[center][h2]Anne Mayer[/h2][h3]Unidentified Planet — Ruined Church[/h3][/center]
If not for the young man's plea, Anne would have been happy to remain where she was, to take even a minute to recover and catch her breath. As always, though, it took only a moment for the situation to turn critical. This mystery planet was yet another warzone, and the people here were in dire need of help.

And what kind of hero could leave the cries of a child unanswered?

Even with her right eye still half-blinded, even with her body howling at her to lie down and rest, she forced herself to stand up and step forward. To hold herself up straight, shoulders squared, like the kind of knight people spoke about in stories. These kids had been forced into the depths of despair, and just as much as they needed protection, they needed some kind of hope to cling onto, something to keep their souls intact through the bloody battle that followed. Anne knew better than anyone how war could tear a person apart, and she would not let these innocents fall the way she once had.

Her gait steadied as she approached the young man and his sister, and she spoke to them with the firm confidence of a woman used to command. "Your goddess is right. We're going to save your home, and bring you and your sister back to everyone there. So right now, we need to keep both of you out of harm's way." She knelt down to gently lift the injured girl in her arms, before ushering the two civilians back towards the far end of the chapel as the powersuit stranger had advised. Her back faced the doorway, the open windows, and the dark span of her coat formed a protective barrier between her charges and anything that might assail them. Never mind infantry weapons: her clothing was built to fend off tank rounds and particle beams if necessary. So long as she was here, nothing would get through.

[i]...That may be all I can do for now, though.[/i] If the enemy was a Raven unit, then they could be affiliated with the AL, and it would cause a political storm if Anne were to be seen engaging them directly. Even leaving that aside, with the state of her body... She'd have to count on the others to fight. With their numbers and their Paranormal Powers, they could probably win without any casualties on their side.

Any of these strangers might still turn out to be her enemy. Yet when the young man had asked for someone to save him, each of them had heeded the call in their own way. At least for the moment, this fact was reason enough for Anne to place her trust in them.