Right, he would have to remember that this wasn't like where he came from. Though it was hard to imagine, even humanity's understanding of biotics was fairly recent by galactic standards.

"A biotic is someone who can create and manipulate mass effect fields using the element zero nodules in their bodies. It's..." He had to think of how to phrase this. "I guess back in the old days they would have called it a psychic ability? Since it all acts through electrical impulses in our brains. I just think about it and..." The barrier returned, glowing purplish-blue over his whole body. "I'm not sure I'm explaining this right," Kaidan admitted. "Maybe think of it like radiation exposure, and the biotics are a mutation result. It's close enough to the idea."

And hopefully a good enough explanation that Zhao had some idea of what it was and how it worked. Kaidan dropped his barrier again. It was an ability he could hold for hours at a time under the most hectic of combat situations, so using it off and on like this didn't phase him at all.

"Am I that obvious?" Kaidan gave a little laugh. "I hope I don't come off as having a stick up my ass or anything like that. But you're right, the Alliance is humanity's military force. I'm a marine, until recently serving on a war ship. Not really sure what that makes me here yet."