Chapter 7: Snake and Shadows.
Echo grabbed the shadows, and yanked at them. He pulled out one of the Bandit elites and tossed him just a little distance away.
The bandit immediately regained his posture.
"You knew I was following you?" he asked.
Echo simply nodded.
"Jet" Glaucous bit his lip. "I figured it was you".
"It's nice to see you again, old friend".
"You're not my friend, Jet" the blue haired hunter glared. "You sold me when I was running away".
"It is your responsibility to take over as leader".
"I'd sooner die".
"So be it, if that is what you wish".
A single shadow slashed his arm, before Ruby got in the way.
She groaned as the shadows slashed at her dress.
In an instant the shadows changed direction.
They swarmed into Echo's hand and he shattered them.
"Who are you?" Jet growled "you shattered my cage, absorbed the master's attack, and you redirect my shadows. Just who exactly are you?"
Echo gestured to Glaucous and Ruby, to go on ahead.
"Are you sure, Echo?" his leader clenched his fists "I have a bone to pick with Jet myself".
"I'm sure" Echo answered, with his usual soft smile. "At the most, delaying your father is the most important job. And should be done by you".
Glaucous relaxed as he listened to Echo's voice "I understand. If we keep going this way we'll find him, right?"
Echo nodded.
Glaucous headed off into the forest. Ruby hesitated for a moment.
"He'll need back up" Echo glanced at her "I'll be fine".
She gulped and headed off after the blue haired hunter.
Shadows darted after them, but Echo slammed his heel down into them. His strike shattered the shadows.
"You dare get in my way?" Jet growled.
"Your opponent is me, Jet" Echo smiled, lowering his foot to the ground.
"So any idea why Echo decided we'd be fine, just the two of us?" Blake inquired, as Silver examined the tree's.
"Not a clue" Silver responded "but I guess he has his reasons".
"I recall you mentioning that you were more of a Scientist than a Hunter?"
"That's true, I guess you could say I have an Electrical personality. One that attunes me to machines, more than combat".
"Interesting" Blake folded her arms.
"Feel free to take off your bow any time." Silver smiled, softly "I don't hold anything against the Faunus, even one that was part of the White Fang".
Blake froze.
"How did you-"
Silver interrupted her "my Aura is Silver. By focusing it, I can see the memories of a machine, weapons included. Your Gambol Shroud has many memories attached too it".
Blake went quiet.
"I have a friend who is a Faunus. Marine Verity, she's a Fox." Silver continued "at a point in her life, she lashed out at humans. That is, until a kind man took her in and raised her, trained her. That man was the same person who raised me, raised Echo, and Jade. I do admit, she seemed to like Echo quite a lot. Maybe it's cause he has such a kind personality, just like his mother. Or maybe it's because he resembles his father".
"So you were raised along side Echo and Jade?" Blake changed the subject "what was Laurel Slate like in person?"
"Cocky" Silver chuckled "just like his Daughter. Echo sort of resembles his father, but Jade inherited his cocky and reckless personality".
"What about their mother?"
"Well except for the provocative way she tends to dress. Jade physically resembles her mother. Echo on the other hand has her personality, and her anger".
"In all honesty, aren't we supposed to be tracking a Bandit, rather than making idle chat?"
Silver shrugged "I find it mood lightening".
A spear flew from the bushes, but Silver simply grabbed it out of the air. As his hand made contact with the hand crafted wooden spear, it turned to ash.
"What was that?" Blake stumbled in shock slightly.
"My Gauntlets allow me to focus my aura into electricity." Silver responded "also, you can come out now. No use hiding".
The figure came out of the thick forestry. His hands were scaled, and his eyes were similar to that of a snake's. Trailing behind him, was a reptilian tail.
"Fang Aurum." The reptilian faunus stated. On his wrists, he wore bands which attached curved blades too the underside of his arm.
"Silver Argent" Silver politely responded.
The bandit suddenly darted forward. Silver blocked his slash, with his gauntlet.
He grunted slightly as he held back the bandit's attack. Static surged through the gauntlets and he pulled back his other hand and punched the bandit in the gut.
Fang stumbled back slightly.
Silver's expression became more serious. He suddenly dashed forward and struck the bandit again. Fang was barely just able to block.
He moved out of the way as Blake sprinted forward and surprised the bandit. Silver formed a bolt of lightning, and threw it when he had an opening. Blake rolled out the way and the bolt hit Fang directly.
Smoke floated off the reptilian bandit from where the bolt had hit. He growled and breathed heavily.
"You're not going to win this." Silver glared at him "you might as well surrender".
"In your dreams." Fang snapped "three of us may have fallen already, but I can at least buy some time for the leader".
"You're outmatched."
"You're underestimating me."
"Well then. Give me a challenge" Silver tilted his head.
Fangs blades glowed a poisonous green. He slashed forward at Silver.
The scientist gasped and quickly blocked. He held his defence as the bandit rapidly slashed.
Blake fired a shot, and Fang jumped back.
"Silver are you ok?" she asked.
"I'm fine. Just don't let those blade touch you." He answered "they're poisonous. This will be more difficult than I thought".
Sharp shadows lashed out at the clam teen, but he easily avoided each one.
"How do you remain so calm, even in the face of danger?" Jet glared at him.
Echo shrugged.
"Refusing to even talk to your opponent?"
"No point" Echo answered, he darted forward and slammed his knee into Jet's gut. He grabbed him by his clothes and tossed him into a tree.
Jet became shadows as he hit the tree. His shadow zig zagged towards Echo.
The grey eyed teen stepped aside and yanked him out of the darkness.
Jet gasped and dispersed into shadows, reforming a little distance away.
"Who even are you?" he gritted his teeth "not even Oxford can just yank me out of my shadow".
Echo simply smiled back at his question.
Jet bit his lip, trying not to loose his posture.
He panted, his breath filled with the rage he was trying to contain.
Shadows darted up from the floor and zig zagged towards Echo. The grey eyed teen simple swung his foot into the darkness, shattering the shadows. Static fizzled and bolts of dark electricity struck around him, but Echo simple stood still without even flinching.
"How?!"Jet gritted his teeth "how can you be so calm? Your life is clearly in danger! How can you stay so calm".
Darkness vibrated around them.
"Because the calmer I am, the angrier you get" Echo smiled softly.
"You're- You're taunting me?!"
Echo nodded.
Jet darted forward, blades of shadows swirling around him. He swung a fist at Echo, but the calm teen simply turned and dodged the strike. He retaliated with a punch of his own, but shattered one of the shadowy blades surrounding the bandit.
He brought his knee up again, and slammed it into Jet.
The bandit dispersed into shadows as Echo's knee hit him. Shadows swirled around and lashed out, but Echo simply stood still and let all the shadows miss him completely.
A single shadow tore through his chest and Jet reformed, smirking victoriously. His expression was short lived as he saw his victim still smiling, even with a shadowy blade through his chest.
"How- How are you still alive?" Jet trembled.
Echo closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. The shadows filling the air swirled around as he breathed them in.
"He's- He's breathing in my shadows?!"
His eyes opened, his pupils had turned red. His soft smile became a grin, showing off the sharp fangs that he'd kept hidden. Echo laughed as the shadow through his chest dissipated and the wound healed.
"What- What are you?" Jet gulped.
"I am Echo" he responded "and your shadows are mine to consume and control".
Shadows swirled and lashed out. Jet countered with shadows of his own, but Echo's darkness was to overpowering.
"How are you doing this?"
"Simple. I copied your aura. Your shadows can defend you, but they can't harm me" Echo grinned.
Jet grunted as his shadows shattered, he barely managed to avoid the opposing darkness. Against power like this, it's clear he stood no chance.
He held his arm, where he'd been struck by the darkness. Echo's shadow's dissipated.
"You've seen a glimpse of part of my complete personality" his expression returned to his soft smile.
Jet was still trembling "You may beat me, but you won't defeat our boss".
"Just watch me" Echo suddenly vanished, reappearing in front of Jet.
The last thing Jet saw was darkness as his vision faded.
Silver rolled out of the way, as Fangs blades slammed down.
"This is definitely harder than I thought" Silver bit his lip.
"Trying to attack while avoiding those blades, is troublesome" Blake tightened her grip on her sword.
Fang sprinted forward, and slashed down. The duo jumped aside.
Blake darted back towards the reptile and slashed. Fang blocked with one of his blades, and swung with the other. While his guard was down, before he could slash at Blake, he was hit with a bolt of electricity from Silver.
Blake kicked Fang in the chest as he turned to try and dart at Silver. In response he turned back and quickly slashed forward. His blade just went through her left over image as she jumped back.
"Here kitty, kitty" Fang growled.
"Forgetting someone again?" Silver's fist slammed into the reptile's back. Static surged through his body.
One of Fangs blades slashed through the scientists clothes and cut against his chest.
Fang knocked Silver back using his tail.
Silver groaned and held his chest.
"Are you ok?" Blake asked.
"I'll be fine" Silver panted "but we need some sort of strategy to take this lizard out".
"Any idea's?"
"I think I might have one" he answered "If I go in head on and distract him, you can come in from behind. I'll momentarily charge your weapon with static and you can strike that lizard down".
"Sounds fine enough".
"Well lets go then".
The duo went back into the fight. Silver slammed his fist into Fang's chest, catching him off guard.
"How are you still so strong?" Fang grunted "the poison on my blades should be effecting your immune system by now".
Silver panted, but his skin let off a light glow as he slammed his fist into Fang again. Static lashed out from his strikes.
Fang began to block with his blades as Silver began to speed up in he strikes.
"Don't have much time left" the scientist groaned as he took heavy breaths.
"I see" Fang smirked "my poison is effecting you after all".
"Blake!" Silver yelled "get ready!"
Fang jumped back, expecting a double attack. Instead a static energy shrouded Silver.
"What?" the reptile gasped "what are you doing?"
"Overcharge" Silver copied the faunus' previous smirk, slamming his fists together in a similar fashion to Yang.
In an instant he was gone and Blake came into Fang's view. Silver had converted his body into static and charged up the Cleaver form of Blake's weapon.
Fang attempted to block with his blades, but as Blake swung her blade static was let loose from it. The metal that made up Fang's weapons heated up as the static overcharged them with electricity. Static held the reptile in place as the cleaver smashed through his blades and hit him square in the chest.
Time froze for an instant, but that instant quickly ended. One moment Fang was being hit by the blade, Blake didn't even see him hit the tree.
It cracked and toppled. The bandit had hit it with such speed and force that the tree had been uprooted.
Blake looked at her blade, stunned "How did-?"
"Neat huh?" a voice came from her weapon.
"What?" she gasped. When she looked at her blade, it seemed like she could make out Silver's face in it.
He stuck his tongue out at her and winked. Static shrouded the cleaver and flowed out of it, reforming into the scientist she'd been partnered with.
"The true form of my Electrical Pulse Semblance." he answered before she could ask "it allows me to act as a living dust charge with physical weapons".
"I've never heard of such a thing" Blake put her weapon away and folded her arms.
"Course not. It's super rare." Silver responded "all five of us have unique Semblances".
"Five?" Blake tilted her head.
"Echo, Jade, Me, Marine, and Nyanza".
"Who?"
"Another guy raised alongside me, Echo, and the others." Silver answered "He's only a year or two younger than Jade. I guess if you consider Jade the leader, and Echo not part of it, then we become Team JSMN".
Blake shrugged.
Silver tossed an object onto the ground. It created a domed barrier over the unconscious Bandit.
"What now?"
"Now, we wait".
He forcibly yanked the red gem from it's pedestal.
"Though my Elites may have failed me, they bought me enough time to get this." Oxford laughed "With this I can weave powerful fire storms and conquer the world".
A bullet zipped past the crystal.
"Put the crystal down".
"Glaucous" Oxford turned to look at his son "I see you've brought a friend?"
"I said, put the crystal down".
"Or maybe you plan to enslave her? Use her as a tool when you take over the family business?"
Ruby bit her lip and glared at Oxford.
"I won't ask again" Glaucous aimed his guns at his father.
"So you really do plan on becoming a Hunter" Oxford's expression changed to a grimace "you're just like your mother; stupid, sick and weak. Hunter's are a disease on this world".
Glaucous fired a shot.
"Don't talk about my mother like that" It was surprising how well he was keeping his cool.
"Oh my, look at you" Oxford taunted "I bet you feel like a real man shooting at your father like that".
"You're not my father" Glaucous responded "as far as I'm concerned, I never had a father".
"Glaucous" Ruby glanced over at him.
"I don't care about blood relation at this point Ruby." he responded "even if we can't take him down, the least we can do is weaken him somewhat. But let's try our best anyway".
The scythe wielder nodded.
"So it's a fight you want" Oxford laughed, as flames shrouded him "so be it".
The two team leaders darted in, and the fight began.
To Be Continued...