Carmen Shepard stepped through the doorway from the stairwell in engineering, confident in her engineers' abilities to finish the modifications with the heating pipe. She didn't notice Javik coming out of his quarters as she sneezed into her elbow, stifling another. The Prothean blinked, staring at her. "Are you ill, Commander?"

Shepard hid her initial shock well, turning to face her blunt comrade. "No, someone's probably just thinking about me."

Javik tilted his head slightly to the side. "Many think of you, Commander, but that has nothing to do with your own body."

Shepard held a hand up. "It's a human saying. No, Javik, I'm fine."

This seemed to placate the Prothean, who continued on his way as Shepard went to the elevator, going to the CIC. Truthfully, she was beyond tired but the Reapers wouldn't wait for her to get some rest; time was running out. She stood in front of the galaxy map for a bit, staring at the interface showing the systems that had fallen under Reaper control. She shook her head, stepping back from the console. "Joker, plot a course for the Far Rim. The Quarians are ready to talk."

"Aye aye Commander."

Shepard sighed and returned to the elevator, going to the Crew Deck to investigate dinner. She found, however, that the menu was mostly various soups, the exception being an Earth dish of garlic basted shrimp garnished with coconut. Having a distaste for soup ever since the collector base and unwilling to divulge her allergy to coconut, she went to the lounge instead, deciding to drink her dinner. As she sat down at the bar, pouring herself a drink, her thoughts turned to her mother. She kept telling herself that she was alright, but deep down she couldn't deny the fear that the Reapers had killed her or worse. With that thought in mind, she tossed back three shots, barely realizing she was pouring more.

Nearly an hour later, the door to the lounge opened and Javik walked in, looking at Shepard. "We will be arriving at the Far Rim relay soon, Commander. Is it wise to consume such amounts of alcohol?"

Shepard cleared her throat, taking a sip from her glass. "Javik, soldiers in this cycle are, for the most part, so used to drinking that half a bottle before meeting with dignitaries is nearly expected."

Javik shook his head, stepping over to the bar and leaning against it. "That is more than half a bottle, Commander."

Shepard sighed. "Thank you for pointing out the obvious, Javik. Are you going to tell me that the Reapers are invading, as well?" She stifled a sneeze, sniffing and downing the rest of her glass. She reached to pour herself another but Javik was faster, taking the bottle away from her. "The hell do you think you're doing?"

Javik reached forward and grabbed Carmen's arm. She saw flashes of his memory, feeling some of her own memories transition to him. The Prothean released her arm, looking at her. "You are thinking of your mother. There are more important things to be concerned about, Commander. Your cycle is nearing its end."

Carmen stood up and stopped herself, feeling her fists clench. She shook her head and turned away. "Not all of us have nothing left to live for, Javik. Family is important."

Javik seemed to take a moment to ponder this, feeling he'd said something very wrong. Joker's voice came over the intercom, breaking the silence. "Approaching the Far Rim relay now. ETA five minutes."

Shepard nodded. "Thanks, Joker." She pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, going to the elevator to be in the war room when the Quarians boarded.