Chapter 33

Medical Officer Quarters - Medical Bay - SSV Normandy SR1

It was so frustrating. Liara had seen Shepard do it while barely looking at the terminal screen, but even with a guide and hours of time, she seemed unable to progress any further in her investigations. Wall after wall after wall flew up into her face as she typed away at her personal terminal that sat in the room that she shared with Karin. It made her want to pound the keyboard until it responded, a remarkably krogan response.

But she refused to give up. She would show her worth one way or another, even if it took all day and one of those energy drinks that the humans constantly took. She continued to pry and pry at the walls, using guides from both Shepard herself that she had obtained for training purposes, and with assistance from Tali, who, despite her age, was amazing at cracking things open. So, she continued to slam herself into the walls fruitlessly until the door to her room slid open. Her eyes widened as she saw who was standing in the door.

"Sh-Shepard! What are you doing here?" she asked nervously as she slipped the screen away as fast as she could.

"I was about to ask you the same question. We're docked for another twenty hours or so. I thought you and B'Nalia would be crest deep in prothean study with the archaeological committee. But instead, I get a message from the XO that you've holed yourself in here. What's up?" asked the spectre as she stepped inside and eyed the terminal curiously.

"Nothing! I was just... logging some of the details of the visions we saw! That's all!" responded the asari, who was now as rigid as a plank of wood.

Shepard cocked an eyebrow, such curious facial body language it was, before eyeing the asari. Finally, she smirked playfully. "Logging it away on the home screen?" she asked as she took a step closer. Liara looked at the terminal and wanted to slap herself for not realizing that she had merely minimized the window, leaving nothing up but the background of her home network. "Tell the truth, were you watching pornography?"

Liara's eyes widened before she crossed her arms and huffed. "By the Goddess, Shepard. You're almost as bad as Joker," she said as she narrowed her eyes.

"Hey, it's a thing humans do when they're nearly caught looking at porn. Swipe the screen away quickly so nobody sees the material. I'm just going off what I know," said the human with that beautiful smile as she shrugged.

Sighing to herself, Liara buried her face in her hands. "I was not watching pornography, nor would I ever. Unlike most, my sexual desires are not triggered by watching others have intercourse," she said as she reached over and brought her screen back up. "I was attempting to help you."

Shepard knelt down and stared at the screen curiously. "Binary Helix Level A access?" she asked before turning to the asari. "Why are you trying to get into Binary Helix's financial records?"

Sighing, the asari slumped back into her chair, both to rest herself and to put some much-needed distance between the human and herself, lest her insides turn to mush again. "I've been looking up stuff on my mother ever since we visited Thessia. While there, I called a few friends and pulled a few favors to try and get any information I could about her. But there was nothing to be found. I checked all of her public accounts, they were all closed, and the credits went who knows where. All of her stock holdings in businesses, sold. It was like she picked up and vanished from the galaxy."

"It's not too hard to get a bank account in the Terminus. And I doubt anyone out there would want to piss off a matriarch. So, she might have moved her wealth to a more secure location where the Council couldn't touch it," said Shepard as she looked at the computer once more. "So why Binary Helix?"

"Because, after some digging, I found out that while she had dumped her shares for the company, she was still funding Binary Helix on... something. It's literally her only connection to Citadel Space, and I was hoping I could figure out what it was she was funding. If she felt the need to continue funding it despite her rogue status…" said the asari allowing Shepard finished her sentence.

"Then it might have something to do with Saren!" said the spectre as she smiled at the doctor. That smile immediately made Liara begin to grin stupidly as well. "But how did you find out she was funding this hidden project?"

"Before my mother was outcast, her funding history was public record. It's a law on Thessia that anyone holding any position of power have both their financial records and transactions on display at all times," said Liara as she turned to the terminal and brought up the chart. "It makes it easy to see who is trying to lobby and influence politics, something our people eliminated long ago."

"Good thinking," responded Shepard as she leaned down and placed one hand on the asari's shoulders.

Slightly jittery from the contact, she continued. "A-Anyway, I looked at every public donation and funding project that she had listed. Most were charities, of course. But she did have one project that she had started about a month after she first approached Saren. Now, any customer who is not a lawmaker can request confidentiality on releasing financial reports. The Council doesn't require the names of the funders as long as they know how much was given." Proudly, Liara brought up the financial record from Binary Helix. "And exactly one week after her exile, her name vanished from the reports. But one of the new anonymous names on the list had the exact same donation amount as my mother, a hefty one point three million credits per annual year. That amount specifically has only ever been offered to them as a single payment over twenty years ago by a human individual looking to help fund an anti-aging project. He died the year after."

Smiling brightly, the asari turned back to Shepard to find her grinning as well. "Well well, T'Soni. It looks like we may have another potential investigator on board the Normandy."

Her smile weakened a bit, and she finally sighed again. "I truly wish that were the case. However, in trying to investigate exactly what this project was from Binary Helix's database, I was unable to gain access."

"Liara…" said Shepard, causing the asari to look at her. She now had such a lovely smile on her face. Liara couldn't help but admire her gorgeous features again, from her silky, soft, red hair to the many freckles that dotted her face like the stars of the galaxy. Even the scar that marred her eyebrow only added to her attractive face. "That doesn't matter. You did great," she said, before reaching up and gently rubbing her fingers over her crest.

Liara inhaled sharply and closed her eyes at the gentle sensations of the woman's calloused hands running over her sensitive head. The unexpected affection sent shivers down her spine as she felt the fingers travel over the ends of her crest and begin sliding down her neck. But the asari reached up and grabbed Shepard's hand. "P-Please. Unless you are propositioning me, do not continue. And if you are, I hope you are prepared for the consequences."

Shepard snorted as she began to laugh at the serious face that the asari had donned to warn her. Slowly, she retracted her hand, to the slight relief and disappointment of the asari. "Sorry, Doctor. I was unaware that it was that sensitive."

"It might not be for some asari. However, it is for me," she said, looking down at the ground shyly as if admitting one of her deepest secrets.

"I'll keep that in mind. In the meantime, we might get that information faster if we go through legal channels. The Council can ask for information on a specific financial donor if there's probable cause that it's an illegal payment or is being made by someone of interest. And while I'm sure the Council wouldn't harass me too much for just bypassing their security and getting the information myself, that could take days, even with my skill." As she finished her statement, Shepard stood straight again and stretched. "I have to talk with the Executor about Kaidan and Tali anyway, so why not make a trip of it?"

Liara was grateful for the move as it allowed her the freedom to examine the woman once more. Wanting to keep up with the conversation as her blue eyes roamed over the hardened muscle that many human women went without, she prodded the spectre. "I heard about that. What happened exactly?"

"The racist host of a restaurant said Tali couldn't come in because they didn't allow quarians. He also called her Kaidan's pet, and then referred to her as a junkrat," said Shepard as she finally released her stretch and shrugged. "So Kaidan threw him through a table."

Giggling, Liara nodded. "I can see why."

"So, I sprung them and then talked to the owner about a policy change. He crumbled like a sandcastle during high tide. As it turns out, he'd had a run in with a Spectre before, and that helped his decision making."

"Well, even without that experience, I doubt he would have held up long against you," said Liara with a smile.

Shepard smirked and flexed her arms, showing the muscle that Liara loved looking at. "Yeah, you're right about that. But was that an attempt to flirt with me, T'Soni?"

Finally pushing aside her flustered behavior, the asari simply smiled. "I'm glad you noticed." Shepard chuckled as she leaned forward, her dog tags clinking in her shirt as their lips met once more.

Clifton Apartment Complex - Tayseri Ward - Citadel

Garrus must have adjusted his robes and the flowers he held several times as he waited at the door. He wasn't usually nervous. From his C-Sec examination to his potential spectre induction, and even his first caseload on the Citadel, he'd always faced them with determination. But this was an entirely different kind of battle, one he had no practice or training with.

Finally, the door opened and the woman on the other side greeted him with a smile. "Hello, Mister Vakarian. You are looking sharp," said Chloe as she stepped aside and opened the door for him.

Entering her apartment, he looked around quickly before turning to her and holding out the bouquet. "I... I heard humans enjoy flowers. So, I got you a bouquet of... what did she call it... thornless roses?" he asked as she took it with a smile. "I heard they are popular on Earth."

The redhead inhaled the scent from the bouquet before smiling again and nodding. "They are! And they're beautiful, don't you think?" she asked as she slid the door shut again.

"I... suppose," he said nervously as he held his hands behind his back.

She eyed him curiously. "Why are you acting so formal, Garrus? You are not on trial," she said jokingly at his rigid stance.

"Sorry, I'm just not very used to this kind of thing. Even on Palaven, relationships were quick and to the point. None lasted more than a night before... oh no…" he said as he buckled and sighed. "And humans don't like to hear past relationship experiences…"

Giggling to herself, the woman, who was dressed in a red skirt down to her knees with a matching shoulderless top lightly smacked his chest with the bouquet before heading into the apartment. "Come Garrus. I still have to put on makeup before we leave."

He simply clamped his mouth shut before following her into the main living space of her apartment. It was small, especially for a medical practitioner. His own apartment when he worked for C-Sec was easily bigger, as her kitchen, living area, and laundry area all were crammed into the same room. It looked like she had a separate bedroom at least. "I like your place," he said as he realized how very frugal it looked. He wasn't sure if it was because running her own clinic in the seedier part of the wards didn't pay well, or if she was naturally just non-material person. But he now felt he had more in common with her.

"That's a rarity. Most people see apartments like this and think I'm flat broke," she said with a smile as she headed for the bathroom. He watched her go, his sharp eyes watching her waist intently before catching himself and looking away once more.

That was when he saw it. Its expression was one of defiant indifference as if his living or dying would mean less to it than what it had eaten for dinner. Garrus had only ever seen that look on the faces of those who killed indiscriminately, regardless of who they were, where they came from, or what their goal in life was. They were entirely soulless monsters. But the contrast of that expression with the creatures almost naturally smiling face, furry ears, and soothing purring were almost comical. "So... you have a cat?" he asked as he stared down the unblinking face of the feline.

"Yes! Her name is Camille! She's very loving!" shouted the woman from the bathroom.

Garrus stared at the animal curiously before approaching. It didn't move an inch and just stared at him with that same indifferent expression. "I wonder if cats can even change expression," he said as he recalled some of the older cats with the same look in the pet store. Finally, he stood towering over the creature as it laid with its legs tucked under its body on the back of a couch, one of the only pieces of furniture she had. Its fur was slate grey, and it had odd, green-colored eyes. Lifting his talons, he slowly reached them towards the creature, wondering if its temperament would allow for him to pet it. Finally, he used the tip of his talons to stroke over its fur, and the cat just continued to stare at him as if he were less than dirt. He sighed and pulled away, unsure what he'd have to do to please the small monster.

Minutes had passed and Chloe finally walked out of the bathroom with all of her makeup on, he assumed, and stopped dead in her tracks as she saw the turian standing nervously, staring at the cat who was glaring back with its indifferent stare. "You two seem to be getting along."

"I don't think she likes me very much," he said as he looked over to the woman.

"Don't worry, she'll grow on you. It took almost a month before she allowed me to pet her in my lap," said the woman with a playful smile. "It's somewhat of a joke back on Earth that humans don't have cats as pets, but cats have humans as pets. And with some cats, you can believe that."

"I see. I guess I have two hearts to win then," he said as he finally turned to her and looked her up and down.

"So, how do I look?" she asked as she reached forward and took both of his talons into her hands.

"Your... uh... paint looks good around your eyes. And your dress certainly... um... shows off your waist," he said, gently turning his head away to keep from making eye contact.

But she smiled at him and turned his head back so that they were eye to eye. "Thank you Garrus. Your compliments are very unique and refreshing." Releasing one of his hands, she reached over and grabbed her purse. "Now then, let us go."

Flux - Zakera Ward - Citadel

After a few drinks and some time spent on the dance floor, Garrus felt himself loosen up considerably. He wasn't Shepard dancing crazy, but he was now free enough to actually enjoy himself without the anxiety of stepping over every human personal barrier. All he did when he danced with her was echoed what Shepard had said and watched her body language. He had spent nearly a week's worth of time studying human facial expressions and their natural body movements in correlation with emotions in order to get this right. And his eyes analyzed her like a microscope.

But she didn't seem to notice as the club music pounded against their ears. The club owner, Doran Gord Seto Valsa, was a friend of Garrus's from a previous case, and offered them a few drinks on the house. Also, karaoke, a human hobby... happened. A few drunken humans stumbled on stage to sing in near intolerable tones. One of them, a rather disheveled man, sang a sorrowful song from a genre simply called country, and it was all about how he had lost the love of his life. He then went back to drinking, and the next came up with an asari at his side. As if to mock the last singer, they sang a duet song called "A Whole New World" from some human movie, practically puking their love all over each other with each word.

All Garrus could do was laugh as he saw the crazy cast step up to the stage one after another to drunkenly sing. One of them even sang in such a throat-ripping tone accented with the music of heavy amplified string instruments and drums. Garrus was surprised that the man could speak at all after the performance, however, he didn't entirely hate it. It was probably the music itself, given that the singing was virtually unintelligible, but he actually found himself tapping his talons to the heavy beat of the music.

Once the long-haired, tattooed singer stepped off stage, Chloe leaned over to him. "You want to sing something?" she asked loudly over the cheers of the people.

"Aha... turians don't sing," he said as he raised his talons dismissively.

"Do you always wear your visor everywhere you go?" she asked curiously as she tapped the lens of his eyepiece.

"I even wear it to bed," he said jokingly as he nodded to Rita, the waitress who handed him a container of water.

Chloe giggled madly before grabbing her own drink and taking a long swig again. "Maybe I'll get to see that sometime," she said as she rubbed the straw from her drink gently against her bottom lip. He looked at her curiously and read her like a book. She was definitely flirting with him, even offering him a potential sexual encounter. But given how much alcohol they had consumed; he would never allow such a thing to happen.

"Maybe some time," he said as he reached his arm over her chair and draped it on her shoulders. She immediately snuggled into his side, relieving him of any worry. Suddenly, the music stopped as one of the Quasar machines on the second floor began blaring the alert for a winner. Everyone on the floor beside the two of them raised their glasses and cheered as the asari shouted happily and began collecting her winnings. But even through the slight intoxication, and through the exo-suit, Garrus could see that Doran was less than happy.

That feeling multiplied when the short bartender stepped down from the bar and headed in his direction. Stopping at their table, he looked between the pair. "I'm sorry to interrupt your date. But I was wondering if… I could speak to you for a moment," he said as he looked directly at Garrus.

"I don't have any issues," said the doctor as she stood to her feet.

"You may both come if... you like. It's not as if I'm… hiding something," said the volus, his voice heavy with pauses as he waved them over to the stairs.

Garrus stood as well and the pair of them headed up the stairs and onto the casino floor where all the quasar machines were. By now, the karaoke machine had been turned off and the regular music of the club was pulsing at a low tone. Doran walked them both over to the machine where the asari had just won in the far corner. "Is something the matter?" asked the turian curiously as he eyed the irate volus.

Finally stopping at the gambling machine, he pointed to it and looked at the turian. "This thing has produced... three grand prize winners in the last... month. I was hoping you could... take a look and see if... someone has tampered with it."

"I can take a look, but I'm not very knowledgeable on how these machines work," said Garrus loudly as he spoke over the club music.

"If you find out its tampered with... and find who did it... you get free drinks for a month!" growled Doran as he waddled away.

"I'm sure I can pull Shepard in here in that time to get her drunk again," he said jokingly as he opened his omni-tool and began scanning the machine.

"Shepard? The Spectre? Why would you bring her here?" asked Chloe, her arms folding over her chest with a tinge of jealousy.

"You haven't seen her dance. Believe me, if you thought that karaoke stuff was bad, her dancing is the stuff of legends," he said with a chuckle as he entered the master code for the device that Doran had given him. Out of his peripheral, he could see the woman loosen up slightly at the claim.

"If you're that sure, I'd say I have to see it for myself," she said, giving him a charming smile. But her smile vanished as the machine suddenly went off again, sending the loud chime out as the words [1000 Credit Prize!] scrolled across the screen.

"Hmmm…" hummed Garrus as he examined the data, ignoring all the drunk idiots cheering at him from the first floor.

Doran approached again; his angry trundling more pronounced than ever. "What in Jor's name was that?"

"It has definitely been tampered with, that's for certain. I don't know much about these machines, but as soon as the prize was paid out, a fraction of it was sent from the machine somewhere else. Let me see here…" he said as he typed on his omni-tool. "It looks like it was sent through your extranet network to this address," he said, lowering his arm so that the volus could see.

"I don't recognize it. It's just a bunch of numbers," said the bar owner as he stared back up at the turian.

"I may be able to pull a few favors at C-Sec to track it down," offered Garrus as he put his omni-tool away.

"That would be very... helpful. Feel free to come back and... have a few drinks on the house. In the meantime, I'll be shutting this blasted thing down," said the volus as he walked over to the machine and used the master code to deactivate the power. Immediately, an out of order message scrolled across the face of the machine.

B.V.V.N. Banking & Associates - Presidium - Citadel

If there was one thing Tali hated dealing with, it was finances. Despite her exemplary skill in mathematics, it seemed that all her talent went into physics and engineering, and immediately fell apart when it came to financial numbers. That was what led her to the banking office that she was in currently.

She sat in a chair, somewhat nervous as the volus in front of her typed away at a computer. His exosuit was far higher quality than she had seen on most of his kind, and even had a hood that made him look somewhat like a short, squat quarian. It was almost a full five minutes of typing before the volus finally turned to her.

"My apologies Miss... Zorah for the wait. Opening an account to pass... funds to a roaming fleet of… ships is more difficult than it first appeared. I have managed to... make it work, however," said the squat figure as his eerie yellow display for the eyes blinked.

"I appreciate that Mister... Von?" she asked, unsure of how volus names worked.

He chuckled lightly and bowed his head. "Please, call me Zan-Barla if you... wish to be formal. It's a simple gesture from Iperian Volus. Otherwise, Barla is fine. Now, you say you wish for... your funds to go into this account, and you wish it to be accessible... from the Migrant Fleet once you return?" he asked, getting a nod from the quarian. "Excellent. That shouldn't be... too difficult. Would you like any other... perks added onto the account?"

Immediately, Tali sat up in her seat and eyed the extravagant volus curiously. "What kind of perks?"

Barla waved his stubby arms around dramatically. "Oh, we have a host of... perks here that one such as... yourself can take advantage of. Offshore account access for... when you are out of Council... Space. You can also put the interest... you accrue from your account towards... the latest market shares. I happen to have a...pretty good nose for trends," he said as he tapped where she presumed his nose would be inside his suit.

Thinking for a moment, she nodded. "I suppose it can't hurt as long as you only use the interest."

"Of course. I would never endanger... a customer's finances. Now, would any other benefits interest you?" he asked, taking a large breath as he finished.

Tali looked over the datapad, eyeing the different perks available. To be honest, none of them were really that useful to her, and would only be beneficial if she lived on the Citadel. But then she noticed one that actually piqued her interest. "It says here that you have a delivery service for customers to transport items?" she asked as her eyes moved back up to the squat advisor.

"We do! If you need something delivered... we shall do it for you. Within a reasonable size... of course," he said as the lights that illuminated his eyes somewhat closed, making her wonder if he was glaring at her. "We are also very... discreet with these deliveries. They are done with... utmost secrecy."

Her eyes widened slightly at the implication, but she tapped her finger on the desk as thoughts raced through her mind. "Would... your associates be able to make these deliveries to the Migrant Fleet?"

Barla began typing on his terminal again for a moment before nodding. "That really depends. Making a delivery... to a colony or station is simple because... they don't move. If we were to deliver... to the Migrant Fleet, we would need... someone there as a liaison who... would inform us of their projected location for delivery." He tapped the desk himself as well, seemingly deep in thought for a few seconds. "If you were to be... on the Fleet, then that... certainly makes matters simpler. But obviously... you are not. So, would you be able... to get us a contact?"

"The Migrant Fleet is always looking for new methods of trade. I don't think they'd have an issue with setting up a trade deal with you. And perhaps a few quarians could use your services as well," she said as her eyes locked onto his yellow ones. "Just to clarify, you aren't just allowing me to use your services because of my relations to a spectre, are you?"

He waved off the thought with his claws. "Any and all are free to... use our services. I hold no such ridiculous... prejudices. The only concern to me... is if the customer can... pay."

She nodded with a smile. "I'm glad to hear that. Then I'm sure that the Fleet would be happy to employ your services. They constantly need things delivered and sparing the fuel it takes to send one of our own would be immensely helpful."

"Well, I'm glad we have... made a deal Zan-Tali. All I need now is... your signature here, and I will give you a contact... number for when you need something delivered. I would recommend you give this... number to whomever your Fleet decides to be... the acting liaison as well," said the volus, who looked up as the door suddenly opened. In the doorway stood a human woman and a familiar turian.

Tali's eyes widened as she saw him with his omni-tool open. "Garrus?"

The turian looked up and noticed her with a twitch of his mandibles. "Tali, funny meeting you here," he said as he approached the desk.

"Apologies, but we were in the middle... of a meeting. If you could wait in... the lobby…" started the volus, but the turian shook his head.

"Barla Von, right?" he asked, getting an approving head tilt from the volus. "I'm afraid that someone has infiltrated one of your networks here and is using it to funnel credits into an unknown account. I will need to access your system so I can track it down."

Barla stood up straight in his chair. "Someone is... using my system to... funnel credits, you say?" he asked, sounding angrier than Tali had ever heard a volus sound before.

"I'm afraid so. Luckily, they aren't in your main system. It appears that they're using the customer extranet access in your lobby. Would you mind giving us access so we can track it down?" asked Garrus as he eyed the squat figure.

"Of course, but one moment," he said as he grabbed a datapad and handed it to Tali. "Zan-Tali, please sign this to conclude our business."

She took it and scrawled her signature across the line before handing it back. "I'm glad to be doing business with you Zan-Barla," she said as she stood up and stepped over to Garrus. Looking at the human who seemed to hide behind him, her eyes widened slightly. "Doctor Michel? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, hello Tali!" said the woman nervously as she smiled at the quarian. "It seems that this mystery thief has hijacked mine and Garrus's plans for the night."

"Well, he is a former C-Sec detective. They typically have a one-track mind," said Tali, which caused the woman to chuckle.

"You know, I'm right here," growled Garrus as Barla gave him access.

"I know. That just makes it funnier," said Tali with a giggle. But Garrus was now fringe deep in his omni-tool, looking for the culprit.

It took him mere seconds to find them, and he turned to Barla Von. "I've got them. Now, I'm going to leave their relay here for now. I don't want them to realize that we're onto them, so don't do anything to it just yet. Once I have them, I'll inform you and you can purge their program from your system."

"Of course... Mister Vakarian. I eagerly await your call," said the volus as he carried Tali's datapad back to his desk.

Presidium Emporium - Presidium - Citadel

"Well, this has been quite the adventure," said Chloe as Tali followed them both into the large emporium on the Citadel.

The place was full of displays of different cultural art and sculptures. There were krogan statues from before the rebellions, asari goddess paintings, and Tali even noticed a large na'saat. She immediately made her way over to the instrument, her eyes wide as she gazed at its majestic beauty.

"This piece is one of the sole remaining artifacts from the quarian people before Rannoch fell to the geth," came a mystical, monotone voice from behind her.

Spinning around, she saw a hanar standing tall, taller than even Garrus. They wore nothing except the small crown device that translated their luminescent lights into understandable words. "I had noticed that it once belonged to my people. How did it end up here?"

With each word, she could see through her face shield the gel-like surface of the tame creature lit up with a myriad of colors. "After the fall of Rannoch, it was sold by a quarian Admiral for a high price to a collector in order to earn funds for the Fleet. The collector, an asari, passed on approximately one hundred and five years ago and donated her collection to the emporium here. It has been here ever since."

"I see," said Tali as she turned back towards the stringed instrument, known as a na'saat. "And how much does it cost?"

"Typically, this one does not sell such historical pieces. However, given that it is a relic of your people, I may consider selling it under the condition that you keep it very well taken care of," said the hanar as he drifted up next to her. His head area stayed facing straight forward, as they didn't have eyes. From what she knew of hanar, they could detect light and sound and some were even intelligent enough to translate the soundwaves that the other races used. In essence, they didn't as much hear people, and more felt the words.

"Of course. Something like this would certainly bring my people joy. It would be shown the utmost respect," she said as she turned to him fully.

"If that is the case, this one could relinquish it to you for four hundred thousand credits," said the hanar casually.

Tali sighed to herself, knowing that even with her pay from Shepard, she had nowhere near that amount. "I'm afraid you will have to keep it safe for me until I am able to afford it then," she said mournfully.

"As you wish. It will be here awaiting your return," said the hanar politely as Tali noticed Garrus heading for the back of the emporium.

"I-If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to," she said as she placed her hand over her heart in thanks.

"May the Enkindlers light your path young quarian," responded the hanar before he began drifting off towards another inquisitive looking customer.

Tali immediately made her way towards Garrus and caught up quickly. "Any updates?" she asked curiously as she eyed the odd, newly added human art. The label on it called it the Statue of David in many languages, and it was an all but naked human, maker her cheeks burn slightly.

"It's here somewhere. But I have to find the address. And to do that, I need in their system," growled the turian as he looked around for someone in charge.

"Maybe we can just walk in the back?" came the voice of Chloe behind them. Both the turian and quarian looked at her oddly. "What? You work with a spectre, and you're here to find a thief. Chances are they're pulling funds from this place as well. So, I don't see them having much of an issue with it."

Garrus sighed as he lowered his omni-tool. "I guess it couldn't hurt to go back and talk to security themselves." The trio immediately made their way back through the employees only door. To their left was the door to a large storage room that was currently being repaired by a keeper, and to their right was the security room. Entering, Garrus immediately took charge as an asari and a turian turned towards them, ready to spring up. "The name is Garrus Vakarian, former C-Sec detective and current spectre associate," he said authoritatively.

Tali was surprised to see the security team sit back down. "What do you need back here?" asked the asari suspiciously.

"I've been tracking a network of relays that have been funneling money into an unknown account. Thus far, I've nailed down three relays, and this appears to be the last address," he said as he opened his omni-tool.

"Wait, so you're saying that someone is using our system to funnel credits?" asked the other turian as he stood from his chair and let Garrus sit.

"It's more likely that someone is using your system to hide the credits," said Garrus as he began typing on the terminal.

"What is this?" asked Tali in confusion as she saw a small box attached to the server.

"Oh... I'm not exactly sure. But we had instructions to install it from the director. He said not to touch it once it was installed," replied the asari as she leaned back in her chair.

"Did the director tell you to install it himself?" she asked as she eyed the asari.

"Of course. He sent us an email-" started the asari officer. But she was cut off by a loud sound over Garrus's terminal.

The screen went red. Tali immediately recognized the action for what it was. Something was locking down the terminal and purging it. And there was only one thing that could react that quickly to Garrus's snooping. Her survival instinct kicked in and she dashed towards the terminal. "Oh no you don't!" shouted Tali as she jumped for the wireless extranet projector. Spinning around, she dropped an ax-kick that shattered the device to pieces.

"What the hell was that for!?" asked the asari incredulously as she stood up.

"That's an AI! It was about to escape!" she shouted as she opened her omni-tool and began typing.

"You're sure?" asked Garrus as his terminal locked him out.

"I know what I'm talking about!" she shouted back in a panic as she spun towards the terminal. "Garrus, you have to purge it before it can escape through the grounded network!" They all looked at it as words began to scrawl across the screen.

[Detection, 100%. Escape, 0%. Self-destruct sequence activated.] Everyone stared at the screen stupidly as the box that Tali had enquired about earlier came to life.

"Goddess, please tell me that isn't what I think it is," said the asari worriedly. She bolted for the door, but it refused to open. "Open damn you!" she shouted as she frantically hammered at its surface.

[None of you will live to tell of me. If you try to disconnect the bomb from the power, it will trigger automatically,] was the last thing that scrawled across the screen before it went blank. Garrus tried to gain access to the computer again, but it was no use.

Tali let out a sigh of anxiety as she tried to clear her head. Suddenly, the omni-tool on her left wrist began flashing. She opened it and saw a message from her recent friend. [Tali, you must plug me into the terminal immediately,] said the AI that she had befriended.

"I... I can't! You can't get... I…" stuttered the quarian as the box began to let off a warning signal.

[Tali, you must. I understand your reservation, but if you don't, you, me, and everyone here will die,] responded Val'eda.

Letting out a loud shout, Tali ran over to the terminal and shoved Garrus out of the way much to his surprise. Opening the casing beneath the hard light, she reached for the omni-tool and entered the code that released the physical cable and the only way of connecting the omni-tool to anything. Finally, she slammed the cable into the terminal's port, and the light from the AI's omni-tool vanished.

Everyone looked at the terminal screen as it immediately flashed green before a loud screeching noise filled the small room. Suddenly, everything went dark and quiet as the power went out. "Tali, what in the spirits name did you do?"

Panting heavily at the stress, she stared at the dark monitor. "Val'eda, respond," she said tiredly. Looking around the room, the asari and Chloe were both in a corner terrified out of their minds, while the turian officer just stood staring in awe as the emergency lights came on. Garrus stood next to her, still awaiting an answer he wasn't going to get. "Val'eda, respond!" she ordered desperately.

She didn't want her nightmare to come true. She didn't want to be the cause of another AI outbreak. But she felt she had no choice. It was either their lives or putting her faith in her... friend. She hoped when she was connecting the device that she hadn't made the wrong choice, and every second that ticked by without a response brought more and more dread upon her shoulders.

But, out of nowhere the lights returned and all of the terminals flashed back on as if they hadn't been affected at all. The quarian's head turned sharply as she heard a loud pop, and she saw that the bomb was now smoking. Suddenly, her other omni-tool flashed again, signaling the return of the AI. Quickly, she jerked the cord free from the terminal. [I'm sorry I worried you. He was more powerful than he first appeared. However, he has been purged from the system entirely,] said the AI across her omni-tool screen.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Tali simply said, "Thank you," and turned to leave with Garrus and the others looking at her in confusion.

CODEX ENTRIES

Jor | Culture | Volus
Jor Danus Zoltus was an ancient Irunite figure who was considered by the volus to be the one true king that they ever had. He was a figure revered for bringing all the tribes of Irune together to survive an ice age event that nearly wiped them out. After his rule, the tribes split again, but they never forgot his incredible leadership.

Zan | Culture | Volus
When speaking to a volus with respect, this is often added to the front of their name. The closest translation of the word has come to mean "honored one," and is frequently used between volus who do business with those higher on the corporate food chain.

Iperian Volus | Linguistics | Volus
The ever-changing language of the volus. Due to their culture of absorbing clans and splitting again, the volus language has always been almost completely consistent from one nation to another. One volus on the other side of Irune would be able to talk without issue to another from any nation on the planet due to this culture of constant melding and splitting again.

Na'saat | Art | Music
An instrument used by quarians before the fall of Rannoch. It typically has a wooden frame with strings tied from one section of the frame to another and is meant to be played over the lap. Some extravagant ones were made as well, and had to be held up by legs, and played by multiple people.

Hanar Crown | Technology | Translator
The hanar do not have voices or vocal cords as most species do, and instead use flashes of low, infrared light from their body to talk to one another. This makes it extremely difficult for species who communicate through voice to talk to hanar. In order to communicate with the more audio-based species, the hanar wear a crown that acts as a translator. It uses photosensitive readers to measure the light from the hanar's body and translates it to galactic common, or whatever languages the hanar have it programmed for. It works the opposite way as well, translating nearby soundwaves into small flashes of light that the hanar can read in order to understand what is being said to it.