by Sailor Sedai (Ellf) » Thu Jul 31, 2014 8:28 pm
And... after a fun birthday, I return with more fic:
This was both the third time and the first time that Andrea had come to Eden Prime. Both prior times had been under circumstances that no soldier would ever want to visit the garden planet. The very first time, she had been on what was supposed to be a simple courier run picking up the Prothean beacon that had been found here. Unfortunately, when they’d gotten there, the colony was already under attack by geth controlled by Saren and his Reaper master, Sovereign... or Nazara as the geth preferred to call it. Her first time on Eden Prime was a life-shaping event. By comparison, finding a live Prothean the second time was simply business.
However, this was the first time that Andrea would have the chance to check out the arcologies of the planet. The beacon had been stored on a landing pad on the surface, and the closest she’d come to where anyone actually lived was a scientific encampment made out of prefabricated housing. According to the codex, 3.6 million people lived on Eden Prime at the moment, belonging to several different corporations which used the surface for gardening purposes while they lived above it. From what she understood, that was where they were going to go to meet the archaeologists, and then once the area was defined, they were going to be staying in, surprise, surprise, prefabricated housing on the surface nearby.
Looking out the window of her quarters, she could see the planet as they approached. A garden world like Eden Prime was mostly lush green plants and beautiful oceans. From this distance, it was pretty much impossible to make out the arcologies that towered over the surface. Of course, the pilot, who always seemed to be busy this trip every time she tried to meet him, managed to guide the ship down into the atmosphere with ease. Upon entering the atmosphere of Eden Prime, Andrea felt the subtle shift from artificial to natural gravity and stood up to get a better look.
The pilot directed their ship to the Alliance spaceport near the Hahne-Kedar arcology, and Shepard started to get dressed. She needed to make a good impression on these archaeologists so she called to mind various things Liara had told her about beliefs on Prothean culture... Unfortunately, that was mostly overwritten in her mind by what she’d seen and heard from Javik.
Still, she had a vague idea of where they needed to start looking for the Beacon. She’d spent most of the trip here going over continental maps and thinking on her memories of the last times she was here.
“Lieutenant Shepard, please report to the bridge for briefing. Lieutenant Shepard, please report to the bridge for briefing.” The VI of this ship had a female voice, but there was no real inflection to it, no emotion. EDI hadn’t even been created yet; Shepard wondered if the VI that was EDI’s predecessor had even been programmed yet, but then she shook her head. Andrea made sure her uniform was straight and headed out to the bridge.
As she approached the bridge, she could hear arguing from up front, where the pilot’s chair was.
“... and I’m telling you, that the only way this bird is going to set down on the surface is at a slow clip, it has to coast to a stop.”
“I’m telling you I can do it, Lieutenant, just have to set her down gently. The eezo cores can handle it, and all you have to do is pull up slowly at the right moment, and you can land this baby on a dime.” Well, that voice was familiar.
“And if you’re wrong, the ship rattles apart and more than just your bones break, Moreau. No, we land the way we’re supposed to.” Andrea made her way up to the pilot’s area of the bridge to get a better look at the two arguing men. One was a tall Germanic blond, standing next to the chair, while the other... was a young brunette man with the ghost of a beard growing in on him. Both wore flight uniforms befitting their ranks, the blond a Flight Lieutenant, and the brunette a Flight Chief. Andrea had to do a double take because she knew she recognized the brunette.
“And if I’m right, which I am, by the way, the ship lands without a scratch and she sets down sitting pretty.” Andrea approached closer at this point.
“Joker?” The word left her mouth before she could stop it. Both pilots turned to her. Well, to be accurate, the blond physically did so, while the brunette adjusted something on the console.
“Done and done. Please, no applause, we’re only landing in the arcology landing bay. Save it for when I do something truly impressive.” And now, the brunette turned toward her... in the pilot chair. “Lieutenant, I don’t believe we’ve met.”
“No, I don’t think the two of you have. Nor have I met her, vision of radiance that she is.” Andrea just raised an eyebrow at him. “Forgive my somewhat boorish subordinate, I am Flight Lieutenant Thaddeus Sitwell, and this is Flight Chief Jeff-“
“Joker.”
“Moreau. We’re the pilot and co-pilot team for the Waterloo.” The blond grinned. She already didn’t like him much. “And you are?”
“First Lieutenant Andrea Shepard.” Andrea answered quickly.
“Well good, now we’ve all been introduced, I can get back to telling the Flight Lieutenant how wrong he is about landing protocol. Assuming he can take his eyes off you for a few seconds.” Joker said with a grin. “Of course, given he was losing the argument, I can see why he’d want a distraction.”
“I was not.” The blond looked affronted.
“Dude, you were pulling rank on me when you knew I was right. I could land the ship like that. You’ve seen my record.” Joker confidently stated. “Of course, I’d much prefer a better ship, but the Waterloo works well enough for what she is.”
Andrea shook her head. “I guess I’ll leave you two to it then. Have a briefing to go to.”
“See you later, Shepard.” Joker waved before turning back. As she headed toward the CIC, she heard one last thing. “Oh, by the way, Flight Lieutenant Sitwell, that was the Commander’s niece you were ogling.”
“What?” Andrea snickered as she made her way to the CIC.
“Well, you certainly took your time. Enjoy your detour?” Well... at least her mom looked like she was more amused than anything else.
“Heard them arguing, they always like that?” Andrea asked.
“This is the first time I’ve worked with Moreau, but from his records, he is highly skilled. His disability is what has kept him from flying much more than a shuttle before this. As for Sitwell, he’s a good pilot, but he has a bit of a roving eye. Anyway, we should get to the briefing.” Andrea stood up a little straighter at that. It wouldn’t look good on her mother if she didn’t act the proper soldier, even if she wasn’t under her command technically. “Admiral Hackett has contacted an archeological team and put them under an NDA for the duration of their dig. You will be meeting with them and directing them on the area in which they’re going to be looking for... whatever it is that Hackett wants them looking for. We’re going to be stationed here and supporting the 212th with exploration security while the dig’s going on, and you along with the two privates who will be assigned under your command will be doing some exploration to try and help tease out this spot that Hackett thinks you know.”
“How will we be doing the exploration?” Andrea asked.
“As Eden Prime is a big world, and we’ll need to keep in radio contact during your exploration, you and your team will be using the Mako provided for this mission. I assume you know how to drive one?” Hannah looked sharply at Andrea.
“Yes, I definitely do, ma’am.” Andrea was an excellent driver. She never did anything with the Mako that wasn’t supposed to happen. Well, then again, she did drive it into a Mass Relay on Ilos, and there was that dream she had about the Mako tumbling through the air. It was definitely a dream. The Mako was not equipped with flight capability. “Who will be assigned to my team?”
“I believe you’ve met them both already. Private First Class Martin Jones and Private Second Class Kenneth McCormick will both be joining you on your exploration trips daily.” Hannah glanced to the airlock door. “The archeology team should be coming onboard in a few minutes. We’ll be adjourning to the conference room opposite the elevator once they’re here.”
Andrea nodded. It was a similar call to one she would make. If this were the Normandy, she’d know that it was more or less safe from spy intrusion, and she suspected that Hannah knew the same for her own ship. Of course, it was entirely possible that Cerberus or the Shadow Broker had some agents here, but that was a risk she’d have to take. If she played the Javik thing close to her chest, she was certain that when she found the Prothean, it wouldn’t get interrupted by agents from either organization.
The airlock doors opened, revealing a sandy-haired man and a blonde woman. Clearly both were civilians from the way they dressed, and if Andrea had to guess, she’d say that they were both archaeologists. After all, both had the fedora that was almost standard to all vids, the man wore sturdy cargo pants and a sleevless pocketed denim vest. The woman, on the other hand wore a pair of really short shorts and a tank top, which while attractive, Andrea had no clue how useful they’d be on a dig. Slung over her shoulder was a bandoleer with pockets along with a bag which she assumed had gear she needed in them. Both clearly had omni-tools on their wrists, and the woman had a tactile glove on her right hand while the man probably had the implants. They flashed some ID and at that point, Hannah and Andrea made their way to the conference room, the archaeologists directed there not long after.
Once they had retreated to the conference room, the archaeologists introduced themselves. The man was Jonas Lindsey, and the woman was his partner, Haley Jackson. Both had already been on the colony when Hackett contacted them about a potential dig site for ancient alien artifacts, and they’d leapt at the chance at finding them to study. Even if most races had written histories longer than humanity’s, there were always records of protheans to study and even artifacts from several asari generations back that were interesting. Of course, this being a human world, humans had first dibs.
Andrea explained where they would be digging, using a combination of maps she’d generated from her omni-tool and memories that she’d been shared from the artifacts she’d interacted with. While both archaeologists were understandably skeptical, the areas in question were areas they had planned on looking when they managed to get funding available. Of course, they’d had a wider area of study than Andrea had narrowed it down to, but that was mostly due to them not knowing a whole lot other than what was discovered when setting up the farms on the surface.
After explaining to the archaeologists where they should start to look, the dig was planned. Luckily they’d had express channels for funding already set up, so the dig itself was able to start within the week, rather than waiting the several months it usually took. Of course, the first place they looked didn’t quite reveal much, but there was evidence of ruins there that led credence to Andrea’s claims. So the search area was widened a bit. After helping to set up the dig further, there really wasn’t much else for Andrea or the other soldiers to do other than keep watch.
The newly expanded dig had been going on for a little over a week and a half before Andrea had started to get antsy. As interesting as archaeology was made in movies, sitting around and watching others dig, getting excited over every little thing they found was boring when the archaeologist wasn’t the asari you were sort of dating. Then, at least, there were certain perks to being nearby when she discovered something. Ultimately, though, Shepard felt the need to explore, and she decided to bring it up that morning at breakfast with her mother.
“Aunt Hannah, I think I’ll start the exploration with the Mako today. I’m getting a little stir-crazy with just watching them dig all day.” Andrea said. The two of them had been getting together for meals for the past week, but both had different duties during the day.
“I was wondering when you were going to get around to that. The Mako’s fueled up when you’re ready to use it. Just be sure to take your team along.” Her mother was smirking. Why was she smirking? “Also, we managed to find a hardsuit in your size; it’s in the locker near the Mako. Sorry it’s not quite as advanced as the armor that Anderson found you in, but it’s what we have.”
Andrea nodded, calling up her omni-tool to ping Jones and McCormick. “I’m sure it will be fine. It’s not like we really expect any combat out here, but better safe than sorry. I’ll be sure to check in every few hours.”
“Good luck. Hope you aren’t too bored out there.” Hannah said as Andrea stood.
“I’ll be driving a Mako. That’s hardly boring.” Andrea smirked and headed out of the prefab toward the hangar. Upon her arrival, she quickly identified Jones and McCormick though they were already dressed in their hardsuits. Andrea had to blink a couple times because McCormick’s was... well, rather loud. Somehow he’d gotten one that was bright orange, not really a model she recognized at all. Maybe he customized it somehow, but orange was definitely not a color she’d expected to see. For some reason he was also wearing his helmet with it already.
They both saluted her as she approached, and Jones even made sure to call her “Ma’am.” While protocol was nice and all, she needed to get them a little less stiff. Too much adherence to protocol could lead to them burning out before their time.
“At ease. I’m going to go change into my hardsuit, make sure the Mako’s ready for driving.” She eyed the pair.
“Yes ma’am. Ken and I will make sure.” Jones nodded to McCormick who then made some muttered comment about the Mako, but she didn’t quite catch all of it.
“Something wrong with your helmet’s microphone, McCormick?” Andrea asked. The orange-clad private shook his head. “You should speak a bit louder then, if your mic’s not picking it up properly.”
“McCormick’s accent’s a bit thick, and he tends to mumble. It’s something that got him in trouble a few times in boot, but you get used to it after a while. He’s not that hard to understand when you know what to listen for.” Jones said.
Andrea sighed. “Right. Anyway, I’ll be back.”
Shepard made her way to the locker her mother had told her about near the Mako. When she popped it open, she narrowed her eyes and let out a low groan. It had to be that armor. Well, that explained why her mother was smirking for certain. Ultimately, the Sirta-manufactured armor was definitely something she’d prefer not to wear, not only because pink just wasn’t her color, but because it didn’t allow her the best flexibility for her biotics. She’d gotten to try on some commando armor one time and it was like wearing armored silk. Still, a hardsuit was necessary for Mako travel, so she’d put it on. If anyone complained or made fun of her, she’d make sure to get them their own set of Phoenix armor. After all, pink was more a manly color, and she could just picture Garrus and Wrex in this. The thought almost had her giggling. She grabbed the hardsuit and moved to a semi-private area to don it.
Once everything was in place, she headed back toward the Mako. Luckily for them, neither Jones nor McCormick said anything about the color. She’d left the helmet off, as she didn’t think there was any real need for it at the moment.
“Right, let’s get going. Hop in, boys and scoot over; I’m driving.” Once both the privates were inside the Mako, she boarded it herself. Oh, sweet Mako, how she missed it. The Normandy SR-2 never had a Mako, and the Hammerhead didn’t really compare. Sure, the Hammerhead was far more maneuverable with its hover capabilities, but it felt so flimsy at times, almost like it was made of paper. The Mako could take a beating and keep on going.
“So, which of you is on repair duty?” Andrea asked. “Because engineering is far from my specialty.”
“I’m a trained engineer, but repairs shouldn’t be needed, right? It’s not like we’re doing anything dangerous.”
“Never know. Eden Prime still has some unexplored areas, which is where we’re headed. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.” Andrea said with a smirk. McCormick muttered something about how his navigation would be... something then. “Don’t worry about it, McCormick. You can be on turret duty if we need it.”
“Woo hoo!”
“Glad you’re happy. Let’s go!” Andrea shouted with her own bit of glee as she started up the Mako and drove out of the parking bay. It didn’t take her long to reach the Mako’s top speed, the vehicle barely bumping as the side wheels rolled over some rocks in the way. Unlike most of the planets that Andrea had explored with the Mako prior to this point, Eden Prime was mostly flatlands. The area that she was headed toward was beyond the farmlands that were under the arcologies, untouched thus far by the corporations that made Eden Prime their home. She kept up the top speed, even when turning the vehicle, drifting a bit on the grass. After pulling that maneuver, Jones turned in his seat toward her.
“Who taught you to drive?” Jones was almost accusatory.
“The Mako? My first CO. Driving overall? That would be a former friend of mine from Earth.” She turned again, jumping the Mako a bit to give it a sharper turn. It was definitely around here somewhere. While the area was mostly flatland, she was quickly approaching one of the mountain ranges, which she knew matched it in some way.
“All due respect, ma’am, but I think you need to be retrained!” Jones grabbed onto his seat.
As Shepard sharply turned again, she quoted someone very dear to her. “Why is it that whenever someone says ‘with all due respect,’ they really mean ‘kiss my ass’?”
McCormick gave an eloquent “Iunno” sound and then muttered something to Jones that sounded both like an insult and something fairly vulgar. Andrea just focused on her driving.
They’d been driving at speed for about a half hour when Shepard felt it. The ground shook slightly, and Andrea cut the throttle. Something felt off about this to her. The ground shook again and she glanced to Jones and McCormick. “McCormick, get on the turret. I may need you shooting in a second.”
Without asking any questions, the orange-suited man climbed into the gunner seat. This wasn’t supposed to be needed, but Andrea activated the kinetic barriers of the Mako.
“What do you think is out there, ma’am?” Jones asked.
“I don’t know. I hope it isn’t what I think it could be...” The ground shook again, and it started to part, bulging upward. “McCormick, there!”
Shepard put the Mako in reverse, flipping to the rear camera on her view. There was no way she was getting these two near enough for the Maw to do more than spit.
The ground shook again and bulged upward behind them. The ground ahead split, bits of it falling down somewhere. Shepard attempted to gain some more traction, flipping switches and turning levers inside the Mako... and then the ground just wasn’t there. She kept them aloft as long as she could, clamoring for the nearest bit of solid ground, but the eezo generator inside the Mako could only hold them up for so long. So she immediately tried to get a look at where they would be falling, to find the best possible place to land. Unfortunately, the cavern below had a good distance between where they were and the ground, so she did her best to control where the Mako would land before the eezo generator gave out and they started falling.
Once the generator failed, she immediately flared her biotics, placing a lift field under the Mako to slow it down to a safe speed. If she could keep this up long enough, they’d land safely, or the generator would get back and the boosters would be useable again. Unfortunately, she had never done a field as wide as this one before, but she knew that in order to keep those under her command safe, she would have to put every ounce of effort into it. Andrea strained, her amp clearly straining with her, but unlike the other amps she’d used before, this one held... longer than Andrea could. The mental strain was too much and she blacked out about 40 meters into the fall.