The Illusive Man had been pleased with the evidence she found. He even seemed genuinely surprised that Sarah had managed to discover what she did despite turning over the only surviving witness back to his Quarian people.

That made Shepard smile, people were always quick to judge her as one sadistic bitch, and to be fair at times she was. But she also knew that sometimes you're better off playing nice. If nothing else it tended to confuse the hell out of your enemies. Much like the Illusive Man was now.

He wasn't exactly an enemy, however, not right now at any rate. He just wasn't a friend either. The real enemy had been identified.

The Collectors.

Whatever those crazy bug-like aliens were up to, they had targeted human colonies and were now very effectively and very deliberately harvesting them. Worse yet, if what the Illusive Man was saying proved true, they were doing so for the Reapers.

That's not all he was saying, of course. Sarah knew this man was lying to her somehow. It wasn't some blatant untruth that he was spouting, rather a much more subtle omission here and allusion there. He was trying to control the situation, and Shepard would have none of that.

Direction, he called it, he was merely giving advice, the final decisions were up to her, or so he claimed. Shepard was certain he was backtracking, trying to cover his ass. He was still playing her and would continue to do so for as long as he thought he could manipulate her. Unfortunately for him, Sarah was a damn good poker player. She casually accepted his explanations; sometimes it's best not to call a bluff right away. For now she would give him more rope to hang himself.

As it turned out he had one more card to play, one Shepard never saw coming.

"I've found a pilot I think you might like. I hear he's one of the best." It was a simple statement, but his next few words were very deliberately chosen, "Someone you can trust."

The link went dead suddenly, Shepard could only sneer at the thought of what he could be talking about. The idea of her trusting anyone in Cerberus was foolhardy at best. And then a familiar voice called out from behind her.

"Hey Commander." Shepard spun around towards the source of that voice to see Joker standing in front of her, on his own two feet, with the same smug look on his face. "Just like old times huh?"

Once again Shepard had been unprepared to meet one of the old crew. At least this time she didn't have any guns pointed at her, so her battle instincts weren't a factor. Instead she could only fall back on her initial gut reaction.

"Holy Shit! Joker!" She cried out.

"Nice to see you too Commander." Joker smirked.

"I'm just... Really shocked to see you here." Shepard said walking towards him, taking a look at him it finally started sinking in that, not only was this definitely Joker, but he was also wearing a Cerberus uniform. Even more surprising, he had no crutches, no wheelchair, nothing to help him against his brittle bones.

"Look who's talking. I saw you get spaced." Joker shot back.

"I got lucky." Shepard smiled then added in an annoyed tone. "With a lot of strings attached."

"Well come on," Joker smiled back, "I'll show you around." He walked with an obvious limp - the only indication for his condition - as he led her once former and now current Commander around the Cerberus base.

"I noticed you're sporting some Cerberus colors now." Shepard commented, she wanted to avoid sounding like she was accusing him of anything, "Even walking on your now."

"Hey you're not the only one who got to take advantage of our Mad Scientists Overlord!" Joker added a hard sarcastic twist to the last three words in his usual comedic manner, "They managed to repair all the old breaks in my legs. Even added some kinda metal weave around them so they wouldn't break as easily. Don't get me wrong, I'm still not winning and dance offs or anything, but at least I don't have to lug around those stupid crutches anymore. From the way Miranda talks, they developed the tech while trying to rebuild you. So yeah, thanks for that." The classic Joker grin looked back at her now.

"I'm so glad my grisly death proved beneficial for your convenience Joker." Shepard rolled her eyes. Joker couldn't resist a short laugh in response. After a beat Sarah added, "How'd you end up here anyway?" The unspoken implications hung in the air, they had both been Alliance officers after all.

"It all fell apart without you Commander." Joker frowned. "Everything you stirred up, the Council just wanted it gone. The Alliance was more worried about keeping all of Citadel Space secure while all the other fleets were trying to rebuild. So they made sure to keep us all quiet. The team was broken up, records sealed, and I was grounded. The Alliance took away the only thing that mattered to me. Hell yeah I joined Cerberus."

For a moment Shepard wasn't sure how to react. She felt her heart go out to her friend and pilot. It was strange to feel sorry for him, considering she was the one who died. "You really trust the Illusive Man?" She asked finally.

"Ah, I don't trust anyone who makes more then I do." Joker shrugged.

"Is that so?" Shepard joked, "So the whole time we were on the Normandy you never trusted me. I'm hurt, Joker."

"Heh, alright you got me," Joker smiled, "Maybe there was someone on the ship I grew to trust." Shepard returned the smile, but quickly withdrew it as he added, "I mean that Pressley couldn't lie his way out of a wet paper bag." A sharp but gentle punch to the shoulder told him the joke was just about as well received as he expected. "Hey watch it! I need that shoulder to pull off a Crazy Ivan."

"I'm glad to see you haven't changed." Shepard remarked as she crossed her arms.

"The best things never do." Joker nodded back, "And you're right about Mr. Freaky Eyes back there. That guy's just squirmy. Reminds me of some crazy evil villain from a vid game or something."

"You know, I was thinking the same thing!" Shepard laughed, "Who the hell names themselves 'Illusive Man'? It a stupid name. We need something better to call him."

"How 'bout TIM?" Joker suggested.

"Tim?"

"The. Illusive. Man." Joker explained by putting up a finger for each word

"I like it." Shepard smiled, "Nice and simple." Then more seriously she added, "You know we can't trust anyone here right?"

"Don't worry, Commander." Joker looked back at her, "I get we're making a deal with the Devil. Right now Cerberus are the only ones who want to help us. Besides, they aren't all bad." Joker shrugged, "Saved your life. Let me fly." He walked over to a window and stopped to look out through it. Nodding at the other side he added, "And there's this."

Shepard couldn't resist her curiosity as she took the space next to joker, looking past the window at what had clearly made him so happy.

"They only told me last night." Joker added with a knowing smile.

Beyond the observation window was a large ship hanger. It contained only a single ship, but it was perhaps the most beautiful sight Shepard had seen since waking up at Lazarus station. As the additional lights in the hanger activated they revealed extremely smooth lines and curves of a sleek metallic frame shining brightly and proudly before them. There was no doubt of the similarity between this ship and the original Normandy, even without the SR-2 tags sprayed across the hull making that connection obvious.

"It's good to be home, huh, Commander?" Joker said, damn near reading her mind.

"I guess we'll have to give her a name." Sarah smiled with a genuine warmth. They both knew immediately that there was only one name that they would be willing to use for this ship.

Like Shepard herself, the Normandy was reborn.