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Chapter Three: The Fallen

SSV Normandy SR-1

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

"Shepherd," Joker turned his head, "we are dropping out of FTL travel now. We should have our first visuals on Alchera."

"Good. Bring our stealth drives online and shields up." He ordered.

"Roger that, Commander. Can't be too careful." The helmsman stated, following his commanding officer's orders, "We are undetectable and ready to take a beating."

"Keep me posted." Shepherd turned and left through the door, leaving Pressly to watch over Joker and Caroline Grenado, Joker's "co-pilot". He made his way pass the CIC and down the stairs to the mess hall. He wore his N7 hardsuit and carried his helmet under his arm. He didn't know why he had suited up so early but he knew that he wouldn't regret it. As soon as they located Liara's vault, they would be off to find it.

He stopped at the small kitchen area and poured himself a cup of coffee. He took a sip, placing his helmet on the counter. The coffee had gone cold since nobody was watching it but he didn't mind too much. Cold coffee was better than no coffee.

This could be it, he thought to himself. The vault could have the Icon inside and their search would be over before they really get started. They still have to find the FIB but, at least, they would have the Icon, already. He tried to think where a species from another universe would hide something so large. He thought about all the places he had been to. Noveria, Virmire, Ilos, but none of them struck him as a hiding place from an interstellar bridge.

Virmire. The simple thought of that place gave him chills. He had left someone behind there. Someone he would never forget. It was the hardest choice he ever had to make. He only had time to save one person: Kaiden Alenko or Ashley Williams. He chose Kaiden.

Now, he had no idea where the biotic marine was. After the Geth attack, he was reassigned to a top secret post under Hackett's orders. Not even Shepherd's Spectre status granted him the information on Alenko. It's been a month since they last talked to each other.

Kaiden had been with Shepherd since the beginning. He was with him when they first landed on Eden Prime. He was with him when they confronted Benezia on Noveria. He was with him when Saren attacked them on Virmire. Kaidan was more than his friend. He was his brother.

That made Ashley like his sister. After meeting her on Eden Prime, the lone survivor of the attack was transferred to his command after she showed how good she really was. While Kaiden had been there with him, Ashley had saved Shepherd too many times. On Eden Prime, she had defended him while he disarmed a bomb. On Feros, she used a gas mine to knock out an attacking settler who had been controlled by the Thorian. On Virmire, she watched his back when he had to calm Wrex down from shooting up the place.

He needed them both right now.

SSV Normandy SR-1

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

"Disabling FTL drives." Joker said, "Emission sinks active. The board's all green. We are running silent."

"Good work, Joker." Pressly said to the pilot, "Start scanning the planet below. This better not be a waste of time."

"Three ships have gone missing here in the past month. Something had to happen to them." Joker shot back.

"My money's on slavers. The Terminus is crawling with them." Pressly returned.

"I'm picking up something on the long range scanners." Ensign Grenado interrupted them, "Unidentified vessel. Looks like a cruiser."

"Doesn't match any known signatures." Joker added, looking at his own computer system.

"The cruiser is changing course." Grenado pointed out, "Now on intercept trajectory."

"Can't be!" Pressly barked at her, "Stealth systems are engaged. There is no way a Geth ship could…"

"It's not the Geth!" Joker interrupted him, "Brace for evasive maneuvers!"

He jerked the ship to the starboard side, attempting to save her from the first shot. He failed. The massive energy beam slammed into the side of the ship, causing an explosion on that side of the cockpit. From behind him, Joker heard a man's scream as he hit the floor.

"Pressly!" Ensign Grenado attempted to help the falling executive officer but a second explosion stopped her from taking the chance. Joker was now alone in the cockpit. It was just him, the Normandy, and whoever was shooting at them.

Not knowing what else to do, he opened a channel across the Normandy and began giving status updates. "Kinetic barriers down. Multiple hull breaches. Weapons offline. Somebody get that fire out!"

Another volley came from the unknown ship. The worst part was that it was behind him so Joker had no idea what his attacker looked like. Judging by the readings on his screen, it was a massive ship. It was nowhere near as large as the Infinity but it rivaled the Destiny Ascension, the Citadel Councilor's private ship. He had no idea how he was going to fight a ship of its caliber. He hoped by broadcasting it over the intercom that Shepherd would think of something.

He could only hope, otherwise everyone on board the Normandy would end up like Pressly and Grenado. The thought of that happening brought panic to Joker's mind. One moment, he had been joking with the bald executive officer and, the next, he was gone. Grenado was still young and could have been a great pilot but she was gone, as well. He couldn't let that happen to anyone else.

He will die before he let the Normandy go down.

SSV Normandy SR-1

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

Chief awoke to the alert sirens. At first, he thought he was dreaming. He had been dreaming so much lately that he wouldn't have doubted it. He barely could make out his surroundings but he knew where he was. He was in his "bedroom" on board the Normandy. He sprung from his bed and looked at Cortana, "What's happening?"

"A large cruiser is attacking us. It doesn't look good, Chief." Was the AI's response as he pulled his helmet over his head and put her data chip inside it. He attached the small storage device to his left hip and snapped his pistol to his right. He reached down and hurled the metal arms chest onto his back, letting the magnetic braces connect it into place.

He turned for the stairs and made a jog for it. Several pipes shot out hot air that his shields absorbed. At the top of the stairs, Engineer Adams stood with a breathing mask over his mouth, "Chief, we got hull breaches. We are ordered to evacuate the engine room."

"What about the engine core?" he asked.

"Shepherd is calling an abandon ship. Managing the core does not matter anymore." Was his answer as he turned for the exit. Two engineers were attempting to pull the doors apart but the Normandy's VI had sealed them shut.

"Adams," the female engineer called over, "they won't budge."

Before Adams could answer, Chief raced to the door. Using his strength, he pulled the doors apart and held them. He grunted out an order to them, "Go!"

The three engineers ducked under his arms and out of the room. Chief could feel the doors pushing back on him but he stayed strong. Thanks to his Spartan training, Chief could withstand an icredible amount of force which made him in charge of flipping the tanks over when they tip. Once Adams was through, Chief lunged forward, letting the doors slam shut behind him.

"Thanks, Chief, we owe you." Adams said the words that Chief had heard so many times in the past.

The four of them raced through the damaged Normandy. In the docking bay, the Mako was turned over on its side. The lockers had detached from the walls and slammed against the metal flooring. Several servicemen had entered the elevator, causing them to have to use a maintenance ladder to the next level.

One by one, they moved up the ladder with Chief at the rear. Explosions echoed from below them as they reached the top. Stepping out of the maintenance tunnel, Chief almost ran into Liara.

The Asari stood with her pink hardsuit on and her helmet in her hand, "Chief, we need to find Shepherd."

"He will be at the escape pods." Chief told her. He doubted that he would be there but he needed to get everyone to safety, including Liara.

Liara nodded and turned for the mess hall. They followed close behind, dodging falling debris from all around. To Chief's surprise, Shepherd was near the escape pods. He was using his omni-tool to repair one of the broken tech boxes.

"Shepherd!" Liara stopped.

Shepherd turned, his helmet shield over his face, "Liara, get in the escape pod."

"Joker is still in the cockpit. He refuses to leave the Normandy." She told him. He moved to another damaged box. Liara used her biotics to hold up a metal pipe that had fallen, "I'm not leaving, either."

"I need you to get the crew out of here and make sure they are taken care of." Shepherd said, calmly, "You and Chief need to go. I'll take care of Joker."

"Commander." She said as he pushed pass her to leave.

He stopped to turn his head, "Liara, go. Now!"

He kept on walking after that. Chief had to grab Liara, otherwise she would have chased after him. He pushed her into the escape pod with Adams and the engineers. He used his own omni-tool to close the door behind him. With a deep breath, Chief pressed the launch button.

The escape pod shot out from the underside of the Normandy and was hurled down to the planet below. Since the pod had no windows, they were unable to see the ship that had ended their journey."

Liara sat on one of the bench chairs that the pod had. She had a stone expression that Chief had a hard time reading but he knew what it was. She was worried and didn't want to show it. Shepherd and Joker were the only ones left on board the Normandy and the ship was barely hanging on. Chief tried not to think about what would happen if Shepherd couldn't make it to Joker in time.

He patted Liara's shoulder, "He'll be okay."

She nodded up at him.

One of the engineers, who had quiet the whole time, grabbed Chief's arm, "We're going to make it, aren't we, sir? I don't want to die out here!"

The words echoed in head. The escape pod, being attacked by an unknown enemy, crashing down on an unknown planet, it all seemed too familiar. He hoped that it would be different than last time.

He nodded at the engineer, "It will be fine."

Adams had his omni-tool out, reading something, "Heads up everybody, this is it! Breaking Alchera's atmosphere in five."

"Sure you don't you want to take a seat, Chief?" Cortana asked in his helmet.

Instead of arguing, he listened. He sat down on the bench and buckled himself in. He was tired of too many rough crash landings, "We'll be fine."

"Fingers crossed, John?" she asked and he smirked under his helmet.

The seconds felt like minutes as the pod crashed through the planet's weak atmosphere. Moments after they broke the cloud line, they slammed into the ground below, skidding to a stop.

Once the pod had stopped moving, Chief opened his eyes. He tried not to think about the Alpha Halo and the Bumblebee. That ended with him being the only survivor. He was glad to see that this crash landing's outcome was a lot better than that one.

Adams had bumped his head on one of the bulkheads, leaving a nasty bruise on his forehead. The female engineer that had realized the engine room door was sealed had cut her cheek on something and had received a bruised arm. The male engineer that had thought they were going to die had come through without a scratch.

Liara and Chief were saved by their hardsuits. Chief's shielding had dropped to about half while Liara's were completely gone but it didn't matter too much. All and all he was happy with the results.

Chief was the first one to stand. He made sure everyone had their masks on before he opened the hatch. With the hatch open, they received their first view of Alchera. The ground was a deep purple and was very rocky. It reminded Chief of the surface of the Moon but with large spires rather than craters. The sky was black and he couldn't find the Normandy or the ship that attacked them in it.

Liara stepped out of the pod behind him, hoping something in her hand. She held it up, revealing the same red button, "Help should be on its way. Anderson gave this to me in case something like this happened."

"Smart." Chief grunted, still scanning the sky. He turned to the engineers, "The Normandy launched four other pods. We need to find them and regroup together."

"Yes, sir." They sounded in unison.

"Cortana, are you picking up anything?" he asked her.

"Yes, actually, the pods give off a unique transponder message once they crash. It makes locating them a lot easier. I can set navpoints for you." She delivered.

"Excellent." The first navpoint was less than a kilometer away, "Follow me."

The Citadel

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

David Anderson entered his office, coffee in hand. He had spent the better part of the day in and out of meetings with the different Council races. His first meeting had been with the Elcor ambassador over some issue regarding a Volus diplomat. He almost laughed when he got that message. An Elcor getting harassed by a Volus, biggest species on the Citadel being picked on by the smallest, he almost laughed too hard. His day went like that from then on.

Bailey had been walking with him the whole time, keeping an eye out for humanity's many enemies. Bailey was a good soldier and great leader. He reminded Anderson of Shepherd in a way. If things had been different, it would be Bailey captaining the Normandy, not Shepherd.

"Councilor," Bailey said, as they made it to his desk, "I was hoping to talk to you about something. Something important."

"What is it, Armando?" Anderson asked him.

"I was approached by Executor Pallin yesterday after work. He wanted to talk to me about reassignment to C-Sec as a captain." Bailey told the councilor.

"And?" Anderson raised an eyebrow.

"I want to accept it." Anderson smirked at him.

"You know, you would have to retire from the Alliance."

"I understand that, sir." Bailey nodded.

Anderson nodded back, "Having one of our guys in C-Sec's higher ups would be good for us. I will talk to Hackett for you and see if I can get your papers moved."

"Thank you, sir. I really appreciate it."

That was when Anderson's face changed. He went being serious to a face that he hadn't had on since Eden Prime. It was the face he made when he saw Sovereign for the first time. Fear.

"What's wrong, sir?"

He looked up. He didn't know how long it had been there but the red light on his desktop was telling him something that he hadn't noticed until now. He couldn't believe it but it was blinking bright red. That could only mean one thing, "Bailey, get me Hackett and get me him now. Shepherd's in trouble."

Alchera

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

They were only missing twenty-two people. Two of them were Joker and Shepherd. The other twenty had fallen before making it to the escape pods. The rest of the Normandy's surviving crew had made it down to the planet with little to no injuries. They had grouped together at the last escape pod, waiting for Liara's backup plan to come. They had no idea how long it would take but they knew one thing, Shepherd was still up there.

Liara kept staring up at the sky all the while, hoping to see his pod, but she knew better. The Normandy was in a different part of the sky from what she was looking at. She wouldn't see his pod fall from it. She was waiting on Cortana, who continued to scan the area.

She looked around at the crew. Doctor Chakwas saw to the small injuries and made sure they were wrapped properly. Adams and three other crewmembers helped others into environmental suits to keep their skin safe from Alchera's weak atmosphere. Chief paced back and forth while Cortana was doing her job.

All the while, Liara was useless. She couldn't do much of anything at the moment beside hope to see Shepherd's face again. How long had it been since the crash? She started to worry more with every question she asked herself.

How long would it take the Alliance to find them?

How fast could they get to Shepherd's pod when it crashes?

Who attacked them?

Why?

There was only one question she didn't want to ask because it would send Chief on a hunt through the planet. She kept the question to herself but she knew that Cortana had already thought about it. Where's the vault?

The whole reason they had come to Alchera was to find the vault that could house the Focus Icon. If she vocalized that, Chief would leave them to go find it. She wouldn't blame him for wanting to go home again but she needed him here. They all needed him here.

With Shepherd missing, Chief was the closing thing to a leader that they had. Granted, some of the surviving crew outranks Chief but they don't out-experience him. Chief had seen some crazy stuff that she would never believe. He comes from a whole different universe, after all. Sure, she fought Rachnii on Noveria and Thorian on Feros but those would have been a piece of cake for the Spartan.

She recalled some of the stories of the Master Chief from her time on the Infinity. The UNSC marines called him unstoppable. His superior officers called him dependable. The Sangheili Separatists called him a demon in angel clothing. All of those descriptions were spot on in her book.

His resume makes Shepherd's look like a Krogan in a dress. The stories about him destroying a parasite called the Flood and defeating the Covenant's hierarchy almost single handedly expressed her. The follow up story of him spending four years on his own in space and coming out to defeat a being that was over a million years old was unbelievable. If she hadn't seen the vids that Halsey had, she would have never thought it possible but it was. The Master Chief was the real deal.

That was when she noticed that he stopped pacing. He was standing completely still with his hand up to his helmet's temple. He looked up at Liara and sounded, "We got a pod crashing."

Shepherd, she thought. The two of them left the crew behind and raced for Cortana's navpoint. The rocky terrain of the planet made it extremely hard to move but Chief made it look like flatland. The Spartan darted from rock spire to rock spire, moving a lot faster than Liara could hope to go. Even with her biotics, she could propel herself enough to keep pace with the super soldier.

According to Cortana, Shepherd's pod would crash three kilometers from their base camp. While that was long distance to cross, they seem to making great time. It might have been the adrenaline that had been pumping through her body since the attack.

The two of them bolted through a pair of spires and got their first sight at the pod. It had crashed into a small ravine, next to an empty river bank. They slid their way down the side of the mountain-like hill and made it to the pod.

Using his strength, Chief grabbed the hatch and ripped it clean off. He tossed it behind him. They looked inside the pod and they froze from what they saw.

SSV Normandy SR-1

Milky Way Galaxy

Mass Effect Universe

"Liara, go. Now!" Shepherd ordered as he turned to make the walk to the cockpit. He could hear Liara yelling behind him as Chief pulled her into the pod. He took a deep breath when he heard the pod jet out from the Normandy.

Just me and Joker, now, he thought to himself as he ascended the staircase that would lead to the CIC. The door opened and all sound stopped. The ceiling of the Normandy had been ripped off and parts of the ship had peeled back like a can of sardines. The galaxy map continued to play but static rushed through it as the ship lost power. Debris floated in midair and pipes were burst open, letting form and gas fly out into space.

Thanks to his hardsuit, Shepherd was able to walk normally through the CIC and down the hallway. The door to the cockpit was open but an energy shield sealed it off from the rest of the ship. Shepherd noticed Joker inside, pleading with the ship to stay together.

He nearly jumped when Shepherd placed his hand on his shoulder, "Come on, Joker, we have to get out of here."

"No!" he yelled like a child, "I won't abandon the Normandy! I can still save her!"

"The Normandy is dead, just like us if we don't get out of here." He bellowed back at the pilot.

"No, we just have to…" he shook his head, "Oh no, they're coming around for another attack!"

Shepherd grabbed Joker by the arm and yanked him out of the chair. He draped the disabled pilot over one of his arm and dragged him out of the cockpit. With his mask over tight, Shepherd carried him down the hallway, avoid the energy beam shot that the enemy ship was firing.

By the grace of God, he managed to make his way to escape pod. He fastened Joker into the seat harness. He turned his head as he heard an explosion next to him. The blast sent Shepherd backwards, away from the pod. He rolled his body to avoid the fire that had split himself from Joker and the pod. He looked up and caught the eye of the pilot.

"Commander!" he yelled at him.

Shepherd knew he only had one choice to make. In his life, he had thousands of choices that rested upon him. Saving the Council or leave them to die. Kill the Rachnii Queen or let her live. Ashley or Kaidan.

Now, he only had one choice.

"Shepherd, don't" Joker continued to yell as Shepherd brought up his omni-tool and pressed the button. The door to the pod closed and it shot out from under the Normandy. Before he could dwell on what happened, another energy blast shot down at the ship, causing more havoc for him. The blast hit him in the chest and slammed him against another bulkhead.

Upon collision with the bulkhead, he busted through it and out into space. The wreck of the Normandy surrounded him and he got his first and only glimpse at his attacker. The cruiser was the second largest ship had ever since in his universe. It was only a little smaller than Sovereign. It was a long ship that reminded Shepherd of a cigar. The energy beam had ejected from the front of the ship.

Even though his ship was completely destroyed and he was floating in mid space, he was very much alive. He hoped that somebody was about to get a distress beacon out to the Alliance because it was going to get cold very fast.

That was when he heard it.

It sounded like the air getting let out of a balloon. He slammed his hand against his helmet to try to cover the hardsuit leak. As he did so, another one popped up on his leg and another on his arm. He felt the vacuum of space sucking the air from his lungs. All he could do was to wait for the pain to stop and it did.

He floated through space, motionless and dead.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and will leave me some feedback. Thank you for reading!