Chapter Text
2197 – Illium
Tristan let his eyes roam over the crowd, watching for any indication of a concealed weapon or ill intent. His heads-up-display constantly updated with new information from their command post, the onboard cameras of his armor feeding imagery and analysis to both himself and his teammates.
Crews bustled around the new Armax Arsenal Stadium where he’d been stationed as external security. Inside was a hive of activity ranging from general security sweeps, setting up for the multitude of patrons and fighting off input from every bigwig who had the next great idea for the month-long celebration.
They’d spent the last three months preparing for the upcoming party and festival celebrating the ten-year anniversary of the Reaper’s defeat. He’d be damned if he was going to allow anything to upset those preparations now.
Illium, thankfully, had the resources necessary to manage traffic to and from the planet, as well as entry into and out of Nos Astra where the large gathering was being held. Alongside the construction of the largest Armax Arena, massive areas for the gathering crowds of locals and tourists were constructed to host the party environment.
Tristan was certain much of the funding could have gone to better uses, but who was to say morale and celebration wasn’t equally as important in the grand scheme of things. But pulling security meant that there was little time for extraneous thoughts and so he returned his attention to the problems at hand.
He was just happy he was only in charge of Aria’s security and not one of the thousands dealing with the logistics of the entire event. The added support of most of the major houses of Thessia and their Commando cadres had been a major help in ensuring that they had additional forces who blended into the local population. He shouldn’t have been as surprised as he was when Aria had managed to wrangle the Matriarchs, but he chalked it up to trying to rebuild galactic goodwill.
He pinged Kelesse on his omni-tool while he waited for the shift change, eager to get back to the hotel Aria had commandeered for their stay on Illium. If he was being honest with someone, he’d say that he preferred the straight forwardness of Omega over the subtlety that was Nos Astra. They were simply two sides of the same coin, one just cleaned up better than the other. The experience there had been grinding on his nerves, the glitz and glam of Nos Astra making him wish for a good old-fashioned bar fight just to liven things up.
The reply was short, an all-clear and that their replacement team would be in on time.
‘She’s probably with Aria.’
Kel wasn’t one for many words and Tristan continued his visual perusal of the crowd around him. His inner thoughts turned towards the idea of getting in a few rounds of practice in the new stadium, the swirling rumors of a possible tournament foremost in his mind.
He’d put his team against anyone currently on the planet with the expectation of winning. Sure, some of the Republic’s commando cadres would likely give them a run for their money, but Taloravi had certainly given them the experience and advice needed to overcome that particular obstacle.
Memories of his Eclipse tattoo and initiation flitted through his thoughts. The organization had taken a special interest in him after he and Kel had assisted with some wet work against a rival organization on a colony where the Eclipse mercenary group was attempting to gain a foothold. It hadn’t been the first time that they’d helped out, but something about that day had endeared him to one of the officers of the organization.
He'd been singled out for tasks and other operations in return for several favors to Aria and her organization. He’d done similar work with the Blue Suns over time, but his time with Eclipse felt different. The request always came from the same unit, and nearly always the same officer in charge. In some ways it had been a good way to get to know the team, and in others it worried him because over time many of them became what he would consider to be good friends.
Friendships and their line of work rarely mixed well.
Tristan returned his attention to his work, prior thoughts of the Eclipse Sun tattoo that sat on his shoulder fading into the background as chatter from his team picked up. The eagerness of returning to their hotel and having a few drinks first and foremost in everyone’s minds.
He smiled as the chatter increased, good natured ribbing and light-hearted insults floating across the channel.
oOo
The next few days flew by in a blur of festivities, speeches, security problems and a good scuffle with some local thugs. It had been relatively minor, one of the local gangs wanting in on a piece of the contracting money, but solid stress relief overall. On top of that, the games at the Arena were progressing, and being able to participate in several of them had his team flying on a post-win high through their more boring security shifts.
Many of the participants were veterans of the War or mercenary groups, while others were simply adventurous enthusiasts or competitors. The brackets were thankfully divided by skill and rank, so the new competitors weren’t stuck facing off against veterans with combat experience or highly skilled mercs. Taloravi had ensured they were always up against the best competition available for the time, unwilling to waste her time and effort on anything less.
They’d had plenty of wins, and a few extremely close losses. No one was ever perfect, and Taloravi had quickly corrected the mistakes they’d made, either from underestimating an opponent or using an ineffective tactic against another team.
The Eclipse Sisters, the elite vanguard of the organization, who had a local chapter on Illium had been one of those losses. Some of the more experienced members of the organization had made excellent use of biotics to separate and out maneuver them.
Another loss had come from a mixed turian and krogan unit that had been apparently celebrating their victories on Palaven and wanted to relive some of the glory. That had led to a very intense match and lots of drinking and laughing afterwards as they swapped stories.
The event had been a massive success and led to a lot of new contacts and friends. They’d secured several new vendors for equipment and resources they needed as well as garnered a few favors and new jobs that would assist in opening even more doors.
Of course the best always attracted the best, and it was during one of the after parties that Tristan noticed Aria speaking animatedly with another woman whose distinguishing red hair flashed in the light of the club.
It was the sound of Taloravi’s voice coming over his radio that keyed him into the fact that something big had changed. “The Admiral is in the house. Extra vigilance. Several of her former crew are also in attendance. Any suspicions, report them immediately.” Her voice lacked the normal levity and Tristan simply clicked his radio in response rather than give an unnecessary verbal acknowledgement.
While Shepard’s presence wasn’t unexpected, it did require a shift of the security dynamics, mostly concerning the rest of her team being in attendance. Only Aria’s security were supposed to be armed, but knowing the caliber of people Shepard had gathered around her, there was little chance of that remaining true.
Eyeing the visible security stationed around the club, he relaxed a smidge, secure in the knowledge that between his team, the secondary security units and Shepard’s personal entourage, someone would have to be desperately suicidal to try anything here. That was assuming they even got in the door and past all the external security.
Tristan altered his route to a roving patrol through the club, Jaen’Xeesa joining him as he made the rounds. She was quiet, the reflective faceplate of her enviro-suit hiding any of her thoughts from him.
A former quarian marine, Jaen had found her home on Omega after the war. While most of her people had returned to Rannoch, there were those that weren’t ready for the adjustment and found service as mercenaries.
They’d gotten along like two peas in a pod, a shared interest in technology, weapons and beautiful asari creating a tight knit bond that led to them usually being paired for security details and other business.
Tonight was no exception and even though they weren’t technically on duty, a healthy dose of experience and paranoia meant they were still on their guard. Being off duty simply meant you were dead.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Aria laughing at something Shepard had said, a grey plated turian with blue Palaven citizen markings having joined them.
He spotted several others that were clearly from Shepard’s entourage at tables nearby, drinks close at hand but with eyes on the crowd. A drell met his gaze from across the room, giving him a small nod before returning to a discussion with an older Asari matriarch in a deep red gown.
“What do you think Aria and the Admiral are talking about?” Light flashed against Jaen’s faceplate as she turned to him and he could only guess at her expression underneath.
“If I had to guess? Probably the war or some other such thing. That’s the only time I know of them really working together. Though there were rumors Shepard was involved during the Archangel days.”
Jaen nodded in response. “I wonder if they’ll join in on the games.” He laughed, “Can you imagine the media ruckus if they did? Not to mention the security issues? Also whoever would be going up against them would be in for a hell of a beating.” Jaen turned to him fully. “You think we could take them?” That had his mind turning over the possibilities. Could their team stand up in a mock battle against one of the most renowned heroes of the Reaper Wars?
Shepard and her team had an astonishing amount of luck working for them as well as some highly skilled individuals. But Tristan would put his faith in his team and their operational experience together against Shepard’s leadership and crew.
If nothing else it would be an excellent opportunity to test their skills against the best the galaxy had to offer. Glory in battle and all that. “That’s a tough question. They’ve been retired for a number of years now. Shepard was in recovery for a good portion of them. No telling if they’ve kept up their skills to our level.”
“You think they’ve lost their edge?”
He snorted at the idea. “Not at all. I think if you gave them enough time they’d return just as good as they were. The only question is how much time they’d need. Hell the galaxy only really settled in the last three years. I doubt they were idle during that time. I mean Aria is hosting this whole shebang in spite of the reconstruction, not because of it.”
Jaen seemed to consider his words for a moment as they moved through the crowd. The noise overall was low, something Tristan was thankful for. He enjoyed an enthusiastic party as much as anyone, but less people definitely made his job easier.
“I suppose you’re right. Still, it would be an interesting match.”
Tristan turned to look at Jaen. “Won’t argue with that. We’ve got a few more days of this though, chances are we’ll have plenty of good matches.”
His radio clicked and he could tell by the sudden stillness of Jaen that it was a team call.
Taloravi came over the line, voice professional and curt. “Everyone, cut the drinks and any partying. Everyone reports back to base within 3 hours. We have an exhibition match in two days. We need to go over the new details.”
‘Well that’s unexpected.’ Tristan figured others would be more concerned, but when Tal gave you orders, you listened. And details were coming so there wasn’t much to be stressed about at the moment. Nothing could be done until they had more information. And an exhibition match? Just another day in the office if he were being honest.
“What if Aria made a bet with Shepard?”
That caught Tristan’s attention as Jaen’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “That’s abs…actually you’re probably onto something there.” While he’d never met the Admiral, from what he knew of her and Aria it made more sense than it should.
“I’m not sure if I hope you’re right or not.” He shook his head, “Well if you are, looks like you’ll get your wish.”
He could practically feel Jaen vibrating with excitement at the idea they’d be facing off against Shepard and her crew members. An exhibition match would bring a massive crowd and he could only imagine what happened to bring that about.
Winning?
That would be the stuff of legends. Losing on the other hand? Well Tristan was just happy no one knew who he really was outside of Omega and even then, only a select few actually had the full picture.
A swift punch to his shoulder roused him from his thoughts.
“Perk up bosh’tet!. This is going to be a great time. Tal won’t steer us wrong and we’ve technically got more years together than they do, aside from the Justicar, and who knows if she’ll even participate.”
Jaen’s infectious enthusiasm brought a smile to his face and he shoulder bumped her in return.
“Well you heard Tal. Let's do another circuit or two and then head out of here. I’m excited to hear what this is all about.”