[h2][center][color=aba000]KRISS MAUSER[/color][/center][/h2]
[center][i]LOCATION: SCVRS[/i][/center]
[center][i]TIME: SUNDAY, LATE MORNING[/i][/center]

[color=aba000]"'53. Mr. Heston.' Hmph, another famous figure."[/color]

Kriss glanced at the eight downward clues that related to the answer. Only a few were filled in. One of them was 'Gold,' courtesy of Allison, who was not present. The wall-mounted clock indicated that she was expected to be here by noon, as she would be on call during the race. Snap wasn't in either. She had left immediately after the meeting, either to take care of something at home or to dodge Kriss. Both were likely, and he wouldn't put it past her to avoid confrontation so early in the morning. It was probably for the best. The decision had put him in a foul mood, and time alone in the lounge to cool off was best for him at the moment. Unfortunately, he still had not finished the puzzle from two weeks ago. A fresh one was sitting on the table, taunting him, but he preferred to finish what he started. Even if it involved famous figures he had never heard of.

So Allison was an official member. Easy enough for other people, who hadn't even met her and just wanted to get out of work. Kriss couldn't bring himself to nail down exactly why he disliked the new member. It wasn't uncommon to vote in new people early on. He had been elected into the squad in the same manner. She was qualified. She was professional on call. She had potential to be a perfectly capable medic. So what was it? Surely it couldn't be as petty as her personality just irritating him, could it? He wouldn't stoop to that level, to disliking someone just because they were different, would he? She was clumsy. Untrained. Unprepared to take this on full-time. She'd probably goof up and make a severe mistake, causing serious damage to life or property.

Because no one makes mistakes, right?

Now he was annoyed with himself. He tossed the puzzle to the table and went to take a shower. Hopefully the water would wash away his attitude. As he left the room, he heard a rumble from outside. The rumble soon escalated in a roar that reverberated all the way through the building, echoing off the walls and causing him to wince. Whatever was outside, it was making enough noise to penetrate the cinder block walls and steel door. He considered going outside to see what it was, but almost immediately the sound died out. He didn't hear anyone screaming for help or banging on the door. Kriss shrugged and headed off to the shower.

A half hour later, he was ready to handle meeting Allison as a fellow member of the squad. Maybe. Oh well. Ultimately uneasy about the whole thing, he toweled off and clothed himself in civilian clothes, which composed of jeans, a blank tee, and a bland zip-up jacket with a single breast pocket. He opened the door and found himself facing Allison, who was on her way to the women's dorm, toting a large backpack of clothes and toiletries. She stopped in her tracks, then turned swiftly and saluted him for whatever reason.

"Hello, Sol City Volunteer Rescue Squad...volunteer! It is I, also a volunteer!"

[color=aba000]"Congratulations on that."[/color]

"You don't sound sincere, Kriss."

[color=aba000]"I know."[/color]

"You're so mean," she called over her shoulder as she entered the other dorm. She didn't sound irritated or upset. It was just a casual observation. Unable to think of a proper response, he shrugged again and headed down to the front desk, where he encountered Snap, who was busy cleaning out the papers on the desk. She noticed Kriss and turned her chair to face him, crossing her arms and legs.

"Good morning, Kriss. How are you this morning?"

[color=aba000]"I am fine."[/color]

"Have you met the new squad member?"

[color=aba000]"Yes."[/color]

"You're going to be working directly with her. I hope you don't have a problem with that."

It was an innocent enough statement, but Kriss couldn't help but notice a slight hint of malice in her voice that suggested she wasn't interested in a negative response.

[color=aba000]"I don't-"[/color]

The conversation was interrupted by a soft knock on the door, followed by a crisp call for attention. Snap turned her head, then heaved herself out of the chair to go answer the door. Kriss remained poised by the door, unsure of whether the discussion had ended or not. It most likely had, though he felt a little odd about leaving in the middle of responding to his CO. Snap shoved the door open and, seeing an actual visitor, stepped outside to greet them. She had never seen the woman before. Given her Olympus Heavy Industries jacket, radiant jewelry, and openly visible prosthetic leg, Snap would have remembered the meeting. The CO was only vaguely familiar with OHI, but apparently they were on the cutting edge of robotic prosthetic appendages. The lady radiated authority despite her casual clothes and large backpack, which she hastily unslung.

[i]"Hello, Dr Marla Olympus, your team got invited to the Gala at City hall as i said, im from the sponsor company, Mayor seemed wanted them delivered by hand for some reason. everything in the pack, tickets, times, dress codes and the security notes etc."[/i]

Snap averted her gaze from the woman to the parcel and accepted it, reading the label for herself.

"I wasn't aware we were on the mailing list." She returned eye contact and examined the woman. Doctor Olympus? The name was familiar, but this was her first actual interaction with someone from the family, especially a doctor. "Familiar" was the wrong word, though, consider the name was plastered all over the news.

"Thank you. Have a nice day," she said, waving politely and turned to go back inside. Snap was a woman of few words. 

The sound of boots treading along the concrete floor indicated the return of Allison, who was also in casual clothes, composed of ragged jeans and a large grey sweater over a black V-neck shirt with her high school logo stamped on the front. She skipped up to the edge of the office door and paused, trying to hear the voice through the front door. Whoever it was, she sounded very fancy, though it was probably the crisp British accent. The metal door opened again and Snap stepped through, holding a large ornate envelope with elegant handwriting on the back.

"Looks like we got something from the mayor himself," she said, weighing it in her hands and reading the inscription. She pulled a utility knife from her back pocket and opened it carefully, dumping the contents onto the table. The envelope had contained a letter, a flier, and two large cardstock tickets, one of which she held up and examined closely.

[b]"FULL CLEARANCE - EMERGENCY PERSONNEL"[/b]