Chapter 61 – Akuma No Hinto

April 7th, 2211 1651 hours – Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik System, Omega

Sinbad District

Data Corruption… Automatic Reconstruction Failed…Data Corruption….Profile Reconstruction Required…

(Specialist Sophia Croft, Jaeger Team Two, First Platoon, 7th Jaeger Battalion, Delta Company)

The Eclipse mercenaries led Sophie and Rayla to a hotel building in a very nice part of the district. Had it not been for the mechanized guards stationed everywhere and the station ceiling, Sophie would have sworn that they were on on Bekenstein or Illium. She could spot dozens of Fenris mechs and Loki mechs, and even several large Ymir units as well. There were enough to probably hold out against a battalion of attackers. The air hummed with the sound of their mechanized joints as the units prowled and patrolled the area.

The sight of them actually made Sophie feel somewhat more at ease. If these were baseline models, even if they had higher-end security software upgrades Sophie felt confident that she could hack them.

There were living troops as well of course – numerous Eclipse mercenaries wearing what was obviously very expensive armor and wielding some highly-modded weapons. Sophie mostly saw asari, humans, and salarians, but there were a few turians too. Some gave them curious glances. Sophie felt like a fish out of water amongst them.

The asari Eclipse mercenary escorting them spent the journey chatting with Rayla about mundane little things like which bars were good and who was recruiting so Sophie tuned them out. To Sophie's surprise, she did not take Rayla and Sophie to the penthouse suite at the top of the hotel like Sophie expected. Instead, the elevator stopped on a random floor somewhere towards the middle of the building.

They stopped outside one of the rooms. The mercenary knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" a surprisingly-deep voice inquired from within.

"Captain, it's me, Pela. Got someone here who wants to talk to you. Says she knows you."

"Let her in."

The asari – Pela – opened the door and ushered Rayla and Sophie inside. It was a multi-room suite that the Captain had converted into a makeshift office of sorts. Although the room and the furniture was very nice, Sophie noticed that there wasn't much in the way of personal items.

Captain Essana Dalis was seated at a desk that she had dragged into the center of the living room. It was filled with scattered papers and holopads. A large decanter of amber-colored liquid sat in one corner and a Scorpion pistol sat in the other. Unlike the other mercenaries that Sophie had seen, the asari captain was wearing a battered set of dark-blue armor. She was purple-skinned with a unique set of turquoise facial markings. She looked mean. The shape of her markings made her face seem as if it were set in a perpetual scowl.

Somehow that scowl deepened as she caught sight of Rayla. "By the Goddess…" Captain Dalis muttered. She uncapped the decanter and poured a few fingers of the amber liquid into a nearby crystal tumbler. Judging from the smell, it was likely scotch. The asari tossed the entire thing back in a single, practiced motion. Just watching her made Sophie's throat burn.

Rayla spread her arms wide. "Essie!" she exclaimed happily. Rayla glided around the desk and wrapped her arms around the Eclipse captain's neck.

"What are you doing here Rayla? I thought you were dead," Captain Dalis groaned from underneath the commando's stifling embrace. "Get off of me!"

Rayla finally let go with a light-hearted chuckle. She sauntered over to a nearby chair – the kind you'd usually find in a hotel that was a part-couch one-seater - and hauled it over to the front of the desk. She then grabbed another one too. After she was done re-arranging the furniture, Rayla plopped herself down in one of the chairs and brought her boots up onto the desk. She gestured for Sophie to join her and Sophie did. Captain Dalis looked her up and down. Sophie swallowed.

Captain Dalis muttered something in asari and poured scotch into another pair of crystal tumblers, setting them before Rayla and Sophie. Rayla grabbed hers and downed it all at once like the captain had. When Rayla saw Sophie look hesitatingly at hers, she grabbed the other one and downed it too.

Captain Dalis poured herself another one. This time, she swirled it around and took a small sip. "Why are you here?"

Rayla skipped right past the question. "Where's Pharah? That merc said she'd never heard of her. Or Hellene? I was surprised she never bothered to reach out to me. I always thought her and I were close. And how about Arissa? Did she end up going back to Thessia like she wanted?"

The captain leaned back in her chair and let out a heavy sigh. Something told Sophie that the captain was very familiar with Rayla's antics.

The asari mercenary shoved Rayla's boots off of her desk. "You left us twenty-five years ago. I know that's not a lot for an asari, but for a mercenary? It's several lifetimes. If you're lucky that is. A lot's changed."

"I can see that," Rayla grinned. "You weren't a captain before I left – in fact, I distinctly recall you mentioning that you'd rather have your scalp sheared than climb the ladder at Eclipse." The commando poured herself another drink again and copied the captain's pose. "So imagine my surprise when I heard that you'd made captain."

The two sat in silence for a while, engaging in a soundless match of will. Sophie had no idea what the history between the two had been like, but it was likely complicated. Asari relationships generally were. One of the unfortunate by-products of having a centuries-long lifespan, Sophie supposed. A lot tended to happen.

Eventually, Essana broke first. "Who's the girl?" she cocked her head at Sophie.

"A friend," Rayla replied. "She's Systems Alliance. A Jaeger."

Sophie jumped up in alarm. What was Rayla doing?

"You brought a Systems Alliance Jaeger into our headquarters?" Essana said coldly.

"Because I don't want to lie to you, Essie. Never have, never will. You're my oldest friend. Possibly my last one too."

The captain muttered something in thessian that was too faint for the translators to catch. The asari mercenary looked Sophie up and down again, and then seemed to relax a bit. Well, not relax. More like reluctantly-accept.

"Pharah left a few months after you did," Essana continued. "Hellene and I figured that she left for the same reason as well, and that she went to find you. To fight in the Reaper War."

Rayla's face immediately darkened. "That would be something she would do," she said quietly. "If she did, she never found me."

The two asari both took a sip of the scotch at the same time, eyes downward. "And Hellene? She was always the best of us. I don't believe that there is anyone on Omega that could have killed her."

"She was killed about ten years ago," Essana replied with a shrug. "Every few years we get into these small turf wars with the other gangs. The damned Blood Pack just up and decided to hit a few of our shuttles with rockets one day."

Another sip. "And Arissa?"

"Murdered. Just last month actually."

Rayla clenched her teeth. "By who? Do you know?" she hissed.

"Yes and no," Essana replied. The asari captain took a moment to think for a second, and then set her glass of scotch down and typed something into her data terminal. When she was done she spun it around to show Rayla and Sophie.

On the terminal was a picture of a dead asari. Her eyes and nose had been removed. Sophie almost threw up.

Rayla stood up from her chair, her biotics flaring up as she stared furiously down at the terminal. "Who did this. Who?!" she demanded.

Mercifully, Essana shut the display off. "For the last three years there's been dozens of unsolved murders. All with the same MO. Women of all species but mostly human and asari – all murdered the same way. Their eyes and noses taken."

The captain downed the last of her whiskey. "We've tried our best to find out who is responsible. We've set baits, bounties – everything. Nothing," she said with a shake of her head. "None of our informants or spies could come up with anything. The victims are all random and even when we've been the first ones to find the bodies there hasn't been a single clue to be found. The locals have taken to calling this perp the Reaper of Omega, although you know as well as I do that it could very well be the work of a local group or a cult. It wouldn't be the first time. Last time it go so bad that I heard that even a few Spectres had to get involved."

Sophie could still see Arissa even though Essana had closed her terminal. Those hollow, black pits had seemed darker to Sophie than the darkest of nights. The Jaeger shuddered and felt sick. She just couldn't understand how or why anyone in the galaxy would do such a thing.

"Trust me," Essana scowled. The glass in her hand shook. "I won't stop until I've found the ones responsible and I've made them pay. You have my word on that."

Rayla sat back down and buried her face in her hands. Sophie had no idea who Arissa meant to the commando, but clearly it was someone important. She wanted to hug her but she didn't know how Rayla would feel about that, so she settled for gently setting a hand on Rayla's shoulder. To Sophie's surprise, the commando didn't shake her off.

Both the captain and Sophie just sat there as Rayla worked her way through whatever it was she was feeling. When she had finished, Rayla sat back up. Her eyes glimmered with tears. She gave the Jaeger an appreciative smile.

"We're the last of our unit, you know?" Essana said forlornly to Rayla.

"Who would have thought? The cynic and the fool."

Essana scoffed and gave Rayla a wondrous smile. "You are a lot of things Rayla, but you are no fool. You were the first to realize what the coming of the Reapers really meant for the galaxy. The rest of us acted like asari – we stuck our heads in the sand or we waited until things were already too late. We learned the hard way when Cerberus came to Omega and the Reapers came to Thessia."

"So," Essana set down her glass and repeated for the last time. "Why are you here Rayla?"

Rayla brushed the last of her tears away from her eyes. "To ask for your help. I'm sure you've heard about the rogue fleet by now?"

"Yes, I have." The asari captain crossed her arms. "Most of them are Systems Alliance, but from what I've heard several Thessian naval ships joined up too, right? Asari High Command also hasn't released an official statement yet on what happened."

"Yes," Rayla nodded. "They're on their way here, to Omega. They're a threat, Essie. We need your help to stop them… and we want you to help us convince the Eclipse to allow a turian fleet into the system to fight them."

The captain blinked at Rayla, utterly astonished. "What threat? We've heard rumors that the rogue fleet has been running around the Terminus Systems but no word on what they've been up to. And a whole turian fleet? Why are they coming to the Sahrabarik system?"

"I can't tell you," Rayla said apologetically. "But know that the Council and the Office of Special Tactics and Reconnaissance are involved. It's a matter of grave importance."

"Spectres? Here on Omega?"

"Yes."

The captain set her elbows down onto the desk and laced her fingers together. "This has something to do with the influx of refugees showing up on some of the other core Terminus worlds doesn't it? Goddess, you're not making it easy for me to help you, Rayla."

"Essie, this is important. Believe me. We need your help."

The captains gray eyes darted from Rayla and then to Sophie, gauging. "I can tell," Essana finally nodded. "You have the same look on your face now as you did when you were trying to convince us to join the Reaper War."

Rayla let out a sigh of relief. "Oh Goddess, thank you Essie." The commando crossed her arms. "I'm not a novice at this game though. As important as our mission may be, I know the support of the Eclipse isn't going to be free. Do you know what Eclipse High Command might want in return?"

"Good question, let me check," Essana sniffed. The captain spent a few moments searching on her holo-terminal.

"Looks like the stars have aligned on this one…" the captain muttered. "Okay, I bet this would be good enough. Junichiro Takatoshi. He's the leader of a small but wealthy and influential gang here on Omega. Controls a fair portion of the arms manufacturing on this station and owns maybe half-a-dozen districts. We've been trying to muscle into his territory for years."

Essana turned the holo-terminal display around again. This time the picture was much less frightening. The picture showed a middle-aged Japanese man, maybe in his mid thirties. He was good-looking, or so Sophie thought.

"Junichiro here has been making some moves with the Systems Alliance. We think he's either trying to go legit or he's working with them to establish an information network in the Terminus," Essana explained, pulling up a few more pictures of Junichiro being seen with various individuals that had been marked as working within the offices of high-ranking Systems Alliance military officials.

Rayla gave a big, wry smile. "Say no more."

Sophie looked at the two, confused. The Jaeger wasn't stupid, but suffice to say espionage was not her strong suit. What exactly was the captain asking them to do here?

"He just so happens to be hosting an elbow-rubbing event at the Izanami tonight," Essana looked at the two of them. "Go in there and get us leverage. I don't care what you do or how you do it, just don't link it back to us. You haven't been around these parts for more than twenty-five years Rayla, so he should have no idea you're working for us."

"You got it sister," the commando grinned.

"Wait!" Sophie finally said. The two asari turned to her in surprise. It was the first word she had spoken since she had walked into the room. "I don't get it. How are we supposed to get leverage over him?"

The two asari both turned to one another and began to laugh.

April 7th, 2211 2045 hours – Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik System, Omega

Kido District – Izanami Bar and Lounge

Data Corruption… Automatic Reconstruction Failed…Data Corruption….Profile Reconstruction Required…

(Specialist Sophia Croft, Jaeger Team Two, First Platoon, 7th Jaeger Battalion, Delta Company)

"Sophia, try to stop looking around so much. People tend to notice when someone's doing that. It'll draw attention."

Sophie immediately returned to starring at the racks of liquor sitting at the back of the bar. "Sorry Commander," she whispered.

The Jaeger nursed her cocktail nervously. To say that she was out of her element in an establishment like this was the understatement of her life. It didn't help that she was wearing a dress that likely cost her a month's salary. She had also been in a bar maybe five times in her life up to this point and none of them were as classy as this one. Everything she knew about how to interact in them came from holo-films and commercials.

Rayla on the other hand had taken to it like a fish to water. The asari commando was seated beside her at the bar wearing an extremely low-cut dress and nursing a glass of Thessian wine, looking like she owned the place. The commando was also better at the espionage stuff too. Unlike Sophie who was still trying to kick her habit of talking to thin air whenever she had to reply to their mission control team, every time Rayla had to reply to either Shepard or Essana she would look at Sophie directly, smile, and pretend that she was talking to her, so as to not attract attention.

Sophie wished she was more like the asari. Rayla had her legs crossed elegantly in front of her and had her back to the bar. The commando had leaned back and had set her elbows up upon it. Everything she did oozed confidence. The Jaeger thought that she was the most charismatic woman in the entire establishment.

Sophie turned to Rayla and tried to mimic her smile, but she got the feeling that she wasn't nailing it. "So what are we supposed to do now?" Sophie asked the control team.

"Junichiro's appetite is legendary," Essana replied. She would also be their liaison with the Eclipse on this mission. "He's been seen with a different girl almost every night. Sometimes two. Just follow Rayla's lead – she'll know what to do."

Rayla turned and brushed away a strand of loose hair that had fallen into Sophie's cheek and smiled back at her. The asari's teeth were so pearly-white and perfect that they almost hurt to look at.

"Junichiro himself or one of his men will eventually approach us," Rayla whispered to her pretending that they were having an intimate, friendly conversation. "If it's a small fish we lay down some bait. That story is that you and I work for Pantheon Technologies. Hopefully there's at least one underling working under Junichiro with enough brain cells to make the connection."

Pantheon Technologies was a prominent cybersecurity company that the Systems Alliance regularly worked with. Sophie had actually interned there after university before joining the marines. If Essana's intel was right and Junichiro actually was interested in inserting himself into the Systems Alliance, then this would be an opportunity that he likely wouldn't pass up.

"I read your history my dear. When he starts to bite, it'll be you who has to reel him in. I'm just a glorified soldier and tonight—nothing but the bait," Rayla smiled.

Wonderful. Sophie stifled a sigh and looked around, still uncertain. She now had the added pressure of recalling exactly what she'd done when she had interned there. "How are you so sure anyone will even approach us?" All of the women in the bar were elegantly dressed and absolutely gorgeous. They were all likely whatever passed as socialites on this wretched station. "I'm not exactly the kind of girl that these guys would go for."

Rayla laughed in disbelief. "Darling, are you serious? You're beautiful," she reassured her. Sophie had heard this before. Rayla had spent nearly an hour before applying makeup on Sophie and doing her hair and the entire time the asari had gushed about how pretty she was. "Trust me, it's only a matter of time before someone approaches us."

It didn't make sense to the Jaeger but she decided she would just follow the asari's lead. Sophie tried her best to look like she was having a casual conversation with the asari, but she couldn't shake the nagging feeling that she was failing miserably.

"There's Junichiro now. White suit and sunglasses. Four bodyguards," Commander Shepard radioed to the pair.

Rayla didn't so much as turn her head, but Sophie couldn't help but slip a quick glance. The Omega arms dealer was taller than his picture had suggested and strutted in like he owned the place, which he did. Sophie wasn't an expert, but the nice, white suit he was wearing probably cost ten of her dresses. Junichiro had on a pair of heavy, dark sunglasses. The collar of his black dress shirt was propped up and his hair was slicked backwards. Trailing behind him was a cloud of cigarette smoke and four other men similarly dressed. Sophie could spot the tale silhouettes of M-11 Suppressor pistols tucked into their waistbands. Those were Systems Alliance-issued pistols. Captain Dalis' hunch must have been correct.

Sophie quickly looked away, wincing slightly at the fact that Commander Shepard had warned her not to do so just a few short moments ago. She took a quick breath to calm her nerves and waved for the bartender to bring her another drink.

Meanwhile, Rayla kept shooting the men in the bar suggestive glances. Eventually a few of them began to nibble, all of them eager to shoot their shot with her partner.

At first, Sophie thought that she might be spared from it all, but eventually they began to come for her too. It took all of Sophie's self control not to look at those men in disgust while they tried to chat her up. She swore that she could hear both Commander Shepard and Captain Dalis sighing multiple times over her earpiece.

Eventually two of Junichiro's bodyguards came over. Rayla gave them their aliases and then let slip that they worked for Pantheon Technologies. For good measure, Sophie hinted at a big, fictional project that they were working on for the Systems Alliance. The two men looked at each other and grinned. You could almost hear the hamster wheels turning in their heads. It was like watching two low-watt bulbs slowly power on. Non-LED of course.

The two retreated back to a massive booth that Junichiro had claimed for himself in the back of the bar. One of them whispered for a few moments into Junichiro's ear. After a while, Junichiro nodded and jerked his head in their direction.

The other bodyguard came back. "Mr. Takatoshi would like to request the audience of you and your friend, Ms. D'ysere."

His tone seemed to brook no disagreement. Rayla flashed him a confident smile and made a show of finishing her glass of Thessian wine before getting out of her chair. Sophie scrambled to do the same beside her. The asari strutted across the bar towards the waiting arms dealer and without breaking her stride grabbed another one glass of wine off of the tray of a passing waiter.

A few other girls were already sitting at the booth but Junichiro made them disappear with a lazy wave of his hand. Some of them starred daggers at the two of them as they departed, clearly unhappy with the sudden exchange of hats.

Rayla slid into the opposite end of the booth from Junichiro. With a small wave she gestured for Sophie to do the same.

Although the bar was dimly-lit, Junichiro had on pair of opaque, black sunglasses. Clouds of dense, gray smoke emitted from the tip of the cigar hanging from his mouth, obscuring his features even further. Like Cade, the man had a tattoo that looked like it extended down from his neck, except his looked like that of a large, Asiatic dragon whereas Cade's was about some online game that him and Cloud played.

The arms dealer removed the cigar from his lips and put it out in a nearby ashtray. His actions were smooth and deliberate. Whether by design or by nature, the end-result was the same. Sophie felt as if she were being appraised.

"Kasai tells me you two work for Pantheon Technologies," Junichiro said. His voice was velvety and hypnotic. "Is that right, Ms. D'ysere?"

Rayla set the glass down and crossed her arms. "Yes. I'm a senior manager in cybersecurity operations over at Pantheon Technologies."

"Very interesting. And how has your recent acquisition of Blackrock's new Trojan software played out in terms of integration?"

The asari cocked an eyebrow. "I'm surprised you know about that. You've done your homework, Mr. Takatoshi."

"You've heard of me?"

"We do a lot of work with the Systems Alliance. Your name has made its way into certain… circles."

The faintest of smiles tugged at the corner of his lips. "Well that is certainly good to know," Junichiro chuckled. He then turned to Sophie. "And you, do you work in the same department as Ms. D'ysere? Ms.— I'm sorry, I do not believe I got your name?"

It was her turn and all of a sudden, Sophie could feel the adrenaline.

"It's Alex. Alex Benford," Sophie stammered.

"Alex," Junichiro repeated, his smile broadening. The sunglasses came off and to her surprise, Junichiro's eyes were soft and warm. They reminded her of the Lieutenant's. "So Alex, are you also in cybersecurity operations with Ms. D'ysere?"

"Yes," Sophie replied quickly. She swallowed and rubbed one of her hands with the other. Should she say something else?

"Sophia, stay calm," Shepard whispered.

Junichiro saved her the trouble. "And what do you do?"

The adrenaline peaked and Sophie hit that sweet spot where functionality finally catches up with anxiety. Sophie started out on a long, rambling speech about threat identification and remote server security. She worked in the bit about the Trojan software that she had rehearsed with Shepard, and even ad-libbed a few things. Though the topic was different it was the kind of word vomit that she had spewed countless times on first dates, and which had left all of her partners confused and more than taken back with her.

Sophie could sense Rayla begin to tune her out, but Junichiro didn't look perturbed. Instead, the arms dealer leaned forward, seemingly drinking in every word. A waiter brought over a drink and without breaking eye contact Junichiro signalled for him to bring Sophie and Rayla a drink as well.

The arms dealer's eyes never left hers and Sophie could feel some heat beginning to rise to her cheeks. He asked her a few basic questions which Sophie easily answered. Rayla chimed in with a few pre-planned lines as well at times, just to deter any suspicion, but largely it was Sophie who did the talking.

She took a few sips from the drink Junichiro brought just to wet her throat. Eventually, Sophie ran out of things to say and spent the next few moments breathing deeply. Junichiro gave her and Rayla warm smiles.

"I must say Ms. Benford, your knowledge is impressive. You know, I'd be very interested in working with Pantheon Technologies and the Systems Alliance. My organization recently won a contract for the mining rights to an eezo-rich asteroid. Would you and Ms. D'ysere be interested in going to my personal penthouse, so we can continue this conversation further?

Sophie opened and closed her mouth a few times. Did she even have anything else she could say about the subject?

"Do it," Captain Dalis immediately ordered. "This is an opportunity we can't pass up."

Sophie waited for Shepard to say something, but the commander was silent. Maybe she was busy.

"Mr. Takatoshi, that'd be lovely," Rayla replied for her. Sophie just smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Wonderful," Junichiro grinned. He got up, walked over to their side of the table and offered Sophie a hand. The Jaeger took it and slid out of the booth. He did the same for Rayla. Rayla finished her drink and got out as well.

A sleek, expensive-looking skycar was parked outside the bar. One of Junichiro's bodyguards chauffeured the three of them to a part of Omega that again Sophie swore was ripped right from the richest parts of Bekenstein. After seeing Omega she could hardly believe that such a neighbourhood could have existed on such a station. Wherever this district was, it was nicer than even the Eclipse' Sinbad District.

They stopped at the base of a nice-looking apartment complex. The people filtering in and out of it were all well-dressed and well-groomed and looked like they all had important places to be. Sophie started to feel a bit anxious again. Her head was hurting a bit as well, having had more alcohol in the last two hours than she'd had the last six months. What was she going to do when she got up there?

Rayla seemed to be laying the groundwork for a different kind of approach. The commando was playing the drunk, infatuated role well. She was virtually draped over the arms dealer on their way up the elevator, playing with his hair and giggling into his ear.

Junichiro steadied Rayla, asking her if she was okay and if she needed a cab home. Rayla shook her head. Satisfied, Junichiro led them to a door at the other end of the hallway from where the elevators were. Surprisingly there were no guards around, but Sophie supposed that they could have been in one of the other rooms.

He opened the door, extending one arm inside as an invitation. "Please, come in. My home is your home."

Junichiro turned on the lights. Sophie gasped. The penthouse was massive and decorated in the style of what Sophie believed to be old Japan. There were bamboo floor mats and a Japanese, artisanal water feature sat directly in the centre of the penthouse's foyer. Numerous artifacts sat on marble pedestals and Japanese scroll art lined the walls. It was all one, giant room, though Sophie could see that there was a loft portion above her.

The bedroom was open concept. The sight of the bed made her anxiety rise and had Sophie wondering just exactly what the Eclipse captain would expect of her and Rayla tonight, so instead she directed her attention to the rest of the décor. There was a particularly large piece of scroll art hanging directly behind the bed featuring what looked like a man and a woman wearing robes, with one of them wielding a long spear. On the adjacent wall was a wall rack which had more than two dozen samurai swords mounted on them.

Rayla immediately made for a large couch at the back of the penthouse. Junichiro moved to join her, but stopped beside Sophie to chat for a moment.

"Impressed?"

"Very," Sophie nodded.

"My friends and colleagues tell me it is a bit much. But I think that a person should have pride in his roots. Wouldn't you agree, Alex?"

His eyes yearned for something. Sophie thought that they seemed to be whittling down her layers one by one – seized by a desire to see the very core of Sophie's being and all of its secret desires, hopes, and dreams that she housed there. The Jaeger wondered how many other women had exposed themselves while subject to the gaze of the charming arms dealer.

Sophie blushed. What would Junichiro think if she told him that her mother had just been a maid for some rich family back on Bekenstein with no clue who her own mother had been, and her father had been a simple civil engineer? Sophie took great pride in her upbringing. Her mother and father had been had workers and had been her role models growing up. But, Sophie was no fool. Having grown up on Bekenstein, she knew that there were those who—upon hearing about her parents— would smile to her face but snicker behind her back.

"Did you grow up in Japan on Earth, Mr. Takatoshi?"

Junichiro's eyebrows ticked up. "Please, call me Junichiro, or Jun. You recognize the influence?"

"Of course. Bekenstein had excellent schools. I loved studying history."

"You come from Bekenstein then? Impressive. I do some commerce there. Bekenstein's manufacturing is unparalleled within Systems Alliance' space."

Sophie declined to tell him that she had never attended any of the fancy schools on Bekenstein at all, but instead had been homeschooled. "And you?"

"I spent the first ten years of my life in Japan," Junichiro admitted. "After the Reaper war my parents returned. When the Phenomenon began to spread, they stayed right up until the Systems Alliance declared Earth unfit for habitation and forced everyone off."

He ran a finger around the lip of an expensive-looking vase. Depicted on it was a women with oddly-elongated arms covered in what looked like hundreds of little circles. "My parents died soon after and I – through fate or whatever cosmic imperative that might exist – found my way here, to Omega where I made this life for myself. I haven't seen my home in almost twenty years…"

His emotions were evident in the tone of his voice. "I am so sorry Jun. But you know, what you've created here is amazing," Sophie said, gesturing at the penthouse around her. "It's like something out of a storybook. I've never seen anything like this."

Junichiro smiled one last time and then went to join Rayla on the couch. Sophie decided to continue her little tour of the apartment and see if there was anything else that might prove useful to the Eclipse. Her head was pounding a little harder now and she had half a mind to ask Junichiro for a glass of water, but she thought better of it. She didn't want him to think that she was somehow weak.

In the background she could hear Rayla giggling and Junichiro talking to her in low tones. Sophie wondered exactly what it was that she was supposed to do here. She'd been told to follow Rayla's lead, but with every passing second Rayla's plan seemed more and more like it was to actually get intimately involved with the arms dealer. If that came to pass, Sophie wasn't sure if she could keep up the charade. What would she do? It had also been a while since the Commander or the captain had checked in on them.

Eventually Sophie found herself standing right in front of the bed. She admired the sword rack and then tapestry hanging over the expensive-looking bed with the two robed figures on them.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Junichiro said. Sophie almost let out a little frightened yelp. So suddenly had he appeared behind her, and so quietly too.

He raised a finger at the figure on the left. "That one there is Izanami. It was she who, according to the old legends, gave birth to the islands of Japan and to many of the other gods. She died giving birth to the fire god Kagutsuchi"

He then pointed to the figure on the right, to the robed man holding the spear. "And that is Izanagi, her husband. After her death he journeyed into the underworld to rescue her. Sadly he failed, and upon escaping the underworld he walked into a river to cleanse himself. Izanagi washed his left eye, giving birth the Amaterasu, the sun goddess. He then washed his right eye he gave birth to Tsukiyomi, the god of the moon. Finally, when he washed his nose Susanoo, the storm god, was born."

Sophie listened with mild interest, but she could only take in maybe half of what Junichiro was telling her. The pounding in her head grew worse. The alcohol must have been affecting her a little more heavily than she thought, because she didn't realize just exactly how blurry her vision had gotten until Junichiro had pointed at the tapestry in order to get her to really look at it.

"I never liked that legend. He should have rescued her."

She squinted and looked a little more closely at the tapestry. It was then that she noticed that the woman on the left had both her eyes and her nose scratched off. Hadn't it been the other one who had washed himself in the river?

The hairs on her neck and arm suddenly stood on end. It suddenly struck Sophie that she hadn't heard Rayla in quite some time.

Sophie turned to face Junichiro, only to find him standing with his face just a few mere inches from her own. The eyes that—just a short time—ago Sophie had found warm and soft now gleamed with some thing else.

The pounding in her head reached a fever pitch, causing Sophie to clutch at her temples. Her mind began to grow dark and the last thing she saw were those big, dead orbs.

Date: Unknown; Time: Unknown – Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik System, Omega

Location Unknown

(Specialist Sophia Croft, Jaeger Team Two, First Platoon, 7th Jaeger Battalion, Delta Company)

Sophie felt as if she were wrapped up in a large, warm, blanket. Her body and her mind felt dead and heavy and her senses muted and dull. Somewhere out there she thought she could hear someone or something moving around, but that realization was all she could manage. Her body disobeyed every single command that Sophie tried to give it. Haze. Everything was all haze and insubordination and dead weight.

Her consciousness came back in a slow trickle. Eventually enough of it pooled to give Sophie control of some of her faculties. Sophie opened her eyes and was immediately met with the harsh glare from a large, overhead lamp, the sort that you might find in a med-bay. Cold, white, and sterile, the light accelerated her return to the land of the living.

A face appeared above her own, partially obscured by the light. The Jaeger blinked a few more times and the image finally resolved. It was Junichiro. The arms dealer look pleased. As soon as he appeared, he was gone.

As her mind continued its return full consciousness several other sensations slowly began to make themselves known to Sophie. The first was an object in her mouth. Something large, coarse and rough had made its home there. She tried to lift a hand to investigate, and that's when she felt the cold, metal shackles.

Adrenaline flooded into Sophie. She tried to get up but found that she couldn't get her head up more than a few inches off of what Sophie now realized was a metal operating table.

She tried to scream, but all that she could manage was a muffled, muted groan.

And then Junichiro appeared again, above her. He stroked her cheek. "Shhh. Relax… relax," he crooned.

Sophie felt herself beginning to hyperventilate. Her eyes darted around. She was in a room wholly unfamiliar to her. The ceiling was a series of cold, metal panelling and directly beyond her was a door and next to it, medical cart filled with assorted instruments.

Her heart felt as if it was going to tear out of her chest. She was beginning to feel lightheaded and dizzy. Sophie looked left and saw Rayla lying shackled and unconscious on an identical operating table.

Then Sophie made the mistake of looking to her right. Lying on a third operating table was the body of a human woman, perhaps in her early or mid-twenties. Her head was tilted her way so that Sophie could see her face. Her eyes were gone and her nose was missing. Sophie screamed.

A figure came between her and the ghastly visage. Junichiro knelt down and tutted at her. "Look at what you've done. You shouldn't have looked, my dear. You gone and ruined the surprise that I was preparing for you and your friend."

Sophie tried to plead with him but she could not manage more than a few muffled words. "I won't remove your gag, if that is what you're asking for. Oh – I used to remove them. I used to be quite enamored with the concept of hearing what a person says as they know that their death is fast approaching."

Junichiro stood up and sighed. "The first few or so were wondrous displays of vulnerability. I heard every reason — every bargain they could conjure up for clemency. Some thought that they could outsmart me or manipulate me. Those I found the most amusing, and often I would play along up right up until the very end. Fewer still would seek to threaten me – especially if they were long-time mercenaries."

He nodded at Rayla. "Your friend Ms. T'Lana there would have most certainly fallen into the last category," he said, using Rayla's real name. "But… I wonder which one you would have been, Ms. Croft."

The monster smiled. "Unfortunately, my curiosity no longer stirs me like it used to. I've heard and seen it all, Ms. Croft. Eventually it all just repeats itself. The final moments of all my tributes were nothing more than spokes on a wheel. Turning it became meaningless."

Junichiro raised a syringe filled with a clear liquid. "Now I like to simply get to the point. Do not worry my dear, you won't feel a thing. It'll be as easy as falling asleep."

Sophie's body shook in terror. Junichiro's features were getting blurrier and blurrier as her tears sought their strangled exit from her eyes. The syringe moved closer and closer.

Something hit the door with a bang, partially crumpling it. Junichiro whirled. Another bang and the battered door flew across the room.

Essana Dalis dashed in, her arms and legs ablaze with biotic energy. She scanned the room quickly. Her eyes widened at what she saw but the veteran captain didn't miss a single beat. The asari raised a pistol at Junichiro.

"You sick fuck!" She spat.

An omni-tool appeared around Junichiro's wrist and he immediately hit the weapon with a Sabotage, overheating her pistol. The asari hurled it at the murderer, but Junichiro quickly wrapped himself in a cloak of biotic flame and slipped out of the way. Even with his biotics, Sophie thought that he had moved way too quickly for a normal being. Was he enhanced?

Essana lunged at him and the two began to exchange blows. Despite likely being hundreds of years younger than the asari mercenary Junichiro blocked her with an almost lazy deftness that belied his skill. He was quicker too – quicker than the asari, and this further affirmed Sophie's belief that perhaps the serial killer had been cybernetically-augmented.

The Eclipse captain's brows furrowed in effort. She knew that she was outclassed and that she couldn't keep this up much longer. Looking desperate, Essana pulled out a combat knife and aimed a few wide, haphazard slashes at Junichiro's chest.

Junichiro darted backwards and dodged them with ease, an amused smile on his face. However, his smile slipped when he looked to see Essana smiling back at him. He realized too late that the maneuver was just a front so that Essana had the space she needed perform the mnemonics required to launch herself into a biotic charge. The charge – initiated from near point-blank range – was too close to be dodged. It hit Junichiro squarely in the chest, sending him flying into the wall behind him. He slumped to the ground, unmoving.

Sophie gave a muffled shout. Essana immediately ran over to her. "Hang on, I've got you," she said, and the captain began to tear off her restraints one by one with her biotics.

Soon Sophie was free. She tore the gag from her mouth and let out a sob. "It's h-him. He's the one who's been killing all those girls!"

"I knew something was wrong when we lost contact…" Essana replied, her gray eyes alight with fury. "But I never would have—damn it, we had no idea, none at all! You have to believe me! I would have never put Rayla in danger like this!"

Sophie nodded and turned to look at Rayla. The asari was still unconscious.

She heard a gurgle from behind her and the fear came clawing its way back into her chest. She turned back around. Essana's eyes were rolling back into her head as she began to choke and froth at the mouth.

The asari captain crumped to the ground to reveal the serial killer standing behind her. He had a tight, sinister grin on his face but it was the eyes that re-ignited the terror in Sophie. They neither gleamed madly or shine with any sort of unholy frenzy as one would have expected. No, they were dull and dead – as if everything that was happening was all just another routine part of his day. That somehow terrified Sophie more than if he had been driven to madness. In his hand he clutched a now-empty syringe that had earlier been meant for Sophie.

"Now, where were we?"

Sophie lashed out with her foot, catching Junichiro in the chest and pushing him back. The arms dealer hissed in pain, Sophie having hit him right where Essana had. Sophie scrambled off the table and dashed for the broken door. She pulled herself out and found herself back into the apartment just beside the bedroom.

Sophie could hear Junichiro moving behind her. The fear overwhelmed her amygdala and swept away her training and any thoughts the Jaeger had about fighting back. No —there was no fighting this monster. Junichiro was no pirate, slaver or even one of those mindless cris'paii. Junichiro was a true hunter. An apex predator. Sophie's only recourse was to flee.

She began to run. Not two steps in she felt a jolt against her lower extremities and suddenly she found herself on the floor. Pain like a red, hot knife suddenly erupted in her foot and lanced swiftly up her shin. The incredulous realization of what had just happened to her struck Sophie and quite nearly drove her mad. She had tripped on the edge of the bedframe.

The footsteps behind her were soft – almost tentative — but to Sophie they sounded like the beat of an ominous, heavy drum. The Jaeger felt a wave of something dark and menacing wash over her.

She rolled around onto her back. There stood Junichiro, padding slowly towards her with a wicked grin on his face. And those eyes… his eyes. Incomparable. Evil. Sophie could see herself in them lying dead on the floor, her own eyes removed and her nose gone.

But suddenly Junichiro stopped. His eyes lifted to look beyond her and his visage turned into one of confusion.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

Sophie turned her head. When she saw what had given pause to Junichiro she was immediately filled with an overwhelming sense of relief. It hit her so suddenly and with such force that it threatened to stop her heart.

Standing in the foyer of the apartment was Commander Shepard, clad in her battered set of black N7 armor. Her face was as still as marble and betrayed not a single emotion. Her emerald-green eyes stared at Junichiro with a bone-chilling coldness. She had no weapons that Sophie could see. The Commander's hands were hanging loosely at her side.

Beside her stood Garrus Vakarian wearing an equally-battered set of armor, except that it was blue and silver and clearly meant for a turian physique. Like the Commander he too was not holding a weapon, though an ancient M-92 Mantis sniper rifle hung on his back.

Junichiro might not have recognized Shepard but he certainly recognized Garrus. "You!" Junichiro hissed. A look of uncertainty crept onto the killer's face. "I know you. You're…"

Junichiro then looked back to Shepard. His eyes searched hers, trying to place where he might have seen her face. But the realization never hit him.

Shepard didn't say a word. She simply looked at Junichiro and then flicked her eyes to the wall beside him which housed his collection of Japanese katanas.

Junichiro followed her gaze, gave a soft smile and then nodded. The killer grabbed one of the katanas and unsheathed it, the blade singing as it exited the scabbard. Sophie could see that Junichiro had kept blade the well-maintained and razor sharp. The killer brought the hilt of the weapon to his lips and kissed it.

Suddenly Junichiro was surrounded by a soft, blue biotic aura. He ran the tips of his fingers across the blade of his katana and the weapon became enveloped with the same glow as well. He was a biotic – and clearly a skilled one as well if he could localize his biotic abilities like that. He then adopted a fighting stance, with one leg backwards and the blade held beside his face. Junichiro's smile grew wider.

Then it was Shepard's turn, and what she did was unlike anything that Sophie had ever seen before. Shepard swiftly brought her hands together and began to move her fingers. The commander began rapidly forming what looked like a series of shapes and hand-signs whose meaning was completely alien to Sophie. Shepard formed maybe half a dozen of those strange hand-signs in under two seconds. She was so fast that Sophie could hardly track her hands.

Sophie watched in awe as Commander Shepard's right arm began to blaze with biotic energy as well, except the biotic aura that surrounded her arm was thicker and a lighter —almost white-ish — blue in coloring than any biotic aura that Sophie had ever seen. It quickly grew brighter – so bright that the Jaeger could hardly see the red and white stripe that covered the Commander's right arm.

A split second later the strange biotic aura began to evolve even further. It condensed and gathered around her hand and forearm and grew even brighter. It also began to spark and crackle – almost as if it had turned into electricity. The singing of what sounded like a thousand different bird suddenly filled the apartment room.

For the first time in a long time, fear found a place on Junichiro's face. The killer was clearly shocked by the Commander's unique, biotic display but he refused to back down. A predator like him would not flee when cornered. No – a predator like him fought.

Junichiro and Shepard launched themselves into biotic charges directly at one another.

They collided with a thunderclap. Junichiro swung his katana and the commander reached out with her hand. The biotic aura wrapped around the Commander's hand flashed even brighter. It was like burning magnesium, growing so bright that Sophie was forced to avert her eyes.

Suddenly the bird-song vanished, to be replaced with silence.

The next thing Sophie could hear was a surprised gasp and then labored breathing. Drops of blood fell down onto the bamboo-matted floor. Junichiro let out a disbelieving grin and turned his gaze downwards. He brought a trembling hand up towards Shepard's elbow.

His fingers gently caressed the red and white stripe of her armored arm. "Beautiful…" he whispered.

His katana fell from limp fingers. The biotic aura enveloping it dissipated before it could even hit the ground. Shepard removed her hand from Junichiro's chest and the killer slumped to the ground.

The entire battle from when Junichiro drew his sword to Shepard's first and final blow had lasted no longer than a few heartbeats. Junichiro was certainly dead. Shepard did not spare the monster a second thought and instead went to Sophie's side. She flicked the gore from her hand and turned on her omni-tool, performing a quick medical scan of the disoriented Jaeger.

Eventually the realization that she was no longer in danger hit the Jaeger and Sophie began to sob. "Sophia, you're going to be okay. I've got you," Shepard whispered softly to her. The Commander stroked her hair and with her other hand injected Sophie with a syringe of some sort. Sophie felt her head start to clear soon after. "Garrus! Check the room behind the bedroom!" Shepard ordered.

The turian nodded and disappeared into the hidden operating theatre. "Rayla's here! She's alive! Captain Dalis too!" Garrus called out. A few moments later the turian reappeared with the asari captain draped over one shoulder and Rayla leaning on the other. The former commando moved with a sluggish feverishness. Her eyes were unfocused and she looked as if she were on the brink of collapse.

When Rayla saw Junichiro an ugly look passed over her phase and she snarled. She pushed herself away from Garrus and limply launched herself on top of Junichiro's body. Before either Garrus or Shepard could react Rayla had already dug her hands into Junichiro's eyes.

"Specialist!" Shepard ordered sternly.

"That's for Arissa!" Rayla hissed. She spat on Junichiro's mangled face and flung away his ruined eyes. She looked up at the ceiling and gave a sigh. "I'm done, Commander. I'm good."

Shepard sighed as well and gave a sad shake of her head. "I'm sorry we couldn't get here sooner. I'm sorry you both had to go through that."

"Don't be," Rayla shook her head as well. "We got what we came here for. We fulfilled our deal."

Rayla ran her fingers through her crest, smearing it with fresh, blood. She let out a sigh and turned her head to gaze out the window. Skycars streaked by, leaving red trails against the backdrop of orange light being emitted from the station's artificial skylamps.

"Goddess, I fucking hate this place."