Emma jolted awake, her heart racing as if she'd just been dropped from the sky. Her room was dark, but an odd glow pulsed from somewhere outside, casting strange shadows on her walls.
Who opened the portal? she thought, that unsettling phrase ringing in her mind as if whispered by someone just behind her.
She pushed herself out of bed, each creak of the floorboards louder in the thick silence. Outside, the night sky crackled with energy, swirling colors that looked as if they'd been painted by a thousand brushes at once. She'd never seen anything like it.
But before she could blink twice, the glow took shape, swirling faster until it was blinding. And just as quickly, it vanished, leaving the night eerily quiet again.
"Emma…come closer," said a voice—a voice that wasn't there before.
She froze, unsure if she'd really heard it. But her feet moved forward as if they had a mind of their own. Step by step, she crossed the room and reached her window, her hands pressing against the cool glass. Below her, in the middle of her backyard, a faint outline glowed.
It was a circle—no, a portal. A portal that pulsed with the soft, beckoning light of another world.
This wasn't real…was it?
A shape started to emerge within the portal, and Emma's heart jumped into her throat. It looked like a person—a person made of shadows, standing just on the other side, watching her.
Without thinking, she threw open her window. Cold air hit her face, but she didn't care. Something about the figure felt…familiar. It was like a part of her knew him, even though she'd never seen him before.
"Emma," the figure called, its voice a soft, haunting echo that made her skin tingle. "It's time to wake up."
Her mouth went dry. She couldn't move, couldn't breathe. Everything in her mind screamed to close the window and run, but she couldn't look away.
"Wake up, Emma," the figure repeated. "Before it's too late."
And then, just like that, the portal began to close, its light dimming as the figure's hand reached out toward her, fingers stretching across the gap between worlds.
"No!" she found herself yelling, not entirely sure why. "Wait—don't go!"
But it was too late. The light vanished, leaving Emma alone in the silent darkness.
Except…the portal had left something behind.
At the center of her backyard lay a silver key, glinting in the pale moonlight. Emma didn't know what it unlocked, but deep inside, she felt it would open a door to something beyond her wildest imagination—or her darkest nightmare.
Emma's hand shook as she pulled her jacket around her and slipped on her old sneakers. Her mind raced with a thousand questions, but one rang the loudest: Was any of this real?
She hurried down the creaky staircase, her steps soft against the wooden boards as she reached the back door. The night air felt colder than usual, and with every breath, a mist floated from her lips. She stepped outside, her gaze fixed on the glinting key lying in the grass.
It seemed almost to hum as she got closer, its silver surface catching the faint moonlight in a way that felt intentional, as if it was calling her by name.
"Who left this here?" she whispered, glancing around. She was met only with silence, the empty hum of the night, and the weight of the unknown hanging thick in the air.
As her fingers hovered above the key, a strange sensation pricked at the back of her neck, and she glanced over her shoulder. Shadows stretched across the yard, longer and darker than they should've been, seeming to ripple as if something was just beyond them, watching her.
Without another thought, she grabbed the key. A wave of heat spread through her hand, racing up her arm and settling like a quiet storm in her chest. It wasn't painful, but it was powerful—like a heartbeat that wasn't hers. She staggered back, the key clutched tightly in her hand.
And then, as suddenly as it had started, the feeling vanished.
Emma glanced down at the key. It looked like any ordinary silver key, but she could feel the pulse still faintly echoing through her fingers. It was almost like the key itself had a heartbeat.
The wind picked up, rustling the leaves and breaking her trance. She shoved the key into her pocket and backed away from the spot where she'd found it, her eyes scanning the yard as she headed toward the house.
But then she stopped.
Footprints—large and deep—were imprinted in the soft dirt, leading away from where the portal had appeared. They weren't her own, and they certainly weren't human. Each footprint was clawed, with three distinct toes that dug into the earth as if whatever had left them had been dragging its weight with each step.
What…what is this? Emma felt a chill crawl down her spine. She followed the footprints with her eyes, noticing they led toward the woods at the edge of her property.
"Who was here?" she murmured, her heart pounding louder than before.
The night seemed to breathe around her, shadows shifting as if they, too, were alive. She felt the key in her pocket warm slightly, as if reacting to something nearby. She backed up, her breath hitching as a low growl echoed from the trees. It was faint but unmistakable, a sound that raised every hair on her body.
Get back inside, her mind screamed, and she turned, bolting toward the house.
But the moment she reached the back door, she froze, glancing over her shoulder. For a split second, she saw a pair of eyes—glowing faintly from the treeline, staring directly at her. They were a deep shade of amber, sharp and alert, locked onto her with an intensity that made her legs feel weak.
The next second, they were gone, swallowed up by the darkness.
Emma stumbled inside, slamming the door and twisting the lock, even though she wasn't sure that would do much good if those eyes belonged to what she thought they might.
She collapsed onto the floor, catching her breath as she tried to make sense of what had just happened. Her hand clenched around the key again, the silver metal cool against her palm.
And then her phone rang, startling her so much she nearly dropped it. She pulled it from her pocket, squinting at the screen. It was her best friend, Sarah.
"Sarah?" Emma answered, her voice shaky.
"Emma, where have you been?" Sarah's voice came through, high-pitched and frantic. "I've been calling for hours. I heard about the…the lights over your neighborhood. People are saying something…weird was happening there tonight."
Emma glanced around, still feeling as if something might be watching her from the shadows just outside her window.
"I'm okay," she whispered. "I think. But, Sarah…something's happening here, and I don't know what to do."
There was silence on the other end before Sarah spoke again, her tone more serious. "Emma, listen to me. You need to get out of there. Whatever's going on…it's not normal. Come stay with me tonight. Please."
Emma bit her lip, tempted to take her friend's offer. But something kept her rooted. It wasn't just fear; it was the key—the strange warmth still radiating from it, as if it was trying to tell her something, like it held a purpose she couldn't yet understand.
"No, I…I can't leave," Emma said finally, gripping the key tighter. "There's something here, Sarah. Something I need to figure out."
Sarah let out a frustrated sigh. "Alright, but promise me you'll stay safe. And keep your phone on, okay? Call me if anything happens."
"I will," Emma said, though she wasn't sure how much comfort her phone would be if those eyes returned.
They said their goodbyes, and Emma was left alone in the silence again. The house seemed bigger, emptier, every shadow a reminder of the strange figure she'd seen. She glanced at the clock on the wall, realizing it was well past midnight, yet she felt far from tired. The key burned slightly in her pocket, and she pulled it out, running her fingers over its surface, feeling its weight.
What are you? she wondered, holding it up to the light. It was ordinary in every way…except for that strange pulse, that hint of life it seemed to carry.
She wanted answers, but something told her they wouldn't come easily. Whatever the portal was, whatever that figure had been, it was only the beginning.
Emma took a deep breath, her resolve settling like a stone in her chest. Whatever was out there—whatever mysteries lay in the dark—she was going to find them. And she was going to find out exactly why the portal had opened…for her.