Drew Karpyshyn: Ascension

"I think my soul is too far gone to save."

"Then why are you calling?" the Illusive Man demanded, the smallest hint of frustration creeping into his voice.

"I'm giving you a warning," the man on the other end of the vid screen answered. "Stay away from Kahlee Sanders. If you come after her, I go to the Alliance with everything I know."

The Illusive Man studied the image on the vid screen carefully. He noticed the familiar signs of Grayson's red sand use — the bloodshot pupils, the faintly luminous sheen on his teeth — were missing. And he realized the man wasn't bluffing.

"Why is she worth so much to you?"

"Does it matter?" Grayson countered. "She's hardly worth anything to you. Not compared to all the dirty little secrets I have. I figure my silence in exchange for her safety is a bargain."

"We will find you, Paul," the Illusive Man promised in a menacing whisper.

"Maybe," Grayson admitted. "But that's not why I called. Kahlee Sanders — do we have a deal?"

After taking a moment to weigh the offer, the Illusive Man nodded his acceptance. Gillian's loss would set their biotic research back a full decade, but Cerberus had too many other projects on the go to risk them all for this. On the screen Grayson smiled. An instant later the image went blank as the call was disconnected.

He didn't bother trying to trace the call — Grayson was too smart to slip up on something that simple. Instead, the Illusive Man just stared at the blank screen for a long, long time, slowly clenching and unclenching his jaw.

2008 year