SSV Cambrai, Silean Nebula
Day 1, 1520
"Alright. At ease, you two…"
Alec and Andersen both slumped, shoulders sagging and hands falling to sides as they fell at ease. The two of them were stood at the war room table with Captain Murphy, out of their armour, looking and feeling battered. He couldn't speak for the marine, but the engineer himself was uncomfortable, shifting from foot to foot and occasionally tugging his sweat-soaked fatigues off his chest as they clung.
"You did good."
It was a simple statement, but it had to be said, he realised. Both he and the chief stood a little taller, and a half-hearted smile flickered over Murphy's features.
"All supplies recovered intact, and no casualties in the squad," he continued, nodding approvingly. "Could have been a lot worse."
"The, ah… asari took a lot of casualties," Alec pointed out, rubbing his jaw.
"And that's unfortunate," the captain sighed, "but that planet was hit by Reapers, Alec. Every survivor we extracted is one more soldier who would've died otherwise."
"I know, sir. Just noting the fact."
"It… should be noted," Murphy agreed. "But a little perspective helps. Likewise… big picture isn't quite so rosy as the small-scale."
The engineer nodded, wordlessly. His brain had been working over the 'big picture'since they made it back to the ship, and to put it mildly, to put it tactically… they were pretty screwed.
"Wider situation's fucked," the captain muttered, echoing Andersen's thoughts. "The Reapers arrived even sooner than we expected, and they hit the planet in force. Now, it's possible they drew forces away from the siege on Cyone…"
"But it's more likely they just got reinforcements," Andersen grimaced.
"Right…"
"What's our plan going forwards, then?"
"Same plan as before, for the time being. Captain Fofana's task force should be coming through the relay and making their drops as we speak, so we fall back to the rendezvous, keep stealth systems running, and bide our time."
"We're going to keep running the stealth systems?" interrupted the engineer, with a frown.
"At least until we know where we stand, yeah…" Murphy nodded.
"That's… gonna get hot, captain. IES diverts thermal output into the heat sinks…"
"And back into the ship. I know. It's gonna be an uncomfortable night, but as long as we're just drifting, no thrust, we should be fine. Won't hit dangerous levels for another day and a half."
"Since when were you an expert?"
"Akito told me."
"…oh. Right. Sir."
The captain rolled his eyes, and the engineer looked at his feet, awkwardly. Alec just smirked at him, then muttered, in a pleasant change of topic:
"What about the asari? Have you spoken to Tarenna?"
"I have," Murphy nodded. "She's grateful, but… she might not sound it if you ask. She lost a lot of people down there. She's down in the hold with what's left of her platoon, at present."
"Understood, sir. What's their plan going forward?"
"Nairobi or Pretoria should have shuttles to spare. A dozen survivors? I imagine they'll get evac back to the Citadel. Go off to another fight."
"'Least they know what they're up against now."
Murphy nodded, half-heartedly, but the mood had turned a little sombre again. It was one of those days.
"I don't imagine we'll get much downtime from Fofana," the captain concluded, finally. "This operation's moving at pace, especially if the Reapers are accelerating their assaults. We'll have to match them. At any rate… next mission's a matter for tomorrow. Good work today, you two. You both earned your shiny new bars. Dismissed."