-Rio de Janeiro, Earth-

"I would like to congratulate you both on this momentous occasion," said the Alliance instructor. "It is not every day we have someone earn the N7 designation. The villa is one of the toughest training programs in not only the Alliance, but the galaxy. You are the best of the best that humanity has to offer. I present you this year's N7 graduates, Thomas and Jane Shepard."

The curtains pulled away to show Jane and I standing to attention in front of the crowd of people cheering. I glanced sideways and saw that Jane was stern as always. I waved to the crowd, causing them to increase in volume. Mom always did say I was a people person.

"These extraordinary soldiers will now step forward and make a public statement for both the Alliance, and the rest of the Citadel. I will turn it over to them now," then he stood to the side with the other Alliance Officer. Jane and I walked towards the podium and she stepped to it first.

"My name is Jane Shepard and I would like to thank the Alliance for the many opportunities it has and will continue to give me. I will preform to the best of my abilities to provide the safety and security that the Alliance will offer. Thank you," she said stepping back. Short, sweet, and to the point. Just like Jane. I made my way in front of the podium and flashed a smile, that was broadcasted on the screen overhead.

"Family, friends, fellow soldier, and anyone else who may be watching at this time, I would ask that you lend me your attention. What we have accomplished here is nothing less than the results of long hours of hard work, dedication, and most importantly, a willingness to get the job done. The title of N7 means many things to many people. Some see it as a symbol of war in a time of peace. Others think of it as a sign for advancement of humanity. I am here to say that it is neither of these things. To put it simply, being a N7 is to be a beacon of hope. We are dispatched to handle what seems like hopeless situations on paper. We will prevail. We are sent to help to handle the worst that the galaxy has to offer. But we will prevail. Most importantly, we are sent to make sure the best possible resolution is reached, whether it be by combat, or reason. We have and will continue to prevail. So, I hope that humanity and the rest of the galaxy will join me in celebrating on this momentous occasion, to peace," I said snapping off a salute at the end of my speech. The rest of the Alliance personnel copied my gesture then the feed was cut.

"So, what's in store for the Shepard siblings next?" asked Captain Wolf, our weapons instructor. I shook his hand as did Jane and she said,

"We're going to be taking some shore leave in Elysium until we get our posts."

"Yeah, we're catching a ride with some of the marines heading there," I cut in, "We actually need to get going if we don't want to miss it."

"I won't keep you then, dismissed," he said saluting us. We saluted back and made our way to the shuttles headed for our transport.

"Isn't it a bit overkill that they gave us our own shuttle?" I asked.

"You're an elite soldier now, people tend to get a little funny when you can kill them with little to no effort," Jane smoothly replied.

"Effortless? If I remember correctly, I had to drag your ass halfway through the jungle," I joked.

"Well, at least I didn't shoot myself on our first day of basic," she shot back.

"Touché, sis. Wake me when we get there," I said laying back.

"You're such a bum, you didn't even bring a pistol," she said sitting hers to the side and pulling up her omni-tool.

"This is shore leave, not a training mission. Besides, I heard Elysium isn't even a big colony. It'll be fine."

"I'm not taking any chances," she said, "Get some sleep."

"You don't have to tell me twice," I said, closing my eyes and drifting into the darkness.

-Some time later-

"Wake up, we're under attack," came a voice I didn't recognize. I opened my eyes to see some women in Alliance fatigues, a gun in her hand.

"What's happening?" I asked half asleep, standing from the seat.

"The colonies being raided, batarians I think."

"What are you doing in here? Shouldn't you be out there helping?" I was fully awake now and trying to get my bearings.

"There's another N7 trying to organize a resistance. She told me to come get you. I'm Riley, by the way," she said as the door to the hangar opened. Two batarians walked in, weapons raised and ready to fire. "I can lay down some fire, so you can get out of here," Riley whispered to me.

"No need, Riley, just stay quiet and let me handle this," I told her loading up the cloaking program on my omni-tool. I disappeared from sight and snuck my way around to some crates. I climbed on top of them as my cloak timed out, it didn't matter though.

The batarians passed under me and I silently hopped down behind them. I pulled the batarian in the back's pistol out of his holster and pressed it against his head. "One noise and your brain will be all over your buddy there," I said quietly. "Sit the shotgun on the ground and get on your knees," I instructed him.

"DIE HUMAN!" he yelled trying to turn but slumped to the ground as I pulled the trigger. I ducked behind a crate as his buddy turned, but he was lit up from behind by Riley. Unfortunately, she didn't manage to get through his shield and she had to duck back into cover in behind the shuttle as he opened fire with his assault rifle. Big mistake. Never turn your back on an armed enemy. I spun out of my cover and finished off his shield, lacing his spine with a cluster of bullets.

"You can come out now," I called to Riley, inspecting the rifle my victim dropped. She approached me, her gun holstered. I tossed her the rifle as she approached, startling her so much she almost dropped it.

"That was pretty intense," she admitted.

"That was nothing. I figured we have 10 minutes at the most before they send a squad to investigate these missing guys. We need to get out of her," I told her. "I need you to keep it together out there and stick close to me. Okay?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

"Great, where was the N7 at?"

"She's at the hospital. We've bunkered down there, but every wave that comes we lose more people."

"Alright, can you get there without being seen?"

"I think I can. They're sticking to the main streets, so I should be fine if I stick to the alleys."

"Good, go there and do whatever she tells you," I said standing.

"What are you going to do?" she asked.

"Officially, I'm going to search for survivors. Unofficially," I said with a low voice, "I'm going to help clear the horde. Good luck," I said activating my cloak and running out the door. I climbed my way through a building and made it up to the roof. I looked over the city and saw firefights over the city. There also looked like a sniper's nest on one of the building near what I assume is the breach that they're using to get into the city.

I made my way back down into the streets and began to make my way towards the nest. I had to use my cloak three different times to avoid patrols headed towards where most of the fighting was happening. I made my way into the building and ran into who I assume is a sentry. He was sitting there on his omni-tool, a drink in his hand. The colony is being invaded, and this fucker is lounging like it's a paid vacation. I snuck behind him, wrapping my arm around his neck and twisting with a quick jerk. He fell to the ground limply and I picked up his rifle. I made my way to the roof, killing three more raiders on the way, I looked over into the nest and saw a lone sniper, laughing and popping shots at anything that moved. I lifted the rifle and fired until it overheated, my rage getting the best of me for the moment. I picked up his sniper and adjusted the sight, looking towards where the other squads were headed. They were making a push towards the hospital, and I could see Jane covering the entrance as marines and colonist fell back into the building.

I lined up my scope with the first batarian I saw and pulled the trigger, his chest popping open much to the rest of their confusion. I lined up another shot and killed another, causing them to fall back into cover. The combined fire from the hospital and my sniper made quick work of the remaining batarians. I moved my scope to check on Jane again and she flashed thumbs up in my general direction. I then turned my attention another firefight that was happening about two blocks away.

I looked and saw that Riley was being fired at by two heavily armored batarians. I lined my shot up and fired, knocking an assault rifle out of one of their hands. I fired again and hit him in his shoulder, not a fatal hit but it'll buy some time while my gun cools down. Riley popped up and unleashed a barrage of fire, causing the other to duck in cover. I fired off two quick shots in his chest when an explosion suddenly shook the building I was on. I looked over the side and saw that a portion of the bottom was missing, and it was going to fall. It began to tilt, so I got in the stairway and braced myself the best that I could. Pieces of debris fell around me, one catching me in my head and my vision went fuzzy.

"Is anyone there, can you hear us?" I heard someone calling out.

"I'm over here," I yelled back, shaking my head. Debris from the building was pulled out from on top of me and I was met by the familiar sight of Alliance marines. "It's about time reinforcements came," I said with a grimace as the helped me to my feet. I applied pressure and felt a stabbing pain in my left leg. Limping towards the rescue party, I found myself face to face with Rear Admiral Kahoku.

"You'll have to forgive me if I don't salute, sir."

"I understand, Shepard. Where's the rest of the survivors?" Kahoku asked.

"Jane has them held up in the hospital. I was on the roof providing support around the city," I explained as I waved off a medic.

"I've heard the reports," he said slinging my arm around his shoulders. "Apparently the N7 at the hospital recruited an assassin to help the colony," he said with a smirk.

"I'm going to kill her," I said as we walked past a shot down batarian transport, in front of the hospital.

"I need everyone with any medical training on the third floor, anyone that isn't half dead, on the second. If you can fight, get a gun and get on the first floor. I want this place ready in case any more comes," Jane barked out orders as we approached.

"No need for that," Kahoku made his presence known. Jane immediately stood at attention and saluted, as did the other Alliance soldiers. "The batarians are fleeing the system. We've won."

"Hey sis, I thought I told you to wake me up?" I called out.

"We both see where that got us, I guess you can come along for drinks next time," she replied, slapping me on the arm.

"I'll see to it that you both get commendations for this, you did good out here," Kahoku informed us. "You'll be receiving promotions, also. Commander Shepard," he said looking at Jane, "I suggest you prepare evac for yourself and the Gunnery Chief here," he said nodding my way.

"Awe come on, I get gunnery chief while she gets commander? That's not fair at all," I said pouting.

"And that's two promotions instead of my one, so deal with it," Jane said nudging my leg. I winced in pain and glared at her.

-3 months later, an unidentified Alliance vessel-

"Well, what about Shepard?" Udina asked.

"Which one?" came Anderson's reply.

"Either one of them, they're a spacer. Grew up on starships their whole life."

"Military service runs in their family," Anderson said, "Both their parents were in the navy."

"They also proved their selves during the Blitz. Held of enemy forces on the ground until reinforcements arrived," came the voice of Admiral Hackett.

"They are the only reason Elysium is still standing," came Anderson.

"We can't question their courage," Udina strained out.

"Humanity needs a hero, and both of the Shepard's are the best we've got."

"We still have to pick one. The council would never consider both for candidacy. What are they like?" Udina pointed out.

"Let's see here," Hackett began. "Commander Jane Shepard. Age 28. She didn't specialize in any training, other than the N7 designation, although she shows biotic potential. Follows orders to a tee, doing everything by the book. Phycological examinations show that she tends to be quiet, preferring actions over words."

"Someone who won't question us and get the job done. An ideal candidate," Udina pointed out.

"Let's not count out her brother, though," Anderson cut that train of thought off. "Gunnery Chief Thomas Shepard. Age 20. Enlisted at the age of 18 and rose quickly to the rank of Corporal before being offered a position in the N7 program under his sister's recommendation, who was a N2 at the time. He quickly caught up with her and finished the program in record time. He is also the youngest N7 graduate to date. He also broke the record for the longest confirmed sniper kill during the Blitz, with a shot from on top of a building on a moving target. He knows the importance of keeping something discreet, but he also knows how to handle a crowd. Following his graduation speech from N7 candidacy training, Alliance recruitment spiked by 7%. He's also been trained in the infiltrator program and started training in the engineering program. He can handle just about anything thrown his way, whether it be mercenaries or politicians," Anderson gave a pointed look at Udina at the end.

"I remember that speech, caused a lot of talk on the Citadel," Udina mentioned. "I'll give both dossiers and let our sponsor choose between them. I'll make the call."

So here we go. I have this story saved in 3 different places so I shouldn't have to worry about losing any of it. Let me know what you think of it so far. Strong start to an epic story? Could it use some work? Let me know.

P.S. I don't own Mass Effect