Mass Effect: Association (PG-15, RPG Thread)

[Solsabre]

Veska ‘Kalros’ Jahara (Krogan)
Fafnir Station Vicinity

Jahara leaned against the gray bulkhead as she studied the approaching station through the cockpit window. She maintained her engmatic loofness from the group as though unconcerned with the details of the briefing. Rather, the female krogan intently to every word and observing the group’s body language with barely a visible shift of her helmet.

The krogan biotic deliberately avoided meeting her adoptive son’s gaze that she felt looking her way. She growled silently, forcing her body to remain stoic so as not to betray her mood. She didn’t want to Hec and Reor any reason to suspect a previous relationship between her and Rosh. For both their sakes.

The ongoing briefing led to needing to secure a terminal for the Quarian crew member to access. Melanie volunteered to go with Yir’Naemis, while Domitian opted to scout out the station.

"What will the rest of you do?" Hec Brann asked. "Remember, a small group accompanying Yir'Naemis is more beneficial to his chance of success."

Kalros stepped forward from her place in the back gaining Hec’s attention. “I’ll scout the station with him,” her concealed face jerked in Domitian’s direction. Jahara knew she’d only draw attention to Yir’Naemis if she went with them. Splitting off to scout the station would be more sensible.

Rosh spoke up from his position on the other side of the cockpit, his deep duel voice carried quietly, “I’ll go with the hacking group as a lookout while they work, though I do have a knack for machines as well.” Vague answer in typical Rosh fashion, Jahara chuckled to herself as the memory of Rosh trying to get himself out of trouble in a similar matter as a young boy.

 

[Griff4815]

(OOC: Sorry for the huge delay. I was busy early on and then I kept forgetting to post. I promise to post more regularly from now on, though.)

-

"What will the rest of you do?" Hec Brann asked. "Remember, a small group accompanying Yir'Naemis is more beneficial to his chance of success."

"I will join Yir'Naemis as well," Keelo spoke up. "It might be less conspicuous if there were two quarians together, rather than the pair of us skulking around the station separately. Unless, of course, four is too large of a group..."

This was the group that Keelo felt more comfortable with. He wasn't a computer expert like Yir'Naemis seemed to be, but he knew his way around a terminal if he needed to. He also felt like a small, unassuming quarian hanging around a handful of krogan and some other rough-looking individuals would have raised a few eyebrows. This seemed like the best situation for him, and he also wanted to look around the station.

"Okay, so what do you want the rest of us to do while they're off hacking stuff?" Brask asked, lugging up his shotgun to his armoured shoulder. "Guess we should just look around the station and try to sniff out these thieves?"

“I’ll scout the station with him,” Kalros offered, gesturing to Domitian.

Brask smirked and cocked his head towards the female krogan. "Want some company?" he offered, already knowing what Kalros' approximate answer would probably be. He grinned provocatively from Kalros over to Reor. "I'd rather hang around a clanless krogan than a Gatatog. They're probably better fighters," he said with a deep chuckle.

Reor grunted and pointed his finger at Brask. "I don't care who you're with, Hailot. Just do your damn job like you're getting paid to," he warned him.

Brask let out a laugh. "Relax. I'm just kidding..." he responded, plopping his shotgun back down in his hands. He proceeded to holster the shotgun on his humped back, using the magnets that allowed the weapon to loosely stick to his armour.

Brask turned his gaze to Hec. "So, 'boss', when we find these thieves, exactly how much force is Elkoss Combine okay with us using to get your items back?

Keelo frowned gently as he considered Brask's question. The fight with the gang members in Omega was one thing, but he did wonder what the rules of engagement would be for this mission. He didn't like the thought of having to kill anybody, but he was keenly aware that he was one of the snipers of the team, and with that role usually meant having to eliminate their enemies.

"And once Yir'Naemis finishes, should we meet up with the other team?" Keelo questioned.

 

[Tundra_Wolfmane]

(OOC: Griff usually summons me, so if he starts posting, I'll probably be somewhere stalking close by.)

-​

"And once Yir'Naemis finishes, should we meet up with the other team?"

"Probably not a good idea," Ask spoke up, finally. He gave the quarian a small grin. "Grouping up in any occasion is a big signal that something's up. It would be better if the two group's goes out of and comes back to the ship at different times to reduce the amount of attention each group gets," he explained, looking back at the station.

It was a different sight than he was used to, and he couldn't help but be curious as to what secrets it held. Finding them out alone would be much easier than in a group...

"I'd like permission to...survey the facility alone," he then said, looking over at Hec. He gestured to the hacker group. "Having too many technical minds in one group might cause a few heads to butt. Plus, I like moving on own pace," he added with a lackadaisical grin.

Besides, if he was able to find his own terminal to hack into, he might be able to drag out a little more information that they weren't looking for. Every little bit helped.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Cog spoke up, raising a hand. "'If he's going alone, I'd like to-"

"And don't let the salarian go anywhere alone," Ask added, shaking his head.

"And why not!?" the scientist proclaimed, looking back at him incredulously.

"For one, you're not as inconspicuous as I am, and I have a lot of experience in 'not being noticed'. And two, you carry bombs - that's the exact opposite of being discrete, which means even though you're a good fit for the tech team, you need to stay far away from them," he said logically and shrugging.

"And you expect me to chaperon a bloodthirsty turian and two mule-headed krogans?" the salarian asked, pointing at said group.

"Hm...would look weird having two krogans with you, but they could just say you're emergency rations." Ask looked at Kalros and Brask with a grin and a wink. He also suspected Kalros had a lot of experience keeping grabby children in line. "On the other hand, they could reasonably be hired muscle. I'm sure that's commonplace in Fafnir."

Worst case scenario, the four would make quite a distraction.

"Preposterous! I am not a-" And any further words and complaints from the salarian were subsequently ignored.

Ask turned back to Hec again. "I am assuming we'll all be using comms? It would be easier that way if we could contact each other no matter where we were in the station, although...hmm...if it's any place like Omega, we'll run the risk of being hacked and listened on to," he noted, tilting his head as he placed a finger on his cheek.

He tried to look uninterested in Brask's sudden question, hoping that his own talking would cause the Volus to lose track and say something he shouldn't. It was unlikely, but sometimes the unlikeliest of things can serendipitously happen.

 

[storymasterb]

Kalros, Brask and Askari offered their help with scouting the station, while Cog got volunteered by the latter. Meanwhile, Keelo and Rosh joined her and Yir'Naemis. More or less what she'd expected, Melanie mused.

"So, 'boss', when we find these thieves, exactly how much force is Elkoss Combine okay with us using to get your items back?

"We do not care how much damage you inflict to the thieves," Brann replied. "Should it become necessary, of course. But I must stress restraint regarding their vessel until we can ascertain whether our property is still aboard and ensure its safe removal if so."

"Excellent," Domitian chuckled. "I had little interest in damaging a hunk of metal in any case. Organics are far more entertaining."

"You don't want us to take any of them prisoner?" Melanie asked. "I thought you'd want to find out how they found out about the thing they stole."

"That's none of your concern," Reor answered gruffly. "Do your part and we'll make sure you get your money. Leave the rest up to us and there won't be any problems."

"As Reor says, we will deal with the how and why," Brann said. "All that you need to concern yourselves with is incapacitating the culprits and ensuring that our property is safely returned."

She frowned. They seemed so cavalier about the thieves, and given the lineup they'd assembled, did they just want the culprits killed to silence them? With how secretive Brann was being about exactly what had been stolen, she couldn't help but wonder if that was his aim. To let Domitian and Brask loose in the knowledge that anyone they went up against would either have to kill them or be killed.

"And once Yir'Naemis finishes, should we meet up with the other team?"

"Probably not a good idea," Ask spoke up, finally. He gave the quarian a small grin. "Grouping up in any occasion is a big signal that something's up. It would be better if the two group's goes out of and comes back to the ship at different times to reduce the amount of attention each group gets," he explained, looking back at the station.

"As Askari says, maintain some distance," Brann said. "We will provide comm-links to ensure contact between all of you is maintained and once Yir'Naemis has the information required and we can determine what has become of our quarry, I will advise you further. Until then, maintain the mission parameters and keep a low profile."

"I will endeavour to do as you wish," Domitian sneered. "But as I'm sure you know, subtlety is not my forte, volus."

"Oh, we're well aware, Palaven-clan," the volus replied. "But I must ask you to try your best."

Domitian chuckled. "I make no promises of that. I can try, but the population of the galaxy is so deficient of common sense that I find myself doing the universe the favor of raising the average intellect on a startlingly common basis."

Melanie rolled her eyes. "You mean you kill people because they look at you the wrong way."

"Oh, come now, I am not that bloodthirsty."

"If we've decided where everyone is going," Yir'Naemis interrupted, his voice as cold as ever, "perhaps we ought to begin. If our targets are still here, they cannot have long before their ship is repaired, and if they are not, the longer we spent bickering, the more their lead on us will grow."

"Yir'Naemis is correct," Brann said. "Ariana has your comm-links and will distribute them as you depart."

"Then let us be on our way," Domitian said with a glint of anticipation in his eyes.

She hoped this wasn't going to end badly.

----

Fafnir Station

After the short while it took for the Shanxi to dock, clear with the station authorities and disembark its passengers, the hacking group made their way through the crowds of the station. It wasn't as busy as Omega, but its interior was still packed full of people and vendors. A hanar offered its wares from one side of the street, while a batarian loudly announced its own from the other while casting vicious glares at any humans passing by. Many of those in the crowds had weapons on display, mostly sheathed at their hip or across their back, but some wandered with them openly equipped. Melanie kept an eye out for any accessible terminals, while admiring the plethora of species gathered. A group of elcor wandered past, followed by a human and asari who she assumed were a couple by how they held hands. The station was all metal covered by market stalls and cloth, like its residents didn't have the resources to dress it up like the Citadel but tried their best with what little they had. It was beautiful in its own way through. It felt real.

"Have you been anywhere like this before?" she asked Yir'Naemis.

He shrugged. "I've been to a lot of places. Travelled on a lot of ships. I've probably seen plenty of places like this before, but they're just that: places." His icy voice was alluring in a dark kind of way, like space. Like the darkness between stars.

"What do you think of it, though?"

"I'm here for the mission," the quarian answered. "Beyond that, I'm not interested." He turned his head, scanning the area. "There. In that corner." He gestured discreetly and she followed his gaze down a side-street. A terminal glowed in the shadows, a turian guard posted by it and looking at the passing crowds as though he wished he could go somewhere else.

"Can you do what you need to with him there?" she asked, unsure exactly how the quarian planned to hack the terminal.

Yir'Naemis shook his head, or at least shook his helmet. "I'm going to need time to find and download the station plans and berthing records. He'd catch on to what I'm up to."

She turned to Rosh and Keelo. "Do you guys have any ideas?"

----

Domitian stood on a balcony, gazing out across the crowds. His weapons are sheathed and his eyes scanned the throngs of aliens, searching for even the merest glimpse of those he had seen in the security footage. He didn't expect to find anything. In their circumstances, he would have remained with the ship at all times to ensure the cargo's safety. Not that he took on recovery missions like that very often. But this one had interested him.

He left the balcony, sweeping back downstairs and batting away the station's irritating VI as it pestered him with inane babble about what he was looking for. Joining the crowds, he glanced to where he had last seen Melanie and Yir'Naemis, seeing their small group dithering at the entrance to a side street. He considered asking them what they were doing for a moment, before continuing. No. Let them ask for his assistance if they so required it. For now, he was in his element. The hunt was on and he hoped sincerely that he would find their quarry before the quarian could find them in the data.

It would be far more entertaining and skillful that way.

He keyed his comm-link to Askari. "Human. Have you 'surveyed' anything of note yet? Our fellow group seem unproductive at present."

 

[Griff4815]

Keelo wandered down the busy street of Fafnir Station. There were many different aliens walking about, minding their own business. It reminded him of some of the commercial districts of Tayseri Ward back on the Citadel, although far less crowded.

The quarian was on edge about their current mission. He didn't know what to expect. Would things go smoothly? Or would another firefight break out like it did on Omega? The uncertainty was getting to him. He tried to repress his nerves by taking in his new surroundings. He had never been to Fafnir Station, so he was curious about its workings and inhabitants. He looked around carefully, also trying to detect a terminal.

Behind his green-tinted mask, he considered his companions. He felt comfortable around Melanie, and Roshiovus seemed nice enough, even if he was on the quiet side. Yir'Naemis on the other hand... When he first met Yir'Naemis, Keelo was initially pleased to be with another quarian. However, as he got to know Yir-Naemis - or not know, as it happened - Keelo began to feel uneasy by the enigmatic quarian.

The black-suited quarian spoke with such coldness and emptiness. It was almost as if there was nothing behind his mask. Keelo hated himself for thinking that, since it was a stereotype often projected onto quarians - the enigmatic, other-worldliness that they inadvertently gave off by their ever-present suits. However, in Yir'Naemis' case... He just wasn't able to get a read on what his fellow quarian was thinking or what he wanted. Even his body language, a must for communication between quarians, was distant and guarded.

He listened to Yir'Naemis' terse conversation with Melanie. His responses were matter-of-fact and completely unsentimental.

It was then that he gestured to a terminal down one of the street's alleys. Keelo turned and looked. Standing nearby the terminal was station guard.

"I'm going to need time to find and download the station plans and berthing records. He'd catch on to what I'm up to."

She turned to Rosh and Keelo. "Do you guys have any ideas?"

"Perhaps we could distract him somehow or try to draw him away?" Keelo suggested. "Maybe one of us could pretend to be lost."

Keelo frowned. "Although, that might not be enough to get him away from the terminal..." he admitted. "If only there was a reason for him to step away from it for several minutes."

He looked at Rosh uncertainly. "Maybe you could strike up a conversation with him or something?" he offered, although he wasn't sure himself.

-

Brask marched confidently down one of the busy streets of Fafnir Station. His shotgun rested on his humped back, and his pistol was never far from his hand. He didn't have to duck and swerve around the other aliens to get past him. They got out of his way. The bustle of aliens seemed to part around Brask as he walked a straight line down the street.

He was used to this reaction. The perks of being a krogan. He was large, intimidating, and armed to the teeth. Nobody dared to risk the chance of pissing him off. Krogan had a reputation of having a short temper, so none of the station inhabitants wanted to put it to the test. They stayed away from him - it was safer that way. Brask was an island to himself.

He grunted and continued walking. His light green eyes shot back and forth alertly. He didn't expect to see the perpetrators walking around, bragging about their exploits, but he knew the importance of being aware of his surroundings. Escape routes, cover, dangerous positions, dangerous-looking people... All of these things entered his mind as he walked up the street.

Speaking of dangerous people...

Brask spotted Kalros a ways in front of him. The bulky, male krogan picked up his pace to a swifter gait, though not so fast that he looked conspicuous. After a minute, he caught up to Kalros and stopped beside her.

"Hey, Kalros," he said to her, folding her arms. "Find anything suspicious? Apart from a female krogan disguised as a male, that is." He smirked brazenly.

"Seriously, there's a few shifty pyjaks around here, but I don't think any of them are the ones we're looking for," Brask mused. He glanced over to see the busybody salarian nearby. He looked at Cogwedj with a leer of exasperation and suspicion. "Speaking of shifty pyjaks... I don't trust him alone. He'll probably blow our cover... literally, in his case."

 

[Tundra_Wolfmane]

Askari couldn't help but smile as he was thrust back into his usual kind of job.

Surrounded by people, completely unknown, walking around with his armor that hid his face completely. To further enhance his obscurity, he kept his sniper rifle cloaked, simply letting his benign pistol be seen. Few others barely gave him a glance, and the ones that did more would soon find that they could no longer see the armored human in their line of sight. It was in the way Ask walked - it wasn't quite straight, a staggered and unusual pattern that made him difficult to follow unless one was particularly invested in watching him.

Interesting enough, the usual guards tended not to pay him heed - either because 'nothing ever happens' and they let their guard down, or they're so paranoid that they try to notice everything and end up missing him. More interesting was that the ones that usually noticed him were shop and stall owners, often calling out to him to look at their wares. That said, he steered clear of the main part of the hustle and bustle.

He instead made his way to back passage between what looked to be a deadbeat bar and a junk shop with a busy human clerk, making sure that no one was watching before slipping in.

Any other time, he might have been in the bar to see what rumors and gossip were buzzing about, but he doubted he had the luxury of just sitting tight listening and waiting for news to just land itself on his lap, so he chose the next best thing: hacking into the terminal from an external panel. Such panels usually served as a connection for future terminals, and sometimes were already connected to nearby existing ones. He simply had to look for a place that looked...older than everything else.

There were many dangers in doing so. For one, he had much more firewalls and defense systems to fool and get through, especially in a heavily protected network - which he hoped Fafnir didn't have. Another was that he would be much more visible and conspicuous, especially to someone who knew where the panels were located. And three, his access wouldn't nearly be as informative as being on a real terminal - which meant he would have to be smart about what he needed to find out.

It didn't take him long to find the access panel, shoddily hidden behind a cloth. He made a quick look from where he came from, as well as made a miniature plan in his head for an escape should he need to, before working on removing the panel, as quickly and as quietly as he could.

Some time after, Askari found himself pressed against the wall, looking at his omni-tool, which he connected to the panel. So far, it looked like no one had spotted him, but he didn't know how much time he had, so he started to work on getting the most relevant information he could with the limited access he had - he focused on getting access from a security terminal.

So far, he found little information he could use. The first thing he looked for - which was his usual - was finding out any local news and reports that security found relevant. A few brawls here and there, a report of a man dressed in black having stolen from one of the store merchants, and even a murder. None of which he could use in finding their targets - it looked like they held their heads low while they were there as well.

However, he was able to pull an e-mail mentioning the new times and shifts for guard patrols. That was definitely something he took care to copy. And more importantly, he was able to get a portion of the station layout - at least enough that he would know where to go if he needed to make a run for it. And if he played his cards right, along with the patrol information, he might be able to get access to a terminal before the hacking group did...

"Human. Have you 'surveyed' anything of note yet? Our fellow group seem unproductive at present," a familiar voice suddenly spoke into his comm.

"Oh, hello, turian," he replied cheerily, careful not to speak Domitian's name. "Why, yes, I have, actually. Did you know that there's currently an unsolved murder? A female of your race was recently killed - her neck broken, seems like. What a shame - she could have been your type!" he said as he continued his work.

He wondered what kind of face Domitian was making. Probably rolling his eyes and scoffing at the thought.

"Of course, I do have a little tidbit that could be helpful to everyone. Just give me a moment~" he said in singsong as he sent a message to everyone in their group whose omnitool had messaging function, Domitian included.

It was the portion of the station's map as well as the patrol schedule. He assumed the hacking group would understand - they weren't the dense sort. So long as they did their work, he would be free to continue digging up more information.

And then he heard a boom.

And he hoped to any higher being above it didn't involve their resident explosive salarian.

-​

"Perfect! Materials found!" Cog called out as he looked at the wares of an asari with a chesire grin.

For one reason or another, he found himself walking about with Kalros, of all aliens. Not he minded or cared one way or another - the prospect of being able to replenish his supply of materials with which to create more of his modifications and bombs, not to mention his gadgets, overridden any indignity he felt. That, of course, made him more energetic than a pyjak on a stealing frenzy.

The salarian had only purchased his materials for a few seconds before running off to the next stall to take a look at their goods, giving Kalros quite a bit of work just to try and catch up to him.

He paid no mind to the multiples of people that he bumped into or bumped into him back - he was a man on the mission. Which was why he didn't notice that his pocket was a little lighter than before.

Perhaps it was for the best. He was already at least ten meters away when the poor and curious pickpocket decided to see what he had acquired - only to accidentally press the trigger and cause a small range bomb to explode. What ensued was a number of loud screams and surprised yells, along with a stream of gray, vision-impairing smog that came from his home-made smoke bomb, spreading out a few meters away.

Cog merely turned his head to look at the source of the sound, curious. "Hm? What happened here?"