Nocturne

Chapter 11: Nocturne

"Nocturne," Noah said, still seated on the ground.

Darkness flowed from within him, hissing as it wrapped around his body.

In a few breaths, it took the form of a serpent with eyes just like Noah's.

As it fully manifested, Noah's instincts fused with Nocturne's.

The serpent hissed and licked the air.

In an instant, Noah's perception of the bronze-skinned man expanded.

He saw the man's tiniest movements and sensed everyone else's presence around him.

"Fangs," Noah said.

The serpent burst into dark particles that formed two black daggers in his hands.

Each hilt had a snake's eye that glared at anyone who targeted Noah.

Though the blades looked like twisted tongues, Nocturne could flick them to help Noah track his opponents.

With these weapons and his Tenebris Spiders' Robes, Noah kicked off the ground.

He dashed at the bronze-skinned man like a serpent, moving faster than any snake on Earth.

He slid around the man's punch and slashed his arm ten times, each slice drawing a spurt of blood.

Then he struck the man's temple with a dagger hilt and spun to sweep his legs out from under him.

The man fell like a rag doll.

Noah appeared above him and stabbed one dagger through the man's palm, pinning him to the ground.

He vanished as though lifted away.

Unable to free himself, the man realized that moving caused his open wounds to bleed more.

His strength ebbed as blood pooled around him.

"Venom."

Hearing Noah's cold whisper, the man craned his head back.

High above, Noah perched.

Threads of spider silk spread from Noah's robes in every direction, weaving an orb web in midair.

Despite these strands, Noah could move his arms freely.

He now held "Venom," one of Nocturne's three forms, shaped like a bow.

This time, Nocturne stretched into a deadly bow that created endless arrows of darkness, so long as Noah had mana.

Each arrowhead ended in a forked tongue, sharp and able to track the scent Nocturne had tasted in battle.

Noah pulled back the bowstring and aimed at the pinned man.

He glared, hating him for his foul words against Eleonora.

The man had believed himself stronger than everyone else, yet his power was worthless against Noah's superior speed.

Noah released the arrow.

It hissed through the air and lodged itself in the man's chest, stopping just shy of his heart.

Using one thread of silk, Noah glided down.

He loomed over his foe like a dark assassin.

The man coughed up blood and struggled to free his only arm, hurting himself more in the process.

He was paying for his words.

Suddenly, the man howled, "Heal me! Heal me, you useless bitch! I won't leave this place until I kill this bastard! One hit is all I need! One punch and he's fucking dead!"

He thrashed wildly, tearing open his wounds.

With every vile word, he broke the vow he had made, sealing his fate.

His skin turned ashen, and his eyes vanished, leaving hollow sockets.

His screams changed into ghastly howls with no trace of emotion behind them.

Only a raw hunger for flesh remained.

His muscles swelled and expanded, tripling his height compared to Noah.

In mere seconds, the once proud man became a monstrous ghoul whose blows could crush houses and whose scratches could infect even the toughest beast.

Any trace of reason left in his mind turned to madness.

He fixed on Noah, intending to devour him.

His huge hand ripped free the dagger, and his bloated chest spat out the embedded arrow.

He rose for the second round.

"Tongue," Noah whispered.

Nocturne shifted again, stretching into a long handle with the serpent's head at the tip.

Its mouth opened to reveal a curved blade that extended into a scythe, ending in a forked tip.

The giant ghoul lumbered toward Noah, each step shaking the ground.

He lifted his hand to crush Noah but lost it when Noah's scythe sliced through his wrist.

Noah stepped in and struck again, severing more flesh.

He lifted the scythe over his head and swung it down, hooking the ghoul's shoulder and yanking him forward.

The monster collapsed onto its chest.

Noah stood over him like a grim reaper.

"You reap what you sow," he said, driving the scythe blade into the ghoul's head.

The impact split its skull and ended its life.