[Book Four] Chapter 56: This is the end

[Book Four] Chapter 56: This is the endChapter 56: This is the end



Mass slaughter.



That was the perfect definition of what happened to the fleeing Ketts forces. As Team Chaos landed right in the middle of the enemy troops, the latter couldn’t help the friendly fire when they all focused on the former. Thankfully the tank had very good shields and rampaged for a while.

Rick, who had been on foot, was charging right and left, swinging his lightsaber to which he had extended the blade to a good six feet. Every armored vehicle he landed on was quickly rendered un-operational. The team was soon supported by Jane and Samara from the air. After half an hour of fighting, reinforcements came from the other area and the Ketts were promptly dealt with.

At the end of the day, the entire region the operation took place in was under the councilian army’s control. It wasn’t much land wise, barely half the size of Texas but the army had taken root and pulling them away would have been difficult for the Ketts.



Team Ghost had succeeded in their mission too. Their third target may not have contained the Ketts’ new weapon or its schematics but they got its location, along the location of the Ketts’ top brass. Both were in the same place, a very densely populated area. That was fine with everyone since the objective was to make the Ketts extinct, the attack had been swift and violent. Furthermore, the Ketts civilization was almost nonexistent, there was no freedom and a very strict hierarchy. All Ketts were soldiers and nothing else as if they were mindless drones. Everything pointing to a healthy civilization was absent like school or anything related to entertainment... If not for their strange ‘religion’ they couldn’t even be classified as a civilization.



After his stunt with the tank, Rick had been severely reprimanded by his loved ones and teammates. Even by Wrex. Though when the news of what Team Chaos did spread like wildfire the morale rose dramatically among the councilian species ranks. The Ketts were in total panic however as the ‘immortal demon’ had landed on their planet and was wreaking havoc.

A month after the beginning of the invasion. Team Normandy pulled through and succeeded in stealing every single bit of data and knowledge the Ketts had. Their new weapon was less of a weapon but more of a new source of energy coming from the planet’s core. They did plan to create a weapon capable of destroying the Gaeia but the council’s attack had been too fast to do anything more than to build ten percent of it. With the data in hands, the order to evacuate the planet was given and in less than a day only what was left of the Ketts remained. As such, Hackett ordered the Gaea to fire its main cannon, while the rest of the fleet took the conduit to get back to the Cassiopeia, the point of ralliement. It took three shots to break the crust of the planet and a fourth to badly damage its core. Five minutes afterwards and the Ketts’ homeworld exploded.



The war was over.



Everyone rejoiced at the victory and the end of the conflict, especially the Salarian since six years represented fifteen percent of their lifespan. After the celebrations, medal awards and everything that happens when a war is won, happened. Soldiers went home. Steven Hackett stepped down from his position of Admiral of the councilian fleet and recommended Victus as his successor. A recommendation that was accepted by the council almost unanimously, though Rick was pretty sure that Wrex didn’t vote for Victus just to annoy him personally and knowing that the turian would be elected for the position nonetheless. Stepping down wasn’t the only thing that Hackett did. He officially retired from the alliance navy and was celebrated as one of the greatest heroes of humanity, along with the Shepards, mother and daughter and Jon Grissom. At Anderson and Kahlee’s request he made a few appearances at Celeste Academy over the years to teach a class or two to the young students in the military division.



He wasn’t the only one to retire officially. As she already stepped down in favor of Ashley to lead the forces on the ground for the final assault, Hannah Shepard was free to do whatever she wanted. It consisted mainly in spending time with her children at their home on a colonized planet (the one where Jane took Rick for their retreat) and visiting her grandchildren and great grandchildren.



Jane and Rick retired for good and decided that if there was another war they’d sit it out. Once settled down, they decided to get a bit serious about their music band. For nearly thirty years they played all kinds of songs from all kinds of genres. New ones, written by Rick or very old ones, no matter the species. They were not the most popular in the sense they had a huge hard core fan base; they were the most known however because their music touched all species and the young like the old. You could ask anyone to name a song from the band and they would answer with at least one.

While music had helped Rick greatly there were times where he was simply disconnected from the world. His eyes unfocused, looking far away and his mind oblivious to anything happening around. Jane simply let him be for a while until he came back from wherever he went. He never really recovered from his many resurrections but at least the burning anger he had inside of him because of the Ketts had faded away.



Time passed, the children got older and for most settled down near their parents as they became themselves grandparents. The quiet area where Jane and Rick had built their big house, not far from the small wooden cabin they still used from time to time, had been worked upon and each of the children had a house and a garden on their own. In a way they had made a very small and quiet village. They weren’t the only ones. Kahlee and Anderson had settled there too and after getting tired of Earth, so did Hackett who was often visited by his family, especially Helena who finally came to live with him when she, herself, retired too.



Kahlee had retired when she reached the venerable age of one hundred and ten. Her departure had been a massive affair and many alumni came to pay their respect to the woman who made sure that not only their education but their life was the best under the roof of her Academy. She cried a bit when during her parting ceremony a statue of her had been revealed at the entrance of the main building. She left with a light heart as Liara had been chosen as her successor. A choice made by Rick through Sandra (as she was the one owning the academy since she took control of the company) and that had been wholly accepted and supported by all members of the staff (not like they had a say in her appointment anyway). Of course Anderson had followed his wife.

He was replaced by Matthew to everyone’s surprise. At sixty three and father of four daughters (he did marry Amelia Williams after all), Jane and Rick’s son had reached the rank of rear admiral and wanted a change of scenery. The post of overseer and teacher at Celeste was the perfect opportunity and he got the job thanks to his impeccable years of service most notably during the war against the Ketts.



It was on the first morning of Summer break of the year 2288 that he received a call from his eldest brother.



“Hey, Adam! What’s up?”

“You need to come home asap. Take Aunt Liara with you.”

“Why? What’s wrong?” the graying man asked in worry not missing the distress in his brother’s voice.

“It’s dad. I think... I think he’s dying.”

“What?! Are you sure?”

“Nothing is certain, Arianna is doing some tests but... it’s not good.”

“What’s wrong with him?” Matthew inquired as he had already turned around and entered the main building to fetch his aunt and wife.

“We don’t know, as I said Arianna is running tests, we’ll know more soon.”

“Alright, I’m on my way to pick Auntie and Amelia up, we’ll be there soon.”



As he exited the elevator to the penthouse, he nearly bumped into his wife and Liara. They had suitcases in their hands, clearly ready to leave.



“Let’s go.” was all he said and they all went down to his ship.

“Any news?” inquired Amelia.

“No. Adam just told me that Arianna was searching but found nothing yet. Who told you?”

“I did.” said Liara with a zen expression on her face but if one would pay attention they would see the worry in her eyes. “Your mother called me and I immediately came up and told Amelia when I saw her.



Matthew nodded and they quickly reached his ship. Thanks to the Celeste being not far away from a Mass Relay and the regular speed of the latest EVA having greatly improved in sixty years, they were home in less than fifteen minutes. Just as they disembarked, another EVA landed right next to them, revealing Aezzia and Aria. Hugging them both, and exchanging information about Rick, which revealed nothing, they made their way inside and were welcomed by Adam.

All the family was there, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, wives and husbands. The only one of the family missing was Hannah that had passed away two years earlier of old age, Arianna and Sandra.



“Sandra is with dad. Arianna is in her lab.” Adam said just as Jane, followed by Ashley, came from the side and gave a rib crushing hug to Matthew with a tear stricken face.

“Mom! So good to see you.”

“Oh Matt. Your dad is...”

“Adam told me that dad was... Ari is still searching but what’s wrong with him exactly?”

“We don’t...”

“His body reached its limit.” Ariana interrupted her mother as she came into the living room.

“What do you mean? It’s dad! His body is stronger than a krogan.”

“I meant exactly what I said.” replied his big sister as she sat down on a couch. “His body has reached its limit. It’s old age.”

“But dad is not even a hundred and thirty!” contradicted Leeha.

“He has like... twenty more years before reaching the average life...”

“It’s because of his time away between 2220 and 2223.” Arianna explained, interrupting the twins. “Dad... he died a lot back then and the nanobots? Well, they fixed him up and brought him back but the damage was done. Each time he came back put a strain on his cells. Sure, the nanobots fixed them, it’s... How can I explain... We have a predetermined number of cells we can produce in total during our life. It’s an almost infinite amount. Almost. Meaning one day, cells will stop being produced and deteriorate with each new one. Each time dad came back...”

“The number of cells decreased immensely because it needed to create a whole lot of new ones in a hurry?” asked JJ.

“Yes. That’s why dad’s state is so sudden.” answered Arianna.

“Sudden? How sudden?” inquired Aezzia.

“Dad began to show symptoms of advanced old age almost a week ago.”

“How long?” Aria, who had been silent until now, asked.

“... Hours. I don’t think dad will see the sun rise tomorrow.” Arianna replied as she began to silently cry.



The revelation floored everyone. Aria didn’t let herself be pulled down by the news. Immediately she moved toward the stairs and climbed them. Reaching the last floor she went directly to the master bedroom. When she entered she saw her granddaughter sitting on the side of the bed, holding Rick’s hands and doing her very best to not break down in tears.

The last time she had seen her son was at Hannah’s funeral, his hair had grayed and he had a few wrinkles here and there. He didn’t look like a man in his hundred and twenties. He didn’t even look eighty. Now, as her eyes laid on him, he looked ancient. A bit emaciated, deep wrinkles everywhere. He looked so weak.



“Pumpkin, you should go downstairs, the family is probably all there.”



Even his voice was weak. The pain that it inflicted on Aria’s heart was unfathomable. The asari watched as her granddaughter kissed Rick and rose from the bed. She gave her a hug and left the room, leaving mother and son alone.



“Sorry.” he said as she came closer and sat down at his side, taking his hand in hers by reflex.

“About?”

“Going before you. Eh, I had a bet on you kicking the bucket before me, guess for once I was wrong.”

“I have a century or two left. Despite what people believe, asari live a bit longer than a millenia.”

“Oh, that’s just cheating! Bet was rigged from the get go!”

“And that’s why I told you to never bet but did you listen? No! Thought yourself too smart to lose a bet.”

“God, I’m dying and you still scold me. Harsh.”

“You’re my son, even if you’d live a hundred years more I’d still scold you.” she replied, her free hand going through his gray hair.

“... I always loved you for that. Love you for so many things.” he confessed while trying and failing to squeeze her hand. “I...made some arrangements for you. Not gonna tell but I’m glad I’d be gone by the time you find out.” he joked.

“Can’t say I can’t wait for it.”

“...”

“...”

“Are you going to be alright? I don’t... I don’t want you to go through that alone again.”

“I’ll be fine. And I’m not alone, Aezzia is with me.”

“Is she? I guess I forgot. Been forgetting a lot of things this past week. Mostly recent events.”

“...”

“Well, you certainly won’t be bored with her around.”

“Don’t I know it.” she replied with a small smile as she thought at all the trouble her youngest granddaughter either found, attracted or created on Omega.

“Did Arianna get some results? I know I don’t have long but...”

“Hours. She doesn’t think you’ll see a new day.”

“Really?” he asked and Aria nodded sadly. “Damn! I’m of a mind to prove her wrong. Eh, I’d do it. I’ll live to see the dawn.”

“I’m not even surprised anymore.” she said with a small chuckle.

“Hey, mom...”

“Yes?” she asked in a tone so soft that no one would believe she was the one who spoke.

“Thank you and... I love you.”

“I love you too.” she replied not pointing out that he already told her so earlier in the conversation.



They stayed like that in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, until the bedroom’s door opened and Adam came in. She leaned forward and kissed his forehead then left.



“Hello, dad.”

“Hey! Deciding to visit your old man today? Good choice, I heard there won’t be any more visits starting tomorrow.”

“I wish there would.” his son replied with sadness in his voice but soldiering up at his father’s humor.

“Honestly? I don’t.” he said, shocking his eldest son.

“You don’t?!”

“Nah. I’ve been ready since... We said our goodbyes on that colony. You know, the one where we met the Ketts for the first time.”

“Shambala.”

“Shambala? Really? Who the hell gave it that stupid name?”

“Don’t know. Doesn’t really matter though, no?”

“You’re right. Who cares.”

“...”

“Anyway... The past sixty years? It’s been both a torture and a blessing. Seeing you all growing up. Yours and your siblings’ children then their children... So much fun, So much happiness. The suicidal moments though, I would have gladly do without. Not so much fun and not so much happiness in those times.”

“I bet.”

“Thankfully you all kept them at bay. I’m really grateful for that. More than you can imagine.”

“...”

“I have... a question for you that... I can’t... I can’t ask anyone else. I can’t ask your sisters, they’re biased. Matthew is a momma’s boy so he’s, in a way, biased too. The twins are... who they are and I’m pretty sure JJ would just give me an answer to make me feel better. But I don’t want to feel better... What I want is the truth and I know that... you’ll give it to me.”

“Why not ask mom or Aunties?”

“They’d be biased too and even if they weren’t, their answer wouldn’t mean anything.”

“Alright... Shoot.”

“Was I... Was I a good father?” Rick inquired in an insecure tone that Adam had never heard from his father’s mouth.



The question surprised Adam a great lot. He didn’t think that his dad would ask that when the answer was so obvious.



“Besides sleeping with your daughters and getting one pregnant three times?”

“... Yeah, I’d figure.”

“You’re the best dad ever. You were always there for us or at least as much as you could. Always ready to do anything for us. You spoiled us but not too much. You taught us to be independant and think for ourselves. You always made sure we understood why we were punished so we wouldn’t do whatever we did again. You gave us lots of freedom and more often than not stood in for mom or Aunties when they were unavailable. I have nothing to complain about and if I did it would be about petty and childish things. Neither do the others.”

“...”

“...”

“Thank you. Ever since Edem Prime... Letting you down has been my greatest fear.”

“You don’t need to be afraid anymore.”

“Of course not, I’m dying tonight or in the next few minutes. No point in being scared.” weakly joked Rick.

“You and your humor...” Adam replied with an amused smile though quite pained.

“What? Did you think I would meet death crying or begging?”

“No. I expected you to outlive us all with how stubborn you are.”

“Your Aunt would say that it’s not stubbornness but determination.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say Arianna is wrong and you’re just a bit under the weather.”

“Oh, she’s wrong though not by much. Just watch, you’ll see.” Rick finally replied with a tired smirk. After a moment of silence, Adam hugged his father tightly. It was maybe for the last time. “Could you send up Sara, please? I’d like a few words with her.”



Adam nodded and left his father. Reaching the first floor he saw the one he was looking for among his sisters, mother and Aunts.



“He looks so tired, so ...”

“Weak.” Sandra said in a whisper doing her best to hold herself up and not break down in front of everyone.

“Yeah and despite that, he has enough strength to joke around as if nothing was wrong.” he said with a sigh. “He wants to talk to you, Sara.”

“Me?” exclaimed in surprise the brunette and got a nod in turn. She left immediately upstairs and Adam turned to his elder sister. “He said you were wrong. Not by much but wrong nonetheless.”

“I took the test a dozen times, Adam.”

“I know but... If there is one thing I learned when he came back to us all those years ago is that if there is someone that can defy expectations it’s dad.”



He looked at his mother with a knowing smile as he said this, remembering the ‘I told you so’ she had given him when his father had been brought back alive. That had been a lesson that he kept close to his heart at all times. For his father, ‘expectation’ was just a word at worst, at best a challenge to overcome proving someone wrong.



Upstairs Sara had entered the master bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed, taking Rick’s hand in hers.



“The record shows I took the blows and did it my way. Yes, it was my way.”



The final frame was of Rick smiling peacefully, his head resting on EDI’s shoulder and the sun illuminating his face. There wasn’t a dry eye in the audience, even Wrex shed a few tears for a friend who did so much for him and his people, though he would deny it and say something got into his eye. On his tombstone a simple epitaph could be read. One that Arianna had promised to put years ago.



Best husband and father ever.



Afterwards, the transmission was stopped and those who were not family or really close friends took their leave. A big open tent had been pitched up with food and music. Rick had asked that they celebrate his life rather than his passing, just like they did for Legion on Rannoch. Despite the sadness of the event there was a good atmosphere, people were talking and laughing about a thing Rick had said or done here and there.



“It was a beautiful commemorative video, EDI. The edit was really well done.” said Anderson.

“Thank you.”

“I’m sure he would have loved it.” commented Kahlee with red eyes, from crying.

“Especially the part with the fish smacking him in the face. Pure comedy gold.” added Joker making everyone chuckle.

“Can’t wait for the entire biopic.” Steve said.

“Oh, yeah! I wouldn’t mind watching it despite not being my kind of movie.” replied James.

“I don’t know, I never thought about it before. I’ll have to see with everyone.”

On the side three middle aged women parted away from the crowd and entered their grandmothers’ home in search of their own mother. They found her breaking down in tears on the couch hugging their aunt who was in a similar state while being watched over by their eldest uncle.

“... Can’t believe he held on just to prove me wrong.” they heard their aunt say between sobs and a laugh.

“That’s dad for you.”

“Girls, could you...” Adam began as he saw his nieces but was cut off by Erica.

“I’m sorry uncle but we need answers and it cannot wait.”

“Not anymore.” added Mira-Jen, Sandra's second daughter.

“Grandpa was our father, was he?” Orianna, their little sister blurted.



That took Adam, Arianna and Sandra for a spin out of shock. The former sighed in surrender.



“I’ll keep everyone out.”

“Keep an eye on Jane and Rick for me will you? I need to have a conversation with them.” Arianna asked as Adam left the room with a nod.

“Will do.”

“About how they’re way too much like dad and your mom?” said Sandra, drying her tears with a tissue and passing it to Arianna.

“Yeah... I swear they’re just like their namesakes. Born in the same year a hundred years apart too, same appearance, same... Everything.”

“They are your grandchildren, it’s surprising it skipped two generations.”

“““Mom!”” shouted her impatient daughters.

“Alright. Yes, he was. You all looked too much like him for him not to be, especially you, Erica.” answered Sandra and before her daughters could say a single word explained the Shepard family’s dynamics with Arianna’s help.

____________________________________________________________



While the small party celebrating Rick’s life was going on, one person was away from the crowd. Looking silently at the simple tombstone of the one she had loved the most her entire life with tears falling slowly down her cheeks. Her mind was a mess. She didn’t know what to do with herself anymore with Rick’s passing. She always thought that she would go before him and she had been proven wrong. Worse than her jumbled mind was her shattered heart. She felt a void, and emptiness that she never really felt before in her life. Not when they were separated in their youth, not when he disappeared for three years in Andromeda. The time when he was dead but in recovery under the Lazarus project had been the worst but it didn’t come close to how she was feeling right now. That hole in her chest was like a gaping wound. Bleeding profusely with no way to close and heal. And the more time passed, the more she felt herself go. The truth was simple.

Rick died and she died with him.

She briefly wondered if this was how he felt when he lost Analysse but quickly dismissed the thought. Rick had died of old age, Analysse by his own hands, there was no real comparison to make.



“Jane?”



Turning around, Jane Shepard saw Miranda and Jennifer a few feet away walking towards her with worry. She didn’t say anything, she just... looked. The married couple’s worry increased. They have never seen Jane cry before. She hasn’t done it for her mother though the sadness and the pain of loss had been evident on her face at the time. To see her cry now, was mind boggling. They didn’t know what to say. What words would bring comfort to someone that, as far as they knew, never needed it? Fortunately for them, it was Jane that broke the silence.

“Would you be okay with... With me being buried here?”

Her simple question, full of implications, shocked her friends. Miranda’s facial features barely moved but the disbelief in her eyes was obvious and couldn’t be missed. Jennifer on the other hand was an open book, her mouth opened, her eyes grew wide and her eyebrows rose up to her hairline.

“Of... Of course.” Jennifer stammered. “You’re family, Jane. You belong here, with him and with us.”

“Like everyone in the family. His partners, his children and their children and so on.” added Miranda.

“We could make a private graveyard. We certainly can buy the land around and make an estate. More than it already is.”

“...Thank you.” the redhead whispered.

“...”

“...”

“...”

“Jane...”

“I’m alright. Or rather... I’m not alright, no. I’ll never be alright again. And that... That is alright.”

The married couple were confused. They looked at each other, having a silent conversation that didn’t resolve their predicament. Jane turned around to look again at Rick’s grave.

“That is alright because... I don’t have it in me anymore.”

“What is?” inquired Miranda.

“Living.”

“Jane, don’t...”

“I’m not going to take my own life, Jen.” she quickly said to somehow reassure her friend. “But I will not strive to live either because I can't do it anymore. Not without him. Everything that I wanted in life, everything that I dreamed of... I did. With him. And now... Now there is nothing left, nothing... more to do. I’m... in so much pain but I’m content. If I died right this instant, I’d be content. I...”

“You think it’s your time.”



The unexpected voice of Sandra came from behind her mothers. They turned around along with Jane to look at the Miranda look alike. Her eyes red from crying.

“I-I-... I feel the same.”

“Ohhh, Baby.” Miranda said as she took her daughter in her arms for a hug and was soon followed by Jennifer.

“Please don’t say that.” the latter said in sadness.

“I’m sorry, Momma but this is how I feel. I achieved everything I wanted. The one thing I didn’t, was enjoy my retirement with dad. I know it wouldn’t have lasted long. Not with our age gap but that would have been enough. Now... I’ve no goal, no dream to work towards. It’s been like that for a few years.”

“What about the girls?” asked Miranda in what sounded like a plea.

“They just got told that just like they thought Dad was their father and they took it well. They’re grandmothers now. They have their own lives and their own grandchildren to spoil. They don’t need me anymore. And even if they did, I don’t think it would be enough.”

“Sandra...”

“No, Momma. No matter what you say, it won’t change anything. You and mom, you have each other. Aunt Jane and I? We had him and now we don’t.”

Her mothers didn’t know what to say. Hearing that their baby girl was ready to go to the afterlife was not something that any parents wanted to hear. It was Jane that broke the tension and silence with dark and morbid humor.

“I was thinking of granite for my tombstone and oak for the casket, what do you think?”

““Jane!!”” protested Sandra’s mothers in outrage.

“I think it suits you. It’s simple but solemn.”

“What about you? Do you have any ideas already?”

“You know me, Auntie. I’m more of a queen than anything so Marble for the tombstone and mahogany for the casket.”

Rick’s second daughter extracted herself from her mothers’ embrace and went to Jane, taking her arm in hers and dragging her away.

“That’s going to cost a fortune!” the redhead replied after giving a whistle.

“It’s not like money is a problem.”

“No, it certainly isn’t.”



Right before Miranda and Jennifer's eyes, they left having the most surreal conversation.

“You know... Nana may need your help right now.”

“With what?” inquired Jane.

“She’s about to talk to your and Dad’s namesakes about their relationship, that somewhat is extremely similar to yours.”

“Really?! Huh, that’s... so weird. Born exactly a hundred years after us, look just like us, and now feel just like us?”

“Yes. It’s like... time is repeating itself. Even their personalities are the same. The difference is...”

“Hannah was not quite like my mother so they never were separated. They just need a push, is that it?”

“Pretty much. They’re struggling with their feelings so badly. Failed relationship after failed relationship. I think knowing about the dynamics of our family could only do them good. Because let’s be honest...”

“They belong together.”

“Just like you and dad.”

“Just like me and your dad.”

Agreeing with each other, they walked towards the house where they saw Arianna dragged her grandchildren for their talk.

‘I guess... In a way, helping them would be helping our past selves. Like it should have been between us from the beginning.’

With this thought, Jane followed Sandra inside.