"You sure know how to disappear with little notice"
John, by sheer luck, happened to be just a few islands down tending the mundane planetside business when the transmission reached him. After a moment of indecision, he postponed his appointment and borrowed one of the shuttles that could bring him over those seventy miles.
Now he was leaning against the doorway to the hall, with a mix of smile and smirk on his face.
"So, what besides a drink you have to offer to merit your announcement of your return from the land of missing persons in such a pompous way?"