Priority: The Citadel II

The Salarian Council member contacts Shepard with concerns about large sums of money moving through the bank accounts of Council member Donnel Udina. He asks that Shepard comes to the Citadel so they can get to the bottom of it.

Acquisition
Priority: Tuchanka is a "point of no return" for several side missions, which must be completed before the Shroud. Likewise, two missions expire once you begin this one:
 * Grissom Academy: Emergency Evacuation (this one may have expired of its own accord by now)
 * Tuchanka: Bomb

Walkthrough
The mission begins when the Normandy approaches the Citadel but is not cleared for landing. Joker contacts someone inside the Citadel &mdash; Thane Krios, if he's alive and if you spoke to him during Priority: The Citadel I, or Armando-Owen Bailey if otherwise &mdash; who explains the situation: Cerberus has attacked and partially taken over the station, particularly C-Sec Headquarters. Shepard deploys with a team to clear them out. Warp Ammo, Disruptor Ammo, biotics and Sniper Rifles are recommended, particularly with the Concentration Mod equipped.

C-Sec HQ
Shepard lands outside C-Sec HQ, and must fight uphill against Cerberus troops supported by Shield Pylons at the far wall. The central path is the most direct and a good place to exercise your sniping skill, but side paths branch off as well for easy flanking or access to the Shield Pylons. Left of the locked door is a Med Station that can be salvaged. Once the enemies are fought off, Shepard finds Bailey wounded near the door. Bailey lets them inside C-Sec HQ, where he discovers that the salarian councilor (either Councilor Valern or Councilor Esheel) has taken refuge in the executor's office, where (Bailey hypothesizes) she was preparing to make accusations against Donnel Udina. Bailey directs Shepard's party to that location; if Thane is present, Shepard vectors him in as well.

Up the stairs of the next room is a medkit and an Assault Rifle Piercing Mod, but acquisitive players should be aware that troops will jump down from the second floor. You can also examine a terminal and a dead C-Sec officer once you are in the clear. Afterwards comes a small room with active fire sprinklers, and then a room where at least one Guardian and his riot shield faces the other direction, a prime target for ambushing. Beware of the Centurions though, of a Combat Engineer on the high ground to the right, and of the fact that the room is basically three parallel hallways: while you're focusing on said Guardian and Combat Engineer, Cerberus can flank you from the left. Once clear, loot the room: there's a Recon Hood on the left, a medigel station against the far wall, and a door on the left side that leads to a bathroom containing a locker salvageable for 6250 credits, an M-76 Revenant and the loot's hapless former owners.

In the next room you'll find broken windows, on the other side of which is another Combat Engineer helpfully looking the other way as he fiddles with the elevator. With him are a weapon bench, a Sniper Rifle Extended Barrel, ammo pickups and another latchbox protecting the elevator controls. The elevator takes you to a room with more corpses and more loot: a Pistol Piercing Mod and Bailey's Personal Log on the right, the M-25 Hornet down the middle right before the malfunctioning door, and on the left a Securitel helmet and Pistol High-Caliber Barrel Mod, as well as a locked door. To open this door, go to the right side up near the malfunctioning door and use the Door Control terminal in the side room. Then go diagonally back and help yourself to a datapad describing the actions of a weapons smuggler, as well as an example of said weapon, the M-358 Talon. Finally, go back to where you found the Door Control to exit this area, as well as find a terminal containing 6250 credits.

On the other side of the door you'll find two more preoccupied Cerberus soldiers, this time executing a C-Sec defector. After that you'll enter a cafe area, with the kitchen on your right. This is one of the better places to hole up, because a number of Cerberus soldiers will flood in and you have to fight them off. Just beware that there's a set of stairs leading downward in the middle of the room, and to clear the enemy from it you'll need to physically go there. It might also be wise to post one of your teammates in the hallway next to the kitchen, so that Cerberus can't flank you from there. Two medstations, one inside the kitchen and one on the far wall, are available if you need the help. There's also 6250 credits against the back wall of the kitchen, a Sniper Rifle Piercing mod near the far wall (you'll likely see it during the firefight), and--for a bit of flavor--a flatscreen TV in the corner of the cafe broadcasting a news report. It's Khalisah al-Jilani, covering C-Sec's attempts to reclaim the Citadel's comm towers so that they can send a distress call. She is doing her part by including a direct plea for reinforcements in her broadcast coverage, which has been piped throughout the station. (For once, no snide insinuations are in evidence.)

Up the stairs against the back wall, you'll find the executor's office. He's dead, but the salarian councilor is nowhere in sight. Your squad members will find him/her under cloak down in the cafe area you just left, but before you can get down there, Kai Leng will arrive to ruin your party. The salarian councilor gets out the critical information that Udina is planning a coup before one of several things happen:
 * If Thane is around, he will intervene, allowing you to save the salarian councilor but getting stabbed in the process.
 * If Thane is not around but Captain Kirrahe survived the events of Virmire, he will sacrifice, allowing you to save the salarian councilor but getting shot in the process.
 * If neither character is around to intervene, Leng will be able to kill the salarian councilor.

Whatever the case, Shepard calls Bailey, and Bailey unlocks a C-Sec police car for Shepard's pursuit. Using transponders, Bailey determines that Udina is leading the Council to a landing pad near Shalmar Plaza, where Kai Leng is presumably waiting for them. In his spare time, though, Leng decides to interfere with Shepard by attacking the police car with his sword, seriously damaging it and putting Shepard's party on foot in the Commons.

Presidium Commons
This next fight is the introduction of two new Cerberus foes: Phantoms, who have biotic barriers, are extremely agile and have a melee-range one-hit-kill; and (unless you've already completed Priority: Eden Prime, the content of the From Ashes DLC, or N7: Cerberus Attack) Nemeses, who are shielded and have a sniper-rifle attack that will knock off all your shields. Keeping your distance, or using disables on them like Concussive Shot, Carnage or biotics, is your best bet against them. It is also possible to shoot a Phantom's sword out of her hand, but this can be difficult without pinning them with Stasis.

The first area has a stairway that will allow you to circle around the Cerberus lines and attack them from behind, but this is not necessarily advantageous: both Phantoms and Nemeses are slippery, Phantoms are most dangerous at close range, and your teammates can probably take them out before you can. Next you'll have to take a running-jump to a new section, where all manner of opposition awaits you: Phantoms, Nemeses, and--worst of all--no room to maneuver. One good bet is actually to jump back across the gap, which will funnel the enemy into a choke point that Singularity will easily block up. Another trick is to wait for Phantoms to jump across the gap then hit them with Stasis so they come out of it falling to their deaths. Alternatively, grab your shotgun, keep moving, and have eyes on the back of your head.

Head down the parking garage towards the door, which Cerberus will seal behind them. Jump the wall to your right and then keep heading up towards Shalmar Plaza using the Citadel's "back alleys." You'll find a datapad with 6250 credits after you jump across a broken gap and go up some ledges on your left. To continue from that point on, put that pad behind you and you'll see the next alleyway. The next zone has an Atlas Mech if you care for some hijacking, but don't take it easy if you've gotten it, there's still more baddies in the area. Finally, take the stairs for a trip atop an elevator.

Tip: Don't snipe the driver of the Atlas if you don't plan on using it. Once open, it will be there, in the way, indestructible, blocking your view for the rest of the fight. If you rely on a sniper rifle, it will make things even more difficult. Long range view is blocked, so not only you can't return fire, but also can't tell when you are flanked.

The final combat zone of the mission can be easy because enemy reinforcements approach via elevator cars, all of which have Power Conduits on the top and bottom that you can shoot out, halting the lift car's progress entirely. However, this zone can also be challenging because the cars come from both sides, and contain Phantoms. And there's basically no room to maneuver. If you remain on top of things, sniping out cars as soon as they arrive, you ought to be fine, but one mess-up could be a game over. If so, take a deep breath and try again. There may not be much margin for error, but the tasks themselves are not actually difficult. A sniper rifle with Concentration equipped might be your best friend, due to the time dilation; obviously, having Adrenaline Rush is just as useful, if less accessible. But the easiest way is to use Overload or Energy Drain on the conduits, which can't fail if aimed properly. If you and another squad member both have it, you can get through this sequence without firing a shot.

Final Confrontation
Finally, a car will arrive that you have to jump on instead of shooting. It has the councilors in it, as well as the Virmire survivor (Ashley or Kaidan), who detects your landing and immediately fires at you through the roof. A short cutscene plays, and the Council's newest Spectre stands between you and the Council.

A variety of factors affect whether the person can be talked down:
 * Previous romance in Mass Effect;
 * Not romancing another character in Mass Effect 2. If Shepard did, be honest and/or apologize for it during any prior interactions in Mass Effect 3;
 * Repeatedly insisting that you're no longer with Cerberus during the Mars mission;
 * Visiting the injured Virmire survivor at the hospital (three times: while comatose, after s/he's awakened, and when discharge is pending);
 * Keeping the salarian councilor alive (either by Kirrahe or Thane sacrificing themselves to chase off Kai Leng), because Udina will have no video footage to frame you with...

Shepard explains that Udina is behind the coup, but Udina dismisses the claim. When the asari councilor tries to stop Udina from unlocking the door that prevents Cerberus troops coming through, Udina pushes her down and aims a gun at her. Either Kaidan/Ashley, or you through a Renegade interrupt, will kill him.

Alternatively, if you didn't interrupt and the salarian councilor was killed earlier, Udina will attempt to frame Shepard for it, making it much harder to convince them that Udina is lying. Without a sufficiently high Reputation, and depending on the above factors, Shepard is forced to kill the Virmire survivor. Unfortunately, a squad member will take the shot if you can't find it in yourself to do so. Afterwards, Udina gives up and pulls a gun. At this point, another Renegade interrupt lets you kill him. If you did not interrupt and if Kaidan or Ashley is still around, they will take the shot. If they aren't, Shepard will take the shot instead and comfort Kaidan or Ashley in their final moments.

Aftermath
Kai Leng reports the failure to the Illusive Man and Bailey follows up on C-Sec's inability to catch him. Other results include:
 * If Thane was present, Bailey will mention that he has been taken to Huerta Memorial. You may choose to be with him in his final moments. If Thane: Sins of the Father was completed, Kolyat Krios will be present as well. (Kirrahe does not benefit from a similar cutscene, as he expires from his wounds on the spot.)
 * A new set of side missions and Citadel missions will crop up, as well as Priority: Perseus Veil. See the Mass Effect 3 Guide for details.
 * After you complete this mission and then one more of your choosing, the following characters, if present, will e-mail you to initiate meetings on the Citadel: Garrus (Normandy Dock), Ashley (Refugee Camp), Javik, Miranda (Embassies), Jack (Purgatory), Liara, Kaidan and (possibly) Tali (Commons). Note that most of these characters are Romance options, and if you are (attempting to be) in a relationship with them, these meetings will be crucial to developing it.
 * Hackett will mention the asari's recent commitment of War Assets as well, such as the Asari Science Team (90), Asari Second Fleet (90) and Asari Sixth Fleet (90).
 * After the mission, David Anderson will e-mail you the Alliance's dossier on Kai Leng. At the same time, Miranda Lawson will e-mail you to arrange a vidcomm chat at the Spectre Offices at the Citadel Embassies. If you read Leng's dossier before talking to her, Shepard will automatically warn her of Leng's presence, which will prevent her death at a later date.
 * Finally, optional War Assets may make themselves available:
 * Assuming you didn't shoot Ashley/Kaidan, they will be waiting for you at Normandy Dock: Bay D24. You have the option to have them rejoin your squad as a party member. If they do not, they remain on the Citadel as War Assets (25). If you have them join Hackett, you will be unable to interact with them socially aside from an e-mail from Ashley/Kaidan saying good-bye.
 * If you saved the salarian councilor in this mission, salarian forces will now commit to you in thanks for your rescue of their councilor. It can either be the STG Task Force (70) or the Salarian Third Fleet (125), depending on whether you rescued Valern or Esheel. However, if you cured the genophage and were unable to save the councilor, you will not receive these assets. If Major Kirrahe sacrificed himself to save the Councilor, his War Assets will no longer be present.

Enemies

 * Assault Trooper
 * Atlas Mech
 * Centurion
 * Combat Engineer
 * Guardian
 * Nemesis
 * Phantom
 * Turret

ru:Приоритет: Цитадель II