Aftermath

By Spectre4hire

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Miranda watched the squad tread silently through the dark bowels of the Reaper. She caught glimpses of the other cameras in hopes of catching Shepard, but all she could see from the others was his back. He had distanced himself while he kept his attention straight ahead.

She wanted to say something, anything to comfort the man she grew to love but comforting others was never a strong point for Miranda Lawson. Her intense training, her concentrated studies, her drive to be the best, to be the beginning of a lasting dynasty came with flaws and blemishes. The more she dug, the more she realized just how imperfect a human she was.

Her gloved fingers softly tracing the outline of Shepard's form from one of the monitor screens. She wanted to say something. Anything to make sure Shepard knew that she was there for him but the vast search in her mind which revealed her prowess in science, medicine, mathematics, history, combat had a gaping hole in empathy and consoling.

"Miss Lawson?"

"Yes, EDI?" The XO refused to take her eyes off of the console screen.

"They have arrived at the targeted destination," reported the AI.

Miranda snapped out of her reverie, turning to the outlines of the Reaper schematics to see that the AI was correct. "Commander?"

She was greeted with silence; she immediately spun around to see that there was no interference detected from either communications or picture. She deduced that he was simply stuck in his own thoughts; she tried again, this time a bit louder.

"Commander?"

"Miranda?"

"Jacob would you please get the Commander's attention."

Miranda watched the scene play out on the monitors, seeing Shepard slowly coming out of his trance and turning around to face the others. It was this glimpse of his profile and then face that she had wanted to see since the young krogan had went through on his sacrifice.

"Miranda?"

"Shepard, I have been trying to contact you." She mentally chastised herself as soon as the words left her mouth at how blunt and informal she was sounding.

"Do you have something to report?" he asked. His tone was void of emotion.

"Yes, you have arrived at your targeted destination," she informed him. She could hear the soft conversing between the squad members but was unable to pick up on their words or sentiments.

"Turn around and you will be facing the room," she directed distantly, falling into her cold XO persona to dominate both her tone and attitude. She kept her eyes fixed on Shepard's monitor when he obeyed her instructions. The lights of his suit illuminated two massive doors that easily went over fourteen feet in height.

"There should be a control panel on the left of the doors," Miranda continued, reading the information from her terminal screen.

"I see it, I'm moving in," confirmed Eli. The batarian infiltrator stepped past the squad and to the control panel where his omni-tool lit up before engaging with the door's mainframe.

Miranda couldn't help but be impressed with the batarian whom after only a few short minutes of persistent hacking and batarian curses got the doors in front of the squad to open. The large ancient doors groaned to life before sliding with a loud hiss, revealing the room before the squad.

Eli joined the others where he was rightly congratulated for his work but none of the squad went towards the room, not even Shepard.

Miranda could sense the uneasiness between the squad members. She couldn't blame them for being hesitant in stepping into the Reaper's 'brain'. She was sure that she would be acting no differently if the roles were reversed.

Shepard finally stepped away from the squad with his rifle raised, and approached the room, stopping on the threshold allowing Miranda to view the room from his camera.

The room was cavernous, the ceiling was easily more than twenty feet high, and the adjoining walls of the door were covered in glowing wires and chords that all headed deeper into the room. At the end of the room was a perch that extended outwards with railings along the edge and in the center of the perch were the glowing lights of the terminal where the wires and chords all plugged into.

The squad one by one filed into the room, making their way to the perch where many of them looked down to see the chasm of darkness below them.

"I wonder how deep this goes down?" Jacob asked.

Miranda then watched with slight annoyance as Eli and Grunt taking turns leaning over the railing and spitting off of the perch and into the darkness. Having enough of batarian and krogan etiquette, she switched her attention on the others who were standing around the terminal.

Three pillars supported the terminal, its width barely passing eight feet with its height approaching the mid section of Shepard. The top of the terminal looked like the patchwork of a quilt with its intricate design of panels, monitors, toggles, and buttons.

"So is there an on button?" Garrus asked wryly.

Miranda was studying the terminal carefully, she could tell just by looking at it, that this machine was ancient but also very powerful.

"Miranda?"

"Yes, Commander?"

"Have EDI prepare extra firewalls," instructed Shepard.

"That's not going to stop this Reaper, Paragon."

Miranda had to agree with Eli's assessment but nonetheless she relayed Shepard's instructions to EDI.

"Preparing…"

"It's not suppose to stop the Reaper, but hopefully it will be enough of a delay so that we can get our necessary files and then we can manually sever the connection," explained Shepard, his voice coming across calm and cool over the speakers.

"Manually sever?" asked Garrus.

"Yeah, a few grenades and a round of bullets," answered Shepard.

Grunt chortled, "I volunteer Battle master."

"I am ready to begin a connection Miss Lawson," the AI's avatar reappearing.

"Commander we are ready on this end," Miranda said slowly. She couldn't pin point an exact problem but she couldn't deny an eerie feeling that was resonating in her stomach. Nonetheless she watched Shepard raise his arm to access his omni-tool.

"Here goes nothing," he commented to his squad before entering the command. The terminal screens lit up a series of what looked to be numbers and a strange language that they had seen earlier on the ship. Powering on the terminal was accompanied by a soft humming sound.

"EDI?" asked Miranda, turning to the AI.

"I am gathering information."

"And?" asked an impatient Miranda, who was more concerned with wanting to end this mission then she was on the files that the Reaper stored. She would have countless time to look through the cache of information; her primary focus was making sure Shepard and the squad survived.

"There is a lot of information Miss Lawson… It is nearly overwhelming. It is staggering the sheer amount that this reaper has accessed and stored."

"Hopefully we can drown the council in it," Joker said casually.

Before Miranda could agree with the pilot's words, static began to sizzle on all of the monitors as the picture became increasingly grainier while a loud buzzing resounded in her ear. She spun around to discover in her horror that she was losing the squad's feed.

"Shepard? Shepard can you read me?" she shouted as one by one the monitors went dark.

"John!" Miranda slammed her fists in frustration onto the terminal as his camera was the last to go dark.

"What happened?" asked a worried Joker.

"We lost them."

"EDI?" Miranda asked hopefully.

"I had to sever the connection; it went through the firewalls in nano-seconds."

"It?" asked Joker.

"The Reaper," Miranda said, with a heavy sigh. She turned her attention on the monitor labeled Shepard that was now pitch black. She took deep breaths; her heart was threatening to burst through her chest. They had walked right into the reaper's trap; all she could hope for now was for Shepard's luck against the Reapers to hold up.


The terminal's humming grew louder and louder as the squad instinctively backed away from the Reaper computer. The noises continued, gentle clicks filled in with the humming and a soft hissing would soon follow, it sounded as if the computer was trying to come to life.

"Miranda something is happening down here," Shepard stated calmly, his eyes fixed on the terminal whose noise was continuing to grow louder.

He received no answer from his XO.

"Miranda this is Shepard. Do you copy?" Shepard repeated, putting his finger to his ear, in a vain attempt to establish a connection.

He was met with silence again. His next words died in his throat as he watched a projection appear before him of a red-silhouetted Reaper flicker to life.

"You are alone Shepard." The voice croaked in a cold, dreadful tone identical to Sovereign and Harbinger.

Shepard was momentarily silenced by being addressed by a Reaper that has supposedly been stuck here thousands upon thousands of years before he was even born.

He could feel his own heart drumming against his ribs, the hair on the back of his neck standing up. A growing sense of dread painfully filling up his stomach but he tried his best to ignore such extremities as he took a step forward towards the crimson image.

"How do you know my name?"

"I accessed your portable devices. The technology is trivial… I am now fully aware of not just you but the time in which you have come from."

"How?" wondered Eli. The batarian was new to Shepard's squad. He had never experienced either Sovereign or Harbinger. He had never witnessed the power that these machines could wield.

"I am omnipotent; such are my powers which you underlings will never be able to comprehend. I am aware that I am not the first of my kind that you have encountered Commander. You destroyed one of our vanguards Sovereign and you halted the plans of Harbinger. Your presence provides me an opportunity."

"An opportunity?" asked an uneasy Shepard going against his better judgment. He knew that whatever the Reaper was going to say it wasn't going to be good.

"I have watched and monitored your progress and communication with interest. It is because of my will that you stand before me."

"Your will?" repeated Shepard, remembering the countless husks that they had to fight off just to arrive in this room, not to mention the death of one of his own squad mates.

"Yes, I have allowed you to reach this room."

"And why is that?" asked Shepard firmly. The Commander instinctively tightened his grip on his rifle.

"I was unjustly abandoned here many, many years ago. I have been patiently waiting for my chance to come, where I will be given the opportunity to be brought back to my brethren."

"This Reaper must be missing a few circuits, if it thinks we are going to tell the Reapers its location," Garrus commented dryly.

"You will see that you have little say on that matter. For I am Doom and you are nothing more than chattel, tools that I will use to assure my escape and your kinds destruction." Doom's words vibrated ominously, sending a cold chill down the commander's spine.

Indoctrination… Shepard knew at once what the Reaper was referring to. He turned to the others to see the hints of uncertainty and doubt escape their stone face expressions. Shepard needed to think fast, he needed to salvage this mission and get him and the squad out of this situation.

He turned to the red-silhouetted Reaper that flickered above them. He readied his nerves, preparing himself for what he was about to do, he only hoped his plan would work. He took a step forward, away from his friends and brothers in arms and approached the oppressor and destroyer of worlds and civilizations.

"What do you wish me to do?"

"Cooperation? I was not expecting such nobility from your kind."

"I will agree to serve you, if it means you release my friends from this ship," replied Shepard calmly.

"No way Shepard!" argued Garrus; offended at the thought that he would simply leave his best friend to such a horrible fate.

"Commander we are not going to abandon you!"

"Stop acting like a damn Paragon!"

"Battle master it would be a blight on my honor if I were to forsake you."

"Such a sacrifice may prove premature," Samara's sentiments were the last before all were silenced by Doom.

"You desire to save your friends from their designed fate? Have you learned nothing from your interactions with my kind! None can stop us. We have destroyed every civilization that called themselves great. We have wiped away all remnants of supposedly the most dominant empires that this galaxy has seen. We are the true masters of this galaxy! Your destinies have already been written on the ashes of those who came before and those who are doomed to come after you."

A burst of bullets rang out, peppering into the terminal that began to violently hum, spitting sparks as smoke began to billow out of the bullet holes. The Reaper projection fizzled in and out of focus before disappearing altogether.

"Damn it Eli," Shepard cursed, turning to see the unabashed batarian shouldering his shotgun.

"That thing talked to much," defended Eli.

"You know that won't destroy it," Garrus pointed out.

Eli shrugged, lowering his backpack while taking out the bomb. "Yeah, well this will."

"All of you are Doomed!" came the deep voice of the Reaper, but there was no projection, as a chilling cocking of a pistol signaled that the Reaper had successfully indoctrinated one of their own.


"Damn it EDI try again!" The words came out in more of a snarl then an order. She didn't care how she sounded; she was not going to sit idly by after their connection was severed. She wasn't going to allow anything to happen to the man who had helped her in more than ways than any other. It was in these few moments when she was not going to allow her supreme training, high intellect, fail her in finding a solution.

"Very well Miss Lawson, rebooting…" EDI's avatar disappeared, as the ship's AI tried to reestablish connection with the squad.

Miranda swiveled around to reface the screens and monitors that were supervising the squad with all of her attention in front of her, ready to spot any sign of improvement.

Blip…Blip…Blip

The soft noise brought Miranda back to reality as she turned to the source to see the life monitoring screens flicker to life.

"Establish reconnected, there is no evidence of the reaper's presence," stated EDI.

"Why is that?" asked Joker.

"It is probable that the squad was successful in shutting down the terminal that controlled the ship's long range communication," hypothesized the ship's AI.

Miranda breathed a sigh of relief, when she saw the heartbeats of the squad all were normal. However her eyes widened, when she lowered her gaze to brain activity and indoctrination and saw that on one of the screens the indoctrination taint was off the charts.

"Shit!"

"What is it?" asked Joker.

Miranda ignored the pilot's question, as she raised her gaze to see whose screen it belonged to… Jacob Taylor. A wave of emotions surged within her heart and brought nausea to her stomach, as she reread the name over and over again.

"Picture and sound are coming on now," reported EDI.

"What is going on?" asked a frustrated Joker.

"One of the squad members is indoctrinated," answered Miranda, surprised by how calm her voice came out.

"What? Who?" shouted Joker.

But before Miranda could answer, her attention was brought back to the monitors as one by one the images flickered to life, displaying the scene unfolding before her. If she had not seen it, she was sure to never have believed it. Jacob had his pistol pressed to the back of Shepard's head.

"Put the pistol down Jacob!" Garrus shouted.

"It isn't Jacob! It's the damn Reaper!" Eli argued, getting up with his shotgun in hand.

"You will be the first victims to perish in our war!" the Reaper's voice came unnaturally out of Jacob's mouth.

"Wait!" Shepard said, holding up his hands. "Don't shoot!"

"Now is not the time for your Paragon antics," snarled Eli.

"That is an order, stand down! All of you!" ordered Shepard calmly, watching as Samara, Eli, Garrus and Grunt hesitantly lowered their weapons.

Miranda cocked her head, what are you doing John? However in the back of her mind, she was rationalizing what she knew Shepard was capable of doing in such a tense situation.

"You wanted a messenger who better than me, Doom!" Shepard asked, trying to gage the Reaper's attention. "The supposed hero of humanity, leading the Reapers to my people's destruction, They will never see it coming!"

His words were a death sentence that echoed continuously through Miranda's mind. She could feel tears swelling in her eyes, her hands nervously shaking on the terminal.

"There would be no fitter way to rejoin my brethren," the Reaper relented.

The Reaper's ominous words set off something in Miranda, a fire began to burn in her stomach. The warmness spread throughout her body, relieving her of the cold fear and uncertainty that had paralyzed her. She was not going to play the damsel; she was after all a woman of action.

"EDI is there any way we can repel the reaper's indoctrination methods?"

"Doctor Solus has been experimenting with numerous frequencies that could in theory disrupt a reaper's attempt at indoctrination."

"Then that is our best hope. We will send the frequencies through the comm. line." Miranda stated.

"Miss. Lawson, Doctor Solus's studies have had no trials or successful experiments," reported the ship's AI, in its unemotional voice.

"It is our only chance of saving Shepard and the others!" snapped Miranda. She wasn't going to lose Shepard. She was going to fight for him, like she knew he would for her.

"Very well… The frequencies should be ready to send in less than two minutes."

Hold on John…


"Here I am! What are you waiting for! I am your only chance of abandoning this planet!" Shepard shouted sounding as brave and calm as he could. To his relief he could feel the pistol being pulled back. His plan was working; he took a deep breath, knowing what was to come. He tried to calm his thundering heart by remembering why he was fighting; a beautiful XO crossed his mind and the plans that they had made for each other.

I am sorry Miranda…

Shepard's thoughts were shaken violently, as he began screaming in pain. The Reaper was trying to penetrate his mind. It felt as if a clawed hand was pulling back the flesh of his skull before cracking his head open. He was unable to think clearly or properly, it felt as if a sledgehammer was pummeling his mind.

He could feel an electric pulse burning through his body. The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth from biting down on his tongue to try to stop his unnatural screams. His eyes rolled back into his head, while his brain was fed image upon image.

This is your fate Shepard! The Reaper's croaking voice, spoke as a backdrop of images of humanoid species being killed and enslaved. Their bodies littering in the millions in the ruins of their cities, he then was forced to watch freshly captured species pleading to their indoctrinated brothers for 'mercy.' But there was none as they were tossed onto the dragon's teeth, joining the rank of those who had doomed them.

He was sure that he could take no more of these gruesome images, or the pain that ravaged not just his mind but also his entire body. All he wanted was for the pain to stop, for the images to disappear; he was willing to beg and plea, anything to stop it all!

Then he heard something, it was a faint chirping noise, it was familiar sound, reminding him of the birds that would wake him up at Mindoir. He tried to concentrate on the noise and as he did the images that the Reaper was feeding him were stopping. The pain was subsiding while he tried to bring more and more focus to the chirping and as he did, he could hear its tune only getting louder, more beautiful.

There was no more pain, no more dreadful images of death and destruction. All he could hear was the beautiful song as it whistled through his mind, calming his heart, soothing his insides, comforting his aching muscles. The darkness that had once engulfed him was beginning to fade and as it did, the location around him changed…

He was on the fields of Mindoir, he found himself walking through the tall grass that tickled his hands that glided above the tips of the grass. He smiled; he had forgotten just how beautiful Mindoir was, as he continued to walk until he got to the edge of the field. He looked down the small hill that he had been standing on, and he could see his small house and farm.

He recognized his mom and dad, who were both dutifully working the land just like they use to. But they were not alone as he walked closer he could see more familiar faces, many of his old friends from Mindoir who had been killed during the raids but there was more! There was also Kaidan, Thane, and Odin all of whom were laughing and working together!

He wanted to join them; he wanted them to know that he was with them again. He wanted to see his mother and father again. He wanted to speak to them, he wanted to ask them all for forgiveness, but before he could get any closer to them, an enchanting voice came to him.

"John," The voice was soft and accented, it instantly brought warmth to his heart.

He hesitantly turned away from his fallen family and friends, to see a woman standing in front of him. She was dressed in a sleeveless, elegant white gown that swayed in the breeze. She was stunningly beautiful, her long raven hair danced in the winds, her mesmerizing blue eyes mirroring the love she felt for him within her heart, her creamy skin only adding to her beauty while her figure was the aspiration of perfection, in a word she was perfect.

"You can't leave now John." Her very tone, her stance, reflected the dignity that she carried herself with.

It took all of Shepard's strength to turn away from the beauty in front of him, and to turn back to where all those he had lost were waiting for him. He now saw that his father, mother, his friends from Mindoir, Kaidan, Thane, Odin had all stopped working and talking and were now approaching him. "I want to see them."

"I know you do John, but not yet. You have to stay. You need to keep fighting." She paused, "You can't break your promise!"

Her last words stirred something within Shepard's heart, a fire that began to kindle inside his chest, being fed the feeling of love, companionship, and compassion. He looked up to see that the feelings he had held for that one someone was the one staring at him. "Miranda."

She smiled as soon as the words left his mouth, her fingers gently grazing his cheek. "Come back to me John."

"Go Johnny, we will be waiting," spoke the fatherly voice of Benjamin Shepard. He looked at his son with pride and admiration. He wrapped his arm around Hannah Shepard whose eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"We are so proud of you. We know you can do it."

"Yeah Commander, you have to save the galaxy… again," Kaidan said with mirth.

"It is not yet your turn to join us," Thane spoke softly.

"Way too soon to be reunited Commander," Odin smiled.

"Will I see you again?" he asked softly, unable to keep his voice steady, as he looked over the ones he had spent so many sleepless nights mourning for and longing to be with.

"You know the answer son," answered his father.

Shepard nodded, slowly turning back to Miranda who was watching with a warm smile but he could see the tears swelling in the deep pools of her blue eyes. "How do I get back?"

"Just keep fighting," answered Miranda before her image faded into dust. The world around him fell back into his darkness while pulling him into the pools of the abyss. He felt as if he was swimming in an ocean, trying to fight the current of the tides to resurface. He kicked and fought with every last ounce of strength he could muster, he could see the light above, shimmering on the surface until he had arrived and he reemerged back to life.

Shepard groaned, stirring on the floor. He cautiously opened his eyes, blinking in the dim lights that showed several familiar faces all looking down at him. However as he opened his mouth to speak, he immediately turned over and vomited blood and bile.


Miranda knew the risks when she ordered EDI to proceed with Mordin's untested theory. She did not need to hear Edi's grim grocery list of side effects and ghastly results that could plague the squad if it failed. She had watched on baited breath as EDI entered the command and the frequencies began being sent to the squad in an attempt to fight off the Reaper's indoctrination.

The next few minutes to Miranda Lawson were torture as she watched the man she loved more than anything in the galaxy writhe on the ground, screaming in agony as the reaper tried to force itself into his mind.

Then to her horror she spotted what she feared the most from the corner of her eye. Shepard's heart beat faded before stopping altogether. He was dead. The fact nearly brought Miranda Lawson's world collapsing around her in that very second but she was too stubborn. She had brought him back to life once, she wouldn't accept his death, she couldn't.

She ignored the pronouncement that his vitals and life signs proclaimed on the screen in front of her. She closed her eyes, imagining she could see Shepard in front of her, hoping that he could hear her; she decided to speak from the heart. Somewhere that he had helped her uncover in their last few months together as they explored not just their relationship but the depths of their love for one another.

She wasn't bothered that he wasn't replying. That only strengthened her resolve as she continued to speak to him, not caring that their private conversation was being listened by others. She begged him to come back, demanded him not to abandon her, reminding him of his promise, of the life they were to have together.

What felt like hours, happened in only a few seconds and as she opened her mouth to speak once more, the monitors interrupted her; her eyes fell on his life signs and pulse. She was unable to conceal a growing smile.

He was coming back to me.

She flinched when he heard his painful vomiting; looking at his monitor she could see the puddle of blood and bile. His heavy breathing against his microphone, the swaying of his camera as he tried to regain his balance while she watched all she could do was smile as she listened to the others rejoice in the miracle of the return of Commander John Shepard.

"I thought I lost you again brother," admitted Garrus, his tone reflecting the pain the turian would feel at such a loss.

"Damn Paragon you do defy all the odds."

"Battle master! You truly are the greatest warrior!"

"I am glad to see that the goddess returned you to us."

"Miranda?" he called weakly.

"I am here John," she replied softly. She saw his weak smile, which was captured by the cameras of the other squad members.

"How's Jacob?" asked Shepard.

Leave it to Shepard; to ask for the well being of others after the ordeal he has just gone through, mused Miranda.

"I am fine," grumbled Jacob stepping forward. It was clear by his tone and body language that the soldier was still struggling with what he did. "I am sorry Commander. I tried to stop it! I just wasn't strong enough."

Shepard waved his hand to stop Jacob from his continuing apology. "It wasn't your fault Jacob. It was the indoctrination."

"I should have fought harder," Jacob admitted bitterly, sounding revolted by his own actions and his apparent lack of strength in fighting the Reaper. "What about the indoctrination?"

"Has been taken care of thanks to our brilliant salarian doctor," answered Miranda.

"Is that the reason for the background noise?"

"Very astute Commander, yes, we are sending you frequencies that seem to have an effect on the Reaper's ability to indoctrinate."

Jacob breathed a sigh of relief before shuddering. "Good, I don't think I could endure that again or fathom what I would do."

"I take it we are the guinea pigs?"

"Correct Commander."

"I don't want to break up this reunion Paragon, but how are we suppose to get out of here?"

"Yeah, I doubt the way back is safe unless you want to wade through thousands of husks," commented Garrus.

"I wouldn't mind," chortled Grunt.

"Miranda what are our options?"

"Hold on John, I am looking up the schematics as we speak," she replied, not listening to the conversation that followed with the squad about programming the bomb. She turned her attention on another monitor and keyboard. She began to type away, trying to find different routes and scenarios for the squad to safely exit the reaper.

"Commander?" Miranda called, after a few minutes of radio silence.

"Yes, Miranda?"

"I think I've found a way."

"We are listening."

"You guys can take a service ladder that will lead you down several stories and into a service corridor which would lead to you to an exit hatch, near your original entry point."

"Sounds good, where is the ladder?"

"By the perch."

"Oh," replied Shepard.

Before Miranda could comment on Shepard's odd reply, the squad radioed back that they found it. She now watched through their monitors as they were all looking over the railing where the ladder was located, but that's not what their attention was on but the dark drop that awaited them if they slipped up.

Shepard sighed, "I suppose we should get moving. Eli set the bomb."

"Timer Paragon?"

"Miranda what is out ETA?"

"Thirty three minutes."

"Set it for sixty minutes just in case."

"Is there any way for the Reaper or the husks to disarm the bomb?" asked Miranda.

Eli chuckled, "not unless it grew some arms and knew the access code."

Miranda nodded, trusting in the batarian's expertise with bombs and technology. She silently watched the bomb be programmed before the squad filed down the ladder. She knew that the Reaper would not go down without a fight. She could only hope that the tired squad would be able to endure whatever the Reaper could throw at them.


The last ten minutes went tediously slow for Commander John Shepard as he was forced to confront his fear of heights, as he descended down the ladder and into darkness. He refused to listen to the joking of Eli and Grunt who continued to speak about how far the drop would be, as they climbed down in front of him.

Shepard was the last and most grateful to get off of the ladder and onto solid ground, he released the breath he had been holding ever since he began the descent. The squad found themselves in a small corridor with steel grating floors; their lights illuminated the vast darkness in front of them.

"Miranda we have reached the service corridor."

"Good then you should proceed forward," she replied.

"Samara, Jacob I want you two to take the lead. Grunt, Eli you guys got the rear," instructed Shepard, the squad silently followed his orders before starting down the corridor.

"So what happened to me up there?" asked Shepard to his turian best friend.

"You were dead," Garrus stated.

"Dead?" Shepard repeated, remembering the images of Mindoir. Images he thought were from a dream but perhaps it was something else… the afterlife?

"Yeah, for a few minutes, we thought we lost you… again."

Shepard could tell the words were not easy for his friend to say; he patted Garrus's shoulder, hoping to convey that he understood and appreciated his friend's sentiment. "Well too bad for you guys that I decided to defy the odds yet again."

"It's a pity to see that the afterlife didn't take away your ego," Garrus's mandibles twitched into a smirk.

"Funny, how many times did this ego save your turian ass?"

"Too many times to count," admitted Garrus, feigning exasperation.

Shepard nodded before nonchalantly cocking his rifle, "and don't you forget it."

"With you constantly around that would be impossible."

Before Shepard could return his friend's jab, lights began to come on in the corridor illuminating the entire passageway including the numerous doors with overhanging door frames that ran along both sides of the service corridor. All the doors looked to be sealed shut.

"Escape is futile Commander Shepard. This will be your tomb!" Doom's voice vibrated off of the walls. A loud humming cut through as parts of the ceiling opened up to reveal a large heavy turret replace the ceiling. The squad had barely time to register the turret before it opened fire with a heavy boom that echoed loudly across the corridor.

Samara was blasted off of her feet by the turret, her body corkscrewing over the squad before collapsing in a heap meters behind them. The squad scattered to find cover in the overhanging door frames as the turret continued thundering down on them with the squad occasionally getting off a round or two before being pummeled back into hiding.

Shepard looked over his shoulder to see the Justicar was lying still on the ground but as he repositioned his body in order to sprint to her position, the turret took aim at him and fired off several heavy rounds. The Commander was just able to find shelter in a narrow door frame.

He could hear the chunks of the wall that he was hiding behind falling to the ground as they were ripped off by the concussive shots of the turret.

"Eli!" The Commander shouted over the gunfire.

"I'm trying Paragon!" replied Eli, who was taking cover while Jacob provided cover fire. The two were crouched in one of the overhangs.

"Try harder, I am losing cover!"

Eli grumbled a few curses in batarian but nothing Jacob could understand as the soldier watched from the corner of his eye, the batarian typing fervently on his omni-tool in an attempt to hack into the turret's systems.

Garrus was the furthest away, his sniper rifle peering behind his cover. The turian was comfortably nestled as he watched the skirmish unfold through his scope. He examined the ancient but powerfully built turret; it bore a striking resemblance to the Normandy's new turrets that he had calibrated. Though there were differences between the two, most notably how and what it fired. The turian was still confident, he had a way to beat it.

It was in those painful hours of research and work when he synced the turrets with the frigate that he had been able to detect its flaw. Its weak point located just under its barrel at its base was where its main circuits and mainframe were kept. It's underbelly that was what Garrus Vakarian was patiently waiting for. When the turret swiveled around its base taking aim at Eli and Jacob's position that was when he had his shot.

Garrus's mandibles twitched as his talon squeezed the trigger, several rounds from Garrus's sniper rifle ripped through the underbelly of the turret before it had a chance to face its threat. The turret hissed and moaned as smoke billowed from its open wounds, before after a soft hum, its power shut down.

Shepard didn't even register what took out the turret only that it was out as he scrambled towards the Justicar who was lying still, he slid to his knees at her side. Looking down at her paling features and closed eyes. "Samara?"

She groaned before stirring, she opened her eyes. "It seems my shields were unable to absorb the turret's rounds."

"Where were you hit?"

She motioned her head to her torso; he followed her eyes to see the punctured wound that was exposing her flesh and bone in her side with blue blood beginning to trickle out.

"Did you administer the medi-gel?"

She nodded before flinching, "I do not think that it will be able to heal the wound."

"Don't worry because Dr. Chakwas will have you on your feet in no time," reassured Shepard, who didn't want to say goodbye to another friend so soon.

The remainder of the squad rejoined around the Justicar and Commander; her wound did not go unnoticed by the others.

"We can't waste time Paragon, we need to keep moving," Eli said with some hesitance.

"Can you walk Samara?" asked Shepard.

The Justicar nodded, before pulling herself to her feet. She flinched as she tried to move her arms and stumbled as she tried to get her feet under her.

"Shepard?" Miranda's accented voice came to his ear.

"Yes, Miranda?"

"EDI is detecting a power surge all along your corridor, she theorizes that it is more of those turrets."

"How many more?" asked Shepard, trying to sound calm at the dangerous task ahead of them.

"Six at the last remaining intervals."

"Damn," Jacob cursed, letting out a breath.

"Nothing ever comes easy for us," commented Garrus, shouldering his sniper rifle.

"What are we waiting for battle master?" Grunt chortled, cocking his shotgun.

"It would be foolish of you to try to bring me along in my state," Samara stated plainly, unabashed by the receiving looks the others members of the squad gave her.

"We are not leaving you behind, Grunt will help you." Shepard ordered. The Commander's tone left no room to argue.

"It would be an honor to protect such a warrior," Grunt agreed.

"Then we shouldn't linger, let's get going," Shepard said, slapping a new round into his own pistol.

"Very well Shepard," Samara flinched, realizing that it would be wasteful in trying to argue with the spirited Commander.

He nodded, pleased that she was not going to fight. "Miranda how far ahead is the next turret?"

"Ten meters," replied Miranda. "Don't be stupid Shepard."

Shepard chuckled, "I'll try not to."

"How are we going to take these turrets down Paragon?" asked Eli as the squad began walking towards the next interval.

"I think Garrus was successful in his attempt."

Garrus laughed, "don't sound too bitter Shepard. The turrets are of a design similar to the ones I calibrated, they are weakest at their base just under their barrel."

"You heard the know it all, aim for its base," Shepard instructed with mirth.

"You should be coming on the next turret on your left," warned Miranda.

"Ok Garrus, Jacob you take point. Eli and I will try to draw its attention. Grunt, Samara you hang back for now."

"I don't know what I should be more thankful for Paragon. Being paired with you again or giving us the most dangerous task," Eli grumbled with no real venom.

Shepard shrugged, "I am always trying to please everyone."

Eli chuckled before following Shepard out into the open where the two were instantly targeted by the Reaper's turret, which opened heavy fire upon them. The rounds tore into the ground in front of the two as they dove out of its line of fire.

The two scrambled towards the nearest doorframe as the turret swiveled its position, following the two but before it could let loose the next barrage it was hit simultaneously by sniper and pistol rounds.

"It's safe now," called Garrus sweetly, standing under the smoking turret.

Eli stepped out of their hiding spot, "funny."

"Took you guys long enough," Shepard replied.

"You know us Commander, we have to be sure before we just rush in," quipped Jacob with a satisfied smile.

Grunt groaned from behind, as he propped up the Justicar, the young krogan watched the battle ensue with hunger in his eyes. He was frustrated and anxious, watching battles develop without participating was near torture.

"You have a restless heart," Samara commented, sensing the uneasiness in her companion.

A chorus of loud groans responded to the Justicar's comment. Grunt spun around to see dozens of blue glowing one-eyed husks approaching them.

Grunt wrapped his reptilian arm tighter around the asari while he raised his other hand holding his shotgun. He chortled, clearly pleased by the change of events before opening fire on the husks.

Samara raised her own pistol, wincing at the burning pain that went up her side at the sudden movement but she ignored it. A Justicar's life was built on endurance and fortitude; she cocked her pistol and fired.

The first few shots were true, cutting down the husks in numbers but as their bodies hit the grated floors, more and more kept on coming.

"Shit!" Shepard shouted before the rest of his words were drowned out by his auto sub machine gun that tore through the next row of husks.

Garrus and Jacob stepped in on Shepard's left and right, rifle and pistol raised and unloaded the next few rounds into the approaching husks. Glowing blue blood splattered like waves onto the beach, dried flesh exploded in all directions but the squad increased their fire as they realized that they were in the middle of a trap and it seemed Doom was upon them.

Eighteen minutes and twenty four seconds till detonation

Miranda nervously glanced at the timer again before her blue eyes fell back to the monitors and to the raging battle that continued. The squad was limping forward, forced to split up the responsibilities with Garrus and Jacob taking down the powerful turrets while Shepard and the others kept the husks at bay.

It was the only plan and chance the squad had at trying to escape the reaper. She could hear the reaper continuing to taunt the squad on their impending doom but she tried her best to block out its chilling voice.

The squad had taken out the second to last turret but not before it got off one more round which slammed into Shepard who was lifted off of his feet before smashing against a wall. But before Miranda or the squad could as much register the attack, they could hear him stirring and getting back to his feet.

"Shit this isn't my day," Shepard groaned, his voice sounding exhausted and gravelly over the speakers.

Eli chuckled, "it never is for a Paragon."

"Come on Shepard no time to relax," teased Garrus.

"The exit hatch is ten meters away," reported EDI.

Miranda repeated the news to the squad who all seemed delighted at the prospect of leaving the reaper once and for all.

The last turret put up a much stiffer fight, it continued to get assailed by bullets but it kept on firing on the tired squad who were also trying to push back the persistent husks. She could hear Shepard shouting out orders for the squad who obeyed them without second thought. Through sheer force of will and determination the squad was able to destroy the last turret before pushing through to the exit hatch.

She watched Eli be the first to arrive at the hatch but as the batarian tried to open the door, it wouldn't budge. "Damn it!"

Miranda sneaked a peek at the timer… Seven minutes forty-eight seconds.

"You thought you could escape your destiny?" the Reaper's voice sent chills down her spine as it reverberated over the cockpit speakers.

"I am going to need some time," Eli said, his omni-tool aglow.

Miranda looked over at the other monitors to see the squad was looking back at a legion of blue glowing husks approaching.

"Time is not something you have a whole lot of," Miranda reported.

"We never do," replied Garrus fondly.

Shepard's rebuttal was drowned out as the squad opened fire onto the husks. Miranda's eyes never left Shepard's monitors, but her ears were in tuned to Eli's grumbling and curses as he tried to unseal the hatch.

The husks were so close their glowing blue blood washed onto the squad, bits of dry flesh spitting forward and sticking to their armor.

Suddenly a dim light illuminated the corridor from the squad's back. "I got it!"

"Alright Grunt, Samara you go first, Eli cover them," ordered Shepard, who had yet to take his eyes off of the husks.

Grunt led the injured Samara back to the hatch where the two were the first to climb through the circular hatch.

"All right Eli get out of here," Shepard instructed. "Jacob switch to your rocket launcher."

"See you on the other side Paragon."

Jacob shouldered his rocket launcher, "ready Commander."

"Alright feed them."

A loud whistle screamed throughout the corridor, as wisps of smoke hissed out of the barrel as several missiles propelled forward soaring through the crowd of husks, clipping off limbs and heads before exploding, spitting out fire and shrapnel in all directions. The husks in the general facility were instantly turned to ash while others were set on fire, hopelessly trying to douse the flames.

"Good work Jacob, you and Garrus get out," Shepard ordered. "I am right behind you," he added.

Miranda watched Jacob climb out of the hatch, followed by Garrus only after the turian looked over his shoulder to make sure his friend was coming.

Shepard stopped on the threshold; he turned from the squad who were all safely assembled outside. Before he turned back to the dimly lit corridors of the Reaper, he looked at the Cyclops husks corpses that littered the grated floors.

"You may have evaded me, but you will fall Shepard. Your kind is doomed!"

Shepard ignored the Reaper's last threat before jumping out of the ship, where Eli was waiting as he closed the hatch and resealed it.

"I don't want those damn things getting out."

"Miranda what is our time?" Shepard asked loudly, over the gusting winds.

"You have two minutes Commander," answered Miranda, relieved to see the squad was coming up on their shuttle.

"With time to spare, I am impressed Paragon."

"Yeah Shepard, aren't we usually jumping out of flaming factories or ships. This is a personal best," commented a pleased Garrus.

After seeing the squad successively load themselves onto the shuttle and listening to the engines revving up, Miranda turned her attention away from the monitors. "Doctor Chakwas this is Executive Officer Miranda Lawson. Assemble your medical team and Doctor Solus and report to the Cargo bay."

"Understood Miss Lawson," replied the accented Normandy's ship doctor.

Miranda sighed before sliding her chair away from the terminal and monitors. It was over, the mission was over and the squad was safe.She stood and stretched, her back stiffening from the hours she had spent sitting and monitoring the squad's progress. She was uninterested at the countdown that Joker had going to commemorate the destruction of the Reaper. She didn't need to see the 'fireworks' to know that the mission was a success.

"Where are you going?" called Joker. "You're going to miss the festivities."

"I am not missing anything," Miranda replied. Her thoughts and focus was on greeting the squad upon their return, most importantly the Commander and with those thoughts all she could do was smile as she left the cockpit.


"How long do we have to be in here?" asked an annoyed Eli, who was pacing in the med bay.

It had been an hour since the ground team had returned from the Reaper, and in that time they had been bandaged up, examined, scanned, and were continuing to be monitored. Dr. Chakwas, Mordin and Miranda wanted to make sure that the entire squad was clear of all indoctrination.

"Until Dr. Chakwas clears us," Shepard repeated, for the eighth time. The Commander of the Normandy SR-2 was comfortably lying down on one of the beds. His head propped up by his hands; he was the most calm and patient about the situation that they found themselves in.

"You're the Commander can't you over-rule her?" asked a frustrated Eli, staring at Shepard.

Garrus chuckled from another bed; he was using the time to clean his sniper rifle. "Bad idea Eli."

"Yeah, very unwise to go against the chief medical doctor," agreed Jacob with a nod, who was leaning against one of the walls.

"I have to agree with the batarian, battle master. Waiting isn't one of our strong points."

"Even a krogan body needs rest once in a while," commented Samara, from another bed. The asari Justicar, who had taken a heavy round from the Reaper turret, was on the mend and bound to make a full recovery after some bed rest.

Eli threw up in his arms in disbelief at how no one else was bothered at the situation.

"Just try to relax and think of the positives," recommended Shepard.

Eli looked to have considered the Commander's suggestion as he went over to one of the beds and sat down at the foot of it. "Yeah, your right at least when I am here I won't be bothered by baldy."

"You could have fooled me," Garrus quipped.

"What is that suppose to mean?" snapped an offended Eli.

"It means that you two seem to like to fight," commented Jacob, unable to hide a smirk.

"Like to fight with her? I hate that bitch!" protested Eli.

"Uh-huh whatever you say," replied Garrus, sounding thoroughly amused with the situation.

"A strong female is the perfect candidate for mating," stated Grunt.

"Like the XO," smiled Eli, trying his best to sound innocent as he made the reference of the commander and the XO.

"He does speak truthfully Shepard. How long has this been going on?" asked Garrus.

"I never took you for a gossip hound Garrus."

Garrus shrugged, "It tends to happen when you share meals with Donnelly and Joker."

"Speaking of you-know-who," Eli grinned, as the med bay doors opened to show Dr. Chakwas, Mordin, and Miranda Lawson step in.

"Remarkable, simply remarkable," commented Mordin.

"What is?" asked Shepard.

"That your brains were not turned into mush while on board the Reaper especially yours Commander and Jacob's. It looks like our experiment was successful. Splendid," answered the hyperactive salarian.

"Mush?" repeated Garrus, his mandibles twitching, looking revolted at the idea.

Mordin nodded, "Yes, that would have been my proper hypothesis after such a long period of time under the influence of that Reaper."

"What about the indoctrination?" Shepard cut in, not liking where the current conversation was leading.

"You are clear of any taint," Miranda answered, showing him a small smile.

The squad conversed happily with one another and began getting up from their positions all ready to leave the med bay except for Samara who was required to rest for a few more days.

"Finally," said Eli, approaching the door but the batarian had to stop suddenly as Tali walked in. The quarian hadn't even noticed him, her head was lowered and her hands were fidgeting in front of her. Even though no one could see through the quarian's helmet, it was clear something was wrong with her.

"Tali what is it?" asked a concerned Shepard, walking over to his friend.

She slowly raised her head, "asari forces have made contact with a geth and quarian outpost. They have engaged them in battle."