Remnants

by General Rage

From Halo's ashes, a mismatched Alliance is born. UNSC soldiers now serve alongside both Batarian deserters and shifty Jackal Space Pirates. Now Shepard and Master Chief have to keep these strange bedfellows from killing one another before they can stop an emergent new threat to the galaxy. The Next Swashbuckling Chapter of the Wormhole Chronicles.

2. Aftermath

Chapter One: Aftermath

Forgive your Enemies, but Never Forget their Names

-President John F. Kennedy

Colonel Holland ran his hand over the casket, re-purposed from an old stasis pod the Normandy had been kind enough to supply them. Inside was a single Marine Helmet, a standard issue rifle and a folded UNSC Flag. It wasn't much, but it was all they had. He took a brief sigh, letting his despair wash out before looking to the assembled crowd within the Corvette's main hangar. He hadn't expect so many to turn out, given all the work there was still left to do. He supposed he should've known better, good soldiers always make time to remember the fallen even in the most dire times. All the more reason to not waste too much time here. He wasn't the best at speeches, but these men and women wanted to pay their respects and he wasn't about to disappoint them in that regard.

"When we escaped Reach together, there were more than three thousand souls with us from our combined forces," he began solemnly. "I thank Captain Keyes especially for letting my Troopers follow you brave Marines into the unknown. Now, we are less than a few hundred survivors."

It was blunt, but true. Holland knew he couldn't sugar coat their situation here. They were inside a hijacked Covenant Corvette, towing another Corvette full of pirates and former enemies. They were in the middle of nowhere limping back to human space. Suffice to say, this was not an optimal situation. They needed to remember their situation. This was a ceremony to grieve, yes, but that did not mean it gave anyone a reason to forget why they were here to begin with. What those who had died had done so for. He had to give their survival meaning.

"The sacrifices of these heroes is one not to be taken lightly," he informed the crowd proudly. "Their efforts are the very reason we have survived despite the odds against us. Their deaths are not without meaning. We should honor their sacrifices, but not mourn them. Through their actions we dealt a significant blow to the Covenant, ended a nightmarish new enemy, and destroyed a deadly weapon that endangered all life in the galaxy. We should all be proud to have served alongside them and been a part of their legacy."

He looked around to the crowd, looking for one face in particular. He noticed soon after that the ODSTs were all off to the side, separated from the other assembled soldiers. Both Marines and Troopers, despite being from different branches, were all huddled among each other in solidarity. The Orbital Drop Shock Troopers, however, looked singled out. He supposed he knew the reason why, given what had happened. Major Silva, the leader of the ODSTs, had committed mutiny. He defied Holland's orders and turned on his fellow soldiers. His actions put them all at risk and it was a wound that hadn't healed much at all it seemed.

Holland couldn't have that, they had enough to worry about as it was, given their new allies over in the other ship they were towing. If group cohesion fractured they'd be in real trouble.

"We will never forget the bravery of these fine men and women," Holland continued, still speaking with pride. "Soldiers of the UNSC that gave their all for humanity. Heroes, like Lieutenant Carol Rawley, Sergeant Alec Taylor, Staff Sergeant Marvin Mobuto, Major Antonio Silva and Captain Jacob Keyes. They all gave their lives in service of Earth and her Colonies."

He supposed mentioning Silva would be controversial, but he didn't care. According to Spartans 058 and Noble Two, despite his actions he had made up for them in the end. He prevented the Flood from acquiring their own escape ship, dying in the process. He trusted their word. Showing that he had no ill will towards their fallen leader would help prove to the ODSTs that he was not their enemy. It would also send a message to the others not to treat their fellow soldiers like traitors. They needed to move past that, especially considering they were entrusting their lives to far older enemies turned allies.

He finally found the one face in the crowd he had been searching for. Lieutenant Melissa McKay, the second in command of the late Antonio Silva. She had turned against her CO when he mutined, but he could tell it had pained her to do so. A man she admired had betrayed his principles and she played a part in his downfall. He could still see the sense of self-loathing on her face. She was now in command of the ODSTs that were left, made of those who had joined Silva's mutiny and those who had not. He couldn't imagine how much pressure was now being placed upon her shoulders. The next few days and weeks would test her resolve. He hoped she was up to the challenge and that they'd be able to assist her should she need them.

Then again, they were all going to be challenged in the days ahead. No one soldier's burden could be placed higher than anyone else's. They all shared the dangers to come equally now.

"What we must do now, is press on with them in mind and not let their sacrifice be in vain," he decreed. "Their struggle is over, ours is not. We find ourselves in probably the most difficult position possible. We are UNSC soldiers, stranded who knows how many lightyears from home. We have had to make alliances that some of us may still find questionable. And until we can be certain this ship is clean of any and all potential tracking devices, we cannot risk going to Earth. Yet, we must return to UNSC space to warn humanity of a potential threat that possibly outweighs the Covenant. We must not falter in this mission, too much is at stake. Not just the UNSC or the Galaxy, but the memory of these brave heroes who gave their lives so that we may have the chance to tell their story to all mankind. So that what happened on Halo, will never be forgotten."

That seemed to strike a chord with everyone, especially McKay. He saw some of the anguish leave her face, replaced with resolve. He smiled lightly at that, but only for a moment before his face became more stern. He respectfully turned to the makeshift coffin and saluted.

"Your courage will be an example for us to strive to," he declared. "Your memory will never be forgotten as long as we yet live. As long as all mankind yet live. We will press on, we will survive and we will remember that we are part of your legacy."

The assembled soldiers saluted in kind and a group of Marines and Troopers took the casket and rolled it towards the edge of the ship. They let it pass through the barrier and float out into the vast black void beyond. Sergeant Avery Johnson yelled to a detail of rifleman to present arms and they fired after the casket into the black. Holland watched the little coffin float into the distance and out of sight. Slowly but surely the others all left the hangar, dismissed from the ceremony. He remained however.

When he left Reach, he had shared command with Jacob Keyes. He had had little time to get to know him before his death, but he quickly grew to respect him as a fellow officer. His loss was a terrible one for the UNSC. Too many good men had already died in this war.

Now, however, he was sharing command of a loose confederation. An alliance born of circumstance. On one side there were his Troopers and the remaining Marines. On the other, a bunch of Jackal Pirates and their cunning shipmaster who seemed less than reputable. Alongside him was another alien from another dimension, called Varvok. His race, the batarians, apparently had their own grudge with humanity, making him potentially more dangerous. For all his clearly questionable attributes, it was clear that the Jackal leader Zek had no personal issues concerning humans. Varvok though was a different story.

The one solace Holland had was that on his side, and sadly probably in the middle of everything, was Command Shepard. The de-facto Captain of the Normandy, he had arranged this alliance. Through it, they had escaped Halo with more men than they could've hoped for. Better still, they had done it with a ship that wasn't infested with a dangerous infectious organism called the Flood. He owed a lot to Shepard for that, and he supposed Zek and Varvok, who had made the offer of the alliance in the first place. It still wouldn't have happened without Shepard's reputation though, that could not be understated.

This did not make this alliance any less shaky though. He had already heard of the scuttlebutt among the crew, still questioning if working with Covenant Deserters was a good idea. Yes, they had betrayed their former leaders and chosen to side with them, but it was a marriage of convenience. It was why they were towing the Jackals' ship, the Fallen Serpent. It had been damaged, they couldn't escape Halo under their own power. They had needed UNSC assistance to steal this Corvette. It was a partnership born out of a shared need for survival, not because they suddenly liked each other.

However, Zek and Varvok had helped the Master Chief destroy Halo, ending the threat the ancient ring world posed. Had the installation been fired, all life in the galaxy would've been destroyed. In a way, they were as much a part of that victory as the soldiers he had just paid tribute to. He couldn't deny how complicated this situation was in any respect and he wondered just what the future now held for them. Stranded countless miles from home with former enemies at their back and current enemies no doubt hunting them even now. Not the kind of command that he appreciated owning, but it was his and he'd have to bear it. If there was a small comfort, knowing Shepard's position in all this, he wouldn't have to bear all the burden alone.

---

Despite the still ongoing after party, work was going steady. Not nearly as fast Retz would've preferred it, but at the very least they were getting done. Stealing what remained of the demolished Covenant vessels in the area before leaving the system and it's exploded ring world behind had given them more than enough raw material to repair parts of their ship. That much could be appreciated.

Zek, however had other things on his mind as the two walked through the corridors of the Fallen Serpent. He had already commissioned a few of the crewman commit to a task that was, in Retz's opinion, rather wasteful in terms of manpower. However, Zek had insisted upon it. He wanted them to paint a big green snake along the side of the ship. He had always wanted to do that, but Covenant regulations had prevented him from doing so. Now that they were free from their yoke, Zek was wasting no time in making sure everyone knew he was a true pirate again.

The men shared the sentiment, they had already started covering the walls in pin ups and posters of various Kig-Yar females, fabled sea monsters of their homeworld and anything else that they had previously hidden away. Zek wanted to go one further, as his items within his dictated to do list proved.

"And I want these walls re-painted, I don't care what color so long as it ain't purple," he demanded. "I don't want to see another spec of that color on this ship as long as I live."

"You're kind of making our supply list a bit longer than it should be," Retz informed his friend. "I don't think we need more ero-holos and a brand new speaker system for the entire ship."

"How else are we gonna blast our tunes through the halls?" Zek asked, seemingly oblivious to the matter of cost. "By the way, the new ship we snagged. What do you think of my name choices? I like Crusty Chorka myself."

"Yes, I think we should really run that by the humans, since they're going to be piloting it for awhile," Retz suggested. "I'm not sure how they'd feel about that."

"They won't mind, it's just a name," Zek insisted. "If you really think they care, go ask them. I'm sure all they'll do is just cock their heads and keep wondering what a Chorka even is."

It had been a bit of a culture shock, this sudden merging of kig-yar and humans, with a few batarians thrown in for good measure. Retz noted how, despite things not breaking down into a shooting spree afterwards the humans still gave them a few suspicious looks. It probably would've been better if they kept themselves segregated for the time being, but that was a bit hard to do in given circumstances.

Despite the lines of authority among between the Fallen Serpent, Normandy and the new Corvette, there were still quite a few humans aboard all three vessels in their miniature fleet. The same held true with the kig-yar, a few more of their kind than anticipated had joined their ranks and survived the fight when they took the second Corvette. It made living arrangements a little complicated, but the humans had allowed a few kig-yar to remain aboard their Corvette in exchange for letting some humans stay aboard theirs. It was only way to balance the life support systems with minimal risk.

The situation still made things a bit tense among all parties though, more so between humans and batarians especially. Varvok assured he'd keep his men from doing anything to spark a fight, but he couldn't be everywhere and his men were still a bit jumpy when they saw humans in the same hall as them. It was a bit disconcerting to see the four-eyed aliens so seemingly disgusted by just the presence of UNSC Marines sharing the same air as them.

Worse still was the case of the unggoy, a fair amount of them had surrendered to them in exchange for their service. That was mostly Retz's fault though, as when he had made the offer for the kig-yar aboard their stolen Corvette to join them, he made the same offer to the unggoy beneath them. At the time, the point was to decrease their enemies numbers, making it easier to push towards the bridge.

Retz hadn't imagined so many would take the offer and somehow survive the repercussions. His gambit had paid off just a bit too well it seemed. While he didn't care much for the little methane breathers, he was wary about breaking a promise in front of the humans. Zek was a bit wary about the whole thing, but he allowed the unggoy to stay on so long as they didn't get in the way. Also they had to serve the ichor and food like little waiters, because they had to at least be useful while aboard. Just because Retz promised they wouldn't have to fight again didn't mean they could be lazy.

There were worse problems, more dire issues if you will. Retz wanted to bring them to Zek's attention, but his friend kept going on about whatever else was on his mind. Retz was worried his friend was getting a bit drunk on freedom and it was making him forget that they weren't out of the woods yet.

"By the way, I'm thinking of getting a new chair for the bridge," Zek happily declared. "Comfier this time, rich Doarmir Leather. What do you think?"

"I think we should worry about our slipspace drive," Retz informed him bluntly. "We need a replacement and if you're going where I think you are to get one, we need something to actually buy it with. More accurately, we'd need to convince the humans to even go there."

Zek didn't seem all that worried though, simply shrugging the problem off.

"Relax, we're fine, we got plenty to trade."

That was partially true, they had quite a few things aboard this ship and the other Corvette they could try to trade for supplies. For a slipspace drive though? That was going to be difficult to acquire. They had already given a portion of their bounty over to the humans, several crates of Covenant plasma rifles. It was a gift, no charge, Zek felt a gesture of good faith would help better solidify relations between them and the humans. Retz agreed it was a good idea, but he was still cautious about thinking it changed much.

"I'm just saying with what little we have and our given reputation, it's not going to be easy to make a deal there," he cautiously informed Zek. "We've only just escaped Covenant employ, we still need to climb back up the ladder after that. And even if we're able to convince the humans to go there, convincing them to pitch in further to help us by giving up their supplies and equipment won't go over well. We need to be careful how much we ask of them."

"It's okay, Retz," Zek assured him once more. "I'm on top of this. I'm going to talk things over with Commander Shepard, smooth things out on that front first."

Retz looked at him confused. He was going to talk to Shepard? Really?

"What exactly are you going to talk to him about?" He asked.

"Just a few things about this alliance and all," Zek explained with a grin. "Getting the slipspace drive and fixing this old crate up are just the start, Retz. You're right, we need to work back up the ladder. Right now, our best real bet of doing that is to keep this relationship we got working smoothly and in our benefit."

The way he put that was a bit of a concern. Yes, keeping this alliance going for the time being was probably good idea. They were alone out here, they weren't exactly in the strongest position and the Covenant were actively hunting them. Everyone could see they were in the same boat, but not everyone had a different idea of how things would function.

Varvok had made his intentions clearest. He was here for as long as it took to get his people home. As far as he was concerned, any fight over here was subsidiary. Their real concerns were the Covenant back in his home dimension, subverting batarian culture and slowly absorbing them into their empire under the promise of helping them defeat their enemies. He wanted to get back there and stop the assimilation, but he couldn't do that on his own. The wormhole back home was guarded by a small Covenant Fleet, just leaving wasn't an option. His best bet at getting back home was with Shepard. So he was staying for the long haul, under protest in a way, but he didn't have much of a choice.

The UNSC likely believed this would last until the Fallen Serpent was fixed, that much was also clear. Once the kig-yar could fly their own ship, they'd go their separate ways and hopefully never bother one another ever again. The risk of being on their own in the middle of enemy territory didn't seem to phase them that much. So long as they didn't have to share space with Covenant deserters they'd be fine. In Retz's opinion it was probably not the best decision, but it was theirs to make.

Commander Shepard was a bit of a mystery. According to Varvok he had no prejudice against aliens and his mixed crew of various races proved that. He also believed in cooperation above all. Something told him that the good Commander wanted to make this alliance last too, but not in the way Varvok and perhaps Zek envisioned. He more than likely wanted them to help continue the fight against the Covenant, help save humanity. After all, they had helped them do just that just yesterday.

Retz, however, knew Zek. He was out. He had escaped the Covenant and a war that he never felt was his. He wasn't going to get dragged back into it. He suspected Zek would be happy to assist the humans in his own way, but he would not fight for them. He had gotten his freedom back and he would sell it again to anyone. If Shepard wanted that from him, he would be disappointed. Retz also doubted the others aboard would be keen on the idea themselves. They had no love for the Covenant, but they had little reason to like the UNSC either. Just because they shared an enemy didn't make them friends.

However, just because he wouldn't fight their war, Zek sounded like he wanted to try at being friends. Or at least business partners. Retz doubted though that he really saw all that much of a difference between the two.

"I know that look you're giving," Zek noted. "You're thinking I've read this wrong."

"I'm just saying I don't think Shepard is interested in helping us in rising within the pirate hierarchy," he informed him plainly. "He has other things on his mind."

"Of course he does, and I'm going to explain to him that we can help soothe that troubled mind," Zek promised slyly. "He's a reasonable man, I've seen it myself. We can do business, I'm sure of it. I just need to lay down the groundwork and we can move from there."

"Maybe I should handle any negotiation first," Retz tried to insist. "It is kinda what I do."

"I appreciate the offer, bud, but this has to be between me and him," Zek claimed proudly. "Shipmaster to shipmaster, if you will. I'll be back in a few hours, let you know what's going down. If nothing else, I'll be able to convince him to talk to Holland and get us access to something we can use for a trade."

Retz sighed, no sense in convincing him to back off. Once Zek had settled on something he wasn't about to stop until he had seen it through. As Zek started walking down the corridor without him, he suddenly turned back.

"Trust me, I got this. Take a load off, Retz, enjoy what's left of the after party," he insisted. "Let loose a little. We're pirates again, it's what we do."

"I'll think about it," Retz replied, which as they both knew was code for 'no thanks' among them.

Zek just laughed and walked off. Retz really hoped his friend knew what he was doing and that he wasn't setting himself up for disappointment. Shepard was probably reasonable, but there were more factors in play just him. The nature of this alliance was still in flux and no one really knew where it would ultimately go. Retz never did like uncertainties, they always made his job even harder.

---

A large swirling orange gas giant filled the window, similar to the one that they had left behind when Halo exploded but with a small asteroid belt surrounding it. A spectacular sight, one that made being a UNSC Marine feel like it was more than just shooting aliens and fighting insurrectionists. It was not, however, the most bizarre thing one could see staring out the window.

Kowalski and Ellingham were currently looking at the Corvette they were towing just behind them. There were at least three Jackals in spacesuits walking along the hull, magboots holding them to the surface. They were there to repair what few holes were left in the boat though, that was being taken care of by another group. No, they were using high powered paint sprayers it seemed, spewing out streams of green and yellowish paint. From what Kowalski could see of the outline they were drawing he concluded they were painting a snake of some kind. Made sense when you remember the name of their ship.

"Those ugly feather brains have a weird set of priorities," Ellingham bluntly stated after what seemed like a long hour or so of staring.

Kowalski just nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, though this could just be normal for them," he admitted. "I mean, these are the first Jackals we've met that haven't tried to blow our brains out."

"Still weirds me out, man," Ellingham added. "Covie deserters working with us. I'll be honest, I never thought that would happen. Not in a million years. And Jackal Pirates of all the things, crazy. My nephew is gonna freak when I tell him this story."

Kowalski briefly wondered in his mind 'if we get out of this', but he pushed it aside. Despite the ceremony just awhile ago, he still couldn't help but feel optimistic. For the first time since before the Covies found Reach, he actually had some hope again. They had survived Halo, defeated a bunch of alien parasites, took a Covenant Corvette and destroyed a chunk of the enemy fleet at the same time. The losses still hurt, but the feeling of euphoria hadn't gone away. They had come out of this with something to show for it for once, it didn't feel entirely hopeless.

Of course, there was still the wrinkle of having to cart a bunch of space pirates around with them. He hated to say it, but he still felt uncomfortable having them so close. They had been trying to kill him just a few days prior and their presence still felt a bit shifty. Still, seeing them paint a big green snake across their ship's hull made it slightly less unnerving.

"Wouldn't have pegged them for having an artistic side," he noted aloud.

"Yeah, that's a shocker," Ellingham agreed. "They don't seem like the cultured type. You know, with the smell and all. Honestly, I'm not trying to be rude here, they all have a terrible musk. It's like they wallow in their own filth or something."

"Historically, pirates on Earth weren't big on hygiene either," Kowalski observed with a shrug. "At least that's what I learned in history class. Guess some things ain't much different in space."

"I'm not really that surprised," Ellingham chortled slightly back. "Have you heard about what they drink? Ichor, I looked it up. It's friggin bile... from like open sores and glands and shit. Gross. Apparently, scuttlebutt says they get it from some weird ass fucking space whale that secretes the stuff."

Kowalski visibly winced.

"Ugh, I bet Pearson would chug it down if you dared him," he suggested.

"Forget Pearson, Ramirez would do it in a heartbeat," Ellingham countered.

Yeah, Kowalski supposed he would. Ramirez was a bit of a risk taker after all, ending up on point more often than not. Although he wondered if he'd pause for a bit before downing space whale bile.

"I guess we can't really be too harsh," Kowalski reasoned. "I mean, they're aliens. There's probably a few things that would taste disgusting to them that we eat."

"Maybe, but that doesn't make this any less bizarre," Ellingham argued. "You hear about this big party they're having? It's one big celebration or something for them."

"They did just escape the Covenant and are pretty much in the clear now," Kowalski said, trying to play devil's advocate a little. "You can't blame them for being happy."

"It's still awkward, dude," Ellingham reminded him. "We're honoring our dead, they party like it's New Year's. I don't know man, just seems odd, like it's not real to them what's going on."

Considering what they had survived, Kowalski wondered if a lot of it was real. Most of it felt like a nightmare. In that vein, maybe the Jackals were just trying to suppress it. But even he admitted it felt a bit wrong for them to feel happy about everything, while on the flip-side they had lost so many good people. Some of them they had probably killed themselves. Trying to keep an open mind was difficult in that environment.

"I hear some of the Normandy crew checked out their shindig by the way," Ellingham added. "Think Samara was there?"

"Doubtful," Kowalski said with a laugh. "She keeps giving the space vultures and their four-eyed buddies death looks. When the ceremony ended and the coffin was floating off she told me she had to get back to meditation, lest she accidentally runs into one of them again. She really doesn't like being around them."

"Yeah, I forgot, the whole code thing, kill the guilty and all that," Ellingham suddenly remembered. "Gotta say, that has to make conversations uncomfortable as hell. I had a psycho girlfriend once, took everything I said out of context, thought I wanted to cheat on her if I gave our waitress a nice tip, when my grandma was sick she thought I was making up excuses to not see her, really toxic relationship man. Sex was good though."

"Yeah, Sam's not like that," Kowalski stated, quick to defend the Asari Justicar. "One, we're just friends. Two, most of the time we just talk about some of her cases or what her people like or what it was like growing up on the Moon, regular stuff. Never got the sense she wanted to kill me for anything."

"If you say so, man," Ellingham shrugged. "Just letting you know you can't use my out if things turn sour."

Kowalski raised his brow slightly at that.

"What was your out?" He asked suspiciously.

"Joining the Marines," he replied grinning slightly before breaking into a laugh.

Kowalski shook his head at that.

"Okay, actually it was moving to another town, I just thought the first one was funnier," he relented. "Point is, that's not an option either. Although to be honest, I'm glad Sam is watching the sneaky little birds anyway. They try anything, she'll waste them easy. She is pretty badass."

Kowalski grinned at that, remembering all the times Samara had pretty much proven that. He supposed it was nice to know she was looking out for them by keeping an eye on the Jackals. On the other hand, Ellingham didn't see the look in her eyes that he did. She did not like being stuck in this situation, her hand forced as it were. The Asari had already expressed her problems with her code being in conflict, this was probably eating her up inside even more.

"Speaking of badass," Ellingham suddenly spoke up in awe. "Look who's just showed up."

Kowalski followed his friend's gaze and realized what his friend was talking about. Just a few feet away, staring out into the void, was the giant green armored super soldier himself. The Master Chief, Spartan, war hero and all around idol to every soldier in the UNSC. Kowalski had seen him a few times marching through Alpha Base on Halo, but never this close. Now, on the list of impressive past victories, he had added saving all their lives and the galaxy itself from the threat of Halo. Suffice to say, Kowalski felt a bit weak in the knees.

"What's he doing?" he asked in a hushed whisper.

"Admiring the gas giant, I guess," Ellingham replied, his tone matching Kowalski's.

The two of them stared at the man for at least half a minute more, just taking in the fact he was even here. One would think he'd be talking to Holland or even Commander Shepard about something. Maybe even getting ready for the next fight. There were no cryopods on this ship, so him and the other Spartans couldn't sleep like they usually did.

"Well, you gonna go talk to him?" Ellingham asked insistently.

"Are you kidding?" Kowalski responded defensively. "You go talk to him, I'm not going to go bother him. I'll look like a total idiot."

"He's still human ya know," Ellingham argued. "It's not like he's Lord Hood, he's a ground soldier. He's in the dirt, like us."

"Yeah, but we're grunts, he's a god damn legend," Kowalski countered. "I wouldn't even know where to friggin start!"

"Come on, man," Ellingham insisted. "When else are we going to get the chance to talk to him? At least not when the bullets are flying anyway."

Kowalski knew he was right, but he still had no idea what he would say. Hell, he wasn't even sure if he should. He'd like to at least thank him for saving their asses, maybe even shake his hand at least. Would be a story to tell the kids... well, if he ever ended up having kids. Besides, he was the first in his squad to talk to an alien, how hard could a Spartan be? As he tried to work up the nerve, he kept staring at the solemn and stoic super soldier before them. He looked real deep in thought, what it was about he couldn't be sure. Who knew how a Spartan's mind worked, bred for war and all that. If he and Ellingham wanted to talk to him, they'd have to make up their minds before he decided to stop literally staring into space.

---

Staring out into the dark, looking past the massive gas giant, the Master Chief kept a silent vigil. Usually by this time he'd be back in cyro sleep, but that wasn't an option right now. It forced his mind to wander a bit more than usual, his thoughts to drift. Technically, he was still on mission, but there was no direct threat beyond keeping ahead of the Covenant no doubt hunting them. He had been going over every event that had led them to this situation aboard this commandeered Covenant vessel. His mind wandered back from the destruction of Halo, to their alliance with these pirates, to the discovery of the Flood and the evacuation of the Pillar of Autumn. At the end of his recollection of events, however, was always another doomed world, Reach.

That planet had been home for a very long time, it was hard to believe it was now a glassed husk. True, it held much hardship and anger, but for better or worse it was his childhood. It was where he had forged himself into what he was today. More importantly, it was where he had met his brothers in arms. It was probably the chief reason he felt the pain of those years was worth it. He had never known truer friends than those of the Spartan II program. They were closer than any family he had long forgotten.

Kelly, the fastest of the Spartans, so quick she had to slow herself down just to spar with him and the others. She was taller than him for awhile, didn't last long though. You could always count on Kelly to press hard and keep moving. She was the rabbit, but unlike the hare in the fable she never tired or quit. Fred was a lot like him, although probably a bit more empathetic than most. Despite him never wanting to stand out in a crowd he more than made up for it in other areas. He was a good leader, if he had to be somewhere else he could count on Fred to take command. It was why he had placed him in charge of the ground team back on Reach, back when things got bad.

They were supposed to be getting ready for a secret mission when the Covenant hit them first. Priorities shifted, they had to split up in a bid to save the planet. Chief, Linda and another Spartan, James, went to an Orbital Space Station in need of having it's AI wiped. Fred and Kelly went ground side to prevent the planet's power generators from being destroyed, desperately needed to keep the Orbital MAC guns firing. Then James got killed. After that Linda was badly hurt and Reach was all but overrun as the MACs stopped firing.

Had it not been for the Normandy's apt arrival they probably would've lost Linda. Instead they got her into stasis, preventing things from getting worse. Later the ship's physician Doctor Chakwas, and equally brilliant Professor Mordin Solus, helped to save her life. There was no such reprieve for Kelly and Fred and all the other Spartans down on the surface of Reach. They had to abandon them and it was the biggest gut punch he had suffered in a long while.

Despite the loss, he soon found new allies, new brothers in arms, among the Normandy crew. He tried to keep them distant at first, grateful to them for saving Linda's life but wary to accept them fully. He soon realized that had been an error in judgment. It was only through their combined efforts that they had accomplished one of the greatest significant victories of the war so far. They could never replace the brothers and sisters he lost, but he felt comfortable around them enough by now. He could call them friends, that wasn't easy for him to do with most people outside the Spartans.

However, he still missed those he had lost. He had Linda at least, a dear part of his old life, but it still felt like he had left a piece of himself back on Reach. Yet he kept feeling his mind wander back to thoughts of the planet, thoughts of his team. Those thoughts aligned with the events of the past day, when for a brief moment they thought everyone else but them had perished with Halo. Then, as if by a miracle, they discovered that was not the case. More had survived, they had lived through the destruction of the ring world.

That fact made his mind wander, made his thoughts drift. Now he stood at this window, trying to peer through the void. Trying to see if he could pinpoint the flickering remains of another devastated world in vain. It was all he could do to keep himself from thinking too much on current events, of hoping too much.

"Never really pictured you for a stargazer."

The smooth feminine voice came from within his own head, his neural uplink. It was playful in tone, a bit prideful and full of wit as well. It wasn't arrogant, however, just knowingly accepting of it's position. She was always like that, always trying to break through the tough exterior. It was kinda like a game to her, one he had long since accepted.

"Cortana," he greeted. "You've been quiet for awhile."

"Been busy running a few diagnostics on your armor, not to mention compiling a logistics report with EDI and DOT," Cortana explained succinctly. "You should know by now, us AIs never stop working."

That was because AIs never stopped thinking, it was in their programming. Cortana was slightly more of a chatterbox than most, always eager to share an opinion of thought. Most of the time to make smart ass remark of course.

"Ever consider taking a break?" Chief asked her.

"This is my break, bugging you," Cortana replied coyly. "I am just more capable of multitasking. Allowing me to do my work and still get some form of recreation. I'm also playing Chess against myself, I'm winning by the way. I'm thinking of challenging EDI when she has some run-times to spare. I feel my odds are good, what do you think?"

"It depends, are you going for three dimensional or classic?" He asked in return.

"Rhombic actually, those other two got boring by the time I was six months old," Cortana informed him plainly. "Now let's get back to what's on your mind would-be astronomer?"

Despite Cortana's quirks, Chief had come to appreciate her presence. When they first told them she'd be sharing his head space within the neural uplink, he was admittedly apprehensive. Maybe it was because of her penchant for sarcasm or her more than a little flippant attitude towards him. However, she had saved his life more than once. When the chips were down, he could rely on her. He had the feeling it wasn't just because she was programmed to either. She was as invested in the mission as she was, their time on Halo proved that to him.

Be that as it may, while he did trust her now, he didn't feel like sharing every waking thought. At least not at the moment. This feeling of nostalgia was a bit of a distraction currently gnawing at him. It would pass eventually and he didn't want to dwell on it for too long. Still, he had to give her something or she'd just keep pushing. So he went for a half truth.

"Just still processing our current situation," he assured her.

"You and everyone else in this mini-flotilla," Cortana stated in agreement. "Although for all intents and purposes we've gone longer without any major incidents between the factions than expected. Probably due mostly to fact we are all avoiding each other."

"We're not going to be able to manage that forever," Chief cautioned. "There's only three ships between us all."

"And one of them is significantly smaller," Cortana added. "However, I'm hoping we can alleviate the inevitable tension once we acquire more supplies. Which we will need if my calculations are correct. Even with the stores of food accumulated between all vessels, we have little less than a few weeks of rations. Now we could have the Marines start eating the Jackal's food but... well, I've looked up what they eat and it's predictably not pretty."

Chief finally took his eyes off the stars and looked slightly up at that.

"What exactly do they eat?" He asked curiously.

"A disgusting slop that passes for a stew for one thing," she replied. "I'm not sure what exactly is in it, but I'm sure at least some of it is still wiggling despite being cooked. Not surprising, this is a species that drinks space whale blister bile as an alcoholic beverage."

Well he certainly wasn't going to be eating that. Realistically though, food wasn't that great a concern. He and the other Spartans had survived long periods of time without eating. He suspected Kat and Jun had undergone similar conditioning. The augmentations certainly helped in that regard as well. If it came down to it, they could starve a little. However, four less people in need of food wasn't going to make much of a difference for everyone else.

It was even more of a concern for some of their alien friends on the Normandy. Garrus and Tali had different amino acids according to what he recalled from their profiles. They couldn't eat the same food as humans, it would make them sick. They needed Dextro-based foods to survive. They probably had a stockpile of the stuff, but who knew how long that would last at this point.

"So we're going to need food and water above all else depending on how long we're out here," he reasoned aloud. "What are our options for that?"

"Well, there is some consideration towards a hydroponics lab of a sorts, if we could make some room," Cortana explained. "According to EDI, Professor Solus is already trying to work something out in regards to Tali and Garrus' unique diets. If he can get that working we can probably transfer a similar setup for everyone else. Problem is, we'd still need something to actually grow before hand and seeds are in short supply. MREs rarely contain viable agricultural material. Maybe potatoes if there is enough of them, we can survive off that. But there's still water to concern ourselves with if we go through with this plan."

There were certainly no shortage of problems to work out then. Thing was, for the moment very few of those were in his wheelhouse of expertise. Chief couldn't help but feel a bit useless in that regard. Then again, if push came to shove he'd probably play some kind of role in securing such materials.

"Maybe if we find a viable planet," Chief suggested. "We could send a team down, collect some possible food samples to resupply ourselves."

"That's one option, course we'd first need to find one and there's no guarantee we'll come across one soon," Cortana cautioned. "I suppose we could take a page out of the book our new friends use, piracy. Covenant ships are likely hunting us, they'd have a few supplies at least. The food the Elites eat isn't nearly as gross as far as I understand."

Either way he'd probably volunteer to assist in securing supplies or taking the enemy ship. At least it would give him, Linda, Kat and Jun something to do. And if they were working with Shepard's crew, they no doubt get the job done in record time as well.

"Easiest solution though would be to find some place to dock and resupply, a port or station," Chief noted. "No idea where we'd find one out here that was friendly."

"I imagine the Jackals' leader has an idea," Cortana suggested. "He has to pick up a new slipspace drive from somewhere. I doubt he's just going to find one floating out in space. And any critical repairs are going to require pulling into a dock of some kind."

If Zek had any destination in mind, he hadn't shared it openly just yet. Perhaps he was weighing his options for the moment. One thing was for sure, if it was a safe haven for space pirates it probably was a bit shady in general. Chief didn't know what to think about that. He had rarely really dealt with the underworld of the galaxy. That was the espionage game, ONI's job. He was a soldier, tip of the spear on the front lines. At least that was what he used to be.

Currently, the only real mission was getting home to Earth and that would take awhile no matter what. As long as they were out here and working with Zek, Varvok and the rest of the Deserters, he'd have to adjust his usual outlook. He was more akin to a fugitive now, they all were. They were being hunted by the Covenant in unknown territory, adapting to that was the key to their survival.

If there was one thing he knew though, it was how to adapt.

"Linda said you'd be here."

Chief turned briefly to see Commander Shepard already walking up behind him.

"I'm guessing you're not big on celebrating with the space pirates either," he asked.

"Not really, sir," Chief responded.

"Same, half my crew decided to check out how Jackals party," Shepard noted. "Hopefully they aren't too hungover come morning. Or sick given what they serve as drinks over there."

Shepard soon stepped beside him, joining the Spartan in his stargazing. He briefly looked over to see the Jackals, still painting their hull.

"Are they making a snake?" He asked surprised.

"I believe so," Chief admitted. "Although to be honest, I wasn't really paying much attention. Other things on my mind."

"I know the feeling," Shepard concurred. "Hard to relax when you know there's more of the fight headed your way."

To the Master Chief, Commander Shepard was both incredibly similar and vastly different. That was the impression he had slowly built up during their time together. Shepard was less insular than himself, less closed off. He was idealistic and charismatic, a soldier yes, but also diplomatic in his approach. He had seen that firsthand when he had taken the offer the deserters presented him. Chief could never see himself as much of a negotiator. He and his team didn't usually give the enemy the opportunity, then again the Covenant were rarely much for talking.

Just because Shepard used his words more often, however, did not mean he was soft. He was a great leader, he cared for his team and he was more than capable on the battlefield. His biotic abilities were most impressive in the field, making up for raw physical power with that of the more subtle strengths of the mind. It was more than just fancy tricks, messing with the mass of opponents and the like. When Shepard unleashed his power, he himself could become the weapon. It never got tiring to watch him turn into a blur of blue light and slam head on into an Elite.

Yet he was still only as strong as his team, which Chief could clearly see he had forged into a finely honed machine. The Normandy crew were much like his Spartans in that way. They were nowhere near as connected or as well-trained, but they made up for their lack genetic modification with their own unique skills.

Put it all together and Commander Shepard was one of the best Marines, the best soldier he had seen outside of the Spartans. If he had grown up in this dimension, Chief had little doubt he would've been one of the many candidates training right along with him on Reach as a child. Then again, he probably wouldn't be the same man if he had. And right now, if they wanted to hold this makeshift alliance together, they needed a few soldiers as skilled with words as weapons. Shepard fit the bill for that job exactly.

"Holland has teams working round the clock to scrub any potential tracking devices or programs on the ship," Shepard stated aloud. "The sooner we know the Covenant can't find us with a flick of a switch the better. Right now that seems to be top priority above everything else."

"Standard Cole Protocol," Chief noted. "Can't risk the Covenant tracking us back to Earth. I'm guessing there's a problem though."

"Yeah," Shepard sighed slightly shaking his head. "It's the fact there's two ships to search, not to mention the crew that came with it. I think it's bringing up some complications."

That was an understatement. Chief didn't pay much attention to scuttlebutt or gossip, but he could feel the tension himself. The Marines and Troopers, they weren't trained to see Covies as friends. None of them were. He could get past it easily. They were deserters, they weren't hostile. At least not for now. But a lot of these men had lost friends, loved ones, some even whole worlds to the Covenant. In the program that had created them, Spartans were taught to not allow emotions to cloud judgment. They couldn't let their personal feelings compromise the mission. At first it was hard to bottle your feelings up, it was still hard in some cases. He had conditioning and training to help him though. The other soldiers of the UNSC, not so much.

"Does Holland suspect Zek or Varvok of anything?" Chief asked.

"I don't think he's worried about them," Shepard answered hopefully. "Well, not entirely anyway. Just that this situation makes things a bit difficult."

"I'll agree with that, sir," Cortana chimed in suddenly. "Holland did agree to this, but it was under very special circumstances. To be fair to our new alien friends though, it's a bit late for them to go back now and they know it. They just helped us destroy a sacred artifact, something the Covenant revered and worshiped. They're marked now, like us. If they helped the Covenant find us, they'd kill them as well."

"Yeah, but Holland doesn't want to take chances," Shepard explained. "A few extra Jackals joined up with us at the last second when they took this ship. It is possible one could be a mole or a plant. Holland probably would feel more at ease if they were able to take a look at the Fallen Serpent themselves, make sure it can't give us away to anyone. To be honest, I can't entirely blame him for being cautious. I have my own concerns."

Chief wondered for a moment what he meant, then he soon zeroed in on the cause.

"Varvok," he stated plainly.

"His men to be accurate," Shepard corrected. "They are probably less happy about this than the Marines are."

"This whole alliance was Varvok's plan as I recall," Cortana mentioned.

"Yeah, but they didn't really have much choice in the matter," Shepard countered with a disgruntled grumble. "Zek was forced into service with a contract. The batarians came here to fight humans. This wasn't what they signed on for. I'd like to think most of them respect Varvok's decision. I know he hates the Covenant, that much is certain. But some of his men, they might not be on board."

Shepard didn't seem very comfortable himself making that statement. Knowing him, Chief suspected he wanted this to work. Like him, the Commander believed in teamwork, unity, the strength of a squad backing you up and sharing in your struggles. It was how he built his own team, finding others with the talent and skill to fight alongside him. For Shepard, those others didn't have to be human to be of value. Varvok called it "building bridges" or something, a belief that meant reaching out to people who were different could make you stronger. His team was proof of that at least, but this situation was a bit different from that.

"I guessing you haven't brought these concerns to Varvok," Chief postulated.

"I don't like to accuse people of things without proof," Shepard said plainly. "So far, none of Varvok's men have done anything to directly harm us or the mission. I want to be cautious without becoming paranoid. The problem ultimately comes back to Varvok though. His interests align with us, but I think that's as far as it goes. Experience has taught me that those kind of situations can create cracks."

"Because he's with us but not really," Cortana finished. "His agenda aligns with us, but it's still separate."

"Exactly and that makes any alliance problematic," Shepard confirmed for the AI. "And to be fair, it's not just him. That's going to be a problem with everyone. He and the batarians are probably just the most dicey in the sense of a long term partnership. He didn't want to send his men to die for the Covenant, why would he put them at risk for humans?"

Shepard rubbed the side of his head in frustration and sighed.

"Maybe I'm thinking on this too hard," he relented. "Hell, I'm probably just being a bit prejudice here. The batarians were the first real enemies I fought in combat. Maybe that's more ingrained in me than I thought."

"Given the circumstances then and now it's not without precedent," Cortana tried to assure him. "I've gone over your history records myself, the batarians aren't exactly the most agreeable species in your galaxy."

"Cortana's right," Chief quickly added. "I read the history logs too. Your encounters with them read almost like our own fights with the Covenant. A lot more successful though."

Shepard gave a friendly huff at that remark. Chief was speaking of course of the same first combat scenario Shepard had mentioned. Called the Skyllian Blitz, according to the records, a human colony world came under attack by a fleet of batarians. They were mostly pirates, slavers and a few "rogue" military personnel, but what they lacked in organization they made up for in brutality. Shepard had been on the planet at the time and, according to the reports, helped hold the line until relief came, rallying civilians and other Marines to stave off the attack. Shepard was able to guess for himself that he was referencing the battle and sounded a lot more humble about it.

"Elysium was different," he explained simply. "By then we had already encountered one alien race and fought with them. We had formulated strategies to make sure we never left another colony vulnerable again. The history books make it seem like I did everything by myself, but it's not true. Just propaganda to boost spirits back home. I had a lot of good people backing me up on the ground, some of them weren't even human themselves. I was a different man back then, before one fight changed everything. My CO was dead, I was losing squadmates left and right, someone had to take charge. It just so happened I decided to volunteer for the job."

"Regardless sir, you got the job done and saved lives," Chief stated formally and respectfully. "In my book, that's all that really matters. Whatever else they say, that part isn't propaganda."

Shepard just smiled at the Spartan.

"I appreciate that, Chief," Shepard assured him. "I just hope I'm not falling into the expectations of what Varvok's men might think of me. I did kinda screw up their revenge, it's going to be hard to earn their respect. I think I at least have Varvok's, although he probably stills sees me as an enemy, just one he has to share a bunk with for the time being."

"If it helps, I would advise not thinking solely on the batarians, Commander," Cortana cautioned. "The Jackals are as much a part of the equation as they are. Perhaps getting a handle on them might make things concerning Varvok easier."

"Worth a shot," Shepard admitted. "I need an opening somewhere if we're going to make this whole strange bedfellows arrangement work."

For a brief moment all was silent as the two of them return to looking out at the nearby gas giant and it's ring of asteroids. Their minds soon drifted away from ship board politics to less stressful matters.

"It's deceptively peaceful isn't it," Shepard noted.

"Always is," Chief agreed.

"In reality it's a big vacuum of death," Shepard added next with a huff. "And yet staring at is a nice way to clear your thoughts a bit."

Chief could agree with that, it was how he spent some of his time in the field after all. Gazing into the stars as a kid made him forget that he had been kidnapped, that he was being trained for war and that life was suddenly a lot more complicated than it had seemed. Now he was doing it again, and yet he still couldn't shake his thoughts. About Reach. About Blue Team.

"I think that pattern in the gas giant looks like a rabbit," Shepard randomly pointed out. "What do you think?"

Leave it to Shepard to find a way to bring his thoughts back. Even if it was in a strange way. It was a typical minor tangent to be sure, but Chief decided to humor him, taking a closer look at the gas giant.

"I think it's duck," Cortana declared before Chief could say anything. "It's a little too rounded to be a rabbit."

Chief would've answered himself, but they were soon interrupted when someone coughed politely next to them. He turned with Shepard to see two Marines now looking at them ineptly.

"Commander Shepard, Master Chief," one of them greeted.

They both saluted at their superiors as they turned.

"At ease," Shepard told them, looking towards the one that had talked. "You're Kowalski, right? The one Samara spends so much time with."

"Yes, that's me," the Marine said. "This is Ellingham, he's my squadmate. We've been on a few missions together, with your crew. We've just never really formally met as far as I recall."

"It's an honor to meet you both," Ellingham greeted them. "You guys are badass, if that's okay to say."

"Oh this is adorable," Cortana merrily spoke in private to both Shepard and the Chief. "I half expect them to start asking for autographs."

Chief didn't really react, but Shepard tried to put his best face forward.

"Thank you for the compliment," he told Ellingham. "It's good to know we have made an impression."

"We didn't want to bother you, but it was probably the only chance we'd get to talk to you," Kowalski explained. "Well, outside of a firefight of course."

Chief was a bit out of his element at the moment. He wasn't used to people talking to him, asking questions. Thankfully, these were other soldiers, not reporters. He could handle that. With that in mind, he went for the most likely response to give anyone in their shared profession.

"It's alright, we weren't really discussing anything at the moment," Chief assured them. "What kind of action have you seen?"

"Well we were on that Cartographer island for one," Ellingham noted. "Saw how you took that beachhead first hand."

"Not to mention all the times we've run into your squad before or since," Kowalski added sheepishly. "It's been a hell of a ride for sure."

"Sadly it's hardly over," Shepard cautioned. "We're lucky to have you though. We need every capable soldier we can get right now."

"Heh, we're cool as long as you two are around," Ellingham stated with a grin. "You guys are like the classic warhounds, man. One man army and everything."

Chief appreciated the praise, but wasn't really comfortable with being placed so high on a pedestal.

"No one soldier is any more important than the other," he explained to them. "What matters is that we face the enemy as a unit. Pure and simple as that."

"I guess but it still doesn't make you any less awesome," Ellingham responded, holding out his hand.

Kowalski did the same as his friend. Not wanting to leave the Marines hanging, Chief shook Ellingham's hand and then Kowalski's. Shepard did the same in reverse order. As he finished, Shepard's wrist started to ring and brought up his omni-tool as he called it.

"Oh, I have something I need to get to," he said. "I should go. It was nice meeting you two. I'll say hi to Samara for you, Private. Sorry about cutting this short. Chief, I'll see you later."

Chief now stood there, with two wide eyed Marines still staring him down. He could almost see Cortana silently holding in a giggle at the whole awkward spectacle. As Shepard left, Chief let out a small cough to clear his throat.

"I should probably see to my other duties with my team," he stated. "It was good to meet you. I hope we don't have to get into a firefight to speak again."

With that, Chief hurried away. At least from the sound of things as he left, the Marines weren't too heartbroken over his cutting and running. They just seemed excited to have shaken the hand of a Spartan. Good for them, it would be a nice story to tell their other friends. Maybe it would even boost their morale. Cortana, in the meantime, let out a small laugh as they left.

"That was a rather ungraceful way to end a conversation," she said. "Also incredibly priceless."

"Hmm," was all Chief could say in return.

Thankfully the AI dropped it, although he suspected she kept a grin on her face for awhile after that. At least his mind was now off his prior concerns. Right now, he just wanted to talk to someone he was more familiar with and try to forget this moment had happened.

---

Tali stepped over the passed out form of one of the Jackal Pirates. She thanked the ancestors silently for her high quality olfactory filters. She could only imagine the stink of this mess hall, especially during this little after party. Those who were sprawled out on the floor dunk were singing to one another, possibly some old sea shanty from their planet. None of the songs matched the music still filling the hall, loud, boisterous and fast. She also saw a few of the revelers watching, well, significantly provocative holo images of what she assumed were the female species of their race.

She was never one to judge the vices of others, so long as they harmed no one but themselves. Still, she couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy. This whole ship, this aptly named Fallen Serpent, was like being back on Omega again. Only it didn't feel like anyone was in control here, this whole celebration in fact felt spur of the moment, random. She suspected that the chaos was nothing new though, this one was just bigger, considering the mess.

That fact however was not as big a deterrent as one would think though. She spotted a few batarians among the dwindling crowd, seemingly enjoying themselves. Tali supposed it was not entirely without reason. Given their story, both the Jackals and their four-eyed compatriots had survived a harrowing ordeal. She wasn't here to fault their method of celebration, although she imagined some of the Marines probably did. This was the direct opposite of the funeral ceremony earlier in the morning. While these pirates had been partying all night.

Again though, she wasn't here to judge them on how they enjoyed themselves. She was here to gather up her fellow crew. Miranda had wanted to do it, but Tali insisted she would. Lawson had better things to do than play party police. Besides, she had to get back Daniels and Donnelly herself. Kenneth had suggested something about introducing the Jackals to whiskey and Gabby of course tagged along to make sure he didn't get into too much trouble. Now she needed them back in engineering though, they still had systems checks to do after all and she did not have much time herself to do all of them.

Luckily, she ran into at least one of her crewmates who would hopefully help her in locating her wayward engineering staff. Sitting with her back to her and seemingly just enjoying the chaotic carousal around her was Kasumi Goto, the greatest thief in the galaxy, although not the most famous for that very reason. Her hooded visage was unmistakable among the various ugly looking bird aliens milling about the room. It wasn't that much of a surprise to see her here. Tali had known Kas long enough to know how much the thief was attracted to the exotic, strange and new. Drunken Space Pirate Party met every single one of those criteria. She must've heard the quarian's approach, because she quickly turned around.

"Tali!" Kasumi greeted jubilantly. "Good to see you! I honestly didn't think this was your scene."

"It's not that I don't enjoy a good party," Tali tried to explain. "It's just, well, when it's all centered around a substance I can't really drink, it's hard to get interested in it."

"Fair enough," Kasumi shrugged. "Lucky me it was 'bring your own booze' apparently. I grabbed some from the cabinet in my quarters. Figured it would be a nice 'Welcome to the Crew Gift' for them. Barely got to drink any, they snuck off with most of it I think. I imagine it's already all gone."

Tali could believe that, given the unconscious flocks of Jackals at one nearby table. Their tongues were sprawled out on the surface and they were snoring incredibly loudly. For whatever else they were, no one could accuse these ex-Covies of being wall flowers. When they celebrated, they did it until they couldn't move no more.

"So was it all just drinking and watching half-naked aliens on holograms?" Tali asked looking about the room once more.

"Lot of sing-a-longs," Kasumi said. "Quite a bit of dancing here and there, not all of it graceful. A bunch were playing some kind of electronic card game. Oh and Jack got into a lot arm wrestling matches. No one wanted to face off against Grunt, but they figured someone could take her."

"How'd she do?" Tali asked, already laughing slightly under her throat.

"About how you would expect," Kasumi answered simply. "Thankfully she didn't break any arms. Dislocated one though. Everyone had a good laugh."

At least it sounded like they enjoyed themselves with a minimal of injuries then. She didn't want to be the one to tell Miranda that Jack had put one of their new allies in the infirmary. Minor ship incidents were the last thing any of them wanted right now.

"Where is Grunt by the way?" Tali asked, searching the room for the krogan. "I hope he's not too hungover. I don't want to have to carry him back to the ship."

"If anything he is surprisingly not buzzed enough," Kasumi informed her as she pointed over to a table. "He's over there, still trying to out drink every challenger."

Tali then noticed the krogan pounding down what seemed to be shots of the slowly growing in infamy Ichor that the Jackals apparently enjoyed so much. There looked to be a ton of empty glasses, strewn about the table. From the looks of it, Grunt had been at this for awhile.

"He's drunk at least six of them under the table," Kasumi added as the krogan slammed down another glass in victory. "Either what they're giving him isn't strong enough or his metabolism is working overtime. I'm starting to see why his species invented Ryncol, only way they can get drunk is by making something fatal to everyone else."

"Defying death is their favorite pastime," said Tali, looking at Kas with an unseen grin. "Kinda like you and stealing I guess."

Kasumi chuckled at the comment.

"I like the thrill more than anything," she corrected. "Every job is like an adventure, never boring. That it happens to involve taking expensive things is just a bonus."

"Partying with space pirates certainly sounds thrilling," Tali presumed. "Another thing off your bucket list I suppose"

"Right along with taking over a ship with space pirates and watching an ancient superweapon explode," Kasumi added merrily. "If I ever decide to make a memoir, it is going to be so bad ass now."

Kasumi tapped the seat beside her with an open palm. Tali sat herself down. She didn't intend to be here for long, but if she was going to chat with Kasumi about current events she might as well be comfortable. Besides, what she just mentioned brought up a few things that were pretty much on everyone's minds.

"You've adjusted to this whole situation better than anyone," she observed. "The Marines are still apprehensive and I don't even wanna know how the ODSTs feel given what happened."

"I've had to make friends of enemies before," Kasumi stated fondly. "Quite a few were cops, helped them with some cases. They quickly realized I was worth more outside of a cell than in one. This situation is a little easier for me though. These are my people."

Kasumi waved her hand across the room, just in time to spot two drunken Jackals trying to wrestle a erotic holo imager away from the other. At the same time, some kind of gambling game broke out into fisticuffs as one Jackal leapt over the table and tackled another. Credit ships and other valuables went flying into the air. Tali looked at Kasumi with a playfully incredulous stare.

"Okay, they're short on class, I'll grant that," the thief relented. "Also they kinda stink. But they make up for it in style, I assure you. Either way, we wouldn't all be here right now without them. The UNSC would do well remember that."

"They didn't do it out of the goodness of their hearts," Tali reminded her. "They did it because they had no choice."

"For a time, we worked for Cerberus because we had no choice," Kasumi countered. "Way I hear it they had the same problem. Their break-up was just messier. So they're in it for less than noble reasons, so were Zaeed, Jack and myself when you think about it. Point is, I'm not in a position to judge them and I don't think it's fair of our UNSC friends to still treat them like the bad guys."

"I agree in a way, but there is a matter of security to consider," Tali tried to caution. "You have to be sure they're sincere and that they don't try to take advantage of the situation."

"I'm not saying give them the run of things," Kasumi argued. "I'm saying the least Holland's people could do is not act like they're still Covenant. Treat them for who they are, not what they were."

Tali looked over to see one Jackal mixing several glasses of ichor together before chugging it down while his friends urged him on.

"And what they are is a ship full renegade privateers with few table manners," the quarian observed aloud.

"Exactly," Kasumi agreed. "It's only fair. I mean, look at our crew. Shepard treated us all the same despite our less than reputable backgrounds. He made sure I didn't steal anything important while aboard the ship, kept Jack from getting into fistfights with Miranda and made sure Grunt behaved himself around Garrus and Mordin. Being cautious doesn't mean we can't be respectable."

Tali didn't really feel like arguing the point. For one she didn't want to seem like a hypocrite. When she first joined the Normandy SR-1 during the hunt for the rogue Spectre Saren, she had been afraid of being treated like a lowlife thief herself. The crew, however, welcomed her and actually grew to value her input. After about a month or so of the galaxy looking at her like she was vermin, it was a welcome change of pace. She had already judged Legion unfairly before truly getting to know him, it wasn't really right to do the same to these Jackals. Given the risks they had all taken, they at least deserved the benefit of the doubt.

Mostly though, she felt there were bigger concerns than the space pirates. They were just one tenuous issue amid several. The ODSTs were getting singled out by Troopers and Marines. The batarians gave any human the widest berth they could manage. And the grunts, the methane breathing aliens, not her krogan crewmate, were waddling about nervously trying to avoid everyone. It was a boiling pot of emotions, anger, frustration and perhaps even hatred are simmering below the surface. It was a bit unnerving. No one really knew when it could all come to a head or it would mean when it did.

Tali suddenly spotted one of the grunts herself. The little alien was waddling down the way with a small tray in hand. On it was what looked to be food, or what passed for food with Jackals. One of the bird-creatures suddenly reached out with his bony fingers and grabbed the bowl of slop from the tray. The grunt jumped slightly at this before being shooed off by an annoyed space pirate. Said pirate than proceeded to stuff his face while the grunt quickly scrambled away.

"They're using the grunts as waiters?" Tali asked Kasumi curiously.

"Yeah," Kasumi groaned despondently. "I don't know what it is, but they're not particularly kind to the little guys. I've seen people treat wait staff like crap before, but the Jackals just seem intent on making up an excuse. Really don't get what's going on there, but they have said they're not going to send them out to fight. I suppose this is their way of making them useful. Can't say I like that aspect of this party."

Tali wondered if she should bring this up with Shepard later. The last thing they needed was a potential problem between the Jackal Pirates and the Grunt Waiters spilling over into the already heated issues between the other factions aboard.

"So," Tali spoke up, trying to get her mind off the troubling thoughts. "How exactly is that ichor I keep hearing about?"

"No idea, haven't tried it yet myself," Kasumi admitted. "I've mostly just been watching how everyone else reacts to it. As far as I know, none of my fellow humans have downed the space whale bile either."

"It doesn't exactly sound appealing," Tali concurred.

Both of them were suddenly drawn to a large banging sound on a nearby table. A pack of Jackals had rolled what looked to be a keg of some kind onto the table. No doubt full of ichor, the aliens were already gathering around to pour out one last shot for the road, or two, maybe even three. Who could tell when or if there would be a last call?

Kasumi suddenly cracked her knuckles, looking over at the keg.

"You know what, screw it," she declared. "I want the full space pirate experience. Wish me luck, Tali. I'm going in."

"I'll stand by on hair holding duty then," Tali stated as her friend got up from the table.

The quarian soon followed her friend as they walked over to the gathering group of drunkards themselves. They ugly birds didn't notice them until they were standing over them. The Jackals looked up curiously, wondering why the women were there. Then Kasumi grabbed one of the mugs from the hands of one of the group.

"Mind if I get the first shot?" She asked.

The Jackal at the tap started to chuckle and the others soon joined in.

"Well whatta ya know, hisssstory in da makings boysssss!" The Jackal on the tap said, slurring his speech. "Da human wants ichor!"

"First human to drink ichor," one Jackal spoke up, hiccuping in mid sentence. "Dis I gots ta see!"

"You sure you're ready?" One asked cautiously. "This one is from an older male, large blister under the fin."

"It can be next to it's blowhole or buttcrack for all I care," Kasumi shot back. "If it even has one of those. Now you gonna pour or what?"

The Jackals all seemed to laugh at that and quickly grabbed at Kasumi's mug. The tapper filled it up and passed it back. It was thick orangey substance from what Tali could see, swirling with reds and browns. She winced slightly at the thought of what those colors could be.

"Missing the little umbrellas," Kasumi observed. "Would make it less disgusting looking. Oh well, bottom's up I guess."

Kasumi put the mug to her lips and threw the whole thing back. It crept into her mouth and Tali listened as she chugged the whole drink inside. The Jackals all watched with baited breath, wide eyed and in shock. Tali herself was a bit amazed, when Kasumi enacted an impromptu drinking challenge she went into high gear to complete it.

When she was done, Kasumi took a breath and turned her mug upside down to show it was empty. Smacking her lips together, trying it seemed to full appreciate the taste of what she just swallowed, she tried to find words for her experience. The Jackals kept staring on in suspense, before the hooded thief finally spoke.

"Tangy," she stated unassumingly. "Yet bold... also incredibly slimy."

She held out her mug once again.

"How about another?" She asked.

The Jackals looked on in disbelief for a moment and then burst out into uproariously laughter. Tali wasn't sure if it was the drinks or the just the sheer amazement that she liked their favorite drink. They pushed her to the front of the group and poured her another mug alongside theirs. Kasumi looked back briefly to Tali, raising her mug in solidarity with the pirates. Yep, Tali thought, definitely her people.

"When you're done, meet me at the exit," Tali called to her. "We're needed back on the ship."

"Just let me get slightly buzzed, then the night will be complete," Kasumi called out. "Or morning, whatever time it is."

Tali left Kasumi to consume her space whale bile with her new friends. Hopefully she wouldn't get too drunk and the tangy bold slime would come back to haunt her later. Right now, she needed to find the rest of the crew and get them out the door. She luckily spotted Kenneth and Gabby soon after. The former was being consoled by the latter.

"That was every drop I had," Ken grumbled as he shook his head. "I just said a wee bit of it. They took all of it! Where am I going to find more out in the middle of nowhere?"

"I warned you this would happen," Gabby told him fiercely. "What possessed you to bring all five bottles anyway?"

"They were different vintage," Ken explained angrily. "I wanted to give them the full range of flavors! I wasn't plannin' on passing out after six shots!"

"And I keep telling you, you're a lightweight," Gabby argued.

"You could've at least stopped them!" Ken shouted back.

"I'm also not your mother," Gabby responded. "I'm not responsible for every stupid thing you do."

When Tali approached the two broke up their argument at last.

"Cultural exchange didn't go so well, huh?" Tali asked, trying to stifle a laugh.

"He got into a drinking contest with a Jackal, got easily beat and they stole his whiskey when he passed out," Gabby recounted. "It's probably all gone by now. This is what happens when you try to beat a space pirate at his own damn game."

"Where were you exactly during all this?" Tali asked her.

"Gambling, unlike Kenneth though I know when to fold them," she answered proudly. "Not sure what I'm going to do with a bunch of alien credit chits and a holo imager that no doubt contains freaky bird porn on it, but it's the fact I won it that counts."

Tali sighed and placed a hand on Ken's shoulder.

"I think the party is over for you two," she told him. "Sorry it didn't turn out so well, but I need you back in engineering. You okay to work?"

"I'll survive, barely," Kenneth groaned. "Worst night of my life."

"You have remarkably strange standards if this is the worst scenario you could conceive," Gabby told him.

The two shuffled towards the exit. Hopefully Jack and Grunt would be in a similar willing mood to leave. She didn't want to be at this for too long. She still had a few things to sort in engineering and a prior engagement she needed to be at. Hopefully she wouldn't run too late. She'd worry about that later though, right now, her gaze fell upon a certain ex-convict currently table dancing nearby and trying to outdo a holographic jackal female for whatever reason.

---

Shepard had managed to get back to the Normandy with a ton of time to spare. He still rushed a bit more than usual to the elevator though. He missed the fact that EDI was trying to talk to him as he entered. It was only when he got off the elevator that she managed to get his attention.

"Shepard, wait," she spoke up frantically. "You need to understand, I tried to stop him."

The Commander stopped in mid walk as he approached his cabin's door.

"Stop who?" He asked confused.

"He overrode the door codes and slipped in before I could lock them," she explained. "He was very persistent on seeing you and incredibly impatient."

"Stop who?" Shepard asked again as he opened the door.

He got his answer when he looked inside his cabin and found someone sitting at his desk's chair. No, not someone, Zek. He was in his usual attire and appearance, scruffy armor marked with a tally of kills, his quills fashioned into something of a mohawk and that eyepiece of his supplemented his sniping skills. Currently he was chewing on an apple of all things, probably stolen from the kitchen at some point. The Jackal noticed Shepard immediately and quickly removed his feet from the rest atop the desk.

"Commander!" He greeted smiling, or at least what passed for one across his beak. "Such a pleasure to see you again."

Zek finally swallowed the apple chunk still in his mouth and then took another large bite. Shepard just looked on dumbfounded, unsure whether to scream in anger or not. After a second or two of gathering his thoughts he exhaled and let his displeasure subside.

"Zek," he said, trying not to sound too annoyed. "This is... unexpected. You. In my cabin. In my chair."

"I apologize if I seem forward, sir," Zek replied, smirking all the while. "Your computer suggested I wait in your crew quarters, but some of your deck hands were giving looks and it wasn't exactly comfortable down there. You were taking a bit long to show up so I decided to just invite myself in."

"I apologize, Commander," said EDI, sounding equally annoyed. "He caught me off guard with his brash behavior and he's more slippery than I thought."

"It's fine, EDI," Shepard her, rubbing the side of his head. "I'll handle this, don't worry."

Zek suddenly took his eyes off Shepard for a moment, looking over to the various model ships in the large display case in front of the desk. He nodded his head for a moment and looked back to Shepard, still wearing an overly pleased grin.

"I've been admiring your collection," he said approvingly. "Quite impressive, Commander. I used to have some ship models myself as a kid. Had to give them up when I needed the cash though, still miss them."

"I just like spaceships," Shepard explained in a rather deadpan manner. "But thank you for the compliment."

"I especially like this big one back here with the huge solar sails, classic design," the Jackal said pointing to the model of the Shadow Broker ship Shepard kept on his desk. "Glad to see other universes appreciate the old modes of space travel."

"It's a unique case," Shepard explained. "More than you realize."

Zek just shrugged at the information, before staring around at the cabin at large.

"You got a nice place up here overall," he complimented once more, spinning the chair around slightly. "I'm going to have to spruce up my own cabin now. All I got in there is a desk and small sitting area. Hell, you got a king-sized bed and a sweet couch. You're living the dream."

"Wasn't my idea, but I don't complain," Shepard informed him.

Zek suddenly got up from the chair walking over to the aquarium on the other side of the room. The Jackal's eyes were drawn to one of the fish, specifically the school of Thessian Sunfish.

"You know how many kig-yar would kill for something like this?" He asked, slightly tapping the glass. "Your own personal fish farm. You ever get in the mood of sea food, just pick out a live one and serve it up however you like."

"That is an aquarium and it's occupants are not for eating," Shepard growled at him. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't consider making my fish tonight's sushi platter."

Zek's grin vanished out of embarrassment, but quickly returned once he cleared his throat.

"Apologies again, I'll just stick to this human fruit I found in your galley," he said humbly, holding up the apple. "What is it by the way? It's delicious."

"It's called an apple," Shepard answered him. "If you ask beforehand next time, maybe I'll give you more."

"Fair enough, it's a deal," Zek conceded. "It's just the taste reminds me of some of the fruits back on our home world. If it's at all possible to acquire some I'll be sure to share them with you. Only seems fair given the circumstances."

Zek walked over to the sofa and dropped himself down onto it. As he continued to eat his apple, Shepard continued to try and keep his emotions in check. Of all people, of all times, why did it have to be Zek right at this moment? More importantly, why was he acting so casual about this entire situation? Was he just trying to put him at ease or something? One thing he was sure of though, he was done playing around and answering questions. It was time for a few of his own.

"Why exactly are you here, Zek?" Shepard asked impatiently. "Did you just come to compare cabin decor and lounge around for no good reason?"

"Not at all, Commander," Zek assured. "I am merely here to talk, Shipmaster to Shipmaster if you will. We didn't really have a lot of time to do that properly yesterday when we were blowing up that ancient eyesore. There's a few things I feel we need to discuss."

Shepard agreed, in a way. Although he wished it wasn't right at this second. Still he was here, of his own accord. It was best to get acquainted with the pirate leader now, rather than later. Although he had a pretty good idea about who Varvok was, Zek was far and away different. He didn't really know much about him besides the scant details Varvok had shared. All he knew was that the Jackal had once been a rising Pirate leader, before being forced into a position of servitude under the Covenant. Given his overt disdain for Covenant religious doctrine, it had not been a great relationship. Then when they broke the terms of their arrangement and got some of his men killed, Zek finally had enough and deserted along with his crew.

It was not exactly an inspiring story, although Shepard sympathized in some way. He had been in a similar situation with Cerberus, although it was a lot easier to break away from them. However, Zek's motives for his actions were a lot more insular. Throw in the fact Shepard was now dealing with an alien species he was unfamiliar with outside of combat and this made things a bit difficult. With the krogan and batarians, he had gotten to know and understand them over a long period of time. Now, it felt like he was back at square one all over again. As if he had traveled back in time to high school when he had first heard about how turians couldn't eat human food and why.

"You could always bring up any concerns when we meet with the other Captains and leaders," Shepard noted, trying at first to gauge the situation he was in. "Any strategy we come up with is going to have to be discussed amongst ourselves after all. Why come to me in private?"

"Because you don't have the same prejudices that Holland and his soldiers have," Zek plainly explained. "And I feel it's best if you clear this with him yourself, rather than me trying to convince him."

It made sense, Shepard suspected he'd end up as the middle man in any dispute or discussion. After all, he hadn't been at war with either side for close to thirty years. Yet he had also earned a modicum of respect with both sides of this alliance, specifically the UNSC. Zek was trying to navigate the murky waters of this arrangement as much as him in that regard. That was both promising and a confirmation of the difficulty Shepard suspected of this task.

"Alright, let's talk then," Shepard said, already forming an idea of what this was about. "I assume this has something to do with your repairs, specifically your slipspace drive."

"Perceptive, Commander," Zek said smiling. "That still remains a chief concern. We've gotten a lot of the Serpent's systems back online. Weapons are a bit tricky, but our shields and hull integrity are solid. The drive is still our main concern. But I do have a solution, a place we can go to stock up on supplies and get repairs."

"I'm guessing there's an issue with this place if you're reluctant to speak to Holland about it directly," Shepard presumed.

Zek nodded, placing his half eaten apple down on the table before he continued.

"It's a port of call that's not friendly to the Covenant," he assured. "However, it's also not exactly the safest of places to visit for outsiders. It's called the Hollow, it's a safe haven for pirates. It would have exactly what we need. Supplies, fuel, a place to fix our ships and perhaps, if we're lucky, weapons for your Marine friends. There's a big black market for human weapons."

"So you want us to go into a den of criminals for you," said Shepard, not particularly liking the suggestion. "Seems a bit more risky than it should be."

"You can't drag my ship around the galaxy forever," Zek informed him plainly. "It's too much of risk for all of us, I think Holland can at least agree to that, you as well. Right now, it's closest real option we have to getting things back in working order. We'll be of a lot more help to each other if my ship isn't leaning on yours, wouldn't you say?"

Shepard had to admit, Zek had a point. If there was a way to get the Jackals' ship back up to full status, why waste time getting that squared away? However, he wasn't going to jump into a dangerous situation without knowing more.

"Who exactly are you going to be getting this drive from? Are they trustworthy?" Shepard asked.

"As long as he doesn't find out I'm working with humans it should be fine," Zek assured. "He'd grow suspicious if that was the case. I'd suggest sending along two of your own people with my group when we dock there. That should ease everyone's minds for the most part."

"I'll still have to talk to Holland about the idea," Shepard responded. "Although I imagine he'll want to get your ship in working order as much as anyone."

"I'll trust you to argue on my behalf," Zek informed him. "But that brings us to the next part of this issue, and it concerns you a bit more. Repairs aren't going to be cheap. I'm low on funds enough already, we need something to barter."

Shepard wasn't surprised by this, he had been expecting it. He knew better than anyone that repairs cost money. Given that the UNSC would probably be reluctant to hand over supplies to Zek's crew, Shepard was his only option for the moment.

"What exactly did you have in mind?" Shepard asked curiously. "Before you suggest weapons, that's out of the question."

"From what I understand you don't have a problem doing that with your fellow humans," Zek noted.

"That's different, they're in a losing war against the Covenant and I have specific limitations on what I give them myself," Shepard replied defensively. "At the same time, the Covenant have been given upgrades to their arsenal to give them an even greater advantage. I'm careful about what I give the Marines, but it's about balancing the scales at this point. I'm not going to hand you weapons to give to a bunch of criminals who could very well turn right around and use them on the UNSC. It's just that simple. Earth needs an edge in this war, outlaws don't."

"Whatever makes you comfortable," Zek shrugged. "Although to be fair, I doubt passing off a few of your pistols to some crooks at the Hollow is comparable to giving the humans schematics to build that big ass laser you got mounted on this thing."

Zek was referring of course to the Thanix Cannon, the Normandy's main gun. In actuality he hadn't really shared much about it, mostly because it was impossible to build without basic understanding of a Reaper's main weapons. They only had it because they had killed Sovereign a little over two years ago and it took about as long to develop the Thanix itself. He was just lucky enough to have woken up in time for the gun to come off the assembly line.

"That's a bit more complicated," Shepard informed the Jackal. "Let's just say most of the more effective technologies I hand out aren't designed to kill people."

"Regardless I wasn't really thinking of guns anyway," Zek admitted. "The guy I need to talk to has enough of those. If it was a matter of guns, I probably wouldn't be talking to you. No, the bird I'm meeting values something else entirely, information."

That was a familiar turn of events, Shepard thought.

"What kind of information?" Shepard asked. "I can't exactly just hand over secrets just to get your ship repaired."

"It doesn't have to be classified stuff," Zek promised. "Just something that he could use. Something that would be worth trading a slipspace drive for."

"What would we have that would interest him?" Shepard asked, confused at the whole notion. "We're from a different dimension, I'm not sure what we'd have that would be of practical use."

"There are a few things that would probably pique his interest," Zek suggested. "Your omni-tools, shields, medical technology, hell even a recipe or two. Ideally, I'd want to give him a technical schematic, something that could make his life easier. But to really figure out what would be of value to him, I'm going to need access to your ship's computers."

Shepard raised and eyebrow at that. It was a pretty forward request to be sure. Access to his ship's computer? He wondered how EDI would feel about that. He wasn't sure how he felt.

"I'd need to at the very least make sure you behaved yourself if I allowed you in there," Shepard cautioned. "EDI would have to log everything you looked at, Miranda would also have to oversee the exchange at all times. She handles most of the sensitive information."

"I'm willing to accept those terms, I'd be insulted if you didn't take those precautions to be honest," Zek replied. "It probably wouldn't take more than an hour or so at the latest. My first mate has a good idea about what to look for."

"I'll have to explain the situation to my crew," Shepard informed him. "But, if I allow this, it's only fair if I ask for something in return."

Zek only seemed to chuckle slightly at the response.

"I knew you were as much a businessman as a soldier, Commander," he warmly complimented, picking up his apple once more. "Rest assured, I never expect freebies this early in any accord. What is your price?"

"That depends I suppose," Shepard admitted. "How much are you willing to commit to this alliance?"

Zek stopped himself in mid bite of his apple, slowly tearing it away from the fruit and chewing on it.

"What do you mean?" He asked cautiously, before finally swallowing.

"I mean, are you going to help us fight against the Covenant?" Shepard asked plainly. "We've never made it clear exactly how this relationship works yet. None of us have. The result is everyone is forming their own ideas on how far this is going. Varvok has made his intentions relatively clear, you haven't."

Zek sat more up right now, placing the apple in his lap. His bony fingers touched each other at the tips and he began to tap them against each other.

"Alright, what do you want me to set straight?" He asked simply.

"The Covenant," Shepard stated once more. "You're clearly not their friend. You don't like them. You've made that evident every chance you got. You didn't hesitate for a second when we told you we were going to blow up Halo. In fact, you wanted in on it. So really, why not take it a step further? Help us bring them down, help the UNSC end this war. It's in your own best interests."

Zek waited a moment, seemingly to ponder the idea. Then he just let out a slight laugh.

"No one wants to see the Covenant collapse more than I do, if only for the pure satisfaction of seeing it crumble," he assured in a slightly more serious tone. "But I just got out of this war, Commander, I'm in no rush to rejoin it. Now, I'll help you and yours get back to your home planet, this Earth of yours. I don't want to be on bad terms with the UNSC, I'd like to forge some kind of working relationship. But I'm not fighting their war for them. I didn't escape the Covenant to become someone else's hired gun."

"I'm not asking for that," Shepard promised him. "I'm asking you to finish what you helped us start. The Covenant is reeling from the loss of Halo and a big portion of the fleet it used to attack Reach. They're wounded, and that always makes someone more dangerous. They're getting closer to Earth, that's the last stand, everyone knows it. And if they win, they're coming after you next."

"I'm fully aware that I'm on their hit list, Commander," Zek replied nonchalantly. "Rest assured, I have every intention of being prepared for the next time I face them. But this fight between them and the humans was never mine. I have my freedom, my crew has their freedom. We're not going back to what it was before."

"It won't be like that," Shepard told him confidently. "I can make sure the UNSC treats you and your crew fairly, like equals."

Zek grinned, apparently recognizing the sincerity of the Commander, but he shook his head.

"I'm sure you'd try, but you can't exactly make guarantees," he said. "You don't control Holland and he can't control his superiors. I'm not comfortable in my current position to be making any contracts like that. Especially when I get the feeling I'm not entirely appreciated by the people who I'd be providing my services to."

"You could help change their minds," Shepard informed him earnestly. "They're suspicious for now, I give you that. But they're not closed off to the idea either, I know it. We wouldn't be here if they were. Besides, how can you expect them to trust you if you can't do the same?"

"I don't trust many people, Commander," Zek explained succinctly. "I can't afford too much of it in my profession. The UNSC has to earn it, same as Varvok, same as you. Maybe if they start giving me and my men credit for helping to save their lives it would be a start. So far, as I understand it, they've been rather belligerent about the whole ordeal."

"You were trying to kill some of them just a few days ago," Shepard reminded him.

"As if any of that was personal," Zek huffed. "It was business, Shepard. You killed some of my men, I don't hold any ill will towards you for it. My crew had their own objective that was opposing to your own goals. Like any good business venture, combat carries certain risks. You came out the better man in the end and I admire you for that if nothing else. If the UNSC would just step back a bit, they'd see that fact for themselves."

Shepard supposed he appreciated that Zek held no grudge against him. Why would he though? If it had been up to him, he probably wouldn't have even bee on Halo in the first place. He put all the blame, it seemed, on the Covenant for placing him into a crappy contract. It looked like he was trying to avoid getting into an equally terrible business arrangement concerning the UNSC. But the explanation did create a few new questions in Shepard's mind.

"What about the marks on your armor though?" He asked the Jackal. "If it was nothing personal, why the kill count?"

Zek looked down at his armor himself, contemplating it's meaning.

"To be honest, it's a bit complicated," he admitted. "It started as a bit of a pastime at first, just something to do. Over the years though, I think I ended up just doing it for release. Something to shake off the anger. Like, trying to convince myself every kill I had earned for myself, not the Covenant. That I was doing this for myself, not them. I'm not sure I ever truly believed that."

Zek looked up, a grim expression on his face as did.

"I never had a great hatred for humans, Shepard," he stated. "I'll admit I rarely thought of them. Most of the time I just saw them as things in the way. Things that had to be removed so I could go back to the ship for the day. That sounds harsh perhaps, but it's how I felt. I just stopped seeing them as anything but a job I had to do for the day. That's as far as the Covenant influence got into my head though."

It wasn't exactly a comforting answer, but at least it felt more earnest a response than anything else. But as soon as he was done, Zek switched gears again, speaking in a slightly less personal manner.

"Frankly, I don't understand how if I can be willing to leave that behind, the humans can't," Zek explained once more. "I mean, I keep hearing things about this word they use for us. Jackal, what is a jackal anyway? What does that mean?"

Shepard wondered how he should approach that answer. He didn't want to lie, but he also didn't want to anger Zek. Then again, if he didn't hold a grudge for him killing some of his people, why would he get angry at the Marines for using what could amount to a slur?

"It's an animal back on Earth, a kind of canine," he explained. "It's a scavenger, eats dead corpses. It's sometimes associated with deviousness and treachery."

Zek looked on for a moment, seemingly to absorb to information. Then, suddenly, he burst out laughing.

"How incredibly appropriate," he stated. "Your Marines are almost as perceptive as you."

He continued to chuckle warmly as he bit into his apple once more. Shepard was at least relieved to know he didn't have to worry about offending him. However, he did want to get back to the subject at hand.

"If you're not willing to join the fight, then what are you willing to offer in exchange for a look into my computers?" He asked once more.

"I have a few ideas of what I could provide to the UNSC that don't involve fighting their little war," Zek assured, mouth still slightly full before he swallowed the apple in his mouth. "Besides my knowledge of the inner workings for the Covenant, I could share some of my plasma weaponry, specifically my schematics for the plasma torpedoes. And considering how slow their ships are, my engineer crew could assist in helping them with a greater understanding of slipspace. Anything more I'd rather wait until I'm in a better bargaining position. Namely, my ship not being crippled."

"Very well," Shepard stated. "I'm sure Holland would appreciate the assistance in both areas, as would I."

"Then we have a deal," Zek declared standing up from the sofa. "I get a look at your computers, I give your people specs to make their own shipboard plasma weapons down the line. Along with making your ships faster if possible."

Zek stretched out his hand for Shepard to shake. As they sealed the deal though, the door to the cabin suddenly slid open. Tali rushed inside, smoothing out her hood as she did.

"Sorry if I'm late, Shepard," she said. "It took longer to round up the others than I-"

She then noticed that Zek was in the room with them. The Jackal took a bite from his apple as he stared at the quarian. Tali herself was a bit flustered.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't see you there, Zek," Tali awkwardly apologized. "I wasn't expecting anyone to be here."

"He was just leaving, Tali," Shepard assured her. "We were just discussing some things."

"Yes, pay me no mind," Zek replied slinking towards the exit. "I really should be going anyway. Things to do and all that."

Zek tossed the remains of his apple into a small trash bin and made a hasty retreat towards the door.

"Thank you for your time, Commander," Zek informed him. "This was a most productive meeting. I look forward to speaking to you again in time. Have a good day, you too Ms. Zorah."

Zek stepped out the door and let it shut behind him. Shepard let out a long sigh as Tali approached him.

"What was that about?" She asked.

"Nothing," Shepard answered in a rather tired voice. "Just a captain to captain meeting. I'll explain it to you later. I don't want to kill the mood more than it already has been."

Tali's eyes beamed, obviously grinning beneath her face mask. She placed her arms behind her and slightly swayed about as she spoke.

"As long as you turn on the music in the next five seconds the mood will be fairly preserved, Wade," she told him, urging him on slightly.

Shepard quickly moved over to the player on his desk. He'd put the eccentric pirate out his mind for now. He had far more important things to do right now after all.

---

"This is pointless," Varvok growled. "I've told you all before, Balak shared little with me concerning his overall plans. Any possible contingencies are beyond my knowledge as well."

"I believe you," Lawson informed him. "However, I'd still like to know more about his alliance with the Covenant and their operations."

Varvok was no less incensed than before, despite the human woman's assurances. He suspected they were going to ask more questions sooner or later, he just saw no reason for it. He had given them everything, more or less, that he felt was important. Now he was in a room, with Miranda Lawson staring him down from one end of the table and Spartan woman in teal blue armor watching over him as well. It felt less like an interview and more like an interrogation.

"I agreed to this because I felt you had something important to discuss," he explained. "Not more questions. I have given you all I can."

"The fact remains though, we have questions about more than just your former leader, Balak," Miranda replied. "It's about the Covenant and their interest in our home dimension. You're the highest ranking person on hand that can tell us about that."

"Zek or Retz would probably know more," Varvok huffed.

"They aren't from your side of the wormhole," the blue spartan, who had been introduced to him as Noble Two, declared. "Where, as we understand, the Covenant have their own agenda, as you are well aware now."

He was aware, it was why he was here in the first place, suffering the indignity of working with humans. Of course, he no one to blame but himself for that, it was his idea in the first place. Granted, he had no choice, not after being betrayed by Balak, his men used as barter for guns against an unstoppable enemy. It was either join with Shepard or die pointlessly.

That didn't make getting questioned by these two any less demeaning.

"I don't need to be reminded," Varvok snorted back.

"The Covenant are doing something back home," Miranda continued. "Something that according to our friend we're in contact with is using up a ton of resources. It feeds back into their war effort here and could mean something terrible for everyone in our universe. That includes your own people."

"Balak barely knew what they were looking for," Varvok exclaimed. "The Covenant aren't exactly open about every little detail. All I know is that they had Balak organize a number of research teams to study something. Mostly experts in xeno-archaeology, difficult to find in the Hegemony admittedly."

At that moment, Noble Two approached the table, standing right next to him.

"Do you have any idea what they were researching?" She asked. "Any idea at all?"

"Balak never told me, no one did," Varvok grumbled. "But I do recall him issuing a few platoons here and there to act as escort to some covert expeditions outside Hegemony space. I never got assigned to one and never really gave them much thought. I do remember that they rarely found anything and came back empty handed constantly. False leads, I suppose. Whatever they were looking for they didn't find it."

"From the sound of it, things have changed," Miranda told him. "They're pushing up their schedules, sending out more teams. We surmise that all the data for their research has to come from here. We already know the Covenant attacked Reach primarily to acquire ancient knowledge buried beneath the planet. Your people were stationed there, you were assisting in that task in some capacity. Did they tell you anything about what they were looking for?"

Varvok, as annoyed as he was, tried to think back. The attack on Reach felt like another life at this point, when he still believed in what he had been doing. He wasn't with the initial force sent there, he was being held back with the rest of the Covenant fleet until further notice. He arrived with the main force, so he was there only for the tail end of the fight.

He did keep himself apprised on the situation, how the Covenant's invasion was a lot slower than one would expect from them. He asked why, they explained the humans could be dealt with later. That there were other duties to attend to on the planet. His men explained a few groups had been sent to outlying regions, more or less to secure areas around potential excavation sites. Keep the humans away, let the Covenant get what they wanted.

He didn't know exactly what they were looking for, although it had to be important if it delayed the wholesale glassing of the planet. Obviously Forerunner, like Halo. It was the only explanation.

"All I know is that the Covenant were less vicious whenever they felt the treasures of their Gods were involved," he relented. "More cautious, less prone to outright destruction. What they were searching for then is a mystery to me. If they are repeating the process though, it seems a bit strange to let my people do their dirty work in this instance."

"Well if they are discovered too soon, the whole alliance will be exposed," Miranda reminded him.

"Yes, and then we'd all be a target," Varvok agreed. "But, they don't seem like the type who would let a batarian or any non-believer get close to the artifacts themselves. In my experience, we were there to assist, never to do the actual acquiring of anything."

Miranda nodded her head at this.

"That would fit with what Liara said she overheard," she said, looking to Noble Two.

"If it's that important to them it makes sense," the Spartan agreed. "The Covenant are using this Hegemony of yours as a tool. They wouldn't risk letting whatever it is their searching for fall into the hands of people they want to eventually subjugate."

"The good news is that means they're more than likely trying to zero in on whatever these artifacts are," Varvok quickly interjected. "For now, Balak is gathering additional data, these expeditions are more about information than anything else. When the Covenant do find what they're looking for, they'll go after it themselves. Until then, your friend has time."

Miranda nodded in agreement and stood up.

"Well, at least we can rest assured we kept the knowledge buried on Reach out of their hands," Miranda stated. "Better than nothing. Liara will be happy to know she has some extra time, that as long as the Covenant aren't on the move they are just grasping at straws."

"I'd still like to know if they were after anything else on Reach," Noble Two asked. "Or if they have other similar expeditions ongoing in this universe. If it's so important they'll devote their main efforts in your dimension to acquiring it, who's to say the search is isolated to just there?"

"I wouldn't assume either," Varvok stated, rising as well. "If they were looking for other relics or whatever on Reach I don't know. We were there to act as a defensive line more or less, I can't be certain of where they were looking precisely. There were a few of my men on another continent, but it's hard to say if they achieved any success. We were all pulled out to chase after you."

That note earned him a bit of a glare, but it didn't last long. Hopefully they understood it was simply a statement of fact and had just decided to let it go. He didn't really want to be here any longer.

"I suppose it doesn't matter now, Reach is most certainly glassed by now," Miranda acknowledged. "Any evidence we could uncover about what happened is long gone. Thank you for your time, Varvok, if you remember anything else..."

"If I do, I'll send it to your ship," the batarian interrupted her. "I don't care for being hauled off into these 'meetings', such as they are. I have my own soldiers to see to. Good day, both of you."

He left, not shy to show his displeasure with this whole business. He supposed he didn't blame them for wanting to know these things, but it still felt like so much for so little. Who cared what the Covenant were searching for? They couldn't stop it, not while they were trapped here. If Shepard was truly concerned with it, then he should simply devise a way to blast through the blockade and get back.

He knew that would not happen though, for many reasons, chief among them the fact he wanted to help his fellow humans. Also the wormhole being unstable made any travel through it from this side risky. He didn't care for the former reason, but the latter was a sufficient one. In any case, Varvok also recognized that disrupting the Covenant efforts here would destabilize the alliance back home. If that crumbled, his people would escape the inevitable fate of subjugation. A fate Balak and the rest of his leaders were marching them into, willingly or unwittingly. It didn't matter in either case, it needed to be stopped. He couldn't do that by getting carted off to interrogation constantly.

He was eager to put some distance between him and the humans. Let them sort this little artifact hunt out for themselves. Unless it led to a method of destroying the Covenant, he didn't care. There was a war to win, let the Covenant waste time searching for trinkets if they wanted. That just gave them more time to hit them hard while they were distracted.

Although, in the back of his mind, considering what Halo had been uncovered as, not to mention what it held, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't concerned at all. No, he hoped the Covenant didn't find anything. That it was a fruitless chase on their part. If it wasn't, who could say how much trouble they really were in?

---

Shepard approached the door to Holland's makeshift office on the hijacked Corvette. As he approached the door, it opened and out stepped a man with short-cropped red hair with a Lieutenant insignia on his uniform. He saluted Shepard once he noticed him and then stretched out his hand to greet him.

"Commander Shepard, wasn't expecting to see you," he said formally. "We haven't been formally introduced. My name Elias Haverson, Holland has placed me in charge of intelligence and internal security for our trip home."

"Good to meet you, Haverson," Shepard said shaking his hand. "I trust the Colonel is in. I have to talk to him about some things."

"Of course, sir," Haverson assured. "I just finished with him now. Although he's still trying to adjust to this situation, as we all are. Thankfully, I think some of his concerns are alleviated. The deserters' actions so far are in keeping with the accord you helped create. Hopefully it keeps that way. We don't want any trouble."

Shepard nodded in agreement.

"I have to talk to him about Zek myself," he said.

Haverson raised an eyebrow.

"The leader of the Jackals," Shepard clarified.

"Oh, yes," Haverson said somewhat flustered. "Sorry, most of those aliens look the same to me. The only other time I've encountered the species is being shot at by them. At the very least, trusting them so far has been a lot more successful than any of us thought. The fact so many of us escaped Halo is proof of that."

"Where exactly were you stationed on Halo?" Shepard asked. "I didn't see you at Alpha Base."

"I was mostly sequestered off to tactical," Haverson explained. "When I wasn't, I was following Holland's unit around with a small Marine detachment. When they got posted to guarding the Control Room on the ring I had to go. Had to take readings, gather intel. Standing orders from ONI is to uncover all we can of Forerunner tech if we run across it."

Shepard was taken aback by Haverson's declaration, unnerved by the revelation of who he had been speaking with.

"You're ONI?" He asked cautiously.

Haverson rubbed the side of his neck, seemingly embarrassed.

"Oh, forgot, you have not had the best relationship with our department," Haverson recalled as he flushed red. "Try to understand, we're not all like Ackerson. The job just tends to attract a lot of less than savory people. I was assigned to the Autumn as a liaison, back when it was supposed to be the lead ship for Operation: Red Flag. Before Reach was attacked anyway."

"So long as you don't try to kidnap my crew we should get along fine," Shepard assured him, joking only slightly. "I guess I can see why Holland put you in charge of security and intelligence then, given your credentials."

"Truthfully it's a bit daunting to be thrust into such a high position," Haverson admitted. "But so many of the other officers aren't with us, so I guess I got the luck of the draw."

Haverson fumbled slightly, sighing half-heartedly as he continued.

"If you call most of your colleagues being killed lucky, I suppose," he said sadly. He quickly straightened, speaking more confidently. "However, thanks to you, many more survived. Your skills as a diplomat almost rival your abilities as a soldier, Commander. I'm not sure anyone else in the UNSC would've taken the risk you did when the batarian and Zek approached you."

"I take it you approve of the alliance then?" Shepard asked.

"To a degree," Haverson concurred. "I was one of the people with Holland who argued to take the offer. I was shocked as anyone when the ODSTs mutinied. Major Silva's intentions were good, but misguided in my perspective. He was too fearful and mistrusting, too concerned with making a name for himself. Perhaps Holland's preference towards the Spartans further clouded his otherwise expert judgment. Whatever reason, I'm just thankful the insurrection didn't cost us too many of the ODSTs, Lieutenant McKay especially. We're going to need them in the fight ahead. Hopefully the rest can be convinced of the opportunity of the situation."

"Opportunity?" Shepard asked, slightly curious by the choice of words.

"Of course, sir," Haverson said, beginning to elaborate. "We've rarely had the chance to observe the Jackals, or kig-yar as they call themselves, in a non-hostile environment. All our knowledge of the Covenant species is second-hand or pieced together. This is the first real chance we've been given to observe the culture and behavior of one of the species in such a manner. It's a potential intel gold mine, Commander. ONI would be very interested in learning more about the race that the Covies have assigned as their premiere assassins and saboteurs. We'll be able to see their tactics up close, learn about them first-hand and see exactly what makes them tick. It will give us an edge against the Jackals still among the Covenant, if nothing else."

Shepard supposed he understood the reasoning. He had hoped though that Haverson felt the alliance would more beneficial in the long term, that Zek and his pirates could help them fight the war. It seemed though he just saw them as a potential asset that could be used against the Covenant. Apparently, Zek wasn't the only one hesitant to bring the Jackals into the UNSC war effort either. Regardless, it was still better than them being seen unwanted vagabonds they had to deal with for now. Despite his reasoning, if Haverson was at least open to the idea of the alliance then maybe there was a chance he could build upon that.

"Speaking of the Jackals, do you have any idea how far along their repairs are coming?" Haverson asked.

"That's actually part of what I want to talk to Holland about," Shepard explained. "They still need a replacement for their broken Slipspace drive. They have a place they can get it, but there are some complications."

"I'm sure the Colonel will want to hear it then," Haverson said, stepping aside. "I imagine none of us wants to be towing the Fallen Serpent around the galaxy for however long it takes to get back to Earth. The sooner they're able to operate under their own power, the better off everyone in this makeshift fleet of sorts will be. It was a pleasure meeting you, sir. Sorry for keeping you."

Shepard saluted in return and let Haverson go about his duties. Hopefully speaking with Holland would go as smoothly. He already asked a lot of the Colonel after all, placing his trust in enemies. This would be something else altogether.

---

"Shepard is courting a non-human?" Retz asked, slightly surprised at the information.

"The quarian Tali, to be precise," Zek elaborated. "I know, not what I expected either. I honestly thought he'd go for the female with the black hair and firm backside myself. I figure that's what humans are into."

"Are you sure about this?" Retz asked. "I mean, it's not like they did anything in front of you."

"They had arranged a rendezvous alone together and it didn't sound like it was the first time," Zek explained. "Trust me, they're seeing each other. Hell, he's probably seen what she looks like under that envirosuit for all we know."

Retz gave the information some thought, pondering exactly what a quarian even looked like without the suit for a brief moment. Then he came back to the matter at hand.

"What exactly do we do with this?" He asked Zek cautiously. "I mean, your gut is hardly evidence of anything. You're not suggesting we..."

"What? Blackmail a potential business partner? You know me better than that, Retz," Zek replied, chuckling slightly. "The man would probably side with the UNSC more if I tried or reveal the affair to take away my influence. What's Holland gonna do if he finds out anyway? Confine him to quarters for making love to a xeno? No, we're going to use this in another way. To get on the Commander's good side."

Retz nodded, instantly getting the idea his friend was proposing.

"You mean help them get more alone time, keep their secret for them if necessary, give Shepard gifts to give to her we'd think she'd like or vice versa?" He asked, his thoughts swirling a mile a minute. "It's a decent idea I suppose. Potentially they'd owe us some favors, perhaps even be willing to side with us more often."

"Well we want him to be our confidant don't we?" Zek responded amiably. "As the situation is now, I imagine a few of our meetings with the UNSC are going to come to a vote more often than not. Why not push the odds in our favor a bit? Show Shepard we're willing to help him out with his lady friend, probably other things too. We show him how valuable we are and this partnership is assured."

"So long as he doesn't take it the wrong way," Retz warned. "I'd be careful about being too on the nose with this. He could mistake it for us actually trying to force him into our pocket rather than become a mutual business partner as you hope."

"Don't be too concerned," Zek assured him, walking him down the corridor. "I told you how well the talk went. He has his own idealistic agenda, sure. But we can work with him. He is a reasonable human, one willing to hear other people out even if they don't agree. He's willing to negotiate."

"He also doesn't sound like he's willing to compromise everything," Retz cautioned. "You can only push him so far in a certain direction. He ultimately wants us to commit to the UNSC and their side of the war."

"And eventually he will see we are more valuable to the war effort as a non-partisan entity," Zek assured. "We'll have a client and a contract that is more favorable. You'll see, we'll convince Shepard, he'll see things our way. In the meantime, we have other business to attend to. If we are going to the Hollow, we need to be ready."

Retz was more than ready. He brought out a small datapad with a long list of items. He scrolled through them casually as he spoke.

"Contacts with the underground are difficult right now, but I've put out some feelers," he began plainly. "I have to be careful, we don't want to alert the Covenant after all. I have a general idea of a few things to look for that might be suitable bartering material. Although I would prefer it if we had more surplus to trade."

"We need to make due sadly," Zek reminded him, he then switched topics back to the matter at hand. "Now you'll have access to most systems, just not weapons and tactical. However, see about looking outside the barter list, things for ourselves if possible. Our ship could use some upgrades of our own."

"I'll see if there's anything in the ancillary files," Retz promised. "But if they're watching me it's not like I can just hack into any file at will. It will need to be low key level."

"I'm not asking for that, I'm just saying deep dive into the areas you do have access to," Zek clarified. "Just find something we can use that Shepard probably won't mind us taking a look at. We can smooth out the details later and get authorization then."

Retz sighed nodding lightly.

"I'm not particularly happy with being spied on while I work either way," he said. "I'm not comfortable with peering eyes."

"Well, what can I tell ya?" Zek asked flustered. "We're stuck with these humans and we gotta play by their rules. At least, within the boundaries of their rules. We can skirt them a little, just don't push'em and we'll be fine."

"Alright, I'll contact the Normandy for a shuttle," Retz sighed. "Once I'm aboard I'll get to work as soon as I'm able. Hopefully this whole endeavor isn't a bust."

"They're from another dimension, Retz," Zek reminded him with a confident grin. "You'll find something cool. It's inevitable. You have to be at least a little curious to learn about them."

Retz gave his friend's words some thought.

"Well, I do kind of want to know more about these apples," Retz admitted. "They do indeed sound delicious. Who knows, maybe their cook will share some recipes."

"Here's hoping," Zek concurred. "I'm kinda getting tired of stew every night. Especially since we ran out of Salted Skungeback guts. Lost a whole bunch of flavor without it."

---

Holland sat in silence for a few moments. Shepard wasn't sure what the man was thinking, but he imagined he had only added to myriad of issues the Colonel was dealing with. To his credit, he hadn't told the Commander "No" outright the second he said he was here on Zek's behalf. He probably was considering it now though after being told that the Jackal wanted to go to a Pirate Den for repairs.

"I don't suppose we have many options," he finally said.

"Not that I can see," Shepard admitted. "Unless you want to try giving them the Slipspace Generator we've been working on since before Reach fell."

"I would not lose all that time and effort trying to make UNSC ships compete with the Covenant just to get some pirate ship moving again," the Colonel answered firmly. "Besides, it wouldn't solve the supply problem anyway. If we had cryo tubes, we could reduce that by putting some of the men in stasis. Instead, we're back to square one when it comes to long term space travel. Not ideal."

Holland got up from his makeshift desk, which was really just some sheet metal on top of a few empty ammo crates, and looked towards a flag he had hung in the corner. It bore the symbol of the UNSC, the planet Earth with an eagle overlooking it proudly.

"You know, when this war started, I didn't think I'd be in a position like this," he admitted. "The Army is supposed to defend Colony worlds, we're not made for Space life. Now I'm the highest ranking officer still alive and in charge of every human man and woman in this tiny fleet if you will. Not what I signed on for."

"You regretting following us aboard the Autumn?" Shepard asked jovially.

"Not for a second," Holland assured. "But the ordeal is taking it's toll. That's why I'm looking to every officer below me to help me out. I'm not too proud to admit I'm out my depth here. You're no exception, Shepard, I value your input as much as Noble Two or Haverson or anyone's. We're in a precarious situation and we need to rely on each other."

Shepard sensed a "but" or something similar about the come. He kept quiet though, the Colonel needed to get this all off his chest obviously. Best to let him.

"The fact is, this request Zek is making," Holland explained, turning back to Shepard. "It's a bit of a concern. This Hollow sounds less than amiable towards humans and the occupants are worse than hostile, they are unknown. Too many uncertainties for my liking."

"Is that a no, sir?" Shepard asked cautiously.

"I didn't say that," Holland replied with a sigh. "It's just something that makes me worried. We barely know these pirates we're stuck with. This Hollow is full of more who we know even less about. But, we need the resupply. Upgrades to this Corvette similar to the Serpent's would also be appreciated. I'd like the situation more if so much of it wasn't in the hands of Zek."

Shepard understood the concern, the Pirate leader was a bit of a wildcard after all. He wasn't sure he could guarantee much of anything himself to alleviate those fears. After all, he barely knew Zek. The Jackal may have spoken to him like they were old friends, but Shepard would be lying if he claimed to fully trust him. However, it wasn't entirely true it was all up to Zek.

"My own people will be going along with him if we decide to pay the Hollow a visit," Shepard reminded him. "They can make sure things don't get out of hand. We can even keep our own ships out of range while the Serpent goes in for repairs. If we remain on alert, we should be able to handle any situation that might arise."

"Knowing your crew will be keeping an eye on the operation is the only reason I'm considering going along with this," Holland informed him. "I trust their judgment, or at least their ability to get us out of any mess we step in. Since you can't send any of your human crew with Zek on this, I trust Garrus will be among the team sent ground side?"

"Yes, his position in C-SEC and later as a vigilante has made him adept at circumnavigating the type of people I suspect are in the Hollow," Shepard answered diligently. "If something comes up, he should be able to handle it."

Holland gave a nod of approval and returned to his desk.

"If he weren't an alien Mr. Vakarian would probably be the finest the UNSC soldier alive," he declared. "He's proven that routinely since you arrived on Reach. Hell, if it weren't for him, we probably wouldn't have gotten as many people off of Halo as we did. I can see why you trust him so much."

Shepard appreciated the praise of his friend and made a mental note to pass it on to Garrus. He did wonder why Holland was suddenly talking about this though. Then, he made it clear.

"Of course, we can't exactly put the credit towards our survival on any one person or xeno," Holland admitted. "The funeral service today made that clear. We're alive because a splinter group of the enemy, Jackals of all things, and their batarian friends, looked past their antagonism and tried to work with us."

"Still trying to process that I guess," Shepard surmised, doing his best to sound respectful.

"I won't lie, Shepard, this whole situation is making me question a few things," the Colonel relented wistfully. "I'm not saying I trust these pirates or Varvok's batarians, but they have surprised me so far. Almost as much as you have. Part of me hopes they continue that trend, but after twenty-seven years of seeing every Covie as an enemy... well, it's hard to move past that."

Shepard nodded in agreement. He had been fighting this war for considerably less time, but he knew exactly how Holland felt. He had been wary of Legion when he first showed up. He was still wary of Varvok and his men. However, like Holland, he had to hope they'd keep surprising him.

"You know where I'm from we've gotten used to working alongside other races," he reminded the Colonel. "My Earth wasn't on the best of terms with a few of them from the start. But at some point, you have to be willing to move forward with them. It's not going to be an easy process though, that I will grant you."

"I suppose the war has to end at some point," Holland concurred. "Until yesterday though, I thought it would mean wiping out the Covenant. That peace was unlikely. Now, after this, one has to wonder if these pirates are the only unsatisfied group in the Covenant."

"There have to be more," Shepard assured him. "It isn't a union created on mutual respect or cooperation. It's built on lies, subjugation and threat of reprisals. No system like that can endure. Maybe Zek and his pirates are just the first step."

"I'd like to think that, Shepard, I really would," Holland replied. "But the Covenant descending into civil war still sounds like a very distant possibility at the moment. More importantly, it doesn't guarantee anything long term. Zek doesn't sound interested in switching sides so much as making an arrangement with people who are the enemies of his enemies. It's not much to base an alliance on."

"No, but it's a start," Shepard suggested. "It's worth at least trying to bring them onto your side. Earth needs all the help it can get right now."

Holland sighed, looking once again deep in thought. It took awhile for him to digest it all. Eventually though he sighed, clearly tired of thinking.

"Let's just get this business with their slipspace drive sorted first," he said at last. "Then we can see about making this alliance of ours more than the strange bedfellow situation we're currently in."

Shepard grinned at that, a sign of progress. Holland was at least open to the idea, that much he knew now. Zek was still a bit of an obstacle, but maybe there was common ground after all. He would've left the office happy with the knowledge that things were looking up. Until a ship wide alarm sounded. Holland was soon contacted by the familiar voice of Haverson.

"Sir, we just got a big contact ping in our sector and moving on a patrol pattern in our general direction," he said frantically. "I don't think it's friendly."

"Contact the other officers and have them meet me on the Command Deck," Holland ordered.

"Does that include Shipmaster Zek and Lieutenant Commander Varvok, sir?" Haverson asked.

"Of course it does," Holland answered back. "Have them shuttle over to our ship at once. We need to work out a strategy to deal with whatever this enemy ship is before it gets in range."

"At once, sir," Haverson stated dutifully.

Holland then looked to Shepard.

"Well, looks like the Hollow will have to wait, Commander," he declared. "We're going to be testing out this alliance of ours sooner than we thought."

Shepard nodded in agreement and followed Holland out the door. He supposed this was going to come sooner or later. It was time to see how this little fleet of theirs held out under fire.

---

AN: I officially welcome everyone to this story and the first official chapter. I hope this has gotten everyone sufficiently interested in future events. This is largely set-up, but it's important to establish where things are currently. Also I just really wanted to have Zek and Shepard talk one on one, that was a fun scene. When you have time, do check the profile for a link to my blog concerning this story for further background information and thoughts on this chapter. Also, included in those notes will be something I suspect a few people have been wondering about for awhile, the face of Wade Shepard. I gave a decent description when I started, but now you should have a more direct picture to place to his words. Do leave a review and I'll see you back here in a week or so for the next chapter.