#cerberus engine

[soundcrusher]

I don't know if I have said it before, but I really like their dynamic. They'll both flee from danger, until Reeve pulls out a McGuffin for Vincent to use, and then Vincent will fight whatever was chasing them.

First it was a turret on the Shadow Fox, some sleep-bullets for Shelke, and then a big ass cannon in the WRO building before fighting Azul.

Like, does Reeve just have stuff lying around for Vincent to use, or what? XD

[anderwhohn]

@smokedanced || semi-plotted starter.

Darkness.

That's all that Isabela is aware of at first, a seemingly never ending, heavy darkness. It's suffocating, and in such, terrifying, as she's known that feeling before. Suffocating...

Dying...

A ragged breath, eyes opening against suddenly bright, white lights. A voice - human, male - saying she's "waking up". Another - human, female - saying "she's not ready yet!". Cold sliding into her veins, awareness slipping away again as a human woman leans over her, the words not clear...

--

"Look sharp, Vakarian," Nihlus orders as they work their way through the Cerberus space station. He's seen the shit that Cerberus was willing to do, and he's sure the Council and their Spectres have only ever scratched the surface of the twisted experiments the human terrorist group gets up to, but this latest experiment...

'Project Lazarus' - named after some human religious myth - has some... unsettling implications. Particularly based on the vids, audio logs, and medical reports they've come across so far. Cerberus scientists and soldiers alike are scrambling in an attempt to escape the Spectres, Turian Blackwatch and Salarian STG teams backing them, but after gaining more intel when they infiltrated the station...

Finally finding what appears to be the medical wing, they can hear a human woman trying to order someone out of bed over the intercom system. A low growl rumbles through Nihlus's subvocals as he pauses by the door, forest green eyes settling on the younger turian for just a moment before focusing on the task as he makes quick work bypassing the lock into the medbay.

"Spirits," is all he manages at the first sight of who, up until now, everything in their intel has only referred to as 'the Subject'. It should be impossible - she died, two years ago - and yet...

There stands the human, shivering in what might be cold or fear or both, with nothing more than a thin sheet clutched to her otherwise naked body as familiar emerald green eyes lock onto the pair of turians.

A heartbreakingly familiar noise of distress - one unique to Isabela Shepard, in her mimicry of turian vocalisations despite the limitations of her human biology - has him stepping forward without thought, looking her over for injury. She looks so alive - impossible as it might be - though there are strange cracks in her skin, the glowing orange of extensive cybernetics burning from within.

Mandibles fluttering in a moment of indecision, he looks back to Garrus before deciding, "We'll deal with whatever this is later. Let's just get her back to the ship."

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

You would have the biggest chance of knowing out of all the people I know, do you have any insight as to why Ortho’s gears only ever show either his eyes or his mouth at any given time?

I've actually talked about it before! You can read that post here. There's also this follow-up post. To summarize, no official reason is given as to why robo!Ortho is not depicted with his full face. Many fans theorize that only robo!Ortho's eyes or mouth (but not both at the same time) are visible because it pains Idia to stare at the "full face" of his deceased younger brother. Indeed, the only instance we see of robo!Ortho's full naked face is at the end of book 6, when the "true" Ortho speaks with Idia one last time after his OB. However, that's not the face of the robo!Ortho we know and love so this doesn't really count.

I think that theory holds only if Idia designed all of Ortho's gears... which is patently false. Fairy Gear was designed by Crewel, and it is highly unlikely that Idia tells his traumatic backstory to professors (especially since he doesn't seem particularly close with the aggressive, assertive Crewel). Ortho designs his Rabbit Gear himself while visiting Clock Town for White Rabbit Fest; Idia is not physically around, so Ortho has no diegetic reason to intentionally design the Rabbit Gear to obscure half of his face. Finally, Cerberus Gear was designed by his mother, STYX' Chief Engineer. It is made very clear that Mrs. Shroud is warm, bubbly, loves robo!Ortho, and considers him like her third son, so it makes less sense to project Idia's anxieties about looking into the face of a dead family member onto Mrs. Shroud too.

Though perhaps less emotionally impactful, I think it's more likely that this design choice was made not with consideration to Idia's in-universe trauma, but rather as an aesthetic choice + to differentiate OG!Ortho from robo!Ortho. Again, this is probably why we see OG!Ortho's full face at the end of book 6 but never robo!Ortho's full face.

[loveisanimaginarydagger3000]

The Babysitter (18)

I Love You

MILF Wanda Maximoff X Reader 18+

Summary: In need of money and a way to escape the problems at home, you get a job babysitting two lovely boys named Billy and Tommy Maximoff. What happens when you start to feel things you shouldn't for their mother? Will it bloom into love or leave you heartbroken?

A/N- I would just like to say that there will be some sensitive issues in this story such as alcoholism, homophobia, anxiety as well as more mature content such as smut so, if you continue to read this, please consider this warning.

The Babysitter Master list | General Master List

Chapter 18- W/c 3.7k- This chapter contains 18+ Content

Tag list- @natsluttt @cerberus-spectre @dorabledewdroop @bibliophilicbi @hopelesslyfallenninlove @simpform1lfs @get-the-fuck-outta-here @natashaswife4125 @marvelwomen-simp (Comment if you want to be added)

I Love You

Your heart shatters as you walk in the heavy downpour, the rain mixing with the tears streaming down your face as block out everything around you. The sound of rain thrashing against the concrete, the engines of cars, and the laughter of people in surrounding buildings all fade into the background, the noises fuzzy while your mind reels.

Completely losing yourself to the torment of your own thoughts, you miss how your name is desperately called out and how Wanda's steps quickly approach when she runs after you, only noticing when her arm reaches out to stop you.

"Y/n," she whispers, voice raw with emotion and eyes brimming with tears. You still due to her hold on you and turn slowly to look at her, taking in her features through watery eyes while letting her hands move to cup your face. "Detka," she murmurs, her own heart shattering at the sight of you so destroyed at what happened.

You don't say anything, another tear spilling from your eyes as you look into her pained ones.

"It's not what you think," she says, pushing back some of the wet hair that's fallen in front of her face.

"He kissed you," you mutter, the whole interaction replays in your mind while you try to focus on what else happened besides the kiss as it was distorting the way you remembered the interaction. All you could remember though was his hands cupping her cheeks, his lips pressed against hers, causing your heart to break a little more and insecurities to build inside you.

"Exactly, he kissed me," she emphasises, your mind now remembering how her arms moved to his chest to push him off, not returning the kiss at all, "I didn't want to kiss him."

You remain quiet, letting the rain continue its onslaught on you both while you stand on the pavement. You think about Melina's words, trying your absolute best to consider Wanda's side of it, trying to look at it from her perspective and not be rash but all that happens is you remember her hesitance.

"You hesitated." Her brows furrow at your words, the confusion and insecurity that's surfaced in your eyes replacing the hurt. "Why did you hesitate?" When she struggles to respond, you let out a sigh, lowering your head and avoiding her gaze. "You considered it, didn't you?" the tone of your voice almost pleads her to prove you wrong, prove that she didn't consider getting back with him.

"No," she says, her voice laced with honesty and desperation to show you that she didn't. "I hesitated because... all I could think about was the man I fell in love with all those years ago." Slowly, you raised your gaze to meet her own, astonished by the amount of emotion swirling in her eyes. "All I could think about was how much he changed, how much I hated him now."

Her hands are still cupping your cheeks, her thumbs wiping the rain and tears off your cheeks as you both stay locked in the moment. You simply both gaze into each other's eyes, losing yourself in her eyes like you always do before breaking the intimate stare.

"He still loves you," You say more out loud to yourself then her, his words causing doubt to stir inside you. He could provide for her better. He's the more stable option. He's the twins' father-

"I don't love him," she murmurs, stepping closer to you and letting her fingers softly brush your soaking hair out of your face. "I don't want him," she whispers, her eyes staring into your own with nothing but love and tenderness. "I want you Y/n. I love you."

Your heart splits into two at her words, part of you revelling with joy because she loves you, but the other half breaks once more as insecurities and doubts gnaw painfully at you. Your mothers words ring around inside your head, Vision's subtle little smirk after kissing Wanda, the pain and grief of the last time you heard those words joining the vile words of your mother.

Noticing the conflict on your face, seeing that disheartened and insecure look in your eyes, Wanda brings you out of the spiral of thoughts, sensing the things your mother had said were making you feel like you were unworthy of her love.

How could someone ever love you?

It won't last, you know?

Do you really think anyone will love you after what you did?

"It's true," she murmurs softly, caressing your cheeks and offering a comforting smile, trying to get you to think like yourself. The thoughts fade away at her soft tone, that gentle tone that causes warmth to take over your chest and calm you down.

"I love you, Y/n. You're all I want. All I could ever want."

The negative and insecure thoughts continue to drift away, your mind now able to comprehend what she's actually saying: she loves you. The revelation makes a small smile break out on your face, her immediately noticing the shift in mood.

"There's my Detka," she murmurs, your hands going to hover at her waist as she leans forwards so she can press her forehead against yours.

"I'm sorry," you sigh out, an apologetic tone lacing your words. "I'm sorry I freaked out-"

"Shh," she gently whispers, hushing your apology, "You don't need to apologise Detka." Her head moves so that her lips can press a featherlight kiss to your forehead, lingering at the wet skin before pulling back and gazing into your eyes.

"I..." You trail off, wanting to say the three words back to her but your throat closing up, the anxiety around the words stopping you. As always, she notices and understands you're not ready, pressing another soft kiss on your cheek before moving to ghost her lips over yours.

"You don't have to say it if you're not ready," she murmurs and her just being so, so perfect, makes you want to say it even though you can't.

"You're everything I want and more," you whisper with a raw tone, trying to convey the love you feel for her in your gaze and words. "You own my heart, Wanda, and because of you, I don't have to make an effort to be happy again. You're my everything."

Wasting no time, her lips crash to yours and the whole world seems to stop. All you can feel is the way her lips meet your own, the way her hands are cupping your cheeks, her body pressing up against yours. It's her, it's all her and that's all you want.

***

Your back hits the door as her body pushes you up against it, the contrast between her warm home and the bitter wind and rain causing a pleasant feeling to flow through you as you heat up a little.

Your whole body soon feels like it's on fire though when her lips press to your own again, her tongue dominantly sliding into your mouth and taking control. Her hands move to your soaked hair, pushing the wet strands back as they fall between your faces while your mouths crash back together.

She steals your breath away, both literally and figuratively as her lips are relentless and that sultry look in her eyes short cuts your brain. The look of pure desire and want causes an unbearable heat to build between your thighs as her body presses further against you, leg slotting between your legs.

A small moan leaves you at the action, your head lolling back while you pant for breath. The older woman takes this as an opportunity to mark your neck once more, letting her teeth scrape down the sensitive skin, which causes a shiver to run down your spine, before littering it in hot, open-mouthed kisses.

"Please," you whimper as your hands helplessly hold onto her waist, the submissive tone of your voice not going unnoticed by her.

"Please what?" she teases with a low tone, pulling away from your neck to admire your dishevelled state. Her eyes scan over your own, watching the way they somehow darken even more before glancing down to your lips, admiring the way your tongue subconsciously wets them. "You have to use your words Detka."

Her lips ghost yours, waiting eagerly for your response but you're rendered speechless by her, too consumed by your arousal to voice what you want.

"Wanda, please," you whisper once more, the desperate look enough to make her take mercy on you. Her hands guide yours to her blouse, helping you unbutton it before shrugging the item off, leaving her in a white lace bra. "Fuck," the word spills from your lips in an enamoured tone, your mind unable to comprehend how someone can be this beautiful.

As your lingering look comes to an end, she pulls away, hooking a finger in the belt loop of your jeans to pull you with her until her back reaches the wall near the stairs. Her hands roam your body while yours do the same to hers, confidence building in you at every little sensual sigh and low moan.

"Fuck Detka," she groans when you suck on the juncture of her neck, her fingers tangled in your locks as you mark her neck. She tugs your head back and manoeuvres so she can walk up the stairs while keeping you close.

It's as if the world would end if you stopped touching each other, the contact necessary to live as the two of you refused to part on the way to her room. You lost track of how many times you pinned each other to a nearby wall, unable to control yourselves as you passionately pour all your emotions into every kiss.

Eventually, you make it to her room, her body swiftly straddling your lap as her hands drift down your body, pulling on the bottom of your shirt.

"Is this ok?" she murmurs, her tone soft and gentle contrasting the hungry and rough kisses.

"Yes," you sigh out, voice laced with neediness as you look up into her enticing eyes. "I need you, please," the way you look at her indicates what you want, the older woman's gaze softening when she sees how much you desire her touch.

"Tell me to stop and I will," she whispers against your lips, pushing you back so you're laid on the mattress with her soft body on top. You move your arms so she can easily pull your shirt over your head, her eyes drifting down your body while she bites her lower lip. "You're beautiful Dekta," she husks out against your lips, pressing her mouth to yours briefly before letting her kisses trail down your jaw and neck. You blush at her words and the way she takes in your body, breath hitching when her kisses travel lower to your collarbone.

Her hands glide up your body, feeling all the soft skin under her fingertips and enjoying the way your muscles twitch under her touch, moving them until they reach around your back to unclasp your bra. Her eyes ask the silent question causing you to nod, her fingers swiftly taking the item off.

"Oh fuck," you moan out, hands shooting out to grasp at her hair when her tongue licks down the valley between your breasts, pressing sensual kisses around your nipple before casting her gaze up, holding the eye contact, and taking your breast into her mouth. A lewd noise is ripped from the back of your throat at the way her tongue swirls around your sensitive skin, her hand moving to your neglected breast and giving it attention.

Your fingers thread properly into her locks, the soft hair heavenly to touch as her mouth works wonders on you, moving to the other breast and letting her fingers pinch and pull your now wet nipple to make you groan beneath her.

When she pulls back, a string of saliva is attached from her mouth to your chest making you curse at how hot she looks peering up at you with that dominant and seductive look. Her thumb moves to her lips to remove it, the action fuelling your arousal as she smirks at the way your breath hitches at her movements, deciding to torment you a little more. Her face returns to yours, lips pressing against yours for a bruising kiss before pulling back and moving to whisper in the shell of your ear,

"Remember what I said to you on our first night," her tone is sultry while her teeth nibble gently on your ear lobe, a small hum escaping you as that's all you can manage in response. "I said I was going to ruin you Detka, and I will," she chuckles at the way you moan at her words, her index finger moving to the base of your neck so she can drag it teasingly down your body. Her nail scrapes softly at your skin, travelling down your desperate body, between your breasts, over your stomach until it reaches the waistband of your jeans, slipping a finger under briefly before taking it out as she gauges your reaction.

"Please," you whimper, eyes pleading her to finally touch you. "Please, I need you so bad, Wanda please," you beg and her lips silence you, a moan being muffled by her mouth.

"Hush Detka," she coos a little condescendingly and you're embarrassed at how much that turns you on, "I've got you, I'll take care of you." Effortlessly, her hands unfasten your jeans and slide them down your legs, you helping completely rid the item and watching as her fingers glide over the expanse of your thighs.

The green in her eyes has completely disappeared, replaced by hunger and desire as she takes in your needy form panting in anticipation while her fingers inch closer and closer to your dripping core.

A moan spills from your lips as your head lolls back when her fingers finally meet your soaked panties, hips pathetically bucking at the small action. She smirks at your reaction, letting her fingers slowly circle your clit through the fabric, gradually building the pleasure inside you. As she persists with her deliberately slow pace, your hips move against her hand, grinding unabashedly as you crave to feel her doing more.

"So needy, so desperate," she mutters against your lips, claiming them while she removes the drenched fabric from your body, your heart beating wildly in your chest. "So wet," she purrs when her fingers slide through your folds, your arousal coating her digits. A sinful noise escapes you at the feeling of her circling your clit, pleasure taking over all your senses, hands moving to clutch desperately at the sheets by your side.

"Wanda," you sigh out when her fingers move lower, a moan leaving her lips at the way you say her name. You're about to say her name again but it's interrupted by a broken moan when she slides a finger inside you and slowly starts to thrust it inside you.

"That's it baby," she praises, knowing how much you liked it last time, "Such a good girl, taking my fingers so well." You moan once again when she adds another finger, pumping both long, slender digits inside you and curling them beautifully inside you. Her leisurely pace soon vanishes when she seems to struggle holding back, teasing herself as well as you at how slow she was fingering you.

"Fuck!" you scream, her mouth claiming yours to muffle the noises she rips from the back of your throat as her fingers speed up, fucking you at a merciless pace. Her thumb moves to circle your clit, adding to the overwhelming pleasure as your hips grind frantically against her hand.

Her free hand moves to interlock with yours, placing it near your head and squeezing it encouragingly as your orgasm approaches quickly, her mouth parting from yours to whisper soft words.

"I've got you Detka, you can let go," you whimper in response, your legs trembling at the amount of pleasure coursing through your body. "Come for me," at her command, you crash head first into your orgasm, a string of moans spilling from your lips while you ride out your powerful release. She presses soft kisses over your face as you come down from your high, tilting your head to catch her lips for a passionate kiss.

"That was..." you sigh out, too blissed out to describe to her the way she sent you all the way to heaven.

"Amazing? Fantastic? The best you've ever had?" she mutters playfully, a chuckle escaping you as she knows it's the first time and therefore the best.

"Don't get too smug," you say, smiling up at her. Her lips tug upwards as she mirrors your content expression while you try and regain your composure.

"Can you do one more?" she asks while letting her teeth bite down on her lower lip, becoming irresistible. Your eyebrows raise at her question, body craving to feel her once again so you nod, letting her take a hold of your hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Swiftly, she removes her remaining clothes, her true beauty on show as she straddles your lap completely bare. It was as if Aphrodite crafted her body, sculpting it to perfection.

"Do you have any idea what you do to me?" she murmurs against your lips, your hands travelling down her body to where she guides you to. She lets you slide a finger through her folds, groaning into the kiss at feeling wet she is, how wet she is because of you. "You drive me insane," she moans out, your finger delicately circling her clit before her hand stops you, a confused expression taking over your face. "I want to try something," she explains, a smirk tugging at her lips as you watch her get into position.

A guttural moan escapes you when her dripping core meets your own, grinding down gently to cause pleasure to consume your body. Her hands brace themselves above your head, interlocking your fingers as she grinds down against you unabashedly.

"Y/n," she moans out near the shell of your ear, a pitiful noise escaping you at the overwhelming feeling of pleasure. The sensation of her clit brushing yours, the small sighs being released next to your ear and the fact you just orgasmed causes your next one to rapidly build. Your fingers tighten the grip on Wanda's, your hips bucking up in search of more friction to send you over the edge but restricted by the body on top of you.

A desperate noise rips from the back of your throat when she grinds a little harder, her mouth moving to press against yours momentarily before pulling back and gazing into your eyes.

"Wanda," you groan out, hoping by the way your body starts to tense and tremble she gets the hint that you're close.

"Hold it," she sighs out, grinding even harder and faster against you, the relentless pleasure wracking through your body causing you to throw your head back against the mattress.

"Please," the tone of your voice is nothing but submissive, laced with desperation as you plead the woman to let you come.

"Just a little longer," she pants out, nearing her own release as she thrusts her hips down against you, cursing lowly in Sokovian at the way your soaking cunt feels against hers. "Fuck, come with me Detka," she groans against your lips, both of you falling over the edge.

The room fills with quieting moans and sighs as you ride out the aftershocks of your powerful orgasms, your body twitching under hers as your body buzzes with a slight overstimulated feeling.

A few moments later, soft fingers brush along your jawline and at your cheek, coaxing you to open your eyes and look at her. She smiles tenderly down at you, pressing a kiss to your forehead before moving off you, pulling your body closer to cuddle into her side.

"I'm sorry about earlier," you murmur into the tranquil room, your head resting on her shoulder as your fingers trace random patterns on her skin, her hands scratching up and down your back.

"Detka-"

"No, please let me finish," you interrupted with a soft voice, tilting your head to look up at her. "I shouldn't have reacted in that way and assumed things without letting you say your side of it." You gauge her reaction to your words, her features softening, "I'm sorry."

"Thank you for apologising," she murmurs back, understanding that you felt like you had to apologise to her even though, in her opinion, you didn't need to. It was an appropriate reaction to seeing someone else kiss the person you care about but she could sense a certain guilt inside you, making her drop the subject.

The two of you remain quiet, simply embracing the moment together and relaxing into each other's arms, the comfort of her body slowly lulling you to sleep.

"Not yet Detka," Wanda whispers, waking you up a little bit to which you groan drowsily at, " You need to get cleaned up and go to the bathroom before we can sleep." You want to protest, too sleepy to do anything but the semi-stern look the older woman shoots your way for not wanting to do any sort of aftercare makes you begrudgingly slip out of the bed to listen to her.

Wanda does the same and helps your tired form, cooing loving phrases as the exhaustion from your orgasms catches up on you, scuffing your feet across her room back to the bed. A content smile plays on her lips at the way you steal one of her shirts and slip it on before joining her in bed, snuggling as close as you possibly could to her.

"I love you," she whispers into your hair as you drift off into a peaceful sleep, unable to stop the smile that forces its way onto her face.

She would never have thought that you, the babysitter, would have been the person to make her feel loved again, but here you were, giving her everything she wanted and more. 

[mysteryshoptls]

SSR Ortho Shroud - Cerberus Gear Voice Lines

Just a small reminder that Cerberus Ortho does not have a vignette.

When Summoned: Leave it to S.T.Y.X to handle magical calamities. We'll show that we have the world's greatest technological abilities!

Summon Line: Nii-san... Everyone, just you wait. I'll definitely come and save you all.

Groooovy!!: This is something that only I can do. That's why I have to go. This is the strength of my... "our" own determination!

Home: AI Data, migration completed.

Swap Looks: Resuming mission.

Home Idle 1: You can hide behind me. Don't worry, this body has high durability. No matter what happens, I'll protect you.

Home Idle 2: As long as I have this gear, I should be able to break through any strong magical barriers. I'll cut a path through.

Home Idle 3: The drive system and energy consumption is the pinnacle of efficiency. Mom's engineering skills are definitely top notch...

Home Idle - Login: Retrofitting complete. Commencing specialized anti-magical calamity functions with the 【Cerberus Gear】 attachment.

Home Idle - Groovy: We will definitely eliminate all disasters that emanate from blotting. That is both the mission and purpose of S.T.Y.X.

Home Tap 1: KB-RS01 gets its sustenance from electricity. But, for some reason, it also kind of likes pastries. Not that it can eat it, though.

Home Tap 2: The engineering division of S.T.Y.X is packed full of elite engineers. They all seem to be super interested in all the cutting-edge technology in my gear, too.

Home Tap 3: They both might be the pessimistic, downer types, but they're really reliable in a pinch. My dad and brother are really similar.

Home Tap 4: What's my brother like when we're back home? He's pretty much the same. He'll use chat functions to talk to the employees, and doesn't really talk to them, for the most part.

Home Tap 5: Careful! It's dangerous to reach out so suddenly like that. KB-RS02 might switch on his battle mode.

Home Tap - Groovy: The strongest person in our family has got to be my mom. She's usually nice, but... When she gets angry, she's really scary and no one's a match for her.

Duo: [ORTHO]: Let's clear this lickety-split, Nii-san! [IDIA]: Leave it to your big bro, Ortho!

Requested by @rotattooill.

[yuurei20]

Question!! But are we ever told or given hints about what the Shroud parents job entails? And is their mom's role different then their dad?

Answer!! ^^ Thank you for this question!

The details of what exactly it is the Shroud parents do at STYX might be a little vague at the moment, but we have received a few hints!

The staff refer to Shroud-Papa as "Director" and Shroud-Mama as "Chief Engineer," so it seems as though she is employed by Idia's father, reporting to him and referring to him as "Director" (when not calling him "Papa").

The Director mentions their previous director, Aidne Shroud, who was his mother (now deceased), so the position of "director" at STYX might be one that is passed down the bloodline to the next head of the family, insinuating that the Chief Engineer married into the Shrouds.

A common question that tends to arise is about the Shroud parents' helmets!

Idia says that his grandmother and father (the past and current directors/heads of the family) "supplemented their magic with technomantic devices" in an attempt to counter the family curse/blessing, which requires them to be constantly producing blot and will go after their magic itself when they don't.

This "technomantic device" is, presumably, the helmet that we see the Director wearing, but if the Chief Engineer married into the family and doesn't have a curse of her own, why would she need one?

From what I can tell this has yet to be explained, and it is possible that the helmets are not the technomantic devices at all? Maybe the devices that Aidne and the director used to supplement their magic are something else, and the helmets are for something else again?

Or maybe the helmet really is the technomantic device that Idia mentioned, and the Chief Engineer wears one in solidarity with her partner? It is still vague! :>

The Director built the base model for STYX's Cerberus System, which Idia perfected at the age of 12.

The Director says that he does "the average Joe work" during the crisis of Book 7, mentions taking a transport jet to a special disaster response base and working with "the entire tech dev division" to craft Ortho's Cerberus gear in in 48 hours.

While the Director may have been involved in the physical crafting of the gear (much like Ortho does for himself in Fairy Gala IF and the White Rabbit event), it seems it was designed by the Chief Engineer (there are many theories that Idia takes after their mother while Ortho takes after their father).

The Director calls her as an eccentric genius, and Ortho is shocked when it is revealed she was able to get through Idia's "super-ultra-ironclad security program" in order to access the schematics she used to design the gear.

And I think this may be most of what we have heard of the Shroud parents! :> Additional information catalogued below!

・Idia Shroud, Family (pt1) ・Idia Shroud, Family (pt2) ・Idia Shroud, Family (pt3)

[eldritch-spouse]

Can you tell me more about Kalymir's hell hounds? What do they look like what are they used for? Can I pet them?

Well. They look like an inferior cerberus, vaguely. They're quite large, Kalymir obviously fancies breeds that are larger than him and quite murderous.

I have no set visual reference for them, but they have hard keratin protrusions on several parts of their bodies generally. Some of them have bony faces and snouts, generally dark in coloration. They work closely with actual cerberi.

They're guards, they're war animals, and they're used to aid cerberi regulate traveling between Hell Rings, as well as stop demons from just carelessly entering random rifts to the surface. Kalymir usually only cares for animals that can aid him in acts of war or terrorizing others, so it's safe to say a lot of species in Wrath have been manipulated and forcibly tamed/engineered to serve such a purpose. Just like his nuckelavee steeds.

Can you pet one? Sure! You probably won't get to keep your limbs intact, but knock yourself out. In fact, trying to pet anything from Wrath is a wonderful idea! ((dripping sarcasm))

Kalymir will not help you in this. Like any standard dog breed, a Hell hound will sense fear and hesitation in you immediately. Even if you are entirely self-assured, they'll still snarl at you openly. You bare the size and smell of prey, so you'll have to frighten them to prove that you're more than just a snack. How you achieve this is what makes things interesting. Provided the King is around, the hounds will not attack you, for they know Kalymir can flip them upside down easily.

[felassan]

Email from Modiphius:

"MASS EFFECT NEWS! Mass Effect The Board Game and Mass Effect Miniatures are almost here! Commander Shepard, it’s time to suit up—the galaxy needs you again! Mass Effect The Board Game - Priority: Hagalaz is coming very soon! But here’s some top secret data just for you: we’re also releasing a range of high quality resin Mass Effect Miniatures! You can use these miniatures to upgrade the plastic miniatures and tokens in the base game, or field them in any miniatures skirmish game (like Five Parsecs from Home), and they’re great for for miniatures collectors and Mass Effect fans everywhere! Find out more on our Mass Effect blog and get a tease of the miniatures representing the crew of the Normandy, including both male and female Shepard minis (with optional helmets) and Wrex and Tali (with detachable drone)! If you haven’t already, sign up for Mass Effect news here, so you can be among the first to find out when pre-orders for Mass Effect The Board Game - Priority: Hagalaz and our Mass Effect Miniatures launch VERY soon! Until then, stay vigilant. The galaxy is counting on you."

[source: email from Modiphius]

Images of the miniatures (Sheps, Garrus, Liara, Tali, Wrex)

[source]

Info from the associated blogpost:

"Mass Effect Miniatures By Gavin Dady Art by David Benzal October sees the launch of Mass Effect The Boardgame - Priority: Hagalaz. In it, Commander Shepard and their band of loyal squadmates take on a new mission to explore a crashed Cerberus Cruiser on the storm-wracked world of Hagalaz. Within the cruiser they will face many dangerous enemies, from the survivors of the Cerberus crew, native life and even the dangerous captives and experiments that Cerberus were keeping aboard the ship. The enemies are represented by thick, full colour, illustrated card tokens in the game, but Modiphius are also producing a range of 32mm, multipart miniatures to compliment them. As with our previous Fallout and The Elder Scrolls miniatures, these are highly detailed resin collectors miniatures.    In this first phase of miniatures, we are concentrating on the core sets required to build up the forces for the board game. The first of these is The Heroes of the Normandy Alpha. It includes six miniatures in alternative poses for the PVC sculpts from the board game.  Commander Shepard is represented in both male and female versions. Armed with the M-8 Assault Rifle or her M-3 pistol and Omni-blade, Shepard is ready to take the fight to their enemies. Shepard also comes with optional parts to depict them with either bare head or their iconic helmet from their N7 armour. The former C-Sec officer, Garrus Vakarian, has been by Shepard’s side from their earliest days as a SPECTRE and is depicted in his role as one of the galaxy’s premier snipers (arguments about who is the better shot between Shepard and Garrus aside). Garrus is depicted with his signature M-92 Mantis rifle, repaired armour and the scars he gained as The Archangel. Next amongst Shepard’s staunch allies is Dr. Liara T’soni. A powerful Asari biotic, expert on the ancient Prothean race and, secretly, the powerful underworld figure The Shadowbroker. Liara  is depicted initiating one of her powerful biotic abilities, energy crackling around her hand. Tali’Zhora Nar Rayya is the young Quarian that Shepard first met whilst pursuing the rogue SPECTRE Saren. Tali is a gifted engineer and staunch advocate for the Quarian people. She is depicted with her drone, Chatika, who can be modelled attached to Tali’s Omni-tool, or kept separate to act as a marker during gameplay. Rounding out the squad is Urdnot Wrex, the veteran mercenary and leader of Clan Urdnot. Wrex is a powerhouse in battle, utilising biotic abilities, a powerful M-300 Claymore shotgun and, more than once, a well placed head-butt. As well as these miniatures, we are also producing further sets to compliment the boardgame, including Reaper Forces, Cerberus Troops and some of the Priority Threats that you will face as you make your way through the crashed cruiser. These sets are ideal for upgrading the tokens in the base game, or for use in any miniatures skirmish game (like Five Parsecs from Home) or for miniatures collectors everywhere. Look out for special collectors and gameplay bundles available exclusively from Modiphius  when the Mass Effect Board Game pre-orders go live soon! In the meantime, you can sign-up for more Mass Effect news here."

[source]

[utilitycaster]

This will possibly skew my poll (although you are encouraged to vote how you want and argue for other things - I would love thoughtful meta on Ludinus's true origins and this is still, ultimately, speculative) but I am really enamored with the idea that he is from the group of elves in northern Wildemount who beseeched Corellon for aid, but were not answered - not because they were ignoring them, but because they had been deafened in battle with Gruumsh. Those elves then attempted to encase their civilization in ice and fled to the Feywild, returning afterwards to rebuild, as the ice didn't work.

This has so many elements that not only fit Ludinus's story, but allow for interesting hooks into other Calamity-era occurrences. If you take the story straight (and then have him get separated from the others in some capacity at any point following not getting an answer from Corellon), this all comes down to Ludinus perceiving an inadvertent absence as a betrayal, setting up the tragedy of dedicating his life to destroying the world, all over a misunderstanding. Sure, Molaesmyr is also the hub of elven culture and few will question his presence, but his willingness to go against the priests of the Arch Heart and to destroy feels much more targeted if it's not a flailing strike at all the gods, but rather vengeance on Corellon's ground.

You also set up where he may have gotten the idea to feed on fey energy and the knowledge to do so effectively; this even could set up how he was able to develop an alliance with the Unseelie Court. The timeline is loose enough - the Veluthil burns for a century post-Calamity - that we don't know what else he might have done. There's a chance for him to return to the Material Plane and work with the original Cerberus Assembly, or to have been the one to have set the arcane fire in the region in the first place. I also think the idea of Ludinus as a terrestrial-based wizard in the era of flying cities makes sense both in that he'd know of Aeor and perhaps even envy it, but be unfamiliar with the details of their tech and therefore preserving the idea that he is painstakingly and cleverly reverse-engineering this tech rather than just badly returning to what he already knew.

Finally: it explains a lot about his base of operations. Why not establish himself in Marquet? Why On some level, he remains in northern Wildemount because that is his home. Maybe he really was in Ivaadel for a time, but this is where he's from, changed as it is. The Dwendalian Empire is a useful tool, and the Cerberus Assembly's new incarnation a seized opportunity, but he could have originally been from where Rexxentrum now stands.

If any of this is the case, and that's a big if, I do wonder if he knows why Corellon didn't answer; or if he ever will.

[strawberrykidneystone]

brief moments of intimacy with mass effect companions

the commander shepard showing affection to their lover <3

a/n: i kinda like this format bc i need more practice writing for the other companions besides garrus😭 some of these are set in ME2 and some are set in ME3 oopsies

gn!shepard x mass effect companions

ao3 version

garrus:

-during missions, shepard is always at the front and center of her companions, guiding them through even the worst circumstances

-however, the way back is a different story

-with the rest of the crew in front of them and walking back to the normandy, shepard hangs back and walks next to garrus, giving him a small nod

-he nodded back and flickered his mandible, looking straight forward as he felt their hand lace with his, giving him a reassuring squeeze as if to say “it’s okay, we’re both okay”

-garrus squeezed back and leaned down to their height, pressing his plate lips against their forehead very briefly as they finally arrived back at the ship they both called home

liara:

-she was holed up in her room, combing through all of the information they had on the protheans for the umpteenth time as if she would magically see something new

-unsurprisingly, she didn’t

-what did surprise her, however, was a pair of arms wrapping around her waist and a nose burying into her neck

-thankfully, she could recognize her lover's embrace anywhere

-by the goddess, she was so wrapped up in her research that she didn’t even hear the doors open

-and what better time to take a break than with her favorite person in the galaxy?

tali:

-she was busy tweaking the core reactor in the engineering room to run at full capacity

-apparently, more time had passed than she thought because the next thing she knew, there was a tap on her shoulder

-she looked over the shoulder that was tapped, but no one was there

-a tap came on her other shoulder so she looked, and the same thing

-she finally completely turned around and found a smiling shepard holding up a picnic basket

-tali apologized for losing track of time but they stopped her, taking her hand and leading her to the cat walk where the core shined above them

-shepard laid out a blanket, setting up tali’s sanitized food and their own human food

-they sat directly across front each other, each sacrificing a hand to hold the other as they ate their respective foods

-a picnic in the stars, at least a very warm one

kaidan:

-kaidan woke up to shepard’s side of the bed being barely warm anymore, they were always up before him

-he yawned and stretched his arms up, sitting up and tossing his legs over the side of the bed to get the day started

-the door suddenly opened and there was shepard with two steaming cups of hot coffee in their hands

-kaidan couldn’t help but smile, they even indulged his “ridiculous” moose head mug (he brought it from home)

-shepard yawned and walked over to him, gently handing him his cup before pecking his lips

-as they turned to walk away, kaidan caught their hand and pulled them down into a deeper kiss, tasting stale coffee on their lips from an earlier cup

-shepard withdrew with a smile and shook their head playfully, ruffling his already messy bedhead hair

-what a nice way to start the day

ashley:

-it had been a long day in the war room and ashley was more frustrated than ever, feeling helpless in this war

-shepard caught up with her walking back to the elevator and snaked their hand around her waist, pulling her closer to them

-she couldn’t help but smile, leaning into their touch and leaning her head on their shoulder

-she may not be able to do much in negotiations, but she knew humankind was in good hands with her fearless leader

jack:

-after narrowly saving grissom academy, the kids were set up in the common area as they waited for another shuttle

-jack was still heated from the entire situation and was currently ripping shepard a new one

-at the end of her spiel, she slapped them and pointed at their chest “that’s for cooperating with cerberus in the first place”

-then, she grabbed them by their collar and pulled them into a rough kiss, their teeth clacking at the first pull in

-jack pulled back for air and looked at shepard with a blush on her cheeks “and that’s for saving my kids… it might be nice to see you again too.”

-shepard chuckled and pulled her close by her waist, so close that their noses were almost touching, “it’s nice to see you too jack.”

miranda:

-meeting miranda on the citadel after hearing about her sister was hard, especially when miranda insisted she needed to do it alone

-but if anyone would understand wanting to do something by yourself, it was shepard

-so they did what they could, pulling her into a tight hug that she returned with full enthusiasm, their rib cages crushing against each other

-a small sob escaped miranda and shepard cupped the back of her head, turning their head to the side and kissed the top of her hair, shielding her from the world so she could compose herself

-miranda took a deep breath, taking in their familiar scent and calming down in their arms

-everything would be alright as long as she had shepard by her side

thane:

-he was sitting in his usual seat in the hospital at the citadel, he was here more than her liked

-a small coughing fit started and his chest heaved, a dizzy feeling going straight to his head

-suddenly, he felt grounded when he felt a familiar hand rubbing circles on his back

-he didn’t even have to turn to know who it was, shepard sat down next to him and he comfortably leaned into their embrace, resting his head on their shoulder

-this place wasn’t so lonely with them, he would embrace death once again knowing that they would join him across the sea

jacob:

-jacob was doing his daily crunches in the weapons room (unsurprisingly)

-shepard initially came in to switch out her shotgun for another she found on the field, but this was even better

-jacob acknowledged then with a small wave, staying committed to his usual workout routine

-that was fine, shepard smirked and walked over to him, kneeling down in front of his legs

-he was a little confused at first, but they had perfectly timed it to when he started his full-sit ups, kissing him every time he made it all the way up

-he did way more sets than he was expecting to that day and could barely move his torso the next day

-worth it though

a/n: if a request is made for more characters i would be happy to add them in!!

[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.

[vakarianshepard]

N7 Month Day 1- Poetry

Here's my first contribution to N7 month! I didn't think I was gonna have anything for today, but I was suddenly struck by this idea. Set in ME2, not long after Horizon; Alexa finds a book of poetry and reflects. Under a cut because it got longer than I planned 😅

The Complete Works of Alfred Lord Tennyson. The small paperback seemed ridiculously out of place. Rare enough to see a print book at all, let alone in a random footlocker in the Terminus Systems. Shepard picked it up, turning it over to examine the blurb on the back. 

“Shepard, come look at this,” Jack called from the next room.

She jolted, startled, before replying, “I’ll be there in a sec,” making the snap decision to tuck the book into her pack. 

Later, in her quarters, she flipped through the pages, pausing when she got to "Ulysses".

"I cannot rest from travel; I will drink life to the lees. All times I have enjoy'd greatly, have suffer'd greatly, both with those that loved me, and alone."

Ash's face suddenly appeared in her mind, unbidden.

"My dad loved this poem," she'd said, almost seeming embarrassed. “I still read it to his grave every time I go home.” 

Her breath caught unexpectedly. A pang of grief shot through her. Alexa sat back, lost in thought. What would Ash have made of all this? The Normandy's destruction? Alexa’s death and unexpected resurrection? Horizon? She sighed, pinching her brow. What a mess. Cerberus sure loved selling bullshit with a smile, she thought wryly. Ash wouldn’t have entertained it for a single second. 

She missed Ashley. Her dry wit, unafraid to speak her mind. God, what she wouldn’t give for ten minutes with her. Two years had passed, the rest of the galaxy had moved on, but her grief was still fresh. To her, everything was a few months ago. Tears pricked her eyes and she wiped at them furiously. 

“I cannot rest,” she snorted to herself; “sounds about right. Sure could use your fire right now, Chief.” Everything seemed so off-kilter, so… screwed up since her unexpected return. Her mind went to her friends—the people she loved, and her heart warmed. No matter how bleak things looked, she was lucky to have them.  She read on:

“Life piled on life; were all too little, and of one to me little remains: but every hour is saved from that eternal silence, something more, a bringer of new things and vile it were for some three suns to store and hoard myself…”

Strangely fitting; resurrected, only to set out on a suicide mission. A second chance with an expiration date. It hardly seemed fair, but it was more than most—more than Ashley, or Pressly, or her parents, or, hell, even the merc who’d carried this book. She stopped herself. It was a chance. Maybe they’d survive—she had to believe they would. Things weren’t perfect; some days weren’t even good. But she was recruiting some of the most talented people in the galaxy, and slowly, they were becoming a team. 

Colonists were still going missing. Horizon was not a victory, and every time she thought of the Illusive Man’s smug face, rage flared white hot in her chest. It would be selfish to take the chance denied to so many and squander it, standing idly by while innocent people suffered. Even if it meant working with Cerberus a little longer. Shepard bowed her head, closing her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, nothing had changed—the dim lighting, the glow of her fishtank, the subtle hum of the engines below. But, her resolve strengthened. She could, no, would do this. For the people she loved, for the people she’d lost. Alexa tightened her grip on the book; she would not waste this chance. She would stop the Collectors and survive on her terms—not the Illusive Man’s, not Cerberus’. She scanned the rest of the poem, her eyes lingering on the last lines: 

“We are not now that strength which in old days moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are; one equal temper of heroic hearts… to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”

Things may have changed; two years gone, she was disgraced, shunned by the Alliance, forced to work for the enemy. She thought of her and Kaidan’s argument on Horizon with a twinge of remorse. Hopefully he would understand; hopefully she’d get a chance to apologize. For now though, she had a job to do, and she hadn’t changed. Not really. Alexa closed the book, her hand lingering on the cover as she stood. 

“I’ll make it count,” she said aloud. As she turned to go back downstairs, she glanced back at the book, a small smile playing across her face, “thanks, Ash.” With a deep breath, she stepped into the corridor, ready to move forward. 

[fandoms-in-law]

Honey Alive

Summary: Steve asks for the convertible when hush money is being negotiated after the Battle of Starcourt. He gets a little more than expected when the car moves on its own while engineless.

Authors Note: My need to write chaos has been filled for now. This was the winning ship of my crack ship poll and honestly kinda fun to write

/\/\

Steve knew cars, and he loved them. Of course he had a good one, and his parents scoffed at the idea of ever letting him be the one to work on his beamer, but he learnt how, often did small maintenance when they weren’t in town and he could get the car out of view of the neighbours.

Now he was going to use everything he’d learnt and more, because the car Hop had given him to get the kids to Cerberus was not going to scrap under his watch.

It should, seriously, definitely should be scraped and destroyed after being driven full speed into Billy’s car, but no way was Steve letting that happen to such a gem of a car. He was going to repair it and keep it, no matter how odd the looks he got from the agents negotiating hush deals were when he requested it alongside the pay out.

Besides, it’s a 1984 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz Convertible. Steve would be insane to not at least have a go repairing such a beautiful car.

And the car even wanted him to repair it, to work on it.

That did surprise Steve, enough to almost attack with his nail bat when the car rolled after him but stopped once he turned back to it. Cars aren’t meant to move on their own, and there was no way this one should be moving since he’d already asked for the engine to be removed and taken by a local garage to check for any damage and have that repaired separately.

Steve might have some confidence in his ability to repair most of the car, but the engine was not something he’s going to chance doing wrong, especially since getting it wrong could plausibly cause the car to explode.

So when the Eldorado followed his steps it understandably convinced him that weird shit was happening again and they weren’t getting even a few months before fighting for their lives again.

But when the others got there, nothing. Nobody else got the car to react no matter what they tried, and even Steve couldn’t with them there. They checked in every way they could that it wasn’t haunted or following him still and it remained as motionless as a car without a driver should until everyone else had left again.

Then it followed Steve closer to his tool box again, light somehow flashing when he went to remove the bonnet to start smoothing it out.

He decided then to just assume some of the weird shit from the mall had passed over to the car and as long as nothing deadly began happening he’d continue repairing it. Frankly with a car that wanted to be fixed and his willingness to look up car manuals meant it went easily.

/\/\

“That’s not a BMW part. You’re going to break your car, King Steve.” The drawl made Steve jump where he was checking the part he’d found matched the part name on his list and there was the schools dealer leaning against a shelf judging him.

“Good thing it’s not for my car then. This is what I need to fix the baby I’ve got to repair now up.” He rolled his eyes, holding it up and nodding, turning to head off since he wanted to get the Eldorado repaired as soon as he could.

Eddie didn’t let him leave, following curiously. “Oh, Has daddy’s money run dry so you have to get broken second hand cars instead of buying new?”

“I’d assume not, but if you see him please say it’s been 5 months and his lectures aren’t reaching me.” Steve huffed.

“Are you trying to tell me not to ask more? Cause I’m going to ask more.” Eddie laughed, keeping pace as he headed down another aisle, checking his list for the other part he knew needed replacing.

As he glanced over to Eddie, Steve shrugged. “Brought a haunted wreck from the mall ruins. Trying to get it moving without ghostly presence now.”

“Can I use that in a campaign? You sound like a DnD NPC.”

“Knock yourself out, I guess. As long as you don’t expect me to turn up and play the character myself.” Steve side-eyed him, but dismissed the bizarre sentence as Eddie dashes off, excited in a way he hadn’t expected, only yelling a goodbye over his shoulder.

/\/\

“Steve, can we please do something else?” Robin whined from the corner of the garage she’d made him put a sofa. “Or at least play some music while I work on your resume?”

“Sure, sure. I just need to get Honey’s engine reconnected then I can put the bodywork back on. If you can hear music over that then go ahead.” He agreed absently, head buried into the car, tightening a few connections.

Robin gave him a weird look that went unseen. “I’m beginning to think you’re dating that car.” She remarked.

“Eh, Pretty sure it’s alive so might need to check with Honey whether that’s the case.” He called back, stretching his back as he stood up and blinking when the car lights flashed again. “You saw that didn’t you?”

“Yup. I think your car just replied.” She stated sounding stunned.

Steve nodded slowly, “Okay, known it to do that before but never with anyone else around.”

“I remember. Thought you were having a weird trauma reaction and Joyce seriously considered getting Murray to confiscate the car for your healing.” Robin agreed. “Why is it doing anything though?”

“It wants to be repaired.” Steve muttered, thinking out loud from the times the car had reacted. “And wants to stay yellow as it literally reversed when I thought about changing the colour. Doesn’t mind if I get a different colour leather for the seats though. Not sure Honey’s views on dating me though. Can you flash once if you want to or twice if you don’t?”

The cars lights flashed once.

Steve looked over his shoulder to share a look with Robin. “How the fuck do I date a car?”

“Don’t know, but please don’t tell me repairing or mechanical work on it counts as sex for a car. I’m not going to stay if it’s voyeuristic.” She replied, words spilling as one idea came into her head. Thankfully two flashes of lights stopped her from going into a full ramble.

Decidedly not thinking on that more, Steve had another thought that got him snickering. “I don’t think Dustin meant cars when he said I could get all the girls and more if I helped investigate that Russian message.”

That got Robin giggling along with him for a while before he returned to working on repairing his new partner.

/\/\

“Okay, Honey. I think that’s you as repaired as you’re going to get.” Steve said, patting the hood of the car happily.

Today Robin had chosen to stay home, knowing how close to finishing the repairs Steve was and having learnt that Honey had times when it preferred to be alone with Steve. She guessed that once the repair was done he’d get taken somewhere on the first drive so made him promise to keep a walkie in his car just in case.

The car’s lights slowly came on then off as if imitating eyes blinking open. It reversed and manoeuvred around until the drivers door was beside Steve which popped open when it was stationary.

“Okay Honey, you take me somewhere nice, okay?” He chuckled, climbing in and belting up but doing nothing to start driving except inserting the keys.

This wasn’t like any relationship he’d ever imagined, and frankly wondered how anyone would imagine it, but he was definitely enjoying the adventure of it and how seemingly safe it was.

[greypetrel]

Friday Effect.

Ok, I've been tagged again by two people (@theluckywizard and @daggerbeanart, whom I tag right back with affection and thanks! :3), so here we go, another sketchdump (or sketchdumB as I mistyped).

Today it's Mass Effect, right now I'm in ME2, blame @ndostairlyrium for finally dragging me down. (thank you Ali!!)

Introducing to you Max Shepard.

Mechanical engineer, convinced that if she can repair it she can drive it (she can't), so genderfluid she broke the game (I... Uh... Entered another romance without knowing it. With a character that technically isn't romanceable by women. *cries over Morrigan in DAO*). Romanced this time voluntarily Liara.

In the meanwhile, she's building herself a 1985 Triumph Bonneville in her room from scratch with Cerberus' money and selling it as a very important research to help the mission (it will help her mood, so you see it's vital for the mission).

Her grandma was from Livorno and she'll curse like a sailor and would say spuma should be more available throughout the galaxy and listen to Europe/80s rock if she could. More doodles below:

Grunt is her son, Wrex has pictures of them in his wallet and forces everyone to look at them and listen to him speak and I'll learn to draw Krogans eventually.

[dalekofchaos]

Fixing Kai Leng

The problem with Kai Leng is Mac Walters desperately tried to convince us that Leng was Shepard's ultimate equal when he could barely hold his own against an aged Anderson and a Drell with terminal cancer and in the end he was a tryhard egdelord that would make Kylo Ren embarrassed.

The solution to this is make Leng deeply connected to Shepard's personal history. Making him be a ghost from Shepard's past with a personal connection would have made this character much better. His backstory could change with whatever your selections are for Shepard.

If you are Earthborn, you are both members of the 10th Street Reds

If you are a Spacer, Leng and Shepard's families served together and Shepard and Leng were childhood friends

If you are a Colonist, Leng was Shepard's childhood friend and was in the rubble with Shepard

If you are a War Hero, Leng was wounded as Shepard held off the Batarians during Elysium. Leng's survival and stand against the Batarians attack on Elysium caught Cerberus' interest.

If you are Sole Survivor, you both survived an ambush on Akuze. Only Leng wasn't taken to be experimented on. Leng was recruited into joining Cerberus for his survival. Cerberus convinces Leng that the Alliance left him for dead and so did Shepard. Leng's sense of betrayal and human supremacy leads him to joining Cerberus

If you are Ruthless, you and Leng slaughtered the Batarians on Torfan without mercy, The sense of ruthlessness inspired Leng's cold hearted exterior and human supremacist beliefs and led him to Cerberus.

Where do we go from here? Replace Jacob with Kai Leng. And the books would be his ventures with Cerberus(but less as a cringe tryhard) Jacob ultimately added to nothing. He's so fucking boring and unlikable and turns into the stereotypical black guy who cheats on you.

Kai Leng's motivation when it comes to Cerberus would be this. I would say he was a young man who wanted to serve the human race and the alliance but when he saw that the politics of the Alliance kept holding him back from doing the right thing or the greater good,  he saw that Cerberus was the only ones helping humanity.

Remove the cyber ninja aesthetic and combine Soldier, Adapt and Engineer to make him a Cerberus super soldier.

As for Kai Leng. A Leng who has personal history with Shepard has potential, plus Leng being indoctrinated with Cerberus human supremacist beliefs, but also somebody with a moral conscience when it comes to the missing human colonists, somebody emotional that you could agree with or understand, contrasting Miranda as a starting squadmate.

Through the course of ME2, he would grow on you as the rest of the squadmates of ME2 did. His loyalty mission would be centered around our background. If we're a War hero, we hunt down the Batarians who survived Elysium. If we are Sole Survivor, we hunt down the Alliance officer who led their squad to Akuze. If we're Ruthless, we deal with Batarians who want revenge for Torfan who plan on giving human hostages to the Collectors. Throughout their talks, Shepard can convince Leng that Cerberus is wrong and eventually Leng's loyalty with Cerberus begins to wavers, especially after TIM sends them to be ambushed in the Collector ship.

Leng started completely loyal to Cerberus, but when he works with Shepard he sees that Cerberus is wrong, but stayed loyal, but also loyal to Shepard. When The Illusive Man asks Shepard to give the base over and when he/she refuses, he asks Leng to force it. This is where Kai Leng finally stands up to Cerberus. Kai Leng all his life, all he wanted to do is serve and protect humanity. He sees that the humans of the Terminus Systems were proceed into becoming a human Reaper and was horrified and when the man he looked up to for years says we should use what killed the humans, he gets the message we should sacrifice humanity and the costs of uplifting humanity. Kai Leng has had enough. He sees through the illusion of Cerberus and with Miranda tells TIM to fuck off and he stays loyal to Shepard.

Between the events of ME2 and ME3, when Shepard betrays Cerberus, they realize that Kai Leng is probably the strongest link between Shepard and themselves, and try to use him against Shepard. Not as lucky as Miranda, TIM does not want to lose Leng so he captures and indoctrinates Leng, making him an agent, and reprogramming his mind to become somebody he was not before, working mindlessly for TIM, as his first lieutenant in combat, much like Bucky Barnes, we have an emotional connection to Kai Leng before seeing him as a villain in ME3.

The first time we'd see Leng in ME3 is on Earth. We see this lead Cerberus Phantom in a unique mask stalking you and Anderson. And as we're leaving Earth, we see Kai Leng killing Anderson. With Shepard swearing revenge.

Throughout ME3, Leng would be stalking Shepard. Causing trouble as we encounter Cerberus. Trying to kill Eve, activating the bomb on Tuchunka and the attempt on the Council.

He would become the same Kai Leng that we all know and hate but we would be able to sympathize with him more.

When we finally confront him in Priority Citadel, we face him and omni-slash his mask off. We get the reveal. Shepard is shocked, Leng hesitates after hearing Shepard utter his name. Maybe in the Cerberus coup on the Citadel, if his loyalty mission was completed in ME2, he would not kill Thane, out of respect of a former squadmate, and regain conscious thought again for a brief moment to spare him. 

It would also help to explain his inexplicable plot armor. Rather than surviving against the onslaught of Shepard due to plot reasons, he would not be killed, as Shepard still sympathizes with him, and doesn't want to kill him, sparing him and letting him escape, or not being able to fully focus, hoping there's a little bit of the real Kai Leng still in there.

Of course this would lead to multiple outcomes towards the end of the game. He could either be recruited back or un-indoctrinated somehow, but for a good plot he would only be able to turn good again and rejoin the squad way too late in the game, maybe in the last third of the game, like Legion in ME2. Bonus points if you can romance him as Femshep, would still make a better romance carrying on to ME3 than Jacob.

Otherwise, he would have to be killed and could not be saved. I don't think that convincing him to commit suicide like Saren or TIM would work, because it would be too similar to the TIM suicide not too long, and would lose impact because of it. He would have to be fought and killed one last time in combat, and have a tragic end most likely.

If we saved Kai Leng, he would've been transported on the beam. Depending on your reputation and war readiness, Leng can break through the indoctrination and kill The Illusive Man or Leng kills himself, which distracts TIM and Shepard shoots The Illusive Man. If Leng broke through and killed TIM, he apologizes for killing Anderson and being unable to control himself. If you were just friends they hug, if they were LI, they kiss. Leng's fate would be either being aboard the Normandy to put Shepard's plaque on the memorial or finding Shepard's body and bringing him back and then we'd get Shepard putting Anderson's plaque on the Normandy.

SO that's how I would've handled Kai Leng. Making him more connected to Shepard and less of a tryhard edgelord that they made him to be in canon.

[badwryter]

Chapter 1: The forge

"Cerberus!" Delphi screamed as the ground buckled underneath her.

"You're falling." Came the calm reply from her ships A.I.

She slammed into the floor below and her world went dark as her suit locked itself and absorbed the impact. The lights on her helm began to flicker and cycle power before coming back online. The cool gel interior receded partly as her suits power returned in full.

She coughed till she could breathe and pulled herself to her feet. "You said it was safe."

"I said scans showed it was structurally sound."

"That wasn't structurally sound."

"The scanners are at 40% reliability. You should not have flown through that storm on Charon."

"We didn't know the terraforming had traveled this far out."

"We knew there was a storm."

Delphi silenced her comms and began to look around the ruins she had fallen into. The yellow metallic walls shimmered like chitin under the lights cast by her helmet. An eerie calm filled the air as she padded over the dark soft carpet.

She shambled across the uniform floor as her joints settled back into their respective sockets. The force of her reuniting with solid ground having left its mark on her body even as her armor remained pristine. A large structure rose from the center of the room that was connected to the shaft she had tumbled into.

"Cerberus." She called only to be met with silence.

"Cerberus." She called again after adjusting the volume.

"Yes." They replied.

"I've found the central computer room."

"Impressive."

"I think I'm in another forge."

"This far out?"

"If the observatory can transfer energy all the way out here it can probably use it too." She couldn't manage to keep her annoyance out of her tone.

"You're speculating again."

Ignoring Cerberus, Delphi brought her hand to the port of the console and pushed energy through her gauntlets into it. The energy of her body drained into the machine, leaving her vision once more dim. Her suit chimed a warning in protest to her actions which she promptly ignored.

The flow of energy stopped as quickly as it started and the console came to life. She let her fingers play against the various familiar controls until lights began to fill the large room. Checking the sensors to see the damage the possible millenia had done to the equipment, she fired up a few of the basic systems. More warnings flashed, these ones from the machine itself. She powered the forge down.

"You're being reckless again." Cerberus chimed.

"I just wanted to see how long a repair sequence would take. I think a year would be enough to get it operating at a basic level."

"Give it two. Just to be absolutely sure." They relented.

She checked the warnings one last time before setting the forge in repair mode. "Two years. Mark the date."

"February 28th, 2415. Marked."

Delphi walked towards her ship with a notable limp. The sleek cruiser sat atop a large rock amidst a barren moon. She glanced around her, making note of the beginnings of a thickening atmosphere as she climbed aboard the Phantom.

"Two years." She whispered to herself before climbing aboard and flying away.

She settled nicely into the seat as the ship prepared to reach maximum speeds. Triton, a moon on the outskirts of their solar system receded quickly until it was no longer visible to her scanners. The engine thrummed softly as she stripped off her suit and stashed it in the compartment hidden under her bed.

"You should have kept it on until you were fully healed."

"I'll heal fast enough on my own. I'm low on energy as it is."

"That's because you force started a computer immediately after getting injured. You should have waited."

"You're just mad that I was right."

She sniffed at the collar of her shirt and recoiled from the stench. It smelled irreparably of sweat, ion, dust, and stagnant air. The few changes of clothes she had left were not in much better condition.

"I think we'll stop somewhere at the Uranus Frontier before we do the long haul back. I'd rather not be stuck in here for almost a month straight."

"It is twenty three days." Cerberus corrected before continuing. "Stopping by the frontier is for the best. Your identification is too outdated for the more sophisticated factions."

"I could just put on the cloak and say I'm an archeologist. They let us go just about anywhere."

"None of you have been openly seen in 20 years. I don't think the Eldest would approve of you breaking that tradition."

"Run striatum pause and wake me when we get there." Delphi sighed.

She closed her eyes as her brain activity slowed to near nothing. The random sensations her body still felt despite her inability to comprehend them kept her mind busy. A detailed dream sequence played rapidly before her minds eyes completing the sensation. She felt herself coming back to reality shortly after as her ship landed on the brightly lit pad.

"Where did you land us?" She asked while stretching her muscles.

"New Berlin on the moon Titania. It is the largest settlement."

Delphi grabbed a small pistol from her weapons rack and strapped it to her hip before looking out the window. The large city eclipsed the skyline with its high rising buildings. A blue-green ball of gas hung in the air and blotted out much if not most of the night sky.

"Keep watch." She called as she stepped out onto the metal landing pad.

A small man approached her and hastily scribbled down a few lines on a tablet before looking her way. "Name?"

"Delphi." She responded and stepped around him.

She could hear his footsteps walking closer to another platform as she moved towards a large holographic map. It sat just outside the small transport shuttle area that offered trips to various marked sectors. Shops, bars, museums, and many other tourist attractions were on clear display. Eyeing a few of the more notable bars she selected a small motel nearby and had Cerberus send the appropriate currency under her id.

The shuttle moved quick, speeding down tracks in the underdeveloped city. Different shades of neon flew past her vision faster than she could read any of them. The various advertisements were lost in a whirlwind of color. Whatever they were trying to sell bled seamlessly into another sales pitch.

Suddenly the shuttle dinged and the large doors glided open. The musk of the putrid undercity air wafted into the shuttles cabin only to be purified and replaced with the smell of ion. A short walk left her standing outside the motel surrounded by stink.

Pulling a smaller tablet from her pocket she let the machine scan the code they had sent her. She stepped into the dingy and poorly lit room as the smell of dust got sucked out of the air by autofilters. Small stains of mysterious liquids still peppered the floor adding to the overall ambiance.

The medium sized bed clung to the far wall away from the door. The red sheets and blankets had seen better days, but smelled as if they had been freshly cleaned as she leaned over them. She grabbed the tablet chained to the table and laid down.

"I'm thinking burgers."

"It's been over a week since you've eaten anything."

"Over a month and a half since I've had anything that wasn't freeze dried." She tapped away at the tablet until she saw a small bar with hardly any reviews.

"Drinks as well?"

"I'm a simple woman. I like food, drinks, clothes, discovering ancient and lost technologies, and silence." She placed the tablet down on the side table and headed through the door. The mechanism locked audibly behind her as she turned her comms volume all the way down.

The shuttle brought her to a section of the city within walking distance of anywhere she would like to go. Hurrying along she snagged some clean clothes and quickly dropped her nauseating ones in the nearest recycling station. The dark pants and matching shirt were thick, working class style clothes. They clung loosely on her, but were more than comfortable enough.

A small neon sign flashed next to the door of the bar. It read Open with an unlit Closed sulking right behind it. She stepped through the door and took stock of the emptiness inside.

"Can I get you anything?" A call came over the counter from the woman cleaning glasses.

"Burger, fries, chicken strips, mozzy sticks, and some cheap whiskey." Delphi responded as she sat on the uncomfortable stool provided.

"Dyzil!" The woman yelled. "Burger, fries, chicken strips, and mot sticks!" The bartender poured a glass of a dark liquid and set it in front of her.

"Thanks." She took a light sip and let it coat the inside of her mouth before taking a much longer drink.

"You're new here huh?" The bartender asked while scrubbing away at another glass.

Delphi nodded while taking another drink and turning to face the empty bar. Chairs hung upside down on top of tables as a lone patron sat in the corner. He eyed her from under the brim of his hat while holding a mug of amber liquid.

"Early or late?" She asked while swirling her drink in its glass.

"Early, but don't worry. I don't judge people who need a drink before a shift."

The sound of clattering ceramic shifted her attention away from the man still staring at her. The plates were piled high and nearly overflowing. The smell of the food made her mouth salivate.

"He hooked you up." The bartend remarked as Delphi dove in.

She tore through the food as quickly as she could get it down. The only thing that saved her from choking was the near constant refills on her drink. The heady whiskey clanged around her head, threatening a headache at every turn and bounce.

"It's not going anywhere." A voice came from behind her.

"Hmm?" She mumbled in between bites of chicken.

The man took the stool on her left and waved over the bartender who had wandered over to the other side of the bar. With a gesture of his hand he ordered another drink and one more for Delphi. Sliding the drink within her reach he spoke again.

"Names' Zan, you're new here aren't ya."

"Ordering me a drink gets you five minutes."

"Make it ten." He remarked after waving the bartender over once more.

She pulled out her small tablet and set a timer. A large holographic five floated above it and began to count down. The drinks sat in front of her as she continued eating while he talked.

Every few sentences she would nod or make a noise while barely paying attention. His voice droned on in the background, seemingly unaware of the timer slowly ticking by. This continued until the last of her fries got washed down with what remained of the second glass he had bought her.

"Times up." She said, pausing the countdown just before a large two began to fade.

"Hey! I paid for ten minutes, I only got three of those!"

She quickly paid the bartender and exited to the bustling street. The man followed shortly after, complaining the entire walk to the shuttle about courtesy. She stood just at the brink of the door and refused him entry with a blank expression.

Another quick trip landed her back at her rented room. Her head swam with the cheap whiskey as she collided with her pillow and sank into a deep sleep. The chiming of Cerberus drifted into a cool melody she could swear she had heard somewhere before.

A dull throbbing in her head brought her slamming back to reality. Artificial light streamed through the cheap curtains, beckoning her to wakefulness even as her pounding skull drove her deeper into the pillow beneath her. A sudden chime echoed through her comms, bringing her attention to its urgency.

"What?" She mumbled through the cotton in her mouth after raising her comms volume back to audible.

"You should go check on your ship. Someone scheduled it for maintenance and I've since been locked out."

"SOMEONE WHAT!" She screamed as leapt from her bed and ran to the door, nearly forgetting her tablet with the access code in her haste.

The ride towards the landing platforms felt longer than it took. As soon as the doors opened she launched herself from the shuttle. Using some of her heightened speed, she reached her destination in half the time it normally would take.

The Phantoms platform sat empty with a large cylinder in place of where her ship had been. She rushed over to open it heedless of the dock worker calling to her. His voice echoed off the metal in futility.

When she reached the cylinder, she quickly lifted the latch. Inside was her armor, her Proctor bow, and a slip of paper with the name Delphinus written in large scrawling letters. The dock worker gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Ma'am, empty pads are off limits to the general public. I'm going to have to ask you to leave." His voice was firm, but ambivalence hung underneath.

"Where's my ship." She turned to face him as anger filled her.

"The ship that was docked last left a couple hours ago."

"So you just let someone take my ship?"

"We are not responsible for lost property. You should have kept it locked or purchased a guard driod to watch it."

"I'm taking this." Delphi sighed, pushing her anger back down, as she closed the cylinder and hefted it over her shoulder.

The dock worker shrugged and picked up his broom. She could still hear him sweeping as she walked back to the shuttle. The doors closed with an audible hiss while neon signs began to flash passed her.

"Why didn't you keep watch?" She asked as soon as the door to her room closed.

"I tried. A man from platform maintenance locked me out faster than I could override his control." Disappointment was evident in Cerberus's tone.

"You didn't have to let him on board. You could have denied access."

"I thought you had scheduled maintenance without telling me. You do have a bad habit of withholding information."

She set the cache on the floor next to her bed and flung open the hatch once more. The letter still sat on top, begging for her to read it. A cold sweat pooled down her spine as she plucked it from the pile and opened it.

Dear Delphi.

I borrowed your ship if you hadn't noticed already. Don't worry I left your belongings behind where you could find them. I probably won't be bringing it back though. At least not any time soon, but I think you'll be fine either way.

When you do manage to make it back to the Observatory give mom a warm welcome from me.

You won't be able to find me so I recommend just giving up and trying to find a way off world.

P.S. Don't be too hard on Cerberus. They're doing their best.

Love Gemini

She bundled up the letter and tossed it on the floor. "At least we know how someone could actually fly the damn thing."

"So you're going to try to chase him down I take it?"

"I don't really have a choice." She grabbed her armor and bow, tucking it under her bed out of sight. "Guess we're staying here longer than we thought."

"At least get some actual sleep before you go cohorting into the night."

"Yea, yea, nothing I can do now anyways right?"

Delphi stifled a yawn and laid her head against the stiff pillow. Her eyes slowly drifted closed shutting out the sight of the abysmal room. The whiskey still swam lightly in her head.