A/N: Once again my apologies for the seriously long delay. A computer crash, and the onset of winter (which means the start of a second job at the ski resort I live by) unfortunately delayed my ability to write. But I finally have a new laptop, and a few days break so I have tried to cram in as much writing in as possible with this chapter. I apologize for any mistakes because I really did knock all this out in about three days and only had a chance to re-read it once before throwing it up on the site. Thanks to everyone for both your patience, reviews and suggestions. As a side note…Way to go Bioware! For those of you who didn't know: Mass Effect 2 has already garnered several awards for the year -including two Game of the Year awards. And if you haven't seen it yet, head on over to youtube and check out the world premier trailer for ME3. Looking mighty epic!
Chapter 14: Fasten Your Seatbelts
Shepard waited impatiently for the airlock to cycle through it's decontamination cycle before she was finally able to set foot on her ship for the first time in over a month. Her crew was already bustling around familiarizing themselves with the upgrades and running pre-flight checks.
Shepard turned to the cockpit and leaned against the empty co-pilot chair as she looked the new interface over. "Everything up to spec Joker?"
"And then some, Commander. Normandy's better than ever," he answered in a pleased voice.
"Good to hear. As you were Lieutenant."
"Aye Commander."
Shepard turned and began making her way through the busy CIC and came across her XO who was consulting with one of the techs at his station. Pressley watched her approach, finished his orders to the tech and then straightened up when Shepard reached him.
"Commander," he greeted as he handed her a data tablet.
"How are we looking XO?"
"So far all department heads are reporting back no major problems. We've had a couple of minor glitches and hiccups, but Chief Adams has his crew and the techs crawling all over the ship fixing them and triple checking all major systems. By this time tomorrow we should be slipping past the outer planets."
"Excellent, keep me appraised of our progress. I want to hold a Senior Staff meeting before we head out."
"We have our orders?"
"Not yet. Admiral Hackett will be arriving shortly to deliver our orders in person. Please notify me as soon as he arrives and see him to the Briefing Room. And make sure Joker doesn't get too nosey while we are in there," she added with a serious look.
"Aye Commander," Pressley answered with a knowing roll of his eyes. "Oh, by the way, we got word in while you were being cleared by Medical. Wrex and Garrus are both heading back to the Citadel and will await your instructions on their pick-up."
Shepard smiled at that. "Once we get our orders, see to it that we plot a course for the Citadel first."
"Sure thing Commander. There is also a message for you from Tali. I took the liberty of forwarding it to your cabin."
"Thanks. I'm going to go get my gear all stored away. Carry on Mr. Pressley."
"Aye Commander.
Shepard made her way down to her quarters, and looked around sadly when she entered the spartan surroundings. She had never been one for decorations, but the sterile environment that surrounded her left her with a sense of cold loneliness. She'd grown accustomed to having the presence of her lovers and living somewhere that both looked and felt like home. But the Normandy had become her home too and with a snort of wry amusement at her musings she began to unpack her bags which had been sent ahead while she was cleared for full duty.
Once her uniforms were all hanging in place and her gear stored in her locker, she moved over to the desk and placed two small pictures next to computer monitor. Suddenly the room looked a whole lot less sterile as she gazed fondly at the pictures she'd taken of each of her lovers while they had been on vacation.
Still smiling, she slid into the chair and punched in her code for her message inbox. She scrolled through the messages, deleting the spam and saving other messages for later perusal. She finally came across the one from Tali and opened it. Her expression softened as the young Quarian's face filled her screen.
"Hello Shepard. I promised Ashley and Liara that I would try and keep in touch, but I am about to be sent out on a rather lengthy assignment and I don't know when I will next have a chance to contact you so I figured I'd keep you updated now while I could. I am back with the flotilla and you should have seen the reception I was given."
Shepard chuckled quietly as Tali sighed and could almost see the blush under the violet visor. "Sometimes it's a bit embarrassing being the daughter of a Fleet Admiral," the young woman groaned good naturedly. "Coming home a Hero from the Citadel Battle only made it worse," she added with a rueful chuckle as she shook her head. "Needless to say they were ready to place me on one of the most prominent ships without even needing the data from my Pilgrimage. But my father was thrilled to have the data and he has already begun a special research project based upon what we found. He's promised to keep me appraised of his findings, and I will pass along any information we uncover."
Tali paused and then leaned forward. "Our actions have finally stirred my people from their complacency Shepard. When I came back I spent some time with my father and another Admiral and they told me that as soon as it became known that the Geth had been traveling beyond the Veil, fear began to run through our Fleet. After the attack on Eden Prime, my people realized we could no longer run from our problem any longer. It would only be a matter of time before the Geth sought our Fleet out and we do not have the means to defend it properly from a full scale attack. It has been the cause of much debate amongst the Conclave and the Admiralty Board, but father has told me that they have already started on a course of action to better prepare our people.
"We have been able to monitor and even decrypt several Geth transmissions indicating possible locations of strongholds. A few are close enough to the Fleet to be the cause of some concern and by the time I had returned, our military had stepped up both recruiting and the training of our Marines. It seems I possess some rather…unique skill sets now however. Apparently none of our soldiers know how to hack a Geth Prime during the middle of a firefight, and I am being attached to our best Marine Unit to start training them in the basics. Our missions will be to not only take down as many strongholds as we can, but to recover as much data and intel as we can during each mission. I will be sure to forward to you what we find."
Shepard swore quietly as Tali paused again and then sat back in her chair to relax a bit more. Shepard knew that Tali could more than handle herself in a firefight, but it still worried her that Tali was going to be heading back into danger. And the frontlines at that.
"Well, now that business is out of the way…..I miss you Alex," the young woman said softly. "I miss all of you terribly. I think my father was a little…disturbed by the fact that I was so reluctant to return home, but he has tried to be understanding. Life has been a little dull here, although that is soon to change I suppose. It is good to be able to see my friends and family again, but it's not the same as it was before I left. I can't explain how I feel to anyone here, perhaps because they did not share the same battles and struggles as we did. But I do not feel as….connected to my people any more."
There was a soft sigh and then Tali seemed to shake herself from her mood. "I received a message from Liara a couple of weeks ago. I am glad to hear that you and Ashley are healing well and that all of you are enjoying your vacation. You most certainly earned it. Keelah, I can't tell you how good it felt to be out of my suit for the first time in over a year. My father could barely get me to come out of my quarters that first week," Tali chuckled and Shepard grinned. The young woman's voice softened a bit with the next statement. "I would have given that all up however to have been able to spend some quiet time with you Liara and Ashley however."
Shepard swallowed hard and traced a finger along the screen over Tali's face. "Me too Tali," she whispered. "All of us would have enjoyed that I think."
"But my father was about to send the Marines out to fetch me so it was a good thing I returned home," the other woman continued with a rueful shake of her head and a noise of amusement. "I have to head out soon. The Captain of the unit I am being assigned to is having his doubts about having an engineer and tech specialist assigned to his team and wants to run me through some practice drills. Good thing I had a good instructor out on the battlefield. You take care of yourself Shepard and I will keep in touch with you as much as I can. Keelah se'lai, Commander."
"You take care of yourself too Tali," Shepard whispered fondly and then saved the message away in her personal files. She wanted to show it to Ashley and Liara later.
"Commander, Admiral Hackett has arrived."
Shepard leaned forward and punched the comm button on her desk. "Thank you Pressely. I'll be up in a minute."
Standing, the Commander pulled her uniform straight and double checked herself in the mirror before heading up to the Conference Room.
Hackett looked Shepard over as she strode into the room and was silently pleased with what he saw. When she had departed a little over a month ago, he'd seen a weariness in her eyes and an almost defeated set in her shoulders that had concerned him greatly. He, more than most, was well aware of the struggles and personal obstacles she'd had to overcome to become the woman she was today. He knew that this past year had been hell on her, and quite frankly even he was surprised she hadn't caved under the pressure. That she'd managed to weather the storm, only strengthened his faith and confidence in her abilities as a soldier and a leader. It was a shame that brewing political storms might force her to step back from her ability to command Alliance troops and return to the life she had worked so hard to leave behind her….that of a lone wolf.
Shepard stopped just in front of him and went to proper attention, giving him a crisp salute. "Admiral," she greeted.
"At ease Commander," he grinned, and then because he alone could, he stepped forward and hugged her. "Good to see you back on your feet kid."
Her ears reddened slightly, but she accepted the gesture from the man that had saved her life all those years ago and been the closest thing to a father figure that she'd ever had, and returned it briefly before stepping back. "It feels good to be back Admiral. So what's the word?"
His smiled faded and he gestured to the chairs. "Actually, there is quite a bit we need to discuss so perhaps we should make ourselves comfortable."
"That bad?" Shepard asked taking in his somber expression as they sat across from each other.
"Things are expectedly a mess right now. You are humanity's hero, but that damned reporter that you pissed off is also stirring up trouble with some of the other races with a smear campaign focusing on the fact that we sacrificed the Council so we could concentrate our fire on Sovereign. Despite my instance that as Senior Commanding Officer in the battle, it was ultimately my call to make, she is singling you out as the sole reason for their deaths."
Shepard scowled. "You know one day, that bitch is going to make a bad report on the wrong person and get a bullet for her trouble," she grumbled.
"I'm honestly surprised it hasn't been done already. That woman is a menace to everyone's society. The last thing we need right now is someone stirring up more trouble."
"Guessing I may not be so popular whenever I set foot back on the Citadel again?" she said with a bit of a smirk.
"I would recommend that you try and not stir up any more unwanted attention for a little while."
"Great," Shepard sighed. "So I take it that isn't all the news you have?"
"Ashley's appointment to First Lieutenant did not go through. I am officially protesting it, but Command has so much on it's plate right now it'll take months for my appeals to go up through the chain of command until it can reach someone who will override the initial decision. However, I put in a new request for her to at least be promoted to Operations Chief. I expect this one to go through as it will be within the normal progression and after what she did on the Citadel there is no way she can be denied it. The only thing that old windbag Waverly can do is slow down the paperwork which I'll expect, but I promise to keep nagging him for this until he finally grows tired of me and sends it through."
Shepard sank back into her chair, more depressed by that news than she thought she would be. They had all known that with Waverly in charge of signing off on Ashley's promotion, the promotion from enlisted to ranking officer was slim to none. The Admiral had served the same time as Ashley's grandfather and the man had carried a massive grudge against the Williams family ever since. Several other ranking officers had protested his obvious impartiality when dealing with Ashley's father and herself, but the ancient Admiral was too highly decorated and carried far too much clout for anyone to do anything serious about it. Shepard had retained a small sliver of hope that the well documented video proof of her Chief's actions on the Citadel would have been enough to sway the Admiral's viewpoint finally. Apparently not.
A sharp burst of anger surged through her and she stood up abruptly and walked over to the comm panel. "Fuck that son of a bitch!" she swore as she slammed her fist down onto the panel and then winced as her newly healed hand and arm protested the abuse.
Hackett allowed her the anger, for he had done pretty much the same thing. Actually, he had done a bit more by giving the old bastard a piece of his mind….which he was sure he was going to regret sometime in the near future. Hackett hadn't done like many of the others in the past had done and protested quietly within the confines of secure office.
"If it makes you feel any better, I went right up to His Highness and told him what I thought if his decision right there in the middle of the Command Floor just after the Chiefs had adjourned from a meeting with the President," he told her with a smirk.
Shepard turned and stared at him in awe. "And you still have your job?"
"Oh I am sure he'll find some way to make me pay. I'll probably find myself back out on patrol again, which I honestly don't mind right now. Too much political maneuvering going on for my taste. But rest assured I didn't sensor my words on the subject."
Shepard moved back to her seat, still rubbing her hand and slumped back into it. "Now this I have to hear."
"I had gotten a note from my aide right before the meeting that Ashley's promotion had been denied. God bless Anita because she had done a little digging around and gave me some ammunition to hold against him for his decision…
As soon as the tone sounded indicating the end of the meeting, Hackett stood from his seat and made a direct line to Waverly who was in the process of gathering up his notes and issuing a few commands to his aide. "Admiral Waverly I demand to know why you rejected my recommendation for a field promotion for Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams," he stated loudly enough to cause the rest of the board to quiet down.
"Need I remind you that I do not have to answer to you Admiral Hackett?" Waverly said stiffly, well aware of the stares of the others, including the President himself.
"Perhaps not, but I can assure you that I will appeal this to the highest levels on the basis that I feel your personal grudge against a dead man has turned into a vendetta against anyone else in his family that is serving within our ranks. Need I remind YOU of the fact that there is plenty of documented proof that Ashley Williams is to be awarded the Presidential Star of Honor because of her bravery? On what basis would you deny her the right to be promoted?"
There had been several stifled gasps of surprise at his audacity to question the ruling of a high ranking Admiral in front of everyone else, and Hackett saw out of the corner of his eye that the President was watching the proceedings very intently. The man was only slightly older than Hackett himself, and was known for his fairness in all matters. It was clear he wasn't liking what he was hearing…and it was the first he'd become aware of it.
Waverly was also very well aware of the position Hackett had maneuvered him into and while his face was an unreadable mask, Hackett could see the anger burning behind those dark eyes. Waverly didn't get to his position being a complete idiot however. Prejudices aside, he was a brilliant tactician and strategist. He took only a moment to recover and then straightened.
"Admiral Hackett I am not disagreeing that Chief Williams is a courageous and exemplary young soldier. No one can deny she is indeed one of the Heroes of the Citadel Battle. But she has only just received her first field experience while under Shepard's Command and I believe that field commissioning her all the way to Lieutenant might be a bit…hasty."
"I see," Hackett said flatly. "But approving a field commission to Lieutenant to a man that has only slightly more field experience and a record of insubordination isn't hasty?"
He almost smirked when he saw Waverly's jaw twitch in irritation. "The candidate in question was of higher rank than Williams to begin with and those marks in his file were from early in his career. He has had an exemplary file since. Again, I do not have to explain my decisions in such matters to you."
"And I wonder why it is that a man with several marks in his file and that enlisted two years after Chief Williams, was promoted faster than her when she has nothing but stellar reviews by all her commanding officers and some of the highest performance evaluations amongst our entire fleet," Hackett retorted.
"Admiral I refuse to discuss this further with you as I do not answer to you. If you wish to resubmit a request for the Chief to be promoted along the more traditional path of someone with her experience I will be sure to seriously consider it."
"I'll be sure to have it on your desk by the end of the day."
Shepard whistled. "Wow. You really didn't hold back any punches did you?" she said, her tone conveying her respect for her mentor's boldness. For a lower Admiral to go up against someone like Waverly over an enlisted officer like that would normally be career suicide. It spoke volumes of just how impressed Hackett was over her Chief's performance, and Shepard felt a surge of pride for Ashley.
Hackett smirked. "No I didn't. And by questioning him in front of everyone including the President not only did I make sure Ashley's case was fairly heard by all of them, I ensured that Waverly couldn't retaliate against me too harshly without drawing attention. Besides, we've lost too many officers for Waverly to risk sinking my career. We can't afford to lose anyone at this point so the worst he can do is see to it I get assigned to oversee upcoming sector patrols."
"Thank you for taking such a risk Admiral."
"William's deserves this. So tell her to hang in there and I hope to have her promotion within the next month or two. The rest is going to take some time, but I will not let up on this until she is an officer."
"Thank you, sir."
"Now, let's discuss your shakedown cruise and upcoming assignment," he said his features once more going grim.
Shepard frowned. "I'm not going to like this either am I?"
"You're not going to like what it implies," Hackett admitted.
Three hours later…..
The crew took one look at the dark and angry expression on Shepard's face after the Admiral had left and wondered at what could be so bad to have completely changed their Commander's demeanor so drastically. It was well known amongst the crew now that Hackett had been Shepard's sponsor and mentor during her Academy days and since her Commissioning, and that she'd obviously had both a soft spot and a respect for him that she showed few other higher ranking officers. A discreet call was placed down to Ashley and Liara, after the Commander had stormed off the CIC and down towards her quarters, and the two women met in the Mess.
"Joker called you too huh?" Ashley asked her lover quietly as they moved off to one side of the room.
"He did, although Dr. Chakwas was just returning with her dinner when Alex passed by on her way into her quarters. She came in to inform me that something had happened and that Alex was obviously very upset and I was about to call you when Joker called me and then told me he had already alerted you."
"She's been in that meeting with Hackett for over three hours. Most mission briefings take only an hour maybe two. Let's go see why this one took so long and why it's made her so upset."
Liara nodded and they approached the door and signaled the chime. Both waited patiently and finally were granted admission to the room. Ashley looked back as they slipped inside, but none of the crew in the Mess seemed to be paying any attention.
Ashley looked back into the room as she stepped inside and let the door slide shut and took in Shepard's stiff stance as she stood facing away from them, a tumbler of Turian brandy in her hand. "Commander?" she asked formally.
"Yes Chief?" Shepard asked flatly without turning.
Liara's eyes widened at both the tone and formality. While it caught Ashley a bit off guard, she quickly fell back into her training and moved into a formal at ease pose. "Dr. T'Soni and I were just wondering if everything was ok Ma'am. The briefing took longer than normal and the crew has noted that you came out looking upset."
Shepard slammed back the rest of her drink, then set the glass down hard on the edge of her desk and turned to face Ashley and Liara. Ashley was suddenly thankful that she'd decided to slip into the more formal posture, because the eyes that were meeting hers were not her lover's but her Commander's. "Chief Williams, how I appear is not any of this crew's business, and I will not have speculations running rampant aboard my ship is that clear?"
"Crystal, Commander. I will relay the message Ma'am."
"See that you do. As for the nature of my meeting with Admiral Hackett, that is also none of this crew's business until I deem it time to reveal what I feel is relevant for the crew to know of our orders. When I do so, it will be with the entire Command Staff."
Deep down, Ashley felt hurt by the cold tone and by being shut out, but she knew it had to be this way. Relying on her training, she pushed her feelings aside and straightened to an attention and saluted her Commander. "Aye Commander. I'll be down in the hold resuming my duties."
"But-"
"Is there an issue here Dr. T'Soni?" Shepard asked, her voice creeping into a dangerous tone that hadn't been used with either of them in a very, very long time.
Ashley quickly reached out and grabbed Liara's arm. "There's no problem here Commander. We're sorry to have bothered you Ma'am," she said, quickly pulling a hurt and bewildered looking Liara out of the room.
The doors closed behind them and moments later glass could be heard shattering in the room. Liara tried to stop, but Ashley just tightened her grip and despite the spectacle they were making, the rest of the crew gathered in the Mess, politely pretended to ignore them as Ashley dragged Liara back towards the Med-Bay and into the back office that Liara and Chakwas now shared.
Chakwas glanced up at their entrance, took one look at the two and then studiously returned to cataloging her supplies. Once inside the office Liara jerked her hand out of Ashley's grip and looked at her with tears in her eyes. "What the hell was that all about? How could you let her talk to us that way?" she demanded angrily.
Ashley slumped against the doorframe and rubbed a hand through her hair. "Liara this is what Alex was talking about. This is why she was so afraid of getting involved with members of her own crew in the first place. We were wrong to go in there just then."
"So checking on someone you love when they are obviously upset is wrong? Explain to me how that could possibly be wrong ," Liara demanded.
This is way more complex that I thought it would be, Ashley sighed to herself. "Liara, checking and caring for someone you love isn't wrong. Going in there after she's just had a meeting with the Admiral to find out what made her so upset…that was wrong. As much of a renegade as Alex is, there are certain protocols and policies she sticks to and this is one of them. Officers are usually given all the details of various missions and intel. The crew is then only given enough information to get the mission accomplished, but they usually never know all the details."
Liara, who had finally begun to understand the military way of life and thinking nodded slowly. "But why would she speak to us in that manner?"
"Because even though we went in that room as concerned lovers, I am still one of her soldiers, and not even a ranking officer at that. I had no business being in there asking her what the Admiral had said when not even Pressley knows what's going on yet." Ashley stopped and then smacked her head back against the doorframe as she closed her eyes and groaned. "Damn it, we haven't even been aboard a day and I already put her in a position that we all promised we would try to avoid. Fuck!" she swore, angry with herself.
And suddenly Liara fully understood. She stepped forward and settled a hand on Ashley's shoulder. "I think she will understand that we only had the best of intentions, and will not hold it against us for long Ashley."
"Yeah, but don't expect to see 'Alex' anytime soon now Liara," Ashley warned with a sigh. "After this, expect to only deal with the 'Commander' for awhile, until we can all adapt to this situation."
"Perhaps that would be for the best. I had not realized just how…difficult it would be to adjust to conducting ourselves properly while aboard ship," Liara admitted.
"We'll get through it. Besides, you have a little more leeway than Shepard and I do and we are the ones who really have to be careful. So don't sweat it too much, and don't take her distance personally ok?"
"I won't," Liara promised.
"Good. Now I had better get my ass back down to the Bay and finish our weapons inventory. Something tells me the Commander is going to be up top in a bit demanding that we be ready of departure sooner than we all expected."
Liara leaned in for a chaste kiss and the two women let their foreheads rest against each other for a few moments. "We'll get through this Liara."
"I know. Now go. You have far more work than us left and no one else to help you."
"You're always welcome to come down when you're done here. Once I'm done with inventory, I'm going to be breaking everyone's personal weapons and armor down and cleaning them. I know you've been wanting to learn more about taking care of your own gear."
"I will see you in an hour," Liara promised with a smile.
"Status report!" Shepard barked out and everyone in the CIC cringed.
Pressley raised an eyebrow, but looked down at the pad in his hand. "Dr. Chakwas said the Infirmary is all prepped and Medical is green to go. Nav and Helm are doing some minor adjustments to instrumentation readings but should be ready for final flight prep within an hour or two. Food stores are all aboard. Chief Williams just cleared Weapons and is currently running the Mako's checklist. Chief Adams says his crew has worked out the bugs and they are starting their final check of the new drive. I would say that we should be ready for departure within five hours barring any major issues with the drive."
"Joker get on the comm and request clearance to undock in six hours."
"Aye Commander," the pilot answered crisply without any of his usual sarcasm.
"Pressley inform all department heads that I want a meeting with them in five hours."
"Aye Commander. Will there be anything else?"
"There will be a small detachment of Marines that are being assigned to us. They should be here within the hour. Notify Chief Williams and myself as soon as they arrive, and send them to the Briefing Room. I'll be in my quarters reviewing the mission file until then."
"Yes Ma'am."
Shepard spun on her heel and marched back out of the CIC and the group let out a collective sigh of relief. Pressley walked forward and Joker looked back at him. "New Marines? You think she's pissed because we are taking on new crew?"
"That or Williams is about to be relegated to the bottom of the ranking pack again," Pressley sighed. He'd been made aware of the Chief's situation and was infuriated by command politics that such a promising young soldier was being denied the chance to serve her race to the best of her ability.
"Maybe someone should put a few of those Admirals back on the frontlines to remind them of why we need officers that can actually think under fire," Joker grumbled.
"While I whole-heartedly agree with that statement, it's best you keep such thoughts to yourself Mr. Moreau," Pressley warned sternly.
"Aye Sir. It's just frustrating," Joker sighed.
Pressley rested his hand on Joker's shoulder. "I know. But the last thing we need to do is add to the Commander's frustration with the situation. You've got orders to follow anyway Lieutenant."
"Yes sir."
Ashley swore as Joker's voice reverberated around the Bay and startled her enough to smack her forehead on the Mako's undercarriage. Pressing a greasy hand to the lump that was already growing, she slid out from under the vehicle and sat up. "What?" she called out.
"Uh, sorry to bother you Chief, but the Commander needs you in the briefing room for a meeting with the new Marines we just took on board."
"New Marines?"
"Um…yeah," Joker answered hesitantly.
Ashley's heart dropped. She threw the rag she'd been wiping her hands clean on to the ground and sighed. "Well fuck," she muttered, starting to have a picture as to why Shepard was so upset. "I'll be right up," she told Joker who acknowledged her back and then the comm system clicked off.
Ashley stood and then looked down at herself. "Way to make an impression on my new superior officers," she muttered to herself. Surprisingly, she found herself not really caring for the first time ever. Either Alex was rubbing off on her, or she was finally growing weary of fighting so hard to impress ranking officers when it was being made clear that even her status as a well known hero wasn't good enough to advance her career.
She stalked up to the briefing room, grease stains and all, and found herself an empty chair, ignoring the inquisitive looks from the new arrivals. She noticed they were all of equal or lesser rank…with one exception. And the kid wearing the Lieutenant stripes looked greener than every other man or woman sitting in the room. Hell Joker looked more intimidating than this kid. Well wasn't this just great, she thought to bitterly to herself.
Shepard entered a minute later and Ashley shot to her feet. "Commander on Deck!" she called out before the Lieutenant had even noticed Shepard's arrival. The rest of the Marine compliment rose swiftly and following the Chief's example, they went to rigid attention and saluted their new Commanding Officer.
Shepard looked them over, and then her eyes stopped briefly on Ashley's grease-smudged form. Despite her anger over Ashley crossing the line earlier, she couldn't keep her amusement at Ashley's appearance out of her eyes entirely. The amusement died as soon as her eyes drifted to the young man wearing Lieutenant stripes standing just past Ashley.
"At ease," Shepard responded flatly. She took a seat and nodded for the rest of the group to take a seat as well. "I am going to make this brief ladies and gentlemen. This crew is special in more ways than any of you probably realize, and your posting here was not a welcomed one," she told them bluntly.
Ashley felt her eyebrows creep upwards at the harsh statement and the Marines shifted nervously.
"You all know who I am, and I am sure you've all heard the stories, though most likely you've only heard half the story of what really went down. I don't give a fuck what you think about me, but I can promise you that if any of you screw up even once, I will take the opportunity to boot your ass off my ship. We have a racially integrated crew here and it took a lot of time, hard work and effort for us to all reach the level of trust and performance that was demanded of us. I serve not only the Alliance, but I also serve the entire galaxy in my capacity as a Spectre. Sometimes that means I have to toss the rulebook out the window and do things my way to make sure they get done. Hero or not, if I had just been a Commander for the Alliance I would have been Court Marshaled for disobeying a direct order and stealing the Normandy to continue my pursuit of Saren and Sovereign. If you have a problem with any of this then you need to let me know now before we leave and you will be free to leave in good standing."
Ashley watched as everyone shifted again and warily looked at each other. None of them had ever been in a situation like this, and it was obvious that all of them were extremely uncomfortable, but no one wanted to speak up.
"Last chance," Shepard warned.
Still everyone remained silent. Shepard then looked at the young Lieutenant. "What's you're name Lieutenant?"
"Garvey, Ma'am."
"Lieutenant, how much field experience do you have?"
"I've done two tours of duty Commander."
"On a backwater farm planet and on a patrol ship on the inner ring. You've dealt with what? A handful of small pirate and slaver skirmishes maybe?"
His face reddened, and he stiffened under her almost scornful look. "I've been in almost a dozen enemy engagements Commander," he protested.
"Chief Williams, how many battles have you fought in?"
"Before I signed on with you Commander I had been in one hundred and sixteen engagements with enemy forces. I lost track after that."
"Not counting everything we had to fight our way through on the Citadel battle, you can add nearly a hundred more to that number Chief," she answered holding the young man's gaze for another moment longer. Then she looked at each of the new Marines. "Since you have all decided to stay, here's how things are going to run. I have to play nice for now with the Admiralty even though I think the majority of them have their heads up their asses. So Lt. Garvey, you will be Senior Officer for this little joy squad in title only. The rest of you seem to have decent files with reasonable battlefield experience. We'll see if you can live up to my standards. Chief Williams has been with me on every single enemy engagement since Eden Prime and knows what I expect of my crew. I suggest you all look to her for suggestions on how to survive under my command."
Shepard paused and looked the group over before turning to Williams. "Chief, get them up to speed on the crew and find something for them to be useful at while we run through our final checklists. Also, talk to the Quartermaster and have them issue them some cots for down in the Mako Bay."
"What?" the Lieutenant exclaimed.
Shepard's gaze snapped towards the Garvey. "Just one excuse Garvey. That's all I need."
Garvey's mouth snapped shut, but the others moved restlessly and finally one of the other enlisted lifted his hand and waited patiently for Shepard to acknowledge him. "Commander, I realize that us being here is an intrusion on your team, but do you really think it's necessary to prohibit us from having access to the crew quarters like everyone else?"
Ashley couldn't help it. She let out a bark of laughter and even Shepard smirked. "Apparently, none of you made yourself familiar with the design of this ship. This isn't some cruiser, or even a troop transport like most of us are used to ladies and gentlemen. The Normandy was designed as a scout ship with a limited crew compliment in mind. However, because of the nature of our upcoming mission, and because of the experience of this crew, we are being sent back out onto the frontlines. We were already pushing capacity as it was and there are no real 'crew quarters' aboard the Normandy. The sleeper pods are already maxed out in rotations and a good number of my crew have managed to do just fine with more creative means of sleeping. My Chief Medical Officer and resident Prothean Expert share a lab which also doubles as their sleeping area. A number of the Engineering Crew have claimed a few quiet corners and tunnels god knows where as places to sleep. My pilot practically lives in his chair. And the Chief, along with several other members of the team that you will soon meet have made the Mako Bay their home. It's unconventional, but then so is this crew. Besides, you are all Marines. Deal with it."
"Yes Ma'am."
"Good. Now report to Dr. Chakwas for your medical evaluation. Chief Williams will catch up with you when I am done briefing her on several more matters. Dismissed."
The slightly shell shocked group stood and made their way out. Ashley had stood with them, but had slipped into a formal at ease pose once more and held it while the group left. As soon as the door closed she cleared her throat and met Shepard's gaze. "Commander, I would like to formally apologize for my behavior earlier. It was unprofessional and I was completely out of line. I promise I won't let that happen again."
Shepard sighed and sat back in her chair tiredly rubbing at her temples. "Sit down Ash," she said quietly.
Once Ashley was back in her seat, Shepard looked up and offered her a wan smile. "I know you and Liara only had the best of intentions and I'm sorry I was so hard on you both back there. But I was pissed off and I just couldn't deal with that right then."
"You had every right to come down on us like that Alex. Liara didn't understand but I explained it to her. I'm sorry for putting you in the very situation we all talked about avoiding this morning," Ashley said sincerely.
"Is she okay with this?" Alex asked quietly.
"Probably not as much as I am, but she understands. She's just going to need time to adjust is all. She knows not to take it personally though…just as I didn't and never will."
Alex let out a small sigh of relief and gave Ashley a look of immense gratitude. "It's gonna be tough on us for a few weeks Ash. I hope you know that my distance doesn't mean I care for either of you less. It's just-,"
"You have to take the lead in setting an example and you have to let the crew know that nothing has changed just because we are all a little more familiar with each other. You have to find your balance and both Liara and I understand that. You've got enough to worry about with this new squad assigned to us Alex- don't worry about us too. We're big girls, we can take care of ourselves," Ashley assured her with a grin.
"Thank you Ash."
"So don't you think you were a just a tad harsh on the new kids?"
"Fucking Admiralty. They did it just to piss me and Hackett off," Shepard swore angrily. "And that's not all," she continued grimly. She opened her mouth twice and shut it, wondering just how she could soften this blow.
Ashley saw the anger and disappointment in Alex's eyes and let out a long slow breath suddenly realizing what was so hard for her lover to tell her. "Waverly didn't approve my appointment did he?" she asked sparing Alex from having to tell her.
"No," Alex muttered dejectedly. Then she smirked a tiny bit. "Though you should know Hackett cornered him in front of everyone including the President demanding to know why he turned down your appointment. Bastard managed to weasel himself out of the explanation, but Hackett assured me that he can't turn down your appointment to Operations Chief, and that he is still going to pursue your promotion to officer even if he has to appeal it up to the President himself. It might take time Ash, but you'll get what you deserve."
Ashley's smile became a little more genuine. "Well it's nice to know that I have at least one friend in high places. Please tell Admiral Hackett that I appreciate all he has done for me next time you talk to him. And Operations Chief is the next best thing anyway. They can't stick me in shit assignments anymore…that is if you ever decide you're tired of my stubborn insubordinate ass."
"Come here you," Alex growled out and Ashley moved to crouch in front of her. Alex grabbed her by the front of her uniform and pulled her close for a searing kiss. "I happen to like your stubborn insubordinate ass, and I plan on being able to ride it for a long time to come," she said with a smirk as Ashley chuckled at the double entandre.
Alex released her after one more playful nip of her lips and then her command mask fell back into place. "As for too hard on the new team? They are going to have it easy compared to what we had to deal with. And that Lieutenant is barely six month out of the Academy. You'll hear more about the mission in the briefing, but we are being sent back out onto the front lines and Waverly has the nerve to send me some green kid that has no real battle experience to be my new squad leader as a slap in the face. If I let him take charge of this compliment he'll get people killed and I am THROUGH having Marines die needlessly under my watch," Alex said vehemently. "So I include him in Senior briefings and he'll go planetside to get his experience, but ONLY with you there to watch his six and mine. You're gonna have to baby sit him Ash, and I know this puts you in an awkward position. But I saw the respect in every one of those Marine's eyes when they heard just how many skirmishes you and I were in during this past year alone. Are you up to the task of taking the lead even if you aren't ranking officer? It's going to be a fine line you are going to have to walk, and you aren't exactly known for your subtlety Chief," Shepard said with a faint grin.
Ashley chuckled and shook her head. "You never like to make it easy for me do you Skipper? But yeah, I can handle this. I'll have them in line and up to your standards in no time."
"Good. I'll see you in a few hours at the briefing then. And just so you know, when I call for a Senior Briefing, I do expect you to be there, regardless of your rank. I need your experience and expertise in those meetings and the rest of Senior staff is already familiar with your presence."
Ashley saluted. "Aye aye, Commander."
"Dismissed, Chief."
Ashley smirked at the now familiar phrase and the tone behind it and with a nod left the Briefing Room. As she made her way downstairs, she felt some disappointment and resentment over not being appointed. She also admitted to being angry with Waverly's choice of Lieutenant. It was just as clear to her why this kid of everyone else that had to have been available was chosen. But it was a fool's choice and a dangerous one at that. No one else should pay the price of one man's personal grudge. But she felt a sense of satisfaction in knowing that she would get her appointment to Operations Chief soon- the highest enlisted rank she could hope to achieve. It also helped to know that she had at least one heavy hitter in her corner finally. For now though she had to go play good cop and soothe some bruised egos.
She entered the Infirmary and smiled at Chakwas and Liara who were both busy running tests and scans on their newest batch of crew. "How's it looking Doc?"
"Everyone is in good health. I wasn't aware that we had planned on taking on an extra Marine compliment," she asked with a raised eyebrow.
Liara, who was finishing her scans of the young Lieutenant paused and looked up, her eyes sad. "I take it that your appointment didn't go through?" she said with some bitterness in her normally soft voice.
Ashley sighed inwardly as the new Marines glanced between the three women, the Lieutenant looking as uncomfortable as he was back in the Briefing Room. It was not something she wanted to discuss in public, but she decided it was time to nip this in the bud before it started and these guys were going to find out anyway.
"No it appears that once again, my association with the Williams name has kept me from being appointed to the Lieutenant rank that both Shepard and Admiral Hackett put me in for. I am assured however that I will get my Operation promotion soon though and that Hackett is going to go over Waverly's head and push for an officer appointment for me anyway. Might take awhile, but Shepard seems pretty confident in the fact that someday I might see my own set of stripes. Until then I'm here to help our new crewmates settle in and adjust."
She turned to the squad who were now regarding her with even more shock and noted out of the corner of her eye that the Lieutenant hung his head. "Ladies and gentlemen I know you have already met Dr. Chakwas and Dr. T'Soni, but let me tell you a little more about these two incredible women. Dr. Chakwas here has served the Alliance for almost three decades, and is one of the best damn doctors you'll find in the Fleet. She is also well versed in the physiology of a number of other races, and we are both honored and proud to have her continue on with crew even though she was due for retirement at the end of our last tour of duty."
Chakwas blushed slightly but nodded her thanks to the Chief. "Dr. T'Soni is our resident Prothean expert. She has been working as an archeologist for the last half century, and is one of the galaxy's leading experts on the Prothean culture and technology. It was because of her that we learned that much of what we knew about the Prothean's had been wrong. She alone realized that the Prothean civilization was not the first to be wiped out inexplicably in our galaxy and it supported Shepard's discovery of the Reapers and the threat they now pose to our own civilizations."
"Reapers?" a Marine sergeant asked confused.
Ashley frowned. "The ship that attacked the Citadel was a Reaper. It was a sentient ship with immense power. You all saw what it did to the entire armada at the Citadel and that was just a single advanced scout. There is a whole fleet of those things beyond the edge of the galaxy, and it's up to us to prepare for a war with them."
"But I thought that it was just the Geth," another responded
"Yeah, I mean I was there on the Citadel, and the place was swarming with Geth," a third added.
Ashley, Liara, and Chakwas all share a look. "The Geth were working with Saren, but only because they believed Sovereign- the Reaper- was some kind of…deity for them. Hasn't the Council or even Command briefed everyone about the threat we are facing?" Ashley asked in disbelief.
Garvey finally spoke up. "We were all told that it was a Geth ship that Saren had somehow managed to gain control of. How can you be sure otherwise? I mean it looked pretty much like a Geth ship."
Ashley turned on him her eyes growing dark. "And how many Geth have you fought Lieutenant?"
"What?"
"How. Many. Geth. Have. You. Engaged?"
"Uh…none."
"I could fill a frigate with the amount of geth I have blown to pieces this last year. It's safe to say that I got to know how they operate pretty well. I was also there when Shepard actually had an exchange with Sovereign itself, and that was no Geth. It was just using the Geth like it was using Saren. And what you may not know and will never bring up to her personally though everyone on board knows about, is that Shepard interfaced directly with a Prothean message beacon. The message was a warning about the Reapers, and she witnessed the destruction of an entire civilization. If any of you have any doubts to the validity of the existence of the Reapers I suggest you keep it to yourselves, unless you want to piss off every single member of this crew," she warned grimly.
"We copy Chief," one of the more seasoned Marines said quickly.
"Good," she said forcing herself to relax. "Grab your gear and I'll show you where your new home is going to be."
They made their way down a deck and Ashley was surprised to already find that the Engineering crew was in the process of setting up a small row of bunks off in one corner of the Bay and a second row of storage lockers had already been installed against an empty wall. She noticed that her own cot was gone and that a second set of extra large and sturdy racks replaced Grunt's and Garrus's original sleeping pads. She looked over at O'Malley who was directing the Supply Techs who were delivering another shipment and quirked an eyebrow.
He grinned and shrugged. "Called in a few favors when I found out we had a new squad being attached to us. I knew there was no way we could fit them into the sleeper pod rotation and this is the largest free space we have. I have a few more coming in for myself and some of the Engineering crew too. Might get a little cozy down here, but figured it would make it easier for all of us. Quartermaster and Chief Adams are trying ot figure out somewhere we might be able to install a second head and shower room though. It's starting to get mighty friendly upstairs," he chuckled ruefully.
Ashley smirked knowingly and nodded in agreement. She noted that some of the new crates being brought on board bore the emblems of several weapons manufacturers. "More toys?" she asked with a hopeful gleam in her eye.
O'Malley laughed. "Shepard called me earlier to tell me that I had a nice little chunk of credits to use as I saw fit for any of the crew's needs. As soon as I heard about these guys I figured it wouldn't hurt to order a few extra weapons just in case. Also have some armor upgrades and spare parts for any repairs you might need to do in the future."
"And God knows just how many of those we go through. Thanks O'Malley."
"No problem Chief. Oh and if you give me a list of everyone's primary weapon specialty, I'll see to it that we can pick up a Spectre grade weapon of choice for each of them while we are at the Citadel," he said with a nod towards the stunned looking Marines.
"Will do O'Malley. Thanks."
"Just doing my job Chief."
Ashley turned back to the group and was hard pressed not to laugh. "Spectre grade weapons?" one of the younger Marines asked.
"Because Commander Shepard is also a Spectre, she has access to weapons that most people do not. She also accumulated enough credits on behalf of the ship to make sure that everyone who goes planetside with her is armed with nothing but the best. You are going to find that life on board the Normandy is going to be difficult ladies and gentlemen. There are a lot of things you are going to have to adjust to. But it does come with some perks. Weapons and armor upgrades on the ship's account and not your own is just one of them."
She noticed most of them were still looking a bit overwhelmed and leaned against the wall. "I know this is hard for you guys right now. If it makes you feel a little better, Shepard was very opposed to me being on board at first too. On top of that, I had the same prejudices and difficulties in being forced to work with a team full of aliens as I am sure most of you do. And then to make matters worse, the deeper into that mission we got, the more we realized the fate of the entire galaxy was resting on our shoulders and the pressure to not fail was worse than anyone could ever imagine. But we set all of that aside and overcame the odds against us and we are family to each other now.
"Lieutenant, I'm sorry you have been put in the position you are. Everyone expected to come back and see me promoted to officer, even though I told them not to expect it because Admiral Waverly still carries a grudge against my family despite my record," she told him with a resigned shrug. "I'm still just a Chief, and I will respect your rank, but I hope you can respect that I know how things run around here and that you'll feel comfortable in asking my advice on things. I know it's an unusual situation, but as all of you will soon find out, this crew is unique and we do things Shepard's way….which isn't always by the book. So give it a little time, have a little patience, and you'll see soon enough that the crew will warm up to you if you give us a chance."
"May I have a word with you in private Chief?" Garvey asked after a minute.
She nodded and they moved off to the side. He looked her in the eye for a minute and she waited patiently for him to sort out his thoughts. "Chief how long have you been a Marine?"
"Almost ten years, sir."
"I see," he said looking away, doubt in his eyes. "And you were really nominated for officer promotion and turned down?" he asked quietly.
"I was nominated by both Commander Shepard and Admiral Hackett. But Admiral Waverly is in charge of those kinds of promotions and unfortunately he served with my grandfather who surrendered at Shanxi. His personal grudge against my family name is the reason why I was turned down for officer candidate school despite a perfect grade point average and the reason why I will probably never see officer stripes during his lifetime," she said unable to keep the resentment from her voice completely.
"But that's ridiculous! Why hasn't anyone said anything?"
"Politics, Garvey. I have had over half a dozen CO's recommend me for Officer School and every request has been turned down. My last CO that went up against Waverly for me found himself on a five year tour of the inner system. I understand Admiral Hackett went to bat for me, and was still turned down. Waverly just has too much clout for anyone to be able to do much about it," she sighed.
"So really, you should be doing my job and I shouldn't even be here," he said dismally realizing why his reception had been so cold.
"In their eyes, yes," Ashley admitted. "Like I said, I told them not to expect it to go through. I was hoping that with an Admiral finally in my corner I'd have a better chance, but not this round it would seem. We honestly weren't expecting an extra Marine compliment, but no offense sir, by sending your squad and putting a green graduate in charge on a highly dangerous mission, it was meant to be a slap in the face to the Commander, the Admiral, and myself. I'm not going to take your presence personally, but sir, I thought I was ready for the action I was bound to see on the Normandy. I had nine years of service under my belt, I have graduated from a number of Spec Ops training including H.E.A.T., and I was the only surviving member of my squad on Eden Prime. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Shepard's more pissed about having someone so green being put in charge of these men and women. The Skipper cares about her crew, and contrary to the rumors, she does care if she loses someone. She's worried that having someone as inexperienced as you will put the rest of the squad in danger, and that's why she is angry with Command's decision to assign you to us."
"I…see," he said slowly, looking even more dejected. Ash felt pity for the young man who had found himself a pawn in a game of power. "She's never going to trust me is she?"
"Work hard, do what she says, be willing to accept advice, keep your head down, and don't get yourself or anyone else killed and she'll come around. It took almost three months before she finally began to ease up on me. It took me nearly five to really become settled with the rest of our crew. Working with our alien crewmembers is going to take time Lieutenant. They all come from cultures so different from our own and it took almost everyone on this crew awhile to adjust. So what you will see when Wrex and Garrus come aboard is the result of time and patience on everyone's part. None of us are going to expect you to trust in them overnight, but we will expect you to treat them with the same amount of respect that we show them."
"We will do our best Chief. And given the circumstances, any input and feedback you can give me would be helpful. I may be green as you put it, but I'm not stupid. I have had men and women under me with more experience and I have always been open to suggestions and recommendations. I just hope that you understand that I also have an impression to make here. And while it has been very few times and I hate doing it, there will be times when I might pull rank. Most of the time it has worked out, but on the few times it didn't, I have been man enough to admit to my mistakes. I need to know that the only time you will disobey an order from me is because you know without a doubt that my order may get someone needlessly killed."
Ashley nodded. "So long as you are willing to admit to your own mistakes and learn from them sir, I will not interfere with your orders unless I feel they may jeopardize the team or the mission. At that time I will make a strong recommendation in hopes that you will take my suggestion into consideration."
"Then I think we are going to get along just fine Chief," he said with a somewhat relieved smile on his face.
Out of respect, Ashley straightened and saluted him with a smile on her own face. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.
"What can the rest of us help you with Chief?"
"Let's get everyone's bunk assignments squared away since it seems a few of the Engineers and our Requisitions Officer are also bunking in with us, and then maybe you can introduce me to the rest of the squad. After that, I'll steal your tech specialists to help me finish out the Mako's final inspection while the rest of you do a full weapons and gear inventory and inspection. The Skipper likes to leave port knowing that we are ready for a fight at any moment. Given the action we've seen this past year, it's been a very good habit to get into. Most of us keep our armor nearby because we never know when we need to be suited and ready to drop within a few minutes."
"Sounds like we should run through some gear up drills in our spare time then too."
Ashley nodded in approval. "I would strongly recommend it and the Skipper will be pleased."
"As soon as the Senior Briefing is over I'll tell the squad to be prepared. Perhaps you would do us the honor of demonstrating to us what the Commanders expectations are?"
"Aye Aye, Lieutenant."
"Thank you Chief."
"Lieutenant Garvey I assume you have now had a chance to catch up on the rest of the crew manifest by now, but I let me introduce you to the rest of the Senior Staff. You have already met my XO and Navigator Lieutenant Commander Pressley along with our CMO Dr. Chakwas. I believe you have also been getting to know Gunnery Chief Williams, who has been placed in charge of Armory and Security. Lieutenant Moreau whom you will all hear us refer to as Joker, is our Chief Helmsmen and the best damn pilot in our fleet. Dr. Liara T'Soni has been assigned to our crew as a civilian expert in the science field, with a particularly vast knowledge of all things Prothean - which given our particular assignment became rather critical. Finally, we have Lieutenant Commander Adams who is our Chief of Engineering."
Garvey nodded politely to each, happy to see that most of them seemed at least somewhat open to his addition to their ranks and didn't dismiss him outright. "Everyone, this is Lieutenant Garvey, and he is the team leader for the new squad of Marines that was recently assigned to our crew."
There was a murmur of quiet welcomes, but Shepard kept them short before cutting back in. "Now, down to business. Lieutenant Garvey have you been brought up to speed with details about our last mission?"
"Yes, Commander. I was also made aware of the fact that not everything we've all been told may be quite the full story. While we were assisting Chief Williams, she has…clarified certain aspects of your last mission."
Shepard nodded in approval. "Good," then she looked at the rest of her crew. "Apparently with a few rare exceptions- Admiral Hackett being one of them- the Alliance and nearly every other race is trying to lessen the seriousness of what happened on the Citadel by saying it was merely a Geth incursion. They are keeping details of Sovereign and the threat of the Reapers from the general public."
There was a sudden clamor of angry comments and noises of disbelief that quickly followed that statement. Shepard allowed it, for she understood all too well their outrage at having their personal sacrifice diminished. She noted that Garvey looked around, a serious and thoughtful expression on his face as her crews' reactions re-affirmed what he'd been told. Finally she held up her hand to quiet them after a couple of minutes.
"Trust me, I know exactly how you feel and now you can see why I was a bit out of sorts earlier. Hackett and Anderson are fighting this decision, but it is going to be a long hard road for them to pave. People are scared and right now the Geth threat is more than they want to believe. Command and many other governing bodies of the various Council races believe introducing the idea of this new menace will only cause mass hysteria and panic. Many of those in power don't even want to accept the existence of the Reapers."
"How can they ignore so much evidence though? Sovereign was literally delivered to their doorsteps." Liara asked.
"And there-in lies the problem. A lot of Sovereign has mysteriously disappeared - scavenged by private entities who swooped in during the confusion. What has been left looks very much like advanced Geth components to the rest of us. The Quarians are the only ones who have really been able to study the Geth in the past and know their make-up. Their scientists are regarded as the only experts who can definitively say whether Sovereign was Geth or not. I asked the Admiral to send what they have retrieved to Tali's father since he is an Admiral within their people, but it may take some time before he can verify our claims," she sighed.
"In the meantime, our orders are to seek out and destroy the Geth strongholds that are beginning to pop up all over. These orders come from the Alliance in conjunction with the current de facto Council members, which means that this is my current assignment both as an officer and as a Spectre. Since we know that the Geth are trying to set up a strong presence in Council territory, I can understand the Council's desire to see the Geth pushed back. What I won't stand for however, is having the Reaper threat completely swept under the carpet and both Admiral Hackett and Councilman Anderson agree with me on that. As a secondary and covert mission, we will continue to look for further signs, information, or knowledge about the Reapers in an effort to thwart another invasion that may wipe out all life in the galaxy like they did to the Prothean civilization.
"We will be heading to the Citadel to pick up our two remaining crewmembers, and I will also have a meeting with Councilman Anderson as to a few more specifics. Our reception there may be a mixed one so I suggest that the crew remain aboard while I take a small team to the station for the meeting and a supply procurement stop. Joker….don't do anything to piss Control off this time. I don't need to draw any more heat than what we will already be likely facing."
The pilot looked somewhat irritated but nodded. "Yes Ma'am."
"Adams, how much longer does your crew have?"
"My crew is finishing the final checklist now Commander. Normandy should be ready to be under way within the next two hours."
"Good. Joker, as soon as Adams gives the green light for his department, notify me immediately and then be ready to undock. In the meantime, I suggest that those of you whose duties are not required at this time, get some rest during the next week. Once we set out from the Citadel we have another long mission ahead of us, and it might be almost as ugly as the last one. Dismissed."
Everyone stood and began exiting the room, a mild grumbling rising between them about the dismissal of the Reapers. Garvey hesitated and then straightened when he finally caught Shepard's eye. "May I speak with you privately Commander?"
She nodded stiffly and then when the rest of the crew had left she leaned against the wall and folded her arms. "Decide you want off my boat Garvey?"
"Permission to speak freely Commander?"
She smirked. "Why the hell not. Let's hear what you have to say rookie."
His expression tightened, but he took a moment to force himself to relax. She was baiting him and he knew he couldn't let her get to him, or he would never have her respect. "Look, I know I'm the new kid on the block. I also know that half the men and women in my squad are probably more qualified to lead than I am just on experience alone. But we all have to start somewhere. You started somewhere yourself Commander, and if I read right, not everything always went according to plan. Whether you were at fault or not, people died."
She straightened, her eyes going cold. "I would choose your next words carefully Lieutenant."
"Listen I know there are two sides to every story. And I had the unfortunate experience of having McCullough as one of our field instructors during a live fire exercise. I and half my training squad damn near lost our lives because of his recklessness and ineptitude. All I am saying is that someone was willing to give you another chance. That's all I am asking here Commander. I may be new, but I AM a Marine. I have faith in my training…I just need the experience and some guidance. Frankly, I couldn't have asked for a better Commanding Officer. I also know the truth about Williams, and I think what is happening to her is bullshit. I'm sorry that I'm the poor son of a bitch who got chosen to be the pawn in this little power game, but here I am, and there was nothing you or I could have done about that. Now I am willing to play by your rules Commander, but all I ask is that you give me a chance here. Marines don't do the job because of the pay…we do it because we want to help make a difference. I am here because I want to prevent what happened on Eden Prime and the Citadel to anyone else. Help me learn how to do that the best way I can."
Shepard was silent for a long time, just gazing steadily at him. He held his breath, hoping that his request would break through her iron shield. She shifted minutely, but he noticed her stance relaxed somewhat, even if her eyes narrowed just a bit. "This ship is mine Lieutenant, and we don't always do things in compliance with Command. As a Spectre sometimes my duties to the Council override or even conflict with my orders from Alliance Brass, and I may break them outright. Are you willing to go the full distance as I see fit?"
"It may take some getting used to, but I think both I and my team can handle that. Way I see it, this ship is Council property anyway. Besides, if you had obeyed your orders the last time, this discussion wouldn't even be taking place."
She nodded. "You might also notice that I let some minor infractions of the Regulations slide. For now, I expect you and your men to adhere to them until you get a feel for how things run around here. If I bust someone down for breaking a regulation, I don't want to hear a complaint about what I do or don't allow other crew members to get away with."
"Understandable. It's something I've seen on couple of ships and shouldn't be a problem Commander."
I also tend to take small teams to the surface with me. Less people to worry about and we draw less attention. You need to understand that if we go into a what I know is a highly dangerous situation, I will be taking those I know and trust until I feel you have enough experience. In return I promise that you will see your fair share of action, and I will give you the chance to learn from each away mission. In most of those situations you will be partnered with at least myself and Chief Williams and if she gives you a directive in the middle of a fight, I expect you to follow it for the time being."
"Chief Williams and I have come to an agreement Commander and there will be no problems there."
"I also expect you and your squad to treat our alien crew with respect. They take some getting used to, and sometimes they can be difficult to figure out. Garrus is a Turian and keeps to himself until he gets chatty. Wrex seems like your typical Krogan- badass, blunt and won't give you the time of day until he respects you. But once you have earned his trust and respect, you'll have one hell of an ally in your corner. Liara…Dr. T'Soni," Shepard corrected herself, "is still working on figuring us humans out. Don't underestimate her though. Beneath that quiet and almost naïve exterior is a young woman who is probably stronger than most of this crew. Liara is both a skilled fighter and a powerful biotic. During our pursuit of Saren, we discovered that Liara's own mother had fallen under Sovereign's compulsion and Liara was forced to fight her. Lady Benezia did not survive the encounter, and despite the pain of having to kill her own mother, Dr. T'Soni never wavered once in her commitment to stop Saren and Sovereign."
Garvey nodded. "I understand patience will be needed and you have my word Commander that I will do my best to show them the utmost respect. I have no problems working with aliens Ma'am, and from the comments I've heard from others, they are actually looking forward to the chance to interact and work with other races. I believe it will be an enlightening experience for all of us."
Shepard was quiet for a bit longer and then finally her posture relaxed completely as a smirk turned the edges of her lips upwards just a fraction. "Then I think we won't have any problems Mr. Garvey. Welcome aboard Lieutenant," she said with a nod to him.
He grinned back at her and then saluted. "Thank you Commander. It is an honor to be here Ma'am."
"Talk to Williams. You'll be going down to the Citadel with me, and she'll tell you what to bring."
"Aye aye Commander."
"Dismissed, Lieutenant."
He saluted once more and left feeling much better about his assignment. He knew it would be a bit of a rocky ride in the beginning, but he and his team would adapt if they just hung on and rode it out.
Shepard sighed as her lights came up at Joker's contact. "Commander, Normandy is cleared for undocking."
Well at least she got an hour of rest. She pulled herself upright and slid her shirt over her head. "Notify the crew we will be undocking in five minutes and have all departments run through the final check in. I'll be up in a moment."
"Aye aye Commander."
Two minutes later she was striding through the busy CIC making her way to the helm. "Status?"
"All departments check in and green to go Commander. Port hatch has been sealed, docking ramp has been withdrawn, and Control will be removing the locks in T Minus two minutes and ten seconds."
Two minutes and ten seconds later the docking clamps released and Normandy's control was turned over to the helmsman. "Normandy you are cleared to launch. Please proceed to sector two nine seven. Good luck and god speed."
"Copy Control. Heading to sector two nine seven. Normandy out."
Shepard remained behind her pilot, watching for several minutes longer as they cleared the traffic that always surrounded both earth and the massive shipyard that hovered above it. As they slipped into empty space Joker looked up at Shepard. "We are in the clear Commander."
She stared out the inky blackness and watched as the band of the Milky Way drifted by the window. Somewhere out there, just beyond that rim, an armada was poised. For now, she could do nothing more than find more pieces to the puzzle and prove that their existence and threat was real. Still staring out into the infinity, she recalled an old line from one of the rare stories she'd heard as a child. "Second star to the right and straight on 'till morning Mr. Moreau."
He raised an eyebrow at her reference but then nodded and turned back to his console and double checked his course heading for the Citadel. "Aye aye Commander."