Situated in what appears to be a ghost town is an ancient house; the Carolstone Mansion. The town of Blackenridge was a mining town over a century and a half ago, but the ores had long since dried up. The Carolstones were the original settlers in the area; they established a trade post before Revolutionary War, they convinced the railroads to move in a century later, they owned the mines, and they lost the most when the ore dried up.
Of course, that’s the legend.
In truth, Jacob Carolstone found something down in the mines; the ore seemed to be in long bands, almost like tendrils of a spider web that all came together to a single point. Following the veins with only a handful of trusted employees, Jacob found what he called the Node. It is a metal that doesn’t come natively from that rock, and the lines of rich metal ore leading up to it were a mystery; like water pipes feeding a single source. Not knowing what to do with it, he took it back to his house and kept it in the basement.
For six generations it stayed there, relatively untouched. Wars came and went, musket was replaced by rifle, and finally electricity came to Blackenridge. And finally, Jacob Carolstone VI got the idea to hook the node up to power. Raw electricity surged into it and the Node started to hum with a low, throbbing pulse.
A door opened. Not a regular door, but a void in space opened in the air of the room, surrounded by purple crackling energy. Carolstone noted that there was a room beyond the doorway, but it was nothing like what he was in; it was a completely different place. With a few experiments, he discovered that he could go into those rooms, those places, and with the proper tools, he could traverse the void himself. He also noted that when the power was shut off to the node and then it was rejuvenated, it would be a different place each time. After a long enough time, he discovered that it wasn’t just different places on Earth, he was seeing different Earths. Each of them differed in advancement, culture, and even era.
Blackenridge died when the ore dried up. But Carolstone Manor stands strong, only looking to be in disrepair on the outside. Inside, the house has been maintained, improved, and almost completely rebuilt over the years. Now the William Carolstone III oversees the house and the occupants; a number of trained individuals that can utilize the portals to solve crimes, help resolve crises as they unfold, and to be a positive force for change in the multi-verse.
You are one of those people exploring the multi-verses. Pay is great, benefits are great, and you can visit Ancient Rome, the Stone Age, the Renaissance, and the future all in the same week.
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