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[ME-Privateer] In The Black (Ursus Peregrinus & Atroxa)

Artemis gave a huff of laugh and smirked at her captain's request to try and get them through in no more than five or six pieces, “I'll see what I can do, but I'm not making any promises.” She looked back to the map for a moment but got distracted by Tahlyn's hand on her shoulder, looking up at the Turian. She seemed a little flustered for a moment at his vote of confidence and the compliment, but managed her usual cocky grin at his next comment, glancing at Bronn, laughing under her breath at their exchange, “Well I don't particularly like the sound of a cross country Tomkah journey either, so no worries.”

She slid off the stack of crates, listening as Tahlyn gave the two of them their instructions to prepare to land on Garvug, the pilot giving a curt nod, “Will do.” She shook her head though when he asked if they had an questions, both of Artemis' hands going to the small of her back and push as she curved her spine back in a stretch. “Nope, no questions,” She groaned, straightening, “Except if Bronn is going to cook something for lunch? I'm hungry.”

In the cockpit on their approach to Garvug, Artemis had herself strapped into the pilot's chair, her jaw working on a piece of gum to help with the physical stress of their incoming, as well as her nerves. She looked up at the display as the course Tahlyn had laid out appeared, then glanced up at her captain when he put his hand on her shoulder, she gave a rough laugh, “Yeah, think these britches might be a bit too big for you Varro,” she told him, glancing at his hand before she looked back to the display. Hell, they might even be a bit too big for her, but she was feeling that familiar sense of fear and excitement, tinged with adrenaline.

Her studying though was interrupted again by Bronn, glancing over her shoulder at the Krogan, “Considering I don't have anything warmer or toughter than my leather flight jacket, that'd be appreciated.”

The ship gave a shuddered, and a jerk, and the display shield began to turn red along the edges with atmospheric friction. “Might want to strap in Varro,” she told her captain before she pulled on her headset, pressed a button and the muffled sound of music coming from one ear piece, the visor over her eyes lighting up with a mirror image of the display. Music helped her concentrate, usually the hard driving beat of electronica or heavy metal. Artemis lost herself to her own little world, her focus narrowing until it was just her and the ship, hands gripping the controls tightly.

They were coming in fast, the ship was vibrating from the never ending turbulence and friction, a dull roar that competed with her music and the constant beeping and screaming of the ship's instruments. The Harlot was not happy about this at all, and even the VI's annoyingly calm voice seem a little more perturbed than usual as it repeated over and over the ever shrinking distance between the Harlot and the ground. Artemis's knuckles were white and the muscles along her shoulders and arms were taunt and flexed as she kept the ship on as straight a course as she could while fighting with the atmosphere, breaking through the clouds to see nothing but ice and snow rushing up at them.

Her teeth were bared in a silent snarl as she pulled them out of the dive, her gum clenched in a bite that could probably rival a Varren's right about now. The ship dipped low over the landscape, then leveled out, the instruments finally calming down. They were flying low, like Tahlyn had instructed, and heading for the mountains as quickly as possible.
 
~~Tahlyn Varro & Kurrlok Bronn~~

As the Harlot's Virtue started its approach, Bronn just snorted at Artemis' comment about her limited wardrobe.
"In my best interest to keep you from freezing solid, kid. Think I trust our illustrious captain to get us back out after you get us in? I've SEEN him fly." Beside her, the Turian growled but didn't say anything as his engineer and friend raked him across the coals. "I'll have it ready for you when we land, along with a little present for you. Remember that Kessler you were toting when you came aboard? I finished working it over."

Tahlyn held up a hand to short-circuit Bronn's chatter as Artemis started to bring them onto the course he'd laid in. A touch on his console activated his seat restraints and a moment later Bronn followed suit, webbing himself into his seat at point defence. They were just in time as the ship started to shudder from the turbulence. One particularly stiff jolt bounced Bronn's head into an overhead stanchion and he grunted and activated his helmet, his face disappearing behind the impassive mask of his blue and grey armour. A stylized golden Krogan skull was painted on the face, the optic sensors giving an azure glow to its eyes.

"Hold together, precious.." Eyes slitted and his hands clenched on the arms of his couch, Tahlyn willed his ship downwards. A sidelong glance at Artemis as she fought the ship down through the atmosphere. "Just a little longer..."

The Harlot shook like a labrador after a swim as Artemis pulled out of the dive and turned them towards the mountains. Things went very quiet in the cockpit for a long moment, and then Tahlyn began to chuckle.
"Artemis," he said finally, "remind me to give you a raise. That was about the ugliest planetfall I've ever seen with engines, but you didn't break my ship."

The words were barely out of his mouth when an incandescent tunnel of air carved past them from the mountains they were approaching. It missed, but the next three tracked closer and the fourth connected while Bronn was still lighting up their defenses.

The ship bucked and lurched, a crackle of exploding electronics and the shriek of rended metal echoing through the ship.
"Incoming fire, evasive now!" Bronn punched up what was left of the ship's defenses, filling the air with countermeasures and laser pulses. Tahlyn was punching keys as red lights winked on every control board and half the ship's control surfaces went sluggish.
"We lost the starboard side outer airlock, two attitude thrusters and the aft sensor array on that side." Tahlyn's voice was tense as his claws flew across the keys. "On the upside, we're not going to crash and die."
"Not yet, anyways." Bronn's dry voice cut in and even with the vocal filters in his helmet, the wry smirk on that reptilian face came through. "They're on passive targeting and they're either mobile or they have multiple emplacements. I can't lock them up to shoot back. Not at this range. Oh, and someone wants to talk." Scrubbing his face as he spun his couch to look at the Krogan, Tahlyn growled.
"Put them on." Bronn nodded and flicked the switch and leaned back, setting the point defense to reactive mode.

"Unidentified vessel, this is Warlord Raik Harm of the Wraith's Eye." A harsh voice came through the comm system. "Reduce speed to Mach 2 and adjust course to 274 by 119. Any deviation will be met with lethal force." The transmission ended with a click and Tahlyn groaned.
"I can't wait to meet your old friends, Bronn." The Turian's shoulders slumped a little as he contemplated the damage to his ship. "Better do as we're told, Artemis. They've got sharper teeth."
 
Artemis really hadn't had the spare attention to reply to Bronn telling her that he'd finished upgrading her Kessler, so she was glad when Tahlyn had stemmed the flow of what would have probably been a long winded explanation of everything that had been done to it. Usually she would indulge the Krogan in his mechanical passion but just then she'd had far more important things to worry about. Like not getting them killed. She thought she'd done a rather good job of it, but kept a tight grip on the controls as she got them leveled out.

She let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding and looked at Tahlyn as he started to chuckle, raising her brows at him. The pilot smirked at him, still not letting go of the ship, keeping her steady. Artemis could feel that this planet had some serious wind streams, they kept pulling at the Harlot, trying to push her. “I will certainly remind you of that, Captain,” She told him with a grin, turning back to the view screen.

She looked back in time to see the blast just barely miss them, then the next three, flinching as the fourth hit them. Artemis clutched the controls, trying to keep them steady as the ship lurched, and then went crazy on her as it suffered from the damage the last blast had done to it. “Fuck,” the pilot growled under her breath, fighting with the Harlot as she dragged her ass, hearing Bronn warn of another incoming attack, but she couldn't really get the ship to respond well enough to evade it, thankfully they got the defenses up in time. Her instruments were beeping and screaming at her, showing her the damage as Bronn listed it. “Great,” Artemis muttered, her knuckles white.

Artemis managed to keep them steady as they received the transmission from the Raik Warlord, glancing at Tahlyn as he told her to comply with the Krogan's demands, giving a curt nod. “Aye aye,” she responded through clenched teeth and carefully put them on the proper heading.

The Harlot landed about as gracefully as a hippo, jarring Artemis in her chair, but they landed alive and in one piece. She finally allowed herself to relax, slumping in her seat a little with a ragged sigh and flexing her hands, which had started to cramp from clutching the controls like her life depended on them, which it had. “We here at Harlot air thank you for flying, we know you have no choice in travel so keep your complaints to yourself,” she told her companions, unbuckling herself and standing, stretching her tense muscles out.
 
~~Tahlyn Varro & Kurrlok Bronn~~

The silence in the cockpit was total as Artemis brought them onto the indicated course and into the narrow mountain passes. It hung around them, tension thick in the air until she brought them down onto a snow-kissed landing field of dirt and scrub grasses. When Artemis broke the silence, Tahlyn made a snorting sound and unwebbed the restraint straps.
"No complaints," he said in a weary tone. "Let's go see what those pirates did to my ship."

Bronn retracted his helmet and rose, rocking his head from side to side. Giving Artemis a wink, he made his way down the steps and picked up a small duffel bag. Slinging it to her, he smiled.
"Better get dressed, it's below freezing out there. Besides, my people show more respect if you look like you're ready for a fight." He moved a little in his armour and nodded in satisfaction.

Tahlyn, wearing his new coat over his slate grey armour, stood by the port side airlock. The view through the starboard lock's window was scorched, black smoke rolling up and obscuring the view.
"Stick close, they might not be feeling friendly." The Turian told her as the lock cycled open and the cold, thin air of Garvug blew in. It had an odd tang to it, a new biosphere's scents.

Outside a half dozen armoured Krogan were waiting for them, wearing black armour trimmed in red. Their weapons were held at the ready, their helmets were blank masks decorated with grim designs. No two of their suits were quite the same, with trophies mounted on pauldrons or hanging from their equipment harnesses. One wore a necklace of Geth optics, another had a set of long flat plates that must have been cut from Turian skulls hanging from his belt.

The leader strode up, the only one with his helmet down to reveal a polished black crest and blood-red skin. An ugly scar crossed his mouth, exposing sharp yellow teeth. He wore a half-cape of leather, died red and hanging down over his left arm. An ugly looking rifle dangled from his right hand and he carried a wickedly serrated axe across his back.
"I am Raik Harrm and you're standing in my ship." The words were delivered with cold confidence.
"This is my ship, Warlord," Tahlyn said as he walked down the ramp, looking around.
"My guns say it belongs to me." Harrm returned, moving towards Tahlyn, the rifle coming up.

Both aliens stood staring at one another, and a crackling blue Biotic glow began to build up around them. Pushing past Artemis, Bronn hopped down and his booming voice cut the tension.
"Can your guns even shoot straight?" Bronn demanded as he stepped between them. "Hell, Harrm, you're not still carrying that museum piece are you? Your FATHER carried that Striker and it was a lousy piece of junk eighty years ago."

The pirate warlord looked at the newcomer, his gun's massive bore prodding Bronn in the chest, and he cocked his head to one side.
"Damn my eyes... Bronn?" Harrm laughed and clouted the gunsmith in the side of the head with his rifle. "Kurrlok Bronn, what the hell are you doing here? Last I heard you were working on Omega." Chuckling, Bronn grasped the Raik warlord by the shoulder and butted his head. Both staggered back, laughing.
"Believe it or not, I've got a shop on Illium now. Keeps me busy when I'm not keeping the Captain's ship in the sky." He looked back at the Harlot's Virtue. "Thanks for that, by the way. You know that's not going to buff out." Tahlyn glared as he listened to the conversation but the Krogans just ignored him.

"That's what you get for showing up unannounced, Bronn. You know better than that." Harrm looked over at the ship. "Just be happy that I let you keep it. IF I let you keep it. It's been a bad few years, we could make a decent profit on that thing even if we cut it up for parts and scrap."

Tahlyn moved back to Artemis, looking tense.
"If he mentions cutting up my lady for scrap again, I'm going to pry off his crest and shove it up his cloaca."

~tag~
 
Artemis caught the duffel bag, giving a rough laugh, “Hey, I'm always ready for a fight,” she unzipped the bag and muttered, “but armor sounds like a good idea with a bunch of Krogans...” She strapped it all on as quickly as she could, joining Bronn and Tahlyn at the airlock, toting her newly modified Kessler. The armor fit her well, giving a bit of bulk to her lithe frame, primarily black, which she thought could go with some modifications for appearances if nothing else.

She nodded at Tahlyn's advice for her to stick close to them, turning off the safety on her pistol as the the air lock opened and she squinted against the blast of air. It wasn't too bad, but she'd grown up in the alpine climate of Elysium. Cold, thin air was something she was used to, she'd feel more at home here on this floating chunk of ice than a hotter planet.

The welcome party wasn't very welcoming and Artemis certainly did stick close to Tahlyn, the pilot staying close to his side. She wasn't a ground trooper by any stretch, fighting one on one she was good at, battle situations though were not her forte. She didn't look frightened though, and she wasn't, but she was perfectly aware of her own short comings when it came to fighting. She stayed on the ramp beside Bronn as Tahlyn went down to confront the leader, watching the exchange between the Turian and Krogan tensely.

When the biotic blue energy began to crackle into life though she started take a small step back, turning her head to say something to Bronn, but the Krogan was a step ahead of her and went pushing past to diffuse the situation. Which he did, of course, Artemis looking at Tahlyn as he came back, grinning at him a little and tapping his chest with the back of her hand, “Don't worry, he'd have to deal with me to get anywhere near her,” she told him, trying to lighten his mood a little. She squeezed his shoulder though as a more serious follow up, “The Harlot's not going anywhere unless I'm flying her.”
 
~~Tahlyn Varro & Kurrlok Bronn~~

"She's not going anywhere until Bronn spends a couple of days putting her back together, anyways," Tahlyn chuckled and shrugged his shoulder into her hand. "But so far so good. At least no one's shooting." His violet eyes glanced over at his pet engineer and he sighed. Krogans!

Bronn and Harrm had lapsed into an obscure Krogan dialect, and when they parted Bronn was laughing.
"Okay, so good news and bad news. Good news is, you get to keep your ship, boss, and Harrm's willing to help us out getting it fixed up. Bad news is in return I get to spend some quality time un-fucking all their broken toys. From the looks of these poor muppets it may be a long list. Remind me, do I get overtime?" Bronn smirked and looked around. "I think my stocks may be a little depleted before we move on, too, but it's amazing how much goodwill free guns will buy you from a Krogan." He looked a little unhappy about that last possibility, but whether it was giving away all his toys or giving them away for free it was hard to tell.
"Trust me, Bronn, it will be worth it. There's a world of difference between popguns and what we're after." Tahlyn clapped his Krogan friend on the shoulder. "Now why don't you go grab some presents for our hosts while Chase and I get to know Harrm?"

Grumbling, Bronn stomped up the gangway into the ship while Tahlyn led Artemis towards Raik Harrm.
"Thank you for your offer of hospitality," Tahlyn told the tall, broad Krogan. The Turian wasn't short but Harrm was big even for a Krogan and in his armour he loomed.
"It's not for you, Turian. It's for Bronn. He may be a hopeless warrior, but my Father was a fool to ever let him leave the Wrath's Eye. If he can get our systems online, fix my ship's main battery, I'll let you and your ship go. If not, well, we've got Varren to feed." Harrm snorted and Tahlyn moved.

That snakelike quickness Artemis had seen a few times before had Tahlyn's shotgun up and pressed against the Krogan pirate's snout before he had time to react. His other hand was holding the bulky old Striker's muzzle down, and Artemis saw tension in both faces. Around them a half dozen rifles and shotguns were levelled at Tahlyn and her, angry Krogan starting to move before Harrm's free hand gestured them back.
"That's the last time you threaten me or my crew," Varro said very slowly. "Bronn likes you, which is why I let him do the talking instead of just smearing your pitiful mercenaries across this field. Now unless you want me to give you an extra nostril, you'll back right down and invite us all in for a drink."

The moment stretched out, like a water droplet about to fall, and then Harrm took a step back and laughed.
"Ha! No wonder Bronn likes you. You talk like a Krogan, Captain. Come on, you and your lady-friend can come have a Ryncol on me." Harrm turned, his cape billowing in the breeze, and stomped towards a bunker-looking building set against the cliff face.

Looking back at Artemis, Tahlyn took a deep breath and stowed his shotgun.
"Welcome to scenic Garvug. I can't wait to see the night life."

The bunker was a dark and industrial looking place. A couple of Krogan were standing guard, several more were carrying equipment deeper into the complex. Ahead she saw a Krogan child running around, but it disappeared behind a corner before they got too close. Harrm led them into a large, open hall with perhaps two dozen Krogan and a handful of other aliens. A Volus and a Batarian were sitting down at a table with a couple of Krogans, playing some kind of game, and a pair of Drell in black armour were flanking a Hanar who seemed to be haggling with the locals. The bar Harrm led them to had a long firepit down the middle of the room, flickering illumination and a handful of Krogan sitting at tables or benches, sharing meals or drinks. The bartender was obviously old, and he wore a prosthetic limb in place of his left arm. The crude cybernetic replacement held a glass he was buffing with a cloth as Harrm took a seat.
"Kefph, a round for our guests." The bartender looked up, revealing a badly scarred face and a cybernetic eye as well.
"Hmmp. Ryncol? Or is that too strong for you?" He poured two, then glanced at Artemis and dug beneath the bar. He came up with a bottle of beer, Black Star Breweries on Shanxi. "Don't get to serve humans too often. Want a glass?"

~tag~
 
“Well that too,” She laughed, her hand slipping from his shoulder and looking over at Bronn and Harrm, looking at her favorite Krogan curiously as he came walking back over to them. She listened as he laid out the situation to them, smiling a little at his obvious dislike of having to give away his precious guns, and for free. If it got them out of here, and in one piece, and with the Harlot though, she couldn't say she really felt bad about it. She looked at Tahlyn a bit sharply though when he suggested that she and him go and get to know Harrm, frowning a little, “Do I have to?” She whined, but went along anyway.

Harrm might make Tahlyn look slightly shorter than usual, but he made Artemis look like a pygmy, standing next to the Turian with a wary expression as Tahlyn greeted the Warlord. Her brows lifted at his threat, and she started to glance at her Captain, just in time to see the blur of his shotgun as he lifted it to press it into the Krogan's face. Artemis' eyes went a bit wide and she glanced at the Harlot, wondering how long it would take her to get Bronn, Tahlyn spoke though and she looked back to him. The Krogan around them didn't attack, but they lingered to move about like circling sharks, their weapons already out. Artemis' own hand strayed to her pistol, glancing all the while between Harrm, Tahlyn, and the circling Krogan.

Artemis just waited, and listened, and in the never ending moment of silence following Tahlyn's own threat, she stayed tense and ready, her jaw clenched. When Harrm stepped back and laughed, she let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, relaxing visibly. She watched the Krogan stomp off then looked at Tahlyn when he spoke, giving a short rough laugh, “I bet it's real lively. Judging by our reception.” She just hoped they didn't have any Asari dancers, they always bugged her for some reason.

Inside, she ended up at the bar with Tahlyn, glancing around curiously at the other 'patrons'. She managed to hop up onto a bar stool that seemed to have been made for a giant, her feet dangling fairly far off the ground, and looked at the grizzled old bartender as he spoke to her. “Ah yeah, no thanks to the Ryncol, I'd rather not be pissing blood later,” She snorted a little but looked at the beer, “I'll take that though.” She held out a hand for the glass, taking it once the drink was poured, looking around again, “Cushy place Harrm,” She said, looking at the Krogan next to her, she'd decided it was best to keep Harrm and Tahlyn a part a bit.
 
~~Tahlyn Varro & Kurrlok Bronn~~

"I have seen worse receptions," Tahlyn smirked back. "We didn't get shot completely out of the sky, no one's dead and I'm not being tortured by Batarians. So there's room for things to go both ways." Chuckling, he leaned on the bar and nodded to the bartender. When the drinks were set out, Tahlyn reached out and snatched a Ryncol from one of the pirates before he could pick it up, downing it and closing his eyes. He made a low grunting sound and his teeth ground together, then he shook his head and coughed. "Yeah, I'd stick to the beer, Chase. That stuff's rougher than our landfall."

Raik Harrm chuckled and muttered something to the disgruntled Krogan who'd had his drink snatched by Tahlyn.
"My men deserve a few rewards, but I don't want them getting soft. Too many Krogans are soft, now. Like Bronn. Comfortable. Complacent. They forget we're at war." He downed his drink, nodded for another and grunted. "But while you're my guests, you can enjoy what hospitality we have to offer."
"All we really want is to head north." Tahlyn put in as he lifted a second Ryncol and took a sip.
"Bronn said you want to play archaeologist. You're welcome to it. I'll even sell you a skimmer, since that ship isn't going anywhere for a while." Harrm smirked at the dirty look Tahlyn gave him. "But it won't come cheap, and I get the impression from your engineer that you don't have much cash on hand."
"I'm sure I'll come up with something." Tahlyn said, violet eyes narrowing over his mug. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go check on Bronn. Artemis, I'll be right back. Any one of these Krogan gives you trouble, you have my permission to drop them like an orbital strike." Finishing his drink and swaying slightly, the Turian pushed himself up from his seat and turned to go.

Harrm grunted as he watched Tahlyn leave, then turned back to Artemis.
"You won't find anything you know," the Krogan told her. "My people've had this world since the rebellion, and the Asari had it before that. There's nothing left to be found, and the Protheans didn't leave anything worth having anyways. The Turian's on a wild Nathak hunt. The only thing out there is ice and Thresher Maws." A couple of his cohorts nodded.

~tag~
 
Artemis frowned when the Turian compared his drink to their landing, “Hey that wasn't my fault!” She quipped back, taking a drink of her beer. She listened to Harrm though as he spoke of their compound, and about Krogans. She preferred Bronn's company, that was for sure, but she kept her mouth shut. It was Krogans like Harrm that had them in this situation in the first place, but no way she was going to tell him that. Maybe she'd send it back to him as a transmission when they were finally on their way out of here.

She just drank and listened to the bit of exchange between the Krogan Warlord and Tahlyn, watching the activity around her curiously. Artemis looked up quickly though, her eyes going a touch wide when her captain excused himself and left her with the Krogans, alone. She wanted to argue, but for the sake of not looking like she'd much rather be going with him as some sort of weakness she just nodded and took another drink.

When Harrm spoke of their dismal chances of finding what Tahlyn was looking for, she gave him a sideways look, her elbows resting on the bar, and shrugged her shoulders, “Good thing I'm not looking for anything then, I just fly the ship.” Artemis took another drink and tried to think of some sort of small talk. But what did you use for small talk with a Krogan Warlord? Hell if she knew. Yeah, Tahlyn could come back now.
 
The Raik pirate eyed her carefully for a long moment, sizing her up. Then he chuckled.
"It's wise to have low expectations. The more you expect, the more you'll be disappointed. Most humans don't seem to be that clever." He got a chuckle from his boys, and then turned, nodding to her. "Come on, almost time for tonight's entertainment."

Harrm turned and walked from the bar, gesturing at Artemis to follow. Out in the main hall, he crossed to the far side where a large metal grate was being cranked back over a circular, sand-bottomed pit. A couple of Krogan were standing around it, watching. Down in the pit, a couple of Varren were restrained by their owners. Snapping and snarling, they hissed at one another.
"Vorn, you think that thing can hold its own?" Harrm called down to one of the handlers. The Krogan who looked up was young-looking for his species, his crest hadn't dulled yet, it still had that adolescent sheen.
"He'll fight!" The snapped comment came back, a higher pitch than Artemis was used to hearing from his species.
"But will he win? What do you think, human? Know anything about Varren?" Harrm chuckled and leaned over, looking at the other one. This one was obviously the favourite, larger and scarred from previous fights, one of its fangs was missing its tip, giving its snarl a snaggle-toothed quality as it turned to try and bite its owner.

"Having fun, Chase?" Tahlyn walked up with Bronn in tow. The engineer was obviously drowning his sorrows because he had a mug of Ryncol that must have been at least a liter. "Really, Harrm?" Bronn hid a belch as he saw what was going on. "What's next, going down to the swamp with a spotlight to shoot Klixen?" Tahlyn had a disgusted look on his face as he looked down, Bronn merely looked mournful over having to give away his toys.
 
Artemis frowned a little at his remark about humans, not following him immediately when he got up. She finished her drink, muttering incoherently into her glass before she sighed and set it aside, hopping down from the stool to see what the 'entertainment' was. She was doubtful as to how entertaining she'd actually find it, and as she approached the pit, she knew that she wasn't going to find it entertaining at all.

She liked animals, she liked animals better than she liked most people she met, human and alien. Varren fighting was disgusting to her, and she frowned deeply as she looked between the two fighters. Artemis crossed her arms, listening to the banter between Harrm and the young Krogan, Vorn. If she wasn't so irritated she'd find it curious to see a young Krogan, as it was though, she didn't really feel all that interested.

Artemis glanced at Harrm when he spoke to her though, and she gave him a glare, about to just tell him she wasn't interested in watching blood sport and go back to the ship. Tahlyn arrived though, the pilot glancing over her shoulder at him, “Hardly,” She growled, glancing at a forlorn looking Bronn. He at least seemed to echo her sentiment, but she looked back to the pit to see another Krogan walking into the pit carrying a crate. The two fighters seemed to go a little crazier at the sight of it, and Artemis assumed there was some food in it or something. Unfortunately she wasn't far off as the Krogan produced a Varren pup from the crate, holding it aloft by the back of its neck. The pup squirmed and growled, snapping it's jaws at the empty air.

“Hey, wait, what's he doing with that?” Artemis asked, a tone of alarm in her voice.

“He's a runt, only good for bait for the fighters,” A Krogan from next to her explained but that seemed to do it in for Artemis.

The pilot was sliding down the wall of the pit before she could really even think about it, darting forward and snatching the pup from the Krogan's grasp, holding it to her with one hand and the other hand having drawn her pistol. Realizing the situation she was in, two snarling Varren on either side of her, Artemis thought maybe this wasn't the best decision she'd ever made, but then she told herself she'd probably made worse ones.

The Krogan that had been holding the pup blinked at her, then tried to snatch it back, “Hey, give-” He withdrew his hand though when Artemis brought the butt of her pistol down on his wrist and then pointed it at his face.

“Fuck off,” she snarled, and the pup was squirming in her grip, making her glad for her armor.
 
The scene at the fighting pit wasn't really a surprise to Tahlyn, but he didn't like it. Bloodsports were as common amongst Krogan as brawls, and just as inevitable. Tahlyn had seen worse things in his years with the Cabals, but watching a couple of animals tear each other apart was the last thing he wanted to do after the day he'd had.

Bronn wasn't even looking. He'd seen what was going to happen and he wanted no part of it. There were reasons he'd been back to Tuchanka precisely thrice in the century or so since he'd left, and reasons why he had abandoned the Raik Grenph and his Wrath's Eye pirates to play bodyguard and then security guard. The Krogan understood his people perfectly, which was why he preferred to spend his time around aliens.
"Yeah, great Harrm. Nothing like watching a dinner duke it out to decide who gets to be the entree." He sounded about as enthusiastic as Artemis felt as he finished his drink and looked at the flickering overhead lights. "I'd be better off getting your reactor ticking over, I don't think it's cycling properly."

When Artemis spoke up Tahlyn looked down and sighed. Cruelty on top of cruelty and how much fun would that be? The last thing he expected was Artemis jumping down into the fighting pit to snatch the struggling fish-pup from its owner. Then her gun came up and Tahlyn bit back a smile. At least she knew how to handle Krogan diplomacy.
"Chase! Stop playing around. We're not here to make trouble." Tahlyn snapped out and Bronn grunted. In spite of the words the Turian had his pistol out, and Bronn's hand was on his submachinegun as they moved by reflex to stand back to back.
"No trouble, Turian." Harrm laughed. "Back down, Trenn, it looks like we've got a new kind of entertainment. Let them loose, boys."

There was laughter from the gathering crowd as the chains were released and the two Varren charged. Artemis had just enough time to see Tahlyn leaping down to stand beside her as their claws dug into the sand and the two snarling predators pounced.
 
Artemis looked up at her Captain when he snapped at her to stop playing around and causing trouble, “Yeah because jumping down in a Varren pit is totally fun!” She snapped back, obviously more than a little pissed off at the moment, still brandishing her pistol and holding the squirming pup against her. She looked to Harrm though when he seemed to not be angry or offended, it clicked in her head what he was up to though when he mentioned 'new entertainment'.

She felt her heart kick it into overdrive and she turned her pistol on the Varren to her right, thinking that if she could kill one quickly, she'd kill the other before it could really do much damage to her. She'd have to really thank Bronn later for the armor, if it survived this test run anyway. She saw Tahlyn leaping down at the last minute, in that weird sort of slow motion that things took on when her adrenaline really got going, and when she glanced at him she felt like she looked at him for a full minute, but really it was more like a second.

Artemis stayed her trigger finger, hoping that Tahlyn would be able to push them back so she didn't have to kill either one of them. She'd rather not, though it might be a kindness considering their lives and how they were used. Either way though she tucked herself against her Captain's back, gun still aimed on the one Varren's head in case she needed to shoot it.
 
As the Varren pounced, Tahlyn moved. Instead of diving aside or backing up he moved in, catching the Varren at the apex of its leap, one hand grasping the predator by the throat and muscling in between its slashing forepaws. Its face shoved forward as it struggled, snapping at him, but he just bopped it sharply on the muzzle, right between its eyes. Its eyes squinted and it let out a hissing yowl.
"Fuck off sharpish!" He grunted and let it fall. The Varren curled up, covering its head with its paws.

The other Varren had caught Artemis low, barrelling into her belly and knocking her flat on her back, sending her gun and the pup flying in opposite directions. Claws scrabbled for purchase on her armour but didn't find any as it clambered up her body. As Tahlyn turned, he saw and growled something under his breath. The Turian leapt and knocked the Varren off her before it could snap at her face or throat. The two of them rolled away and Tahlyn backed off as the Varren focused on Artemis again, setting itself for another leap. Above them the crowd was cheering and laying bets, and from the corner of her eye Artemis could see Bronn gesturing with his gun and saying something about fifteen to one odds.

Harrm was looking down, arms folded, watching intently. The rest of the Krogan were cheering raucously, a dull roar of background to the hissing-purr of the Varren as it readied to leap.
"Come on, Chase, don't mess about." Tahlyn barked at her as the Varren worked itself up for another pounce. "Hit it between the eyes. There's a nerve cluster there." His gun was up, tracking the creature, but his eyes were glancing up and around. Shooting it was an option, but it wouldn't buy them any goodwill.
 
Artemis braced herself as she saw the other varren barreling at her, catching her low in her stomach and knocking her onto her back. Yet again she was glad for the armor, especially as the beast tried to claw it's way up to her face but found it difficult to get purchase on the hard material. The pup went one way and the pup went the other, but there wasn't much she could do about either until Tahlyn finally knocked it off of her. She rolled onto her knees once it was gone, looking around quickly and spotting the pup clambering to it's feet as well.

The jeers of the crowd did nothing for her mood, and neither did Bronn's wagering. Her attention was drawn back to the Varren though, seeing it hunkering itself down to have another leap at her. She gave Tahlyn a glare when he barked at her though, “Yeah, playing around! That's totally what I'm doing!” She barked right back at him.

The pilot dropped down a little as she saw the Varren start to jump, but jumped forward herself, slamming her fist down between it's eyes. It's pupils dilated and then scrambled away from her with a loud yowl, shaking it's head. Artemis took the moment to scoop up the pup, who had started to troddle it's way towards her, looking completely unconcerned about the events unfolding around it. Next was the gun, snatching it up out of the sand.
 
The two stunned Varren backed off, heads held low, making odd whining sounds as they gave Artemis and her captain a wide berth. As she scooped up her pistol, Tahlyn stepped over and wrapped an arm around her waist, a blue glow limning them as he hopped up out of the pit.
"You carrying any damage, Artemis?" He asked in a low voice, keeping close to her as the Krogan pirates backed up, muttering and laughing. One of them gave Tahlyn a friendly punch in the shoulder, but as the Turian was turning to face him Bronn stepped up and gave him a Tuchanka handshake. Their skulls met with a clonk of bone-on-bone and of the two Bronn didn't take a step back.
"Of course she's not. Take more than a couple of Varren to get through that suit. Right Chase?" Their engineer seemed in a cheerful mood, unlike a few of Raik Harrm's thugs. That might have something to do with the credit balance he was looking forward to collecting from them.

"Just give her some room, Bronn," Tahlyn put in, taking a look at the squirming animal she was holding. "Well, does that make us even for our little freefall on Illium or am I still digging my way out of that hole?" Varro seemed fairly cheerful about it, all told. The stress in his tone when he'd followed her down into the pit was gone, as was the harsh look on his face. He seemed almost relaxed in the wake of the incident.

"There's just one thing I want to know," Bronn said as he forced a way through the crowd for them until they were safely ensconced in an alcove along one edge of the hall. "Are you going to cook that, or are you going to name it? Because I haven't eaten since we landed and I've got a couple of recipes that would make your mouth water." The Krogan was only half joking as he leaned back against a stack of supply crates, slipping the pipe-tomahawk from his belt and slowly loading the bowl before lighting it and puffing contemplatively.
 
Artemis watched the Varren skulk off, before Tahlyn stepped up next to her, her free arm around him as he put his arm around her waist, the pup still squirming in her other arm. She knew what was coming but it was always a little disconcerting to float through the air, though she knew Tahlyn would never let her fall. She shook her head at his question, opening her mouth to answer before they were interrupted by a Krogan deciding to give her captain a bit of a love pat. Bron intervened before a fight could break out, and she gave him an irritated look. “Yeah, I'm fine,” She grumbled.

She followed along after Bronn as he carved a path through the crowd. The pup had stopped squirming so much and was now half draped over her shoulder instead, it's front legs dangling over them and his head up near her ear, peering around curiously. He was a pleasing color, with a black stripe running from the tip of his nose, over his head, down his neck and back, and the top of his tail. Immediately around that his skin was a deep blue that lightened as it went further from the stripe, taking on a green tint. It faded until his belly, chest, and feet were a pale, near-white shade of green, and his large eyes were a vibrant gold. Only the smallest buds of the spines that would one day sprout from his back had started to develop, and his teeth were still sharp puppy teeth.

Artemis was supporting his rump with her right arm, letting him half perch, half drape over her shoulder, the two of them already looking comfortable with one another. So when Bronn half-joked about eating him, he got a maternally protective glare from the pilot. “No, we're not eating him Bronn,” She told him, then paused, and looked at Tahlyn, “I'd like to name him.” Her brows lifted, and her face softened into a slightly pouting expression. “Can I keep him?” She asked, “I'll take care of him, promise.” She gave him a small smile and added as incentive, “You let me keep him and we're even on dropping me out of a forty story building.”

She hefted the pup in her arms a bit, ending up holding it up with her hands under his front legs, lifting him a little so the pup's head was level with Tahlyn's. "Come on, you can't say no to this face," She said sweetly, the pup just growled at him.
 
Chase's request to name him drew a more disapproving look than telling Bronn not to start heating a pan. Tahlyn tilted his head, eyes narrowing as he watched the squirming little critter climb onto her shoulder and settle there briefly.
"It was four hundred stories," he said finally, chuckling. "And you can keep him. But you're cleaning up after him, and if he breaks anything and I shoot him full of holes you're cleaning that up too." The Turian wagged his finger at the Varren's blunt snout as she held it up for him. It snapped at him but missed and got a gentle poke in the nose for its trouble.
"Ha! He nearly had you Varro." Bronn grinned. "I think it's a he." Reaching out, the Krogan extended a hand and let the Varren snap its jaws onto his armoured fist. Dangling it by its teeth, Bronn peered at it and nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure. Besides, the females are usually less colourful." Offering it back to Artemis while Tahlyn threw up his arms and muttered something in Turian, Bronn managed to pry his hand loose.

Flexing his fingers, the Krogan nodded to the pilot.
"If you'll excuse me, I've got some money to collect. Not too many of these Raik lads were expecting you to hold up, and nobody expected you to get out without shooting." He punched Artemis on the shoulder lightly. "You know you're getting an even split, right?" Bronn was still laughing to himself as he ambled off to find his debtors.

* * *

Raik Harrm set them up in a pair of rooms in a disused portion of the bunker complex. They'd been sealed for a while, but aside from a thin film of dust on some surfaces and a faintly musty, Krogan-y smell they were clean. Tahlyn didn't object, it was obvious enough that their host didn't want them flying away until he'd gotten his money's worth from Bronn. Their Krogan engineer had dragged a couple of unwilling assistants down into the bowels of the base to go look at the reactor core. From the way the lights flickered every few minutes, he was either fixing things or setting them up to be at the center of a crater visible from space.

Tahlyn, meanwhile, had gone and collected a kitbag of his gear and another of hers when he'd gone back to lock down the Harlot's Virtue. Given the way Artemis had looked at the Varren barbecue pit, he'd also brought dinner, a couple of civilian self-heating meal trays for her and some bronze foil packages for himself. Sitting down cross-legged on a hassock-chair meant for a Krogan, he ripped open one of the packages. It made a sizzling sound as some chemical heated it up to a palatable temperature, but it looked bizarre. It was a greyish-green loaf, and when he bit into it Artemis saw that it had at least a half dozen layers in several colours, including one that was a thick and vivid orange sauce.
"I talked to Harrm. If Bronn can get their power systems sorted tonight, he'll lend us a skimmer, we can head north tomorrow." Varro didn't seem too happy about the prospect of leaving Bronn behind. "The sooner we get out from under the Raik the better. Bronn can handle them, and it'll take them weeks to get through the Harlot's security systems."

Taking another bite of his... food-loaf, Tahlyn looked down at the scampering Varren pup and snorted.
"Are you bringing that along when we head north, or leaving it in our Engineer's trustworthy hands?" There was a toothy little smirk as he glared down at the skittering lizard-thing. "No, you can't have any. First, it might kill you, and second, it's mine and *I* might kill you." There wasn't any venom in the words, but the captain did make sure his other meal pack was tucked away from the edge of the table.
 
Artemis beamed when Tahlyn said she could keep the pup as long as she took care of it, a grin breaking out onto her face and laughing a little when the Varren snapped at him but thankfully missed. When Bronn let the pup latch onto his fist to dangle in the air though she took the opportunity having her arms free and having the Turian throwing up his arms to suddenly cling to Tahlyn in a surprisingly tight hug, her arms wrapped around his torso as her head only just barely came up to his shoulder. “Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on him,” she promised, then without really thinking about it, went up on her tip toes to press a quick kiss to his plated cheek before she let him go to take the pup back from Bronn.

She cradled the Varren in her arm like a mother would a child and it calmed almost instantly, stubby tail wagging a little as it's mouth fell open in some semblance of a grin, long pink tongue hanging out of one side of it's mouth. Artemis just kept beaming, smiling brightly at Tahlyn, “Thanks.” She looked at Bronn though when he punched her in the shoulder and told her she was getting an even split, “I better!” she laughed, the pup still reclining in her arms and looking very pleased with itself.



Settled down in the bunker, she sat in the chair next to his, her feet dangling in the air a little and eating from one of the trays that Tahlyn had brought her. She watched the Turian though for a moment with an expression mixed with curiosity and slightly apprehension, not trusting whatever the hell he was eating. She nodded a bit though at his plan for them to head North and kept eating. She smirked though when the pup went begging for food, and Tahlyn proved to not be so grumpy as he was trying to be. Artemis chuckled under her breath a little, “Orion, here,” she grabbed a piece of food off her tray and held it down for him. The pup tried to snatch it from her hand but she slapped him on the nose a bit. “Hey! Those are my fingers!” She growled and he tried again, a little more carefully this time.

“He's smart,” She beamed, “starting to learn his name already.” Artemis frowned a little though at the question of whether she planned on bringing him with them or leaving him behind. “I suppose I should leave him here... he'd probably just get in the way huh?” she sighed, then smirked a little, “I can trust Bronn not to eat him right?” She half-joked.

Orion sat at her feet, watching her as she ate and let out a growling whine. “I already fed you!” Artemis protested, “I need to eat too.” She nudged him away with her toe but he came right back. "What's the plan if we head out tomorrow then?" She asked, looking back to Tahlyn.
 
As they ate and Artemis played with her new pet, Tahlyn was watching the Varren carefully. He wasn't sure if he approved of giving something so squirmy a name but Artemis seemed pleased by her acquisition. The Turian found it hard not to smirk when she nearly got her fingers snapped in those hungry jaws.
"I'd say Orion's at least as smart as his former owners, but that's not a great recommendation." He allowed as he finished his dinner and popped open a drinking bulb, sipping the coffee as it was still heating up. It wasn't his usual special roast, just mass produced ersatz for spacer consumption, but he still savoured the bitterness. He much preferred it to Turian Spice Teas, finding them too cloying for his palate.

"I'll say this about Bronn - he has never eaten anything once he knew its name, and that includes that Thresher Maw the locals on that moon called Maelbolgia." Tahlyn shot her a grin. "Orion'll be safe with Bronn than he will with us. I don't think Varren do too well in the cold and we're going to be digging down into a glacier that's nearly ten thousand years old."

Leaning back and watching Artemis with wary eyes, Varro found himself rubbing his cheek where she'd kissed him. Shaking his head he growled and took another pull at his coffee before replying.
"Bronn and Harrm are making a deal for a skimmer. We'll load up my amateur xeno-archaeologist kit in the morning and head up the fissure like we planned to do in the Harlot. Should be a lot easier to fit a skimmer than my poor, wounded lady." He sighed as he contemplated the repairs Bronn would need to make to get them space-worthy again.

"Then we burrow down through the ice to the Prothean facility and I use the info Rowlan gave me to try and find out just where to go looking for this 'Star Lance' project. Whether it's here in this system somewhere or tucked away somewhere else. At least one of the project scientists... or war-artisans, the Protheans had some strange vocabulary, was transferred to Garvug at some point to do a survey. The translation I have isn't perfect, but I think that Garvug was on their short list of places to build or test this device." Tahlyn finished and shrugged. He had been working with fragments of fragments for years now, condensing meaning from mist. Every time he talked about it out loud he felt simultaneously like some kind of prophet trying to convert the masses and like a lunatic who expected to be locked up any second.

"That's the shape of my plans. Assuming we got here before the Colonel and Cold Iron got word to their local contractors, assuming we can even find the facility and that the Asari left anything intact when they left a few millenia ago. Assuming a lot of things." Tahlyn chuckled at himself as the lights flickered again and then went out completely. As the lights went out the door slid shut with a grinding sound and a very final sounding 'snick'. The distant hum of the ventilation system vanished as well, leaving them in silent darkness broken only by the whining of Orion.

"Assuming Bronn can get the lights back on, of course." Tahlyn added, his omni-tool lighting up to provide some illumination. Walking to the door he examined it and grunted. "Huh. That... that could be a problem. I think we're locked in." Grasping the heavy lever, he tugged at it, then harder. It refused to budge. Throwing himself into it, the Turian growled and strained, but the door didn't even shift.

Looking over, he shook his head. The only light was the glow of his omni-tool on his wrist, it's bluish glow making his violet eyes shine like a cat's in the darkness.
"Krogan security measures," he sounded very unhappy, "in case of contamination or invasion... probably mutiny too, knowing them. Interior partitions lock down if the power is cut. I think we're stuck here until Bronn fixes the reactor. Unless you happen to have something that will cut through Flintsteel. Do you?" Tahlyn took a deep breath, closed his eyes.

At that moment, he was thinking about nothing but the weight of mountain over their heads, and desperately trying to find a way to get out.
 
Artemis shot the Turian a look when he compared Orion's intelligence to his former owners', then looked back at the pup, scratching under his chin which elicited a tiny purring noise from him. She kept eating, listening to Tahlyn as he told her that the pup would be safer with Bronn than with them. She sighed softly, “Yeah, I know. Guess I'll leave him here then.” She shot a glare under the table though at a scraping noise to see Orion chewing on the base of the table. She nudged him hard in his side, making him growl and let go, before he latched onto the toe of her boot instead. She shook him off and nudged him again. “Going to need to get you something to chew on that won't get you in trouble,” She muttered.

The pilot looked back up as he started laying out the plan for their trek up into the glaciers, not seeing the way look he'd been giving her, so she just kept eating and listened. “Seems pretty straight-forward,” she shrugged, “well, except for all the 'ifs' and assumptions I guess.”

She looked up though as the lights went out, frowning in the dark before her head turned to look in the direction of the door as it slid shut and then locked. “Great...” She muttered as the ventilation system stopped, and Orion started to whine. Artemis sighed and reached blindly under the table, “C'mere boy,” she held out her hands and felt him brush against them, but he wiggled away into the darkness before she could grab him. So she got up as Tahlyn did, watching him as he examined the door. Then trying to open it, a futile gesture.

Artemis frowned as he shook his head at her, then shook her own head as he asked if she had something that would maybe cut through Flintsteel, “Afraid not, cap,” she muttered, starting to walk over but stumbled a little as she stepped on Orion, who let out a yelp of surprise quickly followed by a growl of protest. “Damn it Orion, then don't stay under my feet,” she snatched him up before he could run off and walked over to Tahlyn, the pup climbing half onto her shoulder again to perch, whining softly. “Don't worry,” She assured him, standing in the sphere of light his omni-tool provided, “Bronn'll get the power back up.”
 
Looking at the door again, Tahlyn took a long, deep breath.
"Yeah, he will. He can't shoot straight, but he can get just about anything running if you give him the time. I really don't like being trapped, though. I can handle tight spaces, I don't mind the dark... but I hate not having an exit." His violet eyes glanced up at the ceiling, imagining the entirety of the mountain over his head. Artemis saw him twitch a little, just a faint shudder, but Tahlyn got it under control.

Moving away, he sat down on the nearest bed and folded his legs into a half-lotus. For a few moments he toyed with his comm-link, but the weight of steel and stone was enough to block their transmissions. With the ventilation stopped it was beginning to get warm in the room, and soon enough the air would start to get stale. Doing a few calculations, Tahlyn came up with a number and it wasn't one he liked.
"We've got about four hours before we start to suffer anoxia," he told her, leaving his omni tool on to provide a light. "And I can't get through to anyone." It crossed his mind, but he didn't mention it, that this could be a convenient way for Harrm to get rid of them and convince Bronn to stay. "Orion'll probably last the longest, Tuchanka breeds tough critters."

Going through his pockets, Tahlyn began looking for anything useful. His Omni-Tool was a plus, but beyond his guns he didn't have much else that was useful.
"We've got a couple options," he said finally, looking over at Artemis. "We can sit tight, try to sleep and figure they'll get the systems relit before we start running out of air..." The expression on his face didn't offer much confidence in that possibility. "We can try to get the door open, there should be a counter-weight holding it in the wall somewhere. Might be able to get through to it and shift it enough to get it open even a crack."

"Or, if you're feeling adventurous, you can try finding a way out through that." Tahlyn cocked his head at Artemis and then pointed up at the air vent. It was rectangular and not particularly large. "You've got an omni-tool, so you'll have light and it should be able to map your progress to keep you from getting lost. You look skinny enough to fit... don't think I would." Letting the option hang in the air, he rose again and started looking for access panels in the wall, and when that didn't work he configured his tool into an ultravibe scanner and began running his hand over the bulkhead, looking for hollow spots and open areas hidden from view. The high-frequency sound made Orion yip and hiss, scrabbling in Artemis' grasp.
 
Artemis could tell that the Turian really didn't like being trapped in here. Mind you she didn't like it much either, but he seemed far more agitated than she did. She remembered when they'd been in the hotel room, laying low, and decided that Tahlyn really didn't handle being cooped up very well at all. She watched him settled on the nearest bed with a look of slight concern on her face then sighed and looked at Orion, setting the pup down finally and sitting in a nearby chair to play with him with her feet. She had nothing better to do and Orion would need to be kept entertained, and Tahlyn seemed to want to be left alone.

When he spoke up about how long before they began to suffer from the effects of insufficient oxygen, she let out a deep sigh, “You're such cheerful company...” the pilot muttered under her breath, looking back down as Orion clamped onto the toe of her boot and began tugging on it with fierce little growls. She gave a bit of a snorted laugh though when he mentioned Orion lasting the longest thanks to Varren being pretty tough, she yanked her boot free of his jaws, making the pup go tumbling backwards with a yelp. He just sat there, a sullen look on his face, staring at her reproachfully.

“Could have fooled me...” before she patted her thigh and the pup trotted back over, nipping at Artemis' hands as she reached down to grab him. She pulled him up anyway, swatting him on the nose for being a pain.

She looked back to Tahlyn as he started going over their options, none of which sounded particularly appealing to her. Sitting around hoping didn't sound good, trying to force the door open sounded futile, and crawling around in a vent sounded like a bad idea all around. Staring up at the opening, she didn't look down until the Turian started on the door, scowling as Orion scrabbled around in her lap in protest to the noise. “Ow! Orion calm down!” She growled, picking him up and holding him in the air.

She knew Tahlyn wasn't going to be content just sitting around, so for him there was only forcing the door as an option. But she didn't feel like dealing with a panicking Varren. “Stop Tahlyn!” she told him, finally setting Orion down though the pup just pressed his head against Artemis' calf. “I'll go in the air vent, just stop making Orion try to gut me,” She sighed heavily, staring up at the vent with her hands on her hips. “You're going to have to help me up,” she started stripping off her armor, even with it on she was small enough but she figured every little bit would help, and she'd probably be able to maneuver better without it. Her boots came off as well, leaving her bare foot in the sleek black micro fiber under armor. “Crawling around in vents in a black unitard, maybe I should wear a mask and put on some cat ears,” Artemis joked, not sure he'd get it though.
 
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