March 15th, 2169 CE

Isaac Shepard feels the blood pound through his body faster than it ever has before. The rest of his men are down, harpoons jutting out of vital areas, air hissing into the blood floating in zero g. The stars have never looked more terrifying and alien than they do now, floating distantly beyond the tattered hull of the SSV Carrhae. He's hunched behind a corner, desperately replacing the thermal clip in his Avenger. He's damn lucky to be alive, he reckons.

"I'm telling you; I saw one duck right through here." He hears one of those fucking pirates far too close to his seven.

"And I'm telling you it was one of these damn floaters. None of these birajuus saw us coming." Another one, Isaac leans closer to the wall, listening for more footsteps. Just the two of them then. He's got three more thermal clips. There couldn't be more than thirty of these things. He's got plenty for every one of their ugly asses. With a grunt, he rounds the corner and fires. The first one goes down without ever seeing him. The second levels his damn gun, but Isaac has always been quicker on the draw than most. He dies squinting all four of them bulbous eyes in a pathetic excuse for a glare. Grandma glared harder, and she'd been born blind. More footsteps. Guess he'd been a bit too rowdy. He retreats through the doors, never giving the bastards his back. He shoots the control panel when he's through, let those fuckers figure that one out the hard way. He chuckles darkly, then he opens his comms.

"This is Service Chief Isaac Shepard. Is there anyone on this damn frequency?" Static, he waits for a moment as he continues his retreat. Crackling, then a voice.

"Shepard? Oh, Dear God!" The ship's doctor, Borowski. He sounds damn terrified, like he's seen the devil licking at his heels. Isaac frowns.

"Borowski, what's your—" A wailing moan cuts him off.

"I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry!" Borowski was never the toughest nut to crack, but this feels ridiculous. Are things really that bad? May God himself damn these ugly sons of bitches.

"Borowski! Get a grip, damnit! How bad is it? I'm enroute t—"

"We've left you! We thought you were all dead, and, and…" The good doctor trails off into sobs. Isaac's blood stops pumping, the chill of inevitability running down his spine.

No. Just last week Jasper had commed him from the academy, and said he was sorry for going out with that silly Cash boy. Hannah was going to get some leave and they were all going to visit Dallas like he'd been promising since his boy was knee height to a grasshopper, damnit…

"…Shepard…?" The doctor's quiet voice breaks the silence. Isaac wants to cuss him good, to scream at him for being such a spineless coward… But he can't. He'd never have run, but he can understand having so much to lose. The doctor has kids too. He's also not the only one crying right now. Isaac's eyes sting as he dwells on all the promises he'll never keep, all the things he'll miss… Then, righteous anger swells in his breast. His eyes narrow to slits, taking on a stony hue.

"Doc. I want you to tell 'em who got us. It was those fucking batarians. Make sure everyone knows." Isaac shakes his head to clear the tears from his eyes behind his visor.

Borowski's breath hitches. "What about you, Shepard?"

Isaac snarls. "I'm taking as many as these ugly fucks down with me as I can, Doc."

Borowski is deathly quiet for a moment. "Godspeed, Isaac."

Isaac grins maniacally as the door glows with the light of a blowtorch, activating his shield boost, adrenaline rush, everything. "You too, Stevie."

The door bursts open, and Isaac and his Avenger answer with a unified roar. The first five go down before they know what the hell that's waiting for them in the cargo hold. The next three get off their harpoons, but miss. The one after that bounces his off Isaac's shields. Isaac's grin widens. The one after that pierces his shoulder with his harpoon. Isaac's smile gets bloody, his air begins to thin. Four more fall to his blitz. Then the last one, the leader if the extra paint on him is good for anything, pierces his gut. Isaac's eyes widen and the air rushes fully from his suit. The bastard doesn't even finish him off, muscling past his suffocating carcass with a sniff.

As Isaac begins to drift away, he thinks of his family. His wife, his Kerze im Dunkeln. She'll be so lonely, burying herself in work to numb the pain… And his boy… Oh, Jasper. He's always been so soft, so good to the world… This damn galaxy had better be good back to him or… Or…