Disclaimer: Mass Effect is copyright of Bioware. Many of the characters contained herein—Shepard included—are property of Bioware. Shepard is partially of my forging, since I could imagine his background and actions during his military career. The sequence of events and their outcomes are property of Bioware. The interpretations of the events are my own. Ci-Ci is mine. Please do not repost this story or any parts of it herein. Always give credit where it is due. I owe the Mass Effect Wiki a great deal for helping me figure out timelines, details, and other such things.

I welcome constructive and/or encouraging reviews/critiques. Thank you for reading. Enjoy!

5 April 2184—Illium, Tasale System, Crescent Nebula

Corinthia ordered another drink. She needed it. Somehow, she'd managed to survive for six months without him. It helped that she dreamed about him every night, coming home alive and well, embracing her, only to have her heart shattered when she woke and found herself alone in the cold world.

"Fuck love," she muttered. She raised her glass a little. "Here's to you, Shep."

The bartender, an asari matron, leaned on the counter. "You alright, honey?"

Corinthia shook her head shortly.

"Bad day?"

"Bad life."

"Moping in here won't change anything."

Corinthia smirked. "Believe me, I know." She drained the rest of her drink. "This was for the Fallen."

The asari raised an eyebrow. "You some kind of soldier?"

"Used to be. Now I'm something better."

The bartender snorted. "Not what I'd call a mercenary."

Corinthia paid for her drink. "Me neither. Thanks for the drinks." She pulled on her jacket and left.

Illium was the asari-run center of trade for most of the galaxy. Most of the planet was covered with skyscrapers, glowing orange against the purple sky. The money stayed in the upper floors, where most legitimate businesses ran, while the dirt and thugs ruled the ground.

Corinthia leaned against a railing, looking at the skyline. She'd been on Illium for a month and she had yet to actually take a breath and look at the planet. "Gilded," she murmured, "like everything else."

Her omni-tool flared to life. She glanced at it, sighed, and dragged it in front of her. "Yes, Liara?"

"We're in business," the asari answered breathlessly. "I have it all set up. We have a showroom here, the Citadel, and Earth. All are fully staffed and ready to open next week."

"Awesome."

"You don't sound happy."

"Six months, Liara."

"Already? Oh, I'm sorry Ci-Ci. I didn't mean to be insensitive."

"It's fine, Liara." Corinthia rubbed her eyes wearily. Corinthia had spent the last six months keeping herself so busy that she didn't have time to dwell on the past. She had only stopped to get a drink because she'd heard a news report talking about the measures different planets were taking to commemorate Shepard—like a memorial flame on Torfan. The idea of it was ridiculous, in her opinion, since that was the last place that he'd want remembered or where he'd want to be remembered for. Hopefully, they'd be tactful enough to leave his honorary title "the Butcher of Torfan" off the plaque. Even so, it was less the news of that happening and rather the fact that they were showing a picture of him that made her choke. Worse, it had been the ceremony giving them Stars of Terra eight years before (which was probably the only time that they were ever recorded by the media). That day marked the beginning of their friendship. All of her repressed emotions had come flooding back along with the memories of their friendship. She was trying to fight them back into their box in the recesses of her mind. It wasn't working.

"Do you want to come over?" Liara asked.

After the Normandy's crew had been disbanded, Liara had come to her home, Illium, where she had started to hunt down the Shadow Broker. Though the asari never gave her reasons for doing so, Corinthia had helped Liara set up a network of contacts so that the former scientist could enter the information industry. They had been working together ever since, trading information.

"It's better if I don't," Corinthia answered. "You don't need a Spectre around."

Liara understood what Corinthia wasn't saying. In order to fund Liara's operation, they needed money. The used their savings to go to Ilos, recover Prothean artifacts, and set up art galleries to sell them through. Everything was in Liara's name, since she was technically just a businesswoman on Illium and Spectres weren't supposed to be business investors, but Corinthia (because she could/had always wanted to) had figured out how to launder the money so that no one could trace it.

"I have another piece of good news," Liara continued. "I've translated everything I can from Vigil. There isn't much there beyond a history of their people, but it was only up until before the first Reaper strike. There was a recording of the conversation Shepard had with it, but not much else."

Corinthia kicked the railing. "Damn it!"

"Maybe you can look at it again, see what you can recover. I was only translating what information you had initially decrypted. The information on the Reapers was still locked… I don't know, Ci-Ci. I wish that I could've done more…"

"It's fine, Liara. Send me what you've got, regardless. I'll work more on Vigil when I have the chance, see what I can do…"

Corinthia tried not to sound disappointed. She'd spent six months hunting down vague leads about large, unknown ships, but none were Reapers. Her last options were the Shadow Broker himself or Cerberus. The terrorists were, in many ways, the Shadow Broker's main rivals. Corinthia had turned both parties down before and wasn't going to go back on her word. Of course, she could just hack Cerberus and find out what they knew. They were constantly upgrading their security, so she constantly had to rethink her hacking methods. She hadn't tried to get into their databases since Shepard had destroyed their research bases, but there was no time like the present.

"Are you there?" Liara asked.

"Yeah, I'm here. Listen, you wouldn't happen to know of any Cerberus activity around here, would you?"

"What are you planning?"

"Planning? Are you kidding me? I make this up as I go along."

"Please, take my advice: Don't go after them. They aren't all bad."

Corinthia raised an eyebrow. "What's gotten into you, Liara? Do I need to tell you about their pro-human racist tendencies?"

"It's not that. They've just… well, they've actually helped me in the past."

"Liara," Corinthia warned, "what aren't you telling me?"

Liara chuckled. "I'm an information broker. You can't expect me to tell you everything."

"This is important, Liara. I promise I won't kill everyone unless they attack me first. Unlike some people we know, I can be subtle."

"Perhaps that's changed since our last mission."

"You have no idea. So, about that information…?"

Liara sighed. "Alright, but just this once."

"I knew I put you in business for a reason."

Liara shook her head. "This is a quid pro quo. I will expect repayment."

"And you'll get it, don't worry. I promise I won't kill anyone unless they try and kill me, okay?"

"That will have to do. Please, don't be reckless. I don't want to lose you as well."

"Liara…"

"I'm sorry, Ci-Ci, but losing one friend is hard enough. I can't do it again."

Corinthia chuckled. "You won't have to."

17 August 2184—the Terminus Systems, Unknown Location

The Illusive Man took a long drag from his cigarette. "Miranda, give me some good news."

"Restoration is in progress. We should have vital signs in a few more weeks."

"That's good to hear." He exhaled a long string of smoke through his nose. "We have another problem."

"It's nothing I can't handle."

"I'm afraid this time you might not be able to. They wiped out the Kronos Cell already."

Miranda blanched. "That's impossible… How many died?"

"Everyone. The facility is destroyed and all the information there is gone and there's evidence that they managed to access the back-ups here. I'm going to have to increase our security measures."

Miranda's mind raced. "Are we compromised?"

"It's hard to say. We'll know soon enough. Take every measure to ensure your security."

"It's already done, sir. End transmission."

The Illusive Man leaned back, finishing his cigarette with one long drag. He hated it when people interfered with his plans. This… hunter had been an unexpected addition to an already serious situation. After Corinthia had turned down his offer, he'd had no choice but to find a way to return Shepard to life. Now that, too, was compromised. The Kronos Cell had been responsible for training a new army of completely loyal soldiers. Much of the experimentation Shepard had disrupted and destroyed had been by the Kronos Cell, but that had been an annoyance rather than a true problem. Most of Kronos's resources had been diverted into the Lazarus Project under Miranda's guidance, but that hardly lessened the blow.

He lit another cigarette. It was a personal insult that this hunter had annihilated a Cell and he had no idea who was responsible. He prided himself on being informed of everything that happened in the Galaxy. He intended to stay that way at any cost.

On a hunch, he checked into Commander Corinthia-Imreas's activities. Even after she'd declined helping him, he'd been having her followed. Her investigation into the Reapers had helped him start his own. So far, she'd discovered that the Reapers were using the Collectors and geth as henchmen. Worse, the Collectors had started abducting entire colonies. Something was starting. The Illusive Man wanted to know what and having someone interfere with his operations was one of the last things he needed. If he was careful, he might still be able to get Corinthia to help him. He could leak her information, set her up with allies… She had mentioned finding some help. So far, she only had Liara T'Soni and Shepard's old crew, but she had never once called on any of them. Either she didn't want help or she was planning something else.

He opened the holonet and began searching for mercenaries. Everyone had a price. He already knew Corinthia's and, hopefully, it wouldn't be long before he'd be able to have her loyalty as well. With Corinthia and Shepard on his side, humanity couldn't lose.

28 November 2184—Ruined Reaper, Terminus Systems

Corinthia skidded into cover. Of all the stupid things she could've done, she had walked into an ambush by Shadow Broker agents. Had Liara warned her? Yes. Had she listened? Of course not. She had been following the Collectors and expected an ambush from them.

But, that was a cyclical argument. The Collectors were working with the Shadow Broker. The traditionally neutral party had taken a side, which explained Liara's determined hunt.

Corinthia took out her omni-tool. She had no less than ten agents chasing her, not to mention the Collectors in front of her and the mercenaries lying in wait for her by the Mass Relay. Cerberus had finally figured out that it was her eradicating their cells and had sent, to date, four assassins after her with a fifth on the way.

She was in trouble.

She leaned her head back against the wall, muttering, "What would Shepard do?" She smirked. "Grenade." Of course, she'd had it engrained into her to never carry anything explosive. "Thanks, Shep," she muttered.

The room shook. The ship was going to get sucked into the gas giant it orbited. "Damn it… Why the hell did they have to corner me here?"

She'd been investigating a derelict Reaper. Her findings were not good. Despite having been destroyed by the Protheans, it was still capable of indoctrination of the weak minded. Being paranoid, she never spent more than twelve hours in one at a time. Her timer was going to go off in five minutes and she was starting to feel… something at the back of her mind, like nails on a chalkboard in a different room.

She checked her exits. The best way through was through the Collector squad. She'd risk it.

She turned on her cloaking device. The only reason she hadn't before was because she needed her omni-tool to do other things. If she left, gun blazing, she could get away without hacking.

The Shadow Broker agents fanned out through the room. "She's in here somewhere…" the leader murmured. "Remember: we need her alive and intact."

Corinthia had yet to figure out what they wanted with her, besides revenge. Between chasing Collectors, researching the Reapers, and hunting Cerberus Cells, she and Liara had been systematically eliminating Shadow Broker agents as they tried to find the elusive leader himself. That was enough to warrant several seven figure bounties, but each was for her alive; she was worthless dead.

Her eyes widened. Now, there was an idea…

She quickly wove through the room towards the Collectors, wondering if they'd see through her cloaking device. Her technology was advanced, but the Collectors weren't like any kind of enemy she'd ever faced before. They had found the Normandy and ripped it to shreds, killing Shepard and twenty other crewmembers in the process.

Sure enough, almost as soon as she was in the room, they turned towards her. Without being able to see her, they simply raised their weapons and started clicking eerily. Each one had a triangular head with multiple eyes, mantis-like arms and legs, with brown, leathery skin. One glowed gold, like the broken cracks of a hardening river of lava. Its voice deepened metallically, like Sovereign's.

"You have crossed me for the last time, Commander. You cannot stop us!"

She would've answered ("Just watch me"), but until they started shooting at her, she was going to remain silent. Her omni-tool buzzed, flickered, and turned off, her cloaking device with it. "Shit."

The Collectors raised their weapons. She sprinted through the room, shots cutting into her armor without her shields to protect her. How the hell had they managed to shut down her omni-tool? Or had the Reaper done something to her?

She'd have time to sort that out later. Right now, escape was her first priority.

Shouts echoed through the hallways as the Shadow Broker agents caught up to her. She could see the exit. It seemed to get farther away with every step she took. The walls closed in oppressively like they were trying to hold her in. Fingers wrapped around the walkways, reaching for her ankles.

"HUSKS?" she gasped, reaching for her shotgun and wishing more than ever that Shepard was there with his biotic bowling ball. "You have got to be kidding me…"

A bullet found a weak spot in her armor and embedded itself in her shoulder. Another followed suit in her lower back. She staggered from the force and swallowed the pain, wishing it was like Elysium, when she'd been shot and hadn't noticed. Then again, she hadn't been able to feel much of anything then; the concussion of the blast which induced her facial scars had dulled her sense of touch for hours.

Her ship was close. She lost precious seconds as she opened the door manually and slipped inside.

The lead Collector stalked out of the opening. "You cannot escape!" it growled. "I am Harbinger. You will not stop us!"

Corinthia started the engines. "C'mon…"

"Bring her alive," Harbinger ordered. The Shadow Broker agents nodded, opening their omni-tools to try and hack the door open. She drew her pistol and shot the controls, buying herself a few minutes. She opened her radio and sent out a general distress call on all military channels. Even though she didn't need them to come save her, they would find the derelict Reaper instead (and therefore solid proof of their existence).

"Work faster!" the mercenary leader, a vicious-looking batarian, ordered, barring his needle-like teeth. "I want to see her bleed."

The ship shifted, pulling away from the dock. The agents opened fire.

"Fools! I said that I want her alive!" Harbinger shouted. He shot one of the offending agents in the forehead. "Get your ship and chase her."

They followed their orders without hesitation. Harbinger looked on, eyes unblinking as he stared at Corinthia's ship. She headed out of the system, towards the nearest Mass Relay, and never once tried to avoid the Shadow Broker agents' ship's shots. Her transport fumed smoke and leaked air. The engines sputtered. If the incompetent fools tried to cripple it more, they would kill her.

Harbinger felt a surge of anger as they did exactly what he feared. The final shot hit the fuel tanks and the small craft exploded. Harbinger turned his back to the scene. He had wanted Corinthia alive, but if she was dead, that was still a good thing. Like Shepard, she was one of the only things standing between the Reapers and galactic domination. No, not domination; extermination.

"Tell your Shadow Broker to release the news that Commander Corinthia is dead," Harbinger ordered. "Search for her body. If you find any part of it, I want it."

15 January 2185—Unknown Location, Terminus Systems

The Illusive Man had smoked a pack of cigarettes and the day had barely started. After a long investigation, the Council had declared Corinthia dead. The attacks on the Cerberus Cells had tripled in intensity. All of his attempts to find the perpetrator had failed. He had been certain that it was Corinthia, that she had somehow escaped death and continued to hound him, but it wasn't to be. Her body either had been vaporized or she had vanished into thin air. She was good, but not that good. Even Shepard hadn't escaped death.

Speaking of which… He opened a communication channel. It was almost immediately answered. "Miranda, give me some good news."

Miranda almost smiled. "We've done it. Shepard's alive."

"How long before we can use him?"

"I need to run some more tests to ensure that he has full mental capacity and memory retention." She turned as alarms whirred. "That can't be right..."

"Is that panic I detect in your voice, Miranda?"

She started shouting orders. The Illusive Man looked on, bemused. Miranda came back a few moments later, looking a little disheveled. "What happened?"

"He regained consciousness. This wasn't supposed to happen for another three weeks."

"Were the signs good?"

"His brain activity was off the charts."

"Well, then, I don't see why this is a problem. We've made him stronger, smarter, and better than ever before."

"Are you sure that you don't want me to put in a control chip?"

"Positive. He needs to be exactly like he was."

Miranda nodded. "That's another problem."

"So you heard about Corinthia." They were hoping to use her as leverage to keep Shepard on their side. "This might not actually be a problem. Having her gone removes the temptation for him to leave our service."

"It will also make him a liability. You know as well as I do that she was one of the things that kept him from causing another Torfan."

The Illusive Man smirked. "That won't be a problem so long as he gets the job done."

"I hope you're right. He almost knocked out Wilson. I've had to double the sedative dose."

The Illusive Man chuckled. "That's what I like to hear. I'll make the arrangements. Everything will be ready."

"What if he doesn't agree to help us? What if he wants to go back to the Alliance?"

"Leave that to me. He won't be able to refuse."

Miranda raised an eyebrow. "She's not next, is she?"

The Illusive Man smiled enigmatically.

Miranda sighed and ended the transmission. When he smiled like that, she did not want to be around to see, hear, or be pulled into the consequences. Though loyal to Cerberus, she had more than enough work to do without having to resurrect another enemy, especially one who would ultimately steal Cerberus's greatest investment and asset (namely Shepard).

Whatever happened, her life was not going to get any easier. If Shepard was anything like his reputation, he would be near impossible to control and would probably destroy any and everything he came into contact with, Cerberus included. If they were lucky, his annihilation streak would transfer to the Collectors.

If.