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Entry tags:
- ch: charles pressly,
- ch: commander shepard,
- ch: david anderson,
- ch: elizabeth bennet,
- ch: george wickham,
- ch: kaidan alenko,
- ch: lydia bennet,
- ch: lydia jenkins,
- ch: m gardiner,
- ch: mira gardiner,
- ch: nihlus kryik,
- ch: richard jenkins,
- ch: saren arterius,
- ch: william collins,
- fandom: austen,
- fandom: bioware,
- fic talk: commander elizabeth bennet au,
- gaming,
- genre: fic talk
The Commander Elizabeth Bennet AU!
I talked in my last Snowflake post about my Commander Elizabeth Bennet AU: a P&P/Mass Effect fusion with Elizabeth as Shepard that’s simmering in my brain right now. I may or may not actually write it, but I do want to get the story nailed down for myself, and I’ve gotten the basic set-up established—at least, I think so!
I didn’t want to explain the entire fic (...should I write it someday) on Tumblr, but I still wanted to share some part of it with the fandom friends who might care (I’m actually very excited!). So I thought I’d post about the set-up for the story over here on Dreamwidth.
The story opens on Mira Gardiner, a decorated officer of the human Systems Alliance and captain of a new, state-of-the-art, stealth Alliance starship, the SSV Normandy (I thought about Waterloo, but idk). Captain Gardiner’s staid XO, William Collins, is her current right hand and presumed successor as captain of the Normandy according to Alliance protocols. But there’s a complication.
For years, humanity has been trying to get accepted into the powerful galactic Council, and one major step in that direction would be the appointment of a human to the elite Spectres that act on the Council’s behalf. Captain Gardiner herself was once under consideration to join the Spectres, and served a mission under the observation of the turian Specter Saren Arterius, but failed in mysterious circumstances. Now, years later, the Council is finally re-considering the appointment of a human to the Spectres, and has reached out to Captain Gardiner again. They’re not re-considering her; the current (oblivious) candidate is her favorite protégée, Commander Elizabeth Bennet. They want Elizabeth transferred to the Normandy for a secret mission under the supervision of the Spectre Nihlus.
Elizabeth is a controversial figure these days. She’s always been respectful, clever, and pleasant, even charming, but she’s never backed down from anyone or anything. She recently triumphed in a brutal battle on Torfan with batarian slavers; her forces were obliterated by the batarians, but Elizabeth used her tactical and technological expertise to not only survive but to wipe out the batarians. Captain Gardiner herself defended Elizabeth’s actions to the Alliance high command—and apparently Elizabeth’s resourcefulness and resolve at Torfan caught the eye of more than the Alliance.
Captain Gardiner sees it as a great opportunity for both Elizabeth and humanity, and maybe a bit of redemption for herself. Per the Council’s request (“request”), Gardiner asks for the transfer without informing Elizabeth of the true reason for it. Collins’s nose is a bit out of joint as Elizabeth outranks and overshadows him, and the crew is curious about the presence of a Council Spectre and the notorious Commander Bennet on the ship, but Captain Gardiner knows how important this is.
En route to the mission, Nihlus and Captain Gardiner tell Elizabeth what’s really going on. Elizabeth is privately wary, but professional, and prepared to do what’s needed for the good of humanity. The mission involves recovering artifacts of the ancient and long-gone Prothean Empire, currently being studied at a dig on the idyllic human colony of Eden Prime. But it soon becomes clear that something has gone horribly wrong at Eden Prime—as they arrive, they receive desperate but cut-off messages from the local Alliance troops and colonists, begging for help.
Normandy is a stealth vessel, not a warship, so they decide to send down a small contingent to find out what’s going on and see what they can do to help, led by Elizabeth. Apart from Nihlus and Elizabeth, Captain Gardiner selects Corporal Lydia Jenkins* (young and callow, but good at what she does) and Lieutenant George Wickham (who actually spent several years studying the Protheans under an asari matriarch before he abruptly left the interstellar academic life to join the Alliance). The contingent heads down to the surface while the Normandy remains hidden, prepared to offer further aid if Elizabeth needs it.
Captain Gardiner suspects she won’t. If anyone can squeeze victory out of a bad situation, it’s Elizabeth Bennet.
—
*Unlike canon Jenkins, Lydia does not die
**Darcy does show up in the story, just not this part of it
I didn’t want to explain the entire fic (...should I write it someday) on Tumblr, but I still wanted to share some part of it with the fandom friends who might care (I’m actually very excited!). So I thought I’d post about the set-up for the story over here on Dreamwidth.
The story opens on Mira Gardiner, a decorated officer of the human Systems Alliance and captain of a new, state-of-the-art, stealth Alliance starship, the SSV Normandy (I thought about Waterloo, but idk). Captain Gardiner’s staid XO, William Collins, is her current right hand and presumed successor as captain of the Normandy according to Alliance protocols. But there’s a complication.
For years, humanity has been trying to get accepted into the powerful galactic Council, and one major step in that direction would be the appointment of a human to the elite Spectres that act on the Council’s behalf. Captain Gardiner herself was once under consideration to join the Spectres, and served a mission under the observation of the turian Specter Saren Arterius, but failed in mysterious circumstances. Now, years later, the Council is finally re-considering the appointment of a human to the Spectres, and has reached out to Captain Gardiner again. They’re not re-considering her; the current (oblivious) candidate is her favorite protégée, Commander Elizabeth Bennet. They want Elizabeth transferred to the Normandy for a secret mission under the supervision of the Spectre Nihlus.
Elizabeth is a controversial figure these days. She’s always been respectful, clever, and pleasant, even charming, but she’s never backed down from anyone or anything. She recently triumphed in a brutal battle on Torfan with batarian slavers; her forces were obliterated by the batarians, but Elizabeth used her tactical and technological expertise to not only survive but to wipe out the batarians. Captain Gardiner herself defended Elizabeth’s actions to the Alliance high command—and apparently Elizabeth’s resourcefulness and resolve at Torfan caught the eye of more than the Alliance.
Captain Gardiner sees it as a great opportunity for both Elizabeth and humanity, and maybe a bit of redemption for herself. Per the Council’s request (“request”), Gardiner asks for the transfer without informing Elizabeth of the true reason for it. Collins’s nose is a bit out of joint as Elizabeth outranks and overshadows him, and the crew is curious about the presence of a Council Spectre and the notorious Commander Bennet on the ship, but Captain Gardiner knows how important this is.
En route to the mission, Nihlus and Captain Gardiner tell Elizabeth what’s really going on. Elizabeth is privately wary, but professional, and prepared to do what’s needed for the good of humanity. The mission involves recovering artifacts of the ancient and long-gone Prothean Empire, currently being studied at a dig on the idyllic human colony of Eden Prime. But it soon becomes clear that something has gone horribly wrong at Eden Prime—as they arrive, they receive desperate but cut-off messages from the local Alliance troops and colonists, begging for help.
Normandy is a stealth vessel, not a warship, so they decide to send down a small contingent to find out what’s going on and see what they can do to help, led by Elizabeth. Apart from Nihlus and Elizabeth, Captain Gardiner selects Corporal Lydia Jenkins* (young and callow, but good at what she does) and Lieutenant George Wickham (who actually spent several years studying the Protheans under an asari matriarch before he abruptly left the interstellar academic life to join the Alliance). The contingent heads down to the surface while the Normandy remains hidden, prepared to offer further aid if Elizabeth needs it.
Captain Gardiner suspects she won’t. If anyone can squeeze victory out of a bad situation, it’s Elizabeth Bennet.
—
*Unlike canon Jenkins, Lydia does not die
**Darcy does show up in the story, just not this part of it