The Regular Navy Brat

Mass Effect

Chapter One: The Citadel

A regular navy brat. That was what they had called her, even when she was standing right beside them; pristine uniform and that bright innocent look in her eyes that was the mark of every new recruit. At simply eighteen years of age, Vaylen Shepard felt as if she was too young to be standing on the sleek marble floor of the Citadel, hands clasped behind her back as the Lieutenant made the crucial introductions. Her black hair was pinned back from her face; that one stubborn lock tucked behind her ear, at least for the moment, and her lilac eyes bright with anxiety, anticipation and pride. Despite the disapproving glances at her unlaced scuffed boots, which she had neglected to polish the night before and had forgotten to tie up on her way off the ship, she knew that she had finally found her niche… of a sort. Before, she had been tailing after her parents, lugging their cases, looking after the screaming brats, that sort of thing, but now she was making her own damn way. She was going to do her very best to climb to the top of this intergalactic ladder. She was going to show these puffed up aliens exactly what humanity was made of.

The Captain laughed at the Lieutenant’s comment and then cast a roving eye over Vaylen, standing beside Ray Ashford who was positively quivering with excitement. She liked Ray, he was quick, quirky and when he cracked a joke, which was damn often, it was all she could do to keep her ribs intact. ‘Shepard, eh? Are you not, perchance, related to Hannah Shepard?’ The captain asked her. Vaylen snapped to attention, trying not to make the sound of her teeth grinding audible. Everywhere I bloody go, she thought savagely.

‘Yes sir! She is my mother, sir.’ She said clearly, keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the glittering light a few inches to the right of his head.

‘Of course! You have her eyes, although you look a lot like your father. I suppose they badgered you about joining up yes?’

‘No sir. They did not approve…’ But the captain did not hear her reply because he was already been taken down the line to inspect the rest of the lambs. Lambs to the slaughter. Oh, joy.

It was true that Hannah and Michael did not approve of their only daughter’s choice to join the Alliance Fleet. It was bad enough that they had to cope with each other risking their lives every damn minute without worrying about Vaylen too, but regardless of their arguments, she had made her choice. This is the only thing she had ever known, so what else was she supposed to do? Go back to earth and become a painter? She didn’t think so.

Skilled with weaponry, yet with a side-order of some semblance of Biotic skill, Vaylen was what people liked to call a Vanguard, and she had heard every joke in the book about that, so she simply did not give a damn anymore. She was damn proud of what she was, and nothing was going to change that.

‘Okay everyone, this is probably going to be the most important mission any of you have ever been on.’ The Captain announced once everyone had been suitably glared at. He was standing against the white marble wall, hands behind his back as he regarded the newest recruits with a professional eye. ‘Maybe, for some of you, even the only mission you have ever been on. In the outlying regions of Alliance space, there is a small, very lush, planet called Akuze, maybe you’ve heard of it, maybe you haven’t, that isn’t important.’

He sent a quick glance at the Lieutenant and then shrugged. ‘The planetary surface has been a known breeding ground for Thresher Maws, though, as it is not mating season, there is no reason why they should attack you. In the rare case of a Maw attack, and there will under no circumstances be any more than one attacking you at one time, everyone should focus their firepower on one point of the Maw, and it should be like pissing on a bonfire.’

‘Only slightly less temperate, sir.’ Ray chirped and the line sniggered as one. Even the Captain smirked.

‘Perhaps, Private Ashford. Perhaps.’ He conceded. ‘It really depends on where you’re standing at the time. Stomach acid of a Maw is known to be quite… ah… warm, Private.’

Ray rubbed at his nose in reply. He did that often. He claimed it was because his nose itched, but Vaylen suspected that it was simply a mannerism and after the first few times, she let it alone. He was a tall man, with short, slightly spiked black hair and gleaming blue eyes, his appearance betraying his personality. When Vaylen had first met him the month after she had signed up, her first impression had not been a good one, he had been quiet and moody, just as was expected, but no, after a few weeks he started to come out of his shell, and he soon became the clown. Everyone adored him.

‘We will be setting off at 1600 hours. You have free time until then, try not to wander too far marines, we’d hate for any of you to get lost and miss out on all the fun.’ He winked and then strolled off with the Lieutenant, muttering in low tones.

‘LT Matthews looked freaked.’ Ray observed after a moment. ‘I wonder what managed to remove that ever present smile.’

‘How about a chisel?’ Vaylen watched as the small regiment of red-cheeked marines began to fan out over the marble floor, two of them heading to where she and Ray stood. ‘Must say it is a welcome change. He seems rather demented when his cheeks are constantly a mile apart.’

A.J Matthews was the Lieutenant who had introduced the captain to his new lackeys. He was an alright sort of guy, in the sense that he hardly ever spoke, hardly ever smiled and kept himself to himself. But Vaylen could tell he was worried about something, call it womanly intuition, but hell, it was obvious to her. Explained why Ray could sense it too, she thought with an inward smirk.

She looked up as Scarlet Cash and Christopher Green, another two of their closer friends, came towards them. Green was older than the other three, having chosen to serve the military after his career of an interstellar sales advisor fell through the crapper and he spent most of his time with the short and bad tempered Scarlet. Scarlet and Green had denied, adamantly, that there was nothing going on between them, but Green was handsome in the rugged kind of way and Scarlet was the object of many of the marines’ lust. They had dreams about her. And not the dry kind.

‘Well that was a waste of my time.’ Scarlet snapped as a greeting. ‘They could have said all this before I got out of bed. I could’ve slept in.’

‘And miss out on all our dazzling conversation? How could you say such a thing?’ Ray chortled. He checked his watch. Standard issue Citadel timekeeper with four hands fifteen numbers and a strange array of smaller clocks inside the larger face. ‘I’d say we have… around…’ The thought for a moment. ‘Eh… what the hell? I’ve had this thing for three years and I still can’t figure out how to work out the time.’ She shook his wrist slightly.

‘It was your own fault for throwing away the damn manual.’ Vaylen peered over his shoulder and gave him a quick rundown.

‘Still don’t fucking understand it.’ He said after she had finished. ‘Most of us don’t even bother with the watches. We just ask someone.’ He flung out an arm and caught a passing Salarian. ‘Hello friend. May I inquire as to what hour we find ourselves at present?’ He said politely.

The Salarian blinked.

‘He wants to know what the time is.’ Vaylen translated quickly.

‘It is…’ He pulled his arm from Ray’s grip and checked his own watch. ‘0948…’

‘How the hell did you work that out?’

‘I learned.’ And he walked away, flat nose in the air.

Green chuckled. ‘He couldn’t have ever made that sound more insulting if he had tried! Come on, close your mouth Ray, or are you trying to catch your dinner?’

Vaylen laughed at Ray’s hurt expression. ‘Speaking of food. I haven’t had breakfast! Who wants to grab a bite to eat? Just none of that Turian crap, my stomach won’t be able to take any more of that shit.’

---

A regular navy brat.

Vaylen picked at her food with a plastic two-pronged utensil as Ray, Green and Scarlet argued about nothing important, all sure that is was to be another one of those quick missions and back in time to see the end of the month. She wasn’t scared as such, just nervous, as after everything her parents had been through, her father losing his arm to a group of Krogan mercenaries after he was found in the wrong place at the wrong time, her mother almost dying one of the simpler missions she was assigned after Vaylen’s younger bother was born, she had grown to be cautious.

A regular navy brat.

What did that leave for her future prospects?

Turning into her mother? A high-ranking officer who had to spend half of her time on leave because she had a habit of getting pregnant several times in a decade? With all due respect, sir, fuck that with a pulse rifle. Cue smarmy grin.

Vaylen let out a sigh and pushed the slop away from her. This was still her parents’ life she was living and she had no clue how to get free of the expectations everyone had of her, great or no. She was sick of being Hannah’s and Michael’s daughter. She wanted to be who she really could be, on her own strength; she wanted to be Vaylen Shepard.

‘You look as if you’re blowing several fuses in that head of yours.’ Scarlet said, catching the darkness on Vaylen’s ordinarily cheerful countenance. ‘What’s up chick? Not enough salt or something?’

Scarlet, though her temper left a lot to be desired, was a nice enough girl, smart and serious but able to call on something similar to a sense of humour when the occasion called for it and she was somethingelse when it came to sniping, but Vaylen didn’t know her that well. Ray had assured her that she was as genuine has he was, a comment she found extremely amusing, and so she decided to trust her. As of yet, she had let very little show…

‘I’m ok... just phased out for a moment there.’

Ray gave a chortle. ‘You’re worse than the damn Asaris for that! Right. So what’s happening now? We have a few hours to kill so yeah?’

‘Five and a half hours,’ Green corrected.

‘I’m all for going to get some shut-eye. I mean, we’re going to be on Akuze for a human month at best so we may as well conserve our energy.’ Scarlet mused. ‘The rest of the unit should be out and about, stirring up hell, so the ship should be approaching peaceful, at any rate.’ She grinned at the boys. ‘Unless you’d rather visit Chora’s Den like any other respectable marine?’

‘Too full by now.’ Ray shrugged. He yawned theatrically and slung his arm over Vaylen’s shoulder. ‘Besides... I have other things on my mind.’ He waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Vaylen shrieked and shied away from him with a laugh. ‘Jerk.’ She murmured.

Inside, however, her heart was pounding.

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