Teleportation matrix
A teleportation matrix is an inter-dimensional "hole" through which teleportation is facilitated.<ref>Jagex. Postbag 33 - "We've deliberated, cogitated and digested.", 5. Postbags from the Hedge. *</ref> The existence of teleportation matrices allows matter to be transported across limitless spacial distances almost instantly.
Role in Teleportation
When matter is teleported, it moves between three locations almost instantly; it is because of this that phenomenons such as straddling are possible. First, the matter exists within its original point of existence, the area in which the teleportation was initiated. The magical force that initiates the teleportation, such a set of runes, then bores a hole in the fabric of reality known as a teleportation matrix; most of the well-known teleports used today occur using established pre-existing matrices. The matter, via the matrix, then enters the Abyss, a dimension that exists between all other known dimensions, including Gielinor. Finally, the matter loops back into the teleportation's target location and exits the matrix. Matter travelling through a teleport matrix is apparently followed by an aetheric thread, although the exact implications of this remain unknown.
Use
Following the discovery of runestones and the beginning of the Fifth Age, the Abyssal Services Department was established by the joint efforts of the Wizards' Tower and others tied to the major human nations, possibly including kingdoms such as Misthalin, Asgarnia, and Kandarin. The Abyssal Services Department has since regulated the use of teleportation matrices, somehow teleport blocking those matrices not under the close regulation of the Department. However, the Department's success in regulating teleportation has been far from complete, and many other teleportation matrices, both artificial and natural, exist in Gielinor.
According to the abyssal book, those that create methods through which teleportation matrices can be accessed do so in such a way that values such as distance and speed are managed fairly constantly during teleportation. Although teleportation matrices typically loop back out of the abyss, it is possible to become trapped in the Abyss during teleportation due to matrix errors. This error has since been exploited by the Zamorak Magical Institute. After discovering this error, the group sent an initiate to the Abyss. Once there, the initiate opened a matrix leading directly form Gielinor to the Abyss, allowing transportation between the two. Opening a matrix that leads directly to the Abyss is apparently more complicated than opening one that loops back out; the mage has since been forced to maintain a state of constant concentration to keep the portal open.
Following the re-discovery of runecrafting during the Rune Mysteries quest, the wider implications of using teleportation matrices have become the subject of intense studies amongst certain organisations. According to the Mage of Zamorak in Varrock, the continued use of teleportation matrices has caused the dimensional barriers of Gielinor to weaken, causing random errors to occur more frequently. The ZMI's establishment of a portal in the Abyss has also created a significant risk; should the mage lose concentration, the barriers between Gielinor and the Abyss could temporarily breakdown, killing those near the portal's entry-point or, in an extreme case, causing Gielinor itself to be destroyed.