"Plans are fragile things and life often dashes expectations to the ground."

―Kreia, Star Wars Knights of The Old Republic II

April 2, 2172

The sounds of a firefight echoed through the streets. People hurried past avoiding the source of the ruckus like it was the plague. Cries of pain or a gurgle of someone choking on their own blood broke through the gunfire every now and again which were then followed by cocky shouts of victory. All and all, it was another glorious day on the galaxy's most tourist friendly station.

Zaeed moved like a hunter through the streets, leaning forward slightly, steps even and purposeful, muscles pulled taut as if expecting something to pounce. His face was schooled into a permanent scowl that, combined with his broken face, might be considered threatening.

As for me... well, I was good at faking it at this point. Being the menacing mercenary I mean. With shoulders hunched and features blank, I passed through the crowds hoping that I at least looked half as intimidating as Zaeed did. The new heavy armor probably helped with that, even if it did make turning my head a little difficult. Who needed flexibility and speed when you could soak up bullets like a krogan anyways? Not me, that's who.

Some civilians glanced our way and quickly moved out of our path, a testament that we at least didn't look like easy targets. Maybe they saw our weapons and armor and just figured that we weren't worth bothering. Or, considering no sane person would be heading towards the sound of gunfire, they just thought we were crazy. I was thinking it was more the later.

Eventually we stopped just short of the firefight, in an alley connected to the side street in which the bullets were currently flying. Zaeed peered around the corner before shaking his. We were here for really only one reason: To recruit freelancers for our crusade against the Blue Suns. I had suggested to Zaeed that we could enlist the help of Aria or one of the other gangs but he had shot down those ideas real quick. He wanted freelancers and more importantly freelancers that he trusted to some extent. Unfortunately, one such hired gun was currently participating in the brutal and bloody shoot out just a few yards ahead of us.

I pulled a drell woman off the side and into the relative safety of the alley we were using to wait out the danger. A grimace made its way onto my face at the amount of collateral damage being done. Seriously, couldn't these guys use some discretion? People had to live here, y'know. Then I remembered that Zaeed and I would probably cause just as much chaos if not more so maybe I'm a hypocrite.

"You should probably get out of here," I grinned reassuringly at the woman before winking, "Wouldn't want someone as pretty as you getting caught in the crossfire."

She nodded appreciatively and gave a shaky smile before slipping past me. Zaeed watched the exchange while leaning against the opposite wall of the alley, before snorting and shouting over the gunfire, "That bleeding heart of yours is gonna kill us both."

"Says you."

"She just pick pocketed you, jackass."

Eyes widening, my hand went down and sure enough, the pouch on my armor that carried my spare medical supplies felt a lot lighter.

"Son of a bitch." Why was everyone on this freaking station a criminal? Medi-gel wasn't exactly a cheap commodity. Couldn't there, just once, be someone who was an accountant or something? This sucks. I nodded back towards the side street, trying to avoid Zaeed's 'I-fucking-told-you-so' look, "So who is this guy anyways?"

"An old friend."

"And by old friend you mean…?"

"A friend that's not new," Zaeed's insights never ceased to be informative.

Scratching at my nose, I resisted the urge to sigh. Zaeed was always cagey when it came to his past, but it's not like I was the most forthcoming with my own strange origins so I guess that you couldn't fault him for having his secrets. Still, at least I was only a dimension-hopping, pathological liar with everyone's best interests at heart while Zaeed was just a paranoid schizophrenic mercenary hell-bent on revenge. Out of the two of us, I was fairly certain that I was slightly more grounded. "Can I at least get a name?"

The old mercenary smirked just as the gunfire ceased, "Jace Reyn." He took the chance to glance around the corner. I followed a second later, pride still hurt from being so easily pick pocketed. Note to self; quit being a gullible idjit.

The side streets was littered with bodies, most of them armored in black bodysuits with the familiar Eclipse logo decorating their forms. The only person left standing was the young guy, back turned to us as he kneeled down collecting the merc tags off the dead bodies. Whether this was part of his contract or he just liked collecting souvenirs like Zaeed sometimes did, I had no idea. Probably best if I never knew; we mercenary types tended to be a bunch of particularly eccentric sons of bitches. His armor was a dark orange that made me think of a traffic cone and had me wondering how the Eclipse could have missed him in that get up.

The man swept around to point the rifle at us as we emerged from the alley. Zaeed easily sidestepped the barrel before he had it leveled while I raised my hands in surrender.

"Whoa there, stud," I tried for a disarming smile but probably only looked more like an idiot, "Let's not do something we'd regret here."

Zaeed growled stepping between me and the barrel, "Put that thing down, Reyn. Before I beat your teeth into your liver."

"Zaeed?" To his credit, the young man, (apparently this was Jace Reyn) blinked, slightly startled and bewildered before a sheepish grin spread across his face. He rested his rifle across his shoulders and rubbed the back of his neck in chagrin. "Heh, sorry about that, but can you blame? I mean, it's been years, boss man. Would it kill you to pick up a communicator?" He talked with a light Louisiana drawl that could almost be considered charming.

"I've been busy." Zaeed answered in his usual gruff tone. Mercenaries tended not to communicate well, especially with each other. And not just because we were antisocial jerks, though that was one of the reasons. It was just in case there was someone smart enough that could track you through your omni-tool. That's why Zaeed always had me carry around two; one disposable to call in contracts and one personal that I should always keep on me and never let anyone have the number. I used to think he was just being unnecessarily paranoid again, but then I remembered how I tracked Mrs. Shepard's omni-tool back on Mindoir and decided that maybe there was some merit to the old man's madness.

"With drowning yourself in a bottle maybe." The younger man rolled his eyes. Yeah, that sounded like Zaeed. In his defense, he didn't get drunk before jobs nearly as much since he and I started working together.

"Since when has a little liquor ever hurt anybody?" I shrugged my shoulders, attempting to defend Zaeed's unhealthy habits.

Jace turned to me, sizing me up for the first time, "Hey, don't think I caught your name there stranger." He gave me a smirk and held out his hand. The man had bright blond hair and a boyish face that made it hard to predict his age. If I had to guess, I'd say he was somewhere in his twenties, making him only a few years older than myself.

My eyebrows arched before I took his hand. Well, he's surprisingly friendly for someone who a second earlier had been ready to make me into swiss cheese. "Matt Carter."

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance. Are you and Zaeed working together on a job?"

I glanced back at Zaeed, "Yeah, something like that. We're kind of a team."

Jace let out a sudden and unexpected chuckle, "Ha, yeah sure." Then he saw our blank expressions and the humor faded from his face. "Wait, you're actually serious?"

"Oh we're the best damn friends," Zaeed interjected with a shit eating grin directed towards me. "Besties actually. We're getting friendship bracelets next damn week."

"What's so hard to believe that we're partners?" I crossed my arms out in front of me.

"Well, it's just that boss man's not known for his benevolent nature." A look flashed over the younger mercenary's face but it was gone before I could figure out what it might have meant.

"You think I'm some kinda charity case?" That's a real dick move.

The younger mercenary shrugged, unrepentant. Apparently that was exactly what he meant. "Well I-"

"You two are adorable." Zaeed interrupted, heading off the mounting argument, "Now if you chuckleheads are done bickering, we can get on with the reason we're here."

I glanced down at the ground with a sour taste in my mouth and noticed Jace mirror my expression. It was never a good sign when Zaeed had to scold you. I thought it better to ignore the blond for the rest of the meeting and had the impression he had chosen to do the same with me. Guy was an ass.

"We've got a job," the old mercenary continued, tossing a data pad at the younger man and crossing his arms in front of his chest. Jace caught it with his free hand and looked over the contents. "Thought you'd be interested."

The younger man took a moment to read over the tablet. His eyes widened slightly and he gave a low whistle, slinging his rifle across his shoulder and fixing Zaeed with hesitance, "So you're serious about this, Zaeed?"

"No, I'm fucking joking."

Jace ignored the cynicism, (I had the feeling he was used to it) scratching at his close-cropped blond hair, "It's only been a few years, boss. Don't you think you need to ease yourself back into the game?"

"Five years, Reyn," Zaeed stepped forward, not really in a threatening manner more in a commanding way that demanded respect. I really wish that he would teach me how to do that. "Believe me, I'm back in the game."

Jace was smart (for first time in this entire conversation) and let the topic drop. Good thing too. By now, I knew better then to question Zaeed's skill or mention Vido in any of our usual insulting banter. He tended to get prickly around those subjects. Last time we were on Omega, a vorcha had insulted him by saying he wouldn't hire Zaeed to clean vermin out of trash block. That vorcha unfortunately met with a horrible accident in trash compactor. It had been absolutely horrifying but also morbidly fascinating to watch. Kinda like a train wreck.

See, after Vido shot him, Zaeed had some trouble getting back on his feet. Understandable considering his 'advanced' age. The old mercenary spent most of the following years drowning himself in the bottle or on some shit contract job. In the business, he was considered a washed up bastard. They didn't know what I know. That he would one day be responsible for taking down entire military frigates not just good at clearing two-bit slaving vessels and bodyguard duty.

That was probably the reason Zaeed had jumped on my plan so quickly. Mercenary work was all about reputation and who you knew. Zaeed lost more than just his eye after Vido betrayed him. It cost him his credibility as a mercenary. For independent contractors that was the worst thing that could possibly happen. People talk and word gets around, it's a lot like being blacklisted.

Yeah, bad right? I didn't know you could die twice. Apparently, for mercenaries, you can.

It didn't bother me too much. It just meant that we couldn't be too picky with what contracts we took. A lot of the ones we've done so far were high risk low pay operations. Many left a bad taste in my mouth but like I said, it's the life I chose and we were getting by so there was no point it complaining. Even if most of our nights were spent in shitty motel rooms.

Besides, that was all about to end. Once Zaeed was running the Blue Suns again, he'd have his reputation as a mercenary restored and everyone else would realize what I already knew; the old hired gun was not the type of guy you should count out.

"Where'd you get this info, if you don't mind me asking? Last I checked, none of our old contacts can get ahold of this kind of dirt."

Zaeed jerked his head back towards me, "That's where he comes in. Boy came to me with the intel. We've got a deal worked out."

Jace looked me over, for once his expression serious. "Can we trust him, Zaeed?"

"I'm plenty trustworthy, thanks for asking." I waved a hand. What was with people and ignoring me like a slab of unwanted leftover turkey dinner? Ignoring me was really the best way of pissing me off.

"But I don't know you," He gave me a searching glare, "Sorry if I'm not taking your word for it." Jace stated crossing his arms to mirror Zaeed's own posture. "This could all be some elaborate trap, boss man."

What? What did he mean by trap? Did he really think I was hired by Vido or someone else that might have had a grudge against Zaeed? As if I was that clever. Whatever, he could think what he wanted. Like I needed his freaking approval. "Oh, bite me."

"It's the Terminus," Jace stated with an apologetic shrug, "You learn real quick like that not everyone wears their hearts on their sleeves."

Zaeed snorted glancing from Jace then back to me with an expression that wasn't quite a frown on his scarred face. He replied with steel grit in his voice, "Let me worry about the maggot. As for the intel, I've checked and it's good."

I couldn't help the small thrill of triumph at Zaeed words. But that was immediately replaced by guilt 'cause Jace was right (sort of). I was only doing any of this so I could get access to the slave trade the Blue Suns had been running. So I could fulfill my own promises to Jane. So I guess that made me a manipulative lying bastard, huh?

Jace sighed, "There's no talking you out of it?"

"Not a goddamned chance."

Be like trying to talk a dog out of chasing his own tail. Heh, yeah that sounds like a good comparison.

Jace's features shifted into a begrudging grin, "Oh what the hell? Bessie and I have nothing better to do, if you'll have us we'll help."

"Bessie?" I raised an eyebrow at the name. Who was Bessie?

"Yep," he brought out the rifle once more with pride shining in his eyes, "M8-Avenger series. Pimped out with about every mod you can get and some you can't. She's my pride and joy." He turned to grin at Zaeed and gave him the thumbs up, "I call her Bessie."

I couldn't help but turn to Zaeed and mouth the word 'Bessie?'. That sounded suspiciously like Jessie. Zaeed gave me a glare that warned me to drop the subject. That's when I realized it. There was no way in hell I was letting this golden opportunity slip away 'cause holy crap, Jace Reyn was a fan boy. Zaeed had a fan club. That's hilarious. Guess who was filing that little tidbit of information gold away for future reference. Maybe I had been a little too quick to judge; this Jace guy was alright.

"Sure you and Bessie can tag along." I answered him, good humor returning. "The more the merrier, right?"

"Meeting place is the last entry in the data pad." Zaeed leaned forward, holding out his hand. "Discretion is damned important right now, Jace."

The blond head of hair bobbed up and down, nodding earnestly in understanding and accepting the handshake, "Don't need to tell me twice, boss man. And much obliged for the work. Be nice to fight with a professional again." He gestured absentmindedly around him, "Just let me finish up here."

Zaeed turned and left without another word. Jace shot me a look of flat out suspicion while I shrugged a shoulder before turning and following after the older mercenary. What's his problem? I guess you couldn't really fault Jace for not trusting me. It's taken half a year of working and living with Zaeed just to get him to trust me to patch up his wounds after firefights.

Still, the whole 'charity case' thing didn't sit well with me. I didn't like when people thought that I needed a freaking hand out. That sort of crap got me pissed. It's not like I haven't worked to get here and Zaeed didn't pull any punches when on the job. He wasn't the coddling type of teacher.

"Well," I caught up to the old mercenary, matching his strides. "He's interesting." I'm not quite sure how I felt about Zaeed's old friend. I guess he wasn't a complete douchewad compared to some of the other mercenaries we've met. Hard to get a read on someone's character after only meeting them once. Jace struck me as a less worldly or violent Zaeed, but who knows.

"That's a way to put it," Zaeed groused. "Jace is probably my biggest fan, whether I like it or not. He's an inexperienced kid, but is as strong as a varren and twice as loyal. He was with me when shit went down. Only Blue Sun that stuck around after Vido got the balls to try and gank yours truly."

"Sounds like a real stand up guy." I stated with just a hint of sarcasm.

"I'm surprised you two didn't hit it off as soon as you met. Considering you're practically the same person."

"What are you talking about? I'm nothing like that dick."

Zaeed sent me a wide smirk, and began counting on his fingers, "Let's see you're both smart asses, both inexperienced kids, and both annoying. I think that's enough similarities."

I racked my brain for a good comeback before chuckling, "Heh, I'm sorry Zaeed you never told me you had fans."

All I got in return was a painful smack on the back of the head.

The dark places of Omega scared the shit out of me. That was the conclusion I had come to after spending the better part of the night cycle wandering through condemned building complexes. The flashlight mounted on the shoulder plate of my armor did very little to illuminate the darkness around us.

The stairways creaked under our boots, disrupting our usual intelligent and engaging banter.

"You always take us to the nicest places, old man."

"Feeling a bit nervous there, boy?" Zaeed gave me a wicked grin.

"I'm just saying that in terms of creepy abandoned buildings, this is definitely one of the better ones we've broken into." I tried for a smile while shuffling around the corner and looking down my shotgun sights. We weren't really expecting an ambush, but smugglers sometimes used these types of places as their base of operations and it was never a good idea to surprise a smuggler.

"Go wait in the skycar if you're gonna be a pansy."

"What kind of partner would I be if I did that?" I muttered, peering down pitch black hallways with slight trepidation. "Besides your sense of direction is worse than mine. You'd be lost without me."

Zaeed snorted and patted the side of his rifle as the beam of his own flashlight arced down the halls, "I got Jessie."

"Can Jessie watch your back? No, she's a rifle." I spared him an amused glance in his direction and already felt a little more at ease, "You and the gun have a very unhealthy relationship, I feel like you should know that. It's borderline psychotic."

He gave a chuckle, "Says the boy who can't shoot for shit."

Dick, he knew that I had gotten better with my aim.

Emerging from the building and onto the roof, the sight that greeted us shook me to the core. I just hadn't been prepared for it. You always knew that Omega was big, practically its own planet, with its own seedy culture and dark past.

But this… nothing could prepare you for the actual sight.

It was like something out of Blade Runner, if Blade Runner had a billion dollar budget. The city scape stretched out before the walkway, bright, multicolored lights shone through the dark atmosphere. Skycars raced overhead, just neon streaks of color on the dreary backdrop. The skyscrapers tilted every which way, haphazardly bending for the stations older mining structures. And this was only one district. Sometimes, Omega could make even the biggest and strongest krogan and crime lord feel small. Insignificant.

Then I saw it all taken over by Cerberus. Wasted by Reapers. The people cowering in their homes while Centurions and adjutants prowled the streets like animals.

I looked down trying to distract myself from the thought only to see a rally taking place in the square below with a turian pacing back and forth on the stage, shouting something I couldn't make out. Probably a big wig gangster trying to garner support to start his own group. Mostly, I tended to ignore the inner workings of Omega's faux politics. The guy would probably be dead within a day. Poor sap wouldn't even live to see the Saren wreck avow on the galaxy. That's what happened to you when you threatened the status quo on the crime filled station.

Shaking my head, I tried to get rid of the pessimistic thoughts. Man, I really needed to stop being such a joy kill.

"Goddamn, maggot." Came Zaeed's annoyed growl. I looked over to see him heading towards the adjacent building using a series of walkways. "At least try to fucking keep up."

"Sorry," I nodded turning away from the sight, "But you can't deny that view."

"Yeah, I know." His words surprised me, and I looked up to see his back still turned to me, gripping the walkway railing and using his foot to test the next platform. "Don't be fooled by the glitz and glamour, boy." He kicked at a relatively stable looking platform and it immediately groaned and collapsed, falling away into the depths of the station. "Omega may look all pretty from here, but if you don't watch what's right in front of your goddamned face, you'll fall and splatter your guts across the ground. Leaving one helluva mess for some poor bastard to clean up."

My gaze went out to the city once more as I followed him, "I bet you're a riot at parties."

"And I bet, if you don't hurry your ass up, you're gonna get shot. By me." He smirked before calling over his shoulder, "Now quit sightseeing and-"

My boot landed heavily and went straight through the metal like it was plastic wrap. With added weight of the new armor pulling me down, I nearly followed with it. Zaeed grabbed ahold of the back of my armor before I could take the plunge.

"Watch your fucking step." He finished with a growl. "Christ, what did we just talk about? I'm not gonna be the sorry sod that cleans your guts up from the pavement, ya hear?"

"Damn." I let out a heavy breath and tried not to contemplate how far down that was. It's not my fault these walkways are shit. "Thanks," I muttered. He just grunted, pulling me upright and continuing on.

Soon the old mercenary and I began climbing up the last set of stairs, the incident behind us.

"Who are we looking for all the way up here, anyways? Another old friend?"

"Something like that." he replied, his face pulling into a grimace, "It's Tristana."

"Tristana?" A hand went up to rub at my temples, now understanding why he didn't say anything earlier. "Crap."

"I don't bloody see why you're whining." Zaeed twisted around to fix me with a devilish grin. "It's my guts the cold bitch hates."

That's bullshit. The bitch hates me just as much as him if not more. "What are the chances of her actually helping us? I mean, she isn't exactly the friendliest chick."

Zaeed scratched at his jaw before turning back on the path, "Tristana ain't that horrible."

"She shot me." Right in the fucking shoulder too. I don't care if I had been in the way of the bounty, that's no excuse. You don't just shoot someone it's down right uncivil.

"She shot through you," He corrected with a smug look before patting me on my shoulder and turning back around. "Get over it. And try not to piss her off, all right maggot?"

My eyebrows drawing down as a humorless smirk crossed my features. Like he needed to warn me. Even a dimwit like myself knew better than to poke a sleeping bear twice. That would be just asking for trouble.

"Think she'll be in a good mood?"

"What? You think our luck is gonna turn around now?"

No, but I might as well try and think positive.

We stepped out onto the top of the adjacent building. It took me a moment to orientate myself with my surroundings. And it's then that the noise hit me, or rather didn't hit me. Up here, way above the streets and away from the traffic lanes, the world was dead silent. The only sound was the slight clink our armor made as we walked forward. I had gotten so used to the city sounds of Omega's pulsing night life, but there was nothing up here. No faint sounds of a firefight, not even the hiss of old pipes or humming of ancient air ducts. The entire rooftop felt displaced from the rest of galaxy.

If Zaeed was weirded out by the sudden silence, he didn't show it. Zaeed didn't get unnerved by a lot. Sitting at the very far edge of the structure was a dark shape. It took my eyes a second to recognize the shape as an asari with dark azure skin. She was kneeling down on the ledge, peering down the sights of a sniper rifle. This time as we walked up to her, I kept a respectful distance just in case she happened to have as itchy a trigger finger as last time.

"Massani. Massani's shadow," the silky smooth voice sounded in answer to our appearance, not taking her eyes off the scope and making me wonder how she knew it was us. Her voice seemed to carry that mystic quality that Samara's had in the games. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

The ex-justicar turned freelance assassin was covered in shadows, hiding her from sight. This was Tristana, or as Zaeed called her, 'stone-cold bitch'. Besides that and what Zaeed told me, I didn't know much about her. We had only worked with her once and it had just been a minor job, not worth mentioning now. The ex-justicar turned freelance assassin was clad in a tight form-fitting black light armor so as not to obstruct her use of biotics or fighting style. It also made her an extremely attractive individual. I knew better now, though. Tristana may look pretty but she was an unfeeling, calculating she-beast that could snap me like a twig with a flick of her finger. Not to mention she was currently one of the highest paid snipers in the business.

"Never mind the fancy talk. Got a job." Zaeed stated just as eloquently as your average Neanderthal.

Tristana took the moment to pull away from her scope and give us a blank stare before dropping any pretense of civility. "I'm in the middle of something, you son of a bitch. This better be important," the asari hummed, sounding slightly annoyed. She rolled her neck before returning to the scope. I looked back down at the square and the rally going on below. Oh that poor fuck.

"It's a helluva plan." Zaeed continued, either pretending not to have heard her or just not caring that we might have a nuisance. "But the short version is; we're shoving Vido out an airlock."

"Of course you are." Tristana adjusted the scope, not sounding the least bit surprised. "And I suppose he's dragging you along with him?"

It took a sec for me to realize who the question was directed towards, but Zaeed answered for me, "He helped plan it."

"Then you're both remarkably stupid." Perfect, she was in a good mood today. I was worried. "This doesn't sound like the kind of thing you walk away from."

"It's not," the old mercenary continued. I could tell that he was trying to be patient, but Zaeed was a man of action and all this talking and negotiating wasn't in his nature. "You make it through to the end, you run like hell. Big payout but you'll be earning every credit."

The assassin scoffed, "Don't try and sweet talk me, Massani. You have neither the credits nor the clout to back it up."

I decided to intervene before Zaeed got more impatient. He already looked pissed enough to shoot someone. Knowing my luck, that someone would probably be Tristana and that'd only get her pissed too.

"If we take back control of the Blue Suns, he can pay you with their-"

BANG! The muzzle of Tristana's sniper rifle flashed, briefly lighting up the darkness around us and filling the oppressive silence with the crack of the shot. It also revealed her regal visage, illuminating the gray face markings that framed her face and the scar that ran from above her left eye and ended in the middle of her cheek. The man standing on the platform down in the square dropped like a rock. Pandemonium erupted and I wondered how similar they must look to ants.

She raised her gaze from the sniper rifle and let out a heavy breath. The ex-justicar stored the sniper rifle across her back and stood to regard me with an unreadable stare. Her gaze was piercing, it didn't really feel like she was looking at me. More like she was staring right past me. I didn't like the feeling.

"You said nothing about taking back the Blue Suns from Vido." She turned her amethyst gaze to Zaeed, "I wasn't aware you cared about being a leader anymore. To my understanding, you're a washed up has been."

Zaeed leaned onto his back foot and crossed his arms, meeting her calculating gaze with his own mismatched glare "Stick around, I'm fucking full of surprises."

"The Blue Suns will send everything they've got after you."

"We'll send it right back."

The impromptu staring contest ensued for a couple more seconds and I couldn't tell whether the two wanted to fuck or kill each other. It might have been some sort of asari nonverbal, telepathic communication? Or maybe I was confusing porn with reality again. Damn Fornax. And damn Zaeed for setting up that subscription, still needed to get him back for that.

Finally, Tristana narrowed her gaze, "Very well. If you are set on your current path then you better follow through with those credits."

Zaeed grinned and held out a data pad, which she took as she pushed past us, dropping the temperature at least ten degrees with her presence. I watched her receding form as she disappeared down the steps of the walkways. My god, she's awesome if only a bit terrifying. Then, turning to the old mercenary, I arched an eyebrow in question, "Dude."

Massani answered, a careful expression of genuine confusion covering his face, but I knew him well enough to know that it was bullshit, "You got something to say then say it."

My face drew in confusion, attempting to figure out what may have just happened, "Were you- What was that?"

"What?" Zaeed grunted again, and I had the distinct feeling that he was fucking with me on some messed level.

I have no idea what just transpired and, y'know what? Maybe it's best if I just let it go. I'll file it away under the rest of things that don't make much sense about this galaxy. "Never mind," At least she didn't shoot me this time. "I don't get her. She scares the crap out of me."

Zaeed shrugged but I could swear I saw a smirk on his face as we turned to walk off the roof. "Never try and understand women, boy. Women understand women and they hate each other."

That made a disturbing amount of sense, though slightly misogynistic.

"I guess asking if you trusted her would be a stupid question, huh?"

"Damn sure it wouldn't be a shining moment for you, no."

Glad I didn't ask. "Y'know, you got to trust somebody to some degree eventually."

"Last time I did that, I got shot in the face," He deadpans.

I don't really know what to say to that so instead I let him take the lead before falling into step.

"Well, aren't you just two tons of fun tonight."

"'Course I am. I'm a Goddamn riot."

April 9, 2172

Zaeed was right about this being a 'helluva' plan. He and I had to go through the whole thing weeks in advance and even had to complete a few small 'errands' for associates of the Shadow Broker to fill in any information gaps we had. It wasn't perfect; Zaeed and I weren't exactly master strategists. But we were ready now, or at least as prepared as we'd ever be.

The first phase of the plan involved kidnapping Maska Oran. We didn't have a lot of room for error here. This had to go down without a hitch 'cause the volus banker, while only a middleman, was still on the Blue Suns protection role. Which means that people might notice if he suddenly went missing. That left us only one real option; get him alone, leave no one behind to report to the higher ups, and break him quick enough so no one would be looking for the poor bastard. Tristana and I would be taking care of the kidnapping business while Zaeed and Jace dealt with Oran's guard. And (not to be racist but) volus tended to be sort of spineless when it came to violence. It wasn't always true, but in my experience the stereotype tended to hold. Persuading him to help shouldn't be too hard.

Like I said, it wasn't perfect, but it was a straightforward enough. As Zaeed says, 'Where strength fails, stealth and simplicity do just fine'. Better than our usual strategy of 'Don't die'.

That's what led us to Illium. Maska Oran had a couple business deals going on there. Perfect time for a kidnapping.

The planets sun hung high in the sky, giving a muggy quality to the air. The upper class seemed to ooze from everywhere at once, blocking the walkways and filling the restaurants and market places with their auras of self-importance. The sound of chatter and drunken laughter was near constant and set my nerves on edge. And here I was without a scrap of armor on.

As you can probably guess, I was about as out of place as charging bull in a china shop.

"Relax," Tristana hissed through my ear piece as I pushed around the crowds with muttered apologies. The volus and his guard were only several yards away, but in these densely populated streets it was struggle to keep them in sight while remaining inconspicuous. "Stop fidgeting. If you act like you belong here then no one will look twice at you."

"Easy for you to say." I tugged at the collar of my dark blue button-up shirt and tried to blend in despite my obviously out of date clothing. This was such crap. Why'd Jace and Zaeed get to wear their armor while I had to go in unarmed? "You get to sit up in your little hidey hole while I have to do all the grunt work."

There was a slight sigh of disapproval mixed with frustration followed by, "He's moving." I looked up to see she was right. Dammit, needed to stay focused. Couldn't get distracted.

I nearly lost him in the market district, but found him again by the stall. Tristana helped with her vantage point observations whenever he was getting to far away. I attempted to make small talk, but it really wasn't my strong suit so we spent a lot of the time in silence. Eventually he stopped to have lunch at an outside cafe with one of his clients.

It was just Tristana and I and the game of waiting for Zaeed to give us the all clear that the ambush was set up for the guards.

A cute turian waitress came by, "Hey there. What can I get for you?"

"Hey yourself," I relaxed slightly at her congenial smile. "I don't suppose you have any pie?"

A moment later, I was shoveling down a tasty slice of heaven that was made out of some type of Thessian berry that I couldn't pronounce the name of.

"So…" I started around a mouthful of deliciousness as I scanned the cafe. Oran and his client appeared to be in the middle of a very heated discussion. We could be here awhile, might as well make myself comfortable and do a bit of information gathering. "You and Zaeed have worked together before?"

I heard the annoyance in her voice when she answered, as if my very presence were an affront to her lifestyle as she answered, "Yes."

"You want to elaborate?"

"No."

"Well aren't you a regular Chatty Kathy?"

"I can snuff you out with my mind."

"What you don't want to talk anymore? And here I thought we were getting along so well." I snorted, "I was about to ask you out for candlelit dinner, maybe a romantic stroll on the beach."

Deathly silence greeted me and I probably should have taken that as a sign to stop, but my mouth kept running despite my brain telling me to shut the fuck up. "Maybe next weekend you can meet my parents."

Tristana made a growling sound, soft and cautioning, and I felt a chill run across my spine. It literally felt like she was lining me up in the sights of her scope.

"Incredible," she stated simply. "The depths you're willing to go in your scorn. It would be admirable if it weren't so disappointing. Mind yourself, Zaeed's shadow. Strength and bravado only get you so far and life is more about learning when not to overplay a hand."

"Bite me."

"I will shoot you again," she finally warned.

"Sorry, it's cool. I'm done." Even I knew when the joke was over.

"Good. Now stop touching your earpiece, it makes you look like a spy."

"Sorry," My hand instantly dropped from my ear. I must have looked crazy to anyone passing by, talking to empty air. Well, couldn't say my interest wasn't piqued and I wasn't about to stop on account of looking a bit strange. "It's just... What was he like? I can't even imagine him with two good eyes let alone a social life." Then again, I hadn't exactly made a whole lot of friends on the jobs Zaeed and I have gone on so far. This was probably the most interaction I've ever had with another mercenary outside of battle, drunken brawls and flirting in bars being the exceptions.

"What is it you wish to know?" The asari questioned, and I imagined her raising a proverbial eyebrow (did asari have eyebrows?).

I leaned back in my seat and asked only half-jokingly, "I don't know. Was he always this much of a prickly old drunk?"

There was a slight pause before she answered, "No, the trust issues and drinking only came about after Vido shot him." My eyebrows raised further and she must have recognized my disbelief because she continued, "You don't believe me."

I shrugged, "Just hard to think of him as being any different than he is now." Zaeed doesn't strike me as the type of person that would change easily. He was just… himself. It was actually kinda weird, knowing him outside the game. He wasn't exactly who I thought he would be but despite his tendency to be a dick, Zaeed was still someone I would consider a friend. Didn't have many of those in this galaxy.

I turned my attention back to my pie and dug in. It tasted kinda like blueberry.

"Now I believe it is my turn to ask a question." Tristana informed.

That threw me for a loop and caused me to slow in the munching of pie. What could she want to know about me? "Go ahead, I got nothing to hide."

"Everyone's got something to hide." Tristana said without even pausing, the mystic quality of her voice throwing me for a loop and she continued before I could think of a good response. "When is it you plan to ditch Zaeed Massani?"

"What?" That was the best response I could come up with at the moment. My brain was still trying to catch up with her reasoning, "Hold up there, beautiful. What was the question?"

Her voice adopted a light tone to it, almost bored, "Take some advice: After this whole thing is over, do yourself a favor and get away from the self-destructive mercenary. Zaeed only cares about his own goals of revenge."

A frown crossed my features, "Yeah, well, he and I are kinda a team. We're like Starsky and Hutch. Or Tango and Cash. Only instead of fighting crime, we kill people. It's a great time." I'm sure both references went right over her head, but that's not the point. The point was, Zaeed was a friend. An asshole sure, but he was still my sort of mentor. I wouldn't have gotten as far as I have without him. Sure, we may bicker and get on each other's nerves but that's what friends were for.

"Unnecessarily violent and a mistrustful drunk? A smart man would never had befriended him in the first place."

"Then it's a good thing I'm none too bright." I snorted, hoping that my response would end this topic.

Of course it didn't.

Her answer came out with no small amount of disinterest, "Indeed. Everyone in this galaxy is out for themselves and securing your own future should take priority."

"That's a little cynical, don't you think?" I didn't want to have this talk, least of all with this cold bitch. May have gotten a bit more than I bargained for when I started this game of questions. And since when did the Tristana decide to dispense with all this righteous crap? Mercenaries, especially freelancers like us, tended to not give a shit about each other. "What's with the words of wisdom all of a sudden anyway? You decide to take up a side job as a fortune cookie writer or something?"

"Out of professional courtesy, I suppose," she mummers over the comm. "It is inevitability that you will die, either by association or through his actions I do not know which."

"And you just already know all of this because you can see the future, huh?" I bit out angrily. "Yeah, right."

"I know because betrayal and revenge are a never-ending cycle in Zaeed's little world. He proves that even now by hunting Vido. Tell me, how long do you think it will take for him to turn on you?"

"That ain't gonna happen," I growled.

"Zaeed's track record seems to illustrate the contrary."

"Shut up," I grit out between clenched teeth. I hadn't even realized my fists had been clenched until the fork in my hand had started to bend. Zaeed wasn't a mad dog. People needed to stop treating him like one. The old man was just good at getting the job done and if that made him ruthless then so what? It was his-our job to be mercenaries, not philanthropists.

"I apologize. Did you not wish to talk anymore?" Tristana mocked in an emotionless voice, "I thought we were cooperating fantastically. I almost felt something."

Now she's just being a bitch. And maybe, if I was being honest, her words and the mystic quality to her tone left me a little creeped out. Not that I would show it. "Damn, would you just shut your cake hole already? All that doom and gloom is such a drag. Having a little faith in people isn't such a bad thing."

"Amazing, that may be the stupidest thing I've ever heard," she admonished lightly, her voice still carrying an air of superiority that was getting on my nerves. "It isn't a question of faith. I wonder why Zaeed even wastes his camaraderie on someone as foolishly naive as you?"

"Screw you." A hand ran over my jaw. That was such a weak comeback, I could do better.

The cute waitress from earlier passed by my table and gave me a strange look as I continued arguing with empty air. And now she probably thought I was a freak. Great.

"I would hope that Massani taught you better," Her self-assured tone left little room for protests.

Note to self; avoid future conversation with Tristana at all costs.

My omni-tool suddenly flashed to life, a message from Zaeed on the display. "We've got the go ahead," I stated plainly, happy for the distraction. That whole conversation had been a little too dreary for my taste.

"He is exiting the cafe," I looked up to see she was right. "If we are we're waiting for the opportune moment I believe this is it."

I nodded before completely turning off the comm and dialing Oran's contact info on my omni-tool communicator and then another number. The other number was an old contact that Zaeed knew Vido used to have. Vido Santiago had ditched the contact years ago, around the time he betrayed Zaeed, but it was still usable. Especially for our purposes of disguising who was actually calling. (Funny enough, I had found Oran's number on the extranet. He really should be more careful with that type of information, there's no telling what sort of freaks may be on the extranet).

I took a moment to route the phone call through the earpiece and watched as an orange hologram flashed across the volus' forearm. He took one glance at the caller ID before ushering his guards away to speak in private. I couldn't help but smirk, "Maska Oran of the Vol clan speaking. How may I assist you, Mr. Santiago?"

"Hey Oran, how was lunch?"

There was a moment of hesitation, "You're not-"

"Good, huh? Did you try the pie? It was awesome."

"Who is this?" The volus demanded sounding just a bit nervous.

"The handsome human in the outdated clothing at you're 1 o'clock."

The volus turned to his left and I resisted the urge to throw something at him, "You're other 1 o'clock."

He twisted around and I caught his gaze before waving. "Great job. Now turn back to your right and take the street down to the parking garage. There's a beat up old skycar in the second parking space of the first level. Get in it, we're going for a ride."

"Why should I follow you?" Came the volus' slightly frightened yet defiant voice. Well, you had to give him points for bravery if not brains.

"'Cause I bet you're a decent looking guy under that bodysuit." A red dot appeared dead center between Oran's eyes. This was more for intimidation purposes than anything else, Tristana could have killed him just as easily without the red dot attachment, but half of the mercenary game is using fear as a weapon. Zaeed taught me that. "And I'd hate to see a handsome devil like you get your head shot off."

Yep, Massani was definitely rubbing off on me.

Several minutes later, we had the skycar parked on the roof of a building and Tristana dragged the volus from the back seat none to gently. She threw him onto the ground while I exited out my own side of the car. Time for a little interrogation. This would have been a lot easier if I had been wearing my heavy armor, but beggars can't be choosers. I marched forward and grabbed the volus by the front of his body suit, setting him back on his feet.

"What is it you want?" Oran demanded in a tone that made it seem like he was in complete control of the situation. Once again you had to give him credit for bravery. I stepped forward and he stepped back, bringing him closer to the edge. "Whatever you're being paid, I can triple easily. Tell me who hired you and we can work something out."

"Your client, Vido Santiago, arrange a meeting with him at this location." I handed him a piece of paper with the written address Zaeed and I had agreed upon for the ambush point.

The volus took one look at the paper before crumpling it in his hand, "I'm afraid I can't do that. My clients security and well being is nonnegotiable."

My eyebrows arched and I nodded, "Alrighty then." I stepped aside while Tristana moved forward, causing the volus to take another step back.

Oran turned his head over his shoulder, measuring the distance between himself and a messy death, "I'm just a banker. What makes you think Vido would even listen to me?"

Tristana didn't answer as a blue aura rose around her. She raised her hand and suddenly, there was a flash of light and the volus went right over the edge. I watched him fall a short distance and felt a brief flash of crippling guilt, but I crushed it fast enough. He wasn't actually in any danger. Not really.

The asari assassin leaned forward, still watching the man fall, a calculating light in her amethyst eyes. I glanced at her expectantly and coughed.

She turned a blank stare on me, "What?"

I attempted to fix her with my best glare and she huffed in response, bringing her hand back up and closing her eyes as the cerulean field materialized around her once more. Almost a full minute later, the volus came floating lazily back up, no worse for wear. She dropped him right in front of us.

"Now," I kneeled down to his height with a smirk that I wish I had more confidence in. "How about that meeting with Vido?"

Maska Oran was fairly cooperative after that.

April 10, 2172

Our beat up skycar pulled up to the curb of the construction sight. The engine purred quietly. Broken lights flickered above as the taped off area surrounded us on either side. The steel skeleton of the unfinished construction site remained deserted, no surprise considering the time. This late at night, very few dared venture outside their apartments. Well, at least the sane ones, The. All the worst kinds of things happened right around now.

I bit into the ration bar and nearly spit it right back out. "Seriously old man, these taste like ass."

Zaeed grunted, uncaring. "If I so much as see a crumb on the dashboard, I'm skipping rope with your entrails."

Oh C'mon! He was still hung up on that? "It was one time."

"Took me weeks to get the smell of that coffee out of the upholstery." He muttered.

Probably best if we just abandoned this line of conversation. "So," I took another bite and attempted to talk around the mouthful of cherry flavored plastic. "We good to go?"

"Not yet."

"What's taking so long, anyhow?" I asked.

"Jace will give the signal when he's ready," the old merc growled, rubbing at the gray stubble collecting across his jaw. "How's the twitchy little bastard looking?"

Twisting around to look into the back seat, my gaze met with the terrified look of the volus. Or at least, I assumed he was terrified, it was hard to tell with that suit covering 100% of his face. His hands were wrapped in duct tape and his omni-tool had been confiscated the moment after he had arranged a meeting with Vido. I continued chewing.

"Great." I quipped sarcastically before deciding to use the joke I had been thinking about since the moment we kidnapped the poor fuck. "You might even say he's… captorvating."

Zaeed didn't even look at me when he cuffed me across the back of the head.

"Ow! What hell?"

"The next godforsaken joke you make about kidnapping, I'm force feeding you a grenade."

He's just jealous he didn't think of it first. It's quite the burden being this freaking hilarious all the time.

"You two Earth clan thugs have no idea who you're crossing," Oran wheezed through his suit. "I am a very important man and have some very important clients that will leave you unrecognizable and in a morgue."

"Oh hell," Zaeed said with faux seriousness. "You hear that, maggot? He's got important friends that could kill us."

I picked up on his game and replied just as grimly. "Oh man, people trying to kill us? That's something we've never had to deal with before. What are we gonna do?"

Zaeed scratched at his jaw, pretending to think, "We'll just have to let him go. Nothing more we can do. He sure has us in a tough spot."

"You both are dead when I get out of these restraints." The volus muttered, though he didn't sound very convinced.

"Ha," Zaeed barked cruelly, adjusting the mirror to look back at the volus. "He's shaking in his suit."

"To be fair, you did kinda scare the living bajeebas out of him when you started duct taping him."

The old mercenary smirked without remorse, before powering off the controls. "Not my fault the little shit has the backbone of a jellyfish."

"Your one to talk about jellyfish, considering you got choked out by a hanar on our last contract." I chuckled, "Oh man, that was amazing. I should have taken pictures."

"I'll fucking bury you, boy." Came a growl of warning. "I'm sure the worm would love to hear about the time you were pinned by an elcor."

Heh okay, that had not been my best moment as a mercenary. Pulling out my omni-tool and checking the time, I ignored the brutal grin on Zaeed's face.

Just then Jace emerged from the alley and waved his hand.

And that's our que.

Zaeed growled, shoving open his door and stepping out. "We needed the element of surprise. Remember that. Better get the drop on a target especially a high ranking one. If Vido so much as feels the hairs on the back of his neck rise, then he'll take off like a goddamned jack rabbit."

"Yeah, I get it. I helped with the plan remember," I responded, stuffing the last bit of the ration bar in my face and opening my own door. I followed him to the trunk of the car.

The old mercenary opened the back of the trunk and then popped open the secret compartment tucked away underneath. Out came a plethora of weapons and gear. Zaeed equipped Jessie to his back while I took out my shotgun and rifle. The last thing I pulled out was my helmet. It was my first time wearing the full armor and it was a bit disconcerting. For a moment, the T-shaped visor was blank, then it lit up with information.

We were about to make our way over when Zaeed placed a hand on my shoulder.

My eyebrows drew down. "What's up?"

"Not you," he stated gruffly. "Stay by the skycar."

"Excuse me." What the hell was he talking about?

"These Blue Suns aren't gonna be like the usual sacks of shit we deal with." The old mercenary answered with an expression of grim resolve steeling his scarred visage. "Stay back until we need you."

"And what? Provide moral support?" I snapped back.

"This is an order, maggot."

My frustration nearly boiled over, but I kept my peace. This is bullshit, but I'd listen. Hell, I wouldn't even ask why. Even if I really wanted to know how he could possibly think this was a good idea. Zaeed wasn't one to mince words and he deserved some respect on my part. So I'll remain the good and obey.

Still didn't mean I had to like it.

Zaeed dragged Oran from the back of the skycar and led him into the alley where Jace and Tristana were waiting.

I cursed under my breath and leaned against the hood of the car, resisting the urge to punch the side of the vehicle. Man, this sucked. No one would want to take backseat to something like this. I checked the time. 02:57. Three more minutes until the meeting.

The air in the construction site felt oppressive, heavy. There was a chill in the air.

He doesn't trust you. You're expendable to him.

I shook my head to get rid of the thoughts. No, those were Tristana's words not mine. She wanted to be a bitch fine, but I wouldn't let her mess with my head.

Pulling open the door of the car, I swung down into the driver seat and toggled on the radio. Desperately searching for something to calm my nerves. I plugged in one of my own tapes and, after a short moment, Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival came on and I let myself give into the ancient music.

I sat there for the next couple of minutes, waiting for the meeting to get underway.

Cracking open my eyes, I ran a hand over my face. Just in time to see movement in the corner of my vision. Two dark blue shuttles soared into sight. They touched down on either side of Zaeed, Jace, and Tristana. Consequently blocking my view of them as well.

Warning bells began to sound in my head and I scrambled to get back out of the car.

The shuttle closest slid open. Blue Sun mercs jumped out with practiced efficiency, guns at the ready. We were surrounded.

Two of them broke off after spotting me through the window of the skycar. They raised their rifles.

Then opened fire.

AN: Holy. Fucking! SHIT! Longest motherfucking chapter to date! And it's another sort of bridge chapter. Filled with slow story building, character intros and crappy jokes galore! Horrifying, ain't it?

Any of you still with me? Great! We're in this for the long haul, you and I. It's gonna be quite the journey. Welcome to hell, I'll be your guide.

On the bright side, next chapter will see an end to the Blue Sun Arc. For better or worse in terms of our protagonist.

I apologize. I know a lot of you miss Jane and probably want to kill me for the long as shit wait between updates and want this show to get on the road already. Believe me, I know. Unfortunately for all of us, I'm a dick. And a perfectionist. So I promise to get these out when I can and I'm aiming for at least once every month. So we'll see how long I can keep that promise.

I'd also like to personally thank both OnkelJo and Wrecksauce for volunteering to be beta readers for this fic. I don't know if either of you two are reading this right now, but thank you and I appreciate the offer. Someone just happened to volunteer beforehand and I just thought he was the right man for the job. So ShadowAngel23 is the new beta reader for this nightmare of a story. Give him your best. Also check out his two stories, they're pretty good and are definitely not getting the love they deserve. Thank you all again for the overwhelming support and don't be afraid to comment and tell me what you think. Especially if it's critical. I thrive on negative feedback and your reviews are my sustenance. It's a horrible habit, I know.

Stay classy,

-Solas