When Jane wakes, the bed is unsurprisingly empty save for herself when she reaches over to the other side. Any shock of being alone has long since dwindled away, it more uncommon to have Garrus slept in that not. It's just something left from the war, maybe even his days alone on Omega. Just like her own ceaseless nightmares, her husband's PTSD leaves him with his own mental scars that manifest in his inability to sleep even the short amount of time a turian needs over the long period of unconsciousness he adapted to thanks to having a lazy - by comparison - human wife.

Damn insomniac.

Sighing, Jane drags her hand across the bed and to her chest. She knows it's time to get the hell up and get ready for their arrival on Eden Prime. Their intent on the - once again - rebuilt colony pertains to a hope that they can obtain and set up a deal on behalf of the Wraiths with an armor and weapons supplier that's made it's home here, Spiritus Sol Armory. Specializing in, though not limited to, turian and human equipment, a contract with Spiritus Sol for large orders of equipment could work in the Wraiths' favor both in overall price and the possibility of 'convincing' the company to agree to a delivery situation that could end up looking pretty damn shady.

Jane doesn't have to be all that business savvy to understand and agree with Arcanus and Garrus when the topic of keeping isolated and protecting their own and the Wraiths' location from the rest of the Galaxy. Much like their smaller equipment purchases, they plan to set up a chain of transfers among their own people, starting from a designated delivery location given to their third party supplier, followed by a series of trade offs among various Wraith ships or stationed personnel before finally reaching Virmire. So far, they've successfully kept any kind of authority's investigation from following the twisting path they leave can't completely mask despite their best efforts, but it doesn't hurt to be even more cautious.

Now they have the task of convincing the head of Spiritus Sol Armory that delivering large amounts of equipment to a representative instead of directly to a warehouse or distribution facility. The task seems an awful lot like something Arcanus should be doing, but it's not like Jane doesn't completely trust in her mate's ability to come up with a good enough explanation to assuage their worries. Garrus' proven himself perfectly capable of lying through his razor sharp teeth before.

Maybe the fact that Spiritus Sol's founder and CEO, Gwen Malolin, is more than a body behind a desk will pay to their benefit. It's not really much of a secret that the woman is bonded with - or at least married to - a famous biotic and turian general that made his name during both a turian civil and the Reaper wars. Their relationship obviously paid a part in the development armor meant for both biotic usage and front line combat, a quality not many armors possess, especially for turians. Other Spiritus Sol equipment is just as highly recommended, but not many companies can boast having paid just as much attention to biotics as they did more common users. The fact hits home well enough with the twins that she was more than ready to go in place of Arcanus, even if it presented the possibility that she and Garrus could be recognized.

If Mrs. Malolin is as privy to her husband's positional duties as she was claimed to be during the turian civil conflict on Taetrus, then perhaps she can understand that shit orders can come down from the top. Whether or not someone chooses to follow those orders, they would still understand that superiors don't always think about the consequences for their men, for the ones actually getting down in the shit and doing the hard work. General Malolin may still be part of the Hierarchy military, but Jane has a feeling he isn't one to see the things she and her husband has seen and follow the order to just turn a blind eye to it. Malolin may follow Hierarchy orders, but he'd have to be an idiot to put himself in their shoes and just bend over and take it from the Council, in being their scapegoat.

That, and Jane's pretty sure the man could understand doing anything to keep his children safe, even if it means becoming criminals in the galaxy's eyes.

Jane sits up and checks her omni-tool for the time even though she knows Garrus wouldn't have let her sleep too late to interfere with their appointment. She closes her tool, yawning as she gets to her feet and tosses her hair with a hand. Heading for the bathroom, she goes about her morning routine and uses a brush, some hair product, and pins to tame the mess before walking back out into the main room of their - too - large cabin. She and Garrus don't need all the space, but it seemed like something the crew purposely added to the design when they found out the Revenant could very well be their go-to ship. For what reason, she doesn't know, but she has an idea that is has to do with their standing at the top of the Wraiths company and some sort of show of appreciation.

That, or they all feared pissing off the bosses. If they did, then their engineers were idiots. They wouldn't win Jane and Garrus over with a mansion of a quarters, not when loyalty meant so much more. A big cabin didn't mean shit when there was a risk of getting shot in the back, especially with the high bounty on hers and her mate's heads waiting to be claimed.

Putting on the black, pencil skirt dress she brought from Virmire for this meeting, Jane slaps some quick makeup on and gives herself one last look before. Her appearance passes inspection at least to her eyes and she finally slips on her heels on her way out the door in search of her mate. He's not immediately around the deck reserved specifically for her family and a handful of important - though not frequent - guests. She hasn't been in the twin's rooms, but she's pretty sure they range between her own and the guest cabins' size.

She takes the lift down to the Crew Deck and only location on the ship not directly related to work, consisting of the Mess, Medbay, and crew quarters and added amenities. If all else fails and she doesn't find them around that deck, she can always comm them. She'd really rather not walk through the entire ship in search of them if she didn't have to. The Revenant had much larger - and more - decks than the Normandy and Jane still didn't completely know the ship well enough not to get lost, wasting the time she could be spending getting prepared for the meeting with Spirits Sol Armory. Luckily, she finds her family all in the mostly empty Mess. Jane knows it won't remain empty once the ship completes her maiden voyage and actually faces real use, but for now, the quiet is nice and reminds her of the laid back feel of the Normandy.

"There you are!" She calls out as she approaches their chosen table closer to the galley access - and where Damocles must be by his absence - seeing that Garrus has already gotten dressed in his own suit alongside Cassia in her much more laid back, casual dress.

"Hi, mommy," Cassia says as she lowers her hand holding a book and smiles. She seems to be eating something that, to Jane, looks a bit like an off blue porridge with pieces of fruit, both levo and dextro.

"Hey, Princess," Jane responds as she comes up behind her husband, mandibles deep in a datapad, and wraps her arms around his shoulders. Laying her cheek on his crest, she makes a long suffering sound. "That must be pretty interesting."

Garrus chuckles and shifts to lay his free hand on her arms, a soft thrum sending vibrations through her wherever their bodies touch. "It's the newest Fornax issue."

Snorting, she lifts her head to kiss the top of his head and glance down at the datapad to see if he really is reading porn. Lines of text filling the screen isn't something Fornax is known for - the exact opposite, actually - and she huffs a laugh. "Have Fornax for the articles, I see. I had no idea word were so damn sexy for you."

He finally sets the datapad down and shifts his head, making her step back and climb into the seat next to him. "It's a report from our information sector," he explains, offering the datapad to her, but she holds up a hand, not really feeling like reading a bunch of shit she probably wouldn't even understand. "It's about the Leviathan."

Jane blinks in surprise, brows lifting. "The Leviathan? Seriously?"

Humming, he nods before his gaze moves over towards Damocles, tray piled high with food and upsettingly not dressed in his usual spiked, leather jacket. Jane's expression shifts, skeptical of her son's definition of 'dress nice and professional.' She glances towards Garrus and her mate shrugs with a bemused grin.

At least he covered the tattoos.

"Uh, Damo?" She leans her elbows on the table, clasping her hands as she watches her son sit and start to dig in. "I doubt your outfit fits into the 'professional' category."

Damocles snorts, the sound an awful lot like a scoff, and tips his head back to swallow. "I know." He huffs and flicks his mandible at her critical hum. "I don't need to be there to make a deal and it's more intimidating with four people." He shrugs. "I can just wait outside. I'm still close enough to kick someone's ass if it all goes wrong, but I'm not bored."

Garrus chuckles softly and glances towards Jane. "I've already had this discussion, but you have to admit him being there might give off the wrong intentions."

"Because he's such a brute," Cassia whispers loudly, smirking teasingly at her brother from above her book. Damocles flicks his mandible in mock annoyance before flicking a piece of food in her direction. She makes a loud, high squawking noise and nearly falls out of her seat, swatting him with her hand. "Jerk!"

Snorting softly, Jane looks to her mate and shakes her head, grinning in exasperation at just how much the twins still act like little shits to each other. She wouldn't want it any other way and loves how easy it is for the two to playfully harass each other even after all the hell they've been through as kids. It's just something she nor Garrus could teach them as parents but something they had to learn on their own, though she knows having each other helped.

Ignoring the two children light heartedly bickering across the table, Garrus turns to Jane. "Remember how I asked Arcanus to have an eye out for anything about the war?" When she nods, he hums and glances at the datapad. "Most things are pretty straight-forward except for the Leviathan. With our research and some help from Liara, the information sector has put together a large collection of data that either directly links to the Leviathan or is suspected to."

"What exactly did they find? Something we should be concerned about?"

"That's the thing. Most is just something we can't really do much about but keep an eye on it." His face tenses as he pulls his mandibles in towards his chin, as if upset over what he has to say. "Remember the T-GES Mineral Works personnel? We've kept track of them, I was curious." Exhaling a heavy breath, he grabs the datapad and accesses the data. "Some are showing some disturbing signs. At first, I thought it might just be coincidence, but it was crossing species barriers, affecting multiple age groups. Jane," he says, eyes rising to hers, "They're dying …. Their brains are dying."

"Dying …," She trails off, seeing that the twins have stopped to listen in. "Like some kind of dementia or something?"

"That's a way of putting it, yeah. Only it doesn't stop at memory," Garrus explains, scrolling through the data. "Many doctors all over the galaxy are all coming to the same conclusion without even knowing of the connection, 'neural decay.' They aren't just losing their memories, they're falling into a coma before dying, their brains just … forgetting how to function, how to keep their body alive. There are too many to count, all coming from Mahavid."

Jane chews on her lip, trying to find any other reason than the fucking Leviathan causing this. He's right, it can't be mere coincidence that all these people from all species share the same story … and end.

"Could it have just been something on the asteroid?" A long shot, but she has to ask. If only to make herself feel better, more in control.

"Doubtful." Garrus shakes his head once. "Mining was stopped on the asteroid because of the Leviathan. Everyone enthralled on that asteroid sued T-GES, won too. I guess it's pretty easy to expect juries to agree with someone who lost ten years of their life and not have enough evidence on whatever mysterious artifact that did it."

Damocles rumbles curiously around his food. "Council hid the Leviathan?"

The way he asks makes it obvious that he knows the answer, but Garrus still nods with a disappointed sounding hum. "It's safe to say."

"Or at least the Alliance kept it a secret," Jane says, remembering that it wasn't Council led forces that distributed the orbs across the battlefields, but teams coming from multiple species under Alliance command. "We told them to leave the Leviathan the fuck alone-"

"But they didn't listen," Damocles says before swallowing, growling, "Just like always."

Jane sighs and nods. "Yeah. They didn't"

Her husband hums beside her, nudging her side to get her attention. When she looks to him, he tilts his head towards the galley. "You should grab something quick to eat before we head to Spiritus Sol."

Nodding again, she pushes herself up and leans over to kiss the plating at his temple before accepting a real one when he turns his head towards her. "I should probably eat on the ride over there. I'm sure I can keep from spilling food on myself." She grins at her mate's snort and pats her hand on his shoulder as she starts towards the galley. "And if not, then that's what the black dress is for," she adds as she turns back to her family and motions her outfit.

The buildings within Spiritus Sol obviously take inspiration from both turian and human architecture, with its sharp angles combines with an organic design. Metal and stone create a visually appealing representation of the two species and it makes Jane wonder what the buildings across the galaxy now look like after so many species worked together to rebuild. She knows that many species stayed at the final destination of their posting during the war while others left their homeworlds to explore new places as if nearly dying inspired them to get off their asses. Perhaps cooperation in rebuilding has left planets more like melting pots than an isolated people.

She thought it a good idea to mix their species, but knows there will always be division. Even Virmire has set groups even though the lines are very blurred. Part of her knows that unification is the best choice for the galaxy, a fantastical show of optimistic thought, but another part of her sees that there must always be a distinction between people. The galaxy cannot suffer uniformity or they'd be no better than what the Reapers had planned all along, husks following one mind. It's why she enjoys the diversity among the Wraiths, supports it, and urges people to walk that line between discord and assimilation.

Mrs. Malolin's office is located in the administration building, at the very top of the six level tower. Damocles chooses to stay down in the courtyard of the plaza, lounging on a bench as he plays some videogame on his omni-tool, but Cassia joins Jane and Garrus.

The lobby of the massive building has floors of stone, colors of silver and slate swirling in a sea of what looks like granite. A set of desks sit around the perimeter with a single, round receptionist counter in the center where two humans, one male and one female, look up and smile at Jane's approach.

"Welcome, ma'am," the male says, eyes fluttering over her and her family as he gives Garrus and Cassia that same false smile. "Can I help you?"

"We're here to see Mrs. Malolin." Jane turns to her mate as he steps up to the counter beside her, handing over a datapad that contains their credentials and approval for access to the upper floor of the building.

"We're three instead of four," he says with a light rumble, playing into the same pleasantry. "The fourth decided to stay down in the courtyard."

"Very well, sir." The woman says as she takes the datapad, it lighting up in her hand as she scrolls through all the legal jargon. "Yes. I see." Lifting her gaze, she smiles at Garrus before glancing towards Jane, then Cassia behind them. "Shall we expect your fourth to join at a later time?"

"No," Jane says, shaking her head once and offering the same smile back to the two receptionists. "He's not one to change his mind so he won't be coming up looking for us."

Both receptionists nod as the woman sets the datapad down to her right. "I understand, ma'am. I'll let Mrs. Malolin's assistant know you'll be arriving shortly. The lifts," she says, motioning the far back wall of the lobby behind her, "are just behind me and will take you to the top floor. Thank you for choosing Spiritus Sol Armory."

Jane gives her husband an exasperated look. It was his and Arcanus' idea to come here in person, but they had to have known she absolutely abhors putting on a show. This place was all about the show and she can't help the long sigh and slump of her shoulders once the doors to the glass elevators close. She leans back against the side railing of the lift and looks out of glass that overlooks the sprawling hillside that stretches out towards Eden Prime's pristine suburban district.

She has to admit, the colony has cleaned up well and made a new name for itself, but it still feels strange coming back to the place. Seeing it at its worst - multiple times - leaves her with a certain image of the colony and its people. It's not easy to see the good that can come from Eden Prime and the fact that she's more used the place looking like hell leaves her with a hollow feeling in her chest. What kind of person would look at a thriving colony and be more accustomed to seeing it in flames than it covered in life?

"This colony is huge," Cassia says, pulling Jane's attention away from her thoughts. "And so beautiful."

Jane glances to her husband and huffs a weak breath, knowing full well that their daughter is too damn observant for them. It's not necessarily a bad thing, and reminds Jane of what they fought for in the first place during the war. Even if they've taken to living on Virmire away from the galaxy, she and Garrus fought to give their children the chance to get out and see the galaxy for the good it can be. If there was anything she would have chosen to give them, it'd be the hope that people can persist and rebuild.

"It sure is." Garrus hums and steps up to stand beside Cassia, looking out at the colony through the crystal clear glass. "It's always been a symbol for humanity, but I have to admit I like it better seeing all the cooperation between species." He huffs a laugh and looks to Jane, smiling softly. "Did you know that turians here have even taken up a newly designed colony insignia for Eden Prime?"

"Really?" Jane lifts a brow and stands up straight, sweeping her gaze over the colony even though she knows full well that she wouldn't be able to see any new paints unless it was right in front of her. That, and she wouldn't even recognize it anyways.

"Yeah," he nods and adds, "Ever since the war, turians have petitioned the Hierarchy to accept colony insignias representing non-turian colonies and planets. They aren't as expansive and usually have a single design for an entire planet or colony as opposed to the many in Hierarchy space, but they're still recognized by Hierarchy law now." He shrugs and rumbles, the sound soft and pleased at the supposed idea of his people accepting the interspecies idea. "No doubt Victus had a lot to do with it. Still, I guess it's a show of just how much has changed since the war."

Cassia purrs and smiles, nodding happily as the lift slows. "It's nice to know that people don't have to feel obligated to live in their people's space just to feel accepted."

"That, and it doesn't hurt to know one species isn't kicking out another even after rebuilding." Jane chuckles and shrugs when they all turn to the doors in anticipation. "Shame it took a fucking war to end the galaxy before people learned the concept of inclusivity. Humans especially." Jane snorts and shrugs when Cassia looks to her. "Humans are bigoted by nature. More so being so new to the galaxy."

Cassia is quiet as she considers that, but neither can speak further about it as the doors to the elevator slide open to a small hall with a long wall of glass just before them that leads into what must be the Mrs. Malolin's assistant's office. Garrus leads the way in, holding the glass door for Jane and their daughter, and a young human woman glances up from her terminal. Smiling, she tucks a strand of her straight black hair behind her ear and stands, rounding her desk.

"Greetings, Mr. and Mrs. Vakarian. My name is Isabelle," she greets, offering a hand to Jane and dipping her head in greeting to Cassia and Garrus. "Mrs. Malolin is expecting you." She holds out a hand towards the far wall covered, a large wooden door set in the center. "Right this way, please."

Jane gives her mate a final glance as he steps to her side. He nods, confidence radiating off of him, and she gives him an amused smile. Good to know one of them has any clue how to set up a deal with what could be the best opportunity in supplying the Wraiths with equipment. While they weren't really in dire need, the cost to manufacture their own weapons and armor or acquire it through regular licensing was much higher than what was planned for the Spiritus Sol contract.

Isabelle knocks twice on the large mahogany doors before pushing them both open and addressing her boss. "Mrs. Malolin?" she says as she steps in and aside to give Jane and her family room. "The Vakarians are here to speak with you."

The office is large and open, a window looking over the Spiritus Sol plaza on the far wall and bookshelves to the left. On the right is a set of cabinets with what look like various knick knacks and many photos of what must be Mrs. Malolin's family, friends, and other things Jane suspects from seeing on so many vids of big, fancy CEO offices. A set of couches create a small seating area around Mrs. Malolin's personal effects, but the woman herself stands from a large, wrap around desk further within the room, cutting off whatever conversation she must have been having with the only other occupant of the room, a chocolate colored turian with red stripes along his chin and mandibles in a Spiritus Sol set of light armor.

"Thank you, Isabelle. That'll be all," Mrs. Malolin says as she stands and smooths down the skirt of her stylish dress suit. She gives Jane and her family that same professional smile everyone in this building seems to have mastered as she rounds her desk and approaches, her guard - there's no doubt of that - follows behind. "Mrs. and Mr. Vakarian, Gwen Malolin," she greets, offering a hand to Jane and nodding her head in a more turian greeting to Garrus and Cassia to which they respond in kind. "This is Aurelius Naxxus." She motions the turian, the man the same height as Jane's own husband. "He'll be joining us today."

"You'd expect otherwise." Jane offers a dip of her head to him and turns to introduce her daughter. "This is our daughter Cassia." She smile when her daughter clasps her hands and gives a polite dip of her head to both.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Cassia says before looking around the office. "You have a beautiful office."

"Thank you." Mrs. Malolin steps back and motions the comfortable looking seats before her desk. "Please, take a seat."

Jane and Garrus follow her and her turian guard as they lead back to the desk, all intent on starting the big conversation of a reputable company dealing with mercenaries. Jane has to admit that the chairs are quite comfy as she sits, though a bit large, most likely meant to be used by human and bigger species alike. She figures turian, mostly, because she highly doubts a krogan would ever have a reason to make it up to the Spiritus Sol CEO's office, but she doesn't want to outright leave out the possibility.

Mrs. Malolin sits at her desk, but Aurelius decides to remain standing a short distance behind her. He isn't hovering, but the message is clear. He's here to defend Mrs. Malolin should the shit hit the fan. Not that Jane expects it to, though. Sure, there's the possibility that Malolin might call for authorities to arrest the proclaimed war criminals and rogue Spectres that just walked into her office of their own free will.

And even if it goes bad, it's not like we'll turn our weapons on her without cause. Now, if they decide we're better off as target practice than business partners ….

Jane decides they'll cross that bridge if and when they get to it.

"I guess I'll be the first to say that I hadn't expected to receive a message over a possible contract with well known war heroes." Mrs. Malolin sets her clasped hands on her desk, expression professional, but wary. "However, you must see where I'm coming from when I say I have reservations about conducting any business with mercenaries knowingly."

Jane huffs a weak laugh, tilting her head at the truth of it. "Yeah, but you haven't called for authorities - that we know of - so you must be willing to hear us out."

Mrs. Malolin's expression shifts slightly, as if in consideration of something. "Mrs. Vakarian, I know about politics to know that what the galaxy hears is not the complete truth. I find it hard to see two people responsible for saving the galaxy and immediately thinking of all the charges the Council has against you." She lets out a soft breath. "But you haven't outright denied being mercenaries - even made it clear when you reached out to me - so I'm cautious. First of all, I can't associate Spiritus Sol with anything or anyone illegal-"

A loud squeal comes from behind Jane and she jumps in surprise, but Garrus growls and immediately stands, spinning towards the perceived danger. Looking back, though, Jane only finds their daughter standing in the small seating area, leaning towards a picture frame with a huge grin on her face. Jane and her husband share a confused look, but relax as Cassia looks to them with a happy trill before her attention moves to Mrs. Malolin.

"Is this a dog?" Cassia asks, her voice high like it usually is when she's excited as she points to a picture.

Mrs. Malolin chuckles, her smile amused. "I think? I'm not sure what picture you're pointing at." Her smile softens. "You can pick it up. It's okay."

Chirping, Cassia delicately picks up the light wooden frame and holds it close as she brings it over. When Mrs. Malolin takes it, she chuckles again and her smile warms. "Yes, that's a dog. Her name is Buttons. She's a pomeranian," she adds as she hands the picture back.

"Oh, I bet she's so soft," Cassia says with a thrum and smile as she offers the picture to Jane.

Jane grins in amusement over her daughter's excitement and glances at the photo of Mrs. Malolin, General Malolin, two young turians - golden and light brown - and one blonde, human girl holding a literal ball of fur in her arms. The 'pomeranian' is something Jane hasn't seen before, but there's a little face amongst the golden fur, and by the looks of it, she can tell why Cassia was attracted so much to it. Cassia has always been in love with animals and those she deems 'cute' attract her like bees to honey.

"Your family, I take it?" Jane asks as she takes a look at the picture once more before offering it to Garrus. When Mrs. Malolin gets that soft, maternal joy to them, Jane smiles. "They're cute."

"That's an old picture," Mrs. Malolin says with a small laugh. "I'm afraid they're not so small anymore. Brutus, my son with the sepia colored plates, is twenty-two years old and Caius is seventeen. Our daughter, Eva, is fifteen now." She watches Garrus gives Cassia back the picture. "We adopted Brutus during the civil discourse on Taetrus and my youngest are part of that new Chier initiative," she starts, chuckling, "Well, I guess not that new given their ages."

Ever since the twins, Jane admits she's kept an eye out for anything concerning the science of creating hybrids that didn't result in imprisonment or the scientists' escape into the Terminus. For the sake of her children's lives, she hopes there could be a way to prove they were just created through legal means before the technique was well known. It might lead to some kind of trouble, but she knows it'd all be less than a discovery of their true nature, of being true hybrids caring human and turian genes. She can't imagine the lives her children live, always hiding for fear of becoming likely test subjects.

At least, if they were Chiers, they wouldn't need to fear because they'd be full turian with just some genetic modifications to show some of her much like Mrs. Malolin's children share her blonde hair and - for her turian son - golden plates. Their daughter's red eyes must have been from her father. Jane's sure Damocles would be much happier as a Chier, but Jane can't go back and stop Cerberus from putting Reaper tech in her. Nor would she really want to now that she truly knows what it's like to be the mother of her wonderful twins. Despite their hardships, Jane hopes her children are just as grateful to exist as she is, even if it doesn't always seem like it.

Jane tries for something more friendly as she jokes, "So I take it you recommend it?"

"Absolutely," Mrs. Malolin responds, smile seemingly more genuine. "The technology for it is more accepted now. The initiative got off to the rocky start because of all the laws against hybridization, but looking back now, I don't regret the fact that they bent some rules to give me my children."

Jane huffs a weak laugh and picks at the edge of the plush cushioning on her chair's armrest. "Yeah … I guess we should probably get to explaining ourselves." She offers Mrs. Malolin an encouraging smile. "I get that you're worried about us being mercs, but we aren't like the others."

Rumbling, Garrus nods and looks from Jane to Mrs. Malolin. "You're right to believe that politics have painted a certain image of us. We did things for the Council and know things that wouldn't be the best for the galaxy but had to be done." He shakes his head and pulls his mandibles to his jaw. "We were tired, ma'am-"

"Please," Mrs. Malolin says softly, offering a sympathetic look, "I think we're getting to the point where you can call me Gwen."

Jane smiles a bit and nods. "Then you can call us by our names too." Sighing, she leans back in her seat and lifts her eyes to the expanse of Eden Prime over Gwen's shoulder. "What Garrus says is true. We just wanted to be left alone to live our retirement, but they wouldn't let us." Her gaze falls on the woman and Jane's jaw clenches at the way she and her family were treated. "The Council used are kids against us. They were infants and the Council threatened to dig deeper into how we had them and where they came from." Looking back to her daughter, Jane motions Cassia to come closer, taking a step towards trusting this woman in hopes they'll be believed. "Our children are hybrids too, but not in the same way."

Cassia nods and holds up her five fingered hand and Gwen shows sincere curiosity and surprise, but Jane's happy to see that the woman doesn't outright show sign of pressing the issue. Aurelius also watches Cassia as she wiggles her fingers, but only makes a soft rumble of interest as Cassia chuckles softly and drops her hand.

Jane huffs a soft laugh at the show and tell, raising a hand to Cassia's in silent thanks. Her daughter purrs and smiles before Jane turns back to Gwen. "I don't know the science, but Cassia and her brother are true - and illegal - hybrids. We didn't do it purposely just to screw with the Council," she says, lifting her gaze to her daughter as Cassia gives them all space and returns to looking over Gwen's family photos, "But I can't say we weren't going to fight to keep them a secret once they were born."

"We could only do that by keeping them away from the spotlight, out of the Council's sights." Garrus growls softly and lowers his gaze as he shakes his head once. "We couldn't just walk away, not with being war heroes hovering over our heads. The Council wouldn't let us be," he says, lifting his gaze to Gwen, then Aurelius, "So we got out. We pulled out of Council space."

Jane nods, expression serious as she looks between the two people before her. "We aren't like the other merc bands. We're only like them by the fact that we do work we choose to do and get credits as payment, no higher power to answer to."

Gwen's brows tense a moment as she seems to consider that and Garrus sits up straighter in his seat, gaining that bit of height in the way Jane's come to see as him gearing up for battle. This one just so happens to be in an office with words as his weapons.

"We don't transport drugs, sell illegal weapons, shake people down, pirate ships, or deal with slavers. Our biggest work comes from cleaning up the messes polite society tries to ignore," he says, motioning the window with a hand. "Say someone commits a heinous crime on Eden Prime, but escapes prosecution, disappears into the vast darkness of space. Imagine that person still out there beyond any legitimate means' reach? You can't afford to send out people to hunt them down, but you can hire us."

Aurelius finally steps forward to speak. "So, you're bounty hunters," he says with a raised brow plate. "What do you do with the people you catch?"

"Depends on what the bounty says," Jane says, shrugging at the cold truth of it. "Sometimes we're hired to clean up any traces because the bastard wouldn't be put away long enough - if at all - if you follow proper protocol and sometimes we find a way to send them in without giving too much about our company away. If you consider it," she adds, looking to Aurelius, "We're still doing quite a bit of what we did before, only now no one has to claim responsibility for sending us out to get the bad guys. We're cleaning up the galaxy behind the curtains. Only bonus is we get paid to do it."

Gwen looks at Aurelius before nodding to Jane. "Well, I'm sure people wouldn't be looking to hire you unless it would ultimately mean taking someone really dangerous out of the galaxy. I don't like the possibility of you playing judge, jury, and executioner, but I get that it isn't that simple." She takes a deep breath, seemingly to mull it over. "Is that all your mercenary company does?"

Garrus hums and shakes his head once again. "No. We work as bodyguards, transport security, cheap transport of products or people." He flicks his mandibles and gives Gwen a stern rumble in his vocals, "We don't do anything that could harm innocent people. Jane and I have set rules for The Wraiths and the work we take up. Anyone who goes against it is immediately stripped of their association and exiled."

Gwen drums her fingers on her desk once before giving an understanding nod. "I guess I should at least hear you out before making a decision. It only seems fair," she says, smiling softly though with a hint of reservation. "You don't seem like you're running a company like the Blue Suns or something, but you have to understand I can't really have Spiritus Sol be connected to any company that falls under the definition. There's just a bad taste with the word whether or not you're doing something illegal."

"Understandable," Garrus agrees, looking to Jane as if in question. She knows what he intends to offer and sees that it could help Gwen see their side so she nods. Rumbling softly, he smiles at her before turning back to Gwen. "We're ready to offer something in trade for the contract we're wanting." He opens his tool and flips the readout to show Gwen a readout of a newly designed mod from the Wraiths' R&D sector. "We can trade blueprints for mods that would otherwise be considered illegal because of the dangers of development. We've already gone through the prototypes and testing stages, clearing it for safe manufacture and use." With a flick of his wrist, he sends the blueprint for one of their simpler mods. "We didn't expect you to accept the proposal without seeing this offer too."

Jane nods, watching Gwen as she opens the file on her terminal and looks it over. "We do the dangerous development stages and you get to manufacture them for yourself."

Gwen arches a brow. "You know that you're technically agreeing to give the rights to Spiritus Sol Armory to manufacture and distribute this tech, right? I mean, I can see how we'll be able to file the proper patents without any trouble for us, but you wouldn't be making a profit."

"That's fine," Jane says, scooting to the edge of her seat to get closer. "It's not like we're sending all our designs over, but you can distribute the ones we have no problem making their way into mass production."

Gwen chuckles. "Keeping the best for yourselves," she says and grins when Jane smiles and shrugs.

"Always have to be a step ahead of the common criminal who can just walk into a distributor and buy a mod made from our design."

Garrus hums and closes his omni-tool. "And we plan to enhance and work on the equipment we get from you, so we'd be open to sharing any possible developments on those as well."

"Still," Gwen starts, flipping through her terminal's interface, "Asking for a twelve percent decrease of wholesale price is pushing it. We sell high quality weapons and armor and you haven't guaranteed a set number of mod designs you're offering."

Jane looks to her husband, completely lost on business tactics, but he nods in reassurance and says, "We understand. We can guarantee a new development - either as equipment or mods - at least bi-monthly. You'll be making a lot more than the twelve percent we're asking."

"Right," Jane agrees, deciding to throw something else in the discussion, "And the Wraiths plan to switch all our equipment to Spiritus Sol weapons and armor." She doesn't speak about the very likely possibility that the Wraiths won't just wear off the shelf equipment without making their own adjustments and additions. "So you'll have a long lasting contract with us. We have a lot of men, so I can promise that you'll be getting a hell of a lot of orders for shipments."

"Which brings up the next issue," Gwen says as she turns her complete attention back to Jane and Garrus. "We can't deliver to 'The Wraiths' or have any kind of legal agreement about this. I can't let Spiritus Sol be found in association in any way."

"We agree," Garrus says, rumbling in agreement. "We can't have an official papertrail that could connect the two of us, but your ships will need a manifest. For each order, we will leave a destination well within what would be any other normal delivery, whether it be one of our storefronts or an individual. That's all that's needed on your part, everything else for us will happen through numerous trade offs and drops until finally making it to our actual location."

Jane can tell Gwen's considering the idea as the woman looks over Jane and her husband before glancing towards Cassia and back. Finally, after a long moment that seems to weigh heavy in the air, Gwen smiles softly and nods. "Okay. I think we can make this work." She chuckles lightly when Jane drops her jaw in surprise. "Don't look so surprised," Gwen says, shaking her head in amusement. "I can't say I expected all this when I heard you wanted to meet, but I get it. I get where you're coming from even if I can't imagine being in your shoes. I respect you both for what you did for the galaxy and I'm mad for you over how the Council treated you. A lot of what you said sounds probable, so I don't doubt that they'd do something like that." She lifts her hand, palm up as she shrugs. "I know it's not much, but I can at least help you by accepting. I mean," she adds, chuckling, "It's not like I'm not getting anything out of it."

Jane chuckles and nods. "Yeah, we wouldn't expect charity."

"Good," Gwen jokes with a smirk and scoots her chair towards her terminal. "Now, let's draw up a contract that we can transfer to your and my person." She types quickly, glancing towards Garrus and Jane. "We might not put it into the books, but I want to keep a copy for myself and I'm sure you'll want to keep one for yourself too."

Garrus rumbles in the affirmative as Jane nods and scoots closer to him. She can't say that she expected this meeting to turn out as it did, even a small part of her concerned it might turn into a bloodbath of self-righteousness as people tried to arrest her and Garrus.

It's a nice feeling to know that there are people at least out there willing to listen to our side of the stories, let alone believe us.

Gwen Malolin and Aurelius Naxxus are property of Wafflesrock on Ao3 and Tumblr. I highy recommend their Ring of Fire series where these two came from.