Announcer: He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came out. His throat tightened under the pressure in the arena, fear visibly taking hold of him. Before he could force the words out, Alex suddenly appeared down in the pit, standing firmly on the stone platform. He stared upward as Noctum began descending the massive staircase, each heavy step echoing through the arena.
Noctum: As he stepped into the arena, he slowly outstretched his arms. Black smoke poured from his back, flowing outward and downward like an enormous, shifting cape. He reached up to one of the large spikes protruding from his shoulder and gripped it firmly. With deliberate force, he ripped it free from his own body. The spike elongated and reshaped in his hand, hardening into a massive blade forged from crystallized blood and jagged obsidian. "Blessed thy hallowed name."
Sophi: Before Alex had entered the arena, she held him tightly, her fingers gripping the fabric of his clothes as if anchoring herself. She looked up at him and rose onto her tiptoes, pulling him down into a deep kiss. "I love you. Please be safe. You've got this..." Her voice was soft but firm despite the fear in her eyes. She kept her hand against the side of his face for a lingering moment before slowly pulling back, allowing him to teleport down onto the platform.
After he disappeared, she shuffled over to sit next to Radna. She curled into a small ball in her seat, wrapping her arms around herself. Taking slow, steady breaths, she tried to calm her racing heart while keeping her eyes locked on her husband and Noctum below.
Noctum: "I shall let you strike first. I heard you are more familiar with turn-based fighting." He lowered his sword slightly, his posture relaxed, almost bored.
Alex: His jaw tightened. He summoned his seven floating hands, spreading them out around him in a defensive arc. "Aura: Red!" A massive red beam erupted forward, tearing across the arena straight toward Noctum.
Noctum: His gaze remained completely unamused. With a single casual wave of his sword, the beam vanished as if it had never existed. "A pity. I held hope that you would use a more signature move, something stronger in your arsenal. Yet you hold back." Flames of black and red began spiraling around his blade and crawling along his body like living serpents. Without hesitation, he stabbed the sword into the ground. The arena floor shattered violently beneath them, cracks racing outward in every direction.
Alex: "What the hell?!" He jumped upward as debris launched into the air. One of his floating hands shifted, its center glowing light blue. The air distorted. Time itself seemed to rewind in a controlled ripple. The cracks sealed, the debris reversed its fall, and the platform restored itself as if nothing had happened. He landed roughly on the stabilized stone, sliding back slightly before looking up at Noctum. "Are you insane?!"
Noctum: "I am aware of your strength already, and yet you show little but pitifully small attacks. Where is the great code I am told of? Are you afraid that your woman might discover something? Does power frighten her?..." He lifted one hand and slashed the air. Three arcs of black and crimson flame burst forward in rapid succession, surging toward Alex in a violent flurry. The outer edges of the flames nearly reached the viewing stands.
Alex: He threw up a green barrier instantly, the translucent shield flaring as it absorbed the impact. The flames splashed against it, hissing and clawing at the surface. The scent of death rising from them was overwhelming, thick, and suffocating. "How do you-..."
Noctum: "I know many great things." He tapped the tip of his blade against the ground a couple of times, each tap echoing unnaturally through the arena.
Sophi: She yelped as the platform beneath the two of them crumbled, instinctively grabbing onto Radna's forearm in shock and accidentally digging her nails into his skin. Her heart pounded as the arena fractured below. When the structure reformed moments later, she let out a deep sigh and slumped slightly into her seat in relief. Then she noticed the marks on his arm. "O-Oh fuck, I'm so sorry...!" she whined, immediately rubbing the spot gently as if that would somehow fix it before pulling her hand back shyly.
Radna: He glanced down at his arm, then over at her with an amused smile. Flexing his muscles casually, the marks vanished from his skin as if they had never been there. "You're all good, darling. Don't feel bad." His attention shifted back toward the arena, his expression turning serious again.
Sophi: A faint blush spread across her face as she watched him flex. She quickly turned away, trying her best to hide her embarrassment. She leaned forward in her seat, closer to the edge of the viewing platform, straining to hear Noctum more clearly over the tension in the arena. "Discover something? Frighten me...? What does he mean by that...?" she whispered to herself before slowly leaning back again, her eyes locked firmly on the fight below.
Radna: "Alex hasn't used a lot of his power in some time, mostly because of the consequences it can have. Thus, he is holding back in every fight, refusing to use some of it." His eyes narrowed slightly as he tracked Alex's movements. "Unfortunately, here, if he doesn't stop holding back, he might die. Have you noticed that his dodges are getting very close?"
Sophi: "Y-You heard that?" she whispered, turning to look up at Radna with wide eyes. "Mmh, I-I didn't know that...why would he be holding back...? W-Wait, might die?!"
Radna: "Alex's main source of damage reduction is being blocked out by something. His No-Hit Protocol, HP Lock, and everything is being shut down. If he doesn't use some of his stronger aura colors, he will lose." His gaze stayed fixed on the arena, jaw tight.
Alex: He stared forward at the king blankly, his expression unreadable. "Aura: Orange." One of the floating hands drifted forward, its core glowing a deep orange. "Orange has the ability to shut down aspects of someone's being, such as your connection to death."
Noctum: "By all means, hero, go ahead and try." He stood completely still, sword lowered at his side, making no effort to defend himself.
Alex: Sweat began forming along his skull. "What is he playing at..." he muttered. He extended his hand and slowly closed his fist. The orange hand flared brightly as an outline snapped around Noctum's body, attempting to bind him. For a split second, the aura took hold. Then it shattered instantly.
The orange outline fractured like glass, exploding outward. The floating hand cracked and broke apart midair, disintegrating into fragments of fading light. "Ngh-" Alex staggered slightly, gripping his chest as a sharp jolt of feedback shot through him from the destroyed construct. "I-Impossible."
Sophi: "Mmh!!" she whimpered, flinching hard as she saw the floating hand shatter. She turned away instinctively, squeezing her eyes shut before forcing herself to breathe. After a shaky inhale, she turned back toward the arena, her eyes glossy with forming tears. "F-Fuck...baby, please..."
She sent a tiny, trembling burst of pink energy down toward Alex. It carried no power meant for battle, only emotion. A quiet plea. Don't hold back. Please be safe. "R-Radna, he's going to be okay...right...?" she asked, her voice small and unsteady.
Radna: "I-I...I don't know." His voice faltered. He looked down at his hands, unable to meet her eyes.
Sophi: She slowly reached her hand out toward Radna, gently gripping his chin and turning his face toward hers. "He'll be alright... I'm sure..." she whispered, offering him a weak but sincere smile. After a moment, she pulled her hand back and curled into herself again, drawing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them as she continued watching the fight below.
Noctum: He casually tapped his blade against the ground. From the fractured stone, a throne-like seat formed behind him, shaped from hardened shadow and jagged rock. He sat down slowly, crossing one leg over the other. With a lazy wave of his hand, he gestured toward Alex. "Come now. Once you do something worth my time, I shall truly engage in combat with you."
Alex: He glanced upward briefly, meeting Sophi's watery gaze. Worry flickered across his face, but he swallowed it down and turned back toward Noctum. "Fine. Aura: Black. Function: Eradicate_Death."
One of the remaining hands flashed black. A holographic box formed in front of it, translucent and humming with distorted energy. In the center, a single word appeared: [ death ]. The letters began to corrode slowly, fragmenting as if rotting away from existence itself.
Sophi: When Alex looked up at her, she saw the fear in his eyes. A cold chill ran down her spine. She had never seen him look that afraid before. Her gaze snapped back to the arena as he activated Aura Black.
Noctum: "Attempting to decay the 3rd chapter concept of death? I see how you play." He leaned back slightly in his seat, unbothered. "Regardless of the universal consequences, you will do anything to defeat your enemy."
Star: "Universal consequences?!" His eyes widened in alarm. "Alex, stop! It isn't going to do anything! Removing the concept of death from everything will break the chain of reality! Nothing will die or stay dead!"
Sophi: Her eyes slowly widened as the realization hit her, the same understanding Star had reached. Her lips parted as she started to speak, but Star's sudden shout cut her off, making her flinch at the volume. "Universal consequences...?" she whispered under her breath, confusion and dread mixing.
Alex: Star's shout startled him. His concentration broke instantly, the black construct flickering as he hesitated. His mind raced. If Noctum truly embodied death itself, why was he completely unaffected?
Noctum: "Oh my, how exciting. You are starting to learn what true consequence is." He clapped his hands slowly, the sound echoing mockingly through the arena. "I must say, you are far less impressive than your previous counterpart, though I do not blame you. With the deal I made, it is almost impossible for you to do anything to me."
Star: "Deal?..." He reached out with his power, golden energy extending as he attempted to connect to Noctum's mind. Something else answered. A mass of suffocating darkness snapped around Star's consciousness like a trap. His body jerked violently as the connection reversed, and he was slammed to the ground, the golden light around him shattering on impact.
Sophi: "Star!!" she yelped. She jumped to her feet and rushed to his side, dropping down beside him and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. One hand moved to his back, rubbing gently as soft pink energy flowed from her palm, spreading warmth through him in an attempt to calm and heal whatever damage had been done. "A-Are you alright?!?" she asked urgently, her voice trembling as she held him close.
Star: He groaned softly, rubbing the side of his head as he slowly pushed himself upright. "Ugh...y-yeah, I'm fine. I just...felt something incredibly dark within him." His golden glow flickered weakly. "I can't enter his mind. I can't do anything."
Sophi: She did her best to help Star up. "Something dark..? Mmh.. we'll figure it out soon, I'm sure." She gently rubbed his head once he was seated before returning to her own chair. She curled back up into her seat and watched the arena intently. She was still confused about the darkness Star mentioned.
Noctum: "Well, that was stupid." He scoffed coldly, his attention shifting back toward Alex as if Star had been nothing more than a mild distraction.
Alex: He exhaled slowly, the tension in his shoulders easing as he slid his hands into his pockets. "Fine. Aura: Crimson_Red." One of the floating hands ignited in a deep, blood-crimson glow. The throne beneath Noctum warped violently, twisting inward before detonating into fragments of hardened shadow. The entire arena was swallowed in absolute black. No light. No sound. No depth.
"Aura: Static." A sudden distortion rippled outward. A field of crackling static formed where Noctum had been sitting, a warped, glitched void that tore at the structure of reality itself. The distortion tightened, wrapping around him and dragging him sideways, beyond the visible layer of existence.
For everyone watching, Noctum simply vanished. The blackness faded, and the arena returned. Alex slowly lifted his head and looked up toward Sophi. A small, reassuring smile formed on his face.
Sophi: A wide grin spread across her face as she locked eyes with her husband, nearly standing up to cheer.
Noctum: He suddenly appeared behind Alex. "A very fine try, trapping me outside, but foolish."
Alex: Without even turning fully, his hand surged with purple and red energy at the same time, the two colors fusing violently around his fist. He spun and drove the punch straight into Noctum's face. The impact was catastrophic. Everything behind Noctum shattered instantly, the entire half of the arena disappearing in a single blast. Stone, structure, the ceiling, even the distant edge of the realm itself was wiped out, leaving nothingness where reality had just been.
Noctum: He slowly tilted his head, Alex's fist still pressed firmly against his metallic cheek as if the attack had barely registered. "Interesting." He snapped his fingers. Black smoke poured outward from his body, spreading across the void and restoring everything at once. The missing half of the arena reappeared, the realm sealing itself seamlessly as though the destruction had never occurred. Then he calmly reached forward, grabbed Alex's energized hand, and tightened his grip. The sound of crushing bone echoed as he broke it under the pressure.
Alex: "AGH!" He was thrown backward, bouncing across the stone and clutching his shattered hand, purple and red energy flickering out erratically.
Noctum: "I grow tired of this." He tapped his blade once against the ground. There was a sudden dark flash. Before Alex could move, before he could summon another aura or even brace himself, his body began to crumble. Cracks raced across him in an instant, and then he collapsed entirely, breaking apart into trillions of tiny fragments that decayed into drifting dust. Within moments, nothing remained of him but particles settling over the arena floor. "He is no threat to your power, my lord..."
Sophi: "N-NOOOOO!!!!!!!" Her scream tore through the arena, shattering every pane of glass in the structure. She fell to her knees, staring down at the arena in pure shock and agony as tears streamed nonstop down her face, unable to look away from the dust settling where her husband had just been.
Alex: A faint sparkling glint of light shimmered behind Sophi, barely noticeable at first. Then suddenly, he reappeared beside her, safe and intact. He was panting heavily, one hand gripping his chest as he steadied himself. He had not come that close to true death in a very long time, and it showed in the way his breathing struggled to even out.
Noctum: "Hmm? A respawn point? Very interesting. I will allow it simply because I enjoyed a good stretch, but the point shall still go toward our side." He rested his blade over his shoulder casually. "The score is currently 2 to 2. It is the first six of the ten rounds unless we must host a tiebreaker, which I doubt. Rest easy. You get thirty minutes..."