"Oh, hello. I see you two have returned again."

The same young man greeted us once more are Samus and I entered the bar of Southern Horizon Inn. Though not as dark and gloomy as it was before, the room still seemed to be quite empty.

"I see business is running slow today."

"Yes, sir. The last person in here besides me entered about an hour ago."

"Really?" Samus seemed a bit surprised at this, though I thought little of it. "This man… Is he still here?"

"Actually, yes he is."

"Good," I said, looking about the room. "Give me a double mocha frapuchino, just like last time."

"Sure thing. Anything for you, ma'am?"

"Yes, Bahama mama please."

"Alright, just give me a quick minuet."

The bartender took care of our drinks relatively quickly. He must have remembered the nice tip I had given him earlier, because before I could even pay for the drinks he said "it's on the house".

Once I had been given my drink, I began to look around the room once more. The client was sure to be in the room, considering what he had told us to do before we had even begun our mission. I looked about the room, finding all but one chair empty. A stall was being occupied by a single person in the far corner of the room. The person, who was facing us at the moment, did not wear a business suit, but a galactic federation uniform. The white cloth-like material covered his entire body, save for his head, as graying hair and a light face were revealed to us.

"Michael," Samus said, apparently noticing the man as well.

"Yes, that's him."

The two of us moved over to the stall and sat down in front of the uniformed man. I allowed Samus to sit first, allowing her time to get comfortable. The man, or should I say Colonel (pronounced kernel) Anderson, by what his uniform and name tag say, seemed somewhat pleased with himself, as he had a fairly good grin on his face.

"You seem cheery, Colonel."

My words seemed only to signify an understanding between us. I seemed to remember that face now, and though I had a name, I didn't remember where I saw him from.

"As a matter of fact, I am."

Samus started to speak now, her confidence in herself growing.

"Am I correct in assuming that you already know the status of the mission?"

"Yes you are. I am here simply to give you two your proper reward, as well as some information you may find interesting."

"This information being..."

"First off, Michael, after you and Samus both left the planet, the Federation Ship Galaga made a short stop at planet Eigen. By my order, we did a small sweep of the area, and made sure the base is no longer operational. Though I was very confident in the power of your explosives, I felt that a small missile would be enough assurance that what could have been left is no more."

"Just a little extra protection for the federation."

"Very true Samus. You can never be too careful these days, as the higher ups say."

"Well I wouldn't trust the higher ups too much, they have been known cross their own hired men."

"Very harsh words, Samus. True this has happened, but there was always a good reason."

"They have done it to me before, and chose that I bring back a very dangerous creature with me."

"I see… Well you have my sympathy, but I cannot say I knew anything about this."

"Yes, I'm sure. The higher ups most likely put this incident under five star clearance."

I could tell that Samus's blood was boiling. Her temper was starting to get out of hand, as her voice was growing louder, and her hands were clenched into fists. Angry at the stupidity of it all, she must have been forcing herself not to strangle the poor guy across the table.

Slowly, as I listened to the conversation, I began to remember a few things, most concerning Colonel Anderson. He looked very close to the Major I worked for years ago. Though much older, his nose and eyes seemed to be almost identical.

"Not to be rude, but I must change the subject for a moment."

"Fine, but… Oh, whatever."

Samus was furious by now, and the only thing keeping her cool was the now melting drink in her hand. She began to suck on the drink, sipping it through the straw as if it had annoyed her more then the Colonel.

"Colonel Anderson, were you a Major during the war twenty years ago?"

"Yes actually I was. And also, I was beginning to wonder when you would remember me. I remember you yelling at me for telling you to watch your mouth around the Colonel, and then punching me across the face. I also remember that only Emilia Langsted kept you from assaulting me anymore."

"Oh, that… Yeah back then I wasn't worried about a court marshal."

"No worries. That actually taught me a lesson."

"That being?"

"Well, I learned that there were some people who should not be crossed. One such as yourself. Although, I can see that you have mellowed over the years."

"Yes well, I have had my fair share of epiphanies over the years."

"Michael, I saw you by Emilia's bed when the ship was attacked. Poor thing died horribly."

"Yes, but at least she died for what she believed in."

These not so fond memories were one of many nightmares that I tried to avoid at night. Often, my writing would remind me of these memories, and often I would wake up in the middle of the night, sweating profusely.

"Maybe we should change the subject once more," I said.

"Very well. Now as for the reward, it has been delivered to your accounts. That's five million credits each, mind you, so the total sum is actually ten million."

"Wow…"

Samus seemed very taken aback by how much she was being given. Though well earned, I still felt a bit surprised myself.

"Yes, you two are getting more then several years of a soldiers pension. Now please, enjoy yourselves. Maybe go on vacation."

"I'm sure we will, Colonel."

"Well, I must bid you farewell. I have business to attend to immediately, and I cannot stay for small conversation."

Colonel Anderson rose from his after speaking and began to head for the door. Feeling a bit of the old military man in me, I rose as well, and then saluted with my right hand (he way it's supposed to be). This sudden gesture seemed to catch his attention, as he looked at me quite curiously.

"What are you-"

"It's been a long time since I retired, but you still deserve the respect of an officer."

"Then I must return the gesture in kind."

Colonel Anderson then saluted me, and after a moment lowered his hand. Once he had lowered his hand, I lowered mine, only to be greeted by the Colonel's once more. I shook his hand, and when he released, we said our goodbyes, and Colonel Anderson left the lounge.

Now relieved of an old duty, I sat back down next to Samus. She was looking at me a bit curiously, and began to speak as my eyes met hers.

"What was the salute for?"

"In the military, it is customary and respectful for N.C.O.s (non-commissioned officers) and other low ranking men and women to salute officers. Retirees do not have to salute soldiers, though many have become quite fond of those that have taken their place. As for myself, I only saluted because that man had earned my respect years ago."

"Huh?"

"Remember that story he told about me hitting him back in the military? Well by the time that had happened, word had spread about two of my... adventures. I had become as cold and bitter as a rock, and although I became pretty quite and un-talkative, Emilia Langsted, a close friend of mine during the time, seemed to be the only one who could get me to talk."

I paused for a moment, remembering Emilia. Samus had already seen the only photo I have of her, yet even with that picture, I still find it hard to imagine her in my mind anymore.

"Anyway, about a week before I was sent out to destroy a base for the third time, Major Anderson came onto the ship, fresh from the academy. Although briefed about me by the Colonel himself, he still seemed determined to get some respect out of me. I was walking down one of the many halls one day, Emilia to my right, when the Colonel and Major Anderson came by. At the time, I was cussing and swearing about how I was supposed to take out another base single handedly. Emilia noticed the two of them coming and saluted, but I merely glanced at the two and continued to walk by."

"And let me guess, he bothers you, you hit him, Emilia stops you from killing him."

"Something like that, but not in that order. The Colonel knows who I am, so he isn't too worried about my… disrespect. He saluted Emilia, and continues on his way. Emilia then catches up with me and starts ragging on me like my mother, say things like "you know you should have saluted the colonel and the new major" and what not. Shortly after, Major Anderson comes up to me and starts asking me questions, wondering why I didn't salute or anything. I just tell him that the Colonel and I are on good terms and that he should just leave me alone. Major Anderson gets so annoyed, he starts reading regulations off the top of his head, and tells me the punishment I can get just for insulting him. Emilia, knowing how I would get, grabs my arm and says "just stay cool, and say I'm sorry.""

"What do you do?"

"I say "Screw that, I'm punching the dumbass." And just as I said, I punch the guy in the face. I don't hit him hard enough to break a jaw or nose, but he got a slight bruise, and fell to his ass. After that, I stand over him, pick him up by the shoulder, and dust off his left shoulder, which picked up a bit of dirt."

"Huh?"

"Major Anderson says the same thing. After I dust him off, I say "You, Major Anderson, are the only dumb fuck to cross my path, piss me off, and get me to punch him in the face. Not only that, you took the punch like a man. So, you now have my respect. I won't salute you, but if another shit head gives him a hard time, send him to me.""

"You're kidding?"

"No. I'm pretty sure Major Anderson was feeling pretty weird, considering what I had just said. Without another word, he walked away to where the Colonel was waiting, and then headed to the bridge. After that, we only spoke a few times, and he eventually left the ship as a Lieutenant Colonel. Of course, while he was on the ship, he sent at least a dozen trouble makers to me, just as I told him."

"Whoa… So you actually knew our client."

"Small universe, huh. Anyway, on to a different subject."