Author`s Note: I have a terrible habit of starting something and then disappearing for a while, which I have no intentions of doing any longer. With school coming to a lovely end, for good, I'll have more time to work on writing. So here's, finally, the next chapter. I think it kinda sucks, but I needed to get back in the groove of writing again and just had to go with what I had written previously. Reviews are great, but I'll live if you have better things to do ;)

01. REASSIGNED

Renee was parading through the station in her civilian clothes, defying the Alliance station-wide rule to be in proper uniform while on duty. Technically she wasn't officially on duty until she had re-opened her clinic, which was probably why she was taking her time to dig through her hand bag for her security I.D. as she was walking. It wasn't long however until Renee found her I.D. to swipe through the card reader attached to the wall to unlock her office; but she was surprised to find it already unlocked.

The heavy mechanical door slid up when she stepped onto the sensor and the young doctor found herself in the Company of Admiral Hackett, whom had made himself comfortable on her plush sofa. Immediately she turned to feign haven entered the wrong room, but the highly recognized Alliance solider knew better.

"Dr. Logan, I assume you enjoyed your extended shore leave?" Renee had been part of the Alliance long enough to know the Admiral could care very little about anyone's vacation but his own. So she answered cautiously with a nod. "Good, good," he paused, "Glad to have you back."

Renee wandered to her desk and placed her few belongings amongst the clutter she had left behind. "I'm quite sure you're not here to admire my tan Admiral," she responded in shy bluntness. The veteran smirked at her comment and stood up from where he had been lounging on the couch for the last half-hour, to cross the room towards the sealed window, were the outside shutters had been lifted.

"Right you are Doctor, I'm her because I am in need of someone of your talent," he had locked his arms behind his back formerly and was staring out into the dark space behind the glass as he spoke with his back towards her.

"I'm no Alliance soldier Sir," Renee answered, afraid where this was going. She turned away from her desk to stare at the Admiral's uniformed back, trying to suppress her worried expression.

"No, no you're not, but you have proved you are quite capable of taking necessary action when duty calls." Renee was sure he was referring to the bio attack on the citadel a year ago, when a Batarian Ambassador released a deadly plague throughout the Citadel, hoping to take out the Council. Dr. Logan just happened to be there when it all went down. She helped C-Sec take back the Citadel station after being infiltrated and after the fighting had been ended, she turned her attention to the few who were exposed to the plague. Renee had no intentions of reliving the crisis - for various reasons.

"With all due respect Sir, I have no desire to put myself in that position again," she bluntly spoke, which was out-of-character of someone of her nature. she had grown fond of the simple life as a doctor since that attack on the Citadel.

"I'm afraid your volunteering is not an option Miss," Admiral Hackett answered no the least bit upset by her decline, but in no mood to argue with her wishes. He turned away from the window to see she was upset by the answer. "We've already arranged for a substitute for your clinic and you'll be expected to be ready to leave tonight."

Renee didn't know is she wanted to be angry or excited for once, excited for a change. Either seemed rather possible at this point. The Admiral gave her an encouraging smile from across the lobby, almost fatherly in an Alliance veteran sort of way. She looked down at her desk and didn't like the idea of someone else sitting there, but she knew there was nothing she could do to get the Admiral to change his mind at this point.

"May I ask what exactly I have been enlisted for Sir?" If she wasn't going to be angry, she sure as hell was curious and if she no longer had a choice in this, she at least wanted a heads up to what she was getting herself into. The Admiral was suddenly proud to answer her, but she was not prepared for his response.

"The Corsairs Dr. Logan, an elite group-"

"I know who they are," she interrupted suddenly, deciding she was going to be angry now.

She already knew about the Corsairs, more than most enlisted in the Alliance knew, and that was probably what had stunned Admiral Hackett for a moment. The Corsairs weren't exactly common knowledge to an Alliance doctor. Renee had known a corsair, before he decided to leave the Alliance over a year earlier. She knew that joining the Corsairs meant possibly running into people who knew him and her. The Admiral took notice to her upsetting puzzlement and decided to take his leave.

"The freighter leaves at 1900 hours, try not to be late Doctor."

Renee barely moved to salute him when he left and collapsed into the nearest chair when she heard the clinic door seal with a hiss behind him. She wasn't sure if she was ready to see action again, or even carry around a gun, even if only for protection. Truth be told, she still had nightmares sometimes of when the rogue Spectre Saren had lead an attack on the Citadel. She watched as friends and patients were slaughtered by the swarming geth, if she hadn't been rescued by one of her own patients, she would have been dead too.

She sighed loudly and brushed her dark hair back with her hand, she knew it would be pointless to unpack her things from vacationing at this point. So, instead, she decided to leave her suitcase on her bed where she had left it and to pack a new bag of Alliance appropriate attire. Before she left her clinic however, Renee used her omni-tool to check her mail. She had received the usual spam mail while she was away and was even less surprised by the vid-mail she received from a former patient and friend. Despite that, Renee found herself unable to read his message still and resorted to storing it with his other unread vid-mails.

The Doctor had no intentions of being late, not when an Admiral had insisted on her arriving in a timely manner. So she had her luggage forwarded to the freighter while she made final touches on the arrangements for her replacement, which was far more painful then she had thought. No matter how much she desired to stay, she locked her apartment and handed over the keys to her clinic before heading down to the garage. Since she was on a schedule, Renee made sure to make good time through the busy wards and the security check point by having everything they would ask for ready.

When the guard scanned her I.D. she was worried by the surprised look on his face, that he terribly tried to hide by tilting his head away. Great! Renee thought to herself, when he ran her I.D. for a second time, as if trying to confirm his findings. After an access granted beep for the second time, he handed back her I.D. with an unusual interest. "Guess you'll be joining the big kids," he remarked in an almost envious manner, glancing her up and down.

"Excuse me?" Renee answered, she was both confused and insulted by his obvious disappointment in her being given some sort of elite clearance.

The guard sighed rudely. "You'll want to head for the third dock on your left, that's where the freighter has been reserved for you special guys." She barely was given the chance to question him again before he was pushing her along for the next soldier to gain entrance to the garage. So she followed his directions to the correct elevator that would take her down to the awaiting docked freighter.

On her way down she listened to a news update on renovations throughout the Citadel, while most of the C-Sec Academy had been rebuilt immediately, parts of the wards was still in need of improvement. What she saw of the wards rebuilding wasn't all too impressing when she last visited the Citadel, she often found herself forgetting what floor she was on and where things were. Of course, those who survived in the wards are most appreciative of the wards modernization.

After a few minutes of listening to endless news casts, Renee had reached her assigned dock, which was already busy with soldiers arranging and carrying supplies and luggage onto the freighter. She had to weave around clusters of soldiers and steel crates as she walked alongside the length of the freighter, named Stalengrad. This was the freighter she would be playing Doctor on. Renee was impressed by its size, nothing compared to the Normandy, or so she was told, but probably just as well received as the deceased freighter. She wasn't sure whether to board or wait outside with other stranglers, but she knew she would need to get to the Med Bay soon to file the crew's medical reports.

"The Doctor I presume?" she cautiously turned around to find herself standing in the presence of a decorated Captain, whom was dressed far more formerly then the rest of the hustling crew about the dock. He smiled casually down at her, for she was rather short compared to his height, and he offered his hand to shake hers. Renee shook his hand gently and nodded to his assumption.

"Dr. Renee Logan," she named, "Permission to board Captain?" She was itching to get to her desk, to sort through the stack of files already scattered across its surface. The Captain hesitantly released her hand and nodded.

"Captain Charlie Vero, I was hoping I'd catch you in time to show you to the Med Bay myself," the good Captain answered in relief. He politely waved his arm for her to step ahead of him and even gently pushed on the small of her back to emphasis his insistence.

Renee walked side-by-side with Captain Vero, matching his soldier-like pace as he maneuvered around people and things and towards the back of the Stalengrad. She found herself even more impressed with the freighter's interior, although lacking stylistic design, it didn't fail to support the modern traits of an Alliance freighter. The Captain paused momentarily for a door to open and then suddenly she was standing in what would be her home for a while.

The Med Bay was equipped with a few beds and everything she would need to perform from getting a cold and needing to have surgery. Her desk, which was entirely much nicer than the one in her clinic back on the station, was roomy enough for everyone's paperwork to be tossed carelessly on. And if things couldn't get even more better, the Captain opened a door in the back of the bay to a room of her own. Renee was suddenly glad to be Corsair, if it meant she wouldn't have to share a bunk with a total stranger.

Captain Vero padded back towards her from where he had opened the door to her room. "Of course," he started, glancing back at her room, "You'll still have to use the bathroom which is across from the bunks." Renee looked up from a file she was browsing to share a disappointed look with him, which he returned with a grin. "Don't worry, they're separated bathrooms and you are one of very few women on this ship."

"So, do you know what dangerous mission we're about to embark on?" Renee finally asked, the question had been bothering her since Admiral Hackett refused to entirely explain her new duties to her. The Captain added to her bother with a slight shrug, as he too began to finger through the files already stacked on her desk.

"All I know Doctor is that we won't know anything until we're through the relay," he answered unenthusiastically, glancing up at her when she sighed disappointedly. "And," he suddenly added. Renee turned sharply to receive his remark with all her attention. "You were specifically requested for this mission Miss Renee."

Suddenly she felt sick, "Who would do that?"

"I don't know, they won't say," he answered her truthfully, wanting the answer himself.

"Well that's just great," she huffed and slunk down into her new expensive chair. The Captain got the hint she wanted to be alone, which was timely with his Captain duties to make another round of checking on things before they left the station. He grinned again at her, although she wasn't looking, and headed towards the door. Renee was too focused staring at the ground to see him walk by.

Before he stepped across the threshold, he looked over his shoulder. "You'll probably be expecting some company soon, we've got a handful of biotics on board and if I read your file right, you're sort of an expert on those type." He left without anything else to say.

Renee had her elbows on the desk and her face in her hands, she was suddenly entirely exhausted after only a handful of hours since returning from a rejuvenating vacation. How did things suddenly turn serious on her, again. Why would anyone recommend her for the Corsairs? Surely Admiral Hackett meant it when he said she was enlisted for her help against the Batarians, not something entirely different. "It has to be the Admiral," she told herself in a whisper. Otherwise, something bad was attached to her reassignment.