May 12th 2184 CE 18:03

It took nearly two hours to reach the Gozu District. The Vorcha, in their cycle of eternal stupidity, were attempting to push into Blue Suns Territory. While their rebellious encroachment resulted in a swift and brutal response from The Suns, the ensuing chaos forced Garrus and his squad to take alternate and significantly slower routes. The frustration was weighing on him along with the situation's urgency.

When they finally arrived at the clinic, Garrus did not like what laid before them. If he could hazard a guess, the doc was expecting them. A small army of mechs was patrolling outside. He quickly pulled his sniper rifle up and peered through the scope. The doc himself was outside rambling, at what one could only assume was a hundred miles an hour, into his omni-tool. Even with his superior turian hearing, he couldn't make out a single word from this distance.

"Alright. I'm going to try and have a talk with him."

"The doc's not too happy with you boss." Ripper cautioned.

"True. But I really don't want to fight this guy. For one, he's too smart for his own good. The spirits only know what he has waiting for us. And, well, he may be a pain in my ass but he's doing valuable work." Garrus paused. "That said, I want you prepared. Slowly inch forward, keeping out of sight. Remember this is the guy that leaves rotting heads on pikes as a warning to the local gangs. He's no ordinary doctor. Do not underestimate him."

Garrus ducked and crept onward. Once he was a mere twenty feet from the doc, an icy voice rang out.

"Know you're here Archangel."

Crap.

"Give back patient or be blown to smithereens!"

"Wait, what?!"

"Patience not a strong-suit Archangel. Return her at once!"

"You lost her." It was more a statement than an accusation. He could scarcely believe this was happening after everything….

"You took her!" The salarian spun sharply, and glared directly at his position with a blazing omni-tool ready to unleash a pyro-tech attack. "Patient has broken leg. Could not have left on own accord."

Garrus raised his rifle in response. "That's the most disturbing thing you've told me yet. Stand down doc. If you won't listen to reason, I'll make you." The mechs were circling his position, attempting to flank him.

As he reached for a grenade, a human woman came scrambling out of the clinic as if her ass was on fire. She wildly waved her arms above her head in a clear attempt to grab their attention. However, with his gazed fixed on the salarian's pistol, it wasn't until she was closing in that Garrus realized it was none other than Nalah.

"Woah woah woah boys, everybody just calm down. What's going on?" She skidded to a halt beside them, violently panting.

"Know this cloaca?" The doc kept his pistol trained on him, but Garrus spotted the relaxation of muscles as some of the tension left his shoulders.

"Yes. Mordin, he's a good man. My husband and I…."

She was abruptly cut off as Butler came stampeding out of cover, frantic. "Woman! Get your ass over here and get down. Can't you see this here is a standoff?"

"Of for fuck's sake Fra-"

"Are you outta your god damned mind!? Get outta there."

"Are you serious? Do you listen to nothing I say?!"

"I heard and I-"

"Oh shut it. I've been working at this clinic every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday for nearly a year. And yes I told you. But you were just pretending to listen." She huffed and turned to the doc while Butler stood idle looking as if he'd swallowed a frog. "I vouch for him. Whatever he's here for..."

"The missing patient. 1182."

Nalah glanced up at Garrus, confused, as both men relaxed and holstered their weapons. "Sorry. We had an early morning brief when we discovered which ship she was on. There wasn't time to catch you up."

"This is who you were searching for?"

"Yeah. Look, we have to find her. Councilor Anderson gave me some ominous news. She's in a lot of danger, even if she wasn't a lone, injured woman on Omega. And for her own safety, doc, that's all you're getting out of me. How the hell did you lose her?"

"Yes. Yes. If Archangel not involved must have snuck out. Impressive given broken leg. Need to find her. Suggest we split up." Mordin hesitated for a fraction of a second. The subtle movement would've eluded most species' perception, but very little escaped the needle-sharp eyes of a turian. "Suggest some of your squad accompany me. Can move faster without mechs. Have more men than necessary for search party."

"Krul, Ripper, head out with the doc. If Nalah vouches for him..."

"I do." Nalah interjected.

"Then that's good enough for me. Doc, tune into frequency 179.6 The password's 335ripitsheartout all lower case."


Notes: I'm nearing the end of what was supposed to chapter 34. However, I feel like it's far too long so it'll be split up.

Anyhow, I just wanted to thank everyone for leaving comments/kudos/favorites. It really encourages me. Thanks to the fire and a lack of privacy, everyone knows what my new hobby is and thinks it's ridiculous. So that's great. Personally, I don't see how practicing my extremely rusty writing skills is a waste of time. Plus, it makes me happy. And it's been ten years since I wrote anything. I'm simply trying to find my feet again. Either way, this story has been running around my head since the trilogy's release. So maybe that's worth something in and of itself.