The Portal

Chapter 11

     David stood there for a moment and thought about it, as it was something he was curious about considering the entire time travel phenomenon. What happened if he got shot? Drowned? Got hit by a train? His father said the body going back to the past was a projection and not the actual body, so it would make sense for the mind to go back to the body if the projection is destroyed. He looked back at his brother and finally responded to him.

     "Were you planning on tell me this soon," David started, "Or were you going to let me die first and learn it on my own?"

     "That's how Dad taught me," Ricky replied, "He didn't want me to run around like I was invincible and be careful and cautious right from the beginning. He wanted us to avoid that at all costs because you still die. If you get shot in the gut you will bleed out and suffer till your heart stops. You will experience death and that's not a pleasant feeling. I would recommend you avoid it as much as you possibly can."

     "How many times have you died in there?" David asked, curious about it himself since Ricky had been traveling for quite some time.

     "A few times," Ricky vaguely answered, "Trust me brother, it sucks."

     "So if we want to come back, why can't we just off ourselves if we want to exit early?" David asked.

     "I wouldn't recommend that," Ricky said, "There is a possibility that you might mimic that action in the cave and really kill yourself."

     "Good point," David said, as it made sense. "So if we meet our maker any other way, the Portal will bring us back unharmed?"

     "Yes, with no injuries." Ricky confirmed, "But you'll still remember the trauma of the actual death."

     "That would suck," David agreed, "But at least it's good to know that if we make a mistake or get ambushed, we come back here instead of to the afterlife. That was something that I was actually afraid of."

     "What was?" his brother asked.

     "I was afraid that if we died in the past," David explained, "That we would also die in the cave as well."

     "I'm not exactly sure how the Portal does its thing," Ricky said, "But when our projection dies, the only thing we retain is the memory of it and how badly dying at that particular moment blew. So try to avoid it."

     "You think?" David said, laughing.

     "Look," Ricky said as he started to walk David towards the cave. "Gail doesn't think you're ready, but you actually know more than I did the first time I traveled through time alone."

     "Dad was always like that," David agreed, "He was the kind of guy who would push a kid into the deep end to teach him how to swim. Let the desperation of the moment be a motivator."

     "Yeah, that was Dad." Rick said as they walked closer. "Look, think of a nice place or time that you'd like to see. The more precise you can be the better. I'd also recommend not going somewhere where you might bump into your younger self. That can cause problems, not to mention Dad and Gail would get super pissed at me as well."

     David stopped walking, "Where did you go your first time alone?"

     "I can't tell you," Ricky said, smiling. "If I tell you, there's a chance you might go there and that might be awkward. Do you need a minute?"

     "Yeah," David said as he took out his cell, "Let me look up some dates so I can be precise in my timing."

     "Good idea," Ricky said, "Let me know if you'll need to change."