Bioware owns the characters and everything else you can find in the Mass Effect Wiki. Calinstel owns 99.5% of the ideas behind the Quarians that I'm using. The rest is mine.

Chapter 1: The Humbling River

It occurred to John that the floor looked nice today. Freshly polished deck plates managed to give off the faintest glimmer of a reflection even in the darkness of his cabin. He'd have to thank the maintenance crew for that one.

Not only that, but it felt smooth against his lips. Not a trace of dirt or debris upset the kiss he shared with cold metal. Of course John would have to speak to the ship's design team about one issue that quickly became apparent. The floor really ought to have been constructed further from his face.

WWWRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA -

The siren tore through the stillness of the cabin. The painful noise assaulted John's ears from every angle.

Confusion abandoned the Spectre as he sprung from the floor, nearly falling over himself as tangled blankets broke free from his body. He groped in darkness for the light switch. Though he had good visual memory of its location from his bed, it mattered little when he had no idea where he was in the small room.

The search proved unnecessary only a second later. Pale red light began bathing his room, the rest of the ship no doubt likewise illuminated. The emergency lighting together with alert siren meant only one thing. John threw on his gear, stabbed at the door control, and stormed into the cargo deck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. Drill. Training exercise. Something. Please God, anything but this.

As if in answer to his thoughts, Joker's voice blared across the deck just as John came within an arms reach of the elevator. "Flash! Flash! Flash! Incoming!"

Joker's voice sounded clear and professional. If John had to guess, he'd say that the man seemed far too distracted from dodging whatever projectiles or beams sped their way to worry about trivial things like actually getting hit.

The deck jumped up to meet John, the deafening roar of an explosion explaining why he found himself uncomfortably close to the deck for the second time in half a minute. When his helmet's audio filters felt it was safe to admit sounds again, the loud wail of decompression greeted him. Before long, silenced reigned when mass effect fields stilled the fleeing air.

Space training had served the marines well; most already had their boots magnetized in case of a hull breach. Others managed to activate them as soon as the explosion hit. Only a few could be seen floating peacefully away beyond the protective field.

Hardly a scream could be heard throughout the cargo bay These marines were too professional for that. The survivors simply continued to gear up and wait for their non-commissioned officers to direct them to where they could offer the most assistance.

...

Though he spoke little of it, dying on a ship was one of John's worst fears. In combat, that is real combat, he had some say in how it ended. In ship-to-ship battles there was little that one person, let alone a marine, could do to effect the outcome. The thought of not having any level of control over his fate sent chills down John's spine and terrified him more than almost anything. Almost anything... Tali!

Bringing his hand in front of him as he ran, his omni-tool flared to life, a brilliant orange lantern in the dim red cacophony around him.

"John! Not a good time," Tali's voice had never made him so happy, "Where are you? Get to the pods!"

"I'm fine Tali. On my way there now," technically this wasn't a lie; he'd just make sure the rest of his ground team got to the pods first, "What about you?"

The engineer's fingers were a blur as they fluttered over her console, helped along by the lack of any wind resistance. "I'm getting there. The ship is lost. I need to shut down the drive reactor before we-"

"Just go!"

"No! Most of engineering is dead, it's just Adams and myself! We need to do this so it doesn't go critical and blast the pods to pieces."

John knew better than to distract and possibly delay her with a pointless argument. She would tend to the ship regardless of his feelings. With a deep mental sigh, he gave in. "Fine, when you're done, get to an escape pod! That's an order!"

"Don't worry. See you in a few seconds," she hoped. With that, she closed the connection and began a final few adjustments.

With luck John would never know that all of engineering was a vacuum and she had been seconds away from getting blown through a bulkhead. When a space-suited Adams found her she had just managed to isolate her air supply, still fighting a nasty case of decompression sickness. Envirosuits and cybernetics had their uses, after all.

...

Jane demanded answers, and as soon as she made her way into the cockpit said as much. "Joker, what the hell is going on?"

"Dreadnaught engaging us, moving to intercept from aft, unknown class, time now, using some heavy-ass particle weapons. I think I can get us out of here."

"The fuck you can," Jane scoffed as she synced her omni-tool to the ship-wide comm system. The broadcast alert tone sounded on all decks, followed by the Spectre's calculated voice, "All hands, abandon ship. All hands, this is the captain. I say again. Abandon ship."

Jane deactivated the comm and rounded on the pilot, careful not to break his shoulder as she squeezed. The situation was too serious to upset her, but she tried to put some fire in her voice nonetheless.

"Joker you listen to me, damn it," she pointed to the doorway behind her and to the right, "you've got thirty seconds then get to that pod. That's an order. And launch the distress beacon."

"Already done ma'am!" he called over his shoulder as she stalked away.

She needed to supervise the evacuation, make sure that everyone still living got the hell off this ship. Jane pulled up hasty damage and casualty reports on her omni-tool as she headed out of the bridge.

Pressley dead...

Jane would say a silent prayer for the gruff but efficient man later.

Twenty or so presumed dead in engineering...

Jane hoped that Tali wasn't one of those whose time had come. John would never forgive her and she would never forgive herself. Their youngest engineer, hardly a woman, had so much ahead of her... a bright future and all the potential in the galaxy. Pangs of guilt hit her hard for ever deciding to let John bring the quarian aboard.

Cargo bay briefly vented and no report from John or Gunny Williams...

Endorphins flooded her veins as she read. It just wasn't possible. Not like this, and for damn sure not on her ship. Biotics flared about her as charged through the ship towards the cargo bay. If her baby brother was spaced, nothing in the universe could stop her from going after him. Mom would understand.

...

"Sis, just heard the call," John spoke into his omni-tool as he checked the elevator, "We've got three marines spaced, ID's to follow accountability. Sixteen marines, Gunny, Garrus, and Liara all made it up on the lift."

Jane waited patiently for her twin to finish before tearing into him, "What the fuck, Nee? Didn't have time to report with the rest of the ship? Get the fuck out of there before the fields give!"

"Moving, Sis," he cursed his luck as the controls he palmed turned from green to red, "Elevator's broke. Gonna try for the service shaft with the last of the marines. Meet you at the top."

"Fine, see you there," she gasped as she neared to shaft leading down to the bay.

During the exchange between the twins, the cargo bay had quickly cleared of marines as they made their orderly way to the shaft and up its ladder. The whole time they moved, John could hear the shouts from his sister at the exit far above. As each marine reached the top, she used her biotics to pull them up and out of the way, one by one, directing them to the nearest pod.

Finally, it was John's turn. He was the final one out, aided by the biotic field surrounding him. As soon as his last toe cleared the shaft, Jane hit the seal and dropped him to the deck.

"Ow," John rubbed his knee where he fell, "Coulda been a little nicer, Sis."

"And you could have let me know you weren't Alchera's newest satellite," she replied.

"We'll discuss this later," he accepted the hand she offered, "What's the status?"

She pulled him to his feet. "Joker is overdue, gonna go down with the ship if someone doesn't stop him. Got reports of crewmen 'presumed' dead," she carefully omitted their location, "I'm headed to check on them, make sure everyone gets off okay, get them to the evac shuttles if needed."

"Got it. I'll get Joker," he responded over his shoulder as he headed off to the helm, "Get off this ship when you're done."

"You too, Nee! Be safe! Grab him and go!" but John was already out of earshot, submerged in the clamor of the ship's siren.

...

On his way to the bridge, John passed by the rows of escape pods, doing a mental count of the personnel inside as he passed. He felt incredibly relieved to see so many had already launched. He would get a final count later, but the numbers were better than expected yet worse than hoped.

Passing the final one, he saw Chakwas, Jokinen, Adams, Garrus, Bhatnagar, and...

"Tali!"

"John!"

At that moment the Quarian couldn't express how grateful she was to see her human standing in the doorway of the escape pod. Taking his hands she quickly drew him into a powerful embrace.

It could have been a lot worse, she reflected. Against a ship like that, the Normandy stood little chance of lasting more than a few seconds. Yet there had been enough time for the vast majority of the crew to escape. The Human Alliance would be along shortly to collect the pods, and if not, she could hope for no better death than drifting for all eternity with John Shepard.

Ready to get her inszel inside and the pod door closed, she held him even tighter and stepped backwards, intent on taking him with her. Fear crept through her as she tried. The human held firm at the door frame. Having met with resistance, her eyes pierced his as they searched for answers. Don't you fucking do this to me! Not now. This is a fre'eging ship, you can't play hero here!

"What are you doing? Come on, we have to get out of here!" She pulled a little harder and met with the same opposition.

"I'm taking the pod at the bridge," he said without looking at her.

"No! You're here now," Tali nodded just behind her, "You'll take this one." Things were getting serious now. John picked exactly the wrong time to turn stupid.

He gently caressed her mask, speaking softly, "Joker's still there. He doesn't want to leave. I have to-"

A three fingered hand shot out with surprising force, latching onto his upper arm. The fingers he held to her mask contorted into odd angles as she used her other hand to wrap them in a surprisingly strong grip.

"Fuck that John! Let him die! You've done enough," she begged, "Please, just come with me!" Desperation overwhelmed her as she rapidly tried to yank him into the pod again and again. She would feel less panicked had her mask been slowly filling with water.

"Ahh, Tali, that hurts! I'll be fine! There's an escape pod on the bridge. I'm just gonna-"

"Not good enough! Get in here, now!" She couldn't take any more. Her human was coming with her. She had never thought for a second she was capable of harming even a hair on this man's head but circumstances dictated events, not thoughts and wishes. This situation required drastic action.

From now until his dying day and beyond, she would love and faithfully serve this man. That gave her plenty of time to make it up to him. Even if he never forgave her for what she was about to do, he would at least live to hate her. That was good enough. Her animal instinct took over, that state of mind that told her to destroy whatever endangered her mate. Which in this case was her mate. It was for his own good.

John fell forward into the pod as she suddenly and violently tugged him toward her, his armored fingers twisting ever more painfully at the joints from the pressure of her vise-like grip. She maneuvered his palm to face her, pressing his digits up and back with both her hands now. The simple technique forced John to choose between continuing his fall to his knees or never being able to hail a sky-cab again.

Feeling from John the slightest hesitation to comply, she summoned all her considerable leg strength into a crippling kick against the Spectre's side. A disturbing crunch rattled through the pod from where Tali's greave hammered the human. The force would be enough to send him reeling were Tali still not holding his hand. He rebounded like a tethered soccer-ball to the sound of breaking fingers and landed at her feet, his head falling forward. Tali stopped then reversed its movement with a swift knee to his faceplate.

Doctor Chakwas and Garrus could only stare at the display. Adams thought about joining in, helping the girl drag in her boyfriend, but thought better of it. The others were already strapped in and couldn't help if they wanted to. Either way, John needed to get in this pod. Tali could have handled it better, but this might be the only way to accomplish anything. Garrus reflected that he would have done the same thing were it Jane pulling these stupid heroics and not her brother. It was a good thing his girl wasn't into that.

All resistance in the human vanished after the well-placed knee. He crumpled to the deck, and sensing that the threat to her mate was at least temporary gone, Tali took a flying leap at the pod-door controls. The ground met the girl much sooner than she hoped.

John had caught her by the waist, plucking her mid-flight from the air with his good hand. In a flash he scrambled on top of her and she found a very heavy black boot pressing against her neck. Though he was careful not to press too hard, embers of Tali's killer instinct ignited once again, burning hotter than ever before. This beast standing over her was going to kill her human. It had to die.

Years of dance training and competition made the next maneuver quite easy for the girl. Twisting to her right side, she kicked her left leg up as high as it could go, her knee grazing her chin. She sent a hand to catch her ankle.

The display reminded John of just how exotic she really was. Tali had, quicker than he could process, looped her body to surround his right leg. No human, gymnast or not, could pull of the feat. Almost too late to do anything about it, John saw exactly what she had in mind. Tali was never unarmed.

The quarian's fingers lightly brushed her ankle and slid along the holstered shaft of her ceremonial blade, stopping when they reached the haft. Withdrawing the weapon, she looked to the beast that threatened her saera, wanting to see its face as she ended it. Plunging it towards its meaty torso, satisfaction filled her in anticipation of the kill.

John barely had time to catch the blade with an armored gauntlet. At the sight of her towering target, reality forced itself upon her like a rogue asteroid. Still staring at him, Tali's hands stopped working and the dagger fell to the deck. The beast was gone. Inches from where the tip of her blade had been stood her inszel. His eyes held sadness, remorse, and... understanding.

John took a step back and off her, reaching down to help her up as he did. Standing before him, she slowly extended an arm then gently clasped his broken hand. He took it with as much vigor as the pain would allow.

"Please, John...," a sobbing cry then, "Please..." It came soft and defeated, as if a final plea from young mother begging for the life of her dying child. She forced herself to continue, "Don't..."

Though hardly capable of speaking through frantic tears and grief, John knew what she was trying to say. Faceplates tapped each other softly as he leaned in close, stalling her mid-sentence.

"I'm sorry Tali. Know that I love you." With that he withdrew his hand and stepped back, but not before one final grasp from his quarian, unwilling as she was to give up even at the eleventh hour. Seeing him wince at her grip, she let go out of impulse alone.

John quickly exited the pod and slapped its exterior haptic interface, closing the door and sending it on its way.

"I'll be back for you. Don't doubt me," John muttered to the place where the Quarian once stood.

Inside the pod, Tali curled up in the corner and waited for the inevitable.

...

The transition from ear-splitting inferno to the tranquility of space jarred the Spectre. Alchera loomed above, big, red, and beautiful, its sun just cresting into view. John shoved a floating chair aside as made his way to the cockpit.

The faint hiss in his ears brought his mind back to the confrontation with Tali. He had suspected some suit damage, and this confirmed it. It didn't seem to be that bad at the moment. For a little while at least, his suit would do an adequate job of maintaining pressure. Fortunately, he didn't plan on being here that long.

At first glance, it looked like Joker was dead. The only thing between John and empty space was the centimeter of suit material and his armor plates. Nothing could have survived in the gutted fuselage, but if Jane was to be believed there was still one person left only a few meters ahead.

The VI was long gone, so someone had to be flying the ship. The sight of the tell-tale blue glow of a mass effect field confirmed his suspicions. A moment later he caught the rapid movement of arms flailing across orange flight controls.

Crossing into the restrained atmosphere of the small compartment, he allowed himself a small sigh. This ordeal was almost over.

Drawing himself up to deal with the brazen pilot, he said plainly, "Come on Joker we have to get out of here."

The pilot, unwilling to stop working or spare a glance from his controls, replied, "No, I won't abandon the Normandy. I can still save her."

John shook his head as he spoke, louder this time, "The Normandy's lost. Going down with the ship won't change that." He put a hand under Joker's armpit in preparation for a lift.

Reason finally won out over frustration. Defeat crept into the pilot's voice. "Yeah ok, help me up."

The Spectre started to pull Joker up and out of the chair, gently at first in deference to his medical condition. White light flooded the helm.

Quite unnecessarily, Joker added, "They're coming around for another attack!"

At this, John abandoned all care as he jerked the pilot up and out of his chair in one swift motion, hauling him in the direction of the escape pod. It was well past time to put this ship behind them.

"Ahh, watch the arm!" complained Joker.

John could care less if he broke every bone in Joker's body at this point, as long as that damn pilot lived to see another day. The Spectre steadied himself with one hand on the pod's door frame, using his other to hurl Joker inside, the task made easier without artificial gravity.

The white light made its way onto the flight deck. It sent John reeling, his grip giving way under the onslaught of flying debris.

"Commander! Shepard!"

Joker wouldn't launch the pod from inside as long as John was outside. Unfortunately, John just wasn't going to make it in time. That was not okay with the Spectre, but it had to be done. Palming the launch controls from where he impacted halfway across the ruins of the deck, he watched as the pod shot off to safety, the ship disintegrated around him.

Another explosion buffeted him, bringing him ever closer to the void. Gradually, momentum edged him further and further out into the great beyond. What little hope he still held onto rapidly vanished to the sound of the small air leak growing into a rather large one. Frantically he attempted to close the gaps in his suit, twisting and contorting his body as he tried. He had to make the hissing stop, louder and louder now, knowing the whole time that there was precious little he could do.

Alchera loomed large beneath him. Finally the hissing stopped altogether.

Mom...

Jane...

Tali...

Dad... I'm coming home...

...

With all the last of the survivors safely off the ship, Jane made her way to one of the few remaining escape pods. She had just climbed in when it, and the ship, lurched beneath her. With only seconds to spare, she hit the launch controls, bracing herself for the acceleration.

Rocketing to the preset rally point, she could only pray that John and Joker had made it out alive. Looking through the small view-port, She thought she caught sight of a small thruster flare just as the Normandy entered her death throes, but she couldn't be sure. The ship fell to pieces as she watched Her first command and so many of those who trusted her with their life, sundered to ash as she stared helplessly. Now was not the time for tearful remorse, that would come later. She still had a job to do.

Orange light filled the hushed dark pod, her omni-tool keyed to the emergency frequency. She spoke softly, keeping her voice level, "Section heads, this is the Captain. I need accountability now."

One by one, they called in. Operations was good, supply was good, engineering took the largest hit... on and one they reported. Then silence. Jane realized that no one from the marine detachment had reported in. A chill crept up her spine.

"Commander Shepard, report detachment status."

More silence. It became hard to breath. "Commander Shepard, report now."

Again, no one spoke. Her eyes began to water, throat tightening. Jane's voice cracked, "John, please report..."

Seconds ticked by. She had to sit down and couldn't repress her sobs any longer. She screamed, "Nee! Report now God damn it!"

Finally she heard her answer, "This Gunny Williams, reporting for marine detachment. Twenty four present, three KIA, one MIA. I'm sorry Ma'am."

"No! Fuck it all! No! Joker, where is he?!"

"Ma'am... The commander, he... got spaced," came the somber reply.

Jane didn't want to hear any more and turned off the volume on her omni-tool. A calm came over the women, followed by determination. John wasn't dead. Not by a long shot. He was out there waiting for rescue, waiting for her. If she was the only one with the knackers to go after her brother, then so be it.

Jane brought her omni-tool to the pod's control system access panel. With a few simple key strokes, she sent a command-authority override into the pod's navigational computer. She opened another bright orange window and began scanning for John's emergency locator beacon, built into every marine and crewman's suit. She found her brother's almost immediately, along with three marines and one engineering serviceman who had apparently managed to get into a suit. The others indicated no life-signs, but John's... He had a rapid pulse, dropping blood oxygen levels, and decreased suit pressure.

He needed rescue immediately. Hers was the last pod released and therefore the closest. Altering its flight path from the rally point to John took only another few key stokes. She checked the shuttle location to be sure, but, just as she thought, there was no way for it to intercept in time. Fingers ran along suit-seals, granting her a brief reassurance.

"John's alive, but he won't be for long. I'm going for him," she reported over the comm. She could only guess at what the replies would have been.

In agonizingly slow motion, the pod made for its new destination. What felt like an eternity to Jane was only a dozen of so seconds. Finally a proximity warning sounded, letting the former captain know she was within twenty meters of her target. Pod thrusters weren't designed to be very precise, the best estimate having Jane pass her brother within eighteen meters to above-starboard. She would overshoot and have to fight momentum on her way back to him if she didn't do something soon. If she delayed, the pod would eventually re-orient and return to its nav-point, though by then it might be too late.

She was no adept, but she practiced constantly with her biotics, once or twice toying with them while doing space-walks. Hopefully it would be enough.

Jane grabbed the emergency EVA kit and took manual control of the pod, aligning its hatch with roughly where she thought her brother lay suspended and dying. She took an instant to mentally prepare herself before releasing the hatch. Air shot from the pod, and with it the Spectre inside.

Diving headlong into her brother, she realized she would miss him by less than half a meter. Putting everything she had into the most important biotic pull of her life, she closed the distance and locked both arms around the man's waist. Halting their movement with another pull, she could see the air leaking from his suit in small fountains of crystallizing water vapor. By now it was barely a trickle. John wouldn't last long if she couldn't stem the tide.

"I've made contact with him. He's losing air. Suit damage."

She maneuvered herself to straddle her brother, locking his torso securely between her thighs. Her hands now free to operate, she quickly sought out each hole and crack, applying patches from the kit she brought with her.

"Finished repairs."

If a planet-side boat started taking on water, the first step was to plug the leak. Now, she had to find a way to bail the water out. Or in this case, restore all his lost oxygen. His auxiliary tank depleted, even his suit's recyclers would be of no use.

"I'm going to link my suit with his."

She connected her suit's external air supply coupler to his. She felt a chilling rush of air over her skin as her suit pressurized his. Dizziness momentarily hit, but that meant nothing to her at all. If she had been told she'd lose both arms and legs it wouldn't have tarnished her mood in the slightest.

Though still unconscious, John's breathing had stabilized and his pulse strengthened. She may have lost her ship, and many of the crew with it, but she had just brought her only brother, her twin, the better part of herself, back from the dead. Tell me I can't do the impossible! Fuck you, I'm Jane Shepard! I can do anything! Fuck you, universe!

"It's done. He's going to make it. Moving back to the pod now," she said in a detached tone, as if she did this sort of thing all the time and it was really nothing to get worked up about.

The pod, as predicted, had come to rest roughly twenty meters from their current position, well within the range of a biotic pull. Or it would have been, were they not still inside and active debris field.

Escape pods jettisoned from their parent craft and traveled a set distance to a constantly updated rally point. That point was set far away from the mother craft for a very good reason. Any closer and the pod risked collision with the expanding remnants of the destroyed vessel. Which is exactly what happened to the pod that Jane had brought within tens of meters to the derelict Normandy.

A large section of the obliterated frigate's drive section slowly careened into the pod, damaging it beyond any hope of repair. Eezo and mass effect fields showered everything within a hundred meters in a glowing blue aura.

"No, no, no... We were... We were so close!," she screamed with rage as she held her brother even tighter, arms wrapping around as she faced him, cradling his limp head to her shoulder. His sturdy form gave her some comfort in the face of oblivion.

"I'm sorry Nee, I'm so sorry," she blinked moisture from her eyes, "Please believe me, I tried. God I tried."

Even crumpled from the impact, Jane might have made it to the pod, maybe stayed inside, using its beacon to help locate them when the Alliance showed up. Instead she found herself drifting helplessly in the eddies and currents of the expanding field, while the pod did the same in the opposite direction. Even if she over-clocked her biotic implants, she had no hope of correcting their momentum.

Soon the pod would plummet into Alchera's atmosphere, heading west, while she and John would enter to face the rising sun.

"Quite a view Nee... very beautiful," she reflected, sobbing now. "You can't see it, but I'll describe it to you on the other side."

Sound came back to her then, like driving an aircar with the windows down. Soft at first, getting louder by the second.

She turned her back to the planet, holding John above her relative to its surface. "It's better this way. You're lucky. You're not going to feel what comes next."

She felt the heat now, a bad sunburn after a long day of laying out at the beach. The beach... A faint smile crossed her lips at the pleasant image.

"Garrus, if you're listening, I love you babe."

Blisters formed and burst under her armor. She held her brother tighter still, pressing herself as hard as she could into him. It might hurt now, but it wouldn't last much longer.

"Johnny..." Her insides cooked, she needed to stay awake for just a second longer.

"Johnny," she croaked, taking her last breath, "I absolve you from your sins. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good."

...

"Ma'am... The commander, he... got spaced."

"No!"

Tali had heard the section heads calling in. She realized, probably before the captain had, that John had failed to report. She dimly listened as Jane first demanded, then screamed for her inszel to respond. Still though it hadn't sunk in, as far gone as she already was.

Not until Joker finally decided to chime in. Wrath overwhelmed her sensibilities in a heartbeat. Were he standing before her, she would have killed Joker far too hastily to enjoy it.

Before long though, reason pressed though the haze as it was wont to do in desperate times like these. She would end that sickness of a man later. For now she had to rescue her human.

Garrus was the first to notice what Tali was up to. She stood by the access panel to the pod's computer, omni-tool out and fingers dancing. "Um, Tali? You and I are the only ones with vacuum-safe suits..."

It was as if he had been talking to a wall. She continued type away.

Others took notice then.

"Garrus!" Doctor Chakwas practically screamed, hand waiving at the girl, "You need to do something! She'll kill us all if she goes after him!"

One on one, only he could stop her, Garrus knew. Even that was a fifty-fifty proposition, maybe less. She fought much better than him at short ranges, after all. Alternatively, everyone in the pod could jump her at once, but she was guaranteed to kill at least one of them.

Inside the pod, Garrus felt their momentum shift from their previous heading. Not much time left now.

Engineer Adams spoke up this time, "Please Garrus! You're the only one with armor..."

The turian approached the girl. The new course set, her back now faced the panel she had been attending to. She crossed her arms under her bust. Cold, dead, and glowing eyes regarded him. Still she said nothing.

Garrus knew better than to touch her. She never liked that. Instead he held his hands in a Turian gesture used for begging. "For the love of the Spirits, Tali. For the love of your ancestors. You're going to execute them all."

Her face remaining impassive, her body as motionless as a statue.

He continued, "It's not worth it, John's already-"

The kick came out of nowhere. Thinking her incapable of movement at this point, he barely had time to block the terrifying blow. "Don't you dare say such a thing!" She pointed an accusing finger at him and continued, "He's still out-"

The comm interrupted, "John's alive, but he won't be for long. I'm going for him." At hearing Jane's voice, Garrus and Tali both rounded to face the small speaker in the pod's wall.

Both Turian and Quarian tried to hail the captain at the same time, but Garrus was quicker. "Jane! What the hell do you think you're do-"

The blow landed square on the unsuspecting Turian's helmet before he could finish the sentence. "Captain!" yelled the engineer into her omni-tool, "Please save him! You can do it!"

Just as Tali finished, she found herself face first on the deck with a hundred and forty kilos of Turian and armor atop her. It didn't matter, once Jane had made up her mind, there was nothing anyone could do. She would save her human and Tali could wake up from this awful nightmare. She would be proud to have the captain as a sister one day soon, she hoped.

Holding Tali to the ground was a bad idea. The girl could leg press the armored turian ten times over, at least. Garrus was off her almost as soon as they fell. He assumed a combat stance, expecting the worst. He was surprised to find the girl just sitting there. Silence filled the cabin.

"Tali," began the former C-Sec officer wearily, "I don't think she can hear us. She would have responded by now."

Jane's voice betrayed nothing, "I've made contact with him. He's losing air. Suit damage."

Tali perked up. Feeling returned to her glowing eyes, unseen features softened. Her captain would make this right again.

"Okay Tali," Garrus said calmly, resigned as he was that Jane had and continued to risk her life like this, "Jane's got him now. He's safe. Turn the pod around."

She kept sitting, but this time she turned to him with a tilted head as he spoke. Perhaps this was the best she could hope for. The captain was doing exactly what Tali would have done. But then again, she had for more experience with EVA work and the captain might still need her help.

"Finished repairs," this time Jane let a touch of relief slip through the calm demeanor.

"See Tali? Turn this pod around, please," Garrus said again.

"Yes, please dear. Jane has this well in hand," Doctor Chakwas added.

Tali turned to face the elder human, then back to Garrus. After a moment's consideration she spoke, "Alright, I'll... I'll get us back to the nav point."

"I'm going to link my suit with his," Jane said.

Untold relief flooded the Quarian when she heard this. It mixed with no small measure of strange-yet-understandable jealously. While she had never told John, to a Quarian that act held special meaning. Although family members did this routinely for a variety of reasons, and anyone would have linked suits under these circumstances, she had still hoped to be John's first. The action would save Johns life, so she wouldn't complain too much. Besides, there was plenty of time to link suits later.

Tali finished resetting the pod's flight path to the rally point just as she heard her captain's voice again.

"It's done. He's going to make it. Moving back to the pod now," Jane spoke again.

Finally, she allowed herself to collapse to the deck, all the worry draining from her like so much raw sewage. She was at peace and all was right with the universe.

Quicker than she would have noticed, had she even bothered to pay attention, Garrus was on top of her. Like the well trained C-Sec officer he was, he had her lying on her stomach, searched, and deprived her of firearms and blade before anyone else could make a move. Almost as an afterthought he produced a set of flexi-cuffs and secured her wrists.

Tali was more than happy to put up with her Turian friend's textbook arrest. She would have put the hand-cuffs on herself had he asked. John would live, and she would have something to live for.

Jane's voice interrupted Tali's reprieve, "No, no, no... We were... We were so close!"

"What?! No! Not now! No!" Tali flailed against her restraints. She tried to get up, but couldn't find the leverage on her stomach as she was, hands tied and Turian atop her again.

"Please Garrus! You and me! We can save them! You and me and Jane and John! We can all live!" She was no closer to tiring than she had been when the Normandy first came under fire.

This time Jane could barely be heard, "I'm sorry Nee, I'm so sorry,"

"Garrus! Now, you det kazuat, bastard, fucking, fre'eg, son of a whore! Let me go!"

"Tali," the Turian said as he used a talon to turn her head to his omni-tool, "We're too far out. They were blown towards the planet by something."

Before her, displays showing John and Jane's suit signatures had the pair already in a rapidly decaying orbit. Tali could never have noticed when Doctor Chakwas did the merciful thing and put her under with a well-placed tranquilizer.

I owe you all a Tali/Shep love scene, maybe next chapter with... Freedom's Progress.

What did I do right? What did I do wrong? Please let me know with a review.