A mere 11 hours, twenty-five minutes and 13 seconds ago, June had still been in cryostasis, peacefully dreaming of a better future.
Now, everything had changed. In the matter of half a day, the 22-year-old had become an orphan, stranded in a foreign and so far hostile galaxy, tasked to save thousands from imminent starvation and find them a new home while the authorities breathed down on her neck and the thoughts of her comatose brother followed her around every corner. No pressure of course.
It didn't help that the silly little crush she'd harbored on Lexi back when she was sixteen had seemingly returned full force…
Oh, and Cora of course. Sulky, mad, royally pissed off Cora.
However, on the bright side, she'd also gotten a ship. The most beautiful she'd ever seen. The Tempest.
With a ship like that, almost everything felt possible. And she hadn't even really seen most of it yet.
She'd been too tired to do the rounds; so after meeting the crew – and happily realizing that they'd transfered Lexi T'Perro to the Tempest crew – she'd collapsed face first on her bed.
Tempest - med bay
Lexi was nervous about her new position as the Tempest's ship physician. Of course, she'd always wanted to work out in the field and not in a quiet little lab far away from all the action. But this? This was huge.
From her few run-ins with Ryder, she knew that their new Pathfinder was a risk-taker. And now, the fate of the whole project seemed to rest on the young human's shoulders, Lexi being responsible for her physical and mental wellbeing.
She looked up when she heard a silent bing and the sound of doors sliding apart. Wondering if June was already awake – she'd gone to her quarters earlier to SAM announcing that she was sound asleep – she slipped her head through the med bay doors, frowning when her eyes landed on Cora, who was marching towards the Pathfinder's quarters.
"Oh no – you stop right there or I swear I shall hurt you!" She stepped into the quiet hallway, glaring at the woman.
Cora Harper merely raised a brow at the asari, raising her hand to knock on June's door.
"I told you to stop!"
"What's your deal? We've reached Eos and-"
"And your Pathfinder needs her rest! Do you not remember what happened today? Do you care so little?"
"I do. But we've reached Eos and we need to-"
"No. I forbid you from waking her. First and foremost we all need a healthy Pathfinder. This day so far was both physically and mentally straining for her. And as her doctor, as this ship's doctor, I will not let you risk her health just because of your hurt ego!
"This is not about my-"
"Jeez, will you two shut up?" They hadn't noticed how the doors had opened, hadn't noticed how June had stepped out of her quarters behind them. The young woman was massaging her temples, her forehead furrowed.
She was pale, Lexi noticed. And her eyes seemed dull. When she realized that her and Cora's heated argument had probably woken the girl, she blushed. This was just great. Her first day on the ship and already she was making things worse. Maybe she was even responsible for June's obvious headache.
"Are you all right?" she asked, her voice atypically small.
"Yeah. Just a.. a headache. Nothing to worry about," Juniper softened her voice when she addressed the asari, knowing she'd only been trying to 'protect' her. It was good to know that she had her back. At least someone did…
Her smile faded when she turned to Cora. "I'll take a quick shower – then we can go. Tell Liam to be ready in half an hour."
The blonde opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but finally settled on a curt nod before she walked away.
"Are you sure you don't need me to check you-"
"I'm fine, Dr. T'Perro. Promise. Stop worrying. I'll be a whole new person after I've taken that shower."
Lexi frowned but nodded. "If you say so. But come see me if you feel any worse."
"Will do, Doc."
"And Juniper?"
"Huh?"
"Call me Lexi; it seems only fair."
The young redhead beamed at the asari. "Sure. Thank you, Lexi."
Eos, Promise
Eos was… well… Juniper wasn't sure there were words to describe the planet.
Eos was first and foremost a desert planet. It was dry and sandy and the red mountains all around reminded June of photos she'd seen of the Grand Canyon on Earth.
The plant life was scarce but held its very own charm – at least that's what she thought. They weren't cacti and they weren't palm trees, rather something in between but unlike anything else she'd ever seen.
There were also some lakes across the planet's surface and Juniper had wondered whether the water was warm enough for a swim, right before SAM had informed her and the others of the extremely high radiation.
The temperature on Eos moved around the 20°C degree mark, warm but not too warm, much like a mild spring day. Eos being a desert though, June was fairly certain that nights would be cold if not freezing. She was grateful for the advanced environment and temperature controlling features of her Pathfinder Scout Armor. However, even the best armor set couldn't protect her from the radiation for more than five minutes.
They'd landed in the area of Promise, Eos' first outpost site, where thankfully the shield generators were still working, keeping the radiation at an acceptable level. June was itching to take her helmet off but then… Well. She remembered the last time she'd been on a planet without a helmet. Involuntarily but still. She would never forget Habitat 7 or the way her lungs had been about to collapse, the feeling of breathing in fire and ice at the very same time.
Cora and Liam were mostly quiet, following after her like loyal soldiers, as June took the lead. Taking the lead wasn't the hard part of being the new Pathfinder. Her natural curiosity and her love for science and everything new made Juniper the perfect explorer. There would never be a cave, a house, or anything really she'd simply pass by; she needed to know their hidden secrets.
So here she was, excitedly moving from one abandoned outpost house to the other, her squad dutifully accompanying her.
At least, until Cora sighed through their linked comms.
"I do not think we'll find anything else here, Pathfinder. Let's move on."
'Pathfinder'. Not June. Cora's obvious distance stung but June knew there wasn't anything she could do but wait for the older woman to cool off on her own.
"We won't know that until we've checked it ourselves," June replied from the entrance of what seemed to be a science lab. "Be my guest and wait outside though."
Alone, she entered the building, her eyes darting left and right to clear the area for any possible threats. She found none.
But she did find the lifeless body of a female scientist, carelessly forgotten about and slowly starting to rot.
Glad that her helmet shielded her from the stench she knew must be filling the room, Juniper gently rolled the dead woman onto her back, running the scanner.
"Dr. Marcy Cooper," SAM announced, putting a name to the rigid face. "Died from multiple gun shots to her chest. Most likely a kett-made rifle with a 89% probability."
June's face hardened at the mention of the kett. After Habitat 7 and learning more about them on the Nexus, Juniper knew peace was not a possibility. And she'd hunt them all down.
For her father.
For Dr. Cooper.
For everyone.
June was about to turn around and go but she really didn't like the idea of leaving the Doctor behind, all alone and… No. She would not leave this woman behind like everyone else had done.
It was bad enough that June had to leave her mother behind. She briefly wondered whether her grave was even still there – more than 600 years had passed after all – but quickly forced herself to get her mind back on track.
"SAM, can you call Lexi for me?"
"Of course."
"Ryder?" the asari's voice came over the intercom only seconds later.
"Lexi, I uh… Could you arrange for an extraction? I found a body. Dr. Marcy Cooper. She deserves a real burial… I'm, I'm sorry I contacted you. I didn't know whom else to-"
"It's perfectly fine, Juniper. I am a doctor after all, so I suppose I'm more used to death and bodies than anyone else would be." There was a short pause and June could hear Lexi fiddle around with something in the background. "Get the coordinates to me and I'll arrange for pick-up. And Juniper?"
"Yeah?"
"If you happen to find further… Just reach out to me, yes?"
"I will. Thank you, Lexi."
Tempest, LZ nearby Promise
When June got back from scouting Eos, all she wanted to do was sleep. The day had been rather successful to say the least. They had a new all-terrain vehicle – a Nomad that'd been left behind in a sealed off container – and the radiation on Eos was slowly but surely ebbing away. The discovery of the 'Remnant' and their structures had been a milestone for their colonization efforts. If each of the planets possessed such climate control vaults, maybe it was even possible to bring Habitat 7 back to life. Of course there were still many issues to deal with on Eos, as well as a decision to make. Addison wanted to establish an outpost as soon as the radiation was fully gone and June was to decide whether it would be a military base or a scientific research station and while her heart beat for the latter, she wasn't sure it was the right choice.
Her mind drifted once again to the sweet lure of rest and sleep.
But there were reports to write, new crew members to assign, and–
"Ah, there you are," Lexi's voice broke her trail of thought and despite her exhausted self, June found herself smiling at the asari. "I'll need to take a blood sample before you retire. To check for any signs of lingering radiation in your systems."
"I don't feel sick."
"Which is great – but it doesn't mean you aren't. No back talking. You're coming with me."
June wanted to protest but merely settled for a loud and dramatic sigh before following the doctor into the med bay and sitting down on one of the cots, idly dangling her legs.
"So I hear you picked up two new crew members?"
"Yes," Juniper confirmed, rolling up the sleeves of her shirt. "A krogan named Drack and an asari named Peebee. Is that an actual name? She wouldn't tell me."
"It is not. At least not that I've heard of," Lexi approached Juniper with the syringe, her fingers gliding over Ryder's right arm in search of a good vein. "So, a krogan, huh?"
June curiously eyed the doctor whose voice had audibly perked up. "Yeah. And he's pretty old, too. Peebee said something about him merely having left the life expectancy of a human now. Maybe even less."
"I haven't had the chance to study a krogan warrior of his age in all my years!" the doctor sounded excited. "Do you think he'd let me do a couple examinations?"
Juniper chuckled. "Well, you're the doctor, remember? Just tell him they're necessary and required for all crew members. – What's so interesting about the krogan anyway?"
In her excitement, Lexi entered the needle with a little too much force; however, the human barely even flinched.
"I'm sorry, I-"
"It's fine," June replied, trying to be brave and nonchalant while in her mind she was cursing. "So?"
"Oh, yes. The krogan. I've studied them for a long time. I wrote my doctor's thesis about 'Krogan Virility and Aggression'. I did my doctorate in Alien Biology and Genetics. They are quite a fascinating race." Lexi drew the blood and quickly sealed the small puncture wound with medi gel.
"I'd love to hear more," Juniper stated, not knowing where the words were coming from or how the heck to stop herself from saying the next. "Maybe over dinner?"
Dr. T'Perro looked rather uncomfortable and Juniper immediately regretted her forward flirting. However, now the words were already on the table.
"I'm sorry, Ryder. But you're not exactly my type," Lexi finally settled for what she thought was the most gentle letdown and hoped that the young woman would let it go.
She didn't.
"What's your type?" June blurted out, her curiosity once more getting the best of her.
"Not a patient."
"Oh…"
Lexi noticed how the girl's face fell and shortly felt like hitting herself. It wasn't that the girl wasn't her type, just… Well. There were so many reasons speaking against a closer relationship between them that Lexi could barely make note of them at the same time.
1 - Juniper Ryder WAS her patient.
2 - Lexi had sworn off romantic relationships for the foreseeable future.
3 - Humans didn't live long. It'd break her heard to lose her mate so soon, having to live many centuries without her.
4 - Juniper was young, barely an adult.
5 - The young woman also was the Pathfinder. Nothing should interfere with-
Her inner ramblings were interrupted by the doors sliding shut and immediately, Lexi felt bad. She'd been so out of it, that she hadn't heard the girl's goodbye nor had gifted her with any reaction. Juniper probably thought the worst of her now…
The asari was about to bolt through the doors herself, when she reminded herself that she was not on board the Tempest to make friends. And, she definitely wasn't there to fall in love with the young and beautiful human Pathfinder, no matter how difficult that might prove to be.
No, maybe it was for the best that June wouldn't think as highly of her anymore. It'd make things easier for both of them.
AN/ Let me know what you think of the story so far :)