going fishing [ open ]

[descens]

who ; Lev, the Underworld and YOU (remember to tag in!)
what ; Lev has invited a couple of Sacrosanct's residents to meet in confidence with him. He may be getting more than he expected.
where ; Asphodel - Underworld shadow market, equatorial tunnel section
when ; after his transmission
warning(s) ; TBD. Please see event notes.

Comments

[cmdr_renegade]

"Yeah, I'll get right on that," Shepard returned and lowered her weapon. She dropped her fist and gave a similar command to those behind her.

So this was Lev.

Lev, who apparently handed out job codes that were references to ancient literature. Ancient literature that was, apparently, the actual pass-code. It was circuitous in a way she neither appreciated, nor regularly dealt with. It hadn't even occurred to her to cross reference their pass-code, and given the distinct lack of Humans currently on deck with her, it wasn't surprising that no one had suggested it.

She, very briefly, wondered if any of their home planets even used a system of catalog like humans, then she remembered that this was a very recently diffused situation, and she was thinking about libraries of all things.

Lev wasn't just some schmuck playing soldier underground. By the looks of these guards, and how absolute their attention was, he was doing far more than playing. He had their loyalty in a way she could, very firmly, respect. This might not have been a ship, but it was close enough, in principle. Lev was the commanding officer, and she'd acknowledge him as such, here.

"So," Shepard prefaced evenly, ignoring the firm beat of her pulse in her ears, "We have permission to enter?"

[savor_last_shot]

Garrus slowly lowered his rifle from where it had been firmly pointed at the mounted cannon that was still disconcertingly pointed at them. Or Shepard, in particular. If things went to Hell he thought he could overload it before it wasted the whole group - that's what shields were for, after all. He didn't exactly like this kind of reception, but with Shepard you tended to get used to it.

Besides, this Lev looked like he had some serious help. Not to mention loyal, even if Garrus was sure Shepard's team could carve through them like a hot knife through a hanar's tentacle. Not particularly eager to find out, of course, but if it came down to it....

Human literature? He'd never heard of it. Maybe Legion would've been better for that kind of thing. "And here I thought we were finally finished with having guns pointed at us."

[eighttotwelve]

Much like his fellow sniper, Thane was prepared to shoot, one way or the other. Protecting Shepard was an unquestionable thought, and if it came down to a shoot out, Thane would pull his trigger.

It's easier to move without the bloodshed, though.

Slowly, his gun is lowered. At least this Lev character kept true to his word, more or less. He glances to Garrus, answering wryly, "Would it be Shepard's crew if there was a lack of hostility from others?"

1/2

[descens]

Lev shook his head, turning, the mere swing of his shoulder enough to gesture Shepard and her men forward into the camp.

It wasn't disappointment, per se, but maybe slight exasperation. There were certain skills he would expect any of his allies to know and how to search for keywords was one of them. He couldn't waste time on some ridiculous cadre from another universe that had somehow advanced to the space age without Google. If nothing else, he didn't consider himself a very good fucking teacher for that kind of thing.

Well. His opinion of Shepard's intellect had taken a hit, but he couldn't knock her bravery. He wasn't sure how he'd deal with that many guns in his face. Probably faster, but that was him.

That could still make her useful, at any rate.

"Come up to the control tent as soon as you're situated, Commander. Try not to agitate my men too much in the mean time."

That said, he strode off, leaving her in the company of the guards once again as the crowd pressed in.

[singularitynpcs]

Guards whose attention was now firmly fixed on some of Shepard's companions. While Lev had only glanced at the non-humans and wavered more explicitly on the synthetics in her party, the armed men seemed determined to make their point about the latter.

"That doesn't come in," the female guard said firmly, pointing to Legion. "Or you're putting it in autistic mode, one or the other."

[cmdr_renegade]

"It's with me," Shepard defended without thought as she holstered her pistol. Her hand never left the grip. She glanced at the guard and offered a short roll of the shoulder before adding, flatly: "Besides, if it does something you don't like, it's a good excuse to put a bullet in both of us."

She lifted a hand and motioned into the camp with a quick flick of the wrist. They'd get a reading of the locale first, then she'd have a chat with Lev.

"Problem with that?" Shepard followed up. "I'd hate to agitate you unnecessarily."

[singularitynpcs]

If Shepard was expecting to get a rise out of the guards, she'd be disappointed. The woman guard's expression didn't flicker.

"Autistic mode," she repeated, stressing it. "And don't take it near any electronics."

The matter was over, though, that was pretty clear. They would enforce Lev's rules to a T, but he'd given them permission and everyone in the camp just had to work with it. She stepped aside, likewise the big guy.

[savor_last_shot]

Garrus just elbowed past one the guards as they moved on, exchanging a long look with them. He was used to this. Two sides eying each other up and waiting for the other side to twitch first. It wasn't anything new - and twitch or not, Shepard's crew could handle a lot. He shook his head and moved on. They were loyal - which was a slight notch in their favor, but Garrus had known a lot of criminal thugs who were loyal to their boss. And they'd all been on the wrong side.

[notyourchauffer]

And Skyfire.

Poor Skyfire who had hung back and towered behind everyone the entire time passed through, wincing a smile to the guards. He looked utterly mortified. He wasn't exactly into using violence or confrontation. Though quietly he was grateful. He was well-read in a lot of human literature, but anything religious was left untouched.

The words 'I'm sorry' were mouthed to them as they passed. He didn't imagine it would make much of a difference.

The one thing that irked him was their treatment of Legion. They apparently had no respect for inorganic life forms. It gave him a small rush of indignant irritation, but he swallowed that and moved on.

All the more reason to keep his identity a secret.

[modelscientist]

Mordin followed the others in, sparing the guards an appraising look before he went back to scanning things with his omnitool. It's nothing he hasn't seen before. Big men who think they're very tough and want to enforce their rules on people. Made sense though, since they were in their territory. On the other hand, such things rarely impressed him. He was smaller than most of them, that was true, but he was dangerous in his own right. All the better that they underestimate him. He glanced at Charles.

"Feeling alright?"

[notyourchauffer]

Skyfire winced again and then smiled down at Mordin. It was... an exceeding comfort to have him around. He reminded him woefully of Percepotor, one of the few amongst the Autobots who had given him the time of day.

"Yes... I'm alright. Just..."

Well. He wasn't unfamiliar with having to apologize for other people. Particularly Starscream and even some of the Autobots (Sideswipe and Sunstreaker).

Regardless, they pressed on.