Hello all. I would say I am sorry for not updating any of my stories sooner, but so much has happened and continues to happen. Some days I have nothing but want to write, others it is the last thing on my mind. So, with that in mind, here is a chapter 1 rewrite. It mostly contains grammatical fixes as I have become a slightly better writer in the time I have spent down. It may also contain some additions, however, the bulk of it should be the new chapter I will release in the coming days.

As soon as he heard the hiss, John knew he was in trouble. "Suit rupture detected, Pressure: 90%" Every Spacers worst nightmare was to have a suit rupture, and John got to live the experience. As he spun helplessly, he glanced at the Normandy just in time to watch his ship explode. He had no idea how he was going to get out of this mess, when only 2 weeks ago, everything was going so well

2 weeks earlier

John took a deep breath and opened his eyes. He was in the captains cabin of the SSV Normandy, his ship. The thought still brought him chills to this day. Council Spectre, ship's captain. He was responsible for the lives of everyone on board. Suddenly, John felt someone move next to him. When he turned his head, his nose was tickled by a mass of black hair. Slowly, the memories of last night returned, her coming up to his room, confessing his fears to her, both falling into his bed. John put his head back down as she snuggled closer, pressing herself into him.

Carefully, John pulled himself from the bed, and walked over to the shower. As he was scrubbing his hair, the shower door opened, and a pair of arms encircled his waist. "Trying to shower without me?" John smiled as he turned to face Ashley Williams. Gunnery Sergeant, lone survivor of the 212th on Eden Prime, his lover. Ashley was more then a crewman, and everyone could see how happy the two were together. John smiled, and leaned in to kiss her. "Behave commander, we drop in 4 hours and you need to finish that shower." And with that, Ashley left, leaving nothing behind but the feeling of her touch.

2 weeks later

A beeping brought Shepard out of his memory. With a glance, the commander saw that his oxygen reserve was down to 20%. John looked around to see if there were any escape pods nearby. When none were close, he reached to grab the loose hose. After a few seconds, he managed to grab the tube and plug it back in. "Oxygen hose connected: Attempting repressurization." John let go for a minute, looking at the pods entering the atmosphere. "Warning. Oxygen Depleted. Seek nearest habitable structure and remove helmet." Shuddering, John looked out at the vast emptiness. He grabbed his pistol, put it next to his head, and smiled at the hope falling to the planet below.

Jack Harper, former Alliance Special Operator, sat in his chair, staring at the stars. The flickering lights made it seem almost peaceful. "We are at war. No one wants to admit it but Humanity's under attack. One very specific man might be all that stands between Humanity and the greatest threat of our brief existence. We need a leader, someone who can unite the galaxy behind us. Shepard has a good start, but he hasn't done enough to get the other races to accept us as one of them."

The clicking of heels approached. "We do not have much time if we want to distance ourselves from the Council." Miranda Lawson stepped around the chair, holding a pad in her hand. "Ever since Shepard saved the council our colonies have been under attack, and no one is claiming responsibility."

Jack sighed, and lit a cigar, one of his Arcturan Blends. "We must bring him to our side. We do not have the time to bring someone else into the spotlight." Jack stood up, and turned around, facing the wall that sat behind him. "Miranda, get me every cell head on this wall now." Miranda strode forward, sending messages out on her pad. As the wall started to blink on, faces filled the individual screens. From Soldiers to Scientists, Politicians to smugglers, people of all walks of life filled the wall. Once all the screens were filled, Jack began.

"Shepard is our best bet at securing the kind of help we need if we want to defeat the reapers, and so, we must bring him in. We will surround him with the best and brightest, the toughest and deadliest allies we can find. The team will have to be strong, their resolve unquestionable. He is unique. Not just in terms of what he has accomplished, but what he represents. He is the future of humanity, and his success is humanities success." Every screen was quiet, no one wanted to make a peep, for fear of interrupting this speech. "The Council will never trust Cerberus, they'll never accept our help. No matter how much we have given them. Even after everything humanity has accomplished. But Shepard, he is there spectre. He saved them without sacrificing a single ship. He's a hero, a bloody icon. Now, we must make him into more than an icon, we must make him into a god. Everyone must know the truth about Shepard, and what he stood for."

Jack picked up his drink and stared at the data pad. "Bring him in, bring him back. I want all shipyards to start building as fast as they can. I want all recruiters bringing in fresh bodies. We need to prepare for the Reapers, and if the council won't help, then Humanity must prepare." Miranda stared, shocked at how far The Illusive Man was willing to go. "How do we know that he won't betray us to the council? Or to the Alliance? We can't trust him!" He turned around. staring out of the window of cronos station. Jack Harper had come to a decision that would shake the future of the galaxy.

"Send one of our agents on the Kilimanjaro an alert, and have him give Hackett our fleet numbers and assault base positions. We need to throw everything in with Shepard if we want Humanity to win this war." Miranda stood still for a moment, believing her boss to be joking before she nodded and walked back to the door. As she was drafting the message on her omni-tool, a soldier ran in, and stopped before The Illusive Man. "Sir, Shepard is dead." Miranda had never seen her boss stutter, pause, or even look surprised. So when his cigar fell from his hand, she was shaken. He stood, and walked towards the window. "Which system was the Normandy attacked in?" The soldiers helmet moved slightly, using his armors comm system. "Amanda system, Omega Nebula sir." He turned, facing the soldier, gazing at him for a moment, before glancing at Miranda. "Go, take the 2nd. Bring the body back. We have work to do and a Shepard to prepare for. Trooper, call the shipyards, get them cranking out ships as fast as we can." Jack Harper sat in his chair, and pulled up a vidscreen. As the screen showed in progress, he pulled out a second cigar, taking a deep drag as the screen showed a grizzled human in an Alliance uniform. "Admiral Hackett, we need to talk."