Aftermath [Sar'Neda, Caelus Hadrian, Kato Feun, Zahn Viratas, Skyla Marsh, Ben Walker] Earth, 2186 (

Zahn Viratas

Turian

Male

Age: 23

Mercenary, Traveler, and Writer

Zahn let Cael and Ben talk it out until he saw a female Turian in red armor run inside a nearby apartment building. She looked familiar. Could it be her? He went up to the glass door with his rifle ready just in case and opened it, and saw her. She turned and saw him. Her eyes widened, surprised to see Zahn with his rifle pointed at her.

"Hey," she said, raising her arms. "I'm not here to loot. I wanted to catch my breath in a place no one can snipe me unexpectedly. You understand."

Zahn recognized her voice. "Verena?" he asked. "What are you doing on Earth?"

"Zahn?" Verena. She stared at him for a second to make sure he was who he said he was. "I got hired to fight against the Reapers. I was ordered to look for survivors."

Verena Azarian was a bounty hunter he worked with a couple of times. They first met on a job they, along with many others were recruited for. She was experimented on a long time ago by people attempting to create their own army of super soldiers. It failed and she was rescued, but her childhood friend was never found. Verena acquired the skills she needed to fight and became a bounty hunter acquire the money needed to travel around the galaxy and find him one day. Her bad experiences with the people from her past made it harder for her to get close to people, but she trusted Zahn enough to let him do jobs with her. That was about it as far as Zahn knew.

"I know you don't exactly play well with others," Zahn said. "But could you at least help us bring communications back online? It's too dangerous to travel alone, even for you."

Verena nodded. "I'll help you guys out, then I'm outta here. Got it?"

Zahn smiled "Understood." He led her to rest of the group.

"Hey," Verena said. "Is that Cael Hadrian?

"Do you two know each other?"

"Kind of. It was when we were on Palavin. You know, to stop the assassination on the Primarch. I disguised myself as a waitress at a restaurant and accidentally gave him the wrong order, but I don't think he will remember me."

"Everyone, look who I found," Zahn said. "Can we keep her?"

Verena playfully punched his shoulder. "Shut up."

"We can trust her. She was here to fight the Reapers. I've worked with her in the past so I know she won't pull anything on us." 


OOC: I was thinking we have could a temporary ally until the current plot is over then Verena can pop up in later story(ies).

GeneralXIV

The Turians were known for their intense discipline and Caleus was no exception. Ben watched stone faced as Caleus closely inspected the group of looters and interrogated them. Sarah looked nervous and sweaty, constantly adjusting her goggles whenever she was questioned. "Probably a nervous tick." Ben thought as continued to observe Cadeus looking over them. It turns out that Sarah was the leader of a petty band of thieves  who saw the Reaper War as an opportunity to commit theft without experiencing any consequences. They couldn't risk letting these looters go as they will continue to be disruptive. Despite their limited experience in firearms, the looters managed to survive a massive attack by the Reapers. "You might as well help us now because the Turian is not as understanding as I am," Ben stated bluntly to a sweating Sarah.

Cadeus seemed to agree with Ben.

“Fine. You can join us, but you’ll follow my orders and engage in no looting. This is a military operation and I won’t have any civilians wasting my time. Do you understand?” He said.

The looters all nodded hastily and Sarah turned to Ben. "What are we going to do?" She asked him.

"That's classified," Ben answered. "Just follow our lead."

Sarah's eyes furrowed in frustration as she brushed a strand of her frizzled red hair over her shoulder. "That's not good enough!" Sarah protested. "We're following you into area pitch black. We need to know what we're up against!"

"In due time," Ben said curtly. "But right now I suggest you do what we say."

Sarah shook her head as Zahn came in looking a little excited. Beside him was a female Turian. It turns out the female Turian was some sort of mercenary who goes by the name of Verena Azarian. Verena said that she can is skilled and take of herself, something Ben already figured as much when he studied her. "The more the merrier," Ben said wearily as he took out his rifle. "Follow us," he whispered to Sarah.

Cadeus led the group through the ruins and to their destination. "We haven't looted this place," Sarah whispered to Ben. "We've heard rumors that it's thick with unknown enemies." 

"Roger that," Ben replied. Noticing Sarah's shaking hands to the point where she almost dropped her SMG. Ben gave her a reassuring smile. "Stay calm." He said. "We'll handle the heavy stuff, just give us some covering fired." Sarah flashed Ben a slight smile tried to calm herself.

“Hisha, we’re in position. Over.” Cadeus announced in his radio. 

Pointing his rifle, Ben began scanning the area and found shadows approaching them. "Sir! It looks like we got company!" He whispered hoarsely to Cadeus.



(OOC: What I imagine Sarah looks like: 
)

Zahn Viratas
Turian
Male
Age: 23



Mercenary, Traveler, and Writer

“Well,” Caelus said. “You’re the senior officer here. If you want to bring her along, I can’t stop you. More manpower couldn’t hurt.”

"Hadrian," Zahn said. "That may well be true, but if I do make a questionable decision, I want you to have your feelings known. You have more experience than I and have proven yourself very capable. I would appreciate your insight in the future. Understood?"

Caelus turned to the female turian. “I’m Staff Sergeant Hadrian, 43rd Marine Division. You don’t have an insignia of rank,” he noted with a glance at her armor. “If I had to guess, I’d say you’re some sort of mercenary. Got a name?”

“Verena. Verena Azarian,” she replied. “As for my line of work… yeah, let’s just go with mercenary. Don’t worry; I can handle myself in a fight and won’t cause any trouble for you.”

“Glad to hear it.” Cael said.

"Hey," Zahn said, speaking low enough so that only Verena could hear. "Try to get along with everyone, at least until we finish business here, alright?

Verena sighed. "Okay," she said. "But I'm not going to try and make any friends either. Just remember I'm doing this for you."

Zahn nodded. "That's all I ask, but please do follow orders. We need everyone to cooperate.

"I can do that," Verena said. "As long as we can the job then, then that's what matters. When we're done here, can we talk in private?"

Zahn wondered what it could be about, but kept it to himself. "Sure."

Caelus proceeded to inform the entire group of the situation, leaving out some of the more sensitive details. He definitely didn’t want these looters, or Verena to hear about the Thanix tank. When he was finished, and John’s wounds had been treated with medi-gel, Caelus led them all through the streets.

As they walked, Zahn and Verena were talking.

"Zahn," Verena whispered. "I feel like there's more going on then he's willing to tell. What is it?

Zahn briefly explained what was going with the Thanix canon and the surviving Cerberus member.

"So that's how bad it is."

"It's good that you came," Zahn said. "We could use your help."

"You could have asked me to take down a Reaper and I would have done it," Verena replied. "I owe you." She was referring to time during their first job, where they met. Verena had been having trouble making personal relationships with people and Zahn was the first real friend she had in years. It meant a lot to her, after everything she'd been through.

As they continued walking, Verena spoke to Zahn again. "So," she said. "You said one of the Cerberus members you fought was a woman."

"Yeah," Zahn said. He chuckled. "Couldn't get her number unfortunately."

Verena laughed. "Oh Zahn. I swear, I don't know how you do it sometimes. You are in a fight for your life, but you find a way to flirt with your enemies. Have you ever been on a date with any of them afterwards, ever? Just curious."

"Surprisingly," Zahn said. "I have. Which is funny because I only do it to hide how nervous I am and to make my enemies think I'm an idiot. It's worked so far."

Once they reached their destination, Caelus and Sar exchanged information about their next move.

"Hadrian," Zahn said. "What are we doing next?"


OOC: GeneralXIV . If you want to skip your turn again, say the word.

Zahn Viratas
Turian
Male
Age: 23

"The agent is unaware of our presence," Zahn said to Caelus, Verena, and Ben. "I propose that Caelus, Verena, and I enter the base and act as if we don't know about the agent. I was thinking that Ben should go with the looters and make sure they're following the plan. He managed to calm them down earlier and I'll feel more at ease with one of our own being with them. Once we go inside, we'll do what we usually do. As we walk in, we'll look for any signs of any suspicious activity. While Caelus and I go to report, Verena will look for the Cerberus agent and contact us when she does. She's at good acting as if she belong somewhere so we don't have to worry about the agent figuring out our plan. Does that sound good to everyone?"

"I can do that," Verena said. "No problem."

---

They were just across the street from the rally point. A decent observation point, all things considered.

When Sar saw the group coming towards them, she was ready to move the point. That was right before she saw the figures of Staff Sergeant Hadrian and Lieutenant Commander Viratas among them, followed by the N7 and the Drell assassin. While the majority of the others were humans, it was obvious these people were recruited for some reason. She'd have to talk with the two Turians...

As soon as the group stopped on the street below them, she gave the order. As their figures emerged from the shadows, she gave Ghost another shoulder squeeze, indicating her readiness to cross the street. Most of the strangers were bunching up in what she recognized as a perfect opportunity for a frag grenade. She could see the Sergeant reach up to his radio push-to-talk: "Hisha, my team has reached the navpoint. What’s your status?" He was clearly not expecting an immediate answer, because as soon as the radio went quiet, he barked something towards the small gathering.

She let her rifle hang on the sling, waving at Hadrian to alert him to her presence. The Turian saw her, but if he made any motion of acknowledgement, it was not one she caught. Instead, he gathered around with Viratas, Feun and the N7, whose name Sar couldn't remember. From the fact they whispered, they were not straight with whoever their new friends were. Or why one of them, a Turian woman, was standing right there, with the group. Just convenient enough to give birth to a spark of doubt in the back of her mind.

Not allowing the paranoid thought to gain any ground, she walked straight towards them with nothing but a simple hand signal to her partner, indicating he should follow.

"Gentlemen," she greeted them in a fashion that would not betray their ranks and chain of command even to the most observant, "what is the situation."
Viratas, clearly having suggested a course of action while she was still out of earshot, began to explain his plan. From his rather simple - to the point of being foolproof - plan, she gathered that the unknown Turian woman was named Verena, and that she was to enter the compound with her fellow Turians and Kato to search for the Cerberus agent while Ben would coordinate the mercenaries holding perimeter outside. The last part made her wince - not that anyone would notice under her prison of a helmet.

Even despite her reservations, it was a good plan, if in need of adjustment.
"Feun - I want you with Ben. These people, whoever they really are, are not to be trusted, and I need enough people outside to keep them under control if things go awry. It will also be less conspicuous if we have a Turian squad seeking shelter rather than a mixed-species unit. Me and Ghost will follow closely under cloak."

Sar silenced the Turian newcomer with a look before she could voice any of her concerns.

"There are a few things that can knock a man out reliably. A good, unseen punch in the gut is one of them, and Ghost can deliver."

With a motion of her hand, she gave the woman space to talk. Verena, however, remained silent.

"One last thing. Has anyone seen the..." she cut off mid-sentence instead of referring to the ex-Cerberus sniper as Nemesis. "...seen Sam?"

Feun was the first to answer, with a simple, uncharacteristically quiet "No," forcing Sar to sigh and reach for her radio: "Sam, Hisha. Come in, over."
Even despite Sar's wish to keep the human sniper away from Cerberus operatives for now, it was the most sound course of action to post her on a nearby rooftop. The lack of answer, however, meant no such thing could be done. It did not matter. She would try again later, and improvise if Sam could not be reached.

She looked at the team, question on her lips: "Any questions?"

Sar could not fail any of them. For Menae's sake.

---

Well, this is shaping up. I kept most of the actual interaction to Verena (NPC) and Kato (I guess he's now and NPC as well) - feel free to add your own character's thoughts and questions before we move up. If there are no outstanding issues, next turn we move onto the FOB itself and take that man. Dead or alive.

---

They were at the entrance. Sar could see Walker and Feun placing the mercenaries, while herself, Ghost, and the three Turians were preparing for entry.

"Remember. We're looking for a guy with a long range radio pack," she urged them. "Confirm the target, and for the love of the Ancestors, take him alive."

With nods from everyone, her and Ghost cloaked and entered the compound.

The three Turians spread out, searching for the target. Few would realize they aren't actually looking for means to contact their headquarters. Sar was hoping their prey was not one of them.

Walking slowly among the surviving Alliance personnel, her nerves were strung near breaking point. At any moment, someone could notice her or Ghost making nigh inperceivable changes in the environment. Their cloaks did not protect againist bumping into objects or stepping on noisemakers of any kind.

Finally, the Turian woman - Verena - spoke over the radio: "There's a man here with a transmitting radio."

Sar's heart rate increased. She shot a look across the room towards where the mercenary was, immediately finding the man in question.

"Ghost," she whispered in the radio. Only a few meters away, the other infiltrator's silhouette moved, highlighted by the heads-up display. The hunt was nearly done.

They snuck up slowly on the unsuspecting Cerberus operative, taking extra effort to be quiet...

She could see her spotter prepare his punch, just as they agreed. Then, something unbelievable happened...

With a single swift motion, their quarry blocked the punch and pushed Verena onto Ghost. Sar reacted swiftly, stepping into the man's path as he began to run for the door. Whatever Cerberus did to him, he smashed right through her, sending her head-first into a nearby desk.

Her helmet caught most of the fall, but even so, the force with which she was sent flying was strong enough that she had to take a moment to realize what just happened. Her vision blurred and the previously dim room suddenly felt like there were several flashlights lit up in front of her face. Trying to beat the sudden, inexplicable nausea, she keyed her comm, but the only word she managed to say was a weak "Hadrian!" trying to warn the Staff Sergeant.

Sar tried to get up, but couldn't keep her balance. When she managed, her orientation proved it difficult to find the compound entrance. With her mind singularly set to taking the Cerberus operative, she stumbled towards it...

Outside, the night lights blinded her for a moment, nearly sending her back to the ground. When her sight came back, she could see Kato Feun standing over the man who slammed into her, sword pointed at the man's throat in victory.

Adrenaline slowly vanishing from Sar's blood stream, she collapsed on the spot, unconscious before she hit the ground.

---

OOC: Did I say I really want to finish this quickly? Well, I did.

Xesthan Draining Dragon GeneralXIV smilesja

I ask all of you to write some sort of character epilogue. Their attempt to communicate with HQ and quickly finding out there is no more mission if you want, and definitely why they decide to leave London, Earth, or simply walk away from the neighborhood.

I also think that @tzeenchianapostrophe should see what happened in the end.

And with this, the story arc of Aftermath is concluded. I thank you for the good times, and may we see each other in future RPs!

(I'll write Sar's character epilogue after the lot of you sort yours out. She'll be... busy...)

[/td][td style="padding:5px;"]Benjamin Walker aka "Ben"



Human

Male

Ex-N7 Soldier/Mercenary



Age: 28

bsn.boards.net/post/193169



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(OOC: Epilogue: )

It was over.

After a long battle, Ben and the team overcame obstacles and defeated the bad guys and retrieved the items. Ben gave a sigh of relief, for the first time for what felt like years he can relax. "Looks like we did it," he said happily.

Sarah and the other survivors were busy celebrating as Ben overheard Galen "Good work, Lieutenant Commander Viratas," Galen said. "That goes for everyone else as well. That goes for all of you as well. Patch yourselves up. I'll call all of you when communications are back online."

"Yes sir," Ben saluted.

Ben waved goodbye to the others and went to the Alliance ship. He never thought he would go back to the N7 again but for the first time in his life, he was glad he did.

Serza