Location: Lieutenant Commander Shepard's quarters, SSV Dublin.
Liam hung another freshly starched military shirt in his new closet. The place resembled a mini-loft and was bigger than any of the cryo pods and hot bunk ships he served on, certainly more personal than the cold steel of X-19's barracks. But even the sheer size of this marvel couldn't shake his thoughts from the meeting.
He felt bad for the captain but almost betrayed by the Admiral. Regardless of how bad one officer's problems were, it seemed reckless to send an entire ship on useless patrol as cover just to help an officer find her sister. He was all for sticking it to the Alliance, but practicality had to rear its ugly head sometime.
Taking a seat on his single bunk he lost himself in the high thread count of the sheets beneath his fingers. Cruisers were known for extended deployments, so they never skimped on comfort.
Sighing, he lay back and finally managed to pinpoint his anger. It wasn't this mission. It was the fact that Hackett was risking his stripes for him. A great gesture, but one that weighed heavily because he knew there'd be almost no way of paying Hackett back, other than succeeding at the mission. And that was more of an Alliance win than any real repayment.
He hated being indebted like this, but you don't say no to an Admiral. That's the way dad did it.
It's also why he's dead. A cynical voice in his head deduced remembering just how devastated mom was after.
Mom...he smiled at the image. She was probably going nuts waiting for a response. Then there was Mikey and Sasha, how long has it been? Time seemed irrelevant back on the post, but now he found himself missing it most of all.
Outgoing communications were banned at X-19, unless they were critical and came through the monitored comm. station. Waving his omni-tool he wondered if it was safe to relay a message. To at least check up—
A knock interrupted his thoughts. Liam looked up to find Vega practically hanging off his doorframe with a grin. "Nice digs, Lieutenant. Or I guess its Commander now?"
Liam sat up with a weak smile. "I think Loco fits right about now."
Vega raised a brow as he walked in, uninvited. "Then cheer up, Loco, you're wearing stripes now." He took the room in, somehow making the large space feel small. "This ship is amazing. I never had my own quarters before."
"I don't share," Liam joked, as he stood and kicked his pack under the bed.
Vega backed up with a laugh. "Don't worry, Loco. I'm not into that. My room's the next one over." He plopped into a comfortable chair near the desk. "If I knew this was waiting for me, I would've hauled ass for a promotion."
Liam backed off, putting some distance between himself and the newly promoted 2nd lieutenant. It wouldn't do any good to thrash this guy for his delusions about higher rank. It was more than just nice sheets and a private room. Responsibility would be ten-fold starting now.
"Preston says he'll give us a tour after dinner," Vega said, between creaks of the chair as he spun in it.
"Great." He would've preferred scouting the place on his own, but that would upset their order and maybe even piss off the crew.
"Did the captain say anything after she kicked us out? Anymore swears?"
Keeping his gaze on the stars blurring past the window, Liam shook his head. "If she wanted you to know, she wouldn't have kicked you out."
"Hey." The squeaking stopped as Vega stilled. Liam glanced over his shoulder at his lieutenant. "Look, the way I see it we're both FNG's to these guys. Let's have each other's backs on this," Vega said.
At X-19, Vega would already be a pariah for his lack of discipline but here...well it was technically foreign territory. Being in the know would mean life or death to a new officer and like it or not that's still what he was.
Allowing a smile, he grasped Vega's bearlike grip. "Alright. I guess it can't hurt."
"That's what I'm talking about." Vega grinned. "So what's going on?"
"They think a rogue group might compromise Firebase Dagger," Liam answered, giving him enough truth to feel satisfied. It wouldn't be right to betray the Captain's trust by letting the entire ship know about her sister.
"Cerberus," Vega said. Liam fought to control his surprise and won. "I heard rumors..."
Shepard smirked. "More truth?"
Vega shook his head. "It's not like that, Commander. A buddy of mine worked comms back at my old posting. He caught transmissions he wasn't supposed to about Cerberus." The lieutenant actually looked concerned now. "I think they went rogue not too long ago."
Liam digested this but said nothing as he wondered just how many soldiers knew things above their pay grade. "Could be a coincidence," he mused, secretly gauging how much he knew.
Vega raised a curious brow, shaking his head. "You believe that, Loco?" At Liam's unfazed expression he raised two beefy palms. "I'm no politician, but even I smell a cover up. I can smell the Cerberus involvement on this one."
Choosing not to comment, Liam shrugged before switching topics. "We have free reign to see the ship?"
"You're a high ranking officer now." Vega grinned. "I don't think that'll be a problem."
Feeling adventurous, Liam stepped out into the immaculate corridor of the officer's cabin wing. The feeling of being on a ship was non-existent. Sure cruisers had more room for individual officer cabins but looking at the many doors reminded him of an apartment complex rather than the heavy cruiser he moved into. Only the high ceiling, blue panels and a thick nest of cords reminded him he was on a military vessel.
Vega shuffled out behind him, likely suppressing a smirk to his question.
A loud stomp followed by 'sir!' made them look in the direction of deck entrance where the newly minted Operations Chief saluted with a smile.
"What do you think, Commander?" Hunter asked, as he approached.
"Impressive," Liam answered distractedly, still looking around as he committed every detail of wire work to memory. Back at the villa they taught Infiltrators to know their tech and identify any threats it posed. The severe state of mental alertness transferred over to home territory.
Hunter looked pleased, but eager to get going. "I'm glad, Sir. If you have time, I can give an orientation. Preston won't mind."
"How about a map?" Vega quipped as they fell into step, beside the Chief. "This place is a whole other world. Six decks is overkill."
"Heavy cruisers like the Dub carry more field personnel than your standard Frigate. It makes sense to provide enough space," Hunter explained smartly, although his tone suggested understanding. "Many visiting officers are taken aback with her size. I guess they ain't never seen a cruiser turned living complex like ours before."
"Also turns us into sitting ducks," Vega said, observing the large space that spread on for miles.
"With a hell of a lot more firepower," Liam said before Hunter could argue. "I bet that main ELRC Cannon would disillusion them of that notion."
The ops chief looked to him with curious eyes as he punched the codes for the lift. "How did you know about our armament, Commander? We installed it four days ago; I don't think the ship's manifesto has it down yet."
He couldn't stop the ghost of a smile as he explained. "The wire work is set up in a cluster that feeds into one direction, the main battery. ELRC cannons are new and highly experimental that means more power demand so feeding it straight from the source is common practice." Vega's look of complete hopelessness grew alongside Hunter's widening eyes as Liam continued, "Its also good to feed additional coolant to this gun since we don't know how fast it'll overload in combat. Normally, leaving the coolant tubes exposed is a huge risk, but I'm guessing since it only passes through the officer's quarter's they're accounting for some level of security."
Vega shook his head as if trying to clear the cobwebs and groaned. Hunter only gave a light snort before nodding in appreciation. "Impressive, Sir. Kind of makes me wish I took the Infiltrator course."
Liam arched a brow as he looked down to his young subordinate. The kid seemed ambitious, but the slight and all too familiar hint of disappointment in his tone suggested there was a story here, one he wasn't sure he should tell.
"Why didn't you?" Wincing at how harsh his own voice came out, Liam added. "Recruits with good tech skills usually get to choose between Infiltration and Engineering after basic."
The ops chief stood straighter but didn't fully meet his eyes. "I didn't get the choice sir. That year we needed more Combat Engineers than Infiltrators." The door could've melted under the chief's hard gaze but his tight smile tried to mask that. "I'm happy to be where I am."
The conviction in his voice acted like a shield against further questioning and Liam backed off. Vega was right, they were still the FNG's, promoted or not. Until that title lifted it was best not to crush any toes.
Deck six was their first stop. According to Hunter it used to be the officer's cabin until Flores put a requisition to turn it into a rec area specifically for officers.
It was empty when they walked out and admired the lounge. Comfortable leather chairs good for reading were off to the side. While a fully stocked mini bar with what appeared to be every kind of booze in the galaxy took the wall opposite the lift. A sixty inch display covered the prime spot in front of a black leather couch that could only be procured from earth. While a pool table was set up nearby.
"Hey what's this?" Vega asked, pointing to a closed off door near the washrooms.
Liam looked it over as Hunter stepped to it and popped the lock. "It's a hot tub."
Opening the door Hunter stepped back with a smile as he looked to them. Liam found it hard to keep his jaw closed. The tub resembled a mini-pool and looked cozy enough for ten people.
"What happens if we're attacked? Or we enter a mass relay?" Liam asked, fighting the urge to jump in.
"If we're attacked the water is drained through rapid suction into a tank below hold. As for a potential jump, they thought of that and outfitted the compartment with Zero-G stabilizers." Hunter seemed to have realized his audience was lost in admiration. "It's safe to say the water is not going anywhere, Sir."
After four hours of getting to know the crew and touring the massive ship, the lift returned to the CIC on deck three. His growling stomach reminded him of how long it's been since this entire journey began and to his horror realized he hadn't eaten more than a protein bar over the span of their two day trip. A bed, food and some answers would've been perfect.
Hunter continued his brisk walk, leading the tour with confidence. "I know you were here before, Commander. But I thought you might like to see the cockpit. Flight Lieutenant Donnelly wants to meet you."
"Look at you, got a fan already," Vega said with a teasing smile before turning to Hunter. "Think she'll want an autograph?"
"Yours?" Liam said, raising a brow. "Probably not."
Hunter chuckled but stopped when a blue flash careened into him.
Liam quickly drew his pistol, crosshairs on target.
The biotics cooled to reveal Casey with a friendly arm around Hunter.
"Hunter! Congratulations!" she squealed oblivious to the danger as she ruffled his hair. "We haven't had an ops chief in like forever!"
All eyes landed on Liam lowering his gun.
"Pipe down, Blitz." Preston yelled from one of the consoles also watching. "And what did I say about using biotics on the bridge?"
"Sorry, sir!" she yelled back.
Liam wedged his pistol back in his holster. Clenching and unclenching his fists helped ease the adrenaline back. Vega and some of the bridge crew glanced to him with a questioning expression but he ignored them.
"Thanks Casey," breaking from her grip, Hunter vainly tried to smooth his hair when Preston waved him over. "Please excuse me. I wanted to show them the cockpit..."
"I got it Hunter. Now go before Preston gets a hernia." Blitz turned to her new officers. "What do you two think of the ship?"
"It's good. Big, but good," Vega replied distractedly as he looked between Liam and Blitz. "But hey, what's that about you not having an ops chief for a while? What was I?"
Blitz laughed. "Right. Guess I forgot all about the thirty minutes we had you, Vega," Her attention turned to Liam. "Commander. First Lieutenant Casey Blitzer but people call me Blitz." He grasped her warm loose grip. "I just want to say it's an honor. My parents live on Elysium and they're still living there thanks to you."
"I'm glad they're alright," Liam said, wondering how her purple mid-length hair ever got past standards. "How long have you been on the SSV Dublin?"
"Long. It's my fifth year," The three of them made their way towards the cockpit. "This was my first posting right out of Ascension. Preston scouted me."
"Doesn't strike me as the recruiter type," Vega said giving Preston a sideways glance, flanking her left.
Liam shook his head. "Ignore him."
"Actually, he's right," Blitz fought a smile for a whole two seconds before it came to her. "Staff Commander Preston hates it. But...he has a good eye for talent." She looked between them appraisingly.
"You're making him blush," Liam nodded to Vega who looked away, embarrassed. Blitz laughed easily and for the first time in a long time he felt at ease on a new ship.
The briefing room doors suddenly opened and Hackett walked out with the Captain. Her calm demeanor and guarded expression didn't give anything away. Hackett's trademark unreadable expression pretty much shut down any inquiry.
Following the bridge crew's lead, he stood tall and held a salute. Vega, Hunter, Casey and Preston did the same from the corner of his eye.
The CIC was soundless for an entire minute as nobody moved, waiting for orders.
"At ease, everyone," Hackett said. The low bustle returned as people got back to work. A sinking feeling settled in his stomach, when Hackett and Flores meandered their way to him. Blitz and Vega took the hint and disappeared, leaving Liam as the sole sacrifice.
"Commander, thank you for agreeing to this," Hackett said.
"Of course, Sir," Liam replied, as he shook his mentor's hand. There was nothing to agree to.
"I'll need to speak to you before I leave."
"I'm also going to speak to you after he leaves," Captain Flores said as her intense brown eyes held his. The slight edge in her voice didn't give him any delusions. Something about this little deal didn't sit well with her and Liam was glad to say the feeling was mutual.
"Yes, ma'am. When and where?"
"Observation. Deck four at twenty-two hundred," she stepped back, not offering Hackett another look let alone a salute. "Hunter will show you."
As she made her way to Preston, Liam followed Hackett and his guards in the opposite direction. When the four of them were locked and descending Hackett turned to Liam.
"I'm sorry about this, Shepard. But I'm out of options."
"Sir, if I may speak freely?" Liam asked. If this was his last chance to get some answers, he didn't want formality to screw him over.
"Go ahead," the admiral nodded his approval.
"What's really going on?" looking Hackett in the eye he let loose. "If what you're saying about Cerberus is true, then I don't understand why the 83rd isn't involved. Or how finding Major Flores takes priority? It's not that I'm unsympathetic—"
"I understand your confusion," Hackett cut in, "but this is more than a simple rescue mission. Major Flores was a part of Cerberus when it was still under military control. She's one of the few agents who we assume remained loyal to the Alliance once Cerberus broke away and the only one that has tried contacting us when it became clear her parameters changed. We're hoping she can tell us what the hell went wrong." The Admiral's eyes narrowed. "You need to be cautious either way."
Liam felt doubtful. "You think the transmission was a trap?"
"Maybe. But I expect you to detect and evade if it is, Commander." Hackett sighed. "Shepard, I don't like this anymore than you do. But the Major took a big risk by contacting us through open channels. Whatever intel she has on Cerberus can't fall into enemy hands."
There was more to it. There had to be. He felt it in his blood, but the bigger picture was murky at best. Hackett was the type of man who wouldn't take a shit without a solid plan. Extraction of deep cover assets required the most complicated and delicate plans which is why N7 infiltrator squads handled extractions at this level, not an expensive cruiser full of jar heads born and raised on spray and pray combat. Something was missing here and he sure as hell was going to find out what.
"This one's off the books, isn't it." Liam stated. There was no way the admiralty board would risk losing a ship just to investigate one exiled Major's distress signal. Especially if everything with a Cerberus logo was being systemically wiped out by other Alliance spec-ops groups. "You're risking your career here sir."
"Yes." the rough quality of Hackett's tone said everything he didn't want to know. "The Alliance has made up its mind. But I owe Captain Flores a lot and I'm sure you understand her concern for her sister's well being."
Shepard nodded, suppressing a shiver down his spine when he remembered hearing news from Akuze. You don't forget a day like that.
"You owe the Captain?" Liam asked before he could think.
Hackett allowed a small smile as the elevator ground to a halt. "That's a story for another time, Commander. You have work to do."
"Right," Liam shrugged as the doors opened.
The two guards fanned out and lead the way to a waiting Kodiak.
"Did you get in touch with Rear-Admiral Kahoku?"
Liam shook his head. "I've been out of range for most of the ride here."
Hackett nodded in understanding. "Speak with him. He was Major Flores' handler and the last to receive her transmission," Hackett said, as his face showed hardened determination. "Good luck, Shepard."
With that the admiral stepped onto the Kodiak's platform and looked out over the hangar. Liam stepped back to salute which the admiral returned. The door slid closed and the Kodiak taxied to the launch bay.
Admiral Steven Hackett was a great mentor even before he was an admiral. Liam never forgot how many times he ran into the man when he was just a space brat visiting his parents aboard ships. Unlike the other officers, Hackett treated him like a human being and not the poster boy every other officer fawned over just to seem nice. He wasn't about to let him down.
Liam made his way back to the lifts but couldn't shake the ominous feeling in his gut.