This was inspired by Pentatonix and Lindsey Stirling, specifically by listening to the intro of the PTX and Lindsey Stirling mix of Radioactive and finding it really relaxing.

This is set in Mass Effect 2 but Liara is part of the crew and I devised my own non canon ending, but there are spoilers.


"Shepard?" Liara called as she entered into the Captain's Cabin.

The Commander was lying on her back in the middle of her wide bed, eyes closed, breathing so slowly that the Asari thought the woman must be asleep.

How can she be asleep when she is about to go start a war to save the galaxy?

Liara moved to the Commander's side and gently touched her arm, "Shepard?" It was as she approached that she noticed the thin wires leading from her hand up to a band covering her head and ears, and became rather alarmed. The Commander was so still it reminded her of being in stasis.

Shepard opened her eyes, tugging strange headwear down to rest around her neck, sitting up on her elbow, "Yes Liara?"

Liara, distracted from her original reason for entering the cabin is still perplexed by the wires, "What is that?"

Shepard looked down at her hand, where the asari pointed, "Oh, it's old earth technology that plays music, you listen to it through headphones," She took the headphones off and held them out to Liara for her to study.

"And you put that on your ear? Isn't it dangerous?"

"Dangerous? Of course not it's just sound waves- well, only if you listen to music at an obscene level for an extended period of time, then you might have hearing damage."

"And you listen to music through it?"

"That's what I said isn't it?"

"Why not just use your omni tool or your private terminal?"

"I like the immersive experience of headphones, it's like the sound is filling your head and spreading out through your body. It's unique, nothing that an omni tool can provide, plus, I find it rather relaxing, especially violin."

"Relaxing?" Liara's expression belayed her disbelief at the Commander's words.

"Here," Shepard shifted over to make room for Liara, "Lie down and I'll show you."

Liara looked at the woman doubtfully as she lay down on the bed beside her lover as per her request and gave her a chance to be proven wrong. Shepard gently placed the headphones around the asari's head, leaning up on her arm as she turns the volume down slightly before playing the last audio track she had been listening to. Then she places a hand gently over Liara's eyes, getting her close them and only hear the music. Shepard can see the moment that Liara lets go of her previous hypothesis about the music player and falls into the trance of the music.

Liara can feel the music beat against her ears, but not unpleasantly so as when they have had to business in nightclubs and the sound waves are so strong that she can feel them pound against her body.

Shepard was right, it's like the music infects your body and calms you… She sunk into the music, the beauty of the sounds sending a wave of shivers across her skin. It was a whole new experience, no longer was it just sound, but a feeling, a feeling that spread through her and took over, filling her with a state of peace.

Shepard smiled as she watched Liara's reactions to her music, pleased that she was able to sway the asari and make her understand why she liked it. She paused the music and Liara opened her eyes, sitting up and removing the headphones she handed them back to Shepard.

"I see why you like it, it's amazing, it's like the sound is alive and it's so calming, I've not experienced that before with sound."

Shepard was still smiling as the asari became animated with her explanation, "It's how I prepare for war."

"Like the calm before the storm."

"Yes."

Shepard stood up, she was aware that they would be arriving soon, and placed the player in a draw, taking her armour from off the counter and putting it on.

"Oh! Yes, that's what I came here for, to tell you that we are just about to land," Liara stepped forward and helped fix the armour in place.

"I know," The Commander replied gently, fixing her armour into place and then reaching for the asari, kissing her once, "I'm coming back for you," She promised again and took a step back to leave.

Liara hugged her fiercely, "I love you," she whispered.

"I know," Shepard whispered back, kissing her cheek and then placing an object in the asari's hand. She stepped backwards towards the door, "I love you too."

And then she was gone. Shepard left the cabin and her lover in a state of complete peace, calm, level headed and ready to fight. The other's in her crew and squad noticed it too as she walked onto the CIC and briefed them and checked her weapons, attaching them to her armour and signalling her squad.

"Alright everyone, time to go save the galaxy. Again. You all know your jobs, and I know you'll do them well, that's why you're here. There is a lot riding on this mission, not just for each of you personally, but for the rest of existence and life as we know it, try not to think about it too hard."

"There's no place we'd rather be Commander," Kasumi said on behalf of the crew who nodded their confirmation.

A smile touched the corner of the Commander's mouth at the crew whose loyalty she had gained over the weeks, "Then let's go."

In the Captain's Cabin Liara looked down at what the Commander had given her; dog tags. She found it odd at first, she hadn't seen the woman take them off, and, wasn't it regulation that she keep them on if they had to identify her body? These were not the old tags that she had dug up when Shepard first died, these were new ones, still shiny from their lack of use. She read the military inscription with Shepard's basic information, name, birthdate, blood type, rank… Then she turned them over and on the back was a number- her number, engraved at a later point in time into the metal. It made her heart squeeze, anyone who found the tags would be curious enough to call the number and reach her. Like writing down your next of kin on a medical form, but on her military issued identification.

Now the asari was even more perplexed, if she had the Commanders tags, then, what did the Commander have in the way of identification if something went horribly wrong? Her hands shook and she quickly sat back down on the bed before she could fall, her jaw wobbling she clamped a hand over her mouth to keep it still. She didn't want to think about the possibilities of what might go wrong, but her mind wouldn't be so kind as to stop.