Chapter 6

Kaidan stared at the stars through the window of his transport ship. Somewhere out there, Shepard and the Normandy were off on some insane mission. It had been two months since Horizon, but Shepard wasn't hard to trace. All he had to do was follow the wide trail of destruction in her wake, and listen to the rumors that she was off to take down the Collectors. What is she planning? How the hell is she going to stop them? He leaned his head against the cool glass of the window and sighed as the transport approached its destination. He was on his way to Grissom Academy to select recruits for the new team he had been given charge of. Anderson's recommendation had gone far, he was now the ranking officer of the 1st Special Operations Biotic Company, and promoted to Major. His fingers idly ran over the new badges that symbolized his rank. The last few months had been a whirlwind. He was back in the field, Anderson had stepped down as Councilor, taken a promotion to Admiral and Udina had taken his place. Funny how everything changes at the same time.

"Major? We'll be docking in just a few moments." The voice of the pilot called out over the intercom. The ship rattled as it bumped up against the airlock of the station, and Kaidan rolled his eyes. I miss Joker. He never botched a docking. He stood up, and waited for the door to open. His new uniform felt uncomfortably tight around the chest and arms, the workouts he and Stevens had done must finally have started paying off. As the doors opened, he stepped into the academy's waiting area.

A wave of nostalgia hit him hard. He remembered his first moments at Jump Zero, being a scared 16 year old, separated forcefully from his family, hauled off across the solar system. He wondered if the kids here were actually here of their own free will. Was this place a cold, institutional prison for biotic kids as well?

His eyes opened wide as he stepped into the main lobby. The large open space was filled with plants, warm lights, and smiling people. Two teenage girls ran by, stopping briefly to stare at him and giggle before taking off again.

"Major Alenko?"

He turned to face the blonde woman walking towards him.

"Kahlee Sanders. Hello." She nodded at him, and looked around the room. "Welcome to Grissom Academy. The students that are viable candidates are waiting for you in the atrium."

"There's an atrium?"

"Yes." She turned to look at him carefully. "I hear you were at Jump Zero when it was BAaT." Her eyes narrowed as she studied his face. "I've heard rumors you were the reason it got shut down."

"Those files are sealed."

"I have friends in the Alliance, Major." She turned away from him and started walking again. "In any case, Grissom Academy is much, much different. Our students want to be here, and have come willingly." She pressed a button to open a large door. "Here. These are the students old enough for consideration for your team."

Kaidan walked into the atrium, and stopped short. The room was several stories tall, with bushes and waterfalls everywhere, surrounding small, secluded study areas. A group of seven young adults clustered nervously around a table, their conversation halting as Kaidan and Kahlee approached.

"Major Alenko these are..." Kahlee's voice trailed off as she walked past the small group. Kaidan watched as she knelt behind a small shrub, and curiously followed her. As he got closer, he heard a voice whispering frantically.

"Square root of 906.01 equals 30.1. Square root of 906.01 equals 30.1."

"David, David, its alright. Let's get you somewhere quiet."

They stood up together, and Kahlee led him away with an apologetic look on her face. Kaidan turned back to the students.

"What was that about?"

"That's David. He just got here." A girl with curly red hair pipped up. "He was locked up in some crazy Cerberus base for a while."

"Cerberus?"

"Yeah. A few days ago, Commander Shepard called, and had us send a team to go pick him up. She wouldn't leave him until they got there."

"Shep- Commander Shepard rescued him from Cerberus?" Why is she rescuing people from her employer?

"Yeah. I got to go on the shuttle as backup." A pale boy with dark hair looked smugly at the redhead. "I got to see Commander Shepard."

"How was she?" The words were out of his mouth before Kaidan could stop himself.

"Oh man. I've never seen someone look so pissed off before." The boy grinned. "David's brother couldn't even look at her without flinching. She's pretty hot, but I wouldn't want to be on her shit list. She looks like a complete bad ass."

Kaidan grimaced. I wonder if I'm still pretty high up on that list.

"Did she mention what she was doing?" He tried to sound casual.

"I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to hear it, but she mentioned something about the Collector's base and the Omega 4 relay."

"The Omega 4 relay?" Another girl piped up. "No one ever comes back from there. I grew up on Omega, and everyone knows that thing is a damn deathtrap." She shivered. "I mean, its RED, and that's where everyone says the Collectors go. That can't be good, right?"

I have to get this conversation back under control. These kids need to respect me as an officer.

He stood up straighter, feeling the fabric of his uniform strain against his arms. The students stopped chattering, and they all turned to face them.

"So you all know why I'm here. You have been selected as the best students the Academy has to offer, but you need field training." He leaned forward, resting his hands on the table. "I'm here to give you that training, then place you with active units."

The redheaded girl raised her hand tentatively.

"Major, what will we be fighting?"

"At this point, unruly mercenaries, small Geth patrols, and possibly helping with colony defenses from Collector attacks. But..." He looked around at the expectant faces. "I have a feeling something bigger is not far off." I was there on Ilos, when Vigil warned us about the Reapers. I saw Sovereign. And if the Collectors are working for the Reapers? Is that what Shepard's trying to fight off?

"Sir?"

"Don't worry about it for now. Lets go over what you've already been trained in. I need to know where to start."

A month later, Kaidan and his students were taking their lunch break in the small cafeteria. He looked around at them proudly; The seven of them had shown great aptitude and skill with their biotics, and after a few more weeks, they would be ready to take out for field training. He settled into his seat, and studied his datapad. He used these quiet moments to try and track down any news of Shepard and the Normandy. He frowned as he scanned the reports out of the Omega system. A ship similar to the Normandy was seen coming out of the Omega 4 relay. He double checked the report. Now several different sources were showing the same thing. A freighter surveillance camera had even managed to catch it. He watch the clip. That's definitely the Normandy. What the hell was she doing in the Omega 4 relay?

"Jennifer. Come look at this." Kaidan tossed the datapad to one of his students. "What do you make of this?"

She scanned the articles.

"No freakin' way. Major, are you messing with me?"

Kaidan shook his head.

"That's the fourth report that I've read about a ship coming back through." He pointed. "There's a video, too."s

"But... that's impossible."

"That's Commander Shepard." He smiled to himself. Impossible tasks are her specialty. He leaned back in his chair, and put his hands behind his head. Did she manage to take down the Collectors? Did she actually pull it off? He smiled. Of course she did. She's Shepard. She came back from the dead, she can do anything.

The rest of the group gathered around to read over Jennifer's shoulder.

"Damn. Told you guys she looked like a bad ass!"

Kaidan laughed.

"Alright. Alright. That's enough fawning over Shepard. Time to get back to training. Colin, your barrier still needs work."

The pale boy grinned.

"Its getting better though. I can hold it against everyone but you, Major. I think I'm ready for field training!"

"And I'm not going to take you out into the field until you're ready. Back to practice."

They gathered their things, and headed back to the large room they used for training. Kaidan watched them walk in front of him, a warm feeling of protectiveness washing over him. These are my kids. They have to be the best if they are going to survive what I think is coming. He stopped to look around the cafeteria filled with the Academy's other students. How would my life have been different if I had ended up here, instead of Brain Camp? Would I have ended up with Rahna after all? But then I never would have met Shepard. He felt his chest get tight, and tried to shake it off. Would that have been a good thing? He still dreamed of her, now always in shadow and out of reach.

Two weeks later, he and his team entered the lunchroom to an odd sight. All of the staff and students were clustered silently around a large screen broadcasting the Alliance News Network. Kaidan sidled up to Kahlee and leaned towards her.

"What's going on? Is everything alright?"

"We aren't sure." She whispered back. "An emergency signal was broadcast, and then they said there was going to be a breaking report. We've been waiting for a few minutes... Oh. Here we go."

On the screen, a grim looking man scanned a datapad, then looked solemnly at the camera.

"We have just received confirmation that the Alpha Mass Relay in the Bahak system was destroyed several hours ago."

There was a loud gasp from the gathered crowd, and Kahlee turned to Kaidan with her mouth open.

"I didn't know the relays could be destroyed!"

"I didn't either. I wonder what..." Oh no. Shepard, you didn't... He didn't know how he knew she was involved, but destruction on this scale, there was far from any doubt. He watched, horrified, as the newscaster continued.

"The entire system has been decimated. 300,000 Batarian colonists are estimated to be dead." The man cleared his throat. "The Alliance Military has taken recently revived former Spectre Commander Shepard into custody, where she will face trial on Earth. For now, the question remains, what reason does the former Hero of the Citadel have to crash a large asteroid into a mass relay? Are her ties to the shadowy organization Cerberus to blame? We'll have more on this tragedy as the story unfolds. Stay tuned to the Alliance News Network."

Kaidan couldn't move. What was she thinking blowing up a Mass Relay? Killing thousands of Batarians? Has she completely lost her mind? Did Cerberus rebuild her as a sleeper agent? Again, his mind raced back to the possibility that she wasn't actually his Shepard. But she had felt so real on Horizon. Everything about her, the way she felt, the way she smelled... They way she stared at me like I had just stabbed her in the heart... Everything felt like her. He cradled his head in his hands.

"Migraine?" Kahlee looked at him with concern.

"No. This is just... overwhelming. I need to contact the Alliance."

She nodded.

"I'll take care of your students."

He jogged through the empty academy to the small room they had given him. Before he put his call through, he stopped to look at his photo of Shepard. I hope you know what you're doing. He turned the photo so it didn't show up behind him, and tried to call Anderson. The Admiral must have been busy, it took Kaidan several tries to get through.

"Major. I was expecting I would hear from you." Anderson looked tired.

"Yes, sir. What happened?"

"We sent Shepard on a covert mission to retrieve Doctor Amanda Kenson from Batarian custody, and somehow she ended up blowing up a relay, destroying a star system, and practically starting war with the Batarians. So, a typical Tuesday for her."

Kaidan was shocked at the Admiral's deadpan humor.

"Sir?"

"Sorry, Major. Its been a long day, as you can imagine. I spoke to her briefly before she the Normandy headed for Earth. She says Kenson and her team had been indoctrinated by the Reapers. That she was helping them come through the Alpha relay."

A shiver ran up Kaidan's spine. He remembered Matriarch Benezia and Saren, and what they had tried to do while indoctrinated.

"She thinks the Reapers are coming, Sir?"

"Yes. And soon." He sighed. "I hope things are going well with your students. If Shepard is right, we are going to need them soon."

"They'll be ready, Admiral."

"Good. And Major, since you were the one to encounter Shepard on Horizon, you might be called to testify at her hearing."

"Sir?"

"The Alliance believes she was acting for Cerberus."

"Ah. Sir, can I ask you a question, off the record?"

"Go ahead, Major."

"Do you believe her?"

Anderson's face clouded over.

"I've always trusted her. I'm not going to stop now." He picked up a datapad. "Her crew is getting split up, since none of them were directly involved with the relay. One of them, a biotic named Jack, is headed to Grissom as we speak. Be careful, I hear she's a bit... unstable."

"Yes, sir."

"Alright, Major, I'll see you on Earth when you get called in. Anderson out."

Kaidan saluted as the image clicked off. I'm going to have to testify? About what? Her working with Cerberus? He stood up and picked up the holophoto. Looks like I'm going to have to hide this again. He set it back down on the small table with a sigh, and thought about the last time he had seen her. It had been so strange, seeing her without her seeing him. She looked so tired, but so determined. She always thought she knew what she was doing. He jerked upright as he replayed that conversation with Garrus in his head. Jack. Didn't he say they picked up Jack from PRISON? He bolted out of the room, and back to the cafeteria.

His students greeted him with worried faces.

"Everything alright, Major?" Colin was the first to speak up.

"Yes, I just had to put a call through to the Admiral."

"Does this mean we are going to go to war with the Batarians?"

"I don't know. But I think we are going to have to push field training up."

"Do you think we're ready for that?"

Kaidan clasped the young man's shoulder.

"I think so. You are the brightest students I've ever had."

"We're the only students you've ever had, Major."

"Quiet, Private." A broad smile spread across Colin's face. Kaidan knew how desperately his students wanted to be an official part of the Alliance. I just hope the enthusiasm doesn't get them killed.

"Major, a new teacher will be joining the Academy." Kahlee Sanders had come up behind him. "She'll be training the students that are too young for your team, but show the potential. She should be here later today. When she arrives, I want you to go over what kind of training they need." She looked at the students. "Well? Get to packing!"

They turned to Kaidan, expectant looks on their faces.

He fired off a salute to them.

"Dismissed!"

They saluted clumsily back, then took off running for their dorms. Kaidan looked at Kahlee.

"I should pack as well. Can you send the new instructor to my room when she gets here?"

She nodded, and Kaidan followed his students down the long hallway.

Several hours later, his door hissed open. A small bald woman, covered in tattoos, sauntered in and plopped herself in his desk chair.

"You the Major?" He nodded, and she stared at him, eyes narrowing. "I've seen you before. Did you arrest me for something once?"

"I'm not really the arresting type." He sat down on the edge of his bed with a sigh. "I think I would have remembered you."

Her fingers traced circles on his desk.

"Yeah. But I know I've seen you before. I don't forget faces." Her stare was unnerving. Suddenly, she snapped her fingers at him. "Ha! I haven't seen you, I've seen your fucking picture!"

"What?"

"Your photo!" Her face had an evil grin on it. "In Shepard's quarters. We were playing cards, and there was a picture on her desk. Its you!" She leaned forward, studying him. "You're the ass from Horizon!"

Kaidan felt his face go red.

"Yeah, I guess I was."

"So what the fuck was that about, huh? Didn't like her not coming back to the Alliance?"

I don't want to explain things to her. This should do it. He reached into his duffel bag, and pulled out the holophoto.

"Here." He held it out to Jack, and she snatched it out of his hand.

"What is this..." She turned the photo around and looked at it carefully. "Oh. You and Shepard, then."

"Yeah." He shifted his weight awkwardly. "So... about the students..."

"Right." She handed the photo back, and he stuffed it into his bag. "You want them in fighting shape?"

"Yeah. I have a feeling something big is coming."

She nodded.

"Fuck yeah, it is. Shepard seriously pissed off the Reapers. Shit's gonna go down."

"Them and a lot of other people, I suspect."

"Yeah." Jack laughed. "I told her we should have stolen the ship and gone pirate."

They spent an awkward hour going over what Kaidan expected from the next group of students, then parted. The transport Jack had come in on was going to take Kaidan and his students to an Alliance training facility. He followed them on board, and they set up in one of the small cabins. Colin clicked on a small monitor and they all clustered around to watch the latest update on the ANN. The anchor was back, reporting on Shepard's arrival on Earth.

"...Exclusive footage of Commander Shepard being taken into custody by the Alliance Navy after turning herself and her ship in. She'll be held her until her trial in several months, when the Batarian Hegemony hopes she will..."

Kaidan tuned out what the anchor was saying, and focused on the freeze frame of Shepard. She was mid turn, her now shoulder length hair whipping around her face. Her face was set with a grim expression, but there was a worried look in her eyes. What's coming, Shepard? What do you know?

He rubbed the back of his neck. Whatever's going to happen, I'm going to have these kids ready. Will I be ready? Will I have to see her at her trial? She probably still hates me after Horizon, she'll really never forgive me if I have to testify in front of her.

He sat down, and tried to tune back into the news. The galaxy was changing. Things were happening, and he had a sick feeling in his stomach that things would never be the same again.

(A/N So yeah, this one is really short. There really isn't that much to their story in ME2. So I'm going to move on to ME3. I'm posting the first chapter of that at the same time as I'm posting this, so you can find that under my name as "Creating the Future."

About ME3. Thank you so much to everyone who gave me input on the ending. (please don't read this note any further if you haven't finished the game.) I'm going to take everyone's advice, and go right up to the point where I think canon should stop. (Getting hit by the beam. I'm a big fan of the indoctrination theory.) I'll be going off headcanon after that. I mean seriously, I don't want my favorite OTP to be tragic. But part of me holds faith that Bioware is going to fix this with some DLC. It took me 6 months to write my ME1 story, I'm guessing this will take just as long. Hopefully by then, we will have DLC, or an announcement of it, then I can end this with canon. But if they don't, I'm going to ignore Space Brat. Anyway, thank you for reading, and I'll see you all in the next story!

**hugs!**

-Lara)