Phoenix can access the history of an object by touching the fingerprints left on it. There are layers to the information, the deeper of which he has yet to truly delve into, though he has strong control over the more shallow ones. The fingerprints do not have to be “complete prints” or even discernible by a forensics tech; as long as the item has not been wiped clean, the prints exist for Phoenix, even if the smudges and partials would be useless to law enforcement. He cannot gather information from an object handled by gloved hands or anything that does not leave a print, as the fingerprints are what leave the trace to the objects’ history for Phoenix to access.
A quick touch will give him simple information based on the freshest set of prints. A longer touch and more concentration can either access older prints’ information, or give Phoenix insight into the emotions and thoughts of the users, as well as flashes of the memory.
The first level is accessed at all times, automatically, instantaneously, and almost unconsciously. Phoenix can glean information from an object based on the freshest set of fingerprints with just a quick touch of his own hand to the object. If it is a keyboard or a keypad, he can sense what was last typed into it. For example, if the last person were to have gone online and purchased an item with a credit card, he can easily gain that information. If it is a book, he can tell which were the last pages read; a phone, the last phone number dialed, etc. At this level, he cannot gather emotions or feelings attached to the actions, nor will he be able to tell who the handler if he doesn’t already know (unless the information he gleans provides him with the name or clues to who the handler was).
With a bit more than a quick tap of the object, Phoenix can sort out the same sort of information based on the older sets of fingerprints. To do this, he has to consciously go beyond the information gained from the newest set, and dig deeper, so to speak. The newest information is always the easiest to find — he has to go through the newest user’s information to get beyond it to the previous user. Depending how far back he wishes to go, this may take several seconds, several minutes, or even longer, depending on how many users’ prints are on the object.
When accessing the next layer of information, touching or holding the item for several seconds and focusing on it will bring Phoenix into the mindset of the last person who used the object (at the time they used it). He will see, in a flashback, the object’s history while in the hands of that handler. Therefore, he could hold a gun that was used in a murder and see how the gun was procured, then “witness” the murder take place. He will feel the emotions and thoughts of the murderer and get an image of his or her appearance, but no actual name unless the “history” reveals it (i.e. if the murderer is called by name by her victim or if she gives her name when buying the gun, etc.). This level is rather taxing and disorienting.
Phoenix can also access the emotions and visions from the “older” fingerprints that lie beneath the newest set. This will take the most time and extreme concentration as he will have to go through each user’s history. If he breaks from the touch, he will have to start over again; thus, depending on the number of users, this may take several minutes to several hours, and the longer he’s at it, the more likely Phoenix will lose the connection due to his own emotional state, fatigue, or interruptions in concentration.
