Part II
Human
Gunnery sergeant Ashley Williams took three deep breaths when she stepped into the sunlight. She knew the air she breathed, despite its nutrients, was not really ideal for humans. That was why she was sealed in her suit like a crate of nonperishable foodstuffs. Although she was perishable, she wasn't going to perish anytime soon.
That was her hope, anyway.
"Garrus, how far away is she?" Ashley asked, shifting uncomfortably in her thick armor.
"I told her to keep out of firing range, but she won't take long to get here".
"Yeah, and neither will the geth. If you-"
"Quiet. Listen", came the crystalline commands from Shepard's environmentally sealed armor system. The three of them probably looked like a colorful trio of faceless space jockeys. The fertile fields and lush hillsides of this world made them look even sillier, like a group of heavily armed soldiers that could gallop through the grass, singing and dancing like something out of a musical comedy vid.
"Armature. They must be getting close", came the turian's humorless observation.
Sadly, Garrus was right. There was nothing musical or comedic about the squad's present circumstances. They'd been scouring the planet for several hours, rummaging through packs of freaky-looking space monkeys in search of an important data module the Alliance wanted. That had been the easy part. Not more than a minute after locating the module in a dark cave had they become aware that hostile forces had been spotted only a few clicks from their present location. To make matters worse, the Quarian they'd entrusted to pick them up outside the cave was nowhere to be seen. Even if the geth hunting party couldn't locate them in time, they couldn't stand out in the open indefinitely. The air on Eletania, while rich in oxygen, was laced with microscopic organisms that could induce anaphylactic shock if even a single unfiltered human breath was taken.
"See anything?" Shepard spoke in her smoothest stay-cool-because-I'm-in-control-of-the-situation voice. She sounded relaxed, like she could have been enjoying a hot beverage in the mess hall. Williams had to look at the commander to convince herself that she was in fact standing alert, a shiny firearm where the disposable cup should have been.
"Nothing on scanners", Garrus croaked back.
Williams had grown very fond of her commanding officer ever since joining the Normandy's crew. The conditions of their meeting could have certainly been better, but serving under this smart, talented officer made the fulfillment of even minor objectives deeply rewarding. It was like everyone on the Normandy wanted to be a part of Shepard's shore party, even when the anticipated danger of the mission was extreme. Commander Shepard was like the hard-boiled badass every soldier wanted to be. She could be frisking a huge turian pirate one minute and administering first aid to an injured child the next. News vids spoke of her like she was some kind of superhero, and there was no question that if any human was qualified to join the Citadel's elite Spectres, it was Shepard.
Besides, it was fun to see the Turian councilor getting all flustered about letting a human into their proud little unit. Williams had to bite her lip to keep herself from shouting obscenities at the councilor whenever she accompanied Shepard to the Citadel Tower. Maybe the tower's soft lighting and cherry blossoms had worked its seductive magic on her.
"There they are. Still outside of firing range".
Williams glanced at the sleek helmet that encased Garrus's pointy head. Even in full armor, he looked very alien. Maybe even more so, since the helmet prevented her from gazing into his beady little eyes.
"Geth armature confirmed. They've got infantry, too. Looks like Tali was right", the turian sounded more like a cop than a soldier, his sentences chopped into neat little blocks stacked proudly in the air. He was staring down the length of a sniper rifle, an admittedly excellent tool for maintaining situational awareness in these vast, mossy hillsides. The business end of the rifle pointed toward an extended ridge in the distance. Ashley wished she could see the enemy herself, but she trusted Garrus enough that Tali would arrive in the Mako long before the geth got into firing range.
This was really pushing it, though.
"If they haven't spotted us yet, they will soon. Grab some cover", Shepard gestured several meters ahead of their present location, where the hill was crowned with several boulders that would provide adequate concealment from probing geth eyes.
Or visual scanning systems, or whatever the damn things had for eyes.
Ashley and her alien ally took cover behind a large boulder several meters away from the cave entrance, while the team leader relaxed her weight against another rocky protrusion. Even with a heavy pistol in her hand and enemy forces en route, Shepard was a model of military professionalism. Even on the rare occasion Shepard made a joke, Ashley had never seen her smile or laugh. Maybe it was the professionalism that earned her so much respect as a leader.
Ashley was glad she wasn't the team leader. She knew Shepard's experience on the battlefield made her far more qualified for such responsibilities. Besides, less time spent commanding meant more time for shooting.
"I hope Tali didn't run into those things. She should have been here by now", Garrus hefted the sniper rifle in his hands, and pointed it approximately where the enemy had last been spotted.
Ashley frowned at the "Level 1" atmospheric hazard warning on her heads-up display. It was only a matter of time before some heartless corporation set up shop here, maybe stuck a nice big bubble on the surface, and charged tourists hundreds of credits a day to enjoy the scenery. They'd probably start seeing big profits before the end of the first fiscal year. Hell, she'd have been happy to plop down a few weeks pay just to spend her next shore leave here. It was easily one of the prettiest planets she'd ever set foot on.
"Commander, I've lost contact. They must be further down in the hills, request permission to advance and reestablish contact".
"Negative, Garrus. Just stay down for now, we've got high ground on 'em".
"Yes, Commander", Garrus replied quickly to conceal his disappointment. The turian was a bit like Ashley, perhaps. He didn't like the idea of sitting still. He wanted to find the enemy before they found him. Shepard's experience was easily greater than that of both of them together. The woman knew what she was doing. Parents must have enjoyed showing news vid footage of Commander Shepard to their kids. A perfect role model, and not just for kids.
Sharp. Strong. Inspiring.
Ashley couldn't help smirking despite herself.
Her grin faded when she glanced back at the atmospheric hazard indicator. Not much time left.
"Maybe we should fall back to the caves, at least time would be on our side", Williams spoke to no one in particular.
"No, they'd just box us in. But if Tali doesn't get here soon-"
Garrus silenced himself when he heard the approaching roar of a machine. Ashley felt her pulse flicker, and she had already gone weapon sighted when she recognized the sound as the Mako's angry grinding during a sharp climb.
Finally.
"At least she got here before the geth", Garrus remarked plainly, the tip of his rifle peaking out from the edge of the boulder. Garrus clearly was not a trained soldier of the Alliance military.
"Garrus, keep your head down", Ashley grunted at the turian squatting beside her.
It was good that Ashley had bothered to glance at him at all. It gave her a full second to react upon seeing the narrow beam of red that hovered inches away from Garrus's angular skull. He was just about to offer his justification for peering out beyond the safety of the rock, when Ashley grabbed him by the collar of his armor and yanked him towards her with all her might. He instantly lost balance, and fell to his side, obviously surprised by the sudden violence of his supposed teammate.
The thicker burst of red sizzled through the air before Garrus could even summon a protest from his lipless beak. It was all the explanation he needed, luckily. Garrus righted himself beside the Chief, and the two remained pressed against the rock while Ashley shouted to her commanding officer at the nearby boulder.
"Taking fire, Shepard! Geth snipers!"
Shepard barely flinched, raising her voice slightly as though the two were merely greeting each other in a noisy department store.
"Down below?"
"Negative! Fire was parallel with the ground we're on, Commander. Must be on a nearby ridge, got us right in their sights".
"Copy that. Mako is on approach. You and Garrus get on board".
Ashley didn't like this command. To her, it suggested her life was more valuable than the commander's, which she knew to be untrue.
A shadow fell over the pair's mossy cover. Garrus offered to cover Ashley as she boarded the Mako, but she responded by grabbing his collar and practically shoving him ahead of her.
A faster vehicle might have taken much longer to reach them at the top of the hill. The clunky rover was easily one of the best vehicles Ashley had ever been in. It could handle deadly inclines, treacherous terrain, brutal weather conditions, sustained small arms fire, and still look ridiculously cool. The Mako was the perfect complement to Commander Shepard's efficient and direct approach to problem solving.
The turian, quarian, and human were a tight squeeze for the tank-like rover's already cramped interior. But the Mako felt quite barren without Commander Shepard inside. There was a loud click as the airtight entrance sealed shut, and the trio was cast into what felt like total darkness.