The datapad Odessus had given her was preloaded with information but had no connection to the extranet. While she found the title amusing, she found it difficult to focus on the words in front of her. She did manage to parse enough of the chapter on omni-tools to hear Michael already going on and on about being able to overload an enemy's hardsuit shields, but she started to get lost when she got to the chapters on the other species in Council space.
There were so many of them. The turians were just the tip of the iceberg—or maybe a better metaphor would be the tip of the spear, if this Treaty of Farixen was any indication. How was Hannah supposed to comprehend a race of jellyfish people that functioned, let alone moved, out of water—while maintaining their shape no less—and were somehow able to translate their bioluminescence into spoken language? Were the volus really the only race responsible for the stability of the entire galactic economy?
(Oh god. There was a galactic economy. What if the Alliance eventually joined it? Her and Michael's savings were just starting to show some gains, and she didn't want to see it inflated into oblivion as soon as this conflict ended.)
And what about this Council? For the size of the galactic community and the diversity of races, the Council seemed criminally small: one representative each from the asari, the turians, and the salarians, whoever they were. And species had to prove themselves before they could reach this echelon of representation? What did that mean? What did that process involve? Without a clear definition of what it meant for a species to "prove itself," it seemed it was determined entirely by the whim of the members of the Council, who had an obvious interest in remaining as unchanged as possible for as long as possible. This wasn't a democracy; it wasn't even a republic. It was oligarchy.
With the Alliance already in conflict with the Hierarchy, what assurance did they have that they'd be treated fairly? Would the turian councilor—one-third of this governing body—remain impartial? Would they recuse themselves and leave the diplomacy and policy making to the other two? As optimistic as she normally was, Hannah was not fool enough to hope so.
She put her hand to the crook of her shoulder to stretch her neck and immediately regretted it. That mystery spot was still tender. It was a favorite for Vyrnnus. The thought of him turned her stomach, and she had to put the datapad away. She'd continue learning about the galaxy once she could put his face out of her mind again. She lay back on her cot and closed her eyes, waiting for the nausea to pass.
#
He'd come to talk to her a handful of times now, each time with that psychic burning thing he did. Each time, it started as a tickle and eventually grew to feel like all her cells were trying to tear themselves apart. Miraculously, she'd been able to keep her hands at her sides every time. She knew people like Vyrnnus; the moment she brought her hand to her neck was the moment it would get worse. He'd move to something else, something more painful.
She had no idea how he was doing it, and her only source of information was Sana, who continued to check on her. Hannah had debated asking her if turians were psychic or telekinetic, but the question sounded crazy even to her. She'd have to figure it out on her own.
Vyrnnus was definitely one for both theatrics and passive aggression. He would remove his gloves the moment he entered the room and rest his uncovered talons lightly on his thighs whenever he sat. He would feign a chill as a pretense to raise the temperature in her cell.
He hadn't asked her any questions about the Alliance since that first encounter, but he loved to talk.
"It's laughable that you humans force one retreat and you think you've won the war," he would say and laugh derisively. "You have no idea who you're up against."
"I've been commanding troops longer than you've been alive, human," he was also fond of saying, though she doubted he knew how old she was.
"You wear that trinket some humans do to show they have a mate," he said during their last "interrogation," pointing to the ring on her finger. "Such a primitive practice, showing ownership over another person. Are humans so faithless that you require even your mates to wear an external token to ward off other suitors? What about your mate? Was it faithless? Was it on Shanxi?"
She glared at him in silence, and he only smirked at her.
"I killed quite a few of your kind, both before and after your reinforcements arrived," he continued. "You humans have so little variation that it's hard to tell you apart, but perhaps if your mate had some distinguishing mark, I could tell you if I killed it. Give you some closure, yes?"
Hannah's head was starting to hurt from how tightly she clenched her jaws, so she forced herself to relax those muscles. He didn't know her age, and he didn't know anything about Michael.
She began her typical response, "Lieutenant Commander Hannah Shep—"
Vyrnnus waved a hand dismissively, still smirking, "Indeed."
He stood and paced the room. He started to move on to another subject when his glance fell on something that seemed to catch his attention, and whatever words he was about to say died on his tongue.
He pointed a long talon past Hannah. "What is that?"
She followed his gaze, and saw her tablet sitting on the small stand next to the head of her bed. She'd forgotten to turn it off when Vyrnnus had entered her cell; her attention had diverted immediately to preparing herself for whatever he planned to do. The screen was currently on an image of a pyramid in Teotihuacan, where she and Michael had spent their honeymoon. She felt her heart beat just a little faster.
He picked it up and looked at it. "I'll ask you again, human. What is this?"
She could hear a lilt in his voice that sounded almost excited, and she knew where this was going. "Lieutenant Commander—"
He waved his hand again to silence her and began sliding through the pictures. The next was one she'd taken while she and Michael kissed in front of the pyramid. The next several were also taken on the same day, though the next was taken several years later—a side view of her growing stomach. She hoped without reason that he wouldn't know what that picture meant. By the flick of his mandibles, she knew he did.
He held up the tablet and said, "This device is not approved for use by incarcerated persons, human. Possession of contraband is a serious offense on a Hierarchy ship."
It took all of Hannah's strength to keep her breathing steady, and through clenched teeth, she began again, "Lieutenant Comman—"
Without another word, he dropped the tablet. Hannah focused on her breathing as the screen flickered black. The casing remained intact, so she held onto the hope that the data was not lost.
That hope vanished when Vyrnnus brought down his foot—heavily—onto the device. The tablet cracked and shattered under his weight, and all Hannah could do was keep breathing.
Her neck seemed not to hurt so much anymore.
#
Thankfully, Vyrnnus was not her only regular visitor.
Sana came by three times each day to bring food and company and to keep a cursory eye on her vitals. Luckily, Hannah didn't need to disrobe. Sana had cut Hannah's bra from her when they brought her aboard, but even so, it wasn't a sense of modesty that worried her. Vyrnnus had begun to work his way down her back along her spine, and she was working up an impressive line of hot and blistering burns. The pain had been blinding last time, and she may have lost consciousness for a moment. Her arms would twitch a couple of times at odd intervals since then.
She'd been in the brig for two weeks, and Vyrnnus still hadn't pressed for real information. He seemed content to try to wear her down gradually before even attempting to ask her for what he wanted. He seemed to be under the impression that he had all the time in the world to break her.
What Hannah needed was a good long run. Just to clear her head. Her legs ached to stretch and burn, but she knew she would only end up injuring herself if she tried to run in the clothes she had. Her physical training time had been uncomfortable enough even during low-impact plank exercises. Flight suits weren't particularly known for their ability to wick, and there was no way she could sprint for an hour without some kind of support. Not to mention that her boots would likely break her feet in half if she tried to run on a treadmill in them.
The next time Sana came by, she broached the topic of borrowing a bra.
Sana chuckled at Hannah's request. "Asari only wear supportive underthings on two occasions: for reinforcement while nursing and for special occasions," she said. "We build support into our garments as a matter of course. I will loan you some activewear so that you can run." She paused to look Hannah up and down and consider. "I would think that wearing a bra during high-impact physical activity would cause chaffing. Is that not a concern for humans with pronounced mammary glands like yours?"
Hannah rolled her eyes at the clinicalness of the question and smirked. "As long as it doesn't have a seam or a hem, it's fine. And I'd say I'm more average than pronounced."
Sana hummed in thought and brought up the interface on her omni-tool to type a few notes. When she'd finished, she switched the program and started running scans on Hannah. "I am glad to see that humans use exercise to remain positive as well as healthy. I do wish Odessus would follow your example. She has been restless lately. She is no doubt apprehensive of her hearing regarding her administrative leave. Perhaps the next time she comes to see you, you could persuade her to take up a more rigorous exercise regimen."
Hannah felt a slight pang in her chest—probably just embarrassment—but shrugged it off. She debated briefly how to respond and quickly settled on, "Yeah, I'll do that."
She had neither the energy nor the inclination to dive into that topic.
Sana's brow suddenly creased, and she glanced up at Hannah. From where she sat, Hannah could see what was supposed to be her body floating above the good doctor's wrist; where most of her body glowed blue with only faint lines outlining her internal organs, a small, angry red spot glowed near the middle of her upper back. Sana swiped her fingers across the interface, and suddenly the faint lines followed along the contours of her skin, and that spot grew into a chain. Sana's expression went from concerned to alarmed faster than Hannah would've liked.
Shit.
Sana pulled Hannah gently forward by her shoulder, pushed back the collar of her flight suit, and gasped.
"Hannah!" she said in a hushed voice as she pressed her fingers gently against the skin near the injuries. "These are warp burns. How did you get these?"
Hannah shrugged and pulled away from the doctor's prying grasp, rolling her eyes.
"I walked into a door. How do you think I got them?" She paused, realizing what Sana had said. "Wait. You know what these are?"
"Who is doing this to you, Hannah? Whoever it is has clearly done it before. They have kept their fields fine and small enough to damage only the epidermis, and it takes an enormous amount of practice to gain that kind of control. They slipped, though. One field was too large or too strong and caused deep-tissue damage, possibly even nerve damage. I need to know who did this."
Hannah sighed and shrugged. "The less you know about it the better, Sana. You knowing isn't going to stop it, and if you tell anyone, chances are they already know and it'll just make it worse for me. He'll just get trickier and more vicious, mark my words. If you can treat the burns, fine, do that. But that's all you can do."
Sana set her jaw in an angry line and nodded. "Vyrnnus?"
Hannah shrugged and looked away from the asari.
"Does Odessus know about this?"
Hannah shrugged again. "Probably. Or something like it."
From the corner of her vision, Hannah saw Sana switch to a new program on her omni-tool and start to type something. She'd gripped the asari's wrist, and the interface disappeared. Surprised, Sana took a step back, and Hannah released her hold, shaking her head. "Don't," she said. "She has enough to worry about. The hearing and all."
The doctor looked as if she'd just moved the last piece to a puzzle into place and nodded. "Of course, Lieutenant Commander, you are right. We should let her concentrate on those matters that are most important to her at the moment."
Sana said nothing else for the rest of her visit. She spread a cool salve against the burns and fumed in silence. At one point, while Sana leaned over her neck, Hannah thought she saw a faint blue light shimmering over the doctor's skin, but she dismissed it as just a reflection from the barrier at her cell's entrance.
Several hours after Sana had left, one of Hannah's guards stepped through the door with a bundle of clothes and left them on the edge of her cot without once looking at her. She would've thanked him just to get under his skin, but her attention was drawn to a small datapad atop the pile. She picked it up to read the note Sana had left for her.
I have adjusted your schedule for tomorrow so that I may observe your fitness levels for my paper. Octavus is aware and has cleared it.
Hannah wasn't sure whether to shake her head or be impressed, but it was good to see that humans didn't have the galactic monopoly on gumption.
#
The shoes Sana brought her did not seem like they would fit her at first. They seemed small, smaller even than Sana's feet, which were themselves smaller than Hannah's. But after learning of the space magic of omni-tools, the space magic of medigel, and the everyday magic of telekinetic aliens, she decided to give it a shot and try them on. She huffed when they stretched and slid easily around her heel and molded to her arch. Of course it fits perfectly, she thought. The galaxy is made of magic.
Once she was dressed—she could get used to the firm, breathable support the asari tailored into their clothes—Sana took out the pale blue runner's tape and began to adhere it to her legs. This wasn't something Hannah usually did back home, and the sensation was strange, like long fingers holding her muscles in place.
Sana smirked at her when she stood up. "I am used to seeing this color on my skin," she said. "It is odd to see the contrast against yours."
Hannah chuckled. "Yeah, well, between you and me, I'm not looking forward to the contrast that'll happen after I take this tape off." Hannah hadn't missed having smooth legs this much since basic. She was sure Michael would laugh at her and tell her to go through ICT then come talk to him about luxuries like shaved legs.
As they left her cell, Sana turned to the guards with what was clearly a prepared statement. "Colonel Octavus has entrusted her into my care until my examination is complete. To maintain doctor-patient confidentiality, you are not permitted to follow us." The guards exchanged a glance, and one seemed about to respond when Sana lost her patience. "Just call him to verify and let us get back to our schedule. We are already pressed for time as it is, and I have no patience for your dallying."
The two guards seemed to straighten at the tone in her voice and nodded. Hannah had to bite the inside of her lip to keep from laughing, and when they were out of earshot, she turned to Sana and smirked. "I'd never have guessed you were a social engineer, Doc."
The asari did not meet her gaze and only continued on toward the gymnasium. "I do not know what you mean, Lieutenant Commander. If they had called the colonel, he would have corroborated my claim. I told him it was the least he could do to give you an hour or two of privacy after your treatment. He did not agree with me. At first. I think he changed his mind when I asked him for guidance on how to describe my services rendered on my invoice to the Hierarchy: medical treatment or aiding and abetting abuse of power. He seemed more amenable after that."
Hannah stopped walking. "Sana. You didn't."
Sana stopped as well. "Of course I did, Lieutenant Commander. You are my patient, and I have a responsibility to keep you healthy and unharmed." She stopped and brought up the interface for her omni-tool. "Vyrnnus is currently receiving his formal reprimand, and the colonel has synced his 'tool's signal to mine. He will not be able to come near you without my knowledge."
Hannah shook her head and took a deep breath. "Shit. I had everything under control, Sana. Things could go sideways really quick."
The asari turned and began walking again. "A simple 'thank you' would have sufficed, Lieutenant Commander. Come along. Our time is limited, and Octavus said he would not hesitate to sound the alarm if you are not back to your cell at the time we agreed upon."
#
Hannah could feel the tension begin to leave her shoulders as soon as she started to run. This was everything she needed. The burn, the heat, the sweat. Sana timed her, tested her, pushed her. She changed the speed and the incline and the time. She took her pulse and her blood pressure. She even drew a small vial of blood, even though Hannah wasn't sure how that could be relevant.
By the end of it all, she had no idea how far she'd run, but Hannah felt a little more like herself. Every muscle ached and her fingers tingled. Her neck and back were slick with sweat; her face felt hot and was probably red as a beet. She couldn't help but smile as her breathing and her heartbeat slowed to their normal pace.
Her grin, however, froze and faltered when Odessus entered the gym.
She looked smaller in her loose active clothes, out of her light armor. She was currently wrapping her wrists and hands in what looked like tape, but she paused after only half a dozen steps into the room. She lifted her gaze from her hands and looked in Hannah's direction, then looked quickly away.
Hannah shot a glare at Sana, who looked completely unsurprised. "By the goddess," she said, sounding almost bored. "It is almost as if Athame herself arranged this chance meeting because she thought the two of you should talk like reasonable adults."
Odessus shook her head and finished wrapping her hands. She took a stance in front of a boxing bag hanging several meters away from Hannah. "We did talk like reasonable adults, Sana. No one's feelings are hurt. We're not mad at each other. But the more contact we have, the more difficult our lives become. I have my duty, and she has hers."
Sana continued to look unimpressed and didn't even lift her gaze from her omni-tool's interface. "Indeed," she said. "That does sound reasonable. Have the two of you also discussed the content of Hannah's interrogation sessions with Vyrnnus?"
Hannah crossed her arms and shifted her weight to her back heel. "Your meddling is growing steadily less tolerable," she said then turned to Odessus. "She wants me to tell you about the warp burns, or whatever she calls them, that Vyrnnus gives me."
Odessus hesitated in her assault against the swaying bag, her mandibles pulling tight against her jaw. She glanced at Hannah, then returned to boxing with renewed force. "Well, I did warn you."
It was at that statement that Sana looked up from her omni-tool, genuinely surprised. "Pardon me?" she said, her cheeks coloring slightly. "Odessus Ravaka. Are you telling me that his abuse was expected?"
"Sana, I even told you the colonel knew about it," Hannah said, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. "Why do you think he was reluctant to do anything?"
Odessus paused and turned to Sana. "You told him?"
Sana's glare could turn water to ice. "You did not?"
Before any of them could say another word, Sana's wrist began to blink red. Odessus nodded toward the light. "Someone is trying to get your attention, Doctor."
The asari looked down and gasped. "It's him," she said, walking quickly toward Hannah. "He's within two hundred meters on this deck. He's on his way here."
"Why?" Hannah asked.
Odessus strode to Hannah and took up her wrist. "It's a gym, Hannah," she said as she brought up the omni-tool's interface and navigated through the programs. "He's probably coming down here to work off some steam. Especially if he's just been reprimanded for doing the exact thing his commanding officer expected him to do without having to be told to do it."
Hannah gasped when her arm disappeared. When she realized the rest of her had disappeared as well, she felt slightly panicked.
"Don't say anything," Odessus said, returning to her punching bag. "The cloak doesn't dampen any sound you might make."
Sana brought up another program on her omni-tool, and Hannah saw a series of characters constantly changing. "Get rid of him, Odessus," she said, the urgency ringing clear in her voice. "Hannah has twelve minutes and forty-seven seconds before she needs to be back in her cell."
She'd barely spoken the words when the door to the gymnasium opened and Vyrnnus walked quickly through them. Hannah's heart began to race at the sight of him, and her stomach turned again. He paused midstride and lifted his gaze, his nose plates shifting to smell the air.
How strong was a turian's sense of smell? Could he smell her from across the room if he tried? Or maybe it was the scent of the cloak itself. Hannah brought her wrist to her nose and breathed in quietly. She caught the weak scent of ozone and electricity, but she had no way of knowing how weak that smell might be to Vyrnnus.
Whatever it was that had stopped him seemed to pass out of his mind, and he resumed his trek across the room. Hannah moved quickly and quietly to keep her distance.
"You're here early, Ravaka," Vyrnnus rumbled as he approach another punching bag.
"Couldn't sleep," she answered shortly without looking over.
"I'm surprised you're not checking in on that pyjack you picked up on Shanxi."
The pause was nearly undetectable. Nearly. "She's scheduled for sleep right now. Depriving a prisoner of sleep is against regs."
The other turian rumbled and said something Hannah's translator didn't catch. "Should've left it on Shanxi," he said when her translator recovered. "It's an officer but it doesn't rank high enough to know any critical information. There's no place for useless refuse like that on this ship."
"I guess you should have thought about that before engaging in armed conflict with the humans," Sana said coolly from where she stood stretching on her side of the room.
Odessus shot her a look that silenced the asari, and before Vyrnnus could say anything in response to the jab, she offered her own reply, "Prisoners of war are a statistical eventuality, and protocol is clear on what to do with them. Hierarchy rules of engagement provide a place for Hannah on this ship."
The other turian stopped and turned toward her, clearly more shocked by her words than Sana's. "Plates gone dull, Ravaka? You've never been one for pets before. If I didn't know better—"
He stopped and turned his head into the air, sniffing. Odessus kept her eyes on the bag in front of her, but Hannah saw her tense. The moment stretched out and filled every inch of the negative space in the room. Finally, his eyes lighted on Sana, and his expression changed to one of understanding.
He turned back toward his bag. "You need a shower, Doctor. You're starting to smell like it."
Odessus huffed. "As always, Vyrnnus, your repartee continues to be an inspiration. It is a she, by the way."
"I don't care what it is," he growled. "It's a menace, and the sooner we get those reinforcements, the better. They'll be subdued within a month, mark my words. The humans need to be put down before they start another Rachni War."
Here, Odessus paused and turned toward Vyrnnus. "What reinforcements?"
His mandibles twitched at an angle Hannah couldn't parse. "What's the matter, Major? Out of the loop? We're on our way back to Palaven right now. The primarch has already promised support, provided we divulge the details of the engagement. Give it a month and the humans won't know what hit them."
Before either Odessus or Vyrnnus could say another word, an alarm tore through the air. She saw Odessus glance quickly in Hannah's direction. Luckily, Vyrnnus appeared to miss that movement. Nonetheless, he took a predatory stride toward her.
"What have you done, Major?"
Odessus stopped and moved herself away from him. "I've done nothing, Commander. Why would you think the alarm has to do with me?"
"Don't play innocent, Ravaka! The pyjack has escaped, and you had something to do with, I'd stake my life on it."
Odessus spread out her hands to indicate her ignorance. "I've been here with you. How exactly am I supposed to have aided and abetted an escape attempt?"
A blue corona enveloped Vyrnnus, and Odessus took two steps back. He took three steps into her space and leaned forward, "Where is it, Major?"
Odessus took one defiant step forward. "Retract your threat, sir. I have no idea what the alarm is about, but an escape attempt is preposterous. And again, I've been here. How exactly am I supposed to have helped her?"
He took another step forward, now just a breath away from her. After a long moment, he growled, low enough that Hannah's translator almost didn't pick it up, "I don't believe you."
Though he moved his arm, Hannah did not see his hand connect with Odessus. Nonetheless, she went flying across the room and crumpled on the floor a dozen meters away. Sana called her name, but made no other attempt to move, fear and confusion having apparently rooter her to where she stood. Vyrnnus made another gesture, and the air bent and distorted into a blue sphere that moved quickly across the room until it connected with Odessus before she could recover herself. She grunted and fell to the ground again.
"Fuck you, Vyrnnus," she spat out breathlessly after a moment.
He strode forward and grabbed her by the cowl. "Where is it, Ravaka? Not even a human is stupid enough to try to leave the ship in the middle of a vacuum. Tell me where it is."
Odessus moved quickly, and Hannah wasn't sure what she'd seen. Suddenly, Vyrnnus was bent over and falling backward, her two-taloned foot wrapped tightly around the spur protruding from his leg and pushing downward with force. He cried out as he fell to the ground.
He threw out his hand again, and she crashed hard against the wall. This time, she didn't recover quite so quickly, and a dark blue rivulet sprang from her nose.
He was crouching over her now, pinning her arms to her sides with his knees and grabbing her cowl to bring her face closer to his. His fist, clenched and raised, began to glow bright blue and spark. "Assaulting a superior officer in wartime. Sounds like treason to me."
He brought his glowing fist down hard, and Odessus stopped moving after that.