If you want to skip Shepard's Bio, go right ahead.
Character Bio:
Name: Jane Trinity Shepard
Born: 4/11/2154
Age: 29
Hair Color: [Original] Black [After Reconstruction] Red
Eye Color: [Original] Violet [After Reconstruction] Green
Skin: Ivory
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 163 lbs
Pre-Service History: You were born and raised on Mindoir, a small border colony in the Attican Traverse. When you were sixteen slavers raided Mindoir, slaughtering your family and friends. You were saved by a passing Alliance patrol. After being taken back to earth you were left with your Uncle, Admiral David Anderson, who took you in. You joined the Alliance at the age of 18, became an N7 recruit at the age of 20 and graduated at 25.
Psychological Profile: During your service, a mission you were on went horribly wrong. Trapped in an extreme survival situation, you had to overcome physical torments and psychological stresses that would have broken most people. You survived while all those around you fell, and now you alone are left to tell the tale. The Sole Survivor's unit was slaughtered in a thresher maw attack on Akuze.
Class: Vanguard
Talents: Incendiary Ammo – Cryo Ammo – Pull – Biotic Charge – Shockwave – Nova
Bonus Talents: [Original] Flare [After Reconstruction] Flare – Dominate – Slam
Looking up, seeing the fluorescent lights flick past her as the nurses and doctors hurried her through the hospital. Her body was strapped down, her neck in a brace, her wrist bound tightly to the bed railing to keep her from moving any further. The sounds around were muffled, the light was blinding her in this hallway. She could hear her Kaidan yelling in the background, what? She didn't know. What even happened? How did she get here? Her eyes fixed in on a doctor as she leaned over, flashing another damn light in her eyes.
Stop!
"S...e….c...he..r…?"
She opened her mouth, blood started to drip from the sides. The doctors panicked, moving her faster. She heard screaming as she was placed into the ER room. They locked all the door, the anesthesiologist placing a mask over her mouth and nose and told her to count back from ten.
Ten
Breathe, Shepard, just— "Let go of her!" Kaidan?
Nine
"Major, I'm going to ask you to please leave. Shepard needs—"
Eight
"I know what you're going to do to her!"
Se...en
What are they going to do to me?
..Six.
"Stand down, M—" "No!" Bang.
..F..v…
Shots fired. Bang. Bang. Bang.
...ur…
Blood splashed on Shepard's face, a doctor fell on her. A syringe was stabbed into her chest. A scream. A shot. "Shepard!"
...hree..
Kaidan, what are you doing? Kaidan! Kaidan shot the remaining doctors, his hand letting go of the weapon to clamp the open wound on his neck. "I...m sorry...Commander...I...fai..led..."
..w….
N—NO! KAIDAN! KAIDAN DON'T—
One
"SHEPARD!" Shepard shot up, screaming in pain. Her arms wrapped around her abdomen, her eyes struggled to look around the pitch black room. She wasn't in the ER room anymore, and from what she could tell, no one was in this room either.
"W...hr...am..." Shepard placed a hand over her mouth, coughing. Her throat was dry. A voice spoke over the intercom, complete gibberish to herself. She groaned, holding up a finger, quickly turned on her OT to check her translation. She hissed, moving her feet off the table and readjusting the frequency. She put her thumb up as the voice appeared in the intercom again.
"Everything alright, Commander Shepard?"
Shepard slowly slipped off the table, on hand holding onto her abdomen the entire time. Her words came out in hisses and forced laughter, "Could be worse. Though, it would be better too...Where am I?"
"Safe."
"Really?" Shepard wiped her brow, "I haven't been safe in years. How do you know—"
"We're sending someone in to assist you." A door on the far side of the pitch black room opened, a turian and an asari stepped through. The asari lit her omni-tool, pressing a few buttons before the lights in the room turned on.
So much for safe. Shepard shielded her eyes from the light before looking around the room. It was a medbay, or maybe a tech lab. Probably a combination. She looked over to the two officers and held her wrists out.
"You aren't our prisoner, Commander Shepard." The asari spoke, taking a step forward, "Our commanding officer would like to speak to you."
Shepard furrowed her brows, clearing her throat, "Wh...Where is...Major Alenko?"
Asari's face turned grim, looking down than up at the Turian. Shepard sighed, "Okay, I...I get it. Let's go see your commanding officer."
The turian motioned for Shepard to follow, "Right this way, Commander."
Shepard walked with the two, the asari walked silently behind her with the turian took point. Neither of them had weapons, which set Shepard's radar off. Something definitely wasn't right. She watched the turian from the back, she's been trained to watched. She could tell by the way he moved he wasn't nervous, anxious, agitated. He was calm, the little jump in his steps means that he's happy...excited perhaps? Why? Shepard sighed as they started walking up a flight of stairs. Shepard held onto her side, using the other hand to hold the railing as she forced herself to walk up.
"Ah," The Commanding Officer, at least who Shepard assumes is, stood up and walked around his desk. A turian, taller than most she's met. His clan markings were white with a small tinge of sky blue, his eyes a piercing green, his skin darker than any turian she'd seen before. This turian didn't wear a visor though, which stroke Shepard as odd. Must not be in the military, or just not any the field any longer.
"Commander Shepard," He walked towards her and stuck his hand out, "I'm glad to see we got to you in time."
Shepard eyed his hand suspiciously before taking it, "Who is 'we' exactly?" The turian laughed and nodded, motion her to sit. Shepard choose to sit in the couch in the back, away from the windows and also so should could laid down. She hadn't realized how much pain she was in until she walked up those damn stairs. Shepard grunted as she laid back on the couch.
"I—" Shepard hissed, "I'm sorry for laying down...I'm in a lot more pain than I thought."
"Liara," The Commanding Officer looked towards the asari, "Please retrieve Mordin Solus from his current study. Tell him Shepard has awaken and needs some minor medical attention."
"Yes, sir." Liara bowed, her arms crossed in front of her chest, before walking out. Shepard furrowed her brows and stared down at her bandaged chest and stomach. Blood was starting to seep through.
"Shit," Shepard moved, "I should—"
"It is all right, Commander." The Turian that brought her looked towards her, his mandibles flaring into a smirk, "You aren't the first who has bleed on a couch in here. That's our tenth in the past three months."
"That comforting." Shepard mumbled, but looked at the commanding officer just to make sure. He nodded and she settled back onto the couch.
"So," Shepard cleared her throat, "While I wait for, what I'm assuming, is either a shot to the head or thrown to a thresher maw, why don't we get down to business."
The commanding officers mandibles twitched into a smirk, "Anderson said you'd be funny."
"Anderson?" Shepard shot up, ignoring the pain in her stomach, "You know—"
"I do." The commanding officer walked over to her and sat on the coffee table in front of the couch, "He's the one who called me. Needed me to send in a team and get you out. Someone wants you, and others, dead. Admiral Anderson learned about the plot and contacted me—"
"Who even are you?" Shepard asked. Liara returned with a Salarian, who Shepard could only assume was Mordin by the way he instantly commanded her to lay down. Shepard complied, laying back down.
"My name is Nihlus Kryik," Nihlus spoke, pushing himself off the table and giving Mordin more room to work, "And I need your help."
Shepard watched Mordin as he cut the side of the gauze, laying a cloth over her breasts before slipping the rest of the gauze off.
"T—Thank you." Shepard's eyebrow raised in astonishment.
"Not needed to be worked on. Don't need to see." Mordin spoke quickly, pulling out a tweezer and non-absorbable suture material.
"Will sting, burn—possibly might scream." Mordin warned, diving into his work. The most Shepard did was grit her teeth, whatever meds they had pumped her up with at the hospital must still be in her system, or the Salarian added more when she arrived here.
"Where am I?" Shepard turned her head to look at Nihlus, who was speaking to the other turian that brought her in.
"Attican Traverse."
"Where in the system?"
"Nodacrux—"
"Vostok System. Maroon Sea—" Shepard cursed under her breath as Mordin finished stitching her up, "Why am I here?"
Mordin handed her a black tank, saying a few words to Nihlus before leaving. Shepard pulled on the tank, not caring the Liara and the other Turian weren't distracted enough to not watch. Shepard slowly stood up, sighing in relief when she didn't feel any pain. Nihlus motioned for her to follow him, which she complied. They walked the halls of the large building. Shepard glanced through windows and saw other turians, asari, salarians, even a few krogan and drells. They had a few M35 Mako's a couple M-44 Hammerheads, a butt load of skycars.
"I've never seen such a diverse group work together before." Shepard admitted, "Things have been...tense, as of late. Udina becoming a council member hasn't exactly...worked."
"Yes," Nihlus sighed, his mandibles twitching in annoyance, "Udina is the worst possible human to be seated on the council. I would have chosen Anderson."
"Glad to see we're in agreeance there." Shepard nodded, "You still haven't told me why I'm here though. Or how I'm alive. How did I get here? I was in the Sol System. What happened to Major Alenko? Why was I attacked? What—"
"All of that," Nihlus stopped at the end of a long hallway and turned to her, "Will be answered if you agree."
Shepard waited a few moments for him to continue, "...Agree? To what?" Nihlus stepped to the side, showing a door behind him.
"I will wait out here. After you speak with him, give me your final answer. We need you in this fight, Commander."
Shepard nodded to Nihlus before stepping towards the door. She clicked on the green panel, the door sliding open to her touch. She turned her head to see Nihlus and the other two with their backs turned to her, blocking her exit from the hallway. She pursed her lips. Smart, bastards. It isn't like she would have anywhere to go if she broke out of here anyhow. The planet was deadly, if she got any of the pollen in her system, she'd be dead within the next hour from an allergic reaction. She sighed. She hated the universe sometimes. She shook away her thought and walked in through the door, it sliding shut behind her before the lights turned on.
"Commander Shepard." Anderson on the other side of the table, a warm smile on his face.
"Uncle Anderson." Shepard couldn't help but smile as she ran to his side, jumping into his arms. He laughed, patting her back and pushing her away to look at her, "Glad to see your still alive."
"I heard I have you to thank for that." Shepard laughed, taking a seat in the chair next to his. Anderson sat back down in his own chair and slide a data pad towards her.
"A father has to protect his children." Anderson sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.
"From all the 'hush, hush' I'm guessing this is going behind the Alliance's back?" Shepard picked up the data pad and turned it on.
"More than that, Shepard, I'm afraid." Anderson watched Shepard skim through the data pad, "This is going behind everyone's backs. Every race, species—everyone is under attack."
"Why me? I need to know what Kaidan died for." Shepard continued skimming through the data pad. "I recognize a few of these names. Saren Arterius...They killed him?"
"Him and a few other Spectres, as you can see, but not all their targets are Spectres."
"Shit, Anderson." Shepard furrowed her brows, "But why me? Human Spectres aren't even being look at—never the less thought about. Not after Udina and his power hungry killing spree."
"You were under...consideration to become a Spectre. It was hush, hush—a need to know basis. They've seen how you handled Udina—"
"I'm guessing it's also because I have a bit of Admiral Anderson's blood flowing through my veins?" Shepard joked, flexing her arm, "You would have made a better Councilor...but I can see why. I can handle Udina and his bullshit, less diplomatic than you, but I get it done."
Anderson chuckled, leaning back into his chair, "We need to figure out who these people are—why they're killing Spectres and how they're getting away with it."
"...What about Kaidan?" Shepard set the data pad down and looked at her Uncle, "If I was their target..."
"They had to." Anderson shook his head, standing up and pacing around the table.
"Okay," Shepard sighed, "So...If I join this, whatever the hell is going on here, thing...what happens? I know how these things go, Uncle."
"You will no longer be Jane Trinity Shepard. The group here...I've worked with them before, the help criminals with talents—"
"My past life is gone. I'll be reconstructed, repurposed. No longer a...a Shepard." Shepard slumped back into her chair, pushing a hand through her hair. "I won't see you again...Will I?"
"Of course you will." Anderson answered quickly, turning around, "You are my family, no matter what—"
"But I'm not Jane Trinity Shepard anymore, Uncle. I'm...whatever the hell new name they give me."
Anderson around the table to her, "Yes, Jane Trinity Shepard will no longer exist. You will go through genetic modifications, your eyes will be different, your hair, maybe even your skin. But you will always be Jane Trinity Shepard. No one can take that away."
Shepard bit her lip and picked up the data pad again, "Do we have any leads?"
"I..." Anderson cleared his throat, "I can't tell you, unless you agree to become part of this."
"What even is 'this'?" Shepard gestured around the room, "I still don't know who I'll be working for."
"Shadow."
"Shadow?" Shepard covered her mouth, stifling in a giggle, "Shadow? You fucking serious?"
"Watch your language." Anderson crossed his arms.
"Shadow, Anderson?" Shepard forced herself to stand up, "Shadow doesn't exist, Anderson. You told me they didn't!"
"I said what you needed to hear! You were about to leave Earth, unskilled, untalented, to go hunt down slavers—"
"That killed my mother! My father! My home! Your family!" Shepard started to yell, pointing towards the door, "I will never work for them!"
"They aren't the same anymore, Jane." Anderson spoke softly, "The people who did that to Mindoir are dead. I made sure of that."
"Who are they now, Anderson? You just said they take in criminals—"
"Who want to do better. They are given a trial before being accepted into Shadow. If Nihlus doesn't see remorse or potential, he tells them to leave. He doesn't want Shadow to go back to being what it was."
Shepard crossed her arms, glaring down at the floor, "You're asking a lot of me, Uncle. You're asking me to forget who I am, put away my grudges, and work for the people that killed my family."
"I'm not asking you to do any of that." Anderson placed a hand on Shepard's shoulder, "If you say no, you and I will leave...but you will be hunted down by whoever or whatever is doing this. The moment you become a Spectre..."
Shepard bit her lip, falling back into her chair, "I'll be dead."
"You have an option here, Jane...Do whatever you think is right." Anderson leaned his bum against the table, crossing his arms.
"The Council doesn't know about this?" Shepard looked down at the data pad.
"They have an on going investigation...but they still don't know that you were attacked. They don't even know that another Spectre was found dead last night in the Terminus."
"They're walking in blind." Shepard leaned her head back against the chair, looking at Anderson. "I...I know what the right thing to do here is, Uncle...But I still just have so much hate."
"I know, Jane." Anderson sighed, standing up, "I know." He looked up with the door opened, seeing Liara, the turian and Nihlus walk in.
"When this is over," Anderson placed a hand on her shoulder, "I'll buy us our favorite ice cream."
Shepard giggled, "Mint Chocolate—"
"Cannabis Ice Cream." He leaned down and planted a kiss on the bridge of her nose, in between her eyebrows, "I'll see you later...daughter."
Shepard quickly stood up and pulled Anderson into a bear hug, ignoring the pressure of her new wound, "Goodbye...dad."
Liara and the Turian escorted Anderson out of the room, Nihlus silently stood a ways from Shepard, watching her. She quickly wiped a stray tear away and deeply sighed, "O—Okay, Nihlus...I'm in."