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[Kel Riever]

Iole was busy thinking about the meeting about to happen in the conference room, which could really only mean that she'd be deployed with the team.  Abruptly, the door to the starboard observation lounge opened and a human woman in a drab raincoat came out too fast to avoid.  Pulling up short so they didn't fall, Iole still collided into her.  Then she was bumped from behind much harder.

To avoid a giant pileup, Iole stepped out from between the two as she was forced forward, and grabbed the wall to steady herself.  She got a good look at the tall turian behind her with the terrifying visage.  She knew his name was Arian but was the only person on her team to not have met him yet.  Iole was about to apologize, when she saw the Spectre chasing after the woman.

Confused as to what was going on, but clear it was serious, Iole looked to Arian to see if he seemed to have any idea, then to Naleena for direction.
 

[Kel Riever]

Naleena ran and caught Molly from behind by her shoulders. "Molly, you don't want to go out there. Things are going to happen and you need to stay safe. You can't leave the station anyway. No outbound traffic for now.

And if you're not going back to C-sec, you'll need funding. Be part of my team except not on my ship. I'll deal with C-sec."

“It’s bulls**t!”  Molly found herself half out of control with what she was saying.  “It’s not getting approved if I’m getting knocked off the case from above!”

“They won't have a choice. I'm a Spectre," Naleena said looking in her eyes, "And I need you on this case."

“They’ll suspend me until approval and hit you with red tape that will keep me in lockdown.  I’ve seen it before, Naleena, to other people.  This is C-Sec we’re talking about.  They’re down the hall from the Council while you’re out here on the fringe flying around!  Someone’s playing with this from the inside and you can’t play with it unless you’ve got the power to tell people not to go looking for the Shadow Broker.  Think about it.  Who could make that call?  Could you even?”

Molly was solidly in Naleena’s but the detective felt like she was on the verge of trying to yank away.  Then Hagen suddenly reversed to grab Naleena’s arms with her own hands and stared back.  “If I’m right and someone inside is tied to the Shadow Broker, what happens when you an exception for me?  What if they get nervous?  What if they decide to pull the switch they haven’t yet on that family, just to be sure?  Maybe some other switches too.”

[Cknarf]

Janiri Conference Room.

 

Frank wandered into the conference room.

 

Am I the only one here?

 

He looked under the table.

 

Neat.

 

Frank took a seat, and placed his helmet before him.  He checked his omni-tool for the time.

 

I'm a little early.

 

He leaned back in his chair, and spun around a few times.

 

"Ugh. Booooooooriiiiing" He sighed.

 

-----------------------------------------------------------

 

"Alright everyone, we're splitting into teams." Frank paced the empty room.

 

"Red team, you guys get to do something relatively simple." He stopped, and turned around, facing the table.  He slammed his hands down as he leaned forward.

 

"Blue team, you'll be doing something insanely dangerous. It will involve bombs, or some other crazy sh*t." He pulled out an imaginary cigarette, and lit it. He took a long drag.

 

"Frank, you're with blue team, obviously." Frank flicked away his invisible cigarette, before pulling out another.

 

"You got it, boss." He answered himself.

"Okay then, we--"

 

"Hello, Frank."

 

"Gah!" Frank was startled, as VERA suddenly appeared in her usual spot.

[Redbelle]

The call on Anika's comm stopped her in the hallway and she raised an armoured hand to accept the message. Seeing that it was about a briefing, she raised an eyebrow, turned, and walked back to the briefing room. She got to the door and opened it to see the wall partition in front that allowed the door to open without disturbing the meeting going on and was about to step inside when she heard a voice, handing out assignments.

 

'Great, I'm late.'

 

She was about to walk in on the meeting, apparently underway, when she heard VERA's voice. And a startled cry from what sounded like Frank. Curious, she peered around the partition and saw Frank, standing behind the lectern, looking a little guilty as VERA stood nearby and realised what was going on.

 

'That's..... actually, heh... adorable'

[Cainhurst Crow]

Essul had dawned his armor an hour ago, once he heard there was a meeting. He'd sat in his quarters in silence, not picking up his cigarettes nor going on his terminal. He sat, eyes closed as he focused on breathing in and out in the armor, feeling it weight him down as he focused on his breathing. He envisioned possible scenarios in his head of battle, and occasionally his eyes or mouth would twitch from an errant memory drifting into his minds eyes.

 

But for many minutes, Essul simply sat and waited in his state, working to keep his nerves calm. This was, as far as essul was concerned, a storm. He remembered them from his homeworld and how quickly they moved through the air, whipping it into a frenzy of wind and noise before dissipating as quickly as they came. And Essul remembered the feeling of one approaching, the feeling it gave him when it came just close of touching down.

 

At the calm before the storm, Essul was ready. He wouldn't let his emotions get the better of him again as he opened his eyes and rose, grabbing the helmet on his desk and heading out for the conference room.

 

As he walked down the hall, essul was somewhat still lost in his internal thoughts when he spotted Anika outside the conference room. He approached as he gave a nod of his head, unaware of what had occurred earlier, "It's good to see you here earlier, Anika." he said in simple greeting, before moving to the door.

[Kel Riever]

“Hey badass batarian,” Jenus said as she appeared behind Essul and slapped him on the shoulder, “Hey, too-tall.”  She winked and made a clicking sound as she passed Anika.  Mira and Tallis filed past as well.  When the three Commandos moved into the room past the screen, Jenus started, “Hey…,” then stopped and looked away to avoid engaging the man at the lecturn.

“Frank!  Frank!”  Tallis shouted.  She was not helping Jenus, evidently.

There was a bell chime, and a general command came through the speakers, interrupting the awkward moment.  “This is XO Tollan Lindra.  All Spectre operations team members are to report to the conference room immediately.  All crew are to familiarize themselves with their personal mission briefings, which are now available to access.  Personnel are to be mission ready in one hour.

Saved, or what she thought was saved by the break, Jenus wondered, “Hey, where’s Red?”

“I’m sure she’ll be here,” Mira said as she looked around, “But where’s Iole.  She should have arrived by now.”

~ ~ ~ ~

(Note:  The following was a collaboration with Shotgun Julia)

“Tip our hand by making an exception for you? Is that what you’re thinking? That I’m going through channels?” Naleena said looking at the detective with a bit of disbelief. She’s been working for C-sec too long and her mind is confined to rules and regulations. Naleena thought.

“Molly, think a moment. I’m not making any exception. Go outside the box. You’re officially off the case, and we want them to continue to think that. So we improvise. I'll fabricate something. I have a huge project, and I can't be chasing down every single lead that comes my way. I need someone who can go out, do a preliminary investigation, and determine whether a lead is worth following," Naleena said with a sly look on her face. "My project is top secret, so C-sec won't be able to verify anything. You have excellent investigative and forensic skills: Skills I can easily justify that I need.”

She waved her left hand to the side. "Of course, I'm feeding them a line of varren sh*t, and I don't care about that. It gets the job done and no one gets hurt.”

Hagen's world was being flipped around, where people she worked with for years were turning their backs on her and a family who would die over it. The confusion and struggle going on in her head formed into what felt like a solid mass that slipped down into the pit of her stomach. "I'm not a traitor..." That mass curled tightly in her innards, and Molly grabbed a wall.

"That doesn't look good," Iole said. She made a concerned glance towards Arian, and then tried to hold the detective to steady her.

Molly pushed the Commando away, and then bent over at the waist as she dry heaved.

[TheMajonese]

It took Arian a few seconds to realise what was happening. Then he recognised the woman, he remembered seeing her in front of the Afterlife after she got literally thrown out. He had no idea who she was and what her business on the Janiri was but she obviously was upset, even hysterical.

 

"Maybe you should see a doctor?", Arian asked, knowing how stupid it was. He certainly had no idea what else he could do to help.

[Kel Riever]

Previously...( http://forum.bioware...res/?p=18465255 )

Somewhere in the Terminus Systems

Xhuan Setura felt the fresh air pass through her nose and into her lungs as she ran between the orange leaved woodland.  Her feet were light and fast.  Her strides powerful.  Her eyes keen for her prey.  On her back holster was her usual Eviscerator, but for this special hunt she also carried her two curved traditional blades on her back.  Xhuan’s intent was to handle the matter without firing a shot.

There had been a sound an hour ago.  It was perhaps a wail, or a scream.  Someone might have spotted Xhuan as she moved through the saffron colored grasslands before the wood.  She had made no attempts to conceal her movements at the time, and it satisfied her that her prey might know she was coming. 

When Xhuan had first entered the wood, a trace of her prey had made her ponder.  It had been a bloody, torn outer garment.  There might have been a fight, she determined, as the blood was enough to indicate a grievous injury, but not enough to indicate immediate death.  She expected to find a body as she ran, but did not, which only served to increase her curiosity.

Then, perhaps a mile later, Xhuan had found where the fugitives may have taken some sort of break.  Important items had been left behind, such as a sleeping back, and a fire kit.  Another quarter mile revealed an entire backpack had been discarded.  Knowing the fugitives had little time to grab precious gear, she figured they knew their lives were at stake.  No one had been foolish enough to set up an ambush, so perhaps they knew the kind of trouble they were in.  This did not surprise Xhuan.  Terminus raiders could be savage.  But terminus raiders might leave survivors.

Another several minutes of pursuit and Xhuan came across a pistol.  Now the fugitives were dropping things they knew not to.  Was their panic so severe?  Xhuan crouched to examine the weapon and its position.  It was dropped haphazardly, and had in fact flung some bit, but what grabbed her attention the most was the blood spatter across its surface. 

From ahead was the discernable sound of panic from someone, then their cries were cut short.  The wood around Xhuan was covered with dead foliage, but not enough to hinder movement.  The light that passed through the canopy was dim.  Xhuan’s sharp eyes thought they saw a distant shadow through the trees far ahead, and leaves rustled audibly enough from the same direction to reach her ears.  With a quick examination above, Xhuan saw the branches of many of the trees were clear and ample, providing her with another option of travel.  The asari leapt upward, to make her way leaping from limb to limb with sure feet and hands, now chasing her mark from on high.

At last, Xhuan found her prey.  A haggard man, his back against a tree, had only his colonist’s survival outfit and a long utility knife in his hands.  He was backed against a faraway tree, waiting for his pursuer, with wild eyes, ready to make his last stand.

“Come on!”  The man yelled, desperately, knowing his life was over.

Xhuan grinned and her green eyes lit with satisfaction.  She would take this man with nothing but her hands.  She wouldn’t even use her biotics.  She would snap his bones with her fists and then break his neck.  Then she would seek his companions, wherever they had gone to, though she found it odd they would have left him alone, since he was uninjured.  Xhuan crouched on the thick branch limb she perched upon, setting herself up for her charge.  Her fingers noticed something torn and rough, so she looked down to see what she had put them on.

Deep scars were cut into the branch, like large swords had been used to cleave the wood.  The scars were fresh, and in some, smears of red were visible.

Rustling from the trees ahead and the man’s yell snapped Xhuan’s attention back to her prey. 

A massive creature descended like a flash from the tree the man had his back against.  It was perhaps three meters at the shoulder and quite long, like a large, carnivorous cat.  It had eight legs, however, a wider jaw, blue eyes, and a short haired coat that seemed to shift between violet and black in color.  The man was trying to raise his knife upward but it was too late, as the creature’s jaws unhinged and it ate him whole.  The creature then steadied itself calmly on the ground with its clawed feet, extended its head and neck, and swallowed the man entirely into its stomach.  Xhuan witnessed in fascination as the creature calmly re-hinged its jaw.  It sniffed at the ground, checking for any remnants it might have missed and licked its lips with a long, pink tongue.

Xhuan’s smile broadened as she thought about the beast and its kind.  There was treasure surely to be found on this world after all.  She could not wait to tell Iyana…

[Kel Riever]

(Note:  The following was a collaboration with Shotgun Julia)

“Easy, Molly,” Naleena said trying to reassure the detective. “You’re not a traitor.”

Iole saw the Spectre had the situation in hand, whatever was going on.  She'd seen stress before, but it never got easier.  Though she wasn't familiar with Arian, she made a discreet gesture towards the turian that perhaps they should move on to the meeting room.

 

Naleena guided Molly back into the Observation Lounge and sat down with her on a couch and closed the door. “As a Spectre I choose my own assignments. The Council can’t be bothered with every crime committed in the galaxy, and that’s why it created the SPECTRE’s Office. Going after Iyana is an assignment I’ve chosen, but I can’t focus on it.

 

“We have to be very careful in how we go about this, Molly,” Naleena said putting her hand on Molly’s shoulder. “Iyana is part of the Shadow Broker network. People in government could be as well. You fear people in your department could be compromised, so a little misdirection isn’t unwarranted. All we’re doing is feeding them a little disinformation. You’re still working for The Council.”

 

"Okay," Molly said, not so much in agreement with what Naleena was saying, but an acquiescence that she needed to calm down. Hagen's stomach did another somersault, but she stopped her worst reactions.

 

"Okay, I need help. I admit it." This time Molly did directly answer Naleena's proposal. The fallout of what was happening outpaced her ability to pull it all in, but she started on the path to accepting the answer might be with the Spectre. "I've got to think this through, make sure all the 'i's are dotted and the 't's are crossed. This can't be some half-cocked plan."

 

“I have something in mind, but what you need to do now is give VERA you C-sec access codes. Let me explain,” Naleena said, “The order probably hasn’t arrived in the C-sec IT department yet. You need to get copies of all your files before they lock you out, and VERA will follow you inside and clean any trace of you doing that. You need to trust her.

 

“Right now I have a team briefing and a mission. You stay on the ship and take care of this. I’ll talk with you again afterward,” Naleena said, stood, and left.

Molly sat right back in the chair she'd fallen asleep in, and her eye caught the tea and muffin left for her.  Sickened by their appearance, she shoved them away, sending them crashing to the floor.  Hagen gripped the arms of the chair tightly as her stomach flipped again and pressed her eyelids closed.

"Perhaps you would care for a pharmaceutical to settle your nerves?" VERA's voice asked.  The detective looked up, and the hologram of VERA in her business outfit was projected in front of her.  VERA held a cigarette precipitiously, and watched Hagen with a worried expression.

The idea of an AI in Molly's presence didn't help.

"No thanks...," Molly managed to say as she dry heaved once more.  Saliva ran thick in her mouth.  "You better get those access codes from me while you can..."

[Cainhurst Crow]

Essul looked to jenus as she passed, raising up his helmet to slip it on right as a small blush started to come across his features. Compliments were something new for Essul, even working in the hegemony things were usually a lot more formal than aboard this ship. He took his seat, a small smile playing behind his tinted helmet, obscured from the others view.

 

"Yo..." Came a reply from the doorway as Vayne walked in, dressed in his red armor and looking around with a raised brow, eye scanning the room. "...The heck's everyone else?" He asked aloud as he plopped into his chair, looking at the briefing as he tilted his head. "So whose got what? I'd like to know if I got the easy or the hard job."

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Janiri Conference Room

 

The team waited in the conference room discussing the situation on Omega and possible outcomes. They didn’t know anything about the plans Naleena and Aria had discussed. Everything had been handled on a ‘need to know’ basis, and up until now they didn’t need to know. That, however, just changed.

 

The door opened and the Spectre entered and glided to the head of the table. She set three datapads on the table and tapped a couple of buttons. VERA’s holo-image appeared in her position in the center of the table. She seemed to be a bit more detailed now, and her “office” took on a more realistic appearance.

 

“Good morning,” Naleena said to start the meeting. “I think it’s time to brief you on what’s going on.”

 

Naleena informed the team about what the plan was to deal with the insurgents on Omega, and VERA highlighted the region on the 3D projection she brought up over the center of the table. The team was also informed about the evacuation of two districts and the deal to rebuild the station afterward. Certain details were left out due to confidentiality agreements in the documents.

 

“It is fortunate that the insurgency is confined to the tip of the station at the moment since this will minimize casualties,” VERA said, “However, Omega has a population of 7 million inhabitants and the evacuation of the two districts will result in even more overcrowding. A space station is a confined space. When the Janiri and Zorya cut the tip off the station, the vibration of from that is expected to shake the station. The closest approximation is a seismic event. My studies of organics in crowded confined places during these types of events range from unsettling to panic.”

 

VERA then showed amateur films taken during the aftermath of Sovereign’s attack on the Citadel. “While authorities made a valiant effort to evacuate the 13.2 million inhabitants from the Citadel in 2183, only those living in the Presidium were able to evacuate, while those living in the wards were not. There was a high level of looting in the chaos that took place during the attack and in its immediate aftermath before C-sec was able to restore control.”

 

VERA paused for a moment, then continued. “I found it odd that organics would use the time when their own lives were in danger to seek out material goods that would not improve their chances for survival. It would have been logical to take food and weapons, but instead luxury items were the most frequently stolen.”

 

“This is exactly what we’re concerned about: looting and people taking advantage of the situation. My guess is that the average mercs will be ill-prepared to handle the situation. It calls for calm,” Naleena said, “But you’re professionals. You can do this. You’ll be assisting Aria’s team and helping them coordinate their efforts. I believe in you.”

 

Irina raised her hand. “Where will you be? And what are the ROE?”

 

“I'll be on the ship coordinating the effort between us and the Zorya,” Naleena said, “Aria will determine the ROE.”

[Cknarf]

Professional? Yep! That's me.

 

"I'll do my best to keep the ladies of the station under control." Frank nodded. "Alas, I am but one man."

 

Frank looked to Essul.

 

"You'll have to handle the overflow, buddy.  You're tall, chicks dig that. Make me proud."

[Kel Riever]

The four Commandos in Team Boom stared at Naleena with eyes wide in shock as the details of the briefing sunk in.

"That's a lot of people who are going to die," Iole said, her golden eyes flickering in the residual light of VERA's projection.

"Disaster.  Disaster." Tallis echoed.  Her face was sad.

Even Jenus' typically cavalier demeanor had subsided.  "Party is over for those people getting chopped."  She drew a line across her neck with her finger. "Nobody's walking that off."

Mira's eyes went to the estimated casualty numbers on her datapad.  Of the four, she was most stunned.  "Eighty thousand souls...."
 

[Cainhurst Crow]

"We're venting Omega? That's the plan, just vent out those people into space?" Vayne asked skeptically, looking at naleena with a sidewards stare of surprise as he read out the details, "Can't we just quarantine that area, find a way to fix whatever that preacher did to them?"

 

"It's not going to work. There are too many in that area who are now, whether they wanted to be or not, armed enemy combatants..." Essul said plainly, speaking in a voice of restrained anger at the situation, head looking down instead of at vayne, "The minute we try to seal them off, they'll try and charge or try and find alternate routes. And on omega, they'll probably find them."

 

"So we just up and shoot them into space, kill them all?" Vayne demanded as his attention shifted to essul, glaring at the batarian as he spoke, "Even you aught to know that's an extreme measure for this. There's bound to be more than a couple innocent people down there. Or does the SIU train in the school of acceptable losses when it comes to bad spots like this?"

 

"There is no doubt going to be casualties. In fact, I dare say this whole plan will ensure that there will be casualties lost. But we do not have a choice. These cultists appear to have purged the humans in their controlled territory already. Their members were all affected by the reprogramming number in the thousands. There are too many to save, and not enough time to do it before they ensure many hundreds of thousands more die." Essul stated flately as he looked the krogan in the eyes, his own narrowing as he spoke, "We can either do nothing and ensure more die and suffer, or mitigate the loss to how ever small a number as we can! That is how the Special Intervention Unit operates, if you truly wish to know."

 

"Don't worry, I understand it clear enough. It's the economics of life, isn't it? Get the least amount of people killed with the fewest costs to doing it. I've dealt with that attitude before, and I've had to do it one too many damn times myself..." Vayne said with a growl at the batarians responses. To him, essul seemed all too easy at discussing this loss, and he damn well wanted to make sure the batarian knew exactly what he was saying before he was one talking, "All I say is that there isn't a reason to go patting yourself on the shoulder for saving on expenses. Especially when there's gonna be a lot of damn blood spilled just to make us out of the red. But I'm sure you already weighed that out and found it okay to live with, huh?" He asked sarcastically, before essul seemed to explode.

 

"Do not DARE make that claim of me, Kavadar!!" essul said as he slammed a fist on the table, rising to his feet to glare at vayne, as the krogan rose to his feet as well, returning the look with a growl of his own, "I know full well the costs of what we're about to do, and I'm damn well not going to brush off my blame for when it happens. But it's going to happen whether we want it to or not. So we can either get it done now, and get to work keeping the rest of this station from plunging into anarchy. Or we can sit around and feel sorry for ourselves for what we have to do, and let others suffer because of what we could do..." He said as he lowered his fists, not even realizing he'd raised them into a fighting stance to begin with.

 

"We can't save all of them...that's not the choice we have. What choice we do have, is how many people we save after this tragedy strikes..." Essul said as he continued to stare vayne in the eyes, "So...what's it going to be?"

 

Vayne was silent, still growling at the batarian as he worked to cool down his temper and urge to rip the man in half. It wasn't a good idea to work up a krogan, and if it were any other, this would have ended in a fight a while ago, "I'm in, dammit...Just don't say crap like that so lightly." he said simply as he retook his seat.

 

Both kept glaring at each other for a full minute until they looked away, their tempers back from boiling to simmering once more.

[TheMajonese]

Arian really liked this plan. Of course cutting a part off of the station was probably also going to kill innocents that were still living in these districts and cause panic on the rest of Omega but it would solve this whole cultist problem at one go. 

 

He had followed the argument between Vayne and Essul without saying anything. After the krogan's last words Arian knew he shouldn't say anything about his own feelings on this plan. For him the necessity of taking action against this threat was enough reason to sacrifice innocents and he had no problem with it as long as there weren't any other options. Besides, if Naleena had choosen to take such a measure than Arian wasn't going to question her.

 

"So what are we waiting for?", he asked. "The sooner we get rid of this cult the better." 

[Cknarf]

Off to a good start, team.

 

Frank shook his head.

 

If that sh*t happens again, I might have to take control of the situation... BY FORCE.

 

He wasn't opposed to headbutting everyone, even while sober.

 

"That's what I like to hear!" Frank thrust a finger in Arian's direction. "Sh*t or get off the pot, amirite?"

[Kel Riever]

"Why don't we relax, a little bit, about killing a city's worth of people," Iole looked at Frank with some scorn.  "I don't think this is exactly cause for celebration."

Jenus looked at her companion hard, the purple facial markings on her cheekbones serving only to emphasize the stare.  "Hey, this isn't the Princess Dawn cruise line here.  We're the good guys, and we do what we can to save people.  And if we have to kill a bunch of brain dead, murdering civies to save a station, even if it is filled with a bunch of vermin and whores, then I say drop the f**king hammer, like the Spectre says!  No more tongue time for them.  They're already gone."

Iole looked like she was going to leap across the table and strangle Jenus.

[TheMajonese]

Arian raised one eyebrow on Frank's words. "Ahm...yes...", he said slowly. "I think that's what I meant.

[Cknarf]

"Hey, if making a balls-out run with a shuttle to scoop up some non-crazies was an option, you can bet your fine blue ass that I'd be on my way right now."

 

Frank targeted Iole with his finger.

 

"There's nothing we can do, right, boss?"

 

He looked to Naleena.

 

"Because... I'd be more than willing to make a rescue attempt." He nodded. "I just need a shuttle."

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Naleena stood in front of the group listening to everything they were saying. Her leather armor felt unusually hot. Sweat beaded on her forehead and trickled down her temples. The operation had evolved well past the simple recon mission that Aria had originally requested. She remained deep in her thoughts. Vayne is right; it's a slaughter now. There's no glory in this. I didn't ask for this crap. Trouble comes to me in big dark swarms. The good and the just, they're like gold dust in this galaxy. I have no illusions. I'm not one of them. I'm no hero. My options have decreased to a singular course.

 

"Okay, enough! I don't like this anymore than you do, but you know what Dr. Tolus said about the situation. They spread the prions through the food supply. Someone deliberately contaminated it. By now, everyone up there is infected or will soon be," Naleena said, and she began to walk back and forth in the front of the room. "You know Dr. Tolus and VERA's analyses. We have data from 2183 captured by Commander Shepard on Virmire concerning Reaper Indoctrination. This fits the pattern. If there were a cure, I'd have it distributed through the ventilation system, but there isn't any, and that narrows our options considerably."

 

Naleena stopped and faced all of her team. "I'll make one last call to The Council. If they have a better solution, I'll call you back in here and we'll implement it. If not, we're going ahead with this mission as planned."

[Cknarf]

Frank stood, and stepped away from the table.

 

"Sh*t."

 

He went back for his helmet, and put it under his arm, before stepping out of the conference room.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Frank sent a message, as the elevator descended.

 

[Hey commando, meet me in the shuttle bay if you've got a minute.]

 

The doors opened, and he stepped into the bay. He stopped before the Scythe.

 

After a quick glance at something on his omni-tool, he shrugged, and climbed inside. He took a seat in the cockpit, and looked around.

 

Neat.

[Kel Riever]

As soon as the meeting was adjourned, Iole got up and stormed out.

"What's crawled up her a*s?" Jenus asked , but her eyes avoided watching Iole as she left.

Tallis stood up sharply and turned towards Jenus. She angrily raised two fingers to her lips, spread them to form a 'V', and stuck her tongue through. Then she left as well.

In the hall, Iole saw the message from Frank. She cursed loudly, then strode the quickest path she could take to the hangar. When she got there, she went immediately to the Scythe and climbed aboard. She wanted to unleash her fury, but a feeling she couldn't explain held her back.

"What?" was all Iole could manage to ask.

[Cknarf]

"Glad you could make it." Frank looked up from his omni-tool.

 

He closed the shuttle schematics, and motioned for Iole to sit in the other seat.

 

"I meant what I said in there. About the rescue." 

 

Frank lightly ran his hands over the controls.

 

"I know it's  unlikely..."

 

Super duper highly unlikely

 

"But depending on how the call goes with the council, there might actually be a chance to make the run."

 

He sat back, and rested his head against the seat.

 

"Now I know I can fly this thing. It's not a Kodiak, but I've got a good idea of how everything works."

 

Good enough, anyways.

 

"But, I would feel much better if I had a co-pilot..."

 

Still laid back, he turned his head to face her.

 

"What do you think?"

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

"VERA, please patch me through to The Council, and forward copies of Dr. Tolus' report to them," Naleena asked. It was a futile request and she knew it, but she had to try. One last time. For the innocent.

 

VERA took a deep drag off her cigarette and blew the plume of smoke out while shaking her head. "If you think it will help, Boss."

 

The connection to The Council went live. Councilor Tevos was the first to speak. "Spectre T'sarius, I see that you're on Omega and have your hands full. What do you want us to do?"

 

Naleena stood before them trying to remain calm. "We are facing a situation that is deteriorating rapidly. You see the reports I sent you that indicate the inhabitants of that district of Omega have all or very soon will all be indoctrinated. According to Dr. Tolus, this is Reaper Indoctrination."

 

"But you're using Shepard's reports from Virmire," Sparatus said, "She nuked the facility. There was no way to go back in and verify."

 

"I know what my team saw. You have our omni-tool cams data. You have our hard data. You have the data from Saren Arterius' researcher on Reaper Indoctrination. The pattern all matches up," Naleena said.

 

"Then why are you contacting us?" Udina asked.

 

"I am hoping that you have a better plan than this," Naleena said, speaking in a much more calm and rational tone. "There are a lot of lives at stake. 80,000 lives at stake. If there is any assistance you can render to Omega."

 

"Omega is deep in the Terminus Systems. Sending in any kind of military force would risk open war," Councilor Valern said.

 

"But...." Naleena started to say.

 

Sparatus interrupted. "Did you not understand your job when you took it, Spectre? You take on assignments, assess situations, and make decisions. If you didn't want to make this decision, why did you take on the assignment?"

 

"It was supposed to be a simple recon mission," Naleena replied.

 

"It doesn't look like a simple recon mission to me." Udina said.

 

"Well, screw you! You know these things can happen. Don't you support your field agents?" Naleena said, her aura beginning to glow.

 

"Enough!" Tevos shouted. "The Council gave you a state-of-the-art ship for your support in your assignment. This was valuable information that you uncovered, and it indicates that the enemy is on the move. However, we must leave the disposition of Omega up to you. Good luck, Spectre."

 

Before Naleena could reply the connection went dark. Luck. They wished her luck. She felt like Lady Luck was really a hooker and she was fresh out of credits. She started to lift a chair with her biotics, and VERA appeared. It disarmed her. VERA had the ability to disarm about anyone. There was something about the way she looked and acted. It got under your skin and made you feel comfortable. Naleena opened the cabinet, and pulled out a tumbler and poured a drink.

 

"Sorry, VERA, I need one," she said, and slammed it down, the liquid warming her inside and soon pulsing to her head dulling the pain. "VERA, would you inform the team and the commandos that the mission is going ahead as planned, and that they are to report to Aria inside Afterlife within the next 30 minutes. Inform Commander Selani to prepare to depart."

 

"Yes, Boss," VERA replied. She began the announcement.

[Kel Riever]

Iole returned Frank's look with golden eyes, hesitating a moment before taking the seat next to him in the cockpit of the Scythe.

"Sure."

For a while, the Commando pulled away her gaze, and thought about Frank's hands working the controls, expertly, despite the complexity of the Asari Republics shuttle customized for Naleena's use.  She took the co-pilot's yoke, for manual handling, and grasped it.

"I expect Jenus to say what she did," Iole said, a tinge of sadness in her words, "Because she's a killing machine."  She went silent, and turned back to Frank, letting him complete her second sentence in his mind.

The priority message light on Iole and Frank's omni-tools flashed at that moment.  The message was from Naleena.  Iole opened her omni-tool and read the confirmation that the mission was going ahead as planned.  When the message sunk in, she let go a heavy breath.  Defeated, she got up and stood over Frank, scrunching the corner of her mouth as if thinking about something for a minute.

Then Iole bent over and kissed Frank before she headed for the shuttle exit.