I might as well admit it, I'm a sucker for Alternate Universe-type stuff. Seeing as Aftersun takes place somewhere vastly different than the ME universe we know and love (but not too 'out there' that it'll be unrecognizable) I will lay down some important details. Of course, questions are welcome. Always.

Firstly, Reapers began their invasion about twenty years prior, so the universe as we know it is already engaged in this galaxy-wide war with them. Reapers are also less difficult to kill - their advantage has always been their numbers, not their strength. So for the time being, Reapers are being kept at bay by combined military strength.

Two years ago, Commander Shepard faced the toughest one yet - Sovereign. She is well aware that there are more "S-class" Reapers out there that will completely decimate them unless they can come up with a way to effectively end this ongoing war.

It also might be worth mentioning that indoctrination is well-known by this point, and there is no known therapy to cure the effects, except perhaps a bullet to the brain. The cost of the war is becoming staggering, not just in military terms but personally as well - a lot of people are coming to terms with the fact that there may be no tomorrow...

Message received:

I heard about your landing on Noveria—if anyone knows how to make an explosive entrance, it's you. And the feeds say you made it out alright, no casualties. It's nice to hear good news once in a while.

-Garrus

Message sent:

It was a mess down there. I had half the crew overlooking evacuation while my team went in. It got a little difficult towards the end, but we managed. I remember when it was mostly Geth in the Aleutsk Valley, sure we found a Reaper here and there, but nothing compared to how it was this time. Thankfully, we have Thanix cannons.

Message received:

Huh. All I remember from Noveria was how cold it was. Still, I'm glad you made it out alive and that my calibrating finally paid off.

Shepard, I know I'm probably not the best person to say this, but it'll get better somehow. It has to. In the meantime, it turns out I still have more Reaper kills than you. What was it? 49 to 42?

-Garrus

Message sent:

Live it up, Garrus. We're heading back to the Terminus systems, the Reapers there are practically begging to be shot out of the skies; it's just a matter of time now.

Shepard chuckled as she set the datapad aside, unintentionally disturbing the sleeping drell on the bed beside her. He shifted under the covers, lightly opened his eyes as his lips parted in a sigh.

"Sorry," she said in hushed voice, "didn't mean to wake you."

His eyes settled on hers, the commodity of sharing her sleeping quarters for the night apparent in his appreciative gaze. "It is uniquely pleasant to wake beside you, Siha." He reached out and touched her chin, mimicking the smile that danced on her lips. She curled her fingers around his hand and bent over him, pressing her mouth to his.

When she pulled away he leaned on his elbow, watching her gather the clothes she had so carelessly tossed away the night before. "You were exchanging correspondence with Officer Vakarian?"

Shepard stopped short of reaching for the pants hanging precariously from the railing by the fish tank. "I was," she tossed him a curious glance. "Did something give me away?"

Thane sat up on the bed, complacency lining his features. "Laughter, mostly. He brings something out of you, I cannot even think of a proper way to describe it."

She shrugged. "Go figure," she mumbled quickly, and promptly tossed the pants in the laundry bin.

"You must miss him," he mentioned casually, sliding into his pants and shirt. Unlike her clothes, his were neatly folded by the bed. Last night had been more her tryst than his. But he had been as much a willing participant, returning those miniscule gestures of intimate interest during the last few missions. During the shuttle back from that last mission she had flat-out asked—in front of a mortified Ashley Williams no less— if he would join her in her cabin later in the evening.

'An appealing proposal,' had been his concise reply. 'It would be my pleasure.'

Shepard paused by the fish tank, pushed the button to dispense food for the fish she kept, and turned to look at him. "It's a little strange not having him around," she admitted with a sigh. "The Normandy isn't the same without him—well, there's certainly a lot less calibrating around the main battery," she added with a smile.

"I find his reassignment peculiar," Thane noted, settling on the couch.

Garrus had been whisked away by turian command in a matter of hours after an arbitrary stop on the Citadel several months back. His perfect memory recalled every detail of the sternly-worded conversation between the Commander and the General of the Sixth Fleet.

"It's…complicated," she told him, dismayed. The memory of the scene that had played out in the conference room was still vivid in her mind. Abruptly, she had excused herself and Garrus to discuss the matter in private. Despite the General insisting that the order was from the highest authority, they both knew Shepard had too much pull in matters concerning the galaxy.

In the privacy of the main battery, his eyes mirrored the uncertainty she felt.

'Say you want me to stay, and I'll stay.'

'Do what you want,' was her response, colder than she would have liked. Something vaguely forlorn swam in his blue eyes, punctuated with something she had never noticed before.

"In the end it was his decision. I made sure of it," she told him conclusively, eager to end all discussion on the subject.

She headed for the shower while Thane patiently waited in the room. A few minutes later she was quietly changing into her uniform, her hair dripping wet. She buttoned up her coat and looked at him, brows perked in inquiry. "Entertained?"

He muttered a quick apology, barely realizing he had been raptly watching her. She gave a small chuckle and joined him, sitting on his lap and pretending to adjust his collar. "I enjoyed last night," she said, her fingers sliding down to his chest, caressing the bare skin. "Wouldn't mind doing it again."

"Glad I could be of service," he replied, certainly enticed by the idea of another encounter.

The intercom beeped and Joker's hesitant voice came in through the speaker. "Please don't be in the middle of something."

Shepard rolled her eyes at his pleading tone.

"What is it?"

"We've got something on the scanners; you might want to, you know, get some clothes on and join me on the bridge."

"Jeff!"

"Joking!" he said defensively, "No need to get all riled up, Commander, save it for Thane. See you soon!" He disconnected.

"I swear if he wasn't so damn good at his job I'd toss him," she gave a dismissive shake of her head, though there was humor in her features. Thane chuckled and she kissed him quickly before she rose to her feet. Together, they took the elevator to the Crew deck and parted ways from there.

Thane was well aware of the looks he garnered. Apparently, it had become common knowledge that he had spent the night with the Commander. It wasn't terribly uncommon for her to have a few flings here and there—some more reoccurring than others—and the crew didn't pay too much mind to it. Except Thane wasn't human, and this was a Cerberus crew.

Ignoring the intrigue surrounding him, he made a brief stop at the mess hall and ate his meal in the solidarity of his quarters.

Kelly Chambers smiled at Shepard as she stepped out of the elevator. "Looks like someone had a good night," she said knowingly.

Shepard shrugged, aware of what she meant. "Yeah, well I didn't do much sleeping," she said, absently rubbing the back of her neck and stifling a yawn. "Tell Gardner to make coffee."

"Of course, Commander," Kelly responded with a chuckle.

Shepard made her way to the bridge, placing a hand on the back of Joker's chair.

"What's going on?"

She looked over the screen, leaning forward so that her face was almost level with his. Joker gave a quick side glance, straightening up on the seat as if uncomfortable.

"Scanners are picking up a ship. No distress signal though, looks like it just went dark," he gave an almost inaudible sigh. "Maybe it was a Reaper."

Shepard moved away from Joker, pacing the cabin. "What can you tell me about this ship?"

EDI's voice chimed in, "It appears to be a turian ship, Commander. The lack of armaments, however, would suggest a civilian vessel."

Shepard paused, frowning. "A civilian vessel this far from Palaven? Can't be. Any chance you can pull up any info on its course or the crew?"

"No," was EDI's reply. "Information on this vessel is non-existent."

Joker peered closer at the screen, "Look at the hull, Commander. It's huge. Almost reminds me of those old freighters."

"Yeah," she looked over the scans again. "You think they were transporting more than people?"

Joker gave a slight nod. "Could be."

"EDI, run another scan, what's the status on the inside of the ship?"

EDI was silent for a moment.

Joker frowned, "Commander, couldn't we just call turian command and tell them they got a stray vessel near the Terminus systems?"

"Scans complete," EDI chimed. "Safety protocols have been established in all areas, artificial gravity generators are in working order as well. There appears to be no external damage."

"Then it's not Reapers after all," Shepard noted. "Some sort of malfunction?"

"Besides the lack of power on board, there don't seem to be any," Jeff said, analyzing the information in front of him. "Still think it's Reapers," he added, after some thought. "It's always Reapers."

"I'm boarding," Shepard said, "get a shuttle ready, Joker."

"Can't we just ignore the creepy ship floating in the middle of nowhere?"

"Oh come on," Shepard grinned. "It might be fun."

"Yeah, no," Joker mumbled, scanning over the results. "Not a big fan of dark and spooky."

EDI's voice came through, "Commander, I've run multiple scans, and I'm sensing scattered heat signatures, though none particularly indicative of life forms."

Shepard paused to consider this only briefly. "I'll gather my team. Have the med-bay ready in case we find anyone."

"Wait," Joker called, swiveling his chair to face her as she started down the entry. "Shouldn't we, you know, let turian command know what's going on? Or even the Council?"

"I'm not waiting around for them to decide what to do," she replied. Turian command was ridiculously bureaucratic when it came to dealing with speculative situations of this caliber. She wasn't waiting for them to give her orders.

Still, Shepard would go on good faith and let at least one turian know. "I'll let Garrus know, just in case," Shepard said absentmindedly, as she considered her squad. Joker's cackle snapped her from her line of thinking.

"Aha! So you two are still talking."

Shepard pointedly ignored his grinning face and strode out of the bridge.

Kelly gave her a light nod as she stopped by her terminal and typed up a quick message to Garrus—'Found a turian vessel. Civilian maybe. Possible cargo onboard. No external damage, but it's gone completely dark. Going to check it out. Coordinates are as follows—'

"Who should I call down, Commander?" Kelly asked, just before Shepard stepped into the elevator.

"Tell Tali to meet me downstairs in twenty minutes," she replied, and pushed the dial for the Crew deck.

She made a dash for the mess hall as soon as the doors open, fully intent on getting her usual cup of coffee before departing. Thankfully, Gardner was already pouring the brew into a Styrofoam cup.

"Gotcha all set here, Commander," he gave her an affable nod and she smiled in thanks, settling into one of the tables.

Ashley Williams came out of the bunkers just then, straightening up her uniform and assuring her hair was still neatly held in place. She went in for breakfast, immediately noticing the Commander sitting quietly by herself.

She slid into the chair beside her, "Are we stopped?"

Shepard nodded, holding the cup with both hands, letting the heat drain into her skin. "Found a turian vessel. Going to investigate."

Ashley frowned, "Shouldn't we let the turians take care of it?"

Shepard mimicked her expression, "Everyone says that."

"For good reason, Commander," she reminded.

"It'll be fine," she said, gulping down the last of the coffee. "It'll be an adventure."

Ashley's expression eased until it was amusement in her eyes instead of doubt. "If you say so, Ma'am." She gave it some thought. "Mind if I tag along?"

Shepard gave a small shake of her head, "Sorry, Ash. I've got Samara and Tali on this. You should rest, Noveria kicked our asses, remember?"

"I'm fine," she insisted, "I can handle it."

Shepard placed a hand on her shoulder, "I know that. I wouldn't have dragged you out of Alliance service otherwise."

It hadn't been easy either. Finding her on Horizon had been an unexpected, but pleasant surprise. Yeah, Ashley had been skeptical about her revival, even more when the rumors about Shepard's Cerberus ties turned out to be true. But these were delicate times, and friends were too few and far between.

Hours of deliberating with Ashley's superiors, they'd finally let her onboard a Cerberus vessel, with the promise that she be brought back alive. Shepard intended to keep that promise.

Ashley gave a short, relenting sigh. "Fine, I'll stay. Just…be careful out there, Commander."

"Can't afford not to be," Shepard said with a smile. She stood out of her chair and went to summon Samara.