Shella Duncan

**Shella Duncan** is the sister of Sarah Duncan, suffering from a strange curse.

## Story

### Against the Tapestry

Shella Duncan's existence seems to be eerily incompatible with Sarah's own; in whatever Timeline where Shella is born, Sarah isn't, or tragically dies soon after her birth, and the reverse is also true. In a selected timeline where Shella was the one alive, as a policewoman she investigated a string of disappearances alongside Ann-Lise Adler, managing to destroy the stone that tethered the Ongash Abomination and save the small village of Ongash from its influence.

However, this resulted in Shella being grievously scarred by the incident, both psychologically and physically due to the explosion she used to destroy said stone. In her state, most of her bones broken and her face greatly burned, she retired from active police life. In that state, she was brought to the Cheshire Isle by the main timeline's Sarah, who healed her, and found by Devos Raines, who quickly embraced her present by his side.

### Another Point of View

Another Timeline retells Shella's story as the daughter of Caroline Duncan, born with a grievous illness that would eventually cause her death. Unable to stand it, or to possess the financial assets to prolong her life, Caroline chose to end Shella's life mercifully. However, instead, her grandfather Ricky Duncan ended up adopting her, disguising Shella as the servant Rita.

Shella eventually came to resent Caroline and seek to destroy her life after seeing Caroline pregnant with Sarah Duncan. Teaming up with a dying Ricky, and using Ricky's incredible wealth due to his discovery of the element Pandorium as a resource, Shella managed to craft the perfect crime, seeking to slaughter the entire Duncan family and blame it on Caroline. While she succeeded in many timelines, her attempts resulting in Pandora's creation, whom Justice Preston eventually stopped, rescuing Caroline from the sea of probabilities and ending Shella's slaughter.

## Appearance

Shella is a silver-haired woman with dark blue eyes, dressed in a standard black and blue policewoman's uniform. After the accident, she was grievously scarred, with most of her bones broken, although Sarah eventually healed her.

## Personality

Although Shella shares Sarah's determination and temper, she is much more structured in her mentality, with a strong sense of justice and progress. After being exposed to the Dark Tapestry, she suffered from post-traumatic stress, with only Devos truly managing to reach her in order to help her break free from her trauma. She is much more loving with Devos, although she can sometimes be annoyed by his exceedingly dramatic and playful behavior, and is very much the rational part of the couple.

## Powers

* **Gift of Prophecy:** Shella possesses the power to view glimpses of the future through prophetic dreams, most likely tied to Sarah's powers.

## Storylines

* Call of Cthulhu : Pharaoh's Bride features her as a central protagonist.
* Pandora's Truth features her as Pandora's material avatar.

## Trivia

* Shella's name is derived from Cecilia and means "blinded".
* The reason of her intimate tie with Sarah's fate is unknown. It has been hypothesized that the pair were parasitic twins - with one dying in order for the other to live - but it isn't yet sure whenever this is a medical fact, or metaphysical rule.
	+ This was elaborated in Pandora's Truth, although it is unknown whether this justification stands only for the specific Chessboard or is a more general truth.
* She also has a Paradox version in Paradox Shella.