Sorry for the delay. Real life sucks sometimes. Being sick for two weeks sucks more. Better now.

Approaching

"I was expecting... more."

Zei turned to where Swan was working and eyes the girl. Swan was so focused on her work that she barely noticed the humans in the room now. No one would take her hunger for granted -no one was that stupid- but treating her like and animal sat wrongly with a lot of people. No one would completely relax with her around, but no one would confine her either. Especially considering what the Tenno had done. It wasn't every day that one of the boogeymen of the Solar System appeared simply to free someone from a slave collar and then disappeared again. Sora nodded from where she stood by the door and spoke.

"Swan?" The female clone asked. "Problem?"

"I don't know, Sora." The young looking human sounded confused, but her focus never left the display. Sora smiled. Young the human might appear, but she was no novice."I was expecting more Grineer in the area. This is one of their major bases, no?"

Sora moved to stand by the girl's display and scrutinized it as Zei went back to her work. There was a lot to do and little time.

"Hmmm..." Sora shook her head. "Yeah. This is one of their major bases. Lots of shipyards around. This is not a designated fleet staging area, but not an outpost either." She paused. "Anything odd on scans?" This was to everyone. A smattering of shaken heads and she scowled. "I don't like this. There should be more traffic."

"A trap?" Swan looked at her odd relative and Sora shrugged.

"If so, for who?" Swan asked. "We are to all appearances, a Grineer Galleon on profile for the base. If they knew we were here, they would be attacking. The six other Galleons in the area would make short work of us, but... This feels wrong. That is too few for such an base."

"Might they be drawing us further in?" Swan asked and then froze as her display changed, showing something far larger. She paled, but was quick to speak. "Sora!"

"I see it!" Sora was terse as she keyed her com. "Boss? We have detected a Fomorian in orbit around the base."

"Class?" Peter strode onto the bridge and to the ladies console as the tension on the bridge spiked to uncomfortable levels.

"Not a Balor." Sora said quietly, perusing the readouts as Swan worked the passive sensor arrays. Every Grineer ship maintained a number of active scanners operating at all times and the Jolly Roger was no different. But those sensors could only be used in ways that were typical Grineer protocol, so the crew was heavily supplementing the active sensors with everything from infrared detectors to a pair of crew out on the hull in hard suits with powerful telescopes. Even in this day, the Mark One eyeball had its uses. It was also far harder to fool eyes than many sensors. Sora shook her head. "Standard Fomorian. Not that such is much of an improvement."

"It is something." Peter sounded a bit distracted as he scanned the readouts. Then he grunted either in confirmation or disgust. It was hard to tell. "Ah. 'Spear of Harkonner'. Figures."

"Harkonner?" Sora asked carefully. The arms manufacturing clan was big in Grineer society, such as it was. Grineer lived by the motto that 'Might made Right' and then Harkonner clan always ended that saying with 'and bring a bigger gun!' They were arms merchants on par with the Corpus, if nowhere near as technologically inclined. Many in the solar system considered Grineer tech to be trash, but it generally worked in any and all environments. The same could not be said for Corpus tech, much to their chagrin.

"Yeah." Now disgust rang clearly in Peter's tone. "Knew they would do something to protect their investment, but this? Sheesh. Bunch of maggots." He nearly spat the last.

"Investment?" Swan asked. Edmund answered her and the young looking human spun, eyeing the Corpus soldier.

"As one of the Empire's most prolific armament dealers, Harkonner gets a massive chunk of the tribute that the Grineer treasure ships bring in. So, this rendezvous was going to be defended no matter what. This is just a bit bigger than expected." The soldier's words were half query. He relaxed as both Peter and Sora nodded. He made a face at Peter. "Please tell me we are not going to frontally assault that monster ship."

"Nope." Peter smiled as Edmund relaxed. Edmund stiffened again as the smile registered. It was feral.

"We are going in the back."

A few minutes later

"Flash is doing well, but she will be off status for the next few days." Anne said with a frown as Peter entered the medical bay. Peter nodded and Anne slumped a bit. "That wasn't Grineer, was it? Who did that to her?"

"Sometimes I truly wonder about humans. How they survived what they can do to each other." Peter was quiet as he peered into a ward where Flash slept fitfully. "You know how brutal Grineer can be." Anne nodded and the captain shook his head. "That said, no. It doesn't seem like what Grineer would do. Beat her? Sure. Break bones? Sure. That? No. Not even Tengus can make something like that happen." He grimaced as Flash's hand moved slowly in her sleep. He did not need to watch, he knew where it was going to go. He turned and marched to where Anne stood, face stony. "She was a pilot for the Corpus. She did something. Maybe smuggling? Maybe something else. Maybe she just told someone to keep their hands to themselves. So they did that to her."

"Turned her into a pleasure toy." Anne's face held rage now. The female Grineer Reclaimer who she had once been wouldn't have been concerned at all. This female was livid about what had happened to her crewmate.

"Yeah." Peter's face matched the medic's rage. He liked Flash. She had a hell of a sense of humor when she wasn't out of it. "Touch either of her shoulders and she just shuts down. I knew the moment I did it what would happen. Didn't think, just did it."

"And how long have you been practicing interaction stuff with humans?" Anne asked, her eyes intent. Peter slumped a bit and nodded. "Where did you find her?"

"Rathuum." Peter turned to face the wall. "The prisoner quarters. She was never sent out. She wouldn't have lasted a second in a fight. No..." He shook his head. "No, she never left the quarters. When we found her, she was half starved and more than a bit of a mess. At least she doesn't remember it consciously."

"They didn't..." Anne breathed. Peter just nodded and she snarled. "Those scum! One of their own?"

"Humans hurt humans for most of their history. Kayla De Thayam doesn't care." Peter grunted. "What animals do on their own between her self-gratification episodes doesn't matter to her. I found Flash there. We took her in, kept her safe. Let her wake up." He smiled a bit in fond memory. "She was more than a little pissed when she regained lucidity." He shook his head. "Can't blame her. Grineer don't do that kind of reproduction thing, so..." He shrugged. "We were safe for her, so she stayed with us. Then we found out she was a pilot and we started laying plans for the future, not just survival."

"So... when they got tired of you lot killing Executors, they let you go?" Anne asked, incredulous.

"It wasn't that easy." Peter allowed, then changed the subject. "We need a pilot. I can, but I am not the best at it and need to stay focused on the job. Sora and Gogre likewise. Flash is out. You have access to the personnel logs. Who else has piloting experience?"

"Hmmm." Anne turned to her console and started tapping keys. "Flash was training several others, but none of them were anywhere near her level of skill." She shook her head. "I can pilot."

"We need you here." Peter's immediate rejoinder brooked no argument so Anne did not bother to try. "No one else?"

"No one listed as beyond 'Competent'." Anne frowned. "One thing... If Edmund is Corpus Special Forces, would he have training how to operate Grineer craft?" Peter smiled at her and she froze. "Um... can you trust him?"

"For hurting the Grineer?" Peter's smile turned downright vicious. "I think we can."

Less than a hour later

"I knew you lot were crazy the moment I saw you." Edmund's voice was hushed even though there was literally no possibility of sound waves travelling through the vacuum of space around the shuttle. "But this?"

The shuttle was flying into one of the hangar bays of the Fomorian. The humongous ship blotted out the stars as they slid in on the approved path, other Grineer ships of various kinds flitting here and there. Any deviation from standard protocol meant death, either swift or slow and agonizing if captured alive. Edmund had a single plasma grenade on his belt for such an eventuality. He would not be taken and he knew the rest of the team felt the same way and had other such plans. Ten Grineer in Grineer armor with Grineer weapons. Plus one less than enthusiastic human pilot.

"Hey." Gogre's voice was amused where he sat near the exit ramp. "We resemble that remark."

"Yes, you do." Edmund did not look to where Peter was working his console. "What do I do if they want to inspect the shuttle or something?"

"Isn't improvising what Special Forces guys like you are supposed to be so good at?" Gogre's instant rejoinder had more than one of the others chuckling.

"Yeah, but I am not going to be able to sneak away with the shuttle in the middle of a open hangar bay." Edmund allowed. "If I try to fight, I am dead. If I try to run, I am dead. If I try to fly away, I am dead." He sighed. "Ah well. Don't get caught or die." He pleaded.

Peter smiled and kicked a panel nearby. Edmund stared as the panel slid aside to show a small space in the wall that had been cleared.

"It has sensor baffling, so if you need to hide this was built." The captain smiled wider as Edmund eyed the space. "Not very big, bit it will protect you from detection. Of course, if we all get killed or caught, all bets are off."

"In that case I would do better to overload the drives and blow as much of the hangar as I can." Edmund agreed. Capture by Grineer wasn't always a death sentence. Humans had survived such. It was never fun or easy.

"Use your discretion." Peter replied as he slid the armored mask into place. His face was not well known. At least, not yet. But it was probably better not to take any chances.

"Funny." Edmund retorted as the shuttle slid into place on the landing grid with only a minor bump. "My bosses never thought I had any discretion."

"Then you will fit in just fine around here." Gogre quipped but then the team was rising.

Edmund cast a look over his shoulder as the team left the shuttle, swaggering as only Grineer could. Then he slid down in the seat, ready to hide or fly as needed. Peter nodded to him minutely as he left the shuttle and closed the hatch. The captain had to hope that the human would manage. Flash would have managed just fine, she was a known quantity. But she was not available. Peter gritted his teeth and followed the huge bulk of Gogre into the super ship.

As before, it was ridiculously easy to get into a Grineer ship. They were clones in armor. They acted as Grineer, so they had to be Grineer, right? None of the electronic defenses had a chance against the tricks that Gogre and Zei had thought up. None of the scanner beams so much as blipped as they passed through them. They had known this. Getting what they wanted and getting out was always going to be harder than getting in and that was before they had found the Fomorian instead of a Galleon in place.

This wasn't going to be totally one sided though. The Grineer had their prize protected. A Tenno would have been able to get in and out reasonably easily, if in a far more messy fashion but no Tenno had reason to go after such a thing. Tenno were dedicated to stopping the Grineer. Their way of fighting was alien to the Grineer. It wasn't something that the clones could adapt to. Tenno could be stopped, sure. It took overwhelming firepower, but the Grineer often had that. The problem was that unlike most normal opponents, Tenno refused to stay dead. Peter himself had fought Tenno, had seen a warfame literally dismantled only to see a flash of light and see the Tenno standing there again as if nothing had happened. That time had been bad. Peter had been one of three wounded survivors from his company of clones. Surviving such had gotten him sent to Tengus. As a reward or punishment? He was never sure.

The ship was a labyrinth on the inside. Peter had no idea how many clones crewed such a ship. Thousands? Tens of thousands? More? He didn't know and really didn't care. Fear was there, but it was suborned in the rage that was growing. A familiar rage. He felt the old patterns come to the fore and strode with the arrogance that had been his hallmark as a Lancer. He hadn't known any better then. Now he did and if anything he was angrier.

"You!" A commanding voice had the team stopping in place. Gogre spun to face a Heavy Gunner. "Come with me!"

The Gunner started off and Gogre, without a moment's hesitation, followed and the team did as well. If a Grineer was giving orders, then said Grineer had the authority to give orders. Disobeying such, even for a second, was punished. The Gunner led them through a series of corridors that seemed oddly familiar. Had Peter even been on a Fomorian? No. he would remember.

Then it clicked. The captain jerked momentarily but continued to march even as he recognized the markings. Grustag. The marks indicated that the Gunner was taking them into an area set aside for the Grustag Three! A lab or a prison. Both. A hellish place that any sane Grineer avoided like the plague. Coming into such a place was a death sentence. The Grustag Three had killed more Grineer than many enemies had. They were uncontrollable raving psychotics. Another of Tengus' successes. But the Gunner seemed unconcerned. Was she brain dead? Tricked? Only one way to find out.

Peter was tense as he clenched his Sobek as a heavily armored hatch ahead of them opened and the Gunner led the way into a large room... Peter was hardly the only clone to come to a complete stop as the state of the room registered. The Gunner herself seemed frozen in place.

The room was a lab like the one where Peter had been 'adjusted' by Tengus. He didn't have any idea what the equipment was for and really didn't care. What he cared about was the three figures that lay sprawled ungainly around and the utter devastation that shone on the equipment. The Grustag Three had fallen! From the blood and other things that shone, the good doctor needed to clone them again. A small human form sat in the middle of the room, her head bowed. She wasn't wearing anything but a thin patina of gore. It took no imagination to figure out what had killed the Three.

Have you come to play with me?

The voice wasn't Swan. But it was close! And it was in Peter's head. He acted instantly, leveling his Sobek and firing. The Heavy Gunner had no time to react as her head exploded. The team drew their weapons, but nothing else happened. Peter slapped the door and motioned to Gogre who nodded and set about fuddling the sensors.

"Do you want me to play with you?" Peter asked calmly.

You are not like them. The young voice said, her tone oddly curious. They were afraid, even the crazy ones were afraid. They just attacked me. Hurt me. You are not afraid. Why?

"Because I know what you are." Peter holstered his shotgun and knelt down beside the human. No. What looked like a human. She wasn't one. The face that looked up at him was Swan's and one of the other team bit back a gasp. Peter reached out to take the human form's hand. "I am not your enemy. Do you want me to play with you? I can."

I do not know what I want. I woke. Here. They hurt me. I hurt them. I remember things, but they make no sense. The girl stared around the room, her face impassive. I do not know what to do.

"Can I touch you?" Peter asked. He saw blood flowing onto the floor. The Three hadn't gone down without a fight.

Will it hurt? I thought I would be getting hungry again like I was when I woke. I am not.

"No." Peter said with a sigh as he sat and pulled the girl into his lap. He bit back bile as something fell out of her to land with a 'splut'. "We cannot save you. You cannot metabolize our flesh and you are hurt too badly to carry out of here."

I am dying. The girl's mind voice was firm. Good. This is wrong. I am wrong.

"No." Peter hugged her gently, careful of her wounds. He was also wary of her teeth, but she was too weak to bite."The ones who did this to you were wrong. We are trying to stop them. But you? All I can do is end your pain."

Do it. The girl asked. I like you. You feel kind of like me, but not. So angry. So hungry. I... want... It hurts. Please? She begged.

Peter's face was set under his helmet as he reached out with slow, careful hands and took hold of her head. A quick, practiced yank and she shuddered and went limp.

Thank you. The final mental caress was kind and gentle. Then it faded. He laid her down gently straightening her limbs. Peter's rage was growing and eh was sure that Gogre was holding onto his own temper by his fingernails.

Of course, that was when the armored hatch opened again and another team of Grineer streamed in. Peter didn't bother talking. He opened fire and Gogre was a bare moment behind him.