Reassigned
Commander David Anderson
The Harris Military Base on the edge of Vancouver was set up, for among other things, one of the main Earth side facilities which was cleared and set up for N7 space lift and mission command. Though its main facility was as a transport hub for North America and the Alliance Fleet in orbit. To that end the hangers and tarmac was packed full of F-63 Trident fighters and then the Bruin assault shuttles.
His eye drew to two of the former as they rocketed down the runway then immediately began pouring on the Gs as they tilted towards space and disappeared after just a couple of seconds.
Ah, I never feel more at home then on an Alliance base. Anderson grinned behind his sunglasses.
The smile died on his lips when he saw who was waiting for him, or more to the point the look on his face. The second command of his squad looked at the two of them approach, his eyes hidden behind his own shades but somehow Anderson knew he was staring at the figure trailing in his wake, his mouth set into a permanent frown.
"Donald," Anderson greeted the man as the two of them grasped each other's hands.
"I heard that you were bringing Shepard but I wasn't sure if I should've believed it or not. I thought she was on trial for a court martiable offense, not to mention the war crimes."
Anderson gazed at the man with a frown now that the point had been made, I suppose this will be something I am going to have to get used to. Donald Diver was the man who he had gotten to know over several long years, a more capable squadron XO he didn't know, and he was even a couple of years older then the Commander. But he was always aggressive about his opinions and by the book, even if that book's usage descended into the creative.
"Look the Prime Minister wanted my advice on how to deal with her situation and she is still an Alliance soldier until such time as the court martial rules her otherwise. This is a parole situation, nothing more, nothing less."
"Do you trust her to watch our back?" Donald replied, unconvinced.
Anderson's lips quirked into a mild smile, "you know the one reason she is here is perhaps because she lost control because of what the Batarians did to her last squad. If someone gets in our way I am confident she can put them down."
Donald grunted.
Abigail Shepard
She slowed to a stop and bit on her lip as she watched Anderson chat with his fellow soldier. Somehow she gathered the two of them knew each other but the Special Forces Commander looked tense and every once and awhile the other man turned or gestured to her.
Are they talking about me? She wondered.
After a moment Anderon broke off the conversation and turned back towards her, "Come on Shepard, this way." He waved her over.
Anderson led her to a small building nestled against the perimeter fence with a single communication dish. It was nondescript and thus the perfect accompaniment to what was in the interior.
The interior was two rooms divided by a pain of bullet resistant plexiglass. On one side was a projector and a white wall display and on the other a desk, rows of chairs, and six other soldiers waiting for her. The entire ensemble was bathed in blue light making it look all official like.
Abigail looked over her fellows with some apprehension, wondering what they were thinking of her, suspecting that they all looked down on her just like the man who greeted Anderson…which was here as well.
A lithe, tall woman approached her with a smile, "Danielle Abrams," she offered Abby her arm.
The Valkyrie took it and grasped it in a firm shake. "Abigail Shepard good to meet you…what do you do here?"
"I'm Anderson's communication and medical specialist." The woman greeted. "And well… no need to mention what you are doing here."
I suppose not. Despite the last line Abigail did feel somewhat more at ease.
"Gentlemen, ladies, please be seated."
Abigail turned her eye towards the front of the room where now Anderson was standing right next to another man dressed in the uniform of a intelligence specialist, by the name on his vest he was 'Higs.'
Abigail did as she was bade and sat in the seat on the far left in the second row, Danielle joined her sitting on her right.
The projector whirred to life and projected a display of a bunch of images flashing over.
"Since the Batarian attack on Elysium some time ago the Alliance launched Operation Instant Resolve in an attempt to deal with the terrorist and pirate organizations related to the Batarian extremist core throughout the Traverse and Terminus systems.
"As many of you are aware that officially the Batarian government does not endorse these activities. But unofficially the Alliance strongly suspects that they are using these organizations to engage in a proxy war…and without much in the way of actual evidence of these ongoing activities the Citadel Council wouldn't look too kindly on us engaging in direct and open warfare, thus we have no choice but to play their game."
Wow, this was the same briefing I was given just before we hit Torfan… more or less.
The images now switched to a picture of a man, wearing a white coat and spectacles of some kind along with a tie as intelligent eyes gazed back at them.
"This is Michael Ellison," Intelligence Chief Higgs started, "he graduated top of his class from John Hopkins with associate degrees from half a dozen other universities throughout the Alliance and the first human to give a guest lecture at the Citadel University of comparative species genetics and Serrice University. He is quite a brilliant man renowned across Citadel Space. He went missing from his home on Terra Nova three months ago."
That's a mouthful.
He clicked another control and the image shifted again, this time to a seedy looking back alley somewhere, the architecture looked unknown to her but the other figure in the picture he was talking to was a Batarian.
"This is a picture obtained via an intelligence channel and it shows him on the Batarian colony of Rokae. We believe he is working with the Batarians, either elements within their government or an unaligned mercenary organization, to kidnap humans and conduct genetic tests on them."
He finished his speech leaving a stunned, incredulous silence in his wake.
"What makes us think this?" Donald started. "The Batarians are known as being slavers what makes us think that they are doing anything different?"
"Because over the last three months some of their actions haven't been entirely above board. Conducting them not in open operations but several people have gone missing, most of then teens or young adults, from several colonies." Anderson started. "And some of these Batarian raids have produced missing colonists which have not made it to their slave auctions."
The squad descended into an uneasy silence as they considered what was going on in front of them.
"Now," Anderson said clicking the controller again causing the image to shift once more, this time to a picture of the Batarian Alliance border, "we do not know exactly where Ellison has gone to ground since then so we cannot risk going in until we have a target, we will be using every single bit of intelligence at our disposal to root him out of the background. Until then we are on hot standby, waiting for-"
The door to their left opened and another woman entered the room, also dressed in the uniform of an Alliance Navy Intelligence crewman.
"Excuse me, sorry to interrupt your briefing, but sir," she bent over to whisper in Higs's ear. Shepard watched his eyes grow wide from whatever he was being told.
"What is it?" Anderson inquired.
Higs straightened then looked at the Commander, then at the squad in the bay behind the glass.
"We have a change of mandate and priorities, since we are one of the only squads in active circulation so close there just was an attack on a Terra Nova element zero refinery. Batarians are suspected to be involved."
Angry chatter broke out around her but Abigail paid it no attention, her eyes narrowed at the thought. Batarians, again. She knew that the mission would involve them but still, the knowledge she would be facing them so soon after Torfan filled her both with excitement and dread. Excitement to prove herself again at the enemy which had laid her low, an implacable foe which needed to be fought. But dread that either she'd mess up again or that the Alliance would consider her actions wrong and she'd end up back in jail.
"What's our transportation look like?" Anderson inquired.
The newcomer fielded the question. "The SSV Agincourt is in orbit and has been ordered to prep for awhile. We have a Bruin fueling up on the tarmac right now, you leave in thirty."
Anderson nodded and turned towards the briefing room, "step to it Marines."
They did so straightening to attention before each of them filed out, Abigail was the last one to leave.
Abigail was back out in the tarmac, the engine turbines of the shuttle they were approaching was beginning to spin up.
Anderson had fallen back as the rest of his team began making their own preparations.
"Quite a team you've got there." She nodded towards them.
"Thank you," he grinned, "we have been together a couple of years now and I know it won't stay that way but it is good to know that they've got our back."
"I had a good team once too," Abigail murmured half unconsciously.
Anderson looked her over. "Come on the best way to honor them is to move forward. We are in this together."
Her head snapped back as she wasn't aware she had even verbalized the thought, but then after a moment she smiled and nodded, grateful for the perspective.
With that they climbed into the troop bay after the rest of the squad and the transport lurched skyward before its main engines cut in.
The man across from her was eyeing her up and she gazed back at him, not backing down from the challenge, knowing what his problem was and not caring.
If Anderson trusts me that is good enough for me...and should be good enough for him to.
His name tag on his combat vest read 'D. Diver.'
She sighed, this is getting ridiculous, "Shepard." She stated.
"Donald." He returned.
"Whoa the tension is so thick in here you could cut it with a knife," the one who looked like the heavy weapons chuckled over in a corner.
Abby turned towards him and cocked her head, "I think since I am the new girl on the block I'm not sure if I need introductions, but then I might not be around forever so maybe that would be premature?"
Donald smirked to himself given what he thought of that idea.
"Well I'm Edward Mitchell," the man leaned a hand across his chest and then patted his neighbor next to him, "this here is our quiet, yet friendly we assure you team sniper, Cameron Foley."
He grunted in response.
"And of course you already know Danielle Abrams," he nodded to the woman who had already sat next to Abby on the other end.
"Well I am glad...at least some people seem more welcoming then others, I look forward to serving with you."
Donald grunted again.
Before they could talk any more they looked at the viewport as the Alliance Frigate was beginning to grow in the view port.