This is my first story; I have been a long-time lurker here and have decided to buckle down and contribute. I, like so many others, take issue with the end of Mass Effect 3 and I choose to accept an indoctrination theory of sorts. Mine is a Paragon FemShep, loyal to Liara, Spacer, War Hero. What can I say, I'm a sucker for the quintessential "good guy". There are elements I have left out of this first chapter purposefully (the Crucible, the Catalyst, etc.) and more clarity will come with later chapters.
If those of you feel the inclination, please let me know what you think. Now, on with the story!
"Focus your fire on the oculi!" The command from Admiral Hackett blasted through the communications channels. The Reapers had paused, something had happened. The combined forces of organics and Geth were not going to waste this opportunity.
All ships and ground troops opened fire on the immobilized Reapers. The pause was no more than thirty seconds, but in that short time, they were crippled. Reapers were falling across the galaxy. Even those that had survived the onslaught would not survive much longer. The organics had pulled ahead.
After several hours of fighting, Harbinger finally succumbed to fire. The massive Reaper fell dead in the streets of London, the last of its kind. Communications channels were buzzing with reports of conquered Reapers from all over the world and throughout the galaxy.
Victory.
"Garrus!" A frantic voice called out again and again. "Shepard!"
"Normandy, this is Liara, I cannot locate Garrus or the Commander, can you get a read on their position?" Dr. T'Soni was frantic, there was only rubble and smoke for as far as she could see. Some larger structures had survived, but the streets were littered with the remnants of war.
"Negative Doctor. I'm sending more of the crew to your location; sit tight. We'll find them, Liara." Joker tried to be as comforting as possible. He grimaced and finished alerting the other crew members of their new search and rescue mission. "It can't end like this EDI, it just… can't."
"The Commander had 0.000141% of surviving a direct hit from a Reaper. If Dr. T'Soni's report was accurate, then it is unlikely that we will find the Commander at all." EDI hesitated, managing to seem awkward. "However, Shepard has overcome insurmountable odds in the past; perhaps she will pull through Jeff."
"Shit." Was all Joker could say. "We've gotta try, EDI. We owe her that."
"Joker have the rest of the ground team meet me down in the armory." Joker jumped as Ashley came over the intercom.
"You're clear LC Williams. Team is being notified now."
Down in the armory Ashley Williams paced back and forth as she waited for the rest of the crew to assemble. Almost the entire crew had rendezvoused back at the Normandy after Harbinger had fallen. Dr. Chakwas had seen to the more serious injuries, but those that had only minor scrapes and burns were left to help one another. Ashley hastily treated her own scrapes and burns, then moved on to the other crew members. She roughly bandaged one private's leg, unable to concentrate on technique. Williams knew she was racing against the clock; that every moment spent in preparation pushed Shepard closer to death. That is, if she had even survived.
"Um… Ma'am?" James ventured carefully, hesitant to break the Lieutenant Commander's concentration. "We're all here."
Ashley's head snapped up and she surveyed her team. Vega was shifting nervously, his normal bravado having crumbled hours ago. He was relatively uninjured, only a few cuts here and there. Javik stood almost perfectly still, his eyes seemed to bore into Ashley as she looked at him. Tali's helmet had been cracked and there were multiple tears on her suit. She had hastily patched what she could and loaded up on Medi-gel and anti-biotics to combat the impending illness. Her breathing was uneven, but she had refused to stay behind. Wrex had also joined their squad. He was limping; it looked like half of his foot had been blown off. Even EDI seemed to have taken a beating. The dents and scorch marks on her metal exterior indicated that the AI had seen some serious combat of her own.
Williams motioned for the group to pile uncomfortably into the heavily damaged, secondary shuttle. James got behind the controls and started them off toward Liara's location.
"Okay people, listen up." Ashley tried with everything she could muster to sound as confident as Commander Shepard. It was a battle for her to keep her hands from shaking and her voice from wavering. "We are missing two of our team. Garrus and Shepard are out there somewhere. We didn't come this far to lose them like this. We'll split into three teams. Wrex, you and Tali will be with Liara. EDI is with Javik and Vega comes with me. I don't think we will have to worry too much about Reaper ground forces. Once the big guys started falling, the freak show got hammered. But just in case, keep an eye out. Our primary objective is finding the Commander and Garrus. Any other rescue efforts are secondary. We owe it to Shepard to give it everything we've got. You know what she means to all of us, I don't need to spell it out. Get out there and find her. Bring her home."
With that the cabin of the shuttle was silent. Once Vega found a safe landing area close to Liara, the team piled out.
"Thank the Goddess you've arrived! I have been searching but I… I cannot find them." She blinked back tears. She was beyond exhausted and utterly overwhelmed, but she could not, would not stop until she found Shepard. Her shoulder had been dislocated and her right arm was hanging awkwardly at her side.
Tali walked briskly to Liara and pulled her into a gentle hug, avoiding the damaged shoulder. "We're with you Doc." Wrex rumbled as gently as he could. Liara pulled herself together and nodded.
After two hours of searching, the team got a morale boost.
"Lieutenant Commander Williams." EDI called over the channel to Ashley, but was heard by the entire team. "Javik has located Admiral Vakarian. His left arm was pinned under rubble, smashing his omni-tool. He is unconscious, but his vitals appear to be stable. I will radio Joker for pickup."
"You're clear EDI. Good work you two. When you get Garrus secured, get back down here."
Several hours after Garrus had been found, the search for Shepard had proved unsuccessful. Ashley was torn. To leave the Commander out here seemed unthinkable, but she could not imagine that her CO had been able to survive this long. She made up her mind. "Meet me back at the shuttle everyone."
"What?" Liara's voice was panicked. She had grown increasingly frantic as the hours wore on. "You cannot be serious. I will not leave Shepard out here. I must find her."
"We've been through a hell of a day Liara, if we don't get some rest we get sloppy. We can continue searching after we get some sleep. We won't be able to help the Commander if we're walking around like zombies." Ashley heard Liara's scream of protest over the radio. "Everyone goes back to the Normandy tonight. That's an order."
"No. I will continue to search. I will not abandon her!" Liara had reached her emotional limit. Tears of rage streaked down her face. Her head was pounding and her stomach was in upheaval at the thought of abandoning her bondmate.
Ashley shook her head. She hated herself for ordering the team to fall back; but she knew it's what Shepard would have wanted. Shepard would not want her friends coming to harm for her sake. "Bring her in Wrex, however you need to."
With that Wrex grabbed Liara and threw her over his shoulder. "Put me down at once!" She yelled in protest. "You are making a mistake! WREX!" Liara pounded on his back with her good arm until she dissolved into tears, accepting defeat.
The team sat in the Normandy's conference room. They had all been attended to by Chakwas after Garrus had been stabilized. Liara was no longer crying, but sat in a daze, staring at the table top. They had been unable to find Shepard. They all knew there was little use in going back. Shepard could not have survived Harbinger's attack without immediate medical treatment – if it was survivable at all.
"We tried." Was all Ashley could say. Everything seemed hollow. She felt as if her very existence was a mockery. She had let down the woman she respected most.
"Lieutenant Commander!" Joker's voice rang through the ship excitedly.
"What is it Joker?" Ashley sighed. She felt broken.
"I just received a communication from an Alliance ground clinic. They found an N7 Marine. She was alive, but just barely." The team perked up, not daring to even breathe, afraid that the littlest thing would cause disruption. "They think its Shepard."
