Noctis Noir

Lyngvi wondered what was happening outside. He could hear sounds of chaos, explosions, clashing metal, and all the other sounds one would hear in a war zone. He was getting worried. Is Lyria alright? He was too powerless to protect her with his current state. It made him frustrated.

It wasn't long before the door opened and Gaylord walked into the room.

"Poor Lyngvi. What have they done to you?" Gaylord went over to destroy the chains that held Lyngvi in place. "You're almost home now."

"Leader," Lyngvi recognized him. He knew their leader was fond of using disguises to spy on people. It wasn't rare for one to find the leader missing during some days. Everyone knew he was keeping an eye on their threats.

Gaylord summoned a portal to their headquarters. "You can take this portal to get back home."

Lyngvi hesitated. He thought about Tank and Lyria. Was it really right for him to return?

"What's wrong?" Gaylord sensed his hesitation.

"Nothing. I just feel powerless without my abilities," replied Lyngvi with his usual calm smile.

"Don't worry. That can be easily restored."

Lyngvi took one last glance at the direction of the city before stepping into the portal.

***

"Guys, Epsilon and Magnus managed to close the spawner," Frisk announced to the ones in the city square. "Let's clean up the town of any soldiers and lead the players to where Garth and Astrid are. They said the escape portal is up and running."

Tank, Lyria, and Sed smiled at the news. This boosted their morale as they fought off the remaining soldiers coming at them. When the place was finally cleared, Sed went to inspect the houses in case they missed any players.

There was one player standing alone inside a building. His back was facing Sed.

"Hey, we're going to evacuate soon. Come with us," Sed spoke.

Gaylord turned around. "Am I saved? Are the horrible enemies gone?"

"Yeah. It's clear for now. Let's hurry."

Gaylord followed behind Sed as they walked back to the other players.

Suddenly, Frisk's voice came out of Sed's menu tablet. "Watch out for Gaylord. He might be an enemy."

When Sed turned around, the fake Gaylord immediately choked him. Sed had no time to react.

"W...Who... are... you?" Sed struggled to speak.

The fake Gaylord had an evil smile. "I wonder."

"Sed!" Lyria shouted and fired a bolt at the fake Gaylord. That was enough to free Sed from his grip.

The fake Gaylord laughed. "You think you prevented a disaster? This is just the beginning."

"Who are you?" Lyria asked. She was ready to fire another shot.

The fake Gaylord did a Gaylord pose. "How rude! Do you not recognize me, the great Gaylord?"

"I didn't want to believe that it was true, but it was you after all," said Epsilon while standing on top of a building with her arms folded.

"Razette Epsilon," the ex-guildmaster turned around. "I see you're alive. Too bad you left Aries before I got to send you an invite to my group."

Epsilon shrugged. "Look, I'm already wanted in the real world. I don't need a second bounty on my head."

"Fair enough."

"Why are you wrecking havoc in this world anyway?"

"If I explained myself, that would make it easier for you to defeat me, wouldn't it? Unfortunately, I'm not a textbook villain. Try another question."

Epsilon was getting annoyed. "Fine. Keep your secrets." She summoned her giant marionette. "Marionette, crush!"

The ex-guildmaster only had to snap his finger to lock Epsilon in place and fire a deadly arrow at her. It traveled too fast for anyone below to fire a shot that could counter it.

"Epsilon! No!" Magnus leaped in front of her and took the full blow of the attack. He was knocked sideways and fell bleeding on the roof.

"Magnus!?" Epsilon was shocked at the turn of events.

"What's wrong with me? Why am I protecting you?" Magnus questioned himself with his dying breath. He found himself moving instinctively to protect his rival as if he actually cared about her! What an absurd idea!

Epsilon bent down to examine his wounds. They cut deep. He needed immediate medical attention or he would die. "I don't know. You're probably just an idiot."

"Shut... up..."

"Don't die on me. If you do, I'm going to write Maggie on your gravestone."

"I hate you, Razette." Magnus passed out.

"Magnus? So you were with them this whole time? How disappointing. I heard you and Lyngvi were captured, so I came to rescue both of you," said the ex-guildmaster.

"He can't hear you, you know," said Epsilon.

"What's with this guy?" Tank whispered to Lyria as they both stood ready to defend. "Even if we tweaked our abilities, it's like his is on a completely different level."

Lyria hated to admit it, but Tank was right. She could feel the intimidating aura from where she stood. How did he get himself so powerful like that?

Suddenly, upbeat dubstep music started playing from everyone's menu tablets. It surprised all of them.

"Frisk, now is not the time," Tank whispered.

"Sorry. You guys are just so serious and tense. It's scary," Frisk replied.

The ex-guildmaster suddenly laughed. As he did, more spawner portals appeared around them until they were surrounded by more soldiers. "How about a challenge? Let's see how well you can last with all these mobs."

All the enemies came at them at once. Lyria had to pull out her war fans again to catch up with the speed of the attacks. In a brief moment, she managed to cast Heaven's Sanctuary to provide them some knockback. Tank buffed his allies with shields for a stronger defense. Epsilon swiftly used her chains to drag Sed's body into the safe area.

"Let's increase the difficulty a little bit," the ex-guildmaster said as he summoned a large hammer from above to strike them down.

"Marionette, go!" Epsilon ordered her marionette to block the hammer midair and sacrifice itself. The collision caused a large explosion above them.

"Let's see you block this." Several swords appeared midair, ready to pierce their targets.

"Shit," Epsilon cursed.