Omega Chronicles -28- Unforeseen Circumstances

It seemed to be a slow night in Afterlife.

Aria's forearms were resting on the parapet overlooking her club, her eyes were panning lazily on the crowd downstairs, betraying a hint of boredom. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, in the hopes of easing the dull pain in her lower back. Her belly was bumping slightly against the glass panel she was standing behind. A sigh of annoyance escaped her perfect blue lips and a small crease formed in the middle of her brow. She couldn't wait to give birth and be done with all this uncomfortable nonsense.

A svelte, determined figure was suddenly making her way up the short steps to Aria's personal lounge, in the blink of an eye Garka and Anto were in front of her, their rifles cocked and ready. "Stop right there."

The visitor's voice rang clear so that the Queen could hear her. "Is this the way to welcome an old acquaintance, T'Loak? Omega sure used to be friendlier than this, not a century ago."

Aria recognised the voice immediately. In her mind she was torn between being worried and being solaced. She settled for suspicious as she called off her guards. "Let her through."

The Turian and the Batarian lowered their weapons and stepped aside, going back to their usual posts, as the cocky Asari visitor approached the middle of the lounge in slow steps. She stood there, arms crossed on her chest, waiting for the Queen to actually speak to her.

Without so much as turning her head, Aria did.

"Aethyta. Long time no see. I was quite sure you stated you did not want to set foot in this, I quote, 'stinking excuse for a cesspool' ever again. So I take it something big must have changed your mind."

The Matriarch waved Aria's irony off with a quick gesture of her hand. "Yeah, yeah. I should know better at my age than to make promises I'm not sure I can keep. So fucking sue me. Unfortunately, you once did choose to go out of your way to save my life. And so I find myself in the sorry position to owe you. But guess what, T'Loak. I came to give you something that will make us even."

"And here I thought you were coming here to exact revenge for Benezia." Aria's lips curled up in a small grin, she knew this had to sting.

"Ah, yes. That pig-headed, sexy as Hell bondmate of mine. There would be that small matter too. It is fortunate that I happen to know she was far gone in the head by the time you got to her. Fortunate for you, I mean. Otherwise I should kill you where you stand. Speaking of which, not that I expected you to run and throw your arms around me upon seeing me here, but it is fucking rude of you to not even look at me while we have such a perfectly lovely conversation."

Aria finally turned around to face the Matriarch, revealing her now impossible to hide pregnancy. Aethyta's eyes went wide for a second as she took in the unexpected view. Her voice was suddenly lower as she commented. "I had heard rumours. I had also dismissed them. I guess I shouldn't have. But if you think this changes anything, you are mistaken."

A sure voice got her attention from behind her. "Oh, it does change everything, I can assure you."

Aethyta turned her head to see who was interrupting her. The first thing she saw was the muzzle of a weathered Carnifex pointed at her head, just a few paces away, and not far behind it was the face of a young human, her odd coloured eyes burning with determination. The Asari's voice betrayed a hint of amusement as she addressed the Commander. "And who the fuck might you be?"

Shepard's expression didn't betray any emotions as she answered. "Someone who can easily ruin your day, should you choose to even -hint- at making any moves against Aria."

The Matriarch's lips opened in a smile as she took a couple of steps and subtly smelled the air around the human. "So you must be the other proud parent! How bloody cute. An impromptu family reunion." She went back to looking at the Queen as she went on. "Anyway. You managed to piss off some very powerful bitches while you stomped around outside your sandbox, T'Loak. Especially on Noveria -and- Feros. That's never healthy. I'm sure you must have been warned already, certainly in vaguely threatening terms. A little bird told me it was Councilor Tevos that had been tasked to give you the message back at the Citadel. Now that the financial damage you caused has been quantified, you have become a not-so-public enemy number one. So I'm here to enlighten you about who wants your head on a stick. Well, even more than usual, that is. Matriarch Lyria, Matriarch Saneera, Matriarch Vysene. I'm sure you're familiar with the names. And with this, I consider my debt to you fully paid."

Aethyta headed for the stairs. Shepard couldn't help herself and teased. "Aw, you won't even stay for a drink? And here I was, already warming up to your sunny personality."

The Matriarch stopped for a moment right in front of the Commander, eyes locked on the human's. "I like you. You're fearless. But keep in mind, it is a ridiculously short step from fearless to reckless. Don't take it."

Just as swiftly as she had come in, she walked down the steps, quickly disappearing from their view.

Aria sat down on her couch with a short sigh. "That went rather well, all things considered."

Shepard was at her side immediately, a concerned look on her androgynous features. "Old friend of yours?"

The Asari casually crossed her legs and took a sip of her drink. "Old, yes. Friend... that was never really cleared between us. I guess we are both opportunistic enough to choose our friends and allies according to the season, so to speak."

The Commander couldn't help asking. "Is she going to be a problem?"

"I hope not. I always had a soft spot for her and the way she foregoes any hypocritical deference when she speaks her mind. But we did kill Benezia, whom she loved deeply. Aethyta is intelligent enough to understand why we had to, but her mind and her heart are two separate things, and she has been known to follow her heart on more than one important occasion in the past. We'll see."

Shepard's hand came up to caress Aria's prominent belly in a sweet, slow motion. The Queen put a hand on the Commander's chin and lifted her face, fixing her eyes on her human lover. "It's almost time. We will leave for Thessia in a couple of days. It will be just the two of us, I want to keep this as low key as possible, even though I doubt there is by now a single soul in the Terminus Systems who -doesn't- know I'm pregnant."

"Is it necessary to go?" Shepard didn't like the idea of leaving Omega in someone else's hands, the possibility for a hot head to get ideas of taking control behind Aria's back was always a looming, very real perspective after all.

"Not necessary. No. I could give birth in a varren's lair if I needed to. But this place is dangerous, with people who hate me behind every corner. I don't want to run any risks at a time when I will be vulnerable. Being on Thessia, of all places, will give me at least a measure of safety. No one in their right mind would try anything stupid there. It has always been a sort of neutral ground."

A small grin opened on the human's lips, her voice turned low and she commented with a mock tone of self-importance. "Fear not, fair maiden, I will protect you, anywhere."

The Queen let out a short, amused laugh. "Well, aren't you chivalrous, Commander. I haven't been called a Maiden in a few centuries now." She quickly added in a sarcastic voice. "And I certainly don't miss it."

Shepard didn't even blink before replying. "Doesn't mean I won't lay down my life to protect you, and our child."

Aria stared at her for a long moment. Her blue fingertips slowly glided on the human's cheek and traced her lower lip. "I'd rather you stayed alive."

Shepard caught her wrist and placed a soft kiss on her palm, then gently tugged her, inviting her to come closer. Their lips met, and a small spark of pleasure burst between them. The Asari's hand grabbed Shepard's neck and her fingers entwined in her short hair, their mouths opened to deepen the kiss, naturally. They took their time devouring each other slowly, their tongues dancing a familiar dance of faintly concealed hunger.

As it slowed down, Shepard brought their attention back to the matter at hand. "So I guess we won't be taking the Inanna?"

The Queen had a pensive expression on her face for a moment. "No. As I said, I want to keep it low key. I will have a small transport ready for us."

"As you wish. Is there anything specific you need me to do before we leave?"

Aria smirked, her eyes suddenly glowing. "I can certainly think of a thing or two. Unfortunately, I'll have to delay them. There are still a few preparations I need to make. Once I'm done, I expect to find your lovely naked ass waiting for me in bed."

Shepard returned the grin. "It will be my pleasure, my Queen."

"And that's it. We're done, all systems go, I checked and double checked and triple checked everything I could." Tali's fingers were flying quickly on a pad as she paced nervously in front of Shepard. "Let it be known, for the record, I do not approve of you and Aria getting on this shuttle by yourselves. I do not approve of you going solo. I do not approve of this because it is stupid and dangerous and you should bring someone along. Like me. Or Garrus. Or Jack. Or all of us!"

"Tali…" The Commander tried to get a word in.

"No, no. Do not 'Tali' me, I know I sound over-protective and paranoid, but guess what. Someone has to be, since you won't! This is stupid! I don't get why you need to go by yourselves, I don't get why you refuse some assistance, when we're all eager and ready and willing and actually worried about this."

"Tali…" It was worth a try.

"No, no. I know ultimately it's none of our business, I mean, silly us for caring and wanting you to be safe, right? But still, there must be something I can say to make you change your mind, to make you reconsider…"

Shepard raised a hand and put it right on the young Quarian's visor, grasping it and giving it a short shake. That finally seemed to catch the engineer's attention. When she was sure Tali was in fact listening she spoke, slowly and in a low, patient voice.

"Tali. The decision is not mine. Aria was adamant about all the details of how she wants this to go down. And you know as well as I do that it is virtually impossible to change the Queen's mind once she has set it on something. Believe me, I do appreciate your concerns, and up to a point I also share them. Now I don't know if this is all part of some ancient Asari tradition, if it is Aria being her usual paranoid self not wanting to be seen in such an intimately vulnerable moment, if it has to do with some weird astronomical alignment or if it's because of what she had for breakfast. And to be honest, I just don't care. All I know is that she's about to give birth to our child, and I'll be damned if I don't make it happen exactly as she wants it to happen. It's the minimum I can do. Got it?"

The Quarian sighed from behind the opaque glass. "Got it. Doesn't mean I have to like it."

She gestured with her hand toward the open hatch of the shuttle. "Let me take you on the official, very short tour. I'll show you everything you need to know about the little modifications I've made to this little tin can."

The Commander smiled. "That's the spirit." She climbed the small metal ramp and walked in.

The journey to Thessia in a shuttle was proving to be longer than anticipated. Well, Shepard was sure it would be so, given the limited capabilities of flight speed of such a small vessel, even considering the amazing job Tali had done to make it faster, more resilient, and even more comfortable than your average, run of the mill shuttle. It was still a fucking shuttle. The human was reminded of some of the more ruthless training while she was still in the Alliance. They stuck four or five of them in a ship no bigger than this, threw them out somewhere and told them to find their way back. Once they did make it back, you really did not want to be in front of the hatch when it opened. Weeks in such a confined space, deprived of all but the most basic things needed for survival, meant that the air recycling ended up working way over capacity just to make sure the soldiers did not die of their own stench. It was certainly a formative experience.

She was shaken away from her reminiscing by Aria's splendid, and slightly round, figure coming to sit in the chair next to her piloting position. Shepard greeted her with a smile. "I thought you were going to take a nap."

The Asari had a look on her face that spoke volumes. She was the embodiment of discomfort and aggravation. "Fuck naps. Fuck this shuttle. Fuck pregnancies. I'm just about ready to carve my own offspring out of my belly with a pocket knife."

The Commander was quick to reply. "I do always carry a knife… it's in my boot, if you would like to take advantage."

A sinister shadow passed on Aria's eyes for a second, and Shepard thought she might actually take her up on her offer. "Smartass."

The human sighed internally in relief. "Well, the good news is, it won't take that much longer. According to Tali's flight plan, we should be there in just a few more hours."

There was a sudden, loud booming sound as the small vessel was hit by something and rocked out of its course. Both Aria and Shepard were knocked out of their seats and fell to the floor on one side of the cabin, their ears ringing.

The Commander turned immediately to check on her bondmate, the Asari stared at her in confusion for just a second. "What the hell…? I'm all right, find out what happened!"

The human swiftly climbed back onto her piloting chair and her hands brought up the command console. She ran a few tests. "We've been thrown out of FTL. I'm trying to find out why or by what."

Aria pushed herself up and went to sit down as quickly as she could, she wished she could strap herself in, but her bulging belly was making it impossible. She cursed under her breath. Her eyes narrowed. "I don't like this. Scan for other ships."

A small beeping sound was the system's reply. Her blue finger came up to point at a dot on the semi-transparent interface in front of them. It was closing in, fast. Her voice was cold and annoyed. "I hate being right all the time. And I could make a sure bet there are the hands of those fucking old bitches Aethyta mentioned, behind all this."

Shepard was working frantically to get them out of this ugly predicament. "Whoever they are, they sure seem angry at us. Evasive manoeuvres. Hold on, it'll get even more bumpy. They're charging weapons." She started looking for a way out of this, anything that could enhance their chances of surviving the attack. She knew the shuttle had been retrofitted with a couple of small beam weapons, the only thing the limited energy output of the engines could fire, but she knew it would not be enough to fight back.

A shot from the enemy ship missed them by a hair, the shockwave knocking the shuttle about like a weightless feather. Aria grunted and her hands and forearms wrapped around her belly in an instinctive protective gesture.

Shepard's voice was calm under pressure, as usual. "There, I found a planet with a breathable atmosphere in that star system off our starboard bow. Heading there at top speed. If we can manage to land this thing before they see where we are, we can at least hide." She inputted the commands for the new course. "Once we get inside the system, I'll take everything off line and we'll fly manually. I don't want to leave too much of an energy trail that they can follow. Also, there seems to be a very convenient asteroid field en route to the planet. We can use it to confuse their sensors somewhat. Every little bit helps."

"Good plan. Now make it work, Commander. This is not how I pictured spending my day."

Another shot exploded next to the hull, a red light went off on the console. Shepard checked the damage. "That one was too close. The structural integrity is compromised. Better make our way fast."

Aria nodded. "Transfer the piloting commands to my console. I've done my share of dodging asteroids in order to save my hide before. I'll fly us in and out of the field, then you can land this thing."

"Be my guest." The Commander pressed her back against her seat as the shuttle gathered speed. She watched with heedful eyes as the big rocks flew by them, the Queen's hands moving elegantly and precisely as she made the small craft squeeze through passages that seemed too small to accommodate a cleaning droid. Aria was still full of surprises, and Shepard couldn't help staring at her for a few long moments in a state of nigh adoration and deep admiration.

The Asari somehow noticed. She grinned, despite the circumstances. Every stroke to her ego was always a welcome gift. "Close your mouth, Commander. One might think you've never seen a pilot before."

She swallowed and replied. "Oh I've seen pilots. Many of them. Very few as good as you. It's quite pleasant to still discover new things about you, my Queen."

"As delighted as I am in your praise, you're up. That's our planet right there. I hate to have to admit I'm not half as good at landings…" There was a playful smile tugging at the corners of Aria's lips, even in the face of enemies trying to shoot them down.

Thankfully they were making a poor job of it. They seemed to have fallen behind in the asteroid field, giving them a much needed advantage to try and hide. Shepard took command of the shuttle and flew them into the atmosphere, the impact with it was shaking them about, she did not want to slow down, in fear that the hostile ship could catch up with them. As soon as the initial friction died down and the shuttle adapted to the new flying environment, she started looking around for a good place to land.

The planet looked lush, and this particular region seemed devoid of urban structures. She quickly checked the database to see where they were. As the computer entry said, it was an uninhabited world. The atmosphere was indeed breathable, but only by a margin, any prolonged stay would require some serious terraforming, and apparently there were no notable natural resources that would justify the costs. Hence no corporation was really interested in it, and it had been left alone and to its own devices.

As they were pondering about the best place to set down, a loud creaking sound made their heads turn. Shepard frowned. "I told you the structural integrity had been compromised, no? Well, that's our last call. We better hope it actually holds together long enough for us to land."

"I would pay good money for some positive news right now." Aria's annoyance was now bordering on concern.

Shepard started slowing down, she pointed to a somewhat flat promontory below them as she turned the shuttle towards it. "There. Might as well do." A beeping sound caught their attention. "We lost power to the thrusters. Redirecting whatever I can to them. Hang on tight, it won't be a soft landing."

The Commander lined up the small craft and initiated the descent, she brought all systems off line to give more power to the rapidly dying thrusters. As the ground approached she deployed the emergency chute from the back of the shuttle to slow them down as much as possible, she turned its nose up and hoped against hope that the damned thing would survive the impact.

A shattering grinding noise filled their ears as the metal delved into the earth, the short plants, the small rocks, Aria tried to hang on to the arms of her seat but to no avail, she was violently rocked out of it and thrown against the bulkhead near her, a sharp pain blinded her as she fell to the floor and as she was tasting her own blood filling her mouth, she lost consciousness.

"Aria!" Shepard's cry was almost impossible to hear over the cacophony that was deafening her. She wanted to unbuckle and go to her lover, but she knew it would be a bad idea. She might end up injured herself, and then who would be left to help them? She clenched her teeth and waited some never ending instants for the shuttle to finally stop.

She got rid of the seatbelt and jumped to where the Asari was. Her hands tried to assess any damage for a couple of seconds before she remembered she actually still had an omnitool. She brought it online and scanned Aria's body as quickly as she could. The instrument told her there was a broken femur in the Queen's leg, a cracked rib and a small lesion in her mouth. She immediately applied some medigel as instructed. Then she tried shifting her lover to a more comfortable position, she sat down next to her, she took her in her arms and gently tried to wake her up.

After a few seconds Aria came to. Her eyes opened suddenly and she looked around, alert and almost in a panic. It took her a moment to remember where she was and what had just happened. Then she focused on Shepard's face, who was looking down at her with a mix of apprehension and relief. In a spontaneous move, her hand came up to cup the human's cheek. As she did that, her eyes turned black and she projected her mind inside herself to check on her daughter to make sure she was ok. Satisfied with what she felt, she blinked back to the here and now. Her voice was trembling slightly under the pain from her leg and torso, the metallic taste of her own blood still lingering on her tongue. "I do hope those bloody fuckers find us here. I'll make sure to feed their innards to the local fauna."

Shepard grinned and held her tighter for a second, careful not to press on her wounded rib. She placed a soft kiss on the Asari's forehead. "I swear, you have more lives than a cat. Thankfully."

Aria tried to push herself up. "A what now?"

"Never mind. Let me help you up, we need to get out of this twisted metal cage, then I'll start looking for a place where we can settle down for the time being." She stood up and lifted Aria's arm up and around her neck, so to offer support. "Careful how you step, you have a broken leg."

"Yes, I can feel it, thank you." The Asari noticed the hard tone in her own voice and mellowed it a bit. "At least you got us down here in one piece. Nice landing."

The Commander gave her a smile. "You're welcome."

They found a wall of rock nearby, and Shepard started building a makeshift shelter against it, using some broken branches and some large foliage of which there was an abundance all over the place. She went back to the shuttle to gather a first aid kit, what little supplies they had brought along and thermal blankets for the night. While she was there she debated whether to turn on the emergency beacon, but she was afraid the enemy ship might still be close by and could pick up the signal. She decided to bring it along instead, and to turn it on later, or maybe even the next day. She took a look around and was happy to see that the vegetation was already covering most of the hull, she finished the job in order to hide it from anyone flying above it. There was no fire and no smoke that could give away their presence. After leaving all the stuff from the shuttle with Aria, she went to fill a few containers with water from a nearby pool. She could feel herself getting tired more easily than usual, and knew that it was because of the lower percentage of oxygen in the planet's atmosphere. By the time she was back she was completely exhausted. She sat down next to the Asari, panting audibly.

Nevertheless, she wet a small cloth in the fresh water and motioned to wipe Aria's face with it. The Queen tilted her head back and away, her blue hand jumped up to grab the cloth from Shepard's grip. "I'm not dead yet. I can clean myself, by myself."

The Commander was somehow quicker and jerked her hand back before the Asari could reach it. "Ah ah. Not this time. I -am- pampering you, and you -will- be pampered." A defiant grin slightly opened her lips as she waited for a retort.

They held each other's gaze for a few instants, then Aria had to admit to herself that the idea of being cosseted and revered was, right at this moment, quite inviting. Her aching body was killing her, and her head was still pounding incessantly. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the soft, giant leaves that Shepard had settled behind her back as a temporary support between her and the hard stone. Her voice was low and silky. "Fine. See that you do an excellent job of it, Commander."

The human replied in kind as she drew near. "Do I ever not?"

Aria smiled a tired smile as she relished the cool touch of the wet cloth on her skin, her hand covering the human's in a lazy caress. "I'll be the judge of that."

Shepard kissed her lips softly, lingering for just a moment to enjoy the feeling before resuming her ministrations. "I love you too."

The evening came quickly, the sun set beyond the vegetation. Shepard had started a small fire to keep them warm and to keep potential animals at bay during the night. She was hoping not to attract the attention of many living beings during their stay, and that this area of the planet would be devoid of dangerous predators she couldn't fend off. Maybe they'd be lucky in that, at least. In any case, she still had her faithful gun, and the Queen had her legendary biotics. She was getting familiar with the noises of the bustling night life as she made herself as comfortable as she could in their rudimentary cot. She enveloped Aria in her arms and spooned her, careful not to hit her face against her crest. She let out a long, low sigh and before she knew it she fell asleep. Who knew how long they'd have to be here.