Amelia looked out over the small terrace, cradling a ceramic mug of steaming tea, as she leaned against the railing before taking a tentative sip. The fragrant liquid scalded her mouth and tongue as she forced a swallow with a wince. A sigh escaped her lips as she looked over the lake that spread across the horizon between the various parks and store fronts. The year was 2172 CE; today was her last day as a civilian, before being shipped off for Alliance training.
She was alone in her mothers apartment, not having any friends on the Citadel and with Hannah being busy with Alliance business up in the Presidium. Amelia didn't mind, preferring to be alone in the peaceful atmosphere. She sighed again and shivered anxiously as her imagination ran wild with the anticipation of training and her future career. The uncertainty of it all made her tummy quiver. Was she to be stationed on a frigate exploring the traverse, a modern day conquistador? Or was she doomed to stand at attention all day, waiting on some mildly important diplomat finish a meeting somewhere on Earth? She took a larger sip of tea after letting cool for a minute, the bitter taste of artificial sweetener following the tang of lemongrass.
High up above, her light green eyes silently observing the pedestrians below by the lake, savoring the last few hours of freedom she had. She closed her eyes and listened to the song of the alien birds that populated this part of the Citadel, their voices familiar yet beautifully peculiar. A faint air current pulled at her sandy hair, carrying the scent of the strange flowers below and reminded her of the brief visits to Earth she rarely got to enjoy being a spacer. She felt the slightly warm artificial light, and tried to imagine the last time she was on Earth.
"Shepard." A hoarse voice gasped in the darkness, cutting through the dissipating ringing. "Shepard, you need to get up. Shepard!" Panic laced the male voice, and Shepard opened her eyes at his shaking. She was met with the strong taste of copper on her tongue, the smell of burnt plastic and hair in her nose, and the bloodied face of her squad mate over her. "Oh, thank God," He sighed before helping her up.
"What happened?" She asked, sitting up and bringing the room into focus and piecing together the memories from moments before. A colony compartment came back into focus, a dead Batarian several meters away. She stood up, wincing at the sharp stab on her rib cage before applying pressure to her wound. She spat out a glob of blood and did a mental check list of her body, ensuring everything was there and in working order. She straightened and pulled her hand from her side, palm coming away crimson.
Her squad mate spat towards the Batarian as the rest of her squad did final sweeps of the living quarters rooms. "This bastard here managed to throw out a small radius grenade before we managed to take him out. Nearly blew you back to Earth. Good thing we were issued shields, eh?"
"Yeah, good thing" She chuckled nervously before picking up her Avenger. Her shield modulator sizzled angrily as it attempted to recharge, and she quickly applied medigel to her wound before it became anything serious. Relief swept through her as her skin tingled.
"Regroup. We need to find the last of the colonists." She ordered, straightening herself up to her full commanding height. What was left of her squad resumed their formation, guns at the ready.