MASS EFFECT: WINTER EYES
CHAPTER 2: NEXT TARGET
"Speak up. Aria asked you a question." The pale yellow toned Krogan rumbled beside T'Loak. His assault rifle directly aimed at the pair. Skin tone could give away a krogan's age. Older krogan had darker tones while younger ones had more brightness to it. His left eye was missing, and the flesh had grown in some where it had been sutured shut. Thick scars were covering his face. He had seen some hardcore battles in his younger days. His accomplice was a younger breed, no scars and kept his reptilian mouth shut.
"Technically, Brek," Aria interjected pointedly. "I made a demand." She then flashed her cold blue eyes over to him. "I can handle this." A firm reminder not to cross her. Aria T' Loak always wanted to appear that she had everything in control and could handle herself against any foe. If she let her bodyguards do her talking for, it was a sign of weakness. Brek's lip rolled up slightly to reveal his deadly sharp incisors before he thundered back with a giant step. Seeing their interaction, Liara figured that this krogan was new on Aria's payroll and didn't want to play by the rules just yet. She kept this information in her pocket. She never ceased to let opportunities slip out of her fingers. If they had trouble getting out of Aria's clutches, perhaps, Brek could be their ticket off the station. Once satisfied that she had the floor, Aria approached Liara and Garrus with a look of distrust on her purple facial appearance. "It bothers me when members of Shepard's team arrive on my station. My men noticed you, Liara T'Soni, when you departed from your ship." Liara didn't show a spec of worry on her face. Somehow, she knew she failed in her deception of her appearance. "Better luck next time." Aria cooed.
"It's been five years since the war, Aria." Liara argued calmly.
"Yet, you are still hiding from me." T'Loak countered. Point her. "Whenever Shepard and her crew were on my station, it was trouble."
"Despite that, you begged her for help to take this place back from Cerberus." Garrus fought through gritted teeth; his fists clenched at his sides. He remembered the hell that Macha endured on her own when she agreed to go solo with Aria to take back Omega. Garrus never slept until her safe return. To him, Aria wasn't worth risking her life. Omega wasn't worth it. Shepard saw the need for Aria's forces and she was determined to get back Earth at any cost.
Aria's eyes narrowed dangerously to almost slits from his comment. "I do not beg," She hissed. "I traded my support for her noble efforts in exchange for helping me retake this place from Cerberus." A pause. "I don't know how you got through the net, Garrus Vakarian, but I assure you that it won't happen again." She glanced over to the two batarians that accompanied her. Her eyes drilling into them, looking for silent answers on how the turian came to be on Omega without her notice. "Just how long have you been here?"
"Hours," Garrus lied quickly.
"Don't push me." Aria glared hard at him. She wasn't playing. "You both would come this way to meet up behind closed doors?"
"We were just leaving." Liara spoke up.
"Your ship is impounded, and it will be released upon my discretion." A thin smile spread across her light purple lips. "Let's just say. I do not trust you."
"This doesn't concern Omega!" Liara didn't like the notion that they were now prisoners of Aria. Just how long would she keep them there? This was holding them up!
Aria could detect the tension rising. "If it doesn't, then why come here? Please. I wasn't born a century ago."
"I came here and Liara found me." Garrus found his voice once again, stepping into the center of the room, becoming the direct subject of the conversation.
"Garrus- "Liara gasped, raising her arm to stop him, but he moved away quickly.
"I... had to get away. I came here because-," He stopped himself short as if he now regretted the choice he was about to make.
Aria was not amused. "I'm listening. Don't drag this out. I hate long winded stories. It's almost as bad as an elcor trying to sell me something."
"There are murders connected to Shepard," Liara butted in, trying to redirect the conversation. She wasn't about to let Garrus confess to his days as Archangel. Not when there could be active bounties still on his head. The years may have progressed, but the mercs impacted did not forget the turmoil he put them in. They had no choice now, but to get Aria's assistance. Even if it wasn't purposely, Liara could rely on her intel as well.
"What murders?" Aria grabbed onto the bait.
Garrus knew they were losing valuable time and if they divulged everything to her here and now, then she may decide to keep them there. They had to get moving and the docks were on the same way as the club. He had to move their party along. "We can't discuss here. We may be followed."
"By who?" Aria wasn't buying it.
Liara looked over at Garrus and tried to read his eyes the best that she could. She didn't know what trick he had up his sleeve, but she had to play along to make this believable. "We are not sure who is behind them yet," She lied. "If you traced me here, then they probably have as well. We need to get out of here."
"She's right, boss." A batarian spoke up. "No way out of here. We have more weapons at the club."
Aria sneered at him, then shot her eyes back at Garrus and Liara. She crossed her arms and pondered on what to do. "Abenk, you lead the way. The back way," She emphasized the latter. Her eyes never left the turian and the asari in front of her. "You are coming along too. Brek?"
"Yeah?" The older krogan barked.
"If they try to escape, shoot them," She commanded flatly.
"Understood. Get moving." He moved towards their prisoners and ushered them along with the barrel of his gun.
Aria stopped them. "Hand your weapons over to Abenk. Don't think I trust you that much."
The walk towards the club took longer due to the twisted routes that Abenk was leading them on. Some of the streets Garrus was unfamiliar with, but he tried to keep a mental note of the layout and picked up on familiarities. He always tried to remain one step ahead. Despite the zig zags, he calculated that they were still going in the westerly direction and the route to the docks would be coming up. Aria had the ship impounded, but perhaps, if they fought their way through, there was a chance! Being unharmed was a problem. He hoped to catch one of the guards there off-guard and seize their gun. Liara could muster with her biotics until they got down to the docks. Once they were there, they could manage to surprise the forces holding the ship and make a break for it. They had to time everything perfectly. He caught Liara's weary gaze upon him. She nodded her head slightly, not to cause any suspicious movement. She was onboard with whatever his plan was. They didn't have time to discuss everything with Aria. If Charon determined they had loose ends, then they would target the volus witness on Ilium to silence him forever. He already may be dead. Suddenly, a blur caught his attention and he glanced up in its direction. They were passing several apartment complexes and it almost seemed like someone was looking down at them as they passed up. The window, two stories up, was vacant now. Were his eyes deceptive to him? He looked ahead to see that Aria gained some distance between them.
A sickly looking salarian approached the group from the left. "Aria, I lost my daughter during the plague years ago." He weakly coughed. "They fired me from the refinery last week. I need work." The amphibious looking alien reached out to the prestigious asari, hoping to catch her for a moment. Abenk caught notice of his attempt and moved to usher him away.
"Get lost!" Abenk snared. He barely got his words out before the entire right cavity of his head exploded with blood and brain matter splattering everywhere. Blotches of blood fell on the salarian and Aria who were the closest to the victim. Screaming in terror, the salarian fell to his knees and crawled away to seek refuge.
The headshot was precise and clean. A professional hit. "Sniper!" Garrus alerted the team and he grabbed Liara by the wrist, jerking her to the right to take cover behind trash bins. He should have seen this coming! That moment that grabbed his attention was no trick.
The remaining batarian moved to protect Aria and glanced frantically around for their attacker. The burly Krogan remained exposed, relying heavily on their thick hides and redundant nervous systems for protection. Their large bodies made it impossible to take cover like the others. Aria didn't like the idea that her prisoners were alone. She took notice of their location. "Stay with them!" She bellowed.
A whizz and another round ricocheted off the ground near where Aria was at and the batarian. Another struck the batarian's arm that barely was uncovered. He groaned and jerked to get out of the way. Garrus looked to see the pair of krogan moving in their direction and the shooter ducking back down in the same window that he noticed before. Their action was almost seamless, and he noted that their clothing was all in black, which made it difficult to see them at first. The rounds were only going to Aria's direction. Becoming quicker almost in an act of desperation. Was she the intended sniper's target?
Eyeing the fallen batarian's weapon still out in the open, Garrus made a dash for it. "Garrus!" Liara called out to him. She worriedly watched him and then back at the window.
Scooping up the rifle, Garrus caught the brief look on Aria's face and then rolled back to his original position. Checking the magazine, he was satisfied to know that he still had half a clip. "At least the poor bastard was ready," His mandible twitched at his friend as he glanced around his surroundings.
"Brek!" Aria called out to the krogan that was near them. "Watch them." The idea of one of them being armed didn't settle well with her; even if they were hiding for their lives right now. Technically, as a biotic, Liara was still deadly, but Aria outranked her with her skills.
"What are you going to do?" Liara looked on at Garrus.
"We can't charge in there. The bastard may have the whole place wired." He thought out loud as he analyzed their situation. He had to think like this guy. It felt odd being the other person on the end of the scope.
"Surprised he hasn't made a break for it."
"He knows he's trapped or he's that hard up to get his target." Garrus contemplated their foe. "Either way, he's going to get desperate."
"Well, if he is, then he's doing an excellent job of hiding it. He is not coming out." Liara noticed that things were becoming calm, but any fool would believe the coast was clear.
"Can't let Aria do anything stupid." Garrus thumbed back to the Omega leader's direction. "She'll send her goons in. He wants his target."
"You really think Aria is going to stand there and let him shoot?" Liara cocked her eye ridge at the direction he was going with it.
"Only one way to find out." Garrus looked up at the window again and then back at their captor. "Aria! Stand up!"
"Are you fucking crazy?!" She shot back, keeping her head down. "You want me dead!"
"He wants his target! You're it!" Garrus shouted back.
"How convincing…" Liara teased him.
Garrus noticed Aria looking his direction but kept his guard up. He noticed their foe was still hiding. He pointed to his own rifle with his talon and then to the window. Sternly, Aria gritted her teeth and stood up from where she was. "You want to screw around up there? I'm right here," She called to their unknown assassin.
There was silence and it seemed as if Garrus' plan would falter. He crouched down and waited, keeping his finger on the trigger and staying out of sight with T'Soni next to him. His heart rapidly moving in anticipation, his hand stayed steady despite the pressure. If he was wrong or missed, then another life may be taken. He could hear Liara's quick breathing as she vigilantly waited for the signal. "Come on…," Vakarian huffed through his mouth.
Aria was playing her part. She stood there casually, arms crossed, as if her life truly was not in danger. The sniper sprung up from his hiding spot by the window, holding his rifle at the ready. As if everything was going in slow motion by the sheer adrenaline, Garrus glanced Liara's way. "Now!"
Gathering dark energy, Liara released a biotic sphere towards the humanoid figure, striking him directly with an unsuspected singularity attack. The dark energy lifted the man off the ground, rendering him helpless as his feet dangle beneath him. He struggled to regain his sights. Shooting haphazardly in Aria's general direction, striking the crates near her, but nowhere near her or her men. Garrus raised his own rifle and took aim. The distance was longer than most shots would be precise with an assault rifle. The attack called more for a sniper rifle, but brute strength was Aria's MO; not stealth. Squeezing the trigger down, a spray of rounds flew at the assassin, striking his shields, tearing apart the kinetic barriers and piercing his light armor. Garrus didn't let up until he heard the man whelp in pain as a bullet struck his right hip. The krogan were already rushing inside on Aria's order. Garrus didn't have a chance to warn them. As suspected, there was the sound of an explosion towards the front of the complex and the sounds of agony from tenants caught in the aftermath and the deadly groans from the krogan succumbing to their wounds after the blast. Garrus had knocked Liara down and used his body as a shield to protect her from any flying debris. Luckily, the blast was focused on the entrance hallway to protect an ambush, so it was not directly on them. The man still dangled helplessly in the air when they stood back up. "Liara…" Garrus said gently as he tried not to look over at the hallway destruction. The front of the complex was charred, and dead burnt corpses were exposed where once happily tenants lived.
"I'm on it…" Liara launched another biotic attack. This time a throw maneuver. Tossing the man like a rag doll out of the window towards the streets below. Garrus ran and caught the man before he came to a deadly splat on the concrete floor.
Blood stained the man's clothing on the right side where the hip was struck. Not fatal, but he could bleed out if not given the proper attention. The man appeared to be young in his early thirties with red hair that was combed over. The ends of the hair were neatly cut up to the nape of the neck. Shock consumed the man's body from the hit and he momentarily at some time during the biotic hold, lost consciousness. His head drooped towards the right side exposing the same familiar tattoo image of Hades on his neck. Gasping, Garrus gingerly placed him down and tapped him with the scuff of his boot. "Seems like they are getting closer."
"That him?" Aria walked over with the last remaining guard by her side. Her eyes didn't even move over to where the krogan went. There was no need to check on any survivors; there were none.
"Yes," Liara frowned, seeing the same tatt as well. "It seems like it."
"Who are they?" Aria asked. When the others would not speak, this infuriated her. "I don't like being kept in the dark on issues that are happening on my station. You already pissed me off snooping around."
"We didn't think at first that it concerned you." Liara curtly replied.
Aria eyed her carefully. "Well it concerns me now, so start talking."
A soft grunt from the man below caught their attention and all eyes turned downwards to where he was. He opened his green eyes, focused on the aliens and then turned his eyes away in disgust. "No talk back?" Garrus asked to the group in surprise.
"He will." Aria said in assurance as hatred consumed her.
The man snapped his face back towards her direction. "I don't talk to alien shit like you," He spat saliva at her, hitting the upper part of her shirt.
Aria's cold expression remained poised. She didn't bother to look at her shirt. She took the heel of her boot and jammed it sharply into his open wound. The man screamed loudly as she continued to press it down into the torn flesh. The man screamed louder until his body went into an unconsciousness state once more from shock. "They all talk when I'm through with them," She whispered to his silent form matter-of-factly. She looked over at her batarian companion. "Ebrako, get this piece of filth out of my sight."
"I'm on it." The batarian moved to grab the human by the arms to drag him along with him to the club.
Aria turned her attention back on her previous captives. "Lose the gun." She held out her hand to take Garrus' weapon back. "Don't think this means I'm letting you go yet."
"Aria, we are on the same side." Liara shook her head tiresomely in exasperation.
"I just been shot at and you two know who this guy is with. Once I'm done with him, then I will deal with you."
Garrus handed her the weapon and motioned her to move on. "This guy could give us more information than that volus, Liara." He pointed out. He and she reluctantly began to follow Aria and Ebrako back to Afterlife.
"It doesn't seem he really wants to talk." Liara muttered sadly. She thought back to the ex-Cerberus operatives that they uncovered following their raids on the Cerberus outposts. Many took their own lives rather than becoming prisoner. It seemed like this guy's intentions were the same. He didn't plan on Aria having backup from Garrus and Liara. In fact, she began to wonder if it was pure coincidence that this guy's attack on T'Loak happened around the same time of her arrival on Omega. He was dug in. Did he plan it? Did he know that Garrus was already there? A lot of unanswered questions rattled inside her head.
"Oh, he will talk," Aria's response was smug. "They always do."