[color=gray]Sara stood in the halls of the Shangri La in full tactical gear. [i]When did I get here?[/i] Sara looked down each hallway. On one side, she could see her brother-in-law, and her team. The XCOM operatives were there as well. To the other side, Sara could see a dozen of the small gray aliens that she had come to know as sectoids. All was still, even the projectiles flying down the hallway. Sara breathed slowly, her body felt like it was weighted down with sandbags. She began to remove her gear, starting with her gas mask and helmet, then her vest, then her armored padding. It didn't help, she was still slow and heavy. Sara moved as quickly as she could toward the ERT. Her movements were slow and disrupted nothing, not even the water spewed out by a triggered overhead fire suppression sprinkler. When she was only a few steps away from her team, a door slammed shut. Sara slammed into the wooden door. She looked over her shoulder and saw that there was no more hallway, she was in the room with the aliens. She opened her mouth to scream for help, no noise came. The bright lights from the UFO flashed and blinded her sight momentarily. When her eyes adjusted, there was a tall figure standing in front of her. It was regal, it's crimson robes flowing to the floor and beneath its feet. Sara realized the four armed alien was floating. A long, spindly hand stretched out from the red robe and reached for Sara's face. Sara swung around, trying to smack the hand away from her. Her own hand passed right through the alien's. She tried to move out of the way, but they were too sluggish, the tall alien simply adjusted. Sara backed against the wall, her breathing heavy, eyes wide. Then the hand took hold of her face. __________ [i]SMASH![/i] Sara gasped as she woke up and shot into an upright position. She looked to the noise that had woken her, a glass mug filled with coffee had shattered in the middle of the room. She breathed heavily, sweat drenching her hair and tank top. Her eyes darted from the shattered mug to the table she remembered she had set it down on. There was a five foot gap between the table and the mug. [i]How did it get there?[/i] With a deep breath, Sara slowly began to come down from her panic. She rested her face in her hands and rubbed her eyes. [color=white][b]"Just a nightmare..."[/b][/color] Sara mumbled to herself. Sara pulled herself from her bed and stepped barefoot over to the bathroom. She turned toward the sink and noticed that her mirror had been cracked, like somebody had punched it hard. Sara studied the mirror, it wasn't that way when she first arrived in her quarters. Nevertheless, the mirror was broken now, nothing Sara could do would fix that without getting some other staff in for repairs. She turns the sink on and filled her cupped hands with cold water. Sara splashed the water on her face and ran her hands down her cheeks, her eyes staring into the cracked mirror. Each segment of the mirror reflected back a whole copy of Sara's face at different angles. Sara reached for a towel and ran it through her shoulder length hair. She sighed, [color=white][b]"Jesus, Sara... You see dozens of bloody massacres as a cop and you don't get fazed. One encounter with aliens and you lose your mind... Shame on you..."[/b][/color] she says in a scolding tone to herself, [color=white][b]"Get a grip, girl."[/b][/color] There was a knock on her door. Sara leaned back a bit and looked at the metal, featureless door before calling out, [color=white][b]"It's open."[/b][/color] The door slid open with a hydraulic hiss and Hengeveld stepped into the room. He looked around, spotted the shattered much and coffee stain on the floor. [color=cadetblue]"Sara?"[/color] he said. Sara waved her hand from the bathroom door, [color=white][b]"In here."[/b][/color] Hengeveld raised a brow and turned his back to the door, [color=cadetblue]"Sorry, I can come back if this isn't a good time."[/color] Sara shrugged and stepped out from the bathroom, the towel resting over her shoulders. [color=white][b]"I spent two and a half days in a quarantine cell having to shower in front of at least thirty people. Not much can really bother me right now."[/b][/color] Hengeveld chuckled at that but kept his back turned to her, [color=cadetblue]"Well at least you're optimistic about your situation."[/color] Sara didn't respond to that. She made her way toward her dresser and pulled some cargo pants out. She let out a long sigh as she slipped them on. [color=white][b]"Thank you,"[/b][/color] she finally said. [color=cadetblue]"For what?"[/color] Hengeveld responded. [color=white][b]"For having the decency to not look,"[/b][/color] Sara responded. The dutchman shrugged, [color=cadetblue]"I figured it'd be a bad first impression if I looked."[/color] It was Sara's turn to chuckle now, [color=white][b]"Right you are, Hengeveld. You're in the clear now."[/b][/color] Hengeveld smirked and turned around to face Sara. She was grabbing something to sweep up the broken glass. Hengeveld watched her in silence for a few seconds before she spoke again, [color=white][b]"So what brings you here, Hengeveld?"[/b][/color] The squad leader blinked when he heard her, then finally answered, [color=cadetblue]"Hm? Ah... Yes."[/color] He cleared his throat first, [color=cadetblue]"The squad, we usually put money on our pool games. And since you thoroughly kicked our asses, it's only fair that you get the pot."[/color] Sara glanced at him and shrugged, [color=white][b]"I didn't buy in. And I was just shooting because nobody else was."[/b][/color] [color=cadetblue]"Regardless, you're an Arctic Wolf now. No members are exempt from pool money."[/color] Hengeveld said as he simply set the money down on the table. Sara glanced at the money for a moment but decided not to try and dispute the squad's rules. She began to sweep the glass onto a tray. Hengeveld watched her do it. [color=cadetblue]"So. What's with the mug?"[/color] Sara shrugged, [color=white][b]"Wish I knew. The sound of it smashing on the floor woke me up. Big mystery. My bathroom mirror is messed up pretty bad too."[/b][/color] Hengeveld raised a brow at that and went to go check. [color=cadetblue]"So somebody was in your room then? While you were sleeping? Talk about grade A creepy. You gonna bring it up to the commander?"[/color] Sara finished sweeping the glass up and set the tray aside. [color=white][b]"If it happens again. Then yes."[/b][/color] Hengeveld nodded slowly. [color=cadetblue]"Hey... You said you were widowed, right? Who was he?"[/color] [color=white][b]"Master Corporal Adam Lancaster. Served a tour of duty in Bosnia as a peacekeeper before transferring to the Patricia's Light Infantry Regiment. He did two tours in Afghanistan from there."[/b][/color] Sara said as she leaned back against her kitchenette's counter, her arms crossed. Hengeveld took that information in, [color=cadetblue]"How did he... Y'know... If you don't mind me asking?"[/color] Sara shrugged, [color=white][b]"Officially, it was a roadside bomb. But I'm a cop, and I can tell when there's a fabricated story."[/b][/color] Hengeveld raised a brow at that, [color=cadetblue]"You think there's more to it?"[/color] [color=white][b]"Yeah. But I'm afraid to look further into it. It's easier to think he just died in Afghanistan, far simpler that way."[/b][/color] Sara looked away from Hengeveld as she said that. [color=cadetblue]"Yeah, I hear you on that. But nothing is ever that simple, sadly."[/color] Hengeveld said, running his hand through his blonde hair. [color=white][b]"Not if you make it complicated."[/b][/color] Sara said. Hengeveld smirked at that, [color=cadetblue]"Good point."[/color] There was a sudden beeping coming from a device on Hengeveld's belt. Then a similar device on Sara's dresser started beeping as well. Hengeveld took the device from his belt and looked at it, the device had one word on its screen. Sortie. [/color]