She ran through the shadows of the Forest, after the boy that was always out of reach.
Her heat pounded in her chest as she struggled to go as fast as she could, but her legs felt like they were lagging.
All around her she could see figures in the dark, calling out her name, "Shepard... Shepard... Shepard". Mixed in were the voices of those she knew but were gone. Thane, Kaiden, Mordin, and Legion.
There were other voices. New voices, those of people she had recently met and watched die. As she ran she looked to the side, to the Shadow figures. Before her very eyes their bodies began to warp, expand, and change into something horrible. They chased her, the voices changing from those of friends to the scream of madness that froze her very soul.
They were behind her, closing fast. She had to reach the boy, protect him. He was almost in reach, almost safe.
Then the fire began to rise. She slowed, a feeling of intense lose and regret. It turned to fear as the boy began to writhe in the flame, his body expanding. His flesh changing to a sickly green brown color. Tentacles protruding from his arm, and face. One half remained innocent, but showed nothing more than hatred. Then with it gave of a shrill scream as it lunged, the shadows closing in for the attack. She was going to die... No, she was going to be turned!
"Commander Shepard. It is time to wake up." The voice of EDI called.
Shepard sat up with a start, her bare chest rapidly heaving as she awoke from the nightmare. She looked down upon her chest, inspected her arms, and saw she was covered in sweat. She placed her face into her hands, trying to calm her nerves. That last assignment had left her marked, literally and figuratively. Upon her neck was a laceration that not even Medi-Gel was able to hide fully.
"You asked me to inform you when it was 09:30. Your debriefing with the Council is scheduled to commence at 11:00"
Shepard sighed a little, her brown eyes searching the room for a moment, scanning for a threat. After a moment she shook her head, her jet black hair was shoulder length hair tickled her neck. "Thank you EDI."
She felt a familiar three digit hand be placed upon her shoulder. "Bad dream again?" Garrus asked out of concern. He sat up, his plated chest bare. It seemed that he was sleeping in her cabin more often than he did his own. She sometimes wondered if he stayed to put himself at ease, or to comfort her.
She nodded, "Yea... It the same dream as before, but different. It's just..." Her hand trembled a little at the memory of the last mission. Something about it bothered her more than any other of her previous missions combined, save for leaving Earth.
Garrus was not used to seeing Shepard like this, but even he knew what she was going through. The entire situation had escalated beyond their control to the point the Council demanded a full inquiry on the events that transpired. He nodded a little, "I know how you feel. All that we saw and did... It's almost beyond belief." He looked towards the fish tank, hoping to find some answers. All he could come up with was a stupid remark, "Then again if you had told me three years ago that I would be fighting machines the size of sky scrapers, and dating the savior of the Galaxy, I would not have believed that either."
She chuckled at the corny remark, but that was part of Garrus's charm. She turned to him and smiled. She reached out and ran a finger along the lower part of his scared mandible. He gave that Turian style purr that she knew how to bring out of him
"I don't know what I would do without you Garrus." With that she rose from the bed, he naked form swaying as she walked towards the shower. The sweat upon her body gave an exotic glint to her tanned skin, and made Garrus's eye's stay glued to her. Near her desk she paused and looked back to him over her shoulder, "Join me in the shower?"
He chuckled a little and rose from the bed and followed quickly after her, pushing aside all the worries of the Council, Reapers, and all that happened over the past few days... Well, at least for an hour.
1029 hours, September 16th, 2186(Alliance Calendar)
Crucible Construction Site (Location Classified)
Aboard Alliance Dreadnought Alexander
Admiral Hackett stood before the observation window as the Crucible took shape. It was an impressive site that he personally was overseeing. Often times he could look out upon it and see the coming victory over the Reapers, but not today. The events that had recently transpired with Shepard and her crew had caused a major shift in everything he ever knew.
"Admiral Hackett, Sir." Hackett turned and saw his executive officer, Michael Eddington approaching. The man looked exhausted from countless sleepless nights, and mountains of paperwork involving logistical support for the Crucible. Yet he always seemed to find the energy to get the job done. "We just received a signal from the Citadel. They said its time."
Hackett did not reply all at once. He had been called upon to testify as to his part in all of this, but as he had an important job to do here the Council agreed to allow him to do so over the QEC (Quantum Entanglement Communicator).
"Thank you. Your dismissed" He and Eddington shared a quick salute before the man departed. Hackett looked out the window once more, then turned and made his way to Communications. It was time indeed.
1030 hours, September 16th, 2186(Alliance Calendar)
Serpent Nebula, Widow
Council Chambers, aboard the Citadel
The C-Sec technician had just finished some last minute adjustments to the QEC when the image of Admiral Hackett appeared. All three of the Council Members were present and accounted for all thanks to Shepard rescue during the Cerberus invasion of the Citadel. Councilor Sparatus, the Turian Representative to the Citadel, was the first to speak, "Admiral Hackett. I thank you for agreeing to speak with us under such short notice. I only wish it was under better circumstances."
Before Hackett could respond Councilor Tevos, the Asari representative to the Citadel began the proceedings. "According to out reports, you were the one who sent Shepard upon the mission to the Voyager Cluster in regards to unusual Cerberus activity in the Cluster. According to the repost you provided they were not going to any star system, but instead they were heading deep into open space."
Councilor Valern, the Salarian representative to the Citadel was also present. During the Cerberus invasion, Shepard and the Drell named Thane Krios had saved his life. "We were hoping you might clarify a few things before Shepard is summoned. Please tell us everything that happened. How did you come across this information to begin with?"
Hackett took a slow, deep, breath in before he spoke, "About two weeks ago I received information from the Shadow Broker in regards to unusual Cerberus deployments to the Voyager Cluster. Unfortunately with the ongoing War with the Reapers, I had no ships which to spare to investigate. It was only after Shepard managed to bring both the Quarians and the Geth did we final get any sort of breathing room. That was when I contacted both Shepard and the Primarch."
One Week Ago
1614 hours, September 09th, 2186(Alliance Calendar)
Perseus Veil/ Tikkun System/ Planet Rannoch
Aboard Alliance Frigate Normandy (SR-2)
The Battle of Rannoch was over. The Quarian/Geth conflict was ended, and the remains of a Reaper now lay upon its surface. The result of it all was peace between the Quarians and Geth, and not to mention more aid for the War Effort.
Even now the Geth are assisting to repair Quarian Live Ships that were damaged during the battle, but of course both their fleets are keeping a safe distance from one another.
Shepard couldn't help but smile. It had been a good day, but a costly one.
Legion, the very Geth that made her realize that not all Geth were alike was gone. It had sacrificed himself to give his entire race sentience. It was her friend, and a valued member of Normandy's history.
Now as she, and those who knew Legion from the days when they fought the Collector, stood before the memorial wall to honor Legion by adding its name to the other names of people who gave their lives to the cause. Those present were Shepard, Garrus, Tali, EDI, Joker, Chalkwas, Gabby, and Daniels. Each of them knew Legion well, had worked with him. Some ever considered him their friend, or at the very least a brother in arms.
EDI was observing the behavior of humans as they grieved over a fallen comrade when she suddenly tilted her head, as if listening to something. After a moment she looked towards Shepard, "Shepard. We are receiving a Priority One message from Admiral Hackett over the QEC."
She nodded a little. Most likely was going to congratulate her for bringing both the Geth and Quarians into the war, "Thank you EDI. Ill handle."
As she turned to leave, Garrus gave her a quick questioning look. She knew what he meant, even if he didn't say. She placed her hand on his shoulder and gave him a small smile, just to say she was ok, then entered the Elevator.
A moment later she made it to the QEC room, Admiral Hackett was already patched in.
"Good work on Rannoch Shepard. Bringing in both the Quarians and the Geth was a major victory, but I'm afraid that that is not what I contacted you for." Now her interest was piqued. If Hackett was contacting her for a mission then it had to be something to do with Cerberus. On the QEC a disembodied hand appeared and gave the Admiral a Data pad. He typed a few commands before continuing, "Shepard, I'm sending you to the Voyager cluster. There you will link up with a joint Turian and Alliance fleet lead by the Alliance dreadnought Trinity."
Now her interest was piqued even more, "It must be something big admiral, if you're redeploying ships from the front lines. What are the details?"
"Last week I got some Intel on a major Cerberus push into the Voyager Cluster. The funny thing is that Cerberus did not push into any of the know systems. Instead they have been heading out into open space." The Admiral finished typing on the Data pad, and a stream of information was then transmitted to the Normandy via the QEC. The Admiral continued, "Whatever is going on, it is something big. Long range scans are showing of the scale energy readings of an unknown origin. Whatever it is, it has Cerberus's attention. Find out what is going on out there and take it from them, destroy it if necessary."
Destroy if necessary? Not only was the Turians and Humans working together on this mission, but also they were willing to destroy whatever could be emitting so much energy, "Is there anything else I should know Admiral?"
"Nothing substantial", Hackett said. "You and your crew are on point. Once you are in system, make contact with the fleet. The Normandy is the only ship capable of going in undetected. Go in, figure out the situation, and then rejoin the fleet. If this has Cerberus's attention, then we must investigate?"
Shepard gave a sharp salute, "Yes Sir."
Admiral Hackett returned the "Good, Hackett out."
Shepard leaned against the rail in front of her and considered this. A million questions streamed through her mind. What was Cerberus doing out in the middle of nowhere? What could possibly be the source of this unknown energy? Was it the Reapers? She could not say for sure. All she did know is that if both the Turians and Alliance were concerned, then this had to be a big detail. There was only one way to find out.
"Joker. Lay in a course for the Voyager Cluster." She said directly into a Communications link to the Bridge.
"Aye Aye ma'am. I'll let you know when we arrive"
Present Day
1100 hours, September 16th, 2186(Alliance Calendar)
Serpent Nebula, Widow
Council Chambers, aboard the Citadel
Moments before the Council had finished questioning Admiral Hackett for his involvement in what is now known as the "Gateway Incident". Shepard stood waiting her turn. Behind her seated on benches were others that would testify as to the events that unfolded on Gateway.
When she was called forth, she rose from her seat and straightened her dress uniform. She stole a quick glance towards Garrus, then was off. When she stepped onto the platform before the council, it was Vetos who spoke first.
"Commander Shepard, thank your for coming." The fact that the Asari Councilor was here just showed how serious it was. Even with the Reapers pushing in on Thesia she somehow managed to find time for this hearing. "We have summoned you here to clarify as to what happened in the Voyager Cluster."
"By our reports, you encountered not one but several separate hostile alien species, rogue AI elements more advanced than even the Geth and possibly more advanced than the Reapers, and also the possibility of a sentient parasitic organism unlike anything ever before seen." Councilor Valern was getting straight to the point, just like most Salarians.
"That is correct. All of which I have stated in my report," Truth be told Shepard was frustrated to even be here. There was a war on and she had work to do. "If I may ask, why am I here?"
Out of all the councilors, it was Sparatus that Shepard considered more of an alley. When she first became a Specter, he had firmly been against it. During Cerberus's war against the Collectors, he had been most adamant against the idea that the Reapers existed, but ever sense she had gained Krogan support for Palavin he seems to have changed his view. "You must understand Commander. While there is a War on, we all have our duties. What happened at Gateway could have been a threat to all life in the Galaxy, even more so then the Reapers." He stated simply.
Shepard considered that a moment. From their point of view she could understand. She was doing the same thing for her crew, making everything seem as normal as possible.
Vetos said, "Now then Commander. We would like to hear everything that happened. Tell us about these", she stole a quick glance at her data pad. "About these Forerunner creations. Tell us about this Covenant and UNSC."
Valern gave Shepard a hard look. If there was any race that knew anything about releasing a threat on the Galaxy it was the Salarians. "Commander Shepard... Tell us about the Flood."