Tali'Zorah awoke from her medically induced slumber slowly. Her eyelids slowly pulled apart, she was staring at the ceiling. Large lights installed in the ceiling were currently off, there was only light seeping through cracks in the shades on the window that wasn't far from the left side of her bed.

Where...?

Her eyes opened wider as she remembered the night of meeting Shepard's brother. Trying to sit up, quickly wincing as she felt a harsh stinging in her side, it was so painful she almost started cursing. Stopping only when she saw a Batarian sitting in the chair on the far end of the room. He appeared to be sleeping quietly. His head tilted down and his arms crossed, his boots kicked up onto a table in front of him.

Iromak...?

She looked down at her side, seeing where there had once been a hole. Was now patched, the fabric to make it was surprisingly sturdy. She would still need to look into acquiring a new suit though. The best patches could last a couple weeks at most before the seal would need replacing.

She looked around the room for a moment to try and find something with the date. Eventually, she opened up the omni tool she had. She was still unaccustomed to the newer version, but found it markedly less buggy than her old one.

Three days!?

She looked over at Iromak before returning to her omni tool. She looked at it for a few moments. Finding her thoughts trailing to Shepard.

Her train of thought was interrupted by hunger pains. Placing a hand on her stomach as it ached. Three days will make a person quite hungry. She started to get up, her legs swinging over the edge of the bed.

Tali hadn't noticed that her suit was hooked up to the machine behind her, likely to administer antibiotics or painkillers. It started beeping as she accidentally tugged on a hose hooked into her suit. Iromaks head lifted almost immediately when the beeping started. His right hand moving down towards his hip. Looking at the door to ensure it was still closed. Noticing Tali was sitting up out of the corners of his eyes.

He stretched his arms out slowly as she realized what the beeping was, relaxing again. "Hello Tali. How are you feeling?" His rough, grating voice had a gentler edge to it than she expected, Batarians always had rough voices, to hear one talk like he cared somewhat was new.

She was going to try and act casual about it, but the loud rumbling of her stomach would've made it easy to see through. "Hungry… and a little tired." Despite sleeping for close to four days. She found herself still exhausted.

Iromak stood, gesturing to the bed she was attempting to leave. "I'll get you food. Lay back down and rest, healing up from getting shot isn't easy work." He turned and left, Tali watched him for a few moments. Taking note of the fact he hadn't changed from his armor since they met in the bar.

She moved back into the bed, the machine silencing its argument against her movements. Looking at the window for a moment and with the wave of her left hand with the omni tool. The shades lifted up, bright light filling the room. Her eyes squinted slightly to adjust to the change. Blinking a couple times before realizing she was on the presidium.

A Quarian and Batarian on the presidium. C-Sec must be having a field day.

She began wondering if Shepard had made sure that C-Sec would stay off their backs. A few minutes passed, she wondered where Shepard was again. Her eyes focused on the passing vehicles.

The door clicked open and Iromak entered, carrying a tray with tubes scattered across it. Laying it on a rolling table before sliding it over to her bed. He returned to his chair that faced towards the door.

She began eating before making conversation. She felt much better with food in her stomach. She saw Iromak returning to his position that he had been in before he had gotten up.

After clicking a tube of water out of the port in her mask. She looked at him for a few moments, slowly speaking up. "Uh… where-" She stopped as his eyes opened back up and his head raised, looking over to her. She found herself much more nervous to talk with Iromak without Shepard beside her.

"Is John?" He finished her sentence. She only nodded quietly, averting eye contact. Choosing instead for the window that was uncovered now. "I imagine he's doing some very important Spectre business at the moment. He had to leave the Citadel, I didn't ask specifics on it." Iromak looked to the door in front of him. "He asked me to keep an eye on you, make sure you weren't bothered."

Why...?

Before Tali could ask the question, Iromak continued. "You might want to send him a message, I'm sure he's been waiting to hear from you." He closed his eyes again. His head remained upright this time though. Clearing his throat before speaking again. "He seemed to be worried about you."

Tali said nothing for a while, trying to think of what to send Shepard as she ate. A nurse eventually entered to give her a general check up. Giving Tali a rundown of the situation and when she could leave. Tali considered that may be a good point to start her message.

Iromak moved so little and breathed so steadily, she thought he was asleep. When he spoke, she was nearly spooked into jumping. "So… you enjoy flying around in an alliance ship?" He wasn't the best at talking with people. He would still try for John's sake though.

"Oh… well, I've been enjoying it. Compared to the ships I've seen…" She trailed off, not really having a ship to compare it to. The Normandy was a set above any other ship she had been on. "It's definitely the most impressive. Serving under Shepard is different from other captains… or, uh..."

She cleared her throat quickly as she thought back to the moment on the stairs with the Williams woman. She had made it a point to avoid the woman after that interaction. "Commander, in Shepard's case. Others usually hold themselves separate from their crew. He seems to enjoy spending time with his crew."

"He's always been like that. He likes to know the people that follow him." Iromaks statement caught her attention. Tali tilted her head slightly as she looked at Iromak. Leaning on the rolling table that slid on the ground under her weight.

"Has he been the captain of other ships?" Her voice was filled with curiosity. Finding the topic of Shepard something that she was more comfortable talking about with Iromak.

His eyes opened at the question, searching the wall like the answer was there. "Well… we own the ship. It's not a big ship or anything. Did he not tell you about it?" He looked over at her, his four eyes resting upon her glowing eyes.

She shook her head and stayed silent. He eventually continued, not wanting to leave her hanging. "Well, it could fit… maybe fifteen people in total, depending on what was in the storage area. We usually just had a crew of me, John, Mino, and occasionally a turian John had met in a bar on the Citadel."

"What did the four of you do?" She was picking a food tube up and started attaching it to the front part of her helmet. She hadn't looked into Shepards past out of respect. So she was completely unaware of his past.

Iromak paused for a few moments, seeming to try and find a single word that fit it. Shrugging slightly and looking back to the door. "Oh… Lots of things. It was a pretty decent setup we had going." He seemed to be trying to step around answering the question.

That only made her more curious. She didn't want to pry too much though, so she started asking about the ship after she finished eating the purified paste in the tube. "What was the ship like?"

He started scratching his chin as he thought. "Well… it probably isn't anything compared to the ship he's flying on right now. It was mainly a small cargo hauler, we had it refitted for a bit of… self defense. Can't be too careful traveling through the Terminus systems."

She watched Iromak, her eyes squinting slightly as she searched his face. She had no clue what he was thinking, trying to read his facial features was like trying to read a rock. "Did you go through the Terminus often?"

He hesitated to answer, rubbing the back of his neck as he looked at the wall. Avoiding eye contact now. "Oh… a good bit. John kept track of where we went, what we did…" He trailed off before finally looking at Tali. "He didn't say anything about it?"

Tali shook her head, still leaning forward as she watched Iromak. He wasn't sure as to what he should say. "Maybe that's something you and John should talk about… What has he told you about, how we met?" Iromak knew that John wasn't likely to bring this up of his own accord, but wanted to know what she was aware of.

Tali was twirling the empty tube of water around in her hands. "Well… he told me about how, uh-" She was quiet for a few moments. "It was how you and him, met the, 'Old Man.'" Her eyes hovered over him, watching Iromak shyly. "Would you please at least tell me a little about what you two did?"

Iromak was silent for a few moments. Tapping his fingers against the arm of the chair he was sitting in. "Well… I suppose." He adjusted his position in the chair to sit up more, one boot still on the table in front of him. "I suppose I'll start from when we met Mino Avesi, and how we got our ship. We had been working as guards for traders looking to make drops in or near the Terminus for about a month or two."

"Was this before he joined the Alliance?" Tali sat back as she looked at Iromak. Picking up another tube of food to attach to her mask. He shook his head.

He looked up at the ceiling as he thought for a moment. "Two years into his service. He finished his contract and we started traveling together. He picked the alliance back up after…" He stopped himself for a moment, focusing on the light fixture that was still off. "A while. I forget the specific times."

John and Iromak sat side by side on Arcturus station. The two of them were heavily armed, both carrying assault rifles and sidearms. John had a shotgun laying under his seat. While Iromak had a long range rifle tilted up against the wall next to him.

Both had medium sized duffle bags that held their belongings. It was mostly food, water, some medi gel and spare clothes.

A few guards had been tasked to 'discreetly' keep an eye on them. It was mostly Iromak that they kept an eye on though. A heavily armed Batarian was usually a security risk.

John had his arms crossed and his head tilted against the wall behind his chair. His eyes closed. They had been waiting for the ship that had hired them, it was pushing two days of waiting now. It was part of the deal though, and they would be getting paid well enough while going through the Terminus system.

It was a no questions asked type deal. They were there to make sure the deals went smoothly. Fighting wasn't expected but it was out of Citadel controlled space. So the only protection people could hope for was private guards.

Iromak was looking at his Omni tool. He could hear the man who hired them before he saw them. The heavy breaths of a volus accompanied by the thuds of the environmental suits boots hitting the ground. They approached from the left side, on Iromaks side.

"Ah… you two… must be the ones." The volus approached them. An asari followed up behind the volus by a few feet. She wore armor that looked tough, but wasn't anything compared to what John or Iromak had. She had dark blue skin that contrasted nicely with her electric blue eyes. She had a sharp jawline and a strong chin. Thin tattoos streaked along her temples, fading as it got further from her eyes. They were mostly horizontal with a slight upward tilt on the approach to her eyes.

Her arms crossed as she looked at the pair, her eyes remaining on John for a few moments longer before she looked away. She remained silent as the volus got his hired help. John's head lifted, looking first at the volus before at the Asari. "You said that this would be a two person job. Did something change?" He wasn't complaining, it was more curiosity, he did prefer to know the full setup before taking a job though.

The volus turned away, waving for the pair to follow as he walked off to the right side. "Can't be…" Deep breath. "To careful." Deep breath. "My associates..." Deep breath. "Have had trouble." John and Iromak were looking at each other for a moment. "As of late."

The Asari followed him, both John and Iromak following behind her after they grabbed their weapons. The volus, slowly but surely, led the pair to his ship. It was dwarfed by an average freighter, but still had the same bland, boxy appearance as one. These ships were often used for emergency supply runs or smuggling. Not in all cases though. They were efficient ships and with the extreme downsizing, it was much cheaper compared to your regular ship.

It was still expensive to someone who didn't make tens of millions of credits though. The ships had an entire box section on the underbelly. It was heavily armored, dedicated purely to the Eezo drive.

On board, it was fairly simple. One diagonal hallway. Doorways on either side that led to detachable storage pods. On the opposite side of the entrance was the cockpit. It had its own door and was able to make its own atmosphere separate from the rest of the ship. Inside there were the only two escape pods on board.

The volus had an area designated for the three hired guns. It was a storage area that was half empty. There was about eighteen feet of room between either of the walls. It wasn't much, but a room was more than what most captains gave them. John suspected that it was only given to them because the area was on hand, not because the Volus was being generous.

The door slid open. The Asari entered and took the far left corner. Both John and Iromak looked at her for a moment. John was standing on the left side of the room. His shotgun lay on a shelf that folded out of the wall. It was in various pieces as he was cleaning it. Iromak was sitting on a metal crate in the corner directly to the right of the door, fiddling with something on his omni tool.

She looked between the two for a moment. A questioning look in her eyes. Neither were paying her any attention now. She found it strange at best that a Batarian and a Human were traveling together. Figuring the prospect of money would bring just about anyone together. "Have you two worked together before?"

John's head rose from looking at the pieces of the weapon in front of him. Looking at her for a moment before turning to look at Iromak. The two of them traded a quiet glance before John spoke. "You could say that." His eyes returned to the weapon in front of him. Working in silence.

She waited a few more moments, assuming that he would say something else. Looking at the Batarian who was still attending to something on his Omni tool. Letting out a quiet sigh and trying to start the conversation back up. "I'm Mino." She pushed herself off the crates that she sat upon, taking a couple steps towards John and holding a hand out to shake.

Iromaks hand started moving towards the pistol on his hip as she approached John. It was something she barely caught out of the corner of her eye. John looked at her again, glancing down at her hand for a moment. Finally giving it a short shake, bringing his hands back to the weapon on the table. "I'm John. That's Iromak. It's nice to meet you Mino." He returned his eyes to his disassembled weapon.

"Are you from earth? Or the colonies?" She leaned against the wall, watching his hands work away. He wasn't used to being asked questions about himself, but decided to oblige.

"Terra Nova. Why?" His head turned to face her. His eyes locked with hers, this was the first time he noticed how bright her eyes were. They seemed to have a hint of curiosity in them that he could just barely see.

"Oh, well, I've been starting to look into Human history and culture. Have you ever been to earth?" Her gaze flicked back and forth between his eyes. Her head tilted slightly to the side.

He finally broke eye contact. Looking back to his weapon. Starting to assemble it back together. "No, I've seen vids and stuff. I would like to go at some point. Have you been to Thessia?"

She wasn't expecting him to return the question. Answering it all the same. "Yes. Quite a few times." Her eyes watched the pieces get organized together. "Do you work in the Terminus often?"

He shook his head, leaning on the table as he double checked that he had everything in order. The gun slid into its locked position. "No. Just over a month now. I worked in the alliance for two years. I didn't really enjoy it though, too many regulations for day to day life."

He pushed the shotgun to the side. Looking at Mino as he leaned on the table with both arms. "What about you? Asari commando or something?"

She shook her head, smiling slightly at the suggestion. "No. I worked as a doctor for most of my life. I've been doing this for around five years now though."

"Working for the Volus or being a mercenary?" He found himself admiring her tattoos. Quickly averting his eyes as he pulled his pack up to rummage through. Looking more for something to distract himself rather than anything in particular.

"Mercenary. Get to travel, get paid, get to meet people. It's a decent way to make credits." She finally touched on the topic of Iromak. Who was watching her with the top row of his eyes. "So… most humans wouldn't work with Batarians considering their history… why-"

He spoke before she got to finish her sentence. "Iromak is a good man, and I trust him. That's where we'll leave it for now." His tone was strong but not harsh.

She looked at him for a few moments before looking at the ground. Giving a short nod as her hands folded behind her back. "Y-yes. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend. I was just curious about..." Minos' sentence fell off as she felt John's eyes focusing on her.

"About… How did we get to know each other?" He tilted his head to the left slightly as he watched her. The mercenaries he had met before had a much tougher front than Mino. She nodded at him when he finished her question. Raising her gaze to once again meet his. "It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you later."

She could tell it wasn't a subject he was looking to delve into. Walking back towards her corner now. John had found his eyes following her while she walked away from him. Quickly shaking his head and returning his eyes to the contents of his duffle bag. "So how long did you work as a doctor?"

She turned back around, sitting on the crates in her corner. "Around two hundred years." She said it in a very casual way. It made something catch in John's throat as his eyes widened slightly.

He had always forgotten about the Asari's extended life compared to other species. He cleared his throat before speaking. "Well… you certainly had a lot of time to hone your skills." He moved to stand with his back against the shelf.

He hadn't gotten the chance to talk to many Asari before. He found Mino nice to talk with. "How recently did you start your study into humans?" His eyes once again locked with Minos, a soft smile slipping onto his lips.

She straightened her back slightly as he looked at her. "Oh, very recently. Within the last year actually. It's more of a hobby than anything."

It was a couple days' ride to the first location. John and Mino chatted for quite a long time. She inquired into many things about his life. What the colony was like, what type of education he received and eventually, how he got into the alliance.

"Well, my old man wanted me to serve my part. Alliance soldiers protected us, he felt I should repay the favor." At this point, John had taken a seat a few feet to Minos' left. One leg folded under the other as it swayed back and forth. Leaning against the crates that filled the other half of the room.

He found chatting with Mino to be a better way to pass the time than in complete silence for several days. Which is what they had been doing the whole month prior. "Your dad wanted you to join? What will he think about what you're doing now?"

Mino regretted the words as they left her mouth. She could see how his posture changed, leaning forward, his elbows moving onto his knees to support himself. Falling quiet as he and Iromak looked at each other for a few moments. "Well… uh. He's not…" His sentence fell silent as he stepped around saying anything directly. Even though it didn't change anything. "He's not around anymore." He didn't seem sad, just quiet, or hesitant to touch upon the subject.

She could tell it was still fresh in his mind. His eyes were now searching the wall in silence. She didn't say anything to him. Only reaching over slowly and resting her hand on his shoulder.

His eyes stopped searching in the middle distance. First looking at her hand and then over to her. They both held eye contact for a few moments. Eventually, he sat back slowly, starting to tell her about the old man. Leaving out the fact that they weren't related to each other.

The planet was mostly desolate, little to no natural resources, extremely thin atmosphere, no chance of water. In John's mind, this meant increased chances for pirate bases or illicit dealings. He and Iromak were standing on either side of the entrance to the small ship.

John was looking at a pad on the wall that gave a readout of the atmosphere. He already knew there wouldn't be any oxygen, his helmet was already on and ready to go.

The Volus started walking down the hall of the ship from the pilot's pit. His heavy breathing and weighty thuds were nearly echoing in the thin walls. Mino stepped out from the room that the three had been sharing. Following behind the Volus. Her automatic rifle was held in her hands, the barrel pointed to the ground. Her finger off the trigger.

"Make sure." He took a deep breath. "That this group." Followed by another. "Does not try." John found himself disliking the Volus. "Anything sneaky." Mostly because he hired John and Iromak for the reason they were experienced. They didn't need a shakedown on a basic trade.

"We've got it handled. Just get it over with quickly." Iromak spoke up. Turning and looking down at the Volus.

"If something goes awry, stay near me. I'll keep them off of you." John spoke, his eyes flicking over to look at Mino for a moment as he spoke. Looking away as the ship rocked lightly from the turbulence of landing.

She assumed he was speaking to the Volus, but it seemed like it was directed to her. The Volus looked back and forth between John and Iromak. "Yes… See that you do."

The Volus walked over to a door that had been sealed since their arrival. A pad that was about thigh high to John was uncovered by the press of a button. He was entering in a sequence to detach the cargo pod from the ship.

"And make sure…" The Volus turned and started waddling to another door. "That my new cargo…" He released yet another cargo pod. "Is actually in the... pods when it's loaded."

John was starting to consider avoiding working with Volus' in the future. He just couldn't stand the long, slow, dragged out conversation. He enjoyed conversations with an elcor more than this. "Are we putting the pods on or will they be handling it?"

The volus waved away the question as he walked to the exit after the ship finished landing. Iromak and Mino putting their helmets on.

"You don't do..."

I shouldn't have asked.

"Anything. Except..." He opened up the door, hot, dusty wind filled the ship. "What I hired…" Iromak went out first, his semi automatic rifle in hand. Followed by the Volus. "You to do." John followed him while Mino stayed back to guard the entrance to the ship.

John kept close behind the Volus. The mass effect shields had a wide range around a person's body, he was using that fact to keep the Volus safe within its range. Just in case the buyers tried to get a free shot on him to avoid their end of the deal.

No such attack came though. In fact, the whole trade went off without a hitch. It was the usual way things went. Fights were rare in these trades since both sides were always well armed and eager to get the whole thing over with.

Once back upon the ship, in the safely sealed environment. The volus pressurized the inside of one of the cargo pods. It took several minutes for the operation to complete. He opened the door afterwards to reveal lots of metal crates. "Check three at…" The Volus started waddling over to the other cargo pod door. This one was self sustained and was already pressurized. "Random. Make sure…" He was checking something on the pad that was low on the wall. "They are real."

John obliged, checking three of the boxes. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Mino had stepped into the room with him. Only staying near the doorway.

Making sure I don't test the merchandise?

He checked through three of the boxes in the almost full room. Three boxes down and he found various rifles and shotguns followed by dozens of grenades. After closing the boxes back up, he turned to look at Mino for a moment. Walking out of the room with a short nod to her. "Weapons and grenades, they look like they're in good condition."

The volus was walking away from the other door without opening it. Both John and Iromak watched him for a second before their eyes turned to the door. Mino walking towards their storage area.

John gave a two finger wave to Iromak, who started walking after Mino. John handed him the shotgun as he passed. "Aren't you checking these ones as well?" He started walking to the door. Looking at the control panel for a moment.

The Volus stopped and turned. Shaking his head. "One is enough." John had a feeling something else was up though.

His eyes squinted as he looked at the volus, raising his hand towards the control panel. "Shouldn't we at least cut the power off on it so it stops draining energy?"

The Volus started to waddle surprisingly quickly towards John. "No, we should not…" He got closer, attempting to pull John's arm away. "It's pressurized for…" He was quite unsuccessful in his attempts. Sounding more aggravated now. "A reason..."

Mino had taken notice of the Volus' growing voice. When she turned to go see what was going on. Iromak was standing in the doorway, one hand held up with an open palm. Telling her very plainly to stop. His other hand held John's shotgun, it was pointed at the ground though.

"There's not many reasons to keep cargo pressurized." He pressed a button, the door sliding open to reveal a cargo bay full of cages that held slaves in a dark room. "Weapons, explosives, and slaves. The first two I don't care about." He pushed the Volus back and down to the ground. Pulling his pistol from his holster.

The Volus fell down with a huff before he started shouting. "Guard! Help!" His weighted breathing became panicked as he saw John pointing the pistol towards him.

Iromak went flying out of the doorway suddenly. Smacking against the wall and falling to the ground. Mino stepped out, shrouded in a fog from her biotics. A sign that she had spent quite a lot of time practicing with them. Mino was glaring at him with her bright blue eyes.

John stared at her, but kept the pistol pointed at the Volus. "Let's talk about this Mino. I don't-"

"Shut up!" She made a quick swing. He couldn't do anything but take the brunt of force from her. It felt like a train hitting him. Hitting the door far behind him with a thud, the air being forced from his lungs upon impact. Falling to the ground and barely catching himself with his hands. His pistol dropped to the ground next to him.

The volus was trying to push himself up. "Oh… thank the-" He was cut off by Mino kicking him back over.

"You too. I hate people trying to pull a mutiny, but I hate slavers even more." John was gasping lightly to get the air back in his lungs. Shaking his head as he looked at the ground.

"I'm not pulling…" He coughed lightly as something caught in his throat. Continuing after that. "It's not a mutiny. Me and Iromak have been doing this for the last month. We were going to bring them back to Citadel space."

Iromak, who had finally pushed himself onto his knees, made very slow movements as Mino was watching them both. His hands held halfway up in the air as he watched Mino. "Right, a Batarian who frees slaves. Got a better joke?"

She sneered the words out, John put a hand up. Waving away her snide remark. "You don't understand…" He pushed himself up onto his knees. Looking up to see the barrel of Mino's pistol was pointed at him. Both he and Iromak had shields, so it'd take more than one shot to bring either down. It was the biotics John was worried about. "You want to know how Iromak and I met?"

"So he told her?" Tali was slouched back into her bed, finding it much more comfortable than the pods on the Normandy.

Iromak had not been able to hold still throughout the story. Switching sitting positions or pacing quite often. He was currently looking out at the presidium. A sight he had not gotten to enjoy before. "Yeah. She thought we were looking to take the ship and cargo for ourselves. When she realized that we were bringing them back to Citadel space, she settled down." His arms crossed over each other as he looked out. "I think it helped that John was willing to cover her lost pay on that run too."

"So you turned it all over to who? The alliance or the Citadel?" Tali watched him curiously, occasionally looking out the window as well.

"We took the people to the Citadel, there's the chance that they had been chipped. We wouldn't know where to start with those. The Volus was tossed in jail, probably for a shorter amount of time than he deserved." He turned to face her, leaning on the windowsill. "Mino decided to join us after that. I guess she found our cause to be decent enough to help with."

"What about the ship? And the weapons?" She had noticed him stepping around that. Persisting for a more complete answer. Her eyes squinted slightly as she watched him.

"Well…" He cleared his throat, looking at the door for a moment before speaking again. This time in a quieter tone, but loud enough for Tali to hear. "We held onto them, both the ship and the weapons. C-Sec would've just stored it away or sold it."

"So you did steal his ship? Wouldn't C-Sec stop you?" She started leaning forward, abruptly stopping as she felt the pain in her side. Wincing a bit, then reclining once more.

"Actually, Mino suggested we keep it and utilize it in our schemes. It's a lot easier time hunting slavers when you have your own ship. C-Sec, you'd have to ask John. I think he made a deal with someone here." He scratched the side of his face lightly.

"Do you use the ship?" Tali was adjusting the pillows behind her to be more comfortable.

"It isn't in flying condition at the moment, uh…" He looked away, his eyes searching around the room for something to take his attention. "It got pretty banged up a while back. I've been fixing it up in my spare time. It's just me though, so it's been taking a while. Probably another year before it'll be fit for travel."

"So where did Mino-" Tali was about to continue her question. The door opened up before she could speak though. A turian entered, soon followed by an Asari. Both were wearing the blue and black C-Sec armor.

While they stepped in, Iromak took a couple strides from the window. Placing himself between the two security guards and Tali. "What's going on here?" His voice was rough and firm. Obviously displeased just at their arrival.

The Asari gestured to the heavy pistol sitting on Iromaks hip. "We need to confiscate your weapons. Maybe that would go on the Citadel arms, but not on the presidium." Iromaks top pair of eyes watched the light blue Asari, his bottom pair watching the Turian.

Iromak simply shook his head. "No… I don't think you'll be taking it. I've been here three days and it's been fine. What changed?" His hands hovered at his sides. His eyes squinted slightly as he watched them.

The Asari spoke up once again, stepping past the Turian as she did. "The council requested you be disarmed. Otherwise you're a security risk, and we'll have to remove you." There was currently one Batarian on board the presidium, and that one was armed. Word had passed around rather quickly when John left. Eventually, it bothered someone who had enough sway with one of the council members to get the 'situation' resolved.

Tali was watching with her eyes widened slightly. She looked at Iromaks hip, noticing his pistol still hanging from its holster on his right side. She saw what appeared to be a slight twitch in the corner of Iromaks mouth. Like he was about to smile. It was quickly suppressed though.

"So, I need to disarm?" Both the Turian and Asari nodded in unison. He slowly reached down, using two fingers to gently pull the pistol out of its holster. Holding it only by the grip. The Asari started holding out her hand, only for Iromak to hand the weapon to Tali.

Tali looked at him, she was somewhat surprised. Slowly reaching up and taking it after Iromak gave her a nod. She held it gently in her hands. It was quite heavy compared to the one she carried.

"What the-" The Asari started to speak, only to get cut off by Iromak who turned to face her with sharp eyes.

"You said I had to disarm. Not her." There was a strange silence that filled the room. Tali could see Iromak adjusting his stance, the right foot bracing himself to fight, just in case they decided to try to take the weapon by force.

"Fine, this isn't worth it." The Turian seemed satisfied at the resolution and started leaving. The Asari watched him for a moment.

"Get back here. We-" She was once again cut off. This time by the turian who turned back to face her.

"This isn't worth a fight. He hasn't done anything wrong for three days. He's here on the order of a spectre. We fulfilled the council's request. They didn't say anything about the quarian being armed. Let's go." With that, he turned and left. The Asari chased after him, trying hopelessly to convince him otherwise.

Iromak walked over and closed the door behind them. Returning to the chair he had been sitting in when Tali had first awoken. She was looking at the weapon in her hands. It had a small insignia etched into the grip. Two half circles were engraved into it, both were turned towards each other. Had they been full circles, they would resemble links in a chain.

Her thumb ran up and down the insignia for a few moments before looking at Iromak. He spoke before her though. "You should probably send John a message now. Don't mention C-Sec though. I'll talk to him about that whenever he gets back."

She nodded, setting Iromaks heavy pistol next to her on the bed. Opening up her omni tool and starting to write. Letting John know that she was finally awake and what the nurse had told her. She told him that Iromak was keeping her safe. Making a point to thank John for having him stay. Finally ending it with how she was hoping to be back aboard the Normandy soon. It took her about half an hour to get it properly worded before sending it..

She found herself still feeling quite tired. Her eyes drifted closed slowly while she slumped back into the soft pillow. Her head turned away from the blinds. Iromak seemed to notice her dozing off. Closing the blinds with the wave off his omni tool.

"Thank you…" She spoke quietly as Iromak sat back down in his chair. She drifted into sleep once again. Her mind pondering on what else Shepard and Iromak may have done before slipping into sleep.