Chapter 16: The predator makes its move

It was a tingle that woke him. On his neck. He didn’t open his eyes, his mind too much in the fog to do that, instead his focus was on the sensation he was getting. The tingle came back but this time higher; only for a brief moment. The third time it happened, he recognized the feeling; a kiss from very hot lips right onto his jaw. He didn’t react, enjoying far too much the feeling of it, not until he felt it on his mouth. He puckered his own lips and moved his head forward a bit when he felt the lips kissing him moving away, trying to make them stay in contact. It worked, as the lips came back down on his with a bit of strength behind them. He savored the feeling and wanted more, that’s why he opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out. It was welcomed immediately without any resistance and found it caressed gently by another. He wanted more and began to move his appendage faster. A lustful moan was heard from the person he was kissing, his mind only now awake enough to realize it. He felt the weight of that person on top of him. A woman obviously as he could feel her breasts pushing against his chest, her nipples hard as diamond. When he felt the rubbing of something against the length of his crotch and the wetness that came with it he finally moved his body. Using his arms he pushed back the woman he was kissing while leaning back, putting an end to the kiss.

Rick opened his eyes and was confronted with ones he knew well. The most beautiful emerald eyes he has ever seen in his entire life. Ones he was familiar with. Intimately. Full of love and lust. He was also familiar with every freckle just under them, spanning from cheekbone to cheekbone  crossing over a cute little nose that he just wanted to kiss. His mind was fully awake now and the dots connected. Immediately he recognized his half-sister who saw the recognizance on his face and smiled lovingly at him.

“Good Morning.”

A simple two word greeting that she gave him. He stayed silent, he stayed motionless, like a prey that got caught by a predator hoping that if they didn’t move they would be not seen and got to live another day. Unfortunately for him Jane never stopped grinding her nether lips against his cock and his lack of any kind of response prompted her to drag them agonizingly slowly from its base to its head. A single thrust upward from him or downard from her and he would be buried inside her.

“How do you like it?”

She had said that with a grin on her face, keeping up with what she was doing but never crossing the line. He brought his hands up on her thighs, slowly making them roam up until they reached her hips. The feeling of her skin under his fingers, made his dick flinch unconsciously. He wanted more. He needed more but he resisted his urge and simply held her in place, stopping any movement she was making.

“Don’t worry I won’t cross that line. Not yet. Not until you’re sure.” she said reassuringly. She could have forced it and started moving again but she did not. “That doesn’t mean I won’t go for everything else.” she added as she finally moved up to rest her ass on his stomach, moving her hand behind her to grab him gently and began to stroke him.

“Kisses, bites, handjob, tit job, blow job… Everything is on the table but actual sex. Now, I’m giving you a choice. A very cold shower to bring that beast down…” she explained as her grip tightened. “Or my hot. Wet. Mouth.”

She had leaned forward next to his ear to present the second option available to him. Whispering sultrily in it before using her tongue to lick its rim first then explore its inside.
Rick shivered, goosebumps appearing all over his body, his cock lurching again screaming at him to do something as if it had a mind on its own. He simply lifted himself up with her, his hands going from her hips to her ass getting two firm big handfuls. Changing his position he was now on the edge of the side of the bed sitting, with Jane straddling him. His eyes focused on hers. He didn’t say anything, he couldn’t, he didn’t have the strength. Instead he simply spread his legs wide, prompting Jane to smile from ear to ear in victory.

____________________________________________________________

Their morning training was done in silence, each doing his own thing. Jane had finally succeeded in moving her biotics the way she wanted. It lasted less than a second, but she saw it and felt it rotate a bit. That was progress and that put her in an even better mood than the one she already was in. On his side Rick was playing again with his own biotics. So far, he could unleash his biotic from the nodules of his wrists and the one between his shoulder blade consciously. The others were work in progress. Some nodules, because of their location on his body, didn’t need the training, like the ones in the middle of his limbs like the biceps but he didn’t care. The perfectionist in him had shown the tip of his nose and wasn’t going back to being absent until the job was done.

When he believed he had enough, he just went back up to his quarters without saying anything or acknowledging anyone. Not Jane, not James and Steve who had come down to the docking bay, nor Diana Allers who devoured him with her eyes as she was running on the treadmill like she did every morning ever since she came aboard. Rick had seldom talked to her but made a mental note to change that as she would soon be needed to take down Dalatrass Linron and for other projects. The woman needed to be briefed on what was going on so she would be ready to act fast when it was time. He would need to talk about it to Jane first and get her permission though. The thought of his sister brought him back to what she did when he woke up and what he didn’t do. She was pushing hard but strangely he didn’t care or rather didn’t care about the way she did it, he didn’t push back. She was now playful in her ways and not… Not how she’s done it before. He didn’t know exactly what was different; couldn’t put his finger on it. He just knew that it was different. The fact that she was now acting the same way his wife did to get him to do what she wanted was not lost on him.

‘Perhaps, that’s why I didn’t fight it?’

Any further thought on the subject stopped as he sat down in his seat and opened his terminal to finish the work on his new weapon.

Meanwhile Jane stopped her training, Rick leaving being a good indication that it was time for breakfast. Fortunately for her what she was trying to do was not too taxing so she wasn’t sweaty. There was no need for her to go back to her cabin and take a shower. This was fine with her as she could still smell Rick’s lingering scent on herself. Greeting the people around her in the dock bay, she took the elevator towards the crew deck. She didn’t want breakfast actually as it would wash down the taste of the man she loved that was still in her mouth. She loved it and wanted to spend the rest of the day with it but her stomach didn’t agree with the thought. It was growling angrily, demanding to be fed more as the early snack it got earlier despite being rich in protein wasn’t nearly enough for a biotic.
Walking towards the kitchen she noticed no one was there. Checking the time on her omni-tool she saw that it was just past the shift change so everyone was either asleep or already at work. That was more than fine with her as it meant she was alone and could enjoy the quiet a bit. She put a pan on the induction hob and activated it before going to the fridge and taking eggs, milk and butter then took the rest of the ingredients from the cupboard to make some pancakes. As she was preparing them she began humming happily and rather loudly by herself.

At the same time, Ashley and Liara exited the latter’s room for breakfast. Had there been any onlookers that would not have been an uncommon sight as sometimes the two women spent the night together, when Rick was unavailable. Besides, crossing the deck was faster than going up a floor to reach the man. As it was there were no onlookers and that’s why they were surprised to hear someone humming a happy tune from the dining area. Turning at the corner they saw Jane doing her own business happily, not noticing them. Looking at each other, the two bedmates simply sat in silence at their usual table and looked at their commander and friend getting more into what she was doing, slightly shaking her body around as she cooked whatever breakfast she had in the pan. The sight put a smile on their lips, not because of the atrocious dancing that Jane was infamous for but because they were genuinely happy for her to be this chirpy.

When Jane put the last of the pancakes on her plate, she turned around to go to the table but froze in place seeing Liara and Ashley already seated with stupid a smile on their face.

“Hi, Skipper.”
“Good morning, Jane.”

It took a moment for a moment for the redhead’s brain to reboot before she joined her teammates at the table all the while they kept their stupid smile on their face.

“Good morning, girls.”

Was all she said as she began to eat her food without paying attention to the focused looks on her. She ate in a very uncomfortable silence and felt like a rabbit preyed on by two foxes. She was proven wrong when Ashley spoke up.

“Someone got some good dick last night.”

Jane choked on the piece of pancake she was eating then looked at Ashley who didn’t look like a fox at all but more like a shark with plenty of teeth showing. Liara too had the same grin. Finally swallowing correctly her food she played the oblivious one instead of denying vehemently.

“Really? Who?”
“Jane.” Liara replied.
“Yes?” answer the redhead keeping up with her innocent and ignorant act.
“You know damn well we’re talking about you, Skipper.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Uh-huh. You behaved like someone who had a good night.” commented her asari friend.
“I did.” admitted Jane.
“So was it as good as you remember?” Ashley inquired, still grinning.
“I didn’t have sex last night if that’s what you’re implying.” the redhead answered back flatly.

That was not a lie as nothing happened during the night but her human friend was too perceptive and used to his kind of conversation. She hadn’t been duped.

“This morning then? A warm up before training?”
“I…”
“Jane. Before you serve us some more bullshit, let me tell you. We know. It’s obvious. Now you either spill the beans or you can keep on denying it, making the conversation even more uncomfortable for you.” Liara warned.
“I… didn’t have sex per say…” the commander confessed while being vague.
“What was on the menu then? Tuna or Sausage?” asked the brunette. Seeing Shepard blush furiously she didn’t bother to wait for a response. “ Sausage then. Good for you!”
“Ash!”
“What?! It’s true! I’m really happy for you! I’m sure Liara is too!”
“Hmm.” and a nod was the answer of the asari.
“See! Now come on, tell us everything!”

Jane looked at Ashley then at Liara and simply sighed, knowing there was no way she could get out of this one.

____________________________________________________________

Rick was typing on his keyboard frantically, focused on the last touch on the project he was working on. This is why he didn’t notice EDI entered his quarters, or rather EDIs as both synthetic and organic bodies of the AI were there. Each stood on one of the sides of the man and looked silently at what he was doing. Waiting a few minutes they saw the simulation he had started finished in a success.

“Great. Now I just need to build it. I wonder if I can get help from EDI.”
““I’d be happy to assist.””

The sounds of two voices in stereo coming from both his sides made him jump in fright. Or he would have if he wasn’t chill in nature making only his heart beat faster.

“Gosh, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”
““I’m sorry that wasn’t my intention.””
“The twin voice is really disturbing.”
““Really?””
“Yes. Bad memories from the movie Shining. Anyways, what can I do for you? I’m sure the both of you just came in to look at what I was working on.”
““This is correct. I wanted to make a test and make a comparison.””
“A test on what?”
““Kissing.””
“Kissi-.”

He was interrupted when organic EDI turned his head towards her as she hacked his helmet to open the jaw part of it. As soon as Rick was facing her, she planted her luscious lips on his for a few seconds before retreating.

“What -”

He was interrupted again when this time synthetic EDI turned him to face her and kissed him too. Once he was released, Rick was at loss on what was happening.
“Interesting. The kiss with my synthetic body felt different.”
“Oookayyy. That’s normal, synthetic and organic are not wired the same way. You know that.”
“I meant different when you kissed it last time. I know the sensation was the same but it felt like when I kissed you with my organic body.”
“Are you saying that you… instinctively, for a lack of a better word, instinctively put the sensation of your organic body above the sensation of your synthetic one? Like the data has a higher priority?”
“It seems like it. ”
“That’s… fascinating. Why the kiss, though? Not that I’m complaining, I wouldn’t mind kissing both of you all day, every day but I’m curious.”
“I’m more or less done gathering data with my sense of smell, I’m sure there are plenty of scents out there but I currently have plenty enough so I wanted to start working on another sense: Touch.”
“And you thought to start with a kiss?”
“No, I did many small tests before coming to you. I just wanted to experience kissing again and…”
“You just wanted to mess with me.” he stated flatly.
“Yes.” she confirmed without an ounce of shame.
“I hope you know it means war, EDI.”
“War?”
“War on pranking, of messing with the other.”
“Oh.”
“Right now I’m in the mind to take your organic body back to my bedroom and mess with it both figuratively and literally.”
“I do not mind but I would prefer it happening to my synthetic body first.”
“...”

Not for the first time Rick cursed himself for spending so much time with her. He was never sure if she was joking or not anymore and it bothered him a bit. However he was no coward and there were only benefits to call out her bluff. Either he’d get his dick wet or he’d beat her at her own games. Whichever was fine with him.

“Alright.”
He took synthetic EDI’s hand and dragged her to his bedroom. Surprisingly the AI offered no resistance, something he thought she would do. He laid her on her back on the bed and towered over her. In one swift move his lips were on hers and once again she offered no resistance. The texture of her lips were surprisingly soft and warm and he could swear they were slowly getting hotter. When his tongue entered her mouth, hers felt smooth but ruber-ish, and found himself actually feeling the sensation. His hands started caressing her body gently in all the right places, prompting EDI to moan. Moan mechanically as if it was a simple formality. He touched a sensitive point of her or any woman’s body and she moaned, like an automatic answer. It felt so fake to him that it immediately turned him off. Stopping what he was doing and breaking the kiss he looked at her. The sight of a smirk, a smug smile on her face made one of his eyes tick in annoyance.

“Well played.” he admitted reluctantly. “How far were you going to let it go?”
“I believed the term would be second base.”
“Oh? Scared to go to the third?” he said in a taunting tone.
“No. As I said yesterday, I wish to follow the usual human rituals first.”
“That’s twice now that you use these specific words. Are you… Referring to a date?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you say so?”
“I read that men are supposed to ask women out.”
“Back in the twentieth century maybe. Now, it’s not much of a thing, though it still exists. There are now plenty of women asking men out. Ashley for instance is the one who asked me out. Analysse did too, so did Jane aaaaand surprisingly Tali. Well… Tali never really asked me out per se, she just said she wanted to have sex while wearing very sexy lingerie but that does count. In fact it’s preferable for men to be asked out as we can be rather dense and thick in the head when it’s about women being interested in us.”
“I see.” she replied in a neutral tone that made Rick realize that maybe she wanted to be asked out.
“EDI, would you like to go on a date with me?”
“I would love to.” she answered with a smile.
“Well, one thing’s for sure, you already mastered women’s ability to make men do what they want and be mad at them for not knowing what you are thinking.”
“Did I?”

He didn’t bother to try to know if she was genuine or messing with him again. Instead he got up from the bed and extended a hand for EDI. She grabbed it and was pulled on her feet.

“Let’s get back to work.”

As he turned around to exit his bedroom he saw organic EDI standing near the door. Apparently she has been looking at what was happening and Rick wondered if the AI didn’t secretly have a voyeuristic kink. Honestly, he didn’t care, he wasn’t one for kink shaming, especially after the time spent with his wife.

‘I may be a depraved man but god were you so far beyond me in that regard, Analysse.’

Suddenly an idea came to him. An idea to get back at EDI and to be back on top in their newly declared prank war. When he reached organic EDI, he grabbed her in a quick, swift move and kissed her, immediately trying to rape her throat with his tongue, he grabbed a firm handful of her ass with one hand and a breast with the other. The kiss didn’t last more than ten seconds but it was enough for the body to react. It led out a very hungry moan and moved forward towards Rick to feel more of it.
When the kiss ended, the XO of the Normandy simply went to his workbench without a care in the world as if nothing ever happened, leaving behind two stunned EDI. For the first time since she had been activated the AI has been out of sorts. The sensations from this one last kiss made her react in a way that should not have been possible. The data from the sensation, more specifically the touch, had been… Overwhelming for a lack of a better word. Nothing like ever before and in fact so much that she got a small emotive reaction which shouldn’t have been possible with the dampeners active and running at their best. Trying to understand the reason for what just happened with as much processing power that she could spare, without being detrimental to the vital systems of the Normandy, she couldn’t come to a conclusion. In the end she decided that further testing was required, never noticing that she was eager for it.
Filling that objective as one of her highest priority on her checklist, she joined Rick to the workbench.

____________________________________________________________

Jane was currently talking with Wrex in the com center. Something she was glad to as she liked talking with him and because the Krogan didn’t care about her love and sex life. Unlike Liara and Ashley who dragged to the former’s room to get the details of the development of her relationship with her half-brother out of her. While she confessed that giving Rick a blowjob had been exhilarating and made her happy beyond the moon she also revealed that she had wanted more and that now that she was reminiscing she was fighting hard the urge to just go to him and guck him for all that he’s worth. Ashley came to her rescue, saying she had bought the same model of dildo she had gifted her years ago and that she was just waiting for Jane to reach her limit to give it to her. Liara had to admit that perhaps, the redhead approach was better than what she had advised and wondered if their relationship would have been different had she done the same, her long estrangement and strained bond almost a year before with her human boyfriend coming to mind. Nevertheless, as Jane was getting hotter and hotter because of the subject of the talk she put an end to it before she could spontaneously combust and went to work even though she didn’t really have anything to do technically. That’s why she went to talk with Wrex and get her mind out of the gutter.

Unfortunately their talk was abruptly interrupted when a very hot beam of light went through the wall from their side and passed right between them. The beam was a few inches from her face and went on to the other side of the wall clearly melting anything in his path. That didn’t last long as the beamed suddenly retracted from where it came, leaving the people in the room in a state of shock while anything metallic that the beamed had touched was red hot.

“WHAT THE HELL?!” Wrex screamed, pulling everyone’s mind out of their bewilderment.
“Did anyone die?” said a monotonous and synthetic voice they knew well.

It came from the hole from where the beam came. Getting closer and not in the line of sight Jane spoke up in a very angry tone.

“What. Did. You. DO?”
“Ah! You’re still alive… guess I’ll have to try agai…”

A loud smack cut of whatever he was saying before she heard him yelled at EDI in both reproach and protestation.

“What did he come up with now?” Wrex asked by her side.
“I don’t know but I’m going to find out. Right now and maybe tear him a new one for nearly killing us.” Jane replied as she stomped out of the com center and made her way towards Rick’s quarter, followed by Wrex.

When she arrived in the former armory she saw Rick standing in the middle of the room holding the beam like a sword. Synth EDI was on the side looking at it while Organic EDI was behind both, sitting on a chair looking at some data on the terminal screen in front of her.

“You have one chance. One. To explain what you’re doing damaging my ship, my equipment and nearly killing me…”
“And me!” Wrex interrupted.
“Before I’m putting my fist so far up your…”
“Lightsaber.”
“Wha…”
“I just built a lightsaber.” Rick reiterated as he slowly and carefully swang around the said weapon.
“What does it do?” the krogan asked as Jane was currently processing what she was seeing.
“Cut things. It’s for melee. Better than the omni-blade but more expensive to make though and much more deadly aaaand more useful.”
“And you nearly killed us with it because?” the redhead finally talked.
““It was an accident.”” EDIs answered.
“An accident?!”
“Yeah. I kinda forgot to check the length of the laser emission before activating it, that’s why it was so long and pierced through everything and went as far. It’s dealt with now as you can see.”
“You forgot?! It could have breached the hull and depressurized the entire ship!”
“Don’t worry, EDI would have activated the shield, we would have been fine.” Rick replied nonchalantly, his gaze focused on the moving blade in his hands.
“That’s not the point! You could have killed someone! You nearly did!”
“Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Nobody did though, so no need to be anal about it. I’ll be more careful from now on.”
“EDI, from now on I want you to check everything he builds before using it.”
“I will, commander, though I share the blame. I checked all the data but not the actual hardware. My apologies.”
“I’m still blaming him, because it was his idea.” Turning to Rick she added more. “From now on, I want to know everything you’re working on, in payment terms. You don’t get to test your project without my approval first. Get it?”
“What?!”
“You heard me, no more playing around with the crew’s safety when you’re trying out one of your inventions.”
“Seriously?!”
“Yes.” Jane replied, deadly serious.

Turning off the lightsaber, Rick put it on the table with a protesting groan before leaving the room with a ‘fine’ under his breath.

“I wouldn’t have minded seeing it in action. You took all the fun away, Shepard.” Wrex commented before exiting the room too.

Jane sighed tiredly.

‘The day had started so well.’