Canary in the Coalmine || Niles & James
James could have gone without ever needing to experience debridement. The removal of the dead tissue from his second degree burns was something James would've been happy to not repeat; unfortunately, he did need to repeat it. Twice. In the Ashkent Creek General Hospital, of all places-- located where Ashford General stood in his native plane of existence. The pain was excruciating, but James survived it, and the doctors who treated him seem to think he was in good enough shape to discharge now, with the instructions that he try to get as much bed rest as possible; walking around on his legs as the burns were still healing wasn't advisable. But how could James not explore Ashkent Creek? He justified it with the simple fact that he needed to eat. The Thai Tanic was his first choice of local flavor; James limped in, smiled at everyone in sight, and watched carefully. As he filed in line, there was one person in particular who captured his attention-- Subject 001, in fact. He had to confirm. "Niles Nowell," he asked, extending a hand toward him. "Is that truly you?"
Niles had never expected really, truly giving up food. Of course, he no longer needed to go about things this way, but it kept up the appearance and he loved Thai Tanic. Even vampirism wouldn’t stop him from going there. It was a busy place, so Niles busied himself with his cell, flipping through his emails and getting rid of the junk mail that somehow weaseled its way in as he waited for his food. It all felt a little too normal for everything else going on around him, but Niles needed to cling to those sorts of things. As someone said his name, the young man looked up from the screen and pocketed the thing. “Yeah, that’s me,” he answered, trying to place the face of the man. He seemed extremely familiar with Niles, but Niles couldn’t say the same. Trying to be polite, he said, “remind me of your name?”
Ah, so he was correct! James beamed with excitement and clapped his hands together. Though he was hungry, this conversation would satisfy his intellectual curiosity, and that was more important than satisfying his stomach. "Dr. James Martin, topologist." He offered enthusiastically, along with a vigorous handshake. Niles' hand felt somewhat chilly, but after being subjected to icy touch after icy touch from the good doctors at Ashkent Creek General, James wasn't bothered by it. Though... perhaps the details of how he knew who Niles was ought to wait until they caught up with each other. "Have you already ordered? I would like to discuss matters with you, as they relate to this dimension. This town." James pulled up a chair for himself, abandoning his place in line. His appetite had been whet for something else now. "I'm aware you're not from here. Neither am I."
Niles couldn’t hide his surprise from the man who seemed to know him. Even though Niles had just been given his name, it didn’t fill in the blanks. Topologist? Not having a clue of what it was, Niles tried to break it down, but he only got as far as figuring that it had something to do with places. Niles shook his hand, taking it back as soon as he could from the enthusiasm and energy the man was putting out. “Yeah, I have,” Niles answered, his voice like a question as the man continued, Niles’ voice almost skipping over the other’s as he watched the man—Doctor Martin—pull a chair up. Niles cleared his throat as he shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about—“ his own words nearly interrupted by a sneeze that Niles hid quickly into the bend of his elbow—fucking shell. “What do you mean?” He asked, quieter this time.
James’ eyes widened in alarm at the sneeze. "Langes leben!" Was he sick? Was it exposure to new bacteria and viruses that their dimension didn't hold? That had been one of James' top concerns about the prospect of switching between dimensions-- though he was sure there were people out there who would be giddy to learn of all new biological warfare opportunities. "Are you ill?" He asked Niles with genuine concern. "Tell me, do you know if they have influenza here? Or streptococcus? Ah, I suppose... I suppose that hardly matters at the moment. Let's start with the basics, shall we?" He slid his chair closer to the table, wincing as his bandaged shins pushed against the leg of the table. "We're both Ashford River natives. More specific-- we're natives of that dimension. We're not in Nebraska anymore, as the saying goes."
Niles’s eyes narrowed at the man. That wasn’t a phrase he’d heard since he’d come here—to Ashkent Creek or whatever this place was. The man seemed to know it and know the difference between it. “No—No, I’m not. It’s this stupid shell I got at a raffle—look, it’s a long story okay?” Niles said shaking his hands. “What’s going on?” Niles asked. The man seemed to know more that most about what was happening and it was unnerving. “You need to keep your voice down,” Niles said, his own tone hushed as he set the phone screen down on the table. “What are you talking about?” Niles was exasperated. It was obvious that something had happened. Niles knew he wasn’t home anymore, but somethings were the same. “Do you know what’s going on?”
Keep his voice down? "Why?" James asked curiously. Were people here not accepting of discussion of multiple dimensions? That was reality, after all. And sure, people at home tended to give him strange looks when he discussed topological theory in public, but James always figured that was because they couldn't quite parse through what they were hearing. Never the less, he would comply for now. Niles had been here longer; he might've known something that James hadn't yet learned for himself. "Of course I know what's going on!" Despite his intention of keeping his voice to a whisper, he found himself back at normal volume. "Don't you? To some extent? Perhaps not how or why, but surely you know you're in a different dimension now." It was time. James pulled his notepad from his breast pocket and clicked a pen open. "Can you tell me what differences you've observed? How are you finding the people here? Have you reconnected with any alternate versions of your friends and family?"
Shaking his head, Niles looked over to the other patrons, trying to see if there was anyone paying more attention to their odd conversation than they should. It was putting Niles on edge, there was nothing he wanted less than people thinking he was a quack. It was something that was hard for Niles to keep up with this guy exclaiming things about different dimensions and alternative versions. It had potential for a dangerous situation. “No, I don’t know.” Niles answered, his voice still hush. “We’ve gotta be quiet because I don’t know anything what’s going on. And no—I don’t. Numbers have changed. I can’t exactly just call up my family. You’re going to need to be quieter or we’re going to need to go outside.” Niles shook his head.
James' eyes followed Subject 001's. He was looking around, probably nervous about eavesdropping. James was reminded again to lower his voice. It was hard not to be overtly excited about this though; why was he nowhere near as enthused? "I will keep my voice to a loud whisper. How is this?" James asked, leaning forward on the table so he wouldn't miss a single important detail of what knowledge Niles had to report. "May I ask again? What have you learned about this place? How has the transition been for you? My apologies, truly, if it's been difficult, but, ah, I'm sure everything can be smoothed out with time. And what is time, anyways, when dimensions can be manipulated?"
Niles bit his bottom lip as he began weighing the options. Staying and talking with this guy might get some information on the shit show he’d been thrown into, but then again, it might just did the hole deeper. “Better,” Niles answered, shifting in his seat as he crossed his arms, almost instinctually leaning away as the doctor leaned in. “It’s different but it’s real close to the same,” Niles finally answered after a brief pause. “Some of the same stuff is here and so are some of the people, but it’s like everything is just shifted to the left or something.” Niles wasn’t sure how to describe it. “It’s confusing. Everyone seems to keep just moving on.”
"Interesting..." James propped his sinking glasses back up to their proper position and ran a hand through his hair. "Not to the left, precisely. But you seem to be indicating that things are somewhat... askew compared to the Ashford River we know and, uhm, well, know." Did that mean the Jenna here wouldn't be the same as the Jenna from home? That was a potential problem, though he'd accounted for some of the potential differences based on life span. "Where did you appear, when you first ended up in this dimension? Near campus?"
Niles sighed, shaking his head lightly. The first real person he met that was having the same experience as him, and he was a total and complete loon. Excited by it even. Niles just wanted to go back. “Whatever we feel about it, that’s where I was from. That’s where everything that is mine is.” It was frustrating—more so even—to be thrown into someone else’s reality. Into someone else’s life. Niles’ thoughts were called back to the present at Doctor Martin named a very particular place. Niles shifted, uncrossing his arms and leaning forward. “How do you know that?” It wasn’t so much a polite question, as it was a demand.
"Ah! Well, it's quite simple, really. Er-- logically follows my experience. I left Ashford River after a walk down the beach, and I successfully appeared in Ashkent Creek on a similar version of that very beach. In a bonfire, unfortunately. That was... not intended." The pain constantly shooting up James’ legs was a stellar reminder of that. "It follows, then, that you would appear in the parallel version of the area you left Ashford River in-- fairly close to the University of Maine Ashford River campus, if I recall correctly." He thumbed through his notebook to the proper page, scanning it and confirming. "Which I do."
“You’re the guy—“ Niles stopped himself, his voice getting loud. “You’re the guy who ended up in the fire?” God, Niles hoped it wasn’t intended. There was nothing about it that made ending up in a fire sound good. “You meant to come here?” Slowly things were falling into place but not a place Niles wanted them to be. He didn’t care about getting his food anymore. How did this man know where Niles had crossed over? “Outside. Now.” Niles didn’t bother to wait for the man. If he wanted answers, he’d follow. Niles was already standing and heading outside. He stepped off to the side, heading for the edge of the building away from prying eyes and prying ears before seeing if the man followed.
It seemed word of the bonfire incident had traveled from ear to ear across town. Human curiosity could hardly be helped, regardless of dimension, apparently. "Certainly I meant to come here." James replied. He was coming to understand that most people who "switched over" between Ashford River and Ashkent Creek--or vice versa-- did not have the luxury of choice. Present company included, no thanks to James. But this was important work, and Niles hardly seemed worse off for the change in scenery. James had many other questions he wanted to ask the Subject though, and he was insistent on taking this outside. Had he inadvertently started talking too loudly again? James slid his notebook and pen back in his pocket and hobbled out of the Thai Tanic to find Niles. He seemed... distracted, perhaps? Something was amiss. "Niles?" James tested the waters.
Niles was entirely unamused by the conclusion he was coming to. That somehow the man was involved in what had happened to him. “Did you have something to do with what happened to me?” Niles asked, his phone in hand as he pointed at James. “Did you send me to Ashkent River?” The doctor had plenty of questions, it was only fair that Niles had answers to a few of his own. “Is that why you’re asking me all those questions about the difference. Was I a canary in a coal mine? This is my life,” asshole. Niles bit his tongue at the last word. Even upset, he knew that he would catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.
Canary in a coalmine... that was an accurate way to put it. James wanted to dawdle on the question, given how pointedly it'd been phrased, the anger seeded in Niles' voice. James was somewhat apologetic about needing to use test subjects for such a feat, but there were greater things at stake here. And besides, Niles acclimated. Or would. They both would. "I'm aware that this is your life," he finally said, dodging the first question. "And though it wasn't your intention to come here, you are here, and your observations will be valuable to many people." He considered fishing for his notebook again, but there was a chance that Niles would grow angry enough to tear it out of James' hands. "I believe that, eventually, everyone will switch from Ashford to Ashkent, and vice versa. I just gave you a... push."
Niles couldn’t help but laugh. It was a hollow and unhumorous thing. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “A push?” Niles asked, though he didn’t intend for an answer. “A push?” Niles repeated, more steel in his voice. “My undergrad degree is different. I can’t get ahold of my family—and it’s not really even my family is it?” There was so much that Niles wanted to touch on but instead he let out a cry of exasperation. “You want my observations? Like I’m some sort of control in a science experiment?”
"I'll send you back!" James insisted. "Once I'm done here, I'll send us both back. You have my promise." He did feel for Niles, especially where his family was concerned-- and his education. But this needed to happen, and-- "I have a hypothesis..." James started, knowing that Niles would likely be weary about hearing this given his disdain of the thought that this was a science experiment (although yes, it was). "You needed to be sent here, Niles. Not just for Jenna and myself, but if the disruption that caused the merge is to be fixed, you need to be right where you are-- in Ashkent Creek."
“Who is Jenna?” Niles asked, exasperated. It seemed like the doctor had everything figured out. It was more than frustrating for Niles. “I don’t give a shit about your hypothesis doctor. I care about getting home and soon.” Niles answered. He didn’t need to be any where but home. “Do you even know anything about me besides my name and my school?” Niles tone was threatening. He could feel the glamour over his skin, and he kept it there—for now. “Send me back home.”
"Of course I do," James scoffed, and then instantly regretted it, given Niles' obvious anger. He was a scientist, after all; he had done his due research into the lives of all of the Subjects he looked into, but time was short and there was only so much attention he could dedicate to each individual. "I will send you back home as soon as I am able to." There was one very large snag, and that was the simple fact that the Can Opener was back in Ashford River, possibly lying on the beach where anyone could find it. Another one would need to be made in this dimension. "I, ah, must be off now. My legs and feet. The doctors told me not to stand for prolonged times..." James looked down at his legs, then pushed his glasses back up his face. It was an excuse, technically, but also the truth. "When the time is right, you will go home."