Mike smiled as he noticed the reactions from the Normandy crew. Joker, Tali, Mordin, Garrus, Shepard, and Jacob were in awe at the view of New Vegas. Jack, Samara, Thane, and Grunt did not seem very interested. Despite the mixed reactions however, he had surely made an impression.

"I think you might have gone a little overboard with that Amigo," Raul stated dryly, a hint of a smile on his face.

"Oh come now. I couldn't let such an opportunity pass by without acting on it," replied Mike.

"You're going to get us in trouble again. You're always trouble."

"Yet you still travel with me. As do the others." Mike added defensively, smiling at the ghoul.

Raul shook his head and shrugged, "Mostly because we have nothing better to do. It's either travel with you and hopefully live or continue by ourselves and live pointless and boring lives."

Mike turned to Raul with a suffering look, "Raul, one of these days you're going to get over this determined pessimism of yours, and all of New Vegas will collapse from the shock."

Pessimism?" Raul demanded as Mike began to walk off. "Pessimism? Me? We ghouls are the most enduring and easygoing people in the world. We look on each day with – Mike, don't you dare walk away while I'm defending myself!"

Mike ignored his old friend as he talked with Shepard, "It is quite a sight I know, and I'm sure you and your friends have a lot of questions but right now we need to get to the Lucky Thirty Eight. Once we're inside and all settled, then I'll be happy to answer any questions."

Shepard tore his gaze away from the sights and nodded in agreement at Mike's suggestion then turned to his crew, "Let's go everyone. Mike is going to show us where we're going to be staying."

Mike waited until he was sure everyone had gotten Shepard's message then, after a confirmatory nod from Shepard, he lead them towards the imposing tower that was the Lucky Thirty Eight.

Things rarely surprised Shepard. His entire life, from growing up on the streets of Earth to fighting the reapers, he had seen many strange and unique stuff. He had met the rachni and their queen, had spoken to and fought reapers, he had even been to the Citadel, and many other memorable events. So, when he had seen New Vegas, he was interested but not overtly taken aback by shock or excitement.

The inside of the Lucky Thirty Eight was likewise, interesting but not wondrous. Mike had explained, once they had entered inside the large tower, that this building was not only his home but also the home of his companions. Like the rest of his crew, ever since seeing Raul and learning what and who he was, Shepard had been slightly eager to find out who the rest of Mike's companions were. Or what they were. He needn't be let down. Mike's group was about what he had expected.

When they had reached the suite, Mike had begun introductions and, almost within moments afterward, Mike's people and Shepard's own were already talking with each other. Now, looking around the suite, Shepard could see that friendships were beginning to occur between the two parties. As he walked around the place, he noticed a few such examples; Garrus and Thane seemed to have a lot in common with a man named Boone, Mordin was chatting animatedly with a man named Arcade Gannon, and more interesting was one between Grunt and a super mutant called Lily. Even as he made his way past Mike, he saw that he to was conversing with Zaeed.

"Jimmy? Little Jimmy? Is that really you?"

Grunt was confused by the large monstrous humanoid before him. The creature, Lily, had literally walked over to him and begun calling him this Jimmy. "I am Grunt, proud Krogan of clan Urdnot."

"Oh, Jimmy, always acting so silly. Grandma misses you."

"I am not Jimmy and I am not of you bloodline." Grunt was quickly growing irritated by this mutant arrogance.

Lily seemed not to have heard him for she continued to talk, "Oh… Jimmy is getting angry, just like Leo. Little children shouldn't be angry with their elders, but you're not really angry are you? You just took some of grandma's pill. I don't like them either dearie."

Grunt felt the anger rising within him and his first instinct was to tackle this Lily, however, luckily for the both of them, Shepard walked over to them. As he passed by Grunt, Shepard put on hand on his shoulder and muttered, "Watch yourself Grunt. I don't think Mike would take kindly to you rampaging around and attacking his friends." Then, before Grunt could respond, Shepard walked off, leaving him alone with Lily again. Taking a breath, he did his best to stay calm as Lily continued her annoying prattle.

"So how did it feel getting revenge on Benny?" Asked Zaeed, who was standing next to the Sunset Sarsaparilla vending machine, looking at Mike with a hint of respect and liking.

Mike smiled as he took a sip from his water bottle, "Having the little weasel before me, tied up and helpless, while I pulled the trigger was one of the best moments of my life. Ironic that I was in a very similar situation, only a few days before hand, where he had the pistol. The very gun he used to shot me in the head, I used to shot him in the head." Mike sighed with content as his smile became more mischievous, "Revenge is definitely one of the best thing that one can experience."

Zaeed nodded in agreement, as he motioned towards the scarred side of his face, "I'll agree with you on that. When Vido betrayed me, he did to me what Benny did to you. From that day, I swore to have my revenge against that backstabbing bastard. So when we finally caught up with him," he gave Mike an evil grin, "I burned him alive." They both laughed long and hard.

"Well Zaeed, I have to go check on the others, but I'm glad to have met you." With that, Mike left Zaeed by the vending machine and went off to talk to his companions.

Despite all that had happened within the last few hours, Tali had managed to stay calm. Her travels with Shepard and the adventures they had helped to strengthen her composure and resolve, as well as the fact that she was sitting alone in the corner of a large dining room. Right now, she needed peace and quiet, which was a little odd considering she grew up on the Migrant Fleet where one became accustomed to noise.

A hand fell on her shoulder and, looking up, she saw Shepard looking down at her, a look of concern visible on his face. "Oh… Hey Shepard. I didn't see you coming."

"You alright? You've been unusually quiet since we've arrived here."

Tali sighed and shook her head, "No, not really. I just… but never mind. I'll be fine. I just need time to process things."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Questioned Shepard as he knelt next to her.

Touched by his concern Tali smiled, "No, like I said, I'll be fine. After all, I have you and I know that no matter what happens, you'll be there for me as I'll be there for you."

She watched as a grin appeared on Shepard's face and he replied, "Don't worry Tali. I'll find a way back to our universe."

She chuckled and put a hand over her faceplate, "I'd hope so. The great commander Shepard. Savior of the Citadel, hero of Elysium, and defeater of the collectors who cheated death, and who's possibly the only hope for the galaxy stopped because he got stuck in a parallel universe. We'd never hear the end of it." She laughed for a few moments before it died down. Then, in a more serous tone, she continued, "I believe in you Shepard. We all do and we will always be there to support you."

Shepard put his hand against the side of her head and smiled as he looked her in the eyes, "Thanks Tali. That means a lot." They remained there for a few seconds, staring at each other in silence before Shepard spoke again, "Well I have to go check with everyone else and make sure they're all settling in, but if you need me, don't hesitate to ask."

Tali nodded to Shepard and watched as he walked off before she leaned back in the chair. Sighing in relief, as she moved into the more comfortable position, she closed her eyes and began to doze off. Within a few minutes, she was fast asleep.

"I don't trust him," stated Miranda as she stood looking out a window at the distant landscape.

"Of course not," replied Jacob as he took a seat on a couch, "you've never been one to trust anyone. You didn't even trust Shepard at first when we worked with him."

The two were in what once had probably been a lounge area. The whole floor was one room that wrapped around the tower in a circular shape. There were dozens of chairs and couches on the floor, as well as a long bar.

Miranda shot Jacob a look of irritation as she continued, "Yes but he's hiding something from us. Something he doesn't want us to know."

Jacob sighed, "Everyone keeps secrets Miranda. Sometimes they do so because they have to. Whatever Mike's keeping from us, he probably has a good reason for doing so." Reaching towards the table, Jacob picked up a book, labeled Guns and Bullets, and opened it up to the first page, "Besides, why do you worry. Mike has been nothing but helpful to us since we met him."

"But doesn't it seem too good to be possible?" Miranda asked with a curious look.
"What do you mean?"

"That someone like him would be willing to help us. Think about it. He has a place in the best part of the city and he was kind enough to help a group of strangers who are from another universe. It just seems to good to be possible. Not only that but the people here seem so civilized, especially him."

"I don't know what you mean by that but I think the use of the word civilized is something to be thought about," stated Jacob as he set the book down and leaned back against the couch, "These people are living in a world that was nearly destroyed by a bygone generation. The aftermath of a nuclear apocalypse is almost similar to the aftermath of other world-shaking events like world wars and pandemic. The population is reduced, people are scared, society has to recover, and governments have to maintain order. The only difference is that a nuclear apocalypse magnifies the consequences greatly. Whole nations are destroyed, government is gone, industry stops, and there is not forms of long distance communications. I think the people here are just trying to make the best of a bad situation. If anything the word civilized can be applied to anything. These people, the ones in this city, are just one possible example."

Miranda eyed Jacob curiously, a small grin forming on her face, "you are unique Jacob. You seem to know a lot. One would think you seem to have experience in dealing with situations like this."

Jacob laughed at her comment, "With what we've faced and what we are going to face. One has to have an understanding of events that happen after a catastrophe."

Miranda nodded as she looked back out through the window. She remained silent for a while before turning to face Jacob again, "Still, I'm going to keep an eye on our new friend. He may be simply a person who's offering aid and means us no harm, but I still what to know more about him and what he's hiding."

Jacob sighed as he returned to reading the book he had set down earlier, "I expected as much. Just make sure not to anger him too much. The last thing we need is an enemy in a place like this."