The next morning…
Joker: -Knocking at the door- Shepard!
Shepard: -Waking up- Hmm… -He turns to hug her, but he was alone in the bed- Liara?
Joker: Shepard! Come on!
Shepard: What's the matter, Joker?
Joker: -Raising his voice little by little- Are you seriously telling me you've forgotten that today we celebrate the victory?
Shepard: Okay. -He puts his hand on his face, sleepy- Okay. I'm coming. Give me ten minutes.
Joker: Sure. But if were in your place you wouldn't let me even a second to get ready.
Shepard: -Amused- Is that a complaint?
Joker: Nah, it's just a thought.
Minutes later…
Joker:-Getting in the elevator- Cortez is waiting to take us with Hackett, to the center of town.
Shepard: Do you know why Liara has gone so fast?
Joker: She said she didn't want to wake you up so that you could rest. She left an hour ago. She'll be there, don't worry. So relax and enjoy. You've earn it.
The celebration took place in a big square, in whose center the asari had prepared a stage. Admiral Hackett, under whose command the impossible was achieved, advanced over the microphone to make a speech which would last in those present's hearts.
Hackett: Today we celebrate what several months ago seemed impossible to us. The reapers had us cornered. They weren't here even for a year, and they had already decimated our forces, broken our hopes and clouded our future. But we've succeeded. All of us, together under one banner, under one noble cause. They hit us hard, and that made us doubt about our chances. Until we came together, we made things much easier for the reapers, isolating ourselves from each other, defending our borders without caring about our allies, dividing our forces to fight them in the infinite fronts that day by day they opened. Desperation makes us weak and selfish, it makes us forget those who long ago helped us, it makes us sacrifice those who support us for our own survival. However, we were able to set aside past grudges, forget our differences, rely on those who are with us, to fight against extinction. We were on the edge of the abyss, but we could overcome it. We faced an unbeatable enemy, an enemy which had erased many civilizations, and together we defeated them. The reapers have made dent in our society, and because of that, the horror we've lived will endure for decades, maybe centuries, but we will recover our greatness. And this day will remember us what we can achieve if we stand together.
Hackett also announced, among other things, that all engineers who worked on the Crucible were going to focus in repairing the mass relays as fast as possible to link the galaxy again. At the end, there was a minute of silence to honor those who gave their lives in the war, since not only in the last battle everyone's destiny had been decided. After the ceremony, Admiral Hackett walked over Shepard.
Hackett: Commander, I couldn't tell you how much I'm glad you survived the mission. -Ashamed- I'm sorry I doubted about it…
Shepard: I understand, Admiral. You had to put out of danger what was left of the fleet.
Hackett: I must also tell you something about certain reports I've received. We have news about the Leviathans.
Shepard: Are they going to give us trouble?
Hackett: I believe not. The last they told us was that the problem they tried to solve is now in our hands… I don't quite understand to what problem they refer.
Shepard: I think I do.
Hackett: When you have recovered I'd like you to make a full report.
Shepard: I will, sir.
Hackett: And with regard to the reapers... All of them have died, and for what we are seeing here on Thessia it seems that the Crucible's energy made their remains self-destruct. To the last piece.
Shepard: Do you mean they are disintegrating?
Hackett: Exactly. And it's better than you may think. If a faction like Cerberus was formed and had access to reaper technology, it could be a disaster in the future. "Human" size reapers volatilized instantly, but not the big ones. However, in a few days even Sovereign class reapers won't be more than elemental atoms.
Shepard: And the other synthetics?
Hackett: Although they have also perished, their remains don't suffer this… reaction. We believe it's a security system inherent in the reapers.
The Admiral looks to the horizon, satisfied.
Hackett: Good. I hope to see you soon, Commander. -He makes a military salute and leaves-.
Garrus saw Shepard with Hackett, and when he was left alone he went to speak with him.
Garrus: Shepard, I thought that after having been consecrated as a legend you would be more, eh, content. Is something wrong? You know you can tell anything to your best friend.
Shepard: I was remembering Anderson… Up there things got complicated. The Illusive Man caught us off guard. He couldn't control the reapers, but he could with Anderson and me. He made me pull the trigger. I shot Anderson. I can't stop thinking if I could have avoided it. I don't know…
Garrus: You can't blame yourself for that, Shepard. I know you too well not to know that if there had been a way to save him you would have found it.
Shepard: You may be right, but still… -he sighed- At least I was with him in his last breath.
Garrus: Eh, stop thinking about it. Think about he didn't die alone. -He makes a pause- Shepard, you know Anderson would be proud of you.
Shepard: I do. -In his mind Anderson's last words resonates: "you did good, son, you did good. I'm proud of you"-.
Garrus: Come on! Nobody could have achieved what you have. I'm glad to have been with you from the beginning. I've retained you enough, I think the others also claim to spend some time with the great hero.
Joker: Hey, Shepard!
Shepard: Joker, where have you been?
Joker: Ah. I've been with some fighter pilots from the Alliance. Phoenix squadron. They helped to keep the Crucible safe.
Shepard: I'm glad you are making new friends. How are you?
Joker: Isn't up to me to ask that question? -Shepard looks at him, arching an eyebrow-. I'm not bad.
Shepard: But…?
Joker: -Sadly- But I miss EDI. The Normandy has never been so… quiet. Empty… -he breathes deeply- You don't have to worry about me. Well, a little, okay? I'll get over it. I only need time…
Shepard: Understood. Well, Doctor Chakwas said you could tell me the travel to Thessia.
Joker: Bah, it has nothing interesting. And we were the last in arriving… -Sarcastically- It was easy. What was fun were the seventeen days to reach Arcturus Stream at full power. The rest was faster. A jump to get to Annos Basin, other to Krogan DMZ, and the last to Athena Nebula. You should have seen the welcome of all fleet, and all the soldiers acclaiming us form the ground. That was worth seeing.
Shepard: I'd have liked it.
Joker: By the way, when the news that you had survived went round … Well, don't panic with the amount of messages you have been sent. I think the last thing Traynor said is that your private terminal had been saturated. I guess she will fix it soon…
Wrex: Shepard! -He comes nearer and gives him a big hug. He turns to Joker in order to repeat the process-.
Joker: -He takes a step back and puts his hands up- No, Wrex.
Wrex: Ah, yeah, princess. I almost forgot about that. It would have been…
Joker: Yes. I leave you alone. I don't want Wrex to get too affective with me…
Wrex: And then he says he has sense of humor. Humans!
Shepard: It's good to see you here, but, for what Joker told me, you went through Tuchanka. And I see many krogan.
Wrex: In part it's Bakara's idea. She said that recognition of our people would be good for the image. And I wasn't going to leave until I knew you were all right.
Shepard: I appreciate that, Wrex.
Wrex: However, we will have to find another great enemy to fight, je, je, je…
Shepard: I hope not. I've already had enough fight for a while. What are the krogan going to do now?
Wrex: I had planned to lead another rebellion. You know, so as not to lose the habit. After saving the galaxy…
Shepard: Wrex…
Wrex: Bah! I was just kidding.
Shepard: Sure, as in Sur´Kesh, am I wrong?
Wrex: Recognize that my sense of humor delighted the salarians. Besides, my wife wouldn't let me do that. I know all women have strong personality, but you've never seen how a krogan female gets angry. Never contradict them. You may not survive. You, in that aspect, have it better.
Shepard: You wouldn't say that if you had seen Liara angry. The asari can also have much temper. She could unleash a great storm.
Wrex: Ja! You begin to resemble to Joker!
After meeting Wrex, Shepard saw Tali.
Tali: Shepard, I'm glad to see you recover. When we found you in the Citadel we feared that it was going to be the last time we would see you.
Shepard: Thank you, Tali. You saved me.
Tali: Keelah! I can't believe we did it. Finally. It seems it has passed a whole life since everything began, since Saren.
Shepard: Now I guess you'll go back to Rannoch, with your people.
Tali: I don't know. I'd like to return to my home world, and help my people start from scratch. But…
Shepard: What stops you?
Tali: The truth is… is that I… Don't tell this to anyone… -She looks around to see nobody is listening to them- to anyone. Understood? -Shepard nods- I want to be with Garrus. He has something special… Also, If I don't stay with him, well… He will keep trying to get off with, and it's not his strong point… You don't have any idea how bad he does…
Shepard: Believe me, I know what you mean. I'm really glad for you both. You make a good couple. Take care of him.
Tali: I don't promise you anything. He has the habit of getting into trouble. However, that… may be because of your influence… -Tali walks away slowly, while the Commander thinks about it, amused-.
Suddenly somebody put her hand on his shoulder, and what he could not expect when he turned around was encountering Matriarch Aethyta.
Aethyta: Shepard, you've done it. And you've lived to tell about it.
Shepard: I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Liara. By the way, where have you been all this time?
Aethyta: Since Thessia fell I was coordinating asari's efforts to defend our territories. However, I've come to tell you that I trust you to look after Liara. I know you left her behind to save her, and I thank you. She loves you much more than you can imagine. This is not easy for me… I'm… glad you appeared in her life. If there is somebody who is worthy of her… it's you.
Shepard: Thank you. She means everything to me.
Aethyta: But don't believe I won't keep watching over you. We'll meet soon.
At that moment the Commander realized someone was missing. For some reason Liara was not there. He had seen her at the ceremony, but after he was hoarded by his friends he lost sight of her, and she was no longer there. The fact that Liara had left away that morning without telling Shepard anything surprised him, and also that he couldn't have spoken with her along the day, as if she wanted to avoid him for some reason. As he couldn't find her and he had already been with all his teammates, he decided to return to the ship. He enters in Liara's cabin, and sees she's asleep in the chair.
Shepard: -Getting closer to her without making a noise, he asks in a low voice- Liara? -When he is at her side, he hugs her from behind-.
Liara: Mmm… -Shepard gives her a kiss on the neck. She slowly opens her eyes and smiles- Shepard. I thought you would take longer to return…
Shepard: Liara, are you all right?
Liara: -She turns to speak with him- Yes, I only needed some intimacy, to clear my mind and assimilate everything. But I fell asleep… It had been so long since I couldn't relax, evade, rest. Before there was much at stake, I couldn't afford it, but now…
Shepard: Perhaps the others don't realize, but I know you too well. Something happens to you, and it's not that. You will have to do it better. I feel you distant since this morning. Liara, you know you can trust me, you can tell me.
Liara: It isn't that I don't trust you, it's… No… I don't want secrets between us. There's… something that pricks my conscience, something I couldn't avoid, an accident, something I saw yesterday when we were together… Part of what happened up there…, in the Citadel.
Shepard: Liara…
Liara: I need to talk about this. Shepard…, I could see what the reapers proposed you.
Shepard: The decision I took -she interrupts him-.
Liara: Was the right one. -She stands up and stares at him- You aren't telling me the whole truth either. You don't stop thinking if there may had been another way of -now he interrupts her-.
Shepard: Liara, I… No, you're right. I couldn't save them all… That's why I keep asking myself the same question…
Liara: I saw how the Catalyst explained each possible solution. It's ironic, isn't it? That the component the Crucible was lack of was the reapers intelligence itself… They got you to choose. When they told you that if you killed them you would also destroy all synthetics you thought that there could be other option. But in the end you judged the others were wrong, and you decided to do it. Do you think that other decision would have been better? Perhaps synthesizing your DNA with the Crucible's energy? You believed nobody could take the decision of changing everyone. Or controlling them? You told them you had not reached that far to lose everything, to lose -the first tears begin to slide down her face- those who occupy a place in your heart and in whose hearts you also occupy a place, to disappear from their lives.
Shepard: Even so, the victory cost us a lot… To that I added the geth… -regretfully- And EDI. She confessed me she was beginning to feel alive thanks to me… -he sighs and looks at the floor- but I killed her.
Liara: -She puts a hand on his shoulder. Shepard looks at her eyes- You could have also refused to use the Crucible. Fight the reapers on our own means…
Shepard: -Shaking his head- No. Without the Crucible we couldn't have defeated them.
Liara: That's why you activated it. The right way isn't usually the easiest. And you've always had the necessary strength to choose it.
Shepard: Because you've been always at my side. Have you thought about it? We owe you the victory, Liara. You discovered the Crucible blueprints, you didn't allow me to give up, and, if even then everything went wrong, I know that your time capsules would have saved the next cycle.
Liara: Nobody had ever told me something like this, which made me feel so… special… You did the best. And… -she smiles- you've come back with me.
Shepard: -Kidding- I've heard that I was brought by dragging… -Liara laughs-.
Liara: I never doubted about you, I knew you wouldn't fail us. When I said we had changed I was wrong. You were still the same. And I'm glad you have never stopped being who you are, that what you've been through hasn't made you change -Liara surrounds the Commander with her arms to comfort him-. Shepard, I'll always be with you. I love you -she releases him-.
Shepard: Liara, there's something I have to tell you. I know that to describe the bond between us there are no words. I know that what made you get interested in me was the beacon of Eden Prime, but also that with the time it changed. And everything you've done for me, since the day I met you. You brought me light in the most fateful days this galaxy has lived, and you gave me the necessary courage to comply with my duty. Without you Commander Shepard would have never reached that far. You've been my reason to fight and not surrender even when all hope had vanished, when everything was darkness -Shepard kneels down and takes her hand, showing his beloved a ring. He looks at her firmly, and with determination, he says the words she hoped with such longing-. Liara T'Soni, will you marry me?
When she saved Shepard and he regained consciousness, she radiated happiness, but now, at that precise moment, she feels the most fortunate person in the whole galaxy.
Liara: Shepard -she slowly outlines a smile-... Yes, I do. -Liara puts on the ring, and pulls his hands to make him stand up, and they maintain a prolonged hug for what to them it seemed a whole life-.