Introductions [ENDED]

[Admin]

Seiya looked at the young man and woman in front of him, a stern look on his face. These were his first new recruits and he didn't want to give them the wrong impression. He didn't want them to think they had joined some type of club or fraternity. What he was going to ask them to do, to be part of, it was hard and it was only going to get more difficult with time. He had had enough nightmares never to wish his life on anyone else. But along with all the bad memories Seiya Yoshirou had a sense of duty and a sense of purpose. It was the only thing that got him through the bad days. What he'd been charged with doing was more important than the pain he suffered.

Now if only he had a clue about what he was doing he'd be set.

"Enjoy the trip?" he asked from the tier that surrounded the hanger bay of the Blade ship. The ship was fully functional but their was no crew to run it. The only reason he'd been able to get it down here at all was do to the small miracle Adamo and Zach had been able to work for him. The brothers knew their way around ships and, with their help, he'd been able to land this in the only place he'd hoped it would not be found, Antarctica. The yeerks would be able to pick up the metal signature of one of their own from orbit but there were ships in the atmosphere all the time these days. He was hoping his signature would get lost in the many they'd be picking up. And as long as he wasn't moving around and drawing attention to himself he should be ok.

Which was fine, he didn't care if this ship never flew again. It was only useful because of its ability to completely regulate its internal atmosphere and so it was a ready-made shelter that could survive the abuses of the Antarctic atmosphere.

"I hope the flight from France wasn't too long," he continued as he walked over to the stairs that would get him to their level. The Cameron brothers were acting as the transporters in this little project. So far they were also his recruiters but he was wondering if he should find someone to do that job full time.

[stevie]

Stevie's eyes looked around and around the place she'd been brought to. How or why she'd been convinced to come to Middle-of-Nowhere, Antartica, she'd never know, but she was here and she was ready for whatever she'd gotten herself into. The guy in front of her was giving her a rather stern look... In all honesty, it was making her a bit uncomfortable, but as far as she gathered, he was the boss down here, and she was not in a position it speak against him.

"Perhaps 'enjoy' isn't the correct word," she admitted, her french accent flowing beautifully through her fluent English. "But it was all right, I suppose. Your... men were rather amiable." That was where she went silent, not exactly sure of what exactly she was suppose to say. Instead, her eyes focused in on him as she hoped that they would ask all the questions she couldn't. Like... what exactly they were going to do now?

[Admin]

Seiya walked down the stairs until he was standing in front of the new recruits and stopped, wondering how to go on. When Cassie had recruited him it had been out of a back alley about to be eaten by a Taxxon. He hadn't really had a choice at the time. His choices had been go with the wolf or stand around in what remained the the Taxxon it had torn apart. When the wolf had told him that it could give him the power to fight back too the non choice had become even more simple.

But he wasn't here to recruit children the way they had done it in the States. This time they wanted something a bit more serious and, for whatever reason, Seiya had been the one chosen to deliver it. He'd spent a long time trying to figure out how to train the force that Cassie had described to him, a small elite force of animorphs that seemed like it could be anywhere at any time, and he had arrived on some semblance of a training schedule. But this would be the first time he got the chance to put his idea into practice.

"I assume that Adamo and Zach told you a bit about what you were getting yourself into," he began in an even tone that wasn't mean or hostile but wasn't welcoming either. It was neutral, the type of voice that anyone who worked in a service industry learned to perfect after dealing with so many belligerent strangers. It was even, distant and, most importantly, unoffensive.

"I'll tell you a bit more. I have been given the task to build an elite group of resistance fighters. Our mission is to bring down the Yeerk Empire and win back this planet for those who would live on it peacefully. We are not murderers. We are not revenge seekers. And, maybe most importantly, we are not yeerk killers. We are a disciplined, guerrilla force. If you choose to stay you will become one of us." Seiya was trying to take mental notes even as he spoke. He had a feeling he'd be delivering this speech a lot and it was pretty much going to be the same thing each time.

"This is going to be our training facility. Before you leave here I will make sure you are the type of weapon that can perform the tasks we will require of you. You will learn everything I have to teach you about morphing, hand to hand combat, survival skills and weaponry, both alien and domestic. You will also learn about the different alien races you will encounter in the field and maybe a bit about the location you will be assigned to on a semi-permanent basis, its local power players and its local resistance, if one exists. Once you leave here your job will be to help the local resistance or to be the local resistance if one does not exist. You will have allies in this task but no one will be able to do what you can do. When it comes to taking down the empire you will be the best weapon we have and that means you're going to be put in the most dangerous situations. If that doesn't sound like something you want to do I can call our pilots and they will return you to wherever you came from. But if you want a chance to fight back...say so."

[stevie]

Waiting for him to speak, even though it didn't take long in reality, took forever in Stevie's head, and when he finally did, Stevie couldn't help but be a bit taken aback. She had expected some kind of welcoming, warm voice from this random stranger, but she was obviosly wrong about that one. The first thing out of his mouth was more of a statement than a question, but she nodded sharply in response nevertheless. Adamo and Zach had given her a very brief, very vague idea of what she was doing here. Somehow, despite not having all the details, or really any details, Stevie felt a strong calling to this place... Like perhaps it had been searching for her. Or maybe she had been searching for it.

As she listened intently to the man's words, her eyes absently gazed over that the guy that had come here with her. They hadn't gotten a chance to speak on the flight in... mostly because of the airsickness she was still getting over... She couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking about their situation. Swept off to Antartica with minimal details to join a... how had the man just put it? A disciplined, guerrilla force? "I'm in," she announced proudly, jumping randomly back into reality. After all, she'd done gymnastics her entire life, and if she could do a full twisting layout on the beam, she could do this, right?

Silently, she double-thought herself, knowing that, out here in this training camp things were going to be a lot more difficult than trying to impress a judge. After all, she'd just been told that she'd be trained with her fists, with actual weapons... She was about to undergo possibly the hardest thing she'd ever had to face, yet somehow, she was excited... anxious even to jump in, to get this training moving so she could start making the difference she'd always wanted to make in this war. Maybe then she'd have the strength and the skills to find her parents.

[xander]

“Couldn’t find a colder place to put your bloody club house?” Xander hugged his arms close to his body. It didn’t matter how comfortable the inside of the ship was, he knew outside there was nothing but ice and snow. The thought of it gave him Goosebumps.

The trip for him had been fantastic, for one simple reason. He’d been asleep after fifteen minutes in the air. Long trips, no matter the transport knocked him out faster than a sucker punch. He didn’t know where he was until they were being thrown off the plane, then he was cold and then he became unsavory. If the brother had said a word on the plane, Xander couldn’t remember it.

As Seiya started to describe their mission Xander smirked, “All for that, fighting the good fight and such. Not too thrilled about the schooling but I’ll survive.”

He slapped his hands together and rubbed his palms. If he was lucky his time in London and with Conner would come in handy. Any chance to defend himself, he was more than willing to take. No matter how weird it seemed where it took him, and who it was with. Would have liked it to be warmer but being picky never did good in the long run.

“So, when do we start, eh?”

[Admin]

"Now," Seiya said, smiling for the first time in their short interview. He was glad to hear the Cameron's hadn't failed him. Both recruits seemed willing enough to do what he asked of them despite the fact that they had just been plucked out of their homes and shipped to Antarctica on very little information and less hope. "Welcome to Basic Training. My name is Seiya Yoshirou and I'll show you where you will be sleeping." After a moment he added, "Separately. Your lives are you own after you leave here but while you're on this continent you'll have to keep focused on one thing, training. So no after hours entertainment."

He turned around, thinking to himself that maybe he was being a bit too strict with them. They were new after all and most people didn't respond well to the strict formality he had learned to use when building rebel groups. "I am glad you are here. The work we are going to be doing, that you are going to be doing...well, I believe in it and I hope I can make you believe in it too."

He turned back around and headed towards the personal quarters of the ship.

[stevie]

"After... hours... entertainment?" Stevie repeated slowly. She glanced over at the other guy that was with them. In her head, she couldn't help but be appalled at what their 'teacher' seemed to be applying with his 'sleeping seperately' comment. However, she kept it to herself, as she guessed it made sense for him to clarify... Just for future reference, of course. Besides, the speech he gave after it more than made up for it.

Staying as close as personal boundaries would allow, Stevie followed him through the ship. Her eyes were all over the place, taking in every detail, every hallway, everything. In a purely observational capacity, she was fascinated. Stevie had only ever seen the yeerk ships from the outside. In a personal capacity, however, Stevie was sure that she would get lost more than once in her time here. Better to get a small mental map now than to spend hours wandering aimlessly later.

[xander]

Xander took a second to get a good look at the hanger. It was impressive that was for sure. He’d never seen anything like it before and his gut told him he may never see anything like it again. “Huh,” he muttered and jogged to catch up with Stevie and Seiya.

He walked up to the girl and whispered, “Why don’t you and I sneak out after hours and get our Scrabble on?” Dropping back he and covered his mouth to muffle his snickering.

This would be the first room to himself since he lived in Long Beach he realized. Since the Yeerks dropped in he’d either shared space due to lack of room or protection. The ship wasn’t lacking area and Controllers popping out of the ceiling didn’t seem likely. Smiling he continued following the other two a few feet behind.

[Admin]

"You can sleep here," Seiya said as they turned into the hallway where the human living quarters were. There were also rooms for hork-bajir, taxxon, gedd and rooms set up for some type of alien they'd never encountered before. But all of those were on a different level. Seiya and the others hadn't quite figured out what to do with them yet. Maybe convert them into something useful? Or leave them the way they were in hopes of getting Hork-Bajir allies? It was a problem for another day. For right now they had all the room they'd need.

"We haven't had many resources to help make this place comfortable but it should be livable. There are beds that even have some sheets on them," Seiya said smiling at the two, "and a shower in each room. You're responsible for keeping your own rooms clean and there will be a weekly inspection so keep it clean." He'd taken that little piece of military culture and decided it would be a good addition here. He didn't really care whether someone's room looked like a pig stye but getting recruits in the habit of staying neat and organized would help them stay so in the larger world where they would probably need it.

He walked up to a door and palmed it open, making sure they could see what he was doing so they'd know how to do it too. "These can be personalized but we removed that option for now. If you make it past the third week you'll be able to personally lock your door. For now just palm them open. There are morphing suits inside," he said motioning to the now open room and then turning to motion to the room across the hall. "You won't need them for morphing until a little later in your training but it would be a good idea to start to get used to them. Also, if anything needs to be changed, a new size needs to be found or something, we need to know that."

He palmed the room closed so that the new occupant would have to open it themselves in a moment and turned to look at them. "That's it for now. You get one rest day tomorrow. I hear we have one more recruit coming in either late tonight or early tomorrow so you'll all get the added day. Training starts the day after and I will introduce you to your teachers at some point tomorrow as well. The mess hall is down this hallway," he said pointing behind him, "but I don't expect you to know your way around just yet so," he looked up and spoke directly to the ship's computer. A second later a small wire set unobtrusively in the corner of the hallway between the wall and the ceiling lit up and glowed a soft red.

"That will lead you to the mess hall. Dinner is in an hour. Until then you are free to settle in or do whatever." He nodded to both of them. "See you both in an hour. If you have any questions I'll be in the mess hall."

[Dean]

Dean sat in the small bug fighter his eyes closed and his arms crossed. The trip had not been a fun one from the African Sudan and he already missed the heat. He still couldn't belive that he had left the ARC (African Refugee Camp) for this. He didn't see any good reason that he shold be taken up to Antartica for some "elite" training. He had been fighting the yeerks for more than eight years now, only three months of which with the power to morph. He had gotten the ability from one of the old Amrican factions, but left shortly after. He felt that he could do more good back with the ARC. Dean had met Darel, their reluctant leader, and his family durring his years of globetrotting after the all out invation. Darel had taken him in and taught him numerous fighting techniques, and- most importantly- his marksmanship. Archer did not like the idea of anything happening to his surogate home without him there to help. But Darel had insisted that Dean went. So here he was, like it or not.

Dean shifted unconfortabely in the seat, adjusting the colar of his coat around him. I'm not suited for being cold, thought Dean bitterly, I'm a Texan who's been living in freaking Africa for the past three months.

He had to tell himself to calm down, bitching wasn't going to do any good. The way Dean figured it, if they really needed him that much, he couldn't turn them down anyway.

Or they were desperate. Really desperate.

Dean opened an eye and saw that they were approaching something. It looked like a crashed Yeerk craft, maybe a Blade Ship. He sighed and closed his eye as they made their approach.

"Here we go."

[stevie]

With her eyes wandering around, Stevie's ears almost didn't hear Xander's whisper. "Huh?" she asked, doing a quick double take. Her brain's instant replay, however, seemed to have caught it. "Oh... scrabble..." She gave him a smile, not wanting to seem impolite. "I'm afraid you'll most definitely beat me, unless we play with in French. English is my second language, after all." she told him. Hopefully he wouldn't take her answer the wrong way. After all, she wasn't saying no, she was just stating a fact.

Following so close to their leader almost ended badly. Stevie had to stop on a dime in order to keep from running into Seiya. Luckily, she managed it, and quickly backed away she he has a bit more personal space. She listened intently as he explained the rooms. How the doors opened at the simple touch of a hand. Nervously, she crossed her arms tightly, uneasy at the thought that anyone could simply walk into her room for the next three weeks.

Again, Stevie kept her thoughts to herself. Complaining was the last thing she wanted Seiya to know her for. Instead she listened to the rest of his speech. One more recruit was on his or her way. Then there would be a single day of rest before they started training. Tomorrow, she was sure, would either be very boring, or she would get very very lost. After all, she doubted that the ship would light up red and tell them where to go 24/7. At least, not without Seiya.

"Thank you," she said politely when he started to leave before turning back to Xander. "If you don't mind, I'll take the room on the other side of the hallway. I'm still feeling a bit ill from the flight in and I'd like to rest until dinner." Again, she smiled and gave a polite nod before turning to cross the hallway. Just before opening the door, she turned back one last time. "It was very nice to meet you," she told him, unsure just yet as to whether that was true.

[xander]

“I don’t really mind you using French as long as I can use English,” Xander smirked, “Got no problem with mixing things up a bit.”

He listened as Seiya described the door locks. Anybody being able to get in was a major concern. Then again he might be able to open other doors as well. Glancing at Stevie he smiled evilly and wondered if she was a light sleeper. After all there was nothing like waking up to a rearranged room to set the tone for the day. As for the red light it was covenant, it also made it hard to use the excuse of getting lost. Maybe he’d “get lost” after he’d eaten.

“Go ahead,” he said taking the other room. He waved back at her before placing his palm on the door like Seiya had. The room inspections would take some getting used to especially since he tended to move things daily. With luck he’d be given some warning before hand. For now he decided to try and figure out what the morphing suit was.

[Admin]

Sieya nodded when they chose rooms and headed back towards the hangar bay. He'd said he'd meet the two new recruits in the mess hall but he figured they wouldn't come looking for him for at least another twenty minutes. Neither had arrived with many personal items as was only fitting for entering their force. Animorphs had to travel light. You could only morph what was on your body after all. You had to be willing to sacrifice everything else. It would be a good thing for them to learn that lesson early on. You didn't own anything and you went where you were needed. It was one of the reasons he didn't give them locks on their doors. He didn't want them getting to attached to their rooms.

He walked into the hangar bay and waited for the bug fighter to arrive. Yesterday Cassie had asked them to pick up a potential asset in Africa. The Camerons had been in France at the time, finding Xander and Stevie but he'd sent them back out as soon as they'd arrived. Still, he hadn't expected them back quite this early. Whoever it was they'd been sent to get must have been pretty good to arrange such a smooth pick up.

The doors to the hangar bay opened and the Bug Fighter glided in smoothly, coming to rest on a clear area of the ship's hull. Seiya and the other teachers had been working hard to turn half the hangar bay into a training area since it was one of the only open areas on the entire ship. But the other half still operated as a hangar bay.

He stood up on the tier surrounding the open space and looked down at the doors to the bug fighter, wondering who exactly would step out.

[Dean]

Dean gathered his two bags as the engines of the spacecraft cooled down. One an old canvas army number that held extra ammunition, his rifle and spare pistols. He wasn't sure what he would be doing down here on the ass-end of the world, but knew that he didn't want to come unprepared. It had worked pretty well so far.

Archer swung ammunitions sack over his shoulder after sliding his small satchel around his chest. He then walked down the ramp leading out of the fighter and into what he assumed was the loading dock of the Blade ship. He had never been inside such a large Yeerk craft but hey, there wasn't much else it could be. Once Dean was clear from the Bug fighter he dropped the larger sack to the ground-various metallic noises escaping- and scanned the area

He didn't see anything or anyone waiting for him, just a large open space. In Dean's experience that was never a good thing. If the people who'd invited him to this party weren't here to see him in, then were where they? He couldn't help but suspect that this place was a trap, a Yeerk scheme devised to lure him away so they could attack the ARC colony. Dean's hands rested on his gun-belt out of habit, not touching the weapons but close enough to draw if he needed to. He kept his mind ready, expecting a fight, and waited

[Admin]

"Please don't fire that inside my ship," Seiya said, making his presence known. "Unless you are in the firing range of course, where we have reinforced the hull. We were a bit surprised to find that human bullets go through this hull like a pen through wet paper but that a dracon beam on full blast has no effect. Something to remember in the future but the fact remains I don't want you putting holes in my ship," he said, pushing off from where he'd been leaning on the railing and walking towards one of the stair cases. The short trip gave him a strong sense of deja vu since he had just done something very similar less than an hour ago with Stevie and Xander.

"My name is Sieya Yoshirou," he said in a much kinder tone than he'd used with the recruits. This man was already an animorph and a brother, there was no reason to try to intimidate him or impress the seriousness of the situation on him. From the looks of his weaponry he already understood how serious the situation was. "May I ask what your name is? I'm afraid Cassie didn't give me many details, just asked me to send the Camerons to pick you up."