Kisa didn't know what to think. The other Liam was a clone for sure. Or was her Liam a clone?

The other one was taller than Liam, and looked more muscular (though she wasn't sure – he did wear a full body armour). He also seemed much younger, too. His face lacked two things – the three scars and warmth.

Liam's face twisted in surprise, disbelief and anger. After few electrifying moments, he made swinging motion with his arms. The other one was lifted into the air, then driven harshly into the ground.

"Who. Are. You." Liam roared.

"F—k." He coughed. "Michael Williams Junior. Adopted by Elyse Williams. I didn't know you were the f—king biotic one." The other one replied, his eyes cold and unmoving.

"There is only one left. You should have known... Nurse Williams, did you say?" Liam asked, curling his fist. He was fighting a losing battle against his own emotions.

"She was the only one left after you f—king killed everyone. Why don't you just kill me now? Like how you did twenty years ago. Why didn't you kill them?" Williams said, pointing his chin towards the motionless bodies strewn around them room.

"Because I have changed. I made mistakes, and taking out Nadir was one of them… How do you know this? You would have only been a baby." Liam said. He seemed to think deeply for some time. After more silence, he asked again "Why did you attack me?"

William's body was lifted from the ground and propped back up. He seemed amused at his action. "You have crossed my path." He answered blatantly. "Nadir… is that what you call it?"

"Yes. For reasons too difficult to explain." Liam replied. He had made a considerable effort to soften his voice. "Where is Nurse Williams? I didn't think she'd let you join Eclipse."

"Died of cancer." Williams said, and spat at the ground. His demeanour changed, being significantly less aggressive compared to the start. "What the f—k are you going to do with me now?"

"Call your ships. Make them surrender. You know you can't win. They'll be taken to prison and serve their sentence." Liam replied, "You will join them."

"And if anyone disobeys?"

"They die."

"You haven't changed that much."

"My profession requires me this way."

They both looked at something off the screen. Liam's body flashed in brilliant blue as he launched a biotic attack. The camera was caught in the impact, and Kisa lost connection.

"What the hell?" A voice behind her asked. She looked across the shoulder and was surprised to see the whole infiltration team crowded behind her.

…

"I owe you an explanation."

"No shit Sherlock."

"Shouldn't you be doing the clean-up, sir?"

"Alli will handle that."

"I thought that the Captain handled everything on Alliance vessels."

"I'm a combat Captain, Nekros. I don't usually deal with politics. Best off, too – I usually hurt people when I'm frustrated."

"Heh, just like me."

"So… who was that?"

They were in the Horizon's conference room (otherwise serving as Gaming Room). The other Liam, Michael Williams, had ordered every Eclipse soldier to stand down. Many, including the second cruiser as well as dozen soldiers in Eclipse, refused the order. They ended up being cold bodies floating in a small debris cloud.

SSV Manila and SSV Melbourne was on its way to assist with taking the prisoners, and repairs were underway on the hull breach (they decided it was best to repair engine 3 back in the Citadel, as well as getting a new one to replace engine 2).

Liam had called the five members of the infiltration team as well as Shema to gather in the conference room. When Kisa arrived, she found that she was the last one there. Various talks were already underway, but they hadn't gotten to the important bits yet.

Liam scratched his left palm, a habit which Kisa had noticed. He always did it before talking about something important or difficult. His face was already healing – there was only a small swell at the place where a black eye used to be an hour ago.

"That… was one hundred and twenty five. I didn't even know he was still alive… I'll start from the beginning. Some of you know a little, but here's the whole story… I am an experiment. A clone based on no-one."

Kisa did know that Liam was different, and also knew that he had 'special' origins. But a clone?

"What do you mean, based on no-one?" Nekros asked.

"My genetic template was pretty much built from scratch, from healing, hearing and eyesight enhancements to high resistance to biologic toxins. It's very, very slightly based off some male human, but they modified it to a point where I am not categorically human anymore. It's highly illegal, to build a sentient being out of nothing, but that's what happened."

Liam shrugged, and continued.

"They built me in a facility I call Nadir. Never found out the name, though. They only had one goal – to create the perfect, mindless soldier. It is a century long program - forty human clones for every twenty years."

Liam spoke quickly and mechanically, as if he had prepared the speech earlier.

"Every one of them receives intensive military training from birth as well as any grafting Nadir see fit. Numbers one to forty had various physical and neurological enhancements. They were all dissected before they turned twenty. Numbers forty one to eighty had internal enhancements such as immunity, healing and more modifications. All of them were killed before they turned fifteen… due to various toxin and damage experiments. Numbers eighty one to hundred and twenty had… eccentric modifications. I was one hundred and one, and I got cellular toxin containment mutation."

"That's where you eezo drinking comes in?" Alexander asked. His expression was grim and passively alert.

"Yes. They had expected me to gain some control over any poison that my body ingested. They didn't realised that found a new way for a human being to become biotic."

Kisa, who had been listening carefully to every word, had to ask this question. "Liam. When you were back in Nevos, you didn't have any eezo in your blood like us, or any eezo clumps like other human biotics. So how are you biotic?"

Liam smiled cheerfully. Kisa knew that, enhancements or no, this human being was unique in his own right, a worthy person who stole her heart.

"Nobody knows. It's like magic!" Liam did a small explosion gesture with his hand. "One day they drugged me up some eezo, and- I killed somebody. Doctors thought I store eezo in my muscle cells and release it when I give the signal, but nobody's quite sure. I just know that I can drink liquid eezo with useful side-effects."

"Back to your story." Alexander urged, his expression still the same.

"Well, as I said, they weren't really concerned about keeping me alive. One day they decided to give me enhanced neurological systems gained from number eighteen. It went wrong or something, and I ended up dying [air quotation marks on the word dying] on the next field exercise. That's how I managed to get out of the program. I was twelve or something, not sure."

"How did you find out about all this?" Nekros asked. He seemed taken back by the enormous monstrosity that humans had committed, and was clearly wondering how far the humanity was willing to go.

"I returned to Nadir after five years, killed everyone, and burnt the place down."

Liam used to be a monster. Kisa thought, and realised that he still was – just only when in battle.

There was an awkward pause in the room, highlighting the smell of coffee in the air. Liam broke the silence with a sigh.

"That's enough explanation. I don't mind if you tell everyone. Actually, do tell everyone. It's much better that you guys talk about it instead of me. Dismissed."

Op-Chief Hemmingway left the room first, closely followed by Nekros. Lieutenant Keniev gave Liam a slap on the back, and left. Kem and Shema (who sat still like statues throughout the whole thing) stood up, thanked Liam for the explanation, and left. Everyone (except for the Quarians, because she wasn't sure) was trying to digest Liam's story and what it meant for their job. After all, Liam was their leader.

Kisa found herself alone with Liam. He seemed to expect the current situation, and gave her a small grin.

"Surprised?"

Kisa nodded.

"Satisfied?"

Kisa shook her head. Liam laughed.

"Thought so."

Liam lightly massaged the bruised eye, whose swelling was almost gone already.

"Do you know how I changed?"

"From…?"

"A mindless child soldier to… well, me."

"No… Will you tell me?"

"Maybe. It's a story for another time."

Liam got up to leave, but grabbed his hand. He didn't react at first. Kisa pulled him towards her body, unable to contain her feelings.

He held her gaze and allowed himself to be drawn in. The time slowed as Liam closed his eyes and leaned forward. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and felt his hands lightly hold her waist. His lips met hers in a deep kiss. It was sweet and wonderful.

They parted.

"I was so worried. Please don't do that again." Kisa whispered.

Liam smiled. "Maybe. That's a promise for another time."

…

Jackson walked towards the small room which detained one hundred and twenty five, checking his omni-tool and trying to clear his head. His heart was filled with emotions, emotions which he was a no stranger to. After all, he did have Catherine before Kisa.

Except now, he felt guilty. How could he forget Catherine?

I'm just fulfilling her wish… My final duty, which I should not have completed… How can I deny someone who loves me? How can I deny both women who loves me?

He hated his lack of answers.

The door took some time to open, but it finally did. There sat one hundred and twenty five, his head bowed. He didn't look up.

It's creepy now to see my face on someone else.

"What the f—k do you want?" Michael asked with his own voice.

And voice. How did I stand this before?

"Get out." Liam said as he opened the prison cell. They were in the Eclipse interceptor, which had various small rooms obviously built to smuggle and hide things. They also served as a pretty good make-shift prison.

"What, you want revenge for the beating?" Michael sneered and didn't move.

"As you wish." His hands glowed blue, and easily lifted him up. Michael opened his mouth to talk, but Liam closed it. He walked across the connector and back into Horizon. He forced Michael into the seat of the conference room. When he released him, he didn't struggle and merely stared back.

"I want to make a suggestion, and you are in no position to refuse." Michael opened his mouth again, but Liam went on.

"I want you to join the Alliance. I will release you and fund your training if need be. I just need you to do two things for me. One, drop the swearing. It's bugging me, and also bad for my own image. Two, I want you to take my position once I die."

Michael's eyes widened in surprise.

"What?"

"I'm about to go in a mission that I have little chance of returning. I want you to take my position. Not become Liam Jackson as such, but fill the roles that I am filling right now."

Michael didn't reply. He sat thinking, and scratching his left palm.

"Why do you do this?" He finally asked.

"Because you're me, and I know you better than anyone."

More thinking and scratching. Liam gave him time.

"Alright."

They both smiled the identical smile, but one which went beyond just being clones.