Disclaimer: I don't own Underworld or Mass Effect, they are owned by Len Wiseman and Bioware respectively, probably, not sure. Well I don't make any money with this, which is the most important part.

Nomad-117: This story takes place in an AU crossover universe where the events of Underworld Awakening never happened. I suppose it could be a part of my Blood and Bones universe, not that they would influence each other in any greater way. Perhaps a mention here and there.

Summary: Selene had lived through the centuries and met more than one historical figure, but without knowing it she just stumbled across another one. Perhaps one that will prove to be more important than all of those who had come before.

Blood among the Stars

The first time Shepard met the Corvins was when she was eleven years old, in the slums of Earth. Her parents had died in a car crash only two years prior, and since then no one seemed to care what happened to her, or any other of the orphaned children in this part of the city. That was until the young couple had shown up to administer medical help to all the orphans and homeless they could reach.

Out of the two of them only the man, Michael Corvin, seemed to have official medical training. Though his wife, Selene, apparently was skilled enough to fix at least minor wounds. And thus Persephone Shepard was lucky enough to have someone to treat her broken leg. Life was harsh in the slums, and on one of the many trips to look for food she fell a little further then she had anticipated. Shepard had been lucky, a group of homeless had found her shortly after her fall and brought her to the makeshift hospital the couple had set up for people like her.

Thankfully she had been unconscious during the trip to the hospital, even when lying still she could feel the almost unbearable pain radiating from her leg. She didn't even want to know how much it would have hurt to be moved in such a state. Of course she didn't show her discomfort, she had learned within her first month of being orphaned that showing weakness just invited others to pray upon you.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by a gentle voice. "Hey, how are you?" A man asked her while looking at her with obvious concern. He had dirty blonde hair and blue eyes that seemed to spark with kindness. She quickly deduced that he was the kind hearted doctor everyone was talking about, Michael Corvin.

In response to his question she simply stared at him blankly, after all what did he expect her to say after she broke her leg? At least he seemed to catch up on her meaning pretty quick, since he started to rub the back of his head embarrassed. "Sorry, that was a stupid question, wasn't it?".

She continued to silently stare at him waiting for him to make the first move. He looked at her for roughly five seconds before sighing to himself. "The silent treatment, huh? I have experience with that." He mumbled almost inaudible, the words clearly werent meant for her but she still raised a single eyebrow in response.

If he noticed he chose to ignore it as he assessed the damage to her leg. "Whats your name sweetie?" Michael asked her in a calm, soothing voice. However Shepard suspected that he intended to calm her down with harmless smalltalk. It wasn't going to work, but she chose to indulge him anyway.

"Shepard." She simply, not interested in sharing her first name. She hated that name since she could remember.

"No first name?" The doctor asked her with raised eyebrows, as she refused to answer he managed a small smile. "Not fond of that one, huh? Well, you wouldn't be the first to feel that way, nor will you be the last."

She simply nodded once in return, not trusting her voice not to betray her current weakness. A moment later she tensed up when she saw him lifting a syringe, syringes in the slums were seldomly a good sign. He must have noticed her sudden change in attitude for he lowered the syringe and smiled at her. "Dont worry, I have no intention of poisoning you or giving you drugs. I merely want to give you something against the pain, which could be counted as drugging you, now that I think about it." He told her, which did nothing to assuage her fears.

Just because he was rumored to be kind didn't mean that he truly was. She hadn't survived on the streets for two years because she was gullible. However, in her current predicament, she couldn't run away. So with that in mind, she discreetly tried to find something that she could use as a weapon. After a short search, she found it on a nearby medical table, a scalpel. Still keeping her eyes on the Doctor in front of her, she slowly moved her hand towards the scalpel, just a few more centimeters and-.

A hand grabbed her own before she could reach the knife. Startled, the young human looked up at who had caught her and saw a young woman with shoulder length black hair and brown eyes staring down on her. "There is no need for that." The woman told her firmly, her hand still within her grasp as she used her other hand to push the medical table further away.

Shepard deflated slightly in defeat, her last chance to escape gone. As if reading her mind, the woman spoke up again. "You have valid reasons to be so distrustful, but truth is if we wanted to kill or drug you we could have already done so. And you could have done nothing to prevent it."

Shepard simply blinked at the woman in surprise, normally people never told you that they can easily kill you if they want to, at least not so bluntly.

Michael sighed again before he smiled once again at his slightly paranoid patient. "May I introduce you to charming my wife, Selene Corvin. And while I wouldn't have put it quite as bluntly as she did, she is nonetheless right. So if you have no further protests I would like take care of your leg."

Shepard stared at the two of them for a moment before nodding her consent. The two Samaritans immediately began to work and prepared everything for the impending operation. Even without an omni-tool scan it was painfully clear that they had to reset the bone, of course they still needed said scan. They had to be sure that the bone hadn't fractured in multiple places, or even splintered.

After a brief examination of her leg via omni-tool, Michael nodded his approval. "Seems to be a clean fracture. This shouldn't take too long. However, I will have to put you under while we reset the bone and apply medi-gel."

"Okay." She murmured back, knowing that she had no other choice. She didn't like that, but she accepted it.

Michael gently injected her with whatever was in that syringe. "Don't worry, everything is gonna be alright." He promised her sincerely. She wanted to reply, but before she could, the darkness of unconsciousness had already engulfed her.

The first thing she noticed when she woke up was that everything looked dark and blurry, however that was soon rectified once she blinked a few times. However what certainly wouldn't change through mere blinking was that she was alone. And in a rather comfortable bed. She hadn't slept in something like this since the day her parents died.

The fact that her current bed was an ordinary hospital cot told a lot about the conditions she had lived in before she was orphaned. Still, it was better than she was used to, and it looked like she didn't even need to be on alert in case someone tried to steal what little possessions she had. And it certainly helped that her leg didn't feel like it was going to fall off any second now.

Shepard slowly began to sit up and took in her surroundings in greater detail. She saw what looked like a makeshift hospital room. Her view of the two beds at the end of the room was blocked by the curtains that surrounded them. Aside from those two spots she could see everything in the room, including entrance and exit points which were always important if she had to make a quick getaway.

She slowly moved her freshly treated leg experimentally and was rewarded with a slight twinge of pain. Nothing she couldn't handle, but before she could swing her legs over the side of the bed she was stopped by a cool voice. "I suggest not walking for at least a few more hours. The fracture your leg isn't fully healed yet."

The eleven year old girl slowly turned to the origin of the voice and saw the woman who had stopped her from reaching the scalpel. Selene if she wasn't mistaken. She narrowed her eyes at the adult who stared back at her completely unfazed by the glare she was receiving. Seconds turned to minutes as the two of them simply stared the other down, before Shepard finally relented and moved to lie down on the bed. Never breaking eye contact while she did so.

The woman sent a tiny smile her way, Shepard got the impression that she didn't smile often, before she spoke up again. "Now, was that so hard? Though I can relate, I never liked hospitals myself."

Shepard couldn't help the sarcastic remark that slipped past her lips in reply. "So you decided to work in a hospital, makes sense."

Selene's expression remained unreadable in reply as she answered in the same even tone as before. "And the hospital I work in has served you well hasn't it?"

Shepard loathed to admit it but the woman was right, without them she probably would have died. You didn't live long on the streets without two working legs. She owed these two at least some gratitude, as long as she didn't owe them anything else she was fine with that. So she hesitantly nodded at the woman, who seemed to be satisfied with the answer and moved on to the one of the curtained beds. But not before sending one glance at the girl that clearly said, stay in bed until told otherwise.

Surprisingly Shepard decided to listen to her and did her best to get comfortable. If she was stuck here, she would make the most of the time she had.

A few hours later, she was cleared to go, just as promised. Shepard was relieved that she didn't have to rely on these strangers anymore, yet at the same time she was sad that she had to leave what she began to consider a safe haven. But asking the couple if she could stay longer than necessary would have been a show of weakness.

Though she suspected that she would be forced to make further trips here in the coming years.

Her thoughts proved to be prophetic as she was forced to 'visit' the couple more often than even she expected. Over the years she developed an extreme pain tolerance, not really surprising considering how often she got hurt. After she joined the Reds, the number of injuries rapidly grew. Most of them were caused by other gangs who wanted to push the Reds out of their territory. Shepard could tell that the couple didn't approve of her choice to join a gang, but they understood why she had done it. If you were a member of a gang, it was less likely that someone would rob you or worse in your sleep.

However, the chance of getting a fist between your teeth rapidly grew, especially if you were involved in the 'politics' between the various gangs. But no matter how often Shepard came to the two of them with a broken bone, a knife in her body or some other form of injury, they never expected a reward. They simply continued to do what they had done for years.

Though she wondered how they did it, medical supplies weren't cheap, and she doubted that they could pay for them with good will alone. At the same time she learned that the two seemingly peaceful doctors were not to be underestimated. As the gangs started to fight near their hospital they sent a simple message to the various gang leaders. 'Dont fight within a one block radius of our hospital, or we won't treat your wounded members.'

In response a particularly bold gang, the Black Skulls, had tried to force the two physicians to work exclusively for them. The people they had sent came back with painful but not life threatening wounds. The message however was clear 'Dont mess with us', and it looked like even the greatest of idiots understood that. Even though they needed three more failed attempts to intimidate the Corvins before it sunk in.

However, it wasn't until she was sixteen that she saw some of their combat skills in person. It was purely through luck, both good and bad, that she had a chance to witness them. On her way home back into the territory of the Reds she ran into a group of young aggressive men. Unfortunately they weren't drunk, which would have made it much easier to beat them up, and they had decided that she was old enough to be of 'interest' to them.

It hadn't taken them long to take her down, after all it had been five against one, before they had just started to fumble with her clothing when her rescuers appeared. They had warned the men to back off, and when they predictably failed to comply both of them began to attack. Although, Shepard observed with the part of her mind that hadn't been dulled by her latest collection of bruises and broken bones, that Michael was far more reluctant to do so.

Selene moved with the grace of a predator, effortlessly dodging punches and kicks while delivering her own with deadly precision. A hit on the windpipe of one of the men had him gagging for air, she caught the leg of another and twisted it sharply. A sickening crack echoed through the streets, followed by screams a moment later.

Her third opponent was taken down through precise strikes at his nerve points, he hadn't even had the chance to react before he fell to the ground unconscious. While her previous opponent was still in the air she turned back to the one she had punched in the throat and hit him on the back of his head, he fell like a sack of potatoes.

Her husband was less graceful but still managed to hold his own. He caught the fist of one of the men and delivered a strike of his own on the nose of the man. Blood sprayed from his face as he staggered back holding his nose. His companion attacked when he saw an apparent lapse in his opponent's concentration and received a hit to his temple which knocked him to the ground. He managed to sit up before a second punch sent him into unconsciousness. The last man standing was still holding his nose, his eyes analyzing the situation. Not a second later he turned and ran. In a motion that looked almost lazy Selene drew a gun and shot him through the knee, he fell down screaming. Apparently unconcerned over the volume of his screams or her previous shot Selene stalked up to him.

She bent down and grabbed his throat and lifted him up, coupled with her dark clothing, this made her look like some kind of ruthless, beautiful demon. If the guy wasn't afraid before then he was certainly now. "I want you to tell everyone in your thuggish little gang that if they even think about raping one of the girls here, I will hunt them down and make them live to regret it." She shook him impatiently when he failed to reply. "Is that clear?"

"Y-yes!" He managed to choke out. Satisfied with the answer, Selene let him drop on his injured leg. He cried out in agony, just as she had intended, a none too subtle reminder for scum like him, and curled up in a fetal position.

"Move." She told him coldly lifting her right hand, which still held the pistol, slightly. Whimpering he began to crawl away, a slick trail of blood following in his wake. Selene would have prefered to kill them all right here and there, but if she did that to every group who tried something like that then the police would eventually notice. Even in a rough neighborhood like this too many dead would cause suspicion, to put it mildly. Which of course didn't mean that she let them have free reign. Some had already met their demise, and those who had already fallen prey to her would be the lucky ones.

Though not as many as Selene would have preferred, but she promised Michael not to kill too many people, and not to shift the blame on someone else. With a quick glance she determined that all threats were neutralized, she first checked Michaels condition with a quick look. She knew that he could take care of himself, but she always felt better when she had checked him through herself.

After she had assured herself that her husband was uninjured she turned to the would be victim. Shepard for her part was staring up at Selene in a mixture of intimidation, shock and admiration.

She had thought that she knew how to fight but it was clear that the elder woman was far deadlier than her and the rest of the Reds combined. And said woman walked now towards her, she probably should have been more afraid but Selene had just saved her, and she doubted that she could stop the woman anyway.

If the situation wasn't so grim she would have laughed, she was more or less in the same position she was in when she met them for the first time. Her musings were cut short when Selene offered her a hand. Shepard was pulled up the moment she had grabbed the outstretched hand. For a moment Selene seemed to look her over before looking into her eyes again. "Follow us." Shepard recognized the command for what it was and followed the two doctors out of the alley. Though not before glancing back at the wounded men still lying unconscious on the ground, she had the overpowering urge to grab a weapon, it didn't matter what kind, and kill them for what they tried to do, but she restrained herself. She doubted that the couple would let her do that, though she silently vowed to herself to be never caught in such a situation again.

With a last hateful glare at the prone forms of rapists, she turned around and continued to follow the couple. It didn't take them long to reach the clinic, she barely made it through the door before Shepard felt herself led to a nearby bed. "Sit." Selene told her in a voice that brooked no argument, the gun still in hand.

Shepard decided not to argue with the dangerous and armed person and sat down silently. Her gaze following Michael as the young doctor went into what she knew was the kitchen. Her frequent 'visits' had instilled some familiarity with the buildings layout into her.

"Are you alright?" Selene said and interrupted Shepard's thoughts. She was certain that she didn't miss any physical wounds, but this didn't mean that the young girl was alright. She wanted to know in what state of mind Shepard was in. Partly to make sure that she didn't have to go back and make an example out of those idiots.

"I'm fine." Shepard automatically replied, physically she was fine but she still had to process what had almost happened.

Selene had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. Teenagers are 'always' fine. Fortunately Eve has long since passed that phase. She thought mildly irritated, perhaps under other circumstances she would have admired Shepard's composure but right now it only harmed the girl more than she already was. Selene didn't want her to be all alone with these dark thoughts that were undoubtedly plaguing her mind. Though she knew that if she tried to press the girl on the subject she would only be met with aggression.

Her observation would undoubtedly amuse Michael. "Where others get defensive you get aggressive." He had told her more than once fondly, not that she could disagree with him, she was well aware that she usually solved problems by facing them head on or if possible by shooting them until they stopped being problematic. Internally she weighed her options, she could wait for Michael so that he could take care of this emotional turmoil that clearly resided within the human teenager or she could do something herself.

Selene had never been one to simply wait around and wait for something to happen, she preferred it to make things happen. So she would help Shepard the only way she knew how to. She knew that Michael would approve, both had seen the potential in the girl, the potential to become something greater than a street thug, and unlike many of her peers she hadn't succumbed to the harsh environment. She did what she had to do to survive, not because she enjoyed it or because she had become resigned to her fate, she did it to survive long enough to get out of this hellhole.

"Come with me." She ordered Shepard who followed her numbly. Selene led the teenager into the small training room they had prepared. Usually only Selene used it, and occasionally Michael but never before had an outsider entered it. She turned towards her latest patient. "Attack me."

"What?" Shepard asked confused, unable to fathom why the doctor, nurse or whatever she really was wanted her to attack her.

Well at least that got a reaction out of her. Selene thought dryly, before she decided to clarify things. "I am going to train you." Selene stated as if it should be obvious, and to the vampiress it was. Said vampire saw Michael grin at her through the open doorway and knew he understood her. Perhaps even better than she understood herself, he probably thought that she helped the young human because she could see some of herself in her. And he probably was right, not that she would admit that outloud.

"You want me to attack you?" Shepard asked slowly as if she couldn't believe what was going on, and truthfully she didn't. She already knew that she was no match for the black clad woman but after a brief hesitation attacked her anyway.

As expected Shepard never stood a chance and felt utterly humiliated by the ease with which the older woman had picked her blunt, charging attack apart. Selene for her part had learned some things about the humans fighting style, which did nothing to impress her. No technique, no skill, only fast and hard attacks that were utterly predictable for any experienced combatant. She spent the next two hours showing Shepard various ways to defend herself such as breaking free of a chokehold and told her new charge time and time again that should she ever find herself in a tight spot she shouldn't hesitate in hurting her enemies, even if it meant crippling them permanently.

After sending the wide eyed human to bed she turned towards Michael and signaled him to follow her. She wasted no time in closing the bedroom door and turning towards him. "What do you think?"

"I think this girl needs all the help she can get, but we both know that we can't exactly help her to get out of this mess." Michael told her truthfully, before he began to smile. "But I think we both know someone who can."

Selene smiled back, she knew exactly whom her husband had in mind. She activated her omni-tool and contacted an old friend. They had first met him on Shanxi and he was one of the few human friends the pair had who were aware of what they were. It didn't take him long to accept the connection, though both immortals could see his surprise of being contacted by them after all this time. Selene smiled slightly at the stunned human. "Hello David, it's been a long time."

Author Notes:

Nomad-117: First I would like to apologize to all of you who had hoped for a sequel of my Blood and Bones story. I plan to continue that one too, but I am afraid that I am simply horrible with focusing on a singular story. So it will probably take a while before I upload again. Secondly I hope that you all enjoyed this one. Reviews are always appreciated.