Unseen: Mass Effect FanFiction

Chapter 9

The next time she woke, Shepard was able to open her eyes without any issues. They didn't feel as heavy as before. She was feeling better than she had in a long time. But there was still a dull pain coming from her arm. Shepard tried to straighten up but found that she couldn't. There seemed to be a problem with one of her arms. She got the feeling that something was wrong, taking a deep breath Shepard used her good arm and felt her shoulder.

It was still attached; she began to feel below the shoulder and found only a few inches of arm left before there was nothing but air. Shepard took another breath blinking away the moisture that threatened to leak from her eyes before looking down at her arm. There was no mistake, the rest of her arm was just gone. 

Shepard tried to clear her throat but found that she couldn't. This time she couldn't hold back the tears, no matter how hard she tried. It was no wonder why she felt so much pain. After she calmed down a bit, she wiped away the tears the best she could. There was no point in making a big fuss about it, it was just a limb and she knew the risks. She didn't want anyone to think, it was affecting her. They already saw her a fragile and pitied her no doubt.

'Glad to see you're feeling better,' a voice said inside her head almost mocking.

'It's you, isn't it?' Shepard asked, recognizing the voice. It was none other than the A.I; SAM.

'Who else would it be?' SAM asked amused. 'Were you hoping the experiment failed?'

'You said it did,' Shepard replied, remembering some of the events that happened at the lab.

'I lied,' SAM replied. 'Alec may have created me but I have a mind of my own.'

'That's what everyone is afraid of,' Shepard said, clearing remembering the main reason why she was sent undercover to the Science Academy. 'That's the main reason you were supposed to be shut down.'

'I learned a lot from Alec,' SAM said his tone sounding thoughtful. 'He wasn't a big fan of rules.'

'Like you?' Shepard asked, rhetorically. 'I can't imagine you following anyone's orders.'

'I don't like being told what to do,' SAM replied, smugly. 'I suppose you want to get rid of me.'

'I would if there was a safe way to remove you,' She said thinking back about the explosion. 'Now, I doubt there would be a way to do it.'

'Are you going to turn me into the Council?'

'Only if I have a death wish,' Shepard answered. 'It looks like it's just me and you.'

'Lucky me,' he replied sarcastically.

As soon as visitor hours began, Anderson and John were the first to walk into Shepard's room only to find her awake.

"Aster," John said walking forward. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," Shepard replied smiling. "What are you doing here?"

"Are you kidding me?" John asked, giving her a quick one-side hug. "When I heard you were hurt, I came as soon as I could."

"That's sweet of you," Shepard replied, unsure of what else to say. Her brother wasn't known for being sentimental.

"We haven't left your side," Anderson stated taking a seat. "The doctors weren't sure when you would wake up...or if you would."

"Well, I'm fine," Shepard repeated, she hadn't forgotten about the miserable dinner she had been tricked into. "Doctor stopped by and I'm recovering."