Summary: Ash gets her own little chapter, because why not? Shepard isn't the only one who gets to have 'face-to-face' meetings with Hackett.
"I don't want any excuses, Lieutenant Commander. Is Shepard available or not?" a gravelly voice pierced the vid comm room on the Normandy .
"Well... she uh. Well..." Ashley stammered. "She kinda got laid up again and is in a hospital on Illium. So I guess that means she isn't, sir."
"Damn. This is not a time for the Commander to be injured. We may have won the war against the Reapers but we still have Cerberus to deal with along with the threat of krogan expansion," Hackett said, rubbing at his neck.
"Well, to be fair, sir... she was already in the middle of healing anyways," Ashley pointed out. "Though, if I may... why is Cerberus still a problem? Shepard killed the Illusive Man back on Earth. We were told if we cut off the head..."
"That Cerberus would no longer be a problem? Try telling that to the victims of multiple hit and run operations carried out by ships bearing the Cerberus logo. We know that Cerberus had multiple independent cells, one of which Ms. Lawson was the head of. But who knows how many more there are?" Hackett finished for the younger soldier. He looked just as stressed as he did during the Reaper War.
"Well, what is this about krogan expansion? I thought Shepard said she'd brokered a deal with Grunt and Wrex not to start bugging the Council about it until after we had all recuperated from the Reaper bulls- stuff," Ashley said, cutting herself off before she could swear in front of the Admiral.
"She did say that, but this is krogan we're talking about. They've never been prone to listening to other species," Hackett said.
"Wrex is different, Admiral. He respects the Commander just as much as any Alliance soldier does now that she's saved all of our hides. He wouldn't go back on his word if he could help it," Ashley insisted, surprising even herself at her defense of the krogan she had been so ready to shoot back on Virmire if he tried to attack the Commander. Maybe they've all grown on me...
"Then let's hope he can help it, Lieutenant. When do you expect the Commander to be up and able to help with the continued Cerberus threat?" Hackett asked.
"I... can't answer that, sir. Even the doctors say it was a surprise for her to regain consciousness so fast. Maybe what Cerberus did to her helped her heal faster. I don't know. Either way, she's still pretty beaten up. Docs say to go day by day with her," Ashley answered, rubbing the back of her neck. She was not cut out for these conversations with Hackett.
"Perhaps you should remind the Commander that just because we've won one war that doesn't mean the galaxy has stopped wanting to fight," Hackett said.
"I will get on that right away, Admiral. Is there anything else I should tell her?" Ashley asked, a bit of an edge to her voice. I'm not a damn secretary...
"No, that will be all Lieutenant Commander. Hackett out," the Admiral said before his holo image disappeared.
Ashley let out a breath then rested her hands on the railing in front of her. She swore loudly before she smacked her gauntleted hand on the railing. It made an interesting clunk sound when her hand connected with the metal of the railing.
She swore again when she saw she had dented the railing a little. She peered closer then realized... no she hadn't. She hadn't used that much strength. It took the strength of... Shepard had hit the same railing. Ashley didn't blame her.
Shaking her head, she left the vid comm. She passed the war room then made her way up to the CIC. Traynor was there like she always was. EDI was with her. They seemed to be discussing the galaxy map.
"Lieutenant Commander Williams," a voice bearing an Australian accent called out to her. She spun on her heel on her way towards the cockpit. Her eyes locked in on the former Cerberus operative that had been with the Commander back on Horizon.
"Yes?" Ashley asked, trying to stifle her desire to snap at the woman. She still didn't trust her despite the fact that she had deserted Cerberus and had clearly helped them quite a bit during the Reaper war. She trusted the woman a bit more than she had, thanks to Shepard.
"I have been hearing reports about Cerberus' operations throughout the Terminus Systems. It concerns me that they have started acting on their own so soon after the Illusive Man was killed by the Commander," Miranda Lawson said. She scratched idly at the base of her throat, a nervous motion.
Oh, it concerns you? That's all? Ashley thought to herself.
"Yes, well... you're not the only one. And with Shepard MIA right now... we may end up doing shit on our own for a bit," Ashley said, a little more brusque than she had meant to be.
"Perhaps Doctor T'Soni could use her information network to find some of Cerberus' chatter. I've been gathering a few leads myself but they aren't as solid as I'd like them to be," Miranda said, ignoring Ashley's tone the best she could, for Shepard's sake.
"That... all right. Sure. Worth a shot I suppose," Ashley said. She furrowed her brows as she mentally grimaced. She didn't like sounding so out of her league especially in front of Lawson.
This is the Commander's thing, not mine. She's always been good at leading and figuring out our next move... she thought helplessly.
She turned to head back up to the cockpit once more before she felt a hand on her shoulder. She stiffened then slowly turned back around to gaze at the genetically 'perfect' woman.
"I know you still don't trust me, Lieutenant Commander. And there's nothing I can say to convince you. Just know that I want the Commander back to her old self again. I will do everything in my power to find out why Cerberus is acting on its own, and what their final goal is," Miranda said.
"Thanks. The Commander will be up and about in no time. She's too stubborn to stay in bed when there's still work to be done," Ashley said.
"I... should be going. I don't exactly have an office anymore but I'll make do," Miranda said. I always do...
"Wait," Ashley called out.
"Yes?"
"About what you and Cerberus did to the Commander..."
"What about it?"
"The Commander... she seemed a lot stronger than she was when I knew her while fighting Saren. Did... is that because of what you did?"
"You mean muscle-wise? All we did was return her muscle-mass to where it had been before she was spaced. However, the cybernetic enhancements probably play a part in what you are describing. Will that be all?"
"I noticed that some of her more superficial wounds had healed a lot quicker than expected. Does this mean the more serious wounds will heal quicker than mine might?"
"Most likely."
"Oh, good. Thank you, Ms. Lawson."
"My pleasure."
Miranda turned away from the Spectre then headed off to find a place to work. Ashley took in a breath then let it out before heading up to the cockpit of the Normandy.
"Hey, Joker, I'm heading back out. I need to talk to the Commander again," Ashley said.
"All right. Tell her not to get fat on all that hospital food," Joker said, turning to look at her.
"I don't think that's possible but I'll tell her," Ashley said before heading out.
Ash made her way up to the Commander's room. She knocked on the door then made her way inside. Her gaze went to the bed, noticing that it seemed a bit more... wrinkled, than before.
"Hey, Ash. Something wrong?" the Commander asked, sounding a bit more chipper than before.
"Hackett called. He says Cerberus is still a bit of a problem for us. They've been hitting colonies in the Terminus Systems for no discernible reason. We've also got the krogan rumbling," Ash said, offering a salute before she spoke.
"At ease, Williams. It's all informal here in my hospital room. Anyways... Cerberus? I thought I took care of them..." Shepard said.
"So did we. Lawson is sniffing around for any information that can be of help. She also suggested our information broker over there should cast out some lines herself," Ashley said, jerking her head in Liara's direction.
"Of course," Liara said softly. She rubbed the back of her neck. She then called up her omni-tool that was connected to her computer on the ship which was then connected to the Shadow Broker network. She sent out a call that asked for any information on Cerberus' operations with a monetary reward for the best information. "Done."
"Okay, now that that's done. What about the krogan? Wrex promised me there'd be no movements made for expansion or anything else until the dust settled. Don't tell me someone is forcing his hand," Shepard said, her gaze on Liara for scant seconds before returning to Ashley.
"No idea. Hackett just said the krogan are making a stink over it already. No specifics," Ashley said.
"No rest for the wicked. Okay. Try to get in touch with Wrex on Tuchanka. Find Grunt, too. Maybe his Aralakh Company can keep people in line until we can all sit down and hash things out. Get in touch with Tali, tell her Rannoch may be a target for Cerberus since the quarians are still trying to rebuild and they might seem like a good target now that they're stationary," Shepard said then groaned, rubbing at her jaw. It hurt to talk at length.
"Perhaps you should let Ashley figure out the best course of action right now, Shepard. She seems perfectly capable of making those decisions," Liara said, noting the pain in Shepard's eyes.
Ashley looked like she had swallowed another thing of Caljaki. She still had a Gunnery's state of mind when it came to orders. She could make small ones, but the ones that needed to be made at that moment were beyond her.
"No, no it's fine," Ashley insisted.
"I'm almost done anyways," Shepard said. She rubbed her jaw a bit more. "As I was saying... Try to find Zaeed. He ran off after I destroyed the Reapers. I need him to use any information Liara and Miranda track down and prevent more colonies from being attacked, or at the very least to fight off Cerberus using his merc connections. Find Jack and her kids and see if she'll help with that, providing 'artillery strikes' for the mercs. If not, no harm done."
"Should I be writing this down?" Ashley asked wryly. Shepard fixed her with a light glare. Ashley held up her hands as if trying to fend off the look.
"Finally, get Vega and have him head to Tuchanka. He wants to see how tough krogan really are? Here's his chance. He gets to be an ambassador for Earth to make sure the krogan take a chill pill until I'm ready to broker a deal. By the way, where's Garrus?" said Shepard.
When the dust had partially settled and she'd been taken to Mars for her initial recuperation she'd woken up to only find Liara, James, Miranda, EDI, Ashley, and Joker to be with her plus the regular crew that helped with the day-to-day ship operations such as Traynor. Miranda had been a surprise since she had assumed the former Cerberus operative would've gone to ground since her job in the war was over and there was a chance of arrest for being former Cerberus by the Alliance. Not to mention after piloting an F-class fighter she wasn't even supposed to be owning for hit and runs that she wasn't technically supposed to do and she had to answer for.
"Last I heard he returned to Palaven," Liara piped up from her chair after checking her omni-tool.
"Right, his mom was sick and last I heard his family had made it off Palavan but they probably went back... hm..." Shepard said, musing to herself. She didn't want to pull Garrus away from rebuilding Palaven and attending to his family. He had more than earned that much. She wasn't even supposed to know his mother was sick and in a salarian hospital. He didn't talk about her. But thanks to Liara... Shepard wasn't even sure if Garrus' mother had survived the Reaper invasion. Something to ask later on. Then there was Garrus' sister and father...
"All right, well, scratch that thought. Instead, try to track down the Primarch. Let him know about Cerberus and the krogan situation. I'm sure his people are scattered throughout the galaxy helping rebuild multiple planets. No need to add to the stress by being unprepared for Cerberus striking. I think that's it..."
"Sure you don't want me to fetch you coffee and feed your fish while I'm at it?" Ashley asked with biting sarcasm, though it was also playful.
"Very funny, LC. You're effectively my second-in-command right now. You know that. Oh! Get in touch with Jacob and let him know he and the scientists might be a target again for Cerberus. That's what I was forgetting!"
"Sir, yes, sir," Ashley said, offering a salute.
"And... thanks, Ash. You're a bigger help than you think," Shepard said.
"I try," Ashley said, smiling. She turned then headed out of the room.