Mass Effect Liara's Story Ch2

MASS EFFECT LIARA'S STORY CHAPTER 2

Again, Bioware owns all these characters and background places, I'm just playing with them.

ILLIUM:  Liara sat in Romaro's Eatery not far from her office in the Nos Astra Trading Port. Surprisingly, the restaurant was filled mostly with Salarians who consumed the human food with zeal. This was one of her guilty pleasures. Anaya introduced her to pizza late one night in the Normandy's galley and she had been hooked ever since. She said it was Italian food. Humans were such a diverse group. So many human things that they broke down into other sub-categories and sometimes more than that. She wondered how a species with so many identities could flourish as a whole. Perhaps that was the source of their strength and resilience.

Liara was in a strangely muted mood. She received her first bits of intelligence that Shepard may be alive. Anaya Shepard. Just saying the name to herself made her heart skip a beat. She knew she shouldn't get her hopes up, but there was no stopping it. Liara also sensed something new, though. Along with the hope and need to see her again, Liara felt barriers building inside heart. Trying to guard her against the pain and misery she endured after those dark events following Alchera two years ago. She was also apprehensive that Anaya may not be the same person she was when Liara had fallen in love with her. So much has changed her, why would Anaya be the same after coming back from the dead? Even she didn't understand it all. After two years, her love may be coming back to her, but Liara wasn't sure she had the strength to face her.

"Goddess, what is wrong with me?" She asked herself. Was it just the memory of the pain that followed losing her, or was it more? Had everything that happened changed her that much? Would Anaya see a stranger when they finally reunited?

THE CITADEL, TWO YEARS PRIOR (TWO DAYS AFTER LEAVING SHA'IRA): "No! I have no more time to bow to the wishes of every former crewman of the Normandy." Ambassador Udina said with a sneer. He sat back behind his desk and waved his hand dismissively at Liara. "I suggest you make your inquiries through the official Alliance Chain of Command, Ms. T'Soni. I'm sure those grunting cavemen would just love to help you."

Liara bristled at the tone this man was taking with her. She remembered well how he had treated Shepard and how his political double dealings nearly doomed the galaxy. She was always taught to respect a person's position, but her patience was wearing thin and she could not respect this man as a person. "That's Doctor T'Soni, Ambassador, and I'll remind you that you would be a rotting corpse right now if it were not for Commander Shepard and my crewmates."

"Yes, yes." He said sarcastically, leaning back and spreading his arms wide. "You are all great heroes." Then he stood and angrily jabbed a finger at her. "I am sick and tired of bowing and scraping to that bitch Marine and her stable of alien pets! Take your…Aaaggehgh! LET GO OF ME!!"

Radiant blue light surrounded Liara as she lifted Udina, his chair and desk several feet into the air with her biotics. "I would advise to you to keep a civil tongue in your xenophobic head when speaking to me about Shepard, you craven little tchelu-fe! (Krogan dung-eater)" She growled through clenched teeth. "If you do not apologize right now, I'll toss you out…"

The doors behind Liara hissed open and Counselor Anderson strode in with Admiral Hackett. "Whoa, whoa! What's going on here?" Anderson bellowed. He looked from Liara and did a double take at Udina. He couldn't stop a chuckle getting out before composing himself again.

Liara immediately released Udina, who crashed to the floor in a heap along with his furniture. "Counselor I am Liara…"

"Dr. T'Soni." He interjected, crossing the floor to shake her hand. "I am so glad you are well. We've been very concerned about you for weeks now. Please, come into my office." He waved Hackett in. "Admiral, you also, please. Ambassador, please clean up your office, we represent all of humanity here." With that he followed Hackett in and let the door close behind him.

Liara walked to the balcony and gazed out over the Presidium in an effort to regain control of her emotions. She surprised herself back there. She only meant to lift the Ambassador in the air not the entire office. Finally, she turned back and found Anderson and the Admiral waiting patiently.

"I apologize for whatever Udina said to you out there, Doctor." Anderson started. "It's no excuse, but he's been under the microscope from the Alliance since he dropped the ball with Shepard and nearly killed us all. I believe he blames Shepard for it all. I'd rather just replace him, but that's not my call. He has friends in high places back on earth."

"It is not your fault, Counselor. I know the high regard Ana,…Commander Shepard held you in. Also, bitter, small-minded people exist in all races. I just didn't like the way he spoke of the Commander." She felt her balance coming back while talking to these two honorable men.

Admiral Hackett, a fit, stern looking man with short gray hair, offered his hand and introduced himself. "Doctor T'Soni, it is a pleasure to finally meet you in person. The galaxy owes you a great deal." She took his hand and smiled in spite of herself.

"Thank you, that is very kind of you to say, but the Commander deserves all the credit. Sometimes I think the rest of us were, as you humans say, just along for the ride. I imagine you are wondering what I am doing here." She began.

Hackett spoke up. "Would it have anything to do with finding Commander Shepard?" He asked.

Liara was shocked. "How did you know this? I only recently decided that this is what I must do. Has the Alliance found her?" Hope rose.

Anderson and Hackett shared a guarded look. Finally Anderson nodded and Hackett continued. "No, I'm afraid not. Apparently, there has been quite a lot of interest in finding the Commander. Intel tells us that no fewer than five merc bands have been contracted to find her for various clandestine organizations. We have tried also. Alliance Marines have covered that rock from every point of the compass twice over and the results were less than satisfactory. We have recovered a few items, but not enough. Of course we still haven't been able to check the wreckage itself. The residual Ezo contamination around the ship will not dissipate enough to get close to it for another two years. But we did find items of hers several kilometers away."

Hope fell. "But she was spaced, was she not? What evidence could you have found?"

Hackett activated his omni-tool and typed in a few commands. "I'll have it brought over and shown to you."

Anderson interjected. "Listen, Doctor. I think I know what this means to you and you know what Shepard meant to everyone in this galaxy. She was an icon and our greatest hero. What we don't want is some group getting her remains and selling bits of her to the highest bidders across the galaxy." There was anger in his voice. The mere thought of it made his hands ball into fists and cheeks flush with controlled rage and indignation.

"I…" Liara choked. "I just need to find her. See for myself and make sure she is taken care of." The thought of gazing upon Anaya's remains either unmarred or burned up from re-entry made her want to cry.

The office bell chimed and Hackett met an Alliance Captain at the door. An armed escort comprised of four hulking N7 Marines stood alertly behind them. Leaving the Marines in the antechamber, Hackett came back over carrying a shallow, one meter by one meter, sealed, glass box that he placed on a nearby table. Though it was the very last thing she wanted to do, Liara forced herself to walk over and look down at the contents.

She recognized what it was immediately. It was the back torso plate of Shepard's armor. How many times had she gazed at it while following Shepard into battle? The memory of Anaya glancing back over her shoulder, tossing her black hair with a wink and a devil-may-care look in her brilliant green eyes just before charging head-long into a group of mercs, flashed through her mind. Goddess, she was born for battle. How many times had Liara unlatched the seals on each side to get her love out of it so she could feel her body next to hers? Tears traced paths of sorrow down her cheeks as she placed a hand on the box.

"And then there are these." The Admiral handed her a small box holding two shiny, oblong pieces of metal lying on dark blue felt, held in place with the traditional black strip of black ribbon. Shepard's tags. Liara struggled with herself to maintain control. She would let these emotions out in private. They were only for her and Anaya.

After she calmed, Anderson continued. "I'm sorry, Doctor. I know what you meant to the Commander and her to you. Of all of us, this must be hardest on you. But this brings us to our current problem. There are reports that her body was in fact recovered and it is out there either on the black market or in some ones personal collection." His voice firmed and a steel glint shone in his eyes. "We are doing our best to get her back, but maybe you can succeed where we haven't. I'll take all the help I can get. The Commander's body will not be a prize for some thug or despot!"

Just as Anaya had made it her mission to find Admiral Kuhoku, so too would Liara find Shepard. She owed that much to her love and to herself. "I will find her." She stated in a tone that left no doubt that it was all but already done. "Thank you for seeing me. I only have two requests. Please send all data you can about this to my omni-tool. I need leads, a place to start. People to talk to."  Hackett opened his own omni-tool and started transferring files to hers. "Thank you, Admiral. Also, a personal request," She motioned sadly to the armor and tags. "I would like to keep these. It would mean a great deal to me."

Anderson spoke hesitantly. "I'm not sure that is possible. The Alliance wants to keep them in memory of her. I know the two of you were involved, and she cared for you very deeply, but I'm not sure I can pull this off."

Liara's head jerked up in surprise. "I should have known she would tell you, Counselor. You were like a father to her."

"It would be very difficult to say the least." The Admiral added. "But if you don't mind, Counselor, I'll see what I can do."

"I'll leave it to you then, Hack." He replied with a smile, clapping him on the shoulder. "Doctor, if you can, please bring her back to us."

/////

The next morning, Liara left her room, exited the elevator and entered the lobby of the Dilinaga Hotel where she had decided to stay until she knew where events were taking her. Seeing Anaya's tags and back plate had shaken her in an unexpected way. She had been hoping that Shepard had found a way to cheat death and was waiting for her somewhere. Then again, armor and tags do not a body make.

She came to a halt half way to the front doors when she realized someone was approaching her from the lounge.  A human woman about her own height with shoulder length flaming red hair glided over and stood in front of her. The woman's dress was dark green with diagonal red and white stripes that wound around her voluptuous body. She had an arrogant air about her, like she was doing the galaxy a favor just by walking around in it.

"Liara T'Soni?" She asked in a haughty tone. Liara looked in her dark green eyes and decided she didn't like her already.

"Yes, what may I do for you?" Liara replied politely.

"My name is Gwendolin Meyers. I was wondering if you would give me a little bit of your time. I assure you that it is in your best interest if you do. I have a booth in the lounge for privacy." Liara agreed and they entered the bar. The woman sat at a booth that gave her a good view of the room, but left Liara's back to everything. Liara simply kept walking and sat in a corner booth where she could see also and waited until the woman finally stood and joined her. "Cagey. I should have expected that you wouldn't do this totally on my terms."

Liara gave her a neutral look. "I do not know you. What do you want?"

They paused as a Salarian waiter set two glasses of water on the table for them and asked if they wanted menus. Liara declined for both of them. She had no intention of eating with this woman.

"I understand your caution, but I am not your enemy." She said with a smile that Liara could see was calculated to disarm her. It did not. "You received a message from my employer, Miss Lawson several days ago. She is concerned that you have not replied and that you instead went to meet with Counselor Anderson and Admiral Hackett."

Liara could see that this knowledge of her whereabouts was supposed to impress her, unbalance her and might be a veiled threat. It had none of those effects. "Get to the point." She said simply.

Gwendolin's eyes narrowed slightly in irritation. "Very well. My employers know of your, ah special relationship", the woman sneered and looked disgusted when she said the word, "with Commander Shepard." Liara bristled at her tone and had to fight to keep her biotics in check. "My organization believes that you will try and locate the Commander's remains for your own reasons. We have a proposition."

Liara stared at her with open hostility. "Again, get to the point." She nearly spat.

She leaned towards Liara and lowered her voice conspiratorially. "Humanity can ill afford to lose our greatest hero. We believe that humanity, and the entire galaxy, is in grave peril and our only real hope is that one, specific person can save us all. Our people have resources most governments would be envious of. We believe we can bring the Commander back just the way she was before the attack on the Normandy."

Liara's world lurched as she digested the other woman's words. So many emotions flowed through her. Hope, disbelief and anger that this might be a scam. She noticed the other woman's eyes widen and realized she was unknowingly using her biotics. The table and both glasses were surrounded by the pulsing glow of her biotics. Liara quickly regained control of herself and her powers. The light faded away almost grudgingly.

She smugly noticed that Ms Meyers had paled considerably. "Why would I hand her over to a bunch of people I do not know and submit her to your sick experiments? Do you plan to clone her? Make a mindless army of Shepards for your own use? I will not be party to such a thing. It goes completely against her convictions and mine. It would not be right. Anaya would never do this and I will not either!" Liara stood to leave.

Meyers stood with her. "Listen, just think about it. It's not cloning or anything of the sort. It's bringing her back to life just the way she was. Same body, no changes. We need her and you know it. Just contact Ms Lawson if you wish to talk about it."

"It would be an abomination." Liara shot back and left the woman standing at the table. They were words that would haunt her for years to come.

Back in the lobby Liara struggled to control herself. She noticed the blue glow of biotics winking in and out from between her clenched fists. Vaguely, she started wondering if she was losing control of her powers. She forced the thought away and chalked it up to stress as she forced balance and control back into her mind. She needed a friend. A familiar face to talk to. Too bad Tali was back on the fleet. She considered getting her on the link, but wanted more than a projected image. Garrus. Sha'ira told her that Garrus had gone back to C-SEC. She would find him.

As she left the hotel she did not notice the non-descript Drell who rose from his seat across the room, casually tucked a data pad under his arm and followed her out the main doors.

/////

Liara walked through the wards trying to find the C-SEC office. Zakera was a mess. Huge chunks of Sovereign and Alliance cruisers had rained down across them in a deadly shower of destruction. People were crushed and buildings toppled. The death toll was staggering, and there was no estimate to when repairs would if ever be complete. After hours of aimless meandering around the detours, she found herself in front of the familiar door of Dr. Michel's Medical Clinic. She went in.

There were two Turians in the waiting area with different wounds. Liara decided they must be there to get their dressings changed. Three of the beds were occupied and she spotted Dr. Michel standing over the one at the far end of the room. The red haired human saw her approach, smiled, deactivated her omni-tool and went over to Liara. "Dr. T'Soni! It is so good to see you again!"

Liara smiled at the friendly face and the genuine, happy greeting. "Dr. Michel. It is good to see you  again, also. Please, call me Liara." She said, shaking the other woman's hand.

"Then please call me Chloe. Enough of this 'Doctor, doctor' business. What brings you to my clinic? You look a little paler than I remember…" She activated her omni-tool and started scanning Liara before she could stop her.

"No, please, I am well." She assured her. "I was just in the area looking for Garrus and happened by your door. I could not resist stopping in to say hello."

"Oh," Chloe said happily, stopping her scan. "I am glad you are well, and it's good you stopped by. Garrus is no longer on the Citadel." When she saw Liara's concerned expression she shrugged and went on. "No one knows where he went. He was working C-SEC again and about to be promoted to area commander when he just turned in his resignation and left without a trace." Chloe's eyes went vacant for a moment. "I worry about him." She finished quietly.

"I am sorry to hear that. If I find him, I'll tell him to drop a line to you." Liara said.

This brought back Chloe's smile. "Please do. I would lo… like to hear from him again. He was a…dear friend. Maybe there is someone in C-SEC that I do not know that you can talk to. The local captain wouldn't even admit Garrus had ever existed to me. For now though, I'm sorry, but I have patients to see. It's been very busy since the attack."

"I shall start there, I suppose. Thank you, Chloe."

"Stop by again, if you have time, Liara."

/////

Liara wandered the area reliving memories here and there, generally lost in her own thoughts, until she found herself on a remote landing and surrounded by six Blue Suns mercenaries. She barely came aware of them a moment before a rifle crashed into her back, stunning her and sending her sprawling on the ground. Before she could react blows started raining down on her from all sides.

Liara felt consciousness ebbing when she heard one of them say. "That's enough, boys." And the pummeling stopped. Gradually, her world came back into focus and she saw a grizzled Batarian smiling down at her. "Listen, Lady." He said, spittle flying out between his lips. "We're here to give you a message. You either back off your little quest, or the next time you see us we'll send you back to your goddess in several different boxes."

A couple of the other mercs laughed and one said, "I hope we can take our time with that, I wouldn't mind having a chance to go over that body myself. Inch by inch." Liara felt a hand roughly grab her waist and move up her abdomen towards her breasts.

Cold rage engulfed her. Her biotics flared around her and she lashed out. The male human touching her was thrown away and into the ceiling with enough force to split his armor, shatter his spine and splatter the area behind him with his blood. She heard weapons being drawn on each side of her. Looking left, she hit the two on that side, a human and a Turian, with a singularity. They screamed in pain as it hit them. It was so strong it literally pulled the men apart limb from limb until there was just a ball of bloody gore churning around in the air. Then she rolled right into the legs of the three remaining on that side knocking two down and unbalancing the third. Her biotics raged within her, burning to get out, searing her mind.

Liara roared in pain and rage as she grappled with the two on the ground. The first died as she quickly twisted around and scissor locked her legs on the unfortunate woman's head and broke her neck with a quick twist of her hips. The other, she grabbed and pulled on top of her just as the third, the Batarian, leveled his rifle and let loose with a burst of fire that burned through the merc's back. She used a throw to propel the now dead merc off her and into the Batarian. It was a glancing blow, but it gave her enough time to gain her feet and face him as he turned his weapon back on her.

When he saw her, he gasped in wide-eyed fear and the weapon dropped from numb fingers. Biotic power didn't just pulse around her, it was like looking at a star going nova. Energy crackled from her eyes as he felt himself being lifted from the ground. He screamed in abject terror as she reached into the air behind her and created an incredibly brilliant ball of energy and threw it at him. The warp smashed into the hanging merc with enough force to destabilize him at the molecular level. He just disintegrated.

Liara stood there, panting. The biotic energy still pulsed around her, gathering and getting stronger. Panic pulled at her as she realized she was no longer in control of her own powers. The energy just kept welling up inside her. In vain, she tried to push it back down. She fell to her hands and knees as the burning inside threatened to consume her.

In a last, desperate gamble, she tried focusing all the power around her fists and slammed them into the floor with all her might and will power. The explosion was incredible. Two nearby speeders were thrown off the landing and crashed to the street forty stories below. Windows for three blocks shattered and power was cut off to a third of the ward.

Liara lay motionless at the bottom of a three foot crater, staring up vacantly at the now missing ceiling. Around her, walls were pushed out and what was left of the mercs bodies had been vaporized. She was semi-conscious and she could see, but did not have the strength to move a muscle. "Goddess," she thought, "what have I done? What is happening to me?"

Movement. A shadow crossed over her and then a Drell's face came into view. He smiled as he pulled a five inch blade out of his sleeve and held it to her throat. "Well, this simplifies things…" He said.

Then he was just gone. Liara absently registered the use of biotics, but had no idea how or what had happened. She heard a guttural cry of rage and someone leapt over her. It sounded like a woman swearing and raging at her opponent as they fought. There was a brief scuffle that was cut off by a cry of pain and a wet, ripping sound.

Liara struggled to stay aware, but exhaustion finally pulled her into blissful sleep.

As she lay there unconscious, Aethyta came to her side. She quickly wiped the Drell's blood off her hands on her own dress before gently cradling Liara in her arms as she always wanted to. She easily lifted her and quickly strode away carrying her sleeping daughter to safety.

/////

Liara woke in a familiar room. 'Seriously, again?' She thought to herself. She slowly sat up in the soft, silk covered bed and looked around the room she had spent weeks in while healing. She was still clad in the same dress she had put on that morning. Only a few moments later, there was a polite knock on the door and Sha'ira swept in and gave Liara a friendly, knowing smile. "Welcome back, Liara. We must stop meeting like this."

Liara smiled despite the pain in her head. "It seems every time I get in a mess you are there to help me out, Sha'ira."

Sha'ira folded her arms under her breasts and rocked back on her left leg. "I was not there. A…mutual friend brought you back to me. I understand you put on quit a display of biotic power in the wards."

Liara told her of the events as she remembered them. The rage and biotic power. How it kept growing and she could not control it. "I've never dreamed of such a level of power before. I thought it would burn me to a cinder." She finished.

"It would have if you had not instinctively found a way to release it." Sha'ira replied, still smiling that secretive smile at her.

"What is wrong with me? Is this a result of the Ahlar'Tyr?"

Sha'ira came over and sat beside her. "No. It has nothing to do with that. Well, not directly. You must first know that you are very healthy and everything is alright. Most Asari in your condition would most likely not be in the circumstances that you were in earlier. Your body just instinctively created more and more power to protect itself from harm."

Liara looked at her blankly. "What do you mean by 'my condition'?"

"Little one," Sha'ira said as she took Liara's hands and smiled at her. "You are with child."

TO BE CONTINUED