Edgar Hein's shades vanished into his dark longcoat, so that he could better stare out to the black of space, past the thick glass of his office's windows. He had hoped that the strangely humbling sensation he usually felt looking out to the stars would smother the sorrow, but it the silent spectacle gave him no succor.
Behind him, bedlam. Chairs had been thrown against a collection of priceless items from his past. That had been the first expression of rage he had indulged him since the bad old days. He had given himself time to process the news, but it hadn't been enough.
Almost thirty years of work, he screamed in his mind. Snuffed out by a cheap murder... my web of agents, unable to protect you. Was this a master stroke from my enemies? Or was it simply a fluke?
Someone's voice came through the intercom. "Colonel?" said the man at the Conn. "We're almost at the Citadel."
"Understood," he replied, betraying no emotion. "Is the Copperhead fueled up?"
"Aye, sir. Do you want me to leave the Conn and—"
"—No, no, I can handle the old bird myself. I could use the practice."
"...Understood, sir. Flemming out."
There are others, Hein reminded himself. Others I can call upon to become what I need them to be. And it just so happens one of them is waiting at our destination... yes, this was long overdue.
He sat at his desk, and activated a secret console. Its haptic emitters whirred to life, and a holographic avatar stared at him, awaiting for him to speak.
"Paragon is lost. I'm activating Galahad."
And within seconds, everything that could be collected on Adam Jensen had been sent to Hein.
[h+]
CODEX ENTRY – Jensen, Adam
Adam Jensen (born in 1993) is the last known mechanically augmented human being since the Great Crash of 2052, as well as a veteran of the Corporate Wars of 2029.
One of the hundreds of subjects in the Sarif Cache found in old Detroit in 2175 (and thus far the only one to have been successfully brought out of stasis), Jensen's awakening has caused hundreds of legal and ethical debates in academic circles to erupt on Earth due to the legality of his extensive cybernetic modifications. Although he could not be charged since these laws were not ex post facto. Anti-augmentation advocates are now desperately trying to amend Article 1 Section 9 of the United North American States' Constitution to implement such laws, a factor in Jensen's decision to leave Earth in favor of the colonies.
He eventually attempted to settle on Elysium, shortly before Skyllian Blitz. Afterwards, he left for the Citadel, where he signed on as a C-Sec officer. He was quickly promoted to the rank of Corporal on C-Sec's Homicide Desk after finding enough evidence to put Cylenander, the Hanar serial child murderer, away for life.
CODEX ENTRY – Sarif Cache
In the aftermath of the Corporate Wars, a brief yet bloody conflict that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, anti-augmentation sentiment (which were already reaching a boiling point due to the Pangea Incident) rose to new heights, and biotech legislation progressively went from regulation to outright ban.
David Sarif, a polarizing figure of his time and an ardent proponent of human augmentation, predicted what he described as a "dark age of technology". To preserve the works of his company and provide humanity "answers to questions it is ready to ask", Sarif spent a significant portion of his waning fortune into Project Legacy: the construction of a hidden underground bunker filled with electronic data storage and printed media on biotech and cybernetics. Most importantly, Sarif had hundreds of his staff cryogenically preserved in the underground facility. It was sealed in 2031, and discovered and opened in 2175 by archeologists.
Project Legacy's success as an elaborate time capsule is arguable: most of the technologies found within are now very illegal, but the schematics for the PEDOT Cluster led to significant advances in modern Biotic implants. To this day, various universities petition the UNAS Government for access to the cache, with little success. As for the frozen staff, over 20 percent of the Cryo-pods shut down due to power loss, and flaws in the thawing process means that the rest cannot be opened without great risk to the sleeper. Only one subject has been successfully brought out of stasis: a security guard known as Adam Jensen.
Culturally, the cache was an interesting look into the daily lives of people before the Great Crash of 2052. Articles of clothing, Artwork and various other pieces of entertainment electronics and media were put on display at a museum. Visiting Asari took well to the display, and now the "Neo-Renaissance" style of clothing and architecture is seeing resurgence on Asari colony worlds, especially on Ilium.
SHADOW BROKER DOSSIER – Adam Jensen
Subject: Jensen, Adam
Gender: Male
Date of Birth: March 9th 1993 (Earth Anno Domini Calendar) in Detroit, Michigan, United States
Nationality: Citadel Citizen, Former US American
Height: 1.90 m
Weight: 90 kilos
Hair color: Dark Brown
Eye Color: Green Yellow (Artificial)
Blood Type: O Negative.
Profession: Currently employed by C-Sec as a detective. Former Chief of Security of cybernetics corporation Sarif Industries. Former SWAT Specialist.
AUDIO FILE CTD 44551: Tela Vasir Recording (audio only):
TV: I had the pleasure of seeing Jensen at work during a bank robbery gone bad in Zakera Ward. He and I were already inside, in line to do our banking when ten armed Asari - some gang of maidens that like to call themselves the Daughters of Anarchy who were crazy enough to operate in the Citadel of all places – decided to barge in right through the front door and blasted the guards away with their combined biotics. I was in my civvies so I decided to play the part, discreetly alerting C-Sec with my omni-tool. Well, the Daughters of Whatever were smart enough to have a signal jammer on, and My SigInt program needed time to cut through the static. While I was doing this, Adam had simply vanished in the initial chaos. When the robbers spread out to secure the area and round up the civilians in case they'd need hostages…that's when things started to go wrong for them. One by one they stopped reporting in: some just went quiet; others screamed and then went quiet. And then there were two: The leader, this brick shithouse of a maiden carrying one of those big fuck-off shotguns the krogan are into, and this wired little bitch with an LMG. Too young to have any real experience, she cracked under the pressure and started shooting up the ceiling, screaming "Come on out, phantom!"
Nihlus Kryik: Did she hit any civilians?
TV: She was getting there, but then (laughs) but then –fuck me!- out of nowhere comes this fridge, fast as a cannonball, and it bashed right into her! She was out like a lamp!
NK: He used Biotics?
TV: Don't think so. No flare.
NK: That left the leader…
TV: Right. So the leader grabs this human girl – tiny, not much older than…oh, fourteen?I don't know - and puts that shotgun to her head. Classic hostage situation. I was getting ready to spring into action when this yellow golden glow in the shape of a man erupts some ten meters away from the leader and faded into Adam with his hands up. That was a surprise: I didn't know C-Sec had access to personal cloakers.
NK: They don't.
TV: Right, anyways. That gang leader? Still so new at this she makes all the classic demands you see in the vids: first she asks him to drop his weapon – which, by the way, was still holstered – and when she hears the sirens outside and changes her demands to a getaway car and a shuttle to Bekenstein… but you could tell she knew she wasn't in control of the situation.
NK: She was bound to do something stupid.
TV: Well, it turns out our boy Adam has got a…what's the human expression? A silver tongue? He convinced her to let go of the kid well enough, but then she had a brilliant idea.
NK: She figured a cop would make a better hostage?
TV: A cop that just took down her gang, no less. It didn't end well.
NK: I can imagine: I just pulled the case file: she's in a coma right now with three broken ribs, a punctured lung and both arms broken in several places.
TV: Got off easy.
NK: So why didn't you intervene?
TV: Didn't have my gear. Also, I wanted to see him in action. Say…why are you interested in him?
NK: I can't talk about it.
TV: You know, you hear all kinds of things on the Presidium…
NK: Really.
TV: Humanity is pushing for a human Spectre again…
NK: Hm-hm.
TV: The Council taking that request seriously…
NK: Imagine that.
TV: …You're scouting him for the Spectres!
NK: I can't talk about it.
TV: Kryik, come on, if you can't trust your fellow Spectres, who can you trust?
NK: …It doesn't matter. If there's a list of candidates, Jensen's name wouldn't be in it for long.
TV: Do I need to mention the fridge again?
NK: …I have a better idea of his abilities than you think. The fact of the matter is that a significant amount of people on Earth - important people - consider him to be a walking, breathing war crime. Humanity wouldn't want him as a Specter...
TV: …What about Elysium? You'd think they'd hail him as a hero.
NK: Adam doesn't like media attention, and his role in halting the Blitz was downplayed by Alliance propaganda.
TV: You sound disappointed.
NK: Politics shouldn't factor in Spectre recruitment... Only the worthy should be granted the responsibility.
*Recording Ends*
Deus Ex Human Revolution is the property of Eidos and Square Enix
Mass Effect is the property of Bioware and Electronic Arts
CTD FILE 1999: Audio transcript / Presidium:
Adam Jensen: Saren's hiding something! Every lead we pursued vanished without a trace. Every call, every extranet search we made was monitored or halted by the Spectres! They even hacked our computers!
Executor Pallin: That's the Spectres for you. I'll say one good thing about them: they look after their own…
Garrus Vakarian: Even when one of theirs is responsible for the deaths of thousands of civilians? Even when one is responsible for the death of another?
EP: You two seem to be under the impression that a Spectre causing the deaths of thousands is some kind of dire catastrophe worthy of the history books. For the Spectres, it's a Tuesday. They've gotten plenty of public accusations over the centuries; some of them false, some of them true, and they've learned to deal with them efficiently.
AJ: Are you saying the Spectres are in on-
EP: I didn't say that. I'm saying getting accused of atrocities happens too frequently to the Spectres. After a while, they stopped caring if they're true or not. Defending their own is pretty much a reflex now. They only act against one another at the command of the Council.
GV: Then let us keep investigating! If we find even a small piece of evidence that points to Saren being dirty, they'll gladly help us put his head on the chopping block!
EP: Not possible. The Council has already reviewed the evidence-
AJ: -which currently amounts to zero.
EP: -and they'll make their verdict shortly.
(sounds of footsteps. Three pairs)
GV: Give us more time! Stall them!
EP: Stall the Council? Don't be ridiculous. Your investigation is over, Detectives.
sounds of footsteps, one pair, fading away
silence, 10 seconds
Jun Shepard: So…um. How about those glow in the dark trees…I guess? Also, space.
GV: Commander Shepard?
JS: The one and only.
GV: Garrus Vakarian, I was the officer in charge of the C-Sec investigation into Saren. This is my partner, Adam Jensen.
AJ: Ms. Shepard.
JS: Pleased to meet you both. So, just between you and me, did you find anything that might help me nail him to the wall or at the very least embarrass him in front of his friends?
GV: No. Saren's a Spectre. Anything he touches is classified-
AJ: -That didn't stop me, though.
Kaidan Alenko: You tried to hack into a Spectre's files? Damn.
GV: And that wound up bringing down the wrath of the Spectres on our heads. They thwarted us at every turn. Couldn't find anything solid.
JS: Damn.
KA: I think the Council's ready for us, Commander.
JS: Well, that's my cue. Detectives.
AJ: Ms Shepard.
End of Recording
VIDEO FILE CTD 04201C
(tracking subjects: Commander Jun Shepard, Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams.)
(filtering background noise…done)
Ashley Williams: Holy Mother of…that was him! The Monster!
Jun Shepard: Who in the what now?
AW: The Frankenstein Monster! How can you not know about him?
KA: He was all over the news on Earth back in '75.
JS: Well goshdarnit would you mind explaining to this poor colony farmgirl what this Frankenstein nonsense is about? I swears I can't hardly keep up with all this core-world nonsense of yers!
AW: Well, the Franken-
JS: -I've read Mary Shelley, Chief. I just don't see the connection between a ruggedly handsome cop and a flesh golem animated by lightning.
AW: You've seen his hands, right?
JS: So he's got prosthetic hands. Still not seeing the connection.
AW: He's like this all over! Fake arms, fake legs, fake lungs, fake heart. Even parts of his brains are electronic!
KA: In other words he's mostly synthetic.
AW: Right! What if he's controlled by Saren? What if he's been compromised by the Geth? You've seen those Husks!
JS: He didn't seem particularly overcome with the desire to eat my brains, Chief.
AW: Nobody human modifies himself like that unless he's got a thirst for it. What if Saren offered him more mods?
KA: Well, they don't make augmentations like his anymore… could be tempting.
JS: And you're making assumptions on his character based on…what? A one minute conversation and the fact that he's augmented up the arse? Chief, you realize that me and the LT are augmented, right? Hell, you've got gene mods yourself.
AW: Those gene mods keep me at peak human performance, well within what was meant to be, so that's not the same thing! And your implants are designed to help you manage your natural abilities…
JS: Chief, my abilities are the result of me breathing in too much Eezo as a kid. There's nothing natural about them. And because of those implants I need another one in my skull to remind myself who I am and who I'm supposed to know every once in a while.
AW: You're…?
JS: Yep. And I've yet to sing the praises of Saren.
AW: I'm sorry ma'am, I-I really shouldn't have said anything.
tracking subject Captain David Anderson
DA: Jun!
JS: Sir!
DA: If you're quite done arguing with your subordinates, we've got a meeting with the Council to attend!
(increasing audio volume)
JS: …ver could back down from a fight.
DA: Probably your worst flaw.
JS: Heh, yeah I-urgh.
DA: Jun?
KA: Ma'am?
JS: I'm okay, I'm okay. I'm just overdue for a dose of Neuropozine.
DA: Chakwas didn't give you your dose?
JS: You know what that shit does to me. Need to keep my head on straight…
End of Video
-0-
Audio Transcript: Presidium tower elevator
(Muzak playing)
Adam Jensen: I am NOT in the mood for this.
(Sound of Omni Tool activating)
Static
recalibrating mic…done
Garrus Vakarian: …ittle extreme, don't you think?
AJ: Don't want to listen to this crap for the next twenty minutes and get it stuck in my head when I go to sleep.
GV: Off to grab a few winks?
AJ: I've haven't slept in days, so yeah. What about you?
GV: Hm…I still got a few leads I need to check on.
AJ: Not giving up?
GV: …No. I can't. I know Pallin doesn't want me to keep at it…but Saren just rubs me the wrong way. What about you?
AJ: …I'm still in. You need me to tag along?
GV: Nah, I can handle this one by myself. Just get some rest. I'll keep you updated.
AJ: Right.
(Silence, 5 minutes door chime)
GV: Well, this is my stop. Sweet dreams, Jensen.
AJ: Thanks.
(door chime. Silence, 3 minutes)
AJ: (sigh)
Audio file - Phone Call – CSec Dispatch/Adam Jensen's apartment.
Adam Jensen: I'm up, I'm up.
Ishoth Fazzik: Mister Jensen? We have a Code 98 at Aguilar Memorial hospital. Officers have already cordoned off the area. Executor Pallin has ordered your immediate-
AJ: -wait, wait, slow down. There's been a murder? Who's the vic?
IF: An Alliance Marine by the name of…[beeping sounds] Junko Zayne Shepard.
(5 seconds of silence)
IF: Sir? Are you there?
AJ: I'm on my way.
End of Recording
CODEX ENTRY: Augmentation.
Augmentation is a catch-all term for the sciences and technologies meant to improve the physical performance of an organic being through cybernetics, genetics or even simple chemicals.
The legality of augmentation varies from species to species, from method to method. The Citadel, however, strictly restricts bio-modification to enhance the existing abilities of a species. Adding new limbs and extra organs would be a violation of these laws.
Salarians happily embrace all forms of augmentations, although they prefer to apply it to more primitive species. Turians are lukewarm to the idea, but are willing to replace limbs with mechanical prosthesis and implant electronics in their soldier's brains to enhance battlefield awareness. Krogan are repulsed by the idea: enhancing themselves is essentially an admission of weakness.
Humanity is a peculiar case. While humans once attempted to embrace mechanical augmentation in the early decades of the 21st century, the social, political and economical turmoil caused by the technology is blamed for the Corporate Wars, the rise of the National Secessionist Forces, the worldwide pandemic called the Gray Death, and finally the Great Worldwide Crash of 2052 (better known as The Collapse). As a result, a deep hatred towards performance enhancing cybernetics still exists on Earth, and its laws on human augmentation reflect this. These laws have been slowly changed due the advent of human biotics, who need electronic implants to manage their abilities or become a hazard to themselves and everyone around them.
On the other hand, shortly after their recovery from The Collapse, humans were all too eager to engage in bio-modifying animals and micro-organisms. This has led to the creation of useful medical devices and treatments, such as Medi-Gel, which is now used throughout the galaxy.