The mountain wind was bitter, stinging deep into the skin with all the ferocity of a dog's bite, the wind howling like a wolf as the two young men made their way to the top. It was a stupid thing, really. They'd gotten somewhat lost in the bad weather whilst out on the mountain. Not a big deal, really, under normal circumstances.

But the mountain was going to shut down before its normal closing hours. The land was normally cold and chilly this time of year, but this time the edge of winter was digging in more deeply than in previous winters, and blood had been drawn. In the case of our protagonists this had become a literal truth, the eldest could feel his skin had broken open due to the harsh, dry weather that was engulfing him and the youngest.

He held his grey-gloved hand up to the top of his helmeted head, cringing slightly behind the black and grey scarf he wore which was doing little now to shield his face from the cold. He tried to peer through the dense cloud that was engulfing the top of the mountain, but all of it was in vain. He could make out where they'd just gotten off, but the very thing that had brought them up was shut down right now, they were the last ones off and they needed to make their down to the "Sachem" trail.

If they could only make it from the "Rim Runner" to Sachem they'd be alright. Sachem would take them back to the road, back to their home, back to the warmth of soft blankets, to hot beverages, to their family waiting eagerly for them at home. They were supposed to be old enough to handle this. This was not a big deal. They could get through this fine if they were careful.

Taking deep, pained breaths, the eldest turned to his beloved family, the baby of the family. He nodded, pointing in the direction of Rim Runner, the youngest nodding eagerly back as they move as fluidly as they could across the whiteness beneath, despite the thin cover that was faintly visible in what little light was bathing over the mountain. They were going to take it slow, be careful. Yes, it was so gusty and chilly that they could have been in a wind tunnel at the bottom of the world, but if they could just make the half-hour run down the slope before them-

Then, the sound. That horrible, horrible sound that immediately sends shivers down the spine of anybody that's ever gone out into the winterlands. A "SKRRRIITTCCCH-ing" kind of noise, high pitched, biting, like nails on a chalkboard. The sound that means you are SLIDING ON ICE.

Inherent, long-kept panic bubbling swiftly to the surface of the youngest. His arms flail instinctively, his balance is lost. He trips, spinning across the ice…off the course. The eldest has been luckier, he keeps his balance as he swiftly dives after the youngest, not caring about the bumpy terrain that he and the youngest are riding down. But eventually he too falls onto his side, panting and heaving as pain shoots up his arm.

He growls angrily and manages to wrench himself free of the skis as the baby of the family screams for him. He scrambles down the hill as the youngest continues to tumble down, down towards a harsh, seemingly unending drop. His hand reaches out, one glove grasping one mitten, then another glove reaching out and taking hold of HIS…

He tries to tug the youngest up. But the eldest has been up and down the mountain with the youngest for five hours. His legs are worn, pulsing with pain, feeling as though they are fire despite the bitter cold that is ravaging him as he pants and heaves. His arms feel so weak and floppy, he tries desperately to make the necessary tug that will yank the baby of the family up to some degree of safety-

The youngest manages to get hold of his shoulder, but tugs instinctively, trying to pull himself up. And with that, the two plummet off the side, down, down into the deep, down into darkness…

The two strike something, darkness instantly claiming them. And with that…

Silence.

Mass Effect:

PRECEDENT OF PARAGON

"In the year 2148, explorers on Mars discovered the remains of an ancient spacefaring civilization. In the decade that has followed, these mysterious artifacts have revealed startling new technologies, enabling travel to the furthest stars. The basis for this incredible technology is a force that controlled the very fabric of space and time, and it…is the greatest discovery in human history."

The man took a deep, long drag of a cigarette as he sat inside of the Raptor-class shuttle carrier that was lowering him and his mercenary platoon down to the main base on Shanxi, the skies an odd, unsettling reddish hue that matched the faint red light within the loading/unloading dock of the shuttle. Once the back hatch opened, they'd be on sweet, sweet land and could get to work.

But that was still quite a ways away. As purplish cloud after purplish cloud passed by the small circular windows of their ship, Jack Harper had to listen to this annoying, fresh new face go on and on about the discovery of the new technological devices that humanity had discovered, first on Mars, then at Charon, Pluto's "moon". He couldn't stop talking about the fascinating new leaps and bounds in science and technology that the discovery of these "Mass Relay" things, as the Protheans had described them in the ruins on Mars, had given to mankind.

His problem was he'd heard this all five times before. The young man speaking was about 20 something years old, and was part of the back guard designed to assist his mercenary group integrate with the troops on the newly established colony of Shanxi. And the kid had done nothing but talk about how amazing the alien tech was. Over and over and OVER. Couldn't he change the subject? Talk about Something! Anything! ANYTHING other than the-

"Sorry, I know I drag on." The kid insisted, his hazel eyes looking nervously away from the bearded Mr. Hackett, his commanding officer nodding appreciatively as the kid held his hands in his lap. Commander Hackett adjusted the blue cap atop his head, tilting it slightly to the side as he raised a thick black eyebrow up.

"You're all hopped up. How come?"

"It's just…I'm visiting somebody very close to me, sir." The kid nervously admitted as he rubbed the back of his neck, Jack Harper taking another drag of his cigarette before tossing the little stub away and rubbing his fingers through his deep, rich brown hair. "Somebody who's stationed at Shanxi and head of the garrison is waiting for me. My cousin."

"Your cousin?"

"Luke." The kid said with a nod. "The son of my dad's sister. Really nice kid. Big smile. Blonde hair, big dimples. Big cheeks and smiles run in the family." He added, pointing at himself and giving a toothy grin as Jack chuckled slightly, rolling his eyes.

"You're awfully confident considering we've been getting reports of that enemy force lingering around here…and considering I'm not here to do your cousin's toenails, I'm afraid we've most likely been sent into Vietnam in space. We're the occupying force, I'd wager, not knowing how we're going to move forward, how we're going to win…let alone how we're going to survive." Jack said as he pointed at the kid, who blinked slightly before shrugging.

"Sir, I got to be Captain because I don't have any fear of death, and the skills to cheat it over and over again." The kid told him. "Everyone in this shuttle brings something new to Shanxi to help defend it should it come under fire. Maybe we're not over our heads. Maybe we're just good enough to make a difference and push these things back…whatever they may be."

Jack Harper shrugged, pulling out another cigarette from his thick white overcoat and lighting it up, blowing a small ring of smoke through the air as the shuttle finally touched down, and light began to pour in as the docking hatch opened wide, fresh and cool air sweeping in, propelled by a gentle, alluring wind. "We'll see, kid. I hope you surprise me."

…

…

…

…the primary fortification center of Shanxi was a circular, silve building with faintly jagged-ending pillars, each of which were infantry dormitories. A smaller ring surrounded it, filled with various colonial settlements which had the same rounded-top-dome design that the primary army headquarters of the colony possessed. The sun faintly glimmered off the top of each dome as blue lights lit up the sides of each building, and the early morning had left dew which faintly slicked down off the roofs to plop down on orange grass below, an odd, evocative smell coming off the soft grass as young Lucas, head of the 1st Garrison folded his arms before his chest, nodding securely at his commanding officer, General Williams.

"They'll be here shortly, sir."

The general looked Lucas over with both eyes, Lucas's gaze drawn to the general's scar, a long, horizontal cut across the general's right cheek that was about half a foot long, and which looked painful. It was a miracle that it hadn't struck the general's eye…whatever blade had done it had just barely missed him by centimeters. His general brushed his faint brown hair back, taking a deep breath as he turned to look out over the settlement.

"The exploratory fleet I sent out hasn't reported back yet. I'm getting concerned. You understand the importance of getting as many men here as possible. We were lucky to have anybody sign up to assist."

"My cousin would always be happy to assist us, sir. When I heard he had risen to the rank of Captain and was eager to aid our exploratory operations I knew he'd be here the minute he heard I was here." Lucas admitted to the general as Williams's soft grey eyes widened ever-so-slightly in interest, his face becoming amused as the shuttle took off, Hackett having other cities to visit, other garrisons to inspect.

"Your cousin, eh?" The general asked as the sound of the shuttle landing filled the air with a "SCHA-FIISSSSH" noise, he and Lucas turning as it touched down in the loading area by the northwest region of the main settlement. They made their way past reddish/brown bushes that resembled ferns, striding with a small platoon of guards as they greeted the newcomers to Shanxi, General Williams being saluted by one mercenary after another, the rear guard soon coming up behind the last of them, a cheery-faced, brown-haired young man with hazel green eyes that stepped up after Jack Harper had stepped to the side.

He saluted passionately with a firm nod, then immediately held Lucas in a tight hug. "LUKE!" He cried happily.

"TORTOISE!" Lucas laughed, returning the embrace and patting his cousin on the back as General Williams chuckled a bit, the others in the group all joining in with a couple snorts, giggles and guffaws.

"Tortoise? Really?" Jack Harper asked, taking a deep breath of another cigarette before a glare from General Williams made him accidentally SWALLOW the thing, making him vomit on the grass with a "CHUGK-HAK" sound as Lucas's cousin's already-rosy cheeks turned redder still from embarrassment over the pet name.

"It's because a tortoise is older than a turtle. My brother's nickname is Turtle and I'm the older one so I'm Tortoise." The kid mumbled with a faint, nervous laugh.

"He saved my life once, sir." Lucas said as he saluted the general again. "We were up skiing at Okemo ages ago, another lifetime ago. His efforts to pull me up got me discovered intact and mostly unharmed. Took them another three years before they could find him, but they found him!"

"Ah, yes, I remember the story well. "Family Found Frozen in Frost"." Jack Harper realized, speaking out loud as the others turned briefly at him. "You two were popsicles on a far-off mountain in Vermont. I'm surprised they found you at all. Guess you're lucky. All those amazing technological advancements you kept talking about are the only reason you were able to be unthawed and returned to normal."

"The need to go where no man has gone before pretty much saved my life, sir." The kid said as he nodded at Jack Harper, then at General Williams. "And I will go wherever you wish with this fine crew. Who knows? The next thing we find could help us discover time travel for all we know."

"That'd be something." General Williams said with a nod. "I want you and the men here to do a patrol, Captain, but I don't want you going more than three clicks from outside this base, you understand? Take point and then head on back. Everything by the book whilst I try to get in contact with our exploratory force we sent through that Mass Relay." He informed them all with an authoritative, almost fatherly tone. "Mr. Harper, you've got training to undertake. You don't know the first thing about this planet, but we've got some training regimens we've crafted for Shanxi."

Captain Lucas saluted. "We won't fail you, sir!" He proclaimed along with the rest of the assembled group, all of them snapping at attention, only the kid's gaze moving over to the deep, reddish woods that stretched out on all sides around the colony of Shanxi...a faint unease rising in him as he chewed on his lip.

He had a bad feeling about this.

…

…

…

…the wind faintly blew through the crimson trees as they took up point for the fourth time this week, moving in a large circle out from the center point of Shanxi. The kid and Lucas weren't too far from each other, only a hundred yards as they pushed past the thick red foliage around them in their matching steely armor, the "N6" and "N5" patches on their chest the only real indication of difference between the two's chest armor, though the kid was wearing a tie-dyed headband that was stretched across his forehead, and a mood necklace in the shape of a cross that you could see hanging off his neck and down the nape of his chest armor. They were, in Lucas's mind, without any real camouflage. Cover, sure, but not camouflage.

Still, there was a good part to all of this. They could move quietly through the undergrowth about them, everything seemed muffled and quiet. If they could just keep on their guard and keep their eye out, they'd be fine and would notice any potential dangers. They weren't looking for trouble, but if it came close, they'd deal with it easily enough. After all, they had come prepared, the kid especially, he, the eldest, was packing a secret weapon in a compartment hidden around his leg, by his thigh.

It was an oldie but a goodie, a classic firearm. Nothing like the weaponry he was now carefully aiming through the trees, designed to generate ammunition by shaving off a projectile the size of a sand grain from a dense block of metal contained within the weapon's body, a projectile that would be propelled violently by decreasing its mass within a small mass effect field from within the weapon, barreling out at the target, thousands of tiny rounds being propelled from a single ammunition block…

And as a faint sound filled the air, Lucas and his cousin stiffened, knowing they'd have to put those weapons they wielded to use. Lucas wheeled to the left, something rising up which had been hidden in the undergrowth and crouching almost impossibly low, tossing aside a faint and rudimentary blanket of some kind designed to blend in with the environment, a blanket their foe evidently felt he didn't need now because Lucas was right in his line of fire and so darn CLOSE-

But Lucas's cousin was the best shot in the family. A sniper rifle shot rang through the air, the form being forced to dive into a nearby set of bushes as Lucas blinked for a moment before emptying his gun in the direction of the bushes, the being that had hidden away racing off through the woods as more and more forms caught their sight, moving just out of the corner of their eyes as Lucas's cousin roared out a warning to everyone else on their private communicator line.

"They're here, they're HERE! Emergency maneuvers!" He screamed, ducking as one of their foes fired off in his direction, a greyish, face-painted blur he couldn't get a good look at. He frowned to himself as he hid behind a tree before taking a deep breath, racing through the trees towards the form with a bellowing cry, Lucas letting out a warning, "Nick, no, wait"…

THA-BLAM! He slammed into the being as it managed to shot off a couple rounds, but they thudded against his body almost uselessly, he barely felt the strikes as the two went tumbling down a hill, rolling down, down, thick grass whacking their faces over and over again as the young captain finally came to a slamming halt, hitting a rock that the other had rolled into as well, the two letting out faint moans before the kid rose up…

Only to find the other had gotten to HIS feet first and was now pointing a small, powerful-looking plasma pistol that looked like it belonged in the hands of "Robocop". He blinked his hazel green eyes as he stared into the silvery/blue eyes of his opponent, surprised at what type of creature this was. He'd heard reports, but had never seen one of them up close. It appeared to be a sort of reptilian humanoid of some variety, with faintly avian features, bent back legs, a thin, lithe body beneath the dark blue armor this being had and bird-like claws clearly visible, as evidenced by the specialized gloves and boots it wore. It's mandibled mouth spread open slightly as it's voice growled some kind of command at him.

How odd. What a strange type of voice, like he was saying the same thing twice, and yet at the same time. Like two identical people were speaking at once…what was that effect? "Flanging", yes. The Beatles had done it-why was he thinking about the Beatles? This alien being had a gun pointed right at him and was about to give him a third nostril.

It spoke angrily again, giving him an annoyed look as the kid turned his head slightly, the alien noticing out of the corner of its eye a few other similar aliens approaching. One was very similar to itself, but whilst the kid's captor had a bluish/purple crest on its deep silvery face, the second alien had blackish/blue, and was slightly older, with two long mandibles spreading out at the top, the third alien being a reddish/brown alien in color with one interesting feature: white facial paint over specific points on its body in thick, ornate stripes with piercing green eyes that looked the human over.

The first alien repeated its demand AGAIN, but this time Nick was able to gleam what he was saying…somewhat. He recognized the language.

"Quid agis, Desolas?" The second one asked

"You speak Latin." Nick remarked. "And you want to know my name."

"Quis est vestri nomen!?" The alien who was sticking his pistol in the kid's face demanded angrily.

"Nescio." (I don't know.) Nick wisecracked, chuckling a bit, earning him a whack across the face as he spat at the ground, frowning angrily at this person, "Desolas", evidently, who was pointing his gun in his face.

"Quis…est…vestri…nomen?" Desolas snarled.

"Nemo me impune lacessit." (Nobody provokes me with impunity!) Nick growled back in his face, the alien beings looking at each other in interest before Desolas chuckled slightly.

"Inusitatissima iocaris." (You've got a funny sense of humor) He informed the kid, raising a nonexistent eyebrow as he motioned for Nick to move over to the other two, blinking as he noticed something that had begun to spread slowly but surely, Nick blinking as he looked down at the large wound on his side. "…hmm." Desolas mused…his guard temporarily lowered as he looked at the wound.

Nick made his move. He rushed forward, grabbing Desolas's arms and twisted them behind him with his hands, pinning them behind the alien with one hand whilst his other snatched up the weapon he had hidden in his hidden thigh compartment, pointing it at the other two, eyes glaring darkly.

"Non fieri potest!" (It is impossible!) The eldest of the aliens exclaimed.

"Nil mortalibus ardui est." (Nothing is impossible for humankind.) Nick insisted as the third one adjusted something at the collar piece of his deep red and black armor, his facepainted face focusing in on Nick's face.

"Resistere irritum est, adulescens…give up. We outnumber you."

Nick blinked in surprise, but didn't lower the gun. "You have a translator." He realized. "Look, back off! I'm walking out of here, your friend is coming with me. This is a 44 Magnum. The most powerful handgun in the world. It can blow his head clean off."

"He said give up, you…THING." The second one snarled, his tone becoming dark, a furious, baleful glint coming to his steely eyes as Nick positioned the gun squarely underneath Desloas's chin, making the second one's eyes bug out as his voice immediately dropped an octave. "Wait, no, stop!"

Nick slowly moved it back to Desolas's forehead, raising a thick eyebrow up. "You're being awfully calm about this. Kudos." He complimented. "They train you well wherever you come from…where DO you come from?"

"Oh no you don't. You know how this works. All you'll get from us is our name, rank and file number." Desolas muttered, gritting his fangs.

"Look. You guys fired on us first, okay?! I think my kind are owed some answers, alright?" Nick snapped back at them as they circled each other ever-so-slowly, looking back from his prisoner to the other two. "So where are you from and what're you doing on Shanxi?"

"So that's what you call this place? Shanxi? Alright. Very well." The third one said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "We are Turians, from Palaven. My name is Nihlus Kryik. This is my comrade, Saren Arterius. I believe you know his brother."

Nick's eyes immediately widened, his mouth opening slightly as Saren saw the gun twitch and a nervous expression come to this strange being's face. "…younger brother?" He asked quietly.

"…yes." Saren said quietly.

"…alright. Alright." Nick sighed, head lowered slightly as he let go of Desolas, stepping away as Desolas stood by the other two. "Why are you pushing us?"

"W-what?" Saren asked.

"Why are you pushing my species? Humans have never met you guys before now, now you're picking fights with us. Are you guys trying to conquer us for some stupid reason or do you just enjoy blasting the beejeebus outta anything that moves?" Nick demanded to know.

"Don't tempt us into blasting you, you're bleeding very heavily." Saren told him with a faint air of superiority, chuckling slightly as he rested his head upon the top of one clawed hand, shaking said head back and forth.

"Lightheadedness or not I'm not just letting you walk away until I get answers." Nick muttered, blinking slightly, the Turians well aware he was probably minutes from passing out. "What are you doing here? Why are you attacking us?"

"We're not "attacking". Your race are the aggressors."

"We're not the ones who fired on you first. You attacked OUR ships first."

"But you invaded Council space and activated a Mass Effect relay."

"Counc-LOOK!" Nick yelled out, waving the gun in the air. "SOLDIERS! FROM OUTER SPACE! HERE! WHY?!"

"You're a bunch of evidently easily frightened fools who activated something you weren't supposed to touch. Nobody who hasn't been approached by our intergalactic governing body, the Council, is to even get within ten lightyears of the Mass Relays and make use of them. But YOU'VE been activating every single one you can get your hands on!" Saren snapped at him, pointing an accusatory claw.

"There's an intergalactic government." Nick said, frowning a bit before shaking his head rapidly back and forth, mumbling something under his breath. "Well, still, you guys can't go around s-shooting…shooting up my…my men, I'll…I'll have to take you into custody and-and…" He turned to look down at his wound, seeing the blood was now dripping out of his armor through considerable cracks to pool on the grass. "…aw, DANG." He sighed, finally collapsing unconscious on the grass.

Nihlus knelt by the human after they stood there, watching him for a few moments before he listened in for the youngling's breathing. "…he…doesn't appear to be breathing. I believe he's dead." Nihlus remarked, sighing slightly. "Such a waste. He looks even younger than you were when you first joined. I doubt he even knew how to fire that weapon."

"He wouldn't have done it. I could see it in his eyes. He didn't have that steely resolve you need for such an action." Saren said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "We should alert the others. A ground approach is out of the question. We'll engage in orbital bombardment tactics and force them out so they can no longer cower in their burrows."

As the threesome walked off, the body of the young human was left alone, the wind faintly blowing through the grass and the trees above, faint leaves flickering through the air, several of them settling on his body as silence reigned for what seemed to be many hours, the faint roar of spaceship engines filling the air…

Hazel/green eyes snapped open.

…

…

…

…Lucas couldn't believe how fast things had gone south as he used his binoculars to peer out from the hill he and his men had been forced to hide out by. They'd been caught completely off guard by the sudden laser bombardment, the death from above that had barreled down on Shanxi from high above and ravaged the central facility of Shanxi and all of the outlying cities on the far rim of the planet. And now…

Now these stupid "skull faces" were combing through the wreckage to get anything they could scavenge. A hateful glare came to Lucas's face…they'd taken his cousin from him. Just after he'd gotten Nick back, now…

And now they'd taken down another large city on the outer rim of Shanxi's most densely populated civilian area. Targeting civilians was low. Low.

But if they were going to play dirty…so would the team he was leading…the team that included one Mr. Jack Harper who had a small party on the far side of one such "captured" facility.

"Get ready. There's four inside. Three behind. The building is yours, Hislop. We're on the stragglers." Harper whispered, tossing a look at the blond-haired, ponytailed woman to Hilsop's right as she brushed two thick locks out of the way of her eyes, her blue eyes narrowing along with Hilsop his jet-black hair seemed to bristle.

They leaped out from within the truck they'd been hiding in, their faces lit up as they lit the Turians up with burning-hot reddish/purple blasts of energy, Ben Hilsop's face contorted with a furious, hateful rage as he fired off at the Turians. "DIE, SKULL FACES!" He snarled out, the Turians being blown away by their onslaught as they barrled at them, catching them utterly unaware.

One by one they downed Turian warrior after Turian, and it looked like the day would belong to them as Jack saw the ponytailed Dr. Eva blasting through another Turian like his armor was tissue paper, dropping him on the spot…before his eyes widened in horror. Ben was being pinned to the ground by a furious-looking Turian, the only one left, who was overpowering him quickly.

THUDDA-THRAK! Jack piled into him, making him drop his gun as he pinned HIM to the ground, Ben hissing darkly, putting his pistol to the being's head. "You stinkin' vultures! Not enough you bomb innocent colonists, you have to pick through the ruins!"

"Stand down, Ben." Jack insisted, putting a hand on Ben's shoulder, speaking comfortingly. "I can't interrogate him if he's dead."

"I'm-I'm SORRY, man." Ben groaned as he stood away and his arms hung limpy at his sides. "Seeing these settlements on fire up close-I…I mean, my brother's one of the casualties they wiped out!"

"Hey, Captain Lucas lost family too. We've all suffered here. That's why we joined the cause. But hey, if you want to kill more Turians after this is done, join the military." Jack insisted.

A beep from a large, streamlined "MAKO" armored tank/jeep that made them glance up at the bulky, big-wheeled vehicle, a cannon smoothly turning away from them as the occupant climbed out, Captain Lucas grinning. "Jack, the Man wants to see you. You and your prisoner can ride in the back."

"And what a sweet ride it is." Dr. Eva Core admitted, putting her pistol away as she brushed her ponytail back a bit, noticing Jack had found some device in the turian's pocket.

"This some kind of communicator?"

"That would be none of your business. I doubt you'd be able to fathom it anyway."

"We might surprise you, Turian." Jack said with a slight chuckle, pushing the Turian towards the enormous vehicle, climbing down a short ladder to the dark red insides of the Mako. "We might just surprise you."

…

…

…

… "The name isn't "Turian", it is DESOLAS." The Turian they'd captured mumbled as he turned his head to the side, his voice becoming cold and angry. "Release me to my people and I may be merciful."

"Ah, and they are your people, aren't they? You're a general. Well, this IS quite the nice surprise." Jack Harper said as they sat in an interrogation room, steely blue/grey walls surrounding them as Desloas's hands were kept tied behind his back in thick cuffs, angrily grinding his teeth. "Guess what, general? We're doing you a favor. We're heading for your camp right now."

"My comrades, my brother included, are lying in wait with superior numbers and firepower, human. Saren himself was strong enough to save me from a frozen death when we were children, shielding my body with his as we waited for help for DAYS. He can handle anything you throw at him, as can my men. Why not follow the example that most of your military has set in these past few weeks…and escape whilst you can." Desolas snapped out, bluish spittle flying from his mouth.

"That's a really touching story about your brother, Mr. Arterius. But, thing is...we took care of YOUR squad easily enough. Maybe you're the ones who should have stayed home." Another voice spoke up, a shadowy form speaking from a nearby hallway, arms folded across his chest, familiar yet…somehow Desolas couldn't place him.

"Such typical arrogance. New arrivals always want everything. The galaxy becomes your personal feast. I'm sure the stars look quite inviting from your home. But let me in on a little secret…" Desloas said, whispering quietly. "Others were here FIRST. This area of the galaxy is important, and off limits to ALL species. You're. Not. Welcome. Here." Desolas said, extenuating every word.

"Well you're welcome to kiss my ASS, pal!" Ben said, sticking his assault rifle in Desloas's face as the Turian frowned slightly, continuing where he'd left off.

"Rules are important to us Turians. Our code defines who we are. And you can't just go moving wherever you want. We're not giving you one kilometer of Shanxi…north, south, east or west."

"You sure talk big with a gun right in your face." Ben murmured as the figure in the hallway snorted slightly before bursting into a short fit of laughter.

"He's used to it. Again, I gotta say, Desolas. Kudos."

Desolas's eyes widened as he snapped his head in the direction of the hallway, hazel/green eyes cheerily gleaming on that familiar, brown-haired face, curly/wavy hair brushed back above a tye-died headband. "Y-you? But…you…"

"Like I said. We humans might surprise you. In fact, I've got another surprise for your men. Tell me…what do you think?" Jack Harper said, having finished typing up at a nearby console as a perfect holo-vid imitation of Desolas appeared, popping up on the small datapad he'd kept with him. "And on your secure channel of all things. Quite a good likeness. And I've just about got the voice down."

Jack cleared his throat. "Lieutenant! I've escaped! Meet me one kilometer east from your location!" He said, his voice being augmented and shifted by the datapad program he'd just crafted as Deslolas's eyes narrowed, Nick blinking as he looked deep into the Turian's eyes.

"…your eyes." He said quietly, Desolas noticing an air of genuine concern coming into the human's voice. "…they've got a…glow to them. Are you okay?" He inquired.

"…my health is of none of your concern human." Desolas mumbled, looking away and to the side. "I've no idea how you survived. But you should have just gone home. This plan will just get you killed."

"Well, then. Nos morituri te salutamus." Nick said, giving Desolas a snappy salute.

"Yes, we who are about to die salute you. We happy few, we band of buggered." Jack said with a grin, lighting up a cigarette.