Miya managed to dodge Adam's feet, just in time, as he scrambled back to the wall.
She was using a gentle voice with Adam now, hoping to calm him, and also calm her own growing anxiety.
"We don't know what happened. We seem to be some place different -- unusual. See?", she points to the six pedestals, three feet high that are flickering and clicking.
"That looks like a way out", again pointing out the corridor.
Looking to her companions, she quietly asks, "Should we try to leave and find someone to tell us what's going on?"
Remembering her friends concern regarding Adam, she answers, "Adam's okay -- a nasty cut which I have bandaged, and a bit hazy like the rest of us."
Miya's eyes keep straying to Lucian as though he would know what to do or where to go.
Are we hallucinating? - Lucian's mind races, as he looks all around them. When his eyes meet Miya's he stops and stares, his friend's look reminding him it is time to do something, instead of simply sitting and staring - with a nod to her, he moves towards one of the pedestals.
Approaching it, he studies where the light may be coming from, his senses on full alert.
"Who's got a phone? There's a GPS, it will tell us where we are. Maybe not how we got here but at least where we are." Lydia's voice has that same hopeful yet doubtful tone to it. Her I-pod didn't work. Would a phone?
Relieved to see Lucian stand and investigate the pedestals, Miya extends her arm to Adam to help him up on his feet. "Come on, Adam. Try and stand up. I'll help you."
With her arm around Adam and lifting him to his feet, Miya waits until he is steady on his own before releasing him and fishing in the outside pocket of her bag for her phone. Looking at the screen, there is no backlight, let alone mobile service. "My phone's not working, Lydia. Sorry." Miya put the mobile phone back in her bag. She had only just gotten the iPhone last week. Something wasn't right. The pedestals had light so there had to be electricity. "Those things have lights. Maybe the phone got broken in whatever happened to us."
Miya stood beside Adam as if protecting him. He had only just gotten out of the institution -- and she didn't want him suffering a setback and going back in again so soon.
She looked about the room with its stone floor and walls, hoping to notice something that would be useful.
Are we hallucinating? - Lucian's mind races, as he looks all around them. When his eyes meet Miya's he stops and stares, his friend's look reminding him it is time to do something, instead of simply sitting and staring - with a nod to her, he moves towards one of the pedestals.
Approaching it, he studies where the light may be coming from, his senses on full alert.
Looking down on the nearest pedestal, it is a has of sorts as well, as some kind of opaque liquid fills it, nearly to the rim. The blush light seems to be coming from something under the fluid, or perhaps the fluid itself, but it gives off no heat. The clicking sound seems to come from the pedestal itself, although from a particular part, you cannot say.
There does seem to be something in the water, as every now and them you catch a glint of something metallic, from beneath the liquid.
The hair on the back of your neck raises as a chill comes over you, and you get the sense of something familiar.
Adam took a moment to look around,frowning as he did.
Suppressing a shiver, he took several deep breaths. He wrinkled his nose at the damp air, and looked back and forth at his friends. He looked down at the now mostly crumpled cardboard box that had contained his dvds. Taking a few steps, he stood over a copy of "Hot Fuzz", and stared at it for a moment. Remembering his own phone, he pulled it from his pocket, wincing a bit at a bruise on his hip he hadn't noticed before.
He powered it on with no difficulty, and held it around.
"I've got no signal either."
He looked around again.
"What is this? A cave?..."and trailed off.
"Anyone seen my hat?"
Miya stood beside Adam as if protecting him. He had only just gotten out of the institution -- and she didn't want him suffering a setback and going back in again so soon.She looked about the room with its stone floor and walls, hoping to notice something that would be useful.
With an attentive, eye, Miya scanned the room. pas the confines of its walls, there was not much light, save that came from what appeared to be the exit. It was cool, but not cold, so it would do for shelter if needed, although if the temperature dropped, they would need some source of heat.
Finally looking to the ceiling, Miya noticed that there were symbols cast above each of the pedestals by the bluish light, although they were blurry and hard to focus on. Further inspection though, she noted that the one above where Lucian stood was almost clear compared to the others.
Lifting her finger up to the ceiling and pointing to the symbols cast there, above each pedestal, she asks, "What are those symbols? And Lucian, why is is the one above you almost clear?"
Feeling the nip in the air in the stone-walled room, she mused aloud, "It will get colder as the light fades. I suppose we can use this place as shelter and we need to start a fire? Anyone have matches or a lighter?"
Phillip gathered up what was salvageable from the vending machines and and stuffed them into his backpack. "Anybody hungry or thirsty? Looks like we've got a fair bit of snacks here."
He stopped to gather what spare change he could from the machines then pulled out his flip phone. Through the cracked screen he could make a new text message, but it seemed frozen trying to load it. He had to pull the battery to restart it. "Damn, no service."
He stuffed the phone away with a frown and turned to the pedestals and the symbols above. "Weird."
He immediately pulled out a pocket notepad and pen and began sketching the symbols as best he could, lost in the patterns. He subconsciously patted his jean pockets and mumbled, "No, no matches."
Lucian is completely mesmerized by the bluish glow, and his eyes go wide when he notices the metallic glint - My dog tags? - his mind races before he can register it.
The pull to siply reach in and grab them is unbeliavable, and his hand begins inching towards the liquid, then he hears Miya's voice and turns around.
Lifting her finger up to the ceiling and pointing to the symbols cast there, above each pedestal, she asks, "What are those symbols? And Lucian, why is is the one above you almost clear?"
"I have no idea Miya... And also, I think my dog tags are in..." - turning to point the pedestal to his friend and realizes he never stopped moving his hand, and it was now completely immersed in the liquid, still reaching for the metallic object - "There" - the boy stops dead in his tracks, not wanting to move away, but hesitant in pressing on.
"No matches but I've got this." Lydia fishes through her jeans pocket and produces a Zippo lighter wrapped in a Repsol logo. She doesn't smoke but there is always a reason for a good mechanic to have fire close at hand.
Igniting the lighter with a flick of her thumb, she verifies that, unlike the electronics, it works normally. She extinguishes the flame and returns the Zippo to her pocket, trying to remember the last time she added fuel as she wanders closer to the pedestals that everyone seems to be gravitating towards.
Lucian cautiously extends his hand into the shaft of light emitted by the contraption in front of him as she draws nearer. She grimaces in an expression of combined anticipation and horror. The last time she felt this way was in 9th grade when her shop teacher, Mr. Martinuk, had managed to catch his tie in the drill press during a demonstration. All 26 students had gasped collectively in shock and then simultaneously pressed forward, not to help but to watch with bated breath as their instructor was drawn inexorably closer by the machine until he managed to hit the large red power button on its side with one flailing hand. No one had wished him any harm; the students' collective shock combined with their inexperience in emergency situations had paralyzed them in a state of rapt morbidity.
Lydia realizes she is holding her breath. She exhales and then deliberately breathes with measured consistency while Lucian continues to explore the...machine?...If it's a machine it's like none she has ever encountered before. She leans in to have a closer look at another pedestal, the one next to where Lucian is investigating, but touches nothing.
While the others study the light emanating from the pedestals, Miya circles beneath the symbols, trying to determine if they have any religious significance. Out of the corner of her eye she watches as Phillip busily sketches the symbols into his drawing pad.
It was good that Lydia had a lighter.
Perplexed by something in Lucian's voice, she responds only with "Lucian?" and she turns and looks at him.
Phillip studies the symbols for a few moments, but finds that they are shifting and blurry. Walking about the room, trying to get a better fix on them, he does observe that when one approaches a pedestal, the symbol becomes clearer, but only for that particular one. Realizing this, he notes that Lucian's hand is actually in the liquid and the one above him is glaringly clear, virtually HD quality. It appears to be an abstraction of some kind, but near as you can tell, it is a
Lucian's instincts prove true, and as he reaches into the liquid he finds purchase on the chain that he assumes is his dog tags. As he does this, the opaque nature of the fluid changes to a translucent blue one, and he can see his dog-tags underneath, draped over his fingers. A surge rushed through him, causing him to start slightly, a flash of warm then hot then cool. A feeling of exhilaration passes through him, excitement, nervousness, joy, and fear all at once. Then a deep feeling of relax, and if waking from along needed sleep. There is no grogginess, though, as he feels completely alert. In fact, he feels a steadiness and strength, confidence even...
Lydia tries to get a closer look at the pedestal to get some kind of handle on how it may work. Her years of working on cars and fiddling with other devices helps her very little in this case, however. It doesn't appear to be mechanical at least, though the clicking sound that she heard may be some indication of gears on the inside. It's impossible to say without opening it up and looking...as she comes to this conclusion, though, she notices Lucian's reaction, and is struck by the fact before her eyes, she notices the muscles in his arms thicken some and take on more definition, and stepping back, he seems to be more cut in general.
Miya comes to a similar conclusion to Philip, as she moves to get a better look at the symbols as well, they definitely become clearer as one approaches a pedestal. Finding herself as close as she can to one, she can almost make out what the symbol above her is when Lucian makes his start. She can barely see a glint of something in the liquid in front of her when her keen eyes also note the change in Lucian. She catches a glimpse of his eyes as well, noting they are more earthy than previous, the irises now surrounded with a jagged ring of silver. She also notes the now crystal clear image of the fortress above him, and several possible religious interpretations come to mind, but nothing stands out as more plausible than the others.
Adam stands still behind Miya, and his arm raises as if he would restrain her, but quickly drops to his side. He is startled by Lucian's reaction almost more than Lucian is, and lets out a short low scream which he quickly clasps his hands over.
"WHat the F??!?"
Jonas for once in his life stops moving, stunned and speechless. He clearly is out of his element, but at the same time seems extremely excited, but still fearful.
"Dude."
Jonas is staring at Lucian. Still fairly disoriented by the explosion-thing-whateveritwas. As the others had moved about he was just stunned. The oddity of the situation had grasped him after he made his stupid comment. And he tried to snap out of it but it hadn't happened until Luc plunged his hand into the watery stuff.
"I'm with Adam. What the hell is happening? Why the hell aren't we in the library? What's with the damn glowing stuff and this creepy cave we're in?"
Jonas gets up and heads towards the exit of the room, and the corridor that continues past it. He stops and looks over his shoulder at his friends, being torn by his emotions and this craziness about him.
"We should leave, try to find our way home. What do you say, guys?"
Lucian stares back at his friends, but he cannot see them – his head suddenly invaded by a barrage of feelings and thoughts, his body first burning as if he had a fever, and then dropping to a freezing cold that makes him shiver – and suddenly it is all gone, as if it had never happened.
He notices Lydia’s stare, and lifts his arms in front of him – they felt strange… Light. His eyes go wide as he notices the muscular tone they have taken – he had worked hard on his physique in the army, but nothing like what he was looking at.
Staring around at the others, he seems to be taking it all in, he can hear Miya’s breathing, and the hesitant steps of the others – in the air he smells…
"WHat the F??!?"
Lucian has no answer – he simply shrugs at his friend, taking a step forward. He cannot deny it though – as strange as it may seem, he feels… Well
"Dude."
Jonas is staring at Lucian. Still fairly disoriented by the explosion-thing-whateveritwas. As the others had moved about he was just stunned. The oddity of the situation had grasped him after he made his stupid comment. And he tried to snap out of it but it hadn't happened until Luc plunged his hand into the watery stuff.
"I'm with Adam. What the hell is happening? Why the hell aren't we in the library? What's with the damn glowing stuff and this creepy cave we're in?"
Jonas gets up and heads towards the exit of the room, and the corridor that continues past it. He stops and looks over his shoulder at his friends, being torn by his emotions and this craziness about him.
"We should leave, try to find our way home. What do you say, guys?"
”No…” – Lucian finds himself speaking – ”I don’t think so Jonas… There is something here – look at me man… I… I mean… Look at me!” – he finishes with a smile, as if it was enough, but knowing it is not.
Level up done, and in the crunch (except for the languages – not sure how you wanna do those)
Wow, such a cool start ;)
I’m just going with the flow and improvising – hope that is ok.
Phillip carefully sketches the symbol above Lucian, noting the little details. Satisfied with the results he leans back staring at his drawing, then suddenly smiles. "It's a puzzle."
He starts walking around the pedestals excitedly and eyes Lucian's transformation. "Guys! I don't know what the heck's going on, but something finally makes sense to me. I think we need to each stand at one of the pedestals."
He jogs over to the nearest pedestal and points at the ceiling, staring up expectantly. "Look!"
The pedestals, which evoked familiarity but remained so frustratingly mysterious, had captured Lydia's attention so far. At Phillips behest, she turns her gaze upwards and walks slowly from one to the next until the symbol above resolves into sharp focus.
"Neat!" she exclaims and looks expectantly to its associated pedestal. The pool of blue liquid contained in the basin atop shimmers gently from within, casting its mellow glow despite the lack of evident power source. Although she itches to investigate, manipulate and dismantle as is her first impulse with most things, some vague sense that meddling might not be wise in this case stays her hand.
Miya stood perplexed, taking in the information so far and not really understanding it. Luc had changed, physically, but she was not sure how that was possible in such a short amount of time.
She spoke without realising, "Which pedestal's which? Do we have one allotted to each of us?" Her voice was soft in the confines of the stone-walled room.
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The pedestals are cylindrical in shape and about three and a half feet high. They are arranged in a circle, with an equal amount of space between them. There is a basin set into the top of each one that casts bluish light on the ceiling, and the light seems to come from the liquid itself, or perhaps deep in the basin.
Miya moved carefully from one pedestal to another, peering into each basin in turn, hoping to see or be drawn to something within the glowing liquid contained in them. Luc had found something, so could she...?
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Miya takes a look into each of the basins, careful taking in the details. They each do seem to contain something, but it's hard to say without a closer look.
As she moves closer to one, she looks up and notes the image cast above it becoming clearer and clearer. Standing nearly flush to one, she eyes the symbols above her, now almost absolutely clear; a simple bowl, overflowing with a bounty of rice. What is more odd is another figure that seems to be circling it, hard to make out exactly, because it appears to be made of fire, but it appears to be some kind of forest creature.
Looking down into the basin, she can see the water shift slightly from opaque to more translucent. Immersed in the fluid she can see what appears to be a smooth spherical object about the size of a golf ball. Strangely, she (and only she) can smell ocean air, different from the otherwise moldy smell of the room, and the faintest call of a horn.
Phillip stands next to a pedestal as well, staring up at the image as it becomes clearer. Above him is what appears to be a large primitive key with far too many teeth, for they jut out from the end at all number of angles.
Looking down into the basin in front of him, he too notices that the liquid changes so he can barely see something below. His object appears to be a cube...
Looking into the pedestal/basin in front of her as well, Lydia can see the barest glint of something as well. The object she sees before her seems a bit harder to make out though, as though it's moving on its own.
Above her, like the others, an image is almost crystal clear; a tree. Looking closer though, she can see it is also a hand, save one that is rather large and has leaves growing from it.
The ocean smell was something unexpected and made Miya involuntarily smile. It reminded her of the many, different places she had lived, where the ocean and the mountains provided a sanctuary from anything difficult in her life. The soft sound of the horn caught her ear and she wondered where it was coming from. The fiery fox symbol above her head kept playing in her mind.
Miya gently immersed her hand into the basin, attempting to take hold of the small, spherical object sitting at the bottom. She thought it might be a pearl ...
Jonas realizes why he is feeling torn. He's had safety his whole life. Nothing unexpected, not really. That's why he always turned to television and movies for excitement. And this did in fact look like the end of a prologue or beginning of a first act of a movie or miniseries. He devoted himself to acting so he could pretend to have adventure. Seeing his friends begin to embrace it makes him want to have that courage that all his favorite heroes do.
"Well, if you guys are gonna do this, I'm not going to be the one to break up the band. Besides, what would you do without me?" he asks, putting on fake confidence in the form of one of his signature smirks.
Walking up to another pedestal, Jonas looks around at his friends and what glow-y stuff is around them and then looks for his own craziness.
"I've got a key..." Phillip says staring at the symbol on the ceiling then peers at the pool. "...and a cube...how about everybody else?"
After sketching the key, Phillip pokes his pen into the blue liquid of his basin. He eyeballs and sniffs the liquid on the pen trying to discern any clues.
Miya answers softly as she attempts to remove the object from the basin.
"I see a woven bowl overflowing with rice and a fiery fox spirit circling -- I believe that is the symbol of Inari Ōkami, a Japanese kami. In the basin, I see a pearl ... and I hear the quiet sound of a horn and smell the ocean."
"My picture's a tree, sort of, and there's something moving in the water." This last thing is not promising. Could it bite her? She shudders a little.
As Miya's fingers take hold of the orb in the basin a strange sensation passes over her.
It is like waking from a long rest, she is relaxed. The air is fresher, the colors more vivid, the sounds more crisp. A shudder washes over her, and she recalls the first scent of Saki, and can picture her mother opening the purple tinted glass and smiling down at her as she softly laughs and speaks to her father. She can remember the first line of the first book she bought for herself, feel the cord around the handle of her grandmother's katana and remember how heavy it felt in her small hand.
She blinks, and there is a rush of light, and the orb rises from the water with blinding speed. She can see the droplets of bright blue liquid hang in the air for fractions of seconds as the pearl shoots out like a tiny sun. It hangs in front of her for another fraction of a second and she can feel an involuntary smile start to come to her lips, she is a baby in her mothers arms warm and protected.
She sees the pearl before her glisten once, catching the blue light from the other pedestals, and then as if it were made of mist only, it shoots into her chest. Her heart speeds up, thundering in her ears and she gets the sensation of running through tall grass, chasing something just ahead. She is thrilled. Rising slightly off the ground, she is washed in a nimbus of colors like a flame, but as quickly as it appears, it is gone.
Walking up to another pedestal, Jonas looks around at his friends and what glow-y stuff is around them and then looks for his own craziness.
Just as Miya put her hand in the basin, Jonas looks down into the opaque liquid and can see it clear before him. Inside is a a rectangle of some sort about the size of his palm, he can see just beneath the surface black and red. Looking up, the image comes into focus, he almost isn't surprised by what he sees...ever the performer, before him is a Mask, split down the middle; Tragedy and Comedy.
"I've got a key..." Phillip says staring at the symbol on the ceiling then peers at the pool. "...and a cube...how about everybody else?"
After sketching the key, Phillip pokes his pen into the blue liquid of his basin. He eyeballs and sniffs the liquid on the pen trying to discern any clues.
[dice=Perception]1d20+6
[dice=Profession (brewer)]1d20+6
[dice=Craft (beer)]1d20+7
Strangly, the liquid smells of honey. Just as he places the scent, however, the substance appears to have evaporated, and the pen is as dry as before. Looking back into the basin he can almost make out the cube clearer, checkered with small colored squares...
Everything had felt calm and right as different memories filled her head. She had forgotten she was in an unfamiliar place. Then the pearl shot into her chest and her heart beat faster until it was all she could hear. Miya felt the thrilling sensation of running -- giving chase. Such freedom and power. She felt her body rise off the ground, just a little, and lifting her hand to her face, she watched as the colours moved across the skin -- a living flame -- and then it was gone.
Strangely, her body was still thrumming. Miya looked down into the full basin and saw a reflection staring back -- vivid blue, crystalline eyes, and a strange white strand of hair starting from the front and moving to the back of her thick, dark hair.
Miya swivelled around to face Lucian and the others, her movement seemingly light and effortless, and tried to speak but nothing came out. Then she tried again; this time her voice came, sounding higher than its usual pitch, "I think something happened to me. Look?"
Emboldened by her friends, particularly Miya, Lydia swallows hard and reaches into the liquid regardless of what might be moving around in there. The younger girl's cool confidence has always encouraged her to behave more dauntlessly, yet another thing that makes Lydia feel grateful and fills her with the warm comfort of comraderie whenever their little clique gathers.
"You look different!" Lydia marvels but then falls silent before she can elaborate as she is seized by her own transformation.
Watching as Lydia reached into her own basin, Miya smiled at the move and then looked to Jonas and Adam, "You two must find a basin of your own, look to the symbols above and then reach into the water. I believe this is what we are meant to do, given the number of basins and pedestals."
She heard Lydia's confirmation that her appearance had altered somewhat.
She replied in the same, strange high pitched voice, "My hair and eyes. My voice ..." But there was something inside too, she could feel it. Like her body was becoming malleable and flexing. Yet outwardly it only seemed that her hair and eyes had transformed.
Phillip squinted at the sweet smell of honey and raised an eyebrow as the cube took shape in the basin. He turned as Miya's voice tightened with excitement. He looked again to Lucian, settled into his new form and back to Miya as she slowly transformed.
He met Lydia's gaze and smiled encouragement as she reached into the blue liquid. He breathed a heavy sigh and plunged his hand into his own basin and grasped the cube.
He felt the hair over his entire body stand on end as a gentle breeze filled his ears with a soft distortion. The hand holding the cube began to pulse with his heartbeat. The veins of his arm shot through with a glowing blue slowly radiating out in spiral patterns.
Bits and pieces of the blue spirals stood out as familiar, but as he tried to pull them together in a cohesive pattern his chest and mind suddenly froze in calming chill.
He fell to a knee, grasping the still coalescing cube tightly in his hand. A faint whisper echoed in his ears as the blue markings faded. The soothing voice brought a smile to his face as he looked around the room with an unfamiliar peaceful gaze.
"Well here goes, Jonas."
Jonas reaches his hand into the basin and seizes the box, still unsure of what it is. As the microseconds pass, anticipation builds, and he starts to feel like the world is spinning, but more as if through editing than through some actual sensation felt be his body. As is in a scene from one of his beloved films. He mentally braces himself for the transformation event.
As Lydia quickly thrust her hand into the liquid she is overcome by the scent of rain. The smell of wet earth rushes up to meet her nostrils, and her muscles flex instinctively. Her hands ache, and she can feel the pain of toil, the heavy beat of her heart and the acid in her joints. She can feel the flush of running, and her endorphins pick up, and she feels the cool night air on her skin. She can hear the others' heartbeats as well, and how they fluctuate with their new experiences.
A relaxation then falls over her, and she can feel sunlight on her face. There is a satisfaction the passes through her mind and body, one that only comes from completing a long task.
When she finally pulls her hand free of the liquid, she feels more sturdy, more aware of her surroundings. In her hand is a worn leather belt. Numerous loops and pockets attached to it. Confused for a moment, she recognizes it. She can remember handing it to her father decked out with tools as he strapped it on and worked on the house.
With his hand around the object, Jonas's mind is flooded with images and sensations. The smell of hot popcorn covered in butter, the taste of sugary syrup and ice. He can fill the rising boom of theatre speakers as that all to familiar sound rises the audience is listening. He can remember sitting in front of the tv, toy lightsaber in hand, watching as father and son duel over open space,and the pain that is more than physical on Mark Hamil's face as he loses his hand.
Jerking backwards, he suddenly feels dizzy but at the same time things are very clear. He can feel a confidence well up in him, a sureness in himself. A smile comes to his lips as her remembers that famous archaeologist on the bridge, and the cultist advancing towards him as he pulls his gun.
Looking down into his hand, he can see a deck of cards. Strangely dry, the box is faded, but the paper is sturdy, adorned with the familiar bicycle symbol. Flipping the tab open with his thumb, he can see just top portion of the first card. An ace, with the faintest scratch on the left upper portion near the corner. His first deck.
Even though the others seem to be affected in beneficial (yet strange) ways, Adam still appears rather nervous as he stands before his own pedestal, looking into the murky water below. He catches a glint of something there and his eyes narrow, a front coming to his already worried face.
Looking up and holding his breath, he can see the image above him come into focus.
"A caterpillar?" he says exhaling.
Looking to his friends, he can see their faces. Confusion, excitement, anticipation. It is almost as if they are meeting again. As if the brief time in the library was the dream. He blinks hard and takes a deep breath again.
"F... it!", he says, thrusting his hand in the basin and grabbing what is there...
Almost instantly, all six of the basins light up with an intensity nearly like daylight, bathing the ceiling in a constellation of all different colors of vivid blue, swirling and becoming ever brighter, the ears of the group are filled with the sound of moving stone, the faint clicking from within the pedestals becoming more intense. Before their eyes, with a supernatural rapidity, the entire room is deconstructed around them, brick by brick, stripped away by some unseen hand. In less time than they can take to turn 180 and take it all in, the room is gone and they can feel fresh morning air rush into their lungs and just the glint of sunlight on their cheeks.
No longer in the strange room, you all find yourself on a grassy hill, the sun just cresting over the horizon. To the north in the distance a thick forest, and the east you can hear the faint sounds of a brook. From the top of the hill you can see down in the valley; a thin column of smoke rises to the sky from a small cabin surrounded by a wooden fence where sheep can be seen.
It was good to feel the sunlight on her face and be out of the musty, stone-walled room.
Miya closed her eyes for a moment and just listened, letting herself absorb the sounds and feeling of the place. She concentrated on her breath, how it moved in and then rolled out. When she found a place of balance, she opened her vivid, sapphire blue eyes and stared out, focusing on the cabin with the smoke coming from its chimney.
From her gym bag, Miya removed the daishō (her matched pair of swords: the katana and wakizashi), still in their respective saya. She attached them to her belt for ready access in case of trouble. They should be worn.
Looking down at the ground, Miya searched for tracks of any kind.
"Someone lives down there in the cabin. We should go speak to the owner and get some answers."
Her voice still sounded higher than she remembered it. Like the soprano she had heard in a concert hall in Vienna.
Miya's eyes focused on the others, waiting to hear their spoken thoughts.
Lucian was about to say something to Miya, but his voice could not be heard as the clicking sound rose impossibly high, the reality around them simply mutating and changing.
As it stopped, he felt overwhelmed by sensations - the warm sun on his skin, the grass brushing against his leg skin, the smell of saplings brought by a breeze, and from afar a brook running by.
He could feel it all, and so clearly that somehow he could not believe he was dreaming, but he had to be, right?
"Wait, wait..." - he stammered - "What is this..? Miya... You look" - he searches for the right words - "Amazing... Beautiful... I mean, you were already, but..." - he stops short, before embarassing himself, looking at the others - "And you guys, and ME?!" - he stares at his own rippling musculature, taking off the tanktop for added effect - "What's all this?"
He keeps looking all around himself - "And this place? Wow..." - is the best he can articulate.
Miya's words seem to bring him back to reality - "I guess we can move along yes, at least try to find out where we are, because I doubt anyone will have any further explanation - we gotta be dreaming..."
As Miya starts scouring the area for tracks and clues, Lucian falls in place next to her - "I learned some tidbits about tracks in the army Miya, but nothing like what I feel I can do now" - he is actually smiling at her as he speaks, and somewhat mesmerized by her hair it seems, but quickly focuses his attention on the task at hand.
Miya smiled and blushed equally under Luc's compliment of her new, enhanced looks.
When he lifted his tank top and showed off his defined, amplified muscles, Miya blushed again; it had been some time since she'd seen Luc without a shirt on. And even then, they were much younger, and he didn't look like this.
"So... we're collectively dreaming? I've never shared such dreams with you all before this. I think ... this is real. I don't know how or why, but perhaps we may get some answers from the shepherd down there. The cabin doesn't look ominous. And you look strong enough to take someone on, Luc", Miya gave a shy, impressed smile.
As he joined her and searched for fresh tracks, she noted Luc's eyes on her hair and she ran a self-conscious hand through the lighter strands.
"We may need your army expertise, Luc. But right now, it seems you're only treading over any possible tracks, strongman."
Fumbling over what to say, Lucian really stammers - "I can't seem to focus" - he starts with an excuse, but then stops short - "There is just too much going on..." - he stops staring at his friend, and suddenly feeling quite self conscious, puts his clothes back on.
"If we're not dreaming, then what happened? I've seen the Chronicles of Narnia but... come on..." - he shakes his head - "It can't be, right?"
Looking again at the cabin, he adds - "Then again, you're right - we've really got no better option than asking around I guess" - he concurs, moving out of the way - "I'll just stand over here, before my boots erase any trace of a track..." - he smiles.
"I've heard so many stories about my mother's ancestors. To hear them you'd think it was all fantastical and improbable, yet I still believe in the tales. Maybe we got some hallucinogenic drug pumped through the air con of the library and this is some bizarre test. If it's a test, let's go find answers..." Miya noticed Luc had put his tank top back on. She recollected her first impression of him, back in junior high, when she started at their old school and she smiled, thinking it seemed such a long time ago. And then he enlisted and left...I cannot explain this place, but I cannot stop wanting to know what it is..., Miya mused inwardly.
"Stand beside me. I feel protected, Luc." And she earnestly felt that way. Miya believed in him, even momentarily disoriented as he was.
When the transformation is complete, both the room's and Lydia's own, Lydia opens her eyes to survey her new surroundings. Her blood pounds in her veins as if the energy from the mysterious basin still flows within her, filling her with vitality, and she feels more present, more connected with the world--even this strange new world--and the people around her than she ever has.
Luc and Miya stand together not too far off, comparing the many small ways in which they had changed too. The scents and sounds of the forest almost overwhleming her, the air itself feeling tangible, Lydia approaches them.
Adam collapsed to the ground as the "curtain" was pulled away and their surroundings changed once again.
Looking down at the grass he dug his hand into the earth, pushing his fingers into the soft dirt and grasping a handful of the soil.
He sat for a minute or so watching the grains and leaves of grass fall from his hand, then standing, he wiped his hand on his jeans and looked to his friends.
There didn't seem to be any use to denying it anymore. There was something going on now, and it wasn't only in his head. Back at the hospital, he had learned that when others couldn't see what he could, he should just not talk about. His friends could see all this though, so he seemed a bit more comfortable.
Nudging Philip with his elbow, he nodded to the cabin.
"Physics, eh? Hrmph."
Then to the others,
"I think you're right, Miya, Luc. We might as well ask down there. Looks safe enough...though I'm guessing all bets are off."