"Lieutenant Martel, these 30 recruits will end up on 10 Alliance vessels. It is your job to get these men and women trained and ready for service. We don't know when, but these marines will be pressed into service and you have a good record and we think you will do an excellent job with them. Carry on." Admiral Mikhailovich said, saluting the new Lieutenant.
"Aye, aye Admiral." Fulia said, saluting back. Fulia looked at the view screen to watch the recruits form ranks before she walked out.
She quickly outfitted herself in her combat armor and walked out the door.
Fulia was normally quiet but she knew this was her first taste of command.
"Attention! Welcome to the hardest days of your life" Fulia shouted, causing a few of the more unprepared recruits to jump, but mostly the perfect ranks went to attention and saluted.
"At ease. Day one of training. Each of you will be posted on an Alliance vessel. Each of you have graduated from the Junior N7 program. Each of you is destined for big things and other recruits will look up to you. But right now you are nothing more than lumps of clay that it is my job to mold. And now it is time to see what you are made of! 30 laps around the building, no walking! Move out!"
Fulia watched as the recruits ran the 30 laps required of them. She was impressed as they completed the 15 mile run.
"Now pair off! Hand to hand drills!" Fulia shouted, watching the recruits follow orders quickly, despite their tiredness.
"If pressed into hand to hand combat, what is the most important thing to remember? Ensign Larsson?"
The smallest recruit jumped at the sound of his name but was quick off the mark. "Never get pinned down too long, in case of multiple hostiles, sir!"
"Correct, quick movements and quick thoughts will save your life! 20 minutes, full contact!" Fulia shouted, watching the recruits begin to spar. She felt older than 22. She knew the pride that Adriano felt when he gave orders, and Max too. They loved their uniforms, but unfortunately Max was under lock and key for the destruction of the Alpha relay and working with Cerberus and Adriano was in a self-imposed lockdown. She knew the truth of what they said, and she wanted these kids to be ready.
Kids. I'm barely older than they are and most of them are more ready for whats to come than I was. Hell, Larsson looks like he could hang with Adriano for a while.
The 20 minutes was over and Fulia shouted, "Good work recruits! Now, more often than not, you will be using a weapon of some sort! Each of you know your strengths, so pick a weapon and line up!"
Each recruit picked up a weapon, and stood in line, as Fulia unholstered the new M-77 Paladin that Adriano bought her before locking himself down.
She hit a few buttons on her omni-tool and on the adjacent roof top 31 life-like Geth shaped targets popped up.
"Make sure you aim! We don't want to make someone on the far side of town's day miserable! I want..." Fulia trailed off, as a crackling noise came through on her omni-tool.
"...tenat Martel. Get....Reapers....Martel?" Came the voice of Admiral Mikhailovich. Fulia looked around at the recruits, knowing the fear she saw on their faces was reflected on hers.
Before Fulia could do more than look up at the sky, an explosion near by told her the worst was coming. Horrible noises and creatures were seen and heard through the dust and smoke.
"Take cover!" Fulia shouted, shooting the nearest creature, as the recruits scrambled behind the supply crates and ventilation units.
As the smoke clear Fulia gasped. In addition to husks, which the Alliance had known about for years, were horrific creatures, bulbous backed and four eyed...the batarians had been corrupted.
Fulia ducked behind cover, narrowly avoiding a shot to the chest, but her arm was hit. The shot ripped right through her barriers and armor and opened up the flesh on her arm.
"The lieutenant is hit! Cover me while I patch her up!" One of the recruits shouted to another. The recruit rushed to Fulia’s side and quickly applied the medi-gel and wrapped her arm. An explosion to their left made them both look. A grenade had exploded and killed 5 of the recruits. Fulia felt that pain more than the pain in her arm.
“Cover me while I try to get an evac!” Fulia shouted to the three nearest privates. As she rushed to the near by communications console she heard yells of terror and turned in time to see two of her recruits going over the edge of the building in the grasp of husks. Fulia felt terror beginning to grip her heart, but she knew she had to push it to one side in order to get them out of this. Another glance at the sky caused her heart to drop. The Normandy had taken flight and headed towards the other side of the city.
“This is Lieutenant Fulia Martel. Any Alliance ships, myself and 23 recruits are trapped in the southwest section of the city and need evac! Any Alliance ships!” Fulia shouted, firing a few well placed shots to a grenade box, blowing up a crowd of husks behind her recruits. “Watch your 6!”
“...Lia? Lieu....Martel, .....location!” came a familiar voice on the radio. “Fulia....read me?...Athens....re...”
“Cassius! We are in the southwest corner of the city, Alliance light infantry training rooftop! Hurry we...” She was unable to finish the transmission. One of the Batarian creatures shot the console, and she was engaged with three husks. She blasted the nearest with the last shot on her clip, clubbed another and kicked the final one over the edge of the building, before reloading her pistol and quickly dropping 3 more husks. She looked and saw the three covering her had been gunned down trying to protect her. All over the building the young privates were fighting and dying, while the Reaper forces kept coming.
“Larsson! You three fall back!” Fulia shouted to the three remaining privates, as she switched to her Mattock and began covering them. The three recruits dropped behind cover at the far end of the roof top. Fulia noticed a break in the Reaper forces and quickly fell back to her recruits.
“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. We are going to die.” One of the recruits said, tears beginning to fall down his cheeks.
“Stow that talk! Lieutenant Martel, what are our orders?” Larsson said, refreshing his thermal clip.
Fulia took a deep breath and said, “We hold this position. The SSV Athens may be enroute and if not, we hold until we can get out. The Reapers don’t take any more of this rooftop. Larsson, move forward to the ammo boxes. Milos, Contreas, the two large air units. There is a secondary comm station on the far side of the roof. Hold those positions while I try to make contact! Move!”
The three recruits rushed their assigned locations as Fulia rushed across the rooftop and heard the comm unit.
“Fulia! Do you read?!?!” Cassius was shouting.
“Cassius! I’m here. I only have 3 recruits left! Are you inbound?” Fulia asked as she reached the panel, and heard the sound of gunfire behind her. She turned and saw the two furthest recruits being hit by the bulbous horrors and Larsson falling back towards her.
“We are coming in on the north side of the building. We had EDI give us a patch to clean up comms. Be ready!” Cassius said.
“Larsson! Evac coming! North side!” Fulia shouted, taking cover behind the panel.
“Aye Aye!” The young recruit shouted, firing at the nearby enemies, and also taking cover.
Fulia could hear the sound of the Athens circling around the building and shouted, “Larsson, fall back!”
As she began laying down covering fire, the young recruit rushed back towards her, as she heard the sound of Julius Shepard shouting behind her, “Lieutenant Martel, Private Larsson! Hurry!”
In that moment, a group of husks swarmed around Larsson and Fulia could see the young man’s movements begin to slow, but she rushed forward firing.
“Fulia! There is nothing you can do, we have to go now!” Julius shouted.
“No! Larsson!” Fulia shouted using her now flaring biotics. She didn’t see the Batarian creature to her left. All she felt was two sharp, burning pains in her abdomen. The last thing she heard was the sound of several assault rifles firing, and Julius rushing forward, shouting her name.
Julius watched as Fulia ran forward trying to save the last recruit, and saw the two enemies flanking her. He was unable to drop them before they hit the younger woman. “Fulia!”
Julius deployed his combat drone, as Zanethu and Rehalak opened fire. Julius reached the now bleeding Fulia, quickly stopping the bleeding. The young Martel was barely conscious, but he could hear her saying, “Lost them all. My fault.”
“No, it wasn’t your fault. Zane, cover me! Rehalak, go tell med-bay we have one incoming!” Julius shouted, incinerating the nearby husk.
Fulia felt warmth going through her body as Julius quickly began patching her up and heard herself mumble, “I couldn’t save them.”
“Nobody could have sweetheart. But I am going to save you!” Julius said quietly, and giving a sign to Zanethu that he was ready to go. The turian began firing in short bursts giving the middle Shepard son a chance to gently pick up Fulia and head towards the waiting medical crew and her cousin.
“Ju...Julius, Don’t...don’t let me go. I...can’t. I don’t want anyone else to leave.” Fulia said, the tears fighting out of her.
“I swear I won’t leave you. But I have to get us out of here. Can I give you to Cassius?” Julius asked, and Fulia nodded slowly and Cassius took his cousin and moved quickly onto the ship.
“Helm! Get us out of the system and to the Citadel! Specialist, contact the Normandy ASAP and tell them we have Lieutenant Martel! Zanethu, you are in command while I am in the Med-Bay.” Julius ordered quickly, before turning to Cassius and taking the weakening Fulia back in his arms. “And Doc we are heading your way.”
“Nor...Normandy? Did Max...and...Adriano?” Fulia started, before Julius gently shushed her.
“Yes, they both made it. It’s okay sweetheart. We are all worried about you now.” Julius said, putting a small kiss onto the younger woman’s forehead. Julius and Cassius took Fulia to the med-bay to begin the long process of getting her back onto her feet.
