Author's Notes: Somehow, I forgot to add a disclaimer and an author's note to my last chapter. How it escaped my notice is beyond me. For any of those who read the last chapter, First Steps, I am starting this story from the very end of Mass Effect 3. I did choose to destroy the Reapers so Shepard is alive. I chose not to go with control or synthesis simply because there is no bringing Shepard back from that. I have read comments and people, naturally, bring up Project Lazarus. That would be a solution if there was anything left of Shepard to reconstruct. Sadly, with control and synthesis Shepard was disintegrated. Anyway, for the sole purpose of this story I am using my main Shepard from the games who followed the Paragon path with the occasional Renegade actions and conversations. Elizabeth Shepard is a Spacer and a War Hero. She romanced Liara during the chase for Saren, Sovereign and the Geth. In Mass Effect 2 she romanced Garrus with a side of Liara after the Lair of the Shadow Broker. In Mass Effect 3 she chose to stay with Garrus and in my story, it will be explained for those of you who are FemShep/Liara fans. I am too, don't get me wrong but even though I love Liara to death I always felt that Garrus was a better match and, again, it will be explained whether it is from a memory/flashback or a conversation between characters. I am going to try as hard as I can to keep the characters from going out of character, so try to bear with me. I would also like to address the fact that I am fully aware, after re-reading my first chapter that I did spell Sha'Ira incorrectly. With all of that said, please continue to read and enjoy! Reviews are greatly appreciated.
Disclaimer: Bioware and EA own all the rights to the Mass Effects series. I own and claim nothing but the plot point for this story.
"A stubborn enough person can survive almost anything." Zaeed – Mass Effect 2.
Cheering, so much cheering. The sounds were twice as loud as they should have been. She tried to open her eyes, but felt instead as if her head would split open. She could smell smoke, dirt and rock. There was something heavy on her. She tried to push it off but cried out in pain when she tried to move her arm. She tried sitting up, but the motion made her dizzy and she felt bile rising in her throat. She swallowed it back down and leaned back panting. Once again she tried to open her eyes and having succeeded this time, despite all the pain, looked around her barely able to move her head. It was dark. All she could see was rock and pavement around her. She looked down at her arm and grimaced. It was broken, as well as her legs. Her breath started coming in quick gasps as she tried to get a grip on her control.
"I'll be fine," she whispered, her throat raw from breathing in the dust that was still in the air. When she swallowed it felt like she was trying to swallow a mouthful of rocks. Her throat was dry and she felt weak. She looked up and couldn't see anything. It was too dark to see anything. With her only good arm she tried to shove the heavy chunk of concrete off her but to no avail. She groaned in pain as she moved, her breath catching in her throat and her world going dizzy again.
She laid back, letting out a shuddering breath and tried to call out to anyone. It was too loud; no one would here her calling. The pain was too much and she closed her eyes again, letting the sweet dark take over her as she passed out with one last thought of the Normandy.
"How much longer Joker?" Garrus asked walking up behind him. Joker looked over his shoulder and sighed.
"It's going to be awhile Garrus," he said, moving his fingers over the console; engaging the stealth systems. "It's going to take us weeks to get there."
"How many weeks are we talking about here?" Garrus asked, leaning against the door frame. Joker shook his head and turned his seat around to face him.
"Eight to ten if Liara's calculations are correct," Joker looked down and then back up at Garrus. "I don't know how much you know about humans Garrus but if Shepard's not found in a few days there is no way she'll be alive by the time we get there. She has to have water at least to make it. We need to get in touch with people on Earth to find her or she'll be dead in a matter of days and it won't matter how long it will take us to get back to the system." Garrus was quiet for a minute taking in what Joker said. A few days? He felt a cold grip take him and he shook it off.
"Shepard is strong. She'll make it," he said as if trying to convince himself and not Joker. Joker shook his head.
"It doesn't matter how strong willed she is. If she has water then she'll make it, but the human body can only go three to six days without water before we die. I know you don't want to think about it Garrus, fuck, neither to do I. But we have to. Shepard needs to be found immediately. I won't go into all the gory details about what will happen to her if she doesn't have water, but just know that she will suffer. You and Liara and everyone else have to get in touch with people on Earth. They have to find Shepard now," Joker said, his voice angry. He turned back around effectively turning his back against Garrus.
Garrus took off towards the War Room, maneuvering through the people on the ship. As he passed Specialist Traynor he barked orders at her to send Liara up into the War Room. Liara came rushing in and looked at him with curiosity.
"Traynor said it was urgent and that you looked like a madman," she said. "What is it?"
"I need you to be the one to organize search parties on Earth. I will be with the engineering crew and Tali to see if there is any way we can make this damn ship go faster. Have you been able to get in touch with anyone back on Earth?" He was pacing, his hands shaking as he looked at her hope in his eyes. She brought up her omni-tool.
"Yes actually. Miranda, Jack, Wrex and Grunt are all searching for her in the parameters that I assigned them. Jacob, Kasumi and Samara are searching the citadel or what's left of it anyway. So far there has been no word," she said, looking at her omni-tool reading the conversations between herself and the others.
"Search parameters? What are they?" Liara looked up at him for a moment and brought up a picture of where the beam from the Citadel was touching Earth. She must have taken it when Shepard forced them onto the Normandy before she made her suicide run.
"I had some help from Tali determining where Shepard might have landed after having armed the Crucible and luckily it was only a 20 mile radius. It might sound like a lot, but with the help we have Shepard should be found in a few days," she said turning off her omni-tool and looking at him.
"A few days? She doesn't have that long Liara!" Garrus said, pacing again.
"I'm sorry Garrus it's the best we can do. Isn't it worth trying at least?" she asked, wringing her hands together. "With Miranda and Jack's biotics the search should go by faster. As biotics we can move rubble faster than that of any other person."
Both of them were quite for a few minutes, thinking about Shepard on Earth. They both had horrific images popping up in their minds. Shepard dead and bleeding, Shepard dead from starvation, Shepard crushed to death and suffering. The images just wouldn't stop coming. Liara took a shuddering breath, trying to push them from her mind but to no avail. She felt tears well up in her eyes and looked at Garrus.
"What if we don't find her?" she whispered, her tears making wet track marks down her soft blue face. He looked up at her. He knew now was not the time to be angry at Liara for being in love with Shepard. He knew she was hurting just as much as he was. He walked over to her and took her hands in his and forced her to look him in the eyes.
"We will find her Liara," he said, his voice deep and rumbling. She started crying in earnest and threw her arms around him, hugging him. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and let her cry on him. He was never very good at comforting people especially when they were crying but he felt that this was what they both needed. Eventually Liara pulled herself away from Garrus.
"I'm sorry," she said looking down at her hands.
"Don't be. The person we love is somewhere on Earth and we are not there. We just need hope and we can't let ourselves think that we might not find her." She smiled softly and nodded. "Keep in contact with those on Earth and let me know if they find anything at all. Speak with Traynor and see if she can help with communications. I'll be down with Tali and the others." He turned away and made towards the elevator. Once the elevator doors shut he breathed out and leaned against the back wall.
He closed his eyes and saw Shepard standing in front of him, her arms crossed over chest while she asked him about the Turian chocolate he had received from Dr. Michele. Leave it to him to blurt it out in front of Shepard that Dr. Michele had given him some. He smiled a Turian smile at the memory.
He was doing was he always did. Calibrating the Normandy's weapon systems. He trusted the crew but he was better at it than everyone else. He heard the door to the gun battery open and looked over his shoulder as Shepard walked in, wearing the black slinky dress, as Tali described it, that Kasumi had given her for the big heist. She walked past him and leaned against the railing, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Need me for something?" he asked, trying hard not to look at how the dress accentuated her hips and breasts. When she didn't answer, he stopped what he was doing and looked at her. "Shepard?" Her eyebrows were drawn down into a slight crease over her eyes which held some sort of emotion that he couldn't quit put his finger on. She was good at that. "Too good," he thought. She tilted her head, her red hair brushing her shoulder and her bright, so beautifully bright, green eyes just looking at him. She took a deep breath and sighed.
"Why did Dr. Michele give you chocolate?" she asked her voice quiet. He was startled. That was certainly not what he thought she would ask him. It was a relief really. She was jealous and he inwardly smiled at the thought. Too often was he worried that she would come into the gun battery and tell him that she was in love with Liara and she wanted nothing more but to be friends with him. He gave a small laugh, the flanging of his voices reverberating across the walls.
"I don't know really. Like I said she told me that she saw it and thought about me. It's probably because I helped her with Fists thugs with you help as well," his voices coming out as a deep rumble. She didn't say anything but just stood there looking at him, taking in what he said and thinking about it. It's what she did best. She wasn't a rash person but occasionally she would lose her temper. Mostly it was only when someone said or did something stupid. She looked away for a moment before returning his gaze.
"Try not to let it happen again Garrus," she said, her voice low and sexy or at least he thought it was sexy when she lowered her voice the way she did.
"It's just chocolate Shepard," he said and immediately regretted it as he saw the way her eyes sparked and she tilted her head at him, bringing down her eyebrows over her eyes.
She shook her head and said, "It is not just chocolate. Maybe Tali was right when she said I need to watch myself." He felt worry slither through him hard and violently.
"Shepard," he started but she raised her hand effectively cutting him off.
"To you it might be just chocolate but to me, it sends a different signal. I know that you don't know a lot about humans, so I'm willing to let this slide. However, for future reference don't accept chocolate from anyone but myself. Or unless it's someone from the crew," she said, coming to stand before him, looking up at him with a smile on her face. She took his hands in hers and looked into his eyes. Her green eyes were like liquid as she peered at him. Kelly had once compared her eyes to a Granny Smith Apple and though he hadn't known what that was at the time he looked it up and had to agree with her. Shepard placed her hand on the side of his scarred face, caressing him there.
"So no more chocolate then?" he asked. She laughed and stepped back sliding her hand down his arm, making him crave her.
"Not from Dr. Michele anymore anyway," she said. "I have to get to the War Room. The Admiralty board from the Migrant Fleet is waiting for me. I can't wait to hear what Admiral Xen has to say about Legion."
Before she left, he grabbed her arm and brought her to him placing his forehead against hers. "Don't worry about that crazy bitch. Just remember that we all trust you." She smiled and escaped from his embrace. She walked away, her hips swaying slightly and he knew he was in for a long night trying to calibrate the Normandy's weapons.
He opened his eyes when the door of the elevator opened and made his way towards the engineering room. Tali was standing there discussing something with Adams when he walked in. Tali excused herself to come to stand in front of him.
"Any news yet about Shepard?" she asked, her mask blinking blue every time she spoke. He shook his head and she looked away. "They'll find her Garrus, I know it."
"Want to figure out a way for this ship to go faster?" he asked. She looked up at him and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Do you have an idea ?" he nodded and motioned for her to follow him.
"I do, I just hope you're ready for it. It's going to take some persuading from the Migrant Fleet." She titled her masked head at him.
"Oh I am definitely ready for it then. As an Admiral my voice does carry weight. What did you have in mind?"
He looked at her and flared his mandibles in a smile.
"We're going to reactivate the Geth."