N7 Echo (10 glimpses)

by scaldwell0211

Vincent Shepard was an Earth-born freedom fighter, arrested and jailed in Detroit, trading his sentence for service, he became a black ops member of N7 Echo Team - where the coverups followed each mission. After earning the nickname, the Butcher of Torfan, he cared little. He wanted a way out, but even getting killed wasn't enough. Can he get free this time?

p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vincent Shepard lay on his back, stretched out on his bed, gazing blankly at the ceiling of his captain's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis new and improved captain's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanComplete with a lounge area for drinks and a giant fish tank running along the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThere was even a case for collecting model style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat a joke./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Two years ago Vince had met his fate at the hands of an unknown style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAfter being left for dead by the Alliance, the human-interest group Cerberus had spent millions, and all the time since then, to reconstruct and revive style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat an honor, he mused. He put his arms up, clasping his fingers behind his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe had been right about one thing – the geth activity he had been investigating led him to where he needed to be, even if it led him to his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat unknown vessel belonged to a race called the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShady beings that were lurking somewhere beyond the edges of traveled space, the unexplored other side of the Omega-4 relay, were now the ones linked by Cerberus to human colony style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince wasn't surprised that the Alliance did style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey'd never put much priority on the outer colonies in the first style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIf Cerberus would get the job done, then Cerberus it style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanThe intercom buzzed next to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Commander," it was his cute little yeoman, Kelly style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You wanted to know when we were entering the approach vector for Omega."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He rolled over and tapped the haptic style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"On my way."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He decided to stop by the armory style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis arms master, Jacob Taylor, was in the process of taking apart his assault rifle and cleaning the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanVince leaned casually against the weapons locker and crossed his well-muscled arms, preferring the sleeveless freedom and utility of his old raider style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis roughshod brigandine outfit, combined with his silvery hair, yellow-green eyes and the scars on his tanned unshaven cheek and chin gave him all the look of a rogue style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jacob, by contrast, was zipped tight in his Cerberus utility uniform when he snapped to and had to stop himself from style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanStill ingrained in the alliance ways, Shepard thought with a smirk./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Commander," Jacob rocked on his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We ready to go get this doctor?"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis brown eyes seemed brighter against his dark style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShepard noted reluctance in them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Did your time in the corsairs ever bring you out this way?" Vince recalled their earlier conversation at the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Alliance doesn't mess with the Omega system much, even the black ops groups like your corsairs and my N7 Echo team."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jacob shook his head, relaxing a bit. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Never been out here style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI heard about what you N7 Echoes did on Torfan. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey promoted the shit out of that story, saying you were the tip of the spear that broke the defenses of those batarian slavers."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe watched Shepard closely, "I heard it was brutal. The batarians still call you the Butcher of Torfan."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince's yellow-green eyes narrowed in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We killed every one of those bastards because they deserved to die," he said style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen he looked at Jacob, there was gravity in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"If you would've seen what they'd done… Fuck those batarians."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jacob folded his arms to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I believe it, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe alliance has been covering their dirt up for style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanEven after watching them dishonor my fallen brothers when they didn't have to, because they had to protect their precious reputations, it took counselor Udina backsliding on his promises to make me walk style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus gets shit style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI might not agree with all their methods, but I'm only part of the Lazarus cell, and what we're doing is important because nobody else is doing anything."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe seemed to think about it, "Did you know that after you died, the alliance hid that from the public for almost a year."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince raised his eyebrows with mild style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Really?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Yeah," Jacob nodded, "They used old photos and shit for recruitment style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanFor a good six months you were all the rave in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen they ran out of legit footage, they just made fake vids until people started questioning style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThen they had a emfuneral/em."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe snorted./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard lifted off the locker with a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We do this our way from here on style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus can pay our bills all they style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanemWe/em know why we're doing this."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Amen to that," Jacob style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You headed out then?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Yeah," Vince answered, "After I have a quick chat with Jack and Miranda."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Hah," Jacob style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Good luck with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMiranda was pretty upset when you ignored her request to come to Omega style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe'll do whatever the mission requires, especially if the Illusive Man is pushing it, but I actually think she planned on skipping Purgatory at all."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""She didn't seem too excited at the notion," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThen in seriousness, "I spent enough time in a cell to know anyone that's going to be part of our crew doesn't deserve to rot in prison any longer than they have to."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Your instincts were spot on this time," Jacob admitted. "That crooked ass warden is everything wrong with privatizing prisons."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis face style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Greed and power."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Piece of shit tried selling us out," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I still need to speak with Miranda about Illusive Man's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe can't afford to get blind-sided by any more of those."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Most style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe warden must've been offered a lot of money to go against the Illusive style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'd like to know who's throwing around that kind of cash."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Cash," Vince said style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Haven't heard that word since I left style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey still say it in Detroit..."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis look became distant as his thoughts began to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe dismissed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You've got the deck until I get back."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis golden green eyes flashed as he style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Time to see if this seedy-ass spaceport lives up to its reputation."/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"2. Barfight/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Omega – Club Afterlife/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Goddammit, Shepard!" Miranda shouted, swinging her guns around toward the Blue Suns mercenaries and peppering the club walls and tables with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe sound of the battle was nearly drowned out in the drumming bass of the vibrant music. Flickering and flashing red and violet and pink lights made the flurry of movement and gunfire a surreal hazy whirlwind of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGlass exploded, people screamed in a commotion of scrambling and fleeing./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack, decked out in her biker-like black leather, her back to the side doorway, paused to admire the moment through her visor shades, which prevented people from seeing her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe smell of smoke and alcohol filled her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe smiled then curved her stubbly, shaved head around to see a Blue Suns merc hiding behind the ravaged bar. With excitement and hard liquor filling her veins, she spun out of the doorway, swung her legs over a table and swept up all her biotic style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe hurled it like a side-winding style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Fly, bitch!" she screamed as the pulsating blue force hit the merc in the back and sent him hurling helplessly into the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe cocked her head toward Shepard, "Batter up."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince crouched and grinned like a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis yellow-green eyes flashed with ferocity as he style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe shot forward in a blaze of violet-blue energy and slammed into the floating style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe mercenary was blasted backward and crashed into the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe dizzily struggled to move in the mess of shattered glass and clattering metal before seeing that Vince was standing over him with a burning shotgun style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe blast lit Shepard's scarred face in a pretty flash of orange and yellow./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Miranda, box 'em up!" Shepard ordered. "Jack!span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTime to go bowling!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer polished black Cerberus armor made her nigh invisible as it reflected the moving and flaring lights around style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe remaining Blue Suns had already begun to cluster near the front style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe set her jaw, gripped her double Locust submachine guns tightly, and sprinted from behind the bar, sending another stream of bullets leaving sizzling melted polonium holes in body and table style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe Blue Suns scrambled desperately to move, knocking into each other in a perfect tangled mess of a target./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"On either side of the circular bar, Jack and Vince moved into style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack rolled her biotic energy like a bowling style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack rolled her biotic energy like a literal bowling style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt curved through the air and exploded into the cluster of mercenaries, sending them flying up in all directions, the biotic energy release slowing their bodies to drift temporarily through the gravity altered space… Vince's shotgun blasts tore through the helpless thugs, rending them out of the air, one fiery blast after style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He turned and began walking toward the other end of the bar as the last charred mercenary body hit the floor behind style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Fish in a barrel," his golden eyes were on Aria's window./span/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;" /span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Aria reclined on her posh leather couch, arms outstretched along the back, her legs style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe asari watched Shepard approach with strained style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer masculine, relaxed posture did not fool style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer cold eyes withheld her ferocity the way only a woman style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer jaw style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You shot up my club."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Her collage of bodyguards stiffened around him, hands on their style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe continued to stare him down as he stopped in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe looked around at the guards and then his yellow-green eyes rested on Aria and he style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Cerberus'll foot the bill."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Down a few steps from Aria's spot, Miranda and Jack stood observing his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Hear that, cheerleader?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus is feeling awful generous today."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda's large blue eyes turned on Jack with that feminine kind of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe forced a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Why not? We've already covered the drinking binge-inspired barfight you and Shepard indulged yourselves style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOr perhaps you could chip in from all the bank terminals you two kept stopping to hack while we were trying to find the doctor in the middle of an epidemic?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack's red painted lips glistened in the ruby club light and she smiled slow and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Who would've thought taking Cerberus for everything they've got would be this much fun?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda's gaze was steady. "I was right in thinking you should've been our emlast/em style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI should've known this stinking piss-hole that is Omega would be just too enticing for a girl of your style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanPerhaps you'd prefer the extra months sleeping peacefully in your cyro-suspension."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe turned her back on Jack, dismissing the ex-con, and her attention to the commander, hoping he was about finished chatting with crime style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack clenched her tattooed fist and grit her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe could sooo punch this bitch in the back of the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen she felt biotic energy starting to flare up in her fists she released them, but only a bit too late./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda's micromesh suit picked up the dark energy and spurred to life her body style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe Cerberus agent turned slowly, her eyes incredulous. behind her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Are we going to have a problem?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack squared off, her shoulders set, her fists style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBlueish energy pulsed out of her skin, radiating off her in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Give me a reason, Cerberus bitch."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Ladies!" Vince cut in, "Plenty of time to argue later."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe held an omni-pad in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I traded the list of Aria's defectors for this."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Both women stared blankly, if style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe continued, "I asked for a name or location of the guy the prison warden sold us out to."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe smiled, the jagged scar on his unshaven skin stretching into a little style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Aria had both."/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"3. Renegades, All of Us/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Club Afterlife, Omega/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince sat at the bar, basked in Afterlife's crimson style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey had waited out the weekend in the docks while Garrus healed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe club had been up and running the next day as if nothing had style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe whole mission to Omega had been a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe Illusive Man had given them two names located on the asteroid station, Doctor Mordin Solus and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanVince didn't know if he was surprised to find Garrus had gone style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe was almost relieved./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"When he'd first met Garrus, he thought the turian was an overzealous style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis breaking free of C-Sec to help Vince in his hunt for the rogue spectre Saren, had earned him a spot on the original style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen Shepard made spectre, Garrus seemed only too happy to operate outside of the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCops and cons weren't so different when it came down to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGarrus had turned to crime fighting, on his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGood for him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He finished his cold blue turian hurricane with a gasp and a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe clapped down the cup and eyed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was sitting rather patiently on the stool next to him, legs crossed, hands on her lap. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was normally sharply present, but at the moment, the eyes behind her omni-visor were far off in thought./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"When Shepard had first thrown up his feet in her office and started asking her probing questions about Cerberus, she had seemed only too happy to tell him how great Cerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe had been more interested in the extent of their resources and how easily he could access them. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe seemed to really believe in the Illusive Man's ideals, even defending their methods as pragmatically altruistic while admitting the tycoon simply dumpsdumped limitless resources into whatever motivatesmotivated people style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd while she began going on about her superior genetics, he had been admiring those perfect curves and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe also seemed to remember her noticing and appreciating his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer suggestive smiles and seductive movements coupled with her icy tone and cold stare made him want to melt that frosty exterior./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""What are you smiling about?" Miranda asked, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The rest of the crew are finishing style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think we've spent enough time wallowing in the filth."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe leapt off her stool lightly and padded away into the crowd./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Ever since they had gone to that prison to release the convict Jack, Miranda had been style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAs Jacob had pointed out earlier, she had wanted to come to Omega straight off and Vince's willfull decision to go the opposite direction first, and to the last place she had wanted to go, had definitely worsened her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd because someone at Cerberus leaked information about Shepard and the Lazarus project, specifically how much it had cost, the warden got lofty enough to betray style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe thought he could ransom style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanVince shook his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat a dipshit. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanDid he think Cerberus wouldn't retaliate at some point, even if he succeeded?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"At any rate, the convict Jack turned out to be a victim of Cerberus torture, so she wasn't too pleased to find she had escaped prison only to be takengreeted by style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMiranda had made the immediate mistake of trying to tell Jack how things style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe biotic brawl almost unleashed in the Normandy's meeting room was only avoided by Shepard promising Jack all the Cerberus data she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe probably should've jumped in and said something when she was in Miranda's face, but he had found it all too style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat, also, had pissed Miranda style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSince then, she and Jack had been dancing around another catfight everywhere they style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd for some reason, he kept bringing them both on the missions./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He rose from his stool, feeling the cold drink still tingling his veins and the drumming of the bass trembling in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe exhaled as Jacob approached him through the smoky red style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Commander," he style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The doctor is set up in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe's going over the collector data we got from the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe thinks he'll be able to figure something out by the time the Illusive Man gets us the location of another possible collector strike."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I hope so," Shepard scratched his platinum and silver style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"If we can't stop those swarms from getting through our armor, we're going to be joining those missing colonists."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"The arms master agreed. "He seems to know what he's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe was helping those people with a cure in the wards, so the salarian's got principles and stands by his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe said he'd help and I believe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd now that we have all the names on the roster but style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe've only got the krogan general left to find."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""How's Garrus?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jacob relaxed a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He's doing style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis face is pretty messed up still, but the turian's a tough bastard."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe put his back to the bar and looked out at the broad cylinder of golden light rising up in the center of the circular bar, threaded with platforms of asari style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe moving silhouettes shifted the rays of amber light around style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I still can't believe the vigilante gang-hunter Archangel turned out to be one of your original style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGoddamn, Shepard," he crossed his arms and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"They weren't kidding about you."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The doctor's a rebel, Archangel's a crime-fighter, you were a corsair, I was N7 Echo, and now we're all style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGo fucking figure." /span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"4. Prisoners/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Cargo Hold, Normandy SR-2/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"After the rest of the crew had returned to the Normandy, they had plotted a course for the last name on their roster, the krogan Generalwarlord style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShepard had Miranda make the announcement before he headed down toward the lower style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack rarely seemed to leave the dark shadowed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut being captain of a ship meant maintaining situational awareness of all your style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat much he had gleaned from the Alliance style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat much more in the depths of black ops motives./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince came down the metal steps to find Jack sitting on a crate in the dark, hunched over a scattered array of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer biker jacket was in a heap on the deck, next to her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanA swirl of colorful tattoos curved up her slender arms and encircled her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer once shaven head was now covered by a thin film of red-gold peach fuzz. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer face was illuminated with the orange light of the omni-pads at her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe turned and looked up when he approached./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Hey," she watched him style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He leaned casually against a stack of magnetically held food style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe had removed her shade visor. "Find anything?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""There's a lot to go through," she admitted with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I need to find specific names and places."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Do you know what you're looking for?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She sighed, dropping the omni-pad in her hand to the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I know I was held in a facility with other biotic style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI know Cerberus ran style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI remember faces, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt's all a blur of nightmares and pain."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard thought a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Do you have any idea what they were after?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Why don't you ask your cheerleader girlfriend?" she rose, sidled up to him, pressing close and looking right in his face, her pale face a wash in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe noticed that her dark eyeliner and glossy red lipstick worked together to bring out the red in her brown eyes – eyes that were pervasively searching his own right style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Why did you break me out?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I told you why."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""First, I mean," Jack turned style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Your airhead assistant said you did time at the Palace."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The Palace used to be a basketball stadium, about two hundred years style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt fell apart back in the 1990s."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe smiled at the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"For years it was left in ruin, an abandoned style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat was before the WEF and the Detroit lockdowns."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack said style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was turned away from him, propped in a narrow opening in the hold that was illuminated by the pulsing red light of the cylindrical drive coupling shaft behind it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He went style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Those of us who didn't want to be caged fought style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanFor once the gangs fought together against the authoritarian state they were trying to put the world style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen I was captured and sent to the Palace, it was already well established as the worse place to be style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat shit hole killed more of us than it released."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"The convict extended her fingers and slowly clenched her fist, quietly observing her tattoos as she moved her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"So you took a deal to become a boyscout."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Hell yeah," Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"When the Alliance recruiters came by – everyone was feeling style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI enlisted, passed all their combat and biotics tests, and was immediately sent style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey promoted me quick because I kept doing what nobody else wanted to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat landed me in N7 special style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanEcho team."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"" style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe blackest arm of N7," Jack chuckled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You guys were supposed to be the boogey men."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looked at him sharply, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The gnarly shit you did, you did for the government – that's even worse."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""You're not wrong," Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack looked up at style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The only time, in most of those black ops missions that I ever really felt alive was style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen I saw the batarian slavers abusing and molesting those people…"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis yellow-green eyes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"They got every bullet they had coming. But…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"For the first time since they had met, Jack seemed to take style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"But what?"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was looking down at the floor but she was listening style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe coupling light flickered behind her./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""There was this guy, an old Palace style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe'd been there long as anyone could style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe was sort of a hermit but whenever he talked in the yards, people listened."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack glanced over and studied the scars on his unshaven style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He told me about this psychology experiment one of the universities had done, way back style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHarvard or Yale or one of those breeding grounds of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""They divided the students up into prisoners and prison guards and had them simulate a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey intended to see how their relationships changed because of the shifted power dynamic."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis face contorted with mild disgust, "They didn't even last a week before they were abusing the power and fighting with each style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt was a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe power dynamic dehumanizes people and prevents any real style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNot to mention most of the guards are greedy as hell, constantly pushing inmates to commit more crimes to make money… that or they're the idiots prancing around tripping on mini-power highs and patting each other on the back."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Getting me out wouldn't be enough for someone who hates prisons as much as you style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI know," Jack's voice emanated from her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You'd avoid that place like I did."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Okay, so why would I choose Purgatory first?" Shepard seemed genuinely curious./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I don't know," Jack shook her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I know why Cerberus wanted my biotic powers and my expendable style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI don't know what you would want from style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI don't like being jerked around so I asked style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat ugly ass bounty hunter told me you just did the opposite of what Miranda style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe seemed to think you're just inclined to be roguish."span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince's green-gold eyes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I am roguish."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack stifled a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You're lame, is what you style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI just had to see for myself that you weren't another Cerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou brought me on the first outing in Omega to find the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe drank and partied in the club before we even started asking questions."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer dark eyes caught the red style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe smiled deviously, "You did that on purpose."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince smiled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Maybe."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack pursed her scarlet lips, "Fuck you, Shepard."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe drive shaft engaged and the red coupling light brightened to bask them in a soft ruby style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack arched her back and tilted her chin up, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer feline silhouette did not go unnoticed by style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe picked up her weapon, an unmarked pistol, gun metal shade, and examined style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"When I find where that facility is, I'm going to find names. I'm going to hunt them down one by style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd then I'm going to burn it all to the ground…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince watched the surreal scene of Jack bathed in fiery pulsing light, pondering her revenge, talking softly of those she would style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTendrils of steam curled up out of the darkness and left mist clouds in the flickering style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe ship rumbled gently, bass-like in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer silhouetted head turned to him./span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""When you find it," Vince's eyes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'll bring the lighter."/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"5. Miss Chambers/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Normandy SR-2, on route to Horizon/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanVince reclined on his couch, in his cabin, sliding his arm along the ebony style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanClose by sat Kelly Chambers sat in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanClose by,span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spansat Kelly Chambers sat in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe wine bottle was nearly empty but their glasses were both style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanKelly's emerald eyes sparkled with unmasked intrigue, her freckled face flush with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer scarlet hair framed her face in neat style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer silver earrings shimmered in the wavy light of the fish style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe picked up her glass and sipped it style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I thought I'd heard all your stories, but you always hide some secret details don't you?"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe poked an accusatory finger at style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You welcomed the wildest of the bunch on board right from the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanChoosing a prison, and Purgatory of all places, to start?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThen you braved Omega – once in a quarantined lockdown and again right in the middle of a gang war."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince reached for his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The Illusive Man wanted these people and I got them all to sign up."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe took a slow sip. "This ain't my first rodeo."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""You do have a way with people," Kelly admitted, sipping a little too quickly and a little spilled down the corner of her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe wiped it with an embarrassed smile./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Do I?" Vince observed his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""You certainly do with me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I'm not so sure," Vince grinned, "After you invited yourself up here, I was just being a good host."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Invited myself?" she feigned insult. "I seem to remember you saying that I was prettier than Samara."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""You are," Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She acts all high and mighty, but she's just a cold-blooded style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI watched her crush a girl's neck… twist it, real style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThen she looked at me with those bright alien style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe knows exactly what she is and she flaunts it in my style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanLike she somehow gets to kill and do what she likes and I'm somehow a rogue because I don't follow any code…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""After you said I was cuter than her," Kelly returned to what mattered, setting her glass down, "You agreed we should spend more time together."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""For the crew's sake," Shepard clarified. "So you could give me frequent updates on their status."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Of course," she nodded gravely, sliding toward him, "The crew is always on my mind."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Yours is a very helpful mind," he teased./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""So, Commander, what about that big krogan tank you have sitting in the down in the engineering storage spaces?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAre you going to let that big guy out?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I figure we'll wait till after this Horizon style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanFor now we've got everyone else, though."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe grabbed his glass again./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Garrus is carrying something around," she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I think it might have to do with his old style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe's been getting updates from somewhere and he recently got one that set him pacing more than usual."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I'll talk to him," Vince finished his wine. He followed the gleam of the silver necklace she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe'd found it left somewhere on Illium when they were breaking into a crime scene to find style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe had quickly discarded the chip and its previous owner's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhen she saw there was no picture yet, she'd asked for one of his spectre inauguration but he deftly avoided that by giving her a brilliant image of the Illium skyline./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Mordin creeps me out, to be style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut once he finished his research on the seeker swarms, he hasn't stopped bustling about getting to Horizon to test style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think he actually wants to go out into the field with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe's overly excited…" Her red lips frowned. "He cured that plague on Omega, so if anyone could figure out a solution to the swarms, it'd be Mordin."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer eyes looked back to his, a bit of concern welling style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We don't know for certain style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis Horizon mission will be a real style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm afraid for style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think he might be useful to have with you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I'll bring him along then," Shepard set his glass down and stretched out both arms, one hand brushing her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe smiled, his yellow-green eyes watching her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis fingertips began grazing her bare skin and she shivered and scooted style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe could smell her perfume now and see the faint traces of freckles on her flush could smell her sweet perfume now and see the faint traces of freckles on her flush cheeks./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She placed her delicate hand on his knee, almost style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Jack's tattoos are style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe's as complex as they come… there's a lot of dark there."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looked worriedly into Shepard's eyes, hovering close to his face so he could smell the merlot on her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She's a deep person but she may be surface level when it comes to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe might approach it style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut you shouldn't do that… if you care about her."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"That caught Vince's attention, his hand gripped her shoulder tighter and he pulled in, his face inches from style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Don't worry about me."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe leaned in, even as she began closing her eyes and took her mouth into style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer lips tasted of cherries and he tasted the strong wine on her tongue and she moaned style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe pulled away and smiled. "I've got you to keep me safe."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""That's right," she poked him on the nose, "And to feed your ever-growing fish style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI should get a raise for coming up here all the time."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He tickled her and she giggled in his arms, "Don't forget Dumptruck."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""How could I forget Dumptruck," she squirmed playfully in his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He's the most important space hamster in the galaxy."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince gave her his wolf grin and rolled her onto her back on the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe looked down at her cute green eyes and flush, out-of-breath style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Damn straight."/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"6. Ghost Memories/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Alchera/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShepard looked down at his snow-dusted boots, where a dark, carbon steel omni-tag was lodged in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe scattered wreckage of the original Normandy SR-1 littered the frosty rocks of a cold, distant world. The original attack site where it was now confirmed a collector ship had ambushed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe blasted and charred debris that marked the resting place of his first life surrounded him like a surreal grave, frozen and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanHe knelt and plucked the tag from the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Grenado, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanGrenadine, Grenado, they used to call style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was the bilge mechanic, always drunk as shit but never had an issue she couldn't style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe'd hit on everyone with two legs with bilge-joke sexual innuendos."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Classy." Miranda uttered, off to the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Good to see the alliance has such high standards."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Take what they can get, I style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI seem to remember some real winners in that Project Lazarus lab…"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Wherever there are high stakes operations there's bound to be someone who lets petty greed get in the way," she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"But now we know, after Horizon, that the collectors are working with the reapers, perhaps to the same end as Saren with the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou said yourself, those husks proved it. Whatever anyone's thoughts on Cerberus – our intel got us the seeker swarm data from the quarians on Freedom's Progress, - with the help of your former crewmember, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOur intel brought us to Horizon in time to confront the collectors and save half the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd your emother/em former crewmember, Lieutenant Alenko, told us exactly what he thinks of Cerberus." She arched a thin dark eyebrow, "And of you, for that style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe seemed awfully upset with you."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe folded her ivory sleeved style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"It's beginning to look like your original crew wasn't that unified after all."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""He blames me for Ash's death," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He can go fuck himself."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda relaxed a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She did die on Virmire and it was your call."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard winced, his scars style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Maybe I made the wrong call."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"…/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Just over an hour had passed, and the crew of the Normandy SR-2 had salvaged what they could from the ruins of its style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMost had returned to the ship by now, but a few lingered on as the commander did not seem in a hurry, but had started wandering aimlessly about, as if in a daze./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard rested on a stack of iridium crates, his boot up, elbow on his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe had slipped back onto the ship without anyone noticing and made his way down to the holds, where Jack usually hung style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe omni-pads she had been going through were still scattered on the floor by the tool bench./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He had three last ID tags he hadn't style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe wanted to remember them before he put them style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe had just remembered the first, Marcus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Hey."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He looked style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJack had returned to chill in her dark corner. He held up the ID tag to her. "This guy, Grieco, nobody really knew where he came from or what he style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe was about as dumb as a box of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTypical grunt you tend to see in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNobody knew what his actual job was, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe mostly did odd jobs and worked in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat's when he wasn't lurking in the shadows gawking at women and drooling on himself with his hands in his pockets."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Oh what the fuck, Shepard," Jack scowled. "I expected you to be some kind of boyscout but instead your whole crew sounds like a bunch of drunken misfits."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe lifted her bar shades up onto her brow, her large brown eyes warm with the red light of the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Entertaining."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""They caught old Marcus having a wank to some anime porn once and nobody ever forgot that."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Anime?" Jack mused, resting her tattooed forearm on the pipes above him and hovering with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You mean he was whacking off to cartoons?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He was beating that bitch like it owed him money."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Shepard, that's gross." Jack turned away sharply and swung herself around to sit down on another style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe nodded at the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Who else you got there?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He looked back at the tags and held one style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Next we have Mandira Rahman…" he thought a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"They called her Rahman style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was a sassy old Hindu style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe was a sassy old hindu style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think she was a MAKO style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanReal man-hater."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He looked at the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Bacardi style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanEngine style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanLoved style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe'd have between five and seven bottles on his body at any given style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanRight before we deployed he was so style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe was leaning over an auxiliary battery for preflight inspection and just fell in and stayed there until we found him passed out a day later."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack looked style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Are you fucking kidding me?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou're the same Commander Shepard that killed Saren and saved the Citadel? emYour/em bank robbing ass?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWith a crew of complete rejects?'"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Those banks were ripping off the people of Omega," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Besides, it was mostly gang money."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I'm not complaining," Jack smiled. "As long as I get a cut."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looked at Shepard sternly, "And more shore leave like Omega."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe looked at Shepard sternly, "And more shore- leave like Omega."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe rolled her neck and her shoulders, stretching in her feline style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"When are you gonna take a girl out again?" She teased, playing with her new Locust submachine style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey had found the original pair raiding a vault with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe had one, Miranda the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I haven't gotten to kill anyone since you broke up with your boyfriend on Horizon."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince's demeanor changed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe scowled, replacing the ID tags into their storage style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I heard the cheerleader back there," Jack continued, edging closer to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She said you got that Ash chick killed. Is that true?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"When Vince's green eyes flashed warningly, she put her hands up and smiled, "I'm only asking 'cause sacrificing myself is not in my contract."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I was in charge and she's gone," he concluded. "That's all there is to it."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack shrugged, her interest style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"In my pirating days we heard of N7 style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe didn't run into the alliance much, but we operated in the outer systems, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWeren't impressed by what we did run style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut we heard stories about N7 Echo – the alliance's murder style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShit, every crazy thing your team did, the alliance disavowed."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"That just made us believe it more."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe set down her submachine gun and stood over his right knee, looking down on him. "You guys were the only ones we were afraid of."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe cocked her peach fuzz head, her rich brown eyes taking him style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Here you are, Hero of the Citadel, Butcher of Torfan, N7 Echo, rogue Cerberus captain… a badass in every way."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe smiled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We could take this beautiful ship and rob Cerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe could live free, go wherever we want."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She slid down to straddle his knee, still holding onto the pipes above them, her goth painted face hanging between her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe slid down to straddle his knee, still holding onto the pipes above them, her goth- painted face hanging between her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You could be the baddest captain and I'll be the baddest style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat do you say, Shepard?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWanna go renegade?"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe leaned in, her freckles coming into focus, her dark eyes amorous and hungry. Her full red lips spread to reveal her white canines were a tad lower than her incisors, giving her a seductive and vampiric style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We'd have a huge Cerberus payout, the best stealth fighter in the galaxy, and a reputation not to be fucked style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe'd have ultimate freedom."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe dangled her nose inches from his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer breath smelt of cinnamon and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe ran her tongue over her glossy lips and pursed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'm getting wet just thinking about it."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Keep your pants on," Vince grunted. "I came down here because you're the only one I felt like talking style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNot everyone is as messed up as I am."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Oh, but I am?" Jack swung her leg off his and walked over to the HAZMAT style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'm over here giving you fucking compliments and you're in my face with that shit?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"It was Shepard's turn to put his hands up in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I don't think you're messed up at style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think the opposite."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis armor was once polished like a black and red Ferrari, but had quickly become battered and marred from combat, stained with smoke and oil, chipped and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanKelly had offered to polish it style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe'd let her do style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""You're the most fun I've had in a long style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think you're amazing." Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You're probably the strongest person I've seen, after what you've been style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI've got mad respect for you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack rolled her eyes./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""What they did to you in that Cerberus testing facility… what they put you and the other children through… well, they thought they could crush your identity, make you a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey used biotics and tech, violence and emotional abuse to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut all that pressure for all that time… They didn't know you were a lump of coal."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"The ex-convict gave him a sidelong style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"That's a fucked up thing to say."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Why?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat happens when you put pressure, long and hard on a lump of coal?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack's red-lit eyes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"What? It makes a diamond?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""There it is."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Jack shook her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Shut the fuck up, Shepard."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He stepped in front of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I love the dark ink, Jack… dark like coal… like a cocoon…"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe traced a finger down her tricep and she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I love the colored ink…" His touch moved down her elbow and to her wrist./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She looked up, taking his yellow-green gaze into her dark eyes, lustful and provoking, "What does that remind you of?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"A colorful butterfly."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""The fuck, Shepard!" she pushed him style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I thought you were serious."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""About what?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She smiled, but her eyes were not style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I thought you were gonna be the bold renegade you are and vanquish me with your vanguard, but you went and got all pussy on me."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe feigned lost interest and turned like she was going to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe realized she had nowhere to go./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Diamond in the rough," he kept on./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Okay, get emthe/em emfuck/em out of here." She turned and ushered him toward the stairs./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He submitted to being put out of the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We found style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou crushed the lunatic inside and wasted the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanTeltin is now a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNow I need your head on style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe're headed to the Citadel style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAct nice and maybe I'll take you out again, somewhere nice this time."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Eat pyjak shit!"/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"7. Spectre to Ghost/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Admiral Anderson's Office, Presidium, Citadel/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAdmiral Anderson looked a hell of a lot older than Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAs if mirroring his sentiment, Anderson chuckled, "Damn, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou look uglier than I remember."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanVince grinned style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You got a message through to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNot sure why you wanted to see me."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe presented his black Cerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"The alliance left me for dead."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"You were dead," Anderson uttered. "I see you've donned the red of the N7 Echo Vanguard."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShepard shrugged. "Once a vanguard…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAnderson nodded. "Look Shepard, we didn't know you were alive until just style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus kept their project a secret as long as they style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhich brings me to my style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI had heard troubling things, that you were working for Cerberus now. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI wanted to bring you here to see what you had to say for yourself."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"What can I say?" Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I am, technically, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt's been two style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe galaxy 's moved style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanC-sec hasn't even reinstated my status as style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSo why should I explain anything to anyone?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"I know you, Shepard," Anderson style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You could barely follow orders in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThere's no way you would take orders from Cerberus unless there was a damn good reason."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanVince crossed his armored style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'm not taking style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHuman colonies are disappearing and the alliance, as usual, hasn't done shit about style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanCerberus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe know the reapers are using the collectors like they used the geth before style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe alliance should be style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI let the Destiny Ascension crash and burn because those councilors were going to get everyone style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI don't care that I'm a ghost now, that the alliance doesn't recognize style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI don't need recognition, it's why I joined Echo Team in the first place. I know what it is to be disavowed and written style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI expect it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"But these are working class families, pioneers and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI was born into the remains of a country that was built on freedom and braving the wild to build style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThese people are the same and the alliance has turned its back on them. Someone has to do something, and right now, it's Cerberus."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Those colonists moved out there to get away from the alliance," Anderson moved to the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You saw how they received Alenko and his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAs for the council, well, you let the old one die so the new one is leery of making any promises to you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Kaidan's a fool," Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He's so by-the-book he'd let his prejudice for Cerberus blind him to the actual threat behind the collectors – the reapers."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanAnderson gripped the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Kaidan's always been true blue style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat much hasn't changed since you've been style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAs for myself, I hadn't imagined my last days working for style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI don't know why he keeps me around, he never listens to me. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOnce he became a councilor, he went right back to his old ways, bossing everyone around and always the networking with the corporate style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe says it's all for the alliance and bolstering human style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSometimes he talks so much about human interests that he starts sounding like your new employer."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"I told you," Vince pushed off the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I don't work for Cerberus."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"I know," the admiral style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You're working emwith/em style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanListen, Shepard, I'll try and divert some alliance resources to policing more systems, and I can keep them off your back as long as you stay out in the Terminus style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIf all they have are rumors you're alive, they won't waste any resources looking for you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Good to know," Vince gave a weak style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Thanks for nothing and tell Udina he can go fuck himself." He turned and strode out of the office, clipping a confused Councilman Udina in the shoulder as he passed./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanUdina stumbled into Anderson's office, red in the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Anderson, I need to see you in my office!span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd who the hell was that? He nearly bowled me over!span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'll have him detained for questioning!span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOne can't have brigands tromping about the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis is the Presidium for god's sake!"/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Don't worry about him," Anderson said style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanJust a ghost." /span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"8. Space Pirates/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Drive Core Control, Normandy SR-2/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Tali delicately tapped the haptic interface of the starboard drive core style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer eloquent quarian suit draped in micromesh fibers with intricate designs of their nomadic people's heritage, traced in gold over royal style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe still had the old suit he remembered from back in the days when they were chasing style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNow she seemed all alone once again, off in the corner of the engineering spaces./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanVince came up beside her, his gold-green eyes observing her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You alright, kid?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span" style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOh, yes, thank style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm alright, but I'm still not over losing my team on style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShepard, I don't even know if that data will be useful."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Reegar made it out," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I think he'd follow you anywhere, Tali Zorah."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTali fidgeted with her omni tool then shook her purple-hued style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Reegar is one of the best soldiers I style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe isn't very sharp when it comes to coding and tech." she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"He practically thinks I'm a wizard."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"You're a tech wizard," Shepard prodded with a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Best one I style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanPlus, I trust you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Thanks, Shepard," she gave a short bow of style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNot being able to use facial expressions, quarians grew quite expressive and communicative with their tone and movements, which might be why anyone as traveled as Vince would know that quarian dancers can put asari to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanToo bad nobody appreciated how all their suit designs and patterns were artistically designed to direct eyes and movement and create a sort of surreal optical style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis is also why they had some of the best cloaking technology – also not known because the quarian people kept a tight lid on all their tech style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanFor a people without a homeworld, it was their primary resource./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe continued, "When you shot the screens in front of Veetor's face, I thought you were going to hurt style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI was afraid for him."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanVince looked genuinely taken style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Tali, I'd never hurt anyone important to you."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"I know, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut it had been two style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd Cerberus' careless actions have put the Migrant Fleet in danger style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI couldn't be sure they hadn't tampered with the tech they used on style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI had to see you in action first."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Makes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd now?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"You let him go with me," she said with finality. "Now Veetor is fully recovered physically, if not style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou worked with Kal Reegar instead of letting him die as a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd back when the Shadow Broker agents tried to murder me for bringing evidence to the Council linking Saren to the geth, you stopped them, took me onto your crew, and presented the evidence with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI returned home from my pilgrimage with honors and respect for the quarian style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAll that is why I'm here now."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe had been ambushed in the back alleys of the Citadel by Shadow Broker agents, when he had first found style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe second time had been on Freedom's Progress, where her entire team, deciding they didn't like Vince's commanding presence, had rushed ahead and got themselves slaughtered by a heavy style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe third time he found her was on Haestrom, chasing style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd once again, the entire team save Reegar was killed, this time by a geth sentry style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe knew from the first moment he saw her, helpless and surrounded, that he'd have to big brother this little quarian./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He noticed her sparky golden eyes glance at the simmering mass effect fields pulsing around the drive core behind him and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I appreciate the sentiment, but the Normandy's feeling left out."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"As much as I love the Normandy, and the upgrades I'm especially looking forward to working with, I'm still getting used to a shackled AI controlling all primary style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanEspecially an AI both designed and implemented by Cerberus."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Anything you need, Tali," he gave her a serious look./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanBefore she could respond, they were interrupted by Miranda on the style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe must've used EDI to pinpoint his location on the Normandy… Having an AI system came with the added benefits of no style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Commander, Kasumi and I have finished decrypting the files we got from style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanOne of our targets is on Illium, which is convenient, because there is another matter I'd like to discuss with you when we inevitably head there."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanShe didn't wait for Shepard to respond before clicking off on her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe looked at Tali and shrugged./span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTali shook her hooded head and uttered, "I'll finish getting settled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI think I can improve our thrust capacity with some upgrades my father's been working on."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /span"Why Tali Zorah," Vince grinned, "Are you and daddy sharing secrets?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-tab-count: 1;" /spanTali didn't look style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You know there are some advantages to having a father in the coding and encryption style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe emhas/em to share with his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWho would carry on his legacy?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Her mock innocent tone revealed the little pirate in Tali that Vince always knew was style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe smiled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"As crazy as our mission is, and as crazy as our crew is to agree to it…" He glanced back at Ken and Gaby arguing over their panels./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I told ya, woman!" Ken snapped, "Don't be cobra-striking the controls like that. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanA man needs time to prepare."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""We've done this a million times, Kenneth," she snapped style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I'd say you could do it in your sleep, but I think you already do."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanVince gave Tali a side glance. "I think we might just be the sanest people in the galaxy."/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"9. Cheers to Killing Those We Know/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Illium Eternity/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"The smooth ambient lighting radiated warm violets and cool style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe liquid music soothed with flowing rhythms and tranquil style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThere were any number of places Vince would rather be. Miranda seemed to like it, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMiranda had unlocked a discretionary fund at his request, in payment for his helping her free her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanZaeed, Jack and the others were out doing some gear shopping with it./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda's white suit gleamed in the neon style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer large blue eyes seemed distant, somewhere better, her face style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe sipped her aqua gin from a crystal wine style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe pursed her full lips as she savored the sweet style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer cheeks were already a little style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Shepard," she set her glass style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You were the last person I expected to succeed, if I'm honest."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince raised a scarred style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Cerberus is an organized machine, whose ranks are filled with a long list of exemplary academics, engineers and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWe operate with precision because we operate as a multi-faceted style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou seem to have a penchant for rule-breaking and chaos. But…"span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer fingers slid toward her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We've recruited every name on the dossier despite my doubts. We stopped the collectors from taking the entire colony on style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanDespite the fact that Lieutenant Alenko dug up your past with Chief Williams and called you a traitor to your face, we were still able to gather enough data to implement a more comprehensive scan for collector ships in the outlying systems."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince took a shot of red cough syrup, or whatever the hell it style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe felt immediately warm and fuzzy style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis vision was exceptionally sharp, however, like he was looking at Miranda in hyper style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Good god, style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou ever step out of the fucking office?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"She smiled and shrugged, giddy with aqua style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"No Cerberus project team has had this much continued success in its operations, ever."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Project team my ass," Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I run this ship." He pointed at her, his gold-green eyes glinting. "I run your ass, too."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Not in your wildest dreams," Miranda waved him style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I work for the Illusive style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou are an asset, one that I am charged with." She stole another sip and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You could say that I'm in charge of your ass."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Babysit my ass, is what you mean," Shepard decided to avoid a second go at the red cough style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe took Miranda's drink and sipped style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIt was so sweet his teeth style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe cringed but soon felt a cooling numbness settle style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe steadied himself on his stool. span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe ship was starting to rock, he thought./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""What I'm trying to say, Shepard," Miranda took her glass back, "Is that I wasn't even going to ask you to help with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI was going to let Niket take care of it."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe shook her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Instead, I took care of him."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""He betrayed you," Vince said style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You went to him for help, and rather than tell you he had a problem, he waited for you to set everything up and then tried to change the plans behind your back." Shepard rested an arm on the pristine style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"What he did was cowardly and self-important, and it put your sister at style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThat's not the kind of thing you can forget."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda's jaw tightened, her eyes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span" style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI suppose not."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe seemed calm enough, but Shepard could tell from the faintest tinge of biotic energy flickering about her that she was using all her effort to still style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanEven then he could see a tremble slip through now and again./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince gently touched her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe violet lights swam over his silvery hair, moving shadows over his scarred, unshaven style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Your sister is safe now."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis voice was style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Nobody alive knows where she is but you and style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou've given her the chance to live an untroubled life."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda felt herself style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe effort to restrain her emotions was style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe soon succumbed to alcohol and weariness and slumped slightly onto Shepard's shoulder./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince put his arm around her, feeling how soft she felt under her tight-fitting suit when she was style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHer raven-colored hair was fragrant with style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe could feel her breathing slowing as she relaxed further./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I can't believe she's finally safe," she muttered to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"No more loose ends."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"He looked up to see Samara standing a few paces back, watching them coldly with her icy alien style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"When you are finished preying on your emotionally vulnerable crew members," she began with thinly veiled contempt in her voice, "I have something that demands your style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSooner, rather than later, would be appreciated."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Miranda moaned softly as Vince steadied her on her stool and turned his attention to the judgmental style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You said it could wait! Your oath to me comes before your code, that's what you swore."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I also swore that if you forced me to break the code," she crossed her arms calmly and her ancient asari eyes resonated with icy style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I would destroy you." She watched his frown with unmasked style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Do as I ask, and my powers will be style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMy quarry has landed in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHow long she will remain is style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe sooner I stop Morinth and her murdering spree, the sooner I can devote all my efforts to our task with the collectors."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Let's go, Shepard," Miranda composed herself and glanced at the unsettling style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We've got intel we can trade on Omega style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanBut first…"/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""First," interrupted Zaeed, appearing next to style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe gruff bounty hunter had a drink in his hand and what could possibly pass as a smile on his battle-scarred style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe splashed his drink down on the bar and looked to Shepard and Miranda with a wild shine in his dead white style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We're going to kill my old friend, Vito!"/span/p
/div
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"10. Burning Bridges/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Zaeed's quarters, Normandy SR-2/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Shepard sat hunched on a crate in the port space near the compactor. The space was littered with Zaeed's assorted collection of trophies./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"The bounty hunter leaned against the wall, muscled and weathered arms style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanSweat still glistened in all the recesses of his mangled style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe shivered and shook his style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"What a fucking rush."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince rocked slightly in style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We let those people burn…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""They were merc contractors," Zaeed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"They knew who they were working for."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis tone style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"It was the only way to get that bastard, Vito."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I don't care about the contractors," Shepard style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"I had to force Samara to go against her code for that."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe looked up with lethal gravity in his gold-green style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She vowed to kill any who broke her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou didn't see the chilling murder in her eyes when I used her oath to me to break her code."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe looked to the old bounty style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"You better be all in after this favor."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""It's as good a mission as any to be my last," Zaeed style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"So what's this new shit detail you're giving me?span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe asari is gonna make a go at you the moment we finish the mission?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""She's a justicar," Vince leaned style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"She's been doing it so long she's lost all style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI've seen the void in her eyes when she takes style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe's convinced herself for hundreds of years that she's justified in her personal murder style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNothing will change her style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanShe's become an emotionless killing machine."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Much as I love that in a woman," the bounty hunter uttered, "Make no mistake, she will come for you. She's the real deal, Shepard."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHis one good eye was concerned, his white eye - dead style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"We'll have to do something about that, sooner rather than later…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""That's a tough call," Vince admitted. "The rest of the crew won't style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanMiranda is too set on following Cerberus to the 'T' if she can. A lot of the crew thinks she's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanNow Samara wants me to help her kill her own daughter – if that doesn't tell you how heartless she style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThis Morinth is apparently an style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanWhat do you know about them?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Hmm," Zaeed raised his graying style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Vampires, what suck out a man's life-force when she mates… or a woman' style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThey grow more powerful with each style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIn this task, at least, you might want to consider taking the justicar's style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanYou bloody well might need her against an Ardat-Yakshi."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince rose to his feet, straightening his hardened leather style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Your merc connections got us in Omega's gang hirings easy, and even inside the Blue Suns tent, when we were scouting style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe intel you salvaged from Vito's ship gave us our final name on the Blue Suns style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThe one who the warden sold us out to."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""I was there with you, remember," Zaeed stated. "I knew that greedy bastard was angling for a style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanHe asked too many style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI had a feeling shit would go style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanAnd he sold me out, too."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""If this collector ship is for real, and the Illusive Man is giving it to us straight about the turians taking it out before getting ambushed by geth, everything else will have to take a back style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanI'm going to check if Miranda tracked that name down style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanThen we'll all meet up in the conference style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /spanIf we put boots on the ground in that collector ship, I want you with me."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;""Can't bloody wait."/span/p
div style="mso-element: para-border-div; border: none; border-bottom: solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in; border: none; mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext .75pt; padding: 0in; mso-padding-alt: 0in 0in 1.0pt 0in;"span style="font-family: 'Amasis MT Pro Light',serif;"Vince style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span"Think I'll let Jack out of her cage on this one, too."span style="mso-spacerun: yes;" /span/span/p
/div