[Like she'll answer that! There's no way Iona can make her arm settle down and the glamour finally fades away. She curses under her breath at firs,t but then, she instead turns to Michael, her eyes lighting up with an idea.]
Michael! Can you handle freezing one, maybe two minutes? I'm gonna nab that urn.
[Michael sets his jaw; using his powers was never something he liked leaning on, but the young man could recognize when it was necessary. At the very least, it sounded like it would be the easiest way of resolving this situation without any needless conflict. He exhales, mentally preparing himself, then nods at Iona.]
Okay, I'll try. But you've gotta hurry.
[He's about to kick his powers into gear, but the other three are already trying to make their own move...]
So if there's someone or something here, Jake, you should probably do something about it. Or are you just going to stand there like a statue?
[The colors were all distracting, but more distracting is the fact that there's something going down that all of them are oblivious to, and the more seconds that pass, the more Lyra is really disliking this idea.]
[And working on it, he is. It just appears that he's just standing there, frowning in the direction of invisible Michael and Iona, but after awhile, something moves -- it's hard to tell what, though, because it appears invisible, only visible by the way it's kicking up dust and rubble in one giant sweep... towards the two.
He's using his powers, the equivalent of reaching out with his soul and giving whatever is there a giant, telekinetic thrashing, if it connects. It's like a massive invisible tentacle reaching out to crush whatever might be in its way.
[Michael isn't sure what's going on, but he can see the dust being swept up and the floor rumbling a bit, like something massive is headed their way that they can't see. He curses under his breath, gripping Iona's hand tight to make sure that his powers affect her equally.]
Crap, hold on-!
[So much for whispering, but it's kind of a stressful situation, okay. He forces his eyes closed and concentrates, and time stops all around them. Iona will have to make her way around a force she can't see, though; the direct route is being blocked by Jake's frozen powers.]
[Michael is too busy focusing to be worried about Iona taking too long -- it seemed like a moot point, because every passing moment would feel excruciatingly long to him, when using his powers.
He can't help but feel a rush of relief when Iona returns to his side, urn in tow. Does he feel dizzy? Of course he does! Is it head starting to hurt? Well, just a little. He's been working on focusing, on making his powers last longer when he needs to use them -- but it hasn't been that long, and while he's made progress, it's been a slow process.
Is he going to say he's just fine and dandy? That's a no-brainer as well.]
Yeah, I'll be fine. C'mon, let's move closer to the exit so we can make a quick get away.
[...Which would make it a very convenient way to escape, wouldn't it? That is, if frozen-in-time Jake over there hadn't already possessed a fair amount of foresight, and blocked the door with an invisible force the same time he swept a force through the room itself. They'll find that out soon enough, the moment they attempt to leave. It'll be like hitting a brick wall.]
[Alright, what the hell?? Iona basically runs towards the door and then stumbles backwards, almost dropping the urn (which isn't helping because it's vibrating in her arms).]
Ow!! What the heck? How're they blocking the door?
[She rubs her nose as she gives an indignant glance over at Jake and the others.]
That's it. We're gonna have to find another exit or make our own.
[Michael frowns, wanting to protest, but what can be said? She's right; they probably can't do anything about what's in the urn, but they can work on getting out of here faster.
Though Michael's starting to have a little trouble keeping his powers stable. Time kind of flickers in and out of being still a couple of times, and he grits his teeth, following.]
I don't think I can hold on much longer. [Not without pushing himself too hard, and the last thing they need right now is the burden on him fainting on them.] A few more seconds, and I think I should drop my powers and we just make a dash for it.
[Iona nods and before she starts off, she holds out her left hand to him. Cause she's not gonna run off first like she usually does.]
We'll turn invisible again when you turn off the switch. And maybe we'll figure out what that guy's powers are in the meantime.
[Her arm might give away their spot, but that's what running's for! And Oren. Oren will help. The vibrating from the urn doesn't stop, but Iona slaps it down and her magic is keeping from whatever is inside from spilling over.]
[And Michael releases his hold on time, and things move normally once again. He holds onto Iona's hand tightly, trying to recover from the transition. It always makes his head feel like it's swimming for a few seconds, but he tries to force it away, knowing that they're not done here yet.]
[When time moves again, the other three can feel it, being the unusual individuals they are. It's jarring, like someone stopped a record, and it sped up again to catch up to where it was supposed to be. It's so disorienting that it almost throws Jake off his feet, even though there was no physical effect. He steadies himself, looking down at the ground in confusion, then glances over to the urn-
[Morgan is feeling it too, though he doesn't show it as readily as his half-brother. He notices the missing urn and frowns; it's amusing when Jake is playing leader, fumbling around with decisions concerning bringing urns back or not -- it's not amusing when someone is trying to steal their paycheck from out under their noses.
He speaks commandingly, obviously making the executive decision to take back his leadership role.]
[Lyra is just barely recovering, having been out of it for a few seconds when time started up again. She's busy shaking off her confusion, and hadn't realized that the urn was missing until just now.]
I didn't- [OH MY GOD. Everyone stop talking to him at once!] Just shut up for a second, Lyra, okay?!
[He does as Morgan's instructed, easily falling into his role of taking orders rather than giving them. (He's more used to that, as much as he'd hate to admit it.) Unlike Michael, though, Jake is able to focus his mind to a razor-sharp point, and he's even more effective when under pressure. This situation would certainly apply.
And so immediately, startlingly, Jake sends another "sweep" of force throughout the entire room. If there's someone here, he's going to knock them on their feet to slow them down -- or at least he'll catch a sense of where they are if he can feel his soul brush up against someone, at the very least.]
[There was no avoiding that next move and Iona feels herself being swept off of her feet and being knocked in the back.]
Shit--!!
[And her concentration on invisibility wavers as a result, revealing both her and Michael. She's still holding onto his hand with her left, but has to let go when hit.]
[It's Oren who rushes in as debris and dust fly everywhere, standing in front of Iona and Michael protectively in plain sight of the opposing trio. His eyes flash dangerously.]
Too much.
[Aka, things have escalated needlessly in his opinion.]
[Michael had been hit too, and in the staggering force, he has to lurch forward to keep his balance, letting go of Iona's hand the same time that she does the same.
Well. So much for their stealth tactic. Oren stands in front of them both right now, but Michael can turn to face the trio more directly, now, uncertain about what to do. Maybe... they'll recognize each other and laugh all of this off? Wouldn't that be great.]
Jake freezes, having recognizing two of the three that have finally appeared before them. The golem and the witch from the cafe; a rush of panic flickers through him, because what the hell were they doing here, poking around in their business? It's one thing to meet at the Grind, it's different when you're interrupting an actual job, and he's not exactly sure what to say. Other than...]
Just what in god's name is going on here?
[THIS IS THE OPPOSITE OF THE WARNING HE GAVE YOU, YOU GUYS......]
[Lyra is having a similar reaction to Jake, having recognized Oren.]
What- hey, it's that golem guy from the cafe. [She's not sure if she should wave or be annoyed or what. She gives Morgan a little elbow in the side.] The really tall one.
[Morgan, though... upon seeing the three of them, his expression falters into confusion, but recovers a moment later, becoming a bit difficult to read. A thin smile bleeds onto his face, and he steps forward to stand in front of Jake, lightly brushing off Lyra's gesture.]
What's too much? The fact that we were trying to deter a trio of thieves from running off with our paycheck?
[He does give a tiny congenial wave at them from across the gallery. It's difficult to tell if it's anything close to sincere, but they can probably guess that there's irony embedded in the gesture.]
Hi, Jackie. Oren. Stranger I've not met. Now, give us our urn back, please.
[Iona stands up to reveal herself and steps in front of Michael (she's concerned for his safety the most and she'll put herself out there before anyone unsavory discovers his time powers).]
Well, well, well. Hello again. And hello for the first and the last time other two people.
[To Lyra and Jake of course. See, she can play that game too!]
As for the urn, I have no idea who's paying you for it, but I can tell you right now that they definitely have no idea what's in here either and--...
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