We return to our intrepid protagonist standing in a long corridor of doors, having just been rescued from Death's Domain.
>rejoice in my salvation, gleefully follow mysterious visitor
You feel rejuvenated, as though you have a new lease on life. What a joyous thing it is to have a second chance at...
At...
Well, you'll be damned if you know why you feel like you have a second chance at something, but you're determined to follow your apparent savior and not to squander it. It would be awfully rude if someone (quite literally) stuck their neck out for you, and you simply turned around and opened a random door and poked your head through because, gosh darnit, your curiosity is just getting the better of you and you really want to know what's behind this large oak door marked with a curious symbol.
You're an awfully rude person.
You feel an intense sensation of vertigo as the gravitational forces shift perpendicularly around your head as you poke it through the crack in the large oak door. Your head feels heavy and begins to fall forward, dragging your body behind it. As the world spins around you, you fall to your hands and knees on the edge of a large canyon. No, that's not quite right. It's not a large canyon that you're on the edge of -- it's a very, very tiny cliff.
As you wobble back and forth, sure that you're going to collapse and go tumbling down into that monstrous gorge, you suddenly feel a hand grab at your collar and heave you backwards. You tumble back through the door as it swings shut, your head spinning. The stranger stands over you, his eyes wide in nervous shock.
"You picked one hell of a door to go sticking your head through. It's a good thing I came back for you."
The room slowly spins as your eyes revolve about in your skull. You ask where you were just now.
"That was Yungas Road. I wouldn't exactly call it safe, but going through it wouldn't have been such a hazard if it weren't for this." The stranger motions to the curious symbol on the door. You ask what it means.
"It represents the door's orientation in space. Well, the orientation of the other side of the door. This one is perpendicular to the local gravity right now."
Your face is blank in confusion. The stranger just sighs and helps you up.
"Look, don't worry about it for now. Just stick close to me and you'll be fine."
You nod, keeping within arm's reach of the stranger as he walks down the corridor, motioning to the doors.
"Each of these doors leads to a different place on Earth. This hall we're in now is a part of the Akashik Records. Not the Records Proper, but the part of the Records connected to this universe. If you think of the Records as a library, then this is just one branch. Each of them connects at a focal point to form the Akashik Records as a whole."
The stranger looks at your baffled expression with a grin, then opens a pair of double doors. These are much larger than the surrounding doors, with an impressive arch at their crest. You note that they do not have the same kind of symbol on them that the other doors do.
"This is the point where all the branches of the Records connect; this is the Multiversal Nexus."
You look inside and see only darkness. It's not as impressive as you were expecting. You say as much to the stranger.
"True enough, there's not much to look at right now. However, were you to step inside, I think you would have a greater appreciation for the room."
You motion to the doors, as though to indicate that you wish to enter.
"Not just yet. Allow me to take the lead. I'll motion you in once it's safe."
The stranger steps through the doors, and suddenly the room is filled with light; trails of shifting colors spin off into the distance, curling into complex fractals as they seem to swirl about the stranger standing in the center.
"The thing about this room," the stranger says, his eyes closed as though in deep meditation, "is that it is unstable. It might be described as a bridge between universes, but it is better described as a river. Most who enter this room are unable to conduct it, and are swept away by the current. Some find themselves deposited back into their original universe -- others, swept into one unfamiliar to them. I'm sure Death told you something about this; it was by entering this room that you originally came to this universe. If you wish to return to your home, it will be necessary for you to enter this room again. However, it will be a difficult journey. I can help, but you will have to trust me."
You consider the stranger's words carefully. Considering that he has already saved your life twice, you decide that he has earned a little trust. You nod purposefully to the stranger, who then motions for you to join him. As you step into the room, you feel your body being ripped apart and reconstituted all at once.
You are ankle-deep in snow. An icy wind chills you to the bone. The sound of gunfire rattles from a copse of trees nearby.
Perhaps your trust was a little misplaced.
