HOLOCAUST

CHAPTER FIVE:

FORTUNE FAVORS THE BOLD

June 3, 2186

1302 hours.

Lower Wards, Original Site of Chora's Den, Shalta Ward, The Citadel.

The Reaper War.

Captain Marcus Lee Shepard, Shadow Broker Liara T'Soni.

The Lower Wards were dead silent, not a sound to be heard among their cold, dead, abandoned walls except for their echoing footsteps. Marcus remembered this place all too well from three years ago; when he walked these exact halls to reach Chora's Den to rescue Tali; a quarian with intel he needed, only for him to run into and meet Wrex. He remembered how dirty and disgusting they had been, and how that extended to their equally disgusting inhabitants. The Lower Wards had been the Citadel's own little Omega; and now they were just ruins; noone had even bothered trying to fix the area.

He walked through what used to be the lower market, heading for the exit door, which had been completely twisted off the hinge, torn aside and a blue curtain of sorts hanging over it. The place was so silent it seemed to whisper to them as they passed; the hiss of gasses above giving the place a horror-like theme.

They moved through the doorway, coming across an inactive rapid transit terminal and heading into the overpass where Chora's Den was located. Turning left, he recognized the square-like interior of the pass, and the old sign, an asari dancer lying down in a sexual pose, was no longer lit, and some of it had been destroyed by debris.

They weren't alone, and Marcus felt himself smiling as they moved towards the old entrance, where debris still lay where it hadn't been removed. Multiple figures stood along the bridge, either holding SMGs, shotguns, assault rifles, pistols or sniper rifles, along with the occassional missile launcher or flamethrower. Had this been one year ago, Marcus would have been among them in combat armor, weapon in hand, and gunning them down, but today their blue armor was let unbloodied, and this time they weren't trying to kill him. He had his friend to thank for that.

They all stared at him, clad in blue armor from light, to medium to heavy; turians, humans and the occassional batarian. He heard a few batarians growl at him, but he ignored their gaze, heading for the lone figure who stood ahead, his armor standing out in the crowd of Blue Suns troopers.

One woman stood at his side, arms crossed and clearly the one in command. She wore a full helmet, her assault rifle holstered on her back. She cocked her hips on her right side, standing beside the mercenary who now called himself the leader of the Blue Suns.

"You actually came," the bounty hunter muttered, "Thought I might have been interrupting some goddam Council meeting. Wouldn't want to piss off our four fucking overlords."

"I'm done with those four fucking overlords," Marcus returned with a smirk, holding out his hand for the man to take, "I have to say, I didn't expect to get a message from you Zaeed, but bringing an army of mercs onto the Citadel? Expected that even less."

Zaeed Massani was just as grizzled as he had looked a year ago when he last saw him. The man was the most feared bounty hunter in the galaxy, and for good reason; the crazy shit the old man had done would have earned him a number of statues in his honor; whether it was killing krogan battlemasters and taking their helmets, or blowing up turian warships; the man had done it. Even survived one bullet shot to the forehead after being betrayed by his co-worker, and then survived being blown to pieces by numerous more bullet wounds. He was a freak of nature, and the man was old enough to be his father. Numerous scars occupied his face, and his left eye was a white, cybernetic iris, giving it a very creepy look. His old armor was chipped, burnt and riddled with bullet holes, but it was working. And what only furthered the captain's smile was the avenger assault rifle on his back; Jessie he called it; a rifle the man had an insane attachment to.

And with his co-worker dead, by his own hands no less, Zaeed Massani had uncontested control over the Blue Suns organization, and all for one purpose; to provide a fighting force for battling the Reapers. At least its something. Getting the Eclipse and Blood Pack on their side would be one hell of a challenge, but Marcus would find ways. I'm sure Zaeed will have some ideas...

"If you stop expecting things from me, you won't ever be goddam surprised ever again," Zaeed replied, shaking his head as he crossed his arms, jabbing a finger at the men around him, "And I have to admit; having all these grunts to take fire for me has been great. Means I get to live longer, and the longer I live, the closer my retirement plan seems to be getting. Of course, I don't think that'll be happening very soon if I hear the reports are correct, and not just fearmongering bullshit."

"Its true Zaeed," Marcus replied, grin dropping almost immediately, his voice taking on a solemn tone, "The Reapers are here."

The merc spread his arms out wide, giving a mock look of surprise, "Well I'll be fucking buttfucked; we were right? And I thought for a second those retarded monkeys actually had half a molecule worth of a brain to be goddam right for a change. I'd love to stay 'we were right, and I'm loving it,' but I guess the destruction of all life isn't really something to celebrate is it?"

"Khar'Shan's fallen. Earth's fallen. Palaven or Sur'Kesh are probably next, if the Council tells it right," Liara spoke up, coming to stand beside Marcus with an inquisitive brow, "The Reapers have already butchered and harvested hundreds of thousands, most likely. Millions more will follow."

Zaeed turned to the asari, "Well its lucky we have a lot of fucking guns, isn't it? We'll get to even the odds," he waved to the Blue Suns around him, and turned to Marcus, "These sorry bastards are all yours to command, Shepard. He want us to blow up a fucking Reaper? Consider it done. Want some assholes to die so you can extract? I have the troops provided. All these assholes need is targets to shoot at. They'll do the rest..."

Marcus didn't like how the mercenary finished his sentence; like he wanted to add something else, but trailed off on purpose to let him know their was a catch. There always is. If there's one thing I've learnt by now, nothing is ever easy. But I'll do anything to get the Blue Suns under my belt. I don't like crawling into a bed with a mercenary organization, but I need them to defeat the Reapers. I need them for the alliance I'm forming.

"But?" He finally felt the word leave his lips, like a breath of air on the wind that he wanted out of the way in a hurry.

Zaeed sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned against a nearby piece of rubble and scratched his chin, "There's been a complication. Remember that cunt I told you about; Vosque?"

Marcus' eyes narrowed menacingly, "Darner Vosque. I remember him. You said he was the leader of the Blue Suns, and that you were going to 'relieve' him of command when you took over. What happened?"

"I got fucking soft," Zaeed growled, motioning to the woman nearby to finish the rest.

Her voice was soft but hardened, like that of a soldier, "Vosque didn't fight back when Zaeed took over; he just let him have the organization, and to our surprise, Massani just let him live. He made Vosque head of the Citadel division and, until recently, things were running smoothly. Now it seems Vosque has gotten a bit greedy and treacherous, and hopes to join Aria T'Loak's forces."

"Omega is a long way from here," Marcus commented, "And if I know Aria, she won't let just anyone see her."

"Aria isn't on Omega anymore," the woman shrugged, "She's here. On the Citadel. Vosque plans to meet with her soon, but we hope to eliminate him beforehand, and have Zaeed take over in his place with the negoitations with Aria."

"Why give you some blue-armoured cunts, when I give you Aria's cunts as well?" Zaeed piped up, revealing his plan, "My mercs are good, but Aria's a real badass; and I doubt the Reapers scare that bitch."

Goody. Wound up in mercenary politics. Although its slightly more enjoyable than Council politics, its still a tad on the tedious side. But I'm not certainly not looking a gift horse in the mouth. But why would Aria come here? She hates the Citadel. She wouldn't ever leave Omega, unless she has no choice..."Do you have any idea why Aria would be here?"

"Not a single one. But everyone agrees that whatever got her to come here, its royally pissed her off," the female Blue Suns officer spoke again, "Damn near choked a C-Sec officer to death with her biotics for simply asking for ID. Then she shoved Councilor Tevos' communicator in his face, and stormed off to Purgatory; its a clu-"

"I know what and where Purgatory is," Marcus deadpanned, turning back to Zaeed, "What worries me is this Vosque figure," his voice became ice, "He sounds like he needs to be removed." Noone is going to get in the way of this alliance. I'm done with being diplomatic to these scum. They either get in line, or I'll find someone to replace them. Vosque is no different. I'll kill him, and the Blue Suns will be mine. Every single soldier.

He looked around him, imagined the face of every single merc in the room; they would die under his command. Just when did he start seeing soldiers as a resource? If he starts thinking like that, what makes him any different to the Reapers? Next I'll be recruiting husks for my army. I'm nothing like the Reapers. I won't let those bastards define who I am.

"Which is exactly why I'm goddam here. To remove a thorn from my ass," Zaeed hissed, "That, and a whole bunch of mercs to help me, and my second-in-command, Jentha there. I planned on ambushing Vosque, but when I learnt you were here, I thought you'd like to deal with him yourself. He's fucking with your plans, afterall."

"You're letting me deal with your traitor?" Marcus asked, flabbergasted, "Why?"

"Truth is, I guess I goddam owe you a life," the bounty hunter replied, grunting, "You helped me kill Vido when you didn't fucking have to. That asshole plagued my life for twenty years, and here you were, willing to kill the fucker. You let me put a bullet between his fucking eyes. So let me return the favor. Vosque is all yours; the only left to you is how you kill him."

"Very well," Marcus declared, turning to Liara, "I'll run through the plan with Zaeed, Liara. Could you return to the ship and grab our armor and weapons for us? I'm expecting a fight."

"Do you want me to have Keeling and James suit up?" The asari asked, concern in her eyes.

"No. There's no need. Let them enjoy their shore leave," he stated, waving a dismissive hand and shaking his head, "Just you, me, Jentha, Zaeed, and a whole lot of Blue Suns. They're only mercs; we've fought a whole lot worse."

"That we have," Liara smiled alittle, turning to leave, "I'll be back soon with our equipment. Try not to run off anywhere. I'd hate to tell Tali that I lost you."

The grin remained on his face with her final sentence, but it no longer reached his eyes, mind conjuring up images of his quarian wife. Damn it, where are you? What are you doing out there? I need you, and you're nowhere to be seen. He had tried contacting her through her normal inbox earlier on, but she either had changed its extranet IP address, or she simply wasn't replying. He didn't like to think she was ignoring him. She would never do that, would she? Damn this war. I might have found her already, if it wasn't for the damn Reapers...and now Cerberus.

Liara saw the look in his eyes and hastily left, trying not to let those thoughts linger.

Marcus dropped his smile entirely, setting a grim facade on his features to wipe away the emotion he secretly held. Turning to Zaeed, he spoke, ice in his tone, "I've got a war to win, Zaeed, and alot of armies to raise, lets get this over with. We'll find Vosque, kill him, and then I'll leave. And your certain that the Blue Suns will fight for me? For the galaxy?"

"They'll fight for me," Zaeed corrected, thumping his chest, "And I've fought alongside you. You're a crazy motherfucker, Shepard. Calling you my friend would be too goddam soft, but I've definitely come to know you as a comrade. So when the call for battle comes, call me, and I'll rally the troops and we'll charge in, guns fucking firing. The Blue Suns will be yours Shepard, on your terms, and my own. So, are we ready to kill this asshole, or what?"

Marcus nodded, squaring his shoulders and stretching them, "We'll wait here for Liara to come back. Once I've got my armor and weapons, we'll storm Darner's base."

"You need armor, Shepard? You've gotten fuckin weak," Zaeed chuckled.

"I'm not stupid or invincible, you old bastard," the man threw back equally, shaking his head, "I'm a mortal, just like you, and I need my armor as much as the next guy," deciding to change the subject, he asked for some intel, "Just where is Darner meeting Aria anyway? I'm assuming he'd do it at his base."

"You give him too much credit," Jentha replied, uncrossing her arms, "No, the imbecile's doing it right out in the open; just outside the Consort's Chambers on the Presidium. Aria is apparently well known here, and C-Sec seems to have cleared the area completely. Apparently Tevos' given her free reign, and Aria plans on taking advantage of as much of that privledge as possible."

"A Councilor's word on the Citadel might as well be law. I'm not surprised C-Sec has laid off," Marcus replied, scratching his forehead, "But if Darner and Aria are meeting in the middle of the Presidium, we can't launch a full assault. I won't do anything that harms innocent civilians."

"You think C-Sec's stupid, Shepard? They know how these meetings go; gunfights are commonplace," Zaeed waved a hand as a dismissive gesture, "No, the whole goddam section is like a ghost town. Even the Consort's Chambers are locked up tight, and its residents left a while ago. We'll have the whole place to ourselves."

The captain snorted, sighing. The first time I've fought on the Presidium since the Battle of the Citadel three years ago. Luckily for us, that was against geth and husks. If mercs is all we have to worry about, this battle will be over very quickly.

Marcus' response was quick and to the point, "Then all we can do is wait."

And wait they did.

{Loading...}

June 3, 2186

1338 hours.

Outside the Consort's Chambers, Presidium, Shalta Ward, The Citadel.

The Reaper War.

Captain Marcus Lee Shepard, Shadow Broker Liara T'Soni, Blue Suns Commander Zaeed Massani, First Lieutenant Jentha Renmark.

Today was one of the days where he truly hated Alliance standard issue combat armor.

Not only was it pathetic in how much punishment it could take, but it was so light that it felt like it wasn't even wearing it. He might as well be naked for all the difference it made; and only the guns on his back gave him any reassurance that he was safe, and even those weapons were seriously lacking, save his SMG and shotgun.

First chance I get, new armor, new assault rifle. Might even try to find where my old Locust SMG went, along with my Claymore. I like the Piranha, but the claymore is just better. A proper krogan's weapon, Wrex would say...He strode forward, armoured boots clacking against the metal floor with each step, this part of the Presidium feeling eerily empty for an area that was meant to be the most populated, especially with the rich and cosmopolitans of every stripe. C-Sec did a good job evacuating the place.

"What's with the shitty weapons, Shepard?" Zaeed piped up, eying the weapons on his back, "They look piss-weak."

"Oh come on, you hypocrite. You use an Avenger," he shot back, "Besides, never said I liked them. Alliance practically force fed them to me; same with the armor. Believe me, I'll be getting new ones soon. I ain't sticking to these. Only weapon they couldn't take away from me was my biotics."

Zaeed snorted, turning away as he unholstered his own avenger assault rifle, "Jessie's different. I've upgraded her in many a different way, and now she packs a goddam punch ever since that Reegar guy fixed it. Yours is unchanged, unmodified, and that makes it pure shit in my books; could for nothing but shooting a wall with, and there's no satisfaction in that. I like to watch the blood squirt out of the men and women I kill. Makes it real; let's me know I've killed something."

"That's awful," Liara piped up, clad in her white armoured labcoat and Tempest SMG in hand, "To take joy from killing people is horrific and barbaric. Its just plain sadistic."

"Shepard didn't recruit me for my charm and calm words, asari," Zaeed replied, "He recruited me because I'm the meanest motherfucker in the Terminus Systems, and only second to Aria. People don't fuck with me and live to be smug about it, and that gains me influence over some pisspots. And one particular bunch of pisspots just happens to be people Shepard needs. Get with the goddam picture, girl, or the Reapers'll wipe the floor with you. War is ugly, I've gotten used to it, hell, thrived on it."

Liara looked about to protest, but Marcus just held his hand up to stall her, moving forward, "Zaeed's right, and while I don't agree with taking pleasure in it, getting used to it is necessary. We can't afford to play the censorship and paragade game when it comes to this war. If we want to win, we have to be ruthless. That means taking joy from the few kills we get. Its brutal, Liara. But you have to get used to it, or it'll only consume you, spit you out, and kill you."

"I didn't expect that from you of all people!" Liara objected, "What would Garrus say? What would-"

Before she could even say his wife's name, he spun towards her, halting his march and facing her, a chill in his tone, "Garrus would agree with me, and so would Tali, with a bit of convincing. They know what is at stake Liara; something you've failed to contemplate. You were willing to let people get murdered just to take down the Shadow Broker; what makes this war any different, hmmm?"

"I..." she replied, shaking her head, "You can't just gamble with people's lives!"

"And you can't pretend that I'm fucking God!" he growled, poking a finger in her chest, "I can't fucking save every goddamn person in the galaxy! I'm going to have to make choices that'll end families, kill husbands and wives, and possibly end the futures of children. But if it means I save the galaxy, then I might just be able to sleep, knowing what I did. Its something that'll always haunt me, but do you think I'll like it? If you assume that I do these things and like it, you've seriously got your head screwed the wrong way. You know me better than that. You fought beside me against Saren, for godsake."

"Yes, I do know you," she replied, almost in a whisper, "I know you would always look for another way. You wouldn't just go straight for the throat without a single other thought."

"I had time then. Time to think," with a final glance in her direction, he turned and began to leave, "We're out of time, and decisions are needed now. Come on, we've got to keep moving or we'll miss the meeting altogether."

Zaeed and Jentha moved past Liara, and the asari sighed, moving to catch up, unwilling to remember what Marcus had just said. This war has already changed him, and its barely started. Or was it Aratoht that changed him? She was beginning to think it was. The destruction of three hundred thousand must have been really hard on him. And now he's closing himself off, piece by piece, and becoming the cold man I see now. Goddess, please don't stoop to that level...

She finally caught up to him, and just as Marcus and the group reached four Blue Suns troopers: one turian, three batarians. All of them carried vindicator battle rifles, and one batarian had his blue tech armor activated, all four sending Zaeed glares. Marcus knew there was a column of Blue Suns loyalists behind them and ready to back them up, but Vosque's separatists were an unknown variable. He had no idea how many there were.

And, with a shift in his cold expression, realized he didn't care. They would all die equally if they got in the way of this alliance. Enough mister nice guy.

"We know why you're here, Massani," the batarian in tech armor growled, "Better leave right now, before we comm Vosque and tell him your here. I'm sure he'd love a nice exchange of bullets. Maybe he'll finish the job Santiago started."

"Move aside, blink, or I'll pop you a new hole," the mercenary spat, moving to stand next to Marcus' left, who stood there like a statue, finger fumbling at the magnetic clamp holding his shotgun, "I'm not in the mood to be yanked around, and this little rebellion will gain you nothing. I took control for one reason; to help fight Reapers."

"We fight for money, not for politicians. Or did you forget that when you took control, Massani?" the batarian laughed, "Your fucked. Fuck the Reapers, and fuck you and your cause. Drag the rest of the Blue Suns to death, but do not bother involving us. Now leave, or we'll open fire."

A dark laugh was their only reply, and the four Blue Suns could only watch as the batarian in tech armor was wrapped in biotic fire and thrown across the bridge and into the water, where his armor dragged him under and began to drown him. The rest became tense and all of them eyed Shepard, who's eyes were full of malice.

"You were given one chance to not get in my way. I'm done talking," he raised his shotgun and fired, blasting the head clean off the turian's shoulders, causing the other two to open fire, "Now you die."

A biotic lash wrapped around one of the batarians and pulled him towards Liara, who had an SMG waiting. Once he was within range, she fired two bursts, which split his belly and killed him, and the asari dropped him on the bridge like a ragdoll. Zaeed strode forward, his avenger ripping into the last batarian's back, who had tried to run away, but had simply been gunned down. The merc turned to Marcus, who strode forward once more, like an emotionless robot, "What the fuck turned you into such a goddam hardass?"

The N7 didn't even respond, simply ignoring Zaeed as he marched forward, the man willing them forward without so much as a word. Zaeed got the hint and moved forward, shouldering his rifle, while Jentha took up his rear, giving Liara a quizzical gaze as she moved. Liara simply shrugged and followed, the column of Blue Suns soldiers marching down the bridge behind them.

As they approached, they heard words being exchanged by Vosque and Aria, and Marcus could overhear Vosque's response; the man's voice was croaky and slimy, like that of a man you knew you couldn't trust, "-that's the condition."

"We all have our little delusions," Aria spat, Marcus easily recognizing the asari's harsh tone and equally harsh words, "But if you seriously fucking think I'm crawling into bed with you just so I can guarantee your support, you can seriously go throw yourself out an airlock. I'll get your support, with you alive, or not."

Sounds just like Aria.

As he moved around the corner, he came within view of the argument. On the left was a squad of Blue Suns soldiers, all holding assault rifles and shotguns, while one held a grenade launcher. Turians, humans, batarians. Before them was a man in Blue Suns armor, with no helmet, and his SMG holstered on his hip; his scalp was shaved and bald, and he had hazel green eyes, with a crooked smile that just oozed perversion. The man made him sick to look at, and Marcus knew upon looking that he was Darner Vosque.

Aria stood on the other side, still wearing her customary white battle jacket, black leggings and anyone would recognize her heavily tattooed face from a smile; her glare so menacing, it could melt steel. Around her stood her bodyguards; he recognized Bray, but the others were unknown to him, and behind her were her numerous, unmarked mercenary gang members. And they seemed fewer in number.

Vosque chuckled, shaking his head, "Trust me, you'll want me alive; Massani will soon be dead, and the Suns will be mine once more. They'll follow my command unconditionally, especially with the promise of more credits. And with your recent failure to keep Omega in your grip, I don't think they'll be very inclined to follow you. You need me, and that disgusts you, I understand that. But I also love it. You'll bed me, hell, you'll fuck me, if it gains my support. Is that not why you're here, begging me? Why, otherwise, would the great and oh so fearsome Aria T'Loak, be begging me here, in the middle of the Citadel?"

"...failure to keep Omega in your grip..." Okay, now that's definitely peaked my interest. But what does he mean by that? How the hell did she lose Omega? She basically had an iron grip on that station.

Aria's response, as could be expected, was less polite, "I swear, if you stare at my tits one more time, I'm going to have to fucking kill you. I will not fuck you, I will not bed you, and I sure as hell won't even suffer your breath on my face. Join me, or I'll find somebody to replace you."

A loud chuckle sounded, and all three of them, yes, including Marcus, whorled around to watch Zaeed casually walk down the steps casually, rifle before him and a haunty smile on his face, "Funny, that last sentence was the same thing I said to Vosque before he decided to go goddam AWOL on me. And now, I plan on doing just that."

Vosque looked at him with a widening grin, "Massani, I see you've finally come to speak with me personally? Good, now I get to kill you and take over."

"You?" Zaeed snorted, "I've got a few matches and some gasoline for what I'm going to do with your corpse, Vosque, so I'll be worried of what you do to me when I join you in hell," he turned to Aria, still smiling, "Sorry bitch, but a man's got to deliver payment, and this goddam cunt has alot of pay coming."

"Zaeed fucking Massani, you better back off!" Aria forewarned, "I will not let this meeting be ruined by you."

"And why's that?" he replied, waving a hand at Vosque, "Because you need my Suns? You need my fucking troops? All you had to do Aria was come to me, instead of going behind my back and negoitating with this cunt. Hell, I already promised the Suns to Shepard to fight his war, didn't I, Shepard?"

All eyes glided up to land on the figure currently moving down to join Zaeed, quickly joined by Jentha and Liara at his side. Arriving at Zaeed's side, his hands clasped behind his back as he replied, "That's correct, Zaeed. I need the Blue Suns to fight the Reapers, as I need you, Aria. And the Terminus Systems."

"Well Shepard, didn't expect to see you here," Aria stated with a scowl, "Just wish you weren't interrupting my fucking moment. I need Vosque."

"For what? The Suns? Weren't you listening to Zaeed?" he growled, taking a step further towards the asari crime lord, "He controls four fifths of the entire Blue Suns organization, while Vosque controls one. And Zaeed knows the stakes of what's going on; he knows you need them to fight the Reapers, as I do."

"I don't want them to fight the fucking Reapers!" she replied, "I want them so I can take my fucking station back from the Cerberus cunts who stole it from me!"

That right there stopped him in his tracks. Cerberus took Omega from Aria? How the fuck did the Illusive Man manage that? And why the hell would they need Omega for? Just what is timmy up to...

"As interesting as this is," Vosque murmured, "Its really time for me to take my leave. I've got a ship waiting in port; goodbye Aria. Hopefully we can do business again in the near-"

Marcus whorled on him with lightning speed, watching him try to take off in his skycar. His face became that of a horrifying monster, and noone would saw it behind his helmet would be able to withstand looking into those feral eyes for more than two seconds. Oh no you fucking don't. Lighting up with biotics, he whorled forward like the speed of light, a lance of dark energy charging out and striking the ascending skycar's engines, sending it out of control.

Vosque, with the door still open, was sent flying from the canopy as the skycar smashed into the ground, broke through the railing, and landed straight in the water, sinking to the bottom, smoke trailing for but a moment before dying. Vosque landed face first on the pavement, and he landed with a thud, crying out in pain as he likely broke his nose from the impact. Marcus marched over to him, and noone dared move as he tore his helmet off and threw it onto the ground, malicious intent in his eyes.

Vosque coughed and sputtered as Marcus descended upon him like an angry vulture. He grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, yanking him up from the ground before slamming his face back into the ground, further harming his nose, and causing Vosque to howl in agony. He cried out for his troops to do something, but they simply did nothing and watched with horror as their commanding officer was beaten by the galaxy's hero.

Red blood coated the ground when Marcus picked him up again, and this time moved over and slammed his face into a wall, this time repeating it six times. Satisfied that enough of the wall had been coated red, he watched the man's fluttering eyes, he dropped him and looked down on him, shaking his head.

"You could have joined me and Zaeed, but you didn't. You chose to resist," Marcus hissed with anger, "You were offered a chance to stand beside the galaxy in a common goal. You chose to resist. Here is the price for your incompetence."

"No...please...I beg of you," he spat blood out from his mouth as his breathing became ragged, "...I'll fight for...you...have mercy..."

He got to say no more as Marcus lifted his foot and then let it descend with incredible velocity, landing on the man's neck and smashing it, crushing his trachea with one death stroke. The man coughed and gurgled, desperately trying to garner some oxygen, but was unable to find any, and was offered no mercy on that particular aspect. He choked for a few seconds, suffocating, and then suddenly it was over, and Vosque's body lay motionless before him, eyes gazing up at him emptily. Instead of closing them, Marcus rolled his body over with his foot and then moved to face the Blue Suns group before him, anger still burning in the pits of his eyes, which might as well have been hell itself.

"Take a good hard look at his body," he growled, "Because that's what I do to people who get in my way. I will not allow leniency to affect me anymore; you either stand by me, or get swept aside, but do not get in my way. The Reapers will wipe out all life in the galaxy, including your own. Even now, our homeworlds are being besieged. Khar'Shan and Earth has fallen, and it won't be long before they target Sur'Kesh and Palaven," he addressed the turians in the group, "Don't ask for credits, because you won't get any. Don't demand glory, because there's none waiting for you. Don't fight for women or love or a chance to survive, cause the likelihood is, there won't be any when this is over," he crossed his arms, "Fight for the galaxy. Fight for the very continuity of your species. Because in the end; mercenary, thief, engineer, politician, it doesn't matter...we're all soldiers now. And you will do your duty to protect this galaxy. We fight or we die. Remember that. Now, anyone else like to follow Vosque's example?"

There was no answer. Only dead silence, a dozen pairs of eyes locked onto him with pure trepidation, and he nodded, turning back to his group. I'm not asking for loyalty; no, I already have that from the squad that I care for. From the brother I watch over. From the wife I cherish. No, I need them to fear me enough to never question me. To show them that if they fear me now, they'll be pissing themselves over the Reapers.

Marcus could see the narrowed eyes of Liara trying to plunge into the depths of mind, trying to find out what was wrong with him, but knew he was safer that she didn't know. Zaeed looked impressed, while Jentha looked utterly surprised at the brutal killing of the man. Aria looked unfazed, still annoyed over having the meeting interrupted, but one thing was certain; the whole room was silent.

He came to stand before Zaeed, "There you go Zaeed; Vosque is dead, and the Blue Suns are all yours again."

The man nodded, whistling, "You made it look fucking easy, Shepard. As you always do. You did a fine job of killing Vosque's ass, too. But you're right; now the Blue Suns are completely mine, I officially promise the whole goddam organization to you," he snapped a fake salute, and his face looked reluctant in the action, "Call me, or any one of my commanders, and they'll send troops wherever you need 'em. And when the final battle comes, you can expect us all to be there, in full force."

Marcus thanked him with a shake of his head, waving away the forced salute. His hand firmly gripped Zaeed's before shaking it and then pulling away again, "You sure you can't join the Normandy again, Zaeed? I need every able-bodied soldier I can get my hands on."

The man laughed, "That's exactly why I can't join. Someone has to lead the Suns, Shepard, and I ain't leaving it up to my fuckwit commanders; I need Jentha leading the Citadel division, and I certainly ain't leaving it up to my batarian commander, Marath. Hell, not even Palisus," he sighed, something that was odd for the mercenary, "No more goddam adventures for me, Shepard. The time for me being a big, goddam hero is over. Now I've got to play military general, and you need your troops organized and ready. But I will see you on the battlefield someday. We'll blow all those Reaper cunts to hell, and I can finally retire somewhere tropical. Maybe a big, fucking beach."

"You? Retire?" Marcus quipped, a smirk on his face as he shook his head, fury melting from his eyes, "That's something I'd like to see, Massani."

"There's always a day where you get too fucking old for people's shit," the merc quipped, "I think this war will finally be the end of the road for me. Or maybe I'll create my own mercenary organization; and then sit back and let my commanders lead it. Now that sounds like a goddam plan," he shook his head, giving Jentha a nod, "Well, I'd better make a run for it, Shepard. C-Sec's going to be all kinds of pissed to see all this fucking blood on their floor, and even more pissed to that cunt's mangled trachea. Plus, I've got to get my troops off this station and back to Zorya."

Just as Zaeed turned to leave, Jentha came to stand infront of him, holding out her hand for him to shake, "In the short time I've gotten to be alongside you, Shepard, its been an honor. I hope we meet again in the near future."

He nodded, smiling at the merc, "Indeed. I would hope so too, Jentha. Try not to get killed anytime soon."

She laughed, "In this line of work, its hard to do so, but I'll see what I can do. When this is all over, I'll buy you a drink. Cheerio." And with that, Jentha walked over to lead her new Blue Suns squad back to their Citadel base of operations, while Zaeed moved to lead his unneeded troops back to their ship, and off to Zorya. The brief reunion with the merc had been unpleasant, but at least it had been something.

Haven't seen much of my old SR-2 crew since meeting Kaidan again. God I miss them. Not just Tali or Garrus; I miss all of them. Grunt's violent nature, Legion's logical reasoning, Samara's calm stature, Miranda's skeptical doubts, Kasumi's mischief, Jack's cussing...damn it, I miss all of it. Mordin's rapid speech about shit I don't understand, Joker's...well, jokes, EDI's attempts to grasp humor, Thane's cool demeanour, everything. What I'd do to have the whole crew together again. He sighed, remembering the people he wanted at his side the most. The people he trusted without question. I miss Wrex's boasting, Garrus' smartass remarks and Tali's...what don't I miss about her? Her touch, the look of her eyes, her warm hugs, her adorable possessiveness, her cute mannerisms, all of it. At least I have Liara. I can trust her. He looked at the asari, not allowing his emotion to play out on his face. But those days over, and now we're at war. Real war.

He turned to look at Zaeed, who was in the process of leaving as he spoke loudly to the mercenary, causing him to halt and turn to face him, "Zaeed, we haven't had much of a chance to talk."

"Haven't had much time to talk. You know, killing Vosque and everything," the merc replied with a shrug of his shoulders, "Why?"

"Let's make time," he brought up his omni-tool, located Zaeed's contact on his contact list, and sent him a message specifying the time to meet him, "I'll meet you in the Dark Star Lounge; exchange some words over some drinks. I haven't seen any of my old crew except Kaidan and Liara, and the former is hospitalized. It'd be nice catchin' up; if you're not too busy."

"I've got goddam mercs to take back to Zorya," Zaeed persisted, before finally giving in, "Fine, Dark Star it is. We'll talk about being big fucking heroes, and how we'll be toasting our dead brethren over the pools of blood of our enemies."

Marcus grimaced, "That's...dramatic. And just a tad horrifying."

"If you're not used to it now, don't bother. I ain't no fuckin softie," the merc cursed turning to leave, "I'll see you later, Shepard."

Marcus gave him a curt nod, before turning to address Aria, "As for you Aria, I honestly don't know what to say apart from; what the fuck are you doing on the Citadel? I thought you hated this place."

"If I had a dozen nuclear devices, I'd have a few choice places I'd put them, yes," Aria growled, clenching her fists in and out, "But recent...events, have forced my hand. I now find myself living on this hellhole of a station, and I have to live with it until I can take mine back."

'Hellhole of a station?' Funny, I said the same thing about Omega, Aria. When it comes to aesthetics, not to mention overall safety, the Citadel wins, everytime. "Yes, I heard a few choice parts about that. Want to tell me just how you lost your space station to Cerberus? Omega's a pretty big station."

"Maybe I'll discuss it with you later. Right now, I've got to find a place to bunker down. I've heard Purgatory night club is similiar enough to Afterlife," sighing, she turned to her men, practically growling at them to get back to her skycar, "We'll talk later, Shepard. You'll know where to find me; if not, you'll just have to sit down and fucking wait."

Despite himself, he found himself smirking, "I'll see that I do. Afterall, you're currently on the top of my priority list in terms of making an army."

"And maybe I'll help you. Maybe I won't. Whatever gets my fucking station back," she hissed, waving a dismissive hand and turning around, her footsteps hard and brutal as she left, "I'll see you later, Shepard."

What's with all the 'see you laters?' I swear, I'm part of the 'see you later' club at the moment, and the number of members are piling up. He turned back to Liara, motioning to where they came from, "Come on, let's head back to the Normandy. I've got to get out of his armor and get to the Dark Star Lounge. And before you ask, no, I don't want an escort. I can look after myself."

"How did you-?" Liara began to ask, surprised.

"Because the murderer of Aratoht just happens to be on a space station that is currently housing thousands of batarian refugees," he rubbed the back of his neck with an armoured glove, inhaling and exhaling, "I'll bring my SMG if it makes you happy, but I can look after myself. That and my biotics will keep any fanatics from trying to kill me. I'll be fine."

"Its not angry batarians I'm worried about," she stated, coming to stand infront of him, holding out a hand on his chest, urging him to stop. As he did, his eyes met hers, and hers were full of steel conviction, "Its you. The way you killed Vosque was...brutal...and that's putting it mildly. What has gotten into you? And don't lecture me about 'the war' because that does not excuse how you treated that man! I know he was scum, but the Marcus Shepard I know would never kill a man so...barbarically!"

Maybe I was being alittle overkill, but I needed to make a point. His face cringed and twisted into a look of irritation, "Your right; that man was scum. He was also in my way and I have made it abundantly clear that people who get in my way don't get fair treatment. Besides, I needed to make an example. I can't afford to have people love me anymore; if I need them to fear them to serve the purpose I need of them, then so be it, I'll do it. I'll sacrifice everything I have, including my morals, if it means winning this war."

Including myself. He shuddered at the thought, but he did not let Liara see it. She would only exploit his momentary weakness.

"So you brutally kill people who get in the way of your objectives?" she hissed, looking at him, before snorting, "What if one of us got in your way, did you think of that? What would Garrus think? Would you kill Tali if she-"

"Enough," his voice was steel, unwavering, his eyes pure frost as he met her eyes. He knew she had been building up to that, and he was almost at breaking point. The reason for that was because she was right. He wouldn't kill Tali if she got in his way; hell, he'd probably listen. And there's where the hypocrisy lay for him. He would kill anyone who got in his way, but his own squad? He couldn't even comprehend coming to lay harm on them. And the fact I hate to admit is...it might just come to that. "We're returning to the ship, Liara. This conversation is over."

He moved to leave, but she held firm, her eyes glaring into his, "We're going nowhere until we've settled this."

"I am giving you an order," he growled, "Remove your hand, or I shall remove it myself, Liara."

The ice in his tone made her feel as if she was talking to a completely different person, and without a thought, she removed her hand, letting him pass by her. She hadn't even realized he was gone until he was on the bridge. Turning, she watched him cross the bridge before slowly moving to join him, shock and terror in her eyes.

Just what has happened to Marcus Shepard?

{Loading...}

June 3, 2186

1400 hours.

Dark Star Lounge, Level 28, Zakera Ward, The Citadel.

The Reaper War.

Captain Marcus Lee Shepard, Blue Suns Commander Zaeed Massani.

"I was actually wondering if you'd show up," Zaeed murmured behind him as he sat on the stool before the counter, "Consider me goddam surprised."

Marcus gave a brief huff of acknowledgement, bringing the bottle of beer he held in his hand to his lips and taking a short sip, cringing at the bitter taste. Unimpressed with the taste, he placed it back on the counter, watching Zaeed take a seat next to him on a nearby stool. The turian bartender turned to him instantly, nodding at the mercenary. Zaeed gave his own brief nod, "Levo whiskey; and none of that cheap shit they give to fucking children. Give me the high-powered stuff; and don't bother with the glass. I'll take the whole bottle."

"That'll cost extra," the turian stated.

"I'm a fucking mercenary. I'm swimming in fucking money," the bounty hunter deadpanned, slamming a credit chit on the bench, "Now just get me my fucking bottle and piss off."

Marcus just shook his head, noting just how much Zaeed hadn't changed. "Glad to know you could come Zaeed," he finally spoke, his voice bitter from both previous events and the taste of cheap beer in his throat, "I thought you'd be too busy."

"Ha!" the man laughed, slapping his shoulder, "Says you; motherfucking Alliance captain, you are. Making alliances, filing paperwork, and running errands for 'superior' assholes. So don't give me the 'thought you were too goddam busy' gag, cause fuck you."

"Calm down old man," he teased, chuckling, "I meant no harm."

"You're a fucking cunt," he cursed, shooting the bartender an annoyed glare as he received his bottle. Getting the point, the turian quickly scampered away, pointedly trying to avoid the merc's eyes, "But a likable cunt, luckily for you."

"I'm flattered," he deadpanned in response, sighing heavily as he simply sat there, both men falling into silence; well, whatever silence you could have with headache-inducing music playing on the dance floor nearby; numerous asari, turians, humans and many other species taking to the dance floor, completely oblivious to the campaign of genocide going on around them, "But on the serious side Zaeed, its good to see you."

"Touche," the merc replied, taking a sip of his bottle of whiskey, giving a sigh of relief from the warm taste, "I'm surprised at how quickly you handled Vosque. Thought you might try to talk him out of it. You know, do that diplomatic shit you do."

The man snorted, shaking his head with distaste, "Ask the Reapers if diplomacy will sway them; maybe we can try and talk them to death. Talking is useful, but its an armada we need, not politicians. I can't afford to talk down people while thousands are dying on Earth and Khar'Shan and all over the galaxy; the time for action is now. Besides, Vosque wasn't going to listen, and persuasion wasn't working. I had to remove him to ensure I had the Blue Suns on the leash," he faced the merc, "They are on a leash, right? I can't have them disobeying orders, especially in battle."

The man shook his head, "That speech you gave really moved 'em; scared shitless. Swear a smelt piss. Nah, they're about as loyal as they can be; but likely more to their own lives then money, nowadays. Trust me, when you call them to fight some Reapers, they'll ask how many troops you want and how many bullets to bring. It was a goddam risk you took, though. How did you know they'd act like that?"

He sighed, meeting Zaeed's eyes instantly, "Fortune Favors the Bold," he stated, "This war isn't going to be won by tredding carefully; got to take some risks, right? Sacrifice a few planets to save a system, and a few systems for a cluster, and maybe a few clusters for the galaxy? Its a dangerous game we're playing, Zaeed, but I'm confident we'll win it. As for your other question, I didn't. Sometimes you've got to take a shot in the dark and hope you hit something. I hit something, and it just happened to be vital organ, so I feel quite lucky."

Silence fell upon them as they sat quietly for a few moments, sipping their drinks while the ear-ringing music played in the background, and they took in their surroundings. He heard Zaeed whistle from his right, and turned to see what he was looking at, rolling his eyes as he saw a few asari approaching them, their breasts so unnaturally big, they might as well have been pumped full of helium.

He turned to look away, asking the bartender for another round, before handing over his credit chit. The bartender extracted the credits necessary and handed it over just as the asari arrived before them, giggling, Zaeed obviously having called them over.

"Look at them fine pieces of ass and tits," Zaeed guffawed, facing Marcus with a grin, "And they seem eager. Want me to get one for ya?"

He rolled his eyes, not even facing the merc as he took another sip of his drink, "You know I'm not bloody interested."

"No, I didn't. Come on, you fucking gay, Shepard?"

"I'm married, you moron," he growled, turning to Zaeed, "Tali, remember? You can't have forgotten the wedding already. If so, your memory must be fading faster than you are. And even if I weren't, but I'm interested."

"Suit yourself," he grunted back, waving the women off, before turning to face Marcus again, "What the fuck got up your ass? Would it have been different if it had been a few quarians?"

"No," he growled back, finally facing Zaeed with a no-nonsense glare, "I. Am. Married. Full fucking stop. I love Tali, I only love Tali, and that will never fucking change. So drop the bloody subject, Zaeed."

"Whatever. You're such a fucking killjoy," with a heave of effort, the man twisted himself around on his stool, turning to face him again, changing topic as quickly as Marcus had suggested, "Any plans with Aria now that she's on the station?"

Good, he changed the subject. I swear, if he had kept pushing for it, I might have socked him. I hate it when people do that. Is a 'happy marriage' that hard to comprehend? Is divorce really that common? Do I look like a fucking apprentice of adultery? He nodded, gulping down his drink, "Yeah. For two reasons now; one, to find out what the hell she's doing on the Citadel, and two, to try and arrange an alliance. Once I have Aria's forces, and trust me, I will have them, and yours safely under my belt, I'm going to try and see if I can 'convince' the Eclipse and the Blood Pack to join our cause. Aria basically rules the Terminus, so once she joins us, we'll own all the mercenary companies in existence...in theory."

"Fucking fantastic. You'll have every mercenary in existence as the spine for your armada," he shook his head, scoffing, "I've seen worser foundations."

"Its the best we can do until the Normandy's retrofit is fully completed and we can head to Palaven. Council's not willing to listen, so I'm planning to just hit them individually. First the turians, then the salarians, then the asari. Once they join us, I'll move onto the other races, and then we'll see what we can do from there. Its alot to do, but I'm sure I can do it."

"You seem confident they'll join you," Zaeed stated, "You that confident?"

"No," he deadpanned, "But its the best I got. I'm short on allies, Zaeed. Too short."

"The fuck you mean?" the man replied bluntly, like he always seemed to do, the man simply not caring for personal feelings, "You've got that Liara chick."

"Yeah, I also had Kaidan, and now he's in hospital," he replied just as bluntly. I've got to remember to check up on him later. Huerta Memorial was it? I'll check in before we leave for Palaven. I hope he's alright, "And even with those two, its still too few. "No Grunt, No Mordin, No Legion, No Wrex, No Samara, No Garrus...hell, Zaeed, not even my own damn wife is there to support me. Like me, she's probably half-way across the galaxy in the ass-end of nowhere, trying to negoitate peace and play politics. I need my friends, Zaeed. I feel fucking useless without my squad. Without my team. Sure, there's James and Keeling, but I barely know them as it is, and they haven't gained my trust just yet, or even the right to be called my friends."

"Do you miss her?" It was a seemingly out of nowhere question, and Marcus took a second to contemplate it, before dumping his bottle on the counter and turning to face the merc.

"What?"

"You fucking deaf?" he replied, moving closer until he was almost in Marcus' face, the man's putrid breath giving evidence to his lack of personal hygiene, "Do you fucking miss her? You do or you don't."

"What kind of a question is that?" he asked rhetorically, but seeing Zaeed's unwavering response, waved his arms in the air, "Of course I fucking do! Jesus Zaeed, everytime I close my eyes all I see...is her. Everytime I sleep, everytime my thoughts wonder. I feel empty and lost without her at my side, and it hurts. Fucking hell, it hurts like a fucking bitch," he slammed his hand on the counter, startling the bartender with its verocity, "And where the fuck is she? I send her a message, and she doesn't even respond? What am I meant to think of that? Is she dead? Is she ignoring me? I don't know what to fucking think! And its killing me...not knowing! Because I can't do anything about it! I'd go out and search for her, but unfortunately for me, I've got a fucking Reaper Invasion and the Galactic Apocalypse to deal with! I don't know what to fucking do, and I feel useless because of it!" he entered his rant, relaxing, and sighing in defeat as he sagged against the counter, "I'm lost, Zaeed. I just...I just feel empty. Like I'm just following some preset goal, and when its over, I'll just stop working."

"Sounds like seperation anxiety," Zaeed stated, "Can't say it doesn't sound like romantic bullshit to me, but what you describe sounds alot like that, Shepard. You're fucking attached. You two own each other now, and no matter how much you goddam hate it, its going to be there till the day you fucking die. The need to have her at your side is probably just because of the battlefield comraderie you've forged in combat."

"I'm getting relationship advice from a bounty hunter," Marcus chuckled at that, shaking his head, "I must be desperate."

"But you know I'm goddam right," he stated back, and Marcus slowly nodded his head, staring blankly into the depths of his bottle, just wanting to drink his problems away. No, I'm better than that. Besides, thoughts of her make me happy. Reminds me of better times...and the times we could have if we win this war...or if she's even alive...no, those are horrible thoughts; she's not dead. She's alive, and she's out there somewhere, and I will find her eventually. There'll be a time where I'll need to assemble the quarians, and then I can see her. Goddamn it, why does it hurt so much to think of myself in her arms, or her in mine? Why does it hurt so fucking much? Sometimes I hate being married.

"Yeah, you're right. Guess I just needed to vent, and you were the closest person to do it with," he met the man's eyes, "Thanks Zaeed. I know I'll see her again, I just...I need friends at my side, and I've never needed my wife more than I've needed her now."

"Then you'd better hurry up, get the Council races together, and go goddam find her before the war's over," the man took a long swig of his drink, "Or you or her won't be around to enjoy what time we might have left."

...what time we might have left.

Sounds like defeat. But I won't surrender. To surrender is to let the Reapers win.

And he'd rather castrate himself then let the Reapers succeed. The cycle ends with us.

"Aria was a tricky stick in the mud. Getting her to join us was easier than I thought, but quite...complex."

- Marcus Shepard.

"How so?"

- Reia'Inas pav Earth.

"Let's just say that what she wanted me to do to secure her allegiance benefitted both of us...heavily."

- Marcus Shepard.

A/N:

Sorry for the long wait! I've been playing alot of Total War recently, and I recently watched the four hour long movie Gods and Generals, so that's why I haven't been writing. That, coupled with homework, has kept me very busy. Next chapter is coming soon.

Also, most of you were wrong. Congrats gilmaxter and Myron22 for figuring out the obvious secret; the merc was Zaeed Massani.

SERIOUSLY? Wrex? Come on guys.

Chapter 6 comes soon, and will mostly be conversations. Along with some more of Shepard's crew bumping into him.

Keelah Se'lai, troopers!