The Red Moon Collection - 2 - Three Phantoms

Chapter 18

Hub 6, City of Pugnax, Altakiril

"Drop your weapon," Corsin ordered authoritatively. "We're not here to kill you."

The squad held their position just inside the doorway with their weapons trained on the asari. Her expression remained stoic and unconvinced after the turian's assertion.

"And I should believe that?" The asari asked. "You have already killed most of my guards."

"We gave them the chance to surrender," Kallux countered sternly. "They opened fire on us. We had no choice."

The teal-faced asari narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Then who are you? What do you want?"

"We need information, and we believe you have it," Will informed her smoothly. "And forgive us for the rushed, intrusive entrance. You're our only lead."

"My name is Corsin Rentarius. I'm a Spectre." Corsin slowly lowered his rifle as a sign of good faith. "And you are Fayneer T'lees, yes?"

The asari finally let the glowing ball of energy in her palm dissipate. Given her initial determination to fight back against impossible odds, she must have believed that they were telling the truth. She dropped the shotgun back to her side and let the barrel hang toward the floor. The fearsome looking gun clattered harmlessly against the light armor that encompassed all of her body but the head.

"That is correct," she finally answered with a sigh. "I suppose I knew that this day would come eventually."

While the rest of the squad lowered their weapons, Eleena continued to grip her SMG cautiously, ready to raise it at a moment's notice. Will and Corsin stepped forward and crossed the room to the desk behind which T'lees was standing. As they approached, T'lees set her shotgun on the table to show her cooperation.

"What do you mean by 'this day?'" Corsin inquired curiously.

Fayneer looked to him. "I have been anticipating two possibilities concerning my fate. The first being that I would finally be tied to the operations of Narenthus Antarian and hunted down to be brought to court. The second being my assassination by Antarian himself."

"Assassinated? You do work for him, right?" Will raised a brow. "We assumed you were one of his lieutenants."

The asari gave him an amused smile. "If only I were so lucky. I am nothing more than a puppet. A shell of a woman with my former power as nothing more than a painful memory." T'lees glanced between Will and Corsin as she continued. "I was once the owner of seven successful manufactories like this one throughout the Terminus Systems. Four years ago, Narenthus Antarian initiated a hostile takeover of my organization and its assets. The only reason I was left in my position was to be a figurehead that he could use for his public advantage." She shook her head regrettably. "But I was told too much, and after his removal from the Spectres, he became increasingly paranoid. I knew it was only a matter of time before I would be either sought by the Council or silenced once and for all."

"Sounds like the better option got here first," Eleena said icily from the door.

"If he had sent you, I would be dead by now. Luckily, trial by the Council is precisely what I desired," Fayneer mused.

Corsin cleared his throat. "Actually, we have no interest in taking you into custody. We want Antarian. We just need you to give us information."

"Well, if it means taking that bastard down after what he did to me... I will do what I can to help," the asari informed them.

Before the conversation could proceed, footfalls began echoing through the hallway behind them. The asari commando squad jogged through the doorway and into the office with Captain Lintarith approaching Corsin and Will immediately. The other three commandos took up position with Eleena and Kallux by the doorway. Lintarith grinned as she stepped up beside the human and turian and looked T'lees up and down.

"Good work," she complimented. "Looks like she didn't even put up a fight." Lintarith glanced over to Will and Corsin. "Your friends are in the communications room monitoring the station's security. We don't want the local authorities catching wind of this yet."

"Commandos..." Fayneer said softly as she looked over the uniforms.

Lintarith looked back to her with a cocky smirk. "That's right."

T'lees turned her attention to Corsin. "You have no interest in taking me into custody?"

"But they do," the turian finished. "Now, we'd like you to start talking so we can be on our way."

T'lees paused briefly as a satisfied smile spread across her lips. "I would be happy to tell you everything I know about Narenthus Antarian. After we have agreed upon the terms of our exchange, of course."

Will smirked. "Terms? You don't have the leverage to negotiate for any terms. We'll ask the questions, you give us answers."

Fayneer T'lees tilted her head slightly in a mockingly inquisitive manner.

"Oh, how wrong you are," the asari corrected him tauntingly. "You showed your cards far too early, I am afraid. If I am truly your only lead, as you unwisely informed me, it would be in your best interest to consider my requests."

Will did his best to hide his disappointed frown. He should have known better.

Corsin grunted bitterly and nodded. "Go on, then."

T'lees smiled. "As I said, I will gladly tell you anything you need to know." She looked to Captain Lintarith. "But afterward, I want a pardon for my alleged crimes."

The commando captain laughed at the suggestion, but soon stopped as she realized that Will and Corsin had remained silent. Lintarith narrowed her eyes and gave them a furious glare.

"You are not considering-"

"Of course not," Corsin interrupted. "We can't just assume that any information she gives us is true and then set her free. Besides... I don't know if the Thessian government would even recognize the legitimacy of a Spectre pardon for crimes on their home planet."

"Simply not delivering me to the commandos would suffice, if nothing else." T'lees raised a finger to her lips in contemplation. "Is there no way to ensure your trust in my word?"

"You're a Spectre," Lintarith interjected quickly as she turned to Corsin. "I'm sure you've got plenty of... interrogation techniques. Get what you need and hand her over."

T'lees let her expression change to that of momentary concern until Corsin spoke.

The Spectre shook his head firmly. "Torture is unreliable."

There was a long pause that was finally broken by Kallux. "We could bring her with us while we hunt for Antarian. She'd probably give us more relative and accurate information if her own tail was on the line."

Will turned back to the krogan, slightly taken aback. "Are you crazy? You wanna bring a wanted criminal onto our ship so that she can betray and attempt to kill us?"

"While being a prisoner is most certainly not my desire... I would rather be in your hands than those of the Thessian authorities," the asari admitted regrettably. "At least for now. And while your concern is legitimate if you give only a cursory glance at the situation, allow me to offer a few counterpoints. The first and foremost being that while I am, allegedly, a criminal, I am most certainly not a murderer. I may be an exceptional biotic, but I promise you that I have only ever taken lives in self defense."

"Yeah, that's convincing," Eleena muttered from across the room.

T'lees ignored the comment. "I am also in no way opposed to seeing Narenthus Antarian brought to justice. Offering my assistance would be as much for you as it would be for me." She smirked softly. "And as for betrayal... I would be a fool to attempt to attack and overpower four clearly capable warriors on their own ship."

"There's actually eight of us," Will added.

"Which only proves my point more so," T'lees said with a sly smile.

Eleena shook her head and stepped up closer to Will and Corsin. "This is fucked up... I don't trust her."

"Trust should not even be a factor!" Captain Lintarith exclaimed, clearly having reached the breaking point of her temper. "Fayneer T'lees is my target, and attempting to deny me her capture is an obstruction of justice!"

Corsin, who had been surprisingly quiet, turned to face Lintarith and assumed a dominating stance. The turian held his rifle across his chest and looked down at the shorter asari.

"I'm sorry, Captain, but as a Spectre, my authority overrules your own. For now, Fayneer T'lees will be coming with us." The turian's voice was level and grimly professional.

"You son of a bitch!" Lintarith clenched her fists and stepped up so close to Corsin that their chestplates nearly touched. "We had an agreement! You were to interrogate her and nothing more."

"I didn't intended on going back on my word," Corsin said quietly as he gave T'lees a sideways glace. "But we don't have the luxury of time and alternate options."

T'lees raised a finger. "Might I also point out that, technically, Captain Lintarith and her commandos have no real authority here on Altakiril. It is an independent colony far outside of asari space, after all." She looked to Corsin and raised a brow. "Though, if all of this talk about going back on your word is true, I am not so sure I can trust you to hold up your end of the bargain. For all I know, you could deliver me to Thessia after the conclusion of your mission."

"You probably should have thought about that before you convinced me to take you prisoner," Corsin said as he narrowed his eyes. "But how about this... you lead us to Antarian without problems, I'll consider holding up my end of the deal."

The room would have been silent if not for the sound of Lintarith's angered and labored breathing through clenched teeth. T'lees let her arms fall to her sides and nodded in defeat.

"In that case... I suggest we leave Altakiril quickly." Her eyes shifted across the faces before her. "The local authorities will arrive before long."

Lintarith turned and threw a biotic punch into the support column behind her, denting the thick metal. She turned back to Corsin, her hand still glowing, and pointed a finger accusingly.

"I will not forget this, Rentarius."

"Lower your hand, Captain. It's not smart to threaten a Spectre." The turian's mandibles twitched slightly.

"Fuck you," the commando replied. Lintarith spun and marched toward the door. "Commandos, on me! We're getting off this rock."

Eleena looked to the three commandos that watched as their commander passed them by. Zaera stood at the end of the line, her face bitter and eyes piercing. Eleena frowned and shook her head.

"Zaera, I'm sorry, it's not like I wanted-"

Before she could finish, the lieutenant had turned and followed the captain into the hallway along with the other two commandos. Will looked around the room as everyone stood in uneasy silence. Kallux wore a straight, grim face and clenched his cannon in his hands. Corsin stared at the desk between himself and T'lees, most likely considering whether or not he had made the correct decision. After a few moments, he reached forward and grabbed the shotgun that was sitting on the desk and stowed it on his back.

"You," Corsin addressed T'lees. "Is there any data in this factory's network that can help us?"

The asari shook her head. "I am afraid not. This factory has only been operational for a few months, and everything we produce is retrieved by Antarian's ships. I do not know where the shipments are taken."

Will narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "That's interesting, because we found a holopad of yours that had plenty of data regarding orders and shipments to the Vol Protectorate."

T'lees nodded. "Yes, those transactions would have occurred around six months ago. It was near that time that Antarian shut down most of his and my older manufactories and moved our operations. Since then, he has given me less and less information regarding his business." She hesitated briefly. "However, while the computers here will yield nothing worthwhile, there are two things that I know which might interest you..."

Kallux and Eleena had slowly made their way to Corsin and Will as the squad stood and listened intently to their captive.

"The first is that I have certain access codes that will allow us into Antarian's private networks. I have only a few from an old batch, and they will most likely be traced and firewalled quickly." T'lees smirked lightly. "Of course, I will not release them until we are well off of Altakiril."

Corsin grunted irritably. "What's the other 'interesting' bit?"

"I have been to Antarian's estate. I was flown there and not given information on how to return, but I remember the place itself vividly. I would be very helpful if you plan on assaulting it." She took in a deep breath. "More importantly, I believe I know how to find it."

Within an hour the squad had made their way back to the Hyperion and launched into orbit. The group's reaction to their new captive was, understandably, negative. Vayren was quite vocal with his disapproval, leaving Corsin and Will to remind him that he was outnumbered in the decision. In truth, Will himself was barely convinced that this had been the right choice. Tyrixis, Shansa, Eleena and Tul'Sorrin all remained suspicious of the new asari and agreed that if there was even the slightest hint of subterfuge by her part that they should turn her over to the Thessian authorities immediately. On that, everyone agreed. Fayneer assured them that there would be no need for such action, but even herself agreed that it would be a wise choice if they were forced to make it. After Shansa had linked the ship with the nearest comm buoy, Will, Corsin, Vayren and Tul'Sorrin met with T'lees at the computer terminal in the crew's quarters.

"As I mentioned, we may have only one chance," T'lees reminded them.

Tul'Sorrin nodded as he began requesting access to the network provided by the asari. "His cyberwarfare VI will most likely identify the antiquated security code and block all of them from the batch. I'll grab everything I can before that happens."

Vayren grumbled and crossed his arms. "Perhaps, Ms. T'lees, you can tell us how this relates to finding Narenthus Antarian?"

The asari stepped up beside Tul as the others watched her carefully. She eyed the quarian's work, waiting for the moment when she would be needed to enter her access codes.

"Antarian is a peculiar man," she finally began. "As an outsider, he never trusted me a great deal. However, during the years when I was in a slightly positive standing with him, I did gather an idea of how he runs much of his organization. Interestingly, he spends most of his time at his private villa, enjoying the luxuries acquired by his business. Because of this he has a trusted friend, a turian, who acts as his 'hand' in the field."

"Which is what we thought you were," Will noted.

She nodded in acknowledgment. "This turian, Russon, oversees his most delicate operations and, in doing so, communicates directly with Antarian on a regular basis." T'lees pointed to one of the network addresses on the screen. "Yes, this one." She looked back over her shoulder. "If we find Russon, I am certain that he will have what we need to locate Antarian's estate in his omnitool records."

"I'm at the code prompt," Tul'Sorrin informed them.

T'lees leaned over the quarian and placed her hands on the keyboard to enter the code. Her fingers moved far too fast for Will to catch anything worthwhile from the keystrokes. She stood back up as the hidden characters sat waiting in the text field.

Corsin crossed his arms and stared at the screen. "Whenever you're ready, Tul."

The quarian drew a deep breath and tapped the execute function. After a brief second of authorization, the screen filled with code that represented the back end of whatever database T'lees had managed direct them to.

"I've been noticed," Tul announced immediately.

His hands were already quick at work searching through the lines of code. Will stared intently despite not understanding what he was seeing in the least.

"Shipment logs, denied. Expense reports, granted." Tul'Sorrin muttered to himself as he attempted to access different logs. "Granted! Deployment records. Sounds promisings." He quickly saved the data before closing and moving on to the next. "Damn it, I-"

The screen blinked and backed out to the access code prompt once again. T'lees leaned forward immediately and entered another code. This time, they were met with an access error.

"Just as I expected," Tul'Sorrin said regrettably.

"So what did we get?" Will asked nervously.

"That's what I'm trying to find out," the quarian replied as he began parsing through his captured data.

Vayren looked over T'lees as she stood patiently at Tul'Sorrin's side. "And if we find what we're looking for, what should we do with her?"

"Nothing," Corsin said firmly. "We're not going to find our rogue Spectre in this database. Until we have him in our custody, she's going to help us."

She glanced to meet Vayren's gaze. "As I told your companions, Antarian took almost everything from me. I want to find him as much as you do."

"I've got something," Tul announced. "Recent deployments. It looks like a large contingent of soldiers was deployed just under a day ago, led by someone referred to as 'Talon.'"

"Could it be Russon?" T'lees inquired hopefully.

"I have no idea," the quarian answered truthfully. "But I have some information on their assignment... apparently it is 'priority one.'" Tul scrolled down a few more lines before sitting back in surprise. "They were deployed to... Lorek."

Will placed his hand on Tul's chair and leaned forward. "Lorek? Are you sure?"

"Yes." Tul'Sorrin muttered something in Khelish. "It's fragmented, but I have the coordinates. It also looks as though it says something about, 'seizing the silo.'"

"Send them to Shansa," Will ordered. "We need to set course immediately." He straightened himself and looked to the Spectres. "I'll gather the crew and let them know the situation in a few minutes."

Vayren motioned toward T'lees. "What should we do with her? We don't exactly have a brig."

Corsin nodded in agreement. "He's right, and we can't just let her wander around the ship."

"You don't need to convince me," Will assured them. "We'll confine her to the crew's quarters and bunk room and watch her in shifts. I'll take the first one. Luckily, I think the flight from here to Lorek is only about eight hours."

"I'll start looking for reports of anomalous activity around Lorek," Vayren said decidedly.

Corsin nodded. "Good idea, I'll give you a hand."

T'lees watched as the Spectres filed out of the room and glanced over to Will and Tul'Sorrin. "Forgive my ignorance, but what exactly is the chain of command on this ship?"

Will leaned his back against the wall and shook his head in exhasperation. "It's complicated."

The next few hours passed at a snail's pace. T'lees had requested some time to rest only a few minutes after Will had called the crew together to explain their newest course of action. Will gladly agreed to her request and offered her the second to last bunk available. As she slept, Will sat quietly in the chair at the corner of the bunkroom. Three hours passed as he sat with his cheek resting in his palm. Finally, his patience expired and he called Kallux in to take his place as 'warden,' allowing him to head to his locker and remove his armor for the first time since equipping it before Altakiril. The cargo bay was surprisingly empty, with seemingly everyone occupying the forward compartments to either sleep or prepare for the upcoming excursion on Lorek. After sliding his jacket over his shoulders he turned to the doorway at the rear of the cargo bay and approached it with a small smile. As he stepped through the open door and into the engine room, he saw Eleena sitting off to the side with her back against the wall and legs stretched out before her.

"I was wondering when you'd show up," she mused. The asari's eyes lifted up to him.

"Was I due?" Will raised a brow inquisitively.

Eleena pulled one leg up and wrapped her arm around it. "You always want to talk after something big happens. Figured it'd just be a matter of time."

She had changed out of her combat gear and into one of the few outfits she owned that was not a jumpsuit. Eleena wore black pants with large pockets lining the legs and a loose, long-sleeved gray shirt that she often wore to bed. The asari continued to stare at him, her gaze occasionally venturing down his body and back up again.

"Hope I'm not becoming predictable," he mentioned as he leaned against the bulkhead beside the door.

"Not at all." Eleena stared quietly for a moment. "Though it seems you're developing a habit of bringing strange asari aboard your ship after only knowing them for a few hours."

Will smirked. "Twice in six months makes it a habit?"

She shrugged in defeat. "If it happens a third time, then I'll be getting suspicious."

"If a third asari pops up, it won't be because I went out of my way to make it happen." He crossed his arms and smiled. "I was more than happy with just one."

Eleena smirked. "Well, I'm glad I filled your asari quota. You sure know how to make a woman feel appreciated."

"It's got nothing to do with that," Will countered. "How am I supposed to compare anyone to you, regardless of race?"

"I keep waiting for the smooth talk to end..." she trailed off jokingly.

Will winked. "You'd be lost without it."

The asari pulled herself to her feet and began slowly pacing at the center of the room. "Will, I still don't trust her."

"Of course you don't," Will chuckled. "I don't either. No one does."

"Then why is she here?" Eleena spun on her heel to face him.

"We need her to find Antarian. At least... I think we do." He shook his head. "Corsin made the call. I trust him, so I trust his judgment."

"Are you still going to trust him when she turns on us?" The asari's voice had grown much more hushed.

"You mean if she turns on us?" Will reached forward and took one of her hands in his. "My trust in Corsin isn't what I'd be worrying about in that situation. Our safety, on the other hand..."

"She won't get the chance to hurt you," Eleena said quietly. "I won't let her."

He felt her hand squeeze gently. Will and Eleena locked eyes as he tried to hold back his amusement.

"You won't, huh?" Will tilted his head to the side with a small grin. "You think I can't protect myself, El?"

She took a step closer to him, not breaking the stare. "If her biotics are half as strong as mine, she can lay down a whole lot of pain." Eleena's free hand reached up and grasped the collar of his jacket. "And this leather isn't gonna ward off any biotic attacks. One of my barriers, though... that would do the trick."

They were close enough for Will to feel the warmth of her breath as it flowed around his neck. His empty hand wrapped smoothly around her hips and lower back, only to find a hard shape through the soft cloth of her shirt. His fingers quickly recognized the shape of her SMG. She still wore the holster on the small of her back, but tucked out of sight. He grinned softly as she winked knowingly.

"I'm glad I've got you watching my back, Eleena."

The asari blinked softly, still looking into his blue eyes. "Always, Will."

Will and Eleena felt the anticipation around them and drew in deep breaths. Their eyes sunk shut as they leaned in to close the small gap that separated their waiting lips. Will kissed deeply, and she reciprocated. Eleena's hand released his collar and snaked its way up the back of his neck and into his dark-brown hair. The asari ran her fingers through the alien oddity as Will's hand slowly dropped from the small of her back to her rear before finally settling at her hips. It was only a few seconds before their lips began widening, seeking more of each others flesh. Their tongues jabbed teasingly at one another before Eleena suddenly pulled back from the kiss. They opened their eyes in unison, their breathing deep and labored. The asari's hand dropped from the back of his head to the door control panel beside them as she leaned forward and held her lips beside his cheek.

"I hope you don't have anywhere to be for the next few hours," she whispered into his ear suggestively.

Will grinned and tilted his head to place a few sensual kisses on her neck. "Just wherever you are." With a firm grasp of her hips he pressed their bodies together tightly. "It's been a long time," he warned her with a nervous chuckle.

"Me too, Will." She took a deep, calming breath. "Just relax."

A small, excited smile spread across her lips as she tapped a button on the control panel. With a soft ping, the door slid shut and locked.

Author's Note

Apologies for the delayed chapter! The next one should come out much quicker as a result. Hope everyone is enjoying the read!