A/N: If the ending of last chapter was a bit confusing, hopefully Liara will be able to shed light on just what happened there. And she will react in the only way I can think of as fitting for her.
Thanks once again for all the reviews this story has been getting, and to Shadow, thank you for the guest review, I'm glad to hear you've enjoyed the tale so far.
Now, let's get on with things, shall we? :)
Chapter 45 - The Illustrious Mr. Vega
Through her eyes, I have seen Earth burning. I have seen what it did to her, Liara thinks, lying quietly on the bed, not daring to move a muscle from fear of disturbing Morgan's fragile slumber. Liara knows that she has no chance at falling asleep herself now, not after what she has experienced drawing on Morgan's memories during their union. The gruesome sights have left her paralyzed with fear.
I looked at Earth, but in the eye of my mind, I know I saw Thessia instead. My people will share the same fate, it is inevitable, she realizes, with a feeling as if an ice cold hand had reached into her chest and clutched hard at her heart. Her reality will become my reality. Her horrors will become my horrors.
How does she cope with all that? How dare I not be there for her when she needs me? She feels tears starting to escape the corners of her eyes again. To think that I once considered ending this, because the very thought of losing her again might be too hard for me. How could I be so selfish to think about my own pain? I must be there for her, every time she needs me. I must reinforce her strength, and gain my own in return.
She turns her head slightly to the side to watch the face of her lover, nuzzling against her, for once her brow is free of creases, the smile on her sleeping face relaxed and content, Morgan looks released from her cares and worries, and Liara sighs, wishing that she could prolong the moment somehow, even if she knows that there is so much work ahead for both of them. But this time, I will be with you along the entire way, my love. We will be strong for each other. And we will persevere.
Morgan wakes to the sound of a gentle click of some kind of wiring getting connected. She opens her eyes, realizing she is splayed out on the bed in Liara's new quarters, noticing her asari lover putting the last few finishing touches on her new Shadow Broker headquarters. Morgan's heart swells with fondness when she sees how Liara goes through so much effort to make as little noise as possible, hoping not to wake her, and for a while she just watches her lover work, without alerting the asari to her being awake.
Eventually, as Liara steps away from the complicated rig she has set up, looking pleased with herself, Morgan rises up in the bed and is about to greet her lover, before getting rudely interrupted. "Good morning, Shadow Broker!" the annoying info drone floats over to her, its words making both her and Liara jump in fright.
"Oh, you're awake," Liara smiles. "I really need to sort out that VI's programming. I'll get to it later. Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah... surprisingly so," Morgan admits, as Liara walks over to her and sits next to Shepard on the edge of the bed. "Listen, babe... I... I didn't hurt you last night, did I? I was a bit... rougher on you as I normally would be..."
"No, it was... strangely enjoyable," Liara admits. "And it was what you needed, Morgan. I am here for that. To give you what you need." With that she wraps her arms around Morgan's shoulders and pulls Shepard to rest with her head against Liara's chest, while bending down and planting a kiss on Morgan's brow.
"You are too good to me, babe," Morgan says quietly, though from the expression on Liara's face it is clear that her lover disagrees strongly. "Right now, though, I feel like I could do with some coffee and breakfast. Have you eaten yet?" she asks as they separate.
"No, I was too busy getting this thing ready," Liara points at her new toys. "I think it should be good to go."
"Well, go on and test it out while I grab something from the mess hall for us both," Shepard smiles. "I should probably check my terminal for new messages as well."
"Umm, you can do it from the console there," Liara points at one of the computers. "I thought to link it through here as well... I hope you don't mind. I just figured as long as you're spending time here..."
"I always appreciate creative hacking attempts for my convenience," Shepard laughs, before sorting out her hair at the mirror and stepping out into the mess hall. When she returns, all three dozen screens in the office are already active and bursting with incoming transmissions, Liara scratching her head, looking a bit at a loss and not knowing where to start catching up with all this information.
"Well... it looks like everything is... more or less in order..." Liara speaks, quickly browsing over the data feeds. "Most of the agents have been reporting in over the past day, save for three... ah, and report from Feron, thank the goddess he is alright."
"Yeah, I guess your agents will also get trapped on the Reaper hit worlds," Morgan realizes, starting to sip her near-coffee. "With time it will probably take its toll." Liara simply nods with a grim expression on her face as Morgan starts to browse messages on her terminal.
"Rubbish, and then some more rubbish," she says, having quickly looked them all over. "Nothing from Sparatus yet. Though... hmm, this might be interesting."
"What is it?" Liara asks.
"There are some news about quarian fleets possibly arming for war. Young quarians getting recalled from their Pilgrimages and various other hints pointing towards that," Shepard explains.
"I hope those preparations are against the Reapers..." Liara sighs.
"Oh, don't be silly, babe," Morgan chuckles. "They would not think to attack the geth at a time like this. I know those admirals are stupid, but surely they're not that stupid. Especially now that Tali is back with the Fleet, the collective quarian intelligence and wisdom has quadrupled."
Liara chuckles, before falling silent again. "Oh... goddess. I... I think I might know why Sparatus has not reported yet," she says moments later.
"What?" Morgan feels instantly alarmed. "What is it?"
"Taetrus has... fallen to the Reapers," Liara says quietly. "The massive turian fleet sent to retake it has been ambushed coming out from the mass relay and completely... annihilated."
"Gods..." Shepard exclaims, rising from her seat, feeling her heart starting to skip. "Those are the ships we will need later on! And they are just... throwing them away by engaging Reapers in an open war!"
"It appears they had no idea what they were walking into," Liara explains.
"We really need that war summit soon, so I can try to convince them to avoid open conflicts like this," Shepard says, then hesitating as she stops her torrid pacing around the office. "...damn it, I really need to hear from Garrus soon, I am starting to get very worried. I hope... I just hope he wasn't on Taetrus. I wonder if any of your agents could check..."
"I just asked them to do so, Morgan," Liara replies, looking equally worried. "This... is not going well, is it?"
"It's not going to look pretty until we make some progress on that damned Prothean doomsday machine!" Shepard exclaims in frustration.
"Once I have sorted out these reports, I will spend some time analyzing those blueprints. I will need to confer with EDI as well, she will no doubt be able to help," Liara ponders thoughtfully, making plans.
"Well, I imagine Hackett has his top scientists working around the clock on it, and the asari and salarians should hopefully jump onboard soon," Morgan shrugs. "That said, you are the Prothean expert, so you can probably help a great deal."
Liara looks up at her. "Oh... oh, Morgan, do not worry, I know I am making all these plans and I make myself sound so extremely preoccupied, but I will not neglect you, I promise!"
Morgan breaks out in relieved smile. "I'm glad you said that before I managed to make myself looking stupidly selfish by insisting on your company," she admits guiltily. "That said, we do need your expertise. We don't really know much about this Prothean device, what it does, how to operate it, and then there's that mysterious component..."
"Yes, it would probably help to know a bit more about it before we activate it," there is a merry twinkle in Liara's eyes. "Morgan, if you don't mind, I would prefer to dedicate a few hours to study the blueprints. After that, I promise to be fully at your disposal."
Morgan bends down to gently brush her lips against Liara's. "Don't worry, babe. I'll stop by later when I decide you have worked too much or when I'm simply starting to miss you too badly."
"It's a deal," Liara agrees with a smile, as Shepard leaves the asari to her research.
"You settled in, Doc?" Shepard asks, stepping into the medbay, looking for her old friend, Dr. Karin Chakwas. "Everything in order down here?"
"Everything is fine, Shepard, we are fully stocked," Chakwas replies with a smile. "Ah, it truly feels like being home again. Lab work was... useful and necessary, but it did not compare to serving on the Normandy."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Shepard chuckles. "Sometimes I feel like I'm married to this ship. Something always drags me back to it."
"I'm not sure how Liara would feel if you were truly married to a ship," Dr. Chakwas grins, warmth in her eyes as she looks Morgan over. "And speaking of Liara, I feel I must remark how much more at peace you appear with her back onboard the Normandy. I'm glad we have her with us."
"I know what you mean, Doc. With what's going on back on Earth... it's killing me, but... you know, with her I feel as if even when everything around me is unraveling, I still have a steady ground beneath my feet. She just makes me feel that way."
"You'll need that support, Shepard. This is just the beginning, we both know that," Chakwas says sadly, before lightly patting Morgan on her shoulder, directing her to sit down on one of the beds. "Please, just a quick routine examination."
"Why? I feel fine!" Shepard puts up a token protest as Chakwas raises her omni-tool for a quick scan. "Nothing wrong with me, is there, Doc?"
"Well, I'd like to keep an eye out on those Cerberus implants grafted into you. With you breaking up with Cerberus, I have been entertaining the notion that-"
"That despite what Tim claimed, they would still somehow be able to exert control over me through the implants," Shepard finishes for her.
"Yes, that was my worry," Chakwas admits, checking the omni-tool. "Well, the readings seem perfectly fine, the implants show no rejection. Hmm..."
"Hmm? What do you mean, hmm?" Shepard asks anxiously. "I hate it when doctors say 'hmm'. That's usually a bad sign... nothing worse than a doctor being curious about some unexplained anomaly inside of you!"
"It's nothing, Shepard. It's merely that the readings are identical to what they were six months ago," Chakwas says.
"Isn't that good?" Morgan asks.
"It is good, even if not entirely normal," Chakwas replies. "You would expect some slight wear and tear. I'm sure it's nothing to be concerned about, though."
"Uh-huh," Shepard gives her a skeptical look, before relaxing. "Say, Doc... we should have a glass of that famous brandy of yours sometime later. Raise a glass for all those left on Earth..."
"I would like that, Commander," Chakwas nods. "I do not have any family left to speak of, but I would join in a toast for those brave souls all the same. So many friends left behind..." she shudders slightly, desperation briefly reflecting in her eyes. "We need to end this war quickly, Shepard."
"That's the plan, Doctor," Morgan tries to sound reassuring, even if she doubts her own words. "Build crazy Prothean super-weapon and blast the bloody Reapers so we can all go home... sounds simple, right?"
Morgan decides that the new, combined armory and docking bay, rebuilt in the style of the SR-1 is worthy of her approval, bringing back fond memories of the first ship under her command. Down here she is enveloped by the relaxing hum of the ship's engines, the sight of Lt. Cortez fussing over the Kodiak shuttle, always finding one or another thing to fix and improve upon. And then there is, of course, the illustrious Mr. Vega, seemingly always working out whenever Morgan happens to set foot down into the armory.
"Still no word from the Council, Commander?" James asks, exhaling sharply as he pulls himself up towards the bar with practiced ease. He is doing the behind-the-neck version of the exercise, something that Shepard herself has always disliked greatly. "I'm guessing they're not really interested in helping."
"I give them three more days to realize that they can't build the Prothean weapon all by themselves," Shepard shrugs. "After that, the calls should start coming in."
"Hope you're right, Commander," James says. "Though why would they help? There's no war on the Citadel. Everything here is calm, peaceful... it's just wrong."
"They do think about their people and their homeworlds, James. They're not that egocentric. In that sense, they seem to care more about their own people than Udina who thinks about his own personal benefit first," Shepard replies. Can't believe I'm defending the Council. What has this galaxy come to? "Their worlds are starting to come under fire now, the turians especially. Soon enough they will be desperate to work together."
"Probably true that," James admits. "Hell, you were right about leaving Earth, too. Still hurts like hell not being there, but... looks like this war is going to be won by dealing with all these pendejo politicians. Not sure how useful I can be with that, though."
"Don't worry, James," Shepard chuckles. "Somehow I don't think that running out of targets to shoot will be a concern in this war."
"Yeah..." James grunts reluctantly. "Damn it, lost the count now."
"78, I think," Shepard says, suddenly aware of someone approaching them. She is pleasantly surprised to see that it is Liara, the asari smiling as she reaches out to place something in Shepard's hand. "Whoa, a real apple," Morgan grins. "Where did you get that?"
"I managed to steal a few in the mess hall before the crew caught the sight of them," Liara explains proudly.
"Oh, well done!" Shepard smiles, then moving a little to the side, freeing space for Liara atop the heavy crate she has been sitting upon. Liara nimbly jumps up to sit next to her, though it is a tight squeeze and she ends up crossing her legs over Shepard's, almost partly sitting in Morgan's lap. Shepard notices James stealing a quick glance, and all of a sudden it seems as if he is perspiring a great deal more. "Nice show, isn't it?" she whispers to Liara, gesturing at Vega.
"Quite stimulating, I agree," Liara nods with a grin.
"So, James..." Shepard starts, then bringing the apple close to Liara's lips, allowing the asari to take a small bite.
"Damn it, Shepard, now I really lost my count," James curses loudly, making her and Liara exchange amused looks.
"Concentrate now, James," Shepard's voice is laced with sweetness as she wraps a hand around Liara's waist. "Wouldn't want to think of you cracking so easily under a little... pressure."
James grunts and releases the bar, landing heavily down on the floor. He turns to look at them, mildly frustrated. "What did you really want, Lola? Surely you didn't come all the way down here just to torment me?"
"Lola?" Shepard's eyebrows rise questioningly.
"Yeah. My best friend's sister growing up was Lola. Older sister. Hot, tough."
Shepard laughs. "Aw, James, you say the nicest things," she grins. "But yes, there was one thing I had meant to ask. For a few months now, really." James crosses his hands over his broad chest, looking at her. "I was just curious... what did a capable marine like you do to get stuck on a glorified guard job?"
"You can just look up my service record, Commander," Vega replies, his tone suddenly a great deal frostier.
"I can and I will," Shepard replies. "But I figured I'd give you the chance to first tell me yourself."
James thinks for a moment, before facing her with a challenging stare. "Think you can dance and talk at the same time, Lola?" he reaches out with his hand, beckoning her to jump down from the crate and join him.
"Is this where I would get jealous were I a human?" Liara asks, trying to keep a straight face.
"I don't think James is talking about that sort of dancing," Shepard replies, jumping down and standing in front of James. "Alright, Vega..." she raises her hands, assuming defensive posture. "Show me what you've got."
"What do you want to know, Lola?" James asks, at the same time as throwing the first testing swing, Shepard easily dodging it. "That I fell out with the Alliance brass? That Anderson pulled my sorry ass out of the slums of Omega?"
"Your heart is in the right place, Vega," Shepard barely manages to pull back from another left swing, then launching a quick counterattack, catching James off balance with her punch. "Must have been something real bad to shake your trust in the Alliance."
"Could say that," James snaps in reply, annoyed at Shepard having scored a hit. "Maybe you've heard about the disaster on Fehl Prime. Lost most of my squad with my commanding officer, Captain Toni, protecting a civilian colony from a Collector attack."
"What about the civilians?" Shepard asks, going fully on the defensive as James' swings become fiercer and fiercer.
"It was either them... or the intel we had on the Collectors. Intel that we thought we could use to destroy them," Vega's voice is full of pure, unfiltered anger by now. "And I chose the intel!" the incoming punch is so hard that Shepard's ribs feel the impact even if she manages to deflect most of the force behind the blow.
"I've made my own share of choices like that, Vega," she responds, equally harshly now, catching him on the chin with another quick counter punch, then nimbly jumping back.
"The best part was... we really didn't need that intel in the end," James snarls, throwing a quick succession of punches that ends with a nasty uppercut that Shepard doesn't manage to completely avoid. It catches her upper lip and she can feel the sticky, salty taste of her own blood flowing down her chin. With a corner of her eye she sees Liara tensing and straightening up on the crates, looking at her worriedly. Don't interfere, she tries to convey with her stare and it appears that Liara understands.
"We didn't need it because you were out there saving the galaxy by taking down the entire Collector homeworld!" Vega shouts, launching himself into another attack, aimed to deck her for good, but he fails to connect and Shepard's fist crashes into his chin, stunning the Lieutenant.
"Would you have preferred that I didn't go through the Omega-4 relay?" she says quickly before James has had the chance to recover. "Your sacrifice might have mattered more then, yes, but at what cost? How many other colonies would have been taken before you actually did something with that intel? We both did what we had to do. You could not have known, James."
Vega slowly lowers his hands, his anger fading. "All that time with the shrink has been rubbing off on you Lola, eh?" he asks.
"Let me tell you something about sacrifices, LT," Shepard speaks angrily. "Six months ago I sacrificed an entire batarian system to prevent the Reaper invasion, to make sure we're ready when they finally come. Now think back of Earth and how 'ready' we were! How's that for one sacrifice that paid off?"
"I... yeah, I... I get it, Lola," James says quietly. "But we still can make that sacrifice matter. We just need to win this goddamn war."
"That we do," Shepard nods, suddenly feeling tired and exasperated. "But now I think I need to clear my head. Liara," she looks at her lover.
"Yes, Morgan?" the asari is at her side immediately.
"You, me, and some remote tea shop on the Presidium," she suggests, Liara smiling approvingly. "Let's escape all of this, if only for a little while..."