In the time available before the hostiles breached the doors, Avatar did what it could to prepare for the attack. There were two doors leading into the same hallway, each on opposite ends of the same wall. Since the fighting would remain close quarters, Avatar switched to its shotgun to improve its effectiveness. There were no fixed or loose objects in the room which would provide viable cover, but Avatar was able to move furniture such as chairs, and even a table, closer to the door to act as obstacles for those attempting to file into the room. It would only be a minor hindrance, but it improved their chances of success by a greater degree than any other actions it could have taken during the same time. 

The whole time, the Turian woman was crying out in pain. She was not in a position to prevent Solares from stopping her bleeding, but that did not cure her injury. She largely ignored Solares’ words and instead curled up on the floor, clutching her head, screaming. “My…head…” She said weakly while sobbing. 

After five separate, unsuccessful attempts to open the doors conventionally, Avatar heard more movement outside, heading away from each door. Retreat was improbable, so Avatar expected the use of explosives to gain entry, and after only seven seconds, its expectation was proven correct. Two detonations, 1.21 seconds apart, struck both doors. Neither of the metal doors were completely opened, as it appeared as if the hostiles had used fragmentation grenades as improvised breaching charges. However, they were both damaged enough that biotics among the enemy were able to use their abilities to clear the doorways, first on the right door, then the left. Unlike a normal, properly executed breaching maneuver, the enemy was not able to file in immediately to take advantage of the disorienting effects of the explosions, which allowed Avatar’s allies to recover and prepare. On the left door, two enemies took cover on each side of the door way and leaned into the room to fire, while on the right, where Avatar was aiming, a hostile threw a fragmentation grenade into the room. Given that they were in an enclosed space, the ricochets from the grenade could potentially threaten anyone in the room, even outside of the lethal blast radius.