A/N: I'm BAAAAAACK.
A short break was good, edited and reposted the first nine chapters, accidentally had two chapter twos for a while. Any who here we are with book two It's a bit short but I suppose first chapter kind of always is. And No I didn't 'Steal' Weaver from MtM if you look in the shadow brokers dossiers it has the names of all Garrus's squad, some of which I will use and some of which I'll completely make my own characters, partially because I'll picture MtM characters if I did use them.
On with the Show!
Resonance Effect Book Two: Vigilante Payroll
Chapter 1: Rise of an Empire
The ride to the base is fairly long, it feels like we've traveled to the edge of the station. There is a lot more machinery than people or structures out here. When we do arrive I can see we are indeed at the very edge of the station, the back wall of the building is built into the rock of the asteroid. The base looks the same as it did in the game, a two story building with open faces connected by one long bridge.
Garrus takes the car under the bridge into a garage beneath the base. As I step out I recognize the area from the game, it was one of the areas you had to close the shutters in, turns out that shutter is the garage door. But as I look around the area is nearly empty a few crates sit around, and the car we just got out of is the only vehicle.
"So how many people have you got on your team so far?" I ask following Garrus into the base.
"With you in we'll have a total of six people."
I nod, makes sense he hasn't been here long so he won't have picked up many people yet. I follow him up the stairs and we come out of a door beneath another staircase. This is the main floor, I can see two people sitting on couches in the living area, beyond that I can see an Asari in a small kitchen area. When they hear Garrus and I approaching the people on the couches turn towards us.
"Everyone this is Jonathon Knight, he's going to be joining us on our little crusade." Garrus says then he turns to me. "Go ahead and introduce yourself, I'll take your stuff to the armory."
"Alright, thanks." I say handing my stuff to him.
When I look back one of the people who had been sitting on the couch has gotten up and is walking towards me, a Batarian.
He offers his hand. "Kullan Dakar, most people just call me Dak though." He says in the typical low Batarian voice.
I shake his hand. "Alright Dak, nice to meet you."
He starts a bit when I shake his hand. I bring my right hand up and flex the mechanical appendage.
"A gift from Soverighn."
He nods. "Right Garrus told us about that, so you do know Garrus from before right? When he was with Shepard?"
"Yeah, we worked together on Shepard's ground team."
"Ground team? I thought he said you we're a weapons and armor expert."
"Well yeah I am, I'm a fighter too though, primarily a marksman role."
He nods again. "Well good not sure I would trust someone to make my gear if they didn't know how to use it."
I chuckle. "Yeah, what about you though, you have a specialty? Or just a beef with the mercs?"
He chuckles, a deep rumbling chuckle. "Both, I'm an explosives expert."
"Good, because Garrus will tell you my motto with explosives is 'Use a bunch and see what happens' it'll be nice to have someone who knows what they're doing."
He chuckles again. "Alright we I'll see you around Jon."
I nod before he walks off. Well he seems nice, I haven't met many Batarians, but I know they aren't typically nice to humans, or very inclined to chuckle.
Anyway I continue over to the common area, to the Turian sitting on the couch. He seems to have noticed me and puts down the datapad he was reading, and standing up.
He offers his hand. "Sivan Alturus."
I shake his hand, he briefly looks at my synthetic hand before looking back to me.
"I almost didn't believe Garrus when he said you had a prosthetic made from a Geth arm."
He speaks in a very calm voice for a Turian, less flange than Garrus, his skin is a slightly olive green that I've occasionally seen with some Turians, and he has black face paint. The most striking thing about him though is that we're almost the same height, obviously he is still taller, but he is one of the shortest Turians, I've ever seen. Even his build is slimmer than any male Turian I've ever seen, the females tend to be slimmer and shorter, but he has a normal fringe and back ridge, something that is played down on the female side of the species.
"Jonathon Knight" I reply. "Trust me it wasn't my choice to get this, but I figure now that I've got it might as well make the most of it."
His mandibles flare in amusement. "Hmm, well I'm the team's infiltrator, from the sound of it we'll probably be working together quite often."
"Yeah Garrus was never very good at sneaking." I hear a derisive snort surely from Garrus. "and I'm almost as good a shot." I finish looking over to Garrus with a 'Happy now?' look. He nods and goes up the stairs.
Sivan chuckles. "You two are obviously pretty good friends."
"Yeah, we we're the team's top marksmen, and gun experts so we talked quite a bit. I actually lived with him for a while afterward, before he came here."
"Hmmm, he said you we're good with weapons and armor, have to see what you can do for stealth equipment."
"He seems to have told you guys quite a lot about me…"
"I think he expected you would join up, at least that's the way I figure." He says shrugging.
"I kind of knew I was coming as soon as he asked, just needed to think about it."
"I can understand that, well tell me when you get your stuff set up and I'll bring you my equipment." He takes a few steps away. "Spirits know it could use some proper attention."
I chuckle. "Alright, see you around then."
He nods, grabbing his data pad and sitting back down. I head over to the Kitchen where I saw the Asari. After a brief search I find her sitting at a table eating.
"Mind if I have a seat?" I ask walking up.
She shrugs. "You're the one Garrus told us about right?"
I sit down across from her. "Jonathon Knight, yeah he seems to have told everyone all about me."
"Quite a bit, kind of interested to see how you'll do. My names Rellan."
"Nice to meet you."
"We'll see if you keep that opinion." She says. "I've spent most of my life on Omega, not really a 'people person'."
"Eh, I'm not one to judge."
"Right, you're supposed to be the equipment guy right, ever work with amps before?"
"A bit, I tinkered with a few during my time on the Normandy, I'll see what I can do."
She nods. "Eh that's better than I hoped." She gets up and dumps her garbage. "See you later then."
I get up and start walking over to the stairs. Rellan seems a bit indifferent, not necessarily unfriendly, but we'll see. I get to the second story and look around, there's another small common area up here, with the bunks farther off to the right. Behind me down a short hallway is Garrus's massive room. There is a Salarian sitting on one of the beds.
He looks over to me and stands up. I walk over to him.
"You must be the new guy Garrus mentioned, names Weaver."
"Yeah, Jonathon Knight."
"I'm the designated driver, I can drive or fly just about anything with an engine." He scowls after a second. "Not that there's anything much here to drive."
"Yeah I don't really want to fly into a mission in a car, we're gunna need a shuttle."
"Yeah, could probably use a truck too, in case we need to move something big." He says hand on his chin in thought.
"Are you a mechanic as well?"
"Of a sort, I should be able to keep whatever we have flying but, I only know field repairs."
I nod. "Well I should be able to help some, I'm good with most tech."
"I can see that, interesting prosthetic you have."
I lift my hand and examine it. "Yeah, it was pretty easy to modify a Geth arm to work as a prosthetic."
"Why not just get a normal prosthetic?"
"Because I'm not a normal person." I reply with a smirk, there's truth in that lie.
"I believe that's a perquisite for getting on this squad." That gets a chuckle from me.
"Indeed, well I'll see you around." He just nods turning back to his bunk.
I start to walk away, but stop to look out the window. The vastness of Omega stretches out before me, mostly dark until the area near afterlife, distant sounds of gunfire can be occasionally picked up, but the base is pretty secluded way out here. The air isn't as thick out here either which is good, I have to keep reminding myself that this is a station built on an asteroid, although I have found out that's why most building don't have windows, although 'building' is a relative term, most structures are built into each other and aren't standalone structures. But I have to go talk to Garrus.
I step away from the window and head downstairs to the room Garrus took my stuff too. He is in the common area and joins me as I walk through. Coming into the room I look around, It's about as large as Garrus's room upstairs, but there are a few benches and some machinery occupying this end of the room. The far end has several lockers, a desk and a bed, I turn to Garrus.
"I'll be sleeping here then?" I ask one eyebrow raised.
He shrugs. "If you want to, you could claim a bunk upstairs."
I smirk. "Nah, I'll take a bed over a bunk."
"Thought so"
He closes the door and leans up against the wall. "Really Jon, I'm glad you're here, I could use your help."
I lean up against a workbench. "Yeah? I'll do whatever you need, you're in charge right?"
"Actually, I wanted you to be my second." He says look me straight in the face.
"Why?" I ask one eyebrow raised.
"I might be better at leading a ground team, and I've got a mind for criminals, but you, you know how to fight a war, it's not quite the same, but it's close."
I nod. "Well, what have you been doing so far, as far as missions go?"
"Nothing big, killing a few Lieutenants, destroying a few stashes, just making a name for ourselves."
"That's a good start." I think for a second. "The most important things in any war are, information, and resources."
He nods understanding.
"We should start investigating into the mercs higher ups, see who might part with some information given the right incentives." I says starting to pace back and forth.
"We don't have the money for bribes right now." Garrus says.
"I figured, but we should know who is likely to accept a bribe should we need too." I stop for a moment and wave my hand. "Resources, that's the next thing, credits, tech, guns, ammo, vehicles, food, and water. We should be able to steal most of that from the mercs."
"So what do you think our next step should be?"
"Getting a shuttle, we'll need one for deployment, pick ups, and ferrying supplies." I think for a second. "The mercs likely have vehicle depots, chopshops, mechanics, storage, we should find one and raid it, steal a shuttle and some choice equipment."
"They won't be expecting an attack on a vehicle depot, should be lightly guarded." Garrus replies.
"Exactly, should be an Eclipse depot too, they'll have the best tech."
"Alright, so that's step one, how should we go about getting information?"
"Omega is a rats nest, finding reliable sources is going to be difficult, our best info right now, will come from observation."
He nods again, I can see the gears churning in his head. "Ok, Sivan, you and me are best suited for that kind of job."
"Right, if we can find a good depot, we should be able to get a shuttle and equipment to keep it running, maybe even some equipment I could use in here."
"Rellan knows Omega best, I'll ask her if she can think of any likely places." He waits a moment. "Speaking of which, what do you think of the squad so far?"
"Dak seems friendly, Sivan seemed like a nice guy as well. Rellan seemed more indifferent, but I guess we'll see, and Weaver was very… professional."
He chuckles a little. "Yeah, that's about what I thought." He pushes off the wall. "Well I've got a depot to find, I'll tell you if I need you for something."
"Alright, I'll see what I can do here, go over weapons and armor. The usual."
He nods. "Good to have you back Jon."
"Good to be back."
A/N: Well there you go, hope you like it.
*NOTE IMPORTANT FOR ANONYMOUS REVIEWERS!*
I changed my mind if you post an anonymous review I will make a section after the chapter to reply to them, so if you do that you can find it there, regular reviews will be replied to same as always, Thank you.
-Jknight out
