I. A Plotting Mind Never Tires

"I see right through you any hour."

-Blue Foundation, Eyes on Fire


Jane bit her bottom lip in an attempt to stifle a hiss of pain. Her head was pounding in tune with her heartbeat, something that caused extreme discomfort as she found herself regaining consciousness. After a few moments of riding out the migraine ravaging her brain, the redhead squinted her eyes open. The dim lighting coming from somewhere above her caused her head to burst into another wave of agony. Her vision was blurry, and she was just barely able to make out the high ceiling hanging over her. The object she was laying on, possibly a cot, rocked precarious under her as she shifted her weight so she could prop her elbow up to see her surroundings better.

Green orbs roved around the cell, taking in how dreary it appeared. A lone strip on the ceiling produced the faint light that had previously shone into her eyes; it also revealed the rest of the room to be rather bare. Off to the side in the furthest corner away from her sat a toilet with a small sink hanging beside it. The floors were barren of any other articles of furniture besides the ones mentioned. Her eyes trailed over to the dark, oppressive walls that looked as if they were looming over her; almost caging her in. Only one thing truly stood out to her though, and that was that one of the walls appeared to be made entirely of some type of glass-like material, looking more like a window than a wall. The window-like wall unveiled a dark and desolate corridor with no living beings in sight. It made the hair on her neck rise as she thought of all the terrible things that could be lurking within the shadows smothering the window's perimeter.

Her body protested when she sat up further; her free hand came up and cradled her head. Jane closed her eyes as another wave of the migraine engulfed her being. Figuring she could reduce painful headaches by drinking some water from the sink, she flung her legs over the side of her cot and readied herself to get up. Her bare feet pressed hesitantly against the cold ground, testing it to see if some unknown trap lay in wait. Nothing sprung out at her and no obnoxious noises sounded, so the woman figured she was probably safe to stand up. Her legs shook slightly as she allowed her full weight to rest on them. Taking a deep breath, the redhead took a step forward. When her legs didn't buckle under her, she took a few more until she arrived at the sink. Her hands rested on both sides of the basin and she leaned slightly on it to relieve her unsteady legs. A hand reached out and quickly turned on the tap. The tap sputtered out a few drops of liquid due to under use before spitting out a clear stream of lukewarm water. Jane angled her body over the sink and cupped both her hands under the spritz. When the water filled up the space of her cupped palms, she splashed her face. Her eyes clenched shut as the liquid ran over over them and dripped steadily down her cheeks. She quickly scrubbed at her skin, ridding the organ of the salt residue left over from sweat. She repeated this process a few more times before leaning fully over the sink and slurping at the water. It tasted stale, but she sort of expected that seeing as she was drinking from a sink and all.

Tendrils of wet hair hung around her face when she finally moved back from the sink. She wiped at the dribbles of water sliding down her chin and made her way back to her cot.

It wasn't until she sat down onto the bed that she allowed her mind to be flooded by the thoughts of her current predicament. A strangled sob unexpectedly burst from her as she fully started to grasp the situation. Her head became cradled in her hands, muffled tears racking her body. Only a few hours ago (she could only hoped it had only been hours) she had been lazing around on her couch procrastinating the need to grade essays. Now here she was sitting in a cell after being kidnapped by an alien species humanity had been warring with for the past two years.

Rumors heard in passing about the ruthless species slowly trickled into the redhead's mind. Rumors of how what humans were spared from death by turian hands soon wished to be killed due to the cruel nature of their imprisonment. To say she didn't possibly believe them now would be the understatement of the century. Jane knew the turians would hold no remorse if they tortured her, and most likely, killed her. Not even her gender or her civilian status would save her if the slaughtering on the streets earlier were any indication.

"I see you're finally awake."

Jane jerked her head when she heard the muffled murmur. Her eyes quickly darted to the direction she had heard the voice, and emerald irises met with luminous blue. A pale silver turian stood on the opposite side of the window with his hands folded behind his back. The alien had a fringe and mandibles pieces that stretched back a fair distance away from his head,making him appear more unique than the pictures the redhead had seen of standard turians. His piercing bright blue eyes looked like they belonged more to a cunning predator and less to a sensible sentient being. Something about that predatory gaze caused her to shudder in fright. She couldn't really tell, but it looked as if the male had smirked when he noticed her body's involuntary movement. If his cocky stance was anything to go by, she was probably right.

"What?" She finally croaked out, internally wincing at how rough and unused her voice sounded. She cleared her throat and tried to wipe at her her eyes as subtly as she could.

The male harrumphed at the human's action, faintly recalling that the liquid pouring from her eyes was a sign of emotional weakness. It highly amused him that the the sniffling female before him was already frazzled and nothing had truly happened to her. It only reminded him that humans truly were weak and far too fragile.

"I merely stated that you were finally awake. You'd been out for a while now," stated the silver turian as he started to pace the length of the window.

"How...how long exactly?" Jane knew it was a long shot that the being before her would actually answer her question honestly, but the inquiry had been gnawing at her.

The pale turian inclined his head to the woman. A sardonic light gleamed in his eyes as he chuckled darkly, choosing not to answer her. Instead a palpable silence descended; it almost physically choked Jane at how tense it felt. The turian continued pacing, his eyes probing the redhead's form, searching for something that obviously wasn't there.

Jane shifted at the attention, feeling uncomfortable at how invasive his eyes insinuated. Her hand rubbed at her cheek and her eyes looked downward, attempting to hide them from the alien's gaze.

"I wonder why they took you? You don't seem special. You're muscle mass appears to be average, maybe below average, suggesting you're no soldier. You don't look to be some eccentric scientist for the humans...so why did they take you? Spirits know we don't need frivolous prisoners taking up space in our brig.

The woman felt like she should have been insulted at how he talked to her as if she were a car at an auction show. She did feel a twinge of indignation, but what she primarily felt was horror at the thought she had been captured with the intention of gaining the upper hand against her brother and nothing else.

"No matter," the turian before he muttered without waiting for a reply. "I'll find out soon enough."

With those words said, the silver being stalked off; leaving a perturbed feeling to crawl into her stomach when she could no longer see him.


Nihlus Kryik was beyond exhausted when he was finally able to sit down at his desk in his quarters. His legs stretched fully out underneath his desk; his eyes becoming lidded as he allowed the rest of his muscles to go lax. The russet colored turian gave a large and pleased sigh when his thoughts became filled with the events of the day.

His plan had been a success; even more so if he counted the human female laying unconscious in the brig below his feet. Initially, he had meant to give a rather crushing blow to the humans' moral by attacking their own planet. Encountering the Alliance's most cherished soldier's sister had been a delicious bonus.

The white-faced turian gave a low chuckle. The defenses the species had set up had been truly pathetic compared to the technology the turians possessed. All Nihlus had to do was put on his ship's cloaking device and sit around until one of the people manning their stations on the near by moon slipped up and allowed an opportune moment for him to cruise on into the planet's atmosphere. From there, he followed coordinates one of his crew had filched and made his way to one of the Alliance's cities that contained their largest headquarters. That city had also just happened to contain Shepard's sister.

A hiss from the door opening jostled Nihlus out of his thoughts. The turian peeked open a sea foam eye to see Saren Arterius waltzing into the room, a neutral look planted on his face.

"Well hello, Saren, I wasn't expecting a visit from you so soon," remarked the red tinted turian as he sat up from his reclined position.

"I wasn't aware we'd be taking prisoners from this attack, Nihlus."

Nihlus stiffened at the accusation of his comrade. "We weren't," he replied in a cautious tone, his demeanor guarded as he stared steadily at Saren.

Saren placed his hands behind his back, his subharmonics hinting at impatience. "Then do explain why there's a human in the brig."

The russet alien was silent be for tersely saying,"She was an exception."

"Who is she then? Even you wouldn't be rash enough to abduct a useless human for no reason."

Nihlus' eyes narrowed slightly at the offhand insult. Saren was a dear friend and mentor to the turian, but there were instances such as now when the snobbish silver alien grinded on Nihlus' nerves.

It wasn't because of retribution though that the russet colored male found himself reluctant to respond. No it was because Nihlus wasn't sure if he should chance at telling his comrade who their special guest was. It was a well known fact that Saren and Shepard had seen a fair share of each other on the battlefield, and every single time they encountered one another they managed to have a showdown that ended with both side retreating. It was only expected that the silvery male would hold a grudge against the human that managed to evade death again and again.

It was also a well known fact that Saren liked getting even. He used any method he could,whether it was a dirty one or not. If he knew of the woman's true identity, Nihlus was pretty sure that the outcome of having his mentor gaining such knowledge would not bide well.

The expectant and annoyed hum of subharmonics caused Nihlus to make his decision.

"She's John Shepard's sister."

The reaction was immediate. Saren's eyes narrowed and an interested hum filled the air. He allowed his arms to go lax before making his way closer to his protege "Is that so? What was it you were planning on doing with her, hm?"

"I'm...not sure yet," admitted Nihlus, his eyes lowering down to stare with sudden interest at a datapad.

Saren's lucent eyes gleamed before the male turned and made his way to the door. He paused just before the door, ominously murmuring, "I suggest you find out sooner or later, Nihlus, because if she is no use to you, I wish for her to be disposed of, preferably by my hand."

Seafoam flickered up and clashed with bright sapphire. No words were needed as both males stared at one another, their eyes guarded as they tried to gauge each other's thoughts. Nihlus was soon left in solitude though when Saren looked away and disappeared through the sliding doors.

The russet colored male exhaled a large gust of air, his eyes darting down to his hands as his talons drummed on his desk. The rhythmic tapping was like a physical manifestation of his thoughts, quick and anxious. Fretful brooding covered his mind, what was Saren planning? Whatever it was, and if Nihlus knew his friend as well as he thought he did, he knew it wouldn't be good. His human hostage was in very real danger; he didn't need her dying on him before he figured out a precise plan that would revolve around her imprisonment.

An idea struck him, causing his index finger to pause in mid-air. He quickly lifted his hand and tapped at his omnitool, causing a face to appear on the object's screen. He gave a smirk at the name that blinked lazily under the face. Just the turian for the job he had in mind.

Buzzing filled the office before a flanging voice answered, "Yes, sir?"

"Vakarian, I have a task for you..."


I'm glad so many of you are interested in this story!

I know this might seem choppy (to me it does anyway) but I promise I'll try to sort out the kinks as I move on. Feel free to help point out to me any mistakes and mishaps so that I can fix them.

Feel free to ask questions or comment.