[center][h1][b][color=red]A[/color][/b][/h1][/center][sub]Interactions: Val-[@Herald], VV-[@Estylwen][/sub][hr]
[indent][color=#ffffff]A watched as VV and Val exchanged quick introductions, their voices struggling to be heard over the storm raging outside. The wind howled like a wild animal, a constant reminder of the danger they had barely escaped. She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling the cold seep into her skin despite the warmth provided by the fire. As she continued to look at them, a wave of guilt washed over her, prompting her to remember the one person they had left behind from their group. Her mind raced to D, alone in the escape pod, feeling scared and abandoned.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]Or dead. [/color]

[color=#ffffff]A knot formed in the woman’s stomach as she pictured him waiting in the dark, slowly succumbing to his wounds. They had promised him they’d return, hadn’t they? The hope, though, felt delicate, like a fragile glass ball that could shatter at any moment. [/color]

[color=#ffffff]“He has to be okay,” she whispered to herself, the words slipping out in a desperate plea. [/color]

[color=#ffffff]A felt VV's elbow gently nudge her, bringing her back to the present. [/color]

[color=#ffffff][b]“You doing okay?”[/b][/color][color=#ffffff] VV asked, her voice filled with real concern. A quick look into VV’s worried eyes made A realize her struggles were showing, even if she tried to hide them. [/color]

[color=#ffffff]“Yeah, I’m okay,” she said, forcing a smile that didn’t quite feel real, “We’ll see D again. We have to.” The words felt fragile, however, as if they could break apart under the weight of her worries. A small voice in her head told her she was lying, even though she wanted to sound confident. She wished she could brush the worry away like dust, but it stuck to her, heavy and uncomfortable.[/color]

[color=#ffffff]As for the mention of the raiders, A shivered at the very thought of their almost capture and the big possibility of the situation reoccurring as VV suggested. Yet, she just as quickly pushed the concern aside. They had more immediate ones to deal with. Turning to Val, she gave him a nod from where she sat. [/color]

[color=#ffffff] “First…thank you for helping us,” she said sincerely. “We wouldn’t have made it without you.” Then, clearing her throat to shake off the remnants of anxiety, she began to explain their situation to him. “We were part of an experiment. Umbra Corp. They did something to us, changed us. We don’t know the full extent of it, but that's why those raiders were probably after us.”[/color][/indent]