John watched Gabby and Camicia walk side-by-side through the market. Korlus was a swamp-like armpit of a world, but it did have enough of an ongoing 'salvage' trade to make shopping for spare parts a fruitful enterprise. Gabby had requested the stop, since she was not happy with the current state of their inventory. He had agreed, and also offered to watch over the two while they shopped.

The hazy sun shone down through the spiderweb of cables strung overhead. The heat was strong enough to make John regret his usual clothing choice of a black suit. But, thinking back on his talk with Persephone, he figured it was good to get out of the ship and walk around. He certainly felt less moody. If nothing else, it was heartwarming to see the diminutive human and the towering turian chatting away like the bosom buddies they'd become.

It was unlikely that anyone would try anything, but 'unlikely' was not the same thing as 'impossible'. Thus, John was taking note of their surroundings and watching out for anyone who might take an unsavory interest in the pair.

The two crewmembers stopped in front of one stall that looked to be built out of scraps of sheet metal. The salarian behind the counter perked up as they approached and began to look over his merchandise.

Somebody was watching him. He could feel it.

John looked carefully around, making his movements slow and steady. He didn't want to spook whomever it was. But after a thorough scan of his surroundings, he couldn't see anyone. Maybe his sixth sense was a little off after his ordeal on Carcosa.

The feeling of being watched continued.

John glanced over and saw that the two crew were still engrossed in conversation with the salarian. He did another scan, and still didn't see anyone looking at him. Then he heard a questioning little noise that sounded like 'Wirfl?', and realized he hadn't been looking close enough to the ground. John glanced over and down at the source of the noise.

His gaze met a pair of goggle-like purple eyes. Those eyes were set above a toothy mouth. Two large and very sharp-looking fangs stuck up on either side of the thing's blunt snout. The animal was built like a huge shaved bulldog. Its shoulders were higher than its rump and rippled with muscle as it tilted its head. Its slate-colored skin had purple stripes along its back, underneath a row of fleshy-looking spines. The animal's goggle eyes never stopped looking at him.

John walked closer. The thing was inside of a cage, and was pressing itself against the cage's back. It didn't look angry, exactly, just curious. "Wirfl?" it asked again.

There was a ratty-looking human standing nearby. The human was surrounded by cages, all containing specimens of the same doglike creature.

The human noted John's interest. "Hello, sir! Are you looking for meat or entertainment?"

"Sorry?"

The salesman waved at the cage. John noted that he didn't get his hand anywhere near it. "This is a fine specimen, a very spirited male. I nearly lost a hand to it, and it injured three of my colleagues before we could capture it. A lot of good meat on him, if that's your preference." He sidled closer to John. "And, if you're into that sort of thing, I'm sure this one would make a champion pit-fighter. Mind you, he'll need a bit of training."

John crossed his arms. "Um, okay. What...is he?"

The salesman looked a little puzzled, but plowed on. "I know his coloration is a little unusual, but I assure you he's a healthy varren...um, sir? You might not want to get that close..."

John ignored the man and squatted on his haunches directly in front of the cage. The varren tilted its head the other way and regarded him for a long moment. Then the animal pushed itself up and padded to the front of the cage. It flopped down next to the cage's front and pressed itself up against the mesh.

The human became a little frantic. "Really, it's not tame at all...oh, dear."

John smiled and scratched at a little patch of the varren's skin through the mesh. Now that he was this close, he could see that its skin consisted of small, tightly-packed scales. The varren let out a little satisfied "Wirfl!" and pressed itself harder into the scratch.

"I...okay, I guess he...likes you?" The human sounded completely dumbfounded.

John stood. Now that it was suddenly deprived of scritches, the varren twisted its head up and around and gave him a hurt look.

"How much?" asked John.

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Gabby had finished haggling over the price of fuses and was putting them into a duffel when she felt Camicia stiffen next to her. "What in the name of all the spirits is that?"

The engineer looked over and saw a commotion in the crowd making its way towards them. The crowd parted and she saw that the commotion centered around John and a big varren padding cheerfully along beside him.

The assassin gave them both a smile. It was the first honestly happy look that Gabby had ever seen from him. "Hello, ladies. Did you get what you needed?"

Gabby nodded absently, her mind still reeling. "Um, John? What is that varren doing?"

He looked down at it, then up again. His face was confused. "Walking?"

Camicia relaxed, but this was the relaxation of someone getting ready to sprint. "Is it tame?"

John pondered. "I don't think so. The guy who sold it nearly lost a hand to him. That dude must have been a real asshole, right buddy?" He leaned down and scritched the varren on top of its head. The varren's goggle eyes half-closed in bliss as it made a little chortling sound.

"You bought. A wild varren." Gabby's voice sounded amazingly calm, even to her. "For what?"

He looked a little embarrassed. "Well, they were just gonna eat him. Or make him fight. I couldn't leave him there, he's too cute."

"Cute. I see." Camcia's mandibles clicked. "You humans are nuts."

The varren cocked his head and regarded Gabby. She froze in fright as it padded forward and sniffed at one of her trouser legs.

"Be nice, Errol," said John.

"You named him Errol?" Gabby just managed to keep the squeak out of her voice.

"Sure! He looks like an Errol."

The varren looked back at John and seemed to get the idea that Gabby was a pack member. He then flopped on his side at her feet and looked up with a hopeful expression. "Wirfl?"

"See?" John sounded triumphant. "He just wants scritches. Errol's a big old softy."

Camicia edged around the pair. "Really, John. Varren are extremely dangerous. You can't have one just walking around..."

Gabby very, very slowly reached down towards Errol. The varren gave a toothy smile as she gently touched it. Since he didn't snap at her, she felt emboldened enough to actually give it a quick bit of scratching along its scaly gray flank. The varren let forth the same chortling noise as before and leaned back into her. The varren was all muscle; that lean nearly knocked her over.

John beamed. "Like I said. Just a softy."

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Persephone rubbed her temples wearily. "This is a ship, John. It's an enclosed space. Where is it going to go do its business?"

"Him, not it. I looked it up, they can be litter-trained like a cat. And our waste system can handle his poo no problem. I'll take of it all, don't worry."

She slumped at the mess room table and looked up at John's grinning face. "We are on a highly sensitive mission to prevent a debilitating war for your species. And you bought a Goddess-be-damned varren? As a pet?"

"C'mon, it's not that big a deal. He's adorable! Just look at his cute little face!"

Errol was standing right by the human's side. The varren looked up at John, then over at Persephone. His big purple eyes blinked as he smiled, displaying a quite alarming amount of teeth.

"It's funny, I read about how they actually smile like us," said John. "You know, most animals bare their teeth as a threat or an attack posture. But for a varren it means they're happy."

"How fascinating. I hope you also read about how they they eat everything. And I mean everything. They can bite through steel. They're as hard to kill as a krogan. And they breed like...well, like varren."

"He'll be fine. I bought a whole bunch of lizard meat on Korlus. And he's the only varren on board, so we don't have to worry about little baby varren running around."

Persephone kept massaging her temples as she felt the beginnings of a headache. "We have just spent a lot of time and effort to get your hand healed. If this...thing bites it off, I'm reserving the right to point at you and laugh." The asari sighed as she and Errol stared at each other for a long moment.

Then she looked up at John. She had to admit, he looked happier than she'd seen in a long time. "Okay. But you clean up after it...him. And you're the one who will exercise him and all of that. I'm not lifting a finger, I don't care how cute he looks at me."

"Great! Come on, Errol, I'll show you our cabin." John puttered off aft with Errol trotting close behind.

Persephone sat there for a long moment. "Humans are nuts."

"That's what I said!" yelled Camicia from the cockpit.

----------------------------------------

Hito's purple cloud cover shone along the viewports beside her as Bast made her way through the station. The gas giant was a rich source of Helium-3, and that richness had resulted in several clashes between rival mining operations. They were still getting over the latest one, and she was fortunate that she'd found a tramp merchant vessel willing to run her out this far into the Attican Traverse.

The coded message from the Helen indicated that they should arrive within the next few hours. As a stranger to the station, Bast had gotten many curious looks, and several of those looks were far from friendly. She sighed internally. It would be best to just find a place to hole up and wait for John's team to arrive.

Then she sighed again, audibly this time, as two men stepped out into the corridor ahead of her. They wore the armor of the Blue Suns. She couldn't see any visible weapons, but that didn't mean much. What was obvious was the leers on their faces. They had more than simple robbery on their minds.

"Hey, sister," said one of them in a raspy voice. "Are you just passing through?"

The silver-haired woman stopped and calmly looked them over. "Yes. And you want me to keep 'just passing through'."

"Oh?" The other man's leer stretched even further as he spoke. "You think so?"

Bast nodded. "I'm very sure. You do not want on board this train."

The first man gave a chuckle and pointed behind her with his chin. Without looking Bast knew there were at least two others behind her. "I think we do, sweet thing. We've got a whole other sort of train in mind..."

Her first bullet went right through his visor and through his eye. His partner didn't even have time to react before he, too, got shot through his brain. Bast spun and got three more shots off at one of the others. There were two more behind her, and they were already charging forward. The one she shot stumbled and fell, while the other managed to get inside her reach and batted her gun aside. He shoved into her and got her up against the wall of the corridor. Any triumph he might have felt was short-lived, however, as Bast's other arm wormed its way between them. Then her punch-dagger went through the bottom of his jaw and up into his head.

The merc stared at her with bulging eyes as she twisted the dagger, making sure to probe deeply into his skull. She yanked the blade back out and the twitching body toppled over.

"Shit," she muttered, then cleaned off her gore-covered knife hand as best she could against one of the bodies. There was a commotion from back up the corridor, and she figured it was not worth sticking around to find out if it was friend or foe. Bast turned and sprinted away.

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Gabby brushed her hair out of her eyes. It had been a while since she'd worn it this long, and she'd forgotten how big of a pain in the ass it could be. It would be nice when it was long enough to gather into a ponytail. She glared in exasperation at Errol, who crouched with his haunches in the air. His fanged mouth gripped a wrench, and the varren chortled happily as he waved the tool about.

"This is not playtime, you little shit," she growled. "Drop that goddamned wrench."

How the stupid varren had gotten into Engineering was a mystery. She'd been minding her own damn business and doing some routine maintenance. When she'd turned around to grab that particular wrench she had found it now in the mouth of Errol, who then gave her a chortle and scampered off around the drive core.

Chasing him didn't help. He was much faster than her, and the toothy bastard seemed to think that she was playing with him. Gabby crouched, and Errol growled in happy anticipation. She feinted left and went right, and of course her grab missed.

"Wirfl!" exclaimed Errol happily. He seemed to be having a capital time.

The engineer gritted her teeth and changed tactics. This time, she feinted right and went right. She had a brief moment of triumph as her hands closed over the end of the wrench protruding from Errol's mouth. But it was very brief; the playful varren tossed his head around as she got hold of the wrench. Errol's bull-like neck was all muscle, and the force of that toss spun Gabby through the air. She felt her feet leave the ground before getting flung away. Her back hit a nearby stanchion with jarring force, and the blow drove the air from her lungs.

She lay sprawled on the deck, unable to move. Nothing seemed to be broken, but it was very hard to breathe. As she lay there and tried to get her breath back, Gabby felt a nudge at one boot. She swiveled her eyes up.

"Wirfl?" Errol no longer held the wrench in his mouth, and he looked genuinely concerned. He nudged her leg again.

Gabby raised a hand, slowly, and Errol nuzzled it with his big blunt snout.

She finally was able to draw in a breath. "I'm okay, you little bastard. You just knocked the wind out of me."

Errol gave a dismayed chuff in response and nudged her stomach with his head.

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"I'm fine, just...we people can't play as rough as you can, understand?"

"Wirfl." He laid his head in her lap. The varren looked so forlorn that she gave him a few shaky pats on his head.

Finally she felt good enough to get up. "Okay, this is not your area, got it? Lots of breakable stuff in here. Now shoo."

Errol obediently trotted off as she shook her head. Scary guy or not, John was going to get an earful from her about the need to keep an overly-playful varren away from her drive core.

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John opened the hatch of the shuttle and stepped back as Bast threw her bag up into the craft. That was quickly followed by her own gray-suited and lanky form. The interior cabin of the Helen's shuttle was only about two meters long and two across. Having both of them in there made it a tight fit. He smiled at her and closed the hatch again. "So you ran into the local welcome wagon, eh?"

She shrugged. "I guess so. A single woman, traveling alone on the frontier...it's probably a miracle it didn't happen before now."

He seated himself in the pilot's chair, and Bast took the other. He could feel her eyes on him as he maneuvered the shuttle away from the station and out to where the Helen sat in a parking orbit.

"I have to admit," she said, "you're doing pretty well for someone who only saw a spaceship for the first time a few months ago."

He chuckled. "Ah. I see Mrs. Carmichael filled you in on my colorful past."

"She did." Bast sighed and stretched her arms out above her. "And she told me about the whole Okuda thing. I've got another assignment for us as well."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, Management wants us to give Cerberus a headache whenever and wherever possible. I've got some data to help with that. I guess this means I'm in it for the duration."

"Sorry about you getting roped into this."

Bast smiled. "I'm being paid a significant amount, so it's not really a hardship."

"Regardless, we'll be pleased to have you," he replied. The sparrowhawk shape of the Helen became visible in the cockpit windows and drifted closer. "Gabby's taken over the Engineering space as her quarters, so at least we have a spare cabin." He flipped the shuttle upside-down and mated it to its docking cradle beneath the Helen.

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After cleaning off her hands and getting her bag stowed in her designated cabin, Bast decided that a meal was in order. It was nothing fancy, just a pre-heated ration in a pouch. But it was the first hot food she'd had in a while, and she took the time to savor it. She looked up as Gabby walked into the mess.

"I guess you weren't rid of me that easily," she said.

Gabby stopped and smiled. "Bast! I heard you were joining our merry little crew." Behind her was a man with a messy mop of brown hair and calculating eyes. Gabby indicated him. "Bast, this is Nathan. Nathan, Bast." He smiled and shook hands with Bast.

The operative reached into the lapel pocket of her gray suit-jacket and withdrew a small OSD. "If you're Nathan, then this is for you. Some Cerberus intel, courtesy of the Alliance."

He took it and looked curiously at her. "Do I want to know how you came into possession of this?"

"Nnnnoope."

He nodded and smiled. "Then I will not ask. Thank you." He turned away from the main table and walked off towards a terminal along one wall of the mess room.

Gabby took up a seat across from Bast. "So I heard you had a little excitement getting out of Hito."

Bast shrugged. "A little. Nothing I couldn't handle. Like I told John, I'm just surprised it didn't happen before now..."

She trailed off as she felt a warm pressure on her thigh. She looked down.

Bast had trained long and hard to control every single aspect of her mind and body. That was the only reason she didn't immediately scream and throw herself back from the table. The fanged animal rested its huge, bullet-shaped head on her leg and looked up at her with soulful purple eyes.

"Wirfl?" it asked.

The operative cleared her throat. "Um, there's a varren in my lap."

"Oh, that's Errol," replied Gabby. "Don't worry, he's friendly. Although sometimes he can be such a little stinker. He's also a total slut. He'll put his head in anyone's lap if they give him scritches."

"Ah. Scritches?"

"Yeah, especially between the ears. He likes that."

Very carefully, Bast reached down and gave the varren a vigorous scritching in the recommended place. The animal closed his eyes and chortled in appreciation.

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Nathan growled a little in frustration. "This data would have been very useful for me to have, back when I was still working in the Alliance."

Mackie gave him a sympathetic grin. "I guess the spooks keep things pretty compartmentalized, eh?"

"Indeed. Of course, Cerberus wasn't my specialty at the time. But there are still some things here that would have been handy to know."

Mackie stretched a little and looked at his terminal screen. The screen mirrored what Nathan was plowing through from the data dump that Bast had given them. It was later at night, and there wasn't anyone else in the mess. Mackie had found Nathan still at work, and after the analyst had refused to go to bed he'd decided to volunteer as a sounding board for Nathan.

"So what are we looking at and why?" he asked.

"As to the 'why', we've been asked to disrupt Cerberus activities as time permits." Nathan then highlighted several bank account statements. "And here is the 'what'. I've taken Bast's data and correlated it with several other databases that I already have access to. Cerberus has a truly staggering amount of capital going towards this thing called the Lazarus Project. A good chunk of the money is going to basic research on neural repair, and another chunk is towards developing new prosthetic and cybernetic technology. And all of the results of this research are being funneled into one physical location."

Mackie leaned forward and read further. As he read the amount of money involved, it woke him up like a cup of strong coffee. "That can't be right. Four billion?"

"That's what they've spent to date. Much of it has been going into neural repair research. There is a lot of basic work being done at quite a few laboratories and universities, all being funded by money that ultimately comes from Cerberus."

"Fixing neurons," mused Mackie. "Well, I'm not a doctor or anything but the brain is the first thing to go after you kick it, right? I mean, given the name of the project they must be trying to come up with a way to bring humans back to life after they're brain-dead."

"That is my conclusion as well."

"So if you know this much, why keep digging? Bringing people back to life is a trick anybody would want. Especially a group of assholes like Cerberus. They probably just want to keep it to themselves."

"There are several things that do not quite fit. First, they are trying to fix not just damaged nerve cells, but nerve cells that have been long dead. That is a much harder problem to solve. Second, I am getting a definite sense of desperation in all this effort. They are trying to get this capability developed as soon as possible. And third, in spite of what looks like remarkable success, I don't get any indication that Cerberus is getting ready to mass-produce any of this technology. It's as if all this money and effort is going into a black hole."

"Okay, Mr. Analyst," said Mackie with a grin. "Look at it logically. If they're not mass-producing this technology, then it must be for just a few people. The Cerberus elite."

Nathan blinked. "Oh. Yes, of course. Mackie, you're a genius."

The fixer's grin got wider. "I do have my moments."

Nathan leaned forward and scanned through more of the data. It went by far too fast for Mackie to keep up, but finally the analyst leaned back. "It bothered me that all of the genetic information used in the Lazarus research is from a single human's genome. This project isn't for a few people. It's for one person."

Mackie shook his head in wonder. "All that, to bring one human back from the dead?"

"It appears so."

"Who's worth that kind of money?"

Nathan laughed. "That is the four-billion-credit question, isn't it? If we can determine that, then any effort to disrupt or disable this program becomes much easier."

The blonde fixer shrugged. "Maybe it's for what's-his-name, the Illusive Man. If he's actually dead, that might explain why they want it as quickly as possible."

Nathan rubbed his forehead. "The damage they're trying to repair is very specific. Namely, they want to reverse the effects of exposure to death pressure and freezing for long periods of time. Unless The Illusive Man was killed a while back in some sort of depressurization accident, it doesn't fit." He leaned forward and rested his forehead in his hands.

Mackie stood, walked over, and put a warm hand on Nathan's shoulder. "You've done enough skull work for one evening. I think you need some sleep, okay?"

The analyst sighed. "You're right. I have to confess, I've been avoiding sleep lately."

The younger man paused before replying. "Bad dreams?"

Nathan nodded. He looked up at Mackie. "I hate to ask, it's horribly selfish of me. But that last time I did sleep very well..."

In reply Mackie leaned over and hugged Nathan. "Of course, dude. I'll be your security blanket anytime you want. Or even more."

To his surprise, Nathan returned the hug. "I mean, I don't want to take advantage of you or anything."

Mackie chuckled. "Buy me dinner on Illium and we'll call it even."

----------------------------------------

From orbit, Illium looked much like Earth. It was a lovely green-and-blue globe that stretched beneath the cockpit's windows. John reached down from his chair and scratched Errol's head as Camicia took them in. The thin blue line of atmosphere expanded and then engulfed their ship. In the distance, the city of Nos Astra twinkled as they drew closer.

"So where to first?" asked Mackie. "Now that we're back in what passes for civilization. I guess we need to find this 'Ghost' character, right?"

"We do have a few contacts from Gelban," said Nathan. "But they're older, so I'm not sure how useful they'll be. I'm thinking we might kill two birds at once, so to speak."

John turned to look at him. "How so?"

"Thanks to Ms. Bast's data, I know that the Lazarus Project began after Cerberus had dealings with one Liara T'Soni. She's an up-and-coming information broker who is conveniently located right here on Illium. In Nos Astra."

John didn't miss the slight stiffening of Persephone at the mention of the information broker's name. "Problem?" he asked.

"I don't have a problem with her," the asari replied. "But there might be hard feelings the other way. It's probably better if T'Soni and I don't meet."

Bast shook her silver head. "If she's with Cerberus, I don't think any of us should meet with her."

"Ah, that's the thing," replied Nathan. "I don't think Liara is 'with' them, in that sense. She was on board the Normandy during the chase after Saren, during which she participated in quite a few actions against Cerberus operations. As near as I can tell, she's only had dealings with the group once, about two years ago. Her reputation since then has been strictly neutral. We might be able to gently probe and find out her true feelings about them."

Mackie nodded. "And if we can find out what the hell this Lazarus Project is all about, then we might be able to give Cerberus a good kick in the balls."

John felt Errol rub his head against his leg. "Okay," he said, "Let's set up a meeting. I'll even throw in our true affiliation and see what she makes of it. Nathan, I want you there too. You do your lie-detector thing."

"What about the rest of us?" asked Mackie. "I mean, I like all of you but it would be nice to get the hell off of this ship for a while."

John chuckled. "Have fun, just be careful. I want a buddy system set up. Nobody goes off of the Helen by themselves."

Camicia glanced over at John. "And what about your fanged little friend there? Does he count as a buddy?"

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Nyxeris was an asari with a deep purple coloration to her skin and a very friendly smile. She took John's card with a little bow and motioned towards the chairs in the waiting room.

"If you gentlemen will have a seat, I will let Ms. T'Soni know that you are here." She glided off through the door behind her desk. Nathan sat while John walked over and and looked out the waiting room's window. The view reminded him of that from a Manhattan high-rise, although this city was much more sleek and had a lot more air traffic.

Nyxeris came back out. "Please, come this way."

The office beyond the door was plain, although it did boast a spectacular view of Nos Astra's harbor. Everything in the space was clearly chosen for utility rather than appearance. Behind the desk was an asari with pale blue skin and wide eyes that somehow gave her an innocent air. She was dressed in a simple white-and-black suit that looked much less fancy that the dress worn by her receptionist.

She stood and held out a hand. "Mr. Hadlock, pleased to meet you. Liara T'Soni." Her voice was higher-pitched than Persephone's, and somehow hesitant.

John shook hands, and indicated Nathan. "The pleasure is mine. This is my colleague, Nathan Prasad." They'd decided to go with Nathan's real name to see how good her information was.

She shook hands with Nathan as well, then gestured to the chairs in front of the desk. As he settled himself down, John realized that the furniture was very comfortable and probably very expensive; Liara seemed to be someone who valued function as well as form.

"Thanks for seeing us on such short notice," he said to her.

Liara smiled and nodded. "You paid enough for the privilege. On Illium, credits are a sure-fire way to get someone's attention."

He smiled back. "So I've heard. We're trying to locate someone."

She looked levelly at them both. "I am assuming this someone does not wish to be located. Someone who owes you money? Or perhaps you wish to kill them."

Nathan laughed. "Nothing so dramatic. No, we simply wish to set up a conversation with her."

Liara raised one eyebrow. "Her? Perhaps you'd better start at the beginning."

Nathan looked a question at John, who nodded in reply. "We know it's a she," Nathan said to Liara. "And that she's human, and has a base of operations here on Illium. But that's all we know. She is known as 'the Ghost', but I'm pretty sure that's a name that others have given to her. I have some contact information which is almost certainly out of date. And, as I said, our intentions towards this person are not hostile. We just want to meet and talk in a neutral location."

The asari leaned back in her chair. "And if I can put you in touch with this...'Ghost', you would be willing to pay for the opportunity?"

Nathan nodded.

John cleared his throat. "Unfortunately, there is a bit of a time pressure on this."

Liara gave a sad little laugh. "Of course. There always is. Faster costs more, you know."

John smiled at her. "I think we would be willing to pay you a significant bonus." He placed his hand on her desktop and slid a stack of five gold coins across to her.

Liara tapped her fingers together and regarded the coins as if they were an unexploded bomb on her desk. "I see. So you're with them."

John leaned back in his comfortable chair. "Yes, ma'am, we are. If that is a problem, we can leave right now. With no hard feelings on either side, I hope."

"Why would there be hard feelings?" Liara's voice was now very soft but also very controlled. Her eyes still looked innocent, but John wasn't fooled for a second.

John shrugged. "Well, given your past associations, you might have issues with us."

Liara placed her hands flat on the desk and looked at them both with irritation. "Let's stop dancing around each other, gentlemen. You're worried about my prior dealing with Cerberus."

Nathan peered closely at her. "You have to admit, it could be a concern to us."

She gave an amused glance back at the analyst. "You mean, given that your Organization and Cerberus are now apparently locked in opposition? I can appreciate that." She sighed. "But rest assured, gentlemen, my affair with Cerberus was a one-time-only matter."

Nathan looked at John and nodded. It was clear that the analyst was seeing something positive that John couldn't. So John made a 'go ahead' gesture. Nathan seemed to have good instincts.

The analyst cleared his throat. "All right. All cards on the table, as it were."

"Played according to Hoyle?" asked Liara with a tight smile.

Nathan chuckled. "Of course. Our primary goal is to speak with this 'Ghost' person. But we also have information on a Cerberus operation called the Lazarus Project. The genesis of which was apparently kicked off by your previous dealing with Cerberus."

She gazed down at the desktop. "Lazarus...a figure from human mythology, yes?"

Nathan nodded. "One who was raised from the dead."

Liara continued to stare down between her steepled fingers. From her face, John knew that her memories were not pleasant. "What is your interest in this project?"

John leaned forward. "To disrupt it. Cerberus has spent a lot of money on it, and if we can..."

"No." Her voice was soft but final.

The assassin raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought your dealings with Cerberus were over."

Liara brought her eyes up to stare at him. "You must allow that project to continue." She gave a bitter little laugh. "If it can continue."

Nathan gazed at her. John knew he was doing his lie-detector trick, and wondered how well it worked on asari. "From our own data, it appears that they have made very significant strides. Perhaps even succeeded."

Liara's face showed a brief flicker of shock. "Succeeded?"

The analyst nodded. "Maybe you should tell us what this is all about. If we're playing according to Hoyle, that is."

The asari stood and faced out of the window. "I'm surprised, Mr. Prasad. An analyst of your ability should have been able to piece together the clues. Especially once you knew I was involved. You shouldn't have to resort to parlor tricks like your micro-expression analysis of my face."

Nathan gave a guilty little start, then leaned back in irritation. "All right. We've deduced that Lazarus is focused on restoring a single individual. One who was dead for a significant amount of time, and who was most likely killed in some kind of depressurization or freezing accident. And it started about two years ago, after you met with Cerberus." His eyes widened. "Which was after the destruction of the Normandy."

"Yes," she said. Liara didn't turn around.

"It can't be."

"It is." Liara now sounded amused at Nathan's disbelief. "And now you say they've succeeded. I gave Cerberus a body, gentlemen. And in return they made me a promise. One they may actually keep after all." She turned back to face them, and John was surprised to see a genuine smile on her face. "I have to thank you both for bringing me a bit of hope."

Nathan slumped in his chair. "Why him? Why such effort for one man?"

"Because he's one of the few who will fight them."

"You mean the Reapers? There are plenty of others willing to fight them."

"Ah, but he just might win. That's what he does, Mr. Prasad. He wins."

John finally had enough with the circular dialogue. "Speaking as the dumb leg-breaker in the room, can either of you clue me in?"

"It's Shepard," said Nathan. He shook himself a little. "They're trying to resurrect John Shepard."

John looked askance at Liara. "From what little I know, he wouldn't exactly be friendly with Cerberus. Aren't you worried that they might have, well, altered him?"

Liara sat again. She looked older and more tired than when they had first come in. "I won't lie, it did worry me. But they promised to restore him 'as he was'. I think The Illusive Man is concerned that messing with Shepard's mind would blunt his effectiveness."

John pondered their options, then shrugged. "All right. We will leave this 'Project Lazarus' alone. Unless Shepard comes back as a zombifed Cerberus fanatic, of course."

She gave a grim smile. "In that case, Mr. Hadlock, The Illusive Man had better pray that I never get hold of him." She looked down at the stack of gold coins. "But it seems we've gotten distracted from your primary request."

After a little bit of consideration, Liara leaned forward and plucked the coins off of the table. "I will set up a call with this 'Ghost' of yours, gentlemen. As soon as possible."

----------------------------------------

After they had left, Liara called in Nyxeris. "Did you find their ship?" she asked her adjutant.

Nyxeris nodded, and called up some files on her omni-tool. "I did. It's the Merchant Vessel Helen of Troy. Has a human name, but it's actually a refitted turian corvette. Apparently has a crew of seven, which includes the two who were just here. I was able to hack in and obtain some pictures from the security cameras at the docks; I'm forwarding those to you now."

Liara opened her own omni-tool to look through the images. "Pretty bad resolution on those security cameras. They make one of the crew look like a varren. Oh, wait...it really is a varren." She tilted her head. "Why do they have a varren?."

Nyxeris shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. It seems our Mr. Hadlock has a pretty eclectic crew."

Liara smiled. "Seems like it. There's even an asari with him." Then her smile dropped away as she peered more closely at the images. "Oh, Goddess. It's her."