The light from the near by street lamp touched and nearly made Garrus' skin tingle. He wished that he could feel the warmth of the pulsing electricity, instead that of the cold from Omega's dirty streets. Letting out a huff he watched as his misty breath floated out in the cold air away fly forever gone, adrenaline throbbed through his veins and pores from the recent battle, and he hated to admit it but he felt good. With rifle in hand Garrus started to walk away from the scene, a smile - the first one in what could be described as an eternity came across his face. It was strange to once again be able to feel, Garrus felt oddly exposed and vulnerable, like when you ripped of a band-aid and let the open wound be announced to the world. The turian waited perplexed for a wave of guilt to hit him and bring him back down into a world of nothingness, because feeling good did not feel possible anymore, the hole in his chest was just begging to resurface and continue its dull throb.
"You're Archangel." Garrus felt every sign of emotion drop off his face as he turned slowly around and stared wide-eyed at the figure before him. Confused by the statement that should have been a question Garrus took a disgruntled step back from the almost arrogant human. From helping so much on Omega locals had started to begin to call him Archangel, because he was their savior, and Garrus couldn't help but feel pride when someone called him that, except not now.
Only the spirits would know how long this human had followed him for, and after experiencing this frenzied month of barely sleeping and trying to save Omega from itself no one had outwardly spoken to Garrus or even thanked him for trying to make this small asteroid a better place. Which was now why he felt so surprised as he gawked at the follower who must have tracked him since he had stopped a small store from getting robbed. Garrus opened his mouth and started to stumbled over his words like a little child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Before anything of any importance could be said the human male cut Garrus off.
"I want to join you," the words fell out of the young mans mouth and felt the same as hearing a language that was similar to you own but not quite. Garrus gave the man a look that suggested what he had just heard was something impossibly crazy, like being told Palaven had just blown up. Garrus tilted his head sideways trying to convince himself he had misinterpreted this entire conversation, and tried to understand what the human that was so new to life really meant by saying those words. The man surely didn't look like a fighter, or a honed killer, it was even difficult to call the person in front of him a man because the energy he gave off was a like that of a child. Taking his eyes off the human and mentally shaking himself Garrus focused and readied his firm words of decline for anyone to join up with his cause. What he did, trying to create peace in the mist chaos from the core of Omega, he did this alone. The new life this turian now lived was his decision and he wasn't just about to bring someone else down with his choices. No audible or comprehensive declaration was outwardly spoken before the human seemed to sensed what Garrus was already going to say and interrupted the turian's planned speech. "I'm not taking no for an answer."
Stifled Garrus watched at how serious the humans voice and body language had become. The man crossed his arms around himself defensively and stared at Garrus with strong soulful eyes. Looking into those brown eyes Garrus saw something he hadn't before, an inner fire that was burning bright from the boy's passion and drive. A drive that wanted to get things done, a passion for change, something Garrus could relate too, something he once had and felt. Except there was one gigantic difference between the two of them, this human still had his whole life in front of him, at his young age he could just get the hell out of Omega and start again. Garrus on the other hand knew for a fact that this was the last place he would ever visit, the last place he would ever see a sunrise or sunset, and sooner or later this place would be his grave.
"No, I work alone," Garrus spoke trying to put force and meaning into the deadness of his voice. Even to his hearing the sound was heard as fake and more animated than a robots. All of the young mans face flushed with anger as rejection hit him. Garrus could almost smell a temper trying to being supressed.
"'Figured as much, but hear me out!" The man persisted. The fire that had flashed from inside the humans eyes before hit Garrus again as stared he into the mans vision. He had been mistaken, the passion, the drive, and real heart he thought he had seen earlier was really a desperation and white-hot anger for this place and its surroundings. Almost like a vision Garrus could see the humans life unwrap before his sight, a life that thousands of kids on Omega were experiencing now, theirs and his existence was that of never having enough to eat and always being hungry, with no real-time to experience being a child. A life no one wanted. "I'm a good shot, I'll bring all of my equipment, and I won't get in the way-"
"What I'm doing," Garrus paused and jestered a hand over his body and weapon to make sure the human saw the battle armor he wore and the rifle he held, which still smoked slightly from the barrel, and then he continued on knowing that this time around his decline sounded alive and real. "Is not a game, I'm doing this alone, so as I said before, no." Silence spread between the two as the mans jaw hung wide open. Then the shock wore off as the human started to regained his composer quicker then Garrus could believe was possible. He really wasn't going to take "no" for an answer.
"Don't you-"
"You're to young," Garrus stated bluntly and watched as the human felt his words of truth like being a punch in the gut. How old was this kid really? To the turian as he looked at the unwrinkled face that radiated youth the human most likely just graduated from highschool, if he had graduated at all. A life of being a vigilante was not for him, even if it was hard to hear, the answer was always going to end in no.
"I know how to handle myself! I've lived here all my life, I know every street and every face, I can help," the young man said, his voice was changing from a once determined yammering to a pitiful plea. Garrus couldn't help but faintly consider what he was saying. Even after all the time Garrus had stayed on Omega he really hadn't done anything to stop the fire that was consuming everyone with greed and evil, he had just been able to make sure it didn't spread. A native from this residence with real knowledge or information on the different gangs and criminals was greatly needed. In simple words, Garrus couldn't do this all on his own. "Please-"
That word "please" had fallen into the conversation because it was a very good way to stir some cause and effect, and because sometimes saying something as simple and little as please in a time of need was the hardest thing to do. This human wouldn't have ever said anything so weak and demeaning unless it was a true emergency, and Garrus doubted the human had even ever said please to his own mother, let alone a turian he had just met. Garrus watched silently unsure of what to do as the man became choked up with hurdles of emotion trying to regain his dignity. Then rapidly the anger from before had switched to deep embedded grief as he poured out his heart and soul to Garrus.
"I am young and not that experienced, but those animals, those monsters that run these streets murdered my sister," that hit straight in the heart Garrus because he too had a younger sister. It was one person he knew if danger ever came her way he would take every hit, bullet, or ordeal he could think of to make sure she was safe. With ease Garrus remembered all secrets he and his sister had shared, all the times together they had spent playing when they were younger, and just thinking about losing her was too hard to get his mind through the idea. "So please, just let me join you, I need this."
Different outcomes and situations played out in Garrus' tactical mind. Everything that could go right or wrong if this human joined up with him, he could see them dying from various bullet wounds or in an explosion, but then again that could happen anyway without someone by his side. If anything it would be nice to have some company, someone to keep his mind from wondering to far out of the barriers he had set up to protect himself, basically Garrus was lonely. Late at night when the heat of battle faded away and nothing was left to do, Garrus was nothing either, just a hollow shell. A friend it seemed was something hard to come by in Omega, and he couldn't help but want one. If anything a friend could help try to repair the damage. Even if a friendship never got established an ally could also be a useful thing, a person to watch his back, and with more people on his side then less were on the enemy's. Plus Garrus knew this human wasn't just going to just walk away and leave now.
"Okay... Alright," Garrus huffed a defeated mumble of agreement. "But you have to listen to me. If you do anything I don't agree to or don't follow an order this-" he waved his two fingers back and forth between them. "This teammate thing is over." That was that, with those few mouthful of words Garrus realized he had just recruited someone to join up with him, so much for being strong-willed he mused angrily at himself. The human nodded eagerly murmuring thanks and praise, then Garrus felt something tug at his mind for the first time. "Wait, I don't even know your name."
"Oh, I'm Montague," the human paused taken back by what Garrus had said. Then he smiled an impish grin. "'Friends call me Monty."