The portal was a brilliant ocean blue, with golden streaks of light that shined brighter than any star. It was one of the most beautiful things he had ever seen. An unforgettable image lasting a lifetime. But the beauty was gone in an instant. His left foot suddenly lands on a rocky surface, and slowly, the rest of his body begins to emerge from the portal. What feels like a gentle push knocks him forward until he's completely free from the mysterious gateway.

A young man stands in silence within a large cave, illuminated by the blueish glow of the portal behind him. His face obscured behind the full visor gas mask he's wearing. Air flows through the filter hanging from the center of the mask, with deep and long breathing, filled with nervous excitement.

A large, gray backpack is slung over his shoulders, stuffed with various supplies and equipment. His beige cargo pants stand out against the glow of the gateway. A black combat vest is worn over the green canvas jacket he brought for warmth. Tan shooting gloves provide protection for his hands. The vest pockets are filled with items, and magazines, for his two weapons.

A black, compact pistol sits holstered on the left side of his stomach. In his right hand, he firmly grips the downward facing assault rifle that rests besides his body. A weapon black as night, featuring a wire stock and curved magazine so prevalent in the Kalashnikov gun family.

He begins to step forward, his black boots imprinting the dirt beneath him. The young man raises his free hand up to his left shoulder and switches on the angle-head flashlight attached to his vest. A beam of light floods the cave, mixing with the soft glow of the portal.

A few more steps are taken, when his movement is suddenly halted from behind. The young man immediately spins around to see what stopped him. A slow exhale escapes his mouth. He had completely forgotten about the rope tied around his waist! An absurd idea suggested from his friend on the other side. He starts to pull back with his free hand firmly gripping the rope. Leaning back with the full weight of his body, his hand pulls with all its strength. The rope tightens through the portal, but nothing gives. His feet begin to dig into the ground as the force of his weight has nowhere to go.

“Give me more slack!” His muffled voice yells through the gas mask at his friend. Only silence, and he quickly gives up when his voice can't reach the other side. “Dammit. This isn't going to work.” The young man stops pulling and begins to walk back to the gateway entrance.

He stands before the portal, shimmering in the darkness of the cave. He aims the vest flashlight around the gateway to gather any clues to its origins or history. The portal is slightly larger than a doorway, but designed using the upper-half of an oval shape. It's crafted directly into the cave wall, and the wall itself looked smooth as if chiseled by hand. The entire outline of the gateway has various markings and stones, but they don't seem to be doing anything.

The young man shines the light to the left side, but sees nothing of interest. He does the same for his right side and immediately finds a new discovery. A second gateway! Much larger than the one he stepped through. The inert portal stands as tall as a single story home, with the same designs and features as its smaller brother.

Nothing stands out as to why the larger gate is silent. There doesn't seem to be damage anywhere on the surface. Where the blue pathway would be is instead solid rock. No mechanisms, keys, parts, or anything else is visible. Not a single clue about how the mysterious gateways work.

The young man goes back to the task at hand, and moves up against the left side of the working portal. He picks up the rope that has been dragging the entire walk back. With a single hand, he tugs several times on the rope. “Dan! Dan! If you can hear me, give me more rope!” Silence once again. The young man stays still, but his mind begins to think of all the possible reasons why his voice isn't reaching his friend.

He thinks back to when he decided to step into the unknown. Recalling how Dan and himself had a heated discussion in the middle of the wilderness. By complete accident they discovered the mysterious portal. He remembers the numerous ideas and scenarios bounced off each other. Would they go to the past, or the future? Will they discover a new world, or travel to a distant country? Was it a tunnel to a secret government facility, or a lost path through the mountain range? Would they find aliens, gods, beasts, humans, or nothing?

The young man stirs again with an idea, turning his body back toward the cave. He begins to scan the cavern floor with the flashlight. A stone is quickly found that is a few feet tall and just as wide as a torso. He immediately walks toward the stone, kneeling to lower his weapon, and begins undoing the tether around his waist. He quickly wraps the rope around the stone, then slowly leans it onto its side to pin the rope between dirt and rock.

As he grabs his weapon and stands up again, the young man begins to pull off his gas mask. His short, auburn hair and long sideburns flow with the mask until they finally separate. His sharp, brown eyes begin adapting to his darkened surroundings. A defined jawline, and smooth chin are brightened against the beam of light under his face. He breathes fresh air deeply into his broad nose, and moistens his lips that dried under the mask.

He takes out a folded blue nylon bag from a pocket of his cargo pants. The bag unfolds naturally and the young man begins to stuff the gas mask within it. He zips the bag tight, securing it to the right side of his waist. He then swings the rifle upward, letting his left hand catch the front pistol grip.

The young man turns around again and once more approaches the gate. “If you can hear me, I've tied the rope around a rock! I'll come back when I've checked the area out!” His voice is deep and clear now, but once again nobody responds.

He begins to back away from the portal, turning to walk deeper into the cave. Ahead, he sees the blue glow of the portal bouncing all around like reflections of water. He quickly starts scanning around the cave, checking all around as he walks. Its obvious now the cave is a large, rectangular room the size of professional soccer fields. The walls look hand-crafted by design, but the ground is simply dirt and rocks. Even the ceiling high above just seems to be natural stone.

The young man's careful observations reveal two passages out of the room. One is at the top corner of the eastern wall and the other at the top corner of the western wall. There is a pause in his movement, but then his feet start guiding him to the western path first. Only a few minutes pass before the young man is now standing in front of an imposing passage.

The western wall has a large, square opening too big for any human. The young man estimates the height of the opening to be double his size, basing his guess on the fact he himself is exactly six feet tall. However, the size of the doorway wasn't the main issue anymore. The entrance and hallway are completely covered in spider webs, enough so that a thin sheet of webbing spreads across the entire opening. The flashlight also reveals that behind the thin blanket, webs continue on for a lengthy distance.

The young man reaches into his vest to retrieve a disposable lighter he had brought. Moving to the bottom left corner, he keeps an eye out for potential spiders. He sees some specimens that are smaller than his fingernails, but he stays clear of them out of caution. He flicks the lighter till an orange flame starts dancing. Kneeling down, he puts the flame to the webbing, and watches it burn against the threads.

At first, the webbing simply flashes and melts into the ground. But suddenly, a rush of flame ignites from the bottom corner. The young man is startled and quickly backs away as he watches the burning tide of fire go across the massive doorway. In mere seconds, the sheet of white webbing is no more.

Although the first step was a success, the young man realizes he can go no further. The flashlight illuminates a hallway filled with thick columns of webbing in all directions. He knows right away it would take too long to create any path. There's also a lingering fear about the small spiders in the area. Disappointed, the young man turns around and begins the walk to the other passage.

After walking for several minutes with the glow of the portal all around him, the young man now stands in front of the eastern pathway. The opening is the same as the western side, and a sigh of relief escapes the young man. The hallway is free of webbing or other obstructions that would block him. He steps through the opening to continue his exploration, following the corridor to wherever it leads. The walls, ground, and ceiling all seem similar to the rectangular room where the portal resides.

After a short distance the hallway makes a sharp turn to the left. As the young man follows the path, he immediately notices the soft glow of lights ahead of him. The light does not seem to be natural, but something more akin to florescent lighting. He keeps walking forward, and sees the corridor is indeed illuminated. Every few yards or so, both sides of the corridor are brightened by fist-sized glowing stones near the top of the ceiling. The young man can't help thinking that although less bright, the stones are performing the same task any light bulb can do.

The exit out of the corridor presents itself quickly after the turn was made. Light at the exit seems to be more natural and the young man's walking turns into a jog to reach it faster. His equipment bounces and clatters, with his rifle held tightly in both hands. He thinks to himself that hes finally found a way above ground. His body bolts through the opening, but stops almost instantly.

His breath is taken away as he stands within another large cavern connecting to the outside world. The cave is naturally beautiful, with moss growing on the rocks and large plant roots coiling the walls. A massive opening to the right of the young man allows light to flood inside the cavern, and through the opening he sees evidence of a forest. Above the cavern exit numerous natural skylights pour additional sunlight from the outside.

The vest flashlight is turned off as the young man walks to the center of the cavern. He estimates the size to be similar to the portal room, but the cavern is shaped like a half circle instead. His head is darting around this new environment, excited to find something exotic. His hopes are quickly met as he reaches the center of the cave, right in front of the opening.

Directly across the exit, carved into the cavern wall, stands a large monument. It seems to be a statue of a knight or a soldier. It's difficult to tell because the upper torso and head are gone, crumbled all around the statue. Weather and time have taken a toll, with most of the intricate details on the armor worn away. A round shield is held in the left hand, and in the right, a large war hammer that reaches all the way to the feet of the statue. The surviving portion of the statue stands at least fifteen feet tall. The young man can't help to wonder how it must have looked in the past.

A digital camera is pulled out from a front pocket of the young man's pants. He now begins to take pictures with one hand, snapping different cave angles and parts of the statue. As he continues taking pictures, a thought crosses his mind that perhaps he was transported to somewhere in Europe. He had seen articles and television shows about mysterious phenomena that have transported people over great distances. The monument surely wouldn't be in a place like America.

His thought process is cut short as the corner of his right eye notices a small, stone structure at the northern side of the cave. It's very well hidden, with its colors blending into the cavern walls and concealed within the shadow of a large ledge above it. He notices the remnants of a fire pit and sees several wooden tables that seem to have all manner of plants, vials, and equipment.

The young man quickly turns back to the camera to review the pictures of the statue, and satisfied with the results, puts it back into his pocket. He turns himself to walk toward the stone structure, but stops immediately. A figure is already heading towards him.