Kisa and Jackson visited Nekros yesterday at his temporary residence. He was glad to see a friendly face (well, a face and a mask) in such a hostile environment. He quickly told them that his duty was extended on Omega. He had to stay for another week, this time inspecting armour. Nekros made no attempts to hide his annoyance.

"I envy you, Bui." Nekros complained.

"Why?" Jackson/ Bui replied, again in his high-pitched voice. As much as he tried to deny it, he was quite enjoying being a Quarian – it made him feel carefree. The suit had flexed and adjusted to his body, so it was now relatively comfortable to wear.

"Because you have a reason to do something. I thought the military would give me a reason, but all they do is to talk about politics!"

"Well…" Jackson mumbled. He wanted to recruit Nekros immediately, but then it would make him a deserter. That would be problematic for Nekros after the mission. "Why don't you quit?"

"Because I don't have a good excuse." Nekros answered. "I can't just quit…"

Perhaps I can do something with the Turian military's roster? Kisa thought. "We'll figure something out."

Nekros laughed. "Thanks. That means a lot to me."

"You'll find that she's a women of her words." Bui said quietly.

Nekros stared at his guests, stunned by their seriousness.

...

This isn't my job! Thea thought, angrily smoothing the creases of her business suite. It's always been either Kisa or someone else doing the diplomacy! She walked nervously past the customs office of the Citadel. She wasn't sure about how the Citadel will react to her after almost two hundred years of no contact, but the C-Sec officers didn't stop her.

Jackson had sent her to the Citadel to recruit Rallel, despite her complains.

"It is your job! You are the leader, you recruit!" Thea argued.

"There's no point arguing Thea. Kisa told me all about you." Jackson commanded, still reading through thousands of documents regarding possible candidates for the mission. Thea knew that some of those documents had information about her.

"About what?" Thea asked, polishing the gun she found three days ago.

"Your reading. She told me that you've read more than a thousand books regarding law and diplomacy – even stole some during your heists. I found that ironic, by the way."

Thea immediately knew that she lost. Jackson and Kisa was right – she had been reading a lot about law, probably enough to become a lawyer. After a nightmare almost a hundred years ago, she had decided that she needed to know law as much as anyone else in order to continue her work. So far, it hadn't come into much use, becoming more of a habit than anything else. Thea probably knew enough about legislation to get Rallel out legally.

That's how she ended up here, travelling alone to the Citadel (Jackson and Kisa decided to capture the real terrorist to replace Rallel, so they were off fighting somewhere, leaving her out of the fun). She looked up at the Citadel sky, happy to see it again. Although the Citadel was too quiet for her liking, it was a good place to wind down.

Perhaps coming here was a good idea after all. Thea looked peacefully across the station. The city amongst the stars, the heart of the galaxy…

She made her way to the Zakara Ward, where she made an appointment to meet Rallel. Although she was only a suspect, the threat of terror wasn't taken lightly in the Citadel. Even after her identity was double checked, she was escorted to the meeting room with two armed guards, both Turian. They wore heavy C-Sec armour, wielding the classical Phaeston. They made no attempt to hide their menace, though Thea could tell that they were somewhat scared.

"You have be given the right to speak with suspect in private, ma'am. She's been unshackled for the interrogation, as per your request. But, if you need any assistance or feel threatened in any way, then please press this button" The left guard said in a gruff voice as he handed her a small disk. It had nothing but a large, red button on top of it.

"Please be careful. That women is dangerous!" The other guard spoke, his split voice being accented further due to his nervousness.

"Don't worry. I will be fine." Thea replied in the most cheerful way possible. The guard opened the heavy door that separated the prisoners from the outside world. Inside was a starkly lit room. It had only one piece of furniture – a large metallic table set. The blinking lights or glow panels that normally filled the Citadel was nowhere to be seen. The smell of blood hung ghastly in the air. It was clearly designed to make the guests uncomfortable.

On the side opposite to Thea was a batarian women, who had her feet up on the table and sitting very comfortably on the blocky chair. She wore green prisoner's clothes. Thea couldn't make out the details of her face – her own shadows covered a majority of it. Despite her situation, Rallel looked very much like in her element. The women open her top right eye and stared at Thea.

"Who are you?" Rallel asked. Her voice was deep for a women, but definitely feminine.

"Hello, my name is Thea Sorac. I am your possible lawyer." Thea replied in the most business-like manner. She had to find out more about the subject: What was she like? Was she suitable? What were her weaknesses? Her strengths? Was she ready to sacrifice her life? (That's what Jackson asked Kisa and herself so Thea planned on simply copying him).

"Lawyer? Humph! Nobody can get me out of prison. Why are you here anyway? Who sent you?" Rallel asked. She opened all her eyes, but didn't move her feet when Thea sat down across the table.

"I assure you that I have the necessary means to take you out of prison." Thea answered. She actually did know of a way to get her out, but it would require some bloodshed if Rallel didn't cooperate. "I am here to make that happen. As for who sent me-"

"If you are thinking of recruiting a prisoner, then you are crazy." Rallel cut her short. She knew that nobody would try to get her out of prison – no friends, no family, being chased by Blue Suns, the only person who would try to get her out of prison would be some crazily rich person wanting a personal band of mercenaries.

In a way, she was correct.

"Perhaps. The person who sent me wants to find out more about you." Thea said.

"Well tell him that he should learn to use a gun" Rallel said, closing her eyes once more. She really didn't care about anything anymore – perhaps a prison was a good place to be. It can't be worse then what she's done…

"He knows." Thea replied. Seeing that the conversation will lead nowhere, she decided to switch her gears. "Hey! Sit straight! I'm talking to you! I'm here to save you, and damn right get you into a crazy band of mercenaries. You've heard of the Geth attack on the Citadel? Well, they're not dead, and they need to be taken care of. The guy who sent me wants to recruit you for it, alright? He knows how to shoot, and also know how to rip your arms off with his mind, but he wants your help, okay? Now that you know, listen properly!" Thea scolded.

Rallel removed her feet from the table and stared blankly at Thea. She hadn't expected the asari to come out so tough – a lawyer were normally a snivelling idiots who would mess their pants if they saw a gun, but this asari was clearly different. This asari would be on the trigger end of the gun.

What in the world is this…?

…

Kisa looked at Jackson, who stood in his full combat gear. Although she had seen many threatening enemies, she had never seen anyone like Jackson. Mechanical and unmoving, he seemed to personify death. His black armour's design was seamless, encasing Jackson's personality within. Standing in the dark, Jackson was almost invisible save for his visor, which glowed in red. Kisa felt like she was standing next to a shadow – a very lethal shadow.

Jackson's actions had changed too. He was always the one to give smiles (even under his Quarian mask), making people feel welcome and special. He always talked in a friendly way with a simple underscore of seriousness. He was always the "likable person". But inside his armour, he was silent. No unnecessary movements, no loose ends. Not even the sound of breathing. When he spoke, he spoke in a minimalist style, finishing the conversation as soon as possible. Throughout the firefight, he was the horrifying killer, showing no pity to his enemies. The usual blue glow that biotics made was hidden by his armour, and he launched the salvos in the most optimal position. Even when he was blown back by a grenade, he didn't grunt, his only reply being a bullet to the victim's head. He was designed for combat.

Kisa felt scared – she hadn't seen someone so deadly before. Although she was on Jackson's side, his mere presence made her tremble. The fact that his biotics were stunningly powerful, and his aim always precise, didn't help either.

They now stood outside the Blue Sun's main hideout, having eliminated the gatekeepers. A Blue Suns major hid here, who clearly hasn't expected his Omega fort to be punched through like paper. Now, he was hiding inside, hoping to escape somehow (that wasn't possible: Kisa made sure that the communications from the compound was severed completely).

"Concussive rounds. We need hostages. No talking: I don't accept surrenders." Jackson said. Kisa realised that he was talking to her.

"Right. I'm ready when you are." Kisa replied.

Jackson gave her a short nod and raised his left hand, positioning his Mattock rifle against his chest. The metal blast door imploded, folding up into a small ball.