Arrival

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Entry posted by Amryai200 · June 8, 2009

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Nora Sullivan looked out her train window. Sand and rocks stretched to infinity. She couldn't hear the outside over the thundering roar of the steam engine, but imagined it was oppressively silent. Some might find the sparse, noiseless desert depressing. She thought it was beautiful.

The roar of the locomotive was suddenly accompanied by the grinding screech of brakes. The shout of "Fiero Station!" somehow carried itself over the noise. Time to get off.

Nora grabbed her suitcase - her only possession - and disembarked. Fiero Station was small, simple, uncomplicated. From what she had heard, so was the town of Fiero itself.

According to the last census - taken three years ago, in 1870 - Fiero had well under 5,000 souls in total - a big difference from where Nora came from. No, this was definitely not New York. There were people here, for sure, and it was busy for a town in the middle of nowhere, but it wasn't the bustling haven of chaos that was the Big Apple. Nor was it Ireland, Nora's first home. She couldn't remember Ireland very well; her main memory was being hungry. She wouldn't be hungry here.

Times were good out west, or so she heard - finding a job, and a home, would be easy.

She headed downtown. It was a long, smelly walk through the industrial sector north of the river - what was the name of that river? She couldn't remember. But it was dirty. Hopefully the rest of the town wasn't like this.

Thankfully it wasn't. Downtown was quite pretty - the main streets were even paved! Times were good indeed. The highlight was definitely City Hall - a recently built, Colonial-style brick building. She went inside.

The clerk looked up. "What can I do for ya?"

Nora replied in her slight Irish accent.

"A job, ya say?" said the clerk cheerfully. "We've got plenty o' those. Ya look new - I imagine you want a house too? There are a couple new ones out on the east side for rent. Not exactly palaces, but I think they'll suit ya just fine."

Things were working out. She looked at the map on the wall. Fiero - her new home. She was excited to be here, out on the frontier. Life was a bit wilder here, but, she hoped, it would also be more fulfilling.

What she didn't know was that it wouldn't remain a frontier for long.