Falling

[skullz]

This had to be a dream. It was the only logical explanation. Maybe Charlie fell, took a tumble down the stairs and hit her head. That would explain the blackness she had fallen into. Like a void. No sense of up or down or light or dark. Cold. No sense of time. Only the furious beating of her heart and the heaving of her lungs told her that she was still alive. At first she feared the worst. Maybe she had broken her neck, become a vegetable. She was going to be trapped for the rest of her days inside a shell that could no longer see or touch. She could still hear her own screams though and scream she did. For a while. But after she screamed herself hoarse Charlie gave up. No one had called back to her. Not once.

It was terrifying.

However, the void was not endless. Eventually something caught her eye, but before she could register what it was everything changed. Suddenly, and very nearly without warning she had been spat onto the ground, grass and dirt kicked into the air as she skid to a stop. Thankfully she had landed on her backpack, otherwise her back might be in sore shape.

Disoriented and dizzy, she fought to focus. Everything was too bright after so long in the dark. The sun felt almost like fire on her skin. But her biggest concern was the door. It towered over her like a behemoth. For a long time she didn’t move. Only stared, stuck to the spot by fear and uncertainty.

Was this it? The end? That light at the end of the tunnel? Was she dead?

Charlie didn’t know. But her body felt heavy as she pushed herself to her feet, brushing dirt and grass off of her sleeves. She pushed her beanie back, tucking her dark hair back away from her face. She didn’t know what would be on the other side of that door. But where else could she go? An endless expanse of grass and sky stretched around her, feeling as oppressive as a prison cell.

No choice.

She stepped up to the door, pushing it open with only a finger. It should have weighed a ton yet… it was almost as if it were opening for her, calling her down into that staircase beyond. She didn’t fight it. One hesitant step after another she descended, keeping to the center of the wide rail-less decent. But it didn’t last. Suddenly and without warning it disappeared beneath her feet.
Screaming, Charlie expected another plunge, to be cast into darkness once again. What she hadn’t expected was for sneakered feet to land gently in soft grass. Eyes that she didn’t remember closing opened to look around. She was on the edge of a clearing, looking out at a vast mansion and a barn. Confused, Charlie looked around. Her chest was heaving in panic, heart pounding in her chest.

“I’m not… I’m not dead am I?” Her voice was breathless as she stepped forward. Her eyes were glazed over, seemingly in a daze. If she were dead, then why was her heart still beating?

An idea struck her and Charlie sifts through her pockets, first of her grey hoodie and then her dark blue jeans. No luck. She crouched, almost in a panic as she flings her backpack off and slams it to the ground in front of her. Her skateboard appeared to still be in one piece and strapped to her bag, one small miracle of all of this. She dug through the outside pockets of her bag, searching until “Got it.” She pulled out her cellphone, unlocking the screen and hoping that maybe, just maybe-

The device beeped ‘no signal’ and Charlie felt her heart sink into her chest. What was she going to do?

[themascura]

Steele had just settled down to enjoy a good book by himself. He had a small glass of scotch- a taste every now and again was okay, but it wouldn't do to dip too heavily into the stocks- and a snatch of silence that was all too rare around the bar. It had taken at least thirty minutes to convince himself that there was nothing else that needed doing by him tonight. He had covered every concievable base he could.

He leaned back in his chair and stretched until he felt his knees pop. After that he setttled back down, easing until his shoulderblades found just the right spot in the seat and propped his feet up on the chair across from him. How long had it been, he reflected somenly, since he had taken a few hours for himself? Just to relax and read a good book or sip a cold drink? Too long, he decided with a feeling of satisfaction. He lifted the glass of scotch to his lips. A soft, soft scream shuddered through the air. He froze, glass twinkling just a few inches from his face. He hovered indicisively for a moment, try to decide if he had really heard what he thought he hard. A moment later he heard a soft voice, followed by footsteps, a thud, and then beeping.

Damn. Damn, damn, damn, damn, DAMN! He sighed and slapped his scotch back onto the table, tossing his book haphazardly across the room. So much for an evening off! He grabbed his hat and crammed it onto his head, shoving his chair in with a foot and striding out of the kitchen through the side door, out into the field of green. Another creature probably would not have heard the young woman's cry, or any of those noises, but he was a vampire and gifted with extraordinary senses. He took a moment for his pale blue eyes to adjust to the sun and then cast about, looking for the source of the disturbance. The grass was too long, he noted with irritation. He would have to get Conner to cut it soon. It was easily tall enough now to hide a crouching person.

He hovered, waiting for a noise or a movement to point out to him where the new comer was.

[skullz]

Charlie cursed under her breath, hand closing tight around the phone and giving it a squeeze. She makes like she might try to slam it into the ground, arm raising up and threatening the motion. But she doesn’t follow through. Her arm fell limply to her side, head hanging down to stare at her bag. She took a deep steadying breath, closing her blue eyes for a moment and wondering: What the hell is going on?

“The house.” She breathed to herself, looking up at the sprawling estate. She only hoped that whoever owned the place had a phone and was willing to let her use it. Charlie zipped her bag back up, putting the phone back and making sure that nothing had fallen out. She also double checked her board and that it was still securely attached. When she stood back up, Charlie flung the pack back over her shoulders, clipping the buckle in the front to keep it from moving.

But when she looked at the house again, maybe mansion was more appropriate, she saw a shape that wasn’t there before. A man? A wave of relief washed over her, heart fluttering with signs of hope. But the feeling didn't last long. It was replaced with something else. Something uneasy. She was getting a strange feeling about all of this. Charlie didn’t know why, but as she started walking toward the sprawling estate, she got a sinking sensation in her stomach. Though she didn’t want to admit it, she was scared, terrified even. But she couldn’t just sit there and wait to wake up from this dream. It had to be a dream right?

[themascura]

Steele waited for several seconds, listening intently. He could hear someone moving around in the tall grass, but with the wind rustling around he couldn't quite pinpoint the exact position. A moment later, however, a figure emerged from the field, headed for the house. Steele nodded to himself and stepped off of the landing, striding across the lawn. The grass, still crisp with the lingering threads of winter, crunched sharply under his feet. He could smell fear wafting in the air, drifitng up to greet him like an old friend. An old friend he sternly ignored.

"Hello." He greeted the oddly-dressed individual once he was close enough to be heard. The woman- he thought, as best as he could make out from that distance. She was wearing some sort of bulky sack on her back, which distorted her figure enough to make it difficult to tell. Mostly he was judging by the way she walked, and the way she wore her hair.

Another victim of the nexus, it seemed. He doffed his hat, holding it in his hand instead of letting it cast his face in shadow. The last thing he needed to do was terrify the poor girl. That made... the fourth victim spat out of the portal in as many weeks. It was entering another active phase, it seemed. His expression pulled into a brief, powerful scowl. An active nexus was good for no-one. He growled under his breath and stared at the pinstripe fedora clutched in one square hand.

"Evening." He tried again, clearing his throat and trying his best to not look as if he were a tall, muscled mafioso in a severe gray suit. Damn. Where was Sandra, or Conner? Why were none of the less threatening, charismatic people around when someone came through the nexus? He loosened his tie and plastered what he hoped was a friendly, non-threatening smile across his face.

"I imagine you're fairly frightened right now. I don't know when or where you came from, but this place is perfectly safe. No need to be afraid." He tried to assure her, perhaps a bit clumsily.

[skullz]

The closer Charlie got, the less like a man the man looked. He was like a wall to her, big, broad and intimidating in this strange place. This place where this big man was dressed like… like he walked straight out of a gangster film; pinstripes and fedora included. That voice made her tense when he finally spoke and Charlie found her hands coming up, gripping the straps that were slung over her shoulders. Her grip squeezed worriedly, heart thudding in her chest.¬

She found, when he removed the hat, that the man was not unattractive, though he was probably twice her age. He had a serious face with sharp lines, which made the attempted smile seem less friendly than he probably meant it to be. But his tone was not unkind and somehow those words allowed her to at least find her own voice.

“Frightened? Yeah. You could say that.” Charlie snaps, tone coming out far harsher than she meant it to. She swallowed thickly, stopping short of the man and making sure she was well out of his reach. “Sorry.” She sighed. “Sorry. I’m just… a little freaked out.” Her brow furrowed, teeth worrying at her bottom lip. "Where am I? What's going on? Because I was walking down some steps and then I was falling…Did I trip? Did I die? Is this some effed up version of heaven or hell or…?” Her voice was suddenly small, hesitant and almost afraid of what the answer could be.

[themascura]

Okay, he was pretty certain he was smiling reassuringly now. It wasn't an expression he practiced on a daily basis... or even a monthly basis, for that matter. Normally they had a couple specific person around to great and reassure the new arrivals. Unfortunately, at the moment, they only had one of those, and she was predictably elsewhere at this moment in time.


"Well." Steele cleared his throat, attempting not to glare when she snapped at him, and keep the smile on his face all at the same time. The expression was... interesting, with eyes that were just a little too wide and a smile that was just a little too forced.

"Lucien might tell you otherwise, but this isn't Hell, or Heaven for that matter. This is the Dregs, and you just got picked up by the Nexus. It's... sort of like a hole in time, and space. A tear, rather. It moves around and opens up in different worlds and times. Sometimes no one is there when it opens up, but when someone is, they fall into the Nexus. It's like a tunnel. The other end is here, but unlike the other end, it never moves." He attempted to explain, big hands moving with uncharacteristic clumsiness as he tried to find a comforting way to explain to the woman what had just happened to her.

Comforting wasn't really a card in his suit of skills. Actually, he had spent many years learning to be as far from comforting as possible. That's what he got for trying, he supposed. It never seemed to be a skill that came in handy anymore, frightening people. Just the opposite, actually.

"This happens all the time. We invite the displaced individuals to come stay with us in the Dregs while our people work on finding them a way home. Or, if they like, they can stay and join the staff." He cleared his throat, a deep, thunder like sound, and turned to point to the square of light he had just emerged from.

[skullz]

Charlie stayed quiet, listening to this man and his deep rumbling voice. But what she was hearing made no sense. A tear in space and time? How could he expect her to believe that? This man with his forced smile and intimidating self. He looked like he stepped out of an old gangster flick yet he was talking like the Doctor with a wibbly wobbly timey wimey explanation.

Her brow furrowed in confusion, expression becoming tense and disbelieving.

Yet, she got the feeling this man wasn’t the type to joke around. His tone was sincere and he seemed to be trying his damnedest to actually help her. If it were anyone else she might have thrown it back in their face and asked what the hell they were smoking, but somehow part of her believed this guy.

“Seriously?” Charlie’s expression softened a bit as he kept talking. Her eyes scanned the building before returning to his face, swallowing thickly as it all started to sink in. “This is real isn’t it? This isn’t some joke? This is actually happening?” She takes a breath, the gears in her head going a million miles an hour. It was obvious that she was nowhere near the city anymore. That much she knew for certain. It made it that much easier for her to believe him.

[themascura]

She was staring at him. There was this look etched on her face, a look of intense disbelief. For a moment he imagined she was going to call him a liar. It wouldn't be the first time. His size and square, grim face, tended to make people think twice about it, though. It had been a very long time since anyone had done that, for that matter. He gave up trying to smile reassuringly and ran his blunt fingers through his salt-and-pepper hair. After a minute he put his hat back on, nodding when she asked if this were all really, truly happening to her. He couldn't commiserate, really, he had never been through the Nexus, but they had gotten all sorts of reactions on the other side. People ranged from entirely calm about the incident to screaming and out-of-their-minds. This girl seemed to be somewhere in the middle.

"Yes. It's real." He racked his mind, trying to think of what Sandra would say, if Sandra were around, "Um. It's alright. This sort of thing happens more often than you would think. Lots of mising persons reports are related to it. Anyway. I don't know where you're from, or when, but this is the 1920's, and you're in America." He explained, realizing that he had probably missed a lot of the reassuring points Sandra would have hit on. Damn it, he was just no good at this whole comforting people thing! This was why they had Sandra!

"Listen. Why don't you come inside. I can get you a drink, and see if I can drag Sandra out of whatever book she's doing, or away from whatever broken-winged bird she's currently nursing." He gestured toward the door, still radiating light and warmth. He figured there was probably a fifty-fifty chance he could get her to come inside with him. The other fifty percent he figured would have her running screaming into the woods, convinced he was a serial killer or something.

"Sandra's the woman who normally does this sort of thing. Greeting the new guests, I mean. She's. Better at this." He tried to describe the Priestess, thinking that if he did so she would seem more real, and less like a ploy to get the young girl inside, "There are others too. Krepta, Conner, Tim... couple'a others. Not as busy as it normally is, but picking up some." He added with a stroke of inspiration.

[skullz]

Charlie was lost in her own little world, blue eyes staring but barely seeing as the man perched the hat back atop his head.

"Wait what?!" Charlie squeaks, taking few stumbling steps backward. Now it makes sense. His suit, the way the man speaks.... Charlie had been trying not to think of the man as a mobster with his pimped out clothes but if this really is the 1920‘s then maybe.... maybe he is.

She looks from the man to the house and back, pulse finally starting to calm down from the frantic flutter it escalated to. Charlie listened to what he had to say, mostly because she suddenly couldn't find her voice anymore. Sandra... maybe this woman would help her make sense of things. Of how the hell she got here, which was something that still wasn't clicking in her mind. There were others though. Others.... somehow knowing that she wasn't alone in this, that she wasn't the only one dropped through that seemingly endless darkness helped make things just a little less surreal.

"I'm.... I'm from New York City... 2013...." she sucks in a breath, hand gripping tight to the straps of her bag. Charlie steps toward the house, keeping her distance from the man but torn by how inviting the place looks. "You're not some mobster or something whose going to wack me the moment I get inside are you?" She looks sideways at him, wanting to look at the place but weary of looking away from him.