Shepard's bones felt like shattered pieces of glass. Her brain was all fuzzy. Her lungs heaved for air. Her throat stung with every gulping gasp. She couldn't see anything, probably because she had her eyes squeezed shut. In an instant they flashed open and light flooded her vision, blinding her from seeing anything in front of her. She tried to move one of her arms, only to be interrupted by agonizing pain. Her jaws parted in a scream of anguish.
Where am I? What am I doing here? Am I alive? Many questions ran through her mind as she lay, forever falling. Suddenly her body grew cold, slashing at her like a phantoms sword. Freezing spasms circulated her body, leaving her in a form of immobility. She'd never felt such a pain in her life.
God, am I dead? Is this what real death feels like? She thought. At an instant her painful seizures stopped and she laid there, the warmth flowing back into her body. A blast of air filled her lungs. Gasping, she sat up, her vision slowly coming back to her. It didn't take her long to notice she wasn't floating at all, or falling. She was just simply in a room, more like area, of white mist. Is this heaven? She thought. It wasn't at all what she expected.
Her legs wobbled as she attempted to stand. When she was on her feet she thought she had it, but when she tried to take a step, her knees buckled and she collapsed on the white ground. Her brain rattled and seemed to shake in her skull, or what she felt of it. As she cringed in pain on the ground she felt a hand, smaller than her own, touch her shoulder. She looked up to see the little boy that had haunted her dreams for a while.
"W- What am I…" she choked out. "What am I…doing here?" She shuddered. The boy was silent for a while, then stood up and turned around, walking away a few steps.
"Come," He said.
"I- I can barely move…" She gasped.
The boy turned around.
"Did that stop you when you fought the reapers? Stand up!" He ordered.
Tears welled in her green eyes, but she did as she was told. She groaned and grunted as she hoisted herself up and onto her feet, steadying herself for balance. A pain shot up her side, almost knocking her off balance. She limped over to the boy, groaning with pain at every step she took. The little boy stopped a few feet ahead of her and she limped over to him. He was staring at some, and then he pointed ahead of him.
"Look," He said. Shepard looked ahead of them both, narrowing her eyes against the bright lights.
"I… I can't see anything…" She narrowed her eyes more until they were slits. "All I see is a bright light…"
The little boy took her hand in his and led her towards the shining light and in an instant they were floating above the Citadel, with the reapers! Shepard looked around cautiously then turned to the boy, glaring.
"What the hell is this?!" She demanded. "Where am I?!"
The boy held up a small hand for silence. "Your mind is within the reapers. You control them." He explained. "Try thinking of something, control them."
Shepard looked at the reapers, almost reluctant to try out her new-found powers. She tried to think of something but her thoughts were only clouded by nameless faces. Who were those people? She shook her head and thought hard, suddenly a reaper began to move, the people below didn't seem to notice it. She commanded the reaper to pick up some of scraps of metal. Shepard tried to concentrate on the reaper moving the piece of building, but her thoughts were again clouded; but with the memory of blue eyes and gentle hands wrapping around her waist. Her eyes snapped open when she heard a crash.
She looked to see the piece of metal had fallen on a couple of shuttles, luckily, not crushing anyone.
"It takes a while to get used to." The boy said. She turned her head to look at him.
"Am I… Dead? Is this heaven?" She asked. The boy shook his head.
"No, you are not dead. You are merely melded to the reapers. They obey your every command." He explained.
Was this what really happened? Her thoughts were once again clouded with the memory of blue eyes, gentle hands, and a soft soothing voice. Who was it?
"How do I get back?" She asked still gripping her ribs, which stung at every breath she took. She now only took short, quick breaths.
"There is no return, unless we rebuild your body. You will be quicker, smarter, and more agile than you were before. But it will come with a sacrifice." The boy explained.
"What doesn't these days?" She scorned. Her brow furrowed as the boy led her to another location. They walked across the vast field of white mist.
"Where're we going?" She asked finally. The boy kept walking until they came to a small container. It looked familiar.
"What's this?" She asked motioning with her good hand.
"This is a module that contains your human body. This state is merely your 'soul'" He said. "In your human state, you are asleep, waiting to be awoken."
A light bulb lit in Shepard's mind. "So, it's like a type of reincarnation? I'm being brought back to life again?" She asked.
The boy nodded. "Yes. From here you will be alive in the real world but in your dreams you will be here."
The hatch opened and she stepped closer.
"Are you ready?"
"Let's do it."