Unraveling the Knight

The Ghoul just stared at Ren and Nora as they looked back with looks of confusion and possibly fear. He just smirked as he cracked his right middle finger. "Since this is a two against one, I think I'll use my new favorite form for my Kagune. With a few modifications." With those words his Kagune wrapped around his body, similar to when he attacked Yang.

His upper tails went over their respective shoulders and crossed over his chest. But instead of going down to the opposite side of his waist, they went around the opposite ribs. That's when they crossed over his back to the respective shoulders again. Instead of wrapping around the entirety of his upper arms, the Kagune just cover the outside of them. Once reaching his elbows they wrapped around his forearms before the tips split into five again and covered his fingers, giving him claws twice as long as before.

Meanwhile, his lower tails crossed his waist and stomach once again before covering his legs. But just like the upper tails, they only covered the outside of his thighs before wrapping around from the knees down. Finally, the tips split in two. One laid over the tops of his shoes and the other lined up with the back of his heel, giving him two talons on either foot.

This was his new version of his armor. It had 'evolved' for lack of a better term. This version of it, focused protection on the more important places of his body while not inhibiting his maneuverability. Along with giving him more ways of attacking. But again, he was a predator. He had to be at his peak to stay that way. And with the shocked and terrified looks on Nora and Ren's faces, he thought he did very well.

He lowered his stance and had his arms out to the sides, his claws ready to tear into whatever got in his way. "I suggest you two take out your weapons." He said with that malicious grin still in place.

The two looked at each other before Ren turned to his leader, "Jaune, we don't want to fight you."

He just chuckled, "I'm sure he'd appreciate that. But, I'm not Jaune. Not yet."

"What?" Nora asked, beyond confused.

The Ghoul just sighed, "I've been through this enough already." He grumbled. "Long story short, Jauney here was kidnapped, experimented on and tortured. All that was too much for his mind to take and I was made from that trauma. And I'm going to get rid of the people that are stopping him from doing what he needs to survive. Because that is what I'm here for."

That just shook the two of them to their cores. Nora was almost brought to tears at thinking that her Fearless Leader had gone through all that. Her and Ren didn't have the easiest time growing up. But Jaune's trauma was in a completely different ballfield to theirs.

Ren was just as shocked but his mind focused on something Jaune, no, this wasn't him. What he said, getting rid of people. He voiced his thoughts, "You did it." The Ghoul and Nora turned to him. "You were the one that killed CRDL."

He just tilted his head as his grin grew, "Yes, I did. Along with Blake and Yang."

That caused Nora to gasp and tears were building up in her eyes. Ren's eyes narrowed. "You ate them."

He nodded again, "Those experiments turned Jaune into an extinct species known as a Ghoul. No, sorry, Half-Ghoul. And they can only survive by eating the flesh of humans or Faunus. That was the first real meal we had since coming to Beacon."

That made their stomachs churn. Ren shook it away and kept talking, "Okay, CRDL I can understand. I don't agree but I can understand. But why Blake and Yang? What did they even do?"

The Ghoul just shook his head, "Doesn't matter, they're gone now. And you two are next. Then the other three will come after."

That's when Nora finally lost it, "Why would you do that?! Don't you know what that'll do to Jaune?! It'll break him!"

The Ghoul's face just became an even more twisted version of his usual smirk, if that was even possible. "Exactly." That's when he shot off like a bullet towards the unsuspecting Valkyrie. His right claws came forward but she was quick enough to pull out Magnhild and shift it into its warhammer form. His claws hit the shaft of the weapon but the strength behind it still pushed her back. He reared his left hand back to claw at Nora but as he did, he was being belted with bullets.

He quickly jumped back and away from the salvo Ren was releasing on him. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he took off towards the ninja. Ren kept Stormflower trained on him and kept firing. The bullets were deflected off of his Kagune and as he closed in, Ren tried to slash at him with the blades on his guns. The Ghoul brought up his arms and caught them with the armor on his forearms.

That's when the Ghoul kicked at Ren's leg, the talons wrapped around Ren's lower leg, just above his ankle. The Ghoul swung his leg out along with Ren's leg, setting him off balance. The Ghoul then pushed forward and knocked Stormflower back. He then grabbed the ninja's forearms and connected his knee to Ren's chest. Which all resulted in Ren falling onto his back. The Ghoul capitalized by trying to shove his right claw through his chest.

That's when he saw something in his peripheral and turned to see one of Nora's grenades coming at him. He brought up both is hands up to protect himself but the explosion still sent him backwards and off of Ren. He was thrown back but he used his talons to dig into the ground to slow himself down quicker. His Kagune claws were smoking from the explosion but that didn't stop him from charging towards Nora.

She responded by firing a few more of her grenades. Before the first one could hit anything, the Ghoul had jumped high in the air. At his peak, he extended the claws of his left hand towards her. She narrowly dodged them and shifted Magnhild back into hammer form. That's when the Ghoul used his claws to pull himself towards her. Using that to increase the forced behind his attack. When he was close enough he performed a full front flip for an axe kick.

Nora held her trusted weapon above her head and met his kick. Her arms shook from the force behind it and the ground beneath them shattered. That exact second, the Ghoul placed his other foot on the shaft of her hammer. He closed his talons on both feet around it before he leant backwards. He dug his right claws into the ground along with his left and used that leveraged to pull Nora off the ground. He released her and she went flying through the air and into the charging Ren. He managed to catch her but he fell to one knee doing so.

Before the Ghouls feet could touch the ground, he spun his body like a break-dancer until he was facing the two again. As his feet touched the ground, he took off again, using all four of his limbs to push off. He flew toward them and at what he felt was the right distance, he slammed his hands onto the ground. That caused him to flip forwards and he pulled his body inwards to keep up the momentum, making him look like a glowing red ball, spinning towards the two.

Ren saw the unorthodox attack coming and quickly threw Nora to the side and out of the way. He then tried to jump out of the way. The attack hit the ground just a second later, the force behind it and sent him flying. While the debris hit him, lowering his aura before he tumbled across the ground.

Both sane members of JNPR were slowly getting back to their feet. The dust from the Ghoul's attack was clearing and they could still see him kneeling in the crater he made. He slowly started to stand tall and when he was at his full height, he cracked his neck to one side then the other. "That it?" he asked sarcastically.

The two charged at him, intent on stopping him and find a way to get Jaune back. He crossed his arms across his chest before he threw his arms to the side, extending his claws again. Nora swung her hammer at the ground and used an explosion to send herself into the air. While Ren slid on his knees and bent underneath the attack. He got back on his feet on the other side of his arm and was running again. Or he would've, if a spike didn't grow from the side of one of the claws and extend towards him. He barely reacted in time to dodge but managed to get away with it only cutting his cheek slightly.

The Ghoul was retracting his left claws and was preparing for another attack on the off balanced ninja. That was until he heard the explosion from above him. He looked in time to see Nora coming down with her hammer. He quickly raised his left arm and caught the hammer on his armored forearm, although the strength still carried through and he felt his radius and ulna break in his arm.

Before he could power through, she released another explosion at point-blank range. That sent him flying directly at her partner. He took his martial arts stance and slammed his palm into the Ghoul's back, releasing his aura strike. This caused him to fly in the other direction and tumble across the clearing. He finally stopped towards the center of it and laid in a heap.

The two watched his body as they slowly walked towards one another. When they were standing next to each other, Nora spoke up, "Think we did it?"

Ren just kept watching their leader, "I don't know."

"Well that depends." Said that distorted voice and causing them to tense up. That's when the Ghoul started to make his way to his feet as it chuckled. "By 'it', do you mean stopping me? Or killing me?" He looked at them with that same bloodthirsty look as his head was off to the side from the impact he made with the ground. He used his right hand and popped it back into place. "Because it seems you failed at both."

Ren just glared at him, "We would never want to kill Jaune."

The Ghoul chuckled at that, "Those attacks spoke otherwise. If not for our higher regeneration, Jaune would probably be dead right now." He then shrugged apathetically. "But why would you two care? To you, the only person that matters is the one standing beside you. Yeah, maybe you care for Pyrrha and the remains of RWBY. But Jaune? He is nothing to you."

"That isn't true!" Nora defended adamantly. "We love Jaune. He's our Fearless Leader, our brother!"

"Then why do you insult him at every opportunity you have then pass it off as a joke?" The Ghoul challenged with a knowing smirk. "Maybe you just enjoy being the one higher on the food chain for once. Rather than the weak and pathetic little girl you used to be."

Nora stared wide eyed and trembled. Ren took a step forward. "Don't talk about matters you know nothing of."

The Ghoul turned to him next. "You're one to talk. How many times have you even had a conversation with Jaune when you started it? I could count all of them on one hand and still have extras." He shook his head slightly, "But then again, your leader is too weak for your taste, huh? It would only make sense that you only put up with him."

He then placed his right hand over his face, "Such a shame too. After the death of his family, he saw you two as his brother and sister." He looked at them between the gap in his fingers. "But you don't care about him at all."

Both were just shaking from that, both angry by the blatant lies he was spewing. They both looked in his eyes, well focusing more on the red one, to search for any lies but found only truth. Insane truth but truth nonetheless. Ren was able to real himself in but Nora wasn't so lucky. She charged towards him without thinking. "Nora, stop!" Ren shouted in desperation, but it fell on deaf ears. She jumped at him with her hammer in full swing and a battle cry to follow it.

The Ghoul just smirked. His left arm was already healed and was already rising. The back of his forearm hit the side of the Magnhild, pushing it to the side to just miss him. As that was happening, he was stepping forward and wrapped his right hand around her throat.

She tried to thrash out of his grip but his left hand had a hold of her weapon and that's when he drove his knee into her solar plexus, knocking the air from her. With that brief second, he pulled Magnhild from her grasp and threw it to the side. He then shifted her so his right arm was around her throat and she was facing away from him and her back was against his chest as she shrugged to breathe again. He looked over her shoulder to see Ren pointing his guns at him, "Let her go." He said, voice filled with barely restrained anger and hatred.

The Ghoul chuckled, "Or what? You try to fire and she becomes my shield. And if you take a step closer…" He had his right index finger's claws slowly leave a cut on her jawline, through her aura. "I'll be forced to slit her throat."

Ren growled. He was feeling so helpless, just like when he lost his family and his home. He was pulled from those thoughts when he heard Nora barely speak, "R-ren…help…please..."

He swallowed before speaking, "Don't worry, Nora. I'm right here."

The Ghoul moved her closer and he took a deep inhale of her scent. "Hmmm, she has such a sweet smell, doesn't she?"

Ren's eyes narrowed and his knuckles were turning white from how tight he was holding Stormflower. "Put her down!"

The Ghoul just smirked. He used his left hand to moved the shirt off her left shoulder just enough for what he had planned. "One bite shouldn't hurt." That's when he sank his teeth into her shoulder. Her aura was still active but he used his enhanced strength to break through it. Nora gave a bloodcurdling scream as he did. Once he bit through her shoulder he pulled away with blood leaking down her shoulder and from his lips as he chewed on her flesh.

With a shout, Ren lost his cool and charged forward. His blades ready to tear into him. The Ghoul just smirked and swallowed the flesh in his mouth. He unceremonially dropped Nora and took off towards him. Ren was too enraged to realize the Ghoul was in front of him and he took a thrust kick to his chest that sent him flying backwards. Ren tumbled across the ground until he was on all fours and charged again with another shout.

The Ghoul waited for him to get close and Ren went for a slash for his face. He easily weaved around it and grabbed his extended arm and pulled him over his shoulder to slam him into the ground, cracking it. The impact making him let go of his weapons. Before Ren could recover, he lifted the ninja into the air by the same arm. Lifting him over his head and throwing him into the ground a few feet in front of him. This time, shattering the ground and his aura.

Ren slowly pulled himself onto shaky legs as he stared at the Ghoul with fury and hatred that would rival how he would look at the Nuckelavee. He clenched his fists, like he was prepared to fight him with only his fists. The Ghoul just looked on with that damned smirk. Ren took a single step and next thing he knew, there was the Ghoul in front of him. He then felt pain erupt from his stomach and with a gasp of pain, looked down to see his right claws impaled into his stomach.

He slowly looked back up to see burning red and cold blue look into his pink. "One down." Was all he said as he pulled his claws from his stomach. Ren was breathing shallowly as his hand went to his wound. He took a step backwards then a half-step before falling to his back.

"Ren!" Nora shouted in despair as she pulled herself to her feet and started to run to him. He just waited for her to get closer and when she was, he lunged forward. His left claws tearing into her left side and causing her to bleed profusely. The attack made her cry in pain before collapsing onto her stomach beside Ren. The Ghoul just turned to them as their blood dripped from his claws, "And that makes four."

Nora was breathing shallowly as she slowly looked to Ren. She slowly extended her right hand to him as she bled out. "Ren." She said weakly.

By some miracle, he turned to her and reached his left hand to grasp hers, "I'm right here." He said weakly. "I'm so…sorry, Nora. I was…supposed to save you."

She slowly shook her head as she smiled weakly, "You…already did…all those…years ago…" Tears started to slide down her face, "Thank you…for being with…me until…the end…"

Tears started to slide down Ren's face, "I would…do it all…again…thank you for…being my…family…" His vision was going dark, "I….I…love…you"

Nora held his hand tighter, "I….love you….too"

With those last words, the two died together. The Ghoul just looked down at them as his Kagune unraveled from his body before disappearing. He looked up to the sky and started to laugh. He continued to laugh until tears started to slide down his cheeks and his laughter quickly became crying. He then collapsed to his knees as Jaune now looked down at Ren and Nora. His hands gripped the front of his shirt as he leant forward so far that his forehead almost touched the ground. He then let out a heartbreaking scream of anguish.

He just cried uncontrollably for what felt like an eternity. That was until he heard very familiar sounds. He tensed up and slowly looked up, with tears still falling, to see Beowolfs entering the clearing. They were attracted to his negative emotions. They wanted to eat. No, they wanted to eat Ren and Nora. They were going to defile their bodies.

His face settled into a snarl and he stood tall in defiance. "You won't touch them!" he shouted as he charged. As he was running, his Kagune erupted from his back. For the first time in his life, he was using the Kagune. Not the Ghoul. Him.

The tails started to lash around, cutting and tearing the Grimm apart. Any Grimm that got close to his dead teammates were torn apart. Jaune didn't stop. He kept dashing and charging the Grimm as tears still poured from his eyes.

Eventually, the Grimm stopped showing up and the corpses of the ones that did were already turning to smoke. Jaune just kept staring ahead as his tears finally stopped. His Kagune was still out and were swaying back and forth, ready to attack. He heard a tree branch snap and turned in the direction of the sound, ready to attack. But stopped when he saw who had entered the clearing. Port and Oobleck with Ruby, Weiss and Pyrrha just behind them.

The professors looked on in shock at the students, both dead and alive, and all the Grimm corpses. Meanwhile, the other three were just staring at Ren and Nora. They were trying to come to terms with it as they finally looked at Jaune. The pain in their eyes was too much for him. He collapsed to his knees and his Kagune dissipated in record time. He then looked at the ground as he brought both his hands to the back of his head.

The professors looked on in confusion as Oobleck stepped forward, "Mr. Arc, what happened here?"

He didn't react at first but slowly, he looked up to them all, his eyes just looking dead. "I did this." He said in a neutral voice, devoid of any emotions. "All of it."


A/N- Here is the next one. I'm surprised I got this out so soon. Was really in the zone I guess. Anyways, the scene with Jaune breaking down and using his Kagune was suggested by Jauneforever. I think I did it very well. Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh was the Beta for this as usual, go check him out. With that, I hope you all enjoyed and to see you all int he next update!