The Elemental Jewels: Psychic Energy

Chapter VII: "The Idea"

“Are you kidding?” Autumn asked Mary-Anne that night. “Five?”

“No, I’m serious,” she said. “There were five Duressish agents guarding that place. I hid in a nearby bush and waited for Erica’s signal.”

Mary-Anne was in the middle of a story about one of her adventures as a Jewel, where they went by the name of Water Lily. Autumn really enjoyed hearing stories like this. Plus, she wondered if she could get any more information on how to beat Oceanillus for the team.

“So, Erica and I were joined by our friends, and we snuck back into the place,” Mary-Anne continued. “Who should be waiting there but Oceanillus.”

There's my answer! Autumn immediately perked up.

“You fought Oceanillus? How?” she asked.

“Well, we were having trouble,” said Mary-Anne. “He was very strong. He kept shooting psychic beams and teleporting everywhere. Oh, and worst of all, he had mind control powers.”

“¡Cállate!”

"It's true! He didn’t like to use them a lot, because it tired him out, and while activating it, he was vulnerable, so he didn’t bother in this first fight. However, we encountered him for a second time, and he used it on Joy.”

“Eso es terrible...”

“I know. It took some work to save her. You see, we had figured out that this isn't just a case of hijacking a body. When someone is under Oceanillus's spell, they - in a sense - are him. He locks the target out of their own brain and links theirs together.”

“So, how did you break it?”

“It wasn’t easy, but we realized that the key was to break his focus. With Joy, the building we were in had a loudspeaker, so we had Evan and Henry find and scream into it while Justin kept Oceanillus busy and Erica and I held her in position.”

“Interesante...”

“There’s also the Psychic Dis-Charger, or PDC,” Mary-Anne went on. “Our friend, Richard Yoast, developed it. It's exactly what it sounds like - a specialized device for taking away a psychic's powers.”

"This has been great, thanks!" Autumn said with an excited smile. "I can’t wait to tell the others!”

“About me?”

“No, about all of this,” Autumn said awkwardly. “Oceanillus is coming back to Earth. We're trying to figure out how to fight him.

"Oh!"

"Although, to be fair, I do want to show them you sometime.”

“I would soon. There’s no way you can mention all this stuff I’m saying without them getting suspicious. It’s just not realistic.”

“I know,” said Autumn. “Someday. Once we're not in crisis mode anymore.”

Mary-Anne smiled. “Okay! Let me know when!”

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“Hey, Nettuno!”
    
Nettuno had just run into Monisha on the way to their tutorial period. “Hey, Mon, what’s up?”

“Autumn told me on the bus that she found a way to beat Oceanillus,” Monisha replied.
    
“She did? How?” Nettuno said, completely stunned.
    
“I was gonna ask, but then I thought, ‘Who cares?’” said Monisha. “‘Cause, I mean, if there’s a way to beat this down, that’s what we need to focus on, right?”

Nettuno agreed. “Yeah. So, what did Autumn find?”

“Well, apparently there’s this device called the PDC, or Psychic Dis-Charger, invented by Yoast Xiānsheng himself.”

“The old Jewels' friend, Richard Yoast?” Nettuno asked with excitement. “The pawn shop owner who can reincarnate?”

“Any reason you're describing him?”

“Because this is gonna be so cool, getting to meet someone that can never die!"

"Okay, calm down, fanboy," Monisha laughed. "We'll get our chance. Surely our bosses remember where the pawn shop was. We'll just head down tomorrow during our shifts."

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The next day, the Crusans brought Kenta, Nettuno, Monisha, and Haden up to the Bronx, while Florence, Autumn, and Roxie-Caitlyn stayed behind to watch the store. After a bit of navigation through Google Maps, they finally found the right place, as noted by the words "Yoast Family Pawn" painted in red lettering on a wooden sign.

"Welcome to Yoast Family Pawn, how may we..." started the young fem behind the counter as the bell hooked up to the door went off, but her voice trailed off at the sight of Shelly and Brent leading the group. "You're back!"

"Hey, Joanna!" greeted Shelly.