MASS EFFECT

The Wraith Wars

"Who needs tomes and volumes of history? Children are dying. The injustices of the world hide in those three words."

Steven Erikson – Deadhouse Gates

I took a break from writing this trilogy to deal with my wife's cancer and to work on my original novels. I am hoping to put out 1 or 2 chapters of Wraith Wars per month... at least that's the plan. As previously stated, this is the second in the trilogy. While Reaper Dreams focused on the Destruction choice, the theme of Wraith Wars is Synthesis. Also, I am drawing inspiration for each novel in this trilogy from a seminal work of Science Fiction. The first novel, Reaper Dreams, was influenced by "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" by PKD - a novel that most people know from cinema as "Blade Runner". The Wraith Wars will draw heavy influence from "Stranger in a Strange Land" by RH

I am changing up viewpoints of the main couple this novel - so instead of Jack's viewpoint, we will get Miranda's. In the first chapter, we will step back in time to the beginning of Reaper Dreams, and find that two of the Williams sisters - Abby and Sarah, survived the Citadel thanks to Aria. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy.

PROLOGUE

May 5th 2187: Omega

Abby Williams

The stench was overwhelming. It fouled Omega's already endangered atmosphere, diluting the thin air into a putrid sludge that confused the brain, threatening the proclivity of the respiratory reflex over the gag reflex. It was even worse for Abby and all the other human and Asari refugees who had been forced to seek shelter in the Charr District. The gravity, elevated to favor the district's Elcor inhabitants, was compounding their misery, turning each singular breath into an act of defiance. Sarah was asleep on a nearby cot. Abby went back to her again and again, pressing her head to her sister's chest just to make sure she was still alive, still fighting to breath.

The gravity had other complications. It was dangerous for humans to be here. One misstep, a trip, or a stumble, and you wound up on the floor with shattered bones. Abby had seen it several times already. One man, Marco, died when rolled over in his sleep and fell out of his cot. If that wasn't bad enough, the damned Vorcha were hovering around the corpses, impeding the progress of the Elcor who volunteered to remove the bodies. It wouldn't be long until the damned scavengers began to challenge the cadaver crew over who had the right to the dead.

'Absolutely disgusting,' thought Abby. Yet, the Vorcha were merely the first to entertain the notion. Soon, every refugee on this station would arrive at the same conclusion.

Fifteen million aliens and humans were packed onto Omega, a mining station meant to support half as many, and there was no relief on its way. The Mass Relays were inoperable. A team was working on the situation, but it would be months before they knew if they have had a shot at fixing the Omega 2 Relay, and even then, there was no guarantee that the other end of the line would be open. Abby wondered how Ash was doing, and if mom and Lynn had made it out.

'Ash will be fine,' she told herself. 'But mom and Lynn are gone. You need to accept it. Get Sarah through this. That's your job now. It's what Ash would tell you to do.'

The latter thought was something she dared not share with Sarah, especially in her fragile state of mind. Abigail Williams was a realist, and she knew that it was only blind luck that she and her sister made it off of the Citadel during the Reaper attack. If they hadn't been standing there at the port when the crazy Asari woman and her bodyguards came storming through, they would have been left behind with everyone else. Even then, the shuttle they were shoved into, barely escaped. The Reapers tore apart the civilian convoy in seconds. Less than a third of the ships that fled the Citadel reached the Widow Relay. Even if mom and Lynn were on one of those ships, that put their survival at one in three, and there was no telling what system they ended up in.

In the frantic hours before the relays went down, ships were piling up in the Sahrabarik system by the hundreds. The refugee flotilla was scattered across the system. Ships low on fuel and supplies were turning to piracy, and it seemed that almost every hour the Omega defense grid was shooting down a vessel attempting an unauthorized landing. Abby wasn't sure just how bad it was going to get inside the station, but it sure beat the hell out of freezing to death in space. Sighing, she stared over the rail and watched a group of Elcor communicating with two Turians and a Batarian on the ramp below. After a time, the Batarian and the Turians made their way on up.

Abby was checking on Sarah when the Batarian called her name. "Abby Williams?"

She turned, surprised. "Yes?" While in her mind she uttered a silent prayer. 'God, please let him say that mom and Lynn and looking for us.'

"Aria wants to see you," said the Batarian.

Abby recognized the name right away. The locals referred to Aria with a bit of awe. She was the law on Omega, such that it was, and from all Abby had heard, she was some sort of gangster. The fact that she knew Abby's name was a little unsettling. What the hell could this woman want with her? She looked at her sister, then turned back to the Batarian.

"Is this important? I can't really leave my sister right now," she said. "She's too weak for the gravity in this section."

The Batarian turned to the Turians, then back to Abby. "We can help get her out of here, but if we do, you'd better do as Aria asks."

Abby didn't need to think twice about her answer. Whatever it was that this Aria wanted, it was worth it for Sarah's sake. She swallowed the thickening saliva in her mouth. "Deal."

An hour later, Abby found herself flanked by guards and starting at an Asari woman she recognized—the same Asari from the Citadel. Abby was dumbfounded. "You're Aria?"

The Asari rolled her eyes. "Who else would I be?"

Abby didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, I just… back on the Citadel… thank you."

Aria sneered. "I put together a convoy of shuttles on the assumption that the Reapers would blow most of them out of space, and that they would target the shuttles with the most people in them. That's why you and all those other poor bastards were at the head of the convoy. It's just dumb luck you got through, so don't thank me."

Abby was dumbfounded. Even if it was true, who would admit to being so callous? She had no words. "Ok then," said Abby. "Why am I here?"

"It's a fucking mess here on Omega," said Aria. "And one of my enemies used the opportunity this morning to take a shot at me. More precisely, they didn't exactly take a shot. They caught us passing through one of the bulkheads that leads out of Kima District. Normally no problem—my bodyguards are usually on point, but the fuckers flooded the bulkhead with ionized gas and dropped some sort of device my techs are still working on. None of our weapons would fire, and the assassins were all trained in hand to hand. They took my guys apart. I made it through the hatch just in time, but not without a knife in my ribcage. That's when I realized I'm getting too old for this shit, and that I have a serious flaw in my security."

Abby shrugged. "I guess that's why Krogan are popular as bodyguards."

Aria shook her head. "Krogan are expensive as hell these days, and all the experienced war leaders are off the market—went back to Tuchanka. Not to mention, the one Krogan I had along that day is the son of a bitch that almost got me killed. He went down in front of the hatch and blocked my escape route. What I need is a bodyguard with extensive experience at hand to hand combat and stealth ops, who can stick by me in any situation, and who has half a fucking brain. I had my people run an assessment of every citizen or refugee we have on the books, and guess who made the top of the list?"

Abby blinked. "You mean me?"

"No, I drug your sorry ass all way up here just to waste my time," growled Aria. "Of course I mean you. You're an expert with swords, which seems to be a thing these days. After the relays are open, I plan on a hunting expedition, and I'd like you to come along. I also wouldn't mind sparring with you."

"I'm surprised you're so interested in swords. It's not exactly a popular art," said Abby.

Aria wore a murderous look that took Abby aback. "There's a certain Cerberus Operative who uses them, and I want to take him apart piece by piece."

"Sounds personal," said Abby.

"It's very fucking personal," said Aria. "He butchered my daughter."

Abby nodded. "Ok, now you're speaking my language. I hate Cerberus just based on what my sister has told me, and family means everything. My sister is sick. You help her, and I'll be your bodyguard, your blade, whatever else you need."

The Asari woman grinned, her eyes flicking over Abby like a cat staring down fresh fish. "Be careful what you offer, Williams; I can be a greedy bitch."

Abby wasn't sure how to take Aria's words, so she just dismissed them, offering her hand. "Anyway," she said. "Do we have a deal?"

The Asari woman looked down and quipped. "Already expecting me to hold your hand?"

Abby suddenly felt foolish, always her first instinct fell back to human centric expressions. "Um, sorry, it's a human custom. What do Asari do to seal a deal?" she asked.

Aria laughed. "Williams, we don't have enough time for that. There's work to do."

For that, Abby was grateful.

UP NEXT: Miranda suffers a stunning setback in her attempt to revive Shepard a second time. Meanwhile, she's finding it extraordinarily difficult to balance her work and her relationship with Jack. A definitive choice looms, as she realizes that she must sacrifice one to save the other.