[Book Four] Chapter 49: Healing

Chapter 49: Healing

They have been at their retreat for two weeks and already Rick was showing signs of improvement in some areas. When he took one look at the big house he turned to Jane and asked where the small wooden one was. After a twenty minute walk they arrived at their destination. At the sight, he simply took her hand in his and entered their new home for the seeable future. There was absolutely nothing modern or electrical to his surprise beyond the plumbery for clean water.

“I really wanted it to be a retreat for you, so you could turn your mind off and just work on something not tech related.”

That was her explanation and it earned her a heartfelt kiss on the cheek. Quickly he began working on the land around. Cutting the grass, leveling the ground to make it even and finally planting vegetables seeds that Jane had prepared just in case he took the fancy as she remembered the small garden he worked on on Eden Prime. It was hard work but he was distracted. He was creating something and in a way, life, instead of creating something to destroy and kill. It was on the fourth day that he asked Jane if she wanted to help. She readily agreed, bored with watching movies or reading books. That was a change that she embraced wholeheartedly as it was both something that she has never done before and spending time with Rick. By the end of the week, she had to admit, gardening was fulfilling in its own way. She exercised a bit, had her mind focused on something and overall enjoyed herself. That’s not to say that she liked it more than a round at the firing range but she felt more productive than just going to the gym. Since she didn’t see herself spending the rest of her days doing this every day she wondered if she could just alternate any other day. Regardless of any thoughts of the future, she also enjoyed learning about plants in general and their practical use behind simple cooking, like which could be used and how as medicine. It didn’t stop there. Rick brought her to the forest on walks and taught her many other things. In hindsight, he was giving her a very thorough and detailed course on survival. Course that she wished had before she did her own survival test for reaching N-7. She had ended up in a forest not much different from the one they were, if not colder and would have done a lot better with all this knowledge she was learning.

Among his lessons, there was cooking and how to make a irori, a traditional japanese hearth fire. It had necessitated a bit of remodeling on the cabin but it was so easy work. She had to admit it was fun and the addition of the hearth did wonders for the warmth of the place. The lesson she loved the most was everything regarding hunting. From the creation of a bow, which she was astonished to find could take between thirty to forty hours, to the creation of traps to tracking animals. Two days before she had her first kill, some kind of doe that didn’t look like a doe at all. Rick told her it was a Litpkkto, an herbivore usually living in a small group. The beast was big enough to last them for a week, maybe two.

Finally his last lesson was on how to skin the animal and worked on it to make clothes or a water pouch. How to use the bones to make utensils or tools. She wondered if he would agree to teach a class on survival and filed that thought away in a corner of her mind for later. One thing was for sure, he was getting better, proof was the small but genuine smile he gave her when she caught the Litpkkto.

Outside of the lessons he spoke very little beyond any questions Jane had for him. He seemed content to just be there and enjoy the silence. Thinking about it, she understood why that kind of life appealed to him. Lots of space, a calm environment, no one to annoy him.

‘How did he live six years on Omega above a nightclub?’

The thought puzzled her but she put it on his incredible adaptability to his environment. Another question that came to her was if this was what his married life was with Analysse or if that was in general. She won’t lie and say that she didn’t like it, quite the contrary.  Ever since they really got together for good in 88, they had never been by themselves. There was Arianna, the others… They have never been completely alone, just the two of them and part of her wished she had that experience earlier in their relationship.

‘Well, I have it now, so better than never.’

“Thank you.” Rick said as he got under the cover with her to snuggle.
“I would say ‘you’re welcome’ but the truth is… I think I needed it too. I needed the closeness with just you and me. We’ve been together forty years and I’m still learning. About life, about things, about you.”
“Would you really be okay? Living like that I mean.”
“In the long term? No. The isolation would kill me but spending a few weeks at a time like that? Yeah, I can see myself doing it. We’re still putting a firing range though.” she replied and he chuckled a bit catching her off guard.
“What?” he inquired looking at her face, most notably her big wide surprised eyes.
“You laughed!” she exclaimed with a smile.
“... I suppose I did.”

In a flash she was on him, her lips on his, pushing fiercely to have as much contact and convey her feelings as much as possible. When the kiss escalated to involve their tongues, she moved their body and ended up straddling him. Sadly for her he still had no reaction down there, but she didn’t care, she knew that it wouldn’t be long before they’d be one again.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Days and nights passed for the couple and Rick made slow but steady progress. Jane became good enough to hunt on her own with just her bow and arrows but kept her gun on her just in case. By the end of the sixth week, she already experienced her first harvest and found the taste of the diverse vegetables simply divine. Rick had told her it was because ‘the reward of hard work made everything better’ and she couldn’t disagree with that. They were currently sitting on the couch which faced one of the windows in the center of the living room. It was open slightly and they just watched the rain falling outside. There hasn’t been much rain during their stay, less than a week of it but she had to admit the sound of rain drops was soothing.

“You were right. The smell of the rain is really… Periencore, right?”
“Perichor.”
“Perichor.” she repeated in acknowledgement, burying her head in the crook of his neck while one of her hands gently caressed his stomach.

She didn’t mean anything by it, it was just her body acting on its own, answering a need to touch him, to be as close, as much in contact as possible. She didn’t even pay attention to what she was unconsciously doing, enjoying the moment too much, what her senses picked up and how they made her feel. She was so much in her own world and feeling  good that she didn’t notice, at first, Rick’s hand landing delicately on her ass and stroking it gently. Her mouth let out a few moans of contentment and only when he squeezed a buttcheek was she brought back to reality. Immediately she pulled back from his neck and looked at him with hope. The mischievous grin he gave her nearly made her jump him in want and need but instead she controlled herself and let her hand roaming his stomach explored slowly downward. When she felt how hard he was, she pleadingly looked at him. The second he gave her a small nod, she dropped to the couch on her knees and went right between his legs. She failed to rip his underwear and he had to lift himself up for her to remove it.

Once his cock was free, she took it reflexively in both her hands and looked at it with no small amount of lust and admiration. Leaning forward, she let his dick rest on her face and took a big breath through her nose. Memories of past time in this position assaulting her mind and making her wetter than she has ever been. Slowly she began to give the meat pole butterfly kisses, going down at first until she reached his balls to which she sucked a bit one after the other. When she had enough she stuck her tongue out and still taking her time licked inch by inch from his base to the top where she stopped and gave his tip a kiss with her puckered lips. Rick reached forward with his hand and took her cheek in it before going from the side and back of her head, letting her hair slip through his finger. Accepting the invitation, Jane looked at him dead in the eye and lowered her mouth on his cock. Letting out a moan as she tasted his flavor, swirling her tongue in an hungry manner they were both very familiar with. Closing her eyes to enjoy it more, bit by bit she lowered her head, taking more of him inside her mouth. After each inch she backed up to his crown only to go back down and go an inch further. When she reached a point where it would go to her throat, she grabbed his other hand and put it on her head. Understanding the message, he pulled her head down, helping her take more of this cock. He did it gently instead of roughly, making sure that they both enjoyed it as much as they could. That had the effect of Jane drooling sloppily all over him, something that he always loved.

‘If the blowjob is not messy then it’s not a good blowjob.’ he thought.

After a few minutes of exercise, Jane finally reached his base, her nose not just touching but burying against his pelvis. When she started to choke he firmly maintained her head in place for a few seconds before quickly removing himself from her mouth by backing her head up. Her face was a mess, drool and pre-cum all smeared around its lower part while the upper part was stained with tear marks. A thick string of saliva connected her mouth to his cock. Loudly, she sucked it and leaned forward again until she reached one more time his dick’s crown which made it lurch a bit. Letting it go with a loud pop she began removing her top, displaying her very erect nipple pierced by familiar heart shaped rings. Standing up she removed her shorts, completely flooded by her love juice and revealing her bare pussy to him. She wasted no time to straddle him and with one hand reach for the one thing she knew would fill her like nothing else ever could and make her complete. Raising her ass, she positioned herself and sank on it at an agonizing slow speed making them both moan in pleasure. Rick grabbed her tits, his mouth latching on one of her nipples, sucking it and biting it for all its worth.
Once Jane’s ass rested on his thighs, she stopped moving, feeling the completion she was feeling. Her walls stretched not too much nor too little, just perfectly around his cock. Her cervix being poked heavily against his tip felt heavenly and she knew that it would be long but her first orgasm hit her. That’s why she didn’t move a muscle for a while and pulled him away from her breasts, she didn’t want to come that soon. 

“Jane?”
“Just… let me… I haven’t felt like that in years.”

Understanding what she was trying to say he didn’t push for more and let her lead. Finally after a minute or two, she moved her pelvis forward then backward at a very slow pace at first. Every five loops, give or take, the speed increased a bit until she began rotating her hips instead wishing to scrap the different part of her that weren’t scratched properly with a simple back and forth movement. Once again it lasted a few minutes before she decided she needed more. Putting her hand on his shoulders she gripped them firmly and began bouncing up and down. This time she didn’t bother to enjoy a slow pace with increasing speed. No, her engine was beyond ready and she went full throttle immediately. She was so wet that Rick’s groin and the couch were a flooded mess, but none of them cared. The speed at which she brought up and down was maddening for Rick who after three years of inactivity, a very messy half finished blowjob was about to blow the biggest load of his life into the best pussy he has ever been into. The sound of her ass slapping against his thighs and the one of their coupling didn’t make things better. Unable to hold himself back anymore he grabbed her ass with his hands roughly and spread her ass cheek as much as he could to have a firm grasp. Not missing a beat he began fucking her from below, meeting her downward thrust with equal thrusts. Her moans led to screams of pleasure who culminated a few minutes later in a glass shattering screech as she came with force. She plowed herself down with everything she had while Rick did the same but up. The act was so violent that his cock breached her womb’s entrance forcefully making her scream even higher while he painted her baby room stark white with a torrent of burning cum. One spurt, two spurt, three spurt, it went on and on until she was completely full. At that stage, his seed began to overflow and run live an angry river along the walls of her cunt with difficulty as they refused to loosen the tight grip they had on his cock. Once his sperm reached the outside world it fell to his balls, then to the couch then to the ground.

Their orgasms subsiding Jane fell forward into her brother in a semi-conscious state while his breath was absolutely ragged. Getting their breathing back to normal and their mind entering the post nut clarity stage, Jane couldn’t help herself and laugh tiredly.

“What the hell?!” she spoke in a low voice. “Are you trying to knock me up again? How backed up were you? You never came this much.” she joked, making him laugh.
“Well, three years. Though that’s also because of the nanobots.”
“What do they have to do with you cumming like a fire hose? I swear even horses don’t cum that much.”
“Sandra wanted and I quote ‘ to be completely covered and drowning in your cum’. So I worked on the nanobots to increase the production of sperm. I guess I forgot about it.”
“Of course it’s Sandra’s fault. She’s the worst cum addict in the known universe.”
“Should I turn it off then?”
“Are you mad? This is awesome! Nu-huh, no way, it stays.”
“Alright. How are you feeling?”
“Honestly? Like my womb is ready to burst.”
“Not a good feeling?”
“At first it was but now that the high is gone, it’s kinda uncomfortable. I wouldn’t mind draining a bit of it.”
“Okay.”

Putting back his hands on her ass, he stood up and instinctively, Jane’s legs warped around him.

“What are you doing?”
“I’m not about to pull out here. With the amount I let out inside, we’ll spend the week cleaning the floor up.”

The redhead agreed and thought that Rick would bring her to the bathroom. Her expectation was dashed however when he walked in the opposite direction, towards the front door. Once outside he took a few steps barefooted on the ground and while getting wet from the rain he slowly removed himself from his sister’s cunt making both moan in pleasure. All along, cum kept running down their flesh to the ground and when he was completely out a deluge of it very loudly, fell out.

“Damn!” Jane said as she was looking down, impressed at what was happening. “And you’re still hard!” she exclaimed in happiness and disbelief.
“Nanobots.”
“Fuck, I love you and your big brain.” she said, kissing him lovingly.
“Ever had sex in a forest?”
“Can’t say I have. How is it?”
“Don’t know, that’s why I’m asking.”
“Give me a minute or two to feel my legs again, then another to clean you up and you can bend be over that tree and fuck my ass.” she said with a mischievous smile.

Had it not been for the nanobots, both would have gotten sick with the amount of time they spent fucking under the rain.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

“YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH!”

With a final hoarse cry of ecstasy, Jane advertised her climax. With a loud grunt Rick pulled out from his sister and looked with a satisfied smile the sorry state he had left her. Her asshole and pussy gaping almost grossly and letting out a river of cum fall to their bed. In a loud thud he let himself fall face first to her side. After a very short moment he turned his head to the side to look at his most beloved redhead. He couldn’t help it and felt even more pleased with himself. His sister was stuck in a very awkward position, with her head buried into the mattress; looking his way, her back arched almost painfully and her ass raised as high as she could. She had wanted him to mount her and he obliged her. Looking at her face, he reach with his hand a strand of her red hair to put it back behind her ear, revealing a very well fucked Jane. Proof was her crossed eyes, her open mouth and her tongue lolling about. It was a look he would never get tired of.

Putting his hand on her cheek he began caressing it slowly, caringly and lovingly with his thumb. It took a while but the gentle caress brought her back to the world of the living, and after a few moments of recognition, smile gleefully at him.

“Hey.” he said, sporting a smile too. He got the same greeting back from her but in a very hoarse and broken voice that made her wince. “Don’t speak, let the nanobots fix it.” he added and she simply nodded in understanding. “I should probably tuned mine down. What’s the point of all this sex marathon if you don’t have a voice afterwards? Though I won’t lie, knowing that I pleasure you so much that you lost your voice is damn satisfying for my ego.” he joked and Jane tried to move to hit him but was too knackered to move a muscle. Seeing her dilemma, he raised himself and pulled her legs back, prompting her to slowly lower her ass until she laid flat on her stomach and breasts, before taking back his place beside her.
“Thank you.” he heard her whisper in a sleepy voice.
“Anything for you.” he replied as he kissed her nose and let one of his hands explore her back in a loving and intimate gesture.

The hours of rough sex, and the mind blowing orgasms has finally taken his toll on Jane. With his soothing caress she fell asleep quickly. Physically tired but mentally fine, he got out of bed and covered her with the sheet. He didn’t bother to dress up, they were after all the only people around and it wasn’t like he cared if someone saw him naked in the first place. In the corner of the room he saw the acoustic guitar that James had offered him years ago and that Jane had brought thinking it would help him. It wasn’t his kind of instrument too limited unlike the piano and not as fulfilling as a drum set, Rick admitted nonetheless that it was a very versatile instrument, easy to learn and to move around. The sight of the gift sparked in him a musical inspiration that he had not known in years; too busy with work, with his family, with his survival. With so many things. Now he was free however. Picking up the instrument he put it by his side on the couch as he sat down.

It was hours later that Jane roused from her sleep thanks to the faint sound of a guitar playing. While she felt quite sore all over, she had rested enough to move around. Something that she didn’t forbid herself to do. As quietly as she could she walked slowly behind him, listening to the soft and catchy tune her brother was playing but also humming. Seeing him so focused but peaceful at the same time, renewed her hopes that he was really getting better and that she was getting the man she loved back bit by bit. 

“Sleep well?” he asked as the song ended and turned around to look at her with a smile on his lips and more importantly some life in his eyes.
“Yes. That was nice, what song is that?” she replied as she went around the couch and sat beside him.
“One of the new compositions I made.” answered Rick as he put the guitar away and hugged her from the side with one arm.
“Compositions, plural?”
“Hmhm”
“Can I hear it again? I only heard the end.”
“Sure. Want to sing the lyrics?” he replied, taking back the guitar.
“Why don’t you?”
“Last time I sang, you, Ashley and Tali forbid me to ever sing again.”

He had a sheepish and embarrassed smile when he said that, shocking Jane a bit. Now that she thought about it, she never heard her brother sing during all those years. In fact the one and only time she heard him was when they were fighting the Thorian on Ferum. She mentally chuckled at the memory and how bad his singing voice was. She knew that if she asked he would do it for her but she didn’t want her ears to bleed so went along with his request.

“Alright. What’s the lyrics and the rhythm?”

Picking a datapad from the free side of the couch, he gave it to her and hilarious (in her opinion) hummed the tune. After singing the lyrics in her mind, she signaled him she was ready and he began to play. When he signaled her she began singing in a beautiful and powerful singing voice neither knew she had.

“My ancestors planted some sequoias by a road

I’ve driven down that road since I was born
Oh never have you ever seen so many perfect evergreens

But I would chop them all down just for you

I have walked a million miles in a hundred pairs of shoes
In search of some universal truth
Well a deity just came to me and handed a scroll to read
And I will gladly pass it on to you.

Anything for you
All of this is true
But the best story that I could ever tell
Is the one where I am growing old with you.

…

I’ve gotten drunk and shot the breeze with kings of far off lands
They showed me wealth as far as I could see
But their kingdoms seemed all shrively and they cried with jealousy
When I leaned in and told them about you.

I’d give up anything
Anything for you
I’d give it all
All of this is true
But the best story that I could ever tell
Is the one where I’m growing old with you.
All I’ve ever wanted see, was to tell you honestly
I’d do anything for you
I’d do absolutely anything for you.”

Reading the words was one thing and so was singing in her head, but hearing her own voice say those words was way more powerful and Jane found herself crying tears of joy as she sang and sang.

“Are you…?” Rick asked, worried as the song ended but couldn’t finish his question as Jane simply grabbed his head and pulled him down for a heartfelt kiss.

“I am, stupid. How could I not be? How could I not be alright when you wrote a song for me?”
“Not the first...” he replied and alluded to the two pieces he made during the Reaper War.
“It’s not the same thing! This… This is personal. This is your love for me in words and notes. And I love it.”
“Really?”
“Of course, really!”
“I didn’t… I mean. It’s just… what I’ll do. Nothing special, I’ve been doing it for the past forty years.”
“John, sometimes words are louder than actions.”
“I know! It’s… weird, I mean… There isn’t any feeling involved.”
“There is! More than you know. More than you can imagine.” she replied and pulled him down again for another kiss.
“Honestly, I'm of the opinion that the only good thing about it was your voice. I didn’t know that you could sing so well.”
“I didn’t know either. I never really sang before. Well, besides military songs during boot camp.”
“You should do it more, you’re really good.”
“Really?!” she asked in surprise and felt quite happy with herself with the nod she got in return. “What’s the name of the song by the way?”
“Anything for you.”
“That’s quite simple, I like it. Can we do another?”
“Sure. There are three mores on the pad.” he indicated with his chin.

Looking down, Jane swiped her finger on the screen of the datapad and reached the second song. Its title made her narrowed her eyes and look accusatory at her brother.

“What?”
“Love me Dead ?”

The glare he got made him gulp.

_____________________________________________________________________________________

The tenth week of their retreat had just begun. It was early in the morning; the sun was barely rising and yet both of them were already awake. The results of an awful night plagued with nightmares for Rick. It was while Jane was absentmindedly ruffling gently and comfortingly with her hand Rick’s hair as he laid his head on her stomach that she finally heard what she knew had been coming for a while.

“I don’t want to go back. I can’t go back, Jane. I can’t fight anymore.”

It was said in barely above whisper volume but she didn’t miss it. She had been expecting that even before they left after giving Kelly Chambers a quick call for advice on how to handle his recovery.

“Jane… I’m not going to mince words with you but it’s highly likely that Rick would not be able to fight anymore. Or rather… He wouldn’t be able to go back onto the field again.”
“Because he had… too much?”
“Yes. Even if and it’s a big if here, even if he could, he shouldn’t. The chances of him breaking down in the middle of a fight are very high. He has… too much trauma. So much that he will have a meltdown; either violently enter into a frenzy state of mind, not unlike how he did when you got him back, quickly give up the fight and let himself get killed or have the mother of all panic attack and be an easy target.”
“That’s not good.”
“No it’s not. He held it for three years because he had no choice but now that the fighting is over, going back to it is impossible. He has the choice this time, to go back to hell or not. The second time is always way more difficult than the second because we know what’s waiting for us. I won’t be surprised if he decides to stay wherever you’re going.”
“What should I do then? I need to bring him home.”
“Accept it. Perhaps nudge him to a support role? He is a thinker before being a warrior, despite how good and deadly he is at fighting.”

“You don’t have to fight anymore. No one will begrudge you if you don’t.” she answered in a soft and understanding voice.
“...”
“But you do need to go home.”
“Home is where the heart is. You’re my home, Jane.”
“And you are mine, but I have to go back.”
“... Not if I keep you here.”
“You shouldn’t. Many people are counting on me.”
“I don’t care about other people!” he shouted in anger.

Grabbing his head, she gently moved it, so his face would face hers.

“What about our family? What about the children? Will you let them on their own? Supported and ordered around by idiots in charge?”
“...”
“You don’t have to pick up a gun and go back to the field, but you could still help plenty with your mind alone. Make sure they’re as safe as possible. Be Hackett right hand man or something like that. See what others don’t and share your findings. Make sure that it’s those bastards dying instead of us.”
“... I can’t do it, not without you.” he answered the last part in a whisper.
“I’m sure I can arrange something with Hackett.”

He looked at her for a moment, observing her, analyzing her then when it seemed he was done, shifted his body to find himself laying on Jane, his hands grabbing roughly her melon size breasts and resting his head in their valley. The sound he made was a mix of a tired sigh and a moan of satisfaction.

“There are plenty of people ready to support you, John. You just have to let them help you.”
“... It’s embarrassing.”
“I know you’re not used to it. Not for things like this. It is for the best though.”
“I don’t… I don’t want to lose any more respect from the kids…”
“I don’t think you realize how much they do respect you and how much they will do so more than ever for doing it. The ordeal you went through? They know that none of them would have been able to do the same. Not our Ari despite how smart she is. She has our fire sure but not the endurance or the will. Sandra wouldn’t either despite how pragmatic and focused she is. In fact she broke down many times, perhaps as much as Leeha did during your years away. Were it not for Ari and Sara, she wouldn’t be still in charge today and instead be a worse crying mess than Leeha. And those two took after you the most. Heck, they’re probably thinking that no one else would have been able to but you.”
“...”
“Will you let them on their own?”
“They don’t need me anymore.”
“Aezzia aside, who missed you like crazy. They all do. Why do you think Ari and Sara are still living on the Cass when they could work from home on Ryder? Why do you think Sandra parted with her mothers to follow you?”
“Because…”
“Because she couldn’t live her life without you anymore. She still can’t. The boys? Adam is panicking because his daughters will soon enter their teenage years and he’s terrified and needs your advice. JJ, despite being settled for years now, still needs your words of comfort and encouragement from time to time. The twins can’t ask anyone but you how to deal with so many women in their lives.”
“...Matthew?” he asked after she stopped there.
“Matthew is mine. A mama’s boy through and through, he doesn’t need you since he has me.” she replied in an exaggerated haughty manner to goad him.
“Gosh, he’s going to get himself killed if he follows in your footsteps.”
“Nu-huh.”
“Hu-huh.”
“Nu-huh. Anyway…” she deflected as she knew how the conversation would go if they continued. “Do I have to talk about Leeha? I don’t know how that girl managed to even breathe for three years without you in her life. A Miracle, that’s what I call it. Siohban’s art had taken a turn to the morbid and macabre without you around. Analysse is on her way to become the second coming of Jen the psychotic biotic. Only Siobhan could ever calm her down and barely.”
“...”
“You see? They need you. Do I have to speak about their mothers? Our own?”

He didn’t answer and simply shook his head sideways which in his position looked more like he was motorboating Jane than anything.

“You can do this, John. For a little while at least.” she said encouragingly.
“...I don’t have the fire anymore, Jane.” he persisted.
“Are you telling me that you don’t channel any emotion that you don’t like into anger and rage anymore?”
“...”
“I know you. The fire it’s still there, we just need to blow on the embers to fan it.”
“Good luck with that.”
“... I guess the girls and I will have to find another stud then.”

Since comforting and coddling didn’t work, Jane went for the jugular instead. His pride as a lover but most of all his possessiveness. It worked.

“WHAT?!” he shouted, raising his head from his second favorite pillows.
“You heard me. You think Ashley is going to sit around if you’re not there to pound her pussy to mesh? Liara? They may enjoy each other but no girl on girl action replaced a big, fat, hot, veiny dick. Sure, Between Tali and Ariana they may come up with a special dildo but…” she knew she had him with that but needed to push more.
“Fuck no!”
“Yeah, exactly. No fuck anymore. And I’m not even talking about poor Sand..”
“I’ll fucking have whatever dude even look at my pumpkin rape do death and his whole family no matter how distant by an elephant! No fucking male is touching a daughter of mine!” he roared in rage.
“I doubt that since you’re not going back.”

And with this final sentence the fire in her brother was raging like never before.

_________________________________________________________

“Commander! Good to see you back.”
“Likewise, sir. My apologies for taking so long.” Jane replied as she entered the Command Room of the Cassiopeia to report to Hackett.
“Nonsense. To be honest, I thought  you’d take more time. Ten weeks is way less than what I was expecting. I gather everything is in order?”
“Yes, more or less.” she replied and continued seeing he wanted a more detailed explanation. “He’s never going to be the man that he was before his disappearance. It was to be expected, after all I wasn’t either and neither was he his first time. However he has his mind straightened up and didn’t come up with any new ideas of doom. He’s even on his way to scrap those projects and probably start more reasonable ones..”
“Glad to hear that.”
“Did we miss anything?”
“Three Mass Relays have been finished. We now have instant travel to the Athena, the Aphrodite and the Hephaestus cluster. We intend to use the Athena cluster to be the central hub of the whole Mass Relay network and be the only one with direct access to this cluster.”
“Limiting access to the front door to the Milky Way. That makes sense.”
“Yes. Your niece had even helped with their construction and the defense of their location.” he said but this time less enthusiastically.
“Sandra? How so?”
“Yes, her. She said we should add an IFF to the Mass Relay and sell to the council automatic defenses that would deter any unauthorized ship using them.”
“Like the Collector did with the Relay Omega-4? Smart.”
“Smart, yes.”
“That must have not come cheap.”
“No, it wasn’t. But those defenses are so above what’s currently available on the market that the council had little choice but to make the deal. Not when the security of the Milky Way is at stake. I’m just glad the Alliance is not the only one paying for it for once.”
“I swear I could hear you say that you miss making business deals with Rick, sir.” she said with a grin.
“You have no idea. Rick is a mix between a wolf in sheep’s clothing and a snake. He knows how to be nice and generous sometimes. Your niece… She’s a vampire that won’t stop sucking your blood until there is not a single drop of it left in you. Not an ounce of mercy.” Hackett explained with a gruff tone.
“That’s the main difference between her and her father. He’s driven by knowledge and a bit for prestige but has otherwise no ambition. Sandra on the other hand is driven by success and prestige and is very ambitious.”
“I have noticed. Anyway, the Ares cluster is a no go for now. We lost two more scouting ships to the Ketts, so we’re leaving it alone for now. We're consolidating our outposts in other clusters instead. Finally the Hestia cluster where you found Rick and the temple is currently a battlefield. Ketts presence is not as heavy as the Ares cluster but not insignificant. Admiral Williams and the Andromeda fleet has been tasked with engaging and neutralizing every and any enemy opposition. Afterwards, she’s to secure the cluster until further notice.”
“She won’t be home any time soon, then.”
“I’m afraid not.”
“My new orders?”
“For now, none beyond working on Wald. If there is a situation requiring your talents, I’ll let you know.”

Being dismissed, Jane left the Command Room and went back to the family quarters.

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