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Shepard woke to the familiar feel of the comm link buzzing in her collar. Lifting her head, she realized she had fallen asleep sitting at the table in life support. Cried herself to sleep, really. Waking to a universe in which Thane was dead was both surreal and ... not so much. It had been so long since he had left the Normandy missing him already felt like a normal part of life. But now she could never again look forward to seeing him when she docked at the Citadel, never speak to him over vidchat or receive an email from him. He was gone, far away, where she could not reach him.

Her comm link buzzed again, reminding her that the galaxy—and the war—went on, and she would have to make time for her grief later. She hit the button. "Shepard."

"Commander!" There was unmistakable relief in Traynor's tone. "We couldn't find you."

No, Shepard supposed they couldn't—although she imagined Garrus or Liara would have had a good guess as to where she might be. "What's going on?"

"Admirals Hackett and Anderson are on the line for you."

"Anderson?" It was always a miracle when he could get an open channel. "I'll be right there. Can he hold?"

"Yes, for another few minutes, he says."

"On my way."

In the War Room, she found the admirals' images both waiting for her.

"Commander," Hackett said. "Did we interrupt something?"

"No. I—" She wanted to tell them about Thane, but, really, so many people were losing loved ones to this war. Her loss was no different than anyone else's. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"I'm just glad you could join us," Anderson said. She could see his smile, blue and wavery though it was. "We heard about what happened at the Citadel. Udina …" He shook his head. "I never trusted that SOB, he was always power hungry, but this …"

"Cerberus was just using him to take control of the Citadel."

"What the hell for?"

"I don't know. Not yet. Although the Citadel is a prominent target—if the Illusive Man wanted to cripple the fight against the Reapers, taking over the Citadel is a good place to start."

"It could've been a lot worse," Hackett said. "I understand you stopped the assassination attempt on Councilor Valern."

"Not me." Tears rose in her throat and Shepard swallowed against them. "My former—companion, Thane Krios. It—it cost him his life." The last few words came out in a whisper, the tears threatening to overwhelm her. She looked away, and the two admirals waited with sympathy until she could control herself. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Anderson said gently. "It's always hard to lose someone, and I know he was … special to you."

Shepard nodded.

"I've met that assassin before. Several times," Anderson told her. "Kai Leng. I'll have Hackett send you my reports on him. Short story: Be careful."

"Too late for that." She thought of the sword that ended Thane's life and said grimly, "Next time we meet, he dies."

Hackett cleared his throat. "One unexpected side effect from the attack—I've had inquiries from the asari on the status of the Crucible."

"They're scared enough to send help?" Anderson asked. "About time."

"Yes, the asari and salarians alike are throwing in their support now."

"I should be grateful," Shepard said, "but I'm just frustrated. Why couldn't they have worked with us from the start? We could have prevented so many deaths." She sighed. "Foolish to dwell on that, though. Nothing we can do about it now. How is the Crucible coming?"

"Good. We think we're about halfway done. The schematics are very easy to translate, which makes the whole job go faster."

"We any closer to understanding how to use it?" Anderson asked.

Hackett shrugged. "Maybe? Our scientists are convinced it can generate enough energy to destroy the Reapers. But how, and in what form, are questions that remain to be clarified. We think the Catalyst is the key to focusing its energy properly."

"I'm working on that. The Catalyst is somewhere in this galaxy, and I'm going to find it," Shepard promised them.

Nodding crisply, Hackett said, "We'll keep building. I'll send you an update on the schematics."

"And I'll keep fighting—make sure there's an Earth left to come back to."

Shepard looked at Anderson, thinking how strong and fit he seemed. Commanding a rebel army seemed to suit him better than being a councilor ever had. "Stay safe."

He smiled. "I'll do my best. Good luck to both of you. Anderson out." His image flickered and was gone.

"Commander, it looks as though the quarians are willing to talk—and we could use their fleet."

"I'll look into it."

"Hackett out."

His image disappeared as well. Shepard looked at the empty space where they had been, took a deep breath, and turned around. She could grieve later. For now, there was work to do.