RPG Discover The Deep ..::)(-Play-)(::..

[Corey]

The sand blew across their burned faces. Three months. Three months they had been out there in search of anything and finding nothing. Three months of dehydration fits and respiratory distress. Three months of the scalding sun and the freezing nights. Three months of the scorpions. And what have they found?
Nothing.

Early one morning he rose from the cradle of sleep to a landscape as of yet untouched by sunlight. It looked as placid as an ocean, despite their little makeshift home and the red-flagged excavation sites. The sonar had revealed little, but there were a few small things. Possibly some recently dead animal, buried under the sand after it died of dehydration.

Slowly, he made his way to the top of one a dune of sand. If he had been anywhere else, he would have sworn he had been climbing a watery wave. The horizon stretched for miles. The crystal clear air magnified everything, making it seem attainable in less than a few minutes walk. Cacti stood like solemn guards to the treasure that lied beneath the sand. Their needles like makeshift weaponry. Flowers like eyes. Appendages that seemingly reached toward the sky to pick up some unknown signal or order. He shook his head and smiled.

The sun peaked over the horizon, immediately beginning the great heat of the day. Shadows sprung from the cacti and sand dunes. The few shrubs that grew almost curled up to try and hide from the life giver and death bringer in the sky. He slipped on his reflective sunglasses and walked back down the dune, leaving footprints once again on the perfection of sand. A warm wind kicked up and rippled their tents. A few stirred, but more slept. He smiled and walked over to the small plastic storage unit they had brought with them. Slowly and carefully he removed the sonar device. Dragging it over the the agreed-upon spot, he began charging the battery. It would take about an hour to reach maximum charge with the sun just beginning to peek over the distant lands. Solar power wasn't perfect.

He made coffee and waited for the others to awake. He felt that today was their lucky day. Something was going to happen. And wether that thing would be good or bad, anything would be better than the monotonous run of their stay, so far.

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Professor Shrai'i Kell Megelani checked her clipboard, then her watch, then continued walking down the hall. Her black heels clicked against the floor and she smiled to herself. The white coat flared around her body and hid her lithe, slender figure. She was a linguist. One of the best. Her superior knew it, and respected her at least that much. Her body was another story.

The doors opened automatically, and then sealed shut again behind her. She sat down at his desk, avoiding his penetrating stare expertly. Then she removed the pen from her ear and started writing down the assignment on the whiteboard. The two men standing around her nodded and did the same. It was then that she noticed exactly who they were. Dr. Leo Baldwin. An expert in archeology and the like. Professor Stan Veraguchi. A history major, graduated from...some huge college. And her own private boss.

Professor Trent. She looked up into his piercing green eyes, matching their glare with her own iced honey ones. He smiled slightly.[/i]

"I know it's slightly off the beaten path.... But I have another job for you. One that's rather top secret."

"And?"

"You'll be with other skilled individuals, working in the field."

"What field?"

"I can't tell you that. I can give you this."

[i]He placed a manila folder on her lap, neatly brushing his hand against her chest. She gave him a glare, then broke the seal and opened it. And smiled.[/i][/COLOR]

[Frankie]

Sam's face was serious and stayed that way. She stood there staring out into the nothingness. She was quiet and never slept much so she could keep a good watch out. She did keep an eye out on the activity already going on as the sun began to rise. It was quite boring but who ever said her job would be full of much.

She stood upright and others would say she stands like a board. Her dull colored clothes stood out in this landsacpe. Dull army green jeans and older army boots. She would seem like a normal person because that style was known to alot. But the true givaway was the gun she had straped to her side...and the large one swith a strap over her shoulder.

She was security of this little operation. Sure it wasnt a huge job but it was a job. It kept her away from her arguing secondary parents. Her job kept her busy so she never had time to think...she always stayed alert and watched things... she watched for abnormality in things. Anything strange was checked out...

Her short hair seemed spikey and didnt lay straight. It was a nice cut and she liked it that way. Her eyes pierced the landscape watching what she could. Her lips were pressed into the perfect line of seriousness and her eyes seemed the same.

"Boreeeeing" She hums to herself just once.

[Arcadia]

Despite the fact that the morning light was beginning to stretch its warm little fingers across the desert, Megan still sat sprawled in her bed. Having kicked any and all covers off much earlier that morning, as the heat began to set in, she groaned softly and turned over, her dark brown locks matted against her neck. It still amazed her, even after three months, how quicky the change in temperature came between night and day. And how much of a change it actually was. She'd never worked in the desert before - usually around mountains, or out in the rural country; places like Pompei. She thought of Pompei briefly as she sat up, rubbing her eyes. Of the huge dead city, with those stone buildings almost entirely intact, and she missed it. But the thrill of find something here - what had drawn her to the Sahara in the first place - was much too great. And the change from working at ruins already unearthed, as opposed to a barren landscape such as this one, was a good one.

Stumbling from her bed to a shabby table near the side, she yawned loudly and stared blearily into the cracked mirror, adjusting the angle of it slightly. [I]Mmm, good morning, gorgeous,[/I] she thought to herself sarcastically, raising an eyebrow at her wild hair. She shook her head lightly, reaching for her toothbrush, and set about cleaning herself up a bit. Once changed into some suitable work clothes - a tank top, khaki shorts, sunglasses, and her beloved boots - she stuck a pencil in her mouth and snatched up her clipboard as she headed out the door.

The sun hit her face immediately and she smiled slightly at the sudden warmth, twisting her hair up and sticking the pencil through it in some crazy, makeshift do. The glittering sand stretched out for miles and miles before her, and she sighed as she ran her eyes along the edge of the horizon before turning in the direction of the sonar equipment. She thought she spyed Palavar with it. Striding over to the solar machine, she offered a grin to the man always up before her - it was indeed Robert, after all.

"Good morning.."

[Corey]

[b]Robert-[/b] "Morning Miss Caulfield," He wiped a bead of sweat from his forhead. It had already rose twenty degrees. "Sleep well?"

[b]Megan-[/b] "Well enough. What's for breakfast?" Robert smiled and walked over to a small tent they had erected. He came back with a buttered english muffin.

[b]Robert-[/b] "It's either this or a can of Spam. And I think Spam is more of a lunch food." She smiled faintly and took the english muffin from him. Robert turned around and surveyed their comodities. Everything was either in a makeshift cellar they had dug, or in coolers. And they were running low. Seventy cans of non-perishable food, twenty three packs of bread products, and then a few indulgences.

[b]Megan-[/b] "We're running low, aren't we." She gave him a sad smile. She knew they would have to leave soon, just as most of the others did. Robert nodded.

[b]Robert-[/b] "Yeah. We are. I'd say we have enough food for about another two weeks. Maybe less if we don't ration. The good thing is that we still have plenty of water. Probably enough for another three or four weeks. So if we run out of food at least we won't die of dehydration." He shrugged and looked at Megan. She was smiling slightly.

[b]Megan-[/b] "You know what I've realized?" She wiped her forehead. "Desert humor stops being as funny when you live there." Robert nodded.

[b]Robert-[/b] "But you can't help but joke about hopeless situations. It relieves stress." Megan smiled and walked away with her english muffin. "We're doing sector 17 today," he yelled after her. She gave him a thumbs-up without turning around. He smiled and walked over to the sonar machine. It's small indicator tone was sounding. The machine was charged. "Well... If anyone is still asleep, they won't be for long..." Everyday, underground charting began promptly at eight am. It was eight twenty. I waved at Samantha and pointed toward the machine. She nodded and inserted a pair of earplugs. She then turned toward where everyone was still grouped together.

[b]Samantha-[/b] "PLUGS!" There was sudden movement in the tents as people scrambled to insert their plugs. An original member of our team, Alan Ragrock, had not worn earplugs one day. The machine blew out his eardrums. He was sent to a local hospital and flown back to his US home. Megan took hers out of her pocket, and jammed them in. Robert inserted his own and began adjusting the variables of the machine. Maximum depth... Full power... Full spread... Image mapping to full resolution... "PLUGS!" Samantha repeated the warning in case someone had not heard.

[b]Robert-[/b] "Beginning sequence one of five." Robert spoke into a small cassette recorder. He pulled the trigger of the machine and the air suddenly felt as if you were at a concert. It vibrated and seeemd to wobble. It continued for about ten seconds then stopped. "Two of five." He pulled it again and the same thing happened. The excess vibration was released into the air while the less harmful vibrations mapped the underground. The rest of the sequences were carried out without incident. Robert pulled a screen from the machine and looked at it.

[b][i]Display-[/i][/b] [i]"Mapping of Underground Area: Sector 17, expected to be completed in 01:28:12. Data buffering at 3%."[/i] Robert nodded and walked over to the mess tent while removing his earplugs. His stomach always hurt after a sonar run. An antacid was in order.

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]She packed her standard uniform for working in the "boondocks" as he called it. Something like army fatigues, and a set of Moroccan clothes. Loose to let airflow, but tight around the ankles, waist, wrists, and stomach. To keep the sand out and the body warmth in. For the flight, she was wearing the formal two piece linnen suit but with crepe soled shoes. No use in wearing heels and ruining the leather.

She lifted her exoskeleton backpack with ease and shouldered it. Her smaller pack, containing her dopkit, glasses, clipboard, wallet, passport, and other important items was also picked up. The taxi was waiting outside and took her to Heathrow without another qualm. The letter from her superior was waiting on her seat. She picked it up and slit it with the wooden knife she kept in her bra.[/i]

[font=times]"Hello Shrai'i,
By the time this reaches you, you should be en route to Heathrow. Enclosed is your Visa, and new ID card. Keep them close. Be careful when you get there, a woman like you is an easy target. The gun and permit are with the driver.

I can not stress enough the importance of your safety. Remember to go with your instinct, and never go with anyone that lacks the proper ID, no matter what they say.

Pax.

Trent.[/font]

[i]She looked out the window, then took the Glock 9mm and the international permit from the driver, who handed them over without even looking at her.

12 Hours later.

The plane landed easily at the Egyptian International Airport. She got out, feeling very little jetlag and breezed through customs. Courtesy of UN documents and other useful identification. She had changed outfits into the Morrocan black pants, army boots, and body wrap. The burka went over her head unobtrusively and she smiled. It was also good for hiding the weapons she had brought along. Her sensitive documents were stashed in her blouse. Nobody seemed to want to deal with her. It was better that way.

She followed the directions to another hotel. Much better.[/i][/COLOR]

[Arcadia]

As Meg put on her earplugs, she couldn't help but think of Ragrock; she supposed everyone did. His mistake wasn't one you'd exactly want to make, and since his sudden departure, no one had. She couldn't help but smirk in amusement, just a little, and continued picking at her muffin as she strolled along the dunes. Walks in the morning always helped to soothe her in the beginning. The extreme heat combined with the sudden change at night had left her a quivering mess for a few good days, so she took up walking in the morning to ease her mind and body. Sort of like a moving meditation. Now, she had long grown accustomed to the bizarre temperature but the walks stuck with her. And as long as she enjoyed them, there was no real use in changing her ways.

The vibrations under her feet were also a strange thing to get used to. But she, just like the rest of the crew, got used to them. Sometimes they made her feel queezy.. sometimes her head hurt afterwards. And sometimes they just tickled the soles of her feet and kept going up. But all these were regularities to her now, and the thought of leaving them was a depressing one. Sighing quietly, finishing up the last bit of her english muffin, she turned to look over their modest little site. It was home, simply put. She would hate to leave it.

[I]Sector 17,[/I] she thought to herself as she removed her plugs, [I]Be merciful. Please be more than just desert.[/I] She slid her sunglasses up her forehead, deciding that today would be a good day. Even if lucky number 17 didn't do anything for them. That was the key - to stay smiling. Though optimistic as she might be, not even Megan could hide the fear in her eyes. And she really, [I]really,[/I] hoped that for once, the desert would prove her wrong and give up some sort of find. Even if it was a lizard at this point. She chuckled at that; if she had to pick, she thought something a little bigger than a lizard would be nice, but one miracle at a time.

Heading back down the dune towards their camp, she thought to go fill up her canteen for the day, all the while repeating to herself her new mantra: [I]"One miracle at a time, Meg. One miracle at a time."[/I]

[Frankie]

Sam stood completely stiff as she always seemed to. She kept her eyes moving but not herh ead. She watched the activity in the area. Mornings were sometimes slow. She took out her earplugs and shoved them into her pocket. She then rested her left hand on her pistol and let the other lay flat against her side.

Robert walks up out of nowhere, "Arent you gonna eat something... We got work to do..."

"No thanks" She mearly nodded not even moving her head to look at robert.

"But its hard to work on an empty stomach"

"I dont eat breakfast... Nor do i eat lunch." Sam kept survaying the area. "You shouldnt complain... we are running low on supplies... im one less mouth to feed..."

Sam then moved for the first time in 2 hours. She walked over towards some sand that seemed to move slightly. She walked slowly and she reached into her back pocket. She slowly pullled out a knife and stabbed into the sand. All the while robert watched from afar with a confused look on his face.

Sam pulled the knife out of the sandy ground and stuck to the end of it was a scorpion. Sam grabbed it by its tail and pulled it off her blade. She then turned around and flung it over her shoulder as she walked back to her standing place.

"I just hate scorpions" Sam answers the silent question on roberts face.

[Kain]

Ack got a late start.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[color=firebrick][I]

James lay in his tent with his earplugs in trying to catch some more shut eye like he always tried to.But of course it never worked.Too much commotion and movement.James stood and walked out too Robert to get whatever assignment to be done today.James walked over to Robert shouting to get his attention.

James-Hey Robert!!!What do we have up for today?

Robert-Since i'm feeling lucky today we're gonna try Sector 17!!!

James-Anything important i need to do today?

Robert-I'll tell you if we find something.

James-Alright then.

James waves goodbye and walks over to the tent to get something to eat for breakfast.He grabs a muffin and walks over to a nearby sandune.James climbs it like it was a small mountain.He sits atop it and stares out at the endless sea of sand while he eats his breakfast before he has to get to work.[/I][/color]

[Hinata]

[COLOR=teal]


Saria noticed her walk into the hotel and right on time luckily. She had to get back to the site quick. Who knew wht Robert, James, Sam and Meg were up to. But all she knew was that she didn't want to be left out for long. Who knows they may have discoverd something big and she was left out. Those were the only hought that ran through her mind for the past two days as she came into Cairo.

She took out the piece of paper and walked over to the woamn studying the photgraph and the lady as she heade to the front desk. She called out to her.

Saria: Professor Megelani, I presume?

Shrai"i: Yes, and you are?

Saria: Oh, I'm sorry. The names Saria, I'm here to escort you to the site.

Shrai'i: Well as you can see I just got in. Do we have a few hours of rest that I can get.

Saria kind of startled by her bluntness looked at her for a few minutes. She didn't want to stay in Cairo long, but she knew she would need rest as well.

Saria: Okay we'll be leaving in the morning. Be ready by 5 am. We need to get back as soon as possivle. Besides who knows who may be around. Something of such importance shouldn't be--

Saria for a moment stopped speaking and then corrected herself.

Saria: I'm sorry if I come off rude or anything but being how I am, I find it easier and more homly being at work out in the field ya know?

Shrai'i: Yeah, I think I get ya.

Shrai'i quickly turned around and got her room key. She went to the elevators leaving Saria in the lobby.

As Saria noticed her walk away, she stewed for a few minutes wondering what Shrai'i was thinking about her. She hoped that her comment didn't spark any harsh feelings, especially since she just met the lady.

Saria: Oh well. I may as well explore the city.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------[/COLOR]

OOC: Raiha, If you dont like how I present your character please let me know or if you didnt wish to meet this way I can always change things. So let me know....
SEE YA!!

[Frankie]

Sam was now sitting on a small plastic box. She threw her knife into the sand and pulled it out again. She repeated this for over an hour. She contimplated some things and watched the others wander around restlessly. She heard them say something about a linguist coming in and no one wanted to start till the new memeber and saria were back.

Sam glared at the sun as it was quickly yet slowly moving across the sky. The heat at times got to her but she endured. Flashbacks came to her and it was of her childhood. A fifteen year old living in a house with two gay men who always argued. It was alright and it was the only life she knew but at times it got annoying. Them helping with homework was actually quite entertaining.

Sam snapped back into the present day and looked around. "What a boring day" she sighed to herself.

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue]She'll be very formal once she meet's the team, but don't worry....you're fine.
~~~~~~
[i]The exhausted female undressed, took a shower, pressed her clothes, and collapsed into bed. Several hours later, she rose again. This time, she dressed in her Moroccan clothes once more, and was ready to receive her dinner. The hotel's most excellent room service delivered her meal. Hot tea, bread, and some sort of fried vegtables and meat. She tucked in quickly, and consumed everything set before her.

Then she packed her things and waited for Saraia to return. She seemed cute enough. A little straightforward, but obviously not used to desk work. Oh well. It takes all kinds.

Shrai'i walked to the older styled TV and flicked it on. Good thing she could understand .....whatever language that was. It was archaic.[/i][/COLOR]

[Arcadia]

After retrieving her canteen from her tent, the brunette went about going to fill it up, slipping her shades back over her eyes as she traipsed over to the mess tent. Most of the others were now up and about, and she saw quick glimpses of them, appearing or disappearing into different tents themselves, getting breakfast, checking the day's schedule.. just as they did every other morning. With a little pout, she found the huge, metal barrel of water (they had a few of them, actually, though by now with all their resources running low, this seemed to be the last one standing) and filled her little canteen with enough water for the day. "Good water, [I]pretty[/I] water," she purred appreciatively, taking a small sip before closing off the little jug. She fastened the belt connected to the canteen loosely around her hips, before deciding to go find someone to talk to.

Mornings were always pretty quiet, she decided, especially today. Probably because of the new member.. a linguist, if she was correct in remembering. That news had brought a sigh of relief to Megan - while she could speak a little French and Italian, she was by no means fluent in either of the languages, especially the latter one, and it would take a great worry off of her shoulders. She'd been a little out of practise for the last few months, as well, so having someone here who could actually speak the languages would be nice. All in all, a good addition to the team, she mused, though she only hoped it wasn't too late.

With another sigh, deciding she was going to try to avoid thinking about that possibility, she started back towards some of the dunes, offering Sam a bright grin, a small wiggle of the fingers, and a merry "Good morning!" as she passed. And then she began climbing, a slow but steady pace up the crazy dunes before she greeted James, whom she found to her left, sitting complacently on top of the mountain of sand.

"It's another lovely desert morning, eh?"

----

Eh, talking for other characters makes me feel kind of uncomfortable, so I probably won't do it often. That's not to say that you can't do that with Meg - go for it, as long as she's in character, I'm all for it. I'm just a little apprehensive about doing that until I know what most of the characters are like. Just thought I'd let you know. o.O;;

[Hinata]

[COLOR=teal]
As she wandered about the city, she remembered one reason why she became and archealogist, the traveling. Although many parts of the city were a little unkept she enjoyed its ruggedness and how busy it was.
Men mostly, some calmly discussing matter of importance. Others yelling and bickering. Or at least from what she could tell. She didn't know the language but just guessed from their body language.
Many booths filled with food, clothes, jewelry lined the streets but she couldn't stay there and look on. She be too tempted to by meaningless things so went straight for the good stuff. Mostly nonperishable items from a groceir that sold...Modern-like foods.

[I]I hope they remember what I'm doing for them. Using me as their errand-girl[/I]

She mumbled to herself as she filled continued on her quest through the town. Picking up small parts and other "special" items that a few members of the team needed. But luckily tomorrow they would be going. Back to her old stompng ground. Well at least thats what she called it.

As she thought about what her team could be doing, she soon wandered about the professor. How would she reckon out in the desert?[/COLOR]

[Raiha]

[COLOR=royalblue][i]Saria knocked on her door and was pleasantly surprised by Shrai'i's promptness. She was waiting, with her backpack and purse in hand. The two walked down the stairs, headed for the waiting Jeep, and climbed in. She sat in the front, tossing her things in the back. Saria noticed her attire, and smiled. It was perfect.[/i]

"I like the outfit."

"...I figured I'd be using this sometime."

"Moroccan?"

"Yeah. I got it from a specialty shop in Big Sur."

"The gang's gonna get a kick out of it."

"Why?"

"Most people wear khakis and cotton shirts and stuff."

"I have my own style."[/COLOR]

[Frankie]

The wind suddenly changed. It became almost silent and sam stood up. She looked in all directions and then strained her eyes toward the east. A small cloud of sand swirled and whipped around. But sam wasnt stupid. It may be small in the distance but they are Huge when they get on top of you.

She stood up and cupped her hands around her mouth. She took a deep breath and then shouted:

"Warning! SAND STORM IN THE EAST HEADING THIS WAY... ITS COURSE MAY CHANGE BUT GET EVERYTHING NAILED DOWN JUST IN CASE WE DONT WANNA LOSE ANYTHING! THIS IS YOUR WARNING...SO DONT SAY i didnt *whispers to herself* warn you"

She took another breath and filled her lungs with hot but refreshing air. She headed to her tiny TINY tent and took it apart. A few sticks and a cloth was all it was. She put the sticks in the cloth and tied it together. She then wrapped it in a plastic bag and burried it int the sand. She did attach a large rock to the bag so if the storm did hit... and the sand was blown away it might stay in its place. Shemade a small noticable pile of sand where she buried it so she would know where it was once she was done with her bedding

Her bedding though... went in one of the jeeps parked off to the side of the site. She shut the door and locked it.

"That better do it" she then walked back to the pile of sand and sat on it...Her guns still at her side. She waited for the outcome.

[The Harlequin]

[font=gothic][color=indigo][i]Kattarin heard the warning and sighed. It was truly unlikely that any kind of sandstorm kicking up around now would really cause that much of a hinderance to her, and for good reason. She'd brought her own tent. And she'd made sure it didn't let sand in. Multiple canvas layers and all. She simply lay back, making sure the tent flap was tightly closed, and tied off. More for keeping out people than sand. After all, provided they all survived, she didn't want a lot to do with them at the moment.

When one considered that the only reason she was here was because of people, that made a little more sense. Besides, they were all pretty much alive, though maybe not in the mental sense, and not in imminent danger of incipient mortality, so she was pretty redundant anyway. And conversationally dead with anyone who wasn't from back home. Strange, thinking of Australia as home. After all, she wasn't really Australian, not in a biological sense. In a personal sense though, she was. It wouldn't have worked with any other country, Australia being probably the most multicultural place on earth, but even so, Russians were somewhat rare. Still, she had quasi-fitted in there. Here, surrounded by people she didn't know, the only comfort she had was the environment...And in a place like this, that really kind of sucked.[/font][/color][/I]

[Corey]

Robert sighed and trudged his way back up to the sonar machine. He pulled out the screen and brought up the display.

[b][i]Display-[/b] "Mapping of Underground Area: Sector 17, expected to be completed in 00:37:57. Data buffering at 72%."[/i] He slid the screen back into its compartment and wheeled it down the dune. The coolness of the shed had longs since been replaced with a steifling humid heat. He pushed the machine in, grimacing slightly, and locked the doors tight. It was their most important piece of technology. Perhaps even more so than their night gear; thermal blankets, assorted thermal clothing, and lights. He slowly and carefully made his way to his own tent, feeling the wind as it began to pick up. His tent was small. Built only for one. It was white, to reflect the rays of the sun and keep the inside as cool as possible. He unzipped the outer door and then the inner. Two layres meant less sand. And less sand was a very good thing. Robert re-zipped his tent and picked up a book. It might be a while. Hopefully Saria and the new (but probably un-needed) linguist would arrive after the storm. Alan had been good, but apparently this person was better.

[Frankie]

Sam stood outside. She glanced around and then put sealing in the windos and door cracks so less sand would get into the jeeps. The wind picked up and sam sighed. She grabbed her specialied helmet that kept sand out. She put it on and sat near her pile of stuff.

She watched the huge dust cloud roll on top of them. For some reason she didnt even worry about going inside a tent or anything. She just sat there.

[i] how beautiful[/i] She thought to herself as she watched the sand blow around. She thought it was beautiful... almost like magic. She never voiced this because she figured everyone would think she was insane.

The storm dissapered just as quickly as it had appeared. Sam took off the helmet and re set up her tent. It seemed everyone else was not up to getting out of their tents yet. Sam shrugged and went back to her post. She did watched the sandstorm blow away... the storm dissapered over the dunes.

"Pity"

[Kain]

[color=firebrick][I]James looked up slightly to catch a glimpse of Megan hovering over him.

James-Hi there.Go ahead and pop a squat.

James gives a small smile and gently pats the sand next to him in a gesture for Meg to sit down.He continues to stare out at the desert as he strikes up a conversation.

James-I hope we find something today.We've been here for weeks and have come up empty handed.What do you think Meg?

James takes another nibble of his muffin and listens to Meg as she talks.[/I][/color]

[Arcadia]

She smiled in return, and opened her mouth to reply but Sam's loud, assertive voice bellowed out before she even had the chance to take a breath. [i]"WARNING! SAND STORM IN THE EAST HEADING THIS WAY..."[/i] The warning carried on as she called out the directions they had all already learned by heart. Meg sighed, slumping over in defeat, before turning her eyes towards the direction of her mortal enemy - the sand storm. She hated them. She was fascinated by them, definitely, and the sounds they made were sometimes unearthly, but everytime one popped up - as they often did - something in her gut turned over. Eventually, she'd figure out the answer to that little riddle, but for the moment she just snapped her fingers in disappointment.

"Damn," she murmured, before shrugging her shoulders at James. "Go figure. I guess I'll see you after the storm ends." She wiggled her fingers at him before sauntering back down the dune, sometimes sliding down, heading in the direction of her tent.

She'd done her homework before she came out here, and so like the others, she'd come prepared. Double layered tents meant less cold, less sand, and less creepy crawly things, and that was generally good. Unfortunately, the only tents she could find were all obnoxiously colored. It seemed only natural, though, for her to have the day-glo orange tent. Sliding the flaps back, she climbed in her little haven and rolled her eyes at it, emitting another sigh as she zipped it off. She checked the door and windows thoroughly before resigning herself to her 'special chair', pouting slightly. This was [i]so[/i] not how she had wanted to spend her morning.

[Corey]

[b]Robert-[/b] "Well ****..." He put down his book after reading no more than two pages. He thought it would be longer. Stoically, Robert stood and shook his tent from the inside, knocking off the sand. The zipper stuck slightly, but he was finally able to get out of the nice little tent. All traces that people had already been out this morning was wiped from the area. No footprints. No tire tracks. And no... Shed? "What the hell? Sam!" She swung her head quickly around.

[b]Samantha-[/b] "What?"

[b]Robert-[/b] "The shed got buried... We gotta dig it out before the machine fries... We don't have another one... Let's go!"

[Frankie]

Sam rolled her eyes "Sir... is that like the four thime since we got here that has happened?"

"Yes now stop stalling !"

"Im not..." Sam stood up and grabbed a shovel. "Point to the x and ill get to digging..."

He thrust his arm in the direction of where the shed stood.

"Alright alright"

Sam then begins to dig with the help of robert.

[Arcadia]

Thankfully, the sandstorm did not continue as long as the last one had, and Meg was sure she'd only been seated for a few minutes before the screaming winds outside her tent lowered to a dull roar, and then nothing at all. She blinked at the cieling, before standing and poking at it on her tip toes. The sounds of sand sliding down the tent flaps reached her ears and she smirked, before bouncing around the tent joyfully, continually poking the cieling. After all the fun that could be had was [i]had[/i], she unzipped the tent and peered around outside curiously to see if anybody else was up and moving - again.

It was like a barren landscape once again, smooth, sleek sand in every which way and a clear blue sky above. Very strange, how the weather could change so rapidly in the desert, she mused lighty, before stepping out of her her tent completely. There didn't seem to be many others out, but the peculiar sound of grunting and shoveling caught her attention and she wandered in that direction to find Sam and Robert working hard at the spot where the all-important shed [i]should[/i] have been.

Pursing her lips, she grabbed a shovel and joined in, working furiously to hurry and get the shed unburied. No need to tell her once, let alone twice - right now, that sonar meant life and death for them. And as weird as she found the desert to be, she definitely wasn't ready to leave it. "Oh, I hope it doesn't combust on us like the last one did.."

[size=1](Sorry this is a tad late.. hopefully not [i]too[/i] late! *sings stupidly* [i]Here I come to save the day!![/i])[/size]