Sara was a fun bundle of energy when she was a kid, always ready to laugh. Probably one of the few times I was considered the levelheaded one when I was younger. You did not want her to get bored, because if she was bored, she'd make her problem your problem. My solution to that problem was to run her into the ground on the soccer field. Scott was more, introspective. Not that he didn't have a sense of humor to match his sister, but he could be more methodical in his deeds. He can zero in on a single project and attack it with such focus that sometimes he'd forget to eat. Would make for good staff officer material if he ever decided to go down that route. Together though, there was almost nothing they couldn't overcome, and at times that even included me.

In a lot of ways the two remind me of how me and John were. Maybe if we'd been together longer, we'd have balanced each other out more like the Ryders did. But it was probably too late for that even after we met up again at the academy, we'd been apart almost as long as we had memories of each other. And it's certainly too late now.

-Evangeline Shepard, Mandatory Counseling Log 013

Chapter 12

Abundans cautela non nocet

As the Normandy docked, Shepard gave the view of the station interior a lingering look.

"No big crowds," she remarked. "Good."

"At least none that we can see," Miranda said.

That was not to say there wasn't a welcoming party, and an armed one at that. But for Omega, that was hardly out of the ordinary even when things were what passed for normal. Now with this mystery plague ripping through the station, it would have been downright odd if Aria did not send someone to greet Shepard.

"EDI, you able to tap their internal comms and cameras yet?" the colonel asked.

"I have coverage of the docking bay and parts of the main commercial district where Aria has her headquarters," EDI answered. "There are several areas, including the Afterlife Club itself, that appear to be on separate closed-circuit networks that I cannot access."

"So long as we get early enough warning about anyone trying to move on the ship, that should be sufficient," Shepard said. "If anyone makes a play for the ship, pull out immediately, don't bother waiting for us. Is that clear?"

"Are you sure about that, ma'am?" Joker asked unhappily.

"If we lose the Normandy, we lose any chance whatsoever of getting out of this system," Shepard said. "So yes, I'm dead sure."

"Understood, ma'am," came the still unhappy accession.

"Alright, let's get to it."

The four that disembarked were, in a word, loaded for bear. Hanging off Grunt's back was the Typhoon light machinegun, the krogan slotting in as the main assault asset of their squad. The colonel herself had her trusty Saber attached, while the Mantis sniper rifle was ready in reserve in case engagement range exceeded that of her main rifle. In comparison, Jacob and Miranda's loadouts looked downright banal, but anyone who found themselves on the business end of their respective shotgun or submachinegun would still be having a very bad day, and that was before their biotics entered the picture. In any other place, people would have assumed the four were walking into a warzone. On Omega, the turian at the head of the welcoming committee at the docking terminal didn't even bat an eye.

"You Shepard?" he asked.

"That's right."

"Come with me," he ordered, "Aria's expecting you."

Shepard looked the turian over, conducting a brief check of his visibly detectable biometrics. He did not appear to be lying, at least.

"Lead the way."

The direction they headed off in was also towards Afterlife, which was another point in the turian's favor. Shepard still kept a hand near her sidearm just in case, however.

"Omega," Miranda said as she similarly swept her gaze across their surroundings. "What a piss hole."

She was loud enough that the turian leading them almost certainly could hear her, but he showed no sign of disagreement.

"At least it keeps you on your toes."

That actually saw a grunt of agreement.

"Every time I set foot in this place, I feel like I need a shower on top of the usual decontamination."

"So how many times have you been here?" Shepard asked.

"Even once is too many," Miranda said with an almost exasperated sigh. "But recently? Enough to prep for our current mission."

"Reconnoitering hostile territory may be necessary, but it's usually just as unpleasant," Shepard remarked.

"Hopefully things don't get too hostile while we're here," Jacob said.

"Speak for yourself," Grunt said. "I could use a good scrap."

"You'll probably get your chance," Shepard said. "In fact. Hey, buddy." Without a name, there were few options for what to call the turian guiding them. "Should there be so many vorcha around?"

That saw the turian quickly scan the surrounding area, reaching for his weapon in the process. The other mercs quickly did likewise.

"No," the turian said finally said. "There shouldn't be."

That was all the confirmation the colonel needed.

"Barrier!"

Miranda and Jacob immediately complied, working together to provide all of them with omni-directional cover. Just in time too, as flashes marked the impact of gunfire, also from all directions.

"We've been kill-boxed!" Jacob cried out from the exertion of maintaining the barrier.

Shepard had also reached that conclusion and was already acting on it. In her hands was not her gun, but four grenades. Spinning about, the colonel threw them in a hemispherical arc before charging in that direction herself.

"This way!" she shouted.

While the ambush had been neatly executed, the vorchas were likely not expecting such a rapid and coordinated response. The wave of fire and destruction visited upon them by Shepard's grenades disoriented that particular section enough for the colonel's charge to break right through. That got them out of the kill-box at least, but from the way things looked, they were still grossly outnumbered.

"This your boss' idea of a warm welcome!?" Shepard demanded.

"Hell no!" the turian shouted back. "Aria doesn't use vorchas! They're a bloody plague!"

From the growing intensity of fire directed their way, the vorcha may well have heard that and taken offense. Shepard, like most marines that had done shipboard tours and run into pirates, possessed at least some passing familiarity with vorchas. The spiny creatures were naturally aggressive and hardy, which often saw them used as shock troops by pirates and other outlaw organizations. The usual approach to dealing with vorchas, aside from simply shooting them of course, was to take out whatever non-vorcha overseer was coordinating them. That was generally sufficient to break the formation of the vorchas, making them considerably easier to deal with. These vorchas however did not appear to be led by any such overseer, at least not one within Shepard's line of sight. Despite this, they maintained a surprising cohesion in their assault, one which due to sheer numbers if nothing else represented a significant challenge, even for someone like the colonel.

"EDI, how the hell did these bastards sneak up on us?" Shepard inquired in between taking potshots.

"The vorcha appear to have traveled through the station's ventilation system, bypassing the cameras I was able to tap," the AI responded.

"Is there any way to tell if more are on the way?"

"There currently does not appear to be any more enemy reinforcements inbound," EDI stated. "There is however signs of mobilization by Aria's forces, they appear to have noticed the disturbance."

Shepard glanced over at the turian.

"Ruckus like this? Boss lady'd definitely notice," the turian said. "We just gotta hold out until the cavalry's here."

The colonel had already shouldered her rifle, but that was to free her hands for something else.

"I've got a better idea," Shepard said as a blue glow enveloped her form.

"Colonel, what are you-"

That was as far as Miranda got before Shepard jumped out from cover and disappeared in a flash. What sounded after was a mixture of metal snapping and pained screams. The initial landing saw a trio of vorchas skewered on Shepard's sword, before their bodies were literally flattened by the discharge of gravitic energy. Quite a few other vorchas were caught in the impact radius, their bodies merely snapping from the biotic field being projected by the colonel. Some of those injuries might have had a chance to heal, given time. The parting fragmentation grenade Shepard dropped in their midst before charging at another cluster of vorcha rendered that moot.

At the sight of such carnage, Grunt let out a mighty roar as he charged to join in the fray. This was no blind blood rage, however. The krogan maneuvered so he struck the opposite flank from Shepard, performing a pincer with his battlemaster. The machinegun he wielded laid down a blanket of fire that offered little chance for the enemy to return fire, busy as they were cowering behind cover. Then, a few suddenly found themselves with a lot less cover than they expected as biotic fields lifted them into the air. The enemy so distracted, Jacob and Miranda were given the perfect opening to display their own talents. The resulting combination turned the tables entirely against the vorcha attackers. What was supposed to be an ambush against an outnumbered foe was quickly turning into a wholesale slaughter of the ambushers.

While Grunt was hosing down the vorchas that flailed helplessly in the air, Shepard opted for a quicker but no less lethal follow-up. Sparks flickered on her gauntlet before an electric charge triggered a chain reaction with the biotic fields. The resultant explosions left a shower of severed limbs and broken bodies, the blood splattering far enough that the biotics ended up having to dive for cover once more. Shepard and Grunt were unfazed however, already on the hunt for new targets.

The onslaught might have decimated the vorcha numbers, but a few clumps of hardy survivors were still holding out. Or at least they were before a massive torrent of flame washed over their positions. The cacophony of screams was bone-chilling in its horror, being burned alive was not a pleasant way to go. Shepard did not avert her gaze for even a moment as she bore witness to the live cremation of the remaining attackers. From amidst the smoke and embers came a contingent of heavily armed soldiers, a mixture of multiple races, but all wearing armor with a white-black styling similar to that of the turian that greeted them. The grunts parted ways to allow through a gruff looking asari. Somehow Aria looked even more pissed off in person than over video.

"Colonel Shepard," the asari said, annunciating the name with a clipped tone.

"Ms. T'Loak," Shepard responded with a somewhat more lackadaisical tone. "Quite the warm welcome here."

"Oh I'm sure you've had warmer," Aria however didn't miss a beat, then glanced over at the turian. "Take some of the boys and do a sweep, Gavorn. I want these plague rats burned out."

"Yes ma'am."

Shepard made note of the turian's name but little else about his departure. Instead her attention was firmly drawn to two very specific words in Aria's orders.

"You think the vorcha have something to do with the plague that's hitting Omega?" the colonel inquired.

Aria gave a snort. "Don't read into every little thing, Shepard. It makes you sound like a conspiracist nutjob."

"That wasn't an answer," Shepard responded, flashing a smirk.

The asari snorted again. "The vorcha are a bunch of feral scavengers, cannon fodder at best. They wouldn't have the knowhow to make a plague like this. At the same time, they seem to be the one other species aside from your fellow humans that are immune."

The colonel's eyes narrowed. "Really now."

"So even if they didn't come up with it, vorchas can spread it, and with the way they crawl through the station's interior, we've caught more than a few that were carrying the disease despite not showing symptoms. So, plague rats. That satisfy your etymological curiosity?"

"Just about," Shepard said. "I assume this is doing bad things to all of the gangs that used vorcha for muscle?"

"That's my problem, not yours," Aria said, then smirked herself. "Until I say otherwise."

Which probably meant it would become Shepard's problem in due time, assuming it was not already what with the ambush that got sprung on them.

"Alright, if the vorcha aren't my problem," yet, "to business then?"

"Better than wasting anymore time here. Come along, now."

A woman fully confident of herself, Aria was. Shepard saw little reason to challenge that confidence, yet, and so trailed after. With the queen bee of Omega herself leading the way, no one else appeared stupid enough to try to make a move on them, though there were plenty of curious looks thrown their way, at least from what people were actually milling around.

"Would have expected more people around a concourse this big," Shepard remarked.

"The plague must be making a lotta people scared," Jacob said.

"Or dead," Grunt added.

"Thanks, we really needed that part said aloud," Jacob said dryly.

That only elicited a chuckle from the krogan. Death was clearly no great taboo from his perspective.

The party arrived at a large, gaudily lit building soon after. There was likely some sort of flexing going on with Aria using a nightclub as her official headquarters, but looking at the approaches Shepard could tell that the asari was no fool. The stairs leading up to the main entrance were actually a killing field, with plenty of vantage points from the club proper to fire from. Several of the what looked to be decorative, or at least haphazardly placed, protrusions around the plaza were also probably traps or hidden turrets and the like. And the door they passed through was thick, very thick. Anyone that actually needed to assault Afterlife might well end up in the real one before all was said and done.

Even as they passed through the door, Shepard felt an invisible web of EM emissions sweep over her. A sensor, likely to check what Shepard might be carrying. Depending on how good it was, it might even be able to pick up something through the shielding, both active and passive, of Shepard's armor. The colonel watched Aria closely to see if the asari would visibly react if given a head's up about the returns. The way Aria glanced back at her didn't reveal much, aside from there at least having been an exchange.

Inside the club proper the dance floor was loud and crowded, with patrons aplenty milling about. Even if the station was burning down around them outside, the clubgoers seemed determined to have a good time. Shepard withheld comment on the wisdom of clumping together in such large crowds in the midst of an apparently highly contagious pandemic. Fortunately for the colonel's patience, their party walked around the floor and headed up to an upper level. From there they entered a large balcony that overlooked the dance floor, meaning they were subject to the fullness of the noise below. And just as suddenly, all that noise disappeared as Aria did something with her omni-tool.

"Impressive privacy screens," Shepard remarked.

"I tolerate only the very best," Aria said, plopping down on her couch. "Well, have a seat."

To their credit, Shepard's team glanced over at her first before accepting the invitation.

"Jacob, Grunt, keep an eye out," Shepard said.

That left her and Miranda to sit down and talk business.

"Cautious one, aren't you?" Aria said with almost, but not quite, a sneer.

"In this line of business, it pays to be," Shepard responded.

"So it does," Aria said with a tilt of her head. "And yet you're intending to plunge right into a plague zone. Aside from your pet krogan, human or not, that's hardly cautious."

Shepard's lips thinned. As far as the colonel knew, she had no plans whatsoever, aside from going to wherever Garrus and Mordin were located and extracting the two. If Aria really thought she was headed towards a plague zone though, that at least answered, to an extent where the two were. That did not bode well for the general success of the mission.

"Do you know if Dr. Solus and Garrus are still alive?"

The asari actually uncorked a bottle of what looked to be rum and poured herself, and just herself, a glass. When she leaned back, she gave another tilt of her head, indicating that if Shepard or Miranda wanted any, they'd have to do likewise. Only after the other two had glasses of their own in hand, and even taken a sip at that, did Aria answer.

"Last I heard from Mordin, he had stabilized everyone within the vicinity of his clinic and was making good progress towards a cure," the asari said. "That was of course three days ago, and a lot of things could have changed since."

Now it was an eyebrow that rose.

"A cure."

"If it had been anyone else, I would have laughed before flushing the atmosphere out of their section," Aria said. "But when one of the finest geneticists the STG has ever cut loose tells you he might have a cure, well, only a fool wouldn't listen."

"A cure," Shepard repeated thoughtfully, then her eyes narrowed. "That changes things."

Another snort. "An astute observation."

Shepard paid little heed to the sarcasm. "So what's my part in all this?"

"When I last spoke to Mordin, he had a list of things he needed to properly synthesize a cure," Aria said. "I've gotten it all packaged and ready to go, but getting volunteers to make sure the package reaches him intact has been, tricky. Most of my most trusted personnel would succumb to the plague if Mordin is wrong about his cure, and the humans in my employment, well, I can't be certain they wouldn't just try to run off with the package."

"Good help is always so hard to find," Shepard said, not entirely without sympathy.

"Too true."

Shepard leaned back, swirling her glass. Noverian rum, and a pretty high grade one at that. Jondum, the salarian Spectre Shepard had worked with during the hunt for Saren, had actually snuck a few bottles to Shepard as a sort of congratulations and thanks for her help after Virmire, so the colonel was not completely unfamiliar with its flavoring.

"How big is the package?"

The dimensions Aria provided were, while bulky, should still be possible for them to carry, especially with Grunt. Assuming Shepard herself was willing to risk Mordin being wrong here. Then again, if the salarian scientist was wrong, they would be looking at a much bigger problem than just losing their newly acquired krogan muscle.

"I'll need a sealed suit for Grunt," the colonel thus stated.

"We'll consider it a down payment for services to be rendered," Aria responded without missing a beat.

"And Garrus is down there with Dr. Solus?"

"Can you imagine anywhere else a crusading Spectre would be on this station?"

That was hardly a definitive answer, though Aria did have a point. If Garrus was not busy going after the very worst of Omega's scum, and there had been no reports of any such cleansings, he probably was doing his level best to help Mordin, especially if the salarian really did have a plague cure in the works.

"The district itself, is it one of yours?"

To that Aria shook her head. "The Blue Suns are the ones that run it, and they've had better luck keeping a lid on things than some of the others, what with how many humans they have. But even they're starting to run low on warm bodies to throw at the problem. And they're not likely to ask questions before shooting."

"That's nothing new," Shepard said dryly, then met Aria's eyes firmly. "Just so we're clear. I go in with the package, help Mordin work out a cure. We come out, you get a cure you can distribute to the general populace, I get to leave with all of my team, including Mordin and Garrus."

"If I get my cure," Aria emphasized.

And if she did not, the pirate queen of Omega would likely burn Shepard and her team to make sure they could out bring the plague out with them.

"Miranda, anything we should deal with before we head in?"

The Cerberus operative took only a moment to consider a response.

"We have an additional asset on retainer, who might be on Omega. I want to check if he's available to accompany us."

"Human?"

That was not prejudice in Shepard's question, but sheer pragmatism. If they brought a non-human into the quarantined slums, he or she was more likely to be a liability than an asset. It was already a big risk bringing Grunt along, EVA-rated suit or not. Fortunately, Miranda nodded.

"Do it," Shepard said, then to Aria. "We won't be long."

"Better hurry all the same," Aria said, draining the rest of her glass. "Mordin missed our last check-in, and word is the Suns are starting to lose control of the situation. Too many rats scuttling about."

The colonel's eyes flickered. Could the vorcha really have something to do with the plague? It would not do to underestimate the bastards, vicious little runts as they were. If they understood that they were unaffected, even if they were not behind the plague originally, they could probably still discern the advantages that might be had if the disease became more widespread around the station.

"I'll keep that in mind. Where should we head once we're ready?"

"Shuttle dock 44 is where the package is being stored," Aria said. "They'll also take you to the district."

"Sounds like a plan," Shepard said, then downed the rest of her own glass in one gulp. "Save the rest for when I get back?"

Aria actually looked amused at the remark. "If you get back."

Shepard flashed a smirk of her own. "I'll hold you to it."

Getting Grunt properly kitted out was not terribly difficult, with the tech even kind enough to warn that gunshots would puncture the suit and render it useless for keeping the plague out. The krogan had a kinetic barrier that would help mitigate at least some of that, and so long as he stayed well out of close quarters and actually used cover it might even be enough. Still, there was no denying that Shepard was taking a major risk bringing him alone. Hopefully she would not be foresworn on her promise to Okeer already.

"Colonel."

Looking over, Shepard noted the man trailing behind Miranda.

"This is-" the other woman began.

"Zaeed Massani," Shepard however had already matched the face with a name, and not just because of her connection to EDI. "Well I'll be damned, you're still alive."

Zaeed gave a grunt. "Nothing so far's been able to stop me. This mission of yours just might do it, but with how much money was on offer, hell, what've I got to lose at this point?"

"Your sterling good looks?"

Shepard actually managed to say that with a completely straight face, which caused both Miranda and Zaeed to just gape at her for several long seconds. Then the latter burst out laughing and did not stop for just as long.

"Oh, that's a good one," Zaeed said after he finally managed to catch his breath. "If nothing else, this mission ought to be full of chuckles with you in charge."

"Glad you know how to take a joke," Shepard said lightly, and then her demeanor visibly shifted. "So you should know I'm not joking when I say this. Follow my lead, do things my way, and you might actually walk away from this with your payday. If you prove a liability though, you won't get another warning. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," Zaeed drawled. "So, what's our first impossible mission?"

"Going into one of the slum districts to extract a potential cure for this plague."

"That right?" Zaeed rubbed his chin. "Guess that explains the EVA suit you've stuffed your krogan in. That's gonna make him less useful in a fight, you know that right?"

"I'd also prefer he be around for the next fight after," Shepard responded. "Besides, don't I have you to pick up the slack?"

Zaeed grunted. "You'll get your money's worth, that much I promise you."

"I'll hold you too it," Shepard flashed a decidedly unsettling smile. "You ready to go now or do you still need to grab your gear?"

"I travel light," Zaeed said. "What I have on me is all I need."

"Good, then let's get to it. Wouldn't want the good doctor to die on us because we were tardy."

The ride down to the slum district was quick and quiet enough and no one tried ambushing them upon their arrival either. There was a large mob gathered at what looked to be a blast door leading into the district proper, big enough that even with the weapons the guards were hefting it was not a sure thing they couldn't get swarmed. With this being Omega, a good chunk of the crowd was also probably packing.

"You can't just keep us out here!" someone shouted. "This is our home! We're paid up too!"

"Look, lady," one of the turian guards said. "We're doing you a favor keeping you out of there. The whole place has gone to hell, what with the scavengers and the vorcha duking it out with the Suns. And if that don't get ya, there's also the plague."

"But that's why we need to get in there! Who knows what they're doing to our homes! And I'm human! I'm supposed to be immune!"

"Well I'm not, and if you think I'm gonna let you waltz back out afterward as a potential plague carrier, you got another thing coming. Our orders are to shoot to kill."

Before the arguments could escalate any further Shepard and her squad began pushing their way through. With how heavily armed they visibly were, the crowd parted ways quickly enough until they were before the blast door.

"Open up," the turian accompanying Shepard ordered. "Aria's orders, this lot get to go through."

"Whatever the boss lady says," the other turian said, getting out of the way posthaste.

"Hey-wait!" the woman from before cried out. "Why do they get to go in!?"

"Because unlike you lot, they look like they could actually storm a fortress and make it out as something other than a pile of corpses," the guard said snidely. "Now get out of the way!"

"Such charming personalities," Miranda said under her breath as they crossed the threshold.

"Can you really blame them, living where they do?" Shepard said.

"Seeing as they seem reckless enough to want back into a plague zone, probably," Miranda said dryly.

That elicited a chuckle from more than just Shepard, though the humor only lasted until they got a proper look at what awaited them. The still-burning fires certainly weren't a good sign. Even on a station as large as Omega, open flames consuming oxygen were bad news. Then there was the inconsistent lighting, with some sections still clearly visible while others were bathed in pitch darkness. Even those areas that were illuminated showed recent signs of conflict, from fractured walls to splatters of blood.

"So uh," Jacob began as they all took in the nominal sights, "did Aria say anything about letting us back out if this thing goes sideways?"

"No, and we should assume that if we don't get that plague cure, the doors will stay locked," Shepard responded.

"And yet we're still going in," Miranda quipped.

"Do you have a better alternative?" Shepard responded.

"No, but that doesn't make this any less of a bad idea," Miranda retorted.

"So long as it's not a stupid one, we'll manage," the colonel was not without some wit herself. "EDI, how's the connection?"

"The structures between yourself and the Normandy are not yet at a point of obstructing the signal," EDI responded. "I have also tapped additional communications relays to provide fallback routes for data packets."

"And still no word from the good doctor?"

"Negative. I have been attempting to ping Dr. Solus using the STG handshakes provided to us by Captain Kirrahe and Agent Vakarian with the C-SEC handshakes provided by Executor Pallin. Neither have responded."

"Keep trying," Shepard instructed. "If we can get in touch with either, it'd make our mission a lot easier. Alright, according to the map we were given, Mordin's clinic should be this way. Eyes peeled. Zaeed, you have point. Grunt, next. Miranda and Jacob, watch the flanks. I'll bring up the rear."

"Spoken like a true officer," Zaeed said.

"At least you know which direction the fire won't be coming from," Shepard retorted.

The merc chuckled and made no further remark as he took up the lead position. As they walked through the streets, the relative silence was broken intermittently by the sound of gunfire. And the smell in the air took on more than a merely smokey sent.

"Ugh," Miranda said as she gazed at a pile of ashen corpses. "Bodies."

"Must be trying to burn the dead to stop the spread," Jacob remarked.

"Or anyone they thought was already infected, dead or alive," Shepard added.

That elicited a grimace from near everyone.

"Can't smell a thing," Grunt said. "Wonder if Gardner's cooking smells better."

That statement demonstrated two facts. The first was Grunt's EVA-rated suit was working. The second, Gardner's cooking was good enough to be potentially rated as higher than burnt corpses. Which one was being insulted was still an open question.

"Hold up," Zaeed said, raising a fist. "Contacts ahead, looks like a couple of Blue Suns."

"I see them," Shepard said. "Zaeed, Grunt, Jacob, take up positions here, here, and here. Tag your targets, I want them dropped in one go if this goes south. Miranda, be prepared to throw up a barrier around me."

"After what we saw at Korlus, do you really think the Suns will be amiable to reason?" Miranda asked.

"No, hence why I want all of you to be positioned to put them down. But if we can get through this without having to shoot everyone in our way, we might just get to our objective faster. Get to it."

Without wasting any more time, the team carried out their respective orders. Once everyone was in position, Shepard stepped forward into view of the mercs, weapon out but not raised.

"Hey!"

The Suns immediately brought their guns up, but did not fire. That was the only thing that saved them from immediate ventilation of their guts.

"I'm here on Aria's orders," Shepard continued talking. "We're here to see Dr. Solus, to-"

"She's with that bastard salarian!" one of the Suns cried out. "Kill her!"

None of their shots reached Shepard, instead splattering over the blue bubble that enveloped her. The mercs were nowhere as lucky as a hail of fire scythed their positions. None of them had had the sense to take cover when Shepard first appeared, and lacking kinetic barriers of their own, their armor very quickly succumbed to the incoming fire. Shepard did not even have to pull the trigger herself.

"Huh," the colonel said after all the targets went down. "I guess Dr. Solus isn't particularly popular with the local authorities."

"That might explain why Aria lost contact with him," Miranda said, "if the Blue Suns are trying to pressure the doctor somehow."

"Well, I guess we do this the direct way," Shepard said. "Any Blue Suns we meet, put them down."

"Now we're talking," Grunt said, the grin evident even behind his helmet.

"EDI," Shepard said, ignoring the overenthusiastic krogan, "did this squad here manage to squawk about our presence?"

"Negative, Colonel," the AI said, "our appearance took them enough by surprise that none appeared to call it in. There are however other patrols in the area, and if there is any sort of check-in timetable, it will not be long before their absence is noted."

"Sounds about right," Shepard said. "Let's hustle then."

The squad did not break out into a run, that would have simply drained their stamina and likely seen them blunder into some patrol or another. They did pass what looked to be a scavenger or three, but those had the good sense to hide away when they noticed such a heavily armed group approaching.

"Can't believe people are risking their lives scrounging around like this," Jacob said.

Zaeed actually gave a dismissive snort to that. "What, this your first time outside the core worlds, kid?"

"I've been around the block a few times," Jacob insisted. "Doesn't mean this looks any better the tenth time than it did the first."

"Then you've not been near deep enough in the shit," Zaeed retorted. "None of the scavengers are shooting at us, which means they're opportunistic, not desperate. Be thankful you don't have to watch your backs against starving refugees who're trying to knife you just so they can get their sons or daughters a sip from your canteens or a bite from your emergency ration bars."

Jacob fell silent to that, not that Shepard blamed him. For all that the marine likely had been in some very nasty Charlie Foxtrots, the Empire did by and large engage in mostly clean fights. Even when dealing with pirates, the rules of engagement were clear enough that those getting put down deserved it. And whatever errands Cerberus had had Jacob running since his discharge apparently had not taken him to nearly as destitute a place as some of Zaeed's old jobs, perhaps because those places tended not to have anything of value as far as Cerberus might be concerned. Wannabe warlords and crime lords that might have obtained Zaeed's services in the past though? They preyed on such weaknesses because of their own innate feebleness.

Gunshots mercifully, as odd as that sounded, broke up the awkward silence, though they were still too far away to make out exactly what the cause was, at least by sight.

"Emissions makes out at least a fireteam of mercs," Shepard said. "Not quite sure who they're shooting at, though might be scavengers."

"Suns are probably still trying to keep some semblance of order," Zaeed said as they inched closer. "They get paid protection money for the district, and if they don't at least try to make good on that, they could lose control to a rival gang."

"Do we bypass, Colonel?" Miranda asked. "This isn't our fight."

They were now in visual range of the firefight and could plainly see the slaughter that was happening. Several people were being dragged out of their homes, a motely collection of humans, salarians, even a batarian. The civilians tried protesting, but one received a rifle butt to the face, sending him crashing down onto the floor. Blood started pooling around him. That saw the salarian panic as he made a sudden dash to escape. He got three steps before another merc drilled a burst into his back.

"It is now," Shepard said, switching over to her sniper rifle. "Zaeed, Jacob, flank right. Grunt, take that vantage point there and prepare to hose down the enemy. Do not hit the civilians. Miranda, support Grunt and make sure no return fire compromises him. EDI, prepare to jam their comms. We go on my mark."

The squad efficiently took up their positions. Once satisfied everyone was ready, Shepard gently squeezed the trigger, and the head of the apparent Blue Suns leader popped like a watermelon. The others would have jerked back in shock save for the sudden sharp shrill that blasted them over their radios. Two never managed to steady themselves before Grunt perforated them with the machinegun. Another pair suddenly found themselves off their feet, dangling helplessly as Zaeed methodically riddled one with bullets and Shepard blew a hole in the chest of the other. It was over in a matter of seconds, a textbook ambush pulled off so cleanly one might fear a deficit in karma might be called to account in the future. In the preset however, there was still some cleanup to be done.

The civilians were too shocked by the brutality of the takedown to do anything but quiver in place. Remarkably, none managed to recover to make a break for it even as Shepard and her squad emerged from the shadows.

"Jacob, check the salarian," Shepard ordered. "Zaeed, grab any thermal clips that're still usable. Miranda, Grunt, keep watch."

She then knelt beside the wounded batarian. The man was bleeding profusely, but head wounds were like that for many species, so it was not necessarily fatal, at least with treatment. Shepard activated her omni-tool and injected some medi-gel and the all-rounder began its work of stitching the broken skin and reducing the swelling caused by the hit. The batarian's breathing grew less labored, his four eyes became more focused as he looked up at Shepard.

"You, saved me," he said hesitantly, even unbelievingly.

"You looked like you could use saving," Shepard said. "You alright for now?"

The batarian grunted. "For now, though the plague will get me sooner or later." He glanced over at the two human civilians. "Unlike others."

"Well, we'll see about that," Shepard said as she stood back.

The colonel glanced over at Jacob, who shook his head. The salarian at least was dead before they could have done anything. Shepard then looked back at the trio of survivors.

"I have some questions," the colonel said. "Seeing as I appear to have saved your lives, I'd appreciate some answers."

"O-of course," the man said, clutching who was presumably his wife. "Please, just don't hurt us."

Shepard did not dignify that with a response, instead getting down to business.

"What were the Blue Suns doing?"

"They've been going house to house, clearing them out," the woman answered. "Said it's to make sure there aren't any scavengers around. But these are our houses! And we're the ones that paid for their protection!"

"Some protection that turned out to be," the human man said bitterly.

While that did answer the question, it did not provide much in the way of actually useful information, so Shepard did not linger on the topic.

"I'm here to link up with Dr. Mordin Solus. Do you know of him?"

This time it was the batarian that grunted. "Dr. Solus, yes. A good man. Treats everyone fairly." Then chuckled. "Unless you try to steal from him. Saw him throw out a human that tried to take extra pain meds. Man deserved it, the thieving rat." A noticeably nervous glance flickered in Shepard's direction. "No offense."

"None taken," Shepard shrugged. "Do you know if he's still alive?"

The three shook their heads.

"The last we heard anything about anything was three days ago," the woman said. "That's when comms went down throughout the entire district. It was shortly after that that the Suns started really aggressively sweeping the district. Turning people out, even shooting at those that ran away."

Now that was interesting, Shepard mused. Three days was also the last time Aria had had word from Mordin. The loss of communications was certainly related, but what caused it? A thought occurred to Shepard as a certain word bubbled to the surface of her mind.

"Have there been any sightings of vorcha?"

The three looked at each other quizzically, before the human man spoke up.

"Now that you mention it, I do recall seeing some of them scurrying around. Which is odd, the Blue Suns used to run a really tight ship around here, and they really don't like vorcha. The Blood Pack uses them, you see, and the Suns don't, so they're always worried any vorcha around might be the Pack trying to turf in."

"Any krogan with the vorcha?" the colonel asked next.

"Well," eyes fell upon Grunt momentarily, "no, I don't think so."

"And did the vorcha show up before or after the plague broke out?"

The humans looked at each other but seemed uncertain how to answer. It was the batarian that did however, and with certitude.

"Before. The Suns ran a pack of them out of town a few days before the first infections became publicly known."

Well, wasn't that interesting. Plague rats indeed.

"Alright," Shepard said. "The three of you have a choice to make. You can go back and hide in your homes and hope that the Blue Suns don't find you when they come to investigate their missing patrol, or you can come with us to Dr. Solus' clinic. We'll try to protect you along the way the best we can, and so long as you follow our instructions, we should all make it safely there."

Miranda shot the colonel a quizzical look, clearly wanting to ask if such trouble was warranted, but possessed of enough tact to not do so openly in front of said civvies. Not that her look was not missed. Still, Shepard was not about to leave these people to fend for themselves without at least offering when it was within her means to do so. She was not quite that ruthless, yet.

The presumably husband and wife looked at each other again, hesitation and doubt clearly making them uncertain. The batarian however spent perhaps a single moment before rising, gingerly, but rising nonetheless.

"I'll come with you," he said.

Though Shepard's helmet precluded anyone else from seeing it, she still raised an eyebrow.

"You sure?"

"You saved my life once, no, twice now," the batarian said, "when you took out the Suns and then gave me medi-gel. I think I like my chances better with you."

That seemed to settle it for the humans as well as they rose and gave choppy nods. Shepard responded with one of her own.

"Same formation," the colonel said. "Zaeed, point with Grunt supporting. Miranda and Jacob take the flanks. Our guests will be in the center, and I'll bring up the rearguard."

There was a smoother precision in the way the squad took up their assigned positions, one that was not present when they first entered the slums. Only two firefights in and they were falling into a familiar tempo with one another. While Jacob and Miranda had been with Shepard through the trenches a few times already, Grunt and Zaeed were still relative unknowns, but becoming less so with each passing moment. That was good, but Shepard knew they could get even better. Now they just needed to make sure there would be two more joining their merry little band at the end of all this.

A low hiss of static rumbled over the radio, before clearing out just enough for a voice to be heard.

"Shepard, is that you?"

The colonel did not freeze exactly, but neither did she make any motion to set out. Instead her attention was fixed solely on the voice on the other end.

"Garrus?"

End of Chapter 12

A little New Year's present to my ME readers. Also I think someone can edit the tvtropes entry to note that Vengeance is seeing semi-regular updates again. At this point I believe I have five separate works recommended on that site, for four different franchises. Slowly getting there with my goal of having the most recommendations across different franchises.

Squad banter is actually much more difficult to write than it might appear at first glance. Part of it is keeping track of the rest of what's going on and conveying it through prose, so readers retain the impression that the characters are actually still moving while they talk.

Next chapter should I think wrap up the Omega mission, though cleanup may spill over into the subsequent chapter as well.

Looking back at some of the reviews that built up during my hiatus, noticed a question. No real comment on the House of Bernadotte, they may or may not still be around. I generally won't commit one way or another to what real-world counterparts still exist within the storyverse specifically to retain flexibility for future developments. Until such time as something is actually needed, I'll refrain from revealing anything in the author notes. Things that have been revealed in the narrative I'll provide clarifications if the need arises, though. Not really an answer, but this is the extent that I'm prepared to go.