"It took us a while to learn, too," Ereba replied taking a drink of water. "So we concentrated our efforts on nature preserves on Sanves, and built arcologies on Nevos. But on Thessia? It's all gone. Still, I've never seen jungle like this."
Irina looked around, too. "Is it just me? Or does anyone else feel like we're being watched?"
Tallis and Iole were in the center of the group, with Iole covering high and Tallis low. Tallis put a cluster of one hand's worth of fingers to the side of her helmet and spread them apart while pulling them away. As she did, she imitated the sound of an explosion.
Iole had opted for the sleeveless version of her Commando uniform, and her HUD glasses instead of her helmet. She kept her eyes sharp, but translated for Tallis. "Tallis is saying let them watch right until they get a block shaving through their brain."
Jenus hewed her way through the jungle with determination. She was a lot quieter than one would expect, leaving her machete swings only for the most impassable of undergrowth. It was clear she expected people to step up and deal with the difficulty of moving through the terrain for the priority of keeping sound to a minimum. It was impossible to tell her expression with her helmet on and her back to most but it was a good bet she wasn't a fan of the chatter. And the confirmation of that came when she turned around once and drew a finger across her throat before she kept going.
Aboard the Khukuri, somewhere in the Terminus Systems
Iyana, bedecked in her silvery armor, sat in the seat next to the unremarkable pilot at the fore of the Khukuri. The turian had enough sense to keep quiet, but she missed Jrudek and the games she would play with him. He was always so good at avoiding her traps. And he was so loyal. A gift to her, and one that she passed on at great cost.
While her face was immobile and cold, Iyana's eyes sought out the mask of 'Captain Silver' that she had become accustomed to wearing from time to time, and even speaking to, occasionally. Not out loud, of course, but with Jrudek gone, and Xhuan behind, there was really no one with her that she could talk to. So Iyana began speaking to Jess, well, or the mask that was once hers.
I return your cube to you, Jess, and accompany it with my Jrudek. Something I never had to do, but I gave you these things so you would understand. That datacube and your Rasgul were rightly taken by me. I am now blazing the path you were on, for you, can't you see that? So I give you your cube back for you to understand there is no ill will. Even though you have not given me back my property! And of course what do you do with my Jrudek? You let him die...
The mask of Captain Silver only stared silently back.
Of course, you don't even have the decency to die for what you did, either. You take things from me, and you wreck them. I come take your things and I make them better, or I make you better from my taking them. If I slice up your people, can't you see that it is to make you better? Or your ship, you saved that because of me, you don't see that? You die by my hand or you rise with me, this is lost on you? How much time do you have Jess? You would do the same as me if you had so little.
A sigh escaped Iyana. The pilot couldn't help but twitch his head in her direction before he reminded himself of who he was with and stared back at his controls. She could punish him, but it wasn't his fault for her letting her emotion get the better of her.
You are an insolent child, Jess. But I love all my children that survive me. Yes, even you. Even your friends though I am not so sure they have as much of a chance as you. That sordid Spectre of your association, the crew of misfits she and you have surrounded yourself with...and you still can't see what I am doing? I'm doing this for us all!
Iyana thought about how Spectre T'Sarius had played right into her hands, eliminating the downstream connected to Morgan on Earth. It wasn't plan A, but when it all fell apart, that group of resources quickly became a liability. It would have been worse if they were left alone, then Iyana would have had to send her own team in, and the more contacts, the more risk someone could be traced back. Not that she didn't appreciate a good suicide either; the police chief had done himself in before he could be caught. But of course, Iyana had to take credit for that too. After all, actions such as the chief's suicide were a result of Iyana's projected ideas and values she worked incalculable hours at fostering. More loss. It still did, in fact, get to Iyana.
You take, Jess, and you break. You break things because you don't understand what you are holding onto. Give me my things back, Jess, don't you understand? Don't be so stupid as to pretend you can't read my messages. Take your twisted eyes and look at why I have returned your things to you. Look at how I returned them. Let me have my way and give me back my property...for your own benefit...
A signal light appeared on the screen in front of Iyana, along with a small message: Target intercept 2:00:00. Iyana watched the seconds meter on the countdown.
There are greater things out there, Jess. Let me have my way, and if you can survive me, you will walk in the hallowed halls of the gods!
Jenus came upon a fallen Yautja lying motionless on the ground.
Aboard the Medusa
Jess had the door panel open and was working on her end of the conference room while behind her, Lomala seemed to grow more and more agitated. It had been ten minutes and still no word from the repair crew. Jess had offered to try a fix on their end and thus the panel had been removed, coupled with a few minutes of Jess making small talk until she threw up her hands.
"No good.... Whatever's wrong, it's on the other side.... We can wait..... or..... no... No you wouldn't.... I couldn't ask it of a guest. I mean.... we cold leave this room right now you wanted, but I doubt you'd want to if it meant going 'That' way".
Jenus
Jenus held up her hand to signal a halt. Her first reaction was to scan the area for any signs of an enemy. She gave a look over to Iole to see if Goldie was picking anything up on her motion sensor. Jenus' second reaction was to see if the Yautja looked dead or was wounded in any way. Poachers had a nasty habit of laying traps and the easiest way to get caught in one was to get suckered for the bait of someone fallen or in need of help.
It also wouldn't be so great if the Yautja was actually wounded and waiting to kill the person who wounded it. Looking from the size of the native, it wouldn't be such a fun fight to get close to one.
On the Medusa
Lomala was frustrated, and she wasn't going to let it show, but concerned about the reprisal for her tardiness. Unconsciously grinding her molars, Lomala was only happy to hope for some other option. "What way is that way, Captain?"
Jess squinted slightly as she rubbed a hand over the back of her neck. "Well...... The doors sealed on automatic..... But the shaft's operate on manual locks. We pop one open and we have access to the whole aft section of the ship. Get to another hatch that isn't sealed. Let's see..... Don't mind me, its a maze of tubes. We had a few jokers on the ship recently and they rearranged all the signs in there. Some are still missing. Never got around to replacing them. I'm sure I could get us through to an open hatch somewhere".
By this time, Morgan was in a position behind the batarians completely and she could see the slightest curl of the edge of his lip in a smile.
Lomala had a crossed expression on her batarain visage between a grimace and a glint in her eyes of hope that she could somehow rescue her situation from complete disaster if she could minimize the degree she was behind. As one who could stand doing nothing a lot less than trying something, Lomala replied, "If that's what it takes Captain, I'm willing to bet that your prior customers aren't used to being treated this way. But I am not going to argue if what you do gets us out of here faster. I am already on a time of debt and while I should press you for lowering your price from this, and yet I still may, if you get us back to our vessel with our product succinctly given your breakdown, I will overlook this."
Jess's head shot up at the mention of lowering the price and she spared a moment to look at Morgan before fixing her gaze back on Lomala.
"Well then, let's not dawdle"! Crossing the room to the far end, Jess reached down for a section of decking. Lifting up one of the grated sections revealed a hatch with a large lever across it. Reaching forward, Jess grasped it and with a grunt of effort, pulled it up and to the side and the hatch opened to reveal another hatch underneath it with a large wheel that Jess grabbed hold of and turned two full rotations. The sound of grinding metal rang out and when it ended, the hatch opened once more. Downwards this time, though slowly, as if the hinges were designed to prevent the hatch from simply falling open.
Everyone crowded around as Jess swung her legs over the edge and hooked her feet onto the ladder that ran straight down before ending with a flat section that disappeared both fore and aft.
"Okay, it's going to be tight quarters so everyone in single file and keep up. No stragglers. Get lost down here it's liable we won't find you for days, assuming you don't find a working hatch to climb out of".
With that, Jess grabbed hold of the ladder and began her descent. Once at the bottom she called up. "MORGAN? LET AELIAS KNOW WHAT WE'RE DOING! COMMS DON'T WORK GOOD DOWN HERE"!
From the open channel Jess had maintained, Marshal checked the plan Jess had given him and called three of the hanger bay boys.
"Marshal to Coco. You in position"?
"Oh jolly well yes I should say"! Came the enthusiastic response. "Got the Captain in my sights alright! I'm starting the signal jammer as soon as they reseal the hatch. I do say, this scanner you gave me is a bit of alright! As long as she keeps close to this section of corridor I shouldn't have any trouble keeping the group in range".
"Keep me up to date on where they go. If they start moving somewhere you have to break contact I'll get Chris and Keats to move in to cover you".
"Rather decent of you old boy..... Well now, here's a few more coming down.... I'll let you know how it goes"!
Marshal reached to cut the connection.... Then noticed Aelias staring at him. Arms folded. Eye's half lidded. "Problem"?
"So now we really are scamming the Batarian's"?
"Just to give the loading bay time to download some alterations to the tools".
"......Riiiiiiiiiight".
Irina scanned the Yautja. "It's still alive."
"Set up a perimeter," Naleena ordered and she knelt and examined the creature. "And here's why. Tranquilizer dart."
A squad of armed Salarians decloaked. "Step away from the specimen."
Naleena looked up at the voice and saw the uniform. "STG. It figures. Specimen?"
"I'm Captain Ralban. We're on a mission to gather samples of this previously unknown species for genetic evaluation," he said. "Now step away from the specimen. You've ruined the entire trap. Others from his clan would soon come looking, and we'd tranquilize them and have our quota."
From her position on the perimeter, Irina glanced over. "Did you pay a visit to Earth and snag a few of us? I'll put money this is where those tales of 'little green men' came from."
"We give them amnesia drugs then return them after we've run our tests," Ralban said.
"They're not that effective, and people think they're crazy later," Irina continued. "You ruined lives. And what do you think these primitive people will think?"
Naleena had heard enough. "Your not taking this one. I'm a Council Spectre and my orders supersede your mission. How many have you taken on this trip?"
"A half-dozen, why?"
"Return them," Naleena said with a glare.
"You can't be serious," he scoffed. "Besides my men are in position."
"And I don't think your men can take on a highly disciplined team of Asari Commandos, and highly trained specialists," Naleena countered pointing at the commandos, Anika who had her Typhoon ready, and Vayne. Krogan regeneration was a factor, even though Vayne lacked that, the Salarians didn't know.
Ralban raised his hands in front of him. "You made your point, Spectre. Stand down, men."
Naleena breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing she wanted right now was a firefight.
Timoshenko came forward. "Did you happen to notice any humans in the area? Private hunters perhaps?"
"No, none that we were able to see," Ralban replied. "If there were, they were well hidden."
Naleena pulled the tranquilizer dart from the Yautja. "Can you bring him around? I'd like to try and communicate with him."
"Perhaps I can, but be careful. They're very strong, and aggressive," Ralban said and gave the Yautja a stimulant.
The Yautja opened its eyes and saw Naleena. It grunted and jumped back along the ground and cocked its head studying her.
Naleena tried to reassure him with her hands but it didn't seem to get the message.
"Tallis, maybe you can communicate with him. Ask him if he is alright," Naleena said.
"Talis? Are you sure about this?" Essul asked as he looked towards the Yautja. This mission was already starting to get complicated, not something he liked. Essul thought of drawing his rifle just in case, but given their current predicament, he doubted he would do well against them.
"These things ain't got enough sense to wear proper armor, and you think we can communicate with them?" Vayne asked as he looked the thing over, seeing the weak points on it as he glanced back to the salarians, "I thought you guys learned your lesson with us? Don't go abducting species you can't handle."
On the Medusa
Morgan called down after Jess, "You bet, Captain." He just let the rest of his humor linger in the air. No need to set off any suspicion. "Who's next?" Morgan asked one of the batarians.
"I'll follow," Lomala said. To one of her security members, she ordered, "You follow up behind me, and you," she ordered the other, "Stay here should the door become free before we get through."
Inwardly Morgan sighed. Looked like he wasn't going anywhere. "Aelias," he called up, "Captain is taking two of our guests through a maintenance shaft. Coming her is going to be difficult. Keep me on top of things." Morgan was pretty sure Aelias was keen to what was happening, but he played his part.
"So if the Salarians are the problem, then I guess we're done here," Irina commented.
"That still doesn't explain why we were seen as the 'devils,'" Timoshenko replied.
"Unless the species is simply mistrusting of things they haven't seen before?" Irina said.
"That's most likely the case." Johnny agreed. "This one seems surprisingly calm, considering he's surrounded by at least five different species of aliens."
"He is still partially tranquilized," Naleena remarked turning to Johnny. "And he is intelligent. We have not tried to harm him, either. Ralban, were the others taken from this same area?"
"Yes, they were," he replied.
"Tallis, tell the Yautja that I have ordered that the others be returned immediately and that we mean his people no harm," Naleena said
Tallis nodded and went through a series of gestures. The Yautja cocked his head and made a gesture in return. He took a breath and seemed to relax slightly, but was wary of the group of Salarians and the humans on the Naleena's team.
Anika was keeping a sharp eye lookout around them as the group spoke amongst themselves. While things seemed calm on the surface, she knew that letting her guard down could prove a costly move.
"If we're here to stop the hunters from bagging more of these..... uh..... people..... then maybe he knows where they've been going missing. I'm sure the Salarians must have an idea of where other hunter groups have their hunting grounds. Wouldn't want to compete with another group for live prey after all".
Something rustled in a large canopy of trailing leaves that fell from a branch up high and Anika checked her thermo scope again, only to find the same heat signature's from the forest plant life messing up her imaging.
"Dammit..... What is with this place? Every time I calibrate I end up zeroing in on something else that's plant"!
"Easy enough to explain". Said one Salarian. "Plant life carnivorous in many ways. Usually feeds on small animals or insects. Still uses sun's energy to create energy for growth but secondary feeding mechanisms well developed. Possibly in response to high competition where evolutionary diversion took place to place emphasis on predation. Should not be a problem if you keep clear of the largest plant life. Have a blade handy if you get caught however. Plant life is docile until disturbed. Creatures have means of avoiding alerting them to their presence. Evolutionary adaptation or skill taught among their kind? Very curious".
Anika listened, her helm masking her look of incredulity as the Salarian wound down from his spiel. "Even the plant's are going to be a problem? Great. I suggest we select a destination and get moving. All this cover and us as a group out in the open feels like inviting trouble".
They sent the captive Yautja on his way. There was no point in keeping him around. The Salarians left, presumably to ignore the Spectre and specimen gather elsewhere on the planet.
"This still leaves the hunters we're here for. VERA said there were no fewer than four ships on the surface," Naleena said. "If one of them was the Salarians that leaves three. Why would there be so many?"
Just then there were some explosions off in the distance about 3 kilometers to the west coming from the area near the where VERA said the village was located.
"Well I'll be damned...it worked..." Essul said to himself as he witnessed Talis's talents first hand in this case. He watched the creature go, hearing Anika's question and problems with her scope.
"You have to watch the air, for any possible shimming effect. Or look out for usual spots of cover you could expect a cloaked sniper to use...it's not foolproof, but it's worked for me in the past." Essul advised, hoping it helped Anika in some way with her problems. A malfunctioning or simply ill-equipped scope was a pain he could sympathize with as a fellow sniper.
At the explosion Vayne turned his head, snarling as he spoke, "Maybe cause they got stupid and decided guns weren't exciting enough..." Vayne said as he drew his Chakram Launcher, "Come on, Let's get moving before these Pyjackanapes make these people permanent Luddites..."
Meanwhile aboard the Medusa......
The maintenance tunnels were dimly lit, the air stale but breathable. Jess was on her hands and knee's crawling forward, followed by Lomala and the rest of those who had followed them down.
"This ship has a lot of these maintenance tunnels. Most aren't used any more. Much as I like to keep the ship original, some times modern solutions are just better. Take cable. Back in the day we needed zero guage cabling just to run the phones. The amount of power needed to push the signals needed repeaters every ten meter's. Modern day comm cable lets us get the guage down to twelve and repeaters every thirty meter's. With all that extra space alone we could move cabling out of these tunnels and into more accessible corridor overhead runs. We still have a few cables running around in here. Mainly as backups so try not to disturb anything if we run into some".
Jess could feel Lomala's annoyance pouring off her, though since all she could glare at was her posterior Jess didn't mind as long as she followed. Finally they reached an intersection where the dim lighting in one direction had gone out. Jess tutted.
"Tch.... That's not right. Can't go that way in the dark. It's okay, we can go around. Follow me"! She said cheerfully as she crawled off in the opposite direction.
Tarballs stood atop the highest deck of his carriers superstructure. Underneath him, the world he had handed over to the devil woman Iyana turned slowly under him, obscured somewhat by the hull of his ship. The large view port that took up the entire wall reflected himself and even Tarballs had to admit, the change the golden throne had visited upon him was startling.
Where once had stood an old, craggy faced, decaying man stood a man of Olympian stature. Bright, blonde hair cascading now from his head, sweeped back to spill over his back like a lions mane. His brow was now more pronounced. A fitting tribute to the way the throne had moulded him, changed him so that where his weak, failing body had been, now stood a male Adonis. No less an Adonis......
The thrones power meant that he now had the power to become a God.
The throne itself was sitting off to the side. Now quiet, it hadn't spoken to him since he had bent it to his will. In the back of his mind though he could feel it's anger. A seething resentment that warred with it's plans for him.
A door behind him opened at the farthest wall. One of his guards, Once towering projections of his power, now forced to look up at him to meet his eye's. Tarball's eye's slid over to the reflection of the armoured warrior and waited till it came to a stop just behind and to the side of him.
"My lord".
"Speak".
Silence lingered as the armour clad figure seemed to be picking the words for the moment. "My sister's and I have discovered one of us..... From our past.... She appeared on the galactic network.... We wish to acquire her".
"What do my hands say"? Tarballs asked, referring to his two commanders.
"I have not asked them. They are.... nervous. Your transformation leads them to question if your require them now you are well again".
"A valid concern". Tarballs noted casually. "But that does not explain why my body guards did not ask my hands".
"My Sister's and I believe that they do not matter in this. If we are to acquire our sister then we must leave you unprotected. We serve you and only you. It is your word that we seek in this matter".
At last, Tarballs turned his back on the turning planet and faced his armoured knight. "You are Last".
"That is what I am known by my lord".
"When you came to me, you wanted me to protect you. I helped you when no one else would. Crafted the arms you wear to help you hone your abilities. Anywhere else, you would be seen as monster's. Devils. You will never have a safe haven anywhere else but here with me. Yet you wish to leave for a sister? Only those you brought with you received the final augmentations. Who is this sister to you"?
"We remember her. She was called Anika. She escaped before the end. Where she has been I do not know but she has resurfaced and those we escaped from will surely have noticed her. Though she is not one of us, she is still a sister of the complex. It is a bond that runs deep yet I suspect she does not know of the final days of those she grew up with".
"What do you want Last"?
The hulking armoured figure helm bent to study the ground before rising once more. "We want to bring her into our fold. We want to use her to discover those who did this to us. We want to find the one who ordered the deaths of all our sisters and exact our price for these..... gifts".
Tarballs regarded her. "I will allow it. But not all of you. I still require your presence. You may send two. Choose wisely".
Last nodded. "The Sense and The Flame will be more than adequate to the task. We will require a ship.....".
"Use Scarlet. I will let her know that you are operating with my blessing". Last nodded then stood a moment longer than necessary that told Tarballs she had something else to say. "Speak your mind".
"My lord..... There are.... rumours..... you and the devil woman. Your transformation while you were alone with her...... Some say we have entered into an alliance. Some say you have taken her as your lover.....". She stopped abruptly as Tarballs simply gazed at her and then pressed. on. "..... I do not mean to overstep my bounds my lord. But I must know if we are to protect you during this...... state of change".
"You think I need protection now"?
"When our bodies were altered, we were dangerous to ourselves, and anyone near us. I do not doubt you...... Only that I wish to say, from my experience, be careful my lord. Whatever has happened, for whatever reason, it will take time for you to adjust to the...... alterations".
Aboard the Janiri...
“Do you ever feel like we’re just…” Lusia began.
“Generic NPCs in a roleplaying game?” Asteria finished. “All the time.” She looked up from the fabricator.
“I mean, all we do is stand here, and operate the fabricator, or tinker with weapons.” Lusia set her shotgun aside.
“All while the others get to go on these grand adventures…” Asteria sighed.
“We’re just as strong as them. Why don’t we ever get selected for a mission?”
“Because someone has to defend the ship in case we get boarded.” Septerax said as he passed. He’d heard these complaints many times before. “Keep up the good work!”
“Pfft. As if that will ever happen.” Asteria rolled her eyes, and got back to work.
Jen
"Yes, VERA, that's true, but that is not current." Jen was studying away privately in the lounge, sitting across a couch, with a hand held display resting on her tummy.
VERA was in holographic form, but behind Jen. The irony of VERA having a visual display of herself while it wasn't even within eyesight of the only human in the room was perhaps lost on Jen Severn. Of course, it was also possible that Jen was paying a lot of attention to her. There were some bio signals that could indicate that, in fact. But Jen, like her older brother, had a good mastery of hiding her emotions if she wanted to. They weren't honed, like Morgan's, but the ability was there.
"I do not understand. All files on Professor Klein's work have been accessed. There must be some information that has not been entered in the Alliance Neuroscience files."
Jen nodded. "That's correct, VERA. Klein changed his theory on how consciousness arises from networks. His prior belief that severe, biotic abnormalities were associated with the asari as they pertained to the Ardat-Yakshi were genetic and tied to their species. What you have is his latest published work explaining that the genetics were why he believed many of those diseases were not able to be cross transferred, even considering acts including melding. But he began travelling Earth a few months before I left, and when he came by NYU, as part of his presentation, he said he was beginning the process of disproving his prior work."
"Wouldn't that be included in his lecture notes?"
Jen shook her head. "No, because it is a postulation and he made no official on the book mention of it because there is no work behind it yet. But the importance of his mentioning it to the neuroscience community is critical because it opens the door for the rest of us to ponder. This is where the discourse is just as critical to the learning process as the material that exists in published form. Or even simply recorded form. And, you can't get the nuances of exactly what parts of what Klein is saying by listening to a snippet. It takes being in a dialogue with him, and of course, with other leading scientists."
"Please explain to me the current direction of Klein's work as you understand them, Jen."
Jen sighed, but was appreciative of the question. She didn't really feel comfortable with being a teacher. She wanted to learn, to be sitting in the lectures like Klein's. But she couldn't deny VERA's curiosity, and she turned her head to finally look at VERA's holographic form.
"Doctor Klein now believes that it is only a matter of time before humanity has its own, albeit rare, occurrence of abnormalities amongst biotics. Whatever the cause, Klein believes the development of any species, over time, will experience challenges, setbacks, and the more a species develops in a new area, the greater the chance it will encounter difficulties. He points to other abnormalities in biotic species that are not nearly as dramatic as Ardat-Yakshi syndrome, but has emphasized that another, dramatic genetic shortcoming making itself known is a question of 'when', and not 'if'. He has been involved extensively with the work of the asari and salarians on the idea, and all believe that the rapid entry and development of humanity in biotics has made us the most vulnerable to these kinds of abnormalities. It's almost a complete reversal of his prior work, which is why he won't put anything out official on it until he has something he can show for it. Otherwise his credibility would be ruined."
"In other words, it makes sense, but there is no proof."
"Exactly, VERA. Anything can make sense. Without evidence, it means nothing. But Klein interests me because he's gone so far as to say he's surprised nothing has shown up already."
"Is this speculation on his part, or is his prediction based on demographics and statistics?"
"Speculation," Jen replied, "But I have my own speculation on the matter based off of his. Which is, maybe it's already happened, and we just haven't had recorded evidence of it, yet."
"Sounds like mortar fire!" Irina shouted. "And a lot of of it!"
"Let's move out!" Naleena ordered. "Jenus take your team 100 meters south of my teams position. We'll move parallel toward the village. Stay in contact."
They'd come to an area where there were trails possibly leading to the village made by hunters. They weren't well worn, but they were better than hacking their way through the natural terrain. After ten minutes, the mortar fire ceased, and the teams heard small arms fire from three groups. It grew louder as they approached.
(assume it will take the team 22 minutes to reach the village)
On arrival they saw three squads (about 36 soldiers) of Cerberus troops rounding up the entire village.
///////////////////////
Major Burke ordered mortar fire to strike behind the village driving the villagers toward his position. The Illusive Man saw potential in this species. Once cloned, implanted with control chips and trained they could be used as shock troops against the reapers. He knew the reapers were coming, and it was just a matter of when. He’d keep them in cryo suspension until needed. All this could be done without sacrificing humans.
Cerberus troops moved in to surround the village. The villagers would be taken via transport aboard a Cerberus stealth cruiser in orbit. This cruiser was built along the same lines as Alliance cruisers except with updated hardware and an onboard shackled AI.
Alliance presence in the system was nil, however he was aware that a Council vessel had recently taken position in synchronous orbit over their position. As to why, he didn’t know. He doubted they knew about the cruiser.
Retour en haut