Connection Lost

Arc 1

A calm day begins much like any other, peaceful, quiet, and little traffic on the roads. The weather is perfect, Andrea thinks, while she mindlessly walks through the city. As much as she could be out with her friends, or family, she loves to spend time alone. Her time to herself is a well needed break from school and her part time job.

At least, this is what she wishes she could be doing. At the moment she's underground, who knows where, trapped in a dark and dusty cavern.

"Is this an old mine?" She asks herself, trying not to cough her lungs out from the dust falling down on her.

How'd she end up here? Andrea was going about her normal day at school, her last class had just finished up. Her mom offered to pick her up and drive her to work, but she declined and wanted to enjoy a leisurely walk.

Unbeknownst to her this would be a mistake. As she was on her way to work, storm clouds started to cover the sky. A few drops of rain fall down onto her face, Andrea looks up and around her for some shelter before it starts to pour down. Finding a small alley between a couple of shops she stands under an overhang. The wind picks up and the rain pours harder, unfortunately at an angle where it hits down the front of the alley, pushing her back.

"Ouch..." Andrea grunts, tripping over an old box and falling into her back. She sits up and rubs the back of her head, then she leans back against the wall next to her.

Just hard of her, a little to the right, part of the wall seems out of place. It appears more soft, more liquid. Perhaps the wall was made with a weak material, one that doesn't mix well with water, she thinks.

Standing up to her feet she takes a few steps forward and she touches the wall. Though there's not much to feel since her hand goes right through it. Instinctively she pulls her hand back, turning it around to look for any change.

"That's interesting" she says to herself and takes her phone out from her pocket. "Hey Cate, I was wondering if you could meet me somewhere?- Yes, I'm sorry I missed your text earlier, can you please come out here? I'm over by the antique shop on 23rd and 25th. Okay, okay, just come over when you can."

Andrea puts her phone away, she can't meet with Cate yet and she has a job to go to, so she leaves the alley. Her job is nothing special, but it gets her something to do to pass the time and earn some cash. Working at a bakery isn't all too exciting, that is unless she's eating some of the products on her break.

Her shift ends a few hours later, at which she calls Cate again. "Hey, are you busy? Oh, we can meet now if you'd like, sorry I had a short shift to get to. Cool, see you there."

Andrea clocks out of work and leaves the bakery, making her way down the street towards the antique store. Outside she spots her friend and runs over.

"Hey Cate! Sorry for making you wait!" Andrea Calla out, giving her friend a hug. "I found something interesting you might like."

"In an antique store? It's just junk that only our parents would be interested in" Cate replies.

"It's not in the store, it's in the alley here, come on" Andrea says, pulling her friend along behind her. "Right here, take a look."

"What am I supposed to be looking at?" Cate asks, walking down past Andrea. "I don't see anything special, why did you want me out here-".

Her sentence is cut off as she leans back into the strange wall, Andrea reaching out quickly to keep Cate from falling in.

"What the hell was that?" Cate asks in disbelief. "Did you see that, I just went through the wall!"

"I saw it, I'm glad I caught you when I did. I don't know what's on the other end" Andrea tells her.