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By Bert The Stormtrooper · Posted
Hello and welcome to a Bert the Stormtrooper Reviews! Today we're taking a look at the Velocitron Speedia 500 Collection, Cybertron Universe COSMOS! -
I was worried that she was going to be small enough that she wouldn't quite work, but this figure is a great example of what this line can do. What do you think? Looking forward to the next instalment? Thank you to everyone who has subscribed and if you haven't and enjoyed yourself be sure to click the things. -
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By Apollo-XL5 · Posted
CHAPTER VII The sun rose up over the mountains that surrounded the Monastery, shining it's warm light across the land as Night gave way to Day once again. In the Bots room, the sunlight shone through the window and broke through the tiny gap in it's closed curtains. "Crosscut, wake up..." Evac then said, making his friend open his eyes slightly and look up at the Pilot with a half-asleep expression. "...It's Nine AM, time for breakfast." he added, gaining a yawn from Crosscut who slowly sat up in his bed. "Wait…*Yawn*…I thought we were supposed to get up at eight-thirty AM?" he asked, which made the Pilot look back with a knowing look. "Well I did try, but you seem to be quite the heavy sleeper…and hypocrite." This earned a surprised look from Crosscut. "What did you say?" he asked with a hint of curiosity and anger in his voice at his friend's words. "I mean, when I got back from the Loo last night, you were already fast asleep…" Evac began to reply, only for the other Bot to interrupt him with a smirk. "Yeah, I remember it well. Peace and quiet…it was bliss." he said in a half joking-like way, only for the Pilot to shake his head slightly. "…well, I tried to get to sleep then…only for you to suddenly erupt into a snoring-fest that went on for over an hour…an hour." Evac added, which made his friend's eyes widen in shock. "That is a stone-cold lie, I am not a snorer!" he exclaimed defiantly, which made his room-mate smile as he activated his holo-tool. "Really? Then listen to this." he said before tapping the interface, which then played out a recording of Crosscut's snoring to the completely surprised Bot. "I…I did not know I did that…" Crosscut said as Evac then stopped the playback and deactivated the holo-tool, as a smirk grew on his face. "Well, I am just going to have to make a recording for you, and then play it for everyone to hear…" he said as his Pilot friend gave him a knowing smile, only for the Bot's expression to change to one more cautious. "…but I will have to wait until we have landed on a planet, because if I play it while we are on the Eudora whilst traveling, then it will shake the ship apart." "Very funny. Now could you please get dressed so we can get to breakfast already?" Evac replied, gaining a chuckle from Crosscut as he nodded back. "Okay, give me a moment then." he said as he picked up his trousers and t-shirt off the floor beside his bed, while the Pilot watched with a little impatience showing in his face. Meanwhile, in the Dining Hall, Myra and Kat sat at a table and were eating from the small buffet that was left for them. The Asari finished chewing and looked around the room with a puzzled expression, which gained her friend's attention. "Myra, what is it?" she asked while using her fork to move some of her food around the planet. "What is taking Crosscut and Evac? They were supposed to meet us here at Eight Thirty AM." the Rogue Spectre replied, which earned a confused look from Kat. "Yeah…, why was that again?" "So that we do not interact with the Ardat-Yakshi here, as they have already had breakfast and are now studying." Myra said back, making the Human Woman nod back in return. "That's right, I remember Samara telling us that and the other rules last night." she said before a person the entered the room via the North doorway and caught her attention as Mason looked over Myra's shoulder at the arrival. "Speak of the devil, here she is now." she added, making the Asari turn to see the Justicar who had the look of someone with a lot on their mind. "Good Morning, Samara. Care to join us?" "That is a most kind invitation, but please accept my apologies…for I am not hungry." the older woman replied as she started to walk past the pair on her way to the Southern exit, which made the Rogue Spectre nod back. "Okay, but we can always just talk some more…." Myra started to say, stopping the Justicar in her tracks as she turned round to face them with a stoic expression. "…for I know Kat would like to know more about the Justicars." the younger Asari added, gaining a friendly smile from her Human friend. But Samara ignored her and continued to look at the younger Darby. "I am also quite busy, perhaps we can talk later. Now if you would please excuse me?" "..uh, yes of course. Later." Myra replied, which earned a nod from the Justicar who then turned back around and continued out of the Dining Hall, leaving the pair by themselves again. The younger Asari fixed her attention back to her meal and was about to start eating again when she stopped and looked at Kat, who had a concerned look on her face. "Kat, something wrong?" "I don't know, I just felt that something was off with Samara for a moment there." the Human replied, making it Myra's turn to look back with a curious expression. "What do you mean?" "Well, you know Samara better than I do. Did anything seem off with her right now?" Kat asked, which made the Asari look away with a thoughtful stare for a second before returning her gaze back to her friend. "No. She just looked like she had something on her mind, that's all. Why do you ask?" "It's just when we all talked with her last night, Samara paid attention to each and every one of us. Like it was almost the height of bad manners to look like she was ignoring any one particular person." Kat replied, gaining a nod from Myra in return. "Yes, I know. Samara is a very well-spoken and polite individual. I would expect no less from someone who has had nearly a thousand years to perfect her social etiquette." "The short time that she stood here with us, I would completely agree." the Human Woman said back, though the tone in her voice sounded somewhat worried and this did not go unnoticed by the Asari. "Kat, what are you saying?" she replied with a patient and understanding tone, as the two of them looked into each others eyes. "Perhaps you didn't notice it because you have been friends for a long time, so some things get missed in the moment. Maybe it is because I have an Outsider's perspective, but it's just that last night when Crosscut, Evac, and I turned in for night, Samara looked at each one of us as she said good night. But just now when she left us, the Justicar blanked me out…" Kat said, which made her Asari friend look back down at her meal. "…now call me crazy, but even after only knowing Samara for one night. I never got the impression she would do that, it didn't seem like it was even in her character." Myra's friend continued, earning a nod from the Rogue Spectre. "Now that you mention it, that doesn't seem like her. I guess I missed that. Nice catch." she said back affectionately, earning a slight smile from Kat in return. "Thanks, so why don't we go and see what is bothering her then?" "Yes, that's a good idea. But first, we should find out what has happened to our friends." Myra replied, gaining a nod from her friend as she reached for her earpiece, only for the Asari to give her a knowing look. "Remember the rules. No unauthorized com-links or holo-tools to be used in the Monastery without the Superintendent's say so, as only the staff and Justicars are allowed to do so." "Right, so we do this the old-fashioned way then." Kat said back with a little agitation in her voice, gaining a smile from the Rogue Spectre. "Exactly….we look, or we can go to the Control Center at the south side of the Monastery and ask them to check their sensors." she replied, which made the Human Woman smirk at her. "Okay, that sounds better." she replied as the pair then left the Hall via the southern doorway. A few minutes after the ladies had left the room, both Crosscut and Evac stood in the Northern doorway to find themselves looking into the now-empty hall. "That's great, either Myra and Kat are late or we have missed breakfast." the former said with anger lacing the tone of his voice, which earned an innocent expression from the Pilot. "Hey don't blame me! I tried to wake you earlier. It's not my fault that you could sleep through a bomb explosion." "I would have had a full night's sleep and been able to get up on time, had it not been for your snoring." Crosscut said back, earning an eye roll from the Pilot as he walked ahead of his moaning friend, having noticed the buffet on the table. "Anyway,…at least there is something left to eat." he said before picking up what looked like a bagel from one of the plates, while the other Bot joined his side and looked down at what else was on offer. "I think I'll take the cherries." he said before picking up one of the fruit bowls and taking a bite from one, gaining a knowing look from Evac as he chewed slowly. "So that is how you sleep so well." "It can help, but I just prefer to have some fruit for my breakfast." Crosscut added. "So, are we going to try to and find the others? There are only two options available to us." the Pilot asked while gesturing to both doorways, earning his friend's attention as he was about to eat another cherry. "I guess we split up and check both directions, one of us should be able to find them." "Alright, I'll head back out this way then." Evac said as he gestured to the northern doorway, which made Crosscut nod back. "Okay, that leaves me with the south. Just remember not to speak to the residents, you don't want one of these Ardat-Yak-whatevers to kill you with a kiss…do you?" This made the other Bot look back at him with a knowing look, raising his left eyebrow as he did so. "I don't think it works exactly like that, Crosscut, besides if I happen to run into the Asari staff member I spoke to last night, then I think I will be okay." "You met an Asari last night, other than Samara? When was this? Because the only Asari I remember us meeting was the Justicar." his friend said back with a disbelieving tone, only for Evac to stare back with a smirk. "I met her on the way back to our room from the loo. She seemed nice and friendly if a little on the shy side." he said back with a slightly affectionate tone, which just fuelled Crosscut's disbelief even more. "Really? What's her name then?" "Tolae." the Pilot replied in an honest tone, but his friend just continued to look back at him with the same expression as before. "Tolae? Fair enough…" he said back while placing the bowl back on the table, though Evac did not feel that his friend totally believed him. "… let's get back to finding our friends okay." the Bot added, earning a nod from the Pilot as he turned around and walked out the other exit while finishing off the bagel. PRIME EFFECT 5 Meanwhile, Samara walked through one of the Monastery's identical-looking corridors, moving in the direction of the Landing pad as she came up to a crossroads. So the Justicar took a right turn and immediately stopped as she took note of the Asari Commando standing guard at said doorway, who saw her in turn. "Justicar Samara, what are you doing here?" the soldier asked as the older woman walked up to her. "I am in need of some fresh air, so if you would please allow me to pass.." she started to say, only for the Commando to look back at her with a stoic expression. "I apologise, Justicar, but this landing-pad is in use and no one but the crew of the ship standing out there may get access to it." "Yes, I know. It is the Eudora standing out there at this moment. I met its crew last night and I am also a good friend with its Captain. I am trusted by her." Samara replied, but still, the soldier would not move. "It is not a question of trust, Justicar. You have been a valued member of our staff for the last few centuries. But I still cannot let you passed, I am sorry." "I understand. but unlike my Mother…" the older Asari started to say with a different tone and accent as she began to turn away from the Commando, whose expression changed to one of confusion as she looked back. "..I don't follow the rules..." Samara added as she suddenly grabbed the soldier by her throat with a vice-like grip, making the other woman gasp for air as her eyes widened in shock. But the Justicar just tightened her grip more, making the Commando struggle even more as her killer leaned in close and looked directly into her wide-open eyes. "…for I am Morinth." she added before the other Asari's neck suddenly snapped, which made the Ardat-Yakshi drop her corpse to the floor and press the door controls on her left. The doorway then opened to reveal the Eudora on the landing pad just aways from her position, with the Murderer taking not that snow had just started to fall from the dark clouds overhead. 'I will never understand how anyone can choose to live their entire life on this snowball.' she thought before picking up the Commando's body and exiting the Monastery, feeling the cool breeze and snowflakes as they touched the bare skin of her face as walked over to the edge of the landing platform. 'This is a good a spot as any.' she thought before dropping the corpse of the side, watching it fall down into the river in the rocky valley below. But then just as she was about to turn her attention to the Eudora, a glowing object could be seen in the corner of her eye. So Morinth turned to see a holo-drone floating there beside her, looking as though it was about to scan her. But rather than look worried, the Asari merely smirked. "Go ahead, scan me." she said in a soft tone, with which the drone obliged as it then swept her whole body with a light beam. "No life form detected, continuing with patrol." it then said in a synthesized voice before flying off to another area, which made Morinth look down at the small metallic device that was clipped to her utility belt. 'Being part of Leviathan does have its perks.' she thought as she gently tapped it. 'This gizmo keeps me off all sensor grids that the Federation/Autobots have running all over their Empire…' she added while turning back to the Eudora. '…So then, back to the task at hand.' The Ardat-Yakshi then walked over to the Eudora and activated her holo-tool, pointing it up at where the boarding ramp was stored. "How does that Human saying go... open sesame." she then said while her holo-tool beeped, and the ship acknowledged by making a mechanical noise which was followed by the boarding ramp opening up and granting her access, gaining another smile from the Asari as she then walked up into the Eudora's interior. Once inside, Morinth walked directly into the Cockpit and sat in the Pilot's chair, which activated the holo-controls and interfaces around her. 'Let's see if Vasir's little tracking beacon is still working fine.' the Murderer thought as she typed a sequence of keys on the holo-interface and brought up a screen, earning a nod from her in response. 'Good, the tracker is still online and unnoticed by Darby and her friends.' Morinth then had a thoughtful expression appear on her face as an idea came to mind, so she started typing a new sequence into the computer. 'Let's just put another program in there, a guarantee that Myra shouldn't pose a problem in the future, Vasir should appreciate that.' she thought as she continued working away at the interface. Back in the Monastery, Evac had been searching for the last thirty minutes for any sign of Myra or Kat as he walked down the corridors, though they were not the only Women the Bot was hoping to come across. 'This would be so much easier if I could just use my com-link.' he thought as he walked past one door which had a window, and a figure inside caught his attention as the Pilot stopped in his tracks and looked through the transparent glass to the room's interior. For there was Tolae sitting on a couch at a small table, looking at a number of data-pads that were on top of it. "Tolae." he said with a sudden buzz to his spark as he gently knocked on the glass, earning the Asari's attention as she looked up at him. "Evac?" she replied with a surprised look, gaining a nod from the Bot as he looked back at her through the window. "Yes, it's me. What are you doing in there?" he asked with an interested tone, which made her get to her feet and walk over to the door and open it. "I am studying. What are you doing here?" she replied with a questioning tone. "I'm looking for my friends, a Human woman and another Asari. You didn't see them go past, did you?" the Pilot asked, to which Tolae shook her head in response. "Sorry, I have not seen anyone walk past in the last hour or so. But then again, I have had my head buried in those data-pads back there." she said back while gesturing to the pile on the table behind her. "Oh, okay. Thanks. But what are you reading over there anyway?" he asked, earning a sigh from the Asari. "You should carry on looking for your friends because you don't belong here." "Why not…?" he started to ask, before a noise from further down the corridor caught Tolae's attention, so she looked in its direction and spotted an Asari Tutor stepping out into view. "Great! Get in here." the Ardat-Yakshi then said as she opened the door and pulled Evac in, gaining a surprised look from the Bot. "Whoa, easy there. You have quite the grip." he replied, before being pushed out of view of the window. "Just do me a favour for a moment and stay here, please?" she asked with an almost pleading-like tone, which made the Pilot look back with an understanding expression. "Okay." he said in return, gaining a slight smile from the Asari before she returned to her table, picked up another data-pad and began to read it as she sat back down. 'What is she not telling me?' Evac thought as he watched her reading from the pad in her hands, before both their attention was caught by a knock on the window of the door to the room. "Just a second." Tolae then said as she got up and walked over to the door and opened it, earning a thoughtful expression from the Pilot as he heard another female voice speak. "Tolae, I just thought I would check on you and see how your studying is faring?" "It is going well, Tutor Gallae, I should have it all memorised for the classes this afternoon." she replied while keeping her attention from Evac, who continued to eavesdrop on their conversation. "That's good, very good in fact. And I spoke to Superintendent Jethra earlier, she told me that you are also well ahead with your meditations." Gallae replied, earning a nod from Tolae in return. "Thank you. That is kind of you to say." But as she and the Tutor spoke, Evac's eyes widened as something came to mind. Something that suddenly made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, for he realised who his new friend really was. 'Oh no, I really am in trouble now.' he thought as he watched Tolae wave goodbye to the Tutor, feeling his spark beat somewhat quicker as his fear began to build. "Yes, alright. I will see you at the lesson, Tutor Gallae. Till then." she said before closing the door, turning back to the Pilot. "Sorry about that, Evac. But if you were caught here...with me." she started to say, only for her to stop as she noticed the way the Pilot was looking at her. "Evac? What's wrong?" Tolae asked with a taken aback tone. "You're... you're a Arad-Yakshi." was all he said in return, which made the Asari sigh in return and look down at the ground with an ashamed expression. "Yes...yes, I am." she replied, making the Bot look somewhat more worried as he stared at the door. "I have to go, I shouldn't be around you." Evac replied as he started to leave, only for the Ardat-Yakshi to step aside and sit down on the couch. "I did tell you." she said back as the tone of her voice started to sound slightly shaken, which gained the Pilot's attention as he stopped and looked down to her as she sat there, looking at the table. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" he asked. "I wanted to, wanted you to keep away. But you just talked to me like I was a regular person, I forgot what that was like…" Tolae started to say as she kept her attention away from the Pilot, who then sat down beside her on the couch. "…so I guess I just wanted to feel normal again, if only for a moment…" she added before looking back at the Bot, and he found himself looking back as they stared at each other. "…and you also reminded me of someone I used to know." she finished with her voice sounding as though it was breaking ever so slightly with that last sentence, which did not go unnoticed by Evac. "Really? Who was that?" he asked with a sympathetic tone, but Tolae simply turned her attention back to the door. "If you don't mind, I would rather not talk about it." she simply said, before pointing to the door with her hand. "You should go before anyone sees you." But Evac just sat there and looked at her, as a friendly smile appeared on his face. "No, I am not going anywhere." he said back, earning a surprised look from the Asari. "Why?…I mean,…I am a monster. Ardat-Yakshi even means Devil of the Night winds in Asari." she replied, but the Bot just continued to look at her with a smile. "Before coming here, I did not know much about the Ardat-Yakshi other than that they were killers, monsters that needed to be locked away. But then I met you…" he said in an understanding tone, while Tolae simply listened. "…and on first impressions, I would say that you are a kind and caring person. And now that I know what you are, that hasn't changed my impression of you." he added, which made the Asari sigh in return. "But.." she started to say, only for the Pilot to cut her off. "But what? You certainly do not look like the monster that your people want us all to think you are, you look more like someone who needs a friend." he replied, making her look back at him with widened eyes. "You…want to be…my friend? But you don't know me." she said. "But I want to, if you'll let me?" Evac replied, which made Tolae look back at the ground for a moment. 'I killed the last person who was a 'friend' to me…' she thought before feeling something touch her hand, and so looked over to see that the Bot had put his hand on hers in a supporting gesture. '…But maybe this could work since he knows what I am.' "So…if you want me to go, then I will go." Evac then said, making the Woman look at him as a slight smile graced her face. "No. I have lived for over three hundreds years without a friend, and if I let you walk out that door then I guess I won't have another chance." This made the Pilot's smile widen as he gently stroked the side of her hand with his thumb in an affectionate manner, which unbeknownst to him had made her heart warm slightly. "But if another Tutor heads this way, then you will have to hide again." Tolae then said with a more serious tone, gaining a nod from Evac in return. "Of course." "So what shall we talk about?" the Asari then said, which made the Pilot turn to look outside the window as it snowed outside. "I didn't realise that it snowed here." he said in a surprised tone while getting to his feet and walking over to the glass, earning a curious look from Tolae as she joined his side. "Yes, it does snow here a lot over the year. I would have thought that the snow-covered mountain tops would have given you a clue?" she asked with a slightly sarcastic tone, which earned a smirk from the Bot. "I did see them, but when my friends and I arrived it was not what I would have called cold, and the sky was completely clear. I had heard from Samara that this was generally the type of weather that Lesuss had during the year." "While that is true, we do still get snow storms a number of times a year. Do you like snow then?" she asked, having noticed how Evac was watching the snowflakes as they fell down before them. "I love snow. Back home where I was born, the entire area is covered by snow for almost the entire year." he said, earning a curious look from Tolae. "Where's that?" "A small town called Barrow in Alaska, back on Earth. Despite that, it can be bitterly cold almost all year round and we would have bouts of never-ending day and night in the Summer and Winter respectively each year, there was always a lot to love about the place. I mean there was so much life there, despite the harsh conditions. There were always Polar Bears and numerous types of birds to see like Snowy Owls and Eider Ducks, I even managed to spot a Whale or two during my youth there, watched them poke their heads up out of the holes in the ice to breathe before going back under and swimming to wherever they would go." he said, with the Asari remaining quiet as she watched him, taking note of the smile on his face as he reminisced. "You sound like you're a bit of an animal lover." she observed, making him look at her and smile. "Does it show? Well,…yes. I guess, I am. I mean, my family owned a couple of Alaskan Malamutes which my Dad would use for Dog Sledding, he even took me a couple of times and it was a lot of fun. I remember we did it one night and the sky was so clear that it was like you could see every single star in the galaxy overhead, then suddenly multiple waves of colour appeared above us. It was the Northern lights and my Dad stopped us and we watched it for a couple of hours with the Dogs, it was magical." he added, which made Tolae sigh in return. "Sounds nice. I always wanted to see other worlds. But..." she started to say, earning a saddened look from Evac in return. "But you then found out that you were an Ardat Yakshi." he added, gaining a nod from the Asari. "Kind of killed any chance of me exploring the galaxy. I mean, I did not even get the chance to leave Thessia." "How did you find out?" the Bot asked, which made her look back with an uncomfortable expression. "Can we talk about something else? I don't feel like speaking on this topic for the time being." she asked, earning a nod from the Pilot. "Okay then." It then went quiet between the two people as Evac looked out of the window, trying to find something to restart their conversation. "Wait? What's that?" he then said while pointing down below the window, gaining his friend's attention as she looked at what he had noticed. "What do you mean?" she said back as they both saw an object on the a cliff-side just below the monastery, which made the Bot narrow his eyes. "It looks like a ship." he replied, earning a confused expression from Tolae. "How and why would anyone land their ship down there, it's almost a suicidal act." "Perhaps whoever did it doesn't want the monastery to know they are there, and it isn't that difficult to land in a spot like that. I mean I could do it, for one." he said back with a knowing look, before turning his attention back to the Asari. "Want to go and check it out?" "You want to go out in that, to check out an unknown ship?" she asked with a worried tone, earning a smirk from the Bot. "Yeah, and I want you to join me." he replied, which made her look down at the object with a thoughtful expression. "I have been a model resident here for a long time and even though I have already broken the rules by even talking to you, I really do not want to break any more…" she then said, earning an unsure expression from the Bot. "…But that being said since we cannot just call up security and have them check it out. It would probably be more prudent of us to look into it ourselves." she added, which made Evac smile back at her. "That's the spirit, so shall we go now?" he asked, gaining a smile from Tolae in return. "Yes, let's go." she replied with an enthusiastic tone as they then turned and left the room, heading towards the nearest exterior door so they could investigate the unknown object. PRIME EFFECT 5 Inside the Monastery's Control Center, Jethra was overlooking the work of the other three Asari Commandos as they worked at their individual stations. "How is the detection grid holding up?" she asked, which made one of them turn to face her. "It is working at hundred percent capacity and we have had no disruptions since yesterday evening, which as you know was down to a pack of mountain Varen." "Yes, I do remember it well. We thought one of the residents was trying to escape the Monastery but found that all were accounted for with our internal sensors. I hope you have recalibrated the detection grid so that the local animals aren't curious to try that again?" the Superintendent replied, gaining a nod from one of the other two Commandos. "Yes, Sir, I have retuned the individual sensors to emit an ultrasonic frequency that should ward off the local wildlife." she said, gaining a nod from the older Asari in return. "Good, so now…." Jethra started to say before everyone's attention was caught by Myra and Kat who then entered the room, making the Superintendent turn around and face them. "Excuse me, but this area is off-limits to civilians. I will have to ask you to leave at once." she said in a stoic tone. "We were told by Samara last night that if we ever needed help, we were to come to the Control Center as it is the only place where we could get help." the Rogue Spectre replied, which made Jethra pause for a second as she considered it. "It will depend on what you want?" she replied in return, while the Commandos just watched. "We are looking for our two friends, Evac and Crosscut…" Kat said, before her Asari friend stepped forward. "And also Justicar Samara, since she seemed a little off earlier and we wanted to make sure she is alright." "We should be able to do that, though only because Samara had said so." the Superintendent replied before turning her attention to the Commando sitting closest to her. "Bring up the internal sensors for the Monastery." she then said, earning a nod from the other Asari as she typed on her holo-interface which made a screen appear which they could all see. "Well, it appears that Samara is in her room…" Jethra said, gaining a curious look from Myra in return. "But that is impossible, since her room is in the northern part of the Compound. Yet, we saw her leaving the Dining Hall from it's southern exit, but there can't be any way that she would have made it back there by the time we got here, could she?" she asked, earning thoughtful looks from the others in the room. "No, now that you mention it. It doesn't seem possible, wait…allow me to contact her." the Leader then said before tapping her com-link. "Jethra to Samara, come in please." she said, only to receive static in return. "Perhaps her com-link is malfunctioning." one of the Commandos said back, just as Crosscut then stood at the entrance. "Oh, there you are." he said with a relieved tone, earning everyone's attention as he walked over to Myra and Kat. "Crosscut, what are you doing here…..and where is Evac?" the Rogue Spectre asked as she looked either side of the Bot, gaining an annoyed stare from the Superintendent again. "Evac and I split up so that we had an equal chance of finding you. I guess, I was the lucky one." he replied before noticing the angry stare from Jethra. "What you guys doing here anyway?" "We're here to find out where Samara went too." Myra replied, regaining the Asari Leader's attention as she once more attempted to call the Justicar on her com-link, while Kat meanwhile looked back at Crosscut with a questioning expression. "You left Evac alone in this place?" "Nah, Evac told me that he would be alright if he ran into one of the staff here that he met last night. I thought he was making her up, but he was quite adamant about her." the Bot said back, gaining curious looks from his two female friends. "What's her name?" the Asari asked. "Tolae, he said her name was Tolae." Crosscut replied, which made Jethra turn back and look at him with widened eyes. "Tolae, how do you know that name?" she asked with an urgent tone to her voice, surprising the group. "My friend said he met one of your staff last night, goes by that name." he replied, making the Superintendent shake he head in return. "She is not one of my staff. Tolae is one of our residents!" she replied, gaining wide eyed stares from Myra and her friends. "You mean she is an…." the former Autobot started to say, only for Kat to cut him off. "..an Ardat-Yaksh!" "Yes. We must find and separate the pair at once. I mean, she has been one of our most well-behaved residents, but if she…." Jethra started to reply before Myra got her attention by pointing to the holo-screen. "We don't have time to waste then, you and I will head for Samara's room and find out what is going on there. Meanwhile, Kat and Crosscut can go and get Evac. Where are they now?" she said as she turned her attention to the Commando manning that station, who then typed away and brought up to signals at the Monastery's exterior. "We have them. Evac and Tolae are outside." the Asari said, making Myra look back at her friends with a purposeful stare. "Go and get him." she said, gaining nods from them both as the Bot and Human Woman turned and left the room in a hurry. "Jethra, after you." Darby then said, earning a respectful look from the Superintendent as the pair then left the Control Center themselves. Ten minutes passed before both Asari arrived at the door to Samara's room, with Myra reaching up to her com-link as she gave Jethra a questioning look and gained a nod in return. "Myra to Kat, you read me?" she said after tapping the device. "I read you. So we are allowed to use these now?" her human friend replied. "I think the situation has allowed it for now, anyway….where are you guys now? Because we have just reached Samara's room." Myra said back as the Superintendent pressed the door control at it's side and rang the chime. "We have just exited the building and are now heading down the path that Evac took with his 'friend'. Will keep you posted, Kat out." Once the com-link deactivated, the younger Asari turned her attention back to the Older one who had just rung the door chime again. "I do not understand. Our internal sensors read Samara as being in her room and yet she does not answer." Jethra said, which then made Myra activate her holo-tool and begin to hack the door control. This earned a surprised and somewhat disgusted expression from the Superintendent, who watched in disbelief. "You can't do that. I am the only one here with…." she started to say, though Myra simply kept her attention on the holo-tool which had three wheels of light spinning around her forearm, with one after another locking into place as the door unlocked and opened. "We needed to speed things along and I am not in the mood to apologise for that, not when one of my friends might be…..in trouble." she started to say before both hers and Jethra's eyes fell upon the interior of the Justicar's room, for it was in complete disarray. The pair entered the room which looked as if a war had been fought in it, as the furniture was in pieces and spread out around them. "By the Goddess! What happened here?" the Superintendent asked with a worried tone, while Myra just stared at there surroundings as there was still no sign of their friend. "Is Samara's signal still coming from here?" she asked, which made Jethra look down at the screen on her holo-tool and nod back. "Yes, she should be right in front of us." she said back while pointing down at the destroyed bed, so the younger Asari got down on her knees and started to lift parts of it up. "Help me." she said back with an authoritative tone, making the Superintendent join her side as she lifted a wooden plank and revealed a blue hand. "Samara!" Jethra said aloud with a worried tone as she then used her biotics to lift the rest of the bed up into the air, revealing the Justicar as Myra pulled her body out from under the rubble. "Is she alright?" the Leader replied as she dropped the broken bed back onto the ground, while the Rogue Spectre checked Samara's vital signs before shaking her head gently. "No, she is dead…" she said back with a saddened tone while looking down at the Justicar's body, before activating her holo-tool and taking a scan. "…My holo-tool says that she has been dead for hours." the younger Asari added, gaining a similar and yet confused look from the Superintendent in return. "But who were you talking to earlier? If Samara's body has been here all this time?" she asked, earning a thoughtful expression from Myra before she tapped her com-link. PRIME EFFECT 5 The snowfall had increased somewhat by the time Evac and Tolae had reached the cliff-side where the unknown ship was parked, but it was not enough to hinder the pair as could easily see their target. "We were lucky that the snow hasn't fallen at a faster rate, because that would have made our climb down somewhat more interesting." the bot said with a relieved tone, gaining a similar smile from the Asari, before she looked back up at the Monastery with an unsure stare. "What is it?" Evac asked, having noticed her expression. "It's just this is as far as I have ever been outside of the Monastery during my time here." she replied before looking back at the ship which was just aways from them, earning a nod from the Pilot as he looked in the same direction. "Well, considering your good behavior up until now, perhaps they will let you out more once we have uncovered what's going on with this ship?" the Bot said with an enthusiastic tone, which made Tolae look back with a hopeful yet restrained expression. "That would be nice, though I doubt it." she answered, before gesturing to the ship. "So, have you seen this type of craft before?" she asked as Evac activated his holo-tool and took a scan, earning a nod in return. "It looks like a standard one-man shuttle, but my sensor readings are picking up numerous upgrades to its systems." he replied, gaining a curious look from the Asari. "Can you tell what exactly has been altered?" she asked, making the Pilot shake his head in return. "Unfortunately, no. I am picking up a low-level energy field surrounding the vessel which appears to be hindering my scans. I can only tell you that improvements have been made to the ship, but no more detail than that." he replied, while the Ardat-Yakshi took a few steps closer to the shuttle, earning a wide-eyed look from Evac as he held his hand put to her. "Tolae, don't step any clos..." he started to warn, though the Pilot was suddenly cut off by the sound of the ship powering up, making them both look at it with surprised expressions. "...er, because it might be booby-trapped " he finished his sentence, gaining an embarrassed look from Tolae in return. "Sorry, I didn't..." she started to say back, only for Evac to give her an understanding look back. "It's okay, lets just get ready for whatever this ship is going to do next." he replied, earning a nod from the Asari in return as he equipped his pistol, with Tolae powering up her bitoics. But just as they were ready for the Shuttle to fire a hidden weapon back at them, the hatch opened up and granted them access. "Okay, was not expecting that to happen." Evac said with a bewildered tone, with Tolae looking back with a similar expression. "I might be somewhat new to this, but I thought booby traps were supposed to be harmful to trespassers. Not opening up what they were protecting without a fight?" "Perhaps it has malfunctioned, in which case...I'd call that a win..." the Bot began to reply, but found himself cut off by a Mech suddenly climbing out of the ship's hatch and revealing itself to the pair. "...but my luck has never been that great." he finished while looking the robot up and down, while it glared back with it's aqua blue optics. For this was not the standard version of Mech that he had been used to seeing around the galaxy, since it had a more armored form and yet it still looked like it could move fast, not being slowed down by its extra weight. "It's only a Mech, these things have never been much of a threat, even back before I was sent here." Tolae then said with a slither of over-confidence in her voice, before launching herself at it with a biotic charged punch. "Tolae, wait!" he shouted as suddenly the droid stepped to the left, dodging the Asari's attack before grabbing her arm and throwing the woman back to the ground hard in front of him. "Tolae!" the bot cried out as he rushed to her side, firing his pistol at the Mech. But it activated an energy barrier which deflected the bullets safely away, while the Asari recovered. "Never seen a Mech move like that before." she replied as Evac helped her to stand, all the while continuing to fire on the enemy and keep it on the defensive. "Yeah. Or one that has the ability to activate its own defenses, they don't have the power requirements for such things." he said back before his pistol stopped firing and began smoking, which earned worried looks from them both. "Great, now my pistol has overheated." he then added, before the droid then shut down its force-field and activated twin holo-armblades, one on each arm. "Okay, that's not good." Tolae said in return with a worried tone, gaining a similar look from the Pilot. "Yeah, looks like we going to get physical." he replied while activating his holo-blade before the Mech suddenly launched itself at the pair. Meanwhile, back at the Eudora, Morinth had just deactivated the Cockpit's holo-interface when her holo-tool activated and began beeping at her. 'That's interesting, no one has ever come across my shuttle before.' she thought with a curious expression, while looking at the warning screen that was being projected over her arm. 'I should get back, since it looks like I have overstayed my welcome.' she added as she tapped the holo-screen, bringing up another which showed the layout of the monastery. "Prepare to activate emergency Ground-bridge." she said, gaining a beep from the holo-tool before looking back at the interior of the Eudora. "Computer reinstate security lockdown, code shadow-Beta-two." she then said, making the ship power down once more. 'Now...back to my ship, I am done here.' she thought with a smile as she tapped her holo-tool's interface, which made a person-sized Ground-bridge portal appear in front of the Asari and illuminate the Eudora's interior. As that was happening, Evac and Tolae were still fighting with the Mech as it lunged at the Bot with its holo-arm blade. But he managed to deflect the attack with his holo-blade, which then left him open and allowed the droid to punch him in the face and knock him back. "Leave him alone!" the Asari spat as she threw a biotic projectile at their enemy, hitting it square on it's back and sending it to the ground. "That thing sure packs a wallop." Evac said while holding his jaw, as Tolae joined his side and helped him up. "Are you alright?" she asked with a concerned tone, which gained an appreciative smile back. "I have had worse, believe me." he replied before looking back at the Mech, who was recovering just a few feet ahead of them. "This thing fights like a person." she said back while readying for the next attack, gaining a nod from the Pilot in return. "Yeah, and it hits like a Terracon. But..." he started to say before the robot pounced at the pair again, but Tolae only just managed to stop it as she created a biotic barrier between them and it, which it stabbed with its holo-arm blades. "What the?" the Ardat-Yakshi said with a wide-eyed stare as she and the Bot watched as the Mech's arm blade suddenly penetrated the barrier, creating large cracks around the breach and weakened it considerably. "Holo-weapons have never been able to damage biotic constructs...never!" she said back in surprise before a green glowing vortex suddenly opened up just aways from them "What now?" Evac then said while the Mech continued to force it's weapon through the barrier before another Asari walked out of the portal, gaining relieved looks from the pair as they recognised her. "Samara, great timing!" the Bot exclaimed while Tolae sent the barrier crashing into the droid, making the energy field shatter into tiny glowing blue fragments that then disappeared as the enemy was sent onto its arse again. "Please, Justicar Samara, help us." Tolae pleaded to the newcomer, while the droid got back to it's feet and attacked them again. "I would if the Mech wasn't just defending my ship, and I do hate people who try to touch my stuff." the other Asari replied whilst staring back with narrowed eyes, gaining a surprised look from Evac while his friend sent the Mech to the ground again with a biotic charged kick. "That's not Samara." he said, earning a nod from the newcomer in return. "And what gave me away? The fact that I do not wear my mistakes and regrets like a badge of shame, or perhaps that I simply think for myself." she replied before throwing an energy ball between the pair, which then exploded and sent them both flying in separate directions. The Mech meanwhile joined the attacker's side as Evac got onto his knees, a look of confusion on his face as he stared back. "Who are you then, because you're the spitting image of Samara." he said, which made Tolae's eyes widen as she realised who this other Asari was. "You're Morinth, Samara's first daughter and an Ardat-Yakshi like myself." she said, gaining a nod from the Murderer as the Mech then leapt and tackled the Pilot back onto the floor. "That's correct. Did my mother tell you that?" she asked with a curious tone. "No, I learned of you via your sisters Rila and Falere. For they were kind to me when I first arrived here and I thought I had made some friends that day, but then the next day I found out that they had been killed during the night." Tolae replied with a regretful tone, which earned a smirk from Morinth in return. "That's right and I should know...for I killed them myself..." she started to say, gaining a horrified look from the younger Asari. "But they were your sisters! How could you do that!?" she spat while lunging at her fellow Ardat-Yakshi with a biotic charge which was suddenly intercepted by the Mech, who punched her in the face and followed though with a kick to her stomach that knocked the wind out of Tolae as she fell to her knees. "Because my sisters were more concerned with denying what they were and so betrayed me to my Mother. Of course, I killed them...and now Mother has joined them too at last." Morinth gloated as she looked down at the younger woman, who held on to her aching stomach and fought through the pain she was feeling to look back with a judging-like stare. "You killed Samara too! You're a monster!" she spat, which gained her a biotic slam into the ground from the Murderer who looked at her with a smile, while Tolae felt every part of her being throbbing in pain. "Yes, I am. That is what we Ardat-Yakshi are supposed to be…" she started to say back, as Evac tried to recover while under the observing optics of the Mech. "…the Alpha Predators, top of the food chain in this galaxy." she added before turning around and looking up at the Monastery. "If I had more time, I would rip this entire temple down and kill all the others like us here who have chosen to hide their true selves behind a doctrine of shame and fear. forced upon us by a Government who are afraid of the power we hold, for we are the next stage of Asari evolution." "Dear God, doesn't she love the sound of her own voice." the Pilot suddenly said with a hint of sarcasm to his voice, gaining Morinth's attention as she pulled him into the air with her biotics. "Yes, I do. But there is something I love more…" she started to say while stepping closer to the Bot, staring back with a seductive gaze. "…And that is to kill my victims with a kiss." she said, earning a wide-eyed stare from Tolae who realised what Morinth was about to do. "No, don't…." she said, raising her hand to the Arad-Yakshi as she tried to get back to her feet. But the Murderer simply swiped her hand beside her, knocking the younger Asari onto her back with a biotic backslap. "Stay out of this. It's only a little kiss." she said before looking back at Evac, her eyes turning black as the Bot suddenly found himself losing control as he stared into them. "So do you want me to kiss you, embrace you and…..blow your mind?" "Yes, I want you." he said in a toneless voice, which made her smile back. "Then kiss me." she replied before leaning in close, with the Pilot unable to do anything other than what she wanted as he leaned in to kiss her.
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