Twin Fates

by Tobias5

Fate played as much a role in Shepard's defeat of the Reapers as did his skill. What if fate had different plans? Did you know that the Shepard on Mindoir was born as a twin? What if both had survived the raid? How would the Reapers have dealt with TWO great heroes instead of one? It's time to find out just how much better and worse things get with TWO Shepards fighting a war.

25. Chapter 24

Twin Fates

By Belle and Tobias

Automatic Disclaimer: We do not own the rights to the Mass Effect or any other referenced copy righted material.

Belle's Note: So, this chapter is one that I desperately wanted to write because this part of ME2 was one that grabbed me by the heart and pulled it out. I felt there was a lot of fun to be had with this one so I hope you enjoy it.

Toby's Note: Belle had a great idea with this chapter that I loved and I honestly never thought of it. See if you can pick out the scene, hint it's near the end.

Chapter 24: My Brother's Keeper

Earth Date: April 7th, 2186 CE

Location: Normandy SR-2, Mid-Transit

The sound that greeted Jane as she entered her brother's room was of a familiar voice coldly reading her brother the riot act.

"-for as long as the stars exist you will never again allow yourself to be put in such a situation John. This is the second time I've seen you get shot down and you will not leave me again." Liara said coldly. Jane felt herself smirk as she watched her brother stand there and face his girlfriend on the terminal. She hadn't seen such a look on his face since they were teenagers and their mother had chastised him for going skinny dipping with Elizabeth. Though she remembered their father only being upset they had gotten caught.

"I promise to try and not end up like that." John allowed. Liara glared at him and he winced.

"I suppose that will have to do," Liara said with a sniff. "Though next leave you get you will be here with me. I intend to make you work very, very hard to making up for scaring me to death, again."

"Uh how?" John asked with trepidation in his voice and Jane smirked evilly thinking John deserved whatever punishment Liara came up with.

"Well I have been studying this human text called the Kama Sutra. You will help me put it into context." Liara said smugly.

John blinked and then smirked.

Jane blinked and then gagged.

"Okay I'm interrupting," Jane said and John jumped.

"Jane you should have knocked!" John snapped at his sibling.

"Now where's the fun in that? Besides you didn't lock the door," Jane retorted.

"I do believe I now have to return to work," Liara said, "I shall call later." Liara disconnected the call and John sighed before glaring at his sister.

"How you feeling?" Jane asked with a smirk.

"Better. I feel a bit stiff in spots and the side of my face is tight but Miranda said that will pass, just like the ache did from when I woke up," John said. He looked at her before pointing at his terminal. The message from the Illusive Man was there about a out of control project and he had been reading it when Liara had called.

"So, we're I take it we're not going to get the IFF just yet?" Jane asked and John nodded. "Joker, we need to make a detour." She called over the comms.

"Why am I not surprised?" Joker said sarcastically.

"Hmmm, highly volatile technology," Jane muttered as she read the message again. "We should prep to bring Tali and Garrus with us. I'll leave Blasto behind."

"Sounds good," John said as he sent Joker the new coordinates. "I don't like the name Overlord for the project."

"Think you'll be up and running by then?" Jane asked and John gave her a look. "You're just jealous I've got all my original parts."

"Oh, so my death defying adventure is already a joke to you?" John asked and Jane shrugged.

"Knowing you had a whole team dedicated to cloning you spare parts makes me feel a lot more durable than you," she said. "Also, it makes me feel like I can worry about you a little less."

"You should respect your older brother," John called as Jane headed the elevator.

"Only by fourteen minutes," she shot back as she opened the doors for the elevator. "You should go see Tali by the way. She mentioned you haven't talked to her in awhile." John winced at that.

"I've been avoiding that conversation," John admitted and Jane rolled her eyes as she stepped in.

"Just be honest with her John," Jane said just as the doors started to close. "It will be worse if you lie."

John sighed.

~*TF*~

A few hours later John was riding the elevator himself rehearsing in his mind what he wanted to say. Jane was right, honesty was best. The worst part of it was if he wasn't involved with Liara he could easily see him and Tali coming together. She was fun, smart and cute in her own unique way. If he was honest with himself he could see the temptation there.

"What was it Jane always said about me?" John muttered to himself as he got off at the engineering deck. "I'm stupidly loyal? I wonder what would happen if I wasn't?" John shook himself and entered the engine room on Gabby and Ken's side. Catching their looks as he entered he gestured for them to leave. Ken opened his mouth to speak but Gabby elbowed him in the side before dragging him away. John focused on Tali and saw she was leaning over her station focused on something. As John approached she looked up, her whole posture gave him an impression she was relieved he was there.

"John! I'm glad you came by. I may need your help! I just received a message from the Migrant Fleet. The Admiralty Board has accused me of treason." Tali exclaimed and all thoughts of having a heart to heart with her flew out the window.

"What? You!" John exclaimed and Tali nodded. "Anyone who knows you wouldn't believe you'd commit treason!"

"I don't know. They don't lay charges like this unless the evidence is absolute," Tali said softly. "But it means a lot that you believe in me John."

"What can I do? Anything?" John asked and Tali sighed.

"Unfortunately I have to go back to Flotilla and face the charges myself. They'll delay the trial a reasonable amount of time until I can get there." Tali explained and John winced.

"We're mid relay jump right now and then we have an emergency mission to deal with." John explained. "Jane and I wanted you to come along because we need you. Will the board wait that long?"

"If I send them a message and let them know I'm coming right after I think they will," Tali mused. "At the very least my father will push for that since he's on the board. He'll have to recuse himself for the trial though."

"Then I'll take you right there after the mission," John said and took Tali's hand to give it a reassuring squeeze. "We'll get you through this Tali. I promise."

~*TF*~

Earth Date: April 8th, 2186 CE

Location: Aite, Typhon System

"Woo!" Jane cried in joy as she hit the jets on the Hammerhead to slow their landing and executing a perfect stop in front of the building. John nodded.

"You've been practicing with Hammerheads," he said and Jane smirked.

"Required training after someone sent the Alliance video of my Mako skills," Jane said, giving Tali a glance that the quarian pointedly ignored.

"Only the Alliance?" Garrus muttered as the group exited the vehicle.

"Thank God you came! My name is Dr. Gavin Archer. The situation is urgent - we're facing a catastrophic VI breakout. I'll explain the details later, but you must retract that transmission dish! The controls aren't far from your position. You have to hurry!" a voice said over their comms.

"Good thing we brought you," John said to Tali.

"You don't think they're developing an AI?" Garrus asked and the group shared a look.

"Like an EDI two point oh?" Jane asked and Garrus nodded as they entered the building.

"Why bother? EDI is exceptional, besides from the term Overlord, this may be about a capturing program," Tali suggested.

"Be advised, this is a secure facility. All weapons must be declared upon entry and checked with security personnel on duty," a computer voice stated as they entered and Jane looked at the carnage before them.

"Jesus...I don't think anyone is alive," Jane whispered as the team cautiously headed down the stairs.

"Over here...on the monitor," Archer's voice called from a display on the main desk. "Ah, there you are. I've locked myself in a computer room on the far side of the base. There are geth on the loose." Archer looked like a middle aged man.

"A rouge VI program has seized control and...I've lost a lot of friends today. I'd hate to see you join them. Please watch yourselves," he said. The group moved on.

"Geth," Tali muttered as she looked around seeing parts of the aforementioned synthetics here and there.

"Overlord," Jane added and the group shared a look.

"They plan to control geth," John sighed, shaking his head.

"And failed," Garrus added.

"How could they be so reckless and stupid?" Tali growled and Jane shook her head.

"It's Cerberus, are you actually surprised?" she asked and the quarian paused before sighing.

"I shouldn't be but I am," she confessed and Jane and John both patted the quarian on the shoulder. They headed through the base and with a minimal difficulty they broke into the security office. There was a log from Archer on the screen and after reading it out to the group Garrus shook his head.

"Looks like the Illusive Man wasn't happy with this group," Garrus commented.

"Cutting corners may have led to this," Tali added as they reached the control room.

"Just find the controls for the dish," Jane suggested as each of them approached a different terminal.

"Found it," John said, hitting the button. The dish started to move only to jerk to a stop, causing the group to flail.

"Never easy!" Jane muttered.

"System error," the computer said before what looked like a holographic display of what looked like digital code manifesting as eyes appeared shrieking in a horrible way. Jane froze, there was something about that shrieking.

"Did that sound like it was speaking to you?" John asked and Jane nodded. It was like the words were just out of her reach.

"Damn it! The VI's overridden the controls. We have to stop him...he's trying to upload his program off planet. Destroy the antennae inside the dish. There's a tram on the lower level. Get to it as fast as you can!" Archer burst out over the radio and Jane scowled.

"Jane there's a log over here," John began looking up from a terminal he was at. "He's talking about using live…Geth…and…" John trailed off and Jane felt a chill run through here. She slowly turned around and saw the monitors behind her. Each of them was lit up by holographic representations of eyes.

"Keelah…" Tali whispered behind her and Jane swallowed.

"I think we should go…" Garrus said hurrying to door and opening it. As they swiftly moved down the hall another screen lit up and that screech filled the air.

"'Make it stop'...it's saying 'make it stop,'" Jane said shooting John a concerned look which he shared.

"Shepards, the cameras are following our movements," Garrus noted. John looked up and damned if they weren't.

"This is an automated security update. Geth activity has been detected. Please remain at your workstations until the all-clear is given," A computer's automated voice called out over the room's PA system. "Welcome. Today's lunch special is fillet with a side of egg salad."

"And two troopers, one rocket unit, and one destroyer in lower area. Three troopers and one rocket over the top. Two troopers and two rocket units on the way to the door!" John called out as the Geth swarmed into the room.

"Oh this is going to be fun," Jane snarked as the team opened fire. With the set up of the cafeteria, it was relatively easy for Jane and Garrus to hang back and snipe geth while Tali used her tech and John rushed.

The group ended up on a tram looking up at the massive dish.

"Damn it all...he's aligning the dish to a new upload target! He'll have a clear line of sight to our satellite! This is going to be tight," Acher's voice hissed over the comms.

"Arriving at dish access. Attention: Satellite broadcast window is opening soon. All upload data must be approved by your department supervisor," the VI stated as the tram reached the walkway to the dish.

"Somehow I don't think anyone would approve of this upload," Garrus muttered.

"EDI would probably be offended by the attempt," Tali added as the group left the tram, nearly blasted by the geth approaching.

"Speaking of EDI, she's being awfully quiet," John muttered and Tali quickly checked her omni-tool.

"The comms are being jammed, looks like Cerberus is doing it," she said and Jane nodded.

"To keep this rogue program on the planet, thus why he's using the dish," Jane muttered. The three geth on the walkway were easily taken down and the three on the opposite walkways from theirs were also easily done in with sniper rifles.

~*TF*~

The team entered the base of the dish, moving with precision. Jane and John drew Geth fire as Garrus and Tali took out the units. Jane used shockwaves to knock unshielded troopers into the air.

"Rocket Troopers!" Garrus cried and the group looked at the steps as the troopers moved in. Between the two snipers the Rocket Troopers were downed quickly.

"How did Cerberus get so many geth?" Tali muttered again and John frowned not liking the implications.

"Are we clear down here?" he asked and the team did a slow look around.

"Affirmative," Garrus said and John sighed.

"Let's get up there," Jane said as they headed up to the radio dish.

"You need to destroy the support struts now. They have their own capacitors...try blowing them up!" Archer's voice called from their comms as they reached the top. Jane motioned for the team to turn off their comms for a moment.

"Side note, I'm suspicious of that man," Jane said after they did and John nodded.

"Being the sole survivor of your own experiment is questionable," he added as they found the first capacitor. Just after he turned his comms back on John hit it with a few well placed shots. With an explosion that announced its destruction, geth appeared on both sides.

"Stick together," John called and the team nodded. "Jane, Tali, focus on the struts, Garrus, we'll cover them." Slowly the group moved, as each strut was destroyed the top of the antenna began to shake before it eventually began to collapse.

"You've done it! You've severed the link to the satellite!" Archer cried as the antenna fell, right into the team's path. They looked up to see the entire thing beginning to collapse.

"You've got to be kidding..." Jane groaned as the group began to run for the edge towards the tram.

"Move! The whole thing's giving way!" John cried as the team ran for the edge. As it tipped up, Jane wasn't sure the group could make it, so she gave them a biotic push, sending them well onto the safety of the tram walkway as she leapt behind them.

Time froze for Jane as she realized her jump wasn't perfect, she was going to be just shy of the walkway. Her heart leapt as she reached but it would be scant inches between her and the walkway.

John turned to see his sister's descent and he dove, hand outstretched. His one arm gripped the guardrail as he caught her outstretched hand. John jerked and felt his shoulder explode in pain with a sickening pop. Gritting his teeth to bite back the scream of pain he swung her towards the walkway. She slammed into the walkway hand railing, but was able to wrap her free arm around the guardrail post.

"Jane!" Garrus cried, diving so that he was able to grab her torso below the guardrail.

"You got her, Garrus?" John ground out and the turian nodded as Jane gasped. Slamming into the walkway probably left some bruises. Jane was awkwardly helped up as the dish collapsed, shrouding the walkway with smoke as Archer approached.

"Over here," he called and the team looked at him.

"What the hell is going on around here?" John demanded as his arm dangled by his side and Archer looked contemplative. Perhaps he was not happily the only survivor. He looked at the group.

"Man's reach exceeding his grasp. I was ordered to only discuss this with Cerberus agents. I may speak with you, but the rest of your team..." Archer said as he looked at John, indicating the rest of the team would be debriefed by John.

~*TF*~

"You have my thanks, Commander Shepard. You bought us some time, though probably not much. This isn't over yet," Archer said. John grunted and there was a sickening crack as he popped his dislocated shoulder back into place. Testing his arm he turned his focus back to Archer with a glare.

"You owe me an explanation," John said tersely moving his arm around.

"This is Project Overlord. An attempt to gain influence over the geth by interfacing a human mind with a VI. The results have been...less than satisfactory," Archer said, sweating a bit at what he had just seen.

"I'd hate to see what you'd call a disaster," John growled and Archer glared at him.

"You can't dismiss the entire project. We did succeed, at least partially. My brother David volunteered to serve as a test subject, but his mind couldn't handle the VI connection. He's like a virus now, infecting our networks and seizing control of any technology he finds. It's why you had to destroy the dish. Imagine if his program got off –world," Archer explained.

"How does he take control of electronics?" John questioned.

"This is a hybrid intelligence the likes of which I've never seen. I don't know where the man ends and the machine begins," Archer confessed and John scowled.

"What's the worst-case scenario?" John asked, wanting to prepare himself for the worst.

"A technological apocalypse. Every machine, every weapon, every computer could be turned against us. If he hit the extranet, who knows where it would end." Archer said and John stared at him for a moment.

"You should have considered that before you started the experiment." John snarled.

"We couldn't be expected to account for every outcome! Certainly not the abomination David has become. Davi...the VI has fortified itself in the main laboratory at Atlas Station. It's in lockdown now. To enter, you need to manually override security from our facilities in the Prometheus and Vulcan Stations."

"How does the lockdown work?"

"It's a fail-safe procedure in the event of an emergency. Normally, all three project heads have to agree to cancel the lockdown. I'm the only one left now. I can give my authorization, but you'll have to manually reset the other two yourself." Archer said moving to the console and entering his. The system unlocked for this station.

"And what happens if I have to kill your brother?" John asked and Archer winced.

"Let's just hope it doesn't come to that." Archer said quietly. John sighed and headed for the door to brief the team.

"We'll be heading out shortly," John said as he walked through the door.

"The other stations are all within driving distance. Best of luck, Commander."

~*TF*~

"Do you have the list of casualties?" Jane asked as she gently placed the body into a coffin.

"All accounted for. As you gather them, I can double check the database for the name and confirm identity," Tali said.

"How many more coffins do you need?" Garrus asked from the storage area.

"Probably three more," Jane sighed. "What a fucking mess."

"Cerberus gives away a lot of goodies, but they certainly make the hazards impressive," Tali said as she looked at the row of filled coffins already.

"Alliance may be bureaucratic bullshit sometimes, but they sure as hell don't allow for this kind of collateral damage with their experimental operations," Jane sighed as she headed in to collect another body.

"Need some help?" John asked as he exited Archer's office.

"Is it okay for you to tell me about what's going on?" Jane asked and John sighed. He quickly gave Jane a run down on Archer's project.

"Man's reach exceeding his grasp indeed," Jane said as she shook her head. She pulled a body into a fireman carry as John did the same with another. "I don't know how Cerberus keeps going with all of this. How many people have died for their human first policy?"

"This isn't human first, but it is a waste," John said and Jane shrugged.

"I'm just glad I don't have to make the calls home on these," Jane said as they exited and took care of the bodies.

"You want to drive?" John asked and Jane stared at him before grinning.

"Get the last body and I'll get the Hammerhead," Jane said and both Tali and Garrus shared a look of abject horror.

The ride to Prometheus Station was actually really smooth...for a Shepard.

"Jane, have you been practicing? Jack and Kasumi were horrified," Tali questioned and Jane laughed.

"We were rocketing out of a live volcano. That was scary as all hell, this has been pretty easy with John manning the guns, even with those turrets," Jane said.

"You never drove the Mako like this," Garrus commented.

"I've always been better with Hammerheads, Makos are seriously bricks," Jane said and John nodded as the Hammerhead crested a rise.

"Whoa," John said as they looked over the edge of the cliff at the crashed geth ship. "Don't see that every day."

"Commander Shepard, Prometheus Station is a crashed geth ship full of dormant machines used in our experiment," Archer's voice came over the comms as the group stared at the defense shields. "Our people there have gone silent. It's likely the VI has activated the defense shields to keep you out. Good luck."

"I really don't like this," John groaned and the team mumbled agreements.

"Well, let's go," Jane sighed as she eased the Hammerhead over the edge, hitting the jets to slow the landing.

"Scanning area...Analysis: Generators are providing power for main shield," The Hammerhead VI said.

"Now that is a valuable find," Tali muttered as the group stared at the shielding.

"Warning: The VI infection has assumed control of the geth cannon," the Hammerhead VI commented and the group watched as the cannon of the geth ship moved towards them.

"Tali, can that cannon take out the shielding?" Jane asked and Tali sighed.

"Yes," she said as she gripped her safety harness.

"Only four shield generators, that's easy," Jane said as waited for the cannon laser target to hit before flying across the field. It was easy to let the cannon do all the work. Taking down the generator and then letting a second shot destroy it. "John, that shield is coming down."

"On it," John said from the cannon controls. Once the cannon on the ship was exposed, John took it out quickly and efficiently. Jane brought the Hammerhead up to the entrance of the Geth ship.

"How many Geth ships have you been on?" Garrus asked Tali.

"Does helping to remove the one from the Ferros colony count?" she asked.

"No..." he replied.

"This will be the first," she responded.

"Great..." Jane muttered.

~*TF*~

Quiet. It was eerily quiet as they entered the ship. In the main room a Geth Prime unit was held in a stasis field as the local console was running a detailed scan.

"Attention visitors: This Cerberus facility contains hazardous AI technology. You agree to assume all liability for personal injuries or death that may occur during your visit. Thank you."

"Seriously?" Jane demanded. Garrus shot her an amused look

"Would you expect anything else from Cerberus?" the Turian asked and Jane huffed. John led the way up the ramp and deeper into the ship. As they walked they saw bodies everywhere but very little in the way of Geth and none of them appeared intact.

"Either most of the functioning units have moved to other parts of the facility or this is one giant trap." Tali muttered and John nodded in agreement. They walked past a still functioning console with an audio log and on a whim Jane tapped it on.

"Lanigan just ran a simulation. If these geth ever wake up there's a 98% chance we'll be dead within two minutes. I'm starting to hate Lanigan." A researcher's voice said.

"Yeah I would too," John muttered as they headed deeper into the ship. As they did he could just feel the tension rising. The more and more time went by without anything happening the more convinced he was that this was a trap. It didn't help that the cameras kept following their every move. Despite knowing it would be a waste of ammo he was extremely tempted to shoot every camera he saw.

"Halloween was yesterday," the researchers voice began again and John turned in surprise to see his sister had activated another audio log. "Lanigan ran around wearing spare geth parts. Spooked the shit out of everyone. Now I definitely hate him."

"I would too. What a boshtet." Tali muttered and Jane laughed. Not too long after they reached an open room that was flooded and the access console to lift the lockdown was of course on the other side.

"Who decided to put it there?" Jane demanded as John accessed the controls to move the platforms for them to cross.

"It's Cerberus, when do they ever do the smart thing?" Garrus asked and Jane sighed. After John got the platforms in place they moved across and he quickly pulled the override. He jumped back however as the VI appeared on the screen and screeched at them before disappearing.

"Uh, John…" Tali said drawing his attention to behind them. The downed Geth units were twitching and lighting up as the VI brought them back online.

"And there's the catch," John sighed. "I knew this was too easy."

"Hostile geth activity detected. Armed response is authorized. Cerberus reminds all personnel that this emergency is now classified information. Disclosure to outside parties is a violation of your confidentiality agreement."

~*TF*~

For this team it wasn't difficult. They all had experience fighting the geth together and now that John and Jane were able to trust each other again it finally clicked. The team fought with precision, picking up on old routines and synergy. They slowly but steadily fought their way out and the Prime unit at the entrance was easily ripped apart by them. As they entered the Hammerhead Jane smiled happily at her brother who returned it. To quote Garrus, it was just like old times.

"Having these resources would be nice for a colony," Jane hummed as they drove to Vulcan station.

"Too bad about the moon," John agreed.

"What are your talking about?" Tali asked and John looked at her.

"Aite has a moon in degradation, it's going to eventually crash into the planet in a century or two," he explained.

"That is sad," Tali muttered as she looked at the life as they entered the tunnel.

"We got Mechs," John called and Jane hit them. "You're going to damage the paint job." They entered the volcanic region.

"This is Archer. I advise extreme caution. Vulcan Station is our geothermal plant. They stopped reporting in shortly after the experi-" Archer was cut off on the comms.

"Scanning area...Analysis: VI infection is present within plant machinery. Advise caution," the Hammerhead VI called. It was slow going with the sentry turrets randomly appearing while navigating the hazardous landscape. Jets were set up apparently for Hammerhead vehicles to navigate the terrain.

"That vent is too low," Tali pointed out.

"Let's get in there," John sighed as they landed next to the building.

"Warning: Automated controls are offline. Core systems have been compromised," the VI called.

"This place is a disaster," Jane sighed and John nodded. They entered to find only a few mechs between them and the controls.

"Warning: Pressure levels in valve A3 have exceeded maximum threshold. Manual control is required," the VI informed. It took Tali seconds to start the venting, making it so that vent was pumping out a strong enough blast. The VI face filled the screen and Jane jumped.

"Creepy," John muttered and Jane nodded as they returned to the Hammerhead.

The ride was just as irritating with more turrets and lava. Finally they made it to the main building of Vulcan Station.

"I can complain about Cerberus, but they know how to name their bases well," Jane sighed as they headed into the building. "I suspect more security mechs and less geth."

"That would be a nice change," Tali replied.

"Warning: Pressure levels in valve D4 have exceeded maximum threshold. Manual control is required," the VI announced. The building had damage and the group knew it was less than optimum. They headed deeper in, climbing through the building, occasionally using the over taxed pipes to blow away mechs and assault drones.

"That VI is everywhere," Garrus growled.

"It is certainly focused on us above that Archer," Tali commented.

"Maybe some of his brother is still in here," John suggested. As they continued it was only a bit more difficult when a YMIR mech came into play.

"Garrus and I will get the drones, Tali, try to take down that YMIR's shielding for John," Jane cried as she and Garrus took prime sniping shots.

It was too easy to head into the control room. A single Loki mech was attempting to destroy the override switch. It glowed with the VI's light. It was easy to disarm the mech and as soon as it was helpless the glow of the VI was gone. John quickly pulled the override.

"...are you receiving this? Commander Shepard, this is Dr. Archer. Please respond," Archer called over their comms.

"I hear you, Doctor. We've hit the override at Vulcan Station and are moving on," John said right as Garrus put down the mech that was running around in panic.

~*TF*~

"Commander you've done it! The lockdown has been canceled. You can now breach Atlas Station and end this nightmare," Archer cried as the group flew over the landscape. "You'll need to find the main server room there to shut down the VI experiment. Good luck."

The tunnel for Atlas Station was looming.

"I can't wait for more corpses," John muttered and Jane nodded.

"What do you think we will find?" Tali asked.

"More examples of Cerberus arrogance that led to horrific death," Jane sighed as she landed the Hammerhead.

"Looks like you're in, Commander. Good. I'm getting some troubling readings here, though. The VI is trying to upload its program directly from your location. Get to the server room and shut down the core before it can..." Archer broke up again before a recording seemed to play in his voice. "Archer long 155.2: For years, my brother's condition has been a handicap. That changed today. His autistic mind is the breakthrough I've been looking for...he can communicate with the geth! Such a tremendous grasp of mathematics! It seems serendipity is alive and well in the 22nd century."

"That's probably a bad sigh," Garrus said and the group moved slowly. John took point, Garrus was left flank, Tali was right, and Jane was rear, moving mostly backwards, just in case.

"I will be happy once the security cameras stop following us," Tali said. The doors began to shut and open again. "And that can stop too."

"Archer log 157.8: Unless he sees results, the Illusive Man is shutting us down next week. I have no choice. I'm going to tap David directly into the geth neural network and see if he can influence them. The danger should be negligible. David might even enjoy it." Jane's eyes widened at that.

"That motherfucker!" Jane snapped.

"Jane..." John said.

"That VI face...it is David and he is screaming for us to make it stop," Jane growled. An autistic man trapped in a machine. The screams they had been hearing were a tormented human soul trapped in a virtual hell. John stared at his sister, she looked upset.

"We will," John said and Jane nodded.

"I won't kill him," Jane said.

"David or Archer?" John asked.

"David, I may have to kill his brother," Jane stated and John nodded as they called the elevator. It was easy for Garrus, John, and Tali to fill the elevator with gunfire as Jane put a singularity right in it before they destroyed the geth on it.

"Oh good, more geth," Garrus grumbled.

"I hear that," John sighed as they went in. As the door closed there was a moment of realization.

"Grab the floor!" Jane cried and the team dropped, holding the grating below them as the elevator flew up and down wildly. The door opened as the voice screamed, everyone could make it out now..."Please...make it stop."

"Archer log 168.4: I'd be lying if I said no harm could come to David. His autistic mind is as alien to me as an actual alien." A log played and the group stared at the geth units at the charging stations.

"Tali, can we do anything to make sure those geth don't come online?" Jane asked.

"Of course," Tali stated as she went up to the first geth and destroyed the head with her shotgun.

"I don't know what I was expecting," Jane said as John gave her a look. The group quickly took out the geth units. They headed down the hall.

"That door's hologram doesn't look right," Garrus said as John activated it. The display duplicated a few times before sliding across the wall to the other door.

"Oh...I really don't like that," Jane groaned.

"I get a bad feeling from it too," John sighed. They entered the room. Jane stayed by the door while Tali and Garrus flanked John as he approached the terminal. As he pressed the button green light of the VI's holo-display rose up, engulfing John in it.

"Shit, his implants!" Jane cried as she rushed to his side. He staggered like he was drunk, moving towards the door. The green holo flashes played over his skin as his eyes glowed green. "Fuck! John! John answer me!" He dropped to all fours by the door and Jane began to pull up a diagnostic on her omni-tool just as John got up and headed out the door. Jane turned to follow only for the door to slam shut in her face. She rushed to it, hitting it as locked displays appeared all over it. "Give him back!"

"He's been hacked!" Tali cried as she began trying to hack the door.

"Is this even possible?!" Garrus hissed as he began to struggle at the door with Jane.

~*TF*~

"Archer?" John snapped, seeing the man walk down the hall. He shook his head. There was a glow, where was…was the VI doing this? Or was David trying to show him a path. He headed down the hall. He tried to look for the team but something was pulling him down the way.

"MAKE IT STOP!" David cried out his voice crackling with electric buzz, sounding clearer than it had before.

"We're coming kid," John growled, turning the corner to see geth coming at him. "Shit open fire!"

~*TF*~

"Nothing is ever simple. Fuck, I hope this works," Jane growled as she dug her blade into a panel on the door. The metal groaned but it was the door that gave. "Oh thank God. I owe Naena all the turian chocolate she and her grandkids can eat." Tali dove into the opening and began digging into the physical components of the access panel on the other side. "Can you open it?"

"Give me a second," Tali said and Jane jumped as Garrus caught her biceps and held them gently, not hugging her, but comforting.

"Thank you," she said and he nodded as the door opened.

"I owe you too, Tali," Jane said as they moved into the hallway, they had heard weapon fire, but there was no sign of whatever John had shot at. They cautiously moved down the hall and they could see something through the windows at the end. As Jane approached she felt sick. A man was trapped in a piece of machinery. She couldn't make it all out, but based on the tubes in his open mouth, the tubes dangling beneath, and the support pieces attached to his head and limbs...he was completely hooked into the machine. Her stomach tightened with disgust and hatred. Archer had done this to his own brother. Archer had done this to his autistic brother. Archer had subjected his poor brother to this torture. "Please...make it stop." The electronic voice of David Archer had been screaming in pain and confusion. Hell wasn't deep enough for his older brother.

"Spirits..." Garrus huffed as he stared.

"That is his brother..." Tali gasped and Jane looked to see evidence of weapons fire down the hall.

"What was John fighting?" Garrus muttered.

"It's targeted," Jane said. "What is David showing him?" They moved down the hall to see an open lab.

"Shepard!" Tali cried and they looked to see John appear below them. He began firing at something. The shots were hitting specific electronic structures, except for every now and then when he would fire elsewhere seemingly at the air. Tali shrieked as John pointed in their general direction, firing. Rounds pummeled the window but it held.

"There's a broken window in here, we can get around," Garrus called and the two women left the window above John to hurry after him.

~*TF*~

"Node acquired: Normandy SR-2 is within range." A computer's voice rang out.

"Shit!" John snarled turning his gun on the data node. David was trying to get away. Out of this hell of energy and pain. He wasn't trying to infect systems he was trying to run away from this hell. He blasted the data node and was swarmed by more geth.

"Hold on kid, I'll get you out," John growled, opening fire again.

~*TF*~

As the elevator opened to let the team off, Jane practically ran as soon as the doors had enough width. John stopped firing and the green holograms around him were gone. He was staring at David in shock.

"Quiet...please make it stop..." David's electric voice whimpered and Jane felt tears as she grabbed John in a hug.

"You're alright!" she gasped and he blinked.

"What do you mean?" John asked. "Were you guys okay with the geth?"

"There were no geth...at least, no real geth," Jane said as she looked up at David. "We think he hacked you. We're going to need a team to get him out of that."

"You mean everything I saw was a digital projection?" John said, his eyes wide. "I saw memories of Archer discovering David could talk to the Geth. The experiments and then when they hook him to this." Jane felt tears begin to flow as she looked at David. His eyes were wide and terrified, the speculum in them only making it more obvious how scared he was. The elevator opened again and Archer came running.

"Wait!" he called. "I'm begging you. Don't do anything rash."

"Rash? Like forcing your own brother into an experiment?" John barked, glaring at the man with hate. Jane kept him between herself and Archer. She might just kill him if she didn't control herself and her gauntlets were creaking from how tight her hands were clenching.

"I know how this must look, but I never intended any harm to come to him. You must believe me," Archer said. "It's not like I planned this. It was an accident. Seeing David communicate with the geth...it all seemed harmless." Jane was shaking with rage as she looked at David, the man was practically crucified.

"And before you knew it, you were running your own private hell," John snapped.

"I had no choice! The demands were incredible. The Illusive Man doesn't broker failure!" Archer tried to defend himself with righteous anger. "Any war we fight with the geth will be bloody. I was asked to find a way to avoid that."

"And how many have already died for this project?" John demanded.

"More souls than will ever forgive me. But I won't apologize for radical ideas. If my work spares a million mothers mourning the loss of a million sons, my conscience will rest easy," Archer said and was shocked as Jane approached him. John didn't even stop her, she wasn't out of control.

"Look at him...look!" Jane hissed, not yelling because David wanted quiet. "Your brother will never be the same!"

"The damage may not be permanent. He might recover some semblance of his mind," Archer backtracked, clearly afraid of Jane.

"Cerberus will never leave him alone. Your brother will always be a lab rat," Jane snarled.

"But a well cared for lab rat. At last he'd still be alive," Archer said and Jane grabbed him by the arm and the back of the neck, twisting his arm up so Archer had to look at David.

"So you'll sacrifice your brother's happiness for your own ambition?" she growled. Archer hissed in pain but didn't move. He looked up at David. The man's dark eyes dripped continuous tears.

"Square root of 906.01 equals..." David's voice whispered sadly out of the speakers. Archer went still in Jane's grip and she let him go.

"30.1," Archer responded, he was quiet for a few breaths. "What I've done to David is unethical. If he dies, it's unforgivable. Let me take care of him. Please."

"Quiet...please make it stop," David's voice range out and Jane let out a gasping sob. It shocked her team. She looked up at Archer, her own tears dripping down her face.

"I've seen enough of your cruelty to know he'll never be free from it here. I'm taking him away," Jane said, turning.

"No! Leave him! He's too valuable!" Archer cried, shooting at Jane, her shields held and she backhanded him, making him stagger away as she drew her pistol and held it in his face.

"If you even think about coming after your brother, this bullet will be waiting for you," Jane growled before turning away.

"Where will you take him?" Archer asked and Jane paused.

"Grissom Academy. They can help special cases like David...minus the torture," she sneered as she turned and walked away. "Joker, contact the Academy, and let them know we've got someone who needs their help. Drop my name. Heavily."

"The Illusive Man can fire me if he doesn't like it," John growled. Jane approached David.

"Is it quiet enough David?" she asked.

"Quiet..." David said. "Square root of 912.04 is 30.2...it all seemed harmless..." Jane stood looking up at the man with tears dripping from her eyes.

~*TF*~

John was quiet as he watched his men gently examine and removed David from the device. Chakwas was working quickly but quietly. Even Mordin who talked a mile a minute was quiet. When they finally removed the last device Legion was there to softly lift the autistic man to the waiting gurney. Now that David wasn't affecting the geth it was safe for the unit to join them and Tali had asked for the unit to be there. Given David's affinity with the geth Legion's presence calmed and soothed him as the medical personnel worked. Miranda covered the man with a blanket and then they briskly moved him out, David weakly mimicking the geth langue as Legion conversed with him. The last one to escort him out was Jane whose eyes never left the gurney. When they had all gone John quickly approached Archer. Only Garrus had stayed behind to cover John.

"Commander, I-" Archer was cut off as John fist impact the man's face. Archer staggered back and felt to the ground but John didn't stop grabbing the front of the man's shirt with his other hand and just punching him over and over. He lost track of how many times he hit the man and only stopped when Archer let out a broken plea for mercy. John panted taking in the doctor's ruined face.

"I saw everything," John hissed at the man. "David showed me the entire thing. As one older brother to another you are disgusting filth and if I ever see you again I will shoot you on principle." John let the man go to crumple on the floor.

"Let's go Garrus," John said, heading for the door, his gauntlet dripping blood as they walked.

~*TF*~

Earth Date: April 7th, 2186 CE

Location: Normandy SR-2, Mid-Transit to Grissom Academy

John entered his room and was shocked to see his sister. More so, to see a set of legs hanging over the edge of his couch where he could see them from the door, but it was the pants Jane wore out of armor.

"Hey, you okay?" John asked and Jane sat up. Her face was red and swollen, she'd been crying. She walked up to him. He could see the pain in her eyes.

"David was his brother," she said in a voice that spoke of a lot of sobbing in recent past. He hadn't heard Jane sound like this since they were teens on Mindoir. He nodded as he placed a hand on her shoulder. Jane pushed in and hugged John around the chest, her arms wrapped around his shoulders as she pressed her face to his shoulder. John didn't even hesitate to hug her tightly. "His own brother...how could he do that to him? He was so scared. He didn't understand what was being done to him. How could he do that to him?" Jane wept. "I could never do that to you."

"I know you never would," John said rubbing her back with his off hand, the other still covered in blood. "Hey, I'm fine. I'm right here."

"You just keep scaring me," Jane sobbed and John was surprised by that. "First you get hunted by those stupid batarians...then a VI hacks your stupid brain...stop scaring me! I just got you back!" She pounding on his chest with her right hand ignoring the fact he was still in his armor, not moving her face from his shoulder.

"I hate to tell you this, Jane, but we still have to go up against the Collectors," John said and Jane took a few calming breaths.

"I know...but I believe we can do it," Jane said and John looked at her. She walked to the bathroom and grabbed some tissues. With a loud honking noise she cleared her nose. The sink ran and she splashed her face.

"It was kind of you to stay with David until they could drug him and get him out of that thing," John said and Jane came out of the bathroom. She watched her brother undo his armor and noted that his hand was covered in blood.

"I'm a kind person," Jane stated. John finished taking off his armor, clad in his clothes he wore under it.

"I know," John said and Jane looked at him.

"I'm glad you're back," she said. "I haven't told you that enough. But I really missed you and seeing what happened. How could anyone do that to their sibling?" John guided his sister to his sofa...where he saw an expensive bottle of liquor was half gone on his coffee table.

"We've seen siblings with less than kind attitudes towards each other," John said, guiding Jane to sit down. She flopped onto the sofa and fell over, her arm thrown over her eyes. "Think about Nassana Dantius."

"I'm going out on a limb that the Dantius family would not be a good example," Jane sighed.

"Like the Archers are?" John shot back and Jane looked at him then.

"Don't be an ass," she sighed as she sat up. "Gavin took care of David for years. They're both grown and due to the lack of hospice or hospitalization...I would assume their parents didn't want David institutionalized." John poured himself a drink. It smelled odd.

"What is this?" he asked.

"Japanese gin," she replied as he sipped, it wasn't bad, didn't taste like gin to him.

"I think Gavin snapped under the pressure and did unspeakably evil things to his brother," John said. Jane reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing tightly.

"I regularly fear I'm becoming a monster..." Jane confessed.

"You're not Jane," John said, squeezing her hand back.

"I know...because I could never do that to you," she said as she looked at him. "I'm sorry it took me so long to trust it was you." John shook his head.

"You went through hell without me...sorry I left you alone," he said and she smiled at him.

"Fighting the Collectors will be easier by far," she said as she got up.

"You are going to bed...right?" John asked and Jane shrugged.

"Or into the shower...one or the other..." she said as she headed for the door. "Or I might go calibrate something..." The door shut behind her and John sighed.

~*TF*~

Jane headed into Samara's room, Miranda was luckily gone and Jane was relieved, she was planning on asking the justicar to her room for this conversation.

"Ah Shepard, how are you?" Samara asked and Jane took a breath as she sat on the floor across from her, not going into a meditative stance. Samara stopped her meditation to look at Jane.

"I don't have anyone else I trust to ask this of," Jane said and Samara nodded. "I've only ever dated my own species and only ever dated less than I can count on one hand. And I've only ever had one lover..." Samara smiled slightly, it surprised her that the bold warrior before her was in need of love advice. The justicar had not been able to do much of that for her daughters, it might be pleasant to try this conversation.

"You are quite close with Garrus," Samara said and Jane nodded.

"I honestly never thought I would date a turian," she said and Samara smirked.

"Your people are still so new to the galaxy," she hummed and Jane felt like a child.

"Have you...ever..." Jane was awkward and Samara was kind.

"Yes, a few in my maiden days, a few soldiers and a mercenary," Samara said. "Garrus is nothing like the turians I was involved with however." Jane blinked.

"What do you mean by that?" Jane asked nervously and Samara smiled.

"All my romances with turians were short and we meant for it to be that way. Garrus does not seem to be the type to have short relationships," Samara said and Jane nodded.

"I care about him...a lot..." Jane said and Samara listened attentively. "He was my friend first...but without me even realizing it, he became so important to me."

"How does this differ from your last lover?" Samara asked and Jane blinked at that. She thought about Kaidan. He had made her feel human. He was the first man who made her feel like a woman, hell, he was the man who made her a woman. He was very handsome and his butt...well, Jane had never been attracted to that part of the male anatomy before Kaidan. She blushed. Then she thought about Garrus.

The two men were similar in some ways and different in others. Both had been cautious about the start of their relationships, both had seen her as someone to be respected first, and both had warmed to her. Kaidan had been a fellow soldier to Jane while Garrus had felt more like a mentee when they first met. Kaidan had been this handsome biotic that Jane was drawn to while Garrus had quickly become a friend, someone to bond with over a sniper rifle. Kaidan had treated Jane like something delicate to be protected while Garrus had held her up as a leader, someone to respect and emulate. Jane had been sexually attracted to Kaidan from the start, but now...the thought of Garrus' scent made her feel warm in the same way. When Kaidan left, Jane had accepted his feelings, hated them, but respected him. Nearly losing him on Horizon had been a nightmare, seeing him had reminded her of the ache of her heart from the wound he had left on it. Still...when Garrus had gone missing she had felt something similar, but that time she fought for the right to go after him. Finding him on Omega had made her have hope again. Nearly losing him had been worse than Kaidan because while she recommended Kaidan for Horizon, she had been in the room with Garrus when the rockets nearly took him from her.

"It feels very different," Jane confessed and Samara nodded.

"Was your first relationship a passing fling?" she asked and Jane sighed.

"It was too short for me...but, we met by chance and started flirting not long after. We were only together for a few months when John died and then...he blamed himself for failing to keep John safe. He claimed, he failed me and didn't deserve me," Jane said and Samara nodded.

"How is this different?" she asked and Jane shook her head.

"I've known Garrus for years," she said and Samara nodded. "He's been there for me on our mission, in losing John, and when he ran off, I did everything I could do to get the chance to find him again."

"Now think about this, would you feel any differently if he were a human?" Samara asked and Jane froze. What if Garrus were just human...like Joker?

"No," Jane said and Samara smiled.

"So do you need any more advice?" the justicar asked and Jane smiled.

"Well, when I originally asked...I meant more of like...the vids Mordin gave me were really clinical and uncomfortable and I just cannot bring myself to look up the porn...although EDI has informed me that Joker has...a lot of human-turian porn...which makes me uncomfortable," Jane rambled and Samara chuckled.

"I thought I understood the problem, let me give you better advice then," she said. "Garrus has already bonded to you through friendship and mission. He will view this relationship far more seriously than any of my turian partners did ours. You have already shared life or death encounters together." Jane blushed deeply at that.

"Otherwise, turian males are quite sensitive under their fringes. Since turian females have talons, they find the soft touch of our type of fingers extremely enticing and pleasant," Samara explained. "As turian legs are not designed the same as ours, they find it extremely erotic when we can wrap our legs around their waists...female turians don't do that..." as Samara began to explain the tricks to...enticing a turian male, Jane went through several color changes, but she did not leave. She had not had this type of useful girl talk ever...

~*TF*~

Belle's Note: I had some trouble with this chapter. I got to a certain point and just got wrecked. The Overlord DLC ALWAYS makes me sad. David is one of those characters that just sticks with you in the bad ways. I have never and WILL never leave David Archer in his brother's hands. The first time I played it, I recognized David's cry to "please make it stop" very early on and it terrified me. When I actually got to that scene I was blurry eyed. I'm an older sister and the thought of abusing my younger sibling like that torn me apart. There is something therapeutic about punching Gavin Archer across the face that will NEVER get old.

~*TF*~

OMAKE 1

As the group moved through the geth ship the sound of gunshots followed by grunting got the group to freeze. Slowly John, Tali, and Garrus turned to watch Jane shot each geth unit in the optics before using a biotically enhanced stomp to break apart the bodies.

"Uh...Jane..." John called and the woman paused. "What are you doing?"

"This dude, Isaac Clarke, taught me this method," Jane said and the group stared. "Oh come on! Like we don't all know that these are going to come to life at some point? We all KNOW they are going to activate and I rather we just walk right out of here!" The others shared a look before they all began to shoot and stomp.

Belle's Note: So, when I play Dead Space, it takes me for F-ING ever because I will stomp EVERY corpse as I walk through that damn game. When Dead Space 3 came out, Toby and I played it together in co-op and I drove the man insane stomping on corpses.

Toby's Note: Actually I kind of wish you could do that during Vulcan station. The entire time you head down to the console you know they're setting you up. I just wished they had given you options. And shooting all the VI cameras changed something.

OMAKE 2

John and Joker were sitting on the bridge when EDI suddenly let out a strange human moan followed by the sounds of turian growling and the unmistakable sounds of...coitus.

"Sorry, that was supposed to go to Jane Shepard's earpiece," EDI explained and John's face twisted in disgust.

"Who said she could access that file?" Joker demanded in an insulted tone.

"Jane Shepard says she will send a copy of the titles to your parents if you comment, Mr. Moreau," EDI stated and Joker froze.

"Why?!" John cried as he stared in horror at EDI.

"Samara is the one who put in the title requests for Jane Shepard," EDI stated. "Samara also sent the same titles to Mr. Vakarian."

"Ugh!" John cried in disgust.