Adult-FanFiction.org : Games

Need to Know	By : Nicker Category: +M through R > Mass Effect Views: 13206 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Mass Effect & all the characters are property of Bioware. I am not making money with writing this story.

Chapter List
- 1
- 2
- 3
Three weeks later Ashley Williams was still fuming. Tangled in red tape at the Alliance HQ in Vancouver she was trying to get her questions answered, her clearance raised, getting stonewalled every step of the way.
She could not read the full testimony, nor could she take a look at the evidence. Talking to Shepard was not exactly forbidden, but the lawyers were dragging their feet about it and buying time. Ashley was not sure if it was still the Williams Curse working against her, or the typical incompetence and ignorance of the armed forces, or that maybe it was a conspiracy against her. Lawson’s off-hand remark about Hackett was nagging at her. Or simply, it was a new thing, a Shepard Curse, and she was being brushed off because she used to be a part of Shepard’s crew.
It would have been ironic, and if it turns out to be true, Ashley swore she would bash some teeth in.
It didn’t help, that her only witness bailed out on her. Ashley was baffled about how Lawson was able to get far enough with a bad ankle and broken ribs. She must have popped a few painkillers and made a run for it, and paid the price later, writhing in agony. At least Ashley hoped she did.
The good thing about it was, that since Ashley snatched her up in an unofficial capacity, she didn’t have to explain it to anybody, how she lost the #2 most wanted Cerberus terrorist, and face the consequences.
Instead, she was conveniently sent on an errand to meet some turian envoy on Arcturus Station. She did not appreciate the irony but she did get the message. She also got a message on her way back to Earth, this time from Liara. Oddly enough, Hackett managed to get clearance for an asari to access the prothean finds on Mars, but didn’t seem to be able arrange at least a visit with Shepard for her. She called Liara back as her ship passed by the red planet.
“Commander Williams,” Liara chimed politely on the video feed. She seemed distracted, but in a nerdy kind of way which Ashley learned to accept. “Did you find out what you needed to know?”
“Yes and no. Lawson confirmed Shepard’s testimony and what you told me. I managed to fill in some gaps up until Horizon, so…” she trailed off. “She seemed cooperative and then managed to slip away before I could ask any more questions. It was frustrating.”
“I see. At least it was not a complete waste. I had a very tense conversation with her after she got away from you.”
“Oh? Did she threaten you?”

“Not in any menacing way,” the asari smiled.
Lawson probably figured out who tipped Ashley off and was just as annoyed at Liara as Ashley was at Miranda. “It was harmless, I can assure you. We sorted out the… misconceptions.”
Ashley scoffed. It didn’t make much sense, but there must have been something else between them, some arrangement she was not aware of. It did not matter.

“Did she at least tell you, why she bailed out?”

“I’m afraid not. But she suggested that you will figure out her reasons…”
Ashley let out a frustrated growl, pinching the bridge of her nose. Trying to think out loud, hoping it would jog her brain or maybe the asari could come up with something.

“I’m still trying to get in to talk to Shepard, but they are stalling me. I put together what was in his full report, and some pieces of the two years before… I’ll just have to plan my next step. To talk to Shepard somehow...”
“Commander… Ashley,” Liara was talking, trying to cut off her train of thought. “Can I give you an advice?” Liara said politely.

Ashley sighed, looking at the monitor, knowing she won’t like it.
“Sure,” she said resigned.

“You gathered a lot of -as you say- heat in the… uh, high brass, I think is the word…? Maybe it would be better to, um, ‘lay low’ for a while?”

Ashley narrowed her eyes. “Have you been watching human broadcasts, Liara?”
Liara seemed to produce the asari equivalent of a blush.

“I am holed up on Mars for more than a month now, commander. I figured, if I’m going to study the protheans I might as well…” she noticed Ashley’s look, “never mind… it’s an occupational hazard.”
“I won’t be sidelined again, Liara.”

“You will be if you continue, Ashley…” Liara said softly. “Just… take a vacation… let them think you gave up. Give yourself some time to come up with a new plan.”

“Vacation?” Ashley scoffed.
“Yes. Vacation,” the asari said, with an unusual emphasis on every word. “I hear, Australia is nice this time of the year.” She paused, and anticipating the next question she added with a nervous smile. “I just watched a documentary about the cleanest beaches on Earth. Apparently it’s in Marouba, Sydney.” She sighed, looking around, no doubt regretting the bleak, red desert that surrounded her.
“Sounds like you want to go there, Liara.” Ashley mused. “You can take a break, too.”

The asari scientist smiled.

“Maybe I will. But you should definitely go there. To Sydney.” Again, the emphasis. Ashley frowned at the odd tone. She nodded and thanked Liara for the call, they said brief goodbyes, and they cut the call.
Only after a minute or so did Ashley started to suspect that the asari was trying to tell her something, convey some hidden message. Australia… Sydney… and then it hit her.

With a bemused snort she nodded at the now dark screen.

“Vacation it is.” she smirked, and started to fill out a request for leave.
***
It’s been three days since Ashley Williams took shore leave and flew over to Sydney, locating the Marouba district and renting a cottage not far from the beach. It was nice and quiet and hot, but the salty breeze was pleasant, and people were relaxed all around. Very relaxed. Ashley on the other hand already knew that there were only so many days that she could do nothing. The morning jogs on the beach were actually good, and it did feel nice to catch some rays.
She had four more days from her week off, and the magic was starting to wear off. She decided this would be her last day on the beach and then she would start hitting the pubs, or the reef.
Contrary to popular belief she was not born in combat gear and did not feel naked or exposed without her armor. She was comfortable in her swimwear, and she did get a handful of stares, which also felt good, although she knew that most of those were due to her well-toned muscles and not her other curves. She smirked even before she passed them, reveling in the occasional nervous glances, as if her eyes were saying “yes, I could take you down, too”. She had to conclude that she could take out most of the people on the beach in hand-to-hand combat—
She got a taste of her own medicine later, however, when resting on a deckchair, sipping an icy cocktail, she noticed a blonde in a black bikini walking towards her in the sand, rubbing her hair with a towel, smiling confidently. And that walk was more like striding with a cadence to the hips, a bunch of perfect curves and flawless skin that coalesced into a gently swaying apparition called Miranda Lawson.
Good thing Ashley was sipping her drink and wearing sunglasses, so that the only thing betraying her utter surprise was the choking as the drink almost came out of her nose, forcing her to sit up and take control of her esophagus and her breathing.
There was no limping, and no traces of fading bruises around her ribs. She checked. Thoroughly. Modern medicine can do wonders, she thought. Lawson not so much sat down, but glided smoothly into the deckchair next to Ashley, keeping an amused expression, looking out over the ocean. Ashley frowned and sat back, not even looking at her but staring sullenly forward behind her shades. For an outsider it looked like they didn’t even know each other.
“Good to see you, commander,” Miranda offered, throwing her beach towel on the table between them. “I have to say, you clean up nice.”

She rested her head back on the chair and closed her eyes, enjoying the heat of the sun drying her skin. Ashley didn’t even look at her, and only acknowledged her words with a quiet snort.
The silence stretched between them, until a waitress came and took Miranda’s order. As soon as she was out of earshot, Ashley couldn’t help herself and snapped her head in Miranda’s direction.

“You’ve got some nerve, Lawson,” she hissed. “Showing yourself in plain sight, here of all places! Aren’t you suppose to be on the run? Hiding?”

Lawson smiled.

“Come on, Williams. Who would point me out? So what if somebody was looking for a blonde on the beach?” she asked playfully, waving her hand around discreetly.
Ashley followed her gesture. It was true: pretty women were galore around them, many blonde… it was a good disguise, hiding in plain sight, except that even Ashley’s pulse quickened when she noticed Lawson approaching.

“You are either very stupid, or you are intentionally taking a huge risk, Lawson. Are they watching us now?”
“Nobody is watching us, commander,” Miranda said placatingly, watching the people come and go, enjoying the beach, talking, swimming, playing beach ball. “Well, nobody is spying at least. I can’t speak for those enjoying the view,” she added pointedly, giving Ashley a lookover from the corner of her eyes. “Can you blame them?”
Ashley was not in the mood to discuss the phenomenon of two bikini-clad women drawing the occasional looks from men in their vicinity.

“ What’s your play? Am I your insurance policy?”
She quickly leaned back as she noticed the waitress returning with an icy cold cocktail. Lawson smiled, thanked her and then pouted her lips ever so slightly to sip into the glass. Ashley winced as the now blonde woman made even this look alluring.
“Maybe a bit of both. I trust that you will appreciate the help I have given you and will put in a few good words for me in case I need it…” she sipped her drink again. “And yes, I am taking a risk.”
Ashley was not impressed. “Great. It was worth bailing out on me…”

“Ah, that one. I realized that I was set up by a mutual friend. Besides, if the Alliance were to ever find out that you let me go, it would have been the end of your career. I did you a favour, commander.”
“Well, a lot of good it did to me…” Ashley spat bitterly, returning to slurping her drink. “And if you were hoping that I would be able to put in good words for you, you bet on the wrong horse.”

Miranda hummed in understanding. “I was about to ask. How has the Systems Alliance been treating you?”
“Go ahead, gloat,” Ashley growled, drinking her cocktail sullenly. “I can’t give you protection. You set up this little meeting in vain.”
“I don’t need your help, commander,” Miranda said calmly, still sounding a bit amused. “I’m here to finish our conversation.”
Ashley let out a loud snort, shaking her head.

“You’re just fucking with me.”

“I was at a disadvantage. I was injured, in a lot of pain and impaired from the painkillers. Now we are on even ground.”
“So you are going to tell me the rest of the story. Out of the goodness of your heart.”

Lawson shrugged nonchalantly, finishing her drink and putting it down gracefully on the table. She picked up the towel, dabbed her hair and sat up to leave.
“Maybe I feel it was rude of me to leave like that,” she said. Something rattled against Ashley’s glass on the table. “There is nothing more I can tell about the rest of the mission that you don’t already know, or relevant. That was one of the reasons I left.”
“That’s awfully nice of you.”

Ashley shot a glance at her over her sunglasses.

“The rest of the mission is not at all interesting.” Miranda paused. “Except of course the last part. Now that’s a whole different story that you will not find anywhere.”
Ashley raised her eyebrow behind her shades and looked at Miranda as she was standing up.

“Oh, believe me, commander, if you were in their position–” Lawson waved towards the sky as she threw the towel over her shoulder, “–you would also classify the Omega Relay mission Ultra Top Secret for a million years and brainwash the crew. I know I would.”
“So why would you share this information with—” Ashley started to ask, when she noticed an omnitool on the table, next to her glass. It must have come from the towel, she realized as she glanced over at the other woman suspiciously from the corner of her eyes.
Lawson smiled. “For several reasons. One being… covering my ass, as you would say” she replied in a cheerful tone and started to walk off. “Come on, let me buy you a prawn on the barbie.”
“Uh, what?” Ashley blinked, trying to follow the sudden changes in the subject.

“Shrimp. On barbecue,” Miranda said, wrapping the towel around her waist.

Ashley absently fiddled with the omnitool and slipped it smoothly onto her wrist as she reached for her own towel. She stood up, throwing the towel over her shoulder, and looked around casually, just taking in the sight of people enjoying the sun and the sea, just like any other summer day on the Southern Hemisphere. If there were Cerberus agents or Alliance operatives in the crowd, Ashley could not spot them. She wondered briefly if Lawson was just being too cautious–not a stupid thing in her position–or just played Ashley.
She caught up with Lawson at the nearest stand just as she ordered two plates of shrimp, her accent suddenly more prominent.

“Really, commander,” Miranda said jovially, “I took three days to make sure we are not being watched.”

“So you spied on me.”

“It’s only fair. Last time you were on my trail.”
Ashley rolled her eyes, taking the offered paper tray and started nibbling the food absently while Miranda smiled warmly at the vendor and paid. It was actually surprisingly good, and the bread roll, too, soaking up the salty juices.
Despite her reputation as a cold and dangerous agent of a terrorist organization, Miranda Lawson could certainly sell herself as a friendly and open woman who blended in perfectly with the beach crowd.
Ashley supposed it was to be expected from a spy, but the contrast was still so sharp to her that it made her wonder, which one was the real Miranda Lawson. Or if she has seen the real one yet. The injured Lawson was certainly not an act.
“Something wrong?” Ashley heard Lawson ask her and she realized she was staring blankly as they strolled towards the hotels.

“Uh, nothing,” she mumbled, returning to the present, nibbling her food thoughtfully. “I see you made a full recovery.”
Miranda nodded, licking the spicy oils the shrimps were seasoned with off her fingers.

“I never thanked you for your help back on the Citadel. I could have handled it myself, but I am sure it would have been worse without your intervention,” she smiled and nodded towards the almost empty paper trays. “I hope you accept this as a token of my appreciation.”
Ashley glanced at the shrimps and then back at Miranda with a scowl on her face.

“You think this covers it?”

Miranda laughed and shook her head. It made Ashley’s spine tingle.

“Of course not.” She threw the plate into a trashcan and licked her fingers clean, rubbing her palms together.
They reached a small fountain in the shades of some trees, where the path split. Miranda stopped and turned towards Ashley and put a hand on her arm. It was a discreet, soft touch, maybe even a common, familiar gesture around here, where everybody was overly friendly and open, it only lasted a second, but it still left goosebumps on her skin. Pats on the arm shouldn’t surprise her this much.

“I owe you one.” Miranda Lawson said and turned away, leaving her at the fountain as she strolled off towards the hotels.
“Wait… what were the other reasons?” Ashley called after her, trying to pick up the conversation where they left off back at the beach.

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out, commander,” Lawson replied over the shoulder and walked on, clearly signaling that the conversation was over on her part.
Ashley scoffed, shaking her head as she stood and absently rubbed the omnitool around her wrist and started to make her way back to her own hotel.
The fact that she did not spot any suspicious people around them, however, did not mean that they were not there. Ashley was not a spy, not trained to notice these things. She did know enough however, that after she returned to her hotel room, she locked the door, turned on the holo-display and switched it to a lifestyle channel with a lot of talking people, turned up the volume and went into the bathroom to take a long bath.
Only then did she check out the omnitool. It must have been Lawson’s personal model, now unlocked. No biometric identification or password stopped her from accessing the menu. It was mostly wiped clean, except for a handful of video recordings. According to the timestamps–if she could believe them–they were made not long before Shepard turned himself in to the Alliance.
She hit play and her eyes immediately went wide as she watched, from the point-of-view of Lawson, standing in the Normandy’s cockpit, as the ship emerged from a relay jump into the middle of a bright interstellar cloud filled with debris.

“It’s the Galactic Core…” somebody whispered as Joker nimbly put the ship through a series of maneuvers to dodge ancient shipwrecks and unrecognizable artificial objects.
The awe soon disappeared as Ashley heard their tense conversation, voices solemn and nervous, discussing their next move, facing some unknown threat. Soon Ashley completely forgot about the bath, sitting on the edge of the bathtub and staring at shaky pictures of the crew descending into the pits of hell…
- 1
- 2
- 3
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Need to Know