Oh, that was better. She was getting tired of hostile meetings. Nautica's own sunny smile returned, and she accepted the handshake.

It took her a moment to place his name in its proper context; learning several million years of history in the span of a few weeks meant things sometimes didn't click quite as quickly as she'd like. Her eyes widened and her smile vanished into shock once recognition hit--he was from before the war, before the Senate had mutilated his body and his mind.

"--Senator Shockwave?" If he wanted to think the obvious surprise on her face was due to the rank...well, that was probably better, since an honest explanation would entail both the words 'evil' and 'dead.'