AN: Thank you for the comments, favorite's, and follows. It always makes me happy to open my inbox and see those lovely messages! :D

Okay, this turned out a little longer than was the original plan (I'll explain more on the bottom). This is also a little different from one of my normal chapters, so bear with me. There is also so actual dialogue that I pulled directly from the ME3 (you'll know it when you see it) and there is some of the dialogue that I pulled from the game and twisted it for my own purposes.

Bioware owns all, save for Adria and my own, personal Shep.

Enjoy!

The attack came with no warning. One minute it was quiet and peaceful (well, as quiet and peaceful as was normal, anyway), the next minute had her staggering on her feet. Explosions on some lower level shook the entire level she was on.

Warning klaxons sounded as the hospital went into lockdown and the staff began preparing for the new patients that were bound to arrive. There was no hesitation, no panic, just an increase in movement.

Non-critical patients were all moved together so that there was more space.

It was times like this that Adria hated her job. The problem was that, if a patient was too critical and unable to be worked on quickly, well, then she had to move on. She had to save as many lives as possible.

She hated life or death situations.

The pressure was horrible.

Life would find no complaints with her if there was a lot less death and a lot more life. No wars, no gangs, no battles….

Just romance and marriage and babies.

She paused with her hand on a tube of medi-gel. In the midst of all the chaos, she had forgotten to think of the well-being of someone.

It disgusted her that she hadn't thought to contact him earlier. This was his element- he'd know what all she should do.

She opened her omni-tool and keyed in his comm link code. "Kaidan?" she whispered, fear coursing through her. Static was her response. "Kaidan…oh god," she choked out.

Adria gathered all the medi-gel in front of her to her chest, trying to maintain some semblance of calm (it wouldn't do her or the patients any good if she was busy have a panic attack about a friend lost somewhere on the Citadel.

Still, she had faith.

Kaidan was a survivor. He didn't know that she knew about what happened at BAat, but she did. He survived. He served with Commander Shepard and survived (from everything she heard about the mission of them hunting the Geth and that rogue Spectre, it was a surprise anyone survived) and he survived the destruction of the Normandy and the abduction of Horizon.

He would be fine.

She just had to keep repeating that until she actually believed that.

"External comms are down," Kaidan muttered to himself as he made his way to the Councilors. Unfortunately, he was only half way to them. "No way to signal for help…limited internal comms.

"Only ship with enough processing power to come close to straightening them out isn't even here- probably half way across the galaxy saving someone else."

A traitorous part of him mind (that spoke too loud to be ignored) found that pretty convenient. She had stopped by the Citadel after every major mission save for her last one. She went straight into the next mission. Another part of him (just a tiny voice, really) wanted to think that it was because he had been released from the hospital and she didn't know where he was.

…because she thought he had been saying goodbye.

He had been pretty sure that he had been getting past her past associations with Cerberus, but, apparently, that was a lie. He had thought that talking to her in the hospital had been enough. Rubbing his forehead, he wished that things were black and white.

They used to be…back before he had met Shepard and they went on an impossible mission and found out that, according to a bunch of epically scary monsters, they were at the apex of their civilization and they were going to be brought to extinction.

Sometimes he wished that life had stayed simple. Then again, that would present the same dilemma he was currently facing with the women in his life. What would he honestly be doing if Reapers' didn't exist and he had never met Hope? Where would he be in his career?

Probably still a Lieutenant serving on a ship, not remembering the names of the crew, because, honestly, he hadn't earned his last few promotions. No, Shepard was the reason that he was currently ranked Major. Her victory on the Citadel had awarded him the rank of Commander and her work on Horizon had given him the status of Major.

And Spectre?

Hell, all the things that made him into a badass soldier had come from her…well…almost. He wasn't so pretentious to think that it was only Hope that made him the way he was. He had been a pretty decent soldier long before he had even met her. Plus, he had some pretty intense situations after he served with her….

…where she saved his ass from the Collectors'.

Damn.

"Of course she makes everyone better that serves under her. The best that the galaxy has to offer…'s the reason she's in charge of the uniting the galaxy, despite the fact that she quite literally blew a damn Batarian planet- and it's system- clean, clear off the map," he muttered to himself.

"Major," a familiar voice interrupted, causing Kaidan to shut his mouth. "It seems Cerberus is to blame for the invasion. There are squads of them on every level that I've been on."

Kaidan sighed as he looked at the Drell. Of course it was Cerberus (and he knew that, hence the reason why he was suspicious of Shepard)- why the hell wouldn't it be Cerberus? "You think they've got a target or are they just distracting us from something else?

Thane seemed to think on that. "It's my belief that-" he rolled to the left a fraction of a minute before a bullet flew through the area his head had been. Kaidan ducked into cover opposite of Thane. "I believe they have a target- or multiple targets. There're too many of them and they're too well trained to be a distraction."

After Kaidan finished off a Guardian, he joked, "That means there's only one thing missing."

"Oh?" Thane inquired, checking the clip in his rifle.

"Yeah. Shepard. She's not one to miss a huge battle."

Thane gave Kaidan a strange look. She doesn't fight because she wants to- she fights because everyone needs her to."

"I know," Kaidan admitted. "But she enjoys the fight- you can see it on her face when she makes a hard kill."

"Her gun is an extension of herself, but that's not who she really is. I'm not sure that she even knows who she is anymore. She's too worried about everyone else to worry about herself."

"I'll let you in on a little secret," Kaidan gasped as a Nemesis broke through his shields, forcing him back into cover until they regenerated, "that's always been a problem of hers. If you hadn't noticed, she doesn't even let anyone know if she's been shot, let alone voice her feelings or as for help."

Thane beaded down on the Nemesis, slowing his breath to the point that Kaidan wondered if the Drell was actually breathing. He pulled the trigger in slow motion and promptly began to reload after making sure that the Nemesis was dead. "Have you made a decision yet?"

Had he? Because he had instantly been suspicious of her, did that mean that he had made a decision? He thought back to his lists.

Kaidan sighed. "Not yet. There're too many variables- too many words," my words he added silently, "between us. We're two totally different people."

"People change," Thane admitted, "but she is an amazing woman. I never knew her before the Collector mission, but it has proven to be an honor to know her."

"Seems like it always is."

"Feelings are a little more difficult to change," Thane added.

A scream from behind them had them both turning around. Kaidan nodded decisively. "You need to go back and help whoever that was- Cerberus isn't known to take prisoners."

"What about you?"

"I've got to go find the Councilors and escort them to safety. Also, we need to find a way to broadcast onto the comm buoy. Until then, no one will know what's happening unless they tune into the emergency comm system. That's no efficient enough." He paused as he thought about it. "Let's assume that Cerberus is holding C-Sec HQ. After you find out what's happening to that civilian, go see what's happening there. C-Sec is going to need all the backup they can get.

Thane suppressed a smile. The major sounded eerily like the Commander. He nodded his head and seemed to disappear right before Kaidan's eyes. With a shake of his head, he left to find the Councilors.

It was euphoric.

He hadn't experienced the thrill of a hunt since he had left the Normandy. It was a strange thing to miss- of this he was certain-, but he was a hunter by training. The Hanar ingrained it into his very nature at a young age.

Thane didn't use a cloak like the one that Kasumi used (of course, after going on a few missions with her, he strongly considered it) because he didn't need it. He had the ability to hide in plain sight. (Shepard had once told him of a game she played sometimes called Where's Thane.) It was difficult to explain the mechanics of it, but it was hand.

At the moment, he stood perfect still in an alcove. A woman's body was laid in the center of the room with three Cerberus lackeys standing around her. She was, most likely, the source of the scream.

"We're to hold this floor at any cost. We've got one of our target's nearby, and he may try to escape," one of them informed the others (in the back of his mind, Thane could hear Shepard say, Let's call him number one. When it's time, Thane, you get One.).

"Do we get the pleasure of taking out the target?" (Number Two is yours Garrus, the ghost-voice of Shepard chimed in).

"No way," a female voice responded (Number Three is mine.), "Kai Leng will appear at the last second and make the kill.

Thane stepped further back into the alcove to do a search on Kai Leng when he was interrupted by a familiar voice demanding, "Hey, hello, is anyone there? What's going on?" over the comm.

Looking around, Thane slipped away from his hiding spot and out of earshot of the Cerberus soldiers. He skirted into the shadows and entered a storefront.

"This is the SSV Normandy, is anyone out there?"

"This is Thane, are you really here?" he asked.

"Yeah, this is Joker."

Thane rubbed his temples. "We have a small situation on the Citadel- no external comms."

"Yeah, no kidding," Joker said sarcastically.

"I need to talk to Shepard, Joker. I need her help."

Thane waited until he heard her say, "Go ahead, Thane."

"Shepard, the Citadel is under attack," Thane explained as quickly as he could. "Cerberus troops are everywhere and they're in control of the docks."

"Are you safe?"

Thane blinked twice before saying. "I'm in a Presidium storefront."

There was a slight pause and she asked, "Did Kaidan make it out?"

"We got separated. He said that he had to protect the Council. I'm going to C-Sec headquarters." He proceeded to explain the HQ was being held by Cerberus and, until it was freed, Cerberus held the entire station.

"Alright," he heard her say after a moment of thought, "Joker, get us away from the docks and as close to C-Sec HQ as you can get. We'll deploy in the shuttle."

"Aye-aye, Commander."

"Thane…."

"Commander?"

"Stay safe."

It was all going according to plan.

Well…almost.

Somehow, Valern had disappeared and Udina's network could place him.

No matter, one of the Illusive Man's drones would find and kill him. It was a pity that Udina wouldn't get to see his face as he realized that he was going to die, but there was a bigger picture to look forward to.

The only regret that Udina had was that Major Alenko had found him and the other Councilors. It was a shame that Alenko would have to die with Tevos and Sparatus. He had already proven that he would never leave the Alliance for Cerberus when he had met up with Shepard on Horizon- shocking, even, to the Illusive Man.

If only some other Spectre had found them…especially if it had been Shepard. Somehow, despite showing where her loyalties lie, the Illusive Man harbored hope for her. Even Udina had once fostered faith in Shepard when she appeared on the Citadel after her temporary death. She was an excellent soldier (better, even, than Alenko) and always brought her people out on the other side.

But Udina had disliked her from the moment that he met her. Not only was she a great soldier, but she exuded an aura of charisma and confidence that would lend to any negotiation. Even given his own skills of negotiation and his political experience, he had a distinct feeling that he would lose to her in any negotiation.

"Councilor Udina," Major Alenko interrupted his thoughts, "We need to head out."

As Udina fell into line behind Alenko and in front of Tevos, all he could think was, Well, at least I get the pleasure of knowing the Major's death will hurt Shepard.

Well, this is completely FUBAR.

First, Bailey had been shot. She had watched him go down and, with the way that he fell, she had been certain that he was dead. She felt her heart clench in her throat as she set to work on the Cerberus assholes. Her grief for him was eons different than when she lost Ash and Mordin, but it was still intense grief.

Luckily, the shot had missed anything vital and Bailey had been playing dead (Shepard considered shooting him in the foot for making her think that he had died).

That was about where their luck ended.

"Cerberus has control of C-Sec. While they do, they have control of the station," Bailey informed her, scanning the open files on the terminal.

"Of course they do," she sighed.

"Wait a minute," Bailey said slowly, reading something in its entirety. "Looks like the Salarian Councilor was here just before the attack meeting with the Executor."

James stepped forward, looking confused. "Why would he be meeting with the Executor?"

"That usually means that someone big is about to be taken down. All he said was, Be on guard- the likelihood of betrayal from within is high…. Not a lot else."

"The Council mentioned Udina," Garrus offered, stepping forward. "Does he even have that kind of pull?"

It all clicked.

It made sense that he was with Cerberus. He didn't think much of other species and he had a mean-streak the size of Mars. He was all about Humanity- other species be damned.

Of course he was Cerberus.

Problem was that Kaidan was now escorting three of the four Councilors to an evac point that was compromised by Udina. Problem number two lay with the Alliance and the fact that he would sooner die than join their ranks.

…and, if a Cerberus Operative found them…well…then Kaidan would die.

She clenched her hands into tight fists. "It doesn't matter right now- we'll worry about Udina" that treacherous asshole "later. Right now, we need to kick Cerberus out of C-Sec."

"I've set up a comm channel so that we can communicate," Bailey offered.

Shepard spared him a quick smile of appreciation. "Garrus, James, go see what kind of data or spare clips Cerberus has laying around or on them."

Garrus gave her a knowing look and left with James to search the fallen bodies. Shepard leaned onto the desk and sighed tiredly. She might, even, have rubbed her temples had it not been for the gauntlets adorning her arms and hands.

"Seems like you're thinking really hard on how to ask a simple question," Bailey pointed out.

Okay. Straight to the point then.

"I need you to try to contact Major Kaidan Alenko. He is escorting Udina, Tevos, and Sparatus."

Bailey looked pained. "I don't even know if I can access any open channels as it is, let alone a specific one."

Shepard nodded. "He needs to know about Udina- or our suspicions, at least."

"I'll work on it."

"Thanks." She straightened herself up and the said, a little louder, "Garrus, James, we're moving out!"

AN: Okay, this was definitely supposed to get a little further, but character's kept wanting their voices heard, so that's actually what happened. I hope you all enjoyed it. I know, I know, there was in-game dialogue (remember, I mentioned that in the beginning), but…well…I couldn't help myself. Feel free to comment!