Howard looked grimly down at the holo display of the planned expansion to the town, mentally running numbers as he circled the display. Said numbers getting bigger and bigger as he continued to look. Why on earth did the colony need another shopping center?

"So this is what they asked for?"

He asked as he turned away from the display, looking briefly at his omni-tool before glancing back up at the representative of the colonial administration. The man nodded eagerly.

"Yes Mr Price. New citizens are coming in everyday. Mindoir is turning into quite the bread basket. These expansions are necessary growing pains as the colony expands to accept more inhabitants."

Howard sighed softly before striding behind his desk and sitting down, steepling his fingers in front of him and regarding the young man over the top of them.

"The problem I'm having, kid, is that expansions like this don't come cheap. Preliminary calculations put this project at several million credits at the outside. Is the administration willing to foot that kind of bill?"

The young man seemed to brighten at this, as if he had just heard a piece of very good news, he nodded.

"Er yes, as a matter of fact. We recently received quite a generous donation from an unknown benefactor within the colony itself. I haven't read the reports so I don't know exactly how much. But if rumors around the office are to be believed then it should be more than enough to cover the cost."

Howard looked inquisitively at the young man, his eyebrows raised high enough to almost recede into his graying hairline. He leaned back in his chair, arms folded across his chest. His expression turned pensive.

"I'll… have to check with the main administration office for the actual amount. But if you ain't' messing me around we should be able to come to an agreement."

The young man smiled and quickly bobbed his head, before making a speedy about face and seeing himself out of the room, Howard quickly pressed a button on his desk. And the holo display winked off with a muted beep. He turned and pressed another button on the console, a quick series of beeps followed as he was connected to his secretary.

"Doreen, could you make sure the kid the Admins sent goes on his way with a contract for the Colonial Council to look at? I'm sending you the PDF."

"Right away Mr Price!"

The secretary's voice happily chimed, Howard sighed and lay back in his chair. Absorbed in thought. This situation raised a huge amount of questions, first and foremost. Who in the colony had that much money? And how did they keep it a secret when news on Mindoir traveled around on a rumor mill that left the majority of everyone's personal dealings open for the judgment of the rest of the colony? What were they doing to get it? Was it illegal? And most important of all,

How had he not known? If Howard was one thing he was well informed, he had kept up an abundance of his contacts from his N7 days. Almost nothing happened on the colony without him knowing about it, if somebody could slip under such a comprehensive radar then-.

Whatever the case was, Howard supposed that perhaps he ought not look a gift horse in the mouth. He sat forward, And flicked on the screen of his computer, looking grimly at the digital mountains of unread messages.

Sometimes he really hated his job.

Guld the Vorcha was having a very bad day, worse than the ones he usually had on Omega in any case. When he was a few months younger. He had been forced into the Blood-Pack by a pair of krogan toughs. It wasn't pleasant work, but at least it was simple. They said kill, he killed. They said guard red sand, he guarded red sand. But this….

Guld was not sure how much he was paid, or if he was even paid at all. But whatever it was he wasn't getting enough of it. A few hours ago they had been given a fairly routine and easy to follow set of instructions. They were to stand outside of a warehouse and look intimidating while the higher ranking members did whatever it was they did when Guld couldn't see. It was the same as it always was.

Until it wasn't.

Suddenly there had been gunshots, and yelling. And Guld had not known whether he should stay where the Krogan had told him to. Or if he ought to see what all the noise was for. However, before he could come to any sort of decision. The noise stopped entirely. Guld was not sure if it was a good idea to look inside. But he did not have the means to feed himself, and the krogan had actually been good company. As long as you were willing to deal with the occasional insult, or insanely racist remark about your species mating habits. And so, steeling himself. Guld opened the door ever so slightly. And looked hesitantly inside.

He saw a scene of destruction, illuminated by a single fluorescent light swinging above. He saw bodies, many of them. Whether they were dead, or simply unconscious he wasn't sure. And standing in the middle of it all. Was a human child. Guld could not account for how this was the case. But he trusted his eyes, and he was fairly certain that he hadn't taken anything that would make him see things in the last few hours.

The child carried no visible weapons. His eyes and face were obscured by a pair of heavily tinted goggles, and a black cloth mask. A pair of padded dark blue pants covered his legs, completed by a pair of armored boots. His upper half was covered by a black padded jacket. His hands were covered by black padded gloves. Not an inch of skin showed. The only distinguishing feature that Guld could identify was the child's raven black hair.

Guld checked the ammo readout on his shitty old rifle. Steeled himself, and stepped inside. Weapon raised. Or rather, that's what he would have done. If the child hadn't turned and looked directly at him.

In the five years Guld had existed, he had never been more totally, viscerally. Terrified. Like a deer caught in headlights, Guld froze, his rifle clattering unceremoniously to the floor beneath him.

He stood rooted to the spot, his mind concocting any number of ways this almost demonic being could bring about his swift and painful demise. It began to slowly pace toward him, whisper quiet footfalls making no noise that Guld could easily detect.

Finally the child stopped in front of him. And looked the Vorcha straight in the eye. Guld was not quite what one would call lucid for what came next. And so would be in no position to tell us what happened next. Had this been the case however, he would have said that after the child's eyes briefly flashed a dim lavender behind his goggles. The child said:

"You will take the 150 credits I am about to give you. You will then go to your favorite food vendor, buy whatever your favorite food happens to be. And then go home, go to sleep. And forget that you ever saw me."

Guld would then make us privy to the knowledge that at the time. This sounded like a very good idea.

I watched as the Vorcha stumbled away. Mumbling incoherently about charred Magric chops. Satisfied that the problem had been dealt with, I turned back to observe my quarry. A small group of thugs connected to the blood pack. Led by a low level krogan lieutenant, word had come through the grapevine that they had been harassing some of Aria T'loak's working girls while they were out and about.

Aria had taken a bounty out on their heads. They were to be delivered to Afterlife. Preferably alive, so that Aria's men could have a few choice words with them.

I rolled the bodies up and onto a storage scroll, and made a brief hand seal. The three batarians and one Krogan disappeared in a puff of smoke. And I rolled the scroll up, stowing it in my pack. Normally I wouldn't have run the risk of putting live people inside a storage seal. But I was fairly certain they would survive. And i didn't feel like carrying an adult krogan Halfway across Omega, chakra enhanced strength or no.

There was an organic oozing noise. As a black mass of formless goo ran down the warehouse wall. Making its way toward me, before stopping just in front of me. It writhed and wriggled as it began to shape itself, before finally settling into a humanoid shape.

"An exemplary performance master! It was a pleasure to watch you work."

I sighed as I turned toward the door. And began seeing myself out. The black humanoid following close behind me.

"It was a couple of thugs and a wayward Vorcha Umbra, not all that impressive I think. And I thought I told you not to call me that?"

Umbra chuckled.

When I had gone to meet the Mindoiran ten tails in person. In a cave system that stretched for miles beneath the colony. It had given me a wealth of information, times, places and happenings I would do well to remember. And his final parting gift had been Umbra. A piece of the ten tail's essence, instilled with a portion of my chakra and will.

It was his last action before he died.

I had been given to understand that tailed beasts lived for a very, VERY long time. But nothing in this plane was truly immortal. Not even them. I had met Mindoir's ten tails in the twilight of its life, and I had borne witness to its ending.

Its enormous corpse now lay miles beneath the surface, laying at the base of the planet's world tree. As it decayed, it would give new life to the tree, from the tree it was born. To the tree it would return. A new fruit would flower, and a new tailed beast would be born from the tree to guard it.

Such was the cycle of the world trees.

Umbra kept silent pace with me, following close behind as I made my way through the labyrinthine slums of Omega. Mass effect 2 hadn't done this place justice. It really was a shithole, filled with any number of unpleasant disgusting sights. It was, to quote a certain jedi, a wretched hive of scum and villainy.

Operating in such a place certainly had its advantages though.

As long as whatever it was you were doing didn't cause too much trouble. You were basically free to do whatever the hell you pleased. It was as if Detroit and the west side of Chicago had an evil space station love child.

Minus any sort of law enforcement.

There was of course Aria's men. But they were there to enforce Aria's rule, more than they were there to keep the peace.

After a few minutes of Body flickering through service ducts. I began to hear the bass heavy music of After-life. Strobing neon and rising smoke painting the surrounding slums in a tapestry of debauchery. I stopped just short of the club, ducking briefly into a side alley, as I unclasped my bag and removed the storage scroll. Unrolling it, and then standing back to make the appropriate handsign.

The three thugs appeared in a puff of smoke. Still as unconscious as I'd left them. I frowned and then briefly made another hand sign. Smirking as the three scumbags were drenched in icy cold water.

They each spluttered, forced into wakefulness. I gave them a few brief moments to compose themselves. Before I spoke.

"Wakey wakey boys! You've got an appointment with royalty!"

They each in turn looked up at me. Before each in turn reaching for their weapons. Which I had relieved them of.

"The hell?! Give us back our weapons brat!"

The krogan bellowed. I shrugged. Every bit the smug bastard.

"Fraid' I can't do that bucko. Now why don't you be a good little scumbag and come with me?"

I allowed a small amount of killing intent to leak into the air around me as I spoke. Smiling in silent satisfaction as all the bluster and machismo seemed to leave them.

Aria was used to strange things. On Omega, strange was just another form of normal. Strange was routine, she had decided several hundred years ago. That nothing could surprise her now. But this-

This went beyond strange.

She had never seen anything quite as surreal as a human child leading a trio of mercs. Their body language was furtive. Their expressions bewildered, they looked scared.

Of the kid?

Aria watched in silent bemusement as the child marched the three mercs up the stairs and toward the couch on which she sat. Her current bodyguard, a hulking krogan, massive even by the standards of his kind. Moved to intercept.

"Unless you've got business with Aria, move along. It's a busy night and she don't wanna' be disturbed."

The child spoke, something in his voice making him sound much older than he looked.

"I'm here to collect a bounty that was put out on these three gentlemen. As per the bounty, I am delivering them into your organization's tender mercies."

The krogan looked over the child's head. Observing the three mercs. Who had retreated into a defensive huddle.

"Ain't you a bit young for this line of work kid?"

The krogan asked as he turned to once again look at the child

"Most Krogan become killers before they can walk. What's your point?"

The child replied. His tone suggesting a desire to not waste any more time. The bodyguard shrugged, and then stood aside. Wisely keeping whatever other questions he had to himself.

Aria reclined in a state reminiscent of regality as the child led the three mercs to stand before her, each one now nearly catatonic with fear and apprehension. As she regarded them as one might regard a disgusting something stuck to the sole of one's shoe.

"You have a warrant on these three miss. One of roughly 10,000 credits. If my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. I've come to collect."

She looked them over briefly, putting names to faces as she observed each of them in turn.

"I don't suppose these would be the shitheels that've been causing my girls so much trouble?"

The kid nodded.

"The very same. I hope I wasn't too presumptuous by bringing them to you personally."

Aria smirked. And waved her hand languidly.

"Well, I suppose it saves me having to send my own men to deal with it." She said, as she snapped her fingers at the krogan bodyguard. "Vorg, get those three squared away. And then get this kid his money."

The enormous krogan nodded. Before pulling a massive shotgun from his back. Racking back the slide and pointing it at the three mercs.

"You heard the boss."

He growled.

"Get to steppin'."

Aria watched as Vorg led the child and mercs away. Her eyes narrowed, she gave a quick hand gesture to her attendant. A jittery but reliable salarian. She continued to observe the child as Vorg handed him the credit chit containing his payment.

"A child doesn't simply subdue a full grown krogan and his lackeys without a single visible weapon. This kid might prove dangerous in the future. I want him watched."

As I left Afterlife and ducked into the residential district, one of Aria's goons secretly tailed me. Or at least, he thought he was secretive, he was rather easy to spot from the rest. What with his hilariously conspicuous secretive movements.

In my short time working as an… Independent Contractor. I had learned that those who made the greatest effort not to stand out. We're often the most conspicuous. When you put visible effort into going unnoticed.

Ironically, people tend to notice.

I made a few inconspicuous handsigns. Casting an illusion to throw my pursuer off I ducked into a shadowed doorway. And smirked as I saw Aria's hired muscle plod past me, oblivious.

I followed after him. My steps whisper quiet as I made my way behind him. It was then that I struck.

I threw my right arm around the batarians throat, gripping it with my left as I squeezed the batarians equivalent of a windpipe. He gasped and struggled for a few short moments kicking and gasping faintly as i gently lowered him to the

dura-crete. Finally his struggling ceased, as all four of his eyes rolled into the back of his head.

I released his neck and let the unconscious alien flop down. And took a short few moments to relieve him of his credit chit. Before gripping the batarians left arm. And sending a small surge of electricity through it. He convulsed, before being forced into a sudden wakefulness.

"Don't talk, listen. Let me tell you what's going to happen."

I said as I pulled a knife. Holding it the batarians throat.

"You will return to Afterlife, and tell your employer that if she values the lives of her men. She will not send anyone to follow me again."

He seemed about to speak. Before I cut him off with a yell.

"I said don't talk, didn't I?!"

I continued.

"Furthermore, you will make it clear that if this happens again. I will not be so magnanimous as to spare your life."

I pushed the blade a few minute inches. Not enough to break skin. But certainly enough to feel the edge dig against the soft and vulnerable flesh.

"Understand? Nod."

I moved the blade a few inches back and the batarian. Who, luckily for him, was quick on the uptake. Nodded silently. Wisely keeping his mouth shut.

"Good, now get the fuck out of my sight."

I sighed, as I turned in the pilot's chair of the small civilian issue corvette I had managed to obtain with my accumulated funds. It was an older model. But it was a quick, reliable little bird. It held the majority of my equipment, and was the ship I used to travel from Mindoir to other systems. A shame that I hadn't come up with a name for it yet.

The pilot's display hummed to life, as I began to input the commands necessary to return home. Smiling as the docking clamps of the small hangar disengaged. I was forced back into my chair slightly as the thrusters kicked in, accelerating the corvette away from the station. At current velocity, it would take another two hours before I hit the mass relay.

"Switch to autopilot."

I said, grunting as I sat up slowly. I was going to catch whatever sleep I could.

"Umbra, wake me when the ship is in range of the relay."

Umbra nodded minutely.

"As you command, master."

"And stop calling me that!"

Aria kept her expression neutral. As she listened to the sputtering batarian finish his testimony. Oh this was an annoyance, it really was.

"I see, you may go."

She said, with a casual and dismissive flick of her hand. The batarian, happy enough to be finally free from questioning. Nearly ran from the top balcony.

It wasn't that the child had detected her agent. She had been half expecting that. No, it was that the child had elected to spare his life that had her confused. Killing the poor bastard would have sent the intended message loud and clear. And it wasn't as if he was incapable. Perhaps unwilling? In any case, Aria's mind was disquieted. This kid was showing himself to be more dangerous by the hour.

An appropriate level of caution would have to be employed. She suspected.