sweethymns | Pictures in the Dark

[Michael creases his brows, trying to decide on what the best course of action might be.]

So, is that a good thing or a bad thing? [He glances at Morgan, the one that Iona described as no one liking him when he visited the cafe. He can't quite pinpoint it himself either, but there is something decidedly off about the guy.] Do you think we could just talk to them, explain the situation?

Well, it's awkward? I mean... I shouldn't be talking to customers outside of the workplace shouldn't I??

[Iona, your boyfriend works at your cafe, geez...]

Ah, but we can listen in on them for another minute. We can gauge what we can do from there and follow them in the meanwhile.

[He nods, figuring that Iona at least has a good point -- they may as well try to assess the situation a bit more before they make a move.

He remains quiet, and equally uncertain, as he listens in further. The taller, dark-haired man speaks again, and Michael eavesdrops quite intently.]

[Jake is turning to look at Morgan and Lyra, hesitance still sketched into his otherwise gruff expression.]

You sure we weren't given any other details as to what this thing is supposed to be?

Uh, hello? It's an urn. [It's partly said to just annoy Jake, as she's smart enough to know what he's really asking.]

And by the way, since when did it matter? We're going to bring it back to the client, they're gonna be real happy about it -- happy enough to give us our cut of the pay. You're overthinking it too much, Jake.

[Morgan chimes in, since Jake seems to be so prone to vacillation and indecision.]

She's right, you know. Things become far less complicated when you refrain from asking needless questions. We might as well leave with our "treasure" in tow, and return it as soon as we're able.

[It's the obvious solution, to him.]

[Iona shakes her head at the trio.]

Yeah, they have no idea what they're dealing with. Oh well, let me see what I can...

[Her right arm is suddenly flickering and the colorful light it emits from the crystals embedded in her skin begin to bounce off the walls.]

U-Uh oh...!

[Why is it reacting like that? Because whatever is in the urn is reacting to Iona and in turn, her crystal arm is reacting back.]

I-Iona...! [Michael says in the hushiest of hushed tones, yet still conveying his concern quite well, as if that'll somehow stop the sudden light show. The lights dance all over the wall and ceiling, and the three strangers would literally have to be blind to not notice it.

He hopes against hope that maybe... they'll just... ignore it? (Fat chance.)]

[Fat chance, indeed. All three of them do notice it, and while Lyra looks confused and Morgan looks skeptical and vaguely amused, Jake straightens immediately, gazing over to where he can judge the lights are coming from.

He's taking it just a bit more seriously than the other two.]

Who's there?!

[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.]

Edited 2016-06-27 13:50 (UTC)

Shut the hell up, Lyra. I'm working on it.

[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.

Jake was never one for subtlety.]

[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.]

[Here she goes! Iona lets go of Michael's hand and rushes forward and stumbles when she feels something invisible in her way?]

What the hell?? Oh, crap gotta take the long way around...!

[And she does just that managing to make it around Jake to pluck the urn out of his hands.]

Got it!

[And she runs back to Michael.]

Are you feeling okay?

[Because first and foremost, him using his powers is a risk and Iona worries that even a minute might get him dizzy.]

[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 follows, trying to walk straight, and nearly bumps into Iona when she bumps into the invisible wall.]

How is this even happening? [He pinches the bridge of his nose.] Ugh...

[And it's in that gesture that he notices the urn vibrating. That's... probably not a good sign?]

Hey, Iona... is it supposed to be doing that?

[Iona looks down at the urn and switches it between her hands so she can keep her right hand on the lid, trying to lessen the vibrating.]

I don't think it should? But whatever's in here definitely doesn't like me!

Okay, less talk, more go time! We're gonna have to take the long way around at this rate.

[And she's weaving back to where they were and back to Oren, waving Michael to come over before the other three can figure out what just went on.]

[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.]

All right... I'll count down. 3, 2, 1...

[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-

-Which is not in his hands anymore.]

What the hell-?!

[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.]

Jacob, sweep the room again. Lyra, still with us?

Edited 2016-06-30 19:22 (UTC)

Y-yeah, I'm still here... what the hell was that?

[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.]

Wait, why'd you let the urn go?!

[Can't you do anything right, Jake?!]

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1/?? idek anymore

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done!

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1/??

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done

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1/?

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