The 'ground strike team' consisting of Jane, Kaiden, Ashley, Therris, Wrex, and Tali were all seated in the communications center while Garrus briefed them.

"Therum has always been a bit of a hot spot," he brought up a hologram of a volcanic world. "Shut it!" He didn't even bother to look at Jane, who was poised to snark at the pun. "There are several Prothean ruins scattered over the surface, which means the Hanar have always wanted the system 'preserved', while the Battarians have had an on-again-off-again relation with the Citadel Council to exploit the world's mineral resources.

"The Knossos system itself is on the edge of Citadel space, so we've only sporadically enforced any embargos of the system. The Hanar have limited their 'enforcement' of Therum's isolation to Corvette and Frigate blocades, while the Battarians have been content to use guile and bribery to keep their mining concerns operational."

"Until now," Therris leaned back in her chair. "The Battarians have always been one tantrum away from breaking from the Citadel, and with the Hanar going rogue..."

Garrus nodded. "Exactly. The Citadel Alliance has no major fleet assets that can be freed up as of yet, so both the Primacy and the Hegemony are free to move their forces when and how they see fit." He shifted the hologram to show a list of Batarian ship names. "Last week, the Batarian Hegemony had one cruiser squadron within two relays of the Knossos system. As of yesterday, the STG reported that the Hegemony Dreadnought Pillar of Damnation and her escorts were observed to be making their way to the Artemis/Tau Relay."

"Hm," Wrex rumbled from his seat, "sounds like the Jellies found their Quad and decided to take the world themselves."

"Yes, but how?" Tali leaned in. "Even if the Hanar had mobilized forces before being banished, they'd need to have deployed through the Hades/Gamma Relay. The Turians are always patrolling that area due to Batarian antics."

Jane tapped her armrest. "Bets on if we check Fleet Com logs, we find a SPECTER order to the effect of, 'Nothing to see here'?"

Garrus' mandibles buzzed in frustration. "Sucker bet there, but not our problem. Our problem," he brought up the system map, "is getting in, deploying a ground team, finding and extracting Doctor T'Soni, and getting the hell out again.

"We may receive some support in the exfil stage." He looked at the three Spartans. "I was informed by Councilor Tevos before we left, that the UNSC-EF has been authorized a temporary, and limited, stay on the treaty barring Human Warships in Citadel Space." There was some nervous shuffling among the gathered Citadel races. "It's a long shot, but do any of you know a Captain Pressley?"

Ash and Kaiden shrugged, while Jane frowned slightly. "The name's familiar, but I can't place it. I assume they're commanding the detachment?"

Garrus clicked his mandibles. "Yes, from the," he glanced at his omni-tool, "Piper at the Gates of Dawn. You Humans sure insist on giving your ships a mouthful for a name."

He looked up as Ashley gave a low whistle and leaned forward. "Don't know Pressley, but I know about the Piper, she's got a reputation: compartment doors opening and shutting without input, random sensor artifacts, uncommanded weapons fire. She was slated for the Breakers when the Covies attacked. Got a new lease on life when a pair of Marathon Heavy Cruisers bit it over Jericho. Since then, She's been the bloody tip of the Spear poking the Covies in the soft bits."

Everyone, including her fellow Spartans, looked at Ash in mild alarm. "They're sending us a ship cursed by the Spirits?" Garrus buzzed.

Ashley rolled her eyes. "It's not cursed, just old. The Piper was one of the first run of Halcyon Cruisers, so she's closing on a century of service."

Tali relaxed slightly at the admission that the mighty UNSC used such legacy hardware. "Well, ships do tend to develop quirks over that much time."

"Exactly," Ash rocked back in her chair. "From what I've heard, almost all of the 'spookiness' went away after her last refit. The rest of it's probably just superstition about her name."

Garrus shook his head and clicked his mandibles to get everyone's attention. "Okay, we're getting off track. The Piper is a serviceable warship, which along with her Destroyer and Frigate escort will be available to support us as long as they can get to us in time. As I understand it, they've already launched to the Knossus system, and should arrive within two days. They'll remain on station in Slipspace until called in or waved off.

"So that just leaves infiltrating the system. We'll drop out of FTL at the edge of the Satellite Scanner's range, and plot our approach. There are several Prothean sites on the planet, so we may need to slip into orbit for closer scans."

"Nah," Wrex rumbled from his seat. "The Jellies may not be the experts at snatch-&-grabs that the Battarians are, but even they'll know to maintain Geosynchronous Orbit over their prize. Once we figure out where the largest concentration of Hanar ships is, we deploy to the closest Prothean site."

Therris warily eyed the ancient Krogan. "Spoken from experience, I take it?"

He huffed. "I've been a lot of things, girlie; most aren't very pleasant."

"That's a solid plan," Garrus stated, as much to forestall a potential argument. "Now for the actual Ground Team; I want to change our normal tactic up a little." He looked at Jane. "I understand your Spartan armor can survive reentry, or at least you claim it can, so I'd like to drop you and Kaiden ahead to scout around. I'd send Therris with you, but I'll need at least one Biotic with the MACO team. Spartan Williams, I'd like you in the MACO for additional heavy support."

"Drop me with them," Wrex waved at Jane and Kaiden. "I'm not a Battlemaster for nothing, and my back aches just looking at your puny APC."

Garrus nodded. "I'll have engineering fabricate three ME Descent harnesses. They're single use, so just ditch them once you're down. That leaves me, Therris, and Ashley in the MACO.

"Tali, This is going to be overland run-and-gun work in a very hostile environment, so I'm keeping you up here for now. See what you and your Geth can learn about the Hanar in action.

"We'll land as close as we can, and provide fire support and reinforcement once we link up. Understood? Alright, everyone check your gear, then get some rest."

...

As Wrex had predicted, the Hanar forces were clustered over one spot: a known Prothean site in a highly volcanic Hanar were fending off a Batarian offensive in orbit, and neither seemed to notice the stealth ship's approach.

"It looks like most of the ground activity is focused around this exploratory shaft," Jane indicated a structure protruding from a small escarpment.

"With concern, I can make one flyby and drop the teams off here and here" Jo'Kar indicated two spots on the map, "but you'll need to clear out these gun emplacements before I can safely extract you. Snidely, that, and the lava, but I'm sure you'll figure something out."

Garrus ignored the barb. "Drop the MACO here, and then the Heavy Team here. You three, neutralize the guns while we draw their attention. It'll take us a bit to navigate the Lava flows, so you should be able to keep pace with us and meet us here," he pointed to a tunnel just before a collapsed canyon entrance.

Everyone nodded, and headed to their sections.

As his team was loading onto the MACO, he saw Jane stepping out of the Fornax Dungeon Ring in an unfamiliar suit of armor. While not as cluttered with projecting bits as either Ash's or Kaiden's, the slab-like green armor was much more substantial than what he was used to seeing. He almost wished he could deploy with her, or trust Wrex with recording her at work.

I'll see plenty when we link up.

With Confidence, approaching drop zone; all teams stand by.

Everyone moved to their positions; the MACO slid into the center of the bay, facing the main ramp where the Heavy Team was standing.

Jane rolled her shoulders, almost reveling in the familiar feel of Mk VI armor, as opposed to the SPI she'd been forced to use the last several months. Her Brute-Hammer and Striker were locked on the magnetic clips on her back. She waved at Garrus, Ash and Therris as they boarded the MACO.

Better her than me...

The lights in the bay flashed red, and the loading ramp opened wide. She, Kaiden and Wrex all charged out the door and lept into free air. Their HUDs all showed their descent, and waited for the preprogrammed activation of the 'Arrestor Belt' each was wearing. They all quietly guided themselves towards a pair of gates that would block the MACO's approach, to say nothing of the large automated gun emplacements.

Their belts activated, and all three came to a gentle landing on the ridge overlooking the courtyard between the gates. There were no complete Homunculi, but there were several converted Drell, as well as what Jane assumed were converted Battarians. Two particularly bulbous creatures had each been fused with a crew-served gun.

Jane hand-signaled to Kaiden to eliminate one of the walking guns, then duck to cover. She turned to Wrex, and pantomimed charging down the hill after Kaiden fired. Once in the courtyard, and the focus was on them, Kaiden would shoot the second Walking Gun, then join them in mopping up the rest.

Everyone tensed as Kaiden took aim.

-CRACK-

Jane started swearing and unlimbered her hammer, as the first Walking Gun was still standing.

-CRACK-

Kaiden's second shot did fell the creature, but now everything in the courtyard was focused on their position.

Jane sprinted partway down the hill before hammer-launching herself into the air. She landed hammer first on the second gun, sending it into and through a nearby crate.

She turned to face one of the clusters of Converted, when a shockwave of blue launched a half dozen of them all over the place. At the center of the wave, was a laughing Wrex, merrily blasting every nearby Converted.

-CRACK-

Jane heard the death warble of the second gun, and switched to her Striker. Mopping up the courtyard was a matter of a few second's work.

All three paused to listen, as their various electronic sensors were still recalibrating after the violence of the attack. Wrex motioned to one of the corrugated steel buildings flanking one of the gates, while Kaiden pointed his Doru at another.

Jane motioned to clear Kaiden's first, as it was the closest to the path the MACO would take. They stacked up next to the door, and filed in as quietly as two fully armored Spartans and a Krogan could.

"GRRAAHH!"

-BAM-BAM-BAMBAMBAM-

-BLAM-BLAM-

-CRACK-

Jane paused to look at the ruined mass of dissolving flesh, and the hole in the wall behind it, then shrugged. "Oh well, ammo conservation isn't an issue."

They found a control for the two rolling doors that formed the first gate, and saw the two field gun emplacements guarding the approach.

Jane was thinking how to deal with them when Kaiden nodded. "Hold on a second, Bubo wants to try something."

There was a momentary pause, then the guns both turned on each other and began firing.

The team made their way to the second gate house.

"GRRAAHH!"

-BAM-BAM-BAMBAMBAM-

-BLAM-BLAM-

-CRACK-

The second gate was opened, revealing only one gun.

Wrex rumbled under his breath. "I'm pretty familiar with that make of cannon. If your Bubah friend-"

"Bubo."

"Can distract the gun long enough, I can shut it down no problem."

Jane could almost see Kaiden arguing with his digital partner before he nodded to Wrex.

The Battlemaster Charged across most of the distance to the gun, while it glitched in its turret. Once at its base, Wrex began wrecking a particular panel, and then the machinery under it. After thirty seconds of carnage, the gun lost power.

They all heard the deep boom from the MACO's gun in the distance.

"Whelp," Jane checked her Striker, "sounds like Garrus is playing our song. Let's hoof it to the next choke point."

...

Ash did her best to relax as the MACO jostled along. She had no idea what Garrus had been shooting at, but as they hadn't stopped or died, it wasn't particularly important.

They had just finished slaloming through a set of switchbacks, when Garrus swore under his breath. "Looks like the Heavy Team are stuck in at the entrance of a tunnel. I see one... no, two Homunculi, as well as something else."

He glanced at the two other squad members. "Get ready to dismount, if we need to." He turned back to his gunsight as Therris and Ashley grabbed their weapons.

He focused in on one of the Homunculi as it began separating, and fired the cannon. Whatever Titans Damned tech reinforced the twisted Hanar's barriers, it was not vehicle grade. The creature burst in a biotic shockwave. As the mob staggered, he laid into the second Homunculus with the Coaxial gun. He was about to send a second cannon shot, when he saw Jane leap up and smash the thing with her Gravity hammer.

The MACO was just rounding the last turn approaching the tunnel, when he saw all the Heavy Team bound up onto the ridge, and continue on.

The tunnel itself was dotted with various Converted, including a few unfamiliar armed shapes. Those still proved little match to the speed, power, shields, and sheer mass of the MACO as they rolled along. The exit to the tunnel had some wreckage, and one creature that resembled a walking turret.

-BLOMP-CRONCH-

"Damnit," Ash stirred again from her near nap. "Stop swerving to hit...whatever! You don't get extra points for running them over!"

The Asari driver with the black eye makeup glanced away from the road for a moment. "Not according to Jane." She turned her attention back to the road as they approached another lava-switchback. "Of course, she usually spends the entire time cussing the MACO out."

Ash jostled in her restraints as they took the turn at speed. "I wonder why."

They closed on another tunnel, with yet more signs of the Heavies having blitzed the light infantry, while drawing the Homunculi and Turrets' fire. Garrus dealt with those before the vehicle was on them, and they were in yet another tunnel.

Garrus gave his nav-map a glance. "Alright, Jo'Kar did an overflight, and there's been a rockfall at the entrance to the next ravine. We'll dismount there, and meet up with the Heavy Team." He fired out a burst of machine gun fire as they exited the tunnel. "It winds around a lot, so expect ambush tactics while we push to the excavation site."

Everyone gave a nod and a "Yessir", as they readied their gear.

The MACO came to a rocking stop, and the rear hatch dropped. Ashley was out first, her rifle sweeping back and forth, followed by Therris and Garrus. The ramp thumped shut just as the Heavy Team came bounding over the ridge.

The three jogged up to the MACO. Jane nodded to Garrus. "Saw some new Homunculi; one looks like a walking blister with a crew-served gun grafted to it, the other looks like a Batarian, with the Ugly switch dialed up to eleven. They aren't as fast as the Sleestacks or as tanky as the Flying Polyps, but they can take it and dish it out."

Garrus nodded, then looked over Jane's team. "You three have another bounce in you?" He gave a grim smile when Wrex and Kaiden nodded. "Good; get up on that ridge, and give us some overwatch. Keep it subtle if you can, and maybe we can draw some of the ambushers out into a crossfire." He cast Jane a glance.

She shrugged and stowed her Brute Hammer. "I bounce because of the hammer, and the hammer uses power. I want it for later fights."

He nodded again. "Alright. Jane, you're on point. Therris, stack on Jane, and I'll follow. Sergeant Williams, take up the rear: your BR has better range than the Striker, and I'd rather have your heavy armor covering our rear."

Jane could see Ash wanted to argue, but could see the soundness of the deployment. She nodded, and everyone took their places, and moved into or on top of the ravine.

As expected, there were multiple ambush points along the winding path; and as Garrus hoped, Wrex and Kaiden helped make very short work of the mix of Reaper-ified Butt-tarians and Walking Guns.

The two teams rejoined as the path wound up to the excavation entrance. There was an exploratory shaft, capped with a Universal Modular Airlock, which was surrounded with a prefabricated gantry for lifting heavy equipment. There were also several shapes scuttling around the girders.

The team was about to sweep the area, when the warble of a Hybrid came from the shaft entrance. The Hanar/Drell amalgamation was followed by several Sleestacks, Butt-tarians and Walking Guns, all of which had the telltale glow of Hybrid enhancement.

The Ground Team was driven to cover as the Homunculi deployed. After a minute of back and forth fire and Biotics, Garrus was starting to get concerned.

"They aren't separating!"

"Maybe there's another team somewhere in the tunnels," Kaiden yelled as he Threw a Sleestack into a fireteam of Butt-tarians.

Ash growled as she laid some covering fire for Garrus. "So what do we do about it?!"

Jane was letting her Striker cool down when she saw Therris get a wicked, almost manic grin. "No, Yea-Girl, we are not pulling a 'Fastball Special'!"

"You're right; we aren't!" She dashed over to Wrex's position, and planted a kiss right on his lips.

Once the faint biotic glow faded from the two, Wrex barked out a laugh. "You are a crazy little pyjak, you know that?!" He stomped over behind Jane and tensed up. "Let's paste this blob so we can get this job done."

Jane looked helplessly at Garrus, who just shrugged. "Everyone, get ready to lay down heavy fire. Whenever you two are ready."

Jane shook her head as she unlimbered her Brute Hammer. "Queen B was right: I'm a bad influence!" She and Wrex moved to the side of the container they were behind. The moment she felt Wrex's weight lessen off of the Hammer, she swung. There was a flash in the air as Wrex Charged mid flight, and slammed into the warbling Hybrid.

There was an explosion from the collision, as the enhancing glow disappeared from the Homunculi. The rest of the team poured fire into the now unprotected creatures, and within ten seconds, the battlefield was clear.

Wrex stepped onto the now distorted shaft entrance. "That was AWESOME!"

"That was dumb as hell, is what it was," Ash snarked as she dead-checked the few intact corpses.

Garrus moved up the ramp to the tunnel entrance. "Dumb or awesome doesn't matter, as long as it was effective, and didn't damage the shaft entrance. Wrex?"

The scarred Battlemaster thumped the outer door control, and it groaned aside. "It'll be a cozy fit, unless someone stays out here."

Garrus looked around before stepping into the hatch. "I want everyone with us in case there are any other surprises. Jane, you're on point again. Wrex, rear guard. everyone else, stagger Biotics and rifles."

The team made their way down the shaft, and into the main excavation site. While there were some Homunculi in the excavation, they didn't exhibit enhanced traits, and were swiftly dealt with.

The focus of the excavation was a vertically stacked series of open cells. These led to a second vertical shaft. Looking down, the team could see most of the cells were powered.

Jane whistled in appreciation. "I'll give the Protheans this, they built to last." She looked towards her fellow Spartans. "Hey Kaiden, can you use that asteroid trick to find our wayward doctor?"

Everyone looked puzzled, while Kaiden just shook his head. "Too much else going on in here; the Protheans seemed to build everything, and I do mean everything, with Eezo in it."

Wrex huffed in semi understanding. "I get what you want, and what he means. You can get some... interesting effects if you use your biotics right in one of these ruins."

"Or use them wrong," Therris nervously looked around the excavation. "Lotta stories about biotics going a little crazy in one of these places. Aside from the Hanar, that's how most Prothean cults start."

Garrus tapped his foot on the walkway. "Superstition or not, we have a job to do the old fashioned way, so let's get to it."

Everyone piled into the elevator at the end of the catwalk, and rode down in silence. Just before reaching the bottom, the machine gave a shuddering groan and stopped.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

The team scrambled out of the broken elevator, and gathered in front of a blue plasma window. Inside the cell, an Asari was suspended in a transparent bubble.

"Doctor Liara T'Soni?" Garrus eyed the trapped Asari.

"Oh thank the Goddess! Yes, I'm Doctor T'Soni. I've been stuck like this for a day and a half now. When the attack first happened, I activated this holding cell in a panic. I thought I could activate the cell controls with either my Omnitool or my biotics, but I'm completely restrained by this field. I thought I was going to die in here."

Garrus tried his own Omnitool, then looked at the other biotics in his team.

"That won't work," Liara shook her head. "The Battlemaster and his...minions already tried that. The system must be controlled manually from one of these terminals."

"Battlemaster you say," Wrex unslung his shotgun and grinned.

"Yes, he," Liara took a shuddering breath, "he started killing my colleagues in front of me, trying to force me to open the cell. When it became apparent I couldn't, he killed them in front of me 'for the sport of it'."

Wrex huffed. "Sounds like a Weyrloc to me. Whelp," he programmed a command into his shotgun, "sounds like it's time to give the Krogan gene-pool a quick shock."

Garrus nodded as the team started heading to the bottom of the shaft. "We'll have you out of there as soon as we can."

Once he rejoined the team, they searched the camp for any clues as to how to get into the cell chamber.

Ash rummaged through a crate, discarding a number of odds and ends. "If T'Soni is telling the truth, I wonder where this Krogan and the rest of the Homunculi are?"

Therris came up behind Ash and began salvaging, or dismantling, the cast offs. "Maybe they're waiting for us to crack open the Doctor's vault? Work smarter, not harder, as Jane is always saying."

"I fought a Krogan once, during a pirate raid," Kaiden absently commented as he poked at a dark computer terminal. "Didn't really strike me as the 'plan and wait' type."

"You fought a Krogan and lived?" Wrex ambled over to Kaiden. "You Humans impress me more every minute. He give you a good fight?"

Kaiden snorted. "He gave me a headache, so I dropped a building on him."

Jane smiled as the ancient Krogan laughed, then saw the look on Garrus' face. "Something?"

"Maybe Kaiden's on the right track." He walked to an oversized piece of machinery near the cell tower. "We might have to demolish our way in."

He fidgeted with a control panel for a few seconds, before the machine hummed to life and lashed out with a powerful laser beam. Once the smoke cleared, a hole had been shock-drilled through the tower wall and into the central shaft.

They entered onto a platform with an active control panel. It took a few moments of poking before they found the button to raise the platform. Garrus and Jane stepped into the cell where Liara was suspended.

"Oh good, you're here. I heard the drill firing, and I imagine he heard it as well, so we don't have much time."

Jane turned to the lit console. "Alright, so how do I turn it off?"

"The square within a square icon in the upper left corner. And please," Jane paused and looked at the trapped Asari, "don't touch the round icon in the middle; I believe that one controls the size of the containment field, regardless of whatever is inside."

Jane nodded, and hit the unlock icon. Garrus managed to catch Liara before she slumped to the floor. There was a rumble throughout the complex.

"Did we trigger something?" Therris glanced around, just before a more powerful rumble.

"Yeah, a retaliatory strike," Ash hit the elevator controls just as Jane, Garrus and Liara stepped onto the platform.

Garrus handed Liara off to Therris. "Nierra Ops, this is Nierra Actual, how copy?"

With frustration, Nierra Actual, Nierra Ops, kinda busy dodging the pitched space battle, can you call back?

Garrus pinched his mandibles tight for a moment. "Ops, patch me into Comms." Once an icon on his Omni lit up, he typed in a code and hit transmit. "Ops, actual, get ready for some exciting cover. Out."

He shut the connection, just as they arrived at the top of the shaft.

"Surrender the female," a bull Krogan bellowed out from the open cell. "Or don't; that works too." He was flanked by a Walking Gun and a Hybrid, while a half dozen Butt-tarians dispersed into the platform area.

Liara sidled up beside the elevator control. "I for one, vote 'don't'." She quickly entered a command into the console, and a restraint field engulfed the three in the cell.

The Butt-tarians all shrieked as one and began firing, as Liara cranked the restraint field control. The three trapped in the cell were crushed into a pinprick. Without the enhancement from the Hybrid, the Butt-tarians fell in short order. The cell victims were released with a THUNK as Liara dropped the field blocking their exit.

"Damn, and here I was hoping for a good fight!" Wrex walked over and toed the ultra-dense artificially compressed mass.

"Well, I'm hoping to leave this place, and perhaps get some answers as to what is going on," Liara brushed past him with a wobbly gate, made all the more unsteady by the tremors that were growing in frequency and intensity.

Once they were outside, they could see the flashes of the battle in the upper atmosphere, as well as a momentary explosion that collapsed in on itself after a few seconds.

"Slipstream Rupture," Ash watched the skies, "pretty damn close too."

Whatever else she would have said was drowned out as a streak of fire from the sky slammed into a nearby lava flow. The team lept for cover, as a wave of magma lapped at the shaft entrance, before the lava flow drained and a hot wind blasted out of the excavation.

"Let's head for the MACO!" Garrus ran along the ridge to where the APC was parked.

"We're not all gonna fit in there," Jane yelled as they ran.

Garrus jumped down onto the vehicle roof. "Yes we will, it just won't be comfortable!"

He lowered the hatch and climbed into the gunner's seat. He hit a control, and all the seats folded up. "Jane, Kaiden, lay down against the left wall, Ash, Therris, against the right, Wrex, you're in the middle, Doctor, on top of him!"

There was a great deal of grumbling as the six sophonts squeezed into the space.

"I seem to remember some of my college colleagues attempting something similar with a Solion Sky Car," Liara said as she scaled the Krogan, "though there was less urgency and considerably more alcohol involved."

With the last of his team on board, the hatch was shut and the truck took off.

Jane could only wait as the MACO bounced and jostled across the ruined terrain, until her armor was pinged by a UNSC IFF transponder.

"Jane, callsign 'Hunter-01' just advised us to prep for a Raptor Snatch," Garrus called from his seat. "What the hell did I just agree to?"

The three Spartans began swearing and grabbing on to anything they could. "It's the opposite of how you like to launch; lighten this thing up, then grab on to something!"

The entire cab began to fill with a low level Biotic stasis effect, just before something slammed into the roof of the MACO. The vehicle was then yanked off the ground.

...

"Captain, Hunter-01 reports, package is secure."

Fleet Captain Charles Pressley nodded in satisfaction. "Once they're aboard, all ships will disengage. Spin up our Slip-Core, and be ready to jump as soon as they're secure."

He watched impassively as the battle played out. The after action records of the Eden Prime attack greatly improved their response to the Hanar and Batarian tactics. His escorts ruthlessly attacked any ship that tried to lay its gun on the Piper, while swarms of Longsword and Saber fighters kept the returning Pelican's flight path clear.

"They're aboard, sir."

"Very good. All ships form up. Inform the Nierra to tuck in." He watched as his taskforce, including the Raven Class Raptor on loan from the ISA all formed up close to the Piper.

"Mister Nye, if you please," he nodded to his navigator. A hole tore open in the fabric of space and time, indifferent to the Batarian cruiser and two Hanar frigates that had been there a moment before, and the eight ships slipped into the space between.

...

"Is it over? Are we dead yet?"

Jane shifted the now unconscious Kaiden off of her and sat up. "No Wrex, we are not dead yet."

There was some thumping from outside, as the Pelican was hoisted off the MACO. Everyone followed Jane's example, as all the Biotics except Wrex were completely exhausted.

"Okay, Jane," Garrus powered the MACO's turret down, while directing Peebee to do the same with the MACO itself, "what can we expect, and what should we do?"

Jane rolled her shoulders. "Armed security, separate debriefs, all weapons confiscated, the usual for being strangers on a military ship. There's a treaty, so someone will be keeping the worst of the bigotry in check. If not," she cracked her neck and knuckles meaningfully. "Whenever you're ready."

He sighed, then nodded. Jane leaned over Kaiden and hit the manual hatch release. The door eased down to the deck, revealing two squads of UNSC Marines in full kit, as well as a medical team and two people in suits. Jane guessed they were ISA, and here to debrief everyone.

"Jane B-183. No med alerts to report, but all the Biotics are wiped."

One of the suits nodded, and the medics helped unload the MACO. Ash stationed herself by Kaiden, while Jane and Garrus hovered near Liara. The Marines collected everyone's weapons, and the team was directed through the cavernous yet crowded hangar to one of the various hatches.

For Jane, the next two hours were a blur of being peeled out of her armor, and being debriefed by military intelligence. Once the ordeal was over, she was conducted to a small galley where the rest of the team was seated. There was food and hot coffee, as well as benches.

She poured herself a cup, then sat down next to Garrus.

"So, was it everything you ever imagined?"

He sipped a water bottle, trying not to spill from the unfamiliar container. "Truly an ordeal for the ages. Songs will be sung of the horrors of being asked the same five questions thirteen different ways." He took another sip. "No probes, so there was that."

The hatch to the galley opened, and a bald man in Fleet Duty Green and Black adorned with Captain's Eagles walked in. He held up a hand before Jane could stand.

"At ease, Spartan. Just here to check in on everyone." His eyes lingered on Liara for a moment. He poured himself a cup of coffee, and sat down across from Garrus. "I've seen the reports, now I want to hear your opinions."

Garrus flexed his crest in curiosity at the Human commander's mein. "Not the worst op I've had, though I could do without either the growing Homunculi menagerie, or the rough pickup."

Captain Pressley smirked and chuckled. "Eh, nobody likes getting Raptor Snatched, but it's one of the best hot zone pickup methods out there, unless you have a gravity lifter."

"The merc we ran into in the excavation was Blood Pack," Wrex rumbled from his seat. "Seems odd for a Merc to be hired by religious zealots. If the little lady hadn't travel-sized him, we might have learned when and where he was hired."

Pressley waved off Liara's distress at Wrex's statement. "We have the Spartan helmet footage. I'll have our techs and ISA get as clean an image as we can, and forward a copy to you so you can run that lead down."

Garrus nodded in thanks. "I appreciate that. So, now what?"

Charles sighed and set his coffee down. "Now, we get to the meat-and-potatoes of the matter. Miss T'Soni," Liara looked over at the human officer, "what can you tell us about your mother, Saren Arterius, your research, and any reason you can think of why they might send a Hanar fleet to kidnap you?"

...

Gallun sat on the knoll, patiently, silently. His fellow Stalkers were spread across the ridgeline overlooking the valley, where Fleetmaster Vadamee's beach-head was being constructed.

Where many of the Zealots scoffed, and called him lazy and a coward for not actively hunting his prey, he had grown up a hunter, and knew his craft well.

The Unbelievers had, in recent years, become more tenacious, more cunning, and more worthy of respect than the Covenant afforded them. He knew the Demons would find the beach-head, and his prey would almost certainly come too.

The silence of the valley was shattered by a low flying Human aircraft. It was one of their military transports, though it bore no markings. He watched as it settled into a box canyon, near the hydro-plant the Covenant was using to power the bivouac's stealth field generators.

A squad of Demons deployed, along with one smaller individual. This one was lithe, and graceful as a serpent: a hunter in their own right. Were his task simply to eliminate this new creature, he could have done so with a particle rifle right then, but his task was not simple. He needed to know if there were more, and where they came from.

And so, Gallun sat on the knoll, patiently, silently. There would be time enough for the rush of battle. For now, he would wait; a patient Stalker, reveling in the thrill of the hunt.