The Red Moon Collection - 2 - Three Phantoms

Chapter 17

Hub 6, City of Pugnax, Altakiril

"Lieutenant!"

The commando leader barked and Zaera immediately whipped her rifle back up to hold it on the Hyperion squad. The pale blue asari frowned and mouthed the word, "Sorry," to Eleena. The engineer rolled her eyes and held up her hands again.

"Alright, let's see it," the commando leader requested.

Corsin stepped forward with his omnitool activated and presented his Spectre credentials. The dark purple asari read them over carefully and gave the turian a long, silent stare.

"Weapons down," she finally said.

The three other asari soldiers lowered their weapons, but remained obediently in place as their leader stowed her weapon and presented a hand to Corsin. The turian grasped it and shook professionally.

"I apologize for the harsh welcome, but we can't be too careful," the purple asari informed him regrettably. "Captain Lintarith."

The turian nodded understandingly. "Corsin Rentarius, Special Tactics and Recon."

Lintarith motioned over his shoulder. "And them?"

Will, Kallux and Eleena had lowered their hands and were waiting patiently to be acknowledged.

"My squad," he answered truthfully.

The commando captain looked back to the pale blue asari. "Lieutenant Zaera, you know these people?"

Zaera stepped up and shook her head. "Only one of them, ma'am."

"Hm." Lintarith looked Corsin up and down curiously. "You said you were looking for us?"

Corsin crossed his arms. "That's right. We're after Fayneer T'lees."

The commando captain nodded. "Come with me." She raised a finger above her head and made a pointing motion while addressing her soldiers. "We're moving."

Will muttered to Kallux and Eleena. "I guess we're just coming along for the Spectre-Commando ride?"

"We didn't get shot, that's enough for me," Kallux mused.

Lintarith activated her omnitool flashlight and turned to lead the group down the dark half of the hallway with Corsin at her side. After the first few steps, Lieutenant Zaera looked over her shoulder and slowed her pace to allow the Hyperion squad to catch up with her. Eleena gave a quick glance to Will and Kallux and motioned toward the commando, which was met with encouraging nods. She stepped up beside Zaera and was met with an excited smile.

"Eleena!" Zaera's voice was hushed, but ecstatic. "It's wonderful to see you! What's it been, seventy-five years?"

"Something like that," the engineer replied.

Will and Kallux remained silent and casually listened in on the conversation, both incredibly curious. Ahead of them, Lintarith and Corsin turned the group to the left at a divergence in the hallway.

Zaera flipped on the safety on her rifle. "How have you been?"

"Well, you know... I've had my ups and downs." Eleena gave her a small smile.

The commando chuckled softly. "You must be doing well for yourself if you're working with a Spectre." Her voice sunk to nearly a whisper. "He's handsome too... or maybe it's just my inner soldier that loves the rugged veteran look."

"Aheh," Eleena looked back to Will in amusement. "Yeah, that's definitely a bonus. But how have you been, Lieutenant Zaera?"

"Since I last saw you? Mostly deployment, really." Zaera smiled proudly. "I was offered a spot in the officer academy in 2167. Just graduated about six months ago."

"Congratulations, Z." Eleena's tone was quite sincere. "You must have some crazy stories."

"Not many I can talk about," the commando answered with a grin. "I wish you could have been there for them."

Eleena remained silent for a few seconds. Before she could respond, Lintarith halted the group at a door and held her light on the control panel. She reached forward and activated the controls to bring up a holographic panel that appeared different from the standard one Will had seen on the Hub. After entering a series of numbers and hand motions, the door slid apart. The commando captain stood aside and waved the others inside. Will stepped into what looked like a small office that had been emptied some time ago so that crates and packs of combat supplies could line the walls. Four cots were set up in the corner of the room, each lined up against the wall in parallel. After everyone had entered, Lintarith closed the door behind them and turned to face the newcomers.

"So, the Council is after T'lees," she said while stowing her rifle.

Corsin shook his head. "Not quite. We're after someone else, but T'lees has become a person of interest in our investigation. We'd like to find and question her."

Lintarith narrowed her eyes and nodded. "Then it appears our goals coincide."

Will cleared his throat. "Might I ask why you all dropped out of contact a few days ago? We probably could have met under much friendly circumstances if we'd been able to get in touch with you."

The captain eyed Will for a moment before turning to Corsin. "Who is this?"

"Captain William Hume," Corsin answered. "He leads the team my partner and I are working with for this mission."

Lintarith's eyes wandered between Will, Eleena and Kallux. "Mercenaries?"

Will looked to his companions and smirked. "We might as well start going by that name considering how often it's suggested."

"Hm." The commando captain seemed unamused. "To answer your question, we found that our signals were being traced by the city's security. For all we know, they are being paid off by T'lees and could have alerted her to our presence."

Kallux crossed his arms. "Your first assumption was that the security is corrupt?"

"We have no evidence of corruption," Lintarith stated. "But we are not taking any chances on this mission."

"This doesn't matter now," Corsin interjected. "Our mission is urgent. Have you found T'lees?"

Will glanced around the room quickly. The three other commandos were standing silently at ease and with their eyes locked on him and his squad. He looked back to the captain and tried his best to quell his discomfort.

Lintarith gave him a cocky smile. "Yes. We've been monitoring her daily rituals and habits for the past few weeks, waiting for the right time to strike. Unfortunately, she spends most of her time in one location, making it difficult to predict when she might leave the facility for an ambush."

Eleena raised a brow. "Is she dangerous?"

"Records indicate that she is a powerful biotic, and she is almost always accompanied by bodyguards." Lintarith shook her head. "It also appears as though she has been here for many months and she has most likely planned numerous escape routes, just in case someone attempts to apprehend her."

"So where do we stand?" Corsin tilted his head slightly.

Lintarith beckoned them over to a table and activated a holographic map that covered three floors of the building. "These are the blueprints of the building that Lieutenant Zaera was able to steal from the city's internal network. My team has already finished planning our attack, we've just been waiting on the right moment to unleash it. If you plan to aid us, the additional strength of you and your team would be much appreciated."

The Spectre looked to Will, Kallux and Eleena and were met with nods of agreement. "If you allow us to interrogate her first, then absolutely."

"Excellent." Lintarith glanced to her commandos. "Circle up, we may have to modify the plan." She looked back to the others. "I'll run down everything we have and make changes as necessary."

Corsin nodded. "Sounds good."

She pointed to the middle floor on the hologram. "This level houses the manufactory that T'lees oversees and manages. Over the past few weeks, we've been secretly locking down all of the rarely used entrances and exits, such as those two maintenance accessways you were tampering with. Our plan was to leave only a handful of ways in and out of the factory and strike from there."

"I'm guessing you haven't sealed off the main entrance," Will remarked with a hint of sarcasm.

Lintarith nodded. "That's correct. We were going to split into two pairs, one assaulting from the main entrance and the other from maintenance tunnels above the facility."

"A head-on assault?" Corsin shook his head in disagreement. "Too risky. Might I pose an alternative?"

The commando gave him an irritated look. "By all means." She did not appear to appreciate Corsin's disapproval of her tactics.

The Spectre waved his hand across the map of the factory. "There are a lot of small rooms near the entrance, one of them probably handles security. I suggest we infiltrate and send the entire facility into lockdown, leaving T'lees no chance to escape."

"They won't just let us walk into the security center," Lintarith argued.

"No, they won't. But we're not going to ask for permission," Corsin replied. "We can send our team's infiltration experts to find the security using stealth generators while the rest of us get into position and lay low in those maintenance tunnels you mentioned. Then, once we're ready, they can activate the lockdown while we sweep the facility."

Lintarith crossed her arms and stared at the map. "How good are these 'infiltration experts' of yours?"

"The best," Will answered confidently.

She nodded. "Alright. You and your team can move in from the lower tunnels while I lead my squad in through the upper."

"Excellent." Corsin motioned to the sidearm on his belt. "All we've got on us are pistols. We'll need to retrieve the rest of our equipment from our ship."

"And the infiltration experts," Eleena reminded him with a grin.

The turian chuckled. "That too. Captain Lintarith, when do you suggest we make our assault?"

The asari commando narrowed her eyes as she thought. "As I mentioned, T'lees rarely leaves this facility. My suggestion would be whenever we are ready."

Corsin looked to Will. "Any objections to the plan?"

He shook his head. "None. Let's go get some guns."

The next few hours were spent in a state of rapid preparation. After retrieving Tul'Sorrin and Vayren, explaining to them the situation, loading up their combat gear, analyzing the maps and committing important locations to memory and syncing the commando and Hyperion squad's comm systems, Will was beginning to feel tired. The group checked and rechecked their equipment and the plan before diverging from the hideout and making way to their respective positions. Will, Corsin, Kallux and Eleena headed to the first maintenance door they had attempted to open, this time with a special security shunt provided by Lieutenant Zaera, and waited patiently to hear from the other teams. After about ten minutes, Captain Lintarith finally reported in.

"We're entering the tunnels above the facility now," she informed them.

Corsin applied the shunt and opened the maintenance door. "Let's move."

Will stepped through with this rifle at the ready and flashlight shining brightly. The tunnel was small, but he had memorized the path that would take them to their point of access to the facility. Once the others had stepped inside, Corsin closed the door behind them and nodded.

"Lead the way, Hume."

"Twenty feet ahead, then left," Will repeated aloud. He nodded as they approached the first turn and rounded the corner. "Alright, thirty more feet, then right."

"How long do you think it'll take Vayren and Tul to find the security center?" Eleena asked to no one in particular.

"If we're lucky?" Corsin paused. "Five minutes."

Kallux chuckled. "I hope we're lucky."

Will turned right, as the map had instructed, and shone his light on the wall as they continued forward. About thirty seconds later he grinned and pointed. "There it is."

A ladder ascended to a hatch in the ceiling. If the blueprints were correct, the hatch would open into a storage room near the back of the facility and allow them an easy entrance.

"This is Will, we're in position."

Vayren answered. "Affirmative, Captain. Tul'Sorrin and I are waiting near the entrance. We will begin our infiltration as soon as the commandos report in."

A few second later they were met with Captain Lintarith's voice. "We're at our position," she informed them. "Ready to enter the facility on Agent Vayren's signal."

"Understood. We are activating our stealth generators and going dark." There was a bit of static from Vayren's signal. "Standby."

Will gripped his rifle and took a deep breath. "Now we wait."

"I hate this part," Corsin muttered.

"You and me both," Eleena added as she tapped her foot on the floor.

Will stowed his weapon and leaned his back against the wall, looking to Eleena. This was the first time in over four hours that they did not have a pressing matter to attend to. Kallux, however, spoke before he could.

"So, Eleena." Will could see the asari look up as the krogan spoke. She already knew what he was going to ask. "This commando, Zaera..."

The asari let out a sigh and smirked. "I was just waiting for you or Will to ask."

"Well, Kallux beat me to it," Will quipped.

Eleena shook her head. "She's just an old friend." She took a deep breath. "We were in the same unit during basic training..."

The group was frozen in silence for a few moments before Corsin finally spoke. "Basic training?"

"Well, I wasn't planning on sharing this with you all, but yeah. I was... a commando candidate for a few years." She glanced around the group nervously.

"You..." Will shook his head slowly as he collected his thoughts. "Why didn't you mention this before?"

Eleena shrugged defensively. "It's an inconsequential part of my past. I withdrew from the program after two years and nothing came of it."

"Two years and you didn't finish?" Kallux narrowed his eyes. "Why?"

"Fuck, I don't know," she answered. "Because I didn't like it? I was young and restless when I signed up. Two years without seeing a starship engine made me realize what I really enjoy doing."

"It's nice to finally know where your combat expertise comes from," Corsin mentioned. "I've always thought you were a little too good for your average merc." He quickly glanced to Will and Kallux. "Not that you two aren't good..."

Will smirked. "Don't worry, I've already come to terms with being the least threatening member of the team." He looked over to Eleena. "I can't imagine you being a soldier."

"It wouldn't have lasted," she assured him. "I hated it. Too much bullshit."

Kallux chuckled and nodded. "I'm glad you quit. Things on the ship would be pretty boring without you around."

"Seriously," Will added. "And you've saved my ass more than a handful of times."

Eleena continued to tap her foot on the floor and smirked. "No need to lay on the flattery. I'm not planning on defecting to the commandos."

The group laughed softly as their comms pinged and activated.

"Attention all units, this is Agent Vayren. We are prepared to initiate the facility's security lockdown. Is everyone ready?"

"Affirmative, ready and waiting," Lintarith responded.

"We're ready down here," Corsin answered.

"Alright. Activating lockdown in three, two, one."

As the Spectre finished the countdown, the sound of a distant and muffled alarm began blaring in the manufactory above them. Will jumped up onto the ladder, quickly ascending to the top rung and reaching for the center of the hatch above him. He tapped a single button and the door slid open to reveal a surprisingly well lit room and unleash the sounding alarm. Will poked his head up and made a quick scan of his surroundings. Crates both open and sealed were stacked all around the hatch. Seeing no immediate threats, he put his hands on the lip of the hatch's seal and pulled himself up into the room with ease. He quickly steadied himself on his feet and turned to offer a hand to the next in line on the ladder. The rest of the squad was in the room within fifteen seconds with their weapons drawn.

Will took point and waved the other to follow. "Door on the far side of the room. It should open to the main factory floor."

He approached the door and stepped to the side as the others held their weapons ready. He reached for the control panel and opened the door with a quick tap. Corsin stepped through with Eleena just behind him, their weapons scanning the room quickly as they did. Will moved in after them with Kallux taking up the rear. The factory floor was reminiscent of the one they had found on Neidus, but this time they were met by at least a dozen frightened workers. They were clearly confused by the lockdown alarm, but the sight of four armed strangers sent them into a panic. Shouting erupted from the workers as they jumped to hide behind workbenches and equipment. Seeing no immediate threats, Will ran toward the closest group of civilians.

He reached the first, a turian, only to be met with incoherent pleads. "I'm not going to hurt you!" Will lowered his weapon in an attempt to diffuse the situation. "I'm looking for Fayneer T'lees! Where is she?"

He had to shout to be heard over the alarm. Corsin, Kallux and Eleena moved up to his side, their eyes scanning the room for trouble. The turian Will had approached shook his head furiously.

"I don't know! I don't know! This is only my third shift!"

Will stepped past him and shouted. "Does anyone know where Fayneer T'lees is?"

Another turian slowly rose up from behind a nearby conveyer belt. "I... I do! Her office! It's through that door, at the end of the hall!"

The worker turned and pointed to a door at the far end of the room. Will approached the turian with his rifle gripped tightly in his hands.

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Yes! I was just there!"

Will looked to the others. "Come on!"

With nods of affirmation the group ran for the door with their sights locked on the center. Just as they were approaching, the door slid apart to reveal a trio of armed turian guards. The Hyperion squad halted and held their aim as the guards did the same.

"Drop your weapons!" Corsin shouted authoritatively.

They responded with a burst of gunfire. Will cursed and dropped to his knee as he and the rest of the squad returned fire. Eleena sent a quick but weak shockwave toward them, causing two of the guards to stumble and lose their aim. Kallux's cannon kicked in at the same moment, the heavy rounds impacting the center guard's chest and quickly obliterating his shields. Corsin and Will concentrated their fire on the turian on their right, quickly tearing through his shields and dropping him under their combined power. Kallux's target was the next to fall, his chest exploding as the armor plating that surrounded it gave way. Eleena had turned her SMG on the final guard as his rifle was brought to bear on Will. His shields dipped dangerously low after a burst from the turian's weapon connected, but leveled out at twenty percent as a series of bullets from Eleena's SMG tore into the enemy's helmet.

"Everyone okay?" Will jumped to his feet and began walking toward the open door.

"Fine," Corsin answered.

Kallux vented his heat sink and nodded. "Same here."

"That was a sloppy shockwave," Eleena grumbled.

Will stepped through the doorway and into a hall that ended at a door currently glowing red to indicate its locked state. He opened his comm as they approached with their weapons ready.

"Captain Lintarith, what's your situation?"

The asari responded with gunfire accenting the message. "We're under fire from a large group of the security force, but we're holding out! No sign of T'lees!"

"We've got a possible ID on her location," Corsin informed her. "Moving in now."

"Understood! The sooner the better, we could use some support!" An explosion sounded after Lintarith's request.

"This is Vayren, we've been staying low in the security room. We'll head to your location now."

"Much appreciated, Agent!"

Will closed the comm channel as they stopped in front of the locked door. Corsin stepped up and prepared his shunt program.

"This might take a second," he said.

As the shunt began to work he stepped back and raised his rifle with the others. After ten seconds of an orange light blinking on the control panel, the hue changed to green and a soft ping sounded. The door slid apart to reveal a large but surprisingly dreary office. At the far end of the room, behind a large desk, an asari stood with a shotgun pointed toward the door in one hand and a wine glass in the other. With all of the squad's weapons on her, she downed the last of her drink and set it on the table.

"Damn. He sent four people to kill me?"

The asari looked up. Will instantly recognized her face from the picture Vayren had found: it was definitely Fayneer T'lees.

"I cannot think of a better compliment."

She pulled the muzzle of the shotgun away from the door to her free hand and used it to prime the weapon to fire. She gripped the weapon in her right hand before once again taking aim at the doorway and igniting a biotic glow in her left.

"Be sure to tell him that I shot back."