Notes:

EOD - Explosive Ordnance Disposal

Digging In

Cliffside, Gellix, Arrae System – 6 June 2189

Adrien Burns met them at the door of the dining hall with a smile. "Good morning, all. I trust you slept well?"

Shepard chuckled quietly, surprised as Liara responded, "Certainly better than I would have in a crew bunk with room for only one. Your guest quarters are both spacious and comfortable, Adrien. Thank you."

"That they are, Liara," added Hannah. "I did rise this morning, however, with an idea in my head."

Samantha looked between her and Adrien as she commented with a grin, "Uh oh. Run while you can, Adrien… don't ask any questions… just run!"

Puzzled, Adrien glanced at the Spectre. "Why?" Quickly looking to Hannah, she continued, "I'd be happy to hear any ideas or suggestions the Admiral may care to offer."

"So much for that," Samantha said with a smile. "Mom rarely has just an idea; she most likely has a plan of action she fully expects everyone to partake in once she offers it up, simply because it's a great suggestion. It's also generally not something she can do alone, so will need help to make it happen." She chuckled quietly before adding, "Just be ready… because if you ask to hear it, you've basically just volunteered to participate in whatever it might be."

"That is sooo not true!" Hannah looked at her daughter for a moment before she started to laugh. "Okay, so maybe it is, likely more times than not… but you must admit, I normally do come up with pretty decent ideas!"

"So… what am I expected to do here, then?" Adrien glanced between the two grinning women before looking at Liara, her brow also raised in question. "Simply ignore it… or ask anyway, to be polite, even knowing my entire day's schedule may likely be derailed by the answer?"

Before Liara could offer an opinion, Hannah replied, "It's honestly not as bad as all that. I would simply like to stay here, spend the day with you, and have Sam and Liara swing back this way to pick me up, once they are done with Brek and, I assume, Spectre Jatok."

"A 'go to work with the Governor' day?" Adrien smiled. "I do that with our orphans! However, I am quite confident the day's topics of conversation will not be the same as those I normally have with an 8-year-old!"

"I would certainly hope not," Hannah answered quickly. "I'd like to get to know you… see you at work, how you make decisions. See if there's anything I can help you with." She paused before adding, "I mean, until the fifteenth, I am still the Alliance Interspecies Liaison for Post-War Recovery and, as such, may have access to a few resources you could probably put to good use. How about we talk about it over breakfast and make our decision with a full stomach?"

Adrien gave a little chuckle before responding, "How about we enjoy our breakfast together and then talk about business later, in my office, after Sam and Liara head out?"

"That's a deal."

Following a relatively quick breakfast, Spectre Shepard and her team bid their goodbyes and headed to the shuttlecraft. After a final wave of farewell, the door of the Fleet Orison class shuttle slipped closed as it lifted off and turned lazily toward their destination, seemingly in no great hurry to reach the next objective. Hannah watched, commenting, "It must be nice for them to finally not feel a need to rush from place to place." Letting out a sigh of contentment, she turned back to Adrien. "It's still amazing to realize we have a future secured from the threat of annihilation by the Reapers, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is." Adrien smiled as she replied. "And to think I may also have a family… when I always assumed I would be alone in the world? No words can express the gratitude I feel toward Samantha… and you… for giving me this opportunity."

"Well then, let's not waste a minute of it." Hannah waved an open hand toward the hatch. "Over the years I've learned moments like this can be fleeting, so we need to grab ahold of them while we can, to make sure none of them pass us by."

During their walk to the office, Adrien received a number of calls, everyone thinking all of their guests had departed, only to be surprised that the Admiral had remained behind. Each time, Adrien quickly explained they would be conducting the day's business as usual and that she would be in her office momentarily.

"Good morning, Earnest," she greeted as she walked in the door. "Hannah will be with us for the day but, other than that, we treat this day as any other. So, what's on my agenda?"

He simply stood there and stared at Adrien's unexpected companion for a moment, until Adrien cleared her throat to draw his attention. "Oh, right. Sorry. Agenda." He opened his omnitool and started reading. "You have three contracts to be reviewed… and signed, assuming you agree to the terms I negotiated, then, the water pump in Greenhouse 2 is being a bit persnickety… but I would like you to look at it before I purchase a new controller. It might just be a software issue…"

"Just buy a new one, Earnest. It won't hurt to have a backup sitting on the shelf." Adrien paused, and then added, "Matter of fact, buy five, so we have one for each greenhouse. I'd hate for an electrical storm or power surge to wipe out our entire growing capacity in a single sweep."

"Roger that." Earnest made a quick note and then continued, "Then, you're free until after lunch; I didn't want to book anything else, just in case you got caught up in the controller repair."

"Thank you… I appreciate the forethought." Adrien smiled and prompted, "So, after lunch is what?"

With a heavy sigh, he glanced at the Admiral before looking back and answering, "Then, you have a potential meeting with the fledgling, self-proclaimed machinist union. Now that we have an official status, they are banding together to demand pay more equivalent to machinists at other colonies… established colonies. I tried to explain to them that we don't yet have anywhere near that level of net income, because we're still building our basic infrastructure, but they rejected my explanation and demanded an audience with you."

Earnest shrugged before continuing, "We honestly can't pay them any more than what they're already getting… which is their fair share of the colony's minimal profits." He snorted in derision and added, "The rep actually said I was nothing more than an administrative toady and proclaimed they were tired of talking to the useless middleman."

At that, Adrien sat forward, her eyes narrowed. "He actually said that to you?"

"Yes, she did, and I recorded all my conversations for later reference… just in case I actually end up writing any contracts or agreements." Earnest caught Adrien's glance of expectation and shifted screens, forwarding the data. "Aaand… I've just sent you that particular confrontation, so you can be prepared."

"Excellent." Adrien pursed her lips for a moment, then added, "And push the meeting time a bit later… say, 1400 hours… to give me time to review the files before I speak with this rep. What's her name?"

"Janyce Ward. She came in with a small band about three months ago and has caused nothing but trouble since, stirring up the workers." He shook his head. "I haven't researched it yet, but I think she may have been the organizer behind the failed strike last month. Because of that failure, I highly doubt she has support of the majority; my guess is that her group is a small collection of profiteers, simply looking to take advantage of us… thinking we're an easy mark."

"Thank you, Earnest. Clear my calendar of everything following that meeting." She glanced at the Admiral before continuing, "I'll get to the bottom of it this afternoon, one way or another, and I don't care how long it takes. Extortion is a crime and I'll not have the operations of this station held hostage by someone who mistakenly believes us to be nothing but weak-willed administrators. In the event our conversation goes badly, I want you to have security on a silent alert… and to be prepared for a forcible ejection, if required."

"You think you might need security just to get her out of your office?" Earnest's surprise at Adrien's words echoed in his voice.

"No," she answered resolutely. "Getting them off the station. If it comes down to it, I will make it perfectly clear that they either play by our rules or they will be escorted to their quarters to pack their personal belongings… because troublemakers are not welcome here. And Earnest? Make sure security understands that these people leave with nothing more than what they came with… other than a one-time offer of free transport to wherever they want to go; they can consider that their severance package. And don't worry, I'm not putting this on you. I will make all of my conditions perfectly clear to them when we have our afternoon chat."

"Understood, Ma'am. I'll speak to Chief Wilson immediately and begin making arrangements."

As the door slid closed following the Station Administrator's exit, Adrien blew out a heavy breath before meeting Hannah's eyes. "Sorry about that. I'm honestly hoping it doesn't come to anything… that Earnest is wrong about them and I can convince them to stand down."

"But," responded Hannah, "you've come to trust his judgement… so, you're worried."

"Yes, honestly… I am." Adrien frowned. "And I'm certainly not pleased that this all happens the day immediately following your visit… when you were supposed to already be gone."

"You don't think it's a coincidence?"

"No, my gut tells me there's nothing coincidental about it." Adrien shrugged. "It's pretty common knowledge… at least it was before the war… that there's significant Alliance incentive money for establishing a successful colony; equipment, supplies, hazardous duty credits…"

"Which is basically what I offered you over breakfast…"

Adrien huffed out a small laugh, a smile appearing on her face. "And I went and turned you down… rather unceremoniously, at that."

"Only because you want to be part of the solution, not part of the problem… as I believe you put it." Hannah smiled in return. "Which is a stance I can fully appreciate after seeing what you've already accomplished here. You're basically self-sufficient, other than regular trade – mostly for luxury items – and almost ready to begin exporting foods and technology." Pursing her lips in thought for just a moment, she then added, "So the only help I could honestly give you is a list of agricultural contacts at other belt world colonies who you think you can help."

"You know, I hadn't thought about that." Adrien looked at her in surprise. "Here I thought I was going to be the one helping you, simply by not asking for anything and making your job here super easy… basically nonexistent." She laughed and added, "Looks like I was mistaken. I'll be accepting your help after all… because if you have such a list, that will save me an amazing amount of time and effort by not having to do all the research myself. But, even then, I'll still have to chase all those people down and get an audience with them."

"I can also give you an introduction of sorts… to all of them." Hannah shrugged. "A referral, so to speak, so they know your project has my backing."

"You'd do that? But I thought you were leaving the job… going to the Defense Committee, starting on the fifteenth?" Adrien's brow knit in consternation. "There's no way you can do that in a week."

"Why not?" Hannah grinned, her expression carrying a hint of challenge. "You put together your sales pitch, I write the endorsement, and we send the combined message to the lead agriculturist at every one of those colonies… there really aren't that many, fifteen or so. And it's just an introduction. Setting up the meetings and selling your work is still up to you. I'm just helping to get your foot in the door."

Gellix, Arrae System, At Large – 6 June 2189

"Where's the Knight Shade, Shepard?" Hailot Jatok stared at his fellow Spectre, a frown on his face as she stepped out of the Asari shuttlecraft.

"Gee, good to see you too, Jat," Shepard chuckled quietly. "With you and second team gone, we easily fit on a shuttle now… especially when we're just playing escort on a diplomatic mission. We dropped Admiral Shepard off for her visit with Burns… and figured we'd pop over here to say hi, seeing as we were in the neighborhood. The Knight Shade is still sitting on Thessia, getting a thorough maintenance service. Why?"

"Well, since you were here, I wanted to borrow those two Jiris Infantry hovercraft sitting in her belly, but that's hard to do, seeing as you went and left 'em behind!"

"What could you possibly need the Jiris for, Jat?" Liara asked.

"While Brek was over there getting established with his colonists, along with his SILC miners and security…" Jat jerked his head in the direction of the new Krogan settlement before he continued, "…I took over this encampment for my base of operations." He scoffed, followed by a low growl in his throat. "Then, one of my scouts discovered a major Blue Suns lair in one of the nearby trenches. The thing's a good fifty meters deep, with defensive weapons set up all over the walls, in every nook and cranny deep enough to hold one."

"So, the cover fire is too intense to drive through… and a Tomkah is way too slow against that kind of firepower." As an unexpected memory of James Vega surfaced, Shepard smiled and continued, "Like shooting fish in a barrel."

"Exactly!" Jat sighed, "Don't know why you're smiling, because I was really hoping to fly those Jiris right up their butts and light their asses on fire!"

"You know the Jiris is a Turian vehicle, right?"

"Yeah… so?" Jat stopped and his eyes lit up. "Well, shit. And we've got a Turian platoon not 50 klicks from here! You think they'd help us out?"

"Yes, I do." Shepard's smile widened to a full-up grin. "Let me make a couple calls."

Lieutenant Kaestis Akeiros glanced up at his adjutant as he entered notes into the terminal on his desk. After literally sitting on his hands for seemingly forever, he had asked for and received confirmation of the request for aid from a Krogan Commander – the first Spirits-be-damned Krogan Spectre, at that! They were requesting the use of a pair of his Jiris troop transport hovercraft so they would stand a decent chance of breaching the Blue Suns defensive lines in the canyon where they had set up operations.

He saved his notes, then downloaded everything to his omnitool and that of his adjutant, Tul'bius Vicso, as he began issuing orders. "Vic, assemble the troops. We have a mission."

"All of them, Lieutenant?" Vicso hoped that asking for clarification from his commander wouldn't result in a reprimand.

Akeiros spread and dropped his mandibles ever so slightly to show no rebuke was intended. "I believe that's what I said, Centurion… the entire platoon." There was a cheery note in his sub-harmonics as he added, "Our new Krogan neighbors recently discovered the Blue Suns have a rather firmly entrenched presence in a nearby canyon, close enough to their newly established colony to be an eminent threat. So, they have asked for our help in eradicating them… help I intend to provide… immediately."

Tul'bius replied, "Yes, Sir!" then turned and rapidly left his commander's office, intent on carrying out his orders as fast as possible. The entire platoon! he mused. We haven't had to deal with more than the occasional pirate raid in months! Using the side of his clenched fist, he banged the rather large haptic ALERT button on his console; this engaged an irritating warbling tone that sounded throughout the entire facility. The skin next to his eyes crinkled in amusement as the confused sounds of increased activity came up from the lower level.

"This is not a drill! I repeat, this is not a drill!" Vicso had never liked the sound of his own voice echoing back at him through the PA speakers, but there was no help for it now. "All squads, armor up, equip weapons, assemble at your assigned vehicles. We have a mission! Everybody move! We leave in ten minutes."

Vicso hurriedly pulled on his own gear, grabbed his weapons, and headed for the lower level – in addition to being the commander's adjutant, he was also the designated pilot for Jiris 2. Hope everyone's ready for some action! came the thought.

Upon entering the cavernous hanger area, he noticed the lieutenant conferring with each of the four squad leaders as their teams clambered aboard their assigned shuttles. Of course, Alpha Squad split themselves among the four Jiris fighting vehicles, as they would be the first to drop in behind enemy lines, should the opportunity present itself. The likelihood of that, however, was slim at best, going into a deep trench that probably ended in a cavern of some sort, so they were preparing to dismount with the rest of the platoon upon their arrival at the Krogan colony.

The three other pilots were already firing up their eezo cores when Vicso arrived, prompting him to waste no time as he clambered hurriedly into the pilot's compartment of Jiris 2, initiating his startup sequence before his butt even hit the seat. As he worked, he watched the Lieutenant standing in the middle of the maelstrom, calmly observing as his soldiers hustled to their assigned shuttles. Only when the last Turian boarded did Akeiros take hold of the side grab rail to pull himself aboard and issue the command for departure.

As every ship lifted off the ground in unison, Kaestis addressed the forty-four Turian warriors, infantry soldiers and pilots alike, through their commlinks. "We have been offered a chance to begin repaying a debt today. During the Reaper onslaught of Palaven, Menae, and most of our colonies, the Krogan came to our aid, even as they were battling Reapers on their own homeworld."

As the four hovercraft slowly exited the hanger single file, followed quickly by the rest of the platoon aboard the shuttles, he continued, "You are all aware Gellix was formerly a Krogan colony, given to us as caretakers following the Rebellions. You have also been informed of the Galactic Council decision to cede partial control of the planet back to the Krogan, conditional upon a joint venture with the Human colonists already here. Now, what you don't know is that Krogan Spectre Hailot Jatok has just requested a pair of Jiris gunships to assist them in ridding the planet of a group of Blue Suns, entrenched in a canyon near their newly established colony."

The lieutenant chuckled. "I know being assigned here – on a levo-based world in the ass-end of nowhere – has been pretty damned boring, so… I decided to involve the entire platoon on this little drill. We've become stale… unmotivated. We can certainly use the exercise to smooth off some of our rough edges… and kicking some Blue Suns' ass is a perfect excuse to clinch a friendly relationship with our new Krogan neighbors!"

Cliffside, Gellix, Arrae System – 6 June 2189

As Director Burns prepared for her conversation with Janyce Ward, Hannah sat on the other side of the rather spacious office, comfortably relaxing on a couch while she typed up her message of introduction and recommendation for Adrien. She had already sent an inquiry to the Alliance Department of Agriculture requesting the list of divisional contacts on the Alliance controlled worlds.

She also had a brief chat with Wrex, during which she quickly realized the Krogan had no such equivalent… so simply told him about Adrien and what she was doing. The Krogan Overlord was most definitely interested and promised to identify his lead agriculturist. He would then transfer him, or her, to the Gellix colony immediately, to learn everything they could from the Human agrobiologist.

While she worked – given Adrien's earlier conversation with Earnest – Hannah had also gained a pair of 'escorts.' The two soldiers were supposedly assigned as temporary aides to the Admiral but, in truth, their presence was to provide extra security while Ms Ward was in the office. As the entry chime they had been waiting for finally sounded from the door, they all hoped such security measures would prove unnecessary.

Adrien stood from her seat behind the desk and, with a quick glance at Hannah, tapped the remote door release on her omnitool. As Janyce Ward stepped in, Adrien realized she was a rather large, well-built individual… a woman of obvious strength. "Welcome, Ms Ward. Please, do come in."

"Steward Ward, if you please." The woman raised a brow, wondering how her self-proclaimed title would sit with the Director, knowing full well Unions were a thing of the past.

"This is not an Asari high house, Ms Ward… and the position of Union Steward no longer exists within the Systems Alliance so, no…" Adrien stood firm, meeting the woman's eyes as she said, "… that doesn't please me at all." Giving Ward no time to respond, she waived her hand toward a small meeting table in the corner of her office. "Please, let's sit down and have a discussion over your grievances."

"Whether you like it or not, I am representing the workers here, and what I bring to you are not grievances… they are demands." Ward squared her shoulders and set her jaw, obviously ready for a fight.

"Sit down, Ms Ward." Adrien's tone took on the bite of polar ice and her eyes narrowed in acceptance of the challenge. "You are in no position to make demands. Putting the illegality of such an action aside for the moment… there has been no declaration of intent to form a union, no formal statement of organization, and no acceptance of any proposals. I have heard no public announcement for a vote of any kind, particularly for the appointment of officers – including one for a steward – for any such organization, so don't waste my time." She drew a deep breath and added, "So, I offer you a piece of advice; put aside your bogus proclamations and get to the point of why you're here."

"Say what you will, but we have formed a Union…" She stopped in surprise as Adrien smacked her hand down flat on the table, causing a loud, resounding bang that, being completely unexpected, made even the security guards jump.

"If you say the word 'Union' one more time, I will have your ass thrown in prison for the next twenty years, Ms Ward!" Adrien growled, "The only unions that still exist are political bodies, like the Earth Union of Incorporated Nations and the Salarian Union. The formation of a workers' union is now illegal and, by law, constitutes sedition. Any overt conduct that includes subversion of legal colonial authority is a felony, Ms Ward. I am giving you this opportunity to air your grievances, so keep that in mind and choose your next words very carefully… or this discussion will be over before it's even begun."

Janyce clenched her teeth, her jaw muscles flexing as she glared at the Director, then glanced at the Admiral and the two guards across the room, all three doing their best to pretend they were ignoring what was going on at the table.

Returning her eyes to the infuriating woman who, by grace of position, simply presumed to be her better, Janyce sneered, "Fine… I'll get on with it then."

"Excellent idea." Adrien forced herself to relax, sitting down and leaning back in her chair while still remaining vigilant. "Let's see if we can have a productive discussion regarding the machinist complaints then, shall we? Exactly what issues are you here to discuss?"

Ward also sat and leaned back, mimicking Adrien's pose, but with a derisive snort. "You play in your greenhouses all day… Have you even walked the surrounding area? Do you have any idea how littered this region is with unexploded ordinance, still remaining from the Krogan Rebellions?"

Adrien smiled at the woman, which seemed to anger Ward just that much more. "As a matter of fact, I have… and I do." Her smile faded as she recalled her time on Gellix during the war. "Unlike you, I've been here for more than two years, Ms Ward. I arrived during the Reaper War… kept constantly on the move, having to dodge them, plus all the crap left behind by the Krogan and the Turians, all in the extraordinary effort it took just to survive."

Her vanishing smile turned all the way down to an angry frown as she growled, "So yes, I have much more than just an idea as to how dangerous it can be to roam the surface of this planet. Much more so than you could ever be, with your mere two months here, so do not assume I am just some 'behind the desk' bureaucratic scientist who knows nothing of what it's like out there… in the real Gellix." She paused only to take a quick breath before asking, "Why do you think Brek and I have brought in the SILC? They can remove those dangers without risk to their runtimes."

"And that's the major problem!" Ward blurted. "You're giving those damned machines all our jobs! The machinists are more than just tool and die makers! We're equipment operators and mechanics who keep the mining equipment running! We're ordnance specialists for blasting… and yes, a few are even EOD experts for when shit doesn't go off like it's supposed to." Ward took a breath and continued, "With the damned Geth here, working for nothing but eight percent of the raw mineral take, we got nothin'! We don't want to just survive… we want to build a future! Do better for our families… bank some creds, buy an apartment… or a piece of land on which to place a house. We don't want to live off of fucking government handouts! We want to support ourselves…" Ward huffed in a mix of disbelief and disgust. "What's so damned illegal about having a little pride and wanting to build something for ourselves here?"

Adrien sat back in surprise, remaining silent for a long moment before finally saying, "Well, I'll be damned. I guess we both owe one another an apology."

"What?" Ward stared at her in disbelief and asked, "Why in Hell do I owe you an apology?"

"For trying to form an illegal union…" Before Ward could go off again, Burns held her hand up. "But I also owe you one… for thinking only the worst of your intentions. If you are truly here for those things… for self-betterment and wanting to stand on your own two feet, then we are more alike than I ever dreamed." She shook her head and stared down at the table. "Damn."

Looking back up, Adrien shrugged and continued, "Worst part of it all is that I have nothing for you. We simply don't have the cash flow to do anything about it; the colony is too young and we're still building… and I don't believe I have the right to ask anyone here to put their dreams on hold for who knows how many years, before we can truly make Cliffside profitable enough to give you what you want."

Hannah had taken interest in the discussion's turn and stood up. "If I may…?"

Ward glanced at her with a puzzled frown as Adrien replied, "Of course, Admiral."

"I believe I may have a solution to your dilemma." She smiled encouragingly and explained, "We have a struggling mining operation on Rayingri, in the Gagarin System of the Armstrong Nebula. The mine used to provide essential titanium and rare polonium and thorium, assets critical for our continued post-war rebuilding and recovery… but Reapers made a horrible mess of the place. They've only recently completed their facility rebuild and have been trying desperately to find workers. Few are willing to travel to what is, quite literally, the opposite side of the galaxy… but, if you are truly looking for such an opportunity, I'm sure I could arrange it."

"Rayingri? Never heard of it," Janyce scowled. "You wouldn't be trying to sell me a load of shit now, would you, Admiral?"

Adrien was shocked at the insult embedded in the question, but Hannah simply laughed it off. "Wouldn't think of it, Ms Ward. After all, I am the Liaison for Post-War Recovery… issues such as this one come to my attention all the time. I will tell you, given the location, it seems the SILC would be a natural solution. However, their proximity is not a benefit in this case because, unfortunately, that led to some rather unfriendly contacts before the Geth became our allies… something the colonists there will neither forget nor forgive any time soon. So, seeing as the relatively newly named SILC aren't an option, the colonists are looking for other solutions." Hannah grinned, "I do believe, if you are willing, you and your machinists could be that solution."

"You're honestly being serious." Ward actually leaned forward, looking hopeful. "So… what exactly do you mean when you say you could arrange it? How could we afford to pay for such a long trip, when most of us are unemployed and aren't nearly lucky enough to have even two spare credit chits to clink together in our pockets?"

"The Alliance, likely along with everyone else in the galaxy, desperately needs the raw materials you could help provide, Ms Ward." Hannah gave her a knowing nod. "I am absolutely positive I can leverage that for the free relocation of however many workers want to give it a go, along with their families of course. It is not unheard of for large corporations to foot the cost of worker relocations. So, those who truly desire to start the new life you speak so passionately about can do so on Rayingri; they simply need to volunteer… take their future into their own hands... and Adrien and I will handle the rest. Do we have a deal?"

Janyce stood up, towering over the diminutive-by-comparison Admiral. "I can't speak for the others without asking 'em first, but you have your first volunteer, that's for sure. Me."

"Excellent. So, then… If you'll excuse us, Director Burns and I have some transportation to secure. I'll make the initial inquiries, and we'll finalize arrangements as soon as we know how many are willing to go. How does that sound?"

"It's certainly different than what I expected walking in here…" Janyce paused and looked at Adrien as she continued, "But different can be good, especially given how we started this whole conversation."

"That is one thing we can definitely agree on, Ms Ward." Adrien stuck her hand out, adding, "Never thought I'd be saying this, but it's been a pleasant surprise, hearing your desire for a better future."

Janyce actually chuckled, taking the woman's hand and pumping it gently. "I hear ya, Director. I guess we are more alike than we ever imagined possible. I'll get out of your way and talk to my people. I'll have a preliminary answer for you first thing Monday morning."

"Monday would be great, Ms Ward." Adrien gave her a smile and a quick nod of approval.

"Oh, for God's sake. If we're gonna do this, call me Janyce. Ms Ward makes me feel old!"

"Thank you, Janyce," she answered with a grin. "I'm Adrien, and it's been good to make your acquaintance."

Gellix, Arrae System, At Large – 6 June 2189

The surface of Gellix – the narrow, barely habitable equatorial band – was a rocky landscape composed of small hills and a surprising number of small canyons in between massive mountain ranges, making it ideal terrain over which to travel in a Jiris gunship. Lieutenant Akeiros thought about the Krogan as he watched the jumbled countryside moving rapidly past his vehicle. Their six-wheeled Tomkahs were heavily armed and armored and, while more than tough enough to traverse this land, painfully slow on anything other than a relatively smooth surface, their large size making them easy targets for enemy gun emplacements.

They had traveled slightly more than half the distance to the Krogan settlement when pilot Vicso warned of unidentified targets ahead, simultaneous to abruptly slowing the vehicle. The other three gunships spread out from single file to a staggered 'vee' formation while Akeiros worked to identify the unknowns. After several seconds, he chuckled and said, "Stand down… they're Krogan, coming out to meet us. Centurion Vicso, let's go meet our new neighbors."

A clipped, "Yes Sir." was his response as the Jiris accelerated towards the group of Tomkahs. Within minutes, Akeiros exited his craft and walked up to the big Krogan standing beside a wheel at the front of the vehicle. Stopping a meter away from the enormous male, Kaestis did his best to sound friendly. "Lieutenant Kaestis Akeiros. You requested our assistance?"

The Krogan displayed his teeth in a small grin as he replied, "Commander… and Council Spectre… Hailot Jatok." He held out a massive right hand, Human-fashion, as he continued, "Call me Jat… it's what I'm used to hearing. Spectre Shepard said your people might loan us the use of a pair of those gunships. Didn't expect you to show up with four of them."

Kaestis gingerly grasped the Krogan's enormous hand and pumped it twice; relieved to get his own hand back in one piece, he responded quickly, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jat. Never expected to be meeting a Spectre of any species… certainly not a Krogan." He ducked his head slightly at the realization he had possibly insulted this fellow. "Apologies… that didn't sound nearly as offensive in my head as it did when I just said it aloud."

With an embarrassed cough to mask his discomfiture, he continued, "I realize you requested just two Jiris vehicles, Spectre, but…" Kaestis glanced around at the four gunships. "I couldn't decide which two I wanted to leave behind, and truth be known, we were all pretty bored, so…" he brought his hands up shoulder high and continued, "… here we are – a platoon of Turian soldiers and four gunships, ready to help you kick the Blue Suns off this planet."

Jat's grin opened to show all his teeth and he let out a chuckle. "Sounds like my kind of party, Lieutenant." He waved a massive hand at the shelter in the background. "So, why don't you come on in and we'll come up with a joint battle plan to keep friendlies from accidentally killing each other. I hadn't exactly planned on a whole damned Platoon riding to our aide, so our strategy needs to be significantly updated… maybe even become a campaign, instead of just one battle? We can't let our Turian neighbors be all bored now, can we. That'd be rude."

Kaestis replied with an answering grin. "That sounds like an excellent suggestion to me, Jat. Let's prepare, so we can get this… party… started!"