Chapter 1: This is not Maine

When she opened her eyes, she was standing on a clearing.

A moment ago she had been on her way home, after having turned Robin Hood, the traitor, and his Marian, into full grown tortoises. Like expected, the others in the dinner hadn´t thought it funny. They just had no sense for humor.

"It´s just for a few days" she had explained while rolling her eyes.

But Snow and Charming had just looked at her disapprovingly, taken the reptiles, and left the dinner.

She had left shortly afterwards.

And now Regina stood on this clearing, wondering how she had gotten here.

She didn´t even recognize this place.

Looking around she spotted a guy, standing a good hundred feet away. He was walking around seemingly confused.

She strode over to him. Closing in, Regina heard him mutter something like: "That's not funny, Hiro!"

Who or what is a Hiro?

"Who are you?" she demanded.

He turned.

They studied each other for a few moments.

Regina had to admit he was handsome. He had to be a little over thirty years, was quiet tall, around 6´2, and well built. He had brown eyes, dark hair and thick eyebrows.

"I am Sylar."

"Never heard of you."

"You haven´t?" he smirked, "Well, never mind. Who are you?"

"Regina Mills. I´m the mayor of Storybrooke." She explained, beginning to suspect, she wasn´t there anymore.

"Ok, Miss Mayor, what are you doing outside your town, city, whatever?" Sylar wanted to know.

"None of your business." She informed him.

"Do you know…" he seemed to struggle with himself.

Regina raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to finish.

He sighed. "Do you know where we are?"

So he doesn´t know either.

With a sigh she admitted: "No, I don´t."

For a moment they looked at each other.

Regina considered her situation. Sylar might be lying. Maybe he was responsible for her being here in the first place.

On the other hand he seemed like he had honestly no idea where he was. And maybe he was useful.

She decided to stick together with him for now, but she would be careful, not trust him too much.

"Shall we work together to find out how we got here?" she suggested.

He nodded slowly.

Then he said: "Okay, let´s try to find someone."

"Ok." She agreed.

Regina turned and began walking, looking for a way through the forest.

After a few steps she realized he didn´t follow her. She turned back to him.

Sylar was standing a few steps away, seemingly having walked straight the other way.

She fought back a grin.

"Perhaps we should actually walk together if we want to work together." He suggested.

"I agree." She waited for him to come over, but he was looking around, not moving.

"This trees are looking strange." He said, musing.

Now she had a closer look at them too.

He was right. They did look strange.

The leaves seemed to come directly from the trunk. They had no branches.

Was this… another world?

With this thought Regina turned to Sylar and asked him: "Which world are you from?"

He looked at her confused.

"Earth." He answered slowly, somehow hesitantly.

So… he didn´t know about other worlds. And Regina certainly wouldn´t change that.

"Yeah, me too." She answered. It wasn´t a lie, not really.

Sylar looked at her strangely.

"So you want to tell me that this is not earth." He didn´t seem too convinced.

She shrugged, then she began walking towards something she thought was a path out of the forest.

After a few steps Sylar began walking after her.

"Wait!" He called.

"We can talk later!"

"Hey! Stop!" He had nearly caught up with her.

Regina just rolled her eyes.

Sylar grabbed her by the arm, turning her.

How dares he!

She lifted her hand, throwing him back with her magic.

Regina smirked… then felt herself being lifted up and thrown back too.

She landed on the ground a few feet away.

Standing up, she ignited her hands, ready to fight.

Sylar was standing, his hands burning too. They closed in, then when only a few feet separated them they began pacing around each other, walking circles, watching each other closely.

"So you are an empath." He stated.

Empathic. Her?!

"No, I don´t think so. You are a liar. You can´t be from earth."

He seemed confused. "Why shouldn´t I?"

"Because of your magic."

Idiot. Why does he still deny it?

"Magic…" He said it, like she was the stupid one. "That's what you call it."

"How do you call it, Idiot?"

"Abilities. And you are an empath. My ability is more powerful. I can help you."

He extinguished his fire.

"More powerful than me?! Only in your dreams. I have been doing magic when you were still wetting your diapers!"

He frowned.

"I knew you were older than me but that much. Anyway… I can help you control your power. It´s nothing you need to be afraid of. It may seem like a curse, but it´s a gift."

"Are you even listening to yourself? You sound like self-help-book. I. Can. Control. My. Magic!"

"Ok, do you know how you can extinguish this flames?"

"Yes, I do." Regina told him in her best sugar-sweet voice. Then threw the fireball. It missed Sylar by inches. And that was of course on purpose.

He didn´t seem too impressed.

"Without throwing it, I meant."

She lifted her left hand in which she still held a fireball and smothered it.

Then she stepped threating towards him, expecting him to step back, which he didn´t.

So now she stood really close to him and had to look up. Well, this decreased the threat and it didn´t help that she had to think that his height was quiet impressive. On the other hand…

"Your chin looks fat."

Sylar looked offended. He stepped back a little.

"It just looks that way because I have to look down at you because you are so small, witch." He threw back.

Regina just rolled her eyes.

"And you smell like fish."

"`Cause my town has a harbor."

""My town" does your town have a shower?" He shot back sarcastically.

"Watch your tongue! I could just turn you into a fish!"

"You can do that? Impressive." And he did seem impressed. At least a little.

"I told you I´m more powerful than you." Regina said satisfied.

Sylar was looking at her strangely. Somehow… interested and wanting.

Then he turned away, abruptly.

Was he after her power?

Regina really had to watch out.

Not an hour before Sylar had been on his way to Jared Cartmen, a client of Mohinder and him. Jared had the ability of dreamwalking.

And he had to admit he hadn´t had the best intentions.

Sylar wouldn´t have killed him. He hadn´t murdered for about four years, at least not in order to get an ability.

He was in control of the hunger now.

But Jared was one of these weak people, who thought their abilities were a curse. Sylar had seen the potential behind it. A dreamwalker was not only able to visit other people's dreams and manipulate them, but was also in full control of his own dreams and could look deep into his subconscious.

So Sylar had gone to Jared to understand his power.

Although he had sworn to never take an ability without the permission of the special in question.

He had sworn it on the same day he had promised himself to never be controlled by his hunger again.

And then out of the blue he had been standing on this clearing. At first he had thought Hiro had done that, but now that seemed highly unlikely.

Before he had time to phone his small japan friend, this woman had demanded his attention.

Regina seemed to be a powerful empath who was in good control of her abilities.

He had never heard of transformation before. Maybe that was why the hunger had hit him so hard. So he had turned away in order to regain control.

Sylar thought of something else. That had helped him a lot in the past. At first it hadn´t been easy, but as time passed he had gotten better.

So… this was another planet or world?

He was still trying to wrap his head around it.

Because he had no better idea he reached for his phone and dialed Hiro´s number.

There was no signal. Of course not. This was a damn other world or planet or whatever.

He swore, wanting to just throw his phone away. He took a deep breath, focused, than turned back to Regina. She was watching him carefully.

"Tell me more about other worlds." He demanded.

She shrugged. "There are many worlds. In some magic existed, in others it doesn´t. It´s difficult to travel between them."

She looked at him, sharply.

"That´s why you must be lying. You say you´re from earth, but there magic doesn´t exist."

"It´s called ability and I´m beginning to suspect that your-" he gestured with his hands. "-magic and my ability are something completely different."

He should have known earlier.

Regina had done magic before he had shown his power. Of course there was the possibility that she had gotten the abilities from someone else, but her "magic" had felt different.

Sylar should stop offering his help, Regina seemed indeed to be in control of it, and would only be going to burn him in order to prove it to him.

He looked at her again. Regina didn´t appear alien like he would imagined. Not that he had thought much about the appearance of magicians.

In fact she looked normal. Expensive clothes if anything. She was pretty with dark eyes and dark hair. Although she was rather small she appeared strong.

Sylar made a mentally note to be careful. Perhaps magic could have brought him here, after all, who knew what witches did in their free time.

Now Regina was looking at him calculating, distrustfully.

Sylar still wanted her to be his ally. Even if she was the one who brought him here, which he doubted, she could still be useful.

"Ok, shall we?" he asked.

"And for what would I need your help?" Regina wanted to know. She looked at him arrogantly. Her tone indicated that she was used to people doing as she demanded.

"Well, your majesty-"his arrogant tone matched hers. "- for starters: the "path" you chose just leads further into the forest, whereas this path-"Sylar pointed to a different one. The one he had headed for from the beginning. "-will eventually lead to a town."

"Okay smartass, how do you?" Regina replied, crossing her arms. She clearly didn´t believe him.

He smirked. "Well… the path has been used repeatedly, can´t you see that?" he explained, rolling his eyes. "-and the trees are standing further away from each other, then the ones over there.-" Sylar gestured along the clearing. "If you would look really closely you would see the smoke- it could be from a city." In fact he had just heard noises that indicated a city. He came up with the rest while talking.

Regina glared at him. "Or maybe it´s just burning trees."

"Yes, or a burning city." He countered.

Regina sighed, finally giving in.

"Ok. Let´s go."