Location: Firebase Dagger—Ontarom
A military base was not the most dignified place to hold a press conference, but Brock sure knew how to party and make the most of it anyways. The east portion of the dark side was transformed into a panel. The splash screen behind it displayed the Alliance symbol so as to obscure the thick forest beyond. The pipe works were now a semi-respectable gathering place complete with caterers preparing some tasty appetizers. The seats were reserved by order of importance, with Brock and anyone he deemed worthy of making him look good, sitting in the middle.
Reporters from every major news station across the galaxy flooded into the compound. They were greeted by servicemen and techs who had orders to give them their full attention. But the marines were really just buffers between the nosey ones and the sensitive intelligence.
Everyone streaming in either had money or knew how to pretend they did. Most of the female reporters left little to the imagination, with their tight curve hugging dresses. No one seemed concerned for the unpredictable weather, but that was a given since Brock had his team erect a force field over the compound so for now the clear sun radiated through the transparent bubble of energy. In the event of a sandstorm, everyone below was safe from anything short of a meteor shower.
As the last of the stragglers moved in, Liam leaned on the railing and allowed himself to relax. There was real booze around so the chances of anyone asking personal questions after the presentation were slim. From his spot on the east approach he could see four of the twelve outposts. So even if the big wigs lost themselves in politics at least there were enough marines out there prepared for anything.
"Well aren't we looking good," Ellie said appraisingly as she came up beside him. She was pretty in an indigo dress, it was a style from Earth that had a classic but striking beauty to it, something the Europeans were known for.
"You look nice there yourself, Ellie," Liam replied, making a show of admiring her from head to toe. He pushed back from the railing and looked over to the gathering crowd. The reporters were already jousting for the best seats. "Excited?"
Ellie reached out and began fixing his tie distractedly. Liam smiled but didn't say anything. He knew he did it right, but if a pretty woman wanted to put her hands on him then who was he to complain?
"For the disaster this is going to be? No." She raised her face and gave him a hopeful smile. "But hey, if I get to rub elbows with the rich and enjoy a day out of uniform. I'll take it!" She said. He could feel her hands leave his tie.
A flicker of worry crossed her face before it was replaced with an impenetrable mask. Her hands dropped to her sides as she looked back at the gathering crowd.
"Everything alright?" Liam asked, reaching out for her elbow. She wasn't even going on stage and she was worried. If that was the case then he didn't know how he himself should react.
"Oh yeah," she huffed, and gave a small shrug. "Just trying to remember how to talk to people again. I get nervous at these things."
"You'll be fine," he assured, knowing full well that something else was the matter but deciding to let it rest for now. There was more than enough to process without trying to play therapist as well."Can't say the same thing about Brock."
The man in question was already shaking hands and greeting his guests. His beefy stature looked comical against the stick thin socialites and political figures of Endeavor.
The snap of pictures and hum of cam drones reverberated through the air. The Captain was already being bombarded with questions but she looked to be taking it in stride as she kept her pace with Preston. It was hard to see her through the cluster of reporters, but the Staff Commander stood out like a sore thumb. Preston glared at him as he walked by with Flores.
Liam thought back to their earlier encounter. The Staff Commander practically threw a fit when he protested against Brock's mother of all debriefs.
~O~
2 hours earlier…
Liam felt his back spasm as Preston threw him against the wall and shoved an elbow to his throat. He was stronger than he looked.
"What do you think you're doing, Shepard?"Preston asked, bringing his weather-beaten face close to his own. Liam could see the faint lines of battle making their mark on the older man's features. He wasn't ancient by any stretch of the imagination, but there was experience there Liam only hoped to gain one day.
"My job...bastard took...witness," Liam choked out, feeling his throat tense dangerously under the strain. He debated taking him on, but having one more enemy wasn't a wise move.
Preston backed away and Liam slumped to the ground, breathing hard. "Tell me what is on Brock's shoulders?"
"What?" Liam looked up to his Staff Commander as if he were insane.
"What symbol is on his shoulder!" Preston demanded.
Liam thought fast, military drill kicking in as Preston was replaced with a villa instructor. "Stars, sir."
"Exactly. The man has stars, Shepard and as long as you don't, you'll do exactly as he says. No questions asked." Preston bristled, his facial hair making him look like a grizzly. "Am I clear?"
"Crystal," Liam replied roughly as he watched him storm away.
~O~
"Okay," Ellie said, watching the cluster pass before turning her inquiring gaze to Shepard. "What's that all about?"
Shaking his head he smiled back. "Long story. We should go before all the good seats are taken."
"Did you forget you've got the mother of all guest of honor chairs?" she said, taking his arm to steady herself as they started down the ramp.
Liam closed his eyes. That's right, he was all the way at the end of the panel table between the asari and the rich guy.
Speaking of which, they were all waiting off to the side with Vega as their babysitter. He didn't look half bad in a black monkey suit and armed with an avenger rifle. Your classic bodyguard. When James saw him and Ellie, he gave a thumbs up accompanied by a toothy grin.
Thankfully Ellie didn't see Liam's own return gesture as she stopped and took everything in with those sly eyes. "Hey." She gave Liam a beseeching look. "Just try to take it easy, enjoy yourself."
With a final pat on the back she joined Casey and Gordon near the mid-row, leaving Liam to face the podium alone. Preston and Flores were already seated along with some silver haired business guy that screamed trust fund. He guessed that to be Heyuan Genomics' CEO Roland Price. Taking a seat beside him Liam channeled his inner war hero interviewee persona and held a decent conversation.
Or at least he would have, had he been capable of forming a sentence. Once the cloud of people left Flores, all he could do was stare. She looked gorgeous. So different from her every day captain's blues. The red mid-length dress attracted all eyes to her and for some weird reason it threw Brock into a jealous fit as he barreled through the crowd towards his attention hogging seat in the middle.
Roland was smart enough to know when he was being so blatantly ignored, but the old man didn't seem offended as he peeked sideways and smiled. "Beautiful isn't she?"
"You have no idea," Liam replied, careful to put his eyes back to his companion when Flores glanced his way.
o~O~o
Someone had enough sense to invite DJ Madura. Thanks to her, all the Earth-based electronic tunes from eras past lit up the after party. Reporters that spent the entire night trying to poke holes in their press release were now dancing with reckless abandon, arms flailing and bodies twitching to some beat from Rom Di Prisco.
The pipeworks were the perfect blend of mingling ground and dance floor. All the hard tiled surfaces reflected carefully positioned strobe lights, while the sandy grounds were covered with steel sheets the marines laid out earlier. Since most of the guests were downstairs Liam found it slightly more private by the outlook and took his call there.
There were few things better than seeing mom for the first time in four years. Sure she could be a little less pissed and a lot more understanding of the fact that he looked dead tired, but that was mom.
"And what business did that woman have dragging your family life into it?" Hannah demanded as if he had all the answers.
Liam shrugged honestly. "Mom, she's a reporter. They're trying to get the juicy details so they can sell stories. You know how this works."
Hannah's dark brown eyes narrowed in fury. She swept the bright red hair behind her ear and said, "I know that right about now I prefer your sister's approach."
He laughed at the memory of Fiona knocking Al-Jilani flat on her ass. It was the first interview Fi did after Akuze and thankfully the last. Yet as much as he agreed with his sister's actions it put the rest of them on Khalisah's shit list.
It was difficult to switch topics and get her to stop nagging about his sleep. So he pulled the sibling card. "How's she doing?"
"Your sister is back on Earth, 56th regiment under Major Coats once again." Hannah said, her light brown eyes shone with pride through holo-com. "She's up to Staff Lieutenant but of course I had to hear it from the Major. Your dad would be proud."
The warm sensation of relief flooded his system. Ever since Akuze he was worried sick about his little sister Fiona, fearing that she'd fall to the Shepard curse of drowning in FUBAR missions. But she bounced back faster than anyone could've predicted and he was glad to see the Alliance was quick to acknowledge that with a promotion.
"That's great news, mom," he replied as his smile melted when his thoughts turned to his little brother. It'd been three years since Torfan. "And how's Jarhead?"
"John is on some special assignment right now. But I'm hearing rumors that they're thinking of making him XO under Captain Anderson once that new frigate is finished," she said with a happy smile. "And congratulations to you too honey, it's been a long time coming."
"Anderson's the best there is. John will be in good hands," he replied, trying to keep her encouragement at arms length. He remembered how strict his parents were, hell his dad was a downright hard ass but now he knew why. Everything they ever did was to prepare him and his siblings for war. It was just the way things were.
Her projected expression flickered between understanding and pity. He hated that look. Mom had this ability to know when something was bothering him, and he didn't want to ruin this reunion by explaining the bizarre broadcast she likely just saw.
"I'm glad you're finally off X-19, Liam." she said slowly. "You know no one blames—"
"—I'm alright," Liam replied, not wanting to dwell on that place. He was grateful they banished him to guard duty and not a psych ward after Elysium. "I'm just glad it's over."
Someone sounded in the background and Hannah Shepard nodded before looking back. "If that's the case then I want to get more than just one message every four years from my own son. Do you hear me?"
Liam nodded with a grin. "I hear."
"Good," she said before adding, "So my grandson's birthday is approaching..."
Shepard perked up and sat straighter. He talked to Mikey regularly and knew the boy was excited. This year he was finally old enough for the derby. "Yeah, I ordered his gift already. I've been hoping to touch base with Fi so she could pick up the racer."
Hannah shook her head, and tucked a few loose orange strands beneath her naval cap. "Sasha will be okay with her son entering the derby?"
"She hasn't been opposed," he replied, mulling it over. He loved watching the kid own the field in dodgeball, but it was the pure wonder for all things fast that really got Michael's attention. "I want to be there when he sees it."
"Then make it happen," Hannah said sharply before easing back on her tone, "that boy is growing, Liam. I don't want you to miss out on that."
Mom was always defensive when it came to Mikey. He pitied any poor schmucks who ever dared to make his boy's life hell.
"I don't either," Liam assured with a smile.
Someone sounded in the background and Hannah Shepard nodded before looking back. "Well I should go before this ship falls apart. Try to avoid that Al-Jilani woman, I don't want a galaxy wide embarrassment."
"I'll try, but no promises." He smiled at her widening grin.
Hannah Shepard signed off, leaving Liam with his thoughts as the party continued to rage around him. A lot of people were asking questions about Sasha's personal life. But what she did or didn't do with her new boyfriend was Sasha's business. What did it matter to him? He leaned back against the rails and yanked on his tie, there was no sense in keeping up appearances when the reporters below were too drunk to ask any real questions.
Only Brock was chatting up the last of the sober ones near west wing while Flores was below with some Diana Allers woman. She was clearly a new reporter since she kept getting outstaged by hogs like Khalisa Al-Jilani. In a surprising turn of events Brock and Flores worked together and kept the newshounds focused on the real story. After all that, the Captain wasn't even breaking a sweat.
"Sup, Shep...she aint' gonna...dance by herself..." Glen slurred at his right, held steady by Ellie who was under his arm.
"You going to be okay, Glen?" Liam asked, hovering a cautious hand near his suit-clad back just in case Glen thought he had wings.
"Had a few too many, but should be fine as a chipper come morning," Ellie said, being careful to keep Glen from swaying. "Done a number on you isn't that right, Glen?"
"I be alright...Shep." Glen shook his head, making the dark shades over his eyes quake. The dreaded hangover was probably doing a number on him from last night's adventures in the officer lounge party. Heck come to think of it, seemed like every night was a party on the Dub. How did anyone get any work done?
"Okay, that's it. You're coming with me to see Chakwas, let's go," Ellie said, and despite Glen's protests she managed to drag him by the hand. Liam started to follow but stopped when she issued a strict order. "You're not leaving here until you dance, Commander. Heck if I went through the ringer tonight there'd be scotch in my hands too."
"I don't dance," Liam said, reaching for Glen's other arm. But the Vanguard was on Ellie's side and pulled away too.
"Nope, you're staying Shepard. At least ask the captain to dance," Ellie hollered but her request was drowned out to the sound of music.
Liam smiled as he watched them stumble away. He remembered the handful of shore leaves on Earth where he along with his siblings were hell bent on learning how to dance. Ten lessons between the three of them sent ballroom, hip-hop and contemporary dance teachers running for the hills.
The only people missing were Liara, Vega and the Captain who basically disappeared after her interview with Allers.
Laughter sounded close by, Liam smiled as Vega and Liara joined him at the west approach rails. The scientist wore a deep blush while Vega, still in his bodyguard persona, aimed her a goofy grin.
"Hey Shepard," they stopped before him, "doc says she can't dance. I don't believe that."
Liara looked flustered in her modest green form fitting dress. Unlike her colleagues it didn't show as much skin. It was like prom night for the shy girl and Vega was the meathead trying to hit on her.
"See Vega's a pro," Liam said, addressing Liara. "He's just itching to show us his moves."
"Nah, loco, I'm on guard duty. Flores would kill me," Vega stammered, sobering up a bit.
"I don't think she'll mind." Liam smiled when Liara did.
Vega was about to make another rebuttal when Preston shouted from his perch near the control array's entrance. "Get to it, chief. I'll watch over your charges."
"Ha, no can do sir. I take my job very seriously," Vega shouted back.
"They seem good at it," Liara said, watching the small crowd on the dance floor below. "Very skilled."
"Casey's one of them," Liam added. That perked Vega's ears as he shoved closer for a look. One of Roland Price's managers was matching Casey move for move.
"On second thought, I'll be back." Vega rushed downstairs and fluidly joined the rest. But instead of cutting in, he had his own growing entourage which now included Diana Allers.
"Not what I expected." Liam backed away from the rails and looked to his companion. "How's the night treating you?"
"Well, thank you," Liara replied, gliding a single finger along the steel railing. "I'm not really in the right frame of mind to dance...unless of course you wanted to, not that you have to!" Liam only stared blankly so Liara smacked a palm to her head. "Goddess...I've embarrassed myself again."
"I think the dance floor is crowded enough. Besides, we could both use a break from the conference," he said, meaning to put a gentle hand to the small of her back but let it fall to his side instead. There was no need to make this any more uncomfortable than it already was for the poor girl. "What did you think of it?"
"You're referring to the conference?" She looked his way. He nodded. "I wish they hadn't asked so many questions regarding my mother. But I'm fine now," she said before he could appease that wound. "However, they seemed to pry into your personal life too."
Liam nodded, feeling his jaw tense when Al-Jilani's questions drifted back into his mind. While everyone else focused on the mission, she was the only one bringing Sasha and her new boyfriend CEO of Hahne-Kedar Shadow works, Dillon Ackerson, to the table. Nearly threw him into a fit. Thankfully Brock was too much of an attention hog to let that line of questioning continue, while the Captain shot down any subsequent attempts. They were a surprisingly effective team, comfortable working with each other, at least in public.
"I'm sorry if that question offended you," Liara stammered out, making him realize he hadn't said a word.
"No. It's not that. Don't worry about it." He shook his head but could see the damage was done when Liara excused herself. Preston was already down the ramp and following her like he promised.
A good hour later the dance floor was packed and everyone moved to Jamiroquai's 'alright'. The ancient track struck a good mood as people were too busy shouting 'Well spend the night together, say hello to forever!' to notice who was in their company. Everyone was completely sloshed now. The cam drones were put away as reporters lost themselves in a rave like frenzy. Brock was in the middle, not actually drunk but enjoying the attention many of the women flashed him as they itched for one last quote. The team of asari were naturals and already locking lips with the likes of Roland Price and others too drunk to care. Casey was still down there, oblivious to the fact that rich men with actual moves were obscuring her from James. She seemed to be the only one oblivious to Vega's attention hogging moves with Allers, but boy were they putting on a show.
The click of heels took his attention from the dance floor and towards his rapidly approaching Captain.
Her dress swirled with each step of her stilettos. It covered her shapely legs and left a lot to the imagination, he couldn't tear his eyes away. Instead of heavy makeup that most of the women downstairs donned, Flores opted to keep hers natural, with just a hint of smokey eye to accentuate those brown irises. The modest V cut of her dress made promises that were too much to share in public. It seemed like Preston's stoney face was the only buffer between her and the many admirers she cultivated over the evening but dismissed with one glare.
"I never realized Vega could dance," she mused, watching the scene below as their favorite ops chief, swooped an unsuspecting Diana Allers in his arms and twirled her around eliciting cheers from the rest.
"He's got moves I'll give him that," Liam replied, before settling with his back to the rails as he studied Flores. "Thanks for coming to the rescue when they zeroed in on family values."
Flores spared him an 'are you kidding me?' look. "It was none of their goddamned business. This entire press conference was just a farce."
Liam laughed at that. "I dunno, ma'am. We're still standing aren't we?"
She graced him with a tired smile that spoke to him all on its own. "Tell me something good, Shepard."
It took him a moment to deduce what good actually meant in her vocabulary, before eventually deciding on something mission related. "I talked to Roland Price. He seems to have nothing to do with this hostage fiasco. I think it's clear as day that ExoGeni stands to gain something from this, but it's hard to see what."
"Good. I asked Brock about your witness, he's hoping to work his magic on ExoGeni but made no promises." Flores took all that in but he must have miscalculated because that look of exhaustion only intensified. For the first time he saw fleeting panic in those eyes, however brief it was strong enough to make him reach out and place his hand to the small of her back without thinking.
"We'll figure this out, then we'll find your sister." His palm danced with electricity, he could feel the energy of the strong smooth flesh beneath that dress. It was that same energy which made him feel bold tonight and tired of being on the dance floor sidelines. "I also think you look gorgeous, ma'am."
That got her attention as she turned to him abruptly. He could see in her wide brown eyes that she wasn't expecting that and didn't know how to react. But that sweet surprise lasted moments before the competent captain took over, her indulgent smile returned. "Well...thank you."
She moved and Liam let his hand drop but not his gaze. Once again he was held captive by those brown eyes that seemed to beg for more without saying a word. "Would you like to dance?"
God was listening because suddenly a closing song started playing. One of those slow ones meant for couples who wanted to sway on the spot and remember the night forever, he recognized it as that ancient Top Gun ballad. Flores did too as her smile was followed up with a light laugh. "I don't dance, Shepard."
"Neither do I," he recovered, "but the standard looks pretty low." He reached out to rub the back of his head, a nervous habit from highschool times and just plain annoying now.
She shook her head with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I should be heading back now. Thanks for keeping me posted."
"Anytime," he replied quietly, somewhat disappointed but happy that they were back on good terms.
o~O~o
Ontarom's sun fired up the morning sky and drenched the world in orange. It would've looked serene and peaceful to anyone wanting a fun day in the busy colony. The only problem was that it wasn't day.
Shepard stifled a yawn and heard Vega do the same as they escorted the freed asari to their enviably elegant ship. He tried hard to swallow his aborted confrontation with Brock. The bastard was lucky Preston came in when he did. If he hadn't, Ontarom would've needed a new colonel.
"Can't believe it's morning already," Vega said, interrupting the uncomfortable tension radiating from the scientists.
"It's not morning," Shepard said, trusting his internal clock alongside the dossier on Ontarom's strange cycles.
"Yes. This is an eclipse cycle," Liara said, perking up with wide curious eyes. "Ontarom has three suns that take turns rising prematurely due to the planets' alternating rotation; we're still studying the accelerated phenomena. It should dissipate into nightfall in roughly one hour."
"All the more reason we better get home. We wouldn't want someone's mommy to worry," Sithandra said from up ahead of them with the other asari, including Liara's silent supporter.
"Don't listen to them," Shepard said, trying to cheer her up, "there's a reason you're in charge."
"Thank you," she said in a meek attempt to pass it off, but he could tell their words cut deep. Poor girl, she was only trying to do her damn job.
As they got closer the full size of the ship hit him. It was smaller than the Dub, but not that much smaller. If the asari decided to arm this thing they'd have a formidable if not slightly oversized frigate. Breathing deeply Liam fought his urge to put the mantis to good use. These guys were harmless. Brock's ridiculous press conference proved that much. No need to stoke the fire.
"Please forgive me if I sound ignorant but was that normal procedure?" Liara's voice cut through his thoughts.
Liam scrunched his brow and glanced over to the asari. "Is what a normal procedure?"
"Back at the base, your leader Brock allowed us a chance to tell our story to your people. I've never had such an opportunity," Liara said, sounding almost grateful.
"Yeah..." Liam eyed her with a weary sigh remembering how Brock single-handedly took credit for rescuing the scientists. The reporters ate it up, but he felt the tension back on base mainly among the other marines who knew the real story. "He likes to show off. Don't be surprised if only half of what you said makes it to the extranet."
Liara didn't seem to get the apology but held off any further questions. Thankfully Vega filled the rest of the silence when the sun began to set.
"Finally," Vega rejoiced, when they were near the ship's doors. The other asari didn't even wait for Liara as they all filed in expertly. "There you go."
"Thank you," Liara said, coming to a stop well before the door, much to Liam's dismay. Couldn't they just go already? But a part of his gut clenched at the thought of possible mutiny aboard that ship. "We wouldn't be here if it weren't for the two of you."
"It was not a problem," Liam replied, as he watched the sun extinguish and cast Ontarom's surface back into darkness. The ship's proximity lights kept things well lit.
Vega cleared his throat loudly, letting them know he was an active observer in this conversation of values. "Hey it's getting dark, Commander."
When Liara finally looked up he caught her big blue eyes in his own gaze. "It's never going to be clear cut, Liara. And sometimes the rules won't be enough to keep them safe. I wish it were different."
"So do I," she said sadly, but smiled despite that. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." Liam replied and felt himself return the smile. She's a good kid, just needs some experience and practice.
"I didn't catch your full name, Commander," she asked shyly.
"Liam," he answered only to jump when Sithandra hollered from the megaphone.
"Get in Liara! We don't have all day—night whatever."
Shaking her head with a wistful smile she backed away. "Thank you Liam. I hope to one day have your confidence."
With that she left and sealed her fate on the ship. He'd be lying if he said he didn't want to keep them grounded for another day, but some piece of hope trusted her judgment.
Vega's footfalls sounded beside him as they both watched the ship take off. It hovered gracefully. The mass effect cores didn't make a sound as they gained altitude and disappeared from view in the blink of an eye.
"You feel good about letting her go?" Vega asked, watching the starlit sky for any sign of them.
Shaking his head lightly Liam tried not to think about it. "No. But she'll be fine. She's new but shows potential."
"Hope you're right." Vega led the way back to the Mako where Hunter waited patiently. "Hey, what's up with you and Brock? He went out of his way to make sure you didn't get a word in."
Liam gave him a dismissive shrug, remembering how Brock cut in to answer every question aimed at him. "You ever understand the entitled?"
"Nope."
"Me neither," Liam said as they climbed in and Hunter gunned the engine.