UNTILL I MET YOU || JIKOOK

39 (M)

JIMIN POV

Jimin was never very good at watching other people work.

But there wasn't a lot he could do to help over the next few days as his omega worked hard to familiarize himself with the shield machine.

It helped that Jungkook liked to talk through things out loud, and Jimin learned a lot each day about the machine and its many components.

His father had explained some of it, but hearing it from the lips of an alchemist was a very different thing.

"Explain it to me again,"he urged feeling they were close to a breakthrough.

Jungkook sighed and put down his tools, his hands on his hips.

"The center of the shield is a generator, powered by celestial silver."

"The current runs along the seams of silver-blue alloy across the island and under the ocean, activating each of the sigils in turn."

"There's a critical mass that has to be reached enough of the sigils have to power up and once they do it creates a dome of kinetic energy around the island."

"A shield. Nothing from outside can come in, and nothing from inside can go out."

"And the glass dome above the machine?" Jimin was still a little lost as to its purpose.

"I suspect, when the machine powers up, it'll map out the network of seams and sigils, showing which are active."

Jungkook ran a hand through his hair, letting out a long breath.

"Then the question is still the same. Why isn't the machine powering up?"

The omega nodded. "That is the question. It should work."

"All the components seem to be functioning."

"I just don't know why..."

"You said celestial silver needs a trigger, right?"

"With the glove and the hammer, it was a combination of things."

"What if the machine is the same What if we just haven't figured out the trigger yet?"

"You're right. That has to be it."

Jungkook was moving, walking around the machine, ducking to look at different parts.

"Here, see this."

Jimin came to crouch next to him. "What am I looking at?"

"This, here."

It was a piece of metal shaped like the base of a bowl but textured rather than smooth.

"What is it?"

"That's just it. I have no idea."

"But there are four of them, one on each side of the machine."

Jimin examined the first one then circled to look at the rest.

They were all the same size, all formed from the same metal.

The only difference was the textured surface of each one.

"This one points due north," he said.

"The others east, south, and west."

"That can't be a coincidence."

"No," jungkook agreed. "And they're shaped like they're meant to contain something. But what?"

There were hundreds of elements or objects that could potentially fit into them, which made the possibilities endless, unless...