Well now that we have all the squad members present, the mission and bonding can really begin! I'm glad you all seemed to enjoy the combat against the thresher maw, as well as everyone's interactions so far. Let us just hope I can continue to keep this momentum up.
Anyways, not much else to talk about here, so let's get this ball rolling!
Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect or Naruto. They are the property of Bioware and Masashi Kishimoto respectively. This is a non-profit fan made work of fiction. Please support the official releases.
Chapter 13
Training Begins
Alicia stepped out of the elevator onto the hanger deck of the Normandy, turning and heading down the hallway to the engine room of the ship. The warship was currently heading back to the Citadel, to allow repair teams to work on the damaged Mako and to give Alicia and her ground team a chance to pick up supplies that they had requisitioned since Edolus. It was mostly a few small things, some weapon mod programs and armor enhancements, as well as a few personal items some of the members wanted. Wrex in particular wanted to pick up some type of special organic wax for one of his 'trophies' taken from the thresher maw corpse, a large fang he intended to turn into some type of necklace or drinking vessel. Wrex, having made the killing blow against the maw, had 'generously' donated the maw corpse to the Alliance for research purposes after claiming the fang, ten cubic feet of scaly hide, and forty pounds of flesh and meat, all for this own personal use.
She chuckled at the thought of Wrex drinking from the fang like some type of reptilian Viking warrior, before glancing up as she entered the engine room. Her gaze automatically locked on the slowly spinning, glowing Tantalus drive core, as it was always eye grabbing, before she looked to where Chief Engineer Adams stood, looking over a report one of the other engineers had given him. "Lieutenant Adams," she said, drawing his attention.
He turned, quickly coming to attention and saluting. "Commander, do you need something?" He asked as she returned the salute.
"I was just coming down to check on the status of the ship. Haven't had a chance to do so in person yet," she said, nodding to the drive core. "How is she treating you?"
"I've been on almost every class of starship in the Alliance Navy, and I can say none of them compare to this ship," Adams said, turning to where they could see the drive core. "The Tantalus drive core is almost providing more power for the Normandy then we know what to do with. I've had to work with Joker to balance out the drive engines and maneuvering thrusters because they were almost overpowered in their output. And the IES stealth system is a marvel of engineering. We're completely immune to everything except a visual scan, at least until the heat sinks need to be discharged. Though we can't stealth when we go to FTL or a Relay jump. Our emissions are too high for the heat sinks to handle. Overall, I'd say we're ready to handle almost any situation," he reported to her.
Alicia nodded at that, before glancing around the engineering crew on duty. Most of them were at their stations, monitoring the ship systems and adjusting power flow throughout the ship. Some however were in the middle of routine maintenance of some of the systems. Her eyes landed on the hooded, shorter figure standing at one of the consoles. "And how is she turning out?" She asked Adams while nodding to Tali.
Adams glanced over at the quarian girl, before chuckling. "I have to say that she is a huge benefit to the engineering crew. She practically knows the basic systems of the ship as well as me by now, and she's already getting an understanding of some of the more advanced systems. Give her a couple weeks and she'll probably know this ship better than the people who designed her. You've got a definite eye for talent," he said.
Alicia nodded as she heard that. "She was eager to help out on the ship. You'd think going into life or death situations would be enough, but not for her," she said. "Any problems between her and the crew?"
The chief engineer shook his head. "None so far. Most of the engineering crew kept their distance at first, but they're starting to warm up to her. She's a bit of a shy one though, isn't she?"
"Don't worry, Naruto and I will sort that out," Alicia told him. "Anything else to report?"
"Nothing at the moment, Commander. I'll have an official ship status report by twenty-three hundred hours," he said, saluting her. Alicia returned the salute before moving over to Tali.
The quarian was mumbling to herself under her breath as she worked at a terminal, running diagnostics on the secondary power couplings to the sensor systems. Alicia stopped a few feet from her, grinning a bit. "Ship status, Miss Zorah," she said in an official sounding tone.
Tali let out a yelp and whirled around at that. "Commander Shepard! Please don't startle me like that," she said, placing a hand on her chest.
"I was just checking on the newest member of the engineering crew," Alicia said to her with a smile. "How are you settling in here?"
"I'm utterly amazed at this ship," she said, her voice filled with awe and excitement. "She is incredible. That drive core is the most advance I've ever seen! And everything is so new." She glanced around in amazement. "Only a couple weeks ago, I was making jury-rigged patch jobs on a tug from last century, and now I'm on the most advanced ship in the galaxy."
Alicia chuckled at her excitement. "Well this ship is brand new, the first of her kind. She's a prototype stealth reconnaissance frigate. But I'm not sure I'd call her the most advance. The asari still have a few decades of technical evolution on all of us."
Tali just gave a small shrug. "From my perspective, this ship might as well be the pinnacle of advanced space flight technology. In the Migrant Fleet, there isn't a ship that hasn't been in service for less than twenty years. Some of our ships date back to our exodus from Rannoch," she said, her voice breaking ever so slightly at the mention of the quarian home world.
Alicia's eyes widened as she heard that. "You have ships that are three hundred years old?" She asked.
"Older than that. They were in service before our ancestors were forced to flee our home system," Tali said. "We've done our best to keep them in working condition, but with constant wear and tear, we've had to cannibalize parts from some of them to keep others working. Add in how hard some colonies work to keep the Migrant Fleet away and thus how hard it is for us to make large purchases of parts and equipment, we're often forced to scrounge for any ship we can find, either for parts or to replace ships we're losing to old age and mechanical failures."
By the time she had finished speaking, Tali's previous excitement had been replaced by a more somber mood, and she was glancing down slightly. Alicia gently placed a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at her. "Well I'll talk to the Alliance about ensuring members of the Migrant Fleet are able to make large scale purchases through credits or trade with our colonies. I think it would be good business for everyone."
Tali smiled at that, her eyes indicating her pleasure. "Thank you Commander. My people would greatly appreciate that," she said, before glancing at her console. "I really should get back to my work, unless you need anything from me?"
The red-haired vanguard shook her head. "No, nothing right now. But there's a meeting for the ground team at eighteen-hundred hours, in the communications room. So, I'll see you then."
Tali nodded at that, turning back to her work, as Alicia smiled while heading off now to return to her other business.
In the crew mess, Ashley was enjoying a ration of military grade ice cream, savoring the taste of strawberry and vanilla mixed together. The crew mess was largely empty save for a couple other crew members sitting not that far off who had given her nods and greetings when they had passed by to sit down earlier. Ashley had to admit it was a nice change of pace, serving on a posting where everyone didn't automatically mistrust her for the actions of her grandfather. Apparently both Naruto and Alicia's confidence in her pulled a lot of weight with the crew, as well as her own actions so far.
Her good mood vanished as a figure sat across from her, and she sat up straighter. "Vakarian," she greeted stiffly, noting he didn't have food or a drink, meaning he clearly intended to talk. Seeing him clad in regular clothing, she was a bit surprised at how slim he appeared outside his armor, since the chest part made him look bulkier then he actually was.
Garrus frowned ever so slightly, his mandibles twitching. "Sergeant Williams, have I done something to offend you?" He asked her, deciding to get things out in the open. "You've done your best to avoid me, you become cold and silent when I speak or am near. What did I do to anger you?"
Ashley just stared at him, before dropping her spoon in the empty dish that her ice cream had been in and sat back in her chair. "…you've done nothing, Garrus. I don't have a problem with you. I have a problem with turians in general," she said, arms crossed. "Your people's actions caused my family a lot of suffering and humiliation for almost thirty years now."
Garrus blinked in confusion, trying to think, before his eyes widened. "Shanxi," he whispered quietly, making the connection based on the time reference.
"Yes. Shanxi. My grandfather was General Howard Williams, the commanding officer of the garrison. The only military leader in Alliance history to surrender to an invading force," Ashley said, her voice growing bitter. "I think you guess what happened afterwards."
"But you can't blame every turian for that. The turian commander who attacked your people might have been acting overzealously, but-," he started to say, only to be interrupted.
"Your people opened fire on mine without warning or provocation," Ashley snapped, eyes narrowed. "Hundreds of humans, military and civilian alike, died because your people, without provocation, started a war with mine. And since then, we've had to fight tooth and nail just to get an APOLOGY from your people, let alone proper reparations for the damage done and lives lost."
"But my people weren't the ones who hurt your family. Your people were the ones to do that," Garrus said to her.
Ashley glared at him, before standing up. "You're right, they are. But they wouldn't have to if your people had maybe decided to speak before shooting," she said, picking up her dishes. "We're done talking, Vakarian."
She moved away, ignoring his sputtering protests as he tried to stop her. Seeing her walk away, stiff shouldered, he growled and slammed a fist on the table, causing the other Alliance crew members to glance over at him. He shook his head, turning away while rubbing his fist.
After his talk with Alicia, before the mission to Edolus, he believed that he needed to prove himself to Alicia. While landing that blinding shot on the thresher maw had given him some praise and respect, he felt he needed to work on better connecting with the rest of the ground team. He already had at least cordial relations with Naruto and Kaidan, and he knew it was highly unlikely that anything but actions, and a lot of them, would help him with Wrex. That left Tali and Ashley.
With regards to Tali, he would approach her and apologize for his earlier comments that he had made out of hand. It was too easy, though not right, to blame the quarian people for the actions of the geth, simply because they had made the geth. He needed to remember though that Tali's grandparents most likely hadn't even been alive when the geth rebelled, and so there was nothing he could blame her for with regards to the geth. He'd try to sit down and talk with her to fix things on that front. But as he had just learned from his interactions with Ashley, it would not be as easy as that with the human sergeant. He would have to overcome her mistrust and dislike of his people before he could even work on gaining her trust.
He was approaching the elevator when he nearly ran into Kaidan coming down from the command deck. The human sentinel glanced up at him, and nodded. "Everything alright Garrus?" He asked, noticing him rubbing his hand.
"Oh, yes sir. Just a little disagreement between me and Sergeant Williams," Garrus said, moving to attention. Kaidan chuckled as he saw that, shaking his head a bit.
"You don't need to be formal with me Garrus. You're not Alliance military. Call me Kaidan or Alenko," Kaidan said with a smile.
Garrus shifted a bit, relaxing. "Umm, alright si-I mean Kaidan," he said a bit sheepishly.
Kaidan nodded to him, before frowning a bit. "So what was this disagreement? Should I be checking medical?" He asked, only for Garrus to shake his head furiously.
"N-No sir! Just a verbal disagreement is all," he said quickly, only for Kaidan to raise an eyebrow at him. "I-I mean Kaidan. Sorry. Turian military training is hard to shake," he said.
Kaidan nodded quietly at that. "No worries Garrus. But with regards to Ashley, would it help if I talked to her?"
"No, this is something I need to work out with her. I don't want to cause problems between you and the others," Garrus stated. "I don't want to be a weak link on the team."
"I'd hardly call you that, but alright Garrus," Kaidan said. "I'll see you for the briefing then."
The turian nodded to him, as they continued on their separate ways.
A few hours later, the ground team was gathering in the communications/briefing room, with most of them glancing curiously at the asari also present. Liara was fidgeting a bit at their looks, since she had little to no interaction with most of them due to being in the sickbay for most of her time on the Normandy thus far. But Alicia had requested she be present as well.
Said Spectre entered the briefing room, data pad in hand as she nodded to them. "Alright, two main points to this meeting," she said. "We're heading back to the Citadel to get the Mako repaired and checked out. She took some nasty damage against that maw, and as it turned out we broke the suspension on two of the wheels and the rotation motors on the turret were damaged as well. We can't fully repair them here. I'm also going to see about finding a facility for us to train at, as we need to work on team drills and fire coordination," she said, looking them all over. "I don't know how long we'll be there, but until we get any new information relevant to our search, we have little else to do."
As they all nodded, or in Wrex's case simply grunted, she continued. "The second bit of business concerns Dr. T'Soni. She not only requested sanctuary on the ship, but also offered her aid to our mission as well. I have decided to grant her sanctuary and accept her help, as recent information has confirmed that she is not a double agent or plant working for Saren. I hope you are not offended by me checking to make sure," she said, directing that last part to the young asari.
"Of course not, Commander. I understand your need to ensure the safety of your ship, crew, and mission," Liara said. "And I wish to thank you for granting me sanctuary."
Alicia nodded at that, smiling at her. "So, now that you're part of the team, let's figure out how you'll fit into our merry band here. Do you have any combat experience?"
Liara shook her head at that, looking slightly ashamed. "I'm afraid not. While I am proficient in defending myself with biotics, I have no real combat experience, beyond what happened on Therum," she said softly. "I do have first aid training and some basic firearm training. Both were part of the preparation for going on the archeological expeditions in the more 'wild' parts of the galaxy."
The human Spectre nodded quietly at that. "Right. When we get to the Citadel, I would like to get you outfitted in some armor and a weapon you feel comfortable using. But for now, I think it is better if you act in an advisory or support role. We'll keep you out of combat, though I would like for you to take part in any combat training we do, to help you become more acclimated for combat."
"Of course Commander Shepard. I will endeavor to help in any way I can," Liara said. "I of course am also willing to divulge any information I can that will aid in your mission."
"Do you have any idea why Saren might have gone after you?" Kaidan asked her, leaning forward a bit. "Perhaps something you found out about the Protheans?"
"Or maybe she's leverage for Saren to use against her mother," Wrex grunted, making Liara flinch slightly at that, while Alicia shook her head slightly.
"Saren's going after something connected to the Protheans. I think that's why he wanted Dr. T'Soni," she said, looking to Liara.
"Please, call me Liara. I do not think I have enough experience or age to warrant being called Dr. T'Soni," the asari said with a slightest smile. "I'm afraid I can't think of why Saren wanted me specifically. As I mentioned to Commander Shepard, I'm far too young for my work to be taken seriously by most scientists and historians. I am ashamed to admit it, but I'm only one hundred and six years old," she said, sounding embarrassed at that.
Ashley snorted at that, a slight grin on her face. "Damn. I hope I look that good when I'm your age," she teased, earning a barely stifled snort from Tali and a rumbling chuckle from Wrex, as Liara flushed a bit.
"Maybe you'll be lucky and age gracefully, like me," Wrex rumbled, waving at his scarred and slightly craggy reptilian face, making Ashley blanch at that.
Alicia raised her hands, standing up straight. "Hey, c'mon guys. Let's lay off teasing the new member until she's more settled in and used to everything," she said, looking to Liara. "And trust me Dr. T'Soni-I mean Liara. We're more than willing to listen to any information you can give us. You might know something the other 'experts' would overlook."
Liara barely blushed at Alicia's words, before nodding. "Well…there is something I've been working on proving," she said slowly. "I've been studying everything I could find about Protheans for almost three decades now. Of course you all know that there isn't much left behind by them. Their civilization seemed to reach its pinnacle and then just…vanish. They disappeared, with almost no trace of what happened to them, or barely enough to let us even know they existed. What I've discovered though, what I've theorized and been trying to prove…is that they were not the first race to suffer such a fate," she said.
Garrus leaned forward at that, looking surprised. "What do you mean?"
"Well…some of the texts and data I've gathered from some Protheans ruins and artifacts have hinted at or indicated that they discovered the ruins and remnants of another powerful civilization, which they then built their civilization on top of. I've done some digging through multiple historical sources, and come across references to ruins even more ancient then the Protheans. Most of these ruins were simply catalogued as belonging to Protheans from an earlier era, but I've done my own research, and noticed discrepancies in design and appearance between these ruins and Prothean ones that are too large to simply be a separation of time. It is a separation of culture and ideology. What's even more fascinating was the discovery of a Prothean data track some fifteen hundred years ago, in which a Prothean researcher claimed to have discovered texts from this precursor race that mentioned their own discoveries of another race before them. It may seem like conjecture, because there is practically no evidence of the race the Protheans found, let alone a race before them. But if my findings are correct, it would indicate that there seems to be some type of cycle, where ancient races forge vast space faring empires, that suddenly seem to collapse at the height of their power, and vanish with little to no trace of their existence left behind," Liara said, her voice growing excited and animated the more she spoke on this subject, her eyes dancing with excitement and passion.
Her words immediately caused everyone to glance at each other, and then at Alicia, who had grown more serious as she heard Liara's words. "You believe that there are other races before the Protheans…who disappeared like them?" She asked, slowly standing up straight.
"Y-Yes. I realize it sounds foolhardy, but-," Liara started to say, looking a bit downcast at everyone's reactions, until Alicia interrupted her.
"I hardly think it's foolhardy. In fact…you are probably closer to the truth then you realize," Alicia said, turning and bringing up an image of the Prothean Beacon from Eden Prime. "You ever see one of these before?" She asked.
Liara stood up, moving closer to examine the image. "It is definitely Prothean, but I'm not sure I've seen anything like it. What is it?" She asked curiously, glancing at the red-haired human whose gaze was fixed on the image.
"It was called a beacon by the scientist team that discovered it on Eden Prime. It's why Saren attacked the colony there, in order to interface with it. I had the unfortunate experience to unwillingly be interfaced with it as well," Alicia said quietly. "It implanted an image in my head, a vision of organics being slaughtered by machines. At the time I wasn't sure what I was seeing, but thanks to Tali, we figured out exactly what it was."
She turned to Liara, who was surprised by how serious and slightly dark Alicia's eyes had become as the Spectre continued. "Fifty-thousand years ago, the Protheans were attacked by a cybernetic race of AI known as the Reapers, who wiped them out. The beacon downloaded the images of their destruction into my mind. And now Saren is trying to find these Reapers."
Liara frowned at that, glancing down a bit in thought. "I have never heard of anything like this before. Where do you get this information from, concerning these 'Reapers'?" She asked Alicia in a slightly doubtful tone.
"As I said, thanks to Tali. She brought us information not only on Saren's betrayal but also on the Reapers, at least as much as the geth know about them. According to the geth, the Reapers were what slaughtered the Protheans. And if your theory is correct…it is reasonable to assume then that the Reapers have been doing this for quite some time," Alicia responded.
Liara blinked at that, before turning and murmuring to herself, crossing one arm across her chest and supporting the elbow of her other arm in that hand, resting her chin on her other hand as she paced in thought. "Could it be…it would make sense…if they tried to erase their presence to ensure no one was ready…y-yes, yes! That would make sense!" Liara said, suddenly whirling around and looking at Alicia. "If these Reapers are the ones behind the Protheans disappearance, it would be logical to assume they're behind the other races disappearances as well," she said. "Most likely they attack each civilization to gain something. Perhaps new technology, resources, information. Then they do their best to eradicate any sign of their presence, as well as the majority of that era's dominant civilization, in order to obscure their actions and leave the next era's race or races vulnerable to attack!" She said, pounding a fist into her open palm. "This could explain everything about why the Protheans so suddenly vanished! And why there are hints of evidence of previous civilizations!"
She looked excitedly at Alicia, only to blush a bit at the bemused look on Alicia's face, as well as several of the others present. "F-Forgive me for my outburst," she said, trying to calm herself down, before looking at Alicia again. "You mentioned it gave you a vision?"
"Sort of," Alicia said, rubbing the back of her head. "The beacon was damaged in some way, maybe before Saren used it, maybe because he used it first. The vision it gave me was garbled, barely made any sense at all. I couldn't really make heads or tails of it."
"Would you be willing to let me see it?" Liara asked her. "I could meld with you and see if I could make more sense of the vision."
Alicia frowned slightly at that, a little unsure. "I'm not sure what more sense can be made from it right now. And I'd hate to put you through what this vision did to me. I'm still having trouble sleeping at night," she said with a hint of concern in her voice.
"I understand, but perhaps my knowledge could offer some insight into this vision?" Liara asked. "At worst, the two of us can stay up late talking about the night terrors we have," she added in a weak joking tone, obviously not used to being humorous.
Alicia just smiled at that, before nodding. "Guess it can't hurt…I hope," she said, taking a deep breath and standing up straight.
Ashley frowned though, glancing over at Naruto with a questioning glance. She was a bit wary still of Liara, thinking she could possibly still be trying to pull a fast one on them, and the last thing they needed was someone connected to Saren rooting around in their commanding officer's head. She noticed though that Naruto appeared calm, and so she bit down her concerns, for now at least. Tali meanwhile leaned forward, curious about what would happen, as she had only heard of asari melds before and never seen one in action.
Liara took a deep breath as she approached the commander, gently touching her arm. "Please relax, Commander," she said, closing her eyes, before opening them. Her eyes had become black orbs as she reached mentally reached out, connecting the pulses of her nervous system with Alicia's, synching with her.
Immediately, she found herself connecting to Alicia's mind, though she kept the link to a minimum. This was going to be a very basic meld, a sharing of information and little else. She found herself curious at the lack of resistance or bewilderment on Alicia's part. "You've done this before, haven't you?"
"I'm no stranger to this, no,"Alicia mentally responded with amusement coursing across their bond. "There have been a few asari who enjoyed 'melding' with me, if you know what I mean."
Liara blushed at the implications, before moving on to what she had entered the human commander's mind for. Finding the vision, she hesitated for the slightest second, before delving into it.
In the physical world, the rest of the ground team watched as Liara's face grew more pained, the barest hint of horror appearing around her closed eyes and mouth. Naruto frowned, wondering if things were really that bad. His sister had confided that the vision left her greatly disturbed, but seeing Liara's reactions to experiencing it gave him a great idea of what Alicia was dealing with.
Soon enough the asari pulled away, gasping in surprise and panting slightly as her eyes returned to their normal blue, and she looked at Alicia, who was grimacing a bit. The human vanguard shook her head, clearing the lingering images away before looking up at Liara. "Sorry about that."
"Do not apologize, Commander. I had…some inkling what I was getting into. Though I did not expect it to be that…intense," Liara stated, taking in deep breaths as she calmed herself down. "Thank you for showing me that vision. You are right though, it is very hard to make anything out at all, beyond visions of…death and destruction," she said, her voice breaking a bit. "I would like some time to perhaps meditate on what I saw, and go through my research notes. If that is alright with you?"
"Go ahead. I think that about wraps things up anyways, unless anyone has anything they want to bring up?" Alicia asked, looking around. Seeing no one moving to speak, she nodded. "Then dismissed."
The various ground team members began to disperse, leaving the room, with Liara hesitating a bit, her eyes dancing over Naruto with excitement before she left. Naruto, noting her look, glanced at Alicia in slight confusion. She simply chuckled, shaking her head lightly. "You should expect her to assault you with a ton of questions. She wants to know everything you remember about your time before you were frozen," she warned him.
Naruto stiffened slightly at that, before letting out a sigh and rubbing his forehead. "Guess I should expect that, given her interest in the Protheans. Though I doubt she'll enjoy what answers I might give," he said, before looking up at her. "But how are you doing? I imagine seeing that vision in your mind again wasn't pleasant."
"No, not really. But this vision is something that Saren wanted. It is connected to his goal of bringing back the Reapers, whatever the hell they are exactly. So, I need to grin and bear it, until we've dealt with all this and Saren is either rotting in jail or in the ground. And then I can visit a shrink, preferably an asari one, to get my head looked at," Alicia said, her usual grin returning as she spoke the last part.
Naruto just rolled his eyes at that, before looking at her, concern returning. "Still, take it easy, okay? If you're having trouble handling this vision-."
"Then I'll come right to my little brother and open up to him," Alicia said, her grin softening as she wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "It's good you're here, 'Ruto. I think I'd have a harder time handling this on my own," she added, using one of her nicknames for him.
Naruto chuckled as he patted her arm. "Well, now that we've got that out of the way, guess I need to steel myself for dealing with an inquisitive asari. Should be fun."
"Mmm, you lucky, lucky dog you," Alicia teased him. "Having an asari so interested in you? Why can't I be the one from fifty thousand years ago with all the information she'd be interested in?"
Naruto shook his head as he started to head off, leaving her in the comm room alone, chuckling to herself. Though the chuckles died away after he was gone, as she leaned forward, placing her face into hands and tiredly rubbing. Reliving the vision definitely was not something she had enjoyed doing. She wasn't sure what was worse, the death and destruction, or the vagueness of it all. If the message was clearer, if she had some sort of context to it, maybe she could handle it better, rationalize what she saw. Standing up straight and dropping her hands to her side, she took a deep breath to calm herself. For now, she'd do exactly as she told Naruto. She'd grin and bear it, until all was said and done. Squaring her shoulders and putting on her 'commander' face, she strode confidently from the room, to await the ship's arrival at the Citadel.
Attican Beta Cluster, Theseus System
Saren felt the thump of his shuttle, a non-descript turian craft, docking in the hanger of Zhu's Hope, the docking port connected to the human colony on Feros. The planet was one that was covered in the ruins of an ancient Prothean city, which a human corporation known as Exo-Geni had funded a colonization effort to populate it. The colonists had appropriated a few of the massive towering structures the Protheans had left behind, turning them into housing facilities and other necessary structures.
Saren couldn't help but feel sickened at the thought. These Prothean ruins, housing who knows what ancient secrets, had been given to this inferior race that was plundering them from profit and greed. They were like a plague, consuming resources and knowledge with no thought for anything but their own wants. Still though, this worthless colony potentially was going to supply him with what he needed to move his plans forward, and finally find the Conduit.
As the final docking procedures had finished, he stood up, looking around the interior of the shuttle. Instead of the normal guard of geth drones he would have arrived with, there were several asari present, each armed with a variety of weapons and clad in form fitting light armor that most likely would have drawn the gaze of those unable to command their base desires. Each one of these asari was a commando, the soldiers and warriors of the Asari Republics. Unlike most other races who formed organized militaries, the asari instead utilized volunteer groups of guerilla style fighters, who gathered together from each village, town, city, colony, and nation in asari space to defend their homes or conduct missions for the government. Highly adaptable and flexible in combat, and extremely lethal with centuries of combat experience under their belts.
These particular commandoes were those loyal to Matriarch Benezia, and who now were loyal to himself as well. He had requested their presence to prevent a panic amongst the inhabitants of this dirtball of a colony, as he was sure the geth would do so. He could only smirk as he watched them prepare to disembark, securing and sealing their helmets and checking their weapons, knowing that each of them would loyally, maybe even fanatically die for him if necessary.
As the hatch opened, they saw a small group of humans moving towards them, causing Saren to sneer at the sight of them, before schooling his features and stepping out onto the dock, the asari falling in behind him. He stopped not too far from his shuttle, as the humans did the same opposite of him. The one in the lead, a slightly older looking man with very short hair, looked over the group in some confusion and apprehension, before looking to Saren. "Can we help you?"
"Yes, I believe you can," Saren said, turning on the charisma with a disarming smile, even as his eyes began to glow again. "Please take me to your master. I have a proposition I'd like to make."
"You mean someone from Exo-Geni? Why did you come here when their headquarters are-," the human began to said, only for Saren to raise his hand to stop him.
"You misunderstand me. I mean take me to your true leader…take me to the Thorian," he said, his grin widening at the sudden look of comprehension and fear in the man's eyes.
Citadel
As the Normandy finished its approach, and slid into docking berth 442, the now designated docking berth for the ship, Navigator Pressly activated the ship-wide comm. "Now hear this. Now hear this. Liberty call protocols in effect for crew. Check duty rosters for liberty rotation. Those on liberty call will observe proper protocols while off ship. That is all."
As the crew members began chatting about their plans on the Citadel, Alicia was already moving to the airlock with her ground team. "Now remember, just because you're part of the ground team doesn't mean I can get you out of jail if you start a brawl. I'm still the newbie Spectre, so I doubt they'll appreciate me using my influence to do that. So, play nice. Especially you Wrex," she said to the krogan, who just grunted in annoyance at her as they entered the airlock and exited the ship.
They were brought up short, however, at the other end of the gangway to the ship by the sight of a man clad in the dress uniform of an Alliance admiral, with a hard set face. Almost immediately Ashley drew to attention, saluting. "Admiral on deck!"
Kaidan, Naruto, and Alicia all immediately saluted, as did Garrus out of reflex. That earned a somewhat mocking chuckle from Wrex as the non-Alliance members of the ground team moved to the side, Garrus looking chagrined as he joined them. The admiral in question returned the salute, his eyes moving over the Normandy, then the ground team, and finally resting on Alicia.
"At ease. Rear Admiral Mikhailovich, commanding officer of the 63rd Scout Flotilla, 5th fleet," he said, his voice betraying nothing save for the barest hint of annoyance.
"This is an honor sir. What can I do for you?" Alicia asked, now moving to the at ease position.
Mikhailovich studied her for a few seconds, before speaking. "I'm here to see the ship that was slated for my flotilla, until the Council got their claws on both her and her commanding officer," he said.
Alicia did her best not to frown at his words. "Sir, I was just following orders from up the chain of command. I was jointly ordered by the Council and Alliance command, and the Normandy was placed under my command since she was the best ship for the job."
The admiral waved a hand, dismissing her words. "I don't blame you for the politician's choices. They see an opportunity and they take it. However, I do begrudge the fact that they gave you this overdesigned piece of tin," he said, looking at the ship with a slight look of contempt.
Alicia's temper flared slightly at that, her eyes narrowing. "She is a fine ship sir. She has already served us well in our mission, and I have no doubt she'll continue to do the Alliance proud."
Mikhailovich simply waved his hand again, dismissing her words. "Please, Commander. This ship is a farce, a ploy to play nice with the turians. She would never stand up to actual combat. Our appropriations committee had to divert billions of credits in order to construct this publicity stunt. We could have had a heavy cruiser instead."
Behind them, both Tali and Garrus bristled at his comments, the former because she hated hearing someone put down an incredible ship, especially one she was serving on and was helping to maintain; the latter was slightly insulted at this man's disregard and insults for something that was a symbol of the slowly growing bridge in turian and human relations. Garrus was actually starting to step forward to say something, when a look from Naruto stilled him.
The movement however drew the admiral's gaze, and his eyes hardened slightly at the sight of Alicia's ground crew. "And who is this with you?" He asked.
"My ground team sir," Alicia said, slightly wary of what may come next. "My team's second in command Captain Shepard, Lieutenant Alenko, and Gunnery Sergeant Williams. Over here, we have Garrus Vakarian, former turian military and C-Sec officer. Next to him is Dr. Liara T'Soni, Prothean expert and archeologist. Beside her is Tali'Zorah nar Rayya, my team's geth specialist and combat engineer. And last, but certainly not least, is Urdnot Wrex, my assault combat specialist,"
The admiral looked over each of them, before turning to Alicia. "There are alien nationals onboard this ship? Do you realize-?"
"Each of them has signed a full non-disclosure agreement, with assurances that if they break it, they can face anything from high fines to life sentences in an Alliance jail, depending on the importance of any information they release. What's more though, they are exactly the team I need for my mission, sir. They are unorthodox, adaptable, each bringing new perspective and experience to the team, which is what is needed to stop an unknown enemy in relatively unknown terrain, sir," Alicia said, her voice growing hard and serious at this man who was about to insult her crew members like he had insulted her ship.
Admiral Mikhailovitch sputtered slightly at the barest tones of disrespect in Alicia's voice and was about to reprimand her for it, when he noticed the slight look of discomfort on Kaidan and Ashley's faces, the barest look of approval on Naruto's, and the slightest movement from the krogan as he leaned forward, looking more menacing as he did so. The admiral straightened, deciding to proceed onwards. "I am here to inspect your ship. The Normandy is an Alliance ship, and I'm here to ensure she is up to standards," he said.
Alicia nodded at that. "I'll be happy to escort you sir," she said, only for him to shake his head.
"No need, I'll see to it myself. Wait here," he said, moving past her and heading to the ship.
As soon as he was onboard, Wrex let out a chuckle. "I knew there was something I liked about you, Shepard," he said.
"Skipper, you sure it's wise to antagonize him? He is an admiral," Ashley said worriedly, only for Alicia to wave her concerns aside.
"He's a pompous asshole who thinks his rank gives him the right to push people around. I can barely put up with him insulting my ship, but no one insults my team without getting at least a verbal lashing," she said.
"B-But he's an admiral! Can you really show such disrespect?" Tali asked, aghast. Alicia raised an eyebrow at her reaction, shrugging slightly.
"I'll give him the respect due to the uniform and rank. I won't give him any more than that, unless he earns it," she responded, as Tali just kept staring in surprise. Alicia just nodded to them. "You all can go ahead; I'll wait here for the admiral and see what he says."
"Fine by me. But if he starts blowing hot air again, let him know that I handle your complaints department," Wrex said with an ominous chuckle as he began stomping off towards the elevator. Ashley, Kaidan, and Garrus all followed, leaving Naruto, Tali, and Liara behind.
About twenty minutes later, the airlock opened, and out walked the admiral, who approached them. Naruto and Alicia saluted again, and he did the same, before speaking. "I am not happy with what I saw, Commander. Your crew is up to par, though your pilot obviously could use more discipline. But that ship is even worse than I thought. Who came up with that CIC design? It is completely inefficient," he said.
"It was a modified turian design, sir. Captain Anderson explained to me that the turians utilize a similar design to help increase the visibility of the commanding officer, help ensure his orders are more easily distinguished during combat operations. I'm assuming the Alliance members on the design team wanted to test how effective such a command style worked under combat circumstances," Alicia replied.
"While I can understand that, they should have done so in a lab or simulator, not on a frontline warship. It could be disastrous," Mihailovitch said.
"Actually sir, there would be no way to gauge the true effectiveness in a lab. Those taking part in the test would never move with the speed and purpose as they would in the middle of an actual combat situation. The results would be faulty," Alicia responded, making the admiral pause.
"I suppose that is true," he grudgingly admitted, only to shake his head. "But that drive core onboard. One hundred and twenty billion credits and who knows how much eezo just to make the ship move undetected? We could have three drive cores for Agincourt-class frigates at equivalent cost in credits and resources. What good does it do for a ship to remain undetected for only a few hours? It is useless," he practically ranted.
"Our stealth drive allows us to effectively infiltrate enemy systems, gather data on enemy positions, strengths, and resources, and then withdraw without being detected, allowing for larger forces to then effectively strike and disable the enemy with minimal time and effort. What's more, the Normandy would easily allow us to drop infiltrate teams and Special Forces without detection, then return to extract them. It would be a major step forward in equaling or surpassing other species' intelligence and Special Forces, such as the salarian STG," Alicia reasoned, before deciding to add a subtle jab. "Isn't that the whole point of scout flotillas?"
Mihailovitch sputtered a bit at that, before conceding. "That is true, and I suppose it would be of limited use in such a role," he said. "I will admit your reasoning does put some things into a new perspective regarding your ship, but I still am not entirely convinced that it isn't a waste of resources and manpower. I AM convinced, however, that at least in your hands, it will be used to the best of its abilities. I suppose my report will not be as negative as I believed it to be."
Alicia nodded at that as she and Naruto saluted. He returned the salute and stalked off towards the elevator, leaving the two of them to drop the salutes.
Tali still looked uncomfortable at everything that had just happened, shifting a bit nervously. "T-This won't cause any problems, will it?" She asked nervously.
"I shouldn't think so. He might raise a stink, but nothing will come from it until after Saren's been dealt with. And by then, they might just sweep it all under the rug anyways," Alicia said, turning to look at her. "You okay?" She asked.
"I could never imagine doing that," Tali said softly. "My father is one of the five admirals of the Migrant Fleet. I always saw him being treated with respect."
Naruto raised an eyebrow at that. "Your people have only five admirals? You have thousands of ships; it's hard to imagine there are only five admirals."
As Alicia activated the elevator and they stepped on, Tali continued. "Well there are only five admirals because they form one of the two governing bodies of the quarian people, and are charged with governing the entire fleet."
All three of them blinked in surprise at that. "So your father is one of the leading members of your people? Wow. Does that mean I rescued quarian royalty?" Naruto asked her with a teasing grin, to help her calm down.
Tali, initially thinking he was serious, saw his expression and smiled behind her mask, knowing he was trying to help her feel more comfortable. She decided to try and give back as good as she caught. "Yes you did. And if you aren't careful, I'll see you imprisoned for disrespect to quarian nobility," she said in as much of a snooty tone as she could muster.
Naruto's grin widened, as did Alicia's. "Nicely done," she said, as Liara raised an eyebrow.
"This is quite a strange conversation," the asari said, looking between them.
Alicia could only chuckle at that. "You have no idea," she added, only to blink as her omni-tool signaled. Activating it, she found an alert for an incoming communication. Accepting it, she responded. "This is Commander Shepard."
"Commander, its Captain Anderson. We just received an alert that you docked. Could you please head to the human embassy? We need to speak to you," spoke the former commanding officer of the Normandy.
"Understood sir. On my way," Alicia said, closing the omni-tool and turned to the others. "Unfortunately, duty-calls. Naruto, can you make sure Liara is properly outfitted?"
The vulzan marine captain gave a nod, as the elevator slowed, and then stopped, the door opening and allowing the passengers to disembark. Alicia immediately turned, heading to a nearby door that would take her towards the Presidium, while Naruto nodded to the skycar services nearby. "This way ladies," he said.
Liara eagerly followed, thinking now would be the best time to ask Naruto some questions. "Ummm, you're…Captain Shepard, correct? That is your rank?" She asked.
"It is, but you can call me Naruto right now. Probably easier," Naruto said as he signaled a cab, typing in the destination he wanted to go on the summoning console.
"Yes, right. Naruto. Is that your vulzan name, or is it a human name?" Liara asked him eagerly.
Naruto chuckled a bit at that. "It's the roughest translation of my vulzan name, yes. My name is Naruto Uzumaki, though I have taken the Shepard surname. In my native tongue, my name is pronounced Duhike Iqimuba. You should have heard Alicia try to pronounce that after I learned it and told her about it," he said, slipping into his native tongue when pronouncing his name.
Both Tali and Liara blinked as they tried to process hearing his name in his species' tongue. There had been some guttural tones when he spoke, almost like growls, that had made pronunciation more complex. Liara shook her head after a few seconds, quickly typing that down. "I see, I see. And your people shared the galaxy with the Protheans?"
Naruto's smile disappeared, and he stiffened a bit as the cab arrived, while he registered her question and tried to consider how to answer. "That…is one way of putting it, I suppose," he said finally, as the door opened and he indicated they should get in.
Tali clambered into the back as Liara frowned, following her. "What do you mean by that, exactly?" She asked him.
Naruto sighed as he got into the front of the cab, not exactly wanting to answer her question and thus relive the memories he had seen of his ancestors who had been alive during the Prothean's arrival. Finally, unable to think of a reason without being flat out rude, he spoke. "The Protheans arrived in orbit of my species original home-world, a slowly dying, relatively barren planet, approximately seven hundred years before my birth, if I'm following my ancestor's memories correctly," he said. "They decided that the vulzan had developed enough to be 'uplifted' into the galaxy, to become part of the 'glorious Prothean Empire'."
Liara blinked in confusion as she heard his words, as his last sentence had been spoken in a sarcastic tone. As the cab lifted off, she couldn't help but continue. "Wasn't that a good thing?" She asked hesitantly.
Naruto sat there for a few moments, absolutely silent, before answering, his tone restrained but with hints of anger. "I don't know. Would you consider it a good thing if your species was told by another that they're going to become part of that people's culture? That they had no choice in the matter, except to be destroyed?" He asked her.
Liara could only gape at his words. "S-Surely…y-you can't be-," she started, only to be cut off by him.
"I don't know if it was standard practice of all Protheans. Maybe my people just drew the short straw when it came to Prothean commanders. But yes, I am telling you that the Protheans arrived and told us we would be part of their Empire. They apparently admired the warrior culture of the vulzan race, watching our clans and different sub-species fight for decades for resources, or their own petty differences. They thought we'd make excellent soldiers for the Empire," he said, his voice drifting, talking almost as if he had personally experienced what happened as he stared out the window as the cab started to take off. "They underestimated my people though…when faced with this new threat we united against them, fighting them tooth and nail to maintain our own freedom."
He shook his head, drawing himself back from the memories as he turned to look at Liara, his face hard. "It took the Protheans five months to finally subdue the vulzan race, even with their ships and advanced technology. But in the end, subdue the vulzans they did. Even though my people had fought them, killed hundreds of Protheans, they still admired our resolve, our capability. They took my people to a new planet where they could flourish, and integrated our warriors into their war machine as shock troops. And that is my people's interactions with the Protheans," he said, before turning away, focusing out the front window again.
Liara could only gape as she tried to comprehend everything she just heard while Tali sat there, watching Naruto with wide eyes, having been the unintended recipient of information she hadn't expected to receive. Liara finally closed her mouth, settling back in her seat while looking slightly downcast, not having expected those answers. It took her several minutes to finally work up the courage to speak again. "I am…sorry, if I drudged up memories that were painful for you."
Naruto let out a soft sigh, slumping slightly in the seat. "Those were probably some of the least painful of the memories I could have told you about," he said quietly. "I understand you are excited and fascinated by the Protheans, but I cannot say that I am too eager to speak about them. My ancestor's memories of them are of conquering warriors who used my people to attack and kill other races who fought back against them. My own memories, what little I have of them, are far worse." He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "If you could…give me time, I can try to speak about them more."
"T-Thank you," Liara said, decided to take what she could get, and glad she hadn't upset the vulzan. She sat back in the cab, troubled by what she had just learned, trying to compare that to her notes and her own preconceptions about the Protheans. It was hard to believe that the people she believed to be an enlightened and civilized people could treat another race with such barbarism. She frowned though, wondering if Naruto's memories might not be tainted by the opinion and emotions of not just Naruto himself, but also his ancestors as well. She would need to hear more before she could judge.
Naruto meanwhile was trying to control his breathing, his emotions warring in him as he thought about the Protheans. He hadn't expected how quickly the fear of that young ten-year-old boy woken from the stasis pod and the anger he had built up since then had taken over him, and had almost led to him shouting at the young asari sitting behind him. He closed his eyes, doing his best to settle his emotions, only to blink as he felt a small hand touching his shoulder. He looked back to see Tali leaning forward, shyly placing a hand there, causing him to give her a small grin.
Tali could only nod as she saw that grin, glad that she could give him support and help him, the way he had been doing so for her so far. She gave the barest squeeze before sitting back, trying to settle the nerves that had shot through her, as the skycar winged its way towards its destination.
Human embassy
"Do you realize how much political trouble your stunt on Therum could cost the Alliance?" Udina ranted to Alicia, who simply stood there, letting him rant. Anderson stood nearby, shaking his head as the ambassador continued. "Destroying Prothean ruins like that?! If it wasn't for the fact that most of the details are classified we would have the entire scientific community braying for blood! And the turian Councilor has already been commenting on how he doesn't think you have the subtlety or finesse for this kind of work! Your first mission and you've already started jeopardizing your position!"
Alicia rolled her eyes, before speaking. "Considering how the other two Councilors already agreed with me that my decision was for the best, I hardly think that's accurate, especially since Councilor Sparatus seems intent on belittling my efforts. And considering how that facility was already overrun by geth loyal to Saren, I think the fact that I kept that amount of technology and knowledge out of his hands outweighs the loss of the facility, don't you?"
Udina glared at her, fists planted on his desk. "There are political ramifications to your choices, Shepard. You need to consider how your choices can affect the Alliance's image with the people and governments of the galaxy."
Alicia adopted a mock thoughtful stance. "Gee, you're absolutely right ambassador. Next time I'll think more carefully when I'm trying to ensure the Alliance and humanity isn't wiped out by a mad-man who hates us," she said, before getting serious. "My job isn't to ensure the Alliance's political image looks good. It's to make sure the Alliance and humanity survive. If that means destroying a Prothean ruin, raiding a batarian colony, or streaking across the Presidium bare-ass naked, I'm going to do it. Because politics and image come and go, but life doesn't."
Udina growled, and moved away, while Anderson nodded in approval, deciding to take over. "Well I for one congratulate you on giving Saren a black-eye, especially after Eden Prime. We've already dispatched two squadrons to reclaim the site on Therum, though most likely Saren's geth have pulled out by now. In the meantime, we wanted to apprise you of what we've gathered so far."
Alicia nodded as Anderson called up a holographic map of the Attican Traverse. "Now we haven't been able to pinpoint Saren's exact position, but we have received rumors and unconfirmed sightings of him in several systems across the Traverse, closer towards the border with the Terminus Systems," he said, indicating several highlighted points on the map.
Alicia nodded as she studied the systems in question. "But nothing concrete yet?"
"Not yet. We've been trying to gain access to any connections Saren had that we could use to track him down, but our own intelligence agencies have found little so far, and any other information from other intelligence groups has been…delayed," Anderson said, shaking his head lightly. "We do have reports that might connect Saren to corporations on Noveria, but nothing worth following up yet at this point."
"So basically, nothing at the moment," Alicia said. "I suppose that is sort of good, as I can use that time to train my team. I actually was planning to look into some facilities where we could run team drills and combat simulations."
"Having problems with your 'dream team'?" Udina snarked, jabbing at Alicia's choice of various non-Alliance affiliated specialists for her team over a team of Alliance professionals.
Alicia just raised an eyebrow, before responding. "A few hiccups, to be expected. But with enough time and patience, they'll be a well-oiled machine in no time," she said.
"Actually, I know exactly where you can go," Anderson stated, cutting off anymore jabs between the two. "Pinnacle Station, in the Argos Rho cluster. It was a turian facility, where their spec-ops trained. Now it's a facility open to all Special Forces from various Council races. Turian Blackwatch, salarian STG, asari commandoes, and of course now Alliance Spec-ops troops as well," Anderson stated.
The red haired Spectre nodded as she heard that. "Sounds good then. Guess I know what my next stop is," she said. "Anything else I should know about or you want me to investigate?"
"Nothing except you should be wary on your way out. Khalisah al-Jilani has been on the prowl later, most likely looking to interview you," Anderson said, causing Alicia shudder.
"Great, the yellow journalist leech. Just what I need," she muttered, rubbing her forehead. "I swear, if she uses that 'the public has a right to know' line on me, I will personally shove her face first into the nearest pile of krogan crap I can find."
Anderson chuckled at that imagery. "I think you'd earn a second Star of Terra for that," he said.
Alicia just smiled, before growing slightly somber. "I still wish you were out there with us sir. It doesn't feel right, being in charge of the Normandy. I'm a combat operator, not a ship commander," she said quietly.
The aged captain smiled at her. "That might be what you think, but I honestly couldn't think of a better successor or person to take over for me. You have the charisma to get others to follow you, and have the skill, knowledge, and capability to direct others in battle. You're a very capable commander, both on the ground or on a ship," he said.
The female Spectre looked at him, and smiled ever so slightly at him. "Thank you, sir," she said. "I guess I'll just have to prove you right now, won't I?"
"You better. My reputation is on the line," Anderson said jokingly. "Now get out there and show the galaxy why you were chosen to be a Spectre."
"Yes sir!" Alicia said, snapping to attention and saluting him. He returned it, and she smartly turned and marched off, head held high.
Pinnacle Station, Three Days Later
The ground crew of the Normandy, decked out in armor but minus their weapons, stepped into the main entryway of Pinnacle Station. They were greeted by two armed and armored turians, who nodded to them, though they stiffened at the sight of Wrex, who just smirked behind his helmet as they passed through the entranceway.
The main area of the station consisted of a walkway that passed through a lounge area, where they could see a few armored individuals of various races lounging and chatting with each other, some laughing at jokes or playfully taunting each other. There was a café where they could purchase meals and drinks, obviously as part of their relaxation between sessions in the training area. Beyond that was the administration and operation area, where the personnel who oversaw the running and maintenance of the holographic training rooms. Each team of special forces was given times they could utilize the training room, and then would select a location and scenario, before moving to the left where a locker room contained hundreds of training weapons based off of actual combat weapons, as well special additions to the armor to register hits from the holographic weapons of the holographic opponents.
Alicia stopped just inside the lounge area, turning to her squad members. Her eyes landed on the newest member, who seemed to be shifting and trying to adjust her armor. Liara was clad in a set of human armor made for civilian or private sector operators. It was similar to the armor usually worn by asari commandoes, but was reinforced with very light armor plating at certain points, offering higher protection but with less speed and mobility. However, considering Liara did not have the conditioning or training to move and fight in heavier armor, or the skills of a commando that let them make the use of their nearly unarmored combat suits, it seemed like the best choice. The helmet though was asari made, though the sealing components and onboard systems were modified to work with the human made armor. The helmet's overall design greatly resembled the style of helmet used by humans, though it was slightly longer in the back, swooping and tapering into a point, to allow for the asari head crests. The whole armor was painted a soft white with blue trim. The asari archeologist also had chosen a M-3 Predator for her personal sidearm, though Alicia had also offered to help her train and get comfortable with an SMG to give her a little more 'oomph' in the gun department.
She grinned as she moved over to Liara. "Feeling alright?" She asked her. Liara shyly nodded, wincing a bit as she felt the helmet's weight move with her nods and almost throw her off balance. Alicia just smiled and touched her shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Just follow our lead," she said, before looking to the others. "Everyone wait here, I'm going to get us signed in," she said.
As her ground crew began to disperse amongst the lounge, Alicia moved towards the administration area. Her eyes immediately locked on a man dressed in an admiral's uniform, with the insignia of a full admiral on his collar. He currently was leaning over a railing, watching the combat below as a team was currently in the middle of a session. He didn't even glance up as Alicia came up to him. "Admiral Ahern?" She asked him, saluting.
The man glanced up at her, revealing a beard and receding hair line, before looking forward again. "Well well, the first human Spectre. What an honor," he said, his voice clearly showing he didn't actually think it was. "What brings you here?"
"I'm here to get some training in with my ground team," Alicia said, the slightest hint of annoyance at the man's casual dismissal of her. "Is there some sort of procedure for signing up to use your facility?"
The admiral waved to the side, where a console sat. "Weekly schedule is posted over there. You're allowed to sign up for at least one hour a session, up to three sessions a day. When it is your turn to utilize the room, just tell Ochren what you want," he said, before growling as there was the flash of an explosion in the training room. "Ochren, I thought we made it clear to those RITA troopers they couldn't use high explosives for every match!"
Sitting at the control console next to the window overlooking the training room was a grayish-brown skinned salarian with brownish-red highlights. Said salarian just growled in annoyance as he looked over his shoulder at Admiral Ahern. "Don't blame me! I told them, but they don't bother listening to me!" He shouted back, looking forward. "They'll overload the holographic imaging systems at this rate. It can't handle processing so many explosions. Course nobody cares what we have to do to keep this simulation working," he muttered under his breath.
Alicia raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know RITA troopers trained here," she said, referring to the Alliance's second spec-ops forces. The N7's were the Alliance's Multi-Situational Combat Operators, trained to fight in multiple combat situations and scenarios. However, the Alliance had created a second group of Specialized Combat Operators, to handle certain combat situations. The Rapid Insertion Tactical Assault troopers were made up of marines, navy combat personnel, and N7's who specialized in being quickly dropped into combat zones to surgically strike at enemy fortifications, supply outposts, and command posts. Officially known as the 12th Regiment of the 49th Brigade, 1st Division, they were nicknamed 'Rita's Rangers' to honor the founder of the brigade, a then Major Rita Galloway who had led their first operation in 2177 against batarian pirates who had captured an Alliance research outpost. The tactics employed by Rita and the platoon she had assembled allowed them to rapidly deploy near the outpost without being detected or intercepted, before they struck hard and fast, liberating the researchers and extracting out. However, Major Rita was mortally wounded during the action while providing cover fire for two of her soldiers pinned down by the enemy, and was posthumously promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. The troopers who became the first RITA troopers petitioned that their unit be named after her, leading to the creation of both their acronym and their nickname.
Ahern just rolled his eyes. "I wish they weren't here. This squad has to be the most trigger-happy bunch of leathernecks I've ever seen," he muttered, turning to Alicia. "They'd probably extract a VIP by strapping him to a chair sitting on a mountain of explosives. Though given how you have a krogan and turian on your team, I'd expect worse when your group takes the floor," he said, eyeing Alicia's team.
Alicia raised an eyebrow. "Right. Well I'll get my team signed up then, and get out of your hair," he said, eyes widening at the unintended pun.
Ahern looked at her, eyes narrowing slightly. "I can hardly wait," he said, turning back forward.
Alicia gulped slightly, shaking her head at her mistake before moving to the console. Typing a few commands, she found one opening for the current day, and quickly signed her team up, looking over the rest of the week and selecting a few other open times. Finished, she turned back to her team, chuckling a bit as he saw Wrex was helping himself to the café.
"Right, Normandy team on me," she ordered, getting her ground team to join her. "We're signed up for our first session. So rest up and don't get into any trouble. Because at 1600 tonight, training begins," she said with a grin.
Sorry about this chapter being out late. I had trouble writing this one out, and I also got caught up in a new game. I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I only recently got Knights of the Old Republic, and have been thoroughly enjoying the game. So it sort of distracted me. Sorry about that.
I hope you all enjoyed this fanfic, and that I didn't screw it up too bad. Guess we'll see.
Also, it was recently suggested that I try my hand at creating codex's on things unique to my fanfic, such as the vulzan or the just revealed RITA troopers. I'd like other people's thoughts on such things, if I should or not.
Thanks go out to a7xfanatic11 again for his work at betaing my fanfic and helping me regarding Mass Effect lore and characters.
Till next chapter!