All around her was darkness, an infinite void of seemingly endless black. There was not a single other thing in this emptiness. Yet, it did not bother her. She felt actually calm in this strange void. It were as if… she was at peace.
This peace would not stretch on forever however, as sounds began to fill her ears.
"….ian! Guardian!"
It was a voice. High pitched, and obnoxiously cheerful. It was stirring her from her rest.
"C'moooooon! Eyes up, Guardian!"
Oh lord! What was that voice?! It sounded like a screaming child! Now she wanted to wake up just so she could shut them up!
Her eyes shot wide open. Right in her face was a single glowing blue eye staring right at her.
"Whatcha dreamin' about?"
…
…
…
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
The woman felt her body spring to life as she jumped up in terror off the couch. The small eye didn't even flinch at the scream. Instead, it felt happiness surge through its whole being and it danced around her happily.
"YOU'RE HERE! YOU'RE AWAKE! YAY! I'M SO HAPPY!"
The woman watched the little eyeball dance around happily in both fright and cluelessness. It was hopping all over the place. It was like watching a rabbit on coffee.
"HOORAY! I FINALLY HAVE MY GUARDIAN! I'VE WAITED SO LONG THAT I'D THOUGHT IT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN, BUT IT DID! IT DID!"
The little eye sounded female. Though the woman was still unsure as to what exactly it was. Some sort of small robot perhaps? Though, she didn't think there would be any robot that could show joy on THIS scale.
The eye flew right up to the human's face again.
"You and I are gonna be the best of friends! We'll go on all sorts of fun adventures together! I can hardly wait!"
"Wh- What?! H-hang on for just a minute!" The woman pleaded nervously. "Who are you? What are you?"
"That's obvious, silly! I'm a Ghost!" It spoke as if the woman knew what that was. "I'm your Ghost to be exact! You can call me-"
"Edith?"
Over by the doorway, the woman saw another floating robot. This one was white with a vertical red stripe in the center, and two golden prongs attached to the top and bottom points of its shell. It was looking at Edith with a disappointed and annoyed glare.
"Edith… We told you to let her rest. That poor woman's been through enough as it is. She doesn't need you scaring the bejesus out of her!" It scolded the other Ghost.
"I'm sorry, Sundance. I just couldn't help myself. I wanted to talk to her so badly." Edith apologized.
Sundance hovered over to the woman.
"Please forgive Edith. She's really impatient."
The woman nodded. She picked herself up off the floor, sitting back on the couch. She could feel an agonizing throbbing sensation in her skull. It was as though someone was pounding at it with a jackhammer.
"You okay?" Sundance asked.
Despite being asked, she responded with another question.
"Where am I?"
"My place. What's left of it, anyway."
Walking into the room came a new face. This one… almost human.
It looked like some kind of… robot, would be the best way to describe it. It was male from the sound of his voice. His body was athletically built and clad in brown leather armor as well as a black and red hood cloaked around his head with a long, torn cape draped down the back.
The robot's face was a dual color of white at the forehead, and light blue across the lower face. A short blue horn also protruded off his forehead. His eyes were a bright blue and his mouth would glow orange whenever he would speak. There was also something strapped to his hip. A large revolver pistol. Black and white with a spade imprint on both sides of the barrel and grip. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that he looked like a literal space cowboy.
"Hi there, sleepyhead." The robot greeted. He casually walked over to the woman and crouched down so that he could meet her at eye level.
"Your wounds are healed, but you'll still experience the pain as if they were still there. How do you feel besides that?"
She rubbed her aching head and groaned. "Like the morning after shore leave…"
"Oh boy. I know that feeling. I usually blame Drifter for it after a night at the bar." The robot chuckled at the humor of his remark.
The woman sighed. She gazed at her surroundings. It appeared that she was in some sort of demolished apartment. The walls were broken down, many pieces of furniture were destroyed, scorch marks littered the walls. The kitchen was fine, but the trim REALLY clashed with the countertops.
She turned back to the robot who, despite her own worried and frightened demeanor, smiled brightly at her.
"I'm noticing a lot of robots around me… Machines didn't rise up and enslave humanity, did they?"
The robot laughed hard. "Nah. Of course not. But we will someday…" He turned to the large hole next to him and screamed. "You hear me, Zavala?! EXOES WILL RISE AND CONQUER THE WORLD! MWAHAHAHAHAH!"
She couldn't help but chuckle at that. The robot then sat down next to her.
"But until that day. Hi. The name's Cayde-6, but you just call me Cayde. You've already met my Ghost, Sundance."
The little Ghost flew beside Cayde's head. "Hi." She chirped.
The woman raised her hand nervously, waving at them in a greeting fashion.
"Uh… Hi. I'm… I'm…"
The human woman couldn't seem to finish her sentence. Not because she didn't want to though, but because there was a specific piece of information missing from her brain.
Her name.
"I…" No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't seem to find any trace of her name… or anything about herself at all. Not her name. Her age. What year she was born or even where she was from. She was like a blank piece of paper.
"I don't… I don't remember..! Wh- why? Why can't I remember anything?!" The woman was beginning to panic as she cradled her head.
Cayde reassuringly places a hand on her shoulder. "Whoa, easy there. I know you're scared. Believe me. I've been there."
She looked over at the Exo beside her, who was looking at her with a look of understanding and sympathy.
"You have..?"
Cayde nodded. "If it helps, I know your first name." He reached into his pouch, where he pulled out a small, snapped piece of a dog tag. The woman examined it and saw a small inscription engraved on it.
"Your name is Jane."
…
"C'mon! We gotta move! *huff* Remind me to add more mobility mods to my armor after this, Edith…"
Jane ran as fast as she could go. Her grip on Whiskey's arm was tighter than a vice.
C-Sec HQ might as well have been a maze as she had absolutely no clue as to where the exit was. Almost every corner she would turn would be a dead end, and they would have to circle back. It didn't help to have an angry and highly agile turian chasing them either.
"Doe…" Whiskey finally spoke. "How did you even find me?"
"We tracked your Light, Whiskey. It was easy with all these Lightless around." She explained, still rushing. "What did you even do to wind up in prison?"
The Exo fell silent again. He looked down at the floor in shame. He wanted to come clean. But he feared he wouldn't be able to face his teammates. Would they view him the same way, after he betrayed everything he stood for.
Whiskey took a deep breath.
"I killed a civilian…"
Doe suddenly stopped. She looked back at her gunslinging robot in utter shock. Whiskey covered his mouthpiece with his hand. He felt nothing but utter disgust towards himself.
"I never meant for nobody to get hurt… Just in and out, lickety split… My stupid knife… I-I didn't…"
Whiskey was on the brink of a meltdown. He would collapse there, overpowered by emotion. Breathing was quickly growing more rapid. Jane couldn't stand seeing him like this. Whiskey was the kind of guy who could shake off anything and laugh about it in the end. But this.. She drew the Exo close to herself, wrapping her armored arms around his frame.
"Hey hey, come here."
His head rested over her broad shoulder. Whiskey slowly hugged his comrade back, softly whimpering.
"Dag nabbit…" He cursed.
"Was it an accident?" Jane asked.
She was given a nod for her answer. "She was barely even twenty…"
Coming out of stealth mode, Turnbull hovered over to Whiskey. He gently nuzzled against his metal cheek.
"Whiskey, I'm so sorry, partner."
Whiskey slipped out of Doe's embrace. He sniffled and rubbed his optics. "Sorry ain't gonna make up for what I did. I gotta face the consequences for my actions." He stated
"I couldn't have said it better myself, cowboy."
Jane and Whiskey turned their heads to their rears. Walking out from the shadows, Garrus approached menacingly; his Black Widow loaded and ready to be fired. The turian was dawned in his Archangel armor. Dark blue with small golden crests across it that resembled a small angelic figure. Garrus' moved in slowly. He was like a predator on the hunt for his latest kill.
Jane instinctively drew her Khvostov and aimed it directly at the alien while standing in front of her comrade.
"And just your luck that Archangel would be the one to deliver your punishment." Garrus growls viciously.
"Hold it, big guy." Doe urged. "We can talk this out. Why don't you lower your gun and we can talk."
Vakarian snorted. "After you."
They stared each other down. Their fingers firm on the triggers, ready to fire at any given moment. Garrus had his mandibles fluttering in anticipation. As angry as he was, he had to play this right. This was the one who managed to beat Kaiden in a fight. If he were to face such a force alone, the turian would need to think outside the box and consider his options carefully.
Garrus sniffed the air. His nose slits opening slightly to take in the scent of the air around Jane. She was human from what he could tell. However, there was another smell laced into it that he couldn't put his finger on. It was almost… Ethereal. And there was another scent as well.
It smelled… Familiar somehow.
"Whiskey told me what he did." Jane stated. "He will face discipline for his actions. I promise you that."
Garrus snapped out of his aromatic trance.
"His punishment isn't for you to decide." Argued Garrus. "That barista he killed was a friend of mine."
"So, what? This is about revenge?"
Garrus averted his gaze for a second. He felt an uneasy sensation spread into the inside of his chest. Butterflies fluttered around in his gut. In all honesty, Garrus wanted to say yes. But he knew that revenge would only lead to more suffering.
He knew this for a fact. As he had almost fallen into that trap long ago… Had it not been for her…
…
*Citadel: 2185*
…
"Shepard, can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear."
Garrus had positioned himself up on the balcony just above the ward. His rifle was fully loaded and ready to deliver judgment to anyone in his sights. Meanwhile, Shepard and Thane were down below, scouting the area for the target.
"See anything up there?" Shepard asked her turian friend.
"No." He replied. "Aside from you. Nice butt. Hehe."
"Keep flirting, smartass. See what happens."
"Shepard, Garrus. This is Thane, I have found the target. He's ten feet from where I am. Sitting on a bench."
Garrus took note. He tracked the drell to his location and observed the surroundings. He finally locked onto a desired mark. Another turian, who wore an outfit of navy, orange, and neon green. An utter tragedy, in his mind.
"Alright. There he is…"
Lantar Sidonis.
A former member of Garrus' mercenary team, back on Omega. That slippery excuse of a turian sold out Vakarian's entire team to the three biggest merc groups in the Terminus Systems.
Ten men. Ten good men. All dead by Garrus' feet. People he respected. People he cared about. All gone. Nalah was left all alone. Butler's child was left never knowing who their father was.
AND FOR WHAT?
Damnit. This wasn't the time to lose his cool. He needed to be focused for the shot or he'd risk hitting someone else.
"Wave him over and keep him talking." Garrus ordered Shepard.
Jane nodded. She casually approached Sidonis, trying her best to avoid attention. Garrus could feel his mandibles fluttering occasionally. That was a tell sign that he was irritated. Sidonis noticed Shepard and Thane on the approach. The woman waved her hand, beckoning him. Sidonis decided to head over, thinking she was someone else he was meeting.
"Let's get this over with." Lantar said impatiently.
The turian was in hiding. He wanted this to be over as quickly as possible so that he could pack up and leave the Citadel.
There he was. Lined up like a practice target. Garrus would put a bullet right between that bastard's eyes and see his blue brains splatter all over the place. Too bad Shepard was in front of him.
"You're in my way. Move to the side."
Shepard glanced back at Garrus. She waited a few seconds before she would act.
"Listen, Sidonis. I'm here to help you."
Garrus clicked. What was she doing?
"Don't ever say that name aloud." Said Sidonis, slightly panicked.
"I'm a friend of Garrus'. He wants you dead, but I'm hoping that's not necessary."
"Garrus? Is this some kind of joke..?"
His blue eyes widened. Was she? DID SHE JUST WARN HIM?! Garrus couldn't believe this. Shepard was playing the hero card NOW? To SIDONIS of all people?! His closest friend and now SHE was stabbing him in the back! When would it end?! How dare she! How fucking dare she! AFTER EVERYTHING! Garrus growled in rage. His subvocals flaring to life.
"Damnit Shepard! I knew you'd try this! Get out of my way! I'm taking the shot!"
His tone now angry. But she didn't care. "You're not kidding, are you?" Sidonis questioned. The unarmed turian could feel his fight or flight response going into overdrive.
"Screw this! I'm not sticking around here to find out!"
Sidonis was about to make a beeline for the shuttles. Shepard luckily managed to grab hold of Lantar before he could.
"Don't move!" She urged him.
He fought her. "Get off me!"
"Lantar, I am the only thing standing between you and a hole in the head."
Glancing over her shoulder, Sidonis could make out a twinkle in the distance. The reflection of light off a sniper scope. Garrus was right there.
"Fuck…"
Garrus snarled like an animal. "Shepard, I swear to the Spirits. If he gets away because you let him, you can fight the Collectors without me."
Garrus threatened to walk away from the mission out of his own grudge. She ignored him. Jane instead listened to the one in front of her as he spoke, "Look, I didn't want to do it! I didn't have a choice!"
Garrus hissed, "Bullshit. Everyone has a choice."
"They got to me, said they'd kill me if I didn't help. What was I supposed to do?!"
"Let me take the shot, Shepard. He's a damned coward and we both know it!" He demanded- No. He begged.
Jane however ignored Garrus, keeping her focus on Sidonis, "That's it? You were just trying to save yourself?"
Sidonis started pacing. Shepard followed him step by step to protect him from Garrus, who watched through the scope. Sidonis sighed heavily, leaning against a railing, he looked over at Shepard.
"I know what I did, I know they died because of me. I have to live with that."
A small pause followed those words and he could see the green of Shepard's eyes as she turned to look at him. His eyes… There was great pain within them. Regret. Guilt.
Sidonis continued. "I wake up every night… sick… and sweating. Each of their faces staring at me… accusing me." His head hung low, "I'm already a dead man, I don't sleep. Food has no taste. Some days… I just… I just want it to be over."
"I can oblige, you piece of garbage."
Garrus bit out, his mind warring with him. Sidonis was his friend. His brother. His brother. His brother was in pain. His brother killed his friends. His friends were dead. They were all dead. Monteague, Butler, Ripper, Sensat, Erash, Krul, Vortash, Mierin, Weaver, Melenis. All dead. All dead! ALL DEAD!
THEY WERE DEAD BECAUSE OF HIM!
"Garrus," Jane's soft voice came through the mantra of names, "You have to let it go, Garrus. He's already paying for his crimes."
"No… No no no. He hasn't paid enough," He whispered back to her. Garrus' composure was becoming more unstable. "He still has his life."
"Look at him, Garrus, he's not alive," She stepped away from Sidonis and turned her attention to the balcony, giving him a clear shot."There's nothing left to kill."
"My men…" The turian faltered, looking at Shepard, but no longer through the sight of the scope, "They deserved better."
Tell Garrus," Sidonis interrupted, "I guess there's nothing I can say to make it right… but…"
Two words. That was all it took to reach his wounded heart. Two words that could be spoken by anyone.
"I'm sorry…"
Garrus looked at the small turian, crumpled over the railing in defeat, He could feel his hands quaking.
Sidonis had been the object of his scorn for so long. Why was he now hesitating. That disgrace of a turian had the blood of ten people on his hand. Ten friends. He deserved to die. There was no question tbat he did. But... When Garrus looked at him now. All he saw was nothing more than a broken man, like he was when he heard about the Normandy going down.
Garrus suddenly found hinself deep in his thoughts. He was thinking of himself in Sidonis' position. Tied up, alone, angry mercs all around him. Garrus could only begin to imagine how scared Lantar must have been. He wasn't a soldier. He couldn't fight them. And to have to chose between your friends lives and your own in such a way. Your mind screaming at you from both ends. It must have been hell.
Garrus let out a trembled breath. Just..go…" He cringed in a disgusted breath. "Tell him to go."
"He's giving you a second chance, Sidonis. Don't waste it."
Sidonis pushed himself off the railing and looked to the balcony in the distance.
"I'll try, Garrus. I'll make it up to you somehow."
Garrus eyed down the scope and it was in that moment that he felt the peace and calm he had thought would never wash over him again.
…
"No… Someone once taught me that revenge never solves anything."
Garrus would have committed an act that he knew would haunt him throughout his life had it not been for Shepard stepping in and reminding him of who he really is inside. He was a turian who always cared about the wellbeing of innocents. Someone who values true justice and refuses to punish those who don't deserve it, even if he had to break the rules to do it.
He was Garrus Vakarian, the Archangel.
"This is about justice. That's what Reeka would have wanted. Your friend is going back to his cell. And I'll throw you in there too if you try and help him."
Jane smirked in humor underneath her helmet.
"You can try." She warned in a cocky voice. "From what I heard on the news, Whiskey smacked you around like a little bitch. And if this hick can do it..."
"Wha- HICK?! The fuck, Doe?!"
With a quick flick of a switch on his rifle, Garrus activated the Armor-Piercing Ammo mod on his rifle.
"Aren't you a cocky one?"
"If you think that, then you haven't met Shaxx. We Titans love to boast."
"Boss, wait."
Whiskey placed a hand on Jane's shoulder. He walked past her and stood before Vakarian, looking him dead in his icy blue eyes.
"That barista was a friend of yours, right?"
The only reply to his question was a low growl. Garrus didn't want Whiskey to speak about her at all.
"For what it's worth…" The gunslinger tilted his hat down to cover his eyes. "I'm sorry."
Garrus' growls halted. He could hear the sincerity within the Exo's voice. He may have been a synthetic, but he seemed to be showing genuine remorse for what he had done. Garrus was honestly taken aback.
"As am I for this."
At that moment, Whiskey tossed something into the air. A small round object. Once it had come into view, Jane fired off a shot from her rifle, exploding on impact. The object released a thick wall of purple smoke into the air which blinded Garrus momentarily.
"Run, Whiskey! Get out of here!" Jane ordered.
The cowboy obeyed and fled as fast as he could. Garrus peered through the scope of his gun. It was equipped with a thermal scope so that he could see through the smoke. He aimed right at the fleeing robot.
"No you don't."
"I beg to differ."
A hand reached through the smoke and grasped the barrel of the rifle. It yanked the gun right out from Garrus' grip. A snapping sound was heard from within the plume. Jane had managed to rip the gun in two with her bare hands.
Garrus snarled. He activated his Omni-Blade, sprouting a two-pronged holographic blade from his right arm. He quickly thrust his arm forward, hoping he would at least hit SOMETHING.
The smoke cleared as he thrusted. Garrus felt a wave of shock sure through him as he laid eyes on what he had just struck.
Strapped to Jane's left arm, a round shield composed of purple energy. It had stopped Garrus' Omni-Blade dead in its tracks.
*SENTINEL SHIELD*
"What in the Spirits' names?!"
"Now you're in for it."
With one mighty push, Jane knocked Garrus' arm away. The turian quickly leaped away from the armored woman, who banged her fist against the center of her shield, causing a loud clang to echo through the halls.
Garrus examined the shield. Whatever energy it looked as though it was made from, it clearly wasn't biotics. Could it have been the same energy that Javik sensed before?
"What are you?" He questioned anxiously.
Jane shouted at the top of her lungs. She tossed the shield at Garrus; the purple disk flying straight toward the turian at high speed. Garrus ducked his head at the last minute before the shield could slice off his head. It rebounded diagonally upward off the wall. Jane jumped up high into the air and caught the shield with great skill.
Garrus was stunned by how high this human could jump. In fact, she was right on top of him! Jane slipped the shield back around her arm.
"We are Guardians!"
Jane roared before she dove down like a meteor. Her shield struck Garrus right in the middle of his cuirass. Vakarian gasped for air from the force of the blow.
The two ended up crashing through the floor as though it were thin ice. They continued to break through multiple floors on the way down, one after the other before finally reaching the basement. Upon the impact, Garrus coughed up blood from his mouth. Had he not made the decision to re-enforce his shields to withstand a rocket, he would have been crushed like a bug.
Jane pulled her arm back. There was a deep crack in Garrus' chest armor. The human was surprised that was all the damage her shield could do.
"That's some tough armor you've got there. I'd ask you where you bought it, but I don't have the time." Jane complimented.
Garrus finished coughing and took several deep breaths to recover. "And you… just full of surprises…"
Jane stepped back. Her shield vanished. Making a selection in her HUD, a new gun manifested in her hand. A large pistol. Black and red, with a spade engraving on each side of the barrel and grip. She twirled the gun in her palm like Whiskey does before she pointed it right at the turian with the hammer cocked back.
"I don't wanna kill you, birdie boy. But I will if I have to. Stay down."
Garrus chuckled humorously. He looked up at the Guardian.
"Sorry. Turians don't know how."
Suddenly, Jane felt a powerful jolt of electricity coursing through her armor. It disabled her shields and locked up her mobility.
Overload, like Kaiden used on her. Garrus had deployed it without her knowing. This was his chance.
With one quick raise of his leg, Garrus kicked Jane right in her face, knocking off her helmet and causing her to tumble backwards. He then reached for his Phaeston assault rifle and unleashed a storm of heat sinks.
Doe quickly got back onto her feet and ran for the nearest cover she could find, firing off a few shots from her pistol whilst running. One bullet struck Garrus in his visor, knocking it right off the left side of his face. Jane scurried behind a metal support column and reloaded her revolver.
'Shit. Too close. Rather not expose Edith and give this guy a chance to capture her while I'm down.' She thought to herself.
Jane peaked her head out. Garrus fired off three shots at the column. She quickly retreated before the bullets could hit her.
"You're one tough bastard, you know?" Admitted the Titan. "Getting right back up after a fall like that. Your people got metal bones or something?"
Garrus reloaded his assault rifle. "Not the first time I was almost crushed to death. This leg of mine says it all." He responded. "Don't think I ever crashed through five floors before, but there's always a first for everything."
Reaching to his hip, he grasped a small disk-like object. Garrus tossed it at the wall on the other side of the column and it started to beep quickly. Jane gasped. She knows a Proximity Mine when she sees one. Doe quickly dove off to the column right beside her before the charge could detonate. The explosion was small, but compact. It would have shredded her.
"Definitely have more fight than the last guy did!" She chuckled despite her breathlessness.
"No offense to Kaiden, but he's never had to fight off an army of mercenaries by himself."
Looking up at the top of her HUD, her shields were back online. Perfect.
"Archangel, was it?" Jane twirled her pistol in her hand. "I gotta be honest. I like you. A fighter to the end. Just how a Titan likes it!"
"Oh. Well then, I'm glad I can be such a good source of entertainment for you."
Slowly, Garrus moved in on his opponent. His trigger finger was itchy, and there was only one thing that could state that itch.
"Now would be an ideal time to lay down your weapons. You're trapped like a rat."
Jane laughed however. "Don't be so sure about that. I've still got a few tricks."
"You really wanna take that risk?"
"Any good card player's a gambler, right? Besides…"
From the side, Jane dove out and fired off three shots from her pistol. Garrus ducked to the right and unleashed hell. Jane countered by summoning a low barrier of energy at her feet and ducked down behind it, shielding her from the rounds.
"A game is never over until the last card is played. A friend taught me that."
Garrus snorted. "Your friend sounds like he played too many poker games for his own good."
A snicker escaped her lips. He… wasn't wrong about that.
His opponent was right in front of him. Garrus couldn't see her face, but he didn't care about that. She was right where he wanted her.
"That barrier does look like it's going to last long." The turian pointed out.
"Think I care?" Jane replied.
A smirk crept up onto his mouth plates. Garrus wouldn't lie, this woman was starting to grow on him, believe it or not.
"My best guess? No."
Something about this woman seemed to light a fire within Garrus. They were clearly fighting to the death, yet for some reason, he was actually enjoying this. Vakarian hadn't felt this alive in years. Not since Shepard died. It was like he was in the Armax Arsenal Arena with her again, blasting holographic enemies for sport. Even though this woman was his enemy… Garrus was enjoying himself.
"You know, with all the shooting we've been doing, I don't think we've properly introduced ourselves. Because it sounds like "Archangel" is more like a nickname." Jane pointed out.
"I suppose we haven't." Garrus agreed in a friendly tone, but kept his guard up.
"The name's Garrus."
Jane froze up. Her eyes went wide and she found herself unable to draw breath. Her hands started to tremble, making it harder to hold her weapon.
"W-what..?"
"Garrus Vakarian. Codename: 'Archangel'. All-around turian bad boy and dispenser of justice in an unjust galaxy." The turian was unable to stop himself from gloating. He always loved introducing himself like that. "Also I used to kill Reapers on the side. And you are?"
"Garrus? You're Garrus?!" Jane asked in disbelief.
The turnian raised a brow. She was getting awfully excited for some reason.
"Yes? I just said that."
The woman holstered her weapon and stood up from the barricade, which finally vanished. Garrus still could not see her face as the basement was too dark and his visor was gone.
"I… I don't believe it! You're really him!" Jane spoke. "I finally found you!"
Wait. Finally found him..? Okay, now Garrus was REALLY getting confused.
"Found me?" Garrus questioned, lowering his weapon. "Do you know me or something?"
"No." Jane quickly responded. "But I think you know me."
She started walking toward the turian. Her face becoming more and more visible as she got closer to him. Once she was finally into full view, what Garrus saw. He could not comprehend.
It… couldn't be…
"My name is Jane Doe. I'm an operative of the Vanguard."
Jane revealed herself at last. Caucasian. Neck length hair as red as fire covered her head. Her eyes were a vibrant emerald green; their gaze piercing and intense. An array of freckles spread out across her cheeks, as well as scars that looked like they were done by a medical procedure. There was also a silver ring hooped through the septum of her nose and black tribal tattoos etched into the left side of her face, reaching from the top of her eye to her jawline.
Garrus felt his heart completely stop dead. That woman. There was no way this could be possible. Was this some kind of joke?
"When I first became a Guardian, I lost all my memories of my past life. Only clues I had were what was on me when I woke up."
Garrus couldn't breathe. His brain felt like it would just explode from the shock. His only good leg felt like it would go numb. What was before him. That face. That hair. Those freckles. Those eyes.
It was HER!
"It was a voice log. Pretty damaged, though I managed to make out your name. I think I was calling out for help. Specifically, to you."
"No… No, this- This isn't real… It-it-it's just my imagination..." Garrus whispered in anxious panic.
Jane continued to walk closer.
"Five years, I've been trying to figure out what it meant and who you are. I couldn't find anything. It was like you didn't exist."
"It's not real. That's not her. But that face. Her face. Why-why does she have her face?!"
"If you know who I am then-"
A shot fired from the rifle into the floor next to Jane's feet. The bullet tore into the metal floor and the resulting shot caused her to stop moving. Garrus pointed his rifle back at Jane; his eye welling up with tears.
"Hey! What the hell, man?!" Jane exclaimed.
"YOU'RE NOT HER!"
Garrus screamed as hard as he could muster. Jane jumped from the sudden outburst.
"YOU'RE NOT HER! WHY DO YOU HAVE HER FACE?! WHO ARE YOU?!"
Such screams of rage and fear. Garrus sounded like a madman on the loose. Jane remained where she stood, not even daring to move a muscle.
"Garrus-"
"SHUT UP! YOU'RE NOT REAL! YOU'RE NOT JANE SHEPARD! YOU'RE A..! YOU'RE..!"
His breathing intensified to the point that he was beginning to hyperventilate. Garrus dropped his gun and ended up backing into the wall and fell to the floor. It felt as though he was having a heart attack. Jane, noticing the distress the turian was in, rushed to his aid.
"Garrus!" Jane exclaimed worriedly.
Doe gently placed her arms on both his shoulders. This caused Garrus to swat them away out of fright.
"No! Don't touch me!" He cried.
"Garrus, I'm trying to help you." Jane argued. "You're having a panic attack."
"Stop calling me by my name! You're not Shepard! You're not real!"
Garrus just kept refusing to acknowledge the woman before him. He shut his eyes as tightly as he could, but that didn't stop the tears from flowing down his facial plates. Garrus just swung his head from side to side, as if trying to shake the ghosts out of his head. And before long, his cries were devolving into slightly hysterical chuckles.
"It's a dream! Yeah, that's it! It's just another bad dream! I'm back in bed! All I need to do is wake up and it will all go away-"
*SMACK*
A gloved hand swatted hard across the turian's face, breaking out of his hysteria.
"GARRUS!" Jane shouted.
Slowly, Garrus turned his gaze back to Jane, who was staring intensely into his eyes. Vakarian couldn't work up the strength to look away. He just kept staring.
Those eyes. That vibrant green hue. That piercing gaze, one that could reach straight down into your soul. He knew it very well.
"From how you're freaking out right now, I think that it's safe to say that you DO know who I am, and that I was clearly someone you trusted an awful lot." Jane spoke firmly. "And if that's true, then you have to believe me when I say this. I am not trying to hurt you, Garrus. Just calm down. Take a deep breath. Like this."
Jane inhaled deeply, then exhaled , and then repeated the action again. Garrus couldn't help but comply. It was as if he was hypnotized. He inhaled deeply, then exhaled along with her. Each breath helped slow the racing of his heart. Jane's hands planted firmly on Garrus' shoulders, not budging one bit.
"That's it. Just like that."
Eventually, Garrus' breathing returned to normal. Jane sighed in relief. The turian was still unsure as to if what he was seeing was real however. He slowly raised both his hands to Jane's face, cupping the sides of it ever so gently. He could feel the soft skin against his palms.
Garrus then leaned in and brought his face into her hair. He inhaled through his nose, taking in its full scent. The smell, like fresh forest air. It was the exact same. The same as her.
There was no doubt. No other explanation that he could think of. This was real. She was real.
"Shepard..?"
'He keeps calling me "Shepard". Was that my old name?'
Jane looked at Garrus' tearful eyes. She could see it within him. Pain and relief, mixed together into a potent cocktail. Even if she had no recollection of who Garrus was, she felt her heart ache at the sight of him in this much pain.
"It's nice to finally meet you." Jane said with a sad smile.
Suddenly, Jane was pulled into the turian's arms. Garrus held the human close to him as tightly as he could, so tight that he thought Jane would just pop like a balloon. But he didn't care. Not one bit.
"Shepard… Shepard..! My Shepard!"
His cries grew increasingly harder. His tears falling from his face like raindrops. Garrus couldn't bear to let go, for he feared that she would vanish once again if he did.
Jane felt conflicted right now. The turian who tried to kill her not long ago was now holding her so closely. She was hesitant, but eventually, Jane wrapped her arms around Garrus' shoulders and hugged him back.
The two of them merely sat there on the floor, holding one another close. Garrus sobbing into Jane's shoulder, gently stroking her crimson locks with his hand.
"It's okay, Garrus. It's okay." She hushed.
"You're really here! You're alive! Spirits be praised! It's a miracle!"
If this were a dream, he did not want to wake up. Shepard was here. She was alive and well. In his arms once more. All the pain. All the sorrow. All the suffering he had endured these past five years. Losing his leg. Losing Shepard. It was all gone. Because at long last.
She had come back to him.