Chapter 8
New Berlin really was, as Adams had put it, 'out in the ass-end of nowhere', or at the very least it did all that it could to look the part. The settlements scattering of prefab units, stacked on top of one another, were arranged in such a convoluted way that it couldn't possibly have been completely random, yet it lacked any hint of order and the planning behind it was impossible to comprehend. Shia briefly entertained the idea that the whole thing could be considered and art installation, if it wasn't for the dead bodies and looming danger of an ambush. The units themselves were in varying stages of disrepair, some fairly new and still retaining their white finish, while others were tattered and overgrown with vegetation.
As they moved deeper into the settlement, the signs left from the fighting became ever more prominent as they entered areas where the citizens had apparently been able to mount some kind of defense. The air became thicker and hazed, the smoke from the small fires around them mixing with the smell of blood. It permeated the air and Shia cringed slightly, snorting in a vain attempt to shield herself from it. The sight of the bodies was less disturbing to her now, yet stepping over them she couldn't help but feeling strangely detached, like what she was doing was somehow wrong or immoral. "Don't let it change you." She shrugged at the memory. No, I still care. she told herself, but she was also painfully aware of the need to focus on the task at hand. Stepping over yet another body, Adams signaled for them to stop. She took the time to look the body over; it was a young woman, not much older than her. Her eyes fixed on her once flowing blonde hair, now a tangle of dirt and brown blotches of coagulated blood. She checked the vital signs with a solemn sigh, fully aware that it would be in vain.
They were perched at the end of a narrow alley, propped up against a metal crate they scanned their surroundings. Her eyes went over the multitude of openings in the buildings down the barrel of her rifle, there were no signs of movement. Turning to Adams she whispered "Do you think they're still here?"
Adams grumbled before he lowered his rifle slightly to respond "Aye. These bodies are still fresh, and we saw no ships in the area as we approached." he repositioned himself and raised his rifle. When he spoke again, his voice had an eerie calm to it "They're still 'ere, waitin', I'd stake my life on-" He stopped abruptly, and Shia could see his body tense before the ground beside her exploded in a cloud of dust, the loud noise of a weapons discharge following in it's wake.
Shia acted instinctively. Throwing her left hand up, the blue hue of her biotics flared brightly as the barrier engulfed them, deflecting some of the fire. "Shit!" Adams roared as he rose from cover momentarily, sending a barrage of bullets flying down the alley at their assailants. As he ducked back into cover, he raised his hand to the comm "Amherst, enemy presence confirmed, heavy interdiction. Converge on our location, over!" he yelled over the gunfire, rising quickly to deliver another volley. "God dammit!" he roared at the static in his ear when no reply came from the other team.
Shia, feeling the fatigue already setting in, glanced over at him and shouted "Sir, I can't keep the barrier up much longer!"
Looking down the way they came, realizing that any retreat would leave them exposed, he collected himself and said sternly "Alright... we have to spread out. When there's a break in their fire, you head for that prefab." he motioned his head to a portal to their left. "I'll cover you."
Shia nodded in response, listening carefully for the break. When it came, the muscles in her legs were already tensing up as the call from Adams came "Go!"
She let the barrier dissipate, gripping her assault rifle tightly she sprinted for the opening in the wall opposite. She heard Adams fire as the doorway drew closer, throwing herself through it, she felt the projectiles once again flying their way. She fell back against the cold metal wall, resting her head against it briefly as she caught her breath.
Propping herself up against the doorway, she leaned out ignoring the tiredness of her arms after holding the barrier. For the first time she could see the enemy; there appeared to be four of them, slowly advancing up the alley. Taking aim, she caught one of them in her sight. Batarians... Time seemed to slow down as she applied pressure to the trigger, she hesitated briefly, feeling as if his four eyes were looking right at her, before she pulled the trigger fully and fired. As the batarian fell in front of her, she returned to cover, throwing her head back as she exhaled. Looking over at Adams, she held up three fingers towards him, receiving a nod of understanding from the human.
As Adams took down another attacker, the two remaining batarians halted their advance and ducked for cover. Deciding not the waste the opportunity, he secured his assault rifle, exchanging it for a short, stubby shotgun. He motioned for Shia to cover him as he took up an advance position. She nodded, firing down the alley to keep the batarians hold up as Adams crept closer. In an explosive move that caught both Shia, and obviously the batarians off guard, Adams burst out towards their cover, and with a gut-wrenching roar proceeded to plant the barrel of the shotgun to the chest plate of the enemy closest to him. Their eyes met, the batarian giving him an expression of utter disbelief before he was thrown back by the blast of the powerful weapon. As the last of them swung around to face Adams, he was quickly dropped to his knees by a well placed shot from Shia. Adams stared at the last batarian to fall for a moment, then cocked his head in Shias direction, throwing her an appreciative nod as she walked towards him. How 'bout that? Kid did alright... he thought, bringing up the comm once again.
Walking towards Adams, Shia glanced over at her fallen enemies, feeling conflicted. She was proud that she'd handled herself well, but there was something definitive about it as well, as if something had changed within her. I've killed... taken life. She shrugged it off. She was a soldier, she knew it would probably come to this, but now that it had she wasn't sure how she felt about it. Reaching Adams, he could hear him trying to reach the other team over the com.
"Amherst, sitrep! Over!" he called out, his voice demanding. At first there was nothing but static, but after a moment a voice seemed to cut in intermittently. "Amherst, report." he tried again.
"Encounter... heavy resistan... Pulling back... LZ" a woman's voice yelled, heavily distorted by static. Adams brow contorted into a deep frown as he spoke "Understood."
He turned to Shia as he equipped his assault rifle again. "You get all that Shepard?"
"Yes sir" she replied with a firm nod.
"Good. We're headin' back. Watch your six and check the flan-"
Adams was cut of as another burst of fired erupted from the alley. Shia threw herself into cover. Glancing out, she couldn't see anything. Shit! Where's it coming from? She ducked as another barrage hit the crate. The she saw it, movement on the third level of the building in front of her.
No way I'm getting a shot in she thought, her mind racing to figure out her next move. As the shooter shifted positions, it dawned on her. As her biotics flared up, she rose and in once swift motion, she locked him in a field and yanked him forward. He stumbled uncontrollably towards the edge, and with a low growl finally fell towards the ground below. Shia turned away from the sight, closing her eyes for good measure, and as she heard the low thud of flesh impacting the solid ground behind her, a chill ran down her spine.
The alley fell silent, eerily so, and she opened her eyes to locate Adams. Looking around, confused at his absence she took at step forward; then she saw him. Chief Adams was lying motionless on the ground. "Chief!" she yelled, running up to him and falling to her knees at his side. In a fit of panic, she checked his vital signs, a sigh of relief escaped her as she felt breathing and managed to register a heartbeat. Looking him over, she froze, seeing the large wound at the side of his forehead. No. No. No. No "Stay with me, Chief!" she cried out as she activated her comm "Amherst, come int!". There was no response. "Dammit... Hang in there Chief... we're getting out of here."
She grabbed Adams by the arm, pulling his body over her shoulders to carry him. The task was arduous, the weight of the man making her stumble, very nearly making him slip out of her grip. After a good few minutes she finally managed to get to her feet, distributing the weight properly she was able to move forward, albeit slowly. Making her way towards the landing zone, she felt the fatigue raging in her body. The stress of the battle, the use of her biotics and the weight of the Chief had drained her almost completely. As she approached to LZ, she heard the sound of gunfire, a lot of it. She swallowed hard as she did her best to pick up the pace.
The ramp in sight, she could see Amherst and Yao engaging at least a dozen batarians on the left flank, the shuttle hovering behind them. The sound of the battle and the roar of the shuttles engines was deafening as she made it up the ramp. As she reached the top, she felt a sharp pain in her right leg. She roared in defiance as she felt the legs strength give in. She stumbled the last couple of meters towards the shuttle, using her last bit of energy to hoist Adams to the ground before collapsing. She could hear shouting, echoing as her vision began to blur, felt someone drag her on her feet, the pain in her leg nearly knocking her out as she put weight her on it. There was and arm around her and she was lead into the shuttle. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was Amherst frantic voice "...copy. We need a med-team in the hangar, two injured."
Shia woke up to a bright white light, a deep pounding in her head. She groaned, closing her eyes and tried to turn away from the light, only to be reminded of the sharp pain in her leg. She spent a moment trying to decide which of the two was worse, before forcing herself to open her eyes. Her vision focused after a moment and she looked around, realizing she was on a cot in the medical bay. She propped herself up on her elbow, and with a strained motion continuing up to a sitting position. Pulling her legs off the table made her hiss loudly as the blood rushed to the damaged area. This caught the attention of the doctor who strolled over to her quickly, putting her hand on her forehead and pushing her back down on the bed before she spoke in a soft voice "Easy there, Private. I'm doctor Sidorova. How are you feeling?"
Shia blinked a few times, deciding that it was probably best not to argue. "Hell of a headache... and the leg..." she said at last, creaking her neck slightly.
"Ah yes. Seems they were using pullonium rounds, you're running a light fever and there was a shock to your system from the toxin. I gave you a few injections just a moment ago, they should be taking effect soon." she paused to do a quick scan with her omni-tool before continuing. "As for the leg, it should heal up nicely. There was some nerve damage, so I'll be placing you on medical leave for a week. I'll discharge you as soon as you're feeling up to it."
Shia glanced to her side, seeing the sleeping form of Chief Adams lying in the bed next to her, tubes attached to his body. She gave the doctor a worried look. "How is he, doc?"
The doctor frowned, looking towards Adams before answering. "I've managed to stabilize his condition, but he needs neurosurgery. We're en-route to Arcturus Station now... but I think he'll recover." Shia nodded as she gave out sigh of relief.
The two women were interrupted by the door hissing open, with Commander Nielsen entering the room.
"Ah, Commander." the doctor chimed "What can I do for you?"
"Doctor" Nielsen responded "I'd like a word with the patient, if I may?"
"Oh, by all means, I was about to discharge her anyway." she responded, walking off to her console at the far end of the room.
Nielsen walked up to Shia cot, and she gave an awkward salute from her lying position. The commander smiled and held up a hand "At ease, Shepard."
Shia slumped back again, her eyes resting firmly on the Commanders face. Her hands fidgeting slightly "Sir... About Gunnery-Chief Adams, I-"
Nielsen held up a hand again, motioning for her to stop. "That's what I came her to talk to you about." he said warmly. After a moment of contemplation, looking over his long time shipmate he continued "Hell of a thing you did down there, Shepard. Saved the mans life, without a doubt."
Shia looked over at Adams again before returning her gaze to the Commander. "I hope so, sir." she said worriedly.
Nielsen caught on quickly, seeing the concern in her eyes. "Chief's a fighter. Don't worry about him" he said "I actually came to discuss your performance specifically. That was one hell of a display for a first mission. I'm entering a commendation into your record, and promoting you to the rank of Corporal."
Shia was stunned and at a loss for words. She hadn't expected to be yelled at at anything. But a promotion, after her first mission? She stumbled as she spoke "Well I-I... Thank you, sir."
Nielsen smiled again, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Well deserved, Shepard." he said "Now, rest up and get well. I'm sure we'll need you up and running soon."
Shia managed a weak smile "Will do, sir" she replied.
Exiting the medical bay she headed for the crew quarters. Hopping on her crutch and looking intently at the floor, she didn't see Jani sitting right outside. "Shia!" she nearly shouted, flying to her feet instantly and into Shias arms.
Shia let out a laugh as she almost fell backwards, dropping the crutch to the floor "Whoa, Injured woman here-" She was cut off by Jani pressing her lips to hers in a deep kiss. At first she was startled, but she soon melted into it and returned it eagerly. When they finally parted, she stared at Jani for a moment before speaking. "Umh... wow." she managed finally as she met her glowing eyes, she could see tears threatening to protrude behind them.
"Something wrong?" she asked.
Jani simply embraced her tightly, her chin resting on top of the quarian woman's head.
"When I heard you were... hurt." she said, speaking thickly into Shias shoulder "I was just so worried."
Shia smiled and stroked the back of her head soothingly, realizing no words needed to be spoken.
They walked and hobbled over to the lounge to find a more private place. After Shia retrieved a soda from the small fridge, they sat down next to each other in one of the couches. Jani rested her head on Shias shoulder and sighed contentedly.
"I wasn't sure if I should tell you how I felt about you." Shia chuckled in between sips from her beverage.
"You should have." Jani replied teasingly, nuzzling her shoulder.
"Yeah... I guess I should have." she said, tilting her head and resting it against hers.