In the End of the World
Chapter 1: Was It Worth It?
She stared down coolly at the corpse of her father.
The body was stripped, covered only by the thin white sheet draped across its waist. What was left of its face was a pale shade of blue, eyes still wide in shock. The blood on the mangled jaw had congealed, covering a large portion of the neck. An ear was missing. Several bullet holes bore into the chest cavity, and she watched as a coroner worked to remove metal fragments from the lower right ribs.
"It's not confirmed yet, but they suspect he owed money. His blood tested positive for videlicet." The recruiter paused, staring at the silent girl. Her auburn locks concealed her eyes as her head tilted forward to take in the sight; he could not read her expression. "Miss Shepard, I'm sorry for your loss."
"The world will only improve with his death," she replied quietly.
The recruiter shifted uncomfortably. "This is clearly a - er - complicated time for you, but we'd like to assure you that our offer still stands. Alliance needs all the help it can get, particularly from soldiers with your level of expertise. You mentioned before that you had unfinished business with your father, so we thought that now, since he's dead -" He cut off with a horrified, garbled noise. "Ma'am, I apologize. That sounded extremely insincere. For the record, Alliance did not commission me to make that statement. It was a slip on my own part, and I -"
She straightened up, grey eyes locking with his. "You were right." Her voice was light, despite the gravity of her words. "There really is nothing holding me to this godforsaken rock anymore."
"Shepard, wake up. Jane, wake up. Commander, wake up." A pause. "Your crew needs you." Another pause. "Damn it to hell, Commander, if you don't wake your ass up this minute, the Collectors will be the very least of your problems!"
Her eyes fluttered open. Miranda was leaning over her. Black hair tickled her arm before the Cerberus worker drew back.
Jane Shepard took a deep breath and leaned forward into an upright position in her chair. She rubbed at her eyes and peered at the face in front of her. Even through blurry, half-conscious eyes, the look of scorn directed at her was not easily missed.
"Fifteen minutes before landing and you thought you'd take a nap?" The brunette shook her head. "Get it together, Shepard. You need rest, and you need to present yourself as a respectable leader to your squad. I don't want to involve the Illusive Man in this, but you're not leaving me with much wiggle room."
"Sorry," Jane muttered, still shaking off sleep. "Can't sleep at night. Getting these dreams that won't stop, won't let me rest -"
"Well, you should have gone to the medical bay for a sleep aid," Miranda rebuked. "Seriously, Shepard. Who's going to follow you into battle after watching you snore, mouth wide open, through a Counsil meeting that's currently being delayed for your egotistical little nap?"
"You've made your point, Miranda," came a deep, collected voice from across the room.
Jane looked to see her favorite Turian standing in the doorway to the Main Battery. Garrus' blue armor, despite its recent encounter with a certain gunship on Omega, appeared to be shiny and new. His expression was stern, a characteristic emphasized by the still-raw wounds on the right side of his face. His arms were crossed, and he leaned against the door frame, indicating a possible limp. Despite the frustration building silently within her at the admonishment she was receiving, a smile tugged at the corner of Jane's mouth at the sight of her old friend. She quickly disguised it.
Miranda's mouth tightened. "The entire fate of humanity is resting in the hands of someone incapable of maintaining consciousness."
"Exactly," Garrus reasoned, taking a step into the small office. "She's carrying the weight of her world on her shoulders. Fifteen minutes of repose is not much for her to ask in return. Let her have a few minutes of peace now and again."
Miranda stared him down in cold silence, then threw a quick glare at Jane before turning heel and marching back to her office.
"Ugh. I owe you one," Jane groaned, hoisting herself out of the chair.
Garrus grinned, walking over to the Mess Hall tables where she had been sitting. "Try not to be too hard on Miranda, Shepard. It's not easy being hated by everyone on the ship. It's her job to nag, not her choice."
"Too hard on her?!" Jane repeated incredulously. "I didn't show the tiniest hint of backbone in that conversation. I just took her crap, same as always. What would you suggest for next time, bowing down to her and begging for forgiveness?"
Garrus chuckled. "Relax. It's a joke."
Jane's shoulders eased a bit. "Oh. Ha ha... I guess."
An awkward silence fell upon them, and Jane stared out the window. They had already arrived at the Citadel. How had she slept through the landing? She shook her head at herself. She really needed a decent night's sleep, especially with the new IFF adjusting rapidly to the Normandy's human-Turian technology. A battle was coming, and she needed to be ready for it.
Garrus cleared his throat uncomfortably, drawing her focus back to reality. She noted his tension, and supposed that she frequently had this effect on others. "Ah, if you'll excuse me, Commander... That gun isn't going to calibrate itself." Without further ado, he retired back to the Main Battery, the doors sliding shut behind him with a soft chime.
(A/N): Yes, I edited and made some changes so the layout of the ship is still true-to-story. Shep doesn't get an office anymore. Keep reading! It only gets better from here, and the chapters get longer too.