The RHG institution; it's a small detour from his intended destination, which is the Northern Mountains. Why? He was invited, of course. Nocifer walked up to the main building. The building was large, easily a thousand feet tall, maybe more, and the letters "RHG" was visibly engraved into the structure. Nox walked into the front entrance of the building, the glass doors of which, promptly opened for him. He walked in.
He was greeted by a female scientist, she wore a white labcoat and glasses, her brown hair was put straight down, she looks visibly shaken, she seems to be trying to hide that fact, albeit rather poorly. On the wall behind her were unusual devices, mounted on the left was some sort of highly technological gun, there were multiple lines of glowing energy outlining its structure. On the right was a green crystal fixated onto a wooden point, also mounted onto the wall. Lastly, there was a plain looking gun on the middle-top of the wall.
Be wary of that crystal, Nox, it can drain your power if activated.
"Nocifer, I presume." The scientist began, keeping as much calmness as she could muster.
"Yes." Was the only thing Nocifer said in response
"P-please follow me." the girl said, almost stuttering, likely because she was shaken. Nox looked at Soul, who nodded back at him. Whatever had shaken the scientist, he predicted that he was going to have something to do with it soon.
Nox was led through the metallic halls of the institution, the halls were silver and gave the look of strict business, in no way were they made to please the eyes, yet they were still very sleek and formed. Officers, scientist, staff briskly walked through the several sliding doors of the hall and into another room, or perhaps hall. As Nox walked, he noticed some of the personnel they passed by staring at him, although he paid them no mind. They arrived at a double sliding door.
"I'd like you to meet someone, Mr. Nocifer." She seemed more calm now. She pressed the passcode on the number key mounted onto the side of the door. The door promptly opened after she had pressed 'Enter'. The room was covered in all sorts of grey shades, it was dimly lit and had only a bed, a table beside it, and a dim lamp, overhead. The lamp looked sleek and new yet was very dim. On the bed, a young man sits, looking down, reflecting. He had jet black hair and a lightly tanned complexion. He wore loose clothes, loose pants and a loose shirt, he didn't wear shoes but had white bandages wrapping his feet. The mere sight of him seems to almost make the scientist's stomach turn. "Flipside." Nox could hear her voice, struggling to keep calm.
The man looked straight toward where his name was called from, which made the scientist flinch a bit. Nox could now fully see this man's face, his eyes were strange, even more so than the man of Death that he fought before. His left eye seemed rather normal, save for the chips of silver in his iris, his right eye is what was profound about him, it was not an eye at all, but a white cross imprinted onto his socket where his eyeball should be. The man also saw Nox and had a hint of surprise crossing through emotionless expression.
Nox, something feels off about this man... Soul warned.
"Something always feels off." Nox responded out loud, although remaining his calm, he cared not what the reactions of the man nor the scientist be.
"Flipside, this will be your opponent, Nocifer." She seemed to ignore what Nox just said and seemed to have become remarkably calm despite seeming shaken earlier. The man, who apparently is named 'Flipside', seemed disappointed, and even reluctant, but stood up in the end. "You won't need to use all your abilities when fighting him," at these words, Flipside's face seemed to brighten a bit. "Go easy on him, it's his first fight." The statement was directed at Nox. "We'll be holding your testing in the indoor arena. Nocifer, please follow me." Both men followed the scientist.
Indoor. Oh how he loved that word right now, the sun was place in high noon. Nox didn't know what he would have done if he was requested that they were to fight underneath the glaring sun. Of course, there are still lights in the arena, but at the least, they were artificial. They did not hinder his power. The scientist led them through another hall, longer this time and arrived at a similar door to Flipside's room, albeit, much larger. The door opened. "Gentlemen, if you would." She made a gesture toward the entrance. Both combatants entered the arena, Nox keeping the same calm, non-chalant expression as before. The scientist was nowhere in sight, but Nox presumed she had entered that chamber that was blocked by glass located on the left of the arena, just a little ways higher than the door. "Please go to the opposite corners of the arena for the test to commence." the female scientist spoke into the mic.
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Nox crossed toward the far side of the arena, he summoned Noctem Aeternum as he went, while Flipside remained near the entrance. Both stood opposite each other, both shifted into firm combat stances almost simultaneously.
Flipside extended his right arm out, the light of the room seemed to gather onto where the center of his palm was, into a white ball of glowing light, slowly extending itself into the shape of a bo-staff. Nox spun and whirled his scythe around his right arm and quickly extended his left arm after, shooting a few bolts of darkness. Flipside let out an evidently reluctant sigh and batted the bolts away with his staff, he ran toward Nox brandishing his staff. He swung but missed, as Nox swiftly stepped back and quickly spun with a decisive counter slash, cutting the shoulder of Flipside.
He stumbled back and quickly put his hand on his wound, the gash rapidly grew itself back, all the blood gone and not leaving a trace of the wound, save for the bloodstain on his shirt. He brandished his bo-staff again and swung at Nox. Nox bent back to dodge the strike but the strike was merely a feign, and his legs were met with a sweep kick, he fell back onto the ground. The bo-staff almost connected with Nox's face but Nox rolled sideways in time for the staff to only connect with the ground with a puff of dust. Nox quickly stood up assisted by his gravitation, and unleashed a quick counter slash, which Flipside blocked with his bo-staff, and countered with a strike to Nox's stomach.
He stumbled back. He seems more adept than the previous I've fought. Nox thought to himself, which almost earned him a staff to the face, if he had not stepped back. Flipside had put most of his weight into the last swing, which Nox saw, he urged the gravity to become stronger where Flipside missed his strike, pulling him face-first into the ground. The ground would be denied though, for Nox had kneed his face in and knocked him a bit into the air and far back.
Flipside was on his back, he seemed to still be conscious, he slowly stood back up dissipating his staff as he did. "That'll be enough gentlemen." The familiar voice of the scientist rang throughout the arena from the speakers placed strategically so that they do not seem obvious, yet still deliver their purpose well. Flipside stood straight and bowed.
"Thank you." Flipside finally spoke. Nox nodded.
Flipside turned on his heel and proceeded to walk back to the entrance...
Suddenly, he stopped. Something looked... off... He seemed like he was... flickering? His hair changing from black to white to black to white. The complexion of his skin helped with the effect, inconsistently blinking; pale, tan, pale, tan, his body's build also became just a bit thinner and then back to its average build then back again, he wasn't screaming, he wasn't making a sound, he was just standing there, perhaps if you'd seen his face, you have known what was wrong. "Flipside? What's wrong?" The scientist's voice had become shaken and afraid once more.
Nox readied his scythe, he charged his left hand with dark energy and looked for souls in the vicinity. There were none. No matter, that is only a slight problem.
The flickering man finally stopped, settling his physique, he now had the white hair, paler skin and thinner build that had been seen as he was 'flickering' he faced back onto Nox. A maniacal grin crossed his face from ear to ear, his right eye's cross was now black and upturned, blood tears came down from the eye's socket, there was also some black 'blight' below his right eye, perhaps it was creeping up his face while he was flickering.
Nocifer, be wary, I know see what was off about him, he is-
"A Demon." Nox was annoyed and disgusted, how dare such loathesome creatures take control of a lower race.
He uttered something and after a moment of silence, laughed maniacally, boisterously, "I am in control!" He exclaimed, he looked at the woman in the observation deck fear written all over her face, and to Flipside, body, He looked at her with lust and began to approach the observation deck, the woman still with fear, but before he could go any further, a bolt of darkness hit the ground where he meant to step. He faced Nox.
The expression of his face said: 'I shall play with you and I shall kill you when I am bored.' In his open palm, the black shadows seeped and formed a distorted ball of dark energy, slowly extending once more into the familiar staff shape, albeit in a black color, but it did not stop there, the top part bent and sharpened into the shape of a scythe.
Without warning, he rushed quickly toward where Nox was, brandishing his newly made scythe, Nox only barely blocked his strike as it was strong and quick, before he could retaliate another was thrown and another, Nox could not concentrate enough to use his powers, although he managed to keep dodging. Flipside dissipated his scythe and stood slouched still grinning.
Beware, Nox, if you let yourself get caught by his hands- Soul's warning was of no use though...
'Dark' Flipside lunged at Nox, although he managed to dodge, his arm was touched by the hands. An agonizing pain filled Nox's entire body, the pain was so excruciating that Nox fell to the floor screaming in a slight fetal position, as the pain receeded, his right arm was impaled by a black scythe, that earned more pain. Flipside repeatedly stabbed the scythe into Nox, splurting black blood all over the floor.
-
Nox felt what Death was like before, and he knew he was close once again, he didn't know he would ever have to do this here. "Soul... Help... Me..." Nox spoke, just above a whisper. In truth, she was watching in agony the whole time, tears flowing down her face. Until she heard those words. She enveloped Nox's body within her own, forming a consensual, mutual, union. As Flipside was about to swing his scythe again, the shockwave of light knocked him far back onto the wall. Nox's body engulfed in Soul's light floated high above the arena floor, shining brightly, as the shadows of the stage seeped through the air and began to spin around his body, faster and faster, the darkness, like fluid, slowly forming the head, then the neck, then the torso, the arms, the legs, the darkness kept flowing now, that the artificial lights of the arena were brought off.
The white glowing eye shone once again, illuminating the whole arena. the featureless entity stared at Dark Flipside. The ArcBeast rushed toward the entity's foot, the grin replaced by a serious expression. He slashed his scythe at the giant's foot, only to have if go through, The giant picked the Beast up, and through him against the arena wall, the only light source of the room moving as his massive body moved. The Beast was stuck onto the wall, however hard he tried to move, he could not. He let out a frustrated yell. The giant's eye seemed to shine brighter and brightern the white light filling the room quickly to make it seem like day, a straight, lucent, beam of pure light finally broke free from the giant's eye, ravaging the air and stage as it descended, descended onto the poor Beast.
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The impact of the explosion causes a large crater where the arena wall was, the arena was reilluminated by its natural, or rather, artificial light, once again. Nox, was still wounded, black gashes all over his body, but they were not as large as before, nor were they bleeding. He walked over to the Beast, he was unconsious, as Nox inspected closer, Flipside lashed out in anger and frustration, yelling obscenities, Nox dodged his attacks with ease and kneed him in the groin. He finally fell to the ground.
Stasis. Nox cast. Tendrils of shadow bound the limbs of Flipside and the gravity held him in place
"Heal without question, Kill without reason." Nox spoke calmly. "But no more." He raised his scythe in anticipation and sent it down upon Flipside's upturned cross socket. Flipside screamed in agony. "Damn your curse." Nox spoke with calmness remained. He started twisting his scythe so that the cross would be turned downward. Blood gushed from the socket of the Beast as he screamed louder in agony. By now, there were a few scientists around them, spectating in horror. Nox finally turned the cross two-hundred seventy degrees. He stopped and retrieved his scythe, he calmly walked to the door, he saw the woman from before, staring at him in horror, he paused by her.
"He needs medical attention, do so quickly if you want him to live." Not making eye contact. He walked out the entrance leaving the bloody eyed, Flipside still screaming in agony.
