Who: Jaceen and Open. Where: Jaceen's room. Mia, Early morning, 33, Year 81380. ----------------------------------- "Nngh.. Lessons..." The half-conscious voice mumbled softy, echoing through the dimly lit forest. Trees, plants, and flowers filled this small section of paradise, giving it a beautiful look of nature. And, hanging between two of the trees, was a slightly used hammock. In this hammock (snuggled up between his two fluffy white wings) was Straken, who presently rolled over, as if plagued by dreams. But wait a moment... This wasn't a lovely piece of dirt in the woods... This was a custom room at Janrdan! Straken really knew how to decorate a place. The floor was even growing natural grass! Ah, those Elemental powers of his really gave him a nice edge over these sorts of things. Straken's dreams soon became a tad bit darker, however. He rolled over more, and seemed to be a tad bit angrier. In fact, his rage was growing so much; the hammock under him flipped him around. He fell onto the dirt, face first. After spitting out a few mouthfuls, Straken lifted himself to his feet. Now semi-conscious, he dusted himself off a bit. His body was woozy, and he felt a bit weak. He stumbled around toward a brook of water (which was just a fancy water filtration and running system he had set up, so as not to be wasteful) and cupped his hands into it. And here is where Straken paused. A roar echoed through his room. A deep, powerful, and frightening scream. Claw marks streaked across the bark of one of the trees, followed closely by the slamming of Straken's door. 0030... 0029... 0028.... Ah, here! 0027! Straken's fist hit the door a few times, while his body leaned against the side wall. The knocking was loud enough to raise the dead! But he continued to pound on the door a few more times. ".... Iallyf... Iallyf its Straken. Please... I need help." The banging came to a stop, and his hand simply rested flat against the door. What the heck could cause him to be banging on her door at bloody 3 in the morning?!
Jaceen had been curled up on her sofa - the only piece of furniture in her entire place that wasn't piled high with books at the moment. She knew that she ought to be getting to bed, but the book she was reading had been so interesting. It was about a few ancient civilizations and although Jaceen had perfect eyesight, she had donned a pair of reading glasses so as to magnify the minuscule text. She'd been mulling over a particular passage about musical instruments when she heard a pounding. Drums? Yes, she really should be going to bed. She was starting to imagine things. It wasn't until she heard the word Iallyf that Jaceen realized that she wasn't imagining things. Someone was knocking, pounding rather, at her door, and that someone was Straken. He was the only one that ever called her that. After he had taken up a position on the Janardan teaching staff, Jaceen hadn't seen too much of him. The clock to her right was blaring the time at her. It was 3 AM. What could he want now? It had to be important. Jaceen set aside her book, quickly slid to her feet and promptly fell over. She grabbed at the arm of the sofa to hold herself up. She'd been sitting for so long that her legs had momentarily forgotten how to function. Once stabilized, Jaceen made her way through the tall maze of books that littered her dormitory. Without bothering to check the peep hole, Jaceen unlocked her door and opened it. A look of confusion and concern on her face. “Straken... what...? Are you...? It's 3 AM," she stammered.
When the door opened up, Straken almost fell in. His hand caught the door frame, holding himself up. He was, more or less, completely depending on that hand right now. "... We've... got troubles..." Straken spoke the words calmly and quietly, though it was obvious that he was struggling with them. One of Straken's hands had become clawed. Not like how a cat has claws, but more like talons. The hands cut straight into the door frame, and were holding Straken up. What's more, Straken looked to be different somehow... Had he been going to the gym? Straken straightened himself up (indeed, he was taller too!) and placed his wings on his back neatly, letting his hands rest on his sides. "... And we may need a cage..." It seemed as though he was using all of his energy right now to act semi-normal. A few feathers were falling around Straken. Normally, when his angelic wings spread out, a few feathers floated through the air. But this was different. There were too many feathers. Far too many. Was he mutating..?
Jaceen gawked at Straken for a moment, not quite comprehending what she was seeing. Had he gotten... bigger? Put on some weight maybe? A stroke of realization hit her. She fumbled with the magnifying reading glasses she was still wearing and managed to taken them off. However, not wearing them still didn't seem to put Straken back into his proper proportions. He was... his hand... his talons rather, were cutting into her door frame. Jaceen's glasses dropped from her fingertips and clattered softly onto the carpeted floor. Straken's voice was still his even though Jaceen could plainly sense that he was struggling. “You... you aren't yourself," Jaceen said, worry now apparent in her voice. “A cage? Are you sure? What's going on? Straken, your feathers... did something happen?" Jaceen's mind was a flurry of questions and fears now. Should she call for help? The logical answer to that question was yes. Whatever it was that Straken was holding back, it seemed dangerous. Deadly even. What were the procedures for something like this again? As one of the main administrators for Janardan, Jaceen thought that she would know them. Did such procedures even exist? She couldn't ever remember reading any passage that explained “what to do should a co-worker show up on your doorstep, and this co-worker, who is usually a very nice and friendly, funny guy, seems to be transforming into something terrible right before your eyes." No. She definitely would have remembered reading something like that. She'd just have to improvise.
Straken stumbled for a moment, and then simply leaned against the doorframe. His breath came in slow draws; probably from the extreme amount of concentration he was showing. However, with every breath inward, his chest seemed to expand just a teeny bit. "Heh... remember... those military transcripts of mine?" Straken looked toward her with a bit of a smile, as if trying to keep a nice spin on the situation. "Brace yourself. This is one... heck of a story." Straken looked back toward the other side of the doorframe. One taloned hand came up, catching a chain that was around his neck and lifting it forward, then snapping it off. He then held it out toward Jaceen. It was a set of dog tags. '5TR-41-3' was all that was printed on them. "... I'm a genetic creation, made about thirty-some years ago." Straken groaned for a moment, his two wings spreading wide as he did. One of them barely missed Jaceen. The feathers the burst through the air, however, probably looked something like the shedding of a cherry blossom tree. Two large, red bat wings were now spread off of Straken's back. They were a good bit wider than his old ones, and seemed to be covered in scales. Straken didn't look like he was in any immediate pain, though he was clearly struggling to hold himself back. "... Ergh... Long story short, I change into some powerful thing when I'm in extreme danger. Only right now I'm changing and I don't know why and you're the only person who has the capacity to block any damage by my elemental powers and I didn't know where else to go on such short notice." Ah yes, another one of Straken's one-winded explanations. But talk about a butt-load of information! Would Straken's transformation be dangerous, or relaxed? Maybe she should get a cage. Or an armed patrol.
Jaceen listened quite raptly, her ears quivering a little. Yes, she had seen his military transcripts. They had seemed perhaps forged to her, or perhaps tampered with a little. Jaceen hadn't said anything about them though. His follow up call had checked out and that was all that had been needed. Usually such documents were changed for a reason and questioning their validity wasn't something one ought to do. Many teachers, and students alike, were hiding from shady pasts within Janardan's walls. She had supposed that Straken was just another one of them. When Straken snapped the chain off of his neck, Jaceen moved a little closer in order to look at the tags he held now in his hand. A genetic creation...? A small noise of surprise slipped out of Jaceen's mouth just then. Not because of what Straken had revealed to her, but rather because he had almost taken her out with one of his wings. Her reflexes seemed to be in good working order though, for she was able to duck out of the way rather instinctively. Then everything went white. White. White. White. White. Red. White. Red. Very Red. Jaceen blew the white feather that had landed on her snout away with a small huff of breath. It looked as if a large scale pillow fight had just occurred in her doorway. She frowned at the floor. She'd probably have to clean that up later. Her gaze drifted back up to Straken again. A pair of massive red reptilian scaled bat-wings had replaced his white feathered ones. Jaceen started, as if she were about to say something, then stopped again. What could she say? It was a lot to take in. He thought that she was the only one that could block his elemental powers. Here Straken was, struggling with himself, his body mutating. Was he telling her that he was going to lose it? That seemed to be the gist of it. “I don't... why would I have to block your elemental powers? Oh, please don't tell me that you can't control your changed state... because, because..." Jaceen's white colourless eyes were in a widened state of shock. She really didn't want to have a “one-on-one" with him. What if she got hurt? What if he got hurt? She took a step backwards, raising her hands in front of her a little as she did so. There was something she was overlooking. Something really important. Something that she should have done when she first noticed that Straken was fighting with himself. She couldn't, for the life of her, remember just what it was at that moment though.
Straken gave a light shake of his head, bringing his hands up to comb his hair back behind his ears. He paused as his hands edged over his ears. A pout hit his face. His ears, you see, had shrunken slightly. "Ah... It's not a lack of control... Two minds in one body. Just... don't do anything to aggrivate Z... He assaults anything he considers a threat to protect me." Straken looked at his talons for a moment, a slightly sad look overcoming the one of anguish on his face. His fur had begun to shrink. Dissapearing at some places. In fact, this process began to happen so rapidly that it looked like the fur had sucked in all over his body. All except his head, in fact. His body swelled some more. His chest came out further, while his arms grew larger. His muscles were now very large, and he probably grew even taller. Scales were beginning to sprout over his body, each one a deep crimson color. He really was changing!
“Oh. Well then. If that's only the case," Jaceen started casually, seemed to realize what exactly Straken had said, then promptly buttoned her lips. She hadn't misheard him. He had just said two minds in one body... Well, she had always thought he was a little odd. Maybe this shouldn't be coming as such a surprise. “Yes, but... you just said it only happens when you're in extreme danger. I'm the only one here... what will your other, er, half think?" She asked, her mind all a-flutter. Straken's fur had been replaced by a rather formidable set of deep crimson scales. Perhaps if Jaceen hadn't been so preoccupied, she would have thought that they matched quite nicely with her equally as red hair. As it was though, she failed to make the connection. Surely his other half wouldn't be aggravated by frightened squeaks? She hoped not.
Straken seemed to be a tad bit past the point of response now. His body fell down to its knees, while his arms came in to wrap around his chest. His eyes were wide, and his mouth hung open. His teeth... They were the first to begin the final change. They grew longer. Much longer. Each one sharp and pointed, like little razors. His mouth stretched outward, while the fur on his face sunk back in. Even his hair began to suck into his head, along with his ears. Soon, his entire head was purely draconic in nature. His eyes, normally blue and bright, had shifted to pure red. Not a pupil could be seen in their depths. They were but a crimson pane of glass now. His body had swelled up to an extremely larger size. He looked like a body-builder who had strayed from his gym. And, as if to add to the fear of this new form, his tail had gone draconic as well. It was much, much thicker, and had a red flame on the end. And, for a moment, there was silence. This moment, which seemed to linger for an eternity, was all of five seconds. The newly formed beast, which had little more than a pair of torn jeans on its legs, calmly stood upward. His feet, talons like his hands, gripped the ground so hard that the floor cracked. Smoke came out of his nostrils as he turned toward Jaceen, having the most purely unemotional look upon his face. The smell of sulfur lingered on the air. Straken, or whatever he was now, looked like a humanoid version of the mighty Dragons of legend. Truly, whatever this thing was... It wasn't a push-over.
Jaceen's arms tightened across her chest in a bit of a scared self-hug. The creature before her was definitely not Straken. Definitely not. Where had that goofy pie lover gone? Why was this mutated stranger here instead? Even his eyes had changed. They had become that same dangerous dark crimson red as his scales. Jaceen's own pupil-less white eyes blinked. If she hadn't just witnessed the transformation with her own two eyes, she probably wouldn't have believed it. The thill squeaked a little as the new being stood up. In comparison to her, he was massive. He probably could have used her as a toothpick if he really wanted to. Although, Jaceen most definitely wouldn't be a very cooperative toothpick. “Um... hello," Jaceen said after a moment. She wanted to politely point out that smoking wasn't allowed on this floor, but figured that it would best to remain silent about the subject. For her own health anyway. What were a few tendrils of smoke compared to the possibility of being eaten anyway?
For a moment, the Draconic Beast didn't say anything. It kept its eyes on Jaceen, as if scanning her. And, indeed, it was quite the glare to find one's self under. He then seemed to relax slightly, bringing his arms to cross over his chest and his stance to straighten up once more. The smoke stopped coming from his nostrils, and his eyes lost the ferocious look. "... Emsajatsemd..." The voice... Oh, what a voice... Dark and powerful. It was as deep as a growl, and had the sort of power that could make small puppies wet themselves. "... Shaja et my shjaus, ias haja E un." And, as if in true semi-villan mannerism, he spoke in Ramathian. What a pecuilar fellow he was turning out to be! He looked around the room for a moment, then back down to Jaceen. His body then began to move as well, lowering himself down until he was seated. Damn, even sitting on his legs, he was eye-level with her! "... Iallyf, I believe he calls you? Hm. Fits that he'd go here. You look like one who would avoid aggression." The Draconic beast extended one of his mighty clawed hands toward her (which were probably twice the size of her own), holding it out in greeting. "My name is Z. And I'm not going to eat you." Perhaps he wasn't a villan after all?
Jaceen blinked back at the creature that was no-longer-Straken. His gaze was a hard one and she was rather frightened at the moment, yet she didn't wither underneath his glare. Despite outward appearances and her rather gentle nature, Jaceen did have a backbone. Specially when it came to dealing with students in the classroom. So if this guy wanted to stare all creepy-like, that was fine by her. Jaceen wasn't exactly used to her students transforming on her though (okay, so maybe there had been a few occasions where a student or two had changed into something else. They weren't usually such intimidating transformations like Straken's had just been though). When he spoke, Jaceen could feel the deep vibrations from his voice right through her entire body. It sort of made her toes tingle. Then he did something that Jaceen completely wasn't expecting. He extended a hand in order to shake hers. Now, Jaceen didn't want to seem rude, so she hesitantly extended her own right hand, sort of shrinking inside a little as she softly shook his large claw riddled hand. “Iallyf, that's me. Though that's really only a nickname. My full name's Jaceen Lapices. I'm actually pretty ah, glad that you don't want to eat me, Z. If I may call you that. See, being eaten wasn't really on my agenda for today. Actually, none of this really was... There's been a change of plans I guess." Jaceen lightly bit her tongue right then. She was starting to babble a little. “I'm not really sure how your mind, or minds work... Is Straken even still there? I don't even know how much you know about this place, the Academy I mean... but you did know my name. I'm sorry," Jaceen said a bit sheepishly, apologizing for her rather flustered state. Then again, she supposed that under these circumstances it was pretty excusable.
Z's grip was strong, but it also had respect. He didn't attempt to crush Jaceen's hand, he only returned the same pressure she gave him. Respectful and casual. What an odd mix. "... I know just about everything. This body, in its twisted perfection, contains two minds. While Straken is active, it is like I am watching a dream. While I am active, the same can be said." Watching a dream? Or how about a nightmare? Yes. A nightmare. At three in the morning. Surely, he'd wake up soon... "Hm. You seem a tad bit on edge. Though, I can not rightfully blame you. Perhaps we should get some air?" Z lifted one of his clawed hands, pointing it toward a far wall. And then, like the inpending signs of an earthquake, Janardan gave a slight shudder. However, the rumble quickly stopped, and Z put his hand down. "... Though... It might be best to just open a window. Or.. Are we in a basement?" Indeed, it's hard to remember certain facts of life when you're just a dreamer. Exact locations just happen to be one of those things.
Jaceen was rather relieved that Straken, well, Z, hadn't crushed her hand. She was rather fond of her hands after all and didn't like to imagine what it would be like trying to write or turn pages with her feet. Although, given practice she imagined that she could become quite adept at it. Jaceen had just been about to comment on Z's statement about living in a dream-like state when there was a rumbling. Her eyes grew even wider. Thankfully the rumbling stopped soon after it had started. Had Z just been about to tear a hole in the wall? Yep. He had. She stared blankly at him for a moment, her mouth dropping slightly ajar before she realized that she was gaping and promptly closed it. A few of the pictures hanging in her living room had gone slightly askew. Luckily, none of them had fallen and there was no tell-tale tinkling sound of breaking glass. “I... we're on sub-level zero. So, very close to the surface, but still partially underground. The ventilation in this place is, er," Jaceen stopped herself from going off on a tangent. Learning about the school's ventilation system most likely wasn't something that Z would find fascinating. Unlike Jaceen, who found some of the strangest things interesting. Like the sound of Velcro for example. It gave her tingles. “I think that it might be best to go outside though. There's more room... and less things to... Yes. I could show you the way if you want. This floor has easy access to the outside, just a nice gradual ramp. Most of our special needs students house on this level, plus a multitude of the staff."
Z stood once more, despite the fact that his skull almost scraped on the ceiling. It wasn't every day that a Pendragon that actually looked like a Dragon walked into Jacine's room. "... Hm. I'd be interested in how the ventilation actually works in here." He looked up toward the ceiling, tilting his head to one side a bit, as if examining it. "... I've been wondering now if it's a central unit, or dozens of smaller conditioning systems keeping the place at a regulated temperature for the various students." Z gave a nod, opening the door and taking a step out into the hall. Fortunately, no one screamed, though one rather young child was staring at the beast for a moment. That lasted all of three seconds. The poor thing was dashing down the hall in an instant, convinced she was having a nightmare. "... You'll have to pardon me if I seem a tad on... 'edge'... to you. I was developed as a tool of war, and I've only been brought out like this during extreme battles and fights. I don't normally get to casually walk around." Z turned to look toward Jaceen from the hallway. His arms were folded over his chest, which made him look even more imposing, like a bodyguard or a weight lifter who had strayed from his gym. Yet, despite this obviously fiery appearance, Z seemed to carry some of Straken's "kitten" qualities. The biggest one at this moment being curiosity.
“Really?" Jaceen's ears perked as Z brought up the ventilation system again. “And I thought I was the only one..." Z had moved a little further out into the hall so that now he wasn't blocking the doorway. Jaceen slipped out of her dormitory, closing the door softly behind herself as she did so. It made a soft “snikt" sound as it automatically locked itself. The floor here in the corridor was littered with many of Straken's soft white feathers. She frowned at them as she carefully stepped around the mess. Glancing to her right, Jaceen caught a brief look at a youngster who was fleeing the scene. No doubt scared out of their wits. Jaceen really couldn't blame them. She was plenty scared herself. Z had just said so himself that he wasn't used to wandering around in a casual setting. Well. Jaceen had news for him then. This definitely wasn't casual. He said that he might seem on edge? Jaceen knew that she was, without a doubt, on edge. She just hoped that she didn't cut her feet while standing on said edge. “Don't worry about it... I mean, I'm sure there's a reason for you being here. Even if it is a bit of a fluke reason. I can't say that I've really any great theories as to why you er, changed though. Janardan is usually a fairly subdued place. Ah, this way," Jaceen pointed to her left and began walking in that direction. The hallway itself was on a gradual slope and after its short length, there were some wide doors to the outside. This was after all somewhat of a “luxury wing." Everything from the flooring to the doors were made at no spared expense. “So ah, the ventilation system. There actually is a central unit. Sort of like the central brain, or core of the school. Actually, a lot of things are controlled from there. Heat, water... Ventilation is just one of them. Each room does has its own environment conditioning system built in, but we can easily override personal settings at the core. We usually try to keep the entire school between 294 and 296 kelvins, but of course, everyone has their own preference when it comes to their living quarters."
"... A central unit? Interesting. The override commands must come in very handy for customizing special rooms -- No doubt you've seen Straken's own handy work. Though I think I might be more interested in seeing the core system. However one would manage to control such data efficiently would be an impressive feat." When Jaceen had posed a coment upon the transformation, Z's clawed hand came infront of his face. He seemed to be examining it, though it was near impossible to truly tell what he might be doing. "... Straken is a Genetic Expriment, as he told you a few moments before the transformation. The Ruling Body had a top-secret organization bent around bringing out the more powerful genetics in Pendragons, trying to isolate what gave us our unique capacities, and act upon it." Z extended one of his clawed hands to rest upon the beautiful marble pillar that was beside a door. Despite the hammering rain outside, he seemed to be more interested in the beautiful architecture. "Straken was the result. They assumed his failure, until I was discovered. However, our brother, Daemon, the second experiment, proved to be too dangerous for them to contain. So, after he had escaped, they released Straken to his own." Z pulled his clawed hand back, moving each individual finger slowly and gazing upon them in pure interest. "... I would guess that Straken's genetic material is probably breaking down, or mutating, thus triggering my appearance. We were, after all, little more than lab rats." Now realizing that he might be making Jaceen a tad bit worried, Z looked back to the large doors that held them inside. "Hm. We should go outside, it's a beautiful night." And, as he walked toward the doors, the rain stopped. The clouds were still out, and rain could still be seen in the far distance. But the rain that was close enough to matter... It just stopped. Straken was a potent Elemental Kinesis user, but this was just amazing... Z managed to redirect the very rain! Well, assuming he did it, of coruse. But damn! He didn't even look like he was exerting any real force. Then again, adjusting the falling rain probably wasn't that hard...
“Oh, yes. The entire system is rather impressive. Only specialized maintenance crews and the higher levels of the school administration are allowed near the central core. We've had individuals break in and try to override things from there before... it wasn't pretty. Even though security has always been rather tight..." Jaceen trailed off as she listened to Straken, now Z, recollect his origins. The fact that he had been a genetic experiment certainly could explain quite a few things. Jaceen knew of a few secretive covert organizations who dabbled in the illegal areas of genetics. She'd stumbled across a few in her own studies and had tipped off authorities if something seemed off-kilter. Such illegal experiments weren't entirely uncommon. It was Straken's mention of “the ruling body" managing these things that threw her. “Are you sure? I mean... there are plenty of organizations that simply act on the ruler's behalf. Vigilantes. I've seen a lot of, well, horrible things happen when your average individual starts to take the law into their own hands... usually for the greater good, but even a person with the best of intentions can cause more harm than good." Jaceen was watching Straken now, actually, her pupil-less eyes had never really left his form as she led them toward the exit. He seemed to have a sort of childish sense of curiousity about him. Not too unlike Jaceen's own. She was always asking questions. Her quest for knowledge had no end in sight. Z's admission that Straken's genetic material might be breaking down alarmed her. What exactly did that mean? Could Straken be on his way to disappearing entirely? Was Z here to stay? Z seemed alright even though he was massive and exceedingly draconic. “Yeah... outside is good," Jaceen said as she pushed open one of the large doors. She was immediately greeted with the scent of damp vegetation. Apparently it had been raining recently. Or that was what she was led to believe. It was only when she glanced up did she notice that something was amiss. The rain clouds were still there overhead. In fact. It was still raining quite steadily several yards away. Jaceen blinked and checked herself. She wasn't doing it subconsciously, was she? She'd been known to do things without thinking about them... but, no. It wasn't she who was redirecting the rain. In fact, the energies seemed to be pointing at Z. “You're doing that?" she asked as her head tilted to the side quizzically.
Z gave a light shrug, looking up toward the still raging sky, before back down toward the horizon. "... The Government wanted to create a 'super soldier', for defensive purposes. It didn't go over very well in the end." Z knew all too well just how much 'importance' was stressed on him during those years. He also knew how everything went down the drain, and how the government quickly covered up the project. Some things, they thought, should be left to nature. At the mention of the rain, Z gave a slight wave of his hand. "Ah, I'm just redirecting the water. No need to get soaked." Once they were out in the clear, Z looked around, before extending a clawed hand outward. "... You have exceptional talents with Elemental Sorcery; surely you've seen someone catch lightening?" And, as if to make a point of this, Z did exactly that. A bolt of electricity came down, crackling through the air, and striking the palm of his hand. The electrical energies crackled outward for a moment, but were quickly brought under Z's very will. The electrical forces soon simply hovered above his palm in a less-than-stable orb. "Every minute, lightening strikes the planet six thousand times. A single burst of that electricity has enough electrical discharge to kill a person relatively easily." He extended the orb toward her, as if he were passing a ball to her. Indeed, his mind had that curious aspect to it, but Curiosity did kill the Cat. "... Though I'm no expert, I've got a few of my own theories involving Lightening and Fronima. Would you care to hear them?" Despite the fact that he was 'holding' a surging orb of electricity in one hand, his control over the rain didn't seem to falter. Well, actually, it faltered for a second or so when he initially caught the bolt, but other than that, there's been no weakening to his hold. And what possible theories could he have on Lightening and Fronima?
“Li-" Jaceen had just been about to respond about the dangers of playing with lightning when there was a deafening crack. A bolt of buzzing energy leapt down from the clouds and was captured by Z. Jaceen stood frozen, staring, as her heart pounded quite madly in her chest. Lightning definitely wasn't her favourite material to work with. It was far too sporadic. Far too powerful. She'd seen too many individuals get burned by it – she hadn't seen any deaths, but they did happen and were widely spoken about. Z had collected the bolt of lightning into a hand held sphere. He appeared to have it under control. Jaceen, having gotten over the initial shock (haha), gazed at the writhing ball of lightning in Z's hand as he held it out to her. It was an impressive feat of course. The fact that Z was still holding onto it was even more impressive. Only a few individuals that she knew could perform such extraordinary acts. Jaceen's white pupil-less eyes seemed almost to absorb the bright light that the ball was giving off as she leaned just a little bit closer to it. “That stuff... the air... four times as hot as the sun's surface. Cloud to ground... anywhere between 100 million to a billion volts. Yes. You know, I think I'd love to hear your theories."
