Chapter 10
Phantom Resolutions.
Velpia exited the small transport ship's cargo ramp. She disliked the thought of returning to the frozen human hellhole, but she couldn't leave Martin alone to his fate. She moved through the dock's building carrying his equipment in a backpack and walked toward the road. "If I know Martin, I only need to follow the smoke."
It didn't take long for her to notice the active police presence in the city. She walked around briefly, following the small crowd gathering outside a police barrier. Several officers stood around the perimeter, and a light cloud of smoke came from the building in the distance. Velpia quickly recognized the building; it was the New Dawn Pharmacy headquarters. The sight of the building's wreckage gave her some comfort. He had to still be alive.
Velpia moved on from the area and headed to the local Hospital before eventually stopping by the clinic. She walked through the doors and approached the receptionist. The older woman behind the windowed desk looked up at the tall alien. "If you need medical attention, we will have to call in a Xeno-specialist, which may take time.-" Velpia quickly cut her off, "-No, I don't need a Veterinarian; I'm looking for someone that may have come through here. Human, Male, two-hundred-and-twenty pounds, but doesn't look like he should weigh that much… probably been shot or stabbed recently-"
The receptionist's eyes widen, "Yes, you must be the one he told us about." Velpia looked at her, confused, "He did what now?"
"Oh, he told us that someone might come for him here. He said we would know once we saw 'her.' He told us you'd be, eh… tall…." The receptionist paused and awkwardly smiled.
"Right… So what did he say?" Velpia asked, trying to move the conversation along. The receptionist cleared her throat and continued, "He said that you'd find him in the 'dusty hellhole' and that your friends were trying to get a hold of him." Velpia paused for a moment, and then it dawned on her. "Thank you, that's all I needed." She quickly turned and exited the clinic. Velpia promptly headed back for the spaceport to that dusty hellhole they were forced to hide in before leaving the planet. She thought she needed to hurry. If he was hiding out there, something must have gone wrong.
Dallas came to the warehouse door; he had been listening to police radio chatter of someone in black clothes trying to force their way into an old warehouse near the spaceport. He calmly walked through the partially opened door, taking note of the darkened floor. The exits were barred up, and he blocked the only way in or out. Dallas gripped his pistol in his right hand and looked about the room. "Martin!" Dallas walked into the center of the open floor and waited for a response. "You have about thirty minutes before this building is crawling with reinforcements. I suggest you come out now so you can die with some dignity… or don't and die like a dog. It doesn't matter to me." He continued to scan the room, looking for movement. The building was quiet; only the sounds of the cold wind whistling through the broken cracks of the walls echoed about. The moonlight dimly illuminated the dust in the air that surrounded him.
Dallas turned back to the door and locked the keypad before walking toward the back offices. "How does it feel to know everything I've been forced to live with?" He stopped again to look around the warehouse. "How does it feel to see the consequences of your actions?" Dallas raised his pistol to the office wall and fired six rounds. "Stop fucking hiding!" He yelled.
The silence began to drive Dallas mad; he wanted answers or at least some validation for the things he had experienced. "Your Turian friend landed on the planet not too long ago. Maybe I'll pay her a visit! See what she is made of!" Dallas paused; a faint sense arose behind him; he quickly spun around and fired three shots.
The rounds bounced off the walls, and he quickly began to look around the room again. He heard another noise from the corner pile of junk as he approached it. He swiftly tossed the metal items around, only to uncover a few rats. Dallas violently threw the metal aside, aggressively marched toward the office, and opened the door.
"Martin!" Velpia said as she opened the door to the warehouse. "Oh, look who decided to show up finally." He replied while standing up off the dusty chair. Velpia rushed over to him and embraced him. Martin tensed up, trying to keep his balance and also in shock at the sudden show of affection. His body was trapped by the tall grip of her arms. After a few seconds, Velpia finally released him, and she backed away slowly. She then cleared her throat and gave him the backpack. He quickly opened it, pushing off the awkward encounter, and upon realizing what the contents were, stripped down.
Velpia's heart sank into her stomach and quickly turned away. She didn't realize what she had done; now he was half-naked in front of her.
I've been watching Dallas scream at himself in the warehouse next door for the last ten minutes now," Martin stated as he slipped into his combat suit. "I think he's done lost it." She turned to the door and waited for him to finish getting his gear together, trying to clear her mind from her embarrassment. "Well, by the looks of the New Dawn building, I'm actually surprised they haven't sent an army after you yet."
Martin chuckled as he finished zipping up his combat vest. "I didn't do that; the Shadow Broker's people assaulted the building. I just snuck out in the chaos."
Velpia quickly turned around, "The what? You're joking!" Martin padded himself down and checked the bag as if looking for something. He then approached her and reached for his Pistol on her thigh. "I need that." She quickly blocked him with her hand. Different thoughts began swimming up through her. "What happened at the Cerberus base? That whole control chip thing is freaking me out."
Martin backed away from her thigh, stood straight, and stepped back. "Short version, an old friend from the war sabotaged Cerberus. He had been trying to set up ways to kill off the test subjects from Titan. He supposedly sabotaged parts of my chip and set everything up for me to stop the rest of the project. I can explain the rest later and in more detail, but now is not the time." Velpia took a deep breath, feeling somewhat satisfied by his answer, and handed him the pistol.
He held it in his hand and walked quietly to the back window over looking the other warehouse. "I know that look, and I don't like it."
"We need to finish this. It's not going to stop until we finish it." Velpia sighed heavily and backed away from the window. "I thought we were leaving? What makes you think they are ever going to stop?"
Martin turned away from the window and smiled, "They'll stop once I make it too costly to come after us. What better way to do that than killing one of their agents and finish blowing up one of their front companies leaders?"
"Did you damage your brain while you were in there? Thats insane! I didn't just track you halfway across the galaxy to give you back to them!" Martin sinisterly grinned and walked toward her putting his hand on her shoulder as he walked past her. "I don't plan on leaving this planet until at least Dallas dies. You can either help or wait for me to find you after I'm done, but I'm tired of running around waiting for these assholes to pop up."
Velpia stood in the office as he walked out. She was frustrated by his logic but also wanted to end their involvement with Cerberus. He could be right, or it could make it worse, but at this point, what did they have to lose? She took another deep breath and followed him down the stairs to the warehouse floor and out the front door. Martin kept the pistol in his hand as he approached the other warehouse. "What's the plan?" Velpia asked, concerned and feeling uneasy. "Just try to stay out of the way and watch my back just in case he isn't bluffing about reinforcements. I don't want Dallas to try to use you in this fight." She slowly nodded as he placed his hand on the keypad.
Martin opened the door and calmly walked through the doorway. He walked toward the center of the room, illuminated by the moonlight coming through the windowed ceiling. Dallas stood up from the corner of the room and approached him through the veil of darkness.
Both men stood twenty feet from each other, their hand gripped their pistols, and waited. "I was afraid you wouldn't show up; I guess you have at least a shred of honor left in that shell of yours," Dallas remarked.
"There's nothing honorable about what we've done." Dallas began walking in a circle, with Martin following his movements. "Do you know how the others died? Do you even care?"
"We all died a long time ago, Dallas. There was nothing meant for us here." Dallas' face turned sour, and flexed his shoulders. "Did anything we went through back on Earth mean anything to you? Did you not care for them? They sacrificed themselves to save you from the Batarians! It's all they talked about for weeks once we heard you were alive! They wanted their Dear Captain. They wanted their Wolf to lead them again!" Dallas paused as his breathing became heavier; his voice was splitting into a rage. "They died because of you; You weren't there to see the light fade from their eyes, to see the Shadow Brokers men cut them down into bloody pieces! We could have been something, fuck Cerberus, we could have done something greater! We all deserved better!" Dallas angrily yelled while pounding his chest.
Martin kept his circular pace. Strangely he didn't feel anger, just pity. "Yeah, we did, but killing me won't bring them back."
"No, but killing you will put things right."
Martin could see the pain building on his face. Dallas was practically in tears. "Is that what you want? To be alone in this galaxy? What do you think Cerberus will do to you once this is over? I'm giving you the option. You can step away; let me go after Soren and Cerberus. We can end this nightmare."
Dallas gritted his teeth, "Help! When have you even helped me? No, you're just a butcher, a damn monster; they were all right about you." Dallas raised his weapon toward Martin but was surprised when Martin holstered his. Velpia was hidden behind the crates in the building's front corner, watching through a small space. "What the hell is he doing?"
"I cared for everyone under my command… Dallas, that war fucked us all up. That shit plays in my head every damn night like a broken record. I've watched so many die, and I carried their dog tags through the whole damn thing as a reminder of what we sacrificed to try to set a broken world straight. And you ran off like a fucking coward to save your own skin. So save your sanctimony for your funeral."
"Shut up!" Dallas raged as he fired his pistol past Martin's head. The round came within inches of his neck as it whistled by. Martin partially gripped his pistol on his hip, turned it towards Dallas, and fired. The deafening shot struck Dallas inside his shoulder, forcing him to drop his pistol and making him recoil.
"You son-of-a-bitch!" Martin drew his pistol from his thigh as Dallas gripped his shoulder and stumbled back. His arm was barely attached and bleeding profusely. "You lousy fucking shot. Do it, you fucking coward!"
Martin slowly marched towards him and raised his Pistol. "I'm sorry." The gunshot rang between the warehouse walls as Dallas hit the floor. Martin lowered his weapon and looked at the man he once served with and wondered what Cerberus could have done to him to make him this way. After everything Dallas put him through, Martin didn't feel as well as he thought he would have.
Martin reached into the pocket of his combat vest and grabbed an incendiary grenade, and began walking towards the exit. He pulled the pin and tossed it near the body. He watched for a few seconds to make sure the body would be engulfed.
Velpia stood up from behind the crates and followed him out of the warehouse. Martin turned around at the door and walked backward, watching the flames. He held his arms behind his head, processing what he just did. "You alright?" Velpia asked. Martin closed his eyes for a second and tried to breathe. "I don't know." He dropped his arms, turned away, and began walking down the street.
"What the hell did they do to him?" Velpia asked as she caught up to him. "He was confused; I think he was finally realizing what the hell was going on but couldn't bring himself to take that last step. That's why he missed. He wanted to die but couldn't do it himself."
"You two had some serious trauma to work out." Velpia quipped. "Yeah, could've used a therapist for that one."
They continued moving, hoping to catch Sören before he realized that Dallas was dead. Velpia trailed just behind him. He didn't appear as steady as he usually was. Something was preoccupying him. She remembered how he acted when they killed Dallas the last time. Now he seemed to be holding back his emotions.
They arrived outside Soren's apartment building, bypassed the receptionist, and headed for the gold-trimmed elevator. The entire lobby watched in almost horror as they marched past them. They punched the keypad, forced the elevator to Soren's penthouse suite, and readied their weapons. Velpia shouldered her rifle and pointed it at the door. She looked up at the floor counter, waiting for it to reach the top.
The elevator suddenly stopped five floors early. The doors opened as Martin was confronted by an unarmed man staring down at his omni-tool, oblivious to the two heavily armed assailants currently occupying the space. The man attempted to walk into the elevator but ran into Martin's pistol instead. He paused and finally looked up. Without a word, the man put his hands up in terror and backed away from the door. He slowly reached down and pushed the button as the doors shut and the elevator continued.
"That was a little harsh; I think he peed himself." Velpia joked as Martin lowered his weapon. "He'll learn to look up from now on."
The elevator reached the top, and Martin exited first. He quickly turned left to the security door and opened the door. Stunned, five guards looked at the door as Martin calmly marched in and began shooting. Velpia remained outside with their rifle pointed down the small hall that led to Soren's apartment. She heard Martin's pistol bark five times, and the thuds as the bodies bounced around. The quiet took over before long as Martin exited the security office. She watched as he reloaded the thermal clip and walked down the hall with grim determination. Martin grabbed the keycard from his pocket and swiped it on the door's pad, which unlocked.
He tapped the button, and slowly they made their way into his apartment. It was quiet, no music, and no one seemed home. They bypassed the Hercules statue and moved deeper into the room.
They swept the corners, taking their time searching. A thud rang, and a faint blue curtain appeared before them. Cutting them off from the rest of the apartment. Martin walked to it and touched it. "Ouch, fuck." he cursed as he recoiled from the burning.
Sören calmly walked out from the back room and approached the curtain. "I had a feeling you would come. But it looks like you have me at a disadvantage."
"Too much of a coward to face us?" Martin quipped. "No, I'm not here to stop you; today, I am just a messenger."
He raised his hand, which held a black glowing orb. He opened his hand as it floated toward them. It stopped and projected a hologram of a middle-aged, well-dressed man holding a cigarette. The hologram took a moment to look over them.
"I take it since we are here. Dallas has failed." The mysterious man said.
"Who the hell are you?" Martin asked the hologram.
"My name is irrelevant; what is, however, is your involvement in my operations. You have been a thorn in my side for some time now, and I need it to stop."
Velpia stepped forward. "You're the assholes that kept coming after us, not the other way around."
"True; however, we've both been played by a mutual third party; now that he has been dealt with, I'm hoping we can come to an agreement.
Martin briefly darted his eyes at Velpia, trying to judge her reaction before looking back, "Why would we trust you?"
"I'll admit, Cerberus hasn't been very welcoming towards the both of you, but I think we can work something out that could benefit all parties involved."
"Why the sudden change of heart?"
"You've proved you're a dangerous man, Winters. Probably better than any soldier the Alliance could muster. You're a survivor; that much you've earned. However, what we thought we needed from you no longer exists, or rather never did. It wasn't my intention to keep you against your will otherwise. Keeping this charade going is a pointless and costly endeavor. Cerberus has more pressing concerns to deal with, and I won't jeopardize my organization or humanity's future on a revenge quest."
Martin rubbed his face with his open hand and took a deep breath. "You want a deal? I want Cerberus to leave us alone, no surveillance, no assassins, nothing, and I want to put a bullet in that man's head." Martin demanded as he pointed to Sören.
The hologram turned around to face Sören and walked across the barrier. "You aren't seriously considering this?" He protested.
"Sören, your handling of Project Titan has been a dismal failure. You've lost the entire Project and failed to ensure the safety of our facilities."
The hologram turned back towards them. "I agree to your terms Mr. Winters, and as a measure of good faith, I will direct a sum of credits to your accounts to cover any unforeseen expenses that may have occurred. I hope we never have to speak again."
The hologram faded, and the ball dropped dead to the floor. The barrier curtain between them powered down with a thud. The two quickly looked at each other and drew their weapons. "Any last words?" Martin asked.
"You-" The room filled with automatic gunfire as Sören was ripped and riddled with holes in seconds. The suddenness surprised Martin, who turned to his side to see Velpia's rifle fissile from the heat it dispensed. "I think I'm beginning to like my job." Velpia boasted. She looked over to notice Martin blankly staring at her. She shrugged and lowered her rifle. "What? You got the last one."
Martin's stare quickly turned to a smile as he shook his head. He then knelt down as Velpia toured around the apartment for a few minutes hoping to dig up any other information.
"Damn, nearly all his systems have been wiped clean besides just data," Velpia stated from the back room. Martin was kneeling next to what remained of Sören. He linked his Omni-tool to his and noticed some information.
I skimmed through the information for a few moments, processing what he was looking at. "Greedy little bastard." Velpia walked over to Martin, interested in what he had found. "Anything good?"
"I think we found our link to the Red Sand. Some of it looks legitimate, some not."
"If it was legitimate, then why all the cloak and dagger?" Velpia asked.
"supposed to be destroyed by law, but they found another use for it and decided that the profit was worth the risk. The only problem is this file was just recently tampered with; we can only link Sören to the red sand and not the company."
Martin stood back up and saved the data. "No doubt whoever that was had something to do with it.". Velpia theorized.
"Yeah, probably, but at least we can head back to the constable and get our pay." Martin paused while he shut off his Omni-tool and stood up. He took his time looking about the room and quietly headed back toward the exit.
They entered the elevator; Martin sat down in the corner. The doors shut, and it began to descend. Martin rested his head in the corner between the walls looking up at the ceiling, and eventually closed his eyes. Something stirred in his chest, a feeling. It wasn't good or bad. It just annoying lingered. Velpia noticed his discomfort and thought about saying something but decided against it. He looked calm, as if some weight was lifted off of him.
The elevator came to a stop, and Martin pulled himself up as the doors opened. They both stepped out, heading for the front of the lobby, before a voice yelled out. "Stop. Don't move!" The pair froze, realizing they had been surrounded. The armor-clad soldiers were positioned all around them with their weapons drawn. Martin looked around him and smiled. "Took ya long enough!" He yelled.
A man broke through the crowd and approached two by the elevator. "You mind explaining yourselves?"
Martin recognized the man and smiled. "Detective Jones, We've just completed the job we were hired to do; Soren Kohler was smuggling Red Sand using illegal Mercenaries operating in human space.-"
"-That's enough. We will discuss this back at the station."
They were escorted back to the station and brought before the chief. Waiting for them there, however, was more than they expected. Walking toward the chief's office, they noticed military uniforms sitting in the room. "Ah shit." Velpia quietly blurted. "What does the Alliance want now?"
Martin calmly grabbed her hand and leaned as they walked. "Just let me handle the talking," he replied as he let go. "I wasn't going to say a damn thing to anyone on this planet."
They entered the room as the other members stood to greet them. "Mr. Winters, I think you may want to explain what happened at the tower, and before you say anything, this conversation will determine whether or not criminal charges are held against you."
Martin took a breath and cleared his throat. He then smiled as he raised his arm and transferred the information he obtained from Soren's Omni-tool. "I was hired for a job, and I completed it. Unfortunately, calling the authorities at the time wasn't ideal, so I acted in your stead, Colonel."
Colonel Gaissac looked over the data. While the Chief began chastising them, "While I commend you for your detective abilities, Mr. Winters, I don't appreciate you turning my city into a warzone. Firefights in heavily populated areas, discharging your firearms with complete disregard for the well beings of others. Storming residential buildings in broad daylight-"
"You forgot the Bar Fight with the Spectre." Martin cut in. Both the Chief and Velpia froze, almost dumbfounded. Although for different reasons.
The Chief briefly shook his head to focus. "You were tasked with finding the Depot and finding out who was behind the distribution, not to wage war."
Martin knew he didn't have the evidence to prove Cerberus' involvement, nor wanted to suggest to the Colonel that he was even involved with them again. He had to play this his way. Martin shrugged. "I'd figure you'd pay more for disposal."
"Do you realize that since you've arrived, morgue activity has risen a two-hundred percent! Whatever storm you brought to his planet has made my life a living PR nightmare. Two small armies of Private Contractors land on the planet. In the middle, a gunslinger with no disregard for the law and his Turian pet cause enough damage to the city to throw the population into a panic!"
"Hey! I'm not anyone's pet! Asshole!" The Colonel finally looked up, a little surprised at the Chief's outburst. "I think what our frustrated public servant is trying to say is, You've caused a lot of damage to the city and panicked the population. While his data explains some of this, there's still a lot we don't understand. I think it's in the best interest of everyone if you leave the planet and head back home."
"What?!" the Chief protested. "We're letting them walk?"
"They're leaving; end of discussion, Chief."
"Kicking us off the planet? Say no more." Velpia turned around without hesitation and grabbed Martin by the arm. "Mr. Winters." Martin gave her a nod, and she let go and stood outside the door to wait. "You keep interesting secrets, I suggest, for your sake. They stay that way."
Martin's eyebrows dropped lower on his face as he turned around to leave the room. He had a feeling the Alliance knew more than the Colonel cared to admit, but he wasn't going to stick around to find out.