AN: I'm sorry this took so long. I'm not the best at fight scenes and life has been a bit hectic recently.

Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I only own my OCs. Nothing else.

The Alpha

Ruby POV

"Not if I can help it!" Ruby called out, charging the Deathstalker.

"Ruby no!" Verdax cried back.

Ruby slashed at the Deathstalker with Crescent Rose, only to be blocked and knocked back by its claw. She tried firing a round at its head, but the bullet couldn't penetrate its armor. She turned and ran, but the Deathstalker followed close behind.

"Ruby get out of there!" She heard Verdax shout.

"Ruby!" Yang cried out.

A caw overhead revealed the Nevermore was also following Ruby. It flapped its wings harder than before, launching several razor sharp feathers at the ground. One pinned Ruby by her cape, and the rest cut of Yang from going forwards. Verdax and Shadow, however, dogged the feathers and kept going.

"Ruby get out of there!" Yang called out.

"I'm trying!" She cried back, tugging on the cloak.

Ruby saw the Deathstalker raise its tail, preparing to strike. She closed her eyes, knowing there was no way out. When nothing happened, she opened her eyes, shocked by what she saw.

Standing there was Verdax, his Grimm mask formed, holding the stinger with both hands, his body glowing in his red and black Aura.

Verdax POV

"WEISS! ICE! NOW!" Verdax shouted.

Understanding, the heiress dashed over and stabbed her rapier into the ground, encasing the Deathstalker's tail in ice.

Verdax backed away from the tail and dispersed his mask. "Shadow get the feather out of her cloak." He said.

The Direwolf grew to his original size, startling the others in the group, who hadn't realized he was there. He then clamped the feather in his mouth and ripped it out of the ground. He shrank back down before running up to Verdax, who pet him affectionately.

Verdax walked over to Ruby, helping her up. "You okay?"

"Yeah." She replied.

"Good."

*SLAP*

Onlookers were shocked to see that Verdax had slapped Ruby, who now had a red mark on her left cheek.

"WHAT IN OUM'S NAME WERE YOU THINKING?!" Verdax roared, making Ruby shrink back. "WHAT GAVE YOU THE IDEA THAT CHARGING A BETA CLASS DEATHSTALKER, BY YOURSELF, WOULD DO ANYTHING EXCEPT GET YOU KILLED?!"

Ruby looked him with wide eyes before lowering her head, tears running down her cheeks. Seeing this, Verdax sighed and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Look." He said. "I'm not trying to be an ass or anything, but you can't kill every Grimm by rushing in without thinking. I've seen too many people die that way and I don't want you being one of them."

He walked away as she nodded her head, leaving her to talk with Weiss.

He came to a stop next to Yang. "You can kick my ass for slapping your sister later."

Yang sighed. "No, I think on some level she needed that. But if you do it again..." Verdax nodded as Shadow sat at his feet and Ruby and Weiss rejoins the group.

"Guys," Jaune said nervously, looking at the Nevermore. "That thing's circling back."

Verdax spoke up. "It was startled by the power my mask gave off, but now that it's gone, nothing's warding it away."

"There's no point in wasting time." Weiss said. "Our objective is right in front of us."

"She's right." Ruby agreed. "We need to grab an artifact and head back. There's no point in fighting them."

Jaune smiled. "Run and live. That's a plan I can get behind."

With that Ruby and Jaune got a Knight and a Rook piece as the ice around the Deathstalker tail began cracking.

"Time we left." Said Ren.

Nora spoke up. "It's just a Nevermore and Deathstalker, we'll be fine."

A roar emanated from the other side of the clearing as Verdax face palms. "Why did she have to say that?"

From the tree line came a third Grimm, larger than the first two. It was 20 meters tall and looked like a Minotaur. It had bone-white armor on its arms and chest with red tribal designs on it. Horns protruded from its temples and curved forwards, being level with its mask. Its blood-red eyes glared at the group of teens gathered at the temple.

"What is that?" Pyrrha asked.

"Oum dammit." Verdax said. "It's a Taurus."

The Taurus squatted down, putting its left foot forwards and hands on the ground, like it was about to start running.

"What's it doing?" Blake asked.

Verdax's eyes widened. "Everyone get ready."

"For what?" Jaune asked nervously.

Suddenly a red ball of energy appeared between the Grimm's horns. It built up until it was the size of a car before firing a large beam of energy at the teens.

"DOGE!" Verdax shouted. Tackling Blake and Yang while the others dove off to a side. Except Jaune, who was tackled by Shadow.

The blast flew over them, creating a violent tunnel of air that roared passed them. It collided with the temple, creating a crater and sending pieces of the temple and the remaining relics across the clearing and nearby forest. Verdax and Shadow stood back up while the others looked at the remains of the temple in horror.

"That was an Aura blast." Ren said.

"How?" Pyrrha asked. "Grimm don't have Aura."

Verdax spoke grimly. "Yes they do. And this one's an Alpha. Meaning he has more to spare."

The Taurus raised its head and roared into the sky.

Ozpin POV

Ozpin watched the tablet with interest. It showed footage of the group of teens facing off against three massive Grimm. Glynda was currently pacing furiously behind him.

"Ozpin, we need to intervene!" She panicked. "They aren't ready for a Nevermore and Deathstalker! Never mind whatever the Hell that thing is!"

Ozpin calmly sipped his coffee.

"No." He said simply.

"But Ozpin-"

"Glynda if these were any other students I would go down there myself and bring all of them home. But I'm confident they can handle the Nevermore and Deathstalker."

"What about the... Taurus?"

Ozpin turned to her. "Mr. Ashen seems very familiar with how this Grimm operates. I will leave it to him to deal with."

"But what if you're wrong?"

Ozpin turned back to the screen and sipped his coffee. "The better question is: what does it mean if I'm right?"

Verdax POV

'The Nevermore's circling around, the Deathstalker's almost free, and that Taurus is probably going to charge us if we move.' Verdax thinks to himself.

"Let's get going!" Weiss calls out.

"She's right, we can't win here. We need to go back." Ruby agrees.

"I wish it was that simple." Verdax said solemnly.

"What do you mean?" Yang asked, concerned.

"You can run from an Alpha all you want but it's too smart and strong to escape." He informed them while taking out Alpha and Beta. "You guys go, you can handle the Nevermore and Deathstalker if it comes to that. I'll hold off the Taurus."

"That's crazy!" Jaune said. "You can't fight that thing alone!"

"Technically I can, the results just won't be optimal for me."

Blake stepped forwards. "You don't have to fight it. We can all get away-"

"No we can't!" Verdax shouted. "The Deathstalker will be free any second and the Nevermore's coming back. That's three massive Grimm, one of which can fly, and another that can manipulate Aura. We can't escape all of them, but you guys can make it if I hold off the Taurus."

He began to walk forwards with Shadow at his side when Ruby appeared in front of him, arms outstretched.

"Didn't you just tell me about acting without thinking?" She demanded.

"This isn't acting without thinking, this is me making sure you guys can see tomorrow."

Ruby was silent as Verdax walked past her. She turned to him, tears in her eyes.

"Please don't do this." She begged.

Verdax sighed. "I'm sorry Rubes."

Verdax looked to Yang, who met his gaze and nodded. Grabbing her sister's arm, she and the others made their way to the cliffs, Ruby telling the others to go back.

"You better come back Wolf Boy!" Yang called out as the group left, leaving Verdax and Shadow alone with the Grimm.

'Wolf Boy?' Verdax thought, as the Deathstalker broke free. It glanced at Verdax before it went after the group, the Nevermore following from the air. The Taurus was about to join them when Verdax launched a blast of Aura at its head, drawing its attention.

"Your fight is with me you bastard." Verdax said as he slashed his hand across his face, forming his mask. At the same time, Shadow grew to his full height, growling.

Both got in a battle stance as the Taurus stared them down. It let lose a mighty roar as it charged forwards. Verdax and Shadow dogged as it brought down its fists, creating a large impact crater where the two were standing.

Pumping his legs with Aura and surrounding himself with the red and black energy, Verdax dashed forwards and swung with his scythes in an 'X' fashion across its leg. The attack didn't even leave a scratch on the Taurus's thick hide. Shadow tried to bite at its arms, but the effort was just as futile.

The Taurus backhanded Verdax into a tree, which broke from the impact, and tried to grab Shadow, who dogged and started circling the massive Grimm. Verdax stood up and combined his scythes into Omega before firing a dense blast of Aura at the Taurus's back. The Grimm turned around as Verdax ran in a circle around the clearing, firing blast after blast at the towering monster. Roaring, the Grimm fired a blast of its own, forcing Verdax to leap back. The Taurus took this chance and grabbed Shadow, throwing him into Verdax, sending both tumbling to the ground.

"When we get home, you're going on a diet." Verdax grunted as he pushed Shadow off.

The two leapt to the side as the Taurus fired another blast at them. They charged forwards, Verdax slashing at the Grimm's legs and Shadow biting its ankles. The attacks were ineffective and only annoyed the towering Grimm.

The Taurus brought down its fists, forcing Verdax and Shadow back. Verdax channeled Aura into Omega, coating the blade and swung it, releasing the energy in a arc that collided with the massive Grimm. As the Taurus recoiled Shadow circled around and struck it in the leg, forcing the Grimm to collapse onto its back.

Taking the advantage, Verdax pours Aura into his legs and leaps fifteen feet in the air. At the peak of the jump he coats his entire body in Aura before rocketing down and slamming his feet onto the Taurus's chest with enough force to crack the ground under them.

The Taurus roars in pain as Verdax's Aura dissipates. But before he can move, the massive Grimm grabs him, pinning his arms, and rolls over into a crouching position, slamming him into the ground. Verdax coughed up blood as Shadow attacked the Taurus, forcing it to release him.

Verdax stood, grunting as he realized his ribs were broken. "I need to finish this." He muttered.

He charged forwards and pours Aura into Omega. He slashed the scythe across the Taurus's leg, cutting through its thick hide. The Grimm roars in pain and swings its fist at him. Verdax doges and blasts its other leg, forcing the Taurus into a kneeling position. Taking the advantage, Verdax rushes forwards and swings Omega with all his might at its neck.

Before the blow connects, the Taurus his Verdax with a powerful Aura blast from its horns point-blank. Verdax is thrown back by the blast; his front and clothes are covered in burns. He is bleeding from his wounds, drenching his clothes in black blood. He slowly rises, fighting through the pain, and looks at the Taurus. The towering Grimm stood to its full height, its right horn cut short by Omega's blade missing its mark.

Shadow attempts another attack, but the Taurus's hand shoots down and grabs the Direwolf who yelps in pain. The towering Grimm walks forwards and kicks Verdax, who is too injured to doge. On the ground again, Verdax's mask dissipates as he attempts to move, but the Taurus slams its right foot on his right arm, breaking the ground underneath.

Verdax yells in pain as his arm is shattered. He slips between consciousnesses as the Taurus reaches for him, until it pulls him up, ripping off his arm in the process, and making his vision go dark.

3rd person POV

Ruby got down from the cliff, the Deathstalker and Nevermore corpses having fallen into the cloudy abyss under the ruins.

"Well, that was a thing." Yang said tiredly.

Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren joined Ruby and the others jus outside the ruins. The group was clearly tired after their recent battles, but Ruby just pushed past it.

"Come on! We need to go find Verdax!" She yelled.

"We can't." Weiss said through deep breaths.

"But..."

"Ruby," Yang said calmly. "Everyone here is in no shape to fight another giant Grimm, that includes you."

Jaune steps forward. "Besides if that Grimm is as strong as Verdax said, we have to consider that he didn't..."

Ruby whirled around to face him. "Don't say that! Verdax is too good to die like that!" She cried with tears in her eyes.

Before anyone could say more, a shape flying out of the forest and hitting a pillar of the ruins before falling to the ground interrupted them.

"Isn't that Shadow?" Blake asked.

Sure enough it was the Direwolf that stayed behind with Verdax. He was covered in scrapes and bruises, his fur was singed, and his breathing was labored.

"If he's here, then that means..." Weiss trailed off, looking back to the forest.

From the tree line came the Taurus. It was covered in marks and wounds and its right horn was cut short. What drew everyone's attention however was the form in its right hand. Upon closer inspection, the group realizes that it's Verdax, who looks bloody and broken, and is missing his right arm and still had Omega clutched in his left hand.

Ruby falls to her knees at the sight. "VERDAX!" She cries.

AN: It will be a while before I update my other story; I'm having some writer's block.

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Next Chapter: Initiation Ends