A small slit let in light at the bottom of the door which stood between them and the monsters. “We’ve gotta get out of here,” Lily told Sam over the shouting and loud banging on the door.
“I’m working on it,” Sam replied, with his eyes closed in concentration and his collar flashing red and white lights as it communicated with the Time Portal core. “Two minutes…I just need two minutes to program the exact energy levels needed to send you back while allowing your body’s molecules to stay together.”
They both knew that if those hideous creatures broke through, they would prevent Lily from traveling through the Time Portal back to her home and back to three days before the virus infected the Time Portal. Lily watched the door bulge with every scream and shout from the other side. The banging suddenly stopped and all was quiet. Lily said, “I don’t have a good feeling about those guys behind the door…what they are up to…”
Then Lily spotted the slime oozing from the bottom of the door. “No, not a good feeling at all…Sam, we don’t have any more time….we need to go, one way or another…and soon…” Lily said, watching the puddle slowly creeping along the floor towards them. She thought to herself that the slime was a mixture of the monsters in liquid form…shadows of their ears and sharp teeth were reflected in the gooey substance. But they still smelled like themselves.…old vomit… and …as the slime got closer, steam poured off it as it ate a path through the stone floor.
She had to take the leap. No choice on that. It was all on her. If she didn’t go back home to three days before she had traveled here, nothing else would matter since time would just fold in on itself. There wouldn’t be anybody around to talk about it, either. Lily looked back at one of the hundreds of paintings which she now knew made up the outside layer of the Time Portal. Lily did have one choice: which painting to leap into. The way Sam had explained it, all she had to do was go into the painting and she would be absorbed by it. She would instantly find herself on the other side, in her world. Sam had adjusted the time mechanism to send her back to the cabin at 9 a.m., three days before she had traveled to Borealis.
Lily picked her painting, the one with the circle of young Blue Monkeys holding hands, laughing and dancing. Their skin and hair colors were all shades of blue, from pale pastel to darker turquoise with an iridescent glow. Off to the side, older Blue Monkeys were looking on proudly. One of the women looked like Sophia and wore garments identifying her as a healer. Lily could see intricate carved details in the ancient buildings in the background. Trees and plants were painted in such vibrant colors that they looked three-dimensional. Even the dancing children appeared to be moving. “I’m guessing that you can’t go with me,” Lily said to Sam who was hovering over her like a worried parent.
“Lily, you know how risky this is and I want to make sure that everything goes as planned. There is no room for error. We have never sent a human through the Time Portal. I have to stay here to monitor the program. My collar and I will regulate the energy levels so you can travel home safely. Don’t worry about me…and them…” Sam said, pointing to the growing puddle of steaming slime.
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What I like about this one is that you've added a time constraint. Giving the characters a time deadline adds so much tension to the scene - which is already tense & well-written here. Great job!
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