Chapter Four
The family's shuttle, painted in a similar paint scheme as the Normandy minus the Alliance logo, makes its approach to land at the spaceport in Shanxi. Air traffic instructed Shepard to land in the first spot next the Alliance military port. There is an Alliance soldier waiting for the shuttle to land. Shepard makes a smooth landing, the door to the shuttle opens with Liara and both girls getting off the shuttle. Leia is shutting down all the shuttle systems before departing.
Lt. Vega is wearing his casual Alliance uniform with a pistol on his hip. He walks up to Liara saying, "Dr. T'Soni. Very nice to see you. Is Commander Shepard with you?"
Liara thinks this is a very odd question. Before T'Soni could answer, the former Commander steps off the shuttle to see Vega talking to Liara, "Hello, Vega. Something I can help you with?" asks Shepard as she stands next to Vega and her bondmate.
"No ma'am. I was told you were landing here and I wanted to say hello," replies Lt. Vega. "I work here at the space port now doing security."
Liara glaces over to Shepard not buying what Vega is saying. Leia sees the look and nods in agreement. Gaia is holding her mother's hand while Kaja is standing between her parents. Neither child notices the look their parents gave each other. They are too busy looking around the spaceport taking in the scenery.
Leia gives Vega a curious look as she walks to grab a dolly for their bags. Kaja follows behind Shepard. Commander Shepard asks, "How long have you been working here, Lt? I'm having a hard time believing you got assigned here at the spaceport."
Lt. Vega is one step behind Commander Shepard starts to answer her question when there is an explosion three landing pads from the group. The shock wave from the explosion knocks everyone off their feet. Vega is first to get off the tarmac.
Shepard is looking to see if Kaja is alright. Kaja is slow to get up. She has a scrap on her elbow when she hit the concrete Shepard helps her daughter get off the ground, "Run to the shuttle NOW, Kaja!" yells Shepard as she turns her daughter in the direction of her mother and sister. The young asari slips a little, but keeps her balance as she does what she is told.
"Shepard come on!" yells Liara when she sees Shepard pull the SMG from her waist. There is a second explosion, further away this time. Also, gunfire can be heard. Liara yells again at Shepard to join them.
The Commander isn't hearing Liara yell at her, she is completely focused on the gunfire and explosions that are going on. Both her and Vega are alert and slowly moving their way towards the commotion. Shepard looks back seeing Liara waving for her to join her. Leia yells, "Get to the shuttle! I'll catch up!" Vega turns to Shepard and signals to Shepard to move up towards the shuttles and he is going around from the other direction. She nods in acknowledgment and slowly makes her way towards an Alliance shuttle.
Liara grabs both Kaja and Gaia by their shoulders and says calmly, "I want both of you to listen carefully and do exactly what I say." Both are listening carefully to their mother. Liara continues, "We have to get back onto the shuttle. Your father will catch up. Let's go" All three start running towards the shuttle with Liara taking the rear to keep an on eye on the girls. She is also prepared to use her biotics if necessary. They arrive at the shuttle safely and board quickly. Liara tells the girls to get seated and to strap in, this might be a quick exit as she heads to the cockpit to start the up the shuttle's systems.
An unknown shuttle lands behind the two burning Alliance shuttles, ten batarians along with their leader Balak jump off the shuttle and start shooting any human they see. Shepard is behind a shuttle, she peeks around the corner seeing Balak and the other batarians getting off the shuttle. Shit, I wish I had armor on. Shepard notices Vega slowly making his way towards to shuttle Shepard is using for cover. She gives him a hand signal to let him know there are enemies ahead and to take cover.
Vega nods and covers Shepard while she leans out from behind the shuttle again and see Balak giving orders to his men. She thinks she heard Balak mention her name, but isn't completely sure on that. The Commander focuses on her target and has Balak in her sights, she slowly pulls the trigger and squeezes off three quick bursts of the Locust with incinerate ammo. All three shots hits Balak in the head, he goes down like a sack of potatoes.
Commander Shepard moves towards the other end of the shuttle, peeks around to see three batarians taking aim at the family's shuttle that is hovering in the air. One of them has a missile launcher Vega also moves to the other side of the shuttle closer to the batarians than where Shepard is located. He aims his pistol at the one with the heavy weapon and squeeze off two rounds. One hits the batarian in the arm and the other in the chest. The rocket left the launcher but misses the shuttle Liara is piloting.
I need to stay and finish this, but I have to protect my family at the same time. Shit! Shepard looks back over her shoulder and see's Liara in the cockpit slowly moving the shuttle away from their landing spot. The door I still open. The Commander fires off several rounds from her SMG and uses her adrenaline rush to run towards the shuttle. Shepard hears bullets go buzzing by her before she dives into the shuttle. Leia yells, "Liara go!" Liara punches the controls and the shuttle takes off quickly tossing Shepard against the side of the bulkhead.
After the shuttle levels off, Kaja unstraps herself from her seat and goes over to her father. "Dad, dad, are you okay?" Shepard tries to get up but her hand slips in a small pool of blood that is collecting on the floor. Kaja kneels next to Shepard and freaks slightly at the sight of her father bleeding from a wound in the back.
Command Shepard is coming down from the adrenaline rush and now feels the pain from the bullet lodged itself underneath her right shoulder blade. She looks at Kaja and says with a grimace, "First aid kit under the seat." Leia points to the seat it is under. The eldest daughter grabs the first aid kit and opens it up and sees items she has no idea what they do. Shepard grabs the medi-gel and slaps it into her thigh. The pain is subsiding, but the bleeding isn't under control.
The next thing Shepard grabs is a big thick military grade gauze pad. Shepard feels herself about to pass out, she grabs Kaja's shoulder leaving a bloody hand print on Kaja's shirt. "Put this over the wound and press down and hold it there..." Shepard passes out before finishing giving her daughter instructions.
Kaja does what she is told and holds the thick pad against the wound. She is remarkable calm for the situation, Kaja looks over to Gaia, who is sitting there frozen in place. Gaia is staring at the scene on the floor too scared to move and unable to even scream. Kaja yells to her sister, "Tell mom, dad's hurt bad." Kaja notices Shepard is still breathing, but the breathes seem to be weaker. She looks up to her sister again. "GAIA, Get mom!" Gaia continues to sit in her spot unable to do anything. Kaja is as quick on her feet as both of her parents, she dumps the contents of the first aid kit on the seat next to her and throws the first aid kit hitting Gaia in the chest with it. "Get MOM!"
Gaia snaps out her daze. The younger sister unfastens her harness and bangs on the cockpit down, "MOM!" The door slides open. Gaia goes in, "Mom, dad's hurt bad" She has tears streaking down her cheek. Liara wasn't ignoring her, but was more concerned about the ship that just showed up in orbit. The Normandy was in orbit on the far side of the planet when they arrived. Leia didn't see it or didn't mention it when they landed. The ship that just arrived is a dreadnaught. The dreadnaught is an Alliance ship. A voice comes over speakers, Identify yourself, civilian shuttle. This is SSV Orizaba, Admiral Shepard's flagship"
"Gaia, go help your sister. I have to pilot the shuttle," says Liara calmly to Gaia. The youngest daughter leaves to help Kaja attend to their father. Damnit, Shepard. Why didn't you come with us instead of always jumping into the fray? This time without armor. No, no, Liara. It's not her fault. Stop. Vega knew something was up. It showed in his body language. Liara opens her mic, "This is Dr. Liara T'Soni, piloting the 'Little D' Commander Shepard is injured and needs medial assistance ASAP."
"Dr. T'Soni, this is Admiral Shepard, how is the Commander's condition?" asks Hannah Shepard with a hint of worry in her voice.
"From what I heard from Gaia, it's bad, Admiral. I don't know for certain," answers Liara. "I can't check on her and fly at the same time. Sounds like Kaja has it under control Things seems quiet right now."
Joker's voice comes over the shuttle speakers, "T'Soni, Dr. Chakwas is ready once you dock on the Normandy. Vega informed us Shepard got hit. He saw the blood stains where the shuttle took off."
"Thank you, Joker. We'll be there shortly," says T'Soni as she cuts the comm off and flies as quick as possible to dock on the Normandy. It took Liara less than five minutes to reach and dock on the Normandy. Liara gets out of the chair quickly and checks on Leia.
Dr. Chakwas and two assistants are waiting when the shuttle doors open. Chakwas sees Liara and Kaja tending to Shepard. She's still alive, but she is still unconscious. Kaja is still pressing the pad against Shepard's back, while Liara is checking Shepard's vitals. Gaia is sitting in a seat staying out of the way. "Let me in," says the human doctor as she places her hand on Liara's shoulder. Liara gets out of Chakwas way Dr. Chakwas looks at the younger asari, "Kaja, keep doing what you're doing as I roll Shepard onto the backboard." Chakwas gets Shepard onto the backboard, "I got this. Stay with your mom and sister." Dr. Chakwas and her assistants get the Commander on the stretcher and run towards the elevator.
Kaja T'Soni looks down at the mess then up to her mother, "Is dad going to be okay?" The calm collected thirteen-year-old asari gets off the floor and sits next to her little sister.
Gaia and Liara both look at Kaja in amazement. Liara is very proud of Kaja and how she handled a terrible situation. "Kaja, Gaia. Dr. Chakwas is a very good doctor and your father couldn't be in better hands. I'm proud of you both. You did what you were told and handled yourselves very well." Dr. T'Soni hugs both girls at the same time, "Let's go and get cleaned up."
Gaia takes Liara's hand and squeezes it unusually tight. Kaja asks as she climbs out of the shuttle, "What about the mess in here, mom?" Liara and Gaia follow right behind.
Captain Alenko is standing off to the side of the open shuttle door, "I'll get someone to clean your shuttle, Dr. T'Soni. Liara, feel free to use my quarters if you want."
Dr. T'Soni glares at Kaidan, she doesn't say anything and heads towards the elevators. Liara has a bad feeling in her gut that Alenko or the Alliance knew something was going on and why Vega was waiting for them when they landed. The elevator door open and Liara presses three on the pad to take them to the crew level. She wants to check on Leia. Plus, there is a restroom with showers on that level as well.
Captain Alenko is waiting for Admiral Shepard's shuttle to arrive. He is standing at attention when the shuttle doors open and Hannah Shepard steps out of the shuttle. "How is Commander Shepard, Captain?"
"She's in surgery, Admiral. From the looks of it, Kaja applied pressure to her wound the whole time. That is one calm kid, ma'am." Alenko salutes the Admiral.
Hannah returns the salute, "I'll be up in the medical bay, Captain. Where are Liara and the kids?" The elder Shepard walks with Alenko towards the Normandy's elevators.
"Dr. T'Soni took the girls to my quarters, I think. I offered it to them, but she didn't answer me and walked off," answers Kaidan as he presses three on the elevator pad.
EDI comes over the speaker in the elevator, "Dr. T'Soni is in the woman's lavatory on level three, Admiral."
"Thank you, EDI. Captain, if you'll excuse me, I want to check on my daughter and family," comments Admiral Shepard as she gets off on the crew deck, leaving Alenko on the elevator. He goes up to the CIC level to stay out of the way.
Kaja is washing her hand, trying to get the blood off. Gaia is already clean and sitting on one of the toliets. Liara is also trying to watch the blood off her hands. The door to the lavatory opens and Admiral Shepard walks in, Gaia sees her grandmother and runs over and hugs her. Hannah hugs Gaia tightly, "How is everyone?"
"Dad's hurt bad, grandma," answers Kaja. She still seems unaffected by the events of the day. Liara is a little concerned that Kaja is holding something back and it will affect her later.
Liara looks over to the human standing in the restroom with her and the girls. She grabs a towel to dry her hands then places it over Kaja's shoulder, so she can use it once she is finished. "Something doesn't seem right, Admiral," says Dr. T'Soni with a very stern look on her face. Liara then turns to Kaja and says, "Take your sister and go to the kitchen area and sit at one of the table. I want to talk to Admiral Shepard alone." Liara takes the towel from her eldest daughter and throws it in the laundry.
"Yes, ma'am. Come on, Gaia. Let's go," replies Kaja as she hugs her grandmother before leaving the bathroom.
Once, both girls are out of the bathroom, Liara asks EDI to lock the door. Which EDI does without comment. Liara isn't a happy asari, her bondmate is in surgery from a bullet wound in her back. Liara and Leia's daughters didn't need to see their father lying in a pool of her own blood. "What the hell is going on, Hannah? I have a feeling that we were bait for the batarians. Leia gets shot and you don't seem one bit surprised by the whole ideal. Why?" asks T'Soni in anything but a cool calm tone, she is quite pissed off and very close to yelling at her mother-in-law.
Hannah knew Captain Alenko was on Balak's trail. She did not know that Balak was going to attack Shanxi. "I only knew that Captain Alenko had picked up the batarian, Balak's trail. I did not know he was headed here until we got the distress call from those on the ground that there was explosions at the spaceport. I also did not know you two had just arrived."
"Then why was Vega waiting for us when we landed, Hannah? Or should I be asking Alenko about it?" inquires Liara who's face is show frustration. I knew this was a bad idea. Damnit. Liara is trying very hard to keep her voice down but the look Hannah Shepard is expressing, it's making it very hard to keep her cool.
"You'll have to ask Capt. Alenko, Liara. I don't know why Vega was waiting for you," answers the elder Shepard. She sees the frustration on her daughter-in-law face. Hannah is trying hard not to show hers. This mission turns out to be a disaster and her daughter is caught in the middle. "Liara, I don't know what you want me to say. I just got into the system right after your shuttle left the planet. This is Alenko's mission and it is a disaster. I've yet to debrief him on what happened and Vega is still planet side. I don't have the answers to your questions, and I want answers to those very questions as well." Hannah goes to place her hand on Liara's shoulder and Liara steps back from it. Right now, she is too angry to allow even her mother-in-law to touch her.
"EDI unlock the door, please. I'm going to make sure Leia is okay and if Kaja and Gaia are okay," remarks Liara as she starts to leave the restroom.
Shepard stands in Liara's way, "Please, Liara, wait. I need to know what happened. From your prospective."
Dr. T'Soni looks Hannah right in the eyes saying, "One of the shuttles exploded. It knocked all of us to the ground. Kaja was next to Leia, who was grabbing a dolly for us to put our luggage on for easier transport. Vega was right behind Leia, while Gaia was by my side. Leia made Kaja join me and Gaia as she pulled out her firearm to defend the spaceport. She may have retired fifteen years ago, Hannah, but she will still jump into the fray if she feels it's needed. And today it was. She wasn't wearing any armor and when she came running towards the shuttle so we could leave, she caught a bullet in the back. I don't even think she knew she got hit until she was aboard. I was already aboard with the girls waiting for Leia. I was not leaving her behind. "
Hannah feels guilty for her family being in the middle of something that didn't concern them, "I'm sorry, Liara. Is that everything? What happened to Balak? Reports I was given is that Leia killed him."
Liara doesn't answer Admiral Shepard's question and pushes her way out of the restroom and goes to join her children waiting for Dr. Chakwas to tell them how Commander Shepard is doing. Admiral Shepard walks to the elevator to debrief the Captain of the Normandy.
For the past two hours, Admiral Shepard has been in contact with both the Citadel Council and the Alliance brass about the fail operation to capture Balak and stop him from attacking Shanxi. The Council is waiting for a report from Spectre Alenko, while the Alliance is in agreement that he needs to be relieved of his command. The Captain made the biggest mistake anyone in the Alliance has made since the war with the reapers. The Alliance isn't happy that their biggest hero once again steps into the fray and this time putting her life at risk when it wasn't her job to do so.
Admiral Shepard is waiting for Captain Alenko in the briefing room. She has already filed reports with both the Citadel Council and Alliance brass. Neither party is happy with the outcome of today's events. The human biotic, Spectre walks in seeing a very angry CO. "You wanted to see me, ma'am?"
Hannah Shepard has her back to the door when Alenko walks in. She turns to face the Captain, "I'm relieving you of your command, Captain. You used not only civilians as bait for the batarians, but it was my daughter and her family you used. And you did it without informing your Commanding Officer as well. Leia should have been informed of the risk of landing on Shanxi, Captain." Hannah has a very stern look on her face when she pauses to look at Kaidan. "This ordeal has now strained my relationship with Liara, Alenko. You are responsible for what happened down there. Lt. Vega didn't follow your orders and charges will be filed against him as well. You never use civilians as bait, Captain. Be thankful, I have no pull on your Spectre status, but I filled a complain with the Citadel Council on the actions of this mission. You have ten minutes to gather your personal belonging and get your ass to my shuttle and it will take you aboard the Orizaba. Which will take you to Arcturus Station. Dismissed"
Captain Kaidan Alenko stands there stunned. He blinks his eyes in disbelief. "I don't answer to you, Admiral. I answer to the Council. This is my ship," says Kaidan in a slightly disrespectful tone to the last person he should have, Admiral Hannah Shepard.
"That is where you are wrong, Captain. This ship is still owned by Commander Shepard. The Alliance never took ownership back from her. The Council wouldn't allow it. The Council paid the Alliance for the ship when they gave it to her. You've been allowed to command this ship to help you as a Spectre and because the Commander left you in charge when she and Liara left But after today, you are being reassigned out of my fleet, Captain. Be lucky if you don't get demoted as well. You now have eight minutes to gather your belongs, Captain. I will forcefully remove you, if you don't leave." The elder Shepard has the same 'don't mess with me look' he has seen on Commander Shepard's face many times during their fight with the reapers. "I am working on seeing if Commander Shepard will take the ship back if not it stays with my fleet.
Captain Alenko realizes he is in a losing situation and snaps off a salute to his CO, turns on heel heading towards his quarters to pack his things. Within five minutes, his one bag is packed and Kaidan Alenko heads to the Admiral shuttle to leave the Normandy that has been under his command for the past fourteen plus years. He doesn't speak a word to anyone as he leaves the Normandy. The models that Shepard left are still in the cabin. Alenko knows something isn't right. He thinks Hannah is over reacting, but he really can't blame her. Vega disobeys his order to inform the Commander of the situation. Kaidan is thinking, Maybe I am responsible for Shepard getting shot. Maybe I should have contacted them before they landed. I also didn't want Balak getting tipped off either by monitoring comm chatter. Vega why did you fail in your duty? Why? Kaidan is hoping to get those answers from the Lieutenant on the way to Arcturus Station.
Hannah leans against the railing on the table in the briefing room and tears start flowing down her cheek. She trusted you, Alenko. This is one of the reasons why she has stayed out in the Terminus Systems all these years, she feared something would happen to either her or her family or the Alliance would always be asking her to be part of things. She contacted me weeks ago about the climate of the colonies and people's view of her relationship with Dr. T'Soni. I told her everything seems quiet on those fronts. The door to the briefing room opens as Hannah smacks her hand on the table in frustration Entering the briefing room is Dr. T'Soni along with Kaja and Gaia. The door closes behind them.
Kaja sees her human grandmother crying and it makes her heart sink. More so than seeing what happened with her father. Which Kaja feels is weird. She'll talk to her mother about it to see if this is normal. "Grandma?" says Kaja as she walks over to Hannah and gives her a hug. "It will be alright." Hannah hugs her tighter. Tears are still flowing from the human's eyes as she holds onto her granddaughter. Gaia joins her sister hugging their grandmother.
Dr. T'Soni watches the interaction between the kids and Hannah and now realizes how much today's ordeal really did affect Leia's mother. "Hannah, I see that Alenko had a bag with him when I saw him boarding the shuttle you arrived on. What is going on?" asks Liara as walks over to Shepard and places her hand on Hannah's shoulder.
Hannah touches Liara's hand, "Capt. Alenko has been relieved of his command of the Normandy. I'm in charge until the investigation is over." Hannah kisses both Kaja and Gaia on the cheek and tells them she needs to talk to their mother alone. Both girls walk out of the room without comment, leaving Hannah and Liara alone in the room.
Hannah waits until the door is closed before continuing, "
"You didn't know we were bait? I'm sorry, I got upset with you. I thought with you being Admiral, you knew about what was going on. After seeing you in here, I now know that was incorrect," says Liara as she hugs Hannah.
Hannah adds one more thing, "I made sure you and Leia's shuttle is cleaned up. So, you don't need to worry about that." The human tries to smile, but knowing her daughter is one level below still in surgery is making it hard to keep her spirits in a good place.
EDI comes over the room's comm to let both Liara and Admiral Shepard that Commander Shepard is out of surgery, but has not come out of anesthesia yet. Dr. Chakwas would like to see both of them. The human and asari leave the room heading to the elevator. Gaia and Kaja are waiting outside in the hallway. They join the two adults to check on their father.
A/N: Ah yes, nothing seems to go Shepard's way when it comes to R and R. I knew when I came up with the idea for this story something bad was going to happen during it. I didn't want to write a happy happy joy joy type story. We need a little chaos from time to time.
Plenty more to come in the up coming weeks. So see you next week.