"Where did you want to enter, Sheila?" Mag held a printed map of the Eco-Dome. On the page were a colorful symbols and icons scattered across a topographic depiction of the synthetic biome. Sheila stood on her toes, peering past her father's arm to get a good look at the possible locations. 

"The swamp, Father," the young woman said, pointing her finger towards the edge of the map. 

"You think Gurk is going to be hiding out there?" Mag asked quietly as he turned his back. The other three hunters were also looking at their maps as they stood by the large metal door that blocked the entrance to the Eco-Dome. Inside the massive glass walls that made up the structure, a thick barrier of plants completely obscured the interior.

"Yes, Father," Sheila replied in a soft voice. "That is where crocodiles usually live in the wild. Or at least that section of the Eco-Dome most closely resembles their usual habitat."

"Not a bad idea. But what if one of the others gets the same idea? We have a bit of stiff competition if we all enter the same location at once!" Mag glanced back at the other hunters over his shoulder, looking at them with frustration as they continued to mingle among themselves.

"I wouldn't worry about them. Bodahn isn't too concerned with taking Gurk out. You know he mostly comes here to practice his aim on the Essencima that spawn inside. The other two might cause some trouble, but I still think we can pull out ahead. Especially with you in charge."

"You're right. But I also don't want this to end too quickly. It'd be a shame if your first Hunt concluded within the first fifteen minutes all because of some bad luck."

"There's still the other Neo-Sapia in there. Even if we can't score the main kill, there's still hope of collecting the secondary target as a consolation prize."

"Grani's don't accept second place, Sheila. You know this."

The woman kept her head low. "Oh, that's right."

"Gurk is the only target worth pursuing. If we don't get him, it's a loss. Understand?"

"Yes Father." Sheila bobbed her head quickly.

"Good. Don't want to put too much pressure on you but you have to be in the right mentality. Now, are you sure you want to start out by the swamp? Your logic behind it is sound, but you also know that Essencima also like to roam in that area of the Eco-Dome as well. And I’m not just talking about the Lurkers either."

"I'm positive, Father. I've done my researcher." Sheila tilted her head up. She looked at her father big, open and eager eyes. A small smile came across Mag's face.

"Good. You've already got that Grani confidence in you!" Mag folded up the map and tucked it away inside one of the pockets of his vest. He turned to the other Hunters and put two fingers in his mouth and made a loud whistle. The other three stopped their chatting to face Mag. "You fellas figure out where you want to deploy?" he shouted.

"What's it to you?" Larson growled. "Trying to intrude on our plans?" 

"No, of course not. I'm trying to get this show on the road. The sooner you three pick a starting point, the sooner we can get to doing what the viewers came here to watch!" Mag then lifted his radio to his mouth and pressed a button on his earpiece that made a bit of static before speaking into it. "Eve. Honey. How many viewers are we looking at?"

"Almost eighty-thousand! And the special viewers are already here!" Evelyn replied. Her voice was muffled from the signal but everyone understood what she had said. 

"See? Eighty-thousand viewers on the Dark Network and we haven't even begun! And we've got a very important person watching right now, so we need to get going."

"Ah, don't stress it my good man!" Larson said as he adjusted the suppressor at the end of the barrel of his rifle. "I know for sure where I'm going. And I have a sneaking suspicion these two do as well. Old Larson here is just trying to get into your head it seems."

"Well, it won't work. I've been through this countless times before. You're going to need a bit more than some third-rate mind game to break me." Mag walked past the rest of the hunters with Sheila following close behind her. He walked up to a panel in front of the entrance to the Eco-Dome and input a special code. "Once you set your desired location, there's no taking it back." Mag pressed a few buttons and a short chime played out. The metal doors to the Eco-Dome opened wide. He entered first while Sheila stood right next to him.

The other three formed a short line at the terminal. In a few moments, each one had placed their desired starting location and were standing inside the entryway with the Granis. The metal door shut behind them, locking the group inside the thin transparent room that separated them from the vast expanse of nature of the Eco-Dome. Behind them on a door was a large monitor with each of the hunters' faces. It lit up, and across their portraits were the small icons of their desired starting locations. 

Mag mustered a small smile. "Nobody else wanted the swamp, eh?" he said as his eyes panned over his rivals. 

"Too obvious," Larson howled. "I know that other Neo-Sapia aren't the brightest, but a crocodile hiding out in a swamp is just asking to be found."

"Fair point. So you're going to the Fallen Canopy instead?"

"More places to hide. For me as well as the prey. Not to mention that the nasty scent of swamp water hinders one of my most important assets." The wolf pointed his nose upwards and sniffed a few times.

"And you two are heading out to the Scorched Jungle?"

Willheim put one hand against his chest while keeping his gun resting across the back of his shoulders. "I'm going there because there are more than a few fine sniping spots there that are easy to reach. You know my style Mag. Not sure why the young chap decided to head there though."

"Just wanted to get some practice in blasting some Essencima," Bodahn chimed. His fingers formed a gun and fired an imaginary bullet towards the wall. "I know how much they enjoy spawnin' in areas full of destruction."

"Right." Mag smiled as he looked at his daughter. He gave Sheila a wink with one eye before looking back at the rest of the hunters. "All right. Now that's out of the way, we can finally get to the reason why we all came here!" He clapped his hands and pointed towards a narrow hall to the side of the room they were in. "Go ahead and get to one of the transport chambers and type in your coordinates. The Hunt will begin as soon as you step out."

There was some small clamoring and discussion as the hunters headed towards their respective pods. Mag and Sheila entered theirs together. The contraption was roughly the size of an elevator; solid, plated metal covered every inch save for a digital screen that floated on the opposite end of the entrance.

"It's time, Sheila. How are you feeling?" Mag asked as he input a series of numbers on the screen.

"I'm excited!" She smiled and began bouncing up and down. "My first Hunt is actually here!"

Mag finished inputting the drop-off location. The entire machine rumbled, followed by bright lights escaping through the numerous slits of the metal panels. "Good. Let's hope this event can live up to expectations!"

Gurk staggered out of his Dormancy Chamber with closed eyes. Still dazed, he lost his balance after his first step. The height difference between the metal prison and the floor was great enough to make him fall face first. As he lay on the cold dirt below, the steam that came out of the Dormancy Chamber covered the area in a thin cloud. The crocodile sniffed the air a few times before opening his eyes. Lush evergreen trees surrounded him on all sides. Using both of his hands, he pushed himself up off the ground, covering his palms with the cool dew that coated the grass. 

"Where...?" Gurk mumbled as he upright himself. He adjusted his mask, turning his head around to further scan his surroundings. The only sound was the gentle rustle of branches flowing back and forth. The crocodile flicked his hand upwards, trying to activate his Implant. After a few more attempts to activate his projection, Gurk gave up. Using one of his claws, he scratched the back of his head. 

"Great..." Gurk said out loud. He took one last look at the Dormancy Chamber before moving in a straight line away from his former metal prison.