-november 11th 1983-
-reader's pov-
"mr clarke?" mike called out to our teacher. we were at the wake of will's funeral.
"oh hey there," mr clarke greeted as dustin took a wafer from a table, "how are you guys holding up?"
"we're.. in.. mourning.." lucas awkwardly replied whilst dustin munched on his wafer.
"man, these aren't real nilla wafers," dustin complained to which I nudged him in the side, he let out a quiet whimper in pain.
"we were wondering if you had time to talk?.." mike asked.
"we have some questions." lucas added.
"a lot of questions," mike spoke whilst I nodded in agreement.
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"so you know how in cosmos, carl sagan talks about other dimensions?" mike recalled, "like beyond our world?"
"yeah, sure," mr clarke agreed, "theoretically."
"right, theoretically," mike replied.
"so how do we travel there?" lucas then asked.
"you guys have been thinking about hugh everett's many-worlds interpretation, haven't you?" mr clarke pondered.
"uh, yeah.. totally.." I spoke without a clue what mr clarke was on about, I just wanted to hear his answer.
"well, basically there are parallel universes. just like our world but just infinite variations of it," mr clarke began, "which means there's a world out there where none of this tragic stuff ever happened."
"yeah, that's not what we're talking about," lucas shook his head.
"we were thinking more of an evil dimension, like the vale of shadows," dustin told me clarke, "you know the vale of shadows?"
"an echo of the material plane, where necrotic and shadow magic-" mr clarke started but was interrupted by mike.
"yeah, exactly." he butted in, "if that did exist, a place like the vale of shadows, how would we travel there?"
"theoretically," lucas added.
"well.." mr clarke picked up a paper plate and pulled a pen from his pocket, "picture this.." he drew a line across the plate with a stick-man on top, "picture.. an acrobat.. standing on a tightrope. now, the tightrope is our dimension and our dimension has rules." he then proceeded to draw forwards and backwards arrows either side of the stick-man, "you can move forwards or backwards," he continued, "but, what if.. right next to our acrobat, there is a flea?"
I leaned in closer, resting my elbows on the table as my interest grew more and more intrigued.
"now, the flea can also travel back and forth like the acrobat," mr clarke explained, "but then here's where things get really interesting, the flea can also travel this way.." he then drew an arrow alongside the rope, "..he can even go underneath the rope."
"upside down." me and the boys said in unison and realisation.
"exactly," mr clarke replied.
"but we're not the flea, we're the acrobat." mike spoke.
"in this metaphor, yes." mr clarke responded.
"so we can't go upside down?" lucas questioned.
"no," mr clarke shook his head.
"well, is there anyway for the acrobat to get to the upside down?" dustin asked.
"you'd have to create a massive amount of energy.." mr clarke answered, "more than humans are currently capable of creating mind you, to open up some kind of tear in time and space. and then.." mr clarke folded the plate before stabbing the tip of his pen through the thin paper, "you create a doorway.." he pulled the pen out of the plate, and not to my surprise it revealed a hole in the paper.
"like a gate?" dustin quizzed.
"sure, like a gate." mr clarke agreed, "but again this is all-"
"theoretical." I interrupted, "we know."
"but what if this gate already existed?" mike pondered.
"well, if it did I- I think we'd know.." mr clarke replied, "it'd disrupt gravity, the magnetic field, our environment. heck, it might even swallow us up whole. science is neat, but I'm afraid it's not very forgiving."
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el's eyes widened in fear as mike jabbed the pencil through the sheet of paper.
"it would take up a lot of energy to build a gate like this," mike recalled mr clarke's words, "but that's got to be what happened. otherwise how'd will get there, right?"
"right." el responded.
"what we want to know is, do you know where the gate is?" lucas asked the timid girl who sat right next to me, with her hands in her lap.
el shyly shook her head 'no.'
"then how are do you know about the upside down?!" lucas exclaimed.
but then all eyes fell upon dustin, who was pacing the room with a compass in his hand.
"dustin, what are you doing?" mike asked, "dustin? dustin?"
"dustin!" I snapped which finally broke him out of his trance.
"I- I need to see your compasses.." he stammered.
"what?" mike bellowed, confused.
"your compasses! all of your compasses right now!" dustin ordered.
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all of the compasses were dumped onto the table in a heap, it created a loud rattling sound.
"what's so exciting about this?" I asked whilst dustin organised the compasses.
"well, they're all facing north, right?" dustin spoke.
"yeah.. so?.." I responded.
"well, that's not true north." dustin shrugged.
"what do you mean?" lucas questioned as I tried to get my head around what dustin was on about.
"I mean exactly what I said," dustin sighed, "that's not true north. are you guys seriously this dense?!"
lucas just meekly shrugged.
"the sun rises in the east, and sets in the west, right?" dustin reminded, "which means that's true north," he then proceeded to point north.
"so what you're saying is the compasses are broken?" mike huffed.
"compasses don't have batteries, dingus," I said whilst playfully slapping mike on the arm.
"exactly, y/n gets it. compasses don't need a battery pack because the needle's naturally drawn to the earth's magnetic north pole." dustin informed the group.
"so what's wrong with them?" a confused lucas asked.
"well, that's what I couldn't figure out, but then I remembered," dustin began, "you can change the direction of a compass with a magnet. if there's the presence of a more powerful magnetic field, the needle deflects to that power. and then I remembered what mr clarke said, the gate would have so much power-"
"it would disrupt the electromagnetic field," I finished for him.
"exactly," nodded dustin.
"meaning, if we follow the compasses' north.." lucas began.
"they should lead us to the gate." dustin finished lucas' sentence.
whereas, a worried look etched itself across el's face as she gazed upon the group and listened in on their
ill-thought but well intentioned plan.