Welcome to Gaia! ::

Out here the sky went on forever.

It stretched unbroken from horizon to horizon, an arid blue dome teased across with scraps of cloud that never quite reached the brilliant white sun.

On a clear day - and it was clear more often than not - you could glimpse infinity.

And beyond that..

Well.

Not much moisture here - not much of anything, really, except sand and sky. A good place for Cacnea, Diglett, and Sandshrew, and perhaps Hippowdon if you were lucky, but likely they'd gone to ground when they heard the rumbling of the four-wheeler's tires. It had been an uneventful ride, which left the red-haired woman leaning in the shade of the building to wonder how - or if - they hid the vehicle tracks.

The grunt on surveillance had asked her if she'd like to come inside, have a drink. That drink she would like but no, thank you, she would wait here. Everything had been moved in, her quarters arranged to her liking, all the necessary paperwork - key cards, IDs, safety clearance and network registration - carried out, and she'd had a shower. Her duties wouldn't start until tomorrow, so for now, she'd absorb the feel of this place and.. adapt.

Besides, she was supposed to be meeting someone.

Out on the dunes a tall shape sniffed the wind.

The woman turned her head as Seth approached, a professional smile playing around her lips.

It quickly disappeared when he kept talking.

She dipped her chin; the pearl drops in her ears swayed. Cool grey eyes, half-lidded, studied the tall elite from under a sweep of fiery hair. She'd had her arms folded as she watched the desert; they remained so now, though the set of her shoulders shifted.

When he was done, her mouth was barely parted in a hint of a wry smirk.

"Hardly. I've been transferred to the center of operations." There was meaning in that - useless elites got sent to remote outposts, on wild goose chase assignments, or placed where they'd do the least damage and hopefully run into an unfortunate accident.

The woman - Nadezdha - turned to face him fully now. "You must be Seth," she smiled, calculating though her eyes remained. Her voice was a low melodic murmur lacking any trace of the accent her name would suggest.

"I believe you're my guide."

Nadezdha turned toward the desert.

"Enough." The crisp command carried across the sand. Something hazy and indistinct in the heat paused and loped toward her, but red light shot out and enveloped it.

The redhead minimized the Pokeball and returned it to the low-slung belt over her hips.

"I'm familiar with your layout and resources," she replied as they began to walk. "Your recent missions as well." Her gaze flickered to Seth for an instant. "I'm interested in your lower levels and making the proper introductions, so shall we?"

She was by no means a short woman and the female uniform's boots gave her two more inches, but Seth was still over half a foot taller and his stride significantly longer. Nevertheless, she matched his pace with three steps for his every two - the brisk, decisive gait of a businesswoman.

"H'm." Nadja made a low noise in the back of her throat, apparently pleased by this plan.

The unremarkable journey had left her ample time to review the briefing materials but even if she hadn't, it was doubtful she would have acted like a sightseeing tourist. She walked straight ahead, her boots tapping briskly down the tiled corridor. Occasionally her eyes would cut away briefly and her expression change the slightest bit in response to something.

Once in the elevator she faced the doors and looked at Seth with a slight sanguine curve to her lips.

"That's thoughtful of you. But I'd prefer if you were thorough."

Nadja's slim brows arched, then furrowed.

"Don't leave anything important out, but don't linger. There are other things I mean to do today."

With that light admonishment she exited the elevator after Seth, falling into smooth step alongside him. Despite the relaxed pace, her walk retained an efficient quality, long-gloved arms swaying at her sides.

She glanced at the various as they were indicated, more often with a movement of her eyes alone or the barest inclination of her head. "Hm." Mention of the emergency exit elicited more interest; the redhead lifted her brows a fraction and tilted her chin, evaluating the hallway.

"Only one?"

Nadja returned the stare with one of her own. Again that clandestine smile, as if she were enjoying some private amusement.

A murmur followed him into the elevator, and soon after so did she. "We should get along just fine then." The doors closed and the car began to whir downward.

The elite leaned back on one foot, a hand resting lightly on her hip. "So you supervise a division, see to the network, teach regular classes and lead missions?" Impressive, her tone seemed to imply, but she didn't say it.

She gave him a brief smile as she passed and paused mid-step at the entrance with one hand resting on the closed half of the double door.

The elite agent surveyed the gym, shoulder-length hair swaying as she looked first left, then right, then up, silently estimating dimensions.

When Nadja spoke, her voice resounded in the vacant room as she surveyed the ceiling. "Have you tested this personally?" It was inquisitive.

"Now that might be something to see," Nadja mused in the silence of the darkened room. She tapped a finger once against the doorframe. "It must be a tight fit." The red-haired elite turned.

As she moved back into the bright hallway she looked at Seth with an expectant tilt of her head. All right, I'm ready, that look said. Show me what else you've got.