7744 réponses à ce sujet

[young fox]

Makaveli The Don wrote...

Man, anyone else felt robbed too? I feel like I was penalized for choosing Jack as my LI. Some BS.

I feel the same way. I feel dumb for sticking with someone other than the ME1 romances. BioWare had a chance to take it somewhere great, but most of the romances didn't get as much attention as they deserved.

[GothamLord]

Nightfable wrote...

Wow, GothamLord! Splendid!! Please, please, please continue!! That is such a great start, I want to read more!!!

Thank you for the vote of confidence.  I'll keep working on more as I can.  Trying to write at work with constant distractions sucks.

-

Mass Effect 3 - Aftermath: Part 2



Blackness enveloped Shepard’s mind once again. The darkness was a double edged sword. The lonely hollow sense of being surrounded by empty nothingness fighting against the lack of physical feeling it brought as a relief from the burning pain that wracked his being. Jack was alive though. She had survived everything despite all odds. The strong determined woman he’d come to love was to stubborn to die.  He was filled for a moment with a true content feeling in that knowledge. Knowing that he felt if these were his final moments he had succeeded to protecting not only humanity but the most important person that made it all worth fighting for.
 
What had happened though? He thought he had been in space just moments before. Hadn’t he?  Talking to some strange…being… was the only word he could come up to describe it.  It had looked strangely like the young boy that he had tried to help back when the Reaper invasion had struck Earth. He could have sworn he’d somehow seen the Normandy crash on a distance planet. All the Mass Relays exploding and sending shockwaves like toppling dominos across the far reaches all the way out to dark space. Was it all just a dream? A vision? Were the Reapers really defeated? Shepard felt himself buck like a bolt of electricity shot through him. He couldn’t die yet without a solid answer. He wouldn’t die. He straight up refused to go out if there was even the slightest chance that he hadn’t succeeded in the mission he’d set out to accomplish. Shepard felt another bolt again crackle through his sub-consciousness. Lashing out mentally at the blackness he felt like a man buried alive tried to claw to the surface.
 
Shepard shot up on the medical bay table with a violent thrust. An incredible gasp of air exploded from his lungs as the heart monitor next to him bleeped to life. The pain in turn slammed back into him like a freight train and sent him back down on his back was a resounding thud. A slight moan escaped his lips as he looked up at the bright lights of the hospital room.  This sight had a sudden feeling of déjà vu of a certain Cerberus facility. Hopefully this one didn’t result in having to crawl out and grab a pistol as soon. He didn’t think he could hold up his arm enough to aim let alone fire. The doctors hurried around him and the room as they went about checking on his vital signs and rattling off medical terms he’d long forgotten since basic medical training in boot camp. One of the doctors leaned over him is a light smile. His voice seemed to be distant and somewhat warped. A ruptured eardrum probably amid the other injuries was the likely cause.  
 
Please lay back and relax Commander. We weren’t sure if you were going to stay with us there for a couple minutes. You’re modifications from Cerberus gave us a few complications before we could figure them out fully.
 
The large double doors of the operating rooms swung open loudly with the wobbling sound of air being disrupted by the use of biotics.  Jack’s voice somehow despite his injuries was clear as day. The arguing of security was ignored behind her as she stormed up beside him in the bed.  Leaning down she kissed him fiercely, pressing herself down on him causing pressure on his broken ribs. It hurt like hell, but it was worth it at the moment. She pulled back up wiping around her eyes. The eyeliner was smeared all around and it was obvious she’d been crying for awhile.  
 
I told those a-holes you weren’t going to croak on them that easy.
 
The security guard started for her arm but thought better at the last moment. He coughed lightly before speaking.
 
Chief Nought…. I’m sorry I can’t have you in here until the Commander is in a better condition.
 
Shepard felt himself about to arch an eyebrow. At least he could control a muscle somewhere without major pain. A single word escaping his lips in a bit of confusion.
 
Chief??
 
Jack looked down at Shepard with a bit of a smirk.
 
Crazy sh*t isnt it?  Alliance offered me a field commission with everything going on and running the support team of biotics. Get yourself some more rest.  We actually did it Shepard. We took out the Reapers.
 
She squeezed his hand lightly before finally agreeing to leave and let the doctors get back to work.
 
 
 

Modifié par GothamLord, 10 mars 2012 - 08:46 .

[Nightfable]

Beautiful writing, keep it up!! Do you have a fanfiction.net account? You could upload it there too.

Modifié par Nightfable, 10 mars 2012 - 08:57 .

[GothamLord]

No I don't. While I love writing I don't generally write fanfiction type material. I'm just that heart broken that I've crossed into an area I never thought I'd go. Of course I've been running a Batman-themed RPG online for awhile now, but thats a bit different as there are multiple people involved.

[GothamLord]

Also feel free to steal anything you want for the mini comic you had in mind. I'd even be willing to collaborate on you with it if you wanted. My artistic talents are minimal in the drawing department. I've always leaned towards the wordsmith side of things.

[Nightfable]

GothamLord wrote...

No I don't. While I love writing I don't generally write fanfiction type material. I'm just that heart broken that I've crossed into an area I never thought I'd go. Of course I've been running a Batman-themed RPG online for awhile now, but thats a bit different as there are multiple people involved.

I feel the same way too, I'm happy to add your fanfic is wonderfully therapeutic. ^^

I wish I had the ability to write like you do. Jack & male Shepard fanfics are hard to find, especially well-written ones. I strongly concider uploading your story online, that way it won't get lost and will be there for us Jackolytes when we need to re-read it, hehe!

[Nightfable]

GothamLord wrote...

Also feel free to steal anything you want for the mini comic you had in mind. I'd even be willing to collaborate on you with it if you wanted. My artistic talents are minimal in the drawing department. I've always leaned towards the wordsmith side of things.

*___* Really? I would love collaborating with you, I will send you a few ideas and start sketching! Many thanks!!

[GothamLord]

I'll see about an upload tomorrow when I'm free from the confines of work. Until then I have it here and two saves between hard drive file and an email direct to myself for when I get home.

Nightfable wrote...

*___* Really? I would love collaborating with you, I will send you a few ideas and start sketching! Many thanks!!

Indeed.  I shall await your ideas.   

Modifié par GothamLord, 10 mars 2012 - 09:22 .

[spirosz]

So, I just ran into Jack while doing Grissom Academy and I gotta say, her reaction to see Shepard put a smile on my face. Her VA was spot on and felt like Jack all the way - and lol at the kids cheering when I did the paragon interrupt. I was surprised I didn't get to see her on the Normandy right after, I was expecting out of all the LI's, that she would at least went to see Shepard for a bit because of what they represent for each other and what they mean to each other.

I loved when she was about to curse in some moments, but you just hear the f-... then she hesitates for a sec, lol.

I haven't gotten her email yet, since I just finished her little story there, but is it true that you just meet her one more time and that's it, nothing before the end or something?

[Militarized]

Reading those two chapters was, on a whole, 100% more filling then almost everything Bioware put in besides the initial meeting with Jack. Thank you sir, it stings just a bit less now.

[Militarized]

spiros9110 wrote...

So, I just ran into Jack while doing Grissom Academy and I gotta say, her reaction to see Shepard put a smile on my face. Her VA was spot on and felt like Jack all the way - and lol at the kids cheering when I did the paragon interrupt. I was surprised I didn't get to see her on the Normandy right after, I was expecting out of all the LI's, that she would at least went to see Shepard for a bit because of what they represent for each other and what they mean to each other.

I loved when she was about to curse in some moments, but you just hear the f-... then she hesitates for a sec, lol.

I haven't gotten her email yet, since I just finished her little story there, but is it true that you just meet her one more time and that's it, nothing before the end or something?

I'm very sorry to disappoint you Spiros, the general concensus is that the Grissom Academy meeting is fine... but yes you only get to see her one more time, no matter how illogical it is. The second meeting is also VERY unfilling and doesn't match up with your meeting with her originally(which we later found out is because EVERYONE gets the e-mail from her and it's almost pretty much the same seeing her again for everyone). 

Travesty.. 

[GothamLord]

Ninj'd above about seeing Jack.    The best line from that however is refusing to break up with her. 

"God, you make the best mistakes." 

Militarized wrote...

Reading those two chapters was, on a whole, 100% more filling then almost everything Bioware put in besides the initial meeting with Jack. Thank you sir, it stings just a bit less now.

Glad some people are enjoying it.  Given that I will be continuing things after I force myself to turn my game back on and double check a few key points for reference.   Also if I can work out some things with Nightfable I can get some beautiful artwork to go along with the story.  

[spirosz]

Militarized wrote...

I'm very sorry to disappoint you Spiros, the general concensus is that the Grissom Academy meeting is fine... but yes you only get to see her one more time, no matter how illogical it is. The second meeting is also VERY unfilling and doesn't match up with your meeting with her originally(which we later found out is because EVERYONE gets the e-mail from her and it's almost pretty much the same seeing her again for everyone).

Travesty..

Wow, that's disappointing. ****, at least they did she some development towards her character and what Shepard meant to her (at least during Grissom Academy), so I'm grateful for that.

You think she would want to go up and see him at least for a few moments to embrace their love for each other, even if she doesn't feel comfortable showing it (you can tell she does care for him). I would of expected something similar to the romance scene in ME2, with her coming up to his cabin, but hey, I really loved talking to her on Grissom and I'm enjoying the story a lot right now.

I knew going into the game that Bioware was going to neglect the ME2 cast to some extent. If I was in their position, I would of made it so your LI (regardless if they were ME1 or ME2) is with you at a certain point throughout the game, but goes back to doing what they were originally, so Jack goes back to being committed to her students and biotics in general.

Modifié par spiros9110, 10 mars 2012 - 12:41 .

[Militarized]

spiros9110 wrote...

Militarized wrote...

I'm very sorry to disappoint you Spiros, the general concensus is that the Grissom Academy meeting is fine... but yes you only get to see her one more time, no matter how illogical it is. The second meeting is also VERY unfilling and doesn't match up with your meeting with her originally(which we later found out is because EVERYONE gets the e-mail from her and it's almost pretty much the same seeing her again for everyone).

Travesty..

Wow, that's disappointing. ****, at least they did she some development towards her character and what Shepard meant to her (at least during Grissom Academy), so I'm grateful for that.

You think she would want to go up and see him at least for a few moments to embrace their love for each other, even if she doesn't feel comfortable showing it (you can tell she does care for him). I would of expected something similar to the romance scene in ME2, with her coming up to his cabin, but hey, I really loved talking to her on Grissom and I'm enjoying the story a lot right now.

I knew going into the game that Bioware was going to neglect the ME2 cast to some extent. If I was in their position, I would of made it so your LI (regardless if they were ME1 or ME2) is with you at a certain point throughout the game, but goes back to doing what they were originally, so Jack goes back to being committed to her students and biotics in general.

Well wait till you finish the game and see if you still enjoy it. I won't spoil it but.... yeah. 

They put a lot of development time into new characters... that I honestly didn't even really talk or pay attention to. Some lame jarhead who made a mistake, some reporter from IGN who you actually can have a fling with.. Kellys replacement(no real reason for that). That's probably what irks me the most, why create NEW characters when they're are enough from ME2 that are so cherished? 

[GothamLord]

The only new character that made sense and that I enjoyed ...slightly was Cortez. Vega was forced. Traynor was forced and totally not needed if Kelly survived. Her job could have been handled by EDI. Especially seeing as they felt the need to shove her into a Cerberus Assassin Sexbot body. I dont even want to think about the damn pointless reporter crap. So much wasted pointless effort.

[fainmaca]

I've yet to play ME3, so I've been dodging spoilers a lot, but I've picked up on a few things about Jack's appearance in ME3 that are cheesing me off and making me rage against the writing staff in general for their treatment of the franchise.

I did see someone asking to be pointed towards any good Jack material out there in the fandom, so i thought I'd post links to everything I know about.

First, Things Whispered In The Dark by Stephensmat. An excellent Jack fic, at least at the start. Still in progress, so hopefully more Good Jack stuff to come.

Second, Our Love Is Problematic by Finn Solomon. Yet another great piece.

Third, The Son Of Mindoir, by Sundown Native. An Excellent piece that gets up close and personal between Shepard and Jack.

Fourth, and my personal favourite, Things Worth Keeping, by Urdaniel. Sadly unfinished, but what is there is the highest quality fic I have ever read, and one of the few fics I read before being inspired to write my own. I'd credit this fic with motivating me to commit to my own long-term fic. Even in its unfinished state, I'd highly recommend it.

Another one by Sundown Native, Cost is a short fic, but very emotional, very powerful.

If I Die and Big Mistake by Loup Der Mer are two more excellently written stories.

Finally, if I may, I'd like to point out two fics I've written that have a heavy Jack focus to them. The first is Ink, a short chapter dealing with the origin of one of Jack's tattoos. This fic has actually been read by the lovely Courtenay Taylor, and she was very complimentary of it.

The second fic I want to direct your attention to is my flagship story, Into The Unknown. This fic is what I started writing just over a year ago, my interpretation of how Mass Effect 3 should be done. It deals with a Jackmance Shepard, generally a Paragon. Obviously, the story is about the Reaper war, so the Jack romance is not given the front seat in the story, but is rather woven into the background of the narrative, mentioned here and there as it should be in the actual games. I have a few Jack moments I particularly like, such as during Chapter 7, at the end of Chapter 8, and my personal favourite in Chapter 37. I'd really love to hear your thoughts on these, as I've always viewed myself as a Jackolyte, so I do consider you my peers in the fanbase.

Anyway, hopefully anyone looking for fanfiction about our favourite biotic can find something in one of those.

Fainmaca Out.

Modifié par fainmaca, 10 mars 2012 - 02:15 .

[fainmaca]

P.s. If anyone would like to read it, I could extract all the shipboard Jack conversations from the fic and post them here with a little explanation of surrounding events.

Modifié par fainmaca, 10 mars 2012 - 02:18 .

[Premier Bromanov]

Awesome, fainmaca. Thanks a lot. I was going to go through the old Jack thread and find all the fic I could, but I think this is all of it. I remember all of this. Time to start reading.

[Militarized]

Thank you so much fainmaca! Maybe I can put this desire to rest with some of this.

[fainmaca]

Decided to post my favourite excerpt from the fic. Please judge away!

~o~0~o~
Shepard nodded with satisfaction before turning to leave. As he exited the Cargo Hold, his soft smile dropped, his eyes resting on the door to the right. He paused for a moment, bracing himself, before stepping through and turning again to begin the descent to the Engineering sub-deck.

The red-lit section of the ship was deathly silent, few if any of the crew having the courage to actually come down here. In fact, Shepard had a hard time recalling ever seeing anyone else down here after Jack moved in.

In just a moment, he'd clambered down the stairs and walked out into the open space before Jack's 'quarters', his pace slowing. There she sat, cross-legged on her bed with her favourite shotgun balanced across her lap, a variety of cleaning chemicals placed carefully next to her while she performed some kind of gun maintenance. As he approached, her gaze flickered up.

The change was instant. Where one moment she had been relaxed, focused on the task at hand, the next she was on her feet, the shotgun discarded, the chemicals spilling onto the floor. Her face twisted with rage, eyes narrowed while her brow furrowed.

"What the **** do you think you're doing down here?" It was less of a question and more of an instruction to leave. Shepard was not cowed, even though his survival instincts were yelling at him to get the hell back up those stairs.

"I came to talk to you." He said calmly.

"You'll be ****ing lucky. Get out."

"Jack, please. You've got to-"

"I don't have to do a damn thing! We had him right there! He was sitting at the end of my shotgun, waiting to die, and then you let. Him. Go. I should have known you'd **** me over, just like everyone else!"

"I had very good reasons for letting him live, Jack. We need Cerberus to-"

"Bull****! They're all twisted bastards, ****ing with people's lives just cause they can." She looked away, blinking rapidly. "And now they're just going to keep on doing the same old ****. We had a chance to end it, and you ****ed it all up!"

"Jack, killing the Illusive Man would have fixed nothing." Shepard tried to take a step forward, but a sudden blue barrier flared up between him and the biotic. "It wouldn't make things any easier going forward."

"It would for me! We're always worrying about what's good for the Galaxy, but what about what's good for me? That ***hole stole my childhood. He paid to have me turned into a weapon. Then, when he had the chance, he got me back on the operating table to **** around with my biotics some more!" Her head snapped around to face him. "And now you try to tell me that killing him wouldn't solve anything? Don't you dare. Don't you ****ing dare!"

"Jack, without The Illusive Man, Cerberus would fall under Banes' control. Do you really want to gamble that that's a better outcome?"

"We should have taken the chance!"

"Damnit, Jack!" Shepard's voice cracked with frustration. Was this really what Sha'ira had meant? "We've got to think about millions of lives, not just our own! Do you really want to risk all those deaths just for petty revenge?"

There was an icy silence, during which Shepard's brain fully caught up with his mouth. Had he really just called Jack's legacy of torment 'petty'? The stricken look on her face said it all.

"So that's what you think? That's what you really think about all the **** I've gone through? Petty?" She looked away, a trickle of black running from the corners of her eyes as her make-up began to run. "I should have known. I'm just another project to you, right? Just another ****ed-up person who needs the godly Commander Shepard to come rescue them from their own problems."

"Jack, that's not- I didn't mean-"

"Get out." The voice was flat, calm. She didn't even look over her shoulder as she said it.

"I thought we loved-"

"Don't even try it. What we had is finished, in the past. 'Cause that's the worst thing about you. Its what I hate the most about you. You made me vulnerable. I was fine before you showed up. I'd made myself strong. Nothing could get at me, nothing bothered me. Then all it took was for one idiot to come along and get inside and **** me up. You convinced me to give you a part of myself, and now just looking at you hurts. I hate that feeling. I hate being weak. But most of all, I hate you. Now leave. Get out of here and leave me the **** alone."

That last sentence was so full of venom Shepard felt himself take a step back, a shaft of pain spearing through his chest. He struggled to open his mouth for a moment, then tentatively reached out towards her with his hand.

"Jack, please-"

"I said GET OUT!"

She spun, the warning flare of her biotics coming too late for Shepard to pick up on the danger. A biotic push, more powerful than almost anything he had seen her pull off, roared towards him, picking Shepard up bodily and hurling him into the bulkhead behind where he had been standing. Metal shrieked around him as several wall panels were ripped from their fastenings. One pipe running within the bulkhead ruptured, white steam pouring out in a choking cloud. In the midst of this carnage, Shepard groaned as white fire raced up his spine, his body's implants kicking in to supply Medi-Gel and painkillers. The roar from the attack shot through the ship, felt even in the hangar within which the Normandy was being housed. Overhead, Grunt's heavy footsteps could be heard rapidly approaching, as well as the mechanical whine of Legion's internal gyros. The crew gathered on the Crew Deck all released sounds of fright and confusion as chairs fell over, food spilled across Rupert's counter and Crewman Hadley was tipped out of his bunk. On the Command Deck, Mordin let out a dismayed yelp as the test tubes of volatile liquids he was working with jumped, spilling over his lab coat and immediately starting to eat away at the white material. In the armoury, Jacob and Garrus reflexively reached for the nearest gun they could find.

Jack's face hitched a little, betraying her surprise at the power of the attack. She took a reflexive step towards the Commander, hand reaching out anxiously, but then her face hardened as she spun away, retreating into the darkness of the sub-deck.

"Jack…" Shepard struggled hoarsely. He managed to rise onto his elbows, but found that his legs fought him as he tried to stand.

Moments later, Grunt, Legion, Zaeed, Ken and Gabby raced down the stairs, swiftly followed by Kaidan, Miranda, Jacob and Garrus. In seconds, the small area beside Jack's 'quarters' was filled with anxious bodies, all clustering around Shepard. This was more traffic than the area had seen in the entirety of the previous year, but none present looked around to find Jack, all focusing on their Commander.

"Shepard! What happened?" Miranda demanded.

"Just an accident…" Shepard winced as a cough brought a twinge of pain to his chest. His second-in-command placed a restraining hand on his shoulder.

"Stay still, Commander." She ordered in a tone that brooked no argument. She scanned him with her omnitool. "Three broken ribs, hairline fractures in all four limbs, cracked skull, fractures in two separate places in the lower jaw, significant internal bruising, but no bleeding…" She paused to look into his eyes. "Possible concussion, too. Grunt, Zaeed, I need you to carry him up to the elevator. Carefully. EDI, inform Doctor Chakwas that she has a new patient."

"At once, Miss Lawson." The AI answered.

"Good. The rest of you, back to your posts. I'll let Liara's techs know they've got a little more work on their hands."

The gathering broke up, the Krogan and the former Bounty Hunter carrying the groaning Commander out before the rest of the impromptu audience filed out. Miranda was the last to leave, stopping to look back into the sub-deck.

"I'm angry too, Jack. But Shepard had no choice in this matter. He didn't deserve that."

She paused, only to receive silence in return. She sighed.

"The worst thing is, this will probably completely fail to put him off. He's that damned stubborn."

Shaking her head, Miranda walked off. From the depths of the darkness of the sub-deck, two glistening eyes watched her carefully, before closing, rendering their owner invisible in the shadows. Moments later, there was a strangled noise, a sharp intake of breath fought against for being a sign of weakness, but nobody was there to hear the smothered sob.
~o~0~o~

[thesnake777]

@ fainmaca
looks good.. Ill check out the full fanfic

[Nightfable]

thesnake777 wrote...

@ fainmaca
looks good.. Ill check out the full fanfic

I'm bookmarking it and will read it from when I am back. Fainmaca, thanks for getting me all giddy.

[Premier Bromanov]

I know a lot of people are dissatisfied with the Jack "romance" in ME3, if you can call it that.  I was asked why I think Jackolytes are dissatisfied, and I explained that it's probably for two reasons. 

First, in retrospect, it makes the ME2 romance seem like an extremely productive fling.  Maybe Jackolytes were hoping for something that would last (same is true of most people who romanced the ME2 LIs).  In ME3, it doesn't outwardly seem that Jack takes her relation to Shepard seriously beyond the physical passion she shows for him.  This is made worse by the "no strings" line, which makes her seem unattached to Shepard except physically.  Didn't we go over this in ME2, by demonstrating to Jack that there's more to intimacy than sex?  Shepard did a lot for her, so does that mean her affection for Shepard got lost in her transformation, or did ME2 not romantically mean as much for her as her fans thought?  I think there's a little more to what Jack says, though, if you read in to it.  The end of the "no strings" line is "But if we get out of this alive..." which seems to indicate that Jack may be hesitant to fully reunite with Shepard because, once again, she's not sure if either of them will make it out of the situation alive.  (Spoiler text, highlight to read) And, since Jack is on Earth at the end of ME3, if you get the "good" ending, Shepard and Jack could finally get that Good End, or, at least, get some time to see if it would work out between them.

Secondly, it's how little the scenes differ between romance and friendship that makes some of us bitter.  Jack isn't straightforward in expressing herself, and she doesn't have an easy time with it. The animators and Ms. Taylor do a great job of harnessing this and putting a lot of meaning in to so little material. Jack got that redesign, though, and she's changed so significantly, but this is all we get?  She's kept away from Shepard for the rest of the game save for a mission, a meeting, and a very brief talk.  That line is so short, and you have to read it in to it, so the entire deal seems incomplete.

Modifié par Premier Bromanov, 10 mars 2012 - 09:21 .

[Militarized]

Hope you were talking to someone important about it Premier haha jking.

I thought of something while browsing the forum... there seems to be an obvious air of dissatisfaction among the ME2 LI's... I am unaware of DLC plans for Mass Effect 3. Did they say there would be any? If so.. I can imagine all the ME2 LI's being added to with DLC just to make us fork over to see what hapens with our preferred LI for our shepard.