Chapter One: Tearing A New One
My eyes fluttered open as my heart began pumping again. The clear tubular cover over my Cry-Tube slid back, revealing the interior of my personal craft, The Chameleon. I swung my feet out to the side and pulled the rest of my body up groggily. “Thirteen Minutes until Dock with Lunar Station”, the computer said as I stood up.
I went, rinsed off, and dressed into my combat suit. I loaded up my backpack and saddled up. The Feds had told me to pack heavily. When they tell you that, you know you’re in for a long, life threatening, trip. I walked onto the observation deck and watched as a tube bridge extended from my ship and connect with the one extending from the base.
“Docking Procedures Complete. Welcome To The Moon, Dr. Hallow.” The Lunar Base’s AI took over my ship. I jogged below decks and casually walked through the tube. At the end of the bridge was a large circular door. It split in half and peeled back. Standing there waiting for me was the beautiful Professor Willow. Her beautiful brown hair was in a knot and she was wearing a lab coat that looked a little small for her. “So, how was your nap, Hallows?” She asked.
I stretched and replied “Not bad considering where I’ve slept for the past two weeks.” Willow nodded and we began walking towards an elevator adjacent to the Docking Bridge. “I’m sorry for calling you in right off of the front lines, but we’re on to something big. Something that will change travel as we know it.” The elevator arrived and the doors split in half. “And what might that be?” I asked, my curiosity through the roof. “A dark matter portal!” Willow replied with an obvious tone of excitement. My eyes went wide at that. Dark Matter technology was extremely un-stable and could easily end in a Doomsday. The fact that humanity has found a way to contain it and harness its true power was amazing. The elevator stopped after travelling about fifty floors and the doors slid open. “And you are our test subject.” Willow said, looking at me slyly.
“We have picked out two destinations with an atmosphere stable for humans. We chose you specifically because both planets have been showing signs of alien life, and if they were hostile, you could easily pick them out and secure DNA samples. You’re a two-man crew in one!” I smiled at that statement, but my stomach was still full of butterflies. Not only was I going to be the first human to travel beyond the moon, but I was also going to encounter extra-terrestrial life! The room that we had gotten off into was small, white, and had a single window with a control panel in front of it. As we approached the control panel, the room the window looked into became more and more visible. Two large pylons were on each side, each with a gleaming purple light in the center which I assumed to be the dark matter. Willow approached the console and said “Watch the magic happen”.
She gripped a red lever on one side of the panel and pulled it down, causing the purple light in the center of the pylons to expand, eventually meeting in the center of the room. Suddenly, Willow mashed a button next to the lever and the thin line of dark matter in the other room began to get wider and wider until it was big enough to fit a commercial airplane inside. Once the widening completed, everything in the other room began being sucked in. Table, chairs, desks, you name it. “Now, allow me to stabilize the pressure… And just add some air…” Willow was obviously very experienced with the panel, as she navigated all of the buttons with ease.
The still-remaining objects in the other room began gently falling towards the ground. “Am I ready to go in?” I asked, staring intently at the portal behind the glass. “Not yet. Right now if you were to go in, you would be vaporized into nothing.” Willows said with a chuckle. “Now, to shoot a portal at one of the two destinations…” Willows pressed a button and a large rumbling sound echoed through the base. She reached over and hit a button on a display monitor and it flicked on, showing that a massive cannon-like object was taking aim at a planet far, far, away. Suddenly, dark matter shot out of it at the speed of light. I swung my head over to the window and saw that the portal on The Moon began pulsating and rippling the air around it. Out of nowhere, pink and blue colors began swirling around inside the portal. “And there we go!” Willows said with a hint of satisfaction in her voice. “What’s going on up there Willows? We’re picking up a lot of activity!” A voice cracked over the comms. “So, the army brasses don’t know about this?” I asked Willows. She shook her head in reply. I leaned over and pressed a button on the comm system, cleared my voice, and said “We just tore the universe a new asshole.”
Note: This story was a quick idea I had in the bath. I am combining many elements of inspiration, such as Half Life and Halo, to try and bring you an enjoyable read. While this chapter does NOT have ponies in it, the next chapter will be VERY different. I know my writing style is pretty quick an not to descriptive, but I tried the best I could to make it legible. I hope you enjoy this upcoming series and that you get attached to Dr. Hallows.