A/N: I would like to give a great big thank you to PiperSqueak for assisting me in writing this chapter. You're a great friend, Pip, thank you again.

Chapter One

"Keep going men! Hold the line!" shouted Major Nathaniel Coats as he fired at a larger than life mechanical squid as it bared down on his troop's position. They had been fighting this same damned Reaper for what felt like hours now. Every shot they fired he prayed would be the one to end it, but now they were down to their last crate of ammunition and things were starting to look bleak.

Glancing over at his war-weary men he saw the same pain and defeat in their eyes he had seen in the vids of soldiers fighting the Reapers in many other battles. The same as the eyes of men who knew their time was up. The end was near and they would either win all or they would sacrifice all. There was no in-between.

His men needed hope. They needed hope like drowning men need one more breath of air. Hope above all else would keep them alive. Keep them fighting long enough for Shepard to do what only she could, win it all. But she was only one woman. She would need help. She would need someone she could depend on to watch her back as she drove ever forward.

The Citadel was the key, if she was going to win this, beat the Reapers once and for all, it would have to be there not here. And if he was going to be that support, be the shield that would protect her from enemies unseen, he would have to go there as well. So, he made his decision. He looked once more to his men, "Follow Shepard's lead, men," he said with a burst of strength he didn't even know he had left in his body. "I don't know about you but I'm gonna give my life, if I have to, to make sure someone wins this war and saves the day. You have your orders. Don't be heroes. Just help one another to live another minute, and when this is all over and those damn robot squids have been blown to cosmic dust, meet me at the bar. I'm buying the first round."

The men cheered around him, echoing his sentiments almost ten fold, with those few words he knew he had conveyed enough hope to sustain his men through the rest of the day's fight. Their shots became more concentrated on the Reaper each man making sure his bullet did not go to waste. Nathaniel was impressed at the improvement of his men's morale, he knew it might be a temporary fix but it might be just enough to get them through the next few crucial hours. A few hours would be just enough time for Shepard to do her thing and save the galaxy from the Reapers, they only had to hold on for a little while longer.

Suddenly the Reaper changed tactics, switching from the defensive to the offensive, the plates that covered the body of the Reaper parted to reveal the deadly laser in the center. The rifle in his arms felt heavier as he looked up at the laser center, this was their one and only shot at truly ending this son of a bitch but this was probably going to be their final act. With as much strength as he could muster he lifted his rifle and aimed at the red center ready to fire just as the beam was brought to life. He was ready for this, for the end of his existence, even his body seemed to be accepting the fate his mind had anticipated since joining the Alliance. The beam started towards him and he fired his rifle hitting it dead center, the creature re-covered its weak point before making a quick retreat. His victory was short lived however when the Reaper moved even closer than before, the beam exposed once again as the machine prepared to fire. Nathaniel prepared his rifle to shoot once again when suddenly pair of missiles hit the Reaper's laser center, causing the machine to explode almost instantly.

"The Normandy!" he heard someone shout and his eyes immediately went to the sky, he saw that indeed the ship of legends was flying overhead. He smiled to himself as he watched the ship fly across the battlefield looking even more magnificent than it appeared in the vids he had seen.

"Shepard!" shouted another soldier, and Nathaniel spun around to see Shepard running at top speed towards their position, her squad mates not too far behind. He immediately recognized who was following her, one teammate was Major Kaidan Alenko and the other was the Turian soldier Garrus Vakarian. They were known as Shepard's A-team, the fact they were here meant Shepard was anticipating a difficult win.

When she got close enough she calmed her pace to a brisk walk, even from this distance Nathaniel could see some cuts and bruises on her face, more than likely the result of her own fight. She was welcomed by cheers from the men around all ecstatic to see her alive and kicking ass beside them.

When she arrived beside him he reached out his hand which she grasped almost immediately, a smile spreading across her face which he felt himself returning, she certainly did have a strange effect on people. "Thanks for the help, love, you have impeccable timing," he said as he released her hand, "Where's Anderson?"

She indicated with her thumb that he was behind them, "He stayed back to talk strategy with Hackett, but he'll be here soon. We're just about ready for our final assault on the beam, what's your status, Coats?"

"We can be ready to move as soon as the supply trucks arrive," replied Nathaniel, glancing over at his men who were now getting medical attention from an Asari nurse. He heard the sound of rushing footsteps to his left, he looked over to see Anderson coming closer to them, many of the soldier saluting him as he past by.

"Major, Commander," said Anderson as they saluted him, "I just got word from Hackett, he's keeping the Reapers busy in space but a few have broken free and are headed for our position, be ready to leave for the beam, Shepard."

"Understood, Anderson," said Shepard, nodding in acknowledgement, "Kaidan, Garrus, we're heading out soon, be ready."

"Aye, aye, Nat," said Kaidan, giving her a friendly wink.

Nathaniel looked from Kaidan to Shepard, raising his eyebrow at the sound of what had to be Shepard's nickname, "What's Nat short for, love?"

"Natalie," said Natalie, and she brushed some dark hair out of her face as she looked across the battlefield at the beam, "This is almost over, in a matter of hours our fate will be decided."

Nathaniel stood beside her, gazing at the beam though his eyes kept wanting to look at her, "I thought this feeling would be different."

Natalie looked over at him with a puzzled look, "What feeling are you referring to, Coats?"

"The feeling of knowing this war was about to end," replied Nathaniel, meeting her blue eyes briefly before looking back at the beam, "I thought I'd feel some kind of relief, instead I'm feeling more apprehensive than I did when that Reaper was about level us with its beam just a few minutes ago."

He felt a hand rest on his shoulder, "We'll get through this, Coats, you'll see. We just have to hang in there a little bit longer."

Nathaniel rested his hand on hers not daring to look at her, he could not trust that his eyes would not give away his fear, "You're an inspiration, love, truly."

"Tell me that after we've beaten the Reapers," replied Natalie grimly, "Come on, let's see what Anderson has planned."

He nodded and followed her to where Anderson was standing with Kaidan and Garrus, a serious look on Anderson's face when he saw Natalie and Nathaniel approaching, "Shepard, Coats, you're just in time. We were just about to discuss our strategy for going after the beam, so far we're all in agreement that it'll have to be you, Shepard, who leads the charge."

"Sounds good," said Natalie and she looked at Kaidan and Garrus, "Alenko, Vakarian, you're with me. I'll radio Joker and tell him to prepare the Normandy, I have a feeling we're going to need her for this fight."

"Sounds good," said Anderson solemnly, then his eyes rested on Nathaniel, "Coats, I want you to accompany Shepard and her squad, I need the best out there."

Nathaniel saluted the admiral, "Aye, aye, Anderson."

"Wait, will your troop be alright without you, Coats?" asked Natalie, she turned to look at him, concern evident in her voice.

He looked over at his battered men, as much as he wanted to stay with his troop he knew his place was now with Shepard and Anderson as they made their assault on the beam. "They'll be alright without me, they're a tough group of buggers."

"Now that that's been settled, we need to get going, we have a war to win," said Anderson, "Shepard, are you and the rest of the team ready?"

Natalie looked at Kaidan and Garrus who both nodded. "We're right behind you, Shepard, to the bitter end," said Garrus.

Natalie's lips twitched in the barest of smiles, "I know, Garrus, I can always count you and the rest of the squad." She turned to Nathaniel, her blue eyes rooting him to the spot, "Coats, if you need a few moments with your men, now's the time to take them. I still have to radio my pilot."

He nodded, surprised that even in the middle of a huge battle she was still considering others, "Thanks, love." He walked over to his troops, attempting to ignore the pit in his stomach as he tried to come up with the words to tell his men that he was going with Shepard and Anderson to the beam. Some of his men looked up at his approach, others were still too engaged in making necessary repairs to their weapons to even give him a glance, somehow he knew they already had figured his plan out.

"Men, how're you doing?" asked Nathaniel when he was close enough, by their drawn faces he knew they were ready to eat a hot meal and sleep. He desperately wanted to give them that reprieve but knew it would not be possible yet. 'Just another goal to work towards.'

His lieutenant rose from the ground, saluting him before speaking, "We're doing alright, Major, nothing we can't handle. Is this it?"

A simple question. He would have preferred a more in depth question that required some eloquent speaking to answer. "Yeah," he said, his eyes cast down at the ground, "this is it."

His lieutenant gave him a curt nod, "Then, on behalf of all who have had the honor of serving with you, we wish you good luck, sir. We're holding you to that promise of buying us a round of beer at the pub."

Nathaniel laughed, glad for the small bit of relief his lieutenant had thrown to him like a lifeline, "Don't worry, mates, I'll be back before you know it. I've never had the honor of serving with such magnificent soldiers as you all, you've had my back from the start, we've conquered and we've lost. Know that no matter the outcome, you're all heros in every respect."

His men stood up, even the ones that seemed too tired to stand again, and saluted him. He was touched by the gesture even though it was commonplace there was something different, he looked in their eyes and saw the pride shining through the pain. That was what was different, the men were actually proud of what they were doing here, glad to have served together and he was almost moved to tears. "Men, dismissed," said Nathaniel nearly choking on the emotion that had swelled in his throat as he spoke, he felt as if he were leaving his blood family behind. His men moved their hands back to their sides and he forced himself to leave them, he mentally told himself not to look back.

Nathaniel saw that Shepard, Anderson, Kaidan and Garrus were now standing on the edge of the ledge looking at the beam and the many obstacles between here and there. He joined them, standing between Shepard and Garrus, "Bloody hell, have you ever seen anything like that before, Shepard?"

"Can't say I have, Coats, can't say I have," replied Natalie softly, her voice changed almost instantly when Anderson gave his signal that it was time to charge, "Let's move people!"

She jumped off the ledge, Anderson quickly on her heels, Kaidan and Garrus followed shortly after leaving Nathaniel standing there briefly glancing down at the others as they charged the field. 'It's now or never, Coats, take the leap.' He jumped down after a few more seconds and caught up with the others before they were too overwhelmed by enemies. When he glanced over at Shepard he saw a smile on her face when she noticed he was running right beside her, he smiled back at her, hope filling his soul as he sprinted towards death.