John Archer

For the moment, the fact that they weren't shooting at him on sight was as good of a sign as he had today.  He still didn't know if he could trust any of them, though he did have a plan to get everyone out alive... with the exception of the attackers.

"Check a window before you decide," Shepard replied.  "Whoever these guys are they own the streets.  I have help on the way, our best bet is to hold out on the roof until then."

Kaylee, still unseen by the others, got the cue and partially packed up the turret, only taking it apart as much as needed to make it mobile again.  Once she was ready to set it up again it would go much faster than usual.

Shepard and Kaylee had stayed in the room, though neither of them liked the idea of dividing their attention between their prisoner and the door.  He wasn't particularly talkative anyway so Shepard simplified their situation... with a solid blow to the head, knocking the man unconscious.  The two of them strapped on light armored vests, though neither bothered to change out of their pajamas first.  However, the second attack did not come. Instead the gunfire was replaced by voices in the hall.  The two of them eavesdropped for a moment, though with reinforcements on the way it was time to make a move; these people were either allies or enemies and it was time to find out which they would be.

The two listened to the conversation for some time before Shepard decided to make himself known, signaling Kaylee to stay hidden in the room.  He stepped halfway through the door, one hand on his coilgun, though he was careful not to hold it in a threatening manner.

"Someone want to tell me what the hell is going on?"

The creaking floorboards were enough to wake Shepard.  At first he was simply annoyed, though after a moment he realized something was wrong.  He easily recognized the pattern of the footsteps; all of them started from one direction then rapidly spread out.

Shepard shook Kaylee slightly, waking her up.  She looked around, confused for a moment, though she understood when she saw Shepard pulling the gun out from under his pillow.  The two of them climbed out of bed silently, taking up position on opposite sides of the door.

A moment later the attack came.  A man armed with a blaster rifle kicked down the door, rather dramatically breaking the silence.  Immediately he fired one shot from a blaster rifle at the bed, burning a hole through the sheets.  However, he did not have time for a second as Shepard and Kaylee sprang into action.  Shepard wrestled the blaster rifle around with a smooth arm lock maneuver, holding his own pistol against the attacker's temple with his other hand, while Kaylee delivered a surprisingly powerful blow to the gut using her elbow, knocking the wind out of him.  As Shepard half walked, half dragged him clear of what was left of the door Kaylee quickly disarmed him, throwing his weapons on the floor well out of arm's reach.  The two of them pushed him into the corner of the room with Shepard keeping an eye and a gun on him at all times.

"Get the turret!"  Shepard ordered.  Kaylee quickly obliged, quickly assembling her portable blaster turret.  The sound of several more doors being kicked down followed by blaster fire told Shepard one thing; the attackers weren't there for them.

As Kaylee finished setting up the turret Shepard relaxed his own weapon; the mounted gun had the attacker covered.  He spotted the troops in the street below him, making his initial plan impossible... at least for the moment.

"All done!"  Kaylee announced.  "How are the streets?"

"Ugly.  We'll need some help."

"Right."

Kaylee went back to work on her computer as Shepard returned his attention to the intruder.  "I'll make you a deal," he said.  "You tell me why you tried to kill us and maybe I'll let you take the elevator."

Shepard and Kaylee had gone to their own room, prepared to settle in for the night.  They hadn't had much luck job hunting that day; all of the listings were either too shady for their tastes or involved the Wyrmslayer.

The two of them lay down on the bed. While there was nothing romantic between them they had known each other for years; the two of them were comfortable sharing a bed, particularly since it meant they didn't have to book two rooms.  Shepard slipped his sidearm under his pillow, leaving the empty holster sitting on the nightstand.  Kaylee watched as he did this, still thinking he was a little odd for it.

"I still think we should have taken the repo job," Kaylee said.  "It's not even illegal, it pays well and we know the ship."

"Sure, then we have to survive flying the damn thing back to its owner," Shepard replied.  "Judging by that landing there must be something severely wrong with it."

"I could set up remote piloting and you can fly it from the Archangel."

Shepard let out a deep sigh.  "All right, if you can rig that up and there aren't any other good jobs tomorrow we'll go get the Wyrmslayer."

"Don't worry big guy, we know what to expect."

"Somehow I doubt that," Shepard replied.  "Night."

"Night."

Kaylee switched off the light and relaxed, though Shepard kept an eye on the door for some time.  Something seemed out of place to him but he wasn't sure what it was.  Eventually he managed to get to sleep, wondering if he really was just paranoid.

General:

• Name:  Sarah Newton
  
• Species:  Human
  
• Gender:  Female
  
• Age:  24

Gene Mods:  Sarah inherited several distinct genetic modifications.  She has a pair of feathered wings attached just below and behind her shoulders as well as a tail to act as a stabilizer.  The wings alone are too small to enable flight in most environments, though she can use her kinetic abilities to get around this.  Her bones and muscles use a structure far superior to that of other humans, making them much lighter and slightly stronger than normal.  She also has light blue skin (a result of a failed attempt to create photosynthetic humans) and pointed ears.  Some of these gene mods were slightly incompatible.  Normally this would have led to eventual failure of several organs, though her healing implant (see Cybernetics) can prevent this indefinitely.

Cybernetics:  Sarah has a healing unit implanted in her chest.  The device is capable of using her DNA to manufacture stem cells which will then travel to any area in need of repair.  The device was necessary to stabilize her condition with incompatible gene mods, though it is also overkill for this job.  Because of this she is able to recover from several injuries which would kill an ordinary human and can heal minor injuries very quickly.  The device itself is plainly visible on her chest and normally glows white.

Appearance:  1.6 meters tall, skinny, dark blue skin, shoulder-length black hair usually tied back in a pony tail.  She has a pair of white feathered wings which can extend to four meters and fold up to become surprisingly compact on her back.  However, the wingtips will extend below her knees, making it impractical to try to hide them completely.  She also has a feathered tail for stability.  Her medical unit is plainly visible as an illuminated white ring on her chest.  She usually prefers a lightweight open jacket over a T-shirt and cargo pants, sometimes leaving the power plant uncovered simply because it looks cool.  All of her clothes had to be modified to accommodate the wings and tail.

Skin texture source

Background:  Sarah always had the skills of an engineer and the spirit of an explorer.  However, while she did have enough opportunity to put her mechanical skills to use she always was eager to go out and explore, hoping to one day see the galaxy.



Talents:  Sarah is an exceptionally skilled engineer and mechanic.  She can repair anything from a 20th century Terran car to a fusion powered spacecraft.  She seems to be able to do this by instinct more than anything as she has had no formal training.  In particular she often gets the job done in bizarre ways when she does not have access to the parts or tools most people would consider essential.  She is also very agile and skilled in her own variant of parkour, often using kinetic abilities as well as conventional moves.  Finally, she is a passable cook and has basic first aid knowledge.

Kinetics:  Sarah has trained to use two powerful abilities in tandem with her implanted power supply.  She can generate a mass projection of her hands or her wings.  A hand projection allows her to precisely manipulate objects at a distance while a projection of her wings effectively increases her wing area, enabling flight despite their small physical size.  Sarah is also capable of generating a point-to-point spatial conduit, embedding each end in a solid surface to temporarily allow two-way travel between them.

Possessions:

• Portable Fabricator:  Compact rapid fabricator capable of printing with a variety of materials.  It can be assembled and disassembled very quickly and the components can be easily stored in a backpack.  It can even manufacture another fabricator.
  
• Personal Computer:  Wrist-mounted computer with a mass projection-based volumetric interface.  It includes a wide variety of sensors and diagnostic equipment and can be used to generate models of items for the fabricator to manufacture.
  
• Tool Kit:  Sarah brings around a set of multi-tools, effectively giving her a very versatile tool kit in a small package.  When she finds a job that she doesn't have the right tool for she will usually use the fabricator to make one.
  
• Space Suit:  Form-fitting mechanical counter pressure suit designed to be worn as a general purpose space uniform.  A tube runs along the seams of the suit which is normally relaxed, though this will inflate and make the suit skintight when a pressure drop is detected.  The helmet can be collapsed and stored on the wearer's side then quickly attached when needed.  The suit is black and silver with a dark blue stripe running the length of the arms as well as from her armpits to her feet.  This suit leaves her wings and tail exposed, though they can tolerate hard vacuum for some time.  Sarah keeps a small bottle on the belt which can provide half an hour of oxygen in an emergency.
  
• EVA Oversuit:  The oversuit is a combined jumpsuit and rigid torso section designed to be worn over Sarah's usual crew suit.  The rigid section has an additional compartment for her wings and tail which maintains full pressure.  The suit also includes a set of maneuvering thrusters and a magnetic line thrower.  It contains a six hour oxygen supply, though additional tanks can be added if desired.
  
• Freefall Broomstick:  Microgravity maneuvering aid consisting of a spring loaded telescopic carbon fiber rod with a rubber pad on one end and a hook on the other.  The force of releasing the spring is used to propel the user away from one wall within the compartment.  After this the spring absorbs the user's momentum at the opposite wall, bringing her to rest.  Sarah's broomstick is one meter long when retracted and three meters long when fully extended.  The spring strength can be adjusted, setting it for use in microgravity or some low gravity environments.
  
• Duct Tape:  Now vacuum certified in case of a hull breach.