Anghraine

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.

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