Chapter 11
Liara opened her eyes, the constant ringing reminded her that the alarm has been going off for a while now. Another work day started slow, she was not a morning person. She slowly got up and headed for the bathroom, after a hot shower and the morning routine Liara got dressed and went into the kitchen turning on the coffee maker, she acquired the taste for the human beverage while back on the Normandy. After her cup of coffee and a quick bite of some leftover asari cuisine Liara left her apartment. A cab was already waiting to take her to her office in Nos Astra. After a short trip through the Illium skyline she arrived at her office building. She took the path to her office from the landing pad, which was uneventful, everything promised to be just another routine day in her current life.
"Good morning Nyxeris." said Liara, opening her office with an omnitool scan.
"Good morning, Miss T'Soni. I have all the reports prepared for you at your terminal." Nyxeris nodded.
"Thank you Nyxeris." Liara was about to close the door behind her, when her morning routine got an unsuspected change.
"Umm, miss T'Soni." Nyxeris spoke up again.
"Yes?" Liara turned, unexpected news rarely were a good thing these days.
"You also received a package, it is on your desk."
"From who?" Liara slowly approached the package sitting on her desk, quickly going through a list of names in her mind.
"The package itself says From Jim, but the actual source is unknown, I was not able to track it."
Liara was confused, her mind going through as many names as she could recall, she sat down at her desk and opened one of her databases, "Thank you Nyxeris, that will be all, please hold my calls for now." She said calmly.
"Of course, miss T'Soni." Nyxeris nodded.
The door to her office closed and Liara was left in a mild state of confusion, she scanned the package as a precaution but it did not reveal anything malicious. It was an old fashioned shipping box nobody uses those anymore. She opened it, inside was a data pad that was ID locked and just had the words From Jim written on it. Suddenly a realization came to Liara, the name Jim did ring a bell, he was a contact that informed her that Shepard's body was on Omega.
Liara unlocked the data pad, it was a gallery of videos and photos of security footage from various locations.
"Goddess! I... I just can't believe it..." Liara spent several minutes looking through the content of the data pad.
Liara simply sat there, paralyzed by what she was looking at, the photos and the security footage were of no other than Shepard, alive. He was spotted in several places, Omega, Korlus, Purgatory and several other minor planets. Tons of questions arose in Liara's head and were swirling around like a beehive. Most importantly however, Shepard can be seen exiting and entering a vessel resembling the Normandy, but with a Cerberus insignia on it. "Cerberus... So they did it after all. But is it the same Shepard... is it my Shepard?" Liara sat down holding her head in her hands, overwhelmed by these news. These images and videos stirred something in her, something she hasn't felt in a long while, something she thought she buried in her mind. Liara took a deep breath and turned over to her terminal, she had to know for sure.
Liara opened her list of contacts and started searching, it took her only several seconds to find the name she was looking for in the old list of Feron's contacts. She quickly set up a comm. link and stood up in front of the holographic display. The display lit up, showing a middle aged man with a goatee and a cigar in his teeth.
"Hello Jim." Liara greeted the human.
"Good to see you darlin, I figured you'd give me a call after you saw my little gift."
"Yes, I... I saw the pictures..." Liara lowered her head and took another deep breath.
The man smiled, "I'm sure you did, what do you think?"
"What do I think?" Liara paused, "What I think is how am I only learning of this weeks after he has first been spotted?" she paused, anger quickly replaced with a mix of other emotions "I'm... shocked, to say the least."
"I'm not surprised. Seeing the dead walk is shocking as it is" the man shook his head, "That being said, perhaps there is a bigger issue here that needs to be addressed."
"Obviously someone has been filtering my information feeds…" Liara frowned, "But besides that, just tell me one thing, is that... really Shepard?"
"Don't know." the man shrugged.
"Didn't you know Shepard?" Liara asked, confused.
"That's just it darlin, I used to know him. Way before he became Commander Shepard, before he became a Spectre as well. I'd say that you know him better than I do, so you tell me."
"I will need some time and more importantly, I will need more footage before I can make any judgments."
The man laughed "Now that's more like it. I have a contact on that new ship of Shepard's, he is Cerberus now, but he owes me big time, he will contact you and give you limited access."
"How limited?" Liara raised an eyebrow.
"The new ship has an AI that monitors all communications traffic to and from the ship. So any footage will have to be from a body cam and sent when the ship docks. Also, Captain's quarters are off limits to all crew members, unless invited by the captain himself."
"I see. I was hoping I would get some footage of him in his quarters, I still remember Shepard's habits."
"Well, if he is the same, he will come to Illium, sooner or later."
"I know that." Liara closed her eyes.
"Don't worry darlin, I don't think Cerberus would want Shepard if he wasn't Shepard, you know what I mean?" the man smiled.
"Yeah." Liara nodded. "Thank you, Jim."
"Anytime."
The hologram powered down, Liara sat back in front of her desk, leaned back in her chair and let out a large sigh. "Goddess, I pray that you are not just a Cerberus puppet Shepard, I do not know what I'll do if you are."
A comm. lit up at her terminal and Nyxeris' voice spoke softly, "Miss T'Soni you have several incoming phone calls on hold. Would you like me to keep holding them?"
"No, patch them through." Liara tried to clear her thoughts as much as she could, work was waiting for her. "One more thing Nyxeris."
"Yes miss T'Soni?"
"If Commander Shepard's vessel lands here on Nos Astra, clear it of all fees and charges, and have someone direct him and his crew to my office."
"Yes, of course."
John sighed, he really didn't want to open the door leading into the Alliance embassy. He knew he had to face the council and try explain how he was dead for two years and why he is working with Cerberus now. Garrus and Kasumi, the new team member they picked up here upon arrival were waiting for Shepard to make a move. John took a deep breath and opened the door. Bright light shined into the large embassy office, in the middle of it stood Councilor Anderson, and to Shepard's right were the holograms of the rest of the council.
Anderson turned to face Shepard and spoke, "Oh, Commander, we were just talking about you."
John walked up to Anderson and shook his hand and smiled, it was nice seeing a friendly face in this room, "It's been a long time Anderson. I hope the last couple of years have treated you right."
Anderson smiled back, "There have been some rough spots but it's good to have you back."
The salarian councilor lost his patience and spoke up, "We've heard many rumors surrounding your unexpected return. Some of them are... unsettling."
The asari councilor picked up, "We've called this meeting so you can explain your action Shepard. We owe you that much. After all you saved our lives in the battle against Saren and his geth."
John replied, "Saren wasn't the one commanding the geth. It was the reaper, Sovereign."
The turian councilor finally spoke, "Ah yes, "reapers"." he made the air quotes with his arms, causing Kasumi to turn away to hide her smile and suppress her laughter. "The immortal race of sentient starships, allegedly waiting in dark space. We have dismissed that claim." he smiled, obviously very pleased with himself.
Anderson figured that Shepard might start to lose his temper, so he quickly picked up, "Shepard, no one else encountered the hologram on Ilos that told you the truth about the reapers. Only you and your crew ever spoke with Sovereign. I believe you, but without evidence from another source, the others think Saren was behind the geth attacks."
Shepard tried to reason with the rest of the Council, "Go back to Ilos and talk to Vigil. Or just look at what's left of Sovereign. It's obvious the technology is more advanced than ours!"
The salarian councilor replied, "The hologram on Ilos is no longer functional, and we have found nothing to suggest that Sovereign was not a geth creation."
The asari councilor continued, "The geth are capable of remarkable technological achievements. This is probably why Saren recruited them."
The turian councilor finished, "This reaper theory proves just how fragile your mental state is. You have been manipulated by Cerberus and before them, by Saren."
John frowned, "Saren is an organic, the geth would never accept him as their leader. They only followed him because he was Sovereign's agent."
The asari councilor replied, "Saren was a compelling and charismatic individual. He convinced the geth the reapers were real... just as he convinced you."
The turian councilor continued, "It was part of his plan to attack the Citadel. The reapers are just a myth. One you insist on perpetuating."
The asari councilor nodded, "We believe that you believe it. But that does not make it true."
John went on the offensive, "I kept Saren from conquering the Citadel, I sacrificed human lives to save the Council."
The asari councilor replied, "We are in a difficult position Shepard. You are working for Cerberus, an avowed enemy of the council. This is treason, a capital offense."
Anderson stepped in, "That's too far. Shepard is a hero. I'm on this Council too and I won't let this whitewash continue."
The asari councilor replied, "Maybe there is a compromise. Not a public acknowledgment, given your ties, but something to show peripheral support."
The turian councilor nodded, "Shepard, if you keep a low profile and restrict your operations to the Terminus Systems, the Council is willing to offer you reinstatement as a Spectre."
John raised an eyebrow, "What does that mean? Will I need to start filing reports?"
The salarian councilor shook his head, "That won't be necessary. This is a show of good faith on our part."
The asari councilor continued, "We cannot become involved in an investigation regarding the missing colonies in the Terminus Systems. But Spectre reinstatement shows our support of you personally."
John turned to Anderson, he nodded, both knew this was all Shepard would get. John stepped forward, "I accept your offer. It's good to have the Council on my side."
The asari councilor nodded, "Good luck with your investigation Shepard. We hope for a quick resolution... and a quick end to your relationship with Cerberus."
The rest of the council nodded and the holograms turned off. Anderson turned around and sighed, "Well. That went better than I expected." he turned back to face Shepard, "You realize the Council's offer is just symbolic. They won't actually do anything."
John nodded, "Even if they don't help, I might as well stay on good terms."
Anderson smiled, "True enough. Don't worry about the Council or the Alliance. I'll find some way to keep them off your back. Shouldn't be too hard as long as you keep to the Terminus Systems."
The door into the embassy opened an ambassador Udina walked in, he started to speak right away, "Anderson, we need to talk about..." He then noticed Shepard standing next to Councilor Anderson. "Shepard. What are you doing here?"
John turned to face Udina, "Meeting an old friend."
Anderson stepped in, "You don't have to cover for me Shepard, I invited the Commander here to spear with the Council. We just finished our meeting."
Udina's eyes widened, "You what? Councilor, do the words political shit-storm mean anything to you?"
John replied, "The Council reinstated my Spectre status. They're just happy I'm staying out in the Terminus Systems."
Udina seemed to relax a bit, "Yes I could see how that arrangement works best for both sides. But you really shouldn't have taken a step like this without consulting with me first, Councilor."
Anderson quipped, "I don't answer to you, Udina. Why don't you go to your office and think about that for a while?"
Udina ground his teeth and replied, "Of course, Councilor. Good day to both of you." he quickly left the embassy.
Anderson turned over to Shepard, "Sorry about that. Udina's never gotten over the fact that I got the Council position instead of him. Sometimes I need to put him in his place."
"Didn't bother me." John smiled, "Not as much as the turian councilor anyway."
Anderson let out a laugh, "Still, he has his uses, he's always happy to attend all those diplomatic functions I can't be bothered with.
The two walked up to the balcony facing the inside of the Presidium, John asked, "How have the last couple of years treated you?"
Anderson sighed, "Serving on the Council isn't how I planned to spend my twilight years. Sometimes it feels like I'm just beating my head against a wall. Knowing the truth about Sovereign is brutal. It's nightmare stuff. Can't blame the others for not wanting to believe it. But I know how important it is, so I keep trying. Fighting the good fight, right?"
"It would be nice to have such an experienced Captain as yourself on my ship, to help me stop the Collectors."
Anderson shook his head, "Thanks, but no thanks Shepard. I am too old to go racing across the galaxy. Much as I complain, I've got an important job to do here. The front line, that's got to be yours."
The two continued to chat about the Citadel and Saren's attack, about the bits and pieces of Sovereign that got scattered across the station, and in the end the conversation led them to the question Shepard has been holding back.
"What happened to Chief Ashley WIlliams after the Normandy was destroyed?"
"Commander Williams is still with the Alliance, but she's working on a special mission. It's classified. I can't say any more. Not while you're working with Cerberus. I'm sorry."
John nodded, "It's been good seeing you Anderson, I should be going."
Anderson shook Shepard's hand again, "Of course, Shepard. I understand. I wish I would do more to help you, but if you ever want to talk, I'll be here."
John nodded and waved to Garrus and Kasumi to head out, the team quickly left the office and headed for the transport hubs.
"I've had enough of the council and this station to last me another two years, let's get out of here." said John, getting in the cab back to Normandy.
John was standing nervously above the star map, he just received the updated list of people to recruit for the mission and two of them were on Illium, there were no more things holding him back, with his omnitool Shepard tried to set the course to Illium, but was quickly interrupted by Joker, "Change of plans Commander, the Illusive man wishes to speak to you in the comm. room."
John let out a loud expletive fitting of his military background, startling Kelly and causing several Cerberus crew members to turn towards him curiously. Shepard didn't say another word and just headed for the comm. room.
He quickly walked in and closed the door behind him, he turned the hologram generator on for a direct transmission with the Illusive man. Just after a few seconds the holograms lit up showing the familiar room with a chair in the middle.
"You wanted to see me?" John asked impatiently.
"Shepard." the Illusive man turned around in his chair, "I have news that will interest you. We've just lost contact with another human colony on Horizon. Looks like the Collectors have struck again."
"Are you sure? They might be just having communications problems." john quipped.
"EDI already double checked the state of the communications, they are online and working just fine, this is definitely the work of the Collectors. Has Doctor Solus come up with a solution to the seeker swarms?"
"Not yet." John replied.
"Well let's hope he works well under pressure, the coordinates are uploaded to your ship, Shepard, head for the colony immediately."
John nodded and the transmission ended. This turn of events was unfortunate, every time he gets close to going to Illium, some problem comes up that just needs to be dealt with right away.
John growled and walked out of the comm. room and headed into the lab. He found Mordin standing next to a glass box with a single seeker swarm specimen inside. Shepard walked up to the salarian, "Tell me you have something."
Mordin looked at Shepard, showing no emotion at first, but then smiled, turned to his terminal and nodded, "Yes."
Liara was sitting impatiently in her chair, the report from the Normandy was late and she was getting anxious.
The comm. came alive and Liara's assistant spoke, "Miss T'Soni you have incoming calls..."
Liara quickly interrupted her assistant, "Hold them for another fifteen minutes Nyxeris."
"Yes Miss T'Soni." spoke the comm. and turned off.
Liara got up and walked to the large window right behind her desk, she stared at the people below in the trading area, she wanted to go for a walk, but she couldn't leave right now, not when she is waiting for the report, not to mention other clients. Finally Liara's torment ended when her terminal lit up showing she received new mail. Liara quickly sat down and opened the report, she scanned though the text and looked through the photos, quietly mumbling to herself.
"So Shepard went to the Citadel, picked up a new crew member and... oh... got his Spectre status reinstated." Liara chuckled, "I bet that status is as useful to Shepard as omnigel for locks these days."
Liara kept reading and soon reached the end of the report, "Heading for Horrizon, possible Collector attack." Liara bit her lip, she was fully aware of Shepard's mission now and has been tracking his progress for a while. Memories of her own run in with them filled her with anger, "So the bastards have finally surfaced. Good luck John."
Liara's mood elevated after reading the report, at least she knew that Shepard was still alive and well. She turned her comm., "Nyxeris, I am ready for the calls, patch them through."
Shepard jumped for cover, narrowly avoiding the shock wave blast that tore a nearby supply crates to shreds. He leaned over and threw a biotic blast at the shambling horrors that his crew nicknamed "scions". They looked like several husks fused together, another horror created by the reapers. John looked to his left and with Grunt, staring at him, waiting for his command. Shepard, signed him to provide cover fire as he tries to get closer, Grunt nodded and readied his assault rifle. Shepard looked around, but couldn't spot Garrus anywhere, regardless, he quickly jumped from cover and ran for the abandoned truck, slightly closer to the two scions. Grunt got up and fired several shots at the scions, his attack proved effective as the scions quickly lost interest in Shepard and concentrated on Grunt now.
John ran around the trucks and took out his shotgun, flanking the scions he walked up to one of them and shot a shotgun shell almost point blank, taking half of scions mass out in the process, killing it. However the other scion, now realizing Shepard's strategy, quickly turned to John and was preparing for fire. At that precise moment there was a loud rifle shot and a bullet pierced one of the scion's heads, disorienting it for a moment. "Thanks Garrus." John smiled and unleashed another blast on the second scion, blasting it to pieces.
John sighed and activated his comm. "EDI, how long till the turrets are online?"
"A couple more minutes Shepard.", as she finished her sentence, Shepard heard a loud shriek resonate throughout the colony.
"We might not have that long EDI." John replied, reloading his shotgun.
Grunt and Garrus ran up to Shepard, Garrus spoke up, "Shepard, I had a good look around, before my position was compromised, a large force of Collectors are coming this way, they are bringing some... thing, it looks like a husk but none that I have seen before."
John nodded, "Take positions, Garrus do what you did last time, fins some higher ground and provide covering fire, grunt and I are going to take each side of the transmission tower."
"Got it." Garrus replied and quickly ran for the stack of crates closer to the living quarters of the colony. Grunt and John ran for the transmission tower, which had blast shields equipped on both of its sides.
John put away his shotgun and prepared his assault rifle, preparing for suppressing fire, Grunt looked around the shield plating, "They are almost here Shepard."
John smiled, "Good." he was unleashing all the frustrations of the past couple of weeks on these things and it felt really good.
With another shriek, the source of the noise announced its arrival. John looked around the shield plating and got a good look at the creature, it looked very insect like, with a large mouth, inside, several husk heads glared directly at Shepard, it was sickening. A familiar buzzing noise announced the arrival of the creature's escort, six Collectors landed near it.
John yelled, "Now!" and both him and Grunt leaned out of the shielding launching a barrage of rifle fire on the group of the Collectors, Garrus didn't take long either and while the Collectors were distracted by Shepard and Grunt, managed to snipe one of them down. However the Collectors quickly regrouped and started firing back, all while the creature starting blasting Shepard's position with its particle beams.
"We need to focus our fire on that thing, we can deal with the Collectors afterwards!" John yelled to Grunt, he then opened a comm. to Garrus, "Garrus, can you overload its shields, we are going to try and bring it down in one go."
The comm. responded, "On your mark, Shepard." John turned to Grunt and nodded, both leaned out and focused their fire on the creature as Garrus's overload tore through its shields. With its armor exposed the creature was taking a beating from the rifle and sniper fire. Suddenly, the creature slammed into the ground and opened its mouth wide, as the husks inside began to glow brightly, Shepard yelled, "Take cover!"
Him and Grunt just barely managed to get back behind the shielding, as the wave of kinetic energy devastated everything around the creature, however the wave proved to be as deadly to the creature's allies as it was to its enemies. All the Collectors were obliterated, and the creature now wasn't hovering steadily.
John waved to Garrus to do the trick one more time. As another Overload electrocuted the enemy, Grunt and Shepard leaned out preparing to strike. However, much to their surprise, the creature closed its distance and was now directly in front of Shepard. Grunt opened fire, while Shepard quickly hung his shotgun on the safety harness, charging his biotics instead, the creature unleashed its particle beams directly at John, his shield was dropping rapidly. A loud sound of metal hitting metal was heard, the creature stopped its attack abruptly, recovering from an impact, John looked to his left and saw Grunt, who just charged and slammed the thing with all his might. John didn't hesitate to take this opportunity, launching a biotic blast at the creature, sending it into an uncontrollable flight.
Garrus walked up from behind the two, getting out his assault rifle and the three opened fire on the overgrown husk, tearing it to shreds. Following this event the defense turrets of the colony came to life, as if celebrating Shepard's victory, they opened fire on the Collector's vessel, causing it to start its engines and retreat immediately.
Garrus spoke as the team was watching the ship make its escape, "There's no reason to stay. Most of the colonists are on board. They got what they came for."
At that moment the colonist ran out into the open yelling in desperation, "No! Don't let them get away!"
Shepard turned to the man, it was a technician they found earlier hiding in one of the hangars. As much as Shepard didn't want to admit it, the facts remained, "There's nothing we can do. They're gone."
"Half the colony is in there! They took Egon and Sam and Lilith! Do something!" the man was hyperventilating, running back and forth, looking at the trail left by the Collector ship.
John sighed, "I didn't want it to end this way. I did what I could."
Garrus nodded and added, "More than most, Shepard."
The man stopped and turned around, "Shepard? Wait. I know that name." he paused for a second, then nodded, "Sure, I remember you. You're some type if big Alliance hero."
At that moment the whole group heard the voice come from behind them, "Commander Shepard, Captain of the Normandy, the first human Spectre, savior of the Citadel." Everyone turned around, John could not believe his eyes, it was Ashley.
Ashley walked up to everyone and turned to the colonist, "You're in the presence of a god, Delan." Ashley paused and turned around to face Shepard, "Back from the dead."
But the man would not listen, "All the good people we lost and you get left behind. Figures." He spat n the ground and started walking back towards the living quarters of the colony, "Screw this. I'm done with you Alliance types."
Ashley walked up to Shepard, for a few moments she just stared in John's eyes, as if finding a proof that it was really Shepard standing in front of her. After a couple of seconds, Ashley must have seen what she was looking for, she reached out to shake John's hand and smirked, "I thought you were dead, Commander." She briefly scanned Shepard's squad, paused on Garrus and added, "We all did."
Shepard braced himself for a line of questioning, "It's good to see you again Ashley. How have you been?" the casual question dropped a lead weight, there was a brief moment of silence.
Ashley had a lot to say and she just couldn't hold it back, "That's it? You show up after two years and act like nothing's happened?" she frowned.
"I would have followed you anywhere, Commander." her voice echoing through the empty colony, "I thought you were gone… I… you were more than our Commander." her words filled with bitter grief. "Why didn't you try to contact me? Why didn't you let me know you were alive?" her eyes looking for answers like they were written on Shepard's face.
John sighed, he knew that the conversation might get tense but did not except it to go downhill so fast. "It wasn't my choice, Ashley. I've spent the last two years in coma, while Cerberus rebuilt me."
Ashley frowned, "So the rumors were true, you're working for the Cerberus," he looked at Garrus, "Garrus too." He shook his head, "I can't believe the reports were right."
"Reports? You mean you already knew?" Garrus asked.
Ashley nodded, "Alliance Intel thought Cerberus might be behind the missing human colonies. I got a tip that this colony might be the next one to get hit. I went to Anderson but he wouldn't talk. But there were rumors that you weren't dead. Worse, that you were working for the enemy."
The last statement struck a nerve, "The colonies are disappearing Ashley! The Alliance turned their back on them. Cerberus is the only group willing to do something about them."
But Ashley wouldn't listen, "Do you really believe that? Or is that just what Cerberus wants you to think? I wanted to believe the rumors that you were alive.." her voice cracked, "I just never expected anything like this. You turned your back on everything we stood for."
Shepard knew that nothing he said to Ashley in this moment would change her mind. He sighed and spoke, "Ash, you know me. You know I'd only do this for the right reason. You saw it yourself, the Collectors are targeting human colonies and they're working for the Reapers."
"I'd like to believe you Shepard, but I don't trust Cerberus. And it worries me that you do. What did they do to you? What if they're behind it? What if they're working for the Collectors?" Ashley replied.
Garrus lost his patience, "Damn it Williams. You're so focused on Cerberus that you're ignoring the real threat!"
John shook his head, "You're letting how you feel about their history to get in the way of the facts."
But Ashley just would not listen, "Or maybe you feel like you owe Cerberus because they saved you. Maybe it's you." she shook her head, "Doesn't matter… I still know where my loyalties lie. I'm an Alliance soldier. It's in my blood. I've got to report back to the Citadel, they can decide if they believe your story or not." she turned around and started walking towards the colony hangars.
John tried one last time to reason with Ashley, "I could use someone like you on my crew, Ash. It would be just like old times."
Ashley stopped to reply, "No it won't. I am no fan of aliens, but Cerberus has a history of being extremist. I'll never work for a group like that. So long Commander. Good luck."
There was nothing more to say, Shepard turned around to his group and sighed, he was glad that the conversation was over, but he wished Ashley would listen to him, he wished she would understand the situation Shepard was in and what was at stake. It was hard to see Ashley just walk out after everything they went through.
Garrus broke the silence, "Well, that was... awkward."
John gave Garrus a disapproving look before opening the comm., "Joker, send the shuttle to pick us up. I've had enough of this colony."
The hologram generators powered off, Shepard was standing in the comm. room with a bitter feeling about the last mission. The Collectors abducted half the colony, and his team was almost powerless to stop them, no other way of putting it. All that proved that he and his team needed better equipment, more training, more encounters with Collectors. To top it all off, Ashley was on that colony and the reunion did not go well. Shepard walked out of the comm. room and headed for the bridge, he walked up to his terminal, quickly checked his inbox and then walked up to the star map. John scanned the locations highlighted on the map, simply acknowledging their existence, he knew precisely where they were going next. He selected the destination and walked down from the platform, a voice in the comm. spoke up.
"I know Commander, we've been traveling there for twenty minutes now." said Joker, sounding very proud of himself.
John smiled and replied, "And that's why you are my favorite pilot, Jeff."
Joker quickly made a snarky reply. "Wait, you know other pilots? I'll take that medal later."
John let out a laugh, "They will make you shave, Joker."
"Fine, fine, no medal." Joker replied with fake disappointment, "ETA to Illium, two hours."