The fresh air of freedom trickled down the narrow passage. That crisp air stung my lungs as my limbs dragged my through the remnants of a ventilation shaft, the only semi-clear path out of this hellhole. After crawling through remains of oil, fuel and ezzo, my lungs – and biotics – pleaded for this to end. My jaw grit as my elbow pressed into a bent metal rib blocking the tunnel of carnage, straightening the damn thing out to let me pass. A quick glance behind me, ignoring the blue biotics sparks arching on my carapace, assured me Anthon Cerr struggled behind, nursing a broken arm. A soured breath of oil and burning filled me before my arms pulled my battered body forward. We pressed on as the fire smouldering at our backs.
"Remind me," Anthon said, grunting as he crawled over a beam. "To kill whoever designed the Starquake's floors. Wheel forgive, they shouldn't have collapsed like that!" My snort echoed his opinions.
"Thought you were an espionage specialist, Cerr, not an engineer," I said, intertwining my fingers and slamming them several times on a panel of metal between me and freedom. Anthon laughed behind me.
"And that is why I know so much about floor design. Come now, Valérien, you must know how good we are taking things apart, with or without explosives!" he said. A small smile found my face. Point taken. My omni-tool, my soul light, soon revealed a solid wall, blockading us. No way would my fists punch through that. A growl surfaced.
"Know what this is then, Cerr?" I asked. The tiny vent didn't have the room to let me look over my carapace let alone do anything other than a belly crawl. The slimmer salarian had no such problems as he peered over my carapace.
"Outer skin, air is on the other side of that metal," he said after a pause. My eyes narrowed. The omni-tool became a blade. My hand jammed it through the skin, jarring my muscles as the metal resisted any attempt to tear through the skin in the narrow space. It yielded. One cut. Two cuts. Then voices sounded.
"Someone's cutting their way out on the main wreckage!" a female voice shouted. A third cut poured air as my hand shoved the metal forward. Massive hands appeared from the far side of the flap, ripping the metal clean off. Light blinded me, my eyes squeezing shut, the tunnel flooded with light. Anthon winced behind me.
"Autillin!" someone shouted, hands grabbing me by the carapace and yanking me out of the tunnel. I coughed as my poisoned lungs filled with my first intake of unsoiled air, it felt like half a ton of tar stuck to the walls of my lungs. With my eyes adjusting, Iona's face appeared above me. The grey-brown turian grabbed me from under my arms and dragged me away from the Starquake. "Spirits be thanked, they are being merciful today," she muttered. My head flopped around, watching as Aergus Navers pulled Anthon free. The pale turian hoisted the salarian up before running after us.
"How many?" I asked as my strength waned. Iona lowered me onto the turquoise coloured grass.
"Dead or alive?" Iona asked as she scrubbed her face. Blue blood crusted along several lacerations on her face and neck.
"Both," I said as my back muscles tightened, trying to sit up. My shattered ribs complained, creaking like old trees. Aergus lowered Anthon beside me, the salarian swearing as he jostled his arm.
"So far, we've dragged 14 out alive. We've found 11 dead... No sign of Commander Delern or her either," she added . My breath snagged in my throat. They hadn't found Dell yet?
"Gideon?" I asked. If he was dead, Dell would-
"He's alive. XO ripped the whole damn hull open trying to find Dell, she found the kid instead, he got inside the engineering tunnels," Iona nodded her head over Anthon wheezing body. My eyes swung, but the surrounding landscape stole my attention knowing the boy lived.
Between the towering pillars of grass topped rocks, the surviving crew members huddled together, an injured Saere limping on a broken leg as she tried to treat the more serious injuries. Lanster lay on his back, an arm flung over his eyes as he gagged on the air. Gideon huddled beside him, hugging his knees as purple bruises and blood marred every part of him. Green coloured blood. Had he been with a salarian? How did he get covered in blood? Beyond the bundle of survivors lay rows of sheets, covering the bodies below them. The obvious ones were the krogan and hanar shaped ones. Quin Gyneris, a silver turian, wailed over one of those sheets, a rough bandage around his left arm. My heart sank, my mind blanking at the thought of his brother lying cold and still before him. To my surprise, Indira was in no better shape. Her cries sounded echoed in the empty landscape, something about 'not fair' and 'why', doubled over a makeshift sheet. My stomach turned heavy. What could break the bouncing girl?
The Starquake itself lay in three large pieces, gouges torn into the ground when the Starquake cartwheeled along the ground. Rock dented the remains of the starboard wing after the cliff tore the right wing tore off upon impact. The cockpit lay shattered about 700m further back than the main wreckage, closer to the first point of impact. The bow had ripped off and settled while the main body continued onwards. Smoke streamed from the sheared off stern, snapped clean from behind the rotary, a clean break along the black ring. That was about 600m further ahead of the main wreckage, flung onwards by the strain failing. Fire smouldered, smoke climbing high into the blue sky. How many survived a crash like that? Most ships these days didn't fall apart like this, they designed ships to stay together no matter the cost. In space, a ship staying together saved lives. The entire ship had crashed at high speed but with a shallow impact radius. At least most of the ship stayed together. But for now, the Starquake burned as a wrecked death trap.
"XO! Valérien is out!" Iona called. My eyes snapped to Iona, startled before they scanned the moving targets, tracking Raisha. The krogan ran laps up and down the main wreckage and the tail section, yelling into people inside the Starquake. Now, she turned her gaze to us. My ribs whined while shuffling myself into a more comfortable position while she sprinted over.
"Valérien! I am relieved to see you in one piece," Raisha said, her deep voice strained as her hands hovered over my shoulders. A rough patchwork of stitches poked out along the left side of her face.
"Yeah, same. How are we doing?" I asked. Raisha sighed.
"We have lost many people, too many. Lanster and Mari are the only two to survive in the cockpit. Sershin and Tolova…" she peered over her shoulder to Indira. "Indira is… not taking Sershin's death well. Shayan crawled back into the Starquake with Henry, Phylla and Shaul to locate more survivors,"
"This is going to crush Dell…" I said. Raisha dropped her eyes, brow knitted.
"If we find her. Indira had taken her to the deck before the impact but lost her after the wing ripped free and the floors buckled. Indira says she disappeared into the bowels of the ship. We cannot locate Mat'al either," Raisha said.
"Iona was saying," I said, rubbing my face, wincing when it struck a sensitive patch. Cries filled the din, dragging my head up. Near one fissure along the side of the Starquake's port side, a crowd of people dragged someone free. Arthan, the quarian, struggled free from the wreckage. He cradled a limp Cassa in his arms. "Spirits have mercy…"
"On the bright side," Anthon said with a smile. "At least we won't have long to wait until rescue. No doubt the Spectre will be here soon,"
"And a one way ticket to jail," Iona growled. "Stupid bitch should have just given up earlier. 'Oh, I'm sure they'll give up', fucking idiot. What the hell was going through her mind?! None of this would have-"
"Shut up!" Gideon snapped, tears in his voice. We jumped in surprise. Iona gaped at him. "Just shut up! Nobody cares what you think!" Iona's plates locked together.
"You little-" she hissed.
"A hair," Raisha said, tone low and rumbling. Iona snapped to her, eyes wide and mandibles flared. "Harmed upon him and I shall throw you back into that fire without your limbs. Do I make myself clear?" Iona gagged on her words, struggling to speak. After a moment, when Raisha's pupils narrowed, Iona leapt a mile in the air before nodding.
"Look, we're all a little stressed," Anthon said, frowning at the exchange. "What's done is done," Iona snapped her mandibles together, a blue hue on her cheeks before stomping to her feet and charging back towards the Starquake. Gideon sniffed. Lanster raised a hand, patting one of his knees. At least he was still conscious…
"Gid," I called. The blond crested boy raised his head, tears threatening to pour free. "Come here, Trouble," My arm raised, trying to reach him. Gideon stared, quivering with his wide eyes as if fighting to understand my intention. He crawled to his feet, holding his right leg off the ground. He limped over, a hand on his hip. Dell would not like that. Despite my ribs, my hands reached up and lowered him to the ground, holding him in a tight a hug as I could muster with a shattered chest, remembering Gideon may also have injuries. He sniffed, whimpering as he curled up on my lap, face burrowed into my chest.
Hours passed; more survivors crawled free, more dead dragged out. Some people delved into the wreckage to find supplies, pulling out handfuls of food and water, blankets and what medical equipment they could salvage from the burning ship. The blankets fought back to the chill as the sun dropped in the sky, staining it red. Gideon dozed in my arms, exhaustion winning while my mind tried to do a head count. So far, we had pulled 17 bodies out. Living wise, 20 survived the ordeal, either crawling free themselves or had help. 8 remained missing; Dell, Mat'al, Sherin Wiaceel – our albino salarian, Alice Kowasho – a female human, Maerk Arnhe – a black and yellow spotted salarian, Eshells Relola – a golden female salarian, Corin Lilrus – a platinum coloured turian and Sallis T'Cerriola – an asari. In that damn ship refused to relinquish them. About 5 hours after we crashed, the fire had burned just about as much as it could.
"We've found Delern!" Shayan cried. We perked, hope bubbling. Gideon started, eyes wide as he focused on the wreckage, dazed and drowsy. Raisha ran towards the quarian. Raisha had not stopped since we crashed, despite her own injuries. The joys of a redundant nervous system. If not for that, Raisha wouldn't be moving right now. Where did she get her energy from? My grip tightened around Gideon as he tensed in anticipation, perked like a damn meerkat or whatever those things on Earth were. Raisha got to the wreck, the port side near the exposed belly. Shayan yanked Mat'al out the hold, fighting to put him over his shoulder. My places rose, jaw slackening, when Mat'al fought against Shayan's grip.
"Dammit, Dell is still in there!" he snapped, fighting despite the green blood staining his white crown. "I almost had her!"
"Where? Mat'al, where?!" Raisha thundered.
"Down there! She's trapped under one of the damned shuttles! She's still alive, let me go, Shayan!" Mat'al hissed.
Shayan whimpered as he reached us, wincing every time Mat'al pushed against his right shoulder. Saere limped over, grabbing Mat'al's arms as Shayan lowered him to the ground. They both pinned Mat'al to the ground. Saere hissed about 'can't help in your condition', earning a cold glare from the salarian. The sound of wrenched metal filled the air, all the warning we had that Raisha delved into Starquake herself. The screeching metal continued as she progressed on her warpath. A sharp pain in my thigh jolted me, eyes drifting down as my lungs remembered to breathe. My jaw clenched as Gideon's grip on my thigh tightened. Mat'al, regaining sense, ceased his fight to return to the wrecked Starquake. He stared after it with longing eyes, narrowed from concentration. The Starquake transfixed me.
An almighty screech rang through the air, the whole hull quivering before the hull threatened to roll from a thundering crash. Gideon and I clung to each other, quivering in unison as we waited. 20 minutes after Raisha entered the wreckage, she emerged. A limp, flame haired human cradled in her arms. My heart sank. Gideon broke out of my grasp, ignoring his own injuries and scrambled away from me, crawling to a space near Saere. His eyes fixed to Raisha, watching as she approached us at a light jog. Mat'al and I lost interest in everything else. Saere abandoned Mat'al as Raisha lay her down beside us.
"She is still alive," Raisha breathed, a mountain of weight crashing from her as she collapsed onto the ground. "She appears to have sustained some substantial injuries however," Saere didn't speak, testing every bone and checking every wound were red blood poured from. Saere ignored Raisha, head down, plates set hard on her face. Gideon crawled over, stopping by Dell's head, quivering.
"She's hit her head hard," Saere muttered. "Her pelvis will take weeks to heal, months,"
"Oh believe me," Mat'al said, some tension easing from his shoulders as he dropped himself back onto the grass. "She'll have more than enough time to recover where she's going," Gideon raised his bugged eyes.
"W-What do you mean, Sassy?" he asked. Mat'al raised a good arm, pointed to the sky. My eyes followed his finger. A turian frigate glided overhead, assessing the crash site.
"Well… fuck," I sighed, flopping against the grass. The blinding pain in my chest made me regret that.
The bastard didn't show his face for another 3 hours. Landing in this area proved to be tricky, and completing the results of the crash assessment. It gave us time to search for any more survivors. They found Alice, Maerk and Corin near where Dell had been, dead. Sherin was lucky, he crashed into a small cubby hole on the old engineering deck, it saved his life. We waited for news on Eshells and Sallis when the sandy coloured turian swaggered his way to the survivors with his crew. He drawled his eyes over a panoramic view of the crew and burning ship. He sucked in a deep breath with a grin.
"Do you smell that, ladies and gentlemen?" he asked. Mat'al snorted.
"Is this the first time you've smelled fresh air, Spectre, or are you going to shove your head back up your arse and give us peace?" Mat'al said, turning his attention to a nearby crew member. Marruns dropped his shoulders as his expression straddled the border between fury and pouting. He popped his jaw when chuckles rang out, both from our team.
"Oh a smart ass, huh?" Marruns snarled, keeping his tone as light if strained. He sauntered over. "You want to know what I do to smart asses on the run from the law?" he bent over Mat'al. The salarian smiled, a coldness setting over his eyes.
"Boy, I have an arm broken in 3 places, a dislocated hip and a shattered knee and yet I am more than capable of breaking your neck," Mat'al finished with a frown, eyes narrowing. Marruns set his jaw, eyes widening. He released a breath before straightening. "So there is a brain cell in there. Pity, must be lonely," Marruns' brow plates snapped down, words flailing on the tip of his tongue, utter contempt in his eyes. He stamped a foot, clenching fists by his side before he glared molten fury Mat'al. Marruns stomped away, making Mat'al smirked.
"And here is the beast herself," he said, dropped a hip by Dell, pulling himself straight. Gideon crouched over her, eyes fixated on Marruns. "So, how long did you think you would last, hmm? A few years? Darling, I had all the fuel depots so guarded you wouldn't have lasted-"
"Uh, Sandy," I called. Marruns snapped to me, mandibles cracking against his cheeks. "I think you overworked that brain cell of yours. She's suffering from a bad case of unconsciousness," Marruns struggled to form words. A snigger broke free from one of his crew members. Marruns snapped to face his team, but they straightened their faces and spines. His mandibles cracked like bones against his skin.
"Shut up, you barefaced bastard!" he snapped.
My plates froze in place, a sharp sting pinched my chest that sent cold chills coursing through my blood. My tongue laden, no words of retort escaped. The word 'barefaced' smashed me like a sledgehammer. Marruns snorted before glaring down at Dell. Crashing from the wreck dragged our attention back to the wreck. Shayan and Henry emerged from the main wreckage, a bloodied and limp body carted between them. The blue skin screamed Sallis. Shual and Phylla followed behind with Eshells, limp in Shual's massive grip. The guns from Marruns' crew raised. The four aliens ceased, breathing as Shual's eyes lit up.
"I would advise against that," Mat'al said. Marruns snapped a fiery glare over his shoulder. "Our XO is more than agitated as it is. Unless you want bodies flying around, I suggest you lower the weapons," Marruns frowned, drawing his plates in confusion. He shifted his eyes around the crew. He didn't even know who the XO is. Once his eyes landed on Raisha, he didn't need to worry about who held that position. Raisha's pupils slit, masked behind a sea of blue. Fists quivered by her side, more than ready to crush a few skulls A low rumble trembled in the air, shaking everyone close to her. Marruns cleared his throat.
"Stand down, men! They're defenceless… apart from the krogan. I want cuffs on him!" Marruns ordered. "Actually, cuff all of them! Every single one of you is under arrest for murder and assisted murder! You have the right to-"
"To kick your face in if you don't shut up!" Shual snapped. Marruns dropped his arms, ready to seethe again. Shual lowered Eshells to the ground as Shayan and Henry lowered Sallis among the dead. The large krogan straightened as Phylla covered them. "That's everyone, XO. Where're we at?" Eyes turned to Raisha, much to Marruns' frustration. He rumbled about a lack of respect or some shit like that. No one paid him any heed. Raisha swung her gaze around the survivors, towering over the people huddled on the ground.
"So far, 24 have survived the crash, 20 have passed. I am glad it is not worse but disheartened by the losses. Thank you, Saere, for your dedication," Raisha said, voice strained. Saere pulled taut smile as she finished tying a rough bandage around Utren's arm, the male krogan only grunting in complaint about the movement restraint. My eyes dropped as the numbers sank in. We lost just under half of the crew… Would Dell be able to cope with that, to know so many died in a single incident? Marruns snapped his mandibles.
"All right, round these people up and let's get them back to the Citadel, no doubt the Council will have questions. Arago, call the cruiser so we can haul this piece of junk back. Maybe there is still salvageable data for the Council. Bloody Shaik, planned this whole crash so it would be more difficult to extract the data…" Marruns ordered, grumbling at his final words.
"We are arresting everyone, sir?" a mucky grey turian asked, a brow plate raised. Marruns frowned.
"Everyone," he repeated, as if for an idiot. The turian soldier clapped his mandibles against his cheeks to clip his tongue.
"And the child?" he asked, emphasising the final word. Marruns' brow plates shot up, mandibles flared. He scanned the 24 survivors, eyes finding Gideon still bent over Dell in some attempt to shield her. No fear lined the boy's molten expression.
"Who's the kid?" Marruns asked, pointing at Gideon as if he were the first child he had seen before. His words forced a snort free. Unbelievable, how did this man become a Spectre?
"He's the Captain's," Iona said. Marruns perked, studying Gideon like he would a pot of gold.
"He's a Shaik?" he asked. Wait, what? My throat coughed to clear the surprised blockage.
"No, he's-" I said, trying to correct the misunderstanding.
"Aw, look at the little murderer, he's so cute!" Marruns said, ignored me while speaking in a higher pitched voice. He put his hands on his knees, leaning down with a grin. "You going to be a little murderer like your mama?" Gideon's expression tightened, eyebrows dropping lower.
"Sure, thanks for volunteering," he said, teeth bared. Marruns' grin dropped. After several heartbeats, he straightened with a cough.
"I uh… p-put the kid in secure holding. Let the human embassy sort the mini Shaik out when we get back," he said, shuffling his weight as he continued to clear his throat. Was that his way of showing his unease or embarrassment or did he have something stuck in his throat? "Maybe they can kick the murder out of the kid,"
"Coming from you, you psychopathic serviceman!?" Gideon snapped. Marruns snarled, mandibles snapped to his cheeks.
"And some manners while they're at it! And it's Commander!" he shouted, jabbing a finger in Gideon's direction. Gideon's glare would've melted the Starquake's hull. If only he wasn't so small and thin, Marruns wouldn't feel so confident around him. "Cuffs on, secure the lot of them, gather the dead and pick up what remains of that ship. Move it, people!" he ordered.
It didn't take long to secure everyone. Most of the surviving crew lay on the ground, pinned from injuries or exhaustion. No words exchanged, it wasn't necessary; they slapped cuffs on people who didn't have broken limbs and tied up the good arms of those who did. They herded or carried us onto the turian frigate, parked a safe distance away. The cargo hold had a quick retrofit to house small cells rather than cargo, shoving 3 to a cell of the same gender and species if possible. The cells took up half the width of the hold, the cells facing each other to watch the grumblings of those opposite us. Marruns led Dell's stretcher towards the elevator to secure her elsewhere. A sea of guards surrounded her, guns loose in their hands. Maybe they planned to keep Dell from us as a way to break us down. When the elevator doors closed, it was the last time I saw her.
They left us in the cells for 5 days to sulk in the dark hold while the ship plotted a course for the Citadel. They had to make a pit-stop to pick up additional food to feed us since they had no levo-amino supplies. Lanster and Aergus shared the cell with me, the former had no tried to walk, content to lie down on his back due to minor back injuries Saere didn't want to agitate it. Neither did the on board medic. It left Argus and I little room, but we endured. My only other concern was Gideon's location, despite searching, he didn't seem to be with Henry opposite me. His grumbles hung in the air, he hated being on his own. They shoved him into a cell on his own. It rattled a few people, Raisha being the big voice throughout all of this, to any guard that passed. He was 10 years old, maybe 11, he shouldn't be in a cell on his own.
The quiet gave me plenty of time to think on the few moments before everything went to shit. My hand slid down my face. What had I been thinking! Was I so desperate, so frustrated, so lonely that my brain made a move on the first female near me? On the first creature with a pulse?! My lungs sagged, air dropping out of my mouth like lead weights. If that ship hadn't stopped us, what the hell would've happened? Here she was, once again, calming the storm of my stupidity and shame. She asked the tough questions, refused half-answers. Dammit, she had damn good captain skills and she didn't even realise it. That girl could smack sense into me when she needed to. My gaze turned to those around me, hoping the scars and dim lights hid the flush on my face.
My cell was halfway up the corridor of cells, granting me a lovely view of the survivors. The vocals and light chatter told me where everyone was and confirmed the survivors; Shual and Utren stood as our surviving male krogan, the blue crested Verv cut in half by the buckling floors. Iona, Andria and Saere were our female turian survivors. The crash wiped the Combat team out. Not as as Mat'al's though; Erikos, Saere and Saldan were all that remained of the science team. The engineering team survived so well because the engineer tunnels were so robust, the only sturdy part of the ship. That also explained why Gideon survived. Arthan, Lanster, Aergus, Jarlan, Phylla and Henry still kicked, albeit injured after a tumble dryer style ride. The intel team had lost the same as the combat crew; Anthon, Quin, Sherin and Mari the sole survivors. We lost just under half the crew, the Starquake and all the data we had worked so hard to collect.
Or so people thought. Data integrity haunted Mat'al, becoming obsessed with protecting this data. He collected the data and spread them among all the omni-tools of the crew. My curiosity tried to peek at the data to see what was in mine, but they encoded the data and to be honest, I wasn't curious or talented enough to crack it. Even then, assembling the data would take months if you didn't know what you were looking for. Some of the omni-tools broke beyond hope, but there were at least 4 copies floating around, I'm sure the data is somewhere. This had all kicked off when Dell mentioned Marruns wanted the server data. Judging by how well the science team survived, the crash decimated the labs. If the main servers survived, well, one good thing to give the STG. How long it would take for the Council to check the omni-tools…
Marruns liked to come down and strut his 'stuff', causing more than a few eye rolls and plenty of curses and insults that sent him scurrying away in a huff. The crew were far more reasonable than Marruns himself. They never bothered us, none stopped to mock us and left us in peace. It only made me question how they put him with so much of his shit and yet remained level-headed themselves. Marruns deserved nothing less than one of these 'pineapples' Dell talked about shoved up his ass. Our anxiety levels peaked when we docked the Citadel. The smooth landing set my teeth on edge, the unhurried landing toying with our emotions, as if teasing us of the upcoming prison time. But hours after docking they didn't come for us, leaving us to sit in our cells, awaiting our walk off the ship. A few mutters cropped up, worried murmurs of a firing squad waiting for us. My shoulders sagged as the guards came to check on us and to prepare us for moving.
"They've secured Shaik, we'll be ready to move this lot off once the human embassy has finished with their duty," a silvery female said as she walked between the cells. Her burnt umber male companion snorted.
"Didn't even fight, has she said anything since she woke up?" he asked. The female shook her head.
"Nope, silent as a rock. Well, she said 'Good morning, Corporal' to the Commander though," she smirked. "Wiped the grin right off his face," The male laughed. A relieved sigh escaped, a heavy weight lifted from my shoulders. At least Dell wasn't freaking out… and that she was conscious.
"All right, humans, that's him there. Careful, he's a kicker," the male warned. A frown grew. That's who? My head pressed to the glass to peer down the corridor. A few figures paused outside a cell. So distracted by the fluttering in my stomach, my brain didn't pick up the 3 humans walking with the two guards. My chest sank to my toes.
"Don't worry, we'll take care of him. With luck, Shaik raised him well enough for us to help him," a dark haired humans said. The cell opened and the humans vanished from sight. Mat'al's face, in a cell opposite me, straightened as he watched. Raisha paced in the cell next to him.
"Get away from me! Let me go!" Gideon cried. A tremor ran down my back at the panic in his tone. My face pressed tighter, igniting any pain, listening with a tight throat. The struggling started, the humans trying to calm the boy but Gideon fighting against it. My heart leapt in my chest when Gideon screeched like a terrified varren, heard him thrash as he kicked out against anything that came near him. The sound of clattering metal sent the two turian guards back a few steps. A stomach churning scream rang out as they pulled him out of the cell, three of them fighting to hold the flailing boy.
Oh Spirits, he fought, my eyes transfixed to the sight. He fought for his life, you would have thought. He powered as much force as he could muster into every kick, into every elbow, screaming bloody murder to let him go. The cocky, pain in the ass, clingy shadow transformed into a wild beast caught in a trap. His fist smashed a human in the jaw with a bone-snapping crunch. The humans threw him to the ground, pinned him to the floor, struggling for control over him. The injured human staggered away as the male turian jumped in to hold him down. Gideon squirmed, eyes rolling into the back of his head. He wasn't even trying to speak. He screeching with incoherent words. The humans grunted as they restrained him. Gideon's eyes flew around them room, landing on me. He skin had turned snow-white, eyes bulging out of his face, pupils the size of pin pricks. Hyperventilation wheezed.
"You're all right, lad. C-Come on, settle down!" a male human grunted as he locked Gideon's arms across his chest. A blonde female grabbed his waist while the turian secured his legs. They hauled him out as he tried to worm his way to freedom. He screamed the entire time, the blood in my system draining to my toes.
Spirits knows how long it took before my heart stopped battering my broken ribs. His screams still echoed in my ears when my senses came back, flattened to the glass, faint claw marks from where I must have tried to claw my way out to get to him. If anything happened to him, Dell would- Across the way, Mat'al paced, a prowling beast prodded one too many times. Spider web-like cracks danced over Raisha's reinforced glass cell, masking her from view. Her pacing would rip the floor up if she didn't stop soon. The female guard eyed the crew, shuffling her weight and rolling her shoulders.
"Maybe we should have moved everyone before moving the kid…" she muttered.
"No shit, Sherlock!" Henry snapped, pacing in the cell. The turian's eyes flew across the crew.
They waited another 3 hours, monitoring us to see if our behaviour improved. It didn't. They decided we would not calm down and they had to move us, despite the threat of a punch or two. A small army stormed the hold, cuffs in hand. 6 C-Sec officers stormed in with assault rifles drawn, pinning those would could walk to the wall while they extracted those who couldn't. Cuffs snapped on our wrists, or those who could wear cuffs. Those unable to hand to endure a glaring match as they tied their good arm behind them. They marched out at gun-point, freeing us from the dark confines of the cargo hold. Those who couldn't walk followed behind in stretchers escorted by armed guards. Walking down the ramp, a series of shuttles waiting to whisk us away into the Citadel. Away from freedom, from even fake sunlight. That thought terrified me more than being confined in a cell. We wouldn't have a trial, my gut didn't see it happening. Maybe they would just to make an example of us… Walking beside Aergus, a familiar face appeared in the mass of C-Sec. Commander Satrino Wilcerous stepped before the escort. The guards sighed, the sound tight as their eyes flicked over us.
"Spectre Marruns Bellium, we'll be taking custody of the prisoners," Satrino said, his tone deep but aloof, as if speaking to another officer – or one of lower rank – rather than a Spectre. Marruns laughed.
"Not happening. I'll be dealing with Shaik and her crew. I captured these runaway murderers," Marruns said. "And I am a Spectre. I can do what I want,"
"Really," Satrino said, sounding bored. "Well, According to Spectre Sitoln Noverok, they've assigned you to a new mission by the Council," My height gave me an advantage, but even from here, the pair vanished in the sea of black and blue. The silence from Marruns at this news felt comical, raising my lips. Marruns' snap his mandibles.
"I beg your pardon?" Marruns asked.
"We've got geth sightings at the edge of the Attican Traverse," a new voice began. The accent and speech speed sounded salarian. "The Council has ordered you to investigate, what with your soaring reputation, you are the perfect candidate after the death of Commander Shepard,"
"Are you mocking me?" Marruns snapped.
"No, however C-Sec will now oversee these criminals regardless. You are a Spectre, you do not deal with little things like the day-to-day activities of prisoners. There are far more pressing matters to deal with," the salarian said. A heavy silence set in.
"Fine. I'll investigate these geth," Marruns grumbled, behaving like a sulking child.
"Good. Men, let's get these people out of here," Satrino ordered, cracking like thunder over the din. Pressure pressed into my back, forcing me to walk forward.
Satrino barked his orders, assigning crew members to different shuttles, including mixing those who could walk with those who couldn't to maximise space usage. My head ducked as my foot stepped onto a shuttle, too tired to deal with anymore shit. My ass dropped into a chair, relieved to be sitting on something at least soft. More people piled in after me before the doors shut. My head shook, wishing Saria had never happened, that the Citadel attack had could have been prevented with more planning. None of us would be in this situation if we had… Now I sounded like Iona! Shit!
"Well, you've not fabricated this," Mat'al smiled, a frozen chill on his lips. A frown dropped, my gazw swinging around the shuttle. Raisha, Mat'al, Indira, Shayan and I sat in the shuttle with Satrino and my brain recognised several faces of the guards. "What do you want, Satrino?" The charcoal turian remained still, giving each of us a meticulous study.
"We don't have a lot of time and I don't have the patience right now. I'll keep to the point. I owe Dell a few favours," he said.
"Didn't you pay them off with the attack on Saria?" Shayan asked. Satrino snorted.
"I thought so as well until my superiors promoted me for my actions during your escape from the Citadel," he grumbled. "Long story and if I'm honest, my fields of fuck are too barren to give any of you some. I am doing this for Dell, I know what that blasted creature is like," he leaned back in the chair. My mandibles sagged. Well… he was a… honest man?
"So you want to pay Dell back," Indira said, a weak smile on her lips, her bagged eyes keeping focused on Satrino. My squeezed her knee, watching her eyelids drop. She had lost so much, and with Dell out of the picture for who knows how long… She hadn't been sleeping too well at all to top this off. "So, what do you plan on doing about it?"
"You'll just have to trust me," Satrino said, glancing behind him towards the cockpit. "Do you have any copies of your data, of your research?"
"Why would you want our data-" Shayan asked. Satrino released an agitated growl.
"Yes or no," Satrino snarled. His ferocity jolted me, mandibles sagging. Words stuck on the edge of my tongue, refusing to budge. What the hell is wrong with this man?!
"We do. Its split and encoded on the crew's omni-tools. There's several copies floating around," Mat'al answered. My eyes snapped towards the salarian, jaw slackening further. Why would he-
"Good. You and the crew are being taken to Khyia Ward Prison, they've taken Dell to one of the Maximum Prisons not far from the Presidium, I'm unsure which one yet," Satrino explained. My mandibles clicked. Maximum… has Dell ever been in trouble with the police let alone been in prison? Oh spirits, how was she going to survive in one of those? Satrino glanced out a window, frowning. "Spirits, will I ever pay these debts off?"
"If you want to pay Dell back," I said, tongue spluttering to life, astonished it worked with me. Satrino slide his gaze. "We had a kid on our team, a 10 or 11 year old human named Gideon. Everyone but the crew think he's a Shaik, Dell's kid," My shoulders shrugged to ease the tension crawling over them. "It isn't true but we couldn't correct them-"
"The point, Autillin," Satrino demanded with a quiet growl. My jaw seized, teeth gnashing together.
"The human embassy took him away a few hours ago. If you can keep an eye on him, keep tabs or something, Dell won't be able to pay you back. The kid's won her heart," I said with gritted teeth. Satrino blinked once, silent as his hard eyes drilled new holes into my scarred face.
"I'll see what I can do," he said. His head snapped to a window, a frown dropping some of his plates. He turned to us. "Get ready to disembark, if you haven't already been strip searched, you will now," Satrino rose to his feet, grabbing a hold of the railing above his head. It was only then I realised my knees were shaking.
The Fact Sheet and Timeline have been updated for this chapter. Please see profile for link to Archive.