Loyalties:
Mass Effect Trilogy is a Bioware game. For any reference to the Official Game All rights are owned by Bioware. The Fan Fiction "Mass Effect At Dawn Again" is fruit of my imagination and my work, it is a free tribute, passionate and personal to a great video game. It is not allowed any use partial or total for profit and not.
"...Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for...
Imagine all the people
Livin' life in peace!
...No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one"
John Lennon (Imagine)
Chapter 50
Father and Daugther
… The automatic door is still closed. Liara disables the electronic lock, with rapid finger movements on her omni-tool, and starts toward the threshold, with soft steps. She is reading something, while with one hand, brings to her mouth what remains of a slice of bread studded with nips, and covered with a layer of strawberry jam at least a finger tall. She bites with taste, chews thoroughly, without ever taking her eyes away from reading. Without paying any attention, neither to the slight hissing, nor to the soft hum. Both noises caused by the heavy metal panels, which docilely parting, long before the young Asari is within range of the motion detector.
She stops, absorbed in reading, halfway between the desk and the door. A few more steps, head lowered on the brand-new report, just received from agent Barla Von. "Thanks the Goddess, the Volus army has eventually scattered the few last Pirates of Aethon remained!..." She rejoices, welcoming the news with relief. "It seems the extraction of Helium-3 from Cherk Sab deposits has already started at full capacity. Excellent! I am sure the repair time for the Relays will benefit greatly from that!" She foretells optimistically in her mind, as starts walking again. Certainly not expecting the big dark spot, which enters her field of vision, just as she is putting in her mouth the last bite of the delicious breakfast.
In fact, for some minutes already, a blurred and motionless figure observed Liara in silence, beyond the threshold, as if it had materialized out of nowhere. Fortunately, the young Asari notices, just in time to avoid crashing into it. "Godd..." The girl gasps, choking a groan. She puts both feet on the ground instinctively, waving her arms around, to prevent, gravity and the big belly, from inexorably pulling her to the floor. Once the balance is restored, she lifts her chin, along with a puzzled look, as realizes open-mouthed. The wide open eyes of hers sparkle in amazement, as she wholeheartedly prays not to be hallucinating. "Oh Goddess! It's about time! So... Why do I feel surprised?" She asks herself mentally, listening to the accelerated rhythm of her heart, which immediately jumps with joy into her chest.
"Father, finally! I was afraid you'd never make up your mind!" She gloats impulsively, looking like she knows what she is saying. Meanwhile, a blinding smile shines on her face, like a small ray of sunshine, warm and bright. Aethyta does not react immediately. Too busy, trying to hold off her legs, which for a few minutes have begun to shake, like two rushes at the mercy of a hurricane. Too excited, to be able to quickly process Liara's allusion. Too happy, to reason. Moreover, as is often the case for a few months, she has no idea how much, what she is experiencing internally is visible even outside. As usual, she is not at all sure she wants to know. She only knows how clumsy and inadequate might be to dare a step, with the serious risk of falling the ground, like a ton of bricks.
Even Liara does not seem capable of any initiative. Father and daughter experience some sort of paralyzing heat in the middle of their stomach. Something intense and sweeping is pulsating, widening and spreading within them, like a river of lazy water. It slowly pervades both of them, radiating everywhere, in pleasant waves of ineffable emotion. Aethyta feels blood swirling through the arteries of her neck, pulsating strongly into her temples, grumbling along the veins of her wrists. She takes a deep breath and feels a burst of joy, lips molded into a crooked grin. "If I could only not look like a jackass..." She hopes, with her first rational thought. Meanwhile, hastens to wipe a lonely tear and shiny, from the edge of her eye. Pretending, to chase away some annoying insect, with a quick wave of her hand. Finally, not knowing how or why, she finds herself listening to the sound of her own voice, relieved that it seems less shrill than she was fearing. "You'll never know how happy I am to see you, little one! Ha, the hell with that! Come here, kiddo, and let me hold you!" She exclaims in one breath, spreading her arms.
Liara has been waiting for this moment, as long as she can remember. As a child, she fantasized about it every night. Every morning, the harsh reality would stain her cheeks with tears. She had felt like an insignificant freak of nature for decades. Unwanted, abandoned and wounded, even from her own blood. Growing up, however, she had convinced that she could do without a father, and just did not need one, indeed. She had come to believe there was no more room in her heart for the kind of presence, once so much missed... not anymore. But she was wrong.
Shepard insisted she talk to Aethyta, and she did. It was more intense and engaging than expected. Liara had the opportunity to figure out things she did not imagine about that eccentric Asari, definitely out of the ordinary. Some other things, she discovered meticulously combing through the Shadow Broker's Archives, screening for any possible information. So, while she was searching, she became attached to such a strange matriarch, arrogant and brash, but intriguing and incredibly different from her. Once she realized that vulgarity, sarcasm, provocation were nothing more than a kind of self-defense mechanism. A collection of clever distractions used by her father to avoid being watched too closely. It became easier for Liara admitting to herself that her father's presence in her life made her feel good. However, with the last dramatic fightings of the Reapers War, both feared to get lost again. Nevertheless, it had been months since Liara had tracked down Aethyta. She knew exactly where her father was, and she was anxiously waiting for Aethyta to show up. She wanted for months, and with all her strength, that unforgettable first embrace between them.
The young Asari slips into the embrace of the elderly parent, holding her breath, and with a graceful, yet unexpected hop. She throws her arms around Thyta's neck and lets herself be enveloped by the reassuring fatherly warmth. It's a strong, yet pleasant, gentle grip. For a moment, Liara feels like a child again, and cannot hold back her broad smiles and wet eyes, gleaming with joy. Aethyta had also been waiting for this moment for more than a century. It is not a dream this time, she is really hugging her extraordinary daughter. She feels Liara's heart beating hard against her chest, the warm embrace of her body, the gentle grip of her arms. She smells a pleasant scent of strawberries, the impetuous emotion of a contact between them, and... a powerful kick in the lower abdomen, coming from Liara's belly. The thousand-year-old Asari feels an infinite joy, which floods her and then drags her up, beyond the stars of the sky.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're here, dad!" Liara timidly whispers into Aethyta's ear, who can barely hold back her tears. The matriarch keeps quiet, but lets her hands and heart speak for her. She strokes her daughter's face with trembling fingers, without saying anything, to stem the emotion. She looks at the eyes of Liara for a long time, those beautiful clear eyes, so similar to Benezia's, and lets herself be bathed with blue and light. Gently, caresses Liara's face, tenderly kisses her forehead. One cheek, the other, then the lovely nose, while a tear escapes her eyes, reaching those of Liara.
"Athame's holy buttocks! It felt like hugging a river sperm whale!" The matriarch chuckles, as she shakes off the thick cloak of emotions, forcing herself to quickly regain an acceptable amount of self-control. "What about that little one you're hiding there? So, you and Shepard ground nasties down all the time, didn't you?" She continues lightly, tapping a finger on Liara's belly. "Well, I'll be darned if she doesn't kick like a maddened Sanves' buffalo! You know, I was beginning to wonder who the hell she got it from!" Thyta remarks, with a broad affectionate smile, rolling her eyes. "Very funny!" Liara opens, pretending to frown, while she brings her hands to her hips. "Well, unless that was a headbutt... not from me, I guess!" She jokes, giving her father a wide smile, no less affectionate.
"Ha, hell no!" The matriarch agrees, with a twinkle in her eye, as she is completely regaining her temper. "OK, stop kidding! C'mon, let me see you. Look stunning, kiddo! So, how are you doing?... The two of you, I mean!" She adds, lifting her chin toward Liara's prominent belly. The young mother caresses her own lap with both hands. "We are fine! Your granddaughter is growing up strong and healthy." Says back with a mellifluous voice, her lips parted in a tender smile. Nevertheless, a veil of sadness emerges behind the proud gaze of hers, like the light fog, when it rises through the reflection of an early morning sunbeam. "Although I... I wish Shepard could get back before she's born!" Sighs, as she does not know exactly where to look.
"Oh, fear not, Honey... she'll be back before you know it!" The matriarch nods instinctively, in a warm and convincing way. The girl, completely unaware of her father's plans, cannot guess the hidden meaning behind those words. On the contrary, she is naively lulled into the reassuring paternal perspective. A gust of optimism runs through her limbs, like a refreshing caress, and she feels incredibly lucky. Liara hardly remembers the last time she breathed deeply, and enjoyed such a pleasant scent of normality. She relishes it greedily. Seconds roll away, to the beat of her heart, along with the sense of melancholy, still curled up at the bottom of her eyes.
The young Asari finally recovers and comes out the comforting numbness with a sigh. "C'mon, sit down, you look tired. Have you had breakfast already? Do you want tea, coffee? So... why did you wait so long to show up? Actually, I knew you were here for months, but... I just didn't wanna... " She again crosses the threshold of her room, talking no-stop, followed by her father, who raises her hands in surrender. "Hey, hey, calm down kiddo, one thing at a time! It's a long story, we better sit down... There's a lot to talk about". Aethyta sits on the bed next to her daughter, and lays a hand on Liara's belly, with a very affectionate gesture. "Can I at least say hello to my "grandkiddo" first?" She asks with a crafty smile. "S-sure you can! B-But... h-how...?!" Liara stammers at the mercy of confusion. Instead of giving explanations, Aethyta squeezes one of her daughter's hands tightly, and puts the other hand right in the middle of the girl's big belly. "Close your eyes, then, so you can see it too!"
The young Asari obeys, silently. The aged closes her eyes, her hand covered with an intense sphere, green and bright, which begins to expand. A halo spreads quickly on Liara's belly, and wraps it completely, with a pleasant tingling. In a matter of seconds, the young mother realizes that something incredibly special appears in her mind. Hard to believe, yet the image looks sharp, intense and absolutely real. She can see her little creature, peacefully sleeping, inside her! Everything is perfectly clear, more like a video than a medical scan. Liara remains to observe, her heart motionless in her chest, like paralyzed with wonder.
The little baby tightens her little toe, with a very small hand. The knees gathered at the chest, the tiny and perfect fingers. She greedily sucks her thumb while resting. The eyes of the sweet creature are closed, and the color is not clear, but the pretty face is incredibly similar to... Shepard's. Besides, just like her dad, she is super sweet when she smiles. It is easy to guess she has already learned to dream. She floats calmly in her haven, lulled by slow breaths, protected by a reassuring warmth. Nothing in there could bother her sleep.
Liara feels her cheeks and throat numbed by intense emotional warmth. Aethyta's pleasant presence expands all around and inside her. She has always been very impressed by her father's strength and determination, and did not imagine the matriarch was hiding as much sweetness! Liara looks incredulously at her baby, unable to break away from that wonderful vision and feels a disruptive emotion, which makes her go crazy with joy, explode with love. She perceives the same emotions beating in Aethyta's heart. She tries to imprint in her memory every little detail of her little creature, until the extraordinary image becomes lighter, to gradually disappear.
"Great Kredak's nuts! She's the spitting image of Shepard!" Aethyta bursts, with a thrill of excitement. Then, with the same shudder in her voice, she hastens to add. "She's beautiful and... so sweet! Reminds me of you though. You know, when you were her age, you sucked your thumb just like that". Memories as a father flare up in Thyta's mind, like tongues of fire, reigniting under the ashes and warming her heart. Liara stares at her father, still breathless, with incredulous eyes immeasurably wide open, beyond any natural logic. "Goddess! It was... amazing... thank you! B-but... but, how the hell did you do that? I'm not able to!" She can barely mumble, as tries to master the still blinding wonder.
Aethyta shrugs, a crooked smile colors her face with irreverence. "Oh, it was a piece of cake... It only took me two centuries to learn!" The matriarch minimizes, jokingly. Nevertheless, she fears her heart will not find its steady beat ever again. "T-Two c-centuries? I don't understand... w-what does that mean?" Liara wants to know, still completely dazed. Aethyta's face becomes serious in a breath, her jaws contract, her voice becomes solemn. She puts both hands on Liara's shoulders and gently guides her daughter's eyes in the indecipherable blue of her penetrating gaze, with a resolute look. "Here we go!" She thinks, listening to her own voice. "It's time for you to truly know your father, kiddo..." She begins to explain with a warm and affectionate tone. But soon, the cork on her seething stomach, splashes off, giving all the tension out in no time. "Oh, shit, shit and three times shit! It's no use beating around the fuckin' bush! Seems impossible, I know! But, I'm the last Priestess of Athame, and I'm here to bring Shepard back!" She spits out, all in one breath.
The phrase bounces into Liara's ears, indefinitely. The sounds contract and dilate, first slow down, then resume speed, without warning. The words break down into letters, each of which screeches in her mind. First in high-pitched way, then more and more dark, slower and incomprehensible. The girl looks at her father behind a mask of confusion. Unable to move, speak, and even to formulate elementary thoughts. Aethyta is not at all surprised. She had been preparing for that kind of reaction for a long time. "Shh, no panic, it's all right. Once you calm down, I'll explain it all!" She hastens to reassure her daughter. Little at a time, Liara's mind begins to frame the situation, moving through the impossible reality, warily. "I... I am calm!" That is all she can mutter, head bowed, her fingers tangled in her lap.
"Here comes the hard part!" The matriarch sighs to herself, at the obstinate search for words that her heart as a father can hardly find. Much to her annoyance, sniffs at the damned confusion that is taking the place of the perfect speech she had in mind for months. Despite that, now that the dance has started, the only possible option is to start dancing. "OK, for starters... that's true! I've been here for several months, and... I got into my head to crawl in the shadows, but I had my reasons..." Liara raises a warning gaze, her frowning brow does not bode well, as she prepares to say something. Thanks to her lucky star, Aethyta is faster to lift her open palms towards her daughter, to prevent her from speaking. "Sorry, Liara! I admit it. At first, I just wanted to make sure that Shepard didn't fuckin' about with you, but loved you back, and really deserved the boundless love you feel for her!" She starts off, outspoken. The subdued hint of regret in her father's voice does not prevent the indignation from expanding into Liara's brain, nor her blood from warming up, driven by increasing flashes of nervousness. She struggles, and meanwhile Aethyta's voice becomes more hoarse, motivated, affectionate.
"Ha, Soulmates! Of course she loves you. What the fuck! And I was damn wrong to doubt it. Just an old mummy's fart, that's who I was!" The matriarch admits, shaking her head with genuine regret. "You know, for all these months, I've been listening to you every day, as you went through your memories with Shepard. It was both poignant, exciting and... amazing like hell! I soon realized the uniqueness of your bond. At that point, I could and should have acted immediately, but..." Aethyta takes a breath, her deep eyes immersed in the depths of Liara's eyes. "In the meantime, something happened that I hadn't foreseen that I would never have believed possible, indeed. I fell in love with Karin and she with me!" The no longer young Asari confesses, with a dreamy girlish smile on her face. Too much stuff! Too many nonsensical, crazy things all at once! Way too much for Liara not to gasp. She hides her mouth wide open behind both hands, and feels that she is blushing.
"What! No, no, no... wait! Leaving aside that my father claims to be the last Priestess of Athame, and has only waited 110 years to tell me..." She barks, sarcastically, in a crescendo of disapproval. "You didn't even bother to let me know you were alive, and on top of that, you spied on me for months, with the arrogant claim of interfering in my life, in Shepard's! ... And now, are you also telling me that you... Karin and you... that you two are... bondmate? I mean, you love her... she loves you! Seriously, father? Yet I thought, given such a degree of kinship and my friendship with Karin... well, I thought I deserved to know at least this little detail. How could I've been so dense?" Liara's voice lashes Aethyta's face, like the grains of a sandstorm thrown by a raging wind, gaining more vigour, word after word. Disappointed and annoyed by her father's long silence and attempts maneuver behind her back, the girl feels seething with discomfort. She stares at the matriarch with a grim gaze, hands on her hips, face reddened with anger.
Aethyta takes the hit without a word, showing off a faint apologetic smile. She is telling the truth, hoping against hope that her daughter will be happier than she looks like. So, she begins with the simple part. "Of course we're bondmates, and hell yeah, I love her! I said I fell in love with Karin, not that she drives me crazy in bed! Incidentally... she drives me crazy in bed, indeed!" She cannot help but point it out, hoping to ease the tension. But, when Liara rolls her eyes, the matriarch hastens to add. "Hey, I'm serious! I haven't felt this way since your mother's days, kiddo!" Aethyta's deep and vibrant voice, her unmistakably sincere eyes and shimmering with love, punch through the girl's heart, which melts like snow in the sun. Liara's arms fall down her hips, as the muscles in her face relax. Anger turns into benevolence, resentment into affectionate complicity. "Well, it looks like humans have become a good family habit. In that case, I'm really happy for you two, dad!" The cautiously affectionate sound of Liara's voice does not escape the matriarch, who feels pervaded by warm streams of relief and gratitude. Regardless of the painful emptiness that is beginning to make its way into her guts, which foretells unequivocally, what her daughter is about to add, albeit in a slightly calmer tone.
"However, as far as I know, traces of the last Priestess of Athame have been lost for centuries. Assuming it was really you, father... Assuming the Priestess of Athame were actually able to bring Shepard back... If so, I wonder, why haven't you done this already? Why wait so long? Why not tell me first?" The questions rain like hail, while Liara reflects aloud and stares in perplexity at her father's marbled face, which reveals no hesitation. "Yeah, I figured you'd think I'm dumbass!" She admits, speaking without any emotional inflections. Preparing, to explain everything with outward calmness. Praying, however, that sooner or later her heart does not dig a big hole and run out of her chest with a jump. "You see, kiddo, my biotics are quite... extreme, to put it mildly. They actually go far beyond the normal abilities of our people. I'm really capable of unique practices. One in particular that the Priestesses have passed down since the dawn of time, and will allow me to infuse Shepard with my life energy." Aethyta nods confidently, before saying more seriously. "However... the process is not reversible, and there's no chance I'll survive the transfer!"
For a long time, the matriarch stops not only talking, but also breathing. Her heart stops beating as well, as she watches her daughter's tearful eyes. The trembling on Liara's chin, which barely moves her parted lips, and the nervous pulsation of her clenched jaws. Aethyta feels her stomach tighten, as in a steel trap. She barely resists the temptation to embrace her daughter, console her, and surrender to emotion. "Well, all this time, Shepard's condition has been notably stable." She instead says, without hiding an affectionate fatherly tone. The smile of hers floods with light as she speaks the name of the person she loves. "Karin has been running millions of tests every day, constantly taking readings, doing her doctor stuff with meticulous care, and... well, she has always been convinced that Shepard could really wake up on her own. For this reason, I agreed to Karin's request to wait. We both hoped the emotional intensity of your memories would be enough to bring her back." She ends, and appears to add credence with a soft nod.
Liara opens her mouth wide, closes and then reopens it without any sound, like a fish suddenly left without water. It is obvious that she would like to say something, but the words die in her throat, suffocated by a whirlwind of emotions, which pounce on and grab her from every part of the soul. Aethyta also seems exhausted, as struggles to hide her emotion. "Trust me cutie, I'd have given my arm not to act in the shadows, and... to be near you! But, you were desperate to be calm, to just think about Shepard, and then... fuck it! The truth is I didn't wanna you to have to make a choice!" She confesses in a low voice as she takes both of Liara's hands and squeezes them tightly between her own. "That's why my initial plan wasn't for you to know, but for you and Shepard to think I was dead because of the war".
The girl is sitting on the bed, as paralyzed. Her fingers still cling to her father's fingers, eyes full of fog. No rational thought in her mind, just blind shadows and a confused buzz, bouncing around in the head like a cascade of rubber balls. Love, anger, despair and a burning and suffocating pain take turns inside her. They get confused, mingle and throw her into a mood of unsustainable and boundless sadness, which she does not know how to control. The great desire to cry takes over everything else and forces Liara to hide her face in her hands. "If... if you think I'm gonna let you do this... then you're really fucking nuts... just like an old mummy's fart!" Liara stammers between sobs. In response, she feels Aethyta's fatherly caresses on her shoulders. Gentle hands gliding reassuringly down her back, and gently clasping her arms, stiff from painful tension."Hey, c'mon, little wings... come here!" The matriarch sighs, her voice broken by emotion. Choking on a sob, Liara rushes into Aethyta's arms, desperately seeking the comfort that only a father can give her. The thousand-years-old Asari hugs her daughter tightly and feels her heart burst with emotion. They remain long in silence, father and daughter, joined in the sweetness of the restorative embrace.
The young Asari awkwardly wipes her tears with a cuff of her tunic, before accepting the handkerchief appeared in her father's hands, unexpectedly. Silent minutes pass before she is able to speak again. "Daddy! Okay, your intentions were extremely good and generous, but it won't be necessary. Shepard will come back, believe me. I know, I feel it!" She begins, nodding with a confident frown, while she talks. Stares at the matriarch, eyes imbued with bright conviction. Heaven knows, how much her father would like to believe her! Hell knows, how fucking much she is still hoping so. "No, honey... She can't!" The matriarch shakes her head, disconsolately. Eyes clouded with resignation. "She would've done it already, if she could! Karin had to surrender to reality, too. We tried, but it didn't work, and now... It's no longer safe to wait." Liara is already about to retort, but her father takes the floor once again, and speaks with fatalistic sincerity. "I'm already a thousand years old. You know perfectly well that I could go to sleep tonight, and never wake up again. So... for your amazing soulmate, and... for you, kiddo, that would be the end of it all!"
"No, no, no! Emily would never want that!" Liara sighs, shaking her head in horror, and giving her father a rueful look. "I know Shepard very deeply. We shared everything. I know her heart better than I know my own. I touched the wonderful depths of her soul, exactly know how she thinks, how she feels, and... and this?" The girl frowns more. Looks at her father, with sad eyes troubled, yet able to crumble much of the already scarce certainties of Aethyta, who can only listen in silence. "Ha, this would be really too much for Shepard! She had been forced to kill Mom... otherwise, Mom would have killed us! Sadly, we had no choice, but Shepard still curses herself for not finding a way to save her, and will suffer forever for that! I know for sure Emily couldn't bear that even my father's death depended on her in some way! Regret and guilt would tear her apart a little at a time, and I... I'd lose you both this way! Besides... whatever you think you are doing, you can't be sure it's going to work! Are you gonna give up your life, Karin... your granddaughter, and... me... just to get a potential disaster? Have you ever wondered how much suffering your sacrifice could cause, even if dictated by such a generous reason?"
Liara pauses for a moment to catch her breath and try to shake off the exhausting emotional malaise. She tries to drive out from the soul the painful sensation that bit by bit is leaving her breathless. In a supportive impulse, Aethyta runs her thumb along the girl's cheek, with paternal tenderness, wiping a tear of love that her daughter cannot hold back. On the other hand, Shepard's clear-cut reaction to her last "offer of help" is still very vivid in her mind. She has to admit what happened the other night only confirms Liara's predictions with surgical precision. So what?... So, she feels her bowels crushed by a flood of feelings, desires and emotions. She feels the life boiling in her veins, love burning her heart, like a forest on fire. For the first time, she can't help but fear that the White Fusion Sacrifice may indeed prove to be the wrong choice for both Shepard and Liara.
Nevertheless, the matriarch immediately realizes how easy it is to find the words she had always been afraid to say. "Hey, Little Wings... you know, I wanna tell you a lot of things! Tell you about me, about my life. I've always wanted you to know who I am, and that... I always loved you!" Some unexpected shyness warms Aethyta's cheeks with an affectionate pinkish warmth. She counts her breaths as they enmesh in her throat and tangle in the beats of her old but untamable heart. "However... at best, a century wouldn't be enough to tell you in words! So, I have a proposal..." She ventures to suggest.
Hearing these last words, Liara's body is crossed by a rush of adrenaline. Sadly, she could not prevent her mother's death, but this time around, she has the opportunity to really do something to avoid her father's. The voice of the young Asari resonates crystal clear in the room. Without thinking any longer, she impulsively wraps herself in a biotic barrier, which excites the air all around. "A merger! You want to say goodbye!" She snaps, clenching her fists wrapped in the blue halo. "By the Goddess! You're not listening then! I won't watch you die, Father! If you plan to kill yourself, sorry, but... you'll have to kill me first!" She growls at Aethyta, menacingly. The matriarch cannot even believe it, yet her daughter's feelings couldn't be clearer. She feels full of tenderness plus an exhilarating mixture of gratitude and proud satisfaction. As a father she dared not hope to win the love of her daughter, but such a fervid and sincere demonstration fills her with joy to the core. She would like to hug Liara, promising that her father will find a way to fix everything. But most of all, she wants to be her father, the way she has always been. "Yeah, yeah, I get the point! Here's your mother's fucking stubbornness! Okay, fine, kiddo, calm down now!" Aethyta starts off with the familiar bold tone, which supports her in the most difficult moments. But then, without caring about the Liara's biotic field that sizzles under her nose, she adds, thoughtfully. "Anyway, I didn't mean a normal fusion, but something much deeper, inner, intense... We'll be able to communicate, and you'll see with your own eyes. We'll go through my life together, not just some useless memory snapshot. On the contrary, memories, emotions, joys and sorrows will be shared and bound into a stable and permanent way". Liara rubs her neck with an uncertain face and, while not yet dissolving her biotic mantle, she must admit to herself that she is very intrigued by her father's proposal.
Aethyta's hope continues to grow under the skin and inside every beat of her heart. "We will establish a very deep emotional bond and finally, I..." She sighs, and takes a step toward her daughter, the tone of her voice sounds cozy and warm. "I can be your father, Kiddo... forever, and... whatever happens!" Liara dissolves the biotic field with an equivalent sigh, while waiting to regain some inner calm. "What about my baby?..." She asks, still hesitant. "The little one won't even notice!" The matriarch promises, with a nod. "I'm going to build a cradle of peace around her. It will be something beautiful, just between you and me, and... when we're done, you can decide, calmly. In any case, I'll respect your decision, whatever it is. You got my word! However, if you change your mind... Well, then you will know I can't fail!"
Aethyta's last words remain suspended in the silence of the room. Liara lingers in the dark and loyal eyes of her father, who does not look away from her, still a few moments. "I've already made my decision, no matter what you show me, but... okay, I wouldn't mind knowing you better. What should I do?" She finally brings herself to ask, with a shy half smile on her lips, and the awareness of the redness on her cheeks. Thyta gives her a lopsided smile, full of loving gratitude and says back in a very persuasive tone. "For one thing, you gotta close your eyes, relax, but most importantly... you gotta trust me!"
To be Continued...