The sounds of sirens blared into the air. Flashing red light strobing as far as the eye can see. One after the other, injured soldiers who suffered from either burns or head trauma were lifted onto gurneys and loaded into the backs of ambulances before flying off to hospitals. Now that the dust had finally cleared, emergency response services could finally arrive and bring the wounded to safety. Astonishingly enough, none of the injuries that the soldiers suffered were even fatal, but that didn't mean they didn't still require medical attention.
Sitting on the edge of one ambulance, Jack was being tended to for the gash on her forehead she received after hitting her head on the edge of a wall when she went down. Dr. Chakwas was being as gentle as she possibly could not cause her patient any pain as she dressed the wound with an antiseptic pad. The biotic felt a stinging sensation from her wound as the pad came into contact with the exposed flesh.
"Fuck!" Jack cursed. "Jesus, Doc! What is that, acid?"
"Oh quit being a baby, Jack. It doesn't hurt that bad." Karen humored.
"Then maybe you gash your head open and pour that crap on yourself."
Finally done dressing, Karen switched from the bloodied pad to a needle and thread. With one hand, she held Jack's dead in place while she ran the needle through her skin with the other. It wasn't long before she had managed to fully close up Jack's wound with five stitches.
"There you go. Good as new." She stated with a huff..
"Do I get a lollipop?" Jack asked jokingly.
Karen chuckled. "I think Garrus asked me that earlier. Where is he, by the way?"
Jack fell silent and diverted her gaze. Dr. Chakwas had absolutely no clue about Garrus' betrayal as she was busy at the hospital with patients from C-Sec. Though she had knowledge of the attack, the status of the turian commander was unknown to her.
"I'm…" Jack paused. "Not entirely sure. But I think he's alright. That bird's tough."
She hated lying to Chakwas, but maybe it would be better for her not to know about the turian's treachery. After all, the crew of the Normandy weren't just comrades in arms, they were a family. A multiracial, gunslinging, dysfunctional family, yes. But family nonetheless.
"And I think if there's one alien you should be worried about, it's the eight hundred pound krogan with the head injury."
Turning her head to the left, Dr. Chakwas saw the barely conscious form of Wrex in an oversized gurney, groaning loudly from pain. She wasn't exactly sure what had happened to him, only that he was found laying atop a ship with his body embedded into its metal frame. Wrex had sustained four cracked ribs; two of them broken, and dislocated shoulder, and judging by the fact that he hadn't referred to himself as 'Uncle Urdnot' once clearly meant that the large reptilian had a concussion. Chakwas turned to him and looked him over.
"Wrex, how are you feeling?"
Wrex's eyes wandered and he smiled foolishly. "I can see all of Tuchanka from up here…" The krogan mumbled in delirium.
She cringed. His condition was bad. She didn't think any human could do THIS to a krogan Wrex's size. "Take him to the hospital. He's going to need an MRI, rest, and some industrial strength pain killers." Chakwas ordered the paramedics.
"Level Awesome? Lucky bastard… Got it, Doc."
The responders moved to opposing sides of the gurney as they pushed Wrex towards the ambulance, ignorant to his fearful pleas.
"Wait, no..! No hospitals! MORDIN ALREADY GOT HIS TISSUE SAMPLES!"
…
The thrusters fired at maximum power, propelling the jumpship forward at blinding speed. The small ship rocketed out of the Citadel airspace within mere seconds. Despite its fragile and derelict appearance, the Radiant Accipiter's speed and maneuverability were in a class of its own. Though its peruser was not far behind. The Normandy picked up speed quickly and easily caught up to the jumpship. The frigate's vulcan cannons fired off a hailstorm of thermal ammunition. Shots tore through space as they flew towards their target, ready to rip it apart scrap by metallic scrap.
Pulling hard to the left, Amanda tilted the ship to the side in an attempt to avoid the bullets. The dodge was successful, much to Joker's annoyance. The shipwright laughed. With a quick dip to the right, the jumpship pulled off a barrel roll out of pure taunt. It was clear that Amanda was the playful type.
Joker decided to step it up a notch. With the simple touch of a few buttons, the Normandy's weapons switched from vulcan cannons to tracking missiles. The rockets fired from their launchers and, using state of the art heat seeking technology, homed in on the small jumpship.
"Trackers, eh? This guy's gettin' impatient." With a few adjustments to the ship's flight settings, Amanda increased her speed. "Whiskey, hold on to your hat!"
The Radiant Accipiter zoomed away, but the missiles were still hot on its tail. Holiday brought up a digital view of the ship's six o'clock. At least four misses were closing in on them.
"Damn. Not gonna be easy shakin' those things." Amanda pointed out.
"Our only option would be to shoot them down." Garrus stated. "Crow, what kind of weapons does your ship have?"
"I don't know."
That response made Vakarian cock his brow plate questioningly at Sov. "The hell do you mean, "I don't know"?!"
"I mean I don't know! I've never used this thing in a dogfight before! I'm not even sure if it has weapons!" Crow poorly explained.
Garrus' jaw hung in disbelief. Not sure if his own ship has weapons? How is that even possible? Just the mere thought of trying to piece together that puzzle would give the turian a headache, so he decided to just accept it… and maybe his fate.
"I'm gonna try somethin'! Hold on tight!"
Amanda pulled off a quick one eighty turn and hit the throttle max speed. The missiles followed suit and kept up their chase. Joker and Miranda went wide eyed as they noticed that Amanda was flying straight towards them.
"Joker!" Miranda urged.
"I know what she's doing. Raising shields. Everyone, grab onto something."
At first glance, it looked as though Amanda was about to ram her ship right into the Normandy in a suicide strike. But at the very last second, she pulled back the yoke and the ship soared upwards. The missiles did not follow, they had a new target. The Normandy. The projectiles made contact with their target and exploded upon impact. The entirety of the frigate was rocked. Had Miranda not grabbed hold of Joker's chair, she would have fallen to the floor from the tremors.
A few seconds back, down in engineering, Grunt was rummaging around the lower floors in search of something. Specifically, it was the part of engineering where Jack used to reside, as she preferred a place dark and secluded to avoid social interaction. The krogan was desperately searching for any traces of food that the Psychotic Biotic may have left behind after leaving the ship.
"Come on, come on! There must be something here!"
Grunt was on the verge of losing control. If he didn't get any food soon, there would be a very good chance that he would kill everyone on the ship and eat THEM. Pulling his head out from the corner, Grunt stared at the prize in his hand. A solitary candy mint. How… disappointing.
"Secret stash my tail section…" He growled. "Oh well, food is food."
That was when hard tremors shook the entire Normandy. Grunt lost his balance and fell to the floor. The mind escaped his hold on it and the candy rolled away from him, falling into an air vent, never to be seen again. Grunt's jaw dropped in raw, unfiltered disbelief.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!"
Amanda twirled the ship around midair into an aileron roll, cheering loudly in ecstatic joy. Everyone else was holding onto whatever they could as tightly as possible to keep from being tossed around by their pilot's erratic flying.
"WOO! Y'all see that? Right back in his face!" Amanda laughed.
Crow felt nausea building up inside him. He fought back the urge to vomit, swallowing back what he had eaten earlier today.
"Take it easy, Amanda!" He urged with a silent gag.
"Hey! Who's the pilot?!"
"Who's ship are you flying because you lost the keys to yours again?"
"…Fair point."
Jane however was remaining perfectly in place without the support of anything. Her Titan body was clearly strong enough to resist the g-force. In fact, Garrus was holding onto her.
"I take back what I said. THAT was a little closer than I'd like!" Stated Garrus anxiously.
"She shook the missiles. That's something to be grateful for." Jane stated.
"No offense, Shepard. But I think I'd rather be back in the Mako with you driving."
Doe put on a shocked expression, clearly insulted by the turian's comment. "What's that supposed to mean?! I'm a great driver!"
It was at hearing that claim that everyone in the ship, even the Ghosts, bursted out into uncontrollable laughter. Whiskey thought he would blow a fuse from cackling so hard. It wasn't that they thought she was a bad driver because of the whole women driving stereotype. It was just that Jane herself drove as well as she danced… and we all know how she dances…
"Jane honey, I've seen your Sparrow. No comment." Amanda pointed out.
Garrus chirped humorously. He was glad to know some things didn't change.
Their moment was cut short however as the ship's radar blipped. Holiday loaded up a visual. The Normandy was still in pursuit. It was encased in some sort of blue energy field. Kinetic barriers, probably. Meaning that the missile blasts were absorbed.
"Shit. Not even a scratch."
The field soon dispersed and Joker smirked in his seat as he was preparing another attack.
"If that's all you've got, then I'm disappointed, lady." He said confidently. "Cortez, get the Thanix Cannon ready!"
"On it, Joker!"
The frigate's main gun started to come online, lighting up with an electrifying blue light. Energy quickly built up before the cannons fired two massive beams of energy at the jumpship in front of them. Amanda went wide eyed at the sight and she turned hard to the right, just dodging the blast by the hair on their necks. A singe mark was left on the side of the Radiant Accipiter, much to Crow's distraught.
"Aww, come on!"
"Sorry Crow."
Increasing speed, The Normandy flew overhead of the smaller jumpship. Two hatches on the ship's underbelly opened up. Inside were multiple large objects with hazard symbols tagged to them. They depicted explosions. That wasn't good.
"Bombs away, ya sons of bitches!!"
The explosives dropped from the hatched one after the other. Red lights flickering off their sides, signaling that they were armed and ready to detonate. It was now raining down hell on Fireteam November because the bombs were equipped with mass effect field generators that allowed them to ignore the weightlessness of zero gravity and plummet like rocks.
Amanda opened up multiple digital views of the jump ship's surroundings. Up and down, side to side, front and back. She needed as many eyes as possible if she were to escape this pickle.
"Outrageous! You people have bombs that just flat out ignore the laws of physics?!" Shinazu exclaimed.
"Obviously you guys have never heard of Mass Effect Energy." Garrus responded.
The Radiant Accipiter kept its current speed, shifting as carefully as possible in between the explosives to avoid coming into contact with them. Amanda needed to really focus in order to navigate through the falling ordinance. If even one goes off, the others will ignite in a chain and that will be all she wrote for the fireteam.
After more than a few close calls, the Accipiter was through and speeding away at maximum. Holiday wiped the sweat off her forehead and sighed.
"Damn, this guy's like my nemesis. Ooh, I've never had a nemesis before! This is excitin'!" Amanda said in a cheerful and giddy voice.
"I'm glad YOU'RE enjoying this." Crow replied sarcastically.
The jumpship was quickly flying out of sight from the frigate. Joker scoffed and increased the throttle speed.
"Oh, you are NOT getting away from me."
The Normandy accelerated, soon keeping pace with the Radiant Accipiter. The cannons at the front of the ship were lighting up once more. They were getting ready to fire.
"Not that thing again!" Amanda said irritably. "We gotta take out that gun if we stand a chance!"
"Fat chance, Holiday." Garrus argued. "That Thanix Cannon is top of the line turian weaponry, based on the gun Sovereign used. It cuts through anything, like I said earlier."
"Well, one way or another, we gotta snuff that sucker!" Amanda shot back.
Crow stared up at the deer display on the monitor. He appeared to be studying it, trying to find a weakness to exploit.
"I think one well-placed shot from a Golden Gun should do the trick."
Everyone turned to the black and white Hunter. Garrus in particular was confused.
"I don't even know what that is." Said the turian, scratching his head.
Drawing his Hawkmoon, Crow turned to Garrus and explained. The Golden Gun was his and Whiskey's Super Ability, alongside the Blade Barrage that Crow used on Kasumi earlier. Where a Hunter supercharged their hand cannon with Solar energy to fire off high-powered flaming shots that can incinerate anything on contact.
There were three different variations to the move. Marksman; a style that revolves around precision to ensure maximum damage. And Deadshot; this focuses on crowd control and rapid-fire shots meant for taking down multiple opponents.
Crow believed that a single round fired from Marksman could disable the Thanix Cannon. If he could figure out how to make the shot from the ship, that is. Garrus was still unsure as to what Crow was talking about, and he explained that he was objecting to the idea of them attacking his ship. But Jane stated that it needed to be done in order to make their escape. Garrus tightened his fists in frustration and guilt.
"Hey, we're not gonna blow it up. We're just gonna slow it down." Jane assured. It didn't make him feel any better though.
"Yeah, just one problem." Whiskey pointed out. "How we gonna pull the shot? Holiday moves while Bird Brain here is standin' up top the ship and he gets thrown off like a drunken bull rider at a Texas rodeo on St. Patty's Day!"
"What kinda bull?" Asked Holiday.
"Spanish Fightin'."
"Guys, is that even important?!" Garrus angrily questioned.
Though Whiskey had a point to make. Climbing on top of the ship would be too dangerous, even with magnet boots. The momentum would knock Crow loose and he would be sent flying into empty space. So how would he make the shot?
"We must act fast! The enemy's weapon is almost fully charged!" Urged Shinazu.
"Come on, Crow. Think. You've come up with crazier plans that came through before." Jane said.
"Everyone, just hang on a minute! I'm not a fucking computer-"
It was in that moment that Crow's hand cannon suddenly started to glow white. The light emanated from the feather carvings on the gun's barrel. Everyone stopped upon witnessing the sudden illumination of the young Hunter's weapon.
"Uh, what's with the light show?" Asked Garrus.
"Uh… Glint..?"
Appearing out of cloaking, Glint scanned over the Hawkmoon with his single optic. He chirped before turning to his Guardian.
"I'm not sure what's going on. The Hawkmoon has never glowed like this before. It's different from when Paracausal Shot is active."
The console in front of Amanda suddenly lit up like a Christmas tree, causing her to jump and release the ship's controls. It were as though the ship was manifesting a mind of its own. In the center of the controls, a port opened up. One in the shape of the Hawkmoon's barrel. But the strange phenomena did not stop there. A voice filled the interior of the ship.
"Crow." The voice sounded female, ethereal. "We have been waiting for you."
The edges of the port shone like that of the hand cannon. Crow looked at the gun in his hand, then at the port. It was as though it was beckoning him. Curious, he moved towards it, but was stopped by Garrus.
"Whoa! What are you doing?" He questioned. "You're just gonna put your gun in that slot and see what happens?"
The turian had a point. If Crow inserts his weapon into the port, who knows what might happen to them. But Amanda couldn't keep dodging Joker's attacks forever, so he couldn't just sit by and let his team and Ghost get blown into space dust.
"It's our only option."
Crow pushed past Garrus and proceeded to the console, mind made up. Garrus couldn't help but gulp nervously. Guess this was it. Let's only hope that this doesn't summon a Reaper.
Once he reached the console, Crow raised his gun towards the port. He slowly inserted the barrel into the slot until he heard a loud *click*. Veins of light instantly sprouted from the edges and were now spreading all across the ship. Everyone watched in bewilderment at the event that was transpiring. It wasn't long before the light had reached nearly every corner of the Radiant Accipiter. Garrus had never seen anything as amazing as this in his life. Not even during the Reaper War.
"May the Light serve as the wind beneath your wings, Hunter."
Without any warning, the entire ship was engulfed in a bright white light. Even Joker and Miranda were staring in awe from the bridge of the Normandy, wondering just what in God's name was going on right now. Soon, the light dimmed and vanished and the ship had returned to normal. Well, almost normal.
The Radiant Accipiter had changed. It's once beaten up body, now sleek and glossy. A new chrome exterior made the feather markings more prominent and stand out. The interior of the jumpship had also morphed as well. The fireteam found themselves standing within some sort of technological, light-infused space. Almost like a pocket dimension. All around them were waves of black, white, and silver, swirling and reverberating, stretching on for what looked like infinity. Garrus was wondering if he had been drugged or something.
"What in the name of The Dreaming City is happening right now?" Wondered Shinazu, dumbfounded by where he found himself.
"Edith. Please tell me you can explain this." Jane said to her Ghost, slightly unsettled.
"Don't ask me! This is more Osiris or Queen Mara's territory!"
"Uh, you guys..?"
AManda's voice caught the team's attention and they directed their focus to their pilot, who was standing with her arms around in front of her, like she was looking for something or navigating through the dark.
"The controls are gone!" She exclaimed. "The consoles. The throttle. Hell, the whole ship!"
Yet despite the astoundment and anxiousness of the group, Crow found himself to be calm. Odd. He felt like he should be panicking like everyone else right now, yet his nerves were as steady as a rock and he was feeling a sense of… completion within him.
In his eyes, he could still see that they were being chased by the Normandy, and the Thanix Cannon was almost fully charged. He wasn't sure as to how he was seeing this, given their current predicament. Was this the voice's doing?
"No… The ship is here. We're still inside it."
Directing their gazes to the Exo Hunter, everyone cocked their heads to the side in confusion. "We are?" Asked Jane.
Crow nodded. "I'm not sure how to explain it, but…" He looked down at his hands which curled into fists. "I think… I think that it's finally awake."
The cannon fired at least. A massive energy hurdling its way towards the jumpship as we speak. Within the space, Crow squeezed his eyes shut and went into a state of concentration. The ship quickly shifted to the side, dodging the beam, then started to spiral around it like a screw. The way it soared in open space, you would think that the jumpship was more like a hawk, dancing in the sky above the ground, showing off its grace and agility. Once the beam had disappeared, the ship returned to slaying like normal.
Both Joker and Miranda had their jaws on the floor from witnessing such a spectacular move pulled off right in front of them. Joker in particular was feeling a tad jealous. He'd smash his fist against the armrest in anger if it wouldn't break every bone in his arm.
Back in the pace, everyone was able to feel the motion of the ship spinning and twirling around. Amanda almost fell over had Crow not caught her just in the time. The two of them accidentally locking eyes and finding themselves blushing hard as a result.
"Ey! What just happened?!" Questioned Whiskey.
The two released one another from their embraces instantly. That was when Crow attempted to explain.
"We just dodged the Normandy's blast. I think that… Now I'm controlling the ship… with my mind."
"With your mind?" Amanda also questioned.
"It's crazy, I know. Glint, didn't you say that the Radiant Accipiter was composed of the same materials as a Ghost is when we first found it in the EDZ?"
Glint nodded. "Yes. Its materials are paracausal in nature, as are the Hawkmoon's. But I had no idea that the two resonated together like this."
Though it seemed complicated to everyone else, Crow was somewhat able to understand what the Ghost said. Both the Accipiter and Hawkmoon were like two pieces of a puzzle. Bring them together and the picture is complete. It explained why the ship was in such bad shape when Crow had found it. It needed the weapon to fully realize its potential. All this time, he had never known.
Garrus cocked his brow plate and tilted his head in dumbfoundment at Crow's level of ignorance towards his own equipment. "You mean to tell me that you had no idea you owned a magic ship?"
"Not magic, Garrus. Paracausal. Intervention from outside our own reality, opposition to traditional causality. Unexplainable by traditional laws of physics."
"…So 'space magic'."
"It's not magic!"
"Actually, that's a good analogy." Amanda commented.
As they bantered, space in front of Crow was starting to distort and bend. It then took shape in the form of some sort of… 'rift' would be the closest thing to describe it. It showed an image of the Normandy, charging up its Thanix Cannon again, preparing for another blast. Crow wondered why the ship was showing him this. That was when he felt something being manifested into his hand. His Hawkmoon had returned to him. The Hunter looked back up at the frigate. He knew what to do.
"I think I can make the shot now."
"From in here?" Questioned Garrus.
Crow took aim, pointing his gun right at the enemy vessel. It was a straightforward shot. He could easily disable the weapon by firing a round through the rift, like threading a needle.
"Definitely."
"Hold up!"
Crow turned his gaze to Whiskey. The Exo ran up to him with an object in his hand. A golden helmet in the shape of a bird's beak. The same one he was wearing when he met Garrus and Liara back in the cafe earlier on. Whiskey presented the armor piece to his fellow Hunter.
"You're gonna need this sucker. Give ya a much needed boost."
The avian Hunter was surprised. Whiskey was offering to help him. Not long ago, he would have left him for dead. It was a big change. But given their current predicament, it was understandable that Whiskey would put his differences aside so that they could all get home safely.
Crow gave the cowboy a grateful nod. He bent down and placed the helmet onto his head. Once secured, the eyes generated a bright orange aura, almost resembling flames. Vakarian was curious as to what the purpose of the helmet was exactly.
"What's with the mask?" He asked Jane.
"It's called the Celestial Nighthawk. It's a powerful piece of armor designed specifically for Hunters like Crow. The helmet has the ability to condense the round of a Golden Gun into a single, high-powered shot regardless of the Super's style." Jane explained.
"And how exactly does a helmet do that?"
She looked at him with a blank stare. He already knew the answer to that question.
"Space magic?"
"Space magic."
Garrus groaned and rolled his eyes. Superpowers. Immortal soldiers. Magic guns and ships. Just what exactly did he get himself into? Because he was getting such a headache trying to wrap his brain around all this.
With the Celestial Nighthawk now dawned, Crow turned towards the rift. With a flick of his wrist, he emptied the bullet casings out of his hand cannon's cylinder and inserted fresh ones. The cylinder clicked back into place, fully loaded and ready to fire. Crow took a deep breath. Raising his gun high into the hair, it shines bright with a radiant golden light.
Garrus had to cover his eyes from how bright it was, but couldn't help but find himself transfixed at the sight of the gun. He was mesmerized. It had to have been the most incredible thing he had ever seen, aside from the paracausal ship that he was standing in anyway.
Crow took aim with his golden weapon as the Normandy fired its cannon once more. A blast of energy raced towards him faster than light. Crow tightened his grip. This was his moment. Everyone was depending on him to pull through for them. He would not fail. Not like last time.
Because he was a Guardian. Just like Jane told him so long ago, when she saved him.
…
*The Tangled Shore: The Reef: 2 Years Ago*
…
Dim lights hung down from the ceiling of the cave, just barely lifting its natural darkness. There were multiple red tarps draping over the inner walls and across the floor, made to make the cave look more homely to a person who's spent their life on the run. And painted on every one of these tarps, a white, crudely drawn spider.
Footsteps were heard from the entrance to the lair. Jane walked in, holding in one hand a massive severed head, covered top to bottom in sickly green chiten. She stopped mere feet from the middle of the room and looked over her surroundings.
To her left was Crow, dressed in tattered robes with the same spider symbol as the decor across the lair. To her center, two guards clad in armor that looked as though it had been forged in scrap metal, each holding a lance. And sitting behind them, the obvious .
"Jane Doe… Good to see you."
Playing back in an arachnid-shaped throne suspended by cables, a large, insectoid alien creature. It had four arms; two protruding from the middle section of the torso, each hand ending with three fingers. Its body was rather overweight as made clear by its plump belly encased by its armor. A blanket gently covering its legs, and atop its head were four glowing cyan eyes concealed by a thick white and blue striped helmet with an O2 mask function, making its breathing much more noticeable.
This creature carried an aura of menacing authority around it. As though it wanted to make everyone around it know who the boss was and to cower in fear at the sight of him. One such aura you would feel from the mob boss or a cartel head. It was safe to say this alien was very into more lucrative businesses.
Glaring up at this disgusting… thing, Jane tossed the oversized head into the center of the lair. A loud thumping sound was made on impact with the floor and a green substance oozed out from the base of where the neck rested.
"Spider." She spoke the obese insect's name, her voice laced with disgust. "It's done."
Beneath his breather, Spider's mandibles curled into a pleased grin. "So it is… So it is." He said with raspy smugness, waving his four arms in the air as he leaned over in his hanging throne. The severed head of the High Celebrant of Xivu Arath himself. What an exquisite trophy this would make.
"Alright Guardian. As promised: you can have a prized bauble from my lair as compensation for your... heroics."
By the Light. Jane could smell that fat bastard's breath from where she stood. Even with her helmet on. It reeked of ether and whatever other foods he ate. Regardless, it was time to collect, and she would have her prize.
The only one worth taking, that is. Jane turned her gaze to Crow.
"I want… him."
The Hunter's eyes widened with surprise. Was she serious? Spider couldn't help but snicker.
"Cute. Real funny."
She smirked. "You said anything in the room."
More laughter escaped from the crime lord's throat. He couldn't help but find this request amusing. Until he realized that she wasn't kidding. "Oh… You really want my little bird?" His guards readied their lances as a precaution, need they defend their boss.
Reaching for her helmet, Jane unlatched her protective covering and removed it from her head. She glared right at Spider in his four eyes.
"Yep. And if I have to squash you like the cockroach you are, and I'll take great pleasure in it." She said venomously.
The guards tensed their bodies. Spider laid back in his throne. Two hands resting atop his belly. "Aww, Jane. My lady love. You're breaking my heart." The alien sarcastically pouted. Spider's posture then changed into a more menacing demeanor. "Who do you think you're speaking to? You really think you just waltz into my lair, use my own words against me, and then start making threats so freely?!"
His words went from sarcastic whines to menacing snarls in an instant. Though Jane was not in the slightest bit intimidated by this oversized tub of insect lard. With one mighty thrust of her leg, Doe leaped toward Spider faster than the eye could see. She was now standing on top of Spider by the edges of his throne. Spider helped in fear as he attempted to reach for the Shock Pistol by his side, but Jane's hand harshly took hold of his larynx before he could. Spider was now at the total mercy of his former associate. Everyone in the lair was stunned, including Crow.
"I don't know. You tell me."
Her grip tightened. Spider was left unable to breathe. "S-stop!" He begged fearfully. "We-we can be reasonable here! C'mon friend..?"
Jane pulled Spider's face closer to hers. "Let me make this clear. We were never friends. I was just using you to get the intel I needed to track down the Barrons. And something tells me that you were too busy staring at my tits the whole time to realize that. Am I right?"
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU IDIOTS WAITING AROUND FOR?! KILL HER!"
The two guards were shaking. They looked at each other, then lowered their weapons, leaving their boss stunned and appalled.
"Looks like they know who's really got all the power here." Jane stated cockily.
"You worthless- YOU'RE BOTH FIRED!"
That was when something solid pressed up against his cheek. Spider glanced at it. It was a hand cannon. That was when the sweat really started to pour from him.
"I'm done being your hired gun, Spider. Let Crow go. Otherwise I'll tear off your head and mount it over my fireplace next to your brother's!"
Jane's thumb pulled back the hammer of the pistol and the gun cocked. Just the slightest tug on the trigger would set it off. Spider felt his heart beating so fast that he swore he would suffer a heart attack. His four eyes shifted towards his attacker's. Jane's eyes were dead serious.
There was no other way out of this for the crime lord. He knew first hand how dangerous Jane Doe was. After all, she was the slayer of Fikrul, the Fanatic, and his Scorned Barrens. Crossing her would be a death sentence. Spider gulped.
"Alright, you little maniac, Fine! He's yours!" Spider finally caved. He turned to Crow, waving his arm towards the exit, almost shooing the Guardian away. "Fly away… and get the hell out of my lair!"
Jane smiled. Too easy. Spider may act tough, but he's like every other crooked piece of work out there. Show them just how far beyond you are of them, and they all eventually go down without a fight. She released his throat and jumped off the throne, signaling Crow and Glint to follow her with a wave of her hand.
"You're going to pay for this!" Spider shouted to her as she walked out of the lair with her prize in tow.
"Doubt it."
With her new companion by her side, Jane exited the lair. It was long before the two of them were outside. Crow looked up into the sky above. Its purple hue was endless and mystifying. As he stared, the Hunter felt a strange feeling overcome him. It wasn't like his usual waves of fear and anger, nor his screaming survival instincts that would wake him in the middle of the night. This feeling was… different. Pleasant. Liberating.
He was free.
"Now what?" Asked Glint.
"I… I don't know. It doesn't feel real."
Was this a dream? Some kind of hallucination? Crow couldn't believe this was really happening to him. For so long, all he had known was the confines of Spider's lair. His cage.
"Why would you do this for me?" He asked.
"Because…" Jane paused. "You're a Guardian."
His eyes widened. Crow turned his view to the sky above once more, and smiled. At long last… free.
Free to spread his wings.
…
In that moment, time around Crow seemingly stopped. The energy beams closing in on him were almost completely frozen from his point of view. Light as golden as the sun coursed through every cell in his entire body. From the top of his head to the tips of his toes, he felt like a walking inferno. Yet he wasn't at all burning hot. Merely a comfortable warmth, like sitting next to a fireplace on a cold December night.
Crow felt calm. Relaxed. In complete control. His target locked. His hand cannon loaded. For this single instance, he was no longer a mere crow. A meek scavenger of scraps left behind or a symbol of demise and pestilence. He was something more. Something greater. Stronger.
To him, the Normandy's Thanix Cannon blast was no more than a snake, slithering towards a seemingly grounded bird to wrap its constrictive body and swallow whole. Unfortunately, as we all know, appearances can be the greatest form of deceit. Because this time it is the crafty snake that has tragically become the prey.
"She leaves the rifle and walks across the naked obsidian into the swarm firing from the hip as she goes, each kick of the old revolver a word.
The stone smokes around her where the arc fire lashes it, and the shrapnel guns throw up leaves of obsidian like glass butterflies.
She shoots her bandoliers dry, and a team of Vandals in glassy stealth leap up to rush her with knives, but she raises her hand and burns them down with the golden gun, laughing."
Because that bird is a hawk, ready to take flight and strike!
"One shot."
*click*
*BANG*
*GOLDEN GUN: MARKSMAN: HAWKEYE HACK*
Crow's radiant gun fired. The sheer force of the shot actually caused the jumpship to rock midair. The bullet, blazing hotter than a sun, sliced through the Thanix Cannon's blast as though it were fragile tissue paper. The shot was beginning to take shape. It resembled that of a bird, like when Crow fired his Paracausal Shot. However, this one was not a hawk like before.
It was now more like a phoenix. One that wears ready to burn away all with its purifying blaze.
From the Normandy's bridge, Joker and Miranda felt their hearts stop and stomachs flip at the sight of what flew towards them. How Joker was able to hold in his bladder right now, he would never know.
"Holy Harry Potter…" Miranda muttered, mind blown.
Snapping out of his daze, Joker activated the ship's internal comm system, connecting to all decks of the ship.
"ALL HANDS, BRACE FOR IMPACT!"
"JEFF, PULL UP!"
Joker quickly started inputting a command into his console. The Normandy raised its nose upwards, quickly climbing upward. The phoenix's wings made contact with the Thanix Cannon's attachments just as the frigate ascended higher to avoid a direct blow. The cannon itself was completely incinerated and dark tear was scorched into the Normandy's undercarriage, like someone had run a hot knife along it.
The phoenix zoomed past the ship and further into open space before it finally exploded in a gargantuan fireball. The blast had to have been the equivalent of the bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki. If the Normandy had taken such a blow like that. Enough to chill you to your very soul.
The flames around Crow finally quelled. His gun returned to normal and the flames in the helmet's eyes died out. With a quick movement of his hand, Crow twirled the Hawkmoon in fingers before he holstered the pistol against his hip, exhaling the breath that he held in as he fired.
Garrus stared in both awe and terror. That little weapon, capable of such devastation. He turned his gaze to Jane, who was smiling with pride at Crow's work. The turian couldn't help but gulp nervously.
Just who in the name of the Milky Way were these people..?
…
Hey everyone! Let me just express how grateful I am that so many of you like my story. I honestly never thought this fic would get so many likes and follows in such a short amount of time. You have no idea how happy that makes me.
Being a writer has always been my dream and knowing that you all genuinely enjoy my work makes me really proud.
So thank you. And don't worry, we'll get to the rest of the Destiny cast soon enough!
'Till next time!