Thanks again for all the feedback and messages :) Picking up where the last chapter left off, no Leng in my story, because he sucked and bought nothing to the game or plot. Hopefully there is enough of a fight to make up for his absence though. Feels like the final draw down now, there isn't going to be much chilled out character time from here on in.

Her chest burnt and her throat hurt. Shepard threw herself forward, scrambling to get away as heavily armoured fists efficiently punched her in the gut and kidney. She grunted as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her from behind, clutching at her and lifting her into the air. The floor swam under her gaze, broken glass trodden across mosaics of the shattered console and broken armour. Tears rolled out of her eyes, as sweat leaked into them. She could only hear the noise she was making, the same noise all people make during a beating.

"Get... off..." She growled through gritted teeth.

A fist impacted the side of her jaw and she jolted back as her helmet rattled, she was only supported now by the Dragoon that held her. The fight had got wildly out of control.

"Get off!" She snarled again, her eyes going wide as one of the Dragoons lashed out at her, the glowing yellow snake of his whip slashing out, blinding her temporarily and heating the air around her. The whip curled around her neck and tugged her free of the other soldier's grasp, flinging her across the room and slamming her into a heap of shattered glass. The coil of yellow clamped firmly around her neck as the Dragoon approached. Not able to breath, not able to speak, she raged through bloodied lips into the suffocating air of her helmet. Dark spots danced across her vision, blotting out the carnage around her. She tried to close her mouth, but her helmet had been crushed and metal scraped against her teeth. Copper-tasting blood choked in her throat and she coughed and gagged as the Dragoon approached, pulling the whip tighter around her neck.

He knelt down in front of her, only an arms reach away as he wrapped the yellow coil around his fist and pulled her close, close enough to look directly into her eyes.

Shepard strained, gasping and suffocating. For a moment she let fear and futility rush through her, forced herself to be calm, to be perfectly still in the midst of the pain and the reality that she might be dying. She closed her eyes, seeing nothing but the pattern of veins inside her eyelids. Her lungs were on fire.

She fumbled around behind her, fingers desperately searching for the knife at her belt. With a grunt, she made a ferocious effort and, like a suddenly broken rope, her whole body jolted, lurching as she opened her eyes, her vision filled with yellow sparks. She felt the hilt of her knife and pushed forwards, slamming an elbow into the Dragoon's ribs. The razor sharp blade swung up and over, as her biotics flared, wreathing her hands as she stabbed through his face plate with an almost inhuman strength. She felt the crack, as his helmet smashed and collapsed onto cheekbone and jaw, the knife effortlessly slicing through flesh as a wash of oddly coloured blood covered her forearm.

The tension around her neck released and she fell forwards onto the body of the Dragoon, sucking in great, unobstructed breaths.

Clambering up, she spotted Liara just ahead of her. The asari was on one knee, body glowing with the force of her biotics.

"Up Liara!" Shepard gasped, as she grabbed Liara under her arm and hoisted her up. "This place is coming down!"

Shepard bent to pick up the pistol she'd lost and staggered forwards, desperately unclipping her disfigured helmet and throwing it savagely at one of the stumbling Dragoons. She glanced across at the strained face of the asari. "You ok?" Her voice was hoarse, barely a whisper.

"Me?" Liara shook her head. There was more blood on her face and lips and an ugly bruise was already spreading along her cheek. "The building is coming down, Garrus and the others had to move, they are on the way, they have the shuttle."

"Thank fuck." Shepard kicked one of the Dragoons, as he struggled upright in front of her onto one knee, his other leg jutting out awkwardly at a twisted angle. With a snarl she swung her knife and threw herself onto his back. She wrapped her forearm around his helmet, twisted his head around and slammed the blade roughly where his eye socket would be. Despite the helmet, despite the blood and the scream, she had a horrible moment of self loathing as she realised she was smiling.

A familiar voice bellowed something and she looked up to see Garrus enter the room, Tali's arm pulled across his shoulder as he supported her weight. She stumbled over a body as she ran towards them.

"Shit Lola, this is what you get up to when we leave you?" Vega roared, mouth at her ear as one hand reached out to absently pull her to her feet.

"We have to go, now!" EDI shouted firing several rounds into the chest of one of the few remaining Dragoons.

Shepard nodded as she regained her footing, glancing around to make sure everyone was there. "Go, leave the rest!" she shouted, gesturing back at the doorway that Garrus had just entered. "Go!" There was the sound of screaming behind her and the recognizable crack of some part of the structure giving way.

"The shuttle is just outside!" Garrus shouted, struggling to run awkwardly with Tali.

Shepard nodded, staggering back a little as something shook the ground behind them. Outside the room the shuttle was parked haphazardly, its rear doors open. Shepard took a running jump and landed with a thud, the chill air in the tiny craft made her breath fog white as she walked up to Cortez.

"How the hell did you get here?" She snorted back a mouthful of blood and leant over the pilot's chair.

"There's another docking bay just ahead, the fleet had wiped out most of the Cerberus fighters, so I went out and around." He looked up at her, his eyes going wide. He paused for a moment and then cleared his throat. "Then blasted my way down through the corridor." A shrug. "Looked like the place was coming apart fairly quickly, figured you'd need a quick getaway."

"You..." Shepard put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed, "Are a life saver Cortez."

"All in!" Garrus shouted, as he slammed the shuttle doors shut and thudded down into one of the seats.

There was a noise like a very loud snap that Shepard seemed to hear through her bones first, before it assaulted her ears

"Shit!" Cortez looked down at the alarm console, "Better hold on Commander, this is going to get messy!"

Shepard staggered back into the shuttle, avoiding the eyes of her squad until she was settled in the empty seat next to Liara. She sat down slowly, dizzy, and exhausted enough that as her head tilted back against the wall, she was asleep before she could protest about how bumpy the ride was.

Shepard's quiet voice buzzed in Garrus' ear, transmitted more by vibration through the flesh and bone of the Commanders body than by sound. He blinked, looking around at the mess and realised that he must have fallen asleep.

"You're awake then?" Shepard mumbled, her voice still hoarse, but holding a trace of mirth.

"Apparently." Garrus shifted, sitting up a little straighter and moving away from the Commander, so he wasn't quite leaning on her. He sighed and let his head fall limply forward.

"How are you feeling?" Her rough voice tickled his ears.

"Not too bad, actually." He spread his hands out on the table and looked down at them. "All things considered." In the hush of the mess he could hear distant voices, women talking quietly and the faint smell of human food cooking. He guessed it was coming up to meal time. "I'm tired, I can tell you that."

"Really?" Shepard looked up from her data pad and quirked an eyebrow at him. "Never would have guessed."

"Yeah, yeah," he waved a hand at her and smirked, "At least I don't look like shit."

Green eyes glared at him for a moment and then turned away, her attention focused back on the data pad. "How's Tali?"

"Getting there." Garrus knew his voice sounded acerbic, but he couldn't help it. He'd been replaying the moment where Tali had almost been blown to bits over and over again in his head. "Just lingering infection now, she'll be fine by the time we get to Earth."

"Good."

"It was a little close for a moment, though." Garrus shifted, trying to get comfortable, but when he tensed his muscles, his mandibles flared in pain. "I'm getting too old for this Shepard!" He flopped back against the wall behind them. "I feel half dead."

"Tell me about it," Shepard snorted. "At least you don't look half dead."

Garrus rotated his head and looked at Shepard. Her face was pale and there were dark circles under her eyes. Worse than that was the ragged wound on her cheek, where her helmet had compressed and cut through the skin. Although neatly healing already, the thick white surgical strips stood out and made it look worse. On top of that, the pale skin of her face was a terrible contrast to the livid purple bruises that covered her neck and disappeared below her uniform.

"You need to get yourself some plates," Garrus nodded, "You humans are so..."

"Squishy?" Shepard cut him off, smiling slightly, "I know, I know, trust me I feel squishy."

Garrus hummed deep in his throat and leant over to look at the data pad Shepard was reading. "What's that?" He asked.

"Final prep," Shepard sighed and passed the pad to him. "This is it now."

"The last stand," He agreed, looking at the fleet movement data and time-scales. "We'll be there in less than a day. Doesn't give us much time."

"Not nearly enough," she shook her head and was about to say more, when a voice sounded over the comm nearby.

"Shepard, are you busy?" Vega's distinctive tone, mumbled.

"Why?" Shepard responded, frowning, as she looked at Garrus.

"I got a problem," His words were slurred slightly.

"What is it?"

"It's the good doctor," he paused. "She's drunk."

Shepard almost laughed. Garrus did. "Liara is drunk?" she shook her head, "No way"

"I mean it Lola, you might want to put her to bed," he laughed over the line, "We're in the observatory."

"All right." Shepard's face was now creased with concern. "I'll head over." The comm went dead.

"Drunk?" Garrus asked, shrugging. "Do we even have enough alcohol on board to get an asari drunk?"

"Apparently so," Shepard said, standing up and moving away from the table. "Tell Tali I'll come see her again tomorrow," she smiled, "and to stop trying to fix things in the med bay."

"Will do Shepard," Garrus nodded, watching her leave. After a few minutes he closed his eyes again, finding it restful, and let the movement of the mess go on around him.

Shepard walked in to find Vega engrossed in his cards and Liara sprawled out on the couch, arms outstretched along the back, legs crossed at the ankles. The light was dimmed and the table in front of the asari was cluttered with empty bottles. Neither of them knew or apparently cared that they had company.

"Liara?" Shepard walked to within a foot of the asari and looked down. Her eyelids were heavy and her blue eyes were unfocused. Shepard waited until she was sure Liara could actually see her, "You all right?"

"Yes," Her words were slightly slurred and Shepard couldn't help but smile.

"Are all of these yours?" Shepard gestured at the empty bottles.

"Two of them belong to James," Liara glanced at the marine and then back to Shepard. "But yes, most of them are mine."

Shepard nodded and squatted down next to the couch and directly in front of Liara, "What brought this on?"

"Nothing," Liara smiled a little sadly, "Everything."

Shepard sighed and leaned over, sliding both hands under Liara's arms as she heaved her up. She held the asari close for a moment, until she was sure she could stand on her own. Liara murmured something and rested her head on Shepard's shoulder. "Let's get you to bed." She looked across at Vega. "Goodnight Lieutenant."

"Night Lola," he waved absently, not looking up from his cards.

Shepard slid one arm under Liara's knees and the other around her shoulders. Instinctively, Liara threaded her arms around Shepard's neck and allowed herself to be lifted. "Just how drunk are you?"

"Very," Liara nodded, as Shepard tightened her hold and pulled her against her chest. "I'm tired," she laid her head down on Shepard's shoulder as she walked, suddenly very conscious of the way the human's muscles bunched against the backs of her thighs in a tantalizing display of strength.

"I know you are," Shepard said quietly, as she manoeuvred through the ship to her cabin, ignorant of the sly stares from the crew. When she reached her cabin door, Liara pressed the door access and Shepard slowly walked down the steps.

"Put me down Shepard," Liara spoke around a yawn.

"Why?"

"You are shaking."

"Not for the reason you think." blue eyes looked up at her and Shepard smiled, hesitating on the last step, holding the asari in her arms and enjoying the weight of her. "All right." Shepard lowered Liara gently, holding onto her until she was steady. "Ok?"

"Yes." Liara navigated the last step cautiously, pausing just in front of the bed and spreading her legs for balance. "Did you watch them?" she looked up at Shepard through hooded eyes.

"Watch what?" Shepard frowned, completely puzzled.

"The videos," Liara mumbled, looking anywhere but at Shepard. "Of the Lazarus project."

"Yes," Shepard nodded, realisation suddenly dawning on her, "So that's what this is about, is it?"

"I am sorry Shepard."

"Don't be," Shepard said gently, "We'll talk about this later."

"Why later?"Liara swung her arm around Shepard's shoulder, sighing when she felt strong fingers curl around her waist. "I gave you to them. I am sorry," she skimmed her fingertips over Shepard's cheek, scowling at the vicious wound. "Are you angry?"

"No, never."

"But I gave you to them," Liara shook her head, but the sudden motion made her dizzy and her stomach flipped. She closed her eyes and fought to stay upright.

"Shut up Liara," Shepard smiled to take the edge out of her words, as she steadied the swaying asari. "We'll talk about it later."

"No" Liara laid her palms flat on Shepard's chest and tried to push her away. "I wish to talk about it now!"

"All right," Shepard frowned, laying her hands over the asari's and staring into blue eyes, dilated with anger and alcohol. "Why would I be angry, you gave me my life back. I'm grateful, not angry."

"This life?" Liara splayed her fingers on Shepard's chest, her gaze suddenly focused on her hands. "A life of war and desperation, you are grateful for this?"

"No," Shepard gripped Liara's shoulders firmly and kissed her mouth very softly, she kissed the line of her jaw and then the side of her neck, "I'm grateful for this." She smoothed the back of her knuckles across the asari's face. "How long have you felt like this?"

"Since the moment I handed over your body." She shook her head, more slowly this time. "I keep thinking about how selfish I was."

"Selfish? I don't understand."

"Cerberus offered me an option and I took it," Liara chewed her bottom lip, as she stared into Shepard's eyes. She wanted to feel disgust at herself, guilt for what she had done, and even pity for the person she'd been before she met Shepard. But it was hard to feel anything beyond an over whelming tiredness and desire for the fight to be over. "I did not think about you, or what you would have wanted," she sighed, sounding on the verge of sleep. "I was lonely, I did not want to be alone. I was selfish."

"No!" Shepard shook her head and for the first time her voice held an edge, "You weren't selfish" she shrugged and took a step backwards, needing the distance. "I would have done the same, had the roles been reversed, if I'd had to make the choice."

"Really?"

"Yes." Shepard swallowed hard, she'd never imaged that seeing someone else's pain could hurt her so much. "Of course I would." She rubbed her eyes tiredly, wincing, as the motion jarred her cheek. "You should have talked to me sooner Liara." There was no fire in her voice, only a deep sadness. "It won't always be like this, you know?"

"Like what?" Liara blinked slowly, her eyes tracing the familiar patterns of freckles on Shepard's face.

"We won't always be fighting; the war won't go on forever."

"How do you know that?"

"Because we'll either win on Earth, or we'll die." Shepard raked her fingers through her hair and moved closer to Liara. "It's that simple."

"We?" Liara whispered the word, backing away until the edge of the bed stopped her. "You said we."

"That's because I meant we," Now Shepard's smile was a little sad, "Come on, you're about to fall down, let's get you to bed."

"I do not want to." Liara folded her arms and frowned at Shepard.

"You know," Shepard kept her eyes on Liara's face as she kicked off her boots, unzipped her trousers and pulled them off, "Garrus always tells me he hates it when I get drunk, because I get morose." She undid her uniform jacket and discarded it on the floor, then pulled her t-shirt over her head and dropped it between them. "I'll have to let him know that when you're drunk, you just get difficult."

"Shepard..." Liara whispered, her eyes a hazy shade of blue, as she reached out to the livid bruises that plastered Shepard's neck and spread down along her collarbone. "Goddess, I did not realise you were so badly injured."

"It's all right." Shepard grasped the delicate blue fingers and kissed them softly, then manoeuvred around Liara and slid into bed. There were a few minutes of silence in the room, before Liara made her decision and began undressing. "Turn around." Shepard murmured quietly, when Liara finally crawled into bed. Blue eyes burnt into hers for a second, before she complied. Shepard curled up behind her, wrapping an arm around her waist and nuzzling her face into the bend of Liara's neck. "Even completely drunk you're beautiful." Shepard said, smiling as Liara mumbled something in response then found Shepard's hand and moulded it to her breast.

"Do we have time?" Liara asked, her voice already thick with the first edges of sleep.

Shepard kissed the sensitive curve of Liara's neck, keeping her hands and body still as the asari murmured and stretched alongside her. "We have time for this." she sighed, as desire warred with a tenderness so profound she could have cried. She didn't want to think about the fact that this might be the last time they could ever spend together like this. "Go to sleep now."

Liara sighed, her whole body relaxing with the motion. Eventually her breathing slowed down and became shallower, finally giving into sleep.

Shepard ran her hand along the asari's hip and up along her rib cage, content to just lie awake and watch her sleep. She kissed the soft skin of her shoulder, traced her fingertips along a fine line of bruising and then closed her eyes. "I love you" she whispered and she waited for sleep, hoping that tonight she wouldn't dream.

Note: I just wanted to handle some issues I felt the game didn't handle very well, particularly between Liara and Shepard. The chapter really just leads into that awful foreboding dread you suffer when you have to go and do something you really don't want to do, but have no choice. Thanks for sticking with me on this, and thanks again to Planetar.