and at one point he responds to reports of a break in a laboratory section of the citadel

he goes there and he finds that the computer lab has been broken into via high tech override, not brute force

inside the room is mostly dark.  there are salarian bodies scattered throughout, and the only light emanating is from a computer terminal at the far end of the room, being manned by a krogan.  it's wrex.

garrus immediately knows there's more going on here than it looks, but he's not sure what.  so he engages in simple dialogue.

"wrex."

"garrus."

wrex doesn't turn away from the computer to acknowledge him directly.  he's typing away, looking for something.

(garrus) "do you want to, uh, enlighten me as to what's going on here?"

(wrex) "not really."

garrus is getting impatient.  he counts four...no, three salarian bodies.  could have sworn there was four.

(garrus) "so, i'm looking at what appears to be a break in of one of the highest security locations on the citadel, one that i didn't even know existed until now.  i'm looking some dead salarians, of which I assume based on their uniforms are STG members.  and i'm looking at the perpetrator, who is the leader of the united krogan clans."

(wrex) "yup."

(garrus) "this looks pretty bad, wrex.  this looks like the start of a galactic war."

(wrex) "probably."

(garrus) "you want to give me something here to make this look better, wrex?  anything?  before c-sec comes bursting in and the entire galaxy tries to pick up where the reapers left off?"

(wrex) "nah, i'm almost done."  <the computer beeps, and wrex waves his omni tool across it.>

(garrus) "alright, well, let's start with the basics then.  you're no hacking expert.  how'd you get the door open?"

(wrex) "i didn't.  they did."

(garrus) "they?"

garrus turns around.  the three salarian bodies are standing up, and the fourth salarian garrus lost is right in front of him.  he clubs garrus with a rifle, and garrus falls to the ground.  as he is losing consciousness, garrus sees wrex calmly walk out the door, the four salarian STG members following behind.

(wrex) "get some rest, garrus.  you seem pretty high strung."

-----

garrus comes to back in the c-sec medical bay.  he walks out of the room to see captain bailey speaking with the salarian council representative, who has only very recently taken the position.  i'm going to name him Newguy for simplicity.  Newguy is pleading with captain bailey to keep the situation quiet until Newguy and the STG can do more investigating.  if they can resolve this quickly and quietly, there's no need to make this incident public, argues Newguy.  captain bailey is fine with it.  he needs to get c-sec ready for a potential new war.  no need to get lost in the details.

garrus asks how the STG can be trusted to handle this given that they were cooperating with wrex.  captain bailey and newguy stare at garrus.  captain bailey suggests that maybe the STG armor the salarians wear is heavier than he guessed.  garrus is confused.  he got clubbed by a rifle.

captain bailey gestures to a nearby monitor, which is playing security footage.  it shows wrex shoulder charging his way into the room garrus found him in.  the four STG members are inside, and open fire on wrex.  wrex is shrugging off their gunfire and knocking the STG aside left and right.  then garrus runs into the room behind wrex.  wrex picks up a fallen STG member and throws him at garrus, knocking garrus down.  then wrex picks up a discarded rifle and fires at the security camera, where the footage ends.

garrus stares, mouth agape.  newguy requests to captain bailey that he can be allowed to bring garrus back to newguy's office for questioning, as garrus is the only eyewitness, despite what little he saw.  captain bailey shrugs, it's up to garrus.  "uh, sure." garrus says, still watching the footage playing on repeat.  he can still feel the pain from the rifle on the back of his head, and the footage clearly shows him being struck at the front of his body by the thrown salarian.

-----

garrus and newguy enter an elevator.  the door closes.  garrus asks newguy what's going on here.  newguy smiles and says all will be explained momentarily.  and that garrus has performed his role admirably, and hopes he will continue to do so in the proceeding events.

they arrive at the citadel tower.  as the two walk to newguy's office, there are two salarian guards outside.  garrus recognizes them immediately as two of the salarian STG members he saw in the computer lab.  he gawks, but says nothing as he and newguy pass them and enter newguy's office.  inside are the other two STG members, and wrex.  wrex is sitting calmly in a chair.  the STG members are unarmed.  the two STG members outside the office enter behind newguy and garrus and the door closes.

garrus looks around.  "please don't hit me this time."

newguy says there will be no more need for that.  garrus will need to be alert and awake for the next steps of the plan.  "what plan?"

wrex sighs.  "the genophage is gone.  the krogan are ready to rebuild.  but tuchanka is...to put it lightly, a dump.  there's no resources, no clean water, no room for expansion, and no materials for repairs.  on top of that, every inch of the planet is a constant reminder of what happened.  the wars.  the genophage.  the deaths.  all the krogan talk about is revenge.  more destruction.  more war.  so as the leader of the top clan on tuchanka, it's my job to give the krogan what they want.  and it started today."  wrex holds up his arms and his omnitool glows.  "i stole the location of the secret, hidden salarian planet where the genophage was created.  and now the krogan will invade and conquer the planet.  then, everywhere else."

garrus looks from wrex back to newguy.  newguy smiles and nods.  garrus looks back at wrex, who is expressionless.  "i thought i asked you to stop hitting me in the head."

newguy chuckles.  "there was some truth in that story.  urdnot wrex did steal the location of a planet the STG has kept secret.  a lush, verdant world.  uncolonized and full of untapped resources."

"and soon to be the new homeworld for the krogan." wrex says.  "i'm telling the truth about tuchanka.  we can't live there.  we can't stay there.  we have to go."

"you're faking starting an invasion to get the krogan to leave tuchanka." garrus says.  "because that's the only way they will."

"yup." wrex says.

"wrex...they'll say it's betrayal when they find out the truth.  they'll kill you for this." garrus says.

wrex shrugs.  "probably.  i don't want to rule, wrex.  i want to lead.  this is me leading.  as long as i get us to that planet, i don't care what happens to me after that."

"abandoning your homeworld is...i never would have thought you'd consider it, wrex." garrus says.

"i didn't.  he did." wrex says, pointing to newguy.

newguy explains that ending the genophage is not enough to make amends.  further reparations are needed.  a simple apology is not enough.  drastic measures must be taken.  and as the salarian council representative, only newguy has the ability and resources to do so.  the STG has kept a number of planets off all galactic starcharts.  special planets for unobstructed research or, in the case of Newplanet, emergency use in the event of catastrophe.  they didn't need to escape to Newplanet during the reaper war, so Newguy doubts there will ever be any reason to do so now.  so he's going to give it to the krogan.

"a new homeworld." wrex says.  "a new start.  the future of the krogan."

newguy says that he is the oldest salarian to ever be elected as council representative.  he doesn't have a lot of time left to accomplish things.  he wants to make sure he achieves something great with the little time he has.

garrus asks why all the theatrics then.  why go through the trouble of staging that break in?

newguy explains that the STG is a salarian division, independent of even the council.  Newguy does not have the access to STG records.  he wasn't even sure Newplanet existed.  the break in was very real, and could only be accomplished with the assistance of STG defectors.  and garrus.  the STG doctored the footage garrus saw and uploaded it to the citadel.

garrus asks how the STG faked their deaths when garrus came in.

"they didn't." wrex says.  "they just lied on the ground and didn't move.  honestly, garrus, for an expert sniper you're sure not that observant."

garrus doesn't say anything for a minute.  he asks what comes next.

"next," newguy begins, "the krogan invade the citadel to steal the replacement to the destiny ascension, still under construction."

"it's big enough to hold a few hundred clans of krogan." wrex says.  "enough to get us started.  and they haven't installed any weapons yet onto the ship.  it's not a warship.  yet."

which is why time is of the essence.  and they will need garrus' help to make it look legit.