Welcome to Gaia! ::

Rachel had stood back observing with a plastic smile as she gripped the headset in an idle hand. She knew damn well she was not suited for field work and couldn't help a gnawing worry about the prospect of going out there again but this was just a pick up. It was very unlikely they would see any combat at all. . . right? At least the team had some time together now and Eamon had managed to redeem himself for the most part in training but Rachel still made it quite clear she could - and would - overrule his commands if she felt they were foolish. She hoped it would not come to that but was prepared to take tactical command if need be, at least then she wouldn't feel like such a dead weight.

The doctor pushed that concern from her mind and went back to observing the team's interaction. She was not surprised by their sullenness. Last time they did this two of their number were killed. She could appreciate Richard's professionalism but had to smile at Uso's entry. He was a brazen punk - reminded her of someone in a past life. Rachel's smile faltered slightly at the memory but she recovered it quickly at the exchange between the boy and old man. She couldn't help but appreciate their opposites and was glad they got along.

The team had filled up quickly with non-combatants and Rachel worried what might happen if their fighters did not get along. So of course Nathaniel's behavior worried her - which was nothing new. She'd seen his jealousy before so knew perfectly well what was going on and could only hope it wouldn't flare into something dangerous. She was starting to doubt the wisdom of requesting him, especially with . . . no one else to rely on. They couldn't afford to lose another fighter.

At least the non-combatants made for an interesting study. The potions maker especially had some interesting ideas that Rachel was very interested to hear more about but they'd not had time to truly discuss in the midst of all the training. Still, it was something to look forward to - as were the enchanters. The labs' enchanters lacked vision in Rachel's opinion so it would be nice to have a few new ones to badger- I mean ask for inventions.

"A markedly anti-social group but I doubt nihilists is quite accurate, Mr. Frederickson. At least I would hope so," the doctor gave them a wry smile as she stepped to the driver's door and opened it up. "Step to, gentlemen - ladies," she added with a smile to the women. "No need to take all night for a simple extraction."

Rachel had given Clarissa a smiling nod for her mention of preparation, a good policy, but she arched a thin brow at the bottles she was handed. Feeling a little like a pack mule she gave the woman a terse smile and nod, subtly different from the first. She had no intention of needing such things but then, with the way the last outing had gone, she wouldn't refuse them. A super-potent smoke screen could be useful though may trip her up just as bad as any foe and a healing potion was always welcome though the warning that came with it was a touch troubling.

"Knock a person out?" the doctor asked for clarification. Depending on the answer it could make a big difference in if she chose to use them or not. Still she tucked them neatly away in her ever-present black purse. Regardless of the answer it would be good to have them on hand.

"Fascinating," the doctor mused quietly with a considering little smile. "I shall have to see what can be done about those ingredients. Your work is certainly something I would like to further discuss at a more appropriate time. For now we've a job to do," she pointed that at the others loitering silently around them then gave Clarissa a slight nod before she swung up into the driver seat of the vehicle - at least she could be of some small use behind the wheel.

Dr. Sarah Schraeder introduced herself to her new teammates a few minutes after having been brought into the room where they were gathered. She had struggled internally with the decision of whether or not it was worth her time to give them her name; she doubted they would be on a team for very long, and even if they were, she would likely be trying to get transferred back to the laboratory. Not because she disliked fighting; the doctor was well-versed in battlefield operations. No, Dr. Schraeder wanted to be in the lab because she greatly enjoyed using her knowledge and prowess to make combat more of an art form for her allies at Leviathan.

In the end, Dr. Schraeder grudgingly gave them her name before sinking back into sullen silence. There was no point in making her stay with Team Seven any less enjoyable than it already would (wouldn't? semantics were hard.) be. Soon enough, they were beginning their training regimens for the week that they had to prepare; Dr. Schraeder stayed mostly out of the center of attention, instead observing all of her new allies very closely. It would appear to most people that she was interested in learning about their combat styles, tactics, and even their psychology on the battlefield - and to some degree, this was true. Her blank face and closed mouth betrayed nothing more, however.

During the periods where she felt it prudent to train, Dr. Schraeder alternated between target practice with her X6-S2 (she shredded the practice dummies with a high degree of accuracy, earning her a small measure of professional respect from Eamon, which was no doubt amplified by the frankly distressing lack of marksmanship in some members of their team) and practicing a flowing, almost dance-like form with her twin Crescent Knives. Anyone who was well-versed in hand-to-hand combat would recognize the style as arnis, which had developed in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, Dr. Schraeder spent most of her time analyzing her teammates and forming opinions on their chances of survival. Any time one of them asked her a question, she answered it in as few words as possible and then clammed up. She was clearly not there to be social. By the end of the week, she figured:

- Rachel, while in some form of auxiliary command, was pretty much useless in battle. Still, she must have been given authority for some reason, and Dr. Schraeder was quite aware that usefulness could be found outside of the battlefield.

- Uso was violent, impulsive, and childish. He would be easy to manipulate, and he hit like a sack of bricks riding on a bicycle when he was angry - which was often. Dr. Schraeder had hopes that he would impress her in battle.

- Richard was... well, he was something else. Very strange. Dr. Schraeder had a few thoughts about him, but he certainly bore more study.

- Strings was less talkative, more observant, and seemed to be rather more aware of his abilities and, importantly, his shortcomings. Dr. Schraeder liked him.

- Briar-Rose was similarly useless in combat. Dr. Schraeder had reviewed her dossier in her spare time and was startled to find that the girl had extensive education and practice in physics and engineering. Though she showed little useful ability so far, Dr. Schraeder had high hopes for the girl.

- Clarissa had created several potions, a support role that Dr. Schraeder cared for greatly. Because of her position in the lab, Dr. Schraeder was very supportive of the type of material support that an alchemist like Clarissa could provide.

- Eamon was a wildcard, having lost his command already. Still, he was helpful and willing to try to teach the others. Dr. Schraeder refrained from judging Eamon until she had seen him fight.

Overall, Dr. Schraeder believed that the team had a fairly high chance of success based on their spread of abilities. In listening to and observing her comrades, she realized that not everyone shared this belief; they seemed to want more combat-oriented agents to round out their numbers.

So they didn't know how to do war correctly. Dr. Schraeder would have to educate them.

Soon (but not soon enough for the irritable and antisocial doctor), the day came for their operation. It was supposed to be a simple retrieval, but Dr. Schraeder had seen enough operations go horribly awry that she was mentally prepared for a full-fledged demonic invasion. Some might call her paranoid.

Dr. Schraeder entered the garage with her head held high, an imperious buffer of icy cold seeming to repel the idea of casual conversation. When she realized that no one was talking at all, however, Dr. Schraeder began to grow somewhat exasperated and decided that she would speak to them now. She started with Briar-Rose.

"Is this the MAC that I've read about?" she asked, masking her excitement and pretending to only have scholarly interest with just a hint of "I don't care I'm just asking to be polite." She looked at it intently, drinking in the details and somewhat defeating her own image of noncaring. "I'm rather interested to see it work in a field test. I've read your files; I believe you have a bright future here if you keep it up."

Frederickson responded to Dr. Miles with a noncommittal grunt, and piled into the van. The three newbies were... well, he was no more concerned with him than he had been with the rest of the team. True, there were a lot of non-coms, but who knew? Maybe forcing Uso and Richard to be the over-buffed heroes in any given situation would feed their egotism while simultaneously keeping them alive. He certainly wouldn't mind having more backup - there had been an awful lot of times where his cover fire had been used as a means of escape, and he had almost been left behind to "hold them off as long as he could."

The new doctor bothered him. Schraeder. She seemed almost intentionally cold. She was very effective in a number of areas, and would be a nice addition to the team, but Strings only respected the sort of pragmatic coldness Eamon and Dr. Miles showed; this... condescension... might cost them valuable players. Still, he would do as he was told. Briar-Rose, at least, seemed energetic enough; moreso than he expected. He would try to get to know her. Maybe. And Clarissa... well, it was appropriate that she and Miles were currently trying to out-Arctic one another, and that was that.

Overhearing the conversation between them, he grunted out, a little awkwardly, "How wide an area does the, uh... shadow cover?"

Dr. Schraeder blinked twice when Briar-Rose stopped speaking. She wasn't used to fellow scientists suddenly cutting off like that, when they were explaining their findings to one another. It took a moment for the baffled doctor to respond to the younger woman's question.

"Yes, of course I would like to hear," Dr. Schraeder said, perhaps a little too eagerly. "There are a lot of options for potential applications - at least three that I can think of off the top of my head. I'd like to hear a lot more about this."

She looked around as she spoke. Weren't they supposed to be leaving soon? It felt like they had been standing around for days.

For the first time since he had been there, Strings showed a hint of real disapproval. His wrinkled face moved oddly as he raised a questioning eyebrow at Dr. Miles, turning very slowly from Clarissa to direct his aged disdain at the doctor. He moved so slowly it was at first unclear whether the eyebrow was meant for Clarissa or the doctor. Seriously, they were being counted off? He turned back, and finally accepted the vials gratefully, having not felt in the least challenged by her suggestion.

"That will work just fine. Thank you." He settled back into his seat after pocketing the gift and clammed up again, eyes going distant as he waited for them to take off, arms clutching his instrument case while his fingers tapped quietly on the neck of it, practicing.

Dr. Schraeder arched an eyebrow severely, staring hard at Dr. Miles as she began to count. What is this, a paranormal operations unit or a kindergarten class? Dr. Schraeder did not like to work on anyone's clock but her own, and being so blatantly patronized was a sure recipe for making this woman her enemy.

Still, Eamon had a point. Bowing to his logic and tactful treatment of the situation, Dr. Schraeder clambered into the car next, taking a seat in the back of the vehicle.