[Book Four] Chapter 15: Family gets bigger again

Chapter 15: Family gets bigger again

“Children and you are mutants.”

Those were the few words that Mordin had told Rick when he came to the family home to give the results from the tests the children and the man had done. Jane, Ashley and of course Miranda and Jennifer were present as it concerns them too.

“Okay…” Rick said, waiting for more and a bit worried.

“What do you mean my girl is a mutant?!” Jennifer asked angrily.
“Genes had mutated.” replied the Salarian.
“Mordin, please, get to the point. What kind of mutation are you talking about here? Are the children's lives in danger? Do I have to be a guinea pig for them to be alright?”
“Noooooo! Everything fine. Good mutation.” quickly dismissed Mordin.
“Meaning?” Miranda asked, getting impatient.
“Rick natural biotic, like Asari. Children inherited genes.”

That revelation shocked everyone around the coffee table. Even Rick himself. The idea that had crossed his mind was that Sandra had somehow inherited his biotics, that’s why he had taken the test too. Never in a million years did he think that it would be because he was a natural biotic.

“Wait, that makes no sense. I can’t be a natural biotic, I was exposed to eezo because my mom was working on a ship.”
“Your mother exposed before you. Shepard proof of that. Eezo must have changed mother’s womb. Mutated DNA. Miracle.”
“... Are there any side effects? Others…”
“None detected so far.”
“... And all my descendants would be natural biotic too?”
“Yes.”

“Holy shit.” he said as he brought his hand to his mouth.
“Isn’t it good?” Asked Ashley.
“For humanity, yes. Family no.” replied Mordin.
“What do you mean?”
“People would kidnap them for experimentation or to breed biotics, Ash. Can you imagine what a man like TIM would do with this information?” answered Rick.
“Like hell that would…”
“I know, lover! I know. No way in hell. But we need to keep quiet about this… Mordin are you sure all my descendants will be biotics?”
“Of course. Offended you think otherwise.”
“Why didn’t Arianna and Adam have any display of their biotics then? Why only Sandra?” questioned Jane.
“Situation perhaps? Protected herself from water on reflex.” offered the Salarian as an explanation.
“Since we’re natural biotics. We don’t need a bio amp, right?” Rick asked and Mordin nodded in affirmation. “What about me? I have an L5n.”
“Possibly limits true biotics capabilities. Also explains fast adaptability of it.”
“Shut up, so Dickhead is even more powerful in reality?” Jennifer wondered aloud.
“Yes.”
“Is that… Is that why I survived when we escaped the Collector’s base?”
“Probably. L3 overloaded, Natural ability took over.”

No one knew what to say. That was such a big revelation that they didn’t know quite what to think.

“What if… I get my implant removed?”
“Dangerous. In case of success, significant increase in biotic capabilities. Rehabilitation required though.”
“You’re not seriously thinking about it?” Jane asked in worry.
“I am. How would they learn to...”
“Liara is a natural biotic, she could…”
“But an Asari. Not a human.”
“There is one thing I don’t understand. How can it be hereditary? Eezo is not something organic.” said Ashley.
“No idea.” replied the Salarian.
“Can’t it be both? Organic and non-organic? I mean the Eezo nodules grow, if they were purely non-organic, that wouldn’t be possible, no?” Rick ventured.
“True. Further tests required.”
“...Okay… I’ll…I’ll get my business in order and I’ll do those tests.”
“Are you really going to do it?” asked Jane.
“I can’t let an unknown like that alone. Not when the children are concerned.”

Raising up from his seat, Rick went towards the children’s playroom to indulge the urge he had to hug them.

____________________________________________________________

Like the previous year, the first Saturday of the second semester was the day of the season finale of Mass Effect. Once again Kahlee allowed the student to use all the theater room and communal room to watch the episode. The difference this time was the food available for them.

Just as Rick expected, the popularity of the crew members were even more divided. Jane was still in the lead by a wide margin but second place was disputed between Garrus and Jennifer. What wasn’t expected was his raise in popularity reaching fourth place. The only explanation he had was the way he had dealt with his nightmares, showing that he wasn’t just an asshole but a broken man not coping very well. That and both his show of loyalty towards Tali and working together with Jennifer despite the rocky start. After that everyone was more or less even. The most hilarious scenes so far was Jane waking up naked on top of Rick, Jane Cracking Rick’s helmet when he fed her and at the very top Jane training her biotic for the very first time. The best action scenes were the mission on Horizon, then on the derelict Reaper and finally in first position, the Collector’s ship.

Rick knew that the Collector’s ship would take first place at this point since that’s when he revealed the use of biotics with legs. The situation was the most dire and he nearly died. It was also a moment of growth for Jennifer. After tonight however, the first place would go to the Collector’s base mission. He was sure of that. 

The first episode was about the rescue of Act!Helena and her N7 team. It was a really gory episode and the public for the first time had seen Act!Rick at his worst because of the captured children. That was because of them that plenty of people in the chat cheered Act!Rick when he completely and ruthlessly destroyed the slavers. His fury for the innocent kids had resonated with the public and he earned some more fans. They saw a new side of him that they had never witnessed before. A ‘good bad side’ was the term employed by a user on the chat. There were more cheers when Act!Samara told about hers and Act!Rick’s last mission together to Act!Jane. Raping children was a big no no, no matter the species you belong to. Finally the episode ended with Act!Rick dropping a drunken Act!Jane like a potato sack on her bed.

“That’s not how I remember it.” Jennifer said.
“You weren’t there, the hell you remember.” replied Rick.
“I don’t remember you going back to your room afterwards. So, did you two fuck or not?”
“Not your business. And even if it was, I wouldn’t tell you and I wouldn’t show it on screen. I didn’t show my time with your wife nor my time with Tali. there was no reason to show my time with Jane if time there was.”
“Party pooper.”
“Want me to show our time in the next season?”
“...”
“That’s what I thought.”

Profiting from the bathroom break, Rick looked at the chat. People were not indifferent about a free EDI. They were either horrified of her or loved her humor. From time to time, the meme with Joker’s face popped up as a response to a post someone made and Rick got the impression that the meme will not die anytime soon. That wasn’t the only one that had been created. EDI’s ‘That was a joke’ had already become a meme and had begun to trend. The most popular so far was Jane’s ‘This is Commander Shepard and this is my favorite store of the Citadel’ embarrassing her to no end.

With the break over, the season finale began with the briefing of the mission where Act!Rick’s intellect is shown. The subsequents scenes were pure action between Act!Joker piloting the Normandy (in a way that made the people realize that he was the best pilot around), the fight with a drone and finally the one-shooting of a Collector ship. The infiltration of the Collector’s base was split between Act!Jane’s side and the rest of the crew.

Rick couldn’t just show Act!Jane’s side, not when everyone fought like mad to create a diversion. He did the same thing when the crew was splitted again. The fast paced orchestral music (one for the infiltration phase and one for the diversion after the teams reunited) had charmed the viewers and many were already asking for the title of the tracks, too impatient to wait for Rick to release it.

“[°Rick<3°]: Holy shit, I think that’s the best moment I’ve ever watched so far.”
“[OctoDaddy]: This one thinks so too. Be it the action or the music, everything is really cool.”
“[Azure_Azure]: To think a small crew of a dozen people took on the whole collectors base. That’s insane.”
“[Mojo]: Look at the crew though. They’re not the average grunts.”
“[Azure_Azure]: True. A justicar, the best sniper around, best biotics, doc and scientist… Pure bred Krogan…”
“[°Rick<3°]: And Rick!
“[CmdShepard_nb_One_Fan]: and the Commander. Sure Wald is a beast in a fight but without the Commander's capabilities, skills and leadership, they wouldn’t have gotten so far.”

When Act!Jane made two teams for the last time however, the focus was kept on her. From reading the chat, the reveal of the human-reaper larva had shocked and disgusted the public and Act!Rick taking it down had been welcomed and praised. The hilarity of TIM getting cut off and forced to listen to Mordin sing (something that had amused almost everyone) was cut short by the sudden reappearance of the fallen baby Reaper. It was a pure moment of horror punctuated by the specifically chosen music. A very loud orchestra supported with a powerful choir, depicted perfectly the hard, desperate and horrific fight. The viewers in the chat were very active, agreeing that they didn’t expect a jumpscare and to keep being scared as the fight went on because of the music.

“[Moltan]: Okay, let’s talk again about the soundtrack because it’s freaking great!”
“[LoftiGangers8k69]:  Yeah! I mean, I felt like in one of those fantasy games where you’re confronted by a freaking colossus size boss fighting for your life”
“[Frogger]: They are fighting for their lives! And it’s kinda like a boss, that’s true.”

Act!Rick's (apparent) death by giving his life for Act!Jane was impactful and many wondered how he would get out of his situation since Rick was clearly alive today. Then came the scene of him clinging to the Normandy.

“[InSaNeKiLlEr]: Bullshit! There is no way that’s possible!”
“[OctoDaddy]: This one thinks the series changed from historical to fiction.”
“[_AzureSandwhich_]: Wald is just making himself look good! What a trash!”

On and on comments disparaged Rick until EDI posted the actual footage on the chat.

“[JACK4EVER]: That’s the real deal! Holy shit! He really did it!”
“[°ARCHANGELUS°]: [Disbelieving] No fucking way.”
“[Scientist_Salarian]: That guy got run over by a flying ship and held onto it with only his biotics! What is he made of?”
“[GruntGruntingAGrunt]: Is that guy even human?!”
“[xOx_QueenSamara_xOx]: What the hell is he?!”
“[SpaceCowboy]: WAAAAAAAAAAAAAALD!”

Rick looked up at EDI with a brow raised questioningly.

“You didn’t have to do that, you know.”
“I do not like your integrity being questioned.” replied the AI.
“EDI… I’m a scoundrel, I don’t have much integrity.”
“That’s not true.”
“What are the both of you talking about?” Liara asked.

“Users did not believe Rick had done what he did, so I shared actual footage of the crew reacting to it at the time in the chat.”
“Must have shut them up real good.” Jennifer said after snorting.
“You really did that?” inquired Kahlee as she looked behind her, up the rows to her brother.
“Yeah.”
“...Don’t do that again please.”
“Not unless it’s necessary but otherwise you have my word.”

She looked at him for a moment before nodding, then turned back to look at the screen where Act!Jane said her goodbye to Act!Rick as she was called up for an urgent mission. Afterward the credits rolled and Rick released the list of music for the two episodes. After the bloopers on the film set, a short break occurred again and a new Q&A with the actors began.

“Welcome to the second edition of Q&A of Mass Effect. I’m Illiana Lorat and I have the pleasure of welcoming… Well, most of the crew we spent the last ten weeks watching on screen with fervor and trepidation.”

“Thank you for receiving us once again, Illiana. And a big thank you to Celeste Academy’s headmistress, Kahlee Anderson for hosting us a second time.” said Christina Stone, the actress impersonating Jane.

“Indeed, many thanks to Headmistress Anderson. Shame on us for not having thanked her last year.” Ryan Jackman, playing Act!Rick said, still wearing his mask.
“I don’t need to see the chat to know the first question going around. Why are we at Celeste Academy for this Q&A?” spoke Illiana.
“That’s because a good portion of the Normandy crew actually works here. It seems now to be a tradition to celebrate the success of the Series at each finale here with them. We also spent a bit of time with the students. Some kind of reward for all their hard work in their first semester.” Orianna said and the actors who were present the previous year nodded in agreement.

“Orianna is here! And you didn’t tell me?!” shouted Miranda to a laughing Rick.
“She wanted it to be a surprise.”
“I’m going to have some words with you.” she threatened and made him laugh even more.

“Let’s really start with…Ryan, you’re still wearing a mask to hide your face for the possible reveal in season three, I suppose so in that case the first question is… How are you all doing?” Illiana asked after getting a nod from the man.
“Rested.” commented Christina making the rest of the cast laugh.
“Rested?” Illiana inquired, confused.
“We had one heck of a schedule for the past ten months before the airing of the season.” answered Ryan.
“Two episodes in a month. We were filming from dawn to well into the night. When we filmed the first season it was during a two year period.” Christina explained further.
“Goddess! That must have been really tiring.”
“Yes. It was quite the experience.” Orianna said.
“That will never be repeated.” added Christina with relief.
“No?”
“No, Rick had seen the problem and after consulting us, fixed it. We will never have such a tight schedule again.” announced Ryan.
“Are you allowed to tell us how?”
“Yes. Rick gave us multiple solutions. Either airing one episode a month instead of two, giving us plenty more time to film and not crawl back to our lodge everyday or simply split the season into four smaller ones.” revealed Christina.
“Four? That would make four more years of airing for Mass Effect and only five episodes per season.”
“Actually no, as the third season is supposed to be as long as the first and second combined.” Kretus Arxian (Act!Garrus) replied.
“Goddess! That’s a lot of story to cover. What did you choose in the end?”
“A bit of both. We would film one episode a month and two episodes a month would be aired for the first part of the season, so season A. For the second part, season B, the schedule would be back to two episodes a week until the end of season B which is the end of the series.” explained Lorelai’Obdis (Act!Tali).
“I see. Mass Effect is not ending anytime soon.”
“No.” replied the cast in unison.
“Okay, here’s the first question from the chat destined to Orianna… “

____________________________________________________________

“A question for Christina. Were you really naked or was it a stunt double in the beginning of the season when Rick put the food dispenser in the Commander’s Aquarium. Quite the perverted question.”
“This is fine, Illiana. The answer is… It was me BUT I wasn’t naked at all.”
“You weren’t?! We see your bareback and shoulders!”
“Rick asked me if I was comfortable doing the scene naked and I told him no. He understood and came with the idea of painting the back of a skinsuit in my skin color. Though I say skinsuit, the front wasn’t, only the back and shoulders.”
“The front was all black and rather baggy.” nodded Ryan in acknowledgment.
“Interesting. Now a question for Lorelai… The sound of Rick slapping Tali’s ass was very loud, was it a sound effect or did Ryan really slapped you? Dear viewers, please stop with the perverted questions.” Illiana said with a deadpan face looking straight at the camera.
“Oh god! I’m never going to live down that answer.” Ryan said buried his head in his hands while Lorelai laughed.
“It’s both. He did slapped me to make it real but not that hard so a sound effect was added. Thank you for respecting my poor butt, Ryan.” teased the quarian.
“Honestly, that’s a good answer, there is nothing to be embarrassed about.” said Illiana.
“I was fearing much worse.”
“I still had his handprint on my butt cheek for a few hours.” Lorelai gave the coup de gras.
“Nevermind…” Ryan grumbled, making everyone laugh again.
“Maybe answering a question will make you feel better. Rick was less of an asshole and an emotionless machine in this season and was way more human. Was it difficult to adapt to that change?”
“Ah! Hmmm. I’d say yes and no. Acting the asshole part was not much different, I just had to turn it down a notch and be a bit more sassy. As for the scene where he is more emotional… When he’s more outgoing and open towards others it’s fine. What was very difficult was the moments when he truly tried to connect with others. Especially with Jack. He’s still in the mindset of not caring for anyone and doesn't want to connect with her but at the same time he can’t help himself. They both had a shitty past and he recognizes that and I think unconsciously he knows that he needs it, needs that connection with someone that maybe could understand him and that it would be good for him but also for her. We can clearly see their friendship blooming the more time they spent teaching the Commander. On Pragia, it’s the first time he voluntarily reached out for her. Quite clumsily, something that Jack tells him point blank. This very slow progression was difficult to adapt to because I had to be the blunt rational asshole but give a tiny amount of restrained emotion at the same time. Not too much and not too little. Just the right amount and of course adjust that amount after each interaction. In comparison the development of his relationship with the Commander was easier, more blunt and extreme. He was either a cold prick with ice in his veins or a snapping ass in denial.”

Jennifer looked at Rick who winked and made finger guns in her direction. She simply smiled and turned back her head towards the screen.

“The next question is… For you again, Ryan. Did you really kiss Aria T’Loak in the second episode?”
“No, I didn’t. Rick wasn’t sure I would end the scene alive so he proposed to do it himself just in case. Since I didn’t know if he was joking or not I let him do it. It’s actually him that you see on screen the whole scene.” replied Ryan chuckling.
“Alright! Now it’s… Christina’s turn. What was the hardest scene to film for you?”
“Oh, definitely the morning after movie night. It was so ridiculous and I kept thinking of the real Rick and Jane in this situation. It was very hard to not just explode in laughter. To imagine them fighting like an old married couple at each other’s throat to suddenly band together against Tali… We did sixteen retakes because I couldn’t contain my laughter.”
“This one is for Kretus. Which scene do you think was the most impactful for your character?”
“In what regards?”
“That’s… not specified.”
“Hmmm… I think… The moment when Garrus sees the Commander through his sniper rifle’s sight on Omega. He’s been cornered by three different merc groups with a lot of fire power and he’s just alone. I think that he expected to die there that day and to just take with him as many as he could but when he sees Shepard... I supposed he began to hope. Not only for his own survival but maybe for the galaxy too.”
“The next question is actually for everyone. Who’s your favorite crew member in the series?”
“Samara. She’s a strong and fierce warrior yet she’s always so graceful with a certain aura around her.” Christina said.
“Tali of course. She begins with this really shy personality but can bite hard. Her dynamic with Rick always pushing her around to get her out of her shell often results in her smacking his head and I find that quite amusing and most of all it pays off as she’s more confident in herself this season.” commented Ryan.
“It’s Garrus for me. He starts as a cop with a dejected attitude because he can’t make a difference despite his wishes and by following the Commander, learns to emancipate himself from his turian education to become a real badass trying to make Omega a better place.” Kretus answered.
“My favorite character is Wrex. He’s that kickass krogan that saw and lived everything, hanging around with babies that he can’t really stand at first for the most part until he does but refuses to admit it aloud until he finally does. His scars on his face are really cool too” admitted Lorelai.
“I think that it’s a very unpopular opinion but… For me it’s… Rick.” Orianna confessed.

“What did you do to my sister?!” Miranda asked as she stood up from her seat and looked threateningly at the man in question.
“Nothing.” Rick replied with a sigh.
“I don’t believe it!”
“Ask her yourself after the Q&A.”

“...He has so much depth and enjoys riling up Miranda for fun because she’s the total opposite of him. She’s always so serious, so dedicated that she forgets to live her life. Rick is like a bomb that turns her life upside down for the better, turning her away from Cerberus and hiring her. In fact he turns the life of many people upside down. What I like the most about him is his dedication and loyalty to his loved ones. When he tricks EDI’s surveillance, knocks out Mordin, then sends to the med-bay both jacob and Zaeed because they are in the way to Tali…  The manner in which he gets on the Quarian ship, without a care in the world of the consequences, as if he owned the place and the Admiralty to just pick her up and go back to the Normandy… I think Tali and the rest of the crew are really lucky to have him as a friend. A friend that would stop at nothing to help you no matter what.”

“She got that right! Though tell your sister to back off Miranda, he’s my best friend and I bite hard.” said the quarian making everyone laugh, even Miranda who knew that the threat was empty.

“Alright, last question for… Ryan. Wow you really have a lot of them.”
“I think it’s proof that Rick is a deep and controversial person that people get to know a bit more each episode and they like that. There is a lot of mystery around him, about his past. We know just enough to be interested but not too much to not want to know more.”
“Quite true. Anyways, here’s the last question: What scene did you like filming the most this season?”
“Ooooooh. Hmm… That’s a hard one. Huh. Three actually come to mind. The first is the last fight on Horizon against the Praetorian. It’s a new foe, very difficult to handle. Physically wise it was a bit of a challenge but the banter with the rest of the team made it so refreshing, especially with Miranda.”
“Yeah, I think we all had a good laugh when Rick answers ‘Collectors’ when Miranda asks him where he found that collector heavy weapon.” Illiana chuckled.
“Then there was the escape of the Collector’s ship. It was by far the most exhausting to do but so meaningful. Then finally… Yeah I think it’s actually my favorite scene. When Rick is hanging off the cliff after defeating that reaper hybrid. He’s holding the Commander up while his hand grabbing the edge of the cliff is slipping oh very slowly. When Shepard tries to make him let go to save himself… He proves once and for all that he does care about her more than he cares about himself. He did it multiple times before in both seasons but every time it was because he needed her to be alive. That scene however… He doesn’t need to save her. The Collector’s base was about to explode, they had won, he didn’t need her anymore and yet he made the conscious decision to pull her up at the price of his own life. I think… It's the first time we can say for sure that his action towards her was emotionally motivated. The commander had wormed himself into his heart deeper than previously or that we thought, so deep that she’s perhaps in the loved ones category just like Tali, Ashley or Liara are. It’s such a big and important moment.”

“That's true?” Jane asked.
“... Yes. Safeguard could have been completed by the council. I had made contingencies to help them with information in case of my death. I didn’t have to save you since the victory against the Reapers was assured because of it. I did think you would have been needed more than me so my choice was not entirely irrational but I picked you up because I couldn’t watch... I couldn’t fail someone I loved again.”

Jane gave him a loving peck on his cheek and leaned against his shoulders, watching the end of the Q&A, happy.

Afterwards the crew separated and went back to their home. The actors joined the students at the cafeteria and gave a private Q&A or simply mingled with the students in drama class. Orianna had gone up the Tower to meet with Miranda, Jennifer. She endured her big sister’s overprotective side as much as she could before Jennifer, who had a good laugh, came to her rescue. She would stay a few more days to spend some time with her niece/ daughter that she hasn’t seen even once in almost a year. She never regretted being an egg donor and was thinking about motherhood herself after the end of Mass Effect. She would have had to find the right man though. Her boyfriend of two years had broken up with her because of her insane working hours and she was now single. Jennifer had joked that she could always ask Rick to be a sperm donor and she had found the idea appealing with how perfect Sandra was in her eyes. To Orianna and Jennifer’s surprise, Miranda didn’t blow up at all. When asked why she gave a simple answer.

“Rick has good genes and is an excellent father. He has his flaws but you could hardly do better. He would support you and your child as much as he could. He’s a good choice if you don’t find Mr.right.”
“... Nah. I don’t buy it. You just want him to be the father because it would mean Orianna would live here with us and you won’t have to hound any boyfriend of hers.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” denied Miranda who had clearly been caught.

Orianna just laughed and they all went back home to get a good night of sleep. Since tomorrow was Sunday and that it was technically still Summer at Celeste she intended to spend time relaxing at the pool with her niece.

____________________________________________________________

Things didn’t go as expected as early in the morning Ashley’s water broke. Quickly, breakfast was forgotten and Rick carried his wife to the small hospital area. Everything had been planned and just as he arrived the doctor and nurses were already ready. This time there wasn’t just Jane and Kahlee waiting outside the birthing room but the whole family minus Ebony and Raven, after all hospitals were not a place for pets.  Ashley had spent six hours in there until finally Rick got out to give some news.

“How is she? How are they? Are they boys? Girls? Fifty, fifty?” Jane asked in succession and in one breath.
“She’s exhausted but healthy, so are the children and they are boys. Not identical twins though. One is a brunette, the other a blonde.”
“What’s their name?” inquired Kahlee.
“The eldest, the brunette, is Timothy Kaidan.”
“TK?” asked a puzzled Jane.
“You’re not calling my son TK.” he replied to his sister with a frown before giving his second son’s name. “The blonde is Andrew Jace.”
“AJ.”
“Jane, I’m going to hurt you.” he threatened his sister.
“I’m kidding! Sheesh, where did you lose your humor?”
“I’m too tired to be humorous.”
“Daddy! Can we see them?” Arianna asked from her father’s side as she was tugging on his pants.
“Not yet, they are getting a bath first and given a blanket but soon.”

The little redhead nodded and joined her brother and sister who were watched over by Orianna.

“So… how long before you knock her up again?” joked Jennifer.
“Oh, Ash and I are done with four. Her baby factory is permanently closed.”
“Who’s next then? Can’t see you not breeding a bitch for long.”
“Since you’re asking, you should know you’re on the top of my list.” he replied with a smirk.

Jennifer bumped his shoulder with hers with a murdering glare but amused smile on her face. Miranda looked horrified on the side but her wife completely missed it as she was focused on Rick.

“But honestly… I think I’m done for a while. JJ and Leeha are still small and now with the addition of Timothy and Andrew… I can’t have my attention and time more divided. It wouldn’t be fair to them until the oldest can walk and speak properly on their own.”

Seeing the nurses exciting the room with his sons, he went back inside to check on Ashley one last time then let the children see their newly born brothers. Out of the three of them Arianna seems the one delighted the most. Adam was simply curious and a bit worried for his mother while Sandra looked uninterested but the gleam in her eyes told otherwise. Besides Arianna the others had been too young to properly remember JJ’s birth and Leeha was technically not their sister, so they were intrigued with this new feeling they had.

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