In which a woman sasses Thane, Feron won't shut up, and Nihlus believes that Thane is immortal.
Chapter 7 – Feron
The briefing had confirmed his fears. Fort Tox had been taken. Feron was there. The rescue was his job. He would have it no other way. But something nagged at him. Why not just come in force and retake the fort? Why only get the agent out and leave the rest of the survivors to their fates? The only reasons he could come up with made him sick.
He sat in the car – an off-roader this time, to navigate the southwest's rocky scrubland – and thought for a moment longer before grabbing his pack and getting out. He didn't close the door; the noise might alert someone to his presence. Creeping around the mesa that he'd hidden the car behind, he eyed the distance between him and the fort's fence. A good five hundred feet over uneven terrain. Not the best situation, but he'd make it work.
The position of the sliver of moon cast the majority of his route in shadow, just as he'd planned. This was why he wore a black uniform, as opposed to Feron's white or Liza's green. Granted, it was a very dark green, but did that matter right now? No. He pushed all thoughts from his mind, save the ones related to the mission. Tanks and a milling crowd of soldiers ahead. He froze about ten feet from the edge of the mesa's shadow and carefully plucked a grenade from his pack. If he managed a good throw, this thing would blast a significant hole in both the turians and the fence.
Thane took a breath and let it out, pulled the pin, ran forward, threw, and dropped to the ground. The explosion tore the front off of one of the tanks, threw foot soldiers every which way, and opened a hole in the fence. Perfect. The expected hail of panicked gunfire passed over him, and as soon as it had gone silent, he leapt up and ran for the gap. It took a confused moment for the turians to realize what was going on, and by then, Thane had already drawn his pistol and shot everyone who'd gotten back near the blast area – and his hole.
Once he was through, he bolted diagonally at the building. There was a side door here, used mostly by maintenance workers. It was on the blueprints he'd been shown, though, so he knew exactly where to look. There, inside. Now to find Feron. First stop: the prison.
The turians were scrambling; most were headed in the direction of his grand entrance. He waited for a lull in the rush before sprinting into the main hallway, running in the opposite direction. He encountered a total of five turians, all of whom were dead before they could alert anyone of his position. He wasn't as good a shot as Feron, but at these distances, there was a body for each bullet fired.
There was a soldier by the door to the prison complex, standing guard. Thane watched him from around the corner, then pounced, slamming him to the ground and snatching his radio. Thane held him at gunpoint and tossed the radio aside, far out of reach. "Do you know if the code to unlock the doors has been changed?"
"No…!"
"No, it hasn't, or no, you don't know?"
"No, it hasn't!"
"Good." He fired. "Go to the Sea."
Leaving the dead turian where he lay, Thane opened the door to the complex. He made his way to the end of it, ignoring the eyes on him. Into a room with a fairly small control panel and security monitors. The panel had switches to open and close each cell door individually and one switch to open them all at once. That one had a security pad next to it. He tapped in the code and flipped the switch.
He turned to watch as the cell doors opened, drell spilling out into the hall. Their chatter got louder and louder, until Thane spoke over it. "Before I get all of you out of here, there are some things that need settled."
All of the drell fell silent, watching him. A woman spoke up before he could continue talking. "How are you supposed to get us out, exactly? There are barely sixty of us left, and this place is overrun with turians."
"Numbers mean nothing in an enclosed space. It will be easy to fight our way out."
"And what then, huh?" The woman shouldered her way through the crowd, coming to face him. "They've got tanks out there, and it's open space. We'll never get past the fence."
"Those are Vyrnnus M-26 tanks. Big, with heavy armor, heavy weaponry, and as much maneuverability as a full cement truck. Take smaller, faster vehicles, and they can't chase you."
"They may be slow movers, but they can still turn their turrets faster than any vehicle can drive."
"That's why you use these." Thane took a box from his pack and opened it, revealing two rows of neat, silver rectangles, wires, and a control switch. "If we hurry, the area will still be cast in this building's shadow. You can plant these near the fence, to make a hole, near the tanks in the immediate vicinity to destroy them, and near the vehicles you're not using so the turians won't be able to follow you. When you're ready, you hit the switch and step on the gas."
"…Who are you?"
He ignored the question. "Is Feron with you?"
"No, they took him somewhere else," another drell said.
The woman glared at Thane. "Right. Feron. The special one. You're here to save him, not us."
Thane looked her in the eye. "Yes, but that doesn't mean that I'll abandon you."
"…Alright. We'll try it. Better than staying in here to rot."
"Your commanding officer is alright with this?"
"I am the commanding officer. Everyone above me is dead."
Thane was quiet for a moment. "…I have two guns: mine, and the one belonging to the dead turian in the doorway. That means I'll need two volunteers to stay up front and help me bring down any enemies we encounter. We can salvage their weapons as we go."
"Excuse me," the woman said, sarcastic, "but won't you need a gun?"
"No. I'll be fine."
"…You're nuts."
"Actually, I prefer close combat to using a gun. By the way, you can't be one of the volunteers. There may be casualties, and this group needs a leader when all is said and done." He handed her the box of explosives.
She took it, but gave him a dubious look. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"
"A soldier. Where are my volunteers?" Two men stepped forward. Thane handed one his gun, then said to the other, "Pick yours up on the way out. Follow me." He moved through the crowd to the door and began to lead.
They encountered their first turians within five minutes. Thane acted before either drell or turian got a chance to shoot. He buried his fist in one turian's gut, kicked another in the face, and flipped the third onto his back, stomping on his throat. "Kill them and take their guns," Thane ordered, already moving on. They shook off their shock and did as told.
It was the same throughout their dash to freedom. Thane hung back and let his gunmen do the work when the turians were too far, but beat down the rest without mercy. They met more and more resistance as the turians began to realize that whatever had blown up the outside of the fort was now inside. There went finding Feron while they were still panicking.
He stopped at the exit. "This is as far as I go. Arashu bless your path, all of you."
"Hey, weirdo." It was the woman. "You'd better not die in here."
Thane smiled. "I won't. Now get out of here." He ran down a side hall before she could reply. Alright, there went the good deed that he'd probably get chewed out for later. It was time to find Feron.
…Now where was he supposed to start looking?
Feron looked up sharply as a series of explosions sent shockwaves through the fort. The first blast had been something on its own… Just what was going on out there?
The turian looked at him, seated in one of the chairs along the wall. "Do you want to talk, or are you just getting distracted again?"
"Distracted?" Feron stared back at him, incredulous. "How can you not be distracted? This base is either spontaneously exploding or being attacked. Either way, it's kind of a bad situation for the people who happen to have control of it – that being you guys."
The turian cackled. "If it was a full-scale attack, those explosions would be happening a lot more frequently, don't you think? No, it's no attack."
"Then what is it?"
"I'm not sure, actually. Maybe you can tell me. Yes… Maybe you can tell me." He leaned back. Feron couldn't be sure, what with the mandibles and all, but that was probably a half-smug, half-sinister smirk. Somehow.
"Yeah, no. I have no idea what the hell's going on. Shouldn't you be going somewhere safe or something?"
"No. My job isn't done yet."
"…You know, you remind me of a friend of mine." Feron didn't have it in him to keep up yesterday's silent act. So, he reasoned, he just wouldn't shut up. He'd talked about pointless things all day. And yet, his interrogator didn't seem to mind in the least. It was getting on his nerves.
"Really? How so?"
"He just never slows down. Does the impossible all day, every day, and what does he say? 'It's a job.' Nut."
The turian was quiet for a moment. "…Well? Go on."
"…I was finished, actually."
"No, I insist." The turian rose and walked over to him, lifting his chin with one talon. "I want to hear more about your friend."
Feron stared up at him, feeling very much like a canary caught in the sights of a cat. He'd said something he shouldn't have. He'd slipped up.
He'd played right into this turian's hands. "…Would you… get your hand off of me, please?"
To his surprise, the turian's talon fell away. "Tell me more about your friend. What's his name? Where does he live? Does he have family? How close are you two?" The turian's eyes narrowed. "Is he SCIU?"
"I'm telling you, the SCIU doesn't exist! How many times do I have to-" He stopped short when the turian grabbed him around the throat.
"You and I both know that's a lie. Now, tell me, your friend… Green scales, a red throat, black stripes running from either side of his head down the back of his neck?"
Feron watched him silently.
"…Tell me his name. That's all I want. Just his name. Say it, and I'll give you a break. Say his name."
Feron put on the most defiant look he could muster. "No."
"Tell me his name!"
"It's Thane." A voice from the doorway. "Thane Krios."
Feron gaped as the turian let go of him and turned to face Thane. "I knew you were alive."
"Nihlus. It's been a long time. I thought I'd seen the last of you."
"Thane, why'd you tell him your name? That was just stupid." Feron gave him a look of disapproval.
"Hush."
"Thane Krios. And I suppose you'll kill me if I try to stop you from rescuing your friend?" Nihlus was smiling, strangely. A turian smile, in his eyes.
"Considering it's my mission, yes. Now…" Thane folded his hands behind his back. "Why don't you stop stalling, hm?"
"That sounds like something I would say."
"You did say it. When we first met."
"Ah, yes, drell memory…" Nihlus cocked his head to the side. "Throwing my own words back at me? Does that amuse you somehow?"
"Nihlus, I don't have time for this. Step aside and let us go so that I don't have to kill you."
"Why? Would you regret that?"
"Part of me would, yes. The rest of me can't wait to tear you to shreds. You're on a tightrope, Nihlus."
Drell and turian stared each other down for a long while. Nihlus finally relented, looking off to the side. "Fine, go ahead. I can't stop you. Take your friend and go."
"What happened to doing your job?" Thane went to Feron's side and started picking the locks on the other drell's handcuffs.
"I can't do my job if I'm dead. I have no weapons. I can't fight you. So go. Let the real soldiers try to stop you." He shook his head slightly. "Not that they can."
"No, they can't." Thane helped Feron to his feet. "I am immortal."
"I believe it." Nihlus backed away, watching.
Feron gave Thane a wary look. "This is news."
"Is it?" Thane's gaze was steady as he met Feron's. "…Come on. We need to get out of here before more turians arrive."
Feron nodded, taking one last look at Nihlus before following Thane. "I still think it was a stupid idea to give him your name. What if they come after your family now?"
"Nihlus will keep my name to himself." Thane stopped his run to peer around a corner, then picked up the pace again. "He wanted it for personal reasons."
"You don't know that. Not for sure."
Thane turned the next corner blind, tearing into the group of turians there with fists and feet. Once they were all down, he took one's gun and shot those still alive. He tossed the gun to Feron, then picked up a second and tossed it over, as well. "You're the sharpshooter."
"And you're the madman. Lead on."
Thane smiled and started their run again. Feron bit the inside of his lip as he followed. That man was too good. It wasn't normal, even by their standards. Then again, who was he to complain about his rescuer… in the middle of the rescue? But they would talk later, oh yes.
Their escape was nerve-wracking, but relatively easy. The turians were no match for Feron's marksmanship and Thane's hand-to-hand. Once they were out in the open air, Feron could see a hole in the fence and a smoking tank. Well, there was one explosion. That grenade in Thane's hand told Feron that there would be another shortly. Feron picked off a few turians while Thane looked the situation over. Finally, when the turians had formed a neat group in front of the hole in the fence, Thane pulled the pin, threw the grenade into their midst, and dragged Feron to the ground with him.
Thane leapt up immediately after the shockwave had passed them, running out the hole and toward the mesa. Feron was on his tail, glancing back at the recovering turian forces. "They're going to hit us, Thane!"
"Not if they can't see us. Get to the shadow of the mesa and get down as soon as you're in the darkness. Lying low for a moment will buy us the time we need to get around the mesa and escape."
"We're not going to make it in time!"
"Then speed up!"
Feron gave Thane a dirty look and sprinted. Gunfire sounded behind them. Thane took a running leap into the shadows and stayed on the ground. Feron followed his example, but not before a bullet clipped his arm. He clapped a hand over the wound and bit back a cry, more startled than hurt.
"Are you hit?" Thane asked quietly.
"Just a flesh wound. It hurts, but we can slap a bandage on it, and it'll be fine. You do have a first-aid kit, right?"
"No, actually, but if it's not serious, you can wait until we're at Fort Genna." Thane got up and started creeping toward the mesa.
Feron followed. "It still hurts."
"You'll be fine. The car's over here."
Feron glared at the back of Thane's head. "Bet you whined when you got hurt."
"I was half dead. I think that entitles me to a little whining."
Feron silently pouted. Thane had a point. Thane always had a point. Feron had given up on saying, "Touché," long ago. They reached the car, and he climbed into the passenger seat. "Just another day at the office, right?"
Thane smiled as he started the car and sped off. "Just another day at the office."
Thane knows he isn't immortal. Psychological warfare. And I thought you were supposed to be the expert here, Nihlus. Shame. Ferret out.
