CHAPTER
ONE
The
challenge is in choosing a room. Does a
room filled with weapons lead to a world unsafe for travel? If the room contains vast treasure, does that
foretell fellow explorers on the adjoining planet or unsavory thieves? What about boxes filled with alien stuffed
animals? A hasty choice can turn out . .
. unpleasant.
Several
rooms still possessed their protective shield covering the doorway, signifying
the dominant species of the corresponding planet had not yet developed to
solving the simple math problem inside.
Still, with hundreds, possibly thousands of rooms to the portal
building, the choices seemed infinite.
Strolling
along the hallway, one room finally caught his attention. It differed from the others in that it was
empty. No boxes, crates or shiny objects. It was as if this species didn’t use the
portal. A clear line of sight through
the portal opening provided a view of sunlight and green, thigh-high
grass. It seemed normal enough for a
quick look-see.
Stepping
through the portal, Clark covered his eyes until they adjusted to the
brightness.
Huh. Just one sun.
That’s familiar.
An
open grass field surrounded him. He lifted his head and sniffed. The smell of pine trees and blackberries
drifted in the air. Clark turned to look
over his shoulder, momentarily forgetting that the portal was invisible from
this side. Yards away rested a dense
wooded area, stretching as far along the horizon as the eye could see.
Standing
at the edge of the forest and vast grassland, Clark wondered at the beauty of
the large green leafy canopy atop black-barked trees, mixed with the poison
ivy-like vegetation that hid the wooded ground.
Peculiarly, all of the vegetation displayed teal-colored streaks or
spots. Even the pear-shaped fruit
hanging from trees and white, heart-shaped flowers growing between the large
leaves, were spotted with shades of teal.
He
then turned and observed the light wind gusts blowing alternating “S” patterns
in the tall grass. As Clark walked, he
held his arms out by his sides feeling the top of the grass stems. Upon closer inspection, the thigh-high grass was
also streaked with teal. He surveyed the
landscape, searching for signs of danger.
Seeing none Clark headed eastward, away from the woods. It didn’t take long to become comfortable in
his surroundings and that made him feel strangely . . . uncomfortable.
If I didn’t know
better, I’d say I was on Earth. There’s
always differences, usually major ones, but here, other than the runaway tone
of teal coloring, everything looks similar to home. The color of the sky, plants, trees, the height
of trees, gravity; everything looks and feels very familiar. It even smells like home . . . kinda.
FOR MORE, CLICK ON PAGE "SAMPLE FROM UNSEASONAL WAR" ON THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE OF THE BLOG
