A/N: Thank you AngstyShenko and Vorcha Girl for your reviews! I love hearing from you!
Bioware owns Mass Effect.
8. Edolus
They filed out of the comm room. Liara turned to Kaidan outside.
"Lieutenant? Is that correct? Could you tell me where I can find the doctor? Everything was so rushed when we came aboard." She asked almost timidly.
"You don't have to call me by my rank. Kaidan will do," he answered. "I'll bring you to the doc. I should see her as well." He still felt that hit he had taken from that Geth Shock Trooper. The pain had been overridden by adrenaline during battle, but now it was returning full force. Adrenaline was an efficient pain killer. Now, every breath ached, suggesting a possible rib fracture. Not likely, but possible. Kaidan hoped it was only a contusion to the chest wall and not a fracture. A fracture would mean he wouldn't be cleared for ground missions. He hadn't had the time to do a proper diagnosis scan in the field and now he might as well let Dr. Chakwas check him over.
Liara looked at him in surprise. "Why? I'm sorry, I don't know much about your species. Are there many human biotics?"
"No, there aren't that many human biotics. My generation are the first. Human biotics are caused by genetical changes due to Eezo exposure," he explained as they walked down the stairs to the crew deck. Kaidan pointed at the door of the med bay. "Here we are."
He led the way in. "Doc, this is Liara. She wanted to see you. And once she is done I wanted to talk to you yet, too." He nodded at Liara and went back into the mess. As usual after a mission he had to replenish the calories burned during combat. Sure enough, the mess sergeant had a tray ready for him. Thanking her he took it, grabbed a coffee and sat down. He wondered what Shepard was doing. Maybe when she was done they could find the time for a chat. If she was done before he was on duty again which was, damn, in half an hour. He groaned in annoyance. Just then the med bay doors opened and Dr. Chakwas came walking over to him.
"You can come in anytime, Kaidan. But eat first, don't rush yourself."
"I'll be there in five, doc," Kaidan let her know. The doctor looked at his half-full tray and gave him a look he knew from his mother. The look saying 'Young man, you are not getting up from this table until your plate is empty' generally followed by the reprimand 'Chew properly! Don't stuff eveything in your mouth all at once like that!'.
The doctor shook her head. "I just said you are supposed to take your time eating. You don't have to stuff everything down at once. I'll see you in fifteen." With that she went back into the med bay. Yep, Kaidan thought supressing the urge to grin, just like Mom.
Ten minutes later he entered the sickbay.
"You're early, Lieutenant," Dr. Chakwas said without looking up from the medical journal she was reading. She closed it and got up. "Not another migraine, is it?"
"Surprisingly, no. My head feels fine, despite the biotics I used planetside. I was wondering if my body adapts to the more frequent use of biotics. But that's not why I'm here. A Geth Shock Trooper nailed me pretty good and I didn't have the time for a proper scan groundside. It's not too bad, some difficulty breathing, feels tender, no crepitus. At first I thought I might've cracked a rib, now I think it's just a contusion." Kaidan gave her a quick rundown as he sat down. The doctor just nodded and began her scan.
"Nothing appears to be broken. Please take off your shirt, Kaidan...Ah, yes. I'd say your self-diagnosis was on the spot. You're going to feel that for a few days. It would be better if you refrain from going on groundside missions the next few days." She started typing something onto her datapad.
"What?! No!" Kaidan was aghast. This couldn't be happening. "I'm fine, doc. I just wanted to be sure there was no fracture. I can go groundside!"
The doctor looked up with a shake of her head, her lips pressed together to a thin line. "You marines are all the same. Very well, Lieutenant. You are cleared to go. But if this gives you any trouble, and I mean any trouble whatsoever, you will inform me and do shipside duty until I decide differently." She put all her authority as head physician and Alliance Major into her voice.
"Yes, ma'am," came the lieutenant's meek reply. Definitely like Mom, Kaidan grimaced, not quite as amused by the comparison as he had been before.
"And Kaidan? You are surely aware that I will also have to inform the commander about this. It will be up to her to assign you for a groundside mission or not."
"Yes, doc." He couldn't keep the apprehension out of his voice. He would be stuck shipside, he was almost certain. Shepard wouldn't take him along if he wasn't at a hundred percent.
He headed up to the helm to take up his duty at the survey station. Sitting there scannimg planets and asteroids for mineral or gas deposits was not a general favorite, but everyone got their turn and today it was his. To his amazement his seat was occupied. Shepard was sitting in it, keeping a close eye on the readings.
"Uh, Commander? I'm on duty station here now."
"Oh, right. Sorry. I'll get out of your way. I'm just goldbricking here anyway. I should be doing my rounds but survey station is perfect if you want to contemplate on things." She got up, standing between his seat for the next four hours and Joker's pilot chair. "I was just ready to scan that asteroid. All you have to do is push the button, the coordinates for the probe are set."
"Thank you, Commander." A hint of annoyance crept into his voice. He tried hard to keep it out, after all he was not upset with Shepard. She heard it nonetheless and gave him a hard look. Immediately she became aware of the firm set of his jaw.
"Is something wrong, Alenko?"
"No, Commander. Everything is fine," he lied as he sat down and launched the probe Shepard had prepared. She was still standing next to his seat and he could feel her gaze linger on him.
"Uh-huh." It was clear she didn't believe a word.
He sighed. "It's nothing major. I just saw Dr. Chakwas because of that direct hit I took on Therum. She wanted to put me on shipside duty for several days, I convinced her not to. She also said she would have to inform you of the situation." And that it is your choice if I get to go groundside or not, he added silently. He didn't want to sound like he was whining.
"Ah. I see. You're worried you won't get to go groundside." She nodded in understanding. "How bad is it?"
"I feel it, sure. But I have had worse." He looked up into her face. She calmly returned the gaze, blue eyes locking into brown. It was as if everything around him had slowed. She nodded again, slowly, not taking her eyes from his.
"Well, you don't have to worry about it today anymore. Once we're done surveying this system we will move on to the Sparta system. According to Admiral Kahoku that is where contact was lost to his missing platoon." She put a hand on his shoulder. "I want to take you and Ash along once we find any sign of them. I want marines on that mission. Tell me how you feel tomorrow morning. If you say you feel good enough, then you're in. I trust you to know what you can handle." She gave his shoulder a quick squeeze and a reassuring pat. With that she left to do her rounds. Kaidan turned his head a fraction to watch her as she walked away. Behind him he heard Jocker snicker quietly. Taking a deep breath he returned his focus on the terminal in front of him, still feeling the imprint of Shepard's hand on his shoulder.
"You've really got it bad, don't you?" Joker asked, watching his reaction closely.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Kaidan muttered. He kept staring at the readings relayed back from the scan. There, the scan found something. He launched the probe.
"Riiight. Come on, Kaidan. I've known you for years." Joker stated, turning back forward. "You're not exactly subtle."
"Great," Kaidan mumbled as he felt himself blush. "Joker, just drop it, ok?"
Joker opened his mouth, ready to retort in his usual snarky way. But something in his friends' posture made him change his mind. This seemed serious.
"Ok. I'll drop it. For now." Joker acknowledged to Kaidan's astonishment.
"Alright. Thanks."
Meanwhile Shepard went to talk to all and sundry. She started with Tali down in engineering, hoping she could tell her more about the geth. Then she found herself talking with Garrus. She had to admit she really liked the turian. He could turn out to be a really good friend. They talked about his time at C-Sec and the frustration of being saddled with too much red tape. Sure, she could understand it was annoying, but...
"The rules are there for a reason, Garrus. If we start ignoring them just because they annoy us, are we any better than the criminals that treat all rules with contempt?"
"Sorry, Shepard, I have the impression you don't hesitate to do what is necessary to get a job done."
She nodded. "True. I always try to cover all options, though."
"But you can do whatever it takes to get the job done!"
"Just because I can doesn't mean I have to. If it endangers others then I have to try to find another solution, otherwise I am no better than Saren. We do things the right way, not the fastest way." She paused before whispering "Usually. There can be exceptions to the rule. You just have to watch that the exceptions don't get out of hand."
"I ...," Garrus had the look of someone receiving a serious lecture. "I think I understand."
"Good."
After that she tried having a conversation with Wrex which proved difficult. Feeling frustrated she went to Ashley, who was busy dismantling a rifle. "Do you have time for a talk? One-on-one?"
"Sure, Commander. Just...give me...one...moment. There." Ashley put away the rifle and fidgeted around. "There was something I wanted to ask you anyway. You know I was never stationed shipside before and I don't have much...experience...dealing with aliens." she hesitated.
"I keep a rather open-door policy. What's your issue?"
"Should we be granting them access to such important stations such as engines or weapons or life support, Skipper?" Ashley blurted out, glancing over at Garrus who was busy tinkering with the Mako. Shepard followed her gaze.
"Let me ask you something." Shepard turned to look at the Gunnery Chief with a stern expression. "Are you aware that the Normandy was co-designed with the turians? They don't need to spy on us to know what kind of tech we have aboard, the turian hierarchy has the same blueprints the Alliance has. This ship is based on a turian model, never forget that, Chief." She paused. "I don't know where your distrust of Alien species comes from, Ashley, but as long as you are aboard the Normandy you will at least have to work with them. I'm not asking you to be all buddy-buddy with them, just work with them."
"Aye. I'll try, ma'am." And someone else looking like I just told them off, Shepard thought.
As she left Ashley standing there she wondered where the younger womans rigid views of aliens arose from. She continued contemplating about it as she took the elevator up to the crew deck. Liara should have had enough time to get settled in. She nodded a greeting to Dr. Chakwas who was busy at one of the medical stations.
"You will find Dr. T'Soni in the storage room, Commander." Dr. Chakwas let her know and she continued through the med bay.
As soon as she stepped into the storage room Liara rose from her seat.
"Commander, are you coming to check up on me?" The asari now stood face-to-face with her.
"Are you ok? You look better than a while ago." Shepard noticed there was more color to the asari's cheeks.
"Dr. Chakwas assures me I will be fine. I must say I was impressed with her knowledge of the asari physiology."
Shepard was a little surprised of that comment. Why shouldn't Dr. Chakwas have any knowledge of the asari physiology? "It's part of her job. Our doctors train in alien physiology as well as human. You never know who might need patching up. And the doc is one ofthe best. You're in good hands. She knows what she's doing."
Liara bowed her head in consent. "I never properly thanked you for saving me, Commander. If you hadn't shown up..." she faltered.
"First of all, you thanked me on Therum already and then again during the debrief. And secondly, you don't have to call me by my rank, you're not a marine. Shepard will do," Shepard answered. "I'm glad we made it on time."
"Funny, the lieutenant said almost exactly the same thing when I adressed him by his rank and told me 'Kaidan' would do. Shepard, I know you're taking a risk at letting me come aboard. Not everyone trusts me, I have seen the suspicious looks the crew gives me. But I am not Benezia. I will do whatever is my power to help you take down Saren." Liara's voice had grown passionate.
"You will earn their trust, I am certain. Don't worry, I know you won't let me down."
Liara blushed. "That means a lot to hear you say that."
They talked for a while about Liara's life as an archeologist. Nick didn't think that would have been the life for her. She was too much of a people person. Of course she enjoyed solitude every now and then but she enjoyed company even more. At least of a few people. She remarked that Liara must have gotten lonely sometimes. Liara stated that she occasionaly ran into small groups of privateers or mercenaries but that so far she hadn't encountered anything her biotics couldn't handle.
"As for the solitude," Liara cast her gaze down at the floor before looking up again, "it was one of the things that appealed most to me. Sometimes I have to get away from people."
"You don't like other people?" Shepard inquired.
"It's not that I don't like other people," Liara answered. She then explained the role of Matriarchs in asari society and what was expected of her as the daughter of one of the most powerful Matriarchs. She figured maybe that was why she had become an archeologist instead, concluding that it sounded foolish saying it out loud, as if she had become an archeologist only to spite her mother.
"I'd say it's normal for kids to rebel against their parents. It's a part of growing up. I know I did." Shepard shrugged.
Liara laughed. "That is what my mother said when I told her of my decision. But that wasn't the only reason I chose to be an archeologist. I felt drawn to the protheans. That is also why I find you so fascinating." She glanced at Shepard shyly. "You were touched by actual working prothean technology, the beacon marked you."
"Sounds like you want to dissect me in some lab," Shepard remarked dryly.
"What? No! I never meant to offend you. I only wanted to say you would be a remarkable subject for an in-depth study. No, that's even worse," Liara stuttered, becoming more and more flustered by Shepard's inscrutable expression.
"I was only joking, Liara." Shepard decided to relieve her.
"Joking? By the Goddess, now you know why I prefer spending my time away from people." She lifted a hand to her face in embarrassment.
"That's not the best way of learning how to understand other people. Try mingling with others," Shepard mentioned. They continued talking about Benezia and asari culture. At some point they began speaking about the misleading rumors about the asari, especially concerning their sexuality. It was kind of interesting, but Nick also felt a little disturbed talking about it with someone she hardly knew.
As she left the med bay she felt a short pang of regret when she saw that the control panel Kaidan so often worked on was empty, then she recalled he was on survey duty. She sighed. She had been looking forward to talking about the past mission to him. Maybe she would run into him later. Now she finally had to write her mission report. She hated writing reports and had been putting it off, but it was high time to get it done.
It was nearly 0200 when she got her chance to talk to Kaidan. Alone, that is. Sure, they had eaten dinner together with the others but Kaidan hadn't been talkative. Even less than usual. Afterwards she had found herself talking to her CHENG and her XO, but when they were done Kaidan was not to be seen, so she had retired to her cabin to finish even more paperwork. Later, Shepard woke up after another beacon-induced nightmare and decided a cup of tea would help her go back to sleep. She wondered if Liara could maybe help her make sense of the vision. She was an expert on protheans after all. Pulling on her pair of Alliance sweat pants she left her cabin.
Perhaps she shouldn't have been surprised to see Kaidan sitting in the dimly lit mess, whom she spotted after her eyes had adjusted to the light.
Kaidan had just said good-bye to his sister when he heard the quiet hiss of a door opening. He looked up to see Shepard standing in her doorway, blinking at the light in the mess. He quickly looked down at his omnitool again, willing down the thought that had jumped into his mind seeing her dressed in the snug-fitting N7 tank top and sweat pants, hair falling loose onto her shoulders instead of pinned up in the regulation bun she wore during duty.
"Alenko," her voice drifted over to him, "don't you ever sleep?" She walked over to the table and sat down, tucking one leg under her.
"I could ask you the same, Commander." He pointed at the empty plate in front of him. "I often need a late night snack yet, especially after using my biotics. They burn a lot of calories."
"And so you got a snack and started tinkering with your omnitool? I hope you're not working." She raised her eyebrows, and Kaidan laughed softly.
"No, Erin, my sister, had left me a message and I called her back. No work. Usually I use the time to catch up on the hockey scores or just read something."
She pulled up her other leg, wrapping her arms around it and propping her chin on her knee. Kaidan stared at her. It was so un-Commander-Shepard-like, it was unsettling. Slowly details seeped into his conscience, the strand of hair that kept falling into her face and the fact that the Commander painted her toenails purple. He felt the urge to tuck the wayward strand behind her ear. He blinked. Stop it, Alenko!
"You know, Lieutenant, I was actually going to make myself some tea, but since you're up as well, I think I'd like a hot chocolate instead." She smiled at him expectantly. He found himself returning the smile without another thought.
"My pleasure, Commander. It'll take a few minutes. Coffee, too?"
"Nope, I want to go back to sleep again. Are you really drinking coffee at two o'clock in the morning?" She watched him make the hot chocolate.
"I can drink coffee at any time of the day," he replied. They fell into a short silence until Kaidan came back to the table carrying two mugs of cocoa. He set one in front of Shepard and took a swallow of the other. "You're right, hot chocolate sounds nice."
"What do you think of our newest addition?" Shepard asked, blowing on her steaming beverage.
"Dr.T'Soni?" Kaidan gave a small shrug. "She seems to be a sweet girl. She's nice enough."
"Any intentions there, Lieutenant?" The question just slipped out. She felt irrationally annoyed by him calling Liara 'a sweet girl'. 'Sweet' as in 'cute'? Many humans were intrigued by the asari. Maybe the lieutenant, no, Kaidan's open and honest face told her the answer even before he uttered it.
"None whatsoever. I prefer more...adventurous women." He gave her a puzzled look.
She glanced at her mug to hide the relief she was certain would be visible in her eyes. When she looked up again she decided this was a good chance to get to know him a little better.
"Tell me about your sister. Is she with the Alliance as well? You'd mentioned she's an engineer."
"No, she's not Alliance. She could have easily joined, though, as she majored in control engineering. But she always said she prefered civilian life, where she could wear what she wanted, wear her hair like she wanted and so on. She finds military life to restrictive." Kaidan paused. "Erin was the one who influenced me to study engineering physics after...well, she convinced me it would be a good way to spend my time. And she was also the first I told I was going to enlist after I had made up my mind. We used to race each other to see who could figure out an electrical circuit first or who could come up with the best mathematic model of a system. It was fun."
"Sorry, that does not sound like fun to me. More like hell on earth." Shepard shook herself. "Way too much math and tech theory."
Kaidan laughed. "Ok, I am a geek."
"Oh, so am I. Just not a tech geek. But I am very happy to have a tech geek like you here. Very useful. And with your biotics and your abilities as a field medic I get three for the price of one. Can't get much better."
Kaidan blushed at the praise. "I'm just a regular sentinel, Shepard. Nothing more, nothing less."
She waived off his objection and continued speaking. "Now, all I have to convince you of is to branch out weaponwise. That new pistol is better than that old pea-shooter you had but honestly I think the assault rifle would suit you as well." She yawned. "And now I think your hot chocolate is making me sleepy. I'm gonna hit the rack. See ya bright and early, Alenko."
Kaidan wished her a good night and stared at his mug after watching Shepard retreat to her cabin out of the corner of his eye. He really enjoyed these late night talks with the commander. And therein lay the problem. She was his Commander. Damn it.
The next morning the Normandy entered the Sparta system. Shepard was holding her daily morning debrief with her officers when the comm pinged.
"Commander," Joker's voice crackled over the speakers, "we have an active distress signal coming from the second planet in the system."
"Thank you, Joker. Take us in." She turned back to Pressley, Adams, Dr. Chakwas and Kaidan. "I think we're done here. Lieutenant, you're coming with me. Tell Williams to suit up as well. Everybody else - dismissed."
Kaidan saluted and went down to the cargo hold. As he stepped out of the elevator he saw Garrus laying half under the Mako. He hoped nothing was wrong with it. Instead of going straight to Ashley he decided to check with Garrus first.
"Garrus, is everything ok with the Mako?"
"It should be fine. I thought it looked like the suspension on the front left side sagged a little, but it appears to be ok. Why do you ask?" Garrus clicked his mandibles. Kaidan wasn't that good at reading turian expressions but he believed it to be indignation.
"We need it. I've got to suit up and tell Ash to do so as well."
"I bet Tali is happy she doesn't have to drop in the Mako again in such a short time," Garrus remarked. "She said it was the most terrifying thing she's ever done."
Kaidan laughed and answered over his shoulder as he walked over to Ashley. "She'll get used to it."
Ashley had noticed him approaching and quickly assembed the pistol she had been cleaning and put it on the rack.
"Something up, LT?"
He nodded. "Suit up, Chief. We're going to hit dirt as soon as the Commander shows up. There's an active distress signal we have to check out. A platoon of marines went missing in this system. It just might be them."
Ashley nearly jumped to her locker in order to get ready. She had been itching for some action. She finally wanted to put her new rifle to its test. And it made her proud to be chosen for a mission concerning missing marines. Maybe they could save some. Maybe she could save some. The loss of her unit on Eden Prime weighed hard on her shoulders, the feeling that she should have done more, tried harder, even if she was loath to admit it.
They suited up and then walked over to the Mako waiting for Shepard who still wasn't there.
"So, LT," Ashley began quietly, "what's going on between you and the Commander?"
Kaidan stared at her. "What are you talking about? There's nothing going on between us." He leaned his head back against the Mako and closed his eyes, praying that he wasn't blushing. Ashley hadn't been on the Normandy for a week yet and if she suspected something already, god, he didn't want to think of what the rest of the crew might think. He felt Ashley watching him.
"LT, I'm not blind. And you are so obvious trying not to be obvious, if you get what I mean." She flicked away some dust from her armor. "I think you two would be cute together."
He looked at her abruptly. "Ash, does the word 'regs' ring any bells? There is nothing going on. And..." He ran an armored hand through his hair. "She's my Commander. I can't, ok? So just...Drop. It. And that's an order, Chief."
The look Ashley gave him was almost pitying. "Aye. I hear ya, LT."
Ashley was just about to add something when the elevator doors opened and Shepard walked briskly out, snapping the last pieces of armor into place. As if it was the most natural thing she stopped in front of Kaidan and turned her back to him so he could check her armor. He did so quickly and gave her the compulsory pat to let her know she was good to go.
"Thank you, Lieutenant."
"Anytime, Commander." He kept his tone and his face impassive. Unfortunately, he could see Ashley smirking out of the corner of his eye.
"All set?" Shepard looked at her two squadmates. A snappy "Aye-aye" from both confirmed her inqiury. "Mount! Alenko, I want you on the sensors and navigation today. Chief, you've got the guns. I drive." There was this slightly maniac grin on Shepards face that always seemed to appear whenever the Mako was involved.
A short while later they touched down on the dusty desert plains of Edolus. Kaidan checked the systems. Everything was in order and the distress signal came in loud and clear. There were some other signals yet that might be worth checking but locating the distress beacon had priority.
"Commander, the distress signal is coming from due north," Kaidan informed her.
Shepard didn't answer, she just accelerated the Mako. They had driven for a few minutes and had just climbed an incline when Shepard suddenly slammed on the brakes.
"Shitshitshit," she muttered, her eyes roaming the scene before her. "Please let it not be what I think it is. Fuck."
"Commander?" Kaidan asked, Ashley echoing the question half a heartbeat later.
Shepard looked into the bowllike depression in front of her with its flat mounds and felt her heartbeat quickening. There, some ways into the depression she could see the remains of an M29 Grizzly and what she was certain were bodies scattered around it. She clutched the steering wheel and breathed in deeply.
"Kaidan, keep a really close eye on our systems. Shield, armor, radar, everything. And I mean really close. If a hostile shows up I need its exact position yesterday." She stressed emphatically. "Ashley, get the 155mm ready. As soon as Alenko gives you the position of our tango be ready to use it. I have some serious driving to do."
"Commander? What are we dealing with?" Kaidan asked with a short glance at her before he looked back at the control panels in front of him. She was pale, almost white in the face and there had been a hint of something in her voice. Fear? He couldn't imagine what would elicit such a reaction from Shepard. Ashley seemed just as perplex and slightly nervous, although she was hiding it well.
Shepard tried keeping her tone light. "Has either of you ever had the pleasure of seeing a thresher maw? No? Well, you will soon."
A thresher maw! Of course, Kaidan thought, that just might be the one thing that could scare Shepard. She had, after all, lost her entire unit to a thresher maw attack on Akuze.
"A thresher maw?!" Ashley sounded nervous and excited at once.
Nick just nodded. "We can do this. We just have to stay out of its range. Maw acid completely bypasses shields and burns right through everything else. If we take a hit we have to be far away enough from the maw to be able to retreat. Well then, showtime."
She slowly rolled the Mako into the almost circular depression, inching it closer to the M29 Grizzly.
"Tango at 10 o'clock," Kaidan suddenly called out. To his surprise his voice sounded relatively calm. Ashley fired the cannon and as soon as she had done so Shepard stepped on the gas. Kaidan kept updating them on the maw's position. Just once Shepard misjudged how far to go, though, and they took a direct hit. They barely made it out of range. To his surprise Shepard climbed out of her seat.
"Alenko, take the wheel and drive the Mako up that incline and then see what you can do to restore the armor. If the maw heads your way, get moving! Williams, as soon as you can shoot again give me cover. And now get the hell out of here!" With that she jumped out of the Mako.
Kaidan was sure his heart stopped for a second as he watched Shepard run towards the M29 Grizzly. He cursed and drove up the incline Shepard had pointed to. There he watched Shepard dodge acid spit after acid spit. After each maw attack she raised the grenade launcher she had grabbed on her way out. Unfortunately it only had a very limited amount of grenades. Finally the Makos' cannon was back online and Ashley joined the fray from afar. Kaidan felt almost useless. All he could do was watch. He was tempted to disobey his orders and head back into the maw nest. He saw Shepard pull her shotgun and fire it at the maw several times. After what felt like eternity the thresher maw keeled over with a high screaching sound as it disappeared underground and failed to resurface. Kaidan immediately started the Mako up again and drove towards the remains of the Grizzly. As soon as they reached it he and Ashley exited the Mako.
Shepard was examining the distress beacon but she turned around to face her squad as soon as she heard them jump out of the Mako.
"This," she hissed, pointing at the Grizzly, the beacon and the remains of Alliance soldiers scattered across the ground, her voice shaking with rage, "this was a trap. They were lured here. If I ever find the people that had the gall to do this I am going to kill them. Slowly."
Kaidan knelt down to examine one of the dead marines.
"These were Admiral Kahoku's people, Commander," he said grimly. He saw the fire of cold fury burning in Shepards' eyes as he looked up.
"Goddamnit!" Somebody was going to pay for this. "Ok, see if you can find anything. I'm going to take care of this thing." She kicked the false distress beacon and then shot it several times with her shotgun.
After they had mounted the Mako again Kaidan carefully mentioned a few points of possible interest that he had noticed earlier. Shepard admitted it might be useful to check them out. Once that was done they radioed Joker, letting him know they were ready for pick-up. Then they waited in grim silence until the Normandy came into view.
Before they exited the Mako after returning to the Normandy Kaidan looked at Nick, making eye contact. "Commander, when we find whoever is responsible for this we will be right there with you to make them pay."
"Hell yeah we will!" Ashley ground out.
Shepard quickly looked over to Ashley and then returned her gaze to Kaidan, seeing bold determination and a promise in his eyes. The hint of a smile fleeted over her face.
"I know you will."
A/N: If you find any mistakes, especially near the end, let me know. It was after 1 a.m. when I finished this...