The Breach on the Beach

Ridley only made it a few dozen yards, when something stopped him dead in his tracks.  He didn’t know what he was seeing. It nearly defied description, at least in our world.  In a sci-fi movie or some kinky anime it would have looked right at home.

Ridley certainly had no frame of reference for it, but as near as he could tell, a misshapen hole was ripping its way into existence in the air immediately before him.  Its ragged edges twitched with rippling tendrils of scintillating energy, tipped by flaming sparks of cobalt and gold. Hot air boiled out from the dark, oily void within, strong enough to blast him in the face.  Ridley coughed and gagged. Whatever it was, it was nasty and caustic, like the black smoke of a chemical fire.

Stumbling back, he tripped over his own feet, landing on his backside with a dull thud.  He caught his breath, never taking his eyes off the…whatever the hell that was in front of him.  Nothing happened for a long moment. The hole, if that’s really what it was, hung just above the sand, large enough for a Hummer to drive through, the wisps of energy along its edges crackling and wavering erratically like a windsock in a tempest.

The feeling he was being watched grew stronger.  After a quick survey of his surroundings Ridley was sure no one was around so he ignored it, completely consumed by what he saw before him.  Maybe there was something in the vodka he’d had too. What was it they said in Scrooged?  Vodka poisoned by Chernobyl?  Maybe Bill Murray was on to something.

It didn’t matter.  The hole mesmerized Ridley, who was still sitting in the sand glued in place.  The hole didn’t even cast a shadow, almost as if it wasn’t truly there. He wasn’t exactly scared, not that he felt overly courageous either, but he was fascinated by it.  Another few seconds passed and still nothing happened. Finally, curiosity got the better of him, and rather gingerly, he scooped up a handful of sand and threw it at the hole.  The sand sizzled and disappeared where it came into contact with the coursing energy at the edges, but he didn’t notice any other reaction. He hunted for a shell and, finding a sizable one, tried throwing it.

Bull’s-eye, right through the center.  It stirred the blackness of the hole where it hit. But where did it go?  Enough of the sand was visible beneath it. He should have seen where it should have landed, but it never did.  Ridley waited.  

But still nothing happened.

Finally he stood back up, not bothering to brush the sand from his black jeans.  He made another quick but careful scan of the beach and again no one was out there, no one.  No Geoff, no Marisol. The house was beyond a bend now, out of sight. He was truly alone, but then he had been for a long time, and he was used to it.  He preferred it that way.  

No, that last part was a lie, and he knew it immediately.  His loneliness was self-imposed and, as evidenced by his emotional tumult over Marisol, something he knew in his heart he wanted to break free of.  But he couldn’t justify that with himself and it only made rage roll up into his belly again. A rage which he only knew how to channel in a reckless and foolish way.  With a deep and angry furrow in his brow, he walked towards the hole slowly, his fists clenched, his body tense and ready to jump away quickly. Being careful not to come too close to the searing tendrils, he leaned in close calling, “Hello?  Hello!”

No response.  His voice fell dully against it.  He circled it to the right and as he passed the edge to loop around the back, it disappeared.  Ridley jumped back. The hole re-appeared as soon as it was in front of him. Speechless, he moved his head left and right.  Every time his eye-line moved behind the hole, it winked out of existence. No sound or fury, just gone in less time than it took to blink.  Completely baffled, he ran around behind it, and sure enough it was gone. The only trace of it was the whisper of crackling energy, and the faintest waves of heat from where it should logically be.

Ridley charged around to the front again, and there it was, plain as day.  Now he had to know what the hell was inside this thing.  Gingerly he drew in closer, holding his breath against the toxic reek wafting out.  He was only a few feet away now. A few inches.

The closer he got, the more the blackness inside gave way to indistinct shapes and a color palette he had never dreamed possible.  His eyes widened as he got closer ,and saw walking mountains amongst clouds of molten metal, drifting through a vibrant violet sky.  He pulled back and whispered, “Good God…”

“Not quite.”  

Ridley jumped back and spun towards the voice.  Five unlikely figures had appeared out of nowhere and were stalking towards him.