I don't own Mass Effect. Bioware does.
Saren woke up to find Jane still lying on top of him from the night before. Even when she was still asleep, he couldn't help but run his talons through her hair. Her eyes slowly flickered back open and she found herself looking back up at him.
"Good morning. I hope you don't mind if you have to move," Saren greeted.
Jane gave out a small chuckle.
"Right," she agreed, "just give me a moment."
Jane took a few seconds to roll off of Saren. He got out of bed and stepped out of the bedroom, making his way to the kitchen to prepare breakfast while he read through his datapad over the next mission. Jane entered the kitchen minutes later.
"Next, we'll be heading to Illium. It wasn't part of my original schedule, but we've managed to catch the Council's eye. They want to see how you handle this," Saren explained.
"So how much time do we have before we leave?" Jane asked.
Jane set off to gather ingredients and prepare her own breakfast.
"An hour and a half," Saren answered, "it's pretty critical apparently."
It didn't take long for both of them to finish preparing their breakfast and they sat down at the kitchen table before they started eating.
"Did you ever hear of the Batarian Hegemony during your time working towards a GED?" Saren asked between bites.
"Not that I'm aware of," Jane answered, "why?"
"The batarians…are a bit of a strange bunch. Culturally, they've been living within a caste system, and slavery is heavily integral to its structure. They consider the Council's anti-slavery laws to be discriminatory and their culture in general puts a lot of emphasis on position, even to an extent to make our Hierarchy seem rather benign."
Jane couldn't help but cringe at Saren's explanation.
"And I thought my mother's brothel was a literal shithole," Jane commented, shaking her head in disbelief.
"It could've been worse. I've seen a few cases where slaves were beaten for disrespecting their owners or failing to perform their jobs," he shrugged.
It was only a little while before Jane and Saren finished their breakfast, so they rinsed the dishes and then left the kitchen.
Arriving at the docks in short order, the two were fully suited and fully equipped for the next mission. Once they boarded the shuttle, Saren started up the engines.
"Intel suggests that a group of batarian pirates are trying to set off chemical weapons in highly populated areas," Saren explained, "Illium may be in the Terminus Systems, but it's still part of the Asari Republics."
"Does that count as a massacre?" Jane pondered.
"Yes. The batarians have been relatively hostile towards other governments over the years since their first contact with the Council, and have been teetering on the edge of pushing one of the other races to war," he answered as the ship left the docking mechanism.
Jane watched as the scenery passed by while the shuttle left the Citadel.
"Can't imagine whether batarians or humans are worse," Jane replied.
"Last time I checked," Saren reminded, "the Alliance at least didn't raid small settlements and facilities for other sentient beings to make slaves out of."
Jane nodded while she scratched her head.
A few hours had passed when the two had landed on the pristine planet. The space port they landed at was clean, well designed, and wealthy. The metropolis far below was sprawling with people, asari roughly making up half of the populace.
"Make no mistake, this place is as bad, if not worse than Omega," Saren explained, "the criminals here may not actively be trying to stab or drug you, but they have plenty of other ways of hurting you."
Jane stiffened, yet she kept up with Saren as they made their way out of the docks. Saren quickly handed in his ID to pay the docking fees before they continued.
"Right now," Saren continued, "our intel is still mostly a hunch as to where the batarian attackers will be planting. We just have to play this by ear, keep our eyes open."
"And let's hope they don't see us coming," Jane remarked.
The two wandered the markets looking for signs of activity from their targets. For half an hour, they searched hopelessly for at least a batarian in hopes they could get a lead. Jane's head spun as she tried grinding away at how they could find their way before whatever the batarians hoped to do blew up in their faces. Her eyes scanned back and forth across the numerous faces in the crowd for something to go off of until she spotted a krogan with maroon plates and red armor loitering by the mouth of a small back alley. Getting an idea, she calmly walked up to the krogan.
"Excuse me," Jane asked, "I was supposed to meet someone, but I can't find them in the crowd. Have you seen a group of batarians by any chance?"
Grumbling, the krogan narrowed his eyes at Jane.
"What does it matter to you, kid?" he demanded.
"Purchasing wares. Why else?" Jane repeated.
Saren kept his distance as to keep out of the krogan's olfactory sense range, yet armed in case the krogan decided to attack.
"You need to work on your ability to lie," the krogan insisted, "who sent you after them?"
"The need for a safer, more secure public," Saren answered, stepping into the open.
"Small galaxy. Name's Urdnot Wrex. I'm not here for anyone in particular, but my partner wanted some payback. She's in back getting some answers. It's certainly more effective than walking in circles," the krogan greeted.
Jane tilted her head to the side.
"You have a partner?" she paused.
Wrex made a head gesture into the alleyway behind him.
"She's interrogating one of your 'friends' that you were supposed to meet."
Looking down the alleyway, around a corner, she could lightly hear some screams and yells, drowned out by the common sounds of the public behind them.
"Who's she?" Saren asked.
"You don't want to know."
Almost driving Wrex's point, a blue glow began to grow from the alleyway followed by a sharp male scream and a spray of blood. Saren and Jane couldn't help but exchange glances amidst the small confusion. A bald, petite woman roughly Jane's height exited the dark alley.
"I've got the place," she announced.
She had tattoos all across her body, wore little more than boots and overalls that had enough straps to leave plenty to the imagination, and her right fist was covered in red paste.
"So, who are these two?" the woman asked, eyeing the Spectre and his student.
"Pfft," Wrex chuckled, folding his arms, "they're probably bounty hunters after the same target like us."
The thin girl simply stared.
"If you want to trust them, fine. That's your poison," she replied as she pulled out her omni-tool, showing the map, "still, he finally gave in and talked."
Wrex and the girl decorated with tattoos ventured forth, compelling Saren and Jane to follow.
"And for the record," Saren reminded, gesturing to himself and Jane, "I'm Spectre Arterius and this is my apprentice."
"Saren? Yeah…I know you. You're the asshole on TV. But I'm not complaining," Wrex hummed, "her name's Jack. We're here because she's got some beef with this group of batarians."
Saren flexed his mandibles into a grin, his subvocals letting out a soft chortle.
"What's her story?" he asked.
They all paused in their tracks for a moment while Jack stared at Saren.
"You'll know after we take out the four-eyed shitheads," Jack offered.
"Charming. What was your plan?" Saren asked.
"Go in and shoot everything. Try not to get gassed ourselves," Wrex answered.
Saren, Jane, Wrex and Jack continued their trek towards their destination. The group headed for a skycar that Jack had stolen during their time on Illium.
"Get in," Jack ordered.
Saren and Jane hopped into the skycar while Jack took the driver's seat.
"So, you're training her?" Wrex asked as he slid into the skycar.
"Yes," Saren nodded.
Once the skycar doors closed, Jack turned on the ignition and took control of the steering wheel.
"Can she at least shoot?" Jack inquired, steering the car out of parking.
"I've gotten the hang of firearms by now," Jane remarked.
"If she's being trained by Saren, she better be good," Wrex unfolded his shotgun and loaded incendiary rounds.
Jane peered through the window while Jack steered the skycar through the air traffic.
"I know what I'm doing," Jane added, "if that's what you're asking."
"Hey, so long as you aren't some bitch-princess who loses their shit over getting their hands dirty, that's fine," Jack sighed as she continued to weave through traffic.
A while later, they soon reached their destination. The group quickly veered off of the highway and down towards the ground. Flying through the cracks of the upper city, they entered the lower parts of the city, away from the prying eyes on the surface. It wasn't nearly as prestigious as the surface area, but it was still kept very clean, with no sign of impoverished, litter, or crime within visible range. While Saren and Jane double-checked their weapons, Jack steered the skycar closer to the ground in search for a place to land. Jack unbuckled herself after she turned off the ignition.
"I know where to go to head to where they're setting up," she told them, "they'll be planting the device that fucker we caught in the alleyways mentioned near the east wing of the facility."
Jack, Saren, Jane and Wrex disembarked the skycar.
"I'll bet they aren't waiting for us forever," Jane proclaimed.
The group began their trek on foot through the lower city, in and out of metal corridor after metal corridor. The group continued to follow Jack until she held up a hand for them to stop.
"There. The facility up ahead," Jack informed.
The building was enormous, but rather plain from the outside. A long fence wrapped around the outside, denying access to non-employees. Saren took his time to examine the fence, figuring out a way to get around the obstacle.
"We don't have much time. We should keep moving," he grumbled as he extended a holographic dagger from his suit knuckles, cutting a hole in the fence before entering to sweep.
"Oh, and the pig-headed fuck in the deep blue armor is mine," Jack reminded as she followed closely behind, with a shotgun in one hand and a ball of biotic energy in the other.
Once inside, they watched as a gang of batarians were arming canisters of the chemical weapon Saren mentioned.
"We're on time. Let's go," Wrex gestured to another door out of view of the batarians.
Having Saren sabotage the lock on the door, the group slowly crept in, keeping their senses tuned for the batarian attackers. With many of the batarians focused on their plan and the group's vigilance, the targets were oblivious to the intruders.
"Looks like there are roughly four dozen guys total," Jane informed Saren, "four are heavy troopers, six are biotics, and there's a single sniper."
Saren hummed as he contemplated the situation.
"Alright, let's start move quietly and start with the sniper before working our way ar-."
The two jumped at the sound of Wrex firing a grenade launcher indiscriminately at the squad of batarians while Jack started tossing shockwaves down the hallways.
"Great," Saren grumbled.
"Well, now what?" Jane asked.
"Disable the bombs, keep them from detonating. The others will keep any opposition away from us," he ordered.
With that, Jane and Saren snaked as close as they could to the bombs the batarians left unprotected.
"I'll have to teach you how to defuse a bomb at some point. I'll show you quickly before someone notices us," Saren mumbled, picking the explosives off the barrels.
Jane kept a vigilant eye while Saren began demonstrating the technique he mentioned. It was a relatively simply device, but he gave her a detailed enough tutorial on how to dismantle the trigger mechanism. The two got to work dismantling the other explosives around the room. All the while, Jack and Wrex kept sharp eyes on their batarian opponents. The batarians attempted to flee, only to be dragged back into the angry storm of biotic power, shotgun blasts, and hard knuckles.
"Don't think you can get away so easily, you four-eyed dipshits!" Jack yelled in between throwing biotic warps.
She latched onto the ankles of a batarian rushing to cover and yanked him close, allowing Wrex to lift his foot up and crush his skull into a fine, red paste.
"Nice one, Wrex!" Jack cheered, raising her fist into the air.
One of the remaining heavy troopers attempted to rush the krogan before Wrex simply caught the opponent's fist, grabbed the batarian's other wrist, put a boot on their chest, and yanked with all his might before tearing both arms clean off. By then, Saren and Jane were halfway finished with their task.
"You're doing very nicely, Jane," Saren hummed as he tossed aside another device uselessly.
"Thanks," Jane replied before she set off to defuse the next bomb.
The two were almost finished given the luxurious amount of alleviated pressure Wrex and Jack presented them.
"Think they won't need our help?" Jane asked.
Saren temporarily looked up down the corridor near the other side of the room to where distant screams, gunshots, and biotic explosions continued to ring from.
"Given how old Wrex is and how young and energetic…his acquaintance is," Saren answered, "I'm sure they're holding."
Jane picked up the last bomb before she set off to defuse it.
Not five minutes in to the counterattack, the batarians that were left were on the run from the rampant biotics. A significantly smaller group from the number they had started with rushed around the corner, avoiding the gunshots from behind them. One took a blast to his back, piercing his barriers and grazing his shoulder, causing him to stumble. Having dropped his weapon, he spun around to punch Jack only to have his arm caught in a lock. Accelerated with her biotics, Jack thrust her hand clean through the center of the batarian's eyes and clean through the back of his head. Yanking her hand out with more rivulets of blood and gray matter, she let the body unceremoniously drop to the floor before continuing to pursue the others. Having disarmed all of the explosives, Jane and Saren caught up with Jack and Wrex.
"We've defused the bombs. What's the status on the batarian gang?" Saren informed.
"They're starting to make for the surface, but they've taken heavy casualties in the process," Wrex replied as he loaded a new thermal clip into his shotgun.
Jane took a moment to examine the corpses on the ground.
"So how many are there left?" Jane asked.
"Eight-ish. Lost count," Jack answered nonchalantly.
Jack led Wrex, Jane and Saren throughout the corridor, barreling after the fleeing batarian gangsters. Rushing through the front gates, the batarian soldiers continued to rush to the public districts several blocks over. Beginning to catch up, one of the batarians fired his weapon into the air, causing people to drop in fear and granting them a clear escape path. That didn't deter Jack from giving up her pursuit, though. Wrex yanked another batarian towards them with a pull allowing Jack to finish him off as he flew past them. Saren and Jane also sprinted after the few remaining batarians, trying to figure out a way to corner them. Saren quickly opened his omni-tool to search the nearby area.
"Jane, I have a plan," he instructed, "follow me, let Wrex and Jack continue their pursuit."
"Ok," Jane nodded, "let's hope it works."
They quickly jumped down a dim back alley and began to weave their way over and under the obstacles along the way. Saren kept his omni-tool out as they ran along to make sure they didn't lose their way. Jane was slow at first, but quickly picked up on how to quickly transverse such obstacles as Saren did. They both kept track of their targets' whereabouts as the plan began to formulate into fruition. Continuing to weave back and forth, the two suddenly saw the light at the end of the alley. Saren quickly put away his omni-tool and pulled a grenade from his belt and waited a few more paces before pulling the pin to cook it. Keeping an eye on his suit HUD, he watched as the batarians drew closer on the mini-map. Rounding the corner and jumping into cover, he tossed the grenade at the approaching group. The ensuing explosion caught the batarians off-guard as expected.
Jane and Saren continued their fight as Wrex and Jack boxed the batarians in from the other side. The former two picked off the batarians who attempted to run while the latter two got in close and personal. With the rounds of a shotgun and the splatter of innards from biotic fields, the four managed to score a worthy victory. Jack repeatedly bashed the head of a batarian in navy blue with her shotgun before she finally got onto her feet.
"Sick fuck," she muttered.
"So," Jane asked, "are we done here?"
Saren eyed what was left of the batarian leader's head. He didn't know much about them, so he head no idea what sort of beef Jack had with the criminal.
"Perhaps you could shed some light on this batarian?" Saren asked Jack.
"I don't want to talk about it."
She walked off as Wrex walked up to the Spectre.
"I found her a year ago. That bastard she just desecrated kept her as an attack dog to have in betting matches."
"You mean the gladiatorial matches in Omega?" Saren raised a browplate.
"Yeah. I was doing a favor for Aria at the time," the bounty hunter answered.
While Saren did nod at Wrex in acknowledgement, the mention of Omega's pirate queen gave him a sense of irritation.
"So I told you Jack's story, what's hers?" Wrex asked, gesturing to Jane.
Saren sighed while he and Jane sauntered out of the alleyway with Wrex walking alongside them.
"Found her on Earth, starving and ill. Anything else?" Saren answered.
By then, Saren, Jane and Wrex caught up with Jack.
"Hey, you ready to go?" Wrex asked, patting Jack on her back.
Smiling, Jack gave Wrex a fist bump. The group returned to the upper city to find a small bar to relax at. Some time later, they headed back to the docks where Saren's shuttle could be seen a few feet away. The two bid farewell the bounty hunter and his crazed sidekick before the boarded their shuttle. Saren still felt a mild buzz from one of the drinks he had at the bar. This led him to resort to setting the shuttle to autopilot for the time being. The Spectre and his apprentice exchanged brief glances.
"So," Jane commented, "a krogan helped us on this mission, huh?"
Saren twitched his mandibles.
"You didn't seem to be intimidated by Wrex when we ran into him," Saren mentioned.
Jane nodded in agreement.
"That reminds me," Jane added, "there was one time where I had been in prison one year before I met you. My inmate was a krogan at a similar age milestone like myself. During those several months of serving my time, we only had each other for companionship. At least it was worth finding out how a krogan can use his tongue."
Saren softly closed his eyes and grinned.
"Sounds like you're not opposed to relationships outside of your species," Saren mused, "does he have a name?"
"Takador Fanak," Jane answered, "I haven't seen him in a long time, but I hope he's doing ok for himself."
"I'm sure the galaxy has granted better luck for him."
At that point, Saren offered his hand, allowing Jane to grasp it.