NEH [IC]

[Shyluz]

It was an average day for the rep of the Continental Postal Service, Peggy Hatterson. Nellie was out on a run, and Jun was off shopping or something. Leaving her, the sole remaining employee of the CPS, to go and represent the Courier service at the Exam. What a drag. I mean, yes, occasionally some unlucky sod would fail and turn into a Horror, then be killed off. But she had a good feeling. This year, maybe she'd recruit someone! Maybe she'd be the hero CPS needed!

She steeled herself as the Courier trainees entered the small, steel room with a glass window protecting the reps. Inside the box was a single machine with an arm sized hole. Peggy sighed. Two thirds of these people wouldn't pass, and would die. It was unfortunate, yes, but it was also necessary. A Courier's life is not with out tragedy, nor risk.

A voice boomed through the box, it was deep and guttural, and it only said one word -- "Creed."

The applicants quickly recited the ancient creed, the creed of the Courier. "Neither snow, nor flame, nor eldritch horror, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." The voices chanted in unison, the representatives glancing along the line of trainees, searching for one which may be a prospect. The deep guttural voice boomed again. "Number one, insert your arm into the machine, and brace yourself."

[Elysian Kentarchy]

Rache

As we are led into the room I admittedly lost myself in thought somewhat. This is a strange course of events but it is one that isn't too upsetting. I want answers and this is the best method to reach the point where I can get them. Then the nightmare can end. I look around at my fellow recruits and become a little annoyed. Too many subhumans not enough humans. I can't help but think but that is the way it is. Admittedly this is a strange turn who would have thought that a pair of Crusaders would be attempting to join the postal service but life is full of strange circumstances and God must guide us along that path. Even if some of us must surrender our humanity. I look at my younger sister, with her white hair and red eyes it would be easy to guess she is an Etherlit but I do all I can to look human, hence why my hair and eyes are covered up by dye and contacts. Otherwise I would have the same style as her.

It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. I will fulfill my duty to God in all things to come. When the time comes I say the oath along with the others. "Neither snow, nor flame, nor eldritch horror, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." I mutter under my breath at the end "Deus Vult."

"Good luck." My sister whispers to me patting me on the back.

"Thanks." I whisper back and approach. "Number One here. and understood." I say briefly and place my left arm into the machine and brace myself and I mutter quickly under my breath. "Misericordia mea et fortitudo mea, refugium meum et liberator meus; scutum meum, et in ipso speravi, qui subdit populum meum sub me." If any pain must come then I will endure it. I would be a laughable Crusader if I didn't.

Anastasia

I feel though my brother is annoyed but that is to be expected. While we are both not fond of subhumans he is even more so than me. But for now we are here together which means it will be easier to be with him now that we are away from our parents. Since my brother recites the creed I go along with it and like him adds Deus Vult at the end. I clasp my hands in prayer as he goes up and puts his arm into the machine. God deliver your servant and keep him safe. Protect him for he is one of your faithful. I know I harbor sinful thoughts concerning him but please intercede on behalf of this sinner and show your mercy and love. Amen. I think in my head.

[The Flame Dawn]

Nokami knew this was now or never. As she took the pamphlet she reminded herself why she was doing this. She was doing this to make her deceased mother proud of her and to become a hero of Vancouver and one day return and help bring glory to the humble fishing prefecture. She watched as a young human male walked up, she shifted from side to side, causing her mechanical legs to screech a bit. She stopped moving when she realized people were staring at her but she kept her eyes on the male, wondering what would happen.

[Glendalia]

Tom Brindle anxiously, nervously, waited. Courage. Courage. Courage. He repeated to himself. He had moxie in abundance, but that still didn't stop the adrenaline that was coursing through his veins, preparing his muscles for a fight.

Tom looked at the other applicants in the room and inhaled the scents. Mostly Etherlits and Bakemonos. There were a few humans, as well as an Etherlit who was trying to pass. They all had moxie. He acknowledged that they all seemed driven and maybe a little crazy. Who else would volunteer for a dice roll of an exam where if you failed then you'd start turning into an eldritch horror and be executed, hopefully before you could break out and kill people? Well, he was driven and maybe a little crazy, too.

Sure, courier service work was an honorable (and potentially lucrative) line of work and it would allow him to experience the world outside of New York City, however, the odds of servival without the bond were so very small. Also, there was the matter of Jessie. She was out there, somewhere.

The thought of Jessie gave Tom a moment of calm and he pushed away the last of his anxiety. He became an example of quiet and watchful strength. When his name was called, he looked very much the example of an Alpha as he walked into the examination room.

[Protestant England and Germany]

Nokami knew this was now or never. As she took the pamphlet she reminded herself why she was doing this. She was doing this to make her deceased mother proud of her and to become a hero of Vancouver and one day return and help bring glory to the humble fishing prefecture. She watched as a young human male walked up, she shifted from side to side, causing her mechanical legs to screech a bit. She stopped moving when she realized people were staring at her but she kept her eyes on the male, wondering what would happen.

Paul Hunter

"Time for lessons." Paul thought as he walked towards the address on the pamphlet. He was a Calico Cat Bakemono, and small for his age. He stood about 5'4" and wasn't very muscular. Though he did have a nack for machines and often was called to work on his orphanage's bus and generators. He had a pretty good life, despite never knowing his parents, but he never really cared for his parents. Whenever someone asked him why he would reply with "If they never cared for me, I never care for them." His life was good, until that night the creatures came. The day after, he found a pamphlet on the floor of his apartment and for a while, he didn't know what to make of it. It wasn't until two weeks ago that he decided to take it up and call to say that he was interested "I hope this is worth it." He stopped at the building. "Looks more like a post office than some HQ for an elite fighting force." He walked in and was immediately shocked at the amount of people who were already there. He didn't know a single person there though he did recognize one of the accents as another New Yorker. But he knew that he had to get to know some of the people he'd be working with. He walked up behind one of the girls there and tapped on her shoulder and smiled. "Hi, I'm Paul Hunter. Nice to meet you."

[Riysa]

Nidal stood in line, right behind a few others, looking at the first poor soul to go. The process seemed surreal, almost comedic to him - a steel-walled room with one-way glass windows, an almost deliberately evil-sounding voice echoing out of a soundbox shouting orders, and a ridiculously deadly machine designed to "help" people. It was like something out of a dystopian movie he saw, where everything was regulated and sacrificed at the altar of power. All that it needed was ironic department names and black-coated MiniLuv troopers, and he could easily believe that he fell asleep during a family night at his house.

As it stood right now, he felt like he could laugh out how ridiculous it was...if he wasn't one of the first in line, and if this didn't have a very real chance of dying. A smile had leaked through though, and he briefly wondered if it was a defense mechanism by his mind to alleviate the stress, or whether he was just a bit crazy. Well, he reckoned, you had to be a bit crazy to want to work this kind of job.

Just a week ago, he had broken the news to his parents about wanting to take the Courier test. His mother had broken down into tears, and his father was simply stunned after they had realized it wasn't a joke. It was painful for him to see them as so - especially if he turned out to be one of the unlucky ones, heh - but nevertheless, it was something he was certain he could do and succeed in. After way too many hours of convincing them, they finally let him do it. He took his leave from work, made sure that any debts or wrongs he owed to anyone were resolved, prayed extra, and finally, at the end of the week, came to the examination.

Now, the hopes and trust of yamo,baba, Ziyad, Subhi, Sara, and Haifa, all of them, rested on his shoulders. It was deadly, but he was confident he could make it through. He was a Hamshou after all! He could turn back, but he certainly wouldn't. He smile grew, as he remembered a line from an old movie - it seemed quite fitting here. "One thousand gallows' ropes, and do not call Nidal Hamshou a coward." He murmured to himself.

Well, now, time to wait for his turn, and hopefully he'd get good news.

[Finsternia]

Sigmund was a little more early than the others. He left his hometown for this. And I may or may not turn into a disgusting thing. He still have the rapier that his parents gave him for his birthday and he absentmindedly placed his hand on it due to his nervousness. He is kind of short with a height of 5'5" so he wore boots to compensate for his unfortunate genes. And I cannot see the machine! He jumped and stretched to see over the crowd but mostly failing. He sighed and waited for his turn, excited for what may happen.

[Empire of the Siberian Flaming Eskimos]

Ashley was walking along without much thought to where she was going, a thoughtful look on her face as she moved through the streets. Today was the big day, the day of the Exam. Outside, it didn't seem to special. The birds sang, the sky was clear, and the clouds moved along above the city. And yet it was so much more than that. Earlier that morning she had woken up to a fresh meal from her parents. Usually they treated her with passive conversation, trying to steer away from the fact that their daughter was training for a role in life that had a fairly good chance of getting her killed. But today she was met only with silence. The three of them ate quietly as her father read the paper and her mother kept the plates and cups filled. Near the end she helped with the dishes and got ready to head out for her big day. That's when they pleading came. Right as she was about to leave her mother had stopped holding back tears she had been hiding for the whole day and asked her to not take the Exam, to find something else to do with her life. It was the closest she ever came to quitting on becoming a courier. And now she was walking to take that dreaded Exam, doubt plaguing her the whole way. She was quickly broken from her daydream when a figure ran up behind her and vaulted in front of her by jumping off the side of a nearby wall and then proceeding to walk backwards in front of her.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you're pouty already," said Andrew with a crooked gin on his face, "the day just started and I haven't even tried to get us killed yet!"

Ashley looked up and rolled her eye's at Andrew's antics, "You're such a show off."

Andrew pointed an accusatory finger at her chest, "And you're no fun. C'mon, lighten up! It's the big day! We'll finally be full fledged Couriers! Just think of the thrills, the excitement! Oh I can see the adventure already. Fighting hordes of Horror's as my life flashes before my eyes! Stop being a downer for once and think of the possibilities!"

Ashley bristled at this, "I am not a downer! I can be plenty fun, thank you very much." An indignant look took her face as she crossed her arms. Her face quickly softened again though. "It's just, today is the Exam."

"I know!" said Andrew exuberantly, "That's why you should be so excited!" He quickly realized his usual methods weren't working though and dropped the cooky grin. "Parents getting you down again?" he asked sympathetically, moving from walking in front of her to beside her.

"Yeah," she said as she rubbed her arm, "my mom cried and I almost cracked. I still can't believe how close I came to actually throwing this all away. How about you? Your old man give you any trouble?" she said as she looked over at Andrew.

Andrew shrugged in response, "He's the same old soldier he's always been. Probably wouldn't shed a tear if a puppy died in front of him."

"That's terrible!" said Ashley as she shoved Andrew towards the edge of the sidewalk with a glare, "You know he cares about you, he just doesn't show it."

Andrew cracked a smile at her reaction and earned an eye roll from her as she realized she'd given him the reaction he was looking for. "Yeah, I guess you're right," he said as he looked forward and remembered the events of the day. This morning his father did the usual of setting an early wake up time, and Andrew did the usual of sleeping past it just because. He was surprised though when the old man hadn't stormed into his room with the usual drill sergeant voice and ordered him up with the threat of a good spanking and getting grounded. Instead he was greeted to see his mom and dad sitting at the table and waiting for him with a plate of eggs and bacon sitting fresh on the table. He had sat down with a sense of unease as they continued to eat without really acknowledging his presence.

"I swear, whatever happened, it wasn't me," he had said as his eyes darted around the table. His mother simply smiled at him and shook her head before putting her hand over his. Andrew continued to be confused and started eating. After that the usual curt small talk ensued that his mom always tried to nurture between him and his father. He would ask about how Andrew slept, Andrew would respond with something simple and rigid, only cracking jokes when his mother came into the conversation. This continued until he was done eating and it was time to go. As he got up, his mother did something strange.

Putting a hand on his fathers shoulder, she gave his father a look of unmistakable authority. As far as Andrew knew she was the only one who his father would take orders from, and that was no different here. Sanding up strait and with his amazing posture from the army, Andrews father turned and looked his son in the eyes. "Today's a big day for you," he said in his firm and commanding voice.

"Yeah, no duh," responded Andrew with an eye roll. His mother shot him a glare and then motioned for his father to continue.

"Um, anyway I wanted to say... I wanted to tell you..." he rambled a bit, his powerful demeanor wilting as he rambled awkwardly, "I wanted to tell you to get through this, to pass the Exam. That's an order," he finished as he reasserted his figure.

Andrew didn't know what to do besides stand there in shock. This was the closest to he had ever seen his father to actually expressing emotion towards him besides utter rage at being disobeyed. It was such a strange experience. In truth, Andrew was just as nervous as Ashley, he just hid it behind humor and a smile. I guess that's one thing me and my dad have in common, we just can't do emotions.

"Hey, you alright?" said Ashley as she watched her friend with a slightly worried expression. Andrew quickly snapped back to the present and realized they had kept walking for quite a bit and were almost there. His usual smile snapped back into place as he looked over at her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said in his usual chipper attitude, "just trying to figure out how fast it will take you to black out during the Exam. My money is on one minute."

Ashley flared up again, "You can be a real ass, you know that right?"

Andrew shrugged, "I hear it's one of my most endearing qualities. Besides, life would be so boring without an good 'ol ass to spice things up." A grin took his face at this, and then he looked forward to see the building for the Exam towering in front of them. "And it looks like we're here." Ashley rolled her eyes at him again and proceeded to march into the building in front of him with her head held high. Andrew trailed behind with a smirk on his face and his hands in his pockets. Soon they reached the testing room and he got his number.

"Looks like I'm going first," he said with a smile, "now I have to make it through so I can see how long you keep conscious."

Ashley glared at him again, "I swear, one more comment and I will reach into you and pull that damn courier gene right out of your body and shove your arm in there myself."

Andrew grinned, "Oooh, getting feisty. Anyways, it seems we're next to each other in line so I get to see up close." Ashley continued to glower as they entered the small room with the testing machine. Andrew noticed the glass separating the representatives from the various Courier services and waved while flashing a grin, only to earn a quick punch in the arm from Ashley. He yelped quietly as he rubbed his arm shot a quick pouty glance at her as she smirked knowing she had at least won once. They then had to recite the usual boring creed. Ashley took simply stared forward stoically, reciting the lines with purpose. Andrew rolled his eyes as and half halfheartedly spoke the lines, editing a few with his own splash of humor. He earned himself several glares and small laughs from this, but the effect was fairly contained. Eventually they called a number forward, silencing his antics as he watched with excitement and a twinge of dread while Ashley gripped his arm tightly and mirrored his actions.

The Exams had begun.

[Saleon]

Nora bridled the gun close to her chest. She never even asked his name, but that man did much to make himself known. He was a distinguished man who cared about people. She was afraid, to be frank. She was worried, anxious, exhausted. She couldn't imagine the opportunity she had, and how hard it would be to achieve it. That gun, the torpedo, was the only thing she could hold on to. That was her dream, it was the only thing she felt she was to be in her life. It was her, like it was the him who had it before her. The shined silver felt inclined to do this. That was the only thing she had to keep herself together, and hold on to the life of a courier.

She could hear the constant clank and clatter of the wheels. The booth she sat down felt of cheap pleather. It was the last train run around the city. It had a single brass lining on the window. The lights on the train's path peaked light through her window in and out, and in and out, and in and out. She looked through the window watching the buzzing people as they flashed by the New York City lights. She gave a brief sigh. This was the time that her life would not be the same. Clank-clu-clunk. Clank-clu-clunk. Clank-clu-clunk. She pulled out a mystery-horror novel to pass the time. The characters were copy and paste cliche's, you could pick the killer out from the second chapter, and it was obvious how he did it. The only thing she liked was the vivid language. It still didn't seem like a fun book, but it kept her attention. Clank-clu-clunk. Clank-clu-clunk. Clank-clu-clunk. Whoo-hisshhh. The train stopped. She barely got through three chapters. "The train has stopped. If you need to get off, than please do so in an ordinary fashion," a voice on the intercom calmly spake. Very few people got off or on. It was a train that didn't get very busy at all. It was quite lax even. They still decided to say it. She walked off to find herself a block away from the Couriers.

"achoo!" she sneezed. It was a little cold today. Or maybe it wasn't. She got sick often, it was hard for her to tell anymore.

She walked out the rest of the way. The street corners were lit up with a small number of stores. A small mom and pop, a cutesy bar, and a small bookstore, a barbecue. It was still lively, if not faint. Just like society now. America is only a couple of faint cities with flickers of flame, life, in all of them. New York was a small light now, whereas there were stories of a whole globe lit with lights. It had a community, inward feel. Isolated, but alive.

"I hate this kind of weather," she mumbled as she walked in the building. She quickly found a couple of napkins and shoved them in her pockets, and in her nose. "creed," a rogue voice from a box stated. She took a small time to figure out what the box asked for. "ah," she whispered to herself. She figured it out, just as the audience of aspiring couriers. "Neither snow, nor flame, nor eldritch horror, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds," she joined the group.

"achoo!"

[Ithalian Empire]

Terrence stood at the back of the crowd, his mind was racing, would he survive the exam, would he find a good agency, would he even survive his first time outside of New York? But the most important thing on his mind was if he would find out what happened to his father. It seemed unlikely after all the years he had been dead, but it was the sole reason he was doing any of this crazy stuff.

He heard the man in charge call first, it wasn't him, and whoever it was Terrence didn't really didn't want to know who they were, chances where the would die any way.

[Empire of Donner land]

Sigi was nerved by the thought of being something important to a world just recovering from a disaster. To be fair though, she was also excited in a way. A feeling she hadn't felt since she started duty on the wall. But then she remembered she would be apart of the minority of the races, Etherlits among them, those who killed her father only a few years ago. She held a grudge even if those people had no relation to the crime in question. It was petty, even she could admit it but she always felt angry when they showed themselves to her. The memories always came back when she saw their eyes.
Besides that, she was perfectly fine with the situation as long as she didn't have to directly work with them.

The streets were relatively busy this day. Maybe it was just the couriers being selected today. But it was comfortable, a little cold but she grew up with it. She passed by people of all walks of life it seemed. The working class just making it through the day to the relatively middle class enjoying their life still alive protected by the walls that they probably paid no mind to since they were born. But she knew of the walls too well. Sigi observed them when she first arrived. They seemed to surround every major settlement in the world so she heard but she only heard of the walls that surrounded Vancouver but those walls werent as great as New Yorks, they were bigger and more defended they even had what looked like heavy artillery or AT guns.

As she approached the building she felt the dagger at her side still in its scabbard of sorts rubbing against her. It's metal and leather handle scraping against her clothes as she approached her destination and if she didn't pass the test, her final destination. It was a scary thought knowing you had to put your arm out to be infected by what you were taught to kill in order to become a courier. An even scarier thought that a two thirds died from this process. Maybe I'm just worrying about this too much, I can't have second thoughts. I have to do this now. it was too late to walk away, she was already so far away from home and she said her goodbyes. They would think she was a coward and she would have to give back the Dagger which her close friend had given her. She still remembered the day.

---

"I heard you were we heading out to become a courier. It's dangerous you know?" He said as they walked across the wall looking out at the ruined city infront of them carrying their rifles.

"Yeah, how did you find out. I never told anyone." Sigi replied as she slowed down looking at the back of his head as if she was looking into his eyes through his short brown hair.

"A little bird told me. Here, take this." He said as he stopped and turned around presenting a dagger with his hand holding it by the blade. "I hope it will keep you safe. Think of it as a early birthday present."

"Isn't this a family heirloom of yours? Don't you need to give this to your son or something?" She asked confused looking down at the steel Dagger that shined in the winter daylight. It's blade was six inches long and had a slightly curved tip. It's handle was made of metal and black leather which was torn from years of use.

"I'm the only child and my parents are growing old, plus I myself am... sadly unable to have Children." He said as he held it out further slowly. "You're the closest thing I have. Please, take it." He said smiling.

"Uh, sure. Anything for you." She said taking it by the handle in putting it in her pocket. "I'll miss you. You know that right?" She said smiling at him.

"Yeah i'll miss you too, Sig. Good luck to you." He gave a nod and walked off reluctantly.

---

She gave a smirk as she remembered him. His name was Turin, he was a fellow wall watcher who frequently patrolled with her patrolling ontop of the metal and reinforced concrete structure. He was the closest thing she had, not as much as a freind but as more of a family member.

"Neither snow, nor flame, nor eldritch horror, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." she said to the box which asked for it using the rather gutteral voice it had.

[Raktio]

(Warning this character does use explicit and vulgar language)
Goodbye shithole city, hello shithole world, Sasha took one last look at what had been her residency for the last almost ten years of her life. Compared to the rest of town it was decent living, but if you compare the place to what it was said New York was, you'd just a well be living on the streets. Well if she didn't die getting there she'd get to see the golden city herself when she traveled through it as a Courier herself. Swinging open the car's door before hoping in and slamming it shut, she stuck her feet up on the dashboard, as the car took off barely waiting for her to get comfortable. "What, yah fucking trying to get rid of me sooner you asshole?" she yelled at the driver.

"Oh quit your yapping, I've got shit to do other than busing around mouthy idiots who're stupid enough to play Russian roulette with fate so shudup," the driver ordered. After that Sasha glared, but than went ahead and did for a quick cat nap, and the rest of the ride was silent.

"Aye bitch, we're here, time to get your ass out of my car," the driver ordered, waking her up. Groggily she opened the door and stuck her feet out before getting up on them, and getting out she shoved the door shut. Grabbing all her stuff from the back seat, she hauled her large green military bag over her shoulder while carrying her backpack in her hand she headed for the where the Courier caravan she would be traveling with to New York.

Apparently the caravan had gotten lucky because they managed to avoid any confrontations with the Horrors since they had a guy who's Ether allowed him to control his own fate or something like that. The trip had been filled with enough twists, turns, breaks lasting a day long and full speed rushes for her to believe they at least have a crazy bastard in charge at the least, and if he could control his fate he could defiantly find a way to find a less wild route. However she was rather disappointed in the end since she did want to get a good look at one of the horrors, and maybe crack a few shots at it.

Finally arriving at New York nearly two weeks after leaving Kansas City, she found that it was more spectacular than what Couriers had described it as. The whole place was orderly, clean and energetic. There wasn't anything on the streets but people and cars, windows shown clearly rather than often being boarded over because they were broken or for security, people smiled, waved and greeted each other like they were close friends in privacy, and there was so much more that she just found bizarre. The whole place sent her into a gloom mode, leaving a glare on her face to warn off others, which of course got the people in uniforms and wearing pistols looking at her way to much.

Directed by one of the Couriers from the caravan she headed over to the Exam building in the Courier headquarters. Leaving her stuff in a place that the Courier assured her was secure, she followed the directions given to her to get her to the Exam room. She kept to herself, eyeing the other people around, her calico ears swiveled about picking up various trace conversations. She joined in with everyone else as she said the words which the Couriers had drilled into her head over the last couple weeks. From there it was waiting for the machine to state her number.

[North Arkana]

Aria mewed in annoyance. She had ended up farther back in the line than she had wanted. He ears twitched, while her tail whipped side-to-side several times. It was an easy to expend the nervous energy she was feeling, but being nervous was normal supposedly. It wasn't every day you had a fragment from a horror embedded into your body. Truthfully, she wasn't as nervous about the exam as she was for what might come afterwards. It was either become a courier or hope there's some other job she'd manage to pick up, though with her limited skill set and strong instincts/urges, there wouldn't be much a chance for the second option.

There were also too many people around for her liking. She could feel the hairs on her neck were standing. A life on the run for a good portion of it had left her with a bit of a hair trigger reaction to possible threats. Normally this wouldn't be too much of a problem, but being in the habit of carrying twin drum-fed automatic revolving handguns heavy enough to break things when used a blunt weapon meant Aria's freak-outs tended to err on the spectacular side.

Don't freak out... don't freak out... and don't think about what's coming up later in the year... definitely don't think about that...

[Raktio]

Rache

As we are led into the room I admittedly lost myself in thought somewhat. This is a strange course of events but it is one that isn't too upsetting. I want answers and this is the best method to reach the point where I can get them. Then the nightmare can end. I look around at my fellow recruits and become a little annoyed. Too many subhumans not enough humans. I can't help but think but that is the way it is. Admittedly this is a strange turn who would have thought that a pair of Crusaders would be attempting to join the postal service but life is full of strange circumstances and God must guide us along that path. Even if some of us must surrender our humanity. I look at my younger sister, with her white hair and red eyes it would be easy to guess she is an Etherlit but I do all I can to look human, hence why my hair and eyes are covered up by dye and contacts. Otherwise I would have the same style as her.

It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. I will fulfill my duty to God in all things to come. When the time comes I say the oath along with the others. "Neither snow, nor flame, nor eldritch horror, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." I mutter under my breath at the end "Deus Vult."

"Good luck." My sister whispers to me patting me on the back.

"Thanks." I whisper back and approach. "Number One here. and understood." I say briefly and place my left arm into the machine and brace myself and I mutter quickly under my breath. "Misericordia mea et fortitudo mea, refugium meum et liberator meus; scutum meum, et in ipso speravi, qui subdit populum meum sub me." If any pain must come then I will endure it. I would be a laughable Crusader if I didn't.

Anastasia

I feel though my brother is annoyed but that is to be expected. While we are both not fond of subhumans he is even more so than me. But for now we are here together which means it will be easier to be with him now that we are away from our parents. Since my brother recites the creed I go along with it and like him adds Deus Vult at the end. I clasp my hands in prayer as he goes up and puts his arm into the machine. God deliver your servant and keep him safe. Protect him for he is one of your faithful. I know I harbor sinful thoughts concerning him but please intercede on behalf of this sinner and show your mercy and love. Amen. I think in my head.

A cold metal clasp came around Rache's arm than on the bottom of it a syringe poked through his skin, right into the blood vein it was about to inject alien matter. Fire poured though his skin as his body fought against the invading exotic matter. It felt like an eternity of boundless pain, but to the outside world it was less than half a minute. At this point most began changing in some physical way, and that was the cue to execute them, but those who didn't would stand there, often thrashing, and pouring out sweat before sagging in relief as the pain subsided.

The Exam machine released his arm, leaving a warm steel case over it which now stood in place of his skin. The metal was secret steel Ether alloy which acted like skin for the Courier who bore it. Aside from being part of a initiation rite, Ether steel was also used for replacing limbs of Couriers, many Couriers had at least one Ether steel limb by retirement if not two. The two guards assigned to him grabbed his shoulders and walked him over to the next room for post -Exam recovery.

As part of gaining their powers, new Couriers also instinctively knew how to use them, like reflexes. Rache found that he could now form Ether material ropes. He could launch smooth light green ropes, anywhere from tripwire thin to large hawser lines, out of his body. While he can't control the entire length, the ends could be reformed into new shapes at will, allowing instantaneous knot tying, and even fusing two ends together. The rope would be be impossible to break apart from tension, but it is easy to cut through, which would make two more controllable ends. The amount of end rope to work with is proportional to it's size, the smaller it is, the less working room, where as bigger ropes need more room to type stuff. The rope, being only a construct of energy eventually will fade, and unless in contact with Rache it would fade away in a few minutes time.

Inside the post-Exam room, was a older Etherlit gentleman around his mid sixties, but still with a lively twinkle in his eye. In front of him was a selection of ornamental daggers with Ether crystals embedded into their pommels. He gave instructions "pick the one that feels right, try it out in here, but most Courier services will give you another crystal and means of getting it covered in your blood, this one is primarily meant for ceremonial purposes these days."

[Empire of the Siberian Flaming Eskimos]

Andrew watched with a wince as the first boy thrashed with his arm in the machine, sweat pouring down him as his body contorted in pain. The process was obviously agonizing, and despite everything he was most definitely not looking forward to it. A two more people were in front of him and he stood in line and watched as yet another participant approached the machine and went through a similar experience, this time actually crying out once. Then a boy in front of him went up, obviously nervous. Just like the last two, he stuck his arm in the machine and braced for the pain. Almost immediately he started to convulse like the others, but something was different. The boy started to froth at the mouth, the convulsions lasting longer than normal. Suddenly he started to... change. His features started to twist as the Horror material took effect, transforming him into an abomination. Andrew's face was frozen in horror as he watched to gruesome scene. Then it stopped. A single shot broke through the horrific scene and stopped the half-boy half-Horror thing from going any further. For the first time Andrew noticed the armed guards watching the room, guns pointed at the now slumped over carcass. The body was quickly carried away, and the next number was called forward. It was Andrew.

He took a deep breath, then turned to an obviously terrified Ashley and smiled. "See you on the other side," he said with a smirk and a wave before walking up confidently. Some people seemed shocked, almost disturbed by the amount of confidence and humor that he still had, this wasn't the time for snide comments and grins. And they were right, it wasn't. Andrew knew that and he also didn't feel the way he was acting at all. He was scared out of his mind for what was about to happen, but he kept his smile and walked with a purpose in his step. If only to fool Ashley and keep her hopes up if not to fool himself. Soon he was in front of the machine, looking into the hungry depth of it's mouth. He dragged in one more breath, then shoved his arm into the hole. At first there was nothing besides the cold touch of metal. Then, the sharp prick of the needle. Then the pain started. As the foreign tissue was injected into him he felt waves of pain as his body fought it. It was bearable though, and he gritted his teeth and sweated through it. Finally the last part of the test came with the molten alloy. New levels of pain he didn't even know existed pounded through him as the metal burned into his wrist.

Ashley watched from the sidelines with a look of horror at what was happening to her friend. She could barely stand watching him like this, and the concern was obvious on her face. Finally the machine released him after what felt like hours for the two of them. Andrew almost collapsed on the floor, but caught himself with his arm and waved away a helping hand from a guard as he picked himself up. Legs shaking slightly as he stood unsteadily, he turned to Ashley and flashed a half hearted grin and gave her a thumbs up. "Beat that green eyes," he said with a weak voice as Ashley shook her head in annoyance. She held back tears of relief that he had made it and gave a smile. He was fine and being himself. Cracking jokes and trying to one up her as always. As Andrew moved to exit the room, she then heard her number called. As she walked up she turned back to Andrew at the doorway for assurance to see... concern? She couldn't be sure but she could've sworn he had been looking at her with the most worried looks she had ever seen. If had been doing anything, it had quickly been covered up by his usual crooked grin. She quickly flashed her own smile, then turned and placed her arm into the hole.

Much like Andrew, Ashley was tense with anticipation. Fear and anxiety gripped her as the cold metal closed in on her arm. The searing pain hit her like a tuck, her vision narrowing to a tunnel almost immediately. When the molten alloy came in it became too much. Suddenly Ashley completely blacked out as the metal burned into her wrist, the only thing holding her limp body up being her arm in the machine.

Andrew watched in horror as his friend started falling to the ground as the machine released her and started running back. Suddenly everything seemed to slow down as he reached out with his hand towards her. It was like everything was moving through syrup, so surreal like a movie. Soon he realized that everything had slowed down. He looked and saw everyone reacting to the drama before them, he could pick out every little part of their expressions as it changed. Is this my Ether? he thought as he passed by the crowd slowly. It soon wore off though and he was then at Ashley's side. He looked down at her and sighed in relief as she quickly started to wake back up. Her eyes fluttered open to see Andrew's concerned smile hovering above her. Ashley smiled back, but it was short lived as Andrew spoke his next few words.

"Told you that you would black out," he said playfully. Ashley gave him a weak punch on the arm and a glare, but in truth she knew he just relieved that she was fine. Andrew smiled more at her response and helped pull her to her feet. "Come on princess, lets get you out of here." The two of them walked out to the recovery room leaning on each other, happy that they hadn't lost a friend.

[Saleon]

Nora sneezed again, before walking up to the box. The thing was the scariest thing of it all. Live or die, this was it. She hesitated. Oh, don't be afraid! You can do it! In than out! She inched her hand in closer and closer. It was a scary box, in how simple it was --Sleek edges and all-- but the promise that it will not be a pleasant box. She cringed before just shoving her hand in the rest of the way. The device clamped her hand as to stop it from moving. The metal was cold. Soon a needle pricked a portion of her hand, before infusing some substance into her arm. It was a seething pain.

Her hand began to lose structure. It felt as if it was twisting and changing. It was obvious to her what this feeling meant. She quickly knew to fight it --That sense that she was losing herself-- stubbornly understanding she wouldn't die here. She felt as if she could've lost herself in that experience. For a second she didn't know what happened. It was only after she looked back at the torpedo did she remember. She clenched it in her other hand. Her gun wouldn't let her give up; no, his gun. She fought with every ounce of survival in her. The hand began to convulse closer and closer together, where it frayed began to begun re-wrapping itself together. It began to hold on. Soon, She got it back to what felt like a normal feeling. it still pulsated, but it also seemed to subside. The blood stopped fighting her, stopped trying to overtake her. It was not her time, and she fought to state that clearly to the new blood.

Then came a worse pain.

A numbing heat consumed her hand-- A burning fire. It was the feeling of something being melted onto her. As if something was being forced on her by way of baptism, by fire. A piece of metal wrapped around her wrist. It burnt into her, like a knife. The new alloy began to meld into her. In some regards, she felt less from this. The sweltering heat began to numb her senses of the pain. She grit her teeth and made sure to pull her tongue to the back of her mouth. The pain could've caused her to bite her tongue off. She had a good head on her shoulders in that case. Hold on! She told herself. Throughout the whole thing she held on. She made it through? she did! She actually did it!

Her body limped forward. "achoo!" she sneezed. Her legs felt weak. She stumbled forward with her sneeze. It took her a little bit before she could get an overexerted, at least controlled walk out of it. She still had to focus to it. Her hand held the wall as she maintained her balance. Her eye pounded with a blue fire as she entered the next room. The other objects seem to burn with it-- to the same tune, if you will. The burned equivocably, and reacted with some of the other people's power as they tested it. One kid's arm ricocheted as his power caused a small crackling firework type thing become a much larger crackle. It woke him up, if the pain somehow didn't. Her power seemed to resonate with others, and cause them to burn out stronger than before. She calmed her breathe and let it subside. Duly noted.

She sat on a wall for a second. Her body sledged downward from within the recovery room. Her eyes blinked for a second. She blurred out.

"m-m-miss?" some person questioned while knocking on her head a little bit, "you there?" She shuffled forward a little bit. "Ah! good, You dozed off there for a second. Hoped there wasn't a concussion." His eyes had a burn to them, too. It explained the familiarity he exhumed. He didn't seem harmful.

He held out a number of ceremonial knives out in front of her. "pick one. These'll be your ether crystals for a little bit. Most services'll give you a different one when you get there, so this is ceremonial. At least you get to get used to everything around you for a bit," he edged out a lackadaisical smile. His teeth peaked through his smile. One had chipped a little. It almost looked like it hurt, but he didn't seem to flinch. She moved her hand over each knife, feeling them out. One caused her eye to burn bright, she liked that one. It was inconvenient to see the crystals embedded in this garish knife. It didn't feel right, so she took another knife out. "miss," he said slightly concerned, "you only get one." This was responded to with one of the daggers scuttling inside of the other. It soon edged its way into the pocket of the ether crystal. She, with a little effort, popped the crystal out, and handed the knife back to him. "guess that works..." he responded. She took the gun from her left arm and propped it open. The torpedo had a barrel for ammo, which was fired from the bottom shell, not the top. above the barely where a portion of the good stayed was a spot for a crystal. She propped it in there and closed it back up.

It made a pleasing clack as it closed. The gun ignited with a fervent fire of azure. It especially shined out from over the hammer of the gun. The fire almost seemed cold.

[Ithalian Empire]

Terrence heard the box call his number. He made his way to the machine, he could feel his gorge rising in his throat. It took supreme effort to no vomit.

"Put your arm in the machine"

Terrence complied. Immediately there was a wiring and Terrence felt the sharp pain of something cutting his wrist. Then came an even worse sensation, molten metal coming in contact with his skin. The smell of iron mingled with the smell of burning flesh. This is what hell must smell like Terrence mused, even though the pain was intense he hadn't passed out yet.

"You may talk your arm out"said the man."Prick your finger and spill your blood on one of these stones" It was than that Terrence actually noticed the tray of knives and the crystals. Terrence did as he was told. When he did so, the world changed. It was as if he could see heat, he couldn't describe it but it was kind of cool. Who is this going to be useful in combat?

[Shyluz]

As the Exam concluded, each of the newly-christened Couriers and their warm Bond steel containing the Horror tissue within them, their Ether having been released, they filtered into a room filled with representatives from the many Courier firms. One would notice that Courier firm would be similar to a trade union of old, but rather than rights, the firms fought for profits.

Out of all the big firms and their reps, one tiny girl walked shyly towards the new Couriers. With a bit of a blush, she approached the newbies. "My name is Peggy Hatterson, from the Continental Postal Service. You probably haven't heard of us, considering we're not all that big." She said, looking up at the potential employees.

[Riysa]

For Nidal, curses uttered in another language replaced thoughts of laughter in his head, for the pain of the "procedure" had been tremendous. Even now, there was still a - quite annoying- prickly feeling in his arm. He tried scratching the metal band, before realizing how futile of an action it was. Yup, it would definitely take some time to get used to it...Oh well. At least he had survived, he didn't want to think about what would happen to some of the less...lucky ones.

Upon entering the "rep room", as he nicknamed it, the first thing that hit him was that it looked just like a trade show. In fact, it was pretty much the same thing, just instead of sales reps from different companies coming to show off their products, it was sales reps from different companies coming to show off their services. The second thing that hit him was there was a lot of reps and company tables, pretty much preventing him from spending too long at any single one. Very well then, he'd need to prioritize the different companies.

Looking around, he saw a couple of big firms that caught his interest, with their squadrons of representatives greeting as many of the new arrivals as they could. Joining a big firm - of course, assuming that one accepted him - did have its advantages, they already would have a good client base, an organized corporate structure, and job stability, would but was that one he really wanted to join? Advancement and recognition would be nil, and he'd pretty much be just another number on their payroll sheets, for who would notice him specifically? He looked around, and something caught his eye. He saw a single representative trying to get people interested in her firm. A single representative, from a small company.

Oho, this was more interesting. Small companies had their own advantages, too.

Nidal decided to focus on her firm first. "Hello madame, my name is Nidal Hamshou." He said, greeting her, placing his hand over his heart and nodding. "Could you please tell me more about the Continental Postal Service?"

[The Flame Dawn]

All Nokami could think of during the procedure was the surgery that got her the two legs she was standing on. She didn't want to recall all the details but she felt more unlike a human as she touched the warm plate of metal which was on her arm.

"Another reason why I hate metal detectors I guess," Nokami though to herself trying to lighten the mood she was in.

She watched as a tiny girl stepped forward and introduced herself to the group of newly created couriers.

"Nice to meet you Peggy," Nokami said with a smile, "my name's Nokami. I'm not from this prefecture though I believe I've heard your name before."

[Empire of the Siberian Flaming Eskimos]

After the rather tedious event that had been the exams, Andrew and Ashley moved on to receive their ether crystals and head into the rep room. Andrew had some fun on the way by using his new slow-mo vision to mess with people. It fascinated him how much you could tell about a person by slowing everything down. What move they were about to make, how they tensed up before doing some things, when they were about to stumble, and sometimes the smallest glimpse of what they might be thinking. So much more could be seen an analyzed, and he loved it. Meanwhile Ashley continued to her usual attitude of scowling at him as he used his new-found powers. She had quickly surveyed what she could do and then promptly stopped any further experimentation.

"Look, see- oh man that never gets old!" said Andrew as he pointed at a person right before the stumbled and almost fell over as they walked, unable to finish before it happened.

"You should really stop," replied Ashley with a disapproving tone, "these are important abilities we've been given to help people with, not some new toy."

Andrew rolled his eyes and smiled, "Oh don't be such a grumpy gus. I take my powers very seriously!" Ashley raised an eyebrow and gave Andrew an especially dirty look. "Ok, I will take my powers seriously, but I'm gonna have some fun first." Ashley sighed and resigned herself to more childish displays of his powers. "Wait, what the...?" Andrew said as his vision blurred, his perception going in and out of slow motion sporadically before settling back into normal speeds. "Hey, it stopped!" he said with a somewhat pouty face, "I was just getting the hang of it."

"That's what you get for wasting it," said Ashley with a smile, satisfied that he'd learned his lesson.

Now it was Andrews turn to glare. "Ha, ha, very funny. It doesn't matter. I'll have plenty more to use later and you won't know how to use your power in the slightest," he said. Ashley continued to smile though, enjoying his similarity to a child who's favorite toy had just be taken away.

Soon they reached the rep room and took their place near the back as representatives from various firms filed in, some in formal attire and others... not so much. Andrew watched as men from some of the more endowed firms spread out to reach as many couriers as possible, obviously looking to grab the talented ones first. Personally, Andrew was not looking to go with a big company. Regulations, rules, and some crabby corporate ass-hat breathing down his neck were not things he wanted to deal with, though making said ass-hat's life a living hell would be a fun hobby. Regardless, he and Ashley had already decided to look at more medium to small sized firms together. Large ones just had too many people in them and too much competition to deal with. He was about to move off to check out a lady that seemed to be from a smaller firm when a man from a larger firm cut him off.

"Andrew Raiden?" said the man as he held out his hand, "Hello, I'm a representative from a prestigious courier firm and I have to say your transcript from the academy was quite impressive. Would you consider joining us?" Andrew sized up the corporate peon with a raised eyebrow. The man wore a grey suit with a white button up and a tie. Pretty standard dress for someone doing what he did. Quite honestly he was surprised anyone was actually looking for him with all the disciplinary reports that were on his transcript. "And Ashley, is it?" he continued as he turned his attention to her, "Your transcript was quite impressive as well. I'm sure you would find a perfect place with us. I'm sure there are plenty of job opportunities for a women such as yourself. Sadly we would have to caution you two against romantic relationships in the workplace."

At this, Ashley blushed bright red. "Wha-!" she stammered, obviously caught off guard by this. Andrew kept his smile, but internally was thinking of all the ways he could screw with the man in front of him.

You really screwed up man, he thought, now exactly how much fun can I have with you? A small smirk came to his face as he moved uncomfortably close to the other man and put an arm around his shoulder. "Oh, prestigious you say? How wonderful! What sort of things are we talking? Free snacks? Good breaks? How's the coffee? Please, do tell." As Andrew let out his string of enthusiastic inquires, the man squirmed in his grip, obviously not comfortable with the way things were going.

"Well, um, we have lots of benefits, uh, why don't we look here," he said as he pulled away from Andrew and brought out a folder. At this, Andrew drew closer and got even closer to the man's face.

"Oh, well I'm sure you have plenty of great things. Let's get into the intimate details, shall we?" Andrew looked around and saw a woman speaking with a different courier. She was fairly good looking, probably and seven or eight in his book, and it seemed she was representing the same firm as the man he had trapped. "How about those benefits, huh?" he said to the man, "You hitting that up, eh?"

Suddenly the man turned a bright shade of crimson. "No! Of course not!" he said as he shook his head with wide eyes.

Andrew gave him a wink. "I see, keeping it on the low. Don't want any juicy secrets coming out, now do we. Don't worry," he said as he made a zipping motion across his mouth, "my lips are sealed."

"No!" protested the man as his face became redder than it already was, "Why would you assume something like that? I assure you nothing of that sort is happening. Why would you insinuate such an idea?"

"Well, you know what they say about assuming," said in Andrew, "it makes and ass out of you and me. Kinda like what you did just a moment ago, right?" Suddenly it dawned on the man what he had done, his mouth opening into an "O" of surprise. "Now please leave before I'm tempted to take more drastic measures." Nodding vigorously, the man walked off quickly to find another courier, obviously flustered and gaining a few questioning glances from the other people in the room. Meanwhile, Andrew moved back to Ashley with a satisfied smile.

"You really didn't have to do that," she said as she recovered from her unsettled state, a look of acute disapproval on her face.

Andrew shrugged, "I know, but I wanted to anyways. Not every day that I get to stick it to some corporate peon." He gave a grin before turning around and moving towards the woman he had seen earlier. "You coming?" he said over his shoulder as he moved off.

"Yes," she said with a smile as she caught up to him, "and thank you."

Andrew shrugged again. It was only a quick walk before they made it to the women who seemed to be from a small firm. In fact, she seemed to be the only one here. He had seen small firms before, but this was on the extreme. Might be fun if they actually have a workload, he thought. Coming right up to her, he held out a hand and gave his usual mischievous grin. "Hello there. The name's Andrew. This is my friend, the ever gloomy Ashley."

Shooting a glare at Andrew, Ashley also held her hand out. "Hello there," she said as she gave a small smile to the woman, "it's nice to meet you."

[Saleon]

As the Exam concluded, each of the newly-christened Couriers and their warm Bond steel containing the Horror tissue within them, their Ether having been released, they filtered into a room filled with representatives from the many Courier firms. One would notice that Courier firm would be similar to a trade union of old, but rather than rights, the firms fought for profits.

Out of all the big firms and their reps, one tiny girl walked shyly towards the new Couriers. With a bit of a blush, she approached the newbies. "My name is Peggy Hatterson, from the Continental Postal Service. You probably haven't heard of us, considering we're not all that big." She said, looking up at the potential employees.

Nora had soon found herself betwixt a large number of representatives. As a new courier, she was a valuable addition to the other groups. Her face had a smooth intrigue to it, though not all of them shared her admirations. She was a valuable resource, but she was also a "dirtied product," an etherlit. A small percentage of representatives kept a wall around her, as to avoid them. This was the way of her life, and one she had strived to fight and avert for a long time; nevertheless, it was a quick realization that not even couriers would be immune of those kind of misconceptions. She had a stubborn perseverance and scuttled any illusion of disappointment from her face. You couldn't tell, really, that she had even noticed. It was shocking, coming from some of these people. Roughly ten percent of the representatives never even gave her a chance. She avoided them in due kind.

Another one came up. "Miss!" he said, wearing a business suit and tie, "Have you thought about joining us? We are one of the more influential courier firms in the business! With us, you know you are going places!" He had a exasperated staginess to him like a salesman selling a faulty product. "going places" was a fictitious thing in his eyes, but he tried to hide it with a flamboyant allure. "Going places" was sign for "the same place all the other couriers go." Not that she didn't want to live, but he made it more obvious the more he kept this up. His act was quite disingenuous. "I'm sorry, but I think I'll refuse..." she said dryly. He didn't let her off easily, he listed off benefits, and random statistics, and fake promises. After a while, he did stop and left. He'd look for a different fish to take the bait.

"miss..." one of them spake in a cockney accent, "hoy miss? you hear me?" She looked confused. He sternly responded "yeah you! who else'd I be talkin' to? I'm a, uh, part of a decent sized courier group. We'd been lookin' for some extras... well, we all're lookin' for extras. Not a day... that we aren't." He showed a slight twitch in his eyes and it was obvious what put it there. Death. It was a most deadly spectre in this world, and expecially for couriers. She parsed her thoughts on him. He seemed like an odd rough'em up with a waning spirit. He took a defeatist attitude. "I'll think about it," she murmured, trying to politely shoo him off. He got the message. He left off to the next one and the next one and the next one. His introduction was almost rehearsed before hand, in that it always broke down half-way through-- on cue-- with no stopping it.

She hadn't moved far from the last guy, until a small girl with a studiousness to her shyly nudged her way through. The crowds of big hit corporations had made it hard for her to get through, but she did. This one had a genuine blush to her face. She had an honest optimism to her."My name is Peggy Hatterson, from the Continental Postal Service. You probably haven't heard of us, considering we're not all that big." She said, squarely referring to a number of them, but it was interesting to note that Nora was one of them. It was nice to see the girl, with a kind cuteness, beyond the defeatism and deceitfulness. "hi," she said, "what is the continental li---Achoo!" she paused for a second, noting the line of spit she just expunged from her nose. "um..." she stated apologetically, with a slight whisper to it, "sorry, do you have a tissue?"

[Ithalian Empire]

Terrance walked into the room filled with the representative of all of NYC's courier services. His father's amongst them. He wanted to go to them and sign up, but they saw him and gave him a look. A look that said stay away. So Terrence did. He wandered around for a while, all the while being accosted by people who looked like they were made of plastic there smiles and friendly demeanor where so fake.

That was until he saw the representative for Continental, a women he never heard of from a firm he never heard of. But most importantly it she seemed genuine. Befor he could think it through he found himself saying, "Where do I sign up?"

[Raktio]

Turning to look at the first person who introduce herself as a rep, Sasha shrugged her shoulders "eh sure I'll join Continental Postal Service." Since she didn't know much anything yet on the couriers she went ahead and decided to join with the first one to offer. Once she learned the ropes and figured out the order of things then she'd decide if she wanted to stay with them or not.

[Finsternia]

Sigmund rubbed where he was injected by the machine and focused his attention to the girl who introduced herself.

He stood on his toes so that he can see from behind the other Couriers. He waved his hands to Peggy and said, "Nice to meet ya, Ma'am!" He kept on jumping in place just to see as the other taller Couriers are blocking his view.