When Time Stopped

Chapter 9

Crashing to the floor their hearts reduce to cuts and bruises. Each get up with the speed of a sloth as their eyes adjust to the planned layout of their end. Lights are dim as the walls have our words carve a sentence that loops around them, only breaking up to allow room for a portal to dominate the colours that are absent from their eyes.

"Is this...?" BigB start, eyes wide.

"Yeah... this is the first portal." Martyn murmurs.

"From Evo? How come it's here?" Pearl exclaims, stretching her sore limbs.

"Who knows, but it looks like they've added  a bit more decoration this time." BigB chuckles, poking the precious plants.

"First portal?" Scott asks.

"Yeah, it's similar to the first portal they showed us in Evo..." Grian explain, running his hand long the words.

Taking a step back he's able to read our language, " 'Green fades to red as your minds repeat once again. Forget the present and eyes can close, forget the past and hearts shall stop still.' Not threatening at all."

"What could it mean?" Pearl asks, touching the cold wall she looks down at her wrist, "Geez!" She suddenly exclaims.

Every stares at her confused before each look at their demise circling their wrists.

"Three minutes left?!" BigB half shouts, "How has that much time past?"

"I'm guessing the fall took longer than we realised." Scott reasons, "but we need to do something quick." He looks towards Martyn who's staring at the portal.

Grian walks closer to the glowing entrance as Pearl mutter a truth they all know, "We have to enter it, and I doubt it'll lead to the Nether."

A nod from our own sets their fear in stone, their bodies stay still as their eyes glare at the shimmering purple. We cannot say for sure, but it seems like none of them want to go through those games again... apart from Scott who makes his way up the sandstone stairs, stopping at the entrance he turns back to the rest.

"There's no point worrying about it- and anyway, what else are we going to do?" He states, smiling sweetly before running into the swirling purple.

A ping is heard as the message 'Scott left the game' appears in bold purple text and a shiver went down their spines. However, waiting is not an option as Pearl and BigB make it a race, jumping into the portal at the same time.

Grian doesn't know what to do, his mind is on helping his friends but his gut is screaming at him. Reaching for his glasses he noticed they're gone, looking around his eyes focus on Martyn who's holding them with curiosity.

"Do you know what's beyond there?" He asks, catching an odd reflection in the shades.

"I have my guesses but I can never predict what they'll do." The bird claims, gesturing for the glasses.

" Do you think it'll save them? " we ask, though not in the tone we'd hope as we give him back his glasses.

Grian squints at him, "What do mean?" He puts on his spectacles and instantly realised what we're doing, "You can play your mind games all you like, but don't speak from the mouth of my friend."

We smile as his anger and move past him. Martyn looks at the portal and a fear enshrouds him, "What'll happen to the others? What will they do?" He asks, looking back at Grian in curiosity.

"I don't know... this is new and way too bold for them, they won't die, I can tell you that for sure." He feels certain, after all he is one of us, death would do no favors to our plans, but he cannot convince himself that it'll always be true.

Walking besides him they both feel time slip away as the sand in their hourglasses disappear, "Well... that's not reassuring in the slightest..." he chuckles to himself, trying to find some joke to tell or something to make going into the portal better, but he can't at least not yet.

Five

This is not the time for worry. 

Four

Grian rushes to Martyn and takes his hand.

Three

They run into the portal

Two

The world Slows

One

'Grian and Martyn Left the Server'