"Why are you guys doing this again?" asked Steve Cortez, the Normandy's shuttle pilot.
"'Cause it's more interesting than guarding the door?" Private Bethany Westmoreland replied with a slight grin. "Plus, Commander's orders and all."
"But, why? It's not like it's a real dog," Vega chimed in from his corner of the bay.
Bethany looked down at KEI-9, who tilted its head at her. She could have swore the blue lights on its "face" blinked at her. The private shrugged. "I dunno. Commander seems to think he's moping."
Cortez chuckled. "He? Why not a she?"
She shrugged again. "Seems like he's a he. Reminds me of a dog my family had growing up."
"If you say so," Vega said. "Have fun with Fido. Make sure he doesn't go sticking his nose in any sockets he shouldn't."
Bethany started walking towards the lift and heard KEI-9's paws tapping on the floor behind her as they entered. It was more than a little odd Shepard was worried about her dog when the galaxy was crumbling around them. Though it was the little things which kept a person going during tough times, maybe it was just one thing Shepard could control? Although Bethany wasn't entirely sure how the commander could read the dog's alleged mood. She supposed since EDI had moods it was entirely possible the canine mech could, though she doubted it was on the same operating level as an unshackled AI. Regardless, all the enlisted crew now had a rotating schedule to take KEI-9 out for walks when the Normandy was docked at the Citadel. Despite the seemingly ridiculous nature of the chore, Bethany was grateful for the break from guarding the most boring door in the universe.
The doors of the lift slid open and Bethany stepped onto the deck of the always buzzing CIC. The room was dark, most of the light generated from the glowing blue galaxy map, and had a heavy feel to it. There was chatter, but it was hushed and came in quick bursts. There were other places on the ship where one could escape to and forget about the war, this was certainly not one of them.
"Bethany! I almost didn't recognize you without your door," said Communications Specialist Samantha Traynor.
Bethany felt her cheeks grow warm and she looked at her boots as the specialist approached. "Uh. Hi! I mean, hello, Specialist Traynor."
"How many times must I ask for you to call me Samantha already?"
"It's , uh, habit," Bethany stammered.
"If you say so. Hello, KEI-9," Samantha said, kneeling down to pet the dog.
Bethany felt very light headed. She remembered my name! Her shameless crush on Traynor had begun, and only gotten worse, since the day they'd met during the Normandy's retrofits. Bethany had ever so tactfully spilled coffee on the specialist's boots when they'd nearly collided in the hall. Bethany had never been so mortified in her life. Samantha had had laughed it off and told some tale about spilling tea on an Admiral. It had made Bethany feel a bit better, hearing how awkward Samantha was, and only further fanned the flames of her infatuation.
"Bethany?" Traynor asked.
"Oh, sorry. What did you say?"
Samantha smiled. "Be sure to take him down by the lake on the Presidium, I hear he likes it there."
"You think he's a he?"
"Of course! Reminds me of a pup we had growing up in England."
Bethany fought back a grin. "Do you want anything while I'm on the Citadel?"
"Chocolates, flowers, a dashing military type to sweep me off my feet. The usual."
Bethany's heart sank a little. Sounded like while she pined for Traynor, Traynor was a bit taken with Shepard - though it seemed like that was half the galaxy felt the same way. And who could blame them? First human Spectre, Hero of the Citadel, defeated the Collectors on a suicide mission, what wasn't there to like about the commander?
"Oh. Uh. Okay. I-I should go."
Samantha grinned. "I'll see you later then, Bethany. Bye, KEI-9!"
Feeling more than slightly dejected, Bethany made her way to towards the airlock and the massive space station that was the center of the galactic power.
#
For a robot dog, KEI-9 sure spent a lot of time sniffing at trees. Bethany thought only real canines were concerned with marking territory.
"Come on, "she said, patting her leg. "We're not even halfway around the lake!"
KEI-9 looked up from the tree at her, than back at the tree, than her, and then went back to sniffing. Stupid mech was worse than an organic pet. At least those could be lured with food. What was she supposed to do with KEI-9? Bribe it with a power coupling? She sat down on a large rock off the side of the path, watching the dog circle the tree for what must have been the tenth time. Bethany wondered if there was something she could bring back for Samantha. She knew the specialist still needed a new toothbrush, but it would be a weird gift considering they didn't know each other all that well. And she knew Samantha had ridiculously expensive tastes in oral hygiene. No way Bethany could blow 6000 credits on her salary.
"There! There it is!" she heard a gruff voice say. Two batarians were coming up the path; one had brownish-red skin, the other a light green with dark, almost black, stripes. They both wore heavy, battle scarred armor, likely mercenaries. The green one was pointing at KEI-9. They started towards the dog.
"You sure it's the right one?" the second alien said.
"Yes. Meets the description. The data should be encoded on it somewhere."
"Hey! Leave my dog alone!" Bethany said, hopping off the rock and coming to stand toe to toe with the alien. He was a lot taller than her and wider.
The green batarian shoved her, hard, forcing her to step back lest she fall over. "Ha! It's Shepard's dog! Don't lie!"
"If you know what's good for you, you'll leave me and the dog alone. You don't want a Spectre hunting your ass now do you, four eyes?"
"Puny human," the batarian said. He bent down and picked up the small mech, who began wriggling violently. "Maybe you'll be the one being hunted when you explain to Shepard you destroyed her pet!"
Bethany's temper flared and she punched the green batarian square in the nose. He grunted and covered his now bleeding nostrils with his free hand. The second batarian tried to grab her, but she stepped out of range. She saw a C-sec guard starting his approach. "Drop the dog!" she shouted. "He's not yours!"
The brown batarian came at her again and she managed to trip him, sending him sprawling into the lake. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the C-sec guard was running now. Then Bethany's vision went white as her jaw exploded in pain and she fell. Looking up, she saw the batarian with the dog looming over her. He raised his foot and then stopped as the mech in his arms let loose an electrical shock that cause him to convulse and fall over. The dog clambered out from under him and took off across the grass, away from the fray.
Shepard wasn't going to like this.
#
Bethany sat in the C-sec office, an ice pack pressed to her bruised cheek, another on her split knuckles. She'd always heard batarians had hard skulls, now she'd gone and learned the hard way. With medi-gel in short supply, the medics had decided on less sophisticated treatment for her wounds. Despite her luck in escaping the fight with minor injuries, Bethany felt sick to her stomach. Part of it was anger; anger at the batarians for being assholes. The other part was shame; shame at herself for not being able to do something as simple as walking a robot dog. She was Alliance military, while not the turian one, she'd under gone some of the best training in the galaxy. And what good had it done her?
The officers had arrested the batarian she'd dumped in the lake, they were questioning him now. Supposedly an all points bulletin was out for his green-skinned friend, and the missing dog, though she doubted the latter was a priority for them. Bethany closed her eyes and slouched in chair, trying not to think about how sore she was, or worry about what she'd say to Shepard.
"Bethany! Are you all right?"
Opening one eye, she saw Samantha standing before her, a look of genuine concern on her gorgeous face. Bethany sat up, dropping an ice pack in her lap. "I'm fine! Really! Just a scratch."
Samantha leaned in-she smelled ridiculously good-and peered at Bethany's swollen cheek.
"Quite the shiner. I imagine Dr. Chakwas can give you something to help it heal quicker when we get back to the Normandy."
"Does Shepard know what happened?"
"No, no. She's been in a meeting with the Council all morning."
Bethany stood. "Okay, there's still time then I guess."
"Time for what, Bethany? Do you have a concussion?"
"I need to go find KEI-9."
"Seriously? I don't know if that's the best idea in your current state."
"I think he's in danger. The batarians seemed to think he had some sort of data stored on him?"
"That's odd. He's just a mech, there is some storage capacity, mostly extra memory slots for software upgrades, but it's not like he can do much else."
"Well, I still need to find him. I was responsible for him. It's my job to get him back to the Normandy safe."
"Or you could, I don't know, let C-sec handle it?"
She stepped around Traynor, heading for the door."They don't care, they're worried about murders and theft-not a lost robot dog. I'll head back to the ship as soon as I find him. Promise."
"And just how do you plan to do that? The Citadel isn't exactly small, Bethany."
"Um. I'll figure something out."
"Or you could simply use the homing device implanted on the dog to find him?"
Bethany turned around and saw Traynor with a smirk on her face. "Can I have the tracking device, please?"
"Mm. No. I think it's a bit technical for a mere private to use. You need someone with some expertise in technology and engineering I think."
Bethany quirked an eyebrow. "Did you have someone in mind?"
"I think I know the perfect person for the job."
#
They took a cab to the lower part of the Presidium. Bethany had never even thought about the underbelly of the Citadel, much less the various working parts that kept the lake clean and the power flowing. They'd been dropped off and forced to proceed on foot, Samantha monitoring the tracking device. The sick feeling Bethany had been experiencing earlier was gone, replaced by nervous butterflies at being with Samantha. Not only did she want to get the dog back to redeem her own honor, there was the added fact she now wanted to make sure she left a good impression with the gorgeous specialist.
"All right, looks like he's about…500 meters west of here. Poor little fellow must be scared if he's managed to make it this far down," Samantha said, examining the screen on her omni-tool.
"Yeah. He didn't seem happy. I was impressed at the fight he put up though. Didn't expect that," Bethany replied.
"Sometimes people, or things, can surprise you."
"This is true."
"You surprised me."
"Oh?"
"I figured you were some delinquent who was being punished. I mean, really? Who gets stuck with guarding a door in the middle of a war?"
"Heh. Well, Shepard is running the whole war from behind that door. It's kind of important."
"An excellent point. Either way, I initially misjudged you. You actually have many fine qualities, I think."
Bethany's jaw dropped and she almost walked into a pillar, much to Samantha's amusement based on the soft chuckle. "I, um, thanks."
The omni-tool flashed and Samantha's smiled faded. "Looks like he might be getting ready to move. Come on!"
They crossed through what seemed like an endless maze of metal maintenance corridors and ladders. It all looked the same to Bethany, Samantha was in the lead, following a blip on the glowing orange screen. They walked under some scaffolding and Bethany finally saw a faint blue light emanating from behind a grate in the wall.
"Let me go get him," Bethany said. "Don't want to startle or crowd him."
"All right. I'll just wait here in the creepy shadows, all alone, hoping no killers are lurking in the dark," Samantha said.
Bethany grinned and stepped through the metal cage of the scaffolding, crossing the large open bay between her and the grate. She knelt down in front of the vent and pulled it off the wall. KEI-9 lifted its head from where it was resting on the metal floor.
"Hey, boy. You okay?"
The dog tilted its head to one side and then rested it back on its paws.
"Aw! I'm sorry, I really am. It was just supposed to be a nice walk. I'll make it up to you, promise!"
The dog lifted its head and then stood before walking out of the vent. It cocked its head at her again. "What? What is it?"
Bethany was yanked off her feet by her collar. "There you are," growled the green skin batarian. His nose was crusted black blood and his breath was rank. "Knew you couldn't leave your little friend here! Where's the data?"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
The batarian shook her violently. "The data about Shepard's plans! The ones that proved Shepard intentionally destroyed our relay!"
"Shepard was cleared of the charges!"
"Not by us!" he snarled.
Bethany punched the batarian in the nose, again, and then struck him in the soft part of his throat with the edge of her hand. He roared in pain and threw her into the wall. Bethany's vision swam and she felt fingers pressing, squeezing against her neck, cutting off her air. Then there was a crackling sound, the smell of hair burning, and a loud thud as the hulking alien fell to the ground. Through her clearing vision, she saw Samantha standing over her, omni-tool extended.
"So, I guess that's what happens when you turn that setting up all the way. Interesting," Samantha said.
Bethany coughed, rubbing her throat.
"Oh!" Samantha said, kneeling beside her. "You all right?"
"Not really."
Samantha brushed the some hair out Bethany's face and stoked her cheek. "I suppose it was a silly question. This time we're taking you right to Dr. Chakwas."
#
Shepard looked...peeved. At least, at least that's what Bethany thought. The Commander stood next to the med bay bed, arms crossed over her chest. Shepard was tall and had long chestnut hair pulled out of her face in a ponytail. She had dark brown eyes that were stoic-to say the least –and it didn't look like the commander smiled much. Samantha was lurking behind Shepard, watching the commander out of the corner of her eye. Bethany felt more than slightly jealous to see the commander getting all the attention say the least. Liara T'Soni, the Shadow Broker, stood next to the specialist, watching with a furrowed brow.
"Let me get this straight," Shepard said, rubbing her jaw. "The batarians thought I had some secret plans locked away...in my dog?"
"Yes, ma'am."
Shepard tuned to look at Liara. "Have your agents heard anything about this bizarre conspiracy?"
The asari shook her head. "This is new, Commander. I'll put out some queries."
"And," Shepard continued, her dark eyes seemed to bore through Bethany's skull. "And instead of coming to me, you, after being assaulted by said batarians, decided to go off on some kind of retrieval mission?"
"It was my idea, Commander," Samantha chimed in, much to Bethany's surprise. "I was the one who suggested going after the mech. I'll accept whatever reprimand you offer, ma'am."
"Great, just great. I've got the Reapers tearing up the galaxy and the crew tearing up the damn Citadel."
Liara stepped forward then, placing a hand on Shepard's shoulder. "They meant well. And you are quite fond of that dog. It's...unsettling."
Shepard's features seemed soften then, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "I'd hate to have the Shadow Broker unsettled."
Bethany saw Samantha look away, her cheeks red, as Shepard and Liara held each other's gaze just a bit longer than was proper between friends. Chakwas cleared her throat. "I need to finish up with the Private here, if you two don't mind."
Shepard's smile faded as quickly as it had come. "Letters in both your files and you're both helping Cortez with requisitions for the next two weeks. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am," Bethany and Samantha said in unison.
Liara slipped her hand into Shepard's and they left the medical bay. Samantha lingered behind, looking at the floor.
"Can I have a moment with the specialist, Doctor?"
"Of course. I'll be back shortly."
"I'm sorry," said Bethany quietly.
Samantha arched an eyebrow. "Sorry? Sorry for what? It was my idea to help you..."
"About the commander and, well, I'm sure she's missing out. I mean, Dr. T'Soni is lovely, but she doesn't compare to you."
Samantha tilted her head to the side and moved to sit beside Bethany on the bed. "What are you talking about?"
"You were all red, standing in the back there. I-I thought, I thought you were, you know, um, interested in her."
The specialist had moved closer, their thighs were touching. "Why would you ever think that?"
"Weren't you the one talking about strong, dashing military types earlier?"
Samantha smiled, leaned in, and kissed Bethany on the cheek. "They're overrated. I'll see you later, Private Westmoreland."
Bethany sat on the bed, completely slack jawed, as Samantha exited the medical bay—looking more than a little smug.
###
