This was inspired by Malukah's brilliant "Reignite".
Sergeant Kennedy caught the light of an evac shuttle's thrusters in her peripheral vision; shouldn't get distracted, stay focused she ran through her mind. Not that it really mattered any more; the Asari colony was almost cleared, her team had held the LZ and this was where she'd die.
Almost instinctively she swung the AA cannon in the direction of the tell-tale moans of husks, letting off an arc of quick-burst fire across the LZ perimeter. Garz is out there somewhere. Again it didn't matter; Kennedy had heard the Krogan's last stand over the comm-link as he'd held the Northern perimeter on his own after the commandos had been obliterated by that Harvester. Despite herself she snickered, remembering how her translator had been unable to cope with the overload of Krogan swearing and trying in vain to fill in the gaps. Pity I'll never get to tell him he told a cannibal to extricate a pyjak from its fundament. And now he was underneath that fucking Harvester, brought it down right on top of himself as it tried to hit the shuttles. And he was still swearing at the Reapers then.
Another burst of AA ripped through cannibals trying force their way in from the eastern perimeter, the recoil of the hastily built emplacement making Kennedy wince. Sodding medigel wasn't going to hold forever, Merot had warned her. As usual the Salarian had been clucking over everyone, scolding Garz about not taking cover, frowning at the burn marks around Parthia's amp, berating her for thinking she was bullet-proof. And he was the one who made himself a target and held back three banshees with nothing but a Carnifex and an omni-tool. He'd taken two down before the third had got him; she'd watched through the sights of the cannon as it skewered him with those claws and tossed the STG operative aside like a rag. Kennedy has unloaded an entire magazine into the Reaper freak for that, screaming her hate as the explosive rounds had torn it apart.
A warning screech from her shields and her sudden stinging sensation in her shoulder brought Kennedy back to the present. Three Marauders had almost made into the LZ, damn stims are making me sloppy. Once more the cannon whirred into life, rounds tearing up the once-beautiful tiling of the plaza that had become the evac point, two of the Marauders getting torn to shreds and the third finding cover just in time, sending more rounds ricocheting off the cannon's armour plating. Come here bastard, Kennedy hissed to herself, this is how N7s do it, letting off another burst far behind the Marauder, trying to draw it from cover. As it shifted she loosed another burst that turned it to scraps of metal and dessicated flesh.
Must remember to tell Parthia that's one to me, a tally that wouldn't be kept anymore; Parthia had almost fried her brain keeping a barrier up during the Harvester attack so that the shuttles could get loaded. Kennedy had watched through her HUD as the cabalist's vitals had swung violently in all directions as she'd struggled to keep the biotic shield up, Garz's suicide attack being the only thing that had kept her from a haemorrhage. Not that it was certain she'd survive, Parthia had collapsed from exhaustion, but Kennedy had ordered her lifted on to a shuttle and away in the last wave. Somebody had to get out of this alive.
Suddenly the cannon's warning klaxons started blaring. Kennedy swore violently as the cannon's haptic display showed the cooling vents were all but melted by excessive heat. Definitely getting sloppy on stims, Ellison would have my ass for that. Looking back the last shuttles were almost ready to be off, back to the good old Avenger then. She eased herself out of the cannon's harness, holding back the gasp of pain from her side and the fresh bloom of pain in her shoulder, that Marauder must have been a better shot than I thought. The pain in her shoulder sent a wave of sickness through her body, and Kennedy's grip on the harness and hit the ground on her back, the jolt causing another crippling shot of pain. Can't do it, can't do it, fuck. The wounds, her team gone, Reapers never fucking stopping. I can't do it anymore.
And her comm came to life,"Sergeant? Sergeant Kennedy, husks are crossing the LZ!" One of the shuttle pilots, Momoi? "Sergeant, we still have civilians to get boarded! Sergeant please! Help the civilians!" The pilot was practically screaming now.
Kennedy you lazy jackass did I tell you to take a nap? Get your goddamn backside in gear and follow your goddamn orders!
The last voice I hear and it would be bloody Ellison. Sucking in a deep breath Kennedy rolled over, flailing for her Avenger on its mag-locks. Still up on the cannon, typical. Another deep breath and Kennedy made it to her knees. Another and she staggered to her feet, almost falling face-first. Blinking rapidly she saw the shuttle, and husks closing fast. Ah shit. Half-running, half-limping, she almost outpaced the husks.
Almost.
The pilot was outside, Avenger in hand, covering the last Asari civilians into the shuttle; but a few were still outside, their eyes wild with terror and petrified to the spot as the husks closed in. The pilot was giving it his best but Husks were still charging forward and then one was on him; Kennedy saw a fine spray of blood across the pilot's chest and screams from the cowering Aasri. And then Kennedy made it, barrelling into the husk clawing at the pilot, ignoring a new wave of nausea she drove her fist into the husk's face again and again. Stumbling up, she grabbed the pilot's dropped Avenger just in time to let off a burst into another approaching husk, smashing its butt into the head of another. The combination of adrenaline and training kicked in; dodge one incoming husk, burst-fire into its torso, scope up and never waste a shot. The red flash as the thermal clip reached capacity, fortunately she still had spares on her, new clip in and keep the bastards at length.
And then it was clear. And the pain came back. Almost collapsing in the shuttle, Kennedy pushed her way to the med station, grabbing a stim syringe and medi-gel pack. Hastily injecting the herself with the stims, she made it back to the pilot, propped against the shuttle's hatch. The wound from the husk wasn't deep and the medi-gel worked fast. Kennedy hooked the pilot under the pilot's arms and lifted him; he looked confused but still conscious.
"Can you get this thing in the air?" She asked, nodding at the shuttle. The pilot blinked rapidly, "uh, yeah...", then more firmly, "yeah I can."
Kennedy smiled briefly, "then get it in the air and get on your way," glancing at the Asari still outside "you too."
The pilot frowned as he helped the last evacuees into the shuttle, "what about you?"
Kennedy shook her head, "somebody's got to stop the LZ being swarmed," she hefted the pilot into the shuttle, "now get going idiot."
The stims were doing their work as Kennedy took cover, keeping the husks at bay whilst the shuttle began take-off. At least Garz and Merot will have some company. The cannibals were back again, the hail fire almost pinning her down.
Wincing as the pain from her shoulder fought through the haze of stims, Kennedy thought of her team, all those missions, beginning to think they might beat the odds together.
And it comes down to this. Definitely getting that on my headstone.
The cannibals closed in, now joined by another Marauder and more husks. Jamming in another thermal clip, Kennedy brought down another half-dozen husks before another lucky shot cracked through her arm. Losing all feeling, she dropped the Avenger and huddled behind the wall, bastard Fate could've at least let me hold a rifle to the end. Closing her eyes, Kennedy thought back to her family, back on Elysium, all those carefree days before the war when there was a future to hope for.
She heard a regular thump of feet towards her across the tiles, and then they stopped. Opening her eyes, she saw a pair of metallic talons in front of her. Gaze travelling upwards, she met the multiple cold white lights that used be a Turian's eyes. And slowly the rifle came up.
"Screw you turkey," she mumbled, "screw you." Nope, that's the one for the headstone. And still the rifle came up.
And then there was light.
And the Marauder's head exploded.
Kennedy's comm sparked into life, "that was my kill Vakarian!" A human voice, a pissed off too.
"Should have been quicker on the trigger then Shepard."
"Shut it and move up! Kaidan, Cannibals three o'clock!"
"On it Shepard."
Shepard. Through the pain and stims, Kennedy latched on to the last word like a talisman. I must be dead, thinking Shepard's here.
She felt the waft from a shuttle's thrusters close by the sounds of rifle fire. Trying to focus, she saw a Turian and a man fanning out, rifles blazing, and shortly followed by a woman in black armour with a red stripe over white.
Didn't know being dead would be this surreal.
The woman hailed over a comm, "Cortez, do a quick sweep to clear the area and we'll be ready for pick-up."
"Roger that ma'am," came the response. The woman then shifted her attention to Kennedy, eyes alight with a fire that made Kennedy feel that distinctly not-dead.
"What is it with marines and death wishes?" The woman muttered as she knelt by Kennedy, quickly inspecting her wounds and making hasty patches of medi-gel. Looking into Kennedy's eyes, the fiery determination still burning bright, "think you can make it to a shuttle?"
"Commander Shepard?"
The woman grimaced, "no I'm the bloody tooth fairy but right now I'm all you've got to get off this planet. Now, can you walk?" Kennedy shook her head, "alright then, sorry if this hurts." With a grunt and another spasm of pain, Kennedy found herself hoisted over the other woman's shoulder.
"Garrus, Kaidan, we have our lost soul and now we're going." Kennedy was unceremoniously dumped on the shuttle floor and felt the subtle lurch as it lifted into the air. As the stims started to wear off, Kennedy glanced through a haze at the woman now talking with the man and the Turian. Catching her eye, the woman gave a quick smirk.
"Just happened to be in the area. Looks like it wasn't your day to die."
A/N- As you can probably tell this is my first fanfic that I tried to speed write so it's not the greatest quality but all reviews, especially those with constructive criticism are very much appreciated.