In Obumbratio

Background Music:

"I already told you, Harper, it has nothing to do with your familial connections. The board has made their decisions long ago, you'll just have to respect that," the older man said. The younger man sighed and shook his head, his footsteps echoing loudly on the thick hull plating. He watched the microbiologists studying the latest samples from Ilos. "I never said I wanted to lead, I just wanted recognition for my efforts. My implants have done wonders for Project Venir, and what thanks do I get? Nothing. Not even a nod from Thatcher. Not even a 'job well done, lad' or anything." The older man chuckled, putting his hands behind his back and followed the young Harper through the winding halls of The Hyperion. "Thatcher's a relic of a bygone age, but you would do well to follow his lead." Harper turned, and snapped, "Yeah? And what about my mother? She survived the catastrophic disaster of the Andromeda Initiative, which we made the mistake of funding, in case you had forgotten! Now she's here, and all anyone does is look up to Thatcher and say how great he is, just because his son is the poster boy of our largest project. Flynt isn't even aware of our existence, for fuck's sake! Why does everyone put him up on a pedestal?!" The older man glared at Harper, narrowing his eyes. "You know exactly why Project Venir takes priority above all else. Everything we have left is riding on it." Harper stomped off through the bulkhead door, the massive chunks of metal slamming shut behind him. The older man stared at the faded grey Cerberus logos on the doors for a moment before turning back around, and walking calmly towards a room guarded by two security mechs carrying elongated stun-prods. The mechs stood perfectly still as he scanned his iris and handprint at the door. The security system emitted a chirp as the airlocking doors let him in to a large, open control room, with the draconic emblem of the Venir rotating on a holo-table. General Eamon Thatcher stood from his seat at the table, having changed into his old Reaper War era uniform. Leaning on his ornate cane, he shook the scientist's hand. "Let's get to the affairs at hand, shall we?"