Chapter Four
Omega-The day Lieutenant Kaja T'Soni left Thessia to take her shore leave
Jimmy Nichols walks in his boss, Rommea Sederis', office. He has a huge smile because he knows the information he is about to give to Sederis is going to make the asari extremely happy. Or the human hopes so anyway. "Sederis, ma'am. I have some news from Thessia. I think you'll want to hear."
"What news from Thessia? And what makes you think I want to hear any thing from Thessia, Nichols?" asks Sederis in her usual cold, nasty demeanor. The asari leader of Eclipse goes back to looking over a data pad listing a shipping manifest for a shipping vessel she wants a squad to hit out in the Attican Traverse.
"It's about T'Soni, ma'am. She left Thessia about an hour ago headed home to Elysium. I know my cousin, Anika, wants to join Eclipse," says Jimmy. He keeps the smile on his face.
Rommea Sederis is about to jump out of her skin when she hears Kaja's name. "T'SONI?! Lieutenant Kaja T'Soni?"
Jimmy Nichols nods, "Yes, ma'am."
"That daughter of a pure blood bitch is going to pay for what she did to me. What her father did to my mother. I want that bitch dead, Jimmy. You hear me? DEAD!" yells Sederis. The asari starts cussing in her native tongue, looks at Jimmy again and says, "Don't come back until she is dead."
"I'll contact my cousin to let her know to keep an eye out for T'Soni then I'll head to Elysium to take care of your nemesis, ma'am," replies Jimmy as he turns to leave Sederis' office.
Sederis says, "Before you go, don't wear anything with an Eclipse logo on it. It will tip her off. Do not underestimate T'Soni, Jimmy. She is very smart and cunning. Take that friend of yours, Stan, with you. Understood?" Sederis pauses and calms down, "Oh, and Jimmy. If your cousin helps you kill T'Soni. Tell her she's a member."
Jimmy Nichols stops and turns enough to see Sederis, "As ordered, ma'am." The human leaves the office and heads to a terminal to contact his cousin, Anika Franzen, on Elysium. When Jimmy's cousin answers the call, he says, "Anika, are you still interested in joining Eclipse?"
Anika responds, "Yes, Jimmy, I am. Why do you ask?"
"Because if you help me with a job on Elysium, you can join," answers Jimmy. He isn't sure how secure the line is, but decides not to tell her the plan.
"What's the job?" asks Anika.
Jimmy has a smile on his face as he speaks, "I can give you more details once I get there. All I need from you is to watch out for an asari, who is on shore leave from Thessia.. Are you willing to help?"
"Who? Anyone I know, Jimmy?" inquires Anika. She is wondering if it is anyone she knows. If not, she's in.
"I don't know if you know her or not, Anika. She grew up on Elysium and I believe her mother still lives there. Last name is T'Soni. She is an officer in the asari military," answers Jimmy Nichols.
Hearing the name T'Soni makes Anika pause and think. She wonders if he means Kaja T'Soni. Even so, she is game. Anika knows her good friend Dr. Cassandra Mitchell use to have a major crush on this asari, but Anika is sure Cassandra is over it by now. If not, oh well, thinks Anika. "I'm in, Jimmy. What do you need me to do?"
"All I need from you is to keep an eye out for T'Soni. See where she is staying, what she is up to. I'm leaving for Elysium today and should arrive some time tonight. Talk to you soon, Anika." Jimmy terminates the call and heads to his apartment to pack a few things he will need for his new assignment.
–
Elysium
Anika Franzen grins after her cousin terminates the call. The next person she contacts her lover and friend, Della Appleton. Della works security at the history museum and might be willing to help her. Or she thinks Della might help. Anika isn't sure until she contacts her. "Damn, Della must have left for work already," says Anika when she gets no response from Della. Anika decides to go to the museum and talk to Della and see is she and Cass are still willing to go to the amusement park after work.
There is a knock on the door, Anika opens it to see Della Appleton. "Oh, Della, I thought you went to work. I just tried to call you." Anika gives Della a kiss.
"No, I'm off today, but Cass is working. Are we still going to the amusement park? I need to do something fun for a change," replies Della.
"That is why I was calling, Della. To make sure we were still going. Is Cass meeting us after work?" asks Anika. She's lying and she knows it. That isn't the reason she called, but she doesn't want to bring it up the real reason right away. Anika knows Cass is too nice of a person to help and if she still has any feeling for this asari, that might complicate things.
Not that little fact bothers Anika. If she joins Eclipse, she can leave Elysium. And it won't matter if she loses a friend. She can make new friends once she joins the Terminus Systems merc group. Anika and Della leave Anika's apartment to enjoy their day at the amusement park.
Della says as they leave, "Yes, Cass is planning on joining us after she gets off of work. First thing I want to go on it a water ride. Nothing beats cold water in the face to wake you up." Della starts laughing at her bad joke and Anika laughs with her.
As the two friends drive to the amusement park, Anika asks, "Della, I might need your help with something. Jimmy contacted me before you came over and asked me to help keep an eye out for an asari and track her movements."
"Who's the asari?" asks Della.
"Kaja T'Soni." answers Anika as she pulls her skycar out of traffic to park it in the amusement park's parking lot.
Della scratches her head, "Isn't that the asari Cass had a crush before she went to college?"
Anika parks the car, but before she opens the door, she answers, "Yes, it is. Does Cass still have a crush on her?"
"Not that I know of. She hasn't mentioned anything about T'Soni in over a decade. They've never met, so I don't see it being a problem. What is Jimmy's plan for the asari?" asks Della. This is interesting to the museum security guard. She does wonder what Jimmy wants to do? For some reason, she thinks he is going to kill T'Soni. Which doesn't affect Della at all, but it might affect her best friend Cassandra, if she finds out about it.
"All he wants is from me is to see if I can keep an eye on her until he arrives. I'm expecting him later tonight. Will you help me, Della?" Anika knows all asari are biotics and with T'Soni being in the military, Anika would like a little back up from Della. Not that Della can do much against a biotic, but it helps knowing her friend has her back.
Della isn't sure if she should help or not. She's concerned about her friendship with Dr. Mitchell and any fall out from this if Cass finds out. "Yea, I suppose I can help you do that, Anika."
"Don't worry about anything. We'll let Jimmy handle it. He's been with Eclipse for a few years now. I know T'Soni screwed him over last year. And he wants to have some pay back for it." Anika opens the car doors and the two friends head to the front gate to pay their admission to the park.
–
Later in the evening
"Holy shit, Anika. There she is!" says Della quietly as she points at Lt. T'Soni. They are standing in line for one of the park newest rides, "Batcave".
Anika replies, "You sure it's her? Maybe it's her famous sister, Gaia." Anika and Della are both staring at the asari huntress as they make way around the queue line. Anika knows the asari is not Gaia, but if anyone hears them, they'll think that is who they are talking about.
They lose T'Soni in the crowd after they get off the ride. The two friends walk around the newest addition to the park looking for the asari. They see Kaja sitting on a bench near "Torpedo: The Ride" Both women point, whisper, and gawk at Lt. T'Soni until Dr. Mitchell joins them. Cass hears her friends make comments about how the asari actress Gaia is on Elysium.
Dr. Mitchell politely explains to her friends the asari they think is Gaia is really her older sister, Kaja. Della has her doubts, which causes Cassandra to explain in a little detail why she knows. When Kaja walks by, Cass gives her a smile which the asari ignores. Dr. Mitchell thinks her friends were being rude to T'Soni and makes a mental note to apologize to the asari if she can locate her in the parking lot.
Since, Cass has joined them, Anika suggests they go ride the "Batcave" again. Anything to keep Cass away from T'Soni. After hours of riding most of the adult rides in the park, they head to the exit. Cass says, "Tracy took my car, but I want to apologize to Kaja for you two practically stalking her tonight. So, wait for me. Unless, I say different."
Della and Anika look at each other with Della shrugging her shoulders at Anika. Anika says, "Sure thing, Cass. We'll wait." Anika and Della walk to the car, leaving Cass by the gate. The two scheming friends lean again Anika's car. Della says, "It looks like she still has some feeling for her, Anika. What are we going to do now? I don't want Cass hurt. You seem like you don't care, but I still do."
"I don't know, Della. We need to talk to Jimmy when he gets here. He might have a plan. He only asked me to keep an eye out. I'm sure she is staying at her mother's. She came here." Anika points to the park. "I don't want Cass hurt either, Della. But I don't care about T'Soni. She cost Jimmy a month's pay and he hit me up for a loan. Which cost me credits because he hasn't paid me back yet and it's been over a year."
"What the hell did she do?" asks Della as she sits on the car bumper, leaning back on the hood.
Anika keeps her eye on the exit and sees the huntress walking through the gate. Kaja seems to notice Cass standing by the exit, but the asari walks by her friend, Cass. Anika watches Cass follow the asari to her car. "I think she screwed up a meeting he had with a buyer, dealer, or something and the deal fell through and his boss docked him a month's pay."
Della shakes her head, "Damn. I can see why he's pissed at T'Soni. Why do I feel there is something else going on."
"Oh, fuck me." Anika isn't liking what she is seeing. Yelling at Cass, "Come on, Cass! Let's go!" Anika is waving her hand at Dr. Mitchell. "Come on, Cass!" yells Franzen again.
Della Appleton smacks Anika's arm, "She's waving us off. Let's leave her. It's what she wants. Or looks like it too me."
Anika shakes her head. "Damn it, Cass. Don't get in the car with her." Anika slowly gets into the car and they wait to see what Cass is going to do. Join with them or go with the asari.
"Anika look," says Della as she points to Cass getting into the car with Lt. T'Soni.
"Fuck me. She going to leave with her. Damn it!" Anika starts the car and leave the parking lot in a hurry. She heads back to her apartment. Maybe Jimmy is there waiting. Anika hopes so.
Della looks over to her friend, "Take me home, Anika. I'm not doing anything that will hurt Cass. No way."
"You already agreed to help me. We know she is in town. We know she likes the amusement park. I want to see if Cass takes her home. We'll park down the street and keep an eye out. We're not doing anything but watching, Della," says Anika sternly.
"Okay, okay. Watching shouldn't hurt anyone. What is with you, Anika? You seem pissed off now. Why?" asks the blonde-hair woman with her hair in a pony-tail.
Anika Franzen shakes her head at Della, but doesn't speak until they get back to her apartment. When they arrive, Jimmy and Stan are waiting for Anika outside on the steps. "Hey, Jimmy. I hope you haven't been here long." Anika gives her cousin a tight hug. "I think you remember Della Appleton."
Jimmy smiles at Della and gives her body a quick look over. He likes what he sees in Della, but he knows she's not interested. "Yes, I remember Della. How are you doing, Della?" Jimmy points to his cousin and her friend to introduce them, "Stan this is my cousin, Anika and her friend Della. Anika, Della, this is Stan. We work together."
Della and Anika shake Stan's hand and the small group go inside Anika's apartment. Jimmy and Stan sit on the couch. Della sits in a chair, while Anika continues to stand. Anika shakes her head. "Jimmy, we have a slight problem."
"What's the problem?" asks Jimmy. Problems are bad. Jimmy knows this. What ever this problem is, it needs fixing quickly. Before it becomes too big to fix.
Della looks over to Anika, who is pacing a little. It's causes Della uneasiness to increase. Anika motions with her head for Della to tell them. "Cass is with T'Soni."
"Why is that a problem?" asks Stan after the bald man notices Jimmy scratching his head and not saying anything.
"Because Cass is our friend and we don't want her to get hurt," replies Anika in a snooty attitude. "We watched her leave the amusement park with T'Soni. I want to stake out Cass' apartment to see if she brings T'Soni home with her."
"Good idea, Anika. Let's go. If she is taking T'Soni home with her, maybe we can use that to our advantage," replies Jimmy as he gets off the couch and heads out the door. Stan and the two women follow behind. Anika locks her apartment and they all pile into Anika's car.
Della Appleton sits in the back seat with Stan. He keep giving her looks and she keeps ignoring them. Jimmy looks to them from the front seat and shakes his head at Stan. "Trust me, Stan, she's not interested. She turned me down once. Me!" Jimmy winks at Della and smiles at her.
"I turned you down more than once, Jimmy. You're a nice guy and all, but not interested," comments Della with a grin showing. Della wonders if Jimmy even knows her and his cousin are lovers besides friends.
Anika parks her car a block from Cass' apartment building. Each of them takes a different location to keep an eye out for Cass and Kaja.. Della takes the parking lot, but sees Cass' car already parked. Then she remembers Cass saying Tracy borrowed her car. So, she heads over to the guest parking area of the lot and hides in the shadows and waits.
Della has a bad feeling this is going to end with more than Kaja T'Soni getting killed. She's in too deep to back out now. Or how she feels. Maybe, thinks Della, she can think of something while waiting for Cass to come home. What if she doesn't come home and they go back to where Kaja is staying? Then all this waiting at Cass' apartment is useless.
Anika finds a nice shaded area with a perfect view of the front entrance to the building from across the street. She lies on her stomach, takes out small visor out of a small pouch and put it over her left eye. Ah, new toys. Gotta love it. Thinks Anika as she adjust the visor to her liking. Her eyes scan the area. The visor is showing Anika infrared readings, which is what she wants to see. She sees two people walk into the building. The silhouettes showing in her visor indicates they are both human. Good, its works great. Anika has an evil-looking grin on her face. Lucky for her, no one can see it.
Jimmy and Stan take different positions over looking the back of the building. Stan is across the street hiding in the shadows. He takes the pistol out of the holster to remove the scope. He puts the pistol back in the holster and looks through the scope. Checking the layout of the apartment building. Stan doesn't see anything around the back that would pose a logistical problem.
Jimmy is on the same side of the street as Dr. Mitchell's apartment building. One of the first things Jimmy does is scramble any and all recording or listening devices in the area. He is thinking why take any chances of anyone being able to identify them if this mission goes bad. Jimmy cloaks himself and walks around to the front of the building, around the front, then heads back along the other side to the back again. Looking for places to ambush T'Soni. He thinks this place is perfect. The street is quiet. Not too many streetlights to make the area too bright. Few areas to hide in the shadows along the sides and front. Again, he thinks it's perfect. Now to see if the couple shows up here or not.
Dr. Cassandra Mitchell finally returns to her apartment. Lt. Kaja T'Soni is with her. From Della's view, it looks like Cass is carrying a couple of take out bags. Della mumbles quietly, "Shit." She follows the couple until they walk inside the side entrance to the building. Once she feels Cass and Kaja are out of ear shot, Della contacts the rest of the group via omni-tool. "They went up to Cass' apartment and it looks like they are having a late dinner."
Jimmy says, "Meet back at Anika's car. I think I have an idea." When everyone gets back to the car, Jimmy tells them what he is thinking. "I say we wait and ambush T'Soni when she leaves."
"What if she doesn't leave until morning? I do have to work in the morning. I can't stay up all night waiting for her to leave," comments Della.
Stan hasn't said much since leaving Omega. "How about his Jimmy. We tail T'Soni for a day or two. Confirm they are going to start seeing each other. This place seems like a perfect ambush area too. I agree with that part. We don't have any more than a pistol with us and T'Soni is a biotic. I'd feel more comfortable with heavier weapons. Assault rifle or shotgun preferably. We did bring some."
"I know, plus I brought the new modded ammo. That is nasty stuff. Okay, Anika take us back to your apartment. You don't mind if we crash at your place do you?" asks Jimmy with a impish smile on his face.
"Of course not. I'm not sharing my bed." She looks right at Stan when she says it. "So, you two get to fight over who gets the couch and who gets the floor or chair," answers Anika before she gets into the car. Anika waits for everyone to get in before starting the car and taking off for her apartment. When they get back to her apartment, they go inside and start planning on what to do next.
The first thing Jimmy and Stan agree on after hearing Anika and Della argue about harming Dr. Mitchell. Della's new responsibility is to find out if Cass and Kaja are going to see each other again and if they are when is their next date. Della is the obvious choice because Della works with Cass at the museum. Anika throws an idea out about keeping Cass from T'Soni.
Jimmy likes this idea. They could lure T'Soni into a trap. He is certain a member of the military police would try to catch those responsible. The more Jimmy Nichols thinks about this the more he likes it. He tells Della to stop by Anika's apartment after work tomorrow to tell them if T'Soni is going to see Dr. Mitchell again. With T'Soni's mother being an information broker, Jimmy and Stan want all communications between them to happen in person. No messages, no calls. Person to person. That way, Dr. Liara T'Soni can't get any information about their activities.
After an hour of making what Jimmy and Stan call a rough draft, Della heads home for the night. She wants to get some sleep, but after hearing what they plan to do. Della isn't so sure she's going to sleep tonight. The blonde-haired woman hopes Cass doesn't plan on continuing to see Lt. T'Soni, but she knows better. If after all these years, Dr. Mitchell still has feeling for the asari. Now, her friend can find out if the asari feels the same or is the asari only using Cass for fling while on leave. If it is the latter, Della is more comfortable helping Jimmy and Anika. If it is the former, Della knows she has to do something to keep Cass from being hurt.
–
A/N: I'll be honest, I don't have a whole lot to say. Except, more tomorrow. Stay tuned.