“Maybe. But this is pretty disturbing. I mean, they could have just said something to us instead of following us around like that. Not only do we have terrifying evil aliens for neighbors—now we have terrifying evil aliens who are unhappy with us. I told you it was a stupid idea to go over there.”
“I don’t think they’re aliens, Brady. And they’re probably not evil.”
“Whatever. I’m not going anywhere near there.”
Felix nodded. For once, the brothers were in agreement.
Chapter 7: Nocturnal SOS
WEEKS HAD PASSED since they had seen the strangers come through the door, and things were starting to get back to normal. Their mysterious neighbors had made their point very clear—they wanted to be left alone—and Brady and Felix were more than happy to oblige. It was the Friday night before school started, and Brady’s anxiety about the neighbors had been replaced by the dread of homework. The boys were hunkered in their beds, asleep, while a heavy rain battered the windows.
Buzz… Buzz… Buzz…
Brady stirred, but the sound of the rain lulled him back to sleep. His eyes were just starting to close when he heard it again.
Buzz… Buzz… Buzz…
Yawning, he glanced over and saw his phone rattling across his nightstand. The alarm clock was off. He knew too well what that meant: the power had gone out again. He felt his stomach churn.
Buzz… Buzz… Buzz…
He grabbed his phone and held it at arm’s length so his eyes could focus.
There was a new message waiting for him—from an anonymous sender. That’s strange. The phone was supposed to filter out messages from people he didn’t know. His mind went back to the player dressed in black from Voxelverse.
Brady shuddered and clicked on the message. A single word was waiting for him.
Window.
His mind raced and he looked expectantly across his room. Behind the curtains, the window flashed, followed by the sound of rolling thunder.
Brady placed the phone back on the nightstand and walked over to his window.
He slowly pulled the curtains back.
At first he saw nothing but the rain streaking down the glass pane. He took a deep breath. See, he thought, nothing to worry about.
But then, through the downpour, he spotted it. Two glowing eyes were staring back at him from the corner of his yard.
A chill ran down Brady’s spine.
The mechanical creature was shrouded in silvery mist, making the fiery eyes appear to float above the ground like disembodied embers. They burned with a supernatural intensity.
The rush of terror nearly knocked him off his feet.
It had come here tonight.
It had come to his house.
For him.
Another bolt of lightning lit up the sky, and Brady could see the dark form of the massive creature—waiting.
Was it possible that the creature had sent him the message just now? Was the girl waiting for him as well? What did they want?
Brady’s head was spinning. He grabbed the curtains, pulled them shut, and stepped to the side, pressing his back against the wall. His pulse quickened, as did his breathing. As he looked around the room, he almost expected to find the creature there waiting for him, ready to tear him apart.
Get ahold of yourself. Felix is right; if it had wanted to hurt us, it could have done so. Don’t be a chicken.
He slapped his forehead. It’s just a dream, he thought. It has to be.
Slowly he turned back to the window. His hands trembled this time as he slid the curtains back open, inch by slow inch.
The machine was still there.
Without knowing what to do, Brady stood frozen at the window. The dog’s eyes stared up at the boy; they grew brighter the longer Brady focused on them.
Buzz…
His phone buzzed again. Brady hesitated a few seconds before walking over and reluctantly taking a look. Again, a single word waited for him.
Help.
Help? If the creature was actually speaking to him, it had a cryptic way of doing so.
Phone in hand, he walked back over to the window. He thought about it for a second, then held up the device so the dog could see it.
The canine slowly twisted its head in the direction of the fence, then back to face Brady. It was motioning for him to come outside, into the storm.
Brady considered the request for a second. It looked awful outside—both the rain and the dog. And he was nice and dry in here, not to mention safe. His mom and brother were sound asleep just a few doors down.
And just when he had started thinking he could put everything behind him, this dog had shown up in his back yard.
What is going on?
Brady quickly realized that going back to sleep wasn’t an option. He knew the machine would wait for him. But at least it was outside. He would have to deal with it before his mom caught wind of what was happening.
He grabbed a crumpled t-shirt from the floor and pulled it over his head. Then he tiptoed down the hall and snuck into Felix’s room. If he was going outside, there was no way he was going alone.
Felix was sound asleep and snoring loudly. Brady whispered loudly into his brother’s ear, “Felix! Felix—get up! It’s here.”
“What the heck?” Felix groaned and pushed his brother away.
“Remember the robot dog?”
“That’s great…” Felix muttered nonsensically, turning over in his bed.
Brady ripped the sheets off his brother. “Get up, Felix! The dog. It’s here!”
“At our house? Are you sure you’re not sleepwalking?” Felix grumbled.
“Of course I’m sure. It’s right outside my window. It texted me.”
“The dog sent you a text? Now I know you’re dreaming. Get out of here!”
“It said something about needing help.”
“Help?” Felix asked, finally waking up.
“That’s what it said. I’m not sure what it means.”
“Is the girl with it?”
“It’s raining, so it’s hard to see anything, but I don’t think so. I think the dog needs us for something. Just get up. We’re going outside.”
10010110
The night air was heavy from the humidity, and the hard rain continued to fall. A thick layer of clouds covered the night sky like a gray blanket; there was no moon to light the way.
Brady looked back toward his mom’s room, hoping they hadn’t woken her on their way outside. Her light was still off, so she was probably still asleep.
The dog had not moved from its position. The glowing eyes turned their gaze to the two boys as they approached. The canine appeared even more threatening up close, with metallic ribs that formed a cage around its wide torso. Steam from the rain rose off the back of the machine.
“This thing is incredible,” said Felix, walking around the creature to get a better look. He reached out a hand to touch it, but the dog quickly jumped back and growled.
“Way to go, Felix. I think you upset him.”
Felix nodded and lowered his head. “Sorry, whatever your name is.”
The growling ceased.
“Now what?” Brady asked the creature. He found it odd to be speaking to a dog, but it wasn’t the strangest thing that had happened to him this summer.
Its eyes narrowed, and the dog turned and began walking toward the fence. It paused after a few paces and looked back expectantly at the boys.
“It wants us to follow it,” said Felix.
Brady shuddered at the thought. “No way. We should have learned our lesson the first time. Something awful happens every time we go back there.”
“You said it needed our help, right? We need to at least see what it wants. I think we owe it that much.”
“Of course we do,” Brady replied, sarcastically.
Felix turned to face the dog. “Before we go—what’s your name?”
Brady shook his head. How was the creature supposed to answer?<
br />
As if in answer to his unspoken question, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He grabbed the device and held it up for Felix to see.
Achilles.
Felix called to the creature. “Okay, Achilles, we’re ready to go.”
The boys stepped forward, cautiously at first, but then raced to catch up as the canine quickened its pace. They were at the fence before they knew it.
“Where to now?” Brady wondered aloud when the beast stopped. Then, in one fluid motion, the dog crouched back on its hind legs and leapt high into the night sky, easily clearing the top of the fence. Mud sprayed in all directions as the creature slammed down on the other side.
Felix was starry-eyed as the metallic hound extracted its paws from the ground and stood tall. “That was incredible! Did you see that?”
“I’m standing right here. I just hope it’s on our side.”
“Would you quit with that? If it wanted to hurt us it could have done it along time ago. Come on. It’s our turn to climb over now.”
“Fine.” Brady started climbing over the fence. “But this is asking for trouble,” he muttered under his breath as his fingers curled around the next link up.
“What was that?” Felix asked.
“Nothing.”
As the brothers climbed down the other side of the fence, Achilles started to walk briskly again. The boys sprinted to catch up.
And then they saw it. The brilliant door of flame burning in the distance. It had moved since the last time they had seen it, but its appearance hadn’t changed.
Achilles continued straight to the blue portal and stopped just a few feet away from it. He then turned to look back at Felix and Brady, who were still a good distance behind him.
“I—I think Achilles actually wants us to go through,” Brady said, nervously.
“I guess that’s why he brought us here. There’s something on the other side he wants us to see.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of. We have no idea what’s on the other side of that door.”
Felix and Brady continued forward. As soon as they reached Achilles, the dog looked at the door, then back at Felix.
Felix took a step closer and carefully touched the light. The tip of his finger disappeared as it passed through the gateway. “It feels kind of cold.” He pulled his finger back—fortunately it was still whole. “I think it’s safe. I’m going through.”
Brady envisioned his brother diving through and falling into a bottomless pit, completely helpless without him on the other side. He grabbed his brother’s arm to hold him back. “Wait a second. The three of us should go through together.”
Felix nodded, and Achilles wagged his skeletal tail.
And with that, Brady, Felix, and Achilles stepped through the light and left their world behind.
Chapter 8: Rescue
BRADY CLOSED HIS EYES, balled his fists tightly, and walked toward the portal. As he took his first step into the light, he expected to be whisked along a celestial tunnel through the stars. But he never left the ground. Instead, he felt a slight pressure that pushed ever slightly against his skin like an invisible membrane. And then the sensation was gone—the bubble had burst.
He took another step.
The rain stopped.
Brady opened his eyes and saw Achilles and Felix standing next to him. They were side by side inside a dark room, with only their flickering shadows, cast by the portal behind them, there to greet them.
The canine wasted no time and started toward an exit at the far end of the room. As the dog approached, a metal door slid back to reveal a tunnel that stretched into murky darkness.
Felix wrung the rain out of his shirt and the water splashed down on the grimy metal floor. “Now what? Where are we?”
Achilles took a few steps into the tunnel and angled his head downward. A plate slid back on his head, and a small scope protruded through the opening. Once in position, the scope unleashed dozens of micro-thin lasers that formed a red lattice across the tunnel walls. The rays of light scanned up and down several times before dissolving altogether.
Then a spotlight shot out from the scope, carving a bright path through the gloom. At least they could now see where they were going.
The boys exchanged a worried glance, then shrugged. We’ve come this far…
The door grinded shut behind them as they followed Achilles into the long passage. The walls were made of concrete, with iron arches buttressing the ceiling along the way. The moldy passage had no windows to provide relief from the claustrophobia that was setting in. The air felt sour, sickly.
Achilles took slow, cautious steps forward through the tunnel. The brothers followed closely behind, their own steps echoing down the corridor. The floor gradually sloped downward. As they walked, Felix took his phone out of his pocket and pressed the power button a few times. He was dismayed when the black screen stared back at him, empty.
“Something’s messing with my phone here. It’s completely dead.”
Brady tried his phone as well, but it, too, failed to turn on.
“There goes our only way of talking to Achilles,” Brady replied.
“I’m sure he’ll figure out another way.” Felix slid his phone back into his pocket.
They continued to follow Achilles until at last they saw an intersection up ahead. Suddenly Achilles stopped in his tracks. The dog’s ears and tail stood straight up, and his eyes narrowed to slits. He was leaning forward and growling softly. Something was wrong.
Realizing something was up, the boys froze as well. Achilles extinguished the light from the scope, and they waited nervously in the pitch black. Seconds later they heard it: a low, guttural noise coming from somewhere far down the side tunnel. The sound was full of despair and reverberated like a lonely whale song from the coldest, darkest reaches of the sea. It started out faint, but gradually got louder, nearer.
Brady and Felix huddled close together behind Achilles, who continued to stand guard. As the noise grew closer, the boys could hear something else. Something unpleasant. It sounded like metal brushing against the ground, sliding and scraping.
Soon it seemed like the creature was so close that only a few feet of darkness separated them from the source of the terrible noise. Brady clutched one of Achilles’ armor plates: it was all he could do to stop from screaming.
At last the scraping passed, and the noise receded. The creature, or whatever it was, had crossed the intersection and was now moving away from them on its path down the adjoining corridor.
After another minute, Achilles turned the light back on and moved forward slowly. For a creature his size, he was surprisingly quiet. Brady and Felix were now much more careful about keeping their own footsteps quiet as well.
They continued down another short stretch of tunnel until they reached an archway that opened into a larger room. Green beams ran back and forth across the opening.
Achilles stopped in front of the beams, then turned to face Brady and Felix. The canine shook his head slowly.
Felix looked confused. “What? We can’t go any further? Well we can’t just turn around!”
Achilles bent his head down to shine the light on his leg. Another plate folded back, this time revealing a small canister. The dog looked up at Brady, then back down at the canister.
“He wants you to take it, Brady.”
Brady retrieved the canister from Achilles’ leg. It was about the size and shape of a spray can.
Achilles turned back to face the room; he whined and scratched the floor with his paw.
“He wants us to go in there,” Felix said.
“Yeah, I got that, thanks. But I’m not going through those green beams. It reminds me of a security system from the movies. We’ll walk through it and alarms will start going off.”
Achilles let out a loud cry, and his scratching grew more intense. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard, and it only got worse as the boys stood there deliberating. The canine was clearly anxious about something.
Finally, impulsively, Felix stood up and walked straight through the beams as if nothing could hurt him. Brady held his breath, waiting for sudden flashing lights or the sound of an alarm.
Nothing happened.
“See? It’s safe.”
Brady exhaled like a deflating balloon and reluctantly walked into the room after his brother.
He turned back to Achilles, who stood there with orange eyes glowing in the darkness of the tunnel. “Your turn, Achilles. Come on!”
Achilles whined louder, but at least the scratching had stopped.
“I don’t think he can,” Felix said. “Maybe that’s why he needed our help. He can’t get past those beams without setting the alarm off.”
“Why not?”
“I have no idea.”
Achilles stopped crying for a second and stared at the boys.
Felix and Brady turned and looked around the room. Unlike the tunnel, the room was dimly lit, and piles of crates were littered about haphazardly on the floor. The crates looked just like the ones strapped onto Achilles’ back the first time the boys had seen him.
And then they saw her.
Standing in the far corner of the room was the girl from the woods. Her head was turned to the side, and her long black hair floated in space. Thin with dark skin, she looked to be a few years older than Brady. She wore a gray t-shirt and blue jeans. Her eyes were wide and her mouth open, like she was in the middle of saying something. She held one of the crates in front of her.
But she wasn’t moving.
“It’s the girl from the forest,” Brady said, stunned.
“She’s frozen,” Felix added. “I—I think we’re here to help her.”
“How are we supposed to do that?”
“Well, we can’t do anything from here,” Felix retorted, and he started to cross the room. Brady followed.
As they came nearer, they noticed that something else was wrong. The air around the girl rippled and distorted, like hot air rising off pavement on a desert road. The closer they came, the blurrier she appeared.
And there was something else. Something was spinning around the girl, although it was moving too quickly for them to tell what it was. Brief flashes of light streaked by as the object circled.
The Quantum Door Page 6
