Renala approaches the entrance, having walked the way from the Respite. Unless the door is locked, she enters the lobby.
#RedrockAgency – August 23, 2014
The conference room is indeed empty, although the Armax Arsenal Arena broadcast is still on, currently showing an ad for Rodam Expeditions. The hallway is equally empty.
Renala smirks to herself. "Almost got the impression I was the only one never coming here," she mutters before approaching the chief's office and knocking on the door.
The door slides open, causing the music to get considerably louder. Vasquez is standing in the middle of her office decked out in full combat gear and wielding the Confetti Maker, apparently practicing manuvering of the rather heavy gun - now in armor. It takes her a moment to notice Renala, the sound of the door opening going unnoticed beneath the music. When she sees the asari she stops, lowering the gun and nodding at her.
Renala returns the nod and steps inside. "This place is deserted and you're ready to shoot down a shuttle," she says. "Is there some warning I've missed, boss?"
Vasquez narrows her eyes as she tries to make out what Renala said over the wailing guitar. Unable to do so, she makes a dismissive wave while putting her machinegun down on the floor and then moving over to the computer, turning the music off. "You were saying, T'Iavay?" She says, turning to the asari.
Renala | "Is there some notice I've missed, boss?" she says. "I didn't see another soul in here, and you're geared up for a fight."
Vasquez shakes her head with a smirk. "Nah, nah... just training to get back in the field." She moves back to the middle of the room and pats the Confetti Maker. "You ever seen a gun this fine before?"
Renala tilts her head, looking over the gun. "I don't think I have," she says. "Things have changed a lot since I ran with mercs before coming here." She looks up at her. "Looks impressive, though. I don't envy whoever finds themselves on the wrong side of it."
Vasquez nods, now grinning widely. "Beefed up kinetic coils, advanced combat VI, cycling thermal clip unit, she's got it all." After a brief pause she seems to remember something. "Oh, right! I asked you to come, didn't I? Need you to take a look at the data recovered on the mission, see if you can decrypt any of it."
Vasquez motions towards her desk - and more specifically her computer. "What did the kid say? Learn anything useful from her?"
Renala moves over her computer, and looks at it without taking a seat. "She didn't talk much," she says. "Whatever they wanted, they went through a lot of trouble taking her from Thessia."
Vasquez sighs and moves over to the window, looking out at the street outside. "Damn it... I was hoping she'd be able to tell us something... what they were testing for, at least."
Renala sits down by the computer, seeing if the folder's already on the screen. "Don't think we have a chance to, either. I got tackled to the ground by someone she recongized and seemed to trust."
Renala focuses the folder and resizes it to see the entirety of it. "Yeah, and the girl was glad to see her," she says. "She apologized, but was on her way before I could ask any questions."
The girl called her Illeya. I tried to walk after them, but she just glared at me, with her biotics ready.
Renala enables her omni-tool. "Mind if I copy the files to my omni-tool?" she says, "and take the work with me back the Respite where I have my own computer?"
A shuttle can be heard outside, although the sound never rescinds in volume. It's not the characteristic whine of a sky-car, either.
Renala taps on the terminal and copies the files over to her omni-tool. "Thanks," she says. "Looks like the program used is included, too. I'll try see what makes it tick, but it can take a while." The omni-tool dissipates as she stands up from the seat.
Vasquez turns around and nods once more at the asari. "Good thing we have you, T'Iavay. Good to be able to keep things like this inside the company."
Renala chuckles. "Save the praise for when I get it working, okay?" she says with a smile, not sounding too serious. "I'll see you around, boss," And with that, she makes her way out. As she reaches the door, she looks over her shoulder. "Unless there's anything else you wanted to discuss?"
Vasquez furrows her eyebrows, pondering the question. "Actually... could you pass on an apology to Briggs? I asked him to come by, so I could tell him in person, but it doesn't look like he's coming."
Renala raises an eyebrow, but nods, turning around to face her. "Of course," she says. "I'll probably be seeing him tomorrow, anyway. I take it he'll know what it's for?"
Vasquez nods, not saying anything. She's looking out the window once more, the sound causing slight confusion.
As she opens the exit door, the asari will be able to see a shuttle floating still about 3 meters above the gate, broadside facing the entrance. The door opens, revealing an armored asari and a turian manning a mounted machine gun. "Release Darennon!" the asari's voice can be heard over loudspeakers on the shuttle. The shuttle has a mismatching right back thruster.
Renala raises her brows and gets back inside, taking cover by the door. "Vasquez?" she asks over the comms. "You heard that?"
Vasquez looks in the direction of the voice and quickly makers her way to the Confetti Maker, grabbing it and then activating her headset comms. "Shit! Yeah, on my way!" She shifts the weight of the gun into one hand and activates her omni-tool, sending off a short message instructing all Redrock personnel: "if you can make it to the hq within 15min come armed immediately". She then starts making her way towards the lobby while activating her weapon's VI and her kinetic barrier.
"We know you're there," the asari says over the loudspeakers. "We give you two minutes to release Darennon!" A comm channel is broadcasted to everyone inside, which may allow them to respond to her.
Vasquez enters the lobby and immediately takes cover on the other side of the door, gun raised. "Situation?" She shouts at Renala while double-checking her equipment.
Renala frowns. "They're asking for Darennon," she says. Her jacket seems to have some kinetic barrier tech in it, but that's about all Renala has for this kind of situation. "And are there any guns in here I can borrow?"
Vasquez unholsters her Shuriken and tosses it to the asari along with one extra clip. "How many are there?"
Renala takes the gun and nods her thanks. "I saw two of them, one on an MG," she says. "Could be more of them that's out of sight."
Vasquez nods. "Stay here, cover the door. I'm gonna get up on the second floor." She jogs out of the lobby and towards the stairs as fast as she can manage, opening the comms while she does so. "Who are you?!"
"Doesn't matter," she responds over the comms. "I'm here for the salarian. You let him go and we'll leave you alone."
Vasquez moves up the stairs and then responds while making her way towards the nearest window facing the side with the shuttle. Upon arriving in cover next to the window she makes a quick check on her omni-tool and types a short response. She then activates her comms once more. "Afraid I can't do that. We're not done with him."
"Does it sound like a polite request?" she responds. "Either he walks out the front door very soon, or we'll tear through this dump looking for him." The shuttle lowers to about a meter above the ground, the mounted gun aimed at the entrance.
Renala enables her omni-tool, trying to see if she can access any of the building's systems with or without her credementials; to see what her options are.
Vasquez presses a button on the haptic interface of the Confetti Maker, switching to AP ammo. She then activates the comms once more. "You don't wanna do that. We will defend ourselves. Last chance to leave."
Renala should be able to access the security cameras and door locks via Vasquez' computer, if she's willing to breach the relatively poor security.
The asari takes a Katana shotgun off the wall and jumps off the shuttle, followed by a fully armored salarian (previously out of sight) with a Carnifex. The stand just off the shuttle, however, weapons pointed at the door. "We do want to do that," the asari taunts over the comms. "I'll repeat myself once more, release Darennon."
Renala taps on her omni-tool, confirming security holes in Vasquez' terminal she could exploit to gain access, and she does run her procedure. "I noticed a security hole on your computer, chief," she says over the comms. "I'll see about getting it fixed after this, but you mind if I used it to lock this place down?" The asari sounds worried, since she'll be the first line of defence without a proper suit of armor.
Vasquez switches her comms to the Redrock channel and responds. "Do it." before glancing out at the mercs that exited the shuttle. She mumbles "Fuck it." before shooting out the window with a three-round burst and then manuvering out into view, steadying the Confetti Maker against the door frame, quickly taking aim at the shuttle and unleashing a hail of high-powered AP rounds all along the vehicle with a bloodthirsty grin on her face.
Renala wastes no time accessing the door locks and locking all external doors, as well as the one between the garage and briefing room. "By the fucking Goddess," she mutters.
The two outside the shuttle makes a run for it towards the entrance, the asari stacking up on the doorframe while the salarian gets to the door. The shuttle's kinetic barriers deflect the rounds, but its door closes and it starts to gain altitude again before the turian gunman can do anything.
Vasquez seems satisfied with having supressed the gunman, but she finds herself unable to target the mercs on foot. She curses under her breath and puts her machinegun down, unclipping a frag grenade from her armor and throwing it with fins out towards the shuttle, hoping to hit it before it climbs too high.
The shuttle speeds forward just after the grenade is thrown, making it barely miss it before it circles around and lands on the roof to stay out of the gun's range.
Renala raises an eyebrow at seeing the interface on the door flicker a bit, checking her omni-tool if she can cut power to it via the chief's controls.
Vasquez exclaims a loud "Fuck!" as the grenade misses, and then grabs her gun again, looking around as she tires to figure out what to do. When she hears the shuttle on the roof she seems to consider attempting to fire through it, but instead makes her way back to the stairs while trying to see if she can raise anyone else on Redrock comms.
Jasper's familiar voice comes to life over comms. "Ya'll out there?" he asks, "Anyone readin' this? We're about ten minutes out, Chief. Had to take a little detour. Keep them sum'bitches occupied and stay safe."
She couldn't have done it a moment sooner, for the door was about to open when the power to it went out; only leaving a 10cm-ish opening at most. The helmeted salarian outside mumbles some profanities. "Door lost power," he says. "Need to breach it." The asari inserts a primed frag grenade through the opening out of mere frustration.
Renala is about to respond when a repeated beeping have her reconsider, and she runs for the door to the conference room, tapping on its interface to open. She is about to run inside by the time the grenade goes off, and she's thrown into it by the blast. Her kinetic barriers saved her most of it, but some fragments found their way into her back.
Vasquez starts making her way down the stairs. "Understood. There's at least four of them. Shuttle has a mounted gun." She reaches the bottom of the stairs and jogs towards the other end of the corridor. She stops upon hearing the explosion, slamming her fist against the door panel and stepping in to the conference room as soon as it opens. Upon spotting Renala she shouts: "Get over here, I'll cover you!"
Renala groans as she gets up to a sitting position, shifting herself to the wall by the doorframe. "Fuck," she mutters. "Didn't see the grenade coming." The bleeding isn't too visible on her jacket, but there's more than a few fragments lodged into her back.
Vasquez mumbles "Damn it." before shifting the grip of her gun to one hand and moving up to Renala, grabbing her arm and trying to pull her up. "Gotta fall back to the corridor, too exposed here!" She looks out the open door into the lobby, feeling uneasy as she can't do anything with her weapon without both hands.
One of the helmeted figures is peeking through the crack in the almost-closed door, but there's not much else they can do.
Vasquez gestures towards the door with a nod. "Yeah, I'll patch you up!" She lets go of the asari and readies her gun at the lobby doorway, firing an AP burst towards the doorway in hopes of hitting the attackers through the door.
"Four hostiles. Mounted gun. Got it. We know where these fellas are from or what sort of issue they've taken with us?" Jasper asks over comms.
The shuttle may be heard lifting off from the roof, again, although the gunfire may make them unable to hear it. The salarian quickly retracts his head and gets back to cover by the doorway, his armor's shields taking care of the gunfire.
Renala walks towards the hallway, wincing at every step. When inside, she leans against the wall. A few drops of purple blood can be seen on her path to the hallway.
Vasquez fires off another burst of AP rounds at the wall where she estimates the salarian is located before backing into the corridor. Once she notices Renala leaning against the wall she grabs the asari and pulls her along to the southern end of the hallway. She glances over her shoulder before putting her gun down and unclipping a medi-gel canister and turning towards Renala.
Renala starts to get off her jacket which the fragments only passed through on their way as it hangs relatively loosely on her. She grits her teeth at the pain.
Vasquez looks over the asari's back, trying to estimate how bad it is. If there are any fragments large enough to be removed, she does so.
Renala has in total eight fragments in her back, the uppermost one on the right shoulderblade, only visible once her jacket is off. Her neck, head, arms and legs has been spared. Only two of them are removable without medical tools. The bleeding is bad, though, making it difficult to truly get a count. "How bad is it?" she groans.
Vasquez starts applying the medi-gel, glancing over her shoulder once or twice to check the door. "Don't worry, I'll seal the wounds and kill these fuckers."
Jasper tries to contact Vasquez over comms once again, sounding a little more panicked due to the lack of a response to his previous attempt, "You there, Chief? How 'bout our approach? We're nearly there, you just let me know where I'm safe to approach from and I'll circle this ol' boat around."
The hostile shuttle has moved to 5 meters above the gate, its guns aimed at the entrance door. "We can end this right now," the asari says over the comms to Vasquez and Renala. "Just hand over the salarian and we're out of here for good."
Renala grits her teeth as the medi-gel clings to her wound and the blood-soaked clothing sorrounding it unless she cut it for better access to the wounds.
Vasquez grabs the top with both hand and rips it apart along the length of Renala's back, giving access to the wounded area beneath without bloodsoaked cloth getting in the way. After finishing with applying the medi-gel she activates her comms. "We've lost sight of the enemy, we're pinned down on the first floor."
Renala sighs relieved when the medi-gel's anaesthetic properties starts kicking in. "Thanks," she says, moving a hand up to her own shoulder to hold the top in place.
Vasquez nods, re-clipping the medi-gel canister to her armor and then reaching down for her gun, starting to ready it and aim down the corridor.
The shuttle comes into view over the horizon. It continues straight towards the gate without showing any sign of slowing down. "Copy. Looks like we're just gonna hafta make this as direct as possible." Jasper says. Before comms cut out, he can be heard shouting a warning to the rest of his passengers, 'Hold onto 'yer butts!'
Renala puts her jacket on, zipping it all the way up and turns towards the door to the conference room. She does not have a weapon, however, for it remains in the conference room.
The passengers proceed to 'hold onto their butts' (As well as rechecking their harnesses) as their shuttle speeds up, heading straight for the hostile shuttle and closing the gap quickly.