Power Without a Price

[curiousdiscoverer]

The first time Ezra finds Milliways he spends most of the experience overwhelmed by psychic sensory overload. Postcognition doesn’t really mix well with inter-dimensional nexus.

However when he walks out and tells about the experience, the true nature of the place is eventually revealed, furthermore he discovers that the Traders are very interested in using the unique location to seed magic to other worlds and they pay very generously for it. So Ezra’s family all hear about the story and stay in the look out for another door, just in case.

Years pass, and Ezra’s family gets a little smaller, and starting wishing for a door to show up.

Because resurrection is possible, but expensive and bringing three people back is impossibly costly without extreme circumstances.

So Ezra feels extremely lucky the day he finally finds a door again, with family in his apartment where they wait behind after Ezra grabs a few things while Temps holds the door.

He is now in better control of his powers and Milliways massive history doesn’t overload him anymore.

Ezra looks around the bar, sits on a table with a nice view and observes.

Is anyone here that could want and deserve magic?

Comments

[parental_guidance]

Emma decides she doesn't like the Washington Metro. She doesn't like cities much to begin with, really. Suburbs are so much calmer, and the city is so busy. This particular subway car is, at least, not horribly full. She and Phil found seats, and Alli is ignoring the extra seats to hang over them and chatter excitedly about her new boyfriend, which Emma is attempting (and failing) to focus on.

Mostly, she is focusing on not focusing on Professor Reed. They ran into her on the platform boarding the train; there's only so many ways off campus, after all. Emma didn't want to bother her- it's a holiday, after all, that's why they're exploring, why make Professor Reed do more work than she has to?- but Jenny of course immediately walked over to chat about their latest kinetic assignment, and it's making Emma squirm uncomfortably on her behalf.

All such thoughts become irrelevant when there is a loud Bang! and the car starts filling with smoke. Awful, caustic, burning smoke, soaking in through the doors and filling the car. Emma pulls her turtleneck over her nose and mouth, but it only does so much. Alli's done something similar, but Phil's doubled over coughing horribly.

There's more smoke in Jenny's direction- Emma casts her a frightened look, but Phil's coughing is getting worse and Emma doesn't know what to do. Announcements start coming over the emergency speakers- they're hard to hear, but Emma can make out 'move towards the station'. This, at least, gives her a goal: get out of the car, don't breathe, go back towards the station they only just left. Panicking, trying not to show it, she has to help, if she panics she might get hurt, Phil might get hurt, keep it together- she and Alli manage to haul the still-coughing Phil upright and drag him through the subway door towards the next car.

Except-

-this isn't the next car?

[mage_see_mage_do]

It isn’t the next car, it is a bar, too large to fit inside a subway tunnel, not that anyone would put a bar inside a subway tunnel.

There is about a dozen people inside: they noticeably don’t act like a subway car derailed and collided to the building; they do start to look at Emma and her friends with confused expressions, conversations die down and silence reigns.

Then a girl and two guys get up from a table and move forward towards Emma’s group. The two guys take Phil and haul him to the nearest table, but the girl steps around and closes the door, before turning back to Emma and asking.

“I have some healing magic,” She says and points at Phil (coughing too much to speak) “can I use it?”

[parental_guidance]

"Healing- magic? That helps with smoke inhalation?" Emma asks, caught wrong footed. "But, um. If you can help him- uh, yeah, please."

[witch_perfect]

"Noooooo. No no, backtrack. What just happened, what sort of crazy shit- what is this place? Where's the subway?! We need to get Jenny!"

[mage_see_mage_do]

"Huh, Franklyn, explain?" The girl says to the guy who is more than six feet tall "but keep the door closed while he explains."

The girl approaches Phil and says to him "you might fall asleep" before placing a hand in his forehead. Phil stops coughing and falls unconscious, but some color returns to him. The girl takes a ring out of her hand and puts on his, she keeps holding the hand, maintaining contact with the ring.

“I am going to get some medical supplies from Bar” the second guy says.

“If you need immediate healing, tell me” The tall one offers - Franklyn apparently - and he turns to Alli “answering your question, this is Milliways the door is magical and sometimes will take over other doors from other worlds, your world is paused while you are here with the door closed. What happened? House fire?”

[witch_perfect]

"Noooo idea. We were just on the Metro when smoke appeared."

[parental_guidance]

"You- no!" Emma goes for the door. "Magic doesn't do this, it just- this isn't how it works! Let me out, let me- Jenny's out there, I have to help her, get out of my way!"

[of_all_trades]

Moving way too fast for a man his size, Franklyn goes for the door, but instead of blocking the way, he opens it to... a living room.

Emma may notice the window in the opposite wall, it opens to a cityscape that is completely unfamiliar and the view is high above the ground.

"It is a different kind of magic," He says.

[parental_guidance]

Televisions and magical projectors both exist, but it only takes the lack of smoke and a hand around the door frame for Emma to verify that this really isn't the metro.

"Alliiiiii," she whimpers.

[witch_perfect]

"Okay, asshole, whatever you did, fix it. Cryptic bullshit is not my speed. That's our friend in there, we need to get her out of the smoke now."

[mage_see_mage_do]

Before Franklyn can answer the girl says.

"Don't call my brother that," the girl hisses.

It should be noted that between the height difference and coloration these two don't look like siblings, except they both have gray eyes.

[of_all_trades]

"The time in your world is paused," Franklyn says to Alli "if the door stays closed your friend isn't going to be more in danger, but if you open the door to there, it will unpause and whatever problem your friend is facing will unpause too. I am sorry, I know this is very overwhelming."

Franklyn closes the door.

"Not sure what we can do," he continues "but we can try to think of something, while the door is closed we have time to think. Would you guys sit down and listen?"

[superego_medico]

The other guy returns, he is carrying what looks like a first aid kit in a plastic suitcase. Behind him there is a third guy with a stretcher, they start to set it up to move Phil to it.

"Bar says we can move him to a room," he says "Temps what are you doing?"

"Oxygenating his blood," The girl - Temps apparently - says "they have enough magic that I can just feed the mana to my ring."

Temps releases Phil's hand. The third guy grows a foot taller. The two move Phil to the stretcher. Temps returns to holding Phil's hand.

[parental_guidance]

Emma splutters at the sight of someone changing height in front of her, but abandons the thought process in favor of Phil. She rushes over to his stretcher and kneels next to him. His color is better, but- what did they do? "Why did he pass out?" she fusses. "He was awake before!" She grabs anxiously for his hand. "Phil? Phil, are you okay?"

[witch_perfect]

"No, see, you saying 'time is stopped'? Not actually helping. Both the part where it is impossible even beyond this already impossible place, and also the part where you have no proof. You weren't in the subway! What if you're wrong? What if it's not frozen for us, or even just for Jenny? I'm not leaving my roommate trapped in a flaming subway car because you think someone stopped time!"

[mage_see_mage_do]

"The healing magic I used does that," Temps says reaching to the other girl's shoulder "if the person is too injured, or too sick, they are sent into a sort-of-a-coma while the body heals. Phil will wake up hungry but well. I am only oxygenating his blood to be sure."

[superego_medico]

"We should move him to the infirmary," Second-guy says to Emma, he also has gray eyes "and you two too... and use the less drastic healing."

[of_all_trades]

Franklyn can only find Alli's doubts understandable and even reasonable.

"I honestly don't know how to prove it too you?" Franklyn says "there is six impossible things between here and the Bar and then she can materialize breakfast out of thin air."

That isn't time for jokes! Franklyn thinks to himself.

"I could get Temps' ring," Franklyn offers "and try to rescuing your friend while you hold the door?"

"Maybe I should do that," Says the size-changing-guy "also, do I count as a impossible thing?"

After saying that, size-changing-guy takes a few steps back and transforms - his clothes seem to merge with his skin and vanish - he stands at same height, but now his skin is white and scale-covered, the hair is dark-green and his legs turned into a long fish tail.

Even the others look vaguely surprised.

"I am happy that you didn't change the face... They are terrified already," Temps says admonishing, she turns to Alli "You two could get a pair of respirators and protective gear from Bar, it will take a few seconds and you won't risk joining the people that need rescuing."

size-changing-and-fish-monster-transforming-guy says a quiet "sorry". He changes back to human, looking a bit smaller than the first time he was seen.

[parental_guidance]

Emma shrieks and clings to Phil. Just an illusion, just an illusion, it's just- special effects- something... she repeats to herself. No special effects on Earth can pull off turning someone into a six foot tall merman in front of her, but she's pretending or she will lose her mind.

Her brain is babbling angry things about why Phil is in a coma what if he doesn't come out how could you think that was a good idea, but there's nothing to do now. So she clings and watches his face. He is, at the very least, gaining his color back.

[witch_perfect]

Alli keeps being about to say something, and then things happen. She is getting really tired of things happening, it leads to things like toxic smoke in her metro. So she seizes on the nearest sane thing. "They sell respirators here? Where, cause I will buy them like now."

[of_all_trades]

Franklyn hates when people force themselves to believe, specially when they don't actually believe, his power gets confused.

"The Bar will sell it too you," Franklyn answers to Alli and then he yells Barward "Put it on our tab! Just give what we need!"

If Alli look, she will see three respirators, which she won't remember being there before.

"I am going to..." Former-fish-guy says "to get Arya anyway."

"Get Adam too," Franklyn says "and Meghan."

[superego_medico]

Phil actually looks pretty normal, his color is healthy and his breathing regular.

"I think we should move him away," Says unnamed-second-guy-with-gray-eyes "they will need you to hold the door, do you mind if we take him to the infirmary?"

[parental_guidance]

"Um." She has to hold the door...? "Can't he stay with me? Does he need anything in the infimary...?"

[witch_perfect]

Alli spots the respirators. She stares at them confusedly, decides to be confused later, and grabs one and heads for the door. Her brain belatedly catches the "our tab" comment, and she tells Franklyn "Thanks!" but doesn't let it slow her down. Time to go fetch Jenny.

[superego_medico]

"We are on the way and is getting crowded," Says unnamed-second-guy-with-gray-eyes "If we start bringing people it will get even more and we will need to move them there at some point anyway. Your friend doesn't look inclined to hold the door and wait."

While not small, the entrance area doesn't look suited to keep multiple people on stretchers, a category that currently includes Phil and might include Jenny and Professor Reed later.