Up and down, back and forth, Jacob paced the small, one-room cabin. Once in a while, he'd glance at the front window, where snow was silently drifting past. He was as off the grid as he could get, holed up in a cabin that had belonged to the father of one of his old Alliance buddies. His parting with Cerberus had been more amiable than Shepard or Miranda's, but considering how many bugs Mordin had found in his lab alone, Cerberus had to know about his relationship with Radha, and he wouldn't put it past them to use him to get to her.

Jacob looked at his watch. She was late. He hoped she hadn't been captured. He continued his prowl of the room, passing a rather musty couch with a rumpled up sleeping bag on it. A table with a lone chair stood nearby, littered with empty food packets. The message terminal on the scratched, dingy desk chimed, finally signalling the call he'd been waiting for. Jacob pressed the receive button on his way by, continuing to pace. Miranda Lawson's face blinked up on the screen. He came to a sudden stop, shocked to see that Miranda had sheared her hair short and dyed it a dark honey blonde. She'd changed the color of her eyes as well; they were dark green now, almost the same color as Shepard's. New freckles were splashed across the bridge of her nose and cheeks.

Miranda laughed softly, "I had to use a false identity to get here," she ran one hand through her hair. "I'm not really used to it yet, either."

"You're safe?"

Miranda laughed again, but the sound was bitter this time, "For now."

"What about Radha?"

"It's done," she said. "Shepard was officially arrested by the Alliance this morning."

He'd expected this news, but that didn't dull the anger and frustration he felt. He returned to striding around the room and asked, "Now what?"

"Now, it's a waiting game. They may throw Shepard in the brig—" she caught the look on his face, "—not the most comforting thought, I know, but that should keep the batarians off the Alliance's back. I wouldn't be surprised if they're clamouring for an execution. Anyway, once the Reapers show up, they'll be begging for the Commander to save them."

"And when will the Reapers show? Months? Years?"

"EDI estimates that destroying the mass relay delayed the Reapers' arrival anywhere from six to nine months. Until then, we help any way we can."

"How do we do that?"

"The Alliance, the Council, their official position is still that the Reapers don't exist. But they are coming. We can help the Commander by preparing for them. We both still have contacts, let's put them to good use."

"But neither us of can get a message to Radha," Jacob said bitterly. "Can't even let her know we've got her back."

Miranda's expression softened and she leaned forward slightly. "I'm sorry, Jacob. I know you're worried about the Commander, but I don't have access to my usual pool of resources. I can't guarantee that the message would be untraceable. We're not Cerberus anymore, but the Alliance wouldn't care about that. We could make things worse for her."

"Yeah," Jacob sighed. He stopped pacing, shoulders slumping forward, "Yeah…"

"You'll see her again, Jacob. We both know Radha won't let a little thing like Reapers keep you apart."

Jacob chuckled softly, his heart lifting a little. "You've got that right."

A small smiled curved Miranda's lips, "I'm sorry, but I've got to run. I'm moving Oriana and her family and then I've got to disappear for a while. I'll contact you as soon as I can. Take care of yourself, Jacob."

"You too, Miranda, and… thanks, I appreciate it."

The screen went blank and Jacob sighed, taking in his surroundings. He walked to the desk, where a picture of Radha stood beside the message terminal. She was a gorgeous woman with radiant copper skin, dark chestnut hair, and deep green eyes that always seemed to have a glint of mischief in them. Her smile lit up her face. Jacob took the photo in hand, running one finger down the curve of Radha's cheek. Maybe he'd go somewhere warmer while he figured out what he was going to do…

A storm was rolling in. Steely grey clouds darkened the horizon over a turbulent ocean. White-purple lightning flashed and thunder growled softly. The other guests were retreating into their bungalows, but Jacob stayed where he was, reclined in the hammock on the front porch of his cottage, a beer in one hand. His message terminal was on a small table beside the hammock. An old friend of his from his Corsair days, Vala Haas, was on screen, looking terrified but thoughtful. He'd just finished telling her everything: the Collectors, the Reapers, everything he'd been through with Shepard. This is how he'd been keeping busy for the past three months, keeping his mind off Radha, who was still under "house arrest" at Alliance HQ. He'd been calling old friends, ones he thought would believe him anyway, telling them his story, preparing them for the Reapers' arrival and slowly bringing his plans together. Vala and her wife now owned a shipyard. He needed her on board.

Vala sighed deeply, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "I don't know… Laticia and I have kids now, Jacob."

Jacob was taken aback. Had it really been that long? It had, he realized with a little jolt somewhere in the vicinity of his gut. His thirty-fifth birthday had come and gone without occasion or acknowledgement. Time marched on, with or without you.

"We need ships that can go off-world. It's the only way this can work," he said.

"You realize that all these ships have been decommissioned, they come here without weapons."

"We have our own." Vala frowned a little at that, as he knew she would. She'd never been big on rules, regulations, and red tape, but never would she turn to the black market, especially for weapons. "The Reapers won't discriminate, Vala, and they don't know mercy. No one is prepared. We have to try and help as many people as we can."

Vala leaned back in her chair. In the background, a baby began to cry. The woman turned her head briefly toward the sound and then looked back at Jacob. "I want my babies, my family, to be safe. All right, Jacob, you have your ships."

"Thanks, Vala."

Vala nodded then leaned in and disconnected from the call. With a sigh, Jacob took a sip of beer. He watched two asari, hand-in-hand with their kids, hurry down the beach as another, louder, growl of thunder sounded. Maybe, if he and Radha survived the war, they would start a family of their own.

Jacob wasn't sure who was worse: the Reapers or Cerberus. Cerberus made monsters of their own people, the Reapers made monsters of everyone else. Both killed anyone who got in their way. He squeezed the trigger on his shotgun, sending a husk flying backward with a massive hole in its gut. They were right in the middle of it all, evacuating colonists. For every one they saved, the Reapers snatched up three or four. One time too many, they themselves had fled only moments before the main bulk of the Reaper forces descended.

"Jacob!" His unofficial second-in-command, a woman named Nev, sent a wave of husks flying with a biotic wave. "It's no good! This colony is overrun! We can't stay!"

Jacob nodded, frowning. They had saved so few… only a handful "Back to the ships!" he called.

His fleet had grown quickly over the past eight months. Retired Alliance, former and current Corsairs, civilians, Nev was ex-Cerberus like himself. Their ships were mostly cruisers and frigates, but Vala had provided a single ancient dreadnought, which she piloted personally. A battle-scarred turian by the name of Decima had even joined them and brought an old, but well-maintained Cyprian fighter with her. Apparently the fighter had been gifted to her by the Primarch for "special services to the turian military." There were also a number of personal shuttles that they'd jury-rigged with weapons. Jacob had felt uneasy about adding these ships to the armada, as they were ill-suited for combat (even with weapons) and had very little defenses, but there were so many people willing to provide and pilot them that he'd relented and used them mostly to evacuate civilians.

Jacob (unofficially, everything was unofficial in his little fleet) captained one of the newer cruisers. He'd named his ship Radha in the hope that he would see Shepard again one day. As was usually the case, Miranda's prediction had been spot on. The moment the Reapers arrived on Earth, Shepard was released from custody, and was now fighting Reapers and Cerberus like everyone else. He'd received only a single, garbled message from her, barely able to make out a few words, but it'd been so good just to see her face again. He tried sending several messages back to her, but the Reapers were taking out so many comm buoys that he wasn't certain any of them went out. He could go looking for her, there was always buzz of the Normandy and the famous Commander Shepard, but he couldn't just leave these colonists to the clutches of Cerberus and the Reapers. He knew Radha would understand.

"Jacob," Nev approached him with a personal message terminal in hand. "I've got a lead."

"What is it?"

"Kelly Chambers said that before she left Cerberus, a lot of employees, mostly scientists, were disappearing. Well, about a month ago Dr. Brynn Cole and her husband Everett went on the run, taking a great deal of Cerberus's best people and their families with them." She held up the terminal, "Communications just picked up a transmission on Cerberus channels and I was able to decode some of the message. They're going after a 'big package' on Gellix, a seemingly barren planet in the Arrae system. It could be Brynn and her people. If we rescue them… they could be a huge asset to the "secret project" the Alliance has going on."

Jacob considered this, rubbing one hand across his mouth. It was a longshot, but if it really was Dr. Cole he couldn't just leave them to the Illusive Man and his dogs. "Yeah, let's check it out."

Jacob's heart was somewhere in his throat. What they'd found orbiting Gellix… it was a one in a million find. It had to be fate, or something close to it.

Licking his lips, Jacob brought the comm up, "SSV Normandy, this is the Radha. Over."

A familiar voice replied, "Smooth, naming your ship after your girlfriend."

Jacob chuckled, "It's good to hear your voice, man."

"Yeah, you too," Joker said. "So, hey, we have most of the civilians onboard, but the Commander's having trouble getting the last shuttle off the ground. Cerberus is stuck to her ass."

"We're on it."

It didn't take long for Jacob to round up his people and board shuttles. As the facility's AA guns had blown every Cerberus fighter out of the sky, they touched down without incident. They exited, however, into utter chaos. Jacob recognized Garrus, perched high up on a catwalk, sniper rifle in hand, taking shots at anything wearing Cerberus colors. There was also an Alliance soldier that Jacob didn't recognize. The soldier was built like a brick wall and bulling his way through a group of troopers, assault gun rattling away. And there, in the thick of it, was Radha. Her long, dark hair was coming loose from its plait and there was a bloody cut on her cheek. Omni-blade in one hand, shotgun in the other, she was seemingly trying to clear a path to a shuttle. Jacob could see part of a boot sticking out the shuttle's open door, but it was difficult to see if there were actually people inside it. The Commander sunk the omni-blade into the gut of the nearest trooper, ignoring the bullets that bounced off her tech armor. With a roar and a sudden whoosh of air, an Atlas mech dropped from the sky, forcing Shepard to dive for cover as it sent a missile careening toward her.

"Nev, Decima, take your squads and help those two out," he pointed to Garrus and the unknown soldier. "Sullivan, you secure that shuttle. I'll take care of the mech."

His group split off and Jacob headed straight for the Atlas, sending a surge of biotic energy smashing into it, knocking it off balance.

"Jacob!?" Radha's voice was simultaneously disbelieving and relieved.

The mech recovered from its stumble, swinging its gun around, and this time it was Jacob who was forced to dive for cover. Bullets cracked the cement where he'd been standing seconds before.

"It's good to see you, Radha." Jacob said with a chuckle.

Radha laughed breathlessly, sprinting to the next bit of cover. "I was starting to think I'd never see you again! Did you get any of my messages?"

Jacob rose from cover and fired his shotgun, cracking the glass that protected the Cerberus pilot. "I got one, but it was corrupted! Did you get any of mine?" He rolled out of the way as a missile sailed over his head and hit a shield generator, causing it to explode. He encased himself in a biotic barrier as small bits of flaming debris rained from the sky.

"I got two, no visual and distorted audio." Radha's voice came from somewhere behind a concrete barrier.

The Atlas was between them, and posed the biggest threat. The tide of battle was turning; Jacob's people were mowing down Cerberus troopers with great efficiency.

"Jacob," Sullvian's voice sounded over his comm. "I've secured the shuttle. Two civilians aboard: Doctors Brynn and Everett Cole. Everett's been shot in the leg, but he'll survive."

"Understood. Get them out of here. We'll take our shuttles out."

"Got it. Sullivan, out."

Radha's voice rang out, "Jacob, Cerberus reinforcements are on the way. We've got to get rid of this mech and get out of here!"

Jacob took a quick peek around the corner. The damaged glass protecting the Atlas's pilot caught his eye and a plan formed quickly. "Radha, you got enough energy for another biotic attack?"

"I think so. Why?"

"We don't have to deal with the mech, just the pilot. If we attack together we can break the glass, then one shot and it's over."

"Good idea." He heard Radha's footsteps as she ran around in front of the mech. The Atlas turned, firing at Shepard, but she'd already jumped behind a heavy metal container.

"On the count of three," he called. A tingling sensation spread through his body, pricking at every nerve ending as Jacob began drawing biotic energy toward his fist, channelling it into a single, precise hit.

"One, two, three!" He and Radha shouted the last word together, darting out from cover and launching their biotic attack.

The glass blew inward and the pilot was slammed back in their seat. Before they could recover, Radha's shotgun boomed, blowing a hole the size of a bowling ball in the trooper's chest. Suddenly without a pilot, the mech stumbled backward, right toward a fuel tank.

"Oh, shit." Radha hissed.

The mech tottered drunkenly on one foot and collapsed onto the fuel tank. Jacob and Radha were forced to dive for cover once more as both the mech and the tank went up in a roar of flame. A clamor immediately rose up on Jacob's comm, different voices demanding to know if he and Shepard were okay.

"We're fine," Shepard groaned. "I'm going to need a good, long bath, though."

Jacob let out a moan of pain, he'd bashed his elbow a good one upon landing, and rolled onto his back. Yellow and red sparks were shooting up into the sky overhead.

"Jacob," Nev's spoke over his comm. "We've taken care of most of the troopers. A few have holed up inside the facility, but they pose no threat. I've received a message from Yolanda, though. Cerberus reinforcements are inbound. ETA: ten minutes."

"We'll be out of here by then. Get everyone ready to go."

"Listen to you, bossing people around." Radha's voice sounded very amused.

Jacob laughed softly, pushing himself up into a seated position. "I learned from the best."

Radha laughed too and sat up. She'd landed only about five feet from him. This was the closest they'd been to each other in months. Their eyes met and she gave him a tired smile, the cut on her cheek was bleeding again. And suddenly, all those months of worry and longing and hope bubbled up inside Jacob. He got to his feet, lurching on bruised legs toward Shepard. Radha got to her feet too, her face a mixture of emotions: pride, love, yearning. He took Radha in his arms and lifted her right off her feet, no small feat as she was decked out in heavy armor. Their lips met, gently at first then more insistent. Shepard's fingers were digging into the back of his neck. She tasted like mint and sweat and a bit of citrus.

"I missed you," he murmured against her lips, cupping her injured cheek with great care.

"I missed you, too."

They leaned in close—

"Sorry to interrupt, Commander."

Radha huffed an exasperated sigh, "Really, Joker?"

"Yeah, well, one for old time's sake. Also, we probably don't want to be here when more Cerberus shows up."

"Don't worry. We're leaving. Soon." Radha's tone brooked no argument and Joker fell silent.

Shepard sighed again, looking over where her squad and Jacob's people were grouped around the remaining shuttles, swapping stories while keeping one eye on the facility.

"You're going to stay with your fleet, aren't you?" She didn't sound disappointed, but expectant and proud. She knew him well.

Jacob nodded, "Being out there, helping people, I like it."

Radha smiled and kissed him again, "Doesn't surprise me at all. I'll get Admiral Hackett to bring your fleet in as a war asset; you'll be in the loop then, with access to more reliable comm buoys, we'll actually be able to message each other."

"Sounds good," Jacob traced the scar on Radha's upper lip with this thumb. "But when it comes time to take back Earth, I'll be with you."

Radha covered his hand with hers. "Good. Now let's get the hell off this frozen rock."