Shepard sat in her black and white leather box chair wedged between her desk and dresser. The orangy glow from the data pad of dossiers she was reading illuminated her face. The scars from the Frankenstein number Cerberus had done on her were healing nicely due to the treatments she was recieving in the med bay. They were heading to Illois for the Asari Justicar and the Drell assassin. She was equally curious about both of the potential new crew members. The Drell was especially intriguing. She had never seen anyone of that species and was looking forward to meeting him. The dossier didn't provide much more than a head shot and a description of his qualifications, age and so on. The Drell were a reptilian race. The assissn was almost forty, in human years, which was approximately middle aged for his kind. She was still in her (late) twenties, though didn't seem to prevent him from appealing to her aesthetically. She shook her head and laid the data pads to rest on the desk. She obviously wasn't getting enough sleep. She was having day dreams about potential alien crew members.

Shepard walked up the few steps by the mostly empty fish tank to the larger desk. She picked up the picture of Liara and wondered what the Asari was doing. She missed her. From Shepard's point-of-view it had only been a month or so. For Liara it had been over 2 years. She sighed as she placed the picture back on the desk next to her awards and achievements. The irony some might find in placing Lira's picture there did not escape her humor. Shepard knew the young' scientist she had ordered to the escape pods had probably moved on, if not to someone else, to her work. The Illusive Man had said she was on Illium and working for the Shadow Broker. Shepard didn't believe that could be accurate. Then again, she herself was an 'investment' and operating on the credits of Cerberus. Anything could be possible. The growing nervous knot in her stomach tightened before EDI interrupted the commanders thoughts with the ETA to Illium.

"One hour until docking with Nos Astra, Commander." EDI's simulated inflections always managed to remind Shepard of her 'mother'.

'Mother' was the House Mistress of the building she lived in as a child with several other street orphans. She had asked M'ma about her biological parents when she turned 16. The woman had said to have found her in an alley crying inside an empty refrigerator box when she was around 2 or 3 years old. Shepard had gone to libraries to pour over old news pappers and tried to work with the local police for any information she could find. She even used Alliance resources after joining to find the smallest clue about her parents to no avail. It used to bring tears raining down in whatever private space she could find on Mother's and Father's Days. Now there was only a faint ache of the scar it had left on her. She was in space after all and had yet to find that magic wishing star that could fix anything with an earnest request. There was no use pining for something that was too late in coming. M'ma had been the best 'mother' she could be, given the circumstances. She had given her food, shelter, and clothes when she was a child. She'd helped her find ways to have an income when she was older without becoming undignified. "Don't give away lightly what you can only give once," she would tell all the young girls. It made Shepard smile to think of it now.

She had been just as nervous as Liara on that special night. She didn't tell her, but it was also her first time... sort of. She wasn't sure if it really counted with them both being 'female', as Liara had classified all Asari for her understanding. She supposed that, technically, she was still a virgin waiting for her 'Prince Charming' to sweep her off her feet should her Asari lover no longer be interested.

Shepard quickly undressed herself, neatly folding her civies into a drawer of the dresser. She washed away her straying thoughts in the shower before donning her layers of basics, under weave and hard suit. Her hair was still damp when she put it up in a giant bun on top her her head and locked the visor in place. She headed to the docking doors.

On Nos Astra;

Thane made his way towards the shipping office taking each stride with a kind of causal purpose. The shipping floor was mostly empty with a few small groups of aliens conversing with each other. One Salarian stood at the foot of the stairs having a seemingly very worried discussion on his communication device. Thane made his way to the far end of the space and stood silently in front of the large window by the offices. There he waited patiently for his contact to meet with him. The sun had begun it's descent on the horizon. He poised his hands in prayer to Amonkira as he always did before a job. The setting sun diffused through the clouds, coloring them in rich hues of lavender and mauve. It reminded him of...

"Are you ready to go, Krios?" Seryna's voice saved him from the memory.

Thane focused on his Asari contact standing a few feet from her desk waiting for him.

"I was praying to Amonkira for a successful hunt." He explained.

"I hope your prayers are heard!" Seryna replaied. A smile spread over her features openinly displaying her disdain for his target.

Thane gave a slight nod to her over his shoulder. He hesitated, looking to the Dantius Towers for a moment.

"Krios?" Seryna asked.

Thane could hear the slight annoyance in her voice. "Let's go."

They walked together in silence to the taxi Seryna had waiting for them. Thane noted every access and exit point without even thinking. He hardly noticed it himself. Such things were almost as second nature as most would find breathing.

The doors on the taxi hissed as they opened. Each took their seats and waited for the doors to hiss closed again before speaking.

"She's been expecting trouble lately." Seryna said matter-of-factly as she programmed the coordinates into the autopilot.

"She will not know I am coming." Thane replied as he once more clasped his hands and bowed his head, closing his eyes to pray.

Seryna watched him for a moment hiding her surprise and curiosity of this spiritual assassin. The taxi swung into the flow of traffic speeding off towards the towers. She returned her attention to the controls and traffic outside the heavily tented windows. It was only a few moments before the taxi pulled out of the stream line to circle around the towers. The landing gear extended and the thrusters flared as the taxi slowed, approaching the lading pad between the Dantius Towers, one of which was still under construction. Thane opened his eyes and secured his weapons.

"Good hunting." Seryna said, as the taxi settled onto the landing pad.

Thane paused and dipped his head to her in thanks as he exited the transport. His features were locked in seriousness, preparing for his final hit.

"Put one in her for me, Krios." Seryna said with a smirk.

Thane looked up at the unfinished building before turning to Seryna.

"Thank you again, Seryna," Thane paused for a moment, "I appreciate your assistance in this matter."

He finished climbing out of the transport and began walking towards the tower knowing he was likely walking towards his own end. The thought did nothing to change his resolve. He was going to kill Nassana Dantius. He would remove another evil from the galaxy and perhaps improve it by doing so.

Dantius Towers;

Eclipse mercs. He could get past them easily. Gun fire. His heart jumped, but only once. He stayed himself, holding his position in perfect silence. No, not for him. The shots were further behind him, he had not been discovered. Shouting, the boom of a biotic shock wave exploding across the floor. Was there someone else here for Nassana? He must move faster. The noise of the others could be useful in hiding his own sounds of quickened progress. He moved hurriedly into the next ventilation shaft. There was a large fan ahead facing the ground, likely a dead drop beneath it. He must find a way around.

"Did you hear something?"

The radio filtered question echoed in the shafts. Mercs. Thane mentally cursed himself for his carelessness in his haste. Eclipse were near his position. Were they were aware of his presence or did they believe him part of the more destructive party advancing through the tower?

"Hey - I think he went in here." A male voice near the access vent ahead of him.

"Well, go get him." A female voice snapped back.

"You go." Defiance.

"Get your ass in there. Nassana's not paying to stand around." Clearly the female was the ranking member.

"Fine... but I..."

The shaft access vent was removed and a tentative rifle muzzle poked into the darkness. Thane drove forward. The male was human, the female asari. The Trooper met his end at the bottom of the dead drop. The Vanguard found the embrace of the goddess in the darkness of the ventilation shaft, her spine severed at the base of her skull. They did not last more than a few seconds against the drell in his battle sleep. His body was well trained. More gun fire directly below him. The other party was moving fast he must not let them past him.

Thane Krios was nimble and silent as he made his way through the ventilation system. He was unsure how many floors he had scaled but he had not yet reached his goal. That was all that mattered, and now he had competition. He heard gunfire and screaming from the floor he was on and decided to peak through a grate.

Salarian workers were being executed as they ran from LOKI mechs with submachine guns. He had been presented with another opportunity to redeem himself, even along his present task. Amonkira be praised. He would disable the mechs and secure the Salarian safely in the nearby supply closet. He must move quickly.

"Have you seen the assassin?"

A female voice was asking the merc about him. Were the loud ones after him and not Nassana? He must complete his task before that question could be allowed an answer. Moving faster now his breathing came with more difficulty. He pushed on. The next area was a warehouse floor. There was only one Eclipse here. The merc had found some Salarians hiding in a small empty office and was holding them at gun-point, shouting. Thane eased his sniper rifle through a grate, lined up the shot and fired...

The merc's head explodes...

One of the Salarians picks up the merc's pistol...

Penthouse;

The assassin attained his goal at the end of the vent shaft that hung directly above the office where she paced between her commandos. He could hear loud explosions in the direction of the bridge. They were close. He was impressed by their ability to keep on his heels while facing fortified opposition. Thane was preparing to drop down the vent when the door burst open. He froze. No! He had not been quick enough. He whispered an internal curse and watched from the darkness of the ventilation shaft. He wanted to know who these people were and what they wanted. The drell thought his target seemed surprised.

Nassana turned towards the door, away from viewing the slow setting sun of what was possibly her last day in this existence. Three well armed aliens walked through the door, weapons at the ready.

"Shepard? But... your dead." Nassana said this as if she were commanding Shepard to return to the afterlife as her guards raised and armed their weapons against the intruders.

"Shepard?" Thane thought, tense with growing anxiety. Commander Shepard of the Alliance had died. As much as the council had tried to divert attention from the fact, few did not learn of the first human Specter's demise. He couldn't see her from his position, so he just listened.

"I got better." The same female voice that had asked about him earlier, presumably Shepard.

"And now you're here to kill me." Nassana Dantius said sarcastically, placing a hand dramatically on her chest.

"You really are paranoid, aren't you?" Shepard feined concern.

"Don't patronize me, Shepard." Nassana warned, waveing a hand then walked back to the window.

"Charming as ever." Shepard shot back.

It was clear to the Drell that they were at least acquainted at some point in the past.

Nassana scoffed; "I'm sure you find this all very ironic. First you take care of my sister and now you're here for me."

The assassin sat quietly, now even more curious of this Shepard.

"Well, you made it this far. Now what?" Nassana continued. She faced her killers again, her eyes narrowed at Shepard.

"You really think I'm here to kill you?" Shepard asked.

"Do you have another reason for destroying my tower? Decimate my forces?" Nassana seethed.

"I'm just looking for someone." Thane closed his eyes for a moment. Now he knew they were indeed here for him and not Dantius. He opened his eyes.

"You expect me to believe that?" Nassana asked. She was clearly becoming annoyed and even desperate, "Is it credits? Is that what you want? Just tell me your price. We can make this problem go away." Nassana said as she regained her poise, confidence returning to her voice in the security of her wealth.

It was time to move.

There was a rumbling over head in the vents. Shepard looked up and then back to the Asari crossing her arms over her chest and shifting her weight. The assassin was going to strike. This should be a good show.

"All the credits in the world won't make this problem go away, Nassana." Shepard mused.

Nassana was angry now. She walked toward Shepard. Her money meant nothing to this woman. Now it was down to the wire and she had nothing to offer.

"Who the hell gave you the right to play god? I may not be perfect, but look at you! We both kill people for money. What's the difference?" She turned away shaking her head slightly, sounding spiteful and some how sad.

"You kill people because you think they're beneath you, they're in your way. I kill people when they leave me no other choice." Shepard retorted.

Shepard was indignant now. The inflection of her voice reminded Thane of... No, he had to stay focused. He pushed the memory away. He removed his sniper rifle and left it on the shaft floor. He would not need it. He could retrieve it later... if there was a later.

There was another rumbling sound in the ceiling. One of the mercs pointed the muzzle of his gun up an air shaft. The others swept the room with their scopes.

"You have a choice. You don't have to do this," Nassana spoke softly. She sounded hopeful and confident once more,"I can tell you..."

One of the mercs tapped her arm,

"What?" The Asari snapped angrily at the Eclipse commando.

"I heard something..."

"Damn it..." Nassana swore leaning both hands on the console in front of her and pushed off, "Check the other entrances." She commaned pointing the commando to the right and then at Shepard. Now she was loosing her grip on her temper. "You stay put. When I'm finished dealing with this nuance, you and I are going to ... Who...?"

While Nassana was speaking to Shepard a figure dropped out of one of the air shafts behind the furthest merc behind her, effectively snapping his neck before the merc could cry out. Without so much as a blink he jabbed the next merc in the throat internally rupturing his wind pipe, catching the merc's weapon as it fell from his grip. The Asari sent to check the entrances ran up to him pulling up her weapon to shoot. He was faster. Using the gun from the throat punch victim, he shot the commado in the heart. Dropping the used merc's gun, he caught Nassana's pistol in mid air when she dropped it, surprised when she'd turned to see what was happening behind her. He caught her by the neck as he forced the barrel into her ribs.

His movements were quick, precise and graceful. It was a beautiful dance of death and he was the reaper. Nassana was forced to lean over the gun now pressed firmly into her abdomen. She looked up to the face of her attacker, stuned and afraid in her last moments of life. The assassin's hand had slipped from the back of her neck to the area between her shoulder blades. As she stood to defy him he pulled the trigger. Her face cringed as the shot, muffle by her body, promised her death . The assassin cradled her to him. His features were now serene, resting her cheek on his shoulder as if embracing her before he lay her on the console. He positioned her hands over the fatal wound.

Nassana watched him as she lay dieing. She found his face and her gaze did not falter as she heard her own voice fade away. His expression did not change as he carefully laid her across her desk and folded her arms over her mortality. It was done.

Shepard let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. The drell was as sexy and he was lethal. She felt a warmth in her face. She hoped to god no one noticed the light flush in her cheeks, or that they would relate it to the battle.

Thane took no notice of the ones who had come for him. He stepped back, lowered his head and poised his hands in front of him. He began to pray.

"Impressive. You certainly know how to make an entrance." Garrus still had his weapon trained on the Drell, but that didn't mean he couldn't be inspired.

Shepard took a few steps toward the assassin.

"I was hoping to talk to you." Shepard stated. She felt guilty for interrupting his prayer. It seamed rude, but there was precious little time for politeness.

Thane glanced up at Shepard briefly and answered softly, "I apologize, but prayers for the wicked must not be forsaken." He shook his head lightly.

"Do you really think she deserves it?" Shepard asked him. He looked up at her, his brow softly knitted for a moment.

"Not for her. For me." His face took on a sad look and almost hopeful that she would understand. "The measure of an individual can be difficult to discern by actions alone."

Thane traced his hand along the edge of the console remembering the gun fire and explosions, the boom of biotic rumbling through the walls, the mercs he'd killed in the vent shaft by the large fan. He walked around the console toward her.

"Take you, for instance. All this destruction…chaos." He waved a hand in the air. Shepard glanced at the dead Asari on the console. "I was curious to see how far you'd go to find me." He said walking towards her slowly. "Well…here I am." Thane narrowed his eyes at her, waiting to see what she would do, if she would falter. Now that he'd had time to look at her, he found it difficult to scold her. Why should he feel that way? he wondered.

"I do want to talk to you, but how did you know I was here?" Shepard asked.

Thane could see the curiosity in her eyes. He walked forward, towards the door, looking away from her.

"I didn't. Not until you marched in the front door and started shooting. Gunfire and explosions, I prefer to work quietly. If I have to fight my way through guards I've made a mistake. I rarely make mistakes." Thane said, clasping his hands behind his back. Proud. Established.

He stood in front of Garrus' muzzle now, as if daring him to shoot. Garrus held steady.

"Nassana had become paranoid. You saw the strength of her guard force. She believed one of her sisters would kill her." He stated looking back at Shepard over his shoulder. "You were a valuable distraction."

Shepard nodded to Garrus and Jack to put away their guns.

"Let's cut to the chase. I need you for a mission." She said crossing her arms.

"Indeed?"

"You're familiar with the Collectors?" She asked, as he turned to face her.

"By reputation."

"They're abducting entire human colonies. Freedom's Progress was their handiwork." She said.

Thane lowered his head a bit, "I see."

"We're going after them." Shepard stated flatly. The assassin turned sharply to look at her, surprised.

"Attacking the Collectors would require passing through the Omega 4 relay. No ship has ever returned from doing so."

Shepard seemed undaunted. She uncrossed her arms.

"They told me it was impossible to get to Ilos, too." She quipped.

"A fair point. You've built a career on performing the impossible."

Shepard was silently surprised he knew so much about her. Thane turned away to look out the window of the office.

"This was to be my last job." He told her. He closed his large black eyes for a moment. "I'm dying." He confessed, nodding his head slightly in her direction in almost a shrug.

"I hadn't heard that... Is there-anything I can do?" Shepard asked quietly.

"Giving me this opportunity is enough." Thane replied. He paused before continueing, "Low survival odds don't concern me." He looked to her then back to the window. "The abduction of your colonists does."

"Not to sound ungrateful, but why does the abduction of human colonists bother you?"

"Because they are innocent. The universe is a dark place, I'm trying to make it brighter before I die." Thane reflected briefly. "Many innocents died today. I wasn't fast enough and they suffered, I must atone for that." He turned back toward this human female who nearly beat him to his target. "I will work for you Shepard. No charge." He stated this as though it was in question. He couldn't help but notice how the descending sun shone on her freckled face, lighting up her eyes with fire. Perhaps the gods had indeed intervened. Praise Amonkira! The Goddess Arashu be praised!

Shepard took his hand shake as the unwritten sighing of the 'contract'. She smiled, briefly, amused at him as she shifted her weight to her back leg and crossed her arms again. She had a suble realization she had a habit of taking the street thug stance. It was something you learn living around gangs on Earth. Habits are tough to break.