Things were quiet between certain members of my squad on our way to Pragia. Georgia was doing her best to remain friendly with Jack, but now that Jack was living with visions of what she'd endured on Pragia, all she saw on Georgia's uniform was the symbol. Georgia understood, but I could see she was hurt by Jack's attitude. They had been getting along okay before Jack's request.
As for Miranda, she was just avoiding Jack at all costs. Miranda was still loyal to Cerberus, to a point, but although she had gathered the information that Jack had requested, she hadn't really read any of it herself. I think it was a case of not knowing so she could continue to live in ignorance. We'd talked about a few of the things that had been discovered while I was gone. She did try to apply reasoning and excuses though she did struggle with a couple of things.
Miranda wasn't involved considering she wasn't a member of Cerberus during whatever Jack endured, and didn't know anything about the operations that I'd found and sent up the chain of command a couple of years ago. I didn't blame her nor anyone on the ship, but I did suggest that perhaps the Illusive Man believed he was helping humanity though wasn't always going about it in the best of ways. As Ashley had told me on Horizon, the path to hell was paved with the best of best intentions.
We stopped briefly in Omega during the journey to the Nubian Expanse cluster, with Pragia located in the Dakka system. Mordin had contacts on the space station that could help us obtain what we wanted. It wasn't a nuke, I didn't want a repeat of Virmine, but it was going to be the sort of bomb that would level a massive area. If Jack wanted to leave a crater, that's what she was going to get.
Things were tense in the last couple of hours before we would arrive in orbit. Jack was keeping to herself though even in the mess, I could almost feel her pacing below my feet. There was endless anger and rage, but I also knew she was scared to death. She hadn't gone into great detail about what happened to her. I knew that would come later.
When the Normandy finally arrived, I gathered the team near the shuttle. I didn't have to give too many orders as everyone was now aware of why we were there. As for Jack, she was fidgeting more than usual. If I didn't know that it was because she was nervous, many would have thought she was tweaking from drug use. As everyone else boarded, I took her hand and pulled her closer.
"Can you handle this?" I asked.
She recognised the seriousness in my tone. I needed her head in the game. "Yes, Shepard," she replied.
"Good. Remember that we're all here to help. Even those who you believe hate you."
"I don't think they hate me," she replied, an answer which surprised me, "We don't like each other because, you know, they're Cerberus and who they work for fucked me up."
"Fair enough. Just take a few deep breaths, control those emotions while we're down there. Whatever the case, we're going to destroy the place. Okay?"
She nodded firmly and I let her hand go. The shuttle ride was quiet and a little tense between a couple of people. Jack looked out the window as we entered the atmosphere. The weather matched her mood. Dark clouds. Thunderstorms. Driving rain. As we approached the facility, EDI reported in that she was picking up numerous thermal signatures inside the facility. She added the facility didn't appear to be in working order.
"Any idea on who would be here?" I asked Miranda.
"Scavengers, maybe? From everything that I read up about this place, it was isolated for a reason. Anything done here was carried out in secret."
"To the orders of your fucking Illusive Man," Jack growled. I immediately placed a hand on her shoulder, feeling her relax at my touch. She looked up into my eyes and I could see her nerves. "Shepard…"
"It's okay, Jack. I'm here. We're all here. You'll be fine."
Kasumi was sitting on her other side and took her hand, giving it a squeeze. Tali didn't know Jack at all but even she offered words of support. I could see Jack appreciated the sentiment. She knew that she was prickly at best, and not easy to deal with at the best of times. Most of my squad who had been on the ship since she turned up were aware and learned how to deal with her.
All was quiet except for the rain landing on the landing zone and thunder in the distance. The wind wasn't too strong though it whipped through our squad as we made our way down the stairs and into the facility itself. The first room was full of crates, and I didn't need to imagine what they were for. Jack's memories were flooding back fast, assuming that she'd likely arrived in one of those very crates.
There was still power and just like Haestrom, I was hopeful that we would find a treasure trove of information. A nearby terminal was working, and we listened into the journal entry.
"The Illusive Man requested operation logs again. He's getting suspicious. When we get results, he won't care what we did. But if he knew… He won't find out."
I glanced at Miranda, who wisely kept her thoughts to herself. Jack glowered at nearly everyone. The entry didn't really tell us anything in concrete terms, just that the facility was doing something that might have pissed him off. The next room jogged Jack's memories again, telling us about how she'd fought her way into it, and the last guard that she killed before she made it to freedom.
The fact we hadn't run into anyone had me thinking the report EDI had given us may have been due to distorted sensors. We remained vigilant, sweeping each corner and everyone was alert. Each little noise was investigated though it was clear the place was nothing but a ruin.
We approached what looked like an octagon. Asking Jack if that's what it was, she nodded and made a gesture. Her eyes went blank, and I had a feeling she was reliving a memory. She explained that she was brought there to fight other kids. It was the only time she was ever allowed out of her cell, and she loved to fight. It was the only time she felt free while kept prisoner. What we all learned is that Jack was conditioned to fight. Filled with drugs, punished if she hesitated. It was either her or the others. She made the same choice each time.
We found another console not far away that still had power. I turned it on, wondering if we would get any information about what happened. It was obvious that things had collapsed either during or after Jack's escape.
"Security Officer Zemkl, Teltin facility. The subjects are out of their cells! They're tearing the place up! Subject Zero is going to get loose. I need permission to terminate. I repeat, permission to terminate."
"All subjects beside Zero are expendable. Keep Jack alive!"
"Understood. I…"
Jack stepped forward and shut off the console. It was obvious she was confused as she insisted that she started the riot after her guards disappeared and she broke out of her cell. When I suggested that perhaps her escape was a product of a larger problem, she disagreed, stating that everyone was attacking her once she was out of her cell.
We moved on and stumbled upon the bodies of dead varren. The kills were not fresh, but it was a sign that we were not alone. Everyone readied themselves for a fight and we soon had one as we carefully approached the next room. It was filled with krogan and vorcha, the red uniforms of the krogan suggesting they were Blood Pack.
"Spirits… What are they doing here?" Garrus asked. He and Amelie were armed with assault rifles and joined me at the front. No need for snipers in the confines of a building.
It was a short, sharp fight. We kept the krogan at bay due to superior firepower. Grunt roared and charged, getting up and close and personal, his shotgun blasting away. We burned the varren and those of my colleagues with biotics had fun flinging them about.
When we opened the door to what was definitely a morgue, even Miranda had to suggest that a lot of children had died due to the experiments. I met her eyes, and she immediately looked away. As for Georgia, her face spoke volumes. She was angry… at Cerberus.
We moved on and ran into more krogan and vorcha. It was the same tactics to deal with them, stopping them whenever a krogan decided to charge. The vorcha had no tactics, barely knew what the word 'cover' meant. It left them as easy pickings most of the time. I remembered that on Omega they used sheer weight of numbers to overwhelm if possible.
"I feel like… I'm pissed off. I'm a dangerous bitch," Jack stated before her voice softened, "But then I'm a little girl again…" She paused and cleared her throat, anger flowing again. "Fuck… It's fucking complicated, okay? Let's just find my room, get the bomb in there, and blow this fucking place up."
The fact that the facility was so extensive wasn't a real surprise. It left me wondering what else they were doing there in addition to the experiments being done on Jack. And I was wondering how informed the Illusive Man was. I doubt the place would have been built without his signature, and surely those running the place wouldn't have been given the funding without some sort of oversight from the boss.
I didn't miss that Jack fought with an anger that I hadn't seen before… Except for maybe when we'd rescued her from prison. She let the anger flow though kept with it enough to temper it, not doing anything stupid and not putting any of her companions at risk. I only had to pull her up a couple of times when she looked ready to charge without a care in the world.
Jack continued to explain things that she remembered the deeper into the facility we moved. We eventually walked into a large area that had trees and looked like some sort of area where the other kids might have been allowed to have a little fun. Jack gestured to a mirror where we could all see our reflections, stating that it was two-way and that her room had been on the other side. She could see out from her room.
"How old were you, Jack? When you arrived here?" Georgia asked.
"I can't really remember… I was young. Maybe five or six."
"Do you remember…" Georgia stopped and sighed. "Your parents. Do you remember them?"
"No. I'm surprised that I even remember what happened to me here. Think you'd remember what happened twenty years ago after being tortured and abused day after day, week after week, for years on end?"
After dealing with another group of krogan and vorcha, wondering just what the hell they were doing at the facility, we found another working console. The hologram figure that appeared seemed to be wearing the garb of a scientist. Jack didn't seem to recognise whoever it was.
"Entry One-Zero-Five-Four, Teltin facility. The latest iteration of PergNim went poorly. Subjects One, Four and Six died. No biotic change among the survivors. We lowered core temperatures of surviving subjects, but no biotically beneficial reactions occurred. As a side effect, all subjects died. So we'll not try that on Zero. I hope our supply of biotic potential subjects holds up. We are going through them fast."
The silence that followed after I turned off the console was deafening. It was started so callously, so objectively. It was obvious that they were talking about… children being experimented on and then dying because of it. If the Illusive Man had even an inkling, did he authorise this or was he truly blind to what was happening in his name?
Georgia walked away and stood in a corner. I noticed her shoulders shaking for a few seconds. What made me almost grin was Tali walking over and offering a comforting hand on her shoulder. As for Miranda, she couldn't meet the eyes of anyone around us. I eventually jerked my head so we could have a quiet word.
"Miranda, I know you had nothing to do with this. But could your boss really have not known anything about this?" I asked quietly.
Miranda glanced around at anywhere except my eyes. "I don't know, Shepard. I really don't know. Part of me wants to believe this place went rogue, that he would never justify anything like this. He wants to improve humanity, but something like this? All those children?"
I could see Jack growing increasingly agitated. "I know you want to believe the best, Miranda. I understand. But do you now see why Jack…" That's when she met my eyes and nodded. "Okay. I'll try and keep calm. Just don't say anything to wind her up. I don't particularly want to break up a fight between you two."
Jack was pacing about and was as angry as I'd ever seen her. But when her eyes met mine, the turmoil behind them nearly broke my heart. One thing I'd become since my return was more empathetic to at least some other people. I knew it was because I'd been given a second chance. And in Jack, I saw myself in many regards. Then her eyes cleared in an instant and the anger was visceral.
"I was tougher than them. That's why I survived this place, Shepard," she growled, "I made it out because I was the meanest bitch possible. I had the power."
We fought on, Jack now on point next to me as I knew she was finding catharsis in fighting and killing again in this facility. Part of me assumed that she was reliving memories while we were fighting, perhaps imagining that she was killing the guards and scientists who had held her prisoner for so many years. We still had no real idea why the krogan and vorcha were there except that there had to be someone leading the expedition.
I heard whispered conversations during the silent moments. Anyone who had joined up had done so either due to loyalty to me or they were being paid a big fat cheque by Cerberus. But that money was now tainted in their eyes. I didn't think anyone would up sticks and leave my squad because of this, but I had a feeling that the opinion of Cerberus would now be lowered in the eyes of nearly everyone. Whenever I looked at Georgia, the guilt in her eyes was evident. She was a believer, but I knew she'd always been cautious and tempered her belief in everything.
Another console and I almost dreaded what we would hear next.
"It's all fallen to pieces. The subjects are rampaging, and Zero is loose. We're shutting Teltin down. What a disaster. We'll infiltrate and piggyback onto the Alliance's Ascension program. Hopefully that will… Who are…? Zero! Wait!"
"I remember that fucker," Jack murmured, "I remember him well. He was one of those that would tie me down and experiment on me. Fill me with all sorts of shit. I don't remember most of it, but I remember faces." She paused and looked concerned. "Shepard, the Ascension program. What is that?"
"An Alliance-funded school for gifted kids. Biotics mostly but also kids who are positively brilliant in other fields of study."
"Could it be… Do they torture kids there, Shepard?"
I placed a comforting arm on her shoulder. "Jack, have you ever read about Jump Zero? BAaT and all the nonsense that went on there?"
"Never heard of it."
"It wasn't anything like you had to endure, but conditions were rough. It collapsed, just like what happened here. The Ascension program is better. It's based at the Grissom Academy, a space station in orbit around Elysium. They do good things there. The kids are looked after, cared for, given everything they need to become powerful biotics and functional members of society. Humans are still wary of biotics because of their power. The kids are guided on how to use their powers safely. If Cerberus is there, they have absolutely no influence."
Jack looked away and sighed. "Sounds like the sort of place I could have done with when I was a kid," she muttered, "Shepard… How I remember things… What we've found so far… It's confusing. What happened on that day…"
"You were a kid. A lot of shit was going on. You wouldn't have had a clear picture of what was going on during your time here. They kept you isolated for a reason. To be honest, I reckon the other kids feared you. They saw the power you were given. As for the scientists, you were a guinea pig. But a powerful one. In their eyes, you were special but also… Well… I guess humanity doesn't have a wonderful track record."
We continued to move forward as Jack knew the way to her cell from memory. Things remained rather quiet until we walked into a large room to be faced by a number of krogan and vorcha. To my surprise, none of them opened fire on us immediately. A krogan was dressed in dark red armour and given his stature, I had a feeling he was someone in charge. I was sort of right as he opened a comm channel to someone else by the name of Aresh. Apparently, the Blood Pack was there for salvage. Unfortunately for them, there was little to be found.
The krogan answered to whatever he was told, stating he was going to kill us. I started to laugh. Grunt cocked his shotgun and beckoned them on. I could have asked questions, but I figured what was the point? There's little point conversing to most krogan or vorcha. Just kill them and get on with your day.
The big krogan was a bitch to take down. His armour was incredibly thick. Even incendiary ammo worked though we had to burn our way through it slowly. The vorcha dropped dead quickly, but half a dozen krogan is quite the opposition, even when I was in a group of heavily armed bastards. Thankfully, the biotically gifted of my squad kept them back so the rest of us could riddle them with bullets.
When the last krogan dropped dead, we approached the door to Jack's cell carefully. I led the way inside with Jack to be greeted by an empty room. I called out for Aresh. He was hidden inside a wardrobe, carefully stepping out of it with his hands raised. He visibly gulped at the weapons trained on him though I gestured for everyone to lower theirs.
"Who the fuck are you?" Jack asked, her weapons remaining raised and trained on him.
"My name is Aresh and you're breaking into my home." His eyes then stared directly at her. "And I know you, Subject Zero. So many years have passed, and I thought that I was the only survivor."
"My name is Jack," she replied through gritted teeth, "How the fuck do you know me?"
He actually smiled despite the gun pointed at his face. "We all knew your face, Jack. They inflicted horrors on us so their experiments wouldn't kill you. You were the question, and I'm still looking for the answer."
Jack's hand was shaking, and I knew she wanted to pull the trigger. "Why are you here?" I had to ask. That was the crux of the matter.
"I tried to forget this place. But a place like this… It doesn't forget you. It follows you. I hired all those mercenaries and came back almost a solar year ago. We're rebuilding it, piece by piece. I'm going to find out what they knew. How to unlock true biotic potential in humans. I'm restarting the Teltin facility." He paused and looked out the two-way window and raised his hands to the ceiling. "It will be beautiful."
"He's fucking insane," Miranda whispered from behind me.
"Like hell this place operates again," Georgia growled.
"I want a hole in the ground, yet this piece of shit wants to justify what happened here?"
"It's obvious we're blowing this place up, but there's still him," I said.
"Just leave me here. This is where I belong," Aresh stated.
Jack walked towards him and raised her pistol. I thought she was going to shoot him at first. A whip of her pistol at his temple put him down to his knees, Jack aiming the pistol at the back of his head. The utter rage flowing through her meant that she simply couldn't keep her hand still. I could feel everyone watching me, what I would do.
Pre-dead me would have let Jack just shoot the bastard. Hell, I probably would have shot him for her. New me? New me knew that Jack would live with even more guilt if she executed him in cold blood. He was insane. He was never going to get the place running again. It was the pipe dream of a mentally damaged man.
I walked towards her and placed my hand on the barrel. Her eyes met mine and she was so conflicted. The anger. The grief. The sadness. Everything she had endured. It was a massive weight on her shoulders and on her heart. I believed there was good in her. It just needed to be unlocked. The mean angry bitch and the scared little girl fighting for control.
"You need to move on, Jack," I said softly, "And killing this man won't help. You execute him, it will continue to haunt you."
"He wants to restart this place, Shepard. He needs to die."
"With what, Jack? This place is a ruin. The mercenaries are dead. I haven't seen anything to suggest he could possibly get this place. There's rudimentary power and that's it. There's no one else here. If anything, he's been left even more damaged than you by what happened here." I moved my hand up to her shoulder and she met my eyes again. "Let it go, Jack. Leave it all in the past. We'll blow this place to kingdom come and leave it all buried here. Don't let the past control you any longer. From this day forward, your destiny is in your own hands."
The pistol began to shake again. One or two tears dripped down her cheeks. I knew she wanted to pull the trigger. She was almost conditioned to kill. She took a breath. A deep one. Then another one. Slowly, she lowered the pistol until the barrel was pointed at the floor. Then she kicked him in the arse.
"Get the fuck out of here, you idiot. Fuck off."
Aresh sprinted away and we heard his footsteps slowly grow quieter. Jack turned to me and practically slammed into my chest. I heard Garrus suggest that everyone leave us alone for a few minutes, placing my assault rifle on my back before I enclosed Jack in my arms. She didn't cry though I couldn't begin to imagine the turmoil going through her mind.
"Can we take a few minutes before we do it?" she asked quietly.
"Take as long as you need, Jack. We're in no rush."
The room contained only bitter memories. I was about to ask one question in particular that I simply couldn't vocalise. She assured me that none of the guards would be that stupid, and the scientists were far too interested in their experiments to do anything like that. I sighed with relief though what they did to her was still abhorrent. She talked about nightmares when we looked at the bed that she had once spent every night on. A table that she would crawl under to cry. She chuckled bitterly, calling herself pathetic before realising that crying had been healthy. She'd cried since joining with me and she managed a joke, suggesting that she hated me for getting through her defences so easily.
"Time to blow this place, Shepard. I blow this place up, leave it a smoking ruin… I'll feel at least a little better."
A couple of crew members had been bringing the bomb forward while we'd been dealing with everything. Grunt stepped in to help move it, making sure it was positioned correctly. Mordin made sure it was set up correctly before handing Jack the detonator.
"Don't press the button until we're on the shuttle and well clear," he advised.
We slowly made our way back to the shuttle. I was with Jack as the last to board it. She took one last look around and sighed. "I spent over half my life here, Shepard. Even doing this won't leave a happy memory. It's just an ending."
"But do you think it'll allow you to move on?"
"Yeah… I think I can do that. Just give me a little time. Get all my thoughts in order."
We boarded the shuttle and took off. Mordin explained the range wasn't extensive, Jack sitting next to me, flicking the lid of the detonator. Those conflicting emotions appeared in her eyes again. She was desperate to do it. But doing so cut the link. She probably worried about feeling lost in the future without Teltin holding onto her mind.
"Let it go," I whispered.
Her eyes narrowed and I slammed the door behind me to let the pilot know that we were about to be hit by one hell of a shockwave. Jack pressed the button and within seconds the shockwave hit the shuttle, causing most of us to bounce around. Jack lowered her head and dropped the detonator to the floor. I placed my hand on her back and gently caressed her. Across from me, Miranda, Georgia and Kasumi all smiled at me. As for Tali, I knew she did the same from how her eyes moved behind the face mask.
We landed back on the Normandy without incident, thanking my team for their assistance. Jack stopped and gave me a quick hug and whispered her thanks before she walked off towards the elevator with the others. Miranda hovered nearby, waiting until we were alone before I turned towards her.
"Get him on the line, Miranda."
"What are you thinking, Shepard?"
"I'm not one hundred percent sure. But they were torturing and murdering kids. I don't know about you, but that is just fucked up."
"I want to believe the site went rogue but… Very little happens in Cerberus without him knowing. I can only… hope that perhaps he set Teltin up to pursue biotic advancements and it went rogue after that."
"I can only hope that is what happened. I want to talk to him now."
I guess the Illusive Man didn't want to piss me off as EDI had him on the line within a couple of minutes. I could have just immediately torn strips off the man, but I thought that I would see what he actually knew. To my surprise, he admitted to knowing about the Teltin facility as he had helped set it up. It was to explore the limits of biotic abilities in humans and perhaps even help enhance our abilities to match those of the asari.
He admitted to failings that he didn't keep as close an eye on it as he should have done. When I asked if he knew Jack, he said that he knew about Subject Zero but wasn't aware that it was Jack until Miranda had requested the information about the facility on Pragia. He put two and two together and figured it out. That was why he cleared the mission for the facility to be destroyed.
When I ended the call, I was convinced that he'd just told me some bullshit, but given that Cerberus had operations across the galaxy, and that each cell did operate independently of the other, it is possible that those working on Pragia could have kept some of their experiments secret. The buck stopped with the Illusive Man though. He would have authorised everything to set it up. He set the ball rolling, and it ended with what happened to Jack and all the other kids. He was responsible.
Kelly was waiting for me in the CIC, looking rather nervous as I knew she would have already heard about what we found on the surface. I gave her a quick hug and kiss on the cheek, assuring her that I was okay. Others would be dealing with what we found in their own way. We'd been on the surface for hours so the time on the ship was already in the evening. My stomach growled and I knew that I should eat something.
Georgia was sitting in the armoury on a small couch that she'd had put in there. Glancing my way when I entered, she looked crestfallen. Taking a seat next to her, she cuddled into my side.
"I would have never believed… I want to believe it went rogue, Shepard. What did he say?"
"He admitted that he set the place up and what it was for. Did he know about what was happening to Jack? I don't know. Part of me wants to think that he knew every little dirty detail going on down there. The other part wants to think that they realised what they could get away with on an isolated planet with no prying eyes. And if it all went wrong, they just blame him."
"I'm not sure what to believe now. I've always thought we were doing the best for humanity. I know that Cerberus sometimes pushes the boundaries. I mean, your being here proves that completely. But sacrificing God knows how many kids for it…"
"Yeah, what Jack endured was bad enough. But hearing that…"
"I'm okay otherwise, Shepard. Just need to be alone with my thoughts for a little while."
Joker was flying slowly towards the nearest relay as I needed to decide on what to do next. It would likely be recruitment unless someone approached me with a problem. I dropped down a level and checked in with everyone. Most people were dealing with it in their own way. Most people were not surprised that Cerberus could stoop to such levels. Everyone had sympathy for Jack.
Miranda… Now that was awkward. Her belief was being shaken. She was desperate to believe the facility had gone rogue. I told her what the Illusive Man told me, and I left a few minutes unsure if it helped her or not. Despite the obvious dislike for Jack, it was obvious that she did have sympathy for the young woman. No one should have endured what Jack had gone through. And add to that all the dead…
After a quick word with Tali, admitting that all she wanted to do was work for a couple of hours before going to sleep, I found Jack downstairs on her bed, curled up in a ball. I sat on the edge of the bed and ran my hand up and down her arm.
"Thanks for today, Shepard. You didn't have to do that for me."
"I want to ask how you're feeling. I can only imagine…"
"I'll be okay in a few days. I want to let it go and move on. I'm tired of being angry all the time. I'm not exactly eager for people to like me though it would be nice to have… you know, a friend or two."
"There are people on this ship who would love to be your friend, Jack. All you need to do is accept them as they will accept you. Talk to them. Get to know them. Things will naturally develop from there."
She sat up enough so I could give her a long cuddle. I could sense there was still a lot of anger inside her, but that blowing the place up was already helping. She was taking the advice of leaving it behind. I dread to think how she'd been feeling if she had executed Aresh. I was glad the old me was being left behind as well.
Still hated batarians though.
I was reading over some news up in my cabin when the door opened, Kelly walking over to sit astride my lap and cuddle against me. It was something that immediately earned a smile, lifting her face to mine so I could give her a soft kiss. We ended up in bed rather quickly, naked as always though I admitted to not exactly being in the mood after the events of the day. She completely understood and was happy to just snuggle with me.
"I think if Jack was here, she'd want to make love, and it's probably the worst time to do that," I admitted, "I did want to bring her up here. I worried that if I told her no she would take it the wrong way."
"Did you want to bring her up here?"
"I wanted to make sure she was okay. I talked to her downstairs. She's doing her best. That's all I can ask."
"You really care for her, don't you?"
"She's me in another life, Kelly. I still carry some anger myself, but I control it. Even when I'm dealing with batarians, it's controlled anger. I don't let it control me. She was dealing with such anger…"
"And now?"
"It'll remain for a while. It can't and won't just disappear. But I know she wants to move on."
Kelly fell asleep against me. I remained awake for a little longer, enjoying the feeling of her smooth skin against mine. When I woke up, I remained in bed for a little while before moving over to my desk. I didn't think Miranda would be in the mood for fun, and everyone else would likely still be asleep, so I remained in my cabin, pouring myself a coffee at the small kitchenette I had. I gazed at Kelly and her nude form, feeling a stirring in my loins though I left her to sleep.
Sitting at my desk, I was reading over some news reports and replying to some messages that I was receiving almost daily from around the galaxy. Despite the Cerberus links, people were still keen to communicate with me. Some were glad to hear I was back. Others were wondering if I could help them with a problem. One or two were not particularly friendly. I just ignored those.
I was getting ready to gently wake up Kelly and head down to the mess for breakfast when Joker's voice nearly had me leaping out of my chair.
"Commander, Jack and Miranda are in the middle of a… disagreement. I think you'd better head down to her quarters pronto."
"Fuck," I muttered, "Thanks, Joker. I'll head right there."
I could hear their voices from the elevator on the crew deck. Kasumi, Doctor Chakwas, Garrus and Amelie were hovering nearby. I told them to go away before I approached the door. The language from Jack would have been considered appalling most of the time. Miranda was trying to get a word in, but Jack was obviously incensed. I guess time alone hadn't exactly helped… Or she'd been thinking all night and wanted someone to blame personally.
Opening the doors, I was greeted by a Jack with a biotic aura surrounding her, as if she was ready to attack. Miranda was dressed though keeping her body language calm. Sensing my arrival, Jack glanced my way, and I could see the anger. I heard the door shut behind me and I locked it to stop prying eyes.
"The cheerleader won't admit that what Cerberus did to me was wrong!" Jack exclaimed.
"It wasn't Cerberus… The facility went rogue, Jack. The Illusive Man would never have authorised what happened. You were a mistake."
I winced at the turn of phrase, and I feared what Jack was going to do next. "I'm not a mistake, bitch," she growled, "Maybe it's time I showed you just what they did to me, so you'll give me some fucking respect."
"Enough!" I shouted. Both women stared at me in surprise. I glared at them without a word for more than a few seconds. The biotic aura around Jack disappeared. Miranda actually stepped back.
"Shepard…" Miranda started to say but my glare caused her to fall silent.
I turned to Jack first. "I get you hate Cerberus. We all do. Even Miranda would understand why you hate them. But Miranda was not responsible for what you went through." Jack made to talk. A gesture had her go quiet. "Miranda helped you, Jack. She gave us the information that helped us solve the issue. She's not going to be your best friend, but you're going to work together in the future. Hating Miranda isn't going to help anyone or this mission. Understand?"
Jack didn't say anything, so I turned to Miranda. "Jesus, Miranda. You were a mistake? Really?"
"I didn't mean it like that! I mean what was done to her… It shouldn't have happened, Shepard. She was a little girl. All those kids…"
Jack scoffed. "Like you'd actually care, cheerleader…"
"Jack!" I stated harshly, "Let her talk."
"Despite what you might think, Jack, I do understand what you've gone through. My life hasn't been sunshine and rainbows."
"Bullshit, cheerleader. You wouldn't have a fucking clue what I've gone through."
Jack had scars. So did Miranda. I'd felt them, but unlike Jack who could explain to me, Miranda… She felt my fingers trace them, but she'd remained silent. I knew she'd tell me later. But in that moment, I think she needed Jack to understand.
"Strip," she stated, "And I'll prove that we're the same in more ways than you could imagine."
"What?" Jack asked, actually managing a chuckle, "You want me to get naked?"
"I'll prove that my life hasn't been easy. We'll compare. Strip."
Jack looked at me a little unsure. "Hey, if it helps both of you calm down, I'm not going to stop either of you."
Jack managed to snort. "Shit, you'd just love the show. Fine, cheerleader, let's see what you've got."
They were both beautiful women, and in their nudity, there was absolutely no denying that fact. Jack's body art was exquisite. It really was an example that body art could enhance the beauty of a woman. Her breasts were perky. Her stomach toned. She had a fantastically perky butt. Her pussy was still smooth as hell and the tattoos went all the way down.
As for Miranda, she was designed to be perfect and there was little doubt she was close to it. Perfect tits. Perfect butt. Perfect legs. Smooth pussy. Great legs. Toned body. As the women stared at each other, they were obviously checking each other out.
"Shit, those are some great tits," Jack finally stated, "Mine are tiny compared to yours."
"Nothing wrong with a handful, Jack."
They both looked at me and I was just about ready to laugh. "Okay, we're obviously talking about scars. Show her, Jack."
Jack stepped closer and pointed them out. Up and down her arms. All over her back between her neck and her butt. There were even scars on her legs down to her feet. "The scars on my arms make me look like I was a fucking junkie," she stated, "I've never injected a damned thing in my life. Not saying I haven't snorted a little shit here and there, but needles are fucked. And given that I spent most days at the facility being injected with all sorts of shit…"
Miranda turned around without a word and showed the line of scars down her spine. "I wasn't born, Jack," she whispered, "I was created. In a test tube. I'm not the product of a loving couple or even a night of love between two strangers. I was created due to the vision of a fucking madman. The one I called my father when I was growing up." She turned around and met Jack's eyes. "I wasn't tortured like you. My torture was different. But I knew if I failed… He'd probably kill me."
"You chose to join Cerberus!" Jack exclaimed.
"They gave me a chance at another life. And do you think we're all bad? Look at him! We brought him back. I put two years of my fucking life into bringing Shepard back! I won't let you stand there and call all of us evil when we managed to do one good fucking thing and that's him."
Jack didn't have a retort to that one because Miranda was right. Cerberus might have done a lot of nasty shit in their past, and probably still did all sorts of criminal shit in the present, but regarding me and the mission, we were doing some good for the galaxy.
Then Miranda surprised us both.
"I'm sorry, Jack. I mean that. Truly. I am sorry for what you were put through."
"Yeah, well… You're still a cheerleader…"
Miranda managed a smile. "And you're still a small ball of crazy fury. But we're going to need that going forward."
Jack met her eyes, and I think there was an understanding. "You really want to fuck him, don't you?" she asked.
"More than anything. You?"
"Totally getting my arse soon enough. After what he did for me, he can just tie me to my bed and have his way."
"Um… Are you two alright now?"
"Jack?" Miranda asked.
"Yeah. Um… Let me get dressed first. Being nude with her is… well, weird. But those tits. Damn."
"Well, you've got a cute butt."
"Shut up."
I unlocked the door behind me as they got dressed. Jack walked towards me, and I wondered what she was going to do. When she hugged me tightly, I hugged her back. Miranda was watching and the softening of her features was a slight surprise.
"Still angry," she murmured, "But thanks… I think we'll be okay going forward."
"Get some breakfast, Jack. I think we all need to sit down and just relax for a moment."
She walked out as I stepped towards Miranda. When she turned to meet my eyes, I opened my arms as she crashed against my chest. "I was going to tell you eventually," she said softly, "I know you felt them, but you never asked…"
"I knew that you'd need to tell me in your own time."
"It's why I'm so loyal, Shepard. The Illusive Man… I had very few places to turn after I escaped. He's given me every opportunity to improve myself, make a good life, and then he's given me you."
"Will you be okay with Jack going forward?"
She leaned back and smiled. "Just saw each other naked, Shepard. Got to see all the goods. She's got a tight little body on her. I'm sure you'll have fun."
"Not jealous?"
"You'll be the best thing for her, Shepard. I know you won't just use her."
"And you?"
"When I'm ready, you'll know about it. Trust me. I'll just leap on you and leave you no choice."
"I like the sound of that."
Jack remained with us during breakfast. I didn't miss that she sat at the opposite end to where Miranda eventually sat, but they could be in the same room and not argue with each other. I think the argument needed to happen. Get everything off their chests. I didn't expect them to ever be friends, but as long as we could all work together going forward, I'd be happy enough with that.
The day passed in calm as everyone focused on their roles or relaxed in between missions. We were on our way to the Citadel as I wanted to recruit from there and perhaps see one or two people. After that it would be a trip to Illium for another recruit and finally Omega for the last recruit. I was hoping to have information from the Illusive Man after that regarding progress against the Collectors. Everyone was keeping an ear on the news in case they made an appearance elsewhere.
I was relaxing back in bed that evening with no sign of Kelly. She didn't come up every night, she was just a regular visitor. I heard the door to my cabin open and looked up from my datapad to see Jack walking towards me. Without a word, she lowered her trousers and panties while kicking off her shoes and slipped off the small top she was wearing. Completely naked, she crawled up the bed towards me until she was straddling my lap.
"No one has ever done anything for me like that before," she said softly, "You really care about me, don't you?"
"I do, Jack. From the moment you were on my ship."
She glanced away as I noticed the tears fall down her cheeks. I gently pulled her down to my chest and stroked her back. "I don't remember anything from before. I just have this feeling that I had a family…"
"Remember where you were from?" She shook her head. If she could remember, maybe we could have… "I guess it's been around twenty years or so…"
"If I was kidnapped, they probably lied to my parents anyway."
She felt silent as I continued to caress her back before my hand moved down to her arse. She chuckled as I felt her slowly grind against the erection in my trousers. When she lifted her eyes towards mine, they were clear in their thoughts. She leaned up to kiss me and it was a soft, tender kiss. Different to most of those we'd shared before.
I sat up as she worked on getting my shirt off, kissing me constantly while her fingers caressed my body. We worked on getting my trousers and underwear off until I was as naked as she was. When her fingers grasped my cock, I growled as I knew how much she wanted to fuck me. I felt the same way about her. But I knew this first time had to be not how we'd talked before.
Rolling her over onto her back, she gazed at me with a mixture of emotions. All of them positive. When I caressed her cheek, I felt it grow warmer as she started to blush. I kissed her softly again as I ran a hand between our bodies, down her toned tummy to her pussy. She spread her legs just enough so I could feel her. She was hot, wet and ready to make love that evening.
"Shepard," she whispered.
"Are you sure, Jack?" I asked softly, "One thing I promise is that we'll make love, and you'll stay tonight. And we'll make love again. And again. But you have to remember that I'm not a one-woman man."
"Shut up and eat me," she stated with humour.
"Like it, do you?"
"I love it when you do it," she replied.
I took my time kissing down her body, paying close attention to those handfuls of breast, earning plenty of soft moans as her nipples were incredibly hard and sensitive, feeling her body shudder as my fingers and tongue ran over them. Her fingers ran over my head at the same time, gazing up into her face to see a slight smile returned.
Kissing down her body, she whimpered more than once the closer I got to her pussy. She groaned in frustration as I inhaled her scent though teased her as I kissed down each thigh.
"Please, Shepard," she finally whispered.
I relented easily as the desperation in her voice turned me on. And I wanted to make her cum hard. Running my tongue up and down her slit provoked the sort of reaction I loved to hear, her back arching slightly as my tongue worked its usual charms. She moaned louder as I'd already figured out how she loved her pussy pleasured.
When her clit made its appearance, I switched to that. The groan she released was ever so loud, feeling her fingers digging into my head as she wanted to keep it in place. I kept using my tongue on her clit as I slid a finger inside her, turning it and quickly finding her special spot.
Her orgasm tore through her body. "Oh fuck, Shepard… Fucking hell… What the fuck you do to me…"
"I won't stop until you tell me," I muttered before continuing.
I slid a second finger inside her and really started to pump her. Her entire body shuddered as I knew another orgasm wasn't far away. My other hand moved up her body to gently caress one of her breasts. Just running fingers over her nipples provoked a reaction, her pussy clenching around my fingers as she started to really move her hips.
"Oh fuck," she whimpered, "Oh fuck, Shepard…"
She enjoyed another orgasm before I kissed up her body and met her eyes, sliding my fingers out of her pussy and into her mouth. She sucked on them eagerly as she felt the head of my cock press against her pussy. Leaning down to kiss her, I felt her hand on my chest. I knew she was nervous as I lifted myself back.
"Please," she whispered, "Be gentle with me."
She gasped as the head of my cock slipped inside her. I was honestly surprised at how tight she was considering what she'd told me about her life to that point. Not only tight but ever so hot. Her pussy was like a furnace, a sign of her complete arousal in that moment. I slowly buried my cock as I continued to kiss her, feeling her fingers running up and down my back.
As soon as my cock was buried, our bodies immediately moved together, feeling her hips rolling in time to my slow thrusts. We needed to break the kiss to catch our breaths, meeting her eyes to see her gazing at me like she'd never done before. I felt her legs move, bending her knees and pulling them back so they rested against my sides. I ran my hands up and down one of them.
"So fucking beautiful," I whispered, and it made her blush, "You are, Jack. You're a beautiful young woman."
"Bet you say that to all the pretty girls you're intimate with."
"And they're all beautiful."
Jack couldn't get enough of me, eventually feeling her legs move to wrap around me. My head ended up next to hers on the pillow as I enjoyed hearing a woman moaning into my ear. And as I felt my orgasm approaching, I felt her start to hug me tighter and hold on as I started to move faster.
"Your pussy, Shepard. Your pussy from now on," she murmured into my ear, "Though I'm always up for fun. Fun with other girls, as long as you're there."
"Good to know."
I tried to last as long as possible, but she just felt far too damned good, warning her that I was close. She actually told me just before I filled her that she wasn't even sure she could have kids but would get birth control from Doctor Chakwas in the morning. When I met her eyes to see her smirking, I grunted and started to fill her pussy. I felt her legs tighten around me as she moaned, telling me to fill her pussy all night.
What made her smile even more was when I just carried on pumping her. "Oh fuck yes!" she cried out, feeling her legs move, "Over your shoulders, Shepard. You'll get so fucking deep inside me."
"Long as it doesn't hurt."
"You're so fucking thick…"
"Maybe you're just nice and tight, Jack."
What Jack really loved was later when she ended up straddling my lap and bouncing up and down on my dick. With her hands on my chest, she was moving in all sorts of ways to make it feel as good as possible, and when she enjoyed an orgasm in that position, she needed to stop and look away as the emotions of the moment were too much for her. When she resumed, she moaned loudly before digging her fingers into my chest.
"Fucking hell, Shepard. I've never had a dick like yours," she moaned, "Should have had you fuck me the first night I was here."
"I'm glad we waited."
"Me too," she said with a smile, "I wanted this after… yesterday… I knew that I was ready. The past is behind. Now I can think about the future."
"Hope I'm in it."
"I can't stay on the ship. Not Cerberus… But if you think I'm giving up this dick now…"
Jack enjoyed more than one orgasm riding me before I pulled her forward, grabbed her arse, and started to pump her. Jack was cursing and moaning loudly, almost demanding that I fuck her harder in her desperation to feel me cum inside her again. When I did, the growl I received actually made her chuckle before we shared one hell of a kiss, Jack whimpering into my mouth as I rolled her over and left my cock buried inside her.
I only pulled out when I finally started to soften, flopping onto the bed next to her. Jack snuggled into my side as I wrapped an arm around her, stroking her side as she caressed my chest.
"Fucking hell…" she finally stated, "I hope you're not done with me yet." I snorted and it made her chuckle again. "Good… I want a lot more of that, Shepard. I know I'm sharing, and that's okay, but you'd better be up for fucking me. And I'll suck your dick next time. You've got a woman here who loves to suck dick and will take it in the arse. The only difference to before is that I am totally fucking willing because… Well, you're mostly a boy scout… But yeah, I've seen the bastard in you too."
I wasn't done with her by any stretch of the imagination. I fucked her over my desk later and she loved it, particularly when I gave her arse a few good slaps or held her by the back of my neck while really driving my cock into her. In the shower, I showed off my strength by holding her up with my hands on her thighs while she bounced on my cock. It meant kissing was easier, and having her orgasm in such a position was a real turn-on.
"Damn, my pussy is going to tingle all day tomorrow," she chuckled as she spooned back against me later, "Hasn't had a workout like that in a long time."
"And I get that lovely tight arse of yours soon enough," I growled into her ear, giving said arse a gentle squeeze.
"You can really pound me that night, Shepard. But tonight… I needed to feel… You know… That word…"
"Loved?" She remained silent though when I pulled her a little tighter, I felt her grab one of my hands and hold it tightly to her chest. "As long as you're happy, Jack. That's the most important thing."
"I didn't know what happiness was… The first time I thought I felt it was when you talked to me, and I realised that you didn't want anything from me except my help. I'll admit that I thought you just wanted help and that you'd probably want to fuck me. But I was wrong about that. Hell, I don't like the cheerleader, but I didn't expect the apology either." She paused before chuckling again. "Still, those are some great tits. Bet you like them too."
"Yep, I'm a man. I see a fine set of tits, I'm going to ogle discretely and then hope I get to see them."
"I'll work with her, Shepard. I would have done so anyway, but I think that actually cleared the air between us. I still don't like her though."
"That's fine."
I woke up in the morning to Jack underneath the sheets, her head bobbing up and down on my cock. When I gestured for her to spin around, she lifted her mouth away to smile at me before shaking her head. She resumed her blowjob and made sure it lasted a while before I finally came down her throat. Only then did she lift herself up to straddle my body, rubbing her pussy along my cock.
"I want you to fill my pussy before we go downstairs," she told me, "I want to wear one of your shirts as it'll be enormous on me. That way I'll feel your cum dribbling out of me."
"And you want to show off?"
"Yep. I want them to get just a scent of my arousal and your cum together."
"I'm glad that you're happy, Jack."
She leaned down to kiss me before she lifted her face just enough that our noses were nearly touching. "I am happy. Now you just lie there and let me enjoy your big dick. I want to cum."
Jack enjoyed my dick quite a lot. By the time she was done, her skin glistened with sweat, and we ended up having a shower before heading downstairs. Realising that she'd woken up to find me in bed, I told her that I'd woken up at my normal time, but I chose to stay in bed with her and eventually started to snooze again. She melted against me for that, hugging me ever so tightly, eventually making her giggle when I started to soap up her body, leaving soft kisses everywhere.
Wearing just one of my large t-shirts, she was humming happily to herself as we gathered a tray each for breakfast, loading up on plenty of food, before we joined the rest at the row of tables. She sat next to me and ate without saying too much though it was obvious that she was completely naked underneath the t-shirt.
"Okay, whatever you did to Jack last night, do it again," Georgia joked, "How are you feeling, Jack?"
"Better. And I agree with that idea. He definitely has to do that again."
"What's next on the agenda, Shep?" Kasumi wondered.
"We're going to the Citadel. Got another recruit to pick up. I'll speak to the Council about one or two matters."
"And fuck the councillor," Miranda stated with a smirk. I gave her a look that simply made her laugh at me. "Tell me I'm wrong, Shepard."
"Nah, you're probably not wrong. Though I'll have to make sure I visit Naira. And I don't think Jane would be happy if I didn't say hello to her."
"Three nights, Shepard?" Chakwas stated, laughing to herself.
"Or maybe just a few hours at one place and then a few hours elsewhere," I replied.
"Shepard…" I looked at Garrus. I could now read my friend rather well. I knew he had something for me. "Can we talk after breakfast?"
Everyone around me sensed this was something big. I wiped my mouth with a napkin, turned to Jack and gave her one hell of a kiss, the sort that left her blushing brightly, before I followed Garrus towards the front batteries. He immediately started to pace, as agitated as I'd ever seen him. I let him pace, relaxing back against the wall. I knew he was carrying wounds after what happened on Omega. The sort of wounds that no one could see.
"I found him, Shepard. The one that betrayed us. Betrayed me," he finally explained, "You know I've got contacts in a few places. Well, someone finally delivered. He's on the Citadel."
"Good thing we're headed there."
"I want this finished, Shepard. Sidonis is responsible for the deaths of my companions. My friends. He was also their friend. He sold us out and got them all killed. He deserves to die."
"Couldn't agree more after what you told me. Got a plan?"
"He's in hiding. We'll need to draw him out. I'm still working on that part."
"Okay, let me know the score when we dock at the Citadel. If it needs a little more time, I'll go and recruit, see some people, probably look at getting some supplies on board. But if you're ready when the time comes, we'll handle it immediately."
"Thanks, Shepard. This means a lot."
"Trust me, Garrus, if the same thing happened to me, I'd burn half the galaxy to find the fucker. I can't even begin to imagine the level of betrayal."
"It's why he must die, Shepard. I want to see his eyes before I pull the trigger. I want him to know it was me."
"Good. We'll get that sorted."
I left Garrus to it as I knew he'd want to focus on his calibrations. I knew it made him happy, kept him at peace. He wasn't the same turian that had joined me originally when we were hunting Saren. It was a shame that Omega had changed him in such a way, but I could handle a more ruthless Garrus behind me. I'd watch his back, he'd watch mine, and we'd kill anyone who got in our way.
My only concern was him dealing with that sort of retribution. I'd survived Elysium and then got my revenge on Torfan. I knew it had left its mark on me. I could only hope that Garrus could deal with it should he pull the trigger in the end.