Mass Effect 3: Rewrite (Under Reconstruction)

by SwordofMercy

This isn't about saving the galaxy Shepard, this is about redeeming it from a mistake that was made countless lives ago. In redemption lies true salvation- The Archivist, A Mass Effect 3 Reboot. Under reconstruction.

1. The Ancient Endings

Eve smiled as she gazed upon the young boy running around in his yard; A toy ship tightly grasped in his small hand as he imagined its flight. Her heart swelled with both happiness and despair at the sight. To know that such innocence still existed in the galaxy, lifted the woman's spirits. Yet this innocence only meant that the child was unaware of the war that was coming, that would soon reach their peaceful planet. And soon his life, and the lives of millions of others across the galaxy, would be shattered, if not completely swept away into oblivion. Such a thought, nearly broke her, but only just. For she would not allow her darkest thoughts to betray her strength.

She would fight, and continue to fight until the galaxy was safe once more.

She wold fight because she was meant to. She would fight because everyone depended on her.

She would fight because no other could.

She would fight because she had dreams beyond that of war and death.

Shepard groaned softly and rested her head against the window; Her thoughts once more scattered between the past, present, and future. In the past, she had never questioned her skills, nor her morality, nor her place in the galaxy. She knew that she was a good person, as she had set herself out to bring happiness and safety to others. Her life had been hard; It had always been hard. The death of her family on Mindior, the loss of her team on Akuze, and all bleak the events of the last two decades all seemed to pile up on her bare shoulders. But it was her life none-the-less, and she had always made the best of it.

Now, as the dark threat of the Reapers loomed so close, she could not help but feel lost. She was afraid. Only a few years ago she was just an Alliance soldier, ready to serve her people. But then she was offered the chance of a lifetime, to become a Specter, a protector to all the known races. Yet fate had other plans. Saren, the Geth, Sovereign, her death, the Collectors, Cerberus, Harbinger; All leading to loss, pain, and the possibility that the galaxy might come to an abrupt end. Again. The Commander did not know whether fate had deemed her to be the savior of her galaxy because she was truly the only one that could indeed save it, or if it was just a cruel joke against the hope the universe placed upon her.

"Commander."

Eve quickly turned to find Lieutenant Vega saluting her near the doorway; A small smirk plastered on his face from her own look of surprise. Pulling herself away from the window Eve replied, "You not supposed to call me that anymore James," her own sad smile graced her pale, freckled face. Vega only shrugged and said, "Well I'm not supposed to salute you either." Before Shepard could reply the soldier continued, "Why gotta go. The Admiralty Board wants to see you." Eve's face blanked out all emotion for a second, before a look of determination filled her once-tired eyes. "Sounds important", she said as she tossed away the data pad she was reviewing and followed the large man.

Upon entering the hall, Eve immediately noticed how the hall was crowded with Alliance officers; Each rushing off to their own destination. Their voices morphed together into a sound of desperation. Upon their passing, Eve noticed something in each of their eyes that sent a shiver down her spine: Fear. Something was horribly wrong, and in the very fiber of her being, Eve knew exactly what is was they feared. She dreaded it to be correct.

Noticing that James had walked ahead, Eve jogged to catch up with him. They had slight difficulty finding their way through crowd of nearly panicking people. James grunted as a soldier collided into his shoulder. The officer in turn, did not even look back to apologize to the larger man. James only sighed and shook his head. "Seems like everyone's gone loco today. Even the Admiralty Board looked like they all wanted to throw themselves out a window." I glanced a Shepard and asked, "Do you know what's going on Commander?" Before Eve could answer, I familiar face caught her attention. A warm smile splayed upon her face as she reached out to shake the hand of Councilor David Anderson.

"Good to see you Shepard", he said as he grasped Shepard's hand.

"Councilor Anderson", Shepard greeted as she gave Anderson's hand a firm shake.

Anderson's smile seemed to falter slightly before he replied, "It's Admiral now. I resigned from the Council when Hackett informed me of your... detainment." Shepard frowned slightly at the new information. She had chosen Anderson to be the Councilor because she irrefutably trusted that he would do what was best for not only humanity, but for the other races of the galaxy as well; Putting the need of the people before 'politcal' standing. To hear that he had resigned because of her own actions did not bode well for the ex-Commander. Something indeed, was very wrong.

"Who holds the seat now?" asked Eve, though deep down she knew already what the answer.

Anderson replied with a deeper frown, "I was advised to allow Udina to be my successor, when I announced I was stepping down. With all that has happened in the last few years, and what is going to happen, I felt that I should be on the front lines instead of behind a desk."

Eve started, but felt her blood run cold as she realized what he was implying, "What's going on Anderson?" The Admiral motioned for Shepard and James to follow him. Spine set rigid, and every step held a pace of urgency, his voice held a tone that demanded full attention. "Admiral Hackett is mobilizing the fleets. I'm guessing word has made it to Alliance Command, something big is heading our way." He stopped as he heard Shepard's own footsteps fall silent. Turning around, he found the Commander standing at the bottom of the stairs; Amber eyes wide with realization, fingers twitching, and her mouth was set in a hard line. She knew what the Admiral spoke of. She knew and dreaded it to be true.

"The Reapers?" she asked in a toneless voice.

Anderson only shook his head before replying, "We don't know. Not for certain."

Eve's eyes locked with his as she shot back, "Then what else could it be sir?"

Once again, Anderson fell silent for a moment before he said sullenly, "If I knew that Shepard..." Leaving the sentence hanging in a cold silence.

The Commander's head was swarmed by negative thoughts. Some questioned how they had received no warning that the Reapers had arrived from dark-space, others about how ready the fleets were. Some even questioned if the other civilizations were ready to aid Earth, and in return, if Earth was ready to aid them. Then there was that small voice in the back of Eve's head, that questioned upon the safety of her crew; her friends, her family, the center of her own world. Perhaps even more, she questioned the safety of Garrus.

Knowing that each second that passed would prove to be precious, Eve Shepard said with a frown, "It must be the Reapers. And you know we aren't ready to face them." Anderson shrugged slightly as he continued to walk on. "Tell that to the Board," he said with what Eve thought was a soft, but bitter chuckle. Jogging slightly, Eve managed to catch up with him. "Sir," she began, "If the Reapers are here then we need to prepare now. Not sit around discussing if it is them or not." She heard Anderson sigh softly before he replied, "It's not that easy Shepard. They're just scared." The soldiers dodge a groups of officers as the hurriedly turned a corner. Neither party stopped to salute one another, but rather continued on their own missions. Anderson glanced at Shepard and Vega before he continued on. "We don't know even why the Reapers are doing this, why they are continuing to do this. That's what scares them, hell even me, the most. But you," he glanced a Shepard once again with both pride and sorrow, "none of us have seen what you've seen. We've reviewed your reports, seen the data you've collected, but its all just theory to us. You've been there, fighting in the trenches. You know what they are capable of."

Eve halted once again as she stared at Anderson. "Then why take away my ship sir?" she asked as calmly as she could, "I could have gotten more data. I could have helped everyone prepare-"

"It's not that simple Shepard!" interrupted Anderson sternly as he came to a stop and stand in front of the ex-Commander. He continued, "If it were my choice, I would have let you keep the Normandy, hell I would have given you a damn medal for saving our asses from the Collectors. I would have let you do what you do best and help save us all. But when you blew up that Alpha Relay, hundreds of thousands of Batarians died. Not to mention your past relationship with Cerberus. A terrorist group of all things! The Alliance couldn't afford to lose the support from the other Council races, and I wasn't going to lose you to the angry masses calling for your execution!"

Eve stared at Anderson in shock and honor; Shock from the betrayal she received from the Alliance, but honor in hearing of Anderson's concerns for her. She has long ago accepted that Anderson was a father-figure to her, after she had lost her own on Mindoir. To the young woman, he was a figure that one could turn to when they needed strength, comfort, and resolve. And at this point, Eve needed as much of each as she could get."If there had been any other way sir, I would have gladly taken it over Cerberus... And the destruction of the Alpha Relay" she began with a calmer voice, "But there is too much at risk to think back on what I could have done. For now, I can only work to save as many as everyone else as I can."

Anderson simply nodded; His face still grimly set. "I know that Shepard," he replied solemnly, "I never doubt that. And this comity believes in you as well."

Eve chuckled softly in amusement before saying, "Are you sure it just wasn't your good word?" Anderson?"

"I've always trusted you Shepard. Now I am asking you to trust me."

The ex-Commander frowned as if slightly offended."I do trust you sir," she said, "But you know as much as I do that I'm a just a soldier, not a politician." Though some may suggest otherwise given her highly 'paragon' attitude.

"Sometimes, that's what politics needs," replied Anderson with a smile of his own, "The 'Just Soldiers' to tell the politicians to stop being politicians for once." Eve couldn't help but smile at his apparently new philosophy, and did not hesitate to follow the Admiral once more. Perhaps this was payback for the time she made him the Councilor of humanity. For those last few moments, they walked in a comfortable silence before reaching the hearing room. A young woman, perhaps the secretary, saluted them upon their arrival before she said, "The Board is expecting you two. Please follow me." In quick, almost urgent strides, they followed the young brunette. As they reached the door, the secretary came to a halt to speak to another officer to discuss, from what Eve could only guess, whether or not the Board was ready for the next hearing. A warm hand on Eve's shoulder forced her to turn and face Vega, who smirked lightly and extended his hand. "It was a pleasure to meet you Commander," he said in a tone of great respect. With a small smile of her own, Eve took the large man's hand and gave it a firm shake. She heard the Admiral's voice greet another individual, but paid little attention to what he was said. Suddenly I familiar, yet strangely bone-chilling, voice reached her ears. "Shepard?" it said.

Eve turned quickly to meet the familiar face of Ashley Williams. Her long, brown hair was pulled back into her signature bun, though it showed signs of increased length. Her body, as it always had before, still maintained a look of physical fitness that was only achieved through years of combat training. She wore what the common alliance uniform, just as the one Eve wore at that very moment, though it showed signs of more wear. Her face, remained the same; Sun-tanned, toned, and strict with a dash of childishness in those brown eyes; Though the eyes themselves did indeed show an obvious lack of proper rest.

"Ashley?" Eve asked in near shock and slight relief. Ashley seemed to smile stiffly at the Commander, perhaps out of mistrust or the need to save face. Anderson quickly stepped in before a tense silence could fester.

"Shepard," he began, "Lieutenant-Commander Williams has just delivered her report to the Board." He turned to look directly at Williams as he asked, " How did it go Lieutenant-Commander?" Eve couldn't help but notice that his voice held a slight edge of hope under the authoritative tone. It made her uneasy to think that the Admiralty Board would continue to ignore the data she had given them. She prayed to whatever immortal denizen that would listen, that they would see the danger now.

Ashley shrugged her shoulders and replied, "I can never tell with them. They've ordered me to stay close by while they interview you and the Comma... Shepard. But other than that, just typical politics unfortunatley." Anderson chuckled softly at the comment, and Eve could not help but smile, only to have it wiped away in confusion.

"Lieutenant-Commander?" she asked in slight disbelief.

Anderson glanced over with a cocked brow before he said, "You hadn't heard?"

Eve shook her head, her eyes never leaving the now nervously shifting Ashley. "No, I hadn't", she said softly.

Ashley looked ashamed for a brief moment, or perhaps the Commander imagined it. With a tense tone of voice Ashley states, "Sorry Shepard. It's been... Well, it been hectic." Eve only smiled sadly once again, understanding Ashley's true intentions for her secrecy, but did not voice any form of retort. She had accepted long ago that whatever relationship Ashley and her had as friends was most likely over, due to their confrontation on Horizon. But she also knew that airing the embers of that event would do little good in the times ahead, no matter how tempting it seemed at the time.

"Don't worry about it Ashley," said Eve with a strained smile, "I'm sure you had your reasons."

Ashley was silent for a moment; Staring blankly at the women before her. The only word that lifted her lips was a soft "Ya."

Suddenly the secretary from before quickly strolled over to the three companions and stiffly said to the Admiral, "They're ready for you sir."

Anderson gave a quick glance and a nod to the Commander; His eyes telling Eve to do everything she could to get the Admiralty Board to take action, to see the danger before tgem. "Then we'd better get in there," he said. Eve could only nod, and waited for Anderson to take the lead. As they walked on, Eve threw one last glance at Ashley; Her amber eyes seeking some essence of the woman she once called a friend. As if seeing her desire, Ashley cast her one smile, an actual smile. The Commander returned with a true smile of her own. Her spirit lifted slightly at the prospect of gaining her old friend back; A needed stability in the harsh times to come. As the Commander passed through the large double doors, she failed to her the conversation the two remaining soldiers had.

James turned to look down on the shorter soldier as he asked, "You know the Commander?"

Ashley's smile vanished in an instant, recalling the events that happened years before, and the betrayal she felt just months ago. In a cold voice that matched her now stern face, she replied, "I used to." Without waiting for an answer from James, Ashley quickly turned on her heel, and walked briskly down the hall; Her mind filled with the thoughts of a time when things were much less complicated.

Eve walked into a large, windowed room to come face-to-face with the Alliance Admiralty Board. Each member's face was set grimly; There somber eyes fixed on the Commander and asking her the same question. Eve wished she could feel some form of pity for them, for the weight upon their shoulders, and perhaps even pride in their actions, no matter how small, to prepare Earth for the coming invasion. But at the same time, she felt nothing but hatred towards them. She had tried to warn them of the Reaper's invasion, she even turned herself into the authorities shortly after her mission against the Collectors to stave the division of the galaxy's people. And yet, they continued to second-guess her at every turn; Constantly claiming that she was wrong about her findings. The Commander didn't know who was worst, the Council or the Board. She had hoped that within these last few months, they had taken the action that Anderson assured her they were taking. Otherwise humanity, let alone the entire galaxy, would be lost.

Anderson quickly walked to stand before the Board. He did not offer a salute to the Board; Just a simple nod of his head, and a quick glance to each member. With his spine set steel-rigged and in a gruff voice he asked, "What's the situation?"

One of the Board members, an old man with a very stern face, gravelly replied, "We were hoping that Shepard could tell us that." He threw a quick glance at the Commander; His eyes filled with a mixture of mistrust, confusion, and hope. "We trust that she will be forthcoming with any information," he continued before falling silent. But before Eve could conjure an answer, or perhaps a retort of her own, the Admiral's voice echoed throughout the room.

"Shepard has been telling you for the nearly four years what was coming, and now you want to listen to her?" he said in an angered voice. "After stripping her of her rank and branding her a criminal?" At this point, Eve did not know whether to be proud or intimidated toward the now angered Admiral.

Another Board member with a face just as stern as the last, scowled heavily as he said, "That is quite enough Admiral Anderson. I am sure that the Commander can speak for herself." His gaze seemed to soften slightly, but only slightly, as he turned to look at the Commander. "Shepard?" he said in a strict, but gentle voice. The Commander glanced at the Admiral, looking for some form of support. Anderson only nodded in quietly said, "Go on now."

With a deep breath to calm her nerves, the Commander took those few steps forward to stand directly in from the the Alliance Admiralty Board. A deathly silence had filled the room. Every individual within waiting to here the answers to nearly impossible question. With one last breath, Eve said in the strongest voice she could muster, "What is it you want to know?" The Board members glanced at one another, before one of them, an elderly woman with kind face, activated her console and made a large map of the galaxy appear. With the flick of her wrist, she focused it upon one of the outer systems that was controlled by the Alliance."At exactly 2300," began the woman, "one of our deep space outposts detected energy readings the likes of which they had never encountered before." She paused for a moment, to gain her the control of the fear that had seeped into her voice. "By 2400," she continued, "we had lost contact with that base, along with three others in the surrounding area. With each passing hour, more and more of our bases and outposts have gone completely dark. Reports have also shown that several outposts in Council Space and the Terminus Systems have been lost."

"Shepard," said the kinder Board member, "do you know what could be causing this?"

Shepard stared at the star-map for a moment of silence, before it disappeared in a flash. She wished to tell the Board what was coming, in a manner that could vent her frustrations. She wished she could yell, and scream at them for not listening to her, even after everything she had done for not just humanity, but for the galaxy. But she had long ago learned to control such negative outbursts, though she never learned to fully quell the temptation to release. Meeting the eyes of the Board, the Commander bluntly, but calmly stated, "You brought me here to confirm what you already know." Her gaze drifted across the faces in the room as she then said, "The Reapers are here."

The room became alive with mixed chatter. Some of it was the wishes of those asking for it not to be true, others were short curses of rage and fear. Some even became prays to whatever great being that would listen, for strength and safety. Others, were simply muttered excuses before the speakers quickly left the room; A last chance to call their families to get to safety. The Board quickly called the room to order, ushering in a newly born silence; As if a tense fog hung in the air as the onlookers twitched and muttered in their seats. The Board was silent as well, seeming at a loss of words. Finally, after a few moments, the female Board member leaned forward to lock eyes with the Commander. Her kind but jaded eyes demanded the Commander's full attention, and the undeniable truth as she asked, "Then, how do we stop them?"

"By fighting back," replied Shepard in her commanding tone. She heard the mutters rise once again but chose to ignore it as she continued, "These things, are not going to react to motions of compromise and peace. They never used them reacted to them before, so why now? They will never show us mercy. And they will never take pity on us."

"But how?" asked the first Board member, "How can we possibly fight something like this?"

Shepard glanced around the room, ensuring that she had the attention of every person in the room. "If we are going to have any chance against the Reapers," she said in her still confident voice, "everyone in the galaxy must be willing to stand together against them."

"That's it?" said one of the Board members in irritation and disbelief, "That's our grand plan?" But before Eve could say another word, the young secretary from before raised her voice above the rabble; Her words sent an unforgettable chill down Shepard's spine. "We just lost contact with Lunar Base."

"The moon? But that's not possible," came Anderson's voice.

"How could have gotten past our defenses?" asked one of the Board members.

"I'm getting feeds worldwide" the secretary called over the sounds of panic that began to fill the room. She activated her console in trembling fingers as she said, "You may want to see this."

And in that moment, that one moment that the screen at the back of the hearing room came to life, did Eve realize that the Reapers were not something to be truly feared. No, they were something much worse. They were the darkest creatures that one would hear stories about at a child from their parents. It would only be years later that they would realize that such tales are of fantasy alone; An entity that should not be feared as it did not exist. Only this time, with the Reapers, such tales were real.

The screen was filled with the images of burning buildings, crashing ships, and the firing of weapons. People screamed, ran, fought, and died as the Reapers' husks could be seen running freely upon the ground; Slaughtering everything in their path. The shadows cast by the colossal-size Reapers that had landed cast some of the footage-blocks into complete darkness. Other blocks trembled at the force of the Reapers making contact with the Earth. And all that ran through Eve's mind at that point, the one thought that silenced all others was: They are here.

Anderson's voice broke Eve out of her shock. He said in near anger, or perhaps fear, "Why haven't we heard from Admiral Hackett?" Eve only cast him a single short glance, before her gaze shifted back to the screen that only a sheer fraction of the Earth's destruction was upon. She herself, a woman of optimism, could only dread for the worst at this point.

"What do we do?", came the voice of one of the Board members.

Eve knew the answer, but deep down, she knew it would require some of the greatest sacrifices; Not just from every denizen in the galaxy, but from herself as well. She did not waste any time in questioning if she was ready for such a task for she already knew the answer. Giving one last look at the screen, she turned away to stride to the Board's table. In a voice, that some would say held the strength of the entire universe, she proclaimed, "The only thing we can: We show these things that we will stand together and take back our homes."

No sooner had Eve said those words, did a low, mournful drone fill the air; The bass of the sound reverberated around the room as if to call the army of Hell forth unto the world. The windows behind the Board shuddered ominously as the sound became louder and louder. As the Board members stood from there seats and began to back away from the window, a Reapers dropped down from the sky to land nearby. The room rose up into a panic as the denizens quickly bolted from their seats and to the door. But it was already too late at that point. The hellish being's weapons had already been charged as it fired lasers to cut into the surrounding buildings. Shepard, as if caught in some trance, could only stand there as her greatest fear stood right before her.

"Shepard!", came Anderson's voice that caused Eve to look toward the Admiral, "Move!" Suddenly the laser honed in the the Board room and began to disintegrate everything in it path. "Run", called the Admiral once more. "Go, Go, Go!" Eve wasted no time as she quickly turned to run, but the weapons fire had already been to close. A massive explosion caused the large table nearest to the window to fly over Shepard's head. The force of its heavy landing caused Shepard to stumble, and she turned back to see the once-again, angry red glow of the laser as it was once again fired near her location. The explosion it caused sent her flying back to hit the wall behind her. With a pained grunt, she rolled on her back on remained there for a moment in a daze. For just a moment, one short moment, she thought she was back on the damned surgical table; First awakening from her time as Project Lazarus's test subject.

"Shepard", came a muffled but urgent voice.

The Commander groaned as she slowly forced her body into a sitting position. One of her hands rose up to rub the slowly building ache in her head. Feeling a sticky, wet sensation, Shepard brought her hand to her eyes to see her own blood upon her fingers. "So this really isn't a dream", she thought silently to herself.

"Shepard!"

Her gaze snapped up to see Anderson jogging toward her. His suit was torn, burnt and bloodied, but he was well and alive; A fact that Eve was grateful for. With strong hands, he grabbed Shepard's arm and helped her stand on wobbling legs. After a moment to catch her breath, he handed her a standard pistol. The weight of it in her hands felt reassuring but terrifying at the same time; Prepared as a soldier but terrified in facing an nearly unbeatable force. "Come on," said Anderson has he began to walk toward the now destroyed window, "We have to contact the Normandy and get the hell out of here."

With unshaken hands, Anderson reached up to activate the comm in his ear. His voice seemed to contain a thousand emotions as he tried to contact the Normandy. "Normandy, this is Admiral Anderson. We are at the... Normandy? Normandy do you copy? Joker?!" Anderson shook his head in agitation and he locked eyes with the Commander as he said, "Dammit! It's the Reaper's jamming signal. I can't contact the Normandy from here." He leaned out the window, his eyes turning left and right, as if searching for something. After a moment of silence, he pointed out to what appeared to be the remains of a cruiser; It's skeleton sticking ominously out of the water. "There," he said, "That looks like one of our emergency drop ships. If we can get there, we might be able to find a radio and at least get a partial signal out to the Normandy." He didn't wait for Shepard's reply as he jumped off the window's edge and turned to gaze up at Shepard.

The Commander, in turn, walked closer the windows edge and looked out the the blazing city. She knew those fires would be alive for weeks, or even months before they were put out. It reminded her of the fires the blazed on Mindior when the slavers arrived. But these things, the Repears, were not slavers. No, they were so much worse. She knew that, as did the other civilizations , and the cycles that came countless times before them. But what they didn't know, was that the pattern stopped here. Commander Eve Shepard of the Alliance Navy would make sure of that. With a deep breath to calm herself, and a wish of luck, the Commander lept off the window ledge and proceeded to follow Anderson.

And that's when she heard those God-awful screams; The same screams that would haunt her in the days to come.

It was like a race to the finish-line; Muscles burning, heart bounding, lungs screaming for air, the winds flying through one's hair. If only it were such a race one would have on a warm summer day, rather than a flee for their life.

Shepard and Anderson quickly made their way down the railing and began to work there way toward the crashed cruiser. Quick glimpses at the ground confirmed Shepard's fears as the outlines of husks could be seen from her vantage point. She couldn't bear to watch as the human citizens ran for their own lives. But nothing in the galaxy could block out those terrible screams. The young Commander could only imagine what the Reapers planned to do to the captured civilians; As she had seen what the Collectors had done to the harvested colonists when she and her crew went through the Omega Relay. Deep down, some greedy part of her mind wished that she hadn't been the one to see that, that she hadn't been the one to have been made a Specter and seen such terrible things within the last few years. Sometimes she just wished that she was just an average civilian, trying to make an average living, and pretend that the galaxy did not have such monsters.

Eve shook her head to clear away the dark thoughts. Now was not the time to contemplate the past. There was only the present to live, and the future to look forward to. And just in time as well.

"Husks!", yelled Anderson as they crossed one of the building's roofs. Shepard instinctively raised her gun and aimed at the climbing bodies of the husks. Their gray, deformed bodies and glowing hollow eyes sent a shiver down her spine as she gazed upon them. But that did little to dissuade her from pulling the trigger of her gun. With great accuracy, she shot down the husks that she could, and used her biotics to throw the other ones off the roof. She was not going to risk letting a single husks get away from her alive, so that they might take the lives of others.

As soon as the husks were eliminated, Anderson quickly made his way down a ladder; Eve following close behind. Jumping a balcony rail, they came upon an unlocked door. Their relief was short lived however, when the familiar groaning of husks could be heard approaching. Anderson tried to fire at the husks as they climbed the balcony's railing, only to find he was out of ammo. He glanced quickly at Eve to confirm that she was also out.

"Looks like we're doing this the old fashion way," he said as he charged the closest husks he could find. With quick and powerful precision, he delivered a heavy punch to the abomination's head. It wheezed in defiance as it swung its arms at the Admiral, who in turn, ducked out of the way, and punched the husk once more.

Eve wasted little time in joining the Admiral, as she balled up her own fists and turned to an approaching husks. With a cry of her own, the Commander charged her biotics and delivered her own deadly punch to the creature. It stood little chance as it was lifted off the ground, from the extra biotic force, and proceeded to tumble over the rail to its death. A small smile graced her lips as the familiarity of battle began to ease her body. She was a soldier, this was what she was trained to do.

With the last of the husks beaten, Shepard and Anderson turned to the door; Both nearly sighed with relief when it opened to show that no enemies awaited them. A door on the other side of the room signaled a way out, and possibly, a route to the cruiser. Anderson walked up to the door and pressed lightly upon the flickering panel. He cursed softly as the door only opened partially. He motioned Eve over with his hand and said, "Looks like there's a hallway on the other side of this door. See if you can pry it upon enough for me to get through. No point in having us both trapped in their if it turns out to be a dead-end."

Eve nodded and made her way over to the door. As she reached for one of the door's panels, a husks reached out trough the gap and attempted to grab the Commander. She quickly lept away from the door, and once again, charging her biotics, delivered a heavy punch to the creature; It body seemed to explode as its blue, and possibly synthetic blood, covered parts of the door.

Anderson's and Eve's heavy breathing filled the air for a moment, before the Admiral said with a soft chuckle, "Dammit. I'm too old for these continuous surprises." Shepard could only offer a faint smile as she once again moved to force the door open. With a soft grunt, the young woman wedged herself between the metal panels and forced her arms forward. The door squealed slightly as she increased the gap between the two sides. Anderson, seeing how Eve struggled holding the door, wasted no time as he ducked down, and quickly squeezed himself through the gap. He glanced around the hallway quickly before stating, "Looks pretty bad, but we might be able to dig ourselves through. Let's me see if I can find something to keep the door open. Hopefully, other survivors will get the hint and follow our path." He didn't even glanced back at Eve as he began to dig through the piles of debris.

Suddenly, a faint sound caught the Commander's attention. She turned her eyes toward the room once more; Looking for the sound's source. She could have sworn it was someone crying. With a quick glance at Anderson, Eve pulled herself out from between the doors and began her own search. As she neared a ventilation duct, she heard a gasp, and glanced over quickly enough to see the face of a retreating child. "Hey," she said softly as she approached. Crouching low, her fears were correct as she stared into the bruised face of a young boy. Eve could have sworn it was the same boy that she saw from her window earlier before.

The boys eyes were filled with tears and he tried to scoot himself farther away from the Commander. His soft, terrified voice nearly broke Eve's heart as he said, "Who... Who are you?" Shepard was about to answer, only to be interrupted be the sudden thunder-like sound, of a passing Reaper. A quick few of the rooms window confirmed that their location was not the safest.

Eve once again locked eyes with the child and softly said, "I'm Commander Shepard."

The boys face seemed to perk up and a very small smile seemed to grace his face. "The one from the news?" he said, "The Shepard?"

"Yes," replied the Commander patiently, though her body screamed for her to grab the boy and run for safety. Slowly, as not to startle the boy, Eve raised her hand for the boy to take. "It's not safe here," she said as calmly as she could, "Come on. Take my hand."

What smile the boy seemed to have quickly fell from his face and he quickly looked away from the Commander. His eyes were once more filled with tears as he met Shepard's gaze once again. "You can't help me," he whispered ever-so calmly.

Eve was about to retort, perhaps scream at the boy in desperation, or even use her biotics to drag the child into her arms and tell him he was wrong. But Anderson's voice made her tear her amber eyes away from the boy.

"Shepard," called Anderson as he stepped through the door; It panels held open by a metal bar that Anderson had most likely scavenged. Seeing where the Commander was, Anderson briskly walked over to stand near his companion. "What is it?" he asked in a slightly worried tone.

"There's a kid in here sir," Eve quickly replied, "I'm not leaving him." The last part of her statement left little room for debate from the normally peaceful woman.

Anderson flicked his eyes to the duct entrance, a look of confusion upon his face. "Shepard," he said slowly and with concern, "there's no one there." Eve was about to retort, but quickly turned her eyes to find that the Admiral spoke the truth. The boy was gone. Eve didn't know what she felt: grief, anger, confusion, or even fear; The fear that perhaps she was beginning to lose her mind. Anderson left little time for her to decide as his voice summoned her from her contemplation.

"Come on," he said, "Let's get moving." He didn't wait for Eve as he turned quickly away and made his way through the newly created door. The young woman hesitated for a moment, her eyes locked onto the air vent. She prayed to whatever deity that was willing to listen, to ensure that the child remained safe. With a heavy spirit, Eve rose to stand, and followed the Admiral through the door.

"What a goddamn mess", Shepard heard Anderson mutter as he bent down to shove a plate of metal out of the way. Eve walked up to stand behind the Admiral, but made no remark as he continued, "Every minute those things are here, thousands of innocent lives are lost." The Admiral paused is work for a brief moment, his eyes losing focusing and his face becoming blank. With a shake of his head, he continued to push bits of metal off the path. "I can't... I won't be responsible for that", he said softly.

Eve nodded her head in understanding; A look of regret flashing through her ember eyes. "I know the feeling sir," she said, "It's one thing to fight a war, but knowing you can't save the all..." She closed her eyes, remembering how she coped with the lives lost in the Battle of the Citadel, to the Collectors, and even the lives of the Batarians of the Alpha Relay incident. Looking once more to meet the eyes of the Admiral, her own holding her resolve and regret, she said, "It only makes the fight that much harder. All we can due is fight to save those that we can."

"You're right Shepard," replied Anderson forlornly, "And we'll make sure those bastards pay for the lives they took so that those who are left know their deaths were not meaningless." He motioned for Shepard to go under a large metal plating, to which the young woman gladly obliged. She grunted as she forced the plate upward, and allowed the Admiral to pass through. "They just came so damn fast," he said a frustrated, if not angry, tone, "We knew they were coming, but I always thought we would have more time. They just cut through our defenses and are now destroying everything in there path."

When a sigh of relief the Commander quickly maneuvered herself out from under the metal, and allowed in to fall with a heavy crash. She stretched her arms to work out the dull pain that had built from the strain and turned to find Anderson crouched down and looking under another pile of deformed metal.

"We have to get to the Citadel," he said with resolve and he turned to lock eyes with Shepard, "talk to the Council. The Reapers sure as hell are not going to stay on Earth for long. Hell, they may very well have already reached the other home-worlds for all we know!"

The Commander felt her blood run cold. Leave Earth? When the Reapers were destroying everything that was humanity? In the very fiber of her being, she knew the Admiral was right, but still...

"I know your right sir, but I can't do that." said the woman sternly, "I can't abandon Earth while the Reapers are here destroying our home."

"I know its hard Shepard." replied Anderson in a fatherly tone; Soft, but leaving no room for defiance, "But like you said, the only way we will be able to defeat the Reapers, is that everyone is going to have to stand together. And if anyone can unite the galaxy, it's you."

"No pressure huh?" said Eve with a soft smirk as they work themselves through the warped metal. The Admiral chuckled as he replied, "With the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance? No, no pressure at all." But his light mood only lasted briefly. As they came to stand at the ledge of a deep drop, Anderson added, "But you aren't alone in this Shepard. The Council will listen to you." The young woman only shrugged, and skeptically replied, "You think so?"; Recalling upon the times that Council continuously second-guessed her at every turn.

Anderson seemed to pause, as if contemplating the validity of his previous statement. With a nearly silent sigh he motioned for Eve to stand on the ledge first. Seconds ticked by in silence as the two soldiers slowly shuffled their way across the thin ledge. "They have to," said Anderson as if he were trying to convince himself, "You were a Specter. That has to count for something. And with the Reapers already here, I can't even imagine that they would turn you, of all people, away."

Eve was about to reply, perhaps make a joke about 'air quotations', when a sudden tremor nearly knocked her from the ledge. Her arms flailed out as she tried to balance herself; Seeking something, anything, to grab onto. She nearly cried out in relief as she felt Anderson firm grip on her shoulder as he pulled her back to safety. The young woman tried to calm her breathing, and for some reason, as shaken from the experience. After a moment to calm herself, she gave the Admiral a nod of gratitude and continued her trek across the ledge. "Thanks," she said, "I owe you one."

The young Commander could literally feel Anderson's frown, and could have sworn he a whispered a soft 'no'. But perhaps that, was just the wind.

Both soldiers seemed to sigh in relief as their feet touched the hard, stable material of a complete floor. Anderson wasted no time in running to a nearby body, and patting down the body. In a flash, he seemed to catch himself, and whispered an apology as he pulled out what remained of the dead's heat sinks. "Grab some ammo over there," he said pointing to another body on the other-side of the room. Without waiting for a reply, he jogged to the end of the room and gazed out the large, burned-out gape in the wall; A place where a window might have been. The young Commander only hesitated for a second before walking over and retrieving what was left of the dead soldiers ammo. She offered her own silent apology to the deceased before reloading her gun and making her way to Anderson.

Upon hearing the Commander's approaching steps, Anderson glanced back to give a curt nod to the young woman before leaping onto, yet another, ledge that ran along the side of the burning building. Shepard did not hesitate to follow suite. The trek only lasted a few minutes, until they came upon the remains of what appeared to be another building. Scrap metal, concrete, and glass remained scattered on that remained of the floor. On a normal day, the Commander would have been a little nervous about walking on top of such a questionable base; Too bad for her, she had not had a normal day in a long time. With quick and light feet, the two soldiers made their way across the remains of the building. They were nearly across when a sudden noise filled Eve's ears.

"Thi-... Admiral An-... Fire...", it said in a fumble of words and static.

A quick glance at Anderson confirmed that he had heard it as well. Reaching up to activate his own comm, the Admiral said, "This is Admiral Anderson. Repeat. This is Admiral Anderson. Shepard and I are inbound on a cruiser in the north bay. Keep your comms open until, and listen for our signal."

The reply he received did not sit well with the Commander.

"Ander-... We ca-... oh God!"

A sudden explosion caught the two soldiers off guard as it shook the floor of which they stood upon. The Commander only had enough time to see the destruction of a nearby cruiser before she, and Anderson, were sent sliding down the collapsing building. Luckily, the drop was gradual, and with a soft grunt, both Shepard and Anderson landed safely on the ground below. Eve looked up to the sky to see the remains of the destroyed cruiser fall into the bay area; No escape pods could be seen leaving the fiery carcass.

The soft sound of voices drew the young woman's attention toward the bay. Survivors? It was almost too much to hope for. She didn't wait for Anderson's order's as she jogged toward the ledge and jumped. Luckily for her, it was only a short fall, to which, she landed gracefully. Anderson's grunt signaled his own landing, and the two proceeded onward. Eve's earlier suspicions were confirmed when Anderson said, "Friendlies", as they came upon a small group a soldiers, "Perhaps they are from the crashed cruiser."

Anderson quickly knelt down next to one of the soldier's while the Commander stood guard; Her gaze glancing around the area in search of enemies. A loud groan brought her attention back to the soldiers, and she nearly gasped when she saw that one of them had both his legs trapped under a metal support beam. Anderson shook his head forlornly and locked eyes with one of the men. "How bad is it?", he asked.

"Not as bad as it looks", replied the soldier optimistically though his eyes were filled with a sad look. "That is, if we can get this thing off of him. If we don't..." he trailed off has he looked at his unconscious brother-in-arms; His face pulled into a deep frown. "I won't let those damned husks get him."

Anderson only nodded once before he replied, "Do you have a radio son? We need to get into contact with the Normandy and signal for pickup. With luck, we can get you and your men out of here as well."

The soldier thought for a moment, and was about to reply when his companion shouted, "Holy shit! More of those things! Take cover!"

A loud screeching sound filled the air, causing Eve to bolt for cover nearby the group. Crouching low, she readied her weapon and took a deep breath. Bolting upward, she raised herself to a combat position and aimed her gun to lock onto what appeared to be... She had no clue. At first glance, they appeared to be husks, but they were quite different as well. They were slightly larger in size, with four glowing eyes, and wide mouths. For some strange reason, they reminded her of Batarians.

"... Oh God..." she gasped as the idea entered her mind.

What was even more troubling, was that the approaching group seemed to halt as a husk corpse. The Commander's blood ran icy cold as she saw the abominations tear into the synthetic beings flesh and shove if quickly into their awaiting maws. Their feast did not last long however, and the turned to once again face the small group of soldiers. They all gave another ear piercing screech before charging.

Time seemed to slow down as the Commander fired her weapon. It was like fighting the geth all over again, or space mercenaries, or the Collectors. In her mind, there was no distinction between the enemies. A shot to the head could disable shields, or them if one was lucky. A biotic slam could permanently cripple them , while a biotic throw would send them flying through the air. Grenades, though powerful, were saved for clusters, as to minimize their use, though concussion shots were easy to replace them on the tougher enemies. Or if one was feeling creative, a quick field overload on their shields, followed by a singularity has near the same affect, if of course, finalized by a warp.

In those few moments, Eve's tactical prowess seemed to take hold of her very body. In her years with the Alliance Navy, as a Specter, as a Cerberus 'operative', she had met some of the most gifted people in the galaxy; Each having an art at killing their enemies in the most efficient way possible. In the eyes of others, such knowledge could have been seen as strange, if not heretical in morality. And yet, in such times, when the chances of one living and dying depended upon whether they used an assault rifle or a pistol, such knowledge would be highly beneficial. Deep down, the Commander knew that her tactics did not come from simply reading a book, but rather, through working with so many varying people. All of which fought by her side to the end, risking their lives for the common goal of keeping the galaxy safe... Or something along those lines. And the Commander was not going to let their teachings go out the airlock before she could thank them properly.

Once the new husks were defeated, Eve turned to Anderson, who then motioned for the Commander to take hold of one side of the beam. Anderson grabbed the other, and nodded toward the soldier he had been talking to earlier; A signal to be prepared. With a grunt the Commander and Admiral lifted the beam up enough, so that the remaining soldiers could pull their injured comrade out from under the beam. When he was clear, Eve and Anderson did not hesitate to drop the heavy metal. It groaned loudly as it failed to catch the ledge and fell into the water, creating a bridge-like structure to the sunken cruiser. "Well at least we don't have to swim now", thought Shepard.

"We did have a radio sir," came a voice from behind; The soldier that Anderson had spoken to. "When we first crashed, our comms-officer had it, but upon retreat, he was killed. We've tried several times to retrieve it, but those damn husks just keep coming..." He trailed off as if ashamed.

Eve, no longer able to keep silent anymore, quickly stepped forward and said, "You did what was best for your men. Do not be ashamed of saving their lives. Be happy that you're alive to get up and fight again."

The soldier gave the Commander a blank stare, before nodding; his eyes however, shined with a new-found resolve. Giving Shepard a quick, but proper salute, he turned to attend his unconscious friend.

"Come on," said Anderson as he approached the newly created bridge, "With luck, that radio is still on the cruiser."

Readying their weapons, the two companions made their way across their makeshift bridge and onto the remains of the Alliance ship. As they rounded a corner, the familiar sound screech could be heard, and the Commander had ducked just in time to dodge the husk's blasts.

"It's like there's no end to them!" shouted Anderson as he opened fire on the cannibalistic husks. Eve was quick to take action as well, as did not hesitate to fire upon the approaching creatures. Her brow dripped with sweat, her arms shook, and her eyes watered from the smoke that filled the air. She tried to recall a time that she had felt like this in battle, only to find that the only memory she held was that of Mindoir; When the slavers attacked. She would have guessed, that she had been conditioned the ignore shut functions of the body in the heat of battle, and her time in confinement simply led for to become more sensitive to the stresses of battle once more... Or perhaps, it was only affecting her now, because her own world was burning. Again.

With the last of the husks slain, the two companions dashed towards the only opening the drowned ship had to offer. The smell of burnt flesh wafted up the Commander's nose, and her eyes fell upon what little remained of the those who tried to escape their fiery death. She shivered the thought of those trapped inside; Either burned alive or having drowned in the bays now tainted waters.

"Shepard", called Anderson from afar, "Over here."

Jogging over, Shepard watched as the Admiral tried to pull a standard emergency radio from the arms of one of the corpses. Her eyes widened, and she nearly hacked when she say that its lower section appeared to be torn apart. She could only wish that the poor man had died a quick death before those creatures had gotten to him. A familiar bullet wound in his skull quelled Shepard's fears, but did little to ease her heart.

Anderson heaved the device once more, and managed to dislodge it from the deceased soldiers frozen arms. Shuffling away from the dead man, the Admiral knelt upon the ground, opened the radio, and turned it one. Its blue screen came to life in an instant, but seemed to flicker as though damaged. Perhaps though, it was the interference of the Reaper's jamming signal. Tapping a few buttons, Anderson began his work of finding a free and clear frequency to contact the Normandy.

"Normandy," he said into the recorder, "This is Admiral Anderson. I am with Commander Shepard in the vicinity of the northern bay. We have three soldiers, along with ourselves in need of immediate pick up. Does anyone copy?" The comm fell silent once more, and Anderson released a tired sigh. Looking to Shepard, he ordered, "Scavenge the area for anything we can use. If we are lucky, I can at least get a partial signal to the Normandy and let them know we are here."

Glancing around to ensure no enemies were yet upon them, Eve noticed the familiar shape of a standard assault rifle. As she made her way over, she could have sworn she was being watched, but simply brushed it off as nerves. In a few quick strides, she came to stand at the rifle, and bent down to pick it up. Like the pistol, the rifle felt familiar in her hands, and she had little trouble handling it.

Turning back to the frustrated Anderson, Eve approached him and and was greeted by static upon the radio.

"Normandy," the Admiral said again, "This is Admiral Anderson hailing for pick-up. Does anyone copy?"

The only reply he received was even more static.

"Dammit!" he yelled as he slammed his fist upon the ground. "Even with our emergency broadcasts, we cannot hail the Normandy from here. Not with that damn Reaper signal jamming everything."

Shepard remained silent for a moment, thinking of a 'Plan B'. In her experience, the plans just seemed to make themselves through the input of her crew. But they were not there in that moment; The time she needed them once more. For now, all she could do was remain calm and think. And then it hit her.

"Maybe they can't get to us," she began, "But we might be able to get to them.

"What?" said Anderson.

"Sir, with that jamming signal blocking communications, there may be no way of contacting them. Our best chance is to find a drop shuttle, and then find the Normandy near orbit." replied Eve; As if trying to convince herself of her own plan.

"Shepard, you've seen what these things have done to our cruisers. What makes you think we'd have better luck in something not even a fraction of the size?"

"That's the thing about luck sir: We don't know."

The two fell into silence as Anderson thought it over. But it only lasted for a moment.

"Alright", he said, "We'll do it your way Commander."

Raising himself to stand, Anderson readied his own pistol, and prepared for, what might be, a long trek to the nearest hub station. But before either of them could take another step, that damnable screech filled the air as they were set upon by another horde of husks.

"Damn!" yelled Anderson as he ran for cover, "There is just no end to these things!"

Eve did not bother to answer her superior as she opened fire upon the abominations. For everyone that, fell two more took its place. Never before had the Commander seen such a force. Perhaps even worse yet, that there would be even more waiting just around the corner. But to stop fighting, would be to die, and Shepard had no intention of walking through the land of the dead again. So she continued to fire her guns, she continued to use her biotics, she continued to use her grenades, and when the enemies got to close, she continued to crack their skulls with her bare hands. But even that, was not enough.

As the Commander bent down to reload her rifle, a husk managed to get past Anderson and grab the unsuspecting woman; Its cold arms only made her think of Death's own cold embrace

"Shepard!" called Anderson as he tried to take aim at the attacking husk; A near fatal mistake on his part. For the invading army had no intention of waiting for their targets to be ready.

Eve's vision began to blur as she struggled to free herself of the choking hold the husk had her in. The abomination seemed to take pleasure in the young soldier's struggles and tightened its grip another degree. It moved its wide maw closer to Shepard's face, and gave a , loud screech of, what could have been, victory.

But no sooner had the sound left its mouth, did it produce another of pure pain as it suddenly released the Commander. Gasping for air and rubbing the soreness away on her neck, she watched as the things head literally explode into a spray of blue chunks from a sniper's bullet. To say the least, it was a very welcome surprise for the Commander. Looking over to where the projectile had come from, the woman saw the small group of soldiers from before, as well as what appeared to be civilians, fire upon the hoard that was making its way toward the Commander and Anderson.

Noticing the the Commander was looking at them, the young man the she had spoken to before yelled, "Get going Commander! We'll hold these bastards off until reinforcements arrive! Go!" He did not wait for the Commander's response as he turned to face the now approaching enemies and began to fire on them.

To say she was grateful, did not seem enough to Shepard as she watched as the most of the husks' attention was turned to the larger group of 'soldiers', but even that did not seem to be enough. She had wished to stay and help fight alongside such fine people, but the look that Anderson had given her literally demanded that she make their sacrifice mean something. So with a heavy heart, Shepard gave one last nod their saviors, and followed Anderson; Killing any of the few husks that still had their attention on the two lone figures.

Dodging, ducking, kicking, and punching, the two soldiers made their past the distracted crowed of enemies. As they ran, Anderson noticed what appeared to be a gap in a buildings wall, and motioned for Eve to follow him. Wasting little time, the two squeezed themselves through the small opening, and found themselves in one of the city's clinics. Anderson gave no pause as he began looking for supplies. Dreading that the husks would follow them, Eve looked around to see if there was anything that could be used to block their entrance. Turning around, she noticed the large metal storage cabinet; Perfect and ready to use as a barricade. Working her way over to its side, she began to shove it over into a tilt. Giving a low grunt, she managed to tip it over, and it came down with a large crash in front of the hole. Wiping the sweat away from her brow, the Commander thought that she had perhaps earned a moments rest... That was until she heard the screams.

Her amber eyes closed as she tried to block the sounds out: Gunfire and the screams of terror. And just as soon as they started, they seemed to stop; Silence reigning in the air. She should have known better than to think that the group that had saved them stood a chance at such a large hoard of husks. Part of her wished that she had stayed and fought, but another part, was grateful that she was still alive. She didn't know whether is was out of the prospect that she was alive to stop the Reapers, or that she was afraid to die again. And she had to sacrifice the lives of others for both reasons.

Eve slammed her fist into the metal cabinet once... then a second time, then a third. She couldn't stop. After everything she had done to prevent this very thing from happening, many refused to listen to her. After all she had sacrificed to ensure the safety of the galaxy, she was still branded a heretic. After all the pain she had endured time and time again, there were those who were still going to cause her pain by second-guessing her every action.

It was all there fault!

It was all her fault?

"Why does the universe have to be so cruel at times?" thought Eve to herself as readied herself to punch the cabinet once more; A dent already forming in it metal side. But a warm, caring hand on her shoulder stopped her from doing so. She turned her head to gaze into the eyes of Anderson. In their deep brown depths, she saw the same emotions that she had been feeling. They had both sacrificed, they had both endured, and to ensure the safety of every living being in the galaxy, they would gladly do it again.

Pulling herself away from the abused cabinet, the Commander took a deep breath to calm her nerves, and took the medigel pack that Anderson was offering her. Looking down at her bleeding hand, the young woman reprimanded herself silently for her uncontrolled bout of anger.

She heard Anderson give a very light chuckle, and turned to look at him in confusion.

"You know," he began with a soft smile, "If anyone else had done that, their hand would have been broken." He fell silent for a moment before continuing, "Looks like Cerberus did more than just bring you back."

Eve only nodded once, and began to apply the cool medigel to her damaged hand. She watched in silence as the skin began to stitch slowly back together before she replied, "I'm grateful for the second chance at living, but I wonder if it was worth it with so many strings attached."

Anderson gave no reply, how could he? He, nor anyone that history had heard of, had ever died and come back. The universe did not work like that, it never would. The living were to die, and the dead were to stay dead. That cycle is what gave the Commander hope, that when the Reapers have been defeated, they would be gone forever; Faded into history as a bad memory, and perhaps forgotten one day.

"It was worth it Shepard," said Anderson as he turned away from the silent Commander, "Never doubt that."

And for the first time that Eve was brought back, she didn't; At least for that one fraction of time.

After her hand was partially healed to working condition, and scavenging for anything that could be used, the Commander made her way over the Anderson, to find him looking at, what Eve could guess, was a city map... Or at least a map of the bayside area. The words 'You are here' indicated the clinics location, and the woman's eyes trailed across the map in search of a transit port.

"Here", said Anderson as he pointed to one, "This one is the closet one from the looks of it. With luck there may be a way to get us off world. But those damned husks are everywhere. We need a better way of get to the transit without going straight into the enemy."

His brow creased in concentration as he tried to formulate a plan. His calloused hand reached up to rub whatever headache was beginning to form, away from his temples. He was certainly a man of tactics, but they mostly entailed the best way to defeat an enemy, not dodge them. It felt wrong for him to be running through shadows in such a way. Finally his eyes lit up, and he pointed to a subway station only two blocks away. "Here," he said as he tapped his finger upon the image, "If we can't go through the bastards, we'll just have to go under them. Let's find us a way out of here."

Taking one more glance around the room for supplies, the two made their way to the back of the room, where they found the clinic's main emergency exit. Pulling his pistol out, Anderson gave a quick glance to Shepard, before turning back to the task at hand. With much effort, he began to push slowly upon the doors red colored handle; Hoping that the alarm would not be set to go off upon the doors movement. As the door creaked loudly upon, the two companions held their breath. In all her years of combat, Eve never thought she would be scared of a simple door.

Finally, after a few tense moments of pushing, Anderson managed to open the door enough for Eve to squeeze through. Giving Anderson a grateful nod, the younger soldier slipped her way through the narrow opening; Her pistol ready in her hand. Looking at nearly all corners, openings, and possible covers in the alleyway. Motioning for the Admiral that the the area was clear, the Commander began to walk down the alley toward the street. She heard the grunt that Anderson released as he squeezed himself through the door, and rose to stand.

And that's when the emergency alarm went off.

And over that blaring sound, was that of the screeching husks that rounded the corner and were dashing toward their new targets.

"Damn it!" said Anderson as he began to fire.

Eve did not bother to answer as she saw another group of husks enter the alley through one of the destroyed buildings. Taking a quick glance behind her, she saw that the way was clear, at least for now. Her glance did not go unnoticed by Anderson, who then yelled, "Keep firing, but work your way back. The station isn't that far."

The Commander did not need to be told twice as she continued firing upon the endless mass of husks. They came from the buildings, the other alley ways, the roofs, everywhere. But she did not stop firing. And when one husks got too close for comfort, she sent it flying, along with three others with a biotic throw. But still, the abominations kept coming, and the two lone soldiers were running out of clips.

"Watch your step," called Anderson over the gunfire as he pulled himself over a collapsed pillar. He covered Shepard as she pulled herself over as well, and together, the two continued making their way as quickly as they could to the station.

Suddenly, Anderson called out, "There! That's the station. We can make it if we run!" And with that, the two ceased their firing, and made a dash for the station's main entrance. Safety, it was so close that Eve could nearly feel it. Her body screamed at her to stop, to rest, but her spirit told her to keep going. She had to keep going. She had to get to the Normandy. She had to stop the Reapers. She had to see Garrus again. And she knew that as long as she and Anderson kept moving, that they would reach their goal.

Or at least that was what she thought until she heard a single shot of a weapon, and watched as Anderson collapse. Glancing over to her right, Shepard saw that the Reaper's husk had been waiting for them farther down the street and were quickly making their way towards the Commander and her companion. Sprinting over to the now injured man, Shepard knelt down, grabbed one of Anderson's arms, and pulled it over her shoulder so that her own body was between the enemy and the man. The all the strength she could muster, Eve began to drag the Admiral across the street. All the while, the husks were firing upon them; There bullets beat upon her shields in a raining force, and she knew that it wouldn't be long before they failed. But they were too close to salvation to stop.

A searing pain ripped through Eve's leg, and she glanced down to see that her shields had failed to deflect a stray bullet. Raising her gun with her injured arm, the Commander fired at the husks, hoping to at least break their formation. Though they appeared to slow down, the abominations just kept coming. A screech from behind confirmed that the forces that they had lost in the alley had found their way to the entrance of alley, and did not hesitate to fire upon the retreating woman.

Too bad for them, that a passing Kodiak ship was in the area, and began to open fire upon the groups. At this point, Eve wondered if it was Fate, or just dumb luck that ensured her survival. Without taking a backwards glance to the scene of battle behind her, Shepard made her way down the stairs; Supporting the Admiral with every step. A sudden explosion from behind caused her to look back, and watch as the Kodiak crashed into the street in a small inferno, and the husks wasted little time in waiting to look for survivors. Quickly making her way through the stations doors, Eve set the Admiral down against the wall and pulled off the doors control panel. With shaking fingers, and only her omni-tool to guide her way, Shepard began looking for the doors emergency lockdown switch. Her amber eyes kept glancing toward the group of husks above the stairs, hoping that they would not bother to turn around.

And as luck would have it once again, the doors cut whatever shrieks they had in the chests off, as the metal doors plunged the Commander and Admiral into darkness.

Only their breathing seemed to fill the quiet room.

Quiet. That was something that Eve felt she hadn't heard in an era. Or perhaps it was the lack of hearing. Whichever the case it may have been, the young soldier was grateful that she had a moment of near silence.

That was until she heard Anderson give a pained groan.

Cursing her distracted mind, Shepard quickly made her way over to the man, and knelt down to look at the damage. A large wound scorched itself into the Admiral's side. Though it did not bleed profusely, it did give Eve a clear idea that it was very painful, and most likely lethal if not taken care of.

"That bad huh?" said Anderson when he noticed Eve's frown. The Commander was startled for a moment, not expecting to see Anderson conscious. But she quickly recovered, and looked up into the Admiral's eyes.

"I should have made sure the coast was clear sir", she said softly.

"For what?" asked Anderson with a soft chuckle, "As I recall we were both running for our lives." He chuckled once more, a little louder, only double-over in pain. Eve grasped the man's shoulders and set him up right once more on the wall. Reaching into her pocket, she produced a small package of omni-gel. Their final packet. She tried not to flinch as her entire leg burned from its own wound. With shaking hands, she ripped open the packet and moved the Admiral's shirt aside to apply it to his own wound.

As she was about to place the healing gel upon his flesh, the Admiral stopped her with a firm grasp on her wrist.

"Your leg."

Damn.

Meeting the Admiral's eyes with her amber ones, Eve said, "It can wait for now."

Anderson shook his head and lightly pushed Shepard's hand away from him. "No," he said, "It can't Shepard. If I cant get out of here, then it has to be you. You have to get yourself to the transit and get off Earth."

"Don't say that," said Eve sternly as she moved her arm back into place, "We are both getting out of here."

"You can't say that Shepard. You don't know that."

"But you believe I can unite the entire galaxy and stop the Reapers."

Anderson fell silent at that; Something the Commander was not used to. With a sigh of frustration, the Commander applied what little omni-gel that remained onto the Admiral's injured side. He hissed in pain as the gel began to stitch his wound together. Locking eyes with the Commander once more, Anderson said, "They just don't make 'em like you anymore Shepard."

Eve could only offer a strained smile as she forced herself to stand; Her own leg nearly screaming in agony at its wound. But she did not show the pain. She would bury it away for another time, another place, another life. Offering a hand to the partially healed Admiral, Shepard pulled the older soldier up so that he would stand as well. He gave another soft groan of pain, but other than the remains of the still-healing wound, appeared to be fine.

Offering only a nod of gratitude to Commander, the Admiral made his was over to the subways tram-ledge and peered into the darkness. All that was visible from their vantage point was the dim flashing of emergency lights.

"Well", he began after a moments of silence, "With the subtrans down, it looks like we are going to have to do a little more walking." Suddenly a distant screech filled the air; Echoing along the subways walls. At first, Shepard assumed that it may have been from one of the husks the they fought before, but her gut, along with Anderson's own look of dread told her otherwise. Whatever it was, it was something they did not wish mess with.

Pulling out his pistol, the Admiral looked at the ammo counter, and saw that it had reached a zero. His tense gaze told Shepard to do the same thing. Pulling out her pistol first, she saw that she too, was out of ammo. Her rifle was no better.

"Damn," Shepard heard Anderson whisper as they both climbed down from the ledge; Their eyes straining to peer into the darkness, hoping to at least see the location of whatever was waiting for them.

With a sigh of frustration, Anderson began to make his way forward, with only his omni-tool, and the emergency lights to guide him. Eve was quick to follow, not wanting the recovering Admiral to remain alone in the dark. And perhaps, she was still afraid of the dark.

For what seemed like hours the two made their way through the dimly lit tunnel. Never before had Shepard been so afraid of the dark; Not since she was a child. Every shadow seemed to jump out at her, every noise seemed to be too loud, and the air seemed too thick to breathe. But she, along with her companion continued forward, as they had no other choice.

After a few moments of walking in silence, Eve began to get the feeling she was being watched. Glancing around, she saw no signs of any enemies... Come to think of it, there were no signs of any battle down here. At first, she thought that perhaps the Reapers forces had not bothered with the subways, but again, the doors were wide open. Why not look for humans in here?

Out of the corner of her eye, Eve saw something one the wall. A shiny, well polished plating, that reflected the surrounding area. But it wasn't the plating itself that caught her attention, but what she saw in the plating. In it reflective face she saw herself, the opposite wall, the floor, and something else. Something that made her blood run cold. There standing only a few feet behind her was... something. She could see its outline: Tall, thin, with long arms, matching large claw-like hands, and a softly glowing mask. How long had that thing been following them?

As she began to turn to look behind her, Anderson's nearly desperate whisper stopped her.

"Don't," he said after hearing the Commander's footsteps cease, "Whatever you do, don't turn around."

Eve straightened herself so that she faced fully forward once again. She saw that Anderson had not even bothered to turn around has he spoke again. "That thing has been following us since we first entered here. Just keep walking.", he said as he began to move forward once again.

Casting one last glance at the metal plating on the wall, Eve felt her stomach drop as the unknown creature seemed to be... smiling: Its lips pulled back to reveal several rows of razor sharp teeth. Pulling her gaze away from the mirror, Eve continued her own trek after the Admiral. "Don't look back," she said to herself, "Just don't look back."

To say the walk was nerve-racking, would be quite a bit of an understatement. Its one thing to go walking through the dark, its another to go walking through the dark with possible enemies waiting for you, and its a completely different thing to be walking in the dark, with no ammo, with said possible enemies stalking you from only a few feet away.

For every step that Eve took, it felt like that thing was getting closer. She wanted to run, or at least make an attempt to fight, but that must have been what the strange creature was waiting for. It had to have been. But why wait to attack two defenseless humans?

But she continued to heed Anderson's warning. "Just don't look back," she continued to repeat in her head, "Just don-" Shepard nearly stopped in her tracks as she looked up to another mirroring plate to find that their stalker was gone. She did in fact stop in her tract, when she heard a shuffling noise above her head.

As calmly as she could manage, Eve whispered Anderson's name once, then twice, each time the shuffling grew louder. Finally noticing the panic in the Commander's voice, the Admiral stopped and took a cautious glance back. To say he was horrified, would also be a bit of an understatement.

"Shepard," he yelled loudly, "Run!"

The Commander didn't need to be told twice as she bolted out from whatever was above her. She could literally feel the tips of its claws in her copper hair as she made her get-away. The creature let out an enraged screech as it dropped down heavily onto the tunnel floor, and began to chase its prey down.

"Just don't look back," Eve thought as she ran alongside Anderson, "Just don't look back."

All the while, Eve's injure leg burned at the constant strain that was placed upon it. But she didn't stop. Not now, nor ever would she stop.

"There!" called Anderson as another subtran station port came into view, "That's the exit!" Sprinting even faster than the Commander would have given him credit for, Anderson quickly made his way over to the ledge's ladder and climbed up, with Shepard following close behind... Along with their stalker. Sprinting to the exit area, Anderson and Shepard stopped to pull the security gates closed; An effort to slow the creature down. Without a second glance, the two made their way up the stairs, and to the entrance.

Only to find the doors sealed such.

Whatever profanity that Anderson was about to say was cut short, as the creature of the darkness gave an angered screech, and the sound of straining metal echoed off the walls.

But Eve could hear something else as well: Voices. Human voices. On the other side of the door. A quick glance at Anderson confirmed that he heard it too.

"This is Admiral Anderson and Commander Shepard! Can anyone hear us out there?" he said in a voice mixed with hope and anxiety.

The sound of straining metal once again filled the air, and Shepard could have sworn she heard the sound of falling rocks. It would not be long before that thing broke through.

Anderson began to bang on the doors with a heavy fist. "Hello?!" he called out in frustration, "This is Admiral Anderson, and I order you to open this door now! Damn it! Does anyone here us out there?!"

Suddenly the sound of crashing metal was heard, along with a victorious screech. The thing had broken through. This was it.

Or it would have been if the doors hadn't suddenly opened. Of course, as soon as it did, both Shepard and Anderson had to dive for the floor as an active combat turret aimed itself right at them. But even then, they may have been lucky, as their stalker was right behind them.

In a glorious blaze of fire, the turret rapidly fired upon the new abomination, who in turn, gave a screech of pain, and quickly retreated back into the darkness. Meanwhile, on the ground of the transit station, both Shepard and Anderson continued to stare at the ground in silence.

"... You know," thought Eve to herself, "I think I'm done with all types of surprises for now on. In fact, I'm going to tell my crew I don't even want a surprise birthday party. I swear to God if they throw me one, I throw each and everyone of them out the air lock."

A firm hand on her shoulder brought the Commander out of her 'pouting', and she turned her head to look at Anderson. With a face that looked like he was fighting a smile, he gave Shepard a firm pat on the back pushed himself up to stand.

Eve followed suite as well, but found that as she stood, her injured leg buckled, and she would have fallen to the floor if Anderson had not caught her.

He cursed softly under his breathe, and ordered on of the soldiers to bring the Commander medi-gel. Working there way over to a bench, Anderson set the injured woman down, and step back to allow the medic to attend Shepard's leg. The young woman nearly sighed with relief as the cool gel was lathered on her irritated leg, and she soon began to feel the skin stitching back together. After her leg was healed to moderate condition, the Commander made her way over to where the Admiral had made his way off to, but not before taking a good look around the camp.

It appeared to be a simple military base camp with the amount of soldiers within the area, but a closer look revealed that there were refugees as well. Many looked scared, others angry. There were even those that simply stared off into space, as if lost in a different world.

With every refugee she past, Eve felt the weight of her burden increase. So many depended on her at this point, so much was at stake. The existence of every man, woman, and child depended upon the actions of her alone. She could not risk letting them down.

Making her way over to the landed Kodiaks, Eve found Anderson and, who the Commander could guess was the Commanding officer of the 'camp', arguing loudly.

"I can't do that Admiral!" said the Corporal in a tone that demanded obedience. A shame he had yet to learn anything about Anderson.

"There is no other option Corporal!", replied Anderson in an even more demanding voice. But the Corporal would not back down yet.

"If the Reapers see these Kodiaks take off we are done for. You want me to risk the lives of my men, and these survivors so that this traitor can save her own ass?!" shot the other man back as he gave a heated glance toward the Commander.

Frowning slightly, Shepard replied, "And as you recall Corporal, I turned myself into the authorities after I stopped the Collectors."

Rolling his eyes, the Corporal then said, "A traitor is still a traitor. Your just lucky you have so many friends in high places, or we would have hanged your ass by now."

But before Eve could reply, Anderson beat her to the punch. "I had enough out of you!" he nearly bellowed, "You will remember the chain of command. You will show respect to your superiors. And you will get us the god-damned radio to contact the Normandy, or so help me, I will hang you!"

The Corporal seemed to pale at these words, but none-the-less saluted the Admiral, as well as the Commander, and made his way quickly over to the Communications station.

Raising one eyebrow, Shepard looked back at Anderson, crossed her arms and said, "That wasn't really necessary sir."

"Yes it was," replied Anderson as he walked away, "Its what we need at this point. The world is ending Shepard, and the only way we are going to get through this is if we continue to have some form of stability and familiarity. If the refugees see soldiers, the people that are supposed to be protecting, rebelling against one another... Well we might as well just give up." He then paused for a moment, before softly adding, "You know as well as I do that you are not a traitor." He didn't even wait for the Commander's response as he walked away; Leaving the Commander alone to her own thoughts. At least for a moment.

Suddenly, she felt the touch of a small hand on her own, and she glanced down to find a child holding her hand. It was the boy from the vents.

Kneeling down so she was level with him, she softly said, "I was worried about you. You ran off when I tried to help you."

The boy looked away, his gaze upon the ground. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I was scared, and I thought that it would be safer if I just hid."

Tilting her head to the side so that she could see the boys watering eyes, the Commander replied, "Hey, there's nothing wrong with being scared." At these words the boy looked up to lock eyes with the young woman once more. "I was scared when I couldn't find you," she then continued, "I was scared when I was fighting those husks. I was scared of walking in that dark tunnel. Heck, I'm even scared right now." To this, the boy's eyes grew large and he replied, "But you're the Shepard! You're not scared of anything!"

Eve smiled at this, recalling her own time as a youth; Thinking that her heroes were not afraid of anything. The first time she had ever thought otherwise, was when she was six years old, and wondered off into the woods that surrounded her colony's main establishment. She had gotten lost, and she was scared, but she always had it in her head that her father would come to save her. And he did, but it wasn't the way the younger Eve had imagined it. Her father had yelled at her, nearly screamed, shaking her and asking her over and over why she had run off. And then, he cried, and pulled her into his famous bear head. He cried and cried, telling Eve never to run off like that again. It was only later that she realized that his anger and sorrow, came from fear; The fear of losing his child. The same fear that Eve felt when she thought she would have lost this child, and that she might lose Earth.

"Well," she said after a moments pause, "Of course I get scared of things. But you know what? It's okay to be afraid. What matters most is that you face your fears when the time comes. Don't hold back to do what you think is right, okay?"

The young boy gave her a sad smile, but nodded none-the-less.

A familiar droning noise sounded through the air, but unlike before, it was much louder. Turning ever-so slowly around, the Commander's gaze fell upon the large body of a ground Reaper. She felt the boy squeeze her hand in fear, and in return, she squeezed his back in consolation. It appeared that it didn't matter if they did anything to draw the invading forces attention, for they clearly had every intention of searching every building, every house, every hold, to harvest all humans. There was just no stopping them from this point. Not yet.

"Shepard!" called Anderson as he dashed over with a new assault rifle, "We managed to get a partial signal to the Normandy. They might have heard us, but you need to go. Now!"

"What?" Shepard nearly yelled as she took a step toward the Admiral.

Anderson simply shook his head and replied, "I know what you are going to say, but there is no time to argue." He glanced back as another tremor shook the ground. The Reaper had spotted them, and was slowly making its way toward the transit port. It single 'eye' began to glow red, and it fired it weapon along the outskirts of the camp. The refugees began to scream in terror, and scattered, while the soldiers readied their own weapons to open fire on the approaching giant. Their efforts didn't even slow the thing down.

"I need you to get to the Citadel and get the Council to help us. Otherwise we may as well kiss our asses goodbye." A sudden explosion from behind nearly toppled the three individuals over, and Eve caught a glance of a large group of husks heading their way.

"Shepard," said Anderson softly as he locked eyes with the young woman, "We can't do this alone. You know that."

Eve remained silent for a moment; Oblivious to the destruction that was quickly approaching them. She always knew that the galaxy would need to stand together to defeat the Reapers. She had told the Council, and the Alliance that time, and time again. Now, it was time to live up to the word. She just didn't think it would come to this. She didn't think she would abandon Earth like this.

"I'll be back for you. I promise," she finally said.

Anderson smiled softly, and reached into his pocket to pull out a pair of dog-tags: Shepard's dog-tags. With warm, calloused hands, he placed them within Eve's own, and said, "I don't doubt it, Commander." And with that he turned, and made his way toward to approaching forces; His rifle raised up, and his voice yelling orders to all soldiers that could hear him.

Casting one last look to the Admiral, the newly titled Commander whispered a wish of good luck, before tightening her grip on the child's hand, and running for the nearest Kodiak. This was the race to the finish. She felt the boy stumble in an effort to keep up with her; His hoarse panting echoing in the woman's ears. The sound of the husks' discharging weapons rang throughout the air, but they too, were soon drowned out by the droning of the colossal Reapers. Shepard's steps side not falter as bullets flew past her head, or grazed her shields. She was just too damned close.

And then the boy stumbled, but even that did little to stop Eve. With strong arms, she scooped the child up against her chest, and continued to run. She ran, and she ran, and she ran until she could was safely inside the Kodiak's passenger chamber. But even then, that wasn't enough for her. She locked eyes with the entering pilot and nearly screamed for him to go. The pilot, in turn, did not need to be told twice, as he made his way into his seat and started the Kodiak. With a violent jolt, they took off. A quick look out the window confirmed that other Kodiaks had begun to take off, only to be shot down by the Reaper's canon. The Kodiak swayed hazardously as it weaved to dodge the laser, and began to pick up speed in an effort to escape. But it seemed that it wasn't enough, as the Kodiak lurched to the side from a hit.

"Mayday, mayday," called the pilot on the radio, "Normandy do you copy? I have Commander Shepard, and we are going down. Do you copy?"

The only thing that answered him was static.

Another look out the window showed that the Reaper had locked onto their slowly descending Kodiak; Its weapon charged once again to take fire.

"My God," whispered Shepard as she pulled the boy closer into her embrace.

Three.

Two.

One.

"The cavalry as arrived!"

God Dammit Joker.

In a blaze of glory, the Normandy seemed to fly out of nowhere, firing it main weapons as it flew toward the Commander's vessel; Its white and blue metal paint literally glowing in the sun, and it name proudly displayed for all to see. Though the Normandy's weapons did little damage to the Reaper, it did gave the Kodiaks pilot enough time to maneuver toward the Normandy. But even then, it would be close, as they were still falling quickly towards the bay's waters.

"Joker!" called Shepard over the radio, hoping he had heard.

And indeed he did, as the Normandy's pilot quickly rerouted to be flying straight at the Kodiak; It bay doors wide open.

"Brace for impact," yelled the pilot as he tried to slow down the vehicle with a failing thruster. Eve did not need to be told twice, as she pushed herself further against the Kodiak's walls and attempted to shield the child in her arms.

"If I die like this," thought Shepard, "I'm going to kill Joker."

A nearly unbearable screeching noise filled the small compartment as the Kodiak's bottom slid against the Normandy's bay floor; Sparks flying everywhere as the smaller vehicle attempted to stop. Eve nearly cried when the Kodiak gave one final jolt, and came to a rest. Only the sound of the bays closing doors could be heard over Eve's gasping. She wanted to laugh. She wanted to scream. She wanted to cry. But all the young soldier did was sit there in silence, in the dark, with the boy still held tightly in her arms.

The boy.

"Hey", she said as she glanced down at the child, "are you okay."

The boy's eyes were closed, as if sleeping, his mouth was slightly upon, and he felt a little colder than he should have. And that was when Eve felt something wet on her hand. Lifting her arm out from underneath the boy's body, she brought her flesh up into her vision to see it covered in blood... But it was not her own.

Looking down at the boy once more, Shepard felt a lump form in her throat. She knew that in warfare, people would die. That no matter what one did, people would still be lost. But to hold one of them, a child none-the-less, in her arms as he died, was something different. She wanted to cry, but she just didn't have the strength anymore. Instead, she lifted her hand once more, touching the child's cold, lifeless cheek; A simple goodbye for a child she could not save. She then gently set the boy's body upon the Kodiak's floor. With a rigid back, she rose to stand, and looked down at the boy once more. Closing her eyes and looking away she whispered, "I'm sorry" before activating the Kodiak's doors.

She was greeted by the large form of Vega.

"Commander. Are you okay? What happened? Where's the Admiral?" he berated out.

The Commander offered no answers, as she had none to give. Not yet anyway.

Pushing her way past the large man, the Commander made her way over to the bay's communications system. She heard James utter a thousand curses; A sign that he had seen the child's body.

The elevator doors then opened, and Ashley Williams stepped out, along with three other soldiers. Shepard did not have to tell the soldiers to assist the Kodiak potentially injured pilot nor take care of the child's body as they quickly made their way past her, and towards the damaged vehicle.

Eve cast a quick glance at Ashley, who looked like she had just as many questions, if not more, for the Commander. But upon seeing the other woman's face, Ashley wisely silenced herself. Instead, she opted to offer the Commander a soft smile, perhaps to show that she was happy to see the other woman alive and well.

Unfortunately for Eve, it seemed that Vega had yet to catch onto the Commander's mood.

"Commander," he ground out as he came to stand behind Shepard, "What the hell is going on?"

Eve only gave him a single glance before she turned to face the computer. "We're leaving," she said sourly as she activated the Communications system. She had to contact Hackett and let him know about the situation.

The Commander heard Vega sputter in anger for a moment, but whatever he was about to say, was quickly cut short by Ashley's own question. "Leave Earth"" she said in disbelief, "Why?"

"Anderson needs us to go to the Citadel to appeal to the Council for help," answered Eve in a eerily calm voice. At this point, she was having trouble in believing that the Council would help them. Hell, she doubted that humanity would want to help any of the other races if they were in a different position.

"Bullshit!" yelled Vega as he took several steps forward, "Those bastards didn't listen to us before, what makes you think they are going to listen to us now? Chances are they'd let us get butchered first so that they can save their own asses."

Grinding her teeth in frustration, the Commander tried to keep calm as she replied, "I don't like the idea of leaving Earth either. But we don't have a choice. There is no way we are going to beat these things on our own. Our only chance is to get to the Citadel and get the Council to see reason."

The large man growled as he took yet another step forward. Glaring down at the shorter woman he said, "Then drop me off somewhere. There is no way in he-"

"Enough!" yelled Eve as she stood against Vega, "I get! You don't want to abandon Earth. I don't either. But this is the only chance we have now. Earth is not alone in this war. Who knows how many other worlds are being destroyed now. If you want to leave, that's fine, but we are going to the Citadel. You can catch a ride back to Earth from there." Without waiting for a reply, the Commander then turned back to the computer, ans began the process of hailing Admiral Hackett once more. Her ears perked up when she heard the retreating steps of Vega, and the approaching ones of Ashley.

"Shepard," she began softly, "Are you okay."

Eve remained silent for a moment, remember the boy's body that she had held in her arms. God, he died in her arms. She could only hope that it had been painless.

"No," she said sullenly as she watched the soldiers from before pass by with a filled body bag on a stretcher, "I'm not okay at this point."

Before Ashley could question her further, Joker's voice came to life over the intercom.

"Commander, Admiral Hackett got your hail. EDI's trying to clear up the signal. With luck, we're far enough away from the Reaper's jam for communications to be back up," he said in a voice that was a little too cheery for Shepard's mood.

Eve caught herself. Where had that thought come from? Perhaps it was the stress. Yes, the stress.

The computer's screen then came to life in a flash of light, and the scarred face of Admiral Hackett could be seen through the thin layer of static.

"Shepard," he said in a tired, but strong voice, "good to see you made it out. But last I heard you were with Anderson..." He paused, waiting for the Commander to clarify her companion's absence.

"Anderson chose to stay behind and organize Earth's forces," was all Eve offered; What else was she supposed to say?

"... I see," replied the Admiral in a toneless voice.

"If anyone can help the people on Earth, its Anderson sir," said Eve as an offer of some optimism... Even if such a thing would be hard to come by in the time ahead.

The Admiral gave a light chuckle, though it seemed hollow before he said, "You don't need to convince me Commander. I know fully well what he is capable of." The 'mirth' that he had was quickly washed away as he returned to the task at hand. "But for now, I have a mission of the up-most importance for you," he said in his trade-mark commanding voice; And Admiral through and through.

"Yes sir," replied the Commander, "but Anderson wanted me to go to the Citadel to seek help for Earth."

Hackett shook his head in the negative and replied in turn, "I'm afraid that's going to have to wait for now. We just received word that our base on Mars has gone silent. We had a science team down there trying to decrypt the Archives, in an effort to find a way to fight back the Reapers. About two days ago, we received a message that they may have found something."

That got Eve's attention. "Did they say what?" she asked in a voice that did little to cover her hope.

"No."

Damn.

"As I came to understand, whatever they found was highly encrypted," continued Hackett, "Dr. T'soni assured me that they were in the process of decrypting it. With any luck, she made enough progress to give us something that would earn the support of the Council."

That also got Shepard's attention. "Liara?" she said, "What is she doing on Mars?"

"A few months back, after your... incarceration," Hackett began, "I contacted Dr. T'soni and requested her assistance with the science team in the Archives. As I recall she is brilliant in deciphering Prothean technology. She had agreed, and has been a major influence with the decryption process." He paused for a moment before adding, "The last transmission why received from her was right before the Reapers hit the Sol system."

The fact that Liara was on Mars when the Reapers hit did not bode will for the Commander. The Asari had been a good friend to Shepard for the past few years, and the Commander had no intention of losing her to the Reapers. Hell, she doubted that Liara would go down without a fight after seeing her in action against the Shadow Broker. Time was certainly of the essence.

"All the more reason to get to Mars then," she said.

Hackett, as if reading the Commander's motivations then added, "Remember Shepard, that data could be the key to stopping the Reapers. Everything, and everyone, else is expendable."

That did not set well with Shepard, and she knew that even the Admiral was having difficulty in believing his won words.

"I will get the data sir," said Eve, "But I am not leaving those people behind."

Hackett merely nodded and said, "Your attitude is commendable Commander, if not idealistic," he paused before adding, "But we are at war now, do not forget that."

To these words, Shepard could only nod.

"Good luck Commander," offered the Admiral, "Hackett out."

The room then fell into complete and utter silence for a moment. But only for the one moment.

"Well that was a cheery conversation," said Vega.

Eve simply shook her head and made her way over to the armory section of the bay. Her mission was quite clear.

"Commander," said Ashley as she quickly trailed behind, "do you really think they're could be something to beat the Reapers on Mars?"

Shepard paused at this. Was there truly something that could stop the Reapers on the Red Planet? Or was this simply a waste of time and effort to find something that was never there in the first place? But then again, when did anyone ever actually know what they were looking for when trying to stop a nearly unbeatable enemy?

"I don't know Williams," Eve finally answered as she grabbed her combat helmet, "But for now, its the only lead we got." If there was no rest for the wicked, then there was certainly no rest for the just either.