It didn't take long for my teammates to get the hint that I wasn't interested in being friends. In fact, I would say a few of them took it a little too personally. However, I was lucky in that Rowan, our group helper, diverted a lot of attention. He was fresh out of a training program himself and close to our age. The girls in the group were obsessed with him and that caused the other boys in the group to stand united. Which meant that somehow, I fitted in even though I didn't particularly want to.

One of the girls in the group, Amelia, was a water Elementalist and we got paired up a lot during practices as well. She wasn't one of the insufferable girls so I tolerated her. I could tell that Elizabeth, our team leader, wasn't to pleased about my behaviour, but she never spoke to me about it.

Time flew by quickly and soon it was our last meal before we set off. They had a huge cafeteria, much like the Academy, but we had to sit in our respective group. I looked around surreptitiously for everyone and found Abigail's blonde head three tables away from me. The blond guy that I kept seeing next to her was still glued to her side.

The red head next to her whispered something and both of them turned towards me. Abigail looked lost as she scanned the crowd before our eyes connected. I frowned at the cluelessness of her face; we were supposed to lay low, not make a bunch of friends.

She raised her eyebrows at me in her usual fashion, unaware that she was getting too close to her teammates. I sighed and turned back to my dinner.

"Timone, I'm starting to think you are a robot," Amelia's amused voice to my right pulled my attention back to my team. I saw more than a few curious glances and even more annoyed one. Did someone ask me a question?

"Sorry, I was thinking about something," I apologised. It wasn't something I'd normally do, but I had learned that this would shut them up faster.

One of the girls rolled her eyes and Amelia shrugged. Rowan chuckled, he didn't have to sit with us but he volunteered to. Before anyone could make another comment, a commotion from the door captured everyone's attention.

I immediately recognised them as the group we ran into in the forest. Everyone began to whisper furiously at each other, excitement clear on their faces. They strolled into the room like they owned the place, ignoring the buzz around them as though they were used to it.

"I still can't believe the Hunters are coming too!" one of the girls whose name I had forgot shouted. Her neighbour twisted around to look at Rowan.

"Is it true that you were in the same basic training as Mariah?" she asked with starry eyes. My cheek twitched at her expression and I wasn't the only one who was repulsed by her... mannerism.

"We did, but I don't know her that well," Rowan answered. He certainly didn't seem bothered by the way she looked at him I was glad that he diverted some attention from me. Plus, he leaves me alone most of the time.

We were scheduled to have our last meet up before the whole group departs, since it would be impossible to get together without raising suspicion once we set off. Casey winked at me and I wondered why we couldn't find a less weird way to signal.

Since my team's table was smacked in the middle of the cafeteria, I was one of the last ones to arrive. It was already near curfew and we hadn't got a moment to waste.

"So, tomorrow is the big day," I started, not wanting to let this drag on. "We need to remember to blend in, and only use our emergency code when something big happens."

I stole a glance at Abigail to see her nodding; she definitely didn't seem to understand that this was directed at her. Bowen rolled his eyes at me and I glared at him.

"No contact with people from another team unless it's necessary," I stressed. "We also need to work out an emergency strategy as well. Evacuation."

It was ridiculously hard to decide on a course of action. Bowen was fixated on opposing everything I suggested. In the end, we agreed on using a sword sign as a symbol. We were grouped, too, which meant Abigail and I were put together. She didn't seem happy about it, but I was glad that she would be my top priority. On the occasion when we are separated, we would head towards the nearest outpost or our destination this time: New Delhi Citybase.

After this meeting, I had barely got time to pack and sleep before it was time to go. We woke up before dawn and headed towards the meeting hall. No doubt they wanted to subject us to another pep talk before we leave. The bigger the group, the longer it took to get things going.

My group was assigned to number 8. Elizabeth headed back to us and nodded at Rowan. "We are leaving through the Easter gate. Now let's get going so we won't be the last one to arrive."

I picked my bag up and followed everyone, trailing at the back. It wasn't until we met up with the other group that I realised it was Abigail's. It seemed Nirmal really planned everything through.

"Stay in one line and don't spread out," Elizabeth instructed and everyone complied. I looked towards Abigail surreptitiously and she looked like she was still half asleep. The sun was slowly rising but the chilly street was already alive with activities.

"Why do we have to go this early?" a girl in her group asked. Their team leader, a Chinese man who looked just like the rest of the citizens here, attempted to explain to her. It's clear that we wouldn't e able to get out undetected in this numbers if we go any later.

Rowan turned out to be an illusionist like Casey, and he was cloaking our entire group as we walked down the street. Elizabeth was taking the rear with the other team leader at the front. There wasn't any problem in getting to the exit. It was a different entrance to the one we entered through, but the setup was identical.

It seemed strange that Yunan Citybase would allow houses to be built against the wall, but it had excellent camouflage options. However, it also made maintenance a nuisance.

But that wasn't my problem.

Without even so much as a proper check, we were waved through the small house and back to the wild. I mentally orientated myself. We must have entered from either the southern or western exit, which was in the opposite direction.

The blond boy with green eyes was still sticking close to Abigail and I shook my head. I already raised the issue before we left and she was still allowing people to get close to her. Unbelievable.

The vegetation was still dense and we had to battle through the thickets until we arrived at a man-made clearing. We were the first trainee group to arrive and only the accompanying groups were here, including the Hunters.

I dropped my bag in a corner and observed the clearing. It was perfectly oval and the group looked well tread; this was a frequently used clearing by the Ganesh Family, no doubt. We were close enough to the Citybase that there shouldn't be any big Legres, however, this meant they were easy to track.

After another hour or so, everyone had finally arrived. The clearing went from a peaceful ground to a market. I had lost sight of most of my team, all of them wondering off to great friends or simply got pushed away by the sheer size of the crowd.

I spotted Abigail nearby and knew it was my chance to speak to her undetected.

"Hey," I looked to my right so no one would notice from afar that I was speaking to her. Our voices would be drowned out by the others, too. She elbowed me in the ribs and I turned to look at her in annoyance.

"We're not supposed to be seen talking to each other," she hissed. I pursed my lips. Now she remembered the rules.

"I am not stupid," I said in lieu of a reply. "What is with you and blondie boy?"

"Nothing. He just likes to stick close to me ever since we found out our powers can work together," she answered and gave me a brief overview of what happened. Our group had a similar beginning, too. It seemed that this was the norm.

Satisfied wit this information, I assessed the blondie boy not far from us before heading back towards the edge of the clearing. Just as I did, the final group arrived, making it almost impossible to move around.

At that precise moment, Trevor shouted for all of us to get back to our group I caught a glimpse of Elizabeth's expression and knew that this was some kind of test and we had failed spectacularly.

Sure enough, after we finally managed to regroup, Trevor gave us a lecture on staying alerted and the danger of the wilderness. I was already well aware of these facts so I zoned out for most of it.

"Good. Now let's get back to business. We'll start ascending the mountain on the west, this path is well used and there will be minimal danger. I want group 1 in the front, 2 and 4 in the middle, 3 and 8 in the left flank. 6 and 9 in the right flank and 5 and 7 at the back," Trevor barked out orders and this time, everybody started moving swiftly.

If I hadn't remembered incorrectly, Abigail was in group 4 which meant we were positioned close to each other. Once again, I wasn't sure whether Nirmal had planned this or not. If she had, then she was one perceptive woman.

We drew up next to her group and Abigail gave me a quick smile when she was sure no one else was watching. I smiled to myself; things shouldn't be boring on this trip then.

The best thing about walking in such a big group was that you never had to worry about much except upholding your position. Most of the time, we were left to just march on in silence, which suited me fine. Occasionally, we were sent off to hunt games or as scouts, but we were taken out to do so more as training than actual need. We were still far from any dangerous territories and with the size of the group, none of the lower grade Legres bothered us.

"Timon, can you light the fires?" Elizabeth came out and asked. I nodded and threw a flame onto the pile of woods in the middle of our campsite, then another when it wasn't catching.

Apparently, a group caught some unmutated deer so we were all treated with deer meat for dinner. I could see the others busy prepping the meat. Hence today we were starting the fire earlier than usual to cook.

"It's nice to have you here," Rowan laughs and starts grilling some meat. The others all cracked a smile, this was one of the few times when they looked happy to have me in the group.

"See how many other groups need your help," Elizabeth continued. It had become a thing for me to help the other groups. I didn't know whether Elizabeth was asking me to do this because she wanted me to make friends or she simply was being nice, but it offered me a chance to check on the others.

When I got to Bowen and Natalie's team, it was clear that the latter was upset by some news. I skirted around towards them before lighting the fire, giving them a chance to talk to me.

"T—Timon," Natalie whispers quietly behind. "Owen and Evanna are staying behind. Gail got lost here earlier and told Fred."

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

'ello - sorry for forgetting to post :P I know I promised double updates, but this is the last of my stock and I need to (badly) go over the edited version of Selection first before I continue with Tom's story. Forgive me?

Anyway, some of you have asked for Character Profiles and I'm working on that, as well as *gasps* Citybase profiles! Although those might not be ready until I finish writing the second Dark Ages, don't want to make conflicting details now!

Let me know how you have enjoyed it so far and just know that this is the last chapter of 2016 (oooooh!)

Happy Early 2017 you guys!