1 1. A Mysterious Red Portal

4 March 2017, 6:30 AM

It was a clear morning, the sun hadn't risen yet. The temperature started to rise after the winter. Early mongers started to wake.

In a room on the first floor of a house, a blanket was lying on the floor beside a bed. A boy around 20 years old was sleeping on the bed. His expression was like he was experiencing a nightmare. He was clenching the bedsheet tightly.

"ah"

Ajay suddenly sat up screaming. He was sweating very profusely, his shirt was drenched with sweat.

"That was a dream. What a realistic dream."

1st person POV

My name is Ajaypal Singh Sidhu. Everyone around me calls me Ajay generally. I am from the Punjab state of India. This state is an agrarian state. More than 90% of the total population farms. I am a civil engineer pass out from a semi-government college. I am preparing for civil exams since last year after graduation. Government jobs are more popular than a private job or starting a business.

This morning I had a strange dream. In the dream, I was struck by some strange bloody red coloured light and then it entered my body. I felt like it fused my body. It hurt like hell. It felt so real.

POV End

"Well, it was a strange dream."

Ajay sighed while sitting in a daze. He was thinking about the dream. Suddenly a voice from downstairs brought him from the daze.

"Ajay, what happened. Why are you screaming."

"Nothing mom, I had just a bad dream."

"Ok, well if you woke up. Wash up."

"OK, mom"

Ajay moved his legs and started to stand up. Suddenly a Red light came into his vision. He was startled and fell on his back on the bed.

"What the fuck is that"

He stared at the light. The Space about 5ft high and 3ft wide is fluctuating in front of him. It was like a black hole but with red colour. It looked like a portal.

Ajay stood up and went close to the portal cautiously. Suddenly he felt a severe headache. He bent his waist and kneeled on the floor and squeezed his head with his hands to relieve some pain. He felt like someone is hitting a hammer on his head. But after just a few seconds he felt that his headache is leaving. He still sat on the floor until the headache completely diminished.

"What is happening. This light and this headache."

Suddenly two words came into his mind. 'Open and Exit.'

Ajay felt a slight urge to say these two words.

"Well let's see what happen if I say. Open."

Ajay spoke the word lightly.

Suddenly a white light started to expand outwards from the centre in the red light.

Ajay went near the portal and tried to see in the portal.

A yellow desert came into his view. The only desert could be seen as you see.

Ajay was dumbfounded.

"The Punjab state is mostly plain area and desert is few hundred kilometres away from here. How come there is a desert here."

He went around the portal to see what was behind the port. Everything was normal except the portal. It was the same view of desert on the back of the portal.

Suddenly a wind came from the portal.

"Ah my eyes."

Ajay tried to close his eyes and use his arm to protect his eyes but was too late. The wind mixed with sand entered his eyes. He tried to massage his eyes to relieve some pain but in vain.

He opened the gate of his room and closed the gate so that no one entered his room. He was cautious due to the abnormality of the portal. He ran towards the bathroom and rinsed his eyes with water. After a few tries, he felt some relief.

He again went to his room and locked the gate. He turned around to see whether the portal was still here or not. The portal was still there but the room was full of sand. The bed, chair, table and even inside of his wardrobe, everything was covered in sand.

"What the fuck, now I have to clean the whole place."

" Why is this portal suddenly came out."

Ajay started to think as suddenly a thought came to his mind.

"That blood-red light was very similar to the light in the dream. It wouldn't be the same right?"

"Wait the sand from this desert came from the portal. I can also go to the other end. wait don't. Life is very precious If something happened to me, who will take care of my parents."

Ajay was a single child in the family.

"Let's test with something else first."

He looked around to find something to throw in the portal. A yellow tennis ball was on the table.

Ajay went and picked the ball and went in the front of the portal. He threw the ball lightly in the portal.

The ball went into the portal without any obstruction. It fell on the sand on the dune and started to roll on the dune and stopped after a few feet away and slightly sank into the sand.

" Well, the ball looks completely fine. Let's take a last test. Let's use the phone to the video the other side."

Ajay went towards his wardrobe and picked a selfie stick from it. He put the Samsung phone on the selfie stick. He opened the video recorder and fully opened the stick.

He gently started to drag the stick in the portal. The phone passed the portal. Ajay became slightly courageous and put the stick in the portal. The stick went into the portal. There wasn't any obstruction.

"Ajay, Did you wash up? Come down and eat some breakfast. I have to go to work."

The voice suddenly startle Ajay and he almost released the stick in fright. But he quickly held the stick tightly.

He sighed and cleaned his sweat from his forehead.

" Coming mom, Just 5 minutes."

Ajay quickly removed the stick from the portal. He looked at the stick and phone.

"It looks fine, just some sand and it felt slightly warm as compared to the room temperature due to sun on the other side."