Mikaela Garrett - Psion
DODGE: +8 | PARRY: +8 | TOU: +4 | FORT: +8 | WILL: +12
HERO POINTS: 1
ACTIVE EFFECTS: Mental Shields
CONDITIONS: None
Edward's positivity was a little infectious, and Mikaela found herself laughing at his story. "Right, exactly. It's easy to use force; nuance is more difficult, but usually more useful."
Mikaela seemed a little hesitant at Edward's next question, but his apology smooths over any anxiety. She doesn't seem to mind sharing the story, but Edward's keen eyes can tell she's being careful with how she phrases things.
"No, it's fine, it's fine. I did have a teacher. My dad found him for me, a little after my talent first manifested. He... made me into who I am now."
She says that with a sort of resolve, tinged with some more complicated emotions. She's about to turn the question back to Edward, when Zhou's voice comes across the mental network.
Mikaela's expression turns pensive. The fact that Zhou can somehow detect the nuances of the raider's life energy patterns only gives her pause for a moment; it sounded similar to, though different from, the way she could perceive the minds of others. That was very interesting.
<An echo...? It could be that the three stronger sources are controlling the echoing ones. I've... seen that sort of thing before. We'll have to be careful until we know for sure if they're combatants, or just civilians with puppet strings.>
The idea seems to make Mikaela anxious, but she echoes Edward's sentiment herself, sending a feeling of cautious confidence across the network. Zhou seemed very capable, but that was no reason to be rash. Her demeanor changes a little; she moves from the congeniality she'd had a moment ago, to something much more businesslike.
As they neared the building, Mikaela switches primarily to telepathic communication; she does it almost reflexively, though she hopes the others will acclimate. For now, she's itching to get a better idea of what's going on in there; the possibility of the criminals being under mental control seems to have increased her urgency.
<I agree; this seems... wrong. Edward, can you keep an eye on me for a second? I'm gonna see if I can't get a better look in there.>
As she says this, she's already taking a seat on the sidewalk, legs crossed, back against the building behind her. She places her coffee next to her, then puts her hands on her knees, eyes closed, and takes a deep breath. On the inhale, she focuses, imagining a door in her mind. On the exhale, she releases the tension, opening the door and expelling her mind from her body. Her posture is relaxed, as is her breathing; it's hard to tell what she's just done, but evidently it wasn't terribly difficult for her.
<I won't be able to hear you with my actual ears like this; you'll have to use the network to talk to me. If that's still a little tricky, I can still feel, so tap my shoulder and I'll wake up.>
She rises, imperceptible to mundane senses, like some kind of phantom. With a thought, she propels her perception through the wall behind her, searching for the galleria Zhou is in. She hopes to be able to use her extrasensory perception to try and aid Zhou's own, and diagnose what's going on with these people.
Stealth:1d20