"Sera, follow me," he said.
His eyes still in shock due to his inability to heal, though still calm, he looked at the spreading fire, instantly dashing toward the city.
Around him, people's screams echoed, begging for their lives as a bloodshed took over the peaceful night. Sera had a cold expression on her face, looking at the sight as she followed behind Noen in deep worry.
After a minute of walking, they reached the centre, where an enormous number of grotesque monsters took over the place.
Their eyes glowed in a ghostly haze, their bodies emanated a suffocating aura as they looked at the begging lives, their hearts filled with no mercy.
As a striking stream of blood slit their necks—
Whereas Sera stood in awe, trembling at the sight, a city which looked lively before was now slumbering in despair.
Kids who ran playing with each other were just on their knees, crying for their families.
She grabbed Noen as her stuttering voice asked,
"Won't you save them?"
Her eyes were completely terrified, but Noen just stood calmly as he said in a low voice,
"Their end has already been decided; what you are seeing now is just a mere imitation."
Hearing that, she just stood, holding her mouth as tears began to fall down her cheeks.
And far away, the same man stood protecting four kids fallen on the ground from a monster who was double his height.
"Hey, stay away!" he said, trembling; his eyes were drowned, but a determination remained visible on his face.
But the monster just laughed as he looked at them with a more sinister look.
Whereas, in the sky, the destruction began to fall—rocks falling, dust and smoke strangling the whole town as the fire stood burning.
Plant-like monsters came crawling, an unknown liquid following their trail, as giant-looking flying creatures stayed suspended in the air.
They had huge eyes, a body made from flesh, and wings like angels covering their backs; they looked like an entity from hell, although they did nothing.
Except for floating, before their screams filled the sky.
Rings around them spun rapidly as the moon turned red in a burning glow.
The city was close to its end, but the man, Aven, stood there fighting, trying to save the one last kid who was left.
His face had a weird smile; his whole body was battered with injuries, but still, he didn't lose his ground.
The only words he muttered continuously—
"I won't let anyone die,
I won't let anyone die…. I wont anyone die!!!"
Just after those words ended, the monster pierced his chest; blood gushed out of him like dripping water, its thickness colouring the claw of the monster.
As Sera stood far away, falling down on her knees, and Noen looked coldly—
"Let's go… There is no point in mourning their past.
But just for you, I can do one thing."
He closed his eyes, turning the world into a silent thread; darkness was everywhere.
As that thread changed its colour to red, going somewhere, a flower came into his sight, a skull hanging on it, looking palely at the city from afar.
Whereas the boy stood deformed against the monster, his body completely distorted, looking like a mess of flesh; its tear shone brighter in between the burning fire as he devoured the monster, who took the life of the kid that, till the end, begged for mercy.
His voice completely broken, he just screamed,
"Why, why, why, why…!!"
His cries echoed as he started to devour everyone, merging them inside his body; slowly, slowly, he ate. Day passed, or time had forgotten itself—he ate the family, the city he cherished the most, as he stood on an altar, crying.
The world turned back to the same old barren city, where the same flower stood on an altar, with tears that looked like blood…
"There it is," he said, his voice turning serious, "and Sera, stay as far away as possible.
Cause this flower ain't normal." His hand burst apart, his regeneration returning back; a sword formed in the middle of the air.
He swung as the skull in the flower screamed—
"Scrahhhhhh!"
Its voice echoed across the cave; small plant-like monsters tore through the ground.
As Noen looked at them, smiling, "at least it looks better than that guy Aven," instantly lunging forward with his sword.
Its vines intercepted his attack, blocking, but he just tore through it, dashing like a beast; his eyes glowed, whereas Sera stood looking at him. Just then, a small plant jumped at her, startling her, though she instantly pulled out the sword that Noen gave her, just facing it forward as it pierced the monster through its guts while she closed her eyes.
Around the altar, he ran here and there, cutting through its vines as he tried his best to come closer, but the monster blocked his every attack, instantly creating a cage around him as it again screamed. But Noen performed a continuous slash with his inhuman strength, cutting through it all as the cave shook.
Ground crumbled beneath his feet, stones started to fall as Sera stood looking at the chaos in fright, still unable to recover from what just happened.
As more monsters lunged at her, seeing that, Noen jumped back, cutting the small pests away, glancing back at the giant monster who looked at him with its crying tears.
He lunged forward, instantly closing the distance, but—
"Noen…" a voice echoed.
Changing the whole world around him, as he looked at a darker realm covered by darkness; corpses of people stayed scattered all on the ground, and at the distance, Aven Scott stood smiling, giving an eerie vibe, his head twisted more as all the corpses twisted along their necks, all looking at Noen, smiling with their hollow eyes.
"How did he…?" he questioned, but before he could have thought, the ground beneath him vanished, he fell trying to get back up, but suddenly, his eyes opened as he saw himself as a person laying like a corpse.
And in front, Aven looked at him crying, his mouth covered in blood; he just muttered continuously as if he had lost his mind,
"Sorry, sorry, I'm sorry," his voice trembled before he started eating Noen, leaving him in great pain as he grumbled,
"Arghhh!"
But unable to do anything, he just laid there as slowly he kept eating his body. Aven's face looked far from normal; it was like a demon, smiling at the blood of the dead.
Before he glitched, smiling, his eyes turned hollow as they switched places.
This time, Noen looked at Aven, his hands covered in blood, and in front, he saw him dead and cold, completely pale, whereas he felt his mouth, covered in thick blood.
Yet he just stared coldly as he just grabbed Aven's neck, trying to crush him, but the scenario changed again, sending him back to the starting when he first entered the city. He questioned,
"What's happening?"
He was completely confused, unable to process; he looked around as in front every citizen of the town looked at him smiling before everything vanished in a blue haze in which everyone stood smiling at him, cold and pale. They just said one word—
"Please kill us, kill us, kill us…."
Their voices corrupted as everything burst like glass, and darkness took in.
In complete silence, Aven stood inside a spotlight, looking at Noen. He said,
"Please…" He started crying, his voice trembling more. "Please… kill us… we have long suffered inside this place, so please…"
"Noen…" a last tear slid down his face as everything turned back to normal.
And he stood piercing the skull on the flower before it all melted away into dust. The whole cave started to tremble as he screamed.
"Sera..!" instantly jumping back, he grabbed her in his arms as he jumped on the falling stones, getting out of the hole they came from.
Behind them, the city started to crumble; thousands of souls looked happily waving goodbye, as before the darkness took in, dust scattered, and the barren city vanished with the last existence that remained alive.
***
"Huff, huff… Sera, are you—" he asked, huffing; his legs trembled, but Sera looked pale as her face drowned under sadness. She asked,
"What happened to them?" staring into his eyes, as Noen said in a sad tone,
"Did you see?"
"Yes… but—" her voice stuttered before an assuring voice came,
"Hey, Sera, listen. They were just souls that were bounded by that monster.
They died over a hundred years ago; we can't do anything. The only thing that was possible was to free them."
Hearing that, She just nodded, her eyes red, sulking, as he continued,
"Well, cheer up. We have to get out of here."
But suddenly, Sera stopped, tugging his clothes. She asked,
"What happened to Aven?"
"He also died," he said, his voice turning low, " He died saving his townspeople from the traveler that came into the city.
He was brave, but… I hope his soul will find peace, somewhere… Unlike me."
He looked back at her, "So, should we go?" he asked, as Sera just nodded at his question.
Before they started making their way out.
But unbeknownst to them, something lurked outside, it was like a snake; its eyes glowed green as it stared at the darkness that followed the stairs to its depth. It stepped forward as its feet melted the ground beneath it,
Staring at the site one final time before it entered the darkness that curious its eyes…