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Post by Joe Fischer on May 20, 2015 5:06:39 GMT -6
Joe sighted down on the last combatant, a female turian who had no facial markings. During his time in the service, whenever he was part of a joint exercise, he and his unit would receive a briefing on the culture they would be working with, and he remembered that a turian who was barefaced was looked down upon, being seen as dishonest and selfish.
To her credit, she didn’t seem particularly alarmed at how quickly the battle had turned against her team, but then again, with their faceplates, their emotional states were virtually impossible to read; for all he knew, she could be wetting herself in fear.
A bellowing roar caught his attention, one he had learned very well: the roar of a krogan.
Looks like Karn found himself a new target, he thought. I almost feel sorry for her.
Almost.
The krogan lumbered towards her, and she still did not seem concerned.
Then the sex started.
Joe had managed to push Maelstrom’s auditory distraction to the very edge of his consciousness, but this overwhelmed him. He actually looked around the bay, half-expecting to see a hanar engaging in intercourse with an overly eager female.
Sounds like an asari…
Then the professional inside him walked up and smacked him upside the head.
FOCUS, MARINE! it shouted. THE BATTLE ISN’T OVER!
He brought up his rifle and looked over to where he last remembered seeing Karn, and saw that the krogan now had one hand wrapped around the turian’s neck while the other delivered several punches to her body. He then headbutted her and released his grip on her neck, and she fell bonelessly to the ground.
The krogan turned towards him.
“Is this going to become a regular practice?” he asked. “Sure would liven up the fights!”
He chuckled as he strode past, patting Joe on the shoulder.
Maelstrom, we’re DEFINITELY going to have a talk…
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Post by Eric Lysander on May 20, 2015 14:55:02 GMT -6
Izahm immediately brought down the second mark Eric had indicated. The N7 put up his weapon and consulted his HUD again, searching for targets and ascertaining allied positions. Too busy to notice a turian a few feet behind him shouldering his rifle. Izahm was also preoccupied with scanning for targets in front of him. The instant the impulse to squeeze the trigger on his rifle manifested he was plowed into the ground by something low and bulky behind him. Scrambling onto his back, he found himself face to faceplate with Naetilia's FENRIS unit. The sounds of their struggling caught Eric's attention. As his scope and barrel whirled about and took aim, the turian was rendered unconscious by the mech's shock attack. Eric slowly stood upright, lowering his rifle. The battle was just about over; any remaining enemy mercs were more than adequately covered by Karn and Joe's actions with support from the other teammates.
The FENRIS sat on its haunches a moment to process the appearance of a dumbfounded, silver-armored warrior. First it was Maelstrom's VI Emily that had come to his aid when an alien intruder boarded the Valiant and a disgraced teammate had tried to arrest him. He had made it clear that he was not fond of having the unit around yet it had also saved his life. The FENRIS' head lurched forward a bit, emitting a cybernetic bark to signify that the immediate threat was neutralized. Eric could not bring himself to say anything.
Th' hell's up here? I don't like th' mechs but th' mechs like me?
"Leave the humans", Lekuhn said over the team's comm channel. "We can question them separately and get some answers."
Eric looked about and saw Naetilia looking at both him and her mech. Did she order the FENRIS to his aid or did it act on its own? He shook out his head and tapped the comm on his earpiece.
"Zap Nap here makes three," he said of the knocked out turian sprawled on the floor.
He hesitated towards him. The FENRIS surmised the human's intentions and backed away far enough to allow Eric to get a hold of the turian and drag him to cover by Izahm. Suddenly a different racket came over the speakers Maelstrom had set up. Eric blushed in recognition of the new sounds and stuffed down an urge to laugh or scream, recalling the exact vid this scene took place in. His palm clapped over his face and slid up and back over his hair.
"... what... in the name of Marilyn Manson?" he said aloud.
If this were peacetime in the barracks or off-duty shenanigans, he would not have a problem with it. In fact he would have helped to set it up. But in the annals of psych warfare it was not known, or at least declassified to public record, for the echoes of passion to be employed as a diversion. Eric tapped his earpiece again.
"Not the heat of battle you mentioned earlier! Gunshots, Mal... Gun. Shot. Not money shot!"
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Post by spartan560 on May 20, 2015 15:01:25 GMT -6
Izahm heard the sounds ignored them sensed a presence behind him and Lysander but confident the older veteran could handle it he sets his sights on the humans making sure none of them escape. It was the sound of arcing electricity that drew his attention. He turns slightly to look over his shoulder to see Lysander dragging an incapacitated Turian with Naetilia's FENRIS nearby. Not one to question results he merely goes back to keeping an eye on the humans trapped under the net.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2015 17:52:07 GMT -6
Naetilia looked over the bay, scanning for any remaining threats. Satisfied there were none, she holstered her pistol.
“It would appear that all enemy combatants have been neutralized,” she said to Maricus.
The sounds of interspecies sexual intercourse played briefly over the speakers before shutting off.
“When I agreed to work for Mr. Bridges, my main concern was working among so many humans,” she said to the elder turian. “I have found them to be far too unpredictable to make useful allies, and aside from Mr. Bridges, these ones have not allayed that concern.”
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Post by Maricus Caenilus on May 20, 2015 18:59:49 GMT -6
At first, Maricus was stunned and irritated when the lewd sounds blasted over Maelstrom's speaker contraptions. Then he realized that the enemies remaining alive were so unsure of what had happened and what the group they were facing might do next that they simply surrendered. It almost made him laugh. Almost.
“When I agreed to work for Mr. Bridges, my main concern was working among so many humans,” the younger turian confided. “I have found them to be far too unpredictable to make useful allies, and aside from Mr. Bridges, these ones have not allayed that concern.”
He turned to fix her with his gaze, his features drawn in tight and controlled. Sometimes he thought she had the potential to make a wonderful addition to the team. At times like this, though, he instead feared that her inflexibility would lead her to an unpleasant end.
"You're thinking too much like a Hierarchy military officer," he said simply. Gesturing out towards the field of surrendering mercenaries, Maricus said, "Rather than fight it, make it work for you."
He turned and walked a few steps away from her. After a deep breath, he bowed his head for a moment, hoping he was taking the right course. Drawing himself back to his full stature, he asked, "Did you ever wonder why we lost more lives in the Relay 314 Incident than the humans?"
[Insert response, if any.]
"We had the superior technology. More experience in space combat," Maricus reminded. "The reason is that unpredictability."
Turning back to her, he said, "They're adaptable. They learn to react quickly to the innovations of their peers and use them to the greatest advantage, and, in general, they are careful to be sure that their plans will not put their allies at risk. At the same time, they generally read the moment, to know when their improvisation would be constructive versus when it would prove a fatal flaw, and they typically still respect a clear chain of command."
Deactivating the vibration generator and activating the blade's safeguards on his galidus, Maricus returned it to the mount on his forearm. "As a mercenary, unless you plan to work with exclusively-turian teams, you need to learn to embrace this, because few other species have our natural discipline and... rigidity."
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Post by Maelstrom on May 20, 2015 19:17:39 GMT -6
"Not the heat of battle you mentioned earlier! Gunshots, Mal... Gun. Shot. Not money shot!" Lysander piped in.
"I know," Maelstrom said. His embarrassment causing him to uncharacteristically feel the need to explain, he said, "Emily's program has always had a hard time distinguishing between violence and sexuality. I think when I told her that I wanted her to play the most graphical scenes of battle she could find, her program must have picked up on the 'graphic' description for that scene in the parental guide. I intend on going over her protocols again with a fine-toothed-comb when we all get back aboard Valiant."
Growing increasingly uncomfortable just loitering around the docking bay, where C-Sec could arrive at any moment, he asked, "Actually, Lysander, can you cover this merc while I take care of Vengeance? I don't like leaving it unattended."
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Post by Joe Fischer on May 20, 2015 19:29:07 GMT -6
“Boss, I’m going to have some harsh words for Maelstrom now,” Joe said, then shut off his comm link and removed his helmet before the engineer could respond.
“WHAT THE FUCK, MAELSTROM?!” he yelled angrily as he strode towards the biotic, not stopping until he was well within the man’s personal space. “WHEN WERE YOU PLANNING ON TELLING US THAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO YOUR OWN THING?!”
This close to the biotic, he wanted to just grab the man and slam him against some packing crates, but held back; physically attacking another teammate was second only to publicly challenging the commander in terms of unprofessionalism, plus with everyone’s adrenaline still running wildly through their systems, his intended chewing out could quickly turn messy.
“We had one person—ONE PERSON—tell us he was ready, but apparently that was enough for you to do your cowboy act!” he shouted. “Now the rest of the team is left playing catch up, trying to cover your ass! Shit like that puts the team in jeopardy, and I will NOT allow that to happen, not on my watch!”
Part of him knew this looked bad, having a public confrontation in front of new team members, but part of him thought it was a good idea as well; he had stated he took the team’s safety seriously, and now they were seeing he meant it.
He leaned in and whispered, “Try that again, see what happens. I PROMISE you are not going to like it.”
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Post by Deleted on May 20, 2015 19:46:55 GMT -6
She looked over at Maricus.
"I would surmise that this is not a favorable display of their...flexibility, is it?" she asked.
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Post by Maelstrom on May 20, 2015 20:03:28 GMT -6
“WHAT THE FUCK, MAELSTROM?! WHEN WERE YOU PLANNING ON TELLING US THAT YOU WERE GOING TO DO YOUR OWN THING?!” Fischer barked at him.
Any embarrassment Maelstrom had felt at the situation with Emily immediately evaporated. The only thing he could think of that the man could have been referring to was the pack of sound grenades. His first impulse was to drop into a cadeira so he could counterattack if need be, but he pushed it down. The unwritten rule of thumb with mercenaries was that the first person to attack a teammate got taken down. Aside from the fact that he was confident he could at least match Fischer in a fight, he knew the rest of the team would guarantee he had nothing to worry about. Focusing back on Fischer's question, Maelstrom said, "That would be when I was sitting down in front of you, TELLING YOU."
“We had one person—ONE PERSON—tell us he was ready, but apparently that was enough for you to do your cowboy act! Now the rest of the team is left playing catch up, trying to cover your ass! Shit like that puts the team in jeopardy, and I will NOT allow that to happen, not on my watch! Try that again, see what happens. I PROMISE you are not going to like it,” Fischer threatened.
"That one person was our employer, Joe. One of only two people who gets to overrule LYSANDER. If Bridges told us to go instead of waiting to deliver the order through the normal channels with Lysander, than I have every reason to think that it's damned important for us to act IMMEDIATELY. So you can stuff it up your ass, Joe, because if you aren't ready to go when the order comes down, that's YOUR problem, NOT mine!" Maelstrom shot back, standing his ground against the much larger man and starting him dead in the eyes. "And any time you feel like throwing down with me, you're more than welcome to try."
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Post by Maricus Caenilus on May 20, 2015 20:19:39 GMT -6
"I would surmise that this is not a favorable display of their...flexibility, is it?" Naetilia asked.
"You obviously didn't serve with the same groups I did," Maricus said, crossing his arms while he watched their display with a scowl. "I remember quite a few times when officers had to get in the middle of sparring matches after missions." He chuckled, remembering a memory of himself in his scrappier days. "I even remember one private who tried to get the crew to let him go up against a sergeant twice his size, despite having an arm broken in two places." Gesturing around with his top hand, he said, "There are still more than enough guns on our downed opponents to make sure they're not going to try anything. So long as the two of them don't start fighting, it's all just positioning."
Realizing this might be another moment that he needed to explain to her about the mercenary life, he added, "Here and in most mercenary outfits comprised of freelancers, the command structure is looser than we're accustomed to. You have the guy who writes the check and then, if he's smart like Bridges, the professional who is usual in charge of giving the orders. Everyone else's 'rank' is based on usefulness and perception. Unless you're part of an organization like the Blue Suns, and occasionally even then, these sorts of things will happen."
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Post by Eric Lysander on May 21, 2015 11:33:20 GMT -6
"Actually, Lysander, can you cover this merc while I take care of Vengeance? I don't like leaving it unattended," said Maelstrom, feeling the heat for his VI’s blunder.
“Got a merc o’ my own ta babysit – hang on a sec,” Eric got Izahm’s attention, pointing downward at their prisoner. “Izahm, can you watch this guy for me? If he wakes up, remind him it’s not a good idea to move.”
[Insert response from Izahm, if any]
Eric stowed his rifle and headed over to Maelstrom’s position. The Mercenary in Black was confronted by Joe who did not approve in the least of his tactics even though the skirmish was entirely in their favor. Eric feared that it would attract attention from passerby or authorities wondering why there were no alarms raised, suggesting that Maelstrom’s speakers be used in sequence instead of simultaneously to simulate gunfire. It was really Emily that was to blame, making a literal interpretation of Maelstrom’s orders. Joe was whispering some kind of threat into his ear when Eric intervened.
“All right - to a neutral corner, both o’ya!” Eric parted the combatants. “Joe, it was my call and Fearless Leader’s to make to let him… sound off. So if you’re gonna be pissed and go all Jekyll n’Hyde on someone, go at me. I offered a slight adjustment to his plan but it wasn’t really followed…”
Eric then looked at Maelstrom.
“This is part o’ th’ reason I don’t trust mechs. Next time you have a plan that needs improvisation, please carry it out yourself or let us handle it? I’d hate ta lose the team over semantics… or worse yet, a spelling error! Ya just can’t teach blinkers to improvise; it’s too random for ‘em. ”
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Post by spartan560 on May 21, 2015 11:47:21 GMT -6
“Izahm, can you watch this guy for me? If he wakes up, remind him it’s not a good idea to move.” "Understood," Izahm says stowing his Widow and taking out his Disciple holding it one handed while a low powered throw glows in his left, "I'll keep an eye on him," I hope this doesn't become a regular occurrence, I would much rather be in my shuttle.
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Post by dargene on May 21, 2015 16:34:39 GMT -6
Meldom De-cloaked after all the enemies had been dispatched, using the wire controller once more he slowly lowered himself down to the ground level and made his way to the group, mostly ignoring the squabble they seemed to be having he walked towards the corpses of the recently deceased mercenaries. He bent over one of them, patting down the dead combatants sides then using his omnitool to scan them to make sure they were really dead.
When he was satisfied he moved to the group talking and waited to see what had to be said, his gaze shifted to the prisoner every now and then wondering if they would require anything from a prisoner.
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Post by Maelstrom on May 21, 2015 17:16:19 GMT -6
“All right - to a neutral corner, both o’ya!” Eric commanded, getting into the fray.
Despite the adrenaline still coursing through his system from the battle, Maelstrom had no wish to fight Fischer, and he backed off several steps. He knew better than to turn his back before Lysander dismissed him, as most of the team would probably see it as asinine cockiness and a form of challenge. By the same token, he refused to look straight at Joe, and he really did not catch what their commander was saying to the former N7. He was too busy trying to get his head back on straight.
As his mind cleared a bit, he used his pre-programmed hand signals to Emily to order a few more last-minute preparations to the shuttle. He did not imagine the group would be staying in the bay much longer.
“This is part o’ th’ reason I don’t trust mechs," Lysander said, a slight change in the sound of his voice drawing Maelstrom's attention. Sure enough, he was finished with Fischer and starting in on his other headache, "Next time you have a plan that needs improvisation, please carry it out yourself or let us handle it? I’d hate ta lose the team over semantics… or worse yet, a spelling error! Ya just can’t teach blinkers to improvise; it’s too random for ‘em. ”
Maelstrom wanted to argue that Lysander was wrong about Emily, but the fact was their commander was, at least largely, right. Normally, that would not have made a difference on whether or not he defended his position, but for some reason Maelstrom felt like the wind had been let from his sails. He nodded. "It would have worked right if I'd had even an hour or two to set it up. I'd still like to look at it as a tactic for the group to use when collateral damage is a concern, though." Even as he said it, he knew that it was probably the wrong time for such a request.
[Insert response, if any]
Maelstrom slowly took a step forward. Speaking low enough that only the two of them could hear, Maelstrom said, "Listen, I'm sorry I didn't take time to address your concerns with the grenades. They were a good idea. It's just... I haven't had a chance to strike back since the Collector base. With everything that happened then and since, Bridges order offered a release, and I took it."
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Post by Joe Fischer on May 21, 2015 18:43:15 GMT -6
“You two trying to get your stories straight?” Joe called out to Maelstrom and Lysander.
He looked at Maelstrom. “You say the boss gave the order to go,” he said.
He then looked at the senior N7. “And you say you gave the order, so which one is it?” he asked.
Staying focused on Lysander he said, “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, a leader taking responsibility for the fuck up of one of his men. But do you really expect me to believe you gave the order to go without conducting PCCs and PCIs?”
He shook his head.
“I know you’re senile Pops, but not that senile. Nice try, but this is one bomb you can’t defuse,” he said.
He looked back at Maelstrom.
“You may have been in the Alliance, but you clearly didn’t stick around long enough to learn about teamwork,” he said. “You want to play the cowboy, fine, go right ahead, Clint. But when that gets you in over your head—and it will, trust me, especially on a mission like this—don’t come crying to me for help, because you won’t fucking get it.”
He turned away, picked up his helmet and made his way to the Valiant.
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Post by Esteban Bridges on May 22, 2015 1:07:59 GMT -6
Esteban scurried down one of the Citadel's millions of Jefferies tubes, following the map on his still active omnitool. The entire area glowed an almost pleasant orange, giving the illusion of a fire within a cave. The juxtaposition was not lost on the Engineer...being within the most advanced structure in the galaxy and being reminded of the most primitive structure man once inhabited.
Every once in a while, he paused to make sure he was still on course. One wrong turn, he would probably end up in Anderson's personal apartment or worse.... the Krogan-only bathroom again. Esteban shuddered. He'd rather be back on the Collector Base than back there.
Fortunately for Esteban, he was on target. The grating over the access tube easily came off, allowing the Engineer to crawl out. His once pristine dark gray armor had dust and grime on it, par for the course with the job he just finished. He reached out, grabbing a crate to steady himself as he rose to his feet.
He smiled slightly, seeing Maelstrom close by... though the tension in the air killed his smile faster than Maelstrom at a Cerberus base.
"What happened?" Esteban asked the unstable biotic while he brushed the grime from his armor. "You look far tenser than normal..."
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Post by Deleted on May 22, 2015 7:25:28 GMT -6
Naetilia looked over at Maricus.
"At the initial meeting, I said I would be civil to the other team members and I would treat them to the best of my ability," she said. "I am a woman of my word, and I will keep those promises."
She looked over at the rest of the team.
"As for trusting them, that will take...some time," she said.
[Insert reply if any]
She approached the team.
"Was anyone hurt?" she asked.
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Post by Eric Lysander on May 23, 2015 9:05:28 GMT -6
Maelstrom attempted to justify his intentions. "It would have worked right if I'd had even an hour or two to set it up. I'd still like to look at it as a tactic for the group to use when collateral damage is a concern, though."
"Run it by me again once you have all th' kinks out, then," said Eric. "We'll see if we can get better use of it."
Maelstrom then leaned in closer to Eric and continued quietly ."Listen, I'm sorry I didn't take time to address your concerns with the grenades. They were a good idea. It's just... I haven't had a chance to strike back since the Collector base. With everything that happened then and since, Bridges order offered a release, and I took it."
“You two trying to get your stories straight?” Joe called out to Maelstrom and Lysander.
He looked at Maelstrom. “You say the boss gave the order to go,” he said.
He then looked at the senior N7. “And you say you gave the order, so which one is it?” he asked.
Staying focused on Lysander he said, “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, a leader taking responsibility for the fuck up of one of his men. But do you really expect me to believe you gave the order to go without conducting PCCs and PCIs?”
He shook his head.
“I know you’re senile Pops, but not that senile. Nice try, but this is one bomb you can’t defuse,” he said.
He looked back at Maelstrom.
“You may have been in the Alliance, but you clearly didn’t stick around long enough to learn about teamwork,” he said. “You want to play the cowboy, fine, go right ahead, Clint. But when that gets you in over your head—and it will, trust me, especially on a mission like this—don’t come crying to me for help, because you won’t fucking get it.”
He turned away, picked up his helmet and made his way to the Valiant.
"I'm afraid th' lug's gotta point," Eric exhaled to Maelstrom. "Ever since the Collector base I've noticed he's been a bit.. on the verge, if you get what I mean. That and the attempts on us, his mom gettin' hurt because of it. Maybe you should dial back on the lone wolf routine. I mean you've been openin' up a bit lately n' I think it's great ... but sometimes it's like you forget you're part of a team now. Cerberus may still be after you but now it has to get through us if they wanna get you. I sure as hell'm not gonna let any of 'em get close. Joe's not gonna either... once he sees you're worth saving. Kid's head still in th' barracks... lets try n' meet him halfway for now 'til he gets used to not livin' by regs."
[Insert response/comment by Maelstrom, if any]
Naetilia approached her teammates for her position by Marcius. "Was anyone hurt?" she asked.
"I'm good, thanks," replied the senior N7. He looked about at Maelstrom and the others. "Anybody here need medical attention?"
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Post by Maelstrom on May 23, 2015 11:35:43 GMT -6
Maelstrom heard what Lysander was saying, but he was not in a place to listen. In fact, it had been all he could do to keep from lobbing a deactivated grenade at the back of Fischer's head after his last couple comments.
"...lets try n' meet him halfway for now 'til he gets used to not livin' by regs."
"Hate to say it, Lysander, but I've been meeting folks in the middle for a long time now," Maelstrom said. He pointed around at all the incapacitated mercs who were still alive. "My feelings haven't changed since we met those pirates about how good of an idea it is to leave people alive to hunt you down later. Do I even make a fuss about it? No, because I know this is what you all need to do. And don't think that's the only example. I've made concessions with Bridges from day one about Emily's monitoring software and how far I'd let it go for my personal security. So, when I'm doing things on a daily basis that are putting my life on the line in order to work with the rest of you, don't tell me I've got to go farther to make that little dick more comfortable. If he's got issues, tell him to take them up with the twins, like the rest of us."
Cooling a little, having said his peace, he added, "I apologized to you for what happened between us here. I meant it, and it stands, but that's as far as I can go on this for now. If that's not good enough, maybe talk to me later, after I've had a chance to cool off."
"Was anyone hurt?" their new doctor asked.
A dozen comments about how to check non-existent portions of Fischer's anatomy popped into Maelstrom's mind, but he was just ready to be done with this all and move on.
"Anybody here need medical attention?" Lysander called out.
"Okay here, Doc," Maelstrom replied. "Thanks for checking."
Turning back to Lysander, he added, "I need to go check out the shuttle bay. As you said, VI's and improvisation are the best combination."
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Post by Maricus Caenilus on May 23, 2015 11:50:45 GMT -6
"As for trusting them, that will take...some time," the new merc said.
A short chuckle escaped him. "You'd be a fool to trust them completely off the bat. Everyone here has their own motivations. Even myself and Bridges. Once you've learned a bit about what drives each of us, though, then you can decide how much to trust us."
The situation contained, Maricus activated his omni-tool and sent a message to his assistant, requesting that his personal belongings be brought to the ship.
"Was anyone hurt?" he heard Naetilia asked, moving off to attend her duties to the rest of the team.
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