'Why is it that you carried around that particular camera?' Jon asked as the class went outside for a photography assignment. Most other students are carrying around the latest camera technologies while Hannah was holding onto her analog electric ones.
'There is something about the kind of photos you can take with this.' Hannah said with a longing smile as her fingers caressed her camera, 'this is a gift from my mother too.'
Jon stood there as Hannah leaned in close and took down an array of snapshots before showing a few quickly to Jon by pulling out the tape. It is true. The pictures had a certain...strange warmth to it. It's hard to really quantify, and yet this...just feels right.
Hesitant to say what he wanted to say, Jon simply stood there and watched as Hannah continued through her assignment. He did the bare minimum on his side too, though his full attention is with the girl with the long hair.
After they have toured around the last point of interest, Hannah is finally happy with what he has gotten, and she turned to see Jon looking at her still. She blushed a little and he suddenly realized how awkward he is being. Despite all of the training he had undergone back in the underworld, nobody can prepare him for this.....
'I.....I am sorry!' He apologized in a hurry, and Hannah shook her head with a smile, 'it's not...can I try it with your camera?'
'Oh.....OH! Yes!' Hannah's eyes widened and she nodded quickly before handing her camera to Jon, their fingers rubbing against each other lightly during the exchange.
Looking at the world through the lens of the camera, everything had a gentle glow to it in the setting sun. Jon spun around in place before stopping on a dime and took a picture of Hannah. Her own warm glow matching with that of the setting sun brings forth a warm saturation, and he quickly moved on as if nothing has happened.
'I have just taken a few.' Jon said, 'but this is so much better than the expensive stuff I had.....' Jon said, handing it back over as their fingers touched again. To his surprise, her fingers are chilly despite the warmth that is given out by Hannah's glow, 'there is a certain magic to it...I don't know.....'
'RIGHT?' She said excitedly, 'there is nothing quite captures the magic of cinema like the film!'
'There is no magic.' A girl interjected from behind them, and she was carrying around a wrist-based camera, one of the later models that neither has seen before, 'its all science, and technology, and nothing else.'
'Perhaps.' Hannah said, as Jon turned to face the girl. She had short blonde hair that looked like its freshly dyed, and she is wearing a thick-framed pair of glasses, 'you seem like you know a lot about cameras. What's yours like?'
The girl looked at Hannah surprised, as she fully expected a defensive response. Scratching the side of her cheek awkwardly, she turned to show them what she has captured on her screen.
It was the assignment all right, but there is a strange blur to the image.
'I...I still need to calibrate this!' She added in a hurry, 'I only made it this morning! It's not perfect yet!'
'You made this?' Jon asked, pointing to the wrist-mounted camera with a handle that is to be used by the other hand.
'What's the point of coming here if you can't make stuff?' She shrugged, and neither Jon nor Hannah can truly comment on that.
'What is your name?' Hannah asked with a smile, 'I am Hannah, and he is Jon.'
'Patty.' The blonde-haired girl replied quickly and quietly, 'Patty Lusher.'
After their brief conversation about the cameras, Patty ran away to complete and redo the rest of the assignments while Jon and Hannah returned to the classroom to complete the post-processing of what they have taken. The class was over, and they both passed the assignment without too much trouble with Hannah getting a distinction in particular.
'You took a picture of me, right?' Hannah asked with a giggle as they walked out of the classroom. Then, she held up a small picture of her under the sun in between her fingers.
'Sorry...'
'No not like that!' She hurried to explain, 'I like it!'
'You do?' Jon asked, returning the smile and taking a closer look at the picture.
'Yes! You seemed to have a knack for using this camera too! I wish I can use it as well as you did the first time around...'
'I think it's because of you that this photo is so beautiful...' Jon murmured t as Hannah looked away nervously and took back the picture.
'People will get the wrong idea if you say things like that...'
Over the next few days and weeks, Jon has fully converted himself to using the analog electronic cameras as he left the fancy one his father gave him in the corner of the room collecting dust.
During a lunch break, the two of them walked through the cantina only to see Patty sitting along by herself. Hannah tugged on Jon's sleeves to draw his attention to it as they joined her at the table in the corner of the room.
Patty appeared to have been in deep thought as her blue eyes were letting out a violet glow. The glow faded away as Jon and Hannah joined her.
'What...what is this?' She asked, looking at the two of them and her eyes looking extra perplexed through those gigantic glasses.
'Nothing!' Hannah said, sitting down opposite her, 'we would just like to join you.'
'Is this a pity party?' Patty asked, her body tightening up slightly.
'Of course not!' Hannah explained before tearing open the packaging to her lunch, 'why would you think that?'
Ignoring Hannah's question, Patty looked towards Jon.
'What about you?'
'Me?' Jon replied with a cheeky smile, 'I am with Hannah. Why else?'
Then, the trio shared a glance before bursting out into laughter.
'I can't even with you two.....' Patty said, 'especially you, Jon. I feel like one day I will get really pissed at you.'
'Let's hope that day never comes.' Jon said before pouring glasses of water for the three of them.
Time flew through the university years, as the trio grew closer and closer as a tight-knit group of friends. Soon, their cameraman certificate courses have come to an end as both Hannah and Jon opted through the field cameraman specializing in investigative journalism and combat cameraman specifically. Patty dived headfirst into the R&D aspects thanks to her superpower matching up perfectly with her interest.
As they approached their capstone project for their degree, the trio prepared in their own ways before gathering before the start of the six months project to celebrate the beginning of the end.
'Say...the past few years have gone by really quickly....hasn't it?' Patty said, downing a drink as she became more and more talkative with the two of them with time, 'I gotta be honest, I can't believe you haven't got together yet.'
Jon and Hannah shared an awkward glance before both looking away quickly. Jon felt like all of his mental training in his past has failed him all at the same time, and Hannah felt as if a fire is about to burst out from within her. Silencing themselves with more drinks as not to say anything they would regret, it was only Patty that kept on talking.
'Anyhow...' Patty nodded knowingly before diverting the topic quickly, 'never live with regrets. That's why whenever I had an idea in my head, I run it through my BLUEPRINT powers and I get on with making it.'
'I think the general advice can be applied to more scenarios too...' Hannah said, and Patty pointed at her before snapping her finger.
'BINGO! Why investigative journalism, I guess I haven't really asked you this.'
'It's simple to me.' Hannah said, holding onto the glass with both of her hands and feeling the chill of the drink, 'I always wanted to seek out the truth, and there is no better way.'
'Yep, cause the news ain't doing us any favors that way!'
'That relates to the capstone too, right?' Jon asked, 'have you found anything you wanted to look into?'
'I don't want to bore you with the details...'
'Oh come on! You are with people that like you here!' Patty laughed before winking towards Jon.
'I thought I will be the one pissing you off...'
'There have been rumors of a type of compound that can enhance the powers of superhumans, and it has been going around in zone four especially....' Hannah said, 'I want to find out where the compound is coming from, and why are they spreading in zone four!'
'If I am correct in my memory, that's where...'
'Yes.' Hannah nodded, 'that's where I grew up.'
'You got any hypothesis?' Patty asked.
'I think so...' Hannah said, looking down at the sloshing fluid as she played with the glass, 'do you believe the underworld exists? There have been rumors that those compounds originated from the underworld.'
Jon's eyes widened, and he froze in place ever so briefly. The relationship and knowledge of the underworld for those in S Prime is a precarious one. To most people living out on the surface, they would have no idea of this entirely independent ecosystem, because of how the underworld is connected to the surface. Instead of having a physical location near or under S Prime, this underworld is connected to S Prime through a series of portals positioned at hundreds of locations throughout S Prime.
The actual physical location of the underworld in the entire world is unknown, and the only connection of the underworld with the outside world is through S Prime.
However, because of the secretive nature of it all, not many truly believe the existence of the underworld, or as it is commonly referred to as zone negative one. However, in terms of size, Jon knows for sure the size of the underworld city easily matches that of S Prime.
'If I was to carry this out, I will have to go there, somehow.' Hannah said.
'It's an urban rumor!' Patty shook her head, 'there is no way something spooky like this exists.'
'But it must have!' Hannah disagreed, 'the dealers came in and out seemingly out of nowhere, and they brought with them such powerful substances. There must be a supply chain, location of production, distribution, and management somewhere! Nothing matches the physical locations in my initial run-through, so...'
'Have yours been approved yet?' Jon finally opened up, and both girls turned to look at him, 'your project proposal?'
'No...The dean said the underworld is nothing but a fairy tale, and the compound is nothing more than common drugs.'
'What do your guts tell you?' Jon asked, his eyes now sharp despite the influence of alcohol.
'It does exist, and the compound did come from it.' Hannah replied quickly, and Jon smiled.
'I...I can take you there if that's what you want to do.'