(commissioned artwork of Kandra and Kaidan Alenko by @xla-hainex)
Title: Vanguard of Our Destruction - Moments
**Note: these prompts were originally published in my Dribbles & Drabs collection of prompts, but because their muses were chattering so loud in my head of late, I decided to re-edit and update them then pull them into a collection of their own. There may be more prompt responses in future that will be posted here as well. I will be posting them a few at a time until I've caught up to the original ones.
Pairing: Male Shepard/Kaidan Alenko, female OC Alenko/James Vega
Characters: John Michael Shepard, Kaidan Alenko, Kandra Shepard, James Vega
Tags: (These will vary with each prompt posted, so please mind the tag list on AO3.). Twin Alenkos, Shepard stays on Earth, kissing, video game level violence, claustrophobia, angst, mShenko, fVenko (eventually), suggestions of abuse/torture, blood mention, rock paper scissors at 14000 feet, fast burn then a slow reburn, slow burn, no one left behind
Chapter 4: Cleaning the other person’s lips with a lick and a kiss
Chapter 5: I think you're beautiful
Chapter 6: Where does all the blood come from?
Chapter 7: Cross my heart and hope to die
Excerpt:
“You missed a spot.”
Kaidan frowns, confused as he echoes, “I missed a sp-”
Instinct has Kaidan backing up a step, his hip bumping into his chair as Shepard lunges forward in a heartbeat, but Shepard's quick and his skills and agile, and before Kaidan realizes it, the N7's hand slides carefully around the back of his head. He's caught so off guard that the plates clatter back onto the table loudly, but Shepard stays with him. “M-Michael, what the –”
Shepard’s grin widens. He only has an inch or two over Kaidan, but as he stands there, lips hovering over Kaidan’s, his tongue darts out. It is the most bizarre situation Kaidan's ever found himself in - and after the hunt for Saren over the past year, he's been in a lot. But as Shepard draws back, Kaidan now sees a bit of sprout or maybe it’s lemongrass, he can’t tell for sure this close, on the tip of Shepard's tongue. It disappears between Shepard's lips. “Not bad,” he murmurs, “but you taste better.”
“I what –”
Shepard repeats the move, his lips descending just as quickly as before...
(commissioned artwork of Kandra and Kaidan Alenko by @xla-hainex)
Title: Vanguard of Our Destruction - Moments
**Note: these prompts were originally published in my Dribbles & Drabs collection of prompts, but because their muses were chattering so loud in my head of late, I decided to re-edit and update them then pull them into a collection of their own. There may be more prompt responses in future that will be posted here as well. I will be posting them a few at a time until I've caught up to the original ones.
Pairing: Male Shepard/Kaidan Alenko, female OC Alenko/James Vega
Characters: John Michael Shepard, Kaidan Alenko, Kandra Shepard, James Vega
Tags: (These will vary with each prompt posted, so please mind the tag list on AO3.). Twin Alenkos, Shepard stays on Earth, kissing, video game level violence, claustrophobia, angst, mShenko, fVenko (eventually), suggestions of abuse/torture, blood mention, rock paper scissors at 14000 feet, fast burn then a slow reburn, slow burn, no one left behind
Chapter 1: Playfully biting someone
Chapter 2: Please, I'll do anything
Chapter 3: I don't want to lose you again
Excerpt:
“You’re a Red, aren’t you?” Anton challenges. “Once a Red, always a Red." He kicks Kaidan, a move that pulls a groan of pain from him, then adds in a deceptively mild tone, "This man is a threat to our very existence. Kill him.”
Shepard's eyes widen, a chill rolling across his shoulders and straight down his spine. With Anton this close, there's no way he misses it, and the gleam in his eyes says as much.
They have Commander Fucking Shepard in a corner, arm twisted behind his back. At their mercy.
So, I finished up Hell Week for work today - yay! - and was wasting a few minutes looking through my WIPs and came across this piece of art that I absolutely ADORE of Kaidan and his twin sister, Kandra. Which got me to start looking through the bits of Vanguard of Your Destruction which I started for Nano...three years ago, I think? Decided to share this little bit I came across early on in the story.
(commissioned artwork of Kaidan and Kandra Alenkoby @xla-hainex)
I can’t stay.
Bits of plaster rain down from the ceiling as the building shakes for a fourth time, and this time it doesn't just push the button to her brain, it slaps it down hard. She dashes back to her room, throwing the closet doors open until they bang against the wall. Rooting through the clothes hanging there, she finally grasps hold of the evacuation bag Kaidan had her create months ago. Clothing. First-aid kit. All the necessities a girl needs to get from Vancouver to the BC interior when an invasion hits! she’d quipped at the time.
Another bellowing wail from outside screams through the windows. She clasps her hands to her ears, but not in time.
As she turns to leave, a glint of mahogany catches her eye and she hesitates, staring at the jewelry box.
No...I can't...
Without thought or permission, she finds herself standing directly in front of it. Anger fills her, a rage she's not felt since...since... Biting her lip until she tastes blood, she lifts a hand and settles it on the top. It's strange to see her fingers shaking so badly, knowing it has nothing to do with immediate dangers brought by alien space creatures, but everything to do with the peace of mind she's been trying to find since her youth.
Breath rattling from her lungs, her fingers brush across the lock, unsealing it. Slowly, cautiously, she lifts the lid, as if afraid it might jump out and bite her. As well it could, too.
It doesn't. Carefully wrapped in the small piece of fabric Kaidan had wrapped around it, it sits there in the corner of the box, behind her charm bracelet and the earrings her grandmother had left her when she passed. Sitting there. Still. Quiet. Unassuming.
And yet it offers so much.
Yet another deep, resonant, mechanical wail fills the air around her, seeping in through sealed windows. Kandra cringes out of instinct, but at the same time, her fingers close around the fabric-wrapped item.
I know you don’t want to think about it, but Kan, you need to. I’m not kidding…
The fabric falls away, like the peel on an orange, and she stares, torn by twin feelings of hope and horror. I shouldn't have to make this choice! I vowed never, EVER, to pick one up again! The very fact she does is...offensive. Despicable. Frustrating as all hell, too, because no matter how badly she wants to deny it, if she's going to live, to survive, she has to accept that he's right.
Quick tears fill her eyes even as the fabric fall to the floor. It’s an older style Savant, the one he used back before the Normandy was destroyed, but it’s better than the old Gemini they’d been issued at Brain Camp.
Kan, you HAVE to survive..
The tears trickle down her cheeks as old muscle memory kicks in, fingers removing the cover before sliding the device into the port. She imagines she can hear a soft click as it fits, but that's mostly her brain playing tricks. Swiping at her cheeks with her shirt sleeve, she shoulders her bag and spins on her heel, stalking out of the room towards the front of her apartment.
Dammit, K, I hate it when you’re right!
I've seen so many wonderful and lovely Shepards going around with the release of ME:LE I thought I'd send some of mine around in a group. Eventually, they'll all be made in ME:LE. At the moment, only Caleb, Gabriel, and Serafina have been created.
Caleb Shepard (both by @xla-hainex)
Kristofer Shepard (art by @rosenkow) ; Lachlan Shepard (art by @xla-hainex)
Rhys Shepard (art by @xla-hainex); Serafina Shepard (my first Shepard) (art by @dragonreine)
Sian Shepard (art for MEBB 2016 by @artisticallyamber) ; Micah Shepard by @dreambled
Jayce Shepard (art by @punwolf); and a special shout out to Kandra Alenko who might as well be a Shepard in her story with as much as she'll have to do! ;) (art by @xla-hainex)
"look at me. you’re gonna be okay." or "please don’t get hurt. not because of me." for protective prompts?
from this prompt list
on AO3 here
Prompt #1 (Abboats, “look at me. you’re goinna be okay”) is here.
Here is Prompt #2! Finally got Michael and Kaidan talking, though this went a bit angstier than I meant... maybe? lol You know me! :) Anyway, this is set during the Reaper War on Earth. Setting is New York City. Enjoy! And thank you for loving them so much! (I even got a sneak cameo by Kandra at the end for you!)
~~~
With calm, steady certainty and without a word, Shepard dons his jacket and places the pistol inside the front pocket. He only stops when Kaidan’s hand grasps his shoulder. “Wait just a damn minute, will you?”
“Kaidan, I don’t have time to –”
Kaidan isn’t buying it. After all the years they’ve known one another, the time spent together, after finally working their relationship back around to where they’d been before Alchera, what’s happening right before his very eyes, in this moment, isn’t acceptable. And he isn’t afraid to say it. “You can’t do this, Michael!”
A heavy sigh fills the air as Shepard turns to face him. Kaidan, bridling with anger, frustration, fear, waits. A shimmer of blue-white energy bleeds out, surrounding his body.
Surprisingly, Shepard doesn’t seem angry. If anything, resignation fills his blue eyes, perhaps mixed with a bit of trepidation. As if he doesn’t want to do this, but he’s going to anyway. Kaidan gulps. Of course, he is. That’s how he operates. Why does it always have to be like this?
Shepard raises one hand to cradle Kaidan’s cheek. As much as he doesn’t want to give in, Kaidan can’t stop from leaning into the touch, savoring it as if it is the last. “Michael,” he begs in a low, rough whisper, “please don’t do. Don’t get hurt. Not because of me.”
Shepard leans forward, touching their foreheads together. “It isn’t because of you,” the commander assures him. “This has been a very long time coming; long before we ever met.” Grim determination tightens the creases around his eyes and lips. “I have to finish what we started in Chicago. Can’t you understand that?”
He can; of course, he can. That doesn’t mean he has to like it. “Then let me come with you!”
Shepard’s head changes angle as he chases Kaidan’s lips for a kiss. When he pulls back a moment later, his head shakes. “I can’t, Kaidan. Not after last time. We did Chicago your way; we do New York, mine.”
An ache as sharp as the tip of a knife cutting across bare flesh slices through Kaidan’s heart. “I-I promised you I would always have your six.” He hates that his voice cracks, that his fear is so obvious, but they’ve come too far together to hide it, even if it was possible.
Both hands now frame Kaidan’s face. “You do. In all ways. Always.” This time, Shepard presses his lips to Kaidan’s forehead before taking a step backwards and releasing him. “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”
“Don’t worry? How can I not? They know you are coming!” It’s the fear bubbling inside, but it tears out of him as anger, biting and lashing at the very man he wants to keep safe. He hates himself for it, too. This isn’t what Shepard needs right now. Hell, it isn’t what he needs, but he can’t stop himself. It’s too much like what happened before the SR1 went down, and those memories still haunt him to this day. “They’ll kill you. You do know that, don’t you?”
Shepard’s smile does not waver and he keeps his gaze locked onto Kaidan’s. Reaching for the chain around his neck, he pulls it over his head. “I know they’ll try,” he replies quietly as he reaches for Kaidan’s hand. The cold bite of metal against Kaidan’s palm draws his attention to the chain that now dangles around his wrist while Shepard folds his fingers over it. “Keep this for me for now. Please?”
A fine tremor starts deep within, rippling across his body in waves. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what Shepard has closed his fingers around; the pattern of letters and numbers biting into his flesh will leave a mark because of how tight he grasps it, and the other…
Realization hits in a flash and with agony worse than any other he’s ever experienced. “Oh, god… No!” It escapes as a barely audible and thoroughly pained whisper.
Shepard’s hand tightens around his, surprisingly reassuring despite the situation. “Keep it for me,” he repeats near Kaidan’s ear, “until I get back.”
Kaidan’s head moves back and forth, but he cannot speak. Instead, he shifts his glance back up to the man he loves more than life itself.
Shepard smiles, nodding, and tugs at Kaidan’s chain, pulling it free of his shirt. He slides his finger down until it meets the matching gold band next to his own tags. “I’m going to end this, once and for all, Kaidan, and then I’ll be back, I promise.” He slides his hand around to the back of Kaidan’s head, gently tugging him close for one last kiss. Kaidan cannot resist. “I promise.”
Shepard walks away in silence; Kaidan can do nothing, say nothing, to stop him. Just outside the door, he catches a hint of a shape, one that he recognizes. Joelle. At least he isn’t going alone.
Minutes pass, hours, he has no idea. A soft voice calling out from the doorway behind him finally breaks through. “K?”
He doesn’t move, and his twin walks over. She’s quick to figure things out, he’ll giver her that, though Shepard’s dog tags in his hand are a pretty obvious clue. “Why aren’t we going after him?” she asks. “He needs our help!”
Kaidan wraps his arms around her and holds tight, the truth finally seeping in through the cracks of the fear. The knowledge doesn’t make it any easier or acceptable, it just is. “We are protecting him in the best way that we can right now,” he murmurs. “If we go after him, he has to worry about us, not what he has to face.”
48. offering the other your coat (for whoever strikes your fancy)
from this list
on AO3 here
Whoever strikes my fancy, eh? Well, thanks to @jedirangerpenguin and her constant love of certain characters of mine, have a bit of Kandra Alenko and James Vega from Vanguard of Your Destiny. :D
Setting: somewhere between Chicago and North Carolina, Earth during the Reaper war.
~~~
They take refuge in the burned-out carcass of a building set in the heart of yet another dead city laid to waste by the Reapers. It shouldn’t leave Kandra so anxious and antsy, but she can’t help it. Their journey across the country has bounced back and forth from one extreme to the other so many times over that having moments of quiet and peace are very…alien. Almost frighteningly so. At the moment, her nerves jitter so badly – like ants creeping along beneath the surface of her skin – that fighting the urge to scratch or rub the area until it goes away leaves her almost as dizzy as the defective implant in her head does. And these days, especially since leaving Chicago, the urge is nearly constant.
We need to be up higher. At least then, they’d have to climb the walls to get to us, or fight their way past barricades we can put in place. But..they’d just as easily come down from the rooftop, wouldn’t they? Climb in through the broken windows, tear a hole in the floor or a wall, or even use the ventilation systems? And we won’t even know they are there…
The scuff of booted feet breaks through her thoughts and she jumps, spinning around on her heel, her fingers already tickling a wave of dark energy into existence, preparing to release it…
“Hey, now, princesa!” Vega calls out in a mixture of amusement and hesitation. “It’s just me!”
Her hand flutters as the energy dissipates, and she curses while glaring daggers at him. “Щоб тебе качка копнула!”
As usual, Vega chuckles and approaches with caution. “Heh. Well, you’re yelling at me in Ukranian, right? That’s better than it could be, I guess.”
With hands propped on her hips, she stomps a foot, stirring up a small whorl of dust and ash into the air between them. “That’s all you have to say for yourself? After scaring me like that?”
“Not sure what you said, so…yeah?” He shrugs. “What’s it mean, anyway?”
Turning away from him, she walks over to stare out the pane-less window at cloudy, darkened night skies. God, what she’d give to see the moon and stars again. “It means you should get kicked by a duck!”
“A duck?” He follows her but stays out of arms reach. “Really? That’s the best you can do?”
“Ducks can be vicious,” she insists, her eyes still sparking with barely contained fire. “And trust me, you don’t want any other Ukranian curses thrown at you. They’re not nearly so nice.” She has to fight back a twitch at the corner of her lips. “At least ducks you can outrun.”
He chuckles again, and from one second to the next, the tension in the room eases to more comfortable levels. A gentle tap pulls Kandra’s attention back around to find him nudging her upper arm with a protein bar. “It’s not much,” he admits, true regret in his voice, “but it’ll get you through for a while.”
“Thanks.” She uses her teeth to tear the wrapper open as she turns back to look out the window, nibbling at one end. Her appetite hasn’t been what it should be since Chicago, not since Kaidan came back from that mission all battered, bruised, and bloodied. She knows that, as a biotic, she needs to do more to fix that, too. She’d been so worried then, wondering if her twin would even survive, she’d lost herself in doing what she could for him while Michael went back to doing what he does best: leading them forward.
But now, more than two weeks later and with Kaidan well on the mend, she still needs to pull herself together. The only thing that has kept her going through all of this, really, has been James watching out for her, making sure she eats something, drinks enough water, gets rest when she’s tired. It’s difficult to believe that just before they arrived in Chicago, they fought more like cats and dogs with each other.
Sudden warmth surrounds her, seeping in through her shoulders and neck. She glances in James’ direction, and discovers the reason; a jacket, the hoodie he likes to wear when he’s out of uniform, now lies tucked around her. It’s huge, hanging down well past her hips, but the warmth it provides is undeniable. And I didn’t even know I was cold. “James?”
His attention is out through the window when he replies sounding almost a little defensive. “What? You had goose bumps all over your arms and neck.”
A small shiver runs up the back of her hands. A quick look assures her his assessment is correct. “I…thank you.”
That has him turning, a lazy smile stealing across his face, perhaps a hint of relief in his eyes. “You bet. Can’t leave my princesa freezing all night long, now, can I?”
She huffs softly and nibbles at the protein bar. “You know, you’ve been calling me that for a while now,” she muses, a soft smile finding her lips this time. “Are you trying to tell me something?”
Even in the dim light, it’s easy to see the flush that reaches his neck, ears and cheeks as he rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “Just…a nickname,” he assures her. “Some people need names that match them better’s all.”
One brow arching, she watches him closely. “And you think of me as a princess?”
“Heh. Yeah. Well, you see… I tried calling you Lola a couple of times, but that just…” He gulps and shifts uneasily before turning to leave. “Never mind.”
Before he gets more than a few steps away, Kandra turns and grabs him by the arm. She has no idea who Lola is, and she’s not sure she wants to know in all honesty, but she doesn’t want him leaving with this sort of awkwardness between them. Not when she knows she owes him much more than that. “Wait. Please?” He doesn’t look at her, but he stops. “I want to thank you.”
A frown creases his brow as he finally glances down at her. “You already did.”
“For the coat, yeah.” Now that she has his full attention, she pulls her hand back. “I mean for…everything. For watching out for me in Chicago. Making sure I ate. Trying to keep me from worrying too much. Reminding me when I needed to sleep, drink, that sort of thing. I…was a bit preoccupied after Michael and Kaidan came back, and…”
The creases smooth out as understanding dawns. Huffing softly, he reaches a hand out, brushes a few strands of her hair out of her face and nods. “I know you and I didn’t start out too well when the Reapers arrived, but I’ve got your back, don’t you worry.”
There is a hell of a lot more sincerity in his eyes than she expects. Not that she doesn’t expect it, but it’s rather intense. Still, it’s reassuring. “And I’ve got yours, James. Whenever, however you need it.”
He looks about to protest, but must change his mind because he smiles instead. “Thanks. I’d…better go check on the others. You gonna be okay up here by yourself?”
She looks back at the window, the mess of the room, and her earlier concerns return in a flood. Deciding that being alone right now probably isn’t the best idea, she shakes her head. “I’ll go with you, I think. Safety in numbers, right?”
James’ smile deepens. “Sounds like a good idea to me.”
I was tagged by the fabulous @hunnybadgerv - thank you, dearest! Tagging anyone else wanting to participate! Not sure who all has done this now or before, but tag me back if you decide to join in so I can see, please!
Okay, so I’ve already done Lachlan, Rhys, and Caleb. Let’s see... Let’s do
KANDRA ALENKO
Dinner - K’s Kafe
Sky - the limit
Trip - BAaT
Season - cooking
Sleep - snuggle
Comfort - hugs
Family - Kaidan
Black - terror
Fight - self-defense
Restaurant - dream
Home - Orchard
Power - biotics
Steal - kiss (from James)
Ocean - content
Drink - who’s buying?
She still has a few things to figure out in her life! ;)
Again, I was fortunate enough to be able to commission the extremely talented @xla-hainex for a couple of art pieces. And look!!! My babies!!!! Kandra and Kaidan Alenko, biotic twins! I’m about to burst, I’m so excited to finally see them together!!! And in time for the last half of Nano and their writing project!!!
A little something for them from that project:
“Kan, stop!” Kaidan shouts as he hurries inside. Their eyes meet and he isn’t at all surprised to see signs of shock in hers. She draws back her arm, preparing another attack; he blocks her movement with his forearm, disrupting the mnemonic. “Kandra,” he barks out sharply, “зупиняти!”
His voice breaks through the haze; she blinks a few times, eyes widening, filling with horror, but they focus on him now. “K?”
He pulls her close for a quick hug of relief. “Yeah, it’s me. Are you alright?”
“I …” She looks over his shoulder before taking a step back from him. “Yeah, better now,” she replies with a forced smile. Her gaze drifts back to his face. From one moment to the next, the shock fades and bewilderment suffuses her features. “зупиняти?” she repeats, her accent slightly thicker than his. “Really?”
Releasing her, he shrugs and uses one hand to ruffle her hair a bit. Not surprisingly, she attempts to duck out of his reach. “Grandpa’d be proud. I got your attention, didn’t it?”
