The light was failing, giving the ruins an even more unsettling atmosphere. The smell of charred metal and flesh stung at his senses. Garrus sat amidst the rubble, resting for a moment. He struggled to control the despair that threatened to overtake him with each burned and ruined body he turned over. Fearing that each time, it would be her.

Three days, he thought grimly. They had been searching for her for three days. His hope of finding her alive dwindled with each passing day. Garrus reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of N7 dog tags. He exhaled a shuddered breath as he gazed at them in anguish. They had belonged to her. She had left the dog tags for him on top of a note he couldn't bring himself to read. He gripped the dog tags, his mandibles flushed tightly against his face.

Someone sat down heavily beside him. Garrus didn't have to look up to know it was James Vega.

"Hey Scars," Jimmy said softly.

"Hey Vega," Garrus replied halfheartedly.

"I came to tell you that they're wanting to call it a night," Jimmy said carefully. "They'll start up the search again in the morning."

Garrus sucked in a breath. "She may not have until the morning. We need to keep looking!"

Jimmy's tired face creased with sympathy and sadness.

"Don't give me that look!" Garrus barked angrily. "She's out there, waiting for us to find her!"

Jimmy reached out and placed a friendly hand on Garrus' shoulder. "Scars…Garrus, you have to accept the fact that Lola might already be gone. We might never find her. And if she didn't survive, would you honestly want to find her?"

Garrus snarled at Jimmy, ripping himself free of the soldier's grip. He flung himself up violently, losing his hold on Shepard's dog tags. They clattered to the ground at Jimmy's feet.

"How can you say that?" Garrus growled. "How can you just give up on her like that? She's our Commander! Your friend! My girlfriend! She deserves more effort than this!"

Jimmy's features contorted with a wounded expression. "Garrus?"

"What?" Garrus shouted, glaring hatefully at the morose soldier.

"She meant a lot to me, too, ya know," Jimmy whispered. His eyes set on the discarded dog tags. He reached down, gathering them up and holding them delicately. His eyes misted over slightly as he stared at them. He stood up slowly and walked to Garrus, placing the dog tags in the Turian's hand. Jimmy's fingers lingered on the metal plates for a moment.

"Don't think for one second that you're the only one who lost her," Jimmy remarked, his voice straining with a tremor. "I loved her, too. She was my best friend. She was... Lola."

Garrus felt the shame wash over him in a cold wave. "Jimmy, I… I'm sorry," Garrus muttered.

"No, Scars. It's okay." Jimmy said understandingly. "I get it and I'm gonna keep searching. No matter how long it takes."

"Thanks, Jimmy," Garrus said genuinely. Jimmy nodded and turned away, heading back to the ruins to resume his search for Shepard. Garrus tucked the dog tags back into his pocket and trudged through the devastation that lay in front of him to continue his search as well.

The last embers of the day barely clung to the horizon when Garrus kneeled down and pushed on the stiffened shoulder of a fallen human soldier. He rolled the soldier over and winced at the sheer ruin of her face. There was hardly anything left that was recognizable as human. Fear blossomed in his chest as he realized her dog tags were missing.

No, please don't let this be Shepard, his mind screamed as he searched the body for any identifying marks. As he carefully searched, he discovered a patch of uninjured flesh under the armor shoulder pad. He removed the armor padding. An Asari unity tattoo adorned the shoulder. Garrus breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn't Shepard after all. His relief was quickly replaced by a sharp stab of guilt. This soldier had been someone's loved one at one time as well. Someone was missing her as he was missing Shepard. They might even be scouring the ruins, just as he was, in vain hopes of finding her alive. He bowed his head, forlorn and lost in thought. At least this soldier had a body someone could claim. He was not sure if he would even get that last decency.

Artemis, his heart cried out as he stared at the charred face of the human soldier. He set a beacon that marked the location of the soldier. This way, the body would be collected in the morning and the proper services could be held.

Garrus continued on, even though he knew it was getting far too dark to effectively search for Shepard. He crested over a hill of broken towers, vehicles and rubble. He stood at the top, taking in the devastation. The ruin made him think of Palaven. He wasn't sure he even wanted to see it. His thoughts drifted back to Shepard.

"Maybe Vega's right," he said softly to the sky. The vision of the last soldier Garrus found plaguing his memory. "Maybe it's for the best that I don't find you." He scanned the area with his visor one last time before he turned to trek dejectedly back towards base.

He endeavored to place careful steps along the perilous ridge, but the metal still groaned loudly under his weight, indicating its instability. Garrus froze, listening to the wreckage complain at his presence. He shifted his weight cautiously, hoping to relieve the stress he was putting on the precarious metal. It groaned loudly in reply, violently bowing. Garrus lost his footing and stumbled. With an ear shattering screech, the ground gave way and fell out from beneath him.

Garrus cried out in surprise and found himself tumbling backwards and out of control. He rolled down into a pit, metal scraping and grinding against his plates. He grunted sharply as he collided with a pillar. He shielded his face with his arm as various amounts of debris and dirt cascaded over him. He groaned and attempted to free himself from the rocks and a twisted piece of steel that had followed him down. He stood up and shook his head, trying to get his bearings. He wished he'd suited up in full armor. It would have saved him from the scrapes and bruising he'd just endured. He stretched his neck tenderly and groaned at the discomfort in his muscles.

The scanner in his visor buzzed and he tapped on the eye piece lightly. It flickered with a damaged image. He would have to repair it. Garrus growled in frustration and gazed at the path of destruction he had rolled down. He wondered how he didn't get seriously injured tumbling down through the disaster.

"Spirits, that's going to be a climb," he huffed softly to himself.

A moan drew his attention quickly away from the hole. His mandibles flared in surprise. He wasn't alone. He'd found a survivor buried beneath the debris.

"Hello?" Garrus called out, straining to hear over the clatter of the recently dislodged wreckage. No one answered him. He reached for his visor again, fumbling to get the thermal readouts to work. It buzzed annoyingly and flickered with an orange light instead of blue. It was in emergency power mode. Garrus cursed his luck.

"Hello?" Garrus called out again, moving his way carefully around the pillar.

"Garrus…"

Everything within Garrus ceased. His breath came to a halt and his heart stopped dead at the sound of his name. He swallowed hard as icy tendrils slithered their way around his neck.

"Shepard?" It was all he could do to force the word from his throat.

The reply was weak, but he was certain he heard it this time.

"Garr…us"

He bolted around the pillar, scattering remnants everywhere as he searched for her.

"Yes! Artemis, I'm here! Where are you?" He called, his breath returning to him in shallow and rapid pants.

She didn't answer. He stopped, standing rigid, trembling in anticipation. He felt so lost without his visor. He listened again, hoping to hear anything. As he strained, all he could hear was the wind rattle through the pit in which he found himself, but nothing more.

"Shepard?" Pitiful desperation flowed through his voice. Silence answered him once again. He dropped his head and gritted his mandibles tightly together. His fist shook at his side. He had been so sure he'd heard her. Garrus tore off his defective visor in disgust and flung it. The visor clattered against a wall of stone and rolled to a rest, the orange light slightly illuminating the stone it sat upon. Garrus ran his hands across his face, battling to remain in control of his emotions.

"Shepard," he whispered again. He dropped his hands and walked over to retrieve his broken visor. He stooped down to pick it up when something glinted in the orange glow. He looked closer and saw the unmistakable N7 logo shining like a beacon against the light.

Garrus felt his heart leap into his throat. He quickly began removing the rocks, revealing scorched armor and then seared and tattered flesh. Garrus continued to dig, steeling himself against what he would find. In moments, he had unearthed Shepard. She moaned in pain as he removed the biggest rocks from her body.

"Oh, Spirits, Artemis!" Garrus exclaimed, carefully removing the last of the debris from around her head. There wasn't an inch of her that was not covered in burns, dirt and blood, but Garrus knew her all the same. She opened her eyes weakly, taking in a wheezing, uneven breath.

He grabbed for his medical bag, pulling out a canteen of water. He put it to her lips, hoping the cool liquid would alleviate her pain.

She drank sparingly, unable to hold the liquid down without coughing. Garrus kneeled beside her, afraid to touch her injured form. Finally, her eyes cleared and she gazed up at him.

"This isn't the bar," she said slowly, immeasurable relief in her voice.

Garrus floundered for a moment and then laughed, his mandibles pulling up into what she called his smile.

She smiled with him, chuckling lightly. She swallowed hard, pulling in a ragged breath. "Hold me, Garrus. I'm cold."

Garrus lost his smile. "I'm afraid to move you."

"Please, it's all I've dreamt about this whole time. Being in your arms one last time," she rasped.

Garrus felt his throat tighten. "There'll be plenty of time for that," he whispered, running his fingers over her forehead gingerly. However, he complied, lifting her up as gently as he could.

She hissed and moaned in pain, shuddering in his arms as he laid her back against his chest. She rested her head against his shoulder, a contented look replacing the pain. He wrapped his arms lightly around her waist, clasping his hands tightly around hers. His regrets about not wearing full armor were quickly dismissed. I=He was grateful for the ability to be close to her. Garrus noticed how alarmingly cold her skin felt against his.

"I knew you'd find me," she whispered. She reached up and touched his scarred mandible with her palm. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed the gesture until that moment.

"I knew I'd find you, too," Garrus said, nuzzling her hand. "I had to."

"You were always stubborn," she teased.

"I thought that's why you loved me," Garrus retorted lightly, happy for the soothing banter.

"Yes," she hummed. "And for so much more."

Shepard suddenly went rigid and shuddered violently in his arms. Garrus held to her tightly. She gulped in deep breaths, trying to calm the tremors that shook through her body.

"Artemis, what can I do?" Garrus pleaded, concern and fear enveloping him.

He heard Shepard swallow as her breathing evened out. "There's nothing you can do, Garrus. I'm dying."

"No," Garrus replied, burying his face in her neck, refusing to accept it even as he felt her warm blood begin to seep over his hands. "We're going to get you out of here and to a doctor. You're going to be fine."

She shook her head. "I think my luck is running out."

"Never," Garrus whispered, kissing her neck in his way. "You're Commander Shepard. Nothing can stop you."

She was silent for a moment. He could feel her body seize with a stifled sob. "I don't want to lose you again, Garrus." Her voice broke as she said the words.

Garrus held her tight, feeling a fire light in his eyes. Turians were not a species that cried often. "No, Shepard. I'm not letting you go this time! You're not leaving me again!"

"I'm not sure it's my choice, Garrus." Shepard replied weakly. She reached up and stroked his mandible lovingly.

"Can you tell Tali that I wish I could've seen her dream home?" She asked through tears.

Garrus felt a sob wrench through his chest as he combated the sorrow that spread through his body. "Artemis, don't…"

"Tell Wrex that the Krogran couldn't have had a better leader. And tell Grunt that he's… he's my tank baby," she gasped out.

Garrus nodded, pressing his face against hers. Their tears mingled together against his skin.

"Let Liara know that I'm so proud of her," she coughed out a laugh. "Tell Joker he's a pain in the ass, but a helluva pilot. Kai… Kaidan shouldn't live in the past. Tell him to embrace tomorrow." Her voice was strained and hoarse. "Let James know that he's the finest soldier I've ever worked with and a good friend. Miranda…" She began coughing again, shuddering and gasping for air. Garrus held on as her body writhed against his in pain. He wished with all his being that he could take her pain into himself.

"I'll tell them, Shepard. I'll tell them all. They'll all know you were thinking of them," he soothed, his own voice breaking with despair.

Shepard squirmed against Garrus, the excruciating pain evident on her face. She gasped, choking on the breaths she fought to take. Finally, she calmed, but there was an unsettling rattle deep in her chest.

"Don't forget me," she breathed.

Garrus shook his head. "Never. I could never forget you."

Her body seized again in his arms. He clung to her in desperation. "Spirits, Shepard, don't leave me!" He pleaded weakly. "I need you!"

A small whimper escaped her throat and she twisted around in his arms, grunting with effort. She pressed her lips against his mouth and kissed him for a long time. He kissed her back, never wanting to let her go, never wanting the moment end. She pulled her mouth away after some time, pushing her forehead roughly against his. She stroked his mandibles with her fingers.

"You're the love of my life, Garrus Vakarian," she said with a little more ease. "I would've never had the strength to make it this far without you. Everything I've achieved was because of you."

Garrus winced at the wonderful sentiment. He stroked her hair and cupped her face in his hands. "I love you so much, Artemis."

Shepard smiled, easing back into his arms and laying her head against his shoulder. She stared up at him, her lavender eyes serene. Her tiny fingers found their way around his. "I love you, too... my Garrus." Her features softened as the pain left her face. Her eyelids slipped closed slowly and the last of her breath sighed from her body.

Garrus stared down at her, his Shepard, nestled against him as if she were sleeping. He kissed the top of her head.

"Sleep well, Artemis." Garrus whispered through his torment. He reached for his Carnifex, pressing it against his head.

"See you soon."

Continue to Chapter 2 & 3 for alternate endings!