Hiring the Right Ones

Mission VIII – Cerberus

John and Jane

John made a mistake. A terrible miscalculation. Nonetheless, he had chosen the course of action - and would suffer for it. John leapt forward, adrenaline package sharpening the lines of the environment, nearly cutting into his eyes with the bright reds of the sky.

Nihlus was lucky - his comm gave out half a second before John's leap, and he used that half of a second to react. The turian steeled himself for impact and started raising up the barrel of his shotgun.

Painfully slow, John watched as the barrel rose up and upwards - while he was still mid move, without the means to sufficiently change the trajectory of his jump. John could only to hope that his starting push was fast enough, and that his initial strike would prove true.

What John managed, was shifting mid air to raise his left leg in an improvised parry with the knee. The very next moment he reached the turian, their armors grinding together with a loud slam. John's initial push had been with his right leg, setting up for a powerful right handed haymaker. The strike, even telegraphed as it was, gave little chance for Nihlus to evade. The punch found the helmet of his opponent with a satisfying crash. At the same time, Jon's raised left knee impacted the turian's weapon, pushing the shotgun aside, its barrel sliding down the ankle.

He was a split second too late - a powerful, charged shot rang loud, exploding in the kinetic barrier. It was too powerful for the shields to have any chance of deflecting it, and John felt a burning pain from his left side.

Just as Shepard was yet to regain his footing, the impact spun him on the axis, and John used the combined momentum from his punch and Nihlus' shot to further the spin. It was a tremendous risk, flashing the turian an unprotected back, but the upside was setting up for a left elbow strike, guided by the adrenaline pack.

At the very same time, Nihlus' shotgun leaped away from his grip - a high impact shot from an awkward angle already made it very hard to hold on to the weapon, and on top of that he had to deal with Shepard's strikes. The combined momentum did its job, robbing the Spectre of his main weapon and shifting the advantage of the fight.

However, even while dazed from a direct impact onto his helmet, Nihlus hadn't lost his cool, grasping a pistol with his off hand. Even as John spun before him, Nihlus was already firing, snapping two shots directly into John's back.

Luckily for John, his armor held - barely - and when the spin was complete, he landed yet another powerful hit. John's left elbow slammed into the turian's visor, crushing through, shattering parts of the helmet. This attack proved powerful enough to push Nihlus swaying backwards.

John's further move wasn't as well planned nor as well executed, for he simply dropped himself onto the turian - without a full use of his left leg he wasn't in a position to reliably stabilise after a desperate attack, leaving him the only choice.

This final push had proved enough to send Nihlus sprawling on the ground - John falling heavily on top. In that wild fall, Nihlus delivered a powerful ankle kick into John's stomach, but most of the blow was absorbed as heavy armor did its duty.

Their fall ended an instance late, when John slammed the turian's head into the hard, rocky surface they had been fighting on. The loud crash of the helmet meeting rocks echoed all round, and the concussive force proved just enough to knock the turian out for good.

Finally, the adrenaline package wore off. Colors returned to their usual palette and John couldn't help but wince at the pain in his left side as his vision blurred due to the intense burning sensation. Before, the adrenaline pack had reduced the pain to a mild discomfort; now, John could feel blood tickling under his armor, while the internal systems tried and failed to fix the damage from the point blank shot.

He let out a hard breath, and pushed off from the turian Spectre, the move heavy and cumbersome. Charn was there in but a moment, offering a helping hand that John took.

At the same time, the batarian kicked away the remaining Nihlus' weapon - the heavy pistol - all the while keeping his own sidearm trained on the unmoving opponent. Just in case.

"Great," John wheezed out, while he scrambled for his omni-tool, hopeful for a relief medi-gel could offer. "That was fun."

Charn let out a short laugh. "Next time, don't get into my firing lines - I'd be able to cover you better."

"Next time," John echoed as his omni-tool beeped and the wave artificial numbness spread through his body, taking away the pain in his side. "You can be the one taking on a turian Spectre up close. I'll watch."

"I'll stick to my rifle, thank you," Charn shook his head. "You know, I was wrong before - about you, that is."

John offered but a short, questioning look, and returned back to assessing the damage on his armor. There was a burned crack in it, running from the knee, up the left thigh right up to the hip. The tiny fractures reached as high as his left armpit, and there was a hole the size of the tennis ball right above his hip, where medi-gel bubbled together with fresh blood.

"You're just as insane as your sister," Charn quipped, as he leaned towards the Spectre, running a scan with his own omni-tool. "What are we going to do with him now?"

"First," John sighed - for Jane would have been better for this job. "Let's see if we can get any data from his omni-tool. He was doing reconnaissance before we ran into him. I want everything that's not encrypted."

John and Jane

"Hey," Charn's voice echoed through their short range comms. "I found a shuttle. Looks intact. Scans show it's empty."

"Military?" John asked, playing with the odds in his head. He was carrying the disarmed Spectre like a sack of potatoes - thrown over his shoulders, with hands tied with omni-tool manufactured manacles. It was a heavy burden, but so far John's only problem was a persistent ache on his left side.

Still, it meant his pace was slightly slower, forcing Charn to play the role of forward observer. "Any geth nearby?" John had no desire to wade into a geth ambush, even though he doubted the chosen route would have them. It was a wide circle he had chosen, based on a few salvaged notes from Nihlus omni-tool and his own instincts. This way was longer, but perhaps the shuttle they found would prove John's guess ture.

"It's a variation of Alliance pattern, but looks mercenary, with light weapons," Charn replied. "No hostiles in sight."

Moments later, John joined the batarian next to the shuttle. The vehicle looked like a standard military issue, except for the lack of Alliance markings. Instead, on the side of the shuttle there was a single, very familiar yellow symbol, marking it as Cerberus.

It was lightly camouflaged. That is, a camouflage net was thrown over the top, hiding from airborne observers. To add to its security, a discreet landing place was chosen. On the surface omni-tool scan, the shuttle came out as empty. All of the systems were turned off, to shake off possible detection, perhaps.

John was already thinking of the best way to make use of the situation.

Charn mistook this interest for hesitation. "I've flown an Alliance shuttle before," the Batarian pointed out. "If we keep close to the ground, we might just make it to the spaceport without drawing too much attention. We're going to be too late on foot. Dragging a turian on your back isn't a viable solution."

"I knew this was a risk when I went after Nihlus." John sighed and glanced at his omni-tool. Even as the initial scan was complete, he still left it open, keeping an eye on the readings. Comparing to the scraps of data salvaged from the turian. It matched his suspicion. "We only need to tell the pilot we're friendly - we might get more information on the whereabouts of the team he's waiting to pick up."

"A pilot?" Charn frowned. "My omni-tool says the vehicle's empty. Could be a mistake, though."

John simply shrugged and took a step forward, tapping on the outside door with his his fist. "I know you're listening," he pointed out as there was no immediate response. "You focused the external camera on our approach, and I know you have the means to listen in. I'm from the Lazarus cell," John continued. "I did not expect any other cells in the area."

There was a pause.

"You're with a batarian," came an expected response - a male voice from the outside speaker, and John grinned. "Never heard of Lazarus cell, either."

John laughed. "You know that our cells do not interact much. I doubt you know about mine, same as the Illusive Man hasn't briefed me about yours. Did they even tell you who you're picking up? No matter - how do I know that you're a real thing, and not a stray colonist, hiding in the place that he should have left alone?"

"I'm just a pilot," came a short response. "What do you want?"

"Can you get in touch with your superiors?" John asked. "Tell them-"

"I'm on radio silence, can't do."

"And I'm a turian," John drawled out sarcastically. "You need to be reachable - in case someone makes you change your position."

There was a pause.

"I can't transmit anything. She'll be contacting me, instead - if you want to wait on the outside, I won't stop you."

John tapped his fingers on the hatch, the omni-tool on his left hand beeping twice. "Are you, by any chance talking about Miranda?" he asked, getting slightly impatient. "She's the one on the serious assignments."

There was no reply.

"Fine," John moved his hand to tap the omni-tool interface, and the hatch on the side of the shuttle opened up, revealing the inside with a quiet mechanical whirring sound. "You forgot to override the emergency switch," he announced, and strolled inside, dropping Nihlus down on the floor without much ceremony.

He was met by an angry glare of the pilot - a middle aged-man packed in light armor, but the man hadn't yet drawn a weapon, same as John.

"Look, if you're under Lawson's command," John carried on in a conversational tone. "You might want to leave out this little mistake. I'll talk with her, mention that you were helpful. Sounds about fair?"

There was a pause, as the pilot looked torn between jumping to grab his sidearm, or just give up and go with the flow John was forcing on him.

"Should I get in, too?" Charn asked from the outside, since the pilot didn't respond. "Or are you still negotiating?" Judging from his tone, he had a suspicion that John was once again lying through his teeth.

"Might as well," John replied, and turned back to the pilot. "Where were we? Have I introduced myself? The name's Shepard. I have worked with Cerberus a few times - and I've been a member of the Lazarus cell for a few years. You don't get to know what my cell does, unless the Illusive Man decides otherwise later."

Join pointed at Charn, who was getting inside that very moment. "This is Charn. He's a temporary contractor I hired to get on this planet in time, but his contract got extended due to circumstances." John pointed vaguely towards the ceiling of the shuttle.

"Gaelan Chandana," the man finally found his wits. "I'm a former ace pilot for Alliance."

"Chandana," John repeated, shrugging. "I feel like I remember hearing of an operative with a similar surname. Got family within Cerberus?"

The man looked surprised, yet the casual comment worked to soothe most of his worries. "An older brother. He's the scientist of the family."

"I'm sorry," John said. "I don't recall if I met him, or simply heard about his work." Perhaps, he added in his mind, I kill the man in the future. "Nice to know men are doing good work. Now - apologies for cutting it short - but I need your help."

"But-" this time, the protest was weak, but John didn't even let the man finish.

"Look, Gaelan, leave convincing Miranda to me. But if I do not make it to the spaceport soon, we're going to have more problems on our hands than an unhappy perfectionist." John let him consider it for a second, before hammering the point down. "Sitting out the war must be annoying - and I could use a great pilot on hand."

"You really know Mrs. Lawson?"

"She once worked under my command on a small mission," John said. "So yes, I know her."

"Fine," the Gaelan finally relaxed. It might have been the suggestion that John could order Miranda around that did it. "You're right. Waiting's getting more annoying by the second. I signed up for action."

"It's settled, then," John pushed to sit down on the empty co-pilot's seat. "Let's go." Without giving Chandana a chance to change his mind, John reached out and flipped the reactor switch, bringing the craft online.

The shuttle's door slid closed as soon as power was restored, automatically.

"You're lucky you ran into my shuttle by chance," the pilot remarked as he was bringing the craft to full working order - the process taking mere seconds. "Must be a good sign."

"It was where I would have planted an emergency escape vehicle, in Miranda's place." John leaned back in his seat, strapping himself for a take off. "Before you ask, I knew Cerberus would send someone. Luck was finding you before the field operatives."

"That, and you wanted to take a longer route," Charn remarked. "An odd gamble, if you ask me."

"I followed a hunch," John admitted. That, and Nihlus had some readings on his top of the line omni-tool, that hinted at a presence of a vehicle in the direction that chose. "Worst case scenario - we would have been later still, leaving all the work to Jane. There was no way we could reach a train station in time to join up with her, anyway."

The shuttle shook slightly as it took off, the camouflage net falling down on the ground in the process.

"Bring us as close to the spaceport and the mothership as you can," John commanded. "Just keep away from it's front side, and if you ever notice it glowing red-"

He did not finish the sentence, as the main display lit up with the image showing off what John was talking about. Bright red glow dominated the screen for a brief moment, and an instant after that display, a powerful beam cut a deep wound into the spaceport, sending pillars of black smoke up into the air.

"...dodge." John breathed out.

Charn gulped, as the pilot's hands shook.

"The hell was that?" Gaelan shouted out. To his credit, the shuttle remained firmly of its course.

"Knowing her," John said without much visible reaction to the carnage on the horizon. "That one might have been Jane's fault."

Jane and John

What now? She had moved quite a distance away from the impact, but wasn't yet sure about her further course inside the bowels of the spaceport. Alone, she would be hard pressed to catch Saren off guard - especially now, when she had taunted him as much. He was extremely dangerous even without forewarning and heavy cover of the geth forces.

To top it all off, her chosen tactic might yet prove a terrible mistake - she had told the reaper entirely too much, making it focus on her.

She had to contact John - but before that, there was a small thing she had to check. During her brief cooperation with Commander Volkov, she had left her omni-tool running a check on most variations of Normandy encryption, trying to get onto the channel.

Yet, after a few taps on her tool, Jane confirmed that the attempt proved a failure. Oh, she had found which channel was being used - but she was no way nearer cracking the military encryption codes than before the attempt. At least she could monitor the amount of traffic in the channel - which was quite substantial at the moment.

At her guess, Volkov was giving some extensive orders, or trying to get a report back to Nihlus. Perhaps contacting the Normandy or even relaying a report to the brass.

After yet another turn, Jane paused, and called up the plan of surrounding corridors onto her omni-tool display. She did not have the full schematic yet, but the automated process had marked the pathways she took. After taking a few short breaths, she noted a possible path and ordered herself to move out.

"John," she broadcast, en-route. "Saren's still alive."

After a short while, there came a response.

"I copy," the comm crackled with John's voice as her omni tool cleared it of minor interference. "What's your status?"

"Uninjured," Jane broadcast. "Saren used Volkov's squad for leverage. I couldn't attack directly."

"Volkov's squad?" Came an echo.

"Ashley and Kaidan."

A pause.

"I see. Did you secure the beacon?"

"No," Jane replied, pausing to peek from around the corner. "I have reason to suspect Saren's geth moved it on board the reaper - but it might have been a lie. I'm going to its location, to verify."

"Alright," came a response. "I should be there in minutes."

"The train line's bust," Jane said. "Not going to work."

"I'm taking a shuttle."

"Good," Jane replied. "You can be my overwatch. I can't hear if Sovereign is readying another shot."

"Doesn't look so," John's voice sounded concerned. "The spaceport is heavily damaged, but there's little to no movement I can track from this position."

Jane continued on the path and reached one of the exits - one that would put her right next to the other side of the station - and it would be as simple as taking a walkway towards the place the beacon should have been.

What if Saren had told the truth, and the artifact was already hidden?

"Keep me posted," she broadcast, and the metal door slid open.

The tram station, bisected in half as it was, still had many geth profiles - all of them seemingly disabled - or destroyed. But weren't the geth that immedietly drew her attention - Kaidan and Ashley were standing on the very same walkway she was hoping to use.

Neither Volkov nor Saren were in sight - and both of her former crewmates were looking around - searching for her, no doubt. That might have meant Volkov and Saren sitting in an ambush. Yet, she couldn't-

The Reaper roared overhead, overwhelming her thoughts. The mechanical screech echoed deep inside her, chilling the bones. For a whole second, Jane thought that she was doomed. Sovereign hadn't seen her, though.

Red lightning ran over the humongous spaceship, and then, it took off, breaking down the sole standing pillar of the space station with it's final turn.

The massive structure crashed into the already wrecked spaceport - close to where the beacon should have been, but instead of crushing everything in it's path, the metal beams got stuck, ending in a makeshift roof over the original location of the beacon. Rain of debris still rained on the beacon's supposed location, and Jane started having doubts about finding it intact, even if it remained there still.

Both Ashley and Kaidan spent precious seconds watching the reaper, just as Jane's vox screamed a warning.

"The geth are moving," John's voice beat through the sound of straining metal structures. "Look out."

Jane focused. It was true, the dormant machines had just woken up. Was that what Saren had planned, before? To lure the Normandy's squad in, and then spring the trap?

Was it her misdirection that threw this plan off, or the fact that Nihus could have been alive still? It seemed that Sovereign had gotten tired of waiting, or - what could have been a lot worse - her words had scared the machine in the quicker, rasher action of some sort.

Perhaps now, the Reaper was already underway to one of Saren's facilities - either Virmire or Noveria - to check up on the supposed leaks and maybe even fortify the projects more.

She cursed under her breath as the Armature on the entrance to the spaceport - still untouched by the destructive beam - unfolded in the cover of the loud noises made by the Reaper's departure and the partial collapse of the spaceport.

That was dangerous.

Her fingers ran through the omni-tools interface as she once more brought her tech armor to bear - and summoned her barrier to serve as her usual double defence.

She broke into a run towards her former teammates. Both Kaidan and Ashley saw her approach. What they did not account for, was the geth Armature completing the preparations. It was all but ready to tear them a new one with a well placed blast.

"Take cover!" Jane shouted via the speakers, through to their credit, both of her former crewmen saw the Armature at about the same time of her warning. After all, her mad dash towards cover from the Armature would leave her open to them, and that must have made them look for the other threat.

Both soldiers dove for the sparse cover the walkway railings could provide, but it was already too late.

Jane changed her course, jumping between them and the first blast, a split second before the charge exploded. Shepard slammed into the railings, bending them with her back, yet her double layer of protection once again saved her life.

She had paid with minor scuffs and burns on the armor. Her position did take a lot of heat from her allies, but neither Ashley nor Kaidan escaped the blast untouched. All three of them were breathing heavily, armors marked with the signature of the geth bombardment.

To add to the fun, Jane could see a couple squads of geth troopers approaching on their position.

"Shit," Ashley cursed, opening fire on the approaching geth. Jane and Kaidan followed her example.

It was a bad idea to leave the Armature free of fire, but allowing the dozens of approaching hostiles to get closer to their position was ever more foolish.

A stray shot dented her armor and Jane bit down a curse. With the beating her suit was getting on Eden Prime, it was barely visible next to the more extensive damage she'd already gotten, but if this continued, Jane would have to scrap it entirely, that is if it would even hold until the end. Patching with omni-gel could only go so far.

Kaidan tried to reach someone on his com - Volkov, perhaps - but it held no results.

"Truce?" Jane offered, smirking as another geth was pushed off the walkway with her biotics. The situation was tough - with little to no cover to keep her alive, but she had survived worse. If she could be sure her back was secure, at least...

"What do you think?' Ashley shouted over the constant fire of geth pulse rifles. It seems that the Armature shot had shattered parts of her visor, and compromised the helmet, yet the soldier didn't look seriously injured. "I'd like to get out of this alive."

"Don't worry," Jane scuffled for better cover as the second blast of the Armature tore into the railings, nearly destroying whatever remained of their protection. This time, at least, they didn't get as battered as with the first one. On the edge of her vision, a shadow of a shuttle zoomed through the smoke. "Cavalry's incoming."

"What cavalry?" Kaidan called as he pushed a geth trooper over the rails into the half-cooled mess the reapers beam had left on the encroaches of the spaceport.

Jane's grin waned as the chrome coloured shuttled appeared in her view. The offending logo glimmering in the lights of charging Armature.

"John," she broadcast. "Please tell me it isn't you on the damned Cerberus shuttle."

With her words, the shuttle slammed into the Armature from the side, sending it spiraling into the very same wound of the reaper beam, the third shot going wide, missing the railing entirely. There was a loud crash as the Armature reached the bottom, followed by a screech of the shuttle grating on the ground, sliding to a stop close to Jane's position, right on the metal walkway.

"John!"

John's laughter in her come was her only reply.

John and Jane

John opened the shuttle's doors, keeping an eye on the slightly dazed pilot. Gaelan seemed unable to believe he actually managed to pull off the maneuver. His fingers shook lightly as the man started diagnostics on the shuttle without much thought, his mind completely off the procedure he was in.

"Good job, Chandana," John added, and the pilot flinched. Seconds before impact, it was John who interfered, changing their course for the collision, leaving the pilot only a few seconds to adjust to the change.

All three men had braced for the impact, and even as the pilot felt terrible, it was Nihlus who hadn't been as lucky. The maneuver had thrown him around the cabin like a sack of potatoes.

John's sympathy went out for the turian who would surely feel the bruises all over after waking up, but for now, the vitals read green on the scan, so he didn't worry too much.

With this accidental rearrangement, Nihlus was conveniently passed out of view for either Ashley of Kaidan.

"Alright, listen in," John shouted in his best commanding tone, looking down at the surprised Kaidan and Ashley, and taking the dishevelled state Jane was in. Overhead, loose fire of the geth troopers frizzled, splattering at the shuttle, without doing any visible damage.

Her lips twitched as she saw his cracked side of the armor. John didn't let her get a word in. And in the end, Jane looked like her armor had been through the grinder and back again.

"We can't stand here and talk. Sovereign is leaving, and I'd bet he's left us an explosive present to go with it." Like last time. "The beacon should be just around the corner - double time, people."

To punctuate the point, he let loose a salvo at the nearest geth troopers, putting down one, and wilting another's shields. While the weapon was cooling down, John turned at the pilot. "Gaelan - what's the status of the shuttle?"

"Ah," the man shuffled at the controls, finally realizing just what he was in the middle of. "Need a couple minutes till it can lift off. At the very least."

Charn disembarked under the Shepards' covering fire, drawing confused, tired looks from both Ashley and Kaidan.

"Shit," that was Jane, her omni-tool brightly lit. "You're right about the explosives. We can't wait two minutes." She tapped the controls quickly, making everyone else's omni tool beep with an open transmission of her readings.

John took a quick glance over the tactical display on his arm.

"Ashley, Kaidan, you're on the eastern one. Lower ramp." He announced in a voice inviting no discussion. "See if you can call down Normandy while you're at it." He turned without even double checking if his command was followed. "Gaelan, you any good with explosives?"

At the shake of pilot's head, John sighed. "Jane, Charn, on me."

What followed was less of a challenge and more of a clean up, except for the ticking time bomb over their heads. Ashley and Kaidan disarmed their explosive with a handful of seconds to spare, while Jane cracked the code of two bombs, covered by John and Charn. All the while, the resistance of the nearby geth troopers was cracking, as with each killed enemy the geth network's capability for battle was reduced. Without the Armature to support them, the geth forces were breathing their last synthetic breaths. Even a handful husks, proved nothing new to the two Reaper War veterans.

John's quick orders, coupled with the bomb's haging over their heads had won them the few minutes without explanation, but as the gunfire was weakening, and he, Jane and Charn were approaching the beacon's last known location, the confrontation between them and Ashley with Kaidan would prove inevitable.

Yet, when they finally entered the plateau of the beacon, a half-broken structure hanging threateningly overhead, their head start was a few flights of stairs both Ashley and Kaidan would have to climb to reach them. After all, it was no coincidence John sent them to disarm the furthest explosive charge.

All the while John was debating the merits of actually showing the beacon to Charn. After all, recovering it whole for the alliance might have been more beneficial in the long run. He needn't have worried.

They were too late.

The prothean artifact was broken, torn in half by a piece of fallen debris. However, in the shade of the broken building, he saw the flicker of an omni-tool, by a figure he recognised.

"Miranda?" Jane breathed out, and grunted some curse under her breath, confirming John's guess.

The woman noticed them, yet remained hidden behind cover. By the looks of things, she was scanning her surroundings for an escape route, but John was nearly certain that the only usable exit was through their stairway. He glanced at Jane and started a gamble on yet another lie.

"Miranda Lawson," he called out and saw her glimmer with biotic blue for briefest second, preparing for a biotic attack, perhaps. "We're here to pick you up."

"I saw the shuttle," she replied, voice collected if slightly strained. "What have you done with my pilot?"

"Nothing, Gaelan's alive," John said loudly. "We want an audience with the Illusive Man."

"We do?" Jane breathed out, as Charn tried not to react. It seemed he was getting more used to John's shifting approach with each passing lie.

"Very interesting to hear that," came a voice from behind them. Ashley Williams, having removed her ruined visor was speaking with an irritated note to her voice. "I've heard that name before."

She and Kaidan were there, pointing their weapons at the group. No geth seemed to be in sight, the last few husks proving to be last remnants of geth forces in the spaceport area.

John exchanged a short glance with Jane. I can't talk down both of these groups at the same time, he was nearly screaming from frustration, but didn't say a word out loud.

Jane tsked her tongue. Why are you looking at me, was what her eyes were saying.

"The Normandy is on the way," Kaidan announced. "It would be in your best interest to surrender peacefully."

"What do you think?" Jane said almost conversationally, as if they weren't stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"We'll need resources," John breathed out quickly.

Jane took a more relaxed stance, but still didn't put down her weapons. "Alliance has them too."

"Too risky," John said, biting at his tongue. "We'll get tied down."

"Hey," Ashley looked both angry and nervous that they weren't laying down their weapons yet. "Stop whatever it is you're doing and drop down your weapons now."

Alliance or Cerberus?

Incarceration and interrogation, or trickery and a chance at using the vast resources of the terrorist organization? After all, Cerberus couldn't have been tainted by the Reapers as much, not this early in the Reaper War.

Cerberus meant action, while Alliance meant taking a few steps back in their way, a way that was very much time sensitive and vital for everyone's survival.

No perfect choice.

John sighed and made his decision.


A/N:

Rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Although now that I think about it, I don't know any such rumors at all.