Protectors- Wrath of The Stranger

Chapter Six: Nightfall

Hell broke loose in the BlackHeart facility. Hundreds of werewolves threw themselves at Noctum, protecting their general in the hope that they could live on in their evil god's afterlife. None of them survived the lethal Aura bursts and punches that hurt them beyond the point of survival. Still, the giant ran, tearing through the cabin towards the Cryo-Chamber, the only place that he thought would be able to save him. Noctum appeared behind Bjorn, tearing through the last few werewolves. Bjorn swung and hit, running as he pulled his fist away,

"You can not escape,"

The tone of the voice drove Bjorn to run faster, throwing himself down the stairs just in time to avoid a blast of Aura. It clipped the side of his arm, sending hot blood cascading down his arm, freezing upon contact. His weight caused him to fall through the boards, landing hard on a metal surface. The Cryo-Chamber shook slightly, causing more horrific screams to come from inside. Bjorn pulled open the hatch, seeing exactly what was inside. His face went pale as he shut the door,

"Noctum," He whispered, "please, just let me leave,"

The thing inside had filled him with such terror that he had no will to fight anymore. Noctum landed next to Bjorn, but he did not attack,

"Why?" He asked, seeming to come to his senses, "have you earned it?"

"Please," Bjorn begged, but he was starting to regain himself, the devious intellect that had shaped his rise among more powerful crime lords working overtime,

He stepped around the side of the giant metal ball, ripping out one of the pipes, filled with pure nitrogen. The security system came on, locking them within an air-tight metal cage. The toxic gas was contained, but so were the two,

"Noctum, you only now know my power," Bjorn smiled, his open palm facing his opponent, "you are completely immobile,"

The air began to slowly fill with nitrogen, the hiss filling the cage. Noctum was completely frozen, unable to even utilise Aura, and soon, unable to breathe. Bjorn had been training to hold his breath for decades. When the time came when there was no more oxygen, he would last a full minute longer than Noctum. He knew not to talk soon, as that would reduce the amount of time that he had to live, but while there was oxygen, it would only hasten the endgame,

"You know, Adam," Bjorn smirked, "you never were good enough. You never had enough power to deal with me,"

Bjorn walked towards Noctum, his hand still outstretched, and he dropped the leaking pipe at his feet so that the gas would fill Noctum's side of the cage first. He spat on the vigilante, smiling at his opponents helplessness,

"You are truly going to die now, Noctum," Bjorn said, "it is so satisfying, so bittersweet to see you here, beaten by none other than Bjorn Mägna,"

He felt his breaths become lighter, as if the amount of air in the room was getting dangerously low,

"No more chit-chat, you pathetic man," Bjorn smirked, "these will be the last words you ever hear,"

The gas filled the room even more, and Bjorn stopped breathing entirely, relaxing into the familiar sensation of holding his breath. He watched Noctum with intent, looking for the telltale loss of light behind the eyes. It was amazing to be so sure, so confident that he was going to win, to exact his revenge on the prodigy gone wrong. The smile on Bjorn's face was broader than his shoulders, but Noctum did not die,

'You can't outlast me,' Bjorn thought, 'there's just no way that you've been training your lungs like me,'

Still Noctum stared, fully alive. Bjorn was counting the seconds,

'153, 154, 155,'

It had almost been three minutes, and it was obvious that Noctum was still alive. Fear flooded Bjorn's insides, although he didn't let it show. If only there was some way, he would have immobilised the hose and bought some time to think, but the lack of oxygen was clouding his mind, taking away his thoughts. He knew that only one thing could be frozen at a time, so if he froze the hose, Noctum would be let loose, and most definitely kill him,