Legacy of the Portal Masters: The War for Earth

Chapter 4: Ryan, Portal Master of Undead

Ryan was sitting in a graveyard, one of his favorite places, meditating. He was in his normal attire, a black hoodie with a skull printed on it. He was also wearing black jeans, and black and brown hiking boots. He was thinking about his past year at school. Ryan was an outcast and a loner at his high school, yet he liked it that way. He didn't believe he needed friends, and even if he had friends, he wouldn't pay attention to them, as he was always deep in his thoughts, of which he shared with no one.

Ryan was slightly muscled, slightly pale, and very wimpy looking, which was the way he liked it, as it always was called for him to be underestimated. At his last school, a bully had started to pick on him. On the very first day the bully picked on him, he went home with two black eyes, and a broken nose, and Ryan had yet to be scratched.

(Earth: Tennessee, Present Day)

He was sitting in the graveyard, with his eyes closed, when five objects fell from the sky, hurtling towards him. Four landed in a semicircle in front of him and, with his still closed, he heard one whistling through the air, and he caught it in his palm. His mind filled with thoughts of Skylands. His eyes opened, and he saw that there were four tiny creatures around him. There was a black Dragoness, who he knew was named Cynder, a white skinned Elf wearing a long black dress named Hex, an armored skeleton with a sword and shield named Chop Chop, and next to him was a skeletal ghost with a mace chained on to his body named Ghost Roaster.

"Master. A force of evil and Darkness approaches. I advise you to flee." Said Chop Chop. Ryan merely gave a wry grin.

"No," he said, "I stay, and I fight. I am not afraid."

"No," said Chop Chop, "we fight. Correct?" he asked, and the rest of the Skylanders murmured in agreement. Ryan took the cords of his hoodie and tied them around his Crystal, then dropped it so it touched his throat. His mind dropped into the Crystal, and he saw the world hued in black. A wave of black energy spread outward from him, and he felt the shield trapping the Skylanders. He let the might of the Undead beat at the shields, and the Skylanders were freed. Ryan stood and looked around. Through his eyes, he saw a graveyard littered with tombstones. Through the Crystal, he saw ghosts of American soldiers from World War Two. A battle plan formed in his mind.

"Skylanders, hide, and wait for my signal." Said Ryan, then he sat again and closed his eyes. But he kept his Crystal open, and with its sight, he saw a tall, hooded figure float down to the ground. The figure flicked back their cowl, revealing a tall, pale woman, with pure white hair. She stalked towards Ryan with silent footfall. A bone-handled knife was unsheathed silently, and the Mage drew back to throw the blade. Ryan's finger twitched. Chop Chops sword sang as he leapt off a tombstone and at the Mage. She tried to parry, but his blade sank deep into her shoulder. She howled in pain and crumpled. Chop Chop swung to decapitate, but the Mage rolled under his sword and launched upward in a ferocious lunge, stabbing the Arkeyan in the chest and throwing him back with the follow through. Ryan rolled backwards and launched himself to his feet. Cynder threw herself at the Mage, claws extended and lightning streaking from her maw. The Mage threw her right arm upwards, and a huge bone slammed Cynder in the chest. Hex threw orbs of magic at the Mage while Ghost Roaster charged. The Mage rolled out of Ghost Roasters way, but one of Hex's orbs caught her in the side, and she screamed in rage. The Mage threw her hand out, and fifteen ghosts of Drow spearmen materialized and charged Hex in a phalanx formation. Her orbs tore through three of them, but when the rest reached her, she couldn't flee fast enough and the Drow stabbed her in the back. She screamed in agony and fell, her back spewing dark blood.

Ghost Roaster charged the unprotected rear, but the Drow heard him and spun, and he skewered himself on their spears. He collapsed in a scream of rage, and lay writhing on the ground as blood welled from his wounds. The entire battle took less than ten seconds. Ryan watched as, one by one, his comrades fell.

The Mage laughed.

Ryan growled.

All Hades broke loose. Ryan made the soldier ghosts materialize, and they opened fire on the Mage. She simply waved her hand, and the ghosts vaporized. Ryan made the corpses in the graveyard rise, but the Mage made them fall again. Ryan threw his hand towards the Mage, and black lightning flew at her. The Mage extended her own hand, and bolts of lightning intercepted Ryan's bolts headlong, matching him bolt for bolt. Ryan was surprised at the Mage's control and aim. He decided that magic was out of the question, so he went with might.

A voice whispered in his mind. Bane... It whispered, and so did Ryan. Leather armor covered him, he felt weight added to his wrists, and a bone scythe formed in his hand. So he charged the Mage and the knife appeared in her hand. He swung the scythe, but she rolled under it and tried a counter-stab at the rear of his waist, but he back flipped over it and swung at her throat. She ducked under the blade and leapt at him, but he rolled under her. The Mage threw her knife, and Ryan barely managed to catch it in the handle of his scythe, which then vaporized. As the Mage's knife fell, Ryan managed to kick the knife handle and sent it flipping through the air at the Mage. She caught the blade between her thumb and forefinger, and laughed.

Ryan remembered the weight on his wrist, and looked down. Black wrist guards had materialized on him. He moved his hand so his palm faced the ground, and a sharp bone slid from the gauntlet. He had sharp bones hidden in his gauntlets. Hidden bones. That would be useful. He stalked towards the Mage with the blades extended. She sneered. But she was worried. Ryan knew that. She started to fear the hooded man before her. Ryan decided that he was a true creature of the dark. He vowed that though few trusted the Undead element, he would make sure the Darkness feared it. He would start by killing this retched waste of Undead magic. He lunged at the Mage. She deflected one of his blades, but the other caught her already wounded left shoulder. She screamed and fell, knocked down by the force of his charge. Her knife went flying as she held her arm up futilely to defend herself. It didn't help. Ryan impaled her throat, and blood welled up from the wound as he drew back his blade. The Mage made a gurgling, choking sound, twitched once, then lay still. Her body decomposed rapidly.

Ryan stood and let the energy from his Crystal spread out to make sure the Mage was truly gone. She was. But Ryan's Crystal sight also alerted him to glowing bones in the ground. Ryan brought them to the surface and they fit together like a 3D jigsaw. When he was done, he looked on to the Portal in front of him, white as bone. But it wasn't activated. Ryan shot a stream of lightning at the husk. It glowed and a layer of magic spread from its rim. Ryan picked up and carried the Skylanders to it, placing them on the magic gently. He then stepped on it himself, then teleported himself to Skylands.