Aftermath

I bowed to the Council and saluted Captain Anderson before turning and heading back to my team. They had not heard all of the conversation, but they knew enough.

"So, the Council grows," Garrus said happily, "good. After what the Alliance just pulled off, Humans deserve this."

"I hope we earn it too," I said, "but with Anderson as our Councillor I think we'll do just fine."

"What now Commander?" Ashley asked, and the rest of the squad all looked at me as they waited for their orders.

"We get back on our ship and we get out there and find a way to stop the Reapers from ever coming back."

"Good!" Garrus exclaimed and the rest of the squad looked pleased and eager to get going. All of them except for Wrex. The warrior Krogan stood in a thoughtful silence before saying to me,

"It's been a hell of a ride Scott; I wouldn't have missed it for the world. But I need to go home to Tuchanka."

"Why?" I asked, fearing to lose a friend.

"Ever since Virmire… ever since I found that it is possible to cure the Genophage, I haven't been able to stop thinking about my people. They need help. They need someone to guide them away from the path that we're on right now, or the Krogan won't need the Genophage to go extinct. I need to set them on a course to recovery, to rebuilding our home world, to unity."

"You think it's possible?"

"I don't have a clue. But if no one tries then we'll never know. I'm taking that example from you Scott."

I sympathised with Wrex. He had grown tired of watching his people slowly die off and had seen that there was a way to help them grow back to their former strength. Bringing Sophie with us, we all went to the dock where Joker had anchored the Normandy. There, we all said our goodbyes to our Krogan brother-in-arms,

"Good luck Wrex," I said, "I hope the Krogan can be saved. I really do. I know the "cure" on Virmire was really only a mass cloning project, but I hated dashing your hopes like that."

"I know Scott. Hopefully we'll meet again someday. Can't wait to tell the Krogan back home that there's at least one Human who can fight like we can," he chuckled.

"Hey," Ashley piped up with a challenging smile, "what about me?"

"Ok…" the big Krogan grinned, "maybe two."

They each said a heart-felt good bye, and when the huge warrior came to Tali she gave him as best a hug as she could, making the unsentimental Krogan a little uneasy.

"I have a present for you," Tali said as she handed over a couple of small weapon pieces to Wrex, "these are the Omni-blade mods that I made before Virmire."

Wrex let out a big laugh and rubbed the top of Tali's head,

"You're a good one you are! I'll miss my little Quarian friend. Be sure and see that Commander Gardner doesn't lose his edge, just teach him everything I've taught you and maybe he'll even be as good as me one day."

"There's even a doubt?" I joked.

When all was said and done, Wrex turned and headed back to the Presidium from where he would look for transport to the Krogan home world of Tuchanka. I told my team that they had as long as it took for the Normandy to take on fresh supplies and fill its stocks up again to rest, repair armour and check weapons. I arranged directly through Councillor Anderson for Sophie to be transported straight back to Earth, and for mum and dad to meet her there.

"You going to be ok?" I said as her private shuttle prepared to leave.

"I don't know. They were my best friends; I've known them all my life."

It was true. My sister had known Rachel since before she had even started school, where she then met Michaela.

"I know, but you have to be strong now: For them. You've got a lot going for you Shea, don't let this hold you back."

"Thanks Scott. I can't believe that this is the sort of stuff you're mixed up in!"

"That makes two of us."

"What are you going to do now?"

Images of what I had seen up on the Presidium flashed through my mind; the fires and devastation, countless civilians lying dead, many of them mutilated by the Husks. I remembered Kaidan's last moments on Virmire.

"I'm going to make sure that this never happens again," I said firmly.

I bid a fond farewell to Sophie and went back to the Normandy and finished up our preparations for heading out. When I went to the galaxy map Garrus approached me, holding the datapad mentioning Cerberus in his hand,

"I just remembered this Commander. Think it's time we checked it out?"

"Good call Garrus, then we continue the fight against the Geth."

Before the Normandy left the system, I contacted Admiral Hackett and explained to him what our next objective was.

"Cerberus?" The Admiral did not like what he was hearing.

"We found the datapad on Noveria. If they're experimenting with Rachni…"

"Say no more Commander. Head to Nepheron and see what you can find. If that base is there; wipe it out."

"Yes Sir!"

Joker set a course for Nepheron's star system and I spoke to the entire crew over the intercom,

"Listen up everyone. I am proud of each and every one of you. As the finest team in the Alliance, you helped to stop the greatest threat this galaxy has ever faced. But I regret to say that it's not over. The Reapers are still out there, and they will find another way to invade our galaxy. We will stop that from ever happening again. Get what rest you can while we're in the Relay network and be prepared for when we get to Nepheron. We're paying a little visit to Cerberus first."

I heard joyful and celebratory shouts coming from the crew back in the CIC; attacking Cerberus was always a good way to get Alliance soldiers pumped up and eager to get into the action.

Only half an hour remained before we reached the rocky, uninhabitable planet of Nepheron. My team was gathered on the bridge waiting to receive information from our scans,

"According to the datapad the base will be on this side of the planet, hidden away in a mountain pass. We don't have the Mako anymore so the Normandy will drop us on foot with its stealth systems and we'll break into the base and take it out."

"Why do we not get any shore leave after, you know, saving the galaxy and all that?" Joker laughed, "ahh, the price of being heroes I guess."

"The bad guys don't take shore leave, unfortunately," I joined in, "wouldn't mind sitting on some beach by the Mediterranean for a while though."

"Where's that?" Tali asked.

"On Earth. It's the most beautiful sea on Earth with some of the most amazing little island retreats. White, sandy beaches and turquoise water. I'd love to show you one day!"

"Definitely," she said happily, "but only after we beat all the bad guys."

"Exactly."

We disembarked from the Normandy on a mountain side above the base. All I could see was a squat little building with a few pylons and antennae protruding from its roof. But I was familiar with these types of dwellings and knew that the base would be below the surface, and I did not know how big a facility it could be. My four friends and I carefully made our way down the precarious slopes until we reached the door to the base undetected. I had told Liara that she no longer had to take part in any of the action anymore and stay on the Normandy finding information and researching ways to stop potential ways for Reapers to invade. However, she had refused and replied that she would be ashamed to be left behind now.

Tali hacked the door, although she admitted that Cerberus software was highly advanced and hard to break through. When we burst inside Liara threw down the two guards that moved to engage us with a heavy biotic blast. While I led the team past the two men Garrus finished them off with his rifle. Garrus, following us at the rear, was carrying a heavy ordnance device on his back that we would use to destroy the base, but any stray bullet could set the blasted thing off. Knowing this, Garrus stayed back during the brief but fierce fire fights that ensued with the Cerberus Commandos. They were good, really good, but against the mix of skills and weapons that my squad had at their disposal they were overwhelmed one by one.

Finally, we found the main laboratory and my fears were confirmed. Contained within an energy shield in the centre of the room were several Rachni, thrashing around violently as they reacted to the noise and commotion going on as Cerberus troops took up positions to engage us. I raised my Mattock and fired away at a squad of enemies moving around the flank. Three of them were brought down when Ashley turned on them as well and while she gave covering fire I rushed into the lab with Tali and began to advance around the other side of the square room. We had the superior number of Cerberus troops pinned between our two covered firing positions and over the course of a few heated minutes they were all eliminated. Taking stock of the situation, Garrus lowered the bomb onto the floor,

"What about the Rachni?" he asked.

"I don't think we'll be able to save them like we did the Queen. Garrus, start the bomb timer. We'll lower the containment shield and lock the door behind us as we leave. There's no way they can escape the blast and the lab will be totally destroyed."

The bomb beeped away as it counted down to detonation. I hit the switch and released the Rachni before sprinting over to the door which Tali locked securely behind us. Racing back up to the surface we felt the dull thud as the explosive went off and the shockwave surged up through all of us from below.

"Mission complete; quick and clean. Good job guys," I said gladly. Embarking on the Normandy I could feel the jubilant mood among the crew, any victory over Cerberus was always welcomed.

"Good work with the Cerberus base Commander," Admiral Hackett said to me, "were your suspicions about them researching the Rachni correct?"

"Yes Sir. There were several Rachni in the facility. There was nothing we could do for them; they won't be a problem."

"I feel better knowing those things are dead. I'm still undecided about your decision to release the Queen on Noveria. We could get burned for that."

"She swore on her life Sir. These are no simple bugs; they're as intelligent as we are, possibly more."

"I'll trust your judgement Commander."

I sensed that he had more to say,

"Do you have orders for me Admiral?"

The old man's voice grew firm,

"We've found information that the Geth have been preparing forward operating bases throughout the Armstrong Nebula. We want the Normandy to assist Alliance operations in that cluster."

"Yes Sir."

For the next month we scoured the Armstrong systems for Geth outposts, signalling Alliance forces when a small enclave was discovered and aiding them in its destruction. Tali routinely sifted through information found at the Geth outposts for anything related to the Reapers, but mostly she simply found the locations of more bases. In between ground operations I continued my usual job of making my rounds of the crew and filing reports to the Alliance and Councillor Anderson. Tali and I spent most of our free time together; watching movies, telling each other about our hopes and dreams, having fun and enjoying what precious time we had.

Despite our desires we held off on the physical part, except for the occasional kiss, as Tali admitted that she had felt horrendously ill after the first time we had sex. However, one day she surprised me when I walked into my room at the end of a shift and saw her lying naked on my bed. She motioned me over with her finger and I happily obliged. I did not dare blink as I soaked in every detail of her gorgeous face, cute little nose and shining eyes. Her slim, toned body rendered me speechless and the only way I could communicate how I felt about her was via physical means. Not that she complained. She was still shy at these times, but I loved that about her and I enjoyed making her feel more relaxed, more at ease. When we lay together, we both wanted nothing more than to escape to some hidden corner of the galaxy together and never come back.

For all the hardships that had been thrust upon me since the whole mess began on Eden Prime, I would do all of it again for the companionship it had brought into my life. Garrus, Wrex, Ashley, Liara and of course the woman I loved; Tali. We had had a private ceremony on board the Normandy to remember Kaidan together and spoke of what his sacrifice meant to the galaxy and what he had achieved in his life. A man of honour and integrity at all times; such a soldier was rare to find in the troubled and unstable place that the galaxy was. If Saren had been able to take his army of Krogan to the Citadel; things would certainly have gone differently, and definitely not for the best. Through his actions we had been able to defeat Saren's forces, kill Saren and destroy Sovereign. Kaidan was the greatest hero out of all of us in my opinion.