A muffled bang came from the control room of Project Sleipnir.

  I told those contractors to be careful up there. We can’t afford another delay.

  Jesse turned away from the helium cooling line he had been examining. Irritation welled in his chest, brought on by the fatigue of a string of many long day's of work and the stress of his upcoming deadlines. He froze and the color drained from his face.

  That wasn’t a contractor. Is that blood?

  It was then that Jesse noticed the man holding a gun. Inside the control room, which sat about fifteen feet above the Sleipnir gate chamber. The scientists that occupied the chamber stood frozen with their hands raised in a placating gesture. Jesse couldn’t quite make out what the muffled yelling was about.

  “Golem, call security.” He thought at his integrated AI.

  “Jesse, the shielding in the room prevents me from accessing the network.” The reply rang through his mind, as clear as his own thoughts.

  He knew that. Of course he did. He had sat in on those design meetings. The frantic situation had made him forget. He looked closer at the man, he was tall with blonde hair with a mask obscuring most of his face but Jesse couldn’t make out many more details from the distance.

  His eyes darted towards the emergency switch. It worked much like a fire alarm, only it let security know there was an emergency and allowed them to direct whichever resource would be needed to the area. He looked back up at the chamber.

  Do I pull the switch or hide? Don’t be stupid, a handgun can’t pierce that glass. He thought.

  As he moved towards the switch he yelled over to his intern. She was standing talking to another contractor, seemingly oblivious of the dangerous situation they all found themselves in.

  “Amanda! Run! Get out of the gate chamber!”

  His young intern, who was really more of an apprentice the Midwestern Consortium decided to name after an old low level college student, gave him a confused look but did as she was told. She was a good kid, and reminded him of his daughter in a lot of ways. They both exuded potential.

  A moment later she noticed what was happening and her eyes widened, terror clear on her face. She shook her head and ducked where she was, a useless reaction. She wasn’t thinking straight. The contractor near her took off running to one of the exit doors, leaving her behind. She froze there, shaking.

  “Damn it.” Jesse swore as he moved quickly to where she was crouching. He felt his pulse thundering in his head. His breath came in ragged bursts.

  “It’s going to be okay!” He told her. In the silence of the room it sounded like a yell to Jesse. “I’ll get us out of this.” Somehow he added mentally. She just looked up at him with wide eyes and short shallow breaths.

  He took a deep breath and in a moment he felt a cold calm come over him. He had to do what he could to protect her and make it back to his family. His wife Kara and daughter Rebecca depended on him for their spot in the research shelter of the Midwestern Consortium. He had no illusions about what would happen to them if he were gone. He would make it back to them and make sure they are safe.

  “Sir, you asked for a reminder at 17:50 for dinner tonight. You expressed explicit instructions that this one is not to be ignored as you have missed too many dinners of late.” Golem spoke into his head. His HUD, or heads up display, that was constantly in his vision blinked with a red reminder alert as well. He dismissed the notification.

  His DIY modified consortium standard engineering AI assistant followed his instructions to the letter as always. He had added a new power core and some basic modifications to the AI matrix to make it more useful to him, but computer engineering wasn’t his specialty. The AIs main core resided in a compartment surgically attached to his left forearm, but it interfaced directly with his nervous system and so he was hesitant to heavily modify it and risk hurting himself. It wasn’t a true sentient AI like in the old science fiction movies Jesse was fond of but it did the job.

  Jesse made a decision. “Lets go Amanda.” He said forcefully, as he gently pulled her arm upward. She did as told but glanced back up at the control room. The two of them began running towards the nearest exit. After the decontamination procedures he would be clear of the shielding and be able to have Golem contact security. He didn’t have time to waste getting to the emergency button. Hopefully someone else had already notified them.

  On the way to the door alarms started blaring. Jesse’s heart sank. “No.” He whispered. They had turned the portal device on. That was a very bad idea in its current state. They hadn’t finished repairing the cooling leak and if the device overheated who knows what could happen. It could tear a hole in the fabric of their universe for all he knew.

  “Okay I need to press the emergency stop button. Amanda, try to make a break for the airlocks. Get out of here” Jesse told his intern, giving her a gentle push as he turned back towards the portal archway. It was located on a slightly elevated platform. The emergency stop was on the frame next to it. The second stop button, the one near the airlock, hadn’t been properly wired yet.

  “Golem, if they power up the portal how long before it overheats and melts the stabilizing coupler?” Jesse asked his AI.

  “Thirty seconds before temperatures exceed safe operating limits.” Golem replied.

  Shit. What will happen if it overheats? He asked mentally.

  “Unknown.” Golem replied.

  Speculate. Jesse mentally said with a hint of exasperation.

  “I do not understand.” Golem said.

  “Give me the best guess you can about what will happen after exceeding temperature specifications with the information you can currently access.” Jesse said aloud with growing frustrated.

  “An unstable rift could be torn, though it is impossible to identify with certainty nor where the rift would be opened to. The Sleipnir gate could fail entirely. There is also a small chance the Gate explodes. Without additional data it is impossible to say with any level of certainty what will happen” Golem replied calmly within Jesse’s mind.

  Jesse continued approaching the emergency stop button. By the time he reached it he heard the whir of the machine powering on followed by the loud bangs of the high energy cables all snapping in their housings from the sudden addition of electricity. This was bad.

  Jesse looked up at the center of the device and his heart sank. He saw a small, almost imperceptible, hole hovering in the air. He finally reached the upper platform and slammed into the emergency stop button, which he knew would turn off the portal device.

  Nothing happened. What?

  The hole in the world remained in place. No… it grew?

  “Shit, what’s happening Golem?” He screamed. His cold calm shattered.

  “The rift appears to be drawing power from an external source. Perhaps from the other end of the connection.” Golem replied.

  Jesse looked up and saw the gunman was looking at him. He then turned his attention to the rift. Does he look familiar? Jesse thought to himself.

  Jesse looked to Amanda, who had just reached the airlock door. He knew she wouldn’t succeed at exiting, the airlocks seal completely when the device was activated and he couldn’t turn it off so the lock wouldn’t disengage. He began running down the ramp on the front side of the portal towards the airlock when he heard another muffled bang. He looked up to find that the gunman had shot the window, to little effect.

  The gunman fired again, making eye contact with Jesse as he pulled the trigger. Jesse’s heart lurched at the sight, even knowing the glass wouldn’t break. He’d seen the specs. He reached Amanda.

  “The airlocks will be sealed until the sensors detect no portal in this room.” Jesse said, trying to get Amanda to focus on him. “There is a protective suit here next to the airlock entrance. It’s reinforced, radiation and explosion resistant. It looks like the other one is gone, someone else probably took it. Go put on the suit, whatever happens it should protect you.”

  She looked to the suit and back at him. Her jaw firmed, surprising Jesse. “No.” She stated and then paused. “You should take it. Go be with your family.”

  “No!” He said back to her softly but firmly. “You take it! I’ll work on overriding the door. I can’t do the electrical work with those gloves on!” He lied. He knew he wouldn’t get the door open in time but he needed her to believe. She nodded and moved toward the suit. She began the lengthy process of donning the protective equipment.

  Jesse looked above and found the man holding both arms outward palms open towards the glass above. Jesse frowned, his brow furrowed. That is until the man’s hands began to glow.

  What the hell is that? Was all he managed to think before a deafening boom happened and the glass to the control room exploded towards him. He reflexively covered his face as the glass showered down, painfully pelting his skin.

  As he looked back up the man, defying all reason and physics itself, floated down from the control room to the gate room floor. His hands were still glowing but pointed downward. He began walking up the ramp to the portal but stopped and looked back over to Amanda and Jesse. He leveled the gun at Amanda, who had only managed to get one leg of the protective suit on. She was huddled on the ground, that same look of raw fear evident on her face.

  Before he could talk himself out of it, Jesse moved. In a moment he was standing between the gunman and Amanda. Thats the moment he remembered the man’s face. This was Bradford. He was a VP of the research division of the project.

  “Please, you don’t have to do this. If that portal keeps growing you’ve doomed us all! Help me shut it down Bradford!” He pleaded.

  The man stopped for a moment. “You are wrong on both accounts.” He said, with no more emotion in his voice than if he had been talking about the weather. He then turned and fired. Jesse could feel the air as the bullet whizzed past his face and struck Amanda directly in the chest. He screamed as she crumpled to the floor.

  Jesse turned around and rushed to her side, tears streaming down his face. He saw the blood welling under her limp form.

  Scan her golem. He indicated to his AI. He looked back up at the gunman. At Bradford.

  “Why? ” Jesse asked, his voice shook and he trembled with a mixture of rage and fear.

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  “You wouldn’t understand if I explained it. I know this technology better than anyone. I would let this whole world get sucked into the rift if it brings me home. My people need me. My family needs me.” He said, anger showing on his face.

  The man leveled the gun at Jesse and squeezed the trigger. Jesse’s muscles tensed involuntarily.

  An explosion rocked the room, knocking Jesse down. The shot rang through the room but no pain followed. Bradford swore and began running for the rift which was rippling at its edges.

  Jesse crawled to Amanda, paying the traitorous executive no further thought. If he wanted to die in the dimensional rift, well that was probably for the best.

  Golem? Results? He thought

  “Amanda is bleeding heavily. She will expire within minutes without immediate medical assistance.” The AI responded dispassionately.

  Jesse shut his eyes for a second and took a deep breath before pulling the protective suit off her leg.

  “I’m sorry Amanda.” He whispered to her, the words catching. “I should have protected you.”

  He carefully put the suit over himself. The process was slow but he allowed muscle memory from his long career to guide him.

  As he centered the helmet on his head, Jesse took one final glance at his intern. Her chest had stopped rising and falling. Bile rose in Jesse’s throat as tears formed in his eyes.

  “I’m so sorry.” He whispered again, shutting his eyes.

  Another explosion rocked the room. Jesse was sent sprawling. His head, shielded by the thick helmet that fully covered his face, smashed against the wall with enough force to put a crack in the faceplate glass.

  His vision swirled in a confusing mix of colors as he began to fall. The floor must have been destroyed.

  A sharp crack against something hard in Jesse’s side sent more pain shooting through Jesse’s body. His vision swam as he continued falling.

  Jesse landed flat on his back. He screamed in pain for a moment before pushing it down.

  Jesse forced his eyes open, his head pounded. Pain wrecked his body.

  Ugh how am I still alive after all that? He thought.

  The room came into focus. It was on fire.

  He took in a sharp breath and found that his rib hurt horribly. He wanted to writhe in pain but stilled himself. He felt his heart race. The feeling of bile rose with the thought of Amanda laying there, shot in the chest by that traitor.

  Golem, what’s my status? He asked mentally.

  “You have sustained a fracture on your sixth rib. You have bruises along your upper and lower lumbar. Movement is not advised and medical treatment should be sought as soon as possible.” Golem replied.

  Would you suggest sitting in a burning room while waiting for these medical professionals? Jesse said back to his AI, rising to his feet. His head spun causing him to stagger before catching himself on the nearby wall.

  “No I would not.” Golem replied.

  Jesse looked around. He could feel the heat from the fire all around him. Smoke filled the room but it vented through a large hole in the ceiling. Through this hole he could see the rift, much larger than before. Shit.

  A small chunk of ceiling ripped free and very slowly floated up towards the hole in the world. Jesse could feel the very slight pull from the rift, causing his stomach to feel as though it was floating.

  “Where am I?” He asked Golem aloud.

  “You are in your neighbor Wendy Roan’s apartment.” Golem replied in his mind.

  He had somehow fallen two stories to his apartment block beneath the test chamber? No wonder his back hurt.

  The fall alone could have killed me kill me, or broken my legs or back. I need to get to Kara and Rebecca. Our apartment is probably not faring any better! He thought. His pulse quickened as adrenaline spiked through him at the thought. He swallowed his fears and pain. They had to be safe.

  “Light up the way out on my HUD.” He said aloud.

  “Acknowledged.” Golem said in his mind.

  A bright yellow path appeared in his vision, showing where to go. It was meticulously planned around red highlighted obstacles and fire. For all the AIs' dry personality, it was still incredibly useful.

  He followed the path out into the hallway, which thankfully wasn’t actively burning, and continued down to his apartment. He took a deep breath, hesitating for only a moment at the door. He wouldn’t let his fear of what he would find stop him.

  He threw the door open to find a chaotic scene. It too burned, and a huge amount of rubble had landed directly in the middle of his dining room, smashing his sturdy oak table.

  “Damn.” He said as he scanned the room. “Kara! Rebecca!” He yelled out. “Aegis!” He added his family dogs name,

  Jesse moved inside cautiously. It was then that he heard a faint whimper through the speakers in his helmet. It wasn’t a person, but must have been Aegis.

  “Where are you girl?” He yelled out.

  Golem, locate her. He said mentally.

  “Aegis is located in a pocket underneath the dining room table.” Golem replied.

  Aegis was buried under the table and the rubble on top of it. The table itself was a heavy oak and was laying at a diagonal angle.

  “I’m going to get you out.” He told the dog.

  Can I safely move the table and rubble?

  “The rubble will be easily shifted. This poses a danger when moving it but may assist with efforts to retrieve Aegis.” Golem replied.

  Jesse moved to position himself underneath the corner of the table and heaved with all his strength. A sharp stabbing pain shot through his side where his broken rib was. Breathing suddenly became much more difficult.

  Jesse yelled as he continued to strain, pushing through the pain. He started seeing stars but still he persisted.

  The table slowly, glacially, rose and Aegis scrambled out. A wave of relief washed over Jesse as he saw his dog. He dropped the table with a grunt and fell to the floor coughing.

  She was a brown and white Pitt Bull, short and stocky. She was pure muscle and the most loyal and happy dog he had ever had. He let her lick at him as he tried to catch his breath, but he couldn’t feel it under the protective suit.

  After a moment Jesse stood, his head spun but he couldn’t stop now. He had to find his wife and daughter.

  He stumbled into the living room next, Aegis following close behind. As he entered an icy spike of fear shot through him. His wife, his beautiful Kara, was lying still next to a large stone. It appeared to have crushed her arm. His breath caught. Her head was lolled downward. He worked past the lump in his throat as he spoke in a hoarse whisper.

  “Kara.” He said. “Golem, what… what is her status?” He whispered with a quivering voice. His thoughts weren’t focused enough to send to the AI.

  “She is alive. Her arm has experienced severe blunt force. It is unlikely to be able to be recovered. She is otherwise unharmed, besides a number of small lacerations. She is not bleeding substantially due to the pressure of the rubble on her arm.” Golem replied neutrally.

  Aegis ran past Jesse and started licking Kara’s face before moving to sniff her arm, or what was left of it. Jesse rushed over to his wife. Her eyes fluttered open and looked into his. Tears welled in both of their eyes. “Kara.” He said, hoarse.

  “Jesse.” She said. “Thank god you’re alive. I thought.” She paused. “Well it doesn’t matter now. Is Rebecca with you? She was in the kitchen when this all happened. Whatever’s happening is getting worse isn’t it?” The questions were frantic, one after another.

  “She’s not with me. I will find her next. Let’s get you free.” He said, standing. He moved to try to lift the boulder off of Kara, though it was obvious it wasn’t something he could accomplish. “It is getting worse. I don’t know how to stop it. I tried Kara.”

  “It’s not your fault.” She said smiling at him sadly. “You need to go find Rebecca. You need to leave me here and go find her.”

  Jesse felt cold, even in the burning room. “No. No, I can’t do that. I’ll get you out and we will go find her together. I can’t leave you here. What if more rubble falls? What about the fire?”

  “You have to. She needs you. I’ll be okay. You’ll get her and then we’ll all get to safety.” She told him. Jesse could see the lie in her eyes. After twenty five years together he knew when his wife was lying.

  He sighed. He also saw some truth in what she was saying. He wouldn’t leave her but he also wouldn’t leave Rebecca by herself. He would get her to safety and then figure out how to get his wife out of here.

  “Fine but I promise you, I will be back. We are all getting out of this. All of us. I love you so much.” He turned to his dog, “Aegis, stay with her. Stay girl.” He turned away, tears blocking his vision.

  He moved into the kitchen quickly. Inside he found his Becca clinging to the fridge door, being pulled by the rift above them. Their daughter had just turned twenty in March. Her long brown hair was flowing behind her and toward the rift, as if a breeze blew it back. Her small frame was out of place in the horrors that surrounded them. She and Kara were his everything. He could not lose them.

  The ceiling was completely missing here, the rift clearly visible hovering above them. He rushed forward to grab her but that was the moment her grip failed and she lifted into the air, slowly floating toward the rift.

  “No!” He yelled, jumping onto the countertop. Pain from his broken rib and bruises shot through him but he powered through it. He moved to the fridge and climbed up on top of it. He reached for his daughter who screamed and reached towards him but they were still too far apart.

  Jesse leapt off the top of the fridge reaching to grab her. His heart surged as their fingers connected, but only for a moment. Their fingers slid apart, grip failing, and to his horror he fell to the ground. He had been pulled down by the weight of his protective suit. He coughed and blood splattered onto his face shield. He must have punctured his lung.

  He stood, stars in his vision. Rebecca stared down at him, a look of terror on her face. Tears streamed down her face. “Dad!” She yelled towards him finally reaching her arms.

  Jesse looked around for anything he could use to reach her but found nothing. He turned back towards her. “It’ll be okay!” He lied. “The rift will transport you somewhere, I don’t know where, but you’ll be safe! Listen to me, I will follow you! I will find you! I love you Becca!” With that she was too far away to hear her reply clearly through the helmet speakers. Without watching her move through the rift he ran to Kara.

  As he entered he saw she was struggling to hold Aegis down with her free hand as the ceiling was torn off the living room. Her body lifted but was trapped by her pinned arm. Blood was now leaking around the boulder. Kara was sobbing as she watched Rebecca float toward the rift and pass through. The distortion of the rift prevented them from seeing the other side.

  “I wasn’t fast enough.” He said to her, “Kara. I..” He hesitated.

  “Do you think it connects somewhere or is it just dissolving everything that goes through it?” Kara interrupted him, reading his mind as always.

  “I don’t know.” He said truthfully. “Golem?”

  “Unknown.” Golem replied, this time audibly so Kara could hear.

  “Kara..” He started again.

  “We aren’t getting out of here, I know.” She said to him, again finishing his thought.

  “Well there is one way out.” He said quietly.

  “The best chance we have is that it connects to something or somewhere livable. That or we will all die. I understand. Jesse, it’s not true though. You can still save yourself. The suit is holding you down.” She told him.

  “I won’t leave you. I won’t leave her. Not if there is even a chance she is on the other side of that thing, alone and afraid. She’s our little girl.” He said to her forcefully. He knew she already knew he wouldn’t accept that. He understood her point but it didn’t matter. Without his family what was he? Nothing.

  She nodded. “Go. Find her. I’ll follow as soon as the portal grows enough to pull this boulder off me.”

  He removed the helmet first. Tears still streaming down both their faces he kissed his wife. “I’ll find her. I promise. Then we will wait for you. We will get you patched up and I’ll get us home.” He told her.

  He started to remove the rest of the protective suit. He felt his weight being pulled up. Kara let go of Aegis, her grip failing. The dog started floating up and Jesse, removing the final piece, pushed off and grabbed ahold of her.

  Together they floated toward the rift in the sky. Jesse finally got a good look at it. It appeared as a literal tear in the fabric of reality. A kaleidoscope of colors floating in the air in a jagged rip. The complex machinery that was used to open it in the first place was gone, instead it floated as if suspended in the air.

  The facility that had been built to house the experiments and the staff who maintained it was destroyed. Everything around them either burned or was slowly being torn apart by the pull of the rift. Jesse took it all in.

  Was this project really worth all this destruction? All these lives?

  Soon he reached the portal. He felt a warmth emanating from it. He closed his eyes as he passed through. It felt like an electric prickling on his skin. “I’ll find you Becca.” He whispered to himself as he passed through.