Protectors- Wrath of The Stranger

Chapter Five: Run

Nothing could have prepared Zavant for the anger that had overcome him. He could see through Noctum's eyes, could experience it all, all of the pain, the rage, the mania that made him unable to think straight. It was maddening, brutal, primal. He realised that his hypothesis was true, the three side effects of the Chrysalis were the reasons that Noctum was acting that way, but if that was so, then there was no way he would be capable of removing it. The original Adam Oughton was lost forever. Zavant now had no qualms about killing Noctum, although the task would surely lead to the death of him,

"There is nothing of you left," He said calmly, surrounding his fists in the electrical current created from his foe's Aura, "I am not facing my past self, but a vengeful deity,"

Noctum landed a blow to Zavant's solar plexus, the blue armour cracking and breaking at the force of the impact, but before the fist could go any further, destroying Zavant's organs, Noctum pulled away, his hand blackened from the force of the Aura that was reflected by Zavant's suit,

"I am in pain," Noctum croaked, "it hurts, but I must fight, I have to escape this place,"

Zavant took a swing, taking advantage of his opponent's weakness. Noctum raised his injured hand to deflect the blow, but was awarded by a spurt of blood as Zavant's clamp crushed the bones and tore the flesh. Noctum pulled his hand back, sending Zavant flying away, but the clamp remained, held fast by the strong rope. He used this to his advantage, shifting his weight so the rope circled Noctum, then blasting electricity through it, weakening his sheer defence,

"As you can see, even Zavant has a chance against Noctum," The High Priestess commented, "what makes you think that I couldn't defeat him?"

"Zavant was Noctum once," Zachary answered, "he knows exactly how to fight himself,"

"You can tell that he's not in his own mind," The High Priestess spoke, "I genuinely have no idea what time and place he thinks he's in,"

She summoned a knife, digging it into the ground like a child, drawing on the ground with a stick,

"I've not been able to figure out your powers," said Zachary, "It's kind of obvious with Bjorn and Jones, but you and Kinetic are a bit harder to figure out,"

"Even I can not comprehend my powers," Samantha replied, "I can summon knives, teleport, heal, copy and inflict curses like Greiger's werewolf affliction, and given enough time, I can even give someone powers like a Chrysalis. The true extent of my abilities is not known, however,"

She seemed to ponder this for a moment, considering something that Zachary did not know,

"My power did not come from the Chrysalis, however," She noted, "it originated alongside it, coming from the-"

Before she could finish, Noctum appeared before them, slamming his shoulder into Zachary as he cried out in anguish. Zachary spun as he landed, his skin grating against the road as Noctum composed himself, burning away his injuries with the Chrysalis, which had begun to poke out from his chest once more. Samantha stared at the orb, reaching for it with the tip of her knife, when another knife soared through the air, catching the High Priestess' blade and knocking it out of her hand. Shaine had thrown it, and continued to run towards Samantha, ready for a fight. Zachary stood, blasting Noctum with his yellow Aura, the crackling lightning pushing the vigilante backwards with its sheer force,

"I've been wanting a rematch since our last bout," Zachary smiled, his skin blackening as scales began to form, crackling with yellow static, "this time, things are gonna be different,"

He ducked the first punch from Noctum, but before he could respond with a counter, Noctum's knee came up under his neck, alongside his elbow coming down. The combined force crushed Zachary's windpipe, and Noctum proceeded to knock him aside, pulling him back in with a vacuum wave. Zachary twisted midair, landing a drop-kick to Adam's jaw, dislocating it with a satisfying crunch. Noctum blasted him away again, this time resorting to a barrage of Aura, leaving Zachary barely hanging on to life,