In the desert, the Sun seemed larger. Whether or not Nod actually bares down on this patch of land more didn't matter to Zack. As long as he could keep moving forward, keep chasing a ghost of a dream, nothing else mattered. It promised power, in exchange for this life. In Zack's eyes, any other life would be a better one. No more would there be tasteless slop, useless schooling, or constant nagging. Even if he wouldn't be his own self, it was still preferable.

Getting out of the shelter was easy enough. All the other street rats saw the place as a home to come back to. Nobody looked twice when Zack walked out the doors. Now, every step was a journey in and of itself. What little ice he had been able to conjure cooled him down only for the seconds it lasted. There was no moisture in the desert, nothing to even attempt to freeze. Only the rolling dunes, blistering Sun, and… strange golden frame existed.

Zack had heard the rumors of aliens coming out of portals framed like this. Black, bloodsucking, semisolid aliens with claws and tendrils. He collapsed in front of the frame as it began to shimmer, a portal appearing. The same voice that called out to him last night did so again, asking for a price. At this point, it was already paid. Zack feebly reached towards the portal. Perhaps there was water on the other side.

The Cinraal reached back.

Everything turned black.

Hundreds of names, memories, and facts flooded into Zack's minds. That there were two of them shocked him less than what he had just learned. The other mind, identifying itself as a Cinraal name much more complicated than human names, settled on Baal. The heat of the desert vanished, replaced with the infinite chill of a glacier. Zack's meager freezing ability became part of him, chilling his insides for as long as his, and Baal's, hearts beat.

Zack felt the presence of his own body just as much as his mind-mate's body. One small and human, the other hulking and otherworldly. Solid gold chains bound the two together, locked by sheer will and a contract signed.

As Baal receded into Zack's subconscious, three things moved to the top of his to-do list.

Find those who oppose Chaos.

Contact the outcast.

Oppose Chaos.

----------------------------------------

Lukhan stood in between a whiteboard and all of his current allies, each seated in chairs. "Isabella, my second. Amos and Cassandra, fugitives from Etras. Acero and Ansem, business partners. Lillian, a painter of inks and plants. Everyone, I welcome you to the fight for our world."

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Isabella gave a small applause, alone. The others, with varying degrees of attentiveness, didn't share her enthusiasm for the theatrics.

"What's our first op, purple leader?" Ace jerred, focusing more on cleaning his gun than the morning briefing.

"Thanks to Malachi's assistance and Ansem's tireless work," Lukhan said, gesturing to the other side of the room. "We are in possession of a detector attuned to the unique signature Cinraal radiate."

AN: put descriptor here

"Lucky for your world there are no other concentrated masses of pure, unstable ether," Malachi hissed.

Isabella cocked her head slightly. "If it detects Cinraal, then can't we track down each one of them?"

Ansem shook his head with a light chuckle. "We're not nearly advanced enough for that," he explained. "In exchange for coverage as wide as Nova City and surrounding plains, I had to give up a lot of precision. Currently, we can only detect the strongest of signatures."

As if in response, a bright blue blip appeared in the northwest area, and began pulsing happily.

"Because of course the Shadows like to play in the desert," Ace jeered, rolling his eyes.

Lukhan's wings almost fluttered open, Isabella noticed. Instead, they lay across his back, still as ever. If she was any less curious about his seemingly emotionless composure, she would have overlooked it.

Lukhan stood in between the radar and the others, so that everyone was looking at him instead. "That the Cinraal would appear in such a place is curious. Malachi, your analysis?"

Malachi shrugged. "Etras is pretty close to a desert world, and everyone hated it there. That isn't a staging ground. Someone chose that place for a different reason."

Lukhan nodded. "Cassandra and Amos. I assume you two are well rested?"

Amos stood, stretched his arms before him, and tensed every muscle in them. Three silver bangles coalesced out of the atmosphere's stray metals, and hung from his right wrist. The bangles were wide enough to fall, but stayed in place. "It's been a long time since I felt these. I'm ready."

Cassandra also stood, with a quarter of the aplomb Amos had. "If he's ready, I am too. I don't need old gear to tell me that." Her hair began to radiate, and its reds and oranges flowed from roots to tips.

Lukhan nodded to the pair. "I want you to investigate the desert alert."

In a flash of fire and wind, the two were gone. A few embers drifted through the air.

"Acero, I want you and Lillian to investigate the city, look for signs of covert Cinraal activity."

As Ace and Lillian left, Isabella stole a glance at Malachi, who looked like he was elsewhere. "What do you need us to do?" She timidly asked.

"Ansem will continue working on his own, however I wish to prioritise streamlining communication. Isabella, you will come with me on a mission of our own. Malachi, continue with yours."

Ansem relocated to his lab, Malachi slipped into his own shadow, and Isabella took her place by Lukhan's side. "Where are we going?"

"We will secure the only other escapee from Etras."