Second Life
Chapter Forty-Eight – Thessia Interlude
I.
Shepard stepped out of the shuttle and saw Onyx waiting for her alone in the Blue Sabre's shuttle bay that looked deserted save for the operator behind the sealed control room.
"Commander Shepard," Onyx took several large strides and shook the human's hand. "Welcome to Thessia!"
"Why so quiet?" As soon as Shepard received Aethyta's message she rushed Joker to race to Thessia at top speed, even though the Matriarch assured her that Liara's shoulder would fully recover.
Onyx took out a small soft purple and yellow handkerchief. "It's the Janiri holy day on Thessia. Most of the crewmembers are on shore leave so that they can enjoy the holidays. During the Janiri holy day holidays friends exchange gifts, families get together and have feasts and lovers go out dancing." She presented the handkerchief to Shepard, "This is a popular gift exchanged among commandos, and we call it sudary. It's soft and absorbent, we used to use it to wipe sweat and dirt during combat but now our combat suits and helmets take care of that, so most commandos use our sudaries to clean our guns."
Shepard accepted the gift, "But I don't have anything in return. I didn't realize this was a holiday."
Onyx smiled. "That's quite alright, Commander. The helmet you gave my daughter was the most treasured gift. I'm forever grateful." Onyx escorted Shepard to the elevator. "Matriarch Aethyta will receive you at the med bay. Happy Janiri, Commander!"
Shepard walked briskly towards the main entrance of the Blue Sabre's med bay where Aethyta was waiting for her. "How did this happen?" She asked while accepting a hug from the Matriarch.
Aethyta noticed the dark circles under Shepard's eyes, and she led the human towards the inner hall. "I'll give you the full account of what happened when we were on Omega, but only after you've seen her and had time to eat something."
Shepard was about to protest when a tall and thin asari in a doctor's uniform greeted them. "Matriarch Aethyta! Back so soon?" She smiled widely at Aethyta as she approached the visitors, deep purple markings on her pale blue face danced with her smile and two strips of dark purple lipstick shone on her full lips.
Aethyta gave the doctor a crooked grin. "Missed me?"
The doctor drew back her smile and lifted a brow marking. Shepard thought if she didn't have those purple markings, the doctor would look like Benezia. "You didn't give me a chance. If we were both two hundred years younger I'd say you were trying to hit on me."
Aethyta took a side step to reveal the human waiting behind her. "I'm only interested in the one in your med bay, Evy." She put a hand on Shepard's back and nudged her forward. "My daughter has a visitor."
The doctor flared her gaze up and down Shepard while replying to Aethya, "Excuses, excuses." And then she moved closer to the human and leaned to Shepard's ear. "We did a lot of flirting back in the day," She ran the back of her fingers from her shoulder to her hip, "Imagine this body only a century younger, I offered this delicious dish to her on a platter."
"What happened?" Shepard wondered if Aethyta had flirted with everyone she'd meet on Thessia.
"She didn't return my affections. She dumped me for a hanar." The doctor crossed her arms in front of her, and Shepard couldn't tell if the hurt look was feigned or innocent.
Aethyta replied without missing a beat, "His humbleness was most refreshing after being around you, Evy."
"What can I say? Humble and asari don't exist in the same sentence, certainly can't co-exit in the same body." The doctor once again leaned over to Shepard but she knew Aethyta could hear her. "You should've heard him. The way he talked about himself in a third person made me want to jab a scalpel into my own heart."
Aethyta rolled her eyes, "Somehow our conversations always ended up about you. This is Commander…"
The doctor offered a hand. "Commander Shepard, it's a pleasure."
Aethyta turned to Shepard. "This is doctor Evagoria T'Laney, our medical chef's sister. Since everyone is off this week, I had to call in a favor to get Evy to operate on Liara."
"And don't forget to mention I'm the best surgeon in the asari military. My sister is more talented with administrative work than with a scalpel."
"How's Liara?" Shepard asked eagerly while eyeing the patient rooms.
The doctor made no move to show the human to her patient, instead she took hold of Shepard's shoulders and asked the human earnestly. "Are you two an item?"
"What?" Shepard didn't expect the question from the surgeon. She glanced at Aethyta quickly.
Aethyta shook her head. "Skinny, leave her alone." And then she couldn't hide the giddiness in her voice. "They're not bondmates yet, but they were some talks of children."
The surgeon slapped Shepard on her back, "Well done, Commander! It looks like our maiden has trapped yet another genetic wonder, the hero of the Citadel, the genius of human military prowess, the…" she saw Shepard's face turning bright red and she put her hands on the human's shoulders again. "Oh, don't fret, darling. You're not the first one and you won't be the last. Our maidens, matrons and even some matriarchs have that effect on other species. By hook or by crook, they'll get who they want." She flared a side-glance at Aethyta.
Aethyta saw Shepard's embarrassment turning into something that looked almost painful and she stepped in. "Well, this one is actually hopelessly in love with my daughter."
The surgeon smiled a mischievous smile. "By hook then, I stand corrected. Come on, let's not delay you any longer." Evy took them to Liara's room and Shepard almost cried out when she saw the contraption around Liara's neck. She quickly moved to the bed and took Liara's hand that was free of the contraption and felt her own hands shake.
Evy patted Shepard's back. "There, there. She's fine. Aethyta told me Liara hadn't been resting well before her injury, so I gave her something to help her sleep. She won't wake up for another eight hours or so."
Shepard's voice was a little shaky. "How long is she going to be in this thing?"
Evy waved a hand. "The clavicle brace will come off as soon as she's awake. I'll give her a strap to keep the healing bones in place. She'll be fine as long as she doesn't get into fights, battles, in fact, let her stay out of any kind of action except the kind that happens in the bedroom. She won't have pain but she can't use her full biotic abilities until the strap is off."
Aethyta waited until Shepard gave Liara a kiss on her cheek and then she grabbed Shepard's arm. "Come on, I'm taking you to our mess hall and get some food in you. I know you haven't eaten much the last few days from the look of you. I'll tell you what happened on Omega so you can yell at me. But I don't intend to get yelled at by my daughter too for not taking care of you."
Shepard held Liara's hand for a little longer before letting the doctor and Aethyta lead her out of the room. The doctor escorted them to the elevator and said to Shepard, "I'll have someone to prepare a cot for you in Liara's room." And then she turned to Aethyta, "I'll expect you to pick me up tonight to go dancing at the Blue Angels."
When the elevator door shut with a ding, Aethyta let out a breath. "Evy likes to talk big, but she's one of our best surgeons, she said Liara's shoulder won't even scar." Seeing Shepard's brows still tied up in a knot, Aethyta added. "You know this means she can't fight on the ground when we get through the Omega 4 Relay."
Shepard's shoulders relaxed a little. "Thank heavens for small mercies."
In the mess hall, Aethyta picked food that was safe for humans and piled them on a tray for Shepard while telling her what happened on Omega. Shepard watched the stack of food containers getting higher and higher on her tray, but she knew better than to aruge with the Matriarch and she told Aethyta about their discovery on Horizon. Aethyta led them to a table and sipped an eezo energy drink from a flask. "I think I might be able to provide you with manufacturing scale we need. The Matriarchy has been trying to find ways to punish Matriarch North. If your team can design the implant, we can make Matriarch North turn her amp factories to make implants. Her industries supply half of the biotic amps in the galaxy. Let me talk to the Grand Matriarch and Matriarch Jamaya."
In the corner of her eye, Shepard saw an asari child staring at her, half hidden behind the snack table. Shepard turned and looked at her, the child moved away from the table and smiled at her. Shepard smiled back. Aethyta pointed at a tall and stocky asari in a crisp uniform decorated with bars on the collar.
"Let me introduce you to Commander Bellana, one of our fleet commanders I've recruited into the Tuchanka Project. This is…"
"Commander Shepard, it's an honor to meet the hero of the Citadel." Bellana walked quickly to join them and took Shepard's hand into her large and muscular hand. Her voice was as gravelly as Aethyta's and almost as booming as Wrex's. Shepard smiled. Bellana turned to Aethyta and bowed her head slightly, "Happy Janiri, Matriarch."
Aethyta returned her greetings and said to Shepard, "Commander Bellana is Fin 2's mother."
Shepard took Bellana's hand with both hands. "Fin 2 is the real hero. She saved Liara's life, I'll never forget that."
Commander Bellana's voice bellowed. "I hear that you lobbied to strip the black mark on my daughter's military records and recommended her for a commendation."
Shepard still held Bellana's hand and she bent her head slightly. "We have an old human saying, whoever saves a life saves the world entire. Liara is everything to me. It was the least I could do for your daughter."
Commander Bellana reached out with her other hand and held Shepard's arm. "Commander Shepard, the asari military has an old tradition also, saving someone's life makes you a part of their family. Your actions against Sovereign saved all of our lives. So welcome to the family."
Aethyta asked, "How's the fleet coordination going for the Omega 4 Relay trip?" Commander Bellana let go of Shepard and turned to the Matriarch to answer her question.
Shepard turned again at the snack table and saw the young girl was still there and looking at her. She excused herself and walked towards the snack table. Aethyta reminded loudly behind her. "Fruits are safe, don't eat the nuts."
Shepard bent down on one knee in front of the child, she couldn't guess her age, and she asked. "What's your name?"
The girl's blue eyes matched the afternoon sky, deeply opaque yet enthusiasm burned brightly when she smiled. She tried to speak, but her voice stuck. She swallowed and tried again, and all she could do was try to not to cough. The bright eyes started to turn nervous, her smile faded and her lips shook slightly and soundlessly. Shepard picked up a water flask on the table and she took the girl's hands and put them around the flask. "It's okay. Drink this."
"I'm Nebi." After a couple of sips, the girl finally found her voice and she looked relieved.
Shepard smiled and extended a hand. "Nebi, You can call me…"
"Commander Shepard. I saw you on the vids. You're my hero." The girl tried mimicking Shepard's gesture, but she bent her elbow first and then brought down an open hand as though she was chopping an invisible fruit with her hand.
Shepard laughed and picked up the girl's hand and put it in her own and shook it a couple of times. "This is a friendly greeting among humans. It's nice to meet you Nebi."
Some of the radiance returned to the girl's face as she first looked at her small hand inside of the human's large one and then she looked up at the smiling face. "You're not at all what I imagined a hero looked like." She stopped smiling, "I mean, you don't look that big." And then she shook her head, "No, I mean, you don't look that mean." She stopped herself again, and the radiance started to fade again.
Shepard laughed again and put a hand on the girl's arm. "It's okay, Nebi. I know what you mean." She tapped the girl's chest lightly with a finger. "Being a hero isn't about how big you are or how mean you look. It's about what's in here. It's about how much you care about the people you protect."
The girl thought about it and she smiled again, this time the smile was a quiet one. Shepard suddenly wondered if she would enjoy talking with a child like this if this were her own baby. The thought warmed her. She reached into her pocket and took out the yellow and purple fabric that Onyx gave her and held out for the girl. "Happy Janiri, Nebi!"
Nebi shook her head. "I can't accept that."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't have anything to give you."
Shepard thought for a moment and proposed. "What if this wasn't a gift but a training tool?" Looking at Nebi's large and bright eyes, Shepard hid the handkerchief in her sleeve and opened her palm.
Nebi's eyes turned even rounder. "Where did it go?"
Shepard pretended to look at own hands with confusion and then patted her pockets as though she was searching for the handkerchief in her pockets. And then she looked at Nebi's shoulder and sighed with a relief, "It was on your shoulder this whole time!" She pulled the handkerchief from her sleeve and brushed it over the kid's shoulder.
Nebi's eyes lifted up with surprise. "That's impossible. How did you do that?"
Shepard giggled, "Would you like me to show you how to do it?"
II.
Fin 4 and G.G. carried a tray of glasses and two bottles of elasa liquor into the common room in the Blue Sabre's crew quarters. Fin 4 told her teammates. "You know what we heard Onyx say to us when we were at the lounge getting these drinks? 'Why aren't there drinks in your hands? We'll head to a tough battle after the holidays and during the Janiri, enjoy yourselves. That's an order!'"
Fin 1 chuckled. "Who put the honey in her eezo this morning?"
Fin 2 chimed in. "Didn't you hear? She's got the hots for that pirate who got turned into our ranks. She must be the one who's honeying up our squad leader."
G.G. smiled. "We should send her some thank you cards!"
Fin 3 didn't want to let it go. "Onyx and an ex-pirate! That would be a thing to ferret out."
Fin 2 teased. "What are you going to do? Spy on her or worse yet, meld with her to find out?"
Fin 4 couldn't help but make a face. "Eww…" And that made everyone laugh.
Before the laughter died down, an asari Commander with broad shoulders and in full uniform stepped in the room. Fin 1 saw her first and barked, "Attention!" Everyone stood at attention.
The Commander waved a hand, "At ease. Relax everybody, I'm here to visit with my daughter who was kind enough to extend me an invitation to meet with her here."
Fin 1 gave a nod to her teammates and relaxed her body first. "Happy Janiri, Commander Bellana!"
Fin 2 looked shocked when she saw her mother walk through the door and at her mother's comment, she turned to G.G. The youngest commando lowered her eyes to stare at the floor while chewing her lower lip. Commander Bellana saw the exchange and realized who was really behind the invitation. She looked at G.G. directly. "I'm surprised how well you know my daughter without the ability to meld with her."
G.G. didn't expect the Commander to address her first and she tensed her body again. Fin 1 tried to rescue the young teammate. "Oh, they can meld and they have." All other Fins bit back laughter and kept their faces barely expressionless.
Commander Bellana's eyes widened looking at Fin 1. "Oh? I thought her condition was similar to that of an Ardat Yakshi."
Fin 3 spoke up, "Yes and no. Her condition is called ISD, Inner Synaptic Disorder, a disease prevents your brain from terminating a meld."
The Commander nodded slowly. "Isn't that one of the symptoms of the Ardat Yashi disease?"
It was Fin 4's turn this time, "Yes, but when a person with ISD can't stop a meld, she kills herself rather than her partner."
Seeing the growing concern on the Commander's face as she first looked at Fin 2 and then at G.G., the Fins jumped in once again trying to help.
"That was before she had her current implant installed. Commander Shepard and a Justicar helped her get the implant, and as long as she has it, she can't hurt herself or her partner."
"That is if the implant continues to work."
"Well, the salarian assured us it wouldn't break or wear out."
"And we have a backup one just in case."
As the Fins tried to explain the situation, their voices grew louder and louder and they overwhelmed G.G.'s protest. "I'm in the room and I can hear you."
Fin 2 finally overcame the shock of seeing her mother and pitched her voice above her squad mates, "Guys, shut up!"
The room suddenly fell silent and everyone looked at the Commander. Commander Bellana took a deep breath and started. "Fin 1, my daughter likes to toe the line, I'm counting on you to keep her in check and not to do anything stupid."
Fin 1 snapped her heals and stood at attention again. "Roger that, Commander!"
The Commander continued. "Fin 3, I had a nice chat with your mother two days ago and she informed me that you haven't been writing to her regularly."
Fin 3 tensed her body. "We've been busy preparing our ship and equipment for the battle beyond the Omega 4 Relay, ma'am." And then she lowered her head. "I didn't want to tell her how dangerous the mission might be. I don't want her to worry."
The Commander nodded but kept a tight face, "She knows the danger that comes with our job, but you won't do her any favors if you keep her in the dark and guessing. Whatever you choose to tell her, I expect you to write or get her on the QEC before the Blue Sabre goes through the relay, is that clear?"
Fin 3 snapped her own heals, "Crystal, Commander!"
The Commander looked at Fin 4 and softened her voice. "My daughter tells me that you're the most talented sniper on the team and that one day you'll surpass everyone and become a leader in an elite squad of snipers. I know my daughter is intelligent enough to make an accurate assessment on that score. You look out for your teammates and you come back safely from the trip through the Omega 4 Relay and I'll personally see to it that you make that leap one day. Is that understood?"
Fin 4 performed a salute, "Yes, Commander!"
Commander Bellana picked up a glass from the tray and waited for everyone to do the same. "Good, I wish you a safe journey and a resounding victory!" She raised her glass and drained the content in one gulp, "Now, I'd like a moment with my daughter and G.G."
Fin 2 and G.G. watched their friends put down their glasses and file out the room hurriedly. G.G. couldn't help but stand at attention again when the Commander looked up and down at her and then asked. "I was told my daughter wasn't kind to you at first. What did she do?"
G.G. gave Fin 2 a quick glance and then she straightened her head and answered. "On Thessia when we had our first official drill together as a unit, she hid my primary and backup helmets. I had to borrow one from another teammate that wasn't fitted with spotter's mods and perform my tasks as a spotter by sight and a hand scope."
Fin 2 chimed in behind her mother. "You aced it anyway." The remark earned a sharp look from the Commander.
"Go on." The Commander turned back to G.G.
"On Tuchanka when we had our survival training out in the desert, she tossed half of my water supply out of a moving tank."
Commander Bellana paced in front of the commandos while listening to G.G.
"And on Omega, she made fun of my call sign that Matriarch Aethyta helped me pick and called me Big Baby."
The Commander stopped her pacing and faced G.G. once more, "Juvenile indeed. I hope you took actions to show my daughter what you're made of."
G.G. gave Fin 2 another look and saw the sniper give her a quick wink behind the Commander's back as an encouragement. "I clocked her face and broke her nose."
Commander Bellana threw her head back and let out a loud laugh. She put a hand on G.G.'s shoulder. "You'll do." When her laughter died down, she took G.G. by her shoulders and looked at her firmly. "My daughter told me that your mother had passed away. I wanted to tell you that you've got a family here. If you ever need help, you only have to make a call, okay?"
G.G. felt heat behind her eyes and she couldn't think of a thing to say. After running and hiding all of her life, she wanted to tell this tall woman what her words meant to someone who had been in exile and what it meant to have a family. She shifted her gaze to Fin 2 whose own eyes were watering; G.G. could only manage a smile and answered the Commander in a quiet voice. "Yes, ma'am." When she saw the Commander return her smile she said, "I'll give you and Alia some time alone."
Fin 2 escorted G.G. to the door and G.G. fixed Fin 2's sleeve that was rolled up. "Be nice to her. She sees more reasoning than you think, but don't let her walk all over you. If the Commander treats you badly, I'll still kick her ass as I promised you before."
Fin 2 laughed even though tears were still standing in her eyes. She wiped her eyes and kissed G.G. on her cheek. "Look who's the Big Baby now?"
G.G. took Fin 2 into her arms and gave her a tight squeeze. "It was always you, but you're my Big Baby and anyone who isn't nice to you will have me to answer to."
Fin 2 laughed again. "I love you."
G.G. brushed her hand on Fin 2's cheek, "Don't make the Commander wait for too long." And she gave Fin 2 a toothy grin and then disappeared through the door.
Fin 2 used her sleeve to wipe her eyes and rejoined her mother. The Commander offered her a seat next to her and put a drink on the table in front of the sniper. Fin 2 sat quietly staring at the drink. "You know, before our last meeting, I'd thought that you would've been happy for an opportunity like this battle against the Collectors."
The Commander tilted her head. "Why?"
Fin 2 sighed and gulped down the drink. "I'd die a hero and you can remember me as such instead of a coward who couldn't protect Graf."
The Commander closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. "I've never thought you a coward. I needed someone to blame and you provided a convenient target. I don't expect you to forgive me for what I said at Graf's funeral, but I'd like a chance to explain why I pushed your sister into the military."
Fin 2 stared at her empty glass and remained silent. Her mother had been hysterical at Graf's funeral, shouting at her. "How could you let this happen? You were supposed to look after your baby sister!"
The Commander downed two shots in a row and filled Fin 2's glass too. "I've never told you this but I was a wild one during my early maiden years." She glanced at Fin 2's shocked expression, "Oh, yes. I did every cliché thing a wild young maiden did right after I left home. Drinking, dancing, partying and waking up in strangers' beds or in nightclubs. I got in trouble with the law a couple of times, wrecked a skycar once, thank the goddess nobody got hurt. My mother enrolled me into the military after bailing me out of a jam and that was the smartest thing she ever did for me. The military life straightened me out and set me on the right course in life. I met your father on a mission. He understood me in a way that nobody had before and I loved him. The Goddess rewarded that love with you and your sister, two most important people in my life."
Fin 2 shifted in her seat. The Commander took the drink from the table and waited for her daughter to take her own. Mother and daughter downed the drinks together, and the Commander refilled their glasses again. "Despite what you might think, you and Graf are the best things ever happened in my life. When Graf ran away from home after you left for sniper school, I thought that military might give her what she was looking for as it did for me. You had excelled so quickly in the military training, I was so very proud. And I thought if only I could put Graf in the safety of the military structure, she'd find her own way like you did. I even pulled some strings to put her in your unit. Thought you two could look after each other, like when you were growing up together. It was my fault to put her in a frontline unit."
Fin 2 couldn't meet her mother's eyes but she shook her head. "No, it wasn't your fault that Graf died. It was mine."
The Commander grabbed Fin 2's hand. "Alia, it wasn't your fault. I was wrong to put the blame on you."
Fin 2 shook off her mother's hand and stood up. "Yes, it was! I cried like a baby when my leg was burnt. I cried and screamed right in front of her. If I hadn't, Graf would still be here. I got my baby sister killed, your little baby girl killed, okay?" She turned away from her mother and tried her best to stop the trembling.
Commander Bellana stood behind her daughter and put a hand on the shaking shoulder. "It was my fault to put you two in the same unit. If anyone should be blamed, let it be me."
Fin 2 turned around and shook off her mother's hand again. With anger in her eyes and her cheeks flushed, she yelled. "But she didn't die in your arms! She didn't beg you to save her. She didn't..." Her voice broke as tears rushed down her face. Fin 2 couldn't bear to look at the horror and pain gathering on her mother's face, she stopped and sat heavily back down and put her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably.
The Commander clenched her fists and bit back her own sorrow. She knelt down in front of her daughter and held Fin 2's arms. "I know what it's like to feel helpless…"
Fin 2 shook her mother's hands off once again. "No, you don't! Not with Graf! Does she come to your dreams and cry for help? She comes in my dreams, not as an adult but as a little girl. She always cries in my dreams, 'help me!' 'I'm scared!' She always looks like she was no older than 20 in these dreams and she was always so scared." Fin 2 stared at her mother's face through her teary eyes. "Does she do that to you?"
"Oh, goddess!" Commander Bellana wrapped her arms around her daughter against her struggle. "I'm so sorry, Ali!" She held her daughter tightly and let her sob into her chest and felt her own heart breaking into pieces.
Commander Bellana held Fin 2 until she calmed down and then she took out a fresh sudary and wiped her daughter's face while still holding shoulders. "If I could turn back time, I would. But perhaps now we can both morn Graf's death. When I think about her, the only comfort I allowed myself is the thought that she's with your father now, and he'd look after her and they'd look after each other. Do you remember when Graf was young, your father tried to teach her how to shoot a pistol, but she insisted on reciting a poem before each shot to drive your father crazy?"
Fin 2 let out a chuckle and took the sudary from her mother and wiped her own tears. "Yes, she hated guns. You remember that time you took us to the shooting range, I wanted to try every sniper rifle they had and Graf sat in the gallery the whole time?"
Commander Bellana activated her omni-tool and brought up a picture of a drawing. "Of course I remember. She drew this picture of you while watching you break every target shooting record in the range." She tilted her arm in an angle so that Fin 2 could see the picture of her young self with a sniper rifle that was longer than her body.
"You used to have this on your desk."
"I still do." The Commander retracted her arm and stared at the picture. "I love this drawing so much. After she finished the drawing, Graf bragged about you with the quartermaster who provided equipment for the Armali sniper unit and it was he who recommended them to check you out." She sighed. "Graf adored you."
Fin 2 swallowed and felt her tears returning. "G.G. reminds me of Graf, mom."
The Commander smiled at the word "mom" and she pulled her daughter even closer. "She seems to understand you the way your father understood me. That kind of person is hard to find in life." And then she lifted her daughter's face so that they could look at each other. "When Matriarch Aethyta recruited me to get the fleet ready, she told me how dangerous this mission through Omega 4 Relay is, I panicked. The thought of everyone I love is gone seems so unbearable. Knowing that the hero of the Citadel is leading the mission, that you'll fight alongside of an elite squad of commandos and your friends, and that I'm helping prepare the fleet as much as possible, makes me feel better. But you'll be very careful, won't you? I can't lose you, Ali."
Watching tears fill up her mother's eyes, Fin 2 took the Commander into her embrace this time. "I will, mom. I promise."
III.
In the jam-packed Blue Angels, Aethyta nodded to the bartender, "Honey wine…"
Evy touched Aethyta's hand, "Since when do you drink honey wine? Did the hanar suck your krogan blood out and offer it to his Enkindlers?"
Aethyta shook Evy's hand off, "I was going to order the honey wine for you and ryncol for myself."
Evy ignored the irritated look on Aethyta's face and grabbed Aethyta's hand again, "Come on! Aren't you moonlighting as a bartender? Don't be so predictable."
Aethyta couldn't help but feel amused at the challenging stare from the surgeon, and when the surgeon bumped her with a bony shoulder as encouragement, Aethyta smiled widely. "Fine, you asked for it, Skinny!" She turned to the bartender, "Armageddon Mix, four."
Evy laughed and then stood in front of the bar, rubbing her palms together while waiting for the bartender mixing their drinks. When Aethyta handed her a rainbow-colored drink in a large shot glass, she flipped the glass and dumped the entire drink in her mouth. Stars burst in her head and shot out through her eyes. Evy's face scrunched up and then she shook her body from head to toe as though she was a dog shaking off water. "Rinse and repeat." She followed it up with another shot and another shake, and then she grabbed Aethyta's arm and together they pushed onto the dance floor.
Lights flashing, music thumping, strangers' shoulders bumping, another round of drinks, another round of dancing… Their feet started to slip on the dance floor, Armageddon Mix had its second and third kicks, Evy dragged Aethyta back to the bar. "I have to sit down or you may have to carry me off the dance floor."
Aethyta lifted a hand to order another round, Evy put a hand on her shoulder heavily, "Maybe honey wine for me this round. I've seen enough stars for one night."
Aethyta smiled and ordered wine for Evy and ryhcol for herself. "You were always a lightweight." Which she knew wasn't true, but she jabbed anyway.
Evy didn't return her prod, only drank her wine. "What did you order the pink jellyfish when you two went out drinking?"
Aethyta shrugged. "I drank, he prayed."
Evy let out a loud laugh, under the neon lights in the dark bar, her purple markings disappeared and her blue face looked even paler. Aethyta had to suppress a grimace suddenly at how much that face reminded her of… "I'd dubbed your time with the Enkindler-lover your pink period." Evy laughed at her own joke and then she leaned over to Aethyta and asked. "Hey, were you ever afraid of squashing him when you were doing it?"
Aethyta started to realize this was a mistake. She remembered why she didn't "get into it" the last time she and Evy flirted, and who that face reminded her of. Back then the wound was still fresh and now the guilt was stifling. Aethyta couldn't say which felt worse, being dumped by Nezzy back then or feeling guilty for not saving her now.
Evy's laughter faded as she waited for Aethyta to rake it in with her counter jabs and then she'd surround and make her own move, but she didn't expect Aethyta's silence. The surgeon put her wine glass down and stroked Aethyta's bare arm with the back of her fingers lightly. "I've noticed something new about you. When I'm not irritating you with my Enkindler-lover jokes, your eyes had melancholy. That's very unlike the Aethyta I once knew. Did that Enkindler-lover upset you?"
Aethyta looked away to the dance floor but didn't move her arm. Evy's hand felt soft and the slow strokes matched the rhythm of the dance tune the band was playing, "Nah, he treated me nicely."
First Aethyta backed down from banter and then she spoke nicely about someone, Evy's eyes narrowed. "What are you hiding, Aethyta? Did he push that Enkindlers bullshit on you or make you do that weird tree-hugging thing with him? If he laid one tentacle on you against your wishes, I swear I'm going to swim down to the bottom of the ocean and dig up his glass jar and let varren…"
"Evy! Stop!" Aethyta couldn't help but shout, "I thought I had the krogan blood rage. I said he was a gentleman, okay?"
Evy put up her palms in surrender, "Fine, fine. Just trying to help." She sipped more wine, waiting for both Aethyta and herself to calm down, and then she sighed. "You know how much I cared about you. When you decided to move to Kahje, pff! Every daydream I ever had of us together dashed away." She flickered her index finger and then rested her chin in her palm.
Aethyta felt her heart ache. She never seemed to get her timing right, she lost over a century of time with her daughter, she couldn't get there in time to save Nezzy, and here was a brilliant and beautiful woman she just had to meet right after she broke up with Benezia. Aethyta was never one to brood but she couldn't shake the heaviness in her chest. She sighed and conceded. "Didn't mean to hurt you."
"Hurt me?" Evy stood up, found herself unsteady on her feet and sat back down. "Nah, I enjoy begging for your attention and when you finally seemed to light up a little then… you just left, no word, nor explanation. I'd rather let an elcor piss on my guts than feeling like that." She let out a bitter laugh. "I figured I'd wear you down the last century, but here we are. I'm once again hoping I'll wear you down before this century runs out. I'm pathetic, I know."
Aethyta grabbed Evy's arm abruptly. "Listen to me, Skinny! Me going with the hanar had nothing to do with you, okay? He was just harmless. I didn't even have a kid with him like the last hanar I was with. I didn't want to be with you because I didn't want to…" She stopped. Under Evy's intense stare, Aethyta softened her voice. "After Nezzy I couldn't sleep with another asari, not even for a one night stand."
Evy captured Aethyta's hand that was gripping her arm and rubbed it with her finger. "You never spoke to me about Matriarch Benezia. I saw the vids Commander Shepard shared with the Council. She died saving us."
Aethyta calmed herself by taking another drink. "I loved her, Evy. We were together for over a century. I wasn't just a donor for her kid. We were in love. Before she died, she told Shepard that she wanted to save the galaxy for me and for Liara."
"Then you owe it to her to live the rest of your life to the hilt. She wouldn't want you of all people to mope in your rycol and close yourself up to the world, would she?"
Aethyta couldn't look Evy in the eye. "You don't understand. I failed her. When she needed saving, I failed her. When you love somebody, you're supposed to protect them, right?"
Evy saw Aethyta's slummed shoulders and miserable look, she held onto Aethyta's shoulders. "Yes, yes we are. I can tell that you love Liara, aren't you protecting her? Isn't this what her mother would want you to do?"
Aethyta once again didn't move away from the surgeon and enjoyed the warmth of Evy's hands on her shoulders. "Look what kind of crappy job I did! She's in your med bay."
Evy moved her face closer to Aethyta's and spoke in a low voice. "Aethyta, what does it serve to look backwards? You're working to save us all. I know you, you'll fight. You fought to save my little girl's life and I know you'll make both Liara and her mother proud. We must look to the future, must we not?"
Aethyta felt as though she was listening to Nezzy talking to her again, the warm breath on her face, the wisdom in the words. She stared at Evy's face, pale blue with bright blue eyes. She pushed the surgeon's shoulders and almost tipped her over. "Thanks for the kick in the quad, Skinny! You're right. This self-pity crap is bullshit. We're going to face a tough fight beyond the Omega 4 Relay. I will fight, and I'll go down fighting."
Evy smiled when Aethyta caught her after that brutish shove and felt the strong grip Aethyta had on her waist. "Hey, what if I were to join you on the Blue Sabre? My sister isn't going to be happy about having my big ego under her care but if the fight will be as tough as you say, my sister's going to need my help. What do you say? You won't get an offer sweeter than that!"
Aethyta laughed. "You're not making a play for your naked ambition to take over my fleet's medical corps, are you Skinny?"
Evy waited all night to make her move and she knew she'd made the right one. "I'll take anything naked you offer."
Aethyta looked down at the large blue eyes sparkling in dancing lights. "Is that so?"
Evy nodded vigorously.
Aethyta took Evy's hands and pulled her up from the stool. "Then let's get out of here."
