#Spectre Requisitions

[finchmarie]

spectre recquisitions 2024

This was my first year participating in @spectre-requisitions-exchange and I hope I get to do so again next year, everyone has been incredibly kind and also everyone is so super talented!!

A huge huge thank you to my gifter who wrote me some fantastically delicous old man smut!!

Take Me Down by MyGorramShip (LoneSurvivor) for FinchMarie (Explicit)

My piece was for @dandenbo and I got the opportunity to draw their NB Shep Otto, and it filled my little queer heart with joy.

Also I'm very proud of how it turned out! It's my most explicit art to date and I'm excited to have ripped off the band aid on that so my art can get shamelessly more filthy in the future. Sorry in advance buds gotta be logged into AO3 to see the full thing!

Be Gentle by FinchMarie for DanDenbo (Explicit)

[spectre-requisitions-exchange]

THE SPECTRE REQUISITIONS RARE PAIR EXCHANGE RETURNS FOR 2024

Are you a rare pair shipper? Do you love those pairings that canon never supplied? Or maybe you’re just good ol’ shipping trash who loves to ship almost EVERYONE in the Mass Effect universe? Then boy do we have good news for you!

The Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange is here!  We’re a rare pair fanart and fanfiction exchange that’s open for the Mass Effect Trilogy and Mass Effect Andromeda. Whether you started with the original Mass Effect or got into the series through Andromeda or the remaster; whether you favor gen and platonic or threesomes and moresomes -- we want you to join us! Mark the dates on your calendar and get those thinking caps on for nominations!

If you’re not already in the Discord, come join us! It’s open year-round for all your rare pair needs. 2024 SCHEDULE

Nominations begin: January 18 Nominations end: January 25 Signup begins: January 26 Signup ends: February 10 Assignments: February 13 (at latest) Assignments due: March 25 Assignment reveal: April 1 Creator reveal: April 8

Watch this space for a guide to nominations! We can't wait to see what rare relationship goodness you come up with this year!

[keriweird]

Spectre Requisitions 2023 - Mordin survived reversing his work on the genophage; maybe in retirement he can begin to help heal the rift with his protege, too.

Treat art for Jaigheart on AO3, requested a Mordin Lives! AU where he and Maelon repair their mentor/protege relationship.

[cannot-rest]

Ashley rare pair fics from Spec Reqs

Mass Effect rare pairs exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange has revealed works! Here are the five Ashley ship-focused works (so far - people may yet add treats). The fShepley is strong this year!

Creators are anonymous until April 8 (coincidentally the start of Ashley Williams Appreciation Week).

Connection Lost by kesla fShepley, T rated, ~3900 words

Ashley Williams logs into an empty server. Williams 22:12 > you were a pain in everyone's ass shepard > epaulets shinier than your damn regulation shoes > half the time we'd wrap a convo with me feeling like you were short a punch in the face > but look. i like confidence. especially in my COs. ESPECIALLY in my female COs. even if that CO is annoying as hell and dumb as bricks > and that's how you got me.

Going Up by Kahika Willarian, G rated, ~2500 words

It starts in, of all places, an elevator. Or: Five times Garrus and Ashley rode the elevator and one time they took the stairs.

From: Ashley by CoaxionUnlimited fShepley, G rated, ~1100 words

They had the funeral yesterday. I shouldn’t be emailing you about this, but God only knows that I’m not going to take up journaling. Sarah would never shut up about it.

The Crack In Everything by FerindenCadash fShepley, T rated, ~1600 words

After her own near-death experience, Ashley has questions about Shepard's death.

Tell Me When by jusbeinkt what are we going to call Ashley/Samantha? I'm thinking Trayliams atm, E rated, ~3500 words

Chief Williams: Your orders for TDY are enclosed. One of our civilian engineers, Samantha Traynor, is currently visiting family on Horizon. She's a tech genius. I recommend connecting with her while on site. Anderson P.S. Reports are confirmed. Shepard is alive and flying with Cerberus. I thought you'd want to know. A comms emergency on Horizon results in an unexpected encounter. Written for Spectre Requisitions 2024.

[vorchagirl]

A Deal's A Deal

The Shadow Broker offers Commander Shepard a deal she can't refuse... (Aka. Shepard gets her fuck on with a Yahg 😜)

This was written for @crimsonshield75 as part of the 2024 @spectre-requisitions-exchange

(Mind the tags! This is not my usual fluffy smut, this is PWP explicit violent dubcon monster sex with a big big size difference!)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/54246664

[otemporanerys]

Spectre Requisitions ‘23 - The Rec Post!!

It’s that time of year again! I took part in the Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange (link to the collection here) and man. SO MUCH good shit.

I can’t reveal what I wrote (yet) but I have been reading through the collection and here’s a few incredible works that I really enjoyed! Remember to kudos and comment if you find anything you like 💖

(NB: I focused on fic, but honestly every bit of fanart I’ve seen for it is also incredible, please go check it out)

Gifts for Me

I was SO lucky this year - loyal friends will know that I’ve been suffering from a massive dose of Lawkarian brainrot, and I got not one, but TWO long-ass Garrus/Miranda fics!!!! honestly still can’t get over it, incredible

Between the Devil and the Deep, Garrus/Miranda, 20K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, fucks him to keep him sweet.

This is just. Pure filth, and I love it. Aliases, power plays, both Garrus and Miranda being amoral little weirdos. What more can you ask for?

The Woman in White, Garrus/Miranda, 16.9K, E

Set pre-ME2, Miranda recruits Archangel for a job, doesn’t really do ANYTHING to keep him sweet (but they fuck anyway).

:chinhands: This is just. GORGEOUSLY written, and the begrudging way in which they start to like each other (but not too much) is incredible. Top-notch Garrus POV

Gen

loose ends, Maelon & Mordin, 9.9K, T

Set during and after ME3, canon-divergent AU. Maelon finds Mordin in the wreckage after Tuchanka and nurses him back to health.

I love their relationship in this - Mordin’s so aware of Maelon’s weaknesses (or what he perceives to be his weakness) but there’s still so much caring, despite the huge gulf between them. Also the easiest way to make me a teary mess is a Urdnot Mordin cameo 😭

The Stories We Tell, Joker & Tali, 3.1K, T

Set during ME1. Tali forces Joker to be her friend.

Really great dialogue for everyone - it’s very cute and fun until suddenly it’s not!!! which is rude!!! but still very good, A+++

Care and Maintenance, Kaidan & Tali, 2.2K, T

Set during ME1. Kaidan and Tali bond over dads, tech and Shepard’s reckless driving.

This one was just nice! And also who doesn’t love a bit of Shepard driving slander

F/F

swear, this one you’ll save, Nyreen/Solana, 1.5K, G

Pre-canon: five times Solana has a secret about Nyreen.

I’m only slightly obsessed with these two, and this fic was so perfect. Childhood friends to lovers is a god-tier trope, and it’s so deliciously bittersweet

Real, Beautiful, f!Shali, 0.7K, G

Post-ME3, A morning on Rannoch.

The post-war fluff we deserve, imo!

A Knife in Starlight, Morinth/f!Shepard, 1K, M

Set during ME2. Character study with a side of smut.

I think Morinth is incredibly interesting as a character, but the real standout of this fic is the Shepard - Ruthless, stone butch, wonderfully jagged.

M/M

Collide, m!Shakarian, 4.1K, M

Set during ME2. Friends-to-lovers and mutual pining.

I love m!Shakarian anyway, but mutual pining?? Sexually charged pining?? LOVE CONFESSIONS?? Good shit

M/F

Change of Command, Garrus/Miranda, 3.6K, M

Set during ME2. Epistolary fic, a series of comms transcripts between Garrus and Miranda.

Yes, someone else wanted Lawkarian!! The (verbal) sparring is so much fun, and the format is perfect.

Beauty Like a Raging Flame, f!Shaeed, 6.2K, E

Set during ME2. Shepard gets into a fight in Afterlife, and Zaeed has to go pick her up.

There’s a lot of Shaeed this year! But this one is my favourite. The Zaeed voice is great (appropriately crusty, not too soppy, just the way I like it) and it’s nice seeing him paired off with a Paragon Shep. Plus, Zaeed’s turned on by violence. Smutty perfection

only echoes in the melody now, Kasumi/Keiji’s Greybox, 3.4K, E

Post-ME3. Bittersweet porn with feelings.

God, this one really blew me away. The prose is incredible, and there’s so many little bits that really land how fucked up the greybox concept really is. The ending is great, too. Can’t recommend this enough.

Longing Makes a Thief, Kasumi/Rolan Quarn, 17.7K, E

Kasumi and Rolan run into each other during a job, and realise they’ve met before - sort of.

This was so much fun - bubbly like a glass of champagne. The banter’s great, the smut is great, it’s all so good. Run, don’t walk!

Poly

An Unfortunately Sexy Man, Addison/Kandros/Kesh/Tann, 6.6K, M

MEA. Addison, Kandros and Kesh all have one thing in common: a devastating, inexplicable crush on Director Tann.

I’m not really one for crack, but this is definitely an exception. Genuinely funny, and the Tann voice in particular is incredibly on-point.

[vidra-comprehends]

This was my first year participating in SpecReqs, a Mass Effect rarepair gift exchange. I heavily recommend browsing through this collection (as well as the previous years), whether you're looking for something specific or just a good read.

I would like to highlight the gift I received from tigereyes45. It brings me great joy and I think more people should see it. Have you ever wished you could see Wrex and Garrus take a crack at the same escape room prison cell?

So, what have we learned about written fanworks?

When you fixate on something for too long, your whole work can feel like a hit-or-miss type of situation. Take a walk! Take a walk!

I am so glad I signed up! This has been a scary but lovely experience from start to finish.

I have discovered another thing or two about what I enjoy. Fiction helps us explore other people's and our own psyche at the same time. What a privilege!

Urdnot Wrex.

I hope to be back next year; more confident and just as insane about our favourite characters.

[diaphanouso]

Spec Reqs 2023 - My Recs

(Shoutout to @otemporanerys for inspiring the general format of this post!)

This year, I participated once again in the Spectre Requisitions Rare Pair Exchange @spectre-requisitions-exchange, and holy moly, the fanworks are absolutely incredible! I've been FEASTING on them all day and basking in rare pair goodness. Check out this year's collection of amazing fanart and fics here, and please remember to leave kudos and comments if you find anything you like!

As usual, I'm doing this at the eleventh hour (right before author reveals), so I'll share what I wrote in about, uh, 8 minutes, lol. Here are my recs so far—I'll add to this list as I progress through the collection!

My Gifts

I could not believe my luck this year! I received a SUPER hot Kasumi/Rolan fic and TWO Castis/Adrien fics! I've developed a... small, inconsequential, totally manageable, NBD obsession with Kasumi/Rolan recently. Also, Castis/Adrien was the first rare pair that came to mind when I participated in Spec Reqs for the first time last year, and I'm all verklempt that they were fulfilled this year 🥹

Main Gift

Priceless | Kasumi/Rolan Quarn | 1300 words | E | by otempora I'll just let this kickass summary speak for itself:

And they DO!! It's incredibly sexy, the banter/teasing is top notch, and the characterization is so well done.

Treats

A Reunion | Castis/Adrien | 1100 | M | by missjlh Castis visits Adrien after the war and they reconnect. Excellent banter and teasing interwoven with poignant depth.

It's Getting Dark, Darling | Castis/Adrien | 1100 | M | by GemTheGinger Adrien pays a visit to Castis, who's been grieving alone. Heartbreaking and beautiful, with strong characterization and gorgeous prose.

Fic Recs!

A Hunger Story | Saren Arterius/Nihlus Kryik | 4700 | T | by Kalliesa

only echoes in the melody now | Kasumi Goto/Keiji Okuda, Kasumi Goto/Keiji Okuda's Greybox | 3500 | E | by calypsid

something worth eating | Grunt & Wrex | 700 | Gen | by CoaxionUnlimited

A Sip of Serenity | Liara & Kaidan | 1500 | Gen | by projectseraphim

Diamond in the Rough | FemShep/Zaeed | 2800 | E | by otempora

An Unfortunately Sexy Man | Foster Addison / Tiran Kandros / Nakmor Kesh / Jarun Tann | 6600 | M | by missjlh

baby | Macen Barro/Avitus Rix, Avitus Rix & Macen Barro & SAM | 9700 | M | by forceinsensitive

[lonesurvivorao3]

Spectre Requisitions 2024

My first year taking part in this! The most delicious stories and artwork are available here for all the Rarepair lovers.

[tigereyes45]

Dear Fellow Creator (Spectre Requisitions 2023)

Hello there. Thank you for checking out this letter. I’m afraid it won’t be too detailed unlike other ones since I’m pretty laidback when it comes to these things. I’m really going to be happy with any gifts. So....here we go! Haha. Everything is below the cut. I put the actual prompts at the bottom and all treats of any kind are welcomed! If you have a question my inbox has anon on and I will tag every responded ask with the Spectre Requisitions 2023 tag.

Likes:

I love angst! It’s my favorite thing. The catharsis that comes out in angst is so good.

Friends to lovers is so good

Characters protecting their loved ones is one of my favorite tropes.

While I want the main focus of these stories to be on the relationships, I really enjoy it when people add in the main character(s) friends and families. After all the characters aren’t without connections outside of romantic.( Vetra and Sidera’s sibling dynamic is so fun. Sara and Scott’s feel as if it could be so complicated too. Grunt is Shepard’s kid! So if you want to throw such things in there, then go ahead.)

Dislikes:

I’m not the biggest fan of enemies/rivals to lovers (when violence is involved. If they were rivals/enemies on a mission and one of them beat the other to the goal, but it never got physical then that’s fine.) Some people do enemies/rivals to lovers well. So it’s not a complete no for me.

No non-con anything please.

Ratings:

I’m good with any ratings. The reason why I didn’t click Explicit is because I’m uninterested in smut. If you want to include graphical depictions of violence that’s fine.

Character Appearances:

For F!Shepard I always just play with default F!Shepard. If you want to use your version of Shepard for one of the prompts then go ahead. 

For the Ryders these are the faces I used for them in my canon run:

The scars they got from an incident when they were kids, where Sara tried to protect Scott’s face, but they both still got burned. As for the tattoos, when they grew up they both got a tattoo where their twin had been injured in their twin’s favorite color. Now they serve as a sign of how close they are. With Sara looking more like their father and Scott looking like their mom. If you want to go with the default appearances for them, that’s fine too. (Yeah I just use all the default names for all three characters too.) Usually I play Sara as the more logical, gets excited about discovering new things, and new tech. She saw their father brush people off so she tries to be patient with others while Scott is more about the adventure itself and upfront about his emotions/opinions.

The list of Prompts

#1 Ship - Jaal Ama Darav/Vetra Nyx/Female Ryder | Sara and/or David Anderson/Nihlus Kryik

Prompt: I would love anything that includes Ryder and Vetra hanging out with Jaal and his family. Maybe they are sitting at a meal with everyone, awkwardly or no. Or perhaps they're learning more about angaran culture. It could even include Scott and Sidera tagging along. Really anything is fine.

---------------

I love the idea that Nihlus disagreed with the unfairness Saren treated Anderson's chance of becoming a spectre with. Maybe he was on the mission two and treated Anderson with kindness, and understood how determined he was. Or perhaps after becoming a spectre in his own right, Nihlus reaches out to Anderson. He could have just wanted to meet the human who almost changed history, or to work with him and give humanity another chance.

Or the two of them could just be sitting in a bar having a drink (young or as themselves after death.)

#2 Ship - Evfra de Tershaav/Tiran Kandros or Bain Massani/Female Ryder|Sara/Reyes Vidal

Prompt:  Evfra and Tiran both have difficult jobs. I feel like that is something they would bond over. However I think the amount of reluctance Tiran has involving everything about his job would annoy Evfra. I would love something about the two of them arguing about that, before eventually making up. (Or not if you'd prefer an angsty break up end.)

-------

I would also be down for something that shows Ryder being considered as an upstanding person due to her being the pathfinder that has done so many wonderful things. Then cue Reyes and Bain hanging around her intimidating others.

This could be an art prompt where the two of them stand behind her, scaring people as she smiles at them.

If you do writing I would love to see a story where people question why she hangs out with those two, and from Ryder's point of view they are very loving and have good sides to them that others don't see because they don't look for the good.

#3 Ship - Cora Harper/Liam Kosta or Cora Harper/Liam Kosta/Female Ryder | Sara

Prompt: Anything that involves Liam and Cora hanging out when everyone else is preoccupied.

Examples (You don't have to do these exact scenarios): Liam getting Cora to laugh as Ryder is stuck dealing with the politics of the station, or the two of them sharing ammo/a snack in the middle of a firefight. 

--------

Life keeps the pathfinder team busy, but Cora, Ryder, and Liam still manage to find moment to spend as just them.

#4 Ship - Female Shepard/Urdnot Wrex/Garrus Vakarian or Kirrahe & Thane Krios

Prompt: These three doing what they do best, fighting. Maybe it's a playful match between the three of them, or a team match between the three of them against another team. Perhaps krogans have regular wrestling matches that Wrex takes the two of them to, and they inevitably join in.

-----

Kirrahe has been searching for Shepard. He finds Thane instead.

#5 Ship -  Tiran Kandros/Avitus Rix or Kaetus/Avitus Rix

Prompt: Anything showing these two getting to know each other over time, and confiding in each other before ending up together would be great. I love how they both didn't want the jobs they end up having, because there were people they knew who were supposed to be there instead.

----

Kaetus is a skilled individual. It would be a tragedy to waste his skills, Ryder insisted. Eventually convincing Reyes. However Kaetus can't be entirely trusted after Sloane's death so they hand him over to Avitus.

Maybe they bond over both having lost loved ones recently, or something.

#6 Ship - Tiran Kandros/Vetra Nyx/Female Ryder | Sara or Alec Ryder/Ellen Ryder

Prompt: I like the idea of the three of them having a date night to get away from work. It's interrupted as they each keep getting calls, emails, and messages about work stuff (and friends and family interrupting too if ya want to throw that in there). Maybe they have to keep each other off their tech so they can enjoy the night off.

----

Ellen tries to talk to Alec about how distant he is with their children. It turns into an argument, and Ellen fears that the twins will never know their father.

#7 Ship - Tiran Kandros/Female Ryder | Sara or Kaetus/Sloane Kelly

Prompt: Tiran and Ryder hiding out from work together, or the two of them making fun of their co-workers as they vent about the latest problem, fight, or ridiculous request.

OR

Scott has grown close to Tiran since he could start working again. He's been inviting him more often to the ship, under the guise of wanting to hang out. However he knows that Sara has a crush on Tiran, so he makes sure they talk at least once everytime TIran comes aboard.

---- Kaetus mourning Solane would be awesome. I want the angstiest of angst.

#8 Ship - Nyreen Kandros/Vetra Nyx or Kolyat Krios & Thane Krios

Prompt: Vetra can get her hands on anything she wants. Nyreen heard of the skilled turian living outside of turian culture, and hires her. Mostly out of curiosity, and in the hopes that her skills turn out to be true. She never expected to find a kindred spirit. How will it turn out?

OR

Nyreen and Vetra on a job together.

----

Kolyat and Thane's trip to Earth while Shepard is imprisoned elsewhere.

#9 Ship - Vetra Nyx/Female Ryder | Sara or Zevin Raeka/Female Ruder | Sara

Prompt: Being the eldest sibling is tough, but it's a little bit easier with someone who understands.

OR

Vetra and Sara end up trapped on a new planet together. The two try to survive as they await a rescue. (Bonus points if Vetra is stressed because she doesn't know this planet or how to get anything they'll need to survive.)

----

Ryder and Raeka had met only a handful of times before everyone left for Andromeda. Now it's to her face that Raeka wakes up, and it's her who saves Raeka before running back for the krogan scouts, alone, accepting death but not failure.

#10 Ship - Jaal Ama Darav/Liam Kosta/Female Ryder | Sara or Jaal Ama Darav/Evfra de Tershaav/Male Ryder | Scott

Prompt: The three of them cuddling on Liam's couch would be cute.

OR

Jaal has recently become very interested in the Andromeda Initiative's talks regarding children. Liam and Sara are taken by surprise.

----

When grabbed by the kett, Scott, Jaal, and Evfra must find a way out of their bindings and away from their enemy's control. Alive or dead.

[spectre-requisitions-exchange]

Assignments are OUT!

Please check your Ao3 assignments page or the email you have associated with Ao3 and see who you were assigned to! There were NO initial pinch hits this year. If any pinch hitters are required, we will advertise when they become available both on our tumblr and DW comms.

We have done our best to try to ensure that everyone has a good match, but if there is an issue with yours, please contact us. We will handle things discretely and privately.

Since assignments have gone out, there are a couple things we’d like  all authors and artists out there to keep in mind:

You are only committing to writing or drawing one thing for your assigned recipient. That means, of the 3+ ideas they have offered, you are committing to writing one. If they asked for two pairings in the same line, you’re obligated to write only one of the two (your choice). Can you do more? Absolutely. Are you obligated to? Absolutely not.

Please remember that the spirit of this exchange is all rare pairs, all the time. Do not use the exchange to try to write/draw a mega-popular pairing, with a less-popular pairing in the background. We do not allow backdoor mega-pairings to dominate works in this exchange.

Please do not post your fic or art on Tumblr/DeviantArt/etc until the exchange has been revealed. It is imperative that everyone gets their gifts at the same time.

Please don’t contact your recipient directly. If you have questions you want to ask them, please contact us! We are happy to be intermediaries for you!

If you are writing a story/drawing a picture that features elements Ao3 has default warnings for, such as underage/non-con/etc, remember to tag your stories for such elements to advertise it to those that want to see it and to respect those that don’t. If you do not wish to do this or feel like you can’t tag a fic or artwork without spoiling the nature of a twist you’d prefer remain unspoiled, please use the “Choose Not to Warn” option so viewers can make the choice themselves whether or not they want to take a chance on seeing potentially upsetting content.

You are obligated to respect your recipient’s DNW/squicks, but optional details are otherwise that - optional.

Please be careful to not reveal who your recipient is. Posting “I’m so excited about my assignment!” is fine; posting “I’m so excited about writing Thane/Garrus for my best friend @participant!” is not.

If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know!

[keriweird]

✨Special Requisitions 2024 Exchange✨

The author of my gift this year had me stumped! But wowsers do I admire their style. I look forward to reading more from them in the future. Thank you so much SaintMidnight!

(Rated Teen)

I also received a super fun treat from @depressed-sock and I'm now on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens next, because hoo-damn did Zaeed misjudge the situation.

(Rated Teen)

There were a bunch of great reads this year and with 88(+) fics/fanart pieces, I'm still working my way through my TBR pile. But for now check this variety out! It's a long post so see more below the cut! (Please review fic description/tags and read at your own discretion)

Honestly, you should probably just peruse the whole collection lol @spectre-requisitions-exchange

Some TBR for me:

[keriweird]

This fic was so friggin gooooood

Distant Chords

Now that creators have been revealed, I can share the piece I wrote for @spectre-requisitions-exchange. @depressed-sock gave me a wonderful prompt that mused about the relationship between Shepard and the clone - not friends, not brothers, but something else. I really enjoyed exploring how the clone became what he is, not a perfect copy, and how he and Shepard find each other in the gaps.

Rating: Teen

Category: Gen.

Pairing: Male Shepard & Male Shepard Clone

Words: 4,054

Read on AO3

Excerpt:

It was hour 1,560 when he had first thought about life without her.

She had told him to count time in days, standard Earth rotations, but this had seemed to him a sentimental abstraction. What were those days to a life like his? What he knew of planetary cycles was the 22-hour sun illuminating the journée moon on Mindoir and the equally long night that cooled the fields. The tides of Luna meant nothing to him. To her, and, he supposed, to all those people she told him about, the days of Earth were little chapters in a life of purpose. He had no use for them until the day he first thought about her gone.

It was the day that asari ran off. Rasa had woken him earlier than usual, rushing him through his calisthenics and a quick breakfast of protein paste before snapping her fingers in the direction of the medical bed in the corner of the bunker. It was the place where he spent most of his days, absorbed in sequences of someone else’s memories. She’d administered the sedative herself, rough and careless with the needle, not like Rana. Then she’d swung round to the monitor, breathing heavily through her nose as she punched in a command on the mnemaptic transfer device.

“Isn’t Thanoptis required for this?” he asked, familiar enough with the brief period of lucidity afforded by the device’s preliminary sequence.

“I told you, call her Rana. That’s the custom with asari,” she said without sparing him a glance. From outside the room, somewhere in the mess that led to the vestibule, he heard a sound like something heavy dropping on the floor.

“Rana, then. Rana is the one who administers the memories,” he mumbled, his lips barely moving then.

“The machine administers the memories,” Rasa said sharply. “Rana gave us the machine. I can operate it without her.��

...

His vision turned white then, like he had walked into a fog, and when he kept walking, a tree appeared, framed by a window, and the sun was out. He’d seen this tree before, with anomalous frequency, he suspected, but he had never noticed its blossoms, pale yellow with bright pink stamens. It was springtime and the tree was coming to life. He’d seen the window before too, and the inside of the prefab cabin. For the first time, he saw a holo-frame on the wall projecting the digital grid of the colony calendar. Beneath the fifty-three days of the long spring month, a banner read “Solar Date: 3 March, 2170."

Keep reading.

[sombredelanuit]

If you like rare pairs and turians, check out my Spectre Requisitions 2023 exchange one shot featuring Nihlus, Shepard, and a happy ending.

[writes-in-space]

Spec Recs authors have been revealed!

I wrote this Kaidan/James treat in a one-day frenzy a few days ago, and I’m really proud of it! I enjoyed taking a chance on writing Venko from Steve’s POV!

I’m going to try to do a round up post on my gifts and faves this week, but that takes a little more brainpower than slapping this link onto my blog. Might need a day or two!

[otemporanerys]

Diamond in the Rough, Fem!Shep/Zaeed, E

Shepard can't stop sleeping with Zaeed. No, she doesn't know why, either. --- War was really fucking stressful. Everyone had ways of dealing with it, some more detrimental than others. Shepard was all too familiar by now with generals with booze on their breath, admirals who spent all night god knows where before turning up to work the next morning, ready to make broad-scale calculations of who got to live and who had to die. Shepard didn’t blame them: she’d stared into hell often enough to know it did things to a person. Everyone needed to blow off steam, and as long as they got the job done, who really cared? Besides, she wasn’t really in a position to judge other people’s coping mechanisms. Read more