EliteCommander

Blood Act I~ Ghosts of the Past

Ssarak Dyreackthanose

---

Ssarak did not have any more to add about the mission itself, but he did want to make sure Lucilia understood how much of a danger Alaria could be. She certainly had the potential to be a productive and helpful ally, but only if she could learn temperance in her actions. Ssarak nodded his head, but before they took their leave, he gave one final comment.

"Very well, and thank you, but you should be cautious with Alaira. She is an excellent fighter, but she is not an excellent warrior. Her skills will serve her well in one-on-one duels, or perhaps against a small group, depending on the skill of the enemy, but for anything more, she will be a liability. Her judgment could break allied formations, or otherwise give the enemy opportunities to exploit. If she were a warrior of my clan, she would not be allowed on the battlefield. Her skill in the mechanics of fighting is great, true, but if she is ever in a position that places the lives of others in her hands, she may very well get them killed. She needs more training, but, well, you saw her reaction towards me. It will have to be another who persuades her." Ssarak warned.

As Ssarak was about to leave the office, he noticed Lyn's basket still on the floor. Evidently, Alaira had taken her away before she could grab it. He notified Lucilia that he would take it to her, then left with Meirin. Once out in the hall, and sufficiently far from the office, Ssarak stopped to talk with Meirin. He let out a sign, his overall expression showing at least some measure of relief. After the stress they had been through over the past few days, it was calming to know that he had more responsibilities ahead of him for time being. At least, nothing aside from the daily routine.

"I suppose that went as well as it could have. Satori will bring forward word of Lucilia's transgressions in regards to Lyn, and hopefully, Lucilia will still heed our warning on Alaira. Since we did not say anything about Lyn, she will not have any particular reason to be angry with us. For now, I am simply glad to be free of these burdens. With all of that out of the way...I am looking forward to being able to spend time with you, without all of the stress and danger looming over us. Right now, I would like to bring this basket to Lyn, and perhaps do a favor for her as well. I was speaking to Lyn before, as you likely gathered. She is very developed for her age, her mind even moreso than her body. She has been worried about the depression plaguing her mother recently, and wants to talk to her. It is something she has never been able to do before, and I would like to help her. You do not have to come if you do not wish to, of course, but I would be happy to have you along. Even if you cannot read Lyn's mind, I am sure you could help. You do have a way of touching others' hearts. Though, hopefully not in the same way as mine." Ssarak said, giving a chuckle and a warm smile.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Harriet's response was exactly what Meesei had been wanting, as it finally separated that ring from her finger. Unfortunately, Meesei did not yet have the magicka to transform back and press the advantage of her magic, but with the strength of her beast form, that might not be necessary. Harriet's transformation would give a brief moment of vulnerability, but Meesei was hesitant to take it in order to finish her opponent. After this crisis was over, Meesei was going to need the confidence and loyalty of the clan's people, but to kill Harriet during her transformation could be seen as dishonorable. It could suggest that she did not believe she could best Harriet in a direct fight. Nevertheless, Meesei was not going to let the opportunity go to waste, so she settled on a compromise.

Having kept her eyes on the ring since Harriet removed it, Meesei dashed forward and struck Harriet mid-transformation not with her claws, but with the sheer weight of her body, intent on throwing her to the ground. At the same time, she went for the ring. Obviously, she could not wear it in her current state, but she wanted to make sure she was the one in control of the powerful tool.

---

As luck would have it, Lorag and Janius did not actually have to scour the entire Ayleid city looking for their quarry, as he was not too far away. As they walked up on him, neither of them really knew what the Argonian was planning, but evidently, he was afraid enough try try and run away. The Argonian threw the bag he had been filling at Janius' face, but could do no such thing to delay Lorag. Perhaps he thought it would be easier to outrun the big Orc. Indeed, Lorag was wearing his iron armor, but it wasn't exactly a full suit, and it did not weigh him down that much. Still, as Lorag was chasing him down, he decided to make the effort a bit easier on himself. Lorag grabbed the hammer from his back by its head, then threw it at the Argonian's back. He was close enough that it was an easy throw to make, and it was probably enough to cause him to fall on his face without seriously injuring him. Lorag could probably have caught him in the normal way, but using the hammer was far more satisfying.

Mass Effect: The Face of Injustice

After the hostiles had been neutralized, Avatar grabbed one of the Turians' weapons before Donny could break it down. The shotgun it had been using was effective for some circumstances, but an assault rifle could fill a more versatile role. It was a rifle in the "Vindicator" line of weapons. It was not the most recent model, but was known to be 10% less likely to fail than the current version, at the expense of 8% less kinetic force per shot.

Avatar quickly scanned the Turian soldier's face once he removed his helmet. His file identified him as Solares Vanore, a man in service of the Turian military who was present as security. Though, it gave little other information of note. The conversation between him, Raa, and Voira did indicate that he was familiar to them, and gave some details about him, but Avatar judged that there was not sufficient time to maintain a conversation. If enemy forces behaved as expected, they would be converging on their location within two to four minutes. Likely, they would be forced to hold against at least one enemy attack.

Raa, and the other diplomats who were rounding the corner, showed signs of stress from the fight, but dedicating time to calming them would not be worth the additional risk, Avatar judged. "Warning: it is not advisable to remain here. Hostile forces may converge on our location shortly. I recommend moving into the security station and establishing a defensive position while I attempt to access station security."

Avatar had noted before that, despite the fact that the group had not reached a consensus, Donny had prompted the others to follow him simply by taking action before anyone else. Avatar decided to integrate that tactic into its approach by moving to the door to the security station nearby and opening it from the control panel beside it. Immediately, Avatar stepped into the room and moved inside along the wall with its rifle at the ready. Within moments, it detected movement in one of the corners, on the far end of the right side of the room, a Turian woman had been attempting to hide behind a row of weapon lockers on the wall, but the angle from the lockers to the door gave a clear line of sight. Unlike those in the hall, she was wearing civilian clothing, but a facial scan could not identify her as a member of the Council delegation. Likely, she was one of the civilian crew of the station.

The woman stepped out from behind the locker holding a common "Predator" pistol, which she was pointing in the direction of Avatar and the others entering through the door. Based on her breathing rate and the noticeable trembling in her hands, she was significantly afraid. "D-don't step any closer! I'll...I'll shoot...I mean it!" She stammered.

Mass Effect: The Face of Injustice

Avatar will probably be grabbing one of those guns for a bit more range.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Physically, Meesei was growing stronger, even as her magic grew steadily more strained. The effects of each restoration spell was compounding on top of the others, making her more threatening to Harriet in melee combat. Although, Meesei did not doubt that her skill would still outmatch her own. The words of the crowd did not register in her mind as Meesei continued to bolt around her opponent. She kept her pattern as unpredictable as possible, often changing the direction she escaped, but sometimes repeating them so Harriet could not rule out any direction. At one point, Meesei even teleported close enough to make a thrust with her spear, though she had to bolt away again when the attack failed.

As feared, Meesei's magicka was draining, but the ring's enchantment had not yet failed. Worse yet, there was no way to know how much of a charge was remaining on it. Although she was not yet entirely exhausted, she could feel the magical fatigue creeping through her body. If there was one thing she had to avoid, it was draining herself of magicka entirely. It was time for a new strategy, one that did not rely on magicka, and one which could actually give her the advantage.

Meesei bolted as far as possible from Harriet while still remaining in their fighting area, then threw her spear at Harriet to delay her while she renewed the shield spell on herself. For the first time since their fight began, Meesei spoke, though only briefly. "You should not forget, Harriet. I have my own magic ring."

With those words, Meesei underwent a rapid transformation into her werewolf form. She showed no need for any mental or physical transformation; it simply occurred on demand. This was the first time Meesei had taken her wolf form in front of the clan, and it was a sight that might give even Harriet's supporter's pause. In her normal form, Meesei did not appear exceptional for a lycan. By virtue of her beast blood, she did of course have a muscular build, but not to the extent of someone like Harriet. However, in her werewolf form, that did not seem to matter in the slightest. She was larger and stronger than a normal lycan in no insignificant way. As the Champion, with Hircine's blessing, she had a body fit for the alpha of alphas. Beyond that, the Ring of Hircine granted her perfect control, in and out of beast form. By its influence, her and her beast spirit could work in unison, with each of their strengths complementing the other. If those factors were not enough, Meesei had not just maintained her stamina for the fight, she had increased it with her restoration spells. She had fortified her speed, strength, agility, and perceptions, and her shield spell still protected her, though she would not be able to renew it without transitioning back to her normal form.

Altogether, Meesei had been increasing her own strength while working to tire out Harriet. It had not been her only plan for the fight, but it was not an accident. Without transforming, Harriet would be at a massive physical disadvantage to Meesei, and if she did transform, she would be losing both the ring and her mail. Harriet had been keeping Meesei on the defensive so far, but she hoped to make this the turning point of their battle. She did not attack first, and instead waited for Harriet to make the first move. She let out a menacing growl, a display that was more a show of power for the crowd than for Harriet.

---

"With pleasure." Lorag grunted before stepping away from his position in the front of the crowd to join Janius. Most of the people were too fixated on the action to bother giving them any more than a passing glance. As they reached the exit to the chamber, Lorag looked to Janius beside him. "You have his scent? I think I've heard about this squirrely little worm, if it's the one I'm thinkin' about. It'll be a cold day in the Deadlands before I let this one get away."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Once Meesei's strike failed, her first reaction was to get to safety. With a sword, she had no advantage at all over Harriet. Instead of attempting to block or parry, Meesei performed another bolt escape just before her thrust could connect, this time to the diagonal in order to end up a fair distance behind Harriet. Finding that the sword would be useless to her, she shifted her grip so that her fingers were resting just behind the guard, then threw the blade almost like a javelin. She expected that Harriet would deflect the attack, but it would stall her for a brief moment. Moving in close was obviously not going to be of any benefit to Meesei, so she had to find a way to keep her distance.

Meesei summoned up another spear. If she did not commit to greatly to her thrusts, it would be more difficult for Harriet to get past its point to get in range of her own weapon. Reach seemed to be the only advantage Meesei could gain over Harriet in melee combat. However, she did not intend to fight on Harriet's terms if she could help it. While Harriet was deflecting the thrown blade, Meesei charged another restoration spell. She fired the ball of glowing energy at Harriet feet, which exploded into a small wave of benevolent energy in an area around it, to prevent her from dodging the "attack." The spell reflected back, this time fortifying Meesei's speed.

Now, Meesei had a new plan, though it was risky. Once Harriet charged, Meesei would use her magic to escape again, then hit Harriet with another body-enhancing spell. She intended to repeat this for as long as she could, but it was going to be a magicka-intensive strategy. She did not know how long it would take to drain the charge on Harriet's ring, and it was possible that Meesei could magically exhaust herself before the enchantment failed. And of course, if she did drain the ring, her last spell would end up helping Harriet. However, even if Meesei began to run low on magicka, there was another way she might outmatch Harriet without the use of her magic, something inherent to the position of Champion.

Mass Effect: The Face of Injustice

Avatar quickly ran projections on Voira's proposed course of action. The Krogan was now temporarily immobilized, but he still had access to his firearm, and was already trying to aim at Voira. Nevertheless, Voira's plan did have a marginally higher chance of ending with zero allied casualties, as the Turians were already close to bringing themselves to their feet and were a more immediate threat.

Within 0.18 seconds, Avatar had decided to abide by Voira's suggestion to focus its fire on the Turians. However, as Avatar was bringing its weapon to bear, Donny hit both of the remaining Turians with a biotic charge, knocking them from their feet once again. One was slammed into a wall, while the other was hit to the floor, and quickly shot by Donny. At the same time, a round, likely from a high-powered sniper rifle based on the sound, pierced through the other Turian.

Taking into account the new developments, Avatar snapped its weapon back onto the Krogan, which was now the most immediate threat. Shortly after Voira began her barrage, Avatar fired a series of rounds from its shotgun, first at his unwounded hand, then straight at his head. Pellets and poison-infused rounds alike cut through his armor after a few shots, then passed into his flesh. The poison spread rapidly, and the sheer volume of incoming fire destroyed primary, secondary, and tertiary organ systems. Even being Krogan, his body could not withstand the damage he had taken. Once the mass effect field keeping him levitating died away, he fell to the ground, bleeding profusely and struggling for breath for a few moments before his body finally gave way. All hostiles in the hallway had been neutralized, though there was still the matter of the Turian of which RK had just warned.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei did not behave quite as expected, though neither were Harriet's attacks entirely ineffective. Despite the reach of her spear, Meesei behaved decidedly defensively. Instead of thrusting when presented the opportunity, Meesei feigned, them moved to parry Harriet's blade. Unfortunately, Harriet's reactions were like lightning, allowing her to readjust mid-swing and snap the blade toward Meesei's forearm. The shield spell immediately proved its usefulness, as blades which struck at a sufficient angle would simply deflect away, as if they had struck armor. Harriet's strike was a bit more direct, but the blade was still slowed enough that the cut it left through her scales was relatively minor. Nevertheless, the sudden pain was enough to cause Meesei to flinch, leaving an opening towards her shoulder that Harriet was, of course, quick to exploit. The blade would have found its mark directly, but as soon as her guard was down Meesei used a bolt escape to essentially teleport a few feet behind herself and out of danger. As long as she did not pass through Harriet, the lightning would not be reflected back.

Meesei expected some surprise from Harriet at the sudden use of such a lightning spell, though she doubted her body language would show it. That technique, along with several others Meesei knew, was from magical traditions that many mages in Tamriel considered lost. She had never met a mage outside of a cluster of a few villages in her homeland who had heard of the technique, much less seen it in practice. Undoubtedly, there were other magical traditions in other parts of Tamriel of which Meesei was unaware, but it was unlikely that Harriet would be making use of such magic.

With a bit more distance between them, Meesei readied her spear and watched Harriet's movements closely. Harriet's skill with a blade was undeniable, and for Meesei, would be insurmountable in any normal fight. She knew she simply could not keep up with Harriet's rapid, and expertly timed attacks. If Meesei wanted to attain any form of success, she would need to be clever and unpredictable in her tactics.

This time, when Harriet moved to close the gap, Meesei initiated an attack as well. She thrust the spear forward, towards Harriet's neck, but when she went to parry, Meesei suddenly dispelled the bound weapon just before the blade reached it. As her momentum carried her blade clean through the space the spear once occupied, Meesei thrust her left hand forward at Harriet's now-exposed torso while simultaneously conjuring a bound sword in it. Meesei doubted it would end so easily, but hopefully she could show that Harriet was not so untouchable.

Mass Effect: The Face of Injustice

You should be fine I think, Andromedai and SgtEasy. I'll message you, SgtEasy, about when and how you can actually get involved.

Mass Effect: The Face of Injustice

Avatar started to move up as well once its allies advanced under the protection of the biotic barriers, but before rounding the corner and coming into the view of the enemy, it activated its tactical cloak to render itself mostly invisible. With its allies attracting the attention of the enemy, the probability of visual detection was below 10%. A tactic often employed by Geth platforms known as "hunters" was to use a tactical cloak to close in on the enemy with close-range weaponry in order to execute a lethal surprise attack, which was exactly what Avatar intended. As Sura was tossing the grenade, Avatar informed its allies of its intentions via their radios, as it had no need to speak aloud in order to communicate with them. "I will advance along the right wall." It warned to prevent friendly fire.

Once the grenade detonated, Avatar stepped through the barrier and rushed forward to close the distance to the enemy. The explosive had detonated just in front of the hostile group, catching two of the Turians within the lethal radius of the blast, while the other two Turians dove to the ground away from the blast. The Krogan behind them was within the blast radius, but the Turians had acted as enough of a barrier that only his shields were drained. As the surviving Turians tried to scramble to their feet, the Krogan reached to his belt for his own grenade, but by that point, Avatar was well-within range. First and foremost, Avatar concentrated on preventing the attack on its allies by aiming its shotgun straight for the Krogan's hand. Despite the armor he was wearing, the close-range blast mangled the Krogan's hand. This prevented his use of his grenade, but due to the pain-cancelling properties of a Krogan's redundant nervous system, he was far more angered by the attack than discouraged. In a rage, he let out a scream, which Avatar judged to be an attempt at intimidation, then charged at the Geth which had suddenly appeared in front of him.