Zack hadn't been out of the conference room for 20 minutes when Fuggla walked up to him. Zack had taken a seat in the mess hall to review some items on his omni-tool when Fuggla sat down across from him.

"Wolfe, I need you for a moment," Fuggla said.

"What for, Fuggla?" Zack asked.

"I think you know," Fuggla said.

"I'm not sure I do," Zack said. Zack really did not know where Fuggla was going this time.

"I think you have some things to show me in your cabin," Fuggla said.

"I thought that Asperiter was taking care of that," Zack said.

"Asperiter is a nice guy, but…" Fuggla trailed off.

"But what?" Zack asked.

"Eroshka is such a bitch! I can't stand her. She always insults me," Fuggla said.

"You claim Eroshka is a bitch, and Lucky is a bitch, and Sara Ryder is a bitch," Zack listed.

"They are bitches," Fuggla said.

"So, who isn't a bitch?" Zack asked. In Fuggla's defense, Eroshka was a massive bitch, but Zack wasn't trying to defend Fuggla at the moment.

"I'm not a bitch, I'm an awesome woman," Fuggla said.

"Right. Speaking of which…" Zack started, as Eroshka sat down alone two booths away.

Zack stood up, walked over to Eroshka's booth, and sat down across from her. Fuggla nearly jumped in her seat.

"Eroshka! How's it going?" Zack asked.

"Captain Wolfe! It is well. You run a good ship, for a vile alien," Eroskha said arrogantly.

"Uh thanks," Zack said. Eroshka had a way of making everything sound like backhanded compliment.

"What do you want?" Eroshka said.

Zack looked past Eroshka and saw Fuggla glaring at him.

"I need you to come to the Captain's cabin with me," Zack said formally.

Eroshka's eyes narrowed for a few seconds, and then relaxed.

"Yes, Captain Wolfe," Eroshka said. This was a surprise to Zack, but hey, why not?

The two of them stood up, and headed down the hall to Zack's cabin. Eroshka entered first, and Zack followed closing the door behind them.

"So, Captain Wolfe," Eroshka started.

"Eroshka," Zack replied.

"I knew you'd give in to me eventually," Eroshka said with a grin.

"I'm not sure I follow-" Zack started, and Eroshka put her finger over his mouth.

"Shhh… Captain Wolfe. You aliens are only good for one thing, and it's time to see what you're good for," Eroshka said, and started to strip.

About a half hour later, Zack was laying down in his bed. Eroshka was standing up nearby, putting her clothes back on.

"Well, that's passable," Zack said.

"Shut up, Captain Wolfe. We both know I'm better than Fuggla or any Sara Ryder or any other you've had," Eroshka said.

"Oh for fucks sake! I've never been with Sara Ryder," Zack said with a raised voice.

"Fuggla insists you have. She thinks you run around boning every orifice in the Heleus Cluster," Eroshka said.

"I'm honored but trust me, I don't want Sara Ryder," Zack replied.

Eroshka stopped for a moment, and turned and faced Zack. She put her hands on her hips. She was wearing her pants, but nothing else.

"Who do you want then, Captain Wolfe?" Eroshka asked.

"I'm not sure I understand the question," Zack answered.

"Everyone wants someone. Everyone. You're not tricking me with your 'stoic leader' routine. You want someone, and want them bad," Eroshka said.

Zack relaxed for moment and thought about it.

"I guess I've never thought about it like that," Zack said.

"You just want those asari bimbos, then?" Eroshka said.

"You know about that?" Zack asked.

"Everyone knows about that, Wolfe. Fuggla knows about it, and if Fuggla knows about it, everyone knows about it," Eroshka said.

Zack sighed quietly. Eroshka was absolutely right; Fuggla could not keep her mouth shut if her life depended on it. He decided to change the subject.

"You were a member of the Roekaar. Why did you join?" Zack asked.

"To drive the invaders from my home," Eroshka said.

"Do you think the Initiative are invaders?" Zack asked.

"They absolutely are," Eroshka said.

"Why is that?" Zack asked.

"You settle on planets that rightfully belong to the Angara," Eroshka said defiantly.

"Most of the planets settled by the Initiative did not have a significant Angaran presence prior to settlement," Zack said.

"And?" Eroshka replied angrily.

"Best I can figure, you really weren't using the planets anyway,"

"They were still ours. They were not yours to steal," Eroshka said angrily.

"The government on Aya has recognized all of the colonies. Aya seems to think the settlements are ours. We did not steal the settlements, we built them," Zack said.

"Aya does not represent true angara," Eroshka said.

"Then who does? The Roekaar?" Zack asked.

"That's right, and you pirate and kill us for it," Eroshka said.

"Well…" Zack said, and then hesitated. He'd killed his fair share of Roekaar, between the Guild and the Pathfinders.

"What's your excuse for stealing so much from us? Why do you want to steal from the true defenders of Heleus?" Eroshka asked.

Zack paused for a moment, and then grinned.

"Every so often, I capture one who's hot in the sack," Zack said.

Eroshka scoffed.

"You are a textbook pig, Captain Wolfe," Eroshka said.

"If I'm such a murderous pig, why did you bang me?" Zack asked.

"First I wanted to put Fuggla in her place for messing up what I have going with Asperiter," Eroshka said.

"Ah. Won't that piss off Asperiter?" Zack said.

"Asperiter is the most blindly horny creature I've ever met. As long as it involves screwing, he doesn't care what happens. Fuggla, however, needed to be put in her place," Eroshka said.

"Makes enough sense. Why else?" Zack asked.

"Second, I've been on your ship for months, and that's just good practice for Roekaar," Eroskha said.

"What do you mean by 'good practice'?" Zack said.

"The Roekaar have long used females to recruit," Eroshka said.

"I'm not sure what you mean by that," Zack said.

"It means the Roekaar find people, and throw women at them to get them to sign up for the Roekaar, Eroshka said.

"Okay, so you were trying to seduce me into joining the Roekaar?" Zack laughed.

"It's not that ridiculous," Eroshka said.

"It is that ridiculous. The Roekaar want to kill me," Zack said.

"Think of all the hot sex we could have. And I could find lots of other Roekaar girls who are almost as good as I am," Eroshka said flirtatiously. She winked at Zack.

"No. There is no way in hell that would ever work," Zack said.

"We set up Asperiter," Eroshka said.

"The dude was in a hole in the ground. That hardly qualifies as set up," Zack said. Only Asperiter could have enjoyed the bunker that they had found him in. That place was miserable.

Eroshka paused for moment, then crossed her arms.

"What about this TIUO fellow? You joined up with him," Eroshka said.

"TIUO paid, up front, and thus far has continued to do so," Zack said. This hurt to say, but it was true. TIUO was shady as all hell, but arguably his most reliable business partner.

"You made a deal with the devil to advance yourself," Eroshka said.

"I made a deal to get out of the slum and make something happen," Zack said.

"Point is, you already made one deal with the devil, so make another one," Eroshka said.

Eroshka actually had a point here. TIUO certainly qualified as a 'deal with the devil,' so to speak. But her proposal was still a terrible idea.

"I don't give a damn. I'm not working with the Roekaar," Zack said.

"Fine, go ahead and limit yourself like that. It's not like they'll ever let you back in the Nexus, anyway. They got rid of you. You can cover for Initiative all you want, but they made you an exile. The Nexus wants you dead as much as the Roekaar do," Eroshka said.

Again, Eroshka had a point, but Zack wasn't about to yield that. He decided to change the subject again.

"Any other reasons?" Zack said.

"The third reason was so that you would not kill me," Eroshka said.

"Why would I kill you?" Zack asked.

"You've killed many of my compatriots," Eroshka pointed out.

"That was different," Zack replied.

At this, Eroshka grew angry.

"How was it different?" she said, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Well, uh, well," Zack said. He really didn't have a good answer off the top of his head.

"Was it different because Asperiter wanted me alive? Because my brothers and sisters had stuff for you to loot and sell for profit to your damned colonies? That was different?" Eroshka said.

"Well, if you have to put it like that," Zack said.

"You are as much a monster as the Kett," Eroshka said.

"You haven't been in contact with the Roekaar for a while. You've lived on the Vagabond. Aren't we your crew now?" Zack asked.

"No, you aren't. You are an invader," Eroshka said.

"What about Asperiter? Isn't he an invader too?" Zack said.

"Asperiter is a valuable contact for our cause," Eroshka said.

"Didn't your cause have you in prison?" Zack said.

"That was a mere miscalculation," Eroshka said.

Zack shrugged off the statement, and tried to change the tone again.

"You know, you're a smart and beautiful woman. Why would someone like you join the Roekaar?" Zack asked.

"Because I am a strong woman, and I will not serve as the doormat for alien imperialists," Eroshka said.

"For such a strong woman, you've no issue serving as a courtesan for alien imperialists," Zack said sarcastically.

Eroshka scoffed in disgust for a moment, and then grinned.

"You're so naïve, Captain Wolfe. Maybe one day you'll understand. In the meantime, another go?" Eroshka asked with a wink.

Zack stood up in his cabin. Eroshka had long since left, and Fuggla was carpet bombing his message feed. Regardless of either of those two, it was time to go to work. TIUO's contract to the Second Nexus rebellion was still open. Lucre station had found no trace of Tann building any ships, so getting there would be easy. He called Sleeze over the intercom and had him chart a course the Nexus. Zack then striped down and jumped into his shower.

He stood there thinking. Something about warm water running down your body offered a strange opportunity to think. So, Eroshka was a diehard Roekaar after all. Disappointing, but unsurprising. At least she was good in the sack. How many others had she recruited to the Roekaar like that? She knew what buttons to push. She must have some experience. Still, she was sold out Roekaar, and that was a huge problem. Maybe Fuggla wasn't so bad after all. Zack then thought about his mission. If he went to the Nexus area controlled by the Second Nexus Rebellion, the Initiative would know that he was in contact with them, regardless of the nature of said contact. Tann would capitalize on this. TIUO was out of contact, probably waiting for him to pick up that recruit. Talking to them would be risky, and he'd be on his own. Again. Some things never change. He decided to go for it anyway.

It would only take a few days to get to the Nexus. Zack decided to hold a meeting in the conference room. He called in Fuggla, Asperiter, and Killal.

"Okay, so we are going back on board the Nexus," Zack said.

"Do you enjoy the idea of rotting in a cell?" Killal asked.

"We are going to the area controlled by the Second Nexus Rebellion," Zack followed up.

"This one thinks that is not an advisable idea," Asperiter said.

"I'm bringing Killal and Fuggla. You'll stay on board the Vagabond, Asperiter,"

"This one accepts this plan," Asperiter said.

"I don't want to work with you," Fuggla said.

Everyone stared at her for a moment.

"Is there a problem, Fuggla?" Zack asked.

"You know what the problem is, Wolfe," Fuggla said, crossing her arms.

"No, I don't know what the problem is, which is why I'm asking what the problem is," Zack said.

Fuggla said nothing. Zack shrugged, and continued with the planning.

"Do we know anything about the Second Nexus Rebellion?" Killal asked.

"They hate Tann," Zack said.

"This one thinks that is a good start," Asperiter said.

"Fuck yeah it is! Do we know anything else about them?" Killal said.

"Not really, no. Tann had them blockaded when he had a navy. They've had some shuttles going back and forth, but they aren't on good terms with the colonies," Zack said.

"This one is glad that is not going Nexus-side," Asperiter said.

"Yes, you've established that. So we are going to go in, quietly, and see if we can talk our way through," Zack said.

"Uh, ok. Why are we going there?" Killal asked.

"We are picking up another crew," Zack said.

In about an hour, the planning was done. Killal and Asperiter left the conference room, leaving only Zack and Fuggla.

"Alright, Fuggla, if you've got something to say, now's the time," Zack said. He prepared himself.

Fuggla took a deep breath, as if to yell, and then said nothing for a moment.

"I don't like Eroshka," Fuggla said.

"I don't like her either," Zack replied.

"So we have an understanding?" Fuggla asked.

"I'm not sure what you're talking about," Zack asked.

"We understand that all of our fights are all your fault," Fuggla said.

"I'm not sure that's entirely-" Zack started, until Fuggla cut him off.

"I'm glad you figured it out! That's so good!" Fuggla said, smiling.

"So, will you come to the mission with us?" Zack said.

"Will you screw Sara Ryder again on the Nexus?" Fuggla answered.

"Damn it, I got nothing to do with Sara Ryder," Zack answered.

"Eh, that's good enough," Fuggla answered.

"I'm going to go get dinner, " Zack said.

"I'm coming with you," Fuggla answered.

Zack opened his mouth, and then stopped. This was not a hill to die on. Time to have dinner with Fuggla.

The two of them took the short walk from the conference room to the mess hall. Fuggla sat across from him. When Eroshka walked by the two of them, Fuggla grabbed Zack's forearm. Eroshka turned and grinned, and then walked on. This situation was profoundly strange and uncomfortable. Eventually Zack was able to talk his way out of the mess hall, and return to his cabin alone.

Soon it was time to board the Humane Trap and go to the Second Nexus Rebellion. Zack began to gear up. He started to look at his armor. It was beginning to show a bit of wear and tear. All this running around was starting to wear out his gear. Lucre station was built to refit and upgrade ships, but did not have the facilities for armor. Still, with any luck, this would not be a shooting mission. It would just be saying hello to yet another group of dysfunctional people in Heleus. Zack chuckled a bit to himself. The Milky Way didn't really send their best, did they?

The Humane Trap departed from the Vagabond, with Zack, Fuggla, and Killal on board. The Nexus looked so different from this angle. The Arks were still in the process of being scrapped, the docks were still busy, but something was so different about it. Docking to some maintenance port was a very different experience.

The radio was blaring messages of all sorts. The Nexus hailed them, then told them to go away, then told them to get away from the maintenance port, and so on and so forth. Regardless of the radio spam, one thing was clear: the Nexus administration – that being Tann- did not want them to be here. Then again, Tann technically didn't want them to exist, so not much of a change on that front. Soon the Humane Trap passed through the maintenance port, and gently landed on a poorly marked landing pad.

The area was… a dump. There was trash everywhere, the floors were dirty, and there were random people seemingly hanging around with nothing to do. Zack looked around. His crew was well armed. Their presence could easily be misinterpreted if whoever was outside was feeling tripper happy. He stood up, took a deep breath, and looked towards the hatch door. After a brief check up with the crew, he opened up the hatch.

An asari greeted them. She looked happy and cheerful, but a bit malnourished. Her clothes were ripped and dirty, with poorly done repairs and patches.

"Welcome to the New Initiative," she said. Zack nodded. He had heard Second Nexus Rebellion many times, but New Initiative? That was different.

"I am Captain Wolfe, and I am a representative of the Privateer's Guild. I am here to negotiate any potential business between the New Initiative and the Guild," Zack said. Technically, Zack was Guildmaster, but this bunch did not need to know that.

"What do you have the New Initiative would want?" the asari asked.

"What do you need?" Zack replied.

"We want your ship," the asari replied. Not this shit again, Zack thought.

"I can look into providing you with shuttles, but my ship is not for sale," Zack said.

"We want your crew then. We need them to man the barricades," the asari said.

"You are not taking my crew, but I will have a look at these barricades," Zack said.

"This way," the asari replied.

A short walk later, there were barricades, stuffed with all sorts of objects. There were dried bloodstains everywhere - someone had tried hard to breach this area. At this moment, the area looked like an uncomfortable standstill. There were some footsteps in the distance, but nothing looking like an attack. The Second Nexus Rebellion was able to hold their sector due to a single access point: this corridor was the only way into this area besides the maintenance port. Tann had been unable to force them back into the fold because of this barricade. Zack looked downrange. There were some figures in the distance. Was that… the Ryders? Zack turned away, and walked quickly behind the secondary barricade. Can't give the Ryders any ideas.

A short walk led to a bazaar of shorts; various merchants selling all sorts of merchandise. Most of it was clearly secondhand, but Zack saw opportunity here. Most of this area looked poor, but this would be a good place to push goods he couldn't push on the colonies. This day was starting to look better. He turned to his guide.

"So who's in charge of this place?" Zack asked.

"You'll see," the asari said.

"Are we heading to them now?"

"Yes, we are," the asari said.

"Is there anything I should know about them?" Zack asked.

"Nothing that you can't figure out for yourself," the asari said.

They kept walking forward, and eventually, around a corner, the floor grew clean, and the lighting improved. Zack looked forward and saw a throne.