Gale Gentry had no idea what he was doing.

Their professor, as usual, had been cryptic in his instructions. All he had told them to do was to head to "The Cove" and and "find their weapons" with his typical unreadable face before disappearing out of the room.

...where on Earth is "The Cove," anyway?

He had wandered pathetically for some time attempting to find his way around the island facility. It wasn't that it was a particularly large place, but it had many rooms and corridors that made it easy to lose track of just where you were.

However, after about twenty minutes, Gale found it - The Cove, that was; the place where he would find his weapon. Adrenaline threaded its way through his veins; adrenaline mixed with an absurdly out-of-place anxiety that made him hesitate at the top of the stairs. From what their instructor had implied, the weapons a Hunter held were the most part of what they were doing here. It was the weapon that made the Hunter who they were.

What if I can't "find" mine? he thought, rubbing the back of his neck with one gloved hand. Dressed in the uniform he had found sitting on his bed, he felt...not quite right yet. The fabric was a little stiff, the boots feeling slightly awkward for someone who was used to wearing nothing but sneakers and sandals most of the time. He didn't feel wrong, persay; just....not right yet.

Was it because he had no weapon yet? A puzzle missing its final piece? Gale dropped his hand, subconsciously clenching and unclenching his fingers. If he failed to get a weapon, then...

No. He wasn't going to think like that. Squaring his shoulders, Gale swallowed hard, adopting a determined expression as he slowly but surely descended the stairs into The Cove.

It wasn't what he expected; the room - if it could be called a room - was much smaller than Gale would have thought it to be, only a little bigger than his own dorm room. The only light was a small, single torch off by itself, the flame flickering a deep orange gold and casting elongated shadows across the floor. And spread across the walls in every direction were...

...what, exactly? Gale's eyes were wide, his breath catching in his throat. Small tiles, a slight bit wider and taller than his hand took up the expanse of the wall, each one around the same size. The difference lay in the glowing symbols in the middle; they were runes of some sort, the markings etched carefully into each and every tablet. And the room itself felt...different, somehow. The atmosphere felt thicker, an odd pulsing sensation filling Gale's head. Tentatively he took a step forward, towards the wall.

Find my weapon. He did not know what exactly that meant. Were these the weapons? If he looked closer, Gale could see that the runes were not really runes - they were shapes, molded into the outlines of what could only be weapons. He reached out a hesitant hand, brushing his fingers over one that looked like a dagger. There was the softest whisper of a sound, barely audible, but nothing more. He was not sure what was supposed to happen, exactly, but something told him that it was not that. Pressing his lips together, he took a step to the left, this time touching a tablet that contained the glowing runes of a bow. When that did not produce anything either, he carefully ran his fingers over a few more.

Nothing. Frustration slid through Gale almost as tangible as water. What is it that I'm looking for, exactly..? It's obviously none of the things I've tried already. What am I supposed to be finding?

A fragment of a memory flashed through his mind, quick and bright. Gale's hand, fingers outstretched towards a tablet with a bat rune, lowered slowly. A frown crossed his face, eyebrows drawing together as he strained to remember.

"End of the line.

"...or is it?

"To the left...death. The Great Unknown. The Final Journey. You already....sure the trip will be...

"And to your right...life. The Even Greater Unknown. Pain and suffering and...there. And the ticket...well, the ticket has...paying unto the end of days."

"Bring it on. I'm ready."

He remembered now - remembered the awakening, remembered why he had chosen this path. But for the life of him he could not remember the rest. It was like trying to remember a dream; fragmented and broken, the pieces scattered throughout the recesses of his mind and he couldn't grasp them no matter how hard he tried.

A soft hum to his left. Gale's eyes flitted to the side, to a rune near the top. The outline of the rune was of...

There was another hum, this one louder, more prominent, followed by a tinny trilling noise. Gale stepped towards it, feeling a strange sort of pull, as if his feet were moving on their own. He strained to reach up to its height, fingers brushing against the tile, gripping the edges. Without knowing exactly what he was doing, he tugged the tablet free from the wall.

Another loud hum.

<< ...took you long enough. >>

There was a flash of bright light, Gale flinching at the sudden whiteness, one arm rising automatically to cover his eyes, squeezing them shut as the tablet in his hand grew warmer. There was a small tremble, and then -

Gale opened his eyes. The tablet he had held in his hands was gone now, replaced by something long and white. Gold bands wrapped around the barrel of the sniper rifle, a series of golden runes etched across the metal. For a few moments he just stared at it, his heart pounding erratically in his chest.

His first thought was That is one badass weapon. This was followed closely by I remember this. I found my weapon, I -

<< Actually, I found you. >>

A pause. Gale blinked. That's funny...I could have sworn I just heard someone tal -

<< That was me. Right here. The thing you're holding in your hands, moron. >>

Gale's eyes moved down almost automatically to the rifle. He had heard of a lot of strange things before, had seen a lot of strange things before, but an inanimate object...talking...to him? He shouldn't have been surprised, especially after going through that whole fake training orientation thing before, but still...a weapon...talking...to him...

"Er," he said stupidly, then stopped, trying to figure out just what to say. "Well. Um. Hi."

Welcome to the most pathetic introduction in the history of introductions. There was silence for a moment. Gale wondered if he'd somehow offended it - or rather him, since the voice emanating from the rifle definitely sounded male.

<< ...hello. >>

Another pause. Then Gale said "So, er...do you have a name?"

<< Of course I have a name. >>

More silence. Gale shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. "Well, what is it?"

<< ...Jinhai. >>

Now they were at least getting somewhere. A smile crossed Gale's face. "Well, it's a pleasure to meet you Jinhai. My name is Gale Gentry. I guess you and I will be working together."

<< I surmised as much, yes. >>

There was a dry note to Jinhai's voice. Gale was slightly fascinated by the whole experience, but he wondered whether or not he looked a little ridiculous talking to himself. Or rather, looking like he was talking to himself, at least. The Cove was deserted, though, with the exception of himself and Jinhai, so there was no one around to view this whole strange ordeal.

"So, uh..." Gale was slightly distracted, holding the rifle up to squint at it in the light from the torch. "What now, Jin?"

<< It's Jinhai, thank you very much. And perhaps you could take us out of here? I've finally chosen you, and I would like to leave this place now. It's rather stuffy down here. >>

Gale resisted the urge to ask how a sniper rifle that didn't breathe would find a room stifling, but he obediently obliged to the request, making his way back towards the staircase.

Except he could resist making a cheeky question as payback for being called a "moron" earlier.

"So, Jin, what do you like to do in your free time? Maybe go on long walks for the beach? Go looking for lovely female rifles with good barrels?"

<< .......why did I pick you again? >>