Dhals Folly, Digeris, March 20th 2186 CE
The interior of the HQ was sparsely decorated given the Turians preference of function over form. Max was happy to see stained glass windows were not an actual "thing" for Turians after all. The level he had worked on where the Embassy was housed must have been some sort of religious center in its past life. He glanced over at Ree who was grinning as she sat cross legged in the padded chair next to him and tapped away on her datapad. He turned back to his datapad and resumed reviewing the personnel files of the prospective members of his company. He was still feeling uneasy about Ree's proposition, but the other Turian seemed to hold so much sway over her mood that Max felt anything he would say would only serve to drive a wedge between Ree and himself. So he decided to focus on work and let their relationship follow in due course.
In addition to being an instructor Max was to be a class advisor for a Company of soldiers. Ree would be an advisor for a sister Company as would a few others who had come with them as well. All told there would eventually be six companies of students, each totalling just under 200 with four platoons of about 50 members each. Each platoon would be broken up into three squads with three, five person fire teams. The structure mirrored Turian and Alliance troop organization almost perfectly. It differed in that the Alliance preferred four person fire teams due to the nuances of Human centric maneuver warfare.
Though the student companies would live this way, it was no guarantee that they would function like this. Max was appreciative of the organization of the troops thus far if for the simple fact that it allowed him to place the onus of executing tasks upon the platoon commanders and they in turn would task their squad leaders. It also meant saving him long sleepless nights writing out Tactical Evaluations for every swinging dick, cooch, tentacle, cloacae, or whatever sexual organ was relevant.
A secretary approached them and beckoned Ree to follow her. She cast a nervous glance at Max and hurriedly closed out of whatever messaging program she was using and followed.
"Knock 'em dead kiddo." Max called out to her retreating backside. She waved dismissively and continued on.
Left to his own devices Max went back to the many bios he had to review. He was stoked to read that Verfher would be in his company. As of now he was slated to be a fire team leader which Max felt was below his abilities. He bookmarked his dossier and moved on. Max noticed movement in front of him and looked up to see a Salarian and Quarian enter and sit beside him. He exchanged greetings and went back to his datapad.
After about twenty minutes or so Ree returned with a confident smile welded to her snout as she strutted by.
"Hey, I'll catch you at the stadium later." She called out as she passed by and made her way to the exit.
"See ya." Max replied as he stood and smoothed out his uniform. He followed the secretary along a hallway and entered an office on the other end of an automated sliding glass door. Portraits of famous Turian Generals and Admirals hung from the faux wood walls of the hallway.
The secretary lead him to a vast tiered office through the sliding door and motioned him inside. Max tugged at his blouse one last time and took a deep breath before he entered and reported in.
"Sir, Gunnery Chief Barrett reporting as ordered." He said while saluting smartly and standing at attention.
"Stand at ease Gunnery Chief." Came a gravelly voice. Max looked down to see who he thought was Alarees sitting behind a wide white-ivory looking desk. The crest was clearly male but the coloration was Ree down to a tee. His colony markings were what truly set him apart from her; A series of narrow dark green lines ran vertically down his face.
"Have a seat."
Max complied and rested his datapad on his knee as he filled a cushy high back chair set facing the gleaming, mostly barren, desk.
"So, Alliance Marines eh?"
"Yes Sir."
"Are you from Earth originally?"
"No sir, born aboard an Alliance Frigate."
"Bred military, good." the Prefect said appreciatively. "I take it you've read up on your assignment?"
"Yes sir, I'm eager to get started."
"All in due time. So tell me a little bit about yourself."
"As I'm sure you already know I'm a Combat Engineer by trade, I am also Exo-Heavy qualified. I caught the tail end of the Skyllian Blitz and was based mostly out of Kaver station where we chased pirates. I was was promoted to Gunnery Chief while on Maklan and was given orders to the Turian Embassy, Earth. Did about a year and some change there before volunteering to come here Sir."
"Any family?" The Prefect asked over his bridged fingers, his electric blue eyes daggering through him.
If not for the markings and rock crusher voice I'd swear I was talking to Ree
"I'm a widower Sir. Just a mother and father, both Alliance. Sir"
The Prefects brow furrowed at this revelation but didn't dig.
"So tell me Gunnery Chief, what are humans bringing to the table here? I ask this because our last… evolution? Was by all accounts a disaster. So much so that my predecessor was relieved. I have some ideas as to the direction I want to take, but I'd like to have your input."
"Well Sir, I think that we can do well in any capacity. Sure we don't have the strength of the Krogan, the speed of the Turians, or the intel capabilities of the Salarians. But we know how to utilize our strengths and to minimize our weaknesses."
"Ah, the fabled Maneuver Warfare doctrine of humanity." The Prefect leaned back in his chair and folded his hands in his lap as his eyes seemed to smile smugly. "Tell me how this perceived 'strength' is relevant to our current setting."
Max started to feel the Prefect had an axe to grind but he played along.
"Well in the sense that we employ our Combat Power to best effect an enemy in a manner of our choosing we, -I, plan on employing the many races placed under my care to maximize our effectiveness at any given task."
"-I don't buy it." The Prefect said as he smirked from his chair. Max became confused and was leery about appearing contradictory to his new boss.
"Well Sir, I am at a loss for words. What aspect do you not agree with?"
"Oh I believe in the doctrine your species ascribe to. I don't think it's applicable to individual races though." The Prefect stood and walked to the wall behind his desk and gestured to the glass cases mounted to it. "This is what I believe in."
Max had, up until that point, resisted the urge to look around the office. He focused on the cases dotting the wall and began to recognise familiar shapes within them. An early model Avenger assault rifle was mounted in the case gestured to. Above it was a Krysae sniper rifle. Next to it an early Turian Gauss rifle complete with battery packs. Below it was an Asari black powder musket, its swooping comb and embellished actions were unmistakable.
"Guns sir?" Max asked while an eyebrow rose incrementally.
"What they do Gunnery Chief, their capabilities. Every weapon has a clearly defined role, a specific task and purpose. No matter who wields them they will not change in their capacity for destruction." He said as if explaining a very grown up concept to a child.
"So what you are telling me is there are no benefits to diversity if all concerned can operate a gun effectively Sir?"
"Exactly." He replied as he rounded his chair and sat back down, a smug sense of satisfaction emanating from him as if he'd made some grand revelation. Max couldn't help but glance over the Prefect's shoulder at a Batarian barrage pistol from their early industrial age. Its symmetrically arranged barrels and tiered sights for all four of their eyes was a dead giveaway. Max had been looking for such a pistol for his collection for years and felt a twinge of jealousy.
"I don't agree Sir."
"Then prove me wrong." The Prefect said tauntingly. "You see, I was a Gunnery Officer during the First contact war. I've seen what humans can do. Looking back on my experiences I have come to the realization that though your weaponry at the time was crude, it still proved to be effective. How you may ask? Simple, we were complacent; we lost an edge we had gained from nearly twenty thousand years of history. The kinetic outcome of our little spat reminded us that the physical reality of war hadn't changed; it was how we had employed the tools of the trade that had.
Would it have mattered that the person pulling the trigger on the Mass driver that tore a trashcan sized hole in my ship had three fingers instead of five? I would submit no. My goal here is to do just that; prove that an interspecies coalition provides no additional benefit than to serve as some bureaucratic flagship for cooperation"
"Well then Sir, I have a Task and Purpose here" Max said, his jaw set in determination.
"We shall see."
Jaa stepped away from the three story window of her office as Alarees emerged from the building exit below and disappeared among the buildings of the compound. Presumably making her way to the stadium. She leaned forward and scratched at the discolored skin above her artificial legs. She had been chatting with Ree via her datapad and had arranged for all three of them to catch a shuttle to town that night to peruse the local scenery. She felt a wave of revulsion as she remembered the human touching her all throughout the day. She had focused her repugnance into determination and bore through it. She actually almost retched several times during the day.
I will fucking destroy you and your disgusting pet. You will feel the loss and agony of my pain.
The phantom pain of her missing legs made her grit her teeth as she sat back down at her desk. So she opened a drawer and moved aside an unopened bottle of pills her traumatic counselor insist she take, but not mandate, and pulled out a sedative injector. She flinched slightly as the needle punched a neat hole in her arm. A sense of numbness spread from her arm to the rest of her body as she sighed contentedly. An old itch began to nag at her so Jaa logged out of her work station and left her office, making her way to the Mech bay set in the northern side of base. Her steel toes snicked down the tiled hallway of the Headquarters building as she made her exit.
Arriving at the rear entrance of the mech bay she waved her Omni at the lock and it obediently opened for her. She looked out over the various stalls and gear stored in the bay as the smell of oil assaulted her nose. She saw the flickering shadows cast from a welding spark on one of the far walls and made her way towards it, weaving around bins of all kinds of mechanical hardware. She eventually arrived at the source of the light where a M-080 Infantry Fighting Vehicle was being worked on by a young human in dirty safety orange coveralls. She shielded her eyes and watched the human work for a while before he paused to grab a tool from the mass of gadgets laid out on a hand cart behind him. He froze as he turned to the cart and noticed her, his face hidden by a welding mask. He set down his welding tool and removed his mask to reveal dirty blond hair and wide fearful blue eyes set in a fairly young face. His thin lips pursed to hide a quiver as he looked at her.
"Ma-Ma'am, is there something I can help you with?" his nasal voice enquired.
"Don't play coy with me Reeve, come here." She said while smiling hungrily.
"Ca-Cabalite, I'm still on my shift. Could we meet later?" He stammered as he swallowed hard.
"Did I fucking stutter Private?" She whispered as her eyes narrowed and she crossed her arms.
Harrison Reeve hung his head and shuffled to her, giving the bay nervous sidelong glances in the hopes that someone, anyone, would enter the bay and interrupt this impromptu visit. When no rescue came he stood nervously in front of the Turian and rubbed at his elbow while looking down at her bladed feet.
"Are you having more problems with your prosthe-"
Stars exploded across his vision as Jaa cocked back and open palm slapped him across the face. He tasted blood as he covered his throbbing face.
"How fucking dare you question my orders." She hissed as she regarded her claws with interest. Reeve held his face as he looked at her fearfully, he dared not take a step back from her.
"I-I'm sorry Ma'am."
She nodded in satisfaction and spun on heel, stepping off towards one of the offices. Harrison knew to follow and did his best to blink away the tears as he trailed her. They entered the dingy, grease stained office and she hopped up on a workbench and leaned back against the wall. Her weaponized legs swinging playfully as Harrison closed the door behind him. He hesitated by the door as her hooded eyes smoldered above a menacing grin.
"You know what to do." She purred. He nodded dejectedly and went to a cabinet and pulled out a tool kit and medigel injector. His hands shook as he walked the items to the work bench and set them beside her. How she typically addressed him from this point on was normally indicative of how well he would fare. He arranged the various scalpels and pliers neatly beside her and took a step back. Jaa looked down on the surgical implements with interest as she ran a finger over them. She paused over a hooked blade and stroked it tenderly for a few seconds before moving on. Harrison looked on nervously as he rubbed at his elbow, his face sporting a three fingered hand print.
"I've been feeling pain in my legs again." Jaa breathed as she lifted a chisel-like flat bladed scalpel and inspected it closely. "I think you need to check the neural interlinks"
Harrison swallowed hard and nodded numbly. It wasn't going to be good. He approached her as she continued to inspect the scalpel with fascination, the fluorescent lights overhead making its edge gleam. He moved to kneel at her legs but she clicked her tongue in admonishment.
"Now now, we don't want to get our uniforms dirty, do we?" She said while looking down at him. She was salivating now and wiped her dark green snout on her sleeve. It wasn't going to go well at all, he thought to himself. He slowly and methodically unzipped his jumpsuit and pulled his arms out of it. Tying the sleeves around his waist he resumed kneeling at her feet. Jaa breathed heavily as she took in the scarred chest and arms of the skinny human boy.
He was a work of art, each puckered scar perfectly symmetrical to one another as they covered his arms and chest. Some tracks were arranged in patterns and swirls while others were a little more abstract. Lately the patterns had become a little more chaotic than usual. Jaa frowned in disappointment at some of the early work done. Work he had done before she truly freed him.
Every work of art has its flaws. She thought as she looked on. Harrison uncoupled one of her legs and disconnected the hair thin filaments that linked her nervous system to the prosthetic. He gently laid the leg on the table and set about opening access panels to assess it's internals. Jaa laid a hand on his and he froze while slowly looking up at her. She could smell his fear, it was disgusting.
"What's wrong Denae?" She purred, her sub vocals barely under control with excitement.
"N-nothing Ma'am" Harrison whispered as his eyes began to water. She was using that name again for him. This had started about a month ago when news of a fresh batch of students and instructors made the rounds. They had been practicing her "art" since before then, but it was never this vicious. There was a time when he looked forward to such visits, the sting of her touch coalesced into a euphoric high as he bled the pain of his past away.
"Come here, it's ok. We've talked about the fear, the pain is only fleeting." She soothed as she edged closer to him and wrapped his head in his arms. His eyes widened in shock at the sudden change in behavior. She had never touched him like this, it had always been through one of his tools. Maybe the worst of it was over.
*hiccup*
The blade of the scalpel was arrested by his ribcage. He tried to jerk away but her arm held his head and neck tight to her chest. The blade was withdrawn after she twisted to dislodge it from sinew and bone, leaving a half inch cut several inches below his nipple. She released him only to grab him by the throat and leer into his eyes as he sobbed openly.
"Shhhh, Shhhh, It's ok. We're almost done, here take this rag, you're bleeding. Shhhh" She whispered. He nodded and accepted the rag, dabbing at the weeping wound as a familiar euphoria tingled in the back of his mind. Jaa sealed the wound with the medigel injector and frowned at her handiwork. She had been reckless and put the cut right in the middle of a circular pattern she had been working on for the better part of a month.
"Oh now this will not do. I guess we can turn this into a pinwheel." She said thoughtfully as Harrison stared blearily at the scars on her face. The numbing tingle of the medigel burned across his stomach and chest. He felt her grip tighten around his throat and he choked on a cry of pain as the scalpel danced in and out of his skin, stitching his ribcage with rivulets of blood as she rapidly stabbed him. Each thrust invoked a garbled cry as he flinched up onto his toes. She had to stop when the blade stuck between two ribs as she finished the second spoke of the pinwheel. She twisted and it snapped off the handle.
"Oops" She laughed "Let me get that" she said as she pulled on the embedded blade with pliers. Harrison had entered a state of partial catatonia by then and looked down numbly as the blade was removed from someone else. A hand much like his but not his dabbed at his chest with a now mostly crimson rag. She worked on him again with the medigel injector and he looked up into her face as she did so. Her amber eyes glowed with fierce concentration, a faint smile playing across her face. She was so beautiful when she was like this.
"I love you."
She stopped and looked into his eyes. She genuinely smiled at him and his heart skipped a beat as she cupped his head in her hands.
"There you are Denae! I knew I could find you in there." She purred before violently ramming her tongue down his throat. He choked on it as she pulled on his head, seeking to bury every last inch. Her hot breath blasted his face as he gurgled and choked on the extremity. He gave in and felt himself push into her as well, her sharp teeth grazing his cheek. She relented and withdrew, her mouth snapping shut as she did so. Harrison stumbled away from her and retched on the floor as Jaa wiped her snout on her sleeve.
"Put me back together." She sniffed as all interest in Harrison left her.
Harrison nodded and smiled as the narcotic side effects of the medigel took hold, it was the best it had ever been.
Vaul side stepped his way into the bench seats of the stadium along with a few other Krogan he had discovered that morning. They had mostly bitched and complained about the tight rules and regulations concerning conduct while at Dahl's Folly which he blithely ignored them for the most part. Vaul smiled at the intended insult meant by the naming of the base. Warlord Dhal had attacked this planet centuries before during the Rebellions and had placed his fleet in between the planet and the responding Turian fleets so as to turn the surface of the planet into a backstop. Stray rounds fired from the Turians had struck the planet, some of them hitting population centers. It had taken many Turian lives to defeat Dhal but the Krogans had fought to the last. Vaul regarded the mocking name of the base a cultural triumph given the fact that many centuries later the Turians still remembered how viciously the Krogan had fought.
Let them make petty insults as the blood of my people forever taints the soil of their home. Vaul thought smugly as he sat down and awaited the Prefects' address. Looking around Vaul noticed that the Krogans had been given a wide berth with many empty rows around them, as if the genophage was contagious. Most of the other races were sticking to their own except for a motley assortment sittings at the fields edge, closest to the raised platform and podium. Vaul surmised that was the staff section and was duly proven correct as he spotted the human Gunnery Chief slipping in amongst them. He sat down next to the black and brown colored female Turian and they started to chat immediately.
"That the one who knocked your tooth out?" The Krogan beside him said while nudging Vaul.
"Yea." Vaul grinned as he relived the brief rush of hand to hand combat.
"He don't look to big. I could take him" The red colored one grunted.
"I thought so to."
"Thats because you're a scrawny little pyjack."
"Eat Varren dung milk drinker." Vaul spat right before he leaned back and head butted the other. The resounding crack of his head plate hitting the others echoed in the stadium causing several people to look around in confusion. An older Krogan in the staff section stood and turned to the two who were now standing and squaring off.
"Knock it the fuck off and sit down!" The older Krogan screamed his rough voice cutting through the chilly air. Vaul and the other Krogan glared at one another before slowly sitting back down.
"You hit like a girl" The red one slurred.
Vaul ignored the other Krogan and went back to surveying the crowd gathering in the bleachers. He spotted a glint of gold reflected in the flood lamps and spotted his bunkmate amongst a group of other Turians shuffling onto the benches a few rows below. He spotted Vaul and waved sarcastically. Vaul grumbled an oath and didn't acknowledge the Turian.
"What's that, wanna go another round?" The red krogan snarled.
"I wasnt talking to you, idiot." Vaul said indifferently.
Earlier that day Vaul had woken to the gold faced one sitting at the small desk, clacking away at his datapad. Vaul wasn't supposed be up for another half hour and told him to keep it down.
"We're on a longer day and night cycle here, it's been eight hours already. You'll be fine." The gold one sighed.
"Don't presume to know what's best for me you glittery douche." Vaul had grumbled as he rolled over to block out the light from the desk lamp.
"Is somebody gwumpy wumpy." The gold one teased as she spun in the chair to face Vaul
"Shut up before I ball you up and use your spiky ass as a pillow."
"Stop it, you're turning me on." He had retorted.
No reply came as Vaul felt a knot form in one of his stomachs. The gold one shrugged and turned back to the datapad and resumed his work, albeit a little more quietly.
Presently Vaul couldn't help but replay the exchange in his head as he glared at the back of the Turians head, a mix of emotions battling for supremacy. His thoughts were interrupted as Attention sounded and everyone stood. Prefect Ferkan entered the stadium from the field entrance and took the stage. His dress grays and cloak billowed in the wind as he stood at attention behind the podium. The anthems of each of the present species played as all remained still as statues. When the Krogan anthem started Vaul and the others sang along to the brash tempo of "For We, the Strong." Even the older Krogan in the staff section swayed and pounded his chest as he sang along.
When all was said and done everyone took their seats and looked down at the imposing figure of the Prefect as he approached the podium and took in his audience. Silence hung heavily in the air, occasionally punctuated by the odd call of some avian analog off in the distance. When the Prefect grew satisfied that he had everyone's undivided attention he spoke;
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am honored to preside here today as your Prefect. I know we all hail from wildly different races, clans, sexes, and religions, but we are all here to serve a common purpose.-"
Max couldn't help but smirk at that bit.
"-In these next six months we will endeavor to strengthen our ties as a galactic community. It is with this in mind that I make a pledge to all gathered here today."
He swept his arm across the gathered crowd as he spoke, his gray cloak cascading down his arm as he did so. The harsh light from the overhead flood lights made his medals and other awards affixed to his chest glint in stark contrast to his jet black carapace.
"My promise to you is we will train to the utmost proficiency. And that you all will be treated with firmness, fairness, and dignity. Now the vast majority of you all here today average about 10 years military experience, some more, some less. This average gives us almost 2,000 years of experience! Each and every one of you brings your own set of experiences and lessons learned to the table. There should be no challenge insurmountable, no task impossible, when we have such a vast wealth of knowledge at our disposal."
Ferkan paused as murmurs of doubt and support creeped along the groups seated before him. When the noise subsided he resumed his speech.
"Now, you may have noticed that for those in the student companies you have all been intermixed. This has been done intentionally. From this point forward none here shall mingle with only their own race, you shall eat, sleep, and train together. That! will not happen ever again." He said as a slender finger knifed out towards the isolated Krogans, a scowl creasing his face. Vaul grew uncomfortable by the sudden attention and cowered inwardly as if he'd done something wrong. He looked down to see the gold one wink at him, causing his cheeks to burn even more intensely.
"Some of you may have heard of our last training cycle, and its.. shortfalls. I believe we will succeed where they have failed if only because we will no longer tolerate isolation. Steel yourselves, for our fortune awaits a mysterious rendezvous. For we, masters of our own destiny, shall drink from our collective knowledge and commiserate our failings as a whole."
Ferkan smiled as he grasped the podium on either side and leaned in towards the crowd.
"It will not be easy. Staples will become luxuries; sleep a privilege, and proficiency a reward. This I also promise you."
Attention sounded as he straightened. Ferkan saluted and promptly marched off stage, disappearing into the bowels of the stadium as the crowd awkwardly looked around for guidance on what to do next. Max pinged his selected platoon commanders via their Omni's and gave them instructions on what the plan was for tomorrow. The Turian from Thracia, Narn, pinged back in confusion citing he was the wrong recipient of his message.
No mistake, execute as ordered.
-M.B.
Max looked up from his Omni and saw the incredulous look on Narn's face morph into pride as he tapped out a reply and turned to address those around him.
Aye Aye Sir!
-N.V.