Chapter 10 - A New Addition

The moment Noire exited that room, she had been beset by two things: more Wards blocking her escape routes, as well as another wave of Demons. This type of Demon however, differed entirely from the ones she had encountered so far in a multitude of different ways. Instead of the humanoid structure she had become used to seeing Demons take, this type had a more gargoyle-like form to it. This type took the form of a Gargoyle statue in their 'true' forms, but they usually stuck to a more blood-like one, which was a serpent-shaped bat with wings that are spiked, whilst every one of their movements remained as silent as silence itself. With their 'blood forms', this Demon type were practically ALWAYS coated in the blood and several small, circular jewels were seen glowing on their wings.

This wasn't anything which surprised her anymore, though, as instead Noire had simply stared at them and began working out plans to counter them. Plans which involved fighting them head on to learn their moves so she could dispatch them as quick as possible. It was something that the blackette had seen dozens of times before in previous encounters with the world of the Demonic, not just in Temen-Ni-Gru, so she really didn't express that much surprise when it happened. Though, perhaps the scene which had taken place prior within that room, that… weird scene at the end of the last chapter, had a say in how she had reacted right now. She'd been so done with being surprised that it reflected in her current mood.

… Take them out swiftly, we do not have time to dilly dally anymore…

'I know.' Noire replied to her Heroic Spirit, mentally drained from what had just happened to her before. All she wanted was to get this over with right now, either that or get some well-needed rest. Still, the situation she currently found herself trapped in didn't allow that, and so the blackette refused the urge to fall onto her backside and rest. Not when there were enemies around her to defeat.

Instead, Noire had simply jumped into battle.

When she'd fought them though, Noire had fought in a more conservative style, switching between her various swords, Raijin, Luce and Ombra to see how these Demons work, so she didn't have nothing when she would ever encounter them again. Knowing the formula of these Demonic encounters in this Tower, it would likely be the case. Just like blood which these guys apparently used to operate, this Demon type would always split in half when hit with melee weapons, but modern-day weapons such as guns will actually cause them to temporarily revert into statues. She had fought both the regular and a "giant" size, which splits into regular versions but remained slightly slower in their larger forms. Not to mention, they attacked solely in packs, while also attacking in the forms of charging at her like spinning drills, without any other kind of moves available. Thus, it had led towards a less difficult battle, if slightly more annoying, with them which ended with her victory. THIS time however, Noire paid extra close attention to her soul absorption power, finally noticing the MICRO-SIZED Souls from the Demons, ones she decided to call 'Blood-Goyles' as homage to their bloody appearance and Gargoyle structure.

Once she had defeated these Demons, did more come, this time accompanied by a hoard of 50 Demons she had grown used to seeing. This hoard consisted of those black scythe wielders, some red and white ones as well. Each of them howled and cawed like mindless birds on a blood rage, before they surrounded her and rushed her from all sides, uncaring for if this could be her final battle. 'I'm so done with these guys… after everything, I could so use something to drink or eat…' Noire thought to herself while readying her weapon of choice: her HF Blade.

Thus, Noire returned to her usual routine of slaying these damned spawns of hell.

Afterwards, Noire left the room and returned to the spiralling tower she had entered from, heaving a sigh of relief that she had finished the fighting. That last battle had been one annoying one to say the least, especially thanks to the way those white wearing Demons teleported around like fans blinking in and out of a crowd. Those fast, red ones didn't do much better for her nerves with how they always running slashed at her with their Scythes, but she had managed. The rapid-fire abilities of her two Handguns Luce and Ombra had been a major help in clearing them out at least. Plus, like she had theorized, these guns seemed to be similar to Ebony and Ivory in terms of power… according to what she remembered seeing them do. Who knows what else they were capable of at this point? She wouldn't be surprised if those things had become even stronger than she could have ever imagined.

Leaning on the wall beside the door for a bit, Noire slowly slid down it, allowing her body to rest for a little while. With nowhere to go for now, she decided to get some rest here and recover her mind from what had happened. 'So, Siegfried…' she began in her mind, already sensing she had the Heroic Spirit's attention. 'Do you still think I could use a companion? Cause I swear, if I had someone like Neptune or that black and red spandex guy as a partner for this, I'm pretty sure I'd go insane anyways.'

…I would prefer it if you did get one, but not as silly as those two. I'll admit to being caught… off guard by… whoever those two were. Do not worry though, I sense that the red/black spandex person called 'Deadpool' I believe, is no longer within the Tower. Looks like he has ways of getting out that we do not. Still, I think that's a good thing, because I doubt you and I would be able to stand him in long doses with our sanity intact…

'Heh, now THAT I can get behind…' Noire replied with a small chuckle, amusement and mirth dancing within her eyes as she looked up to the ceiling. Hearing that this 'Deadpool' character had vanished filled her with a major sense of relief, where she should have been curious as to who he was and what he had been doing in the Temen-Ni-Gru in the first place. She could only imagine what an adventure with solely a companion who was worse than Neptune would have been like, she could see herself losing all her hair because of that level of idiocy. 'On another note… where do you think we should go from here? Up, or down? Cause right now I can't be bothered to think.'

… I believe going up might lead us somewhere. We haven't explored these paths fully, so we MIGHT find something of noteworthiness up here…

At this, Noire gave a small nod at her Heroic Spirit's words. She would have stood up to continue this little adventure of hers, but it seemed her body refused to follow her brain's orders. She didn't blame it one bit, despite her being one heck of a hard worker, more so than the majority of her citizens, even someone like her had their breaking point. Right now, for her, this was one of those times, which was reflected in her following thoughts to her sole mental companion, and mentor. 'Okay… thanks. Just give me a few moments to catch my breath. Not cause of physical exhaustion mind you…'

…Of course, Noire…

It took her about 5 minutes to calm herself and recover from the weirdness which had happened, of which she had to drink a few energy drinks she usually saved for some all-nighters back home at the Basilicom before she found herself back to being full of energy. Good thing she followed up with a simple ham and lettuce sandwich when she heard her stomach rumble, because nobody can go far with an empty stomach. Having a break like this to eat something felt like EXACTLY like the thing Noire needed to carry on, she could not even begin to describe the levels of joy she felt finally having some food in her belly. She could understand how explorers felt whenever they were on long-erm assignments in isolated areas, especially in her situation. Also, speaking of her situation, a little something of note which Noire had noticed during her small break, was that Demons didn't attack her here. For whatever reason, Noire would always be safe in this section of the Tower, no Demons, no annoying Clowns or weird spandex perverts, nothing.

A little thing, but one Noire wholeheartedly appreciated.

After the small break was up according to her internal clock, Noire decided to get going once more, scaling the spiralling pathways to see if she could get to the top. The more she did so, the more she began to realize that these paths didn't exactly lead her to the top, but rathe something else. No, more like they lead to a way to GET TO the top, something she soon found herself to have been right about when she approached yet another mechanical-looking stool. Much like the one which had been in that room… just the thought of what happened there made her wish she could forget about it.

"Whelp looks like a dead end…" the blackette mused as she looked around, noticing she had indeed reached the end of this particular pathway. She also noticed that she was quite close to the source of the clockwork sounds, which came from the gears nearby. She then looked down at the Mechanism beside her, of which she saw a small circular hole at its centre. There looked to have been a message on it, but thanks to the passage of time the message had become too faded to write. 'Huh, I wonder why there was a message for that trinket and not for this thing…' she wondered to herself. Just then though, as Noire looked towards the hole, the flashing image of the said trinket she had picked up went through her mind, causing her to widen her eyes in alertness and realization. "Wait a moment… maybe its possible…" she mumbled under her breath.

Afterwards, Noire pulled out the same trinket, the Astronomical Board, she had found before from her Inventory, holding it in her hand with a calculating gaze. She held this gaze for a few seconds, eyeing the circular green gem in the middle before she glanced to the hole to compare the two shapes. A few seconds passed, before she realized these two could fit with 100% efficiency. "Well. Here's hoping this works…" Noire mused, before flipping the trinket into the air and catching it in her hand by its edges. She then proceeded to place the trinket inside the device, before she stepped back to see if there would be something happening thanks to her actions.

Something did INDEED happen, although she couldn't tell where. What she could tell though, was the fact that it had to do with moving stone, similar to that locked door. 'Huh, well what do you know, it worked… wonder what exactly happened though…' Noire thought, her lips pursed together, and her brows furrowed in confusion. All she could tell, was that it had happened somewhere below her, and little else than that. That could only mean she would have to retrace her steps, or rather she would have to think back using her mental map in order to piece together what might have moved.

She opted for the detective-like option at the end after a few moments of consideration.

Noire, firmly resolute in her choice, sat down in what she had learned was the 'Lotus Position' when she had looked up some forms of meditation out of boredom on the internet, from Siegfried's urging the previous hours. It had ended up helping her keep her calm in tough situations, though it wasn't always ideal.

The position was described as followed, and Noire took to it down to the tiniest detail. From sitting cross-legged on the floor in Sukhasana (an asana AKA a body posture), one foot is placed on top of the opposite thigh with its sole facing upward and heel close to the abdomen. The other foot is then placed on the opposite thigh as symmetrically as possible. The knees are in contact with the ground. The torso is placed in balance and alignment such that the spinal column supports it with minimal muscular effort. The torso is centered above the hips. To relax the head and neck, the jaw is allowed to fall towards the neck and the back of the neck to lengthen. The shoulders move backwards and the ribcage lifts. The tongue rests on the roof of the mouth. The eyes may be closed, the body relaxed, with awareness of the overall asana. Adjustments are made until balance and alignment are experienced. Alignment that creates relaxation is indicative of a suitable position for the asana. The asana should be natural and comfortable, without any sharp pains.

In this position she followed to a T, Noire closed her eyes and let her mind still itself, focusing on solely one objective only: to figure out where the sound originated.

'Alright, now let's see… From the pathways I was able to look through, a lot of them had holes in their design. Likely due to the strain of time, or through a major battle of sorts. Perhaps the reason why the Demons don't come to this place was due to the amount of death which lingers here? I've been getting traces of it throughout my ascension of this Tower, but not by much, which makes sense given this place's age. It's a miracle that its even still standing after so many years. Therefore, that rumbling sound could have been a self-repair system or an automated one attempting to fix a problem it should have long ago but couldn't for some reason. No, that's unlikely if such a system existed one: I would have seen something hinting at it, and I haven't. Two: if there was something like that, then the damage I've seen wouldn't have been here. Thus, I can conclude that this isn't the case, and something else must have been triggered, but what? Hmmmmmm… Hmmmmmmmmmm… hang on a minute, there WAS something! Wasn't one of the pathways blocked from me, keeping me from going any further? Yes, yes there was! I remember, there was a pathway barred by these long, tall pillars of stone which protruded out from the walls! If that's the case, then it could very well be them which have moved, allowing me to finally pass! If this is indeed true, then I still have a lead I can investigate, thus I shouldn't dawdle. I can't see any other alternatives; therefore, I should probably go down there to investigate.'

Although this process felt quite quick to her, upon opening her eyes Noire quickly felt her inner alarm clock and found that about 30 minutes had passed already, much to her surprise. Then again, those in meditation tend to lose track of time, a fact she had once learned herself when she initially tried it out. Standing up from her Lotus Position (although she embarrassingly recalled the times she fell over from this position when she hurried this standing up procedure. Good thing nobody had been around to see it save for Siegfried, otherwise she'd die of shame), Noire quickly donned her FAFNIR ARMOUR, before spreading her wings and shooting up into the air.

She then backflipped, which lead to her swan-diving down to the lower pathways below. Noire made sure to control the speed of her descent by manipulating the position of her wings, just enough so she could analyse the various pathways. Thanks to this Armour's visual acuity enhancements, Noire often found herself noticing things in much greater detail than she had ever done so before, something which she really appreciated in situations where she had to search for the tiniest of oddities. Such a case could be right now for instance, as Noire managed to descend down to the lowest few pathways, before halting herself by lifting her body into an upright position, flapping her wings a few times to push air blasts downwards to keep her afloat, before constantly flapping to maintain her altitude.

It was quite different from her HDD form's flight abilities; she would definitely admit. With her HDD Form, she didn't have to worry about anything since her floating abilities as well as her flight ones were handled by her processor units indefinitely. A sign of her godly divinity, she had learned early on in her life… one of the few things she even recalled from that time. Even after the first time she had awakened this ability when training with Balmung though, Noire had quickly noticed that whilst the wings were connected to her by a gravitational pull like her HDD Form's, they behaved more like actual limbs, which made sense since neither of them were mechanical but organic in nature, and as such they could get strained in time if used for too long. Kind of like when birds land on branches in forests to rest their wings, although in Noire's case she had trained them to last for hours on end, her current limit being a full 24 hours.

One of her prouder accomplishments, she would happily admit.

Focused utterly on her goals, remaining as goal-oriented as ever, Noire looked around to see if she could locate her subject of interest. Her slitted, draconian eyes scanned everything in their sight with the most intense scrutiny, until a few seconds later when she noticed that one such pathway had signs of movable pillars. Pillars which, according to her memory, used to bar her way. Now, they no longer seemed present there, seemingly having been absorbed into the walls themselves.

One wouldn't blame her for grinning in excitement and pumping a fist close to her side in victory, especially in her personality-influencing FAFNIR ARMOUR. 'Yes! I was right!' the woman thought in sheer glee, her grin showing how some of her teeth were slowly sharpening into the fangs of a dragon. Though, it wasn't something which Noire noticed right now in her happiness. Now, we can see just what it is that these pillars were trying to hide from me!' she thought to herself, already strafing over before prepping her landing. Her wings flapped continuously, increasing their flapping rates when she got close to her destination, before allowing Noire to drop onto the pathway just after the pillars.

THUMP!

With a loud sound, Noire impacted the pathway whilst in a one-legged crouch, letting her wings tuck themselves inwards before getting to her feet. She then dismissed her FAFNIR ARMOUR, and switched her HF Blade to her Ashbringer. She decided that since this blade had holy powers, and it hadn't seen as much action as Balmung recently, she should let it have a chance to shine in the upcoming battles. Battles she felt CERTAIN would be coming. With that out of the way, Noire continued on…

Until she found herself standing before what looked like an ornamental two-pronged Trident impaling a large mechanism, very much similar to the one she had just inserted the Astronomical Board into. "Huh… so THIS is what these things were guarding…?" Noire mumbled when she saw it, walking up to the Trident. She had to admit, when wondering what she would find, this wasn't something amongst her list of expectations, though she would take it since it meant she didn't get to fight many hordes of Demons yet. When she reached towards the Trident to pull it out however, Noire noticed an inscription on the Trident's shaft. The Inscription was quite long, longer than she would have expected from something like it. "Huh… looks like its still readable…" she mumbled, before taking the Trident and pulling it out.

Once she did, Noire held it horizontally so she could read the inscription in her mind:

VAJURA

MODEL OF AN ANCIENT WEAPON USED TO CONTROL LIGHTNING

THIS IS JUST AN ORNAMENT

'Hmmm… quite a peculiar sentence to put at the end of an ornament like this…' Noire thought in contemplation, putting the Trident, or rather the Vajura, into her Inventory. When she did so, the blackette once again put herself in the Lotus Position and began to ponder, stretching her mind for any sort of answer. It soon came to her though, like, within a couple seconds as memories flashed through her mind, showing her a mechanism she had discovered not too long into her ascension of the Tower. 'Oh yeah! There was that cranking mechanism beyond that first door wasn't there? In the room I took a short rest on when Siegfried asked me about… having a companion.' Noire thought in realisation, before she frowned to herself.

She would never admit to wanting to have a companion she could talk to; she wouldn't admit to wanting a female companion to relate with and talk about more normal subjects. Heck, she would NEVER admit within a million years or even beyond that, of her wanting some companion who knew what they were doing and were quite competent on the battlefield. Nope, not at all…

Returning her focus to the task at hand, Noire stood up once again and headed off, seeking to returning to that room she had hinted at in the previous few paragraphs.

Returning to that room, as Noire had expected, wasn't so easy as she had wanted it to be. Not only did she get ambushed by Demons along that long, thin corridor which she dispatched them with ease, but she also managed to get herself into even MORE Demonic trouble when she arrived. Apparently, the Demons didn't like her progress through the Tower thus far and wanted to hinder her further. Like they hadn't been doing that enough already…

Ugh!

Fortunately, not all of this was bad, in fact Noire found it MUCH easier to deal with these 'mobs' of enemies in comparison to previous battles. Her Handguns had been as huge a help as Noire had expected them to be, having pretty much annihilated these cannon fodder on the spot with their rounds. She'd even got the bonus benefit of slowly getting used to wielding either a gun in one hand, holding one in two, or duel wielding them. If there was anything good these constant attacks on her served, it would be that she got LOTS of practice for her combat training, and considering how bad she had been with gunmanship, Noire valued this training immensely. Heh, who knew there'd come a time where she would actually do something borderline heretical, to be able to THANK the Demons for something?

Finally, however, Noire had wiped out all the Demons which had been trying to take her out in this 'Living Statue Room' as she had called it, before ascending to the second platform where the hallway containing the cranking mechanism awaited her. She remembered needing something which controlled lightning to 'acquire the SOUL OF STEEL' according to the vague inscription on it as she walked towards the mechanism. All the while, Noire pulled the Trident Vajura out of her Inventor, rearing the weapon arm back as if prepping to throw it. Once she had gotten close enough to the chain mechanism, though, did she slam it into the place where there were 2 holes, ones which fit the Trident like a glove.

'There! That should do it!'

With that thought, Noire took a step back watching as the cranking mechanism got to work. It soon began to rotate backwards, and the sounds of something chained being lifted filled her ears. This caused her to twirl around towards the cage, which resulted in her eyes witnessing it lifting itself off what lay within. 'Alright! Now let's see what was so important that it needed to be caged away like that!' Noire thought, feeling rather excited right now. To be frank, she never liked cages, it reminded her way too much of what the Basilicom had been like for her upon her return from Celestia. A complete representation of the powerlessness whist she did nothing to stop the tyrannical rule of Avenir. When the cage finally stopped, Noire strode confidently towards it, nearly skipping had she any less self-control. The lifting of that cage, it represented her own little 'prison break', which had only fuelled her excitement further.

Upon her approaching the space under the cage, Noire found… what looked to be a circular object embedded inside an Altar, as if it were an important sacrifice in a ritual. Reaching out for it and plucking it from that altar (with more than a little desire to wreck the altar being born within her mind), Noire brought it up to her eye level. The object took the appearance of a circular, orb-like appearance, black but with a pulsating blue glowing interior. She could sense power flowing through this item, like a star within the ever-expanding outer space. A light in the darkness. Kind of similar to her own situation yet again, Noire thought as she examined the altar and, like she suspected, found an inscription. It read as follows:

SOUL OF STEEL

THE ESSENCE OF A POWERFUL AND FEARLESS SOUL

ITS POSSESSOR NEED NOT FEAR HELL NOR OBLIVION

'Okay… considering each of the past inscriptions lead to how these items are needed to help me advance through the Tower, this one's gotta be the same way.' Noire thought in contemplation whilst she put the item inside her Inventory. Searching through her memories for anything she could have missed during her time in this place, she came up blank. Noire couldn't think of any places of which she hadn't explored as of yet, she'd gone through the three doors, she'd conquered several sections of the Tower, and finally defeated more enemies than she would care to mention. Yet, these enemies came at her in numbers which were DWARFED by the forces of Chaos assaulting Leanbox now, but in their case the blood pumping adrenaline felt much realer, more vicious and savage. If she were to make a comparison, then it'd be like fire and water. These battles flowed like a never-ending stream in comparison to those fiery, passionate and searing battles for her survival.

…I'll ponder on it for you, Noire. Meanwhile, you might want to consider the approaching company you're about to have…

Siegfried's words rang true, for after he said them Noire found those same Wards forming on the doors to this Living Statue Room appear, which blocked her inside whilst dozens of Demons appeared around her. As she saw this, especially those Six-armed Statues prepping their volleys to fire at her, Noire sighed as she held Ashbringer in one hand, and Luce in the other, hopping into the air and descending downwards. 'Here we go again…' she thought to herself as the battle begun.

Later, after she had finished killing this wave of Demons…

'Um… Siegfried, are you sure this is a good idea…?' Noire couldn't help but think right now that her Heroic Spirit had last his mind when he had suggested what he had back then. Well, in hindsight, he had merely suggested to her a supposed route to where she could USE this item, and Noire had followed it to the latter. What she didn't expect… was to be taken right back to the platform which stood aside that dark abyss which was actually one big killing array. That array which Noire had nearly fallen into if it hadn't been for her quick shifting into her FAFNIR ARMOUR.

Just thinking about that incident sent shivers down her spine, especially with what she'd learned about it.

This Killing Array…

It had SERIOUSLY come one step away from taking her life.

So, why should she not be weary of Siegfried making her come back here?

Meanwhile, Siegfried remained convinced that this was the only way for them to proceed. He himself may no have wanted to head back here thanks to the memories of almost falling into that killing array, but there weren't any other alternatives. If he were capable of his full power, heck if Noire could channel Balmung's full power as well as the legacy which she would be soon meeting, then she would definitely have been able to last through this Killing Array, hell she'd have been able to grow stronger for it. As such, they would have to swallow their emotions in order to tackle this problem.

…I am certain Noire. No matter how many times we rerun the calculations, there is no way for us to proceed other than moving across this Killing Array. Unfortunately, back then we weren't able to proceed because we lacked the means to do so. However, that Soul of Steel item we have seems to be the key for us to continue. Remember what it said, pull the device out and just go forth. It is the only option which we have anymore…

Noire tried to find something, anything to counter with Siegfried, however to her frustration there wasn't anything she could use. It seemed that her Heroic Spirit had accounted for everything they had gone through up until this point, and right now it was only her stubbornness which refused to accept this outcome. Her mind waged war with itself as she glared down at the Killing Array, concealed within the darkness that the pit displayed. Oh, how she wished she didn't have to stay near this place, how she wished she would never have to face this thing ever again. True, part of her wondered if flying with her FAFNIR ARMOUR would have solved the problem, but this Killing Array's complexity made her think there was something built in to trap flying opponents. She had only gotten away with it last time due to the speed she had done it with, something she doubted would happen a second time.

As a result, it… only left her with Siegfried's option.

Finally, the war inside reached its peak and a conclusion exploded forth within her being. 'Ugggghhhhhh…. Darn it, fine! If you and I fall into that detestable array, I'll be blaming you for it when I die, got it?!' Noire shouted at her Heroic Spirit, receiving silence as a reply whilst she slowly, cautiously raised a single foot to try and see if she could do anything. Not only hat, but she also pulled out the Soul of Steel for comfort, as if the Handguns holstered onto her thighs weren't enough already. As her foot made to step forwards, the orb in her hands promptly started to glow… and in that moment, two things happened:

One: Noire lost her sense of fear, anxiety, doubt and dread. Everything got replaced with a tranquil calmness which could only be compared to Buddhists reaching enlightenment after hundreds of years' worth of meditation. A powerful serene calmness enveloped her being, yet beneath that lay a wall of impregnable steel, a will which would refuse to entertain the notions she had previously carried.

Two: Noire actually felt like she had stepped on a solid surface, and when she did, the blackette noticed something. When her foot stepped on this seemingly physical surface, even though her eyes told her only formless space existed there… what seemed to be ripples of air erupted from her foot and expanded outwards. It was like she were stepping onto a body of water, walking along it without any sense of fear or doubt that she would fall under.

…Interesting… it looks like I was indeed correct in my assumptions. This Soul of Steel will allow you to cross this Killing Array without being drawn into it and being forced to fight so many Demons. That place would be too dangerous for the current you anyways, should you have went there, you would have had to face an army unlike what we have experience before, with Bloodthirster and Demon Prince level enemies. You would only be heading to your death if you went down there…

'Then it's a good thing I don't need to worry about going down there, isn't it?'

Noire responded to her tenant's words, before she continued walking upwards as if climbing a staircase made of water. She didn't stop for even a second, keeping her mind and heart clear of any distractions. Only when she reached the platform on the other side did the blackette exhale in relief, glad that Siegfried had been right on the money with their chances to cross this place. 'There… Now we can advance further up this darn Temen-Ni-Gru already. This Master better not be trying to stall for time, otherwise I'll rip off this person's unmentionables and freaking FEED them to him!'

Although glad that this recent trial had been passed, it didn't diminish the vengeful flames burning within her soul in the slightest. Heck, as she stepped towards what looked to be a sealed door, as it had a set of stone pillars with a circular hole in them fit just right for the soul of steel, Noire's eyes carried a heated gaze that even the sun itself would look cool in comparison to. No words could describe the amount of raw hatred Noire felt inside of her for whoever challenged her back in her Office. Whoever this person ended up being, they would DEFINITELY be having an utterly FURIOUS Goddess to contend with soon enough!

She didn't say anything as she put the soul of steel into the hole, watching as it alongside the pillars sank into the ground, revealing another door. This one seemed to reach the ceiling above in height, but Noire didn't ay much attention to this. Not when she had thoughts of fiery wrath in mind. As such, Noire stepped forwards, pushing the door open and slipping through.

When she closed the door behind her, Noire found herself looking down a set of stairs, ones which curved likely a full 180 degrees. She of course, continued her stride and made her way down them, coming face to face with another large room. This room reminded her of the elevator room which she had cleared those statues in, especially with the chain-lifting elevator platform in the centre. The only thing was, that unlike the previous one, this one had both a Damage Wheel for its mechanism, as well as… was that a skull engraved onto the wall? And, now that she had her eyes on it…

Why did she seem so drawn to it? Like it was calling her?

…Noire, I think it would be wise to investigate this skull before we proceed. I cannot explain why myself, however I do sense great Wards in place here. Not ones which lock us in certain rooms with Demons, these ones seem much more… complex. If I were to guess, then I would say that there could be something hidden within this section of the Temen-Ni-Gru that could be beneficial to you…

Siegfried spoke within her mind, and when he did Noire quickly realized how deeply the Heroic Spirit had been affected by this skull, as well as the possibilities it contained. Noire herself didn't understand it completely, but she too felt drawn to that thing, more so than the Damage Wheel which she suspected operated the lift mechanism. She heard the door shut itself behind her, but she didn't pay it much heed as Noire walked towards the skull. All the while, the closer she got to it, the more the eye sockets the Skull had begun to glow an ominous, crimson red colour. Almost like it was reacting to her presence, gradually growing more and more as she got closer to it.

When Noire had gotten within an arm's reach of the Skull… the blackette gasped when something happened. The Skull's glowing sockets became so right, and equally crimson sparks danced across the Skull itself, that she had to cover her eyes with one arm. All the while, she soon got the feeling of getting picked up by something, but by what she couldn't tell. She tried to move about, but her mobility felt like it had been stripped from her, and no longer could she feel anything below her resembling ground.

'Wha?! What the heck is happening?! Siegfried, what is this?!'

Unfortunately for her, when Noire shouted through her link to the Heroic Spirit, she didn't Get an answer. No, she realized after a couple seconds, it was more like she couldn't due to something interfering with the link between the two. The black-haired CPU could tell this due to sensing some kind of 'weight' fall on top of the link inside her being, stopping Siegfried from hearing her. Though, she still felt the connection to Balmung, so she could still use her stronger sword.

Still, this did NOT serve the purpose of stopping the panic, dread and fear from taking place within her. Nope, instead Noire felt like she would literally explode with these awful feelings surging inside her, even as she repeatedly chanted things Siegfried had once told her to keep a level head, especially when discussing politics with other staff members. With The lack of knowledge, the feeling of being taken somewhere, combined with the lack of communication to her Heroic Spirit, Noire almost missed what happened next.

In an instant, a sharp piercing sensation entered the depths of her mind, causing her to gasp out and groan in pained irritation. The blackette wasn't unused to thigs like this, as sometimes during the early days of Siegfried attempting to speak to her she got that same aftereffect, but in comparison to now… she couldn't find any. The fact that she had to bite her tongue to stop herself from screaming like a banshee thanks to this sensation spoke volumes.

Yet, even so, it only lasted a second as what felt like… symbols, symbols she couldn't recognize at first, entered her mind. They flowed in like a tongue of flame itself, remaining disjointed and all over the place as if she were someone with dyslexia. However, this only remained so for a short minute, and afterwards these symbols joined together in a way which formed a sentence, something which Noire didn't know how to read at first, but as she gazed at them in her mind's eye, she slowly found the symbols becoming… clearer, more eligible to the point she would be able to read them.

After a second or two, Noire finally got the shot of reading them, which put her mind at ease and distracted her from her current situation. These symbols read as follows:

SECRET MISSION:

DESTROY ALL ENEMIES IN THE ROOM WITHOUT TAKING A SINGLE HIT

'Secret Mission? What the hell is that? Anyways it doesn't matter, I don't have time for this! I gotta get back! I still have to get to that 'Master' and kick his ass!' Noire screeched in her mind, both confused and agitated over these experiences. She had JUSST gone through several annoying trials of her own, and because of that she had limited patience! Whatever this 'secret mission' was, she didn't see it as very important right now. Not when she had to save her people from quite possibly a gruesome death!

Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on one's perspective, the so-called 'ride' finally ended, allowing Noire the mobility she had lost before to return to her. Quickly, she found her feet to be placed on solid ground once more, so when she lowered her arm to find herself in an exact replica of the Ice Guardian's chamber, icy appearance and all. The second she made to try and find some way back to that room so she could continue her mission though… Noire became icy rigid a second later. Her hair flew about tanks to the rush of motion, but she could hardly care as it fell down to her back again, her eyes burning whilst witnessing the following sight presented before her…

… 60 Armoured Statues, each prepped with their own energy Bolts which they all fired at her.

Quickly, she made to act as they were released towards her. 'GRRRR! Fine, I don't have a choice, then! I'll just do this as quick as possible Noire activated her ZANDATSU and rolled forwards, avoiding the attacks by a hair before she got to her feet and had the technique deactivate. She then launched 2 VACUUM SLASH attacks towards the right side, where 30 Six-armed Statues prepared their second volley. Thanks to past experiences, Noire had figured out that these guys may be like Archers, but there were several key differences between them. One of them was that these Demons lacked the speed and agility an Archer would need if his position was blown, not to mention their intelligence… well, it lacked slightly, and slightly would be an understatement here.

As a result, about 15 Statues got sliced in half thanks to Noire's retaliation, whilst the rest fell to the floor, dazed and unmoving. But… she would not be finished there.

To follow up, Noire ran towards the right side while the ones still dazed couldn't do anything. Her legs ran faster than she had used them before whilst her lungs burned with rapid urgency, but she didn't care. Flipping into the air and drawing Balmung at the apex, Noire descended into a vertical downward slash which bisected one of the Statues. She then, for quickness, summoned Ashbringer in her opposite hand, before jumping over to the remaining 14 status to deliver dozens of JUDGEMENT attacks, repeatedly mixing it up with CRUSADERS STRIKE and HAMMER OF JUSTICE to keep the enemy on their toes. All the while, Noire executed the Sword Mistress Style she had developed to ruthlessly butcher the Demonic Statues before they could get any hit on her. She'd even added in her LIGHT DRIVE Skill to enhance her speed.

Having thrown away all forms of defence for the time being, including the use of the DIVINE SHIELD ability to reinforce her defensive abilities, Noire turned herself into a vicious, bloodthirsty devil, speeding through the battlefield like a living bullet, tearing through the Demons in her path without mercy. She only had the form of a pure white blur which covered the battlefield in dozens upon dozens of slashes, slashes which always hit their mark and tore through demonic metal like a hot knife through butter.

As a result, she managed to take out the first half of the 60 enemies with relative ease…

And when she defeated and killed the other half, over 120 Demons appeared.

This time however, instead of just the statues, Noire got ready and activated her FAFNIR ARMOUR, an almost draconian fury burning in her eyes which made them take the form of actual flames. Deep, glutaral growls escaped from her throat at this, al the while Balmung and Ashbringer glowed with their respective auras, Raijin appearing, connecting to her, and covering her body with Lightning sparks. She even applied DIVINE SHIELD this time alongside LIGHT DRIVE, before she jumped towards her opponents.

What could only be called a massacre followed.

About... hmm, lets say 2 hours later...

The last foe fell to Noire's HF Blade, the basic-looking weapon having been the one she had chosen later on in the fight to take out these Demons as quick as possible. Seeing that no more Waves were coming however, made the blackette feel quite relieved, as a massive exhale escaped her lips before she fell onto her knees. She jabbed her sword into the ground, allowing her hands to rest on its pommel for support whilst she leaned her forehead against it, eyes closed whilst sweat rolled down her forehead. Her FAFNIR ARMOUR's wings lowered themselves and curled around her whilst she struggled to regain her breathing, her mouth opening and closing but never completely doing either.

All around her, there lay an ocean's worth of blood, completely covering the entire floor this battle had taken place in. Dealing with the first two Waves had bee easy, as it had allowed her to largely vent her anger on some helpless enemies which had allowed her to calm down, then fight with only one of her Swords, choosing Balmung for the job. Yep, by those words, she pretty much confirmed that she had been fighting Waves upon Waves of Demons for the last 2 hours, each one having greater numbers than the last. Not only that, but the Demons got stronger and faster each time, making not taking a single hit almost excruciatingly difficult. Not to mention painful for her, as her pride refused to allow her to relax for even a moment. The words 'don't take a single hit' had repeatedly reminded her of the secret mission, if she had failed it would have bee an insult to her pride as a warrior and as a Goddess. She had to expand her Sword Mistress Style to its fullest capabilities and beyond to keep up with these guys, plus she had to utilize every technique, every weapon in her arsenal to take them all out in rapid succession.

Didn't help that each time a wave came, the stage itself grew larger and larger, till at the point of the change where it covered over 500 meters in every direction.

Thus, this massacre had lasted for 2 hours, and during the later stages she had drained both Ashbringer and Balmung of their power, so she had to rely on her Swordplay with her HF Blade, as well as her Satanic Treasure Raijin to take care of the rest. Those waves had exhausted pretty much all of her energy, leaving her running on fumes by the end, too. The last wave of course, being the most brutal with over 200,000 Demons in the Bloodthirster level to deal with. So… yeah, one could understand Noire's exhaustion. She had no doubt that if it weren't for her FAFNIR ARMOUR having helped her during this fight, she would not have made it this far, and thus would have been slighted in a nigh-irredeemable way. Still, something told her she had completed the last wave of this little 'secret mission' so she could rest easy for a short moment, recover her strength before.

'That... felt more exhausting... than I'd like to admit...' Noire thought to herself whilst her jackhammering heart began to steady itself once more, her FAFNIR ARMOUR vanishing thanks to it no longer being needed. Noire had long since discovered how her Handguns Luce and Ombra had been able to fire either normal bullets these weapons generated on their own or she could fire ones enhanced by her own energy for greater damage capacity, which had been a big reason why she had lost a lot of her power in this battle. Still, this only made the feeling of accomplishing something great that much sweeter to her, something which she couldn't help but chuckle, then explode into laughter over.

…Noire! Its is good I can hear you again! Looks like whatever was blocking my communication has lifted... You alright, you're laughing like someone who has surrendered to madness and insanity...

At hearing her sole companion's words after a couple hours, Noire could not help but grin to herself as her body began to recover its composure, though she didn't take any healing items just yet. 'Its okay Siegfried, I'm fine. I just got through one heck of a hard trial just now, and I still can't believe I pulled it off...' she replied to him. 'Then again, this IS me we're talking about...'

...That confidence of yours assures me of your words. Still, this is an interesting discovery. there are a whole new set of Wards around this place, ones which were to do with transportation, transmutation and confinement. Its like that Killing Array, but the complexity seems so much greater. If the killing array was a massive lake, then this Array is like a massive ocean in terms of interlocking Wards. These creators may have been some sick bastards, but they did indeed have great skill in Wardcraft. This Tower... it looks like it has places like this where you can complete secret missions in small pocket dimensions, likely or some kind of reward or another. Even if there wasn't any kind of reward this kind of fighting experience will be invaluable for your developing sword skills. This Tower really does function for two purposes instead of just one: a mix of knowledge and confinement...

Noire made to reply to that... when all of a sudden a loud pulse sound resounded within her mind.

BA-BUMP!

Instantly afterwards, Noire gasped, holding her head when it got accompanied by a prickling sensation just like the one which had happened when she came to this place. However, also just like before, the whole thing vanished, as information flowed into her mind... but unlike before, it felt MUCH longer than just a few seconds, and instead felt just like a while 5 minutes. Noire clutched her head this time with both hands, feeling her nails digging into her skull while this process happened to her.

Finally, when it stopped, Noire shot her eyes wide open, a startled gasp escaping her lips as another 'pulse' ran through her, signifying that the process had been completed. When it vanished, Noire quickly sat down, taking a few breaths to calm herself, before closing her eyes. Her very consciousness quickly made to examine the information she had gained, and what she saw... well, it would be safe to say that she did NOT feel prepared for what she did.

SECRET MISSION COMPLETE

ENEMY COUNT: SUFFICIENT

EXTRACTION FROM WARZONE: IMMANENT

REWARD: DRAGON FAULT

Only when Noire read this information, did the same experiences she had felt before when she came into this secret mission, happen again. Only this time, Noire found herself only feeling weightless with her ability to move intact, so when it stopped, she found herself back in that room with the elevator. Shen found herself sitting with her back facing the wall which the crystal skull had been embedded into, only this time the skull's eyes weren't glowing at all. Instead, they were blacker than the pit she had to traverse, which gave her the feeling that she wouldn't be able to step back into that space anymore.

'Wow... now THAT was something...' Noire mused mentally, making to sit up... only to stop when she saw something in front of her which should NOT have been there. Before her, embedded into the ground like a certain weapon which granted one the right to be king, was a sword... and one BIGASS Sword it was at that, she would even go as far to call it a colossal-sized one. This Colossal sword had a completely grey body, with the sword's shape being twisted into an oddly shaped dragon bone. As for the sword's tip, it impressively displayed the shape of a ferocious roaring dragon. The moment she saw the sword there, Noire instantly felt herself captivated towards it, almost like she had an affinity towards it. The entire sword seemed to radiate a powerful, immense heat like the roaring flames of a dragon, something she remained familiar with thanks to ancient Dragon monsters.

Stepping up, the blackette eyed the sword from all angles, curious as to what it was doing here. 'Hmmm... whatever this sword is, I can sense great power flowing through it. Its wild, ferocious and animalistic... kind of like the Blood which flows through me whenever I use my FAFNIR ARMOUR. So, that leaves the question: What are you...?' she wondered.

…Interesting, indeed. Noire, this sword is not normal, just as you assume. However, its true secret lies in the fact that this sword has the soul of a Dragon sealed inside of it. I know this because I can sense the soul inside. It has already recognized you as its wielder, remember what that information said? This Sword must be the 'Dragon Fault' that it mentioned as your reward. These Secret Missions, they must reward you for clearing certain trials, tests, challenges whatever you would desire to call them. In this case, it would be wise for you to keep an eye out as you scour the Tower, for any more of these missions. If you find more of them, then you'll likely gain a whole load of benefits from it...

'Really...? Then, if that's the case, why hasn't this so-called 'Master' not tried these challenges?'

…I do not know. However, it would be wise to take them anyways, and reap the rewards afterwards. We can use these to further your power so you can easily defeat this master upon your meeting...

Agreeing with her Heroic Spirit, Noire stopped her circling of the sword, before she reached out and grasped the Hilt. When she felt she had a firm grasp on the handle, Noire made to pull it out... though it wasn't completely successful. The moment she tried picking it up, Noire felt STUNNED by the sheer weight this blade had, it felt like her arms would snap at any moment as she slowly lifted the trembling sword upwards. 'So freaking heeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaavyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!' she shrieked in her mind, just barely managing to lift the sword into a horizontal pointing position before she had to give up, and let its tip embed itself into the ground. Noire, meanwhile, heaved and panted like she hadn't had a drink of water in centuries, feeling like her lungs were about to explode. 'What the freaking hell?! How the heck can one sword be so freeing heavy?!' she screamed mentally.

…Wow. I did not expect this. From that attempt just now, I can safely assume that this sword of yours is... at LEAST 14000 Kilos in terms of weight. It is a really MASSIVE sword, so its weight must be great. Try and see if you can use your FAFNIR ARMOUR and then pick it up, that form does increase your physical ability after all…

'14,000 KILOS?! Geez, who the heck would make such a sword like that?!' Noire screamed back, but in the end she agreed with him, although she felt sorely tempted to not use this sword called Dragon Fault anymore as she activated the said Skill, clasping her gauntlets over the sword's handle before resuming her attempt at picking it up. Unlike before though, Noire managed to lift it into a double handed stance, not the Sword Mistress one she was used to, but she was able to lift it, albeit barely. The sword still trembled like MAD when she tried to wield it, but in terms of combat potential? Noire felt like she would need a LOT of strength improvements before she could think about using it. For now, she'll just rely on Balmung, Ashbringer and her HF Blade, those swords were the easies for her to use at her current level of strength. But still, Noire could agree wit Siegfried about the whole Secret Missions matter, if she could gain rewards from these missions, then she could further her own training.

It's with this, that Noire put the Dragon Fault Sword into her Inventory before activating the Damage Wheel, boarding the Elevator and ascending upwards.

Chapter end

Whew, this one wasn't as large as the other chapters, but it was still fun to write. I've played the game I'm using for inspiration up to a point, so I might just make an overview of what happens beyond that point, I'm not sure. However, the secret missions thing in here is a call to the game as well. The game has secret missions which you have to find and beat to earn fragments which bestow upon you an increased healthbar. I just changed it into different items stored within the Tower which Noire can find and earn if she beats the missions. These items may or may not be usable for the current her though, and the reason for this is because I'm setting up future plans for her development later on in the main timeline. Believe me, Noire took what happened at Halo Mountain to HEART, which is why she is in a desire to get stronger, so she isn't that useless again. After all, out of the four, Noire is really the most level headed and leaderlike Goddess in canon, I'm just using that as a reason for a lot of traits developing in Noire's Character. That, and she will have to FIND these secret mission areas and win the trials, which I may or may not make harder than in DMC 3 canon.