AN:- Trucking along with this one. I've got it written up to chapter fifteen, so lots more definitely still to come

Chapter Two: Mars

Before she could even draw breath Vega was in her face.

"What the hell's going on? Where's Anderson? Where are we going?" She tried to push past him to get to the computer and he grabbed her arm. "Hey!"

She shook him off easily. "We're leaving."

"Leaving?"

"What's going on?" Ashley asked from her other side.

"Anderson wants us to go to the Citadel, get help for the fight."

"Bullshit!" Vega kept pace as she marched to the computer. "He wouldn't order us to leave."

"We don't have a choice, without help this war's already over." She keyed up the interface and opened her old profile, trusting EDI to have kept it unlocked. She needed command access fast.

"Forget it, drop me off someplace, becau-"

"Enough!" She rounded on him before she was even fully aware of it. "Don't you think I'd rather stay and fight?" He cowed before her and she turned back to the computer. "We're going to the Citadel. You want out you can catch a ride back from there."

A new signal cut off anything else he might have had to say. "Commander!"

"Joker, good to hear your voice."

"Still alive and kicking here. Got an emergency transmission from Admiral Hackett for you."

She had thought the gruff old soldier was dead for sure. A smile tugged at her lips despite the circumstances. "Patch it through."

"Shepard." The image was distorted and fuzzy, the audio even worse. "–stained heavy losses… force was overwhelming." From what little she could make out he had been wounded in the head, and in the background his ship's bridge seemed to be in pieces. "No way we could defeat them conventionally."

"Anderson's already ordered me to the Citadel to talk to the Council."

"First we need you to go to the Alliance outpost on Mars. Before we lose control of the system." The signal was stabilising as they got further from the atmosphere.

"Yes sir."

Static cut out his next words. "…researching the Prothean Archives with Dr T'soni." Liara? That she hadn't known. The thought that Liara could have been so close to all this. "May have found a way to stop the Reapers. Only way to stop them. Contact soon, Hackett out." And his image was gone, replaced by comm. fuzz.

"Joker, set a course for the Mars archives."

"Mars?" Thankfully he was too used to her now to argue. He'd ask later, she was sure of that. "Roger that."

"This is loco…"

"Why Mars?" Williams at least was a little more helpful than Vega. "What does he think we'll find there?"

"I don't know yet, but if it helps us win this war…" It was a short jump to Mars. They'd barely have time to re-equip. "Grab your gear."

/|\

Joker was waiting for her in the cockpit. She was still strapping into her armour, but it had been a comforting sight to see the Normandy nearly fully stocked with people, even if she didn't recognise any of the faces.

"Good to see you're still among the living Commander."

"Same to you Joker. Although it's Captain now, strictly speaking."

"That in an official sense? Because I just finished branding all the Commander Shepard Fan Club merch."

"Well it only took Alliance Command what, four years to finally catch up with this promotion? I think the fan club can lag behind a little."

"Anderson not coming with us?"

"I'm afraid for right now there's no one coming with us Joker."

"And why exactly are we heading to Mars first?"

"Apparently they've been investigating the Prothean ruins there and found something."

"Fair enough. We're only about five minutes out so you might wanna get back down to the shuttle."

"Roger that." She paused a moment before leaving. "I'm glad you made it out Joker."

"Back at you Shepard."

/|\

They approached Mars in full stealth mode, EDI scanning on every frequency. Shepard sat in the seat of the shuttle and waited for the order to disengage, watching the reports coming in. What was more distressing than anything was the lack of response. Nothing being picked up from Luna. Nothing from Alliance Command, nothing from UK High Command at all.

Joker signalled her just as the cargo hold was opened. "I've been trying to reach Mars on secure channels. No one's answering."

"Any sign of Reaper activity?"

"Negative."

"EDI?" She dropped them out into the atmosphere, feeling the tug on the ailerons as they angled away and started their descent.

"The base appears to be online. It's possible the inhabitants were evacuated."

"We'll know soon enough. Be ready Joker, just in case."

"Roger that, Normandy out."

Shepard hung up the call and hit the intercom. "We're almost there. Strap in."

She set them on a hard landing, practically nosediving towards the surface.

The radio buzzed again and Vega's voice came through. "Still no contact from the base but we've got a massive storm headed our way."

"How long til it hits?"

"Half hour tops, after that we're going to have difficulty keeping up comms with the Normandy."

She set them down at the landing zone, practically on top of the main facility. "Understood."

She set the shuttle on the auto-return program and opened the shuttle door, stepping and checking to see Ashley and Vega already moving out to cover. Ahead of them was a field of solar power collectors, with a path to the right of them leading to the facility. She signalled her teammates and they took point heading down the path as Shepard brought up the rear, her sniper rifle a comforting weight in her hands after so long away.

They moved in silence along the bluffs, the facility always in sight as they wound their way between craggy rock formations and down short drop offs until they came to the body of an Alliance Marine propped up against a cargo crate. His faceplate was smeared from the inside with blood and there was a single bullet hole in the back of his head. Shepard couldn't help but remember a long time back, finding a turian in a similar position.

"Sergeant Reese," Ashley said after checking his dog tags. "Doesn't look like he put up a fight." As she rose Shepard wondered if she was noticing those same similarities.

"Something's not right here," Vega said.

Shepard nodded. "Vega take point. Keep a low profile 'til we know what's going on."

"Roger that."

Before they had taken more than a dozen steps there was gunfire from ahead. Four slow and deliberate shots. That wasn't a gunfight.

Moving even slower now, they crept forward to see a small band of men, all wearing armour emblazoned with the distinctive black and orange diamond of Cerberus. Shepard's gut curled and she knelt, shifting the rifle to her shoulder and sighting down the scope. There was one man wearing a Corporal's emblem, innocuously stamped on the collar of his armour.

"I've got right," Vega's voice over her comm unit.

Ashley was a second behind him. "I've got left."

That would leave one more alive after all three of their shots, Shepard had no doubt Ashley and Vega between them would be able to take him though. She breathed slow and counted out loud. "Three, two, one. Fire."

Their shots blended into one rolling crack as three men jerked to one side, their helmets blasted open by the force of the bullets. A fine red mist replaced the head of the corporal as he toppled to the floor. The fourth man whirled round to find the shooters but Ashley and Vega were already up and moving forwards, their assault rifles cracking again and again as they landed shot after shot on his chest. The man's armour gave way almost at once and he dropped with a dozen holes in his torso.

Shepard reloaded and marched down to join them, staring down at the dead bodies of the Alliance soldiers in disgust.

"What's Cerberus doing here on Mars?" Vega asked.

"Good question."

"You don't know?" The accusation in her tone hurt.

"I'm not with them anymore Ash. If that's what you're asking."

"It wasn't, but you have to admit it's a bit convenient."

Once upon a time she had at least respected Ashley's tendency to always speak her mind. But the acerbic soldier was going to start grating on her nerves if they had to keep this up much longer. Silently she motioned the two of them forwards and they took point once more, heading to the entrance of the facility only a few hundred yards away.

When they got there they found another small complement of Cerberus troops. Shepard remembered the first time they had come across the group, and the dozens of fireteams they had been able to field at every operation. That gave her no small amount of satisfaction. All of their evidence after the Collector Base mission had been that The Illusive Man was running low on credits after spending so much on his precious Lazarus Project.

Shepard switched to her pistol and switched the ammo load to armour piercing. There was another corporal at the head of the soldiers.

"Williams, take the left side, Vega, take right."

They nodded in agreement and Shepard counted down again. On fire they all stood and there was a short round of gunfire, dropping every one of the Cerberus members in under five seconds. They stepped out from behind the cover of the packing crates and made their way to the door. Shepard knelt to get started on the door lock.

"Doesn't look like they came here in force," Vega said as he stood guard over her.

"Kinda suggests they had help. From the inside. You'd need a lot more men and firepower to take this place otherwise." Shepard didn't rise to the obvious bait.

"Commander I thought you told Cerberus to screw off after you wiped out that Collector Base they were after."

"That's exactly what I did," she said. The last firewall was breached and she summoned the elevator down to their position, standing back and taking out her pistol again.

"Well one thing's for sure, they're no friend to the Alliance."

"Agreed."

The main door opened and they stepped onto an expansive elevator more suited to shifting vehicles than people. Shepard triggered it and as they rode up Ashley removed her helmet, looking over to Shepard.

"I need a straight answer Shepard," she said.

Shepard sighed and activated the seal on her own helmet, folding it back. "About what?"

"Do you know anything about this? What is Cerberus doing here."

"What makes you think I know what they're up to?"

"You worked for them, how am I supposed to believe you've cut all ties?"

She had to wonder exactly what information Alliance Intelligence had been fed, or else had been feeding to Ashley. She had known the Illusive Man wanted to keep her isolated, but it had never occurred to her someone on the other side might want her old crew just as separated. "We joined forces to take down the Collectors," she said eventually. "That's it." She was aware of Vega's eyes on her as well.

"They rebuilt you from scratch, gave you a ship, resources."

"Let me be clear. I've had no contact with Cerberus since I destroyed the Collector Base. And I have no idea why they're here now, or what they want."

"Captain Shepard's been under constant surveillance since coming back to Earth, no way they've communicated since."

"Sorry Shepard, I just…"

The elevator slowed to a stop but before they debarked Shepard stepped up close to Ashley.

"I shouldn't have to explain myself to you Ash." They had arrived in a large hanger bay, a couple of makos sitting in repair bays. "Please trust me."

"I do. It's just that…"

There was a banging above them and they all whipped their guns up and towards it. Shepard moved forwards to find cover while Vega and Ashley broke further into the bay. They sighted on the vent, easily tracking the sound of the thumps. Shepard quickly activated her comm. "Hold your fire, it could be a friendly."

A click from each of their comms reassured her that they'd received the message. Whoever it was was almost at the end of the vent, where a simple grill would allow them out into the hanger. Shepard shifted her aim slightly to catch them in case they came leaping out the end.

The grill bashed out and she saw a thin leg disappearing back into the vent. A second later a lithe figure dropped smoothly to the upper level and disappeared behind the railing. There was another enormous clattering from the vent and Shepard shifted her aim back to the entrance. Before she could make the decision where to fire a singularity opened up at the entrance to the vent. She recognised it immediately as a biotic flare, and her heart soared. There couldn't have been that many biotic users on the Mars base.

Two bulky humanoid shapes were dragged to the end of the vent, and she saw for a split second the Cerberus logo again, but then the singularity increased in power and the edges of the vent caved in on them, crushing the two troopers into a tiny metal can. Shards of the metal ripped and tore and imploded inwards, shredded through the armour of the troops. The bloodied, misshapen mass no longer resembled two humans in a vent when it finally dropped to the floor in a sickening crash.

The figure on the second floor stood and Shepard recognised her instantly. Liara turned to look down at them, raising an eyebrow as Vega stepped out of cover and trained his rifle on her.

"Easy there, Lieutenant," Shepard said, stepping out from cover herself and waving. "She's with us."

"Shepard, thank the goddess you're alive."

"You too Liara."

She leaned against the railings and smiled down at them. "I was so worried when the reports came in." Her smile faded. "I am sorry about Earth."

"Yeah." Shepard took a breath and flexed the fingers on her hand. "It was difficult to leave." Understatement of the century.

Liara nodded, looking to her companions. "Ashley," she said. "I'm sorry, but why did you come here?"

Shepard shook herself out of the brief lull. "Hackett ordered us to come, said you'd know what was going on."

Liara nodded slowly. "I do."

"Hallelujah, some answers, finally."

"Maybe." Shepard almost grinned at the exasperation on Vega's face. "I've discovered plans for a Prothean device, one that could wipe out the Reapers."

Ashley was frowning. "Here, on Mars?"

"In the Prothean Archives, yes."

"We've known about the Archives for decades, why now?"

"Process of elimination, mixed with a little desperation." She returned her attention to Shepard. "When you destroyed the Alpha Relay, you bought us some time, but then you were under investigation, I knew I had to do something. Hackett knew it too. He contacted me, asking if I would use my resources as the Shadow Broker to find a way to stop the Reapers. My search led me here, Hackett got me access to the archives and kept me updated to your affairs. I meant to come see you, but…"

Shepard grinned. "I woulda liked that, but under the circumstances, I think I can forgive you."

"You are too kind." Ashley shifted impatiently and Liara returned to the topic. "In any case my work paid off, the Archives are full of data, an overwhelming amount, I think I found what we need."

Vega huffed. "I guess I'll believe it when I see it. Where do we find this weapon?"

"It's not a weapon, not yet. It's plans for a device, a blueprint."

"More than we had a minute ago, how do we get it?"

Liara pointed to the other side of the room, and through one of the windows they could see a long cylinder leading away from the main facility. "The Archives are just across that tramway, assuming Cerberus hasn't locked it down."

That brought her to the other outstanding topic. "What are they after?"

Vega snorted behind her. "Yeah they seemed hellbent on catching you."

"They want what I'm here for, what we're all here for."

"But why?" Shepard didn't need to ask the question Ashley did. She had a dark feeling she already knew exactly what Cerberus were looking for.

"The Protheans came close to defeating the Reapers, they had plans to destroy them but ran out of time."

Ashley finally got there as well. "And anything powerful enough to destroy the Reapers…"

"Just might be something Cerberus would be interested in."

"So," Shepard felt purpose returning to them. "It's a race to the Archives."

As Liara nodded there was a screeching from the upper level. Shepard's head snapped round to see sparks flying from the blast doors that led out into the rest of the facility.

"We got company," Ashley said, bringing her rifle to bear again.

"Bring it on," Vega growled.

Shepard's mind was racing though. "Not this time James, get back to the shuttle. If Cerberus beats us to the Archives I need you covering the exits."

"But…"

She cut him off. "Now Lieutenant."

He glared at her for a moment longer, then backed away to the elevator control. Ashley was giving her a hard stare, but nodded when Shepard pointed her to cover.

"They're getting closer," Liara said as Shepard drew level with her. "We need to get up there."

Shepard looked across the room to one of the repair bays, the mako suspended halfway up. Liara saw where she was looking and grinned. "Same old Shepard."

Shepard sprinted for the mako, expecting Liara to be at her heels, but instead the biotic was down on one knee, gathering biotic energy around herself.

There wasn't time to worry about what she was doing. Shepard launched herself into the air just as she heard the seal on the door give. She crashed hard against the front of the mako and let out a whuff as the air was driven out of her. She yanked hard at one of the armour plates on the mako and got fully onto the roof of it as boots crashed above and the fireteam entered the bay.

Ashley's rifle lit off as Shepard was turning to jump and grab the ledge above herself, pulling up to arrive at the second level of the hanger bay. Ahead she could see the Cerberus troops ducking for cover, Ashley's assault rifle fire keeping them low. They hadn't spotted Shepard yet, but she was in perfect position for an ambush, taking her pistol off her back and aiming at the first of the soldiers.

Her shots deflected off his shield and she hissed in frustration as they responded, moving back and behind several boxes for even greater cover. Bullets began to spark around her and she rolled to get behind a solid pillar, crouching behind it and breathing deeply, trying to picture the scene and figure out a tactic. She reached down to her belt and pulled out an incendiary grenade, attaching it to the launcher of her omni-tool and leaning out to try and spot the troops.

The grenade sailed over the boxes and detonated, forcing one of the men out of cover as his armour caught fire, the specially designed fuel seeping in through the cracks to burn his skin. Shepard fired twice, the first shot cracking his helmet, the second hitting him in the forehead. The soldier dropped, but Shepard was forced back again as the other two soldiers stood and opened fire on her.

She looked down to see Ashley still keeping up her fire, and Liara behind her, swirling with biotic power. As Shepard watched she jumped, then a second later the biotic energy coiled behind her like a spring and she was launched into the air soaring up high in an elegant forward roll. She emptied her pistol as she fell, forcing the two soldiers back out into the open. Shepard leaned out as well and fired, bringing them down.

"That's a new trick," Shepard said as she stood out from behind the pillar. Below them Ashley was making for the mako to climb up as well.

"I've been working on it ever since I saw the footage of Vasir and Samara."

Shepard reached over the balcony to help Ashley up. "It must take an incredible amount of power."

"Not as much as you might think."

"Looks like everyone's been moving up in the world since I left," Ashley said.

"And I'm sure we'll have plenty more opportunities to show off our new skills." Shepard nodded to the open door. "For now we should keep moving."

AN:- I actually got this far before abandoning the story completely. I was a little further but I was definitely into the Mars mission. I had to replay because all I had was the dialogue, not any of the actual story written.

Not a great deal changed for this chapter. Extended some conversations, trimmed down some gunfights. There is some stuff here that I'll talk about later, mostly regarding Cerberus, but it'll be mentioned in text as well. No need to jump the gun.