Location: Slums district warehouse/storage space—Endeavour colony, Ontarom.
Jeremy hugged the wall at the sound of gunfire. Caplus Stark, the kid whom he wished he'd left behind, was smart enough to do the same but Jeremy could practically hear the kid's teeth chatter under the downpour. That crappy ExoGeni suit was no rain jacket. Plus the bold red was easy pickings for any sharp shooter worth his salt.
"You should go back," Jeremy chided, in yet another attempt to send Stark home while inching forward himself. The kid spent the better part of ten minutes explaining how he was coerced into this whole kidnapping plot by some co-workers. At the time he would've gladly dismissed this as another hazing incident. But the last thing Jeremy needed was Ontarom becoming a hot topic on the Alliance's radar. "Go home to mom and pretend none of this happened."
"No," the kid said, "I'm a Stark...I'm supposed—supposed to do the right thing..."
Jeremy rolled his eyes and guessed no one told the little idiot that he was risking his bean of a career by association alone. If a good cop tied him to this mess, Caplus would be out of work and done with Ontarom.
Before Jeremy could explain the situation in simple terms, a whistling noise caught his ear. It was so familiar that instinct took over and he grabbed Caplus, throwing him to safety just as the wall burst to smithereens under the impact of a Mako cannon.
The thunderous hit took Jeremy off his feet and showered him with chunks of concrete while the rain pelted his fresh cuts. Thankfully the section of wall that would've done the most damage was still up, despite its compromised structural state.
Rubbing the sandy grime from a particularly large gash on his forearm, Jeremy looked back to where the kid landed.
"Stark, you okay?" he asked in a low voice when the plume of concrete subsided.
No sooner were the words out of his mouth than a few voices approached their position. "This is the Alliance. Don't move!"
Great.
Caplus didn't make a peep but there was no time to ponder the kid's fate. Jeremy crouched to the ground and tried to crawl beneath the rubble. Rocks cut into his hands and elbows, burning a new trail of pain but he ignored it and buried himself under the carnage. The water and blood on his palms made it difficult to hang onto the Cobra pistol's grip, but he didn't dare let go as he watched the scene through a small crack in the debris.
If the Alliance was already here then he was shit out of luck.
Fuck.
o~O~o
Location: Slums district warehouse/storage space, main gate—Endeavour colony, Ontarom.
Shepard entered the compound just as the rain fizzled away. A shift in winds brought the familiar smell of gunmetal, blood and carnage to his way. A rush of memories burned at his vision as he looked at all the scene around them.
Dead bodies bled from where precision rounds had torn through them. Most were buried under slabs of concrete and whatever else Glen's biotics managed to obliterate with the help of Hunter's cannon bombardment. Others had the clean hole between their eyes, his own handi-work.
He looked closely at the green Heyuan Genomics uniforms which poked out from beneath the cheap bloodstained armor. They were just civilians after all.
No. They were hostage takers. He kept reminding himself but his gut clenched at the sight. He had seen many dead bodies on the front lines, it was nothing new. But no matter how he slicedit these particular folks were civilians...
He turned away from the lifeless eyes and bee lined for the manager's office where Hunter and Vega were talking to the asari. Glen was up ahead making sure they left no one behind.
Liam felt the squish of flesh beneath his boot and winced when he looked down to a severed human hand. The owner was a few feet away, crushed by a beam of steel supports that had comedown under Hunter's barrage.
~O~
Tiny hands and feet stuck out from beneath the rocks.
They weren't moving.
Shepard threw his rifle aside and began digging frantically, scraping the earth with his bare hands, feeling the soil tug at his nails. No, no, no! They couldn't be dead.
He was going to get them out of there.
He promised to get them out of there...
~O~
"I already told you! We are here for the preservation initiative," oneof the asari yelled at Hunter. Liam focused on her face and clawed back to the real world. The asari remained softspoken, even in her anger. He recognized her as the only one who fought back.
The others beside her bristled in anger but otherwise said nothing as they helped eachother out of the de-energized restraints.
"Don't move!" Glen's voice near the ruins of what was once a wall caught Liam's attention. Hunter quickly drew his pistol and escorted the asari back to the Mako. Paladin in hand, Liam signaled to Vega and they approached Glen's position to form a V.
The Vanguard kept his shotgun aimed at the groggy human atop the pile of rubble. Liam stepped forward, careful to keep right of his team member's line of fire.
Unlike the hostage, takers this man...no a kid really looked to be no older than John, maybe even Fi's age, was roughly in his mid twenties. What used to be a clean crew cut of dark hair was matte with grime and sticky blood. His entire forehead was starting to swell, likely a concussion, Liam observed as the groggy kid opened his eyes but was still a bit out of it.
"Don't move," Liam ordered as he reached out and checked him for weapons. Though it was anyone's guess where he would keep them in a thin red ExoGeni suit like that. Finding none, Liam yanked him upright by the collar and passed him off to Vega. "Restrain him and put him in the Mako. He's coming with us."
Liam turned back to Glen who holstered his shotgun. "Good work, Gordon."
The Vanguard smirked his appreciation. "Not so bad yourself, Shep. Did the blue ones say anythin' worth listening to?"
"We'll find out soon," Liam replied as he activated his comm. "We're done here, Casey. We have six body bags incoming, all hostage takers. Five asari are secured and one possible witness from ExoGeni is in tow. He might need medical attention."
"Copy that, Commander. A med squad is on stand-by at base. I'll let the Captain know as soon as she's back. Blitz out."
Liam started to move but an odd feeling made him freeze. It was the same kind that put ice down his back whenever he suspected someone was watching him. Mitigating his adrenal response, he slowed his breathing and became acutely aware of everything around him. The sun had broken through the dark clouds and the rays made everything seem orange under his focus.
Movement beside him caught his eye and Liam raised the Paladin straight to the intruder's face.
"Whoa," Vega said, raising his hands up high, "easy, loco. It's just me."
Liam quickly holstered his gun and made a show of rubbing his tired eyes. Trying his best put the blame on bad rest. "What is it?"
If Vega was annoyed at the blatant attempt not to address this, he didn't show it. The crazy marine didn't even flinch and that showed some alarming devotion. "We're ready to go. That's if you are too...unless you wanna stand here and smell the metal." Vega smiled showing no hard feelings.
"No thanks." Liam smiled too and clasped his buddy on the shoulder. "And sorry."
"Nothing to be sorry for, loco," Vega replied, as they headed back towards the Mako, "you're just lucky I don't shoot fucking new guys."
They both laughed at that.
Between six body bags and five bickering asari, the ride back was annoying. Gordon was smart to sit shotgun with Hunter at the wheel. Liam and Vega were stuck gripping the overhead hand rails, acting as nothing more than dividers between dead hostage takers, pissed off hostages and one semi-conscious ExoGeni employee. Liam caught Vega's annoyed look as three subordinate asari tore into their leader, the only one who fought for them. She seemed like a young kid even by asari standards, still trying to pacify the situation as it turned ugly.
"We could've finished them back at the ship," one asari yelled.
"Yeah," another joined in, "what the hell Liara? We have biotics for a reason. If you let us thump them in the beginning none of this would've happened."
"They were humans," the one named Liara plead her case, seated between them. "Are you forgetting the treaty we signed with this species, Sithandra?"
"All I know is I didn't sign a treaty that says I can be taken hostage," Sithandra answered back, crossing her arms begrudgingly. "We could've handled that ourselves. Besides you ended up using yours anyways. Just don't see why we couldn't use our biotics too."
"Liara acted in self defense as a last resort. Leaders are allowed to use discretion by law. If you all did it, the Alliance wouldn't hesitate to ban asari from Ontarom and start another contact war," Liam said, making sure his tone left no room for argument. It seemed to do the trick as all three asari backed off from their leader. "Liara made the right call."
"Thanks," one of the quiet ones at the far corner said to him. "Guess we owe you for the rescue."
"Yes. Without your help I can't imagine what would have happened," Liara said, watching Sithandra from the corner of her eye.
"You're welcome," Vega said. Though his expression showed amusement at the situation, probably remembering how they bashed the asari's lack of action earlier.
"What were you doing down here anyway?" Liam asked, looking over to Liara. It was hard to imagine this bookish, soft spoken girl out looking for trouble. But they were far from any area cleared for scientific use.
"We were sent here to catalog and help preserve Ontarom's unique genetic biodiversity," Liara explained. "Those men greeted us at the launch pad next to the designated exploration zones. Their Heyuan Genomics credentials were genuine. We thought our detention was a simple mix-up."
"Speak for yourself, Liara," Sithandra butt in, "just cause' you were blinded by fake hospitality doesn't mean the rest of us were." Sithandra glared to Shepard, backed by two more of the science team. "Some of us don't have the privilege of royalty to protect us from harm."
"For the last time, Sithandra, I'm not here because of my mother," Liara snapped in what was the first real hint of emotion he saw from the calm girl.
So she was royalty? Well that explained a lot. Liam was no expert in asari culture but the other three acted older than their leader and her sole but quiet supporter in the back. Clearly there was some imbalance of power on this squad.
"I'm not interested in who has what spoon up their ass," Liam said, putting a momentary cease fire to the bickering. "Does your government know you're here?"
"Yes," Liara explained, seemingly settling down again. "University of Serrice' department of archeology oversees this mission. This project is also funded by the Thessian government."
"Contact them. Let them know what happened and that you'll be staying at Alliance firebase Dagger on Ontarom," Shepard commanded.
Liara gave him a questioning look. "We have our own ship. If you escort us there we can be on our way."
Nothing would have made him happier, but alas orders were orders—according to Flores. "It doesn't work like that. I can't let you off world until you have a word with my bosses. Besides, we still need to figure out why they decided to take you hostage," Liam said, kicking the body bag at his feet for emphasis.
"Great, more bullshit," Sithandra raged.
"Settle down," Vega cautioned, gripping his holster when the asari began to rise. Thankfully another bump along the road took her balance and planted her ass back on that seat.
Liara held out a hand, trying to pacify the other two who lit up with the aura of biotics. "Please, we don't need more conflict. They saved our lives, surely talking to their superiors is the least we can do. Otherwise I can write you up for insubordination and you can say goodbye to any future archeological excursions off-world."
The silent threat worked as the other asarirelaxed and turned back to their normal shade. Liam held his Paladin loosely at his side, not sure exactly when he drew it but happy he did since it sent the right message.
As he watched Liara make the call, his own comm delivered Blitz voice straight to his ear. "Got some news for you, Commander. Preston and Flores took a squad to survey the nearby dig sites and secured what looks like our asari's ship."
Shepard cupped his ear, to signal he was talking privately and not going crazy. "Good. Tell the Captain we're about ten minutes out."
"You got it. Blitz out." Casey said and signed off.
When they reached the base Glen and Hunter got to work unloading the bodies. Liam led the way with Vega bringing up the rear, assault rifle in hand just in case any asari remembered their biotics. The firebase bustled with activity as alliance servicemen ran wild, armed with—are those brooms? Liam frowned, looking around as everyone kneeled with buckets in hand and scrubbed the floors clean. Marines carrying ladders, wood and paint crisscrossed past, making the whole place feel like an expensive movie set rather than the military base it was meant to be.
"What's going on?" Liara asked, stopping at Liam's side.
"I don't know." He shook his head and waved Vega up front. "Follow James to the control array. I'll be up there in a moment," he said when his eyes found Traynor on the floor with the rest scrubbing as if her life depended on it.
When the party moved ahead, Liam stepped over and squat next to the tech. "You're a part time cleaning lady? Is there anything you can't do, Traynor?" he teased.
That earned him a sud to the face before the young marine reeled back in horror. "Oh! I'm so sorry Commander. I thought you were someone else." But her slightly devious smile said otherwise.
"Liar," he joked, wiping the water from his jaw and smiling, knowing that he had it coming. "Did I miss something? Or is Brock gunning for 'party of the year' mentions on the extranet?"
Traynor laughed, earning her some jealous looks from the folks around her but relaxed with Shepard's presence. Team cleaning did wonders for morale, but the way Brock worked this base it didn't look like he gave a damn about morale. Otherwise he'd have noticed the overworked state of his troops.
"The Colonel wants to hold a press conference," Traynor explained, slapping the sudsy sponge back against the tile, communicating her disapproval.
"About the hostage situation?" At her nod, Shepard felt his eyes bulge. It was one thing to release a statement about a delicate situation but a really stupid move to unleash a three ringed media circus on a mission without any details to stand on. "He hasn't even spoken to the asari. What the hell does he plan on telling the galaxy?" Liam asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Traynor replied. "We're erecting a podium near the dark side. He's invited Endeavour colony's governing council and Heyuan Genomics' CEO Roland Price to give a statement. It should be a good watch...if you like horror flicks."
"Wonderful," Liam sighed, knowing this could turn into a train wreck if a good reporter hit Brock with a few telling questions, in which case he himself would likely be the scapegoat for any 'uncomfortable' questions. "Just wonderful."
Liam rose and walked away, leaving Traynor to what was clearly punishment. Back at the Mako Hunter stood aside as a team of medics pulled the ExoGeni employee from the Mako's compartment.
"Anything?" Liam asked, glancing at the unconscious kid as he was being strapped onto a gurney by three med techs.
Hunter looked up and waved his omni-tool to life. "I compared his face against ExoGeni's employee database. Caplus Stark, works for the ExoGeni portion of the preservation efforts."
Liam frowned. It didn't seem right that an ExoGeni employee would help his competitors kidnap the asari. But if he wasn't involved then his presence made no sense at all. "That's it?"
"For now," Hunter said, returning to his omni-tool. "I've gained access to multiple top clearance ExoGeni projects but nothing that this guy is tied into."
One of the med techs injected Stark with an IV as the others checked his vitals with their omni-tools concentrating on the head trauma.
"Then I guess it's a round of interrogation when he wakes up," Liam said, watching as the techs gingerly wheeled him away. At least until the glint of sunlight lit their ExoGeni medical crests. "Wait, what the hell?" Liam sprinted towards the med unit before it could get far. "I'm Commander Shepard, Alliance navy. You're on a military base and I need you to leave the prisoner. Now."
The techs stopped and looked to him with some confusion. A few nearby marines hesitated between backing him and getting their jobs done. But before they could reply Hunter jogged to a stop beside him. "Sir, the colonel released our prisoner to the ExoGeni medical staff. We can't detain him."
"What?" Shepard was ready to burst. This was the match to the powderkeg he didn't need, especially from his favorite pencil pusher.
Hunter only nodded to show his disdain. "I agree but we don't have the authority to stop them."
"It says so right here," the only female tech among the two men stepped forward and shoved a datapad with Brock's chicken scrawl to his face.
He slapped it away and turned to Hunter. "Stay on him. I'm not letting a potential witness disappear."
"Yes sir," Hunter complied and stepped aside as Shepard stormed out. Hell bent on finding Brock and wringing the colonel's thick neck with his own hands.
A/N: Thank you for all your wonderful support. You guys are fantastic and each of your suggestions help learn. Now let's hear your love of Brock :P Also, how did you take Liara's inclusion?
I love hearing all of your thoughts!