Five Minutes Sooner, Chapter 11: A Portal in the Night

Five Minutes Sooner was originally published as Under the Oak Tree. Same story, new name. Meet The Five Minutes Series.

Date: April 26th, 2008 Place: Lucas’s House near the Old Oak Tree, Warrior, Alabama As Josh and Lucas approached the haunting quietude around the oak tree, they noticed an eerie stillness. Their steps were careful, the ground soft beneath their feet, and the air felt charged, almost expectant. Lucas spotted an unusual rock, oddly out of place, triggering a series of bizarre events.

A Shocking Discovery

Lucas reached out to inspect the peculiar rock, immediately recoiling as a sudden jolt of electricity shocked him. “It stung!” Lucas exclaimed, shaking his hand. Josh, skeptical at first, touched the rock but felt nothing. Realizing something mysterious was at play, the friends knew this rock had a crucial link to Eric’s disappearance.

The Enigma Unearthed

Digging deeper revealed a strange, heavy object weighing about thirty pounds, composed of an unknown, otherworldly material. Lucas theorized it might have absorbed electricity from the lightning that struck nearby, suggesting the rock was some kind of energy-storing device.

A Risky Experiment

Driven by urgency, Lucas proposed a daring plan to recharge the rock by simulating a lightning strike using jumper cables connected to Josh’s truck battery. Despite acknowledging the danger, their resolve to find Eric pushed them forward. As soon as the cables touched the rock, a brilliant purple portal opened, bending reality before their eyes.

Crossing Realities

The portal revealed a startling vision—another Eric hiding, observing his past self. Realizing they were seeing the day before Eric vanished, Lucas and Josh understood this was their opportunity to rescue him. Stepping through felt surreal, as if passing through water, entering a vivid daylight scene of yesterday.

Reuniting Friends

Quickly signaling the hidden Eric, they quietly returned through the portal, narrowly escaping detection by their past selves. Back safely, the tension dissolved into relief and laughter, their incredible discovery now fully realized—they had just experienced genuine time travel.

Can’t Wait for the Next Chapter?

Read the whole story now. Five Minutes Sooner is still available on Amazon under its original title, Under the Oak Tree, but only for a limited time. Grab the original edition before it’s gone. Get the original edition on Amazon Read Chapter 12: A Time Travel Experiment