Deanna wiped sweat from her forehead, grimacing as the sun beat down. She’d been determined to turn the soil for her garden before the heat got unbearable, but she’d missed the mark. Sighing, she picked up the shovel again and stomped the blade into the Carolina clay.

 

Clang! Her hands stung with the vibration as her shovel struck something hard. It sounded like metal.

 

Squatting down, Deanna peered into the clay, brushing aside reddish-orange clumps to reveal a scratched metallic surface, tarnished with age.

 

“What’s this, then?”

 

She cleared away dirt from the edges with her fingers and was able to pry it loose.

 

Holding it up to her face, she squinted at the odd item. It was like nothing she’d ever seen before. Eight inches long, and flat on both ends. Its shape was a multi-faceted cylinder. She turned it over in her hands, examining the five sides. There were odd markings engraved on each plane. She rubbed at the remaining soil, puzzled.

 

Deciding this was a good excuse to get out of the sun, she carried it inside, stashing her shovel on the porch.

 

The house’s interior was blessedly cool as Deanna ran water over her new treasure. The markings were clearer now: geometric symbols that were engraved so deeply they appeared as crevices.

 

Could they be runes?

 

Drying it with a paper towel, she carried it into the living room.

 

This should make for an interesting conversation piece…

 

As she reached to place it on the mantel, she stopped short. She swore she’d seen a blue light flash from behind one of the symbols!

 

Frozen in place, she studied the object for a moment, then decided it had been a trick of the light. Setting it on the mantel, she left the room, wrinkling her nose at her grubby clothes. A shower was called for.

 

Late that night Deanna awoke from a dreamless sleep. She lay frowning at the ceiling, wondering what had disturbed her.

 

Suddenly, the bed began to shimmy. She bolted upright, her eyes wide with panic. The entire house began to shake.

 

It must be an earthquake!

 

A terrible screeching noise split the night, and she clapped her hands to her head, terrified, just as a great flash of blue light illuminated her bedroom like lightning.

 

Screaming, she tried to scramble out of the bed, but the room began to spin. She had the sickening sensation of falling before everything went black.

 

* * *

 

Deanna opened her eyes cautiously, her ears ringing. She was no longer in her bedroom, but outside, at the edge of her garden. At least, it looked like her garden… but it was different.

 

Where her rows of cheerful red impatiens had once been, there were now strangely shaped plants with iridescent blue flowers. The tall stalks were a sickly yellow color. She swiveled her head, flabbergasted to see alien plants dotting her lawn. Trees with orange-colored bark sprouted leaves of metallic silver. Her house was painted a dull charcoal color instead of white. Everything was just a little… off.

 

Was it a dream?

 

Deanna closed her eyes. They snapped open again at the sound of a woman’s voice.

 

“Yoo-hoo! Deanna! I’ve been wanting to tell you…”

 

Deanna was shocked to see the elderly woman approaching. It was Selma Baynes, her long-time neighbor! Except…

 

Selma had died last year. Deanna had even gone to the woman’s funeral.

 

Deanna stood, speechless, as the woman chattered on from a few feet away. There was something a lit bit… not Selma… about this person.

 

Maybe it was her eyes. Instead of the faded blue Deanna remembered, this Selma’s eyes were a flat black. The woman chuckled at her own wit, and Deanna blanched, catching a glimpse of her neighbor’s teeth. Unnaturally long teeth.

 

Deanna stumbled away, stammering excuses, and sprinted for the house. As different as it appeared, she had to believe it was still her own house, her sanctuary. She rushed through the door and locked it, her heart racing. Her breath came out in little gasps.

 

Am I going crazy? Maybe it’s a nightmare.

 

Hurrying to the sink, she turned on the faucet, intending to splash her face with cold water. A fluorescent green liquid gushed forth, and Deanna backed away, trembling.

 

Something caught beneath her heel, and she windmilled her arms, almost losing her balance.

 

It was the object she’d dug up.

 

Deanna picked it up, remembering how it had flashed blue as she was setting it on the mantel.

 

She examined the artifact and knew, with a sudden intuition - it was responsible for her journey to this weird reality. She didn’t care how, or why. She just needed to go back.

 

Lifting it up, she spun around, in search of her mantel.

 

In this strange, upside-down world there was no mantel.

 

Frustrated, Deanna turned in a circle, keeping her eyes on the etchings, waiting for a flash of blue.

 

Nothing happened.

 

Inspiration struck. She placed it on the floor, rolling it about. Everything was different here, maybe up was down.

 

Suddenly, the artifact flashed blue, and Deanna stepped back nervously. The room began to shake. She closed her eyes, praying to go home.

 

A screeching sound and a brilliant flash of light, then… darkness.

 

Deanna opened her eyes, hearing a loud thunk. Everything was dark except a small window of light, irregularly shaped. She squinted, feeling as if she were peering through a keyhole.

 

She could see an object pass in front of the opening, large and menacing.

 

Was that… a shovel?

 

Trembling, she watched as a giant figure appeared, leaning in towards her viewport. A smear of reddish orange filmed the window, then was cleared away.

 

A human face loomed closer, an entity of humongous proportions. Terrified, Deanna watched as an enormous eyeball peered into her viewport, the iris a familiar green.

 

“What’s this, then?”

 

The voice that boomed out was distorted, but undeniably familiar.

 

Her mind spinning with horror, she realized it was her own.