Final Drills

While the others slept, Shae found a quiet spot to mediate; which happened to be the medical bay. The crew of the ship left the squad to their rest, only waking them once they had arrived in the Hades Gamma cluster.

"We'll arrive at Trebin shortly. No signs of other vessels in the system, though are scans don't include the planet surface." the captain explains.

"I don't like going in blind, but we don't really have much choice..." Reimi remarks. "Deal with pirates and Geth, then extract."

"You won't be completely blind, we'll be able to do a surface scan once we've descended." the captain answers, "We'll reach the atmosphere shortly."

"Well, some information's better than none," Reimi remarks. "And hopefully nothing here shuts down systems like our last mission..."

"It is a possibility, if we're dealing with Geth again like on Eden Prime." the Captain replies, signaling to begin the descent down to the surface. The ship set down on top of a plateau, surrounded by valleys; offering some protection if anything was nearby.

Unlike on Eden Prime, the landing was easy and controlled, and systems all remained in tact. "No signs of scrambled systems, so that is in our favor. Beginning scans now."

After a few moments, an image generated on the screen before the captain; showing the location of the ship up on the rise, and several structures in the valley below. "Five structures. Two appear to be inhabited by living beings, likely the pirates. A third is synthetics, the Geth, I'd imagine."

"And the other two?" Reimi asks. "Seems strange for two different groups to camp so close together and not come to blows, especially with what we've seen of the Geth..."

"There could be equipment and supplies in the two remaining structures, but no signs of anything moving. No Geth, no Pirates." the captain continues.

"They could be worth checking out then, since we're going to have to go by them one way or the other to get to all the structures." Shae adds.

"You've been given clearance to use the Mako on the surface. It will make traversing the distances much easier." one of the crew adds. "Are any of you trained to pilot it, or will you be needing a driver?"

"I might be able to control it, but accurately?" Reimi responds. "I'm not sure I'd trust that outside a test or training situation..."

"I can drive." Graal says, nodding his large heads. "We've got all kinds of armored trucks back on Tuchanka. Not sure I'd fit in the driver seat of anything Alliance made though."

"I've trained as a driver too." Barrow adds, "Probably not as good as some of the dedicated drivers, but I can get us where we're going."

"Sounds like we don't need a driver," remarks Reimi. "I guess we're ready to deploy once the Mako's ready."

"It'll be ready by the time you get down to the hangar." the Captain says, the orders already relayed to the crew to prepare it. "It is equipped with weaponry as well, so you won't be defenseless while aboard."

"Well, let's see what this mission has in store for us," Reimi remarks, starting towards the hanger.

"Where do we want to go first? Geth or pirates?" Barrow asks on the way down to the hangar.

"Could check out the other structures too. Maybe they've got guns." Graal adds.

"Based on the map, I'd say attacking the Geth from the east would be best," Reimi remarks. "That way if we have to fall back we're not pinned against another enemy or a cliff wall."

"We'll head east then, and wrap back around to take the Geth." Barrow says, climbing into the back of the Mako and making his way to the driver's seat. "Make sure you strap in or hold on to something. The Mako has a lot of power and climbs well, but its a mess to handle."

"Captain, any wildlife on the scans?" Shae asks over comms. "Small clusters of local fauna, small and harmless. Transferring the scan data to the Mako and your omnitools."

Reimi didn't want to be thrown about during what she expected would be a wild ride, so she made sure to strap in well. There were risks to doing that, especially if there was an accident and she needed to get out quick, but it seemed like a better idea than letting herself be thrown around.

Shae took a seat in the back, buckling into a seat to keep somewhat steady on what was likely to be rough terrain. Graal on the other hand chose to remain standing, a large hand gripping a handle bar along the wall near the rear hatch.

The Mako rumbled to start, its wheels climbing over the uneven ground and any rocks in the way. Barrow started driving east along the top of the canyon, going beyond the marked structure and the Geth. A short distance beyond it, he turned south suddenly. "Hang on, its about to get rough." he says, the vehicle hopping over the edge and into the canyon below.

Despite being strapped in as good as she could get, Reimi's grip tightened on anything she could find when the warning went out. From the look of the map, she knew it'd be a rough ride, and she'd rather get to their destination intact.

Though the Mako had really good suspension, the heavy springs could only do so much to soften the impact as it landed on the canyon floor below. Shae rocked in her seat, the belts holding her mostly in place as they hit, thankful that the seats were cushioned as well.

Graal just laughed when they hit, barely seeming to move with the rest of the vehicle. "These Mako are a lot smoother than the trucks on Tuchanka."

"Humans aren't as well armored as Krogan," Reimi remarks. "We need to make up for that, and when it comes to vehicles, that means making them ride smoother."

"Not as well-armored?" Graal chuckles as the Mako jostles along. "You're not armored at all, and mostly water. Not sure how you humans survive all the things you do."

"That's because we're more durable than we look," Reimi remarks. "We might not have armored plates, but we can take a little punishment."

"I don't doubt that. You humans put up quite a fight against the Turians, I don't think anyone truly questions how tough you are." Graal chuckles.

"And probably surprised the Turians most of all," Reimi jokes.

Once they were down in the canyon, the ride smoothed out considerably; barely able to feel the turn as Barrow took the Mako back west towards the Geth structure.

"Probably didn't expect a full-blown war from attacking some crew working on a relay, but thats almost what happened." Shae comments.