Disclaimer: Once again Bioware own all.

Author's Note: Back again with another chapter. Hopefully moving things on a little. Thanks again for the reviews and the Story Alerts.


The walk back took longer than Amelia had hoped, the girl was unfortunately weighing her down as well as the weaponry holstered to her back. It wouldn't bode well if a soldier didn't have all available weaponry at her disposal so the trek was becoming quite tiresome for the already fatigued Lieutenant. As she neared the front room she called out for the Doctor not caring if she woke her nor if she woke the Corporal at the same time, she had far bigger problems to deal with.

Caitlin still hadn't regained consciousness as Amelia laid her gently down onto the bed, "Who is she?" asked both the Doctor and the Corporal simultaneously, "A former Alliance Lieutenant is all I got before she passed out, is that leg injury serious or did she just succumb to the pain? I don't know if I can carry her a great distance if we need to vacate this spot" Amelia added, her brow creasing with worry at the girl who had fallen in to her lap metaphorically speaking. Was this yet another sign? Was the universe trying to get Amelia to wise up to the situation at hand and make her realise that her life wasn't the only thing at stake. If it was it sure as hell wasn't the best way to do so. Shaking her head she turned away and walked out of the room, "Let me know if she wakes up and a prognosis when you've got one Doc, I need to think." she added before slipping out of sight. Doctor Reeves spared a glance at Corporal Williams who merely shrugged his shoulders, "Do you need any help?" he asked wanting to at least prove useful to someone as the Lieutenant Commander didn't seem to want his assistance in the least.

Her fist connected with the nearest wall as her frustration finally got the better of her, no word from the Alliance and now another soldier to look after, if the situation wasn't already dire it would be even more so now. Amelia let out a shaky breath as she fought to get her emotions back into check, it was unprofessional and did nothing to improve her current thought process. Once again fellow soldiers and a civilian were relying on her to get them out of this situation or at least that's how it felt. The last time she was in such a position, things didn't turn out so well hence the reason she was running across London on her own; the rest of her company were either dead or doing the exact same as her. She breathed deeply once again, listening as her erratic heartbeat began to slow as she allowed herself a brief moment to break. The pain was minimal but began to creep along the joints in her hand all the same, a small price to pay if it meant a moment of clarity. Turning she lent against the wall and slide down until she came to rest on the ground, burying her head in her hands as she allowed the gravity of the situation to finally wash over; for just a moment it was Amelia Grey sitting in that room and not the toughened Lieutenant Commander.

Doctor Reeves quickly assessed the injury to their newest ally and found it not to be life threatening which she knew would please the Lieutenant Commander, applying an ample amount of Medi-gel the wound soon started to heal over. It would leave a slight scar but nothing too noticeable, she pulled the blanket over the young women's frame and ushered the Corporal out of them room; the sight that greeted them caused them both to look at each other with worry.

If there was ever an image of a broken soldier then Lieutenant Commander Amelia Grey would be the prime example. Exhausted and shaking, the toll of whatever she had endured in her journey to get here was visible to both the Doctor and the Corporal but they were to weary to approach her; believing that it was best for them to return their attention to the girl the Lieutenant had brought back shortly before whilst it pained them to see her in such a distressed state they reasoned that only she could pull herself out of it.

It was fair to say the Alliance Brass weren't expecting any messages from the local cluster so when the Normandy SR-2 transmitted such a message they called an emergency session. They debated for hours on the significance of the message and the actions of the soldier that had sent it, some raised questions on Lieutenant Commander Grey's mental state; others brought up the incident on the Citadel. Only a few of them made the suggestion to send a ship to the cluster to retrieve them, as the meeting wore on the decision became more topical before they finally decided to send the most advanced ship they had in the fleet, the Normandy SR-2 and Commander Shepard after all they needed the good press after the incident with the Batarians.

The call came direct from Admiral Hackett and Shepard couldn't help but smirk a little, so the Brass had finally decided to aide those left behind on Earth; all she had to do now was motivate her crew and get a message to Lieutenant Commander Grey.

The decks of the Normandy were buzzing as news filtered through about their upcoming mission, they finally had a chance to do something rather just idling in Citadel space but as with everything they knew the risks the mission against the Collector's was proof enough of that. Commander Alissa Shepard was pacing in her cabin as she tried to think of a way to send a message to the Lieutenant Commander but so far she'd come up blank, the communication arrays into the local cluster were being jammed by the Reapers so it had been a small miracle that Lieutenant Commander Grey's message had made it through at all unless that had been the Reapers intent; they were intelligent creatures could all of this be an elaborate trap to lure her into the cluster? The thought didn't bare thinking about but it had crossed Alissa's mind, if they went through with this mission it would be the Normandy against hundreds of Reapers without back-up; all it would take is one wrong decision and it would be game over. So despite the crews enthusiasm, Alissa didn't share it; this mission could prove to be more suicidal than the actual trip through the Omega Four relay but a fellow Alliance soldier needed help and despite her fears she'd so all within her power to get them to safety.

Amelia took a deep breath and pushed herself up from the floor, her moment of weakness forgotten as she walked with a determination to the other room where Doctor Reeves, Corporal Williams had remained. As she entered Amelia nodded to the Corporal and looked at the Doctor, "How is she doing?" she asked her voice soft and no longer hardened as it had been earlier, "Nothing life threatening, she'll probably wake up in an hour or so." replied Rebecca, that earned her a smile from the Lieutenant the first one she'd seen the young woman give to anyone since meeting up with her and the Corporal. Amelia looked at the Doctor and then the Corporal for a good minute before sighing slightly, "Look, I'm sorry for being harsh on the pair of you but I need you both to understand the gravity of the situation we're in. I'm not perfect which I'm sure you both have just witnessed, but I told myself that no matter what I'd get the pair of you off this rock and to safety; our latest addition hasn't changed that. I've not received a reply to my message and I'm beginning to think that the enemy is using it to lure someone here, who I don't know but I'm worried. If we can get to an Alliance base and to a shuttle then maybe we stand a chance at getting out of here but its a big 'if'." she paused waiting for everything she'd said to sink in, Rebecca's facial features were doing most of the talking until she hung her head and shook it, Ian remained stoic the entire time.

"All I can do is my best, I'm not the greatest Alliance Marine to ever wear the uniform in fact most of my superiors believe I'm a a disgrace to the uniform but grounding me on Earth was punishment enough for one mistake so I don't intend to make another one. I will bare the burden of losing my unit and the burden of losing anyone of you as we make this journey, its my guilt and burden to bare but I will sacrifice my life for each and everyone of you to get out of this city and off this rock, I just need you to help me get there, please." her voice cracked a little as she finished her speech it hadn't been intentional but hopefully it would have the desired effect but it wasn't the Doctor or Corporal who spoke first,

"I'd follow you to the end of the world if I had to, your the reason I got this far and despite what you think Lieutenant Commander Grey, you're a bloody hero to some of us. I'll help even if it means my life is forfeit." Caitlin rose slowly until she was sitting on the bed Amelia had laid her down on earlier, "Former Lieutenant Caitlin Grant, at your service Ma'am." she added with a smirk. Amelia looked at her for a moment, "Glad to see your awake LT, and thanks." she returned the smile and looked at her other two comrades, Dr. Reeves it seemed was still debating her decision whilst the Corporal looked ready to give an answer, "I'm with you Lieutenant Commander, until the end." he saluted before his face broke into a wide grin as he placed his hand on Amelia's shoulder in reassurance, finally Dr. Reeves spoke, "You think too little of your abilities Lieutenant Commander Grey, you've gotten us this far already why doubt that you aren't going to get us the rest of the way? I'll follow you because I trust your judgement and I believe you won't let us down." she looked up and smiled at Amelia before turning her attention to Caitlin.

"Thanks, all of you. It means a lot to have your support. I'm just going to go check for supplies as I didn't get around to it earlier, Corporal want to lend me a hand?" she added, he nodded and headed out of the room. Amelia turned to Caitlin and presented her with her military issued pistol, "Keep the Doctor safe and shoot anything that isn't human." and with that she turned and followed after the Corporal. Caitlin looked down at the pistol for a moment, remembering the feel of it in her hands and nodded more to herself than anyone. Lieutenant Commander Grey trusted her to keep the Doctor safe and to Caitlin that meant everything.