To: Everyone

[earthborn]

This is Commander Shepard of the SSV Normandy SR-2, Systems Alliance.

I know by now that that won't mean a lot to most of you; this world, this planet at least, is a bit farther down the tech curve than my normal. I'm given to understand that for a certain portioned of my fellow summoned, this is not the case. So I'll ask:

How many spacers are here, aside from myself?

Sound off. I'm willing to bet we have a hell of a lot more in common than anything else, no matter who says we ought to be at whoever's throats, or why.

Comments

[frontlinetitties]

Good question.
I don't know the answer, though.
My mother was found tumbling down the main shaft at Drearburh in a dragchute and battered haz suit.
She was carrying a bio-container, inside of which was yours truly.
Only, it sucked all power away from my mother and she landed braindead.
The place I landed was some shitty, remote hellscape of a planet so fuck only knows how she got there or why.
If we had those answers though, we'd know what a baby was doing in space.

[earthborn]

So you're tankborn? Shit, at this point I'm starting to think it's mandatory for tankborn people to have weird, tragic origins.

So did you just grow up on the hellscape planet, or what

[frontlinetitties]

What's tankborn?
Is that like, grown in a vat rather than done the vintage way?
If that's what you mean then I don't know for sure but I would think so.
Hardly anyone risks the old fashioned way anymore.

And yeah, grew up on the hellscape.
It sucked ass, but what can you do?

[earthborn]

Nothing to do but get on with it, right? Survival of the fittest?

Beats me how you stop people from doing it the natural way, in my experience. People are born with the equipment, they're gonna use it. Evolutionary paradigm or something, risks be damned.

[frontlinetitties]

Exactly, and I'm sure as hell the fittest.

You've got space travel but not conception blockers?
Those seem like messed up priorities.

[earthborn]

We have birth control, thanks. We're not actual savages.

You remind me of someone I know. Good kid, though. What's your name?

[frontlinetitties]

Whew!
You had me kind of worried there for a minute.

You know, a lot of people would say the world isn't ready for two of me.
I'm Gideon Nav.

[earthborn]

Oh, I'm always ready for more. Haven't met the disaster I couldn't handle yet, and if you're anything like my Grunt, you're not going to change that.

Nice to meet you, Gideon. So to speak.

[frontlinetitties]

That's what she said, wink wink.

And yeah, nice to 'meet' you too.
What's this Systems Alliance anyway?
Is it like, a military operation?
Are you 'Commander' because you fly a ship, or because you've seen action, or both?

[earthborn]

The Systems Alliance is the military for the human species. Or, at least for the portion that has any loyalty to Earth.

[After all, Cerberus was hardly centered on the homeworld, and whatever you thought about them, nobody could deny the existence of mercenary groups like the Blue Suns.]

All of the above. I enlisted, got promoted, saw a lot of action— still gonna see more, last I checked. And I do command a ship; Normandy's a frigate.

[frontlinetitties]

That is so fucking cool!
What's your weapon of choice?
How many people have you killed?
Does your ship have like, giant lasers or anything like that?

help i love gideon

[earthborn]

What are you, Krogan?

[Is it cute, or upsetting? Well, it's something. Shepard settles on the side of cautious amused.]

The ship does not have lasers; they're too energy-intensive for regular use. My Gunner, Garrus Vakarian, is around here in Cadens somewhere; we came in together. He could tell you more.

I can work with just about anything, but I like a good shotgun. Had a beautiful Asari-made model, back home. Weaponry in this place is a pain in my ass.

[Shepard has to stop and think about that last question. What a thing to ask; and how to answer? Shit, is this public? Just the same...]

I'm kind of a special case when it comes to body-count. Why do you ask?

\o/ that's what she wants

[frontlinetitties]

I don't know, what's that?
I'm a cavalier, but it wouldn't have been my first choice.
I always wanted to sign up with the Cohort which I think is kiiiinda like your Alliance.

And you know, the more I hear about guns the more I want to have a go with one.
They were classed as like, museum pieces where I'm from.
Which is weird because the tech involved in creating guns is actually more 'recent' than for swords.
But you know...necromancers, amirite.
Don't get me wrong though I fucking love swords.

And obviously I'm asking so I can find out whether you're a Gold Star Badass or like
Just a regular badass, you know?
It's important.

[earthborn]

You've never handled a gun? [Shepard is going to have an aneurysm. Unacceptable.] I'm gonna need more detail on the "necromancers" thing, I hope you realize that.

[Shepard cannot relate to the sword thing. She does not like swords. There is a strong reason for why every military in the galaxy abandoned swords and that is because it is very hard to stab people who are farther than four feet from you, as they most typically are.]

Well, last I checked, I was well over three hundred thousand. I don't know how that rates by other people's standards, but like I said: kind of an outlier.

[frontlinetitties]

[So she fully intended to answer both questions, but she's pulled up short by that number. She reads it. Then she reads it again. She reads it a third time for good measure, and then--]

Fuuuuuck me.
Are you serious?

[earthborn]

Yep.

I'm Commander Shepard, I don't screw around. Give me a target, it's gonna die. Ask anyone. Hell, ask Garrus. He was around for most of it.

[frontlinetitties]

[What a badass thing to say! Obviously they're going to have to meet like, yesterday.]

That is fucking insane.
Obviously I want a blow by blow account.
...maybe just the highlights or we might be here all night.

[earthborn]

Easy there, tiger. I get that you're enthusiastic, but I'm not up for a systemic report on my entire service history.

[Holy shit, they are a Krogan, in spirit if not in the flesh. Shepard wants to meet this kid.]

How about you buy my drinks for a bit, answer a few questions of your own, and I'll tell you all about Torfan.

Sound fair?

[frontlinetitties]

[She almost objects. Asks again. But then she keeps reading and sees the suggestion they meet and suddenly those almost-objections bleed away into the ether.]

Deal.
Do you know the Surly Wench Tavern?

[earthborn]

I do indeed. Meet you there; I'll be the ginger marine with the scarred up face.

[She knows her audience.

And, true to her word, Shepard shows up in good time, all five feet and three inches of her, scars and red hair and just the right kind of thirsty. How about a table, the one in the corner where you can put your back to the wall. That's perfect.]

Hey. You Gideon? [You look like a Gideon. You have one of those faces.] I'm Shepard.

[frontlinetitties]

[Gideon turns when she's addressed, blinks her lambent eyes at the much shorter woman in an expression of mild surprise. It's relatively quiet in the tavern at this time, just a scattering of locals skulking about, the late-night rowdiness yet to set in. And whilst Gideon had been expecting company, she's nonetheless unprepared for being spotted so swiftly.

But the woman is quick to introduce herself, which earns her a slanted grin.]

Yup! What gave it away? The biceps or my dazzling good looks?

[She says, as she openly looks the other woman up and down, tries to work out whether it's rude to ask about someone's cool-ass scars before they've so much as ordered a drink.]

[earthborn]

Let's just say that if you don't look like a local.

[Shepard laughs, and signals for a drink— two, actually, and why not? Gideon can drink too.]

So, you first. Necromancy. Really.

[frontlinetitties]

[Whilst the barmaid moves to get their order, Gideon rolls her eyes dramatically.]

I swear, if I had a coin off everyone who asked that question first, I'd be a rich woman by now. It's still pretty weird to me even after months and months in this place, you know? Like, necromancy was the cornerstone of our whole civilisation pretty much. Our god is a necro, even. I come from a system of planets called the Nine Houses, all founded by necromancers who served the King Undying like, thousands of years ago.

[She leans back in one of the rickety chairs, and eyes the other woman again.]

How much do you wanna know? Like, are you a total necromancy newb, and want the whole concept explained, or have you got specific questions?

[earthborn]

Honestly, I'd say it all sounds fictional to me, if I hadn't died once already.

[Shepard is struggling with the concept, can you tell? No? Good, she doesn't like to look weak in front of anyone, let alone near strangers.]

I'm pretty sure there wasn't magic involved in that one, though. Seriously, a whole society built on bringing people back from the grave? Seems kinda... [How to find the right way to say backwards without meaning something insulting] ...unproductive.

But go on, give me the elevator pitch.

[frontlinetitties]

[If I hadn't died once already-- it's a sentence that snags at her insides for reasons, and she quietly files it away to ask more about it later. For now though, it would be kiiinda rude to skip over the other woman's questions. Even if she wants to hear it, and wants the promised tales of battles won even more.

She rolls one muscular shoulder in a shrug.]

Okay. So it's not magic exactly...you're either born with the talent for it or not at all - like me for example, I don't have a necromantic bone in my beautiful body, thank fuck - but it also takes a shit ton of study. Learning boring theorems, reading dusty old tomes...

[And here she exaggerates a yawn.]

Not for me. But basically there was some kinda extinction event a long-ass time ago, and then The Emperor Undying instigated the resurrection, and replenished our system, and when he did that necromancy awoke within his resurrected population. He's the only one who can really bring people back to life though...most necros manipulate the dead, like, with skeletons. Or there's flesh adepts, and spirit adepts, but none of them can really bring anything back from the grave besides hollow constructs. You'd want to ask my necro about that though if you wanted to know more. I'm no expert, and I'm sure as shit not a scholar. But I think the reason we gave up on guns like, thousands of years ago must be to do with necromancy. Maybe they blow the bones into too many bits? Maybe swords create a bigger thanargy bloom? I honestly don't know.

[She casts a glance at Shepard, and there's something eager in it.]

But do you know what's more interesting than unwholesomely messing around with dead things? The battles that cause people to be dead in the first place