The Blue Suns withdraw. The crowds withdraw. The Suns leave security behind in case Archangel appears. Shepard watches the two guarding the displayed bodies. Wishes for her sniper rifle so she can pick them off. What she does have is her pistol and an assault rifle taken from the Human she killed. It will have to be enough.
It's a relief when one of the guard's head dissolves. Then the other.
Shepard moves forward, ducking down behind a trio of trash cans. There are four Suns on guard duty inside. They emerge and Garrus picks one off. Shepard guns one down. They repeat. No one else comes out.
"Reinforcements will be here soon," she calls in the direction Garrus' shots came from. "Let's get going."
Garrus drops down from his vantage point. Removes his helmet. His eyes are dark. "I'm not leaving them."
His voice sounds flat. Dead. He looks past her to the bodies of his comrades. Murmurs each name as his eyes fall on each squad member.
"We'll find a way to come back for them. To avenge them. I'll find a transport." The promises spill from her. As if one will break his trance. "We'll find Sidonis, get him at out back and-"
"Sidonis." Garrus says in his awful, lifeless tone. "Sidonis sold us out."
It doesn't compute at first. Genial, helpful Sidonis? He wasn't the best asset the squad had but he and Garrus had been close. But then…she's seen plenty of men and women turn coward on Omega where moments before they'd been heroic.
"…Okay." She has to take a breath. "Okay. Fine. But we still need to get you to safety. They want you."
"They can have me," he growls. Lets his treasured rifle clatter to the ground. "And I'll take them all to hell with me."
Anger, fear, sorrow spur her to crack her knuckles against his cheek. His skin scrapes against hers as she makes contact. His head cracks to the side and he makes no sound. "You fucking bastard. If you die then their deaths don't mean shit. They need you, they need us to remember them."
Garrus turns his face back to her. His eyes close, his head drops. "Shepard-"
"No," she hisses. "Whatever you say, no. We're getting out of here to avenge them another day. Consider this my official entry into your gang." She can hear the roar of footsteps in the distance. The Blue Suns are coming. "Now pick up your rifle and let's go."
He follows, letting her guide him out of danger to the only safe place she knows.
Home.
Zaeed stands in the front doorway, eyes narrowed to slits. "What the hell are you thinking, bringing him here?"
Shepard meets his scowl. "You don't even know who he is-"
"I've got a pretty good guess." He grabs her shoulders and hisses. "Do you want us killed in our beds?"
She grimaces at the odor of stale beer on his breath. Gives him a shove. "I just need to get my things. I'm changing professions."
He jerks back, looking dazed. Hell, she's dazed by the decision. Maybe she'll wake up tomorrow and wonder what the hell she just did with her life. It feels right though, taking up the cause. Except…well it's not really that. She's not sure anyone can make a difference on Omega like Garrus and his squad were trying to do.
But she is damn sure that they were good people for trying. And the Mercs who killed them deserve payback.
"Look," she sighs. Lets her hands fall to her sides. "Are you really going to turn us away?"
Zaeed snarls in frustration and steps aside, letting Shepard pull Garrus into the apartment.
"Had a feeling something like this would happen." Zaeed says, stalking into the room after them. "Damnit…I even have a contingency plan."
At her raised eyebrows, he explains. "Cerberus offered me a job a few weeks ago. Think I'll take it. It'll get me off Omega when clients realize you've joined up with Archangel."
"Cerberus?" Shepard frowns. They show up on Omega like the missionaries. Though instead of doling out religion with hot meals, Cerberus offers enlistment while they fed you. Get you away from all the non-Humans on Omega. "That's a weird fit for you."
"You shouldn't be talking, Girlie." He shakes his head, glancing over at Garrus. The Turian is slumped on the couch, staring at his hands. "They promised to help me take down Vido. Be damned stupid to refuse."
"Guess so." Shepard takes a look around the apartment. At the man she'd call an adoptive father in a normal situation. Her throat feels tight.
Zaeed looks a little misty himself and turns his gaze away. "There's a package for you. In my bedroom closet. Picked it up in case…this happened."
Birthdays and gift-centric holidays aren't celebrated in the Massani-Shepard household. But when Shepard opens the crate and finds the second-hand Merc armor…well it's all those special occasions at once. Garrus sits on Zaeed's bed and watches her put it on. A faint light returns to his hollow eyes.
"Omni-tool's here," says Zaeed, indicating her right arm. "It's an Infiltrator model. You've got slots for three guns. Don't let yourself get weighted down. You focus on keeping the hell alive."
"I will," she promises. "I better see you again."
"I'm not the one going to my death." He folds his arms, dropping his voice. "You're sure about this? I expected it…but it's a damn stupid thing to do."
Shepard looks at Garrus. Sighs. "Yeah. I'm sure."
She packs her essentials, leaving the memories and treasures of her life behind in the small room. The three of them walk to the doorway when she's ready, the silence heavy on them.
She's not sure how to segue into a goodbye from here. Zaeed makes the first gesture with a hug so powerful she can feel it beneath the armor but so brief neither can get emotional.
"Stay alive," she tells him, opening the door.
"Stay alert," he responds. Shepard walks through the door with Garrus. Waits till the door shuts before she looks back.
With Shepard at his side, Archangel declares war on the Suns. If Blood Pack or Eclipse get in the way, they're knocked off too.
They live on the run. Shepard gets supplies where she can, going helmeted when she and Garrus make their strikes. Watches at night are split, one relieving the other to let them get a half night's sleep. Garrus says little.
It takes three days before he can talk about Sidonis. About how the traitor had lured Garrus away and how Garrus realized it was a set-up too late. Shepard still doesn't understand why Sidonis would do it. Pure cowardice seems the only logical reason. But she can't stomach pushing Garrus for information when just talking seems to hurt him.
When he's told his story, he closes his eyes and says, "My father says that the true test of a man comes when they have to sacrifice something for someone else. So if Sidonis failed…what does that say of me? I picked him. I trusted him."
"We all trusted him," Shepard says.
"No, you kept telling me not to trust anyone. Not even you." He strokes her neck, nails grazing her throat. "…And I still trust you. "
He lets his hand drop. She can't think of what to say. What to do. She can only watch him retreat back inside of himself.
Shepard has second watch shift that night. She finds him intent on his visor. That first night, he'd carved his squadmates' names in a daze onto the frame. Now he's burning out the eleventh name, hands shaking.
"Garrus." She kneels before him, touching his cheek. "My turn to keep watch. Go to sleep."
"Shepard…" he breathes, eyes dark. "When the Vorcha killed them, how did you keep going?"
The question startles her. His dull tone rips her heart. "I…let the hole in me fill up with anger. It kept me living." She rocks back on her heels. "It also made me stupid though. About those two Vorcha clients. I did the same damned thing when Garm got you so…I'm a poor learner.
"So I guess…Sorry. Guess I don't have the answer." She sighs, pressing her forehead to his knees. "I don't know how to help you."
"I do." He pulls her up and kisses her. It's a Human act but there's a desperate, animal edge. His hands curl around her shoulders and he pushes her onto the ground, onto her back.
Even their most frenzied sex has been tempered with Garrus' caution. He was always aware of his hard plates and the effect they'd have on her soft skin. There's no hesitance now as he tears off her armor, claws at her undersuit.
Shepard returns the treatment, pawing at the clasps of his armor. He sinks his teeth into her shoulder. She digs her nails into the sensitive skin of his waist. They fight for dominance, pinning each other. He growls and hauls her against the wall, trapping her with his weight.
"Fuck," she groans as he pushes into her. Her thighs chafe against his as he pumps and makes no sound but a steady rumble. Garrus knows her body now, knows how to move until she's sobbing. The orgasm hits fast and he keeps going, his hands braced on the wall. She's crying for release soon again and again it comes.
Seconds later he lets out a sound, anguished and primal and pleased. Empties into her as he slumps, panting.
"Fuck," he echoes her. She's startled into a laugh because she's never heard Garrus use that particular curse. The translator tells her that he's using the Human word, not some Turian equivalent.
"Yeah, we did" she says, wrapping her arms around his neck. Pressing her cheek to his. "…Joke."
He grips her around the waist. They stay like that, against the wall, long after their breathing has returned to normal. Until he makes a strangled sound that's almost a laugh.