The heat crept in that Needles summer morning. It was not enough to deter the masses from viewing the state park’s three hundredth anniversary. Many stood half naked in a futile attempt to cool off.

Those without ball caps cupped a hand over their eyes. They craned their necks to see a little man at the top of the skyscraper sized skateboard ramp.

Children vainly stood on their toes to get closer to the action. The obnoxious DJ alternated between early 2000s era Punk Rock tunes and his own irrelevant, breathy commentary.

Hugo Sterling rested one foot on the board as he peaked over the edge. His eyes were calm, but his veins pulsed. The board was custom made to work well with Hugo’s four foot four height.

Sleek, black drones floated all around him. News station logos and sponsors printed all over them.

He looked at the drones and said, “See you on the other side!”

And then he pushed off.

The wheels hit the ramp and he leaned into it. His hair whipped around and he smiled. Something was terribly wrong. He was losing control. The front truck buckled under the pressure and cracked. His feet suddenly slipped away from the board and he started to free fall.

The crowd stopped breathing.

Hugo’s head swung in toward the ramp and he closed his eyes.

An emptiness of space wrapped around his body and then imploded. The board tumbled down the ramp.

Hugo was gone.

Confusion and mayhem reined. Some sat, dumbfounded while other screamed and fought.

“What do you mean it will take three hours to transfer the footage?”

Frankie was Hugo’s manager. He loosened the purple tie that accompanied his yellow suit. Frankie punched a Hugo blowup doll and swore loudly.

“Listen up. You’re going to send it through Alternate Space right now.”

A young boy’s eyes well up with tears. Frankie skewed his face into a facsimile of a smile.

“Hey kid, he’s okay.”

The boy did not respond and Frankie shrugged his shoulders.

“I don’t care how much it costs just-”

There it was. A large three-dimensional projection of Hugo filled the sky above the park.

Medical staff scrambled around behind Hugo. Bright lights and complex machinery are scattered around.

“I’m alive!”

A long and bright roar came up from the crowd. He smiled broadly and bowed. A slight glimpse through a window behind him revealed a silver wasteland of space dirt and darkness.

“So much for my stunt though, right?”

He waited for the laughter to die down and continued, “You’re probably wondering where I am and how I got here.”

Hugo had grown quite the hobo beard. This particular New York City curb made a nice seat. Third refill of sludgy coffee in his mug. A few teenagers skateboarded on the library steps across the street.

His skating gigs were sparse and unfulfilling. The safety sucked all the excitement out it. If he sneezed too hard, they would pluck him out of danger again.

Several sirens blared in distance. He set the mug down and kicked it. Porcelain and coffee sprayed across the pavement. One of the punk teenagers, Emelia, got off her butt and stared Hugo down.

“Guys. Get load this,” Emelia said. Emo was apparently in this month. Everything she could make black, was. Her t-shirt display rotated through death metal music videos.

The rest of the grungy teens huddled around Hugo.

“Colorblind gang?” he asked them.

A dude with long, black stringy hair sneered and showed his teeth. He stooped to Hugo’s level and said, “Bet you can’t even grind no more runt.”

Hugo’s ears burnt red as he ripped away the dude’s skateboard. “We’ll just see asshole.” He opened with a simple kickflip and then he performed a nosegrind on the park bench. He jumped off the bench and started a three-sixty. The dude lunged at Hugo and slam dunked the board from under his feet. He closed his eyes again. His face kissed the concrete with brunt force. He lay unconscious.

Emelia braced a hand over her mouth. The dude and most of his pals take off. Emelia stayed and put her thumb on her spiky wristband. The device chirped and she said, “Send an ambulance!”

The ER was overrun with patients. Doctors and nurses ran in circles. Hugo started to wake up when Frankie took a seat next to him. He was wearing his favorite yellow suit again.

“What the hell happened?” Hugo asked.

Frankie loosened his tie and slunk down. “Looks like the Alternate Space network is down, buddy.” Hugo raised an eyebrow and accidentally touched the gash on his head. He recoiled in pain.

“Better just hold still. It’s a good thing Emelia was with you,” Frankie said.

“Who’s Emelia?”

Frankie just laughed and sunk farther into his seat. Emelia snuck up behind Hugo and started to wrap a bandage around his head.

“I was able to commandeer some supplies,” she said. Some of Hugo’s blood was on her shirt.

The fever of the ER staff only intensified. One nurse cried as she leaned against a wall. Frankie tipped his cheap fedora down.

“This hospital has not seen this much action in fifteen years!” Frankie said.

“So old school,” Emelia said.

Hugo tried to get a better look at her, but he could not while she was bandaging.

“Thank you for bringing me here.”

She did not respond. An old man pushed a cart passed them. Hugo squinted and could just barely make out her face in the chrome reflection.

“You?” he yelled.

He whipped around, which ripped off half the bandage. He stopped and clutched his head.

“I’m sorry! I’m helping you now aren’t I?”

Frankie sat up and said, “Wait, you seriously don’t know her?” He looked her over. “Eh. She helped you anyway, didn’t she?”

Hugo settled back down into his chair and Emelia fixed the bandage.

“I hate teenagers,” he said.

A beautiful nurse stopped short as she passed Hugo. “Wait! Are you Hugo Sterling?”

He nodded politely.

“Oh my gosh! What happened?”

She reached down and grabbed his hand. She used her other hand to pinch his cheek. He clinched his fist. “I’ll make sure someone gets right to y-”

An entrance to Alternate Space wraps around her. It covers up to her hand, but instinctively works around Hugo’s hand. Even though he is touching her, it leaves all of him out of the entrance.

“No!” she screamed.

Hugo’s hand started shaking as he looked around the room. Entrances enveloped a third of the people in the ER. Doctors, nurses, injured, healthy, were all transported. Frankie jumped up and looked around frantically.

“What the hell is going on?”

Emelia put her arms around Hugo and said, “I’m scared.”

“So am I.”

He looked down and saw the entrance forming around Emelia.

“Hugo!”

“It’s going to be okay!”

“Hugo!” she screamed through gritted teeth. She grabbed onto him tightly, but the entrance covered her and whisked her away.

“No!”

Hugo stood up and almost fell over. He leaned against the chair and saw the entrance forming around his arm.

“Stay safe Frankie.”

“I’ll see you soon, buddy.”

The temporary removal from our plane of existence was an everyday occurrence. At least for those escaping dangerous situations, or those who needed to travel great distances.

Hugo still shook. The darkness of the void was peaceful. What lay on the other side was a question today.

Light pierced through as his exit formed inside the medical facility. He was hovering over a large device.

“Guys. I’m not falling! Why did you put me here?”

He strained against the anti-gravity to lift his head. The room was empty.

“Hello?”

Gun shots echoed across the building. Hugo’s eyes bulged and he started to squirm.

“Come on! Get me off here!”

The power phased down for a second and Hugo hit the ground. He curled up and puffed out his cheeks. The power started to surge back and he rolled away from the machine.

He glanced around the room, but he only saw complex medical equipment. The door to the main hallway was wide open. All the lights were out or flickered. He peeked around the corner and spied the silhouette of a tall, curvy woman.

He tip-toed town the hall to get a better look. Several men in combat gear lunged at her. She quickly dispatched them with her electrified baton. He moved a little closer as she fought off two females.

He saw her clearly now. Extremely Russian features. Extremely hot. ‘Aline’ was printed on her name tag. Aline was wearing some kind of security guard outfit.

Hugo stepped just a little too close and knocked over a propane canister. She turned and raised her baton. One of the girls Aline had knocked out stood up behind her.

He threw up his hands and said, “Woah, woah, I am unarmed! Also I’m not exactly of menacing stat-”

The other girl bashed an assault rifle Aline’s head. She fell right into Hugo and they both fell flat on the ground. She practically buried him.

“A little help?”

The combatants rolled Aline off him. They each smiled and started high-fiving each other.

“Now come nicely and we won’t hurt you,” the pudgy man said.

Hugo sat up and scratched his head. Confusion filled his eyes for a moment, but quickly vanished.

“Oh I see.”

He placed his hands behind his back and they not-so-gently applied handcuffs.

About fifty people were handcuffed and scattered around the large conference room. Papers, cabinets, and computers were spewed on the floor. Hugo huddled next to some teenagers. They cried and buried their faces in their knees.

“Have you seen an emo kid around your age?”

Nobody responded. They rocked back and forth a little harder. He looked around and caught a glimpse of the guards dropping Aline on the floor. Handcuffs weren’t enough to hold her. There were also leg locks.

His physic made it pretty easy to sneak his way over. He nonchalantly edged his way closer and closer. There were small tattoos on each side of her nose. He craned his neck to inspect them closer. Her gentle green eyes opened. She would not break eye contact. He slowly backed away.

“Wait… you are tiny man who distracted me!” she said. Her accent reeked of poorly attempted Russian.

Aline flopped around, but she could not get at him with the restraints. He put his hands out.

“Come on, don’t draw attention.”

She simmered down and he sat next to her. Her eyes scanned him up and down. He watched nervously.

“I am head of security. You are the has been skater.”

His ears went a little red and he shook his head.

“What’s exactly is going on, miss former head of security?”

A wry smile crept up her face as she put her head on his tiny shoulder. He blushed and looked around. Nobody seemed to notice.

“What do you think,” she said.

Hugo scoped out the room. Hostages sat everywhere, while armed combatants with automatic assault weapons, grenades, and other tactical gear stood around.

“Obviously some kind of terrorist takeover of the Alternate Space hub,” Hugo said.

He tried to peak into the hallway and said, “But I don’t see any leader. We don’t even know what they want.”

She wrapped her teeth around a shoulder button on his shirt and pulled on it. He anxiously pretended that he did not notice.

“Let me know if you see an emo girl. Emelia,” he said.

She snapped up and flung the button across the room. “Who is this Emelia?”

Hugo brushed the area where the button used to reside. He placed his hands around the bandage and said, “I’d be bleeding out if it weren’t for her.”

She smiled again and said, “See the man over there?” He nodded and she continued, “Get his knife for me.”

She smiled through clinched teeth. Her eyes widened and she used her chin to point at the man. Hugo sighed and pushed his way through dirt and drywall chunks on the floor. He was almost close enough to reach the knife on the man’s belt. He reached out just a little farther and fell over.

“Hey man, like, where you groovin’?”

Hugo froze. An average sized man with long, flowing hair leaned against the conference table. Hugo eyed the hippie’s v-neck and ample chest hair with confusion.

“Checking on a friend.”

The hippie smiled genuinely and pulled a pistol out of a combatant’s holster. The combatant simply nodded and moved away.

The hippie fired several rounds into the ceiling. He swayed a little and scratched his head with the gun.

“Everyone. Your attention would like be totally awesome right now.”

The silence was intense. Aline propped herself against a chair. She glanced at Hugo and her face soured.

Somehow, the hippie smiled even broader.

“Come on guys! Lighten up! The Tedster says so!”

He spun his finger in the air and Black Dog blared over the speakers. He waved his arms around and motioned for everyone to follow. He almost fell over when he swirled around. People stood up and awkwardly moved to the beat. Hugo did his best.

A middle-aged women made a break for it, but was immediately gunned down. Tedster slammed his first on the table. His neck tightened and his face blistered red.

“What happened to using blanks?”

Hugo slipped under the table. Tedster winked at him demonstratively and dropped his laser knife. Hugo quietly picked up the knife. Aline had nudged her way near him. He stretched hard and cut off the handcuffs.

Tedster jabbed his pistol up against the neck of the combatant who fired the shot. Blood splashed across Tedster’s face when he pulled the trigger.

He dove into cover and said, “We’re not supposed to kill civilians!”

The rest of the combatants secured defensive stances opposite Tedster. They aimed their weapons, but nobody fired a shot. Most of the hostages lay flat on the ground.

“I’m okay now. It’s okay now,” Tedster said, He got to his feet and continued, “Party’s back on.”

Aline gave Hugo the bird behind her back. He half-smiled and cut her handcuffs. The combatants slowly resurfaced from behind cover while Tedster pulled a large assault rifle from his jacket.

“Party is so on, baby!”

He filled half the combatants with bullets, while the few quick dashed back into cover. A scrawny lady with dark green hair peaked around a chair and blasted Tedster with a stun gel shot.

A burly hostage snatched a rifle off a dead combatant and exchanged fire with the remaining combatants. Others fled the room.

Aline stole Hugo’s knife and cut her leg restraint. Hugo checked Tedster’s pulse and said, “He’s alive.” Aline ducked down and put her lips to his ear.

“Stay here and guard him. I kill ugly green haired one.”

Hugo stared at the blood on Tedster’s face and winced. He crumpled up some stray papers and tried to dab up the mess. Tedster jumped up and grappled Hugo’s arm.

“Oh, it’s just you,” Tedster said.

He dropped Hugo’s arm and sat up. Hugo frowned and said, “Aline told me to guard you.”

“The Russian babe? Well, that’s a relief, man,” Tedster sneered. He rested his back on a half broken desk and played with his hair.

Hugo pointed his index finger and opened his mouth. He was interrupted by the sound of pistols and automatic rifles. Tedster dove under the table with Hugo.

Hugo tilted his ear and stopped breathing. There was only the rustling of loose papers. Many hostages lay in bloody poses.

“Aline?”

Feet scrapped near them. Hugo backed against a table support and curled up. A patch of green hair peered just below the top of the table. Hugo kicked at it and the green haired scalp fell to the ground.

Aline fell on the floor laughing. Hugo and Tedster’s mouths gaped.

“You cut off her scalp?” Hugo asked.

She pressed down on the arms of her uniform and said, “She pissed me off.”

“That is like totally not cool,” Tedster said.

Aline perched on her knees and scurried over to Tedster. She moved in real close and snapped her teeth.

“Who the hell are you?” she asked.

He tried to back up and knocked his head into the table. “Ouch!” he said. “I’m just like this dude…”

She pulled out her knife and licked her bottom lip. Tedster’s hands started shaking. The distant ruckus of guns, explosions, and running distracted Aline.

Hugo cleared his throat and said, “How about we interrogate him in a good hiding spot?”

Her eyes fixated on Tedster’s head as she swayed back and forth.

“As head of security, you must know of some secret rooms.”

“She holds many secrets.”