Epics of Noche 5, Reflection

EON CH 14 - ACT 63, DON'T HIDE IN THE LIGHT

DEEPER INTO THE WOODS.

1777, APRIL 06th, WEDNESDAY11:45 am.

Noche didn't recognize much in the Neverafter forest. Despite it being almost noon-time the forest was almost pitch black. Gray fog drifted across her feet admidst the black silhouettes of the trees around her. The only color was the blinking red light of a broken radio antenna that lay on the ground underneath a canopy of trees.

As she went deeper into the woods she encountered various abandoned landmarks. From a rusty old warehouse, to multiple electric towers, to a decrepit windmill that shrieked in the wind, to a rotten water wheel attached to a saw mill. It was almost as if there was a small town here until the woods crept over it.

There was a moment where she thought she heard a child laughing, but scanning the environment there was no kid in sight. A bead of sweat trailed down her face and she summoned her Omni-oar. After a few minutes of nothing happening, she dismissed the weapon.

Then she came across a sight she wasn't expecting. A mummified corpse who was somewhat fused into a tree – or more like one grew out of him. He was wearing a Cross uniform. Was this the man who was attacked by that tree two years ago? Noche flinched when she saw him twitch. Was he... Was he still alive?

There was no way she was going near him. If he was still alive, then it was probably to lure people closer to help save him. She would not fall for that. Noche lifted up her eyepatch and an eye of corruption formed in her socket. A moment later the man and the tree ignited into a white blaze.

Roots erupted from the ground and began to lash out in all directions. Fortunately, the blonde was far out of reach. She glared at the tree with her evil eye until the entire thing was corrupted and gone. With it destroyed she continued on her path through the forsaken forest.

Deeper in she came across a cloud of gas. It moved towards her and she broke out in a cold sweat. Noche created wind and blew it back, but not before a little touched it. She fell to her knees as the world around her went gray. Her body submerged in a pool of ice water – she needed to breathe. Yet no matter how fast the air came in, she couldn't.

It took the blonde a few moments to stop hyperventilating. Her nerves had settled down and she was able to stand again.

"Despair clouds," she thought. "That's pretty accurate."

In the time she had spent on the ground the cloud had reformed and was inching it's way towards her. Moving towards her as if it was sentient. Noche reacted much faster this time and dispersed it with hurricane winds. She didn't stick around after that.

Not much later she encountered a lava snake. A snake that smoldered with heat and instead of shedding its skin it moulted molten lava. They were as big as an anaconda and twice as strong, not that they needed to be since they could cook anything they wrapped around. She killed it by cutting it in half with her sword.

Deeper in the forest were shadow badgers. A creature that was as vicious as its honey badger counterpart but with the ability to create a blinding black gas. Hurricane winds and a bolt of lightning as thick as an old oak tree took care of any she encountered.

Then there were volves. Noche was hesitant to fight any, given how they reminded her of Moon Moon. So she made cages of wind and walked past any she encountered. However, they weren't the only venomous mutants she had come across. A squad of purple monkeys had surrounded mere minutes afterward.