Mass Effect

Massive Shock Redux

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Mass Effect or BioShock franchises or any characters or property that BioWare or 2K games have staked claim upon. Original Characters that I create may be used or distributed for use at my leisure.

Ch. 14: Citadel Besieged Part 4

The Plan

20:14 March 08 2182

Splicer

I wake up with a start, feeling drugged in a way. I slept like a corpse and I certainly feel like one right now. My body is incredibly painful, down to the marrow of my bones. Nonetheless, my Afterburn plasmid and enhanced healing tonics have undoubtedly helped mitigate the worst of it. I look to the side, see Jada's back to me, her breathing slow and steady, her toned back and shoulders are still naked. The way her the muscles of her shoulders twitch slightly with each breath and how her slightly glossy ochre skin glistens in the dim light are distractingly enchanting. Her neck is long, distinct muscles visible on the back of her neck. It strikes me just how extremely feminine her proportions are. She's just so perfectly statuesque. If I'd imagine lolwhat the goddess Athena looks like, Jada will always come to my mind first.

I let my head fall back onto the pillow, realizing although I made what I think was a good decision last night, it still makes me feel stupid. If I had done something, I'm sure I would have felt guilty about it even if I didn't understand why. Whether or not I would feel worse or better than I do now is a different question.

It's funny. Just yesterday I was thinking about how it's so effortless for me to make difficult decisions in difficult situations. But obviously I'm not nearly so competent in all scenarios. Give me a gunfight any day over this. I need to get out of here.

I gently climb out of bed and to my feet, heading to the shower. I pick up the clothes I left for Jada and put them on the nightstand on Jada's side. She's still dead asleep, or if she's pretending, she's good. The pillow near her face is wet from drool and she breathes steadily, mouth slightly open. I turn away, grabbing my under-armor plate carrier suit to change into, and go into the bathroom and turn on the shower. The water is hot, to my surprise, and I take a wonderful, if brief shower. I probably lucked out that the power is on on this floor right now.

I get out of the shower and quickly dress. I take a second to look in the mirror and brush my teeth. Ugh. I look terrible. My face is covered in an uneven stubble, my face looks kind a swollen after just waking up, my eyes still have dark circles and my hair is an unkempt mess. I quickly put something in my hair to keep it from turning into a dry tumbleweed once it dries out. Before I step out of the bathroom, I wait a moment. Knowing my luck, if I open the door Jada will be just getting out of bed, totally naked. Wait… is that good luck or bad luck? I sigh and decide that waiting certainly won't make the situation any more or less likely. I open the door.

Thankfully, Jada is still asleep. I breathe out a sigh of relief then gather my gear and step out of my bedroom. The apartment is a lot less crowded this morning… Evening? Damn my sense of time is all mixed up. As I step out into the living room, I see only Nelyna and Saphyria sitting on my couch.

On seeing me, Saphyria who's finally totally conscious, gets to her feet and comes directly to me. She gives me a tight embrace that I return. I look at Nelyna who rolls her eyes at me.

"Thank you, so much." Saphyria says, still hugging me. "You saved my life. If it wasn't for you, who knows what would have happened there."

I laugh. "Saphyria, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have been knocked unconscious in a gunship crash."

She steps back and shrugs. "Yeah, but who knows what's happening at the Presidium now. It's where the fighting is most serious."

I nod and lead her back to the couch. I start putting my armor on. "Speaking of, where'd everyone go?"

Nelyna nods toward the front door. "The human captain and ambassador are both talking to Pallin downstairs. Zero went down there too with another turian C-Sec detective that came to try and talk with you. We told him you were sleeping and should leave you alone and that was like… 2 or 3 hours ago? Nata is off doing repairs for Delarian, and Alex left like an hour ago to help Nata I think."

"Was she… Did she look okay?" I ask, pausing putting my armor on, giving Nelyna a pained look.

Nelyna gives me a suspicious look. "Who, Alex? I mean… Considering the circumstances she looked as okay as anyone could. Why?"

I shrug and continue putting my armor on. "No reason, forget I asked."

Saphyria clears her throat to fill the brief moment of silence that follows. "Anyways… Did you sleep alright?"

I nod. "Yeah, like the dead. You guys hear anything about what's been going on?"

Nelyna nods. "Yeah, we've heard that the Blue Suns seem to be reducing their presence on the Wards, focusing on the Presidium. Zero said that probably means they're having trouble securing the Council. He also thinks that they're in a bad position because they relied a lot on shock and awe. He said as soon as people shake off the initial shock of their attack that they'll have a really hard time since the Citadel population outnumbers them at least ten thousand or more to one."

I nod. "Yeah… honestly that's what I'm most worried about. People on the Citadel turning on the Suns, I mean."

Saphyria and Nelyna look at me, perplexed.

"Why would that be a bad thing?" Saphyria asks.

"Well, the Blue Suns are relatively well-equipped, well-prepared, and well-trained. If people on the Citadel rally and start fighting, I think a lot of people will die. A lot more Citadel people than Blue Suns. I'm a little worried that if we don't act soon to counter-attack, Pallin will just want to wait for the Citadel to start rioting or something to try and use that as a cover to finish the Suns off."

Nelyna nods slowly, understanding. "You'd rather have a smaller controlled battle then?"

I nod. "Yeah, I'm going downstairs to talk to Pallin about it. By the way, you didn't meet her, but I brought someone else back last night. I think she'll be able to help a lot. She's still asleep, but if she comes out let her know I went downstairs to help make a plan."

Nelyna's eyes widen slightly, for just a second, and she glances towards my door and then to Nata's door. Then she looks back to me and nods. "Yeah… sure. I'll tell her."

I look back towards my bedroom door then back to Nelyna. "Nelyna… Nothing happened."

She just shrugs and Saphyria suddenly looks really, really uncomfortable. I decide to simply make my escape rather than press the point and head out of my apartment.

"I swear to the Goddess if she's good looking…" I hear Nelyna mumble to Saphyria just before the door to my apartment closes.

I turn toward Tyrannax. "Morning."

"Evening." He responds, bent over his makeshift worktable, a pair of darkened goggles over his eyes as he uses a small plasma welder on a piece of equipment. He pauses and reaches under his table and hands me the helmet from my light armor set, the one with white patches over both eyes and the usual skull motif.

I take the helmet and turn it over in my hands. A large welded seam crosses over the front of the helmet appearing like a scar. "You were able to fix it?"

"It'll stop a bullet or two." Tyrannax responds. "And you'll be able to wear it even with that armor, though it might not be seamless in how it connects with your armor."

I shrug. "If it works it works, thanks."

He nods. "No problem. Let me know how else I can help."

I pull my helmet on. He's right in that it takes quite a bit of adjustment to get it to connect with the main body of my armor, and I feel like I'm stretching the power cables and air hoses a bit to get them to connect to the helmet behind my collar but it works. I just can't look all the way down at my feet and it's a little annoying but I'm at least happy to have something covering my face again. I know my anonymity is totally compromised at this point and that the potential consequences of that are far beyond my understanding. But at this moment I have a Citadel to save. I can worry about myself later.

I head downstairs and find Pallin, Zero, Chellick, Anderson, and Udina all speaking heatedly in the middle of the room. They grow silent as I enter, and turn towards me.

"Splicer." Anderson starts. "I said I wanted to wait for you before we made any plans, but we've been talking… extensively… for a few hours now."

"We should wait." Udina says, immediately trying to dominate the conversation. I have no doubt he's doing this because he's had trouble getting his point across up until this point. "The Council is holding and the turian military is waiting just outside. No doubt the Council is simply waiting for the turian forces to have enough manpower for a full-scale counter attack to take place. They'll open the Citadel arms when they're ready."

"Waiting just prolongs the inevitable." Pallin says, sounding angry. Pallin strikes me as the type of person who likes to be listened to, kind of like Udina. "We should wait, but wait for the right moment to counter attack. We need to break the primary assault on the Council and scatter the Blue Suns forces. To do that we need more fighters. Splicer, I was saying that since the Blue Suns forces are much lighter on the Wards. We should gather C-Sec forces from the Wards and organize a total counter assault on the Presidium. The turian military can mop up."

"They're too prepared for that." Anderson says, shaking his head, sounding both calm and rational. "You said yourself that the Suns have totally cut off all conventional pathways from the Wards to the Presidium. Assaulting from the Wards will be too complicated, too unorganized. If just one of the assaults on the Wards fails, they'll all fail. Not only will our forces be bottlenecked, but they'll have to reckon with any traps or fail-safes the Suns have managed to prepare since the beginning of the battle. Your plan will result in a huge loss of life Pallin."

"It's either that, or we'll need to wait until the people of the Citadel retaliate in force. And I'm not willing to accept the potential catastrophe of that possibility. We need to act now and rapidly." Pallin counters. Looks like he considered the concerns I expressed to Nelyna and Saphyria. I'm glad that he's worried about further casualties.

"I think we need to try something more precise. A tip of the spear attack. What we need is to get a small strike force, just a few skilled fighters. We can maybe get them in Suns gear, and hit the main assault on the Council. We just need to do enough to break the assault and get to the Council. From there we can open the Citadel arms and let the turian military do the rest. It's risky but it risks the fewest lives. And I think with good planning and preparation we can do it safely." Anderson says, looking to me as he explains his plan, likely because he's already stressed his point to the others in the room.

"What do you think of those plans, Splicer?" Zero asks. Chellick remains silent, watching me.

There's a stretch of silence. They're all watching me.

"We should wait for Jada to come down. She might have something to add to all this." I say, crossing my arms.

"Who's Jada?" Zero asks, looking confused.

"A merc Splicer brought in last night." Anderson says. "What would she have to add?"

"I'll let her tell you." I respond. "However, I think all your plans are flawed but you all bring up capable points. In fact, I think Udina made a really good point."

"He did?" Anderson and Pallin ask almost at the same time.

Udina looks simultaneously surprised I said something in his favor and upset that Pallin and Anderson said something outside his favor.

"He said that if the Council hasn't opened the arms yet, they're waiting to." I say, gesturing around us as I talk. "But what if that isn't the case. I think, that if they could have opened them, they would have."

There's a moment of silence, as everyone considers that point. Anderson nods slowly. "None of us considered that possibility. That the Council won't be able to open the arms."

I nod. "Pallin, you're not wrong. We need to rally forces willing to fight and we can't risk civilian lives. That said, Anderson, I agree that we should try something more precise. Chellick told me that Detective Garrus Vakarian is still fighting at the Presidium precinct. I have personally fought alongside him. Not only is Garrus a tactical genius, he's a remarkable fighter. When I was at that precinct, when the assault began, they were under some of the heaviest fighting but they were holding out. I have no doubt that Garrus's skill was a big part of that but they also had a lot of manpower there. Rather than break the assault on the Council where the fighting is heaviest, we should break the fighting on the Presidium precinct using a small force. Rather than counter attack from the Wards to the Presidium and risk a lot of our fighters in those bottlenecks, we can coordinate several counter assaults across the Presidium. We can attack the Blue Suns from behind where they don't expect us to attack at the points where they've dug in at the access zones to the Wards. We can also send a small strike team to the Council assault, where hopefully the other battles taking place will have thinned out their numbers. What we need isn't one plan or the other. We need to coordinate all of it."

Everyone is quiet, taking the idea in. Anderson nods, looking at Pallin. "It could work."

"But it doesn't solve our problem." Udina says, his one-of-a-kind angry Udina voice coming out. "If we do all of that and still can't open the arms, it'll have all been for nothing!"

Pallin nods slowly, thoughtful. "That's the decision point of all our plans. We're all expecting the turian military to do the main fighting, the mop up, et cetera. But what if we can't get them here."

"With my plan, at least we'll have been able to remove the kill zones the Blue Suns have made at the Ward-Presidium access points. We can then follow through with Pallin's plan and rally C-Sec on the Ward without risking them D-Day style at those chokepoints." I say, shrugging.

At that point, Jada steps out of the elevator, fully armored. She looks at me, then the others. I nod her over.

"Jada, we're trying to come up with a plan to fix all of this. Could use your help." I say. I told her I'd keep her secret, and I have. But the others are right. All of this is contingent upon getting help from outside, and I think Jada knows how to get the arms open.

Jada takes a deep breath and approaches. "How can I help?"

"Insight if you want. Or not. It's up to you." I say, simply. The others are silent. They're a combination of confused and expectant. Waiting for her to speak, especially after I said that we ought to wait for her before we plan.

She takes another deep breath. "I'm… Or I was… Blue Suns."

Everyone pauses, looking around at each other, then at me, then back to Jada. Nobody says anything. She looks at me and I nod, confirming that I have her back.

"I was a member of a specialized strike team, each of us subjects of genetic experimentation intended to give us enhanced abilities. You may recall that the Blue Suns were recently banned from taking work in Citadel Space because they were conducting out-of-the-ordinary genetic experiments. I am one of the results of those experiments. Part of the reason it's us here doing this now is retaliatory no doubt, but we needed a big payout too from losing all that business in Citadel Space.

"My team and I weren't privy to the grand plan, but my understanding is there really wasn't a long term one. This was supposed to be fast and hard. We had four objectives, four targets. I only know two of them because my team was initially on target Delta, taking control of the Council. Shortly after the initial attack, we were reassigned to target Bravo after the three teams assigned to it were taken out. Splicer is target Bravo. Our orders were capture, not kill for both the Council and for Splicer." Jada says, explaining the situation. "We failed to capture Splicer twice. After that my own forces turned on me and my team. I believe they were trying to clean up their tracks. I left on my own. The other two members of my team are dead. I don't know what the other two targets were but I know they were put in order of importance. I also know that though we, the Blue Suns, were only supposed to be the operational aspect of this mission. The plan, the money, all the logistics, a lot of the gear, the intelligence, it all came from elsewhere. From someone else."

"Cerberus." I say, looking toward Zero, who begins to nod in realization. "I've been on their hitlist and we had recent… interaction."

"So you're telling us… That all of this was for him?" Udina asks, incredulous, pointing a finger at me.

Jada shakes her head. "He was only one of the targets. There were others."

"What was target Alpha?" Anderson asks.

Jada shrugs. "Like I said, I have no clue. Nor do I know who was sent to find it. That was above my paygrade."

"None of this is important." Pallin says, firmly. "You, Splicer, and your unique… situation will need to be dealt with. But right now, we need to know how to open the arms."

Jada nods. "Right, so as you all should know there's more than one way, more than one place to open the arms of the Citadel. We captured one of those places, and then from there changed the series of codes necessary to control the Citadel's arms. Without those new codes, even if we take back the control point we captured, there's little hope of getting them open."

Pallin nods, knowingly. "Where did they capture, exactly?"

Jada shakes her head. "That, I don't know."

"Well… this wasn't very helpful." Udina mumbles. "All we did is confirm none of our plans will work!"

"We are missing something." Anderson says, arms crossed and head down, deep in thought. "That being said, I don't think we should underestimate the risk this young woman is taking in telling us all this freely. Pallin, no matter what happens you need to give your word to protect this woman, Jada."

Pallin looks towards her and is quiet for a moment, then nods. "Fine. I give my word that, for now, we'll protect you from persecution."

"That wasn't very encouraging." I say with a frown. "Let's break for now. Anderson's right, we're missing something. For now, I think we can at least start to think over a plan to break the assault on the Presidium precinct."

Pallin nods. "You're right. Anderson, let's get to work on that together."

I let the group move apart before turning my attention to Jada.

"That was brave." I say, giving her a respectful nod. "I appreciate your help."

She shrugs. "In for a penny. I know I'm risking a lot but I don't have much to lose."

I notice Chellick approaching me and I frown at him.

Chellick clears his throat and nods me toward a private corner. I go over there with him and he glances toward Pallin and Anderson both bent over a table looking at various datapads.

"I have something that could help." Chellick says quietly, opening his OT.

I cross my arms and give him a look. "So, while Jada was completely exposing herself you decided it'd be best to keep your mouth shut?"

He shrugs. "She might not have a lot to lose but I do. I got a message."

"From?" I ask, waving him on expectantly.

He shows me his OT. The first thing I notice is that the message is from a few hours ago. The message is brief.

Change of plans. You and I are going to help each other bug out and if all goes according to plan we can both survive this. My 'boss,' for lack of a better term, is behind all of this and he's quickly going off the deep end. Worse yet there's no getting out of here without his codes. I need you to locate something for me. Splicer might know where it is. He likely won't help me willingly so you'll need to find him, and ask him. A wooden chest, with books in it. Our benefactor wants this badly, more than any other of our objectives. Do that, and then maybe we can figure all of this out. But whatever you do, keep the books in the chest. Do not open them.

I frown deeply. The wooden chest we found in the ship? Why the hell is that so important.

"Who is this message from?" I ask looking up at Chellick, though deep in my heart I already have a feeling I know who sent it.

"Cerberus operative named Miranda Lawson." Chellick says. He pauses for a moment when I groan before continuing, unperturbed by the fact I know who she is. "She's been blackmailing me for quite some time and paying me for even longer. Not her the whole time but recently she's been my handler for Cerberus related things."

"Like what?" I ask.

He hesitates, looking guilty. "Like… helping Harkin to get several Cerberus operatives through customs a few days ago. The same ones that… might have kidnapped you. As well as several... well actually many others over the last few weeks."

"Chellick, I swear to God it's getting more and more difficult to restrain myself from killing you the more you talk." I say, blood boiling, trying to keep my voice level and failing. "Did you arrest me on Miranda's order?"

He nods. "Yeah… She wanted me to keep you in one place."

"So, she had Barla Von killed and framed me for it?" I ask, incredulous.

He pauses. "Y-Yes. She sent me to pick you up after it happened. But here's the truth: I didn't know all of this was going to happen. I didn't know what she was trying to do with you or that the whole Citadel was going to get attacked. Hell, I didn't even know that the operatives I'd let in a few days ago had anything to do with you or all of this. I only just found out from Garrus that they kidnapped you… He found out about what I did."

"That explains why he's not here with you." I say, rolling my eyes. "Damn Chellick… So, what? Now you're trying to redeem yourself or something?"

He just shrugs, throwing his hands up a little. "Well… yes."

I roll my eyes. "Well, you're in luck… I know about the chest she's talking about. Last I saw it, Zero had it."

"Zero?" Chellick asks, surprised. "Why?"

I shrug. "He liked it. Wanted to keep it. I had no use for it so let him take it."

Chellick curses under his breath. "He probably sold it… Books are extremely valuable."

I call Zero over and he comes jogging over from across the room where he was talking with Jada. "Yo, Splicer. Who is that woman? She's something else."

I nod in agreement. "I know. Listen, do you remember that wooden chest, with the books? What did you do with it?"

Zero shrugs. "It's sitting in my apartment. I have a thing for knick-knacks."

I sigh with relief. "That's great news. Where's your apartment?"

"Presidium." Zero responds. Chellick and I both groan. "What? Why do you need it?"

"I think that chest and the books inside are target Alpha that Jada was talking about." I respond, rubbing my face. "Whoever is behind all of this needs it, for some reason."

Zero takes a deep breath. "Well… I don't see why we should give it to him. Nobody knows where it is and maybe it's better that way."

I shake my head. "Unfortunately, I think this is finally all coming together. I need to figure this out with Anderson and Pallin."

Zero nods and moves over to them, speaking with them quietly. I move to reconvene with everyone, now that I know more. Chellick grabs my arm, stopping me.

"Wait. If I wanted to tell everyone, I would have. Like I said Splicer, I have a lot to lose… If Pallin finds out what I did, even if I help stop all of this, I'm, in the best-case scenario, fired from my job and blacklisted from ever working again. Worst case? He shoots me here on the spot. I know I messed up. I know I did. It's why I'm trying to fix it now. Please. I'm begging you. I chose to trust you with this." Chellick looks at me dead in the eye.

I shake his hand off of my arm and turn my back to him, looking at him over my shoulder. "Chellick. You are nothing but a selfish opportunist. Don't even try to convince me you're here to do the right thing. You're just switching sides because you saw that you could and the side you were on was losing… You and I are not alike. You will do the right thing when it benefits you to do so. I will do the right thing even when I know it won't. I won't tell them today… But Chellick after today, you and I are going our separate ways. I'm going to eliminate you from my life entirely. By sheer force of will, I'm going to wipe you from my memory and never even think of you again. If I so much as drink a bad cup of coffee and so much as your fingerprints are on the cup, I'll hunt you down and make you pay for it. I will give the Citadel the justice it deserves and kill you. Slowly. Do we understand each other?"

Despite my blatant threat, he nods and breathes out a sigh of relief. "Yes. I understand. I'll forward you the message from Miranda."

I walk back toward the group. I notice that Nata and Alex have both made their way down here. They look at me expectantly as I approach, alongside Zero, Jada, Anderson, Pallin, and Udina.

"Well, Splicer?" Anderson asks as I approach. "Zero said you had a development."

"Don't ask me how I know, but I can fix all of this. I know what target Alpha is, and if I had to guess I know what Charlie is too. I have a message from someone on their side who wants to jump ship. She needs bait, though, to lure out Ben King, the guy behind all of this. He also happens to be in possession of the codes we need. So, we're going to retrieve Alpha to draw him out. Then, once King is dealt with, we'll be able to get my contact to open the Citadel's arms for us. It doesn't change the main plan though. We can use the C-Sec counter assault not only as a distraction, but target Alpha is on the Presidium." I explain.

Anderson looks at me confused. "Ben King… The richest human who's ever lived? The business man, philanthropist, playboy, arms dealer. That Ben King?"

"Who else could finance a mercenary operation that attacks the very heart of the galaxy's government?" I ask, gesturing vaguely around us. "He's also Cerberus, though based on the operational targets of the Blue Suns mission and the fact that he's using Blue Suns, I'm willing to bet money that King is doing this on his own to cover his tracks."

"His tracks?" Pallin asks. "What is target Alpha? Or Charlie, for that matter? And you, being target Bravo, how does that play into it?"

"A few days ago, just before Chellick arrested me, I was kidnapped by Cerberus. I think they've been trying to get me for some time. I escaped, with the help of Alex, Nata, and Zero here as well as Garrus. But in doing so, we stole a ship. On the ship was important, rather incriminating stuff, but also a small wooden chest with some books. Target Alpha is the chest with the books because it has something to do with King's greater plan. I'm Bravo, probably because of what I know about all of this. Charlie is the ship because no doubt there was more there we didn't find. Capturing the Council was probably just a way to distract the turian military so King could escape the Citadel once he had all the pieces together." I say looking at each person in the room as I explain, trying to ensure everyone gets the message. I pointedly decided not to mention how the ship is host to an unshackled AI and thankfully neither Alex, Nata, nor Zero add anything.

Pallin looks at Alex and Zero. "You two just up and left the Citadel to go save an alleged criminal? And stole a secret Cerberus ship in the process? Do I need to dock your sick time, if this is what you use it for?"

Zero looks properly mollified but Alex snickers a bit, understanding the joke where Zero did not.

Pallin turns back to me. "Splicer, honestly while I appreciate the candor you've demonstrated I can't shirk my responsibility as executor of this station's law enforcement bureau: I hate to say it but it's sounding to me like while you're not responsible for the attack you are the catalyst for all of it."

I shake my head, guiltily. "I know, Pallin. It's why I'm so invested on making things right. I'm not asking you to protect me from legal repercussions after all this is over, nor am I asking any of you to keep any of this a secret either. I'm just trying to do the right thing. And I can't do this alone either."

Anderson puts a hand on my shoulder. "Well, when the trial happens, I'll stick around as a character witness."

I chuckle half-heartedly.

Pallin, silent for a beat, nods. "You're right… We need to focus on the here and now. First thing's first: We save the Citadel."

Later…

"Okay, one more time: here's the plan." Captain Anderson shouts over the sound of rushing wind to the cabin-full of kitted out soldiers all seated in the large bus-like flying vehicle, getting ready to undergo the mission of their lives. "We've gotten intel from inside the Presidium Precinct: The Suns are besieging the building in force and have swarmed the Starboard Wing of the building. With the Portside Wing partially destroyed during the initial attack, the officers inside are scattered. Most are pinned down in the building's central concourse and lobby, attempting to repel the assault from the main Blue Suns force who've taken up defensive positions in a plaza across from the lobby entrance. However, many more officers are stuck in small sections of the Starboard Wing that they've cordoned off. We need to break the Blue Suns attack from both sides and rally the officers inside.

"We're splitting up into several strike teams. I'll be leading a small contingent of volunteer fighters from the apartment building to try and draw some Blue Suns away from both the Presidium precinct and from Zero's apartment. Executor Pallin is going to lead a few C-Sec officers alongside Detective Chellick, CSI Cisoto, and Tyrannax to assault the main body of the Blue Suns sieging the precinct.

"Splicer is going to lead the covert strike team comprised of himself, Zero, and Jada to make their way into the Precinct itself and clear out the Starboard Wing, allowing officers to not only rejoin the others in the central concourse but also better arm themselves from the armory and storage located in the sub-level of the Starboard Wing.

"Once the assault is broken and the officers are saved, we need to move quickly. Pallin and I will coordinate with the C-Sec officers to organize the counter attack immediately, utilizing C-Sec vehicles to move to the various Ward entry points, attacking from behind where the Blue Suns will least expect it. But it'll only work if we can move fast. After we initiate the counter attack, the hope is that the main assault on the Council will break and we can send a strike team comprised of either Detective Chellick, Tyrannax, Detective Garrus, and CSI Cisoto or Splicer's team to rescue the Council while the other team retrieves target Alpha in order to lure out Ben King. Questions?"

I look around at the cab. Anderson, wearing a set of armor he must have gotten from some store close to my apartment building, stands near the front of the bus, facing the rest of the space while Pallin, in a set of generic C-Sec armor, flies it. The bus is filled with people, ready to fight and maybe die for the Citadel. Zero sits next to Jada, who talks to him under her breath. He's wearing his black C-Sec riot gear and she's in the armor we got from Tyrannax. Tyr is at the back of the bus, armored in what can only be described as a tank with legs. His armor is massive and looks incredibly heavy. To top it all off he has a gun that needs an articulating arm attached to his back to support its weight alongside a cable for power.

Alex is also in here. She's also wearing a set of medium armor, though where she got that from is anyone's guess. She sees me looking at her and smiles at me, eyes looking tired but not afraid. Sitting near her is Chellick in the armor he came to my apartment building in, his eyes trained on the floor. Also filling the remaining seats in the bus are a few Zakera Ward C-Sec officers we managed reach and gather over the last day and volunteers from the building, both of whom are poorly equipped for the fight ahead.

I notice Zero raise his hand, Anderson nods towards him. "Captain, what about the defenses the Suns have set up to keep us from getting to the Presidium… If we don't make it past those the plan you just said is a moot point."

Anderson takes a deep breath and nods. "Yes, it's definitely troublesome. Our plan, as it stands right now, is to send three vehicles through using a remote piloting system that Splicer's friend Nata managed to put together for us. Hopefully, that'll be enough to take out… at least most of the traps the Suns might have set for us. As for anti-air defenses, we'll just have to hope that the two vehicles carrying our fighters can fly nimbly, or take a hit or two… we just need to land these things."

The bus falls silent again. This thing can neither fly nimbly, nor take a hit. It might as well be made of tissue paper if what we're up against are surface-to-air missiles. And if what Jada told us about their defenses is reliable, they'll have plenty of traps, plenty of anti-air defenses, and plenty of manpower. We're getting through on nothing but sheer luck.

I'm about to suggest using the much slower option of crawling through maintenance access ways when my OT starts beeping. An incoming call from an encrypted source. Everyone turns to look at me, surprised because everything other than short range LAN comms have been down since this all started. A little embarrassed for the attention, I answer the call.

"Hello?" I ask, awkwardly, glancing around at everyone staring at me.

"Greetings, Splicer. It's Caspar." Caspar, the AI housed on the Talon of Ebony, says over my OT, his masculine sing-song voice coming in through my helmet. "I'm here with Miranda Lawson. We understand you're currently enroute to the Presidium. She wants to know if Chellick told you about the message she sent?"

"It's good to hear from you Caspar." I say, a little confused. "Y-Yeah. What is she doing there?"

"Well, according to her, she's trying to help fix all of this. She's turning against King. This benefits you, her, and I mutually. As a sign of good faith, her and I have been working on a solution to get all of you to the Presidium… relatively safely." Caspar says. "We've managed to remotely hack the Suns comm system and will be sending out a brief high frequency pulse across their system just as you make your approach. It'll disable their mine network, the guidance systems of their anti-air equipment, and it should be fairly disorienting for the ground troops. However, it won't have an effect on any fire-and-forget rocket systems which have internally housed tracking, nor will it prevent any Blue Suns soldiers from getting a lucky shot with any manual heavy weapon systems."

I raise my eyebrows and look at Anderson, surprise written on my face. "Caspar you're a genius."

"I'm ashamed to say it was Miranda's idea." Caspar says, a bit hesitantly. "However, I have a favor to ask. After you retrieve target Alpha, bring it here to the ship. Do not under any circumstances allow King to get his hands on it. If he has any notion of a possible location, he will likely send the entirety of the forces under his personal command to retrieve it. We believe that the chance to get two of his primary targets at once will be too enticing to pass up. He will reveal himself. So, once you have the chest, bring it directly here."

"Yes of course…" I say, frowning under my helmet. "But why is it so important? Just some books?"

"Not the books themselves, but what they contain." Caspar responds, cryptically. "It would be easier to explain once you get here with them."

"Fine, I appreciate your help regardless." I say, getting to my feet and walking toward Anderson. "You know when we'll pass through?"

"We have eyes on you now." Caspar responds.

"Captain Anderson." I say reaching the front of the bus. "A friend just called. They're going to take down the mine field and guidance for their anti-air missiles, but we'll still need to avoid manually fired rockets"

"That I can do." Pallin says, giddily, pushing the throttle forward.

Anderson claps me on the back. "Damn Splicer. Thanks to you, we might just get through this."

I don't respond, just stare ahead as we race toward the rapidly approaching tunnel that'll take us from Zakera Ward to the Presidium. I point ahead at the three cars moving ahead of us.

"Anderson, since we aren't going to need those to draw fire from us, can we use them?" I grin mischievously. "Send them to… soften the Blue Suns on the other side up a bit?"

Anderson, his hand still on my shoulder, grins and gives me a gentle shake. "You know, Splicer? I'm starting to like you."

"I'm on it." Alex says, suddenly appearing behind me, typing on her OT. "Just tell me when."

The bus enters the tunnel.

"Pulse coming in 3… 2… 1. Pulse fired. Mines and guidance are down." Caspar says as soon as we enter the tunnel. "Good luck, Splicer."

"Alex, the mines and missiles are down. Send the cars." I say, pointing ahead.

Alex types a few more times into her OT, and the three cars ahead zoom off and out of sight around the curve of the tunnel. Just a few seconds later, the bus emerges from the tunnel into the Presidium. I see numerous defensive nests set up around the tunnel, several large artillery-like weapons sitting inert, and a three large fires from where the cars crashed into the Blue Suns ground forces defenses. I see numerous Blue Suns scattering, running for cover or getting up off the ground, looking around in total confusion.

The bus guns ahead, the other one hopefully close behind. Not so much as a bullet seems to hit the hull of the bus as we speed past. Pallin maneuvers the bus ahead and after a few seconds makes a sharp turn.

"We're clear!" Pallin calls.

Cheers erupt throughout the bus and I start moving toward the bus's door.

"Touching down. Covert team is out first along with Anderson. My team is relocating closer." Pallin says, moving the bus and choosing a landing point close to the precinct.

As soon as the bus is down, I open the door and hop out, Zero and Jada close behind. I wait a moment out of the way as Anderson and some of his volunteers pile out of both of the buses. A few seconds later the two buses fly off to relocate to a point nearer to the precinct's front entrance.

Anderson moves over to me.

"Splicer, get moving. Try to stay out of sight and don't engage until my team is well out of the way. These people aren't fighters. I'm going to get them in and out as quickly as I can." Anderson says before putting a hand on my shoulder. "Good luck, son. We're all counting on you."

Why is Anderson making me so damn emotional right now? Thankful my helmet is on so that he can't see my eyes well-up with tears, I don't say anything just hold up my fist and let him bump it. I motion Jada and Zero on as we make our way towards a building adjacent to the precinct. Unlike the Wards, where a 'building' is only a loose description seeing that the Wards are more like a single gigantic structure with spaces demarked for things like residences or commercial use, the Presidium has actual structures that stand independently of one another. From this building we should be able to get a look at what we're dealing with.

I lead Jada and Zero through the building, finding a stairwell and taking it up a few floors. Once I feel like we're up high enough I enter a hall and move to the first apartment on the correct side of the building. I nod Jada towards the door.

She steps up to it and kicks the door near to where it laches to the wall. The door buckles, separating the lock from the wall. She grasps the door at a gap she made with her kick and pulls the door open, sliding it into the wall.

Zero looks at me then at Jada.

"Has she been able to do that the whole time?" Zero asks, as I move into the apartment.

"I'll continue to be able to do that." Jada responds, following after me, leaving dumbfounded Zero behind.

"Ancestors, is that what you meant when you said you were genetically modified?" Zero asks quickly following us into the abandoned apartment, shutting the door behind him as much as he can, which isn't very much at all.

She looks back, grinning slightly and nods. "Yeah. I'm strong."

"I mean you looked strong but THAT strong?" Zero shakes his head in disbelief. "Humans have always seemed to be pound-for-pound way too strong for their size and physiology. I mean one time I saw a human wrestle a krogan. He obviously lost but he held his own for a couple seconds. I bet you wouldn't though."

"That's that monkey-strength for you." I say, crouching near the window and looking out. Jada makes a strangled noise at that and I look at her, confused.

She looks stricken for a moment but waves me off. "No, nothing. I'm good."

I frown but ignore it and look back out the window. We're about two stories above the Precinct, facing its starboard wing on the building's delta-side. I see a few lights flashing by darkened windows, OT lights most likely. Towards the building's alpha-side, I see flashes of light and smoke, hear lots of gunfire. No doubt the fighting has already began.

I nod Jada over who carries a case Tyrannax supplied us. She cracks it open and inside is a zipline rifle. Simple enough in design, let's hope it works. Jada shoulders the rifle and flips a switch. A green laser shoots out forward and back from the rifle, tracing where the zipline will (in theory) follow. She looks down the scope.

"Good behind?" Jada asks.

Zero looks behind at where the green laser is painting the ceiling behind us. "Yeah, should be."

Jada squeezes the trigger and a large projectile fires out of both ends of the rifle, back to the ceiling and across the 100 or so meter gap to the precinct, a narrow cable trailing after it in a coil. The projectiles both make contact with the distinctive sound of rupturing metal and the cable slackens. Jada presses a button on the side of the rifle and it makes a high-pitched whirring sound, tensioning the cable. As she lets go of the rifle, it rotates 180 degrees, the handle on top that could carry the weapon now doubling as something to clip into to ride the zipline. I put my weapon onto my back and grab onto the rifle's handle, using a strap with a carabiner to clip onto it. As I settle my weight onto the zipline, the rifle's motor reactivates, tensioning the zipline to compensate for my weight. I release the brake and shoot forward, the zipline carrying me straight to my destination at impressive speed. As I near the wall, I activate the brake.

I gently hit the wall next to a large window, my feet stopping all my momentum. I glance into the window, looking for any lights inside. Just an empty office. I draw my pistol and get it close to the glass and pull the trigger. The glass shatters and falls out of the frame. I quickly unclip and hop into the office. I press a button on the rifle and it shoots back up the zipline, back to Jada and Zero.

I'm gonna have to order myself a couple of those to have around… just in case. I open the door to the office and peer out, checking to ensure the hall is clear while I wait for Jada and Zero. All clear. I wait until I hear Jada and Zero come into the room behind me.

"We should try and stay quiet." Jada says, coming up behind me, her shotgun in hand. "Melee only for as long as possible. That way, we won't need to deal with their shields."

I nod. "Sure, sounds like a plan. But we need to move fast and hit hard. We won't give them a second to regroup."

Zero steps into view, holstering his weapon, his biotics flaring and coalescing around his arms. "Ready when you are."

I move into the hall and holster my pistol, drawing a monomolecular double-edged knife that I've been carrying all this time in my heavy armor but have never used. "We'll go directly across toward the center wing, then sweep back, taking out any stragglers."

Ahead, we hear a bit of commotion, some loud banging and a number of voices. I look back at Zero and Jada and then nod ahead. We hurry ahead, reaching the end of the hall. I peek around the corner and see a few Blue Suns gathered around a door. One of them shoots at the door a few times with his pistol, the rounds puncturing but likely not having much of an effect on the door or whatever is beyond it.

"Can't stay in there forever." The merc with the pistol shouts, pacing back and forth. "You're only making things worse for yourselves."

I watch for a moment before I look back at Jada and Zero. I hold up 5 fingers. I point at Zero, hold up 2 fingers and then put the side of my hand to the center of my helmet. I point at Jada, hold up two fingers and put my hand to the right side of my helmet and then point to the right. I point at myself and point left.

They nod.

I start moving without hesitation, rushing forward for the one merc I saw move out of sight to the left. The other four I don't even consider as I see two black forms, huge in their armor, move with blinding speed in my periphery.

I round the corner and go left and see not one, but three mercs. The other two never moved past the end of the hall so I didn't see them.

No big deal, though I hope Jada doesn't have any undue surprises like I do. The two mercs further from me see me round the corner and there's a split second of surprise that freezes them. But I know they're trained mercs, they'll start shooting without more than a second or two of delay, even with their friends in the line of fire.

I move forward left hand going up and blasting two Electro Bolts at one the merc on my left. My right hand simultaneously comes up and slams the knife into the neck of the merc closest to me, my original target. The blade easily punctures the soft relatively unprotected side of his neck and plunges all the way to the hilt. I quickly draw it out and rush forward towards the merc on the right, his rifle coming up and ready to fire. I throw my right hand forward and send the knife flying point first with Telekinesis. My aim proves true as the knife buries itself in the center of the merc's throat. Rather than fire, his hands come up to his throat, clutching at the knife.

The last merc, the one that was on my left, he's still reeling from the Electro Bolts I hit him with. I rush forward, closing the three meter gap, and throw his rifle out of his spasming hands. I then deliver a quick sharp kick to his solar plexus and guillotine his head under my arm as he doubles over. I fall backward, and pull as hard as I can. I feel his cervical spine pop out of place and I release his limp corpse, rolling back over quickly.

The merc with the knife in his throat is still not dead, though he doesn't seem to realize that's inevitable. I yank the knife out of his throat with Telekinesis and catch it again, turning back to see how Jada and Zero are doing.

I've turned just in time to see Zero finish the last of his designated enemies, driving his fist into the chest of a downed merc like he was hammering a nail. His fist flashes with dark energy and a spray of blood shoots up out of the merc's caved chest.

"Z!" Jada shouts, knocking one merc aside with a simple shove of her shoulder, grabbing another by the back of his armor with both hands. She spins around and throws the merc like a bouncer throwing a drunk out of a club, head first. But unlike a typical bouncer's throw, the merc flies headfirst several meters and more than a meter off the ground.

Zero deftly drops to the floor and rolls on his back, arm aimed upward and palm open. The merc, flying straight towards me, passes over Zero. There's a flash of dark energy and the thunderclap-like sound of a mass of air being displaced rapidly and the merc is blasted into the ceiling with incredible power.

I cross my arms and wait. Zero gets to his feet and looks at Jada, who's just finished killing her last merc. Looks like she had several more to deal with like I did. She looks at Zero for a second then quickly hops over to him and gives him a hug.

"That was so cool." Jada says with a laugh.

Zero, looking surprised, returns her hug and looks at me. He sees me standing there, arms crossed and pushes Jada off, clearing his throat. I shake my head and walk over to them.

"Have to admit that was pretty cool." I say, looking up at the merc stuck in the ceiling. "Listen, I'll work on getting whoever's in here out. You two go ahead and sweep the rest of the wing. I can't imagine there are many more here. Try and find the armory while you're at it. Stick together."

Zero nods to me then starts heading off, Jada following close behind, chatting away at him while he makes a poor attempt at focusing on his surroundings.

I smile despite my own sense that I should be focusing too. They're both awesome and we work surprisingly well together. Maybe I should consider expanding from a solo operation.

I approach the door the Suns were standing near and rap on it with my knuckles, not entirely sure if it'd be audible on the other side.

"Hey in there." I call, leaning against the door to get closer to it. "This is Splicer. I'm working with Executor Pallin to get this precinct back under C-Sec control. Anyone in there?"

Silence for a time. Then the panel next to the door crackles to life.

"Splicer." Even through the digital panel, Garrus's voice is pretty unmistakable. "Looks like you're saving my ass this time."

"Wouldn't be a first Garrus." I respond, smiling under my helmet. "Half the reason we came out here was to get you."

"All this for little ol' me huh?" Garrus replies. I then hear him groan, as if he's stretching. "Can't say I won't welcome the help. I've been holding this place almost on my own for over a day now."

At least now you'll have practice for when you're Archangel.

"Open up, I'll come up to you." I say.

The door opens shortly after, opening much slower than it might normally. Barely enough power to do that I suppose. I squeeze through when there's enough room and start heading up the stairs I find on the other side. Two flights up, I find a short hall then another door that promptly opens for me. Garrus stands on the other side, rifle in hand and looking tired.

"Garrus." I say, moving towards the shattered window on the other side of the small office. "How are you holding up?"

"Better now that I'm not keeping the Suns back all on my own. Pallin's flanking attack worked well. That aside, having capable fighters alongside him was beneficial. That krogan tore through them practically singlehanded." Garrus says, moving over to the window with me.

"That'd be Tyrannax." I mumble, looking down at the plaza outside the precinct. Several destroyed cars that were probably parked here prior to the attack are burning, numerous dead Blue Suns mercenaries litter the field. The sounds of fighting are still audible, though it seems the fight has transitioned away from this area.

"Speaking of, I should warn you." Garrus says behind me. I turn towards him. He shakes his head, not sure how to continue. "Splicer I… I fucked up."

I wave him off. "Chellick told me. You didn't fuck up, he did."

Garrus frowns, brow furrowing. "Chellick? He went and found you?"

I nod. "Yeah he's trying to make amends. You know… For kind of being responsible for all this."

Garrus pauses then shakes his head. "I doubt he told you the whole story. I found out he was responsible for a lot of this, but not until after it had started. After you gave me the memory chip in your helmet, I went to go looking for him. But he'd already gone to raid Tyrannax's workshop to get your old one."

I nod slowly. "Yeah… I know I went by there to find it but he'd taken it already."

Garrus sighs, then shakes his head. "No, he didn't. I did."

I frown, then take my helmet off to look him in the eye, directly. "What do you mean?"

"I got there first, took the helmet before the raid started." Garrus says and then hesitates. "Then I… I gave it to Chellick."

I shake my head, shrug, confused. "Why?"

"For the entire time we were partners, he was an amazing detective. He always tried to tell me to follow the law to the letter." Garrus starts, turning to look out at the plaza illuminated only by the dull orange glow of the vehicles burning below. "I always figured it was just his way of giving me dissonance. He knew I was a bit of a maverick. I don't like all the regulations, the red tape. Don't like to get held up, concerned over how to catch a criminal. I'd rather catch them, then justify the means later. But he always said 'Laws are there for a reason.' I thought he was just one of those goody-goody cops. A rules follower. But I realized, recently, that that's not the case at all. He's gotten where he has in his career by doing the exact opposite. He doesn't just make questionable decisions to catch a criminal. He is one. He takes bribes. He was a Cerberus informant for goodness sakes. But I didn't realize just how bad things were until the Suns attacked. Just before, he… he convinced me you needed to be behind bars. And I believed him."

I stay quiet. I'm not going to take this as any kind of betrayal, though it certainly feels that way. Garrus and I have a complicated relationship. I'd also say it's really one-sided. I know a lot about him and he doesn't know much about me, not personally. He's been trying to catch me for quite some time, at least until he helped get me out of Minuteman Station. I say that as if it was so long ago, but it's only been a few days. I suppose I shouldn't be so surprised. Why would his motivations have changed so drastically in such a short time? Just for me? Matter of fact, just before I was taken by Cerberus he was trying to arrest me. I guess I shouldn't feel betrayed. But I do. I don't say anything. Better not to. I'll just let him finish.

"He told me… well he reminded me about everything you've done. He reminded me about all the cases we had lined up with you written up as the prime suspect. We knew from the start you'd be hard to catch. We had circumstantial evidence at best. From the start, I had my reservations. I was so focused on catching you, I ignored the why. We were investigating the deaths of muggers, gangsters, or murderers. Even that asari that you dropped out of the hotel, she was a suspected trafficker." Garrus says, still looking out the window, his face still barely visible in the dull orange glow of the fires below, though his eyes glint sharply. "Even so… Crime is crime. You can't just… do whatever you want. Even if I wish I could, you can't. And he convinced me, you have to be stopped. So, I gave him your helmet. I couldn't bring myself to be the one to bring you down. I thought it was a bad idea. I'm too tied up with all of it. I trusted him to take care of it. But then all this happened. I caught him talking to Cerberus. He tried to convince me he didn't know what was going to happen. But I didn't believe him. The best I could do at that moment was fight back against the Suns. For what it's worth, I'm sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen."

I look out at the plaza, the dull glow from firelight giving the room a smoky orange haze. I'm quiet for a while, processing, before I sigh. "Well, not much we can do about it now."

He looks at me, surprised. "What?"

I look at him and pull on my helmet. "We'll worry about me later. Right now, you and I have a Citadel to save."

He is silent, eyes wide, clearly surprised. But then he just nods and follows me out of the office.

Later…

I push a cart, along with Jada and Zero each pushing their own cart, loaded up with weapons, armor, and supplies that we pilfered from the armory. Rather than get everyone to file through the armory from the lobby, we figured this might be a bit faster. The officers we pulled out of the wing had mostly all gone to join the others in the lobby already.

Along the way as we helped load the carts and push them through the precinct, I explained to Garrus what's been going on on our end and our plan to retake the citadel. I also make sure to mention that we considered him an important factor.

We round a final corner, Garrus leading our little group. He raises his hands as he's bathed in light.

"It's Garrus." He calls ahead. "I have a few more behind me."

He looks back at us and nods us forward. We push the carts ahead, past the makeshift barricades, and into the lobby. It's even more crowded now than it was last time I was here. Most are civilians, like before. But unlike before, where they were pushing and shoving to talk to the officers or cry in corners, now they just sit silently. They're all dirty, greasy with the build up of sweat and body oils accumulated over the course of a day or more and from sleeping on the ground.

The officers who are here, outnumbered by the civilians they're trying to protect at least by a factor of 10, look even more exhausted. They're bruised, beaten, filthy, and some sport poorly treated injuries.

This is the force Pallin expects to fight back against the Suns with him? Damn, this was my plan and I never even considered this. Unlike us, these people have been fighting against the Suns non-stop since this all started. This vast oversight might ruin the whole plan.

I see Pallin near the lobby's front desk in the center of the room. I head towards it with Garrus, leaving the cart behind.

I gesture around us as Pallin notices me approaching. "We can't force these people to fight for us Pallin."

He nods, looking tired. His borrowed C-Sec armor sports a few new gouges where bullets hit it. "I agree. But unfortunately, we don't have another option. Anderson's group is coming under attack and few of them were trained fighters. We need to act fast."

Pallin quickly mounts the desk and looks out over all the people gathered there. He waits for a moment or two, waits for people to notice him. As people begin to take notice of him, standing there, they murmur to each other but wait for him to speak.

"Officers, civilians of the Citadel." Pallin calls to the room, his voice echoing loudly in the cavernous space. "I am Executor Venari Pallin. When I was elected to become Executor of C-Sec, I believed I was going to have an easy path to retirement. All the highlights of my career were done with the uniform of an officer or a detective on my back, a gun on my hip, and a badge on my chest. When I accepted the position, I expected a quiet, easy transition to retirement. As long as I didn't make any decisions that were too significant, or accidentally blow up the Citadel, I'd be fine. What could possibly go wrong here, at the center of the Council's power, the safest place in the galaxy? This… this is all my fault. I assumed that the work of those in the past would ensure the safety of this station. I was complacent. I was ready to end my career with a sigh, not a roar.

"But the universe has a way of showing us how wrong we are. I failed you once, but I will not fail you again. We have a plan to save the Citadel, but in order to do it, I need your help. I can't do it alone. This precinct saw the worst fighting from the start, but you all held the line. You prevailed in the face of unbeatable odds. I wish I could say that it's time to rest, that it's all over for you. But we're not done yet. We are Citadel Security. Until the Citadel is safe, none of us are safe. Our job isn't done. The other C-Sec precincts are ready and waiting to come here to the Presidium and help us take it back. But the Suns have set up defensive positions at each of the Ward access points. We have capable leaders here, each of whom are prepared to lead you to strike those positions and bring C-Sec into the Presidium in force. We need every able-bodied volunteer, anyone willing to hold a weapon. Whether in this life, or the next, you will be rewarded for your bravery and your sacrifices. I'll be there too, taking the fight directly to the assault on the Council at Presidium Tower. One more time, I'm asking you, not ordering you, to stand with me, stand with the Citadel!"

There isn't any applause, or uproar. Instead, the officers who looked dead on their feet, some of the civilians who looked dejected at the world, stand up. They just all get to their feet and start walking, backs straight, towards the carts of weapons, armor, and supplies.

Pallin hops off the desk and turns to Garrus.

"Detective Vakarian." Pallin says, not wasting a beat. "We need your help to plan a counter offensive. It needs to be highly coordinated. We have four defensive emplacements to strike at each of the Ward access points. Simultaneously, we need to break the mercenary assault on the Council."

Garrus nods slowly, thinking. "Timing will be everything. We can pull it off. First, I think we need to help Anderson's group and get him here."

Pallin nods and starts heading towards the door. "Right. We'll get some of our people back together."

I nod. "We're coming too."

Pallin looks at me, then shakes his head. "No, you need to secure target Alpha and lay the trap for King."

I take a breath. Dammit, he's right. Though if Anderson dies, what the fuck does that mean for the events of Mass Effect? Fuck it. This isn't Mass Effect anymore. It's real life. Besides, Anderson was a spectre (candidate), he can handle himself.

"I'll take care of it, don't worry Splicer." Pallin says. "Rather, I don't think I can step out, now that I made that speech. People might buckle. Garrus, take CSI Cisoto, the krogan, and Detective Chellick to save Anderson. In the meantime, I'll ensure we're prepared here for the counter attack when you return."

Garrus nods then looks around. "Has anyone seen Chellick? I need a word with him."

Pallin looks around. "I… I haven't seen him in a while actually, now that you mention it."

"God dammit." I say, dread welling up in me. I open my OT and call Chellick.

After a long while of the line ringing, Chellick picks up.

"Splicer…" Chellick says. "You manage to save Garrus?"

"Where are you?" I ask, my voice quivering with rapidly building rage.

"Garrus?"

"He's fine!" I bark. "I swear, Chellick. If you're up to something again…"

"I… I'm sorry, Splicer." Chellick says, his voice quavering a bit. "I'm in too deep."

"Chellick… Where are you?" I ask, looking at Garrus and Pallin who are watching me.

"Just left Zero's. I made a deal to get out of here with King." Chellick responds. "I'll be seeing you, Splicer."

I curse, loudly enough that it turns many heads. "He's going to bring Alpha to King!"

Garrus looks at Pallin, who curses as he looks at the ground. "Damn him… As much as I want King, and the Suns, and Chellick and everyone else to pay for causing this, it's secondary to our priority to save the Citadel. That being said… Splicer, try and get him alive."

I growl and stride away, heading towards Jada and Zero who are helping distribute armor and weapons to people. They see my approach, see how I'm walking with purpose and don't even ask where we're headed or if we're leaving. They just step away from the cart and match my stride.

"Chellick's breaking ranks… Again." I say, leading them out of the precinct, across the plaza, stepping over Blue Suns corpses and through clouds of black smoke. "He's got the box and he's bringing it to King."

"Where?" Zero asks, breaking through the cloud of smoke next to me.

"I doubt King is going to leave without either the Box or the ship. I'm guessing he's headed for the Talon and Caspar." I say, reaching a cab station. I type some commands into the console but it doesn't do anything. I punch it, as if that'll do anything.

Jada pushes me aside and walks up to the console, OT open. "If that's where he's going we won't have long. King might already be there."

"I've never met the guy and I hate him already." Zero says, watching Jada hack the terminal.

One of the cabs lifts off the ground, ready to go. I look at Jada.

"You're full of pleasant surprises." I say with a nod of respect. "Can you juggle too?"

Jada shrugs. "A little."

We climb into the cab and it takes off, flying immediately for its destination. I look out the window, looking at the darkened Presidium, even darker than it is during its night cycle. I watch as scattered gunfire streaks here and there across the Presidium streets or even from wall to wall. It's not long before we enter the Ward access point we had initially gone through. It looks like coupled with the vehicle attack we did as we went through and the attack on the precinct, the Blue Suns here broke their defenses and left. They're either regrouping or heading to reinforce the other defensive positions or the attack on the Council. Regardless, it's good news for us.

"Splicer." Zero starts, leaning forward from the backseat. "I've been meaning to ask. About Chellick. It was no small news at the department that you'd gotten arrested, so I knew you were there… sorry I didn't do anything about that."

I look at him and shake my head. "You've got nothing to be sorry about. Not your problem."

"What went down, exactly?" Zero asks.

"Chellick arrested me. He framed me for killing Barla Von, a volus banker and intel dealer for the Shadow Broker." I say, looking away from him, out the window at the dark Citadel. "He also arrested my friend… also, apparently, he's in part responsible for this whole attack. He helped to let the Cerberus Agents who kidnapped me a few days ago. And now he's taking the box that King wants directly to him."

Zero whistles sarcastically. Interesting I didn't know turians could do that. "He's making a good case to be killed by you."

I nod slowly. "To top it all off, to try and keep me in holding, he went and got Garrus to take my helmet, which has… recordings of everything I've been up to the last few months."

"Why would you include such a thing in your helmet?" Zero asks, incredulous.

I sigh, defeated. "In retrospect, it's turned out to be a terrible idea."

"Well, what does that mean for you?" Zero asks, sounding worried.

I look at him again. "I'm getting kind of tired of everyone worrying over what will happen to me later when the lives of millions are on the line right now."

Zero just sits back, wordlessly.

After a beat, Jada sighs loudly. "Damn. If you get arrested, I'm kind of screwed too, eh?"

For whatever reason, I start to laugh. A little at first, then more and more. Jada and Zero both eventually join in. Our laughter dies down and I look at them.

"Jada, Zero." I say, my voice still with humor in it, despite everything. "If I go down, y'all are for sure coming with me."

They laugh again, and so do I.

Meanwhile…

Miranda jumps to her feet and rushes over to the large viewport at the front of the bridge. She curses and pounds a fist on the railing as she watches a squad of Cerberus operatives, a squad of Blue Suns elites, and in the middle of them all Benjamin King, stride into the hanger.

Miranda knows that Ben can't see her, but he seems to look right at her anyways. She sees him make a shocked expression then shake his head in disappointment. No doubt he hates the partial redecoration the ship is undergoing.

This isn't going how she'd hoped. She had hoped that Chellick would come directly here with the box, if not alone then with Splicer and others. They'd then be able to spring the trap. Looks like she's going to have to improvise.

"Miss Lawson." The AI known as Caspar says, his voice reverberating throughout the ship. "I'm afraid we've exhausted all contingencies. I can buy some time, and seal the ship, but it will give us away. At least that I am unshackled."

Miranda shakes her head. "Undoubtedly, he's already pieced that together. Do it."

There's a distant hissing followed by a deep thump that rattles the ship in it's current state, hovering in the middle of the room just off the ground. The soldiers had little opportunity to react to the ship's closing, though Ben still hasn't moved from that spot he's been standing in. Miranda sees him open his OT and just a second later, hers begins to indicate that he's calling her.

Miranda accepts the call. "Just in time. The ship just closed itself."

"Yes, I can see that." Ben responds, and she watches him dramatically roll his eyes. Even from how far away he is, she can tell he did that. He always was melodramatic in his movements. "Try and find a way to open it from in there. Failing that we have explosives so don't fret."

"Working on it, though the ship is trying to cut the atmosphere in here. I'm more focused on staying alive for now." Miranda responds, returning to her console.

"Ah, yes that's fair. Wouldn't want your corpse to smell up the place, I just had those carpets put in. Well, figure it out. Time is short. Alpha is enroute as we speak. Once we can regain access to my ship, we can leave this god forsaken place." Ben responds, finally turning from where he was standing to face the door he came through.

Miranda acts surprised. "You always have it figured out. How soon until Alpha arrives?"

"Any moment."