"So, what now?" Shepard looked to Nihlus for a moment, then turned to the rest of the team. "Toss this office, take anything that looks even remotely relevant, useful, or sellable."

"Sellable?" Vakarian asked, his spine stiffening.

Shepard met his offense with a softening of her posture. "Yeah, officer . . . sellable. I get the feeling we're going to be on the run soon, and we'll need every credit we can get our paws on to get us through. If looting from bad guys bothers you, then this is a very good time to get back to your beat." She pressed her lips together to stifle her grin at his reaction to the word 'beat', but try as she might, she couldn't keep the gleam from her eye. After a moment, his mandibles flicked, and he turned to join the others in their search.

Shepard turned back to Nihlus. "So, the next move . . .."

"We go to the council with her information. They can't deny that conversation." The Spectre paced to the door and back. "But if they are involved, they will know how much we know."

"Yeah, not to mention the giant-ass target we paint on our backs." Shepard shook her head and leaned against the wall, affecting a nonchalance that she didn't feel. "What about Rael'Zorah? With all these pilgrims missing, he has to have been investigating and trying to find a way to get them back."

"I insisted on going on my pilgrimage despite the disappearances," Tali said, her voice soft and filled with regret and shame. "I told him that I'd investigate and send anything I discovered back to the fleet. I thought . . .." She sighed and shook her head. "It doesn't matter what I thought. I failed, got myself captured, and now we're no closer to finding our people."

"Safe bet that Admiral Papa is hot on her trail. There's no way he's just sitting back on the flotilla hoping news of his daughter wanders past." Shepard's eyes flicked back to Nihlus, narrowing as she puzzled it through. Too many unknowns. "Okay, so this Matriarch seems to think her daughter is enough of a Prothean expert to hunt down. What if we try to get to her first? If she can help unravel this mess inside our heads, it might be worth our time."

He nodded. "Be worth our time just to keep her away from Saren if she can help him." He growled low in his throat and raked his fringe with his talons. "We don't know nearly enough."

Shepard nodded and pushed off the wall. "Well, if Wrex is any indication, the Shadow Broker is not a friend of Saren's. Let's go visit Barla Von before the council, yeah?"

"Yes." His stance hardened. "Hopefully we find something worth trading to Von. The Shadow Broker's information doesn't come cheap." He brushed past her to go over Fist's desk.

Beckoning to Wrex, Shepard led the krogan to one side of the room. "Sorry about Fist, but you'll still be able to collect?"

He nodded. "Dead is dead, Shepard." Looking over at the little quarian, the giant male let out a faint, rumbling growl. "I've met this Saren before. Cold blooded bastard." He stared into Shepard's eyes for a long couple of seconds, giving her the feeling that he was searching for something written deep down at her core. A small nod told her that maybe he'd found whatever it was. "Could you use another gun?"

Grinning, the captain nodded. "I'm certainly not one to turn down help. Welcome aboard, Urdnot Wrex."

Ten minutes later, they left the office and took a cab to the financial district on the presidium. Shepard got out of the car and headed for the door that Nihlus indicated. After a second, she glanced back and laughed. "Sweet baby Jesus," she sighed and turned to look at her motley crew. "We look like a bunch of evangelists from the Church of Galactic Brotherhood."

She raised her hands as if to bless them. "Brothers Kaidan and Wrex, Sister Tali, go see what you can get for that equipment, we'll meet you back here." She waved her hands over them. "Bless you my children, walk forward in the glory of the holy light of the Enkindlers."

They hurried off, most likely as to not be associated with the lunatic woman. She grinned and looked to Garrus. "Brother Garrus, alight yourself somewhere on high so that ye may keep the eye of righteousness fixed upon all the sinners walking this fine presidium. If thou be a witness to anything considered a sin before the Enkindlers, raise the alarm, brother." When he answered her with a hesitant nod and a wary stare, she turned back to Barla Von's front door.

Nihlus took the lead. "Church of Galactic Brotherhood? Really?"

Shepard nodded and headed for the financier's office. "I have trouble sleeping sometimes, watch a lot of very early morning broadcasts. The Galactic Brotherhood cracks me up. Started by a hanar who claims we should all come together into one great bloom-herd, flock, whatever-to spread the holy light of the Enkindlers." She palmed the door control as if anointing it. "You haven't heard the word until you've heard it shouted from the rooftops by the Father of the Light. Glory hallelujah, Brother Nihlus."

A volus wheeze greeted their entrance. "I was not aware either Spectre Nihlus or Spectre-Candidate Shepard had joined the bloom and converted to the holy word of the Galactic Brotherhood." A chuckle followed another wheeze. "Perhaps I need new sources of information."

"We have come here today to spread the great and glorious light of the Enkindlers," Shepard shouted, throwing rapturous hands over her head. She didn't miss Nihlus's wince. "Have you heard the word of the Enkindlers, Brother Von?"

"I have, Sister Shepard." He wheezed. "Everytime I meet with the Holy Father of the Light to transfer his new millions into surprising operations galaxy-wide."

Shepard chuckled as she tried to look stricken by the news. "Woe be upon you Brother Von for your lack of faith and inability to turn the blind eye of that faith." She looked around and wondered how many millions of the Father of Light's suspect credits had been filtered into Von's pocket, ready for a quick getaway. Other than a couple of computer processors and a desk, the room sat bare.

"Nice place you have here, Brother Von. Very homey." She stopped, planted her knuckles into her hips and nodded her approval. "It practically screams 'don't come looking if the markets go south, because I'll be in hiding on Omega'."

"Thank you, Brotherhood-clan." He wheezed and chuckled again. "That is the exact look I am going for."

Nihlus let out a deep, rumbling sigh, brushing past her none too gently, and strode straight up to the volus. "Barla Von." The Spectre towered over the volus, glaring down at him like a falcon who'd spied a tasty snack, but was letting it get a head start before hunting it down.

The financier just looked up at the Spectre then over at Shepard who hung back. After a moment, he took a breath. "Since I have already heard the holy word of the Enkindlers, to what do I owe the pleasure of your and your protege's company, Brother Kryik?" He gave her a slight tilt of his head. "Perhaps one of your bloom has gone astray?"

Shepard hid a grin. Clever little bastard.

"We need information, Von. What do you know about Saren?" Nihlus leaned on the desk, pushing in on the financier, but again, the little fellow just stood his ground.

"I know a great deal about Saren," he said and took a hissing breath. Shepard sighed and settled in for the long haul. It took volus forever to spit anything out. "Do you want to know anything specific, or shall I start at his birth?"

"Don't screw around with me, Von. Eden Prime." As Shepard watched, the Spectre went from seething to completely still, as if time stopped inside his sphere of space. The effect was unsettling.

"Downright creepy," she muttered.

Apparently the volus felt the same way, for his suit deflated a little as he let out a long, hissing breath. "You wish to know why Saren attacked Eden Prime?" He shrugged, his stumpy arms flapping a little. "You already know why he attacked Eden Prime. He wished to obtain the beacon. I do not know why he wanted it. He does not keep my counsel, nor apparently the counsel of anyone willing to share the information."

"What is the Conduit? And what does Saren want with quarian children?" Only Nihlus's mouth moved, but something rang through his subvocals that warned Shepard about what would follow the stillness.

She strode over and lifted a hip to sit on the edge of the desk. "Now, Brother Kryik, you're forgetting the whereabouts of those children, the whereabouts of Matriarch Benezia's daughter, and whether there is a decent mexican restaurant on the Citadel." She made a show of thinking. "I think that's everything."

She leaned on her knee, getting down near Von's eye level. "It has been more than a year since Sister Shepard sank her teeth into a decent enchilada. Do you know how hard it is to concentrate on the holy light and sacred word of the Enkindlers when all you can think about is beefy, cheesy goodness with tons of jalapeno peppers?"

Von waddled around to face her. "I'm afraid I do not, Brotherhood-clan. However, there is a mexican restaurant in Zakera Ward that vol-clan has heard good things about." He looked to Nihlus. "The whereabouts of Dr. Liara T'Soni, the daughter in question, are available for the time taken to do an extranet search and place a few calls."

"Glory hallelujah, Brother Von. The Enkindlers' light in strong in you." She threw her hands up again in benediction. "You shall be rewarded greatly in this life and beyond." She paused and shrugged. "I think. Not sure how that works exactly." She leaned back down. "So, you're pretty plugged in to this place?"

He wheezed and nodded, a movement that included his entire torso. "One must be if one wishes to predict fluctuations in the galactic markets. Information is power." He took a couple of breaths, and she got the feeling he was evaluating her effect on those markets. "You appear to be a woman drawn to power."

She shrugged and waggled her head. "Power, sure. Corruption, no." She gestured to encompass the the presidium. "I don't see the holy light or power here, Brother Von. Corruption, absolutely."

He took a step toward his desk and leaned his squat body against it. "Everything in balance Brotherhood-clan. How does one appreciate the holy light and virtue without holding it up against the darkness of corruption?" Breath. "Recognize good without evil?"

"And which are you?" she asked, sitting up, chin up, back ramrod straight.

Von made a half-wheeze, half-chuckling noise. "As with all things, Sister Shepard, I am a mixture of charity and avarice, good and evil, virtue and vice." He emphasized the last word enough to make her wonder if he was flirting with her.

Shepard jumped up, putting the desk between them.

"And Saren?" Nihlus asked, saving her from having to examine the concept of a flirty volus too closely.

"Saren is misguided, I believe." Von lifted a hand, little mechanical fingers working. "I do not know Saren's purpose in holding the quarian youth, if he is indeed holding them, nor where they are located." He paused for breath. "However, a member of the quarian Admiralty Board is on the Citadel, attempting to discover the answer to these questions." Von passed Nihlus a datapad. "He is in hiding, but should you check this location, you might discover something useful."

Nihlus snatched the datapad, the sudden movement startling Shepard with both its speed and promise of violence. Von flinched back, getting the message.

"Why did Saren want the beacon?" the Spectre demanded. "Our intel says he's looking for a Conduit of some kind. Do you know what he's talking about?" His words flew like daggers, the volus wincing at each.

Von shook his head, a slight waver lacing through his words now that Shepard no longer formed a buffer between him and the Spectre. "Not even the Shadow Broker has been able to ascertain his purpose, although it is whispered in some circles that he was to obtain the beacon for the council." After a long pause for breath, his little fingers ticking nervously. "They do not wish the Earth-clan to get a leg up on the other species." His little, light eyes turned to Shepard. "They believe your people to be a grave threat to galactic peace, Brotherhood-clan."

"Sure, and nothing says get along and play well with the rest of the class like attacking our colonies." Her arms crossed over her chest, a defensive shield, as she cocked a hip, trying for relaxed, but the electricity coming off Kryik made that impossible. "Okay, but . . . the geth? I can't see the council climbing in bed with the geth no matter what."

The volus shrugged and tilted his head, waddling a step toward her and shelter. "Some things you will either have to discover on your own or for a fee, Captain Shepard. I'm a businessman."

Nihlus took a step that felt like a lunge. "Have you heard anything about Reapers?"

Shepard shifted between them again as Von shook his head. God, she hoped she didn't have to stop Kryik from ripping the little guy's suit open. The last thing they needed was to piss off the Shadow Broker. Who knew when they'd need his services?

"Rumour and superstition, Spectre, nothing more." He wheezed and took a step toward her, seeking shelter.

"Then tell me the rumours and superstitions."

Shepard's skin rose in gooseflesh, the hairs along her arms feeling like she'd been dragging her feet along carpet. Lightning crackled through the empty room.

Shepard held up her hands, trying to keep it from striking. "Okay, our source says that they could have been behind the Prothean extinction." She leaned on the desk to get closer to Von's eye level. "I'll tell you what. You give us whatever you can dig up on them, and we'll reciprocate. Something tells me that we're all going to need a few favours in the coming months." She flicked her gaze toward Nihlus, encouraging Von to choose based on his own self-interest.

Von let out a long, wheezing sigh, his light eyes feeling as though they bored straight through her. "You're correct, Brotherhood-clan. I sense dark times ahead. The markets are uneasy, as if something is stirring behind the curtain, unwilling to show itself." He wheezed. "Whatever I discover about Reapers will find its way to you."

Shepard practically pounced on the volus to interrupt Nihlus, and shook the little mechanical hand. "We have an accord, Brother Von. Whatever I discover will be sent to you." She emphasized the last word and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Glory be to the piercing light of the Enkindlers, and a good day to you, brother."

Nihlus led the way out of the office, the static storminess around him dying down to where she wasn't afraid to get electrocuted if she brushed against him. "Don't your people have a saying about making deals with the devil, Shepard?"

She nodded. "They're not recommended. Von, however, is far too practical to be the devil, glory hallelujah!" She tossed a companionable wink at Garrus as he sauntered over.

"I didn't mean Von," Nihlus said and chuffed. "I meant the Shadow Broker."

Shepard glanced back at the door, then to Nihlus. "I didn't hear anything about the Shadow Broker in that conversation. An acquaintance said that he would send me any information his discovered in exchange for mine." She shrugged and leaned back against the cab. "Like I said, Von's a practical fellow. You can guarantee that the Shadow Broker won't see anything I send Von unless the little guy needs something. A quick, secret way off the Citadel more than likely." She nodded and looked down the street. "We'll have some lead time."

Kaidan, Wrex and Tali hurried toward them.

Shepard popped the car open, then turned to look at Garrus. "There is something rotten in the state of Denmark, and you can smell it, can't you, Horatio?"

Garrus's mandibles fluttered. "Is this all some convincing act, or are you actually a raving lunatic?"

"How does quoting Marcellus from Hamlet make me a raving lunatic?" Shepard asked, sighed doing her best to look mortally wounded. "Honestly, Vakarian . . . I ask for your opinion as to the state of corruption on the Citadel, bring a little culture into your life, and I get called a crazy woman."

Nihlus walked around to the other side of the car. "If the shoe fits . . . I believe that's the phrase."

When the other three got in, Shepard settled herself in the driver's seat and shut the car before turning to Garrus. "You're the most familiar with this place, Vakarian. Does everything feel business as usual?" She paused, staring at him through narrowed eyes. "Or is there something festering under the surface?"

She watched him war against his programming, both as a turian and a C-Sec agent. Both demanded unquestioning loyalty to one's superiors, but then he sighed, and Shepard felt him settle fully inside the car with her, his side chosen.

"I've felt that something was off for just over a solar cycle. Odd orders, Spectres taking missions that didn't appear to need a Spectre presence. Colleagues who asked the wrong questions just disappeared one day, and we were told they'd been reassigned." He chuffed, his mandibles lowering. "I don't know what it is, but something's going on, Shepard, and it scares the hell out of me."

Shepard watched him for another moment, then nodded-one firm, resolute nod. "Welcome aboard, Vakarian." She looked to Nihlus. "All right, let's go find our hiding admiral and see if we can't figure out what the hell is going on here."