Beast Soul

"Noah! Quickly come down! Your food's ready!" The voice of Noah's mother echoed throughout the house, and Noah replied back from his room with a loud yell. "Coming!"

"Urgh.." Noah yawned as he got up from his bed and rubbed his eyes. He didn't seem like he had a good night's sleep yesterday. 

Noah slowly walked towards his bathroom, and then opened the door, heading towards the sink. 

Splash!

He cupped his hands under the tap and waited until his hands were completely filled with water, and then splashed his face while closing his eyes, letting the water hit his entire face.

"Hah…" Noah let out a sigh of relief and raised his head up, facing the mirror as he slowly opened his eyes, only for his eyes to widen and yell loudly with surprise.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL F*CK?!" Noah's loud voice echoed throughout the house, which got the attention of his mother, who yelled back with anger. "Noah! What have I told you about using such language in this house? One more swear word from your mouth, and you're grounded for a whole month! Understand?!"

".... Uh, yeah, s-sorry about that.." After a few seconds, Noah replied back, this time a lot less louder than before. 

Noah's mother raised her eyebrows with a frown. His words seemed insincere to her, as though it was only spoken because he was obligated to, not because he felt the need to apologize.

She poked her head out from the kitchen and looked at the stairs, thinking to herself, "Do I need to go upstairs and punish him?"

Back in his bathroom, Noah was staring at the mirror, inspecting his body with great surprise. His mouth was wide open, as though he had no words to say. Completely speechless.

"My body… why- how.. How is it so different?" Noah said as he touched his shoulders and then his biceps. His body had somehow completely transformed itself within a single night, and he went from looking like a relatively average teenager to a strong muscular young man who seems like he works out every day at the gym.

His body had a great build, and if Noah was completely honest, he looked better than before. 

"How on earth did this happen?" Noah murmured under his breath, confused about his sudden transformation. He didn't know what to say. 

"Is this still the effect of that first attack?" Noah thought back to the day that he was first attacked by one of these monsters, pushing him down onto the river and causing the tremendous changes that he possesses right now.

"Only partially, Noah.." The doppelganger Noah's voice interrupted his thoughts, which made the original Noah squint his eyes. "This is the result of the long and arduous process of merging the both of us." The doppelganger explained with a calm voice, although the original Noah still found his voice annoying, for some reason. "Originally, this should've happened within a very short time frame. However, I guess the timing is a bit different since we are essentially an anomaly." The doppelganger finished speaking, and Noah continued staring at his own body.

"...I'm going to need a whole different wardrobe." He said after a brief period of silence.

"Noah? Are you coming down now or do I have to come up there and make you?" Noah's mother yelled at Noah once again with a frustrated expression on her face when she saw that Noah still hadn't come down from his room.

But right when she was about to walk out of the kitchen and towards the stairs, footsteps were heard, coming down from upstairs and onto the stairs, and Noah's mother let out a long and heavy sigh, relieved that her son finally decided to listen to her words.

"Noah, what took you so long-" She turned her towards the entrance of the kitchen, waiting for Noah to appear, but her sentence was cut short as he suddenly froze as Noah slowly came out through the door with a nervous smile on his face. 

"Hey mom.." Noah said with nervousness as he walked over to the dining table, ignoring the surprised expression on his mother's face and sat down. "What's for breakfast today?"

Noah's mother didn't answer, and instead continued to stare at him, and Noah began to sweat from fear. 'Oh god, she can tell the difference!' Noah may only look nervous on the outside, but he was screaming on the inside. 

"Noah…" After a short while which consisted of his mother simply staring at him, she asked him, "Since when did you start working out?!"

"Uh…" Noah didn't expect such a response which caught him off guard, but he quickly reorganized himself and responded with a smile. "Just a few months ago. It's not a big deal, mom."

"Oh my. I can't believe this…" His mother had a beaming smile on her face. She seemed to have been impressed by Noah's words. "My son is actually working on himself and is actually being consistent." His mother clapped her hands lightly and went back to watching the stove. "I sure hope you continue working out, son. I've heard it not only helps the body but also the mind."

"Uh, oh yeah, yeah.. of course!" Noah responded with a puzzled expression on his face. He didn't expect his mother to be so excited about him actually working out. But he nevertheless nodded his head with a made up smile. 

"But still.." Noah's mother tapped her finger on her lips as she spoke. "You really look different even when compared to yesterday."

"Ah, I don't think you saw me yesterday evening, mom…" Noah replied instantly, as he didn't want to make her suspicious. "You came extremely late yesterday, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I remember that!" Noah's mother clapped her hands once again as she let out a short chuckle. "I'm really sorry about that, Noah. Were you able to make your dinner without any problems?"

"Of course. I was fine, mom.." Noah responded with a smile. With that, the topic had successfully shifted, and Noah could breathe a sigh of relief.

"Don't forget that you have school today, Noah." Noah's mother reminded him with a light pat on his shoulder. "So eat quickly."

"Ah, I will, mom." Noah nodded his head. 

'That's right,' Noah thought to himself. 'There was school today.'

Noah didn't know how on earth the government was allowing the reopening of schools, especially since it's only been a few days since they closed down. 

But with the schools reopening once again, he felt that it could increase the chances of even more disappearances and murders in the city, and he had to make sure that the students are safe.

"Oh yeah, and before you head to school…" Noah's mother interrupted his thoughts as she placed her wallet on top of the table, and continued, "Make sure to enter a good clothing shop. Get some clothes that actually fit you, son."

"Ah.." Noah scratched his head and glanced at the tight shirt that he was wearing, which was sticking onto his body, as though it would tear off the second he moves his body. "Will do, mom."

------------------

Meanwhile, on the school rooftop.

"Congratulations captain, on winning the match yesterday!" A black haired teenager with a red and white striped bandana on his head said with a smile on his face as he was kneeling on the ground.

Behind him were a large group of teenagers, who were also kneeling like him. But unlike the black haired teenager with a bandana, their gazes were aimed right at the floor, and their hands were kept behind them, interlocked together.

"You don't need to suck up to me every single time I come to school, Dax.." A big and muscular young man with a military haircut stood in front of the kneeling teenagers. The young man, although muscular, seemed to be a student in the school as well. 

The young man turned around, revealing tattoos on his neck and his chest. The young man's face looked scary as well, with how serious his expression was. He didn't have the appearance of a student at all.

"Dax..." The man opened his mouth to speak, and the man with the bandana, Dax, flinched for a split second. He regained his composure within milliseconds, and he replied with a smile. "Yes, Captain?"

"I heard that there was a bit of a problem going on in the school when I was away?" The young man spoke with a harsh and rough voice, and Dax's expression changed and sweat began to drip from his forehead.

"Ah, yes. I- It was only a small problem." Dax was trying to sweep the incident under the rug. "I'm sure that-"

"Dax!" Before Dax could finish his words, he was interrupted by the loud voice of the captain, which instantly made him stop speaking. The young man closed his eyes, and asked in a hushed tone, "Who is it?"

Dax scratched his chin as he replied, "Uh, someone named Noah Pemberton, captain..."