Deserts.

Maria HATED deserts.

Oh, it wasn't the heat. Maria could easily deal with heat, though of course she preferred to be in an air conditioned environment. It wasn't the sand, either. Sand was irritating, but Maria could live with it, as it was only a minor inconvenience until she could get to the nearest shower. But deserts...
Deserts were empty. And Maria absolutely despised that. Nothing but dunes, as far as the eye could see. Mexico City may have been hot, but that heat wasn't just the sun, it was HUMAN heat. Things were lively, people were out, they were talking, they were doing something, existing! But in DESERTS, Maria mentally spat the word out in her mind, you only had yourself and whatever miserable person, or indeed people, that tagged along with you. Even simply flying above the desert made Maria grumpy.

Still, they arrived, though the journey was too long for Maria's tastes. Almost immediately, the group seemed to splinter into several conversations. Maria kept quiet, instead opting to get a look at the social landscape... Yeesh. Inwardly, she cringed as she noticed the American refused to put the safety on his rifle. Wasn't looking forward to working with THAT one... The female Marine looked promising, 'till she started to smoke. Yeah, no, Maria refused to deal with that kind of shit. Ugh, she desperately hoped that the barracks wouldn't stink of cigarette smoke. 

However... Despite the obnoxious Americans, the rest of 'em seemed promising. Strong, silent types Maria could deal with, and the Chinese looked like that they'd at least be interesting to talk to. She didn't exactly think they'd be out fighting, much, so finding a good conversationalist to spend the time with wouldn't be the worst thing to do.

She knew that her country was trying to snuggle up to the Asian nations, but frankly, Maria couldn't give a damn about international politics. When she did tune in, everything the countries did just embarrassed her. ESPECIALLY programs like the one she was currently in. Honestly, what were they even expected to do? She figured that this program would be lounging around in the barracks, if they were even done. The facilities didn't exactly impress her all too much- until they popped into that li'l ol' hangar. 

[i]Holy shit...[/i] Maria thought, and realized that the UN wasn't playing around, despite how completely nuts the thing looked from the outside. She continued the remain silent, trailing behind the rest of the group, as she tried to absorb every single detail about the place. She got more than a few suspicious glares from workers, but Maria was far too wrapped up in trying to practically memorize the layout of this hangar. This development changed her views on QUITE a few different things, and she caught up to the rest of the group just in time to see the checkpoint guard.

[i]Great, a Russian...[/i]
Despite her mental grumbling, though, she wasn't terribly disappointed. It wasn't this guy's fault that his country was a bizarre Frankenstein mix of a schoolyard bully and a former global superpower. Whatever B.S. Russia pulled, one thing was constant: Maria was surprised that they'd even think about making a move like that. The guard, to his credit, didn't pester Maria much. Her paperwork was all in order, despite her having had several urges to mess them up so she could go back home. Then again, it probably wouldn't be home that she'd be sent to, if she was found this far in a secretive UN program without proper paperwork...

Maria glanced down at her papers yet again, and at the various groups ahead that were splintering off. Ah, jeez. Echo Squad. By the looks of things, she'd be partnered up with those Americans. Still, from what she could tell, the group wouldn't be ALL terrible. Maybe, just maybe, things wouldn't be as terrible as she figured they'd be...

Ah, screw it, her luck's been running firmly against her, lately. Might as well prepare for the worst. Maria quietly sidled up to the group, trying to find a comfortable position that wouldn't make her stand out. She knew that she was going to know these people eventually, but she sure as hell was gonna at least try to figure out who deserves respect BEFORE she starts handing out friendship passes.