This is a work of fan fiction from all Mass Effect games owned by EA and Bioware. I do not claim any ownership of the characters or the Mass Effect universe. My thanks to Bioware and EA for creating an amazing story with characters we have all come to know and love.


Chapter 29: Attack

Ellure struggled to find a beat on the winding ramp. Peering over the black marbleized divider guarding them from a hundred foot drop, she was able to see the steady supply of enemies more fully. She hoped they would be reaching the control room soon. Her team was bound to wane with so much fighting. The mere reality that they were all still intact only increased her concern. It was just a matter of time.

Miranda's voice crackled over her comm. "Acquiring target!"

If there was any possible way to prevent the loss, she would find it. In the dark of night, Ashley was still there in the back of her mind. She suddenly wondered what Williams would think about her kissing a turian, and Garrus, no less. But she'd never know…

Her stomach twisted. She promised herself she wouldn't play favorites here, no matter how much she cared for him. Every single person in her team was looking to Commander Shepard for some kind of strength and support for no real reason. She'd never done anything greater than her job because it had to be done. There was no one else to do it.

The image of the colonist girl in the pod was fresh in her mind. Damn the Council. How could they not understand the scope of this? They should know enough at the very least to admit the Reapers existed. What the Reapers wanted with the collectors and humans made no sense.

"Nice... shot."

Ellure adjusted her visor and tightened it against her ear. "Miranda, you're breaking up... Damn it. The swarms must be interfering with our radio frequency."

Samara preserved the biotic barrier with her arms braced overhead. "This could be a real fire fight. I will hold this position till you are ready to move." she said, crouching behind a fallen pillar.

Ellure sought her own cover, and Garrus kept to her side while Grunt was busy having the time of his life. There was her silver lining for this moment. Breathe in, shoot, breathe out, reload.

"Husks, Shepard!"

Garrus' voice kept her focused. She listened to the reload of his gun as she surveyed the incoming scramblers with another distinctive red glower leading the pack. Grunt downed the collector in her line of sight, and she tossed her grenade at its feet. Detonation sparked a howl of hiss filled cries till the pack's leader imploded on its own forces.

"Perfect shot."

"That was a pretty good one wasn't it?"

"Don't get too excited. I'm still ahead of you."

"Barely... Okay, Samara. All clear, let's move!"

Grunt hustled to act as a meat shield for Samara as they rounded the corner. "Battle-master, I see the doors."

"Battle-master? I'm going to lose count of how many different names I have soon." Ellure gathered up the enemy's unused, abandoned thermal clips and vaulted over her cover to catch up. Judging by the asari's wavering steps, they didn't have much more time. "How are you holding up, Samara?"

"I will hold on... as long... as I can."

Garrus shouted, "Shepard, incoming!"

She tried to keep herself solid no matter how tattered her nerves were becoming. "Just a little bit farther!"

Grunt pushed to the edge of their barrier, laughing exuberantly as he received the brunt of the hits.

Garrus shook his head. "And I thought you were crazy."

With a strained chuckle, she dropped behind their last chance for concealment as a shielding alarm broadcasted her exposure. "At least I know how to avoid getting hit in the face."

"That's because you're short and squishy, and I'm-"

"Not now, Garrus." She hastened to reload the Widow and took aim at the red husk barreling for Grunt.

"You need to follow your own advice. I wasn't done yet. Now before you interrupted, I was going to say..." Garrus knelt and turned to her, releasing the full force of his gaze. "I'm okay with that."

Samara's regal tone was shaken. "I can see the entrance. Need to... get there... soon."

She didn't have time to respond to this poorly timed affection. Climbing onto the onyx slab, Ellure picked off the last combatant in their path. Samara's arms and legs quaked with exhaustion as Garrus hoisted her up by the hips.

"Hold on. We're almost there." Ellure reassured as additional throngs charged their six.

The pressure was on.

Garrus said, "We need to get out of here, Ell," as he vaulted over and assisted Samara off the hurdle.

She jumped down. "Thanks, Grumpy, I am more than aware of that right now." Sticking to Samara's side as Garrus and Grunt ran ahead to the doors, she marched backwards, glad to be off the seeker infested ramp and taking aim. "They're pushing! Keep it up!"

The barrier reached the entrance leaving Samara breathless. "Hurry, Shepard…"

Garrus and Grunt took charge of cover fire as she found the outer access panel. Shaking the ground in protest, the fortified doors parted. Backing in, she pulled her pistol for stragglers. The boys charged into the room. The justicar lingered, heaving for fuller breaths.

What was Samara waiting for?

"Samara!" she cried, as shambles of collectors crossed the end of the ramp's passage.

Crystal blue eyes linked to hers. With a slight smile, Samara twisted around and arched back. The normally soft-spoken asari released a powerful cry and flung her arms forward. Blue illuminated sparks reached outward from her body into a web of destruction.

She was speechless. The barrier launched as a massive projectile. Flying in an arch away from the entrance and up the ramp, it sent seekers, collectors and husks out of visual range.

Garrus holstered his rifle. "I guess she's got that then."

Grunt smiled. "Hah!"

Samara gallantly strode into the room and typed into the inner panel, shutting the doors. Ellure could only gape in admiration. With brief silence compressing, her attention was swiftly readjusted.

"... Repeat. Shepard, do you copy?"

"I copy. What's your position?"

"We're at the door. They've got us pinned down!"

"We're coming, just hold on! Garrus, get this door open."

"Way ahead of you." Garrus punched into the console at the right of their second entry point.

Samara and Grunt readied their own weapons and took center. Quickly, she slipped to the left edge of doors and swapped to her rifle. How many would there be?

Doors rumbled, and a crashing barrage of bullets sliced the chamber. Grunt and Samara rushed to the sides, shield alarms blaring, as the second team trailed behind Miranda. Ellure lobbed a grenade diverting for the stragglers. As soon as Kasumi reappeared, taking up caboose, Garrus had the doors shut.

"Shep!"

"Goto."

"Glad to see you're all okay."

"Thanks, you guys okay?"

"I think so."

Ellure wrapped an arm around the top of Kasumi's shoulders as they both grinned for the breaths they still drew. Casting inventory, she spotted Miranda doubled over, gripping her waist. "Shit." No signs of blood or holes in her thin black covering. She never could understand the XO's choice in protective armor.

Rushing to evaluate the injury, Ellure stopped short as Miranda tossed the cascade of hair away from her face and straightened. "I'm ready for action, Commander."

"Don't scare me like that, Lawson."

Miranda smirked with a laugh. "Duly noted."

With nary a moment to steady her pulse, she patched into the Normandy. "Joker, are you at the rendezvous point?"

"I'm here, Commander. Chakwas and the rest of the crew just showed up."

EDI said, "Mordin's group just arrived, Shepard. No casualties."

She could chalk that down as another achievement.

Miranda appeared exultant as she rested a hand on her hip. "Excellent. Now let's make it count. EDI, what's our next step?"

"There should be some nearby platforms that will take you to the main control console. From there you can overload the system and destroy the base."

Hearing his familiar steps, she said to him, "Sounds easy enough."

Garrus shook his head. "Too easy."

"Commander? You've got a problem." Joker cut in, his voiceedgy. "Hostiles are massing just outside the door. Won't be long till they bust through."

They needed to hurry. She turned to Miranda. "We need to finish this before they get through."

Miranda nodded. "Pick a team to go with you, Shepard. Everyone else can bunker here and cover your back."

The group needed steadfast leaders and a good defense. Knowing Garrus he would want to go with her, but he was right, things had been going too easy. At least here she understood what was going to be awaiting her crew, and he would be able to keep them safe, as well as himself.

No matter who she chose, there was a deep unsettling in her gut. If she could be successful alone she'd try it, but she would have never gotten this far without them. It could only come down to a matter of skills.

She bit her lip, restraining apprehension. "Thane and Jack."

Miranda transferred to Garrus with a questioning look.

Jack timidly walked over. "Shepard, are you sure that's a good idea? I may not be the best option."

"Absolutely." Gesturing to her own body, she continued, "Do I look like a biotic?"

Jack eyed her, amused. "Not even close."

"Hope you've been saving up."

"Hell, yeah."

"Sweet. Let's kick some ass!"

"That's my line, Shepard."

"Not anymore."

Jack narrowed her eyes and mocked, "Let's move out!"

Miranda snapped with girlish mirth and said, "That was actually pretty good! Though, you forgot the hand signals."

Jack stuck one hand high in the air, pointing fingers and snapping them for effect. "Let's move out! Fall back! And my personal favorite... I should go."

"I'm glad you'll remember me for all my amazing quotes and not my powerful and impulsive fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants speeches. It's nice to know that 'I should go' is the one you'll keep in your heart." She shoved Jack teasingly. Surveying, she saw Garrus was not only gone, but Thane still hadn't joined or responded. "Uh… Where's Thane?"


Numb, Garrus approached the drell, judging the shift of his dark eyes. He appeared to be just as puzzled by her choice. "Krios, what's going on in that head of yours?"

"Perhaps it isn't my place... But I supposed you would be going with her."

"That makes two of us." Garrus paused, watching her discuss plans with Jack and Lawson. That in itself was an unexpected sight. "She's really throwing me off track today."

"If it is any consolation, my arm is Shepard's. My body is merely a weapon at her disposal. I will make sure she is unharmed."

"Last time you said that your weapon got you into trouble."

Krios' brow furrowed. "I will overlook that. I understand turian nature to be slightly aggressive."

"Count it for what it is. Either way, when she calls your name I suggest you let me take your spot."

"That will not be an issue. I can understand the desire to protect one you care for." Krios softened in observation of Shepard. "Perhaps she has chosen me because of an understanding that my time is shorter than most."

Garrus scratched a mandible and transferred the bulk of his weight from one foot to the other. Her movements with Jack carried as lighthearted. Probably trying to loosen the girl's nerves. "No. Shepard wouldn't choose you based on that reasoning. Look at Jack, she's in peak condition. Shepard sees everyone the same."

"I would surmise you to be correct, except that I do not think she wishes to put you in harm's way."

"Yeah, well, if this is just another one of her attempts to protect me she's got another thing coming."

"Vakarian, perhaps you should consider that she is preparing herself for the worst. If something happens to her... who will take her place?"

"Thane?" Shepard said, smile fading. "Are you ready?"

Garrus swallowed the churning created by Krios' last statement and spoke in a hushed voice as he waved her over. "Time to have a chat."

Obviously concerned, she bid farewell to the women and crossed the chamber. "What's going on, boys?"

"I'm taking Krios' spot."

"Uh... No. You're not."

Krios said, "I will let you two discuss this in private." Following a polite bow, he left to rejoin the others.

Shepard jutted out a hip, arms folded in a typical maneuver of coercion. "Okay, Vakarian. What makes you think I should take you?"

"Because I'm not just going to stand here and watch you march off into the unknown without me to cover six. I led your fire team, and Lawson has proven she's capable now. There's no reason I can't go with you."

"Garrus..."

"Ell. I know damn well you remember our chat in the mess-hall." Shepard ruffled her hair in an uneasy manner. "What is it?"

"Listen. I know what is going to happen here. I'm not sure what is going to be waiting for me once I climb onto that platform. They need a solid leader." she said, indicating the group as they stretched and massaged sore muscles. "I picked Jack cause she's our biggest powerhouse right now, and Thane because... because he's a crack shot." The harsh tone slipped after her flash of hesitation.

Garrus stood incredulous. "Spirits. That is a lie."

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry for the insubordination, but I'm taking his position. He's already agreed. Push all you want, but he's not going to comply."

"Garrus..."

"I'm not backing down and we're running out of time."

"Damn it." She stationed her hands on each hip while staring at their feet. With an indifferent shrug, she conceded. "Alright. You win, Vakarian. Just don't get yourself killed, cause you know as well as I do that crap is going to abound shortly. There is no way this is going to be a simple place a bomb and fly home mission... You have no idea how badly I wish that were the case." Shepard departed for the platform.

Garrus sighed. "I'm sure I have a guess." Feeling an abundance of relief, he shadowed Jack as they assembled for the final undertaking. No one seemed to even question the change in squad members.

Standing center, shoulders back, Shepard waited for everyone to gather. Hopefully he made the right call on this one. "I'm ready, Commander."

"Me too, boss lady."

Shepard nodded in acknowledgement. After a quick wink to Jack, she looked out at the others. "The Collectors, the Reapers - they aren't a threat to us. They're a threat to everything - everyone. Those are the lives we're fighting for. That's the scale."

A breeze of sweat and Earthy flowers hit him while she paced from one end of the travel platform to the other, giving the truth of her words time to pass from one mind to the next. If he'd learned anything on this voyage or since the first day he'd met this human, it was the reality of what dark secrets this galaxy could hold.

"It's been a long journey, and no one's coming out without scars."

Grunt rumbled a smile, swung his bulked arms out and back in, pounding his fists and displaying his krogan appreciation for battle scars.

"But it all comes down to this moment. We win or lose it all in the next few minutes."

That very thought was poignant. They needed to see this through to the end.

"Make me proud. Make yourselves proud."

Lawson stepped to the front of the group. Looking to Shepard with sterling eyes, she put on a brave face. "We'll do our best. Good luck, Shepard."

In that alone Garrus knew he'd chosen correctly. Lawson had this in the bag, and Krios could handle his spot. Shepard walked past and gave a slight smile to him.

Jack said, "You forgot to say, I should go."

Shepard began typing into the raised panel at the other end of the platform and gave an amused snort. "That I did, Jack." The platform glided out as she turned around and lowered her rifle, clipping her tone. "I hope you know what kind of shit you've probably gotten yourself into, Vakarian."

"I like a challenge."

Jack said, "This isn't about to turn into something… ya' know, is it?"

Shepard regarded her with a raised brow. "Sorry to disappoint, Jack, but I've got a mission to accomplish."

"Good. I'm all about angry sex, but only if it's mine. I'd rather not watch someone else's."

"That is just... charming, Jack." Garrus idly checked the ammo of his Viper. "Didn't mean to step on your toes back there, Shepard. But I can't always be the good guy as I've said. And you know damn well no one covers your ass better than I do."

Jack groaned an exhale. "I will never be able to hear that phrase again without picturing you two. And that is disturbingly fucked up."

Shepard gave a paltry laugh and scouted ahead. "I'll keep that in mind, Jack."


On the one hand it was a comfort to have Garrus, but on the other Ellure worried she'd only be distracted by his presence. What if the bomb wouldn't give them enough time to escape? It was one thing for her to stay behind, it was another to put him or Jack at risk. She couldn't handle another Ashley…

"This is it. All the tubes lead to this spot." She pressed the comm of her visor in the hopes of some form of assistance. "EDI, what can you tell us? What are they doing?"

"The tubes are feeding into some kind of super-structure. It is emitting both organic and non-organic energy signatures. Given these readings, it must be massive."

Jack pulled her shotgun. "If I never see another collector, it'll be too soon."

Ellure tracked the bundles of hose. Passing through a circular port lined with mystery, they gazed at the massive hub of tubing lining the walls, ceiling, and probably floor, if she could see it.

EDI continued as her eyes pursued the finish line. "Shepard, if my calculations are correct, the super-structure... is a reaper."

Her knees screamed to buckle. It was so much more than she wanted to grasp. "Not just any reaper... a human reaper."

"Precisely."

Ten fingers, two expansive hands, arms outstretched as if on a crucifix, the reaper's metallic spine tapered from skull to ribs and into an endless space of nothingness below. An unfinished project due to a lack of resources no doubt.

Sovereign had indoctrinated Saren to open the Citadel for an attack on advanced civilizations. They had their answer as to why, now.

The geth were merely religious fanatics, and not even all of them. But the collectors went beyond religious admiration. They had been abducting humans for the reapers - as some twisted form of synthetic reproduction? If only the Council or the Alliance could see this. This mechanical beast the size of skyscraper was being built by the "essence" of humanity.

The platform leveled to a stop, not far from a large blackened orb on its sternum. The heart?

"Spirits..."

Fear sliced through the Commander façade she'd held skintight. It was now she looked to him. Watching him search over the monstrosity before them, she became conflicted. Afraid for what could happen if this thing was alive, yet strengthened in having him there beside her.

Turning to Jack, she was struck by the severity of this entire mission. As hard as she had worked to recruit them, prepare them, and rally them, she was never truly ready.

Till now.

It was one thing protecting innocent people who'd never done anything to deserve this. But protecting the people you care about? That was an entirely different matter.

She refused to allow the three-eyed stain its completion. "This thing is an abomination. EDI, how do we destroy it?"

"The large tubes injecting the fluid are a weak structural link. Destroying them should cause the supports to collapse and the Reaper to fall."

Four glass cylinders flourished of blood orange, pumping the liquid that drained from the tubes. Two connected to each arm, suspending it above the base's depths.

A whirring carved her concentration. Another hexagon platform revolved toward them in haste. "Give us a minute, EDI. We need to take care of some old friends first." She slid behind the meager fall barricade. Three feet of concealment wasn't much, but she wasn't to be scared away by Harbinger's bees that easily. Not now. Not after seeing this, being so close, and knowing her team was still putting their lives on the line so they could succeed.

"I am so sick of these assholes!" Jack's biotics cast a blue hue, outlining their stand.

"Assuming direct control. Neutralize Commander Shepard."

"Especially that one!"

She lobbed a grenade as Jack's shockwave spread from one platform to the other as they connected. "He seems slightly obsessive."

"Turian, you are considered... too primitive."

Garrus secured his rifle, lending a fierce eye to the scope for his target. "That was just uncalled for."


The floor rippled beneath armored soles as it rumbled and groaned with the collapse of the human reaper. Peering over the edge, Garrus watched it slither into darkness.

Shepard gripped her side, catching her breath, smiling. Jack spit over the edge in demonstration of her endorsement. Uncouth as she was, they needed crazy to fight crazy.

"So much for that." Shepard pulled an energy bar from a clasped compartment of her belt, tossing it to Jack as she affixed her rifle to the back of her breastplate. "Shepard to ground team. Status report."

"It's Thane. We are holding, but they keep coming. A quick exit is preferable."

"Head to the Normandy. Joker, prep the engines. I'm about to overload this place and blow it sky high."

"Roger that, Commander."

Shepard knelt down, gripped a handle in the base of the platform, and with a twist brought up their ultimate goal. Garrus observed Jack chomping away noisily. Leg muscles relaxed as he considered that perhaps, after all they had been through, luck had finally caught up to them.

"Uh, Commander? I've got an incoming signal from the Illusive Man. EDI's patching it through."

Garrus tensed at Joker's voice. What could the Illusive Man possibly have to add?

Shepard nodded to him, and he powered up his Omni-tool for transmission. There was no way in hell Jack was about to accept a communication from this guy.

A holographic image of a silver-haired human morphed above his wrist. Dressed in a suit with husk-like eyes, he now grasped why Shepard seemed to find such distaste for him. She was doing all the work while he sat around calling the shots and spying on her every move. But if anything, he could thank this man for bringing her back to him.

"Shepard. You've done the impossible."

"I was part of a team."

"I'm looking at the schematics EDI uploaded. A timed radiation pulse would kill the remaining collectors, but leave the machinery and technology intact." Knuckles raised with eagerness, the holo pulsed. "This is our chance! They were building a Reaper. That knowledge - that framework - could save us."

Jack cast her wrapper aside, glowering, as Shepard discontinued code entry and stood. Facing the image, she slammed fist into palm and pointed behind her toward the former residence of the reaper. "They liquefied people! Turned them into something horrible! We have to destroy the base."

"Don't be short-sighted. Our best chance against the Reapers is to turn their own resources against them."

Garrus loathed to disagree, but he couldn't help consider that maybe her decision was based on emotion over reason. "I don't know, Shepard. What happened here was horrible... but we have to stop the Reapers. If we destroy this base, then all those people died for nothing. It reminds me of Maelon's project on Tuchanka... You saved the data. What if that cures the-"

"That is entirely different." hissed Shepard, hands on hips, pacing.

"They were working directly with the Collectors. Who knows what information is buried there? This base is a gift. We can't destroy it!"

Shepard halted. He could almost hear the gears of her mind turning and clicking in succession. As she focused on Jack, Garrus sensed the two of them were carrying an unspoken conversation. Her gaze sharpened to the Illusive Man. "You're completely ruthless. The next thing I know, you'll be wanting to grow your own damned Reaper."

"My goal is to save humanity! At any cost! I've never hidden this from you. Imagine how many lives could be saved! Imagine the lives that will be lost if we don't use this information to thwart them!"

"No matter what kind of tech we might find. It's not worth it." Shepard crouched and centered the mine for optimum connection.

Her mind was set.

"You died fighting for what you believed. I brought you back so you could keep fighting! Some would say what we did to you was going too far. But look at what you've accomplished. I didn't discard you because I knew your value..."

Shepard once again stood. A blazing fire confronted the hologram. "We'll fight and win without it. I won't let fear compromise who I am."

"Think about what's at stake! About everything Cerberus has done for you! You-"

Garrus terminated the transmission while Jack handed her a second trigger.


There's no fucking way she could look at Jack and deliver this to him. It was hard to believe that someone with his sort of power and knowledge just magically didn't know the facility had gone rogue. He can't be trusted with something like this. There's no telling what kind of experiments he would administer in the name of survival or human enhancement. "Let's move. We've got ten minutes before the reactor overloads and blows this whole station apart." Lowering the cylinder with a twist, Ellure felt the ground tremor. "That seems a bit fast."

"Boss lady..."

Following Jack's sightline, she gasped, "Oh my god."

Three gleaming scarlet eyes were upon them. The swinging shift of its shoulders, discouraging hands braced on the edge of an abandoned collector platform.

"Shepard, look out!" The alarm in his voice cut her. Dive-rolling to the side, she dodged a particle laser emanating from its mouth. The penetrating shriek of an unfinished reaper echoed through her soul as it clung. In systemic motion, she aimed for the left single eye with her gift from Horizon.

With a grated wail, it dropped from visual. It couldn't be done this soon, she feared.

The echo of a metallic grinding scaled the walls. Ellure discovered Jack and Garrus had fallen back to the furthest point. Three platforms made up the first row of their honeycomb bastion, two in the second row, where her squad hunkered. Maybe they could get out of here at the very least.

Spindle fingers stabbed her section, forcing her bottom off the ground and away from the limited segment of wall that prevented a death slide. Tumbling out, she clambered to the front and center portion. Hairs on the back of her neck stood with the charging of its beam.

You can do this, Ell.

Hurling her body over the partition, she pressed her shoulders against the onyx flecked, copper red floor. Panic surged as did the temperature of the wall against her armored bicep.

The beam cut short and the reaper dropped away once more.

Rolling up to a kneeling position, she signaled ceasefire, permitting for Garrus and Jack to go. Neither cooperated.

Insubordinates!

She waited with a steady trigger. The reaper lunged itself high, bracing, charging, aiming behind her. In the center of its sternum, the heart was a swirling engine of an inferno. Against the pressure of her gun's recoil, she aimed.

It didn't take long to figure out its sweet spot. Ellure smiled large with revelation as it slunk from view, sparking and wailing.

Her gun dryly steamed. Heavy weapon ammo. She needed it but there wasn't time. Judging echoes, the reaper was already resurfacing.

Scouting the area behind her in fervor, she met Garrus' gaze. Lunging and folding one knee under, he slid across the back platform from cover to cover and bowled a clip to her. Left of his position, Jack shouted, "Here we go again!"

She reminded her brain to keep her lungs breathing and changed out heat sinks. Suddenly, it reappeared. But not from the front. "Jack, move!"

Scrambling, Jack jumped with feline grace and rolled across the floor, skidding up beside her. Ellure grabbed Jack's arm and pushed her toward Garrus. She watched as the reaper knocked the back section to crumbles before swinging underneath to return to her.

Too close.

The instant it towered over her, Ellure locked the infrared scope to sync onto its heart. Vibrations ran up her ankles as the collector's particle gun emptied into the reaper's core.

"Perfect shot!"

The gun burned out, but not before the reaper's eyes and heart overheated. She stumbled as it arched back and swayed. Falling downward, the reaper bent forward as it lost control. She ran without far to go. The entire length of its arms slapped across the platforms along either side of her.

The ground began to slip away, slanting almost vertical. Her chest seized tight. Garrus' corner remained untouched. He wobbled on unsteady legs and frantically waved for her to catch up. She gave it all to reach him. Until, Jack slid past her.

There wasn't time to think about it.

Making an about-face, she collapsed onto her stomach, sliding head first, and stretched to reach her. Flash images haunted; Jack's girlish alarm during their Omega recruitment, an excited smile as she set up her crate in the shuttle bay, the puckered face of hate, Jack's laughter as she dressed her in red...

A sharp pain split her side. The alien surface beneath them splintered and cracked. Tattooed hands wildly grasping. Fingers dancing between her own.

Staring back into Jack's terror filled eyes, she decided. It was all in or nothing. There was no way she was going to let her go now. Every soul Jack had ever crossed in her life cast her aside.

Not this time.


"Shepard!" Garrus had to stop her. His own platform tilted against all his efforts. This is just the kind of thing she'd do... again.

Fear gripped like a knife in the chest. He bore through it all and labored up the steep embankment. The connection between them rose to a peak. Armored gloves worked against him. Without his talons as a means to find a solid grip, he could only watch as she and Jack slipped away.

All at once, the ground was hit from underneath. Everything shifted to force him back. A deafening crack thundered as the platforms separated under the stress.

Tumbling in the opposite direction he'd been trying to achieve, his tendons clenched taunt. Pieces of broken black and bronze chucks scraped overhead. A raw thud vibrated from behind as he skidded uncontrollably.

Landing onto a sturdy and intact base, he returned to his feet and surfed in the center as it careened. Another spinning platform was flying toward his. He braced. This was it.


Eyes opened, either hell for her was another collector base or she was still alive. Pained to breathe, she concluded the crushing weight on her torso said she was alive for certain.

Thrusting the hunk of debris to fall to the side, she sat forward and massaged her right thigh back to life. The unbroken platform they had fallen onto, ricocheted off another, and streamlined into the wall, creating a path back into the hive. Lying on what remained of it, they had enough of an outcrop to prevent them from plummeting with the reaper.

Sorting her surroundings, she found Jack lolled on her side near remnants of the devastated wall. She rushed to check her. Eased onto her back, Jack's brown eyes smiled. A jagged grunt and Ellure helped her to stand.

Visibly shaken, Jack dusted the front of her pants in a poor attempt at concealment. "Well, I think this is the part where I say it."

"I'm willing to hear anything you have to tell me, Jack."

"I told you so."

"Except that." She paused on awareness. "Where's Garrus?"

Jack's expression mirrored her personal thoughts. The last time she'd seen him was before the final crash when the reaper's thrashing had knocked her and Jack from their dangling position, helping her to pull girl up, the pain shooting through her side wasn't assisting in that endeavor.

Both scrambled, sifting through rubble.

In seconds, Jack found his body jutting from beneath a marble black beam. Ellure stopped short in her urgency. He wasn't moving. No traces of his blood to be seen, but that didn't mean much to her.

She wrapped her arms around the chilled and hefty girder. Jack shared the burden, and together they hauled it aside. Receiving no feedback, she tried to remain sensible. He was known for regular bouts of head trauma.

Jack tugged at her wrist guard as the clicking of collectors revived in the distance. "Shepard... We have to go."

"No." Shrugging Jack off, she knelt and touched the side of his face. "Garrus?" Anything but this.

"Shepard, we don't have time."

"I'm not leaving him here. Go, Jack." She trembled as a deeper pain seeped from her chest.

"Shepard, I'm sorry. But we can't stay here, and I'm not leaving without you."

"Damn it, Jack!" Closing her eyes, she refused to accept whatever Jack had to say. If he was done, she was done. There wasn't any fight left to give. "Just get out of here."

Checking over her shoulder, she watched as Jack narrowed her eyes abrasively. "I can't go back to the Normandy without you… Shepard, we need you."

She bit her lip with a shake of her head. How could she continue? What would be the point?

A slight flutter under her hand snapped her attention back to him. He opened one eye and quickly shut it. He was okay.

"This is the part where you're supposed to kiss me or say something silly to ruin the moment."

"Son of a bitch…"

"I'm waiting."

Too ecstatic to care she leaned down and made her choice.

A low hum resonated behind her. Jack said, "Not to ruin your little moment but we're about to be swarmed by fucking prothean-collector-bug-things... very soon. And Joker's going to have a shit-fit and die if you don't respond."

"Shit, shit, shit… Do you copy? Commander? What the shit? Come on, Ell, don't leave me hanging... Do you copy?"

She broke away and accelerated Garrus to his feet. Assuring her visor was positioned and synced, she stepped through the crumbled puncture into the base. "I'm here, Joker. Did the ground team make it?"

"All survivors on board. We're just waiting for you."

"Shepard!" Jack braced her arms as if about to create a barrier. "Seekers!"

"No time, Jack. Run!" A few nippy shots from her pistol and Ellure mustered any energy left to follow her own command. Garrus and Jack were both alive. She wasn't sure about the ground team, but she understood the severity of this all so much more now. "Go! I know damn well you can run faster than that, Vakarian!"

She didn't have to turn around to see them. She could hear the clacking and shrieking of their pursuit, the pattering of seeker's wings. Jack and Garrus stretched ahead. No wonder Jack stuck with the light armor and shields only.

She strained to keep up. The Collectors were nothing compared to the Reapers. It took so much effort just to kill Sovereign alone, and they were creating more reapers by using humans. She couldn't help but wonder just how many of them were out there waiting, preparing, and biding their time to attack. They obviously weren't going to stop just because they had cut off the Citadel transport. It was their only way to continue their existence. But there was one thing they hadn't counted on…

The Normandy rose on the horizon, drifting sideways, lining up to the end of the path. The air lock door opened to reveal Joker giving cover fire as Garrus and Jack both cleared the short gap.

The base was quivering with the tick to detonation. She stumbled and recovered as a mass of debris plummeted. The distance to the air lock lengthened while the ground fell away with impact.

The Council would never take care of this. The Illusive Man was only pursuing the interests of humanity. Fuck that. The turians, krogans, asari, quarians, and any others she didn't have time to remember right this second, all of them were at risk.

Every grain in her body hurt. She ignored it.

Barreling head strong, arms and legs pumping, she devoted everything. If she wanted them to make it, she would have to make it.

One last push.

Her arms clung to the grated steel floor as her feet dangled and torso slammed into the harsh exterior of the Normandy. Maybe she needed jumping lessons instead of sparring lessons.

Jack grasped her forearm and dragged her up into the ship. Standing, she grappled for oxygen as the door closed to cut off the Collectors last chance to stop her. She wished there was a window. There was a hand signal she forgot to show them.

"Detonation in ten... nine... eight..."

Ellure spun to follow Joker.

"Seven… six…"

"Yeah, I get the gist of it, EDI... Hold on." Joker shuffled to the pilot seat, pitching Garrus his gun.

She directed Jack to sit at the resource console and braced in the doorway across from Garrus. She could only smile as he looked at her. "I wonder just how pissed Harbinger is right now." he said.

Jack threaded into the harness and buckled. "I don't know, but I would fucking love to hear it."

Her pilot worked feverishly, watching readings, setting coordinates, driving once more through ancient ship remains in escape. "How's it looking, Joker?"

"It's close..."

"Sounds about right. Not to ruin your concentration, but when you said 'survivors', exactly how many are we talking about?" She shut her eyes as the ship throbbed with compression. Garrus' hand picked up hers as the Normandy rocked. Gauging the turns of her stomach, she squeezed his hand in preparation. FTL was reaching its peak.

"All of them, Commander... Hold on tight!"

Squeezing her hand in return, Garrus assured them equally. "Way ahead of you."