Invincible Earth! : Volume 1
Chapter 16: The Pride of the Free World

“Why? You outsiders kidnap our families, raze our towns, burn our cities and you ask why? Truly despicable, trying to act as if you had no hand in all the horrific crimes committed. Not a year has gone by in which the body count can go below a million people. It is even considered a good year if only a million people die in your hands.“, said another man with rage.

Lance simply couldn’t process this new information. Over a million people were killed every year? This was simply an unfathomable number. Who were these outsiders?

“These are even only the deaths which can be counted. Some researchers say the actual number is many times higher but we do not have the technology to track each and every human.”

Lance couldn’t speak. With the seconds ticking away, the sounds of searching got more and more frantic.

“Nobody forced us to be here. All of us are people who lost loved ones at your hands. Given the opportunity to take revenge, it only gives us happiness to die for such a noble cause.”

“Our pride stems from the fact that our deaths make a difference. Our names and deeds may be forgotten, but the fact that we contributed to protecting our homeland will forever be etched in humanity’s past.”

“Our pride is knowing that some day, you and your kind will be defeated and the earth shall have peace.”

“We laugh because we know we won. And you have lost.”

Each of the men and women stated their thoughts. As the group stood tall, faces beaming with pride and the joy of victory, Lance and his team could do nothing but look on.

This moment of pure devotion to their homeland would forever be etched in the deepest corners of each and every team members minds.

As if saluting to the groups outstanding loyalty, the vault started making rattling with sounds like the loading of ammunition radiating inside.

Lance could only kneel down and cry at this moment. Yu Yan and Yu Ying were also silently sobbing beside him, holding each other.

To die for your homeland. To protect it by giving up your last breath. To feel proud that your last breath will make your mother’s breath easier.

Lance wanted to feel this. He wanted to go out and fight these damnable outsiders. How dare they kill earthlings? They had to pay!

He wanted to grow stronger. He wanted to have the time and ability to make a difference. He wanted to have the same expression as every man and woman who were in the vault with them. An expression free of worry. An expression of honor.

“I found it!“, came a scream from the rows of files. Lance immediately stood up and ran towards the voice.

He came upon a mess after running for a few seconds. It seemed that Entsy had crashed down the shelf in frustration. Lance and the others simply hadn’t heard the sounds due to the trance-like state they were in when listening to the group.

A few feet away from them both in the middle was a file with the same shining words.

Entsy was collapsed on the ground. “That’s the last file. I’ve touched all the others. It must be the key. I’ve broken my legs because I pushed myself too much. Get it Lance!“, he shouted after taking a long breath before collapsing unconscious.

Hearing this, Lance started running the fastest he ever had in his life. Each and every cell in his legs focused to spur him forward at the highest speed possible. The energy construct in his dantian started shining bright as the field grew in intensity. The golden light above though was still the same.

Sounds of gunshots suddenly emanated from above, making Lance slightly glance towards the sounds.

Time seemed to slow down as Lance somehow miraculously saw the bullets speeding towards him. One was going directly towards the leg he was going to set down next, which would definitely make him fall. The fall would open him up to the hail of bullets which would spell his end.

He was within inches of the file, his hand stretched out in front of him. If the bullet didn’t hit, his next footfall would let him touch the file as he could leap forward.

He wished with all his might to reach it. He wished with all his might to live.

The golden light flashed.

…

Lance felt a tugging in his body. Due to the heat of the moment, he had no way to know that the golden light had flashed at this moment.

Unknown to Lance, the constant rays that were emitted by the energy construct were suddenly sucked in the golden light. The block of energy became very dim, almost as if it were going to lose form.

In the darkness of the dantian, the golden glow was still increasing in intensity. It seemed that it was unsatisfied with the amount of energy it had taken in.

After the tugging, Lance felt as if someone had set him on fire. The instant extreme sensations almost knocked him unconscious.

Each and every part of him felt as if it were being burnt by the raging fire. He couldn’t even scream due to the enormous amount of agony he was experiencing. All he could do was twist his face into a gruesome visage.

After the burning went on for a few milliseconds, the golden light seemed to be satisfied. The flash that had grown in intensity till now pulsed before going back into the golden light.

The bullet seemed to strangely slow down as all of these things happened in Lance’s body. Although everything took place in the span of a second, Lance felt as if an year had passed since he had seen the bullet speeding towards his leg. Although the extreme pain of being burnt had only lasted for a second, the aftermath was nothing pleasant. Lance’s body felt as if it had been peeled inch by inch until the tissue was exposed all over.

Even though it was only by a fraction of its speed, the bullet had slowed down. This gave Lance the time to make the foot fall and leap off of it, lunging towards the file.

His mind was focused on only one thing: touching the file and saving everyone. Nothing would be able to stop him. This was his conviction. This had been his wish.

Something had granted it. His finger felt a rough surface for an instance before his whole body became weightless.

The whole team was back in the white room. All of them were in the exact positions they had been in inside the vault. Yu Yan had been hit by a bullet in the arm before Lance had touched the file, but it was healed now. Even Entsy sat up, feeling like his body was back at its peak.

Only Lance lay unmoving. He was in a weird position: finger outstretched, reaching into the air while the rest of the body was askew, as if he had no control over it.

Lance’s eyes were open, but there was something wrong with his vision.

His body was still in pain. As he blinked, he sometimes saw the white floor. The other times, there was a blue sky under which glimpses of people in doctor coats could be seen occasionally. One flash even showed Attok looking at him with an expression of absolute horror.

His brain was simply overloaded by the overwhelming sensations it was receiving. The only thing it could do was shut down in a bid to protect his sanity.

Lance shut his eyes, drifting into a coma. The world of dreams welcomed him, saving and protecting him from all the suffering.

It wouldn’t be so bad to stay here forever, he thought, as he lost all feeling of his body.

…

Meanwhile, the entire test-taking area was crawling with all sorts of IE personnel. There were many doctors but also many many men and women in uniforms with the logo of IE emblazoned on the front.

A few people wore casual clothes. One man, wearing branded jeans and t-shirt with a leather jacket on top, was strolling towards the pod in which Lance was taking the test. He had long white hair till the small of his back which was tied loosely. His also had a white mustache and a sharp goatee which he was stroking with his hands. His eyes contained a wisdom in them that seemed infinite.

All the doctors and people in uniform respectfully bowed or saluted, making way for him.

After traversing the many feet of distance in seconds, he laid a hand on Attok who was standing with a look of grief beside the pod.

Startled, Attok turned around. Very few people had the ability to sneak up and even lay a hand on him.

Seeing the man, he exclaimed:“Master! You are here! Its my descendant. He was taking his test when this happened. Please, you must save him!“. He grasped the man’s hands as if he had found a savior.

This man was simply known as the “Castellan” by all who knew him. The IE station was his castle, and he existed to take care of it. He had been present since the very beginning of mankind’s struggle against the outsiders. While others of his time had left or perished in battle, he was one of the few who stayed back as the last line of defense. Although he had never taken part in battles in any member’s living memory, he was known to be the most knowledgeable man that existed. Medicine, technology, training, there was no aspect that he wasn’t skilled in. Occasionally, he took in initiates who he saw worthy to groom. Each and every one of his disciples had at least reached the rank of Legend.

“My dear Attok, you know that I and the whole of IE would use any means necessary to save a seed of such potential. Step aside and control your emotions. You always did have the expression of a squirrel when in anguish.”

Attok nodded before chuckling a bit and moving aside. This was his master, who loved comparing people’s faces to those of animals. Across millennia, there were very few cases where his divine skill in medicine proved futile in saving someones life.

After Attok moved aside, a bloody pod could be seen. The fluid inside which was supposed to be transparent was now a ghastly red.

Inside was a body which was almost completely devoid of skin. It was as if an explosion had taken place under the skin which had blown it apart from the inside. Even on Lance’s face, the skin was blown off presenting just a skeleton with muscle and red matter. Although the eyes were closed, the horrible expression of pain in the face could still be seen.

Such a sight even unnerved the Castellan.

He touched the pod before both of them disappeared into thin air.