Mage - The Spiral [IC]

[Byrons_Ghost]

Many people- artists, mystics, redeemers and the redeemed- believe that there are times in life when perceptions shift and one is in some way altered. For some, these are transitory things, fleeting glimpses of something larger than themselves, or perhaps the true workings of the world. Others focus more on these moments and make them into life-changing events: they are saved, or reformed, or born again, and they are never the same.

None of these analogies is sufficient to describe what was happening to Taylor at this moment. It was as everything around him halted in a single, eternal instant. He experienced a sudden, startling jolt in perceptions, as if suddenly regaining his hearing in the midst of a concert. If a person's remaining senses can become stronger to compensate for other, lost senses, then Taylor's inner perception took over completely from his lesser, mundane senses.

Everything of the past few hours- indeed in the past few days- had been leading up to this one moment. While everything around him became physically blurry and indistinct, he nonetheless was totally aware of his surroundings on a deep, intuitive level. He didn't need to perceive what was happening around him because it was already known. He could feel an energy pulsing around him- flowing through everything and everyone. It was unmeasurably powerful: primal, terrifying and exhilarating all at once. It flowed through everything and everyone around him, and seemed to be the very essence of what made up his surroundings.

This is it, he thought. This is the force behind it all. Everything in every story, or sermon, or spell in the world has been an attempt to access and understand what I'm experiencing right now.

As he saw the energy, and the chain of events which had led here, so to did he see the energy leading him away. A path of golden light was forming outside the car, leading off into the darkness. He didn't know where, but he knew that it had to be safer than his current position.

The moment coalesced into it's ultimate shape. The car stopped, the path emerged, a light rain began to fall, and Taylor bolted through the door.

 

[kuroshidaku]

Ty closes his eyes, watching the man's shadow moving towards the cup before the room fades to black.

"But surely if you were touching it it would still be under observation, wouldn't it?"

 

[Fanog]

Bad Albert's Tap and Grill
Seattle, Washington
saturday evening ,October 2002

Charles has a fine day in the city. He's done this quite often, just watching and conversing with people. That's what it's really all about. People...

At the motel, Charles finds that there are no messages for him and heads to the bar. There are about a dozen people there, most of them enjoying their dinners. The owner looks a bit surprised and waves at him from behind the bar, he probably didn't expect to see Charles back so soon.

The old man is present, sitting at the same table as yesterday and eating a light meal. He has probably noticed Charles entering the bar, but doesn't look like he's about to move or speak to him.

OoC: Charles
_______________________

Ty's home, city centre
Cambridge, England
October 2002, late evening

"Yes, but as long as you are not observing me, I am merely a part of the experiment. If the cup should be a wave, why could I not?"

The man is silent for a moment. With his eyes closed, Ty can only notice the sound of the heater and the cars outside. A lone bird sings outside. Within moments, he can hear the man's accented voice again.

"Done. You can open your eyes now..." As Ty opens his eyes, he sees the man standing near him. The cup is now in his left hand, under the table.

OoC: Ty

 

[Keia]

Leo's home
Denver, Colorado
Saturday 11:45 AM, October 2002

The door bell rings and Leo lets in Gus, who doesn't look like he's been awake for very long. Gus makes straight for the kitchen, hoping to find some hot coffee. "Hey Leo, how're you doing? I hope that nothing crazy happened since last night...? So, what's the plan for today?"

"The coffee's still there, Gus. It's not going anywhere but into you," Leo said with a smile. He didn't drink coffee in the morning, because he felt the caffiene messed up his routine and made him too hyper. He did enjoy the smell though, so Leo was satisfied to brew coffee for Gus even though he had no desire for it himself.

"Well, let's see . . . I slept, worked out, studied film, and ate - mostly I slept," Leo said. "I thnk to plan today is to hear the man out, be on guard, and learn what we can in a private environment rather than on national tv." Leo finished with a motion to the sports channel still playing in the background.

"They just can't seem to stop analyzing that fall. I don't suppose I would either if I was on the other side, but it doesn't make me feel any better."

 

[Fanog]

industrial area off of the M6
London, England
October 2002, around 9 PM

Taylor doesn't see individual events, but patterns and elements. Things aren't only connected, but composed of a finite number of repeating elements. As he dashes away, he looks back to the car, seeing not the two men, but categories and types: Nemesis, thug.

The driver immediately gets out of the car and starts a sprint chasing Taylor. Between blinks of an eye, the man has some sort of metal eye patch, emitting a thin beam of red light. A weapon springs from his sleeve into his hand, some kind of gun.

Taylor looks ahead of him, to the exit of the parking lot and the small building next to it. It looks empty and calm, but things connect in his mind, and somehow he knows. Trouble.

OoC: Taylor
_______________________

Leo's home
Denver, Colorado
Saturday 11:45 AM, October 2002

Gus gulped down the hot coffee, looking better by the minute. He looked at the tv with a disapproving scowl. "Damn reporters, vulture scum. Big accomplishments vanish with a single accident. Sensationalists. Buh! Don't let 'em get to you, Leo..."

Gus went back to the kitchen, pouring himself another cup. He talked from over there. "Do you think that he'll agree with just talking, or would he have you 'do' some more things? And where do you want me - should I keep out of sight, or do you want him to know that I'll be keeping an eye on ya?"

Gus walked back into the living room, drained the mug in one and coughed because is had still been too hot.

OoC: Leo

 

[loxmyth]

The Vault
Boston, Massachussets
October 2002, around 10 AM

Jason wobbled as the images flooded his consciousness. "Wh-what's going on?" he asked stupidly, trying to excise the jumbled mental pictures of a demon of fire and destruction laid waste to the imaginary constructs within his mind.

What was it that he was recalling, exactly? Because he was now sure that he was recalling something, something that had happened earlier. What had he been drawing? He tried to recall, but it was difficult to remember. He drew pictures like other people drew breath: it was reflexive and something he hardly ever really thought much about.

Wracking his brain to remember a past fogged in forgetfulness, Jason had almost forgotten about the little man. He was here, now and somehow, he had caused the recovery of these memories.

"What did you do to me?" he demanded.

 

[Byrons_Ghost]

Suspecting that the building at the front of the lot may be a trap, Taylor turns and begins to run toward the fence at an angle, hoping to find a way through or over it. His path is erratic, seemingly random, his new sight showing him the best route to dodge any gunfire.

 

[Fanog]

The Vault
Boston, Massachussets
October 2002, around 10 AM

The man's accented voice is clipped with determination, maybe anger. "I did not do anything to you. I am now undoing what you put upon yourself... Watch, and learn..."

The man advances and is about to drive Jason into a corner. The rest of the bar is still deserted and quiet. As the man waves with his hand, his eyes stare hard, in concentration. The fingers of his outstretched hand make intricate patterns, seeming to grab, slide and push. Somewhere in his mind, Jason can feel like dust is being blown off his memories, a heavy seal is broken. As clear as if it was happening now, he can remember the events of the night before.

The table, the glass of booze, and the paper. A drawing of the old man, of ghosts and fire. Jason takes a last shot of his drink and grabs an eraser, clearing the paper in furious strokes. He hears himself cursing and ranting, wishing all this had never happened.

Jason is pulled back to the present. The man has stopped his advance, is now only a few feet away from Jason. His hands are held loosely by his side, the calm has reappeared on his face. "It is done... Do you see?"

 

[kuroshidaku]

Ty raises his eyebrows.

"But that still wasn't a conclusive experiment. You could have swapped the hand the cup was in. But, i suppose, that is the whole point. You could be holding it above the table, you could be holding it below. While it might prove the theory, it has no practical application. Or have you thought of that too?"

 

[Keia]

Leo's home
Denver, Colorado
Saturday 11:45 AM, October 2002

Gus went back to the kitchen, pouring himself another cup. He talked from over there. "Do you think that he'll agree with just talking, or would he have you 'do' some more things? And where do you want me - should I keep out of sight, or do you want him to know that I'll be keeping an eye on ya?"

"Well, I would say that we play this above the board. I want him to know that you'll be around and I really don't know what to expect from him or how long it will take. I just want to know how to control what I did, how to access it without having to prepare for it for a couple of days, and perhaps most importantly, to understand what's inside of me," Leo commented as he walked over and turned off the television.

"I've spent all of my life, trying to be in peak physical and mental shape, competing against others in various sports to be the very best that I could. I've always known that I've had an edge, and until now I thought that edge was mental toughness, willpower, or the fact that I wanted, no needed it more than the other guy. I still believe I have that mental edge. But if there's something else, I need to know about it and come to grips with it."