#mass effect verse

[born-of-loss]

[ closed starter for @wetheresilientfew ] 

Reina had a knack for picking up on people’s emotions. Especially when they were drinking alone in a crowded room. 

She was never afraid to approach people she thought might be lonely, either. She was considerably well-versed in the approach, and she had a few natural gifts; she was friendly and, was not too modest to admit, beautiful. Or at least unique. She pulled her hair forward to drape across her shoulders, lilac locks framing her face, and sat beside the black-haired man at the bar.

“You look too young to be this lonely.” She stated, voice warm, compassionate. “Credit for your thoughts?” Green eyes stared at him, wide and expectant.

[o-rusted-heart]

Mass Effect AU : Open.

“Yeah, I’m... not much of a military type. I don’t stand a lot on ceremony.”

“Am I supposed to curtsey or somethin-?” 

[schnabelcopter]

I know I'm not that tall I know I'm not that smart But let me drive my ship into your heart Let me drive my ship into your heart 💜

[tixija-blog]

     Ritual, after so long she sees it everywhere. The way some one holds a gun, adjusts their stance, removing armor in the same order. Every species, every walk of life, dominated by tiny rituals. She is no different, despite the slow and lightyears beneath her boots some rituals never change.

Today’s ritual is coffee. Slow brewed in an old machine while she fusses over it like an overbearing parent. Real beans leave residue like gunpowder on her fingertips. It doesn’t matter that they haven’t used the stuff for centuries now, she remembers the grit.

“ Ahn.”

Two cups. No cream, no sugar, pure and black like whatever remained of her insides, with the smell of old world. Ritual. She hands the cup over, and she waits.

@masscni

[dauntlesspublick]

Humanity’s Best? (Closed)

@that-kid-from-vault-101

      Back pressed against the chilled material of the ward’s wall, Piper took a deep breath. Gruff voices carried back to the dark corner where she hid, just barely audible over the din of the Zakera Ward. Someone was arguing with Captain Bailey again, from the sound of it. 

      The soft orange light of her omni-tool gleamed to life at the reporter's silent request. Her gloved hands fumbled with the older unit, willing it to set up for a new recording. She’d need to be in and out if this interview went south. 

    Taking a deep breath, she pushed out from the shadows and waltzed toward the C-sec Captain, hand out and omni-tool glowing brightly. Her eyes glazed over the man leaning against the desk, seemingly frustrated from the argument she heard previously. Clearing her throat, she began, “Captain Bailey? I’m Piper Wright with Publick Occurrences. I was wondering if you had time for an interview?” A brilliant smile punctuated the request. “A statement from the head of security here will put alotta people’s minds at ease, ya know. People are scared.”

[born-of-loss]

Watch your back

[ closed starter for @rcssian-sniper ]

Reina was back on Omega. She didn’t particularly want to be back on Omega, but she had a friend who had asked for her help. And Reina, being Reina, did not say no to friends, no matter how much it inconvenienced her.

The message from the ex-coworker had been vague, and she hadn’t gone into details when Reina pressed, just that Reina needed to come to Omega right away, and meet at their old shared apartment. Her transport had arrived early on the station and instead of going immediately to visit her friend, she instead decided to pop by Afterlife, maybe see some of her old colleagues. She was incognito, as much as possible; wearing a hood that hid most of her hair. She didn’t want to be recognised until she could dictate who recognised her.

Walking up to the entrance of Afterlife, she gave a quick word to the bouncer, who thankfully knew her from her time working there, and let her in, immediately earning him a wave of complaints from those waiting outside.

[o-rusted-heart]

Mass Effect AU: Synth Unshackled

The Cambridge Cell had stopped being an official part of Cerberus a long time ago; their experiments in workarounds of synthetic intelligence seemed to be more art projects than effective ways of stepping around Galactic law.

At least their conceptualizing was consistent: Council law penalized unshackled synthetic intelligence that was capable of forming its own decisions, but what if the intelligence was human in nature? 

Without Cerberus’ resources, the Cambridge Cell began experiments both unethical and inadvisable with brain scans collected from vintage records back on Earth, their goal a human AI, a way to transcend both galactic law and mortality. 

Granted they had expected some of the scans of great scientists, politicians, or soldiers to take more than the old cop from Chicago they plugged into a body for simple data testing. 

Nick Valentine awoke after a 50 year gap in a decrepit synthetic body in a trash heap on a backwater asteroid in the Terminus Systems. He might’ve had more trouble with it if his brain wasn’t sampled from the best detective in Chicago; as it was he put his situation together well enough. 

He spends most of his time in Omega doing odd jobs-- though he’d really do anything to get off that rock and get somewhere with a little less grime, somewhere his do-gooding could make more of a dent instead of just sweep away the grime for a day.

NORMANDY CREW: Nick Valentine can be recruited on Omega in ME2. His expertise as a detective is something the Illusive Man deigns handy for figuring out the mysteries of the Collectors. 

Nick’s skill set primarily involve hacking, sabotage, and tactical analysis. He also isn’t limited by human needs like eating, sleeping, or breathing-- though his joints act up every now and then. 

[born-of-loss]

More than just spare parts

[ continued from x - @fallesto ]

Reina frowned, momentarily, at the comment from the other.

“I...I didn’t think you would harm me.” She’d never spoken to the infamous Commander before, but had seen her passing through the Citadel on more than one occasion. She never caused a stir as much as she created...ripples. Whispers. Name-drops. 

And now she, a nobody, was talking to the Commander. It was...flattering that the Commander had sought her out, was speaking to her. She wondered if the former--or continued? she never could keep up--Spectre needed something of her, or was just...taking a moment to connect with a fellow human? Well, she wasn’t about to ask. She was sure the truth of it would come out eventually...

“Is there something I can do for you, Commander?”