The Flame
Gojaro collapsed to the ground, his severed leg falling beside him, the pain hitting him like a freight train. He tried to stifle a scream, his vision blurring as the shock set in. The world around him seemed to tilt, the sounds of the battlefield muffled by the ringing in his ears.
The boy's smile widened, his eyes gleaming with sadistic pleasure. "That's the painful look I like to see."
Rosa shouted out, rushing to Gojaro's side, trying to help him up as best she could. Her heart pounded with a mix of fear and desperation as she glanced over at the portal, now fully open. The boy stood before it, a smug expression on his face.
"Well, thanks for the fun," the boy said, his tone almost casual. "For a human, at least you were strong. Maybe if you were on another planet with a naturally higher energy level, you would have become something more. A problem for another life, I suppose."