He stood their immobilised as a part of the group noticed him and became fairly hostile. "Hey, You There! Stop!" One lady yelled at him pointing a crossbow at his head. This caused a dapper looking man to assemble a sort of spear and approach Phil. "I Would advise not to piss any of us off at the moment buddy" The man said to him in an intimidating tone. "Lay down your weapon. I Will not ask twice" said the lady with the crossbow. Phil calmly let go of the dagger which quickly dissipated back into energy. "Who are you and what do you want?" another lady from the group said. Phil said plainly "My name is Phillip, or Phil for short and I only approached this cave because I saw a lot of light and energy erupt from here. Who are you all anyway? I don't want any trouble" He said this in acknowledgement of the darkness around him which would affect what he can do.

Wolgran

"Let him be..."
Said Wolgran, in a slightly sad tone, with a hint of uncaring.
"He is a Lux Hygron. He came here for the same reason all of you have." He paused here.
"Destiny and fate can seem quite humorous at times, now you are a complete Hygron group again. Come with me Phil, I will explain everything to you, why you're here and what the purpose of your powers are, after which you can help yourself to any Zar you wish. And then hopefully you will all set off together,"This he said looking at all the other Hygrons in a slightly angry tone.
"because you were supposed to leave in the morning. This morning, and not tomorrow. I swear to you that you will not spend another night here. I will throw you out myself if i have to!" With that he walked towards the fireplace, but noticed another small patch of burned grass. He sighed and muttered to himself.
"I will have so many more problems with these youngsters..." he reached towards the charred earth, where plants started magically sprouting from. He then turned to Phil.
"What are you waiting for? They won't hurt you, they're on your side, trust me. And put down your weapons all of you."

Beau watched as all gave their five-cents worth in an attempt to help the cause. Beau smiled noticing that all of them, including himself, seemed to be getting along much better, much more peacefully than he would have thought possible last night. He listened intently as the fire elemental with the bow introduced himself and presented a logical, reasonable plan, a thing he hadn't expected from the hot headed individual. Also the quiet girl whom Wolgran had addressed as Fauna the night before, spoke up and offered herself as bait, throwing down a gauntlet that was picked up by Shida, though he wasn't entirely sure the electrician comment made by Shida was meant in good humor, he didn't take offense, he had often been an electrician, so, whatever man. This was wonderful, they already had people dedicated enough to be bait, though if the plan worked the way it was supposed to work, they would not even need bait, as giant tornados of fire.......

Beau suddenly noticed a presence in the corner of his eye, there was a strange man standing at the mouth of the cave, wielding a dagger seemingly made of solid light, he struck and interesting silhouette, painted against the sky as he was, various people reacted, all suspiciously, but upon opening his mouth, Old Man Riverguardian calmed the fears of those around him, and of the newcomer himself it seemed, it was then that the old man began to get angry, veins popped in his head, his beard seemed to grow multiple inches, and the volume of his voice was almost as thunderous as Beau himself could be, it was a terrefing sight, made even more so by the knowledge that he would kick them out of Nature's Haven.

Beau chuckled after the moment of silence that folllowed the old man's tirade. Father Time was absolutely right, they should get going, it was just that no one had ever accused him of not moving fast enough before, it was refreshing. So Beau, turning his face from the old man's and looking around and what was happening, In the brief quiet of the cave that followed the old man's departure, Beau stood up and spoke "The old janitor is right, We should get moving, we can discuss our plans on the way there if we have to, but I think we have a decent one already layed out, if we don't leave soon it's possible that we won't make it to Riverdale at all tonight" and with that he picked up his staff and headed for the cave exit, reaching where the New guy was standing Beau held out his hand in good faith "I'm Beau, Lightning elemental, Pleased ta meetcha Phil"

Shida heard the old mans speech, he seemed very worried but his words fell together strangely. Shida wondered for a moment if he had exploded into fire, another fire elemental might come and take his place.. just like a scab walking across a picket line. He decided he'd rather not find out. Everyone was ready to leave, Shida was going to miss this place, but he knew he'd come back. There was a feeling you got when you were setting out for an ambush, you knew all the odds we're in your favor. This fight was going to be a slaughter, and Shida knew that. As long as we stick together and follow the plan, everyone will be fine..for now. But when this is over, things are going to only get worse.. he pondered a bit too long for a moment. All we have to do is adapt to our situation, and keeping these bastards guessing.. he found his strength in himself when he was most in doubt. Being in many hopeless situations can mold a person to do that, again and again.

One thing was beginning to bother him though. He was worried about Aerilyn. He remembered that when she was snapping at him earlier, he noticed a strong breeze come on, he thought it may just have been a coincidence.. but maybe she had less control over her powers than he'd originally thought. He became worried about the plan, their success in saving the lives of the people there depended on Cora and her mostly. Shida thought to himself.. If all this goes to hell, there wont be any place that is safe from us releasing all of our powers all at once.. I wont know who is who.. I don't even know if i'll still be me after this..

Shida hid most things from the others so far, just like everyone else in his old life. He got people to like him by putting on a show, like wearing a mask, or doing a magic trick, pretending away even to himself what he was really thinking.. Along with being able to survive on his own for the last few years, he was entirely indifferent to ending another persons life. He knew that his new friends.. would not like the side of him they were inevitably going to see out there.. To Shida.. killing was killing, it didn't matter who it was, or why. It was all the same animal, the same feeling, the same sickness. Men turned into beasts, and all it takes is for one man to be desperate enough for something to to kill another to get it.. For a woman to end another persons life, however, she has to be strong. Men.. we just have to be greedy enough to do it, and it isn't hard, it's almost as easy as picking an apple from a tree. Some men use justice as an excuse, Shida was one of those men at heart.. but he was always self-aware enough not to blabber on about it. Beau broke the silence of his thoughts, Shida almost felt like thanking him, he could get lost in a way sometimes, and he felt his flame flickering in and out. His expression changed from almost maliciously dark, to normal, abrasive Shida.

"I'm with Beau, and new guy.. I'm putting you on the team with Aerilyn, Cora and Beau. The man you just met, you are to follow his lead and judgement for now, and as well as protect Aerilyn and Cora, with your life. Shida gave him a glare, "I don't know you, but I have no choice but to trust you, you can obviously fight somehow if you ended up here. Do your powers even work in the night time anyways?"

Phil relaxed a little as the old man said in a tired tone "Let him be". The man continued with "He is a Lux Hygron. He came here for the same reason all of you have." which intrigued Phil. This man knew what Phil is or has become. The old man then turned to the others with a look that could kill and threatened them to leave as soon as possible. "What are you waiting for? They won't hurt you, they're on your side, trust me. And put down your weapons all of you." the old man then said to phil. Everyone else seemed to relax a little bit. Then a man approached Phil, stuck out his hand, and said " I'm Beau, Lightning elemental, Pleased ta meetcha Phil". Phil hesitated but then shook Beau's hand firmly saying "As you heard, I'm Phil, A Light Elemental. It's a pleasure to meet you too, Beau". He then released his grip and turned to another man who approached him saying in a serious manor "I'm with Beau, and new guy.. I'm putting you on the team with Aerilyn, Cora and Beau. The man you just met, you are to follow his lead and judgement for now, and as well as protect Aerilyn and Cora, with your life." Then the man then glared at Phil, "I don't know you, but I have no choice but to trust you, you can obviously fight somehow if you ended up here. Do your powers even work in the night time anyways?". Phil gave him a relaxed look and said with a clear voice "My powers require a Light Source, Torches, Lamps, Fires. But the sun is the best source." As Phil started walking towards the old man he said in a light and optimistic manor "Nice meeting you both". When Phil reached the Old man, The Old man introduced himself briefly and started explaining what Phil was and why he had visions of Nature's Haven. He also went on to talk about an alien race, who look like humans, who have the aim of depleting the worlds Energy. Phil took this on boards surprisingly quickly. After the man was finished Phil said in politeness "Thanks for catching me up". Phil Then turned to the man who previously used the spear to "introduce" himself. "Hey" He said to the man "What's your name then? And what can you do?"

Gilfred was stunned, staring at the spot that once contained a person. Though he been able to get out of the way of the worst of it, the Aegis still shimmered around his body, almost as if it arose in response to the mass of light and not to any physical harm. As the Aegis dissipated he began to come to grips with what he had just seen. "I should have known there was a catch. There's always a catch." He though to himself, a hint of anger creeping into his internal voice, anger not at the world at himself. Anger that he couldn't have done anything except stand there and avoid the dome of light. Taking a deep breath he shook himself free of the stationary position he had kept, the others were moving on, making more plans, it was not yet time to wait and dwell.

He joined the rest, who seemed to have decided on splitting up, and causing distractions to draw out the Vygorns. Gilfred listened quietly, committing the forming plan to memory when he herd Kimberly yell out at someone. Turning to look he saw the figure of someone entering, more importantly he was entering with a knife of light. Even though he was far enough away and the others had it in hand, Gilfred's hand fell unconsciously to his sword. As the exchange progressed his grip tightened, until the old man came over and intervened. Even through the old mans terrifying display of anger Gilfred's hand remained, it stayed on the hilt of the sword until everyone had calmed, at which point it returned to his side and continued to listen as the plan unfolded. At the end of it, confident he knew what was required of himself Gilfred walked back to where he had slept and began gathering together what he brought with him to the Haven, the broken knife and a small weather worn pack, on the side of which hung a Half Respirator mask. "If we are finished planing we should head out soon. That is if we want to make the allotted time" He called over to the others, walking towards the entrance himself , pulling the Respirator Mask off of his pack. "Places to be and things to kill." he thought with a smile as he put the mask on.

Phil, that was the new Lux Hygron's name. Will immediately disassembled his spear into three pieces and walked of minding his own business. He thought about the plan for a whike, he was glad he would be with Gilfred. The synergy could become very optimal when they combined their powers. He was lost in imagination, as Gilfred would raise a metal shield infront of Will, as a beam of high pressured water burst through, like a water turret of a kind. His imagination was broken when Phil turned to him. "Hey" he said to Will. "Who are you and what can you do?"

Will turned to Phil. "Will Mason, at your service. Ex-boxer and Water Hygron" he said with a bow, taking of his hat. He looked up and put his fedora back on. "Phil right? Sorry about the spear, but as the hermit may have explained, there are people who are looking for this place, to destroy it and us. Couldn't take a chance." He looked to the other elementals. "You must understand..." he began. "Now I am a part of this group. I look out for them, and they will look out for me, like brothers" he said pointing to Gilfred when he said brothers. "You are part of this group too. We are bounded by this burden. I will look out for you too, but you must look out for us in exchange and fight by our side, deal?" He asked, turning to Phil and offering his hand.

The Man turned to Phil and said in a posh manor "Will Mason, at your service. Ex-boxer and Water Hygron". After Will took a bow, he said "Phil right? Sorry about the spear, but as the hermit may have explained, there are people who are looking for this place, to destroy it and us. Couldn't take a chance." Will looked to the other elementals. "You must understand..." He began to explain. "Now I am a part of this group. I look out for them, and they will look out for me, like brothers". He then pointed to another man and continued "You are part of this group too. We are bounded by this burden. I will look out for you too, but you must look out for us in exchange and fight by our side, deal?" he offered a handshake. "Deal" Phil Said without hesitation and shook Will's hand firmly. Will's and Phil's conversation was then interrupted by the man who Will previously pointed at. He said "If we are finished planning we should head out soon. That is if we want to make the allotted time". Phil then said "That your actual brother then?" as he started walking towards the entrance.

"Is that really your brother?" Phil asked. "Yes sir" Will replied, "Gilfred, Metal extroadinare" he added. "We'll be prepped soon Gilfred!" He yelled over to him. He turned back to Phil. "So do you consider yourself a fighter?" Will asked. "We need every fighter we can get" he thought. It was nearly time to leave and the fight between Hygrons and Vygrons would follow, as would be the either secret or not so secret war that would test them all

Ghost just watched everything unfold infront of him, he barely cared for the newcomer, and didn't much cared for the old one who died eather...
The only thing he wanted was to depart, and test out his new weapon, but for as it seems it would be taking longer than expected...
Ghost was hoping that they would have left by now, and that they would have encountered some Vygorns on the way, so that he could test out these new chains that were pushing into his own flesh, although Ghost got used to the pain, and the blood already stopped spilling, he just stood up and glanced at the group. He wasn't planing to talk, neather was he planning to tell them what to do.
He just walked towards the exit of the cave, waiting for the rest to follow and after that they could decide how to walk and where to go first, or if they truelly wished to split up... Ghost just didn't wanted to be accompanied by that Light user... He hated the light more than he hated his powers, for once the light touches this world, his powers will be useless...
Ghost sat down next to the entrance of the cave, keeping an eye on the horizon, because who knows what will await them, or if they aren't being watched already?

Will then said "Yes sir, Gilfred, Metal extraordinaire". He then replied to Gilfred "We'll Be prepared soon Gilfred". He then turned back to Phil and asked "So do you consider yourself a fighter? We need every fighter we can get". Phil said in sureness "I can do a lot as long as I am not surrounded in darkness, That's why I took so long getting here, Going by night was safer." Phil looked at the exit and saw that it was still night and then took a small sigh.

'Well, glad you're here anyways" Will replied with a smile. He looked to the table and saw the Zarz still there. He looked to Phil with glee. "C'mon, let's go get you a Zar" he said. He walked over to the table. It would be interesting to see what he would pick if anything. "A Zar is a weapon that is paired to your element, that's what the old man said." Will explained. Tsunami formed from the nearby pool and brushed itself against Will's leg. This thing is like a dog more than a wolf he thought.

"Well, glad you're here anyways" Will said, smiling at Phil, "C'mon let's find you a Zar". He then explained "A Zar is a weapon that is paired to your element, that's what the old man said". Phil walked over to the table with Will and looked at the various weapons. He took a minute to browse the table. Any weapon here, he could make anyway. Then a Blue-furred Wolf appeared next to will and brushed his leg, likely for attention. Phil gave Will a smile as the wolf acted domesticated like a tamed beast. He then turned back to the table and saw Toran, his guardian, holding a fingerless-tipped glove made of leather in his mouth. He laid it on the table and said in a grand voice "This is the most useful weapon to you, Phil". He then pushed it with his nose closer towards Phil. "How come you never come out when I want to?" Phil said in an annoyed tone. The dragon smiled and then disappeared with a burst of pure light. Phil then put on the glove, which perfectly fitted, and attempted to activate it. After shaking his hand around like a loon, he gave up. "Why this thing?" He thought aloud.

Will watched as Phil had found a glove of some sort. He chuckled as Phil waved it around and accidently said "Why this thing!?"
"You won't get anywhere like that!" Will said with a smile. "You have to focus using your powers and channel it into what you want to do. Like a ball of light or a beam of some sort. To do it, picture it and then act it." He explained. "I'll show you..." he said getting out one of his batons. "I want to infuse this with water and swing it because there's a vygorn infront of me." Will began. He raised the baton as water snaked around it, he swung it into the air with no care as the water flew of from the baton like momentum being shown. "You try it." He said gesturing to Phil.

Phil Focused on the glove, He stared at it for a moment. Then, as he clenched his hand, a ball of pure light emitted from the glove above them. Phil was amazed, and somehow knew what to do with it. Phil quickly adsorbed the ball of light through his hand and, as if he was standing under the sun itself, forged a long one-handed sword out of thin air, it seemed. He swung the sword around him and pierced the blade half way into the floor, then he easily retrieved it. He turned to Will and said in a cocky tone "Like that?" as Phil smirked at him and let the sword dissipate back into energy.

Will watched as Phil harnessed his power and formed a light sword. "Like that?" Phil said with a smirk. Will smiled "Exactly like that!" Will said applauding. He turned to the others who all seemed more than ready. He yelled across the cavern. "We should get moving as soon as possible!" He shouted cupping his hands around his mouth. Now the newcomer has learnt how to use his Zar everybody seemed combat ready on average. He hasn't seen the skills of a few others but all seemed well.

"As far as luring out the Vygrons goes, Cora, I'll take you up on that offer, as much as we appreciate your dedication, I think a large pillar of fire should do the trick."

"Beau would be welcome company, I agree." Cora nodded to Shida, feeling a slight dismissal colour her words. "Not that I'm sure why you think they need two hints of Elementals on site, but we'll need everyone for this first act. That way if anything goes amiss we have numbers with us."

Cora didn't recall someone interacting with Thema since entering the cave, so her momentary speech (the lack thereof) was intriguing. Cora assumed it was from being away from friendly people. But she confirmed her name, and told her the power Cora almost envied her for. That was, she felt, their greatest connection: Nature. Cora revered it, Thema embodied it.

Cora followed Thema's gaze to the emeralds and yellows that coloured the cave, listening. “This place, it’s very special to me. Back in Atlanta, I’m lucky if I see a weed sprout between the cracks of the pavement floor. But here, I look around and there’s life in every crevice. It can be a bit… overwhelming."

"You and I are more alike than you know. I lived in Atlanta too, actually broke into a greenery one night, took as much as I could. The look of surprise on my boyfriend's face back home was priceless." Cora chuckled, eyes oddly dim and withdrawn.

"Someone's coming." Irys bounced up from Cora's frosted palms, twirling around her head. Her crystalline appendages pulsated with light, casting pale shadows on the back wall.

Cora's gray eyes widened, glancing at Thema. "Irys says someone's intruding. But I don't know... how."

"It's Irys's sixth sense, to know and feel those close. This one, however, does not seem threatening. Just cautious."

Could have told me that waaay sooner, Irys. Cora thought back, annoyance flickering in her face. No danger, plus that may be the tactical edge we'll need.

He entered the cave, young and wide-eyed. His hair was a curious shade of white and his hand held a most intriguing dagger; it hummed with light. Cora knew what he was just from a glance. The fates that be are a darkly humorous one to send a Lux so soon.

There was a tense commotion when the Lux Hygron entered stage right. But quickly enough the other elementals also saw the lack of a threat, and the weapons and harsh words were sheathed.

Shida took charge in telling the new guy what's what. "I'm with Beau, and new guy.. I'm putting you on the team with Aerilyn, Cora, and Beau."

Shit. Hopefully he doesn't get in my way. Cora thought crossly, raising her hand in a half-wave when Shida mentioned her name to the newcomer.

While Will dabbled with the Lux Hygron's potential, the atmosphere of the cave was one of readiness. Cora, going through a final checklist in her head, filled her zipper pockets with wrapped cheese and bread. Out of the fallen seeds in the cave Cora picked a couple to tuck away in another pocket. She figured it was for good luck.

Cora picked her way back to Aerilyn, combing out the knots in her chocolate hair. She met eyes with the Air elemental, portraying a sense of coldness, irritation. All the bodies around them made her feel claustrophobic. Her best efforts to be chill only made her building temper harder to ignore. She just needed to be outside, the quiet would thaw the ice nipping at her head. In a breath, she stifled the rawness of her feelings and softened her gaze.

"Aerilyn, meet me outside. I'll be waiting down the road -- we could use a chat along the way."

She met the glances of others as she made her way out of the cave. The light of pastel-coloured gloworms led her to the barren surface world. Silence was in the night as she tilted her gaze up to the black, black sky.

She graced through the heaps of trash, slowing her pace for Aerilyn on the assumption she followed.

Cora responded to Shida's proposal about luring out the Vygorns.
"Not that I'm sure why you think they need two hints of Elementals on site, but we'll need everyone for this first act. That way if anything goes amiss we have numbers with us."

Shida gave her a funny look for a moment.. "The reason is because when people are hit by a snowstorm they hide inside and wait it out, but when they see a giant pillar of fire, they usually send their bravest to go investigate. I like your idea because they won't be so apt to running back the other direction into a snowstorm, and the villagers and workers will be safer hiding inside. Along with being able to use the village afterwards rather than destroying it completely. With both of our ideas combined I think we'll get a much cleaner result, don't you think?"

Shida had already made his way outside the cave, right after Will walked off to help out the newbie. He saw what he thought was a ghost sitting outside the cave. Looking closer, he remembered him from earlier, but he looked like he was already dead. His skin was so pale and he had that vapid look in his eye.. he seemed to barley notice him at all, a real quiet type.. Shida relaxed a little more and pulled a cigar out of his traveling jacket, he lit it up by holding his forefinger to the tip, his favorite magic trick. He also liked it because it helped blunder out the of all the trash covering the earth. Most of the time the smell of this world made him want to puke, especially since he'd been without it up his nose for the past two days. As the smoke bellowed out of his mouth across the cratered roof of the cave entrance, towards the night sky, he looked at Ghost curiously. "So, what does Donny Darko think about all of this?" he said in a mocking tone. A rhetorical question of course, but Shida has never taken more pleasure in anything besides messing with people, it was his hobby and most pleasurable pastime. Cora walked past them and they locked eyes for a moment. He thought she made a face like her head was about to implode. When she got far enough away, he looked back at Ghost and whispered across to him, gesturing at Cora's back. "She's the kind of girl who'll tie you up and make you call her mommy, I can tell just by that look in her eye. You know what I'm talking about dont'cha?"

Aerilyn looked to Cora and when the girl told her to meet her outside, she knew that it was to discuss the plans and also make sure to come up with enough backups that they wouldn't have to back down from this first fight. She could see it going either very, very well--or terribly wrong. Most likely the latter of the two. With a nod in the icy girl's direction, she made sure that her eyes told the girl that she completely understood and would do whatever it took to give it her all. Even though I have no idea how to even begin using my own Element to my advantage... She thought and a look of sadness passed over her face for only a few moments before returning to the expression of disembodiment.

Suddenly she smelled something strange and knew that it was a cigar. She'd smelled plenty of them, having been a servant to a rich family who attended many galas, balls, and dinner parties. Breathing the smoke of it in didn't harm her lungs. At least, it hadn't, until just recently. It had been a couple of months ago when she started feeling strange, as if she were lighter and more agile. She had "become like the wind" as her parents liked to put it. That's when she'd been promoted to the bodyguard of the rich family's child rather than the babysitter. They had believed that she would be quick enough to block a bullet from being put through the kid's skull. Of course, they hadn't been the brightest lightbulbs in the package, but never in a million years did she think that they would try and kill her simply because she was less-than-human. Her right hand throbbed at the memory of the bullet piercing her hand, shattering bone, and then going through the child's head. The fingers in her right hand were still stiff and flexing them was a chore. They said that I deserved to lose more than my right hand... now look at me, gradually regaining the strength that had been lost. It'll become stronger, so that this hand may punish them for putting me down. Despite her brave thoughts, she tried to clench her right hand completely, but it wouldn't, and it made her feel ashamed--weak, even.

She didn't even look over at Shida as he spoke of Cora as she walked back. She attempted to flick her right hand, summoning a small amount of energy that she had managed to delve out of her spirit, but instead of summoning a small breeze to put his cigar out-- she blew it from his mouth completely. It landed in a puddle several feet away. She turned and looked at it in amazement, a look of excitement breaking her facade of no emotion, even managing to make her smile a little bit. She then looked back at Shida and Ghost, who had been talking, and returned to her original, emotionless state. "Sorry... I..." But she never finished before she made her way to the entrance to the waste. Why should she apologize? It would make her look weak. Glancing over her shoulder at the rest, she nodded, before entering the waste once again.

Her regular walking speed was faster than most people's, but it still made her seem casual and uncaring. She caught up to Cora and Skyff landed on her shoulder. "Shall we wait for Beau and Phillip?"

Shida was looking directly at Ghost, about to burst out with laughter from the blank expression on Ghost's face. He decided after trying to bond with him by telling him his own personal joke, he'd be better off picking on somebody else for the rest of the journey. Suddenly, his cigar seemed to flick right out from between his fingers, grazing the edge of his lip; it flew away jumping everything in it's path but a large puddle on the rocky floor of the cave. His face twisted in confusion, and his shaggy hair tickled the top of his forehead.. "What in the..?" His eyes woke up from the possessed cigar. He then saw Aerilyn goggling in front of him, she was smiling but looking guilty at the same time, then her expression dimmed to a cheeky half smile.. "Sorry... I..." Shida looked at her for a moment; even more confused, and she turned and walked away. As he watched her walk off, his mind was completely blank in the first time farther back than he could remember. He turned back to look at Ghost, who was looking at him without a singular glimpse of emotion, much less shared curiosity, he almost seemed to be sighing.. He turned to look back at Aerilyn, he then began to realize... After a momentary pause, Shida looked to the others around him, few of them were looking at him and chuckling among themselves. This only confirmed his suspicions, That woman.. Shida resonated, and began to grow somewhat frustrated. I will definitely get her back after this..

Shida abruptly left the company of the others exiting through the entrance of the cave, and then began walking at a normal pace. As he passed Cora and Aerilyn he pulled another cigar out of his jacket pocket. That cigar was worth well over twenty-five dollars, damn her.. He grumbled to himself as he glared at Aerilyn. As he lit his new cigar, he then began to mull over about ways that he could embarrass her, although most of the ways he ended up thinking of would only come off as very perverted he realized.. I may have a problem.. he said to himself.. ashamed at the lack of his imagination.