*Citadel Upper Wards: 2183*
…
"I didn't tell anyone, I swear!"
A woman dressed in a white coat backed up into the wall. In front of her were several armed thugs, all of them laughing in satisfaction at the woman's helplessness. They appeared to be mercenaries, from how well they were geared up. One stepped closer to the woman. His eyes locked on her, like a predator selecting its latest kill.
"That was smart, Doc." He chuckled. Now, if Garrus comes around, you stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or we'll-"
The thug ceased his speaking. He spotted something approaching behind the woman. No. Someone.
Walking into the room, Jane Shepard, Kaiden Alenko, and Ashley Williams all drew their weapons upon seeing the thugs attacking the doctor.
The leader went into fight or flight. He grabbed hold of the doctor by her throat and drew his weapon, using her as a shield.
"Let her go!" Demanded Shepard, pointing a pistol at the thug.
"Give me a break, bitch! You think I'm stu-"
A bullet flew straight through the side of the thug's head, killing him instantly. Coming out of hiding, Garrus sprung into action. Alongside Shepard and her team. They easily dispatched the thugs and the doctor was saved.
"Is it always this crazy on the Citadel?" Ashley questioned rhetorically.
"Not always. Just every other Monday." Joked Garrus as he holstered his M-3 Predator. He turned to the red haired woman. "Perfect timing, Shepard. Gave me a clear shot at that bastard."
Though Garrus was happy and thankful for the assist, Shepard was not as pleased. She adopted an angry scowl.
"What were you thinking?! You could have hit the hostage!" She scolded the turian.
"There wasn't time to think! l just reacted. I didn't mean to…"
Garrus tried to defend his actions, Shepard was right. That move he pulled was reckless. If he wasn't as good a shot as he was, the doctor could have been killed instead, and there are no excuses when it comes to manslaughter.
"Dr. Michel? Are you hurt?"
The doctor ruffled her hair. "No, I'm okay. Thanks to you. All of you."
After calming down, Dr. Michel began telling Shepard about what she knew.
Shepard and her team were searching high and low for evidence against Saren Arterius, a rogue Spectre agent who was responsible for the geth attack on Edin Prime. Though without evidence to support this accusation, there was no way to tie the old turian to the attack.
Garrus was investigating Saren as part of a C-Sec case, but was taken off it after he failed to find any sufficient information to present. That wouldn't stop him however as he continued regardless. It meant using up his vacation days to do it, but that didn't matter.
He had found a lead that led him to Dr. Chloe Michel, but it just so happened that a group of mercs had cornered her. Just great.
Once Michel started talking, Garrus and Shepard had learned that a quarian had managed to find something of interest that was linked to Saren's dark little secrets. Thing is, they didn't know where to find her. There was one person though who did…
"Time we paid Fist a visit." Said Shepard, cracking her knuckles.
Before leaving, Garrus walked up to Shepard and her team with a look of determination.
"This is your show, Shepard. But I want to bring Saren down as much as you do. I'm coming with you!"
Intrigued, Shepard looked at Garrus questioning. "You're a turian. Why would you want to bring him down?"
"I couldn't find the proof I needed in my investigation. But I knew what was really going on…" Garrus' fists tightened in anger. "Saren is a traitor to the Council, and a disgrace to my people!"
There was a fire in his icy blue eyes. Jane admired that. It reminded her of herself when she was still just a rookie. Garrus seemed like a cocky hotshot, but he clearly had a good heart. Otherwise, why would he risk his life and career to expose Saren?
Shepard smiled and held out her hand in front of him. Garrus happily accepted.
"Welcome aboard, Garrus."
…
*Present*
…
That was back when he had first joined up with Shepard. Their first big adventure together. When Ashley was still around. Garrus never would have believed that those events would lead him down to where he was right now…
Especially right now.
'Why am I thinking about that now?'
"Garrus?"
Snapping out of his daydream, Garrus' vision captured the image of Jane Doe and her cohorts, all of them hiding atop a maintenance platform. Crow was looking over the railing through the scope of a sniper rifle. And a strange and fancy looking one at that. Dark colored, adorned with golden spikes and a crest of two wolves and a tree.
"Bite of the Fox" was its name, last Garrus remembered. Do these guys give all their guns names? More on that later, as Jane was looking at Garrus, slightly concerned as he had drifted away from reality.
"You good? You spaced out there." Jane asked.
"Huh? Oh… Yeah, I'm fine, Shep-" Garrus paused his sentence. "Jane." He corrected.
"What's with the name swap?" Doe questioned.
"You go by your first name now. Figured you would be more comfortable if I called you by it."
She couldn't help but smile beneath her helmet. That was… Honestly, a very sweet gesture. Jane patted Garrus' shoulder assuring.
"Hey, you can call me anything you like. I don't mind. Shepard does kinda have a nice ring to it."
That made Garrus smile. Jane patted his shoulder before she walked towards her dark-haired Hunter.
"How does it look?"
Crow was using his scope to survey the area down below, looking for any forms of resistance that will block their escape route. He could see the small ship parked in one of the civilian docks. It was angularly shaped with feathers painted onto its outside.
"Clear enough. Minimal guard activity, so we might be able to just stroll right through the hanger- HEY! Are you kidding me?!" Yelled Crow suddenly.
"What?" Jane questioned.
"Holiday just spilled coffee all over my dashboard!"
Jane couldn't help but snicker in the humor of it. Crow rolled his eyes and continued.
"But I still think we should be cautious. Any idiot would know it's never a good sign when things are this easy."
He had a point. By now, the entire Citadel should be on high alert after the ruckus they've caused. So what's with the lack of guards in the docking bay?
"Luckily for us, we're not-" Jane paused for some reason and pondered. "Who am I kidding? It's us I'm talking about."
"So then, what's the plan?" Asks Crow.
Jane took a minute to think. This was obviously a trap. If they all go in at once, it would be game over on the spot. She needed to treat this like she would a raid. Carefully concoct a strategy, rather than just blindly Leeroy Jenkins their only way of escape.
"Okay. Whiskey, Shinazu and I are gonna head down and take a closer look before anything. Crow, I want you to stay up here and keep watch over us with a bird's eye view. Pun not intended. Don't pull any shots unless I order you to, and even then, only concussive rounds. Am I clear?"
Crow nodded in compliance. "Count on me." He stated.
Whiskey scoffed. "Unlikely."
Jane and Shinazu both shot glares at their cowboy companion, who seemed to be shooting one of his own at Crow. Garrus wondered as to what it was about, but quickly disregarded that though as he walked up to Jane.
"I'll go with you." He said to her.
Jane shook her head in refusal. "Nope. You're staying up here with Crow. If this is a trap, I'm not risking you getting shot."
"Boss, you sure you wanna leave 'em with Bird Brain over there?" Whiskey interrupted.
"Hey!" Said Garrus, offended.
"Not you!" He switched his gaze over to Crow.
It was very clear that Whiskey had some sort of grudge against the blue Hunter. Crow had averted his gaze from his fellow Guardian. An act of shame, perhaps? Jane shoved Whiskey's shoulder aggressively in response.
"That's enough. He came here to help rescue your metal ass. That counts for something."
If his metallic face could make expressions, Whiskey would be scowling. The Exo brushed off his shoulder and straightened his hat, then started moving towards the stairway without saying another word. Shinazu followed, as did Jane, but not before she reached over and put a hand on Crow's shoulder.
"I trust you. Keep him safe."
Her reply came as a nod of understanding. She then proceeded down the stairs with the rest of her team. Crow moved back into position. He laid down on his belly and brought his eye back up to his gun's scope.
Garrus was complexed. These nerds were strange. One was a synthetic who thinks he's a cowboy. Another has some kind of space-knight obsession. The mysterious and brooding Crow here. And then there was Shepard, who was absolutely nothing like he remembered her. Their personalities were all over the place. It was hard to really get a read on them.
Not to mention, while they attacked C-Sec HQ, they didn't execute a single person that entire time. It was safe to say they weren't terrorists. But then just who exactly were they?
If he were going to go with Shepard to where she's been hunkering down these past five years, then Garrus needed to know as much about these people as he could.
Crow seemed like a good start, as he appears to be the most normal of the whole team. The turian slowly walked over.
"Got a spare rifle?" Garrus asked.
"Planning to shoot me in the back?"
"Two sets of eyes are better than one. Besides, I'm a sniper. Keeping watch is what I do."
Crow scoffed at the suggestion instead. He did not trust his new company enough to willingly hand him ANOTHER weapon, as Jane already did. Vakarian sat down on his knees, looking at the laser-focused man.
"If I was going to kill you, then I would have tried by now. I'm here because I don't want to lose Jane again. From the way she defended you back there, you're important to her. Any friend of hers is a friend of mine, and I've known that woman long enough to know how picky she is when it comes to making new friends."
That was right. Shepard may have been a battle hardened soldier, but her belief in goodness and sense of justice gave her incredible judgment when it came to selecting new crew members. Need they be military, mercenary, or even geth like Legion. Shepard can see the good in people. That had to have extended to Crow as well.
"So I'm asking you to trust me here, kid. I'm not your enemy. I'm Jane's friend. And I want to help her get to safety."
Listening carefully to his words, he found no hints of deception in Garrus' voice. He genuinely wanted to help them. Crow sighed and made a selection in his HUD. "Adored". A weapon appeared in a shimmer of light. A golden, jewel encrusted sniper rifle, bundled up in a rich purple and gold cloth. Its fine scrollwork, design, and elegant barrel make it seem more like a musical instrument than an actual gun.
The Hunter tossed it over to his company. Garrus stared at the rifle in total disgust to the point where he thought he'd gag. This gun... Not even Aria T'Loak would use something this gaudy.
"Uh… Really..?"
"It belonged to my old boss. It's not my fault he has bad tastes."
Beggars couldn't be choosers. Garrus shrugged his shoulders and laid down beside the Hunter. His right eye brought up close to the back of the scope. The glass lenses significantly magnifying their views, letting them see greater distances.
The turian was impressed. Despite its ridiculous appearance, the gun was rather advanced.
"So… "Crow", huh?" Garrus started, not taking his eye off his scope.
"That's me." Crow replied without turning around.
"Interesting name. You and Jane work together a lot?"
"Sometimes."
"Where'd you first meet?"
"Luna."
"You're not very social, are you?"
"No, I am not."
That's putting it mildly. He looked like the kind of guy who likes to hang around the lower decks of a ship and stand brooding in the darkest corner. Crow's outfit and name were pretty much self explanatory themselves. It's as though he never grew out of that emo phase every kid goes through in their lives.
Heck, even Garrus went through that phase, as he recalled back when he was fifteen and got the ends of his mandibles pierced and changed the color of his clan facial markings to black. Though, this was mostly done to irritate his father.
It was clear that casualty wasn't going anywhere. Garrus decided to try a more direct approach.
"Metal Head isn't very fond of you, is he?"
The Hunter sighed. "You can say that… I'm not the most popular Guardian around."
"Why's that?" Asked Vakarian.
Crow didn't even bother to respond. He seemed determined to keep his current company at a distance. That was when Garrus noticed something about the Hunter. Something familiar. That was when he finally realized exactly who this guy was.
"Let me guess. You're the young, hot-headed trouble maker who everyone loves to hate."
That struck a chord in the blue human. Crow, at most, glanced back at Garrus, who was grinning.
"Believe me, I've been there. Back when I worked at C-Sec, I was constantly getting on my boss' bad side. I'm pretty sure he was plotting to kill me. That's how annoying I was."
"It's more complicated than that." Crow paused. "I was hated long before I was a Guardian. I…" He was hesitant. Not entirely sure as to why he was talking about this to a total stranger. Though, sometimes confining in people you don't know can be better than those you do, and despise you.
"I killed someone… Someone important."
"We all have our pasts, and everyone makes mistakes in them. I know I have, and I know Shepard has also. But if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. I was just trying to get a read on you."
Finally, the blue human decided to turn around and face the turian. Crow pulled back hood leaned against the railing. His dark hair, side swept to the right. Garrus couldn't help but subtly chuckle from humor. This guy was the definition of a pretty boy.
"Are you usually this talkative with people who are supposed to be your enemies?" Crow asked.
"No. Just the ones I find interesting… Now, I'm assuming that "Crow" is just a nickname? Or did your parents actually look at you the moment you were born and name you after the Earth bird associated with death and misfortune?"
"Funny guy, huh?"
"Better than being Mr. Negative all the time."
The Hunter couldn't help but laugh under his breath, as did Garrus. Crow paused for a moment before giving his response.
"Uldron Sov." He finally said, then pointed his thumb over at his Ghost. "This is Glint."
The small robot appeared and chirped in a greeting fashion. Garrus remembered that Jane had one of these little synthetics with her as well. It was able to regenerate her whole arm. He assumed that this one shared that ability. Though Garrus was still unsure as to how. Questions for later.
"Mr. Sov. Glint. Garrus Vakarian."
The turian offered his hand. Crow accepted and shook with Garrus.
"I know who you are. Jane's been looking for you a long time." The Hunter stated.
"So I've heard."
…
Jane quickly took cover behind a wall upon finally making it down the stairs. She slowly peaked her head out the edge of the wall to get a look at what was on the other side. No enemies. But there was one man crouching down in the corner with a toolbox beside him. A mechanic perhaps. At least it wasn't an armed guard. Getting rid of him shouldn't be too hard. Jane looked back. Whiskey and Shinazu were right behind her. She showed them the hand gesture to hold position and they nodded in compliance.
Jane holstered her rifle and walked out from cover. The mechanic, hearing the sounds of heavy footsteps, stopped his work and turned to his rear. He saw the armored soldier walking in and stood up from the floor before he approached her.
"Hey, who are you? What are you doing here?" He questioned.
"What am I doing here? What are YOU doing here?" Jane quickly responded with a question of her own.
"Huh?"
"Do you have any idea how dangerous it is back here?!"
The mechanic scratched the side of his head. He was getting confused.
"There's a bomb, you idiot! You need to get out of here right now before it blows!"
"A bomb?! Wha-"
"RUN!"
"Oh God, not again!"
The mechanic ran off in a frightened hurry. Jane watched the man run frantically and laughed. "I can't believe that worked. You guys can come out now."
The other two Guardians finally emerged from their hiding place. They were lightly laughing at Jane's lie to that mechanic also.
"Nice one, Doe." Appraised Whiskey.
"Normally, I am against lies. But I admit, That was very humorous." Added Shinazu.
The trio proceeded to the door. Jane and Shinazu took position by the edges with their weapons drawn. They turned to Whiskey and gave him nods. The Hunter opened the door. On the other side, a vast open area, filled with massive ships of all kinds as far as the eye can see. The docking bay's runways. Holiday had their ship parked in the back area. It should just be a straight walk from there.
Whiskey looked back and gave an 'all clear' and his teammates emerged. They noticed that it was suspiciously empty, just like when they viewed the area from that maintenance platform. Which meant they couldn't drop their guard.
"Everyone keep your weapons hot. This has 'trap' written all over it." Jane pointed out.
Complying with their leader's orders, the fireteam proceeded onto the runway. They made sure to keep their eyes on their in-HUD radars for the smallest movements. The Warlock and Hunter moving in tight formation with their Titan leader.
"Boss, I gotta ask. Are we really bringin' that velociraptor with us?" Whiskey questioned.
"We are. I've spent five years trying to find Garrus. Trying to learn who he is and what he might know about me. I'm not gonna let this opportunity slip by." Jane replied determinedly.
"With all due respect, Jane. Guardians are forbidden from seeking out their pasts." Shinazu pointed out. "I do recall Commander Zavala being very clear on that with you many times in the past."
She scoffed. "Yeah well, Zavala isn't here. And even if he were, I'd tell him exactly where to shove it."
"Ain't that how ya got suspended for a month and wound up on two week desk duty right after?"
"No comment."
"Oh I remember that. Zavala's face went from blue, to purple, then to red in ten seconds flat!"
"Nobody asked you, Holiday!"
The trio stopped walking. Whiskey placed his hand on Jane's armored shoulder. He looked her dead in her eyes.
"Doe, this is fuckin' stupid. You're practically kidnappin' this guy. And once we get back, no way Big Blue's gonna let this slide. Where are ya even gonna hide 'em? A cage in the park like Guilmon or somethin'?"
She shrugged off Whiskey's hand aggressively. She glared at him from under his helmet.
"You know, you're one to talk about stupid decisions, Whiskey. Considering that you committed manslaughter while robbing a damn café. And you give Crow lip, clearly over what happened with Caiatl's Psion, might I add! You're hardly in a position to pass judgment over our decisions!"
Her words were harsh, but carried a valid point. Whiskey's foolish decision to acquire funds had gotten him in a bad spot and his team was forced to attack a law enforcement agency to free him. They were in this position because of his choices. And he had the nerve to criticize Jane and Crow over theirs.
"He came with us to help save your stupid metal ass. Show him some fucking gratitude!"
"Come now, everyone. Now is not the time to fight amongst ourselves." Shinazu said, trying to defuse the situation.
Whiskey looked away, pulling his hat over his eyes. Jane let out an annoyed huff beneath her helmet. They knew their Warlock was right. They couldn't start a conflict here. Especially here, or it would be costly.
"I'm sorry, Boss." Whiskey finally muttered.
With her temper now under her control, Jane gave her comrade a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"Forget about it. Let's just keep moving."
…
"Okay. Here's a good one. Our leader; his name's Commander Zavala, was striking a truce with this militaristic race known as the Cabal. Some of their ranks didn't like that idea however, and tried to assassinate him during the meeting. That was when I jumped into action and took a massive cleaver to my face and saved him."
Garrus leaned back against the wall. He was grinning like a fool… or tried to, given a turian's unique facial structure, and shook his head.
"Foiled assassination attempts… Ain't no better stories than the classic ones." He commended Crow. "Though, I may have one that is."
"Oh? Do tell."
"I once tracked down this guy, Saren. Turian, like me. Stopped him from massing together an army of murderous robots, and unleashing this genocidal machine race called the Reapers on the galaxy eight years ago."
"Nonono. That one doesn't count." Crow denied. "You told me you did that with Jane. Remember?"
That fact only made Garrus even more smug. "You're right. I WAS with Shepard. From the very beginning, might I add."
"Woooow. You just couldn't hold that in, could you?" Crow exaggerated.
"Oh jeez. Why don't the two a' ya just unzip yer flies and whip em out, see who's is bigger already?"
A new voice could be heard from Crow's comms. Female and southern, with just a hint of humor at the cost of one's extent. The Hunter scowled.
"Holiday… How long have you been listening?
"Long enough. I was half expectin' you boys to kiss."
He let out a sarcastic laugh. Garrus turned to his fellow sniper, wondering who he was talking to. Crow explained that it was their pilot, who had been eavesdropping on their tall tales the whole time. The turian smirked and stated that she had good taste in war stories. That earned him a laugh from both Crow and Holiday.
Garrus was relieved. Despite his brooding exterior, Crow was actually pretty friendly once you get to know him. That whole 'I'm too cool to care' impression was just an act in the end. He was as big a softie as James was.
After the two snipers had managed to get to know each other a little better, they started sharing their previous adventures with one another. It started off with Garrus telling Crow about his old C-Sec days, then moved on to the Reaper War. Crow was impressed, and he began telling his own exploits as well while they were still scanning the area through their scopes.
"So, how exactly did you meet Jane? Was she fighting some world ending threat and you two united to stop it or something? Because that's usually the case with that woman."
Crow raised his eyebrow at the assumption. He thought. 'That's exactly what happened!' Vakarian was spot on.
"You really DO know her well. Alright, if you really want to know. But it will put your Saren story to shame."
"You really think that? Okay. Let's hear it."
So the tale was told. It was two years ago.
Back then, Crow was working as an enforcer for a crime boss who went by the nickname, 'The Spider', in some backwater space colony called 'The Tangled Shore'. He had been working for this lowlife most of his life until he had met her.
Jane Doe.
One day, there had been reports of ravenous aliens causing mayhem all over the shore. Spider had sent Crow to investigate and his findings had led him to Earth's Moon. It was there they had met, along with an old man named Osiris.
Together, they had deduced that the cause of the rabid aliens running amuck was a dark and terrible creature. It was known as 'The High Celebrant of Xivu Arath', and it had this "magical" ability to turn people into mindless, violence fuelled servants called 'Wrathborn' by carving runes into their flesh. It used these structures called 'Cryptoliths' to spread them across worlds.
After constructing a special lure to draw out these abominations, they had finally crossed paths with the High Celebrant and worked together to finally take this monster down by cornering it in an alternate plane of existence, known as the 'Ascendant Plane', and bringing its head back to Spider as he had requested. Though he failed to include the part where the High Celebrant broke his legs and tossed him into a bottomless pit… But who's keeping track?
As thanks, Spider offered Jane anything in his lair as a reward. She gave him her answer, and left Crow astounded.
She had chosen him.
At first, Spider laughed, but then he realized that she was serious. She had said that Spider told her she could have "anything in the room" and that had included Crow himself. Spider was reluctant at first, but he eventually caved and agreed. He then kindly told them both to get the hell out of his lair. From that point forward, Crow had been a part of her team, and this Vanguard they both worked for.
"And the rest is history."
Garrus stared at Crow the entire time he was talking. The turian didn't even blink that entire time he told the story.
"Uh… This guy, Spider… Did he teach you to make up crap like that? Or are you just that good?"
Garrus immediately went into a fit of uncontrollable laughter, rolling onto his back and clenching his gut from how hard he laughed. Crow looked at the turian next to him with an offended look.
"What the hell's that supposed to mean? It's true! Glint, back me up here!"
"Alright." Glint reappeared out of thin air. "Crow got both his legs smashed and tossed me into a bottomless abyss in the process while Jane Doe did all the work."
"HEY!"
All that did was make Garrus laugh even harder. It was getting to the point where he couldn't breathe. But who could blame him? Magical monsters? Alternate planes of reality? The Reapers were barely believable already!
"Hahaha! I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's just… Wow. Ahahaha!"
"Fine, don't believe me. But don't come crying when a Thrall rips your throat out-"
Crow halted his words. Something caught his eye in the view of his scope. He refocused and zoomed in. There was movement around the higher level docking bays, and rather suspicious looking at that.
"Crow?"
"I see something."
Focusing on, he managed to make out the figure. It was a woman, clad in black, with a hood over her head. She spun around and Crow got a look at her face. It was Kasumi again. The thief leaned over the guard railing, looking his way.
Crow assumed that she was unaware that he had a rifle pointed right at her. That was until she blew him a kiss. He was startled. His body tensed up suddenly and he gasped.
"What is it?" Asked Garrus again.
"It's that woman again. The one I was fighting at C-Sec."
Rolling back onto his stomach, Garrus adjusted his scope's lense and directed it to where Crow's was positioned. There was Kasumi waving "hello" to them.
"Kasumi." Said Garrus with slight dread. "You survived a tussle with her? You have my respect."
"Friend of yours?" Questioned the Hunter.
"Yeah, we go way back. I guess it means this is an ambush."
That meant that Doe and the others were completely unaware and in danger. Crow had to signal his team and warn them that Garrus' friends have set up a trap. But before he could activate his comm, he felt something metal press up against the back of his head.
"Don't even think about it, Gothy Smurf."
A voice spoke to them. Masculine, gruff, with a strong English accent. Garrus realized who it belonged to on the spot.
"Zaeed. Still kicking, I see."
Shifting his body, Garrus looked up at the man who held them at gunpoint. A human male, well aged, and of Middle Eastern descent. His hair was short. The right eye was white from being badly damaged. A scar ran down the right side of the man's face. And there was another scar on the back of his head. From a bullet. Imprinted on the man's neck was a black tattoo of the Blue Suns mercenary group's crest, and he was dawned in yellow and black heavy armor.
It was Zaeed Masani. Renowned across the galaxy as the most feared mercenary and bounty hunter for his ruthless battle tactics and sheer drive to get the job done, no matter the costs. He's also the one who Garrus helped boobytrap Shepard's apartment in the first place.
Back during the battle against the Collectors, Zaeed was sought out by Shepard to assist her, mostly thanks to a generous donation by Cerberus. At first, everyone was weary of this blood thirsty veteran, but after proving himself in battle, and Shepard smacking some sense into him on Sanctum, he was eventually accepted as part of the Normandy Crew. Even helped Shepard get the traitorous Volus Ambassador to give up some vital information in the Reaper War.
Now he stood above his former crewmate and Crow, armed with a Chakram Launcher explosive assault rifle. His eyes were hungry for fresh blood.
"Kinda thought you'd retired after the war." Garrus mentioned.
"Oh, I was. I'm only 'ere on the Citadel for some window shoppin'. That's when I hear about C-Sec gettin' shot up by Master Chief, Count Dooku, and fuckin' Edgar Allen Poe right 'ere! And YOU'D run off with 'em after shootin' Four Eyes!"
Damn. The others must have filled him in on the situation. Garrus hoped that he wouldn't have to fight any more of his friends tonight.
"Zaeed, it's not what it seems. It's complicated." He tried to reason.
Masani snorted. "Really? Because it seems to me that all that goddamn booz finally fried your brain and now you can't tell black from white anymore!"
Wow. He just went right there, didn't he?
"Listen, I could give a rat's ass what your reasons are for helpin' these blokes. Liara just asked me to help drag your plated ass back so she can slap the hell outta ya."
Zaeed, keeping his rifle fixed on Crow, drew an M-6 Carnifex pistol and pointed it straight at Garrus.
"Now get up and get movin', Vakarian. And don't try anythin' stupid."
"Hold on a minute."
The mercenary's attention shifted over to Crow, who was now laying on his side.
"There's no need for things to get heated. We can talk this out like civilized people."
"Huh? And who the hell are you?!" Questioned Zaeed.
"The name's Crow." The Guardian greeted in a friendly demeanor. "You know me as "Gothy Smurf", and that right by your ear is Glint."
"Who?"
"HEY YOU!"
"GAH! THE FUCK?!"
Zaeed jumped up like a cat. He quickly turned to his left. Glint was floating right up in his face, giggling like a little kid.
"Hi." Glint innocently said.
The mercenary was distracted. This was their chance. Crow spun around on the floor and sprung onto his feet. He wasted no time rushing Zaeed headlong. Crow unleashed a lightning-fast punch combo on his opponent's face. Each blow felt like getting hit by a speeding car. Despite his athletic build, Crow's strength was almost as great as a krogan's.
After one final uppercut to the underside of his jaw, Zaeed fell both backwards and into unconsciousness, hitting the floor hard.
Garrus stood back up, leaning over his dazed friend. "He alive?" He asked.
That was when Crow roughly kicked Zaeed in the side. Masani painfully whimpered in response. "He's fine."
"Thanks for not killing my friend. Nice moves, by the way."
The turian received a nod from the Hunter. Now that that matter was taken care of, Garrus could get back to earning Fireteam November about the set up. Once Uldron had given him Jane's frequency, Garrus activated his Omni-Tool and opened his comms.
"Shepard, it's Garrus! Get out of there! It's a trap! I repeat! It's-"
Turning back to the railing, his voice fell silent. What Garrus saw across the vast space of the hanger, he couldn't comprehend.
…
Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't updated in a while. Being a city employee, my days get busy. I have screen painted so many No Parking and No Stopping signs, I don't think I can look at the color combo of red and black without getting PTSD. God knows how I can watch Sonic 3 now! Lol.
Anyway, if you wanna stay up to date with my chapter releases, feel free to follow me on Twitter: @Spookykitty25.
Plus, I finally finished the storyline for Episode: Echoes. Sooooo satisfying to see Saint knock the Conductor on her ass! That's what you get for hurting our favorite Robo-Grandpa!