A journey to the past

The fog was so thick that Thomas could barely see anything in front of him. No matter in which direction he looked, all he could see was grey. He was engulfed in a deep, heavy mist, and although it had only been an hour, he was already feeling clammy from the fine droplets that had formed all over his skin. He swiped a strand of dark, wet hair from his face as he struggled to make out the silhouettes of the trees in the rainforest surrounding him.

He heard faint animal noises, but he was not exactly sure which direction it was coming from. He stopped and turned his head to listen. His eyes were useless in this environment, but his ears were attuned. He would have to rely on his sense of hearing to navigate his way.

For a moment he heard nothing. Then, a few seconds later, he caught the sound again. The animals were definitely to his right and ahead. He estimated them at about a hundred and fifty yards. In the stillness, he could hear them grunting and ripping branches from trees before softly chomping on the leaves.

Quietly and very carefully he walked in their direction, keeping his head turned to the side and his ear towards them. Using their sound as a beacon, he slowly crept closer, excitement building with each step he took. He was about to lay eyes on something no other human has ever seen...

There was a muffled grunt, straight ahead, then, nothing. It was suddenly dead quiet. Even the chirping of the insects seemed to have quieted down.

Then he heard it.

A branch snapped loudly to his left, much closer than expected.

He turned his head, instantly throwing his arms up to shield his face as a giant lizard lunged at him from the bushes. Before Thomas could get a good look, the creature slashed its claws into his right thigh, ripping his flesh right from the bone.

Thomas screamed as he staggered backwards. The animal looked at him for a second, then shrieked in a high guttural pitch so ferocious that Thomas felt the vibrations ripple through his entire body. He wasn’t sure if the creature was calling to others, inviting them to the hunt, or if it was claiming him as its prey. 

Either way, he was in huge trouble.

He squeezed his hands over his leg, trying to stop the blood from gushing out of the wound. He had three deep lacerations across his vastus intermedius, the upper front muscle of his thigh. His pants were ripped to shreds, and the blood was already seeping into the material.

 The fog had cleared a little, and Thomas could now dimly see the silhouette of the creature standing to his right. It was definitely some kind of carnivorous dinosaur, not huge, maybe eight feet in height. From his training, Thomas remembered that the smaller predators always hunted in packs, and this was concerning.

 The creature was standing on two hind legs supported by a strong tail. It had three long claws on each protruding arm. Its head swiveled on a strong neck, and Thomas could see two rows of long yellow teeth that was ready to rip his flesh apart. The animal’s eyes were focused intently on him, watching his every move. Thick water-vapor mist came out of its nostrils as it breathed. 

 Thomas knew that he was about to be eaten alive. He was trapped, feeling like a mouse that had just been cornered by a cat. He didn’t know if the creature was going to play him to death, or if it was simply going to bite his head off.   

 Without hesitation Thomas unsheathed his hunting knife, turned to his left and started running. He knew it was probably the dumbest thing to do, but he was not just going to stand there and present himself as dinner.

 He held the knife with the blade facing backwards, resting it against the underside of his forearm. In this way he could also use it as a shield. As he ran, he looked back over his shoulder.

 The creature was no longer there.

 He looked to his left, then to his right. Nothing but grey.

 He turned back to the front, focusing on his steps and where he had to place his feet.

 The next moment, Thomas saw a clawed hand appear from the fog in front of him. It came swinging in a wide arc, aimed at his torso. He instinctively leaned back and kicked his legs forward. Like a soccer player making a slide tackle, he skidded right underneath the animal. He heard the swooshing sound as the creature’s claws barely missed his head.

 Thomas came up from underneath and rammed his knife into the belly of the beast. The creature’s skin was rubbery, but the blade tore through, burying the weapon all the way to the hilt.

 The creature gave an agonizing screech as it jumped away from him and Thomas watched as it turned twice around itself, inspecting its body for damage. When the creature looked back up at him, he knew he had not inflicted a fatal wound.

 Just as the creature was about to leap at him again, a second one jumped into the clearing. It slammed so hard into the first, that they both toppled to the ground.

 They screeched and clawed at each other as they struggled to get up.

 Thomas knew it was now or never. He had to get away while they were still distracted with each other.

 He sprinted towards the edge of the clearing, knowing that there was a steep slope leading down to the river just beyond it. He had scaled the ravine on his way up, and his only option was to jump over the ledge and slide down the muddy slope. He knew there was a chance that he could hit a large rock or a tree on his way down, but the risk was worth taking.

 It would be challenging for the creatures to follow at full pace down the steep embankment. Dropping quickly would hopefully give him a minute or two to find a safe hiding spot at the bottom before they came chasing after him.

 He reached the edge of the clearing just as the two animals realized what was happening. They turned as one and sprinted towards him, their mouths open and their fangs exposed.

 They closed the gap in no time. They were lightning fast.

 Thomas looked down into the foggy ravine. He could see the escarpment in his immediate surroundings, but the slope quickly faded into the mist as it dropped away. He had no idea what lay beyond his sight, but he didn’t have time to hesitate. Without looking back, he jumped over the ledge, praying for a safe landing.

 Thomas was in the air for nearly three seconds, and he braced himself for a hard fall. He hit the slope with his right hip and elbow, grunting as the impact on his ribcage nearly knocked the wind out of his chest. He could not afford to tumble head over heels, so he stabilized himself by pressing his hand against the ground, leaning back, and keeping his feet pointed down.

 As he had hoped, he was descending fast. Thankfully, he was also able to steer himself and he easily glided between the trunks of tall pine trees as they passed. The slope was steep, but it was mostly sandy soil covered with a thick layer of pine needles and dried leaves that created a slick surface over which he moved.

 Thomas descended over a hundred feet before his heels hit a small ledge. He grabbed onto a nearby tree to stop himself from tumbling over the edge. The debris that followed cascaded past his feet like a waterfall.

Once he was stable, he leaned forward and peered over the edge. It was a twenty-foot drop to the river below.

 He could jump, but he wasn’t sure how deep the water was. It would be much safer to climb down the vertical slope using the thick roots and vines that protruded out of the cliff’s eroded edge. 

 It took Thomas five minutes to climb down the jumbled vines and reach the bottom. He had mud and dirt in his eyes and his leg throbbed with each heartbeat. He had scratches on his face and hands, but other than that, he was okay. His hip would be bruised, that was for sure, but it didn’t bother him right now. He had actually made it down alive.

 Down here, there was no mist, and Thomas walked quickly to the edge of the river. His plan was to cross over to the other side.

 He stood on the embankment and watched the rapids for a few seconds. The white water rushing over the rocks indicated that the current was strong. He didn’t think he would be able to cross without getting swept away.

 Damn!

 He was going to have to change his plans.

 He walked into the shallow water, turned to his right and headed upstream. He stayed close to the riverbank, making sure he didn’t slip on the loose rocks or wander too far into the deep water. Instead of crossing over, he had decided to wade through the river for a while, using the water to mask his scent from the animals.

 After a couple of yards Thomas stepped out of the water and scampered back onto the riverbank. There was a massive fallen tree next to the water that he wanted to check out. When he reached the tree, he found that it was hollowed out by years of rot. It was the perfect hiding spot.

 Thomas climbed into the old tree trunk, pushing away the gunk as he crawled deeper. He didn’t worry about spiders or snakes. All he wanted to do was get away from the two large animals that were hunting him.

 Once he had crawled in deep enough, he lay still and listened for any sounds. All he could hear was the soft droning of the river.

 Now that he was no longer moving, he suddenly felt cold. The dampness was seeping into his bones, and he began to worry about the amount of blood he had lost. He did not want to pass out or bleed out right there in the old tree trunk. He had to get out of there immediately.

 He reached into a side pocket on his trousers and took out a small metallic rod. It was a curved rectangular bar with rounded edges. It was one inch wide, half an inch thick, six inches long, and shaped as a segment of a larger ring. At the bottom of the bar in the middle was a circular slot, cut deep into the metal to hold a ring.

 Thomas removed the custom-designed ring from his left middle finger and pressed it into the slot. It made a soft clicking sound as it latched into the interlocking mechanism. The tiny red light at the bottom of the device turned green.

 Nothing happened until he placed it down on the solid base of the tree trunk ahead of him.

 The moment the bar touched the surface, a swooshing sound accompanied a bright-blue pulsating portal that opened right in front of him. There was a silent hum as the magnetic fields reverberated through the ether.

 The edge of the portal extended from both sides of the rod, following the curved shapes to the top to create a perfect circle. It was only twenty inches in diameter, barely large enough for him to crawl through, but it was his only way back home.

 Because the portal was bound to space and time on both ends, its precise coordinates were locked, meaning that the structure would remain in a fixed position until the portal was closed. It was essentially creating an immovable ring that he could hold onto and pull himself through.

 Thomas gripped the edge of the portal and slowly pulled himself forward.

 Just as he was about to push his head through the gap, he felt a tight grip around his ankle. No, this can’t be happening! One of the animals had discovered him and was trying to drag him out of the tree.

 Thomas pulled on the portal with all his might. He had to get through, no matter what. He kicked at the animal using his free leg. After a dozen strikes, it eventually let go.

 With renewed effort, Thomas pulled himself forward and managed to push his head through the opening. He stuck both arms through the ring and pulled himself forward using his elbows.

 As he wriggled his shoulders through, he felt the animal gripping his ankle again. This time, its nails were clawing through his pants and digging deep into his flesh. He gave an agonizing scream.

 Before he could kick free, a second claw dug into his calf. The predator was now latched onto him with both arms. It felt like an aggravated cat gripping his pants, but on a much larger scale. Surely, the animal was going to pull him straight back through the portal. 

 “James!” Thomas yelled as his head, arms and torso appeared through the portal back at the facility. “It’s got my leg! You’ve got to help me through!”

 James looked in horror at the man materializing before him. Thomas was crawling out of the vertical portal built into the wall, but he was rocking back and forth as if something was trying to drag him back to the other side. His face was covered in muck and his hands were bloody. He had scratches across his cheeks and forehead, and there was a look of pure terror in his eyes.

 It was surreal, because when they had sent him back in time, literally a minute ago, he was perfectly fine.

 James noticed that Thomas was struggling to hold onto the sides, and he wasn’t sure how much strength Thomas had left in his fingers to keep fighting. He rushed forward and grabbed him under the arm. “I’ve got you, Thomas, c’mon!” He pulled on him with all his strength. “Matthew!” he shouted over his shoulder.

 Matthew ran down the three steps that separated the control room from the portal and grabbed Thomas under the other arm. “What the heck?!”

 “Just pull me out,” Thomas shouted. “It’s got me pinned!”

 As the two men struggled to pull him through, Thomas kept kicking at the animal with his free foot, but it simply would not let go. He was pushing as hard as he could with his elbows to pull himself through on their side.

 The creature suddenly lost its grip on his calf and Thomas instantly felt its weight lift. The beast was now only holding onto him with one claw. With sweat running down his brow, he gave one final push against the supporting wall, and he managed to get out into a sitting position, his back against the floor. With his last strength, grunting and with the help of both Matthew and James, he managed to pull his legs free.

 The creature was still gripping his ankle, and for the first time James could see the clawed hand reaching through the portal. “He’s clear!” he yelled over the commotion towards the control room.

 The wormhole instantly closed with the familiar swooshing sound that opened it, severing the dinosaur’s arm where it was protruding through the ring. The cut was laser clean.

 The claws loosened its grip on Thomas’s ankle, and it fell to the floor. Like a lizard’s tail, it twitched and moved as it convulsed involuntarily. Matthew stepped forward and kicked it to the side.

 Thomas was a bloodied mess, and so was the exit portal through which he had just crawled. There were blood smears all around the edge where his fingers had gripped the sides, and a deep dark pool of red where he had dropped out. In the process, Thomas had dragged himself a couple of feet away, leaving a bright red streak across the white tiled floor behind him. 

 Thomas lay on his back, breathing heavily. He could hear frantic screaming and the sound of people running. He had made it back through the portal, but he was quickly losing focus. His body was going into shock, and black spots began to splatter across his vision.

 He turned his head to the side and watched as a pair of women’s boots approached. Everything felt dreamy and he was suddenly not sure if she was real or not. He had lost a lot of blood, and he was getting delusional.

Who is she? he wondered. Sarah? My mother?

 He lost consciousness before any other thought could filter through his mind…

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