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Nichole Rene
Agent of S.C.O.R.P.I.O.
Player: @As I Fade to Black
SCORPIO Intel
Division:	Spec-Ops
Rank:	Private
Origin/AT:	Natural/Defender
Security Level:	Classified
Agent Personal Data
Real Name:	Nichole Allison Rene
Known Aliases:	"Doc"
Species:	Human
Age:	28
Height/Weight:	5'4"/147lbs
Eye/Hair Color:	Blue/Auburn
Citizenship:	American citizenship, officially deceased
Current Residence:	Steel Canyon, Paragon City, RI
Marital Status:	Single
Known Relatives:	Clarence Rene (brother, deceased)
Known Powers
N/A
Training / Abilities
Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman (Navy)
Equipment
• S.C.O.R.P.I.O. uniform • Wrist comm unit • Head-Up Display, or "HUD" • MediPort beacon • M4A1 Carbine with M26 MASS • M-45 MEUSOC pistol • Mark 3 Knife, • Various medical gear
Footnotes

Summary

Petty Officer Second Class Nichole Rene was a Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman with Reconnaissance and Surveillance Platoon, Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, assigned to the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Along with five others, she was chosen by Vanguard for a Top Secret mission, the details of which are only recently coming to light. A placard bearing her name and rank can be found at the Vanguard One Memorial, located in the Rikti War Zone.

Personality

Above all else, Nichole was a compassionate person, who always put the needs of others above her own. It was said the she would gladly have "walked through the very gates of Hell" in order to tend to the wounded, a phrase not doubted by those who survived because of her efforts. Nichole was also exceptionally intelligent, and often became bored by a lack of challenging tasks. She was happiest when her intellect was stimulated, and devoted herself wholeheartedly into anything she set her mind on. Well-known for her intense focus, and a perfectionist to a fault, she always sought better and more efficient ways of accomplishing her goals.

Her sense of humor was well-loved by her peers and almost anyone she came across, and even during the most dire of times she could be relied on to brighten up the situation. Consequently, she rarely took herself seriously, the exception being on the battlefield or when tending to a patient. There she was an entirely different person, completely absorbed in her work and in getting the job done. None can argue her with medical proficiency, nor her absolute determination to save lives.

Early Life

Nichole was born in a small town on the outskirts of Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a population of just under 3,500. Her father had been in the Air Force for longer than she or her mother could remember, and as a consequence she had called base after base her home. Her older brother Clarence was also in the military, although her family rarely discussed the subject. It wasn't until after his death that she discovered he was a Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman for the Navy SEALs.

Like her brother, she expressed an early interest in medicine. While on leave, Clarence would often sit patiently while Nichole played "Doctor," and in more than one family portrait she can be seen holding her plastic stethoscope. She briefly became smitten by poetry in high school, although she never lost focus of her true goal: becoming a surgeon.

She was overjoyed when she received a full-ride scholarship to a big city Medical School. The following year she began classes, having been seen off by her older brother before he finished his leave. Her academic coursework provided little challenge, and she believed that she would be finish her internship in no time at all. In fact, she was fast-tracked by her attending physician to begin her residency; however, during her first exposure to the Emergency Room, Nichole was struck by abject terror. Although many tried, no one could talk her into entering again.

Returning home, Nichole was beset by depression, convinced that she would never do anything productive with her life. It was her brother who finally talked her into joining the Navy, a decision she made reluctantly.

Military Career

Growing up in a military family, Nichole became acquainted with military drill and structure from an early age. Although expressing little interest in enlisting herself, she idolized her brother Clarence, and the stories he would tell her when he came home on leave. While her parents warned him about "corrupting" her impressionable mind, Nichole's curiosity was insatiable.

The news of her brother's death was the catalyst that began her military career. Determined to finish his work, she set out to learn everything that he had. She promised to honor his memory, by any means necessary; that included joining the Navy, the first of many decisions her parents frowned upon. From there her military career is a testament to her ingenuity and intellectual determination. She remains the only woman to train for and complete the Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman course, earning several medals for distinguished service along the way.

It was her medical proficiency that led to her recruitment into the "Vanguard One Operation," and although her role remains unknown, she is memorialized by a momument in the Rikti War Zone, her remains never having been recovered.

Basic Training

Nichole signed up as a sailor shortly after her 20th birthday, and reported for boot camp at Naval Station Great Lakes. For the most part her experience was ordinary; she took to military drill and seamanship easily, and found little challenge in her day-to-day exercises. It was only her courses in First Aid and marksmanship that interested her in the least, and she relished any chance she could get to hone her skills.

It wasn't long before her Recruit Division Commander took notice, and reported his findings to the commanding officer. When approached, Nichole recounted her experiences as a young girl and medical student. Impressed by her background and current talent, the commanding officer made special preparations for her to receive training as a Navy Hospital Corpsman, which she initially (but respectfully) declined. However, as she completed her 8-week basic training and found herself without alternatives, she reluctantly took him up on his offer.

Corpsman Training

Nichole began her training at Naval Hospital Corps School in Great Lakes, Illinois. Having been witness to the hectic life-or-death struggles of the Emergency Room, she seriously doubted her ability to perform under pressure. Despite her initial misgivings, she soon took to the courses with single-minded focus, determined to do the best she could. Beginning with the principles of basic patient care, she soon progressed into disease prevention, emergency medical treatment, and advanced trauma care.

It was the last skill that put her at the top of her class, a fact not lost on her instructors. While most lost their nerve during the simulated combat exercises, Nichole instead became unusually calm, completing her assignment with a level of skill not seen in entry-level recruits. As the weeks went on, she found herself more often than not in positions of leadership, demonstrating the proper way of conducting oneself to her peers.

With graduation nearing, Nichole found herself at the top of every class, both in grades and proficiency. It became exceedingly apparent that her skills, while accomplished by their own right, were again far beneath her potential. Once more her commanding officer, having personally watched her progression through the courses, interceded on her behalf.

Putting aside his own reputation, he recommended her for Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman training, a position no woman living or dead had ever filled. After much controversy and a hard-fought legal battle, an unprecedented decision was made to allow the young woman a chance to prove herself; should she fail, however, the blowback would likely cost both of their careers.

SARC Training

Nichole had found her challenge; beginning with the Field Medical Training Battalion East in Camp Lejune, North Carolina, she had her first of many encounters with the Marines she would eventually serve next to. While training for her Field Medical Service Technician qualification, she received specialized training in advanced emergency medicine, while simultaneously learning the ins-and-outs of life in the Marine Corps. Of particular emphasis was physical conditioning through rigorous exercises, familiarity with small arms, and basic battlefield tactics, all of which she took to like a proverbial duck to water.

Her training at Field Medical Service School the following year molded her into a "Doc" suitable enough for the Fleet Marine Force, and for seven agonizing, rifle-toting, blister-breaking weeks Nichole was face-down in the Carolina mud, proving herself worthy to her fellow Marines. She often finished her day utterly exhausted and covered with unspeakable filth, but it was nothing short of worth it in her eyes, and in the eyes of her peers. It was during her experience there that she learned how to disregard her own personal safety for the sake of a downed Marine, a trait that stuck with her until the end.

The day had finally arrived for Nichole to begin Special Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsman training. Having served two rotations with her Marines, she was sent to a Marines Awaiting Reconnaissance Training platoon in Camp Pendelton, California. There she was subjected to constant exercises and training, and scrutinized for any signs of weakness. As the only woman ever to pass through their halls, she was the subject of constant ridicule and derision, although her grades soon left critics in her wake.

Easily passing the screening criteria, her next assignment was to pass Basic Reconnaissance, a 13-week course that introduced her to the amphibious reconnaissance environment. Day and night Nichole learned how to operate far behind enemy lines, often without sleep. Her courses included surveillance and reconnaissance skills, field sketching, and insertion and extraction techniques, in addition to more specialized parachutist and combat diving qualifications. All told, she received training in just about every course offered, from advanced radio communications to over-the-horizon warfare, and every skill in between.

Graduation saw her at the top of her class, the elitist of the elite in her field. Although her family was noticeably absent, everyone from her Recruit Division Commander, to the Marines she'd met in training, and of course her commanding officer were in attendance. For the first time in years Nichole allowed herself to cry, knowing that she had finally accomplished something in her life.

The Rikti War

Petty Officer Second Class Nichole Rene found herself state-side, on leave in Steel Canyon, when the initial Rikti invasion began. Grabbing her sidearm, she and a handful of civilians ran for shelter inside the Steel Canyon Medical Center. Almost immediately, casualties began pouring through the front doors, and helicopters that had braved the fighter-strewn skies began landing on the hospital helipad. Although initially reminded of her experiences in the Emergency Room, she shook off her doubts and began emergency trauma care on the Heroes lined up in the hallways.

Hundreds of patients that entered the hospital that night were gone by daybreak, though the handful that had been put before Nichole managed to somehow survive. Fighting was still street-to-street as daylight broke over the decimated horizon, and the outlook appeared grim. Determined to hold her position no matter the cost, she borrowed a sniper rifle from the local armory, and took up overwatch the hospital roof.

Joining Vanguard

As day turned to night, Nichole finally had a chance to relax. She had done all that she could for the supers in the hospital, although she would still turn the events of the last 24 hours over and over again in her mind, looking for any mistakes that she'd made. As she relaxed in the lobby, she found herself approached by representatives of the newly-formed Vanguard, who presented her with an offer: a classified joint-operation mission deep into enemy territory, with the aid of super-powered Heroes. Nichole had never so much as seen a super before arriving in Steel Canyon, and she was naturally suspicious of the people dressed in head-to-toe black. However, they would need someone like her; with that in mind, she agreed.

The following 48 hours were a blur, being whisked from a black SUV to a black helicopter, and from one bunker into the next. She found herself in a darkened room with five other men and women, whom she guessed knew no more than she did. Three of the five were military of some sort or other, while the others had no obvious uniforms to mark them as such. She took an educated guess that they were the supers she'd been told about, and smirked despite herself.

All six stood in silent contemplation as the minutes ticked by, while Nichole tried to imagine what the situation was like topside. Distantly she could hear the dampened rumble of artillery of some kind, and the hum of the Rikti fighters that ran constant patrols over the city. After what felt like forever, she was startled out of her thoughts by the sound of approaching footsteps. She and the three others snapped to attention as the door opened, while the two supers made an effort to look like they hadn't been bored to tears a moment before.

The woman they would come to know as Lady Grey stood in front of them, a bevy of Vanguard personnel crowding into the room behind her. She regarded each of them with shrewd eyes, before finally speaking. "I have a mission for you, guys. You six are going to save the world."

The Mission

The mission was deceptively simple; Nichole and the rest of the team, codenamed Vanguard One, would act as an advance boarding party for Omega Team, and secure a position on the surface of the Rikti Homeworld. Of course, it was infinitely more difficult, and a guaranteed suicide mission. But then again, it hadn't been the first suicide mission she'd been assigned to. And with that in mind, Nichole signed her life away on the dotted line--as did everyone else in the room.

Vanguard One would have 24 hours to prepare, before insertion into the tenuous portal between the worlds. They would be free to write letters home, if they so chose, which most of them chose to. In an equally dark room towards the rear of the Compound, Vanguard One and the Omega Team met for the first (and possibly last) time. The moment was oddly uneventful, as each side shook hands and exchanged pleasantries. For having nearly 60 people in the room, one could have heard a pin drop...

(To be continued, hence the stub classification.)

Her Death

Joining S.C.O.R.P.I.O.