Kaidan knew that the shuttle bay was used as a makeshift gym by the marines; it was a common practice for Alliance ships although not an official one. So he wasn't exactly surprised to find the marines and squad in the shuttle bay, training.

What was surprising was the makeshift boxing ring that was made; crates were used to make the boundary as two marines squared off in the centre, with James overseeing the match. The lieutenant observed the two marines carefully as they avoided and landed blows. It seemed that the training exercise had caught the attention of the entire ship, as Garrus, Tali, Liara and Javik were also observing the match.

All seemed engrossed in the event, all aside from Kacey; she observed but seemed to be lost in thought. Kaidan had a feeling as to why and as the match concluded, his suspicion was confirmed.

"Looks good but you need to work on your defence, Mckensie." Kacey mused as the two marines hopped over the crates, "If you can't keep your defences up, the enemy could go right through you. Calhoun, good offence but you need to be aware of your position at all times."

"Yes Ma'am." Private Calhoun replied.

"Of course Ma'am." Private Mckensie added.

"So, who wants to go next?" James asked, clapping his hands together.

"I will." Kacey replied bluntly.

Kaidan rolled his eyes as the crowd made a 'oooo' noise reminiscent of a bunch of schoolkids mocking the kid being called to the headmaster's office. Only Javik and Liara shared Kaidan's point of view on the reaction. Kacey hopped over the crates as James addressed the crowd.

"So, who's brave enough to take on Commander Shepard?" James said with a smirk.

"Why don't you do it, James?" Tali said.

"No thanks, Sparks." James mused nervously, "I…I've already gone a round."

"And lost." Kacey smirked.

Garrus choked, "I knew it."

"Hey, this isn't about me!" James protested, "So, any volunteers?"

Kaidan sighed, "I'll do it. Just to put you out of your misery, Lieutenant."

James' eyes widened as he looked at Kaidan, while Garrus couldn't hold back his laughter. While most shared James' shock, Kacey seemed almost unsurprised by his offer. Kaidan couldn't quite understand why, it had been years since they last sparred together. And it was a tense match, one that nearly resulted in both of them being put in the med-bay.

"Out of my—Kaidan, dude you do know who you're sparring against, right?" James scoffed.

"I'm well aware." Kaidan replied plainly, "And trust me, it's not the first time we've trained together."

"I remember that." Kacey replied reminiscing, "Come to think of it, that ended in a tie, didn't it?"

"It did." Kaidan said, "This tiebreaker is a little overdue."

Kacey scoffed, "A little? Seven years overdue is not a little."

"Alright, Commander, Major, are you ready?" James asked.

"Ready." Kacey replied.

"Ready." Kaidan added.

"Okay. Ready, steady…" James said, "Go!"

Kaidan watched carefully as Kacey paced around the small arena; he knew exactly what she was trying to do. She was trying to bait him into swinging first, so she could dodge it and grapple him and get him pinned down.

Kacey always fought dirty; he wasn't ashamed to admit that the first time he trained with Kacey, he had his ass handed to him on a silver platter. His loss was the result of being caught off guard by her tactics and the weight of her punches. Much like how she played poker, Kacey was good at deception and was more than happy to bait her opponent to allow her to turn the tables. He had fallen for it in the past, but now he was much more aware of her dirty tricks.

The weight of her punches was something that continued to catch him off guard; Kacey certainly didn't lack strength as the dent in the engineering deck could attest. Kacey could clearly keep up with James in strength and then some, and James wasn't exactly weak in any sense of the word.

Kaidan feigned a right hook only to switch to the left, narrowly missing Kacey as she moved back, blocking his blow and catching him off guard with a punch to the right side. It wasn't as strong as before; Kaidan assumed that she was holding back. Kaidan swung left, right and left again in quick succession, catching Kacey on the third swing.

"Not bad." Kacey smirked, "You've improved since last time."

"What can I say? I had a good teacher." Kaidan replied with a smirk as he moved out of the way of Kacey's blows.

Kacey moved closer, feigning a left hook only to move for a right hook that narrowly planted itself in Kaidan's jaw. Kaidan staggered back, but quickly recovered as Kacey moved to grapple Kaidan, however Kaidan responded by grabbing a hold of Kacey's arm and swinging her over, moving her to the opposite side away from him, putting distance between them. The crew seemed engrossed in their fight, with even Garrus, Tali and Liara showing a strong interest.

Kaidan hit her with four jabs in quick succession; but Kacey was faster and retaliated with four of her own, feigning the last one and replacing it with a right hook. Kacey grappled Kaidan, flipping him over her shoulder and causing Kaidan to hit the ground hard. Kaidan smirked; he had a trick up his sleeve. Noticing his foot was very close to Kacey's, he used her own tactics against her and used his foot to knock her off balance, causing the scarlet-haired commander to fall on her backside. Kaidan quickly scrambled to pin her down, leading to the crowd's surprised gasp.

"Gotcha." Kaidan smirked.

Kacey smirked, "Smartass. But we're not done."

"Huh?"

Kaidan completely missed it; her left arm pressed against his chest, and as she pushed him up, Kaidan found himself with his back to the floor, with Kacey on top. She had him pinned against the floor, forcing his defeat.

"Checkmate." Kacey smirked, "I was surprised you actually got the jump on me a few times. I guess the student is becoming a master."

"True but I still have a lot to learn if you're still able to beat me like that." Kaidan smirked as Kacey released him, "I thought I had you."

"You nearly did." Kacey replied, helping him up, "Had you managed to catch my arm blocking you, you probably would have."

"Wait a minute." James mused, "You trained Kaidan?"

"A little bit." Kacey replied, "We haven't done anything like that in years."

"Plus I know how you fight, Kacey." Kaidan mused.

"I didn't take you as one to fight dirty, Commander." Garrus said in an amusing tone.

"Maybe because I don't get the opportunity to do so." Kacey mused.

"Why ask, Garrus?" Kaidan smirked, "Do you want to give it a go?"

"Sure. I could take her."

"Alright let's go!" Kacey said as Kaidan hopped over the crates as Garrus entered the ring. Kaidan already knew how the fight was going to end and, as the turian landed on his backside, Kaidan couldn't help but laugh.

…

"Now that was fast." Kaidan mused as they reached the CIC, "I don't think I've seen anyone hit the ground that fast."

"Garrus should have kept his distance." Kacey mused, "He watched us spar and didn't learn a thing."

"To be fair, turians go through more rigorous training than us."

"True."

"Commander, Thessia is under heavy Reaper attack!" Joker said through the comms, "There's activity across most of the planet."

"Fuck. What about the temple?" Kacey asked, as she headed towards the cockpit with Kaidan in tow, "Can you raise the scientists?"

"Negative." Joker said, "All channels are scrambled across the spectrum. The mission's looking really dicey."

"That's never stopped us before." Kaidan mused.

"And it won't now." Kacey added, "This is far too important. It's now or never."

"Kacey, that's my home down there." Liara said anxiously as she approached, "I have to go."

"Don't worry, everybody is going." Kacey replied firmly, "It's all hands on deck, let's go."

It didn't take long for the entire squad to scramble to the shuttle. It was made clear that this was far too important to waste time. Cortez didn't hesitate to take off in the shuttle the moment the last member of the squad stepped foot on the shuttle.

The air in the shuttle was tense; Liara eyes glued to the screen showing Reapers destroying a city on Thessia. Kaidan found the scene familiar; it was just like Earth, when he was running through Vancouver with James, trying to reach the Normandy. Kacey, however, refused to even look in the general direction of the screen or Liara.

"Liara, do you have anything more on this artefact?" Kacey asked.

"These coordinates the Councillor gave you are for the Temple of Athame." Liara said, "My mother took me there once. It's several thousand years old. And for some reason, it has classified government funding."

"Sounds like we're on the right trail." Kacey mused.

"It sounds suspicious though." Garrus mused, "Why would a temple have classified government funding?"

"That's a question for later." Kaidan mused.

"What if we're too late?" Liara said, her voice shaky, "My people are dying down there."

"Your empathy is a weakness." Javik mused, "You must numb yourself to loss."

"If that was your attempt to make her feel better, you failed." Tali scoffed.

"I was not trying to."

"Benezia took you to the temple?" Kacey asked, pulling Liara's attention away from Javik.

"I was just a child." Liara reminisced, "I thought it was just a history lesson but now…maybe there's more to it."

Kaidan shot Liara a puzzled look, "What do you mean?"

Liara stood up, pulling out her omni-tool, "I went digging through her old files. She had heavily encrypted records on this place, some dating back centuries. I still can't crack most of them. Whatever's going on, it's well hidden."

"Wait a minute." James mused, "Benezia…wasn't she indoctrinated?"

Kaidan shot James a sharp look as Kacey facepalmed. Liara simply gave the bulky marine a straight answer.

"Yes." Liara replied plainly, "We had to kill her."

"Oh…" James trailed off.

"That is why you must steel yourself." Javik added, "More lives will be lost."

"We can't ignore that people are dying." Kacey said, her tone defensive, "The Reapers may not have mercy but we do."

Javik scoffed, "It is their indifference that gives them power."

"Yeah? Well just watch me take it away." Kacey responded.

Cortez began to lower the shuttle; Kacey opened the hatch and the devastation of Thessia came into full view.

"Oh Keelah…" Tali gasped.

The skyline was filled with dark smoke; the silhouettes of the buildings barely visible behind the smoke. Reapers towered over the city, their lasers piercing through the buildings. Fires burned relentlessly among the debris of the city, once pristine buildings crumbled to ash. The sounds of gunfire, explosions and Reaper beams erupted all over. It was pure chaos; pure destruction.

It was devastating.

"Goddess…this can't be happening!" Liara said crestfallen, "My home…"

"We're a little exposed up here." Kaidan said.

"Let's get down!" Kacey ordered.

A small camp awaited the squad at the bottom; asari soldiers shouting and attacking the enemy as much as they could. The corpses of their fallen comrades laid covered at the back of the small encampment.

"You must be Commander Shepard." One of the asari soldiers said, "Commander, we heard—"

An explosion interrupted her as the asari barricade exploded. One of the huntresses ran to cover the gap in the barricade.

"The barricade had been breached!" The soldier said, "Commander, we'll talk later! Get on that gun and do some damage!"

"Got it!" Kacey replied.

The squad moved up on top of the barricade with the exception of Tali and EDI, who on Kacey's orders, remained on the ground to support the asari blocking the gap in the barricade.

A massive wave of husks and cannibals flooded across the bridge; with a dozen marauders supporting them. Kaidan opened fire as Kacey hopped in the turret and the squad opened fire on the waves of husks and cannibals. Grenades and proximity mines were being thrown from the barricade as the squad pushed back against the horde. Kaidan kept his head down as he reloaded his rifle, trying his best to keep on top of the thermal clip count as he tried to keep back the horde. The turret did help to cut through the horde, but the enemy wave was relentless.

Liara planted a singularity in the middle of the horde, picking up a large amount of husks; Kaidan set off a large cryo blast, freezing enough husks for Javik and James to blast through. Garrus fired concussive shots as Kacey ploughed through their numbers with the turret. The asari covering the gap was starting to struggle as more husks bombarded the barrier.

"I…I can't…hold on…much longer…" The asari breathed.

Kaidan looked over towards Kacey, catching her gaze, "Commander!"

"Do it Kaidan!" Kacey shouted.

Kaidan nodded before jumping off the barricade. He ran over as fast as he could to the asari and put up his own barrier covering the gap. The asari stopped, taking a deep breath before saying, "Thank you."

Kaidan could see why the asari was having a hard time; the husks smashed themselves against his barrier hard and they were relentless. Tali and EDI did their best to take down as many close to the barrier as possible. Even as their numbers thinned, the fight was still not done.

"Brutes inbound!" James shouted.

"Try to hold on this time, Shepard!" Garrus smirked.

"Yeah, yeah!" Kacey scoffed.

Three brutes skidded onto the bridge as they bolted towards the barricade. Kacey opened fire on them, killing two and narrowly hitting the third, which crashed into the barrier. Kaidan struggled to keep the barrier up, feeling the familiar seething pain run through his skull. Two concussive shots from Kacey and Garrus' guns launched the brute back, allowing James and Liara to put it down.

"We're clear!" Kacey shouted as she hopped off the barricade.

Kaidan took a deep breath as he dropped his barrier, feeling drained. As Kacey approached, she handed him an energy drink, a look of concern on her face.

"You okay?" She asked.

Kaidan took a sip of the juice before replying, "Yeah, yeah I will be. I didn't know you still…"

"Force of habit." Kacey replied, "Besides, you never know when you need it."

"Maybe I need to start carrying it around."

"Maybe, but that's a topic for another time." Kacey replied, "I'll talk to the lieutenant, you rest up."

Kacey took a few steps towards the lieutenant before turning around, adding, "And make sure you drink that."

"Aye, aye." Kaidan smirked.

As Kacey spoke with the lieutenant, the squad took the time to take a breather; it was already an intense fight and they had barely gotten started. Kaidan rubbed his temple; he hoped this migraine of his would subside soon.

…

"I was here years ago." Liara mused as they crossed the bridge "To see the city burning like this…"

"It can be rebuilt." Kacey mused, "Just worry about the next twenty metres."

Liara didn't seem convinced, "This has to end!"

"Draw strength from your anger." Javik said, "It will keep you alive."

"Remember that cause here they come!" Kacey shouted, "Staggered approach! Try to use cover!"

"Yes, Commander!" The squad replied in unison.

The marauders and cannibals opened fire, but were met with a barrage of bullets coupled with the shield overloads courtesy of Kaidan and Garrus. The squad bounced from cover to cover as they took down each of their opponents. After all, they were exposed on the bridge. Kacey led them into a nearby building, moving carefully over the crumpled metal and ashen debris. Sparks flew from broken machinery as they reached a courtyard.

"Look, we've got fire support!" Liara said as she pointed out the small group of asari on the roof.

The asari opened fire as a harvester appeared but the fight was short as the harvester blasted them to pieces. As ground troops flooded the courtyard, the squad moved into cover, but it was clear that Liara wasn't focused on that.

"No! Damn them!" Liara shouted.

"Keep your focus, Liara!" Kacey said.

"Those things are slaughtering my people!" Liara shouted back.

"Then avenge their loss." Javik replied.

Kaidan could see that Kacey was tuning out of the conversation and turned her focus to the chaotic battlefield. As more Reaper ground forces flooded the courtyard, the squad's focus was divided and Kaidan hoped that they would reach the temple soon.