[Logic Arrest Tool]
World: Mass Effect
Quality: Deep-Blue
Type: Omni-tool
Durability: 40/40
Effect: Increases shield effectiveness by 25%, and reduces Medigel cooldown by 25%
Effect: Reduces cooldown of tech-based abilities by 5%
Note: Superior, human-developed product that significantly improves Shields and Medigel usage, while only providing a small bonus to tech-based abilities.
Note: Manufactured by Ariake Technologies.
Not bad! A clear upgrade!
I could've still tried to sell the parts to other companies, but I know the System won't let me fool around too much. Sometimes it's better to stop being too greedy.
As he leaves the building, he writes a message to Menchi.
[Alex: Keep my Credits, I just won the Jackpot. I might send some to you when I'm done shopping.]
In truth, I got low-balled, but considering the parts were just Green, I think I made the very most of it. The System isn't about to hand me millions of Credits I could turn into dozens of Blue items, just like that.
Alex returns to the shuttle and says to the driver, "You know your way around, right? Take me to where I can buy weapons and equipment."
"I know just the place. It's a small hub where various corporations and merchants sell their products. Most of their customers are rich Alliance officers or mercenaries. Nothing else really comes to mind," the driver replies.
Alex nods. "That sounds decent enough. Drive me there."
Soon, the shuttle arrives at a section of the city resembling a square-shaped shopping mall, with numerous shops positioned along its outer walls.
The shuttle parks a little way off, and Alex prepares to get out.
"I guess I'll just take a stroll and do one round of shopping, hehe," Alex jokes.
"The stores in the circle are the most popular. There are a few smaller shops nearby, in other smaller alleys and nearby halls. If you're short on Credits, you might want to check those out too," the driver adds.
"Thanks, I'll check it out," Alex says, heading off.
As soon as he enters the circle, he spots shop after shop—some dealing in weapons, others in armor. Blue items range from 25,000 Credits all the way up to 100,000. No sign of any Purple-quality gear. Most of the weapons are from manufacturers he recognizes.
Alex spots a [Kessler Pistol], Light-Blue quality. Decent and cheap. He already owns one.
These pistols might sell well. Let's convert my Credits into more!
He's about to buy it when a system notification interrupts him:
[Current authorization, in line with Lowell City law, only allows the purchase of one weapon per month. Does Player want to proceed?]
What?! I guess the System won't let me hoard a dozen pistols... damn. I need to change my plan. I can still buy other items, like armor, but those are more situational. Weapons will sell better in the Realm. For now, I should just pick one expensive weapon.
Alex makes his way to the Ariake Technologies store. Their weapons are clearly more high-tech than most competitors'.
As he approaches, the employee greets him with a smile. "Welcome. Please provide identification, and I'll introduce you to our products."
Alex flashes his ID through his omni-tool, and the clerk's expression immediately changes, turning serious. "Apologies for not recognizing you, Mr. Kerber. It looks like you're marked as a VIP customer. I can offer you access to a more advanced selection and a small discount at my discretion."
What?!
Alex smiles. "Great, show me what you've got."
He's shown Ariake's full lineup—Pistols, Shotguns, Assault Rifles, Sniper Rifles. Not only models he recognizes, but also cheaper variants. He also spots their Mercenary armor sets: Light, Medium, and Heavy.
Should I buy some armor? Rishi and Tereza might need it if they ever end up in a high-tech world. Neither of them is suited for Heavy gear. Medium might even be a stretch for Tereza, though she's got some Strength at least, it should barely be enough. I'll grab two Light and two Medium [Mercenary Armor] sets. They are only Blue quality, but still, good enough.
He also picks out the most expensive weapon available—a slightly modified Deep-Blue sniper rifle, clearly superior to the standard model: [Naginata Sniper Rifle A]. He glances at the stats, impressed, but doesn't bother thinking about it in more detail since he can't use the rifle anyway.
The total comes to 377,000 Credits, but the seller rounds it down to 350,000—a discount of around 8%, enough to satisfy Alex.
Now I've got 1 Heavy, 1 Medium, and 1 Light armor to sell in the Realm. That should be good enough. I've got 50,000 Credits left... should I send them to Menchi, or spend them here?
While wandering the side streets of the shopping zone, Alex comes across a few shops selling everyday combat gear—basic clothing, not combat suits. They are absolutely nothing special, but they offer some protection. The chestpieces are of Light-Green quality, while the gloves and other parts are of plain white quality.
If I do the Shard conversions, the smartest thing is to buy the Light-Green Chest items, as they provide the best Credit to Shard ratio, so I might as well buy what I can. Sorry, Menchi, but you have to make do with what you got. I need shards.
He spends his last 50,000 Credits on exactly ten Light-Green [Military-Grade Chest Armor].
That's 10 x 2 Shards = 20 Shards. Not bad. Alternatively, I can always offload them to a Realm broker and get FC. These flies buy anything, even if they only profit 50 FC per item.
Pleased with his haul, Alex notices it's already getting late.
He spends the next few hours doing what he was supposed to: gathering intel on ExoGeni. After countless pointless conversations, he gets an idea and returns to the Ariake Technologies store. The clerk looks quite bored, as nobody is around to shop.
"Sorry, one more thing. I just had a meeting with your bosses earlier, and I might feel inclined to mention your excellent service. I just have one question—what can you tell me about ExoGeni, specifically their colony on Feros?" Alex asks, casually activating the recording function of his omni-tool.
With a smile, the employee begins to speak:
"ExoGeni always uses the same strategy in their endeavours. They lobby for massive private investments, mostly from relatives, rich acquaintances of shareholders, or sometimes, the shareholders themselves fund the operation. They never involve other corporations. Then they use their gathered Credits to buy the rights to a colony. Their recent purchase, which led to the colony on Feros, is supposed to research whatever is left of a Prothean ruin. They paid a fortune for it—enough to nearly bankrupt them. Many other corporations were interested, but after a heavy bidding war, ExoGeni won the rights. I know this because Ariake was also interested, but we dropped out after the first round of bidding. I heard you can't even visit the planet if you're a private citizen. They call it a colony, but in reality, it's just a private research facility run by ExoGeni," the employee explains.
Alex records this and a few other snippets with his omni-tool, then sends them to the Commander and Captain Anderson, after he walks away from the employee.
He yawns and decides to call it a day. As he sits back in the shuttle, on the way to the temporary accommodation mentioned earlier by the local Commander, he surprisingly receives a message from Shepard.
[Shepard: I thought you had your own private agenda and wouldn't do anything useful, but it looks like you did your job properly! You're the only one who delivered useful information. Good job, Kerber. I can use this for tomorrow's negotiation—I'm getting a hunch what's at stake for them.]
[Side Quest Completed
Mission: Discover information about ExoGeni, specifically it's operation on Feros. The player's own knowledge can't be used.
Reward: Alliance funding: 10,000 Credits, Increased Reputation with Jane Shepard.]
With a smile, Alex sends the extra 10,000 Credits to Menchi.
He exits the shuttle and sees what looks like a strange mix between a standard hotel and an Alliance base.
Is this used by politicians and high-ranking military officers? Looks fancy! Anyway, who cares… I'll get a few hours of sleep and then leave.
Alex enters the building and sees the rest of the team, including Shepard, already sitting in the luxurious lounge, drinking.
I thought we weren't supposed to drink? Shepard can be such a hypocrite sometimes.
Alex sighs, quickly heads to his room, takes a shower, stores his equipment, puts on fresh clothes, and joins them.
As he orders a drink, he relaxes and enjoys a surprisingly fun evening. Wrex shares interesting, if crude and violent, mercenary tales. Garrus tells funny cop stories from the Citadel. Alex can't help but grin and enjoy the vibe. Liara seems fascinated, and even Tali laughs, offering a few stories from her childhood on the Rayya, her home-ship—mostly about her secretly hoarding tech for private research and getting scolded by her father Rael'Zorah, a high-ranking member of the Admiralty Board.
The evening drags into late night, and Alex starts thinking about leaving. Wrex, Shepard, and Ashley are visibly drunk. Even Tali looks tipsy as she drinks through a special straw.
"It's not a straw," she keeps correcting everyone. "Emergency Induction Port!" she explains, talking slowly and clearly.
Damn, she's wasted. Only Liara, Kaidan, and Garrus still seem fine. Kaidan's drinking juice—what a total manchild. My PHY stat is thankfully high enough to make me immune to alcohol.
"You know, it's getting late… shouldn't we rest? It's almost morning. We only have a couple of hours left until the meeting," Liara says, looking worried.
"I hate to say it, Commander, but she's right," a sober Kaidan adds.
Shepard shakes her head. "You're boring. You've gotta relax when you've got the chance!"
She slides next to Alex and throws her arm around his neck. "I see you're drinking, but you still look sober! You can really hold your liquor, Kerber, color me surprised—I thought you'd be the first to get drunk and embarrass yourself."
"..."
"Thanks for the confidence, Commander," Alex says, trying to gently remove her arm.
"Is that amount of skinship not good enough for you, huh? That's blatant disrespect in front of your commanding officer—you deserve some punishment! Liara, come sit beside Alex. That's an order from your Commander!" Shepard shouts, tightening her grip around Alex's neck.
"Okay?" Liara replies, clearly confused, but obediently sits beside Alex, studying his face with intense curiosity.
Why is she so naive?!
Shepard grabs Liara's arm and pulls her toward them, wrapping it around Alex's head just like hers.
Alex tries to stay calm, now pressed between Shepard and Liara, both their faces so close to his that he feels their breath on his skin. He suddenly feels the alcohol kick in—his body heating up.
Then, Tali—clearly drunk—stands in front of him and decides to sit on his lap without warning, violently smashing against his body.
"What is going on?!" Kaidan asks, completely baffled.
"Save me," Alex pleads, not enjoying this drunken assault at all. Tali's hard suit is practically crushing his stomach and lower body.
"Oh come on, you're enjoying this, aren't you?" Shepard whispers in his ear.
"Really? Do humans appreciate this kind of skinship? I'm glad you like this, Alex—it gives me a chance to repay your kindness," Liara beams, completely misunderstanding the situation.
Feeling their breath, their warmth, and pinned by Tali, Alex tries to stand—only to realize her heavy suit is physically holding him down.
"Don't be deceived by that prat'ya! Acting all innocent—you don't need her when you have me right here!" Tali yells, pressing harder against him. Then, standing up, trying to pull Alex away from the others, she stumbles and crashes face-first into the glass table in front of them, her suit shattering it completely.
It doesn't take long before a few staff rush in, staring at the half-wasted group with a mix of shock and anger.
"Guess it's time to go," Shepard mutters, looking just slightly embarrassed.
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