[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/vdDX5gd.png[/img][/center] [color=mediumspringgreen]“Do you really wanna go now?”[/color] Eris asked her quietly. They stood in the tiny apartment, alone save for Charlton who stood outside the door. He had offered to drive Mindy to the airport if she wanted, and Mindy had agreed wholeheartedly. Eris was afraid of Mindy leaving, but they couldn’t really blame her. [color=slateblue]“Yes, I have to.[/color] [color=slateblue]My lab is back home, and...I have something I need to check over again.”[/color] She said. Eris knew she meant the weird, blue blotches around her eyes. They looked like bruises when Eris first saw her, and it kind of freaked them out. Now they were just faint lines of indigo that could barely be seen on her dark skin. Mindy wouldn’t really explain what had happened, but Eris had found a terrible blue mess when they returned to the apartment yesterday, so it must have been something bad. They tried asking, but Mindy was dazed that day, and almost not like herself. They shrugged. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Yeah, okay.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I understand.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Just take care, alright?”[/color] Eris said to her. Mindy smiled, sadly. [color=slateblue]“I will try to.[/color] [color=slateblue]The detective has given me a lot to think about, however.”[/color] She sighed, and left through the door. Charlton escorted her to the car, the only one he and Eris had managed to buy for themselves. They waved goodbye to the two of them, as they headed off for Mindy’s flight. When the car was long gone, Eris sighed heavily, and flopped back on the couch, tired. [i]I have about 2 hours until Charlton gets back with the car.[/i] [i]That’s enough time for a visit.[/i] ………………. They arrived at Max Heighnsworth’s record shop in about twelve minutes later than expected. Max was still open, and the last customer of the day seemed to be shuffling out with a bag of records and cds. Eris waved at them, and they smiled back, not at all suspicious of what New Jersey’s number one Music Hero was doing at a record shop. Max’s new shop was a lot different from the dingy, poster ridden music hall back in Georgia. For one, none of his classic posters were out, which was fine with Eris, but the entire aesthetic from the ceiling to the cash register was drastically different from before. It seemed grunge bands were popular in Provence, for some reason. There were a lot of weird looking metal posters on the wall, and the decor of the room was purely gothic. It was like walking into a halloween supplies store in the middle of june. Max spotted them standing outside, and admiring (mostly gawking at) the new makeover. He practically ran outside to greet them, and it seemed to Eris that Max’s new design choices went further than just the shop. Everything he wore was black. His hair, his shirt (which was nicely pressed, they might add), his pants, and his shoes. “Hey!” he greeted. Eris raised a hand, nervously nodding to him. [color=mediumspringgreen]“I see the record shop has gotten a makeover recently.”[/color] They said, chuckling a bit. Max scratched his chin sheepishly. “Yeah, well ‘give the people what they want’ is what they always say.” He said. “Come on in! I’ll show you a roundabout tour of the place.” Eris laughed, and decided to go along with it. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Yeah, alright.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Show me around.”[/color] Max lead them through the small space of the shop, and showed them almost every inch and corner. Eris could tell he was very proud of this little shop of his, as he gestured toward every poster, and every record he owned in the place. “All the old stuff is in the back. I had to remodel my whole look to attract business around here.” He explained. Eris picked up a horrid looking album cover that contained flames, a skull, and...is that a [i]minotaur?[/i] [color=mediumspringgreen]“I didn’t know Provence was into this kind of stuff.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]They seemed....I don’t know, old schoolish.”[/color] They said. “I thought so to. Normally, small towns like these are into that rockabilly shit, you know?” Max shrugged. Eris nodded, painfully remembering the time their neighbor threw two brick messages through their window. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Yeah, I guess.”[/color] They trailed off. Eris breathed in deeply, steadying themselves for what they were about to do. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Anyway, I didn’t just come for a tour of the place Max, though this is a nice shop...I wanna ask you about this.”[/color] Eris took from their pocket the green Moth pin. Max’s friendly demeanor disappeared entirely when he saw what Eris held in their hand. “Damn.” He said, after awhile of just staring horrified at the pin. “I guess she wasn’t lying then, you really did find it.” Eris raised an eyebrow. [color=mediumspringgreen]“She?”[/color] “Leila said you and Mindy found my moth pin.” Max shuffled his feet awkwardly. Eris gasped quietly. [color=mediumspringgreen]“So it is your’s.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]You’re a Paradox Agent?”[/color] Max raised a hand to his lips hurriedly. “Shut up! I’m not supposed to talk about it. Leila’s orders.” He said. “That moth of her’s could be listening in on us.” He glanced nervously at the pin. Eris crossed their arms, slightly peeved. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Leila has been giving a lot of orders lately.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]She told that Phoenix guy we were partners.”[/color] They said. [color=mediumspringgreen]“I think she thinks I’m joining up as an agent, for some reason.”[/color] “You’re just training though, right?” Max asked. Eris nodded. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Yeah, that’s the plan anyway.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Only problem is I don’t know where to go [i]for[/i] training.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Only person I knew who knew the way was Darius, and well...I can’t train yet.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I’m staying in town to solve his murder.”[/color] They said. [color=mediumspringgreen]“I can’t just leave it like this, Max.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Whoever killed him held a grudge.”[/color] Max sighed. “Well, you are a Super now, I guess. But supers don’t really…solve mysteries. They stop crimes from happening, and you’re a little late for that, don’t you think?” He said, shoulders sagging. “I didn’t know the guy personally, but you are right about one thing. It seemed way too malicious for just a spur of the moment kind of deal. Stringing him up on the building and what not.” Eris threw the moth pin back at Max, who caught it, and put it away swiftly. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Well that’s one mystery down, at least.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]But there’s two more I’ve got to solve.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]You know the detective who came by and asked us questions?”[/color] Max nodded. “He came by the other day, asking all sorts of things. Like what kind of music Darius liked, and how I knew him.” Max shook his head, confused. “He also...knew I was an agent. Somehow. He wanted to know Paradox’s involvement with Darius, and all this other stuff I couldn’t really answer. What’d he ask you?” [color=mediumspringgreen]“That’s the thing.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]He didn’t ask me anything.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]He just told me a bunch of stuff about the case.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]And I think the oddest part of all of this is the rope that was used on Darius.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]It’s not rope.”[/color] They explained. [color=mediumspringgreen]“It’s...wood.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Really intricately carved wood, apparently.”[/color] “Wood? Come one, Eris. You don’t really believe that do you?” Max scoffed. Eris shrugged. [color=mediumspringgreen]“I don’t know either.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]But the guy invited me to forensics today.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]They want me there for some reason, the science people.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I don’t know what you call them, but those guys in white lab coats who look over dead bodies and shit.”[/color] “Wow. Okay. That’s...a little odd. You don’t think they suspect you or anything?” Max asked. [color=mediumspringgreen]“No.”[/color] Eris said. “[color=mediumspringgreen]I think it’s worse than that.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I think...I think Provence may have a Villain on the loose.”[/color] ……………….. “Ah, there you are.” Roland Moore, the detective investigating Darius’ death, greeted Eris as they walked into the dark forensics lab. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Are you sure I’m supposed to be here?”[/color] Eris asked. A woman in a long, white coat came up to the two of them, and stuck out her hand. She had blonde, shoulder length hair adorned with cutesy bows, and barrettes. She smiled warmly, as she looked up at Eris. “Yes you are E.G! We’ve personally invited you here for help.” She shook Eris’ hand. “Well, more like I invited you here. Sarah Guddenhair, at your service.” She chuckled. She gestured toward a long table in the dark room, which held an array of what looked to Eris like a bunch of branches from a tree. “This here is the rope we found tied around Mr.Winters. It’s pretty odd, don’t you think?” Eris reached out to touch one, and a piece of the brittle material broke off in their hand, leaving a smudge of stiff, brown dust. [color=mediumspringgreen]“What is this stuff?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]And how did they wrap Darius in it if it’s so...hard?”[/color] They asked. Sarah came around to the other side of the table. “I can answer that one easily! You see, the rope is made out of what I think might be made of plasma.” She beamed, proudly. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Plasma is a real thing?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I always thought that was just a fake, made up thing for sci-fi movies and shit.”[/color] They exclaimed. Detective Moore spoke up. “It is very much a real thing. But, Sarah is wrong about it being plasma. It is wood, simple as that.” He said. Sarah pouted, and Eris began to wonder what age this woman was supposed to be. “Roland thinks it’s some kind of super power. Like your abilities, or something.” She said. “We ran into a super a couple of years ago with plant powers. He turned villain early on in his career, and we never caught him.” Roland walked up to the wood on the table, and inspected it carefully. “This wood looks exactly like the cedar and oak he used to tangle up a few robbers, back when he was a super. He had an alias, something like ‘Plant Man’.” [color=mediumspringgreen]“And you want me to catch this…’Plant Man’?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I don’t even know where I can possibly start looking for this guy, for all I know he could be dead.”[/color] Eris said, bluntly. Villains were not known to live a long life, especially if they were old. Sarah clapped her hands excitedly. “That’s where I come in! You see, we’re gonna test this wood, and you’re going to help!” She said, happily. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Okay, but how?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]My powers aren’t exactly plant related.”[/color] Eris said, holding up their walkman plainly. “Provence is kind of on a tight budget, and we here at the lab don’t actually have any of the high tech equipment we need to...analyze whatever this thing is.” Sarah said, dejected. Her entire demeanor changed immediately, and her shoulders slumped. Then, she perked up lightning fast. “But cedar and oak make an odd noise when it comes into contact with loud noises! And who better to make noise than…” [color=mediumspringgreen]“A Music Hero.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]Got it.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]So you want me to just blast music as loud as I can?”[/color] They asked. Roland nodded. “Make it as loud as you can, but be careful not to make it too loud. I like having my hearing.” He said. “Same here. Keep it to a minimum, when it comes to the noise.” Sarah stretched her arms lazily in the air, and sat down in a reclining office chair. Eris turned back to the wood on the table, and picked a piece of it up. They held it in their hands, and they had to say it certainly felt like wood. [i]Why do they even need me, it’s obviously wood.[/i] [hider=SURROUND SOUND ACTIVATED-Now playing “The Immigrant Song”][url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8OtzJtp-EM[/url][/hider] The song screeched out of the walkman at an unearthly level, and Eris’ ears hurt. They dialed the volume back, completely forgetting how loud the first few seconds of this song were. The wood vibrated in their hand, and Eris held it up to their ear. Was this the strange reaction that Sarah was talking about? They couldn’t hear anything coming from the wood. Then suddenly, they felt it come alive in their hand, and the wood went limp. Roland looked at it closely, curious about it’s properties. Eris turned the music off completely. “Icredible.” Roland whispered, as he took the rope out of their hand. “I don’t remember this being in his skill set, though. As he learned new tricks?” [color=mediumspringgreen]“Or maybe this isn’t his doing?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]It felt like....like…”[/color] Eris tried to pin it down. “It was an illusion.” From the doorway, Leila stood there, a cane now accompanied her. The moth, Charlotte, rested gently on her head not fazed at all. “Eris, it’s good to see you here.” She greeted. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Why are you here, Leila?[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]You seem to have a talent for showing up at the strangest times.”[/color] They said. Eris crossed their arms, slightly suspicious of the Paradox leader. “I called her here.” Roland explained. “Your agent was...useless when it came to questioning, so that’s why you’re here.” Leila smiled, demurely. “Of course. I will answer anything you ask of me.” She said. “Lets do it here, and now. First question, how do you know this is an illusion?” Roland surprisingly started his interrogation right then and there. Eris felt that might have been a bit uncouth of him, and maybe even a bit unprofessional. But then again, Roland didn’t come off as a professional person. “I know this is an illusion because I can do the same thing, albeit with a bit more flourish and Charlotte’s help.” She said. She went to go take a seat near the table with the wood, and she gingerly picked a piece up. “However, I did not make this, though that may sound suspicious. I have a clue who did though.” The rope was then succumbed to a throng of tiny moths that fluttered around it in a green blur, and then disappeared in a burst of sparks and light. The wood had been transformed into the rope that Roland still held in his hands. “Woah!” Sarah breathed in amazement. “That’s awesome! How did you do that?” She asked eagerly. “My questions first, please.” Roland pushed her aside, and she huffed with a pout and a childish cross of her arms. “How is it that Paradox is connected to Darius Winters?” Leila sighed, sadly. “Snowflake was partnered up with Paradox. We worked together to further the education of the students at Snowflake, using the technology Paradox owned.” She said. “I’m afraid that’s a lost cause now.” Roland moved on. “Whose this suspect you have in mind?” He asked. Leila stood up, and walked over to Roland. He stepped back tentatively. “Charlotte says you already know who he is.” Leila said, quietly. “She says ‘You two are old friends’.” Eris felt a bit creeped out with Leila and her weird telepathic moth. Roland seemed to be considering it however. “Old friends…” He looked at her sharply, and looked her over, suspicious. Eris wondered what the hell was going on, when suddenly Leila smiled, and walked to the door. “I feel our interview has come to an end now.” She said. “I will think over what you have said, Mr. Moore.” Roland didn’t object, it was a rather short interrogation, and Eris wasn’t sure they could even call it that. And then she left. Sarah whirled around in the office chair, spinning it around. “Well I guess we were both wrong. Man, what a bummer.” She said. “We have a lead though.” Roland announced. “I’m going to be leaving Provence in a couple of days, and I want you to come, Eris.” [color=mediumspringgreen]“Wait, what!?”[/color] They exclaimed. [color=mediumspringgreen]“Why me?”[/color] “Not just you, that Phoenix kid too. Both of you are integral to catching this perp.” He said. “We leave for Seattle in two days.” [color=mediumspringgreen]“Seattle![/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]The guy is all the way out there?”[/color] They asked. “Yes. Be ready.” Roland left, presumably to do more research on whoever this villain was, or maybe to buy plane tickets to Seattle. Going to Seattle didn’t seem fun. At all. And Roland didn’t even bother to explain anything, as usual. “What’s wrong with Seattle?” Sarah asked. “I heard it’s a cool city.” [color=mediumspringgreen]“Nothing.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]It’s just...I don’t know.[/color] [color=mediumspringgreen]I’ll see you later, Sarah.”[/color] They said. “Okay! Call City Hall when you get there, we’ll all be waiting to hear how the trip was!” She said, cheerily. Eris smiled, but it didn’t really match how they felt. Charlton was not going to like them leaving to Seattle. Especially with his husband there. ……………… [color=thistle]Welp, the plot thickens it seems, and we get to meet Charltons husband so that all seems exciting huh?[/color] [color=thistle]by the time I upload this, I will have been moved into my new home, and hopefully the update schedule won’t be so out of wack, lol.[/color] [hider=tonight's atmosphere][url]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP0gJpZUF1Y[/url][/hider]