Eventually, the sounds did stop, but Noel remained as she was, throat raw from her screams. She had no desire to ever look back. She remained in a fetal position until she felt something wet trickle down her face.

Noel shot upright as she touched the place where she had felt the wetness. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw red on her fingers. Blood.

Horror washed over her as Noel lowered her hand to see it completely soaked. She looked at her other hand. It, too, was a deep, dark red. Her hands shook as she realized where the blood had come from. It wasn't hers.

The sea breeze felt cooler on Noel's ears and cheeks where she had clutched them in fear. She let out a shuddering breath and tried to swallow. But it felt like her throat was being blocked by something large and jagged. She began to furiously wipe her hands on her dress. All that did was spread the red around. Noel had to fight the strong urge to rush to the ocean and plunge into it. It wouldn't do her any good.

Then the sounds of Azrath screaming something brought her back down to Earth.

On instinct, Noel turned to look at where he was and immediately regretted it. She expected to see the remains of the guard scattered on the ground. But there were none. There was plenty of blood that stained the wharf. Yet, not even a scrap of clothing remained as the ginkrat raked its tongue across the ground, melting the concrete to the point where it could scoop the liquid, along with the blood, into its mouth.

Azrath shouted for it to stop as he dove at the ginkrat to swipe at its hide. The ginkrat completely ignored him as his scratches didn't leave so much as a mark on the ginkrat's scales.

When Noel looked at him, Azrath stopped his assault and flew over to her.

"Noel! Are you okay?!"

Noel didn't know how to answer that.

Azrath cursed. "Eingh de Sah. What am I saying? Of course, you're not!" His eyes passed over her bloody face and hands. "That Darris is going to pay. I don't care anymore! I'm going to find a way to kill him! You don't have to fight anymore, Noel. I'll just—"

"No."

Azrath blinked. "What?"

At the mention of Darris, Noel felt something stir within her. Even within the emptiness. "I said no. I'm not done. Not by a longshot."

"But why? I told you don't have to fight."

Noel got to her feet. "Yes, I do." She shot a glare at Darris, who had been watching them in silence all this time, his arms folded, face deadly serious. He flashed her a smile.

Noel's hands made a squelching sound as they clamped into fists. Her headache had returned in full force.

He knew.

Darris had planned all of this. He had told her as much when he said the ginkrat would first target the weakest prey. She had been so stupid! Of course, the ginkrat would eat a fresh-dead corpse. It was the weakest prey of all. She should have figured that out before it was too late. But he was gone, and it was her fault. Even if she had never known him in life, she felt like she owed him. His blood on her hands felt like a promise to him.

Somehow, thinking about this allowed Noel to push her fear to the back of her mind and lock it there. It filled her with a new sense of purpose. Right now, she had to focus all her attention on the ginkrat. The best way to begin to pay off her debt was to defeat the man who had killed him. And that meant getting as strong as possible. To do that, she needed that piece.

"Azrath." Even Noel was surprised at how calm her voice was. It was almost cold. "Can you think of a way—any way—for me to get the piece without hurting the ginkrat?"

Azrath gawked at her, "You still want to save that thing? Even after… You know."

Noel looked at him, "I can't blame a lion for killing a zebra. And I can't blame the ginkrat for what it did, either. It's only looking to eat. That's all." It was just an animal, after all.

He stared at her for a moment in confusion, maybe wondering what a lion and zebra were. He nodded in some form of understanding. "Yes, you're right. As for the piece, if it hasn't come to you by now, then you hold no influence over it."

"It's my power, though, isn't it?"

"It is yours, yes, but I don't think it recognizes you yet. I believe—and this is just a guess—I believe you have to touch it first to activate it. Like you did with the hilt."

Noel grunted. That had been her guess, too; she hated that she was right. Noel's mind raced as she searched for ideas of what to do next. The ginkrat was ignoring them for now as it continued to lick the concrete, leaving dented trials in its wake. But what would it do when she got aggressive? Surely, it would defend itself. That, and her command spells seemed not to affect it.

And what could she do to get that piece? There was an obvious answer, though she didn't know if she had the courage to do it.

Noel mentally shook herself. There was no point in overthinking. She had to act now, or the piece would dissolve. If it hadn't already. Noel began to walk forward toward the ginkrat. As she did so, she reached out for her staff which came to her the instant Noel spread her fingers.

She was six feet away when the ginkrat acknowledged her presence. It must have sensed her somehow as it stiffened and turned to side-eye her. The ginkrat's tongue was still in the ground but slowly began to reel it in, where it disappeared into its jaws. There it sat, mouth agape once more, as it waited for her.

Noel hesitated for a moment longer before running at it, full sprint. The ginkrat moved, tongue whipping out as it backed away from her. Noel had expected the tongue but not the glob of red-stained saliva that came with it. She was fast enough to dodge the glob. The tongue, however, streaked across her left shoulder. Noel glanced at where the tongue had passed over her.

The blue fabric was already turning black, though its melting was much slower than Oriander's glove. Noel was tempted to wipe it off, but she knew it was a bad idea to get any of that gunk on her hands.

Noel continued forward. The lizard opened its jaws wider. Noel could tell it was only for intimidation as she saw it had no teeth. So, she ignored it and the low, guttural hiss that emanated from its body. But after Noel refused to stop, the ginkrat turned tail and ran.

She gave chase. Noel was far faster than the ginkrat and quickly caught up. She reached out and grabbed ahold of the ginkrat's tail. It was stopped for a moment before its tail separated from its body.

Dammit! Of course, it could drop its tail! Noel threw the useless tail behind her, speeding up to catch up with the lizard, diving at it again. Only this time, she aimed for its large back. She tried to land softly upon it, hoping to pin it to the ground, but the ginkrat was barely deterred. It instantly changed its momentum as Noel held on to a barely existent shoulder for dear life with one hand while holding her staff with the other.

The ginkrat began to thrash and spin as it tried to throw her off, tongue lashing out wildly. Noel could feel her fingers slipping, so she did the only thing she could think of. She brought the staff around in front of the ginkrat's face, where the handle lodged firmly within the ginkrat's open jaws. Noel let go of the ginkrat's shoulder and made a desperate grab onto the other end of the staff.

Now she was holding onto both ends of the staff, with it acting as a makeshift bridle inside the ginkrat's mouth. Noel had a much better grip as she dug her knees into its sides. She pulled her staff towards her body, which forced the ginkrat's head back. Its head arched upward; tongue flung behind to whip her back. Noel winced out of instinct, though the tongue lashing didn't hurt. Mercifully, the lizard stopped.

Noel sighed in relief before she felt an intense pain in her shoulder. She looked to see that the cloth of her coat had been completely eaten through and the white dress beneath it. She could see the pasty skin of her bare shoulder and a clear line of angry red blisters growing from it.

Even as she looked, one of the largest blisters swelled and popped. Noel sucked air through her teeth. The ginkrat's saliva had eaten through her protective shield this quickly. Though it had managed to reduce her injuries to a burn rather than the melting that Oriander's hand had gone through. How did he manage to stay calm through something so horrible? Noel felt on the brink of tears. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire!

 And what was worse, she could already feel the skin along her back begin to tingle like it had fallen asleep. She slackened her grip ever-so-slightly to lessen the pain in her shoulder.

That appeared to be what the ginkrat was waiting for as it began to thrash its head about with enough strength to break the grip of Noel's left hand. Noel felt herself beginning to slide sideways off the lizard's back. She scrambled to regain control, but ginkrat seized the opportunity as it slid its mouth along the staff and clamped its jaws onto the fingers of Noel's right hand. As she had thought when she saw the lizard's lack of teeth, the bite did not hurt. But the jaws were clamped tight. She thought the ginkrat was trying to break her finger. However, its intention became apparent as it launched its left side up and over as it began to roll.

Noel hit the concrete right before the lizard's rough back crushed her as it rolled over her entire body. Noel felt pain in several places at once. First, her chest, as the lizard's crushing weight forced all the air out of her lungs at once. Then her blistering shoulder as it was flattened into the hard concrete—she distinctly felt several more blisters pop—lastly was her right arm, the fingers of which were still held by the ginkrat. Plus, she was still holding onto the staff—the winged end of the staff—which she worried might stop the ginkrat from rolling. It didn't somehow, but it did twist her entire arm to the point where Noel worried it might snap in two.

She wanted to scream, but her crushed lungs prevented her from doing so. Noel had to endure the pain; cheek pressed into the concrete as the lizard's body steamrolled over hers. It was over in a second, though it felt like an eternity. Luckily, her arm and the rest of her body were still intact. Noel only had a second to catch a proper breath before she felt her right arm being tugged by the lizard returning right side up.

As the ginkrat landed back onto its claws, Noel used the momentum from its roll to hop onto its back again and regain her grip on both sides of the staff. Noel planted her knee in the middle of the ginkrat's back in an attempt to imitate Oriander's hold that he used to pin it. She knew she had little time before her right hand began to burn like her shoulder. So, she had to figure it out quickly.

Where had he held it? Damn, she couldn't remember! She just could breathe! Her lungs still felt deflated. If she could manage to stop the ginkrat and catch her breath, she could have time to think. And then she saw it. A dark streak about the length of her foot painted the side of the ginkrat's front left leg. There was something strange about that mark, and it took Noel a moment to remember why it felt so important. The answer hit her when she saw the dry brown crust surrounding the mark. It was a burn that must have come from Oriander's blood. Somehow, when his blood had dripped onto the ginkrat's scales, it had caused a good amount of damage. Enough to cause the scales to begin to crack.

Without further thought, Noel released her left hand from the staff once more and jammed her fist into the damaged scales. It felt like punching through Styrofoam with the way the brittle scales gave way beneath her knuckles. The ginkrat stiffened, jaws spread wide— freeing her fingers—as Noel felt a shiver pass through its entire body. Brown blood gushed from the wound, recovering her already blood-soaked hand with fresh warmth. Thank god the ginkrat didn't have acid blood, too. Noel used this opportunity to get to her feet while keeping her fist planted in the ginkrat's damaged leg.

The ginkrat tried to move, but Noel was not having it. She yanked out her fist and replaced it with her boot, digging her heel into the ginkrat's wound, which only made it writhe more. Good…

It took Noel a moment to realize what she had just thought. What the hell is wrong with me? She shook herself and removed her foot from the lizard's leg. She could feel the pangs of remorse immediately stab her heart, even as her fingers began to burn.

It had been so easy to forget that this creature was a victim of Darris too. It was just an animal. It had only ever defended itself. Her anger was not with the ginkrat but with Darris. It needed to be Darris. She had to be better than the unthinking ginkrat. It's what made her human and not an animal. Or a monster like Darris.

Now that she had a moment to think, Noel remembered where exactly Oriander had held the ginkrat and proceeded to press her foot into the ginkrat's neck, right behind its skull. The ginkrat no longer moved. Its tongue lolled onto the concrete where the area beneath began to melt.

Noel panted as she tried to gain a sense of her surroundings. She examined her hand and saw a disgusting number of blisters growing on them. Noel bent forward and pulled the staff from the ginkrat's mouth with her good hand, examining the handle. There was not a spot of damage on the pristine gold, even as the saliva stuck to it hissed and sizzled.

That was good. That meant the piece was probably still intact as well. Unlike her back and— Noel swore as she grabbed her shoulder with her right hand. Then she realized her mistake as she remembered that she was in pain, not only on her shoulder and hand but also on her back.

She didn't want to look at the state her shoulder was in since all those blisters ruptured. But to Noel's surprise, when she looked at her shoulder, she saw that the cloth was again intact. The same with her fingers, which were free of blisters, even though they had just been covered in them.

She switched the staff to her right hand—which was only hurting a little—to feel the skin beneath. She gingerly touched the place where the burn had been, only to find no blisters there either. She felt her back. The cloth there, too, was repaired, but the area beneath was tender. She winced while at the same time being in awe. Not only did her shield block most attacks, but she was also somehow able to heal any damage she sustained. And quickly, too. It had been a little over two minutes since she had been first hit with the ginkrat's tongue. And yet the damage was almost completely healed.

"Noel!" Azrath came flying at her, "you did it!"

At Azrath's words, the ginkrat started flailing. Noel was almost knocked off its back again, but her instinct kicked in at that moment. She grasped the top of her staff's handle and stabbed it downward into the lizard's neck where her foot had just been. The ginkrat struggled for a moment longer, but the butt of the staff kept it pinned, even when Noel let it go a few seconds after she was sure she had trapped the lizard.

The staff maintained the pressure on its own, so Noel hopped off the ginkrat. She was glad to be on solid ground. She looked up at Azrath, who was staring at the ginkrat, stunned. He then met Noel's eyes, his expression melting into fear.

Noel knitted her eyebrows and filled her face with concern, "What's wrong?" She looked behind her, but there was nothing.

Azrath's mouth moved silently for a moment. Then, "Y-you… for a moment, you—your eyes were so…."

She continued to look at him, "So, what?"

He struggled to answer until he squeaked, "They were so cold."

"Were they?" Noel stared at her red and brown hands, then at the ginkrat who remained stuck beneath her staff. She had to admit that she was a little curious about how easily some of these ideas had come to her while fighting. It had started with summoning her staff during her fight with Darris. Where was all this coming from? Was it Urzuran's power? Or was it her? She looked at Darris again.

He had eyes only for her. She shivered.

"No matter," said Azrath, "You won! You beat the ginkrat!"

Noel tore her gaze from Darris to look at her little friend. She shook her head. "Not yet, Azrath. I've only stopped it. I still have one more thing left to do."

Azrath looked determined, "Yes, you're right. We need to get the piece out of this creature." He paused. His expression hardened even further with resolution. "I'll do it. If I crawl into its mouth, maybe I can make it spit up—"

"No, you're good, Azrath. I've figured something out." Noel began to pull at her left sleeve with all her strength. She tore off the entire sleeve to the shoulder, exposing what used to be a second-degree burn and was now only a bit discolored.

"What are you doing?" Azrath asked in worry as Noel put her right arm in the wrong end of the torn sleeve and worked it up over her entire arm.

"Adding a bit more protection," she said, concentrating on pulling out the wide end of her right sleeve and wrapping it around her palm. "If I can buy myself a few seconds, it might give me enough time."

"Time for what?" It took Azrath a second to realize her insane plan. "W-wait! Don't do that!"

"I have to."

She could feel Darris's gaze. Noel knew he was waiting for her to give in to his desire and kill the ginkrat. She didn't like the way her instincts made her act. If her automatic reaction was to hurt other things… She was lucky that the wound she had caused on the ginkrat's arm was healed. Even the burn Oriander's blood made was gone.

 Urzuran's healing was remarkable. She could only hope it would work on her just as well.

If there were a better way for her to retrieve the piece, she would do it. Her first hope had been to make it gag and regurgitate the piece, but after seeing the ginkrat swallow—after seeing what the ginkrat could do, she doubted anything that didn't cause it intense pain could make it throw up. She would not take that risk. She would not let Darris win.

Noel steadied her breathing as every cell in her body screamed in protest. Her fingers were trembling like crazy they remembered the pain, the blisters. But she ignored her fear and closed her hands into fists. She had built up the resolve to do what she had to do to save the piece and the ginkrat. It was crazy, but she had faith in Urzuran's healing—no, her healing ability to save her.

Noel crouched in front of the pinned ginkrat's face, about as wide as her torso. It was fully capable of swallowing her whole, too. Just like—she shook herself. Stop! Don't think about it.

Azrath landed next to her, "B-but the ginkrat just ate—" He went silent, quelled by the look on Noel's face at the mention of the guard.

"I know." That was all she said before sticking her fingers into the ginkrat's mouth and lifting it as wide as possible. There was some resistance from the ginkrat, but Noel's enhanced strength proved too much. As soon as its jaw began to open, its tongue instantly shot out, aiming for her face. Noel had anticipated this. She caught it with her right hand and stuck it beneath her left boot in one swift motion.

The lizard's putrid breath washed over her, drowning out all other smells. Noel wanted to cover her nose. For that matter, she wanted to run away and scream for help. But that was no longer an option.

It was now or never. God, she hoped her arm was long enough to reach its stomach.

And with that, Noel plunged her right arm down the ginkrat's throat all the way to her shoulder. She rested her left elbow inside the ginkrat's lower jaw while keeping her palm pressed on the top. Now the ginkrat wouldn't be able to shut its mouth down on her.

The ginkrat fought this all the way, thrashing like crazy, but the combination of Noel and her staff kept it in place.

At first, the only sensation on her arm was unpleasant, warm wetness. She could feel, rather than hear, the squelching as she pushed her hand deeper into the ginkrat's pulsing gullet. It was a tight squeeze, but she pushed onward until—yes! Her hand and wrist breached their way into open liquid. Noel was on the verge of throwing up again like she had been all night. But this topped all the other moments of nausea.

She pushed all thought out of her mind and only focused on the piece's shape. The square buckle. Or was it a rectangle? She focused on dumb thoughts like that as she swished her hand through its stomach. Whichever it was, all she had to do was brush it with her fingers, and it would fly into her hand, and that would be it.

By now, Noel was beginning to feel the tingling in her arm, in the hand holding the ginkrat's mouth open, and the part of her foot pinning its tongue. It then grew into a stinging sensation. She only had a few seconds at best before all would begin to burn. Azrath watched with bated breath, just within her field of vision. She could hear him whispering words of encouragement under his breath. Noel couldn't quite make out what he was saying, but she was glad for it anyway. It gave her something else to focus on.

Noel desperately sifted her fingers through the thick liquid, expecting to feel something that was not metal, something that would cause her heart to fail. Thankfully, there was nothing.

Then came the pain. Noel gave a sharp intake of breath. Her instincts told her to stop, but she did not yank her arm out. The pain became more and more intense with each second. Her breathing became more labored. But she did not give up. Noel kept her arm where it was.

She was close. She could feel it. It had to be in here somewhere. It just had to! Tears of agony poured from Noel's eyes as despair and pain consumed her, despite her determination.

And then her pinky brushed something. Something metal that instantly magnetized to her hand. A rush of energy filled Noel's body as her fingers closed around the flat square.

With all her might, Noel pulled her arm out of the ginkrat. Both sleeve layers were gone, and what was left was not a pleasant sight, but Noel was no longer thinking. There was only pain. Pain which consumed her entire body. Not just her arm.

Noel's teeth felt like they were about to break as she gritted them. She only had to wait it out. However, each second that passed felt like an eternity. She saw blackness in the corner of her eyes as she sank to the ground, cradling her destroyed arm in her other hand, which too was burning due to contact with the ginkrat's jaw. It didn't matter if her hand got worse. Nothing compared to the pain in her arm. Why had she thought she could endure this?!

One more second… just one more second, and it'll heal. I just know it.

But it wasn't healing. Noel had never felt on the verge of death before, not even when she was fighting Darris. Now though, as the world began to vanish around her, she felt this was it.

"Mama… Papa… Danny…Aunt Jill…

Why had she been so cold towards her aunt? Why was she such a failure? She couldn't even fulfill the promise she made to her parents to be there for Danny. Why…? Why did it have to end this way?

The blackness was consuming her. All sensation, even the pain, was leaving her. She was melting into nothingness.

Then a voice rang out, "Do not give up, Noel. This is not where your story ends."

 The voice was familiar, though Noel did not have the brainpower to place it. But she agreed. Why should her story end here? She had so much left to do, so many promises to keep. Finishing school, protecting Danny, avenging the guard… finding Steven.

At the thought of her brothers, Noel could see a light within the darkness of her vision. It was something beyond a streetlamp or even the sun. It was something otherworldly. And it was coming from where she thought her ruined right hand was. She tried to open her fist to look at the piece contained within, but her fingers, fused together by her melting skin, would not comply.

Still, she felt a surge of power emanating from her hand—words formed in her head once more. Noel felt herself rising into the air, feet leaving the ground for a second as she raised her fused fist into the air. Then she dropped, slamming the fist into the concrete, which cratered around it.

"Divine Impulse." Noel heard herself say.

Waves of warm energy washed over her and spread across the ground from her hand. Noel felt instant relief from her pain as she was consumed by the comforting waves that hugged the surrounding area.

And then the waves were gone. Noel stood up. She looked in awe at her hands which were completely healed. Even the sleeves of her dress were restored. The blood that had caked her clothes was also gone. She looked at the buckle that sat in her palm. But it was no longer a buckle but a flat piece of metal cut into a jagged shape on all sides but one. A piece of a sword, she realized.

Had this new power come from it? Or had it always been there inside her, made stronger by the buckle? Either way, she was okay now. At least physically. The memory of the pain still lingered in her arms.

"Noel!!"

She looked up to see Azath flying straight at her face. Noel flinched, raising the hand that held the blade fragment defensively.

"S-sorry," Azrath said, flying back a foot or two. "But—"

He was interrupted by a voice—the same voice which had called out to her as she faded away, "Well done, well done indeed, Noel."

Darris approached her with a look of visible relief on his purple face. He crouched down in front of her. The pupils of his eyes were round once more and did not change as he looked at her. He smiled. "You did it."