Commander Shepard's brother invents new indoctrination tech

The Reaper War was over. Had been for a few years, actually. The galaxy was still recovering from the nearly all-exterminating event, which had left many planets in ruins. There was so much rubble to shift through.

For starters, with the huge amount of loss of life and the wrecked buildings, it was difficult to rebuild. Luckily the cooperation between al races hadn’t vanished like many cynics had predicted. It was a surprise to be sure, but a pleasant one. Grudges were finally settled; krogan and turians, humans and batarians, geth and quarians, and so on. Speaking of which, thank the heavens for the geth. They were essential in rebuilding the mass effect relays, as well as regular buildings. Progress was slow, but that was to be expected.

Another consequence of the war was the economy. Not even the volus could magically restore the galactic market, and thus it would take a while before they could bring commerce back to pre-war levels. They even needed to rely on the Terminus Systems; something which many had never thought to come to pass, and even less so when Aria T’Loak – resident pirate queen – agreed to help out. Then again, pirates could hardly raid trade routes when there were none to speak of.

Lastly, there was politics. Earth’s government had been destroyed right off the bat when the war started. Harbinger and his fellow Reapers had swooped in, broken through Alliance fleets and destroyed Arcturus Station, which used to house parliament. As such, leadership had fallen on the shoulders of the admiralty and councilor Udina, but the latter turned traitor and was rid of later on. Suffice to say that administrative work was at an all-time low.

Things could have been worse though. They could have fallen to the Reapers, and become either the new Collectors in preparation of the next Cycle, or building materials for new Reapers. Picking up the pieces after such a war seemed much more preferable.

And it was all because of one person; commander Jane Shepard.

As the first human spectre, she’d been instrumental in defeating the Reapers. Ever since the Eden Prime conflict she’d fought them wherever possible. It was safe to say that the redhead had carved her legacy into galactic history, and that her name would be spoken with awe and reverence. Most people knew of how the Normandy and its crew were the spearhead of allied coalition. All legendary figures, like Garrus Vakarian, Urdnot Wrex, Liara T’Soni, Tali Zorah Vas Normandy – and so on.

They owed their lives to these people. But most of all, to the commander who had made all of this possible; the survival of organic life. Without the sacrifices made by the Normandy crew, they’d be Reaper slaves.

And of course, Shepard and her crew were justly rewarded. Garrus Vakarian was one of the most important Turian leader, as were Urdnot Wrex and Tali Zorah. The former was the new chieftain of Tuchanka, while the latter took the position of fleet admiral in the new Rannochian Republic. None of the other surviving crew members went without their dues though.

Commander Jane Shepard, who had barely survived the final battle and the destruction of the Citadel, had been promoted to the rank of admiral. A huge leap for one person. But as fleet admiral Hacket had told everyone during the ceremony; ‘Shepard is the only damn reason why we’re still alive, and managed to bring us together when many sulked over past grievances’. Besides, with how much Alliance leadership was lost during the way, no one objected to inviting such an accomplished officer into the ranks of the admiralty.

Meanwhile, John Shepard, her younger brother, worked behind a desk for the newly reorganized Apex Corporation – owned by Miranda Lawson.

To be fair, he wasn’t exactly a warrior; or a pilot; an information broker; a politician. He was just a simple engineer/scientist. But one who had worked his ass off for the Crucible project, and had supported his sister during her missions before. He’d been the one to supply her with expensive weaponry and armor, as well as gadgets and other useful information. No one cared for background figures though.

What stung the most was how little his family cared. He’d given Jane his best work, while also helping her with various problems during her career, and yet she barely talked to him. Too busy for her little brother. John knew she didn’t put real effort into their relationship, because otherwise he’d hear of her more often. But that wasn’t the sole reason for their behavior towards each other.

He was jealous of her – simple as that.

Jane always received praise for what she did, just because she was a commander. The Shepard family came from a long line of military service, and their parents were no different. Hell, their mother was an admiral too. But their father sadly died during the Skyllian Blitz; killed by Batarian raiders. Damn monsters.

Still, that made John a bit of a black sheep. He wasn’t a good soldier, and never really showed interest in becoming one. He became an accomplished engineer instead. He’d worked for various companies, learning what he could from machines to weapons. The famous N7 Valkyrie combat rifle was in fact one of his creations. However, it wasn’t like actually wielding the damn thing and shooting bad guys. And thus his efforts were mildly appreciated by his mother.

Whereas Jane was receiving tons of medals, even today. Oh, mom was too busy running a ship to meet up with her son, but whenever his sister had an award ceremony it was all hands on deck. Didn’t turn up when he received an award for a new medi-gel dispenser though.

But John didn’t hate them. On the contrary; he loved his family dearly. Maybe a bit too much, admittedly. He’d be lying if he said that he sometimes didn’t steal a glance at Jane’s tight ass, or his mom’s huge MILF breasts. Being in the Alliance apparently meant free access to enhancements that gave you a killer body – both literally and figuratively.

However, he was tired of being a nobody. John desired to be someone important. As cliché as it sounded, he wanted power for himself and accomplish great things. Even if that meant using others. Jane’s morals didn’t really apply to him, since he was willing to get his hands dirty. All he needed was an opportunity.

Like a job offer from Miranda Lawson, owner of the newly reorganized Apex Corporation that used to belong to her father, for example.

-

“John, can you take another look at the specs of the class 8 Kirsten terminal? I sent it to you by mail. Really sorry for making you work this late, but we need to approve these plans as soon as possible.”

“No problem, miss Lawson. It’ll be done by tomorrow.”

Shepard smiled friendly at his boss, who returned the gesture with gratitude. They were the only ones left inside the building, aside from a few janitors and security guards. It was already past ten, for heaven’s sake. But he didn’t have anyone waiting for him at home anyway. The work wasn’t hard either.

“I’ll admit, I was skeptical when Jane told me you’d be perfect for this position.” Miranda said, turning around to grab a datapad from the coffee table. His office was rather spacious, and included both a couch and small table for comfort. “But this is one of those moment’s I’m glad that I’m wrong. Come to think of it, you Shepards have a knack for exceeding my expectations.”

John chuckled. “Don’t think I’m some sort of miracle worker. That’s a role I’ll leave to my big sis, thank you very much. But you’re welcome. I rather like working here, for you.”

Being compared to Jane was a bit annoying, but he was used to it. His mind was paying attention anyway. Instead, he glimpsed the attractive ravenette bending over, which gave a nice view of her perfect bubble butt. Her uniform wasn’t like the standard office outfit; she wore a tight-fitting catsuit. Apparently that was one of her favorite looks. Not that he complained, when it highlighted all of her sinful curves.

“Well, glad to hear it. Working under my father would have been a whole different experience.”

Ah, yes. The infamous Henry Lawson, who’d previously owned this prestigious company. A man who’d joined Cerberus during the war. Apparently he hadn’t been on good terms with his biologically engineered daughter, seeing as their last reunion resulted in the man being biotically thrown out of a window, and falling to his ****.

Miranda was doing a fine job managing the family business though. She’d reorganized what little assets were left after the conflict, and brought the company back from the brink of failure. Now it was on the forefront of earth’s recovering economy. She controlled everything from here – the Sydney HQ. It was one of the less destroyed cities, making it a good place for companies to settle down. There were a few other complexes around the glove, like in Europe and North America. But even beyond the Sol system too.

Their work was mainly aimed towards helping the galaxy recover, while making enough profit to expand and maintain themselves. Which is why they had a hand in multiple markets; armor; ships; electronics; and so on. Miranda was lucky to have good contacts because of her time aboard the Normandy.

“Then I’m glad that won’t ever happen. Are you planning on going back home soon?” He asked.

“In a few minutes, yes.” Miranda nodded. She looked rather tired. “It’s been a long day, and I’ll be having a meeting with the Quarians tomorrow. We’ll be discussing an exchange program, which should get us some of their engineers for our robotics department.”

“Oh, that’s good news. Quarians have a knack for that kind of stuff, after all.”

His boss smirked. “True. Don’t get started on the Geth though. It’s still a sore subject for them, despite the peace treaty.”

She walked over to his desk where he was sat, causing her ample chest to bounce slightly. The catsuit prevented them from swaying too much, but it was inevitable with how busty she was. The perfect human indeed.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” John said. “Now, I don’t mean to be rude, but you did ask me to work overtime. Can’t really do that in such good company.”

“You absolute dork. But fine; don’t let me distract you any further. I’ll see you later, John.” Miranda waved her goodbye as she left, her heels clacking on the floor.

He waited a few more minutes. Only when she was officially gone did he open his drawer, retrieving a small box.

How unfortunate for her that he wasn’t being a model subordinate just for the sake of being nice. Being alone on the top floor, with easy access to her office, was exactly what he had hoped for. These past two months he’d worked hard for an opportunity like this. Miranda did not trust easily, even when your sister had saver her life before. But now he’d finally reached that stage.

John opened the small container, and retrieved a small orb. It was colored a dark blue, which bordered on being black. Only the size of a pebble. The young man regarded the device as he linked it to his terminal.

He hadn’t been idle since the end of the war. John still had his goal to accomplish, no matter the cost. He desired power above all else, and this little toy was going to help him get it. The orb-shaped machine was something that many would take issue with, however, seeing as it was based on Reaper tech.

See, John knew people. The kind that remained in the background like he did, doing shady stuff that you didn’t want to bring to the authorities’ attention. Through one of such connections he’d made over the years, John managed to get in contact with what remained of Cerberus. The infamous terrorist organization wasn’t gone at all – far from it. There were still many military officers, politicians and other fanatics loyal to the Illusive Man’s vision, even when the man himself was gone.

Convincing them that he could help restore the organization to its former glory hadn’t been easy though. Only after several tests, which might have included supplying them with intel on a resources shipment meant for the Alliance, did they welcome him with open arms. John saw them as an opportunity, similar to Miranda. What better way to gain power than to become such an organization’s leader?

At least, that was the idea.

We don’t have as many resources as TIM did. Hell, we’re basically starting from scratch. John thought to himself as he checked the coding of the orb. He’d done this several times already at home, but this was too important. Few people support what’s left of Terra Nova, since the other races helped save earth. Xenophobia is at an all-time low. We’re **** to work with whatever is left right now.

Leadership was an issue too. With such scarce resources and funding, there were many who tried to claim the Illusive Man’s seat through political games. This resulted in unnecessary infighting. If Cerberus were to make a proper comeback, they’d need someone who could bring order, and act as a ‘public’ figure.

John intended to fulfill that role. He was also certain that TIM would laugh at the irony of his archnemesis’ brother taking his place.

But for that he needed Miranda and her company, which would be impossible. She had abandoned and helped demolish Cerberus. At least, if he hadn’t come up with a solution for her change of mind.

The male Shepard turned off his terminal, and left the office. The hallways were dimly lit as he walked to where Miranda’s office was. Luckily, there were no colleagues that could catch him red-handed. That part of the plan was going smoothly. And with the surveillance jamming tech on him, even Miranda’s security measures were rendered useless.

Despite Cerberus’ fall, its legacy was left intact. Which included TIM’s intel on how Reaper indoctrination worked. John had eagerly accessed the files on the Reapers’ most powerful asset when the surviving members had welcomed him, happy to have someone like him in the organization. Turned out Cerberus had cracked the secrets behind the mind control technique during the end of the war; partially because of Henry Lawson. By emitting an energy field similar to a signal, the Reapers had been able to influence people’s minds. The knowledge on how to make it work was made available by Cerberus scientists, who were now dead. How none of the remaining members had thought of using this was beyond John’s comprehension.

Still, the intel he acquired was essential for creating his own indoctrination device. It had taken months to get it working, and now he could finally deploy it.

John entered his boss’ office, knowing that any spyware she’d installed would be nullified. It was a large room, with glass walls to give a view of the city. It was decorated luxuriously. Miranda was not the type to hide her own wealth. But what he wanted was her desk, or rather the underside. He approached the expensive piece of furniture, before attaching the small orb to it.

This device was what he had come up with; a tiny machine that could project the same indoctrination field as the Reapers, with pre-programmed commands that he’d written. When activated, anyone in a two meter radius would be subjected to slow yet meticulous brainwashing. Originally he wanted to create something that would work faster, but John lacked both the resources and equipment to do so. Even the black market was left in shambles after the war.

This remained the perfect way to enslave Miranda though. Not only would he prove himself to Cerberus, and provide them with the resources necessary to rebuild and become its leader in the process; he’d also gain a sexy woman. One that was completely loyal, and willing to do whatever he asked of her.

John left the office that night with great expectations.