A/N: Dedication level: Updating while ill!
Sara leaned against the window in her quarters aboard the Tempest watching heavy clouds gather on the horizon beyond Kadara Port. A storm was coming, the first she had experienced on the planet, and she was kind of looking forwards to it. By the time it hit, the hour would be late, and she would be tucked up in bed with Suvi, listening to nature rage outside the safety of the Tempest (which would be aptly named in that moment.) For now, the port was bright and sunny, blue sky dotted only sparsely with white clouds, while thunderheads gathered around the distant mountains. The docks below darkened momentarily as a wispy cloud was pushed across sky, shadowing the ground below. The glare of the sunstar dimmed, then brightened again as the wind carried the cloud away.
So lost in her musings was Sara, that she didn't hear the door of her room open behind her.
"Hey." Sara felt the familiar flutter in her chest on hearing her partner's voice, a feeling she hoped would never diminish. She turned to find Suvi standing just inside the doorway of the Pathfinder quarters. She wore dark fitted trousers tucked into boots, and Sara's white Initiative hoody, instead of her usual red-and-white fitted science officers uniform, ready for the party they would shortly be attending in Outcast Headquarters at Sloane's invitation.
She felt an involuntary smile tug at her lips, an overwhelming fondness for her redheaded science officer. Sara's hoody was too big for Suvi, who had hidden her fingers inside the sleeves. It looked good on her. "I didn't hear you come in," Sara said.
"I know," Suvi replied with a cheeky grin, tucking her hands into the hoody's front pocket and crossing the room to stand beside Sara, leaning into her slightly as she watched the docks outside. "I've spoken to Lexi and Kallo and they're dead set against coming. They're expecting things to get pretty wild and want to avoid it," she looked sideways at Sara, expression clearly asking if the Pathfinder thought things would go that way.
Sara chuckled and shook her head. "I promise it won't be 'wild'," she assured Suvi. "If you're worried you can stay behind with them. I know you're not fussed about it. I won't be upset."
"No, I want to come," Suvi replied, adjusting the collar of Sara's jacket for her. Her turquoise eyes were playful as she raised them to meet Sara's. "Besides, someone needs to keep you out of mischief."
"Oh, and that's going to be you, is it? Trouble," Sara teased her.
Suvi laughed, bumping her knuckles against Sara's shoulder. "Behave," she warned.
"I bet they're screwing," Peebee said, her tone matter of fact. She stood in the middle of the loading bay, hands on hips, with the rest of the Tempest crew that would be attending Sloane's party.
Cora rolled her eyes from where she stood leaning against the Nomad with her arms folded and shook her head. "Don't be ridiculous, Peebee," she muttered.
Peebee shrugged, attempting to look innocent. "Just saying."
A deep laugh rumbled in Drack's chest and he gave a toothy krogan grin. "Shoulda sent me to get her instead," he said.
"Hey, Peebee," Liam smirked at the asari. "I'll take you up on that bet. Ten creds says Suvi's got it under control?"
Peebee twisted her mouth to one side as she considered the offer, then nodded and held out a hand. "Deal."
"You're seriously betting on your boss' sex life?" Cora deadpanned, hazel eyes flicking between her colleagues as she watched them shake on it. She slowly arched one eyebrow in disbelief.
"Ryder," Jaal announced suddenly, watching the doors to the Crews' Quarters as they whooshed open and Sara and Suvi approached them side by side. He inclined his head. "Doctor Anwar."
"Hey, guys," Sara smiled a greeting at the assembled group.
"Were you screwing?" Peebee immediately demanded.
Sara faltered and blinked at her in shock. "I…What?" She asked, as Suvi blushed furiously beside her and stared at Peebee.
"No! What kind of question is that?!" The Scot squeaked.
"And what does it matter if we were?" Sara challenged.
"It matters because you told us to be here ten minutes ago," Gil spoke up, bored by the waiting around. "You're late."
"I hear it's fashionable to turn up to parties late," Vetra quipped.
Gil looked up at her. "We're not at the party yet, right now it's rude to be late."
"Who pissed in your cornflakes?" Sara asked, and Gil turned his gaze back to her.
"Funny. Original," he remarked drily. "I just heard Sloane was supplying free booze and don't want to miss out."
"Anyway," Liam interrupted. "Cough up, Peebee, I won."
Peebee scowled, but dialled up her omni-tool to send the funds over Liam, grumbling, "Dammit…"
Suvi gaped at them. "You placed bets?!"
"What?" Peebee asked defensively. "It's a regular enough occurrence. We make bets on how often Cora brings up being a huntress too."
"What?!" Cora cried, dropping her arms and pushing off from the Nomad to face Peebee.
"Okay, let's go!" Sara said loudly before an argument could break out. She strode forwards and hit the button beside the bay doors to open them, shaking her head and muttering, "it's like shepherding kids…"
"Hey, you're all kids to me!" Drack spoke as he stomped down the ramp, shooting Sara a smirk.
A cool breeze lifted the heat of the previous day, and the tendrils of cotton wool clouds that stretched across the clear blue sky cast sporadic shadows over the port. Sara found the walk quite pleasant despite her senses being on high alert for 'unsavoury characters', almost second nature now when walking through the port. On her first day there she had almost inadvertently been drawn into two drug deals, a fight, and some business venture that was most definitely of questionable legality. She had since learned to project an air of 'do not approach' like a true Kadaran.
She walked hand-in-hand with Suvi ahead of the others, leading the way through the crowds that gathered in the market. She felt Suvi glancing curiously about herself, at the array of different stalls they were passing by; shops built up out of scrap metal and tarps with flashing neon signs hung above them proclaiming their wares, benches and tables laden with goods. Mostly angaran, but now with a large Milky Way presence too.
"They built something out of nothing, even without the Nexus' aid," she commented, and Sara sensed a hint of…pride in her voice. That the exiles had come to this place and made it their own when they had nothing but the clothes on their back. A display of Milky Way resilience.
"They had Sloane. She could single-handedly settle even the most hostile climate if she put her mind to it," Sara joked. Through the crowd she spied the ever present armoured security, arms slack, guns holstered so as not to incite panic. They moved in pairs, or solo amongst the people, who paid them little notice. But there were more than usual, at Theron's behest she suspected. Or maybe Kaetus shared his colleague's fears?
"I've heard she is improving relations with the locals, too," Jaal spoke from behind them. Sara looked over her shoulder in surprise, but before she could vocalise it, Liam had spoken up.
"You sure?" He asked, frowning in amusement at Jaal. "Sloane Kelly? Yay, high," he held one hand up in a rough estimate of Sloane's height, "never smiles, attitude you can spot from orbit?"
Jaal gave a little 'hmm' and a wry smile. "Yes, her."
"And when you say 'improving'…?" Sara left the sentence hanging.
"They still don't like her," Jaal explained. "But things are better."
"Baby steps," Vetra said.
"Hey, I wouldn't complain. The worse she looks, the better Ditaeon looks, right?" Peebee grinned at them.
"That's not a good thing, kid," Drack growled from behind her. "Sloane still represents the Milky Way."
Peebee glanced back at him. She hadn't thought of that. "Good point…"
Drack let out a harsh bark of laughter. "Don't sound so surprised."
"Okay, let's get our polite heads on, yeah?" Sara asked as they neared the edge of the market. Ahead of them was a huge thick metal door, the only way into Sloane's domain, flanked by two guards standing to attention with their automatic rifles held across their bodies, fingers outside the trigger guard, ready for action.
"Yes, ma'am," Peebee mock-saluted.
Drack gave a low chuckle, a sound like boulders grating. "I don't have a 'polite head'," he told her.
"That's what I'm afraid of," Sara muttered. The door panels parted automatically, leading them out of the bright Kadaran day and into the dingy gloom of the Outcast Headquarters; a warren of rusting metal wall panels and steel grating. Usually it was relatively empty, but today a steady stream of party-goers choked the corridors. Sara could see guards standing in front of doorways that lead further into Sloane's kingdom, blocking them off and guiding the civilians towards the heart of HQ, Sloane's 'throne room', the wide space where she held her parties.
"Love what she's done with the place," Vetra remarked sarcastically, staring up at a light that was flickering sporadically above them.
Sara shot her a dark look. "Shhh!" She hissed. "Don't get us thrown out before we even get there!"
"Yeah, Vetra, at least let me grab one free beer first!" Gil grinned up at the turian.
Vetra rolled her eyes. "Is that all you care about?"
"Pathfinder!" Sara looked up at the voice, and found her gaze directed towards a female human guard standing at the head of a queue that had formed in front of the doors to Sloane's party, holding a datapad in one hand, waving to the Tempest crew with the other. "Over here!"
Sara exchanged a look with Cora, who shook her head and shrugged, then lead the group towards the guard who was counting the heads of the Tempest crew. She glanced down at her datapad, swiping through a list and nodding to herself.
"Okay, you guys go on in," she said, looking up and smiling at Sara.
"Um, okay," Sara said, a little bewildered. Sloane was giving them special treatment? That had to be unheard of.
Liam whistled appreciatively. "VIP treatment? I could get used to this!"
"Please move," Peebee muttered out of the corner of her mouth, "everyone is glaring at us."
The guard looked up at Drack as though considering declining entry to a krogan. She opened her mouth to say something, but Drack glared menacingly down at her and she faltered. "Got something you wanna say?"
She closed her mouth and shook her head adamantly. "Enjoy the party!"
Drack snorted as he stomped passed her, following the rest of the crew. "That's what I thought."
Already a large crowd had gathered in the room. Turians, asari, angarans and humans, standing around chatting and drinking in groups around tables or dancing in the space cleared in the middle of the floor. Music thumped from speakers in all four corners, Milky Way music that made Sara feel oddly homesick for a moment, until she felt Suvi squeeze her fingers lightly. She glanced down to see the redhead looking around the room with interest, taking in everything as though studying their surroundings for future analysis.
The feeling faded. Where ever Suvi was, that was her home now.
"Okay, if you're going to stand there making googly eyes at each other, I'm going to go find somewhere to sit," Gil announced, clapping Sara on the shoulder as he hurried passed her, trying to hide an amused grin from the Pathfinder.
"Over there!" Peebee darted passed him, pointing towards a free table at the back of the room by the wide slanted windows. Her path brought her by Sloane's dais, and the Queen of Kadara's flinty stare tracked the group as they followed the asari.
"Ryder, if I have to throw you out again…." Sloane twitched one eyebrow in warning. She lounged on her throne with Theron stood beside her, leaning sideways against the chair with a bottle of beer in hand. Theron tapped the neck of her bottle against her temple in greeting, grinning broadly.
Sara resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I'll be on my best behaviour," she promised drily. Sloane responded with a sceptical grunt and turned her gaze elsewhere.
Peebee dropped down onto a scuffed metal bar stool and folded her arms on the thick metal table top, looking incredibly pleased with herself for her find.
Vetra tipped her head to one side as she neared, running one claw along a scratch in the surface. "Pretty sure this is hull plating."
"Waste not, want not," Cora said, scraping back a chair and sitting.
"I'll go grab us some drinks," Liam said with a grin, rubbing his palms together and glancing about himself to locate the bar.
"If Umi offers you anything experimental, do not take her up on it," Sara warned him seriously.
"Noted. So, beers all around?" He asked, looking from face to face, and was met with a chorus of affirmatives. "Be right back!" He turned and hurried away.
Sara watched him disappear into the crowd, then slid into a chair and turned to Drack with a grin, "So, is Umi still trying to mix a drink that'll knock your socks off, Drack?" She asked the Krogan.
Drack gave a snort of laughter. "I don't wear socks, so good luck with that," he said. "No, she can keep trying. She'll never bring me down." He curled his claws and thumped his chest with one hand.
"She definitely brought Ryder down," Peebee sniggered. Sara glowered at her. The asari was determined to cling onto that until the day she died, bringing it up at any chance.
"It wasn't my fault!" Sara insisted. "She mixed ryncol with angaran wine!"
"Two very potent drinks," Jaal stated in amusement. "You should have declined."
"Suvi, they're ganging up on me!" Sara whined, tipping her head back to look up at Suvi, who had remained standing beside her.
"Aw," Suvi said sympathetically, combing her fingers through Sara's pony tail. "What do you expect me to do about it?"
Sara gave her a look of utmost betrayal.
"Uhoh!" Gil laughed at Sara. "looks like you're on your own!"
"You're all fired." Sara pouted at her crew.
"Hey!" Cora and Vetra protested as one.
"What did we do?" Cora demanded, in mock outrage. She and Vetra exchanged a look, then returned their gaze to Sara.
"Except you two." Sara wagged a finger between them.
"Beer!" Liam gleefully announced and leaned between Sara and Drack to put down a tray in the middle of the table laden with drinks. The metal bottles were frosted with condensation.
"And Liam," Sara added, reaching for a beer bottle.
"Eh?" Liam paused handing out the drinks to frown at her, dark eyes flicking from colleague to colleague.
"Sara fired us," Gil casually explained as he gratefully took his beer from Liam.
"Oh, okay," Liam said, unfazed as though it were a regular occurrence. "So, this one is for you, Vetra," he handed over a bottle that looked identical to the others save for a glyph on the label that marked it as dextro. "Enjoy your weird thing. We have proper beer. At least, Umi said it was proper." He gave the turian a playful wink.
"It's not weird, it's dextro-based," Vetra informed him defensively. "Ryder, fire him too. We can have a girls only crew."
"Aw, that sounds fun! Can I be re-hired?" Peebee asked hopefully.
"I'll think about it," Sara grinned at her and swigged from her bottle.
"How about me?" Suvi asked, enjoying the playful banter. On board the Tempest, while she worked on her data or aided Kallo, she often felt like an invisible divide separated her from her colleagues. Here, she felt truly part of the group. "Can I be rehired?"
Sara didn't even pause to think. "Oh definitely..." She said with a smirk, wrapping an arm around her waist. Suvi leaned into her with a triumphant grin.
Peebee gasped, pointing an accusatory finger at Suvi. "Favouritism!"
"Well, duh!" Vetra shook her head at the asari, as though surprised she had even considered Sara would decline the request from Suvi. She looked to Cora, mandibles twitching in amusement. "I thought asari were meant to be smart?"
"They are usually," Cora replied. "Liam, what's wrong?" She asked as Peebee opened her mouth for an indignant comeback. He had been stood staring into space with a bizarre look on his face for the duration of the conversation.
"This beer is..." Liam started, oblivious to the drama as he paused to look down at the bottle in his hand. It was weird and yet familiar. "Kinda hoppy," he finished.
"Hoppy?" Drack growled in confusion.
"It's made with Kadaran ingredients to a Milky Way recipe," Theron spoke up from behind them as she neared their table, pride evident in her voice. "Pretty good, huh?" She leaned a hand on the backrest of Sara's chair and crossed her ankles. Drack shifted his weight, making room for her.
"Not bad," Liam agreed with a nod of his head. "Though nothing beats a nice cold cider on a hot day. You brewing up something like that?" He asked hopefully.
"Unfortunately not, but I'll look into it," Theron grinned and pointed the neck of her own bottle at him.
"Thought you were drinking with the queen?" Sara teased. She still wasn't sure how she felt about her old friend. Definitely tolerant, she didn't feel the need to punch her in the face. Yet.
"Yeah, but I figured I should come see how the peasants are doing," Theron replied, grey eyes twinkling playfully as she brought her bottle to her lips.
"Charming..." Suvi commented.
Theron swallowed and grinned at her. "Hey, doc, didn't expect to see you here."
Suvi paused, raising one eyebrow as she tried to work out whether or not Theron was insulting her. "Oh?"
"Yeah," Theron said, "you academic sorts usually avoid parties like the plague."
Gil snorted. "I bet she could drink you under the table."
Theron grinned broadly at Suvi. "Yeah? Challenge accepted! I'll get the shots!" She tapped her hand against the back of Sara's chair and stood up straight to go and do just that.
"Uh... No?" Suvi said nervously. While she may brave parties, drinking to get drunk was so not her thing. A game of shots was just that, although, she supposed, the aim was to outdrink the opponent, hold the spirits better. Still, not something she felt like doing.
Sara rescued her by speaking up, "can we stop corrupting my sweet and innocent girlfriend please?"
Theron started laughing. "Innocent?!" She cried. "There was nothing innocent about the words coming out of her mouth this morning in your quarters," she gave Sara's shoulder a playful punch. "Talk about being caught in the moment!"
Suvi promptly began choking on her beer, cheeks flaming to match her fiery hair.
Sara bristled on her girlfriend's behalf, the sudden urge to punch Theron rising. So much for feeling tolerant… "Excuse me?!" She spluttered.
Theron gave the Pathfinder a look of wide-eyed innocence that was ruined seconds later by a wicked grin.
Suvi glowered at her, cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. "You're a wee shite, Theron."
"What's a 'wee shite'?" Peebee asked, baffled.
"Theron," Suvi grumbled, scowling into her beer.
"A little shit," Liam clarified for the asari. "And also Theron." He frowned at the tall black-haired woman, not liking her purposely trying to humiliate Suvi, or the glee she seemed to find in it.
"Ouch," Theron touched a hand to her heart in mock insult, grey eyes on Liam, but couldn't hide the mischief in her expression.
"There's nothing wrong with letting 'em know you're having fun. The louder the better, I say!" Drack gave a deep chuckle.
"Not helping..." Suvi muttered. She turned her bottle in her hands, finding the neck suddenly incredibly interesting. Sara's hand felt hot on the small of her back and she was sure the crew were staring at her, if not judging her.
"What were you doing on Tempest this morning anyway?" Sara asked, shooting Theron a suspicious look. She hadn't seen Theron, and no one else had mentioned seeing her. Not even SAM had brought the unscheduled visit to her attention.
"Peebee invited me," Theron said plainly, as if that explained everything.
Sara looked scandalised, turning to stare at the asari.
Before she could open her mouth to ask, Peebee quickly said, "she was helping me mod my omni-tool. I needed some parts that are hard to find. Theron got them for me."
"Had to climb the ladder outside your room to get to Peebee's," Theron added, ignoring the death glare Sara had fixed her with and winking at Suvi.
Suvi's turquoise eyes narrowed, humiliation at the conversation's content turning to anger. "If we could change the subject...?" She said pointedly, cheeks feeling hot again.
"Who's up for a game of poker?" Gil asked, glancing at Suvi, who gave him a grateful smile. He nodded briefly and looked around the group for answers.
"Oh, yeah, and then you can fleece us!" Liam said, clapping his hands together with overly dramatic excitement.
"Oh, come on, it's not that bad..." Gil said, chuckling.
"No, you only win every time," Vetra stated reasonably.
Theron gave a low whistle. "That bad, huh?"
"He terrorises us," Peebee sighed melodramatically.
"You should play Kaetus," Theron told Gil. "He'll give you a run for your creds."
Gil looked curious. He very much doubted that, his record going unbeaten for so long now, but still. The turian could possibly be a challenge. Harder to read than the humans. Especially Kaetus and his stick-up-the-butt attitude. "I'll bare that in mind."
"He's floating around somewhere," Theron looked over her shoulder, eyes searching the crowd for Sloane's second in command. There weren't too many turians, he should have been easy to spot. "Maybe I can convince him to come off duty for a sec."
Gil pushed back from the table and stood up. "You do that, I'm getting more drinks in." He said, easing his way into the press of party goers and disappearing.
Sara saw Theron stiffen almost imperceptibly. Something she recognized from their time together in the Milky Way. Theron's gaze had caught on something for the briefest of moments, and then slid expertly onwards as though she had noticed nothing. But Sara knew, she suspected trouble.
Her anger was forgotten, replaced with almost nervous anticipation. "What is it?"
"Too many guards," Theron said quietly, still looking for Kaetus in the crowd. She saw him moving towards Sloane on her dais, his stride hurried, with purpose. The three of them had planned out the security detail for the party to the finest detail. With Vidal attacking Ditaeon they had suspected an assault on the port would come sooner or later. Kaetus had noticed the discrepancy too.
She counted ten extra bodies, all wearing helmets to hide their faces, scattered amongst the civilians in an attempt to disguise themselves amongst the numbers. Two helmeted guards stood at the main door. That was fine. But they were human when Kaetus had originally given the job to two turians. One of the humans shifted weight. Behind him the door panel gleamed red, locked.
"Ah, crap," Theron grumbled. She had barely taken one step away from the table when a shout of alarm broke through the noise of the party and a ripple of panic spread outwards through the crowd. Thick white smoke billowed from the epicentre. Theron strained her ears, heard the second metallic rattle and hiss, followed the noise with her eyes. Her gaze homed in on the smoke grenades amongst the partygoers' feet. She whipped round, shoved Sara and Suvi out of the way, pulling the table onto its side with a loud clang.
"Down!" She ordered, scrambling behind their makeshift cover just as the first gunshots rent the air. Bullets sparked off the speakers near the ceiling, cutting the music so that now the only sound was terrified screaming, and the imposter-guards yelling something about the Collective. Pandemonium broke out as the room began to fill with thick choking smoke and panicking civilians ran for the doors only to find them locked. The Collective tried to corral them back into the centre of the room by firing blindly into the crowd, attempting to assert dominance through fear, serving only to fan the flames of utter chaos.
"Hah, wild party!" Drack cackled, sounding almost complimentary.
"I don't think this is what Sloane had in mind..." Theron replied, peeping over the table. She could barely see through the thick white smoke. Nondescript shadows surging, muzzle flash, spray of crimson. It was chaos. She swore and ducked back down. "Be right back." She dived out of cover and sprinted away, disappearing into the smoke.
"Gil is out there," Suvi told Sara quietly, expression deceptively calm while her eyes were wide and frightened. Sara looked away from her, cursing under her breath.
Theron hopped up onto the dais and skidded behind the throne followed by a hail of bullets.
"Excuse me, hi," she greeted Sloane and Kaetus, who were bunkered down behind the chair taking pot shots at the shadows aiming at them.
"Wylde, what the hell do I pay you for?" Sloane spat.
"You can fire me later," Theron replied, dialling in a code at the base of the throne. There was an electronic beep and Theron pulled on a hidden panel in the dais to reveal a weapons cache.
Sloane uttered a vague grunt that left Theron concerned for her future.
Kaetus blinked, avian features registering a rare flicker of surprise. "How long has that been there?" He looked from the cache to Sloane in question.
"One of Theron's ideas," Sloane explained with disdain.
"Yeah, and I'll bet you're glad of it right now!" Theron replied bitterly.
Sloane lifted the pistol she held and waggled it. "I brought a gun."
Theron rolled her eyes. Of course, Sloane was allowed a gun. The only others in the room with weapons were security and their enemies. "I installed it a while ago," she told Kaetus. "Thought she would have told you before now."
Sloane ignored the pointed comment. "Not arming my enemies, I hope?" She asked wryly, looking around her throne for a target. There was a firefight happening across the room, but the smoke was still too thick to tell who was who. She dropped her pistol and snatched a rifle out of Theron's hands as she lifted it out of the cache, flicked the scope on and raised it to her eye. The room appeared in shades of red.
"Perfect..." She saw a helmeted guard advancing on their position, took aim, and fired. His head snapped back from the impact and he dropped to the ground, dead.
"The Pathfinder needs arming," Theron said, picking up the three remaining weapons. "And then I'll figure out how to vent the smoke."
"I'll tell security to keep their helmets off," Kaetus said. "Hopefully the Collective aren't patched into our comms..."
"That much I'm certain of," Theron told him, having been monitoring their network throughout the day. She had spotted no anomalies. Sloane snorted, showing her confidence in Theron's certainty. Theron glowered, and a biotic shield flickered around her as she turned and dashed back into the smoke, heading for the tempest crew.
"This is all we have," she said, handing rifles to Sara, Vetra and Liam. "Best I can do. Scopes are heat sensitive, aim for the guys with helmets."
"And what will you use?" Liam asked, brow creased with concern.
"She's biotic," Sara said, testing her scope. She looked up at Theron to smile in thanks but stopped at the other woman's expression. Theron looked as though she had swallowed a lemon whole.
"What's wrong?"
"I think I just got fired..."
Sara's hands stilled on her weapon in surprise. "What? How is this your fault?" Theron gave her a deadpan look. "I mean, I know it's your fault, I'm just trying to be nice."
"Thanks anyway," Theron sighed.
"Could you guys maybe do this later?" Cora asked in disbelief as a bullet struck the table by her head and left a divot in the thick metal. She eyed the damage warily.
"Right," Sara said, as though she had forgotten they were in the middle of a firefight, protected only by a thick metal table.
Suvi's heart leaped into her throat as Sara made to look over their cover. No helmet, no shields, an easy target. She caught Sara's arm to stop her, begging, "don't."
"Aw," Theron grinned at them as a biotic barrier snapped into place around her and she popped up over their cover. "Oh no, you don't!" Rippling purple energy coiled around one fist as she thrust her arm out and flicked her wrist. A strangled yelp announced her biotics throwing a male turian into the air, halting his attempt at a stealthy approach towards them. "Up!" She called, and Sara pulled free of Suvi to pop up, take aim, and fire. The turian crashed back down to earth, dead. "Thank you for flying with Theron airways, we hope you enjoyed your trip," Theron sniggered as she crouched beside Sara.
"You're an idiot," Sara informed her. Cora used her biotics to flick the corpse's weapon into her hands.
Bullets ricocheted and flashed against their cover. Suvi ducked lower, swearing under her breath.
Sara paused, studying Theron a moment. Did she trust Theron? Yes. Her morals were questionable, but she wasn't inherently bad. She was good in a fight, packed a punch, biotics powerful. She would protect Suvi.
"I need you to take Suvi back to the tempest."
Theron looked confused. "Uh..."
"Wait, what?!" Suvi stared at Sara.
"I can't concentrate with you here, I'm worrying about you getting hurt," Sara told her.
Suvi glared, hating being a liability. "Am I not safest here with you? Who knows what's going on out there!" Out in the streets of Kadara it could be just as chaotic as in here. Besides. Leave Sara in the middle of a firefight? Like hell she would!
"Theron will protect you, I need you out of here." Out of danger, protected by a powerful biotic with light fingers. Their cover was dangerously close to being punctured now, peppered by dents from bullets. Suvi had zero combat training and Sara feared she couldn't keep Suvi safe as well as keeping a clear mind.
"The door's still locked, you know?" Suvi pointed out.
"Theron!"
Theron looked towards the voice as she recognized it and her eyes went wide. "Kaplan, get your helmet off, you idiot! Didn't you hear Kaetus?" He had found a fallen table close to their own and was hiding behind it, gun clutched across his body as he stared across the space between them, glad to have found Theron and the Pathfinder.
"Yes, but-"
"No, get it off! You're lucky we didn't shoot you!"
Kaplan wrenched his helmet off and crouched down lower behind the table, clearly frightened. He dropped the helmet and motioned to Sara. "I heard the Pathfinder, you can go through the maintenance tunnels. I downed the guy that was guarding it and you can unlock the door with your code."
"Do it," Sara ordered.
"Can we evacuate the civilians that way, too?" Liam asked.
Theron shook her head. "No, the corridors are too narrow, the panic could cause more harm than good. It's too dangerous," she said. "Best bet is to get the entrance open."
Sara nodded her head, a plan already forming. "Got it."
Suvi attempted to protest, "Sara-"
"Suvi, please," Sara said desperately.
Suvi hesitated, staring into brilliant blue eyes that begged her to listen. Her heart thudded wildly in her chest, she was terrified, but the need to stay with Sara outweighed the want to escape. However, her being there was distracting Sara, and that put Sara in danger.
Suvi huffed a short breath out through her mouth, then grabbed the back of Sara's neck and pulled her in for a hard kiss.
"Stay safe," she said, releasing Sara and moving away before she could change her mind.
"I will," Sara promised.
"Follow me," Kaplan said. Theron pressed a hand against the small of Suvi's back, shielding the redhead with her body as they moved after Kaplan.
Sara watched as they scurried away into the smoke, then turned to her crew. "Cora and Drack take point, draw fire. Cora, project a barrier for you both. The rest of us will follow and take out as many Collective as we can. Peebee, watch our six. Jaal, I want you opening that door. Be ready, I'll bet they're guarding the other side. No heroics. No one's getting hurt on my watch."
Theron and Kaplan were placing themselves between Suvi and the gunfire and she hated it. Hated feeling so helpless, hated being perceived as so delicate that she had to be ferried off to safety. What about the hundreds of civilians cowering and screaming in terror and confusion as two factions fired bullets over their heads?
"Watch the body." Kaplan caught her elbow and guided her around some dark crumpled form on the floor. She hadn't seen it amongst the smoke, could barely see it now. Something dark and wet glistened on the floor from the light shining over the doorway. She swallowed hard and looked away.
Theron keyed a code into a small panel beside a door barely wide enough for a krogan to walk through and pushed. The door swung open into a dark corridor. Suvi and Kaplan hurried through and Theron shut the door, which locked itself again with an electronic buzz. Suvi sucked in a lungful of dank air that seemed sweet after the smoky room. Her throat burned, and she felt like she was struggling to breath. She coughed and rubbed the heels of her hands into stinging eyes, blinking to clear them.
The corridor was gloomy, narrow. Pipes ran along the ceiling, bundles of cables snaked along the walls, trailing onwards and disappearing where the corridor T-ed in the distance. Lights shone from high up on the walls, glowing a pathetic orange, and somewhere a leak dripped persistently, barely heard over the muffled screams and gunfire from the other side of the thick walls.
"Come on," Theron murmured, voice echoing faintly. She started off ahead. "We can get to the docks through here without leaving the tunnels."
Suvi fell into step beside the taller woman. She felt cold and was beginning to tremble, the results of her adrenaline rush fading. She folded her arms over her chest and took a deep breath in an effort to get the tremors under control.
"I'll make sure security in the docks knows we're coming," Kaplan said, holstering his assault rifle on his back and dialling up his omni-tool. Theron saw an extra blaze of orange splash against the wall as they walked, boots echoing around them. "This is Kaplan, escorting Dr Anwar to safety with Wylde. En route to Tempest." He paused, and Theron could hear a tinny voice respond to him via an in-ear radio. "The Pathfinder's girlfriend, you idiot," Kaplan hissed. "Okay, thanks. Kaplan, out."
"And I though everyone knew about you two," Theron joked, nudging Suvi playfully in the ribs with her elbow. Suvi managed a weak smile, feeling sick. She had never been in a fight before. Sure, she had directed the Tempest ground crew multiple times mid fight-for-their-lives, had seen the live feeds from their helmets. She had been on the bridge while Kallo dodged and wove them through a dog-fight as the kett attempted to seize control of Meridian. But she had never been in amongst the fighting, bunkering down behind cover while bullets zipped by overhead. And everyone had been so calm about it.
They reached the end of the corridor and Theron lead them along the left branch of the T-junction. The corridors seemed to stretch away forever, with more branching off, and metal doorways set deep into the walls. Each door and corridor had a small metal sign with directional arrows to help navigate the warrens in both Basic and Angaran. Armoury, water treatment, security, slums, docks, market…Suvi lost count.
"Where are we?" She asked curiously. She'd had no idea anything like this even existed behind the scenes of the port city.
"The nervous system of Kadara," Theron told her mysteriously with a grin. "You can get anywhere in the port through here. It's mainly just behind-the-scenes maintenance, though. You know, technical systems, water and waste networks, that kinda stuff."
Suvi nodded, glancing around herself curiously, wondering where the pipes and cables were going, what part of Kadara Port they carried energy or water to, then suddenly stiffened. "What was that?" She asked sharply.
"What was-" Theron's question was swallowed by a choke as something hit her from behind and sent her muscles into spasm. Her legs gave out and she dropped to the ground, twitching.
What- the thought had barely formed before Suvi dropped beside her in a similar state, turquoise eyes wide and fearful and locked onto Theron's as she realized they had been lead straight into a trap.
Theron recognized the feeling of thousands of volts of electrical current overloading her nervous system. She couldn't move, couldn't even gather enough biotic energy for the tiniest of barriers. She heard boots scuffing against the ground ahead, counted five, maybe six, people approaching.
"Nice work," soft voice, female.
"What are you-?" Kaplan started nervously. "No! Wait!" Single gun shot. Kaplan collapsed behind them somewhere.
Suvi gasped. Theron kept her eyes on the science officer's, straining to move, to use her powers, anything. Her muscles had seized, felt tight, like they had been locked for hours.
"It's…gonna…be…okay…" She forced out, her tongue thick in her mouth. A lie that Suvi clearly didn't believe.
"Take the redhead," that soft female voice again. "Kill the spare."
Theron grit her teeth, trying to regain control of her body as footsteps came closer. Armoured legs appeared behind Suvi, scratched and coated with a film of dust that turned black paint grey. Theron refused to shift her gaze from Suvi's eyes, but it was obvious Suvi sensed the person nearby.
"Okay," Theron promised her again. The gun butt flashed down lightning fast, striking the side of Suvi's head. Suvi barely registered surprise before her eyes rolled back into her head. Theron felt a faint biotic pulse within herself, a reaction to danger.
The gun was holstered, gauntleted hands reached down to roughly haul a limp Suvi up, carrying her away before someone else could fire on Theron. A growl was building in her throat, her fingers clawed at the ground. "No!" She snarled. They were taking Suvi. The Collective had Suvi and it was bloody Kaplan's fault, the traitor. How had she been so stupid?
Suvi's abductor sniggered as he walked away, amused by her pathetic state. Theron shoved herself up with great effort, muscles trembling as she braced on her knees, head hanging between her arms. "You…get back…here!" She shouted, weak even to her. She could feel her body slowly beginning to obey her commands. Too slow.
"Um…" Turian voice, concerned. Theron looked up to see a bulky human man walking away with Suvi slung over one shoulder. The turian aimed his pistol at Theron as an asari followed the human male back down the branching corridor that they had arrived from, out of sight. Theron threw herself sideways and the shot went wide. The second grazed her thigh. She scrambled into an alcove, pressing close to the rusting metal door and clutching at her leg. Blood flowed freely between her fingers as she clamped a hand down on her thigh, screaming in pain and frustration through clenched teeth. The gash wasn't too deep but burned like fire and throbbed angrily.
"Shitfuckbuggerwank!" She needed medigel and a gun. Kaplan had both. His corpse lay several feet away in the corridor, a crimson pool gathering around his head, shimmering in the low lighting.
Theron huffed out several short breaths through her mouth to ground herself, then snapped a biotic barrier around her body and threw herself out into the open, launching a biotic throw down the corridor towards the four Collective goons that had stayed behind. She heard them scatter, the 'oof' as one was knocked from his feet. She seized Kaplan by his chest plate and began dragging him back towards her alcove, leaving a bloody smear across the floor. Bullets began to strike her back, absorbed by her barrier. The spray of an automatic almost knocked her flat on her front. She was breathing heavily by the time she made it into cover, feeling the effects of biotic fatigue. Her biotic implant felt hot. She couldn't keep this up for much longer.
Kaplan had several medigel sachets tucked away in his utility belt. Theron tore one open and spread the gel across the wound in her thigh. Immediately the cool gel began to numb the area. She dropped the empty sachet and launched a wild biotic attack down the corridor as she heard the hostiles begin an approach, then grabbed Kaplan's gun and kicked his corpse away. The weapon unfolded in her hands and she fired blind towards the Collective, sending them scurrying back into cover.
Theron needed backup but with the attack most likely having inside help she had no idea who to contact for aid. But first... She put through an audio only comms request to the dock.
"Dock security," came the answer in a lazy drawl.
"Lock it down," Theron ordered. She could hear the Collective discussing a plan of attack down the corridor. Her biotics frightened them, but they knew they had her outnumbered and outgunned. One of them would have to bite the proverbial bullet and act as a distraction while the others pushed towards her. She wouldn't let that happen.
"Excuse me?" Came the reply, confused and a little aggressive. He didn't like his authority being challenged.
Theron felt a flash of anger. This wasn't the time for petty quarrels. "It's Theron Wylde, we're under attack, you have hostiles inbound with one hostage, now lock down the dock!" She snapped.
"Under whose authority?" The man sneered. He didn't believe her.
"Are you for real?! Just-" gunfire and the line went dead.
"I swear to God!" Theron hunched lower, knees to chest, as a spray of bullets showered her in rock dust, sparked off metal. She fired blindly around her cover, sending another comms request, this time to Sara.
Her heart beat wildly in her chest. Sara was going to kill her… If the Collective she was pinned down by didn't beat the Pathfinder to it.
"Little busy, Theron," Sara grunted. Her voice was almost drowned out by screaming and gunfire.
"I really need you to stay calm," Theron said nervously.
"I am calm."
Theron swallowed. Hesitated, then, "we were jumped, Suvi's been taken," she said in a rush.
Silence. Then, "Suvi's been taken?" Sara's voice was high, strangled.
"What?!" An astounded Cora in background.
"No time to explain," Theron flinched as a spray of gunfire strafed alongside her alcove, dangerously close by. The Collective had shifted position, trying to get a better line on her. "I'm pinned down but know where they're headed, come help me and we'll get her back."
"You literally had one job!" Sara cried shrilly.
Theron launched another biotic attack down the corridor, weaker this time. A wave of dizziness crashed over her. She swallowed hard, took a deep breath, blinking rapidly to refocus her eyes. "Go through the door we left through, follow the corridor to the left and you'll find me. My code is five-seven-three-six-zero."
Sara's response was a low growl just before she cut comms.
She could hear the Collective moving again, trying to find a position where they could see her. She briefly considered shoving open the door she huddled against, decided not to. It was some kind of storage room. A dead end.
She swung her gun around her cover and fired, spraying randomly. As the Collective ducked back towards their own cover, she leaned out of hers and took aim. One of the four went down without a sound, dead. She aimed for another, squeezed the trigger. The gun clicked empty. Theron felt her blood run cold. She saw the turian she aimed for pause and look back at her, saw him realize her gun was out of ammo. As he raised his weapon to fire, Theron launched a biotic projectile at him and threw herself back into her alcove. She felt sick, her implant was burning, and her hands shook. She leaned her head back against cool duracrete and closed her eyes, trying to steady her breathing. She didn't have the energy to fight, didn't have the ammo. Of all the rotten luck…Maybe Kaplan had a spare clip?
Three shots fired in quick succession, coming from the opposite direction the Collective hid in, made her eyes snap back open. Sara strode passed her hiding spot towards the Collective. Theron could hear a low groaning. A fourth shot from Sara's weapon ended that. Theron dragged herself upright and stood leaning against the wall for support. Her limbs felt weak, throat tight with nausea. Sara rounded on her, jaw set, eyes cold and hard.
Theron flinched from the intensity of that stare. "Ryder, I-"
"Shut up and go," Sara growled. Whatever it was Theron had to say, she didn't want to hear it. She had trusted her, trusted Theron to keep Suvi safe, and now the Collective had Suvi and Sara didn't know what to do.
Theron wisely kept her mouth shut.
Theron had lead them along the corridor she had seen the Collective duo had ferry Suvi down, towards the docks. They were sprinting, desperately hoping to make up the time they had lost already, hoping to catch the abductors before they got too far. Theron felt her already flagging energy levels dwindle further, had to keep blinking dancing spots out of her vision. Too many biotic attacks. At least to uncomfortable burning sensation from her implant had cooled.
Daylight streamed into the corridor in the distance, the door hanging off its hinges.
"I think they're taking the docks," Theron puffed, straining her ears to hear signs of fighting but finding none. She wasn't sure if that was good or bad.
"Kallo and Lexi are on board Tempest," Sara said, keeping pace with Theron, "they commed me when the fighting started there. I told them to stay put. The Collective are everywhere. We got the civilians out of HQ and are working on rounding up Vidal's buddies."
"Did you find Gil?" Theron glanced sideways at Sara, trying to disguise her ragged breathing.
"He tackled some guy that was about to gun down two angaran girls so he's the hero of the hour," Sara said, slowing her pace as they neared the open door. Black scorch marks on the wall showed where small charges had been detonated at the hinges to blast the door open. "He's okay. Couple of scrapes."
"Bet he's loving that," Theron commented, stepping out into the open.
They found dock security gunned down around their outpost. A couple of civilian corpses lay crumpled on the walkways. Otherwise the docks were empty, silent.
Engines roared from a berth further along the platform, a shuttle taking off.
"That's them!" Theron cried, running forwards as though she could catch them. The shuttle rose smoothly into the air and began to speed away.
"Kallo, get Tempest flight ready," Sara ordered into her omni-tool.
"Scratch that, shuttle ready!" Theron said, pointing as she sprinted towards another shuttle with a dead human pilot slumped outside. The engines were already running, the pilot collapsed on the walkway with a gun in her hand, chest riddled with bullets. Theron leaped inside.
"Never mind," Sara told Kallo, following Theron. "Cora's in charge, I'm going after Suvi."
"Suvi?! What happened to-" Sara cut the transmission and threw herself into the shuttle as Theron began to pull up. The door slid closed behind her and she staggered into the cockpit, unsteady as the shuttle gained altitude. She braced against the back of Theron's chair with one hand, holding her gun with the other, staring out through the reinforced glass of the cockpit window at the shuttle they were following.
"I swear to God," she spoke, voice low and dangerous, fingers tightening on the back of the chair as she dropped her eyes to the top of Theron's head, "if they hurt her, I will kill you myself."
"Understood," Theron muttered, and there was no trace of humour in her voice. She understood that Sara was in a barely controlled murderous rage and didn't wish to push her.
The shuttle was speeding towards Haarfel, making no moves to evade Theron and Sara, as though the Collective didn't care they were being followed. The sky grew darker as they flew towards the storm gathering in the distance. Heavy dark clouds blotted out the sun and high winds buffeted their vehicle, making it judder and sway. Mountains and craggy hills rose up around them. Theron kept her eyes on the target in front of them, hands flying over the controls as she pushed the engines to their limits.
Sara shoved back from Theron's seat and strode out of the cockpit, into the main area of the shuttle. The buckles of the safety harnesses lining the walls above the twin benches rattled and clunked against hull plating. She stood feet apart, knees bent slightly to keep her balance, checking over the rifle in her hands, letting her fury build, harnessing its energy. Suvi was in that shuttle, and she would have her lover back. She felt the adrenaline coursing through her veins, heart thumping in her chest, blood roaring in her ears.
"Theron, bring us in close to that shuttle," she ordered without looking.
"What the hell do you think I'm trying to do?" Theron demanded, desperately willing their own shuttle to move faster, to catch up with the Collective, to…she didn't know. What could they do except follow? Even if their shuttle had weapons, they couldn't fire. Suvi was on board, damaging the shuttle could harm her.
"Just do it," Sara snapped, glaring over her shoulder into the cockpit. "And then open the doors."
"What?! Why? Are you crazy?" Theron stared back at her, brows knit, mouth agape.
Sara turned to face her, the muscles in her arms bunched, locked hard as marble. "I'm going to jump onto their damn shuttle and fucking punch my way inside, now stop asking stupid questions and just do it!"
Theron continued to stare at her for a moment, then faced front once more, swearing and jerking on the steering column, swinging them around as the Collective suddenly changed course and began heading Northwest, towards Kurinth's Valley. Sara stumbled and swung one arm up to brace her palm against the ceiling.
"Where are they going?" She asked, lurching back towards Theron, her crazy plan suddenly forgotten as she feared the Collective were taking evasive manoeuvres to escape.
"I don't know," Theron murmured. "Maybe you can ask them when you jump on their roof."
"Shut up," Sara snapped, feeling a stab of embarrassment at her rash decision. Suvi was in danger and it inspired recklessness. Rage and fear conspired to cloud her judgment, her ability to think logically.
Ahead, the Collective shuttle skimmed the edge of the mountain they skirted and banked out of sight behind the rocky face. Theron made to follow when a second shuttle rose up in front of them, side on. Its door was open wide, and several Collective clustered inside with weapons trained on Theron and Sara's shuttle.
"Holy-"
Theron swung them around in an attempt to avoid a collision. Sara fell backwards out of the cockpit at the sudden motion, her gun skittering away towards the back of the shuttle, clanging against the rear wall. Her shoulders struck the floor and the breath was knocked from her chest.
The Collective opened fire. Sara shoved herself up on her elbows. She heard the bullets strike the outside hull, pinging against the thick metal plates, and suddenly a muffled whump from one engine. The shuttle rocked and then began to lose altitude. Sara felt her stomach lurch as she began to slide forwards.
"Strap in, Ryder!" Theron shouted, sliding her arms into her own safety harness while furiously trying to get the shuttle under control. The engine screamed as they dropped into a nose dive, Theron jerking up on the controls as they fell towards the hard face of the mountain. Warning lights and alarms blinked and buzzed from the cockpit.
Sara clawed her way over to one of the benches, hauled herself up and fumbled with the crash webbing. She lost her hold on the clasp as the shuttle barely cleared the ridge they had been careening towards. Rock screeched against metal as the underside of the shuttle scraped the mountain. Sara shoved the clasp home and glanced towards the cockpit to see the ground rising rapidly up to meet them, too fast. A flash of metal drew her gaze down towards the base of Theron's seat and she felt her heart climb into her throat. The harness! Theron hadn't secured it. Straps hung loose either side of her, the lock clinking against her seat as she had only shoved her arms through the loops. It wouldn't hold her in.
"Theron!" She cried, too late. They slammed down into the ground. Sara felt herself thrown forwards, her own harness jerking taught against her chest, keeping her locked against the wall. The shuttle bounced, gained air for several brief seconds, and then crashed down again, skidding forwards through a pool of water that exploded upwards in a sheet and came crashing down upon the roof of the shuttle in a thunderous wave before they finally came to rest.
Sara blinked, listening to the harsh sound of her ragged breathing before she finally realized the shuttle was beginning to fill with thick black smoke. Fire. She felt a flash of primal fear as her rattled brain threw out that word.
The engine. It had been damaged when the Collective opened fire on them, the fuel was burning.
"Theron?" She called, tentatively turning her head. Her chest ached from the harness, but a quick mental check didn't suggest any permanent damage had been done.
Theron hung limp in her seat. Sara swore and tugged on the release of her harness, scrabbling free and lunging for the cockpit. They had landed in a shallow pool of water. She could see it lapping at the nose of the shuttle through the cracks that spiderwebbed across the windows.
"Theron?" She said again, moving around Theron's chair and looking down at her. Blood flowed from a gash on the side of her head, streaming down her face in a ribbon of crimson. Sara pulled her arms free of her unsecured harness, hauled her out of her seat and clumsily lifted Theron onto her shoulders, staggering through the shuttle towards the doors. She punched the manual release and the locks disengaged, allowing her to shove the door out and slide it open. Her muscles strained and she had to lean her whole weight into the heavy metal panel, forcing it along its runners. Thick black smoke billowed around the shuttle and she could feel the heat of the flames licking about the engines. If it got too close to the fuel storage…
She leaped out into the water, stumbling under Theron's dead weight, and splashed away from the shuttle, out of the pool onto dry ground where she lay Theron down and felt anxiously for a pulse in her throat. There. She could feel it throbbing against her fingers, slow and steady and strong. She let out a breath of relief and slumped onto her butt beside the other woman, giving herself a moment to recover from the shock of crash-landing. Her head snapped up as she heard the roar of engines above her. The Collective shuttle, swinging by overheard. Sara tensed, waiting for the gunfire, but it never came. They circled the site once before flying away, after their comrades. Sara stared after them in confusion. They had to have seen her, why hadn't they finished her off? She was an easy target, out in the open.
Theron groaned beside her, drawing her attention.
"Oh, God, my head…" Theron moaned, screwing up her face and reaching one hand up, fingers gently probing the edge of her wound. Sara twisted onto her knees to lean over her.
"Theron, you idiot, why didn't you strap in properly?!" She cried.
Theron cracked one eye open, expression creased in pain as daylight exacerbated the headache she felt pounding through her cranium. "I didn't have time, I was trying to stop us hitting the side of a mountain."
Sara huffed a breath through her nose. That was a good point. She sat back on her heels and tapped her omni-tool. "Tempest, I need a pick up," she said. "Have Lexi on standby."
"Right away, Pathfinder, tracking your location," Kallo responded.
Sara dropped her arm and stared up at the sky in the direction the Collective shuttles had disappeared, a hollow, sick feeling in her chest.
Suvi was gone.