"And now, a few words from Commander Shepard, Alliance Navy."
She blinked at her name; the background noise had become muted in her mind after a while. Her entire being focused on what she had to say; though the more she rehearsed it, the more it sounded wrong in her mind. Shepard raised her head to look up at Admiral Hackett, blinking at the sunlight in her eyes.
Just as Garrus said, she walked slowly through the ranks of individuals that had given speeches today. Her place was the last in line, and she stepped up to the podium to look over the crowd gathered. The sun was shining brightly against the skyscrapers in the background- their silver and their burn marks reflecting off of what was left in the rebuild of London. The pad was gently placed on the podium, as she cleared her throat.
Shepard looked out over the crowd gathered, seeing many members of her crew. All of her crew, actually… Even though she was partly blinded by the parting clouds, she could have sworn she saw a few other familiar faces. Thane, Legion, Mordin, Ashley and so many more among their ranks. The rain clouds had separated slowly through the day, warming the damp air and taking the chill from the air. Shepard couldn't think of more fitting weather.
"Thank you all for coming." Her voice had a tremble at first, looking across what seemed like a sea of familiar faces. Tali nodded to her from the front, bright eyes behind her mask staring straight into hers; wordless encouragement to go on. It steadied her tone as she drew breath.
"Some of you have come to share a day with us that is both sad and long awaited. None of us had high intention of making it through the Reaper War, and as you can see by the names here. Many didn't. No planet was safe, no soldier on the battle field, and certainly, no family left back home. Somehow, we won. And that victory belongs to every last one of us. Every civilization on every world." A few people nodded sadly, lost in their own memories of the war. "Now, as we take our first steps toward restoring what we lost, we must remember what it took to win." Video cameras were circling her above the crowds heads, panning and displaying her face on screens she could see. She looked down at the pad for the first time.
"All of our homes, our worlds, our fleets and defenses... all of this and more, are represented on this wall. I have been Commander of the Normandy for a long time, and I have met some of the most brilliant and brave people of my entire life. And in the beginning of this war, I was given a job. I left Earth on the orders of Admiral Anderson. We fought many battles to get from there to here," Her mind flashed to meeting her clone, to her relationship with Garrus, to saying goodbye to Thane. "And we lost so many people along the way. One of them being Admiral Anderson himself."
She paused, looked at the PDA in front of her again. With one slightly shaky finger, she turned it off with a touch. Her eyes looked up to meet the many staring back, "Not many people know I met David Anderson before I joined the Alliance. I was an orphan on Earth, running with a few people that have long since been gone."
She didn't want to read something when it came to talking about him. Not after all this had happened. Shepard spoke louder and more clear, "I actually stole Anderson's wallet." Garrus' expression twitched slightly in his stoic state, as if he had expected nothing less of her. The audience gave a weak chuckle through the tears in this ceremony. "He caught me a few blocks away. He managed to go over two fences to keep up; but I gave him a run for his money. No pun intended." She smiled slightly, remembering how he had been practically wheezing by the end of it. "I ended up giving the wallet back to him. Anderson asked me where I lived… and you can probably imagine the answer I gave him for an orphan. Anderson took me in, gave me my first warm meal in two weeks and gave me his phone in case I needed anything else. By age 17 I had forged my own paperwork to get into the Alliance. And you can take a wild guess who caught me doing that too." Now there were more smiles; he had been a father figure to more than just her, she was sure. "Admiral David Anderson was one of the wisest men I ever knew. One hell of a leader and a trusted friend. And he was that to everyone who knew him."
"He and everyone else on this wall gave us a chance. A future paid for by the sacrifices of those who fought and died alongside us. A future also, for our children's children to live knowing they are safe and prepared for whatever comes next." She took a breath, tears running down both her cheeks and people were clapping now. "I look forward to seeing what future they assured for us." A deep breath out of relief, "Thank you." The entire crowd was clapping as she picked up Anderson's nameplate. The last one to go on the wall. She walked a few steps from the podium she had given her speech from. Every camera on the planet was on her as she pressed the name into place and the entire wall lit up in a brilliant blue glow behind every etching of name. The glow started at Anderson's name and flooded through it like water- making the wall they made a bright shining beacon of their future. Garrus was at her side in a moment after the speech was over, "Great job... He is so proud."
She followed him off stage, still trying to keep her throat clear and eyes dry. "I-." She was interrupted by a storm of people flooding them not thirty feet behind the stage. A few she recognized actually; one being Diana Allers, who was one of the people right in front. Garrus, who had a flashback of his own of a much darker scene, stepped to put himself between the group and Shepard. Some of the reporters had actually backed a few steps back as the tall Turian stood before them with a look on his face that said he was anything to be trifled with. Diana had worked with him before, having absolutely no fear as she stepped right up to meet him. She stayed on the Normandy for a while and reported quite a few of their exploits to get the media and more people behind them for the war. "Commander Shepard, excuse me, can I have a moment?"
A pause, before a single nod and Shepard stepped from behind to beside of Garrus. He didn't argue because it had been her decision, but still stay in that looming stance over the crowd.
Joker was far to the left of them, talking to Liara loudly. "Told ya he removed the stick to wanna beat people to death with it." It would have caused a bit of laughter if Garrus hadn't narrowed his eyes. "Commander Shepard, you've just given an amazing speech and said goodbye to one of your closet friends it seems. A lot of people question your actions in the final moment- whether or not that you could have done more. Do you have any responses to these questions?"
Joker snarled, "And they could have done a lot more too-." Tali put her hand on his mouth with a very audible "shush!" in the background. Garrus stiffened beside her, talk about asking the rough questions right at the start of an already unwanted interview...
It said something about her as a leader when she stared the question down looking right into Diana's eyes. "When I was up there I had a lot of thoughts running through my mind. A lot of people doubt my decision not to take control of the Reapers… But I have seen what the Reapers do to people."
The Illusive Man in his final moments ran through her mind, then to Anderson beside her- bleeding out. "And destroying them was the best decision for humanity and every other species in this Galaxy. And as to me doing more…"
There was a moment of quiet when her voice died in her throat, "…there isn't a single day that I don't wonder that myself." Diana nodded slightly, clearing her throat. She understood what made her say that- she had been one of the crew.
The other reporters, now confident the Turian beside her was for show, rushed forward again, pushing their recorders in Shepard's face. She took a step back and there were questions shouted at her, Garrus put up his arms to keep the crowd control back with the help of a few other security officers. "What do you mean all species? Are more going to be added to the council?" Another voice, "Are you returning to Palavin with Garrus Vakarian?" A louder one immediately after that Shepard seemed to hear over the shouts, "What are you doing next, Commander Shepard?"
She held up her hands, her disposition rapidly declining as they backed her into a corner and the flashes kept leaving spots in her vision. The rest of the crowd was either celebrating, crying or moving along to a feast that was supposed to be held afterward. She was just making a bee-line toward the exit. "Going on vacation!" She answered a burly man who had asked her the last question. Just like that she was gone, Garrus creating a barrier between them and her as they walked. Cameras flashing and videos being recorded.