A familiar sensation of water lapping against the side of her face seemed to stir Shepard from her unconsciousness. As she slowly roused awake, her hands dug into what felt like wet sand, her eyes still closed and preventing her from taking stock of her situation. The familiar scent of salt and sand causing her to cough a bit, feeling a dryness in the back of her throat. Where was she?

She finally opened her eyes, nearly blinded by the orange sun that was setting on a never-ending horizon, her green eyes narrowed into slits as she forced herself into an upright position. Her knees sunk into the yielding sand beneath her, her hands caked in it as she raised them up to her eye level. She remembered them being coated in her own blood, scratched to hell and almost like tenderized meat. She remembered the overwhelming pain that encompassed her body. And most of all, she remembered the blast as her pistol laid out the course for her inevitable end. She remembered the sense of peace that have enveloped her. That she had done her job and now the galaxy was safe again.

So where was she?

A gentle breeze lifted her cherry red locks toward her face, strands cutting across her face in lines as she tried to pull herself to her feet. Her vision focused and she was met with the sight of a beautiful blue-green sea, the water lapping near her knees as the sun continued to tug toward the horizon, yet the light seemed everlasting. The air was warm against her moist skin and she almost felt a contentment holding her. It was a beautiful sight, yet confusion still held her.

"Siha-"

His voice was like a melody as the former commander turned her head to look behind her. The sight was almost too much as tears rapidly swelled within her eyelids, her lips parting in anticipation as a shuddered breath escaped her. Lifelike and towering, the frame of Thane Krios approached her. His movements were like fluid like she remembered, his webbed hand extending out toward her. She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "T-Thane." Shepard choked, a stray tear trembling down her face, spilling across the freckles that rested on her cheeks and curved underneath her chin. It was then that his hand made contact against her flesh, his touch as warm as the breeze that swirled around them. She closed her eyes in that instant, a whimper leaving her as she leaned her face into his touch. His thumb brushed the tear away before his hand cradled her cheek. He moved to his knees before her, a motion that seemed almost as if it were in slow motion. Was this real? Was she trapped in her own mind? His other hand moved to cradle the other side of her face as his drew closer. The hardened woman was convinced this was a dream. Or perhaps a final scene for her to lose herself in as her life drifted away from her. The drell wasn't really here. As she attempted to speak, she just shook her head in disbelief. But Thane simply smiled at her, stroking her flesh between his delicate hands. Shepard dared to open her eyes as she looked into Thane's awaiting eyes.

"Welcome home, Siha." He said in that same gravely tone, yet his expression was serene. And that's when it dawned on her. The sea that laid before her, his presence. She let out a choked sob, his arms encircling around her as she wrapped her arms around his back. She clamped her eyes shut, tears spilling against her soft face as she shook her head. He stroked her hair as she trembled in his arms, yet a slow smile began to form as she buried her face into his shoulder, inhaling him in. She wasn't worried or afraid, no those feelings gave way to the overwhelming serenity as she pulled free from him just enough so she could look at him. His eyes scanned over her face, his hands still holding her to him while one stroked her red locks. As their foreheads pressed together in an intimate embrace, a slow smile crept across Thane's face.

"I've been waiting for you."