The Portal

The black orb started to pulse as Ottothal moved Borg beside the device. Ottothal removed his hand from the sphere, backed up, and let Borg place his hand on it. The little demon was excited to touch the orb. When Borg's demonic body made contact with the pulsing device it sucked him inside with a flash of shadows. His demonic blood, the catalyst to start the device. The metal hanging on the sides of the pedestal lifted up and began to spin around the orb, faster and faster causing a thin steak of red and black magic to intertwine and flow from the orb down the alter and into the pentagram on the floor. From there it began to travel through the glyphs, lighting each of them up as it traveled towards the chairs.

Ottothal strode confidently outside the area. "See, the magic required to open a portal to the Abyss is quite costly…It requires souls."

"Garrok!" Alissa cried out.

Ottothal laughed, "Try all you want, Garrok knows his place."

The magic reached their chairs, crept up through the grooves inside the metal and onto the backrest. Each metal band began to glow with the blood-red shadowy magic. Simultaneously they felt a surge of incredible pain as if someone had stabbed them in the skull with a hot knife. A magical connection was made between the five beings in the chairs and the black orb. Their souls began to tear from their bodies, fueling the machine. A translucent aura blended with the dark magic flowing into the device. Alissa screamed in excruciating pain and tried to summon her magic, summon anything at all. Even if she could cast through the pain, the gold band prevented any other magic from working.

Rothox and Kadrin gritted their teeth staring at each other. Kadrin looked away unable to face his old friend. Julius passed out as his body couldn't stand the pain. However Harim stayed focused, his head shaking as he withstood his life force being torn from his body. He closed his eyes, mumbling a mantra, repeating the same thing over and over again, "Everything must balance."

"Unfortunately due to the nature of the device, it won't kill you right away after all it does take time to withdraw one's soul..." Ottothal referenced a pile of withered bodies in the corner of the room. He had been experimenting.

Garrok felt that same feeling he had felt back at the coliseum enter his mind as he watched his friend slowly and painfully dying. He tried to shake it off but the feeling began to grow. Alissa through her pain saw Garrok fighting something within him.

"Gar…rok, help us!" She called to him through clenched teeth. He saw him look at her through the corner of his eyes. He had heard her. She cried out again.

"Don't listen to her Garrok, this is your destiny," Ottothal said. Whatever magic was behind Ottothal's word it forced the old Garrok back down.

Rothox heard Alissa and tried to summon a dagger to his hand but the enchanted magic didn't work. Every passing second he could feel his body weakening. He was helpless, they were going to die.

The black orb was growing as it took their souls in. When the portal was four feet across a demonic voice spoke from the other side. "Finally." A red-clawed hand reached through the swirling shadows and a large demon pulled himself through the half-grown portal. His dark red muscular body, two large horns, and a black blade strapped across his back. The only clothing he wore was a large black armored loin cloth. The nine-foot body slowly transformed into the demonblood form of Vorthas.

"Vorthas, welcome back."

The demon glanced around the vault seeing the Sect strapped to the chairs powering his entrance to their world. He grinned, "A front-row seat to the beginning." He stood beside the unconscious Julius, his soul still being sucked from his body. Vorthas walked up to the birdman, looked around the room, staring right at Alissa, and stabbed his sword into him. Julius' eyes flashed open one last time before slumping forward onto the blade. Vorthas slowly removed his sword, with a sickening sound. "He annoyed me."

"Vorthas, we could have used his soul." Ottothal was unhappy.

"Look." Vorthas stepped aside showing the vampire the remaining essence of Julius flowing into the portal device. "While the body is connected so too is the mind and soul." Vorthas stepped towards Rothox. "Sometimes it is more fun to watch them suffer."

The tip of a saber stabbed through the chest of Lord Cragxan. Cragxan turned to face Sixx but her saber was too fast and she took his head off. His body instantly vaporized into a misty cloud. Sixx spun behind her metallic automaton, using Atow as cover. Captain Sixx and Erigos' father had snuck into the chamber. Erigos' father rushed towards Garrok who just noticed the ambush. Instead of attacking the half-orc, he slipped past him running straight for Alissa's chair.

"Stop him!" Ottothal commanded.

Garrok reached for him but he slipped aside, a lifetime of running had its advantages. He reached the chair, swung his sword down onto the back of the metal band, his blade cut through the gold freeing Alissa's head. The link between her and the near full portal was severed however it was still growing, so long as a soul was attached it would continue to stay open. Her connection to arcana was reinstated as the band was removed from her head. She spoke a word and the manacles clicked open.

Erigos' father smiled at her, as Garrok's blue blade ran him through. He continued to smile as death took him. Alissa had no time to watch him die, she went to stand but her body was too weak. Her knees slammed into the stone floor. She lifted her head and waved her hand towards Rothox's chair casting the same spell she used to unlock her binds. She went to stand but the imposing figure of Vorthas slammed his dark blade down beside her.

Rothox slipped the golden band off his head and rolled off the chair. Vorthas grabbed Alissa by her hair and picked her up off the ground. She clawed at him.

"I was surprised you were able to banish me. A being so little, so powerless."

Two daggers slammed into his back. While still holding Alissa he turned to see Rothox split from his chair and stumble towards Harim.

Alissa roared, "Who are you calling powerless." She placed her hands on Vorthas, summoned a lightning arcana, and fired a blast right into his chest. It would take more than that to kill him but it knocked him back injuring him enough to drop her to the ground. A scorch mark appeared on his chest when the magic faded.

Ottothal watched Cragxan turn to mist, sending his lifeforce back to his tether. A metal automaton stood in the tunnel when the mist cleared.

He titled his head. "How rude. Who are you to enter my home?"

"Captain Sixx…your holiness," Sixx mocked him.

"Ah, the skyship captain." Ottothal saw Garrok slay the older elf. "Looks like you are alone now, your companion has found his demise, and soon shall you."

"I'm not alone, I have Atow." As she said his name the metal man stepped forward into an attack position, two blades sliding out of his arms.

"Interesting." He slid his foot back, getting his body into a defensive position, still leaving his sword in its sheath. He could hear the portal device still working. So long as one soul remained the portal would stay open, more demons would come through shortly. The automaton attacked, Ottothal dodged and slipped between the blades, if it wasn't for his vampire speed he would have been cut to ribbons by the whirling blades.

The portal was still inching larger and the noises from the other side grew closer. Rothox went to Kadrin's chair. He began to work at the lock on the manacles with his picks.

"Leave…me…" Kadrin said through his pain.

"We have to close the portal."

"No!" Kadrin used the last of his strength to kick Rothox. The sudden attack caused Rothox to snap his pick inside the lock, preventing him from opening it. He reached for the golden band but before he could grab it he sensed someone behind him, he ducked out of the way as Garrok swung his sword, slicing the tip of Rothox's horn.

Harim turned to see Ottothal dispatch Atow, his sword stabbing right through the metal head. The metal man stopped in its tracks, unmoving. Ottothal gave it a shove and it fell over.

"All that work for what?" He turned to Sixx.

She gritted her teeth, "Distraction." She watched Harim leap over the nearest chair and punch Ottothal in the spine four times in rapid succession, attempting to stun him with his monk abilities. The Emperor withstood the stun but the blows to spine were still damaging to his mortal body. Ottothal spun, attempting to sweep Harim's legs out, the monk flipped backward out of the way. Now Ottothal drew his sword. Both his opponents skulked around flanking him. He waited for their next attack. He heard a final yell of agony from Kadrin, he grinned.

With Kadrin's last breath the portal was complete, a black beam shot out from the orb straight up through the dome roof.

The decaying fountain at the front of the castle got obliterated by a black beam of magical energy as the final form of the portal was complete creating a black hole on the ground, pulling in any material around out. A dozen demonic entities pulled themselves from the portal and behind them another row of demons and another as the Abyssal army began its invasion.