Two days later
Citadel Wards
Silversun Strip
"Wow." Is all Traynor can say upon seeing the Strip for the first time. Neon lights are everywhere, advertising everything from food, to guns, to SkyCar parts, and everything in between. Upbeat electro music vibrates out of one of the outlets, likely the arcade. The denizens of the Citadel go about their routines down below.
"This place looks like Tokyo." Samantha further comments as she and Abby observe from a walkway above the Strip. "I think you and I are in the wrong line of work."
Abby smiles, taking a sip of some colorful Asari drink that her friend had recommended. She had no idea what was in it, but it had a mixture of shades of green, tasted slightly fruity, and the Assassin could swear the drink was glowing. Glancing around, Abby catches a glimpse of an Asari and Human couple giving her a sideways look, likely because of her clothing choice. The two quickly avert their gaze and continue on their way to the casino, while Abby looks down at herself.
"What is everyone looking at? Never heard of Marvel comics?" The Assassin nearly says aloud, looking at the logo in question, stenciled in large white letters on her shirt. She sheepishly glances at Sam's outfit, which upon first seeing it, Abby had asked if they were going on a date. A light blue dress stopping above the ankles, with matching flats in place of the usual NWU uniform. Privately, Abby was blown away at how beautiful Traynor looked.
"I am in the wrong time period."
A SkyCar flying overhead brings the Assassin back to reality. She watches it slow to a hover, before landing at the sushi restaurant at the end of the Strip behind them.
"Maybe so." Abby replies to her companion's earlier point. "But I honestly can't picture myself living like this. I mean, what do these people do all day?"
"Well….they...er…" Samantha thinks quickly, trying to come up with a rebuttal. "They...work. I guess. In shops and...offices and...you're right. I couldn't live here, either."
The two women's shared laughter is interrupted by the sound of gunfire coming from somewhere nearby. The people down below and around them stop their conversations and try to see where the sound is coming from. Several neon lights suddenly spark and flare around the sushi place in the direction of the gunfire, and Abby watches as the glass floor of the restaurant shatters and a lone figure falls down to the street far below.
"What the hell was that?!" Samantha exclaims after a moment.
Before she can reply, the Assassin's Omni-Tool lights up with an incoming call, and the caller is none other than Joker, the Normandy's pilot.
"Abby! Samantha! Are you guys near the Strip?" He asks hurriedly.
"Yeah, we're on it." Abby answers. "We just saw one helluva light show."
"And you'll never guess who was involved."
"Shepard." Samantha grumbles. "Of course."
"Yeah. There's some merc guys gunning for her. Is there anything you two can do? She's gonna need help."
"I'm on it." Abby says instinctively.
"Cool. I'll get EDI to triangulate her. Traynor, you should head to Shepard's apartment."
"She has an apartment?" Sam asks with confusion.
"Yes. I'll explain later. Just go! I've got Brooks with me...some staff lady. She's trying to find what's going on. We're going to pick up Shepard."
Joker abruptly hangs up as the gun battle below continues. Sam and Abby look at each other for a moment.
"Alright I'll… see you at the apartment then." The Specialist says.
"Sorry our date got cut short." Abby replies, quickly finishing her drink and donning her hood.
"This wasn't a date!"
"It sure felt like one!" The Assassin hops onto the railing, quickly scanning for a safe place to jump to. "Back in a flash, babe!"
Before Traynor can respond, Abby lets herself fall, much to the shock of the nearby onlookers.
It's a short fall to a long wall of slanted windows. Sliding down, Abby uses an open window as a springboard to jump across a chasm to a walkway. Nearly landing on a pair of Turians out on a stroll, whom she shouts an apology to, the Assassin runs along, pushing through the small crowd of pedestrians while repeatedly looking over the side trying to find Shepard.
"Hey boss! It's Abby!" She says into her short range comm. "Joker told Traynor and I the situation. You okay?" With finesse, she slides down a decline in the railing, hopping off at the end and landing on a parked SkyCar several levels below.
"I'm fine." Some gunfire rings out in the background. "Might need some backup, though."
"Cool. I think I'm almost to you." The gunfire gets louder. Abby is close.
"Excuse me, who is this?!" A voice exclaims. "You are on a secure channel and are putting Commander Shepard in danger!"
"What?" Abby asks in confusion. "And who are you? Her secretary?"
"Hold on, Abby." Shepard herself speaks up. "Joker mentioned Staff Analyst Brooks, yes? That's her. Everybody play nice."
Shaking her head, the Assassin continues. She looks over the edge to see none other than the Commander, trapped in a small marketplace just below, trying to fire at several advancing men.
Abby pounces, landing on a market stall's canvas roof, much to the soldiers' surprise. The Assassin unsheathes her blades, hidden in the sleeves of her hoodie, and gets to work.
She knocks away the rifle of the first soldier, stabbing him in the chest, before throwing him away with a kick to the stomach. With a lightning-fast spin, she roundhouse kicks the man behind her, making him stumble into the soldier behind him. Quickly closing in, she finishes the first enemy off as he stands, stabbing him in the neck and forcing him to the ground. The last merc tries to use her rifle as a club, with a move that is easily countered by the skilled Assassin. She grabs hold of the rifle, pulling it and it's owner forward and kneeing the soldier in the face. The woman is dazed by the hit, and is unable to block the swift slices to her leg, chest, and throat, all before Abby pulls back to deliver a hefty punch to the face, laying the soldier out.
After a moment of silence, the besieged Commander rises from her spot behind a vegetable stand.
The Assassin is momentarily confused by Shepard's outfit; an N7 hoodie, black cargo pants, and boots. Normally she either wears armor or NWU's, and a dress uniform on rare occasions.
"Abby. Fancy seeing you here."
"Eh. I was in the neighborhood. Figured I'd drop in."
The Commander nods after a moment. "Joker said someone would be coming. Liara also said that she was further ahead. This way."
Checking their corners, the two women leave the small marketplace. Abby can't help but hear a squishing sound as they walk, and stops for a brief second. The sound continues as Shepard passes her. The Assassin also notes the Commander's wet hair and damp-looking, scuffed clothing. Confused, she decides not to question it. There's no time to, anyway, as another group of enemy soldiers push through a crowd of civilians towards the duo.
Shepard ducks, with her companion in tow, waiting for the civilians to disperse. She throws a biotic shockwave at the advancing soldiers, knocking a few off their feet. The wave blazes forward, hitting a parked SkyCar and flinging it into the air. It crashes down a moment later, detonating it's small Mass Effect core and triggering the car's alarm. The Commander awkwardly looks back at Abby, then shrugs.
"Whoops."
"Shepard?" Liara asks over the short range. "I heard that from here. What's happening?"
"It's all under control." Shepard replies, firing at the still standing soldiers. Abby hops over her cover and advances, throwing one of her blades at a man who was too close for comfort.
"Who are these guys, anyway?" She asks.
"They have guns and don't like me." The Commander says callously. "Your guess is as good as mine."
"Yeah, them and half the galaxy." Abby shoots back.
The fire from the still-burning car triggers a fire suppression system, the alarm of which is even louder than the car's.
"Is that an alarm?" Garrus' voice sounds next. "What's going on?"
"Thought I'd make things more interesting."
"Of course you did." The Turian grumbles.
"Commander." Brooks chimes in again. "It would really be great if you stayed off the comm."
"Vakarian called us." The Assassin says snarkily.
The pair blazes forward, eventually finding themselves in the parking lot of a SkyCar dealership. Jane turns the corner, weapon ready, only to have a soldier catapult past her from a biotic Throw. A second stumbles back, slumping into a wall, his body riddled with bullet holes. Ahead, Liara stands with her hands on her hips, eyeing Shepard and Abby top to bottom.
"Having a bad day, dear?" The Asari quips.
"You could say that." The two stow their weapons. "Joker is on his way to pick us up."
"The landing pad is over there." Liara gestures behind her further into the lot. "But it's behind a locked gate."
"Let's find someone with the keys then." Abby says simply, passing the Asari.
"I like your outfit." The comment makes the Assassin stop and turn, to see Shepard arching a brow at her companion.
"Uh...keys...gate...right." Liara says awkwardly. Jane smiles at her and the trio continue.
"I heard you fell through a fish tank." The Asari speaks again, stepping around a parked car.
"We'll talk about it later." Shepard grumbles.
The pieces from earlier finally click in Abby's head. "That was you?! Well...that explains a lot." She looks down at Shepard's worn and damp clothing again.
"We'll talk about it later." The Commander says with growing annoyance, something that only makes Liara giggle. The three women head into the Cision Motors lot, and after some brief words with the dealership owner, the locked doors are opened. A C-Sec shuttle arrives, only to reveal several armed mercenaries on board. Abby dives to cover, seeing Shepard and Liara do the same further away. Over the deafening gunfire, a window shatters somewhere, and a large-sounding man lets out a bellowing war cry. The assassin peaks up to see a hulking Krogan pummeling his way through the men in the now grounded shuttle. In a few brief moments, all the mercs have been beaten to a pulp, and the Krogan warrior steps out, satisfied with his work.
"Wrex?" The Commander asks in disbelief. "What are you doing here?" The three stand from their respective hiding spots.
"Butting heads with the Council over Krogan expansion." The Krogan replies, picking up a large gun and handing it to Shepard. "Heard all the shooting. Didn't want to miss the party."
The introduction is cut off by the sound of an explosion and several windows breaking. Dozens of mercenaries pour into the dealership from the buildings above.
"Shepard?" Wrex asks as a gunfight ensues. "Do we have a way out of this?"
"C'mon, Wrex. I'm a professional." The Commander says confidently.
The small Assassin looks at the giant Krogan beside her. "That's not a 'Yes'." She quips.
"It's not a 'No'."
Observing the others' 'stay in cover, return fire' method, Abby opts for her usual approach:
Hack and slash.
She swiftly climbs over the decorative plant holder she was behind, landing with a roll and finding herself surrounded. This catches several of the soldiers off guard, and the Assassin uses the surprise to easily take two down.
One merc aims his rifle at Abby, but she pushes it away and skewers him in the throat, holding him in place for a moment, then throwing him into his unsuspecting teammate. The roll knocks the second man off his feet, and the Assassin finishes him off as he lands.
"Approaching your position, Commander." Joker calls. "Just following the gunfire! Sorry we're late, had to take the scenic route."
"Scenic route?!" Brooks exclaims. "We nearly crashed four times! Where did you learn to drive?"
"And Brooks says 'Hi.'"
A/N Heh. The start should say three months later instead of two days.
Thank's to everyone who is sticking around for updates. I promise this story won't get abandoned. I haven't shelved a fic yet, and I don't plan on doing so any time soon. I appreciate all the favs and follows.
The request for writing help in the previous chapter still stands, and I'll add on another: Any and all feedback is welcome on all of my fics. As you all can tell, despite being a somewhat seasoned writer, there's always room for improvement, especially when it comes to this platform. Please let me know of things you all like or don't like, things I can improve on, or concerns about really anything. I try to reply within an hour or so, depending on the time. (Eastern US, or + 4:00 GMT)
As always, thanks for reading and see you next time!
