Ilyria
Capital of Elysium
August 9, 2176
It was three hours since the first wave. An orbital strike that leveled the financial center, burying more than a hundred people in a tomb of glass, concrete and metal. By the time the colonists understood what was happening, the sky had already erupted into a full aerial battle.
Alliance ships squared off against the invading force, trading fire as smaller fighters zipped around in intense dogfights.
As explosions rang through the air like claps of thunder, Robert Lincoln raced through the city strip with his wife Leila, holding onto her hand with an iron grip. She panted heavily, her chest heaving up and down with every step.
"Come on, honey. Just a bit further."
"I'm trying," Leila rasped. At seven months pregnant, it was all she could do to not keel over in exhaustion
Robert cursed at himself for bringing her here. Just a brief business trip, he'd told her. Just one weekend in which he could plan the construction of a new public park, then they would be back home in Vancouver to throw Leila's baby shower.
Neither one of them expected it all to end like this. Lost on a planet far from theirs, caught in a city literally coming down on them.
"There," Robert shouted. Pointing dead ahead, he pulled Leila to the Visitor's Center, in which the survivors of the colony were seeking refuge. An underground parking area would hide them from the attacks on the surface, at least until more Alliance forces could come to relieve them.
Not much further. Just twenty yards now, give or take.
We'll make it…
"ROBERT!"
As Leila shrieked his name behind him, something pierced through Robert's thigh like a red-hot knife. His leg buckled beneath him, and the young man crashed to the street painfully.
Robert's vision blurred, and he gasped like a drowning man as the air was knocked out of his lungs. Before long he was yelling in agony, and when he looked down, he saw his entire leg stained red.
Through the ringing in his ears, Robert could make out his wife pleading for him to get up. But then a louder, deeper voice cut hers off.
"Get the female to her feet!"
Leila knelt before him, clinging to her husband as the color drained from her features. As if she was looking death right in the face.
A bulky figure clad in dark grey armor appeared over Robert. Clutched in its hands was a wicked looking rifle, marked with dark red glyphs Robert could not understand. The barrel of the weapon was still smoking from the shot that had crippled Robert.
Robert's attacker had mottled brownish red skin, and was looking down at him with four large, black eyes.
A batarian raider.
"Take her," the batarian barked. Another raider, his face hidden by a helmet, walked up to Leila and pulled her away by the arm.
"No! No, Robert!"
"Get off her you son of a…
Ungh!"
Robert was unable to finish his sentence as the raider stepped on his injured leg. Another spurt of blood jetted out, and Robert thrashed about in pain.
"Please, please let her go."
"Now why would I do that?" The batarian grinned down at Robert, baring his sharp teeth. Stealing a glance at Leila, he cocked his head at the sight of her swollen belly.
"Pretty thing. She'll serve my men well. I'm sure somebody will find a use for your offspring too, when its time comes."
"NO!"
Again, Robert tried to get up. And again, the batarian slammed his foot down on his injured limb.
"Be grateful you won't be there to see it, human."
The batarian cocked his rifle, this time aiming at Robert's face.
Robert looked at his wife. Tears streamed down her face, and she struggled fruitlessly against the slaver holding her back.
"Don't look, honey. Just… just don't look."
"Trust me," the batarian snarked, "you should probably listen to him."
"This won't be pretty."
After one last look at Leila, Robert closed his eyes, hot tears rolling down his face.
A loud gunshot split the air.
But when the noise caused Robert to flinch, and something heavy thumped on the ground in front of him, the wounded man was left bewildered. Was it not the pirate that had fired?
Opening his eyes Robert gaped at the sight in front of him. The batarian was lying on the ground, his black eyes still wide open even as a trickle of blood cascaded over them. The top of the alien's head was gone, blown away in a gory mess.
"Fuck…"
The masked slaver holding Leila whirled around, pointing a heavy pistol this way and that in search of the shooter that had downed his comrade. Robert watched as the man's movements turned desperate, and the weapon started to shake in his hand.
"Where are you?"
The slaver's voice was weak and panicked.
"Where are you, you bastard?"
BANG
In a shower of blood, the slaver's knee was blown out from beneath him. The attempted kidnapper shrieked, almost deafening both Robert and Leila with his cries of pain.
Robert's wife wrenched free of the man's grip as he convulsed, clutching onto Robert in a mix of relief and terror.
From around the street corner, a human man strolled into view. An Alliance Marine clad in navy-blue armor, carrying a sniper rifle. Walking at an almost leisurely pace, the marine went right past Robert and Leila and stood above the slaver.
"Right here."
The slaver raised an arm in a pathetic attempt to shield himself.
"No…"
Batting aside his target's hand with the barrel of his gun, the marine aimed it square at his face.
"You should look away now," he said, his head almost turning back to Leila and Robert.
"This won't be pretty."
The couple hugged each other, both averting their eyes as the marine fired.
After a brief silence Robert looked back up at the marine. Having holstered his weapon, the soldier was extending a gloved hand to him, and Robert was at last able to get a good look at him.
To his shock, he saw the marine was even younger than him, no more than twenty-five years old. The soldier was a man with short dark hair, a broad jaw and light green eyes. His features were spattered with dirt and flecks of blood, and a stubble marked his tanned face.
"Get up," the marine urged.
"You're not dying here."
Taking the soldier's hand Robert was hoisted upwards, and an orange glow ignited on his savior's omni-tool.
"This might hurt a bit," the marine said.
"Shit," Robert groaned as the marine applied a salve of medi-gel to his wound.
"SHIT!"
"Trust me, I know."
The marine passed Robert to his wife.
"Help him into the center," he ordered and drew a pistol.
"I'll cover you both."
Together the three made their way across the street, leaving the bodies of their attackers behind. The young soldier scanned their surroundings with a cold, precise efficiency until they were at the building entrance.
He ignited his omni-tool again, and the doors whirred open. Leila helped her husband in, but as they crossed the threshold Robert looked back.
The marine was no longer following them.
"Hey," Robert said fearfully.
"Hey, what're you doing? You're not staying out there are you?"
With a resigned shrug his rescuer answered, "Afraid I am."
"Are you insane?"
"There might still be some others out there," the young soldier replied.
"If there are, I'm going to find them. Some of them will have to stand and fight, the others I'm sending back here. You and your wife, you stay right where you are."
He nearly walked off before Robert yelled, "Wait!"
The marine halted, turning to Robert again.
The injured civilian gazed at him, determined to know who saved him, his wife and their daughter.
"What's your name?"
-SPECTRES-
COMMANDERS OF THE NORMANDY
Presented by Alliance News Network
PART II
Blood Brothers
(Aerial view of Elysium devastated by the Blitz as Alliance ships fight the invading fleet above)
"In the early hours of March 9th, 2176, the people of Elysium awoke to storm of violence. An armada of criminals supplied by batarian warlords engaged in a sudden and brutal attack on the colony."
Emily Wong
"Masterminded by the devious Terminus pirate leader Elanos Haliat, the attack that would come to be known as the Skyllian Blitz was intended to halt humanity's expansion and unite the galaxy's criminal element.
Only through the valiant efforts of the Alliance Navy and present ground forces was the colony able to survive."
Steven Hackett
"To the Batarian Hegemony, the advent of humans in the galaxy was an affront. They saw us as upstarts, reckless and unworthy the land we'd taken. Between that and the Alliance's growing actions to stamp out slavers and pirates, we were quick to make enemies.
It wasn't a surprise that they moved against the Alliance. We just hadn't anticipated how much they were willing to throw at us."
(A pitched battle in the streets between an Alliance squadron and countless pirates)
"While the aerial defense of Elysium was a swift and crushing defeat for the invaders, the ground battle was a desperate and bloody one. Both civilians and Alliance Marines took up arms to repel the Blitz, many giving their lives to do so."
Emily Wong
"You and your wife were there in Elysium when the attack took place, am I right?"
Robert Lincoln
Survivor of the Blitz
"I was. My wife and I, we weren't supposed to be there. It was a business trip, no more than a few days."
Emily Wong
"Witnesses from the scene say that it was Ben Shepard who escorted you and your wife to safety."
Robert Lincoln
"That's right. He saved both our lives, plucked us right off the street as the whole city was burning."
Emily Wong
"Years later, where were you when news of his induction into the Spectres was announced?"
Robert Lincoln
"I was in our garden, playing with my little girl. Christy. Leila called out from the living room, told us an old friend was on TV."
Emily Wong
"The commander told us you contacted him shortly afterward, to personally congratulate him."
Robert Lincoln
"Yes, I did.
It was the least I could do. Leila, Christy, they're everything to me. None of us would be here if it wasn't for Commander Shepard."
(A photograph of Ben Shepard standing with his squad after the battle)
"A gunnery sergeant at the time, Shepard spent hours moving through Elysium picking up survivors before joining the counterattack at the outer walls.
Following a breach in the defenses, he single-handedly held off an entire wave of batarian slavers."
Emily Wong
"While no footage exists, numerous veterans of the battle provided eyewitness accounts of Ben Shepard's bravery in the field. One of them was Navigator Charles Pressly, who would go on to serve under him aboard the first Normandy.
With the permission of the Shepards and his family, we at ANN obtained a recording of Pressly's account of the battle."
Charles Pressly
Navigator and XO on the SSV Normandy
Deceased
"It was incredible, really. They told me young Shepard was the best sniper in his unit, an army unto himself.
Even from our ships we could see the fires, the hole those damn raiders blew in the defenses. But what we could also see was the pile of bodies that piled up as they rushed the breach. None of them even got close before Ben gunned them down. By the time the breach was sealed, he'd probably killed dozens of them.
The ground teams told me he rallied them, put a gun in every able man and woman's hands and brough the fight to the enemy. He refused to play it their way, fought on his term's and no one else's.
The man's got spirit. Can't imagine where he'll be when he's my age. I'm damn proud to serve under him."
"Indeed, the admiration and loyalty he inspired would define Ben Shepard's entire military career. For his bravery and exemplary performance, Shepard was awarded the Star of Terra and inducted into the Alliance's prestigious N7 program.
Yet he was not alone in his success."
The city hall on display, with a massive hole blasted in the roof
"While he sealed the breach in Elysium's defenses and led the ground teams to victory, an airdrop of batarian shock troopers infiltrated the city hall.
Precious few defenders were left to guard the administrative center of Ilyria, and the batarian shock troopers nearly took control of the building. But their progress was brought to a violent halt when they encountered Sam Shepard."
Jeff Moreau
"I'll tell you right now, if you've never seen Sam angry, you are truly blessed. Because when he's angry, he's scary. I mean ruthless, bloody, will-absolutely-ruin-your-day scary.
With those biotics, and that mean shotgun of his, I think Sam could have brought the whole place down on his own."
Emily Wong
"I want to make sure this is accurate. Things are often exaggerated when no official record is kept, after all.
He fought off twenty-five elite shock troopers with only a single weapon and his biotics?"
Jeff Moreau
"I was told it was it was twenty-five. One of the secretaries still stuck in that building said it was hard to tell when it was over."
Emily Wong
"Hard to tell?"
Jeff Moreau
"You know…
Messy."
Emily Wong
"Ah."
Jeff Moreau
"Not that blowing stuff up was all he did. He helped evacuate survivors out of the ruins for a good while before heading off to the battle.
Saving lives meant every bit as much to him as it did Ben."
(Stills of Sam Shepard boarding a shuttle to missions in the Terminus Systems)
"From their early days in training, it was clear Sam Shepard was a very different kind of soldier. Fellow marines attest that the young biotic was possessed of a competitive streak, as well as an intense need to prove himself.
With his advanced biotic skills, the younger Shepard was frequently assigned to more dangerous and intense ground missions."
Emily Wong
"Looking at his record, some would be led to believe the commander was drawn to violence. Would you say that is a fair statement?"
Steven Hackett
"Not at all. Samuel is focused and committed, always has been. What he's always been drawn to is the chance to make a difference. To set right something he sees as wrong. More often than not that leads him right to where the action is.
Of course, the higher the stakes, the greater the cost of failure."
(Aerial shot of Akuze)
"After Elysium, Sam Shepard was assigned to an Alliance unit separate from his brothers. For months his new unit engaged in strike missions on the edge of Alliance space.
Until early 2177, when the colony of Akuze went dark and Shepard's team was sent to investigate."
Kelly Chambers
"During the past several years, Sam and I have occasionally broached the subject. In that year he spent with them, he'd made real friends in his unit. The bond you make fighting side by side with another man or woman, that's the kind that lasts a lifetime.
When his unit volunteered to go to Akuze, none of them expected anything but a quick get in, get out mission. They though it was another raid, like the one on Elysium."
(A steady shot of the city streets on the human colony)
"When Shepard and his unit landed on Akuze, the settlement seemed entirely abandoned.
After a day of searching, Shepard's unit made camp and readied to report their findings to the Alliance. But as night fell, their expedition quickly became a massacre."
(A video file displaying a thresher maw crushing an Alliance Mako, burrowing into the ground and causing several marines to fall into the hole it made)
"In the ensuing chaos, a unit of fifty marines would lose their lives to the thresher maw attack. For years Sam Shepard was known as the only survivor, and while he lived to tell the tale the physical and mental scars of that day would remain for years to come."
Kelly Chambers
"Speaking from personal experience, I can tell you something like that doesn't go away. When you see such violence up close, when you face certain death the way Shepard did, that never goes away. You can find a way to cope, a way to confront the pain and start the long road to healing.
But you never forget. What happened to you, that will never leave."
(Sam Shepard stands near the memorial on Akuze, tracing the names of his fellow marines)
Emily Wong
"As of now, it has been 11 years since Akuze. Since then you've fought many battles, lost many men and faced dangers greater than any thresher maw."
Sam Shepard
"Only that long? Huh. Feels a lot longer than that."
Emily Wong
"Is it still difficult to talk about? It is painful to think about any of them?"
Sam Shepard
"Yeah. It is.
Those men and women, I remember every one of them. I remember their names, their faces. Even the little things, I just can't forget those.
There was one, Lisa O'Connor. She had this old violin her grandmother gave her. She liked to play after every mission, it helped calm her nerves. Then there was Jose, Jose Munoz. He had the best taste in books, and I don't mean the ones you download now.
I mean the old paper ones, the ones you have to dust off after weeks on the shelf."
Emily Wong
"I have a few. It's a real pain sometimes, getting them all cleaned off."
Sam Shepard
"It is painful thinking about all that. But sometimes, in a weird way, I need to feel that pain. It helps me remember the better days. Reminds me what we meant to each other.
What my crew and I mean to each other now.
When you're a soldier, it might be easier to think of yourself and everyone around you as just another asset. Another name to be left on a plaque when all's said and done. But you're not. On Akuze, every name on that memorial is more than just a name.
Every one of them is a life. And none of them can ever be replaced."
Emily Wong
"In recent years, Alliance brass has disclosed that there was in fact another survivor, Corporal Richard Toombs.
Are the two of you still in touch? Does it help, having someone else to talk to about it?"
Sam Shepard
"We don't talk much, really. Last I heard of him, he was running a bounty hunting operation in Terminus Space a year ago. Chasing down remnants of Cerberus and other war criminals.
After the Normandy's brush with Cerberus, he wasn't exactly itching to see me again. I wish nothing but the best for him. He's a good soldier, and a good man."
Emily Wong
"Every man has to find his own way, in the end."
Sam Shepard
"Pretty much."
Emily Wong
"Moving forward in time, after your recovery you were transferred to the SSV Tokyo, where you became acquainted with Captain David Anderson."
Sam Shepard
"…Yes."
Emily Wong
"Is there anything you'd like to say about your time in his crew?"
Sam Shepard
"So much. There's so much I could say. Half of it I should have told him when he was…
Well, when he was still here."
Dark Star Lounge
The Citadel
February 14th, 2178
"Keep 'em coming."
As the turian bartender shook his head in amazement and dutifully fetched his sixth glass that night, Sam Shepard leaned against the bar at an angle most would consider quite dangerous.
The bartender noticed Sam's eyes drifting and helpfully leaned into his field of vision while it still lasted.
"You sure, kid? You look like you're about to keel over any second now."
"Hell yeah!"
To make sure he was crystal clear Sam took one of his five used glasses and whirled it around expectantly.
"Put more of the stuff in the thing more… stuff goes in."
"Okay…" The bartender made no effort to hide his worry at the young human's utter lack of care for his own well-being.
"Your funeral."
In a blink the next glass was filled with a shot of bourbon, and after a moment's hesitation the turian moved to hand it over.
Before Sam could take it another hand seemed to appear out of thin air, taking the glass from him.
The bartender's mandibles twitched nervously as he saw who snatched Sam's drink from him, and he took a step back.
Sam, on the other hand, whirled around ready to curse out whoever it was that had the audacity to interrupt him when he was busy getting wasted.
"Hey, what the fu…"
His words caught in his throat, and Sam's drunken stupor was shattered.
Captain Anderson stood before him, spinning the glass of bourbon in his hand and observing its contents.
"Think I had this one a couple weeks back. Good year, shipped straight from Mississippi I think."
He downed it quicker than Sam could even process, placing the glass on the bar as he shook his head.
"Good brand. Almost too good, judging by your posture, gunnery chief."
"Sir, I…"
Sam tried to force himself to think, to find some excuse that would satisfy his superior officer. None came to mind, and he grew furious for thinking he could get away with this. Shore leave or no, Anderson had been quite adamant that Sam find some pastime that did not involve blacking out.
"I think we should sit down," Anderson said, and pulling up his omni tool he generously tipped the bartender.
"Thank you for your trouble."
"Of course," the turian answered, his dark eyes flickering back and forth between the two soldiers.
"Take care. Try to stay out of trouble, kid."
Though Anderson's voice sounded gentle enough, there was a firm undercurrent that let Sam know his captain was in no mood for a no.
With some difficultly Sam followed Anderson to a booth on the other side of the lounge.
"I was hoping you'd be at a library. Or the Presidium Commons, it's lovely today. A walk out there would do you some good. Clear your head."
"I was planning it," Sam mumbled half-heartedly, with his face in his hands.
"Got a bit… distracted."
Things were already starting to spin, and he knew the headache that was coming the following day would be punishment enough for being so irresponsible.
He opened his eyes, and when his vision was steady enough, he looked across the table at Anderson. The older soldier's hands were folded in front of him, and his eyes felt like they were beginning to bore through Sam.
"What else did you have planned, before you decided a blackout was the way you'd spend your evening?"
Sam shrugged. "I don't know. Hitch a ride to Purgatory, meet a girl.
Spend the night and then never see her again."
He managed a crooked smile.
"Typical shore leave."
"What's typical for some people could be damaging to you, son."
Anderson spoke with the air of a man who had seen many soldiers self-destruct after a mission gone wrong.
"It's a little late to talk about damage."
"I don't understand, Shepard. You're every bit as skilled, every bit as courageous as your brother, yet he's out patrolling and defending our borders while you're doing everything in your power to waste away, die young."
"Well, Ben didn't walk headfirst into a deathtrap and watch every one of his friends die..."
"We've all seen friends die," Anderson. interjected. "And answer me honestly, Sam, do you think for a second any one of them would have wanted to see you like this?"
Sam's throat tightened. He thought of his unit's last night before dropping off at the abandoned colony. They had decided to hold an old-fashioned, campfire style hangout, talking about their lives before the corps and what they had planned years from now. What they hoped the future would bring.
Now what? What future?
Briefly he looked down at the polished surface of the table in front of him and saw his reflection. What used to be a pair of deep green eyes were now mismatched. His right was paler now, and a thin scar slashed across it from his forehead down to his cheek.
Every day this would greet him in the mirror, and he would remember.
"What they want… It doesn't matter anymore, does it? They're gone."
Anderson scooted closer, shaking his head in pity
"Survivor's guilt is something else I've seen my fair share of. Hell, I've dealt with it more than once. Manifests in any number of ways. Drinking too much, obviously. Putting as much distance between you and your comrades as possible.
Sitting in your room for hours on end, staring at the wall, trying to think of all the ways you could have saved them."
It almost unsettled Sam how quickly Anderson had him pegged. The captain had a remarkable talent for nailing down exactly how each of his crew ticked and putting it on full display in front of them.
He had been doing it to Sam for a whole year, now.
"How do you do it?"
"Do what?" Anderson asked.
"Keep going. Lock all of that shit away and move on with your life."
Anderson sighed deeply.
"I'm afraid it's not that simple. When I served in the First Contact War, I saw good men and women give their lives by the hundreds. Soldiers just like you, and your friends on Akuze.
I thought about ways to make myself forget. Drinking it all away or chasing any distraction that would take my mind off what we lost. But sooner or later I had to stop hiding from it."
In a gesture that surprised Sam, Anderson reached out and took him by the shoulder. The captain's grip was firm, marked with the strength of a man who had decades of fighting. But there was something comforting behind it.
If he had ever known the feeling, Sam would have called it fatherly.
"Sam. Don't bury your pain. Don't lock it away. Confront it. You face it head on and remember that no matter how terrible thing seem, you're still here, and you have your whole life ahead of you.
Akuze, that was one day. Every day from this point on is a gift, and I'm not going to watch you waste them."
Anderson stood up, and with some difficulty Sam followed suit.
"Come on. I'll take you to the Commons."
The captain of the Tokyo helped him along, keeping his firm grip on Sam's arm all the way.
"Sir," he asked.
"Yes, Shepard?"
Sam hesitated, wondering if he should even ask.
"Why me? You could be relaxing with the rest of your crew of keeping the other marines in line. Any one of them gets drunk, gets lost or finds trouble, they're worth keeping an eye on.
So why help me?"
Anderson gave him a clap on the back.
"Because you're worth helping too.
On my ship, no one gets left behind."
Sam Shepard
"When Anderson was given command of the Normandy, I couldn't think of a better man for the job."
Emily Wong
"Of course, as the Eden Prime conflict escalated command was given to your brother, and to you."
Sam Shepard
"Well, yes and no. We and the crew of the Normandy were free to carry out the mission as we saw fit, but we had the Council breathing down our necks all the way.
Anderson was always there to guide us, though. Even when the Council doubted us, he never gave up.
It was a privilege to fly with him, while it lasted."
Emily Wong
"Years later, you and the rest of the Alliance Navy would uncover the truth behind the attack on Akuze as an early operation by the extremists calling themselves Cerberus.
Given that the last days of the Reaper War saw you and your crew take the fight to them, some in the media have said Cerberus's presence in the war perhaps opened old wounds.
Some called your fight a personal one, a vendetta. What would you say to those accusations?"
Sam Shepard
"I'd remind them that my life wasn't the only one ruined by Cerberus. With their experiments, their attacks on enemies both human and nonhuman, they made it pretty clear it didn't matter who it was that stood in their way.
Cerberus made it personal, Emily. How many human lives were lost to the Reapers when they betrayed us?
I don't regret any actions we took against them. They had to be stopped."
Emily Wong
"I can't think of anyone who would disagree with you there."
(Broadcasts of the geth attack on Eden Prime)
"After Akuze, Ben and Sam Shepard would not serve with each other for six years. That changed when the human and turian governments sanctioned construction of the SSV Normandy.
Ben Shepard was assigned as executive officer under Captain David Anderson. By that time both Shepards had advanced to the rank of commander.
Their station would be put to the test when their mission took them to Eden Prime."
-SPECTRES-
COMMANDERS OF THE NORMANDY
Author's Note: The wonders of RPGs, picking and choosing your character's history.
The personal background of Commander Shepard was always one of the more fascinating parts of the trilogy to me. There's just enough to put together a solid history, yet so much room to be filled. Before covering the events of the trilogy, it made sense to devote a chapter to the Shepard brothers' service backgrounds. To those who read my previous fic, Two Against the Galaxy, some of this information is already pretty familiar. Think of this as a deeper exploration into what we know, as well as an entry for newer readers.
Next time, the mission against Saren will be covered by our heroes' squadmates, featuring some unseen moments on the Normandy involving Garrus Vakarian and Liara T'soni.
Until next time!