001 [AUDIO] DAY 15 - MORNING

[biobitching]

[HERE have the sound of someone who woke up outside and immediately jumped to conclusions. Her voice is ragged, panic just barely contained under the raaaage.]

This some kind of a fucking joke, Shepard? Or did your pal the Illusive Man put you up to this? [The slightest of pauses, and then:] Should’ve fucking known…

Is that it? Think I’m going to

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[femshep]

[After hearing Jack's voice via Brian's phone halfway across the room, Shepard pulls out her own phone:]

Jack.

[Shepard sounds... like a mess. But she's slept a tiny bit since shit went down so she's got enough energy to sound like the Commander again for a little bit.]

I'm stuck here too, same as you are. No way out yet, but that doesn't mean I'm not looking for one.

...Besides, when have I ever thought you'd play nice?

audio

[femshep]

Hey, watch it.

[But her warning was obviously half-assed, since she knows for a fact that yeah, she sounds like shit.]

What do I have to do to get your word you'll keep everyone's blood on the inside?

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[biobitching]

...I want some of that booze your buddy [heavily sarcastic] was waving around, fresh ammo, and a location. [Shepard's location. Or a rendevous point. Whatever. Just a guarantee that this isn't all smoke and air.]

You get six hours.

audio

[femshep]

South dorms, by the storage room. Third floor.

I can get you the booze and some ammo now, but I've only got what's in my guns, so it's not going to be much. I've got more ammo on the way, but I don't have it yet so you're going to have to wait on that.

audio should they meet up or is shep going to have her snooze now XD

[biobitching]

Fine. [She'll do some of her own scouting around in the meantime.]

audio -- they can go ahead and meet if you want

[femshep]

[If Jack does show up, Shepard's in the hallway in front of no particular dorm, two dark bottles in hand. They'd split the booze two ways and this was from her half, but she couldn't stand the taste of it. Jack would probably like it, though.

Brian's probably lurking not too far off. His mun's afk but we figured he wouldn't take kindly to being left in the dorm to wonder what the hell's going on out there, so Shepard would tell him he could come if he stayed out of the way and didn't piss Jack off.]

audio -- alright!

[biobitching]

[Jack would probably drink krogan piss if it could get her drunk fast enough. But she'll show up a few minutes later, pistol in hand. At the sight of Shepard, she approaches, but stays just out of grabbing range, fight-or-flight tension in every line of her body.

She might glance at Brian, make a note of his position, and then look away dismissively. This was between her and Shepard.

Who, incidentally, looks like shit.]

The hell did you do, wrestle with a pack of krogan?

[IT'S NICE TO MEET YOU TOO.]

action!

[femshep]

[Shepard's offering out the bottles of booze now, so she'll have both hands free to unload her pistol. After all, she did promise Jack some ammo.

At the question:] Spent the night outside the gates. [That was the simple way to explain it, anyway.]

all the action!

[biobitching]

[DILEMMA: put away the gun for booze? Gun, or booze? Gun or--

Holstering the pistol while reaching for the bottles, Jack immediately cracks one open with her teeth and begins chugging, never taking her eyes off Shepard. I assume it's beer of some kind... but maybe Jack would chug hard liquor, WHO KNOWS. Even if all this is one enormous, hideous cosmic trick, she'd feel better if she were buzzed. Besides, it wasn't like she couldn't wreak mayhem and shoot assholes sober, drunk, or hungover.]

[Between swallows.] So you weren't kidding about the monsters. [gulp] Fuck.

[She lowers the bottle, and glances at it speculatively. Tastes like beer. Real beer. Real shitty beer.]

This something Cerberus is testing out? New VR tech? Some fucked-up combat sim?

action!

[femshep]

I don't think this is Cerberus, unless they were willing to throw Miranda to the sharks with the rest of us. [Wrong name to name probably, but the point was still valid.] Not sure who put this together, but it's bar-none the most immersive VR I've ever seen. Looks real, tastes real. Feels real. Trust me, I'd know. [After her little forest expedition, there was no doubt whatsoever that this place felt excruciatingly real.

Meanwhile, as she said all this she was unloading her pistol. Now she's offering up a nice-sized handful of ammo, not much but all she had.]

Like I said, I'm running on empty for a couple of hours. I've got a supply coming in sometime later though, I can get you some of that.

[Even in a place like this, Shepard feels totally responsible for making sure her whole entire crew has food and shelter and ammo and whatnot, so this really isn't a problem for her.]

action!

[biobitching]

[She stiffens visibly.] So the cheerleader's here too. Starting to feel like a real welcome committee.

[Jack helps herself to that ammo, but ~graciously~ leaves Shepard a bit. Not in her best interests to deprive the commander of anything to shoot, even if she wasn't entirely sure what the hell was going on. But seeing Shepard as her usual no-nonsense self, still putting the crew first brings a surprising and totally unwelcome rush of relief. Shit. She was getting soft in her old age.]

You do that, but I'll manage just fine on my own.