The Portal: Part 1

"Keep fighting!" David shouted

"We are with you!" Ash and Hazel shouted back

After a rough battle the monsters were pushed back and began to flee the tower. The three of them quickly boarded the entrance and waited for Levi. They sat down, listening to the battle above. The tower fell silent and they eagerly stood up. Levi was running down the stairs and found the three adventurers safe and sound.

"I know how to stop this. There is a portal where Raven once stood. They built that tower to block the portal." Levi said

"You don't have any wounds." Hazel noticed

"I have healing Energy." Levi said

"Before we go, I need to know who you are. That Titan knew your name and called you a liar for using that name. What is your real name?" David asked

"Levi Bruin. It always has been." he said

"We can trust him. He brought us here and protected us many times." Ash said

"You're right." David said

"Thank you," Levi said, "Now let's return to our wagon and hurry to Raven."

"Yeah, about that," Ash said, "We are completely surrounded."

"I have a plan." Levi said

The four brave warriors barged out of the tower and Levi used plasma Energy to blast through the creatures. They ran as fast as they could out of the city and into the forest.

"I- I need a moment." Ash struggled to say

"We didn't get much from the monsters." David sadly said

"I've got something and I'll split the gold between the four of us." Levi said

"Thank you." Hazel said

The adventurers got into the wagon and Levi steered them to Raven Tower. It wasn't a long journey. When they got there they saw a giant black ring in the center of the rubble. Levi tied the horse to a tree and they inspected the portal. There were no monsters and the portal was closed. They cautiously approached the strange ring.

"Obsidian. It is made of obsidian." David said

"We can't break that!" Ash said

"With a massive amount of Energy we can." Levi suggested

"Ash and I can't use Energy that well." David pointed out

"Anything you can muster will be enough." Levi said

In front of them stood the great Obsidian Portal. It was a dark ring and the center was empty. Levi placed his hand on the ring. It was cold. It hasn't opened in a while, which means it could open any minute. Levi turned to Hazel and nodded his head. They all lined up and stood in silence. Levi looked over to David and Ash and saw them concentrating. They all began to gather Energy and focused the firing point at the ring. Ash used fire Energy. David used water Energy. Hazel used gravity Energy. Levi used plasma Energy.

David and Ash were the first to run out of stamina and they fell to their knees. Hazel ran out too. Levi kept firing plasma Energy at the dark portal. After five or so minutes Levi stopped. He went up to inspect their work, and it was fruitless.

"Nothing happened to it. No crack, chip, or anything." Levi said disappointed

"Is there anything else we can do?" David asked

"When Hazel gathers her strength, the two of us can use gravity Energy to bury it in the ground." Levi said

The sun was still high and it wasn't certain when the portal would open and what beast would crawl out. Time was not on their side. The four of them agreed to wait until dawn then take action. The sun set and the stars came out. The three of them settled down to sleep and Levi stayed awake. He had a lot of time to think about their predicament. He put his mind to work and tried to figure out how to break the portal.

A few hours passed, it was still dark. A bright golden light was shot from the portal. Levi woke everybody up and they took cover and watched the brightly lit ring. At first nothing seemed to happen but after a few moments a monstrous shape emerged. It was a man. The man was twice the size of a normal person and it had elk-like antlers. He wore leather armor and had a single sword. Its eyes were covered by a black mask.

"We need to be careful. I don't know who that is," Levi said, "I will go to talk to them."

Levi approached the man. The ruins were well lit due to the portal. Levi walked up with his hands raised above his waist. The man held out his hand and Levi stopped in place.

"Who are you? I am Levi Bruin." Levi said

The man stood in silence and motionless. His giant frame swayed back and forth. Levi took another step forward and the man immediately unsheathed his sword. Levi took a step back. The man did not put his sword away.

"Who are you?" Levi asked again

The man took a step forward. Levi grasped his sword and unsheathed it. Before he could get an inch of his sword out, the man dashed and swung a very powerful swing at Levi. Levi barely dodged in time. Levi quickly unsheathed his sword and stood up in a defensive stance. The beast was incredibly fast and strong. Levi could feel that he wasn't using even five percent of his power. The man kept dashing and attacking, Levi could only dodge. The adventurers watched in silence. They couldn't even keep up with their eyes.

The second Levi could get up, the man already had swung again. For at least half an hour, Levi could only dash out of the way of the forceful strikes. The man was relentless. Each swing was more powerful than the last. The man's muscles bulged as they contracted in a wide range of motion. His movements were graceful and smooth. He was a master swordsman.

The man continued to strike at Levi, but the blows did not connect. By the end of the first hour, Levi was getting exhausted. He had little strength left. He could not block the attacks and only dodge them. Yet, the man still is using less than five percent of his power. The man stood still waiting for Levi to stand.

"Okay," Levi said, "It's time to get serious."

Sunrise was only one hour away. Levi stood up and closed his eyes. He began to gather an immense amount of Energy. He imbued his sword with plasma Energy. Levi's speed and strength greatly increased. The man wasn't phased by this move and easily could keep up with him. Their swords clashed and they were screaming and struggling to take down the other. The man was vastly stronger than Levi. He was much faster and ten times stronger.

Their fight dragged on. After another hour, the energy drained and Levi's swings slowed down. The man was still able to move with ease. Levi took a few steps back and rested. The man looked down at his chest. Blood had started to seep through his leather armor and clothing. The man let out a grunt of pain and stumbled backward. There was a deep cut on his chest. Levi dropped a dagger on the ground that was covered in blood. The blade was imbued with plasma energy as well. Plasma Energy is extremely radioactive and even just a small bit could bring down the mightiest men.

The creature stumbled around and finally fell to the ground. Levi stood up and walked over to the fallen man. The sun began to rise and Levi knelt next to the body. He held up his hand to signal the group to stay hidden. He reached for the mask covering his face and eyes.

"Let's see what you were." Levi said to himself