6315 réponses à ce sujet

[Redbelle]

Jess listened as Anika spoke to Keith and rolled her eye's as she spoke to Roseanne. "That's Anika for you. Still, when it comes to handling firearms she knows everything there is to know. If she's offering a one on one to fix up that gun, it's probably because she thinks it's dangerous to handle".

 

"Now, I've got you and the young ones two quarters next to each other. One for you and your daughter and one for your son. Feel free to figure out who goes where. Beds are made so you can crash right away when you need too....". As they spoke Jess stopped outside a hatch and she pulled it open for the group. "As for paying for what you get..... C'mon luv. Really? Morgan's first mate. That makes you guests of honor in my book. You'll take our hospitality and we'll be happy to provide it..... Especially.....". She said dropping her voice so only Roseanne could hear her. ".....considering someone might be watching your accounts to see where in the galaxy your accessing your money from. We can get it of course. Make it untraceable so you have some finance behind you again. But don't you go saying that this is a transaction between us. No one messes with my crew. Which by extension means no one messes with you". Jess raised her voice again with a smile. "Now what say we see what Sherie's got cooking? I hate to admit, but she's good.....". Jess turned away and stepped through the hatch while muttering. "....even if she is insufferable".

[Kel Riever]

Keith looked like Anika had just stepped on his favorite toy and crushed it when she talked about his Revenant.  Then when she pulled out the Typhoon, he was taken.  The line about killing people seemed to have less of an impact on Keith than Anika's own admiration for her weapon.  She liked it, and as a consequence, he did.

"Yeah, but...don't you want to, you know, sometimes put a personal touch on it?  Like a gold lightning bolt or something on it."  Keith became a bit proud then.  "Like Ms. Marvel...that's who you're like!"  Keith gasped as if he had a sudden insight and looked Anika up and down.  Obviously he was having a moment.  But he did manage to sputter, "And, uh, yeah, you could show me how to fix it.  I'd want it to shoot if I had to look some bad guys in the face, again."

Jen stayed behind in the quarters Jess had shown her, explaining that she'd be along in a bit, but to save something for her to eat.  She smiled in thanks, but it faded as she was still weighed down by the events that had happened.  Rosanne listened patiently to Jess along the way.  Both Keith and the mother were quiet as they were pleasantly served by Sherie in her perfectionist way.  Keith was quiet as he was thinking about guns, and what he thought was the incarnation of a super heroine talking to him about weapons.  Rosanne was much more attentive, soaking in what Jess said.

The meal took some time.  The Severn's were famished, then Jen finally showed up, visibly looking improved if not full of joy.  She took her own turn eating, and when she was finally finished, the plates being taken away by Sherie (who had to refuse Rosanne three times with her offers to help), Rosanne got to talking.

"I know my kids come off as young, but I bet they're close to your age, Captain, give or take." Rosanne grinned with humor as she got a bit of a scowl from Jen.  The comment passed right over Keith, or he simply had no argument with the statement.  "But take my daughter, she's been an accomplished academic, and hasn't had to do anything such as fend for her own self.  Not that she couldn't, mind you..."

"I am, in fact, right here, Mom."

"...Keith is Keith, of course.  But I do pride myself in that they'll do whatever they need.  And your offer is very generous, Captain, but I'd worry that we'd all become a bit stir crazy if there wasn't something for us to do.  We're not worried about the money."

That part, Keith heard.  "I am!  Do you know the important work I was doing archiving the great works of American literature?"

"Comic books," Jen said.  "Not that they aren't great."

"And guns!  Ms. Marvel over here...do you know the critical things we could do restoring trophy guns to their proper function."

"That's a bit overboard, isn't it, Keith?" Jen teased.

"Hey, you be the neurologist.  I'm the, uh, whatever Indiana Jones was."

"Kids, you aren't helping my point," Rosanne said.  She rolled her own eyes this time.  "So, you see, Captain.  Please don't be offended, your hospitality is second to none.  But even on a beautiful ship like this, I think we'd all be out of place without something to do.  Besides, there are some important requests we have that go far beyond hospitality.  Jen needs a particular kind of care and with the sudden flight from our home, we will need to get her the supplies for however long we'll be here.  They are rather expensive."

Jen didn't look comfortable, but necessity always had her aboveboard about her condition. "The suit I'm wearing cares for me, but without going into the details, I've got a machine that I've got to access daily.  The maintenance is astronomic, let alone the cost of the pharmaceuticals.  It's a genetic disorder so there's no getting rid of it.  I think that's how this all came about...where we're at...Morgan covering my treatment.  We wouldn't be in this situation if it wasn't for me."

Rosanne looked hurt for her daughter, as if she'd had a conversation with her all her life that hadn't gotten through.  She, however, steered the conversation in another direction.  "My son, Morgan, I'm surprised to hear he's your first mate.  I am not sure what that means entirely, but I am not surprised to hear he's in a position of responsibility.  That's him, and while he and I haven't always seen eye to eye as he's grown up, I think deep down we both have more in common that we'd like to admit."

Jess felt that Rosanne had been taking more of an interest in her than the talk she'd been giving.  Morgan's mother seemed to be keen on something about her.  "All of what we need we can ask for in due time, including Jen's medical necessities.  But if I could have you answer anything for us while we're all here, could you please tell me how my son met such a wonderful person as you?"

[Redbelle]

Jess's eye's unfocused slightly as she thought back to when she and Morgan had actually met.

 

"Funny.... When we met it was.... strained. I was helping a Specter investigate colony disappearances. Morgan I assumed was just a bit of hired muscle with a shy streak. We had a few scrapes. We found the colonies were going dark because of an re-purposed alien race. Met their replacements to on Duellos. We tried to stop them but if you ever see armored hulks in an insect like carapace calling themselves Aspirants...... run".

 

"Shoot them first". Anika chipped in. "Then run while they scramble for cover".

 

"Just..... run". Jess continued. "Anyway, That's where we met. Aboard a ship called the Audron. Your son though was.... distracted. He had a lot of things on his mind back then. That much weight on a mans shoulders? It got me curious. I kept an eye on him and eventually found him heading off on his own....".

 

Sherie arrived with a pot of coffee and deposiited several of the china cups down that now held a dull looking glaze on them. Jess picked one up and examined it. "You got them dipped then"?

 

"My husband did it". Sherie sniffed. "He told me you ordered him to make them unbreakable".

 

"When the ship performs a high speed turn the compensators can't fully adjust for you'll be glad.....".

 

"Captain..... I do not tell you how to run your ship. Do not tell me what to be thankful for in my own kitchen".

 

"Mess hall".

 

"Of course you'd say that". And with a lingering look, Sherie turned and strode off. Back ramrod straight with the tray clutched so hard in her hands her knuckles turned white.

 

Jess looked after her quizzically before shrugging and reached out to pour the coffee. "Now your son was solid. We stormed a collector ship together and he kept the heat off me while I shut down the ships core".

 

"Of course, I was just there looking pretty". Anika said dryly, picking up her cup and taking a sip. "Now Keith, good maintenance can keep a gun that's okay into one that can shoot a hole through a cred chip that's got a hole from the last shot fired through it with only point five mil change in it's firing arc. My Typhoon's not that accurate, but the four shots it fires before unleashing a firestorm are the most accurate shots it'll put out before the rate of fire causes the barrel to shake itself so a tightly assembled frame is key......".

 

".....We captured a ship, the three of us, escaped a cult of re purposed humans meant for slave labor by some faction we never found out who". Jess continued. "And later on Omega I met his employer....". Jess went quiet for a moment before continuing. "She and I had a talk and in the end I convinced her to let Morgan go after some downright hostile negotiation. Turns out she wanted to keep him. Why is a bit up for debate since she probably wanted to keep him for his length of service.... My first mate was due to retire and Morgan seemed a good sort to have under me. There was a bit more that happened to us..... the details would bore you I'm sure". Jess picked up her own coffee and took a gulp, feeling the hot liquid burn it's way her throat as she lowered it to watch the ripples across the surface.

[Redbelle]

"Head shots are okay but slam enough rounds into their torso you can either crack their armor wide open or give them the equivalent of a sledgehammer to the gut. But only if you can get through their barriers. Now remember, barriers have transformed the way the modern soldier fights. They will stay out of cover longer to apply their fire to a target. So when you make first contact one of the things to be aware of is how do they react under fire. Trained soldiers have to know how to fight with and without barriers and armor. The average hired gun though will develop bad habits that a drill Sargent never had the opportunity to beat out of them during boot camp. Most never use properly maintained gear so their gear changes a lot. that can lead to old habits maintaining themselves even when their gear has altered and they have to learn new habits.... That's the time when most hired guns get themselves killed. The best soldier's take care of every aspect of their equipment while being mindful of what changing a piece of equipment can do to your combat strategy......". Anika continued.

[Kel Riever]

Keith and Jen listened like Jess was talking about someone they never knew.  But it seemed like they were getting the idea.

Everytime Anika would talk about guns, Keith would start nodding his head vigorously.

Jen seemed to assess Jess a bit, wondering about her, but seemingly unable to come to any conclusions.  There certainly was an intelligence in her expression, and she seemed quickest to fill in certain blanks, if not certain others.

But when Jess watched Rosanne, the mother was keen on every word, even if she didn't fully comprehend the references to battles fought.  Frankly, she seemed more interested in what was behind the words.  And by the time Jess was picking up her coffee, she didn't need to catch Rosanne's eyes to know what they were thinking:

Oh child, yes, I know.

Rosanne made a pleasant sound, perhaps of approval, and perhaps a bit amused.  "Well, Captain, what I do love about this ship is that you've provided us with our own space, and we can stay out of your way whenever necessary.  My compliments to the chef, the coffee is delicious, and we'll be glad to get ourselves sorted out before bothering you with anything.  Except for Keith here, who I think has found someone you'll have to pry him away from.  Don't you be shy about asking us for things we can do, though.  We're here to help with whatever we can."

[TheMajonese]

When he climbed out of the skycar, Arian didn't give any reaction to Irina's story. He had no idea how he should react to it, but he felt the need to ask what these things were that Irina tried to forget. Things that she had seen? Or done? Maybe she was a murderer as well, maybe it was something different. In the end, Arian didn't ask.

 

Upon entering the arena there were other things that caught his attention. This whole place looked more like a casino than an actual arena and if there hadn't been the large logo of the Armax Arsenal Arena, he would have believed to be in the wrong place. "This place is a joke...", he muttered. "Why would people even come here to watch the fights? I mean...it's just a simulation, how can someone enjoy that?"

[Redbelle]

Jess nodded her assent. "Look luv, you don't have to tell me that being on a ship with nothing to do will drive a person stir crazy. You want work? I can find plenty for you to do. I just need an idea as to what your skills are, or if I need to pull the second mate away to train you up on other aspects of ship life. But that can wait till after you've had a chance to rest. After that I've got Dogger scheduled to give you the safety lecture on life aboard. Basic stuff like keep all hatches closed behind you. Where the emergency air shelters are if we decompress. What to do in the event of a fire. Stuff like that. As for your daughter, I want her to speak to Doc. If you don't want to tell me the particular's on her condition that's fine but Doc needs to know. When it comes to crew health his authority supersedes mine.... most of the time".

 

Jess then gestured to the hatch leading to the outside. "The crews a handful, just assembled in fact. Been through some stuff though. Just tell me if any are being unruly towards any of you three and I'll set them right. We run this ship merchant style so sometimes someone will test boundaries. If you don't enforce a boundary someone tests I will. That's all I'll say on discipline for now. Doubt you'll have trouble though. This lot have been meek as lambs for the most part".

[Kel Riever]

The Severns parted, with again, a heaping of thanks.  Keith was asking Anika when he could get his gun fixed, or if she, perhaps, could get him started training for a fight in case he needed to.  He was like an overly eager, sock-sandled puppy.  Rosanne braved offering help in the kitchen, which she was sure to call the kitchen, as her next stop.  Jen was last to leave, letting Jess know that she wouldn't mind at all sharing the information with the onboard doctor (it took her a bit to get that he was actually called 'Doc').  She wasn't shy about explaining her condition, and summed it up as saying the device she'd brought along delivered a battalion of pharmaceuticals into her via the suit.  Jen called her affliction something like 'go-SHAYZ' disease, and then she spelled it out: g-a-u-c-h-e-r.  Her specific condition was actually a derivation of that.  One of the odd, and very rare disorders that modern medicine simply handled best with a treatment, astronomical as the tab was for it.  Jen explained her life was mostly normal, didn't need to wear her silvery suit most of the time and did out of habit, and then hit Jess with the daily price tag.

$122,400 credits.

Every day.

In other words, $44,676,000 credits a year.
 

And that was with proper access.

Jen went to see Doc after speaking with Jess, and began doing what she could to acclimate herself to the Medusa.

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

When he climbed out of the skycar, Arian didn't give any reaction to Irina's story. He had no idea how he should react to it, but he felt the need to ask what these things were that Irina tried to forget. Things that she had seen? Or done? Maybe she was a murderer as well, maybe it was something different. In the end, Arian didn't ask.

 

Upon entering the arena there were other things that caught his attention. This whole place looked more like a casino than an actual arena and if there hadn't been the large logo of the Armax Arsenal Arena, he would have believed to be in the wrong place. "This place is a joke...", he muttered. "Why would people even come here to watch the fights? I mean...it's just a simulation, how can someone enjoy that?"

 

Irina stood with her arms outstretched. "It the spectacle of entertainment, my friend. And there's gambling. Bookmakers place odds on the better players. And the odds change with difficulty factor increases, but you have a better chance of reaching a higher score, too, if things go right," she said as she led Arian down the steps into the place. "Two entry ticket. We'll be fighting."

 

"That'll be 500 CR each," the clerk said.

 

Arian looked astounded at the price.

 

"Here you go, mate." Irina said and plunked down 1000 CR. "Let's go Arian. You can pay me back out of your prize money."

 

The two of them headed into the main facility. It was more of an arcade feel to it than an arena.

 

"Most of the audience watches at home on their vid screens. The cheering we hear is the instant feedback from the interactive hardware they're wearing," she said. "Now, time to enter our names.... Irina 'the Red' - they know me here so smart people bet on me. But you, you're an unknown and they'll bet against you, except for a few. We get paid a flat rate depending upon what we score: 1250 each for bronze; 2500 each for silver; and 5000 each for gold. If you're good, you'll attract a sponsor like Elkoss or Kassa. They'll ask you to do special matches for them and you'll receive bonus credits.

 

"But you're in the wrong century if you wanted to see real fights. Back a couple thousand years ago, my people used to fight in arenas with swords for the Roman Emperor. Gladiators, they called them. Then after that fell, there were tournaments where people fought to the death. But after a while they decided they would lose some of their best fighters that way, so the fights weren't to the death anymore. We saved that stuff for the battle field. Then we invented guns. And now we have this. Don't worry, you will get neural feedback when you're hit.

 

"So let's head down to the locker room and do this."

[Kel Riever]

On schedule, the yacht delivered Morgan to the Citadel a day after his family had gotten there, or so he believed, as he'd maintained his com silence throughout the trip. Even with an alias, he didn't want to take chances.  Once again, Morgan skipped past C-Sec screening, thanks to a little device he'd acquired as a ShadowBroker agent.  He had never needed to fall back on his employment with a Spectre, another relief in case anyone was looking.

When Morgan arrived at the Medusa's dock, he paused to take a long look at the vessel as he first spotted it exiting a lift.  Morgan was amused by his own yearning.  It wasn't just some other, old freighter plying the shipping lanes of connected space.  The Medusa had turned into something else for Morgan, and of course that had more than a little to do with who was aboard.

The gangway was full with supply crates, and certainly a few other crates acquired in Jess' dealings.  Morgan strode towards the Medusa awaiting the contamination scan at the lock, then entering into the forward bay where activity was high.  Dogger was directing crew about, but saw Morgan immediately and broke away from what he was doing.  With a solid pat on Morgan's shoulder, Dogger greeted him and spared not a moment to launch into a status update.  Morgan hadn't even undone his helmet, and held up a hand to stop Dogger for a moment until he could get from him that his family had arrived safely with Anika.  Then Dogger went on with his update.

Morgan listened, knowing Dogger needed to finish for his own sake, then he asked where Jess was.  Dogger let him know.  Morgan followed with a request.

"Tell my family I'm here all in once piece, would you?  Let them know I'll catch up with them soon as I'm able."

Dogger nodded and Morgan went to find Jess.

[TheMajonese]

"I already know what Gladiator fights are." Arian sounded slightly annoyed. He had already heard more that part of human history than he ever wanted to. "That's not what I'm talking about. Where's the point in this arena? You fight, but in the end you get nothing from it. If you're good enough to earn money, then you're certainly waisting your potential in this simulator but you're not going to learn anything about real combat when shooting holograms because you won't get punished for the mistakes you make. And how can people enjoy watching this when it's just people fighting against simulated enemies?" Arian certainly agreed that a fight to the death was something from past ages but he still didn't understand the purpose of this arena.

 

He redied his equipment and although Arian was eager to try out his new weapon, he was certain that he would never visit this place again. Besides, the simulator on the Janiri would probably give him better feedback than the arena.

 

"By the way, I won't need the money I get from this", he said while checking his gun. "So you can have all of it."

[Cainhurst Crow]

Vayne nodded to vera, actually surprised at how quickly the boss had taken care of business as it were. "Back already? These types of stuff usually feel much longer..." He said to himself as he walked up to the door, "Wonder if the new guy did well..." He said before he knocked on the door, a few seconds later opening it as he walked through.

 

"I come bearing gifts. None-double crossing ones at that..." Vayne said as he moved the ice brandy from behind his back, showing it for Naleena to see, "Just to show, not all Krogan are as bad as Wrund. Or take honor as nothing but empty words..." He said with a smile, letting her know he was joking around as he set the ice brandy down.

 

"I'm glad to see you back on you're feet though, boss. Crew could use a leader, and I don't pity you for holding that honor..." He said as he wondered about something, feeling like he wanted to ask, "Say boss, I saw you talkin to some human earlier. I assume he was another one lookin to join our merry crew of misfits..." He said with a chuckle, "How'd it go?"

 

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

 

Essul blinked as he felt the ship be disturbed by the lucky 7, getting up from his seat and getting ready for a fight. He looked around, heartrate elevated and breathing rapid as he slowly calmed down, bringing a hand to rub his 4 eyes.

 

"I need tea...or maybe coffee..." He said to himself, remembering the human drink full of caffine and sugar and milk he'd drank on the ship before, enjoying the bitter flavor of the beverage last time he'd drank it, "Maybe both..." He muttered to himself as he left his quarters, walking towards the mess hall to get something in him.

 

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

 

Yron continued to smirk at falling leaf as she spoke, shrugging his shoulders as he heard her rhetorical question, "Truth is, I thought it was foolish that he ordered everyone to stay back, more ego stroking and what not..." He said with a shake of his head, "If he wanted to fight alone, I wasn't about to stop him. More power to the man, I say..."

 

"As for having more, well I'm not into that sort of thing. I like action, and danger. I work on missions where there's plenty of both, and for whoever offers me plenty of work..." Yron replied as he leaned against the wall casually, "The my newest boss took point, got torn up, and came back? I think that's plenty of danger, and I want to experience every moment of it."

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

"The point it not to learn anything about real combat. The point is to make some easy credits and entertain people. This is a game, and I'm good at it, Arian. I don't enjoy getting my arse shot at all the time, but it's all I know how to do. I'm not exactly young, and one day a round is going to catch me just right and that's gonna be the end of it," she said. "At least here if people have enough money to pay me prize money so i can make a quick 20000 CR for some easy work, I can put it toward a retirement fund and I might be able to save up for relaxing on a tropical beach somewhere.

 

"And I don't want your money. You fight here, you get your share. If you don't want it, make a donation to a charity or something. There's probably some family starving on Palaven that could use it."

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

The Citadel - Janiri

 

Naleena smiled at the old Krogan. “Come in, Vayne. Thank you, and that’s my favorite brand, too. I’ll open a bottle. Have a glass with me,” she said and grabbed a couple of tumblers from her cabinet. “And no, Vayne, I don’t think all Krogan are like Wrund. Asari have their share, too. Nasanna Dantius sent in mercs and mechs and started killing her workers on Illium for some unknown reason. Perhaps she didn’t want to pay them? Who knows? The b*tch was crazy. But she’d apparently p*ssed off enough of the wrong people someone put a hit on her, and now she’s in the Void somewhere.”

 

Naleena looked up at the big Krogan as she poured. “Wrund will get what’s coming to him, if he hasn’t already.”

 

Handing the tumbler to Vayne she continued. “I had a quick business trip to Illium. The human, his name was Roman, he’s an Alliance officer. My boss, Yalson Sao wanted to meet with him. They’re considering him for Spectre. And Sao wanted to go over a mission report with me. Xanthe Remi gave a report to the Council for me while I was in the hospital, and there were some details that were unclear.

 

“Sao put me up at Azure. Nice place. More of a resort hotel, though, so I was quite surprised. I guess he thought I needed it after what happened on Garvug. ‘I thought the trip would do you good,’ he said. ‘You needed a change of scenery for a couple of days.’ And he was right. I’m feeling better. They give great massages at Azure.”

[Redbelle]

WAP WAPWAP WAP..... WAP WAP.

 

Jess stood in front of the punching bag suspended from the cramped exercise room. She'd shrugged off her top and was now simply clad in a sports shirt that showed the sweat from her pummeling workout.

 

'Okay.... okay okay'. He mind worked as she drive her fists into the yielding hi density memory foam. 'So Morgan's sister could bankrupt a small business..... I don't run a two bit operation but damn! That's a cruel cut! And people call me a criminal'?

 

WAPWAPWAP WAP. The bag took a combination that ended with a hook, sending the bag swinging enough that Jess had to pause to let it stop. Breathing hard, she rotated her shoulders and let the tension bleed from her.

 

'Still got to find them work. Iyana's out there. She'll get to them if I let them go. They never asked for this life. Why am I feeling guilty about them living on board'?

 

'Roseanne looked at me funny when I spoke about Morgan'.

 

'...... I miss my family'.

 

The thought came bubbling to the surface before she could push it down and Jess squeezed her eye's shut from the sudden heat she felt. Opening them she saw the bag before her, still swinging slight and Jess raised her fists and started pummeling it again.

 

'I don't miss anyone'.

 

'The old me died. That's where it stays. Grud if Iyana ever found out about my family. This is why you did this Jess. They are safe. It's been over a decade. Their happy, your happy. Just let them live their lives and get on with being Stone.....'.

 

With one last slug at head height Jess staggered back and breathed hard while the bag swung on it's chain. It's surface holding the imprints of her knuckles that the foam was already removing as it surged back to it's original shape.

 

'Roseanne needs to know I can't be with him. Not that way'.

 

'I don't owe her anything'.

 

'Maybe we can figure out a cheaper treatment.... get her daughter onto something that won't break the bank. Get the components and fabricate what she needs...... Grud Jess, your not a doctor. You don't even know what's wrong with her. You can't fix this. It's not yours to fix'!

 

Jess leaned back against one of the treadmill frames and grabbed a bottle of water off where she'd left it.

 

'Stop being everything to everyone. Okay, so having Morgan's family aboard is making me remember mine. To bad I can't do anything about that. Or Jen's treatment's. What I can do is make a tonne of money and try to get my finances back on track. Iyana really broke my bank when she broke my ship. Just be the Captain. Find the opportunities and work out the rest when I have to.... That'll do it".

 

Feeling a little better Jess took a long swallow of water before she winced. "Awww crap. I was supposed to meet Naleena at the strip".

[Cknarf]

"Yo!" Frank shouted, as he entered the bay.

 

"Down here, Eli." Marius spoke over comms. He waved a hand from below deck.

 

"Sup?" He asked, looking down into one of the open compartments in the floor. Marius motioned for him to come down.

 

"Taking inventory. Help me with these, will you?" He asked, as Frank descended the short staircase.

 

"Sure." Frank took hold of the strange wooden box.

 

 

7,62ЛПСГЖ

   

                                                   92

   Л54-77-188                                BT---C

                                                   77

440ШТ.

 

 

"What's in these things?"

 

"Ammunition."

 

"You sure?" Frank grunted a bit as they set down the first of five crates.

 

"Positive."

 

"Feels a bit heavy for a box of clips. Mag blocks?"

 

"Nope. Cartridges."

 

"No sh*t? For what?"

 

"Help me move the rest of these, and I'll show you."

 

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

 

"Where are we going?" Kira asked, stepping into the cockpit. She took a seat at Adir's station.

 

"Headed back to the Serpent Nebula." Quintus opened the map.

 

"Are we going back to the Citadel?"

 

Quintus shook his head.

 

"We're just passin' through. Got a run to make in the Boltzmann system."

 

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

 

"You remember that absolutely gorgeous Earth weapon I practically gave away?" Marius asked, setting down the last of the crates. "The one in the ebony case with gold trim?"

 

"My rifle?"

 

"Yes, that one." Marius was a little upset that it didn't make it aboard. "It wasn't the only thing I picked up on that run." He ducked, and headed further into the hold area. "Follow me. Watch your head, it's a little tight in here."

 

Frank followed.

 

"Russia. That's where I found your rifle." Marius stopped before a much larger crate. "The woman I bought it from, was the wife of an old contact of mine. After his passing, she was stuck with a stockpile of weapons that she wanted nothing to do with. I bought everything she had, including these."

 

Marius pulled open the crate, revealing twenty rifles of wood and steel.

 

"Usually, I can turn a good profit on antique weapons, but I couldn't seem to find a buyer for these." He pulled one out, and handed it to Frank. "Apparently their collector value tanks outside of the Sol system."

 

"What's this gooey stuff?" Frank asked, running a thumb over the engraving on the receiver.

 

1943г

 

"I'm not sure. Some kind of rust preventative, I think.  Try not to get it on your clothes. It's some nasty stuff."

 

"Must work pretty well, 'cause if this is the year of manufacture..."

 

"They are almost 250 years old. The ammunition is close to 200."

 

"And they're still functional?"

 

"Very much, so." Marius nodded.

 

"Neat." Frank worked the bolt, and brought it to his shoulder.

 

"Wait, there's more." Marius produced a crude, 20 inch spike, and affixed it to the end of the rifle.

 

"What the sh*t?" Frank chuckled. "People actually fought with these?"

 

"I was told they saw widespread use in two of Earth's 'great wars', and in small conflicts all the way up until first contact."

 

"Cool. How much for the crate?"

 

"What would you want this old junk for?" Marius chuckled.

 

"I dunno." Frank shrugged.

 

"I'll tell you what. You can have them."

 

"The whole crate?"

 

"The whole crate." Marius nodded. "But first, I'm going to need something from you."

 

"Sure, man. Whatever you need." Frank removed the bayonet, and set the rifle back in place. He closed the lid.

 

"Coming to pick you up wasn't cheap." Marius started out of the hold. "I had to ditch quite a bit of my goods before I entered the system. I'm going to need some help filling this thing back up."

 

"I'm down for a few deals." Frank followed him out, and up the steps.

 

"Excellent." Marius pulled up a photo on his omni-tool. "You remember that pr*ck Donovan Hock?"

 

"Uh..."

 

"Right. You weren't with us then. Anyways, he's an old acquaintance. Or was, rather. A**hole finally got his."

 

"Anyways, at the time of his death, he was set up on Bekenstein.  I know that slimy bastard had quite the collection of rare and exotic weapons in his possession. I would prefer that they be in our possession. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

 

"So... you're sayin' we steal weapons from Donovan Hock?"

 

"No, he's dead remember?" Marius tapped at his temple. "I want to steal them from the people who ended up with them."

 

"That sounds uh... incredibly dangerous."

 

"Nothing you can't handle though, right?" Marius slapped him on the shoulder. "All that time with a spectre, you must have seen some sh*t."

 

"Yeah..."

 

"So. Are you in?"

 

"I feel like I don't have much of a choice."

 

"Yeah... you don't. So..."

 

Frank sighed "A'ight. Let's go steal some sh*t."

 

"Great! Now go get some rest. We'll go over the details later."

 

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

 

After a long shower, Frank crashed on the bed in his new quarters. He opened up his omni-tool, and sent a message.

 

[Hey, commando. I'm on my way to the Boltzmann System, in the Serpent Nebula. My friends asked for a little help, and of course, I agreed. Not sure if that was a good idea, but saying no wasn't really an option. It's okay, though. They're good people, and I don't mind doing them a favor. I'm not sure we'll be making a stop at the Citadel, but if we do, and you're in the area, now might be a good time for you to get out of that varrenshit outfit, if you know what I mean. Or, if you have a problem with going AWOL, we could always just spend some time together, or whatever. We're still a couple hours from the relay. Maybe I'll see you soon. -- Frank.]

[Cainhurst Crow]

The Citadel - Janiri

 

Naleena smiled at the old Krogan. “Come in, Vayne. Thank you, and that’s my favorite brand, too. I’ll open a bottle. Have a glass with me,” she said and grabbed a couple of tumblers from her cabinet. “And no, Vayne, I don’t think all Krogan are like Wrund. Asari have their share, too. Nasanna Dantius sent in mercs and mechs and started killing her workers on Illium for some unknown reason. Perhaps she didn’t want to pay them? Who knows? The b*tch was crazy. But she’d apparently p*ssed off enough of the wrong people someone put a hit on her, and now she’s in the Void somewhere.”

 

Naleena looked up at the big Krogan as she poured. “Wrund will get what’s coming to him, if he hasn’t already.”

 

Handing the tumbler to Vayne she continued. “I had a quick business trip to Illium. The human, his name was Roman, he’s an Alliance officer. My boss, Yalson Sao wanted to meet with him. They’re considering him for Spectre. And Sao wanted to go over a mission report with me. Xanthe Remi gave a report to the Council for me while I was in the hospital, and there were some details that were unclear.

 

“Sao put me up at Azure. Nice place. More of a resort hotel, though, so I was quite surprised. I guess he thought I needed it after what happened on Garvug. ‘I thought the trip would do you good,’ he said. ‘You needed a change of scenery for a couple of days.’ And he was right. I’m feeling better. They give great massages at Azure.”

 

"Last I saw, the bastard was missing an arm. Even a roach can die with enough bullets..." Vayne said as he accepted the drink with a nod, relieved to hear her talking and knowing she was doing well. As he listened though, his curiosity became piqued.

 

"A Spectre? And here I thought he was just another wayward youth we were takin in..." He said as he took a sip of the brandy, surprised by how smooth it was going down. "I'm glad they let you take it easy. Even the hardest krogan needs some R&R, even if they'd never let it show."

 

[Kel Riever]

“What a shame.  And here I’d thought I caught you with a moment to spare.”

Morgan stood in the doorway of the exercise room, leaning against the frame, arms folded.  He was still in his dark grey armor, though his helm was gone and the protection certainly lost its new shine.  In fact, part of it looked like it had been scraped to hell.  But the man inside the armor looked like he was fine, with the hint of a smile on his lips.

More than fine, in fact.  Something had changed about Morgan.

The dark eyes were the same, the black hair, the tanned skin, the jawline, the scars.  But there was an inner intensity, a voltage that exuded quietly from him.  Something was downright rugged about Morgan, something strong and rough.  The glint in his eyes had a draw to them, like summer storms or the low rumble of an earthquake deep beneath the surface.  There were times when Morgan’s average height seemed to grow, when he was at his best.  Now, it seemed Morgan was nearly Anika’s height, though it was surely an optical illusion.

“Don’t let me stop you.  You better put that bag down while you’ve still got the chance.”

The words from Morgan were now the earthquake.  They had a fullness to them, a deepness that Jess had no way of explaining how they ever could have been hidden.  His arms seemed more substantial, his chest larger, there was the thrumming of an engine in him that just reached out with an invisible force.  Again, more impossible experiences.  But for lack of a better word, Morgan had become…

More.

Morgan looked at Jess, awaiting some sort of acknowledgement.  His gaze was locked with hers, tough, the dark eyes wondering of what she thought. Yet those eyes also seemed like pools Jess could just dive into, submerge herself in, and be embraced by.  

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

Naleena clicked on the vid screen while Vayne was still in the room. After several stories, there was one about Garvug.

 

“Hailot Wrund, leader of the former state-run army of Garvug, released a video today mocking the corporate forces trying to capture him. "I'll save you some time", he said, "that DNA you're analyzing was some other hump". The video is half an hour long and exhorts the scattered state forces to engage the corporatists in a guerilla war. "They've moved into our house", he said, "now it's time for them to pay the rent". Sonax Industries supreme commander Lira Speight responded: "Hailot Wrund is a head of state. He should learn that picking up a rifle doesn't make you a soldier, and talking into a video camera, even less so.’

 

“Speight was seriously wounded two weeks ago when the gunship she was piloting was cut in two by laser fire from an unknown small craft that Sonax alleges was assisting Wrund forces. The Council has charged Sonax, Guanghui, and Binary Helix with illegal possession of Prothean technology, and with firing on Council Officials who were there to retrieve the technology. The Council is discussing sanctions against the corporations. Spokespersons for the three corporations deny any and all allegations saying that guerilla forces have the Prothean relic and are concealing its whereabouts. Stocks tumbled for all three corporations in response to the news.”

 

“In other news, Light heavyweight sensation Zarren "The Varren" Casias scored an upset victory over light heavyweight champion Luis "Laser" Reyes in mixed martial arts action last night. "Fight Night at Earth's Pontiac Silverdome" was delayed by hooligans in the stands, as human and Turian fans threw drinks and chairs at one another, and over 30 people were ejected. The five-round match only lasted two, with Luis receiving cuts over both eyes early in the first round that may have hampered his vision. Allowed to continue, a desperate clinch by Reyes brought the match to the ground, where both fighters slipped in the blood and Casias brought things to an end with a triangle choke. Casias is the second Turian to win the light heavyweight title, and his victory puts non-humans as title-holders for all nine weight classes.”

 

Naleena clicked off the vid and tossed the remote onto the table. “So that bastard is still alive. It looks like that will drag on for months. If he regains control, I’ll go there and take him out myself. He made this personal.”

 

VERA’s terminal light flashed. “The Council would like you to appear before them in one hour.”

 

“Thank you, VERA,” she replied. “And there’s no rest for the weary. Thanks for stopping by, Vayne, and thanks again for the brandy.”

[Kel Riever]

Iole was on the Janiri's gun range, practicing a bit with her holdout and other small arms, when she got Frank's message on her Omni-tool.  Tallis was firing down the range next to her, and only noticed Iole had stopped after she'd dumped a good few thermal clips from her Disciple.

"Busy?  Busy?"

"Oh, no big deal.  I think I'm going to set up a trip into the Citadel while I've got the chance."

"Come along? Come along?"

"Aw, that's sweet, Tallis.  But it'll be a quick run, I'd like to do it alone."

"Sure. Sure."

Tallis went back to firing while Iole closed up her session.  With a calm air, Iole left the range.

Tallis was between clips when after Iole left she tilted her head as she heard a sort of victory shout through the closed door.

To:  Beans
From:  Commando

If you're going to stop by the Citadel, and AWOL stands for A Wildly Overdue Leave, then yes, hit me up.  I need a break.  We should try some raman noodles, whatever those are.  They're some sort of gourmet human food, right?

Just kidding.  I know what raman noodles are.  Yum!

Let me know when/where, 'Engineer'
 

[Cknarf]

Serpent Nebula, Widow System.

 

The Vepr crew had gathered around the table ship’s living area, to discuss their plan.

 

“So you don’t actually know where any of it is?” Frank raised an eyebrow

 

“No, but I have a general idea of where it may be.”

 

“A general idea? That’s all you got?”

 

“We might have to do a little reconnaissance, so what?”

 

“What are we gonna do? Just walk up to people, and ask where they keep their exotic weapons?” Frank scoffed. “Hi, I was wondering if you had any Black Widows laying around? Of course, they’re in the fridge under the Typhoons.”

 

“Something like that.”Marius nodded. He opened his omni-tool, and displayed several photographs of people in semi-formal attire. “Much like Hock, the people on this planet are known to party on a regular basis.”

 

“I like where this is goin’.” Frank smiled.

 

“We, you, rather, are going to be crashing a few of them in an attempt to gather some intel. These rich types love to brag about what they have, and that includes weapons.”

 

“Wait, you’re not coming with?”

 

Marius shook his head. “Quintus and I have done business with some of these people in the past, and we’d be recognized instantly. Normally, that wouldn’t be an issue. But, since we’re laying low, and trying to rob them, I think it’s best that we stay behind.”

 

“What about Adir?”

 

“I doubt they’d let a quarian in.”

 

Adir shrugged. “He’s probably right.”

 

“I’ll accompany Frank to the event.” Kira spoke up.

 

“Kira, I don’t think that’s a good idea…” Marius shook his head.

 

“Nonsense. I’ll fit right in with these people. I used to live in a penthouse too, you know.” Kira squinted a little. She was still a little upset about moving from her glorious apartment to the Vepr. “Besides, I’ve got the perfect dress for such an occasion.”

 

“Her biotics would come in handy in case something goes wrong.”

 

Marius nodded. “Okay, fine. Kira goes with you.”

 

“Cool.”

 

Frank checked the message he had received from Iole.

 

“Hey, Marius. Before we do this, you think we have time to stop by the Citadel?” He asked after reading it again.

 

“What for?”

 

“There’s someone I need to see.”

 

“Absolutely not. I can’t take that risk.”

 

“It’s kind of important.”

 

"Is it your girl?" Adir asked. "It is isn't it? Oh, I can't wait to meet her!"

 

Marius raised his hand.

 

“If we make a stop, we make a deal. That’s how it’s going to be from now on. If we can’t, then we don’t stop.” Marius looked Frank in the eye. “And I’m sure as sh*t not smuggling guns onto the Citadel. It was hard enough before they ramped up security.”

 

“Yeah, man. You remember what happened in ‘74. Things got all fucked.” Quintus added from the kitchen area. “I ain’t goin’ back to jail.”

 

“I doubt I’ll be able to cover for you, this time.” Adir added.

 

“Besides, none of us can be seen on station for obvious reasons.” Marius shook his head. “Except maybe Quintus, but there’s no way I’m sending that idiot.”

 

“Bro. That hurts.”

 

Marius sighed. “I’m also concerned for his safety.”

 

“Thaaaaat’s better!” Quintus chuckled.

 

“I’m sorry, Eli, but it’s just not going to happen.”

 

Frank bit his lip.

 

“What if I did it?”

 

“What?”

 

Frank stood up.

 

“What if I got the goods through C-SEC, and did the dealin’ myself?”

 

“If I knew you could, then we’d already be docking.” Marius chuckled. “But you can’t, so I’m not even going to waste my time.”

 

“If things go south, I’ll give you a heads up, so you can split, just in case.”Frank walked closer to where Marius was sitting. “Even if I f*ck this up, I have ties to a council spectre. There is literally no way this can end badly for you.”

 

Marius examined his talons, as he thought it over.

 

“I know I can do this, Marius. Get me to the Citadel, and get yourself paid.” Frank slapped his palm with the back of his hand. “If anything, there’ll be more room for weapons from Bekenstein…”

 

Marius rose to his feet. “Quintus!”

 

“Yo.”

 

“Take us to the Citadel.”

 

“Yee yeeeee!” Quintus hopped and slid across the kitchen counter in a manner that would make Luke Duke proud. “Let’s do iiiiiiiit.” He stomped up the stairs and into the cockpit.

 

“Idiot.” Marius shook his head.

 

“I’m gonna need a few things.”

 

“Holds are still open. Help yourself.”

 

Frank made his way to the elevator, and rode it down to the bay. He replied to Iole's message.

 

[Undercooked varren ass on a stick is more my style, but I suppose I can work with ramen. I’m on my way now.  I have something to take care of first, but it shouldn’t take long.] He attached a photo of a small park on the presidium. [Wait for me here? 8:00 Citadel time.-- Frank]

[TheMajonese]

"The point it not to learn anything about real combat. The point is to make some easy credits and entertain people. This is a game, and I'm good at it, Arian. I don't enjoy getting my arse shot at all the time, but it's all I know how to do. I'm not exactly young, and one day a round is going to catch me just right and that's gonna be the end of it," she said. "At least here if people have enough money to pay me prize money so i can make a quick 20000 CR for some easy work, I can put it toward a retirement fund and I might be able to save up for relaxing on a tropical beach somewhere.

 

"And I don't want your money. You fight here, you get your share. If you don't want it, make a donation to a charity or something. There's probably some family starving on Palaven that could use it."

 

"Or a girl that wants to see the galaxy..." All of a sudden Arian had a great idea what he could do with the money from the arena. There was someone on Omega who would certainly could use some credits. Working as waitress in a bar didn't really pay off.

 

"Okay, let's go...", he said and suddenly almost sounded as if he was in a good mood, which was very rare on him.

[sH0tgUn jUliA]

The Janiri – Medical Bay

 

The room was bright and out of focus as his eyes opened for the first time in weeks. Gradually he became aware of his surroundings. The view was clear and unfiltered, and then he realized he was out of his suit. He panicked. His heart raced and his breathing shallowed.

 

Alarms at the nurse’s desk rang and she ran into his room. “Dr. Tolus!”

 

The Salarian and another nurse ran into the room and saw Faed thrashing on his bed and the nurse trying to calm him. “15 mg Valium, STAT!”

 

The his other nurse handed him a syringe, and he injected it into the IV, calming Faed. “It’s okay, Faed. Calm down. Nothing to worry about.”

 

Faed drifted off to sleep.

[Cknarf]

Citadel, Zakera ward.

 

Frank checked the time on his omni-tool.

 

“So. We gotta deal, or what?” He looked up at the 8 foot tall krogan that stood before him. “I got better sh*t to do than stand around and bullshit all day…”

 

“Hah! I like this human.” Thrak bellowed, while jabbing one of his men with an elbow.

 

“I say we just kill her and take them. Why pay if we can get it for free?”

 

“Because that would be bad for business, Skeet. Not that you would know anything about running one of those…” The krogan shoved the smaller one forward. “Take them to the warehouse.”

 

“Yeah, Skeet. Take ‘em to the warehouse.” Frank squinted at the krogan. 

 

The smaller krogan growled at Frank, before dragging the crate of Strikers away.

 

“200,000 credits have been transferred to your account, as we agreed.” Thrak bowed his head slightly. “It has been a pleasure doing business with you. Boys! Lead him out.”

 

“Marius, the deal’s done.” Frank said, while stepping out of the building.

 

“Excellent work, Eli. Way to prove me wrong. Now go do what you came to do so we can get out of here. We’ve got more work to do.”

 

“A'ight. See you guys in a short.”

 

Frank checked his omni-tool.  The time read 8:20.

 

F***.

[Kel Riever]

Iole was waiting on a bench at the park Frank referred to in the Presidium.  A cherry blossom tree kept company nearby as did a waterfall across the walkway from her.  It was pretty.  

There was nothing nice for Iole to wear but her gold trimmed, navy colored Commando dress uniform.  The one she'd worn to the party.  "Military life," Iole sighed.  She self-consciously smoothed the front down, even though it was fine.  Then she checked the time.

"ahhhhhh..."

Frank was late.  Except Iole knew he would be.  She'd come prepared.  Activating her omni-tool, she started a non-immersive version of her favorite jetbike racing game.  It wasn't long before she was leaning sidways on the bench, pulled by the illusion of motion in the game.