Chapter 4: Bed Rest

"Get them to the infirmary!" Dr. Chakwas followed after the technicians and biotic soldiers who safely extracted the marines trapped inside the burning mako, and Liara helplessly watched beside the other aliens that weren't trusted by the other human shipmates. XO Pressly gave the kind of look that lacked the blatant distrust displayed on most of the soldiers' faces, but the chain of command would undoubtedly be bitter had Garrus or Tali gone in as part of the rescue team.

Liara swallowed thickly and shuffled uncomfortably when she saw the commander wrapped in biotic energy at all times, a combined effort from several soldiers taking turns shielding the wounded in stasis fields as they were brought in through the hanger.

The plates on Shepard's right side looked melted, but it was hard to tell from this excruciating distance.

"Goddess, please let her be okay..."

"Wrex!" Tali called out when the krogan came last - the only one still walking - until the hangar door began to close, and the Normandy's core thrummed quietly as thrusters engaged to disappear before any more geth came to ambush them. Liara followed after the quarian as she rushed over to Wrex, and the scientist frowned worriedly at the black smears and soot decorating patches of the krogan's armor. She looked at the elevator where the unconscious marines were protected by the other soldiers, and the door slowly slid shut. The last thing she saw was Dr. Chakwas wrestling the commander's damaged helmet off, and Liara wanted nothing more than to slip in on the ride up... But she knew she would only get in the way, and it hurt.

Those other biotics looked incredibly fatigued, even Kaidan. How long had they been out there trying to find a way inside the mako, after the technicians stabilized the fire?

"Keelah, Wrex what happened down there?" Tali pointed at the damaged mako that took significant time and effort for the biotics to get back into the hanger, for even the tires were of no help with a broken axel. "How did you three do that to the mako?!"

"We didn't do it," the krogan grunted his correction, and wrestled off his helmet. Dried orange blood glued to the side of his headplate, but he wasn't in a rush to go to the med-bay.

Liara bit the inside of her lip when the hostility between quarian and krogan was made apparent as Wrex outright glared at Tali. The scientist had heard some arguments, but she dearly hoped the two would not choose now as a good time to exchange blows.

Unfortunately, apparently, it was a good time.

"The geth you quarians unleashed are responsible for our ambush."

Soon Tali would say something about what the krogans themselves unleashed upon the universe, to which Wrex would argue that they saved the universe from the Rachni, and then Garrus might join in when turians are roped into the argument because of the events causing the genophage, and circles would be drawn with words, to which Liara usually kept to herself because heated arguments were both scary and frustrating when only emotion factored in. It was futile. There were more pressing concerns.

And for once, the scientist had the courage to make that known.

"Enough!" Liara gestured to the elevator, ensuring she always had an eye on it so that she could take the next one as soon as it appeared. "This is why the other Alliance marines do not trust us, when we cannot even trust each other!" Heat collected beneath her tight collar when all eyes in the hold fell on her. "What happened was unfortunate and Commander Shepard would not blame any of us, she would blame the geth and rightly so. Tali is not personally accountable for their actions."

"Ah hah," the quarian jutted out her hip and crossed her arms in victory, turning towards the tired krogan. Seriously, he needed to get his injuries checked too.

"Likewise," Liara continued, "Garrus is not personally responsible for the krogan, Wrex is not personally responsible for the war. Can we end this and focus on what really matters?"

Long seconds of silence ticked by and the scientist started to retreat into her shy shell when the technicians stopped working on the mako to look over at them. She jumped when a heavy hand fell on her shoulder and glanced over, her throat constricting in fear when it was Wrex.

"The asari is right," Wrex murmured gruffly, catching everybody off guard.

Liara nearly melted right then and there. She stole quick glances, and her mouth curled in a small smile when the technicians looked more surprised rather than frightened.

"Saren's our enemy here," Wrex grunted. "Get your asses back to work." He squeezed Liara's shoulder as gently as a krogan could, and she still winced from the pressure. It was soon the least of her problems when he walked back to his usual spot - instead of focusing on what really mattered to him - but not without one last tease, booming the implication for everybody in the hanger to hear. It sent them all, but not a purple-faced asari, struggling to stifle their chuckles.

"Shepard's waiting for ya to take care of her, asari. She'll feel lots better when you make her ass work too."

Hours in the lab kept the scientist's mind focused as she ran hematology tests on various vials. The purpose of colors for each vacutainer bottle had been memorized perfectly from her time in university, despite archeology being her sole interest at the time. Part of her was humble and grateful that she had taken the time to take the medical courses seriously, another part gave herself a proud pat on the back with each vial inserted either in the blood chemistry analyzer, or the coagulometer to analyze the marines' hemostasis.

If only she could do more for them, but at this point she would do anything she could to assist Dr. Chakwas.

Liara inserted the vials and started the machines, then strode over to a station to begin preparing a blood film using a vial of Ashley's blood. The asari worked mechanically, electing to keep her thoughts as far away as possible to work and not worry. She grabbed a glass slide, using a pipette to carefully place a drop of blood on each end of the glass before she used a spreader slide to disperse the blood over the slide's length. She left the slide out to air dry and grabbed the one she already prepared for Shepard with a Wright-Giemsa stain, to remember who she was viewing.

And to study the cells more thoroughly.

No matter what, Liara was confident she would find even a Goddess-damned speck of dust, should there be absolutely any abnormality circulating the commander's system from what exposure she may have had to Antibaar's atmosphere. The scientist walked over to her seat and inserted the blood film in the microscope, pouring herself into her work to ignore her quivering innards from what she had seen when she entered the med-bay.

Armor plates were peeled off and laid against the wall, and they were badly burned. She wasn't brave enough to look over at the plinth Shepard laid on. It was frustrating, to be this helpless, just like when she came to listen when she overheard the med-bay's comm system erupt to life with the commander asking Dr. Chakwas for medical assistance. Never before had she heard Shepard unfold the way she had, and Liara didn't blame her from what she could piece together in the background - the explosions that faintly sounded behind the geth comm chatter, and Wrex's shouting for an emergency evacuation as he reported of both marines' unconsciousness. The scientist prayed that Shepard had been knocked out cold from whatever imploded inside the mako, rather than being trapped and forced to deal with fire stripping shields down, and gradually melting through armor.

Shudders tore through her at the horrid thoughts, and she renewed her efforts in her work again.

Every nuclei and granular inclusion was inspected cell by cell; Liara eventually let out a sigh of relief when she found no alarming deformities in the commander's blood. She relaxed and rubbed her stiff shoulders, leaning back and staring at the machines running the tests as she contemplated whether or not she should go back in the infirmary to check on Dr. Chakwas... And Shepard.

Curiosity was a driving force as well as a horrifying one, and the scientist knew she was not ready to see what cringe-worthy burn wounds the marine may have. Fortunately, Chief Williams sustained injuries that hadn't appeared to be life-threatening. Hopefully the same was said for Shepard. Wrex reported he applied medi-gel when he talked to Dr. Chakwas on the comms.

Liara glanced over at her door, unknowingly chewing on her lip as she mulled on her decision. She cast it to the wind and abruptly strode to the door, taking a deep breath before she forced herself to push the button to open the way to the med-bay.

Ashley was the first Liara saw on the plinth at the far end of the infirmary, with Dr. Chakwas leaning over the unconscious soldier and lifting eyelids to flash a light. The medical doctor looked up upon the intrusion and gave a tired smile, before her gaze flickered to the marine still shielded by the wall Liara had yet to cross.

Another deep breath; the scientist took one long stride into the infirmary and begun her report. "The tests have turned up no abnormalities for both Chief Williams and Commander Shepard." A level voice and clinical professionalism, everything she didn't feel inside. "Muscle degeneracy has not been affected by any exposure either of them might have had to Antibaar's atmosphere, and there has been no detection of spiked methane or argon levels in their system."

"Thank you Dr. T'Soni, I'll make note of your findings once I'm done running tests here." Dr. Chakwas smiled amiably, then jerked her chin towards the unconscious woman laying on a plinth in the scientist's peripheral vision. Liara swallowed nervously when she just knew what the doctor's next request will be. "Would you mind testing the Commander's pupillary light reflex?"

Goddess save her.

"Y-yes of course, I mean I do not mind no a-and..." Liara cut herself off, mumbling quietly to herself as she reluctantly turned towards Shepard's body with eyes closed. She nipped the edge of her tongue when Dr. Chakwas chuckled, and the scientist took one last deep breath to steel her fraying nerves.

This was for Shepard's own good, and her chance to help Dr. Chakwas even more. She could do this...

Liara hesitantly opened her eyes; her stomach immediately plummeted as she slowly made her way to the unconscious marine's side. There were bandages wrapped around the right arm and a significant amount of padding and gauze tucked along Shepard's right side, traveling all the way up to just past the bottom of her jaw.

"She's been burned, but she'll recover Dr. T'Soni. To the Commander, this is more like a little scratch." Dr. Chakwas' calm reassurance and modest confidence in her work was refreshing, and the scientist gave an appreciative nod in thanks. "The good news is that she hasn't suffered a concussion unlike Chief Williams. I don't think the Commander would appreciate having her mind be even more scrambled than it already is. Though, I think it'd kill her if she ever took her own injuries seriously. I swear, sometimes she's worse than Wrex."

Dr. Chakwas chuckled quietly, though Liara was wholly focused in her current study of the soldier's body. Thankfully Shepard was still wearing a bra, but the scientist was more concerned with the wounds. And an observation she too noted in the past - right away when she had joined this crew, even, after Shepard sustained injuries from rescuing the scientist.

"She's going to want the scars, isn't she?" Liara mumbled with a defeated sigh, and she looked up only to be disheartened by Dr. Chakwas' firm nod in the affirmative.

The scientist was no closer than she was before as to what logical reason there was to keeping battle scars, if they were more likely to develop scar tissue and hinder the soldier's duty years from now. Especially if she kept every single one. They had the technology to help regenerate to make it look like as if nothing ever happened, but they didn't have the technology to reverse and alter the composition of what already was.

Liara picked up one of the flashlights and leaned over, lifting one of Shepard's eyelids as tenderly as possible before the scientist flashed the light to test the eyes' nerve function. "All clear, they're constricting and dilating normally." She flashed more often than she needed to, but only because this was the only time she could see the emerald eyes with so much depth and clarity... But they looked hollow, like the time Elysium was mentioned.

There were scars in her eyes, too. Ones that told tales of gruesome reality. And, according to an inked line on the unburned forearm, a history of victory.

Curious, Liara meandered to the other side of the plinth to get a closer look at the tattoo, caught in the middle of being surprised and having expected something like this. She couldn't help but wonder what Dr. Chakwas' thoughts were when the scientist studied Shepard with inquisitiveness unrelated to medical tests, but no doubt such thoughts would be reserved - not just out of professionalism and privacy, but respect. And so Liara continued her inspection, both doctors pretending it was for the sake of a thorough check when it was just curiosity getting out of hand.

As usual.

Liara tilted her head to the side upon spotting another tattoo at the junction where shoulder and arm meet; a sniper rifle. She smiled small, having expectations built and confirmed as she discovered these little clues on her expedition. Liara set the flashlight down and struggled to stifle her smirk when she silently read the simple sentence accompanying the rifle, and she could almost hear Shepard's voice with it.

"Take it from my cold, dead hands."

Something told her that the commander would never allow anyone to touch her gun even then.

"How long will Shepard be out?" The question - and casual deference - slipped out without even thinking. Liara retreated in a shy shell when Dr. Chakwas' tone held barely-suppressed hints of mirth, but at least the medical doctor spared her - and even enlightened her with something she wasn't sure was ever right to say, considering the commander's rank and status.

"If I don't keep Lucy on medication, she will wake up and move even when she should be on bed rest. In the state she's in now, she needs a week; and that's the bare minimum."

A defeated sigh from both doctors, and Liara's head fell dejectedly. She was both nervous and eager to see the green eyes looking lively once again, even though she had no idea what to say - apart from a heartfelt apology from their last far-too-personal encounter. But if it happened again, she needed to take immediate action the way a human would, and seek out a solution to the problem at hand. Never again did Liara want to be left behind. She would much rather be where the action was - even if it spelled fatal disaster - in hopes to be the one that would truly get to help on the front line, rather than in some cramped room in the back of a lab or hanger.

"Hm..." Dr. Chakwas' hum brought Liara out of her reverie, and the doctor walked over to the commander's burned side. "We'll have to wait to see what the machines will do for her. It may be a couple hours before I know if I have to surgically remove any skin, if heat continues to build up under the tissue."

"What happens now that Commander Shepard remains incapacitated?" Liara asked out of curiosity, still unfamiliar with how the chain of command and Alliance military worked.

"XO Pressly is in charge until the Commander is awake - and if I deem her ready to continue her duties." Dr. Chakwas turned around, her shoulders sagging as she strode to Williams. "I've no choice but to deem them both ready even if they're not."

What? Why would she do that?

"Someone has to fight Saren and the geth, and right now Lucy is all we've got. She wouldn't listen to me even if I pulled rank and ordered bed rest."

She could do that? It seemed Liara still had much to learn about how the Alliance functioned. It made sense however, but she had a lingering suspicion what Shepard would do.

Dr. Chakwas sighed. "If it came down to it: she'd just say she's a Spectre and doesn't have to listen to me anymore. She's by-the-book until she remembers she doesn't need to be."

"Has she always been like this?" Liara smiled a little when she was at least able to draw a small laugh from the doctor, and Dr. Chakwas glanced over her shoulder at the subject of their conversations, then gave a fervent nod before going back to tend to Williams.

"Now that I think about it, I suppose she isn't truly a by-the-book soldier. She's always been polite and seemingly subordinate upfront, but she would get creative and find roundabout acceptable ways to go against whatever she didn't agree with. She's a unique kind stubborn, but that's the kind of person the galaxy needs to fight Saren and the Reapers. No matter how many times she's kicked down, Lucy always gets back up. Keeps me on my toes. I never know what she's about to walk into the infirmary with. Ah, before I forget; a fair warning, the Commander can be... somewhat agitated when she wakes up, medicated. Don't take it personally." The doctor chuckled as she head over to her computer terminal to start charting down her notes.

The kind of person the galaxy needs. Liara looked down at Shepard, and instinctively reached to push away strands of hair sticking to the marine's face.

The commander meant everything to the galaxy, but what did the galaxy mean to her?

Sorrow crept in. From what Liara researched thus far, the galaxy had been unfair to this woman - even her own homeworld had been brutally ruthless to her. Why was Lucy was so driven to protect the universe, no matter the personal cost to her?

Goddess, Liara prayed it was still personal. Nothing was worse than fighting while dead inside.

Music played in the far distance. The melody was soothing and the flow of instruments melding together was peaceful.

Lucy felt as if she was drifting out in the middle of a sea, where there was no imminent danger or potential stress of coming under fire. She was also incredibly stiff however, and tried to wiggle a little in her relaxing imagination. When she did, sharp pain shot up her side and she tensed even more, grimacing when agony diffused around the origin where she first felt the burn.

Sounds started to sound clearer. The blue sea with endless horizons faded away. Gentle humming caught her attention, and her focus shifted to identify where this music was coming from. Darkness consumed her vision and for a moment, she felt like she was outside her body. Minute by minute, she gradually became aware of where her limbs were - and the sharp sensation of cool metal sticking to her back. A groan slipped out of her without meaning to; within the same instant, the relaxing music completely stopped.

"Commander Shepard?"

That voice...

It was just as soothing as the sounds from earlier. The marine opened her eyes and turned her head; groggy green eyes connected with ocean-blue irises where nervousness shone bright. "How are you feeling, Commander?"

Like absolute flimsy shite dragged through a sewer of puke and piss and feces and then left out in the desert sun to dry up, turn crusty, and then flushed down the loo again.

But.

"Perfect," it came out as a hoarse rasp; Lucy winced when her raw throat burned, karma for her lie. She began to push herself up on her elbows, but gentle hands - blue hands? - kept her down by her shoulders. Her gaze snapped to the bandages snug around her forearm, with light pink scarring traveling up along her inner arm. First and most important thing's first. Eyes panned from the blue hands and followed the source to the face: Dr. T'Soni.

"Water?" Lucy whispered weakly.

"O-of course, Commander. One minute please."

Dr. T'Soni's jerky movements were a telling sign; she was growing more anxious by the second, but Lucy was not of mind to care at the moment. The marine took another look and noted the side of her torso was taped with protective gauze, and she curiously poked at it.

Bad idea.

Searing pain exploded beneath her skin and chewed down her side like volcanic lava; unaware, her head had already thrown back as a raspy hiss tore through her lips and charred her throat even more. She caught glimpses of movement and glanced over when the scientist was soon back at her side in a flash, a cup of water carefully cradled in both hands.

Dr. T'Soni's worried tone bled through as plain as day. "Are you alright?"

Please. It already made itself evident that Lucy had a complicated relationship with honesty and truthful answers. Spare them from the bullshit or give toilet paper for her mouth.

"I'm going to adjust the bed so you can sit up and drink safely." Dr. T'Soni handed Lucy the cup of water before bending down to reach the plint's levers, adjusting carefully incrementally, stealing many worried - almost paranoid - looks at the marine. As endearing and noble Dr. T'Soni's intentions were, true to the minerals...

It was actually pissing Lucy off.

"I understand you only want to help, but I'm not some invalid vegetable, doc." The marine grumbled and fought past the pain, quickly sitting up before blue hands had the chance to push down on her shoulders again. As she threw her head back to drink, she gave the scientist the kind of look that dared her to stop Lucy, and instead Dr. T'Soni immediately averted her gaze. Had that really intimidated her that easily? No wonder there have been so many misunderstandings.

"Of course, Commander. M-my apologies, I never meant to i-imply..."

"It's fine," Lucy rasped shortly after drinking, wiping her mouth with her hand. "Sorry, temper. Never been a model patient." A small smile. "Dr. Chakwas would know."

Both aching and burning pain had permanently embedded in her side, buzzing as if colonies of wasps were buried underneath her skin. It wasn't the most excruciating she'd ever been through; and over countless injuries, she developed quite the tolerance for situations like this. Compared to the N7 training in Rio de Janeiro, this was a cakewalk.

Silence left curiosity to probe her and she looked around the infirmary; empty, except for the current two residents. She ooked back at the skittish scientist who was looking down at the ground again, having been caught stealing a glance. A small part of her urged in temptation to tease, until her brain made a connection as to why she was here.

The geth ambush... Gunnery Chief Ashley...

Disjointed memories played in no particular order. Lucy stiffened when she remembered glaring directly into the red light of the geth sniper's scope. Her gaze snapped to her bandaged arm and she held it up, inspecting as she murmured, "the mako... I only remember bits and pieces after the shot. I think I kept passing out. There was another fire, or something?" Lucy looked over at Dr. T'Soni, her own concern bleeding through her tone as she asked, "how's Williams?"

"She's fine now, though still suffering from a concussion. Full recovery will take another couple of weeks. You, too. Perhaps longer." It would have to make itself short.

Dr. T'Soni seemed to hesitate for a moment, and she slowly took the empty cup away from the marine. Lucy wasn't quite sure what all this tip-toeing was for, and almost frowned when the scientist's smile screamed fake and nervous as all fucking hell. But why?

"Do you remember anything from the last time you woke up, Commander? You were still under the effects of medication and incoherent, but... Somewhat agitated, and-"

"Somewhat agitated," Lucy snorted, suppressing a chuckle in time before the pain kicked at her ribs. Now she had a clue as to why the scientist seemed as though she was bracing herself for an outburst of some sort. "That's putting it mildly. I know how much of a model patient I'm not, Dr. T'Soni. Dr. Chakwas showed me a couple of vids before to show me what I'm like when I'm medicated. I was cursing at everything, wasn't I?" She smiled - albeit accompanied with a grunt shortly after pain shot up her right jaw - and shrugged when the scientist nodded meekly. "Well, sorry if I said anything that offended you, doc."

"What? No! You did nothing of the sort!" Dr. T'Soni had a flame that rose to the surface of her eyes, before it was abruptly snuffed out. Lucy had no idea what it could even be for, and was further confused when the scientist decided looking at the floor was still the most interesting thing in the entire universe. "Goddess, I should be the one apologizing to you too..."

Instinct surged the need to protect through her. "You still can," Lucy quipped lightheartedly; she felt much better the moment she got to be the reason a small smile cracked Dr. T'Soni's frown. The marine's natural accent bled through, and it was strangely amusing to watch flickers of cluelessness on the scientist's features, before realization seemed to dawn on her. Copper and tellurium, alright.

"But y'don't really have any reason to 'pologize, so don't sweat it, okay?" Lucy's puzzled as to why T'Soni stared at her with an incredulous expression, and the marine wiggled her jaw left and right to try and ease out the stiffness as she shrugged again. "What, why ya lookin' at me like that? Is it the accent?"

"No, no. W-well, I admit it is strange to hear from you..." Thanks. "Very strange, actually." Not helping. "But that is not it. Are you not upset with me?"

For what? Maybe Lucy had suffered a concussion after all. She gaped dumbly as her eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and wracked her memory for times the scientist might've offended her. All she had was that their last encounter was wildly uncomfortable and far too personal, yes, but nothing to be upset over - Dr. T'Soni was genuinely confused and hadn't seemed to have done it on purpose. Nothing else was coming to mind, and it was then Lucy realized that she'd been staring at the scientist's mouth.

"Nah," she mumbled absentmindedly, though it felt as though she was missing something... And her thoughts felt somewhat sluggish. Her movements had a sway to them; she felt as though she was floating around a bit, before keenly aware of where her limbs were in space. It had to be whatever medication she was on, and she tested her senses by turning her head left and right to see the lag in her vision. It was as if she was drunk. That feeling was fun, sometimes.

Well, there was no fun to be had right now. Lucy looked back at the guilty-looking scientist, and worked her very best at mustering a good smile as she gave a thumbs up with her uninjured hand. Even if she were to be upset - at whatever it was she seemed to have forgotten about - she had to score as many brownie points as possible to trick the good doctor into letting her off this plinth, without immediately calling for Dr. Chakwas. The scientist had a good heart, and that was dangerous - especially for Lucy. She couldn't afford to be trapped on bed rest, not with Saren still out there, smugly running about the whole galaxy.

"I assure you, Dr. T'Soni, you've got nothing to worry about." Lucy took care to filter her accent as best as she could in her addled state, setting the precedence for a commanding air.

"...Just like that, I am forgiven?"

Why was the scientist beating herself up so much? She really didn't have to.

But then Dr. T'Soni's eyes narrowed in suspicion, and whether or not she believed Lucy was about to be an entirely different question. "You're doing this just so you can go." The scientist sighed before she even got an answer.

Fuck her sideways, was it written all over Lucy's face? She worked hard to be unreadable. It had to be the medication. Her accent slipped out again anyways. "C'mon, doc, you know I can't stay here. I have to get back to command."

"You must." She went to get another cup of water, and offered it to Lucy. "Dr. Chakwas ordered bed rest and said she won't clear you if you move around."

Ugh. Of course she did. How unfortunate for her that the marine had the trumpest of all trump cards.

"I'm a Spectre, nobody's the boss of me." Lucy retorted swiftly, but grabbed the cup when the urge to drink consumed all else. She threw her head back and downs the water as if she'd been dying of thirst for days, looking up over the rim of the cup when Dr. T'Soni chuckled quietly.

She had that look like she expected that response. So she was warned, then. No doubt it was the first thing Dr. Chakwas knew the marine would say.

Lucy fought a smile in reaction to the soothing sounds. Soothing; it reminded her of earlier, before she opened her eyes. "By the way, what was that music? Or was I dreaming?"

"Music?" Dr. T'Soni inquired innocently, but the marine would have had to be blind to miss the way purple sat at the base of the scientist's neckline. "What did it sound like?"

"Classical stuff, the kind that made Wrex want to kill me." Lucy set the cup aside and swung her legs over the plinth's edge, struggling not to let mischief plaster all over her face at the sight of the scientist's flustered look of annoyance. She wasn't as innocent as she played. "Is that the kind of stuff you like? You're a real romantic, huh doc?"

"M-music is scientifically proven to help aid the healing process." The stammering and mumbling hardly made for a convincing lie, and Dr. T'Soni spun a little too quickly as she stiffly walked to refill the cup at the water dispenser - almost like she was trying to escape. The scientist was visibly shaken when Lucy's raspy chuckles filled the infirmary. Dr. T'Soni's voice grew significantly smaller as she stumbled out more words. "The sound waves encourage and stimulate new cell growth, and-"

"Give it up doc, you know that I know you're lying. Nothing to be embarrassed about y'know. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it. I won't ever deny the chance to listen to music."

"But it is scientifically proven-"

Oh, she was adamant about this, wasn't she? Well, Lucy could play along. Anything to get out of this med-bay and up to the CiC. She held up her hand to interject. "Relax, I believe you. Dr. Chakwas told me a little bit about what classical music can do, that's why I was playing it in the mako. Apparently it's physiological benefits doesn't extend to krogan."

That seemed to pique the scientist's interest. "It doesn't?"

"Know how I said Wrex wanted to kill me, earlier? Yeah. I wasn't kidding. I'm pretty sure he wasn't, either." Lucy took the offered cup when the scientist came over, grateful to have this healthy supply of water. Dr. T'Soni seemed to be lost in contemplation, her eyes staring into space; probably digesting the newfound data. It was moments like these that the marine secretly appreciated, because it was her turn to observe the nuances of asari behavior.

Of course, that was all she was studying. Of course...

Duty called, though. Lucy had to cut this short. She used this moment to try and nonchalantly sneak away instead, stopping at the water dispenser to mask her intention.

"Bed. Rest."

Alas, subterfuge still proved to not at all be her specialty.

"C'mon, doc, you know-"

"That I know that you need bed rest. And to change your bandages."

Jesus Christ, it was another Dr. Chakwas in the making. Lucy's guard was demolished before she had the chance to even think to bring it up, shooting an exasperated look. "You've been corrupted, Dr. T'Soni. Just what did Karin do to you? Is she controlling you through hypnosis?"

Blasphemy seemed to garner easy reactions from the scientist, who looked baffled one second, and chuckled the next. Though such ridiculousness was usually locked up in the deepest privacy of Lucy's thoughts, this almost made it seem worth it to let it out more often - even at the expense of painting herself as a complete fool.

Dr. T'Soni stopped laughing and smiled. She didn't have to say anything when she begun to play classical music again and grabbed the med-kit, her command issued in silence.

"Get to bed, Commander."

"No point to this," the marine huffed, reluctantly climbing back on the plinth. "I'll be more useful up at command instead of laying here, staring at the ceiling. I'm not tired."

"Mm-hm," Dr. T'Soni hummed, smiling to herself as she busied away with setting up the medical kit. There was a glow about her, an ease to her movements.

Between the soothing melody and the gentleness of the scientist's hands as she worked on changing the bandages...

Lucy fell asleep.