The big blue plain (THESSIA, NARTIN, TEMPLARS)

Vohk frowned severely at his com for a moment, before making absolutely sure that he was no longer in communique with TERF or the Picasso.

"Sorry guys, but due to the fact that we didn't hear that last transmission, means I can't authorize the use of armor, or higher class weapons. We'll just have to make do while we wait for the kodiak to get here."

He ordered, voice tight with meaning. The kodiak shuttle was the fastest, safest way of getting the wounded to medical care, while using the trucks guranateed a longer route, along with bumpy travails of trip back. No, he'd deal with consequences later. Right now, criminals or not, they needed to get these people out of here.

He made his way off the truck, snow crunching beneath his boots. He took a closer look at the crash site, and the other survivors, all quarian, along with the eezo containers, illustrated a better image of what they were dealing with.

Pirates, or smugglers. Either way they'll need to be restrained by the time we get them back to the med center or Cobalt.

"Okay, Lupin stay with your guy, and keep a firm watch on him. From the looks of things we're dealing with smugglers, so wounded or not, everyone keeps an eye on them. Everyone else, lets get the other survivors away from the eezo crates. I don't know how stable that stuff is."

Vohk ordered, keeping a wary eye on those crates. He made his way over to the crash site, OT activated, ready to deliver a painless knockout if one of the quarians decided to make an issue of it.

Back at Camp Cobalt, Helena was of a similar mind to her husband. The Kodiak was their best method of swiftly getting the injured medical care.

With that thought in mind, she left command center, shrugging on a jacket as she did so, and ran to where the Kodiak was being kept.

"Pilot, get over here. Were making a pick up at the med center, and then going to help out Patrol one, orders be damned."

Since she was one of the coheads of Templar, and this was a Templar run subsect of the operation, the pilot didn't ignore her order. The Kodiak was going over there, short of direct interference from somewhere.

She patched into a direct com with patrol one.

"We'll be there in five minutes guys. Do what you can in the meantime."

"Shit, what are you playing at Elgin?"

Inside the debris of the wreckage a young man wearing a blood red hooded coat muttered as he made his way towards the makeshift cargo bay. The gunfire was bad enough, but this? He detected eezo crates with his omnitool. The salvager, known as Snow to the crew he ran with, cursed under his breath as he stopped, checking for an exit. This was getting out of hand, a too good to be true wreck on Thessia was turning into a grade a clusterfuck, and a nagging suspicion became even more pronounced in his mind. That Elgin had an inkling of what was on board.

"Got to risk it", Snow muttered ruefully as he keyed on his omnitool, "Elgin, it's Snow, the site is a no go, I've got others at the wreck and the shooting has begun, making my way back to the pick up point."

Everett kept the quarian still as Lupin treated his injuries, nodding slowly in response to the mumbling. The wounded quarian would remain stable for now, long enough for the Kodiak to arrive, hopefully.

"Nice job, Lupin... keep him secure. I'm checking the crash site," Everett stated before rising up to approach the crashed vessel. He narrowed his eyes once he heard Vohk mention the eezo crates. Add the fact that they entered the atmosphere in a severely damaged state, and it became clear that these quarians weren't just a bunch of unlucky civilians. He glanced over at the downed quarians. They weren't a threat in that state, but the human kept his guard up, nonetheless, leaving a hand close to the Phalanx pistol on his hip.

The crash site looked clear to Everett, until he spotted a humanoid shape through the hole in the cargo bay's hull. It looked bulkier than the other quarians. The N7 wouldn't take any chances.

"Contact, cargo bay. Looks uninjured... it ain't quarian." He drew his Phalanx, aiming it at Snow. "FREEZE!"

"Fuck" .

Snow couldn't make out details, but the motion of a gun being drawn was very clear, but the smoke and wreckage gave him an idea. Slowly turning to face the hole, a good ten foot drop, he dropped down, using the smoke and chaos to start running, skirting flaming wreckage and debris. Contact with Elgin was impossible now as he sprinted through the crash site, vaulting over crates and debris, the cold hampering the salvager's movements as he looked for an avenue of escape, finding one in the wreckage trail. Hopefully the steam, flame, and refuse would discourage pursuers, beyond that, he'd just improvise.

"Just like Portland and Joughin", Snow thought while running, despite the new locale, he was in his element with the wreckage, gunmen, and Thessia itself trying to kill him. But this lean looking young man was not going to make it easy.

Great another runner.

"Neil, Sergeant, we have another runner fleeing the site! Try to cut him off! Gestran, go with Maliszewski. I've got the wounded."

Vohk shouted into the com. He would have joined the chase, but someone needed to get the wounded out of here. He picked up the nearest of the quarians, making his way to the nearest vehicle.

"Understood, sir!We're on it!"He tapped on the rim of the lookout, anxious for Neil to have them on their way. His eyes scanned the wreckage where they were heading, watching for their runner. "Wonder if it's another survivor or what the quarian was running from?" he mumbled quickly under his breath.

"D'you need a hand there?" Titus called, as he began jogging over to Vohk.

"Yeah! Leave the dead for now. And make sure they're not packing anything"

He ordered Titus. Last thing he wanted was for one of bis men to be gutshot without realizing what happened.

"Understood sir!" He replied back to Vohk.

"Well Gallick. We have a truck. If this other individual tries anything dumb he or she is going to get a good reason to start running. Do you see anything right now?"

"No visual yet, Neil. Subject keeping to wreckage. Swing around far side of that craft. May be able to cut him off." He kept his eyes scanning the mess for their runner.

gestran sprinted off towards the figure. There were few things that he hated more than running in snow, having done a fair share of it in his time however, he knew a few tricks. He headed for a icy plot to the left of the crash, hoping that his spiked boots would compensate for the slippery surface.

"Maliszewski! I'll head up on the left, we'll drive him up towards Neil and corner him."

Spotting the runner among the wreckage he added:

"Target is wearing red, you can't miss him!"

A sudden roar of jet engines announced the arrival of the kodiak.

"This is Frosty, setting down on your six Vohk, rescue crew ready for evac. Better make it quick though, I'm pretty sure you'll have company soon. There is a ton of Freezers out there, pretty sure they spotted me as I passed over them."

"He's running," Everett reported as he began to chase Snow. He dropped through the hole and began to chase him, but the smoke and debris made it hard to stay on him. Everett eventually slid to a stop, frantically looking around for Snow. They always had to run. That irritated him, more than anything. Just once, he'd like to see come quietly.

Once the human heard Gestran over the commlink, he took off once more. "You try finding this guy through all this damned rubble," Everett snarled as he moved. Fortunately for him, it wouldn't be long before he saw the man in red again, trying and failing to keep a lone profile.

"Stop right there, asshole," Everett shouted, keeping his Phalanx at the ready as he closed in. Hopefully, Snow wouldn't get the wrong idea and raise a weapon at him, because the N7 had no qualms about shooting to kill.

The Runner

Several shadows were starting to appear through the haze, bracketing Snow within the wreckage trail. These mercs knew their business, but they made one mistake,

"Not enough people", he mused while sliding under a piece of the hull that was still smouldering, rising up and running with one fluid motion, the salvager finding a rhythm as he spotted an ascent route to his left, hopscotching his way on the slag, crates and packed drifts caused by the crash, finally cresting the lip. Seeing a military truck heading towards his original trajectory, Snow switched up, sprinting southeast towards a ravine he spotted on his trip to the wreck, a good distance away, but better than just keeping on. Snow gasping for air, the smoke and fumes taxing him to the limit,
"Can't stop, not like this."
Snow moaned as he half sprinted along the tire trails, not wanting to break off until the last second, all the time thinking,
"Wish I had the 'bitch' with me."

Not enough people? Perhaps, but a couple more were about to join the chase. As Neil drove up towards the wreckage Snow came into sight just long enough for the Salarian to acquire the target. He switched to the PA system in the truck, the voice ringing out over the snow and smoke.

"Advise you stop running, or you will not be given a choice!"

He leaned out over the lookout, trying to keep Snow in sight as the truck bounced around. His OT whirred to life as he prepared a low powered Cryo Blast. Just had to get a little closer...Localize the shot to the legs... Slow him down enough. He fired it off, and hoped the projectile tracked it's mark accurately.

"Like hell,"

The salvager muttering, hurdling over a snowbank, the truck forcing the issue. Snow slid around the bank, trying to use the momentum to get to the ravine, a hundred meters away. Spotting an orange glow from the top of the truck, he tucked down and rolled to his left, using the deep snowdrift to conceal himself momentarily, then rose up, a slope heading down to the ravine giving him an idea, Snow laughing has he dropped to a sitting position, letting the slick downgrade do his work for him, while soaking him in the process, then the drop 30 feet down. As the ground rushed up to meet him, the kid knew he fucked up, a outcropping of rocks, twenty feet above the snowy bottom, was there to greet him, the last thought crossing his mind as he landed shoulder first...
"This is going to hurt..."

Freezers?

Why would the asari natives come here? The alarm had been set, telling people to bunker down until further notice. It didn't make any-

One problem át a time.

"Lupin, Titus, help me get the three survivors into the Kodiak, quickly now! The sooner they're out of here and at the med center, the sooner we can secure the area."

Vohk ordered, carting his surviving quarian bridal style to kodiak. He assumed that his quarian and turian teamates were doing the same.

"Guys, what's the status on the runner?"

He asked as he neared the kodiak.