A rogue Altered Item

Deep in the tunnels of the Foundation, Jesse noticed a Ranger encampment with a tent, a map table and a few crates of supplies. Several bright orange warning flags were stuck in the ground nearby, and some thirty feet from the flags a fist-sized object sat in the sand, glowing with Hiss resonance.

One of the Rangers waved her over. Ranger First Class Albert Wells. Since becoming Director, Jesse seemed to just know the names and titles of everyone who worked for the Bureau. All her employees. Jesse shook the thought out of her head.

"Director Faden," Wells said as she approached. "We're at a bit of an impasse. That's an Altered Item up ahead. We can't advance past it into the tunnel. Supposed to be up in Research, not sure how the damn thing ended up down here. Tried to pull the files on it, but between the current staffing shortage and general chaos all we got is the redacted top sheet. Here." Jesse followed Wells to the table, where Wells handed her a red folder with a single printed page inside.

Jesse closed the folder and Wells started talking again. "As you can see from the markers over there, effective radius is a lot more than two feet right now. Think it might have something to do with the Hiss resonance. We lost some valuable equipment. Had a couple of Hiss come through the tunnel to take potshots at us a couple hours ago, but it seems like they can't get past the thing either."

Jesse nodded. "I'll see what I can do," she said. Extending a hand in front of her, Jesse cautiously walked towards the bar of soap resting in the sand. As she approached the warning flags, Wells’ posture shifted, like he was about to call for Jess to stay back, but he kept quiet. Soon after she passed the flag, Jesse felt it.

A distinct, slightly painful prickling sensation began to crawl up her arm, slowly at first but picking up speed. Still, she felt the parakinetic resonance she shared with Polaris adjusting, suffusing the air around her hand and protecting what was most important. She pulled her hand back. The cuff of her jacket was frayed, but otherwise she seemed fine. Jesse could, she felt, resist the effects of the Altered Item for long enough to cleanse it of the Hiss influence and open the path forward through the tunnels; it was just a matter of getting to it as fast as possible.

Calling on powers she didn’t fully comprehend yet, Jesse pulled at the Foundation itself, drawing crystalline spars from the walls to form a crude scaffold she could climb until she found herself hanging from the ceiling above the bar of soap. She was high enough she doubted she would be able to see it in the sand if it wasn't still glowing with ominous deep-red Hiss resonance. Jesse let herself drop, and the moment she felt the altered item's influence on her skin again she launched herself towards her target with a burst of parakinetic ****. Where she landed, the red sand kicked up into a cloud all around her and she nearly lost the bar of soap in the chaos. Polaris didn't need eyes to sense it though, and Jesse's hand closed around it, the texture of the rose design impressing into the skin of her palm.

This close to the object itself, the feeling was intense, covering her entire body and similar to what Jesse imagined being caught in a sandblaster would feel like. Still, she focused on the object in her hands and, as she'd done dozens of times now, pushed. She felt Polaris flowing through her and into the Altered Item forcing the Hiss out. It resisted, as it always did, but this close and this focused, Polaris always won. There was a sound like fingers snapping in slow motion and a feeling of settling. Then, at the base of Jesse's skull, a shrill ringing started. The Board was calling.