The Crucible, Citadel
Battle for Earth, 2186
After arguing with the Catalyst that extinction was not the solution, and that Synthesis couldn't be forced upon organic life across the galaxy, Shepard himself was faced with two logical choices, destruction of the Reapers, or control of the reapers.
As he thought about taking control of it, hoping that he would never become power-hungry as the Illusive Man, he then realized that the option to control left too much uncertainty in the future.
While he thought about destroy, the pain and desperation to end the war quickly made him think that the damage could be repaired with ease and he hoped that the galaxy could follow the lessons learned about the Reapers and possibly the Geth peace with the Quarians, that the Catalyst's words of a new conflict between organics and synthetics would never repeat. He gripped his pistol and began walking towards his right.
"Your time is at end, you must decide" the Catalyst told Shepard as he walked towards the power conduit with his Carnifex pistol pointed at it. The moment he walked closer and closer to it, he fired his pistol and after a few shots, the conduit exploded.
He knew his choice, destroy the Reapers, undo the Leviathan's greatest mistake and allow the Galaxy to choose its own path.
As he witnesses his final moments, he thought of the people who was with him until the very end, Garrus, Joker, EDI, Ashley, Engineers Donnelly, and Daniels, Dr. Chakwas, Engineer Adams, Miranda, those who sacrificed themselves for the sake of others, Legion, Thane, and Kaidan, and finally the Asari he loved dearly, Liara. As he thought of her, he experienced a bright blinding light.
"And so.. our solution ends" the final words of the Catalyst before it faded into the oblivion.
Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet
A week after the Battle for Earth
While most of the Normandy's crew were thankful that they were still alive, some were not, especially Joker when EDI suddenly went offline after the frigate was caught in the Crucible blast, and Liara when she realized that they could be stuck on the planet for months and that she would face the possibility of losing Shepard yet again. The crew, so eager to get home, worked around the clock in order to get the frigate up and running.
"Dr. T'Soni, we just got the QEC back online and Admiral Hackett is trying to contact you", Specialist Traynor said while knocking on the door of the XO's office. As the door opened Traynor could see that Liara is still depressed about leaving Shepard, while most of the crew comforted the asari about the possibility of Shepard's death, Liara couldn't accept the possibility of losing Shepard for a second time and hoped that Hackett would tell her some good news about the man she loved dearly.
As Liara entered the QEC room she saw the Admiral's holographic projection, along with the Normandy's crew, awaiting her, "Dr. T'Soni, glad to see you and the Normandy still in one piece" Hackett said while looking at the asari, he noticed that she was distraught, "Doctor, are you alright?"
"Yes Admiral, I'm alright" the asari lied with a weak voice, "Doctor T'Soni, I know you're expecting news about Commander Shepard but when we reached the rendezvous point we discovered that the Charon Relay was severely damaged and guessing from communications from other fleets nearly every Mass Relay suffers the same problem. While the only good news I can give you is that, according to communications from Earth, the Citadel is still standing yet damaged and that I have a few ships that remained in the Sol System, I'll try to contact them and tell them to form search and rescue mission." Hackett assured the distraught asari.
"Anyways, I have ordered most Alliance Fleets, and some of the Asari, and Turian fleets to rendezvous at Earth if possible, that order goes the same for you, the sooner you could get the Normandy running, the better and hopefully by that time, we should have some news for you. Hackett out" the Admiral said as his holographic projection powered down.
As she stood there thinking, Liara immediately felt the urge to vomit as she couldn't hold it much longer the asari put her hand over her mouth and began rushing out of the room.
While the crew discussed among themselves on their plan to return to the Sol System, Liara immediately rushed out of the room, when the crew noticed this Garrus and Tali immediately went after her. After moments of searching, they eventually found her inside the bathroom of Shepard's cabin.
The duo could hear the distinct sounds of someone vomiting, concerned the quarian knocked on the door, "Liara, are you okay?" Tali asked as they both waited for an answer.
The answer they hoped for only came in the form of the sounds of the asari vomiting once more, the turian and quarian looked at each other, "I hope she's okay" Garrus said.
After moments of anxious waiting, the doors opened as the tired asari walked to the bed, embracing the comfort the somewhat soft yet still hard matress provided, though the asari couldn't sleep because she knew her friends would still be waiting for answers.
The asari sat back up as she looked at the two, "Liara, are you alright? What happened back there?" Tali asked, Liara looked around her surroundings for a while before turning back to the quarian and the turian.
"I don't know but the only time an asari vomits is when we fall victim to certain types of illnesses, ingest food that are posionous to us, or if we're.." the asari paused for a while as she realized it.
'I do have one thing for you Shepard, a gift it would only take a moment'
"Liara, was there something you were gonna say?" Garrus asked as the asari placed a hand over her stomach, "I think.. I'm pregnant" the asari realized.
The three of them sat in silence for a while, taking in the news they just heard, finally the quarian spoke in delight, "I'm so happy for you Liara!"
"But I think you should inform Doctor Chakwas" Garrus suggested, "I'll inform her myself, for now I think I'll need some rest" Liara told them as she laid her head back on the bed.
"Of course, you deserve it since you just received some great news." Tali said as they walked up to the cabin doors, "And Liara, don't worry about Shepard. He'll come back, he always does." the quarian assured her.
"Besides, the man has a new reason to come back to." Garrus joked referring to Liara's pregnancy, the asari simply smiled at the turian, "I guess he does.." she said as her two friends left the cabin.
Liara looked up at the window, looking at the vast expanse of stars and planets that the universe contained, thinking about a place that they could find where they could all live in peace and happiness, where they could pay no heed to the galaxy's never-ending issues.
The asari held her stomach as she thought of the life she had experienced, from the time she was saved on Therum, how she fell in love with John Shepard while they were on an adventure to stop Saren, and how she lost him once afterwards.
'Goddess, please let him come back to me' she prayed before letting the sweet comfort of sleep embrace her.
C-Sec Offices, Zakera Ward, Citadel
The Citadel, the once-great space station, the symbol of galactic democracy and unity, now a grim reminder of the cost that it took to win the war. While most of the wards were spared despite having a few gigantic holes in its superstructures, the Presidium Ring and Tayseri Ward stand in partial ruins, however by some miracle most of it's residents were spared and the mass effect fields that helped hold the atmosphere along with the station's function to rotate remained intact.
Commander Bailey, one of the commanding officers of C-Sec, from glorified doorman, as he liked to call himself, to resistance leader during the Reaper occupation, to temporarily holding command along, with his fellow commanders, of the Citadel after the Council was evacuated, was surprised to see Alliance soldiers boarding the station so quickly after the final battle.
He was approached by a young Lieutenant, "Commander Bailey, I'm Lieutenant Henry, Alliance Marines, our squad has been dispatched to search any survivors on the areas near the Crucible, or what was supposed to be the Crucible." Lieutenant Henry explained their mission, "We were hoping that you or your men could lend a hand, since you have a better understanding of this station than we do."
"Of course, I suppose we all owe the people that saved our asses that much.. The remains of the Crucible are near the Citadel tower, if I were you I'd wear your helmets and have them pressurized since there's no telling if that area is still pressurized." Bailey told the Lieutenant, "You could take your shuttles there, and try to enter it from the outside. And I'm sorry that I couldn't come, I need to keep check on my men"
"No problem, Commander, we'll be on our way" Henry told as he and his squad walked back to their shuttles.
As they arrived to the Citadel Tower which was surprisingly still pressurized, they looked far and wide in search for any survivors or bodies, until they found a place that none of them ever thought existed in the tower, they found two bodies.
The body of the Admiral that led the Earth Resistance, and the man who once believed in pro-human views, who in the end betrayed the very race he was supposed to uplift.
"We found Admiral Anderson, and the 'Illusive Man'.. No signs of Commander Shepard" Lieutenant Henry told his superiors through their comms.
While they searched the area, one of the men scanned a pile of rubble, as his Omni-tool beeped positively he immediately called for help in digging up the rubble, as they removed most of the upper layer of debris, they were surprised at what they found.
A man wearing N7 dogtags, and his heavily damaged N7 armor, the man that saved the galaxy. Shepard.
The medic immediately came over and was shocked when the Commander gasped for air, "Alright, let's get him out of here!" the medic shouted as they began removing rubble after rubble until they could pull Shepard out without any additional harm.
"This is Citadel Team Zeta, we found Shepard!" the Lieutenant spoke into his comms, "I repeat, Shepard is alive but condition critical!" he repeated as the team moved as fast as they could to the shuttle.
SSV Orizaba, Sol System
The remains of the Fifth Fleet flew gracefully across the vast space, with other fleets following behind. They passed by the Charon Relay, the gateway of Humanity to the stars, which stands severely damaged, its gyroscopic rings displaced and floating in space. While the fleets moved forward, some ships remained to start the attempt to repair and reactivate the Mass Relay.
Inside the SSV Orizaba, the flagship of the Fifth Fleet, Admiral Hackett stands looking at the damaged relay. As Head of the Alliance Military, he became the emergency head of the Systems Alliance after Udina's death, while he looked forward to the rebuilding efforts, he was also concerned about the political and social aftermath of the war.
With the Systems Alliance Government currently in shambles, most of the Fleets depleted, and some colonies still in the dark, it seemed that thr future of humanity seems bleak
"Admiral, we're now receiving status reports from Bekenstein, Terra Nova, Eden Prime, and Noveria. We're also receiving status reports from the European Union, UNAS, and other nations on Earth" an alliance communications officer told Hackett, "It seems their messages are all the same, all Reaper forces have dropped dead or disintegrated. It seems the Crucible actually did more than we expected sir"
Hackett smiled for the first time in a few years, however he returned to his stoic look as he thought about those who had to sacrifice themselves to give them a chance at seeing tomorow. He was also concerned for Admiral Anderson, Commander Shepard and his crew.
"Sir, we just got word from one of our teams in the Citadel.." as Hackett heard this, he braced for the possibility of both good news and bad news, "they found Commander Shepard.."
"How about Anderson?" Hackett asked the officer, "Unfortunately, he didn't make it.. however the Commander is in critical condition.." the young officer replied, "Then tell them to get him up here on the double!" Hackett ordered, "And contact Rear Admiral Shepard, she needs to know this."
On one of the Dreadnought's shuttle bays, the ship's medical crew were preparing to escort the Commander and try to keep his condition stable, as Hackett personally waited for the arrival. The Admiral knew that the Commander was a fighter, but barely surviving beneath a pile of rubble for a week is most likely a miracle.
"Attention all medical personnel, Shuttle SAR-03 is arriving, I repeat, Shuttle SAR-03 is arriving" the intercom said as the shuttle that carried the rescue team arrived, once the doors opened the squad immediately brought out a stretcher carrying the Commander, and two bodybags. Once the Medical team took responsibility over Shepard, the Admiral walked up to the two bodybags and began partially unzipping the first one.
There he saw Admiral Anderson's face, for him it looked like he was finally at peace, then he moved to the other bodybag where upon opening it, he saw the corrupted face of the Illusive Man, the sight has shocked the Admiral, after a few seconds he closed the two bodybags, and went on to the Medical Bay.
Once he arrived, he saw the badly-injured Commander, his face filled with scars that glow due to his cybernetics, some parts of his body badly burned, and his armor nearly vaporized. "How bad is it, doctor?" the admiral asked.
"Fortunately, most of his cybernetics seem to be keeping him stable, though we can't tell right now the state of his internal organs or if there's an infection from his untreated wounds. I'd say, it was a miracle that he survived this long." the doctor said.
Hackett looked at Shepard's body before glancing at the doctor, "Continue your work doctor, inform me of any developments" the admiral said as he walked out of the med-bay.
As he left the med-bay he was stopped by a Rear Admiral, the captain of the ship, whose face somewhat resembles the Lion of Elysium.
"Hackett, I heard my son just arrived, how is he?" Rear Admiral Hannah Shepard asked him, "He's still fighting but doing fine." Hackett assured her.
"If you wish to see him, go ahead." the Admiral said as he walked past Hannah, "I need to inform his crew." he said as the woman entered the med-bay
"Contact the Normandy, they need to hear the news." Hackett said to his communications officer as he entered the comm-room.
"Yes sir, contacting SSV Normandy through QEC." the comm-officer told him
Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet
2 hours (Galactic Standard) later
The crew of the Normandy SR-2 were working day and night in order to get the frigate up and running, with Joker, and the Engineering crew working around the clock to ensure that the drive core is stable and functional, Specialist Traynor keeping check for any updates from Alliance Command, Javik, Vega, and Ashley taking turns between repairing the exterior hull and the interior, Garrus doing calibrations with the main gun, while Liara busies herself with the Shadow Broker network.
"Liara, Admiral Hackett wants to speak with you." Traynor said over the intercom, Liara began walking to the comm-room as she heard this, hoping that she would receive some good news about Shepard, if not, at least they will get some closure. As entered the comm-room she saw the hologram of Admiral Hackett.
"Doctor T'Soni, we have some good news for you" Hackett said, "We found Shepard, our team discovered him buried under a pile of rubble in the Citadel, and by some miracle, he managed to survive. Right now, the whole thing is kept from the public for a while until his condition stabilizes."
"Any ideas on how long he will recover?" Liara asked, "No idea, the doctors say he's in a coma right now, we'll pour whatever available resource we have to keep him alive, and I'm having my team contact Miss Lawson, since we both know she played an important part in Project Lazarus, maybe she could help in Shepard's recovery." Hackett answered.
"Here's hoping" Liara said, "Thank you, Admiral" she added. "You're welcome, doctor, but please try not to worry about him too much. Hackett out." Hackett said before closing the channel.
Liara stood there, thinking about how she lost Shepard before, and what she went through just to see him alive and that her prayers were finally answered once again.
The asari placed a hand on her stomach, thinking about the gift she gave Shepard and herself, the growing consciousness inside her womb, their daughter...
As Shepard walked through the dark forest, he could see the once-haunting shadows disappear one-by-one, with each whisper that carries his name disappear, as he wandered, he saw a bright light from afar, as he began walking towards the light he could hear a whisper, the conversation he had before Anderson died.
"I think you'd make a great dad"... "Think how proud your kids will be, telling everyone that their dad is Commander Shepard.."
Commonwealth of Australia, Earth
Miranda Lawson, a woman that was received into the Alliance with hesitant arms, has proven herself to be one of the most valuable intelligence officers of the Alliance Intelligence Group. After the war, the operative took it upon herself to assist in reconstruction efforts, after volunteering she was assigned to the beautiful yet scarred coastal city of Sydney.
"Miss Lawson, Admiral Hackett has requested that your presence aboard the SSV Orizaba." a female Alliance Intelligence officer said, looking away from her work, Miranda turned to face the intel officer.
"Mind if I ask, what is this all about?" Miranda asked, "Your dossier says that you worked with Project Lazarus, and well.. let's just say your expertise is needed again." the intel officer replied, Miranda's eyes widened when she heard 'Project Lazarus'.
"Wait, you mean to say that-" Miranda said before she was cut off, "Yes, Commander Shepard was found critically injured." the young officer told. Miranda nodded at the intel officer as they boarded the shuttle that will take them to the SSV Orizaba.
As they arrived on the dreadnought, Miranda was greeted by Admiral Hackett, "Miss Lawson, we've just recovered Shepard from the Citadel a few hours ago, while his condition is stable, the Commander is still in a coma, and the docs are not optimistic about his condition." the admiral said as they walked in the Medical Bay, from there Miranda saw the Commander's battle-weary body.
"And since you were part of Project Lazarus, which brought Shepard from a near-death state, we're here to ask if you could do the same thing again. It's the least we can all do for him." Hackett finished while Miranda moved to have a closer inspection of Shepard's injuries.
"It seems you're right Admiral, it's the least we can do.." Miranda said as she inspected his scars that were glowing orange due to his cybernetics, "Most of his injuries can be and should be treated normally, with possibly some frequent medi-gel use. However our greatest concern is to ensure that his cybernetics work normally and that they don't get rejected. But there is little risk of infection since we.. did some genetic tampering.." she added, with the last part said with anxiety, "What kind of tampering are talking about?" Hackett said.
Miranda brought up a datapad and showed the data about the Lazarus Project's actions, "We did some small prototypical modifications to his cellular regeneration system and immune system."
"The improved cell regeneration helps in healing his wounds, both minor and major, and while it isn't robust as the asari's are, it did inadvertently increase his lifespan to about 300 more years..." she said.
"I can't tell if that last part is good or bad.." Hackett said, "Well, since Shepard is bonded with an asari, you could say it's a good thing for both of them, and for us since we'll still have a living hero decades from now.." Miranda said, grinning a bit when she said the first part.
"Well, Miss Lawson, just tell us what you need and we'll let you do your job. And again, thank you for taking the opportunity to join the Alliance" Hackett said as he left the room.
As Miranda was left alone with Shepard, she whispered, "Aren't you a tough bastard to kill?" as she began monitoring his condition while waiting for the medical staff.
Normandy SR-2, Unknown Planet
Back on the Normandy, while most of the crew were working, Liara, decided to go to the med-bay and speak with Doctor Chakwas about her pregnancy. "Ah, Liara, what brings you here?", the good doctor asked, "Well.. Doctor, do you know anything about asari pregnancies?" the asari nervously asked, as the doctor raised her brows.
"Why do you ask? Oh wait, don't answer that, I think I saw you with a reduced appetite for the past few days, and I can distinctly remember hearing someone vomit in the captain's quarter's toilets." the doctor said as she walked up to Liara and scanned the asari with her omni-tool, "I believe congratulations are in order."
"Well, it's a good thing that asari pregnancies are nearly similar to human pregnancies. Let me guess Shepard is the father?" Chakwas asked, while Liara nodded her head, "Yes, we melded before the final attack on the Conduit" Liara confessed, "And I suspect that Shepard doesn't know yet?" the doctor asked once more as the asari looked down.
"I planned on telling him once the battle was over.." the asari said, as she sat down on a medical bed, Chakwas noticed that the asari stayed silent, so she decided to move the conversation back to the asari's pregnancy.
"Standard human procedures for asari pregnancy. Since our two species both have a nearly similar gestation period, and experience the same hormonal changes, even our anatomy are extremely similar so I believe human guides should suit your needs for now" Chakwas added as she transferred various educational resoures to Liara's omni-tool
The asari read the materials she was given in her omni-tool as she cross-referenced it with the lessons about asari reproduction from her school days, she could see the similarities between their two species.
"I never knew that our species had so much in common" the asari said with her eyes widened from surprise, "I can see that the Liara I first met is still in there" the doctor said as they both laughed at the joke.
While it was true that Liara came a long way from being a naive, and innocent researcher to a cold and sometimes ruthless information broker, the asari believed that she could return to that old personality of hers once the war is over, especially once she and Shepard begin raising a family together.
Author's Notes: Thanks for reading this little fan-fiction of mine, while I may have some slight experience in writing stories before, I never thought of writing one for Mass Effect. However after playing the trilogy for.. many times.. I felt that the (High EMS) destroy ending leaves me wanting more, and since we may never see an actual epilogue to the trilogy (which is a good thing since it allows us to be creative with our own personal endings), I decided to share my interpretation of a post-ME3 galaxy.
As you may have noticed, some of my interpretations (or headcanons, as you will) may have been inspired from the headcanons of others. As the story progresses, you may see some headcanons that may seem similar to one's made by others. And while I'll try to make this story focus on the aftermath of the war, there will be chapters where it will shift focus to the crew's antics and Liara & Shepard's new life.
Anyways, once again, thank you for reading, and please leave a review and don't hesitate to post constructive criticisms about my story and/or writing.
Note that John Shepard in this story is a Spacer, War Hero, Paragade (mostly Paragon), and a Sentinel class.
2/10/2017 - Chapter 1 and the other chapters have been updated, chapter one had a lot of changes, especially at the beginning, the changes were done to fix the problems with the plot here.