[Fanfiction] Motherhood

[Shadow977]

Is Janet gonna get involved..

Do the Renegades even know Jesse is the daughter of Janet?

(hohohooooo, what a S***storm that would be fo shizzle)

wouldn't be the first time they didn't do their homework

I can already see the headlines.

"dangerous group of Renegades surrender peacefully after discovering Tenno heritage"

They probably don't even know the Oracles exist.

[renleech]

One thing i'm almost certain: the climax of this tale will not be in the physical world.

[BaIthazar]

just finished copying the first 4 chapters into word so I can read when I dont have internet.

I think that should be enough for this weekend.. hopefully

[Kalenath]

 

Monkey see, Monkey do

 

Five to one odds. Not fair. At all.

 

To the five!

 

All five of the renegade Tenno were Royal Guard. Or... they had been. Once. Royal Guard were trained far beyond regular Tenno. Their job was two-fold. To protect the Royal Family of Orokin and to prevent said Royal Family from abusing their power. Considering that the constitutional monarchs of Orokin were not always well liked, the first part of the Royal Guard's job was dangerous. Many different groups -including political Separatist organizations and flat out terrorist cells- had attacked the Royal Family on numerous occasions throughout the time Orokin had been in existence. The Royal Guard had been the last line of defense for the Royal Family and they had done their job well.

 

But it was the second part that had been far harder and in the end, the failure of the Guard to prevent the abuse of power had led to Orokin falling. This was not the fault of the Guard, although many of them blamed themselves. They were corrupted and used in the plots of various factions within the Royal Family. Some of said family had wanted to change Orokin into a dictatorship, abolish the Executors and rule themselves. Others had wanted to reform Orokin, to change parts of it. Make it better.

 

These five were the last survivors of a group of a dozen guards who had been subverted by one member of the Royal Family. Her stated goal had been to reform Orokin, but most figured that her actual goal had been conquest. And her methods... The less said about some of them the better. Eliza was hardly the only one to bear scars from that time. She had the clearest memories, but she was not the only one who remembered.

 

The white armored dervish who danced into the stunned rank of warframes that faced him also remembered what had happened before. Once before he had faced them all, beaten them all and spared them. He had given them mercy. This time? He had none. Every move was elegant, every move was timed, perfectly focused. If it hadn't been so terrifyingly final, the Loki's dance would have been beautiful. Because each move, if not countered or dodged, would end a combatant's ability to fight. Then he started to blink. Here. Gone. Here. Gone. In and out of invisibility. Predicting where he would pop up and attack next was utterly impossible. Which was the point.

 

All five of these renegades were good. They were well trained, well armed and well motivated. They were also completely outclassed. There was a reason both detractors and admirers often called Sun 'The Monkey King'. But only where he could not hear.

 

"Run!" Gemina screamed as she swung her Ninkondi, only to hit nothing but air. She vaguely remembered something odd happening, but it faded as she fought for her life. She managed to dodge the fast as thought retaliation attack. The Excalibur beside her was not so lucky as he tried to parry with his skana. He went down in heap, his head armor caved in from the metal staff in the hands of the master of Tenno Interrogators.

 

"Gem!" Siri screamed as she fired her Sicarus at the Loki. She too hit nothing but air. "What the hell?" Her Scindo was far too slow to have a chance of hitting the grandmaster and she knew it.

 

"He has a death warrant!" Gemina screamed. "He will kill us all!"

 

"Eventually." The cold unemotional word had all four still conscious renegades quaking. "We will have  a talk first."

 

"Sun... please..." Gemina begged.

 

"You will not take Jesse." Sun might have been discussing the weather as he spun away from Gemina and engaged Samuel. None of the newcomers had full charges of energy in their warframes. Cathi had an Energy Siphon artifact equipped, but it would take time to draw power from the surrounding area. Time that none of them had. "Your trap is...interesting." Sun commented as Samuel took a hit that threw him aside, into Siri who caught him and spun both of them away from the dancing Loki.

 

"We didn't set a trap!" Gemina protested as she tried with all of her skill to defend herself and her fellows.

 

"I am not talking to you." Sun retorted calmly as Cathi stepped forward, her Galatine held to deflect his attacks. She couldn't hope to match his speed, but the sheer bulk of her weapon might serve as a shield. Maybe. "I am talking to your owner." He seemed to pause for just a moment and then focused on Cathi who stiffened. Then he was dancing again. "You."

 

Cathi screamed as Sun flowed right past her guard. One moment, she stood between him and the others. The next she lay still, her Galatine beside her. What had he hit her with?

 

"You are not making any sense!" Gemina shouted, throwing caution to the winds as she charged the Loki to give her kin time to aid Cathi. The Loki... ignored her, his staff spinning to keep her and the other two at bay as he looked at the fallen Mirage. "Leave her alone! Your quarrel is with me!"

 

"This was a nice trap." Sun commented as he knelt down beside Cathi's still form and touched something golden to her. "You know the old saying about traps though."

 

Gemina screamed in rage and frustration as both Sun and Cathi vanished.

 

***

 

He was gentle.

 

She was confused. She couldn't move, couldn't speak. And he was... gentle as he laid her out on a hard surface and restrained her. He was gentle as he searched her, removing all of her tools, her tricks, her traps, leaving her defenseless in a disabled warframe. He was gentle as he opened her faceplate, something that should have been impossible. Not for him.

 

She did not know where she was. The machinery that she could see was...sort of familiar. Terrifyingly familiar. Then her day got worse. Her mouth opened and it wasn't her speaking.

 

"She is mine!"

 

The white armored Loki ignored the words, working on something nearby.

 

"She is mine!" The voice that was and was not Cathi screamed from her mouth. She didn't understand. This... wasn't right. She remembered. But... it wasn't clear. The voice was... her mistress, but... not the kind, loving person she knew and adored. No. This was different. "You will not take what is mine!"

 

"Begone." Sun's cold, hard word sent a pulse of power through Cathi. Something tore inside her and she was sobbing in pain and a long, drawn out scream of rage and frustration came from...somewhere. Then it was gone! She could speak, but not move.

 

"What..." Cathi was crying. "What are you doing?" Sun ignored her. "Please?" She begged.

 

"Did you mean what you said?" Sun asked after a moment of doing something that she couldn't -quite- make out.

 

"What?" Cathi stared at the Loki, confused. "What I said?"

 

"What you said about Jesse, in the dreamscape." Sun said quietly. "She wasn't aware, but you are not the only ones who can read minds. You said she needed a friend." Cathi inhaled in shock and fear and Sun chuckled darkly. "She was stressed before I told her who Horat was. Before I pulled her memories back to her conscious mind. Now? She is one small step from madness. We had to sedate her and will have to keep her that way for some time. You people..." He shook his head. "Did you mean it, Cathi? I can save you. Gemina is too far gone. You are not. Yet. It won't be fun for you, but I can do it. And then... you can save Jesse."

 

"I don't understand." Cathi was so fuzzy. Nothing was clear.. "Will you kill me?"

 

"No." Sun replied calmly. "Either way, no. I will not. Cathi, did you mean what you said?" He laid a hand on Cathi's cheek, but... for some reason, that touch did not frighten her. It... was soothing? "It is very important. To everyone."

 

"I do not understand." Cathi managed to get the words out. "But yes. She is so hurt. As hurt as we are... as  hurt as the... the mistress was... She is worse."

 

"You know about half of what has been done to her, Cathi." Sun looked away. "Some of it is not in the records." Energy was sweeping over Cathi now, but... it felt good. It was coming from all around her. "Do you know what happened to her mother?"

 

"Her mother died." Cathi felt tears threaten. "The Corpus killed her."

 

"Nothing so simple." Sun's voice had sadness now. He turned and nodded to the empty air. "We are ready." Cathi couldn't move as a form simply appeared nearby. The human woman stood, looking at her. "This will not be fun Cathi, for any of us. We can help you. You have to want it though."

 

"I don't understand."Cathi begged as the woman came close. The restrained Tenno stared through tears as the face resolved into someone she did know! Well, know of. She has seen pictures in Jesse's records they had recovered. "Janet... I..."

 

"Oh Cathi..." Janet laid a hand beside Sun's, the two pressing gently down on the crying Tenno's forehead. "We can help you. I can help you. But it will not be quick or easy. Sun..." She turned to the interrogator who nodded.

 

"You do not remember, Cathi." Sun said softly. "So we will help you remember. Help you past what was done. You will curse us for this. Freedom... is as much as a curse as a blessing, girl. But it is better than what was done to you. We will need them, Oracle."

 

"They won't come, Sun." Janet retorted. "Raven won't come anywhere near Cathi after what happened to Mavri. The Lotus refuses to watch and... Eliza..." She shrugged. "They won't talk to me."

 

"They will talk to me." Sun pulled his hand out from under Janet's. Cathi felt an armored hand squeeze hers. "Be strong, Cathi." Sun said softly. "Janet will help. The trap was set for me. Not her. Your owner has no idea how much she pissed Janet off by going after Jesse." Then he...was gone.

 

"I don't understand." Cathi was not this weepy. Was she?

 

"This is not you. This is what she wanted you to be. A thing." Janet said softly. "I saw who you were before. Who you...should have remained. You were the champion in the Imperial Games three years running. The little Tenno girl with the huge sword. She took you after the third year. Do you remember?" She asked kindly.

 

"I..." Cathi tried to focus, tried to remember. "No. The cryo... I..." She swallowed hard as her warframe suddenly vanished. She was wearing a patient gown instead. She was lying on and in something that pulsed with energy. Energy that was seeping into her mind. "No..." She breathed as horror came from somewhere. She couldn't remember where! "No!"

 

"That is not real." Janet's voice was firm from nearby and suddenly, Cathi was back in her warframe. Back where she had been. "That was a memory given form. A control. You are Tenno, beyond such. It took her a month to break you. The Corpus I served once would never have been able to. You are Tenno. Be true to the Code. Jesse needs you!"

 

"I didn't want to hurt her!" Cathi was sobbing as Janet stroked her helmet. "She is a good kid!"

 

"Yeah, she is." Janet said with a sigh. "Cathi, you are going to shift again. Back into your memory. You will be back there. You will remember. It will hurt you." She looked away. "I have no right to do this without your permission, Cathi. This will cause harm."

 

"Oh my god..." Another voice had Cathi stiffening. A new form appeared in the room. The scarred face said it all. The newcomer was Raven. She retched, hand to her mouth. "This is what they wanted me for?"

 

"Yes, Raven." Janet said sadly. "Cathi had no choice and no chance against what was done to her. She obeyed orders. This sister of yours needs help. Will you give it?" Raven bowed her head and then nodded silently. "We are expecting two more."

 

"There are times I truly hate Sun." The irate voice preceded a familiar blue masked form into the room. She was not happy. "This is one of them." Janet nodded to her and the Lotus nodded back, moving to stand by Raven.

 

"What?" Cathi begged. "I don't... This makes no sense."

 

"What was done is deep, Cathi." Janet stroked her arm gently. "It is possible to break but it will be hard." To her horror, Cathi started to cry and Janet crooned to her. "It is okay, Cathi. It will be okay. Please...?" She wasn't talking to Cathi now. She was looking off into the distance. "To save Jesse? What would you do to save yours?"

 

"Anything." A totally unexpected voice shook Cathi as a form in a golden gown appeared nearby. "Hello Cathi." She wore a golden crown.

 

"Eliza..." Cathi breathed. "You... you took the crown?"

 

"Didn't have much of  a choice." Eliza, Empress of Orokin, said sourly. "About as much as I had when Sun barged into my meeting and demanded my presence."

 

"I am sorry." Cathi was crying again and Eliza's face softened. "I am so sorry! You kept trying to get away and I... I..." She had been Eliza's personal guard when the Empress had been a child. For several reasons.

 

"I don't blame you, Cathi." Eliza sighed but then smiled a little forlornly. "I never did. You were just following orders each time you corralled me and brought me back. Even as a little kid, I knew something was wrong. Just not what. She punished me and that I could handle. The thought of her punishing you for it... that really bothered me."

 

"I don't remember much of that." Cathi said slowly. "I... it is all fuzzy. Patchy."

 

"I am sorry I drugged you to escape the last time, Cathi. I knew she would punish you." Eliza said softly. "But now? Jesse needs help. She won't let anyone close. She has walled herself off and she is going mad." Cathi stiffened. "Yes, Gemina's betrayal hurt her far worse than your owner could have imagined."

 

"My...owner?" Cathi asked. "I do not understand. She freed me."

 

"No, Cathi." Eliza said sadly. "She didn't." The white armored form reappeared nearby and Sun nodded to the assemblage. Eliza growled at him. "You are a pain, Sun." He shrugged and focused on Cathi who quailed in her bonds.

 

"I don't..." Cathi slumped a bit. "This isn't right. She freed me. I was a slave and she freed me."

 

"That is what she told you." Sun said as he took a step towards where Cathi lay. "She lied. We will show you the truth."

 

He tapped her head and her warframe vanished again. She barely noticed, entranced by the small globe of blue energy that had appeared on the end of his long index finger. It expanded in her vision, becoming  a machine made of energy. Small silver tendrils extended down and out from a central point as she watched in fascination. The tendrils each started to glow blue and then became brighter. She barely noticed beams of energy lancing out form each tendril to converge on her forehead..

 

Then the energy burned into her skull and all she could do was scream.

 

***

 

Cathi was still screaming.

 

"I... I thought I knew..." Eliza had been sick twice. Raven held a pail ready just in case, but the Empress waved it away. "I thought I knew what she was capable of. But that?" Janet held her as the Empress fought to keep from crying. "She is my mother and she did that... to her own champion... I..."

 

"She wanted to rule and any means to that end was worthwhile." The Lotus said softly. "It was before... Before I came back to the system." She hadn't taken her eyes off the screaming Cathi or the silent Sun. He voice was sad.  "All I knew was the records that were made available to me. After The Emperor accepted that I was the best choice for coordinating the Tenno. This... The records do not do it justice."

 

"I didn't see much of it myself." Eliza said softly. She too had not taken her eyes from Cathi except when she was sick. "She was my mother's tool. No more. She tried to be kind to me. But I knew she was my mother's. I couldn't trust. Not then. My mother was evil. Is evil. She isn't dead."

 

"Why didn't the Emperor have her executed? None of the records said." The Lotus demanded. "This is... this is wrong. On so many levels. The Guard served with honor. They did as they should. And their reward? Slavery."

 

"He wanted to." Eliza patted Janet's arm and stood up, her face still a bit green. She was steady on her feet now. "She had a lot of political support at the time. When it came out what she had done, to Tenno and others, said support evaporated. I don't know if the Emperor was 'adjusted' around that time or later. Lilly and the others said he changed significantly a decade or so after my mother was sent into her prison. That was just about the time the first reports of Sentient incursions came in so no one noticed."

 

"I can make no excuse for what I was." The Lotus said softly.

 

"You do not have to." Eliza replied with a shake of her head. "In the end, the blame for everything lies squarely on my family. The Executors didn't help matters but in the end, my family was supposed to be above such things and we were not. My mother was a symptom, not the disease. Orokin was rotten to the core and needed to go." She froze as Cathi stopped screaming. "Cathi?" She asked carefully.

 

"I am... myself..." Cathi sounded a bit dubious. "I... will it hold, Interrogator Sun?"

 

"Yes." Sun nodded to her and started undoing her restraints. Eliza jumped to help. The others watched as Eliza pulled the Tenno up into her arms.

 

"I am sorry, Cathi." Eliza said sadly. "My family had much to answer for. This... is high on that list."

 

"You did not do this to me, Empress." Cathi laid a hand on Eliza's shoulder and then rose to stand with the ruler's aid. "You shouldn't do that, Empress. People will talk."

 

"Let them." Eliza snapped, but she was smiling. "Welcome back."

 

"How may I serve?" Cathi asked quietly. "If you need me to be tested..." She broke off as Eliza shook her head. "Empress... no one will trust me."

 

"Jesse will." Janet said quietly.

 

"Begging your pardon, Miss Janet..." Cathi said with a frown. "But how can you be sure?" She was not expecting everyone else in the not quite virtual room to snort in unison. "What?"

 

"Just 'Janet', Cathi." Janet said with a smile that faded. "And... I am an Oracle." Cathi stared at her and then Guardswoman's eyes went huge. "Yeah."

 

"That is a hell of a burden." Cathi said quietly. "So... you knew." Janet nodded. "Why didn't you stop us?"

 

"Because Jesse became a target for all kinds when she showed her power as a Cyberlancer." Janet said quietly. "You know why your group wanted her."

 

"To free the monster who enslaved me. But... you could have stopped us!" Cathi protested. Janet bowed her head."She is your daughter! Why didn't you stop us?"

 

"Because if you hadn't managed to access her mind, Gemina would have tried a kidnap and brainwash." Janet said softly and Cathi froze. "And yes. Jesse would have died. Either in the kidnap or suicide to prevent being co-opted. Every vision, Cathi. Every single one." Cathi swallowed hard and nodded.

 

"What do you need from me?" Cathi asked. "I will need a new warframe. This one is tainted."

 

"It is handled." Sun spoke up from where he was doing something that no one looked too closely at. No one wanted to know.

 

"May I make a request?" Cathi asked. The others looked at her. "Valkyr. I wish to choose some slain." The fires of hell rang in her voice but none of the others as much as flinched.

 

"We will see." Eliza said noncommittally. "Raven? Lotus?" The two named nodded.

 

"What?" Cathi asked.

 

"They have their parts to play, but... We need you to do something very hard, Cathi."Janet said slowly. "Something that had a good chance of getting you killed or mindwiped."

 

"Name it." Cathi said quietly.

 

"We need you to kidnap Jesse."

 

Edited September 29, 2015 by Kalenath

[Spikey844]

Yikes....

[evafan002]

umm what? Kidnap Jesse? There are stupid plans and then there are STUPID plans so far this would seem to be one of the latter.....

[Kalenath]

umm what? Kidnap Jesse? There are stupid plans and then there are STUPID plans so far this would seem to be one of the latter.....

 

Well, when you have a choice between: let Jesse die, let Jesse go crazy and die, or let Jesse be enslaved...

 

Stupid has the benefit of being fairly simple to plan.

 

But that won't make it EASY.

[BaIthazar]

I hate to be that guy but.. it`s Valkyr, not valcyr..

Do you want trust issues? Because that`s how you get trust issues

*insert archer pic here*

Edited September 19, 2015 by BaIthazar

[Voporak]

Kal has already stated that Valcyr is an alternate spelling to Valkyr, and I think hr likes that spelling.

[FiveHours]

That would make it sound like valSyr then, not valKyr

[Kalenath]

I hate to be that guy but.. it`s Valkyr, not valcyr..

Do you want trust issues? Because that`s how you get trust issues

*insert archer pic here*

 

Valcyr

Valkyr

Valkyrie

Valkyrja

Wælcyrge

 

Do I NEED to go on? (fixed it)

 

Cathi is a LITTLE stressed by all of this.

Edited September 19, 2015 by Kalenath

[renleech]

I just hope this rescue attempt become bloody...not for the rescue target, but for the kidnappers...Stalker style.

 

Hey, good idea, tell the kinslayer who is around...

[Shadow977]

I just hope this rescue attempt become bloody...not for the rescue target, but for the kidnappers...Stalker style.

 

Hey, good idea, tell the kinslayer who is around...

Good idea indeed.

[renleech]

All this problems could be avoided long ago, i mean, we know now about the royal family being a huge bunch of SOBs... I don't know why Kal did not make the orokin royal family like the Ottomans of old. Power disputes in royalty only left one group of survivors: the ruler and his immediate family.

 

And...why is every dowager i read about in fantasy and fiction is a *@##$? Eliza's mother, Cersei Lannister, Ta'a Chume in Star Wars EU to name a few, unbeliavable.

Edited September 19, 2015 by renleech

[Kalenath]

All this problems could be avoided long ago, i mean, we know now about the royal family being a huge bunch of SOBs... I don't know why Kal did not make the orokin royal family like the Ottomans of old. Power disputes in royalty only left one group of survivors: the ruler and his immediate family.

 

And...why is every dowager i read about in fantasy and fiction is a *@##$? Eliza's mother, Cersei Lannister, Ta'a Chume in Star Wars EU to name a few, unbeliavable.

 

It's a CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY! It is supposed to be better. It was for a long, LONG time, but human nature and all...

 

As for dowagers? You haven't seen WHY Eliza's mother did what she did. Not excusing it, because nothing CAN. She went WAY too far. But give human a taste of power and all but the best tend to want more. Power corrupts.

[evafan002]

Well, when you have a choice between: let Jesse die, let Jesse go crazy and die, or let Jesse be enslaved...

 

Stupid has the benefit of being fairly simple to plan.

 

But that won't make it EASY.

point taken.

[Kalenath]

 

Hard kindness

 

"You... want...?"

 

For the first time in a long, long time, the former Royal Guardswoman was rendered completely speechless. Her training held however and her next words were not expletives. Barely.

 

"Do you have any idea how insane that sounds?" Cathi asked the group. Janet nodded. "You want me to kidnap your daughter?"

 

"I do not want it." Janet said heavily. The Empress and Sun moved to flank her and she smiled a little at them before turning back to Cathi. "But we need it. Sun?"

 

"Jesse figured it out on her own." Sun said quietly. Cathi stared at him, her face paling. "That girl is quite bright. She was looking for 'Horat', to find away to thank 'Horat' for helping her. She found that the records were false." Cathi was shaking her head and Sun nodded. "She dug deeper. She didn't even use code. By the time I got to her, she had the basics figured out. She..." He slumped a bit. "I am not a good man, Guardswoman Cathi. But there are limits."

 

Eliza muttered something about 'stubborn Tenno'.

 

"She figured out that Gemina tricked her." Cathi said, horrified. Sun nodded. "And...the rest?"

 

"None of us would tell her. We knew how she would react. She demanded I break the block in her mind, show her what had happened. I refused. I actually faked something to keep her calm. I was too late. But anyway, I couldn't because it wasn't a block." Sun replied. "The memories were not there. But Gemina and her owner made a mistake. Jesse is not a normal Tenno. Jesse is not even normal for a Royal Guardswoman."

 

"She would make a hell of a guardswoman." Cathi said quietly and Janet smiled a bit forlornly.

 

"Jesse is a Cyberlancer." Sun continued. "Her memories are backed up in her mind. In multiple places and formats. Gemina pulled out a few of the memories..." He broke off as Cathi gave a small cry of fear. "Yes. In computer terms, she restored a backup. I had no idea of what until she started screaming. Neither did she."

 

"Oh my god..." Cathi swallowed hard and Sun nodded.

 

"I had to sedate her." Sun said quietly. Cathi bowed her head and the Interrogator sighed. "Through some mental trickery, I managed to get her to sequester the memories. I tricked her into thinking that the memories were false. Disinformation. When she realizes they are real, she will either go catatonic and not come out or..." He paused as Cathi hissed.

 

"Or go berserk." Cathi slumped. "So... why kidnap her?"

 

"Because Draco cannot protect her from herself." Janet said sadly. "He is good. No one doubts that for more than a few seconds after meeting him. If she were normal Tenno, he could help her. Hold her. Get her past this. She is not normal. Jesse is beyond human or Tenno. Her mind works so much faster than mine. Than yours." She looked at the Lotus who frowned, but nodded.

 

"She is a mesh of computer and Tenno. She has the advantages of each." The masked not-really-human woman said calmly. "Perfect recall. Multitasking ability beyond Tenno norms. Access to almost any information available once her code is active again."

 

"She can't do that." Cathi said automatically. "It will..." She froze and blanched. "Oh no."

 

"The probabilities mirror Janet's visions." The Lotus said sadly. "She will focus her code on the psychic hurt within her. She does not understand, Cathi. She is young. She is naive in some ways. If we let her, she will kill herself either through trying to fix a hurt that she cannot or through rage. She will focus all of her processing power on that. Her mind will lock up and she will die. It will happen very quickly, at computer speeds. Iriana will not have anything to save."

 

"No." Cathi fell to her knees. "No! We... Not Jesse!" She bowed her head. "What can I do?"

 

"With our help..." Janet said softly, waving at the group. "You can mask the fact that you are free." Cathi stared at the Oracle and then slowly paled even further. "Yes. She needs to face what happened before her code activates again. Before Iriana clears her to use it. Before the need to use it becomes more powerful than her need to obey orders. Because it is a need. An addiction almost."

 

"So... she faces Gemina and the... one who enslaved me." Cathi said softly. "And gets enslaved herself? How does that help her?" She demanded and then paused. "I mean no disrespect, Empress." She said weakly to Eliza.

 

"Stuff a stock in it, guardswoman. We need to get Jesse to face this, but on her terms." Eliza snapped. "I cannot order this. This is not a grey area. This is wrong." She shook her head. "Part of me is still that terrified little girl, waiting in her room to be punished again."

 

"I am sorry, Eliza." Cathi bowed her head. "It was... I was..."

 

"You had no choice." The Empress said as she stepped forward and laid her hand on the guardswoman's shoulder. "Now you do."

 

"What choice?" Cathi askd quietly. "Let Jesse die? I have done... so much. No. No. I will not let her die without trying." She rose to stand tall and strong. "I am Tenno. I serve."

 

"Hail Tenno." The others in the room chorused quietly.

 

"I am scared though." Cathi shook her head. "And... how the hell will you explain me escaping from him?" She waved at Sun who chuckled darkly. "What?"

 

"You didn't." Sun replied. "I hurt you and sent you back to them. I will of course, be right behind you."

 

"Tracking me." Cathi mused and then smiled. It was not a nice smile. "And the fact that you get to hunt them in the process..."

 

"I think I can guarantee that they will stay far away from you after they realize what happened." Sun agreed. "But to do that... I have to hurt you." Cathi raised her head and nodded.

 

"I am renegade, Interrogator Sun." Cathi said quietly. "My death is ordained. If it may serve a purpose, then that is good." She shrugged a little.

 

"I do not want you to die, Cathi." Eliza was crying softly now. "I owe you."

 

"You owe me nothing, Empress." Cathi replied. "You did as you had to. I am glad you survived. But... Still kidnapping Jesse... It won't work. Draco is on guard and he won't be distracted."

 

"Which is why you need to take him as well." Janet sounded as if the words were completely sensible.

 

"Ah..." Cathi swallowed hard. "Are you serious?"

 

"This won't be remotely safe, Cathi." Janet said with a shrug. "But the very first thing you must do when it happens is explain to Draco -fast- and do not let them try to alter him. It won't work. It will make him mad. He will kill everyone he can. Maybe he will win, maybe he won't. But then Jesse will die."

 

"I get that she is a Cyberlancer." Cathi said slowly. "And your daughter." She nodded to Janet who returned it. "Is she really that important?"

 

"Yes." This from the Lotus. "Because Grineer excavations woke a Sentient from its tomb." Cathi stared at the guide of the Tenno and then felt faint. She hadn't fought them herself, but she had heard a lot after waking from cryo. Read a lot. "It is not free yet, but soon. We will need every Tenno and every Cyberlancer protecting them."

 

"Only three of them... Ancestors help us all." Cathi shivered a little but then straightened and nodded. "What do I do?" Sun nodded to the table and Cathi lay back down with only minor shudders. Eliza stepped up to her, taking the Mirage's hand in her own. "Empress... I..."

 

"I do not know what will happen, Cathi." Eliza gave the Tenno's hand a squeeze. "Janet's visions are fuzzy when Jesse is involved. She is too close."

 

"And my visions are only probabilities." Janet said quietly. "In my own way, I am not that different from the Lotus. She does well enough."

 

"Why, thank you." The Lotus said with a dry smile that Janet shared. "Raven?" The scar faced Tenno nodded to her and both vanished.

 

"Do not watch, Empress." Cathi begged as Sun stepped towards the table. "What must be, must be. I am renegade." She went still as Eliza pulled the Mirage's armored hand to her mouth and kissed it.

 

"What happened was no fault of yours, Guardswoman Cathi." Eliza said with a fond , sad smile. "And if the worst comes to pass, I will see your name added to the Rolls of Honor." Cathi stilled. Those were the honored dead of the Royal Guard. Heroes all.

 

"Empress... I..." Cathi's words jerked to a halt as Eliza crossed her arms and glared at the Tenno. The Empress had a very good glare. The Tenno relaxed. She knew how to pick her fights. "As you will."

 

"Smart Tenno." Eliza said with smile. "I have another meeting. Keep me informed." She laid the hand down, patted it and was gone.

 

Cathi did not move as the Interrogator started replacing the restraints. She could do this. She would do this.

 

She was Tenno.

 

***

 

It hurt in so many ways. Even after so long fighting, training, being what she was, Cathi could not catalogue all the ways she hurt. Some of it was mental, some of it was physical. Some of it wasn't anything she could describe. She wasn't in her warframe now. It wouldn't do for someone going to relax to be in one. Sun had literally cut it off of her. She hadn't been able to open it, it had fused to her in some way. He had been gentle, but it had still hurt.Then... he had begun...

 

"Ma'am?" A security guard was looking at her warily. Cathi realized she had been leaning against the wall. "Are you all right?"

 

"Hurts, but I am okay." Cathi said with a sigh. "I cannot talk about it."

 

She saw a request for information appear in her bodysuit's HUD and granted it. It would show her completely real -if fabricated- identity information. Sun had taken the fake ID that she had been given before -she was still a renegade after all- and tweaked it a bit. Now, he promised it would show up as valid in any system, be untraceable except to him, and also flag her as Tenno and a covert operative of Intelligence if scanned by someone with the proper codes. This guard likely only saw the part about her being Tenno.

 

"Do you need help?" He asked and apparently meant it.

 

"Not really." Cathi did not have to fake the pain in her voice. "Was told 'go relax for a bit'." She shook her head. "No idea how to do that honestly. No one ever told me to do that before." The guard looked at her and she sighed. "What?"

 

"You are the second person to come through here looking to relax." The guard said with a frown. "Did a message go out or something? The chief won't be happy if we start getting an influx until we get an Elder here."

 

"Not that I know of." Cathi replied honestly. "If it is a problem..."

 

"No, no, not a problem." The guard reassured her. "Just weird to have it all of sudden. Slow for months, now we get groups."

 

"This was the closest place. And weird in my experience is almost always bad." Cathi said with a shrug that turned into a wince as something in her back hurt. "I can go. I am capable. Just in pain."

 

"Whoever told you to come was high rank?" The officer asked. Cathi nodded. True enough. Sun and the Lotus were very high rank indeed. "Then you might get in trouble."

 

"Officer, I am always in trouble." Cathi said with a grin that faded. "I don't start trouble. But I tend to finish it. I give you my word, the rest and relaxation place and nowhere else. They don't have a bar, do they?" He looked at her and she grimaced. "Alcohol and 'ordered to rest' do not mix well in my experience."

 

"No." The officer agreed. "They don't. And no, no bar. Spa, pool, exercise area, massage parlor. That kind of thing."

 

"Good." Cathi smiled. "How far? And how much?"

 

"Straight ahead on this concourse three hundred meters. On the left. Can't miss it. They don't charge for Tenno." The officer nodded to her as he stepped away. "Have a good day."

 

Cathi stared after him for a moment and then started off in the indicated direction. Every muscle in her body was protesting, but she ignored them as she walked. Almost exactly three hundred meters later, she saw the entrance, marked 'Spa'. She nodded and walked to it. The receptionist just inside the door inside looked a little frazzled.

 

"Can I help you?" The young Tenno -she couldn't have been over eighteen- asked.

 

"Ah... maybe?" Cathi said with a frown. "I was told to 'go relax' and I have never done this before."

 

"Is there a problem?" The receptionist asked. "You are moving slowly."

 

"Yes and no." Cathi's frown became a grimace. "I was hurt in my last mission. Docs cleared me, but boss wants me to 'relax'." She shook her head. "I have gotten some weird orders in my life, but that?"

 

"Are you complaining?" The young Tenno behind the desk asked with a smile.

 

"Maybe." Cathi shook her head again. Then she smiled. "Yeah, I guess I am. I was ready to go back to work. But the boss thinks I need more." She sighed. "And I have no idea what to do."

 

"Begging your pardon, Ma'am..." The receptionist said with a fond smile as she moved to stand beside Cathi. "We do."

 

What happened next was unprecedented in Cathi's experience. She wasn't a prude by any stretch of the imagination. Not after everything that had happened. But there was nothing erotic about this. Not at all. The staff were polite, kind, and utterly professional. They are also fast.

 

Before Cathi could even get her mind around what was happening, she was lying on an inclined half bed/half table thing, covered by a skimpy one piece swimsuit and a pair of towels. Then it started. She didn't know what the soothing vibration was, but it was marvelous. The pain was still there, but muted and her muscles were relaxing.

 

"Wha-?" Cathi managed to say.

 

"Don't try to talk." The receptionist had vanished, replaced by a young male Tenno with medic's insignia. "This is the preliminary. It takes thirty minutes. We need you relaxed for the next stages." Cathi grunted and he smiled. "The room is private except for vital signs monitors. Just go with it, Ma'am. We have got you."

 

With that, he was gone. Cathi floated on a sea of bliss. It was sort of like a few instances in her memory, but those were fuzzy, unclear. Sun had said that some of her memories would be with her forever. Others had faded with the compulsion to obey.

 

She wasn't sure how long she was in that state, but suddenly, she was awake as an irate -familiar- voice sounded nearby. The vibration had stopped. The blissful feeling was gone, but she couldn't move.

 

"We have had this argument, Draco." Jesse was not upset. No, she was furious. "I am doing it. End of story. Oh-" She paused as Cathi cracked an eye and saw Jesse standing in the doorway. The young Cyberlancer froze on seeing Cathi lying there staring at her. "I umm... I didn't think anyone was in here."

 

"No, you are not." A shadow moved to stand between Cathi and Jesse. "You don't know what those seats do, Jesse."

 

"Yes I do, Draco." Jesse snapped. Then she sighed. "Sorry. We thought the room was empty."

 

"Ah..." Cathi sat up. Tried to anyway. Her muscles all felt like jelly. "Just got here. I... I don't mean to eavesdrop. But... Wait..." This could not be a coincidence. Could it? "Jesse? Cyberlancer Jesse?"

 

"Yes?" Jesse asked warily.

 

"You are older than I thought." Cathi said with a smile. "But if those seats are what I think you are talking about, then... um..." She trailed off, her face burning.

 

"Yes, I know they have adult toys in them!" Jesse snapped, half at Cathi, half at Draco. "I want to try them!"

 

"That sounds like a private conversation." Cathi sat up, and this time her muscles obeyed her. Sort of. She slid her feet off the bed and then tried push herself up to stand. She gasped as her hand slid off the bed and she was flailing only to be caught. She stared up at Jesse who looked at her. The towels had fallen off. Jesse's face was aghast as she stared the many somewhat faded scars Sun had left on her body. "Ah... thanks?"

 

"What the hell happened to you?" Jesse asked, horror writ large on her features.

 

"Mission went bad. Can't talk about it." Cathi shrugged as she tried to stand and couldn't. "Ah hell... No..."

 

"You need help." Jesse said firmly.

 

"I am alive." Cathi retorted. "Where there is life, there is hope. I am here to relax, no more. And from what I hear? You need it too."

 

"Do I know you?" Jesse asked. "You seem familiar."

 

"We met once." Cathi replied carefully. It had been drilled into her not to lie. Draco could smell them. It would not end well. "It was... not the best of circumstances. You were mostly unconscious. You have been through hell from what I heard since. More than once. You might want to calm down a little? Take it a bit slower?"

 

'Good luck with that.' Draco murmured. Both female Tenno ignored him.

 

"I am needed."Jesse said firmly, but her body was relaxing.

 

"Correct me if I am wrong..." Cathi said slowly as her feet figured out what to do and she stood on her own with only a little assistance from Jesse. "You are needed alive and sane, no?" Jesse flushed a bit but Cathi just sighed. "Ah, don't listen to me! I have no right to tell you anything, Jesse. As messed up as my own life is, anyone who takes my advice is a nut." Jesse had to chuckle at the wry humor in that. But then Cathi sobered. "Jesse, I am an operative. Don't trust me."

 

"I..." Jesse was suddenly crying and Cathi found herself holding the sobbing girl. "My mom was an operative! I understand. But just for once... Just once... I want to talk to someone outside of my circle! Just talk."

 

"Talk, I can do." Cathi said slowly. "But Jesse... there is much I cannot talk about. And I wouldn't know where to start."

 

"We can talk about how embarrassing these suits are." Jesse wiped her face with her hand and Cathi had to smile as she waved her other hand at herself. "I mean... look at this....thing!"

 

Jesse's suit wasn't the same as Cathi's but it was the same abbreviated size and coverage. Cathi put her arm around Jesse's shoulders, aware of Draco's scrutiny, but she did nothing more. She smiled.

 

"That I can talk about."

 

Edited November 14, 2015 by Kalenath

[Shadow977]

This..... isn't what i thought when they said "relax".....

[Kalenath]

This..... isn't what i thought when they said "relax".....

 

Neither did Cathi!

[BaIthazar]

I thought she was going to get a normal massage

and please Tell me Cathi isn't going to kidnap Jesse when either of them are wearing a Bikini

[Kalenath]

I thought she was going to get a normal massage

and please Tell me Cathi isn't going to kidnap Jesse when either of them are wearing a Bikini

 

Put your mind at ease on THAT. Neither of them are interested in tans. One piece suits.

 

And...

 

Let's just say that plans WILL change.

 

Jesse is NO ONE'S pawn. Anyone who tries to use her as one WILL regret it.

[BaIthazar]

Let's just say that plans WILL change.

 

Jesse is NO ONE'S pawn. Anyone who tries to use her as one WILL regret it.

 

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE STORY.

AARGHH

 

next chapter gonna be late today or tomorrow?

[Kalenath]

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS MEANS FOR THE STORY.

AARGHH

 

next chapter gonna be late today or tomorrow?

 

Probably tomorrow, still finalizing. Editing. (AND making sure it is safe for work. The reason I went with high tech massage machine to start the 'relaxation therapy'? Didn't want to violate EULA. My first version was REALLY NSFW. Deleted that.)

 

Tenno spas are ALL INCLUSIVE. ANY form of relaxation you can think of. And then some...

 

But no one wants Jesse to try some of the 'special' features.

Edited September 20, 2015 by Kalenath

[BaIthazar]

you know saying there once was a NSFW version, only makes people want to read the NSFW version.

and keeping something from Jesse will probably only make her want it more.

at the dismay of everyone.

 

loved the awkward argument between Jesse and Draco about the "adult toys"  btw

[Kalenath]

 

Friends

 

Cathi hadn't expected this at all. Jesse had friends and now, apparently Cathi was one of them. Mishka was kind, gentle and funny. Kori was odd, but also kind and funny in her own way. Iriana was just flat out amazing and after checking Cathi's injuries herself had also opened up a bit. But as to how they had all ended up in the pool with Draco watching from the shadows and Kori watching from the poolside? Cathi truly had no idea. And how they had managed to be talking about this?

 

She had been chatting with Jesse as both had gone for a massage. An actual massage with a guy who knew how to do it. She had literally turned to putty. Then it got fuzzy. But not from drugs or hypnosis or anything. From pure contentment. Cathi knew she had slept a bit, then been run through a set of exercises designed to loosen her muscles. Then here. She certainly was relaxed. Maybe too relaxed. She still had a mission. And this.

 

"No, Jesse." Cathi finally said after Jesse whined for the fourth time. "I have never tried the seats you are talking about, and no I don't want to. I am also not stupid enough to try and pressure Draco in any way. So stop trying to get me to convince him. It isn't going to happen."

 

Iriana and Mishka both looked at her, but remained silent. Kori just dipped an armored paw in the water and pulled it out.

 

"I... I just..." Jesse shook her head, defeated.

 

"I do understand." Cathi said gently, splashing a little water at the girl who smiled and returned the favor. "But Jesse... Your first time with a guy should be special, Jesse. Not mechanical."

 

"I don't know any guys who are not warrior Tenno!" Jesse said sourly. "I have no time for a social life." Cathi looked at her and Jesse flushed. "Okay, okay. Yes. I know. I have been overdoing it."

 

"I know the feeling." Cathi's voice was flat now and Jesse stared at her for a moment before nodding. "Since I was woken from cryo, my life has been an endless run and gun. This is the longest I have sat and talked outside of my immediate group of peers. Don't get me wrong..." Cathi said with a frown as Jesse made a face. "They are my kin. I care for them. But... You cannot pick your family."

 

This was true. She did care for the others. Even Gemina, curse her twisty snake heart. Siri was always the slightly less sneaky motherly figure. Fred and Samuel had always been rocks of support in an uncaring universe. She did love them all even though part of that had been imposed on her, the rest was hers.

 

"I did all right in that regard." Jesse said with a fond smile of memory. She stretched and then looked at Iriana as the healer groaned. "Healer?"

 

"Any longer in her and my wrinkles will have wrinkles." Iriana said with a smile. "Don't stay in too long. We still have dinner and the hot tub."

 

"Yes, mother." Jesse said with a glower that was wasted as Mishka started to laugh and Cathi fought a grin.

 

"Come on, Mishkling." Iriana groaned as she pulled herself out of the water. "I can hear your stomach rumbling from here."

 

"It is not-" Mishka started to say, only to pause as her stomach growled. She stared down at it to the general mirth of the others. "Traitor." She growled, but paddled to the pool ladder to climb out. She did very well without her foot. Cathi wasn't sure what the thing on the end of Mishka's leg was, some kind of regeneration device.

 

Iriana bent down to kiss Jesse's cheek and then she and Mishka were gone. Kori padded after them on feet that were far too silent to be armored.

 

"You barely know me, Jesse." Cathi said after a moment. "Draco is good, I will give him that. But you shouldn't be alone with me."

 

"Alone with you?" Jesse asked quietly. "Or alone with Horat?" Cathi froze as a soft sound came from behind her. She didn't need to look to know that Draco had drawn his weapons. "I know who you are, Catherine Gata."

 

"Draco. Code: Akira." Cathi said softly, not taking her eyes from the young Cyberlancer. "For the record, I hate that name. I have used 'Cathi' ever since I took up my warframe." She slumped a bit. "You did some research while I slept."

 

"Akira?" Jesse demanded, not moving. "Was any of this real?"

 

"All of this was." Cathi said with a frown. This wasn't going as she had planned. Then again, it hadn't really been a defined plan. More a series of objectives that they had hoped to fulfill. She smiled sadly. "I liked talking to you."

 

"I cannot trust a word you say." Jesse was one step from crying and Cathi nodded.

 

"What do you know?" Cathi asked. "Whatever you don't know, I will fill in the gaps."

 

"I can't trust you!" Jesse snapped.

 

"Draco is standing behind me with drawn swords, Jesse." Cathi said, not even bothering to look. "You were waiting for Iriana and Mishka to leave. For fear that I would do something bad to them. Not that I would, but you cannot know that." She bowed her head. "Honesty time. Jesse, you are hurt. I was part of the group that is responsible for your hurt."

 

"Catherine Gata is a known associate of the wanted criminal known as Gemina Horati." Jesse recited from memory. "She commonly wears as Mirage warframe. Other associates are Siri, Samuel and... "

 

"Fred." Cathi spoke quickly. Jesse looked at her. "Just Fred. Don't even bother to remember all of his name. He wishes he couldn't." She said with smile that fell. "Gemina hurt you. I don't... I don't know if she intended that or not. I do not think she did. That she and Siri were honesty appalled by what happened. But it is hard to tell with her."

 

"Why?" Jesse's tone was barely a hoarse whisper.

 

"That is a long story and we don't have time for it all now." Cathi said quietly. "For now, I am not your enemy, Jesse. Or yours Draco. Gemina pushed you mentally to get you to come to us in your dreams. Are you still dreaming?"

 

"Why wouldn't you know?" Jesse demanded.

 

"I can't say, Jesse." Cathi replied as calmly as she could. "All I can say without any complications is that the collar that I wore for so long, knowingly and not, is gone." Jesse stared at her and then at Draco. Cathi didn't dare move.

 

"I need your word that you will not harm Iriana or Mishka." Jesse said after a moment. Her eyes went huge as one of Cathi's hands slowly came out of the water and went up behind herself where she held it still. Something stung it -it took no imagination to figure out what- and she spoke as warmth trickled down her palm.

 

"By Blood and by Steel, I swear to you, Jesse." Cathi intoned formally. "I mean no harm to you or your friends. I am here to help as I can. To be a ward, to be a shoulder. To be a meat shield if that is what it takes. By Blood and by Steel, Jesse. I am not your enemy!" She closed her hand, but whatever had cut it was gone.

 

"Who are you, really?" Jesse asked into the silence that fell after Cathi's words.

 

"Now? My name is Cathi." Cathi replied. "Once? I was Catherine Gata. Champion of the Royal Guard. Now? Just a renegade and former slave."

 

"Former..." Jesse trailed off, shaking her head.

 

"Open up your hand." Draco's words cut through the silence and Cathi did as ordered. Something wiped her hand. Probably a liquid bandage. "Explain Code Akira to Jesse." Cathi bowed her head and Draco growled. "Now."

 

"Code Akira is ancient bodyguard slang, Jesse." Cathi spoke softly, but from old knowledge. "It is taken from the title from an ancient holo vid of some kind, one that I am not sure what it was about. Only reference I could find was something called 'anime'." Jesse looked at her and Cathi groaned. "Please don't ask about that. It doesn't make a lot of sense and the cultural references have all faded. I don't know if it made any sense before. Some of those..." She actually shuddered in memory. "Anyway, Code Akira is used when a bodyguard's protectee is in danger of self destructing."

 

"Self-destructing." Jesse gulped and Cathi nodded.

 

"I wasn't there, Jesse. Not at first." Cathi kept her voice calm. "Not until your second trip in. I had been sent out to gather intelligence. None of us knew anything about the world we had been woken into. So, we gathered information. Or at least I did. Gemina and Siri went to the Elders. The others had other tasks."

 

"Why the Elders?" Jesse demanded. "Why kill Mavri?"

 

"They didn't. He shot himself and Gemina played the rest by ear." Cathi shook her head. "The plan was to talk to them. No more. Mavri had been one of Nikis' apprentices. He knew who and what she was. He reacted badly. Apparently, Hans never bothered to say who the other Elders were or Gemina probably would have taken another approach. Maybe. I don't know. She is a sneaky one."

 

"She?" Jesse pounced on that. "Is the Equinox another lie?" Cathi shook her head. "What then?"

 

"Gemina was a girl." Cathi said sadly. "But she had an odd genetic problem. Her body was in complete equilibrium. Made for a hell of a childhood from what I understand." Jesse's eyes went huge again and Cathi shrugged. "I don't know all of the details, but they offered her the Equinox warframe to try and balance her out. It worked." She shook her head. "Anyway, back to the present. What happened next was that we found out about you. Both your powers and your injury."

 

"So when Iriana put out a call for nunchaku teachers to make sure I would keep being good..." Jesse mused. "Gemina answered."

 

"Yeah." Cathi agreed. "And as soon as she stepped into the room with you, she nudged your mind. That is why you smelled orange blossoms. Draco could not have prevented that."

 

"And my dreams?" Jesse asked.

 

"That...goes back a long way, Jesse." Cathi said softly. "Do we have time for me to explain? Have you been dreaming?"

 

"No." Jesse replied absently. "Not for the last few days. Why did they stop?"

 

"You were pulled into dreaming, Jesse. Siri is very gentle about such. But she is also good at it. There was no way for you to resist. Then you used your code." Cathi bowed her head. "It reacted badly to the dreamscape. Hurt you badly. We have spent ever since trying to fix what we did." She shook her bowed head. "Or... they did. I am not.. with them now."

 

"So who do you serve?" Jesse demanded.

 

"Your mother." Cathi replied calmly. "Your mother and her allies broke me free of the chains that held me. Gemina and Siri will pull you back into the dreamscape, Jesse. Drugs, hypnosis, mental techniques, none of it will stop the pull." Cathi said firmly. "But this is very important, Jesse. If you code there again, it will hurt or kill you. Dreams have power. I am no mental specialist, but I learned bit. When they pull you in again, keep telling yourself 'It' s a dream'."

 

Cathi went still as a door opened and another male Tenno entered the room. Dark skinned, familiar. From his look, he was expecting to see Jesse. He was not expecting to see Cathi. She moved a little so she was between him and Jesse.

 

"Hello Samuel." Cathi said softly, aware of movement behind her but not daring to look. "You do look good in a swimsuit."

 

"Cathi..." Her fellow renegade looked cautious. "What are you doing here?"

 

"Trying to help in what little of my life I have left." Cathi replied evenly. Samuel wasn't armed of course. No way to hide weapons in such skimpy attire. But if he was here. Gemina wasn't far. "Talk or take?"

 

"Cathi!" Samuel protested, not moving.

 

"She knows, Samuel." Cathi said quietly. "Jesse knows who we are and what Gemina did." Samuel paled and Cathi nodded. "And no, I didn't tell her. She figured it out on her own." She smiled at Jesse whose face was blank. "Smart kid."

 

"How did you get away?" Samuel asked. Cathi scoffed. "What?"

 

"He let me go." Cathi snapped. "I had about as much chance of escaping as we had in that fight. None. This is Sun we are talking about." She could feel Jesse's sudden tension beside her and Cathi continued. "He is using me to find you, Samuel. Go."

 

"I can't feel you now, Cathi." Samuel said slowly. "What did he do to you?" Cathi shook her head. "Cathi..."

 

"Just...go." Cathi said through burning eyes. "Don't make Draco make a mess in this beautiful place. Go. Now. I am trying to help her."

 

"Cathi..." Samuel breathed and then froze as Cathi erupted from the water, advancing on him. "Cathi! She needs help!"

 

"Her name is Jesse!" Cathi screamed. "And every time we have 'helped' her it has hurt her worse. Now? You will just make it worse. Go!" She screamed. Samuel fled and Cathi stared after him, her face desolate. She turned back to see Jesse staring at her, wide eyed again. "Please don't think of him, Jesse. Don't think of them. Of us. I... I do want to help."

 

"How can you help me?" Jesse asked, her face slowly blanking again. "You say you are not a mental specialist."

 

"I am not." Cathi agreed. "I am a guard. They will pull you back in. When they do, unless you have me arrested or let Draco kill me, I will be pulled in with you." She smiled a bit more naturally. "And this time? I have no slave chains dragging me down."

 

"Slave." Jesse breathed.

 

"Yes, Jesse." Cathi said sadly. "Gemina, Siri, Samuel, and Fred are slaves. I was one until your mother and Interrogator Sun broke the chains. My life is forfeit for so many things I have done, but for the first time in a long, long time, my mind is my own. And I want to help."

 

"If you go back in there..." Jesse said softly. Cathi nodded. "No. You can't."

 

"Jesse." Cathi said kindly. "Standing between those who cannot fight and those who wish them ill is my job. I have been promised that taking control of me again will take far more time than I will let them have. Draco cannot help you there, Jesse. I can."

 

"They will kill you." Jesse said slowly. "If they cannot control you."

 

"Only as a last resort, Jesse." Cathi replied. "You need to understand the nature of your true enemy. Gemina and the others are tools, pawns. The one pulling the strings is your true enemy. And she is far more dangerous than any or all of them put together. She does not causally throw away her tools." Jesse looked quizzical and Cathi nodded. "Her name was forgotten. Deliberately. All of the records were expunged. Everyone who knew it were either ordered never to spoke of it or were subjected to nanobot alteration to make them forget her. Without her name, she has far less power."

 

"So you know it?" Jesse asked. Cathi nodded. "But you will never speak it?"

 

"Before Sun broke my chains, I would have and damn the cost. Now? No." Cathi shook her head. "I will not knowingly subject any human or Tenno to what I have endured." She bowed her head. "Even now, I feel the draw. The... arousal." She swallowed hard. "They could not remove those without wiping my mind. And you need me, Jesse. It has been a long time since I could be what I was. What I wanted to be. Not...a  toy for her whims."

 

"She used you, didn't she?" Jesse asked. Cathi would not meet her eyes and Jesse swallowed. "How... long?"

 

"I don't know." Cathi was fighting tears now. "A long time. It wasn't... I just... I had no free will. When I did what she wanted she rewarded me. When I balked, tried to refused..."

 

"She punished you." Jesse said in a tiny voice. Cathi nodded. "Cathi, can I trust you?" Cathi shook her head. "Why not?"

 

"BECAUSE I CANNOT TRUST MYSELF!" Cathi hadn't meant to scream that. She froze as an arm surrounded her, Jesse had come close. "No... No, don't."

 

"You know...as a kid, I always thought my parents were stupid. Grownups were all stupid. Always so serious." Jesse hugged the frozen renegade gently. "I didn't understand. Now I do. Be strong, Tenno. We will overcome this. Together."

 

"I will stand with you, Cyberlancer." Cathi said with a growl. "But if I tell you to run, please, for the love of god, run. I won't do it lightly. I won't do it if there are any choices. But you cannot fight her on her terms. Gemina's mistress. No one can."

 

"Fighting is not the only way to win." Jesse said with a small, mischievous smile. "How long since you had a friend who wasn't one of them? Gemina's people?"

 

"A long time." Cathi replied, stunned by this change. "And then cryo. Now this waking dream... Or nightmare. I... I am tired."

 

"Of course you are." Jesse hugged her again. "You have been through hell and are stepping to meet it again. It is what your kind do."

 

"Jesse... I..." Cathi broke off as Jesse hugged her a third time. "I don't know what to say."

 

"I am hungry." Jesse said was she released the other woman and stepped back. "You?"

 

"I am so tired, I may skip the hot tub." Cathi said softly.

 

"Oh, don't do that." Jesse said with a grin as she held out a hand which Cathi took hesitantly. "I am told that is the best part." Her grin faded. "And if we fall asleep?"

 

Cathi stilled and then she nodded slowly. Samuel's presence meant that they had a lock on Jesse. They had either been waiting, recovering from the beatdown Sun had given them, or they had been trying to find new ways to convince Jesse. Cathi jerked. If Jesse considered Cathi a friend now...

 

Oh no... Before Cathi could verbalize her fear, Jesse laid a finger over her lips.

 

"Don't borrow trouble. It is okay, Cathi." Jesse's words were far older and wiser than should be coming from such a youthful looking body. Her eyes were sad as she pulled Cathi towards the door.

 

"It is going to be okay."

 

Edited September 22, 2015 by Kalenath