Through the Portal

Chapter Seven: The Portal

Matpat's mouth was wide open. King Jason was peering down at him from his velvet plush throne. Jason's eyes flickered for a brief moment before he shifted his gaze to Stephanie.

"What brings you here?" He asked.

Stephanie clasped her hands together, "Well um, my lord you see..."

"That vile monster's terrible machine brought this man from another dimension." Nate hissed.

Jason's eyes widened and he leaned forward, "So you must be-"

Stephanie shook her head, but Matpat took a deep sigh and took off his cloak. A silence spread throughout the room as guards brandished their weapons and, Jason immediately stood up.

"Please, I just want to get home." Matpat said.

"Lower your weapons," Jason's voice boomed as he made his way towards Matpat. Matpat gulped and tried to stand up straighter, but Jason still seemed to tower over him, "the machine is where I left it." He turned his gaze to Stephanie, "I believe she can show you."

"Thank you," Matpat gulped as he took a few steps back. This defiantly wasn't the lovable teddy bear Matpat was use to.

Stephanie and Matpat turned and walked away. Matpat couldn't help but be impressed by the castle's interior. Even if he knew they were being watched, he had to admit that this Jason certainly had taste.

Stephanie soon had them stop at a wooden door. She took a deep breath and opened it, sending the musky air to wash over them.

Matpat crinkled his nose but followed Stephanie into the room. Rows upon rows of books were crammed into gigantic bookcases and, papers with complex mathematical equations littered the stone floor. However, what really held Matpat's attention was the gigantic metallic metal circle that stood in the middle collecting dust.

Nate sniffed at a rust colored substance and hissed before scurrying over to Stephanie.

"This is wrong," Stephanie said as she placed a hand on the stone.

"What do you mean?" Matpat asked.

She ran her hand across, creating a tiny dust cloud, "This world's Mathew, he said that King Jason called this dangerous," she turned and looked at Matpat, "so why is it still here?"

Matpat waltzed up to the machine, "Hmm, maybe they couldn't destroy it?"

Stephanie shook her head, "I don't know about your world, but in this world everything can be destroyed with enough force."

"Still, once we somehow turn this on and I go back, I'll bring the other me back and then you can destroy this." Matpat said.

"Good, I still have a few choice words to say to that monster." Nate hissed.

Stephanie sighed but went over to a stone lever with a ruby on the handle. She then pulled the lever, causing the gems to illuminate an intense glow. It started to hum, and a few seconds later, the gems show a beam into the middle, creating a ghastly green vortex.

Matpat stared at it as if in a trance. He could feel the magical torrent. His hair stood on end and goose bumps sprouted onto his body.

"Goodbye." Stephanie said.

"Bye and thank you for being my escort." Matpat replied before hesitantly stepping closer to the vortex. This was it; he was really going home, back to his Stephanie and Jason. Back to tasteless air and animals that didn't talk.

His body plunged into the vortex. The current seemed to thrash Matpat's body around like a toy. His heartbeat quickened and he closed his eyes to try and stop his head from pounding. However, with the force and lack of air, he found himself falling unconscious.