Chapter 39: Aimed

Disclaimer: This author in no way profits from the writing of this story. All characters, dialogue, or other referenced material from the Mass Effect trilogy belong to BioWare.

Author's Note: This story does not necessarily follow any particular timeline and may not be considered chronologically accurate.

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He normally wasn't one to question his superiors—even when he was pretty sure he knew better than they did—but right now the turian wasn't sure this was the Commander's best idea.

The woman that looked like she could be Ember's twin now looked like she was going to be sick. Garrus was as caring as the next guy but he did not relish the thought of washing vomit off his feet. He took an involuntary step back from his pseudo-students.

Lucky for him, his own twin had the opposite reaction. Vadix stepped toward the slightly green human, reaching out to steady her.

It was a good thing he'd only armed one of them so far.

Cass held the rifle like it was a screaming baby, afraid to hold it close yet afraid to let it go. Or perhaps she held it like a black widow, terrified to move and encourage its defensive behavior yet fearful to be so close to a lethal arachnid. The older turian chuckled at the irony, given that the model name was Black Widow.

The younger turian glared at him, clearly not pleased with his supposed insensitivity for the girl and her condition.

Garrus wasn't insensitive, exactly. He hadn't forcibly removed the weapon from her hands at the first sign of insecurity—which is what he would have liked to have done.

He grimaced at the thought. Maybe he was insensitive.

The pair were murmuring softly, either accidentally or purposefully ignoring him. That suited him fine. "When you're ready," he suggested as he walked away, selecting his own sniper rifle from the weapons locker and moving to the range without the recommended earmuffs. If he didn't wear them on missions, why start now?

Facing downrange, he could still see the redhead and her companion from the corner of his eye. Good, this way he could keep an eye on them without them feeling crowded. He still didn't understand why the woman was so distraught over a simple weapon. It wasn't like he had pointed it at her.

With a shrug, he settled into a horizontal position as far from the target as possible. It wasn't great for long range weapons, but it was all they had. Beggars can't be choosers, and all that. EDI had configured the target size and air density to represent sniper range as best she could. Peering through the scope, Garrus nodded to himself. He'd practiced in better circumstances, but he'd also practiced in worse ones.

Aiming at the targets nearest the ceiling, the expert marksman took a deep breath in and held it. Until he pulled the trigger.

The only sound in the room was the echo of his single shot.

Interesting. That meant the human had either recovered sufficiently that she wasn't startled by the noise, or her partner had taken the weapon out of her hands.

Garrus peeked at them as he aimed at the next target. They were watching him, studying him really, the Black Widow propped against the ground and resting against the human's leg as she held the barrel with one hand. The scrutiny was a bit uncomfortable. He didn't enjoy being the object of anyone's observations. That's why he felt most at home behind a scope, not in front of one.

He reminded himself what Ember had told him that morning: "Ignore their outward similarities. Look for more important things they have in common with us."

One mandible flicked away from his face as he pondered her advice. Well, they were certainly willing to learn. Eager, even, to do so.

They must have unique skills, distinctive experiences, to offer. Otherwise they wouldn't have been invited to join the team, even if he didn't understand the why of it.

And they'd left behind everything they'd known simply because Commander Shepard had asked them to do it.

If that wasn't reason enough to like them, Garrus didn't know what was.

Turning his head, he met each of their gaze in turn. "Now," he drawled, "would you like to shoot a real gun?"

Vadix, he was pleased to see, grinned immediately. Cass was more unsure but smiled timidly. She's got spirit, Garrus thought. That was something, something he could work with. Nodding toward the weapon lockers, he told the younger man, "There should be another Black Widow in there, second or third from the left. Bring it with you."

The woman looked at her partner, clearly worried about leaving him. Or being left alone. If he said anything, Garrus didn't catch it. All he saw was a jerk of his head, gesturing for her to join their instructor. She glanced between the two aliens before gingerly moving toward the range.

Again Garrus wordlessly directed his student, this time to the space beside him. She settled on the ground, her face growing surer as she did so. "Is this your first time firing a gun?" Garrus asked as he sat up, feeling awkward but hoping conversation might put her more at ease.

Cass shook her head. "Third time," she answered, pinking slightly.

That wasn't much better. Trying to hide his reaction, Garrus responded, "Oh. Well. Best keep practicing then, I suppose."

The human nodded, biting her lip.

Vadix returned then, sitting on the other side of Cass. Good, this way Garrus would easily be able to watch them both. "Excellent," he said aloud. "Let's begin."

The veteran lost track of time as he taught them to set up and take down the sniping gear. Vadix, it seemed, had never shot a sniper rifle before but he was familiar enough with guns that his excitement was palpable. Cass too was a quick study, even if she was more apprehensive about it all. Garrus made them practice with the equipment for nearly half an hour before they were allowed even to think about shooting the firearm they held.

He taught them about the proper use and care of the sensitive weapons, explaining the importance of timing between shots as well as the role of overall distance, atmospheric conditions, and altitude changes. It was something he felt very passionate about, and the turian was surprised at how much he enjoyed sharing his knowledge with the inexperienced recruits.

If he made it out of this alive, maybe he should consider the instructing contract he'd been offered.

After Garrus described the special range settings EDI had enabled for today, he paused and took a good look at his two pupils. The other man was grinning like Liara at a Prothean dig site, his thrilled anticipation leaking into his face. The woman appeared to have settled into a more comfortable disposition, if not confident then at least poised.

It was probably the best he could hope for from her.

"Remember what I said about the kickback?" he asked them. They nodded eagerly, and Cass opened her mouth to answer. Garrus stopped her, hand raised. "That's alright. I trust you aren't just saying yes so you can get on with shooting." He smiled softly at her, realizing at some point during his lecture—there was no other word for it—he'd grown to like the strangely reticent human.

Perhaps he shouldn't be surprised when she looked so much like the woman he loved.

"Very well then. When you're ready, go ahead and take a couple practice shots. Cass, you take the middle three targets; Vadix, you take the three on the far right." Garrus watched as they settled into their own horizontal positions, looking intently through the scopes on their rifles.

With her face turned away from him, Cass looked so much like Ember that Garrus felt his plates shift. Normally it was easy to tell the two women apart—they carried themselves so differently, he wondered how anyone would get them confused—but staring down the length of the gun barrel, it wasn't quite so easy.

If he had walked in on her like this, the turian would have assumed it was his girlfriend. She looked like she belonged there, stilled as she prepared to fire, holding the cocked gun in her hands like it was her purpose for existing.

He'd prefer it if she held his cock instead.

Plates shifting again, his anatomy responded in kind until he was thwarted by his own armor, rewarding him with a sharp twinge of pain at the metal's resistance.

A searing subvocal drew his attention. This one was not his own, humming as they were.

The younger man met his gaze with a growl inaudible to the human, his eyes like a pair of omni-blades. Breaching the distance between them with sound, the message from the other man's subconscious was clear: 'she's not yours'.

Intrigued, Garrus titled his head, questioning. 'She's not yours', he understood.

But why not 'she's mine'?

It wasn't a question he could ask in front of the woman, just as it wasn't a conversation he particularly cared to have. Vadix was not his concern. At least, not beyond the trainee's tactical skills.

A shot reverberated through the room.

Vadix jumped, having shifted his concentration from the woman with a gun to the man contemplating her seduction. Garrus, however, had been focused on her the entire time and he wasn't surprised by the gunshot, only by the fact that she had pulled the trigger.

And that she still looked nonplussed.

How unexpected, given her earlier ill mien and past fainting spells. Though he hadn't witnessed one of those, Shepard had told him about it.

He was about to ask Cass how she felt when he noticed her taking aim once more.

There was nothing he detested quite so much as someone interrupting him while shooting, so he wasn't about to do the same to her.

After two more shots, she lifted her face away from the weapon and her expression of temerity morphed into one of anxiety.

"Well?" he asked, interested in her self-prognosis.

A small smile broke open as she peeked at him, turning away from the younger turian. He growled inaudibly at Garrus once more, leaving the human completely oblivious.

"That was exhilarating," she murmured, her sudden shyness so unlike Ember. "Even if it was terrifying," Cass amended, looking down again.

"The terror will fade," her instructor advised. Then added with a wink, "But the exhilaration? Never fades."

The intensity of Vadix's secondary vocals increased in pitch and Garrus turned his attention to his other student. "You haven't shot yet," he said icily.

Tiny movements shifted his brow plates, mandibles twitching. But he didn't respond with words. Instead, Vadix peered through the scope and, aiming down range, fired three quick shots in time with the lone alien's heartbeat.

Garrus raised one brow plate. It wasn't exactly insubordination, but the man certainly had an issue with his authority over the pair of them. Or perhaps it was only a problem with his notice of the woman. Vadix was acting rather possessive of her, but there was no bond mark to be seen.

Whatever the other man may think, Garrus had no intention of seducing the young woman. Though she may look outwardly like the galaxy's only hope of survival, she wasn't it. No, she was only a tool, a pawn.

Who was she to him when he could make love to a queen?

This challenge rested in his eyes as he met the gaze of his twin. Garrus bore no ill will toward her—or him, for that matter—but at the end of the day, they meant very little to him.

Without blinking he stated, "Let's see how you've done. EDI, the targets." This request was met with a soft hiss as the metal apparatus began to move, bringing their results to the front of the range.

The other man looked away first, either succumbing to his superior officer or accepting that he was no threat. The reason didn't matter to Garrus, only that he had won this round.

When the system ground to a halt, they looked at the targets presented to them. Archangel's one shot was a perfect bullseye, though he had expected nothing less. The other two's trio of hits was less than perfect. Garrus nodded slowly as he observed their accuracy and consistency.

The duo, on the other hand, was nearly numb with shock.

One of Cass's targets had a hole in the very center circle. It was near the edge, slightly wide from the center, but in the central ring it was. Her other two shots had both made it onto the targets, and that was all she'd been hoping for.

Vadix, however, was appalled at his own performance. None of his shots had breached the center. One had grazed the outermost edge, barely hitting the target at all.

"Well," said their teacher without emotion.

It seemed he had no other words to say.

The silence seeped into them.

Cass was the first to speak again. Her voice was small yet determined, strong as the weapon in front of her. "Can we go again?"

The turians grinned at her, their momentary rivalry forgotten in the allure of shooting big guns.

"Definitely," they said in unison, and grinned again.

Then Garrus added, "Whoever shoots the worst fails class."

The human's eyebrows pulled together. "Are we being graded on this?"

"No," the sniper shrugged. "But there's gotta be some sort of incentive."

"Surely you can think of a better 'incentive', Vakarian," chided Vadix.

Raising one brow plate in playful censure, he replied, "Now, Ramraka, I could have you written up for that kind of behavior."

Vadix sat up, spreading his arms wide is a long shrug. "Try me," he said simply.

A snort between them interrupted their banter. Both of the aliens turned to look at Cass, who shrunk slightly into the ground.

"What's so funny?" asked the younger man haughtily.

She tried to hide her smile as she glanced from one to the other and back again several times. But it couldn't be concealed as it took over her face. "Oh, nothing," she tried to convince them. She failed.

They shared a look and, as if they were mirror images of each other, each moved back to the ground to set up their respective firearms.

"Only one of us is going to fail, Cassana," Vadix murmured softly, faint to Garrus's beleaguered hearing.

"Oh really?" she answered, matching his earlier tone of disdain. "If you beg me just right, maybe I'll go easy on you."

The mental image of the turian on his knees at the redhead's feet was all too familiar to Garrus, and he nearly choked on his own tongue at the thought.

His students turned to look at him with concern. How mortifying.

"EDI," he ignored them, his voice scratchy. "New targets, please."

Quickly the automatic system replaced the holographic images marking where the projectiles had pierced the electronic targets, and they were moved back to the end of the firing range.

From the corner of his eye, Garrus saw them take up proper position, looking carefully at their would-be foes, all thought of his embarrassment replaced with the intent to best the other.

One mandible flipped slowly away from his face in a half smile, recognizing the camaraderie offered by a simple competition. "Let the game begin."