User blog comment:Damous/Why Bioware has NOT betrayed us/@comment-2220462-20120312202953/@comment-1388547-20120313165126

The Citadel looked like it was in a pretty high orbit; the debris will still be in orbit for months, if not years. If Shepard is on Earth afterward, it's either because the Catalyst Kid put him there (in fine, traditional deux ex machina fashion...), or he somehow slipped into the Reapers' transport beam that he rode up.