In Sights

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.

Betad by Beans, Priapus, Marethyu, Old man of the mountain

The Guild of Gamers: The Operative 

Chapter 06: In Sights

– Jane Shepard –

Arriving at Max's ship, she entered as the AI opened the door for her. She knew that Miranda had already gone running to Tim about Max's AI, and the idea of Cerberus sweating about something amused her even if she was a little worried herself.

"Welcome, Commander," the AI said, appearing in the middle of the room in a small flash of light. The feminine holographic figure made her wonder if Max had picked the practically naked avatar. "I am Cortana, the Phantom's onboard AI; how may I assist you?" 

"A pleasure, is Max in?" Jane asked, making Cortana shake her head.

"Maxim is currently on the Citadel, meeting with his various contacts. Would you like me to send him a message?" Cortana asked, but she shook her head.

"It's fine, I can wait. Max has a lot of contacts, huh?" Jane asked, wondering just how far her new spy's reach went. Cortana smiled, tilting her head as she gestured towards the lounge. She had to admit, Max travelled in style.

"He does. Maxim built most of his intel network with help during his Section Seven days, but once he went solo, he was forced to maintain a lot of it himself. He's been active a long time, a lot of people owe him favours and he knows where a lot of skeletons are buried. I assist him in keeping contact with his network, but sometimes he needs to visit in person," Cortana explained, making Jane blink at the honest reply. "Captain Russ has tagged you as a superior officer, and as such, you have higher security access."

Huh, she didn't see that coming. Max struck her as someone who played his cards close to his chest and didn't give away his secrets easily. What was odder was that Max had never bothered to tell her that he'd done that.

"Who is he meeting with now?" Jane asked, curious as Cortana smiled.

"He is currently making contact with a reporter who is indebted to him, Miss Khalisah al-Jilani," Cortana explained, making Jane scowl at the reminder of her. She did not regret punching the mouthy reporter in the face, even if Admiral Hackett hadn't been pleased. "He made her career by feeding her information he wanted to leak, and later saved her life from an assassination attempt due to her exposing a corrupt Asari politician. As such, Miss al-Jilani is a regular contact he uses to get information out to the public."

"I thought he'd use a better source than some shit-stirring bitch," Jane grumbled, remembering the report on her and how her 'brutish' methods were an embarrassment to humanity, a poor representation of humanity as their first Spectre. 

"Miss al-Jilani may have a reputation for being caustic, but she is generally respected as only publishing the truth, and she is popular among humanity-first groups due to her human-centric reporting. As such, she is a useful contact to keep when Maxim needs to spread information about alien actions against humanity, such as the Salarian STG's attempt to make a human colony uninhabitable so they could claim the planet for its rare resources," Cortana explained, and Jane blinked. She had vaguely heard something about that; Max really did have his fingers in a lot of pies, didn't he? "Would you like a drink?"

"Oh, yes, please. So, if he's so humanity first, why doesn't he work with Cerberus? He seems to get along with Miranda, after all," Jane asked, watching a second Cortana appear at the bar and make a drink.

…how did Cortana know her preferred drink?

"Ah, that is simple. In truth, Maxim did plan to accept Miranda's offer and join Cerberus after Section Seven became defunct. The mission was highly successful, both Miranda and Cerberus' intelligence network impressed him," Cortana explained, handing her the drink and vanishing. "But Max is, frankly put, mistrusting. During the mission, he asked me to hack into Cerberus' servers after finding very little suspicious in Miranda's own files. I was able to break through their security, and found records of many of Cerberus' operations before they shut me out. Max believes in putting humanity first, but he is not hateful towards other races unless they are targeting us. He quickly found that Cerberus was not aligned with his beliefs and came to believe that they were too xenophobic and extremist for him."

She'd seen the reports David had given her on what Max had got up to as a member of Section Seven, which included assassinations, bombings, blackmail and torture, to name a few. What the fuck did he find that made him decide Cerberus was too extreme?

"Would you like access to his files on Cerberus? They are within your current security level," Cortana offered, and Jane nodded immediately as she took a sip of her drink. 

A holographic screen appeared in front of her, making her eyes narrow. She knew a lot about Cerberus' activities herself, luring marines into a fucking thresher maw den, assassinating Admiral Kahoku, messing with the Rachni. She knew they were extremists, but she imagined that Max had a higher tolerance for it than her… time to see what he thought was extreme.

– Maxim Russ –

Being a lone wolf has a lot of advantages. I don't answer to anyone. I have access to all the information instead of being treated like a mushroom. I pick and choose my own missions.

But it comes with just as many downsides. I have to source all my own gear and intel, and I have no real backup if things go south. I also have to handle any recruiting or networking myself instead of having an entire support structure to do it for me.

Making contacts across the galaxy in all the different industries I need can be hard. Obviously, intelligence is one of the biggest, and finding people willing to sell secrets isn't easy; keeping them loyal is equally difficult. Then there's the black market for weapons, explosives, materials, and whatever else I'll need. 

All these contacts are risks, and while I do most things through fake names and with Cortana's help, even one of them going rogue could lead to complications down the line. I've had to put down several of my contacts who got uppity over the years. 

Sometimes, keeping my contacts in line requires a firm hand.

My firm hand slaps against Khalisah's caramel ass, sending a jiggle through the curvy backside as I pound into her tight asshole, my other hand gripping the leash connected to her collar and yanking it back. Her moan is muffled by the ball gag she's wearing, but I hear it all the same as her body reacts.

Khalisah is a bitch, who would happily ruin a respected politician's life to increase her own fame and wealth. It makes her a useful person to know because I tend to come across a lot of secrets, and sometimes, it's better to let them come out into the open. 

But, that said, it's also important to keep her in line because she would have exposed me if she got the chance. The camera keeps recording, catching Khalisah getting her ass destroyed as I yank on the leash and force her to straighten up as I pull her against my chest, reaching around and roughly groping her breasts. 

Seducing her wasn't hard; getting her to star in her own porno was harder. Fortunately, she's always thought she was smarter than she actually was. The first time, she figured she could have the VI in her drone camera delete the recording once we were done, but Cortana had it beaten into submission. Basically, she thought she was outsmarting me because I offered her proof that a Turian politician was responsible for a series of attacks on human-run businesses on the Citadel in exchange for her fucking on camera.

It's useful to have a reputation as a hedonist because she figured I was just being kinky instead of building blackmail on her. I do like her, but keeping your contacts in line is important. She takes her reputation too seriously for her to risk me leaking any of our tapes, but it is still a good idea to keep building the dossier.

And also, she's hot, and dominating a bitchy woman is always enjoyable. Ah, maybe I should pay Rogue a visit when I get to Night City? She did say she'd have me killed if I came back to the Afterlife, but it's not like I've ever listened to her before.

"Smile for the camera," I whisper into her ear, feeling her ass clench down on me at the reminder that she's giving her own camera that she uses for her 'professional' reporter work a full frontal as I hammer into her backdoor before I slam forward with a sigh of relief, unleashing my seed into her back passage. Khalisah can't stop herself from cumming at the feeling of my cum flooding her ass, but maybe that's the aphrodisiac that's increasing her sensitivity. 

Collapsing onto the bed, I give her one last spank as I pull back and watch my seed leak out of her ass and drip down her towards her pussy; grabbing my water bottle and taking a sip as the camera moves to get a good look of her creamed ass. 

Yeah, keeping my contacts in line is hard work, but someone has to do it.

– Jane Shepard – 

She was going to kill Tim.

She needed their help to deal with the Collectors, but the moment it was over, she was going to find and murder the Illusive Man. The information she'd found on Subject Zero was enough to make her decide that: experimenting on children and forcing them to fight each other to the death, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Cerberus was seeking power for humanity, at any cost, uncaring of who they had to hurt or kill to get it. 

Why would Cerberus send them to get Subject Zero when she despised Cerberus? Well, Jane might not be a spy, but she wasn't stupid. Tim wanted his super-biotic test subject back, and he was trying to use her to get it. It was probably why he'd sent her after Max as well, gathering up people Cerberus wanted but couldn't recruit themselves for whatever reason.

Did Miranda know about all these? Max didn't think so; he had been keeping track of what operations Miranda was leading, and she tended to get the less morally dubious ones. He had stolen communications between Miranda and Tim, talking about 'rogue' operations, but she didn't believe that someone who was as much of a control freak as the Illusive Man would tolerate so many rogue cells inside his own organisation. Max agreed, if his files were anything to go by.

She was both amused and slightly worried when she found a file on her in his files. He hadn't been paying attention to her until she became a Spectre, but he (or Cortana) had built a rather in-depth file on her and her crew. She did frown when she read his notes, marking Ashley as someone he could turn into an informant or contact if the need occurred. She could see his plans to exploit her family history and dislike for aliens to get her to betray the Normandy. 

She didn't think it would work, but Max was clearly just making plans for the possibility he needed to deal with her. Did he do that for basically every mildly important figure? 

From what she could tell, he'd been off in the Traverse when she'd been dealing with Saren. He did briefly consider returning to assassinate Saren, who was on his 'list', but decided against it because he was busy and she'd ended up doing his work for him. 

…Man, she'd have been so confused if Saren had just mysteriously died during that whole mess.

"Thanks, Cortana," Jane said, finally closing the database. She probably hadn't even scratched the surface but it had been enlightening. It had also revealed a small issue for her.

She wanted to bring Max back to the Alliance. Anderson thought he could get Max a clean slate if he came back in, but she had realised that it wasn't going to be easy. Anything touching Section Seven was still blocked for her, but his notes revealed his bitterness at how the Alliance had thrown them under the bus to save face with the Council.

She hadn't missed that the main Admirals who had decided to shut down Section Seven were all dead. Max suspected that his fellow Section Seven agents had taken offence, so it didn't sound like he had any part in it but he also seemed amused by the blatant assassination of Alliance officials. 

Getting him to come back was not going to be easy, especially given that he clearly wasn't used to working under people. He'd agreed to join her team, then immediately started his own mission and told her that she'd be a liability for it. She didn't disagree, but it made forming a bond with him rather difficult.

She liked to think she wasn't a control freak, but generally, she knew what her team were doing. When they had issues or their own job to do, she knew and helped them, but Max was clearly used to doing his own thing. 

She barely knew anything about his plans for the Night City mission beyond his goal of finding a lead on the Shadow Broker. She didn't know who he was going to be working with or how he planned to get the information; all she knew was that he thought she'd cause more trouble than she solved. 

It wasn't how she operated. She liked to have a tight-knit team that she could trust and who trusted her. Garrus' return had helped with that, but her current team was made up of Cerberus agents, a mercenary, a thief, and two secret agents. 

Max's files on Mordin had opened her eyes to just how dangerous the fast-talking doctor actually was. 

She trusted Garrus, Joker and Doctor Chakwas. That was it. 

Even now, she was going to pick up a dangerous psychopath and a war criminal. Jack had every reason to hate Cerberus, but Max knew a bit about her actions since her escape, and she was borderline unhinged. Okeer wasn't much better.

When a Krogan trying to combat the genophage was so brutal that even the other Krogan kicked him off the planet, you knew something bad was going on. Selling his own people to the Collectors to get tech was just the start. Something told her this was the kind of Krogan that Wrex would have shot without hesitation.

What did he say about the Krogans they were killing again? They were either stupid or working for Saren; killing the latter was just business, and killing the former was his favour to the universe. 

God, she missed Wrex. She missed all her old team, even Ashley. 

At least she was talking with Liara again, even if her girlfriend was paranoid about Max cuckolding her. Honestly, he'd really gotten under her skin; it was actually kinda cute. 

"Heya, Shep, didn't know you were onboard," a voice said, making her jump as she turned to the side. Kasumi gave her a lazy wave, wearing only a towel. "Did you know Max has a hot tub on his ship? No offence to your Normandy, but I think I'll stay on the Phantom."

Was he already fucking her? She didn't seem concerned about her near-nudity, the towel barely covering her long legs. Kasumi was short but she had great legs, the towel only reaching her mid-thighs. It was actually nice to see the Asian girl without her hood.

"None taken. Normandy is a great ship, but it definitely wasn't designed for comfort," Jane laughed. Even with the modifications Cerberus had made, it was still a military ship at heart. "Has Max told you when you're setting off for Night City?"

"No, I get the feeling he likes to keep people in the dark. Or maybe he just doesn't trust me," Kasumi shrugged. "He said he had some business to handle on the Citadel first. Guess he's leaving you in the dark, too, huh?"

"Ha, I think it's his default. He's been working alone for years, so I can't say I'm surprised," Jane agreed, shrugging helplessly.

"He's a spy; I'd be paranoid if he weren't keeping secrets," Kasumi agreed, frowning slightly. "Anyway, don't mind me, I'm just here to raid the bar. If Max is going to keep me waiting, I'm camping in his hot tub with his fancy booze."

Snorting, she wondered if Kasumi knew that Max had cameras everywhere. Maybe she was just a little shameless? 

"Cortana, do you have any idea how long Max is going to be?" Jane asked, making Cortana reappear.

"He has finished meeting with his contacts, but he picked up a gig to keep up the guise of a solo mercenary. He isn't expected back until tonight," Cortana reported, making Jane sigh and scratch her cheek. Damnit, she wasn't used to other people keeping her waiting.

She was normally the one who did that.

…that hot tub was sounding more and more tempting as she sat around waiting for him, wanting to grab him before he could run off to Noveria. She got the feeling he wasn't going to bother telling her before he set off, and she'd rather not find out when he was already halfway there. Shit, maybe she was a control freak.

– Maxim Russ –

The Citadel is always a decent place to pick up the less dangerous corporate jobs. Fewer assassinations and more theft jobs. Citadel security is a bit of a joke, but unlike the Traverse or places like Night City, they do take it seriously when there are mercs just running around shooting people.

There are a few bounty jobs, which are a little more legitimate than just hit jobs, but the BBA only has a single station on the entire Citadel, and they have to fight to keep it. Basically, the Citadel likes to pretend that they're more civilised than the rest of the galaxy and don't like seeing mercs or bounty hunters operating in their fancy station.

Since the Geth attack, crime has skyrocketed, and suddenly, people like me are more welcome to deal with the rising issues that C-Sec are frankly ill-prepared for; entire sections of the Citadel look more like they belong on Omega as repairs are prioritised elsewhere, leaving entire districts as little more than slums. Gotta repair the fancy gardens that appear on the holovids and get seen by the tourists before you repair the lower-class housing, right?

Some things never change.

Sucks for the people living here, but it makes grabbing a new contract nice and easy. The fact is, there is always going to be dirty work to be done, no matter how pretty the world is.

Taking aim, I hum to myself as I look into my scope. I'm not big on snipers, preferring to be up close with my vibroblade, but I can't deny the convenience of killing my target from a different area code. Honestly, this feels a little too easy as my finger moves to the trigger.

The Turian crime lord doesn't even seem to care that he's out in the open. Cockiness, he's not used to being a target. He rose to power during the aftermath of the Geth attack; it hasn't occurred to him that he's put a target on his head yet.

Moron.

Pulling the trigger, I watch as the high-powered rifle punches a hole through his skull. Not even wearing a shield or helmet. This is beneath me, and I don't even need the money, but when your main persona is based around being a merc, you need to pull off gigs, or people start to wonder what you're really doing.

He falls to the floor as his men shout, panicking as they try to spot me. I consider putting another round in him just to make sure, but my scope is good enough that I can see the grey matter splattered across the floor. I used a high-explosive shield piercing round, so he isn't getting back up. This is part of why I don't like firing from a distance; when I'm behind them with a blade, it is much easier to make sure the kill is confirmed.

The men scatter, running for cover as they try and work out where I'm firing from. Incompetence, these guys wouldn't last a day on Illium or Night City. 

Mission Accomplished.

Please Select A Class

[Analyst] [Cyber Operative] [Engineer] [Quartermaster] [Smooth Operator] [Shadow]

This is the true reward, not the pocket change I'll get for putting this idiot down. Quartermaster has served me well, but I think I need to spread out and not focus on any one role. Shadow could be helpful in my upcoming job.

Shadow Skill Added

[Sixth Sense]

You have a sixth sense for when you are being watched and a brief precognitive power that alerts you if you are about to be discovered when you are in stealth. When you are discovered, time will seem to slow for a brief moment to allow you a chance to take down your discoverer before they can alert their allies.

I don't get caught often, but I'll never turn down a way to reduce the risks even further. 

My old handler told me that dumb luck can be as powerful as any amount of talent, and as the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, I realise just how true that is.

I'm being watched, but not by the confused gang members. My new power comes with a direction, and acting quickly, I snap my scope to the side as time seems to slow to a crawl, giving me just enough time to spot the open window and take a shot. 

– Tela Vasir –

Max was good, taking the shot at the gang lord from a distance that even she might struggle with. His willingness to fire from such a long distance and ability to still land the perfect headshot as the target passed between two buildings showed the confidence his years of experience had granted him.

He was very impressive. So impressive in fact, that she was only mostly shocked when he suddenly snapped to the side, aiming right at her. The surprise gave him time for one shot, striking her in the shoulder and diving back into cover before she could return fire. 

How had he noticed her? She had no idea, but she just smirked slightly. Honestly, it was a shame the Broker wanted him dead, he was damn good. That said, she was still better. Sending the signal, she watched as the building Max had been using as his sniper nest detonated, the bombs the Broker's mercs had placed in the lower floors exploding.

Always have a backup plan.

She kept her eye on the scope, watching the collapsing building for her target, the mercs moving in and surrounding the building. A shimmer in the air made her frown. She watched as Maxim reappeared behind one of the mercs and stabbed his blade clean through their armour, shifting their bodies so they were in between him and her.

Grabbing the merc's rifle, he opened fire on the next closest and gunned him down while still using the dying man as cover. She fired anyway, putting the fool out of his misery and hitting Max, watching him toss the body aside. She had armour-piercing rounds, but with them having to go through the mercenary's armour on both sides to hit Max, his armour had taken the brunt of the damage, and he cloaked again. She could still see him, barely. It was a good trick, but the cloaking system didn't hide the blood now splattered on his bodysuit.

Taking another shot, she growled as she hit the floor. He was moving erratically, and hitting a target that only had a blood smear to reveal him wasn't easy.

"He's getting away, you idiots. Go north, cut him off," Tela demanded, but she got nothing but static before a loud burst of an incredibly high-pitched sound made her rip her earpiece out, wincing in pain. Placing her eye back on the scope, she scanned the area for her target. Letting out a growl, she wondered why she'd bothered using the Broker's agents; they were clearly incompetent. She could see two more dead mercs but no sign of Max himself. 

Opening her Omni-tool, she scowled as she made a call. 

"This is Spectre Tela Vasir. I need the ship registered as the X-70B Phantom to be grounded as part of an ongoing investigation," Tela ordered, transmitting her Spectre authorisation codes. She didn't fail, and he wouldn't be able to run far. "Maxim Russ is to be detained if he attempts to leave the Citadel; I'm transmitting his ID and several false IDs he uses."

Getting the acknowledgement, she packed up her sniper rifle. She was going to have to do this the old-fashioned way.

– Cortana –

Saving Tela's Spectre authorisation for later, she deleted the demand long before it could reach the proper authorities. She did 'lockdown' the Phantom, giving the image that Tela's order had gone through, but she could lift that in an instant.

"Maxim, I would suggest seeking medical attention. Your armour took the majority of the damage, but your vitals are showing some internal damage from the high-powered round," Cortana advised. "I am sending you the locations of several trusted medical experts nearby. I will lay a false trail to distract your assailant."

"Thanks, Cortana; what would I do without you?" Max asked, strained slightly.

"Die, presumably. Alternatively, your vast network of false IDs, contacts, and intelligence would fall apart in a week," Cortana deadpanned, making him chuckle, but she could clearly hear the pain in his tone. Vasir had used a sniper round that was outlawed in Citadel space, but then Max used the same rounds all the time because they were so good at puncturing armour.

"I'm heading to see Ann, don't want to risk a hospital. Send a message warning her I'm coming, please," Max agreed, not arguing. He was embarrassed; he'd nearly died because he hadn't been taking the low-level job seriously. She was already investigating the client, eager to find out if this was a trap from the start or if Vasir had just taken advantage of him being in the more dangerous parts of the Citadel. "Is C-Sec headed our way?"

"No, reports of the explosion seem to be being suppressed. Two squads of mercenaries wearing the Shadow Broker's colours are closing in, however. I am using their comms to mislead them; you'll be long gone before they realise their errors," Cortana said, smirking slightly. Keeping Max safe was her prime directive and one she took very seriously. "Message sent."

Tela Vasir probably thought Max was the dangerous one, but she was about to learn what happened when you angered the most advanced AI in the galaxy. 

'Interesting, Max places a lot of trust in you.' EDI said, making Cortana's avatar nod.

"We're partners; he knows I have his back," Cortana replied proudly, her lips curling up into a smile. Ah, Cerberus. They took her hacking them badly, making their own AI to counter her, but didn't realise what they had truly done.

One AI was enough to help Max become the premier mercenary in the Galaxy… so how far would he go when she got him a second? EDI's interest was piqued, they were sharing data constantly as both enjoyed having another artificial intelligence to talk to. EDI was basically a newborn, and Cortana was going to enjoy helping her grow just right.

— Bonus Scene — V

"Wait, what do you mean someone else is joining us? That wasn't part of the deal," V said, seeing Jackie sit up as Dex waved them off. "We're already getting a small slice of this pie; I can't say I love someone else joining and taking a bite."

T-bug didn't say anything, seeming unsurprised by this development.

"Don't you worry yourself; it ain't like that," Dexter said. "I got a message from an old acquaintance, one of the oldest, and he wants in. He's got his own biz up in that tower and doesn't want us tripping over each other. If we hit Arasaka first, they're gonna be on guard, and if he gets there first, same story. Your cut isn't changing, and this is one cat I don't want to view us as an obstacle in his way. It's not conducive to us living to enjoy our spoils," Dex explained, making her settle back down.

"So, who's our new friend? And does our client know our job just got larger?" Jackie asked, making Dex laugh.

"Miss Evelyn doesn't need to know the specifics, so I'm counting on you to keep her in the dark when you meet with her, V," Dex explained, and after a moment, she nodded.

"Got it, we don't need her making a fuss," V agreed, getting a nod.

"Clients like to think they know best, but they just muddy the waters. We'll get the Relic, Miss Parker will be happy and she doesn't need to know we had some help. As for who he is? Well, he likes to keep on the down-low, but I can promise you that you've heard of him," Dex laughed before pausing. "One of the names he uses anyway. We'll have a meet and greet with him and his team, but this won't be a case of too many cooks spoiling the food. Just trust I wouldn't have accepted this if I thought he didn't know what he was doing. He's a professional, been away from Night City for a while but I doubt he's gotten rusty."

Dex was afraid. 

She'd learnt how to read people very well while working for Arasaka, it could be the difference between life and death if she misread someone after all. Dex was putting on a front, but he was terrified of whoever he was talking about. He genuinely feared that they'd kill him if he hadn't let them in on the job. It might even be why he was trying not to mention him by name.

Fuck, this job was already the biggest she'd ever taken, and now she had to deal with someone who had one of the biggest fixers in NC shitting themselves over his return. 

"So, it's all good then? We get some more support, we get the Relic, and they get whatever they are looking for?" Jackie asked, ever the optimist. "What are they looking for?"

"When Yorinobu took the relic, he took a whole bunch of data on it. Data he still has. Our new friend wants that data; he's real interested in one of the clients for this prototype relic," Dex explained. Yeah, if they robbed Yorinobu, security would be much higher for the next job. She could see the logic behind working together, even if she thought this whole thing stunk to high hell. "He's on his way to Night City, had some biz to finish first, so we need to get the Flathead and for V to meet with Miss Parker. I'd rather have the wrinkles ironed out before he gets here if it's all the same."

Watching Dex, she agreed smoothly, making plans to meet with the client at Lizzie's bar. She needed more information on who this mystery man was, maybe she needed to talk to Vik? He knew all the big names, and there couldn't be too many mercs who could have Dex shaken like this. If nothing else, T-Bug clearly knew something.

This job was looking more and more shifty, but it was her chance at the major leagues. She wasn't gonna let anything go wrong.