A new corridor, dark and damp. Mildew and fungus grew in slimy patches on the walls. The air was clammy and heavy to breathe. They passed doors with observation shutters every couple of steps or so, revealing just how small the cells on the other sides were.

The stench of decay was thick as they moved down the corridor, checking the cells.

"I got dead bodies here." James turned away from the cell-door, his face grey. "Asari by the looks of it. No humans..."

Kaidan nodded. His stomach was in a tight knot. Not even during the Reapers' attack on Earth had he felt such anguish as he did now. He had to find Shepard, everything else came second to that. He moved to the next cell and opened the shutter.

He froze.

She lay on the floor wearing only a black A-shirt and a pare of panties, curled up in the corner farthest from the door, eyes closed and hands pressed against her ears.

"Shepard!"

She didn't respond, didn't even move.

"Oh God..." James mumbled beside him. "Is she...?"

Kaidan's hands were shaking when he bypassed the lock. It seemed to take forever before the red glow turned to green and he could press it. The doors slid aside with a squeak and he was inside the cell, kneeling next to her, pressing two fingers to her neck, checking for a pulse. It was weak, irregular, but it was there. He let go of the breath he had been holding.

"It's okay, Shepard... You're safe now..." Kaidan brushed away dark strands of hair that clung to her cheeks and forehead. He ran a quick scan using the omni-tool and the result made him frown. She had a fever, caused by an infection. The drugs, a mix of barbiturates and red sand were wreaking havoc on her body, straining her heart. She was a mess. He quickly administered medi-gel, as high a dose as he dared. It would take the temperature down and should halt the infection, but there wasn't much he could do to wash the drugs out of her system.

A few seconds later Shepard flinched, her eyes fluttering open. "D-dad?" Her voice was barely a whisper. "I tried to hide..." She mumbled feverishly. "I stayed quiet like I promised..." The irises were nearly completely swallowed up by the dilated pupils and she had dark circles under her eyes, a bruise coloured her left cheek and temple blue, her lips was cracked and bloodied. Kaidan could see the tell tale signs of abuse on the rest of her body as well; her wrists and ankles were chaffed and more bruises bloomed on her legs and the delicate skin on the inside of her arms was streaked with angry, infected needle tracks.

Kaidan hugged Shepard to him for a moment. "It's okay..." he said softly. "We're getting you out of here." He rose with her in his arms. She was slipping in and out of consciousness as he carried her out of the cell with James taking the lead.

"I've got shuttles coming in." Garrus voice came through in a haze of statics, accentuated by the boom of his sniper rifle. "I'll do my best to thin the herd but you better get a move on. Have you..." There was the smallest hesitation in the turian's voice but James couldn't help but to pick up on it. "Have you found her yet?"

"We've got her", James answered as they turned around a corner. "She's alive."

There came a rush of breath as Garrus exhaled in relief. "We're heading back up as we speak."

"Use a different route and avoid the main exit. There's a small maintenance tunnel that runs under the entire complex. It will take you away from the front of the building to an emergency exit at the back", Garrus advised. "I'll circle around and meet you there."

"Copy that."

They were making their way back through the corridor when Shepard came to. She blinked unable to grasp the situation. Someone was carrying her. Someone familiar.

"Kaidan?" she whispered hoarsely. The sound of her voice made him stop and look down at her.

"Shepard. How are you feeling?"

"Like crap."

Another figure stepped into her field of vision. James Vega gave her a grin. "Hey, Lola. You look like shit."

She managed a smile, taking in his face smeared with camouflage paint and mud. "You're not exactly Mr Male Model of the Month yourself, Vega." Her eyes had lost some of that glossy, empty look as the medi-gel dealt with the fever, now they became shiny with unshed tears. "You came... I didn't think..."

Kaidan hugged her gently. "Of course we came. The galaxy needs you, Shepard. I... we need you."

There was a tremble in her voice when she spoke again. "Did Garrus come too?"

"Yeah." It was James who answered. "It was Scars that planned the whole operation. He's waiting for us outside."

Shepard closed her eyes, relief washing through her. But the feeling of being held, of being trapped, made the her breath hitch in her throat. "Let me down."

"Are you sure?" Kaidan frowned.

Shepard nodded, fighting against the feeling of panic. Her head was spinning and her legs threatened to give out under her as Kaidan gently put her down. She had to steady herself against the wall but she managed to stay upright. "You can't fight and carry me at the same time", she said, trying to keep her voice even and steady.

Kaidan looked as if he might protest but then he nodded. "Let's get out of here." He offered her a gun. Shepard wrapped her fingers around the handle and another rush of relief washed through her. She wasn't defenceless any more.

The walk down the dark corridor was nightmarish. Shepard couldn't help but to feel guilty as she passed the other cells. James glanced at her and guessing her thoughts said: "They're empty. You're the only one we've found that's still alive."

When they left the corridor and entered the room with its disturbing instruments of torture, Shepard froze, her gaze pinned to the chair as if it was a living breathing things.

Dried blood, smeared over the arm rests, the straps. Her blood...

Panic surging up like a black cloud to swallow her as she doubled over. Voices, distant, sounding as if they were coming from miles away, calling her name. Her legs buckled and she fell to her hands and knees, desperately still holding on to the heavy gun.

No! No... It didn't happen... It didn't...

Shepard was alive! Garrus sent a prayer of thanks to the spirits as he moved through the under-brush. Behind him the blast of the mines going off shook the jungle, showering him in leaves.

At least the mercs didn't lack for persistence, he thought as yet another mine went off.

He had been on the move since the shuttles had arrived, keeping distance between them and him. He used the terrain to his advantage, staying invisible as he took out one or two mercs with the sniper rifle before moving again.

Garrus was half-way round to the back of the building when yet another shuttle descended, spewing out mercenaries dressed in the blue and white armour. He was seriously outnumbered and running out of time. He activated the comm as his visor picked up movements amongst the trees.

"Where the hell are you?" he all but shouted.

"We're on our way. It's just that... we're dealing with a... a situation..." James voice was interrupted by static as well as the sound of someone screaming in the background.

Garrus felt his blood freezing in his veins. "Shepard... Is she all right?" His question was met with silence. "Vega! Dammit!" Either the man didn't want to answer or something had interrupted the communication. There was no time for brooding. He had to move.

The smell of burning wet wood tickled his nose as he grabbed his rifle, not bothering to dissemble it, and disappeared in amongst the thick wall of growth that surrounded the camp.

Hands touched her, grabbed her. She fought back, thrashing against the vice-like grip on her wrists. Someone was holding her legs but she managed to wriggle free. Shepard kicked out, putting all strength she could behind it and was rewarded with a surprised yelp of pain.

"Shepard! Calm down!" Something in the voice was familiar enough that it broke through the blind panic. Her chest was heaving, struggling against the weight that had settled there. Her throat was soar as if she had been screaming and she could feel tears on her cheeks.

Shepard blinked and found herself looking straight into Kaidan's brown, troubled eyes. The weight eased as he lifted himself off her and she could draw a deep shaking breath.

"It's okay..." His voice was rough with emotions. "You're safe, Shepard." He wanted nothing more then to hold her but felt instinctively that she would flee like a wounded animal. Instead he moved back, gave her space. "No one's going to hurt you..." He watched as she shifted her gaze away from him to James who was sitting on his haunches by her legs, nursing a bloody nose.

"I-I'm sorry..." Her voice was small, trembling.

That more than anything rattled him. Commander Shepard didn't sound like a frightened teenager. James hid his feelings behind a grin that didn't quiet reach his worried eyes. "Hell, you've beaten me worse during sparring, Lola. I can take it, you know that. Now, come on, let's get the hell out of here." He rose, extending his hand to her. Shepard took it and he couldn't help but to notice how cold her hand was, how it trembled when he wrapped his fingers around hers and pulled her up on her feet. She looked like she was going to topple over and he steadied her with an arm around her shoulders but she tensed and moved away from him.

Her gaze settled on the chair. "Burn it."

James wasn't sure if he had heard her right. "What?"

Shepard turned her haunted eyes to the younger soldier. "You have incendiary ammo, don't you? I want that thing destroyed." Her voice was hard but there was still a frailty to it that made his heart ache for her. "Now, Lieutenant."

"Yes, ma'am." He glanced at Kaidan who stood there with pain written all over his face. The Major was torn between his wish to comfort Shepard and the knowledge that she wouldn't welcome his touch. Or any ones touch for that matter, James added, noticing how stiffly she held herself, shoulders tense, arms wrapped around her middle.

He cocked the shotgun, aimed at the metal chair and pulled the trigger. The sound of the shot was near deafening in the room and the burst of fire that enveloped the chair drove them back.

Shepard stared at the burning chair as if mesmerized. How many before her had been strapped to that thing? How many had been...

No! She turned her back to the fire abruptly. It's over. Forget it. Move on. Survive. "T-there was a camera drone... "

James cleared his throat a little. "I... eh, I shot it."

Shepard nodded. "Good. Let's go." She started for the door, back very straight, fingers clutching the handle of the gun so hard that her knuckles whitening.

Kaidan and James exchanged a glance and followed her.

So, that was chapter 4. On to chapter 5. I'm still not sure where this story is taking us but I'm sure it will be a wild ride. Dark probably, but wild. :)