"Ahhh!!!""N-no!"
"Hel--"
The moment he opened his eyes; he was engulfed by scorching flames and a blinding white light. Then as his hearing recovered; his ears were flood by a cacophony of screams and yells of terror from his teammates.
"I thought...! It should be a secret portal! Unless--" Mikael, the leader of the group, had no time to consider any further - they were surrounded by thousands of enemies - countless cultivators led by a mighty powerhouse barely a step or two weaker than Mikael; a so called Spirit-Severing expert.
The portal was in the middle of a battle-formation; 100 metres in diameter - with no way to hide from their surrounding ambushers.
An ambush - the moment they set foot out of the portal.
Mikael desperately s.h.i.+elded himself with magic spells - Greater Protection From Magic, Spell Immunity, Greater Protection From Weapons - but he could feel that it would not be long before he fell under the onslaught.
"Men! Fire at will!" A valiant; refined-looking man with long black hair stood at the forefront of the cultivator troops; commanding them to slay the intruders.
Arrows blotted out the sky; along with energy-reinforced javelins and flaming ballista bolts. The lead cultivators in the formation channeled their Qi; summoning white pillars of fire to plummet down onto the group of 30 soldiers coming through the portal.
One after another, Mikael"s companions emerged from the portal; only for them to cry out in horror; then they were pierced, burnt and turned to ashes under the siege of the cultivator"s concentrated fire arts - right before their leader"s eyes.
"My brothers... My sisters...! My comrades!!" Mikael gnashed his teeth in fury as he continuously incanted new layers of magical defences. But it was an exercise in futility - he was running out of mana; while the cultivators still had Qi in reserve, rotating their attacking formations to maintain their relentless barrage upon Mikaels squad.
He cried tears of blood and anger as he was forced to watch his cherished allies fall - teammates who had gone through thick and thin; life and death together.
"I"m sorry... I"m sorry...! I"m so so sorry...!! I should never have brought you here...!!!" He clenched his teeth and fists so hard that the veins in his neck bulged out; his palms bleeding from the nails pressed in. Nevertheless; willpower could not turn around the absolute difference in might - he slowly fell to the ground as his s.h.i.+elds and knees gave way.
Finally; the last of his seven brothers and sisters had crossed over... And perished.
Except for Robin.
Robin; the big brother of their troops. Robin; who had counseled, raised and protected each and every one of them through the thick of war.
Robin; who had personally carried Mikael on his back through dozens of kilometres of hostile territory; through mud, rivers and jungles...
Robin. Big brother Robin - the one that everyone in the squad proclaimed as "the most reliable man on the face of the earth".
Big brother Robin popped out of the portal; then immediately began running - towards the enemy commander - untouched and untargeted by either spell or arrows as he charged through the hail of attacks. His face visibly changed from trepidation to fear as he scurried away from Mikael; away to the folds of their enemies.
"Robin... ROBIN!! YOU TRAITOR!!" Mikael was no fool - there was no way that the cultivators would leave a citizen of Earth unharmed - except...
If he were the traitor who had ratted them out.
Something snapped inside the heart and soul of the captain of the expeditionary forces. He abandoned his defences; and instchanted his last spell - at the cost of his life.
Legendary Spell: Wail of the Banshee.
A spell that did not discriminate between friend or foe; slaying every living thing that could not resist the lethal cry of the death-bringing Underworld spirit.
Being the nearest to the Legendary Mage; Robin was the first to wither away; his life snuffed out and eyes rolling up. With a panicked, timid and maddened scream, he frothed at the mouth, then collapsed; silent as the grave.
As the waves of soul-reaping sounds from the spell rippled out; hundreds of the weaker and tired men collapsed and died instantly, slain by the banshees wail.
But it was already too late for Mikael.
"Hahahahahahaha!! Brothers! Sisters! Fear not; I have avenged you!! Now; let us die together!" Eyes reddening with equal parts wrath and sorrow; Mikael fell to his knees; coughing blood.
"And in the next life-- I"ll find the dark hand scheming behind the curtains!!!"
Then he was disintegrated as the flames finally broke through his defenses, thus ending the story of Earth"s only legendary mage.
* * * * *
The red portal flickered once, twice, then dissipated - as if though it had never been there.
A cultivator in military garb quickly gathered reports from the various leaders of the squads of 50 men each; then ran over to their leader; the valiant and handsome black-haired man.
"Lord, it is over. The portal is sealed and we have confirmed the deaths of all twenty nin - I mean all thirty intruders."
"Continue, captain - what are our casualties?" Zhang Yu, their leader, and a Spirit-Severing powerhouse, nodded and spoke gently yet firmly. Despite their success, he looked sorrowful instead of jubilant.
"Sir..." The stern looking captain looked distraught as he provided his report. "Our brothers... More than 400 of our beloved brothers have fallen..." The tall and heavily muscled soldier"s eyes turned red; as he fought to hold back his own tears.
The handsome man sighed heavily, turning to survey the battlefield once more. He formed a few hand-signs; paying his last respects to the departed.
"May you rise to the All-Father"s embrace..." He closed his eyes and bowed his head.
Then, turning back to the captain before him; he gave his instructions. "Let the men rest; give the survivors double wages and a one week holiday. For those who have pa.s.sed on... Give their widows and families five times the normal amount."
The captain was shocked at his command - it was an excessively generous reward during such troubled times - one that would suck dry the resources of their entire branch! "Lord, Lord! I - We - Our southern Jin branch won"t have the money to pay for this and still meet the monthly tribute for next month; how will we, how will we--" He spoke falteringly; with sincere worry - concerned for his master.
Zhang Yu held up a hand; silencing the captain and remaining calm despite the outburst. "Captain Liu; we will pay what is due to our men who laid down their life in defence against the cruel invaders. As for the payments next month..."
He turned face the east with lines of worry creasing his brow. "I will personally go to the east and seek the Prefecture Lord"s forgiveness."
Captain Liu hesitated; before bowing deeply. "Yes Lord; this servant shall obey."
As the Captain hurried off to organise their troops, the troubled young lord sighed once more; raising a hand to stroke his chin, thinking.
"Why would these invaders suddenly appear here...? It was fortunate that Luo Bin… No that Robin warned us in time..." He mourned the loss of his long-time friend; who he had lost touch with for more than twenty years. He pondered who would hatch such a plot against the Zhang clan - and wondered...
"If I traced back the path Luo Bin had taken... Perhaps the family he serves had something to do with this nefarious scheme...?"
But he also wondered... Could his tiny branch family take on the powers who were great enough to hatch such a plot involving other worlds...?
"Who knows where the next invader"s portal will open..." He sighed; then instructed his stewards to pack up their temporary base and depart.