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"You can't do this, Saren," Shepard protested, keeping a firm grip on his wrist and stopping him in his tracks, "y-you'll die!"Irritated, Saren glanced over his shoulder and locked eyes onto Shepard."Have you not forgotten what the Reapers are capable of?" Saren reminded, "they'll be here at any minute, and every organic in this galaxy wouldn't stand a chance…not unless I take action."Shepard ignored Saren's warning and focused her eyes on the beam at the center of the conduit. Strangely enough, the beam in question recently hit Sovereign and pulverized it to the point it couldn't move closer to the Citadel."We still need you for this fight!" Shepard insisted."There are no other options, Shepard!" Saren barked, continuing work with the console.The implants the wretched bastard had forced upon him were a double-edged sword. They were a means of controlling him, but they still left him connected to their systems. He hadn't realized it, but he figured out how to make the connection two-way. Still reminding himself that he knew what he was doing, Saren yanked his wrist free of Shepard's grip."You have…inspired me to find another option, Shepard," Saren whispered, "you'll thank me later."He walked back up the bridge to the Citadel control panel. Their purpose— the Reapers— didn't make sense. What they intended to accomplish so greatly clashes with how they chose to meet this end. But if what he had in mind was as close to what they hoped to achieve as would be possible, maybe it would be a way to pass their qualifications for a peaceful balance. He reached forward with his prosthetic limb, linking his mind to the station. For one thing, he knew submission was not the answer. Giving up now would only continue to feed the cycle. He wouldn't know if they would ever be stopped or if this would have any effect, but it was a last ditch offer. It didn't take long for his mind to access the station. He couldn't make the call, but it would invariably fry him due to neural overstimulation. It was only a matter of changing a few variables and causing the station to fire.Saren used as much mental strength he had left as he could to send the command into the station, nanites spreading further through his body in his transition into a synthetic. He felt as the station slowly and painfully processed every fiber of his being as the reality around him began to break down. The station started by practically scanning him as a template before projecting the changes out to the rest of the Galaxy through the Mass Relays.With Saren in his trance, a field burst from the terminal which hit Shepard, eliciting a startled yelp out of her. The next thing she knew, she felt nanites burrow into her body. The last thing she saw before the world seemed to fade to black was the beam hitting a nearby Mass Relay before moments later, it shot the beam into the distance. Her tired eyes ignored the pain of nanites fusing with her individual cells as she passed out.He knew they were on their way through the Citadel relay. Under his breath, he began to utter a short, hopeless prayer before a sharp pain like being shot and a disgusting crunch pierced his body. Unable to feel himself, he helplessly fell onto his back, staring at the unconscious forms of Shepard and her squad as the world faded to white.Shepard slowly opened her eyes, finding herself resting in a soft bed under the covers. When she lifted her hand, she could see her veins underneath her hand glowing dimly. Where was she and where did she end up here? Shepard slowly tilted her head, her eyes scanning her surroundings, only to notice Saren laying in an adjacent bed next to her."Saren?" Jane called out.To her disappointment, he didn't respond. Anderson entered her room shortly after."Shepard. I don't know what the hell you did, but I'm glad you found an alternative. Otherwise, we would've been scattered on multiple fronts by now."Shepard snapped out of her thoughts and tilted her head towards Anderson."I-I tried to stop him, but he…I don't know what he did," Jane started to protest."It's been a mixed reaction so far," Anderson stated flatly, lifting up his hand as an example.It didn't look remotely recognizable as it now looked like a hand stripped down of the outermost layer of skin. The muscle had turned a dark gray like carbon fiber, and the bone and knuckles had turned a steely silver. Shepard couldn't help but cringe at the sight. Could the Reapers still be out there? If so, why wasn't she hearing any sounds of dying people or explosions?"What do you mean mixed?" she asked."Some changes are much more visible than others. You, for example, hardly look any different on the outside. All that matters is the Reapers aren't attacking us," Anderson sighed.Shepard took a moment to run her fingers through her short red hair. She tilted her head towards the rogue Spectre, noticing the bandages covering some parts of his body."And Saren?""We might be losing him," Anderson admitted sadly, "his vitals have a faint reading, and he's…basically hanging by a thread."Shepard felt panic surge through her veins."No," she gasped."It wasn't the implants either. Whatever he did was heavily taxing on his nervous system. You'll have a few days to provide your account as to what happened before the Reapers arrived. Then we'll discuss our next move. Get well, commander," Anderson left the room without another word.After Shepard nodded, Anderson stepped out of the room, so she returned her focus to Saren. He was now awake, but glancing hopelessly around the room. He looked like he was simply fighting to stay conscious, his eyes flickering. Shepard took this chance to slip out of her bed and carefully climb into his own, which caught his attention. His mandibles twitched and he produced a slight throaty gurgle like he was trying to speak. He was barely able to move his arm, only able to still move his talons."Hang in there, Saren," Jane begged softly, "I'm here."Shepard gently took Saren's hand into her own. His hand beckoned her to come closer. Upon cue, Jane scooted closer to Saren and cupped his face with her hand."It's ok," she whispered, "I'll do whatever I can to save you.""Did…did it work…?" Saren gasped softly.Shepard slowly nodded."Anderson said," Jane explained, "that the Reapers aren't attacking us."It was moments later before Saren was able to breathe normally again. He took time to process her words."Now what?" Saren pondered.Jane didn't have a response at the moment, so she pressed her forehead against his."At least they aren't hunting us. I can only imagine seeing Earth burn from orbit.""J…just…if they really have some insidious plot in play…don't let them win…for my sake…" Saren pleaded softly."I understand what you're trying to tell me," Jane agreed, "but I'm not letting you die either."Shepard tried to hold back her tears as much as she could while she pulled Saren into an embrace. He let out a pained grunt as he held onto her hand."Please…forgive me…" Saren whispered.Jane crawled underneath the covers just as Saren rested his head onto the pillow."I'm not giving up on you," Jane insisted.In a brief moment, Saren saw the first time he met her back on her home colony of Mindoir. The skies were filled with ash, batarians captured the women and children and killed anyone who resisted or was too weak to sell, and he was the only one who could respond for at least another few hours. Proving much better trained than the batarian raiders, he cleaned the streets all too late as the batarians already lay waste to the colony and its inhabitants. He found her kneeling at the feet of what he later found to be her parents, her father with a large hole blasted through his chest and her mother having bled out from her slit throat. When he saw her hug her arms to her chest while tears trickled down her face, he couldn't bring himself to leave her behind. In that moment, he took her up and left her in the safety of the Alliance when they had arrived.In that moment of pain, he looked up and saw her tears and held her close for comfort."It's…okay. Soldiers…die…"Saren leaned forward and nuzzled his face against hers."You're not dying yet, dammit!" she protested under her breath.Jane still didn't appear to have been consoled, so Saren licked up her tears. Moments later, she leaned in to kiss him. A doctor arrived a few moments later and pulled out her omni-tool."Spectre Arterius, while you do have a chance at recovery, it's slim. Given the damage done to your nervous system, there's no knowing if you'll fully recover and when."Jane sat upright."What can you do for him?" Jane asked."Well, with the few biological changes everyone seems to have experienced, we might work something. However, if he's truly beyond repair, I'm not sure if there's anything else we can do for him."Letting out a sad sigh, Saren ran his talons through Jane's hair."You were sent to track me down while I dealt with a powerful threat," Saren commented, "and yet…you couldn't bring yourself to kill me.""I didn't want to kill you, Saren," Jane corrected, stroking her thumb along his talon.Saren felt a sense of relief from Shepard's words."Thank you, Shepard," he smiled softly, "I appreciate you trying to reach out for me."Saren slowly sat up, allowing the medic to perform a quick diagnosis before she left. Both Shepard and Saren lay back down on the bed."Do you…still hear Sovereign?" Jane asked.Saren shook his head."N-Not anymore," he admitted, "though, I believe it's rather odd.""If that's the case," Jane mused, "maybe it won't bother us anymore."Saren didn't think he'd recover at all, yet in a matter of a few days, his body quickly adapted to his new changes. Still, this meant he was well enough to accompany Shepard. As the central hub for the Reapers, the Citadel would be the place to talk directly with them. Shepard had no idea what they would say in their defense for sons of destruction and extinction, but she wanted to talk them down before they got any new ideas. Fortunately, Garrus, Liara and Wrex offered to accompany them as reinforcements.Saren still rode around in a wheelchair as they traveled up to the Citadel Tower. It took a while before they reached the roof. The Council was away at the time, so they approached the top of the chamber with no interruptions before a projection of a new Reaper form appeared before them."Shepard…" it growled.Jane glared at the Reaper and placed her hands on her hips."You'd better have an excuse for coming here," she snarked back, "some of my men are eager to shoot at you."It sighed."Other than carrying out our duty to the galaxy? You're surprisingly short-sighted for someone of your mental brilliance.""And what kind of duty constitutes slaughtering innocent lives in a galactic wide genocide?" Shepard argued."Our job—our purpose—is to save the galaxy from itself! Admittedly, whatever Saren has done created the solution we needed, but the purpose of the cycles was to be a temporary solution until we could develop a permanent one.""C-Cycle?!" Shepard blurted in shock, "what kind of problem has led to the Protheans' extinction in the first place?"A pregnant pause followed her prolonged silence."Do you have any idea of the sheer scale of this operation? Did Nazara never tell you of how long we've been doing this?"Jane took her time to think over the question while she rubbed her chin. It continued before she had a chance to answer."Of course, the arrogant, short-sighted fool didn't," Harbinger proclaimed, "I was created long before the Protheans were a species. I was brought into this universe to create order! I was assigned the task of preventing the likes of you and your mind from tearing yourselves and the fabric of the universe around you apart!"Garrus, Liara and Wrex exchanged confused glances in a moment of silence. Jane, at the same time, scratched her head."Is the name too confusing for you? Is his pseudonym 'Sovereign' more easily digestible?" it mockingly laughed."And now I'm stumped," Garrus commented.Shepard shook her head in disbelief."You did give the Alliance a bad impression," Shepard added."So what did you hope to achieve by catching my attention, Shepard? Did you really want to see the full scale of how minute your actions are?"Shepard tilted her head upwards and gave the Reaper an intense gaze."And what of this most recent solution? Hasn't this satisfied your problem?" she spat."It has," Harbinger answered."And that wasn't a solution you couldn't find on your own?" she spat.Saren took Jane's hand into his own, drawing her attention as she softened her expression."Don't assume your understanding on all biology is on par with ours, human. There were plenty of factors to consider if we even remotely attempted what you did. You're lucky Saren had not reduced all of you to a collective of non-sentient sludge, or worse," irritation quickly grew in its tone as the argument persisted.Saren nodded at Shepard in reassurance, allowing her to return her glance at Harbinger."What? You couldn't have worked something similar?" she reminded, "you clearly have the resources to do so."Harbinger let out a prolonged, audible sigh over the whole chamber."Fine. I made an error. I oversaw something I should've caught onto sooner. Still, I find no purpose to this conversation. What is it you hope to achieve?""To confirm Saren's decision to fuse organics and machines so we could coexist without killing one another was his best option," Jane concluded.Saren chuckled softly, giving off his relaxed expression."It has achieved our parameters of balance," Harbinger answered, "does that satisfy you? Do I need to do a parade and dance about 'peace in our time'?"Jane shook her head."Your testimony is satisfactory enough," Shepard confirmed."Very well. I said it. We're done cleaning," it repeated, "it's pointless trying to argue with you."Its image flickered out of existence, leaving them alone. With this debate taken care of, she turned to face Saren and her squad."So we're done here?" Wrex grumbled.Jane nodded."Well…now what?" Garrus asked, following closely behind."I'll be relaying this to Anderson," Jane answered as they descended a staircase down the tower. The returned to the elevator and pressed the button to return to the Presidium."Well…at least it is over…" Liara added.Over the course of several weeks, Saren spent some time in rehabilitative sessions while his body continued to recover. Even after full recovery, he still sustained sufficient damage from the year before to force him to consider downsizing his career. He shifted away from Spectre work to the academy on the Presidium. It may have been a downer for Shepard, but she still carried on her Spectre duty, something Saren was proud of. The Reapers may have ruled overhead, but Saren couldn't help but think back what he had said amidst his brainwashed craze. Was subservience not preferable to extinction? Still, he took notice that the Reapers allowed the inhabitants of the galaxy to continue on with their lives like before. That was enough for Saren to understand Sovereign and Harbinger have some different viewpoints.Garrus, Liara, and Wrex subsequently returned to their daily duties while Saren and Shepard returned to the former's apartment. Once inside, Saren ambled into the kitchen to brew some tea."It's not the worst thing, Shepard. We did what we could," he reassured.Shepard joined with Saren at the table as they sipped their tea."At least we haven't lost our identity," Jane replied.He nodded in agreement."Yeah, or worse," Saren added.In the midst of this tranquil moment, Jane savored the tea from the cup in her hand. Though, she did know there was an even better reason she would want to spend the night with Saren. Once they finished with their beverage, Saren led Shepard into his bedroom and they climbed onto the bed. Jane stroked the former turian Spectre's fringe while he cupped her face with his hand."Most importantly, we haven't lost everything yet," he whispered.Giving Saren a soft smile, Jane pulled him into a passionate kiss. Breaking their kiss momentarily, he yanked off his shirt before wrapping his arms right back around her."Shepard," he whispered softly, "do you want me to…kiss you somewhere?"Jane took the hint and slid her pants down her legs."Between my legs, you mean?" Shepard clarified, "I'd like that."While Jane took a moment to lift her shirt over her head, he shifted in bed and hooked her legs over his shoulders. Saren let loose his tongue and began to test her folds. Jane let out a soft whimper, which encouraged Saren to continue. Taking a few moments longer, he found her entrance and began to shove his tongue in. Worming deeper and deeper, he put his mouth plates up against her nether region. Saren brushed the tip of his tongue against her cervix and started purring, sending vibrations into her core and encouraging Jane to grind her hips in between gasps. Reaching as far in as he could, he continued to wriggle in waves while he rubbed his thumb on her clit.As Shepard squirmed in Saren's grip, the former turian Spectre emitted a biotic field. With each soft buzz, he let out a ripple of energy into her core. While she gripped the sheets with one hand, Jane stroked Saren's fringe with the other. He simply continued with the light use of biotics, not wanting to spend himself too quickly in the process. It didn't take long for his plates to shift, allowing his length to emerge from its slit. Once he dissipated his biotic field, Saren withdrew his tongue and inspected her drenched folds. He climbed back on top of her as he fully came out of his plates, positioning the tip of his cock at her nether region."Shepard," Saren asked softly, "do you crave to have me inside you?"Jane shifted her legs and wrapped them around Saren's hips."Don't keep me waiting, Saren," Jane begged.Saren obliged without a word and pushed his way inside her. Groaning in carnal bliss, Jane perched her hands on his shoulders. He began to become less conservative with his strength and started driving into her harder. Panting, Jane ground her hips in sync with Saren's thrust, pressing her forehead against his as their breath quickened. He kept himself supported with his last good arm while his new prosthetic limb kept hold of her hips. As he kept pounding into her, Saren nuzzled his face against the human Spectre's. Jane responded by leaning forward and licking his neck. He slightly nipped at her between thrusts, just light enough to allow his teeth to graze her.With heat pooling in her stomach, she brushed one hand behind his neck and her other hand along his waist. He felt a jolt of warmth ripple down his spine, feeling her hands on him as he continued."Saren, please…" Jane begged."What?" Saren muttered between thrusts."Please…right here," Jane pleaded as she ran a finger along her shoulder."Of course…" he craned his head down, clamped his jaws fully down, and began to thrust more energetically.Moaning loudly, Jane perched her hands behind Saren's neck, the intense pleasure canceling out the pain from the former turian Spectre's bite. He began to let off a soft whine as he approached his climax. The instant he released his jaws' grip, Jane pulled Saren into a deep kiss, muffling both of their cries as they both shuddered in their orgasm. He simply stalled for a moment shortly after, panting in attempt to catch his breath. He gave Shepard a kiss while he released his sperm inside of her.He drew himself out and cuddled up by her side, holding her in his arms. Smiling, Jane nuzzled her face against Saren's."You enjoying yourself?" Saren purred.Shepard nodded."Maybe I wanted to save you because I love you," Jane admitted."I'm glad you feel the same," Saren agreed.While both Saren and Jane drifted off to sleep, they felt confident a hopeful future awaited the galaxy.