Tali sat with the rest of the Normandy crew, Kaiden, Liara, Joker, Dr. Chakwa and Garrus, in an alliance base on earth. Tali hated funerals. She was never good at saying goodbye, yet here she was with what remained of the Normandy's soul, saying goodbye to one of the most amazing people she had known. Gathering some strength to look up, Tali looked at the omni-photo of Commander Shepard. He looked so brave and stoic in that picture. Joker told her it was from when he had been promoted to N7. She gulped back more tears as the music in the air continued. She felt a hand, probably Garrus', rub her back.

Most of the crew has survived, but at least twenty had been killed. The Alliance had given them their own services, but this wasn't from them. This funeral was for Shepard from the people he loved, and the ones that loves him. The soul reason they were in a military base was because he had no other home. A home that wasn't the Normandy or the streets he grew up in. Captain Anderson was there, and many of the colonists from Eden Prime and Feros had made their way to earth for this event. Friends Shepard had made during his hunt for Saren. Tali shuddered as memories came back to her. The Normandy's destruction had come so quickly that Tali never had a chance to even see Shepard one last time.

…

"All systems are failing, multiple breaches in the haul, engines shutting down! The ship's doomed, we need to get to the escape pods, NOW!"

Tali scrambled to save some data to her Omni-tool and rushed with Chief Engineer Adams.

"What about Shepard and the rest of the crew on the bridge?"

"They'll have to be quick if they want to get out of here alive. But I doubt even an exploding ship could take out the Commander!"

Tali sprinted alongside the human, ignoring the explosions and alarms going on all around her. As they ran down the hall, another explosion hit the hall and one of the engineers, Emily if Tali recalled correctly, was hit and her body slammed into the wall, twisting in horrible directions. Tali hesitated and looked back, but Adams grabbed her arm.

"Damn it Tali, we have to leave her. She's dead. Move it!"

Soon the two got to an escape pod and strapped themselves in. Not too long after, Kaiden came rushing in.

"Everybody in, go, go, go!" He strapped himself in and hit the eject button.

"Kaiden, where is Shepard?"

"Last I saw he was making his way back to the bridge to get Joker's sorry ass to an escape pod."

Tali felt a sense of dread consume her. From the damage reports she had gotten before leaving, the ship had been nearly torn in two. Going the bridge was a death sentence. Soon, their radio activated, and Joker's voice came over the comm.

"This is Joker. I'm the last escape pod. No one's left on the ship."

"What about the Commander, is he with you?" Kaiden asked.

No response.

"Joker, repeat, is the Commander with you?"

Again, no response.

"Joker," Tali said, "What did you mean when you said, 'I'm the last escape pod.'"

Finally, Joker responded.

"The Commander… he didn't make it. He got spaced just after he made sure my pod out. The ship attacked again, and he was knocked out of the pod. He gave his life to get me out."

Tali felt her head start to spin. No. No, it wasn't true, was it? It couldn't be. Shepard was the toughest there was. He couldn't die… he couldn't…

"Understood Joker… we'll…"

Kaiden couldn't even finish his sentence. Tali didn't blame him. What would they do without Shepard? He'd always been the leader of the Normandy.

"Tali? Tali! You don't look so good."

She didn't say anything. She simply gripped the seat straps and tried not to cry; to wail like a child. Screaming for the loss of their good friend.

"Shit, Tali you're suit!"

Tali looked down and saw that there was a massive hole in her suit near her stomach. Funny. She hadn't even noticed the pain. Likely an infection had already worked its way into her system. Everything started to go cold and dark, and the last thing she remembered was Kaiden telling her to hold on for just a little longer.

…

Tali felt a hot tear roll down her cheek. She hated crying. It always tickled her face and she didn't have a way to wipe them away. She looked up again and saw Captain Anderson was standing at the podium now, looking as grief stricken as the rest of them.

"Well… good evening everyone. I wish I was addressing you on more pleasant circumstances, but…"

He cleared his throat and took a moment to collect himself. He looked on the verge of tears.

"Commander Shepard… almost everyone knew him as Commander Shepard, N7 of the Alliance. I was one of the lucky ones that had the privilege… the honor to call him John. I met John for the first time when I was given command over the Normandy. He was one of the crew members, my XO. First thing he said to me was 'What are your orders sir?'" "You never forget a soldier like that. He was brave, disciplined and he got the job done with minimal causalities. The most interesting thing was that you never heard him complain. Not once. Not a single 'No sir, I can't do that.' He always pushed through. He's… John had gone through Hell and back, and he always managed. I don't know how he did it. Even after Akuze, he served and he did his job. Soldiers like the Commander are rare. Men like John… even rarer. I don't think… a lot of said that we're loosing sleep hoping he comes back home alive. Maybe he knew, or maybe we were all too stupid to tell him… But to me, he's not really gone. People like John don't die. Just M.I.A."

Anderson sighed and wiped away a few tears.

"I've got nothing else to say. If anyone else would like to say something."

He left the podium and sat down near the front. There was a few moments of silence, and then Tali saw Garrus stand next to her. He made his way to the front and stood behind the podium.

"Well… as many of you can tell, I'm not human, but I am military. So for many of you, I understand your loss. The loss of an ally and comrade; a brother in arms. And that's what Shepard was to me. I didn't know him for long, only a few months, but we were close I think. He didn't really trust me at first, but eventually as we followed his mission… we got closer. It didn't matter that I was Turian anymore, the bond we had was stronger than blood or race. I honestly can't say I'm the same man I was when I first met Shepard, and I don't think Shepard was the same soldier after it all. We rubbed off on each other in the end quite a bit I think. He taught me about real justice and I guess I taught him how to trust more. And it's hard… to believe that he's gone. Not here with us anymore. He was a leader and friend to so many of us. Things won't be the same without him, and they never will be. I guess what I'm saying is…"

He turned to the Omni-photo of Shepard.

"Goodbye Shepard. I'm going to miss you."

He left the podium and sat down next to Tali.

"That was beautiful, Garrus."

"I only said what Shepard would have said for me."

A few more moments passed and then Kaiden went up. And Liara after that, and Joker and Dr. Chakwas. They all said thanks to Shepard for what he'd done for them, said they will miss him and expressed their favorite parts about Shepard. Eventually, Tali was the only one who hadn't said anything. Mustering up what little courage she had, Tali stood up in front of everyone at the podium and cleared her throat.

"Well… I guess is my turn. When I met Shepard… I was on my pilgrimage. I was a stupid kid who had no idea what she was doing in the big world. I got myself in some trouble and he saved me. I begged to go along, knowing it was a long shot, but to my surprise, he agreed. For the longest time I knew him as Commander Shepard, the first human Specter. Then… I don't know. We just started talking more. Bonded over the things we went through together. We spent more time together on missions. At first I thought he was a quiet man who only knew how to be a soldier. I couldn't have been more wrong. Shepard was a thinker. He could solve problems and he was extraordinarily kind. He was a peacemaker in a galaxy full of soldiers."

Tali was smiling under her mask, giggling as she remembered those moments

"And now… he's gone. He sacrificed his own life to save the crew. To him, the crew was family and he would sacrifice himself to save us every time. He knew it, and so did we. There were so many times when it came close, but I don't think anyone thought it would actually happen. Not really. I don't know what's going to happen now that John… is gone, but I do know that we will all miss him. Keelah'Sali, John Shepard vas Normandy."