9/27/2211
"Creator-Shepard, incoming transmission over secure channel," Core announced, the geth's emotionless voice flooding Ria's cabin.
Ria glanced up, setting aside the naked circuit board she'd been tweeking. Great, just when I was finally sorting out the flickering problem. So much for having downtime. She sighed. The little pet project had seemed like such a good idea at the time too: taking parts from an old broken omni-tool and other salvage to build a holographic model of her home solar system. It gave her something to do during the ship's longer transits through the relay network. Or at least it would if she ever had a chance to work on it
"Any idea who it is?"
"Unknown," Core answers, "Analysis of encryption key shows ninety-three-point-six percent match to standard Spectre channels."
"Patch it through," Ria replied, wearily waving a hand in front of her.
"Affirmative."
Waving her omni-tool, Ria activated the display screen built into the wall behind her desk, casting a pale blue pallor over her room. A few seconds passed with no change, Ria leaning back and tapping her foot as she waited for the damn call to go through.
Then, finally, a window popped open, an image quickly coming to focus amongst the hiss of static. It was no more than a second before the faint silhouette gave way to the visage of an indigo skinned asari whom Ria immediately recognised as Spectre Irtana, who she'd served under during her own evaluation prior to being admitted into the selfsame group.
Irtana was tall for an asari, standing a head's height above Ria, managing to appear to tower over her even when seen as an image. Teal facial markings lined her face, a color which as Ria understood it was uncommon amongst her species. As with every other time she'd seen her, the Spectre wore black and purple armor, an ever present sniper rifle holstered on her back.
"Ria," the asari Spectre greeted simply.
"Spectre Irtana," Ria replied in kind, bowing her head in a sharp nod. "I take it you are doing well?"
The asari shrugged her shoulders. "As fine as things can be. Not sure if its fair for me to ask the same. You look exhausted, kid."
Ria winced at this, quickly sitting up straight and otherwise doing her best to appear more attentive. Am I really that obvious?
"I've had a long few weeks, sleep hasn't been in the cards," Ria replied. It wasn't exactly a lie, but only half the truth. The last thing she needed right now was others finding out just how shaken she really was by the events on Rothla and those in the days leading up to it. She couldn't appear weak, not now.
"I hear that. I don't think there's a anyone who does the sort of thing we do who hasn't been there at some point." She shrugged again. "How did your meeting with Doctor Leranon go?"
"Fine, all things considered. Still waiting on him to get back to us," Ria replied, frowning behind her mask. "I take it you're calling to call in the favor I owe you."
To her complete surprise Irtana laughed, shaking her head. "Actually, kid, I stumbled onto something I thought might be a bit interesting to you," the elder Spectre replied, teeth flashing as she smiled. "Yesterday I made a stop by the Citadel, intending to visit the Spectre archives. Nothing too important, just needed to access historical data relevant to an assignment I'm currently working. Imagine my surprise when I found out the whole place was on lockdown."
"Locked down?" Ria asked, eyes widening. "That hasn't happened since-"
"Since the incident on the Citadel twenty-five years ago," Irtana finished for her, dipping her head in confirmation. "Though I'd imagine you'd know more about that than me."
Ria couldn't help but smile, remembering the stories of that particularly bizarre day among her parents' adventures. It definitely seemed to be a wealth of entertaining accounts, given how damned often it came up at parties.
"As I'm sure you could relate, I found myself curious and did some digging on my own. As it turned out there had been break in a month ago. What, if anything, was stolen, I couldn't find out, but it must have been something important. Why else would the Council prohibit all future access while the apparent theft was 'under investigation'," the Spectre continued, air quotes punctuating her final statement.
Ria frowned, doing some quick mental math. A month ago… that would have been while I was still on Illium. She stared at her desk, tapping a finger against it before looking back up at the display. "How haven't we heard about this until now? At least a few others Spectres must have tried to visit the archives before now."
"Besides myself, your father, and Spectre Alenko, how many other Spectres do you know?" Irtana asked, a knowing smile crossing her lips as if she already guess the answer.
"...None," Ria admitted. She sighed, seeing at once what the asari was getting at.
"Exactly." Irtana nodded. "I've been doing this for far longer longer than you, and I can count the other Spectres I trust enough to share this information on two hands. Even then, those I do know might not consider it relevant to tell me in any hurry."
Ria did not miss the compliment implied in the elder Spectre's words. By what she said there were at the most five other agents who she trusted besides Ria herself. No, wait… nine others. asari have ten fingers, not six.
Ria frowned deeply, something else occurring to her then. "You think this has something to do with my own case, don't you?"
"You and I both know you'd have to be dense not to suspect some sort of connection between what's been going on. Which is why it should come as no surprise that the Council hasn't realised that yet." Irtana smirked as she finished, though the smile was short lived, fading away as she sighed. "Look, Ria, I don't pretend to know exactly what you're working on or expect you to tell me. But it doesn't mean I haven't started piecing together what few things you have told me, or been blind the rumors that have been cropping up. In this particular case, I have been hearing from other Spectres. Experiments on Reaper tech, the Council's cover up, important people vanishing without a trace. It doesn't even take someone half as smart as me to realise there's a new player in the galaxy, and you're wrapped up in the thick of it."
"So what do you suggest I do?" Ria asked, her frown deepening. "If the Council won't admit what was taken, the only way I could find out would be…." she trailed off, stunned by the shear ludicracy of the idea that occurred to her then. Oh, ancestors, Ria, don't tell me you're actually considering breaking into the damn place. Its not like the archives in on lockdown, making it a bazillion times harder to get in
"What you do with this information is for you to decide," Irtana answered, shrugging her shoulders. "Though, on another, completely unrelated note, I hear that the Council has only beefed up security at the main entrance. Securing the keeper tunnels tends to be far more difficult. I'd imagine someone with Spectre status could even disable most of the security measures once inside, though I can't imagine why anyone would want to do that." While the asari's expression remained neutral, Ria couldn't help but notice the mischievous gleam flickering in the Spectre's eyes as she concluded.
Is it a bad sign when people start to just assume I'm going to do something stupid like this? It's not like I decide to… alright, maybe I do, but still.
"I'll make sure to keep that in mind," Ria thanked her, dipping her head in sign of respect. "I appreciate the heads up. I'm in your debt."
"Consider this one for free," Irtana replied. "If I'm right and things are as bad as they seem, you need all the help you can get. Oh, and Ria? Just remember, just because the Council is blind to what's going on it doesn't mean the Spectres are too."
Ria blinked, caught off guard by the other Spectre's willingness to help without asking for anything in return. It was certainly a break from the favor based currency she'd gotten used to for dealing between Spectres. "I appreciate it," Ria repeated, thanking her again.
"No problem. Good luck out there, kid."
With a faint click the display blinked out of existence, Spectre Irtana ending the call. For a long while Ria stared at the blank wall in front of her desk, pondering their next move.
Well then, reckless abandonment of all self preservation, here I come, chided the mocking voice in in her head that had all too familiar as of late. What could possibly go wrong? It's not like the Council will have my head if they find out, or something.
Standing Ria glanced up at the ceiling, calling out to the to the spot she liked to image was the source of Core's disembodied voice. "Core, set a course for the Citadel. I think it's time to fill our stupid quota for the month."
. . . . .
Ria glanced back over her shoulder, scanning the busy street for any sign of pursuit. People of nearly every species bustled about the wards, all oblivious to her team's presence. Ancestors, Ria, on the Citadel for fifteen minutes and already paranoid. Working yourself up won't help any.
Slowly she released her grip on the pistol concealed under her realk, turning her eyes back to the street before them. Atleast its easier to conceal these things without my armor, so that's something. To keep a lower profile she'd decided against bringing armor, sticking with her standard exo suit. The only concession she made was to swap out her normal kinetic barriers for the more powerful generators her armor was equipped with. Still, she felt naked without her armor, vulnerable. Shields could only do so much in a firefight . Then again, if everything went as planned avoiding any fighting wouldn't prove difficult.
Sparing a quick glance, Ria checked that the rest of her team was keeping pace. Sure enough Tarran and Kel followed only a few steps behind, the two of them having likewise forgone armor in favor of more casual apparel. This in particular had been an important point for Tarran, whose size meant that heavier armor would impede his ability to traverse the keeper tunnels.
With them as well were Mordin and Grelin. The krogan brothers had insisted on coming along now that they'd recovered from their experiences at Rothla. Not that Ria had argued the point. While the two of them wouldn't be accompanying her into the archives, squeezing them through the keeper tunnels could only be described as an comically bad idea, she welcomed the extra protection the two provided. Having two pissed off krogan on call if things went south wasn't exactly a bad thing either.
Maybe our enemies will be too afraid to attack us with those two around. Maybe? Please? Keelah, I just want to go somewhere without getting ambushed every other trip.
"Creator Shepard, we are approaching the entrance point into keeper network, ETA twenty minutes," Core's voice chimed in, speaking directly through their comms.
"I appreciate the update Core, but it's really not needed." Ria sighed. "Don't make me mute you, I can you know. It is my omni-tool."
"Unlikely, given the current count of six-hundred-eighty-three runtimes present. Our direct access can override any attempt to shut down audio-"
"I was joking, Core." Ria interjected, shaking her head with another sigh. Why she'd agreed to let Core upload a fraction of his… consciousness? Self? Whatever it was, into her omni-tool? Well, besides the obvious reasons allowing him to help override the archives automated defenses once inside.
"You know, as lovely as the whole disembodied voice thing is, why didn't Core just come along himself?" Tarran asked, speaking up.
"His body would set off too many sensors… well, more than the rest of us would," Ria explained. "Not to mention geth still aren't all that common outside of quarian space, he would just draw too much attention."
"Who cares, more attention means I get to fight something," Mordin interjected, grinning at the thought. He rolled his shoulders to punctuate his point. "Being cooped up on that ship of yours has me itching for a fight."
"Well knowing our luck, that's not exactly a remote possibility," Tarran replied dryly. "What's it usually? About an hour or two between people trying to kill us?"
This comment put a smile on Ria's lips, something that had become far rarer lately. "I'd say an hour is generous, feels more like every five-"
The words disappeared on her tongue as she heard an odd sound from nearby. Frowning, she turned, looking around for its source. The rest of her team slowed, noticing too that she'd stopped moving. All around them people streamed past, hurrying about their business. Nothing, just another busy street in the Wards.
Sighing, Ria released her grip on her pistol. Keelah, Ria, we already went through this. Jumping at every little noise is sooner going to give yourself a heart attack than save your life. Relax, it was probably just-
"Gaaah!" All she heard was the sound before a mass fell on top of her, blocking her vision entirely. Something was holding her down, and she fought to throw the creature off. Vivid images of the construct that had attacked her on Rothla flashed before her eyes, and the adrenaline coursing through her at the thought gave her a panicked strength.
With both legs, she hurled the creature from atop her in a donkey kick that sent it flying.
The krogan brothers were on the thing as one, pinning whatever had attacked her to the ground in a flailing and frantic ball of arms and legs. Staggering to her feet, Ria watched as Mordin stepped to one side, hoisting up a scrawny, dirt covered vorcha by the neck. The thing continued to flail in a futile attempt to break free from the krogan's iron grip, all the while screaming incoherently at the top of its lungs.
Despite herself, Ria began to laugh, releasing her pent up anxiety. This? This was what she'd been terrified of? Behold, the mighty spectre, nearly scared to death by a vorcha.
"Achhk!" It's screaming came to a choking stop as Mordin tightened his grip still further. It brought both hands up to try and pry the fingers from it's throat, and it's legs still kicked violently in the air.
"Phff, Vorcha." Mordin grunted, shrugging his shoulders. "Say goodbye, Roach."
"Let it go, Mordin," Ria snapped, stepping forward. "But don't let it escape just yet."
Mordin held it a little longer before shrugging again and releasing his grip, tossing it forward. The vorcha landed face first on the ground, at once clawing at the floor in a desperate attempt to gain purchase and run for it. It didn't even so much as scramble to its feet before the rest of Ria's team closed in around it, blocking off all escape.
"Don't even think about it, Vorcha." Tarran warned, making a show of moving to his own holstered sidearm. The vorcha hyperventilated as it looked between each of them, it's breathing raspy and harsh from being choked earlier.
"No! You not keep me here. Need to leave!" It wasn't so much a demand as a desperate appeal, it's gaze still flicking around in hopes of finding anyone who would listen.
"Why did you attack me then?" Ria asked, keeping her voice level. Given how frantic the vorcha had gotten, raising her voice was bound only to work the thing up even more than get answers,
"No want to hurt." It's voice fell, and it looked down at it's feet when it realized it had no chance of getting anywhere. It sank to it's knees with a pathetic mewling sound, clearly beside itself with fear of what they might do. "It had food. Hishk hungry." It pointed right at Ria's pocket, as though it could see the item it wanted through the suit. "Quarians always have shiny foods."
"So you screamed at the top of your lungs before trying to rob us," Tarran noted. The turian sighed, covering his face with a hand. "Spirits, I shouldn't be complaining, but would it be too much to have expected an at least half-competent mugging? This is just embarrassing."
"Of course not. No one with skill would think us a good target," Ria noted dryly. Gazing down at the vorcha still groveling at her feet, Ria couldn't help but notice how scrawny and frail the vorcha looked, as if it hadn't eaten much more than a mouthful in weeks.
Poor thing must have been starving to try and attack us like that. Sighing, Ria dug into her pocket, which to her surprise was already half pulled out. Huh, he was actually looking in the right place, Ria noted as she fished out a tube of nutrient paste. "Let him go, he just wanted this," she extended her hand, offering the food to the vorcha now staring back at her with wide-eyed surprise.
Greedily, it snatched the tube from her hands so hard that it rocked backwards and onto the floor. It shoved the tube in its mouth and slurped at it like a child would a water fountain, gurgling happily from it's place on the ground.
Deciding it was best to leave the Vorcha to its meal, Ria motioned for her team to follow.
"Was giving him food really a good idea?" Tarran asked once they were out of earshot.
"I don't see the harm in it." Ria shrugged.
"I dunno, he could decide to follow us home," Tarran offered.
"If it was a varren pup, then maybe you'd have a point. But I don't think we have too much to worry-" Ria started to reply, only for deep, throaty laughter to echo out behind her. Turning her head she saw that both of the krogan brothers doing nothing to hide their laughter. "What?"
"Oh, nothing. Just that you think there's a difference," Mordin explained between chuckles.
It took a moment before she realised he was referring to her varren comment. Keelah, what did I get myself into. Its not like that would happen…. right?
Author's Note: So, sorry about being so damn late on this one, exams hit me with a pile of work during the past few weeks. I am probably going to end up taking three weeks before the next chapter, see if I can get two done during that period so I have something to fall back on if I am ever too busy to write again.