MidReal Story
The Gateway Chronicles
Scenario: Happy birthday to the largest Pentecostal movement in South Africa, the Apostolic Faith Mission! This Pentecostal movement's roots stem from the Azusa Street Revival, a significant event that ignited a worldwide spiritual awakening. As we commemorate 116 years, the AFM Durban Central Region echoes the essence of our emblem: 'No cross, No crown.' This symbolizes our journey of faith, sacrifice, and ultimate victory in Christ. Happy Birthday, AFM of South Africa. Today, we pay tribute to the pioneering legends, like oBaba uNgidi, who led from the front and significantly contributed to the growth of this movement. We also honor the foundation laid by John G. Lake, whose Apostolic mission in 1908 established the AFM, transforming countless lives and communities across South Africa. Happy birthday, Amafayifi amhlophe. Here's to many more years of blessings, growth, and unity in our mission to spread the Gospel. From all of us at AFM Durban Central Region, we celebrate you! To God be the glory.
Create my version of this story
Sarah Lee
historian of the group, friends with Emily and Jack, petite with freckles and blonde hair, intelligent and brave.
Jack Thompson
techsavvy member of the group, friends with Emily and Sarah, tall with glasses and dark hair, logical and cautious.
Emily Carter
leader of the group, friends with Jack and Sarah, short with curly red hair, adventurous and curious.
It was a typical Saturday afternoon in the small town of Willow Creek, and three friends were hanging out at the library.
Emily Carter, Jack Thompson, and Sarah Lee had been friends since they were kids, and they’d spent countless hours at the library over the years.
They’d read every book in the young adult section at least twice, and they’d even read a few of the adult books when they thought no one was looking.
But on this particular Saturday, they weren’t there to read.
They were there to do research.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?”
Jack asked as he looked around to make sure no one was watching them.
“Of course it is,” Emily said as she scanned the shelves for the book she was looking for.
“Why wouldn’t it be?”
“I don’t know,” Jack said with a shrug.
“It just feels wrong somehow.”
Sarah rolled her eyes at him and said, “It’s not wrong, Jack.It’s just…unusual.”
“Unusual?” Jack repeated with a frown.
Emily found the book she was looking for and pulled it off the shelf.
It was old and dusty, and the leather cover was cracked and worn.
It looked like it had been sitting on the shelf for years.
Emily blew the dust off the cover and opened it to the first page.
The three of them gathered in a secluded corner of the library, and Emily laid the book on the table.
“Has anybody seen Sarah?”
her grandfather’s journal,” Jack said as he took a seat at the table.
“I wonder what’s so important that she had to drag us here on a Saturday.”
“Don’t be such a baby,” Emily said as she took a seat across from him.
“You know you love a good mystery.”
Jack rolled his eyes at her as he sat down.
Sarah joined them a few minutes later, and she had a small smile on her face as she took a seat at the table and placed a leather-bound journal in front of her.
“What’s that?”
Emily asked as she leaned forward to get a better look at it.
“It’s my grandfather’s journal,” Sarah said as she opened it to the first page.
“Your grandfather’s journal?”
Jack repeated with a frown.
“What’s in it?”
Sarah turned to the first page of the journal and began to read.
As she read, Emily and Jack exchanged a look, and they could tell that whatever was in that journal, it was important.
Sarah read aloud from the first page of the journal: My name is Sarah Lee, and I am writing this journal for my granddaughter so that one day she will know the truth about our family and the secrets we have kept hidden for generations.
I know that you will find this hard to believe, but I promise you that everything I am about to tell you is true: Portals exist.
There are gateways between worlds that allow people to travel from one dimension to another.
These portals can be found all over the world, but they are rare and difficult to open.
It is my belief that there is a nexus of these portals somewhere in Willow Creek, and I have spent my life searching for it.
Sarah looked up from the journal and said, “He was obsessed with finding these portals.He spent years searching for them, but he never found anything.”
“Portals between dimensions?You can’t be serious,” Jack said with a frown.
“I know it sounds crazy,” Sarah said with a shrug, “but my grandfather was convinced that they existed.”
“Did he ever find any evidence that they did?”
Emily asked as she leaned forward in her seat.
Sarah shook her head, and her eyes fell on the journal as she said, “No, not that I know of.But he never gave up hope that one day he would find them.”
“And so are you,” Jack said with a frown.
“Are you going to spend your life searching for these portals too?”
“I don’t know,” Sarah said with a shrug.
“But I want to know what happened to my grandfather, and I think this journal might have the answers I’m looking for.”
“Do you really think he was onto something?”
Emily asked as she studied the journal on the table in front of her.
Sarah nodded, and she turned to the next page of the journal as she began to read: “I have been studying these portals for most of my life, and I have learned much about them over the years.They are not natural formations, but were created by an ancient race of beings who sought to explore other worlds and dimensions.I believe that Willow Creek is one such portal, and there will be others like it scattered throughout our world.I do not know how many there are or where they are located, but I am certain that they exist.”
Sarah paused as she read, and Emily could see that she was struggling to process what she had just read.
If what her grandfather had written was true, then everything they knew about their small town was about to change.
“Go on,” Emily said after a moment, and Sarah turned back to the journal as she continued to read: “Willow Creek is a small town in the middle of nowhere, and most people who pass through it do not give it a second thought.But I believe that it is anything but ordinary.I believe that it is one of these portals, and that there are others like it scattered throughout our world.I do not know how many there are or where they are located, but I am certain that they exist.My only regret is that I will not live long enough to prove it.”
Sarah closed the journal and sat back in her seat as she said, “My grandfather was convinced that Willow Creek was one of these portals.
And he thought that there were others like it all over the world.”
“That’s a pretty big claim,” Jack said with a frown.
“Did he ever find any evidence to support it?”
Sarah shook her head, and a small smile tugged at her lips as she said, “Not that I know of.But he did leave behind some clues.”
“Clues?”
Emily repeated with a frown.
“What kind of clues?”
Sarah reached into her bag and pulled out a small slip of paper.
She placed it on the table in front of Emily and said, “He left me a list of books that he thought might help me with my research.
This is the first one on the list.”
Emily picked up the slip of paper and studied the title of the book: The Origins of the Multiverse by Dr.Emily checked the library’s catalog on her phone, but she couldn’t find the book listed anywhere.
“That’s strange,” she said with a frown.
“This book isn’t in the library’s database.”
“I know,” Sarah said with a nod.
“That’s why I wanted to come here and see if they had a copy.”
“Well, we’re here,” Emily said with a shrug.
“Let’s go find that book.”
The three of them gathered their things and headed to the stacks to look for the book.
As they searched for the elusive volume, Emily couldn’t shake the feeling that she was on the verge of something big.
A thrill of excitement coursed through her veins, and she could feel the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.
It was like the moment just before a storm hit when the air was heavy and charged with electricity.
Willow Creek had always been a boring little town in the middle of nowhere, but now it felt like something exciting was about to happen.
As Emily and Jack waited for Sarah to check the next aisle, Jack asked, “What was the title of the book again?”
Emily said with an exasperated sigh.
“I feel like we’ve been looking for hours and we haven’t found anything.”
“Are you sure this book even exists?”
Sarah shrugged and said, “I guess there’s only one way to find out.” She turned to the next aisle and disappeared from sight.
By the time Sarah came back empty-handed, Emily and Jack had already started scouring the shelves on their own.
Sarah sighed and joined them in their search, but after another ten minutes had gone by, they still hadn’t found anything.
“It has to be here somewhere,” Sarah insisted as she checked the catalog on her phone for the fifth time.
“Maybe they misfiled it or something…”
“Excuse me,” Sarah called out to the librarian behind the front desk.
“Do you have a copy of The Origins of the Multiverse by Dr.
The librarian glanced at Sarah’s phone before shaking her head and saying, “I’m sorry, miss.
It looks like that book isn’t part of our collection.”
Sarah’s face fell as she turned to look at Emily and Jack.
“I don’t understand,” she said with a frown.
“If this book doesn’t exist, then what does that mean for my grandfather’s research?”
Emily exchanged a worried glance with Jack.
Emily pulled into the parking lot and put the car in park, but none of them made a move to get out.
They all just sat there in silence, staring out at their small, unassuming town.
After a few minutes had gone by, Sarah let out a shaky breath and said, “What are we doing?”
Emily asked with a frown.
Sarah said with a shrug.
“I mean, this is crazy, right?”
“No crazier than anything else we’ve done together,” Emily said with a reassuring smile.
Sarah said with a small smile.
“But still… It’s hard to believe that we’re really doing this.
That we’re actually going to try and find this portal my grandfather was talking about…”
Jack said with an excited grin.
Sarah asked with a frown.
Jack said with a shrug.
“I don’t know, something about this just feels… right?
It’s like maybe we were meant to find this stuff.”
“Are you saying that you believe in parallel universes?”
Sarah asked with a raised eyebrow.
“I’m saying that I believe in us,” Jack said with a grin.
“We’re not just random friends who happened to grow up in the same town.
