Hello again one and all! It's about fucking time I got around to this one! And now that's it has begun, I'm excited to release it into the world! I hope you guys enjoy the 6 chapters ahead that make up Act 1! But there are a couple things I want to say before I get started.
In case you are not already aware, I have altered the ending to Team WBRN: Black Reaper ll. Chapters 10 and 19-27 have all had changes large and small to accommodate a new, much better, and perhaps more realistic continuity. If you haven't read the revised chapters, please do before you begin The Shadow War: Black Reaper lll.
And secondly, I will be following the same upload style I used for BR2. That means I will be posting a chapter a week until this Act is done, and I won't start writing Act 2 until after the final chapter of Act 1 has been released. This lets me take a bit of a break from writing, take in feedback, and (hopefully) stave off the writers block that has kept this from coming out much, much sooner.
So please enjoy!
- VengfulFate
ACT 1
The Fallen Kingdom
At the beginning of everything, there were two brothers. One of light, and one of darkness. Like any family, there were times where they hated each other just as much as they loved each other. This would often manifest in the brother of light trying to create something that stood apart from the dark world they were in, knowing it would frustrate his more nihilistic brother. Lands and seas, plants and animals, the very stars above us. The dark brother would react, not outright destroying his brothers work, but corrupting it. Pestilence and famine, fires and disease, separating those stars in a void no life could exist in. Their dance crafted the world we know.
One day, after a particularly heated argument, the dark brother went too far. He created a force of pure destruction, cut from his very own cloth. The creatures of Grimm. Even he regretted his decision after the fact. But his brother was forgiving and offered a unique solution. Together, they would craft the perfect being, uniting the best, and worst, of the both of them. They crafted humanity. With their struggle done, the two loving brothers left our world together, confident that we would have no need of them.
"So the brother of light was good, and the brother of dark was bad?" Blake Belladonna asked skeptically.
The group of Blake, Weiss Schnee, Neopolitan, and Qrow Branwen had been making slow progress through the ruins of Vale, heading towards Beacon. Once things seemed quiet enough, Qrow upheld his promise and began to tell the girls what they would need to know for what lie ahead.
"Some stereotypes exist for a reason," Qrow shot back, "unfortunately, you don't get to control that part of the story. Either deal with it or move on."
"What do the brothers have to do with this Salem?" Weiss asked.
"It's about what she's after," Qrow told them, "godly powers in physical form, left behind after their final act. No one has any concrete theory as to why, but they exist. And they're dangerous."
"So, if she gathers them, she'll be a god?" Blake asked.
"Not in truth, but she might as well be for the power she would wield. These artifacts are physical manifestations of incorporeal concepts, capable of controlling the flow of each power they represent. Creation, Knowledge, Choice, and Destruction."
"Four artifacts," Blake noted.
"Four kingdoms," Weiss began to realize.
"And four schools," Qrow finished.
"The artifacts are in the schools?" Weiss questioned, "We need to hurry then! Secure Beacon's!"
"Beacon's artifact will be fine for now," Qrow assured them, "They're all hidden in vaults that are useless without the key. And Beacon's key was already attacked three years ago. She'll be on her guard when she notices Vale's destruction."
"She?" Blake asked.
"Shh!" She didn't get a response. A massive nevermore flew overhead, larger perhaps than even the nevermore at Weiss and Blake's initiation. "It's friends won't be far behind. We need to move, quickly and quietly."
When the sun rose over the devastated kingdom, it was easy to see just how far the city had fallen in just one night. It was quiet and empty, reminding the group very much of Mountain Glenn. Except this wasn't some small, hit-or-miss expansion. This was Vale, one of the four kingdoms that had existed almost as long as recorded history.
"Oh my god…" Weiss couldn't believe her eyes. There was no sign of any human presence. Some of the buildings even seemed damaged already, whether from looters or Grimm they couldn't know. And the dark creatures could be seen, frequently stalking the streets.
"It might actually be safer to move at night," Qrow noted, "We don't exactly blend into the brick and concrete. If we can see them, they can see us."
"So what? Set up camp somewhere for the day?" Weiss asked.
"A third or fourth floor," Qrow nodded, "With a quick exit. A fire escape. Or a neighboring rooftop."
"There," Blake pointed to a tower a few buildings down. It was tall, though the building it was next to had only three floors. "We could make that jump, if we had to."
"Lets go, before we're seen," Qrow nodded.
Weiss hung back a little, falling in step with Neo. Her eyes quickly dropped to the fresh stump, the hand the smaller girl had lost in the chaos. "Hey. How are you holding up?"
Neo held up her stump and signed, 'pain,' with her remaining hand.
"We'll get that taken care of, don't worry," Weiss assured her team mate.
You can get me my hand back? Neo kept her thoughts to herself, like that is even what I'm worried about.
'How long?' Neo signed slowly.
Weiss barely caught it, "How long? How long what?"
'Search for her,' Neo picked her words carefully, not wanting to try and sign entire sentences with one hand.
"As long as we could," Weiss answered softly, "Which… admittedly wasn't very long. The Grimm were coming, an entire horde threatened to be on top of us in moments."
So you didn't search for her, Neo concluded.
"Look, if anyone could survive that, it's definitely her," Weiss tried to comfort.
"That doesn't mean she survived," Qrow butted in.
"Qrow!" Blake scolded.
"What? I'm keeping things real," The aging huntsmen defended, "She's not here, and we're behind enemy lines. We need to focus on us." He looked directly into the furious eyes of the small mute. "We can worry about her when we're safe. She wouldn't want you to kill yourself."
Neo couldn't quite argue, as much as she wanted to. She just huffed and turned away, following the group silently.
"It's so surreal," Weiss pondered, staring out into the city from a nearby window. "I don't see a single person. How is there not a single person?"
"Maybe they're hiding, like we are," Blake suggested.
"Or maybe they're not," Qrow spoke cryptically.
"More pessimistic than realistic if you ask me," Weiss shot at him.
"There's a difference?" Qrow joked.
Blake looked over their camp. They chose a spacious corner office with tinted windows. They pushed all the furniture in the office against the doors, and since it was day a fire wasn't necessary. This left a lot of space in the middle of the office. Despite this, Neo, who was supposed to be resting, chose to sit against the far wall.
The colorful girl looked as though she was not all there at the moment, absentmindedly fiddling with her bandages. She winced as the wrappings fell away a little, exposing her injury to the elements. Curious, she looked inside. She had done some bad things in her life, sometimes to good people, but she had never been up-close with something like this. Clean cuts, sure, but never such rough tears. Is my skin supposed to be that color?
"How are you holding up?" Blake asked the colorful girl, sliding down next to her.
Neo barely acknowledged her presence, wrapping her stump back up with a scowl.
Blake didn't know how to respond, simply sighing. "Just get some rest. It'll give your aura a small boost."
Neo watched Blake stand and walk away. How am I supposed to sleep? She only wanted one thing right now…
A few minutes later another presence sat down beside her. Neo turned to tell off whichever team mate tried to cheer her up next, but her words stuck in her throat. Black coat, silver eyes, cocky smile… She couldn't believe her eyes.
"Hey, Ice Cream Cup," Reaper greeted, her smirk growing.
Neo threw herself into Reaper, the dark woman barely catching her in her arms.
How did you get out?
"I'm me, of course I got out," Reaper teased.
Neo took Reaper's face and planted the longest, deepest kiss ever. She couldn't believe this. After everything, she was here. Just here… Just now…
And not injured… something's not right…
Neo finally pulled away and noticed she had grabbed Reaper's face… with both hands…
I'm dreaming…
"Unfortunately…" Reaper admitted, sounding sad.
Where are you? Neo desperately asked in her head.
"I'd tell you if I could, but this is all in your head," Reaper answered. "Still, we can enjoy ourselves… Right?"
It's not the same… I'll wake up, and you'll be gone…
"But until then," Dream-Reaper leaned in for another kiss.
Neo accepted the kiss, but found herself unable to enjoy it. She knew this was temporary. She knew this wasn't real. And soon enough…
"Sorry, Neo…"
For what?
"It's time to wake up…"
No!
"Neo!" Blake whisper-shouted, "It's time to wake up!"
The faunus woke the small girl sometime during the late dusk. Blake wasn't sure why she got such a venomous look for this. Then again, Neo had little reason to be happy…
"If we're lucky, we might make it to Beacon before daylight," Qrow told the group. "Let's go."
It was another quiet night as the four snuck through the streets and back alleys of Vale. Things seemed surprisingly calm with only nevermores overhead and the occasional beowolf that Qrow took care of silently. Maybe They're all being attracted to some extreme source of negativity, Neo theorized.
They made good time, which also meant the group was tiring quickly as they neared Beacon. The sun began to rise as they turned the final corner, and Weiss could barely believe her eyes. The airship station for short trips between Vale and Beacon for students visiting town was within sight, and it had an airship! The pilot had just finished loading more survivors when he saw Weiss. "Wait!" he called out to his co-pilot, "There's more coming!"
The group started to make their way across the plaza. The airships engines booted up, having already been in warm up since before Qrow and the girls arrived. The pilot motioned for the group to hurry up, and they picked up their pace. But the combination of the engine noise and the group hurrying across a day-lit plaza lead to unwanted attention. Weiss saw it first, a black mass entering her vision. Seemingly falling from the sky itself after hurling off a nearby rooftop was an Alpha Beowolf.
And it wasn't alone.
BANG
Qrow shot away the Alpha that almost landed on Weiss. As the beast recovered, the rest of its pack circled them. A few creepers and an ursa also joined the fray, coming out of the woodworks and displaying just how overrun Vale truly was. And to top it all off, the giant nevermore from the day before swooped in. The airship retreated, the pilot needing to save the passengers he already had.
Qrow, Blake and Weiss all drew and readied their weapons, huddling around the injured Neo. "Of all the rotten luck…" Weiss complained.
"Tell me about it…" Qrow lamented.
The beasts circled them, looking for weak points, and with a mighty roar the beowolf attacked.
Weiss was quick to impale it upon Myrtenaster and duck to one knee. Blake quickly followed up on the unspoken strategy, hopping onto Weiss's shoulder and using her semblance to launch off, cutting the Alpha's head off in the process. The cat faunus landed several feet away, both swords drawn, ready to battle.
Weiss wrenched Myrtenaster out of the fading corpse and turned the cylinder to Burn Dust. She ran her fingers across the blade, drawing the fire power down the length. With a grunt and a swing, She blasted the fire in an arc that destroyed the creepers. Cycling to Air Dust, the elegant swordsmistress spun and dug her blade into the ground. The shockwave staggered the Grimm around her and gave Weiss time to surround herself with a Time Dilation Glyph. With enhanced speed, the once-heiress cut down the grimm around her in a dance of flashing steel.
Qrow concerned himself with whether he should stick close to the wounded Neo or move away to perhaps increase the girl's luck a little. Unfortunately, the Grimm made his decision for him, lunging after the obvious weak link. Qrow slammed his sword into one beowolf, sending him flying into his friend and knocking them both aside. A third beowolf swung at the huntsman, who easily dodged, severing the beasts leg in the process. With the return swing, Qrow cut the monster cleanly in half.
Meanwhile, other creatures also set their sights on the injured party. Unluckily for them, she wouldn't prove quite the easy target. The Grimm that ultimately lunged at her was confused when the flesh-thing shattered and didn't bleed. Neo had quickly maneuvered onto the beasts back and grabbed a fistful of fur to ensure a clean teleport. Both Neo and the beowolf were soon high in the air where the girl saw her secondary target. Without much forward planning, Neo kicked off her beowolf and launched it into a smaller nevermore, teleporting quickly before gravity took her. The nevermore lost it's balance, and both creatures fell to the earth with a hearty chrunch.
Blake launched her weapon in chain-scythe style, wrapping around and anchoring in a beowolf. A quick tug of the ribbon triggered the firearm, dealing a devastating gash as the weapon returned to the faunus. Weiss wasn't doing so well since her dilation ended, and it didn't help that she tried to use her ice, forgetting she emptied it in the generator explosion. She was soon knocked back and landed next to Blake. "Weiss!" The faunus cried, visually checking over her girlfriend.
Qrow wasn't doing much better. He worked his way through several beowolves and an ursa. But he was getting tired, and tripped over the only uneven street tile in the plaza, falling on his ass right in front of an alpha. He scrambled backwards, backing right up into Blake and Weiss. Neo came to the rescue, landing on top of the beowolf and impaling her left heel through it's skull. The Grimm fell and Neo rolled off it, coming to stand next to her friends.
Upon the sights the four saw now, the battle seemed futile. For every grimm they killed, several more took its place, while the massive nevermore circled. Weiss almost forgot she was within a kingdom's walls. At this rate, former kingdom seemed more and more appropriate. The team leader had no idea how they were supposed to get out of this alive…
And then a strange, unexplainable heat wave crashed into them.
"No…" Qrow spoke in response to the phenomenon, "No, not here… what are you doing?"
The horde around them burst into flames. A series of explosions resembling a carpet bombing dealt a significant blow to the creatures of darkness surrounding them. And above them, a sight even the ever-skeptical Weiss couldn't deny. Floating above them, clearly, was a woman engulfed in wind and fire.
"What is going on!?" Weiss questioned.
"Amber," Qrow answered, "the Fall Maiden."
The giant nevermore screeched at this new threat, taking wing. The woman was unfazed. A mass of fire collected in her hand, which she threw at the demonic avian. The bird staggered, falling onto a nearby rooftop. Two smaller nevermore dived at the floating Maiden. She whipped out a staff topped with a red crystal, and used it to throw two more fireballs. One for each nevermore, who screeched and fell, fading before they hit the ground.
The giant nevermore found it's balance, looking up with a face that was melted and charred. The grimm felt increasingly unsure of victory here, and with one final screech, it flew away. The woman, Amber, descended to the ground in front of Qrow. Weiss immediately noted her face was hideously deformed. A spiderweb of scar tissue covered her face, centered around her left eye.
"What are you doing here, Amber?" Qrow immediately questioned.
"That's a fine way to thank your rescuer," Amber huffed, waving her hand to something in the air behind Qrow and the girls.
With that signal, the airship returned, having escaped the nevermore pursuing it. Or perhaps it, too, was rescued by the Maiden. Either way, the group boarded and left the city behind. Finally, the safety of the school was in sight. Finally, Neo would get the help she needed. Finally, they had made it out of the fallen kingdom of Vale.