We heart Plasma Rifles
"Tali, please report to gunnery Chief Williams' work station," Pressley said over the comm. Tali thought it odd but nether the less finished of her work and made her way to the forward section of the lower deck. Just as she was exiting the corridor she saw Commander Shepard, Wrex and Liara T'soni making their way over to the weapons lockers. Shepard had a geth plasma rifle in her arms. Tali couldn't help but shudder a little as she moved over to join the conversation Shepard was already having with Williams.
"So Liara had lifted the geth up in the air and Wrex is already on the balcony. He just rips the rifle from the damn thing and takes one of the arms with it," the spectre was talking animatedly. "Then he removes the arm from the weapon and use it to swat what's left of the damn geth to the ground."
"It was a good fight," Wrex commented.
"I'll see you later Jane Daria," Liara said as she made her way to the elevator.
"Okay Liara," Shepard replied. Wrex chuckled to himself as he took up his usual spot.
"Anyway I need you and Tali to work on this," Shepard explained as she put the rifle down. "Find it's strengths weaknesses and wether it's feasible to replicate."
"Aye Commander," Williams said.
"Understood," was Tali's reply.
"Sorry to take you away from the engine Tali," Shepard apologised. "But you have the most experience with geth tech."
"It's okay commander," Tali insisted. "In fact it's been almost five years since a Quarian has seen an intact plasma rifle."
"Well I better go write up a mission report," Shepard said as she mad her own way to the elevator.
There was an eerie quiet as Williams performed the initial scans and Tali assigned names to the components she recognised. Not quite sure of how to begin Ash decided to engage in idle conversation with Tali.
"So what time do you have in the pool?" she asked the young Quarian.
"Oh, you mean that thing Joker's set up about Shepard and Liara right?" Tali asked.
"Yeah," Ash said. "I have next Wednesday evening."
"Ah I had to stop buying in, three of my days have gone by already," Tali replied. "I'll still need credits to buy passage back to the flotilla after all."
"I'm sure the commander could drop you off once this is over," Williams said. "She could commandeer the ship for official spectre business."
"Such a return would need suitable gift," Tai sighed. "Something much more than a singular plasma rifle."
"What saving the galaxy doesn't count?" Williams said surprised. "Anyway what day would you pick if you could afford it?"
"I was thinking Wednesday as well," Tali said. "They're practically all over each other at dinner and well do they really have to join at every significant briefing. It's so obvious that even Pressley knows by now."
Wednesday came and went; still no one had won the large amount of credits for correctly guessing when the Commander and Liara would make their relationship public. Williams to decided to hang on to her credits. She told Tali such when they set up some targets in the hanger slash cargo area of the lower deck.
"I wonder if we should ask Joker if it is possible to place credits on when they are good and ready," Tali pondered earning a short laugh from Williams.
It was strange, while Williams wasn't a big fan of Aliens talking to Tali was much like talking to one of her younger sisters' cooler friends.
"Okay Williams," Tali said. "I'll scan the weapon with my omni tool while you fire at the targets.'
"And after each variation the target comes back down here so we can scan it for the effect it causes," Ash nodded.
The human took aim.
"Variation One, plasma rifle single shot," Tali said for the record on her omni tool. "Fire."
The gunnery chief dutifully pressed the trigger while Tali recorded everything. Once the target was hit it hovered on its small mass effect drive and came to where the two women were standing. Tali quickly swept her omni tool's sensor over it.
"Won't the drive affect the readings?" Ash asked.
"Probably," Tali admitted. "But we can only use the equipment we have. I would give anything for a weapons lab on a barren moon right now."
"I suppose we better do the best we can," Williams said to which Tali nodded.
"Variation Two, plasma rifle three round burst," Tali stated. "Fire."
They repeated the process as they did it before. Then they prepared for the final test during this round of experimentation.
"Third Variation, plasma rifle continuous fire until overheat," Tali stated. "Fire."
Williams just held the trigger down She had barely gotten off thirty plasma rounds when the weapon just refused to fire any more.
"Well that's a let down," Williams said.
"Not at all," Tali said as she scanned the last target. "We now have more data."
"What you said the other day about a plasma rifle not being enough," Williams started. "Why isn't it, I mean you said no Quarian had seen one in five years?"
"For an ordinary Quarian it would suffice," Tali explained. "But I'm the daughter of a member of the Admiralty board."
"Not quite up to speed on my Quarian political structures Tali," Ash said.
"The Admiral's are in charge of military matters of the migrant fleet," Tali explained.
"Got it," Williams replied. "And your dad is on this board?"
"Yes," Tali said. "My father has been a prominent member ever since I can remember."
"So you have high expectations from the entire migrant fleet on your shoulder's?" Williams asked.
"Exactly," was Tali's reply. "Sometimes it feels as they would not be satisfied unless I deliver them a geth free home world to return to."
"That's rough," Williams commented as she stowed the plasma rifle away.
Several days later Williams found Tali at the table the crew used for weapons maintenance. The young Quarian was using several words that the translator didn't know or wasn't set to translate as she tapped at the terminal.
"Problem?" Williams asked.
"Oh Chief Williams," Tali said startled. "You were correct about the targets' mass effect drives affecting the data. It's just not comparable to the baseline data with have for the projectile when it exits the weapon."
"So we re-run the tests," Williams suggested. "Get some one to stand down there and go to the targets themselves."
"Perhaps Garrus can help," Tali suggested. "He's always down here working on the mako."
"Um," Williams began. "I'd rather not ask him."
Tali was surprised that the brave human picked a spot on the bulkhead and just started at it and fidgeted. But it was pattern Tali had observed in the marine. Every time Garrus would look over the human would stare at him until he looked away. Their necessary interactions were short and to the point, there were no unnecessary ones.
"Do you have a problem with Garrus Chief Williams?" Tali asked.
"No not Garrus," Williams said. "I still feel uncomfortable around aliens and well Garrus is a Turrian."
"Do you feel uncomfortable around me Ashley?" Tali asked.
"No I…"Williams stuttered. "Hell, I'm sorry if I in any way made you feel uncomfortable and not welcome on the Normandy."
"It's okay Chief," Tali replied. "This situation is strange for all of us, I don't know how Shepard has so easily woven us into a cohesive team sometimes."
"You know I thought for sure she'd kick me off the ship when she found out who I am," Williams said.
"Why would Shepard do that?"
"Well like you sometimes people expect things of me because of who I'm related to," Williams explained. "And my life can be hell because of it, I have to work twice as hard as every body else just to keep my position in a groundside garrison. Hell I would have never served on a ship like the Normandy if the geth hadn't attacked Eden Prime."
"Why?"
"Because my grandfather was the one who surrendered Shanxi to the Turrians," Williams explained.
"No wondered Garrus seems to make you nervous," Tali said. Tali had looked up the first contact story when she had first boarded the Normandy. The fact that Humans had achieved so much in isolation with out finding prothean artefacts on their home planet was impressive. Tali couldn't imagine attempting to colonize a system without any kind of mass effect technology. Although she did feel human's were foolish for opening relays not knowing what might await them on the other side.
"I've spent my entire live listening to people say he made the wrong call so I began to resent Turrians and non-humans in general for just finding humanity," Williams explained.
"But it seems you're making efforts to not think that way," Tali insisted.
"Yeah that's the skipper for you," Williams explained. "First she honestly didn't care if the Williams name carries certain baggage, secondly she told me my grandfather made the right call."
"We'll I think he did to," Tali said. "If he had insisted on fighting humanity might not have made diplomatic ties with the citadel and you'd be the latest solider in a long drawn out war, instead of here helping a friend figure out this confounded geth tech."
"We're friends?" Williams asked.
"I think so."
"Then I better go ask Garrus for help or we'll never get this done," Ash said. "Who knows with the amount of geth we've scrapped some scavenger will be selling the rifles on the black market sooner or later best get him to alert c-sec as well."
Tali's smile was hidden by the tint of her visor.
"Damn it skipper why me and not him!" Williams yelled throwing her helmet to the ground as Normandy made for orbit as quickly as she could. "I'm the grunt I'm the one who's supposed to stay behind when something like that comes up!"
"Do you think the choice was easy on me Ash?" the spectre shot back.
"It should have been!"
"Well it wasn't marine."
That's when the gunnery chief tried to take a swing at her commanding officer. The Commander easily ducked the incoming haymaker and Garrus and the requisitions officer both tried to hold the chief back and prevent her from trying again. Then Wrex stepped in and even in her emotional state the chief realised it would be stupid to punch a krogan in full armour with her bare hands. Tali witnessed all this from the corridor to the engine core.
"We'll talk when you've settled down Ash," Shepard stated, she then opened the ships internal communication channel. "All crew prepare for search and rescue operations. Joker track down the STG team members and also keep a look out for an Asari we encountered in the base."
Tali found Williams several hours later sitting on the floor next to the sleep pod she shared one of the night shift bridge crew. She was still in her armour and her head rested upon her knees. The marine seemed to be mumbling to herself.
"Should have been me…."
Tali slid down on the floor next to the human woman.
"Trying to get out of the plasma rifle project Williams?" Tali asked trying desperately to get Williams to act normal.
"I'm not in the mood Tali."
This made the young Quarian more concerned. Ash would joke about anything. In fact when they had first meet in a back alley of the lower wards the first thing she said was a joke that had made Shepard cringe. Of course Ash had shown Star Wars one night in the mess hall so now Tali understood the significance of Luke Skywalker being there to rescue her.
"I saw your disagreement with the commander," Tali stated.
"She should have bought Kaiden back to the ship not me," Ash tried to explain. "He loves it out here, you should have seen his face when we visited the ward markets for the first time and then we stopped to take in that view just outside Flux and at that moment the Destiny Ascension came into view and he said humanity still had hard work ahead but we've made it this far."
"So why does that mean Shepard should have saved him?" Tali asked.
"Because he's the one that represented the best of humanity even if his Angels and Assholes philosophy could have been better phrased," Williams said. "I should have died down there doing my part then fading away, I represent the worse humans could offer the galaxy."
"Don't ever say that again," Tali practically ordered.
"Why not? It's true."
"It's not true," Tali said. "In the brief time I've know you you've worked hard to overcome your preconceived notions and mistrust of non-humans, fought side by side with them and made life long friends in them. Gone into battle not just for earth and the systems alliance but the entire damn galaxy. So are you going to sulk or are you going to get up and honour Kaiden Alenko's memory by showing the galaxy just why humanity is a integral part of society."
Tali offered her slender three-digit hand to the Marine. The human looked at it for minute then clasped it with her own five-digit one. The Quarian hauled the human to her feet.
"Right," Tali said. "It seems the STG team recovered some plasma rifles of their own, they've given use a spare which means we can now break one."
"As long as we don't have to put it back together that's fine with me."
"I think you need to bathe or what ever you human's do first," Tali said. "I can smell you through my suit."
The Normandy was locked into its docking bay. Captain Anderson had arranged to meet the Commander at Flux later that day but for now the spectre had other business to attend to. In fact they had just finished at c-sec, Shepard delivering a report on a few wanted criminals who had crossed her path. Ash had joked to Tali about how the wanted criminals were now a pile of bodies in the middle of the path. Tali and Ash had hand delivered reports on the plasma weapon to both c-sec and the citadel council. The rifle itself was now in a proper c-sec weapons testing facility. Shepard decided that they should check the ward markets for any new upgrades. Tali and Ash walked a few steps behind conversing between themselves.
"You were right," Ash said.
"See I told you her reason was sound and if she could she would have saved both you and Alenko," Tali replied.
"I must of made her feel like crap they way I acted."
On the way they spotted a demonstration in largest area of the walkway from the Clinic to the door to the markets.
"Excuse me Commander Shepard," a man from the crowd approached them. "I'm from the terra firma party."
"Those xenophobes with the racist policies?" Williams said.
"It's not like that…" the man tried to explain.
"Sorry my girlfriend is this most natural shade of blue," Shepard said as she kept walking.
"Damn Chakwas wins again," Ash remarked.
"I still say she cheated the first time by referring Shepard to the alliance guidelines on non-human sexual contact," Tali proposed.
"Fine we don't want the endorsement of some one who would associate with a Quarian vagrant to be our spokesperson anyway," said another man.
Williams turned on him and walked up very close and started him in the face.
"If it wasn't for Tali'Zorah nar Rayya every colony in the Attican Traverse would be under attack from the geth right now," she said coldly. The Chief was happy to see the man swallow in fear. She turned to address the crowd.
"Ever heard of the saying that they're angels and assholes just like us, " Williams said. "Well here we see the human being an asshole and a Quarian with definite angelic tendencies. I know which one is my friend, she's the one in the environmental suit."
With that Williams turned sharply and marched of in the direction she had last seen Shepard go, Tali following close behind her.
"Thanks," the Quarian said.
"Hey anything for a friend," Williams said. "Did Shepard give you that data?"
"Yes right after we left orbit there," Tali said. "I belief it will suffice as a pilgrimage gift.
"I'll miss you," Williams said the sorrow at the thought evident in her eyes.
"Hey your not getting rid of me that easily,' Tali admonished her human friend. "I'm going to stick around, I need to represent the best a Quarian has to offer in the face of this reaper threat Shepard has uncovered."
"Attention all hands," came the commander's voice. "We are now on route to the mu relay."
Williams smiled, even Pressley had endorsed stealing the ship and going after Saren. She hoped Captain Anderson could get a recording of Udina's face when he found out.
"Need help?" Tali asked as she came out of the elevator after finishing her sleep period.
"Oh yeah actually," Williams said. "Can you double check the systems on Wrex's geth made armour? I can't make heads or tails of it and I have to finish cleaning these side arms."
"Why did Wrex loot this thing again?" Tali asked.
"Inspired by our commander he has decided to apply a Krogan cultural perspective on the idea of stealth," Williams suggested. "Pretty much pretend to be the enemy until you can shoot their leader in the face with your shotgun."
Tali laughed a little at this.
"Um I've been meaning to ask you something Williams," Tali said. "No I suppose I should call you Ash or Ashley for this."
"Go ahead Tali," the Marine said.
"Well I was wondering if I wasn't Quarian would we, I mean would there be the chance of being more than just friends?"
"Actually I already feel that way," the revelation left Tali quite speechless. Ash turned and took Tali's suited hands in her bare ones.
"Since that time you found me by my sleeper pod I've been in love with you," Williams elaborated. "I've even become obsessed with just seeing your face unobscured even if I have to wear a full environmental suit to do it."
"It is possible to do more than that," Tali said thrilled. "But it takes time."
"Which is exactly what we don't have," Ashley lamented. "And when you go back to the fleet, well I know the responsible young woman I love, I might not see you again."
"Now that's not true," Tali reassured the human. She cupped her hand on Ashley's check.
"Wait are you wearing lipstick?" Tali asked. She didn't notice it because it was the same colour and tone that Ash's lips normally were.
"Yes," Ashley said. "I found a way to show you how I feel without endangering your well being."
The human slowly lifted the front of Tali's head covering away from her helmet. Once there was enough space there the human planted a single kiss. Then Williams slapped a repair patch down where her lip marks now were. In half a minute the patch was set and blended in with the rest of the visor. Although now there was a permanent mark from the kiss. Carefully she moved the traditional covering back into place over Tali's helmeted head.
"Every time you find yourself lost look at that and know that I love you," Williams said.
"I'll treasure it always," Tali said.
The Normandy sped on towards Ilos and the human and Quarian continued their work together.