The Rift
One day, Joseph laid awake in his bed thinking about a portal that had opened up that split the small town he lived in in half. He always wondered how it appeared, why it was there, and if he should go in. It was a unique occurrence even for his strange life. He figured that maybe he could get his friends to go in with him, should he make that decision. As he lay there, he thought "Why not?" It would be very fateful decision, however he didnât know it.
Later that day, he said to his friends while they were in advanced math class "You know that rift that opened up in the middle of town?"
His friend Leslie said "Ya, why?"
He answered âMaybe we should see inside.â
His other friend Luke said "No way. We got no idea whatâs behind there!"
As they continued back and forth for several minutes they came to a decision. They would go into the portal.
Later, after all their classes had been completed, they headed for the main boulevard that ran right through their small town. Once they got there, they readied themselves for the unknown. So they entered they rift, determined to find out whatâs behind it. The passage was fairly mundane, slight watery feeling, making them a little light-headed. When they got to the other side, everything seemed normal, just something felt odd. Maybe even out of place. They had several friends that lived on that side of town that hadnât come to school since the rift opened up, and the trio decided to see what may have become of their friends.
They soon were passing familiar stores, and then the baseball field where Luke practiced, the antique shop Leslie was at every Saturday with her father, then the church that Joseph went every other day. But even after all this, something was... odd. Something that the intrepid trio couldnât pinpoint, then it came to them. Everyone was gone. Everyone had disappeared somewhere. Finally, they came upon their friend Matt's house. They went up to the front door and knocked. Nothing. They knocked again. Once again, nothing. They tried the door knob and it was unlocked, so they entered the house. They found nobody home but an odd trap door that hadnât been there before. So they entered, determined to find their friend.
Once down there it was very dark, but just bright enough to make out objects. They studied the room that they were in for a few minutes, and then as if out of the blue, their friend Matt appeared. He was wondering who they were, as if he had never seen them before. So he asked "Who are you?" in a deeply disturbing watery voice. The friends kept quiet, so he asked again. He then came and grabbed Joseph and asked in a very demanding voice "Who are you?"
âNobody.â he said.
Then Matt did something very strange. He demanded that they follow him. So they followed. Eventually they started hearing odd sounds, like something was worshiping something else. They eventually got to the area where the former townspeople were worshiping. Then it came to them, and they thought amongst themselves. They had figured out what happened. The whole side of town went completely opposite. Matt used to have a very dry voice, now it sounds like he had drowned. The town used to be bustling on a sunny Thursday afternoon, and the caves under the streets hadn't been used in decades. Now everything had reversed itself, and it was all coming together. They figured out that their friends could very well be their enemies, and their former enemies could be their newfound friends. They knew that they were in grave danger, and they ran. Matt alerted the guards, and they chased after them.
The friends knew they were in grave danger, and used that as motivation to keep running. They ran, and they ran, and they ran some more. All until they got to a door. They bashed the door down with all their might and came upon the sewers. Then a flurry of "Ewwws" and "Yuks" came about. However, even the horrendous stench didnât keep Matt and the guards from trying to run them down. So they themselves kept on going, until they came upon a manhole that was uncovered. They jumped up on the ladder, and climbed out to the street. Unfortunately, they came out upon a part of town they were unfamiliar with. So they made a quick decision. They decided after 10 seconds of arguing that they would take Roseburg Boulevard north and keep running. It was the right decision, but they were a good distance from the rift.
Eventually the guards stopped and they were in the clear. Or so they thought. Matt had secretly been following them. They eventually slowed to a trot, then a walk. Eventually they came upon someone who they had never seen before. He saw them and asked if they could help him. He said that they were chasing him wanting to kill him. They decided to help him seeing as they were just in a similar situation. He asked if they could help him get out of town and they decided that he could come with them. It was at this moment Matt popped out of some trees and tried unsuccessfully to capture them. They fended him off but he got the person they had just met and he fled.
Several hours later they were approaching the rift hoping to get out before something really bad happened. Unfortunately, they wouldnât be so lucky.
They got to the rift, and as they were about to cross when Matt appeared out of the rift and attacked them. Several of the townspeople were with him and they started pelting them with rocks. Several rocks hit Luke in the head knocking him unconscious. They grabbed him and ran, with the townspeople hot on their trails. They ran alongside the rift until they could pass through. Then they passed through it with just seconds to spare. The townspeople were where they were in seconds, and if they wouldâve been caught, something very bad could've happened.
They got to the hospital were they dropped Luke off. When the nurse asked them what happened, they said he fell. They had no intention of telling anybody what had happened, and they kept that secret until the rift closed several months later.
THE END
Not my best, but I think it's good for being a 'come up with it as I go' kind of story.
