The sun was just beginning to peek out from behind the ruined buildings when Alise opened her eyes. She lay there in silence for a while, listening to Noah's steady breathing and the soft whimpering of Rex, who slept curled up next to her. Finally she sat up and stretched lazily.
- Good morning in the ruins of the world," she muttered to herself with a hint of sarcasm.
Noah was already awake - he was opening another tin of food.
- Breakfast of champions," he chuckled, slipping her a can of food.
They ate in silence until they heard something....strange. The room around them trembled, as if the air had suddenly constricted. Something rustled, thundered and .... flashed with a bluish light.
Alise jumped to her feet and ran to the window.
- What was that? - She asked as she looked outside.
In the square, maybe twenty metres from the building, a rotating portal was slowly closing - bright, unreal, full of energy. Just before it closed, something - someone - fell out of it. The boy's body crashed to the ground.
- Damn," Noah whispered. - What the hell was that?
- It looked like a portal," Alise said, unable to take her eyes off the prone figure.
- Let's go," Noah decided, reaching for his gun even though this person didn't look like a threat.
They quickly descended the stairs and cautiously approached the boy. He lay motionless, unconscious. He was wearing ordinary clothes - jeans, a dark hoodie, trainers. He looked... completely normal.
- He looks like someone from my world," Alise said incredulously. - It was like he was plucked right out of my town.
Noah knelt down beside him and checked his pulse.
- He was alive. We need to get him inside.
He picked the boy up gently and carried him back to the factory. He laid him on one of the beds and covered him with a blanket.
Alise stood beside him, staring at the boy's unconscious face. She sensed that this encounter was no coincidence.
The silence was broken only by the constant hum of the wind coming in through the broken windows. Suddenly, without warning, the lights in the factory flickered and dimmed. Bulbs hanging from the ceiling gave off an unstable glow, then began to pulsate again.
- What the... - Noah muttered, looking up.
A low humming sound came from the corner of the room, as if all the electrics were at their limit.
- The generator must have overheated again," he said as he approached the door. - I'll go down to the cellar and see what's going on.
- Want me to come with you? - Alise asked, looking nervously at the boy lying on the bed.
- No," Noah replied. - You stay here. Keep an eye on him... you don't know who he is. If he wakes up, let him know he's not alone.
Alise nodded, although there was a shadow of fear in her eyes.
As the door closed behind Noah, Alise sat down in a chair beside the boy's bed. She stared at his still face, trying to understand who he might be and where he had come from.
And then she felt it.
A strange tingling at the back of her neck. As if her mind was trying to remember something. And suddenly - images.
Flashes.
A school. A classroom. She was sitting on a bench when suddenly the lights began to flicker. Later, the whole room shook, as if something had bent space. And then... the first portal opened.
She blinked quickly, trying to ward off the memory, but it returned with redoubled force.
The light flickered again, and a metallic grating came from the cellar.
Suddenly all the lights went out.
Alise froze. The silence was so thick she could almost hear her own heartbeat. She looked over her shoulder at the boy - he was still lying motionless, unaware of what was happening.
Everything seemed different in the darkness. The hard walls of the factory seemed overwhelming, and every sound echoed with double the force.
Suddenly, the light bulbs flashed again and slowly returned to normal.
Alise breathed a sigh of relief. A moment later the door opened and Noah walked in.
- It's over," he said, shaking his hands from the dust. - There was something wrong with the generator, I reset it.
- Thanks," she said quietly, still not taking her eyes off the boy. - For a moment... I thought something would happen. I had a feeling of déjà vu. Exactly the same thing happened in my world before .... Before the portal opened.
Noah looked at her carefully, his eyebrows furrowed.
- Do you think it has something to do with him?
- I don't know... but I'm starting to get a bad feeling," she whispered.
Noah walked over to the bed and looked at the unconscious boy. He looked calm. Too calm.
- Well," he finally said, "if he is who you think he is... then maybe he knows the answers you are looking for.
Alise nodded, feeling the tension rise in her chest.