The Kodiak Shuttle flew into the hangar and landed smoothly, after which Jane, Tali, Lissi, Missi, and I left it, and the Kodiak Shuttle closed behind us.
"Welcome!"
A Turian came out to meet us, looking extremely enthusiastic.
"Good day, Warden Kuril."
"I have already received your request and prepared everything so that you could interview the girl you are interested in. But are you sure you need specifically her?"
"I'm sure."
I gave a short nod.
"You haven't thawed her out yet, have you?"
"Of course not!"
The status of an active Spectre gave its perks; for instance, Kuril was now trying very hard to please me. I didn't exclude the possibility that everything would turn into the story I already knew. But we were ready for that.
"Excellent, then lead the way."
"Of course, of course."
Kuril nodded, then, quickly rattling on about the security levels of his prison, headed through its sections and corridors, leading us to a room known only to him. However, to my slight surprise, he led us exactly to the process control room.
"We can begi—"
"Stop."
I stopped Kuril, who was already ready to start the procedure.
"I would like to stand there... instead of your subordinates."
"But that's..."
"Kuril, this girl is a very powerful biotic. And they are just soldiers. Moreover, she spent most of her life in a hostile environment, so her reaction will be instantaneous. Wake up—strike. And let her feel very bad. Let her vomit blood afterward, but she will smear them against the wall—or rather, through a breach in the wall—and she herself, staggering, will hurry to escape."
"I don't think..."
Meeting my gaze, Kuril sighed.
"If you prefer it that way..." We were let through to the stairs, down which we descended into the room, and from there we heard Kuril's voice giving the order to begin the girl's thawing. A few minutes passed, and the pod was delivered to the room. And then... then the thawing began, at the end of which a biotic explosion literally blew the pod cover toward us, and if we hadn't been ready for such a thing, we could have died right there.
"Stay where you are."
My voice was calm, but given that two rifles were aimed at the girl, I myself was holding a shield around us, and Lissi and Missi lit clusters of biotic fire in their hands... the girl had no choice but to obey this order.
"A-a-a-gh-r-r-r-!"
"Now, now, growl at me some more."
I shook my head.
"A conversation awaits us that could change your life very significantly. So you will now calmly let us put reinforced handcuffs on you, after which we will go to a comfortable negotiation room. Understood?"
"And if I don't want to?"
"Then you'll be frozen again."
I said this with an undisguised smirk.
"And the next buyer of your carcass will turn out not to be such a nice guy and won't bother thawing you out, but will first pay for the installation of a slave chip."
The girl frowned.
"So?"
"Give me your handcuffs."
I nodded with satisfaction, then approached her myself and put on the handcuffs, after which I turned to Kuril.
"Prepare a room for us, but not an interrogation room—one for negotiations."
"I see you're a big shot?"
"Yeah... big."
I replied to the girl's sarcastic remark.
"It's in my power to put down one electronic signature and this prison will cease to exist. So Warden Kuril, even given that he dislikes it very much, has to fulfill my wishes."
"Can I have some vodka?"
"No."
"Pff!"
"But I can offer a piece of grilled meat and some soda."
"Soda?"
A sneer sounded in the girl's voice.
"You decided to take me for a little girl?"
"I decided that the conversation we have ahead is better conducted with a sober head. Of course, during this conversation, you'll really want a drink, but you won't get anything alcoholic."
"Well, well..."
Next, we went to the room allocated by Kuril, who had clearly heard my words, and on the table there really was a plate with a steak, as well as soda.
"Oh... and I thought you were joking about him being forced to fawn over you."
"No, I wasn't joking."
"I see... chomp-chomp-chomp..."
Since no utensils were provided for her, she ate with her hands; however, this concerned absolutely no one.
"I'll start, perhaps, and you eat for now."
"Yeah..."
Total indifference in her voice.
"So, I am John Shepard, a Council Spectre."
"Bullshit, well, either that or you've become a lich, which do you prefer?"
"Working undercover with a falsified death will suit me just fine."
A flash of disappointment crossed the girl's gaze. Judging by her voice, she would have been happy with the lich version.
"This is my team. Jane Shepard, Tali'Zorah vas Neema, as well as Lissi and Missi K'Ria."
No interest appeared in the girl's gaze. She looked at the steak with more curiosity, having already eaten half of it; I was in no hurry to continue the conversation.
"Jamming the signal. So we can talk peacefully."
Tali reported, and I smiled at her gratefully.
"Alright then, I'll speak quickly. A very big war is coming, against the army of those ships, one of which attacked the Citadel. Before that, we still need to run around the galaxy and solve problems. I need people I can trust with my back. You have a choice: die in stasis when the enemy comes, or do something useful, something right."
"Ha?"
She looked up at me, and in her eyes, as well as in her facial expressions, one could read: "Are you one of those idealistic ones? Even if so, don't sign me up as one of your supporters."
"Payment at your discretion. Money, gold, a place in a shelter..."
"Will you give me your team and a ship?"
A sneer sounded in the girl's voice.
"I will."
"Huh?"
Incredulity sounded in the girl's voice.
"Yeah, sure, I'll determine the targets, and if you disobey, you won't end up back here, but you can certainly fulfill that wish of yours."
"Um..."
She was clearly at a loss.
"The jammer will become ineffective in thirty seconds."
"Overall, I've told you everything, so it's up to you to make a choice. You stay here or..."
"I don't need a ship."
Jack—and it was indeed her—looked at me intently.
"I need to find and destroy one place. If you help, I'll follow you, and if not, I'll slit your throat myself."
"Yeah, agreed—either I fulfill your request, or you try to slit my throat."
"Fine, I'm in."
I only smirked, and at that moment Tali gave a sign that the jammer had stopped working.
"So, I feed you to your heart's content, and you work for me?"
"Yeah..."
Jack turned out to be a quick-witted girl and played along with me, so we soon left the station. And even if everyone understood that we were jamming the signal, that what we said was total nonsense, they couldn't do anything about it.
So the sum Kuril asked for was transferred to him, and he didn't dare stop us.
"Jack, everything you know about the target you're looking for, write it down and give it to me or Jane, and then we'll let you know exactly when we have information. Only don't think that when the information appears, you'll immediately run there. First the mission to save the galaxy, and only then personal business."
"Yeah..."
She threw a sarcastic look at me.
"—I got it, daddy. You're the boss, I'm your shadow."
"A shadow isn't necessary, but you got the principle right."
I nodded calmly, after which the conversation died down.
** Some time later. **
"Son..."
Samara entered my office on Bali, her gaze very displeased. And honestly, I didn't understand what could have caused such displeasure in the usually calm Asari.
"—don't you want to tell me something?"
"Um... no?"
"What if you think about it?"
"Mother..."
Addressing her like that was still unusual, but I tried, as she liked such an address.
"—I truly don't understand what exactly you're talking about."
"I'm talking about the fact that you've started assembling a team. And you didn't even invite me."
The last words sounded extremely disapproving.
"Mom, the sisters need you, especially Morinth. You see yourself that her mood swings, and one day she understands she really needs help, and the next she wants to run away and go back to the way things were."
"Son... I love Mirala just as much as all my other children. But she will be here, in safety, in the cell you created for her and which, according to my advice, they can already improve. You, however, plan to crawl into the very heart of the fire."
Closing my eyes, I tried to cope with the emotions that flooded me.
"Aren't you glad I'm taking care of you?"
"I am glad, it's nice, but... I'm not a little boy anymore and..."
"When you're at least two hundred, then you'll stop being a little boy. For now, sign me up for your team. Because otherwise, I won't let you go anywhere. Even if you're a Spectre ten times over."
"Mother..."
There was condemnation in my voice.
"What?"
"I'll be fine, really..."
"You didn't understand me?"
I sighed and waved my hand in resignation.
"Fine, if you want to join the team so much, then so be it, just don't think you'll necessarily be in the landing party. There are already many people; there won't be enough transport for everyone."
"We'll figure it out."
Samara said this in a satisfied voice.
"By the way, I intend to start a master class for all the biotics on the team, as well as those who wish, so I strongly advise directing all biotics to these mini-courses. You'll learn a lot of new things."
"As you say."
I nodded.
Before this, she had given me a few lessons, of course, but nothing systematic—rather, she just helped with the techniques that, in her opinion, weren't coming out very well. After all, Aria T'Loak and Matriarch Benezia had taught me well, and even if I was far from being a Justicar, I was a very strong biotic. And she apparently just didn't see the point in breaking anything. And things would have to be broken, because the Justicars' combat system is somewhat different from the one I'm used to.
Now, though...
"What changed?"
I looked at Samara, deciding to clarify this point after all.
"I simply finally studied all the data available to me regarding the upcoming war. And by 'all,' I don't just mean what you provided me. But also what was passed to me after my request from the Council of Matriarchs, as well as what a couple of Turian acquaintances passed on. Everyone is preparing for an extremely difficult war, in which, quite possibly, they won't be able to win."
A sad smile appeared on her lips.
"And under such circumstances, keeping the secrets of the order becomes simply foolish. By the way, if you want, we can move several more temples to Bali and other colonies, and then some of the Justicars will be sent to guard them. Not all of them, but..."
She showed with her eyes that this was a very clever plan.
"—about ten percent of the Justicars will be sent. And they are all very powerful biotics."
"I should think about that..."
I nodded in agreement.
***
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