Admiral Han's office looked like a room plucked from a 21st century Sci-Fi movie – a large, circular room with a cushioned swivel chair in the middle, it was filled with various holograms and live feeds of data. One wall was completely covered in one-way glass, giving the Admiral a panorama view of the Citadel. The left wall was a giant screen display, currently showing the list of HIGHCOM combat personnel, their location, their status and their mission. The very bottom row of this list was all blacked out – MIA and KIA. The last five were from the most recent event, Operation Unveiling. The very last name was red instead of black: Jackson, L. On the right side of the room was a small table where his secretary normally sat. Right now though, it was empty: the Admiral had given the secretary a day off. Personally, he hoped that his secretary was learning something while he was in the office, though he was almost certain that he was procrastinating every chance he got.

Admiral Han had a crescent-moon-shaped table, its edges pointing away from the door. On it were even more screens, a pile of data pads, a coffee-cup and a large sign. It read "ADMIRAL EDDIE HAN, SECOND-IN-COMMAND OF ALLIANCE EIGHTH FLEET AND HEAD OF SPECIAL-OPERATIONS: HIGHCOM". The Admiral hated that nametag, but it was a part of the regulations to display it on his table. Nobody seemed to mind it anyway.

The Admiral sat in his chair, facing the window, legs crossed, head bowed, smoking his omni-cigar. He wore the standard Admiral's uniform, neat and cleaned as always. Even his boots were polished like a mirror. He was quite young for an Admiral, scarcely reaching forty. Having had a healthy and balanced life (minus cigars), he looked even younger. But he had experience and wits to match the wisdom of age.

A small chime came from his computer.

"Yes?"

"Admiral, sir! There is a Quarian here who wants to see you! He's name is … Bui, Bui nar Tapaan."

"Let him in."

"Sir!"

The admiral closed his omni-cigar and turned towards the door. Soon, a tall Quarian (but medium height by human standards) entered the room. His suit was a dark green with a purple cloth draped stylishly across his chest. It looked rather stretched and weather-beaten, but groomed in a militaristic manner. The visor was reflective black, with the sensors only highlighting his eyes, glowing yellow. Both of his legs were wrapped in tight bandages, seemingly useless. He stood on two wooden crutches – or was he?

The Quarian gave him a sharp salute, resting his right crutch against his hip. Indeed, his legs were fine… and straight.

"Agent Li, sir."

"At ease, Liam."

Jackson lowered his hands, instinctively grasping the handle of the crutches. He wasn't sure where to begin, but the Admiral spoke again.

"Liam… I won't ask much. Just send me an after-action when you are ready." The Admiral was treading carefully. He knew that, although Liam never showed it, the man was very weak. Jackson was on the verge of emotional collapse, and he couldn't risk that.

"Apologises, sir. I have been… occupied." Jackson said. He turned off his voice distorter, though his voice still echoed slightly before it left his helmet.

"I've heard…"

Silence.

"I don't know what you are doing, Liam, or why you are doing... what you are doing. There are many questions that I should ask you, but…" He got up, indicating Liam to follow. "I won't. I assume there was a reason why you decided against telling us, and I will respect that."

Jackson felt guilty. There was no real reason why he hadn't told the Admiral about Beta-Two yet. He just didn't want to remember the death of his whole crew. He also felt responsible to finish the mission, with or without support… That was his duty.

Jackson followed the Admiral out of the room and toward the Citadel elevator, still using his crutches. The need for the disguise was gone, but he didn't have the luxury to undo his bandages. He decided to stick to his Quarian suit, and turned his voice distorter back on.

It was less than a minute's walk, and neither of them spoke. They got off at the docking bay C.

"You know that I don't like to be kept in the dark. But this time, I'll comply. You are the best hope we have right now… with the Commander Shepard dead, there is no-one who even has the idea on how to fight the Reapers. Not even me." They continued down the long walkway, others respectfully moving out of the Admiral's way. Jackson noted many surprised faces when their eyes came across the Quarian trailing behind him. Most people just ignored him.

"Nobody wants to believe you, and nobody will try to help you. It's a lonely war, Liam." The Admiral sighed deeply. Jackson was surprised – he had known admiral for five years now, but this was the first time he showed this particular emotion: fear. "But I want you to know one thing. You are not alone, Liam." He stopped. A large sign above them indicated their location – C13. On the dry docks was a freshly re-built ship, the redesign of The Nightly Wind. It had the general form of a Turian dreadnaught, though with much more organic finish. It strangely reminded Jackson of the Asari hospital room back on Nevos. It had a pair of wings that allowed the spacecraft to be steered in-atmosphere. It could probably house up to fifty crewmen, plus extra for possible guests. It had a noticeably large aft, occupied by eight plasma FTL engines. It was a strange mix of the old and the new designs.

Its armaments were also impressive: at least five visible missile pod launchers, a set of twin mass accelerator guns lining the wings, and a third, much larger cannon following the central length of the ship. It was a relatively small ship, much smaller than the SSV Jungfrau, though it seemed capable of taking few hits and dealing out much more. Jackson was impressed at the work that was put into the craft. He also noticed a new name that was painted on the ship's wing – SSV Horizon.

"You recognise the ship? The damn retrofits cost just as much as a new dreadnaught. It's even got the stealth drive from the SSV Normandy. Not as good as that one, but it should still give you a tactical edge. You've got engineers within that will proudly rattle on about it for days on end." The Admiral paused. "It's yours."

"Sir?" Jackson was sure he didn't hear it right.

"You still legally own the original ship. I have no intentions to take it from you. I want you to know that you are not alone in this." He fished out a badge from his pocket – Alliance Captain. "You've earned this a long time ago, and you will need it… Liam Jackson, I place you in command of SSV Horizon and promote you to a Captain. Good luck, Captain Jackson." He said, as he placed the badge in Jackson's hands.

Jackson was stupefied. He was a deserter, someone who had ordered many of his friends to death. He was a weak-minded person, bordering psychopath. He was an Agent who had failed his mission… Yet he wasn't asked questions or given punishment. Instead of a trial, the Admiral was fully supporting him, telling him to not to fight alone…

For the first time in a decade, he was lost for words. He was flooded with relief, happiness, strength... and most importantly, hope.

He didn't expect to come back alive for the second trip through Beta-Two. He knew that everyone he was recruiting now wouldn't either. Every moment he was with Kisa, he had felt a sense of guilt.

But now…

He squeezed his hand around the badge and looked at the Admiral. He gave Jackson a firm nod.

"I'll re-open Operation Unveiling. You will get full HIGHCOM funding and support. Your crew is hand-picked and ready to greet their new Captain. Neither the Council nor the Alliance command has say in this – you take the full rein. It's a risky gamble for me, but I trust you." The Admiral placed his hands on Jackson's shoulders. "Find your friends. Not crewmen, but friends. And trust them… And remember, you always have one right here."

Jackson saluted, fighting back the tears. He was glad that nobody could see his face.

"Sir, yes sir!" He finally managed to say.

Admiral Han gave him a warm smile. He patted his back, and walked back towards his office.

…

Various people went to and fro, many preparing the SSV Horizon for the new Captain. Almost all of them were human, although there were two Quarians, both directly from HIGHCOM. They were new recruits to HIGHCOM, ones that would fill the places of the missing agents once stationed on SSV Jungfrau. Many didn't like Quarians, let alone two, coming into HIGHCOM, but Admiral Han insisted their presence. SSV Horizon was still very much experimental, and he wanted to make sure that there were experts on board in case anything went wrong. Also, both Quarians had an impressive combat record, and they were even biotic (very, very rare for Quarians), definitely worthy participants in the HIGHCOM ranks. The Admiral had also wanted (unsuccessfully) to promote them to Agents.

Many looked curiously (most with an unexplainable disgust) at the injured male Quarian who stood motionless outside the dry docks. He stood for quite some time looking at the ship, probably admiring the technological marvel that went into the SSV Horizon. A few observant individuals noticed that he was holding something in his left hand. Perhaps a coin?

When the HIGHCOM Quarians saw him, they were surprised and very glad to see another Quarian outside the Flotilla. But they didn't approach him: they could see from his posture that this particular Quarian needed some time for himself. So they reluctantly continued their work, supervising the last-minute check-ups on the engines. The Captain would arrive very soon.

After perhaps thirty minutes, the male Quarian sighed. He put something into his pocket, re-positioned his crutches and hobbled away.