The Open Gate

Chapter 6: The World Beyond the Gate

The boys finally entered the mysterious gate and immediately realized the gravity inside was horizontal. Because of it, they had to crawl into the doorway sideways while using a torch to move through the darkness.

After walking for some distance, they suddenly stepped into cold water. As Rickey looked around, he realized something terrifying.

“Wait… where’s Vickey?”

The others immediately stopped and looked around in panic.

Vickey was missing.

The darkness around them made everything worse.

“Vickey! Where are you?!” Rickey shouted loudly.

“Vickey!” the others called out repeatedly.

Suddenly, lights turned on across the underground passage, shocking everyone. They quickly turned toward the light and saw Vickey standing near a group of switches.

“Why are you all shouting?” Vickey asked casually. “I’m right here.”

The boys sighed in relief.

Alex then began leading the group deeper inside until they found a metal door. Just as Alex tried opening it, Rockey warned him about possible traps. Alex used an axe to c***k the door open, and they noticed dangerous threads placed above and below the entrance. Carefully, they passed through the middle without touching them.

Inside, they discovered many connected rooms and realized the place was actually a huge underground base. Rickey tried opening several doors using the rusty key they called “The Mystery Rusty Lock,” but none of the doors opened.

That night, they returned home exhausted. While the others slept, Rickey stayed awake reading The Open Gate book, hoping to find clues, but he found nothing useful.

The next morning at school, two new students arrived—a brother and sister named Jack and Julie. Julie joined Rickey’s class, and everyone was impressed by her beauty and confidence. During the break, Rickey spoke with her and discovered they both wanted to become game designers. The two quickly became friends.

After school, Rickey’s friends teased him, but he warned them not to reveal anything about Viscous or the underground base to Julie.

That evening, after dropping Julie home, the boys returned to the forest house carrying all their tools. They entered the underground base again and began breaking open every locked door they found.

Finally, they reached one last massive door that was much stronger than the others.

All four boys held the hammer together and smashed the door repeatedly until it finally broke open.

A blinding white light burst from inside.

When the light faded, the boys stared in complete shock.

Before them was another world.

There were only a few buildings, but they were extremely tall. The streets were completely empty, with no people anywhere. Long pathways stretched across the area, and train tracks ran directly along the roads.

It looked similar to Earth.