Settene

Sorry, I'm leaving soon! Just write whatever!

— Settene

Born Sarah Tenet, she is a natural born prowler and one of the most daring explorers. She is rarely seen in town, barely coming back to resupply and exchange a worn-out notebook for a new one before heading in a new direction. Though she is probably unaware of that, she is a source of inspiration for many aspiring prowlers, and the story of her first expedition is used as an example of a prowler's dedication and boldness.

Born to be a prowler

Settene always felt trapped in Detroit. We have a whole city as our playground, and most of us won't explore half of it in our lifetime. Yet, little Sarah wasn't ten when she grew bored of the place. She travelled the highest high ways with ease and even dared to map the treacherous tunnels of Sub Detroit.

Having joined the Prowlers Guild at a surprisingly young age, she trained her survival skills since she was 7. If she was a prodigy at exploration and stealth, her lack of focus and air-headed nature made her a poor student.

She never learnt anything without practicing it. Once I showed her how to identify the best stones to light a fire in case the lighter runs out of gas, and she forgot everything the very next day! A few month later, during a trip outside, I brought back the topic by accident and made her search which rock was able to light a fire, and then she never forgot the method. Of all the prowlers I've trained, she is by far the most frustrating.

— Andrei Cook, seasoned prowler and former teacher of Settene

Following the standar prowler education, she was initiated to a large variety of weapons to find which one she was the most comfortable with. As it turned out, she is a ranged fighter, and prefers bows and guns by a large margin. The sniper rifle is her favorite firearm, even though she only fired three shots with it. We have only two in Detroit, and the bullets are too sparse to allow any misuse.

While she avoids it unless absolutely necessary, she had to chose a close combat weapon and settled on a machete, because of the versatile nature and efficiency of the blade. She also carries with her two daggers and a balisong, but nobody ever saw her using them so I'm going to assume they are mainly for show. I mean, what good is a little dagger when you have a machete?

Touched by the Mist

Her first encounter with the Mist was when a Cloud passed over Detroit. She was deemed too young to receive her Gift and locked with the other kids, but managed to somehow sneak out of the tightly watched room. She never told anyone how she did it, and I suspect she's willing to take her secret into the afterlife.

By miracle, she wasn't injured while strolling around the raging battlefield. She even had a fun time, and received a gift of super speed. She is able to move at ludicrous speed in the mist, but only within the vicinity of a dense fog. She is not to keen on this power, as it does not synergize well with her fighting techniques. While it is allows her to deliver powerful kicks, it is unfit to delicate manipulations and does not allow her to shoot arrows or bullets faster, as her aim cannot adjust and no bow can withstand such force. Still, it is decent enough to reposition in the middle of a fight or even flee an overpowering opponent.

Cary

Her third journey as a fully-fledged prowler was eventful to say the least. She was tasked with find the whereabouts of a community living in the wastes and see if they were down to trade with us. It was not a task for newly appointed prowlers, but she had proved herself and the community was not important anyway. However, things went South real fast. The group she was looking for had been driven out of their refuge by a wandering Creature which was not happy to see another human step into her new lair.

Joey (how she named the creature, editor's note) jumped me just as I was too far into the basement to flee easily. It cornered me and I knew I was in for a close fight. It had won over the previous inhabitants of the place, so a frail girl was an easy prey for it. I think it underestimated me, and that's why I'm still alive. The fight itself is a blur. I managed to cut deep in one arm, but it cost me mine and a nasty wound in the abdomen. Claws hurt. Don't get clawed kids.

— Extract from Settene's journey into very bad lands.

Her survival was only due to a providential pool of mist that rose from a nearby pond. It was no thick mist, but just enough for her to activate her gift and outrun the monster. Limping and losing blood, she stumbled on the slaughtered family as she fled in the woods. In the end, they couldn't escape their predator. The only survivor was a young dog with a collar indicating its name: Cary.

I would tell the story of how Settene and Cary tended to their wounds with the creature on their trail and what happened then, but the F.I.S.H. has declared her notes on this expedition worthy of figuring in the public library, so head there and read it by yourself if you are curious.

Just know that after this adventure, she and Cary became best friends and that the dog has never left the prowler. They are a great duo, with a now adult Cary complementing the shortcomings of her mistress partner.