“Gateway to the Future”

Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!

Prompt: “Stop it!”

“Stop it!” I scream, pounding on the man’s back. “Let me go!”

He ignores me and continues walking, keeping me securely slung over his shoulder.

I keep hitting him, kicking him, desperately trying to escape, but he doesn’t seem the slightest bit affected.

You know, I never honestly thought that I’d end up getting kidnapped. This whole thing is just a bit surreal to me. Okay, a lot surreal.

At the same time, I can’t believe that no one’s come running to rescue me yet. I mean, I’m screaming my head off for crying out loud! Can no one really hear me?!

Finally, the man stops. He pauses for a moment before letting me slide down to the ground. I land hard on a pile of hay.

Immediately, I stand up and try to run. Unfortunately, being the big, strong man he is, he simply wraps an arm around me and picks me up so that my feet can’t touch the ground anymore and I’m effectively running on air like an idiot.

I scream for help, tears streaming down my face as his arm squeezes me.

My panic grows. I’m trapped here. I don’t know where I’m going to be taken or what’s going to happen to me.

I might die tonight.

The world seems to grow still around me. My terror fully envelops me. And I let it. Because seriously, what else am I going to do?

Suddenly, his arm releases me. I risk opening my eyes.

Everything around me is gone. Like, literally gone. I’m standing in a massive crater.

A sound behind me makes me spin around. A woman is walking toward me, slowly picking her way through the burnt remains around me.

“Good afternoon,” she says, coming to a stop in front of me. “It’s quite impressive what you did here.”

I frown at her. “Who are you?” I spit.

She smiles. “The gateway to your future.”

Final Comments: Magic somehow always finds a way into my stories… Not that I’m complaining hehe.

Overall Rating: 😅