Ashley Shepard, Forgotten Hero

Chapter 13

I found out that the man I attacked is Kai Leng, and he was the Illusive Man's best assassin. I have replaced him, he leads small stuff now.

"Leng," I say as I pass him in a hall.m

"Dawn," he says back.

I walk into the Illusive Man's office and I know something is wrong, "Shepard imagine what this technology could do for human kind."

I see the Collector main ship behind Shepard. The Illusive Man grabs me and holds a gun to my head, I am a skilled assassin but the surprise is my enemy.

"If you destroy the base Commander Dawn dies, the blood would be on your hands Shepard."

Chains wrap around my hands and legs, they just come out of the floor and hold me still.

All of my memories flood back, the good and bad ones.

"Shepard don't abandon me again!" I yell. I hear the door open and Rose Vega walks in, in one swift movement I'm free from the chains and I quickly shoot the Illusive Man backwards.

"Shepard destroy that base! Don't let Cerberus get anything!"

I defend myself from all of the attacks coming at me.

"Ashley-"

"Shepard go!" I end the transmission.

Rose and I fight out way to a fighter ship, I am the pilot and she is the one that controls the back guns.

"Citadel, we have to go to the Citadel," Rose tells me. I put the tiny ship on full throttle and hit the mass relay. The ship is barely holding together as we get to the Citadel.

We barely land before the ship stops working, Rose and I leave the ship coughing and barely standing. Some officers run out and surround us, I can't speak to explain who I am.

"They need a doctor!" Someone yells. I am lifted in someone's arms and I feel the string of my necklace snap. I jump out of the persons arms and I grab it before it can touch the ground.

The engraving on my necklace is an S, for Shepard, for Strong, for Savior, for Survivor. I am picked up again, I clamp my hand around my necklace.

"Their vitals are stable, but barely." I hear beeping but I can't see anything.

"Smoke damaged her eyesight, will have trouble seeing."

"Will see live?" A voice I know asks. Anderson!

I can barely speak but I know what I have to say, "Anderson.... Get Shepard."

My world spins into darkness as voices talk around me, I hope they heard me.

/Shepard\

I am currently sitting in my cabin, happy that we stopped the Collectors and that my whole team survived but sad and angry also.

"Shepard don't abandon me again!" Ashley's words echo in my head. I saw her with a gun to her head, how someone betrayed her so fast that no one saw it coming. But I guess that's my fault, if I hadn't abandoned her then she would be on the Normandy.

I decide to check my private terminal for anything from anyone, a message from Anderson catches my eye.

'Shepard, Commander Ashley Dawn in the hospital at the Citadel and wants to see you. She arrived on a broken ship with another girl, both are injured but they will live. Come meet me and we can visit Ashley, hope you didn't die.

-Anderson'

I blink, she got off of that station. "Joker set a course for the Citadel, and hurry."

Garrus walks in on me just doing nothing, I don't notice he's in my cabin until he kisses me.

"What's wrong?"

"It's Ashley, she's in the hospital on the Citadel."

"How did she get there?"

"I don't know, but what I do know is that she escaped the Cerberus station and made it to the Citadel with a broken ship."

"Wow, she has guts to do that." I look at him and I sigh.

"Garrus, what if she hates me? If she can't even look at me?" I never cry but right now a few tears roll down my cheeks.

"Shepard, she won't." He hold me tight as I calm down.

"I'm sorry Garrus," I whisper.

"For what?"

"Crying, I'm supposed to be strong."

"You're human Shepard, everyone breaks down sometime in their life." I fall asleep in his arms, never wanting to leave.

When we get to the Citadel I meet Anderson and we head to the hospital, with everyone that knew Ashley following us.

"I'm here to see Ashley Dawn," I tell a doctor.

"Right through that door."

We head into large room and Ashley is against the wall on a bed, asleep.m

"Is she ok?" I ask the Salarian doctor.

"Yes, but her eyesight was affected from the smoke. Her friend suffered only broken leg and arm, nothing to major."

"How affected is her eyesight?"

"We don't know, only when she wakes up will we know." I sigh, I wonder how long.

Jack speaks, "When will she wake up?"

"Again, we don't know. Could be a couple of days to a week."

I want to throw this doctor out the window right now, but it isn't his fault.

Now I guess we have to wait.