I am using the default male Shepard's appearance in this story, so keep that in mind.
Chapter 2
It was with an ounce of apprehension that Tali began to descend down the stairs into what had become London's temporary medical facility. As the hospitals across the city had been all but completely leveled by the Reaper invasion, the city's officials turned to the only area of the city that was mostly protected from the elements of nature and was large enough to hold the many wounded civilians, which turned out to be an underground parking garage.
The makeshift "hospital", as it was inaccurately called, was far from ideal for treating the gruesome injuries that some of the survivors had sustained. There was absolutely no privacy, as the parking garage was simply a single room, and the beds were little more than sleeping bags. Supplies were at a premium but the real problem was the shortage of doctors. Only a handful of medical professionals remained, and fewer still were uninjured and able to treat others. Several civilians offered to help out, but there was only so much that they could do without the assistance of a real doctor. The only consolation, if it could be called that, came from the very high casualty rate of those who were injured.
The parking garage, as it turned out, was in surprisingly good condition. The ceiling was completely intact and enough of the support pillars remained to keep it from collapsing. There were a few destroyed vehicles still parked and abandoned in it, but it was mostly empty, giving plenty of room for all of the injured. There were a few dozen injured patients spread out across the floor, but the room was, by no means, bustling with activity. Every one of the injured patients was either sleeping or trying to, and there were no other people visiting the patients in sight. The doctors were hurriedly moving from patient to patient, at an obvious shortage, but their efforts were admirable nonetheless.
"There, that is the shuttle that just returned from the Citadel." Garrus said after they descended to the last step, pointing to a vehicle on the other side of the garage. It was parked at the vehicle entrance to the garage, and a doctor and few civilians seemed to be in the process of unloading the presumably-unconscious passengers.
"They didn't return with many." Tali replied dishearteningly. There only seemed to be about ten people being unloaded from the shuttle.
"You saw the state it was in." Garrus said carefully, referring to the Citadel. "It's a wonder anyone survived at all."
"It was the center of our galaxy." Tali replied absently. "And all that's left of it could fit on a single shuttle."
Garrus frowned. "Come on." He urged as he began to take a step forward from the foot of the stairs. "Let's go check it out."
Tali followed right behind him, and they began to weave through the injured people that laid on the ground. Several of them looked up at her with a pitying look as she passed, and she felt a sharp pang of pity. Some of the injuries that were sustained were simply alarming; a mangled leg here, a missing arm there. But they were alive.
Tali felt an odd combination of curiosity and dread as they got nearer to the shuttle. The shuttle had brought back a whole slew of different species back from the Citadel, but it would be impossible to tell that without getting a good, close look at them. Every single one of the injured survivors that had been on the shuttle were completely covered in a thick coating of black ash and soot. They almost looked like living corpses, covered in this strange, black mixture. It was a wonder that they could even breath, for it definitely seemed as if their noses had been plugged up by this viscous combination.
"Hey, you two!" One of the civilian assistants said as Tali and Garrus neared the shuttle. He quickly approached them, almost looking annoyed. "What are you doing here?"
"Hi, maybe you can help us." Garrus replied. "We are looking for a friend on the Citadel and..."
"We all had friends on the Citadel." The man snapped, clearly frustrated. However, he quickly regained better judgement and added, "I'm sorry, I guess I'm a little stressed. Look, just stay out of our way, alright? These people need treatment for their injuries, not a couple strangers looking for a miracle."
The man turned to walk away and rejoined the rest of the assistants. "Nice guy." Garrus said dryly, watching as the assistants carefully picked up the injured shuttle passengers and unceremoniously laid them down on thin blankets on the concrete ground. There were thirteen injured in total; a surprising number considering the size of the shuttle that had transported them.
A few minutes passed by as Tali and Garrus just stood by and watched the assistants tend to the wounded. The assistants were obviously working hard but the results did not show it, as most of these people needed far more attention than the assistants' limited numbers were able to give. And given the lengthy recovery time, it seemed unlikely that they would be done any time soon. Tali was starting to think about suggesting that they call off their excursion when they were met by another unfamiliar character.
"Been through hell, these ones have." Said a man who had appeared and stood next to Garrus. He was a middle-aged human with a heavy build and a gruff voice that sounded more like a growl than anything else. "Although who hasn't, I suppose."
"And you are?" Garrus asked, sounding perhaps a bit irritated.
"Names Jake." The man replied. "Shuttle pilot."
"So, you were just on the Citadel, I take it?" Garrus asked, realizing that this must be the man who had just transporting these wounded citizens.
"Aye, that I was." Jake responded. "Never thought I'd see hell until I laid eyes on that wasteland."
"That bad, huh?" Garrus asked.
"Anyone who wasn't killed and thrown into a damn pile by the Reapers was crushed by debris. And for the few that had even managed to survive that, there is so little food to go around that they'll starve before long." Jake replied. "A slaughterhouse is what it has become."
"War takes no prisoners." Garrus said dryly. "Are these the only ones you found?"
"Nah, there were more. Not many, mind you, but I could only take as many as my shuttle could fit." Jake said pointedly. "Found these ones scavenging in Zakera Ward. The Alliance is sending in a few larger vessels to do a more complete search."
"And what of Commander Shepard?" Tali asked hopefully, breaking her silence. "Did you hear anything about him?"
"Shepard?" Jake echoed. "That praised hero? I wouldn't know what he looks like, miss, much less where he would be. Hardly know anything about the guy."
Tali, admittedly, did allow herself to become slightly optimistic, but the man's answer didn't come as much of a surprise. "He's a friend." Garrus explained when Tali returned to silence.
"I don't think anyone made it out of this without losing some friends." Jake said impassively. "Heard he came back from the dead once before. Not sure how he can back from this one if he's on the Citadel. Doubt we'll even find the bodies of most of the victims up there."
Garrus and Jake continued talking to one another but Tali began to tune their conversation out. She was staring at the people that were lying on the ground in front of her with a mind full of thought, irrationally hoping that Shepard could be among them.
The three assistants were focusing all of their attention on removing the black powder from the bodies of the wounded, and had all but completely forgotten about their curious visitors. Tali rebelliously took advantage of this, taking a few steps in the direction of the nearest person spread out on the floor. It was an Asari, not much older than a child by their standards. She didn't have the black residue as bad as most, but she was unconscious and had a large, bloody gash across her forehead.
As hard as it was for her to do, Tali turned her back on the Asari and continued on to the next person. This one was a human female, but it was hard to discern any more than that. She was laying on her stomach, with every inch of her being a containing a black tinge of ash. Her hair was a tangled mess and it was impossible to tell what her true hair color was, as it also was a grainy shade of black.
Tali continued on to the next person, who appeared to be another human. This one was a male, and he was laying on his back and was just as unmoving as the rest. There weren't many distinguishing characteristics that she could pick up on, other than what appeared to be a tiny, crescent-shaped scar on his forehead along his hairline.
"Hey, miss!" A medical assistant called out. It was the same one who had told them off her. "Stand back!"
The man had approached her in an effort to apprehend her, but Tali, motivated by rapidly-developing visions of who she believed this man could be, tried to get even closer to the man on the ground. That scar was a signature characteristic of the one she was so desperately searching for. Could it be?
"Miss!" The man said even more urgently, and he reached out and grabbed Tali by the arm.
Tali shook her arm free but she stopped in her tracks to face the assistant. "I know that man!" Tali said, growing annoyed and frustrated. "You have to let me be with him!"
"This man needs medical attention." The man replied calmly. "You should know what that is like more than most. Just let us do our job and you'll be able to see him in a minute."
She should have felt insulted but a growing sense of anticipation gave her tunnel vision; all she could see was the man and his scar, the same scar that she had become very used to seeing over the past couple of months.
"Come on, Tali." Garrus said quietly. He had also walked over to where Tali stood, and he was trying to get her to recede. "There's nothing we can do."
"That's him, Garrus." Tali shot back. "I know it is."
"Are you sure?" Garrus said uncertainly. "I can see a damn thing with all that filth."
"Yes!" Tali said stubbornly, growing desperate. "Can't-"
"Step back!" The assistant interrupted, sensing that he had been forgotten. "I'll clean him up right now if it means that you two will give these people some space!"
Tali finally conceded, taking a couple steps backward with Garrus, but that didn't stop her heart from beating out of her chest. She knew that this man was her Shepard, it just had to be. Garrus, on the other hand, didn't seem as optimistic as she was. She soon noticed that he was giving her concerned glances rather than watch the assistant slowly scrub the black dust off of the man's body. Did he not think it was him? How could he not see it?
After ten solid minutes of scrubbing, the assistant had finally cleaned most of the man's upper torso and head. It was then, as if on cue, that the man began to wake up. This action clearly startled the assistant, who had been in the process of wiping his forearms clean. The man began to stir and let out a loud, deep groan, as if he had just enjoyed a very long and gratifying sleep.
Tali was unable to control herself any longer. In a few leaping bounds, she covered the distance between her and the man, a deep sense of longing quickly overcoming her. The assistant didn't seem to approve when he saw her, but he did nothing to impede her, so she was free to look down on the man that she so deeply ached to see again.
But what she saw wasn't what she had been expecting or hoping for. Embroidered on the man's chestplate was a dirty, slightly-discolored "C-Sec" logo. And, when she and the man locked eyes for a moment, Tali was met with a very unfamiliar shade of green.