The rainbow of expressions on Kravorog's face began to settle back into one of customary viciousness, no doubt with some crude threat on his tongue, but Grunt wasn't finished.
"Oh," Grunt said, his laughter dying at everyone's sudden sobriety. He looked around at them all, then back to Kravorog. "You wanna know how?" His expression became all sweetness, but cruelty colored his eyes as he explained in a way a child would understand. "Well, you see, there're a bunch of big rocks spinning around this star system with engines on 'em." He outstretched a hand to the clan leader demonstrably, "Wrex didn't really trust your father with the bulk of our armed forces, Krav. He figured he needed something to keep him in line, just in case."
Jack watched him look around then, gathering everyone's undivided attention before he spoke again. "I don't report in, my Shaman don't report in, anything happens to Jack, hell, any large ship even leaves this place without my approval? Those rocks are coming here ." He pointed to the ground before him with a large, thick finger.
Kravorog huffed, looking around at his men to steel their resolve. "Any asteroid would take weeks to get here. We'll be standing on Sur'Kesh, surrounded by Salarian bodies by the time they arrive."
Grunt just smiled slowly and Jack's heart sunk. She could guess what he was going to say next before it came outta his mouth. "That's why I sent them 2 weeks ago." He spun his body slowly around to the surrounding wall of armed meat glaring at him. "So you better make your mind up, quick."
God dammit , she swore inwardly, It was another suicide mission after all. Might not be the right time to call him out on this bullshit but she turned a glare on the back of his head that would burn a building down. Jack didn't know whether to feel relieved over the fact that they probably wouldn't be attacked right away or disturbed that she might have to die underground surrounded by these fuckers; but regardless, she figured her stage-cue had finally arrived and put all her current feelings behind it.
"And don't even think about skirting outta here on your own, either, cupcake," She added with a pointed finger and a snort of disgust, "Shepard already wants you dead for Wrex. If she has to hunt you down herself? " Jack chuckled darkly, "They'll have to look at your DNA to figure out what species you were."
The words seemed to have the appropriate effect.
"Enough!" The giant Krogan roared, echoing around the room. His head spun toward Raego, who Jack now understood to be top lapdog, and growled, "Find me those asteroids." Then he looked at Grunt. "You're staying here with me," He said firmly before looking directly at the Shaman, "And we'll abide by the terms of the Crush." He then pointed directly at Grunt, "But if those rocks make landfall, you die with us."
You'd had to have known Grunt awhile to notice the subtle lift of his head that meant he was relaxing, clearly pleased by the call. But when Kravorog turned to level a look at her, she felt a squirm in her stomach that usually meant she should duck behind the nearest wall.
"And you," he said in as close to a purr as the giant probably ever got, "Will stay with our other guests." His eyes darted to Grunt. "An insurance policy. You understand." Then he looked to the Battlemasters standing behind her and raised his jaw in silent order. "Take her to quarters, and strip her of weapons and communication devices. Something tells me she likes trouble."
Jack looked at Grunt in exasperation but he just made a face before nodding. She had no idea how this was gonna solve anything, but guessed it was a stalling tactic of some kind. "Yeah, yeah," she said irritably, brushing off one of the guard's hands while the other confiscated her duffle. She walked back through the rest of the petitioners to the parked tomkahs shadowed by guards, and this time paid attention to where she was and where they were headed.
Though she was bookended in the back seat, she leaned forward between the two Krogan in the front, draping her arms over the shoulders of their seats to peer out the front glass. "So…" She began with a crooked grin, "Just how many 'guests' are staying here? I mean...no offense but you guys seem a tad," she squinched an eye and measured an inch between her forefinger and thumb, "Cliquish."
The pair looked at her, then each other, then the dark tunnel ahead lit only by the light from the front grill. To her left, a guard began rifling through her bag, quickly finding her pistol. The one to the right finally spoke, saying, "Don't wanna spoil the surprise, but don't worry, human. We take good care of visitors. Even gave you the best view in the house."
"Yeah?" She quipped, "Well now you got me curious. You know, since we're basically still going down ." Jack saw the clear bottle of Siporo come up in her escort's fat fist and turned to glare at him. "Hey, that's mine. Lay off."
"What is it?" He snarled suspiciously.
"Liquor," she said, brow furrowing. When he didn't put the bottle back in she sneered. "Oh, what, you think it's a bomb or something?" She snatched it from him, uncorked it, and took a deep drink. The taste actually caught her off-guard. It was sweet and spicy all at the same time; a bit like fire and ice flowing down her throat and stealing her breath. Not bad. She cleared her throat, then spat, "You didn't think I'd actually spend the night here sober , did ya?" She corked it again and yanked her bag back toward her, placing the suddenly valuable bottle back inside with a gentle touch. "You want something explosive in there?" She asked with a bright smile and a wink. "Check out my lingerie."
The guard to her right chuckled, "You looking for a mate? I'm sure there's someone around here into that kind of thing."
The others started laughing as well and she joined in with a disgusted fake one. "That's cute. No. I could've been on vacation right now, but had to come deal with you fucks; so if you could take your faces out of each other's crotch for a minute and sort this shit with Urdnot out, I'd appreciate it." She whipped her head to her left and added, "And I want that pistol back before I leave. Got it?"
"This thing?" the guard growled in disbelief, holding it aloft. "Waste of time if you ask me."
"Yeah?" she pressed, "Well I got it modded just like I want it so…"
He shrugged and she nodded, satisfied. They hadn't driven much farther when the tunnel leveled out, and they came to a stop next to what appeared to be a large elevator. Everyone piled out and Jack followed suit, bag slung on her shoulder.
"Uh, what is this?" she asked while they called the car down. The guards seemed relaxed, which relaxed her, too, but that didn't mean she trusted them.
"Penthouse lift," the chatty one that'd sat to her right said, slinging his rifle over a shoulder. "Takes you up to the surface."
The doors opened and the two backseat Krogan walked in, motioning that she should follow. The other two took up positions outside.
"Krogan Elevators," Jack breathed incredulously. "Neat."
The ride up was long. Felt like more than 5 minutes but Jack knew how much impatience could stretch things. When the doors finally slid open she was struck by how much light filled the room before her. She guessed they hadn't lied after all; this had to be the surface.
Stepping out of the lift, Jack found herself on a sealed and polished stone floor that wouldn't have been out of place on the Citadel. A hallway extended both to her right and left, curving back and around out of sight. The elevator shaft appeared to be centrally located, and the exterior walls of the space were filled with windows...the source of that wonderfully soothing light.
Her 'escorts' brushed past her coming out and it brought her back to herself enough to follow them to the left. She scooted to the right-hand side of the hall, towards the glass frames and doorways of well apportioned rooms one after the other. She'd have to actually go into one to peer out the window, but it looked like they were in a very high place with a view.
"Hey, did you guys actually build this?" She asked, stunned.
"No." Came an unexpected voice. A female voice.
Jack's head swung back around and saw the guards standing with another Krogan wearing Dulak colors and a telltale headdress marking her as the one who spoke.
"We watched, though, and learned," she continued, yellow slitted eyes looking over Jack clinically. "You are Jack, yes? The one that fought with Shepard?"
"That's me," she replied, striding over, then paused and pointed a finger, her eyes lighting with understanding. "You Okeer's kid?"
"I am," she said gravely. "You may call me Roksar. Welcome to my sanctuary."
"Well," Jack grinned as she approached, "You got great taste." She glanced at the two men beside her and quipped, "Pay attention, boys, this is what happens when a woman puts together a space."
A smile twitched on the female's face and she motioned for Jack to walk with her. The others were still trying to figure out how to act after the side-slung insult and didn't know whether to protest and piss Roksar off or swallow their pride. Knowing she'd still have to deal with these two for awhile, she sent them a wink to let 'em know there were no hard feelings.
"You may pick the room of your choice while you are with us," Roksar began, walking toward a set of double doors.
"Oh yeah?" Jack perked. She took a quick right into the nearest room, dropped her duffle by the bed and made a beeline for the window. Hands, nose and forehead pressed against the glass, she was confronted by a stark drop down the side of some kind of mountain that only ended in a tufty cloudbank above ground. A deep sense of vertigo made her fingers and toes tingle and a smile grow across her face.
"We're on top of a center peak," Jack heard from behind her, the Krogan's voice wistful and proud. "This was the site of an asteroid strike, millions of years ago."
She could see it now, as she lifted her eyes to look closer to the horizon. Another stone wall rose from the mist before her, maybe 2 kilometers away, and stretched the edges of her vision on either side.
"That was a big fucking rock," Jack mused as the female moved beside her at the window.
"We're planning on doming the entire crater," Roksar said with a smile. "This will be our capital, unless you and Grunt destroy it."
Jack snorted. "Don't pretend there's a difference between that and you attacking a Council homeworld. Either way, you're getting flattened." She took a step back from the window and turned to meet her gaze. "Look, I don't have a say in any of this, so save your breath. I'm just here to support Grunt."
While clearly not pleased, Roksar looked thoughtful for a moment, then her eyes narrowed with curiosity. "Were you there that day? When my father died?"
Her eyes dropped as she thought back. She'd been using the data Shepard had given her about Cerberus at the time; finding out everything she could about who'd been responsible for her imprisonment in Teltin. "No," she admitted after a moment.
The Krogan pursed her lips before saying, "I'm curious about his final moments. If he mentioned me."
Jack shrugged. "Don't remember who else went on that mission, so you'd have to ask Shepard."
Roksar nodded sagely, then turned to leave.
"Oh…" Jack said, stopping her. "Hey, Kravorog said you had some other guests?"
"Yes," she replied, and Jack made a point of looking around before lifting her hands in question. "They don't want to be disturbed right now," Was the answer to her unspoken question. "Perhaps tomorrow."
"Alright," Jack said disappointedly. "But, who are they? What are they?"
"There is one Asari and one Human female. Their names are Leelia and Kat, but I'll let them cure your curiosity for more than that. If you need anything, touch the panel beside the sliding doors."
"How about some food?"
In answer she grunted then stepped to the hallway door. "Palor?"
"Yeah?" came a Krogan voice Jack recognized from the car.
"Bring Jack whatever she wants to eat or drink." Those yellow eyes fixed on her once again, before she added, "She's important."
She couldn't help but smile at that and lifted a hand in farewell as the Krogan female departed down the hallway to those sliding doors she mentioned. Jack slipped to her own doorway too, peering nonchalantly at how Roksar opened the door, then past her when the doors opened. They revealed various bits of machinery that looked similar to what stood in Kravorog's own room. Medical, she decided, before the doors shut and she was on her own.
"Hey, Palor!" she called down the hall. The one who offered to get her laid turned and she put his name and face together. "How 'bout we start with whatever's on the menu and some Ryncol, yeah?"
"Haha! Famous last words," he laughed.
Jack strode back over to the window and took in the sights, one arm above her head on the glass. First she'd get some food in her belly then some badly needed sleep...and after that she'd work on getting her ass out of this killbox. Until then she needed to adult a little.
She took a seat before the large window and leaned against the leg of the room's lone chair, beginning to take deep and slow breaths. All her most pressing thoughts enveloped her mind like layers of blankets over her head, suffocating her while preventing her from seeing what was real. One by one she examined them before peeling the layer back and away, starting with the new and progressing backward.
The anxiety she felt about the impending doom of an asteroid bombardment was first, but it was also the easiest to put aside. Death didn't scare her; she'd begged for it before puberty, after all..if it happened, it happened. There was no getting out of life alive and she'd rather it go down in a fiery blaze that'd be recorded forever than slipping away in some forgotten hospital bed. Would suck if she died without getting to talk to Grunt again, though. Point is she still had something to say about this outcome, so it was useless to worry.
Would be worse if she didn't get to talk to Miranda, though, and that elephant was big enough to fill two rooms. She took another deep breath to clear a path through all of her conflicted feelings about the woman. They swirled like the clouds of a hurricane and Jack tried to lift herself above it, to see it clearer. She didn't kid herself. No matter how intensely she hated feeling helpless when it came to her lover, the fact that she could feel something for anyone was a positive. Before she ran into Miri and Shepard she'd been on a collision course with execution; if not by some fucking bureaucrat like the one that sold her onto that prison ship, then by some murderer more clever than her on a given day. The pair had changed her outlook and Aria had given an outlet for her aggression. Any options she now had were hers and only hers to fuck up, so she needed to take ownership and be better .
The truth is she shouldn't have left like she had; should've made Miri take her along to help with whatever the problem was instead of flouncing out like a brat. Granted, Jack wasn't the smartest girl in the galaxy but together they could handle anything thrown at them. As soon as the thought coalesced she was barraged by waves of angry pride at the thought of apologizing when the whole thing was still Miranda's fault.
"Oh, 'cause you never screwed the pooch, right?" she said aloud, then closed her eyes and took another deep breath.
Yeah, Miri fucked up but so did she. She could apologize for her part. The resentment still burned, though, right along with the doubt that an apology would do anything about the fact that Lawson simply wasn't interested in her anymore, so why bother?
Why? She answered herself hotly. Because I wanna hear her say it, that's why.
And there it was. The reason. Jack's best friend, paranoia, may have saved her life from time to time but it'd also cost her more than one useful relationship, not to mention one of her lover's lives. Miranda wasn't a coward. If she wanted to break things off she didn't have to book an expensive vacation to do it. Could this all be in Jack's head? Their entire relationship had been built on honesty...it was the whole fucking point, right? So? She should apologize, then just ask her straight up. The end.
The decision flooded her with relief. One way or the other the problem would be put to bed, but it wasn't gonna happen today. Today she could set it aside and focus on what she needed to do, which was get the fuck out of this place, priority stormclouds lifted and Jack could finally feel centered, which apart from hooey-wooey religious bullshit just felt balanced and light-footed; ready to play whack-a-mole with any new problems that arose.
She called on her biotics with a smile and felt them answer with a gentle vibration all over her body. She didn't need to open her eyes to see that cerulean energy swimming around her, waiting for a command. Jack began running through a regimen Aria had drilled into her over the past few years; exercises for focus and precision and endurance. She went through them one after the other with little to no break in between and when she was done, sweat glistened on her forehead. The last exercise was the real test.
She formed the fine fluid threads of a Mass Effect field between her hands. They could be pushed and pulled, even thrown in any direction to grapple, lift, or smash anything in its path that had weight, but that wasn't what she was after. Jack began curving those threads around and around in a circle, rotating the field faster and faster until it began to spin on its own, the strands blending into one another in an increasingly dense sphere. She fed it more and more until it took on a life of its own, its gravity beginning to tug on her clothes and even the fine hairs on her skin.
Turning at the waist, she pushed the singularity forward into the middle of the open room and it obeyed the command flawlessly. Jack remained focused on it, making sure it was behaving as it should...but that wasn't its purpose. Its purpose was to linger there for some time after her attention was torn away, like in combat; but as she turned away to look out the window she heard it pop out of existence almost immediately, and curled her hands into frustrated fists.
Why couldn't she master this? It wasn't a problem with power or endurance, and it definitely wasn't a lack of fucking practice! She spun reflexively to send a shockwave through the goddamned doorway, but caught herself at the sight of Palor with a covered pot and a mug. His beady eyes widened at the expression on her face and he decided against stepping inside, holding the food and drink up after a moment as a kind of offering.
Jack dropped her chin and sighed, putting her anger away for another time before waving him in.
The next morning found Jack nourished and clean, but bored. She'd resolved to wait for Roksar's visit, but two hours after sunrise she was antsy. Wasn't her fault...they were the ones that took her workpad. The end of what little patience she possessed saw her stomping up to the large sliding door that separated her location from Roksar's medical area and slapping her palm to the panel. It took entirely too long for them to open, but they started sliding right in the middle of her 24th pound on the door with an open hand. Behind them was an irritated female Krogan.
"Is there a problem?" Roksar asked archly.
Jack pantomimed a smile. "Yeah, I'm lonely."
"I see," she said, though it was pretty clear she didn't. "Very well," she said after an awkward moment, "Come with me."
This area seemed to mirror the one she came from, except for all the equipment. They passed room after room on the right until Jack spied the familiar blue skin of an Asari in a room decked out with computers.
"Leelia?" Roksar called and the Asari looked up and smiled before rising from her desk to greet them.
"Hello," Leelia said, folding her hands in front of her. "I'm Leelia Salis. It's good to see a new face."
"Yeah," Jack confirmed before holding out a hand. "I'm Jack." As the Asari reached out to grasp it, her eyes watched her as if waiting for her to finish the introduction. "Just Jack," She added, and the blue-skinned woman nodded acceptingly. "You uh…." She started again, looking over Leelia's shoulder at the room she just came from. "You work here?"
"Leelia has worked with my family for several years," Roksar interrupted, "She's extremely resourceful."
Jack sucked on her teeth for a second in thought. "She part of your experiments on Kravorog?"
The pair looked at each other for a moment before returning their gaze to her. Roksar was again the one to speak, Leelia clearly not wanting to overstep. "She is assisting me in that effort, yes."
Jack smiled slyly, "Listen, I gotta ask. What was wrong with him before? What'd you need to fix?"
Leelia looked shocked at the question, but the look in Roksar's eyes was a bit different. Amused maybe. Her thin shiny lips wrinkled as she figured out how she was gonna respond.
"It shouldn't come as a surprise that the Krogan value health and virility," She said flatly, eyes narrowed. "Especially in those that would rule. Kravorog had a deformity at birth that made one leg shorter than the other. It didn't cause him much difficulty but his gait was rolling and uneven and he was ridiculed for it. In the old days he would have been culled, but he was Martak's only child during the genophage, so he was spared. With the genophage cured and the Dulak clan rising in prominence, it was decided that his deficit should be corrected for the good of the bloodline."
"Well," Jack grinned, "You sure fixed him."
The pair exchanged another glance between them, and smiled knowingly.
"That was only the beginning," Roksar said. "Do you want to know more?"
She shrugged. "Not like I've got much else to do."
The Krogan motioned down the hall with an open hand and they all began slowly walking. "The easiest fix was to replace the affected limb. There were many warriors who needed this kind of assistance after the war ended, so Kravorog simply got a prosthetic at the same time they did. While it addressed the immediate problem, it didn't correct the genetic issue that produced it. I was called in to help. Now, the deformity is well known, but as I was examining his genetic code to prepare an adjustment, I found that it had already been corrected."
Jack's brow crooked while she continued.
"I asked who had been treating him and was told that no one had. The correction appeared spontaneously, or so we thought, but further research showed other oddities in his genetic structure. I was intrigued."
Jack noticed that the next room had an occupant, a male Krogan who sat quietly in a chair and watched them through the large glass wall as they approached. Her companions didn't seem to notice him, still talking and walking, but she met his eyes the whole time. He never looked away, even when he should have. She didn't want to interrupt Roksar's little monologue, but damn if it didn't give her the creeps.
"It didn't take long to determine that these oddities were edits, not spontaneous or natural occurrences," Roksar continued. "It was as if something were cleaning up the random bits of trash evolution inevitably leaves behind." She grunted and shook her head. "So I began looking at potential mechanisms."
The room after had another Krogan, this one laying on a bed. His skin was a mottled, unwell color; and his body shivered from time to time as they passed. He wasn't conscious.
"As it turns out, the nanostructures that the prosthetic uses to transfer signals between the synthetic and living tissue were doing much more than simple communication."
Jack keyed off on the word prosthetic and realized she'd only been half-listening. She stopped them for a moment. "Wait," she said, "What now?"
Roksar's yellow eyes gleamed. "The nanotechnology from the artificial prosthetic was curating the genetic code of its host!"
"Curating.." Jack murmured, not understanding.
Leelia piped in unexpectedly, "It was rewriting Kravorog's genetic code to improve his overall performance."
Jack felt her face flush. "Re- writing ?" She exclaimed in alarm.
Roksar seemed to think her response was a good one. "Marvelous, isn't it? I had to learn if there was a way it could be harnessed for other purposes, but I didn't want to perform any tests on Kravorog himself, so I contracted Leelia's services."
"My work with her father's cloning data filled the need very well, I think," Leelia added, and she walked forward to show her the occupant of the next room, who was seated in a chair much like the first patient Jack had seen. This Krogan had oddly colored magenta skin, however, and looked like he was blind or had cataracts.
Something was out of place but Jack's mind was spinning so wildly it took her a moment to recognize that the floor was covered in white powder...which was blowing in from the open exterior window . At that point her brain errored out. "Is he….is he…" she stuttered.
"Alive?" Roksar laughed before smiling proudly, "He is. 624, stand up."
When the male stood, she found herself backing away slowly. All she could see was the memory of human husks, shriveling and changing on ten foot spikes through their chests.
"What have you done?" she asked incredulously.
"Isn't it obvious?" Roksar growled impatiently. "I've harnessed an unexpected leap in technology to modify Krogan DNA for survivability in hostile environments. Soon we won't require terraforming for colonisation, and can inhabit worlds no other council species even wants."
"But…." Jack protested, her brow curling angrily, "He's not even Krogan anymore!"
She looked disappointed in her. "You spoke to Kravorog," she said patiently, "Is he not still Krogan?"
Jack's head pulled back and her eyes widened. "You did this to him too?"
"That was the goal, was it not?" Roksar replied, holding out her hands as if explaining to a small child. "Jack, none of us are anything more than a random set of characteristics determined by the worlds in which we evolved. What rule is there that we can't improve upon these flawed models once we leave that birthplace?"
Jack snarled, "Damn, you sound just like a Salarian, you know that?"
The Krogan's eyes flashed, but she exhaled before answering. "Baiting me is unwise, human."
"Crush says you can't touch me," Jack said with a provocatively pointed finger, "And the truth's the truth, no matter where it comes from. What makes Kravorog any different from the twisted shits the Reapers threw at us, huh?"
"Heh," she huffed. "For one, he can be reasoned with. For two, he chose this. Did they ?
Good point , she thought, feeling more than a little hypocritical thanks to her own augmentations. "Whatever," However, was what came out of her mouth.
Roksar sighed. "You aren't the only one concerned about this and I understand why it's disturbing. As a warrior, it can be upsetting when an enemy utilizes a new strategy or weapon that you have not trained for; but death does not care for your complaints. You must adapt to whatever strategy works or admit defeat . We are only adapting to the galaxy's demands. The battlefields of the past will stay with us as stories and legend."
It took a moment, but Jack put her hands on her hips, started to grin, then began to laugh, shaking her head.
"Jesus H," Jack finally said, cracking her neck to relieve some of the tension there. "You're the one that needs to be down there in the negotiations, Roks. That's what Grunt has been saying the entire time ."
Roksar cocked a brow. "Indeed? I don't have the power to make decisions for the clan, but we will be discussing the matter."
"Yeah? Well you wouldn't have got the chance if you left it to your boyfriend just a bit ago."
She shrugged as if it made no difference. "I will hear what Grunt has to say."
Jack nodded and took a deep cleansing breath. She looked at the vacant-eyed Krogan still standing there on the other side of the glass. Whatever experiments they were doing, they had to be painful for the subjects, which was a sore fucking spot for her. She turned her attention to the Asari and said, "So these are clones, yeah?"
"That's correct," she said in a breezy voice. "They were made from Kravorog's own samples."
"And what, they don't talk or feel?"
"No," the Asari said, concern in her eyes, "They barely have any awareness at all. Only enough to follow basic commands that are programmed before birth."
"Okay," Jack breathed. At least they weren't being asshats about it. After a moment she looked back at them and smiled. "Tour over?"
Roksar shook her head. "You haven't met the other human yet. I thought you might keep one another company while you're here."
"Oh yeah, sure," Jack said. "Lead on."
They continued down the corridor to the last room before another set of sliding doors. On the left wall was a table with a set of armor in pieces on it. Jack was surprised to see the red and white stripe of an N7 class soldier on the arm and suddenly found herself a lot more interested in this guest...which made her appearance all the more shocking.
Sprawled on the bed of the room was something that barely looked human at all. The shape was there, and one half seemed normalish, with dark skin and an eye that looked clearly at her. The other half was...deformed. No that wasn't right. All the parts were there; they were just white. Blank white, like scar tissue almost, except it was ridged and curved like muscle where there should be none. The eye on that side was large, way too large, and liquid white, too. The white seemed to be growing across her face, neck and shoulders...as if it were reaching into the ebony of her skin on the other side and disappearing underneath; and the only symmetry between the two was the long white hair she had pulled back in a severe tail. But that wasn't the worst of it.
They'd caught her mid-meal. Her mouth was open and her hand was putting something in there, but it didn't look like food and it didn't sound like it when the crunching started. Before her, on a folded cloth, was a pile of dark looking rocks. She didn't stop eating as they arrived; only looked up at them with a deep-seated hatred Jack knew only too well.
This was just too many things at once, and Jack wondered if she hadn't dreamed the last fucking half hour of her life. She looked at Roksar and could feel her blood pressure rising.
"What….in the SHIT...is this?"