Wow. Just... wow. I usually read ME fanfics for the characters we all know and love, and for the badass action. This started out with lots of domestic bliss (and non-bliss), which usually isn't my thing at all. And still, I immediately fell in love with it. Then came the terror, and the action, and... wow.
Your style of writing is fantastic. It's marvellously lyrical, and extremely engaging, and I just couldn't put my eReader down. I'm very much looking forward to the second part!

Just re-read this and still worth it.
A good story, well written.

If people are still religious in 21-whatever the proper date- then we have failed.

Enjoyed this a great deal. I know what background I'm choosing for my next FemShep playthrough.

Great head canon. Thank you for sharing. )

what an idiot, no reason to get involved with saren at all.

I would have killed Saren for threatening my daughter, without a second of hesitation.

Hmmm I suspect that 15 years from now they will see the objects and recognize them?

goddamn Liara, grow a spine and dump this crazy bitch!

I Dont pretend to know much about asari dating but to me common courtesy says you dont date someone not even into their triple digits when your almost 400. Cradle robbing slut.

Religious idiot. Brainwashing her daughter to believe her cults garbage.

this was really well done. thank you

Nihlus... oh, that was wonderful coming across him. I loved this story. Liara's and Shepard's characterization was brilliant. I can't wait to begin reading the sequel.

Shepard will have to adjust to being a hero. She will be one for a long time to come.

This is absolutely fantastic, what an epic work. Very impressive. Not only for following Shepard and Liara through their childhood and their lives prior to them meeting in the game, but also for your idea of what Asari society might be like. It's seems much inspired by ancient-Greece, with a bit of the Far East thrown in, and while some aspects of it are more believable to me than others (e.g. clothing optional at a formal reception), overall, I really admire the effort.
Not to mention it was very well written and a pleasure to read. At times it felt like a Shakespearean comedy with the two heroes almost running into each other but missing each other just barely several times.
I did not see any "extreme" darkness, but you sure did not shy away from uncomfortable and disturbing moments (like Shepard's rape and her shooting her own father).
Another aspect of your story that I liked was your take on Benezia. Maybe it was little bit too optimistic - my impression from the games was that the rift between Liara and her mother was deeper and had been present for longer - but you showed very nicely how she was a devoted mother and that everything she did was for the benefit and protection of her child, even if Liara would not or could not appreciate it at the time (or ever, I suppose; maybe she will once she has children of her own). Her interactions with her family, particularly her sister Tatiarina, were quite touching as well.
You really must have liked Benezia since you even had her kick out Aethyta for her extreme jealousy, and not just for political reasons. Ah, Aethyta, the working-class girl ("Hell, she was out of her league, but the rack..."). The Asari political system must be a bit more flexible than you describe it though since in the game it sounds like Aethyta was on the council of Matriarchs at one point and just quit politics because she wasn't getting anywhere.
Shepard's parents were quite interesting as well (wow, Hannah sure had a sordid childhood, to learn about that and to see how it even affected her married life was quite rough), as were her buddies, especially Ricky (nice connection there with Elnora the Eclipse merc, although it's funny how he's so totally immune to Shepard). Her mother truly had unnatural patience though for tolerating being called "preacher woman" by her husband all the time.
I did not really get Shepard's connection to Manny - why would she "need him" and not love him? Why get upset over him leaving? Was it a control issue - she wanted to be the one who leaves, and not the one who's left?
The idea that without a mother-daughter meld/bond Asari children would die is interesting, but a bit extreme, in my opinion... I'd think that just like with the Rachni, the child would probably survive, but maybe not develop properly. I'm only saying that because you even used the same concept of "music" to relay instructions/wisdom/knowledge.
Liara's cousin Sibila seems to be the stereotypical hedonistic Asari, but man, was she hilarious ("The humans have to shoot liquid in you and I'm not a deposit box"). She is quite the contrast to Liara, although Liara was not exactly a wall flower either. My own impression from the game was that she was generally less experienced in life than you make her out to be, but your interpretation does make a lot of sense as well (speaking of which, what exactly *is* the Turian Flywheel position? :) ).
I noticed that you liked to begin chapters with something from the end of the previous chapter... that was pretty clever.
Beast wasn't Wrex, was he? By the way, 10 points for "Krogan Battlewaxer". :)
Was your Mr. Rickman a nod to Alan Rickman?
And Major Varus to Varus the Roman general who lost his legion in Germania?
Nice to see that Doom is still around in the future. And "qTunes".
So that is the connection between "the greatest player of all times", and Benezia's "true love, Marcella T'Loak and Aria? Sisters?
And of course I enjoyed all the predictions in this story, the ones that turned out to be true as well as the ones that were disproved. Nice work embedding those:
-"bigger box traps" on Prothean worlds
-"You might find someone interesting that isn't Asari"
-"If my daughter is already making friends with a Krogan, I'm afraid to see who she brings home to marry."
-"Are you kidding me? They have tentacles on their head! And they are blue!"/"Heck, even you could get laid! I can just see you with a blue babe!"/"Not in a million years! You ass! I'll stick with Humans!"
-"I will never touch a human! Not even if I live a million years!"
-"my daughter loves playing this game where she saves the galaxy"
-"I'm not looking at or talking to another Asari again in my life!"
-"Hopefully I will never find myself depending on them."
-"No. I would make a terrible commando."

Sge has earned her rest. Pierce and Hannah would be proud.