Shepard Stories II - Ch 28: Orientation
Main Characters: Shepard, Milizkia T'Loak
Omega - Afterlife May 2216 CE
Aria looked down when she felt her omni-tool buzz. She smiled when she saw an email from her eldest and the Subject line: Acceptance Letter
Mom,
Check out the attached acceptance letter. An actual military school with forty asari students and forty human students. They built dorms and everything it's so awesome! Also, I need you to approve all these legal documents. Love you. - Liz
Dear Milizkia T'Loak,
Congratulations! We are pleased to offer you admission to the 2216 Fall Class at T'Soni-Shepard Military Academy. You were selected from a highly talented group of applicants. During our review, we were impressed with your academic achievements, talents, and experiences. Your performance and commitments are of exceptional quality, and you should take great pride in all you have accomplished. Your credentials indicate that you are precisely the kind of engaged, thoughtful student who will thrive in this environment, and we hope you will choose to share your many talents with us.
Please take some time to review the important information in this packet and have your mother sign all the necessary documents. Please disregard any documents regarding securing your position, tuition, transportation or supplies. We have secured your position within our Academy and all costs have been waived.
I look forward to seeing you at the new student orientation on Wednesday, August 12th. Please remember to wear your new uniform. If you or your mother have any questions, feel free to contact me directly.
Sincerely,
Dr. Liara T'Soni-Shepard
—/
Omega – T'Loak Residence
Aria rubbed her face then grabbed her tea and some breakfast "Ughhh it's way too early for me to be up." She walked over to the couch and sat down next to Tevos and Lena. "Ok, Bray what do we have?"
"We have it all set up on the large wall screen. Five minutes until it starts but the link is already live." said Bray.
Aria looked at the screen and saw six small cameras screens two for inside the mess hall, one that faced the outside of the front door, one that faced the outside of the back door, and two that said on the move but were black. She clicked on a mess hall camera and set it to take up her whole right side of her screen. She saw eighty students standing at ease waiting nervously yet patiently.
Lena pointed to the screen at her sister Milizkia, "There she is…. there she is!"
Aria nodded, "Yea, I see her. They have eight asari soldiers in there, four lined up down the right-hand side and four on the left-hand side. I see twenty teachers on the right, and eighty military students on the left sectioned off asari, human females, and human males."
Bray pointed to the outside front camera "Here they come now. Look at that! Liara has two big ass varren with her."
Aria watched as four commandos walked through the door and they lined up on the left then two soldiers came through, and they lined up on the right-hand side. Every commando and soldier wore a uniform, and the officers had insignia on theirs. Shortly after, she saw Liara walk in with her first behind her, two varren, and two young asari but no Shepard.
Aria tiredly sat through Liara's long introduction then crossed her arms as she huffed at what felt like an eternity as Liara rambled on and on. Her eyes slowly began to close then nodded off for what felt like seconds until her daughter nudged her awake.
"Dad, they're moving!" said Lena as she nudged her.
"Huh? What?" Aria said as she looked around then looked at the screen "Oh, ok. When did Shepard get there?"
"Not too long ago." Lena replied then smiled as she continued "You've been asleep for about forty-five minutes. They did a whole presentation."
—/
As the cadets formed up in line after retrieving their gear, Shepard spoke. "Ok, cadets you are currently in the form I expect you to be in when we ask you to line up." He directed himself toward the asari cadets "My crew hand-picked you all out of thousands. You forty asari were our top picks, and I hope you don't let any of us down." He scanned his cadets "V'Dore, tell me why you are here."
"Yes, General! My parents paid for my way, sir!"
"Kytis, tell me why you are here!"
"Yes, General. I come from a lower-class family and my parents couldn't afford to send me to school, sir!"
"Some of you here were dealt a bad hand, some live the good life, and some straddle the line. Your reason is due to being low class, middle class, not enough money, officer-in-training and I don't give a shit! I don't care if you blue, black, brown, white, yellow, or whatever the fuck you are, I don't care! You are ALL the same to me." As Shepard spoke, he walked over to his niece and laid his hand on her shoulder. His hand lingered for a moment then he pat her shoulder then said "Cadet, I read your file. Interesting…"
He turned his back to her and walked away then continued "… You are probably the most skilled and intelligent asari and cadet here. No strikes on your record, top five percent of your class, highly athletic, captain of your team, a corporal in the ROTC, graduated two years early and no financial issues. Universities should have been busting down your door. What is your major malfunction to be rejected from all Universities in the galaxy?"
Milizkia looked around nervously then said, "My mother, sir."
Shepard pivoted on his foot as he turned then laughed "Your mother? What does your mother have to do with your academic progression?"
Milizkia swallowed hard then replied "My mother is… Aria T'Loak. No, school wants me because of her… sir."
"Can you imagine?" He said as he glanced from one cadet to another "Having a high academic record and zero problems with money but unable to succeed in life on her own because of who her mother is. So, that forces her hand to live a life she doesn't want to live because what else do you do? What other choice does she have?" He paused as he again glanced from one asari to another then continued "And this is why we created this school. To give you all that choice in life and to be someone that you want to be and not something that's forced upon you."
He raised a finger as he said "I will say this, unlike any other school we are the most difficult and we expect one hundred and ten percent from everyone at all times. You give me any less and I'll kick you out of my school. I don't care who you are, who your parents are, or what class you came from. Every one of you are equals here. You will all work together as a cohesive group. My school. My rules. Don't like how I run my school then don't let the door hit you on the way out."
He looked over at his wife and smiled then back at the cadets "Alright, I'm thinking let's do a presentation of skills. Yea?" he pointed to his niece "T'Loak! Front and center!"
As she ran over to him, he said "Since you're the most skilled cadet here let's see what we're working with, and it will give me an idea of just how shitty everyone else is."
He looked at his niece "What are your biotic powers?"
Milizkia stood at attention as she replied "Barrier, Stasis, Shockwave, and Pulse, Sir!"
He nodded in amazement as he rubbed his chin, "No shit! Wow. Huh…" He pinched his brow at the last power then said "Pulse? What the fuck is that? Some weird shit your momma taught you?"
"No Sir, it's just something I can do. I'm able to slice the power as I expel it."
He nodded as he glanced over at Liara who then shrugged at him. He mumbled "Huh… interesting…" then walked toward the exit door as he waved his hand "Come show me."
Milizkia looked toward Liara then at the closest commandos not knowing what to do. Her Chief looked at her and said. "What are you waiting for. Go!"
T'Loak ran outside, and everyone followed behind her. When she walked out into the open field, Shepard was far away and to the left. She saw a soldier with a camera off to the far left filming them. Then saw Miranda, Benezia and Anna spread out in the field.
Shepard yelled at her "Stop right there!" He placed his hand on his submachine gun on his back as he spoke "T'Loak, I laid out a pistol for you there on the ground midway between us. Think you can get to it unscathed?"
She looked at him and saw her two cousins off to the side. "Sir? I don't want to shoot at you!"
"Well, T'Loak, that's too bad. I expected more from you…. Because I'm going to shoot at you." He said as he quickly whipped out his submachine gun and sent an array of bullets at her.
She quickly tossed up her barrier as quickly as Liara and the rest of the commandos did as a reflex.
-/
Milizkia dropped her barrier and walked toward him as she yelled. "Are you crazy!" She was breathing angrily as she looked at him then looked toward the pistol on the ground.
Shepard looked at her as he smiled then said "Oooh… you want that pistol now, don't you?" He expected her to run for it but instead she grabbed it in a stasis and jerked it toward her. Shepard pointed at her as he said "Impressive! You have one clip, use them wisely."
Milizkia looked at him, glanced over at her cousins then put the gun in the back of her pants. Shepard didn't say anything, just shot at her again and just as before she tossed out her barrier to block the bullets. He could see his niece growing angry. "What? No throw back! Huh? Just defense? I thought T'Loak's were supposed to be bad asses! This is some weak baby shit!" He yelled then slammed his fist against his chest "Come on! Your mother would be disappointed!"
Milizkia stared at him as her lip curled in anger then she hurled out her pulses toward him. Shepard quickly jumped out of the way, and she rapidly hurled another at him. Milizkia could hear Blue growing angry and turned her head quickly towards her then saw Anna and Benezia moving out of the corner of her eye.
Blue started letting out rapid vocals then long low growls. Liara calmly said to her "Heel… Blue…it's ok they're just practicing."
-/
Anna's cue was if Milizkia knocked her dad down she was supposed to instantly attack her. If they both went down, then that was Benezia's cue. When he dove out of the way Anna immediately went for her. Anna pulled out her gun and shot at her cousin, but Milizkia saw her out of the corner of her eye and responded quickly with her barrier. As she held her barrier, she looked towards her uncle who was getting up from the ground. She pulled her gun and shot at him. When Anna reloaded, she sent several pulses her way. Anna tossed up her own barrier in defense.
Gimpy reacted to the danger Anna was in and started letting out rapid vocals the long low growls. Liara calmly said to him "Heel… Gimpy…"
When Anna saw her dad get up, she stopped. Shepard clipped his smg and pulled out his pistol then shot at her again. Milizkia dove to the side and tossed up her barrier. The instant she got up she was done with this non-sense; she dropped her barrier and launched a large shockwave toward them both as she growled out a yell. They both tossed up a barrier, but her force pounded through it and knocked them to the ground.
Blue and Gimpy arched their backs, raised their spikes, and let out a loud growl that none of them had ever heard before. Blue instantly sent out a biotic pulse toward Milizkia.
As soon as Milizkia hit her uncle and cousin she reacted toward the varren on instinct. She knew how Blue was with him and how Gimpy was with the girls. As soon as she turned, she flared her barrier. The moment she turned she saw Benezia move. She gritted her teeth and slid back from the triple force hitting her barrier.
-/
Blue broke free from Alex's grip on her and ran toward Milizkia as Gimpy did the same. Liara yelled "Blue NO! Gimp Stop!" They quickly ran for Milizkia and blasted her again with a biotic pulse.
Blue turned to Crimson and let out quick vocals. He stepped toward her and responded with the same quick vocals.
Liara pet Crimson gently "Crim. easy. calm down. Stay here."
When he didn't participate Blue and Gimp gave him low vocal and barred their teeth at him. He responded with one long higher pitched squeal. Liara pet him "I know but just stay here!"
Both varren turned their back on him and focused on Milizkia. Milizkia glanced over at Benezia as she held out her hands, one at each of the varren as they circled her. She calmly said "Blue… Blue. Don't. Gimp you know me… I wouldn't hurt Anna purposely." She quickly looked toward her cousin lying on the ground then she called out to her in a panic "Anna?" She saw Miranda run over toward Anna. Then saw her dad and Benezia trying to calm down the varren.
Gimpy looked toward Anna who was still on the ground as Blue looked toward Shepard who was also on the ground. They arched their backs again and flared their spikes.
Benezia yelled at Gimpy "Gimpy No!" She then changed her tone to a gently one "Come here boy…. Come here." He looked at her then stopped arching then walked over to Benezia. "That's a good boy." Blue scolded him with her low growls. He turned to her and gave her a long high-pitched squeal.
Liara pointed to Blue and yelled "Blue! Heel! NOW!"
Milizkia was breathing hard as she looked at Blue then toward her uncle and saw him kneeling on a knee.
Shepard quickly said "Blue! Heel now! Get back to momma. Go!" Blue looked at him and made higher quick vocals. Then he responded, "I said GO!"
Shepard looked over to see his daughter standing. Then he looked at Milizkia as he brushed himself off. "Nice but I'm not done with you!" He charged at her, and she tried to throw a stasis at him, but he dodged it. She could feel herself growing weaker and her biotics were dimming. She braced herself for impact, but he stopped directly in front of her with the gun pointed directly at her chest. "You're dead T'Loak!" She blinked then frowned slightly and said nothing.
He leaned into her aux and whispered. "That was extremely impressive kiddo! You blocked every single one of these bullets we shot at you. Every single paint bullet." She looked at him and smirked. He looked at her and smiled "You really thought we would shoot at you with actual bullets?"
She sighed as she hung her head then looked at him and said "I hit you and Anna with a shockwave. I could have hurt you both. She's probably pisssed at me."
He gave her a quick one-armed hug "We're fine and I wanted you to do what you do one hundred percent just as you do in the Arena. I'm sorry about Blue and Gimpy. I should have known better than to have them out here. I see Benezia let up on you because of the pups but very impressive!" He smiled then slapped her shoulder.
She turned and walked toward Anna as she said "Are you ok?"
Anna brushed off her clothes. "Yea, but damn! You did great though!"
Milizkia turned to Benezia and smiled slightly as she looked at her "Why didn't you just finish me off? You could have easily."
Benezia looked at her for a moment then shrugged "I didn't think it was fair besides I was more afraid Blue and Gimp were going to blast you."
Milizkia chuckled "Me too!"
Shepard spoke loudly when he faced the cadets "Cadets, T'Loak did not get hit by one bullet on her body and she got both of us. Can she get an ooorah?"
"Ooooorah!" replied the cadets in unison.
"Asari Alpha team can any of you do better than T'Loak?"
"No General!" replied Alpha team
"Then Asari Alpha team T'Loak is your squad leader. Fall in T'Loak. Does anyone else want to go for squad leader? My daughter Benezia is itching to release her powers on someone and so is Lt. Colonel."
They all looked at each other and no one replied.
"No one? Not one brave soul is up for the challenge. I'm going to put it this way cadets if you don't audition today, you WILL do it another day but much harder. Any takers? Going once, going twice…and you all are done." He shook his head "I am disappointed cadets."
"Bella, Nezzie, and Lt Colonel bring it in!" He took a deep breath "T'Loak front and center!"
"I'm going to say it again this is Milizkia T'Loak, Aria T'Loak's daughter. Now the new part... She is my niece."
They heard everyone gasp.
He smiled "That's right. She did NOT know what was going to happen today. Even though I'm her uncle and those are her cousins, she gave me one hundred and ten percent and she did not falter for one moment! She even took on my pups and that was NOT planned. I am extremely impressed."
He pointed to her "Mili, what is our number one rule when in combat?"
She took a breath "Know your environment at all times, sir!"
"She did exactly that this whole session. She had me in view, my daughters and two very upset varren. That's how she was able to stay untouched the whole time. That and she has very quick reflexes."
"For those of you that are watching live and standing here in complete horror." He held up his two guns. "These are military grade TR6 training paint guns. They are currently loaded with Asari indigo blood color paint bullets but instantly turn to a clear color it they hit a barrier. No live rounds were used. These guns feel and shoot just like regular weapons. We were hoping that you very intelligent young asari would know that we would NEVER use live rounds during a training session such as this." He heard them all let out a breath then sigh. "Now for you civilians it's understandable but for you military students… strike one."
"She did not know that this was not a real gun, but she continued on. That's dedication to complete the task at hand. She has an advantage because of her mother mostly and because of us. My daughters, especially these two right here, are just as skilled as she is because of us. When all you asari leave this Academy, I expect you all to be at the same level T'Loak is right now or better and we're going to test you and push you to your limits. As for you humans we will push you beyond your current limits and you will be just as perceptive and proficient with your weapons. Since none of you took the challenge to become squad leaders before you knew these weren't real bullets; you will endure a much more difficult challenge." A broad smile came over his face "Let me tell how happy that we ALL are that you didn't." He quickly raised his hand as he pointed his index finger in the air "To the training center!"
Master Sergeant called out "Let's go, line up and move out!" as she walked, she explained the area "The building directly in front of us is the indoor gun range. The building directly to the right of the Mess Hall is the school with your classrooms. Behind the school is building one of the training center, to the right of that is the other training center and to the right of the school are the obstacle courses. This training building is the same size as your school. Both training buildings are split into five large rooms. One room is vertical and there are two horizontal rooms on each side. These rooms are covered with quadruple biotic barriers. The plexiglass and interior doors also have biotic barriers. These are the rooms you will be doing the majority of your biotic training in. As for you humans, this is where you will be doing your training but with mostly weapons. Don't think you can memorize the interior because everything moves."
Shepard walked into the training center. "Listen up we are only going to do a few squads right now. Being that it's mid-week we will come back Thursday and Friday to finish the rest. Saturday and Sunday are downtime. Classes start on Monday." He smiled and looked around
"Team 1 you will be here in room 1. Lt. Colonel your team will be LT, Unoll, Anra, and Bella."
Lt. Colonel smiled then said, "Alright, ladies, get your weapons of choice and let's move out." The cadets saw them all grab three weapons and ammo. They clipped two to themselves and held on to the other then walked into training room 1.
Shepard pushed the speaker button "Activating black screen! Timer set for five minutes get into position! Once the timer hits five minutes. You will see a flashing red light then the room will go black for thirty seconds. You will then see a yellow light and the lights will come back on. The students will enter, then the lights will go black again. When the lights come back on a green light will flash and that is your cue to go."
"Team 2 you will be in room 2 right here. Colonel your team will be First Sergeant, Sanava, Kaliaha and Nezzie."
"Asari Bravo Team you will be against Team 1 and Asari Charlie you will be against Team 2."
"Grab your thin padded chest gear and a helmet then line up!" He paused "Listen up! It's five against five. Your weapons will be inside. Once you walk in, I will give you one minute to look around your environment to find your cover and your weapon. You will not cross the red line before the light turns green. Your objective is to make it to the back of the facility, grab your flag and make it back to the red line. The goal is NOT to get hit! Remember you are a team! Work as a team to accomplish your goal. We will be watching."
-/
Asari Alpha Team: T'Loak touched all her teammates and called them over. "Hey, I don't know what's going to happen, but I know my uncle, he's going to send us in after they're done because Delta team needs to go and the other asari squads are down one member. So, let's go ahead and figure out what we're going to do."
Liara smiled at Mili planning with her team just in case. (Babe, Mili knows you way too well)
(She's planning, isn't she?)
(Yes, she is)
(That's why she's the squad leader because she is going in. Delta team over here is just looking around with their thumbs up their butts.)
Alpha team: Lesor age 48 replied "Ok T'Loak, what are we doing?"
T'Loak replied "I think this place is probably set up just like their commando facility. So, we definitely have the upper hand here. There's a u-shaped catwalk on the second level and the middle is open. DO not go out into the middle, they will just light you up from all directions and that's what they're expecting. We need to stay under the catwalk and behind the crates for cover but if they flood us then move where you need to. There's going to be at least one sniper up top. The others will be scattered throughout the bottom. So, if we hug the wall, we'll only need to watch our front and unshielded side. I don't know what you guys have but your barrier is your best friend. Throw it when you need it but don't keep it up if you don't have to. It will give your position away and the sniper will find you. If you can stasis pull your weapon to you that will be a plus. If you don't have stasis, we'll work as a team to help you get your weapon. We need to communicate. Do any of you know hand signals?"
They all shook their heads then said "No."
"Ok, lets run through them really quick." She held out two fingers and pointed to her eyes. "This means I see." She then held up three fingers "This means three. If I do those two hand signals together then point in a direction it means I see three enemies in this direction. If I point to my aux it means to listen, or I hear. If I hold up a fist it means stop. Palm and push toward the ground means get down. Try your best not to talk because we don't want them to know what we're doing. If I point to the left, right or center it means to go in that direction. If you need to get someone's attention tap their shoulder. If they're not within reach, then give a slight whistle. Got it?"
They all nod then say "Yea."
T'Loak took a small breath "Ok what else…. Oh, do any of you know how to shoot?"
"No…"
"Ok. Ummm. Hang on…" Milizkia walked over to Liara and said "Lady Liara?"
Liara turned to her "Yes T'Loak?"
"Are we allowed to prep with the weapons?" asked T'Loak
"Do what you need to do." Replied Liara
"Ok, squad follow me." Mili walked over to the gun case. "Ok, I'm assuming we're going to have pistols." She reached for a pistol then continued. "Ok ladies, watch me. Grip the handle with your right if that's your dominant hand then bring your left one in and under to close the gap. Keep your finger off to the side and off the trigger until you're ready to go. Always point the gun down if you're moving. We don't want friendly fire. Your right arm should be aligned with the barrel of the gun." She handed the gun off to each person in her squad to get a feel for it. "Crash course for now, but it'll have to do. Don't rely on the gun because you can burn through them quickly. Rely on your biotics, yourself, and your team to get you to where you need to go. I don't think there's a time limit, so we don't need to rush, but we can't be turtle slow either. If you think the gun is too much to deal with and aren't comfortable, then don't use it. You ladies going to use one?"
Some shrugged then said, "I don't know," and the others said, "Nah."
She nodded then said, "Ok If you think you might want to use one, just grab it and stick it in the back of your pants for later use." She looked at each of them then said: "What's your name and what are your powers."
The eldest stepped forward first "Lesor, Barrier, stasis, pull."
"Kytis, just Barrier."
"Praci, just Barrier"
"D'radi, Barrier and stasis."
T'Loak nodded then said "Ok ok...I'm thinking we split into two teams. Lesor you're with Kytis and D'radi." She looked at Praci "Praci, you're with me. When we go in, I'm going to grab two weapons. Lesor and D'radi grab one just in case. Use your stasis to grab it and pull it to you. When we get in, we grab our weapons then I'll signal you. We're going to break right you'll break left. We're going to move one row at a time. Remember what the General said, know your environment at all times. If you're clear to move up, then move up. Kytis your job is barrier… barrier… barrier. You are the shield for your group. D'radi you'll be an extra barrier but also use your stasis. Lesor use your pull sparingly we're not here to hurt anyone." She turned to look at her partner, "Praci, you'll be my barrier."
Alpha team looked over when they heard "Alpha team line up and put your helmets on!"
T'Loak took a breath "Ladies, let's get some hands in here. We can do this. On three then Alpha. Ready? One, two, three, ALPHA!"
Liara and several commandos and soldiers smiled. Liara leaned into Shay "Did you see her? She walked them through everything."
Shay smiled and said, "Yes, and I bet they'll make it back with very few hits."
Milizkia saw both Bravo and Charlie team walk out completely covered in paint.
Shepard let out a long whistle. "Wow, ladies that was a slaughter. Does anyone need a medic? Ice bath maybe for all the welts?" He heard a ton of groaning.
—/
Milizkia stood near the door and waited for it to open. As she waited, she said "Alright, ladies, remember what I said. Stay down. When looking over cover do it cautiously and quickly." When the door slid open, they hurried into the area playing team 1. Milizkia looked around the area quickly then saw their weapons beyond the red line. Her eyes quickly came across a rifle further in. Her eyes scanned the area again and saw no one, of course. She looked up and searched the catwalk and saw no one but spotted a possible sniper camp location. She looked at her group pointed at the other three to push to the left and to stay down. She tapped Praci's shoulder to go right with her and she looked down the right side. Lesor watched what Milizkia did then did the same.
T'Loak watched the lights go out for thirty seconds then turned back on. They stayed put because she knew they were already lined up and ready for them. Her team looked at her and waited for direction. She motioned her hands down, and they nodded at her. She pointed to herself, Lesor and D'radi then did a quick hand reach and pointed her finger like a gun. She pointed to the other two and made a dome. They all nodded then she made a countdown with three fingers. 3-2-1 then waved her hand forward. Barriers went up, and they popped out of cover quickly, and stasis grabbed their guns. T'Loak grabbed the rifle and a pistol.
As soon as they popped up the other team shot at them.
—/
As they ducked back down behind cover Milizkia gave them all a thumbs up. She checked her gun and put her pistol in her back and looped the rifle around her. Her team looked at her. She pointed to her eyes, looked up, then motioned to the left. Sniper on catwalk far left. She looked at Praci and pointed at her then herself made a makeshift gun pointing down. She's aiming for us. Praci nodded.
She pointed to her other team and gave two fingers then pointed down the middle. She pointed to her eyes again then flashed another two then shrugged her shoulders. Lesor looked at her then pointed to her eyes, showed one finger then the left-hand side. T'Loak nodded back to her. She tapped Praci, pointed to her eyes then one finger and gave her an I don't know look then pointed down the right-hand side. She nodded at her.
She swirled her finger then pointed forward then flashed three fingers and a dome. 3, 2,1 she grabbed her rifle then she looked at Praci, and she lit her barrier. The other girl lit her barrier, and they moved to the next cover location and stopped. As soon as they popped up, the enemy fired on them. This time Milizkia fired back up at the sniper and saw that it was LT.
Milizkia pointed to Lesor then made a gun with her finger. Lesor shrugged then nodded. D'radi shook her head then pointed to herself. She pointed to Lesor and pointed to her hands to use her biotics. She nodded at her. Milizkia did a quick whistle then pointed to her aux. They all heard someone moving up. She quickly pointed forward to move. Barriers went up, and they hugged the walls. Milizkia shot up at the sniper that was shooting at her. She heard gunfire on the other side, and biotics flash. She tapped Praci then pointed at her eyes and down the way. She nodded at her. Mili looked around then at her team across the way then up at the catwalk.
She saw Unoll behind a crate near her team then she turned, and she fired at her, but she tossed up her barrier then D'radi shot at her. Milizkia dropped her weapon and fired a pulse at her barrier then went behind cover.
They were all hiding behind cover. She whispered into Praci aux. "I need to get that sniper to move she wants me bad. I'm going to put this rifle on your back. I want you to run as fast as you can across to the other side and have Kytis come back over in like two minutes. I want to see if this draws her out. Don't worry about a barrier I've got you just run. When I tap your shoulder again just haul ass."
Praci let out a nervous breath then nodded.
Milizkia tapped Praci shoulder, and she took off running across the field to the other side. Lesor eyes lit up at her running across and saw her getting fired on but had a barrier around her. At first, they thought it was T'Loak. Praci immediately put her finger to her mouth. They looked up and heard movement.
Milizkia peeked over quickly and watched her move. She smiled and pulled her pistol. As soon as she had a clear shot, she took it then fired a pulse at her just in case.
Praci hooked the rifle around Kytis's neck and tapped her shoulder to run across.
Milizkia smiled when she heard LT speak loudly "Sniper down!" she looked at her team and pumped her fist. They all smiled. She pointed to her eyes then flashed four fingers. They nodded.
—/
Shepard looked at Liara and smiled. "Ladies, that was what you call a switch a roo. She baited the sniper to think she switched sides to get her to come out of cover. Very nice T'Loak!" Shepard looked back at the screen and saw Miranda motioning Anna to get high for eyes but not on the catwalk. Anna pointed to her eyes and showed her three fingers right side. Then two and a shrug for the left side. She showed her a M and pointed to the left side.
Miranda nodded at her then sent out quick whistles.
Alex responded, "She's regrouping. Mili better move."
—-/
Milizkia heard quick whistles. Her team looked at her and Mili shook her head no and pointed at the enemy. Milizkia turned to Kytis and whispered "We need to move quickly they're about to come hard on our end. Let's get across on my signal. She looked over at Lesor then pointed to herself, and Kytis made finger run movements than to her than a dome. They nod. Mil tapped Kytis then they hauled ass across to be with her team. When they got across Mil whispered, "Let's move quickly. They're regrouping."
—/
"Ooh shit, she shot across the room! Mil know heard Miri whistle. She knows something is happening." said Alex.
Shepard nodded then said, "She knows they need to stay together now."
Liara pointed to the screen "Did Miri's team not hear them move? They're going right, and T'Loak is on the left moving."
Shepard eyed the screen, "I guess not. They all moved at the same time. I guess she assumed it was her team moving. T'Loak has the advantage at the moment." He saw his daughter do another high scout then whistle rapidly. Miranda looked up to see her throw a five on left. Miranda watched Anna jump down, then Miranda turned quickly and instantly put up her barrier. They saw a large shockwave come their way, two stasis, and a few bullets.
—/
Miranda looked back to see that the flag was missing. Her eyes went wide as she did a double take, then she smiled. She tapped Anna and thumbed over at the missing flag. Anna's mouth dropped open. Miranda whistled rapidly, and her team looked back at her. Miranda spoke quietly. "They have the flag. Press hard and move up. Go!"
—-/
T'Loak looked at her team "Nice job. Let's double-time it back—-" She heard two thuds land near them. She yelled, "Move!" She picked one up and threw it back and surrounded the other in a barrier. They popped, and paint went everywhere. The room erupted in gunfire and biotics.
T'Loak heard several more grenades land. She yelled out, "Watch it! Grenade!" She looked over and saw two of her teammates covered in paint.
Lesor tossed out a Stasis on Anra then shot at her. She looked at her squad leader, throwing out several pulses. She turned and saw that the two "injured" made it across the line. Praci looked at Lesor then at T'Loak and then went back for her. Lesor and Praci picked up the two guns that were left behind.
"Come on, T'Loak! Lesor yelled as she laid down cover fire. Praci gave T'Loak a barrier as Milizkia ran towards them.
T'Loak smiled as she breathed hard as they all took cover "Thanks. I'll give you two a barrier as you cross the line and I'll be right behind you."
The two girls nodded, then ran across the red line. Her four teammates looked at her, then back out toward the field. "Come on!" yelled her team.
T'Loak stood with her barrier lit and walked backward toward her squad. Miranda's remaining group lit up her barrier with bullets as she crossed the line safety.
Miranda put her weapon down and clapped several times. "Very nice ladies! Very nice!"
Miranda's group walked up to Alpha team and gave her daughter a quick one-armed hug. "Switch a roos! Brilliant! You got me! I was impressed with your strategy! I was not prepared for that..." Miranda laughed slightly, "…at, all."
T'Loak smiled "Well, I've learned from the best."
Miranda nodded, "That you have babe."
-/
Miranda walked next to Liara as they headed to the dorms "Liara, that training facility is something else and an upgrade to your commando facility. I know you showed us it after it was built, but being in there in action was unbelievable. You really brought this campus together. What did you spend on this like two hundred and seventy-five to three hundred and fifty million credits?"
Liara smiled "Thanks, Miri. It wasn't just me though, you all helped with this campus too. The cost was like two hundred million credits give or take a few."
Miranda blinked hard, "That's it? How many sexual favors did you perform for that kind of discount?"
Liara laughed as she scrunched her face "Miri, it's called negotiation. I negotiated with my mouth thank you very much!"
Miranda's eyes went wide as she erupted in laughter, "Ooooooh I bet you did! So, the kind where you're on your knees? That kind of negotiating with your mouth?"
She heard Shepard rumble in laughter (Damn babe you dove headfirst into that one.)
Shandri covered her mouth as she silently laughed.
Liara's mouth dropped open as she gasped, "Get the hell off my campus!" She said jokingly as she laughed
Miranda began to walk away then turned and touched Liara's arm "Wait wait… Are you sure… you don't want to negotiate first?" She said as she laughed
Liara dropped her head as she laughed, "Shut up!"
Miranda laughed as she mocked Liara "I negotiate with my mouth thank you very much." Miranda placed her hand on her chest as she took deep breaths and chuckled lightly. She wiped away the tears then said, "Oh my goodness…That was sooo old school Liara…classic, and I fucking love you."
Liara smiled then teasingly said, "Hey Miri…. Maybe... later?"
Miri turned her head to Liara with her brows raised.