Sun beams slid through the gaps in the tree branches, shedding patches of light onto the forest floor below. A soft breeze floated through the area, carrying the scent of blooming flowers and growing grass. The large canopy caused most of the forest path to be covered in shade, something Pyrrha was quite grateful for. The heat would only exhaust them further. Their mission had gone without too many problems. There had been reports of grimm terrorizing livestock, and pillaging fields of crops.
It had been up to them to clear out the grimm in the area, which they had of course done without a problem. They were more than capable. Jaune was still learning how to become an adept fighter, but he was a skilled leader and tactician, capable of leading them in battle. More often than not, his keen eye caught the enemy's weaknesses before anyone else. He had a natural talent for it. In battle, victory wasn't dependent on physical power alone. Someone with the right wit and reflexes could easily overcome someone who exclusively relied on their brawn. He had come a long way since starting at Beacon, that was for certain.
"Good job, team. I gotta say, we really outdid ourselves out there," Jaune declared as they walked down the forest path, a smile on his features. "There were tons of grimm, and we got through them without really any trouble at all." Not only was he a good tactician, but he also had grown as a leader. Pyrrha had ensured that while he learned, they supported him. A leader couldn't exist without teammates to lead. Of course, it helped that none of them were particularly impatient. Despite how energetic and antsy Nora could get, she wasn't a demanding person. Unless it came to Ren's cooking.
"I find it hard to believe that the local warriors were so troubled by the ones we fought," Ren commented, moving his gaze away from Nora, who was eagerly typing away on her scroll. "They were relatively weak, at best. Though, I suppose we shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth."
"Exactly," Pyrrha said with a grin. "It's much too easy to worry. I'd suggest we head back to the city and relax for a few days. We did what we could. It'll be up to the detectives and warriors to investigate from here," It was then that the redhead realized just how silent Nora had been during their trip. Their most energetic teammate was usually so bubbly and vocal, that it was hard to not miss her incessant chattering. Pyrrha turned her attention to Nora teammate, watching her eagerly type away at her scroll. "Are you alright, Nora?"
"She's been caught up in one of those mobile games," Ren explained, wrinkling his nose in distaste. "I still don't see the appeal of them."
"Well, excuse me if I want to have a little fun," Nora's cheeks puffed up into a pout. The bubbly huntress looked up from her screen, exiting out of the app with a huff. "We hardly even have time to be at home these days, so phone games are much easier to play! Trust me, if I could bring an entire console with us, I would!"
"I can't argue with that. Though, we should have a few days off once we get back home," Jaune reasoned. In all honesty, Pyrrha was relieved that they would be back in the city for awhile. She had always wanted to defend the people and help save lives. At the same time, she knew she wasn't invincible. All humans needed rest and relaxation. "We should go see a movie or something when we get back."
"It's certainly been too long since we've enjoyed any leisure activities." Ren quickly vocalized his agreement.
"Absolutely." Pyrrha's gaze softened at the thought of acting like normal citizens again. She had always been destined for the life of a huntress, but there were points where she wished for a stabler lifestyle. She couldn't have both, though. Knowing that she was keeping the people safe was more than enough for her, even when her bones and muscles grew weary from hours spent on the battlefield.
"We should go see that new sci-fi movie!" Nora chirped merrily, a new bounce to her step. "I heard that the special effects are out of this world! Ruby was telling me that she's never seen anything like it! We can get tons of popcorn, too. With lots of butter!"
"Nora, I heard that movie was terrible," Ren raised his eyebrows, a frown quickly forming on his features. "Visuals aren't the only aspect that matters," Another pout quickly formed on Nora's face, clearly displeased at the criticism. "And don't get me started on how bad movie popcorn is for you."
"Well, some movies are so good that they're bad, y'know?" Jaune voiced his opinion with a contemplative look. "Like, funny bad. I think we should give it a try."
"Yeah, mom." Nora teased, playfully nudging Ren with her shoulder. Despite her sarcastic tone, she still looked cheerful as ever. Over the time they had spent together, Pyrrha had come to know that Nora didn't have a mean bone in her entire body. The only time she would lash out was when a friend was threatened. It was truly a blessing to have the hammer-wielding girl on their team. She seemed to gel well with just about everyone, despite her constant flow of energy.
Perhaps the conversation would have carried on, if not for a jarring, unpleasant noise from a nearby clearing. A shrill, child's cry echoed through the trees. Immediately, the redhead raced forward, towards the source of the scream. Perhaps a farmer's child had wandered too far out into the forest. It wasn't uncommon for foolhardy children to bite off more than they could chew. Pyrrha had once been in their shoes, so eager to get out into the world and explore.
The stray twigs and leaves scratched at her arms and legs as she ran, but she paid it no mind. The footsteps of her teammates behind her gave her confidence and the courage to move forward. The tall trees broke out into a wide, open clearing. Unevenly tall patches off grass were scattered throughout the area. But what drew her attention was the small, crouching child in the center.
It was an instinct to hurry forward, crouching in front of the girl.
"Hi, there." The redhead murmured soothingly, relief washing over her when the child lifted her face. Thankfully, she didn't seem to injured. The little girl had red pigtails and wore a yellow sundress. Her wide, blue eyes were swollen with tears. "You're alright. You're safe now." Though devastated and fearful, the small child seemed to be alright. At the sight of Pyrrha's face, she seemed to calm.
The grass crunched behind her as the rest of her team arrived. However, upon seeing three more tall figures, the girl seemed to become even more distressed. Too quickly, the child began to wheeze and seize, her eyes and pupils blowing up wide.
"We need to get her help!" Pyrrha reached down, aiming to lift the child up. Surely there would be a hospital or clinic at the upcoming village! Before Pyrrha's touch could even reach the kid, the child's eyes turned an inky black. It was Jaune who thought faster, reaching up to grab Pyrrha shoulder. The blond tugged her backwards, only to be met with a claw to the shoulder.
A horrible transformation was occurring before the team's very eyes. Black goop leaked from the girl's eye sockets, staining her face with grotesque slime. Her skin morphing into a sickly grey, darkening to a pitch black. The child's cries didn't stop, though. Instead, they raised to horrible shrieks as she grew extra limbs, her face contorting into that of a Beowulf's. There was very little time to react to the horrible sight, though. Snarls echoed through the forest, and thundering paw steps could be heard.
Pushing past the shock, the four withdrew their weapons as a wave of grimm arrived.
Pyrrha was the first to lunge forward, sending her shield into the face of the closest beowulf. The projectile made contact and bounced off of the grimm's face, causing it to give a pained shriek. From there, it hit another grimm in the flank, knocking it to the ground. The redhead slammed her javelin into the first grimm's skull, before decapitating the second with a lean strike.
"Watch out!" Pyrrha turned as Jaune leaped in front of her, holding his shield up to block an oncoming ursa. He managed to divert the massive paw strike, reaching his sword up to cut the beast's head off. Months ago, he would have simply tried to overtake the beast. Redirecting movement to knock a bigger opponent off their balance was a much wiser decision.
Pyrrha summoned her shield once more, following Jaune as he lead an attack on one of the larger beowulfs in the group.
A few yards away, Nora sent several grenade blasts towards the other side of the horde, downing two of three of the weaker creatures. A large beowulf reared up behind her, only to be shot down immediately. It floundered helplessly under the rain of bullets, before Nora ended its misery with a strong strike to the head. Ren covered the huntress from above, eliminating any grimm that dared get too close to her. While the other three team members were best suited to close-combat, Ren was better for attacking from the shadows.
Thankfully, the enemies' numbers already seemed to be thinning. Pyrrha didn't give herself too much time to be grateful. Instead, she rammed her shield into an ursa's face, tilting the massive beast upwards and allowing Jaune to stab his sword into it. The beast roared in pain, shoving Pyrrha off of it. The force behind the motion nearly caused her to stagger. A nearby beowulf, seeing her vulnerability, lunged forward, only to receive a swift hammer to the face and several well-timed shots from Ren.
With the death of the final ursa, the clearing was once again secured. The four fighters caught their breath, steadying themselves. Pyrrha moved her gaze across the other three, relief washing over her when she realized that none of them had been severely wounded. It was Jaune who spoke first, his voice breathless and exhausted.
"Let's... get out of here." They could discuss what they had seen later. Now that the adrenaline of the fight had faded, it was clear that they would need to look into what they had discovered. A human transforming into a grimm was absolutely unheard of. Not only was it unnatural, but it was beyond disturbing. In her short life, she had killed countless grimm and seen her fair share of atrocities. But she had never seen anything so terrible happen to a child. Even if the girl had been a mere illusion meant to lure them in... the screams had been too real to forget.
With that, Team JNPR hurried out of the clearing, and out of the forest. Pyrrha was more than happy to leave. The sweet aroma of flowers had been tainted by the reek of carnage.