Mass Effect: Aftermath

by dragondrewversion2

This prologue of sorts tells the story of what happened to Commander Shepard and the galaxy at large after the Reapers are destroyed by the Crucible, as well as beginning the story of the next legend in the Mass Effect universe... NOTE: This is NOT a "Mass Effect 3's Ending SUCKED" story.

Hey people, I just wanted to tell you before you read this story that this is simply a sneak preview of another project I'm planning on working on once "Survivors" is finished, so don't think that this will put that on hold. The friend who originally conceived this idea wanted a prologue to flesh out the beginning of the story as well as to get some feedback on the concept I've started here. As I said, Survivors will be my priority until I finally get it finished, so expect more of that soon. Until then, I hope you've enjoy the story and look forward to this story's continuation.

Mass Effect: Aftermath

...Shepard...Shepard...

Huh...who?

It's me...Kaidan...

K...Kaidan?

Don't have much time...just wanted to let you know you did a good job. I'm proud of you...

Kaidan...I'm sorry...there wasn't enough time to-

No, no apologies. You did what you could...wouldn't have had it any other way.

Did...did we do it?

Yeah...yeah you did.

...Good...I just...just wish I could see them again. Garrus, Tali, James, Joker...Ash.

...Wish granted.

What?

Shepard...Shepard...JOHN!

Shepard's eyes opened suddenly with the familiar voice calling his name. His vision was blurred with fatigue, dust, and the burning fires around him. He could barely move, his limbs were aching, and could taste the faint, coppery flavor of blood in his mouth. Looking up, he saw six blurred shapes moving towards him, though they were two distorted to make out. One of them knelt down next to him, an orange glow appearing on their arm. He could tell it was a she, but his mind was too scrambled to discern who she was. Their voices were scrambled in his mind.

"Badly injured...not sure...-afe to move him..." One voice said.

"We must leave...no longer safe...leave him..." Another called out.

"I'm going to...didn't hear that...-arrus, help..." The woman tending to him shouted.

"Keelah! This place...-lling apart...need to hurry..."

"Shepard...you hear me...eyes are open..."

"Grab him and...we don't have much..."

The pain in his body intensified when they grabbed him, lifting him from amongst the piles of rubble around him. As they slowly carried him away, his vision centered above him, where he could see what looked like ships buzzing past the barriers surrounding the large room he was in. He couldn't make out much, but he did see a familiar ship slowly float past the barrier dome, making him smile.

"Normandy to...I repeat...tell me you found Shep..."

"We found him...'s injured, get a...here now!"

"Roger that..."

Shepard felt a pair of armored hands grasp his face, patting it gently. "C'mon Shepard...n't you dare die on me...Joker, what's your ETA..."

"Having a hard time...suitable landing point..."

Soon, Shepard felt himself begin to slip away, unable to keep his eyes open. "No, Shepard, keep your...don't do this...John, please...JOHN..." His eyes slid closed as the world around him faded away, unsure of what he would see when his eyes opened again.

Shepard became aware of a familiar odor filling his lungs as he breathed in slowly. Opening his eyes slowly, he was almost blinded by the bright light shining down on him. With noticeable effort, he brought his hand in front of his face to shield his eyes, making him realize that he had an IV attached to his arm. Adjusting himself in the bed, he looked around the room, recognizing it immediately as the Normandy's med bay. He had been placed on the bed closest to the door and, judging by the noticeable indent in the pillow, he must have been there for at least a day or so. He rose to a sitting position, grunting as his ribs and back protested against the action. As he did so, he saw a crewman notice his movement and hastily jump up from the mess hall table and shout down the corridor. He then rubbed his eyes, which were still somewhat blurry from what must have been a couple of days in a comatose state.

He had just gotten comfortable when he looked to his right and saw Ashley lying on the vacant bed next to him. Her eyes showed obvious signs of bagging from lack of sleep. She was just close enough to him where he could reach over and brush a stray hair from her face, smiling through the slight pain reaching that far had caused him. The sudden contact caused her to blink herself awake, immediately shuffling to her feet upon realizing who had touched her. "Shepard! Thank God!" She almost jumped on him, but held back, remembering his injuries, and hugged him as tightly and gently as she could. She fought with all her might to hold back a sea of tears, succeeding for the most part even though a couple sneaked through. Regaining her composure, she let go of Shepard and cleared her throat. "I...I'm glad you made it, Skipper. The galaxy would have been a lot emptier without you."

Lying back slightly, Shepard smiled. "I take it from the fact that we're both still alive and that there's no battle going on outside that we won."

"Yeah, I don't know how we managed it, but we did it." Despite her happiness, there was still an obvious hint of sadness in her voice.

"What is it?"

"It's just...Captain Anderson."

It was just then that Shepard's memories of what had happen two days ago began to come back to him. The conduit, the bodies, the Illusive Man., and Anderson's sacrifice. "He was the best soldier that ever lived...and a good friend."

"Damn straight. How're you feeling?"

"I was just about to ask him the same question." They both turned to see Doctor Chakwas standing in the doorway. "You never cease to have us all on the edge of our seats, Commander. This time was no exception."

"Only because I always have you around to patch me up, Doc. How bad was it?" Shepard asked, rubbing his ribs.

"Four broken ribs, a slipped disc, internal bleeding, first degree burns on several areas of your body, a slight concussion, and broken left fibula. It was very dodgy at times, but you managed to pull through." Despite her years of professional training and experience, she had to let a tear or two slip past to show she was human.

"What about the rest of the team? They make it out alright?"

Ashley sat back down on the bed. "They're all fine. Tali and Garrus managed to escape in the Normandy; they thought you died in the blast. Javik and James spent a good portion of the battle giving covering fire to some platoons in the hot zones. EDI gave tactical support to most of the troops attempting to push to the conduit, but the area was too hot...she couldn't save them all. You'll be happy to know Wrex made it out alright, along with the people who were with you during the Collector mission. Several of them actually met up near the fallback point to cover platoons attempting to regroup. I'm not going to lie; for a while there, we thought we'd lost. Then this pulse flashes by and the Reapers start falling apart and their husks start turning to dust along with them. Most of us were too confused to say anything at first, then we all cheered our heads off. Though we really didn't have much time to cheer, what with the Normandy trying to outrun the pulse."

"Come again?"

"We'd all rendezvoused at the Normandy when we got word that you'd made it onto the Citadel so we could extract you. When the pulse started, Hackett called for all ships to pull back, so we waited for as long as we could, but we had to leave..."

"If you're feeling guilty for leaving me behind, don't bother. The safety of the entire crew comes first."

"I know, it just...wasn't an easy decision. Anyway, Joker managed to speed us away from the worst of it, but it finally made contact with the ship and forced us to land on a jungle planet in the Exodus Cluster. We pulled together some repairs and got back as fast as we could...we weren't ready to believe you'd really died."

"How'd you manage to find me?"

"It wasn't easy. When we got back, the Citadel was in bad shape, with scans showing a lot of the life support was down. We must have scanned every square inch of the station three times over, but nothing. After about nine hours we were about to give up hope until we finally got a faint thermal image. It was a long shot, but we had to try."

"I can vaguely remember hearing you talking while you were trying to move me. I'm going to guess Javik was the one who suggested leaving me there?"

"Hmph, yeah. He said you wouldn't want us to kill ourselves just to save you, but I told him leaving you wasn't an option."

"I appreciate that, LC."

Chakwas could tell by the way the two were staring at each other that they needed to be alone for a moment. "I'll inform the rest of your crew that you're alright and try to keep them out for a while."

"Thanks." Ashley said.

"You are most welcome. And Shepard...well done, I'm proud of you." Closing the door behind her, the two didn't know what to say at first.

Ashley decided to take the initiative. "You had me worried for a while there."

"Well," Shepard answered, "I guess that makes us even. You had me pretty worried after what happened on Mars."

"Hm, I guess so..."

Remembering something from when he was barely conscious, Shepard said, "Y'know, I think that was the first time in a long time that anyone has called me by my first name. I didn't even think anyone knew what it was."

Ashley smiled, "Heh, yeah, it was a...a pretty intense moment there. When you passed out...I thought...I thought I'd lost you again."

"Ash," Shepard reached out and grasped her hand, squeezing it gently, "you pulled me out of the fire back there. You don't think I'd be stupid enough to die on you, do you?"

A single tear rolled down her face as she couldn't hold herself back anymore and pulled Shepard into an emotional kiss which lasted for half a minute before she hugged him as gently as she could. "God...I don't know how I could've handled it if you'd died again."

Shepard patted her back as he made a low 'shhh' noise to calm her. "You would have found a way, Ash. Just be glad you don't have to."

"Shep...John, I don't know if I told you this earlier, the last few days are kind of a blur, but...I love you."

Putting on a cocky grin, Shepard replied, "No fear about the rules against fraternization?"

"Honestly, screw the rules."

"Then I can comfortably say I love you, too."

They finally broke the hug after a few minutes, Ashley taking the moment to wipe the tears that had sneaked past her attempts to fight them back. "So...what now?"

Shepard laid back against the pillow and thought for a moment. He never did consider what he would do once the war was over, he had always been to focused on fighting it. After considering all that he had accomplished and everything he'd almost lost, he came to a decision. "Well, I've stopped a rogue spectre, stopped the genocide of hundreds of thousands of humans, ended the genophage, brokered peace between the quarians and the geth, and helped to save the galaxy from the reapers...I'd say I've done it all. So, I think I'll find a nice little house on a colony world somewhere and spend the rest of my days with the people I care about...any volunteers?"

Ashley smiled again and placed a gentle kiss on his left cheek. "If you think you're going to get rid of me at this point, that explosion knocked more of your brain loose than I thought."

"I thought so. So, you think we should let the others in before they start setting charges on the door?"

"Hm, I don't know, I could still use a little more time alone with you." She trailed a hand up and down Shepard's stomach as an almost sinister smile formed on her face.

"Heh, sounds tempting, but I think we should probably wait until my body agrees with the idea." He rubbed his ribs to emphasize the point.

Putting on a mock pout, Ashley said, "Suit yourself...Commander."

Shepard smiled warmly before turning to the door and shouting, "Okay, people! You can come in now!"

Almost instantly, the med-bay doors swished open, revealing the rest of Shepard's squad. They walked over to shake Shepard's and and congratulate him on pulling off the impossible.

Garrus gave a high handshake. "I knew you wouldn't die on us...again."

"I figured you'd be disappointed, Garrus. Now you won't be the star of all the parades and awards ceremonies."

"Heh, actually that's why I'm relieved. I'd hate being the center of attention while a bunch of politicians give speeches and hand out medals. I'll leave that up to you."

Shepard shook his head. "Hm, hearing that makes me almost wish I'd at least stay in a coma for a while longer."

Garrus laughed a bit, then became more serious. "It's good to see you made it, Shepard. I don't admit this often when it happens, but you did actually scare me there for a while."

Tali then pulled Shepard in for a friendly hug. "I'm so glad you're alive. When I saw you get hit by that Reaper, I almost gave up hope."

"Well, if you felt as bad as I did, I can empathize. I'm just glad you and Garrus got out of there in one piece."

James came up next to Shepard and punched him lightly on the shoulder. "I gotta admit, Loco, you lived up to your nickname out there. Glad to still have you in the land of the living."

"As am I." Liara added, trying her best to hide a tear she'd shed while Shepard was talking to the others. Liara then hugged Shepard tightly, unwittingly causing him to groan in slight pain. "Oh, sorry. Goddess, what was I thinking?"

"It's fine, Liara. I'm happy to see you too." Shepard then looked for Javik, not seeing him in the med bay. "Where's Javik?"

Garrus lowered his head slightly. "Shortly after we got you into the med bay, he told us to send you his respect as soon as you'd woken up. Then he just left."

He was about to ask where he'd gone until he remembered the last talk he'd had with Javik before going after the conduit. Realizing where he was going and what he was planning, Shepard nodded his head. "Thanks, Javik. Couldn't have done it without you."

He then heard the doors hiss open, revealing another welcome sight. "Commander, good to see you aren't another casualty of the war."

"Admiral Hackett!" Shepard responded happily, shaking the Admiral's hand.

"You did a damn fine job as usual, Shepard. You pulled off the impossible."

"I had a lot of help." Shepard looked to his friends and squad-mates to emphasize his point.

"Yes, you did." Hackett then closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "We managed to recover Anderson's body from the wreckage. We'll make sure he gets the burial he deserves. He was a damn hero...and a good friend."

"Yeah...yeah, he was." Just then, Shepard remembered something the catalyst had told him before he destroyed the Reapers, and remembered what would happen to all synthetics. "We lost a lot of friends in this war: Kaidan, Mordin, Thane, Legion, and now Anderson and EDI."

The last name caused the others to scratch their heads. "What?" James asked.

Confused by their reactions, Shepard asked. "What's wrong?"

Liara answered, "You said EDI. Why?"

"She was destroyed when I...wait, you mean she's-"

"Alive? Yes, Commander." The familiar synthetic voice caught Shepard off guard as he turned to see EDI standing in the doorway with Joker.

"EDI?"

"What, do you know any other synthetics with bods like this one?" Joker answered in his usual jest.

"As Jeff just said, I am the only synthetic in the galaxy with this model chassis."

Though Shepard was happy to see her, he was now confused. "But...the catalyst told me that...the mass relays?"

"What about them?" Hackett asked.

"Before I destroyed the Repears...the Catalyst spoke to me, it told me what I had to do to destroy the Reapers, but that it would destroy the mass relays and all synthetics in the galaxy."

"Well then, you'll be happy to know it must have been lying, because the relays are only somewhat damaged. We were reluctant to use them initially after the Crucible sent the signal through them, but some scout ships volunteered to test them out and they're in perfect working order."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. We've gotten reports from all sectors of the galaxy. All the mass relays have been accounted for. Though there will have to be some repairs done to them if they're to be opened to the general public."

"And the Reapers? Is anyone trying to salvage their corpses?"

"That's the strangest part. After the Reapers were shut down, their bodies began to disintegrate, leaving behind only base elements. Not a single trace of the Reapers left."

"So we won't have to worry about terrorists or slavers getting their hands on Reaper tech?"

"Looks like it. Some higher ups might have wanted a look at all that tech, but I say good riddance to it. It was too dangerous."

Unsure what to make of this, Shepard just breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, in any case, I'm glad you're still with us, EDI."

"Thank you, Shepard. I must admit...I had some very confusing feelings when you were brought into Doctor Chakwas' care. I was happy, but I was also afraid and angry, a mixture of emotions that I didn't think possible. I didn't enjoy the experience."

"I hope I didn't scare you too much."

"No, Jeff was kind enough to console me while we were waiting for news of your condition to come through. He even told me he'd take care of 'shedding all the tears' since I do not possess tear ducts."

"Okay, EDI, you didn't have to tell them that part." Joker responded, rubbing the back of his head.

Shepard chuckled and shook his head as Hackett said, "Well, I just came aboard to check on you and get you up to speed. You did the Alliance and the galaxy at large proud down there, Commander."

"Thank you, Admiral...before you go, there's something I want to discuss."

"And that is?"

"...My resignation."

Hackett almost knew Shepard was going to retire if he won the war, so he wasn't surprised when he brought it up. "Hm, I had a feeling. If anyone deserves to leave the military life behind and live the rest of his days in peace, it's you. I'm proud to have served with you." Hackett then saluted in respect.

Shepard returned his salute as best he could from his laying position. "And I you, Admiral."

"As I've been proud to have served with all of you. You represented all of your respective races well."

They each thanked him as he turned and left the med bay. As he left, Doctor Chakwas walked back in, checking Shepard's vital signs. "Alright, everyone. You've had a chance to speak with the Commander, but he's still injured and needs his rest."

Reluctantly, Shepard's team said their goodbyes for the moment and left the med bay, Ashley being the last. She placed a gentle kiss on his cheek and said, "Get better soon, "O' captain, my captain.""

"Roger that, LC." With a drowsy smile, he fell asleep as Ashley left the med bay, a big smile on her face.

2 days later...

Shepard sat straight up in his bed, still sore from some of the injuries he'd sustained, but feeling much better than before. He slowly placed his feet to the floor and stood up, glad that he could still walk. As he looked out the window into the mess hall, he noticed that there didn't seem to be anyone there, which was strange since it was mess hour around this time. Putting on his ship clothes, he slowly walked out of the med bay, regaining his balance as he went. Looking down both hallways past the elevator, he stood in front of the monument to all the Normandy crew they'd lost to the war. All the names, both familiar and non, left a ping in his heart, especially the one at the top right of the list: Kaidan Alenko. His death on Virmire years earlier left an impact on Shepard that barely faded as time went on. Having a vision of Kaidan before he was rescued had helped somewhat, though he knew it was just a hallucination. Still, he decided to remember all the fond memories of his fallen comrades, as they would have wanted him to.

He then proceeded to enter each of the rooms in the hallway, only to find no one in any of them. Fearing something had happened, he rushed to the elevator and took it up to the CIC, hoping someone up there could explain what happened. When he reached his floor and the doors opened, he was greeted by a sight he had not expected to see.

SURPRISE!

Crowding the CIC in front of him was the entire crew of the Normandy with tables of assorted foods and drinks of all kinds scattered about. Several of the crew were wearing paper party hats, including Garrus, which amused him the most, while others were armed with party poppers and favors. An uncontrollable smile came across Shepard's face as he said, "You guys throwing another party without me?"

"Well, Shepard," Garrus started, "we figured since you were down for a while we may be able to throw off the wet blanket and have some fun."

"Then why are you still here, Vakarian?"

The crew laughed at Shepard's comeback, punching Garrus on the shoulder in jest. Joker got up from his chair and walked over to Shepard. "Hey, Commander! How's it feel to have bones made of glass? It sucks, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, now I know why you always walk around so strangely."

"Heh, almost forgot what it was like to hear you make a joke, Commander."

"It's good to be able to without having to go back and study war reports afterward."

"I'll bet. Though, considering the fact that Wrex is here and Tali's proven herself a true alcohol connoisseur, you may still have to do that once this party's over."

"I heard that, you bosh'tet." Tali's remark left the crew in an uproar of laughter.

Shepard smiled and shook his head. "Now that's one battle I might actually want to see."

"A battle between Wrex and Tali would be extremely unlikely, Shepard." EDI walked up next to Jeff.

"He knows that, EDI. It was just a joke. Like if I said you and I would get into a fight with each other. You know we wouldn't."

"True, a battle between us would be unlikely as well."

"Because you care too much about me, right?"

"No, because the term 'battle' entails that both sides have a chance at winning." The unexpected burn from EDI brought about a lot of whooping from the crew.

"And oddly enough, I'm okay with that."

At this point, Wrex came up to Shepard. "HA! I'd still pay to see that."

"Wrex!" Shepard shook his krogan friend's hand. "I see you came out of the fight unscathed."

"Yeah, it was one hell of a fight. Must have taken out over a thousand of those abominations before you managed to deal the final blow."

"How's Bakara?"

"Doing well. She's back on Tuchanka, preparing to bear the first cleansed krogan children in over fifteen hundred years. She wanted me to send along her congratulations and gratitude."

"Tell her she's welcome."

"Can do. So, I hear you're hanging up the guns and going civie."

"Yeah, it's been a good run, but there comes a point when you have to take advantage of surviving impossible odds and settle down, I guess."

"Hm, I'm guessing you and Williams will be "settling down" quite often now that you're up and about again. HA!" Wrex followed up the innuendo with an elbow jab to Shepard's side.

"If she has anything to say about, probably."

"Well, you're a true warrior in my eyes, Shepard. There are already battle songs being sung about you. The strangest part of it is I saw some of my men celebrating with a group of turians earlier...never thought I'd see the day."

"A lot's changed, I hope it stays this way."

"If Bakara and I have any say in it, it will. I worked too hard to bring the krogan back from the brink to let a bunch of whiners send us right back to it."

"Glad to hear it, Wrex."

"Now, if you'll excuse me, there's a bottle of ryncol over there calling my name. Drink well, Shepard." As Wrex walked away, Shepard felt a hand grab his shoulder.

"Hey, Loco! Some of the guys from the cargo bay have a Skyllian Five game going, wanna join in?" James asked, a beer in hand.

Smiling inward, Shepard said, "Alright, you're going to have to teach me how to play, though."

Thinking he'd found an easy target, James said, "Don't worry, Loco, we'll take it easy on you."

10 minutes later...

"SONOFABITCH!" James shouted as Shepard won his fourth hand in a row, scooping all the credits from the center of the table.

"I might have neglected to mention that I won the Skyllian Five tournament at the N7 academy two years in a row. Sorry about that."

James groaned, now knowing that he'd been played. Garrus patted him on the back and said, "You should know, Vega. Shepard always wins."

As James challenged him to another rematch, Shepard saw Liara walking towards him. "Hey, Liara! I wondered where you were."

"Sorry, I was dealing with a matter that...well, it's rather personal."

"What do you mean?"

Liara sat down next to Shepard, taking a drink from a table next to her as she did. "Do you remember the day when I took over as the Shadow Broker? When you asked if the power may be too much for me?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, I realized that, now that the war is over, I don't truly have anything to keep me honest anymore. I then realized that I didn't want to end up like the previous Shadow Broker, willing to kill innocent people to protect his interests. So, I spoke with Admiral Hackett...I told him that I was the Shadow Broker."

Shocked at this, Shepard asked, "What? Why?"

"Because I know that he'd never tell anyone else and that, if I do become corrupt, he'll have set up the measures necessary to stop me."

"That's not necessary, Liara. I know you'd never become like the last Broker."

"I'm happy that you trust me that much, Shepard, but I'm simply putting measures into place, just in case. Hopefully, they'll never have to be implemented."

"I know they won't be, but I guess I'm glad you're being cautious about it. Now, though, how about we just enjoy a friendly drink, on me...well, on James, really."

James groaned again and placed his head on the table. "Hijo de su puta madre..."

"I would enjoy that very much, Shepard. A chance to finally sit back and catch our breath."

"I'll drink to that." As he took a drink, he began to mingle with the other members of the crew, stumbling upon old squad members along the way. He found Jack comparing tattoos with another crewman, Jacob talking with an old friend from his time in the Corsairs, Samara waiting to congratulate Shepard, which she did, Kasumi looking as though she was about to pickpocket a few soldiers for fun, Grunt telling stories to Wrex in his usual enthusiasm along with Zaeed, and Miranda with Oriana talking with Gabby and Kenneth. After talking with all of them, he soon realized that someone was missing from the party. "Hey, have you seen Ash anywhere?" He asked Liara.

"No, the last time I saw her was when I was visiting you a couple of days ago."

"Hm, hey, Garrus?"

Garrus turned from his position with his arm around Tali. "Yeah?"

"Have you or Tali seen Ash?"

"I saw her earlier this morning." Tali said, surprisingly sober. "She seemed upset about something, but she wouldn't tell me what."

"Uh oh, I'd better go find her."

"No need," Liara said, "here she comes."

Sure enough, Ashley stepped out of the elevator, an unsure look evident on her face. Shepard got up from his seat and approached her. "Ash, you okay?"

At first she didn't answer, she had trouble even looking him in the eye. Eventually she said, "Can we...go somewhere private? I really need to talk to you."

"Of course, sure." Without hesitation, they entered the elevator and rode it up to Shepard's cabin, Ashley becoming more nervous as they entered the cabin. "Okay, we're alone. So tell me what's wrong."

Ashley began to pace across the room until she finally stopped, took a deep breath, and said, "Do you remember that night we spent together before we reached Earth?"

"Yeah, it's kind of hard to forget."

"Well...I've been feeling sick for the last day or so...so I went to see Doctor Chakwas this morning. She ran some tests and...God, I can't believe I'm actually saying this..."

"What? What is it?"

"John...I'm...I'm pregnant."

That one word hit Shepard like a grenade, knocking most of the thoughts out of his mind. He didn't respond at first, he just stood there and stared into Ashley's eyes in disbelief. He finally managed to stutter out, "Wha...how...are...are you sure?"

On the verge of tears, she smiled an nodded. "Chakwas did three tests to make sure...I'm going to have a baby."

Grasping what this meant, Shepard hurried over to Ashley and hugged her tightly, almost ready to cry himself. "This is...this is amazing!"

No longer even attempting to fight back the tears, Ashley let loose a barrage of happiness. "I mean...I should've guessed it would happen since we didn't really plan out that night, but...oh God, it's so unbelievable."

They both just stood there for a moment, holding each other. Shepard then broke the hug, but still kept his hands on her shoulders. "So, how are you feeling about this? And tell me the truth."

Wiping tears from her face, she answered, "Honestly...I'm more scared than I've ever been in my life, but I'm also happy as hell."

"Tali told me you seemed upset this morning."

"Yeah, well, I did just find out that my whole life was about to change forever, so I obviously had some thinking to do."

"Now Ash, this is completely your decision here. If you want to stop this, I'll back you all the way."

"I appreciate that, but I kind of like the idea of being a mom. Besides, I can't possibly pass up the opportunity to see what kind of dad you'd make."

"Glad to hear it, Ash." Unable to hold back anymore, Ashley grabbed Shepard's head and pulled it to hers in a strong kiss which lasted for almost a minute.

The finally broke the kiss and proceeded to just hold one another for a few more minutes. Breaking the silence, Ashley said, "You know, there were times during all of this when I asked myself if it would all be worth it...I think it was."

"So do I."

They finally separated, sitting next to each other on the bed. "So," Ashley said, finally ceasing her crying, "should we tell everyone now or wait till tomorrow?"

Shepard gave it some thought and decided, "Well, most everyone down there won't be here tomorrow, so now's as good a time as any."

"Heh, I guess so. I swear though, if Joker makes one crack, I'm going to throw him out the nearest airlock."

"Poor Joker..."

2 minutes later...

The party was still going strong down in the CIC, Garrus and Tali were sitting closely to one another, listening to Joker and EDI tell jokes, which were terrible from both. Cortez and Traynor were having a friendly drink, discussing past relationships. James had managed to get every squad mate of Shepard's together for a high stakes game of Skyllian Five, though found that they were almost as hard to beat as Shepard. The various other members of the crew were simply celebrating their victory with rowdy laughter and singing.

Shepard and Ashley stepped out of the elevator, catching the attention of Joker. "Hey, guys! You two enjoy your private party up there?" Ashley resisted the urge to beat the pilot to death as Shepard gave him the 'Stop before you get hurt' head shake. "Ooookay, I'll just shut up now."

Shepard put his arms up, calling everyone's attention. "Okay, people! Settle down, I've got an announcement to make!" Surprisingly, everyone seemed to quieten down the moment he started talking. "Before I tell you the news, I just want to tell all of you something. There were times during this war where I wondered if we could really pull this off. Seeing what the Reapers were capable of, the deaths of so many people, strangers and allies alike, it made me question if we were just wasting time instead of relishing our final moments. But, every time I felt this way, I went around this ship and spoke to the people I've fought side by side with, some from the very beginning against Saren and Sovereign, some just recently. You showed me that you had the same fears that I did, but that you trusted me to lead us through this, and for that, I can't thank you enough. You see, you're more than just a crew or a squad to me...you're family." That comment made many members of the crowd smile, both inwardly and outwardly. "And, against all odds, I can proudly say...we kicked some Reaper ass!" Cheers erupted from the crowd as the sound of clinging glasses and woots of approval roared through the CIC.

"YOU TELL 'EM SHEP!"

"WE SENT THEIR SORRY ASSES BACK TO OBLIVION!"

"SHEPARD! SHEPARD! SHEPARD!" The chorus echoed throughout the room, forcing Shepard to chuckle.

"Alright, ALRIGHT, alright, calm down, people! That being said, I can't emphasize this point enough: Without every single person in this room, and so many others that aren't, we could never have pulled this off. I'm proud to have served with each and every one of you. Thank you all for all of your sacrifice and hard work. You each deserve a medal."

"And a good lay!" A random crew member shouted, enciting woots and laughter from everyone, even Ashley, who nudged Shepard in the side knowingly.

"That too. Now that I've said that, I have an announcement to make. Ash and I...well, you want to tell them?" He looked to Ash, who at first was a little nervous, but a reassuring smile from Shepard bolstered her confidence.

Taking a deep, relaxing breath, she said, "Okay...but before I tell you, I just want to say something quickly. I'm not going to lie, when we first started on this, the idea of working with aliens was...disturbing to me. I thought we didn't need non-human help and...I was an idiot. I can't imagine doing this without people like Garrus, Tali, Wrex, or Liara. I was wrong, and Garrus, I'm sorry I called you cricket face." She flashed a joking smile his way.

"It's alright," He answered, "I've been called worse." The crowd laughed at his rebuttal.

"Hm, alright, now that I've gotten the sappy stuff out of the way, Shepard and I wanted to tell you guys..." She almost choked up as she prepared to tell them, but held it off for just a while longer. "...we're going to have a baby."

At first stunned, the party quickly erupted into thunderous applause as friends and crewmates rose from their seats to congratulate them, Tali hugging Ashley tightly as Garrus and Wrex acknowledged Shepard's fertility. "I always knew you had a good quad Shepard." Wrex laughed.

"Congratulations...John." Garrus said, the first time he'd ever called Shepard by his first name.

"Thanks, Garrus. You've been a good friend."

"Same to you. Too bad Tali and I won't have the chance to make this sort of announcement."

It was then that Garrus felt himself be pulled towards Tali, who had finished her hug with Ashley. "Perhaps not," she said, "but that doesn't mean we can't try." Though he couldn't see it clearly, he could tell she winked at him.

"Um...no, I suppose not."

Liara began her own hug with Ashley. "I'm so happy for both of you."

"Thanks, Liara." Ashley answered, wiping more tears from her eyes. "Also, I know that you used to have...feelings for Shepard, and-"

"You don't have to say it. I accepted that we weren't meant to be long ago. Besides, Feron and I are quite happy with one another."

"Glad to hear it."

As they continued to hug and chat, Shepard was being congratulated by all of his other squad-mates. Jacob and Brynn mentioned how great it was that they would have kids that could play with one another. Miranda congratulated him and solemnly mentioned how lucky they were. Grunt made a comment similar to Wrex's, though he was a little more explicit, as was Jack. Most everyone else gave a similar congratulatory message, with Zaeed being the only one who was slightly negative about it. "Heh, end one war, start another. Why am I not surprised?" He said.

After everyone gave their hearty congratulations to the couple, Garrus gave a toast to Shepard. "Here's to the son of a bitch that I'm proud to have called my commander. To Shepard!"

"To Shepard!"

As Shepard took a drink from his glass, he looked over to Ashley, who had a curious look on her face. "What're you thinking about?"

"Hm," she hummed, "Ashley Williams Shepard...I like it."

"What? No John Shepard Williams?" He joked.

"And make you change that legendary last name of yours? Not on your life."

"Then here's to you, Ashley Shepard."

"Ah, can't drink remember?"

"Oh yeah. Well, you could toast with water if you want."

"Like I have a choice." She picked up a bottle of water and popped the cap off. "To the future."

"To the future." The clinked their drinks together and enjoyed the rest of the night.

9 months later...

July 3, 2187

"Move, MOVE!" Shepard yelled, running down the CIC of the Normandy, almost knocking down a technician in the process. He entered an elevator, cursing it as it slowly lowered him to the med bay, where he'd just been informed that Ashley had gone into labor. He'd been out on the Normandy's last stop on its victory tour, Eden Prime, when he got the call. He'd wanted Ashley to go with him, but she opted to stay aboard the Normandy to get some rest. Now, only a few hours later, she was having their child when he wasn't there to see it. Nervously pacing around the elevator, he almost tripped over himself when the doors finally opened. Rounding the corner, he saw Garrus, Tali, James, EDI and Joker standing outside the med bay.

Garrus was the first to notice him arrive. "Oh good, you made it!" He rushed out.

"Did I...did I miss it?" Shepard was breathing heavily, having sprinted from the event being held on Eden Prime to the ship.

"No, Ashley's just started giving birth." Tali said. "Doctor Chakwas said to get in as soon as you arrived."

"Alright..." Shepard took a deep breath, more nervous now than he'd ever been.

Garrus placed an assuring hand on his shoulder and said, "Go on."

Shepard patted Garrus' shoulder and nodded to the rest of the crew and walked into the med bay, leaving the others to wait.

Several minutes passed by, with only the sounds of Ashley's labored screams as a sign of their progress. Garrus sat with his hands clasped under his chin while Tali held her arms and paced in front of him. "She'll be fine, Tali." He assured her.

"I know, it's just that on the Flotilla, pregnancies were much more unpredictable. All quarian mothers went in expecting the worst."

"No need to worry, sparky." James added. "Ashley's as tough as they come. She'll pull though this."

"Thanks. I just feel so bad for Liara, though. If she had stayed a few days longer, she'd be here to see it too."

"I don't know about that." Joker said, obviously setting up a joke. "Knowing her, she'd start doing that whole 'black eternity' thing and pass out." He then felt a sharp sting on his left shoulder when EDI smacked him there. "What was that for?"

"You told me to let you know when you were making an inappropriate joke, Jeff."

"Yeah, I told you to tell me if I was, not shatter my shoulder for it."

"...I know." EDI smiled slyly.

"Hm, I've taught you well."

"Joker, if you wouldn't mind keeping it down for just a few minutes." Garrus said, his hands still clasped under his chin.

"Yeah, sorry. I'm just nervous, y'know." He winced as a piercing scream was heard from the med bay. "How long does this usually take?"

"My medical database says that human labor can last anywhere from two hours to fifteen hours or longer."

"Keelah!" Tali exclaimed. "Quarian pregnancies never last that long. Poor Ashley."

"Poor Ashley? How do you think Shepard's gonna feel after that long?" James said, only half joking.

No one commented after that for a good two hours. The each sat silently, waiting for any news while listening to the sounds of childbirth on the other side of the doors. Garrus' foot began to twitch while he nearly wished for something to try and board the ship so he could expend some energy. Tali stopped her pacing and sat next to Garrus, who put an arm around her. James had started doing some exercises to alleviate the stress, though he soon wore himself out and had to sit down himself. Joker took to humming old vid themes to himself, going through shows that hadn't been aired in almost two hundred years. Even EDI found herself tapping her foot, though she didn't understand why.

Finally, after three hours of waiting, they noticed the noise from the med bay had ceased. Hearing no noise for almost a minute, they began to worry...until a soft whimpering began to emanate from behind the doors, followed by the unmistakable sound of a crying infant. Knowing the delivery was a success, Garrus and Tali hugged tightly while James almost broke Joker's arm in a hardy handshake while EDI hugged him. A few moments later, Doctor Chakwas, tired and sweaty, stepped out of the med bay with a big smile on her face and addressed them. "It's a healthy baby boy." The group cheered, though they tried to remain as quiet as they could given the circumstances. "Shepard wants you to see him. Come on, then."

They carefully stepped into the med bay. The lights were dimmed to avoid distressing the child any more than was needed. The smell of exertion was heavy in the air after three hours of labor, as well as that of bodily fluids. Shepard was kneeling in front of Ashley as he turned to look at his friends and crewmates. He smiled as he stood up and stepped to the side, revealing an exhausted and tearful Ashley with a freshly cleaned and toweled baby in her arms.

The reactions were instantaneous. "Oh Keelah, he's beautiful!"

"Look at that, he's got Shepard's nose."

"And Ashley's eyes."

"As far as human infants are concerned, he is very aesthetically pleasing, Shepard."

Joker decided to take the initiative. "Hey there, little guy. I'm your uncle Joker." He wiggled his finger in front of the baby, causing it to laugh and grasp it firmly. "Hey, look, he likes me." Though Joker was rarely known to cry, he started to tear up slightly. "Aw, now look what you've done. There goes my image as the stiff upper lip of the crew."

Garrus knelt next to Shepard, putting a hand on his shoulder as he just stared at his newborn child. Garrus then looked to Ashley and said, "How're you doing, Williams...er, Ash?"

She smiled as she looked down at her son. "All things considered, I couldn't be better...cricket face." She winked in jest.

"He looks just like you, Shepard." Tali said, doing as Joker had done with her finger with the same results.

Shepard looked at his newborn son, still finding it difficult to believe, and responded, "He does...doesn't he?"

"So, what're you gonna name him, Loco?" James said, trying to remain unphased by the tender moment.

Ashley then had a surprised look on her face. "Oh, that's right. John, we've been so freaked out over having him that we haven't even thought about what we're going to name him."

Shepard thought for a moment, dozens of names shifting through his mind. Just then, he remembered the seconds before he was found on the Citadel.

It's me...Kaidan...

You did good...I'm proud of you...

Without a second thought, he said, "Kaidan."

Ashley looked over to him. "That's perfect."

"No middle name?" Joker asked.

Shepard thought for a moment more, "Any ideas, Ash?"

Ashley closed her eyes to think. After a few seconds, she said, "David".

Knowing that Ashley was thinking of Captain Anderson, Shepard looked at the child and said, "Kaidan David Shepard."

Acknowledging the meaning of the middle name, Ashley nodded. "I think it's time the father got a chance to hold him."

Ashley carefully lifted the baby up slightly, allowing enough room for Shepard to put his arms under him. Slowly and nervously, he lifted him from Ashley's arms and ever so gently held him. Shepard's heart skipped a beat as they made eye contact, Kaidan smiling at him so innocently. "Hey kiddo...welcome to the galaxy." The others sat silently as father and son interacted for the first time, not wanting the moment to spoil as the boy fell asleep in his father's arms.

10 years later...

"Kaidan!...Kaidan, where are you?" Ashley called throughout the house. She looked around every room of their two story home for her son, who knew well that it was time for bed. "C'mon Kaidan, it's past your bed time!" Finally, she looked out the window and saw Kaidan sitting on a hill against a tree under the beautiful night sky of Shanxi, staring out into the stars. Though she knew he needed to go to bed, she couldn't help but appreciate how curious he was about the worlds outside the only one he'd known.

Suddenly, she felt a familiar pair of hands begin to massage her shoulders. "Getting Kaidan ready for bed?" Shepard asked.

"Hm, trying to. He never has liked going to bed so early."

"True, takes after his mom on that one."

Glad he didn't use that innuendo while their son was in earshot, she jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. "And whose fault is that?"

"You've got me on that one...want me to go get him?"

"Yeah, he really needs to head to bed, he's got school in the morning."

"Alright, heading to bed or do you want to stay up and watch a vid?"

"Hmm, I think I'll head to bed. Why? Don't think you have the energy to 'sleep' tonight?"

"Wasn't sure you did."

"Heh, challenge accepted. Now go get Kaidan before he falls asleep out there."

"Roger that, LC."

Shepard gave her a quick kiss on the cheek as he opened the sliding door and started up the hill to where Kaidan was sitting. The boy looked very much like his father did, with short brown hair and a strong chin, but he had his mother's dark brown eyes. He noticed his father climbing up the hill. "Hey Pop."

"Hey. Looking out at the stars again, huh?"

"Yeah, I heard at school today that there are these things called constellations, these stars that make shapes in the sky when you connect them."

"Oh yeah? Did you find any out there?"

"No, they must be really hard to find."

Shepard looked out into the stars and looked for a constellation that he knew you could see from Shanxi. Pointing up to a bright star to the left of him, he said, "You see that big, bright star over there?"

"Yeah."

"Connect it to those stars over there and tell me what you see."

Kaidan looked at the series of stars intently, trying his best to see what shape they made. Just as he was about to give up, he tried connecting them in his head a different way and smiled. "Hey! It looks like a turian!"

"Sure does. That's what the turians call the vigilance cluster. They say that if you're fighting on a planet where that constellation is visible, and you're fighting for a good cause, you'll always win, because it'll be watching over you."

"Is that true, Pop?" Kaidan said, his eyes full of wonder at his father's description.

"You never know. I've seen stranger things in this galaxy."

"Wow..."

"Now, I know you want to spend some more time out here and find some more stars to connect, but your mother really wants you to get ready for bed."

"Awww, but I just found my first one."

"I know, but you'll have plenty of chances to find more tomorrow, it's friday remember? You'll be able to stay up a few hours longer tomorrow night and I'll help you find as many constellations as I can."

Thinking for a minute, Kaidan sighed and said, "Okay. Will you at least tell me a story before I go to bed?"

Smiling, Shepard said, "If you hurry, I'll tell you any story you want. That sound good?"

"Yeah!" Kaidan jumped up from his spot and ran down the hill, meeting his mother at the door. "Hey Mom! See those stars up there? They make a turian's face when you connect them!"

"Wow, that is cool. Now, I assume your father told you to head to bed?"

"Yeah, he's gonna tell me a story!"

"That's great. You better hurry though."

"I will!"

Hugging his mom, he ran up the stairs and into his bathroom to brush his teeth, leaving her to chuckle. "He loves those stories of yours."

Shepard leaned against a wall. "Yes he does."

"I just hope you realize that some of your stories aren't things a ten year old needs to know about."

"I wasn't planning on telling him about our honeymoon, Ash."

"You know what I mean. If you tell him about some of the scarier things we've seen, he won't sleep for days."

"I know. That's why I give him the abridged versions."

"Good. Now you better get up there before he starts to get restless."

"Alright, see you in a few. Love you."

"Love you." They gave each other a quick kiss on the lips before Shepard walked up the steps to his son's room.

Shepard was pleasantly surprised upon entering the room that Kaidan was already in bed, ready for his story. "C'mon Pop, which story are you going to tell me?"

"Hmmm..." Shepard exaggerated his thinking pose. "Why don't you decide which one I tell you?"

"Okay..." Kaidan thought for a moment. "How about the start of where you went after that Saren guy?"

Realizing that he was talking about Eden Prime, Shepard said, "I don't know, Kaidan. You know your mother doesn't like me telling you about those times."

"Aw, c'mon. I can handle it. Pleeeeeease?"

Unable to resist his son's pleas, he submitted. "Alright, but don't tell her I told you this, okay?"

"Okay."

Shepard pulled up the chair next to Kaidan's bed and sat down next to him, thinking about where he should start. "Okay, it was about thirteen years ago, just a few years before you were born. I was stationed as the XO of the first Normandy. We'd been told we were just going on a shake down run, what the military calls a test flight, but some people on the ship thought we were doing something more important than that, especially since we had a Council Spectre aboard, Nihlus. Well, an hour or so before we got to our destination, Eden Prime, I walked up to the bridge to talk to Joker, who was the pilot of the ship, and Alenko...you know who he is right?"

"Yeah, Mom told me a lot of cool things about him."

"Yeah...he was a good man. Anyway, they were talking about how it was weird to have a Spectre on board for a shake down run, so I said..."

Shepard continued to tell his son the story of how his struggle with the Reapers truly began as Kaidan slowly fell asleep, Shepard saying, "Goodnight, kiddo", as softly as he could and sneaked out of the room, allowing his son to rest.

As he slept, Kaidan dreamed of things many children have dreamed about for thousands of years: Adventure, excitement, being a hero, fighting bad guys. Little did this young boy know that these dreams may actually become a reality. But that is a story for another time.