Chapter 6

Chapter

Six

PRUE

S hit. Shit. Shit. I'm sprawled on my back. The ground's rough beneath me, and every muscle in my body is aching. I don't know what happened. My mind goes back. I remember Grayson grabbing my arm and telling me to stop. I was falling and contracting, and he kept saying something to me, but I couldn't quite process it. Don't something and find… That's all I really got before I landed here, and he went… where? I shoot up, panic now mixing with the pain and dulling some of it out.

Where the hell's Grayson, and where am I? I scan my surroundings. My bag's to the left of me, to the right and behind me nothing. Grayson isn't in my immediate vicinity. Did I time jump to somewhere he didn't? Did he abandon me here on purpose? Normal people don't go with strange guys, they don't time jump, and they don't agree to help fix the fabric of time. I traced the scars on my neck. I let my fingers trail over the familiar indents. Those were a reminder of my first abnormal experience. I yank my hand away.

This isn't the time to go down that rabbit hole. I take a deep breath, and then one more, using the age-old tactic to get my shit together. I focus on what is around me. It's just grass, and I let my gaze trail over every blade. They're the most vibrant pink I have ever seen. There are outlines of trees, almost inky, as if I'm viewing them at night during a full moon, when I can make out all the figures, but they're slightly dulled. I glance up, and the sky is violet. Physically, wherever I've ended up is like my earth, with grass, trees, and birds, but visibly, it's nothing like it.

It strikes me that this world created itself to stand out, like someone wanted to mark it and make sure it's known and couldn't be forgotten. The air's crisp, and a breeze makes my skin tingle. I cannot hear anything other than a few birds. I contemplate my choices. There were really only two: stay where I am and hope Grayson finds me. Assuming he didn't purposefully dump me here, a possible issue for another time. Or pick my bag up and try to locate him. In the back of my mind, I know when you survive a crash, you're supposed to remain at the crash site, you have more of a likelihood of being found there. But I have this nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach which overtakes my logical thoughts. It's pulling at me, pushing me forward. It's screaming that I can't stay here, because I don't know who will come for me. I need to move and get back to Grayson.

An uncomfortableness settles over me, at my decision. I'm in another world, alone, sore, and with no idea of what to do or where to go. It strikes me that I guess I arrived in Haddlebrooke in the same situation, but with one significant difference. Haddlebrooke felt safe, it was a reprieve. Here, Earth Two, or whatever it's called, isn't an escape. It's a daunting obligation.

I throw my bag over my shoulder and wince when a jab of pain hits me there. One I'm not aware of. Which way, Prue? I'm about to reason my way to follow a direction but stop myself. This isn't an analytical situation. Which way, Prue? Right, left, or behind me? As soon as I think the words ‘behind me,' my stomach jolts, and an electric energy courses through me. So, I turn and walk away from where I landed.

There's a vibrancy to this place that's both inviting and threatening. I throw up a silent plea that somehow this works out, hoping Grayson's a couple of meters away from me, and I won't be wandering, alone and aimless and utterly out of my depth.

The pain isn't a problem. The blinding light behind my right eye where my head took most of the impact isn't an issue. It is the blood leaking down my side and pooling into the pink grass which is a bit of a sticky situation. The cracked rib stabbing me is a major problem. I try to sit up, but fuck me, it feels like I may pass out if I do. I manage to tilt my head slowly to the left and the right. Prudence isn't here. Nothing is. We missed our mark by miles, and it's pure luck I could redirect us here.

Prue's energy overtook mine, interrupting my jump. Right up until this moment in time, I didn't know a jump could be redirected. Once in a time stream, the destination was set and no one could alter it. What's worse was that I couldn't feel my energy through Prue's. Hers pulsed in my veins, locking my magic down. She depleted me mid-fall and now I'm losing blood, time, and my very essence.

"Prudence," I yell, giving it a shot, but it's like my voice and speaking her name makes the silence settle in more heavily over me. I'm not going out like this. I survived the collapse of my world. I refuse to go out on a fucking pink hill.

I roll to my right. The pain behind my eye amplifies as I shift my pressure onto that side, but the broken rib and blood pooling from my left side means I can't worsen the damage there. I make it into a seated position. My bag is at my feet. I grab a shirt out of it. To my left is the rock I landed on, no doubt the cause of my injuries. I bundle up the shirt and gingerly press it to my wound in a feeble attempt to stop the bleeding. I use my arm to hold the makeshift bandage in place. I inhale sharply, and regret it immediately when the pain of my ribs hits me once again.

"Fuck." The word leaves my mouth before I comprehend it, but it sums up pretty much all I've been dealing with as of late. I try to tap into the energy around me to feel for Prue, but I can't.

I grip my hair, and I want to throw something, but instead, I somehow manage to roll to my knees and push up. I glance at my bag, and though I would rather leave it there, I pick it up and throw it over my shoulder. I take a second to steady myself, so I don't pass out, then start moving.

It was a hit and miss in which direction to go but if I landed where I think I did then I need to go to the nearest town just passt this forest.

Get healed. Find Prue. Fix the earths. Control Prue's energy. Sleep. I repeat the plan in my brain until walking becomes nothing, and the pain is just another part of me.

Heal.

Find Prue.

Fix my home.

Control Prue.