Raishun let out a small cry of discomfort as the net wrapped around him, pinning him to the wall several feet off of the ground. The net bounced up and down in the air for a second before coming to a stop, spinning around in a small circle. "That could have ended badly…" He murmured in a shaky voice.
"Are you stupid!" Serah yelled as she floated down next to him, her usually soft features contorted into a frightening glare. The light emanating from her body turned into a deep red, instead of the usual cool purple. "Do you have any idea how lucky you are! If it wasn't for this net you would've died!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" He replied, quickly looking away and seeing his team running towards him. "Looks like the others are coming… Oh, shoot the others are coming!" His voice took on a panicked tone, and he returned his gaze to Serah. "How am I gonna explain you to them!?"
"You don't have to, they can only see me if you want them to." She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. "And stop yelling, you can communicate with me telepathically like I'm doing right now." She quickly slugged him in the shoulder and glared at him intensely. "This discussion isn't over, we'll continue this when you get back from your trip okay!"
"I'll be looking forward to it." He scoffed sarcastically, causing the spirit to puff out her cheeks in anger. Without a word, she moved forward and touched his chest, disappearing in a small ball of light.
Alisa was the first to reach him, jumping up she deftly caught the bottom of the net in her hand and pulled it down the ground where she pinned it with her foot. "You okay?" She asked him with a concerned look on her face, producing a knife from the bag on her thigh. "No broken bones or anything?"
He nodded as she cut him loose. "I'm a bit bruised, but I'll survive thanks to you and the others." He slowly got to his feet and smiled brightly at her. "Nice shot, by the way, I'll pay you back when we're done with the trip."
"As great as that sounds, if you want to thank anyone then it should be Laura." She stepped to the side and pointed behind her, grinning brightly at his praise. "She was the one who noticed you falling, I just took the shot."
Raishun patted his teammate on the shoulder and walked forward to meet Laura. He smiled and opened his mouth to speak, but the smile faded when she stopped a few meters away from him. Her hands were clenched into fists at her side, and she faced the concrete ground with her long white hair obscuring her face.
"Uhh, Laura. Is something wrong?" He asked in a worried tone, slowly walking closer. For a moment he thought he saw a tear fall down her cheek, causing him to stop in his tracks. "Laura are you-"
"Shut up, just shut up!" She yelled, closing the distance between them in an instant and punching him in the chest repeatedly. "You're an idiot you know! What made you think it was a good idea to jump from our room, with the amount of aura you have the fall would kill you!" Her fist crashed into his solar plexus, and he doubled over in pain. "Think before you act next time."
Pebbles around them began to shakily float into the air as she spoke, but they quickly fell back to the ground when Gil walked up to her and gently grasped her wrist, shaking his head. Scoffing, she turned and stormed off towards the bullhead with Alisa following not far behind her.
"L-Laura wait!" He choked out, only to be ignored as the two girls walked into the airship. Taking a minute to regain his breath, he tried to stand but instead fell onto one knee. "Was it something I said?"
"I don't think it was something you said." Gil walked up to him, offering a hand up with a small smile on his face. "She laid into you quite a bit back there."
"Thanks," Raishun said gratefully as Gil helped him to his feet. "Yeah, but I don't get why she got so worked up. I've got you guys watching my back after all."
"Definitely, but don't do any more stupid shit like that stunt back there," Gil said, slugging him in the shoulder. "Now let's get moving before she gets mad at you for being late."
"Good point, I think I've had enough near-death experiences for one day." He quipped and followed his teammate to the interior of the bullhead.
The inside of the bullhead was dark, and it took his eyes a minute to adjust. It resembled a grey metal box, a door on the far wall that presumably led to the cockpit. A row of four stiff looking seats lined both sides of the interior, with Laura and Alisa sitting on the right. The left was occupied by a group of four girls, who were led by a familiar face.
"Oh hey, it's you!" Ruby said happily from her seat. She was dressed in a black top and skirt, both of which had a red lining. The red cape she had worn on her school uniform was present once again, wrapped warmly around her neck. "It's so good to see you!"
"Long time no see!" He said jovially, taking a seat beside Gil who had already strapped himself in. "I hope you got your leader problem sorted."
"Yup, we got everything sorted out, and now we're besties!" She said excitedly in a high pitched voice, wrapping her arms around the white haired girl on her left.
"Hey, get off me this instant Ruby!" She protested, trying to free herself from the energetic girl's grasp.
"But Weiss-!" Ruby complained, still holding onto her. "This morning when I asked if we were besties you said yes!"
"That's because I was half asleep you dolt!" Weiss snapped, succeeding in prying her off after a monumental effort. "Now, stop behaving like a child in front of the new team! You're going to embarrass us!"
"Oh, sorry!" She smoothed out her skirt and cleared her throat, in an attempt to act professionally. "Did you get your problems sorted out?" She asked him, as the yellow-haired girl on her right patted her on the head.
He thought about the events that had transpired over the past couple of weeks and hunched over in his seat. "Y-... Yeah, everything's just great." He lied, rising to his feet impatiently. "When's this thing going to start moving anyways-"
Suddenly, the door to the bullhead closed behind Raishun and it quickly began to ascend. He fell to the ground and grunted in pain. "I just had to open my big mouth didn't I." He muttered under his breath, his cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment as he scrambled back into his chair.
As the large group of bullheads flew over the land of Remnant on their journey to deliver the students to the Forever Fall, teams RWBY and RGLA decided to break the awkward tension and silence between them.
Weiss was the first of the eight to act, letting a small sigh and clearing her throat. "Well, introductions seem to be in order." She said proudly, placing a hand on her chest in a dignified manner. "I'm Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Corporation." She stated matter of factly. "It is an honor to make your acquaintance." She looked up at Laura expectantly, as if to signal that she was to go next.
Laura got her drift and sat up straight in an attempt to look taller. "I am Laura Izuna, h-..." She paused for a moment and quickly regained her composure. "Leader of team RGLA. I hope we can work together well."
Beside her, Gil seemed to relax a little. "Name's Gilgamesh Izuna, but you can all call me Gil. I hope you treat my younger cousin and I well." He said patting Laura on the head, though she quickly pushed him away.
"Hold up, your named Gilgamesh?" Raishun butt in, staring at the older hunter in surprise.
"Yeah my name's Gilgamesh, but if you call me that I'll put you in the infirmary longer than Eric did." He threatened in a calm voice, adjusting his hat.
"I'll keep that in mind." he looked at the team in front of him. "My names Raishun, I'm the-"
"He's the idiot of the team, as well as the weakest." Laura cut in, "If you could all look after him in the field that would be much appreciated."
"Ouch, I have feelings too you know." He said dejectedly, "As I was saying, I'm the Ranger of the group." He drew his Imperial Arm and set it on his lap. "This is Caligula."
As soon as it was drawn, Ruby's eyes lit up. She began to eye the blade with fascination. "Woah! It's an Imperial Arm!" She gripped the yellow girl's arm and shook it in excitement "I've never seen one up close, even Uncle Qrow doesn't have one!"
Raishun laughed, "You wanna hold it?" He asked her, quickly reaching out to Serah inside his mind. "Serah I swear to God if you kill her I'm divorcing you."
"I have standards you know, I only kill bad people." Serah pouted, a sudden chill running down his spine. " And for the record, I'd leave you first."
"Are you sure?" Ruby asked, shifting in her seat excitedly.
He nodded, and her eyes shone in excitement as she tentatively reached a hand out grasping the hilt. Once it was in her hands, she began fawning over the weapon. "It's so much lighter than I thought it'd be!" Her eyes sparkled, and a wide smile was plastered on her face as she began to praise every single aspect of the weapon in her hands.
He couldn't help but laugh, she reminded him of a kid in the toy aisle of a store. "Yeah that surprised me too, I thought it would be heavier when I first saw it."
"Are you calling me fat?" Serah growled in an offended tone.
"No, I was saying how light the blade is. And wait aren't you a spirit, why do you care how heavy the weapon is?" He asked curiously.
"My spirit is tied to the weapon, so it serves as sort of a second body for us while we wait to resonate with a Ranger. So saying it's heavy is like saying I'm heavy." She huffed, disappearing into the sea of his soul, and leaving him with a small headache.
Ruby decided to give the broadsword a practice swing, and almost lopping off Raishun's head as it raced past his head and clanged against the metal floor. "Whoops, sorry!" She laughed nervously, returning the weapon to its Ranger. "Imperial Arms are so cool, Yang can I get one?" She cheered, looking at the yellow-haired girl.
Yang wrapped an arm around her sister's shoulder to keep her from bouncing off the walls. "Aw, don't worry sis. You'll find one eventually." She looked at the team across from her and set her gaze on Gil. "Hey there pretty boy, you want to go get a drink sometime." She winked at him "I know a good club we could hit."
Gil's cheeks turned a faint shade of red, and he looked away to stare at the wall behind her intently. "I'll pass this time." He said bluntly, earning himself a jab in the ribs from Laura.
"Yang behave yourself!" Ruby complained, "Don't scare them off after we just met them."
Yang opened her mouth to speak, but the speaker above them crackled to life. "We'll be arriving at our destination shortly, please stay in your seats until we're ready to drop." The pilot ordered, his voice slightly distorted by static.
"Good luck out there kids!" The pilot said over the intercom, as the two teams jumped onto the ground below, rolling as they landed to disperse the impact. Other students landed not far from them and began to crowd around in a circle so they could hear what their task would be. Above them, their transport flew away but would return once it was time to leave.
"Today, you will all be collecting sap from the trees in this forest. Be aware that while this location is considered safe, there have recently been reports of Grimm in the area." She explained, causing the class to shift nervously. "Should you encounter said Grimm, it's recommended you eliminate it, lest someone less fortunate run into it later on." She tapped her wand against her clipboard. "That will be all, please return here once you have finished so we can return home."
The students began to spread out, using their weapons to dig holes into the trees and holding jars underneath to collect the sap.
"Man this blows," Gil muttered under his breath, using his hand axe to tear a large gash into a tree. He removed his axe and retrieved a jar from his bag, setting it underneath the cut to catch the falling sap. It didn't more than a few minutes of him waiting around impatiently for it to fill to the brim.
"Hey," A black haired girl appeared behind him. She had on a black and white outfit, with her top leaving her stomach exposed. Her yellow eyes studied him closely as if she was trying to figure something out.
"Ah!" Gil jumped, dropping the jar which shattered on the ground. "Watch it! Don't sneak up on people like that alright!" He said gruffly, sheathing his hand axe as he turned to face her. "Who are you anyway?"
"I'm Blake, I was on the bullhead with all of you but didn't get a chance to introduce myself." She explained, looking him dead in the eye. "And you don't like Raishun do you?" She noted bluntly. "You act all friendly around him, yet when you two were talking in the bullhead you looked as if talking to him physically hurt you."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Gil snapped, walking over to another tree and repeating the process he had done with the first tree. "Last time I checked Raishun and I were close."
"I'm good at spotting liars you know, and right now you're the biggest lier in sight." She stated, examining his expression closely. "I wonder if it's because of his Imperial Arm?"
Gil flinched, and he shot her a dark look. His hand reached for the sword at his side, but he quickly took a deep breath and moved the hand into his pocket instead. "Why would I hate him for having an Imperial Arm? If anything it makes him useful on the battlefield."
"You're a pretty good liar you know that." She complimented, "But I think it's pretty one-sided to hate Rangers because of one bad event." She turned and walked away. "Not that you're any better than them of course." She said in a barely audible whisper once she was out of earshot.
While the others were fraternizing with each other and collecting their sap with ease, Raishun wandered deeper into the forest where he could be alone. He tried to slice open the trees, but each time his blade would get stuck partway without reaching the precious sap.
"Dammit!" He hissed, feeling anger rising inside of him. "Serah can't you just possess me and get this over with?"
"Sorry, no can do." Serah said, "The anger you're feeling isn't even enough for me to possess you for even a minute."
Frowning, he tried to feel different emotions, sadness, anger, frustration… but none of them seemed to do the trick. "Why the hell won't it work?!" he growled, gritting his teeth from the effort.
"I just told you why! I need fuel to transform and right now the emotions you're producing aren't enough." Serah explained, a hint of annoyance seeping into her voice.
"Well, what's it gonna take!?" He yelled, stabbing his sword hilt-deep into the tree in a fit of rage. "Because I'm starting to feel pretty frustrated right now!" He tried to pull it out but it was stuck fast, causing the young ranger to groan in frustration. "Great, now Caligula's stuck, this day keeps getting better and better doesn't it."
"Uh… Who ya talking to?" Yang asked him as she appeared from the forest with a worried look on her face and her hands resting on her hips,"You haven't lost it have ya?"
Surprised, he turned to face her. "O-oh, hey Yang! I'm fine, I just… uh… talking to myself is all!" He laughed nervously. "I was trying to get some sap from the trees, It's a lot harder than it looks!"
"Right… so if it's so hard, why is your sword stuck all the way through that tree?" She raised an eyebrow and walked over beside him.
"I had to slam my whole body against it just to get it through." He lied, rubbing his right shoulder and putting on a wounded expression. "I mainly used my shoulder so it hurts a whole bunch right now."
"Here I'll help you then." with a small smile on her face, she grasped the hilt of the blade and pulled it from the tree effortlessly. "Here." She held the blade out to its owner.
He took the blade from her, and she placed her hands over his. Together, they pushed the blade into a nearby tree, creating a gush of sap that he quickly collected.
"Thanks a ton!" He said cheerfully withdrawing the blade and sheathing it. Rising to his feet, he placed the jar he filled up in his bag. "You made it look so easy!"
"That's because it was, these trees are pretty flimsy, so I can even punch through them if I wanted." She grinned, playfully nudging his arm. "Ohhh, I see what you did there you sly dog. You were just pretending to be weak so I would hold your hand weren't you."
"W-what!? No!" He recoiled, his face flushed a light shade of red. "I-i mean I'm not weak but I would never-" He paused and let out a sigh, regaining his composure. "You're teasing me aren't you."
"Right on the money!" She smirked and opened her mouth to tease him some more, but quickly stopped. She began to cautiously look around with a serious look on her face, as the gauntlets on her wrists lowered over her fists.
A worried look quickly dawned on Raishun's face, and he began to worry that maybe he had crossed a line. "Is something wrong?"
"Quiet," Yang said urgently, covering his mouth with her gloved hand and forcing them both onto one knee. The two sat in silence for what seemed like an eternity, when suddenly a bush near their left began to shake. She quickly unhandled him, and rose to her feet just in time to uppercut a Beowulf that had leapt at them. A loud metallic clang echoed throughout the forest as the Grimm fell to the ground with a large hole in its head.
Raishun darted backward and drew Caligula to defend himself. Suddenly, the gem in its blade began to glow, and Serah began to float behind him much to his surprise. "What the hell are you doing here, I'm kind of in the middle of a fight." He demanded, his eyes darting around the surrounding foliage as Yang gave him a concerned look due to his outburst.
"I'm obviously here to help you smartass, and you don't need to yell because we can speak telepathically remember." She scolded, quickly moving to his side, "But back to the fight, we've got several Grimm moving around out there, so stick close to Yang so you don't get yourself killed!"
"Understood!" Following her orders, he moved closer to Yang so the two were back to back. "What's our plan?" He asked nervously, as several Beowulf began to emerge through the bushes, their fangs glistening in the midday sun.
"We're gonna make a break for the others," She ordered in an easygoing tone, pulling back the arm she'd hit the Beowulf with to load another shell into the chamber. "I'll take the lead and wipe them out, you just pick off any that get past me 'kay?"
"Got it!" He responded, preparing to run.
"On three," Yang said excitedly. "One… Two… Three!"
The two of them broke into a dash. Yang completely decimated any Grimm that dared get in her way, her punches and kicks sent Grimm flying in every direction. This left him with nothing to fight as he followed close behind her. It didn't take long for the two of them to regroup with their respective teams, who were collecting sap peacefully.
"Laura! We've got trouble!" Raishun yelled, startling her and making her drop a jar full of sap which shattered on the ground.
"What are you talking about!" She demanded angrily, though it quickly faded as she saw the small army of Grimm nipping at their heels. "We've got Grimm incoming!" She yelled, drawing the rest of their group together.
The two teams formed a circle, as the number of Grimm surrounding them grew larger and larger. Alisa took the opportunity to dash into the center of the circle and kneel on the ground. Drawing her rifle, she deftly removed the scope and loaded a bullet. She took aim and fired, sending a bullet through the head of a Beowulf that wandered to close to the group. "What's the plan Laura?" She asked calmly, loading another bullet into the chamber of her gun.
"We'll all work together to route the enemy, the second we see an opening we take it and make our escape." She said and slammed the hilts of her dual blades together, causing them to extended and form a long twinblade. "Other than that, just protect Raishun. Sound good Ruby?"
"Yeah… let's do that thing, uh… What she said!" Ruby cheered, moving back into the center with Alisa and switching her large red scythe into a sniper rifle.
The two teams ran forward to meet the Grimm that surrounded them head-on. Except for Raishun, who was stopped when Laura held out an arm to stop him. "The best thing you can do right now is stay out of the fighting." She stated, looking him dead in the eye. "Just hold back with Alisa and Ruby, they'll keep you safe!"
"What! But I can fight! You saw me at the entrance exams, I killed that weird Grimm!" He protested, forcing her arm down and running towards the others. He raised his sword above his head and brought it down on one of the Beowulf with a loud war cry. But the blade just bounced off its armored head and slipped from his hands out of reach. It growled and moved to attack him, but he was saved when Laura dashed forward and impaled it through the chest on one of the ends of her twin blades.
"Look, I know you've been training hard." She kicked his blade over to him and removed her twin blade from the Grimm's chest. "But we've been training for this our entire lives, and we just have more experience than you." She gestured to their comrades in front of them. "Take one look at them fighting and you'll see what I mean."
He looked reluctantly and saw the two teams making quick work of the Grimm in their path. Blake vaulted off Gil's back, sending herself flying into the air where she shot forward and sliced through at least a dozen Grimm in a spinning motion. Weiss kept encasing her enemies in ice, leaving them vulnerable to Yang who would shatter them with her punches. The constant crack of rifles filled the air thanks to Ruby and Alisa, who provided the two pairs of fighters with supporting fire, picking off any Grimm that tried to sneak up on them.
"Duck!" Ruby said to Alisa, who hit the ground just in time to avoid a Grimm pouncing on her. The unfortunate beast met its end when Ruby switched her gun back into a scythe, cleaving the Grimm in two.
"They clearly have training that you don't, so as your leader I'm ordering you to stay out of the fight… please." She asked, giving him a hopeful look.
"...Alright." He relented, a wide grin spreading across his face. "Just make sure to kill a couple of them for me alright!" He cheered, giving her a thumbs up.
"Thank you Raishun." She smiled softly and darted off to join the others in their fight.
The moment she left the smile melted from his face, and a dark expression took over his face. "I'd just slow them down huh…" He bit his lip in frustration and noticed a Beowulf out of the corner of his eye. This one seemed different from the others, the red markings on its body glowed faintly, and it was bigger than the others in the crowd. "I'll show them what I can do!" He growled, picking Caligula up off the ground and charging at what he assumed was the enemies leader.
It quickly noticed him and began to retreat deeper into the forest away from the fighting. "Get back here!" Raishun roared, chasing it down into a large clearing.
Orange leaves flew lazily through the air, illuminated by the midday sun as the two stood several meters away from each other. Trees surrounded the clearing, forming a sort of makeshift arena for them to fight.
Raishun took the first move, charging forwards holding his blade at waist level, he attempted to stab it through the chest and end the fight in one blow. He thrust the blade forward, and the beast quickly dodged to the side, and ran its claws down his back, piercing his leather armor and leaving a deep gash in his back. Grunting in pain, he spun around, swinging his blade in a wide arc to catch it on its side. But again the Grimm dodged, and landed another strike, this time creating a small cut on his side.
"He's too fast!" Serah cried, quickly noticing the red splotches on his shirt growing in size. "We have to fall back, if we reach the others they can give us a hand!"
"Don't worry… I've got this in the bag!" He charged it again, but this time with his semblance activated. With the wing on his back, he was as fast as the Beowulf. They met in a clash of claws and steel, the Grimm had the upper hand at first, forcing Raishun backward. But he pushed himself to overpower it, disengaging and stabbing his blade into its back.
It howled in anger, causing the ranger to grin widely. "See, I told you I got this!" he drove the blade deeper, while he turned to face Serah with a gloating look. "I just needed a bit of time is all!"
"Get back!" She yelled, trying to pull him back by his leather chest plate. "The wound's not deep enough!"
"What?" He said in confusion when the Grimm lunged forward and bit down on his leg. He cried out in pain, as it shook him along the ground from side to side, then threw him to the edge of the field.
With substantial effort, he staggered to his feet. "Dammit!" he cursed under his breath and ran to rejoin the battle. Unfortunately, the damage was already done, even with his semblance he was no longer able to keep up with the Grimm. He tried to strike it, but over and over again, his attack was either deflected or dodged. Each attempt earned him a new cut or bruise until he was so hurt that he couldn't stand any longer, falling to one knee.
"Laura was right, you're not strong enough to do this yet!" Serah yelled in frustration, "Just run away, there's no point in dying here!"
"I told you I've got this!" He growled, holding onto his sword to shakily rise to his feet. "But even though I say that, everyone always says that I'm too weak." The wing on his back grew larger and more unstable, some of the energy flowing off to strike the ground and trees. Anger boiled inside of him, and he pointed his blade at his opponent defiantly. "SO WHY DON'T YOU ALL JUST HAVE SOME DAMN FAITH IN ME FOR ONCE!" He roared, running forward one more time.
"There we go, now that's an emotion that'll work." Serah smiled, tapping him on the chest.
The anger inside of him quickly faded, leaving behind a sort of empty void inside of him. "What did you do to me." He asked calmly, holding the spot she had touched him, "Did you eat my emotions?"
"It was more of a snack really, but it should be enough to get the job done." She grinned, walking in front of him and turning to face the Grimm before them. "Just sit back, and let me get us out of this!"
Serah began to walk to the side, slowly circling the Grimm in front of her. Behind of her, Raishun mimicked her movements exactly. "Pretty neat huh?" Serah smiled cockily. Doing a small spin just to watch him mimic her.
The Grimm howled in a mix of pain and anger, rearing up on its hind legs and letting out a loud roar to try and intimidate them. It ran forward and swung at them with its claws. Serah controlled Raishun's body to deflect the attack and force it back, taking the opportunity to slam the pommel of the blade into its snout with a loud crack.
It flinched and took a step back, but Serah was unrelenting and slid forward along the ground. As she passed it, she spun in a circle with her blade outstretched and rose to her feet in one fluid motion. Behind her, the Beowulf fell to the ground, struggling to rise to its feet as its paws frantically scampered against the ground. The tendons in its legs having been cut.
"Sorry but that's not happening." She murmured softly, turning and stabbing the blade through its skull. It whimpered in pain and tried to move forward shakily. WIth a dark look on her face, she pulled the blade out and sidestepped swinging the sword upwards. The blade cut through cleanly, and it's head hit the ground with a loud thud, quickly followed by its body.
"Man it feels good to be back in business!" Serah purred, swinging Caligula in front of her elegantly and stabbing it into the floor. "You're a little slower than I'm used too, we can fix that by training later!"
Raishun suddenly fell to his knees behind her, as she relinquished control to him. "That was intense…" He choked out, his breathing coming out in short breaths as a sudden soreness began spreading throughout his body. "I'm just glad I finally got you to possess me."
She slowly floated over to him and patted his shoulder sympathetically, "The anger you felt didn't give me enough power to fully take over, if it had I could've used my semblance. But it got us the win, and now that I've finally had something to eat after 15 years it should be easier for me to possess you." She yawned, and rubbed her eyes sleepily, "Fighting after being dormant for so long sure does take its toll. I'mma take a nap so you clean yourself up." She murmured with half-lidded eyes, placing her palm on his chest and slowly fading away.
Without a word he used Caligula to rise to his feet, then removed the blade from the ground and sheathed it. "Welp, I'm definitely gonna be sore tomorrow." He muttered, taking slow methodical steps towards where he had last seen his team.
He hadn't made it more than halfway when Eric dropped down from a tree, blocking his path with sickle in hand.
"How did you kill that Grimm?" He demanded, the sickle in his hand glowing as if a bright fire were burning inside the rose gold metal. "That thing was kicking your ass, and then suddenly you turned the tide to kill it."
"What can I say, I guess my training's paying off!" Raishun lied with a confident smirk, glaring at the man who put him in the infirmary. "It's kinda creepy that you were watching me fight the whole time, what were you gonna let it kill me too?"
"I would've intervened if things got too out of hand, though I will admit that it was fun to watch." He flicked his wrist and his sickle disappeared in a flash of embers, "But I don't think training would let you change your fighting style on the fly."
"Oh that… I just copied what I saw Laura do." He lied, "I figured my fighting style wasn't going to work against it."
Eric gave him a suspicious look, "Whatever… I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this time. But I promise you I'm going to find out what the deal with you is." He sighed, walking past the confused Ranger and into the forest.
He glared at him as he walked past, and continued to limp towards where he had last seen his team. "Creepy bastard…" He muttered, continuing on his way.
When Raishun finally did regroup, he found them in a state of crisis. Laura was frantically searching around with the rest of her team, holding onto to a white strip of cloth, which turned out to be a piece of his torn shirt that had caught on a branch during his chase. Her eyes eventually landed on him, she said something to the others and quickly rushed to his side.
"Where did you go!" She asked, letting him lean against her so he could walk properly, "I told you to stay in the center with the girls, and you disappeared without a trace!" She yelled at him, her eyes burning with anger. "When we were done fighting, what do we find of you?! A piece of your shirt!"
The two began to walk back to the clearing had told them to return to, the rest of their group forming a protective circle around them. Blood dripped onto the ground from his wounds, dotting the ground behind them with small splotches of red.
"I just wanted to help." He shot back, "There was a large Grimm that looked like it was the leader, so I chased it into the forest and killed it!" he grinned triumphantly, as the trees began to thin around them. "So have some faith in me why don't ya."
"Have you seen yourself! Your leg is destroyed, and you're bleeding from more places than I can count!" She yelled, ignoring the blood that began to stain her trench coat.
They reached the clearing, and she quickly set him down on the ground softly while the others ran to get help. Raishun looked up and saw her saying something, but her voice was muffled and distant. All he could focus on was the bright sun beating down on him until suddenly all that he saw was darkness when he passed out from his wounds.