Chapter 3 - The Aftermath

"You killed him, Chase... All he wanted was your respect... All he wanted was to follow your orders. You let him down."

Chase looked about, trying to find the source of the voice. It was calm, feminine, and very, very familiar. The commander seemed to be enveloped in a thick grey fog; an endless sea of emptiness as far as the eye could see. The commander couldn't see anything around him, and his body was unresponsive to his mental commands.

"Why do you act this way? Why can't you control your emotions? I raised you better than that, didn't I?" The woman's voice continued.

That last line betrayed the speaker, and the commander's eyes widened with realization. He tried again to do more than look around, but he still couldn't move his limbs.

"Mom? Where are you? Where am I?" Chase feebly tried to yell, but his mouth couldn't form the words.

"That isn't important," the voice replied as if hearing him. "You spend a lot of time thinking about the past, Chase. Thinking about your military history, thinking about what you've done, and who you've hurt. But, you don't think about the present. You don't think about what's going on around you. Look!"

A bright light appeared suddenly, illuminating a small patch of ground a few feet in front of the commander. A corpse was laying there in tattered armour, charred and burned badly. Chase struggled for a moment, trying to crouch down to get a better view. He still couldn't move, so he squinted, trying desperately to identify its features. The corpse's sandy blonde hair was unmistakeable, however.

"Elliott?!" The commander recoiled in horror at his revelation. The engineer's face was blackened, his eyes sunken in and colourless.

"This is your work!" The voice taunted him. "Now, you will suffer the consequences."

Suddenly, Chase felt an excruciating pain erupt from his heart. He fell to the ground, gritting his teeth as he writhed in agony.

"Nooo!" The commander screamed, forcing his eyes open and toppling onto the floor from his bed. Once again, he was in his quarters, alone.

As he sat in silence for a moment, only the inhaling and exhaling of his breathing served to calm Chase. "That felt so real," he thought to himself, catching his breath. Again, he was covered in sweat.

Just a few hours prior, he and Amir had rushed Elliott to the med-bay as soon as they got back onto the Reliant. Doctor Soto had assured them that Elliott was in good hands. Chase knew the doctor was very skilled and knowledgeable, so Chase tried to tell himself that everything would work out. No one besides the doctor was allowed in the examination room, so the commander was forced to leave.

Chase winced when he tried to stand up, and he remembered that he still needed to have his wound treated. The medi-gel had done it's job, but proper medical treatment was required. Chase yawned, both emotionally and physically exhausted. He had slept for a few hours, but due to the recurring nightmares, he felt like he hadn't slept in days.

The door suddenly buzzed without notice, and the commander took a seat on his bed.

"Chase, it's me." Sophie's voice was unmistakeable.

"Come in, Lieutenant," the commander said without thinking. He was still trying to collect his thoughts.

The door slid open, and Sophie stepped forth, wearing a casual uniform with her Cerberus jacket over it. Her hair was up in a ponytail, a few locks of brown hair hanging down for bangs.

"Don't Lieutenant me, Chase. I deserve better than that!" She smiled wryly. "Lights!"

Harsh lighting bathed the room, causing the commander to blink rapidly for a few seconds as his eyes adjusted. He looked over to Sophie and smirked as he saw her eyes scanning his chest.

"Ch-Chase! I thought you were dressed!" Sophie said hesitantly, trying to appear annoyed.

"Really? Yeah, right!" He replied with a laugh. "You know I never sleep with a shirt on."

"Knew," she corrected him as she folded her arms, placing extra emphasis on the word. "I meant that I didn't think you were sleeping! You were never one for naps."

"I shouldn't have taken one, honestly." Chase's voice trailed off as he walked over to his dresser and withdrew an undershirt from it.

"Why? Another...?" Sophie's brow furrowed as she looked down at the bed. She let out a soft sigh, then pursed her lips. The sheets were in a furious mess.

"Yeah," Chase replied as he shut the drawer and threw the shirt over his head. "I haven't slept well in a while."

Sophie evened out one corner of the bed, then sat down, folding her arms again as she looked over to the commander. Her voice was quiet now. "How long has it been, Chase? Since you've had a good night's sleep?"

The commander sighed as he looked in the mirror, straightening out his shirt. He could see Sophie through the mirror, too. Her worried eyes were looking right at him.

"I can't even remember," he replied. The words sounded strange to him, and he searched his mind for the answer. "I either don't dream about anything, or it's another nightmare. This one was ab-" he started, but cut himself off. He didn't want her to question him further, but he knew she would.

"About what?" Sophie asked, trying to coax the answer out of him.

"It was about Elliott..." Chase replied quietly. " He.. was hurt. There wasn't anything I could do to help him."

"Was Doctor Soto there? Or Anna?"

"No... we were in the middle of nowhere, and I couldn't even move. I-" He shook his head, trying to clear away his thoughts. "It sounds stupid, now that I'm saying it. It was just a bad dream. It feels so real at the time... you know?"

"I know, Chase..." Sophie's voice was quiet now as well, her normally cheery eyes now marked with sorrow. "Elliott's going to be okay."

The commander's eyes lit up. He sighed again, but this time, it was one of relief.

Sophie stood up, then continued. "I came here to tell you that the doctor wants to look at your side. He's done treating Elliott."

"Thank you," Chase said warmly. He was still shaken from the dream, but she had made him feel more relaxed. "Is he resting? Doctor Soto said he'd be fine, earlier, but I think he just didn't want me to worry."

"It's strange," Sophie replied, looking puzzled. "That... substance... had eaten through his helmet like acid, but he's fine. It's like nothing even happened to him, honestly. I saw Elliott right before coming to get you."

"He's still... himself, right?" Chase asked, still not convinced.

"He was sleeping peacefully when I left. I would think so." She laughed. "But first, you need a shower! The commander can't go around the ship smelling like that, you know."

Before Chase could reply, Sophie shot him another grin. She then departed.

Refreshed and reinvigorated, the commander made his way to the med-bay. His dream was just that - a dream. He tried convincing himself, but in the back of his head, he questioned the nightmare's meaning. Was he really to blame for what happened to the engineer? If he had kept his cool, would Elliott be unharmed? Who was to blame for what happened at the lab? All these thoughts raced through Chase's mind, and only seeing the med-bay doors brought him from his thoughts.

As the commander entered the med-bay, Doctor Soto greeted him. "Commander," he said with his deep, almost patronizing voice. "It took you long enough to get down here. Sophie left to find you almost an hour ago. Sit down."

The doctor was in his early forties. He was tall and thin, and his jet black hair was mixed slightly with grey. His lab coat seemed to be decorated with all sorts of medical tools.

Chase took a seat on one of the medical beds and lifted his shirt where he was wounded. His skin was bruised, and Chase winced at the sight of it.

"Medi-gel makes my life so much easier," the doctor said casually, his eyes looking over the commander. "But, let's get this dressed, shall we?"

Anna, the ship's nurse, rushed over to them with a tray of medical equipment full of bandages, antiseptics, gauze, and more.

"Commander, what happened to you?" She asked, her brows raised. "The way the wound looks... You've been shot! I thought that place was supposed to be abandoned?!" She handed the doctor a few of the supplies.

"It clearly wasn't," the doctor said under his breath as he set to work.

"It was an active research facility," the commander replied. "They were performing tests on people. My guess is that they were experimenting with genetic modification. We met the leader of the operation, but she killed herself before we could get any answers out of her. She fired at Elliott, but her bullet hit a beaker next to him. He got splashed by its contents."

"Very... interesting..." Doctor Soto said, slowly. Chase's wound was now clean, so the doctor started bandaging it. "After we got Elliott's helmet off, he looked fine. His face showed no signs of burns or injuries from any sort of acid or chemicals at all. I did run some tests on him afterwards, but aside from slightly elevated neural activity, nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. He's sleeping in the room, over there." The doctor pointed at the isolation chamber behind him. "The poor guy. It must've been such a shock to him that he passed out." He shook his head, then continued. "Elliott's helmet, however, was unsalvageable. Almost the entire front of it had been dissolved, which I find rather strange. Perhaps this chemical you spoke of is only effective on inorganic matter. Regardless, I tried scanning the residue in the database, but found no matches. It's not anything we've seen before."

"He was in pain, Doctor." Chase replied. "He was clutching his face. I remember that vividly. I thought it was acid from how he was acting."

"That is true, I am sure, but as of now, he's fine. You can see him, yourself." The doctor finished bandaging the commander's wound. "Have a care, Commander. Don't stress your side for a week or two, and you should be in top form. I'll have Anna bring some fresh bandages up to your quarters periodically so you can change them out."

"Thank you, Doc," Chase said as he stood up. "I want to see Elliott." He walked over to the quarantine room and let himself in. Anna followed behind him.

"Elliott," Anna called out quietly, trying not to startle him. "It's the commander. He's here to see you."

Chase walked over to the engineer, resting his hand on his arm. "You okay, buddy?" The doctor was right; there were no burn marks on Elliott's face.

"C-Commander?" Elliott spoke as he opened his eyes and took note of who was in front of him. "My head aches a bit, but I think I'm all right. How long was I out?"

"Quite a few hours," Chase replied. "We got back to the ship, safely. Do you remember what happened at the facility?"

Elliott rubbed his eyes. "I remember that... scientist. She shot at me, but I didn't feel anything. I just remembered that stuff from the beaker. It went through my helmet like it was made of paper. My face felt like it was on fire, and I blacked out." Elliott's eyes were wide in terror as he spoke.

"You're fine, Elliott," Doctor Soto replied, trying his best to sound comforting. He had entered the room as the engineer spoke. "Like I said earlier, there were no traces of any foreign substances on your person. I think you can return to your duties as soon as you are able."

"Doctor, I want you to run some tests on whatever is in that lockbox we found at the facility." Chase said in return. "It's still in the cargo bay, but I'll have it brought up to your lab."

The doctor shot a defiant look at him in return. "Commander Reilly, might I inform you that such an activity is strictly prohibited by Cerberus guidelines? You are not to tamper-"

"I am the Commander," Chase said coolly, interrupting him. "I know what Cerberus guidelines state, but I am giving you an order. I didn't ask for any back talk from you." Chase looked at the doctor straight in the eye, speaking each sentence deliberately as he stood his ground.

"You didn't, but I don't want anything illegal going on in my laboratory. I have the right-"

"Doctor, if I am questioned about anything, I will take full blame. You have my word. I just need to know what's in that box."

The doctor let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine... I'll take a look at it... if I must."

"I'll call for someone to bring it up," Anna said hastily, hurrying off. She clearly didn't like confrontation of any sort.

A loud beep sounded from the overhead comm unit, followed by Sophie's voice. "Commander, you are requested in the Communications Room immediately for debriefing."

"I'll see you, Elliott. Thank you again, Doctor." Chase said, giving each of them a friendly nod before leaving the med-bay.

As the commander made his way to the Communications Room, he swallowed loudly. He had to keep the tampering of the box's contents a secret, and he also wanted to make sure his team got the leave they'd been promised. He didn't like these debriefings, as they were just another way for the higher-ups to keep tabs on him, but he knew that they were mandatory parts of his job.

Chase arrived at the Combat Information Center, and saw the door to the Comm Room just a few feet ahead of him. Sophie was at her post by the galaxy map, but walked over to the Commander as soon as she noticed him. A smile was on her face.

"Don't forget, Commander. I still want to go to Thessia! Work your magic on the suits, okay?"

Chase grinned back at her, nodding. "I've got this, Sophie. Take care of the Reliant for me."

"Yes, sir!" she said, saluting him playfully before returning to her post.

Chase shook his head, laughing to himself as he entered the Comm Room.