CHARACTERS BELONG TO BIOWARE. LETTER MENTIONED IN STORY IS BIOWARE HANDYWORK NO COPYWRITE INFRINGMENT INTENDED.
THANKS AGAIN TO MY WONDERFUL BETA READER ETERNITY ANGEL OF MERCY FOR PROOFING AND APPROVING.
CHAPTER 2 (F)
Torin sinks into the chair behind her desk and turns to face the two terminals; one shows multiple messages from various persons in various places, the other an image of the Artemis Tau cluster. A quick glance at the first allowed her to see that no new priority message waiting for her to reply to, and thus she turns her attention to the second.
Touching the image where the Knossos system is located caused the terminal to come to life. The screen is no longer serene and peaceful; it is now cluttered with multiple icons for various programs and files. To others, the screen may look like a jumbled mess; but for Torin, the chaos was easy to navigate. She quickly and mindlessly presses various icons, passing deeper and deeper into the system.
"Personal drive accessed," a small voice announces as Torin completes the series of button commands on the terminal.
Turning her attention now fully to the file in front of her, she begins to reread the letter that had started her run of sleepless nights.
**Siha,
I write this with a heavy hand, knowing you will read this letter when I am no longer able to share my thoughts. I am dying, Siha. Perhaps because of the differences between our species, I can hope that time will treat you with kindness and dim the hurt of my passing to faded recollections that a drell would forever remember with perfect clarity.
Selfishly, however, I could not leave this world without leaving a piece of me behind that would never fade.
I once accepted my fate. Nothing remained but a shell destined to die. I only had to choose the when and how of my passing. I had refused to be confined to a bed, gasping horribly as my life beeped away to machinery I had no use for. I thought of my Irikah, broken, bloodied, and betrayed by my absence. Of Kolyat, small and afraid, bravely pushing at his eyes to stem the flow of tears I had entrusted to him to cry... for both our sakes.
The expectation to move swiftly to my end vanished upon uniting with your cause. You awoke me, Shepard. My heart quickened its sluggish beat if only to remain at your side and protect you with everything that I am. I was content to simply watch, take the time left given and praise all I know for allowing me to walk my final days with hope and certainty that I am worthy of more than my cold isolation, solely because you believed.
I love you. If all else whispers back into the tide, know this for fact. By grace given me by the Goddess Arashu, I bid her divine protection to you, my warrior-angel, my Siha, to succeed in your destiny. To light your path through the coming darkness. To give you hope, when all seems lost.
I will await you across the sea.
Thane
Torin releases a deep sigh as she finishes the letter, letting her eyes linger on the last words from her former teammate and lover . Thane was persistently poetic, not only with his words but with everything he did - including taking out his marks. His way of assassination was beautiful, not cold or heartless. It had always been breathtaking to watch him move through the battlefield - it appeared more like a dance than a struggle for survival.
"Damn it," Torin mutters as she tastes blood from biting into her lower lip. Her guilty conscious is coming to the surface.
She reaches for the small flask on the desk and partakes in the teal intoxicant, which quickly sends a warm then chilling effect throughout her body.
She closes out the letter and presses another icon.
"Subliminal Personal File. Access code required."
"Tango Echo Romeo Romeo Alpha One Niner Three Niner Charlie Delta Sierra," Torin recites clearly and slowly.
"Access granted."
Torin rotates her head in a slow stretching motion, having found a knot starting to form again. As she finishes she sighs; once again she is facing the screen that awaits her input.
