“Warning, imminent overload!  Warning, imminent overload!”
The klaxon blared out through the warehouse’s speakers alerting everyone to the trouble at hand.  Very few of the men and women stationed in this underground bunker were paying any attention to the siren.  They were at a crucial stage of the program and every moment counted.  The doors began to rattle as the generators were being placed to overload levels.  The lights dimmed around the compound as energy was being diverted from non-essential areas into the main laboratory.
Inside the command module of the hidden base, Professor Ian MacGuffin was overseeing this testing of the project.  Spectral lights played off the walls as all in the room looked toward the one main window.  Through the window could only be seen a torrent of prismatic lights.  Scientists run from workstation to databanks trying to assimilate the information being conveyed to them from the sensors.  But all seemed to remain calm within this eye of chaos though excited tension filled the air.
Suddenly the lights begin to flicker madly as an explosion rocks the building.  A scientist runs over to a display screen to assess the damage.  Her face takes on a grim appearance as she realizes the effect this will have on the project at hand.  Looking up she says, “Generator 3 has just exploded due to the power overload.  Generators 1 and 2 are nearing critical mass and 4 is starting to red-line.”
“Do we still have enough power to break the barrier?” asks MacGuffin, not wanting to hear the news.
“Only barely,” replies Susan Harris, “if number 4 stays within maximum operating parameters.”
“Peters,” yells MacGuffin,” get all of engineering down to Generator 4 to do whatever it takes to keep it from overload!”
Kevin Peters picks up a headset and begins shouting orders to the engineering personnel.  The rest of the command team quickly begins to compensate for the re-routing of power from some of their systems to the project.  The lights finally give out, thrusting the room into near-complete darkness.  Tense moments pass until the emergency lighting turns on.
“We only have two hours of battery back-up for the lights before even that is used up,” states Harris.
MacGuffin thinks for a moment and says, “Peters, get engineering to turn on the back-up generators as well, then re-route that power to the projection room.  That should give just enough to finish the portal.”
The prismatic effect in the other room slows it strobing effect and the tremors subside throughout the complex.  When all seems calm, the scientists quickly scan their screens to see if the project was successful.
“Status report!” barks MacGuffin.
“Display field is stable,” replies Harris from her station.  “We should be seeing the Scrying Effect momentarily.”
All eyes quickly shift to the window from the Command Center to the Projection Room.  A wavering light fills the center of the room beyond the scientists as it slowly congeals into a circular field resembling a view screen.  An image begins to form within this field that starts to look like a fuzzy picture on a television set.  When the picture comes into clarity, the scientists almost gasp in unison as they realize they are the first to see into another dimension.
The image in the Projection Room takes shape and shows the assembled researchers a world covered in darkness.  Looking through the plate glass window out at the image of this new world, MacGuffin realizes that the image should be daylight but that there is a heavy cloud of smoke over the world.
MacGuffin leans across his desk to speak to Harris, “How does the radiation levels look in that room?  Could we send in Carter and his team to see about better scans and pictures of that dimension?”
Consulting her screens, Harris reports, “Radiation is at acceptable levels in the room but that most of the radiation seems to be coming from the other dimension, sir.”
“Get Carter and his team into that room immediately,” shouts MacGuffin.  “Also have security on stand-by.”
“Sir, nothing is going to come through that imaging field.  I double-checked the simulations myself,” Peters says.
“That may well be, Peters, but I, for one, am not going to take any chances.  Where the devil is Carter?”
Through the window, the scientists see the research team enter the Projection Room with Carter at the lead.  John “Jack” Carter is the country’s leading expert on quantum mechanics and heads a team of equally qualified people.  The team consists of five people: Carter, Rose Rivera – a leading geneticist, Linda Killian – botanist, Roger Thibideau – historian, and Eva Gardner – anthropology.  Pulling out their hand-held scanners and sensors, the team quickly begins to take readings of energy levels and technology from this new world.
“What have you got for me, Jack,” MacGuffin asks over the comm-link.
“So far, readings indicate a highly developed technology base that utilizes steam power instead of electricity.  Pollution levels are almost off the charts, which accounts for the high level of smog in the area.”
Roger Thibideau quickly adds, “It appears that when they went through their Industrial Revolution they never moved on to electronics and microelectronics.”
Suddenly a silhouette crosses in front of the Scrying Effect.  The research team quickly moves their scanners over to begin taking readings of this lifeform.  The lifeform has a large, blocky object on its back almost like snail’s shell and a bulky, metallic right arm and left leg.
Rose Rivera looks up from her scanner and says, “This creature appears to be bipedal with both organic and inorganic material.  I’d like to get a sample of its blood to see what genetic secrets can be revealed.”
“My God,” breathes Eva Gardner, “This lifeform is human!”
“Are you sure?” asks MacGuffin over the intercom.
“Yes, I am,” answers Eva.  “It seems as though it has mechanical additions grafted to its body, but it is definitely human.”
“I’m also getting a heat signature from it,” adds Carter.  “It seems as though it has a steam engine grafted into the module on its back.  My best guess is that is what powers the arm and leg to function properly.”
The figure stops as it passes the screen and turns its head.  It looks around the area.  As soon as the gathered scientists see its face, they realize it has grafted mechanics to its head as well as its arm and leg.  The eye patch begins to glow a sickly green color and quickly shifts between green, blue, and red.  The creature takes an alarmed step backward then steps closer to the screen.
“It appears the creature can see the Scrying Field somehow,” Carter states to both the intercom and the recorder he has on his left shoulder.