Author's Note: This is a semi-crossover with Assassin's Creed in the sense that Shepard's training and the Order itself is based off the Assassin's Creed games. There are some hints that Mass Effect falls into the same universe and there will be references to events within the AC games. However, you don't need to know the AC games to understand the story. Enjoy!

"Rejected! What do you mean I was rejected?" Hackett could hear it in her voice as she did her best to contain the anger and having little success.

Captain Hackett's office on Arcturus Station was small, he was still getting used to the new posting after spending most of his time in space. He had felt honored; he was on track to commanding the Arcturus Fleet. His current job, though, was not something he expected to deal with.

Before him, the small frame of Elizabeth Shepard sat shaking. She held the end of the long braid of her red hair, a leftover from her farm-girl days. The fire in her eyes made the green almost seem to glow as the fury threatened to overtake her. He understood her anger, he had all but assured her that the Alliance would accept her as an N7 recruit. He had stood before the board and told of her bravery on Mindoir, her determination as she caught up with the necessary educational and physical requirements to join the Alliance and her accomplishments during the initial screening phase. Her scores in the areas of command, combat and the near perfect sniping score had him convinced she would be accepted.

Then the psych report made its way to their table.

A long sigh escaped his lips, "I'm sorry Shepard, I wish I had better news."

He watched as a thousand questions crossed her pale face. Her head snapped up and she locked eyes with him, "Why?"

Hackett pushed the data pad with the report across the desk towards her and laced his fingers together. He had read the report the psychiatrist had sent him. It was bullshit. None of the statements against the batarians Shepard had made would've raised red flags with him and her mental state when it came to the trauma she had endured from losing her family showed him that she was handling it well. "It was the psychiatric report. They had concerns."

He could see her eyes dart from side to side as she scanned the information. A look of disbelief slowly formed, "They think I'm going to take revenge against the batarians?"

"You did say if you were able to you would hunt them down." He knew he would've said the same thing if he was in her position.

"I would never do that!" The sound of her voice echoed through the office. He saw her shoulders fall as she leaned back into her chair, "I mean, yeah...I want the ones who attacked my home killed but I wouldn't actively go looking for them.

"I know you wouldn't, but they weren't convinced." Hackett got up from his seat and walked around his desk, leaning against it. He took the data pad from her. "Your hostilities towards the psychiatrist and the threatening statements didn't help your case. You can still enlist in the Alliance, see a shrink, "she snorted her displeasure at the idea, "and try again for N7 training."

Shepard got up quickly and walked towards the window away from him, "And do what? Groundside postings?"

"There's also shipboard postings." He walked over towards her and put a hand on her shoulder, "I know it's not the Special Forces but it's still the Alliance. You'll still be defending humanity."

She shrugged his hand off her shoulder, "Groundside or shipboard, it doesn't matter. Those are both reactionary to the problem. They don't prevent attacks, N7 does. How can I truly protect colonies when they're already being hit?"

Hackett ran his hands over his tired face, he knew she was right. Shepard needed a more proactive roll, offensive not defensive. If she didn't get the right job they would lose her as a valuable asset. She needed direction, focus; she needed a way to channel her anger and energy in a more positive way. A thought began to form, one he was sure was the best alternative for her.

"I'm sorry Elizabeth, it's the best I can offer." He couldn't let his hand show just yet. He already failed her in making one promise; he wouldn't make the same mistake again.

"Fuck you. I'll find another way." Hackett watched her turn and storm out the door. He would make it right by her, he would see to it that she would get the absolution she felt she needed for Mindoir.

Hackett typed in the encryption commands and waited as his transmission connected. He knew this was the best option for her, though maybe not the best moral option. At least it wasn't a merc band, which was the direction he was sure she meant. The beep on his terminal let him know that he had connected. A few more codes and a shadowy figure appeared on his screen, "Captain Hackett, how may we be of service?"

"I need to speak with The Mentor. I may have a recruit for him, someone with a lot of potential." He just hoped he wasn't making a mistake.

Elizabeth Shepard had wandered aimlessly through one of Arcturus' busy market districts. She didn't want to return to the group home where she had been staying for the past year and a half since the attack of her home.

Rejected.

The word rolled through her head as if on a broken record. No matter how hard she tried to think beyond that one word, it always came back to the forefront of her mind. She wished she could go back and change her statements to the shrink. But the damned woman had poked and prodded her, not believing she was so well adjusted after undergoing such a trauma.

Elizabeth credited Captain Hackett with that. He had been the one to get through to her as she aimed her rifle at the officers who had finally arrived to help, while she was unable to distinguish friend from foe. He was the one who had promised an Alliance burial for her brother after he found out how much Finn wanted to be an Alliance officer. He was the one who helped her reconnect with reality, pulling her from the fog of despair and guiding her along the path to channel her energies into something good. Guiding her towards the Alliance and N7 training. She was going to save the galaxy one human colony at a time.

All that was lost thanks to one dumb bitch who wouldn't recommend her for N7 training because of some emotional outbursts.

Stupid cow, I should have punched her in the face when I had the chance. Elizabeth smiled at the thought, finding some catharsis in imaging the woman with a broken and bloodied nose. The feeling was short lived. In the end, she still wasn't going into the N7s.

Rejected.

Elizabeth found a bench further away from the busy walkways but still in the middle of the action. She wanted to watch people, it helped her think. This particular district was one of the safest due to is close proximity to the Alliance Headquarters. Most people in sight were officers; on leave, on break or just going from one office to another. She had expected to be among them in a few months, wearing the crisp uniforms and defending humanity. Now she felt lost and angry, looking at the officers made her start to hate them.

Sure, there was enlisting in the Alliance and maybe she'd get a shipboard posting. Chances were, though, that she would be part of some garrison on a colony charged with defending it if it was attacked. IF…Most colonies were secure, it was the rare few, like Mindior, that weren't. She wouldn't see much combat and she certainly wouldn't be making any kind of difference to stop attacks in the first place. No, she needed to be N7 and she had the skills to do it.

Just not the mental state apparently. Elizabeth felt her anger rise again.

Oh hell, maybe I'll join a merc band. Then I can do...something. The idea didn't sit well with her but it seemed her only option. At least then...who knows.

Her omni-tool beeped indicating she had received a message. Typing a few commands brought up the message:

Shepard,

Meet me at The Florentine Eagle in one hour.

I have a third option.

-H

It was oddly cryptic, the message was listed as an unknown sender and encrypted but it was obviously from Captain Hackett. Elizabeth brought up a map on her screen, showing her where the place was. It was some distance by foot but she had time.

What could be so secret about this "third option" that he picked a place so far from Alliance Headquarters and sent an untraceable message? Her curiosity peaked, Elizabeth headed for the location.

Elizabeth walked into the dark Italian diner, it reminded her of one of those mob family fronts from the vids she and Grandpa Joe would watch after her mom would go to bed. She picked a booth with the best view of the door and waited. The waitress seemed to be annoyed that Elizabeth only wanted water and the free, stale bread sticks. Elizabeth didn't care.

She was beginning to getting impatient waiting for Hackett to show up. Elizabeth was never one to just wait around, she needed to always be doing something. Probably why I always got into trouble at home, she mused.

Just as she was about to leave, a shadow passed over her. Elizabeth turned around to see Hackett looming over her, "Sorry, there were arrangements that needed to be made." Hackett took the seat across from her.

"How the hell did you get in here without me noticing?" She didn't bother hiding the shock in her voice.

Hackett gave a small smile, "Trade secret."

Elizabeth wasn't fully satisfied with the answer but from the look on his face she wasn't going to get a better one. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back, her standard defensive posture. "So, what kind of 'arrangements' were being made?"

"I believe I have a way for you to gain the training you want and the focus you need outside of the Alliance."

Elizabeth blinked, not quite believing what he had said. Her mind rolled through his statement trying to figure out exactly what he was proposing, "Outside the Alliance, what does that mean?"

Hackett sighed, she could see he was trying to figure out how to explain exactly what he was talking about. There was something very odd about the whole thing. "They are a group of highly trained specialists who have sworn themselves to be...protectors of free will. They don't follow the same rules we do, they have their own code which dictates their way of life. They can handle things outside of Alliance jurisdiction that we cannot touch."

There was a long pause between them. 'They' sounded like mercs and Elizabeth was getting annoyed at how cryptic Hackett was being. While she had been contemplating joining a merc band, it surprised her that he would suggest the same thing. Shaking her head, she finally said, "This sounds like a whole lotta bullshit to me, Captain."

"I know, but trust me with this."

"They sound like mercs. Thought you would want me on the straight and narrow." she challenged.

She could see the hints of frustration pass over his face, "They're not mercs. I'm sorry that I can't go into more detail. I'll leave that to them to explain what they do and why they do it in more detail."

"So you're just passing me off to some other group? Get me out of your hair because you dropped the ball?" Bitterness dripped from her voice.

"Look," Hackett leaned forward and she saw an intensity in his eyes that she found hard to pull away from. His air of command caused her to sit up straighter like she was one of his officers and she listened carefully, " I know your potential and the Alliance was wrong for rejecting you for N7 training. You're right, ground side or ship board, you would be at a waste. This way you can be proactive in protecting humanity. And," his eyes locked on hers, "you may finally find peace and stop blaming yourself for the loss of your family."

Elizabeth opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it. She tore her eyes away, unable to look at him any further. Quietly she asked, "What do I do?"

Hackett took out a transport ticket from his jacket and pushed it across the table. She picked it up with unsteady hands. "There is a transport heading for Intai'sei tomorrow morning. That is your ticket to get onboard. On this," he pulled out an OSD and handed it to her, "is the rest of your instructions: what to take, where to go on Intai'sei and who to meet." Elizabeth took the OSD and slipped it into her omni-tool. "I know this isn't the direction you thought your life would go in but sometimes you just have to go with the unexpected turns."

Slowly, Elizabeth raised her eyes back up to Hackett's, "Okay, I'll be on that transport."

"Good. Send me a message as soon get there and we'll see what happens next." Hackett got up from his seat and started towards the door.

"Captain," he stopped and looked down at her, "Thanks, for everything." Hackett patted her on the shoulder and left.

Elizabeth readjusted the duffel bag on her shoulder for the nth time that morning. The docking bay was busy even at this early hour and Elizabeth had done her best not to get lost. It took her the better part of an hour to find her transport and now she was just waiting for security to move faster so she could board. Nervous energy had kept her up all night and now it was the only thing keeping her going.

After a long wait, she had finally reached the security agent. Elizabeth handed the agent her ticket, ID and answered the standard security questions: name, destination, reason for travel, has your bag been with your person at all times?

The questions seemed never ending but Elizabeth had finally managed to get through the gate. She took one last look around then stepped on board.