She stretched on her small, makeshift cot in an attempt to please her sore muscles. The abysmal sleeping conditions on dig sites were a definite negative side of being an archaeologist, but she wasn't complaining. Smoothing the wrinkles out of her characteristic white and blue University of Serrice uniform, Liara T'Soni remembered how lucky she had been to even be able to stay at the university at all. There were just not enough credits available for research into the Prothean demise. She couldn't understand why. To Liara, studying and discovering what had caused the end of Prothean civilization was key to understanding both history and the present. Even though she could easily make up a flawless reasoning for why her research should be funded, she had found that she was too socially awkward to be able to actually convince others and obtain extra funding through fundraisers. She had been able to stay at the university only by virtue of her promising skills as a researcher. Secretly, it pleased her in a way. She had studied and trained hard to become the researcher she was. In some wicked way, being able to continue her research without proper funding was a validation of her expertise. At least, it's what she kept telling herself.

Grabbing a small brush she turned to work on her latest find. It was a small, black orb, lined with strange markings. She had pried it out of a rock just yesterday but had been too tired by then to clean the whole thing properly. The rock formation in the mines of Therum was not exactly easy to work with and it had taken her hours of chipping and drilling before she could finally take hold of the orb. She set to work on it with meticulous care; not knowing whether it was fragile at all, she didn't want to risk damaging it more than years of existence in a rocky oblivion already had.

Liara liked the finesse and fine detail required to handle artifacts. That was definitely a plus side of being an archaeologist. Her natural attention for detail helped, of course, but it was mostly her curiosity at uncovering something heretofore unknown that kept her endlessly fascinated. The same trait also ostracized her from most of asari society, and even a large part of her colleagues at the University of Serrice shunned her. Some had gone as far as to destroy a couple of artifacts she had found. They had never owned up to the deed but Liara knew who they were and why they had done it. 'Purebloods' were not widely accepted in asari society. She had never cared that much but accepted her situation for what it was. She felt good being alone on digs.

As she brushed some of the lighter dust off the small orb, its appearance gradually changed from a matt black to a shiny obsidian. The intricate markings were dark red and snaked around the whole artifact, giving it an almost eerie look. Liara had no idea what it was for but thought it was beautiful nonetheless. If you don't know what it is, assume it's a religious object. She chuckled at this age-old archaeological solution to the unknown.

A sudden loud churning of her stomach reminded her that she had started her workday all too enthusiastically. Yet again. She carefully set the orb down on the foldable metal table in front of her and turned to her supply box. Liara noticed she was down to a mere handful of Thessian crackers, famous for their longevity and nutritional value. She would have to leave Therum in a couple of days to restock. She hoped she would have figured out more information concerning the orb by the time she had to leave. It was entirely possible she'd have to keep digging; perhaps there were more objects scattered in the mine. So far the orb had been her best find.

A noise coming from above interrupted her musings. She stopped chewing and focused on the source. She could ever so faintly make out a deep voice and…something else. Some sort of…beeping? Liara stood up in a vain effort to get closer to where the sound was coming from. The voice was definitely a krogan's; no other species had voices that carried this far. But what were the other sounds? Confused, she put her food away and grabbed her M6 Carnifex. She didn't like the prospect of having to shoot someone, but she would if necessary. Making her way to the metal staircase near the back of 'her quarters', she tried to be as silent as possible. She couldn't hear the visitors anymore, but she wasn't about to be fooled into thinking they had left. They had probably just stopped speaking and continued on into the mine. Dread was starting to creep around her consciousness. Liara had walked up one flight of stairs when the krogan spoke again.

"Remember, you artificial scum, Benezia wants her alive."

Mother?

Perhaps her mother had sent for her. But why had she sent a krogan and…'artificial scum'? Liara wasn't sure whether she should continue walking toward the party or hide.

"So no shooting the meat until she says so," the krogan added as an afterthought.

Panic shot up Liara's spine and she turned around so quickly that she nearly fell down the flight of stairs she had just climbed. She was vaguely aware of a distinct mechanical beeping, but she was too scared to take any notice. Steadying herself against the rock wall, she quickly considered her options.

Mother wanted her alive, so she wouldn't be harmed. Unless…no. Surely mother can't have really gone mad? She had heard rumors of Benezia's involvement with a turian SpecTRe named Saren Arterius having taken a turn for the worse. Some formerly close associates of Benezia's had expressed their concern to the asari Councilor, Tevos, regarding Benezia's recent behavior and partial withdrawal from asari society. Liara hadn't paid the reports any mind. There were always rumors going around about the most powerful members of asari society. She had considered this one, one of many of such rumors. Maybe she had been wrong.

The krogan and his party had descended a few levels and Liara could now hear their footsteps. Panic seized her again and she ran down to her quarters, grabbed the orb and dashed for the elevator. She knew going further down would probably do her no good, but she didn't have much choice.

"STOP! I hear something moving." The krogan bellowed. Liara stiffened. "MOVE! She's somewhere below us. Make sure we don't lose her!"

Liara ran into the elevator and frantically smacked the down button several times. The rickety thing at last began to move and Liara looked around, hoping to find another exit, or at least a good place to hide. She cursed herself for not having taken any precautions in case of an attack. Knowing if there were any alternative exits now seemed like the most important thing ever. Yet nothing ever happened during her digs. Until now.

The elevator stopped and Liara dashed out, running toward an oval opening in the mine's wall. The opening was lined with smooth stones, clearly engineered. Without wasting time to think about what she was doing, she spotted a control panel and studied it quickly. It seemed to control a mass field of some sorts. Maybe if I can activate it I'll be able to keep them out while I look for another way out of here…

The elevator was now going up again, summoned by her pursuers. She could hear the krogan cursing and a machine-like sound…answering? She shook her head and focused on the panel instead. She was pretty sure she could activate the forcefield if she just pressed this button. The elevator had fallen silent and would soon be on its way down again. She had no time to look for other switches. Counting on the mercy of the Goddess she pressed the button.

She was instantly lifted into the air and remained suspended in a position that seemed as if she were mid-cartwheel. Shock lined her face and her body hit her with a dose of adrenaline. Her veins pulsed as she strained to pry herself loose, but to no avail. She had trapped herself in the forcefield. Liara struggled to control her panicked breathing in an effort to bring back a measure of rational thought. She seemed to be succeeding until a krogan stepped out of the elevator in front of her, followed closely by beings Liara had never thought she would see this far beyond the Veil.

…Geth?!

The krogan spotted her and sneered.

He loved to feel the comfortable weight of the Hurricane shotgun in his hands. The gun was like an extension of himself: always poised, ready to kill. Blast. Shatter. Destroy. Seeing someone's head blow off was just awesome. One of the best feelings ever. Although he had blasted some heads during this mission, he wasn't feeling particularly joyful about it today. Something was...off. He felt it like that itch that had been settling on his bulky shoulder, just underneath the plated armor. Where he couldn't reach. Of course.

Looking around the volus trading vessel he saw nothing of worth. Just a bunch of food, some medical supplies, and basic weapons. Scrap. It wasn't his job to question his employer's motives, but Urdnot Wrex was no dumb krogan. His fellow mercenaries were brainless, executing orders without giving them a second thought. For Wrex, that was impossible. In his line of trade, however, having brains was more a vice than a virtue. Nobody liked a merc who asked questions. He shrugged off his doubts — incidentally also terminating the damn itch for at least a little while — and started checking the bodies of the fallen guards for any valuables. No harm in securing some extra credits, even if this employer paid very generous wages.

One turian guard was lying face-down in his own puddle of blood. Wrex remembered the kill with some satisfaction. His shotgun had blasted straight through the turian's body armor, leaving a gaping hole with ragged, fleshy edges lined with intestines peeping through. It was like a little work of art. Killing a turian hardly ever was a bad idea. Especially one who pointed a Revenant at your quads. In that case it became an extremely good idea. Wrex bent down and inspected the corpse, hoping to find a credit chit or maybe a nice little weapon stowed away in the turian's broken armor. His pointed teeth glittered in the ship's flashing alarm lights when he found not one, but two credit chits. Maybe his instincts were wrong. Maybe the haul would be good after all.

Wrex suddenly became distracted by a shadow gliding past him, sending chills up and down his spine and both his hearts beating at an increased rate. The silhouette was clearly that of a turian, but his hood and cloak left not much else for Wrex to discern. The unknown turian moved silently but with determination, like a poisonous viper slithering toward its mark. The krogan battlemaster grimaced involuntarily. He knew a lethal enemy when he saw one, and this turian clearly was no pyjak. Some other mercenaries looked up from what they were doing and smiled nervous smiles. Wrex was sure he heard some of them greeting the turian by the name Saren. Their greetings went unanswered as Saren kept walking around, his gaze piercing and just watching everything. Surveying. Assessing. Watching. Wrex' itch came back full-force. It was no regular itch and scratching it was therefore pointless. He knew better than to ignore his instincts. Should've known better all along.

I need to get out of here.

Wrex had a bad feeling about this Saren. He had felt something was off from the start of this mission. Attacking this ship just didn't make any sense. There was nothing valuable here, at least none that Wrex could see. And his mysterious employer had never shown himself before. Not once. No, Wrex didn't like it one bit. And damn his quads if he was wrong. He had to get out of here. Now.

He backed away slowly, making sure his retreat remained unnoticed. Saren was watching two mercenaries who were stripping some metal at the back of the room, his posture somehow communicating a readiness to attack. Wrex's claws found a door panel and he pressed it gently, praying the door wouldn't make too much noise. It slid open quietly. Wrex chuckled inwardly at volus being unable to make silent breathing aids while at the same time engineering their ship doors to be deadly quiet. Stupid, inferior race. Not even worth proper consideration. He slid through the door and began to make his way toward the shuttle bay. He would get an escape shuttle and fly anywhere but here. Perhaps go to Omega. There was always some fun to be had on Omega.

"Well, well, look what we got here," the krogan mercenary spat. "A little blue asari, all stuck and helpless." He grinned while eyeing Liara up and down. She was in full blown panic mode now. There was something about being unable to move that struck a primal fear inside her. She had always hated it when the other children trapped her in singularity so they could bully her any way they wanted. She felt so helpless, so inadequate. And here she had stupidly gotten herself trapped and had delivered herself to the mercy of a krogan and geth. She could still hardly believe they were here. It must all be a very bad dream. Liara closed her eyes and wept, unable to do anything else.

The krogan's roaring laughter hurt her eardrums even through the stasis wall. The wall muted all sounds to a large degree, yet the krogan's booming voice seemed to thunder in her head. "Let's get you out of there, little princess, and onto my lap!" The krogan sneered.

Oh, Goddess, please help me! Please!

With a swift hand movement the krogan ordered the geth to open fire at the stasis wall, his own shotgun thundering and sending big bullets straight toward Liara. She kept her eyes closed, waiting for the inevitable.

But nothing happened. Liara's prison held. As the krogan's mounting frustration became louder and louder, Liara's feelings went from relief to a renewed, choking panic when she realized she might never get out of here. The last image she saw before fainting were the geth's lights probing her face, and the krogan's teeth promising doom.

Wrex knew he had made the right choice back at the volus ship when he heard the news. All the other mercenaries on that mission had 'vanished'. Just disappeared without a trace. And here was an agent of the Shadow Broker telling him he could do much better. Mercenaries with an intuition like his were very welcome in the Broker's team.

"Plus, you are way too smart to be a mere mercenary. The Shadow Broker knows of your ambitions for krogan society. He is…sympathetic. He offers his support in return for your services. And a generous pay, of course." The agent smiled.

Wrex didn't trust the agent, but supposed that was only natural. The drell looked and breathed thievery. Yet he worked for the Shadow Broker, and the Broker could be trusted to some degree. If not crossed. Wrex wasn't stupid enough to cross the Shadow Broker. He decided to at least listen to his offer. After all, he hadn't gotten paid for the last mission and Omega had a way of stripping a poor krogan of his credits faster than an asari could strip out of her clothes. It was high time for a next paycheck.

A/N: I have always wondered what had happened to Liara on Therum, and what exactly happened to Wrex on that volus ship he spoke to Shepard about. Thought it would be a nice backstory for the prologue. Hope you like it :)