The Vanguard arrived at Omega without incident. Liara took up the co-pilot seat next to Feron as he guided the ship into the docks.
"When we land, I'll need you to set up a meeting with Aria T'loak."
Feron gave her a double-take. "Why would you want to meet with her?"
Liara secured her M-4 to her belt, and pulled Shepard's hoodie down over the top of the weapon. "First, because she's got eyes and ears everywhere on this station. She may already know where Shepard is, and I won't have to waste time searching. Second, she's well connected, and I need a ship, because you're leaving."
Feron's expression became even more confused. "What?"
"I'll need a place to stay once I've located Shepard- somewhere I can sit with him and figure out what exactly happened here." Liara pocketed two of the phosphorous grenades. "The only person I can trust in this sector to find a well-hidden and properly secured safehouse is you."
Feron sighed. "I've got just the place. I'll send you a message when it's ready." He eased the Vanguard into the docking clamps. The ship shuddered once, and all was still.
Liara stood and walked with him to the hatch. "I'll wait here. Be careful, Feron."
He nodded. "You don't have to remind me."
Liara smiled, and pulled him into a one-armed hug. "I know." She released him. "Now go."
Feron disembarked, and Liara found herself alone. She sat at the table in the galley, staring at the dull metal surface as her mind raced.
Aria's never been cozy with the Alliance, so I doubt I'll have to worry about her turning me in. I'll have to see how generous she's feeling… maybe she'll even help me to find Shepard. The two of them had an interesting working relationship…
Liara sighed.
So many unknowns.
The hatch opened, and Feron entered. He looked agitated, nervous. "I got that meeting all set up. Some of Aria's men are here to escort you."
Liara could read between the lines well enough to know Feron was begging her not to go, but she was resolute. She stood from the table. "I'll be waiting for your call about that thing we discussed."
Fernon nodded. Liara stepped out the hatch, and waited for it to close before she turned to the escort Feron had mentioned: Two krogan in full armor, and a batarian.
The batarian was grossly normal and completely nondescript. His skin was typical of batarians- a pale shade of yellow-grey, and his face wore the perpetual frown of his kind. One thing stood out to Liara, however: this batarian had money. His black and gold armor was in excellent condition; an uncommon trait on Omega.
"Doctor T'soni." the batarian nodded in her direction.
Liara stood on the gangway, momentarily considering turning around and leaving. She then remembered why she came, and stepped down onto the platform.
"I'm afraid you have me at a disadvantage, Mister …?" she cocked her head and raised a brow expectantly.
"No 'mister', just Bray. I work for Aria."
Liara nodded in understanding. "Of course." She gestured to Bray and his bodyguards. "Lead the way."
•._.••´¯``•.¸¸.•` ℓσѕт `•.¸¸.•´´¯`••._.•
The pulsing beat of Afterlife shook her jaw as Liara took her seat on the plush sofa. Across from her sat the self-proclaimed leader of Omega. Aria T'loak looked much the same as Liara remembered: feral and cunning eyes, with her lithe posture and movements that reminded her of a great cat from Earth. She smiled inwardly at the thought.
With the razor-sharp claws and teeth to match, I'd wager.
"I apologize for not announcing my visit," Liara began. It never hurts to try humility first. I can always be rude later.
Aria snorted. "Do you believe that lies sound sweeter coming off a honeyed tongue, Liara? And you did announce your visit- where else do people go when they run from the Alliance?" At the word 'Alliance', Aria's eyes met with Liara's. All sense of pretense was gone in that momentary exchange. Liara sighed, and her shoulder's drooped slightly.
"It was necessary and unavoidable. I had to come to Omega immediately."
Aria leaned back, stretching her arms across the back of the sofa and crossing her legs. "And what possible interest could a scientist who specializes in the Prothean civilization have on Omega? Last I checked, we hadn't unearthed any relics in the mines." Bray laughed from his post standing beside her, a grunting, growling sound. A look from Aria silenced him. She turned back to Liara. "Well?" She raised a brow questioningly.
Liara licked her lips, choosing her words carefully. "I heard an interesting rumor, and wanted to investigate it myself." Aria gestured for her to continue. Liara hesitated before she announced, "an acquaintance here on the station thought they saw Commander Shepard."
Aria's face grew serious, no longer amused. It was as if the game of cat-and-mouse she had been playing with Liara was suddenly boring.
"That seems unlikely, considering the last task I'd heard Shepard undertook involved a rather big boom." Aria crawled across the sofa, her movement catlike. She brought her face to Liara's ear and whispered, "and his hand on the trigger."
Liara closed her eyes, holding back her tears. Then, a flash of rage cross her face. Before Aria or her guards could react, Liara's blue-white corona surged, and she seized Aria by the throat.
Bray reached for his pistol, but Liara chided him. "You move, she dies. I could crush her windpipe before you even had it pointed." Liara stood, dragging Aria up with her. She held the Omega Queen over her head, feet dangling helplessly.
"You…ugh… disappoint me… Bray," Aria croaked. She looked into Liara's face, regarding her for a moment. Liara bathed in blue-white biotic aura, cold and calculated anger radiating from her features.
"I would remind you, Aria, that the man you speak of was mine. I loved him. And…" she pulled Aria's face an inch from her own, articulating each word clearly in staccato. "I… will…not…have…him…disrespected." With that, she suddenly released Aria, who dropped to her hands and knees, coughing. She took several ragged, deep breaths before she half-crawled back up onto the sofa. Bray's weapon was out and pointed in an instant, but Liara ignored him. Aria straightened herself out, adjusting her neck in several directions. She waved Bray off, and he begrudgingly holstered his weapon. She turned to Liara then, her gaze full of amusement.
"My, my. Wasn't sure you had it in you, Liara."
Liara sighed, gesturing in frustration. "I didn't come here to play games, Aria! …I just need to make sure it's not him." She sat back down, head in her hands. "I can't begin to tell you what it's like. The not knowing. The doubt. The uncertainty."
Aria waved a hand dismissively. "If for no other reason than to stop these damned Alliance agents from crashing down on me, I'll help you. Anything to get you off this station quickly. Word reached me yesterday that they were seeking information on your whereabouts. It seems the Alliance believes you'd head this direction as well."
Liara's expression turned to one of horror. "Anyone who saw me arrive could report my whereabouts to the Alliance! What if I was recognized?"
Aria laughed, throwing her head back. "You have no idea how things work here. No one reported you, because I didn't tell anyone to." She stood. "I guess Shepard never taught you the only rule Omega has?"
Liara shook her head and said wryly, "Gee, I don't think it ever came up."
Aria smiled, turning to look out over the club. Somehow, the expression reminded Liara of how a varren looked at its next meal.
"Don't fuck with Aria."
Liara nodded. "I'm glad we've reached an understanding." Aria took her seat again.
"So, where did your acquaintance see this imposter?"
Liara's brow furrowed. "You don't think it's him?"
Aria let out a snort. "Shepard may have been the best soldier the Alliance had- he may have been the greatest soldier in the galaxy. But we saw the video feeds, and the few mercs that made it back here after the war had lots of stories to tell. No one could have survived that mess." Aria turned, and regarded Liara strangely. "You think it's really him?"
Liara shrugged helplessly. "I have no idea. The scientist in me agrees with you, Aria: the massive amount of energy released from the Crucible, the explosion... No organic being could withstand that." She looked out over the club, watching people mingle, dance, and laugh. "The part of me that loved him, though… that part isn't so sure."
Aria nodded, a knowing smile playing at the corners of her lips. "He was something of an enigma, wasn't he? I remember when Shepard came back to help me toss Cerberus off of Omega. Even then, without me knowing, he worked his magic over me, and I let that weasel Petrovsky live."
Liara smiled, a tear rolling down her face.
Is it like this with everyone, Shepard? Did every person you ever helped in some way, great or small, feel the good in you? Is there anyone you ever encountered whose life you didn't change for the better?
"He had that effect on people." She whispered, wiping away the teardrop.
Aria nodded. "Bray, escort Dr. T'soni to the docks and find her mystery man. Assist her in any way she asks, up to and including putting a bullet in anyone that gets in her way. And Bray." She leveled a wicked gaze at the batarian. "Don't fuck this up."
Liara stood, and followed Bray off the balcony, and through the club to the back entrance. When they exited, Bray opened his omnitool and keyed a command. Liara assumed that Aria's veiled threats would not be taken too seriously, and Bray would lead her to the docks by himself. As they stood outside the door, waiting, she grew impatient.
"Is there something we're waiting for?"
Bray nodded. "Your escort."
Liara's eyes narrowed. "I thought you were my escort."
Bray shook his head. "Not just me." He inclined his head down the walkway. "Them, too." Liara followed his gaze to a squad of mercenary soldiers coming toward them.
"Is this really necessary?" She asked. "Am I in danger here?"
Bray checked his weapon. "Don't know, don't care. Aria says protect you at all costs. She's not screwing around when she gives an order like that."
After the mercs formed a protective guard around the two of them, they left the lights and pulsing sounds of Afterlife behind. The streets virtually cleared in front of the cadre of mercenaries as they marched swiftly toward Omega's shipping docks, and in minutes, Liara found herself standing in the dock's control center.
"Bray, I need to go find Shep- this person. I'd prefer to go alone from here. While I'm gone, can you get me access to Omega's shipping logs, inventories, and any surveillance from the docks?"
The batarian nodded, and issued orders to his men as Liara stepped out onto the docking ring's concourse. The docking ring was huge. Running completely around the station, the ring had bays enough to fit well over one hundred vessels, in varying sizes. Some bays were designed for freighters, others for passenger liners. The docking ring was abuzz with activity: people coming and going, cargo changing hands, and element zero coming from the mines in massive shipping containers being loaded onto various ships.
I've got to find him.
Liara's pulse was racing as she moved from one bay to the next, quickly checking out the crew, looking for anyone who remotely resembled Shepard. Her hands shook as she rounded a corner too tightly, spilling a crate of cargo to the floor. She hurried on, ignoring the angry shouts behind her. She passed a vessel unloading exotic spices, another bearing ship parts, and a third loading passengers.
He's here somewhere, I can feel it. Shepard, where are you?
Frantically she half-ran to the next bay, turning and colliding with a cargo container. She fell to the floor, dazed.
"Easy there, lady. This isn't exactly a good place for a jog."
Liara's heart skipped a beat. That voice…
She stood quickly, and found herself mere feet from…
"Shepard." She breathed.
The man raised a brow quizzically. "Sorry, lady- think you've got me mixed up with somebody else."
Author's note: Sorry about the shorter chapter this week. This just felt like a good spot to break ;)
Thanks all for your feedback and continued support! It keeps me going.
Until next time!
-Zero