Throughout the fortress of Stonewall, an announcement rings. "Would the following people please report to Phoebe Miller's office." The announcement is followed by a list of names, including yours, and then cuts off. Immediately your personal communicator blips, and a message from System appears giving you the shortest route.
As you enter the spacious office, you notice two things. The first is the red haired girl talking quietly with Phoebe, and the second being that Phoebe seemed almost humble when talking to her, an emotion you didn't know the leader of Stonewall could have until now. You're told to take a seat until everyone arrives, and once you're all gathered Phoebe turns to you.

"Let's get right to business." she says, once more the figure of ultimate authority. "Each of you has been chosen for your unique talents to participate in a mission which, if successful, might mark the beginning of the end of this war." A holographic display flickered to life above her desk, showing a map of the world with all 8 major strongholds on it. "This group will be making it's way around the world, visiting each stronghold on the way and learning what they can from there. The goal of this mission is to train each of you into an elite team, and if successful you will be taking your orders directly from the Council. For now you'll be taking orders from this woman here and her partner." She indicated the redhead briefly before continuing. "Your first destination is Glassmine stronghold, to the north. There's a Sandcrawler ready for you at the northern tunnel, which will take you out of the storm. Are there any questions before you leave?"

Gaius looked up from the tome he had been reading at the mention of his name, his brow furrowing in thought. He thought he had gone relatively under the radar, being neither a great leader of men nor fantastically powerful like many of those at the fortress, not to mention that his power was limited to sheer force at that moment.

"It's probably the name." He muttered as he carefully closed the book and returned it to the shelf he had found it on. While Gaius was proud of his heritage, particularly that of Julius who was perhaps the most famous member of his family, he resented the expectation placed upon him because of it. Despite attempts to stamp out the man's legacy his name was widely known and he heard it whispered in awe here and there and that gave him the drive to work on his own powers. He knew that he had a better mastery of his powers than Julius had had at the age of sixteen but he was also aware that his forebear had had two powers whereas Gaius only had one; he would have to be extra careful in battle.

Having arrived in the room Gaius saw the young-looking redheaded girl. Somehow she looked familiar to him but he could not quite place her; as if he had seen her from the corner of his eye several times before. Shaking the feeling he took a seat and waited for the others to arrive. Once the situation had been explained to them he looked around at the others before raising his hand.

"Are we going to be the only team? If so... pardon my pessimism but there are very few of us if we're to make a real difference, ma'am." His eyes drifted to the redhead and he noticed a brief flicker of a smile cross her face as well but more subtle was the intense sadness, and the glazed eyes of one reliving the past, that she hid almost instantly. The woman, or girl for she appeared barely older than Gaius, seemed intent to stand back and say nothing for the meanwhile although it was clear she was someone important by the way Phoebe Miller looked to her.

The room is quiet, clothes strewn along the floor. A boy lays on his bed, his arms to his side and his legs straight. The boy doesn't move, his chest remaining still, no sign of life present. His skin is cold to the touch, like a body at a funeral. A barely audible noise comes form under the boy's bed, a rustling noise that is too soft to be an animal. Suddenly, a small poppet drags a shoe out, using all it's energy to accomplish this task before putting it's hands on it's hips triumphantly and collapsing to the ground. The boy's eyes shoot open as he gasps for air, as if he has been resuscitated. The boy's name is Luke. He looks down at the shoe, and then at it's partner that already resides on his foot. "I knew it was under there...!" He said to himself as he ties the recovered shoe, a triumphant. Suddenly an announcement rings out through the base, a list of names of those expected to report to Miller's office, Luke's included.

He made his way through the halls, giving a small wave to those as he passes by, the small poppet dangling from Luke's hand. Those that didn't know him would consider this childish, but Luke wouldn't go anywhere without it. He always told people that "I never know when I'll get into a situation I need to be tiny for, and there aren't many of these around," but most assumed that either he was A: Just lazy and would rather use that form to accomplish minute tasks, or B: He had some attachment to the doll, like a toddler to their teddy bear. He didn't mind these things though as the people who were his friends understood, their opinion was the only opinion that mattered.

Luke arrived at the office, knocking first before entering. He saw a red-haired girl speaking with Miller, who had a strange meek presence about her. Then Miller began to speak, talking about an end to the war and missions with this group. He silently slid the puppet into his pocket, and rocked back and forth on his heels. The red-haired girl was apparently supposed to be their leader, but who exactly was she? Why should any of them listen to her? But then again, why should anyone listen to anyone? Luke pushed the doubt from his mind, but Gaius seemed concerned about something else. Gaius was right about the numbers, but Luke said nothing and waited to see how Miller would respond.

The sound of the announcement woke Ludonear up. Ever since he had arrived at Stonewall, he was sleeping much more then he thought himself capable of. He listened carefully when the names were announced in case his was among them. It was. Ludonear sighed and stretched out his arms in an attempt to banish the sleepiness out of his head. "Time to go", he mumbled, still only half awake. Just before he walked out of his quarters he glanced down and found himself to be without pants. Probably better I found out now, he thought with a grin on his face.

Now properly dressed, Ludonear followed the directions given to him by his communicator. While walking to the office, Ludonear tried not to be noticed. He had always been kind of a loner, no matter how tight a group of explorers could and had to be in this world. Especially since the incident, Ludonear was especially cold and closed to the world around him, as if he distrusted every single living thing. He longed for the outside world. It was a hell, sure, but it was his hell. 'I should have gone down with the group' was a thought that often roamed the darker depths of his mind, only to be followed by his hunger for blood and the drive that had kept him alive just long enough to be saved, revenge... While he seemed calm, or at least tried to seem, deep down, in the parts of his mind where only those dark thoughts ever threaded, lay an insatiable hunger for vengeance. Often the realisation of what it made him capable of scared him, and so he had hidden it from the world. Until the day came he could finally set it free upon him.

When Ludonear entered the office, he noticed three people had already arrived. One was a red haired girl who was quietly talking to Phoebe, the leader of Stonewall, the place he had lived since his latest near death experience. The other two were an athletically build male with almost white hair and another male who seemed to be in shape as well, only his hair was brown. Yet, Ludonear didn't really notice the two of them after his gaze had fallen upon the red haired girl. Something was special about her. It wasn't just the way Phoebe talked to her, which was perhaps the strangest thing about her, but more so it was a feeling. Ludonear knew it well, it was the kind of feeling that kept you thinking about things, like a mystery staring him right into his eyes. Not that the red haired girl stared into his eyes. Solving mysteries was in his blood or so to say and immediately Ludonear asked himself what kind of mystery she may be.

In a way Phoebe's words shocked him. They came as a complete surprise. Ludonear was not aware people had been considering him for this kind of mission. Then again, maybe they were just looking for disposable people for suicide missions. To them he must have seemed like a lazy good-for-nothing that was eating their food and taking up their space. Still, the thought of finally being outside of the fortress made him happy. Ludonear wasn't used to staying in one place for long, he fancied 'the road'. 'The road' was a saying his group of explorers used. If the stories were true it dated back to the days before the harsh climates with their dreadful creatures. Ludonear didn't believe them though. He eventually came to the conclusion that it was just a way of connecting with the past and making it look like they had a refined culture, one that involved lots of dying and pointless fighting for no good reason. When Phoebe asked for questions, Ludonear had none. Well, he had questions, but they did not seem appropriate to ask.

"Don't you read your history books kid?" A voice said from the darkness behind the group. Another girl about the same age stepped from behind the door. She seemed to be about 18, but her eyes were far too alert, far to knowing. "When it comes down to it every big change starts with a small group. Martin Luther King, the Founding Fathers of America." She paused for a few moments, then looked at Gaius. "Julius Ragnarson. Change is not about the people, it's about the person." Her eyes took on a hard look as she glanced at each of them. "That said, none of you are nearly ready for anything. All I see is wasted potential, which is why you're going to be learning from the best fighters, scholars, healers and various other trades." As she turned to leave, she said "I expect you all to be ready in three hours, and to be punctual in everything. If I have to come get any of you, I will find you, and you won't like the consequences. Make sure they're ready Rhia." With that she walked out the door, on her way to the Sandcrawler.

Gaius scowled at the demeaning tone. Whoever the woman who had been hidden before was she clearly saw them as inexperienced. As true as that was Gaius didn't feel that required a question to be demeaned as stupidity. Instead of voicing his irritation he nodded his understanding, the woman's deliberate reference to his ancestor proof she knew of his lineage.

The red-haired woman, Rhiannon, nodded to Julia's instruction.

"Of course, Julia." She said, her voice a strangely lyrical tone and accent; one Gaius identified as one of the Celtic accents. Scottish? No, Welsh. It was a rare one to hear now since Wales was very much a desolate area, even when compared to state two hundred years ago. The woman gestured towards the door and led the group out.

"You'll need the basics and not much more; travelling gear, hygienic equipment, a few changes of clothes and maybe a couple of personal possessions but bear in mind that you'll be carrying whatever you bring, and possibly more besides, across the globe and there's no telling whether our journeys between the fortresses will be safe or not. With that in mind be frugal and meet us at the Sandcrawler. I presume you all know where that is." With that she disappeared in a shower of sparks leaving the group to go about their business.

With the first woman's insistence on punctuality foremost in his mind, Gaius headed off to his room with a brief farewell to the others to fetch his things and a few of the more useful tomes he kept; relics of a certain ancestor's research.

---

Rhiannon appeared at the Sandcrawler in a flash of light, a few sparks dancing off of her skin at the electric discharge; a power she had taken and mastered from Alexis Chandle, her teacher at Julius' school several lifetimes ago. Even with her ability of Mastery she suspected that their teacher had still been a more proficient user; Alexis 'the Flash' had been an indomitable person second only to Julius Ragnarson back in those days.

"The shadowy entrance was a nice touch, Julia. I think we've established ourselves in the 'good cop, bad cop' roles quite effectively." She said as way of greeting, hugging her longtime friend. "You know, that boy's resemblance to... Him is remarkable. So close it's scary. I think he might finally be the one."

Lauren returned the hug, smiling. "Who's playing a role? I'm turning those kids into the best team in the world, even if it kills them." She frowned, "Anyway my name's Lauren now, remember? If Tricore figures out I'm still around, this mission is doomed from the start." There was a few moments of silence as they collected their thoughts. "Do you think we finally have a chance?" She asked softly, as if afraid of the answer. "Almost 300 years we've been on the run, hiding away. Do you think that could all end soon?" She slumped against one of the vehicle's six legs, sliding down to sit on the wide 'foot'. "I don't know if I should be hopeful, or terrified."

Luke rolled his eyes and muttered, "What's her problem?" He listened to the things he would be needing and headed off to his room. He pulled out a small, worn backpack and began to stuff the contents inside. The clothes were the easy part, but deciding what else to take along made him sick at his stomach. He wasn't one to make decisions, one of his biggest weaknesses. Why did they pick me for this? Luke wondered silently. He didn't see his talents as anything special, just a way of making simple tasks easier. He tossed the puppet onto his dresser, next to the pair of socks. As he shut his eyes, the puppet came to life quickly grabbing the socks and heaving them across the room to Luke. As they flew threw the air the doll fell inanimate, and Luke awoke. Catching the socks, he smirked, feeling proud of himself. He continued packing, double-checking the objects he had already collected, including the small puppet, to make sure that he had everything he would need or want.

Rhiannon put a comforting hand on Julia- no, Lauren's shoulder.

"You've been through so many names but only one has ever fit you for me." She remained silent, listening to her old, old friend and stared off down the tunnel awaiting their new team to arrive.

"It may pay to not lean on them too hard though. You remember that it was only because of Alexis' careful tutelage that we survived at all. This time we'll keep guard as Julius did over us while others teach them how to survive. They have potential, Ju- Lauren. We can only ever hope and guide them. If they fail then we simply have to guide the generation after them, as we always have done." She thought about the promise she had made to Julius almost three centuries ago.

Look after my children, Rhiannon. Let them see the new world we created.

It pained her what world had been left for his descendants to see; that would all change soon.

---

Gaius stuffed two books into his rucksack, having carefully chosen from his small collection which he should take. They were both family heirlooms and ones he was loathe to take into potential danger with him but he had digital copies and he had a feeling they'd be safer with him than they would left to be boxed away by whoever came to prepare his small room for the next occupant.

He swung the rucksack over his shoulder and made his way towards the designated meeting point, thinking about what was to come; not to mention the mystery of who their two guides really were. He had a feeling he had seen them somewhere before but he definitely would have remembered them; his memory was near-perfect and he never forgot anyone'd he'd ever met.

Lauren smiled up at her friend, putting her own hand over the one on her shoulder. "You always had a way of helping me see things. You're right, I'll try to be easier on them. I just hope they're ready when the time comes." She pushed herself to her feet, brushing herself off. "We need to be careful. He may be the most like Julius, but he's also the latest of the line. We need to take extra mesures to make sure he doesn't become the last. I think we should train him personally, I'll lead him through combat if you help teach him control." Her gaze drifted away, staring at nothing, and nobody but Rhia could tell that she was looking at a very specific place, on the other side of the world. "Maybe I should go see Her soon. I could use some advice right about now."

Books... Right... Maybe I should start reading some again... Ludonear thought when the second woman seemingly appeared out of thin air. She reminded him of the older ones in the group of explorers he used to belong to. They also looked down upon everyone else who was less experienced than they were and had quite the sneaking skills... Yet, Ludonear liked the attitude. Strong leaders had always been necessary out there and to him, she seemed perfect for the job. All Ludonear really worried about was were the redhead would fit in. From his past experiences he knew how much could go wrong when two people were in charge, rather than one. Strong, punctual, in control...

Ludonear made his way to his room and started packing his stuff. He placed everything he owned in his travelling bag. It was the same bag he had always travelled with and could in fact hold everything he owned. Not that he owned a lot, most of the belonging of his group were left behind in small bunkers within the less dangerous area's of the outside world. They used them to form a supply chain and an easy way to find shelter when backtracking. That tactic had kept them alive where, by all means, they should have died. Lastly, he packed his gun after having taken it apart, cleaned it and put if back together. He checked his ammo and decided he was content with the amounts. Out there, they always needed more of everything, especially bullets. The first moments he could remember in Stonewall were simply observing people and wondering if they were royals, by the amount of things they had. The travelling bag was a one and a half meters long and full with things but it didn't bother not slow Ludonear down. He had travelled like this all the time, on foot and by vehicle, depending on how desperate his situation was.

Ludonear had made his way to the appointed place. He saw the two woman at the Sandcrawler and realised the others weren't there yet. And here I was thinking that because I just couldn't resist cleaning my gun that I would be last, he thought while he wondered what kind of trials these two woman were going to make him face. Remembering the military part of his training with the other children in the groups of explorers, he stepped in front of them and straightened is back. "Ludonear Ferta, at your service", he said while trying to look both woman in the eyes. Then, before doing anything else, he simply waited for their reply. He hoped it would be given soon though, he remembered the person who had trained him in following orders. He made him, and the other children, just stand after saying that very line for a few hours before giving them a command. All those who couldn't take it, well, bad things happened to them...

Rhiannon winced; something about Her had always offset her. Then again, she was offset by her own longevity since to her it had always seemed stolen.

"Say the word and I'll take you there. I'll watch over them while you're gone. And you're right, we need to look after him but if he's anything like Julius he'll work ways around us anyway." She smiled at the memory of the old man, looking out from the modest summer home at lawn where his children and grandchildren played; an elderly Mrs Ragnarson there as well making sure the old man was comfortable. From that rocking chair the entire world's peace was ensure whether it was known or not; that was the kind of genius Julius had been.

The first of the kids to arrive saluted in a very military style and Rhiannon forced a smile but did not return the gesture, although she held the boy's gaze easily.

"Ludonear... I believe? We're not the army so don't feel obliged to... salute us. We're relying on you guys to improve your ingenuity and, to some extent, become an unorthodox team. Well, whatever you're comfortable with." She had caught sight of Gaius walking up behind the other man, deep in thought; the expression on that so similar face blasting her back to the past. And he was exactly on time, neither early nor late; so typical of his forebear.

"Are we introducing ourselves? Well, I suppose you both know our names... and probably everything else besides that." There was a knowing sparkle in the boy's eyes and Rhiannon felt like she was the student again but shook of the feeling; the boy was unblooded and unskilled relative to Julius even when she had first met the 'Storm God'. Instead she watched as he turned to the other student and held out his right hand.

"Gaius Ragnarson, good to meet you. Let's get on and survive, shall we?"

Luke raced through the hallways, realizing he was going to be late. As he slammed past someone, he offered a quick apology that was lost as he kept running. The backpack bounced on his back, the poppet in his hand. He didn't want to be late the first day of their meeting, but he had a habit of being tardy. He knew he should've left his room earlier, but trying to decide what to take and what to leave behind took some time. He rounded a corner, nearly running into another body. Spinning to avoid a second collision, he was nearing his objective. Luke slowed his pace, to a light jog before slowing to a walk, as to not appear that he had been running. He entered the room and saw the others.

He breathed heavily as he spoke, "Hey guys!" He gave them a small wave and a cheesy grin. He needed to get to know them, more than just recognizing a face. Otherwise, this team, if you could call it that, would fail miserably. "I'm ready!" He stood there awkwardly, not removing the smile from his face. He prayed they wouldn't call him out for being late, or maybe he had made it? He glanced around looking for a clock.

"Pack up the necessities, I'll see about getting to the Sandcrawler early...at the very least."

Alec let out a deep and rather exaggerated sigh as her brother left her to pack up. Grabbing onto a pair of combat boots, then custom shin guards...damn. Today was an embarrassment for them, and a first for her brother.

Usually Ireneus woke her up at the ass crack of dawn, but it was Electra instead rolling out of bed, late. Did her brother let her sleep in? That seemed like a likely conclusion. Quickly brushing her hair and pulling on some of yesterday’s clothing, she left her room to go find her breakfast…only to be stopped by a surprised bud-acquaintance of hers, who was confused as to why she was still walking around, when she was supposed to have gone to the main office for something important. After much confusion, it had been made apparent that her and her brother, and some others were called into the main office. It was some relief for her at the time that she wasn’t going to be alone, Alec and Irene were both generally new to this place, and she didn’t plan on getting into anybody’s bad books so early on in her life here…especially the leader’s.

Having gotten to the office, probably a dozen minutes late, Alec debated whether or not this would be an appropriate use of Time manipulation if she stopped time so she could sneak in behind the tallest person of the group, playing like she wasn’t late…that had been a stupid idea, so she dismissed it. Instead, she had opened the door just a crack, and heard…of this mission she and others would be on. Deciding to just listen in, and not actually embarrassing herself by entering in and interrupting…she listened in carefully. When it ended with some speech from a girl a few years older than her…she shuffled away from the door in an embarrassed manner when someone opened the door.

“I-I’m part of the mission too! I, err, I just didn’t want to, er, interrupt the important stuff!” It didn’t matter what she said, because the girl who had opened the door walked away. She had kind of felt thankful for that.

The weird thing about this, was that her brother hadn’t been in the room…though she had waited some, it became apparent quickly after everyone filed out of there. And, wouldn’t you know? Alec’s brother had been asleep in his bed, the whole time. Going over to his room, she could hear his alarm going off. Opening the door, her brother had been lying in his bed under some thin sheets, eyes closed and his breathing calm and even, sleeping. His alarm was letting out deafening sirens. Waking him up, Irene seemed…in a daze. Out of it. One of ‘those’ states of mind. When he snapped out of it, he’d always feed her the same line, the ‘bad dream’ one. And, over time, she just learned to accept this sort of answer.

After letting him know about all this mission stuff, he snapped out of it in record time and got dressed, telling her to get her own stuff packed before setting out to the Sandcrawler. And so, here Alec was, packing…

---

The boy, hardly old enough to be called a teen, stood before the kneeling woman. The side of his hand, the side of his face was bleeding, but it only made the ferocity of his glare and expression that much more…terrifying. The gritting of his teeth, both in pain and anger, “You…drop down and kiss the fuc%ing ground! Or…you can deep throat this-“ Reaching to his back for his shotgun, it’s metal shone, reflected the distant street light like the glint of the evil eye. The kneeling woman didn’t say anything, nor did she move, but a gasp did escape her lips.

All this was making him so…mad…stepping forward, he nudged her lips with the end of this shadowed weapon, causing the woman to let out a lone whimper, “When I blow my load, I’ll be making a huge mess…” Hearing this, the woman dropped to the ground crying…kissing the ground. Pathetic, after all that had happened…strapping the shotgun back onto his back, he stepped forward, raised his over-sized, steel-toed boot, and—

Snapping out of it, with the mission in mind, he continued towards the supposed meeting spot before their departure. Packing wasn’t going to be a necessity for Irene…the time for packing, the privilege of packing, all was a luxury afforded to them. Then again, proper sleep was also a privilege, one he abused when he shouldn’t have. Sometimes, though, his dreams became louder than anything of the tangible world.

Finding the place, and youths either younger or older than himself, he didn’t say a single word. Not one. Anything important that needed to be said had already been discussed in the office, which he missed entirely. All that was left to do was complete this lengthy mission. It wasn’t a few minutes after finding the place, did his sister come in with a knapsack slung over her shoulder. Irene nodded approvingly at her; Alec most certainly packed light with only the necessities, unlike last time. Pausing to himself for a moment, he brought a mug of tepid water and four supplement tablets out from the air, holding out two of the tablets for his sister…”Take these two supplement tablets. They should be enough for your body to run on, for now.”

Alec just sort of just scrunched her nose at the offer, glaring at the two tablets, “How about some regular food?”

Still, Irene persisted with the tablets, glaring down darkly at his sister, “No. These tablets will be enough to fuel the body and mind.”

“But isn’t delicious food necessary to fuel happiness, hopes and dreams?” A strange thing for Alec, with a little exaggerated flourish and a grin, to say in defiance.

Ireneus gave her a strange look, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. The saying sounded familiar, “Who told you that?”

“You did, a long time ago.”

“…your memory is shit.”

Lauren looked down at her watch as the last two ran into the room, 3 hours and 3 minutes late. "Now that we're all here, we can get going." She tapped the side of the giant vehicle, which looked like nothing so much as a giant metal box with ant legs, and the hatch folded down from the side. As she stepped into the sparse interior of the vehicle, she brought out her communicator and pressed a few buttons on the screen. Rows of chairs slid out from the walls, and two more chairs rose up from the floor at the front. A second hatch opened in the floor at the back, and she pointed to it. "Cargo goes there. Once it's secured take a seat and we'll head out. There'll be plenty of time to get to know each other, we have a week's worth of ground to cover." As she took one of the seats anyone who knew about the vehicles could see instantly this wasn't a normal sandcrawler. for one thing it was almost three times larger than the vehicles used for conventional desert travel, and instead of fixed benches the furniture seemed to be modular. Once everyone was onboard, Lauren pressed a few buttons on the control console and the outside hatch closed again, and the rails under the Sandcrawler's feet instantly began propelling them down the tunnel without a sound.

Rhiannon took a seat on one of the pair that had risen from the front and crossed her legs as leaned back into it, completely at ease. Gaius was the first to put his luggage into the cargo hold Lauren had indicated before taking a seat halfway down on the right. He was still trying to work out who the two women were; he was sure he had certainly seen the red-haired girl before in any case. Once the team had sat down Rhiannon glanced at Lauren but out of the two of them she was the more talkative, largely due to the ease with which she could escape so the stress of being on the run weighed far lighter on her than her companion, so she leaned forwards to lead the discussion.

"First off we should introduce ourselves. Obviously we are going to be your guides and primary teachers on this journey but you will be receiving specific tutelage at the other destinations on our route from specialists. I am Rhiannon Jones." She caught the flash of recognition in Gaius' eyes but the boy had the sense to keep quiet for which she was thankful. She looked around at the others, waiting for one of them to continue the chain rather than descend into nervous silence.

"I'm Gaius, Gaius Ragnarson." Everyone turned to look at the near white-haired boy as he spoke up. "We should probably also describe our powers if we're going to be a team... it would be hard to work well together if we had no idea of each other's skills." After receiving a nod from Rhiannon, whose name he had found frequently in his forebear's journals, Gaius continued. "I can control air. Well, more specifically I can control oxygen. It's a slight difference to... my family's traditional power but I believe it has more potential since nearly everything has oxygen in it. I've got a fair mind for strategy and a good memory but my hand to hand skills are quite lacking so I'm not good at close combat." He leaned back to symbolise that he had finished his introduction.

Rhiannon glanced at Lauren and they shared a knowing look.

He's the first of his line since Julius to work out what his power really is. Maybe there's some hope for him.

"Hey there", Ludonear said when a third person arrived, he had also been with him and Gaius in the office, "I'm called Ludonear and this guy is Gaius, pleased to meet you. What's your name?"

After the introductions they had to wait for a long while before the last people arrived. However, before Ludonear got to introduce himself, one of the two woman told everyone to go inside the Sandcrawler. Ludonear entered it just behind Gaius. The vehicle seemed different from normal Sandcrawlers. Ludonear was quite content with it though, it seemed simple and sturdy, two things a vehicle (and anything really) required to be usable out there. Complicated machines often broke down and anything not simple turned into comfort, which caused laziness which usually ended in death and often a terrible one at that... Ludonear placed his bag in the cargo hold just like Gaius had, but he removed his gun first. It was a regular, obviously simple of design, rifle with a part to extent it, turning it into a sniper rifle. He left the extension in the bag. After that, he found a seat and sat down while waiting for everyone to get inside.

Once everyone had entered the vehicle and sat down the two woman who would be their leaders, or guides, started an introduction round of their own. First was Rhiannon and after her Gaius introduced himself. When Gaius ended his introduction, Ludonear started to talk: "I'm Ludonear Ferta. I don't have any powers that I know of, but I have been trained in using projective weapons, with a rifle like this one as my speciality. In addition, I have also had training in self defence and in knifes, though I can't say I'm an expert on close combat. I also used to live out there before a very... unfortunate event happened. I lived with a group of explorers, well, family really, anyhow, that also means that I know how to track people and survive. With the right equipment. For a short while..." I wonder if any of them have seen anything of the outside...

As Luke entered, one boy introduced himself as Lundonear and the other as Gaius. Luke smiled, shaking their hands happily. "I'm Luke. Nice to meet you!" The sandcrawler was strange, but the appearance didn't matter, as long as it got them to where they are going. He heaved his backpack into the hatch, hearing it land with a thud. He approached a seat as Rhiannon spoke, instructing them to make their introductions. Gaius and Lundonear went first, one an air manipulator and the other.. just a fighter, of some sorts.

When no one spoke up after Lundonear, Luke sighed and started by giving a small wave to the group. "I'm Luke Haleman. I have the ability of... well, the best way to put it is puppetry. By going into a trance state," Luke pulled out the puppet, sitting it on the floor, "I can," Luke shut his eyes, slumping over. The puppet jumped up, spreading its arms as if yelling 'Taadaa!'. It then collapsed as quickly as it had come to life, and Luke's eyes open as he finished his sentence, "bring anything to life. Well almost anything. It can't be alive, so don't worry! I can't control you guys." He gave a cheeky smile to the group before picking up the poppet and glancing at the last members of the group. "I'm done, the floor is either of yours."

It was a good call to get others to introduce themselves, as well as detail their skills and powers. Since Irene had been absent from the initial meeting, this was a mini-catch up for him. A good portion of their group had introduced themselves, it was his turn to do the same, though he wasn't entirely comfortable with presenting much more than his name and power. Gazing down at the group with piercing eyes, then at the two apparent lead girls (holding back all judgement, since he had yet to see the reason why they were leading), "Name? Ireneus Castle. Power? 'Creation'." Pausing for a moment, almost thoughtfully, he added in sharply, "I will kill anybody who harms my sister."

---

What?! Once again, Alec's brother seemed like he didn't plan on making any new friends. She wasn't entirely sure when he brother changed, but he did, a long time ago. Letting out a exaggerated sigh, then tucking in a stray strand of brown hair, she gave the members of the group a small wave, "Sorry 'bout that, As you can plainly tell, my older brother has the brawn and brutality thing going on for him." A raised brow from Ireneus, but Alec continued on. "I'm all about personality, and obviously, the good looks. Heh, but seriously, I'm Electra Castle. My power is time manip, but I don't really have much of a grasp on it...hence probably why we're going--why we came here in the first place." Licking her drying lips, and looking over at each group member, she gestured towards her older brother and herself, "Back when we lived in the city, some of our dear neighbours gave us nicknames that sort of stuck. I'd prefer Alec to Electra, but you could shorten my nickname further and just call me Al. My bro, Ireneus, due to the spelling of his name...most just call him Irene." Though Irene didn't say anything, he did cross his arms over his chest. Alec grinned widely.

Lauren turned her chair so that she was facing the group, looking at each of them in turn. Her gaze lingered on Ireneus for a bit longer, her thoughts unreadable. "My name is Lauren." She said simply, reaching behind her back. "And until you lot start advancing your skills, that and..." She paused for a second as she pulled a knife out from behind her back. She held out her arm, rolled back her sleeve, and before anyone could react or try to stop her brought the knife down on her forearm. "This," She grunted, "Are all you get to know about me." A couple of drops of blood trailed down her arm, then all at once the bleeding stopped and the cut closed by itself. She took a rag and wiped off her arm, then the knife, and put it back. "Now that we're all cozy with each other, there are a few rules we need to set down. First of all, we'll be spending about a week crossing the Postrussian Desert, but don't think that means you get to wait to start. For today, we'll just get you familiar with the Crawler, since it'll be your home for the next week, and any other times we have to cross the Wilds. Starting tomorrow, You'll get up and get ready for the day before ten AM, at which point you'll start physical training with me. Three hours after that, We'll break for lunch, then You'll be learning several different subjects from Rhia, and when you're ready she'll be helping you learn to control your power. If necessary, we can stop the Crawler and take the lessons outside. If we do, remember that even though the Desert is one of the tamest of the Wilds, it is STILL a wild. Don't leave our sight if we go outside." She turned back to the console as they left the tunnel, the desert sun high overhead. The front view port dimmed to compensate, and Lauren spoke again. "You all have a new Control on your personal comms." As if on cue, everyone's phone gave them a notification of a successful download, "This is the control for the Crawler. The controller is universal, but the default setting on each is a different part of it. The remote can be used to control the Flowsteel that the crawler is made of. Apparently flowsteel is some kind of metal that becomes liquid when in specific magnetic field. Don't ask me how it works, I didn't invent it. Anyway unless you really need to don't change your setting from the default. I don't want to have to break up fights because someone changed someone else's 'room'" She typed a few sentences into the console in front of her and leaned back, letting the Autopilot take over.