lostcarnival | OPEN: New Beginnings In Stranger Places

Who: Dr. Helen Magnus and [You]
When: Day 92
Where: Roaming around, a little lost
What: Arrival, getting her bearings, etc. etc.

Adventure was something Helen Magnus never shied from and exploring the vastness of the underground Sanctuary, far beyond those walls was something she couldn't deny herself. So it was that she found herself here, under contract to the Ringmaster with her eyes wide with wonder at it all. The lights and colours, the excitement, the darker elements shining through here and there. It was as familiar as it was alien and she drank it in with an eagerness she had long felt lacking. It stirred her as she moved through tents, passed people much like her who had joined perhaps years before her. A bright flash of a tail there, wings, glowing skin, all of these people becoming Abnormals or were in the beginning. The sheer fascination would have been enough, really.

"Excuse me?" she asked, reaching out to catch the attention of one of the people she had fallen into step with, "I seem to have found myself a bit lost. I was looking for the medical tent and I seem to have completely gotten myself turned around. If you could point me in the right direction, I'd be most grateful."

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"The Hall of Mirrors sounds incredibly confusing, especially if one is new." Helen shakes her head ruefully at the thought. "Yes, I am very much new," she says, nodding, as she keeps up. "I imagine I'll eventually get the lay of the place, provided it doesn't change too much."

And the Hall seems to have a marked interest in keeping you inside it. But Elsa doesn't want to sound crazy, talking about how a building has any sort of will at all, so she focuses on the layout of the Carnival instead.

"It doesn't, really. As long as I've been here, it's stayed more or less the same."

"Well, there's one thing I don't have to worry about," Helen says with a soft laugh. "I suppose with magic involved the mind goes to so many different places when thinking of the possibilities that can manifest."

"I guess there are a lot." Elsa laughs too. "But the Ringmaster seems more interested in taking the Carnival to new places than changing it around."

She looks at Helen with interest. "Does your world have magic?" She seems comfortable with the topic, at least.

"My world has Abnormals, so, in some respect, they could be considered magic." Helen considers the topic for a moment. They are people who have very different abilities as the normal human population. Myths and legends have been written about many of them, stories to be told in the night. Vampires, werewolves, beings of power, many of them are misunderstood or not at all what they seem."

She lets out a soft contemplative sigh.

"It is my duty to help keep them safe, protect them, and protect the human world from them. In my world, I am the head of an organisation that just just that, but traditional magic..." She shakes her head a little. "Not quite in that sense. Sometimes, it's just a genetic mutation that makes someone an Abnormal. Some can sense emotion, others can reach out and touch minds, go invisible, and a wide gamut of other abilities."

Helen smiles and half-shrugs. It's a long answer to what was probably supposed to be a yes or no question. So much depends on what someone things as magic.

"I, myself, am an Abnormal. I have lived a very long life and, barring any accidents, may live a much longer one. I also have enhanced intelligence." And honestly, fabulous luck to avoid those accidents but Helen can't figure out if that's just her intelligence kicking in or something else altogether.

"An... Abnormal."

Something about that word just rubs Elsa the wrong way. She can't quite help but look pensive, her eyebrows drawing together. People who have powers, who are misunderstood...

People who are not normal.

"It sounds like... a difficult job." That's the only thing she can really say to that.

"I'm just a safe place where anyone can come for help if they want or need it. They come and go as they please," Helen says quietly. "It's there for them just as I am. Many of my dearest friends are Abnormal and the Sanctuary Network has helped them in many ways, some have chosen to stay, some have left but they are always welcome without question."

"It sounds like you must meet a lot of interesting people."

A hub of sorts, for people who have powers, or are some other sort of species. It's almost like...

"The Carnival is a little like that, I guess. It's not always the safest place, and... I guess if you have a contract you're not allowed to leave as you want." She's not making her point very well, is she? "B-but, you'll be accepted here no matter what you are, and the Ringmaster does help those under her employ..."

"I do," she murmured. "Life isn't always the safest thing, either, but we live it to our best ability, especially here. I'm sure it will be just fine."

"With that kind of attitude, I'm sure you will be."

She smiles at Helen, then looks back at the tent they are approaching.

"Anyway, we're here. Zecora is our resident doctor, so she can get you settled in."

She almost forgot something important, though. Her eyes suddenly widen as she says, "Oh, I didn't introduce myself, did I? I'm Elsa, the treasurer."

"Nice to meet you, Elsa," Helen says and smiles back. "Thank you so much for showing me here."

"It wasn't any trouble." She turns to leave. "I'll be going. See you around."

"Absolutely," Helen says with a bright smile and a little wave. Heading off into the tent, she sets about looking for her supervisor. Nothing like getting to work immediately.

OPEN: New Beginnings In Stranger Places

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