Summary: Months after the end of the Reaper Wars, the members of Council races and the crew of the Normandy try to put together the pieces left in their wake.

A/n: Besides from the game discs, I don't own Mass Effect. If I did it would have ended differently. Ending AU but holding on to basic themes. Kaiden/Femshep and James/OC and canon appearances.

Prologue

The pain at assaulted her as she busted into conscience was unlike anything she ever felt. That included having a massive chuck of Reaper smash almost right on top of her and waking up during before Cerberus finished her full body overhaul. It was enough to make her grasp and wish she had died when the Crucible destroyed the Reaper.

The only good thing was that everything hurt, which meant everything was still there. Her disturbing visit with the Catalysis kept replay in her mind adding mental pain to its physician counterpart. Sheppard had no idea how long she was out. She tried moving her limbs trying to access the damage, but found that her left arm was pinned under some debris. Well, there went the hope of clawing her way out of this mess. She tried calming her mind and reaching out with her biotics but the only thing she could manage to lift was the ash that had settled around her.

It was hopeless. This was it. Her number had finally come up, for the second time and there was no hope that all the king's men would be able to bring her back from the dead. Oh Kaiden, I'm sorry I can't make it back. Still, her will to live wouldn't let her just lay there and die. Time seemed to draw out into forever as she lay trapped in unforgiving darkness leading her down a road of madness.

That's why she dismissed the hushed noises that were coming closer as her wild imaginings. She tried to lift the beam that had her arm pinned and while she made little progress it wasn't nearly enough to get her free. A primal scream ripped from her throat at the injustice of it all.

"Major, did you…?" A female voice drifted across the debris she was in. Followed almost instantly by the sound of not too distant banging and clanging.

"Get on the comm and let everyone know we have a fix on Sheppard." The sound of kaiden's voice brought out tears that Sheppard was sure she didn't have ten seconds ago.

"Sir, are you sure it's the Commander?"

"Who else would it fucking be?" Jack's bark shot back. "Seriously where did you find this dumb bitch?"

More clanging and banging as the Kaiden and Jack used their biotics to clear a path to Sheppard. The time that had been drawing out before speed quickly by as three pairs of boots came into view.

"Shit, she'd in bad shape." Kaiden knelt down by her side. "Sheppard, stay with me."

Sheppard got her first look at the third voice with her friends as the young woman in Alliance armor came to her other side waving her Omni-tool. "this isn't good. Vitals are steady, but very faint. The Commander needs more than Medi-gel. We don't have time to wait for evac, we have to move her now and hope for the best, sir"

If it had been any other time Sheppard would have liked this girl's straight forward assessment of the situation, but all she could do was think about was that there was no way that she was going to die now even the pain killer that Kaiden had given her numbed everything in her system. She struggled to stay awake as black flirted with the edges of her vision.

"It's ok I've got you." He didn't let go of the gripped he had on her hand until the drugs pulled her under. "Jack, get the beam."

"No problem." the flare of biotic lit the space around as Jack moved to lift the beam off the commander's arm.

"Wait." the warning came too late as the ceiling started to crash their way. The young woman brought up a partial barrier just in time to keep the weight of twisted metal from landing on them. The blue light from her biotics danced around her body as she struggled to keep it in place. Kaiden saw they didn't have much time before the young woman's barrier gave way under the weight she was trying to keep supported. He gathered Sheppard's broken body in his arms and ran with as much speed that he could manage.

Jack ran in front of the group throwing much of the debris they had climbed over on their way in out of the way. Behind him he heard the crash of the ceiling they had just been under falling to floor followed by more sounds of the structure collapsing around them. Brief concern for the woman they left behind was quickly forgotten as her footsteps echoed behind his.

In a cloud of dust and ash, the group stumbled into the daylight with their precious cargo in hand. Kaiden laid Sheppard's unconscious form down on the ground and started surveying her injuries in the light of day. It didn't look good, but she would pull through. She had to. Otherwise his world would fall apart again.

Just then the medi-vac shuttle landed outside the wreckage of the Citadel.