A/N: Well I did say I would update one more time just before the end of the year, didn't I? I hope you all had a great Christmas, and if you don't celebrate Christmas then I hope you had a great day regardless.

This is the longest chapter of Spectre so far (which it needed to be) so I'm eager as always to know what people think.

Reviews:

AnarionRising27: Thank you once again. As I mentioned, here is the last chapter of the year.

seabo76 (Chapter 6): I hope you're enjoying this fic so far. As to what happens next... the only way to know is to keep reading :)

seabo76: Great to hear. I'm glad that I'm getting Kasumi right; it's proving challenging to balance her fun-loving personality with seriousness (given the context of the story).

Thanks once again.

JustWriteAnon: I'm really enjoying writing Kasumi, so I'm very glad to hear that I'm doing a good job overall. Rassen and Shaela are fun to write too, so that's always a plus. The next few chapters will certainly be interesting (I hope).

Thanks for reviewing as always!

Chapter 10: Truth

"Hands up," the lead Mandalorian ordered, inclining his head in Shaela's direction, the threat obvious. Rassen nodded slowly before raising his hands, desperately trying to think of a way to get the two of them out of their current situation. The leader then nodded towards him, gaze never wavering. "All of you keep your sights on the Jedi, I've got this one." At his words, the other five Mandalorians tightened their grip on their weapons, which were currently aimed at Rassen. For a moment nobody spoke. The loudest sound in the room was Shaela's frightened breathing as she stood rooted to the spot, unable to move.

After a moment, Rassen decided to break the silence. "What do you want?" He asked, not daring to try and go for his lightsaber while Shaela's life was in danger.

"We noticed you on Horizon, Jedi," the leader explained, voice gravelly as a result of the vocabulator built into his helmet. "More importantly, Mandalore noticed you. She wants to know how many of you there are."

Rassen let his gaze wander to Shaela, whose eyes were wide behind her visor, though she was just about able to keep herself from panicking. He smiled slightly to reassure her before returning his gaze to the man who still held a blaster pistol against the back of her neck. "Let her go and I will sate Mandalore's curiosity." He replied evenly.

The leader's response was laced with venom. "Do not try to negotiate, Jedi," he spat. "You will answer the questions I ask you quickly and honestly. If you do not…" He trailed off; making it abundantly clear what would happen if he were refused.

"And what happens if I do answer your questions?" Rassen challenged, looking for anything useful out of the corner of his eye. "What guarantee do I have that you will let her go," he indicated Shaela with a nod, "that you will let either of us go?"

The smile had no doubt returned to the Mandalorian's face as he replied. "Jedi are normally full of spiel about how there is good in everyone and how important redemption is." At his words, a quiet rumble of laughter came from the other commandos. "You'll just have to trust me, Jedi."

"Rassen." Shaela's voice caused him to turn his attention back to her. The quarian gave him a determined look despite just how much danger her life was in. "Don't tell them anything."

"Enough." The leader roughly grabbed one of her shoulders before ramming his blaster muzzle-first into the back of her neck, Shaela crying out as she was forced to bend forwards. "First question," he began, "how many others are there?"

Rassen looked back at the Mandalorian, unable to prevent part of his rage from seeping through. "If you mean Jedi, then I am afraid that I am the only one. No one else made the trip."

"No one else affiliated with the Republic knows about this galaxy? Knows how we got here?"

Rassen ground his teeth together, unwilling to lie while Shaela's life hung in the balance. "No," he replied, anger building as the blaster continued to remain pressed firmly against the quarian's neck.

"Well that makes things nice and easy, doesn't it?" The leader turned to one of his subordinates, the rest keeping their blasters aimed directly at him. "Only him then. Actually, that saves needing to ask any more questions." He turned back to the Jedi. "As I said, Mandalore wanted to know if anyone else is coming. Given your anger at how I'm threatening this one," he nodded down towards Shaela, "you've realised that I'm serious about killing her. You're telling the truth."

"So, now what?" Still looking for anything he could use, Rassen noticed that to his left and slightly behind him, a section of the ship's wall had been pushed inwards by the craft's impact with the ground. It could possibly be used as makeshift cover, given that it jutted out several feet into the room. Inwardly he scowled. There was no way he could currently get himself and Shaela behind it, not when he was being watched so closely and the latter had a blaster pressed against her.

"I believe you know the answer to that, Jedi. Mandalore wanted you taken captive, but my men are loyal. They'll support me when I say you were impossible to take alive." Rassen was about to grab his lightsaber, but the threat that followed stopped him short.

"If you try to resist, I'll kill the girl. On the other hand, do nothing and I'll let her go when you've been disposed of."

"Rassen, don't!" Shaela began struggling, forcing the man holding her hostage to press the blaster pistol even harder into the back of her neck. The quarian stopped moving and looked at him pleadingly, silver eyes now wide with fear for him rather than herself. There was another moment of silence as the world seemed to slow to a crawl, before the leader began to issue a command.

Rassen almost didn't notice it. As it was, there was a flicker just at the edge of his perceptions, a subtle notification from the Force that, even with his years of training, he nearly missed. As a petite, female figure appeared behind one of the Mandalorians at the edge of the group, Rassen sprinted towards the cover he had noticed, simultaneously raising an arm in Shaela's direction. The quarian yelped as she was pulled through the air and into his arms. At the same time, there was a bizarre sound, a cross between a punch and an electronic hum as the Mandalorian in front of Kasumi collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut. Rassen threw himself towards the wall, Shaela in his arms, and rolled, taking the quarian and himself fully away from the blasters of the Mandalorians and behind the jutting piece of cover. As three of the remaining five attackers turned to keep tracking him, the Jedi sprang to his feet, lightsaber hissing to life as he stepped from safety in order to help Kasumi.

He saw her vanish from sight as the other two Mandalorians fired in her direction, their blasters scoring hits against the metal wall of the ship opposite where they stood. Rassen raised his lightsaber into the path of a blaster bolt fired by the first of the three Mandalorians to target him, the lone projectile easily being deflected back in the direction of its owner. He rolled out of the way of the blast of scarlet energy, causing Rassen to raise a hand in his direction. The Mandalorian was picked up as though by an invisible hand and flung backwards, slamming into the wall behind him with a deafening crashing noise as heavy armour met unyielding surface. The sound of a mass accelerator weapon roared from somewhere to his side, blood spurting from the downed Mandalorian as several shots struck home without hitting the man's armour. Shaela gave him a quick nod as he turned to face her.

The other two Mandalorians opened fire, concentrating on him rather than the quarian. The final two, which Rassen realised included the leader, were more concerned with locating their mystery attacker. The latter pair did not have to wait long, Kasumi uncloaking behind one of them the moment their back was turned, the petite woman bringing her fist crashing into the man's unarmoured neck with the same noise he had heard earlier. Rassen deflected the first few blaster bolts of his own attackers easily and then rolled to the side, their next attacks missing him as a result, the scarlet bolts soaring above him as he dodged them. He rose to one knee and hurled his lightsaber at the two Mandalorians, the azure blade spinning gracefully towards the two men horizontally. Neither was able to evade in time as they were both sliced in half effortlessly by the weapon, which Rassen called swiftly back to his hand.

The final commando, the leader he realised, glanced around as he realised all of his soldiers lay dead. Kasumi uncloaked several metres away from him as Rassen walked over, lightsaber still at the ready as the Mandalorian looked between the two of them, clearly unsure as to who was the greater threat. As Rassen drew closer though, he fired at the Jedi, who easily deflected the shot into the man's leg. He fell with a grunt of pain, his armour saving him from having the limb blasted off, but not providing enough protection to prevent serious damage.

Rassen pulled the blaster pistol from his attacker's hand using the Force with barely any conscious thought, the weapon that had threatened Shaela landing somewhere behind him as the quarian herself made her way over to join them, her own gun never wavering. He stood over the Mandalorian for a moment, trying to control his anger as the man stared back at him defiantly.

"Get on with it then, Jedi. I don't know anything useful."

Go on, kill him. You know he deserves it.

Rassen stared down at his captive for a moment, silently gauging how truthful the statement was. He was vaguely aware of Kasumi watching him cautiously, her eyes moving between the Mandalorian, him, and the lightsaber he still held ignited in one hand. He deactivated the weapon, the usual hissing noise filling the room as the blade retracted.

"I disagree," he finally replied, crouching down to be at the same level as the Mandalorian, though he made sure to keep alert for any signs of sudden movement. "I think you're going to tell me what I want to know because if you do then I won't have to kill you."

The Mandalorian laughed at the threat. "Do you seriously think I'd believe that?" He taunted. "You Jedi don't have it in you to kill those who can't defend themselves."

"But you do, obviously. Like the colonists on Horizon, yes? Not very honourable was it?"

"That was necessary." Despite the dismissive response, Rassen knew he had struck a nerve. Inwardly, the Jedi smirked at the anger the Mandalorian had been unable to entirely supress.

"Why?"

"It was… part of the agreement."

"With the batarians?"

"Yes."

"What was this agreement?"

"For the most part they provide us transport and we crush their enemies. I don't understand why we can't just kill them and take their ships, but Mandalore has ordered us to cooperate."

Rassen frowned at the explanation. "But why come in the first place? What could have possibly drawn you here?"

"Above my pay-grade, Jedi," the Mandalorian replied. "You want to know? Take it up with Mandalore herself. I'm sure she'll enlighten you, though you'll need to have a level of affection towards Force-suppression collars and prison cells."

"You will understand if I decline Mandalore's hospitality."

"Fine by me, I didn't want to take you alive before; I certainly don't want to take you alive now." The leader's former smugness returned as he glared at the Jedi across from him.

Rassen frowned again, anger increasing at the Mandalorian's taunts. "If you want me dead, then why bother telling me anything then?"

The smugness now reached new heights. "Because this has a rather long delay." The Mandalorian opened the hand that had been held to his wound. Rassen's eyes widened as he saw a red light blinking on the spherical object in the man's palm. He threw the Mandalorian backwards with the Force, but the last thing he was aware of was something slamming into his side before the world went dark.

It all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye.

One moment Rassen was crouching opposite the leader of the men who had attacked them, the Jedi carefully watching for any sign of movement. The next, the Mandalorian was sailing through the air as Kasumi tackled Rassen out of the way, the human woman moving with a speed that left Shaela speechless, before she had then attempted to get out of the way herself. The grenade had almost completely obliterated the body of its owner, while both Rassen and Kasumi were lying unmoving just a few metres away from one another. Shaela sprinted over to the former, omni-tool running up and down his body as she scanned him.

"Rassen? She asked desperately. "Rassen, can you hear me?" A groan answered her as the human stirred slightly. She examined the scan results, gasping as she realised the extent of the grenade's effects. Visually his wounds were only minor, though his armour was more scuffed and battered than before. However, if her omni-tool was correct, he appeared to have a concussion. Remembering someone else had been caught by the blast; she quickly turned her attention to Kasumi, but froze in horror before she could initiate the scan.

A pool of blood had gathered around the mysterious woman, the colour almost black due to the dim overhead lighting. Kasumi was unconscious at best. At worst… Shaela didn't even want to think about it. The quarian turned back to Rassen and took the human's face in her hands, desperately trying to get his attention.

"Rassen?" She begged. "Kasumi is seriously hurt, she needs our help." The Jedi grunted in acknowledgement as he stirred again. He tried to get up, only to collapse before he could even get onto his hands and knees. She slung one of his arms over her shoulders as she gently tried to help him over to Kasumi. "Can you use the Force?" She asked desperately. "She needs Force healing and I don't know how to do it." Rassen nodded tiredly before again trying to get up, only to stop as he pressed his forehead against the floor, sweat collecting on his brow. "Room's spinning," he muttered weakly. "I-I can't." At seeing her activate her omni-tool, the Jedi waved a hand weakly in her direction. "Worry about me later," he managed to get out. "Deal with… with her first. She needs help more urgently."

Even though she agreed with him, a part of Shaela felt sick as she nodded and gently released the arm she still held. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Shaela left Rassen and quickly made her way back to Kasumi before kneeling next to her. The pool of blood instantly soaked the material of her enviro-suit at the knees. She ignored it.

I'm back in the hospital. She's just another patient.

"Okay," Shaela breathed. "First identify the injury." She activated the same program she had used on Rassen, the expanding pool of blood reflecting the bright orange light of her omni-tool as she checked Kasumi's vital signs. "Serious loss of blood from a wound on the lower back, not fatal yet, but quickly growing worse. No shrapnel in the wound currently slowing the blood loss. I need to stem it as fast as possible." She quickly patted herself down, searching desperately for anything useful. Her hands paused as she reached her hood, the thick material still durable despite its years of use.

I was going to have to replace it eventually.

Shaela unclasped the item before removing it from her head and examining it. The once vibrant blue had long since faded, some areas even appearing closer to white than the original colour. She nodded to herself upon noticing that while there were a few holes, they were near the edges of the piece of clothing, not the centre.

The quarian turned back to Kasumi before gently rolling her over. Having done so, Shaela instantly noticed the injury despite the poor lighting; the bodysuit at Kasumi's lower back being soaked with blood. Thinking quickly, she readied every treatment of medi-gel she had. Taking another deep breath, she applied the substance all over the piece of fabric in her hands, taking care to lather it particularly thickly in the centre. She then pressed it firmly against Kasumi's wound and held it in place with both hands.

A few seconds passed. Shaela continued to hold her now ruined hood in place as blood soaked it alongside the medi-gel. Nothing seemed to be happening! Kasumi's blood continued to absorb into the thick material of her hood until it reached her gloves. Although waterproof, Shaela could feel the heat of the other woman's blood as it covered her fingers and palms. Internally, she started pleading with the ancestors to spare the human's life. She barely knew Kasumi, but the other woman had put her own life in danger for two of them. She would be damned if she let her die after doing that.

Another few seconds passed, and the flow of blood began to finally slow, the medi-gel and pressure on the wound causing it to gradually stop. Shaela let out a quiet sigh of exhausted relief as the flow finally ceased entirely, the pool that soaked her knees ceasing its growth. Infection would normally be the next issue she would have to deal with, but with the amount of medi-gel she had applied, all of the pathogens in the wound would have already been neutralised.

"Is she going to be all right?"

She looked over at Rassen, who was again trying to get up. She motioned for him to stop. "Yes," she replied. "She's lost a lot of blood, but she should be fine."

He smiled back at her, even though his eyes looked slightly unfocused. "Never doubted you, Shaela, not for a single moment."

Shaela double-checked that Kasumi was stable and the bleeding had definitely stopped before gently removing her hands from her now thoroughly drenched hood. She then took the other woman's wrist and accessed her omni-tool, to her relief finding that Kasumi had a small amount of medi-gel on her person. Transferring it over to her own device, she made her way over to Rassen before kneeling down next to him. "Can you sit up if I help you?" She asked worriedly.

"Hopefully."

After a moment of struggling, with her help Rassen was able to sit up. Using the light of her omni-tool to help her see, Shaela quickly noticed that the hair on the back of the human's head was matted with blood. She applied the medi-gel without delay, unable to keep from sighing in relief as Rassen's own injury proved much quicker to heal than Kasumi's.

Rassen evidently picked up on her relief, the human shuffling backwards so he sat next to her before gently embracing her. "Thank you," he whispered next to her ear.

She smiled as she replied. "You're welcome, Rassen."

A sudden beeping caused the two of them to glance in the direction of one of the Mandalorians. Rassen quickly stood up before making his way towards the body; still moving slightly unsteadily as he did so. Shaela frowned as he picked up what appeared to be a small communicator before pressing a button on the side. The voice of someone speaking a rough and unfamiliar language filled the room. Her frown deepened before she realised what was happening. The person at the other end was clearly speaking in a different language to the one Rassen and the Mandalorian leader had conversed in. It must be one from their galaxy, she realised, as her omni-tool was unable to translate it.

Rassen closed his eyes before slowly opening them. "Their ship," he said, indicating the Mandalorians, "is about to leave since they have not reported in." He glanced around before returning his attention to her. "I cannot see this one going anywhere soon, so we need to take theirs. Fortunately, they seem to have landed close to us, as far as I can sense." He turned to face her. "Look after Kasumi, I will be back shortly."

"Rassen," Shaela sprinted over to him, "you can't go out there, I only survived it because I have my suit, your armour isn't sealed. The temperature is far too low for anyone without proper protection!"

He nodded. "For more than a few seconds, yes. I do not, however, plan to be out there for any longer than that."

Shaela looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Rassen smiled slightly as he retrieved his lightsaber from where it had landed after the grenade exploded. "I never did tell you just how fast I can run, did I?"

The loading ramp groaned heavily before swiftly being pulled open. Rassen lowered his hand and sprinted inside the batarian ship, every part of his body seeming to scream in protest at the bitter cold it had been subjected to. Mere seconds had passed since leaving Shaela, but being exposed to such a low temperature for even that long had taken its toll. His lips and ears were as numb as though he had spent an entire winter's day outside, and shivers wracked his body. As a pair of batarians and one Mandalorian levelled their weapons at him though, the Jedi shook away his concerns and ignited his lightsaber.

He could complain about the temperature of this world once they had left it far behind.

The first thing that came to her mind was that she had never felt so cold.

Kasumi groaned as consciousness slowly returned to her, the thief blearily opening her eyes. Instantly noticing that her surroundings were unfamiliar, she tried to get up, only to groan even louder as the world seemed to spin like a top. She was dimly aware of a familiar figure fussing over her. After a moment she recognised the voice.

"Stay still," Shaela commanded. "You've lost a lot of blood. It's going to take your body a while to recover its strength, particularly since we had to take you outside to get you here. It's just lucky that Rassen is as fast as he said."

"Where is here?" She asked, the world continuing to spin as she did her best to lay still. She looked around sluggishly, idly noticing that Shaela seemed to be missing the hood she had been wearing earlier. All female quarians seemed to wear the same kind of hood as Shaela, now that she thought about it. Dismissing that particular observation, Kasumi noticed that she appeared to be on a bed of some sort, though it felt surprisingly uncomfortable. Several blankets lay on top of her, all of them smelling of cheap cleaning solution. A pair of simple looking chairs sat next to the bed, Shaela currently occupying one of them.

We're definitely not anywhere on Ilium, that's for sure.

"We're on the ship that shot us down," the quarian explained. "We were attacked by a small number of Mandalorians, and you were hurt. Rassen dealt with the batarians and one soldier the Mandalorians left behind, and then we moved you here. We just need to perform pre-flight checks and then we can leave. That's what he's doing now, actually."

"Why aren't you with him?"

Shaela laughed lightly in response. "I'm looking after you," she replied. "You're still hurt, but I managed to stop the bleeding, though it was very serious at first. Unfortunately for you, that makes you my patient for the moment. Rassen can probably heal you though, once he gets his strength back that is."

Kasumi looked at her in surprise. "Thank you," she said honestly. Shaela nodded back happily and the two of them lapsed into a comfortable silence. After a moment though, part of the conversation began to nag at her and she couldn't resist probing for information. "Rassen doesn't seem much like a doctor." She stared at the quarian, who began to fidget slightly in discomfort. "Who is he?" She asked finally.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Don't you?"

"No."

"You're a terrible liar."

Shaela looked away before turning back to her. Kasumi felt a small amount of guilt at the conflict in the other woman's eyes, but held firm. After seeming to debate with herself mentally, the quarian finally spoke.

"It's up to him about what he tells you," the other woman said. "I don't know how much he's told you already, but it would be better to let him explain."

"Explain what?"

Kasumi jumped slightly as Rassen entered the conversation, before scowling slightly. That was unfair; no one ever caught her by surprise like that.

If I wasn't currently in what feels suspiciously like a hospital bed in the middle of nowhere and had more than half my usual amount of blood, then I'd have heard him coming a mile off.

"Kasumi, she… she wants to know who you are." Kasumi watched as Shaela stood up and placed a hand on Rassen's arm. "She saved us," the quarian reminded him, "doesn't she deserve to know?" Kasumi held Rassen's gaze as he turned to her, a dozen emotions seeming to pass through his eyes in less than a second. He finally nodded before sitting down in the second chair, Shaela returning to the one she had just vacated a moment earlier.

"I do not know if you will believe me," Rassen began. "But everything I am about to tell you is true. Shaela is right; you deserve the truth after everything you have done so far." He took a deep breath as she continued to watch him for any sign that he was lying. He laced his fingers together and Kasumi braced herself for an earth-shattering revelation. As it was, she was not disappointed.

"I come from another galaxy."

Rassen watched Kasumi cautiously as the still-hooded woman seemed to slowly process his words, turning them over in her mind. He glanced over at Shaela, who took one of his hands and gently squeezed it. He smiled at her in thanks before retuning his attention to the woman in the bed, who rolled one hand for him to keep talking. He blinked in surprise before Kasumi rolled her eyes.

"Well? Keep going."

He turned to look back at Shaela incredulously, the quarian looking just as surprised as he felt. He stared at Kasumi in surprise. "You believe me?"

"I'm willing to hear you out." She gestured at their surroundings with surprising energy, considering she looked substantially paler than normal. "I don't have anything else to do."

He couldn't help from smirking at her response despite his shock at her nonchalant reaction. "Very true."

Hours passed as he explained who he was and where he had come from. As he had with Shaela when they first met, he paid special attention to things such as the Force, which he knew Kasumi had no idea about. Once he reached his arrival in this galaxy several years prior, Shaela began to join in, the quarian adding details from her own perspective or mentioning things he would have otherwise forgotten. The two of them left very little out, explaining about Zaressh, Omega and Aria, and how they had eventually left the station in pursuit of the Sith. Through it all Kasumi remained silent, features calm as she listened attentively. Once they arrived at the aftermath of the events on Querra though, he gave only a broad outline of what had occurred during the next two years. Out of the corner of one eye, Rassen noticed Shaela give him a concerned look, the quarian obviously noticing the lack of detail compared with other parts of the account. Finally reaching the point where he and Kasumi had first met, the Jedi finally stopped talking, voice hoarse.

A small amount of colour had returned to Kasumi's face by that time as another few minutes passed while she absorbed everything she had been told.

"All right, fine. I believe you." He opened his mouth to respond, but the bed-ridden woman beat him to the punch. "That story is so ridiculous, so detailed, that it has to be true. Well, at least mostly."

Looking back at that moment, Rassen would always be slightly embarrassed at the strange choking noise he made as he stared at her in disbelief. "You… I… what?" He finally managed.

The ghost of a smile appeared on Kasumi's face. "Look," she began, "I've seen enough completely bizarre and unbelievable things to know that anything is possible. There is no way you made all of that up on the fly, particularly with how well Shaela was able to expand on different parts. Anyway, the kind of weapons those guys back there had… and you had a sword. To be honest, another galaxy isn't as strange as some of the explanations I could think up."

"So you believe me?"

"Yep." He couldn't help smiling in relief as he noticed how Kasumi rolled her eyes at his reaction. "I believe you, big guy." She paused in thought. "Although, some more proof would be nice."

"Like what?"

"If you can heal people like Shaela said you can, could you heal me?" Seeing no reason not to oblige, considering he seemed to have recovered almost entirely from his own injuries, Rassen glanced over at Shaela, who nodded back encouragingly. The Jedi then stretched out an open hand in Kasumi's direction, closing his eyes as he reached out to the Force.

"Don't take too long to do this, Shaela might get jealous."

He refused to open his eyes, though he did allow himself to smirk as Shaela made an indignant sound in response to the joke. "The sensation is a little disconcerting," he warned, "but not unpleasant. Your wound is extensive, even though so much medi-gel was applied to it. This may take a while."

The door began to slide open before him, and he nearly tapped a foot impatiently, barely able to contain his excitement. Finally, after all of Mandalore's assurances and promises, it was done. As much as he hated to admit it, no one else could have managed it. It was beyond the best of the Hegemony's scientists, beyond even the salarians, despite the speed the damn amphibians could think at. He winced at the bright light of the room as he entered it, his four eyes contracting as he began to quickly march to his target. The various batarian personnel and Mandalorians watched him as he passed, but he paid them no mind.

The moment he had received word that the project was at last completed, he had immediately begun making his way to the lab. He had so far managed to keep his expression calm and collected despite the immense glee he felt, though that had been no easy task. The horned alien turned to face him as he approached, giving him a look of detached disinterest. Even the blatant disrespect failed to ruin his good mood. That was unusual; disrespect was something he normally never tolerated. Then again, this was far from a normal day.

At the alien's gesture, he nodded crisply and walked over to the result of the former's labours. As he surveyed the one personal thing he had insisted on in his deal with Mandalore, he smirked.

Finally.

Rassen frowned as he examined the small screen in his hands, the chair he was sitting on creaking in protest as he adjusted his position, the cockpit silent save for his movements. An hour had passed since he had healed Kasumi, but they had not yet taken off. The reason why was currently in his hands, the words on the datapad he had found in this room proving more difficult to decipher than he had expected. It would have made more sense to finish the pre-flight checks and then try to work out what was contained on the device while they headed somewhere they could get help. Something was nagging at him though, some instinct that told him that there was still something they didn't know, something so important that he needed to find it out as quickly as possible. He was most of the way through the datapad now, but still felt that he was missing some great revelation.

Shaela could have dealt with the checks while he was examining the datapad, but she was currently going through the wreck of her ship. The quarian had refused to answer any questions related to why she wanted to do so alone, and Rassen hadn't pried. He knew her well enough to tell that the destruction of her own vessel had seriously upset her, but no more than that. As a result, they had agreed to accomplish their separate tasks before leaving Watchman.

"I can't understand a word of whatever that is."

He didn't jump as he had when Kasumi had caught him off-guard before. He must have already started to get used to her ability to sneak up on people silently. "That will be because it is in Mando'a," he replied, "which no one in this galaxy speaks." He glanced over his shoulder at her from where he was sitting. "You should still be resting," he muttered. "Your wound may be healed, but there is little I can do about the blood loss."

Kasumi shrugged off his warning. "You mean that no one in this galaxy speaks it except them… and you, presumably."

"Yes, though I am not as familiar with the language as I would like to be." Rassen frowned again as the small blue lettering on the screen continued to irritate him. "Even with my omni-tool helping, I still have not finished working out everything on it. Apparently the translation function seems to struggle with Mando'a more than Galactic Basic."

"Hmm." Kasumi leaned over his shoulder, the petite woman's features illuminated slightly by the glow of the screen. "Anything useful though?"

"As far as I can tell, it appears to contain the orders given to the leader of the Mandalorians who fought us. It seems as though he left it on board this ship after memorising them. The logical thing to do would have been to then destroy this device, though it seems he did not expect to lose and so did not bother." Rassen paused to let out a yawn before continuing. "There is a mention of some kind of 'special arrangement,' something about a prisoner."

"A prisoner?"

"Yes. Someone they have had for months and the batarians want very badly to suffer by the sound of things. They seem to intend to move him to a secure facility." Rassen looked up at her, mind too exhausted to notice how Kasumi had gone very still. "Someone called 'Shepard,' apparently."

Every single part of his body hurt. Shepard blinked furiously, desperately trying to see through the viscous blue liquid that encased him. His breaths came out as loud hissing noises as a result of the breathing apparatus attached to his face. He had woken up only moments ago, and nearly panicked when he realised he was floating in some kind of tank in the middle of a brightly lit room.

He squinted as he saw several dark shapes moving through the liquid. People, he realised with a start. But were they friend or foe? Instincts honed by years of training and even more of experience began to kick in as he tried to work out how many there were and how to best dispatch them. After a moment though, all of the shapes save one vanished, the one which remained growing larger as the figure approached the tank. There was suddenly a second hissing noise alongside his breathing, before he realised that the liquid in the tank was draining through a hole at the bottom. As soon as it had finished, the breathing apparatus detached itself and the front of the tank swung open, causing him to stumble forwards before collapsing, his breathing desperate and ragged.

A pair of boots appeared squarely in the middle of his vision. Shepard slowly looked up, eyes moving over the figure's legs, chest, and finally reaching their face. Despite all of his training, all of his victories, he shivered in a way that had nothing to do with the cold. The man standing above him savoured the moment before speaking, voice smug as he barred the needle-like teeth all batarians possessed.

"Hello, Shepard," grinned Ka'hairal Balak, "it's been too long."