Disclaimer: I own nothing.
AN: Loved the responses. I'll admit to a bit of embellishing in regards to my integration of the storylines but I ask you all to consider the premise of this story. I'm meshing to incompatible universes that happen to be of the same genre. They won't overlap and they won't be perfect. In regards to the questions of biotics and the Force as well as the morality issue of Revan? You'll just have to wait and see. I never did say if Revan was a Lightsider or a Darksider, just that he was trying to buy the Republic and Jedi time and if you've played through both KOTOR games you'll know the term JedI is a lot broader in their time than it is in Luke Skywalker's. As for Revan's strengths… lets just see how that turns out.
Chapter 3: Omega
A pulsing hum reverberated through the filters of Lia'Vael nar Ulnay's audio-receptors, buzzing in the young quarian's ears as she shifted uncomfortably at the subtle tickle that built up under her enviro-suit's hard points. The device in her hand skimmed expertly over the curved surface of its target, shearing off large chunks of shoulder-length brown hair and leaving behind a pale, stubble. Revan remained still during the treatment, his C-Sec uniform top laying at his feet as he tapped his right finger against the cargo pocket just above his knee-joint. Appearing on Omega as a C-Sec officer with recognizable features of a fugitive from the Citadel would be counterproductive to the purpose of their flight. Revan wanted to blend in and disappear until he could at the very least understand the new world around him. That on top of the fact that he was exhausted and suffering from the entirely alien sensation of FLT travel in Lia's galaxy was besides the point.
He was a stranger to this world and until he had established himself in some regards and could function without assistance, his hopes of returning to his own galaxy through the Conduit… if it was even possible; were nonexistent. Glancing at the Spectre pistol resting at the front of the shuttle, Revan considered his situation carefully as he reached out experimentally with the Force.
The Force responded quickly and easily, much to the former General's relief. It had worked on the Citadel during his escape and despite his exhaustion; Revan felt the familiar pulses of the Force imbedded in the machinery and the life around him, buried deeply inside of its host, midichlorians.
Midichlorians existed in some form in this galaxy at least and Revan relaxed as Lia ran the razor over his head, shearing off what was left of his hair before Revan raised his hand and made a gesture to Lia. The ministrations of the razor and Lia's gloved and probing hands on his scalp ceased as she handed the razor to Revan. The former JedI Knight glanced at the mirror by what looked to be a refresher at the back corner of the transport and frowned as he rubbed on his beard. He'd miss the beard as it had been with him since neglecting to shave back during the Mandalorian wars. It had been a long campaign in the jungles of Dxun and he'd not had the time or energy to groom himself during the weeks-long trek through the jungles chasing shadows. It'd felt right to keep the beard, even if it was underneath his mask and Revan gave the beard one last look before taking the razor to it. Nostalgia had no place when it came to practicality. He needed to be invisible and removing what was recognizable would he the first and most important step.
"How long until we touch down on Omega?"
Revan asked his quarian companion, carefully trimming and then shaving off his beard before setting aside the razor and running a small amount of water through the fountain at the back of the shuttle and splashing it on his face. Picking up the discarded C-Sec uniform top, Revan used the stolen shirt as a makeshift towel and sniffed slightly, brushing his hand under his nose before tossing the uniformed top into an incinerator and taking the plain black undershirt and pulling the synthetic material over his head.
Shifting uncomfortably, Revan scowled at how tight the shirt was before he brushed some lingering hair from his hands and stomped his boots on the deck plate, trying to rid himself of the hair still lingering on his trousers. Lia watched this all in bemusement before moving to the front of the shuttle and checking their position. Two more jumps and they would reach the Omega Nebula and one more beyond that to reach the Sahrabarik system that held the asteroid field containing the former mining colony and space station. The on-board VI of the transport would do the necessary calculations for the jumps and auto-pilot the shuttle to avoid collision with random space debris, but Lia would need to activate each sequence. Glancing over her shoulder, Lia relayed the results while Revan made a quick and silent effort to clean up the mess his transformation had made. Glancing up from the incinerator as he disposed of his hair and brushed his hands together, Revan nodded to Lia, gesturing to the pistol sitting at the front of the shuttle.
"We need to avoid attention. No one knows you're with me and our first priority is to be invisible. Much as I hate leaving both of us defenseless, we can't go anywhere with that pistol if its as high a profile weapon as you're saying it is. We need to salvage what we can from it and dump it. Preferably in the incinerator."
Lia frowned at the thought of stripping and destroying a perfectly functional device before she nodded reluctantly. Walking around with a Spectre's pistol would be suicidal on a place like Omega and even if they survived someone trying to take it from them, the pistol would draw the attention of some Information Broker and probably bring the Special Tasks Groups or another Spectre after Revan. It would be dangerous finding another weapon on a place like Omega but with so much unmonitored traffic into the station itself and its Relay, they could disappear easily.
"The mods in the weapon should bring us a decent amount of credits. That of course depends on how heavily the previous owner upgraded the weapon."
A light at the base of Lia's faceplate blinked with her words as Revan inspected the black case of the HMWP Mark X pistol before setting it on the workbench and taking a step back. Lia moved to the bench, typing at her Omni-tool and checking over the mods. Not accustomed to quarian body-language, Revan missed the shock that overtook Lia at the sight of the modifications to the weapon.
"That… that is a nasty little Boshtet…"
The quarian's amplified voice was barely a whisper through her faceplate and Revan rose a brow at the shift in the Force around Lia. She seemed almost hopeful at whatever she was seeing and Revan glanced about the transport, searching for alternate weapon options before huffing in disgust.
"Should have grabbed one of my light sabers at least. Bloody Hell this is going to be messy."
Clenching his fist, Revan focused on the bulkhead before him, his head throbbing from the combination of Mass Effect fields, exhaustion both physical and mental as well as the emotional ramifications of his situation. It was a bleak outlook and Revan brought his left hand to his face, rubbing at his clean-shaven chin and trying to focus on the alien feel of the skin there.
"I should be able to remove most of these mods. If we can manage to find a merchant on Omega before we're robbed or murdered, we should have enough for some new weapons and armor for you, not to mention fifteen, maybe even twenty thousand credits after!"
Revan nodded absently, his stomach lurching as he moved to watch Lia work. Despite his technical expertise, he was at a complete loss over the technology his companion was working on. Half of her work was done on the Omni-tool while the other half was spent taking apart the weapon and carefully removing and cleaning solid but expensive-looking components. It was similar to weapons he'd used in his own universe but at the same time based on an entirely different set of principals. He would have to unlearn everything he knew about weapons tech and relearn it in this galaxy's standards and Revan let out a breath slowly, focusing on his companion's work.
"No time like the present…"
Revan muttered to himself, focusing on Lia's work and trying to catalogue everything he saw. Having an eidetic memory helped, but it would still take time to learn what was necessary to be functional at low level tech work and know what he needed to to survive.
Omega was about as pleasant as Revan figured it would be from the sense of fear he was getting from Lia and her near-horror story explanation of the station. Aside from the stagnant smell of barely recycled air from ancient and likely unsafe filters, the overall atmosphere of the station would have given the dankest corners of Taris' Undercity a run for its credits. As they moved through the scattered crowds of various aliens that Revan couldn't name, even when he tried to read their surface thoughts, the decay of the ancient mining colony grew more and more apparent.
Despite the advanced technology of nearly every known race in the galaxy having been used in the station's construction, centuries of decay had taken its toll and the more than one of the towering buildings was covered in decades worth of grime and rust. The massive Mass Effect Core that powered the station barely kept the structure together with its Mass Effect Field that also served the purpose of keeping the other mineral-laden asteroids within the field at bay.
"Stay close to me and don't speak to anyone but the merchants."
Lia nodded vigorously at Revan's orders, deciding it was very good advice considering the way the port-master had eyed the due upon their arrival. The Spectre's pistol was stripped and destroyed and until they could reach the marketplace of Omega, they would be helpless as far as the quarian knew.
Revan let out a heavy breath, a pulsing and painful pressure building up in his mind as he used the Force to conceal both his own as well as Lia's presence concealed. Had he not fought in a massive duel on Ziost, been thrown through dozens of Mass Effect Fields and bashed on the back of the head by a C-Sec officer for good measure such a small task would have been a simple thing. As it stood he was nearing the point where regurgitating what little food he'd had on Ziost would become a biological imperative.
"There"
Revan glanced at Lia, turning his head to follow her outstretched arm to the set of doors she'd pointed to. Nodding his understanding, Revan followed the quarian youth as she took the point, her small form weaving through the sentient beings milling about the docking port and passing through the ancient but well-maintained doors leading to Omega's main market district. Maintaining the Force-impulse that disguised them, Revan followed Lia through the doors and spotted her form slipping past a massive Krogan unnoticed and moving up to the counter of a four-eyed Batarian merchant. The two spoke briefly and Revan sacrificed anonymity to get the Batarian to deal with a quarian by using the Force to subtly suggest he accept their equipment.
The Batarian merchant seemed surprised at the quality of the weapon mods and after haggling with the shopkeeper for several minutes, Revan followed Lia towards a set of doors adjacent to the markets where an sign that the former JedI Knight couldn't read for the life of him was advertising some low-cost housing.
Low cost because of a gang war involving the Vorcha and their Blood Pack and the Blue Sun mercenaries. Dodging various aliens and humans as he followed Lia into the housing section of the station, Revan scowled at the duffle bag he was carrying. The weight wasn't too great but it was still damned inconvenient lugging the pack while trying to dodge pedestrians and pickpockets.
It was demeaning being reduced to this, but Revan pressed on, his left eye twitching slightly as he calmly followed Lia and waited patiently for her to get them some housing. It didn't need to be permanent and Revan was unconcerned over the odd and dirty looks he and Lia were receiving, the M-4 Shuriken submachine gun Revan kept firmly in his right hand while his left held the strap of his pack secured as well as the M-23 Katana shotgun Lia kept secured at the small of her back went a long way in keeping the gazes short and the memories of the encounters short-lived in the minds of those looking upon the duo with hostility or greed.
By the time Revan and Lia secured a cheap apartment in the dank slums, Revan was practically dead on his feet. It had been over a full day since he was sent through the Conduit and that had been preceded by several days dodging Sith patrols and actually infiltrating the Sith Palace and battling the Emperor and his guards. Even the Force had limits and Revan carelessly tossed the pack containing their purchases on a couch before clearing the heatsink from his SMG and collapsing on the single bed in the room.
"I've been up for a Hell of a long time so I'll just sleep right… here."
Lia frowned beneath her mask as Revan's voice reached her, muffled in the pillows and bed sheets as he was laying face-down. Sighing in annoyance, Lia moved to the carelessly discarded pack and dragged it from the couch to a small table nestled in the corner of the apartment's main living area. Revan had been patient and polite to her, despite the circumstances of their meeting and Lia pushed aside her frustration at the man having taken the apartment's only bed when she realized he had been through quite and ordeal and that despite her abduction, Revan had never actually threatened her.
Sighing wearily, Lia shifted through their purchases, finding a sealed canister of sterilized nutrient paste. Setting the canister on the table, Lia typed a quick set of commands onto her Omni-tool and did a quick scan of the canister before she nodded in satisfaction and attached the canister to a retractable tube at the base of her mask. The tube fed into a small pump that drained the canister of its contents and fed them to Lia via-feeding tube and the quarian quietly finished her meal before carefully detaching the canister and checking her suit's seals. The entire process of eating and checking her suit took close to an hour and by the time she'd finished, Lia was feeling the effects of the long and eventful day.
Yawning beneath her mask, Lia moved to the kitchen area of the apartment, attaching a filter to the water tap and filling the device before repeating the process she'd taken to eat her dinner. Several more minutes were spent rechecking her suit's seals and securing the water filtration system in her field pack before Lia moved to sit down on the couch. Removing her shotgun from the magnetic holster at the back of her enviro-suit, Lia checked the safety though she chose to keep the weapon loaded before she drifted into a restless and uncomfortable sleep.
Neither the Quarian or her companion realized the grave error they'd made in choosing their housing. On the other side of the slums, near the air filtration system a group of Blood Pack were gathered and a single Vorcha clumsily forced an unmarked canister into the system's air scrubber before pressing a series of holographic keys with his clawed fingers. Hissing and snarling, the Vorcha gave a fanged smirk as it thought of the weapon the Collectors had given him. Soon the Blood Pack would control Omega and they wouldn't have to fear the likes of Archangel, Aria or the Blue Suns.
Cerberus Operative Miranda Lawson sat back in her ergonomic desk chair with a sigh as she cast a glance at the crate that had been delivered to her just hours before. The Illusive Man had made it clear that Shepard's reconstruction was to be her top priority but had also sent imbedded within the message a file on everything the Citadel had on their unscheduled visitor. Using Cerberus' resources to find the mysterious new player would be a waste until the man chose to resurface and as she checked over the items within the crate, the genetically enhanced human Operative was both intrigued and confused. The scans of the armor had revealed only solid metal plates but a subtle probing of her hand along the edge of one of the gauntlets had revealed a concealed set of wrist-mounted blades that ran along the outer edge of the gauntlets like jagged and serrated teeth.
Having nearly lost her finger when the blades had popped out of the side of the gauntlets, Miranda had been wary to continue her hands-on examination of the armor itself and took out the odd Omni-tool the man had been wearing. It lacked a holographic display and after determining through very thorough and invasive scans that the device was not a weapon, the Operative had frowned and pushed at the small keypad on the device. Aside from a power spike, nothing had happened and finding the device to be some crude communicator, Miranda had moved on to one of the two cylinders the man had been found with.
According to C-Sec's initial scans the devices were small bombs with a yield equivalent to a small tactical nuke but Cerberus' more advanced scanners had shown the power source to be of some unknown energy signature that lacked any Element Zero. The lack of eezo in any of the devices was what had gotten Cerberus' attention and Miranda frowned as she searched the device for a release to its casing. The scans had shown that it came apart but there was nothing but a button on the side and that had only caused the device to hum and vibrate ominously before it grew silent.
Each successive attempt to activate the device or remove its casing failed and Miranda resorted to using a small and controlled magnetic field to finally detach the case. What looked like a lenses fell from the device to her table, followed by a blue crystal of some unknown element and a small undefined circular object that was giving off a power signature relative to that of a fighter-craft or a small transport ship.
Intrigued, Miranda continued to poke and prod the device for several hours before she began trying to reassemble it. Much to the Cerberus Operative's annoyance the components of the device would not lock back into place and she found herself stuck with a small pile of useless components in an alien device that lacked any of the mechanical principles that any machine in the entire galaxy operated on. The power cell she found housed a powerful form of anti-matter that was held stable in some type of stabilizer field that lacked any of the readings of a Mass Effect Field. There was a small leak of Ion-based energy that the scanners barely registered and Miranda frowned as she examined the odd device, not knowing the first thing about its function.
"Maybe the entire thing is a portable power supply of some kind."
The woman's voice was heavily cultured and accented in Australian. After several more minutes spent examining the device, Miranda set the disassembled light saber in a small case and returned it as well as the gauntlets to the crate that had come directly from the Citadel. It would take time to analyze the devices the Mysterious Stranger had brought with him and despite her interest in the new technology and the cold chill that ran up her spine at the thought of the man being the vanguard of some Reaper attack, Miranda returned to the updated report from Wilson on Commander Shepard's progress.
The Commander was coming along well in his recovery and Miranda scowled as she thought of all the tie and money Cerberus had invested in one single human. Not putting a control device in the Commander would come back to hurt Cerberus, Miranda knew. Despite John Shepard's experience in space from his childhood as a spacer on various alliance ships and his exemplary and heroic actions on Elysium, Shepard was too focused on the moral implications of his decisions to be any real help to Cerberus. The man had taken steps during his time as a Spectre to hunt down and destroy several Cerberus operations and bases and while he may have been a hero and an asset to humanity, he was dangerous to Cerberus.
Scowling at the thought, Miranda cast a curious glance to the crate containing Revan's possessions before sighing and returning to her report. Curiosity would have to wait. She had orders from the Illusive Man and until they were carried out, the strange items would have to remain a side-project.
Former C-Sec Officer Shari'a T'Nala sat quietly in a transport bound for Illium, Despite the bad turn her career had taken, the Asari Matron felt a small bit of satisfaction at the mask she kept in the bag stowed above her in the overhead compartment. It would prove to be useful if she could get it functional again. Due in part to her previous position with C-Sec, the Asari chose to bring the device with her and examine it more closely well away from the prying eyes and ears of the Citadel. She knew the reasons behind the Council's harsh actions but to let fear of Saren's attack drive them to so brutally execute the mysterious stranger was appalling.
Morally outraged as well as furious over the Council placing the blame of the loss of Revan's possessions on her, Shari'a was not sorry to see her career go, just angry that it had not been her own choice. Scowling as she leaned back in her seat, the Asari missed the intense gaze of a Turian seated several rows behind her.
The Turian lacked any facial markings and was dressed in simple plain clothing of a black and gray. Two bright green eyes set on a stoic avian face watched Shari'a closely. She was the only connection to Revan's disappearance from the Citadel and her immediate departure had not gone unnoticed by the Council or the Spectres and the Council wasn't going to just ignore the former Officer. The fact that this particular Spectre had a personal interest in tracking the unnamed fugitive down since he'd escaped his custody.