A pleasant shade of lilac filtered down upon the bed. In addition to the soft blue in the corner, the cool colors provided an easy transition for Shepard as he rose from his slumber. He yawned aloud in the air, stretching his arms wide as he looked to his left, his last thought coming to him.

The bed on his side was empty but indented. Shepard had placed a hand over the area and found it to be still warm. He smiled, Tali must have gone downstairs for something to eat, the chronometer on the nearby next indicated that it was early morning after all.

Gazing upward, he saw the familiar arms of the Citadel situated above him. It was the sight that had greeted him in his cabin for the past five days. He had spent two of them recovering in a hospital bay before his insistence on recovering in a more comfortable location was granted, allowing him to move back into the Normandy and recuperate in a more social environment.

He lifted his left arm and gently prodded the bandage that ran across his face in a diagonal line. The cut had been deep but there was no permanent damage that had occurred. Synthetic flesh scarred but the injury had completely torn a significant strip from Shepard's face. In the end, he needed to have a careful growth application directly to the wound so that he could maintain his normal appearance. This way, there would be no mark once the bandages were removed, no evidence that he had received an injury of any sort.

Alliance technicians, the same ones who had modified him, had mended his leg, skin layer covering the job they had done with his modifications. They had reported, much to his surprise, that the leg had been completely ruined by Kai Leng, bits of metal had been jutting out, piercing the skin as it looked like a strut had exploded from within. Of course, when one's ability to feel pain is dramatically lessened, it is unlikely that anyone would consider injuries the same again. They had to spend six hours working at the destroyed hydraulics and shock absorbers to make it work well again. To Shepard's relief, they succeeded.

His right arm lay across his lap, connected to his body once more, completely bare of any skin. The technicians didn't want to complete it right away as they wanted his other injuries to heal first. This time, the fingers and structure of the apparatus were silver-white, almost ivory, as they glinted from the twinkling stars above. The familiar clicks and whirs coming from the gears and rotors of the arm were all too fresh in his mind. It was a partial step backwards but at least he wasn't staring at his hideous mug underneath it all. At least this time, he knew that his arm would be completed in short order. If they could do it once, they could do it again.

He kicked off his covers and stood from the bed, stretching his legs. There were no twinges or any halting movements that impaired his ability to walk. He was whole again, in a sense. A long glove was on the edge of the bed and he picked it up. Shaking it a couple times, Shepard pulled it over the exposed metal of his arm, he didn't want to see it any longer than necessary, a habit that he started when he noted that Tali wasn't exactly taking to his appearance all that well. That being done, he paced around the room a few times, waking himself up gradually when the door to his cabin slid open and the one person he wanted to see at the moment walked in.

Tali seemed to glide across the room, which meant that she was in a happy mood. Her arm was in a sling, she too had to be operated on to set the bones that were misaligned when she was stabbed. Somehow, she had found the time and the equipment to patch up the pair of holes where the sword had entered her suit. Even on a close examination, you could never tell what had happened for the suit had been meticulously pieced together and sealed shut.

Just as she had predicted, she had been confined to her bed once she had exited surgery due to the sudden rise of a fever. There was no way to tell whether this had been brought on from her night with Shepard or when her suit was exposed to the Collector's atmosphere. Either way, her core temperature had risen so much that when they shared their bed, Shepard could feel the heat radiate off her in waves, concerning him to the point where he had to wrap her in several blankets for a couple nights while he watched from the couch, making sure that she was comfortable enough and not tossing and turning.

Tali, despite her condition, absolutely adored the fact that the days had calmed down enough for her and Shepard to spend some alone time once they had been properly patched up. Sleeping in the same bed, as friends and lovers, was a privilege that most quarians never got to experience, so she made sure to treasure them accordingly. Shepard could not get sick from her illness, or as she put it: an "acute allergic reaction," so this did not stop him in any way from holding her tightly as they slept, preventing her from crying out in pain brought on from her hazy delirium.

She, in turn, had also noted that Shepard's attitude had improved brightly shortly after he had come back to the Normandy. However, there was one such incident, the first night they had been together again, when Shepard simply sat down on the couch after walking in and immediately started to sob. Distressed, she had run over to him and gripped his body with her good arm as Shepard held his head in his hands.

It took a while before she finally realized that he was whispering a word many times over. Straining to hear, she finally caught the faint sound of, "Kaidan...Kaidan…" repeated again and again.

Kaidan Alenko. The Alliance commander who had sacrificed himself for her. The man who had never doubted his superior officer, stuck by his side when the worst was in front of them. A soldier and a friend, now gone. It never hit Tali until then that someone she knew so well as a close comrade was dead, but died making sure that she lived. He had died showing more respect for her than her father ever did, a fact that hammered Tali to her very core as she suddenly felt heavier as despair overcame her. As she sank into the soft surface, she recalled that it had felt like hours as the two of them cried together, mourning the loss of the young soldier and his brave final act. Tali had given a mental thanks to the human, wherever he was now, for allowing her to be with Shepard a little while longer.

Shepard still carried that far-away look of brooding when she walked up to him now, running a hand over his face, palm smoothed over the bandages as she reached up to him. He instinctively used his right arm to hold her exploring palm, the odd sensation of firm fingers flooding back to her as she relaxed in his grip.

His thoughts abruptly turned to Tali as she touched him, "How's your fever?"

She nodded, "Much better. It should be gone in the next day or so."

Shepard gave a tired smile, "I'm glad." Leading her over to the couch, where they had spent most of their time, they sat down and proceeded to stare up at the nebula, past the overarching structure of the Citadel. They silently watched ships fly by for a few minutes until Tali worked up the courage to speak.

"Still thinking about Kaidan?"

He clutched her with his hand tightly, "Yes. I am."

"He was a good man," Tali soothed him. "A wonderful person."

"He was," Shepard agreed. "He was a great friend." He tapped his free hand against his leg as he turned his head a bit, "How are the others taking it?"

"Liara's been locked up in her room, she's still in shock. Garrus is still passed out at the bar from drinking all night."

"Poor guy," he sighed. "Still, I'd imagine it's a send off that Kaidan would smile at. He was always the first one to make a beeline for the beers. Bless that turian."

"And what about you, John?" she now indicated. "How are you holding up?"

Shepard adjusted his position on the couch, "I honestly can't say. On one hand, we just won a major victory by beating the Collectors, but I don't know if the price we paid was too high. Hundreds of thousands of colonists lost to build a Reaper, twenty men under my command, and a friend I've known for a long time. I don't know how I should feel at the moment."

Tali leaned her head across his shoulder, "Did you really think you could save all of us?"

"I did at one point!" Shepard scowled. "I understand that even if one person is left standing then it's considered a victory but that's not what I want! I want for everyone to come home safely, all of them! To see people taken right in front of me, killed following my orders, I now know that I am helpless to what's about to come...but I have to believe that everything will be all right…"

"Shhh," Tali whispered to the agitated human, "You're just one man. You're not omniscient. If you help everyone in need, you will burn yourself out."

"That's just what I do, Tali," Shepard shrugged sadly. "Doing that helped me meet you in the first place. What does that say about me if I give up now?"

"Well, it certainly tells me one thing."

"And that is?"

She lovingly stroked his cheek, with the hand that wasn't confined to the sling, "That I chose well."

He clutched her hand and kissed the back of it, sending tingles up her arm, causing her to smile warmly. He looked up at her and grinned, "As did I."

She leaned on him so that her back was touching his chest. She felt his strong hands wrap around her waist and she sighed as they tenderly caressed her midsection. Shepard, feeling the effects of withdrawal, could not help himself as he bent his head to kiss the shoulder of Tali's suit. She shuddered all the same, feeling his gentle touch and letting out a low groan as his hands started to travel upward, stroking her arms.

Eventually, she felt her muscles relax and she collapsed completely on him. Her hands reached up and grasped his, pulling them down so that she could cross them over her chest. Her breathing calmed as his fingers began to gently brush her hands, unable to do anything else from her desperate clamp.

She breathed to the heavens above, "I wish I'd met you earlier. I would do anything to have more time like this. Just us, no threat of war looming over our heads. Just you and me."

Shepard closed his eyes in his position, breathing in silent agreement, "That actually reminds me of an idea. A very old concept that some humans still cling to back on Earth."

"What?"

"Well, some believe that after death the soul lives on in a process called reincarnation. If that soul has a partner, a mate, then they are destined to meet in the next life, and the one after that. It sort of conforms to the overall concept of being soulmates, that the two are not complete without the other beside it."

Tali looked up, eyes wide and shining, "That sounds...beautiful, John. Do you really believe such a thing is possible?"

He shrugged, "It's hard to say at this point. I would most certainly like to believe it because I'll know then that we will never be apart for long. That I'll always find you in the end. If I think about it like that...then I feel more optimistic towards the future."

She began toying with his fingers, "It also means that we have done this before, if we look deeper into its meaning."

"That is very true. Hell, I might have been a quarian at some point, if you think about it."

"And I could have been a human," Tali groaned mockingly. "Ugh, I can't imagine myself with all of that pink flesh and these ten fingers. What am I supposed to do with all of them?"

"Could be worse," Shepard defended, "We both could have been krogan."

That caused a genuine laugh to erupt from the both of them, as they choked back tears from the action. Tali burrowed her helmet into Shepard's arm as she giggled helplessly while the human fought to maintain his composure. Once their chortling had subsided, both breathed out in relief, feeling the heat surge to the other from the strenuous act.

"I love you, John," Tali breathed, facing forward.

He tenderly stroked the back of her hood, "I love you, Tali."

And they both meant it.

The polished shoe tapped an angry rhythm on the equally shiny floor. The black tile reflected the light from the sun across from them as the man in the chair furiously stubbed out the butt of a cigarette, smoke rising lazily from the ashtray.

Multiple monitors were flaring with data in front of the man in the chair while the other figure stood silently behind him, hands behind his back. A holographic representation of the cylindrical Collector station appeared to the sitting man's right, taken by scans from Kai Leng's final mission.

The figure standing didn't open his mouth. He would speak when spoken to. He had learned that lesson the hard way and it was a mistake he was keen not to repeat.

The Illusive Man sighed, leaning back on the headrest as he rubbed his temples, "Shepard seems to be quite adept at costing me more than time and money."

That was his cue, "Turning Shepard over to our cause was always going to be a difficult prospect. The man has never held loyalty toward us or our objectives."

"Which was why special precautions were put into place so that him getting loose would never happen! Now look, an entire fleet decimated, the Collector base destroyed, and a top operative dead. What other tricks does the man have up his sleeve?"

"If you're suggesting that transferring him over into his current body was a mistake, I assure you that-"

"Be quiet, I hold no ill will toward you for this, despite my attitude at the moment. I am more concerned with the lack of effort demonstrated by members of this organization!"

The figure coughed, "I assure you, sir, that I have done my best in every situation you've given me. I have had no reason to not take every situation as seriously as possible." The Illusive Man did not speak so the man continued, "Leng was a skilled warrior, but he was arrogant, overzealous. He had thought he had gained the upper hand over Shepard when he clearly ignored the other variables present alongside him, resulting in his downfall."

"Are you presuming that you are better than Leng was? Do I have to remind you, that you also failed once in a situation eerily similar to this?"

"I had not forgotten, sir," fear surprisingly absent from his voice. "I am merely pointing out the errors made in Shepard's favor, allowing him and his squad to gain the upper hand."

The Illusive Man turned his chair around, away from the monitors, his attention squarely on the figure now, "And you? Do you recall the errors you made?"

"They have been rectified, sir," he raised a hand in reassurance. "I can meet Shepard head on, now. I can beat him, sir."

"That is what Leng claimed," the man sat back in his chair. "And he is not here any longer."

"Leng used his past victories to create his own mental image of invulnerability. My mistakes have been put on full display for me to learn from. You've placed a large amount of stock in me by allowing me to stand here today. Unless if you were truly desperate, you would not have confided in me otherwise."

The Illusive Man steeped his hands together and smiled, speaking quietly, "You truly are too clever for your own good, you know that?" When the man didn't reply, probably a wise move, the Illusive Man stood and motioned for him to follow as they walked toward the window. "It was a mistake, I'll admit, placing my faith in Leng to track down and kill Shepard. The man was as controllable as a rabid dog, no finesse, no art. Just rage. However, despite these setbacks, I don't think I'll count the commander out as a total loss just yet."

"Sir?"

"He still has his uses," the man clarified, "His aim towards defeating the Reapers runs parallel to our goals, which means he can unwittingly provide us with the kind of lateral support that would be beneficial to us."

"What is it that you would have me do?"

"What it is I tell you." The blue glow of the small, hot star washed over their faces and caused the Illusive Man to slightly squint through the darkened windows. He turned around, the back of his head illuminated, as he spoke, "You are not to go after Shepard."

"Understood, sir," the reply came promptly, not a trace of disappointment in his voice.

"This does not bother you?"

"In my opinion, tracking Shepard is a waste of time and resources. As you said, his goals run parallel to ours so it would be logical to consider the fact that we will run into each other eventually.

"Like I said," the Illusive Man gave a tiny smile, "Too clever for your own good."

A tiny bit of pride passed through the figure at that, but he dared not show it, merely nodding as he pressed for information once more, "What would you have me do, if not to go after Shepard?"

The well-dressed man sighed, "The Reapers are coming, my friend. It will only be a matter of months until they arrive but until that time, we simply wait for the perfect opportunity to strike, when everyone else is...indisposed."

"So, we use the upcoming invasion as a diversion for our objectives."

"Precisely," the Illusive Man's expression suddenly turned cold as the color of the star outside. "I will send you on missions of extreme importance that will have a great effect on things to come. You will be my personal right hand from this point forward. You speak with my voice now."

The man's face chilled, "However, I expect nothing but calm professionalism from here on out. Fail me one more time and I will not bring you back in. Do not make this a personal vendetta against Shepard, I have no time for men on missions of revenge. That is not the purpose of what I am sending you out to do and if you make it any business other than mine, you will be discarded, got it?"

"Perfectly, sir," came the curt response, unfazed by the waving light shining through. "Shepard will be dealt with in due time anyway but I will hold back until you give the word. Make no mistake, I have no intentions of letting you down again."

"See to it that you remember that well. Will you be ready to head out at a moment's notice when the time comes?"

"Undeniably, sir. I am most anxious to begin."

To be concluded in Part III: Inferno!

A/N: Two parts down, one to go! Wow, we've come a long way, haven't we?

I hope you enjoyed this part as much as I did writing it. Drop a review on the board if there is something that catches your eye, both good or bad.

I will release my commentary tomorrow before I take a short break as I revise this part and correct any typos.

Thank you all for sticking with me so far, there's still a lot more story to get through so don't go far! I'm excited to see them to fruition.

You've been a great and receptive audience, keep at it!