No one is coming to save you.
Shepard wanted to do nothing more than rest but the ringing pain wouldn’t let her.
She rolled her head, feeling the incessant ache through every muscle and bone. The black haze threatened to close in again.
No one is coming to save you. Get up.
The voice sounded distant, miles away, calling to her despite being the only one left alive on the remnants of this metallic floor in some obscure room in a crumbling Citadel.
If she dared to look to her right, she would still see Anderson’s still body where he drew his last breath, thanking Shepard for being there. Tears stung at her eyes, threatening to cloud her already tunneling vision. The air, suddenly too thick and heavy for her parched throat and scorching lungs. Every sharp corner of her body ached far too much to move even an inch.
But the same voice called to her.
Her own voice ordered her to move.
No one is coming to save you. Get. Up.
Shepard groaned, contorting her body, forcing every screaming muscle to keel under her own order. She could only crawl, dragging herself one hand, arm, leg, foot moving disjointedly without stopping for a beat. With every one push and pull, she screamed louder and louder. The combined pain, exhaustion, and heartbreak escaped in guttural roars, tears streaking down her face and carving valleys between the blood, sweat, and grime.
After what could only be eons, Shepard finally reached the control panel. She swore at this apparent final cruel test the universe threw at her. With a final bout of energy, she lifted herself off the ground, using the lone stand as a crutch, and typed in the string of code to bypass the defense system.
Just when she thought the worst of it was over, the ground shook.
Suddenly, the tiled panels trembled as it lifted from the ground floor. The jerking motion threw Shepard off their balance. Her entire body flew forward and slumped over the control stand, lacking the strength in her arms to hold herself upright.
She whined again as the floor came to a halt. To muster the strength to drag under legs forward—to quell the unbearable tremors that shook her entire body—seemed unthinkable.
No one is coming to save you, get up.
A tortured sob tore through her. This was once all unthinkable, impossible. The voice in her head was a pounding pressure that was impossible to ignore. Head up. Eyes peeled. Weapon… ready.
Before she knew it, Shepard found herself in front of a pulsing blue light. Her pistol trained on the power cells in front of her. This was the final resort, this would change everything forever. A pull of the trigger and one life would end for the billions upon billions saved of a galaxy.
And yet, her grip faltered and her arms shook.
She gripped the weapon with both hands, and hardened her resolve. Finally squeezing the trigger, she unloaded onto the energy barrier, firing blast after blast until the energy cell came exposed.
In the split second from bullet to blast, she could picture her sweetest moments before the storm. The first smile that grazed Thane’s lips in her presence, the soft laughter held tight in Kaidan’s chest, Tali’s hugs, Kasumi’s wit, Jeff’s dry humor. It would take a complete miracle for her to see them all again.
Though no one was coming to save her, she prayed that she could save them.
The last thing Shepard saw was the arcing of light that dove towards them before… nothing.
Kolyat swore under his breath as another bead of water tickled beneath his scales. The air within the Citadel no longer circulated, leaving him and the rest of the search party suffering under a stagnant, humid weight. They had found few survivors left in the aftermath of the Reaper conversion. Thankfully, his father had managed to remain largely untouched amidst the chaos.
Just minutes ago, though, another alarm blared before he heard something in the left wing go crumbling down. And immediately following was a rush of air and booming tremble.
The echoing sounds of blasters diminished soon after. The incoming silence was not eerie, but cautiously welcomed.
Sana, a human volunteer and his paired partner, sprinted in front of the party toward the direction of the crashing sound.
“Wait!” He called out after her before taking off in the same direction, wary to let his partner wander alone straight into danger.
He caught up to her, ready to recite the search-and-rescue code of conduct, but stopped short after noticing the glint off a soldier’s tag. The only tag he’s ever seen up close, read with the number code of the only soldier worth remembering.
A deep, anxious vibration rumbled deep in his chest as he swept his eyes over the concrete and metal rubble. “There’s someone here, Miss Sana. We have to find them. Now.” Kolyat's voice rang with worry, desperate to find the human who had changed his life. He only hoped that it wasn’t too late to save theirs.
Silent minutes passed between the pair as they worked, scouring the dirt and rocks for any semblance of life.
“Commander!” He shouted, hoping that his stirring would cause hers. “Shepard!” He tried again, before turning over one more rock.
And there, beneath him, he uncovered the bared hand still gripping a familiar pistol so tightly. Kolyat began clawing at the neighboring rocks, ridding the dust and rubble beside Shepard’s ailing body.
“Miss Sana, over her, please! I found her!” His yell was nearly a scream out of the most frightening shock he had ever felt in his 19 years. He tugged at his comm, hoping anyone could hear him and provide aid, revealing his identity and location, “This is of immediate urgency. I have located Commander Shepard.”
At the sound of his voice, Shepard stirred. Her breath a short whisper underneath a collapsing lung. Even a wracking sob was too painful for her to bear. The hand gripping her pistol shook before it dropped the gun to the floor in a clatter. She couldn’t speak but her outstretched fingers spoke, looking for a lifeline.
Kolyat gripped her frail hand in both of his. And the last thing that she heard was his voice saying the words she never thought she’d hear, in a sweet iridescent voice,
Shepard, don’t move. Someone is coming to save you.
stormborns
snowghoul
tangentwithtanner
kaledo-art
izzy806
gummygunk
areudirty
