Chapter 2 : For This?
.
1
.
She had trained since she could hold a weapon, the best shape of any marine, faster, stronger, more dedicated, a better shot with practically any weapon, yet here she was hiding behind a rock with only her father's old pistol to protect her. She was twenty-five-years-old, a glutton for punishment due to her bloodline. She often thought of joining that upstart security group that popped up after her sixteenth birthday, but no, she had refused, now she was stuck at a backwater posting with an overpowered pistol and her light phoenix armor, fighting off invading Geth forces. When she was beginning to wonder if she would survive her thoughts went back to her father, how he left to protect them, how she was to protect her family, she grew a new determination popping out and firing on the geth. One shot, one kill, and when all of the offenders were gone, Chief Williams ran.
.
2
.
Ashley Williams, Gunnery-Chief in the Earth's Systems Alliance, twenty five years old, ran. Followed by several Geth drones she noticed a large rock in the distance. When she got close enough she dove for the rock, twisting and firing on the machines as she flew behind the rock, hitting three of them.
It was a sunny day, not too hot or too cold, the fields were quiet, and everything was tranquil. How were the 212th division to know that a day that started with their commander showing his prejudices would end with all but one of them dead, and a machine army invading?
"At least I wouldn't have been shot at if I'd fucked Donkey" she thought as she took a deep breath behind the rock.
"Mind on the here and now. Focus on the enemy, one shot, one kill." came to her mind immediately after her thought.
Ashley could have sworn she heard a woman's voice in her head. A lesson from long ago, stern yet gentile. It had been a stressful day and the advice was sound, no use second guessing it. Another lesson from the distant past to keep in mind.
As she was about to pop back up and continue the fight the final two machines fell to sniper fire.
.
3
.
She looked behind her to see two men, one wearing N7 armor. When they got close Ashley saluted, looking at the taller man.
"Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the two-twelve. You the one in charge here sir?" she asked the N7 operative, not willing to ease up.
"I'm Commander Shepard of the Normandy. What's the situation Williams?" the commander asked quickly.
"We were patrolling the perimeter when the attack hit. We tried to double back to the beacon but walked into an ambush. We tried to get off a distress call but they cut off our communications, I've been fighting for my life ever since." Ashley explained before faltering a bit. "I-I think I'm the only one left, the others..." she said before being cut off by the commander.
"This isn't your fault Williams. You couldn't have done anything to save them." the commander told her, earning a nod in resignation.
It was at this time that the other, shorter man spoke up. "The Geth haven't been seen outside the vail in over two-hundred years, why now?"
"They must be here for the beacon, the dig site is right over that ridge, the beacon should still be there. " Ashley responded, looking and pointing the direction they needed to go.
"We could use your help Williams, care to join us?" the commander offered with a smile.
For the first time in hours Ashley Williams smiled and pulled out her father's pistol. "Absolutely sir, time for some payback."
.
4
.
After fighting through Geth and finding the Beacon had been moved to the spaceport Ashley, Shepard, and the man who would become known as Kaiden continued through the colony. After fighting through several larger geth the group came across a body, a dead body, of a turian at the loading bay.
"Nihlus..."
"You knew him Commander?" Ashley asked, walking up beside him with a curiously tilted head.
"He was the Spectre that was assigned to the Normandy." the Commander answered evenly.
A small sound jarred the group out of their reverie as they all turned pointing their respective weapons at a grouping of large crates.
"Wait! Don't shoot!...I'm one of you! I'm human!" the man yelled frantically as he kept his hands high.
"You could have been shot sneaking up on us like that. What are you doing behind the crates?" Commander shepard asked in a hard, untrusting tone.
"My names Powell. I saw what happened to that Turian. The other one shot him." the man told them, not relaxing seeing three guns in his face. Anyone could see the stress lines on Powell's face while looking at the soldiers; like looking at his own death at any moment.
"What other one..." Shepard asked letting the sentence hang with slightly squinted eyes.
"There were two turians here, your friend called the other one Saren." Powell told the group, finally dropping his hands.
"Shit..." Ashley said as she let her pistol drop slightly, now pointed closer to the man's groin.
"You know of him?" Shepard asked as he turned to her curiously, letting Kaiden watch Powell.
"Before my father left he was teaching me history. He taught me about some of the spectres. Turns out, Saren was one of them. Reckless, xenophobic, and dangerous, if he can't use you or are in his way, you die. Collateral damage doesn't mean anything as long as he gets his target or has someone to blame for a failure. He's also one of the best, a skilled special forces commando. If he shot Nihlus, we're in trouble Commander." Ashley told him, never taking her eyes off Powell.
"Sounds about right, your friend seemed to relax, let his guard down... and Saren killed him. Shot him right in the back. I'm just lucky he didn't see me behind the crates. I hope the other platform was destroyed, that beacon has been nothing but trouble." Powell said relieved just in time to see a white armored fist catch him in the mouth.
"And that's for taking our equipment. You may have cost a lot of good men and women their lives, that's on your head." Ashley told the man before continuing on to the spaceport.
"You're lucky she didn't just shoot you. A little advice, don't smuggle military equipment then hope to be forgiven by the marines who lost their squad because they ran out of ammunition." Shepard told the man on the ground.
.
5
.
The trip to the other end of the spaceport was quiet. The other two men knew Ashley was angry and mourning her squad, they also knew that no matter how minor the role he played, Powell played a part in them not being able to defend themselves as well as they could have. After making their way across the ramps the group disabled several bombs designed to destroy the colony before making contact with the intact prothean beacon.
As Shepard walked up to the beacon and inspected it a slight glow began running through it. Shepard stepped away to call the Normandy but Ashley was engrossed in the beacon, for some reason as if it was calling to her. Without notice the beacon activated dragging Ashley into it.
Alarmed by Kaiden's call Shepard had to push Kaiden out of the way and ran in to grab Ashley attempting to throw her out of the way of the beacon. Before Shepard could get Ashley out of the way the beacon seared a vision into the brains of both individuals...then exploded.
.
6
.
The Normandy was quiet, people were either asleep or worried, but as for Gunnery Chief Williams and Commander Shepard things were different for their sleep was not filled with silence or happy dreams, but chaos, confusion, and dread. The medical bay was clear white, as sterile as any hospital, the physician looking over the duo was aged but alert, and the marine standing guard was alert and at attention.
Then, with a sudden groan, Shepard opened his eyes and brought his hand to his head. Someone was yelling for someone else before a yelp could be heard, followed by a soft thump. As Shepard opened his eyes he saw Captain Anderson standing in the doorway staring at Kaiden who was rubbing the back of his head while retreating out the door. His eyes then turned to Ashley who had a blank, yet slightly annoyed look on her face, then to a book on the floor that read.
"Hamlet".
It didn't take Shepard long to figure out what had happened and he made a mental note not the get on Ashley Williams' bad side until a tired sigh was heard and Captain Anderson walked up to the front of both beds. "How are you two feeling?" he asked as he clasped his hands behind his back.
"Like the morning after shore leave." Shepard answered tiredly.
It took Ashley a moment to answer but when she did the answer was surprising to the Commander. "Tired Sir."
"That's it? Tired? No headache, pounding, anything that could be considered even remotely uncomfortable?" Shepard asked with a curious sound.
"No sir, just tired." she replied.
Anderson cleared his throat bringing the two back to the task at hand. "I won't lie to you, the council isn't going to like this. Nihlus is dead, the beacon destroyed, the council is going to want answers. It doesn't help that both Saren and Chief Williams are involved, given her father's dealings with the council before he disappeared."
"Wait, you're father had dealings with the council? Was he an ambassador?" Shepard asked Ashley with a hint of surprise coloring his voice.
Ashley sighed "I don't know much about his past honestly. Dad was always secretive about it. I know he was a soldier but not who for, a historian but not where he learned, that he didn't like Turians...well, at least I understood that. He met my mom when he was on Sanxi helping grandpa fight the Turian invasion. Unfortunately, I don't know anything into his dealings with the council. Dad started looking tired, we moved to the outskirts of Alliance Space so we could be at peace. " she explained to the men while resting her hands on her stomach.
"Well, hopefully that works in our favor then. His shielding you from political backlash may keep this investigation on course. I'm also concerned about the beacon, did you see anything before it pulled you in?" Anderson asked them.
"Death, destruction, I don't know what I saw. A feeling of suffering." Commander Shepard told his commanding officer.
"A warning. Sent by the Protheans, a warning against whatever destroyed them." Ashley told the group causing them to look at her curiously. "The Protheans communicated through direct thought, why would they program a beacon that showed them being slaughtered if not as a warning to others who found it?" she explained.
"Hmmm...a good thought Chief. If the only thing in that beacon was historical data then the backlash may not be as fierce as I first feared. That leaves us with Saren, if he's involved we have a lot more problems than before. Saren is a Spectre and one of the best, and he hates humans." Anderson told them before Shepard jumped in.
"You can be assured that the council won't take highly to one of their own being accused of treason. We need a plan if we are going to be able to get the evidence we need." he told them.
"I'll deal with that, if you two are fit for duty Chief Williams has been assigned to the Normandy as it's new gunnery officer. Her skills should fit well with the ground team." Anderson told them before dismissing them and walking back to the bridge.
"This mission just got a lot more complicated." Commander Shepard commented as he began to get up.
"Yea..." Ashley said, yet to move from her spot.
"Is everything alright Chief?" Shepard asked her as he got to his feet.
"Yes Sir, the mentioning of my father just brought back a lot of memories." she told him more quietly, closing her eyes as if the memory was vivid.
To Ashley, though it had been a decade since he last hugged her goodbye on that hill on Sirona, the memory, the smell, the sense that he didn't want to leave, it felt as though it happened yesterday. Her mother knew everything, but wouldn't speak on the subject, classified she said softly with a sad look. Something happened, something that took him away. One day, when she saw him again, she'd find out why, why he left them the way he did.
"Anderson said he disappeared, I can't imagine what that was like." Shepard told her sympathetically as he stretched.
"It matters not how straight the gate, How charged with punishment the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." She told him as she sat up on the bed. "One of the last things he told me before he left. Invictus, by William Earnest Henley, he was always into those poems." She told Shepard before getting somber. Ashley had yet to will herself to get up, not quite ready to relinquish her coverings to the cold of the ship.
"Seems he left you with some protection. That pistol isn't anything I've ever seen in an Alliance barracks, or anywhere for that matter." Shepard said after slipping on his boots.
"The pistol is one of a kind, dad called it a TBP, 'temporal blaster pistol', I was told to never use it again by my instructors, too dangerous for an amateur. Funny, I had been shooting guns longer than most of them had been in service." Ashley sighed as she threw the covers back and sat up, leaning forward with her hands on the side of the bed.
"Dad left with the best of intentions, but it doesn't mean I don't wonder why it had to be that way. Why would anyone come after him?" She explained while hopping to her feet.
"From what Anderson said it seemed like he was a man who had a lot of connections, perhaps one of them didn't like something he had done." Shepard told her supportively as he walked over to her.
"Maybe, only mom knows and she isn't talking. He always believed in unity, an end to conflict. I guess we'll just wonder until he comes back." she answered back.
"Any idea as to why you didn't get a headache after interacting with the beacon?" Shepard asked, changing the direction of the conversation.
"I'm not sure sir. Dad always said my brain was wired differently before he messed up my hair. I may not be a girl who worries about what her hair looks like all day, but nobody likes the tangles." Ashley replied as the two talked causing her commander to smile a bit.
"And the tattoo?" Shepard asked gesturing to the top of her left hand.
"The last gift he gave me. The Minotaur, I think it was with me back on Eden Prime, no other way I survived that. Alliance command said I had to wear a glove while on duty, not Alliance regulation...assholes." she told Shepard with a slightly bitter tone.
"Well then, I guess it's good you had someone watching over you." he told her with a hand on her shoulder. "I know I feel better with you watching mine" he smiled before heading out of the med bay, he didn't hear her final whisper, something her father had told her long ago.
"In our darkest hour, until all are one."