XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX;

"I made it to Omega with little; for a station for outlaws in an entire system full of lawbreakers, it's surprisingly hard to get high-grade gear through security without it being swiped. I lost my main rifle. I only really had my sidearm. It was gone if it wasn't on me and was of enough value to anyone else. My mistake for taking crowded transport." The Turian recollected his arrival, hoping to brace himself to retell his recent tragedy.

Knowing Aria and Omega enough by now, Naruto was quick to understand. "Only way to get in without being named or put into the system. Wetwork, something the Queen herself knows well. If I recall, her reasons for the 'customs' office for that kind of entry is because of spies taking that route as an easy-in with no identity. If they want in that bad? They must be reminded they aren't as clever as they think."

With a shrug, the dextro crossed his arms and leaned against the nearby bed. "Didn't matter. As much as I hate to admit it, I stole some gear myself here and there to give me a better start. The first objective, find the people holding Shepard's head as a bounty and clear it. I got quickly disgusted by the criminal activity there and thought to use some vigilante justice as I did my work. A week after this, people started calling me a savior, an Archangel, and many other names in many dialects of languages. All mean the same thing. Then, just after the Bounty was cleared, I saw a Turian getting ganged up in a bar. He wasn't exactly a civilian, and your average career soldier turned dropout."

Getting understanding nods, he didn't have to say much, considering he gripped his arm so hard they could see the softer bits of the armor bending. With a heavy sigh, he continued. "He had lived on Omega for over a couple of years, sick and tired of the place being as harsh as it is to people just wanting peace and quiet. Like me, he wanted to do something about it. The first partner gained for the long haul. I didn't plan to stay too long on Omega but seeing as Shepard had to get through physical therapy and nothing else was on my plate, I thought, why not. Make these scum think twice before killing an unarmed and non-combative old woman in the streets for their sick, demented pleasure."

Emily leaned against the wall with her arms crossed under her bust, "Making a dent in the criminal element of that place will be one hell of an endeavor."

"I knew it was like trying to break down a wall with a stick. Luckily, more people believed in my cause than even I expected. But, of course, we weren't a mercenary outfit or anything like that. All of my team were experts in their field, including a Batarian, believe it or not."

That made a brow cock from the blond, "Now that is surprising."

Garrus agreed with a nod, "Wasn't the friendliest person but never met a hacker with his skills."

They were still in the medical bay, and even Sakura was slightly surprised. "Batarians aren't known for their technical skills, even Krogan joke about how they can't make a machine worth a damn."

That got a chuckle out of the Turian. He seemed proud of the former teammate. "Says a few exceptions to some of the jokes others have on you humans." All sorts of reactions came from the people in the room to that jab, but ultimately harmless. "Regardless. Vorcha sniper with a sharp mind and heart of gold, Salarian explosives expert who we all swore was STG-"

"He ever say so?" Being with them so long, Emily was curious if she knew the name or not.

"We asked once, and all he said was, 'Whether I was or not, my answer is no for both. Whether it's a lie or truth, believe what you want. I just want the Eclipse to suffer'. Bottom line, we had all respected—a couple of humans, one civilian who wasn't taking a desk job anymore. The team had a dozen members, including me. We all knew our goals, to take back Omega from the gangs. We all knew our one unbreakable rule, too; no civilian casualties. So we played it smart, got them angry, guerilla warfare, got them to come to us in our clean and surgical kill zones."

"We're waiting for the 'but' here..." The siblings noticed the cloth-draped bodies along the floor of the place, so none of them seemed to make it.

Those mandibles twitched in fury and despair for a quick moment before Garrus collected himself, outright getting to the point. "Sidonis, the Turian who was my first partner? He called me out of the blue, saying he was in some trouble, too much for him to handle alone. I rushed to the location he provided. I should have had the entire group come, and I should have gotten them on comms. But I was blinded. I thought I could get him out alone. He even mentioned he only needed one to get him out of the jam." Shaking his head, he muttered the phrase used. "Heh... 'like old times. He was luring me away from the rest of our team. By the time I got there, there was nothing, not even a single drop of blood. I thought something was wrong halfway there, but it took me too long to realize what had happened. All three gangs hit the hideout with every elite they could muster together. By the time I got there, only two of my team were still alive... They didn't last long after..."

Seeing their friend lower his head in despair over remembering the event, Shepard came and put a hand on his arm. "You did what you thought was right."

Naruto was wondering about the entire scenario, wondering about the implications. "And you're sure he betrayed the group? And if so, willingly?"

"I'd love to believe he was forced, to believe he was tortured and made to divide the team enough to strike. But there was no evidence of him being dragged around, beaten, or bloodied where I was sent. Maybe he was elsewhere, you might ask? Well, funny, you should mention that. A few hours after you got me off Omega, I looked into whatever network I got my hands on. He booked a ticket off the rock before the base even got hit."

Chakwas shook her head, "I'm so sorry for what happened to you and your team, Garrus."

"Appreciate it, Doctor, but presently I just want to look for the bastard who killed my team."

The way he said that drew Naruto's attention, "Garrus."

"I know what your thinking. But, no, I won't let this interrupt the mission for the Collectors. I can prioritize, but if I find Sidonis, don't expect me to sit on my hands as you humans say."

The others fully understood his words. They'd be just as angry in his position. "If you need to vent, you know where we are," Emily addressed gently.

Garrus gave the nod, "I know. But I have never been one to 'hash out' my feelings. Ironic, given how much of a hothead I used to be, right?" He could hear his sister chiding him about that.

"Figured you more passionate than hotheaded," Sakura offered her words.

With everything laid to bear, the biotic powerhouse saw the concern on his sister's face. He knew that kind of look only once... "Garrus, just remember. Nothing is ever as simple as it seems. And whatever you do about Sidonis, you should trust your heart to decide what's right. And we will be there to help."

"My feelings got in the way, to begin with..." He started for the door but stopped just as it opened to look back at them. "But I appreciate it, thanks. And for what it's worth, I trust you two more than myself half the time. I'll be tuning the forward cannons, though I doubt we'll be much of a threat against the Collectors with the current output."

As he left, the four humans were silent. Sakura poked her brother's arm and pointed to her sister, knowing all too well the far-seeing look of worry. One of someone who loves the one that is in trouble all the time.

"He's a grown man. But we can make damn sure he doesn't slide off the edge," Naruto quipped.

Chakwas nodded, "It is all we can do. Give our friend space. If he wants to speak, we are there for him."

"Well said, doctor," Naruto grinned.

XxX xx XxX

The blond commander groaned as he sat on his cabin sofa. A few days resting before returning was a must as he could do much after his surgery. His mind wandered as he vividly remembered the red Asari he kept seeing. A hallucination, maybe? Yet she felt so real, like she was with him.

As hard as he thought about the possibilities of why he knew he wasn't going to find an answer by staring at the wall. Picking up the dossier, he read through it. "This one is going to be a handful. The criminal activity list is through the roof. Not like we are all saints on board, we already got a master thief and a merc who ran with the Suns. Something tells me we want to get her on board, though."

He was halfway through his consideration when EDI came to life in his room. "Commander Uzumaki, Yoeman Chambers is requesting permission to come see you. Are you available?"

"Might as well. Send her in."

His cabin door opened not long after, revealing the young redhead who came with a calm smile and saluted, "Requesting permission to come in, sir."

"You salute with the other arm, Chambers," The blond quipped as Kelly corrected herself, "Good. You may enter."

Coming down the short steps, the Yoeman came over to the sofa, "Just came to check on you, commander. Since waking up, you have been in active combat for several hours. Not to mention the minor surgery performed on you an hour ago."

Absently Naruto rubbed his neck, "Well, I believe in being thorough."

"You and the Illusive Man have that in common. You both are highly dedicated to your work. So I came to see if you need a shoulder to lean on."

Always have been able to talk his problems out with Ino if the need arose, the revived soldier was quick to hold back. But, as he remembered that Ino would no longer be available to him soon, he would need to open up to new people one day. With a heavy exhale, he put his notes down. "I've been through hell enough that veterans of the First Contact War, on either side, would probably recoil in surprise at how I even function. But, before the call to board the Normandy and head to Eden Prime came, a few months before, I think, a Turian who had witnessed his ship blow up, his friends being burned alive as he was buried under the supports of the cruiser? He knew all too well my record. It turns out he was a recruit who survived the planetside crash of his ship and was saved by my father on Shanxi. He saw me having lunch, gave me his story, and told me he was the lucky one."

Hearing such a tale, even Chambers was wide-eyed at the admission. "Why would he be the lucky one if you supposedly had it worse in this instance?"

Looking at her with a sad smile, he chuckled. "He said he was lucky because even his enemy cared for his well-being. He knew I had no soul to help me on Akuze when I was nearly dead. He paid for my lunch, insisted, and mentioned he felt he had a debt to pay, and not even lunch would cover it. He wished the spirits to protect me and went to his next post. I didn't find out until later that he was the CO of the THS Korvatos. His ship got severely damaged while defending one of the Fifth's Dreadnaughts from a Geth ship that blind-sided us on our way in during Sovereign's attack on the Citadel."

"Did he make it?" The grim expression of the blond was all she needed to know, "From being in the war fighting humanity to dying to save it. He's a hero."

"Lieutenant Decmus Lucisis. I sent a message to the surviving family about his fate. It felt right, paying him back however I could."

Kelly sat on the sofa, processing what she learned, "I read your files on your time on earth. Not many could survive and be normal. Let alone become a soldier. The horror stories from those places-"

"The vids censored the worst of it. You grew up fast, living around gangs, cultists, drug lords, etc. Avoid getting shot, drugged, and snatched up for whatever they want to do to you." He gazed at the ceiling, "I used to hate folks who lived above it in their lovely, comforted, safe homes. Not even knowing or caring what went on in the old abandoned cities."

It was a weird thing, reading up on the man in front of her to hear everything in his personal views from him. Even with her experience, it was something she had never experienced before. As she listened, she had no idea how to respond because it seemed like he had made peace with his past. Still, she tried to keep the attention on their back and forth. "And has that changed?"

"Somewhat. When you go through the type of hell I have, you tend to try and find answers. There are none, but you can find peace through faith. Old Turian belief helped me through my early years of being in the military, the one where if you look from the outside, you may miss context about how others' hardships are not as easy as you think. Kaiden is a prime example, oddly enough. He comes from a well-off family but has had crap about his biotics from day one and went through his hell. His family is only well off because they were poor and chose to build a better life instead of fighting those who seemed better off. There are plenty who are bad in their ivory towers, but some good mixed in as well."

"I am very grateful you are open with me, Commander."

Naruto gave the nod, "I still don't trust your boss. But so far, you've been straight and honest with me. That also includes the Cereberus crew members on board. Been pleasantly surprised so far."

"We are here to help. I hope effort shows that not all of Cerberus is evil. But, of course, I won't sugarcoat the questionable actions done. Let our actions speak for us on the crew." Kelly spoke with genuine sincerity.

Shrugging his shoulders, Naruto accepted it. "Given most of it is the former crew from the original Normandy, and don't consider themselves Cerberus, the crew itself seems fine. We can only wait and see where the road takes us. Who knows, maybe anyone with Cerberus will change their minds by the time we complete our mission."

XxX xxx XxX

The Normandy was heading to the next relay, on orders from Miranda to at least get into the system when Naruto gave the order. With little to do, Shepard was managing her cup of coffee to keep her awake for the time being. She was used to long hours these days.

Being in the bunk room, she was managing messages, knowing that EDI was double scrubbing anything sent to and from that was potentially dangerous to Cerberus or this mission. In front of her suddenly materialized Kasumi, which almost made her jump. "Jeez, Kasumi... Reclusive behavior much?"

"Well, comes being a thief and all, Shep. Can I speak with you?"

With nothing to do, Emily tossed her datapad on the bed and sat up, "What is it?"

"Since we're getting close back to the Citadel. I wanted to know if I could ask for your help with something on Bekenstein."

Shepard's brow rose, "The manufacturing colony planet?"

"Hai," Kasumi nodded, "There is something there I need to get. And it can't wait." Though her tone was apologetic, there was urgency in it as well.

"Uh-huh." setting her cup to the side, Shepard stood up. "You mentioned a favor or something for your conditions to joining up. What that favor?"

"Right-o. Donovan Hock has something important to me, stole it from my partner when he killed them. If we get it back, I'll follow you and your brother into an abyss."

Hearing the short version was enough to make the one-armed woman wonder. "Seeking some revenge on the side?"

The lowered look of the thief was contesting different emotions and thoughts on the prospect. "Won't lie, I'd happily tear Hock a new one. But what he stole is more precious than thoughts of revenge. Especially if he decides to use the box as leverage, so no barging in guns blazing until we get what we are after."

"So espionage."

"Does your Alliance N7 training cover that?"

Emily couldn't tell if that was a joke or a legit question, "Not the first time Naruto or I did missions like that."

An uneasy look came from the thief, "If possible, I'd have you go with me on this mission. Hock has a lot of eyes and ears from the Citadel to Omega. He knows Senchō by name, face, and reputation. Especially all those cloak and dagger missions Admiral Hackett had him do."

That drew the other woman's attention, "And how would you know all that cloak and dagger business?"

Kasumi gave a weak chuckle, "Peeked around where I shouldn't have?" Emily deadpans, "Okay, so I had a 'tiny' crush on your brother before meeting my late partner. And wanted to know about him, sooo I snuck into the Alliance to peek about."

"That's a bit stalkerish, Goto."

"I'm a thief! Do you think I function like a normal adult or something?"

Not like she was any stranger to seeing so many girlish eyes fawning over her sibling, and to be fair, there were much worse stalkers out there that she had to deal with. "Do you have a plan then? How long will this take? You mentioned not a very long mission."

"Hopefully, in and out within an hour. Best-case scenario, we get into the vault without any fuss, grab the device, and get out before anyone is the wiser: no bloodshed, no fighting, no worries. Whenever you are apart, you and Sencho have less hassle. That's almost become the warning sign of things going south quickly, you two on the same mission."

"Oh, I know it well. 'If they are on the same squad, better be a relay away.' But, unfortunately, they fail to see that the situation gets that insane before we arrive most of the time, so they need us both anyway. Have a worst-case scenario?"

Knowing all too well that chance was still a risk, Kasumi had made sure to prepare for such an event. "I have a pick-up at the Citadel; it's already crucial to the sneaking-in plan. It also has a compartment for all our weapons and armor. So as long as we can maintain our cover until we can suit up, we won't be without our plan B loadout."

That sounded good, "So what are we picking up?"

"Something that will impress Hock enough to get us through the front door. A lifesize statue of your old friend Saren, made of pure gold." The hooded woman beamed proudly. Emily only stared wide-eyed, "What?"

"How the hell did you make a lifesize statue of Saren made of gold so damn fast?"

Kasumi waved it off, "Don't sweat the details. I have quite a few friends who'd help me immediately for jobs."

Since she started working a little more alongside STG, briefings with as many details as possible were standard. But, she took the hint. Sending a quick message to ask permission to re-route for this side job, Shepard quickly looked to the ceiling, knowing the cameras were watching. "EDI, have we hit the Relay yet? Might be going to the Citadel briefly."

The synthetic voice came up from the room's speakers. "We are nearing the Relay; Mr. Moreau has already set coordinates to the next system. Likewise, operative Lawson has already given destination coordinates."

"I suspect that will change unless you block my message. If I have to go up to see my brother personally, I'll be pissed. So will Naruto and Joker, considering the back and forth traffic he has to navigate." She turned to Kasumi... or would have if the woman had not suddenly vanished.

Turning to the door, which had just opened, she saw a shimmer of a hand waving. "Thanks, Shep."

XXX xx XXX

Not long after arriving in the Serpent nebula and Citadel, Shepard and Kasumi got to an unmarked transport where the Saren statue was. The two quickly got ready to travel to Bekenstein.

As the Normandy would look very strange, and they needed to be undercover, it was an inter-cluster transport. The standard for high-profile criminals who wanted to stay off the radar and still transport goods. Kasumi came into their cabin with a garment box with the stealthy team of two waiting to arrive. "Well, time to go over your cover. I'm your right-hand woman, doing your dirty work. No note, mercenary. But you, Ms. Allison Gunn, are so much more."

"Gunn, huh? I feel without one right now; even my arm is packed away." However, she did feel a little off with the weirdly attached half-prosthetic, which made it look like her arm was instead cut off at the middle forearm.

Upon receiving it, she figured it was because it was enough of a change to cause a lower suspicion of a one-armed woman. "As notable as your brother is, you aren't exactly hidden from public view. Your last few years underground helped, but the more we make you look less like yourself, the better. And yes, I thought extreme red was the best approach for your hair; it at least naturally matches the slight pigment it had."

"And now this outfit. Please don't tell me it's a dress." Then, getting a nervous smirk, the one she gave back to the thief was one of dead eyes and disappointment. "Only for an hour... I tear it in pieces the moment we get out of there."

"Deal."

It didn't take long to get dressed and go over some bullet points of her 'badass weekly' review forged for her. Arriving, they got out of their luxury rental and watched their little gift come from the convoy car that followed them. "Solid gold... really? Not something more valuable?" Shepard whispered to Kasumi in a low and curious tone.

"Hock has a taste for the classics," Kasumi shrugged. "Or so I heard."

"Lovely." Emily snorted, adjusting the top portion of her dress. She cocked a brow noticing her partner for this mission was leaning in, "Yes?"

"Well, not Miranda's size but still a decent rack, Shep."

Rolling her eyes, she soon took the datapad to go over things again. "Donovan's security?"

"A private group he pays himself. All pros and good at their jobs."

"Let's hope they are not that good at it." Finishing the limited recon of the area and people inside, Shepard slipped the datapad away. As they came up with their unique offering, the guards stopped them. "Is there an issue?" Getting into character, Shepard sounded annoyed. "Because if there is, I'll just take it back."

"No need to grill my doorman; he is just being cautious." The strange accent was striking as the duo met eyes with the man himself walking down to greet them. "I am sure you understand, given your reputation."

Coming down the steps of the large mansion was a man in his mid-thirties, dressed in a very posh and expensive suit. His skin was pale with short brunette hair and a goatee. Emily wasn't sure if his accent was Irish or Scottish, "I can, just a long ride and a little exhausted from the trip. Allison Gunn." She extended her hand in a respectful gesture.

A blank expression met her gesture as the man stared at her hand and back to his guard, "I'm sure Miss Gunn didn't come all this way for trickery. It is beneath her, and it is myself. Let her through"

"Yes, sir."

With the inspection done, the two started following the man back inside. Though, it was not but a second before the first cog in the plan was taken. "Though, I will request you leave your... bodyguard? Outside."

The girls exchanged looks. "Is there a problem with having my right hand with me?" Waving her non-existent one as a way to ease the tension, even if it was slightly out of character.

"Party rules, I am afraid. For the same reason, we check all the gifts and don't want any trouble from the surprises people bring inside. That, and I don't like the look of her." He had a point, considering Kasumi was still in the usual thieving garb she always seemed to be in. Not the best idea, but she assured it wouldn't connect her as her notorious self since no one usually sees her at all.

"Fair enough." The man of the hour accepted that and went inside as Shepard turned with Kasumi. "Think he's onto us from the word go?" She asked in a hushed whisper.

"He shouldn't be. Hock has never seen me." The Japanese woman whispered, "It is all good, though." Once all the guards around them were distracted by something else, Kasumi typed on her Omni-tool. Within a second, she was invisible, "Prefer this method anyways."

With a grunt, Emily strolled inside the mansion. Saying this guy loved the rich life was an understatement; at least three floors were decorated with all manner of art from nearly every species. The room's center was a water fountain with a posh giant statue. Music rhymed throughout the room while people from all walks of life celebrated.

"Bet most of these people have rap sheets as long as their arms," Emily muttered.

Kasumi hearing her on comms, whispered back, "Longer than that. These people have done anything and everything under the sun. All for power and credits."

It was a good thing she was using the eye implants Kasumi gave her for mug shots for later use. "So, mingle and wait for our in..." She was heatedly feeling the irritation from this dress, always having to fix it. "I swear, Kasumi got me this size on purpose."

A few minutes went by as she talked to someone who had an interest in Archangel. Then, finally, the annoying high voice of the short and cardboard-thin woman had Kasumi turn the comms off until they were ready to move on. "I heard he went down before that Spectre team got there, though I still don't believe Naruto Uzumaki has risen from the grave just to recruit vigilantes."

"Naruto Uzumaki," A man beside the woman spoke with surprise, "I assumed he wasn't dead but in some deep-cover mission. Don't Spectres do that?"

An Asari beside them shrugged, "Either way, the entire extranet is buzzing about the son of mercy. And if he is alive by chance, a few in the Matriarchs would know for certain."

Rolling her eyes, Emily strolled among Hock's guests listening to conversations she could hear. And no doubt Kasumi was likely recording. Grumbling, she adjusted her dress again, "If my boobs pop out of this, I'm going to be pissed," She muttered under her breath.

"If I weren't hetero, I'd hit on you in a heartbeat," Kasumi quipped back in a whisper.

With a quick quip back, Shepard hoped it had the intended effect of embarrassing the girl. "With comments like that, you'd wonder if you aren't interested in some way."

She would never know if that made the thief blush or not, but business was business, and right about now was where it began. "There are some stairs down the back of the fountain; make your way here. Hock finished showing it off to a few interested parties, and no one else seems to be heading this way. And, we're in luck with our plan B."

As if she belonged, the red-wigged woman strode down the other side of where Hock came from and met up at the entrance to a VERY technical vault setup. Beside her was the statue they brought, apparently too large to fit through the door. Beside it, Kasumi uncloaked. "Seems our gift was a bit too big to get through the door. What are we looking at, master thief?"

Kasumi gazed at the door, "Have to omit; Hock knows how to protect his stuff."

"Can you crack?"

"In my sleep Shep," The Japanese smirked back under her hood. "We just have to do a few things to open it."

XXX XX XXX

As the Normandy remained docked at the Citadel while Emily did her assist Kasumi on her mission. Most of the crew took the time to relax in Zakara Ward. Naruto, for his part, roamed to the weapons shop with Zaeed and Grunt. The blond had figured they should at least help the newborn Krogan to see what kind of firearms he preferred. For the grizzled veteran merc, he was going over several mods and upgrades for his weapons.

As they looked over a few shops, Naruto made it a point to realize things were a little different these days. The weapons shop he was with Grunt was pretty prominent in its holographic and parts browsing section, meaning the rumored 'hands-off sales' approach was siphoned out after a couple of years. "See anything you want to try? Given our free reign of budget, you can try things that speak to you."

A low growl escaped the Krogan, who looked at the shapes and sized the holos produced. "Like pictures... Okeer only showed such things, nothing with any meaning or reason." He 'picked up the complex light projection of a rifle, getting a feel for the thing. "It's not the same as a real weapon."

Being attuned to the Krogan ways, Naruto tried to stroke the ego. "Scared a hard as nails Krogan like you would destroy half the ward given a real weapon and ammo before getting your money. They want you to buy their stuff and use it on others, not them."

A loud grunt came from the giant Krogan, "As if their C-SEC Varren could even prove a challenge for me."

"Strength is only as good if you got the wits to use it right," Zaeed reproached while not looking away from the second Kiosk.

"Then you don't have enough strength." Retorted the newborn. "If you can't win, you need to get stronger."

That opened up the perfect point. "And my sister... Is she not strong enough? Not exactly able to arm wrestle you with brute force. Arm or no, she can't toss boulders as you can or headbutt a tank and make a dent in it."

The old merc laughed at that. "Doesn't need to, can choke the life out of me with her middle finger with just the right amount of pressure AFTER she knocks me on my arse because she's damned skilled."

The shaking of his head was clear as Grunt tried to put into words his experience, which was none but didn't stop him from echoing the words in his head. "Shepard's strong in other ways, compensating for muscle with other strength."

"Huh, so you mean to say that Strength is not all about muscle." Naruto understood now what kind of teachings the warlord had stuffed in the tank's programming. "Shorthand for power and levels of combat prowess? Okeer didn't think past the simple stuff for his keywords to make his perfect soldier."

"Never underestimate an alpha female," Grunt remarked.

Wise words even Zaeed agreed on, "A universal rule to live by."

XXX XX XXX

Emily rubbed the back of her neck while Kasumi put the finishing touches to open the vault. "You can get dressed now, Shep."

Not being told twice, the N7 Spectre quickly tossed the dress aside to put on her more comfortable armor. For froze for a moment as she swore she saw a flash and click, looking up to Kasumi. "I thought you were straight?"

"Hey, hot is hot."

The Spectre could only fathom the trouble Kasumi would create using that picture. But, after the hellish amount of moving around and keeping eyes on her for almost an hour now, as Kasumi got all the touches for the five-point super lock the Vault had, she wasn't caring about anything but getting this done. "Now I want to strangle that bastard to death... But, at least we have much more intel on the inner criminal circle, so it was almost worth that damn dress."

With her suit on and shotgun in hand, they locked the doors behind them and moved in. It didn't take long to arrive inside the large objects portion of the Vault, which had more than enough to make one's head spin. "No way..." Even if they were curious about the many statues in the room, the most significant and most impressive piece was in full view, larger than life itself as a disembodied head, the Statue of Liberty.

"How the hell did he get Lady Liberty's head!? Damn you, Hock," Kasumi growled and grumbled.

"Is she more pissed she didn't steal it herself?"

Walking through the vault, they saw more art from Asari sculptures, a Krogan statue, and of all things Quarian table of their ancient language. "Hey Kasumi," The woman came over, "Can we get this too?"

"Well," The hooded woman scratched her head, "It is small enough to take it. But why?"

"Quarians deserve to have their history. Not some slime ball."

A good point, for which Kasumi quickly cut out the glass casing and put the tablet into one of her larger belt satchels. "A good deed for the day."

Still searching, as Kasumi had a detector that said it was close by, Shepard noticed a very weird-looking statue of a creature. The beast was pure muscle, almost like they had made the Hulk into an animal, like a goat or ram with the fact it had demonic-looking horns. "For some reason, seeing this thing makes me want to say 'By the Maker.'"

"Wouldn't want to see this thing coming towards me in a dark alley, that's for sure." The detector finally blipped to life, causing Kasumi to turn in the direction of the signal. "Over here!"

Coming next to another display near lady liberty's head, both ladies bore shocked expressions at the weapons shown. "Are those what I think they are," Emily muttered.

"Kassa Locust," Kasumi did a quick scan, "No. THE Kassa Locust. The SMG that killed two presidents!"

"And a copy." The two looked at each other before taking the firearms, "I know Naruto will want one of these."

"And one for myself," The Asian thief chirped happily before noticing the other device on the same stand. "Keji's Greybox!"

Seeing its strange shape, it was an implant. Shepard watched as Kasumi checked it over for any tampering, just in case. "Once we know it's good to take, we bolt." That was one thing she just remembered they didn't exactly talk about. "What's our escape plan?"

The interface covering the thief's eyes was keeping her from turning around as she did the cracking of any firewalls to keep the data intact, though she still answered with her first idea. "Optimally, we sneak out the back, take out some backdoor guards, hijack one of the luxury cars brought in. Out of range before they can get a bead on us."

"Not a bad idea, Kasumi." The voice was NOT one of them. As soon as the sweep of the device was done, the monitor for the vault clicked on, showing their gracious host. "It would have worked, too, if I hadn't planned for your return."

"Kasumi? What's he talking about?" With her shotgun ready, the Spectre started scanning for enemies surrounding them, not seeing anything yet.

Quickly pocketing the device, Kasumi glared at the monitor. "Well, he DID kill my partner. Of course, he never really saw what I looked like, but I guess even I underestimated his paranoia. Not like he could hack the gray box since it requires the paired one in my head to unlock. I guess he figured that out."

"Correct," Donovan nodded, "The fact you roped in Captain Emily Shepard, the second human Spectre, speaks to the length you'd go for it."

"You knew who I was?"

Hock shook his head, "Did you think I wasn't watching when you and Naruto Uzumaki were both made Spectres? While your talents are on par with your brother, I feel relieved it was you and not him that Kasumi brought here."

Emily narrowed her gaze dangerously, "If you think I'm less dangerous than Naruto, you better think again, Donovan."

"By all means. Prove it if you can. No biotics to rip my home asunder, electrical interference devices to hamper your tech skills." He was stroking his ego, having seemingly made his vault a trap.

Which got on her last nerve as she charged her shotgun and sent a large blast from the barrel that blew up his statue of a turian fighter ship. "Seems I have enough power to blow my way out anyway."

The scowl she received? She almost wanted to clip a picture to savor how she took the smug right off the man's face. Kasumi beat her to it, though. "Well, that shut him up."

"Kill them!" His image faded as a door down the other end of the vault began to open.

"Take some cover, Goto!"

Hock's guards and security forces swarmed into the vault, firing at the two who took their respective cover. Ejecting her spent thermal clip, Shepard geared up her arm-mounted crossbow. Peaking out of cover to fire the thing, she aimed for the one with the hard light armor. She didn't think he would grin and take the item, but as it flew into his chest, the look on his face was of apparent shock. Then, as his body dropped, everyone scattered to flank the two.

Knowing they would need some numbers, Kasumi activated her cloak and let free a sentry drone that flew out to be a decoy. But unfortunately, it didn't get far before the drone suddenly shattered, which surprised the thief a moment. "Shep! Any tech with a signal gets disrupted!"

"No shit!" Pulling up her hard light shield, the Spectre ran from cover to meet with the two flanking enemies, bashing one away and shoving her shotgun into the other's face before blasting it off, getting her shield back in front of her to take the brunt of the fire. "Electrical interference, he said! Local use or nothing with a damn signal! No wonder they didn't think my bolt would hit them!"

It made sense, as anything hard light was usually a drone or device with a signal attached for control, so they didn't realize that she had such options, which gave her the advantage, as she blew up the feet of the statue of David with another big blast of her shotgun and let it fall on top of a few of the enemies in cover.

Being invisible, Kasumi managed to sneak around to those flanking her and, with her new SMG and her pistol, took out two from the back of the head before flipping up above the next one behind her. Then, grabbing their head in hand, she twisted in her somersault and cracked the neck of the surprised guard before landing on her feet and leaping into the next cover she could find, the weird beast statue made of some solid metal as it took some fire for her.

"Someone kill these bitches already!" A woman yelled, seemingly in command. "How can two people be causing us so much fucking grief?!"

"It's Emily Shepard, ma'am!"

"She is still a human, and I don't give a damn if she is Spectre. So run her and her girlfriend down."

A snort escaped Kasumi's lips, "So we're dating apparently, Shep!"

"Not the appropriate time Kasumi," Emily reproached.

With a flick of her wrist, the clip for her shotgun ejected, and she slipped a new one in. She came prepared for this type of fight. As Plan B's go, it was essential. That became exactly why she stormed out, and her shield suddenly turned bright white, collapsing as her shields took the brunt of the fire for the time being until she threw the new white ball into the mass of enemies.

The result? Massive temperature drop with an improvised technical ice bomb, freezing half the enemy and chilling the rest as she shot another large blast that shattered the enemies frozen into bits and pieces, and the new explosive force freezing the rest. After that, it was an easy mop-up at the door, with the two using their new SMGs to clear the iced-up piles.

Running out the door where the guard came in, they found themselves in the base area of the mansion. All manner of transportation, weapons, and everything one could want was there. Kasumi tapped her comm, hearing chatter, "They killed Chief Roe! Stop them!"

Looking back, Goto winced, noticing the dead human blond woman, "So that was Roe."

"Heard of her?" Emily checked her shotgun.

"Former Eclipse commander. A real hard ass from what I've heard. Or was... Bad guys seem to drop like flies with you and Senchō."

The Spectre shrugged, "They should have made better career choices. Let's move!"

They took about a dozen or so steps into the service tunnels when all the doors ahead opened up, and they were met with the entire welcoming committee. Five YMIR mechs, a couple of dozen mercs and guards, and twice that in Loki mechs and robot dogs. "Gotta admit-!" A large explosion shook the ground as missiles hit just near their cover, a few flying back to hit a few more statues in the vault. "Hock's sending in everything! It makes killing them all easier and getting out with no more issues!"

"And harder to kill if they keep shooting at us!" With another thermal clip ejecting from the large Carnage blast of a shot, taking two Loki mechs out and knocking a few mercs back, Shepard fired a bolt from her Omni-tool's crossbow to shred the head clear off the YMIR mech. However, they were soon blasted from their cover when the other's missile barraged it to atoms, causing Kasumi to skitter behind a truck and Shepard to roll under it. "Don't even dare say it!"

Kasumi only looked innocent, "Did cross my mind, Shep." Her tone spoke volumes otherwise.

The repeated missiles were getting annoying, even after another mech got its head clipped off, much to the SPectre's grimace to her shields breaking and her shoulder getting shot into. Ignoring the pain and bleeding, she fired another blast from her shotgun and rolled out of the truck to get with Kasumi. Unfortunately, they all seemed to have an endless stream of firepower, making it hard to get any shots off as another missile nearly took Shepard out at her feet, the shrapnel missing her by hairs.

Not being one for staying put in a firefight, Kasumi attempted to sneak by to find anything to their advantage. "Keep them off me, Shep!" Then, running for it, the thief went for their salvation.

"Not like they want your head at the moment!" Cocking the next thermal into her gun, Shepard charged up her shields, activating her Tech Armor to compensate. Running out from cover, she used both Omni-tools to charge in with shields. Since the two tunnels had opened up, there was a divider, and she hit the thing just before the hard shields were broken. Checking her gel to know her options, she could only thank the low-tech arm's capacity. "No advanced tech, room for Omni-Gel converters and tanks. Thank you, Cerberus, for forcing me to plan ahead of the curb here."

Shepard knew well she wasn't safe, feeling she was in even more danger. But, she had her trump card if Kasumi failed, which was not likely, as she was hacking the turret of the Mako in the very back. "Get behind something solid!"

"Just do it! Whatever it is, it's better than waiting!" Then, with her hard light shields up, she got ready for her next maneuver.

"There she is, boys, kill her! Oh, CRAP!" The thugs and mercs were a little late before suddenly being blown up by the considerable ordnance cannon firing and taking out nearly all of them. The explosion managed to stay behind anything that could hurt its target.

A quick turn into the area with her shield up, Shepard saw the devastation. With her SMG, she quickly took the maimed or crippled guards out before regrouping with Kasumi, who jumped from the tank. "Saw Sencho do that once, though we don't exactly have biotic barriers we can recharge to cover our asses."

Emily took a long deep breath, "Good quick-thinking, Goto." Patting the thief's shoulder.

"Hai!" She pointed towards some doors, "Think we go through there, down a hall, and near the platform where our buddies can pick us up."

"And more waves, bad guys," The N7 grunted, "Let's get this over with."

Kasumi did a mock salute, following the other woman.

XXX XX XXX

While nowhere near as densely packed with Hock's guard and mechs. There were still plenty in their path they had to deal with. Both were glad the YMIR mechs seemed out of the picture. "I need a shower after this. I'm all sweaty." Kasumi bemoaned. "Would Senchō let me use his shower in his cabin on the Normandy?"

"Buy him a drink first," Emily snorted as both were behind cover, dodging fire from more guards.

Thankfully, scavenging for every thermal clip kept her Carnage shots coming, which already gave them the advantage, blasting through some trucks that exploded the guards hiding inside them. Then, moving around and into the containers, the duo quickly made their way to the other side of the depot.

Not to say it was easy getting to the door, as some were flanking back around the way they came. But, much to their regret, Kasumi was waiting cloaked for them and quickly killed one with a quick shot to the head before grabbing them, their weapon, and using them as a shield to blast their buddy with the rocket launcher they had, a red spray of mist filling the area.

Shepard had it more accessible, as the only few guards left were the door guards, and they were not well equipped, not enough for her shield to block their shots as she rushed them, only to tackle one to the ground and stomp their neck and blast the other with another powerful blast of her shotgun.

The last guard rushed her but found that her ammo was a non-issue, as she dropped the gun to summon her next Omni-bow bolt and impale him on the wall next to the door. Then, quickly grabbing her shotgun again, she looked back to see Kasumi uncloaking. "All done! Now, let's grab a luxury car and get back to the ship heading back to the Citadel."

"One last thing to do here, then we go." Getting a look, the Spectre sighed heavily before letting her partner know. "You think Hock's going just to let us walk out? He will send his super mercenary on the payroll or get us himself. I get the impression so far he's the hands-on type, so revenge is on the menu."

"You think so?" The look on Emily's face spoke volumes, "So you've dealt with a lot of this?"

"The jackass who started the Blitz waited years to come after me for cluster fucking his plan."

"Oof," Kasumi mumbled, "So not a good track record." She clapped twice, "Well, into the inferno hellfire of death then!" She chirped brightly.

Again, this was an extraordinary woman, and strangely. But shaking it off, they prepared themselves while getting the door open to the hangar platform.

As they walked into the open, they were greeted by the sound of an aerial vehicle. Kasumi could already feel the 'told you so' coming. "Could be a few more guards being dropped off?"

"There you are, Kasumi! This ends now!" Into view came their enemy, Hock flying a gunship with the visible shine of overloaded diffusion shields. It also seemed to have double the missile pods, a few more cannons, and an armored cockpit.

The pairs of eyes met, and Kasumi huffed, annoyed. "Fine, fine! Let's just get out of this mess!"

"Then take cover!" Being outside the Vault, Shepard chose to give her support drone a try, activating one and sending it into hiding. The minute it left normal disruption range and was still signaling, as she got behind a thankfully gifted security door for protection when the bullets started to fly, she knew they were in luck. "We got signal!"

"Then let's disrupt those shields and bring him down to earth," Kasumi quipped before both ladies heard the distinct sound of a missile begin to fire, "But, first run for your life!"

Shepard and Goto dashed from their cover milliseconds before a rocket turned it to dust."Neither one of you will make it out of here alive!"

Having already planned for such a thing, Shepard ran for some cover behind some boxes, hoping they were sturdy enough to give her some time. Then, activating her leg-mounted thermal clip pouch, she started running sub-routines for her shotgun. "When those shields go down, it's game over. Better pray while you can, Hock."

Witnessing another missile almost take out Shepard, who was playing with her Omni-tool, the thief was shocked. "Get out of there, Shep!" Kasumi wasn't sure what was happening but had to do something now to save their asses.

Or she would have, if not for a sudden short-circuit that caused Hock's airship to jerk around suddenly and the shields to become unstable. "Kasumi! I implanted a little virus, and it won't last forever! So hit it with anything you got to take those shields down! And when you do, get to cover!"

The airship tried to stay airborne but sank close to the facility. Seeing a way up, Kasumi grinned. "On it! Leave this to me!" With her ninja-like skills of parkour, Kasumi had leaped up onto the side of the building's cooling intake pipes and was in time to see the airship nearly crash into the building. The shields were starting to come back, though. As she jumped onto the thing, she noticed a small orange drone attached to the upper left bulkhead and knew precisely what had happened.

Looking down into the cockpit, at a very angry and panicking Hock trying to keep his ship from falling, she activated her Omni-tool. First, she sent a surge of electrical discharge through the ship that took out the shield generator. Then, with the shields zapped and removed completely, she gave a playful salute before jumping off the ship and landing next to Shepard. "He's vulnerable! What next?"

"You get back and watch!" Then, jumping into the middle of the docking platforms, Shepard aimed her shotgun at the gunship as it finally corrected itself.

"You know your out-ranged on that thing!"

Instead of talking, Shepard fired her Carnage blast. As the airship tried to duck out of the way, the explosion suddenly followed and slammed into the wing, breaking into the armor and causing the flying vehicle to buckle from the impact. Then, ejecting her thermal clip, she slipped the one from her hand home in the weapon.

From here, she repeated the same process of impressive firepower. The moment she slipped the clip in, she pressed the butt of the gun to her armored chest and clicked the clip into its place; as her prosthetic hand went to her pouch, which ejected the top of a clip out for her to grab, and she held it between her pinkie and ring fingers before grabbing the handle of her gun and firing again, the blast shot ripping into the underside of the airship as Hock was trying to get a lock on.

Once more, she ejected a clip, used her chest to send home the new one, grabbed the next, and fired. The entire process was immaculate, perfect in its execution. Kasumi swore it reminded her of several fantasy movies of elves in intense archery fights, firing arrow after arrow with inhuman speed.

After the tenth Carnage blast, the Airship started spinning out of control, and Hock was screaming in anger and fear. Filling her last thermal clip, the Spectre aimed right for him. "Sayonara, Hock." And with the final blast from her shotgun, the explosion hit directly into the cockpit, which had its armor blasted away and killed the high-class criminal, blowing the ship into pieces.

Kasumi whistled, "Now that was some damn good shooting. And with a shotgun of all things."

"If you know what you're doing, a shotgun can be like a precision scalpel. Plus, a Krogan friend of mine showed me some pointers."

Typing on her Omni-tool, Kasumi called down the transport to get them back home to the Normandy.

XXX XX XXX

Upon getting into the shuttle, the Japanese woman quickly entered her old partner's grey box with Shepard observing.

Shepard watched as Keiji spoke about how the alliance could be implicated from some sort of evidence and how it was laced into encryption between his and Kasumi's implants. Already checking such a thing, he was right. "Whoever this guy was, he was a hell of an encryption specialist. Even I can't get through something like this without a lot of time on my hands."

Kasumi was being told to get rid of the memories, to destroy it all so that nothing could get out, and so Kasumi could move on. But, much to her sorrow, as she tried telling the message like it was able to hear her, how she couldn't just let the only thing left of him be wiped out. "It's all that's left, of you and us..."

Emily soon stood at Kasumi's side, "There is no way to extract the data from the memories?"

"No, Keiji was an encryption master." Then, for the first time, Kasumi looked unsure, "What do I do?"

"He'd want you to move on and be safe."

A few stray tears fell from the other woman's eyes, "True..." she let out a deep and long sigh. "Mata Ne. Keiji" Her finger hesitated before pressing it. Then, one by one, all the memories faded and were erased. Finally, she leaned her head against the shuttle window.

A hand supported her shoulder, and she looked back to see her partner giving her condolences and respect. It was a simple gesture, but one that made all the difference. Straightening herself, the thief hugged the woman who helped her, which was a little surprising, but the two shared a friendly embrace. After separating, Kasumi stood at attention. "As promised. You have my unwavering resolve to see this suicide mission through."

"Keep that resolve and your trust in me; it won't be a suicide mission for any of us. Naruto and I both plan to get everyone we can out alive. This time that includes you and everyone alongside us on the Normandy." As soon as she said that, the two got notified that C-Sec was hailing their shuttle. "Normandy leaves the Citadel in an hour. 'Procure' your supplies and be on board before then."

XxX xxx XxX

Hitting the Relay, Joker called all hands for their approach. "Hourglass Nebula inbound, ETA to the station fifteen and counting."

"Thanks, Joker." Turning to his right, the blonde sighed. "And as much as I agree we should be prepared for any subterfuge, storming an entire fireteam onboard the station will get us in more trouble."

"So you'll trust they will hand over Jack without issue? I know you better than that." Jacob remarked. Those two, with Miranda and Shepard, were in the conference room.

The issue was that they knew the 'former' Suns would likely betray the deal. Miranda had even confirmed they'd done shifty deals in the past. "The Warden requested to see Naruto confirm the transfer details were legitimate. So we prove we held our end of the deal. If they manage to survive fighting us in a shootout, the entire operation gets sanctioned by Citadel law as criminal activity. Naruto's right. We can't send in everyone to transfer a single prisoner without a fight. And, if they do anything to betray us, we can't have too few."

"Compromise." Everyone turned to Shepard. "He goes with Miranda to secure the Cerberus side of the deal and get's backup from another on the team."

Standing at the ready, the former Corsair soldier volunteered. "I'll go, then. Mordin's still getting our counter ready, and I don't trust mercs like Zaeed, no matter how funny they think they are."

Zaeed did not offend, leaning against the wall, "And when Kuril shoots you in the back, I'll make sure to save your sorry ass, kid."

"Enough, both of you," Naruto spoke calmly but steely undertone. "I know you always never liked mercs, Jacob, but you got to step up passed that for this."

A grunt came from his old partner, "You got it, Uzumaki."

"What do we know about Kuril?" Emily spoke up.

"Former law enforcement from Palaven. He grew disgusted with how the legal system back home isn't perfect and joined the Blue suns." Garrus spoke up.

"Hell of a career change," Naruto quipped.

Zaeed chuckled a little at that. "That's the tip of the goddamn iceberg. That jackass joined up with the Suns for some lofty ideals like vigilantism but found out credits and extortion had their benefits. Maybe he is making things safer by locking up criminals in the dead of space, but I've heard plenty of stories where he is willing to cause havoc for money. Oh, and should I mention he's a bare-faced bastard? Pretty sure our resident Turian here can tell you what that one means..."

"No need." The one-armed woman retorted. "We're very traveled... It makes Kuril seem less likely to hold the deal then."

Distain glowed in Garrus's eyes, "I'll tag along with you, Naruto."

The blond gave the nod, "Four-person team then. And for back-up?"

"Me, Zaeed, and Grunt. If things go south, a big angry Krogan can be a difference-maker," Emily retorted.

Miranda leaned a bit forward with her hands on the table, "More so since our newborn Krogan only seems to listen to you."

The CO of the ship remembered he had to talk about what he found out about the tank-born's thoughts and views but would have to get to that another time. "Alright. We land and see Kuril. All goes well, and we'll be in and out with our newest addition to the crew."

Hidden among them was their resident thief, who kept silent, but almost burst out laughing at the concept of things going well.

XxX xxx XxX

Being scanned through and operated around several blockades surrounding one of the only four ports of this massive ship, the team worked through a good ten minutes of walking before they finally managed to get to the prisoner wing where their pickup was waiting.

"Welcome to Purgatory. You will be screened before entry to the prisoner wings. Proceed ahead." The Turian Blue Suns member spoke before going to stand guard at the door.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX;