Chapter 25

Admiral David Anderson groaned as he slowly regained consciousness. Everything hurt. He opened his eyes and painfully pushed himself into a sitting position. It was dark, the only lighting came from dim emergency lights at the far end of the room. He and Shepard had been in an area of the Citadel that he never knew existed.

Thinking of Shepard, he looked around in a panic. Where was she? He couldn't remember what happened. The Illusive Man had confronted them, then it was like being in a dream. He hadn't been able to control himself. He vaguely remembered firing his weapon, but his head felt fuzzy. He rubbed his eyes, trying to clear his vision and looked around again. The room was destroyed. A massive explosion must have gone off.

"Shepard?" He croaked out. His voice was weak, but it still echoed in the quiet. He listened intently, but only heard creaks and groans as the debris shifted. Things were bad, he thought, and he again looked around. Anderson saw that not only was the computer console gone, but the wall and floor around it. The emergency systems of the station had sealed the breach, but he could tell that power was at a minimum.

He drifted on the edge of consciousness as another wave of pain washed over him. Shepard wasn't dead, he was sure, no matter the destruction. She had come back from worse.

...

Admiral David Anderson sat at his desk after Ashley Williams left, her words echoed, "The rumors are true. Shepard is alive and working for Cerberus."

He got up and walked to the window overlooking the Presidium Commons. The restoration of the Citadel had gone quickly and the commons area was bustling with activity as the various alien species mingled or went about their business. Things looked so normal and yet so different as his mind reeled, trying to absorb the fact that Shepard was alive.

Maybe Williams was wrong. Maybe there were extenuating circumstances that they just weren't aware of yet. He prayed that was the case because he couldn't accept that Shepard would turn away from the Alliance. He had received the report from C-Sec that the Cerberus ship had docked and Shepard was on her way.

The door buzzed and he looked up to see her walk in. The relief that she was alive overwhelmed him. He stepped forward and responded to her salute.

"Shepard. It is good to see you." He said, smiling.

She smiled broadly back. "You too, sir. Congratulations on your promotion."

"Thank you. How are you?" He looked her over: aside from a few faint scars, she appeared as if nothing had happened.

"To be honest, I'm still in a state of shock over everything. I keep being told that it's been two years, but I don't feel it. I just woke up two weeks ago. " Shepard said, running her hand through her short hair. She was still standing at attention in a Cerberus outfit of slacks and top.

"Well, you look good for dead." Anderson said.

Shepard shrugged. "It's a little hard to believe. I know. I have trouble believing it myself."

Anderson looked at her piercingly and said, "I am sure you have your reasons for aligning with Cerberus..."

"I'm not aligned with them." Shepard interrupted. "They have useful information and a ship that they are willing to let me use. As soon as I was briefed about the colony disappearances, I knew the Reapers were involved and I will do anything to prevent a war."

Anderson saw the commitment in her eyes and smiled. Regardless of the circumstances, this is the same Shepard that he had felt a fatherly attachment to. He realized she was watching him and he said, "I believe you Shepard. What do you intend to do?"

"First I want to know if I can get my Spectre status reinstated. I understand from Commander Bailey that when I was declared dead, they retired my status. He has brought me back in the system, but I will need to speak with the Council. I will also need both the Council and the Alliance to join with me to stop the Reapers." She said as she relaxed.

Anderson nodded. "The Alliance has been investigating the colony disappearances and it wasn't until recently that we knew what was happening."

"Yes." Shepard said, bitterly. "I met Ashley on Horizon. She wasn't as happy to see me as you are."

"Your 'death' was hard on everyone. Give her time, she'll come around." He said, quietly.

"I know." Shepard sighed and sat down. "I've corresponded with Doc and he wrote about the memorial. I'm sorry that I put everyone through that."

Anderson sat down and looked at Shepard fondly. "You have a lot of people who care about you."

She shifted uncomfortably and changed the subject, "Will you be able to get me an audience with the Council?"

"I'll talk to Udina. I don't see a problem with that." He responded.

...

I'm so grateful to Anderson. Not only did I get my Spectre status back, but he was able to get me some N7 armor and clothing. I'm much more comfortable in that than in the Cerberus outfits.

The Council was not as accommodating, though. They reluctantly allowed me to be reinstated, but I must stay in the Terminus systems, away from Council space. That is a bit disconcerting, however, the attacks are all in outlying regions, so I should be able to operate within those parameters.

We picked up a thief named Kasumi on the Citadel. She is a bit unorthodox, but I like her. She has a lot of qualities that our mission will benefit from. Our next destination is Ilium, a beautiful asari city. There is a drell assassin and an asari justicar that the Illusive Man suggested for my team to be found there.

I've been having a little trouble sleeping. Weird dreams and the feeling that I'm being watched seem to hang over me. Maybe it's all these synthetic implants. When I can't sleep, I wander the ship. It's peaceful during our night cycle with the lights dimmed and just the hum of the engines. I usually end up in the weapons battery during these night strolls and Garrus seems to always be awake. We usually end up having a wonderful conversation about something random and I relax and am able to go back to my bed and sleep peacefully for awhile.

Is this more than just friendship I feel for him? Could he possibly feel anything more than camaraderie with me?