Mass Defect
An Mass Effect FanFic by SILVER THE SWORD MASTER
C-C-COPYRIGHT W-W-W-WARNING: Mass Effect and all it entails is Bioware and EA Games. Any other characters from series that may or may not be used are their creators. A hint: YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS ALREADY.
RATING WARNING! (x2 COMBO!): This Fan Fiction is rated M FOR MATURE. It'll deal with graphic violence, high drama, coarse language, sexual themes, drugs and alcohol, and other such things that are not meant for kids!
F-F-FINAL WARNING! (x3 COMBO!): READ THE PROLOGUE FIRST. Seriously.
N-N-NEW NOTE! (x4 COMBO!): Don't mind me, just fixing things here and there. Don't worry about it too much if you're a new reader.
AUTHOR NOTES (C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!): Wow, two reviews already? I'm… well, frankly I'm a bit shocked. I figured this was gonna be up a week, maybe two, before anyone even noticed it.
Nightwing (Can I call you Nightwing?)- I'm not a huge fan of SI's myself, and I'm trying to keep myself out of it as best as I can. Is that going to happen? No. (Write who you know!) But I'll try to keep it out of 'me' and more on The Boy. Thank you for my first review. –bows-
Rammer- Huh, dunno where you would get that from, but I'll keep my eyes open. And if you already want more, then it means the hook is –just- long enough. Don't want to rip up the fish, just want to get it on the hook, yeah?
EDIT IN: Wow! Five reviews already?! I wish I had more space to put in more thanks for the support and enthusiasm! But I don't want this part to get –too- long… so it's time to get this show on the road!
Right, stop that. It's silly.
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\\CHAPTER 1: Waking Up
*THUPTHUD*, *THUPTHUD*
You know the feeling.
Waking up for the first time after a particularly long nap, your ears ringing with the sound of your own blood pumping through your body, your eyes are still closed, but the lights are shining through your eyelids.
"I don't want to get up for class…"
The thought came unburdened to his mind, echoing emptily as if there wasn't any other thoughts in there for a while as he softly tries to move, straining a bit to do something as simple as turn his head as he lets out a little groan at remembering what happened, an unidentified ache pounding on his side as he starts to remember. "Oh yeah… I was shot…"
This thought, as it sluggishly made it's way through his mind, was perhaps the cause of his suddenly movement, twitching as he tried to move, to open his eyes, do... well, just about anything. "I'm dead! I'm dead I'm dead I'm dead I'm deaaaaad!" The thought ran through his mind in the back of his head, panicking though the rest of his mind seemed to be treating it as 'oh, yeah, that happened.'
Now, this was a strange occurrence. How many people's first though upon waking up is, 'Oh yes, I was shot the other day', thought in the same way most people think, 'Hmmm, I think I had toast for breakfast the other day…'
"Dr. Michel, I think he's waking up. I can see his fingers twitching lightly."
His head echoed with the voice. It was dark, kind of… tinny, as if it was being filtered through his ears as he lets out another light groan, trying to get his unresponsive muscles to move.
A smoother, female voice filters through his slowly restarting mind. "He's alive then? Thank goodness. He lost so much blood. I didn't think anyone actually used old fashioned weaponry anymore, but there it is… Garrus, please apply a small rub of medigel to his chest, would you? The sedative needs to flush from his system, and it looks like he's starting to panic."
"Of course doctor."
The boy wonders why the voice keeps on being distorted as he tries to figure out what's going on, his head pounding now as two fingers applied a cool, then warm substance to his skin, leaving it warm to the touch.
Soon, the ache holding his body down softly starts to clear, his eye lids still feeling heavy as the warmth from the medigel starts to spread across his whole body.
Now, as I'm sure you've gathered by now, three things are about to happen.
First, the boy is going to open his eyes.
Second, the boy is going to take stock of his surroundings.
Third, Hilarity will ensue.
Hmm? Oh! Hi again! Yeah, sorry, I was in the bathroom and… wait, what? Back to the story? Well, alright, if you insist. But seriously, Hilarity. Just wait.
"Ow…" He groans as he starts to sit up, one hand reaching to his head before his other hand goes to his side, wincing at a pain that he thinks should be there… but isn't?! Now shit was getting -real-. "What in the world…?" He says, his eyes snapping open in surprise as he looks down to his bare torso, looking surprised at the smooth, perfect skin. "No scar…?"
"It wasn't a massive wound, though one I don't think has been seen on the Citadel before… In fact, this is the first time I've encountered a bullet wound like this, especially where the projectile actually stayed in the body." The voice was actually rather soothing, he thought as he softly shook his head from side to side, trying to clear it.
"Take it easy, you don't want to aggravate your body too much, or you'll relapse into shock." The strong, tinny voice that had to be a guy echoed back again as he looks around, and immediately recoils with a yelp of shock and surprise.
"What? What is it?" The creature with the tinny voice asks, looking at him with a… glint of worry in his eye? Maybe? The boy looks at the creature with shock, adrenalin surging through his veins and trying to get him to run, the sedatives in his body the only thing keeping him from bolting as he looks at the creature with eyes wide open.
"Doc, you sure he's ok? He's acting like he's never seen a Turian before." The creature says, looking to what the boy realized was a human woman wearing a… really weird uniform, if she really was human. "He's in a state of shock Garrus. He got shot, and not too long ago. A sudden shock as seeing a Turain, especially if he's from an outer colony or Earth, that don't see too many Turains pass through, could cause him to have momentary relapses."
"Alright. I'll let you deal with him. Once he's calmed down, call me back in, I'll need to question him before he goes." The… Turain, said as he walked out of the door, the boy's eyes locked on the retreating figure the whole time, looking to the doctor in confusion.
"Don't worry, that's just Garrus. He's a C-SEC officer, one of the best." The doctor says, smiling at him as she softly takes his wrist, checking his pulse the old fashion way. "Take calm, deep breaths. He's not going to hurt you. Can you tell me your name?"
"WHAT IS HE?!" The boy cries out, looking around in shock. "For that matter, where am I? This doesn't look like any doctor's office I've ever seen…" He says, his voice border lining on true panic as he looks wildly around the room. The smooth, shiny machinery and glowing holographic panels boggled the mind, and he was sure that he was going insane as the doctor frowned and tapped her bracelet, holding it up to him as an orange, glowing semi-transparent sleeve formed around it, showing all sorts of numbers and statistics on it.
"Hmmm, you're running a minor fever, not even getting into your other injuries, so that would account for the shock. Take a deep breath, try to calm down. You're on The Citadel, in the Serpentine Nebula, in the Wards below the Presidium, just next to C-SEC's main branch. I'm Doctor Chloe Michel, I run the Clinic here." Dr. Michel says, smiling at the boy as she examines what he's wearing in an attempt to figure out what's going on and why he's panicking.
The boy is in good health, maybe not major athletic health, but someone who works out once in a while, a little wiry, and possibly a bit underfed. He stands about five-eleven, give or take a few centimeters, and his muscle is developed and toned under the bandages that she had wrapped for his bruised ribs. Unusually, he appeared to be wearing baggy black jeans, a pair from the Lee clothing company on Earth, but they didn't make jeans anymore. At least, not with the materials that his jeans were made with… she ponders that point as her eyes slide over to his blood soaked shirts. A white and black pattered button-up that he was wearing opened, with a black-tee shirt underneath. As with the jeans, they were human-made clothing, but far out of period, apparently from the late 20th century or the early 21st century. The materials that were used to make them were so far out of date it was almost comical, as if someone made reproduction pieces for a museum. Oddly, it appeared that someone had ripped his shoes off of his feet, as he was wearing only a pair of soft cotton socks that were mostly pulled off.
The look of light panic washes over the boy's face as he takes a sharp intake of breath. "W-where… did you say I was, again? Are you sure… this… isn't Earth? I've never even heard of this Citadel before!" He says, looking around. "C-come on, this is just a prank show, right? RIGHT?"
Now, as I am sure you have surmised, the boy had just violated one of the most important rules of adventuring. And I don't mean knowing where your towel and your frying-pan are. No, he violated a much more grievous rule. 'Don't Panic'.
It seems to be such a simple command, at first glance. Just keep on your toes, keep your eyes open, your head up, take a calm breath and stride into the fire with your head held high and your wits about you.
But, such a rule doesn't quite apply when you're in shock, so I suppose we can forgive the boy for his panic… though Dr. Michel is about to put some sense into him… or perhaps another shock.
"Earth? No, we're several million light-years away from Earth…" She says, looking a bit confused as she looks at him.
"… Million light-years?" The boy repeats, looking very lost now as the panic gives away to shock again, causing him to lie back down.
"Yes, of course. By Mass Relay." Dr. Michel isn't stupid. Far from it. But at the moment, she's grasping pretty tightly to the idiot ball, no?
"D… doc? W… what year… what year is it?" The boy asks as he turns to look at Dr. Michel, his voice barely a strained whisper as looks at the woman who patched him up with the glowing orange holographic display on her arm.
"2183 Common Era." Dr. Michel replies. "Or, rather, just twenty-one… eighty… are you alright?" She says, looking at the boy as he closes his eyes, shaking his head a bit, trembling almost.
"No… nononononono NO! That CAN'T be right! That isn't physically POSSIBLE." The boy yells out, slamming his fists down against the table. "My name is Eric Midore, and there is no FUCKING way in hell that I'm in 2183!"
The boy jolts up, looking at Dr. Michel with wild eyes. "I was born somewhere in 1990! I just turned sixteen, it was 2000 last I checked! Are you trying to tell me that I'm suddenly a hundred and nighty nine years old or… some… thing….?"
It was at this point that the boy, the newly name-stated Eric Midore, collapsed, eyes wide in surprise at the needle in his neck. "Mr. Midore, you need to calm down!" Dr. Michel says, looking a bit panicked. "You've been in a terrible accident, and you're panicking, and possibly hallucinating. Take deep breaths. The sedative will help you relax and put you into dreamless sleep for about thirty minutes…"
And the world fell away as the world vanished into blackness once again for Eric Midore.
Fading into unconsciousness is quite the pleasant thing, really. It's simple, you just close your eyes, let your mind go blank, and let go. Perfect rest, no thoughts, no worries, and no problems, just some time for your body to rest and recover.
Unfortunately for Mr. Midore, Eric, as we'll call him, he wasn't going to have such a peaceful experience. His body would rest, but he had more important things to do.
Like a meeting with a Goddess.
"Hello Eric."
Eric whirled, looking around slightly panicked at the cloudy, misty gray fog that surrounded him, his mind running in many directions at once. "Hello?" he calls out, his voice echoing around through the fog.
"Do not be alarmed."
Eric snorts, trying to put up a brave front, as officially his day has been shot to hell. In more ways in one, considering that 183 years ago he had been lying in a back ally with a hole in his gut and multiple wounds that seemed to have been healed by magic. "Alarmed?! ALARMED? Lady, I don't know who you are, but I'm a little bit more then ALARMED right now!" Eric says, the panic he's feeling quite evident in his voice as he looks around for the person talking to him as the fog starts to swirl around him, softly pulling towards a single singularity.
"You are not going to come to harm, Eric. Peace, and calm, and I will speak to you of what you are about to experience."
Eric frowns at these words, puzzling over the meaning of them as the fog starts to clear, all of it pulling in on that single point.
Now, Gods and Goddesses are quite fickle. They have a tendency to mess with the lives of mortals, using them as the universes chew toys. But what few realize is that these Goddesses are quite aware of their own nature, and try to use it to their advantage as much as possible. For example, a Goddess of strife and chaos will use her own nature of chaos to her advantage, never planning, always acting on instinct, as the most chaotic thing that could happen, would.
As the fog thickens and forms into a woman, Eric can only look on in awe as he views a Goddess for the first time in his mortal life, causing quite the shock. It's about this time that he is starting to wish that he had that blasted towel and frying pan with him, considering all the crazy things he was seeing today.
But alas, you can't bring such items with you during time travel. Nor into your mind unless you know how. So Eric is left standing there, his jaw hanging as he watches the fog smooth out to skin, hair, eyes, and a long, flowing dress of light silver, emblazoned with gold and a crest of a single, golden triangle. The Goddess is beauty beyond words, her eyes, ever shifting, seemingly holding the wisdom of entire worlds and civilizations.
A soft, light smile graces her lips as she looks at Eric. "I am Nayru… the Goddess of Wisdom."
Now, Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, is quite well known for her blessings of science, wizardry, and of course, bringing order to nature. What isn't quite so well-known is that this order-bringing brought order to Time itself, creating the laws of time. As such, she has a secondary title. The Goddess of Time.
Many heroes have been assisted through her wisdom and grace, a series of legacy warriors deemed with the title, 'Hero of Time'. But those heroes are of another world, another relm, very unlike this one, and while Eric knows of them, aren't really relevant to this story.
"Eric, you have been brought here by me, by your dying wish." Nayru says, the soft smile still on her face as she observes the young man in front of her. He's not panicking, as much, but he still looks rather skeptical.
"My dying… wish… But wait, you mean… you brought me into the future?" Eric asks, his eye locking onto hers in surprise and awe.
"I did. That was your wish, 'To live, to survive in the future.'" Nayru says, chuckling softly. "As the Goddess of Wisdom and Time, I locked your body and preserved it to arrive exactly where you did." Nayru explains, smiling the entire time.
"'Locked' my body?" Eric says, frowning a bit now, confused.
"Yes, brought it in between time and physical space. There, there is no time, no motion, no life, and no death. You were locked there, forever undying or living, no thought… nothing. It was this state that allowed you to come here… now." Nayru says softly.
"That's-"
"Impossible? And yet, here we are, and here you are." Nayru cuts Eric off.
"… OK, fine. So I believe you that I'm in the future, let's assume." Eric groans, softly grinding his teeth as he looks at Nayru, "So what the fuck does that mean for me? What the hell am I supposed to do from here?"
"You live." Nayru says. "Accept the goodwill of the Doctor and the Turian. 'Accept' that you are a man with no memories but a few 'planted' memories of a world long gone. They'll take it from there."
Eric glares at the Goddess half-heartedly as he deadpans, "Oh yeah, I'm am SO sure that'll work, brilliant ide... wait a minute, you planted my name in my head!" He accuses.
Nayru smirks at him, completely ignoring his accusation. "Of course it'll work. I'm the Goddess of Wisdom, remember? Here."
Nayru steps closer, and softly tugs Eric's hand forwards. He winces in pain as a bright flash of light blinds him a moment, and a sight burning feeling digs into his right hand. "OW!" He cries out in surprise as Nayru lets his hand go and steps back, leaving him to examine it.
The mark of a Goddess is often called simply 'The blessing'. Depending on the Goddess (or God, I suppose, though God's don't give The Blessing as often and theirs is often bigger than just a marking…) the mark can be anything from a birthmark, an intricate tattoo, maybe a particular hair color or eye color.
This one is quite well known. A single triangle, displaced to the lower-right part of Eric's right hand, which looks like it would be part of two others. "This is the blessing of wisdom. Normally, it would have two counterparts. But that particular destiny isn't involved in this world…" Nayru giggles. "With my blessing, you'll learn and pick up skills at an incredible pace. Be warned, knowing what to do, and actually being able to do it are two different things, Eric."
Eric frowns softly, and then blinks at the sudden tugging on his pocket as his sweet potato ocarina is suddenly pulled from his pocket. "Hey!"
Nayru smiles as she softly takes the ocarina. "You aren't going to need this. Consider it fair trade, a gift for another."
Suddenly, the world starts to shift around Eric as he attempts to move closer to Nayru. "What!?"
"You are awaking. Good luck, Eric Midore. You have much to learn, and a whole new life to live ahead of you… "
The world flashed brightly, and Nayru vanishes as Eric Midore awakens to face his new life.