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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 8, 2015 8:58:04 GMT -6
"... I've come for help."
The largely independent and secretive Maelstrom must be in dire straits indeed if he had to seek out help. His trusted VI Emily must have either been destroyed or functioning at a capacity too ineffective to keep its master hidden. The Shadow Broker's warning was proving to be true. Shepard would have his way of handling this situation but as was made plain in his recording to his former N7 mentor, Eric was not Shepard. The man in black armor would be getting help from a man who coupled his training in the art of war by Earth's most elite fighting force with a lifetime exposure to the workings of the delinquent and criminal mind in all of their guises.
"Take it easy, Mal. Regroup a second." Eric poured a glass of water from the pitcher. He thought of offering some to his friend but Maelstrom still had his helmet on. Eric held the glass in his hand after taking a sip from it himself.
"Alright," Eric swallowed and began in a hushed tone. "They faked footage of you shooting this guy but you have the undoctored vid that proves you didn't. That's a lot better than I had."
Eric sat down on one side of his bed and brought up his omni-tool. "Been watchin' old shows n' stuff on it for days - no one'll suspect a thing. Let's have a look at it..."
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Post by Maelstrom on Mar 8, 2015 13:10:02 GMT -6
"Been watchin' old shows n' stuff on it for days - no one'll suspect a thing. Let's have a look at it..."
Maelstrom brought up the vids from multiple angles. Just as before, the image of the assassin was greatly distorted.
"You see my problem. I submit these, which never made it into storage on C-SEC's system, and even if they think they're genuine, they'll think I'm trying to protect the culprit and lock me up while they investigate. That's a death sentence for me."
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Post by Shala'Bekk vas Neema on Mar 8, 2015 15:42:16 GMT -6
As Shala approached Theraxos at the eatery that they first met, she once again saw his posture was rigid with tension. He caught sight of her and stood, just the way he had done before when they simply ate there together.
I wish it was just that, she thought, both curious and fearful as to what he had to say.
Not that just getting there didn’t require effort on her part; the staff at the hospital had all but drawn guns on her in an effort to keep her there, and it wasn’t until she signed a form waiving them of any responsibility should her state worsen did they release her.
She took the seat opposite him, and then he sat down, his hands wringing themselves so fiercely she thought he was going to tie his fingers in knots.
“Would you, uh, like something to eat?” he asked, his hands still wringing themselves. “I expect the food wasn’t that good at the hospital. From what I’ve heard, that seems to be a universal experience.”
She reached out and took his hands in hers. “I think we should discuss whatever was so important you had me leave the hospital early,” she said.
“You’re right,” he said, and he could feel his hands straining against hers, undoubtedly wanting to continue their wringing.
“After we spoke at the hospital, I returned to C-Sec to file my report,” he said. “I must have spent half an hour staring at the screen. Every time I brought my hands up to the keyboard, they refused to move.
“I’ve been doing this for ten years, ever since I finished my military service,” he said. “I’ve never had a problem doing my duty, but this time…”
“You couldn’t,” she said.
He nodded, apparently unable to say it aloud.
“It’s because of Cerberus, isn’t it?” she said.
“They’re a lot like your friend, impossible to get anything solid on them,” he said. “But if even half the stories I’ve heard are true….tell me I’m doing the right thing, Shala.”
“You’ve lived your whole life a certain way, but now something is forcing to step away from the safety and security of it, and that can be quite scary,” she said. “I understand what you’re going through, Theraxos. I felt the same way when I decided not to return to the Fleet.”
“Yes, I suppose you’re right,” he said, and she could see some of the tension drain out of him.
She had instinctively known he wasn’t looking for a justification for his feelings; he had been looking for someone who understood what he was going through and would support him.
“All right, I’m keeping your friend out of my report, but now what?” he asked. “I can’t just sit here, knowing all this, but…I don’t know what to do now.”
“I have an idea,” she said.
*****
Up until now, Theraxos did not think too highly of his direct supervisor, a human named Bailey; the man seemed to look for ways to get around regulations in order to get the results he wanted, in one instance going so far as to let a would-be drell assassin go.
But right now that was what he needed.
He stepped into the man’s office and saluted. “Sir, I have an authorization for disbursement of money from the discretionary fund that requires your signature,” he said.
The human returned it—rather sloppily, in the turian’s opinion—and said, “How many times have I told you those salutes aren’t necessary?” he said. “I know you respect my rank.”
“Force of habit, sir,” he said. “Now about that authorization…?”
Bailey looked it over. “Five hundred credits to hire a quarian to review the video footage from the Cronauer assassination?” he said, looking up. “You do know that I have a room full of salarians who went over it with a fine-toothed comb and didn’t find anything out of place?”
“Yes sir,” Theraxos said. “But I just want to be sure there’s nothing they missed. Right now, it’s the strongest lead we have.”
“Fair enough,” Bailey said. “And it isn’t like the Alliance isn’t breathing down my neck to find this guy. All right, there you go.”
“Thank you, sir,” Theraxos said, and started to leave, never so happy to leave the station in his life.
“Theraxos, one more thing,” Bailey called out.
The turian stopped and faced his superior. “Yes sir?”
“When she works on the video, make sure she does it here,” Bailey said. “I don’t need some slick lawyer getting his client off because we mishandled evidence.”
“Yes sir,” Theraxos said.
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Post by spartan560 on Mar 8, 2015 18:13:39 GMT -6
"I need...to find...the...doctor," Izahm says gasping for breath as he collapses then tries reaching up to the door trying to lift himself up but instead starts fading back into unconsciousness, "She's in danger...must...find...the doctor..." then the toll of getting out of bed hits him hard reducing him to a coughing fit for awhile. (Sorry for the delay work was murder XD)
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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 8, 2015 20:44:11 GMT -6
Eric restrained his shock and morbid bemusement at the vid footage Maelstrom played for him, recognizing the two other men depicted. The Shadow Broker had promised Eric that no extreme measures would be used to stop Cronauer but it seemed that fate and one of the Broker's agents unwittingly conspired to end his meddling permanently.
Poke your nose into someone else's business too long and someone's bound to poke back...
"You see my problem. I submit these, which never made it into storage on C-SEC's system, and even if they think they're genuine, they'll think I'm trying to protect the culprit and lock me up while they investigate. That's a death sentence for me."
Eric pointed to one of the screens. "Could be one for me, too. The vic's Willard Cronauer, the guy who's been buggin' me 'bout Shepard? He was here coupla days ago askin' bout Mr. B. Had a lotta circumstantial evidence on 'im but nothin' ta tie it all up. Slick Willie was bankin' on me for that... no way I was cashin' that check."
Eric sat up and thought aloud. "We needa dig up more evidence. Fakin' a vid can be done over a lunch break. Fakin' a stiff's lot more difficult. This didn't happen too long ago so we may be able to find out where C-Sec took the body for an autopsy. Where exactly were you when this went down?"
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Post by Maelstrom on Mar 8, 2015 22:33:28 GMT -6
"Where exactly were you when this went down?" Lysander asked.
"Down in Zakera, near the docks. Vengeance was hiding in a secret little docking bay that almost no one besides the keepers knows exists," Maelstrom said, "complements of our recruiter. It was the same route I took on my way out, though. Stupid mistake."
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2015 8:05:13 GMT -6
“The doctor?” Naetilia asked as she helped the male back to his bed. “If you are referring to the female who was with you, she is in another room. She is all right, I expect her to recover fully.”
She gently laid him back down on his bed.
“You say she is in danger, from whom?” she asked. “Blood Pack? Blue Suns? Eclipse? Aria? I ask because we would need to get you off Omega as soon as possible. This clinic could not withstand an assault from any of them.”
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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 9, 2015 8:26:49 GMT -6
"Down in Zakera, near the docks. Vengeance was hiding in a secret little docking bay that almost no one besides the keepers knows exists," Maelstrom said, "complements of our recruiter. It was the same route I took on my way out, though. Stupid mistake." “Zakera,” echoed Eric, coming to a realization. “… holy shit – then Cronauer had to be brought ta this hospital! If you hurry you can sneak inta the morgue n’ get to the body before someone loses it, verify that the wounds on him don’t match your gun. Your lil’ electronic genie can document it all, maybe even get a copy of the coroner’s report…”
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Post by Maelstrom on Mar 9, 2015 8:40:40 GMT -6
"If you hurry you can sneak inta the morgue n’ get to the body before someone loses it, verify that the wounds on him don’t match your gun. Your lil’ electronic genie can document it all, maybe even get a copy of the coroner’s report,” Lysander suggested.
"Not a bad idea, but no way I'd make it. A merc in full get-up? Hospital security would call C-Sec and have me detained, and fighting my way past them is the last thing I need to be doing while trying to prove my innocence," Maelstrom said. "I might wear black armor, but I'm no infiltrator."
An idea dawned on him. "Then again... There is someone here who could get away with wandering the halls in a seeming daze and going where he's not supposed to..."
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Post by spartan560 on Mar 9, 2015 8:47:44 GMT -6
Izahm's coughing dies down a little enough for him to speak, "No none of those. She's in danger from the Batarian Hegemony. They wanted whatever she was working on in her lab," he then has another coughing fit before continuing, "They had sent an assassin after her that I killed but he had a dead mans armor on which is how I and her came to be here. Once they learn of their assassin's failure they're going to send another. I have to get her back to the citadel as quickly as possible," he then breaks down into another coughing fit letting his rescuer process all the information he gave her.
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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 9, 2015 9:50:02 GMT -6
“... there is someone here who could get away with wandering the halls in a seeming daze and going where he's not supposed to..." Eric brow raised as he pointed to himself then wagged the same finger at Maelstrom.
“Me…? W-well, much as I’m up for a little sneakabout there’s one thing you’re forgetting, my black patent armor friend: a drug haze can only get you so far past nurses n' guards. There’s bound ta be some locked doors ta get through and data terminals to search through. I’m no hacker by any stretch and I’ll only have so long before someone comes lookin’ for me…”
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 9, 2015 12:04:10 GMT -6
“The Hegemony?” Naetilia said, mostly to herself. “What could be so dangerous that they would send an assassin?”
To the male she said, “I will consult with another doctor, call if you need anything.”
-----
“The Hegemony sent an assassin after the female, I wonder why,” Doctor Heplorn said, then shrugged. “Isn’t important right now, but getting them off Omega is.”
“How?” she asked.
“It’s best to assume that they have agents here on Omega other than the assassin,” he said. “We will have to disguise them somehow, or…”
“Or what?” she asked.
“Or we could make the batarians assume their assassin was successful,” he said. “We disguise them as themselves, only dead.”
“I will discuss this with the patient,” she said.
-----
“The doctor I consulted with suggests that you and the female either disguise yourselves or fake your deaths,” she said to the male. “Which of those do you prefer? Or do you have another idea?”
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Post by spartan560 on Mar 9, 2015 12:51:43 GMT -6
"Just get me to my shuttle and we'll be fine," Izahm says coughing only slightly now, "Once there we can escape to the citadel where the man who hired me is waiting to receive the doctor. As to the data I have no idea what it is you should ask Doctor McKay if you want to know," suddenly he breaks into a coughing fit then lays back exhausted, "Unfortunately I believe his mission was also the data McKay had in addition to killing us so faking our deaths wouldn't help. Only way is to get us to my shuttle," he then goes into another small coughing fit.
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Post by Maelstrom on Mar 9, 2015 13:26:27 GMT -6
"I’m no hacker by any stretch and I’ll only have so long before someone comes lookin’ for me,”
"I doubt a morgue has a high-security lock or that a coroner's report has a strong encryption," Maelstrom said. "Emily could probably get you through both, if you let her interface with your omni-tool."
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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 9, 2015 13:40:41 GMT -6
Eric hopped of the bed, hands spread out as if he had dropped something. “Whoa-whoa-whoa-wait a second! Nothin’s interfacing anythin’. It was hard enough last time just talkin’ to it. Now you want me ta let it overwrite my drives…?! Don’t you have some kinda ‘lockpick’ app or somethin’… less invasive?”
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Post by Maelstrom on Mar 10, 2015 1:08:34 GMT -6
"Don’t you have some kinda ‘lockpick’ app or somethin’… less invasive?”
Maelstrom thought for a moment about the tools at his disposal. He shrugged. "Grenades?"
Smiling under his helmet, he said, "She shouldn't 'overwrite' anything. Just use your omni-tool as a relay and targeting system of sorts. You'd have to be in contact. I suppose I could act as a go-between if you don't want to deal with her, but I've tried to set up her interactive protocols for politeness."
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 10, 2015 13:13:39 GMT -6
"Very well," Naetilia said. "But you're in no condition to get there by yourselves, I'll escort you. And since time is of the essence, I'll give you a stimulant that should help you stay on your feet until you reach your shuttle."
She pulled out the drug and administered it.
"Get dressed, I'll get your companion ready," she said.
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Post by Eric Lysander on Mar 10, 2015 14:24:29 GMT -6
Maelstrom seemed somewhat relieved at Eric’s offer to help. The recovering N7 ruminated over his options. Explosives were out of the question inside a hospital. He loathed the idea of any kind of program rummaging through his omni-tool’s memory but then he did not wish to have Maelstrom exposed any more than he was already. His “go-between” option was a no go. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Eric went with the most sensible and expedient option despite his objections. “What’s mine stays mine – make sure it gets that through its CPU, okay? I do the sneaky thing, it gets you the evidence and me through any roadblocks I hit… whaddo I need ta do?”
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Post by spartan560 on Mar 10, 2015 16:08:52 GMT -6
The drug hit quickly Izahm shaking his head once to get over the sudden shock then standing up and saying, "Where's my equipment? I'm not going anywhere without it especially on a run like this," he then leans against the wall waiting for his savior to respond.
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Lekuhn
N2
"Let me see if I can remember...yeah, I can."
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Post by Lekuhn on Mar 10, 2015 16:36:14 GMT -6
Lekuhn sat on the transport, going over the preparations he had made for the mission. He had all of his gear in order and felt better since he had meditated. He couldn't help feeling lonely though. It seemed so hard to let others get close. As he looked around to see the others who had boarded with him, he wondered if he could ever reach out and become close to someone else. He had suffered much loss in his life and did not want to go through it again. On top of that, he was in a line of work that lent itself to loners.
I don't want to befriend someone and end up having to kill them, he thought Plus, I won't ever forget it. To forget...to remember...double edged sword.
Most of the passengers were Asari who were traveling from their home planet to the Citadel. Some of the Asari made no note of him, while others looked at him with curiosity. He thought it may have been the color of the armor he was wearing or maybe the deep scar under his left eye. He was an odd looking Drell and he knew this. He paid them no mind. Besides, their faces reminded him of his step-mother.
There were two humans sitting across from him engaged in conversation. He didn't notice what they were talking about until three words perked his interest.
"... DePaul...killed...balcony"
Now he honed in on the discourse, without looking at them as not to draw attention, for he knew well what they were talking about. Lekuhn grew slightly nervous as the conversation went on.
"Media says they found him with a tea cup and half a head!" said one "Serves the bastard right! That slime ball got away with way too much!" said the other
Media coverage already? It's only been three hours.
"DePaul was a great man and a philanthropist" said one of the men, wearing a very expensive suit with pin stripes. "I hope they catch who did it. They say authorities are already searching for the suspect."
"Tell that to the hundreds of people he has raped, murdered or sold into slavery!" said the one in worker's clothes with a five o'clock shadow "Philanthropist my ass...that's a cover up."
They continued to argue and Lekuhn couldn't help but feel unsteady. This type of thing usually never phased him, but for some reason on this crowded shuttle full of Asaris, he shuttered inside. It was as if his step-mother could see what he had done. He saw her in all of their faces and felt a strange sensation generating at the base of his skull. A warm prickly feeling. He knew what was about to happen.
"Rekuhn, come here and look at the stars with me."
"Yes, father"
"All of our Gods are one here. Here in nature where the stars look down upon us every Drell who has ever lived or will live resides. Son, this place lives in you, so they live in you as well"
When he came to, the shuttle was docking at the Citadel and he was surrounded by wide eyed Asari, staring at him.
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