Chapter 4
Dr. Abernathy watched as the machine he'd worked on for so long began to crumble before him. There was no way he could save it. It was going to explode.
"Get Down!" he yelled, shoving Dr. Grant down to the floor. In the instant he did so, he saw someone else in the room with him. A young man had been hiding behind the machine and was making a run for it.
Abernathy went to speak, to tell the boy to get behind something. But before he could... disaster. The portal exploded before his eyes. The vortex shot out from it, and Abernathy watched as it completely enveloped the young man, sending him into whatever place the world changer had selected before the catastrophe.
Minutes past and the dust began to settle around the shattered lab. Dr. Abernathy, with fear in his eyes, slowly looked around what remained. The portal was destroyed, a pile of steel and ash. The room was blackened, covered in the remains of the Vortex. Worst of all, the boy they Abernathy saw was now nowhere to be seen.
Abernathy didn't know what to think. So much was going through his mind. His last chance in becoming the greatest scientist the ever lived was gone. Worse, he may have just killed a poor young man. How did he get in here in the first place? This was supposed to be top secret.
That didn't matter. What mattered here was that he had unwillingly sent someone into a completely different world. He didn't
want this. He wanted his invention to help people. Not condemn them. There was only one way.
He had to find the boy. He had to bring him back.
"ABERNATHY!"
Abernathy turned toward the voice, only to be met with the face of a very angry Dr. Grant. His face was completely red, it seemed as though steam could come out of his ears at any moment.
"Sir, something has happened. There was a boy, and.."
"Do I look like I care?! You said that this... thing... would be in working condition! Now look at it, it's a pile of scrap metal!"
Abernathy tried to reason with him. "Sir please, listen to me. We have to help him!"
Grant didn't seem to listen. "All of the money that we gave you to make this! Gone! This is the last straw Dr. Abernathy!"
"No, please sir, You don't understa.."
"I completely understand. Your a failure Doctor. We put our trust in your skills and you've failed us! Your Fired!"
Abernathy was stunned.
"Sir... we have to help him."
Dr. Grant seemed to stare into his soul
"Help...Who..."
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The vortex drew closer and closer with every passing second. I braced myself for what lied ahead. Wherever this is taking me, it sure is a lot better than here. Closer... closer...
Three...Two...One...
I Shot out of the vortex like a bullet into the clear blue sky. The air immediately changed. It felt a lot warmer. Though I couldn't really check for sure due to me still falling. In fact, I felt as though I was falling... forwards.
I looked down.
I was miles above the ground below
No! NOOO!
More falling. This time, towards the ground. Now, I began to scream. Due to the turbulence around me, I didn't get too far with it. I was only able to get out a few screams before my throat closed up. I was falling a lot faster now. The ground getting closer and closer.
OK... THIS... is how I die.
It was a strange thought. After what had just happened, with the near death experience, I was going to die anyway. I guess whatever luck I had when I first started had finally run out. I began to think of my family. They will have no idea what happened. to me. I don't think that whoever was running that machine saw me. They will think that I just... vanished. Never to be seen again. The thought just killed me. Maybe they will discover my body, recognize it as me, and bring it to them. Ohh, who am I kidding, at this height, my body will be completely unrecognizable. I will just be a lump of broken bones and flesh. The thought made me gag on the inside.
I watched though squinted, tear struck eyes and the ground grew ever closer. From what I could see, I was gonna fall into a field of trees, with a big red barn directly north of them.
My body's gonna be found by a farmer!? This is just PERFECT!
BAM
I was suddenly grabbed by... something... in the sky. I could feel something underneath my arms, trying to lift me up, but whatever It was behind me, I could tell that they was struggling.
"Man, your heavier than you look!"
That voice... It sounded familiar. Someone was trying to save me. How did they know I was falling in the first place. Its not like I announced my presence. I tried to look back at who was helping me, but I was still frozen in fear. All that I could see was... two... things under my arms. They were a light blue, cyan really. They looked like arms, but they didn't have hands. Just what looked like...
Hooves
"Yeah, There no way I'm lifting ya."
There was a pause.
"That hay bale looks soft enough."
Wait? WHAT!
I was dropped.
Arms flailing, I began to scream again! This time, when I looked down, instead of a forest of trees, there was a large stack of hay in my path. It wasn't long before I was about to hit. I braced for impact. Going into a fetal position.
THUD