Chapter Text
They stared in horror at the scene displayed by the shuttle’s cameras. The war-torn streets of London passed beneath them, looking like something out of a horror movie, not a city older than the asari matriarchs. Garrus sat quietly holding Shepard’s hand as the humans on board all tried to process what they were seeing.
The Hades Cannon fired, shaking the shuttle. Steve dodged when it tried to lock on. The shuttle behind them when down in flames.
“Dammit!” Steve yelled. Shepard ran up toward the pilot.
After a brief conversation with Steve, Shepard turned back to Kaidan and Garrus. “Change of plans, people. We’re gonna take out that Hades Cannon.”
“And how are we gonna do that?” Kaidan asked.
“That downed shuttle would have been carrying heavy weapons,” Steve called back.
Shepard nodded. “Perfect. You heard the man. Once we’re clear, make your way to the crashed shuttle. We’ll search the wreckage for heavy weapons.”
“We’re right behind you,” Garrus replied. They turned toward the door and readied weapons.
The Reaper forces started shooting at them before the shuttle door finished opening. The deafening sound of the cannon revving up shook the air. Kaidan threw a reave at a charging marauder before following Shepard and Garrus into the field. He hit the ground running and heard Shepard give Steve the all-clear. The shuttle lifted off.
“You’ve got airborne hostiles inbound. Gonna try to keep ‘em off you,” Steve said through their comms. Remembering the other shuttle going down, Kaidan wanted to tell Steve to flee, to leave them and get to safety. Instead, he focused on a husk on Garrus’ flank.
“Careful, Cortez,” Shepard said. She led them up stretch of torn and rocky earth, fighting hordes of Reaper forces to reach the path leading up to the crash site. As they reached the incline, Shepard glanced up. Kaidan followed her gaze to see Steve’s shuttle overhead, a Harvester on his tail. A lucky hit sent the shuttle careening. Shepard screamed the pilot’s name.
Kaidan froze. The sound of the battle faded, replaced by his pounding heart. Time seemed to stop. Eternity passed in seconds while he waited for a response.
“I’m alright!” Steve replied. Kaidan could breathe again. The world came back into focus.
“You sure?” Shepard asked. She glanced at Kaidan.
“Yeah. But I won’t be picking you up. Gotta land this bird quick,” Steve said. He sounded so calm, so sure of himself. The tightness in Kaidan’s chest eased a bit.
“Get safe,” Shepard instructed.
“Anything for you,” Steve replied.
Shepard turned to Kaidan. “Are you alright?” she asked.
Kaidan forced a smile. “Please, Shepard. That was minor compared to the heart attacks you like to give us,” he said. Garrus nodded enthusiastically. Shepard rolled her eyes.
“Let’s move.” She led them up the hill and straight into another varren’s nest of hostiles.
***
Steve was thrown from his seat when the shuttle hit the ground and slid into a wrecked building. He lay there, willing the ceiling to stop spinning. He could smell burning metal and feel the heat of the fire coming from the back. A small part of his mind yelled at him to move, but he couldn’t stop staring at the way the firelight danced above him.
The scream of a Harvester overhead jolted him back to reality. He took stock of his injuries. His head hurt. He had probably bruised or broken a few ribs. His right leg had twisted painfully when he fell. He carefully pulled himself up. Leaning back against the co-pilot’s seat, he stared at the dark console. His precious Kodiak was dead.
When the Normandy left Earth at the beginning of the invasion, he had accepted the idea that he’d been reduced to a shuttle pilot. He missed flying Tridents, being in the thick of the fighting with a carrier to back him up. He missed his fellow flight jockeys and all their bantering. In time, he realized he had an important role to play. Shepard depended on him to get her into and out of dangerous situations. He found himself in combat roles he’d never dreamed of. While he occasionally missed his Trident, he wouldn’t give the Kodiak up for anything. He’d put a lot of work into this bird.
But he had to get out of there. The burning metal smell was getting stronger. If the fire didn’t kill him, soon the toxic fumes would. He pulled himself up using the pilot’s seat. It took more effort than he wanted to admit. He almost reached out to Kaidan to let him know that he was alright. He knew Kaidan had heard his conversation with Shepard, but he hadn’t said anything, and the pilot desperately needed to hear his voice. But Kaidan was in combat. He couldn’t afford the distraction. Besides, he would hate to lie. He might be standing, but he was not steady.
Voices outside the shuttle startled him. He grabbed the pistol under his seat and leaned against the console. With the thick walls of the shuttle and the roaring fire nearby, Steve couldn’t tell if he was hearing words or just the grunts and cries of the Reaper forces. He held his pistol ready, determined to take a few of the bastard out before they got him. Then he thought of Kaidan being forced to kill a Reaper-twisted husk version of him and changed the angle of the gun. If husks broke through, he’d blow the fuel reserves and kill them all, himself included.
The shuttle wall screamed as the door was pried open manually. Two soldiers stuck their heads in, looking around. One spotted him and looked relieved. “He’s alive!” he called back.
They ran over to him. One pulled up a medical scanner on his omni-tool. “What’s your name, solider?” he asked.
“Flight Lieutenant Steven Cortez,” Steve replied.
“Saw you go down. That was one hell of a landing you pulled off. Thought for sure the shuttle was going to explode when it hit,” the medic said.
“Thanks,” Steve mumbled.
“Don’t worry, Cortez. We’ll get you out of here,” the other soldier said. He set a stretcher down as his friend got a shoulder under Steve’s arm and helped him lay down. “What unit are you with?”
“The Normandy,” he replied.
“No way! You’re that Cortez?” the soldier said. “Shit! We’ve heard about everything you guys have done out there. Or as much of it as we could get with communications shot to hell. That’s not the first time you’ve pulled some fancy flying.”
The medic pushed him out of the way. “You can fanboy later, Todd. Help me get him to the medic tent,” he said.
“Yes, sir!”
His injuries weren’t as bad as he feared. The concussion was mild, the ribs only bruised, and the leg had a minor tear in the muscle and a dislocated knee. They popped the knee back in place and got a brace on him. His ribs were wrapped, and he was left to rest with some very nice painkillers.
***
“Major Alenko?” Kaidan turned toward the young, harried aide who ran up to him. She paused to salute before handing him a datapad. “There are some solider here from the Special Ops Biotics Division asking to speak with you, sir.”
“Biotics Division?” he asked. When she nodded, he grinned. “Shit, they made it! Lead the way.”
His smiled faltered a little when he realized there were only four of them. Four, out of twenty-five. God, he hated this war. They had lost far too many already, and it wasn’t over. But maybe some of the others were still alive and just couldn’t make it here.
Corporal Olliver spotted him. “Major!” he called. The others turned, grins plastered across their faces as they called out their own greetings. He threw military decorum to the wind and embraced each of them.
“I’m so glad you all made it,” he said. “I’ve been worried about you. I know it couldn’t have been easy down here.”
“Yeah, ‘cause you’ve had it so easy out there in space,” Tresik said. They all laughed.
“True. I’ve been slogging through political crap and doing combat drops on hostile planets. I’ve seen the vids, though. I still say I had it easier,” Kaidan replied. They nodded, turning away or looking down to hide the grief in their eyes. “I’ve heard about a lot of what you’ve done. I’m so proud of you all.”
“Thank you, sir,” Bolson said. They were quiet for a moment. Finally, she added, “It didn’t take us long to realize you’d been preparing us for this the whole time. The kinds of missions you gave us, the way you taught us to use our biotics. Every lesson helped out there. You knew, didn’t you, sir?”
Kaidan nodded. “I did. I was with Shepard when Sovereign and Saren attacked the Citadel almost four years ago. I knew the Reapers were coming. I just couldn’t get High Command to listen. And anyone, including Shepard, who tried got shot down and often shut out. So, I kept quiet and took advantage when they put me in charge. I did what I could to make sure you were ready. I’m glad it worked.” He paused to look each of them in the eye. “Is this really all that made it?”
Revin shook his head. “Polinski’s got another group over on the far side of no man’s land. Three, maybe four of them. They’ll be thrilled to see you, sir.”
“So, seven or eight out of our whole unit?” Kaidan asked. He took a deep breath. “Still, that’s seven or eight more than I’d hoped to run into. Any confirmed dead?”
“Yeah. We lost Thompson early on. Died getting civilians out of Vancouver way back at the beginning,” Tresik said.
“Messic, Colton, and Trey all went down together taking out one of those fucking banshees,” Revin added. They all shivered. That scream tore through a biotic’s implants like electricity. At least all his students were young enough not to have the L2.
“So, four confirmed dead. Seven or eight alive. That just leaves eight or nine unaccounted for. Better than I’d hoped,” Kaidan said. “Alright, I’m going to confer with the on-site commanders to see where you four are going. And then I need to find out the status of someone who should be with the medics.”
“Communications further than about twenty feet are completely buggered, but there’s a QEC at the command center. You should be able to reach the med tents that way,” Bolson said.
“Thanks. Hang tight, guys. This battle’s just getting started,” Kaidan said. He started to walk away, but Olliver called him back.
“Are you coming with us, sir?” he asked.
“That depends on Shepard. If she needs me for her ground team, then no. But if she doesn’t, I’ll be back. Either way, just know that every one of those bastards you take out is one less getting in the way. One more chance that we make it to the end and stop the Reapers for good,” Kaidan said. They stood straighter, determination painting their faces.
“Major, can you tell us anything about how Shepard plans to do that?” Tresik asked.
“Not really. It’s all classified. But just know that we do have a plan. It’s a long shot, but it’s the only one we’ve got. If we fail here, there’s nothing else. We’ll end up like the protheans, fighting for decades, maybe centuries, before finally being eradicated. I’m sorry to say it like that, but you need to know the score. So, anything you can do to give us a clear shot, I need you to take it. Our team was built to do things no other team can do. I have absolute faith in all of you to help us win this!” They all nodded. Olliver saluted.
Then Bolson cracked a grin. “You gonna remember that little speech when you get to Polinski’s group?” he asked.
“Get some rest, soldiers. We have a long night ahead of us,” Kaidan said with a smile. He turned and walked away, his heart heavy when he realized that might be the last time he got to speak to any of his students.
***
“Lieutenant, you have a call at the QEC,” a nurse said. Steve sat up too quickly and had to wait out a wave of dizziness. The nurse waited until he looked up at her before helping him to his feet, handing him a crutch. “I’ll make sure you get there safely.”
“Thank you,” he said. His heart pounded, hoping it was Kaidan. Fearing it was word that Kaidan hadn’t made it. When he got to the QEC and they told him it was Shepard, he wasn’t sure whether or not to be relieved. He set the crutch aside as the commander’s holographic image appeared.
“Commander, you made it,” he said. He tried to stand as straight as possible to hide his injuries.
“Glad I could say the same about you, Cortez. I’ve come too far to lose my pilot now,” Shepard teased.
“I apologize for that. Things got too hot. Thought I could do another run and head back around… Well, not one of my finer moments. If I’d been flying my old Trident, things might’ve been different,” he said.
Shepard flashed him one of her classic grins, the one Kaidan said meant she was about to do something heroically stupid. “What matters is we took out that AA gun.”
“Absolutely. And the Reapers are next,” Steve agreed.
“That’s the idea.”
“It’ll happen. I’m just glad I could play a part,” Steve said. He glanced away. They both knew how this could end. It was possible with any campaign, but especially this one. This could be his last chance to talk to her. “And Commander… Thanks for making me believe again. If you hadn’t…” He thought of Kaidan, his whiskey brown eyes smiling at him, his husky voice whispering to him in the middle of the night. He took a deep breath. “It helps to have reason to live again.”
Shepard smiled. “Stay sharp, Cortez.”
“Yes, ma’am.” The image faded and he was alone. He turned away, reaching for the crutch to head back to the med tent and rest. Without the Kodiak, he was stuck groundside unless the Normandy could evac him. They were just too busy up in the air to come after one stranded soldier.
Before he could move, the comms tech called out to him. “Lieutenant Cortez, you have another call coming in. You’re popular today.”
“Thank you, Specialist,” he said. He stepped back up to the QEC. Kaidan appeared before him. His breath caught. “Kaidan.”
“Steve, thank God!” Kaidan said. “I was so worried about you when the shuttle went down. Are you alright? Really?”
“Yeah, Kay. I’ll be fine. I managed to slide the shuttle to a stop instead of crashing. Banged my head a little and bruised a couple ribs. No big deal,” he said. He felt bad for downplaying it, but Kaidan needed to focus. “Are you hitting the ground with Shepard or is she sending you back to the ship?”
“Not sure yet. Probably not going back to the Normandy, though. Ran into some of my students. If Shepard doesn’t need me for the ground team, I’ll probably join them,” Kaidan said. “They were scared, and I can’t blame them. The next part of this is straight out of one of the circles of hell. Shepard’s gonna have to push through a no man’s land full of these bastards to get to the Citadel beam. After that… I don’t want to think about it.”
“Kay… I wish I was there with you. But we’ll see each other soon,” Steve said. Kaidan looked lost, terrified. He stared at Steve like he was trying to memorize the pilot’s face.
Like he was never going to see it again.
“Yeah. I’ll see you on the other side,” Kaidan said. Steve knew what he meant. The other side of the fight, the victory party when the Reapers were dust. But they both knew the other meaning was just as possible. “Steve, whatever happens out there, I want you to remember that I love you. I will do everything in my power to get back to you.”
“I love you, too, Kaidan,” Steve said. They locked eyes for a moment. Then, at the same time, they both stepped back out of the holo-circle. The call ended, leaving Steve alone again. He fought to keep his emotions in check, but fear clawed its way up from his stomach.
No. He refused to sit idly by while the man he loved was in danger— again. He glanced at the medical tent. The nurse had not waited to take him back to his bed. Nodding to the tech, he grabbed his crutch and walked slowly out of the QEC tent. When he was out of sight, he limped as fast as he could toward the Alliance vehicle lots. He glanced at the hanger where the fighter jets were stored but shook his head. If he made it back to the Normandy, they didn’t have proper docking for a fighter. Instead, he headed for the shuttles. He found one that was unassigned. With Shepard here and the Crucible on its way, no one was guarding the shuttles.
He ran inside and flipped everything on and ran through only the most essential checks. Through the front cameras, he saw a mechanic running toward him. He slammed his hand on the ignition and took off. They could court martial him later. He needed to be in this fight.
He flew toward the thickest of the fighting. Along the way, he located the shuttle’s call code, then tuned the radio into the Normandy team’s channels. The team had split up, but he could tell from the chatter that Garrus and Kaidan were with Shepard. Joker had their ship in high Earth orbit above London, watching for chances to clear a path for their commander. He dove in to provide air support for the united coalition forces on the ground.
A call came in that grabbed his attention. “We need evac now. Coalition unit 314 down, immediate evac requested,” James said, his voice grainy through the radio.
Steve activated his comm. “I read you 314. Shuttle inbound for evac,” he said.
“Esteban, is that you?” James asked.
“Yes, Mr. Vega. I got you,” Steve replied. He locked in on James’ transponder and turned the shuttle’s nose in that direction. He switched to Joker’s channel. “Normandy, this is shuttle NS57. Picking up wounded soldiers. Need coordinates for rendezvous. No clear flight path to groundside medical.”
“We read you, shuttle,” EDI said. “Call code locked. Will rendezvous at these coordinates.” A flight code flashed onto his screen. Steve spotted James and pulled in, opening the door.
James and one other uninjured soldier brought the rest inside. James ran up to slide into the co-pilot’s seat. “This isn’t our shuttle,” he said.
“Uh, no. Kinda crashed that one,” Steve replied as he took off.
“Should you be flying?” James asked.
“Just a little banged up, Mr. Vega. I’m fine,” Steve replied. James gave him a look that said he didn’t believe it for a second. Steve shrugged. “I just have to get us back to the ship.”
“Yeah, through a war zone, Esteban. Let me fly,” James said.
“Hell, no,” Steve replied with a grin. “There’s still a shuttle on the Normandy that is a testimony to your ability to fly in combat situations.”
“Not cool, Esteban,” James said, but he stopped arguing.
They arrived at the rendezvous. Dr. Chakwas’ team was standing by to receive the new soldiers as soon as Steve docked. Steve realized as they were pulling the wounded off that they weren’t all human. He was glad Dr. Chakwas had experience with multi-lateral crews. These soldiers were in good hands.
***
Kaidan’s arm hung useless at his side. The back of his neck burned from overuse of his biotics. Fear and heartbreak threatened to overwhelm the adrenaline of battle. But still, he held Garrus back as the turian struggled to run down the loading ramp before it closed. Blue blood flowed over his hand. Garrus’s struggles were growing weaker by the second, but so was Kaidan.
“Vega! A little help here!” he cried, not caring that his voice was rough with tears.
James ran over and pulled the turian to the ground. Kaidan let go, stumbling back into a pile of crates. That was it. He was done. He had no more to give. He slid down the crates, staring at his limp arm. Around him, people yelled. The medical team rushed to Garrus. The ship pulled hard to port as Joker performed evasive maneuvers.
“Kaidan!” Steve slid to his knees next to the biotic, checking him for injuries. “Please be okay. What’s wrong, Kay? Medic!”
Kaidan reached up a hand to reassure him. Everything felt a little fuzzy around the edges, but he managed to grab Steve’s hand. “I’m here, Steve. I’ll be okay.”
Steve leaned down to touch his forehead to Kaidan’s. He dropped a soft kiss on the biotic’s lips. “You better be.”
Dr. Chakwas knelt next to them. She waved her omnitool over Kaidan, running scans before calling for a stretcher. Putting her hand on his shoulder, she said, “We’ve got you, Kaidan. Just rest. Lieutenant, you can speak with him later.”
Steve just nodded, holding Kaidan’s hand as they started carrying him away. He held on as long as he could before the biotic’s fingers slipped through his. Fear tore at his heart and he started to crumble. James was there, arms around his friend, before he could hit the ground. Without thought or hesitation, Steve turned to the big man and sobbed against his chest.
“He’ll be okay, Esteban,” James said. “Come on. Let’s get up to the crew deck. You can watch through the window.”
Steve nodded. He turned toward the elevator but moved his injured knee wrong. Pain shot through his leg and he stumbled. His head started to throb as the adrenaline wore off. He could feel himself falling. James caught him, lowering him gently to the ground. The ship went dim around him. James’ mouth was moving, but Steve couldn’t understand the words.
The ship dipped again, and everything went black.
***
He woke up to a ship that was far too quiet, with Dr. Chakwas leaning over him. She looked angry. He blinked up at her.
“You’re an idiot, Lieutenant,” she said. “What the hell were you thinking, flying that shuttle with a concussion?”
“There was a war, and it didn’t hurt that much,” Steve mumbled.
“Right. And with all that running around, you may have permanently damaged your knee,” the doc said. Steve grimaced.
“There are a lot of other soldiers out there worse off than me, Doc. I’m sorry, but I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing,” he said. “How are Kaidan and Garrus?”
“Not good. A tank nearly flattened them both. They’ll live, but Garrus is unconscious and likely will be for a while. He needed major surgery. Kaidan is awake and doing as well as can be expected,” Dr. Chakwas said.
Steve looked past her to the next bed. Kaidan lay there patiently, watching the exchange. “Hey, Steve.”
“Hey, yourself. A tank?” he asked.
“Yep. Harbinger threw it at us,” Kaidan replied. His shoulder was wrapped with his arm in a sling. A bandage partially covered one eye. Bruises, cuts, and burns covered his bare torso and arms. Steve’s eyes ticked lower, but Kaidan’s hips and legs were covered with a blanket.
“Yikes. Why is the ship so quiet?” Steve asked.
Dr. Chakwas jumped in. “We crashed after going through the relay. Whatever the Crucible did, it shut down half the ship. The drive core’s dead. We have minimal power, though life support is fine for the time being. Happily, we crashed on a planet with breathable air.”
“That’s good, then,” Kaidan said.
“Yes. Now, both of you need to get some rest. I will let you stay in adjacent beds if you promise to sleep,” the doc said. They both nodded. When all they did was turn to look at each other, she pushed Steve’s bed a little closer to Kaidan’s so they could hold hands.
***
Kaidan stared at the immobile mech that used to be EDI. The AI core was a mess of burnt and melted scrap. The servers had fried beyond repair when the Crucible fired. Joker was asleep in the med bay, sedated after EDI became non-functional— After EDI died.
He heard the door swish open behind him followed by the now familiar sound of Steve’s crutch. Steve ran his free hand down Kaidan’s arm. Kaidan leaned back against the pilot and closed his eyes. With Shepard gone, he was in charge. He had about a million things he needed to do. The ship needed repairs before they could get back to Earth. Food, medical supplies, and clean water were low, but not dangerously so. Not yet. With Kaidan and Garrus still injured, and Joker and Garrus grieving, they were short-handed. Kaidan wanted to help them, but he remembered mourning Shepard the first time. Nothing anyone said to him helped. He felt helpless in the face of Garrus’ grief.
But he might be able to give Joker a modicum of hope.
“Steve, was Joker still out there when you passed through?” he asked.
“Yes. Poor guy. I don’t really understand what was between them— I mean, I do. I don’t get falling for an AI, but I know love when I see it. And god knows, I know that look,” Steve replied, voice cracking.
Kaidan turned and embraced Steve with his good arm. With Shepard missing, Garrus and Joker’s grief, and Kaidan’s injuries, the pilot’s emotions had been all over the place for days. Kaidan found Steve sitting with Joker and Garrus in the med bay a few times. Just when he thought he’d processed Robert’s loss, things like this happened.
“Steve, listen. There’s something I need to tell you. It’s not a secret, exactly. I just haven’t said anything because I don’t know when I’ll be able to act on the information,” Kaidan said.
“You can tell me anything, love,” Steve replied. He stroked his hand down Kaidan’s side, bringing it to rest against his lower back. His thumb sketched small circles. Kaidan melted into his arms.
“I may be able to bring EDI back,” Kaidan murmured.
Steve’s head jerked back, and his hand went still. “What? How?” he asked.
Kaidan shook his head. “Shh. I don’t know what to tell Joker. At best, it will be months before we can do anything. More like years,” he said. He told Steve about the server at Cronos Station and the conversation he’d had with EDI.
“Do you think she’s right? Will it work?” Steve asked.
“I think she was right about keeping it off-line. The problem is, even if we can get back to Cronos Station, EDI’s body and the ship’s AI core are fried. I have no idea where we’ll put her… consciousness, I guess. That’s assuming the server survived the Fifth fleet’s attack,” Kaidan explained.
Steve took a deep breath. “Do you think the rest of the galaxy is as bad as the Normandy?” he asked. “Do you think Shepard really—?”
That was the worst part. With their comms down, they had no idea what happened at the end. They knew Shepard and Anderson made it to the Citadel. Hackett confirmed Anderson’s death when his vitals flatlined. Shepard got the station arms open and the Crucible fired after a short delay. They knew all of that. But had it worked?
They had no way to know until they got back.
Kaidan took a deep breath and straightened. “Thank you for listening. I don’t know what to do with the information yet, but I had to tell someone,” Kaidan said.
“I’ll keep it to myself until you decide. Thank you for confiding in me,” Steve said.
Kaidan smiled sadly. They walked quietly out of the AI core. They had a million things to do, but one way or another, they would see Earth again.