A/N: Hey everybody! I'm baaaack!

First things first - this is the sequel to Different Horizons. I wanted to thank everyone who put me on an author alert. I was really touched at how many did. If anyone is joining this story as a new reader, I implore you to go back and read that one first. Things will make a lot more sense.

Second - I have taken some of the information presented in the Game Informer and other various interviews and articles and elaborated on them to create my own ideas. This story is merely my speculation on how things will happen in ME3. It will be interesting to go back and compare once it is released in 2012. I do not own Mass Effect and any of its characters, all rights belong to Bioware and Electronic Arts.

Third - As most of my readers already know, I like to take the basis of the game and twist it around to better fit my version of the story, so not everything will be the same. As far as the time line goes, this sequel is basically just a continuation of Different Horizons and it picks back up a couple of weeks after it left off.

Finally - This chapter and the next contain spoilers for the Arrival DLC. I won't get my feelings hurts if you decide to wait to read this until after you've played it. However, it is an integral part of my plot. Everything that happens later on in the story is because of the events surrounding arrival. Just thought you should know before-hand.

I'm super excited to be writing once again! I've spent the last three weeks trying to reign in ideas and get everything together. I hope you like what I've gotten so far. Please let me know what you think! ~ Jamie

P.S. This story is rated T for some sensual scenes, language, and human/alien relationships.

The Threat of Tomorrow

A wing and a prayer.

Was that the phrase her father always used? It was a term coined by the old fighter pilots back on Earth, men she remembered he used to admire and respect with a passion, and he would often use it when things looked hopeless or when the odds were stacked against him and his unit.

Shepard couldn't think of a more fitting adage to describe the situation she and her crew were currently in. It was one thing to think about going up against the Reapers, when it had taken the fleets of many different races to bring down Sovereign, and that had just been one. It would take a noble effort to launch an attack on such a grand scale, one that would require the cooperation of all the species in the galaxy, and it would be a fight that would be remembered and revered for centuries to come – provided that they survived it anyway.

But as if Shepard didn't already have her plate loaded, she also had to contend with Cerberus and the Illusive Man. Back at the base on the Collector home world she had been faced with the decision to either destroy it and all the information it contained, or keep the base intact and let Cerberus research the reaper technology for the "greater good of humanity". She was only given seconds to make that decision, but based on what she had seen of the experiments that Cerberus had once conducted, she chose to destroy the data.

The Illusive Man had been livid, trying to reason with her, to make her see the error of her ways, but Miranda had cut him off, forfeiting her position with Cerberus in the process. Shepard thought that was the end of it, but then the harassment started; first at the meeting where he urged her to reconsider, and then the email when he threatened those she loved. After she fired back her reply, telling him in so many words to go to hell, it didn't take him long to make good on those threats.

Using the Blood Pack as his hired thugs, the Illusive Man sent a message to Garrus that an old friend had information about a former member of his team – Sidonis, the one who betrayed him and got his entire squad killed. When Garrus ventured out on Illium to find this friend, the Blood Pack struck, abducting him and critically injuring Zaeed in the process. Another squad mate, Denny, hadn't been so lucky. By the time Shepard received word Garrus had already been moved to a secret location and was being tortured specifically because the Illusive Man knew it would cause her pain.

Shepard rolled over in the semi-gloom and placed her hands on her forehead. How many times had she lain awake in the early morning hours, staring out the skylight in her cabin at the infinite expanse of stars above her? How many times had she relived that moment when she first discovered that Garrus was missing? The brightly wrapped package with its crisp bow, deceiving in its innocence when in fact it contained Garrus's eye piece, covered in his blood.

The path to finding him was convoluted and twisted with one surprise after another, the most disconcerting being that the Illusive Man had collaborated with the Shadow Broker. If it hadn't been for Liara and all her research on the mysterious information dealer that no one had ever really seen, she never would have found the location of the base he was being held captive in. And that was only because once they had dispatched the Shadow Broker himself, Liara had stepped in and taken his place. And when they finally arrived at that secret location, Shepard realized with only seconds to spare just how badly she had underestimated the Illusive Man. The building had been rigged with a bomb, triggered as soon as they set foot inside and she had just barely located Garrus when it went off, trapping them both under an immense pile of rubble.

The mattress beside her shifted as Garrus turned over and flung his arm over her waist. It had been touch and go for a while after they'd brought him back to the Normandy. Most of his injuries weren't caused by the massive debris, but from all the torture he'd endured. Shepard would never forgive herself for bringing such terrible pain down upon him. She still felt responsible for what happened, even though Garrus had argued with her that it would have happened eventually anyway and if it wasn't him, it would have been some other member of the crew. But his words, however sound, did little to ease the guilt.

He stirred again and groaned. "Nikole…?" he muttered sleepily.

Only Garrus and one other person used her first name. Sure, it was documented in her file, but she had never been close enough to anyone before to willingly share that information personally. Kaidan had been the first. She'd told him during their one night together on the way to Ilos. But after he rejected on her Horizon, she was left wondering if they'd ever had something to begin with, and more importantly, if she would ever find love again.

She hadn't realized she loved Garrus right away. She had been thrilled when he turned out to be Archangel – the vigilante she'd been told to recruit – but it wasn't until he came to comfort her after Kaidan's rejection that she began to see him differently. Well, comfort wasn't exactly the right word. He'd barged into her cabin to apologize and found her crumpled on the floor. But he had been so concerned, sitting with her while she cried, and it was then that she realized how close they had become and how much his friendship meant to her. It had been a turning point for them both.

"What're you doing awake?" he asked softly, his voice half muffled by the pillow. "What time is it?"

"It's early," she replied.

She dropped both her hands and placed one over his arm, gently tracing the rough skin on the back of his hand with her fingers. He sighed in contentment and, using a scooping motion, pulled her into his embrace. He buried his face in her hair and she could feel his breath come out in hot puffs against her scalp, tickling it through her hair in the most delightful of ways.

"This is the third morning in a row. What's bothering you?"

She nestled herself along the length of his body so that her back was pressed against his chest and entwined her feet with his. She always felt safe in his arms. "Nothing more than usual. It's just," she paused to take a deep breath, "I don't know Garrus. Sometimes I just feel so overwhelmed by it all. I mean, the whole galaxy is depending on me – on us. That's a lot of pressure! And if we fail, well…" she trailed off. She didn't see the point of elaborating on how they would all cease to exist if they didn't find a way to stop the reapers.

"Well then, I guess we'd sure as hell better make every minute count," he replied huskily.

Sweeping the hair away from her neck he brought his mouth down and slowly nipped along the curve from her tender spot behind her ear to the gentle rise of her shoulder. She exhaled in a soft moan and flipped around so that she was facing him. He caught her chin in both his hands and after a moment slid his palms along her jaw line to weave his talons through the tangle of her silky soft tresses. She brought her forehead down and rested it on his bare chest. At the moment nothing else mattered; only the two of them existed.

Garrus tugged at her hair insistently and she let her head fall back, exposing the delicate flesh of her throat. Still gripping her hair in his hand he held her captive as he lightly trailed his tongue underneath her chin and down her neck to her collarbone.

Shepard growled in return, unable to contain herself any longer as he continued his wonderfully tortuous ministrations. She broke free of his grasp and pushed him onto his back and then quickly straddled him so that he was pinned against the pillows. Pretending to be helpless and loving every minute of it, Garrus lay back as she applied the same techniques he'd just used on her.

She ran her fingers over the hard plates on his chest and gingerly traced around his cowl. She knew he exhilarated in the softness of her touch. He locked eyes with hers and brought his hands up to her arms but she quickly caught them and slammed them back down to the mattress, using the weight of her body to restrain them over his head.

When she sank her teeth into the tough skin on his neck he bucked, easily using his strength to sever the hold she had on him. In one swift move he sat up, causing her to flail backward with a smothered giggle. She hit the bed with a soft thud just as he shifted positions so that he was the one straddling her.

"Commander? Come in, Commander," Joker's voice sliced through the silence. "Are you awake?"

Garrus froze.

"Shh," Shepard whispered. "If I don't answer maybe he'll go away."

Right before she and the crew had embarked on the mission to rescue Garrus she had made sure that all cameras and listening devices had been located and removed. Then, shortly after that, she had disabled the port that allowed EDI access to her quarters, much to the AI's chagrin. But all that didn't stop Joker from paging her over the intercom she had sitting on her desk, which was something he did often and unabashedly.

Five minutes ticked by on the alarm clock on the nightstand.

"Oh come on Commander! I know you're in there. If you don't answer I'll be forced to send someone up," he threatened.

Shepard groaned loudly and sat up, running her fingers through her disheveled mane to smooth it down before she reluctantly rose to her feet and pulled on her robe. Tying the sash with an exaggerated sigh she walked up the small steps to the desk and punched the button on the speaker next to her terminal.

"This had better be important," she snapped. "What the hell could you possibly need at 0530?"

"Sorry Commander," Joker replied. At least his tone sounded contrite and at that Shepard relaxed a little. "I wouldn't normally bother you so early, but I have a message from Admiral Steven Hackett. He says it's urgent."

She looked across the room to Garrus. He was sitting up in bed with the blankets wrapped tightly around his waist, listening intently to their exchange. She shrugged her shoulders at him apologetically and was relieved when he smiled warmly at her.

"Okay," she said finally. "Give me five minutes and then patch him through."

"Aye, aye."

After begrudgingly slipping into her favorite white and gray uniform, minus the Cerberus patches, she pressed the button that would project Admiral Hackett's image onto the thin glass above her terminal. She'd had it installed to fill the void after the incident with the models. Just thinking about how she lost control and chucked Kaidan's picture at them brought back a twinge of shame.

Admiral Hackett appeared in a fuzzy haze of orange. He looked older, the effect of the past two years etched clearly on his face.

"Commander," he said and nodded curtly. No preamble or witty attempts at banter followed and at that Shepard smiled. He had always been a 'straight-to-business' kind of man. At least some things never changed. "I've just received word that one of our deep cover operatives has been arrested in batarian space.

Her forehead crinkled in confusion. "I don't understand. Isn't this an Alliance matter? Why call me?"

"Because her reports indicated that she may have found evidence of an imminent reaper invasion."

Her back straightened and she flicked her gaze over to Garrus.

"What evidence?" was the natural follow-up question.

"Dr Amanda Kenson was investigating reports of a reaper artifact and according to her last communication she thinks she might have found it."

"But the Alliance doesn't believe the reaper threat is real," Shepard said. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned all her weight back on one foot. "Why the sudden interest now? I've spent the past two years trying to convince the Alliance and the Council that they exist." Well okay, maybe not the entire two years, she thought, considering she was unconscious for most of it. But still..."I had evidence too, or don't you remember Sovereign's attack on the Citadel?"

That had been the biggest insult of them all, to wake up only to find that Sovereign had been explained away as merely a geth attack and the real truth covered up. Taking a deep breath she tried to calm herself down. What happened was Hackett's fault.

Hackett's tone was soothing. "I know what the Alliance thinks, but Dr. Kenson is a friend of mine. If she says there's proof, she's found it. It's definitely worth looking into."

"Why exactly was she arrested?"

"Her investigation led her into batarian space. I guess they got suspicious when she started poking around and arrested her on terrorism charges. She's being held in a secret prison on the planet Aratoht. I'm forwarding you the coordinates now."

"Okay. I'll gather a team and we'll go in right away."

"No! If you go in there with a group of well armed people the batarians will most certainly kill her. That's another reason that the Alliance isn't getting involved."

Shepard frowned. So it wasn't just that this doctor had found evidence of the reapers. The Alliance needed her infiltration skills. Just when she's started to get her hopes up that things were changing, they dashed them back down.

"So…you want me to go in alone?" She could feel Garrus's eyes burning a hole in her skull, but she kept her focus on Admiral Hackett's image.

"Yes. It is imperative that you keep this mission a secret. Right now, it's just one person going in to save a friend. No one else can know."

"Okay," she said eventually. "I'll keep it quiet."

"Good," Hackett said. "I'll debrief you when you return. Hackett out."

The orangey image disappeared and left her staring into the dark blue eyes of the turian who was now standing on the other side of the glass.

"You are not going in there alone," he said matter-of-factly, folding his arms across his chest as he continued to glare at her.

"I really don't have much of a choice Garrus," she sighed. Running her hands through her messy dark hair again she walked around the desk and went down the steps to face him. "You heard what Hackett said. And he's right. If I go in with a team the batarians will think I'm starting a war. With everything else that's going on right now we really don't need that to worry about."

She moved to her cabinet and pulled out the drawer that contained her armor.

"Those damn batarians won't notice if two of us sneak in instead of just one."

"Garrus, I've made my decision!" she snapped, locking the last piece into place. "Now stand aside and let me do my job!"

XXX

It was raining miserably as Shepard disembarked the shuttle, just as it seemed to have done on every other planet she'd traveled to lately. Her heart was heavy as she stepped out onto the sodden ground. She shouldn't have snapped at Garrus the way she did. She could understand his concern; after what had happened to him she wasn't eager to be apart from him either. But she couldn't let fear get in the way of performing her duties. He needed to trust that she was capable of taking care of herself.

Still, that hadn't stopped the pang of hurt and disappointment from settling into her chest when he failed to show up in the cargo hold to see her off. She shook her head to rid herself of the thought. Right now she needed to focus on the mission.

Sneaking into the compound was easier than she first thought. There were only a handful of armed mercs guarding the facility and it hardly took any effort at all to slip past them. It was almost as if they truly didn't expect anyone to break into their facility. However, once she was inside, a review of some nearby logs revealed that some of the guards had seen a ship off in the distance and thought it might have belonged to the Alliance. She checked the heat sync on her Mattock assault rifle and proceeded down the deserted corridors with caution. Even though the facility was supposed on alert, she was able to run past the few guards she encountered with them noticing.

The long hallway came to an end at a large metal doorway. The window off to the side offered Shepard a glimpse into the room beyond. A petite woman with hair so blonde it almost bordered on white was strapped to a table that had been tilted upright, forcing her into a reclined standing position. A guard hovered just in front of her, slowly directing a machine with two ominous prongs toward her eyes.

With no time to waste Shepard burst through the door. The guard whipped around in surprise and before he could gather his wits enough to fight back, his face met with her fist.

"Who are you?" the woman cried as the guard fell to the floor.

"I'm Commander Shepard. I've come to get you out of here Dr. Kenson."

"Commander Shepard? Oh thank heavens," Kenson sighed with relief. "That means Hackett got my message!"

"Are you okay?"

Shepard brought up her omni-tool and overrode the control to the shackles that secured the doctor to the table. Impatiently Kenson pulled at the metal clasps.

"I'm fine."

Suddenly an alarm sounded overhead and Shepard could hear the voices of more batarian guards rallying in the distance.

"Good. We need to hurry!"

Handing Kenson her pistol, she skipped over the body of the guard lying on the ground and rushed to through the door, turning at the last second to see Kenson bring her foot down upon the guard's head.

"Ready," Kenson nodded.

Shepard was prepared for resistance – after all, nothing she did ever ended easily – but she was more than a little inconvenience when they came to the last room only to find that the shuttle bay doors had been locked down and there were at least two dozen guards between her and the controls. Kenson did all right with a pistol, but it still wasn't the same as having her whole team with her. There was just something about having Garrus watching her back. She never had to worry about him or the other members of her crew holding their own or getting into trouble.

No sooner had she thought that then she looked up to see that Kenson had disappeared from her place right beside her. She quickly scanned the floor around her and the nearby cover, but the doctor was nowhere to be found.

"Commander Shepard!" Kenson shouted from across the room. How the hell did she get over there so fast, especially since Shepard still found herself pinned down behind a crate by enemy fire? "The doors! Get to the doors!"

Shepard watched as Kenson jumped down off the platform where the console was located and ran toward the massive double doors as they inched open.

"Shit!" she muttered under her breath.

She waited until there was a break in the barrage of fire before she popped out of her cover and dashed across the room toward the exit. Bright blue flickered all around her as bullets struck her shields. The telltale sound of them failing beeped from her armor's sensor. She was almost there, just a few more steps. She could hear the shuttle powering up as she sprinted through the doors into the damp night air. Her chest ached from exertion and her heart slammed against her ribs. She flung herself into the shuttle, landing roughly on the cold metal floor just as it lifted off the ground.

"Whew! That was close! Thank you again for coming to my aid, Commander."

Shepard got to her feet and brushed the dust from her armor.

"Do you mind explaining to me exactly why the batarians arrested you and how that relates to the reapers?" Her tone strained. "Admiral Hackett wasn't really clear."

Dr. Kenson nodded and walked to one of the shuttle's tiny windows and peered out. "The reapers are planning to invade using this system's mass relay. We call it the Alpha Relay because from here they can use it to travel anywhere in the galaxy."

"How could you possibly know that?"

"Because I found evidence that proves it," she said flatly. "Destroying the Alpha Relay would stop the invasion. My team and I have devised plan – which we're calling 'The Project' – to do just that."

A plan to destroy a mass relay?

"I thought those things were indestructible," Shepard said at length.

"It's more accurate to say that nobody's ever tried before. The relays are the most powerful mass effect engines out there. Destroying one would probably amount to the equivalent of a super nova and would undoubtedly wipe out the entire system."

Shepard's eyes widened. No wonder the batarians arrested her for terrorism. She swallowed hard as Dr. Kenson continued.

"Once the relay is destroyed it would take the reapers months or possibly even years to travel through dark space to another relay."

"And you think that this plan is worth such a great loss of life?"

"Absolutely!" There wasn't even a glimmer of doubt in Kenson's eyes.

Shepard looked out the window at the mass relay. "I'm going to need to see this 'evidence' for myself then."

Kenson keyed up her radio. "Kenson to Project Base."

"Dr Kenson? Are you alright?" Shepard heard a tinny voice ask.

"Yes. Yes, I'm fine. The plan remains unchanged. Get everything ready! I've got Commander Shepard with me and she wants to see the 'Object'."