Chapter 26

Earth was worse than she'd imagined. Ash fell lightly from above, coating their armor in soot and making them as gray as their surroundings. The distant sounds of war, screaming and gunfire, were periodically stifled by the deafening sounds of collapsing buildings and the deep reverberations the Reapers emitted.

"Keelah," Tali whispered. "I'm so sorry, Shepard."

Garrus looked up at the crumbling ruins and dark sky, his mandibles tight against his jaw. "This is even worse than the vids from Palaven."

"That's why we're here," Shepard replied plainly. "Just keep moving."

She kept her eyes straight ahead as she tried to ignore the corpses they stepped over. She'd seen death before, but nothing like this. This was a massacre.

"Garrus," she said lightly, swallowing bile as she narrowly avoided stepping on a severed limb, "You're a funny guy. Got any jokes rattling around up there? Maybe lighten the mood a little?"

"Well, Joker told me one a few days ago about human women with red hair."

"Forget I asked," she muttered, subconsciously tucking her scarlet curls behind one ear.

They located the heavy weapons they had been searching for and took out the AA gun before being evacuated by shuttle. It took them to a nearby refugee camp, which hardly looked any better than the streets she'd been on minutes ago. The people were covered in dirt, and they looked tired, beaten down. She wished she'd thought to bring food supplies from the Citadel. At least if her mission failed, they could all have had a decent meal before the Reapers claimed them. After assessing the state of the camp, she headed to the communications office. She entered the building, and almost collided with Garrus, who seemed distracted.

"Oh - sorry Shepard." His face lit up. "I just got word from my family. They made it off Palaven."

"That's great news. You must be so relieved." She really was happy for him.

"Yeah. It's a tiny glimpse of hope, but it doesn't mean anything unless we get the Crucible to work."

"All the more reason we can't fail today."

He nodded. "Shepard, I know it's a long shot, and that there's a good chance we won't come back. But I wanted to tell you before we head out -"

"Don't," she said firmly. She wasn't going to let him die out there. He could say it when they got back, but she didn't want to hear it now.

His mouth twisted wryly. "I'm not sure if turian heaven is the same as yours, but if we don't walk out of there, meet me at the bar. I'm buying."

She tried not to let the weight of his words sink in, instead joking, "It's just like you to offer to buy me a drink on the condition that we're both dead."

"I knew you'd be too stubborn to accept it any other way," he retorted, a hint of seriousness in his voice.

"Yeah, maybe you're right." She shifted awkwardly, displeased with his accurate assessment that she knew ran deeper than some stupid drink. "I should, uh, make a call."

"Don't take too long, Anderson is waiting for you."

She nodded and he left. Sighing, she headed to the Communications Tech officer.

"Anyone I can connect you to, Commander?" the man asked.

"Kasumi Goto."

"Right away, Ma'am."

After a few moments, the hologram popped up.

"Shepard, is that you?" Kasumi sounded surprised, but happy. "How's Earth?"

"Fucked up," she replied honestly. "Just be glad you're assigned to the Crucible."

"You know I want to be there as much as you, Shepard... But if my knowledge about technology helps more than my combative abilities, who am I to argue with Alliance Command?"

Shepard nodded. "It feels wrong to leave the fight, even if it's for the best."

"Sure does. Was there something you needed?"

She paused, at a loss for words.

"Shepard? Hello?"

"Yeah, I... wanted to ask why you thought I was with Garrus."

A small laugh escaped from the hologram. "You mean you still haven't worked things out with him?"

"Kind of. I just don't understand why everyone seems to think I'm head over heels for him. We're not even a couple, not really."

"Well, I'd guess it's because you're constantly together. You take him on nearly every ground mission, and even when you're talking to someone else, you're always watching him."

She was not always watching him! Kasumi was way off.

"That's not true," she protested, heat growing in her cheeks.

"Oh, yeah? Who went on your last mission?"

"...James and Garrus."

"And how did you spend the rest of your shore leave after the party?"

"I went to the Armax Arena and ate dinner at the Silver Moon."

Kasumi burst out laughing, and Shepard glared at her.

"What? What's so funny about that?"

"You ate dinner at a five star dextro-levo restaurant? Please, Shepard, I'm not stupid. Unless you went on a date with Tali, I'm going to go ahead and assume that you took Garrus."

"So what?" she demanded, growing irritated. "I ate dinner with him. Big deal."

"When you're going in a suicide mission the next day? Spending your last moments with him? Yeah, I'd say it is."

She had no response. Instead, she stared menacingly at the floor.

"Look, Shepard, I'm not going to tell you what your feelings are, but you're a little late to be figuring this out now. I'd think pretty hard before charging into the battle that could be your last without telling him how you feel."

"Thanks for the help," she muttered.

"Good luck," Kasumi smiled. "With everything." She disconnected the comm.

The sheer amount of enemy forces they faced was overwhelming. They were stuck defending the Thanix missiles, and they were low on ammo. Just as Shepard ejected her thermal clip, a banshee charged Tali, knocking her to the ground. Shepard snarled in frustration, jamming a new clip in, but Garrus moved faster. He advanced on the banshee, overloading its shields and switching to his assault rifle for close combat. The banshee turned its attention to him, preparing for a charge.

For a brief moment, Shepard felt her chest tighten as she filled with panic, and then she was using her biotics to charge the banshee instead, knocking it to the ground. She watched herself punch it over and over, even as the sharp nails raked across her face, smearing her vision with blood. When it finally stopped moving, she stood, shaking. Her knuckles were smeared with red, and she knew her face looked like something from a nightmare. She checked on Tali, but all she could tell through the suit was that the small quarian was alive and unconscious. At least there appeared to be no breaches of the suit, so she would probably be fine.

"Are you crazy?" Garrus yelled, ducking down and switching back to his sniper rifle as another wave of Reaper troops descended upon them.

"You moved out of cover," she shouted back, throwing a shockwave at the line of advancing cannibals and snatching up Tali's shotgun to finish them off. "That banshee targeted you, and you were going to get yourself killed."

"Forget about me, just focus on keeping yourself alive!"

"Garrus, don't you dare make me do this by myself."

Aside from the bullets and the screeches of their dying enemies, there was silence.

"I'm with you, Shepard," Garrus consented, just loud enough for her to hear.

Without Tali's help, they had a difficult time holding off the Reaper forces. Finally EDI gave them the all-clear, and Shepard sent the last two missiles at the Reaper before them. It toppled and fell as the resistance forces attacked it with as much firepower as they could, and Shepard and Garrus mopped up the last few husks just as their shuttle arrived. Garrus carried Tali to the shuttle, then stepped out and stood beside his commanding officer.

Shepard let out a shaky breath as she stared up at the Reaper.

"Well, Vakarian, have a nice flight."

He raised a brow plate. "Are you kidding me?"

"Absolutely not. You're done here."

"What, and miss the party?"

She turned on him. "I'm being serious. Go."

"So am I," he replied calmly. "It's me and you, Shepard. Side by side, walking into hell together. Just like old times."

"Things change," she replied stubbornly. "You're not staying. Get on the shuttle now."

He took her hand in his and looked into her eyes. "I'm not leaving you."

Damn it! Why now? When she'd told him not to leave her alone, she'd only meant that she didn't want him to die. He was throwing her words back in her face, making her let him stay. Anything rushing through that Reaper beam was guaranteed to be vaporized, and he didn't even have the advantage of hi-tech cybernetic implants like Cerberus had equipped her with. He'd die instantly. This was exactly what she had been trying to prevent. Why was he doing this to her?

"Fine!" She yanked her hand back, glaring at him. This was going to be harder than she imagined. He'd backed her into a corner. She didn't like her last resort, but if it would keep him alive, it was well worth it.

There was a cocky smile on his face. "Well, are you ready now, or do you –"

"Banshee!" she yelled, raising her pistol and aiming over his shoulder.

He whirled, and she cringed as she slammed the weapon into the back of his head with as much force as she could muster. He dropped instantly.

"Vega, help me move Garrus!" she called.

James poked his head out of the shuttle. "What's going on? Did Scars faint?"

"Nope, I knocked him out."

"What the hell, Lola?" James shook his head, but grabbed Garrus by the shoulders and helped Shepard hoist him into the back of the shuttle.

"Don't ask, just get out of here. Nice knowing you."

He shook his head. "See you in another life, I guess."

She watched as he closed the shuttle doors and the engine hummed to life before she turned back to the Reaper. Well, it was now or never.

(A/N): One chapter left. I'd love to hear what's in everyone's minds and how you think it will turn out.