The Power of Friendships

"Those choices suck," Xandi Shepard spat.

"Those are what the crucible has opened."

"Then you leave me no choice," Shepard smirked. "I was hoping it would come to this."

"What do you mean?" the catalyst construct asked.

"Ranchi please inform the fleets that phase three is go."

"What!"

"You really thought we wouldn't be wary of gifts from the past after we learnt the truth of the mass relays? Of the citadel?"

"You can end the reaper cycle right now!" the catalyst screamed.

"I am ending it," Shepard smirked again. "On my terms."

"Impossible."

"My friends are going to show you it isn't."

Shepard tilted her head to one side as if listening to something. She then touched her hand to her ear.

"Admiral Hackett?"

"We read you commander."

"Deploy the elcor and the bloodpack."

On the surface elcor outfitted with heavy weapons, and protected by vorcha from reaper ground troops, took aim. Suddenly hundreds of reaper destroyers were dead. The elcor had been patient and discovered exactly where to strike. Their Vorcha escorts viscously cleaned up the remain ground forces.

"Rannoch fleet," Shepard smiled. "one sovereign class at a time. Alliance fleet, Turain fleet protect their flanks. Crucible freighters deploy our remain krogan and Rachni ground troops to the points of heavy fighting. Asari and citadel forces blockade the relay."

Soon space around the citadel and crucible was filled with explosions. More reapers were being destroyed than ships of the combined military force. Harbinger made a break for the Charon relay. Soon the reaper was tumbling into the Jovian gravity well in pieces. The Destiny Ascension had broken ranks to attack and Shepard couldn't blame them. Upon their return to the relay they trapped some destroyers in a pincer movement. As the reaper forces dwindled some tried to flee using conventional FTL only to be met by the remnants of the batarian fleet and their own ends. Shepard had told Balak to not allow any reaper an escape.

"Give up this foolishness," The catalyst said.

"But I'm winning," Shepard said.

"Chose an action that the crucible as opened before you realise the futility of your attack. Just ask your Prothean about it."

"The Protheans who fought you long after you thought them harvested?"

"They all still died before they could really help you," the catalyst taunted. "Leaving you only one soldier who didn't complete his mission."

"Still you made mistake after mistake," Shepard said. "After mistake until it culminated in your largest one."

"What failing to control the Illusive man enough to have him control you."

"No, you fucked with Aria," Shepard said. "One rule in most parts of the galaxy this cycle. You don't fuck with Aria. Even I'm not that stupid and I've been known to run towards reapers."

"I'm on the citadel," came Aria's voice from Shepard's comm.

"You better recall your ground troops to protect your core systems," Shepard smirked. "I'm out of here, Joker come pick me up."

She focused her biotics and leapt away from the council tower. Right into the Normandy's shuttle bay and the waiting arms of Liara T'soni.

"Next Palaven was freed, rapidly followed by Tuchunka, Rannoch, even the Batarian's regained their home world and then finally..."

"The Shepard returned her wife's home world to the light," the child said. "It was on the day the volus slew the last of the great reapers and earned their place on the council's fifth seat."

"Indeed my sweet," the grandfather said. "Of course there were still many battles but they were of no importance compared to the new happy memories forged by the new families."

"Like the Shepard and her children digging up that park on Thessia?"

"Yes," the man said. "Or the Joker and the AI discovering this planet and founding our colony."

"Is it true the Shepard could fell a reaper destroyer with one punch?"

"What does the glyph tell you?"

"That she was a powerful biotic and she must have been flawed as her wife questioned her judgement sometimes."

"Perhaps we'll find out more when Ambassador platform prime 278 opens that time capsule the Normandy crew left in the care of the geth?"

"Maybe," the child replies. "One day I'll travel from star to star and protect the galaxy like the Shepard did and then maybe one day people will wonder about me."

"I'm sure they will," the grandfather said. "So what do you think think happened to the Shepard?"

"She's is buried here on planet Kaiden of course with the rest of her family," the child replied with belief. "Awaiting future archaeologists to find exactly where."