Jeryn's heart sinks right into her stomach when Liara points to the monitor.
Vega looks at them and his face pulls down, frowning in a way that makes the white scar through his lip tighten.
"We have an old friend there," she explains to him quietly. The sounds of the battle are so far away and yet so loud. Jeryn shakes her head. "Strongest military in the galaxy …" She trails off because she just can't put to words her devastation.
Garrus. Don't die.
"Was it like this back on Earth?" Liara's huge eyes don't seem quite as young and naive as they did the day Jeryn first rescued her.
All Jeryn can do is nod.
"I am so sorry," Liara whispers.
Vega's eyes go blank for a few moments. He's not green. He's not untested in combat. He has the scars, literal and figurative, to show it. This is the worst he's seen things, though. The look of helplessness on his face mirrors her own feelings, but he doesn't hide his emotions the way she has forced herself all of these years.
She knows that look. He could go either way. For a fleeting moment the Lieutenant seems lost. She knows too well that these moments, these things he sees piled on top of that burden he already carries could steel him or break him.
Desperately she hopes it's the former.