Everyone immediately jumped up and got on the defensive.

There were two men standing there. One, the one who had just spoken, was a rather bulky and muscular guys who didn't bother wearing a shirt, letting his long black locks hang down over his body.

The other was a pale and frail looking man with equally pale and frail looking gray hair that went down to his neck and frayed outwards from there. His red eyes stared unblinking at the crew.

Strangely, both were wearing pristine white labcoats over their usual get-ups.

"No, Havel, it's not in the instructions. Hades definitely said 'capture Fantasia and Sandra,' and only that."

"What?! You're too much of a stickler for the rules. I'm going to crush them anyways." He cracked his knuckles.

Urbain put his arm in front of Havel to stop him from moving forward. His red eyes drilled into his partner's face. "I said that we're not doing it. Never do anything other than what the mission says."

The look in Urbain's eyes convinced him that he was not messing around. "Tch. Fine, have it your way."

The two of them looked at our crew of Fantasia, Buddy, Sandra, and Ariel.

Sandra gritted her teeth. "The restraints haven't worn off yet, so we don't stand a chance."

Fantasia sighed. "Come on, Sandra. Let's just hand ourselves over before things get complicated."

The two of them silently nodded in agreement and started walking forward.

"Wait!" yelled Ariel. "What are you doing?! Don't give up!" She tried to activate her powers, but still could not. She clenched his fist in frustration.

They stopped. "Listen," said Sandra. "Especially now, we don't have any combative strength, and even if we did we would stand no chance again these two. They're part of Hades' Iron E. unit, and have strengths on the country levels. Fanta and I only are Province level. Plus, we're going up against those two of all people." She looked at them and shivered in fear. "If Urbain allowed it they would have torn into us before we could react." They continued on, accepting their fate as a blessing compared to what it could have been. "Pindorsa," she said as her final words to Ariel and Buddy.

Wings sprouted from the back of Urbain. Gnarly, dark gray wings. He waited until the two others reached him before grabbing them. "Mission complete," he said, expressionless except for those red eyes filled with hate. Instead of flapping his wings though, the various end points of the wings shot out a bright white energy, like spaceships sending plasma out to propel themselves. He lifted into the air this way, then jetted off, leaving a trail of energy that dissipated behind him.

"Hm. Show off," said Havel, who then followed suit by jumping after him so fast that it looked like he too was flying.

Buddy and Ariel were left behind, powerless and without a clue what to do.

"Pindorsa?" said Buddy. "Isn't that a country in South Vespuccia?"

"Yeah. A really big one at that."

"Does that mean that they're telling us where they're being taken?"

She shrugged. "Probably. I think we need to worry about finding Neuman first."

"I guess you're right. How are we supposed to find him though?"

The two of them contemplated different solutions, but they couldn't arrive at a solid answer.

"Well, one thing is for sure. We need to get back to my couch, and then we can fly around from there."

-----

I walked until I reached the village. It was a small, quiet village, and not a person was in sight.

This is kind of eerie...

I passed in between the wooden houses. The wood was very clearly exposed, as if whoever had built it decided to stop the project halfway through. There were only a few buildings in total, but they were all at the same stage, and all looked like they were abandoned not too long ago.

I resolved to check inside one of the structures, and I took my first step inside. Dust filled the air and was lit up by the ambient light from the sun. The light and a slight breeze that filtered into the single room entered through the holes in the walls where windows would normally be placed. It was a tranquil cabin, but something stood out. In the complete middle of the room, there was a pedestal with a message engraved into it and the number one written on it.

The people we know as Sentinels have not always been around. They too came into this world at very specific points in time, they just happened to come rather early on.

It was a strange message, and it confused me to why it would be there. The village felt a little different now that even more mystery had been added to its existence.

I left the cabin and decided to check out another. This one also had a pedestal in it, but instead of a one engraved into it it had a three.

Could these indicate order?

I left that one without reading its message, and then I checked out another of the buildings. This one had a six on it. My suspicions became stronger, and I kept searching until I found the second one in the series.

They are not much different than you and me, but unlike us they have been gifted with spiritual will and powers of the highest class. Their powers also each seem to represent some aspect of humanity.

I went back to the third message and read it, then kept reading until I read the seventh message.

These aspects are called Experience, Life, Dream, Sensing, Nightmare, Reason, Disease, and Imagination. Both positive and negative aspects appear to be present in the list.

All of these abilities have incredible power over the way that Insomnia Wake works. In what ways, however, are not known to the public.

I, however, know the truth. The truth that not all of the Sentinels plan to use their powers for good, and that there is internal strife between the group.

Something has been brewing behind the scenes for thousands of years now, and it is these Sentinels that are the ones stirring the stew. Prometheus, Osiris, Juno, Helen, Hades, Odin, Hera, and Venus are the names they choose to go by, but just who are these people?

The Squadron Squad is headed by three of these people, and it's a massive organization that at times has boasted membership up to 30% of the world's population. Can we really trust those who have that much influence? Or...

That's it?! There weren't any more building to check, but the message didn't seem to be over yet. I left the seventh room and looked around. I suddenly got the impression that I was being watched.

There, in the very middle of the abandoned village, was an oddly shaped pile of snow. I went over and wiped it off, only to find the eighth and final message.

Will we have to fight them in the end?

"Strange message, isn't it."

I spun around to find Juno standing behind me. She wasn't showing much emotion, but took occasional glances around the village, as if expecting something.

"Juno?"

"That's my name yes," she replied. "And who are you? I remember seeing you before."

"Neuman."

"Ah, I see. Back with the Passing Wind fiasco." She impatiently shifted her weight back and forth. "Where are your friends?"

She didn't seem to actually be interested in what I had to say, but I answered anyways. "I got separated from them and don't know where they are."

"Why don't you just go back to your headquarters? You're part of the Squadron right?"

"Err... Yes, but I don't know how to get back. I was kind of teleported here against my will."

"Oh. Where are your headquarters then?" She looked behind her, but then looked back disappointed when she didn't find what she was looking for.

"Selenium City."

"Selenium City?! You got teleported that far away?! That's almost two megayards away!"

Megayards?! What kind of messed up unit is that?

She shook her head. "Well I can't just leave you out here on your own then, can I? I guess I'll have to help you out."

I laughed nervously. "Yeah... Thanks. Where is 'here' anyways?"

"Weird place, isn't it? It just kind of appeared here at some point in time. No one knows who built it, but they claim to know our secrets. Ha, what a joke!" She crossed her arms and paused. "Supposedly Prometheus was supposed to be here, but I don't see him anywhere. My sources are very rarely wrong so I wonder what's up."

Him? What kind of crazy coincidence is this?! "Say, what is his power anyways?"

She glared at me. "It took me forever to get him to tell even me, so no way am I going to tell you!"

The conversation came to an abrupt stop, and we stood there doing nothing for a little bit. Eventually, Juno got bored.

"What's your power?" she asked.

"I don't have one yet."

"Really? Do you have any special aspirations or personality traits?"

Right to the point, huh? "I mean, not really. I really like history and stuff because I can remember it all with my eidetic memory, but that's pretty much it." I shrugged.

"Eidetic memory, you say?" Something clicked in her mind. "I think I see where this is going. Why don't you come back to Celestia with me? There's someone that I would like you to meet, and after that we can summon your friends to meet up with you."

"Considering my situation, that sounds pretty good to me." I smiled awkwardly. And I'm back to being a burden. Greeeeat.

"Very well. We'll wait around here for a little while longer to see if Promy shows up or not, then we'll head out."

Did she just call him "Promy?"