Chapter 12

"All right, I suppose I should give you a list of what you will actually be doing as my bodyguard, shouldn't I?" Aria mused, flopped into her couch while I stood before her. I had to resist sighing, of course she wouldn't be taking this seriously.

"Let's see, well as you may be aware, I don't really need a bodyguard for the normal reasons." My bruises stand testament to that, no shit you don't need a bodyguard. "Mostly, you're there so I don't have to bother. You keep people from trying to fight me, taking away obvious weapons for people speaking to me, and most importantly, stand there menacingly."

I tilted my head at that, confused by what she meant. How do you stand there menacingly?

"Like that! That's perfect." She pointed her finger at me. I'm … not doing anything different from normal. So that's considered intimidating? Good to know. People started treating me differently once I was in the armour but I thought that's because I was no longer just an unarmed human girl in their eyes. The armour must do more than I thought. Aria seemed pleased with what I was doing regardless, that made me smile, hidden as it was.

"That sums up what your normal days will be like, you stay near me and look intimidating to everyone else so I don't have to. Honestly," she waved her arm, snorting, "just because I'm an Asari I get looked at as weak. Stupid bloody maidens making me look bad. You would not believe how many people I had to kill before I was in charge. Even now, people unfamiliar with me do the same. It gets exhausting when make an example of every single one that does it, so it's easier just to have someone else do it for me. That was the original reason I got a bodyguard, that and to entertain me." She grinned at me there, a twinkle in her eyes. I'm … starting to have second thoughts about this.

"Now then, this is where your role differs from the other bodyguards I've had. You're the first bodyguard I've had that isn't purely ceremonial, and one I actually trust." Aria's mischievous air left her as she sobered up. "While it will be rare, I sometimes need things done. Things I don't necessarily want known about. With you being so close, it should be easy to get you to do them in my stead. I used to handle it myself, but it will be easier with some assistance. I know you can handle anything I could throw at you, so I'm trusting you won't let me down." I nodded at her focused gaze, accepting the unasked command. Anything she needs me to do, I can handle it. None of the operations I've done so far have been particularly challenging and this gives me the confidence in my future missions.

"Those missions will be rare but seeing as we will have more time together now I can start teaching you more than I have been, are you up for that?" she raised an eyebrow. I nodded sharply, pleased with the idea. I've had less time for training than I would prefer since I became an enforcer, more training time would be pleasing.

"That cover your duties, at least the broad strokes. Anything else you can pick up as you go. Do you understand all I've said?"

"Yes Aria."

"Good." She gave a toothy grin at me. I had a bad feeling about this. "That can wait for later, I have some questions for you!"

Uh oh.

"How would you respond to someone coming on to you?"

Coming on? What does that mean.

I stalked behind my prey, keeping myself hidden in the shadows, my footsteps silent. Even without prior knowledge, I could tell he was up to something. His breath was unnaturally elevated. He was constantly darting his head around, looking for other people in the silent alleyway. We were the only two here.

Soon enough, he stopped outside a rusted doorway and jammed the metal bar he had been carrying into the rusted door, levering it with a harsh screech. In short order, the door broke open, letting him into the storehouse. One of Aria's storehouses. This one just contained supplies, food rations, clothes, toiletries, that sort of thing.

This wasn't the first storehouse that had been broken into in recent times. The first one happened a month ago, the second a week later, this was the fourth occurrence. It was initially beneath my involvement, but the third storehouse broken into held medical supplies. It was then brought to Aria's attention, and hence mine. Our storehouses are hidden well, secure. They were broken into very rarely, and one occurrence could have been written off as happenstance. The second was unlikely, but feasible. It was when the medical supplies were stolen that red flags were raised. Our general supply stores aren't that well protected, as they weren't that valuable, but it's a different story for the medical ones. There was a serious breach in the security measures, one of the doors being left unlocked and the cameras offline.

It had inside job written all over it. Aria dismissed her concerns outwardly when the matter was brought to her attention, but she was inwardly incensed. As soon as we were alone she ordered me to investigate it, the subversion used so the culprit didn't get suspicious. It was likely that they were one of Aria's employees, and we didn't want to spook them. Her employees were normally wise enough to avoid angering her, knowing exactly what would happen if they were caught, but it seems someone got cocky. It would certainly explain how easy it was to find the man I'm currently following, recording the human for evidence.

All I had to do was check who was working at all those locations that were stolen from, seeing who had been at them all recently. This was easy due to the smart way Aria organised security. To our employees, it may look like they are randomly assigned amongst themselves who guarded what, but a few of the guards were trustworthy decoys who recorded who went where. Out popped three names that I followed discreetly and the man I was following now was the clearly suspicious one.

I walked towards the broken door and found the man ransacking the supplies and shoving them into a bag. He wasn't even looking around him, his mistake. I raised a glowing hand and shot the energy at him, freezing him in the act.

"You, have made a horrible mistake." My raspy voice cut through the silence, despite how soft it was. I rotated the man around with a little focus and found panicking eyes staring at me. Too late, let's go see Aria, shall we?

I threw the man at her feet, Aria only looking down at him from her seat on the couch. He coughed a few times, groaning as he got to his feet. Just before he finished standing, Aria's foot lashed out in a viscous kick to the face that knocked him back onto the ground. He crashed back into it as Aria just crossed her leg back over the other. The control that would take is … inspiring.

"You thought you could steal from me." Aria growled, her fury plainly displayed on her face. The man said nothing in his defence, his wheezing and choking filling the background noise. Aria stood up, raising her hand enshrouded in blue. The man lifted as well, now suspended before her in blue shackles.

"From me!" Aria punched him in the face, his head whipping to the side even as blood left his mouth, similarly covering his lips. I just stood there in the position I stopped at, watching the spectacle. I wasn't the only one, I could see a few pale faces nearby watching. That was intentional on Aria's part, this was meant to be a message.

"What is the one rule of Omega!" she punched him in the stomach, the blow strong and controlled. The man tried to respond, but the binds around him tightened when he did, Aria refusing to let him speak even as she continued to thrash him. All right, maybe this was to relieve her frustration as well. I listened to each groan of pain, every whimper, the sound of impacts. I listened to it, almost bored. Compared to the things I'd seen, the things I'd experienced? This was rather tame. One could almost call it boring, if not for the fact I was watching someone be beaten to death in front of me. It wasn't the first time on Omega, but it certainly wasn't common.

"You shouldn't have fucked with me." Aria told him, her breath coming slightly heavier from her exertion. She raised her hand higher, and the glow around it flared up brighter. She squeezed her fist tightly, and the man began to scream. I watched as the glowing bands around him began to constrict, the man's screams peppered with the cracks of breaking bones, then the wet tearing of flesh as the binding grew tighter and tighter. In one final burst, the man crumpled before my eyes in accordance with Aria's will. What remained was a floating mass of broken flesh with blood orbiting around it.

"Can't have that in here." Aria muttered, her nose wrinkling as she floated the ball over the balcony before letting it drop onto the ground floor with a splat. I don't think the patrons liked it, considering the shrieking, screaming, and retching I could faintly hear beneath the ever-present music.

The show over, Aria reclined back into her seat with a sigh, a satisfied smile on her face.

"Brutal." I commented strolling over to her side, taking a seat next to her, seeing as we were alone. Aria had badgered me enough about doing so. She still wasn't taking my helmet though.

"It had been too long since my last show, if the man's decision to steal from me was any indication. Besides, it's been too long since I've killed someone."

Huh, I didn't expect that last bit. Wasn't sure how to feel about it either.

We sat there for a minute in silence, and while I was happy to continue doing so, she wasn't.

"All right." Aria clapped her hands together, sitting up from her reclined position. "Where were we with your lessons. Ah, I remember." She turned to me a cheery grin on her face. Well, shit. I'd hoped she would leave me be after that. It's why I took the rathe easy mission in the first place.

"A cute guy walks up to you and grins, confident in himself. He asks if you want to go somewhere quiet. What is your response."

"… No?"

"Wrong. He's cute, so your response depends on how cute. If he's kind of meh, punch him. If not and you have the time…?"

I really regret all the extra time we have to talk now.

I'm bored and on one of my pre-scheduled 'breaks' from Aria. I don't know why she makes me take them, and why she makes me go down into the club to do so. And in casual clothes. I have no idea how she managed to convince me, it's kind of hazy. I think she wore me down while I was exhausted from our combat training, stripping me of my armour when I didn't say no.

I felt naked without it, unable to relax with my face bare to the world. People had forgotten what I looked like out of the armour by now and sitting alone at one of the table encouraged far more conversation that I would like. Glaring is a poor substitute for my weapons on Omega, and the amount of guys I've had come up to me while on my 'breaks' is infuriating. I stewed in my hatred for them even now, but I was starting to think about straight up killing one which Aria seemed really against so I had to find another option. I wasn't allowed to use my biotics either, apparently I weas meant to keep a 'low profile'.

Looking around me, I found my eyes on one of the club's dancers, her movements graceful and captivating even after all this time. Something about the movements spoke to me, the dancing was different from the other patrons in the club and I couldn't tell why it was different, but I kept trying. I sat there, entranced until I felt someone tapping on my shoulder. Holding down my growl, I turned around to find who interrupted my break. Instead of finding another swaggering jackass, it was another dancer. This one with purple skin. Oh?

"You look mighty interested there, I don't suppose you would be interested in a private dance?" she smirked at me, a strange look in her eyes even as she continued to hold her hand on my arm. I … don't know how to respond. My face remained blank, giving away nothing, but internally I panicked. I opened my mouth to refuse, but something stopped me. I had been squinting my eyes to watch the other dancer better, trying to get a better look. This is my chance, isn't it? Blinking out of my thought, I shrugged.

"Why not." I could easily pay for it after all. I didn't really have anything to spend my wage on and the personal bodyguard of Aria is paid rather well. The girl grinned at me, leading me by the arm over to one of the private areas. It wasn't closed off or anything, but one of my duties when I was a bouncer was to prevent people taking advantage of others paying for the private dance.

In short order, I was sat in front of the Asari, barely a metre away from her writhing form. I could see each movement in detail, watch her muscles push and pull, her limbs stroke up and down her body even as she watched me intensely, her eyes rarely leaving me even as she performed a complex set of motions. It was … beautiful, is the best word I can describe it. Before I knew it, it was over and the time for my break had ended. The woman leaned down close to me, bowing when she finished.

"I hope you enjoyed. I'm always available for more if you ever want to 'see' me again." She smiled coquettishly, trailing her fingers down my arm as she moved away, having stepped close enough to me for me to feel her breath on my skin. I blinked a few times, watching her leave. I hadn't even noticed her step so close, unlike normal. I jumped up from my seat, rushing back towards the hidden change room my armour was located in. I ignored the warmth on my cheeks, the dryness in my throat, how I felt like I'd just sprinted across the room.

It was only later that I realised that no-one had bothered me while I was with the dancer, and that I had enjoyed my break for the first time since I started having them. I wouldn't mind doing that again.

"Been visiting the dancers, hmm?" Aria's voice broke me out of my daze. I snapped my head to her, shocked. I found her grinning widely at me, focused intensely.

"What?" I was confused by her comment, not knowing how to answer her question.

"You've been having a few private dances performed for you, finding them interesting are you?" Aria repeated, leaning forward with a shit-eating grin on her face. Thankfully I was wearing my helmet at the moment, I didn't have to hide my expressions. It would be difficult right now, I can tell you that.

"What's that got to do with anything? Everyone else leaves me alone and it's nice to not have to talk." I defended myself, feeling warm.

"Mhm-hm, sure." Aria's eyes blinked lazily.

"Well don't let me stop you from 'sampling' them then, I've certainly done so." Aria chuckled, an odd smile on her face.

What does she mean by sample?

[POV: Aria]

Fury seems to be growing up, let's say.

I've certainly never seen her take an interest with anyone other than me before, but I can now find her watching a dancer during her breaks more times than not. I'm not sure she even realises why she enjoys watching them so much, she's still rather naive despite my best efforts, but it's going to be hilarious when she finally figures it out. I could spell it out for her, but where's the fun in that. The martial nature of the dances might have had something to do with it though.

She does have good taste, I have some good dancers here but it does bring something to mind. Fury has never shown interest in anyone else in the club, which is mostly comprised of aliens aside from Asari. Here on Omega, it's not terribly safe for my species so their presence is rare. If Fury leans towards females, then she should have at least some interest in other patrons by now, but the people I have monitoring her have never seen any such signs until now.

That is the interesting part, were her tastes influenced by hanging around me so much? It is possible. The thought is flattering really, but I hope Fury isn't projecting onto them, there could never be something between us. Even now, she is still so young, so innocent in some ways, and so honest. And I am me, the complete opposite. I wouldn't want that kind of relationship with her anyway, I like the one we have now, treasure it. It's been a long time since I had someone like her, and as time goes on we only seem to click more. I can always have someone to warm my bed, but this is far rarer. I had hoped for this kind of relationship with my daughter, but it never came about. I still love her, but she doesn't think like me, doesn't hold the same ideals. Fury does, she is so much like me despite her age. It makes me a little sad to think about what she had to go through to become like this, but what's done is done. The main difference between us? Her honesty. It's such a rare trait to find, her refusal to lie in any way. The only person she lies to is herself.

I've been trying to help her with that and the other issues that have cropped up because of her childhood, but it's slow going. I don't know if she is being purposely obtuse or is the most stubborn girl in the galaxy but changing her mind on something is almost impossible. At first, I tried to just talk her through it bluntly, but that didn't stick. I think she may have begun to ignore me then, it's hard to tell when she has her helmet on, so I tried a different approach. Subtlety isn't really my forte, but she's not exactly stiff competition in that regard. Conversations that tangentially relate to what I really want to tell her seem to work the best. If she can think through things on her own, she will realise what I truly want her to figure out. It works well when it works.

I've had more progress with some things than others. Regarding socialising, I've somewhat helped her. Fury at least knows the rules of social convention, even if she ignores them. The issue is getting through that barrier of hers, her unwillingness to trust others. I can't say it's the worst policy here on Omega, but it is frustrating. She at the very least trusted me, which is something, but she will eventually need to learn to trust others, at least a few. My lessons of a more romantic leaning have been going similarly slowly, if only for my own amusement. I didn't try to hard yet just because she had never shown any interest in the topic, till now. It's still fresh so I'm largely leaving it alone, but I'll start going into more detail soon. The 'detailed' conversations are going to be fun. I won't exclude any race though, more chance to see her squirm, and she may show interest in other races, you never know.

I'm going to use the assumption she's attracted to humanoid females for now, because there aren't many of those here on Omega aside from my dancers. There's plenty of female Turians and Salarians around, but they're not quite as humanoid as Asari are. Quarians, Batarians, Drell and obviously humans fit the bill though. There just isn't many of them on the station, aside from the odd humans here and there but Fury's past has a big effect there. She's been traumatised by her time under human captors, and it's honestly a surprise she doesn't hate the race, instead of just not trusting them.

The only thing I've made exactly no progress on is her obsession with her armour. Getting her to take it off was a chore and a half, the helmet even more so. I've tried asking about her reasoning delicately, but she closes off immediately when I do so and I don't know why. I have my suspicions, but nothing concrete. I managed to convince her to take it off during her breaks using logical reasoning, but that's really all I've managed. I'll have to wait until she isn't so closed off about the matter before moving forward.

That still leaves plenty of fun 'biology' lessons in the mean time though. Just because she's in armour doesn't mean I can't see her squirm. Her attempts to hide her discomfort are adorable, but paltry beneath my gaze. If only she didn't make it so fun!

"… and that summarises the actions of the blood pack over the last month." Vassen finished reading off his data pad, looking up from his report.

"Hmm, they're getting too brave now that Fury isn't massacring everyone left, right and centre. Maybe you should give them a small reminder?" she looked towards me. I nodded. It would certainly be easy to go deal with one of the small gatherings of members they regularly held amongst themselves. The blood pack was easily the worst offender in disturbing the peace, many of the Krogan just wanted to fight and the Vorcha were too brainless to do anything but follow. The other mercenary groups were a bit more subtle than that.

"Good. Anything else of interest to report?" Aria leaned her head back, her eyes closed. There normally wasn't anything that interested her, but I made sure I paid attention. I always did. Vassen turning towards me, where I was next to the couch, was evidence of that.

"Yes. We had a new Salarian doctor move onto the station a few weeks ago. Haven't got a name for you, but he seems important. He's got some impressive tech guarding him, military grade Mech's, likely from the STG."

"Are you sure?" Aria sat up, alert at the information.

"Yes. I've seen these Mech's before, they pack a punch. They certainly dealt with some of the Blue Sun grunts 'requesting' payment for keeping the peace. The blood will be difficult to remove from the walls." Vassen reported. Hah, serves the Blue Suns right, bunch of assholes.

"Fury." Aria ordered, her voice removed of its normal mirth. I turned to her, looking for my orders. "I want you to investigate him quietly. The STG hands out that sort of tech very rarely. He most likely is, or was, a member of the STG and I need to know what he's doing here. It's too dangerous to leave him alone. If he doesn't want to talk? Take him out." Aria's eyes were hard, uncompromising. I nodded my acceptance, returning to my position beside her. I would need to wait until Aria 'retired' before I left, so my absence wouldn't be noticed. She would probably do so in the next hour or so to give me my chance.

This could be dangerous, so I'll need to be careful. None of the people I've delt with on this station were on the level of Special forces aside from Aria, and I certainly wasn't winning those bouts. I'll need to take my time, this is the first truly important mission Aria's given me and I refuse to fail her.

[POV: Fury]

I kept to the shadows while I stalked towards the clinic's location. It wasn't that hard to find it in truth, Aria sent me a rough location and military mechs are a rare breed worthy of notice amongst this cesspit. All Aria had to do was request the information from her enforcers and within minutes I had it.

The station never really slept, so there were always people around that I had to avoid. I took some of the side streets I found during my time as an enforcer, the ones small enough that almost no-one used. I was still smaller than the average being, so I could squeeze in here easily enough. Anyone else I found? They were the dregs of Omega and that's saying something.

It was only near the end of my journey when I had to leave the solitude of my alleyways, but it was easy to find the clinic. The mechs were surrounding the clinic openly, their weapons pointed around them a clear threat.

How do I get in? The mechs are covering all the entrances. Is there somewhere I can sneak through? Looking over the building carefully I didn't find anything. No windows, no vents, can I access it through the roof? Worth a shot.

Moving further back into the alley, I concentrated for a moment, pushing biotic energy into my muscles. I then leapt directly up onto the building making one of the walls of the alleyway, my hands grasping the edge easily and pulling me up onto the roof in one smooth, practiced, silent motion.

I remained crouched as I shuffled over to the edge, peering down at the mechs guarding the building. I can't see any cameras from here, so I'm going to assume the mechs are acting as mobile cameras. That's both a good thing and an issue. These STG mechs are built for a purpose. Their priority is acting as a potent defence, but they are also made by the STG, a mainly surveillance-based organisation. The sensors on these are good, better than any biological being could be. They could only 'see' in front of them but they had motion sensors all over. There's only two ways to get past them. You can fool them if you move slowly enough or wait for the painfully finicky sensors to malfunction. Considering how new these mechs looked, I don't like my chances at the latter occurring.

I moved back from the edge before walking over to the building next to me, jumping easily across the small gap. There was one tactic I'd figured out that worked well for this sort of problem. It could only work when the guards were all mechanical and it required a great deal of biotic energy and endurance, more than many have. It's lucky that there's a widespread ban on AI research, enforced even here on Omega, as the limited programming of the sentry's is the only reason this works. Although the purpose of the ban was to prevent AI's, it also made people wary of making their machines too smart. They weren't willing to make adaptive software, the risk of an AI developing from that not insignificant albeit minor.

Having looked around the decaying building, I found a suitable piece of roof and swiped a glowing finger around the edges, lifting the resulting piece quietly. I placed it next to the roof's edge, before stepping onto it and closing my eyes.

I centred myself, breathing calmy as I reached for the energy within me. Letting is flow around me, I held my hand up in front of me and thrust it up at a glacial pace. My biotics enveloped the piece of roof, lifting it up and with it, me.

I kept the movement slow, moving up only took a few seconds but it was the horizontal travel that took so much time. I had to keep myself moving at a glacial pace to not set off the too sensitive sensors of the Mech's beneath me, the glowing beacon that I became beneath their notice. After the first minute, I began to feel sweat beading upon my forehead, after the second my breath was heavy and at the third my head began pounding in time with my heart. All in all, it took me 4 minutes to move my transport 20 metres to my destination, the roofing settling down softly.

I let myself rest for a few minutes after that, exhausted. I really don't like doing that, it's so much easier when I can just punch my way in but Aria wanted this to be a message as well. That his Mech's won't protect him from me, from Aria.

Having stalled long enough, I stood back up and looked around for my entry point. There should be something, a skylight, a vent, hell even a hole is possible. This clinic really isn't in a good part of Omega and he hasn't had long to fix it up.

I dropped down into a crouch, a hole my point of entry. The sound of my fall was muffled using a technique Aria showed me that cushioned my fall. This technique also isn't meant for quick movement, only able to muffle smaller impacts. Aria was able to jog with it, but that was all. I could only walk.

My reports indicated that the Doctor will be the only one here, he didn't bring anyone with him when he came to the station. Now where are you? This clinic isn't exactly large, so it shouldn't take long to find him.

I walked through one hallway, searching three rooms using the transparent windows to check if they were occupied, all empty. It was the sixth door where I found my target, hunched over his Omni-tool as he worked furiously away. He wasn't armed either. Time to send my message. I straightened up out of my crouch, bringing my shoulders back and keeping my back rigid as I tapped the command on my Omni-tool to open the door.

The Salarian flinched at the sound, whirling around to face me where I stood, my arms crossed.

"Intruder, name yourself." He snapped at me, his eyes darting around him looking for an escape he wouldn't find.

I said nothing in response, standing there. I waited for a long time, hoping to unnerve him.

"Who I am isn't important. Your identity is of far more interest to me."

"My identity unimportant. You are trespassing in my clinic and must leave. If you do not there will be consequences." Oh? Brave for someone unarmed.

I uncrossed my arms, letting my hand fall to brush against the holstered pistol on my hip. The Doctors eyes darted towards the motions and then widened, realising the danger he was in.

"On the other hand, I am not hiding from anyone here. I am Mordin Solus, a simple doctor. I am harmless." Mordin quickly altered his approach. There we go, that's better.

"And what is a simple doctor doing with Mech's defending his clinic?"

"A doctor is paid well on other worlds and Omega dangerous." He shrugged, his posture still loose as if he had nothing to hide. His composure is rather impressive considering he's unarmed and standing across from a fully armoured intruder that got past his Mechs.

"Normal mech's yes, but those are STG Mech's. You can't buy them. Now once again, who are you and what are you doing on Omega. I won't ask again." I growled, growing tired of his evasiveness. Mordin blinked at me a few times, his head tilting to the side clearly thinking things over. I remained in the same position, my posture tense as I made no sound. The silence was almost deafening, only interrupted by the soft humming of the machinery in what I assume is his lab. Finally, Mordin slumped, sighing.

"You aren't a thief, are you?" I said nothing. "Of course not. No, you work for the pirate queen. I must have gained her attention. It was my mech's wasn't it? Yes, that's why. Aria sent you to gain information on me, seeing me as a potential threat. Did I miss anything?"

That was … frighteningly easy for him to figure out, especially considering the situation. His question seemed rhetorical but I shook my head anyway.

"Who I am? A former STG scientist. My former work is classified and I won't be telling you. As for why I'm here. To help others, truly." I resisted the urge to snort. "I have done something for which I must atone. I decided that this would be a good location to do so. The people here are more in need of my help that other planets. I am no threat, all I am now is a simple doctor with some dangerous bodyguards."

In theory his explanation sounded sketchy, but something made me believe him, I'm not sure what. It'd hard to see, but there was guilt buried in his eyes, in the slight hunch of his back when he talked about his reasoning, the lowering of his head and how his calculating tone somewhat softened. All these things combined left me inclined to believe him, but it doesn't hurt to double check. I'll keep an eye on him, see if he truly is here to help people. If he was, I saw no issue in helping him. Seeing my lack of response Mordin turned around, returning to his work.

"If that is all, give Aria my regards." Mordin dismissed me. I chuckled at his audacity, amused, but I left all the same. There was no point in staying as I'd already given him my message. Just showing up unannounced behind him was enough of a threat and he figured out I worked for Aria all on his own.

I made sure to slip out through the same hole as before and take the same route back. It left me laying on my back after I touched down, barely capable of standing but walking out through the front door didn't have the same mystique as simply vanishing. I wouldn't be so tired from this mission if not for the training session I did with Aria earlier. She really pushed me today, training my singularity. It was one of my currently most energy intensive techniques.

God I hate stealth missions.

The door to my private change room opened, admitting me. It was late, the middle of the night and even the club was looking a little bare. It never shut, but there was certainly busier periods. I entered to find Aria slouching into my couch, the one I specifically put in here for me to be able to relax on if I was too tired to return to my room. That was exactly what I had been planning on, instead I found it occupied by a sleeping Asari.

Exhaustion tugged on my eyelids and my limbs felt leaden, my feet wanting nothing more than to drag behind me. Sighing, I started taking off my armour piece by piece, placing them on the mannequin in the corner of the room. Without it, I was left in simple underclothes, a singlet, and some thin pants. There wasn't really room for anything else. It's a pity Aria doesn't let me sleep in it, why would I care about ruining my furniture.

"Fury." Aria commented, evidently haven been woken from her nap. I turned to find her eyes open, but with no efforts made to move. "How'd it go?" She patted the cushion beside her and I sighed before acquiescing and dropping down into the seat, too tired to argue.

"The Salarian is one Dr. Mordin Solus, a former STG scientist. He says he's here to help people, wanting to atone from something. I don't know what." I closed my eyes, the difficulty I had in focusing them to great to keep them open.

"And you believe him?" Aria questioned, her voice soft, still husky from sleep. I hummed in response.

"I do. Something about the way he said it convinced me. We have a name though, we can investigate him. I don't currently believe him to be a threat. I'll keep my eye on him though."

"All right." Aria muttered, leaning into me. She was warmer than I expected, and far more comfortable to rest against than I remember. The couch is pretty good too. I'll just let my eyes rest for a minute before I leave for my room. It can't hurt …

I laid there, leaning into a warm body snuggled into my side, still experiencing the last vestiges of sleep. This is nice …, but where am I? And who's next to me. I felt around my companion gently, finding her to be a still dressed female. I was dressed too, that's odd. We're also not covered by anything else, no sheets or comforters, nothing. Come to think of it, are we on a couch?

Mustering up the effort, I opened my eyes blearily to find a dimly lit room. I looked over to my side and blinked a few times before it registered. That was Fury, currently sleeping next to me on her couch.

That's right, the mission she went on. She must have been more tired than I thought from the training session if she fell asleep next to me. She's never done that before. I looked her over as best I could from my position behind her lying down on the couch but found nothing wrong. She was sleeping soundly, her face more relaxed than it ever was while awake.

Considering she's still asleep, it can't be that late, certainly too early to wake up. I closed my eyes again and wrapped my arms around Fury properly. Shouldn't waste this opportunity, and I look forward to her response when she wakes up. She was small enough for it to be comfortable too, and her couch was more than big enough for the both of us. I drifted off again almost instantly, more easily than I normally do when I wake up in the middle of the night.