《Portal Arena》
Chapter 1: September 11th, 2001
Alex Johnson looked up at the two huge buildings in front of him. It was his first time in New York. He had been looking forward to this day for the past 4 months. His dad had promised him they could visit the World Trade Center. So today, his 10th birthday, September 11th, 2001, was going to be a very good day.
¡°Come on Alex! We¡¯re going to be late for the tour!¡± cried Alex¡¯s mom. ¡°Hurry up! Do you want to come or not? I heard that the World Trade Center has the best ice-cream! Wouldn¡¯t be a great birthday if you missed out!¡± said Alex¡¯s dad
After the tour, they bought Alex a vanilla-chocolate ice-cream in the underground mall. After viewing all the shops in the underground, they wanted to take the elevator up to the first floor. However, the elevator was too crowded, so they found themselves heading up towards the top of the building and the observation deck.
¡°Oh well,¡± said Alex¡¯s dad, ¡°I guess we¡¯re going to see the observation deck again!¡±
Suddenly, as they were reaching the 93rd floor, there was a massive bang and the whole elevator shook and stopped instantly. The lights turned off. Everyone started to scream.
¡°What was that?¡± cried Alex...
¡°Fire! Fire!¡± Yelled the muffled voices outside of the elevator.
¡°What are we going to do? God help us!¡± panicked one of the passengers.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
It took over an hour and half before help arrived. The fire fighters levered open the doors with their red axes.
¡°Is everyone okay?¡±
¡°What happened?¡± asked mum.
¡°An airplane hit the building, we need to get out as fast as possible before the fire reaches this floor!¡±
The fire fighters led them towards the staircase. At that moment, there was a huge rumble and the ceiling fell. Dad and mum and Alex and all but one of the firefighters were instantly crushed beneath the rubble. Only Alex¡¯s leg was trapped but he was in agony.
¡° Help!¡± yelled both Alex and his parents.
¡°Who should I save?¡± asked the firefighter.
¡°Save the kid!¡± commanded Alex¡¯s dad from under the rubble.
¡°What about you?¡± said Alex.
¡°The firefighters can come back for us! Now go!¡±
¡°I got you!¡± the firefighter levered the concrete block up with his axe.
Alex screamed in pain.
The fireman lifted Alex onto his shoulder and sprinted for the stairs. Hundreds of stairs later, the fireman arrived on the base floor and got Alex to safety.
¡°What about my mom and dad? You promised you were gonna rescue them!¡±
¡°Okay kid, hang on here while I get your parents!¡±
The fireman disappeared back into the building. But, just then, from above, there came a deafening sound like a waterfall. Alex looked up. A gray cloud was rushing down the building, immersing everything in dust and rubble...
The next thing Alex knew, he had lost everything...
Chapter 2: The Old World
¡°Today, we are honored to present the Guinness World Record in the Roman Colosseum for the first ever time machine made by Alex Johnson!¡±
Everyone started applauding. Alex stood up. Now 23 years old with a goatee, he looked handsome wearing a suit. His metal leg hardly slowed him down at all now. He reached the microphone with a suitcase beside him.
¡°In this suitcase, is a tiny little chip. It should be planted in specific devices such as a Compudahteslanikolamagnetic device which will be explained later. First of all, I¡¯m going to show y¡¯all how it can be powered up. But for some legal reason, this device can only be shown for 2 minutes.¡± Alex opened the suitcase pulling out a tiny chip and the Compudahteslanikolamagnetic device which just looked like a regular camera. ¡°By putting this chip inside the hole of this Compudahteslanikolamagnetic device, as you can see, the device is charged up. This device can let you travel back or forwards in time, but can¡¯t change what has already happened.¡± Stolen novel; please report.
Suddenly, while Alex was still explaining, he slipped and dropped the device with the chip planted inside. Unluckily, the device fell on the side where all the buttons were. For a moment, there was a low hum coming from the device.
¡°Uh oh,¡± breathed Alex, ¡°The device is charged up... I have to stop it!¡±
The device¡¯s machine voice spoke. ¡°Time set to 182 AD. Preparing for a time shift in 3¡¡±
Alex started pressing the buttons violently...
¡°2¡¡±
Panicking now, he smashed the device against the table...
¡°1...¡±
Alex threw the device on to the ground and made to stomp on it.
¡°Time shift!¡±
A purple portal appeared next to Alex, sucking both him and the half broken device through before closing.
Chapter 3: The Realisation
¡°Wha- what happened?¡± Alex said, rubbing his head.
Alex looked around. He was in a room where there were swords, shields and armor. The light in the room was dim, and the smell of candle wax The light in the room was dim, and waves of unpleasant odor, sweat, blood and urine washed over Alex. He could hear the muffled roar of a crowd, clashing metal and screech of beasts.
Alex went up to the nearest person and asked, ¡°Is this some special performance for the Guiness world record event?¡±
¡°Ask someone else, slave!¡± said a tall black man with a huge bushy beard. The man was wearing a full set of silver armor, and looked like a gladiator.
¡°Who you calling slave, bro?¡± said Alex.
The man grinned, ¡°You shall be my first victim in the arena today, slave!¡± The man walked away.
¡°Oh! My bad, practicing acting before performing are we?¡±
Suddenly, a man in a toga came up to Alex, ¡°Hey! What¡¯s going on?¡± he continued, ¡°You should be in your armor by now! What are you wearing?¡±
Right after the man finished talking, several slaves rushed to get a set of armor that fitted Alex perfectly. Alex had seen a documentary once about gladiators. He knew this armor. It was the armor of a Thrax. A curved shield and shortsword, a heavy helm, leg greaves.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
¡°Wow! Fancy suit! I hope I am the star of this special performance! You guys really should give me a heads up next time!¡±
¡°Hurry up, you cucurbita!¡±1 yelled the man in the toga. ¡°Your fans await you!¡±
¡°Quick rehearsal before the show, am I right? See ya in Hollywood!¡±
As Alex slowly strutted towards the doors into the arena, the roar of the crowds got gradually louder and louder. When he stepped onto the arena, the sound of applause that engulfed him was immense. With no hesitation, Alex made a ¡®Hulk Hogan¡¯ hand-to-ear move. The crowd loved it and cried even louder.
He looked at his ¡®opponent¡¯ and realized that he looked familiar... a lot like the tall black man with the beard.
¡°Wait, you again? From the dressing room?¡± Alex called out, ¡°Oh! You don¡¯t know what you got yourself into, bro!¡±
¡°Prepare to die! Slave!¡± The man shouted and advanced.
¡°Bring it on!¡± Alex said, joyfully, ¡°Oh yeah! Don¡¯t go for my face, it kinda ruins¡¡±
The man got close to Alex and swung his gladius at Alex¡¯s head. Alex quickly dogged backwards, but not fast enough. He felt something wet on his cheek. It stung. He touched it and his hand came away red.
¡°Yo, what was that¡¡±
The man took another strike.
This time, Alex dodged.
¡°Wait! Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!¡±
The man stopped, laughing, ¡°What kind of fatue is this?¡±
While the man was laughing, Alex scanned the entire arena. One by one, he noticed that each of the crowd were wearing togas. If this was a performance, wouldn¡¯t the audience be in normal clothes? Maybe they were part of the show... but where are the professional cameramen? In fact, there were no cameras at all. But the weirdest part was that there was no lighting!
And then, Alex remembered the presentation, the purple portal and the device¡¯s countdown: ¡°Time set to 182 AD. Preparing for a time shift in 3¡¡±
¡°Excuse me, kind sir,¡± Alex said to the man.
¡°What slave?¡±
¡°What year is it?¡±
¡°Year 572! What do you mean slave?¡±
¡°Year 572¡¡± Alex muttered, ¡°Holy doo doo, this is real!¡±
¡°Yes this is real! Now prepare to die!¡±
Chapter 4: A Leg Up
¡°Excuse me, kind sir,¡± Alex said to the man.
¡°What slave?¡±
¡°What year is it?¡±
¡°Year 572! What do you mean slave?¡±
¡°Year 572¡¡± Alex muttered, ¡°Holy doo doo, this is real!¡±
¡°Yes this is real! Now prepare to die!¡±
¡°AHH!¡±
The man took a strike. It struck Alex¡¯s chestplate leaving a dent on it. The impact pushed Alex backwards and winded him. The man violently slashed, aiming for the lower body.
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It took a moment for Alex to realise that the sword had hit his metal leg.
¡°What is this sorcery?¡±
¡°Like that trick? Yo wanna see another?¡± Alex stepped on the man¡¯s foot with his metal leg, forcing him to screech. The man jumped on one leg, the other one in hand. Alex began twerking manically.
The crowd bayed for blood.
Alex swung his metal leg around in a vicious roundhouse kick at the man¡¯s head.
The man went down cold.
The crowd cheered! Alex put up his hands for a ¡®Whoop whoop!¡¯ Then he looked up and noticed a young man with purple clothes eating some grapes in a golden booth. The man stood up, and raised his hand, thumb extended horizontally.
¡°Kill! Kill! Kill!¡± the crowd chanted.
The man with the thumb dropped his thumb towards the ground.
The crowd screamed with excitement.
Alex was confused with the thumbs down. Why was this man giving him a dislike? With no hesitation, Alex gave the man a double thumbs up back with a big grin.
The man scowled and stabbed his thumb even harder.
Alex fanned his hand across his neck to say no and gave the man even a bigger thumbs up.
The man looked shocked and gestured to his guards.
The guards walked toward and surrounded Alex.
¡°You need to come with us,¡± the guards said at the same time.
Chapter 5: Meeting the Emperor
Alex looked around at the emperor¡¯s private chamber. Was he escorted here to meet the emperor (Alex had worked out that that was who the man in the purple clothes was)?
A few moments later, Alex heard the sound of footsteps ascending and the emperor of Rome swept into the room.
¡°Who are you?¡± asked the emperor. ¡°Where did you get that incredible metal... thing?¡± The emperor pointed at Alex¡¯s leg.
¡°I¡¯m Alex, You¡¯re not gonna believe this bro, but I¡¯m actually from the future. Yo that¡¯s crazy, huh?¡±This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.
The emperor frowned. ¡°The future? Where is this place? Is it very far away from here? ¡±
¡°No, dude. The future, as in time, tomorrow, next week... or a thousand years... or two actually.¡±
¡°Not only can you fight well,¡± the emperor laughed, ¡°but also a comedian?¡±
¡°Bro, I¡¯m serious. Just look at my right leg. Can your best inventor invent something like this?¡±
¡°Interesting. Can you tell me more about this future?¡±
¡°It''s just like now, but more future-y?¡±
¡°Such as...¡±
¡°Oh! Um, let me think of a random thing in the future.¡± Alex hesitated, ¡°A Samsung refrigerator rf263beaesr?¡±
¡°First of all, what is a Samsung? And what is a refrigerator?¡±
Chapter 6. Negotiation
Alex explained everything to the emperor. The time machine, the Compudahteslanikolamagnetic device, and, yes, the refrigerator.
The emperor stroked his chin, ¡°Speaking of this time machine, I can order my finest engineers to help you build a new one.¡± Alex listened and smiled. ¡°But I have one condition: you must help us solve Rome¡¯s greatest problem!¡±If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
¡°What is it? What is it?¡± Alex asked like a school kid.
¡°Raw excrement!¡±
¡°What¡¯s that?¡±
¡°Poo poo! People keep throwing it in the street. If you can solve this problem, I will help you get home.¡±
Chapter 7: From Rome to Home
After two years, Alex had finished building the sewer system, connecting it to Rome¡¯s aqueducts. People loved watching their poo poo disappear down through the latrines, and praised the emperor for his generosity. The time machine was nearly ready. It had not been easy due to the lack of technology and materials. He had had to make a steam engine to make electricity first. The machines to make the computer chips were the hardest to make.
The emperor¡¯s scientific advisors watched everything with interest. Alex was careful not to tell them too much: if the Romans had steam engine technology in 184 A.D, then that could change history forever. Alex was pretty sure he could not change the future because it had already happened, but he still had to be careful.
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Several weeks later, Alex was ready to head home. Finally, after being stuck in Rome, and living in the massive Palace of Domitian, he was desperate to go home. The emperor had lined up his legions, making a path for him to walk down to the portal. The emperor walked at his side. As Alex was about to step forward into the portal, he turned around and looked at Rome once again.
He turned around and waved at the guards, ¡°Thanks for helping me.¡±
The legions said nothing.
Then, Alex looked at the emperor and held out his hand, ¡°I guess we won¡¯t meet again. Farewell Commodus. You know, the history books always say you¡¯re a bad emperor. But I think you¡¯re pretty cool.¡±
The emperor took his hand in a forearm clasp, ¡°Perhaps, the history books might be accurate.¡±
Alex looked at him with a confused face, ¡°Whaaaatt? Bro, are you serious right?¡± Alex tried to pull away.
The emperor did not let go. ¡°Seize him!¡±
Chapter 8: Legions! March for Rome!
¡°What are you doing?¡± Alex shouted as he tried to yank off the guards that were grabbing him.
¡°Thanks for making the portal for us. Now we are free to conquer your world. The future!¡± The emperor laughed.
¡°You don¡¯t understand,¡± Alex tried to break free, ¡°if you attack in my world, all you would hear is a bang sound, and the next thing you see will be heaven!¡±
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¡°Mentior!¡±
Alex had been in Rome long enough to know that that meant ¡®lie!¡¯, "No! I¡¯m serious. We have guns, and they can really kill you, even you guys wearing that weak armor!¡±
¡°Bah! Then we will take those guns!¡±
¡°Wait, I shouldn¡¯t have warned you about the guns...¡±
¡°We don¡¯t need your advice anymore.¡± The emperor turned and pointed to the portal, ¡°Legions! March for Rome!"
Chapter 9: Back to the Future
The Global President of the Guinness World Records watched as Alex disappeared into a purple portal which then disappeared with a flash. Everyone gasped but then began to applaud. This must have been part of the show, surely? But an instant later, they were all proved correct as the purple portal reappeared. This new portal was larger than the last one. Much larger.
And then, Roman legionnaires started to march through the portal, 6 abreast. Everyone rose to their feet and started clapping wildly!
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¡°What a show!¡± cried the Global President.
The legionaries looked around in wonder. Where were the guns that Alex mentioned? Everyone was cheering! Did these people want to be invaded?
And that was when Alex and the Emperor entered...