Author's Note: Contrary to popular belief, I will never, ever run out of clichéd Mass Effect jokes. You're welcome.

Chapter Seventy Two: Three Stages

"How is that human friend of yours doing? What was his name again? Shepard? What a handsome, young human he is. What's he been up to Garrus?" His mom asked. Solana's talons wrapped tightly around Garrus's arm. His dad's mandibles clenched against his face, but he still managed to smile at his wife.

Thirty two standard galactic hours earlier Garrus had been informed of Shepard's death. Thirty one standard galactic hours earlier he had quit Spectre training, and come home. Garrus had called Shepard's omni-tool forty eight times since he found out. Each time he hoped to hear that voice. Forty eight times he was disappointed.

His mother was being eaten alive by Corpalis Syndrome; her mind being eroded away. Yet Shepard's death struck a harsher note. He didn't quite know why it burned it so much. Garrus guessed that few things in life could be so damaging. Colt Shepard wasn't supposed to be anything but immortal.

"He's doing well. He retired from the Alliance a few hours ago," Garrus answered.

"That's great to hear. Do you think he'll be happier?" His mom asked.

"Spirits, I hope so. If anyone deserves happiness, it's Shepard," Garrus tried to repress a sigh with his answer. His mom would probably ask the same thing in a few hours. He wouldn't be there to answer.

He stood up and walked towards a window. Palaven was beautiful this time of year. "She doesn't know," Solana's voice was right next to him.

Garrus watched the plant life sway in the wind, "What do you know about Omega?"

…

"They're being taken to a shuttle pad on the Presidium. You better get driving," Bailey said over the comm. Those words were music to Colt's ears. He loved driving anything.

"Why do you always get to drive?" Garrus whined from the passenger seat. Thane was staying behind with Valern. Rosebud and Javik were again shoved in the back

"Because my driving makes angels cry tears of joy," Shepard said matter-of-factly.

"You're so full of shit."

"It's okay to admit you have a problem, Garrus. We can work through your jealousy together."

"I'm starting to think that you're physically blind to your awful driving. That some dark, dank part of your mind blocks it all out."

"Well let's hope I'm not blind; after all, I am the one driving," Shepard grinned when he said this. His smile grew wider when he heard Garrus sigh in defeat.

"Well I think that you just like one-upping me," Garrus said playfully.

"You're not wrong. I'll tell you what buddy, you can be the driver once I die," Shepard turned his head slightly to give Garrus a shit-eating grin.

"Commander, I've sent their coordinates to your car," Bailey interrupted.

"We're almost there," Shepard replied, "So, Garrus, you talk to Ta-"

A sudden thud on the hood of their car made Shepard and Garrus fly back into their seats; both let out high-pitched, startled yelps. Rosebud started barking from the backseat and Javik swore in Prothean. Kai Leng crouched on the hood of their car. He stood slowly and unsheathed his sword. Apparently he had gotten a new one. Shepard made eye contact with the assassin for a second before he started towards the back of their vehicle.

"What. The. Fuck," Colt rumbled, "Take the wheel Garrus."

"W-what?" Garrus fumbled for the wheel but Shepard was already opening his door. Half his body hung out, both of his feet were placed precariously on the seat, and one hand hung onto the side railing. Hopefully Garrus was a decent driver. Anger put his fear of heights on the back-burner. He pulled out his Carnifax and fired. Dark blue formed a circle around Kai Leng and deflected every bullet. Of course the asshole had extremely powerful biotic shields. No one was easy to kill anymore.

Hand-to-hand combat it was. Colt liked high-risk, high-reward strategies anyways. Shepard grabbed a railing above the door and used it to hoist himself on top of the car. The speed of the car made the slipstream intense, to the point of being detrimental to balance. Chilly wind blew past his armor and made his very soul ice.

Kai Leng was preparing to ruin the engine with his sword. Biotic energy started in the Commander's stomach and then twisted peacefully around him. Shepard triggered a charge and went sailing into his opponent. They both tried to keep their balance and stay atop the car, but it was to no avail. For a split second Shepard thought about how he should've probably thought that one through. Then he was tumbling through the air, desperately grabbing at anything but touching nothing.

His biotics prevented him from breaking his legs or worse from the thirty foot fall. They slowed his fall to the Citadel's surface. Kai Leng was about ten feet from him, using his biotics in a similar manner. Both of them touched down at the same time, a half second of peace followed. Then Shepard sent a shockwave towards Kai Leng.

"Liara, what do you think?" Shepard held a hand to his earpiece while diving for cover. He needed to know what kind of biotics he was up against, so he asked his resident biotic expert.

"He has stronger defense powers, but you're better offensive wise. Having only seen a little bit of his capabilities it's kinda hard to tell, but I'd say that you're the stronger one," Liara's voice sounded so different and thoughtful through the comm.

"Good to know, thanks. Traynor, I'm going to need a route to the rest of the ground party," Shepard was trying to get a bearing on where he landed. It looked like they were by some sort warehouse. They were probably in some manufacturing district.

"There's elevators a couple hundred feet from where you are. Just go straight for a bit," Traynor said.

"Alright," Shepard was about to go forward until he spotted Kai Leng heading into the warehouse. This was too good to pass up. "I'm going to take a detour," Shepard followed him in.

Not a soul was in the giant warehouse. Shepard was hyper aware of every step he took. He could hear his footsteps echo. Where the hell was Kai Leng? The machines were cold and docile. They reminded Colt of waiting beasts, roaring to life when triggered. The temperature was low in the building, making everything ten times worse. He twisted and turned down corridors, not keeping track of where he was going.

A noise to his left made him spin quickly on his heel, but no one was there. Sudden changes in the air to his right made him slide his omni-blade out just in time. Steel came inches from his face and impacted his blade. The weight behind the blow knocked Shepard into a table behind him.

"Commander," Kai Leng growled. He brought his sword over his head and swung downwards. His omni-blade held steady but it couldn't take many more blows like that. Colt set off a Nova, pushing Kai Leng back. Shepard pressed his advantage and charged Kai Leng. Shepard hit nothing.

And just like that the Kai Leng was gone. The Commander searched around for a few minutes but the assassin was gone. "Traynor, I'm gonna need another path."

...

Shepard charged into a Cerberus Phantom that was behind Garrus. While it was distracted from the hit, Shepard sent his omni-blade through its neck. Then he sent a shockwave ripping through the ranks of another group of Cerberus and used a Nova seconds after. Those that lived through the biotic attacks got a shotgun blast.

"Figured you guys could use some help," Shepard said while watching the life drain out of the Cerberus opponents. Their blood was too light to be true human organic blood.

"We had it handled," Javik muttered.

"I was wondering when you'd reappear," Garrus sauntered up next to Shepard. He was obviously trying to look cool after Shepard had just walked into the scene and killed all their enemies.

"Lucky for you guys, I have a sixth sense when it comes to knowing when people need help," Shepard was on a badass role. He leaned on his left leg and slung his shotgun across his hip. "Come on, the council is waiting to be saved," Shepard started to lead the way to some elevators.

"They're trying to get to the shuttle pad. Udina's with them," Bailey's comment made Shepard speed up. "There's someone following them. Someone with a sword," this made Shepard run.

"Fan-fucking-tabulous," Colt hated Kai Leng and his stupid fucking sword at this point. The three were rapidly approaching the elevators, "Alright, so-"

He stopped short when he saw a group of phantoms and Kai Leng boarding one of the elevators. Colt was at their position in seconds. He reached out to yank the assassin out, but the doors were already closing, so he settled on a Phantom. It scrambled in his arms for a minute before he twisted its neck until an audible crunch echoed off the steel walls. He let it fall to the ground in a sad pile.

"Shepard, over here!" Garrus was opening the huge doors to another elevator, "Looks like this is our only way up, sorry buddy."

"It always has to be closed, high places doesn't it?" Shepard sighed. He turned on the light connected to his gun and the light attached to his head-cam. The elevator shaft looked even more cramped and nasty than he had thought. Wonderful.

"Hold on, it's gonna be a fast climb," Bailey said before the elevator shot upwards. The sudden change in momentum threw Shepard down to his knees.

"Shit! You weren't lying," Colt climbed back to his feet and tried not to think about where he was. "The assassin hasn't reached the council yet, right?"

"Not yet, he's certainly trying... I'm making his elevator stop on every level," Captain Bailey might've laughed. Probably not.

"Nice!" Colt knew he was grinning like an idiot. Then he saw the asshole's elevator, "I caught up with our friend."

"Excellent, kill his elevator! There's a power conduit under it," Bailed yelled excitedly. Shepard unloaded into it. Kai Leng's elevator stopped completely, while theirs shot past.

"About time we got rid of him," Garrus called.

"Some Phantoms are approaching on another elevator," Bailey stopped any reply, "I have more bad news."

"Is there any other kind?" Shepard thought about how his answer was supposed sound like a joke. It wasn't funny.

"The assassin got on another elevator and I can't override it," Bailey answered with concern.

Shepard saw what he was talking about and shot out the console on the bottom of it, "I've taken care of it."

...

"I see them!" Colt yelled into his earpiece. The council's elevator was coming up next to theirs. "Rosebud!" The varren jumped into his arms and then he carried her to the council's elevator.

"So do we just climb down there or do we... like knock?" Garrus scratched his mandible.

Colt thought for a moment, "I thought you could lower me on a rope, while I strum a harp. Javik could sing some Prothean love song off to the side… You know just to get the point across that we come in peace."

"I am not doing that, Commander," Javik said his title like a joke. A bullet ripped past Shepard's left leg, almost piercing the heavy armor.

"Shiiiieet, looks like Tevos is a better shot than we could've predicted," Shepard was laughing from his comment the whole time he was trying to not get shot, "Ten creds says that Ashley is with em'."

"You're on. Ashley would've hit one of us by now," Garrus answered. Then the bullets stopped and shouting below them started.

"That's our cue," Colt ripped the hatch off with biotics, grabbed Rosebud, and jumped into the now vacant elevator. "That's definitely Ashley," Colt watched the Lieutenant Commander run after the Council.

"Dammit," Garrus handed over some creds.

Shepard could feel the edges of his smug smile tugging towards his ears, "First rule of the road, Garrus. Never bet against Commander Shepard. This is like...the basics man."

The turian muttered something. Probably some horribly offensive turian remark that his translator wouldn't be able to pick up. Shepard was in high spirits. Being around friends and fighting had that effect on him. Nothing could bring him down.

"Cerberus hit the shuttle. Everyone back to the elevator," Ashley turned around just as Javik was closing the door back to the elevators.

"Ash! I see Heurta finally let out you out. What you'd do? Threaten to blow the place up or tell them that Commander Shepard was going to throw a tantrum if they didn't let his trusty Lieutenant out," Colt spotted Udina.

"Both prospects are equally terrifying," Garrus made an excellent point.

Shepard's Carnifax was pointed at Udina. He was too close to the other councilors for it to be a good idea to fire. Udina walked right behind Ashley,"Shepard is blocking our escape. He's with Cerberus."

"Will you just shut the fuck up? Jesus," Shepard was getting a headache. It turned out that some things could bring him down. The prospect of being able to rip Udina's jugular made him feel better, however.

Ashley pulled her gun out again and pointed it at Colt, "Everyone just hold on. Shepard, what's going on?"

"It's just me, Ash. Pure, annoying as hell Shepard. You know, the one everyone secretly hates," Shepard wasn't going to kill Ashley. She wasn't Grayson. He hoped to God that humor would diffuse the situation. He lowered his gun to show he wasn't going to kill her.

"Secretly," Javik scoffed. Javik: 1, Shepard: 0.

"He's Shep," Garrus said. He was asking for competition, a nickname competition. Maybe their silliness would convince Ashley that nothing had changed mentally in Shepard.

"Sheppy."

"Sir Commander Professor Bro Colt."

"Sheploo."

"Foo-foo Sheploo," Garrus won the award for best nickname.

"I quite like that one," Shepard never let his eyes leave Udina.

"It's my favorite," Garrus said.

"How'd you ever manage to save the galaxy?" Udina was such an ass. Shepard had been telling Liara for years now that he was going to kill the bastard.

"You know me Ashley," Shepard tried. His gun was still lowered. He was not going to kill her.

"I know the old Shepard. Before Cerberus got their hands on you. Right now, I don't who I'm dealing with," Ashley was walking sideways and showing no signs of putting down her gun. Shepard was getting furious. Did people think it was completely normal and acceptable to point guns at their superiors? Plus, he was done with this fucking pity party that Ashley seemed to throw every time they tried to work together. 'Shepard, you were part of Cerberus, so you're the bad guy,' and, 'They've changed you,' was getting pretty old. Ashley could kiss her position on the Normandy goodbye.

Colt was fast approaching his infuriated state. He was trying to keep himself in check because at a certain point things would boil over. Shepard could take a bullet, Ashley could not. "We do not have time to talk about our feelings and sort out trust issues. Now let's put on our adult pants and think about this logically. I saved you on Mars countless times. Maybe its the brain damage or maybe you're not thinking clearly, but do you remember what Mars was like? That's right, it was crawling with Cerberus. If I was really with them, I would've killed you there. I would've finished what Eva Core had started instead of taking you to Heurta." Harsh but true.

Ashley started, "We-"

"No, shut up. I am talking. You've all been fooled. Udina is behind this attack. The salarian councilor confirmed his involvement. He's the one with Cerberus, not me. Please, Ash, I'm telling the truth. Why would Garrus or anyone else follow me if I weren't... me?" He probably would've been able to convince anyone to join him even if he was Cerberus controlled. Ashley didn't need to know that. He was not going to kill her. She wasn't Grayson.

He saw Ash waver a bit. Bingo. "We've mistrusted Shepard before and it did not help us," Tevos stepped forward. Oh what incident was that, Councilor? The Reaper invasion perhaps? Or maybe Saren. The list was massive. Shepard had to bite his lip to stop himself from saying anything. He did appreciate her stepping forward, however.

"Cerberus is right behind that door, and will kill each and every one of us if we open it," Colt was getting really tired of talking.

"Enough, we don't have time to debate this. We're dead if we stay here," Udina turned around and started for the override controls.

"Don't you fucking dare," Shepard took a few steps forwards. Ashley held her gun more firmly. "Udina set up a coup with Cerberus. He wants to gain more support for Earth by getting rid of the Council," Shepard tried his best pleading voice. He was not going to kill her. He hadn't raised his gun at her once.

"Please, you have no proof. You never do," Udina said. Tevos put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head. Udina shoved her harshly to the ground and pulled a gun.

This is what Shepard had been waiting for. An excuse to kill him and here it was. Udina would kill Tevos if given the chance. The veil of anger Shepard had tried to keep away slammed down and made thinking impossible. Now rage and instinct were Shepard's master. He blew a harsh whistle and pointed at Ashley. Rosebud sprung from his side and lunged at her. Ash fired once, but it didn't even come close to hitting. The varren had pinned her down. Her gun had slid far away from her in the confusion. Rosebud's teeth were centimeters from Ashley's neck. If Shepard gave the word, she would kill.

Biotic energy cloaked Colt and then sent him flying into Udina. The two went backwards together, but wrath made Shepard unstoppable. He rolled onto his knees, used them to pin the Councilor under him, and wrapped his hands around Udina's neck. "I have waited so long to do this," Colt told his victim. Blood roared in Shepard's ears and could hear the pounding of his heart. Udina's hands were scrambling desperately at Shepard's face and neck. His right hand even managed to knock Colt's helmet off, allowing brown, curly hair to spill out. When he had left a few hours ago Shepard had a shaved head. The Commander barely heard EDI announce that she was switching camera views to the camera attached to his chest.

Colt tightened his grip and slammed Udina's head into the ground. Killing him would be easier if he was unconscious. The councilor's eyes fluttered but he managed to keep fighting. Shepard shook him, hoping he could throw his attacks off. Udina's whole body was writhing underneath Shepard's vice grip, trying to get a breathe of air. Shepard's grip got tighter and tighter. He could feel Udina's trachea starting to cave in. Moments later, the Councilor went still and his eyes unfocused. Commander Shepard had killed him.

Shepard climbed back to his feet and grabbed his helmet a few feet away. A breeze was blowing his hair around. Rosebud's low growl rumbled every once in awhile, as she was still pinning Ashley down. His anger went as quickly as it came. It was replaced with concern for Tevos, Ashley, and Spartacus. "Councilor, are you okay?" Shepard jogged to where Tevos had been knocked down. He knelt down at her side and started inspecting for damage.

"I-I think so," Tevos looked around with a dazed expression. Then she turned her gaze on him. The look she gave him was one that would undoubtedly piss Liara off.

"You're doing fine Councilor. You're safe now," Shepard smiled at her and helped her up. She stayed close to him as he walked up to Ashley. "Rosebud," he called to his varren. Rosebud climbed off the Lieutenant Commander and took up her usual position beside Shepard.

Colt helped Ash up and just like that he felt irritable again. His temper was on hairline trigger. Shepard hated feeling like this; he never used to get so enraged with anything but something important had changed. He didn't know what it was.

"Shepard, I-," Ashley approached him.

"I don't want to hear a fucking thing from you. Not a word. I will lose my fucking mind if you try to make this into something it isn't," Shepard sat down heavily on a bench. It was right in front of Udina's body. The councilor's neck was in really bad shape. Shepard knew he had strangled him, but… Strangulation was a kind word for what had happened.

"Commander," Garrus said. Colt's hair was blowing across his face and covering his eyes.

"The door!" Spartacus yelled. Shepard ignited his biotics and got up. The biotics swirling around his hands crackled angrily.

The door had sparks flying from it. Someone was trying to get to them. "Get behind me," Colt threw his left arm in front of the Councilors protectively. For some reason this felt like the end.

"Shepard?"

"Bailey?" Colt let his biotics go out. Cool down made blue mist radiate from him.

…

Ashley pissed Shepard off. Garrus had never seen him so angry. It wasn't like him to get this mad. He had been fine a little while ago, but then some sort of blind rage had taken over. Garrus was almost positive he had never seen such a brutal strangulation. It was actually really terrifying. The way Colt had disappeared from Shepard's eyes to only be replaced by someone else had been...awful. What had changed?

"Cerberus was right outside these doors, but they ran off when we came along," Bailey holstered his gun, "I'll say it plain, Councilors. Shepard saved the lot of you." Garrus watched Colt while Bailey spoke. His head was down, with his hair covering his face. Garrus could see his eyes flash even through the human's furry crest. Why didn't anyone ever listen to Shepard? He could see that all this mistrust was taking its toll on his friend.

"Then you've saved me twice now, Commander," Spartacus had the decency to say. Garrus wasn't what you'd call a huge fan of the Councilor. "I owe you a personal debt and one on behalf of Palaven."

"You don't owe me anything. It's just what friends do," Shepard patted Tevos and Spartacus on the shoulders. It had never occurred to Garrus that Shepard knew the Councilors personally. It made sense though. It explained why Tevos was looking at him like a love-drunk teen. Did he know every person in the damn galaxy?

"That reminds me. When are you going to have dinner with Helena and I? We haven't had a proper conversation with you in a couple weeks. Helena keeps begging me to set up something up. I swear she likes you more than me sometimes," Spartacus said. Shepard looked up and smiled kindly. Shepard was back. Colt was designed for the people aspect of his job, not really the fighting part. Not that he wasn't absolutely stunning while fighting, but Garrus could see the resentment in his eyes. A picture of how much Colt loathed killing was starting to reveal itself to Garrus.

"It's pretty damn hard to beat my charm," Shepard tossed his head. "I'll have to see what Liara says about dinner. I'll get back to you in a day or so."

"Glad to hear it Shepard. Thanks again," Spartacus returned the pat on the shoulder.

"Tevos, we need to hang out soon," Shepard turned all his attention to the asari. He was very good at making a person feel like the center of the world.

"I'll let you know when I'm available," Tevos hadn't stopped looking at him weirdly. Liara was gonna be pissed.

"Excellent...I'm glad you guys are okay. Valern is safe as well. Thane took him somewhere safe. Do I get an award or something for saving you guys like a million times? Preferably a bronze dragon or like a bust of my head. All the famous people have busts of their heads. Nothing quite says 'I am my own favorite person' like a statue of yourself," Shepard was grinning like an idiot. These weird ideas were so Shepard.

"Did you just give yourself an award?" Spartacus asked jokingly.

"No?" Shepard replied.

"It's been too long Commander...Do you have any idea why the Illusive Man would want to do this?" The turian Councilor looked out over the Citadel.

"No, but I plan to find out," Colt was a master of menacing looks.

"Alright people, let's get you somewhere secure while we clean up," Bailey turned and led the party towards the elevator.

Once they were in Ashley opened her mouth to speak, but Garrus shook his head at her. The ride was silent.

..

"So we were thinking about searching one of the ships we think Cerberus used to infiltrate the Citadel. Wanna come Commander? Could give us some clues," Admiral Obitus, the Turian leader of C-Sec, asked Shepard.

"If you don't mind, Sir. It'll be interesting to say the least," Shepard said. Bailey had taken him to the Admiral, after they had escorted the Council to safety.

"No problem, Commander, we'll be heading out momentarily," the admiral turned to talk to some high-ranking officials.

"Do you guys wanna come?" Shepard asked Thane, Garrus, and Javik.

"I'll come," Thane said. He had been in pretty bad mood since Kai Leng had nearly killed him. Understandable, of course.

"I think I'll sit this one out if you don't mind. I was going to visit my old office. See if I can help," Garrus wouldn't maintain eye-contact. Shepard remembered what it was like when they went through some other C-Sec offices.

"You sure?" Shepard already knew the answer.

"Ya," Garrus said.

"I'll go with Garrus," Javik told them. Colt shot Garrus an amused look. Now his Turian BFF was going to have to deal with the Prothean.

"Okay, sounds like a plan. I'll let you guys take Rosebud. She's pretty tired, so maybe she'll get an opportunity to nap with you guys," the real reason Shepard was sending his Varren off was because some of the higher ranking C-Sec officers were eyeing her with obvious disdain. "Good work everyone, Cerberus never had a chance. Let's meet here in a couple of hours."

"Commander, ready?" The admiral asked.

"Yes. Bye guys," Shepard nodded at Garrus and Javik, and then started to follow Obitus. Thane walked right next to him.

It took the group of high ranking C-Sec officers, engineers, and crime scene investigators around ten minutes to reach the alleged Cerberus transport ship. It looked like the typical civilian ship, but that's exactly what Cerberus would've wanted. Some of the engineers moved closer and started to scan the ship with their omni-tools.

"Do you see that?" Shepard asked the admiral. He could see what he thought was the glow of a VI.

"Yes," the admiral started to walk towards it. "What do you think that is?" He asked a nearby engineer.

"Probably the ship's navigational VI. It's safe, feel free to check it out," the engineer turned back to his omni-tool. Shepard and Obitus walked towards the glow.

An orange scanner swept across their features for a second. The VI's mechanical voice rang out across the entire area, echoing off the walls, causing most of the group to turn and look at them, "Commander Colt Lawrence Shepard and Admiral Caelius Obitus confirmed. Detonation sequence activated."

The words registered with Colt a moment too slow,"Wha-"

...

Garrus said, "I wouldn't worry about it. The Commander came back from the dead. Nothing really throws him off anymore, except of course for a compliment or any mention of his personal life. Now that makes him painfully awkward-"

A deafening roar rattled and reverberated through everything. The rumble threw Garrus off balance, and almost to the ground. His hand reached and caught himself before he could fall. His feet slid apart painfully. The deep, resonant sound continued for several seconds before fading away. Garrus got his senses back quickly and turned around to try and find the source of this sudden explosion.

A solid, towering cloud of dust was rising. It came from where Shepard was. Garrus was running before his mind caught up with his muscles. He had never considered himself slow, but all previous speeds were blown out of the water by how fast he was going.

…

"So do you think we could meet them there?" Liara was referring to the Citadel.

"Well, the Cerberus threat seems to be gone, so I don't see why not," Engineer Adams shrugged his shoulders.

Liara was about to ask something else when talking from the ground crew's head-cams interrupted her words. They both turned to face the screens and watched curiously as an VI identified Shepard. The two, as well as almost everybody, jumped a little when one screen made a tremendous noise and then went completely black. The little icon that indicated the signal was lost popped up.

The other screens were pixilated and shaky. Garrus and Javik swore loudly. Then Garrus screamed Shepard's name and started running. Dread hit Liara so hard that she had to lean against the counter to stop herself from falling. One of her hands covered her mouth in disbelief. Other people who had been walking around the mess nonchalantly had stopped and were watching the screens in horror. The realization that it was Colt's screen that had gone black sunk into her soul. She prayed to anyone that would listen to her. She prayed that he would be okay, and it was just a camera malfunction. She prayed he would walk out of some building and say some stupid joke. She begged for his safe return.

Their connection told her that no amount of praying or begging would work.

...

Someone was screaming. It was the type of scream that only occurred when something really, really bad happened. The kind that was full of desperation and unbearable pain. They cried for help, for anyone really. Several times the screaming got choked up from the person crying at the same time. Occasionally they would stop to hyperventilate or sniffle, but for the most part it was continuous screaming. Shepard realized after a while that it was him.

Nothing felt normal. Not one part of his body didn't hurt. Something inside was just...broken.

He saw the shape of a drell a few feet away. "Thane," Shepard croaked out. He couldn't even be sure he had spoken. Colt's legs wouldn't work, so he dragged himself through body parts and blood to his friend.

"Shepard," Thane turned his head a little. Blood was running out of the side of his mouth. A piece of twisted metal, shaped like a sword, was rammed through his stomach. "How bad is it?"

Colt shrugged as best he could and shook his head, "Not bad."

"You're not a very good liar," Thane tried to smile but winced in pain. The drell's words defeated Shepard. He was a foot away from a wall, so he dragged his useless body to it.

...

The moans and the screams from dying people were muffled out by the frantic barking of Rosebud. Garrus followed the noise through torn-apart bodies and cries for help. A trail of blood and clear oil made it easy to find the origin of her bark. He found Rosebud standing next to a person propped against a wall. A couple feet away was a perfectly still drell, but that wasn't Garrus's concern at the moment. His worst fear was confirmed as he moved closer. The person propped against the wall was indeed Colt Shepard.

He didn't have to be a medical professional to know that his best friend was in critical condition. There was a growing puddle of blood and clear oil underneath Shepard. His lower back was against the wall, while his upper half was hunched over. His arms were at his sides, palms facing up revealing pieces of skin and muscle barely clinging on. His helmet must have come off during the explosion, showing off his dark brown hair. The normally curly, brown hair was almost black with blood and clumping together. By far the worst injury, at least of the ones that Garrus could see, was Shepard's left leg. It had been completely torn off from the rest of his body. Three inches of bone extended past the place where the rest of his leg had been ripped off. The bone came down into a sharp, unnatural point and splintered around the edges. Some blood was oozing out of the main tear, but it was mostly just that clear oily stuff unique to Colt.

"No, no, no, no! You don't get to fucking do this to us again. You selfish asshole," Garrus fell to his knees next to him. "Why would you do this?" He cried.

"GARRUS!" Someone yelled into his earpiece.

"What?" Garrus really didn't know what to do. He had seen some horrendous injuries, but this one? Spirits.

"Start spreading med-gel like it's a second skin. I'm contacting Huerta right now, hopefully they can have someone over there in a few minutes," Garrus barely recognized Chakwas's voice. He didn't know whether it was because she sounded different or because he was not registering things very well.

"Garrus, I'm glad you're here," Shepard raised his head to look at Garrus with sad, knowing eyes. "Looks like you'll be the one driving." Shepard tried to chuckle, instead he coughed up blood mixed with clear oil. Panic crossed Shepard's face when he started a coughing fit.

"Hold on, buddy. Heurta is coming okay? Just stay here," Garrus begged him. He was applying medi-gel as best he could through tears.

"You'll be okay without me," Colt said.

"What?" Garrus didn't look up from his task.

"You'll be okay without me," he repeated. "You made it two years."

"No I didn't. You have no fucking idea how false that statement is," Garrus looked into Shepard's eyes. They were so bare and revealing; Garrus had to look away.

"Did I do okay?" Colt asked.

Garrus had no idea what he was talking about, "You did fantastic."

"Good...that's...good," Shepard breathed in a ragged breath. Something didn't sound right.

"Shepard, keep talking," Garrus was almost done with the medi-gel application.

"Thanks for putting up with me all these years Liara. I know I can be a royal pain, but I tried. I did everything as best as I knew how to. I'm really sorry I wasn't better," Garrus could hear Shepard's breathing getting labored. Liara's response was sobbing.

"Actually, I think I-ah-owe everyone an apology. I'm sorry I couldn't fix anything. The Reaper invasion is partially my fault. If I had just pressed harder, things would be different," Shepard murmured. Garrus finished with the medi-gel and looked at Colt. He wasn't in good shape.

"Don't be stupid Shepard. You're a hero," Garrus took Shepard's right hand in his talon. He clasped it as gently as he could.

"That's...good," Colt's eyes were starting to fill with tears. He whispered, "I don't wanna die Garrus."

"You're not going to," Garrus squeezed his friends hand. Where the hell were the Heurta people.

Shepard looked at Garrus for the first time. The look was pure, raw, and devastatingly real. It showed pain he had never revealed. His eyes told the story of Commander Shepard's life, misery with precious few spots of love . Garrus was scared now. Colt wouldn't look at him this way unless he truly thought this was the end.

"You've learned everything I could've taught you. Now you'll just need to learn one more thing I never could...saying goodbye," Shepard's eyes had that troubling laziness creeping in.

"We're not saying goodbye," Garrus said firmly.

"Do you think Cerberus messed up? Bringing me back?" Shepard mused.

"That's the only good thing Cerberus has done," Garrus put his forehead against Colt's.

Shepard smiled a little and lifted his previously still left hand. He covered their clasped hands with his shredded and bloody palm. "My death can't halt the war...Kill the Reapers for me, okay? You'll do great."

Colt's eyes changed again. This time they looked like the stars themselves had come down and taken residence in his irises. So infinite, and wise. Reminding Garrus that even if Colt Shepard died, Commander Shepard was immortal. His green eyes held a sparkle of affection before they started to dim. Death had waited so long for this soul that it wasn't being patient. It wasn't like what they said though. Shepard didn't look peaceful. He looked regretful and haunted. Colt squeezed Garrus's hand, gave him a final smile, and dropped his head to rest it against his chest.