A calm breeze rolled through the grassy yard and past the worn out, occupied hammock; the cool air tickling the exposed skin that her shirt had ridden up and away from. The woman wasn't going to complain about the cool, clear, sunny weather; any time it wasn't sweltering hot was a good time for her. Between the cold of Ottawa and the cold of space, she still wasn't truly used to her home of nearly a decade. Amaterasu had seasons like Earth, but they could generally be boiled down to hot, warm and temperate; snow would only be found on the peaks far to the east of the continent. Snow…good riddance. I'll be happy if I never set foot in it again.
She rolled over on her comfy rope hammock and let her head block out the sunlight that had been preventing her from reading her datapad. The ropes had once been pristine, two years back, but they'd been getting a workout since. Well, when you're basically put in the corner until emergencies come along, you get to do a lot of reading. Not that I'm complaining, but since…well, I guess I can't blame them. She thought, mulling over the lesson plan for the next morning at the community center. At least those kids keep me busy.
She'd spent the past twenty eight months mostly on Amaterasu, with the exception of a few weeks of small missions scattered here and there, allowing her to take up the role of "special interests" teacher at the local community center during the weekend. The colony was small, but about a dozen children would show up each Sunday morning to hear about something new or interesting, or to learn some handy survival tricks, or just take part in a Q&A session. It always amused her when she'd host one of those. At least some other kids saw a resemblance between the Elcor and…
The hum of engines brought her attention away from her thoughts and toward her front yard, where a shuttle was landing. Alliance colours…normally they let me know what's going on before coming over here and ruining my afternoon. A familiar stout officer stepped off the vehicle onto her overgrown lawn and began his march over to her.
"Lieutenant Shepard?" the man called from across the yard; the woman slowly slid off her hammock, datapad still in hand, and closed the distance.
"Corporal Wilson. To what do I owe the pleasure?" She asked as she returned his salute. The man teetered back and forth on his feet for a moment. He's nervous…what for?
"I'm here to take you to Doctor Reiser. You're to be…" he said quietly, looking almost thankful when she interrupted him. She knew the reaction well, and her mood soured from it. All these years later and…fuck him.
"I saw Reiser two months ago for my annual psych eval, Corporal. I don't need another one, they can check what's there." She said firmly, attempting to sound authoritative and calm. The man seemed to relax slightly, but she knew the next time they'd meet, he'd go back to the same ingrained reaction. They all do. As if I'm going to pull out a gun and shoot them, or snap their necks, just for looking at me the wrong way…
"You…uh…you've been put in for a transfer, Lieutenant." He said, flinching slightly as she looked confusedly at him.
"Corporal Wilson, I'm not officially in anything right now. The Alliance has been pulling me from random mission with random platoon to random mission to random platoon for...what, over two years now? I haven't had to do this before. Tell me you have more on this, or call your superior and get someone who's in the loop to tell me what's going on." She stated calmly, shaking her head at how absurd the request was. I hate going in there…sitting on that bench and saying the same things over and over…
"This is for a permanent transfer. That's all I know. This came from Arcturus, so it must be something serious." Shepard looked at the man for a few moments and then nodded.
"Alright. Whatever, Corporal. Does it have to be now?" she asked, hopefully she could grab some more sunshine. It's supposed to rain on Tuesday, and I want to enjoy the good weather…
"Time is apparently of the essence, ma'am." He said, waiting for her to advance toward the shuttle before he followed suit.
Time is of the essence? Since when are the Alliance hasty about anything?
"In your career, you have had to cope with the deaths of fellow soldiers, some even under your command. Have you been doing anything specific to help ease the stress from those incidents?"
Shepard hated the smell of his office; it was a dusty pile of fake hardcover books, with datapads inside them. It was a sham, the doctor was a sham, and she thought the only thing more disgusting around her than the room were the words coming out of his mouth. Why does he keep asking me these questions? I've been in here for two hours with this imbecile!
"No." she stated emphatically, glaring at the nameplate on his desk. Christ, who names their kid Wellington? I didn't notice that before…
The doctor shook his head, his frustration having built visibly over the past dozen minutes. "You've given me monosyllabic answers for the past half hour. I would like to make some progress, Miss Shepard."
"We'd be making progress if you would stop bringing that event up. I've had yearly sessions with you and we've been over this. It's done. I'm fine. You know it. Let's get onto whatever you're here for." Shepard muttered, leaning back against the couch cushions.
"It's clear to me that we need to discuss Torfan, Lieuten…" he began, before Shepard leapt off the couch.
"We've already talked about it! I've said all there is to say, have you forgotten? If you want me to say I feel I can't function because of it, then we're going to be here for a long time. I made a decision. I'm living with it. I'm fine. You want me to be some mythical butcher that people make me out to be, then feel free to think that, but I've said my piece on Torfan. I've given you what you wanted. Are we done?"she finished, her minor rant not seeming to have impressed the doctor.
"How did those deaths affect you in terms of everyday stress?" he asked simply, ignoring her request.
"I'm actually teaching small classes at the community center, it's a really nice building, really great marble floors. I swear, you could see your reflection in them. One of the kids, Felicia, likes showing me her drawings of cats." Shepard stated with a grin, pacing toward the window.
"Shepard, please be cooperative." She heard from behind her, the doctor seemingly agitated.
"Nah, I don't feel like pie right now. It's too early in the day for that. Maybe some fresh berries though." She spoke, unable to keep the smile off her face as she ignored his pleas.
"It's alright to show some emotion over what you've gone through, Shepard."
She turned her head and stared at him intently. "Which ones do you want me to show?"
He waved his hands slightly. "There's no need to be hostile, I've had plenty of soldiers come to me for help. I know how you feel."
"If you already know how I feel, why are you asking?" she said dully as she moved toward the door. "Look, I can't stand this anymore, and we've already spent over two hours with you. I'm done. I'm calling it. There's a decision you can mull over and write a psych eval on, Doctor."
Shepard closed the door behind her as she left the room, marching down the hall back to the shuttle pad. This is strange, his sessions are never over an hour, and it was like he was fishing for things I've already told him before. Why the hell would he do that? I told him all I wanted to tell about Torfan two years ago… that was fine then, and he hasn't brought it up until now. Something…something's up.
The run home was just what she needed after the unexpected evaluation. The countryside was blanketed in lush, rolling green fields with the odd condensed pack of deciduous trees tosses in. The trees were changing colour due to the season, the native ones shifting to a pale purple or blue, while the imported oaks and maples from Earth changed to their reds, yellows and oranges. It made for a glorious sight in the midst of the twilight, and was one of the reasons she ended up settling there. After the Alliance refused to bring her to Drasta, she'd settled there, knowing an alliance base was near, and that it was also near other civilized worlds like Illium. Not that I've been there…or have even seen an asari in person…While Tiptree offered some of those benefits and more, the weather and the environment had sealed the deal.
As she reached the path leading to her home, she slowed, enjoying the serenity of the azaleas lining the walkway. They were native to Amaterasu, but held enough similarity for some researcher somewhere to place them in the same category. Not that I mind…better that than something unpronounceable. Amaterasu is hard enough to remember already. She leant over the take in their scent but paused halfway through the movement as she spotted a figure near the tree in her back yard. The azaleas all but a distant memory, she brushed past them, making a beeline straight for the man studying her red oak. Shepard stopped a few metres away and reached for her gun, quickly realizing she didn't have it on her. You've been out of commission for seven months, you stopped carrying weeks ago, get a grip!
With the sun having just set, there wasn't enough light for her to get a good look at who it was. Still, I don't think they're going to be any trouble. I can handle myself…
"Hey, turn around with your hands up." She warned, taking a step forward. "What are you doing in my yard?" She took another step forward and focused her biotics, wreathing her in waves of blue. I got this place so I could have something to myself, something for Mel. Who the hell would be out here at this time of night?
The man turned around , shifting her confusion to annoyance, rolling her eyes at the revelation.
"Lieutenant Shepard." Anderson stood before her, his posture and smile rankling her as she took another step forward. After pausing for a few moments, he continued. "You have a fine property here."
"Had lots of time to keep it nice looking, Anderson. I take it that crap over at the doc's office was your doing? " Shepard asked, pushing past him and leaning up against the tree. "A permanent transfer, huh? Someone at HQ finally lost their mind, or am I getting a janitorial position from here on out?"
"You haven't been so long off-duty that you've forgotten to salute, Lieutenant." Anderson stated firmly, looking at her expectantly. She shifted her weight and gave a lazy salute.
"I won't even pretend to know your rank, and it's dark outside. Anyway, what, am I back in the good books now? On official duty? Last I checked, when I'm on leave, I'm not held to regular procedure. Especially if it's forced leave. You come visit me for the first time in probably a decade and I'm supposed to salute you on my personal time? You just waltz in here like you own the place? Who spent two months in casts from broken hands and forearms because you fell for a ploy and could't get the job done? Who took the heat on a suicide mission when Alliance dropped the ball? Me." She pushed herself off the tree and moved up to Anderson, prodding him in the chest. "I don't owe you anything. I owe the Alliance my service until my contract's up and neither of you have done well by me lately, so this had better be good."
"And here I thought you were fine with what happened on Torfan." Anderson said with a straight face. "Either way, the Alliance has need of you again. I was hoping you would hear me out, but if you're too busy living in the past, I'll wait. Do you still want to serve?"
"Not my fault that my brain associates you with bad news, Anderson. And hell yeah I want to serve, but the last few missions have been a little too wasteful or suicidal for my liking." She noted, shaking her head. Shepard motioned toward her home and began slowly making her way there, Anderson following suit. "I'd prefer to be out there doing some good, not sitting around at a desk for three weeks or going solo in a nest of batarian drug lords on an infiltration mission for a month. It shouldn't be hard to tell how well I'd do sneaking around, with these biotics. I can't tell if they just want to forget about me or get rid of me. Unless this is different, I'm probably saying no."
"I can't give you all the details yet…" he started, noticing Shepard rolling her eyes at the mention. "But I can tell you that the Alliance and Turians have co-manufactured a new prototype frigate, and I'll be captaining it. I want you as my XO."
Shepard froze in her tracks a few feet from her side door. What? He wants what?
"You want me to serve under you on a ship?" she asked, unsure whether to feel excitement or horror. "I've never served on a ship before, and I've never run anything close to XO duties, sir. I'm not sure you've got the right person for the job. It's…a hell of a lot better than dozing around here indefinitely, or doing another suicide mission…so I won't say no but…why?"
She opened the door and blankly motioned for Anderson to enter, before quickly moving to the nearby living room and clumsily plopping down on her couch. Anderson took the chair across from her and steepled his fingers.
"You may lack experience, but I've seen your test scores. They're still recent enough, and I know you've got a good head on your shoulders. I know we haven't had the best relationship, but this could get you back on track with the Alliance." He said, pausing to contemplate for a moment before continuing. "I have had friends in your position before. Even I spent a number of months on forced leave from a failed mission. It isn't pleasant, Shepard. This is your way back."
"What exactly is happening on the ship? Why do you need me when there are plenty of Alliance officers that would kill for the chance? Hell, my friend Heather's a great engineer, she'd probably beg me to bring her aboard. My focus is on ground missions. Firefights. Some…well, infiltration, but again, I'm no ninja. Why do you need me?" she asked nonchalantly, leaning her body against one of the throw pillows to her side.
"Well, as of right now there are only minor tests and some shakedown runs planned, but I anticipate once we're certain that systems are running, there will be some ground work to do. We need someone with your skills both in space and on the planet." Anderson said, leaning back against the chair and resting his legs on a nearby stool.
"My skills? Anderson…you know my reputation, and you want me in charge of handling all crew-related manners? What, do you want everyone scared into silence? That's what's going to happen. I know what people think of me. I know I could do the job, but I don't think I'd be as effective as a lot of others would be. Not if I'm leading a ground team and they're thinking I'm going to throw them into the fire. That kind of shit leads to mistakes, and leads to death. Like I've been saying, Anderson. Every time you come around, it's bad news. " Shepard ranted, sighing at the mere thought of having people treat her like she's a monster on a daily basis. It's not a pleasant thought…I want this, but…
"They're serving under me, and I handpicked the whole crew. They'll follow my lead, like you will. They'll respect my decisions enough to not disrespect you, and in time will probably see you as a human being like I do." Anderson stated softly, standing up. "It's a little later than I thought. I should get going, so pack whatever you need and be ready for pickup at 0500. One locker's worth."
"We're leaving tomorrow? Wilson wasn't kidding." Shepard muttered, shaking her head. It's going to be a long night…
"Goodnight, Lieutenant Commander." He said, smiling, as he left out the front door. It took a few seconds for what he said to click in. Lieutenant Comma…I'm getting promoted? That's…fucked up. Nice, but…aw hell, I don't have time to think, I need to pack!
She scrambled up off the couch and paused for a moment, wondering where to go first. I have to leave at five o'clock? That means…Shepard bolted out the door first, back to the red oak for a last goodbye while there was still some light in the sky. She wasn't quite sure where she'd be leaving to the next day, or how long she'd be, but she had a feeling that the third time was the charm. Something has to go right, doesn't it?
A/N: So, just a quick intro chapter. A lot of authors start new fics assuming the reader knows nothing. I didn't feel comfortable doing that, but I tried to have a decent bridge intro for you all. This is technically the sequel to my prequel fic 'Flotsam', so there's a lot of character development you might not recognize as easily if you're coming in fresh. I didn't really get into much of anything here, but as this goes on, there will be character cameos, and there will be mentions of past events (I already have with Anderson), and I generally feel clumsy when I blatantly reiterate past stuff when writing, so…I'll do my best to accommodate you all and make this as pleasant an experience as I can, and to keep the past events and knowledge to a minimum(as much as I feel I can while keeping my Shepard in character), so you don't HAVE to read Flotsam to understand everything. But it's there to read if you're ever interested, of course, and it would probably help.
Anywho, again, just a brief intro chapter. Not much happening, but I felt this needed something along these lines. To establish how she's been doing, how she gets on the Normandy, etc.
And I hope to update fairly regularly, but my course load in school is heavy this year. Lots of readings and assignments, very few lulls. Still, I'll try to get a chapter out when I can, hopefully every 7-9 days.
So thank you for reading, and as usual, any feedback is greatly appreciated. You're wonderful people :D
Have a good weekend!