After Samara: The Ardat-Yakshi
Though Samara had cautioned her about underestimating Morinth, Melanie Shepard still hadn't been entirely prepared for what she'd just experienced. She'd tried to heed the older asari's warning, but hearing about the power of the Ardat-Yakshi and feeling it for herself had proven to be two very different things.
They'd tracked Morinth to the VIP room at Afterlife, and after beating up some turian thieves and getting the bartender to give away a round of drinks, Melanie had gotten her attention. Even as they slipped into the leather seats in a darkened corner of the club, her magnetism was palpable. There was something in the rich, sultry tones of her voice that made you want to agree with her no matter what your rational mind thought of the sentiments she was expressing.
While they were still in public, it was easier for Melanie to control her feelings. She lacked the exhibitionist streak she suspected her seducer/quarry possessed, and if she felt herself slipping, she could switch her attention to the crowd, the music, something to take her mind off of the enchantment the Ardat-Yakshi was weaving. Once they were back at Morinth's apartment though…
Melanie knew almost nothing about interior design, but something about the penthouse, elegant but sparse, decorated with symbols of violence, seemed to reflect the personality of its occupant. At first, she'd tried stalling for time while Samara caught up with them, examining the glittering dueling blades mounted on the wall, but she sensed Morinth would grow suspicious if she put her off too long. She was supposed to be enraptured by her hostess, a condition that it was becoming dangerously easy to fake. As Shepard slid next to Morinth on the couch, it was not hard to guess what had happened to her victims.
"We're so much alike," she purred to Melanie, evoking their shared love of adventure and danger, the undertones in her voice hinting at how much more exciting it would be to seek those things out together.
Partly to remind herself of who the asari was and partly to throw her off of her game Shepard added, "We're both killers."
For the first time, Morinth seemed rattled. "Why would you say that?" she hissed. The commander could feel the full force of her powers drawing her in, trying to subsume her will. It was as if the Ardat-Yakshi had weaponized the fascination that their species had over others, honed it to a terrifying edge that sliced through your mental defenses, plunging straight to your innermost desires. Without words, her eyes conveyed an unmistakable promise: "Just give me what I need, and everything you could ever want will be yours tonight. All your doubts, all your insecurities, I'll take them away." Even knowing what Morinth was, the urge to give in was incredibly powerful.
She didn't. She was Commander Shepard, and she was stronger than that. Tearing her eyes away from Morinth's gaze, she said harshly "You screwed up." In that moment, Morinth guessed the game, but it was too late. Samara burst into the apartment, and the battle was joined. As the justicar and her daughter wrestled with their biotics, Morinth made a last attempt to get to Melanie, pledging to join her mission if she helped her kill Samara, but the spell had been broken. Shepard grabbed her wrist, disrupting her biotic field and giving her mother the time she needed to finish her off.
When it was over, Samara was devastated, but even while Shepard was consoling her, a part of her felt cleansed. She had always been drawn to asari, but especially since her encounter with the Consort, a part of her had feared that fascination. Their mental abilities stripped her bare, made her feel vulnerable, and that was something she couldn't afford to be. Tonight though, she had faced down the perfect predator among them, someone who had spent 400 years honing her ability to subvert the wills of others and kept her mind her own. Her reactions were more under her control than she'd admitted to herself and perhaps that meant she could stop being so afraid of them.