Epilogue

"Clear!"

Shepard cringed as her lover let out an agony filled scream into the open air of the interrogation room. She fought against the need to yell at the person electrocuting him only for the sole reason it was necessary. His heart had stopped and if they hadn't jolted him he would have died on the spot.

As his scream came to an end he began letting out haggard breaths. "Ty? Ty?" He did not lift his head. From her kneeling position she could see that his eyes were unfocused and he was struggling to stay awake. "Can you hear me?" She asked.

"She- Shepard." He breathed out.

Her heart fluttered at the sound of her name coming off his tongue. She had missed him dearly for the last seven months. Her thoughts often strayed to him leaving her to wonder about how he was doing, if he was doing anything crazy or how often he thought about her.

She missed his sarcasm, his softer caring side, his comforting presence and the love she felt every time he met her eyes. When he left she was reminded just how big and empty her room had been, and that problem hadn't been solved when she was brought into custody.

The small apartment like room she was being jailed in was empty save for the furniture and herself. At least my cabin on the Normandy had fish, Vic and EDI when she decided to pop in or if I had to ask a question. I wonder what they did with my fish and Vic or if EDI is okay. I hope they're okay.

The N7 missed the ship, her friends, and Ty every day. Each day in custody had proven fruitless in getting anything done, or at least that was how it felt. She wasn't sure if Anderson–who had retired as a Councilor and now served as an Admiral in the Alliance–or Hackett were doing anything. Under her house arrest she was completely left out of the loop on everything involving the Reapers.

These last six months had been frustrating to say the least, but she never stopped trying.

She often wondered if Ty had any better luck with the mercenaries, although she doubted it judging on his sudden appearance and mention of Omega and Cerberus.

To hear his voice outside her door and then find him actually standing before her…she was too many emotions at once. She wanted to embrace him, to feel his body against her own just so she knew she wasn't dreaming. She wanted to yell at him for risking his life to sneak into the Alliance base.

The Commander wanted to kiss him, to share time with him and relax as if there was nothing life threatening going on in the galaxy. What stopped all of her desires from pelting her at light speed was finally taking in his bloodied state.

They had barely managed enough time to speak to one another privately, and even then it wasn't much. She had helped him down onto the floor as he made a quip, "You should see the other guy." He had said. After that he had told her about the poison stopping medi-gel from preventing his death, told her he had missed her and apologized for being in his current state before slowly starting to pass out. As she tried to keep him awake he muttered something unintelligible, she barely caught the word Reapers which was enough to send her further into worry.

Anderson, along with a small squad of soldiers, found them there right as he passed out. It was probably because of her mentioning he had information on the Reapers that they had actually healed his wound.

She had worried about him the entire time. The fact there wasn't a rut in the floor of her room from all the pacing she did slightly impressed her. Her mentor, friend and father figure kept her updated on his status knowing she was worried because Ty had been a comrade. He apparently had been shot in the shoulder, his foot was broken and it was clear he had been stabbed by a sword of some kind.

He had also informed her they were going to interrogate him once he was awake. That had taken two days and for the last three days they had interrogated him. Ty didn't crack, not that she was surprised. He continued to ask for her and for one reason or another he thought the interrogator was Anderson.

The Admiral tried to get them to let him see her so he would actually talk, but the committee had stonewalled him up until today. It took a lot of willpower not to rip the interrogator in half with her biotic's as he stonewalled them further, forcing them to watch as he was electrocuted repeatedly.

Thankfully that was over and now he wasn't being harmed any further. Shepard wanted to get him help immediately, but she knew everyone else who actually had rank to pull wanted information. And I'm the only one he'll apparently give it to. She sighed internally, the quicker I get this done, the quicker he gets help.

"What do you know about the Reapers and Cerberus?" She asked him.

"Reapers…took Khar'Shan…and Taetrus." He panted heavily. "Cerberus…took Omega."

Shit. The Reapers were already in the Milky Way and had captured the Batarian homeworld. And now Cerberus has Omega and all of its resources. Looks like he didn't have any more luck than I did. "What do you mean they took Omega?" Anderson sounded perplexed. Clearly it was news to him that Omega had been taken over by the terrorist organization.

"I mean…they fucking took…it." Ty responded exasperatedly. "Aria was booted. Oleg…Petrovsky…is in charge now." Ty inhaled multiple breaths then shook his head, "A bastard…named Kai Leng…was the one who…got me…"

"Kai Leng?" The Admiral hissed.

Shepard looked up to her mentor in confusion, "You know him?"

He gave a short nod then turned his attention back to her lover, "Did you finish him off?"

Ty shook his head, "No. Bastard…cheated. Had a sniper…watching our fight. I only…wounded him."

Anderson hummed disappointedly and shifted his eyes away for a moment. Kai Leng had officially made it onto her shit list for what he had done, but there was a more immediate concern: the Reapers. Well actually that was a lie. Shepard's immediate concern was Ty's state of health. He needed medical attention and rest. Three days he had sustained torture with little to no rest as far as she knew.

It broke her heart. She hated he had suffered, hated it was the Alliance who had done it needlessly. What she hated most of all was she couldn't do anything about it. Shepard didn't want to be here forcing him to talk when he clearly needed rest. But I need as much information as I can get, she stared solemnly at the man whose breathing was beginning to slow, and he's the only one who has it.

Damn it.

The N7 didn't want to keep asking him questions. She wanted to help him, wanted to talk to him about anything but the Reapers…but she needed to know if he knew how long they had until the Reapers arrived. "Ty…can you give us an estimate on how long we have until the Reapers get here?"

"How…how long…have I been…?"

"Two days out cold, three days in here." She answered, growling the final words as she flicked her eyes in the direction of the Alliance soldiers. Any who enjoyed what they had done or hadn't questioned the lead interrogator about bringing her in to end it needed a reality check. You're all lucky I can't do anything about what you did. I don't know what I would do, but none of you would like it.

"…do you want…optimistic or…realistic?" The purple eyed warrior asked snapping her out of her thoughts.

She appreciated the thought of an optimistic time frame, but it wasn't what they needed. "Realistic."

"Tonight…tomorrow…the next day." Ty shook his head. "We're out of time." Shepard lowered her head as silence filled the room. She knew his words to be true, wished them to be false but knew better than to believe anything less. More than half a year had passed since they finished off the Collectors and stopped the immediate arrival of the Reapers in the Bahak system. They were truly out of time to prepare. "I'm sorry." Her lover apologized for something not in his power.

Shepard rested her hand on his and gave it an affectionate squeeze, "Don't be. It's not your fault." She met Anderson's eyes who simply nodded in agreement that this conversation was over. A group of doctors and nurses with a gurney made their way into the room signaling the Commander she needed to get out of the way. However she wasn't going to leave without letting Ty know where she was going, "I have to go. But we're going to get you medical attention. Can I count on you hanging in there a little longer, Ty?"

He chuckled tiredly and lifted his head to meet her eyes with his own, "I'll…do my…best." He smiled wearily, but genuinely at her.

She smiled fondly back and gave him a hug. "Stay alive, Specialist. That's an order."

"Roger that…Commander."

Shepard stood up and moved off to the side with Anderson as they watched Ty be taken out of the chair and put onto the gurney where his omni-cuffs were once again placed. When he was gone the pair left with Vega tailing behind them. "Admiral, do you think he was telling the truth about the Reapers?" The Lieutenant asked.

"It's possible." Anderson answered.

"Yes." Shepard responded far more confidently. Ty had no reason to put their odds so low if he thought they had more time. He could massively understate something sure, but he was not one for dramatizing a bad situation.

Her mentor eyed her studiously but said nothing about her confidence in his words. "He had no reason to lie. Not with Shepard there. God help us all if he is right."

He is. We're out of time. The war is at our doorstep and none of us are ready for it.

She remained silent the rest of the walk back to her room. Again the N7 entered the room alone and took in the small room that was devoid of life. Too bad they won't jail us together. It would make things so much nicer. Shepard moved to the window that looked out to the city of Vancouver and brought her hand to the nine-sided star around her neck.

The odds are no longer just suicidal. This war is going to mean life or death for the entire galaxy. She looked down at the star; I need you at my side for it, Ty. Please, stay strong for me.

War was on their doorstep. It was only a matter of time before the entire galaxy would have to face the fact everyone was trying to deny: the Reapers were real and they were here to wipe them all out. Knowing they were so close, it was enough to shake her confidence a little.

"No matter what we face, I'm with you to the end." Ty's words before they entered the Omega 4 Relay played through her mind.

To the end…she kept the pendent in her hand and looked back out the window with determination burning in her eyes.

We'll make it their end. That's a promise.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Thank you to all who have read this story whether you joined in when I first started, jumped in somewhere halfway or came upon this later! It has been a long journey and one I have enjoyed thoroughly. I honestly never expected it to be this long or actually do as well as it has for the first story I ever posted, so thank you for reading! I've had many ups and downs along with the story and as the story grew I'd like to think my writing skills did a little as well, but alas the story of Suicidal Odds has come to an end. The tale is not over yet though as there still remains a war to be fought. I cannot say when that journey will begin, I have yet to start writing it as of now but I will without a doubt write it and give this story its true end. I hope to see you then or in any other works I might write between now and then, for the time being I'll be editing previous chapters to get it more up to date with my writing. Anyways, thank you all once again and hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed writing it! Until next time!