The Catalyst was intrigued. It had been a number of cycles since an organic managed to enter the Network. 162 453 sol years, to be exact. In its eons of destruction, the Catalyst recorded one hundred and two incidents when an organic had entered the Network, but most of them were killed before they could do anything further. Thirteen of them were captured and was subsequently transcended. Only one managed to survive.

This was the second human which had piqued his interest. Although it wanted to transcend the being, the human proved to be too much of a trouble. So it killed the first one by ordering its slaves. This cycle's organics called them "Collectors". Now, the Catalyst had another human to observe. This one was to be more game than the previous one – this human was silent.

…

The Eclipse's plan was almost perfect. A small bait using non-lethal rounds was sent to draw out Jackson and his guests. Two strike teams were placed on the either end of the road to keep the officials occupied as well as to scare away bystanders. A MANTIS gunship, along with a full-scale strike team was deployed to capture Jackson. Ideally, they will capture him alive to find out where their frigate was kept hidden, but killing Jackson will be sweet revenge. Finally, a smaller, cloaked agents were to take his guests hostage. They knew that Jackson wouldn't risk their lives and surrender.

The only flaw with the plan was that it underestimated the prey.

Sometimes, the "prey" becomes the "predator".

…

Jackson, Thea and Kisa jumped into cover, behind the empty skybus and away from the advancing strike team. Lucky for them, the strike teams didn't have time to take up proper assault positions. Jackson took out those who were too close by trapping them in a Singularity field.

The gunship roared overhead, but it moved very slowly due to the tight space between the buildings. A heavy machine gunner started to open fire on their position. Jackson couldn't identify the gun, though sounded like a 600RPM portable machine gun.

Kisa tried to see the gunship through the window of the skybus, but it was too dark to see through. She could not use her powers if she couldn't see her target. A number of mercs were already manoeuvring to flank their position. Kisa took a shot at them, but they were too far to be hit accurately.

Thea was grinning as if she was watching a Saturday night gag show.

"What's so funny?" Jackson asked, yelling above the chaos. He was desperately attempting to calibrate his gun sight, sorely missing the automatic compensator on his marksmen rifle.

"I was thinking that I would either get Kisa to hook up or shoot someone tonight. It seems like I get to do both!" Thea said as she launched a wave of biotic powers at the flanking mercs. Although it didn't hurt any of them, it certainly slowed their progress. Kisa laughed happily at her cousin's comment.

"I wouldn't exactly call this a date!" Jackson yelled, although he did found the comment amusing. It felt good to talk while fighting.

It felt good to be alive.

He sensed that the enemies were closing in fast. "Okay, we need to move. Silverwood, did you say?"

"There is a bar near called Madness Tonight; all sorts of people go there!" Kisa replied. "We split up-" she ducked as a missile exploded nearby. It was thankfully aimed poorly, and none of them were even scratched. "-and we meet there at 20:00. Okay?"

"The gunship's too close now!" Thea's voice, even as she was yelling, was drowned out by the roar of the engines.

"Move on my mark." Jackson barked. "Three, two, one. MARK!"

They separated as if it was a part of their combat training. In truth, they were seeking for positions where they would be tactically superior. Thea ran to the right, continuing to utilize the cars parked in the parking lot and knocking down enemies with her shotgun. Kisa ran to the left, entering the surprisingly-empty shopping mall. She had heard a lot of things about this mall – it was just as famous as Overlook – and found it strange to be running through it with nobody around. She fired a short burst at her pursuers before continuing.

Jackson did not run, and merely holstered his semi-calibrated rifle. He was satisfied that most of the mercenaries stayed behind to fight him. Those that went after the Sorceress Group wouldn't live to regret their decision. He breathed deeply. His whole body was glowing; this time in deep, solar red. The MANTIS roared right above him, its machine guns pointed directly at him. In one fluid motion, he jumped up, utilising his biotics to reach the bottom hull of the ship. The Eclipse soldiers looked up in surprise, but were unable to fire lest it hit the passengers within the gunship.

Standing upside down on the bottom of the MANTIS, Jackson launched a salvo of destruction. Mounting one attack after another, the street exploded into a colourful display of biotic explosions. A majority of the enemy hadn't expected to be attacked from above – they were decimated within mere seconds. The gunship itself shuddered as he launched another Nova. It was completely hapless, and the pilot was contemplating on abandoning the ship. Fortunately for him, Jackson ripped out the left engine (he had already destroyed its missile pod and the machine guns), making it spin out of control. He started the emergency impact sequence, cocooning himself within the cockpit.

Jackson jumped down onto the battlefield as the MANTIS slowly lost altitude. The gunship's VI was doing its best to keep it from colliding into a building, but there was only so much it could do with only its auxiliary systems. He hesitated briefly before he grabbed the whole gunship with his biotics, lowering it gently onto the ground. The ship continued to sputter, which Jackson also had to compensate for.

Although he stood without cover, no-one dared to take a shot at him. Most of them were in incapacitated, and the rest were shocked at Jackson's raw power.

"What are you doing? Fire! FIRE!" The Eclipse captain barked. She herself got out of cover and took aim at Jackson with her Mantis rifle. Still, no gunshots.

I'm going to kill every one of these cowards. She thought as she pulled the trigger. She felt a surge of satisfaction as her bullet hit his left leg. As she reloaded her rifle, a sudden force lifted her into the air. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was the cold, metal floor.

She would later wake up in prison.

…

Kisa sat on the outer table of the bar, checking her surrounding while simultaneously being annoyed by the bullet grazes around her body. After escaping the initial battlefield, she faced four or five cloaked assailants. They were obviously Eclipse, and were armed lightly. They attempted to take her hostage, and didn't foresee any resistance. She took them out with ease – after all, this was her job for more than a hundred years.

She was hit four times, but nothing that couldn't be fixed with a bit of Medi-Gel. After entering the main road, she holstered Jackson's gun and followed the scared crowd. Most of them dispersed near Silverwood, a large boulevard which was always packed. Her omni-tool indicated 19:53, meaning that she was at least ten minutes early.

Although she knew that sitting outside was risky, she wasn't in the mood to flirt with people inside bar.

On her table was a large pizza. The human food was massively popular amongst the species in the galaxy, becoming an instant hit immediately after the humans joined Citadel. Kisa and Thea would have it often during their missions – it was quick and tasty, and easy to pack as well. Now, having missed her fancy dinner and being considerably hungry, she heartily ate three slices, supressing her worries for her companions… and the worries from Jackson's story.

She immediately understood why he invited both herself and her cousin to a dinner – they were good candidates for such a dutiful mission. Capable and experienced, their actions were always based on moral righteousness. They also had the necessary network for Jackson to find allies.

As she reached for her fourth slice, Thea walked around the corner. Her dress bore bullet marks, and her face wore "don't piss me off" expression, but she smiled cheerfully at Kisa. Her energy was limitless.

"Hey! You're quick. Is that pizza?" Thea asked as she quickly approached her table. The gatekeeper of the bar wasn't sure if he should allow her in (she looked as if she had walked through hell), but his instincts told him to keep his mouth shut if he wanted to see the dawn again.

"Hi! It's good to see you!" Kisa replied. She signalled the servant nearby to give them another pizza. She winced briefly when the servant opened the door of the bar – the loud music hit her hard, giving her a headache.

Thea plonked herself down onto the empty chair in front of her. As she did, her shotgun hit the chair, giving out a loud clang. Thankfully, nobody noticed the difference between this particular clang and the one coming from the bar. She glanced at her omni-tool again for the fifth time this minute. The time seemed to be dragging more slowly by the second; it was still 19:53.

"Did any idiots try to mug you?" Thea asked, her mouth half full with pizza.

"A few. All of them should be in hospital by now."

"I see that you are actively creating more work for yourself." Thea mused. Suddenly, her expression immediately tensed. She gulped down the food.

"Kiss me." Thea said.

"What?"

"Do it, now!"

"Why? You-" Kisa couldn't finish her sentence as Thea kissed her passionately. Kisa was absolutely shocked and forgot to punch her. As their lips parted, Thea hissed into her ear-

"There's an Eclipse soldier walking towards us. Act like we're on a date!"

"Why a date? Why not-"

"Because most people can't stand two lovers kissing each other, that's why. Now shut up!" Thea kissed her again. Kisa was very, very annoyed but decided that her reasoning was correct. Through the corner of her eyes, she observed the Eclipse soldier, which she vowed to have him pay for this.

The soldier wasn't dressed in his full combat uniform, although he was well-armed and was wearing a helmet. He was limping quite badly, unable to use his left leg. He approached them in a very deliberate manner until he was right next to their table. He stopped.

"I didn't know you two had a thing going." Jackson said.

The two asaris immediately parted, their eyes wide in surprise. Jackson merely walked on, acting as if nothing had happened. He turned the corner, still limping badly.