I've decided to release ch4-5 before going into a fortnightly schedule.
Buried Beneath ch4: Where Archangel Fears To Tread
Omega, 2185, August 25th 3:17 PM
The short red hair, freckles, the green eyes that are full of life and definitely not dead. She has some scars, but all in all, she looks fine. Did she fake her death? That's something the Alliance does, right? She's still part of them, I can see the N7 on her chest plate.
Who the hell is she with anyway? One of them has black armour with a white trim, a darker complexion, and a strong jawline. He fits the soldier mould. If it wasn't for the Cerberus emblem on his chest, I would think he was Alliance.
The other is a woman. Long, dark hair, piercing blue eyes, and a form-fitting black and white uniform. She's also Cerberus though. Which brings up a good question. Why is an Alliance N7 Commander associated with an alleged terrorist organisation?
Riley doesn't have any other symbol on her armour. It just doesn't make any sense. You would always hear about Riley and her crew stopping Cerberus operations back in the day. Did she switch sides? Is that why she faked her own death? Why would she still wear Alliance armour if that were the case?
This isn't getting me anywhere. If I want answers, I can just walk over there and demand them. I take a step forward and-wait, Archangel? Quickly, I pull my hood up and turn my back towards them. I just have to act like I'm minding my own business and listen in.
"We should get to the transport depot," Riley says, at least, it sounds exactly like her. Maybe she did actually fake her death to swap sides.
"We better go then. He won't have much time," the woman replies. Damnit, even her accent is attractive.
I hear their footsteps start heading in my direction. I press myself closer to the railing to let them pass. I just have to play it cool and follow them from a safe distance. I might be able to use them to get past the mercs.
Once I'm sure it's safe, I begin tailing them. Being extra careful, just in case they've been trained to notice this kind of thing. I should be good though, as long as I don't get too close.
After a few minutes, they find their way to the depot. A batarian Blue Suns member is standing by the entrance. They start a conversation with him, if I had to guess, he's the driver. It's probably how they're getting into Kima. The place is sealed up tight.
I take a deep breath, this could be my only chance. Here goes nothing. "I'm with them," I declare, strolling up casually behind the group as I lower my hood to reveal my face.
All four turn around and Riley stares at me in disbelief. "Vex?"
"Man, I was looking everywhere for you guys," I say with a small smile, moving closer to put my arms around the shoulders of the two women in the group. "As you can see, I'm with them." Come on, Riles, go along with it.
The Cerberus woman makes a dissatisfied noise and shrugs my arm off, but Riley doesn't move. She was always good at catching on quickly. Hopefully, this time isn't any different.
"Is this true?" the batarian asks, tapping his datapad in annoyance.
Riley sighs beside me. "Yes, it is." I knew I could count on you, Riles.
"All right, wait here," the batarian grumbles before walking off towards a vehicle. I hope he's not double-checking with his boss or something.
Riley removes my arm and gives me an irritated look. "What are you doing here?" Thirteen years and that's the first thing she has to say to me?
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" I point a finger. "You're supposed to be dead."
Before Riley can reply, the Cerberus woman interrupts. "Shepard, who is this?"
"I would also like to know," the male member of their group chimes in. Great, now all three of them are staring at me
"Vexenna Ward," Riley states. "I knew her back on Earth."
I fold my arms across my chest. "Do you really have to use my full name? I'm not exactly broadcasting it around Omega."
"We can't take her with us," the Cerberus woman says, looking at Riley. "She'll jeopardise the mission." Like I care about their mission. I have my own to deal with.
"Hey," I interrupt, gaining everyone's attention again. "I just need a ride to the Kima district then I'm gone." I don't see why I can't just tag along for the ride.
They all look at me suspiciously, especially the woman whose eyes are now narrowing. Lucky for me, they don't have time to question me further as the batarian comes back.
"Let's get going. We don't have all day," he announces.
With one last glance, Riley gestures for me to follow, and I release an unsteady breath. That was easier than I thought it would be. I figured the Cerberus goons would have stopped her. I'll take that as a win.
Omega, 2185, August 25th 3:41 PM
I end up in the seat beside Riley as her lackeys sit across from us. She has her head leaning against the headrest, eyes closed. If I had to guess, she's probably planning what she's going to say to me.
As for the other two, I'm pretty sure they're talking about me. I can't hear what they're saying, but occasionally one of them will glance over at me. They're probably worried I'd do something since I know they don't trust me. I'm a stranger after all.
"So," Riley says quietly, leaning towards me. "Are you going to tell me why you wanted to come along?"
Well, I knew this was going to happen eventually. "I live in Kima and the mercenaries are blocking off the district." I shrug, trying to be casual. "Simple as that." I feel a small tinge of guilt. I've never lied to Riley before.
She nods as she seems to consider that. "And the real reason?"
Well fuck.
I just have to play it cool. "What makes you say that?"
"I know you, Vex." She sounds so sure, but I'm not the same person now.
"I hate to break it to you." I raise an eyebrow. "But it's been thirteen years. You definitely don't know me anymore."
She sighs and remains silent for a moment. "I know I didn't stay in touch." Her voice has a hint of regret, I almost believe it.
"Can we just drop it?" I cross my arms defensively. I really don't want to hash out the past right now. "It doesn't matter now."
She looks almost sad as she nods. I turn my body away, indicating that I'm done talking. I feel bad, sure, but I don't want to get wrapped up in whatever bullshit her and Cerberus are up to. I'm here for one thing.
Omega, 2185, August 25th 4:22 PM
I slip away the second we're let out of the skycar. With my hood back up, I blend into the crowd, getting as far away from Riley's group as possible. The way the Cerberus woman spoke when I first saw them... it almost sounds like they're here to help him. For their sake, I hope I'm wrong.
If they were going to save Archangel, it wouldn't be easy with all these mercs. This place is packed. The gangs must really want him dead if they're willing to gather this much fodder. It's bad enough they're actually working together for once. Too bad they didn't need to go through all the trouble. I'm going to end him myself, without the extra body count.
There are so many barricades set up around here that the district is almost unrecognisable, not that I've been around here lately anyway. I live in the central atrium, close to Afterlife and the market area. Nulan was always jealous of it.
Eventually, I find my way to a room full of Eclipse members. There's a table in the centre where most of them are sitting. Even Jaroth, the Eclipse leader. If he's here then this must be pretty serious. I'll have to keep my head down and get past them without being seen.
I take a step forward, but then I hear the muffled sound of a familiar voice coming through the door behind me. Riley. Okay, I have to get a move on. I quickly walk through the room, I have to make it to the next area.
The door behind me opens and three sets of footsteps enter. Fuck. I lean against a table against the back wall, keeping my back to the room. By the sounds of it, Riley is talking to Jaroth.
My hand brushes against one of the datapads on the table, and the screen lights up, revealing several paragraphs. Could there be information about Archangel? I guess it wouldn't hurt to have a quick look. I need everything I can get.
'It's clear though that none of our organisations would be ready to move on Aria without the assistance of the other two.' This can't be real. They're actually planning on taking Aria out? Oh man, she's going to be pissed when she sees this.
I discreetly slip the datapad into my bag. I'm looking out for myself, really. Aria is good for business and it seems she'll have a lot of it after she learns about this. And once Archangel is out of the picture, I'll be ready to take that business.
Just as I close my bag, Riley and her group head towards the door. I didn't even hear them finish up with Jaroth, I should pay more attention. Now her group is ahead of me, I didn't want to be the one behind her. I suppose it could be safer this way.
Following them leads me to a bridge. This side of it is swarming with people and more barricades. The other has a building with a good vantage point, so I assume that's where they've pinned him. No wonder they need bullet fodder, they're literally funnelling people across to soak up his ammo.
And the angles on this side suck. There's no way I can get a clear shot on him, not without climbing onto something. And I can't exactly do that, I'd risk being seen by a merc, or even Archangel. I'll need to get across, but how am I going to pull that off?
Riley's talking to the airship mechanic. If my hunch about her is correct, and it will be, she'll have a plan to get across. If Archangel is in on it, he won't shoot at her. I'll have a small opening, it's risky, but I have no other choice.
Omega, 2185, August 25th 5:11 PM
After some waiting, it's finally time for Riley's group to cross the bridge. She lines up with her Cerberus lackeys and a few random fools the mercs recruited. And there they go, straight across the bridge.
The fodder around her group starts dropping like flies, but he does seem to hit them a few times, probably concussive rounds. Likely an attempt to make it look believable. I just have to wait until this wave is over. Hopefully, the mercs and Archangel would be distracted enough.
She gets inside just before the mercs start setting up another push. I have to try before they get ready. I dart off, jumping over a barricade and sprinting across the bridge as someone yells angrily after me, probably a merc.
Reaching the building, I draw my carnifex. The ground floor is empty, so I make my way to the staircase at the far end. Upstairs, I can hear voices coming from a closed room.
As I open the door, I can see four people in the room. Riley, her tagalongs, and a turian. And through the process of elimination, I immediately point my pistol at the turian.
Instantly, all eyes are on me, as well as the Cerberus flunkies' guns. Riley steps forward, a stern look on her face.
"Lower your weapon," she orders.
There's no doubt in my mind that this turian is Archangel. Killing him would be so easy. It's just one shot and all of this can end. It's what I came here to do. I just have to pull the trigger.
My hand shakes with how hard I'm gripping my pistol. Why can't I do it? Is it because of Riley? Because I won't make it out of here alive if I do? He has to pay, but Nulan wouldn't want me to die for it.
"We don't have time to deal with her, the next wave will be here soon," Archangel declares before turning back to the balcony. The nerve of this asshole. He won't be so nonchalant about it with a bullet in his-
Riley slowly approaches me, shifting my focus to her. She meets my eyes, her expression calm, but her words are stern. "What are you doing here? And I want the truth this time."
Breaking eye contact with her, I glare at Archangel. "He killed my friend."
"Okay." She nods, holding an arm out to me. "Put it down and help us. Then we'll talk."
She's really putting me on the spot. He needs to pay for what he did, but she's also right. I want revenge, but I also want answers. I want to know what happened, why she's here, why she's helping him. I won't get anything with those idiots charging at us.
I lower my weapon, feeling slightly defeated. "I'll help, but I want answers after that."
She sighs in relief. "It's a deal. Jacob, take her downstairs just in case anyone gets through." Well, I guess that's one of the lackey's names.
"You got it, Shepard," he agrees.
"Keep an eye on her," Riley orders before turning towards the bridge.
'Jacob' nods and motions towards the door with his gun. I roll my eyes and start walking. I don't really want to take orders from a Cerberus dog, but I'll have to play nice for now.
I ready my sniper rifle as we wait on the balcony for any sign of someone getting through. Several minutes pass before a mech enters the building, catching my eye. Well, it's nice to see Eclipse contributing.
At the corner of my eye, I see the lackey bring his weapon up, so I quickly snipe it. "Too slow."
He turns to me with a glare, but I pay him no mind. Riley didn't say I had to be nice, besides it's not my fault he's not fast enough.
We wait a few more minutes before deciding it's safe enough to head back. I was expecting more than that from Eclipse. They must be losing their touch or they're saving a majority of their units. The latter, I'd bet money on it.
Riley is the first person I see when I return to the room, followed by Archangel. I take a deep breath, trying to resist the urge to shoot him. Sighing, I set my sniper down.
Riley seems to relax at that. "I want to understand what happened between you and Garrus."
"What?" That's Garrus? The turian C-Sec officer that helped her stop Saren? There's no w-
Crash.
A loud noise echoes from across the bridge, interrupting my thoughts. The Cerberus goons waste no time and run out the door. Archangel turns back to the bridge, leaving me with Riley.
"Help us out again?" she asks. The look on her face is so determined and it's not as if I have any other options. How can I say no?
I nod and that appears to be good enough for her. She rushes straight to the other side of the room to help Archangel, leaving everyone's back to me. She must either trust me or she's an idiot.
Picking up my mantis, I aim it at his back. It would be so easy, just one shot. No one's paying attention, I may actually be able to escape. I won't get another chance like this, it's literally my best shot. Just take a deep breath and do it.
"Heavy mech incoming!" Archangel calls out.
"Give us a hand!" Riley's voice snaps me out of it.
Slowly exhaling, I lower my gun. Fuck. "Coming!"
I sprint over, mounting my weapon on the railing. Taking aim, I spot Jaroth in my sights. I didn't think he was bold enough to join in himself. That's cocky, even for him.
I'm about to pull the trigger when I see him drop. I look towards Archangel, I should have known he wouldn't squander a chance to take out a big player like Jaroth. Whatever, Eclipse isn't my concern anymore.
We make quick work of the heavy mech and the remaining Eclipse members along with it. I have no idea what Jaroth was thinking, but I guess I'm glad I didn't shoot him. It would have been a waste, I only have six more shots. Any more surprises like that and there won't be any left for Archangel.
"Good one, Shepard," Archangel praises. I turn in time to see him give Riley a pat on the shoulder. "They barely touched me, and we took out Jaroth. I've been hunting him for months."
"Yeah," I reply, popping out the empty thermal clip from my mantis. "Just like when you were after Nulan."
Realisation crosses his face. "That's what this is about?"
"Yeah, that's what this is about." I load a fresh clip as I watch him carefully.
He smirks at me. "So I guess that would make you the hitman? What was it again? Vex?" I hate his smug face.
It's almost like we rehearsed it, both of us raising our snipers, aiming at each other. Neither breaking eye contact, not even to blink. I'm going to end this fucker, survival be damned.
Riley intervenes, storming over to stand between us. "Knock it off, both of you."
"He killed my friend," I state through clenched teeth.
She points at me. "And you think that killing him will fix that? Lower the weapon, Vex."
I refuse. "Not unless he does first."
Riley turns to Archangel, who sighs and lowers his weapon. "Keep an eye on her, Shepard. I was after her for months too."
"She'll help us, Garrus," she affirms.
Riley sounds so confident, and she's right. I lower my sniper, maintaining eye contact with Archangel for a few seconds before he turns away from me again. I'll help them out of this mess, but after that, all bets are off.
"Let's see what they're up to now, shall we?" Archangel suggests, looking through his scope.
Riley moves her attention back to him. "What's the situation?"
The Cerberus flunkies enter the room as he replies, "They haven't crossed the bridge yet, they must be waiting for something." As if on cue, an explosion can be heard coming from the floor below us.
"What the hell was that?" the Cerberus woman asks.
"Damn it." Archangel fires his weapon at something on the bridge. "They've breached the lower level. Well, they had to use their brains eventually." He turns his head towards Riley. "You better get down there, Shepard. I'll keep the bridge clear."
Riley nods. "All right. Jacob, stay and help Garrus."
"Yes, ma'am," Jacob acknowledges before rushing over to the balcony.
Riley turns to me. "You're with me and Miranda."
"Yes, Commander," 'Miranda' reluctantly agrees.
I give her a quick smirk. "Miranda? That's a nice name."
Her face instantly turns sour as Riley nudges me with her elbow. "Knock it off and let's move on."
Omega, 2185, August 25th, 8:08 PM
It seems easy enough. Close three security doors. One down each hallway that branches off of the basement. The only problem is we're pretty low on ammo and time.
"We'll start with this one," Riley announces, leading the way towards the hallway straight in front of us. "Vex, watch our backs."
"You got it," I reply, peering down my scope at the security door. "Just so you know, I only have five shots. So, don't need me too much." They don't need to know about the sixth shot, that's for Archangel.
As they approach the door controls, a few vorcha and krogan show up, but they handle it well enough. I really wasn't expecting the Blood Pack to be the masterminds behind this plan.
After the door closes with a satisfying thud, they start heading back. I shoulder my sniper. "Good job," I say as Riley passes. "Especially you." I wink at Miranda, earning a scowl in return.
"Was that necessary?" Miranda asks, her hand on her hip.
"No," I reply easily with a smirk.
"Focus, Vex," Riley scolds, moving towards the next door. "We're on a mission."
"Just watch our backs," Miranda adds, sounding irritated.
"Oh, I'm definitely watching your back." That earns an eye roll from Miranda.
When the next door opens, we're welcomed with gunfire. I immediately get behind the door frame as the others run in to take cover of their own. This is about how I expected this to go.
"Anytime you want to make a break for the controls would be great," I urge, taking a quick shot at one of the shooters.
"Move!" Riley shouts, taking the opportunity to rush closer to the controls.
The faint sound of growls? Varren? I won't be able to see them with all the boxes and shit in this room. I'll do what I can, but they're probably on their own with them.
Riley takes out a merc, giving Miranda a chance to move up. She quickly takes cover behind some boxes as a varren comes out from the other side of it. I take the shot, dropping the varren at her feet.
"I think you owe me a drink after that one, Gorgeous!" I shout, receiving a glare from her.
"Stay focused, Vex!" I hear Riley order before moving up again.
"No worries there!" It was just a bit of harmless teasing, she needs to relax.
Miranda gives Riley enough cover to close the second door. I keep watch as it shuts, just in case something decides to sneak through. Once satisfied, I ease up and wait for them to return.
"Good work," Riley says, patting my shoulder.
"I try," I reply smoothly.
"A little too much if you ask me," Miranda adds, surprising me. I have to say, I wasn't expecting her to do more than glare at me or scoff. That's kind of fun.
Riley opens the last hallway, revealing a row of half walls down the entire thing. The two mercs inside turn towards us. Who designed this place anyway?
"Well, this should be fun," I mutter, taking out one of the mercs. Riley and Miranda charge inside, taking out the other one.
"Looks like a turn at the end," Riley notes, approaching it. She peeks around the corner and immediately drops to the floor as flames pour in above her. Miranda gets down behind the wall she was about to climb over.
"Hey, Riles! I would stay down if I were you!" I jest.
"Yeah, thanks for the tip!" she retorts, sarcastically.
I smirk, time to work my magic. I carefully set down my mantis and draw my pistol. I run out, jumping over the first half wall as Miranda climbs the one ahead of me. The flames stop for a second as Miranda turns the corner, shooting at whoever is down there.
Vaulting over the second wall, I finally catch up with Miranda. I turn, shooting at the tank of the flamethrower before dragging Miranda to the ground next to Riley. I can hear the gas hissing from the tank as the vorcha wearing it starts to panic.
Seconds go by and-
Boom.
It's deafening as pieces of rumble fly past us. Once it's quiet, we glance over the half wall. The hallway is charred with no sign of the vorcha. That doesn't really matter though when a krogan is currently charging at us from beyond the security door.
Riley sighs, climbing over the wall to close the door before he reaches it. "That was... something."
"That could have gone better," Miranda remarks, standing to dust herself off.
I shrug. "Yeah well, that's twice now. At this rate, you're going to get me drunk."
She groans and follows after Riley. She just makes it too easy.
Omega, 2185, August 25th 8:28 PM
Of course the main floor is packed with well, Blood Pack. Their bodies at least, only like two of them are actually alive. By the sounds of it, there are more upstairs. This place really went to shit without me.
"Vex, take care of them, we'll help upstairs," Riley commands, taking off upstairs with Miranda.
Two against one, easy enough. I quickly shoot one before getting behind a sofa, effectively taking out his barrier. Peeking over, I manage to get him one last time before he reaches cover.
Where's the second one? He was right here-
I catch sight of Archangel on the balcony, aiming right at me. So that's it? He shoots me while I'm distracted? Just like that?
He fires, but I don't feel anything. No pain at all. What is he-
Thud.
I turn around, greeted by the sight of a dead vorcha. He saved me? I look back in time to see him get tackled by a krogan. Was that Garm?
Groaning, I rush towards the stairs. Am I really about to, dare I say it, help Archangel? What the fuck is wrong with me?
Entering the room, I find Garm already dead, Riley and Archangel standing over him. That's insane, Garm is a freak. I've never seen a krogan regen like he does... or did.
"We took out Garm and his Blood Pack," Archangel announces. "This day just gets better and better." Yeah, I bet.
I shrug. "Don't celebrate yet, no doubt the Blue Suns still want a go." And me.
"She has a point," Riley agrees.
"Still a feat to take out Garm, props," I add, crossing my arms.
Archangel seems surprised that I would compliment him, but credit where credit is due. Garm wouldn't have been easy.
"We could probably fight-" I'm sure Archangel is still talking, but all I can focus on is the gunship that just appeared behind him.
I push him down and scatter for cover like the rest of the group. He saved me, the least I can do is make sure his ass gets out of here alive so I can kill it later.
"Miranda, overload it!" Riley calls out, barely audible over the fucking gunship.
Miranda nods and peeks out of cover. She lifts her arm, frying the barriers, giving Riley a chance to shoot. I opt for taking out the foot soldiers that are now rushing into the room.
"There are some on the ground floor," Archangel tells us.
Riley nods for Jacob to follow her and they both leave the room. The gunship ducks out of view, no idea why. To repair the barriers probably.
Archangel stands, either to look for it or switch cover. It reappears after a few seconds, riling up its guns. Fuck, he needs to get down.
"Archangel!" The pilot, who sounds like Tarak, shouts before firing.
Archangel's barrier shatters, and he falls, crawling for cover. It didn't look like he was hit after the barrier broke. He's probably fine, but just in case.
"Are you okay?" I ask.
"I've got this," he insists, charging out blindly, only to be met with a rocket to the face.
He lands hard, unmoving. He can't be dead, if anyone's killing him, it's me. I'm getting my revenge, I just have to go out there and get him back behind cover.
"Garrus!" I hear Riley yell as she rushes back into the room. She ducks down, but I can tell she wants to run out there and get him.
"Riley, we need to take that thing out. Now." I so unhelpfully suggest.
"I know, I can get it." She pulls out a heavy-looking launcher. Charging it up, she gets out of cover, firing at the gunship. Beams of energy rush into it, causing it to explode.
I stare in awe. "Wow." I want one of those.
"Garrus?" I'm brought out of my astonishment to see Riley at Archangel's side. She places a hand on him, and he makes some gurgling noises. Well, he's alive. "Garrus! We're getting you out of here, Garrus. Just hold on. Radio Joker, make sure they're ready for us."
Miranda immediately opens her omni-tool, "He's in bad shape, we need to get him out of here."
Normandy, 2185, August 25th 10:13 PM
So this is what the CIC of a military-grade ship looks like? A bunch of boring terminals and a large map generator? Yawn.
I only came because Riley asked me to tag along. She told me to wait, that she had an offer for me. Whatever this offer is, Miranda didn't look too happy about it. Jacob didn't seem to mind much though.
The door behind me opens, and I turn to see Riley out of uniform. She clears her throat. "Do you know anything about human colony abductions?"
Well, that's random. "Not much, just what I hear around. Like Freedom's Progress?"
She nods. "Yeah, just like that."
I cross my arms. "What does that have to do with this?"
She sighs and takes a few steps closer. "I joined Cerberus because they want to stop the abductions. I'm building a team to help with that. You did good today, a little undisciplined, but good. I want to recruit you."
So that explains why she's with them. Is there more to it though? "Do you have any leads yet?"
She's quiet, maybe it's sensitive information. You probably have to be on the team to kn-
"Collectors," she answers.
I snort. "Bullshit, they don't exist." She really had me going there for a second. Why isn't she laughing? She can't be serious. "They're not real, Riley."
"They are." Again, no laughter. She actually believes this nonsense. "It's a suicide mission, but if you do live through it, Cerberus is willing to pay you extremely well."
"So what," I begin, this whole thing feels sketchy. "You want me to work for Cerberus and risk my life for some credits?"
She folds her hands behind her back in a way that's very military. "You can decline."
I take a deep breath. If Archangel is joining up with her, then I don't have a choice. I mean, it's not like it's actually a suicide mission. Collectors don't exist. It's probably just raiders or something.
"I'm in, but not for the credits." She raises an eyebrow, and I just shrug in return. "My target is with you."
She gives me a stern look. "That's between you and him, but you are not to cause trouble under my command. You're part of my crew now."
"So serious," I tease. Her face isn't changing, okay, I get it. "Fine, I'll be good. Just let me sort some stuff out on Omega."
She nods. "That's fine, I have more business here. Just report back here before midday tomorrow."
I give her a playful salute. "Roger, boss."
With an amused smirk, she turns and leaves. I can't believe that just happened. Suicide mission or not, I just agreed to leave Omega. It's a big decision, but I guess it's not so bad, what's even left for me here?
Omega, 2185, August 25th 10:34 PM
Once again, I find myself at the throne of Afterlife. And obviously, being interrupted by Garka for what feels like the millionth time at this point. Leaving is looking better already.
"Really, Garka?" I ask as he scans me. "We go through this every time. I have weapons."
He looks up briefly, then returns to the scanner. "You can go through." I won't miss you, Garka.
I walk over to Aria's couch and take a seat, leaning back into it. So fucking comfortable, I'll miss this more than Garka. It may even be the last time I ever get to enjoy it.
"Vex," Aria greets in the most uninterested tone she can muster. "What brings you here?"
"I'm leaving Omega." I sit up and pull the datapad from my bag. "Thought I'd get you a parting gift."
I pass it to her and she begins reading. Her cool expression quickly transforms into one of anger. I don't think I'd ever seen her this pissed off.
"How could you miss this?" She throws the datapad at Garka's face. That sounded like it hurt, but I don't feel bad for him. She turns back to me. "Thank you, Vex. Your departure will be sad indeed." Well, that sounded so sincere.
"Don't worry too much." I stand with a stretch. "All three leaders are dead and I have to get going. See you around, Aria."
She nods in acknowledgement. It's as much of a goodbye as I'm going to get. It's time to get out of here and pack. Suicide mission or not, at least it'll be interesting.
Thank you for reading.