Beta: Jefardi
Cover Art: Natzo
Flower
Minotaur (Part II)
For the second time in the past hour, Violet was jolted awake by her sense of smell.
Before it had been her addled mind mistaking the scent of smoke for the building being on fire. This time, she had no idea what to associate this smell with. It was like someone had taken all of her younger siblings dirty clothes, chucked a couple stink-bombs at them, and then allowed those clothes to fester for the past couple years in a damp corner of her bedroom.
Needless to say, it woke her up pretty instantaneously. Although, "waking up" was probably not the right term to use. Violet's orange eyes stared into a deep, angry red abyss. A sense of vertigo overtook and her stomach lurched, threatening to rebel against her as she fell into that eerie, terrible light.
Only she wasn't falling at all. It took Violet's mind several additional seconds to process that she was lying down, cheek once again buried in the dirt. The red abyss she was staring into were the eyes of the Minotaur, it's thick dark fur blotting out all other color.
Everything came rushing back to her at once and she remembered the rock flying at her. It must have knocked her out cold, if only for a moment, and that foul smell that snapped her back into reality was the Grimm's corpse-rotten breath.
Stumbling back to her knees, her head gave a sudden throb. She grit her teeth and refused to holler out in pain, not willing to distract Lily. Blood dribbled down the left side of her face from some cut she couldn't see, some of the red liquid leaking into one eye.
Tilting her head up, Violet's remaining orange eye looked back into the Grimm's red ones. The two of them were mere inches apart now. The minotaur let out several angry grunts, trying to pull its buried horns free from the ground. Which was probably the only reason it hadn't attempted to attack her again.
With an ear-shattering shearing, those horns pulled free. The minotaur rose up to it's full height where it towered over her kneeling form. Violet's gaze didn't waver at all, staring up at the Grimm without showing even an ounce of fear.
She wasn't even sure her Semblance would save her again, but she wouldn't give this creature the satisfaction of feeling any terror.
"Oooo-" The Grimm startled to roar again, only for a bright flash and an explosion to cut it off. Heat rolled over them both and Violet was forced to squint past it. Something heavy hit the ground and she dove out of the way on instinct. It saved her life, the Minotaur collapsing where she had just been.
Past the light of the explosion, she caught sight of a white orb flying through the air. It was still high, easily fifteen feet up. That didn't stop Lily from somehow miraculously appearing in front of it, having managed to kick herself up that high with nothing but her own strength. "Ha!" Lily gave a cry of exertion as she kicked the ball, launching it back at the Minotaur. It made contact and another explosion sent the rising Grimm crashing back to its knees.
"Get your sword!" Lily landed on the ground, already preparing to leap back in the air and send the sphere back in another volley.
Violet didn't need to be told twice. She may have been concerned about if Lily could hold her own before, but there was no such doubt left after witnessing that display. Lily was strong, more so than she had originally given her credit for.
She dashed to the unusual circular rock in the center. The elevated surface was almost like a table and scattered across it were numerous other weapons. In her search, she noticed that Rue's shotgun was already missing, meaning she must have already passed by here. Disregarding the thought for later, she continued the search for Ostrum Tempus.
Once she had her time-altering weapon, she would make that Grimm sorry for trouncing her like before. That was, assuming Lily didn't defeat it first. Finally, she noticed the purple sheath and her fingers latched around the katana. Unfurling the string, she hefted the katana over her left shoulder and let it rest against her back.
Feeling the familiar weight of it there brought a strange comfort and made her feel complete. Perhaps it wasn't so strange. She had inherited the weapon when she was five, proving compatible with it and its power. It was as much a part of her as her arms and legs were.
She didn't dare to take more than a moment to relish in the familiar comfort, turning back to the battle happening between her partner and monster. Just in time to witness another powerful explosion ripple through the air.
One that the Minotaur shrugged off. It had gotten wise to Lily's tactic, proving that even Grimm could learn if you gave them enough time. The giant bipedal beast had smacked Lily's orb to the side, enduring the explosion and damage to its fist to veer the soccer-ball sized weapon off course.
Several thick, furry fingers hit the ground with audible slops, the burnt appendages of the Grimm's now malformed hand. Blood rained down like a waterfall from the gushing wound, but if anything it only looked to make the Grimm more mad.
"Oooooooh!" It charged Lily, who was left completely defenseless without the weapon rebounding back to her. Panicked brown eyes spun back to Violet, the dirty blonde hair whipping in the wind to expose them. When she saw how far apart they still were, her rigid stance went lax, as if giving up hope.
The Grimm was far closer to Lily than Violet was. Not only that, but it was bigger and faster than she. No matter how someone looked at this situation, Violet would never make it in time to save her partner.
At least, she wouldn't have been able to without her sword.
Chapter End
