Chapter 1-One of Those Days
A/N: I want to give a special thanks to jamiepage19 who has taken the time to brainstorm and revise this chapter and idea of a story.
I do not own Mass Effect. All rights belong to BioWare and EA Games.
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If there was one thing Jane hated, it was a normal life—a completely tiring, boring, normal life. It had been a year since she had settled into the Citadel, working in the Alliance hospital in Shalta Ward. She had signed up as an Alliance Navy nurse when she was eighteen, and soon made the decision to pursue being a Critical Care NP. Since being approved, she was transferred from Earth, where she did most of her studies, on the Citadel.
She sighed, moving through the crowded corridors toward the hospital entrance. People filled the halls, chatting loudly. She walked briskly; avoiding eye contact with anyone, hoping that no one would stop her in her pursuit. She had already worked a twelve-hour shift and she was exhausted and irritated. All she wanted to do was get to her small apartment and crawl into a nice hot shower. Maybe even watch a vid.
She stepped outside, taking a deep breath of the recycled air on the spaceport. She could already feel the tight muscles in her shoulders ease slowly the farther she went from the hospital. A thought suddenly occurred to her and her hand brushed against things inside of the small messenger bag on her shoulder. She frowned, stepping to side. Lifting the cover, she rummaged through the bag, muttering curses to herself. "Great. Just great. I forgot my key card."
She groaned, walking slowly towards the free transit. It truly had been one of those days. She pressed the keys on the pad lightly, grumbling at herself some more. It would take her another hour to get home at this rate. She would have to wait for her roommate, Chloe Michel to finish her work in her private clinic in the wards. Falling into the seat inside the transit, she clutched her bag, breathing in slowly as she closed her eyes. One downside to living on the Citadel was using the free transits. They were fast and jerky. By the time you had ridden in one less than five minutes, you would not want to eat again.
She attempted to think of better days. The first day she landed on the Citadel she was excited for something new. She thought it would be an adventure. Lucky for her, she had already arranged to be roommates with Dr. Chloe Michel. She had met the doctor through the woman's parents, who she had worked under during her time on Earth. She had immediately felt at home the moment she had stepped into the apartment. Both Chloe and her had gotten along well and already had a few things in common.
"Arriving at Upper Wards," a disembodied female voice announced, its tone sounding harsh as it blared over the transit's com systems.
Jane opened her eyes, slowly getting out of the tiny vehicle, exhaling out of her nose. She looked around her, carefully following the bright neon lights. She planned on not getting lost this time. She could hear the large crowd not far from the clinic shouting about Human Rights. The nurse frowned. The past year, more and more people were ready to see a human councilor seated with the rest of the galactic community. She had even heard bizarre rumors that there was a candidate for a human spectre on the table. Although she agreed that the human population should have more rights concerning galactic affairs, she didn't think her species should be in control of everything.
Jane pushed the doors interface before it slid open. She stepped inside, smelling the familiar smells of medigel and antiseptic. The clinic was brightly lit, a small empty counter greeting her on her arrival.
"Chole must have let her receptionist leave early," she thought out loud, walking into the small hallway.
She saw that the door to one of the small private rooms was shut, but she could hear soft murmurs coming from within. Jane shook her head. Chloe probably never heard her come in. She got out her omni-tool, tapping a brief message to her roommate and sent it, hoping that it wouldn't distract the young doctor from her patient. She re entered the lobby, sitting in one of the seats before opening her omni-tool again to read through her own messages.
A few messages were sitting in her inbox. Most of them were junk mail, but one in particular caught her attention. A small smile spread across her face as she opened the correspondence.
Jane,
Hope everything is going well on the Citadel. We just arrived on Eden Prime. The Normandy is doing great. It is flying smoothly. Wish you were here. Hope to see you soon.
R. Jenkins
Her smile became brighter. She stored the message in her omni's drive and scanned through various other letters. Before she could reopen another when she heard the door slid open. Jane looked up from her messages at the clock. It was past hours for a patient to walk through. She got up from her seat, stepping toward the door.
"The doctor is unavailable at the moment. Is there something you—" Her eyes widened as she took in the turian holding an unconscious bloody human over his shoulder. She stifled a gasp, her mind processing the damage to the body. Burn marks covered the man's face along with several bullet wounds. "What—"
"Where is the doctor?" the turian demanded.
"She's unavailable—"
"Maybe you can't see that well, but this man needs medical attention, immediately!"
Jane shut her mouth, chiding herself. Of course the man needed help. She really needed to sleep.
Focus Jane, she thought, pulling herself together mentally. If she didn't act fast, the man probably wouldn't make it through the night.
"This way," she ordered, rushing past the turian to the back of the facility. She instructed him to put the man on the table as she washed her hands and threw gloves on. Then she went through the drawers, pulling out a mask to cover her face in.
The machinery in the room was already at work, scanning the body carefully, giving detail reports on the man's health. She could now see that there were serious burn marks on the face and neck and three bullet wounds—on the shoulder, in the leg and in the abdomen. She began by examining the wound on the abdomen, cleaning it carefully before applying medigel. From the corner of her eye she could see the turian shuffling on his feet.
"So what happened?" Jane asked.
"We were on duty near Chora's Den…firefight. Eddie didn't see that he was behind a fire containment pod and before I knew it he was on fire. He started screaming and I tried to pat him down, but the flames were already devouring his clothing."
The nurse nodded, keeping her attention on the man below her. The man was young with a tanned skin and short blonde hair. Like the turian described, she could see the fabric of his shirt and pants were burned in some parts, revealing the fresh burn marks. "It wasn't your fault. But I don't understand how you can have weapons to begin with."
The turian flashed something at her that sparkled in the light. She recognized the insignia. "Oh right…so you and your partner are C-SEC."
"Yes, the name's Garrus Vakarian and my partner here is Officer Eddie Lang," he replied, shifting on his feet again.
"I didn't realize there were human C-SEC officers. I thought they were council species."
"Officer Lang had just started with us a month ago. Since there has been such a big bang about human involvement in Council space, the Executor allowed some Alliance and other police officers to join the C-SEC ranks as a test."
The abdomen wound was healing well with the medigel, so Jane moved to the shoulder wound. She probed the area with her fingers and let out a sigh; the bullet hadn't gone all the way through. She rummaged through the gear next to her, grabbing the small pliers.
"So I never seen you around. Are you a new doctor for this clinic?"
"No, just a friend of Dr. Michel's. I was here to see her. I normally wouldn't play 'Operation' on someone unless it was an emergency," she replied. Jane paused, her attention suddenly drawn to the shuffling sound in the lobby. She nodded to the door. "The doctor is out with her patient. Can you get her attention? I'm going to need her help."
Garrus nodded and stepped out of the room. The nurse didn't lift her head until she heard the doctor walk in briskly.
"Jane, you should have knocked on my door when they arrived. I would have come to help," Dr. Michel said in an exasperated voice.
She shrugged, moving away to give her friend room. "I didn't know what you were doing and it was an emergency. I wasn't going to just stand by and watch someone in pain."
Chloe sighed, dropping the topic as she worked carefully on the patient's face. "Just next time…tell me before you go super nurse on me, alright? You already had a long day; you didn't need to be getting yourself worked up on another patient when you're off duty."
It was another thirty minutes before the two stepped out of the room. Chloe only smiled when she heard the story about Jane's awful day, handing her the key card for the apartment. "Just don't lose it on the way there or we will both be stranded."
Jane laughed, smiling at her roommate. "I'll try not to. Be sure not to stay here all night, like you did last week."
She walked out, finding her bag on the seat she had left it on earlier. She slugged it over her shoulder, peering back at the doctor, who was talking to the officer about his partner's condition. The turian looked up, nodding his head towards her in thanks. Jane smiled, waving lightly before she walked out of the clinic, finally heading home.
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She could smell smoke in the air as she ran through the fields. Her feet were throbbing as she padded through the crops barefooted. There was no time to put shoes on. There wasn't time to do anything but run.
She could feel the red liquid on her face and hands dry, caking heavily on her skin. She closed her eyes, trying to take deep breaths—something her physical education teacher had nagged at her to do while running. No—she didn't want to remember.
She didn't want to remember the smell of smoke or the way the fire made the small colony unbearably hot. She especially didn't want to remember the blood on her face and hands, her mother's small smile as her eyes dimmed.
"Shhhh…little one. Everything is going to be okay."
Hot tears streamed down her face, pushing herself to keep up. She didn't want to remember.
Jane shot up, her eyes scanning the room. She couldn't smell smoke, feel the heat of the fire or see the blood on her hands. She exhaled the breath she held.
"A dream," she whispered, clasping her shaking hands together. "Only a dream."
She rose from the couch, her eyebrows furrowing. She never made it to her bedroom last night. "I guess I fell asleep through the vid," she thought out loud, rubbing her sore neck, looking at the clock. It was already morning. She never even heard Chloe come in.
Jane walked into the hallway, her feet lightly padding on the wooden floors. She opened her roommate's door and peered inside. The bed was neatly made, the room dark and empty. She frowned. Chloe never left her clinic.
She had just left Chloe's room and headed for the kitchen when the front door opened, revealing a very haggard looking woman. Chloe laid her briefcase on the small table near the door and dragged herself to the couch.
"Ugh, what a night," she started, slowly taking her shoes off. "I thought I was never going to get out of there."
Jane pursed her lips, brushing her red locks from her face. "What happened last night?"
The French woman sat there silently for a short moment before she tilted her head towards her friend. "I cleaned up the gentleman you started on before I contacted Huerta Hospital to take him. I was starting to head home when out of nowhere a woman came by wounded. I couldn't just leave her like that so I took her in, bandaged her up and gave her antibiotics. It took much of the night to get the fever she had down."
Jane nodded. It was typical for Chloe to help any stranger out. Jane couldn't help but admire the woman for her big heart. She only wished her friend wouldn't wear herself down so much.
She pushed herself from the wall, moving to sit next to the doctor, and smiled softly. "Perhaps you should take the day off. I'm not working today. After you've gotten some rest, maybe we can go out and have some drinks."
The corners of Chloe's mouth lifted slightly, patting Jane's hand. Jane looked down, only for her to gasp. She grabbed her wrist, examining the petite woman's hand. "Chloe, where did this rash come from?"
The doctor chuckled, pulling her hand away. "It's nothing Jane. The woman I worked on was Quarian. I had a reaction to the dextro materials I had to use. Some of it got on my skin when I was working. It will go away in a few hours. Don't worry," she explained, lifting herself off the couch. She yawned and stretched her stiff muscles. "I'm going to get some rest. It was a very long night."
The red head scratched her head lightly. "Yeah, good idea. You wouldn't want me to find something else to worry about."
Chloe only laughed, moving away into her bedroom. Jane waited until she heard the door close and then she rested her head against the couch. Perhaps the day would only get better from here.
"Upper Wards Medical Clinic, this is Jane, how may I help you," Jane answered the terminal, tapping her pencil impatiently on the desk. Chloe had called her earlier that morning to help in the clinic since her receptionist was sick at home. Jane had agreed, both ecstatic for finding something to do on her day off and also kicking herself for taking a day of peace and quiet away from her. She shoved the thoughts away, throwing out dates for the patient to be able to come in. "How about next week?"
Her thoughts had been elsewhere for a few days. She normally would have heard from Jenkins by now. It had been a while since she had received the message about Eden Prime. Why hadn't he responded?
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"Upper Wards Medical Clinic, this is Jane, how may I help you," Jane answered the communicator.
The redhead had been excited about finally going on her first date with the Lieutenant. They had known each other for a few years, since she met him on Earth. He had flirted shamelessly with her, getting her full attention. She allowed him to have her omni-tool's address and soon they were messaging each other whenever possible. Since he had been stationed onto the Normandy though, the message feeds had become slower and shorter. Extranet connections were only so good when traveling through the Mass Relays.
The silence on the other end of the terminal brought her back to the task at hand. "Hello?"
The sound of a click caused her to frown. Switching the terminal off, she rubbed her temples slowly and closed her eyes to the blinding lights of the clinic. She was still exhausted from the long hours at the Alliance Hospital and the restless nights she had spent tossing and turning, seeing the ghosts of her past.
She lifted her head when she heard the front doors swish open. She forced the smile on her lips, lifting herself from the desk. Five men filtered in. "Welcome to the Upper Wards Clinic. Do any of you have an appointment today?"
The group said nothing. One man broke away from the rest and approached the desk, idly running his hand across the top of her terminal. His wide, menacing smile made Jane's heart pump in her chest. Her right hand dropped to her side and slowly crept underneath the desk, where a panic button was hidden. One of the other men caught her movement. He reached for his pistol, yanked it out of his holster, and before she knew what was happening, fired his weapon.
Jane screamed as the bullet tore through the soft flesh of her upper arm. She fell to the ground heavily, the pain unbearable. A black booted foot moved closer to her. She inhaled a shaky breath and listened as the intruder reloaded his weapon.
"I wouldn't move if I were you. Where is the doctor?"
Jane remained stubbornly silent. The man frowned and casually pressed her injured arm with the tip of his boot.
"The doctor isn't here!" she cried. Pain, searing hot and blinding, coursed down her arm. "She's on a lunch break."
In all reality, Jane really hoped that Chloe had heard the commotion and had locked herself in one of the labs at the far end of the hallway. From her position on the floor she could see the button underneath the table blinking and was relieved to see that she had at least accomplished that. Perhaps help would come before they killed her.
The leader turned back to the group and flicked his head in the direction of the long hallway. His men nodded in acknowledgement.
"For your sake, you'd better hope we find her," he threatened before pivoting on his heel to follow the rest of them out of the reception area.
Jane released a shuddering breath and let her head fall to back to the ground, listening quietly to the sounds of doors being slammed and furniture being moved as they rummaged around the rooms in search of her friend.
A few moments later the nurse heard shouting not far from her position and she lifted her head turning off the floor just in time to see them push the doctor into the room. Chloe's eyes meet hers, her pale green orbs shrouded in panic.
"Jane!"
"Quiet down, doc!" the leader barked. He seized her arm and pulled her against his chest, threading one arm around her neck in a strangling grip and placed the cold barrel of his gun against her temple. "I wouldn't want to hurt your friend now because you couldn't keep you mouth shut."
"You can take anything you want. Just please…don't—"
"Who did you tell about the quarian?"
Jane's eyes narrowed as she watched the exchange. So this was about someone Chloe knew. She drew in another deep breath, trying to keep calm. She didn't want her biotics to flare up, causing more problems when her friend was being held with a gun pointed at her. She looked around her, trying to avoid gaining the man's attention above her.
"I didn't tell anyone, I swear!"
"That was smart doc. Now if Garrus comes around, you stay smart. Keep your mouth shut or—" He stopped, his sentence abruptly cut short as his attention was drawn to the front of the room.
Jane exhaled, closing her eyes. Maybe C-SEC had come after all.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
"Let her go!"
Jane thought the voice sounded oddly familiar, but she didn't have time to dwell on it. The distraction had provided her the perfect opportunity to move. Keeping a wary eye on her assailants, she rose up on her hands and dragged herself behind the desk for better cover. Suddenly she heard the gunfire and her friend screamed. She whipped around just in time to see Dr. Michel fall to the ground, unharmed as more gunfire was issued.
"Chloe," Jane shouted, waving her friend over to her. The doctor crawled to her, her eyes focusing on the blood-stained spot on her upper arm, full of concern. "Don't worry, its nothing to worry about."
"Jane, you were just shot. Of course it is something to be concerned about!"
"You can mother me once we're safe. Now come here!" Jane ordered, grabbing the woman to sit next to her. She closed her eyes, feeling the familiar heat at the back of her neck as her barriers came up, enveloping her and Chloe.
The gunfire ceased soon after, and once the chaos had died down she lifted her gaze upward, startled to see the turian C-Sec Officer from the other night standing with three armored Alliance soldiers.
"Perfect timing, Shepard," Garrus said. "Gave me a clear shot at that bastard."
Jane released the barrier, the pain in her arm flaring up. "Perfect shot? What were you thinking? You could have hit Chloe!" she snapped, hissing at the end of the sentence as she grabbed her upper arm.
"Jane?"
She wasn't surprised when the man lifted the helmet off of his head. Of course you would show up now, she thought bitterly. She slowly got to her feet and leaned against the counter. "I'm fine, John."
"Commander, you know her?"
John turned, acknowledging the woman in the pink and white medium armor. "Yeah, this is Lieutenant Jane Shepard of the Alliance Navy Nursing Corps. She's my sister."