- - - In Wake of Memories // TAG: Nikola Tesla

[DR HELEN MAGNUS]

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3:24am. Thursday, 8th August.

Dr. Helen Magnus was still wide awake. Granted, it was like any other night. Always the first person up and the last one down. Never wasting a single moment of her time, yet always focuses solely on her work. It was much too important to dismiss. She’ll rest when she feels she needs it. Will had always wondered if she got any sleep at all, because she was so good at masking her exhaustion. He had to admire her dedication. After a few hours of sleep, will she go back to work and start the tedious day ahead. The way Helen would see it, is that there were not enough hours in a day.

You see. That’s the irony of it. You’d think a person who has lived for over a hundred and fifty years, would consider that maybe time did move too slowly. But no-one else understood that but her. Helen Magnus. The saviour of Abnormals, and the path to their salvation. The ultimate path to their true existence. She understood that, and lived by it with every fibre of her being. The Sanctuary was her life’s work. A network of them, initiated by her father Gregory Magnus, designed to keep those Abnormals safe from the trials of the human race. Because they did not understand, and yet they refused to accept such forms of evolution.

Helen was half-way through her report. On one screen, there was a report roughly four pages long containing information of one of her most recent patients. An Abnormal who could generate both hot and cold energy from a single touch. That of which resulted in a lovely handprint burn on Bigfoot’s arm, during the capture. Will did try to reason with it, but the middle-aged female refused. On another screen, was an exceptionally large email which was to be sent to Sanctuary in Egypt, where the woman was found. Helen insisted they take her back to Old City for further examination. Another computer screen contained medical files and internal x-rays of the woman’s unique blood cells which could enable the energy without damage. With a single click of the mouse, she sent the email.

She frowned, and lightly pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a headache coming on. She had planned to get this report finished that night, so she couldn’t afford to be overcome with sleep deprivation. But at her rate, she could barely read any more words on that report. Her headache seemed to blur her vision slightly causing those words to jump out at her. She leaned back in her chair, and closed her eyes for several minutes trying to relax her mind for a bit. It was the usual events for the night. Will had always told her to get more sleep, but as selfless as she was dismissed that idea. But for years now, she was so used to receiving a few hours of sleep, that when she did finally get to bed, she would automatically awake. It was almost like she couldn’t shake sleeping patterns away when she first gave birth to Ashley.

Suddenly, the youthful young blonde sprang into her mind. Her daughter was taken from her and suffered dearly. Her life ended, leaving Helen alone again. Helen opened her eyes, and let them wander to the picture of the little girl on her desk beside her. Ashley was seven years old at the time, and by the looks of the photo, she had a large grin on her face, who was enveloped into a large hug by her mother, Helen. A rare moment in both their lives, when she finally did take the time to spend the day with her daughter. If Helen was not trying to track down Abnormals, it was spending the day out with her little angel.

Overcome with memories, Helen managed to muster up a small, yet sad smile in memory of her daughter. It seemed like yesterday when Ashley walked through the door of her office, asking for permission to go on a wild goose chase with Henry. Or the time when Ashley skipped a staff meeting to attend a Fight Club. Or the time she gave Helen a box of chocolates, a bunch of flowers, and a gold pendant for Mother’s day last year. Helen’s fingers made their way to the pendant around her neck, almost concealed in the black blouse she wore. Since the day they lost Ashley, she never dared to remove it.

“Oh, Ashley...” Helen broke the cold, heart-wrenching silence that seemed to overcome her office, with a soft voice that seemed to cry for her daughter’s warm presence. She missed her daughter’s witty replies, and even missed her apologetic words when Helen caught her sneaking out in the wee hours of the night on occasion. But she would give anything to have her back. She would gladly give her life for her. Without question.

Helen released a breath of air, she only begun to realise she had held. Slowly, she picked up the picture of her and little Ashley, and held it close to her chest, hoping that maybe this was all a cruel dream. That maybe Ashley really was alive and well, and would walk through that door any moment insisting she’d get some rest. Suddenly finding that report off-putting, she stood up from her chair, and took comfort in the relief considering she had been staring at her computer screens for a good nine hours. The tea on her desk was icy cold, along with the half-eaten French toast that Bigfoot cooked up for her during dinner. She didn’t even find the time to finish her meal. She began to pace around the living area of her office near the fireplace which was still crackling with comforting warmth. Yet the picture remained close to her heart, not daring to tear it away. She rarely allowed herself to become like this. Helen was so used to keeping her true emotions intact, that she barely had time to release them. She made her way to the couch and sat down close to the fireplace. Her eyes welled with tears slightly, wishing that her daughter was here with her. One of the only people in the world that ever truly understood her.

These were trying times. So many things became hectic and chaotic all at once. The world was falling apart one disaster at a time, and Helen felt the harsh weight on her shoulders. There was only so much a woman can do.

People seemed to forget that the great Helen Magnus is human as well. Even she had the capacity to break, more than anyone.

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[NIKOLA TESLA]

Even Nikola had often fallen prey to the belief Helen was untouchable, forgetting at times that she was as human as anyone else. More human, her young protégé might have said. And still she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders, so rarely allowing herself the time to show it. He’d always suspected that had as much to do with her reluctance to be seen as weak as her devotion to her work. Of course, he had no intention of ever sharing that particular observation with her.

Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, he had also forgotten that closed doors are typically a request for privacy. Or possibly, he’d just stopped caring.

She was given little warning before he barged into her office unannounced, not even so much as a knock. But that was a risk of inviting the man into her home. He had no concept of personal space other than his own.

Maybe he had meant to complain about the antiquated equipment she liked to keep in her lab or the sorry state of her wine cellar, but seeing her, none of that seemed to matter as much as it had only a moment before. Because this was Helen. The human woman, not the fearless leader. And he knew she was hurting.

His voice is low as he moves quietly into the room, closing the door behind him, “You know. Crying women have never been my strong suit."

[DR HELEN MAGNUS]

It was times like these, you could truly see the aged-gaze she adopted only in her rarest times. Only those who truly knew her, would be able to detect it. It was a gaze that did not only struggle to withhold the emotions which constantly bubbled up inside her, but it showed how significantly old she really was. It was not the face itself which displayed this. She had no wrinkles to define her mortality. Her skin was as smooth as the same day she had taken the Source Blood into her own. Her cheeks was still as naturally rosey.

But it was all in her eyes. Her bright azure eyes, had seen more than anyone could fathom. If one looked deeply enough, they would know. Know...Perhaps. Understand? Not likely. So much was bottled up inside, but only her eyes could give even the slightest hint of emotion.

But now, they seemed empty. Pain was one thing. Regret. Torment. Joy. Simple emotions were easy. But the loss of a child? That was something entirely different.

Helen had faced alot in her two extended lifetimes. But loosing her dear sweet Ashley in the most horrendous circumstances...Tore her heart to pieces. Every day since. Every reminder of her, every memory, every time her name was unintentionally ushered...Was like a stab to the heart. A death. A piece her slowly died with each moment. And knowing that she could have prevented her death was the hardest thing imaginable.

Sometimes she regretted allowing her death to happen as it did the second time. She should have stopped it. She would have known the outcome, and she should have prevented it. With every fibre of her being, she had the power to save her daughter. The opportunity was there.

And yet she refused to take it and change the course of history. And it was something that Helen regretted every single agonising day since she had caught up with the current timeline. Sure, it gave her a chance to enact this master plan and put it in motion which would save so many innocent lives.

But Helen was never selfish. And if she did try to save her daughter while she was stuck in time, she may as well submit to Adam Worth as he tried to do the very same thing. And it killed her inside.

Helen was lost in thought. A million things were running through her mind. Mostly full of 'what if's'. And not just regarding Ashley, but even with the current events. It was all just too much.

Given the ungodly hour she was still awake, she did not expect anyone else to be awake at this time. And so she was slightly startled when Nikola Tesla barged in unannounced. She quickly wiped away a fallen tear, and cleared her throat as if nothing had ever happened. Last thing she anticipated was someone to see her like this. She was still clutching the photo of Ashley, as if that was her lifeline.

She took an uneasy breath, "Nikola...Surely you know how to knock?" She was a little on edge.

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[NIKOLA TESLA]

Nikola huffed softly, sounding more than a little indignant. “Of course, I know how to knock. What do you take me for, a barbarian?”

He always has had a flair for the dramatic.

This time, though, he softened quickly. He wasn’t as heartless as most would claim. She had always been his weakness, and he hated seeing her this way.

He’d known her for more than a century, liked to think he could read her better than anyone still alive. He would even claim to know her better than she knew herself, having the benefit of being willing to see the aspects of herself she didn’t want to acknowledge. And he knew only one thing could be responsible for her current emotional state. The photo she was clutching to her like it was the only thing that mattered simply confirmed what he already understood. She was mourning.

Nikola had never had children, had never wanted them. He couldn’t know the pain she was feeling, couldn’t know what she was going through.

Here he was, a man who prided himself on his intellect, always having the answer. And he didn’t. This wasn’t something he could fix with a little time and the right equipment.

(ooc: I'm sorry for taking so long getting to this. It's been a draining few weeks.)

[DR HELEN MAGNUS]

(OCC - Quite alright. Work has been rather crazy on my end, too xD)

Helen gave a slight, teary chuckle amidst the tears slowing falling from her face. There was no hiding it this time. Had she known she'd have visitors at this ungodly hour, she would have taken better care to hide it. Besides, Nikola was one of her most dearest friends. One of the very few people in her life she'd truly open her heart and soul too. If anything, he was one of the few who have ever been witnessed to the rise and fall of her emotions.

She trusted him.

She clenched her jaw, and looked back at Nikola. "So...What brings you into my office at this ungodly hour? That is, unless my wine cellar is truly empty." The corners of her mouth tugged as a cheeky smirk suddenly made an appearance. Friendly banter was the daily norm for the both of them. No matter what she was feeling at that point in time, a lighthearted conversation was something she needed. Anymore reminiscing the past tonight, was sure to send her to tears again.

Nothing hurt more than remembering her past mistakes which led to the death of her daughter.

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