The Portal

As he exited the cave, David could see at least thirty men dressed in full tactical gear, and even some small military vehicles with massive guns attached to the top of them. All of them were pointing their guns at David, who had his hands up as he slowly walked closer to Ferguson and his man. The old man was surprised to see David, mostly because he looked exactly the same as he did the very first time they had met a few decades earlier.

“Hello, Mr. Ferguson.” David said, “It’s been a while.”

“For me maybe,” the old man replied, “But you haven’t aged a day.”

“Feels like yesterday to me,” David recalled.

“I bet it was,” Ferguson said, giving off a light chuckle.

“Care to explain why you’re trespassing on my land?” David asked.

“This is all yours?” Ferguson asked.

“It’s my family’s land.” David informed him, “It’s been ours for generations and my brother is the current owner of everything around here for quite some ways. That means you’re all trespassing. I asked you to identify yourself and present a warrant. Upon failure to do so after being warned, I was within my rights to defend my family and my property. So, the only one standing on the legal high ground is yours truly.”

“We’ll be willing to leave you and your brother alone,” Ferguson said, “As long as you tell us where the time machine is.”

“Why do you want this thing so bad?” David asked, playing along with the old man’s assumption that it was a machine.

“The ability to travel through time is a gift,” Ferguson replied, “It’s not fair for a small group of people, one family no less, to hog all its privileges for themselves! Could you imagine the miracles we could do with that machine?”

“I can imagine the horrors and evils it could do in the wrong hands.” David countered, “Power corrupts, so what makes you think someone who has no respect for the rule of law would do anything beneficial with it for the rest of mankind?”

“You dare deny us the chance to use this?” Ferguson roared at him.

“It’s not mine to deny,” David retorted.

“Are you referring to your brother?” Ferguson asked.

“I’m referring to the device itself.” David informed the old man, “The Portal itself selects who can and cannot travel.”

“You’re lying,” Ferguson said, “I want to see the machine. Let me into the house so I can see it for myself!”

“It’s not in the house.” David corrected him, “It’s behind me, in the cave.”

“Why is it in the cave?” Ferguson asked.

“It’s been there since the very beginning,” David informed him. “Tell your men to stand down and I’ll show it to you.”

“You’re serious, aren’t you?” Ferguson said, “How will you convince me that you’re telling the truth.”

“The proof you need is in there.” David assured him, “But I will only allow you to see it. Everyone else has to stay out.”

The old man turned to the armored trooper beside him, “Fall back.”

“Sir,” the trooper replied, “Are you sure you can trust him?”

“This is the first time he’s ever been honest with me,” Ferguson answered, “He’s going to show me the machine. I want to see it.”

David reached out his hand, “Then come with me, Ferguson.”

David and Ferguson slowly walked up to the edge of the cave and as they did, David helped him up the small incline just before the edge of the cave.

“All I’m offering is the truth,” David said to the old man, stealing a line from one of his favorite movies. “I can’t promise you’ll like what you see.”

“I understand,” Ferguson said, “Lead the way, young man.”

As they walked into the cave, David led Ferguson to the middle where Ricky was standing. There was a pinkish orb of energy around his brother, and he was standing there in silence, literally in another world.

“What is he doing?” Ferguson asked, looking at Ricky.

“He’s time traveling.” David answered.

“How do you do this?” Ferguson asked, “Where does this energy field come from?”

“It’s all in the cave,” David explained to him. “We stand here and close our eyes and think of a time and place we want to be. If the cave, or the Portal as we call it, agrees to our request then a bright light will appear at the back of the cave and roll towards us like a runaway train. When it hits us, that’s how this is formed. We are sent to the time and place we asked for and we stay there for forty-eight hours.”

“So, where is he right now?” Ferguson asked.

“He’s still here in the cave,” David answered, “You see the Portal animates what we call an astral projection. That projection is what gets sent out to the time we ask for, while our real body stays here in the cave.”

“That’s why you didn’t die at the hospital,” Ferguson said, thinking about it more. “We shot your projection, not your actual body.”

“That’s correct,” David said, “After I was shot, I returned here to the cave and woke up, unharmed.”

“Did it still hurt?” the old man asked.

“It sure did,” David confirmed, “I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.”

“Where is his projection right now?” Ferguson asked.

“I’m not sure,” David lied, “He’s been in here for a while, oblivious to what’s been going on outside.”

“Amazing,” Ferguson said as he admired the pink orb around Ricky. “He could literally be anywhere.”

“Pretty much,” David confirmed, “But it doesn’t work for everyone.”

“How do you know?” the old man asked, “Have you tried to let someone else give it a go?”

“Not me personally,” David replied, “But I was told by my brother and other family members that the portal only responds to members of my Dad’s side of the family and no one else.”

“What if they were lying?” Ferguson snapped back, “Just to keep this amazing portal all for themselves?”

“That’s entirely possible,” David conceded, “I never tried to let someone else use it to see what would happen.”

“Can I try then?” The old man asked.

“You’re here,” David said, “I can’t see why not. Just stand at least ten feet away from my brother, right over here. If you guys bump into one another, it could cause problems or might even harm you.”

“Alright,” Ferguson said as he moved to the spot indicated. “What now?”

“Close your eyes,” David continued, “Think of the time and the place you want to be and if the Portal accepts your request, you’ll feel a huge breeze hit your body and that will take you to your desired location.”

“Let’s give this a go,” Ferguson said, excited to give it a try. He stood there and closed his eyes and then began to concentrate about when and where he wanted to go. David took a few steps back just in case the Portal actually let Ferguson have his way, but after waiting there for a few minutes the conclusion was pretty obvious. Ferguson opened his eyes and turned around to face David, a tear rolling down his eye.

“I’m sorry,” David said to him, “I don’t make the rules.”

“Why does it only work for you?” Ferguson asked, green with envy.

“I have no idea,” David told him, “I didn’t even want any of this, I was just born into it.”

“This is such bullshit,” Ferguson said, as David could sense his anger.

“There’s still a chance.” David said, trying to calm him down. “You still might be able to make your trip.”

“Explain,” Ferguson said, willing to hear him out.

“This is only something my brother recently discovered,” David started to explain, “There a chance that my father and all the travelers before him had no idea we could do this.”

“Keep going,” The old man said, his patience wearing thin.

“If you hold onto my hand, I can take you there with me,” David told him, “Just tell me the date and place you were thinking of and I’ll give it a try. This kind of travel is not allowed and is considered very dangerous but I’m willing to risk it if you are.”

“You’d do that for me?” Ferguson said, surprised.

“I said I’m willing to try,” David confirmed, “Just tell me where, and when, you want to go.”

“Alright,” Ferguson said, as the temptation was too great. “I want to go to East Valley retirement home in Baltimore, in the year 1935.”

“What’s over there?” David asked.

“My mother,” Ferguson replied, “I never had a chance to say good bye, and I just wanted to see her one more time before my own time is up.”

“Alright, Ferguson.” David said, reaching out his hand to the old man, “Let’s give this a go. Take my hand and whatever you do, don’t let go.”

Ferguson took David hands and David started to think about the date. Moments later a light started to form at the back at the cave and Ferguson’s face lit up with excitement as he saw it coming.

“It’s working!” he called out.

“Close your eyes!” David ordered, “And don’t let go of my hand!”

David and the old man stood there with their eyes closed as the light from the Portal barreled down the tunnel at them and when the hard breeze brushed over their bodies, they were suddenly in another time and place.

When David and Ferguson opened their eyes, they were not only in a new time and place, but a different country as well.

“Where the hell are we?” the old man cried out.

“Definitely not Baltimore,” David said as he looked around.

When he looked around, they were surrounded by Asian people, most of whom were at least a foot shorter than David. Most of them were looking at him with a face of disgust, which gave him the impression they were not welcome, wherever they were.

“Are we in China?” Ferguson asked, looking around.

“I think we’re in Japan,” David guessed, “We are so far off the reservation it’s not funny.”

“How did this happen?” Ferguson demanded.

“I said this was dangerous!” David chided back, “Be thankful we didn’t land in the age of dinosaurs or the middle of a Roman battlefield.”

“Where in Japan are we?” Ferguson continued, “What year is this?”

“I’m not sure,” David lied, “I don’t speak Japanese.”

“Why are they looking at me?” Ferguson asked.

“We just appeared out of nowhere,” David offered, “Chances are they’re wondering where we came from. Let’s walk away before we draw more attention to ourselves.”

David and Ferguson walked a few blocks until they came across what looked like a park so they walked inside it to get away from the crowds. Ferguson was getting tired so he found a park bench and sat himself down.

“How long are we trapped here?” the old man asked.

“Two days,” David explained, “The portal will pull us out after forty-eight hours and then we’ll wake up in the cave as if it were a dream.”

“And then can we try again?” Ferguson asked.

“I guess we could,” David said, humoring the old man. “Are you sure you want to risk it? We could go off course and land somewhere else that could be more dangerous or could kill us.”

“Wait a second,” Ferguson said, as he heard something. “More dangerous? Does that mean this place is dangerous to us?”

David smiled, “It probably is.”

“Explain it to me,” Ferguson ordered.

“I tried to think about your place,” David fibbed again, “But there’s a chance the portal rejected it because it was your idea and not mine. The portal then probably chose another place that I had thought about earlier. Like I said, you’re lucky I didn’t watch any dinosaur movies with the kids last night.”

“Where the hell are we?” Ferguson yelled at David, his patience thinning.

David paused for a moment. “Hiroshima.”

Ferguson looked back up at David, his face trembling. “What’s the date?”

“August sixth... nineteen forty-five,” David answered.

“You son of a bitch,” Ferguson said as he stood up, “You’ve killed us both! We’ve got to run for cover!”

“You won’t make it,” David replied, “Don’t even bother trying.”

“Why not?” Ferguson replied.

“Look over there,” David said, pointing to a small structure. “Do you see that small building?”

“What about it?” Ferguson asked, frustrated to see David wasn’t worried about anything that was about to happen.

“That’s the Shima Surgical Clinic,” David explained, “The intended target was the Aioi bridge, but crosswinds caused this clinic to take a direct hit. We’re less than fifty feet from ground zero. The moment we arrived, the Enola Gay was already in the air. She’s going to drop her payload in less than a few minutes.”

“Why would you do this?” the old man cried out at him. “Are you suicidal?”

“You haven’t been paying attention,” David said, “I’m not here. I’m in the cave, and so are you.”

“I remember!” Ferguson said, recalling what David told him. “Right now we’re both astral projections! That means after we die, we’ll be back in the cave?”

“I will be,” David said, “I can’t speak for you however.”

“What?” Ferguson said, confused. “Why not?”

“Because you’re not a member of my family!” David answered, “If you’re not in contact with me when we die, odds are you’re not coming back with me.”

Ferguson started to walk back towards David, eager to get his hands on him. David responded by pulling out the handgun he took from Ousla and shot the old man with two bullets, one shot going into each knee cap. The old man felt down and starting rolling on the ground in agony.

“You bastard!” Ferguson called out, “My men will kill both you and your brother if I don’t come out of that cave to call them off!”

“I’m afraid not,” David said, taking a few steps away from Ferguson so he wouldn’t be able to reach him. “You see my brother went back in time just before you entered the cave. He only went back a few hours, and appeared at the Marshal’s office to speak with my boss. That would give my boss and the state troopers more than enough time to raid the house and take your men out. They are going to be on orders to hold back until you and I enter the cave. By the time I walk out, all of your men will be either dead or arrested.”

“This is insane,” Ferguson cried out, “Why would you do this to me?”

“You tried to kill my brother!” David replied, “You tried to kill me and my boss! Your obsession with time travel and your mother is not worth other people’s lives! This is the end you deserve, so take in the last few minutes of your meager existence... because your end is near.”

Just as David said that, he looked behind him and could see the single plane flying over the city.

“There she is,” David said, talking more steps away from the old man, “The Enola Gay. I’m not going to lie to you Ferguson; this is going to make the bullet wound I took outside the hospital feel like a walk in the park. I have no doubt that I’m going to be hurting for a few weeks, at least.”

“You are a sick bastard,” Ferguson said, “And a liar! You said you’d never wish this upon your worst enemy.”

“You’re right, I did lie.” David confirmed, “Because I would wish this upon any person who tries to take a shot at me and my family!”

David looked up and there it was, little boy was being deployed. The small bomb flying through the air and being curved off its target by the crosswinds, cruising down towards it target.

“It’s going to detonate in the air,” David told him, “Somewhere around hundred and fifty feet for maximum spread if what I read in the history books was correct.”

“This isn’t right!” Ferguson called out, trying to crawl towards him. David was still more than twenty feet away from Ferguson and he watched as the old man still tried to slither closer, but he was clearly out of time.

“Good bye Ferguson,” David said, giving the old man a half-assed salute. “Or should I say... Sayonara.”

“NO!!!!” Ferguson cried out, still crawling as the blast instantly consumed everything around them.