Note: Welcome, thanks for reading, review if you're so inclined. Parts three and four are already written, and will likely be posted after I finish part two. After that, it's on to the main story.
Tali'Zora swallowed her fear as the warehouse door closed behind her. The place was big, and dark, with piles of crates providing an excess of places to hide. It didn't escape her notice that she had walked into the perfect place for a trap, but she supposed that also made it the ideal space to conduct illicit business. She would have felt much better if she could have purchased a couple of krogan mercenaries to back her up.
Without walking farther in, she could see three men standing near the center of the room, in a circle of bright light cast from a lamp overhead, a Turian, a Salarian, and a human. They were each wearing armor, with hard-sealed helmets. Perhaps the Shadow Broker thought that she might be the trap? It was reassuring to think that he or she might feel just as vulnerable as she did.
Not very reassuring, though, Tali decided. She was the one facing three tough-looking mercenaries. "Have you got the information?" the Turian demanded, as she approached.
"Where's the Shadow Broker?"
"He'll be here," the Turian said, "as soon as we verify that what you've brought is worth it."
"That wasn't the deal." She started to step backwards, but her suite registered a noise behind her. More mercenaries? She had a few handmade grenades, lots of flash but not much bang, that were her only hope of escape.
"Well, if you don't want to cooperate, we'll just have to kill you, and take what we came for." He raised his rifle, but didn't aim yet.
Tali reached for her first grenade, but a flash of red caught her eye. A human woman had planted herself firmly between Tali and the mercenaries, her hair bright red in the harsh light.
The young Quarian's first impulse was to be relieved, except the human wasn't wearing armor, and didn't appear to have a weapon. It didn't stop her from announcing, rather loudly, "Back off. She's under my protection."
Did that sort of thing work? Tali didn't have long to wonder before the Turian swung his rifle at the woman.
She stepped back, catching the weapon as it passed, twisting it around and shoving him into a stack of crates. She had already moved on, the faint blue glow of a biotic field wrapping itself around the Salarian's rifle as it flew out of his hands and into her.
Then she crashed into the human male, bringing them both to the ground.
By then the Turian had recovered, raising his rifle to fire on the woman. Tali threw herself forward, sweeping his legs out from under him. He dropped the rifle reflexively, as he tried to catch himself. She snatched it up and stepped away before he could collect himself, aiming carefully. The Salarian tried to get behind her, but she pointed the weapon at him, and gestured that he should join the Turian, up against the crates.
A Turian in CSec armor and a uniformed human appeared, both waving rifles. "What they hell?" the human demanded. The Turian turned his weapon on Tali's prisoners.
Tali sighed in relief, and dropped her rifle. She turned to thank the red-haired woman for the timely rescue.
The woman was watching her, her narrow lips curved upward at the corners. "I'm Kara Shepard, with the Systems Alliance. Thanks for watching my back."
Tali smiled in response, though she knew the human couldn't see the expression. "Thanks for the rescue, Kara."
One corner of Kara's mouth curled up further. "It's what I do."
Tali wondered if she'd been rescued by a madwoman.
