Ohhhh, yes. I can't believe I missed the update on this first time around, but this is so great. I was excited when I saw you did Alien Hunters last chapter, and was hoping you'd do Last Gift --- needless to say, this did not disappoint. There's a real warmth to the interactions among your cast, and it's heartwarming to see the way everyone more or less looks out for each other. There's a lot of crappy things going on in the XCOM 'verse, but your crew solidly has one anothers' backs. I loved the bit about Menace team unloading on Julian, even though many never knew Dr. Shen. I was also really excited to see you include the "precious Commander" line from Julian --- I almost did a spit take the first time I heard it, and it's so underaddressed in fic.
Your Central + Lily dynamic is still one of my favorite things; there's a real softness there, despite the baggage they're both saddled with. The in-game conversation about Dr. Shen being something of a miracle worker is one of my favorites and it's beautifully integrated here. Also appreciated the phrasing on Central "taking the time to teach her" with regards to Russian.
Lily's final reflection before tossing the Julian chip into the fire was lovely; sad and sweet and yet hopeful.
Lots of the little details were especially fantastic this chapter. Central's backstory, the history of Julian's name, and the Soylent Green reference (!!! I cheered) are up there, along with Central's coat being over the Commander's shoulders (I ship it embarrassingly hard). My favorite though, was definitely the ending bit with the argument about chocolate, a thing I didn't know I needed but really did. I loved the bit about Tygan being the chocolate snob, and Central missing cookies and cream chocolate bars. It was also great to see some references to your other stories: soldiers joking about Central having kids, Faceless burgers, etc.
Glad you enjoyed this chapter! I was worried it wouldn't come out that well, because a lot of the dialogue is lifted from the game. Not too sure how to represent Tygan and Shen's relationship as a result, because in game, they don't really reach an understanding beyond, "Well, I guess you're not going to betray us…"
I imagine that a lot of the crew on board the Avenger is multilingual out of necessity, because it's really bad when you're trying to distinguish between a Haven leader threatening you and offering you help in clearing out an ADVENT outpost. Central probably knows how to order a beer in far more languages than is healthy.
The worst thing about the apocalypse is that a lot of foods are gone forever because either the ingredients are gone, or the recipes are. RIP delicious food.
Comment on The Sum of Our Sin(x)
follyofyouth on Chapter 3 Sun 06 Aug 2017 04:49PM UTC
Last Edited Sun 06 Aug 2017 05:21PM UTC
Comment Actions
Noscere on Chapter 3 Mon 07 Aug 2017 05:43AM UTC
Comment Actions