Author's Note:
Here's Chapter Five...
Book 2 Chapter Five: Beasts of Extinction
I leaned back as Amira leaned forward, feeling heat rush to my face as I noticed her…ahem assets. Though honestly I was more intimidated by her size than how pretty she was. I know maybe four people who come close to her husband height and they're all guys. Her lips curled up into a smirk, and her hands found a perch on her hips as she stared down at me.
"Could you…step three feet back? You're making me uncomfortable." She did so to my relief, my heartbeat slowing down to a more reasonable pace.
It had been a few weeks, well two and a half. A rough "treaty" was being set up though it will likely take closer to years including all the small independent nations on this planet. I wasn't a part of any of that so instead my time was spent preparing myself for an expedition to several ancient ruins scattered throughout North America. I had been working out and training by sparring with Undyne and Amira despite my misgivings.
They…were both completely terrifying to fight and I still had aches and bruises from when my aura broke. Amira was some type of combat prodigy, able to easily discern any weakness and mercilessly take advantage of them. A master of deception and provocation, not helped by my short temper when I'm stressed. She knew she had a greater reach and greater flexibility.
It was…tough but at the least I was getting stronger and better at the whole fighting and combat dealy. Some of that time was also being spent…on actual college.
They finally…and rather quickly…set up a college curriculum for me. An equivalent to an English 114 class, a math class, and a Political Science class. English and Poli science proved relatively easy as long as I put a modicum of effort into my studies and the classes. Math proved the most difficult and there was a flash of resentment toward the school system for their poor implementation.
I mean who changed a class from Algebra to Integrated 1 in the middle of the year? Heck there's probably still some stuff I'm missing due to their shit, didn't help that I was stubbornly lazy to an unhealthy degree.
Even now there's a part of me that hates myself for doing that…
"Hey here take it…" Amira passed me a bottle of water as well as a towel to wipe off the sweat soaking my forehead. This was apparently part of a new fangled class unit considered rather important with the resurgence of magic.
Gaster, Toriel, Asgore as well as various other monsters I didn't know were helping with the implementation of a Magus school system. Learning magic would be a required course for all schools so humans and Draks could obtain basic control without hurting themselves or others. As they grew older, more advanced courses and classes would become available. People could take some basic combat classes that would open doors for a military or well regulated militia, something that would become necessary in the future.
Penny's knowledge was a real boon with the creation of a combined Aura Awareness and Magic class. An important part of the classes was learning self control, like a martial arts class. This mainly applied to the more powerful varieties of magic. Because magic can't be contained and left in disuse without harming a budding mage. Magic was an integral part of one's SOUL. A big use isn't necessary of course, just little things, using Kindness to help grow a small garden, using your Bravery to play a magical sport, or fixing up a chair or a toy for a friend.
But larger…magic should only be used in an emergency or a controlled environment to keep others safe.
The only issue with with the way they're going about this is that we're still lacking in courses here and there due to the loss of several magic branches. Fortunately Gaster had found and then bought some dusty books from an old seller dating back to 1268 years ago, decades before the War.
Right now we had Magical Combat, Magic Studies, Aura Awareness and a few other small ones for more physical careers. The most complete and advanced of all the courses fell under…basically Magitek. I mean the Underground does have the equivalent of a college system of some sort, and with some input from from the Alliance and their own school system we were getting things done. One of the more interesting classes was in some type of Rune based magic, that came in several different varieties.
The ones I knew best were Alchemy, which had to do with the manipulation of the flow of matter and energy. It allowed a human to control an element outside the affinity of their soul. This was in exchange for sheer complexity since it required a strong grasp in Chemistry to use it. The one other special thing about it was that it draws largely from an external force, drawing in energy to perform any known form of chemistry or matter/energy movement.
Then there's Arcanography which is more for replicating magical actions in a consistent fashion rather than physical ones. Arcanograms actually share many similarities to alchemical ones, though the meaning for their shapes and lines tends to be different. Really they would likely fall under the same branch. Arcanogram just deal with the ethereal far more closely…
Heck it turns out Chara has taken a liking to that variety of magic. Mainly it's to take advantage of the Perseverance based magic she lacks. Analysis helped her a fair deal with the construction of weapon constructs. They functioned identically to Gradation Air but with the decay basically non-existent. Of course once the power source is severed they fade away.
With those new books we had the beginning of a burgeoning scientific community, theorizing on how magic works and where it comes from. It's real world applications as an actual useful phenomenon. The main requirement for now was the Magic Studies courses, and a second requirement was being added as Gaster learned Arcanography from the half dozen, 2000 page books he had giddily acquired.
Can't forget about the engineers who were…well imagine our world's engineers if they were literally all wizards and witches. Also some architecture designers and doctors again boosted by magic. They were all incomplete and the few professors would be learning along with their students as it grew.
It was beautiful.
"Frisk! Your bro is being weird again!" I snapped out of my revery and tried to flick her. She snickered and stepped back, but in response I burst hitting her stomach at near mach speed. There was a small grunt as her aura took the hint and I felt elation as I beat her. In most of my fights I couldn't even touch her when she got serious.
Then I realized I was hugging her, and laying my head on her chest…
"I…uh I'm sorry I didn't…" She let out lovely laugh and wrapped her arms around me. I tried to struggle out of her hold to no avail, her strength too far above mine to escape. She hugged me to her chest, and my ears were on fire.
"You wanted a hug right? I don't mind since we're friends." Her Cheshire cat like grin shifted to a more kind and genuine one and I felt warmth rise up in my chest.
I-Ignore your heart…Brandon…can't have her win. Even if her hugs are always really nice…
"Please let go." Amira pouted and hesitantly put me down, and I shook my legs as I got my bearings. She gave me a small push and we made our way out of the sparring arena.
Her green eyes met my brown as we saw a frantic Gaster talk to a worried Asgore and Hannah in the distance.
"You know you're doing pretty well actually. Another couple of months and you might be a match to an Alliance recruit in the Combat area anyway." I shrugged; I wasn't interested in being a soldier or a warrior. I had a choice here, and I still wanted to become a part of the scientific field. Though now I was mulling over between genetic engineering or Magecraft.
"Thanks…what do you think those guys are…" I stopped my train of thought as I felt something dark approach from the distance. I turned my head toward the general direction of East. I eye Amira warily as her hands burst into flames, and scowl made her expressive and kind face contort into an animalistic rage.
My walk picks up into an all out jog, paranoia seizing control of my muscles. Amira leapt ahead and we crossed the distance at a record pace. I skidded to a stop and tapped Gaster's shoulder. I had a rather bad feeling about this.
"What's wrong? Did something happen?" He nodded and I felt shock as he passed me a…gun?!
"What are you—" He shushed me and then cleared his throat
"Grimm incursion…" My blood ran cold, and the gun felt like a lead weight in my hands. "Asriel…he was searching for a portal and it reappeared near here…he believes it's the source of most of the Grimm coming here, barring some exceptions."
I…god… no, no, I won't let those things get anywhere near here.
"The diplomatic vessel is coming into position to offer us some warning as well as unfortunately very limited orbital bombardment capability. However we're talking about some 2 kilogram slugs at best, and once they come close to the town it will no longer be viable."
That would at least cull some of the numbers and make things easier on the militia and the guard. As well as me…
"You're planning to fight?" I nodded and he sounded approving. "I have to…only a few hundred people know magic, and of that number only two dozen can use it in combat. I just want them to be safe." Amira looked concerned and I noticed my legs were shaking. I forced them to stop…
"You're afraid…" It was a statement rather than a question.
I've never been the bravest person…I've always been afraid of things. Unhealthily so at times, and I didn't understand how I could be scared now despite all I've been through.
"Because this time…it's permanent…" I looked up and let out a shuddery sigh as I realized he was right. "If you fail…you or those you care about could die. But that only motivates you more doesn't it? You want to protect them"
"I will protect them. Nothing will get in my way of that." I felt my SOUL rebound as it synchronized with my sentiment. "I'll be ready…" I reached down to the gun, getting comfortable with the grip. Thank God for both my SOUL and training or I could have blown someone's head off with this thing.
The gun resembled my memories of a Carnifex hand cannon though my aura lazily picked out the differences. The bullet fired out was larger, around 18 grams in mass versus the four and a half grams of a Carnifex. Which meant that mass effect guns didn't actually have sand grain sized bullets. Unless you take the upper end of a sand grain I mean, which was what some spacebattlers I've heard of have gone with.
Okay whatever…based on the little slip of paper here this was a modified Alliance model that was actually a pure plasma armature rail gun. Apparently they don't use eezo much outside of biotics and the Gravity engines and special thrusters they have? It fired an 18-gram mix of lead and tungsten at 3000 meters per second. Okay that's… 81,000 joules of kinetic energy per shot, and unlimited rounds through a pocket dimension able to hold ten kilograms worth of bullets?
I call bullshit on that! It doesn't end there though…apparently an application of aura can boost the energy without an increase in velocity. Which makes some of RWBY's weird bullshit make some more sense. Actually now that I think about it…
"Where is Asriel?" Gaster stopped with an odd expression.
"He's being held up by a Grimm horde as well as a strange man…" My eyebrows lifted up and I asked him for specifics. "The young prince discovered four colorful teenagers and he was promptly ambushed by a man with a scorpion tail. Fortunately another human blocked the attack."
Tyrian Callows…and that other man must be Qrow Branwen along with team RNJR.
I stopped my musing as a dozens of flashes of blue light dropped down from the ground. The enraged screams and roars of monsters could be heard from here and Asgore roared.
"The New Royal Guard get into position! Any other monster able to fight has to come along as well!" The king's body flared with energy and aura and his blood red trident materialized.
POP!
I blinked and found myself near the edge of the city. A bunch of humans, Draks and monsters all murmured with nervousness as they gripped onto weapons Alphys and Gaster had provided. I could see a few familiar faces, the dog guard, the RG, Undyne, even Gerson, Muffet and Papyrus were here.
I could see sans float from above us using a blaster like a steed…
"AWOO!"
"CAWWW!"
"SSSSSHH!"
At least ten times our number in Grimm encroached a small fraction of the initial wave. The bombardment most likely saved most of our lives. The humans were the first to leap into action, setting off a volley of actual bullets as well as magic. From what I could see, several Grimm had their skulls shattered by magically and aurally boosted rifle fire. Three beowolves were pinned to a young Goliath, which trumpeted with rage.
One grimm in particular was familiar and I growled as that Nuckelavee clopped toward us. There was an aura of hate and anger that made my knees weak. I could feel a new power that told me this was not going to be a normal encounter. Gaster's arms trembled with pent up rage
"W-What?" Amira asked the angered skeleton a question and he heaved from his nonexistent lungs.
"That thing is being fueled by a SOUL fragment."
Oh…oh please no…
The Nuckelavee roared, shimmering with orange and yellow. The other Grimm answered the call and began a stampede of hate.
Oh no…
As the Grimm made their charge I really hoped that Asriel would be here soon or he would return to find nothing but corpses and Dust.
Ruby Rose glanced about the mostly empty field, now filled with upwards of several hundred Grimm. Though as she watched an Ursa major get crushed beneath a giant orange boot. She realized it might be better to focus on the more imminent threat.
"As I live and breathe, Qrow Branwen. A true Huntsman has entered the fray!" Ruby heard Asriel scoff as he decapitated a medium sized nevermore with his rainbow sabers.
Her uncle raised Harbinger, his face scowling with poorly hidden anger.
"I don't care pal. I'm not going to let you take my niece and that goat kid to Salem."
"Who?" Ruby questioned her uncle, carefully ignoring Asriel battle cry as he rode a Goliath, directing it in the direction of its kind. Ruby felt a disturbing feeling from within her as the scorpion Faunus madly chuckled.
"We've had enough talk now, don't you think?" the hand blade wielding maniac crouched down into a stance.
Qrow smirked in response. "Took the words right out of—"
Ruby blinked as the faunus practically teleported colliding with her uncle in a mad charge. Both Ren and Nora charged in, Nora's hammer directed toward Tyrian's face while Ren slashed his sickle blades aiming for the knees and thighs. The scorpion knocked them aside with his tail with complete ease, and Ruby felt a spike of worry.
'He's strong…too strong for us. But…that doesn't mean we should give up!' Before she could take a step forward, her uncle looked back at them.
"Stay back!" Qrow leaped forward, his weapon nearly taking off his opponent's head. Tyrian stepped forward and fired bullets into her uncle's chest, bouncing off of his aura.
Ruby looked for a shot and frowned, as she found no vantage point. She heard Asriel sigh and she barely kept her balance as a green platform lifted her up into the air. She gave the goat monster a grateful grin and tried to aim from her now better location.
"Dang it they're too fast for me!' Her eyes widened as Tyrian grabbed ahold of Qrows weapon. It was left embedded into the ground too far away. With her uncle left disarmed, Ruby leapt into action and fired.
The scorpion faunus without even turning around, blocking each sniper bullet with ease.
"W-What?" She tried a second time as yellow surged within her.
BOOM!
A single yellow-coated bullet made its mark costing a good amount of aura.
"HA!" Qrow launched a punch right into the pawns face throwing him multiple meters into the tall grass. Ruby internally cheered as her uncle coolly retrieved his weapon. The air seemed to step aside as Tyrian rushed her uncle from behind and she pulled the trigger, but only managed to graze him.
Qrow jumped atop his weapon and Tyrian met his match as Qrow's scythe mode knocked him aside with a swing.
The two moved back and forth, Crescent Rose following them the entire time. Both Huntsmen were evenly matched and Ruby could barely keep up with them without her super speed. She breathed sharply as Tyrian threw her uncle through a derelict home. His aura flickering red the entire time…
She wouldn't sit idly by any longer. She had to save her uncle, and she jumped down despite Asriel's curse. She landed on her feet just as her uncle was thrown through the building. Unbeknownst to her, her aura was shifting between red, yellow, and green, the odd look disturbing her friends.
'Stay away from my uncle!' Ruby's blade blocked the assassin's blade wrists and her lips curled up into a smug smirk. The blades maniacs' visage became one of worry, as he stared into her blazing eyes.
"Ruby!" Before Jaune could step in, a vine wall grew in before Ren could stop his leader himself. Asriel nodded and a firestorm blocked any more view of him. She turned back to face the faunus head on.
"It seems like you want to be taken!" Ruby felt an urge to defy him, and he was pushed back despite the immense difference in skill and size.
"I won't let anyone get hurt while I can do something about it!" A screaming power begged the child to use it, but its call was left unheard. Qrow jumped into the action, surprising Ruby as a stinger nearly punctured her.
"Ruby get back like I told you!" Ruby shook her head in indignation.
"This is my fight too!" She attacked aiming her Scythe blade toward the legs. She missed as his legs expertly arched away.
"It's not—" her follow up attack fails and she takes two kicks right to the face for her foolishness. She comes face to face with an old heavy chandelier and it smashed down towards her.
'Oh sh—' a loud bang heralded Qrow smacking it aside with his weapon. She grinned affectionately at her uncle until she gets a foreboding feeling.
In a blink she's now elsewhere…her blade narrowly redirecting the piercing to a very light graze. She celebrated silently as the faunus growled, through it became rather shocked as a rainbow blade sliced through his tail. Tyrian reels back as Asriel makes reappearance, a sadistic glee evident on the goat's face.
"You bastard!" He takes a step forward before muttering to himself. He assesses the situation and before Ruby can flick the trigger he flees, leaving a trail of warm blood behind. Asriel's eyes followed the faunus with a cold glare that set Ruby on edge until they softened as his reddish-silver eyes met with her silver ones.
Ruby materialized at her uncle's side as the memory of his injury caught up with her. "Uncle Qrow are you okay?" Her eyes widened as a trickle of blood fell from the wound. The rest of team RNJR caught up with questions on their minds.
"Who was that scorpion guy?" Nora went first.
"Were you…that bird?" Ren…
Jaune stepped with purpose. "Why are they after Ruby?" Ruby gripped her uncle's forearm.
"What's going on?" Qrow groaned and took a seat against a conjured chair.
"Now what's your favorite fair—"
"NOPE!" Qrow's eyebrows scrunched up at the interruption and Ruby moved forward as Asriel pressed his hand against her uncle's wound. His shudders stopped as the green light seemed to…heal him and within seconds the lingering poison was gone. Even more impressive, his aura returned to a over a 100% if what she was sensing was right. Now how she could tell that Ruby didn't know.
"If you don't remember my family is going to die!" His deep gravelly voice became childishly shrill at the last beat.
"Hey, calm them down buddy. Give us some time." Asriel shook his head.
"If you want to talk about Maidens being real, the two God brothers also being real, and the four relics being real be my guest. But at least walk and talk."
"Wait what?" Ruby was incredibly confused, and she felt panic as her uncle suddenly had his sword at Asriel's throat.
"How the hell do you know this?" Asriel chuckled with no hint of fear in his voice.
"I've died way too many times before for that little knife-pistol of yours to be able to scare me." Qrow stepped back as seven hearts glowed sequentially across his chest.
"Stop!" Ruby pushed her uncle back, and he fell against the green translucent chair. "What do you mean by being dead? I'm pretty sure you can only die once."
Asriel gestured with his paw to follow him and the group hesitantly did. "Humans killed me when I was eleven years old…" Ruby felt a chill run down into her soul at the casual mention of child murder. "My own fault too…bringing your adoptive human siblings body to lay amongst the Golden flowers is not a good first impression."
'I think I need a glass of good scotch right now.' Ruby slapped her cheeks at the out of character thought.
"I can give you my world's fairytale while we move. How does it go again?"
"Alright…fine." Ruby frowned at the bitter tone in Jaune's voice but kept quiet wanting to hear. Asriel cleared his throat and the five humans listened intently.
"Long ago, two races ruled over Earth: Humans and Monsters. One day, war broke out between the two races. After a long battle…"
Ruby wondered where Tyrian had fled after the loss of his stupid tail…where would he go now?
'Damn them…damn them all!' Tyrian cursed the Huntsmen as well as the goat monster dragging and limping himself in the direction of the portal. He looked around clenching his fists as he searched for Grimm. His queen may have been powerful, but most of the Grimm are still mindless uncontrollable beasts. There was no guarantee they wouldn't rip him apart if they saw the extent of his injuries.
"Damn them…back to my queen…she'll forgive me…"
The faunus flinched as he heard a rustling in the grass. In mere moments he unleashed an auraless attack cutting through a patch of rustling grass on his right. He kept walking and cursed as his foot was caught on a warm rock.
"Gagh stupid r—"
'Rocks aren't warm…' A searing pain rocked his sore legs as the supposed "stone" sunk its teeth into them. He was thrown back and his back thrust against sharp stones. He growled and looked for another rustle, he promptly shot at it when it emerged. That was when he felt a heavy warm weight behind him. He cried out as five-clawed grip crushed his shoulder, he felt his bones turn to powder under that scaly grip.
Despite the pain Tyrian ripped himself away from his attacker, wanting to face it head on if he had to. For his queen. His eyes widened and his stump twitched as an instinctual fear drove him.
The creature following him was tall, one and half times his height and over five time his own weight and mass. The reptile like beings skin shivered shifted from the color of the dirt and grass underneath him to a greyish-black. It's jaw was box shaped and filled with a row of sharp teeth along with the odd molar that indicated a more omnivorous diet like a bear. It's five fingers ended in inch long claws, augmented by a set of sharp knives with strange glowing runes. It's tail cracked against Tyrian's sternum shattering it with an aura-enhanced blow.
"What the hell?! What are you!" Tyrian tried to crawl away but was unable to, as a three toed foot stomped his sternum a second time. One switchblade like claw in particular stabbed into his lower abdomen keeping him in place. It dropped to its all fours; it's arms inches away from snapping his in two. It seemed to smile with a glee and a sense of deeper purpose. In that instance as the knives glowed with an eerie red light Tyrian felt fear for the first time since arriving here.
"AHHHHH!"
And it would also be his last.
Monster kid was petrified.
He had tried to flee to the evacuation zones with everyone else but he had been knocked aside and got lost during the panic. Now he was somewhere near where the Royal Guard had said those Grimm were nearby. The child felt fear as loud growls warned him of the Grimm. He ducked as an excitable young beowolf lashed out with wide arms, aiming to skewer what it considered a morsel on its long fingers.
In response the young monster unleashed a fireball from his mouth. His will to live was rather strong, strengthening his magic. The ball of magic seared through the wolves eye and it howled in pain. Monster Kid breathed in and shot off four or five more attacks. They all made their mark and the beast of Grimm fell to them easily.
Monster Kid felt tingles on his skin and he shot out a fireball propelling himself back from a meter long black feather. He shook as he realized that feather could have killed him two time over. He peered up at the shadow of a shadowy Nevermore. He made his choice as he noticed it was flying in the direction of the townsfolk. He breathes in gathering as much magical power as possible.
FWOOM!
A massive fireball ten times stronger than his newly achieved attack of 4 followed the tainted crow until it impacted with its mask. The beast shrieked in pain and it flew wildly as it was left blinded by the searing heat of Monster Kid's makeshift special attack.
'Hah gotcha! You won't be hurting anyone else ever ag—.' MK whimpered as the bird dropped right in front of him. Up close he could now see just how big the demonic bird was. The Raven towered over him rivaling a semi truck in length and mass.
"CAWWW!" It's crow shook the small buildings around him and Monster Kid fell onto the ground. He crawled back but found himself trapped by a pack of beowolves.
He had nowhere left to run…
"P-Please…I don't I don't want to d—" the Grimm all rushed at him in hateful glee. He dodged the nevermore but failed to escape from the wolves. They bore down on him with their claws and teeth.
His body weakened as he was attacked. His magic protected him but it wasn't lasting. With each hated filled clamp of toothy jaws, every cut opened up by sharpened claws. His fear crescendoed at the alien hatred and sadism shown in their blood red eyes. No matter how much he begged, cried, pleaded…they wouldn't stop.
"HELP ME!" A flash of light followed and the pain and fear was gone.
…
…
The child opened one eye to find the area free of Grimm, only decaying corpses and black oozing stains left on the ground. He heard the shuffling of several footsteps of varying loudness telling him the rough weight of whoever had saved him. He picked himself up, and carefully balanced himself on wobbly feet. The young monster turned around to face the ones who had saved him.
"A monster?! And some humans?" Monster Kid didn't recognize the tall goat dragon monster though he did remind him of the king and queen. Maybe he was a relative? Five humans popped out of the woodworks from every direction.
His eyes twinkled at the caped human girl holding a Scythe smoking with the aftermath of gunfire. She looked like a superhero in the boy's opinion, as did the other humans. One redheaded girl had a giant war hammer and was being followed by a girly looking boy with two green guns. To their left a scraggly knight with a sword and shield who had finished taking care of a giant bear Grimm. Finally there was the one adult, a dark haired man with a tattered cape and a sword as big as Undyne.
His eyes twinkling like stars he dashed toward the ragtag group with hope. The humans looked wary at his approach but the innocent child ignored their looks.
"Are you dudes gonna help clear out these Grimm thingies?" Kid shuddered at the idea that they wouldn't. But they certainly would right?
The goat gave him an unsettling grin but his voice sounded genuine. "Of course buddy. I just need you to point me to where these freaks are so we can take them out." The child pointed with his head to the northwest and he beamed as the monster pet his head with a smile. Then he felt…
POP!
And now he was with the rest of the evacuated monsters and humans safe and sound.
'How did I get here?!'
Sadly for monster Kid the floorboards of the evac point did not have the answer.
"Fuck," I cracked a Grimm wolf's head open with an aura enhanced pistol whip. "Off you…" I knocked several Ursa aside with a wave of blue magic. "MOTHER—" Three older Boarbatusk met their end as I sliced them to ribbons with my string magic. "FUCKING PIECES OF SHIT!" I blew up in a purple Shockwave with the Grimm within a two-meter radius turned into chunky black salsa.
It had been close to half an hour since the Grimm had begun their attack and there seemed no end to the horde. Despite the routine orbital culling it seemed like two more Grimm popped up for every single one we killed.
The entire guard was fighting desperately for their lives their only protection being their magic and the Cyan Dust shield generators implanted into their cloaks or armor. Undyne was the most effective at culling Grimm but even she would eventually tire as her stamina was used up.
Frisk was acting as basically a white mage, using her barrier to protect us from attack, healing us when necessary, and occasionally isolating Grimm into a perfect bottleneck since they couldn't easily break through her barriers.
And Chara….
"DIE!" She was tearing through them with frightening ease, which made a lot of sense. She fought sans, he's surely a more difficult fight than the generally mindless Grimm.
Her fighting was was a mix between brutality and grace. She ducked and weaved between attacks like the wind. She propelled herself around the battlefield with the recoil of her magic bullets. She would aim for any weak spot imaginable. Eyes, groin, sensitive appendages, or the spaces between their bony armor. A glimpse of the demon she once was peaked through her facade of a normal human.
Tearing off arms with gleeful abandon, biting whenever they got to close. Creating horrific weapons out of magic and testing them out on the hapless Grimm. Brutal blades sliced off limbs, spears and axes skewered and burned through their black goo. Oh and the knives, there was a plethora of knives raining down from the sky.
-Play Hate by Vetrom-
I refocused on my own battle facing an older Grimm, a gorilla sized Beringel. Still a massive animal but far more reasonable to face despite its absurd strength.
Focus inward…reach for that power of the soul and shape it into a physical form. Just like Undyne taught you…
What weapon is right for me…? A sword? An axe or bow? No I think I'll go with something more…ancient. One used by my ancestors long ago…
My hand gripped onto a spear of ancient mesoamerican design, it's grip was comfortable and familiar…like an old friend. Built for both thrusting and slashing, the polearm had done well against the Spanish all those years ago.
But that monster didn't care…for all the ways that Grimm were total mooks in the series they came from. In person they were something truly to behold. Up close I could smell the constant putrid smell of death and decay. There was a strange constant blast of dark steam that poured off the beast of Grimm. Their hide oozed with an abominable blackness and the bone that covered their body was full of strange sores.
And their…eyes. Many say the eyes are the windows to the soul… But all I could see in those eyes was…pain, suffering, and hate, within those red glimmering orbs I saw…their determination to die.
No soul should suffer like they had…
"Don't lose focus." I concentrated on my inner mind.
"Analysis…" I muttered, as time seemed to slow down to my perspective. The gorilla charged with complete wild abandon, and I decided to FIGHT.
The Beringel was a powerful opponent, able to take hits from bladed weapons, multiple sniper bullets…highly adaptive for a Grimm.
Step forward…
The Grimm growled as its punch missed and my spear pierced its skin. The Grimm bellowed and grabbed onto the glowing manifestation of my soul. It's hands sizzled and burned with the power.
It lashed out with a kick and as I lost grip of the spear I detonated it with an application of yellow. Another came to my hand and I burst past another blow. This time I slashed it and opened up its stomach area, the trickle of ooze was seared shut by the bladed head and I smirked.
I jumped up onto a green platform and snatched a boulder it had thrown at me. It was around the size of my torso and likely weighed around my own mass.
Reinforce the bonds within…
The simple rock became impossibly strong as it was infused with raw magic. I lifted up the rock, with a new force. Not my gravity manipulation but something else…
It doesn't much matter anyway. The stone was only lifted ever higher and with pride I let it drop.
BOOSHHH!
The 80-kilogram boulder crashed against the Grimm gorilla with incredible force and speed shattering both of its arms and ones of its legs. Yet my adversary got up anyway, despite the perfectly intact boulder imbedded into its oozing stomach.
Quite a determined one hmm?
Its last stand didn't last as a sonic boom heralded a fifty-caliber bullet hitting it with the equivalent energy of two 20mm autocannons. It fell dead, dissolving away into dusty ashes.
My mind slowed to a regular pace though not before analyzing that marvel of engineering held in her deceptively delicate hands.
A high caliber sniper-scythe hybrid weapon. Propelling a fifty-caliber diameter round through a Wind Dust propellant, though I could not discern much deeper than that.
My Integrity was more effective on… biology instead of mechanical devices.
Seeing team RNJR in person was rather different than seeing them across a screen. Ruby Rose looked little different, though she was slightly less waifish, the scars and muscles of being a hunter of monsters more readily visible. She waved politely and I gave her a silent nod before turning to her friends.
Jaune hardly looked different, though his height was more evident in person too. Also wow Nora's skirt was shorter than I was expecting. But besides that Ren was there too, scanning at me with a close eye.
"Asriel." I wasn't going to ask how he acquired three more souls, though based on the feelings I was getting he didn't kill anyone for them.
"Brandon," He didn't turn around once as he manifested a sword and sliced an Ursa from groin to brain with a single attack. "It's good to see you, if not in the best of circumstances."
"Heh, yeah. So you going to introduce me to your friends?" Asriel had a flowey like smirk on his face and jabbed his thumb at them. The group started in their brief greeting.
"Uh Ruby Rose." Ruby waved awkwardly.
"Nora Valkyrie here, and this is Lien Ren!" Miss genderbent Thor was as friendly as ever and her counterpart was as passive as ever.
"Jaune Arc." I almost expected him to break out into a certain "spiel" but he had grown out of that a long time ago. I quirked a brow as Qrow took a sip of his flask much to his niece's disapproval.
"Qrow Branwen kid." I rolled my eyes, his weak jab having little effect on me. When I took a single look I took a double take at Ruby, I could feel the magic seeping into her veins.
"Why does Ruby have an active determined soul Asriel?" The others looked suitably confused at my reply. I could see interest in Ruby's eye however. It made sense though, I was talking about her soul after all.
"What do mean by that? Asriel told me my soul was different but…" Asriel looked sheepish at that.
"It's a little difficult to explain but I'll try. Determination in the quantities you have is incredibly destructive. DT is the will to live, the power to fight against the entire world and win." She looked disturbed at my expression.
"It can't be that strong." I let out a mirthless laugh, I pointed behind them.
"DIE!" Reality stuttered and the twenty beowolves around Chara exploded, with red knives embedded into their dying bodies. There was a brief glitched shriek and they were gone.
Ruby looked at her friend's face with irritation as they stepped back. Almost certainly she has been dragged along into the time bubble.
"Control time…" Ruby's voice was soft and breathy and it was with discomfort that I realized she was a young woman approaching my age.
Never mind that…
"You understand now don't you?" She nodded wordlessly while tightly gripping onto her weapon.
"You're serious." Jaune looked understandably nervous now.
"The difference between a Determination mage and a normal mage is as much as the gulf between one of you and a Maiden, and Mages are at the level of Maidens." His eyes bugged out of his face with my casual statement. "Fully trained mage obviously. None of us have come close to our true potential."
The air started to shimmer and Ren's pupils shrunk to a tiny pinprick.
The Nuckelavee had stepped out of the battle and hidden, biding its time until we tired and it could finish us off. The arrows stuck in its bodies glowed with light almost as if a piece of its past victims souls lingered on within its ghoulish body. I could see the gallons of blood that stained its body a permanent red.
Okay enough of the prose, even if it's keeping me relaxed(relatively speaking I mean)
The entirety of the defense force directed their gaze at the single Grimm, and I realized that the battlefield had gone silent. Only one Grimm remained standing and it was ready for a fight to the death.
"WATCHA GONNA DO YOU LITTLE SHIT!" I flinched as Undyne taunted the beast of extinction. It's body lit up with an eerie light…
"UNDYNE!" I heard Frisk scream out and I looked on in horror as the hand of the Nuckelavee impaled Undyne…
Observation: Prime Target has Silver Eyes.
Secondary Observation: Secondary and Tertiary targets have Red SOULS.
N҉̱ę̺̥̬̳͎̲w͚̞̮̘̞̼̗̻̻͕̟͞O̱̻̬͈̤͉r̭͖d҉̙̺̗er̶̬̤͈ͅs̪͔̙̣̖̞:͔̜̼̗͘͢H̵̼̳O͕̜̖͎L͖͎̬͠D̛ ̴̜̜̭̮OF̹̲F̣̝̼̟ ̮UN͜T̸I͏̞͎̯L̩̜̺̘ H̨U̙͕̘̝N͕̝͠T͏͔͚͙̹ER̞̪͇̪̤-̝̦͇̺̟͉͟ͅK̨I̵LL̦̞̠̖̳E҉̰̪̝̬̠R҉̖͎̙̬̯͓͎ A̝͔R͏R̦̰̩̳I̕V̢E͇͕͢S͏.̹̻̳̼̠͓͕͠
Orders: Engage combat mode
Undyne was not having the best of days. She was still working through a few dozen stragglers. Half the time she had to drag the various now heavily weakened guards out to be evacuated. Of the royal guard only Papyrus and a new recruit named Red had any juice left within their systems.
Undyne sunk to the floor on a knee ducking below a gigantic beowolf and with a tap; a blue spear drilled its way through the monster like things body.
'Dammit these things just keep coming!' Her frustration was at a boiling point and she nearly snapped at Papyrus as a sharp bone whizzed above her head. She held it back as she saw it shatter an Ursa Major's skull plate. A wild grin pulled at her lips, and with her bare hands she crushed the bears throat.
Undyne dropped into a boxing stance, and sidestepped a gorilla Grimm. When she came in close however she did what any sane person would do.
"SUPLEX!" The gorilla bellowed as its spine was severed at the waist. With another grin she tightened her hold and spun the grimm around, her leaking magical energy forming a cyclone as she threw him.
BWOOM!
She thanked sans as he flew through the air, using his blasters to send flying grimm off course. The skeleton monsters and herself were left fighting a dance of death. An endless horde seeking to consume them.
Undyne fought nonstop, minute after minute, hour after hour. Tearing Grimm apart with her bare hands, her inner Spears, throwing magical attacks again and again. Her hand pressed against her lost eye where an Arcanogram had been painted on. It would provide a gigantic and permanent boost of power…
It just needed a trigger…
"Now there's just you!" Undyne ignored the slightly taller humans warnings, and Undyne ate a bit of Toriel's pie getting her up to 100%. "WATCHA GONNA DO NOW YOU LITTLE SHIT!?"
The horse-imp grimm began to glow…
'Oh I might have tempted fate too much with that one.'
Undyne flinched as she felt a searing pain in her stomach, and her hands shook as they latched onto the arm piercing through her stomach. She heard an slimy sound as the arm retracted and she fell down into a heaving heap.
'Idiot grimm… I was hoping for this.' A smiling Undyne crushed an unnoticed pendant on her chest.
"You can't kill me…" The monster turned toward the Grimm with her blazing eyes burning with determination. "You only did 200 HP of damage moron." She felt her body change and her eye felt strange as a red liquid was used to fuel her magic. A power equal to the Undying...
"I'm not done yet!"
I stood paralyzed as Undyne took several measured steps toward the monster, the hole in her stomach sealing just as fast as it was given. I checked her…and the noise of a clock alerted me to the technologized Check screen, adding on detail as an HUD.
Undyne ATK 99 DEF 99
*The Heroine
The Nuckelavee…
Elder Nuckelavee ATK 99 DEF 39.6
*The Kuroyuri Amalgamation
W-What?!
"What the hell? She just walked off a hole through her." Even Qrow was surprised at Undyne's sudden recovery. Despite the development they lifted up their weapons ready to act as support. The brightening Grimm imp's mouth opened impossibly wide letting out a new banshee scream.
H̥͕͘E̲ͅL̯Ṕ̟͕͕͇͚̗̰̲͉̱̪͡US!̭͎̮̗͖͕̀̕K̳̖̺͈̩̺I̬̩̦͕̲͓͡Ḻ̩͕͔͢L͉̹̘͢ K̻͟I͔͎̻͈̤L͓L̦!͓̥ K̤̱̺I͉̼͖͙̝Ḷ̖̖̠̮L̫!͕̣͇͕̙̦̜̯̩̻D͢I̳͉E҉̫̭͕͉ ̨̰̻D̳͞I̮̯͉̮ͅḚ̡̖̝͇̟̫DI̥E̼͍͞!̡̹͍̙ WE̜̯L̰̹̗̺̲͙̠C̹͚O̦͉͢M̧̙̮͔E̢̜̯̙̣̹̝̙ͅT̡Ơ͉̬̬̭ ̼̤̪̰̱̤́ͅO͔U̟͟R̥̗̖͇͓͉͓̻̰̱ S̝̟̥͈̗̖P͎Ẹ̺͓̖̣̱C̭͚̲͙̹I̱̰̩̮̬͘A̯̻̯̫̠̳̱L ͉́HE͍̼̻͓̭̕L҉̱̫͈͍̬L͚̪̫̦̳̳͖!̨ ̶T̩͙̝̻̤͈HE̛ ̯̠̲͎̰ͅDI̫͔V҉I̤̜̳̳̳̹͍N̬͚͍E H̴̹͉͉A̯͇̕R̖̖͇̯̯̬͓͘B͚̝̟IN̰̹̲̙̠G̞̼͓̦E̦͍̱̭R̬̤͓̺͈̱̙̕ O͍̝͉̰̕F̞̗̠̙̪͚̤͠ A̧͍̝̘̪͕̦SC͚̘͝E͖N̨͇S͔̱̞̪̬Ì͇̫͈̻O̮N̟͕ ̤̪͓̲C̮͕̦͎A͏̫̞̜̜L̦̗̣̱͈̬͜Ĺ͔S̘̟̼̟͢!̘̰̫̩̰̱ ̺͎͎͕͓͙̫̕DE̯͜S̙̝̀T̞̗͡R̠̯͓̻̼̫O̢̜͓̼̲̤Y̘̬̞̬̝̯̯̳͉͈̯ T̶̖̲͙̼H̱̰̙̖͍̟̻E͔͔͍͓̩̼͝U̲̜̭̼̮̲͘N͡D͔͍͉͖̥̤̲E͇̗͖̩͢ͅAḎ̦̳̱ ͔͚͔̠S̤̤̖͘E̻̺̥RA̺̠P͎̀H͖̞͇͕̖̲́ ̱͇O̼̼͖͓F̶̹͚͓͔ ̦S̴̻̩I̜͇̝͜L͔͈V͏̤̦̦̩̩̱E̝R͖̳̰͖̠̗!̥ ̬̣͓̳́
Why am I on the ground?
"Woah kid get up." My senses came back to men and out of an odd reflex I fired the hand cannon I had six times, nicking the Grimm in its moment. In one blink it was now in front of me and I realized I had made a terrible mistake coming here.
I nearly lost my lunch as I lurched back from a single swipe of its claws. One hit was enough to drop my aura by 10% and I groaned as my head met the hard ground.
The Grimm screamed and Undyne saved me as she redirected the slash. An enraged Ren nearly lost his head as a beam of orange energy missed. A green barrier saved him, and wind rushed past me as Asriel burst meeting the monstrous Grimm hybrid halfway. In an instant the Grimm threw Asriel tens of meters into the air.
"You think that can take me down! I haven't even gotten started."
No way Asriel could lose to a mere Grimm like this one.
Ḑ̞̤IE̴̜̪̠͚!̥͞!͎̭͚͔͚́͘T̷̘H͖E̸͇̖̳̦̼ ̧̩̞̮͖͖̭W͉̖E̸̱̺̘̱͈Ṇ͈̠̬͍D̵͕͙̝̠̱I͍͇G̜O̦̱ ̪̝͓͈͇̼̝͡I̷̲͓̖͍̯̗S̼̝̙͠ C̰̫̖͟O̝͔͚M̨̯IṆG̻͍͍̜̯͙̗͘!͇͈̖̬̦͚̰͢
Asriel was knocked aside by…a monstrous creature. That nevermore rivalled Kevin in size and majesty and I held back my fear as best as I could. The divine beast opened its wings, hovering without movement and I shook my head as a buzzing started. Dozens of blue and orange orbs formed following the movements of its wings.
Oh God…
"MOVE YOUR ASSES NOW!"
The battlefield exploded and I was caught in the absolute maelstrom of destruction left by the beast of Extinction. The dust started to clear and the only monster and people left standing were the foreigners, Frisk, Chara, Undyne, sans, and Papyrus and Asgore. Everyone else was injured but alive and well though I had no idea where Penny had gone off. Even Toriel and Gaster had been knocked out of the fight and were sent off to guard the town.
From my left…The Nuckelavee attacked.
I ducked, landing an open palm strike on its chest. It's arms swung around and I was knocked away. I landed on my feet, my integrity keeping me rooted. Undyne was the next attack and she moved, her head smashing into its sides with all the force of a barge crash. My eyes could barely keep up
A whistle warned me of the seemingly endless feather bombardment, as the greater Nevermore tried to strike us down from above. Each feather left craters on the ground impacting more like small tank rounds than keratin structures.
"That thing." Ruby's eyes seemed to stare at nothing, her hands turning white as her grip tightened around Crescent Rose. "It's a monster…" her friends gave her a look as she glowed.
"You know what? Fuck this shit…" I growled and smacked a small rock against her head.
"Hey!" Ruby rubbed her head in pain, and I ignored my instincts screaming at me to run as her companions stared at me.
"I need you all to start focusing okay? We have two giant abominations we need to kill before they kill us and proceed to slaughter an entire species completely unequipped to fight a race of murder machines."
"Okay…sorry but come on we just got sucked into another dimension. We've got a little room for error right?" Ruby defended herself against.
"I went through the same thing and I had to fight him." I pointed to Asriel as he fired off star blazing. "For control over the timeline. So please get to work and act like the slayer of demons you are." Ruby's expression shifted and she became more serious. She almost slipped however as her soul glowed from her body.
"How do I?" I guess she's going to get a crash course on magic.
"You know how you reach out for your aura right?" She nodded which this easier for me. "Go deeper, start thinking about why you're here, what motivates you to keep moving forward despite all you've lost. Reach for your determination to keep on fighting, for justice, your kindness. Evolve to more than you once were."
Because that was what magic really was. The sheer force of will to tell physics to fuck off. The power to manipulate reality and to change your fate.
The Nuckelavee grinned, and its claws glowed with light before it twisted it's body. I felt sick as I heard the squelch of flesh and the crackle of breaking bones. The Grimm was…summoning a tornado?!
We were all forcibly lifted into the air and I felt my breath leave my legs as I took a horse kick to my lower abdomen. The Grimm disappeared from sight and launched a kick that turned Nora into a cannonball. She was left with a near broken aura as she impacted into the ground.
It tried to finish her off until a wild looking Ren roared and several aura bursts pushed the beast back. The Nuckelavee claws extended to several times their original size spearing into Ren's aura. Dozens of hits later and Ren crumpled to the ground as his aura was drained to its present limit. I flinched as the Grimm pilfered from Ruby.
It's going to murder her friends using her own weapon...
"S-Stop it!" Undyne's charge was slowed as Ruby screamed, and I sweat as the magical pressure was utterly oppressing. "YOU WON'T TOUCH THEM!" Ruby turned into a red blur.
BOOM!
Ruby broke the sound barrier as her semblance went completely wild. Hundreds of rose petals were picked up by the wind. I could feel the roses structure shiver as magic changed them, shaped them into something more.
Don't just watch, fight!
Just as I moved, Ruby hit the elder Grimm like a red comet exploding with an equal amount of force. The roses formed into glowing blades and each made their deadly mark on the Grimm.
CRACK CRACK CRACK!
A sound like lightning seemed to come down from the sky and the greater Nevermore screeched.
"How is that nevermore still alive?" There was worry in Qrow's voice. That thing was fighting Asriel and still alive. It seems Asriel is a lot weaker without the barrier affecting his determination. But even then that Grimm is taking attacks that would shatter our aura in a single blow.
No, fight the Nuckelavee take care of its superior later…
"DIE!" Undyne yelled out a battle cry, her left eye glowing scarlet as she summoned her spears. As I watched the three clash at near supersonic speeds, an idea came to mind.
"We have to lead them away from the city."
"Hmm? Why?" Jaune sounded curious on my reasoning.
"Because if we can lead them far enough away, the Lusitania." Yeah that's what's it's called. "Can bombard the Nevermore without any chance of a slug striking the city." My eyes widened as Ruby and Undyne moved toward the nevermore. They forced the horse Grimm back
"Good idea!" Asriel called out from above as he flew outside the city bounds. The Grimm followed unable to resist its instincts. We followed as well.
I grit my teeth and jumped a few meters in the air, activating my barriers in midair and using them as I skated using my aura. I out sped everyone short of Ren and Qrow.
"Yello? Is this the right number?"
"What is it Amira?" I asked her tiredly as I directed blue waves to push the Nuckelavee back. While I talked I traced a dozen bolts launching them right between that things eyes.
No visible damage…bounced off the lense…
"We have taken care of a group that attempted to ambush us from the other side. A great number of creeps attempted to burrow under the city to kill the population." Penny was the one to answer the question and I could her simulate tiredness indicating a drop in her energy reserves.
"Just take those Grimm another 300 meters out and the ship can aim it's orbit-to-ground cannons safely."
Helpful…
"Got it!" I nearly had a heart attack as Chara answered from my left. She blinked away and the nevermore screamed as dozens of knives tried to carve out its eyes. It didn't work but it was a good try.
The Nuckelavee let out a shivering cry as we surrounded it. A nasty wound was carved in its side by Undyne's spears. It took a shield bash from Jaune and a lightning boosted hit from a rejuvenated Nora, a bone impaled it and I gave sans a grin.
Our confidence melted away as the Grimm only grew stronger; it's body twitching with excitement. It grinned as it looked at something behind me. Frisk had bent down to heal Asgore…
"Frisk!" The Grimm launched itself toward her while her guard was down, it's claws extending and bursting into flames. A wind blew us back as an enraged Asgore charged meeting the Grimm halfway.
"YOU WON'T TOUCH THEM!" His power suddenly skyrocketed out shining the still rising power of Undyne.
A wave of fire engulfed the horse Grimm, it's enraged hissing vibrating the air. A wave of orange magic detonated the magic missiles and it blocked a spear sliced with one hand, and chopped against Ruby's scythe. A weak cry left it'd throat as Asgore thrust his spear into the grimms chest. It pulled away and the two giant beings made battle.
It parried Asgore's trident with its claws. Asgore struck back, backslapping the Grimm into the ground. It's horse feet scrambled for purchase and it lashed out with its imp arms. The two fought on and off, blow after blow hitting but not crippling either of them. For a brief second I made out and opening…and took it.
I jumped in and released the pent up energy from all my previous runs with death. Its chest seemed to cave in as the energy of a world war era tank cannon did its work. It bounced back with little fanfare and I deflected a blow with my conjured spear. Dozens of yellow bolts of energy flew in an Omni directional attack, and Ruby blocked them with her weapon. Our nine-foot tall king gripped the Grimm's waist and leaped into the air and twisted in the air adding even more power to his attack. It was thrown out of the way and dozens of bullets pinged off or embedded in its flesh. A glance back told me Qrow, Ruby and Ren were on the ball. I smiled as I realized where it had landed.
"MOVE NOW!" in a flash we were jumped back a hundred meters by sans magic. He nearly collapsed to the ground until I rushed over to catch him.
A meteor shower followed and I was nearly brought down to my knees as dozens of slugs rained down onto the Grimm with impunity. Pelted by the equivalent firepower of multiple cruise missiles the Grimm slowly fell down to the sky. As the Nuckelavee disappeared into the plasma fireball I could see Ren's confused dissatisfaction.
"Oh man…where did that come from?" Ruby's chest was heaving as she coughed. Her aura was flickering with the colors of her soul, likely not used to the activity.
Ren calmed down. "That was…less planned than I expected…" We didn't have the most warning and Monsters aren't used to fighting true beasts. This wasn't going to be some master battle plan.
A crowing laugh stopped us in our tracks and from the smoke, dark wings opened wide. A gust of wind blew the cloud away, revealing that monster was still alive.
I could see marks where molten metal was cooling from cracked or broken skin and one of its eyes was gone, a spear of tungsten metal piercing it. From underneath it's wing the Nuckelavee remained alive. The glassed ground cracked underneath the larger monsters talons and it crowed another sadistic laugh. It's laugh abruptly stopped and there was a change in Frisk's expression. A suddenly call rang and I picked up absently.
"Boy…"
"Red why are you—"
"You need to run…" There was raw terror in the usually brave dwarf raptors voice.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Loud and rhythmic footsteps were the first warning…
The startled shriek as the Grimm were torn apart and consumed was the second. The loud snap of breaking wings and the squelch and yelp of the Nuckelavee only added to the horror.
Ruby's scream of pure agony was the third…
I woke up, my body shivering and shaking as I was cradled by a crying Frisk? I felt a searing pain across my chest. When I touched it I winced at the tenderness. I didn't remember much, only the last few moments of the fight.
Ruby's blood curdling scream…
"What happened? Frisk are you…" I trailed off as she looked past me, muttering to herself with empty eyes.
"She's been like that since we chased that monster out." I was startled as Shepherd appeared from a broken down hallway I hadn't noticed. She looked tired beyond belief, the bags in her eyes clear.
"No, no please…not again, anything but that." I brushed back Frisk's hair as a spike of worry hit me.
"What happened? What do you mean chased out?" Amira pursed her lips, her expression haunted.
"A new Grimm popped out of nowhere…it was strong. Impossibly strong and it bi—it." Amira looked suitably horrified and I didn't know what that sick feeling in my stomach was. "It did…so many terrible things before a few dozen shots from the Lusitania and a combined team attack from…everyone finally ran it off."
"We didn't kill it?" She looked frustrated at my question.
"Brandon?" Her voice was frigid and I stiffened up at her fierce expression. "Do you have any idea of what just happened to you?" Frisk whimpered as Amira's voice picked up in loudness. I shook my head. Her hand curls tightly against my shoulder, and she looked away. "You've been in a coma for three days."
W-What?!
"H-How?" A pounding headache seemed to come on with my question and my eyes blinked out tears.
"The third Grimm…it started by…eating the other Grimm." That's not normal, Grimm don't eat each other. "It was…god's just remembering their screams gives me goose bumps."
The other scream returned to the forefront of my mind.
"And Ruby?" She went stock-still and I asked her a second time. "Ruby…where is she?"
"I…" She looked choked up and I heard her mutter something. I gave her a look and she relented with hesitance. "It tore her legs off…"
…
…
I lurched back and with a still catatonic Frisk still in tow I released whatever monster food nutrients they must have been feeding me. Flashes of screams for help, of crunching bone and…
"When they brought her to the lab…I wouldn't say I was surprised…horrified maybe. But not surprised." There was a contemplative look on her face. Like she had seen this all before.
"I…"
"We sent every bit of ground based firepower we had while the ship got a read on. We paid the price for it though, thank God nobody died though. I can't say as much for some of the surrounding villages."
Those poor people…
"What happened to us…" Frisk had a cast on her arm…
"You," She mumbled before replying more clearly. "The Grimm ripped you open and cracked your skull."
I could have died…
"You almost didn't make it." She waited for me to calm down as I let out a breath. "Frisk's arm was broken, and she's been screaming in her nightmares since then. Legion had a hole punched through him, when he picked up Ruby to save her. Ren and Nora had two broken ribs and a broken leg respectively. Jaune came out okay…just a lot of pulled muscles. Undyne and Papyrus were almost dusted."
How could everything go so wrong? One minute we're winning and the next we're…
"I need to see Ruby."
"Are you sure?" I nodded, I felt worry. One she…had to be in so much pain and it was my pl—don't be stupid. I couldn't have predicted this. Two this happening is going to send their entire future off the rails. Whether that's a bad thing or a good thing I don't know. But I had a goal I…
"Yes."
She looked really small in a hospital bed…
Closely monitoring her was Penny while holding a bundle of something large. For a moment I thought Ruby asleep until her eyes opened wide. Her eyes were clear silver, and I shivered as I remembered another pair of Silver eyes.
"So…guess you're up." I nodded not able to believe she could still be so calm after losing a vital part of her body. She shrugged with a fake smile on her face and I shuddered as more memories came flooding back.
"It's not…so bad…they managed to get my legs back if in…" No words were needed to state the obvious.
"Indeed," Penny spoke up in a monotone voice. "Frisk and Toriel's healing magic kept the remaining biomass functioning and cybernetic implants plus regrown tissue recovered the rest of the lost mass. In fact today is the day they'll be returned to her…" I nodded absently and felt a rough patch on my skin where the claws of that thing had left their mark. When I had changed my clothes I had seen the long thin slash that went from my upper chest to my lower abdomen.
I was lucky to be alive…
"Brandon." I turned to Amira who had the same look as before. "Do…you know remember anything from then?" I shook my head and a cough from Ruby caught my attention. She gestured for us to come closer. We did so. "I remember…right after my legs…you know. You were the first to react, the earth under your feet moved and you knocked it off balance." I nodded and her expression shifted. "Then it hit you with its claws, breaking through your aura in a single hit. You cracked your skull open when you fell on a shape rock. Then the geth? Yeah he grabbed me despite getting a hole punched with a claw and got me to a hospital."
"Okay?" I was confused on what she was saying to me. I flushed as her hands reached for my own. Her grip was strangely weak and I let her be for now.
"If it wasn't for you I would probably have died." She was extremely honest and sincere in her statement. "So thank you." I nodded as she let me go. Amira gently pulled me away and whispered.
"You need to rest another day and Toriel, Alphys, and a doctor from the Lusitania have to get to work." She tilted her head to Ruby and I understood.
The next few hours of day and sleep were a blur and the next morning we had gathered together on what to do next. Ruby was in a wheelchair with a thin blanket covering her lower and upper body. Frisk had removed her cast and the rest of team RNJR had downcast looks as they stared at their out of commission teammate. Qrow was actively drinking, though there was an intense look on his face. Amira's mother was infuriated and I couldn't meet her eyes for long. She was the first to speak.
"Well this is a right fucking mess isn't it?" No one disagreed with her, not even Papyrus as he nursed a headache. "From what the grapevine back home is telling me. They're started to consider a glassing campaign." She looked even angrier now.
"Glassing?" Ruby asked with a tilt of her head. The military women groaned and rubbed the bridge of her nose.
"Orbital bombardment of the entire planet." Hannah's reply was quiet dry despite the horror on everyone's faces.
"That would kill everyone!" Toriel exclaimed, loudly against the idea.
"They would probably evacuate the entire population." That does not reassure anyone at all. In fact…
"I still have questions. Since I don't have the clearest memoryof what happened. Can someone tell what the hell that Grimm was." Frisk shook her head briskly, shivers wracking her body. The others had the same question written on their faces. Legion stood up and an image projected itself into the center of the room.
It was…hard to look at it.
The Grimm looked almost humanoid in some manner of the word. The creature was gaunt to the point of emaciation, it's skin fit lightly to the frame of its internal skeleton. Long thin arms supported razor sharp claws glittering with a red light. Bones seemed to stick out, haphazardly acting as dense and strong armor over vital points. Its body was colored grey distinct from the usual black goo that coated the body of its more normal brethren. The upper half of its head were the eyes would be, were hidden by a deer shaped mask oozing with darkness, it's eyes a vibrant red. It's tattered and rotten lips were curled into a wide and inhuman grin painted by blood. It looked rather like a corpse had been brought back from the dead.
Was I shaking?
"You okay?" I think you know the answer to that question Amira. Take a deep breath and calm down. That's it…better.
"What do we know about that thing?" We needed some information so we could kill it. Surprisingly it was Jaune who had the answers this time.
"That Grimm can shape shift. It changed in size from like 15 feet tall to over five hundred feet throughout the course of the fight. When it left it turned into gas to flee." But that would mean it could circumvent our defenses in our sleep and—
"Thankfully that gas form is easily detectable and is only useful as a method of transport." Thanks Gaster.
"Anything else?" Asking more questions was good for keeping me calm.
"It's an ancient Grimm, with the first sighting being in the 2060s." that would mean it survived for several centuries at the bare minimum. "It seems to grow stronger and larger with each Grimm it consumes though with its shape shifting we can't tell. Incredibly durable, fast and hyper intelligent, that thing is more than capable of killing us all."
"So why are we still alive?" Qrow broke in with a narrowing of his eyes, his hands tightly gripping his flask.
"To make us suffer…" Red's statement was clear and we all turned to face him.
"You know what that thing is?" There was tiredness as well as buried grief in the old birds eyes at my question.
"The most recent sighting was a little over three years ago." Frisk froze and mouthed a "no" Though he ignored her plea. Three years ago…but that would mean…
Frisk wouldn't meet my eyes and Toriel gasped as the realization hit her.
"That monster came to a town of about ten thousand people, the second largest in this region. Ten thousand people and only three people escaped alive." His expression was grim and his eyes were shadowed. "The only reason that thing stopped was because of the sacrifice of two humans to seal it away."
"My child…" Toriel placed a hand on Frisk and frowned as the girl flinched away.
"You need to tell us more." Red tilted his head toward Frisk, and she sighed.
"Okay…but not here." Her eyes darted back and forth between. "I know a place…it might have some clues and I'll only talk with four people."
"So is the expedition on hold indefinitely?" Amira asked the question with a nervous look.
"Negative, current calculations indicate that human magic is potent counter against the creature of Grimm. Several more vessels will arrive in 10 days seven hours, 32 minutes and 45 seconds." Legion said all that with a monotone voice though there was an undertone of…something I couldn't describe.
"We're going."
As I stood up to follow Frisk along with sans, Toriel, Amira, and Ruby of all people though escorted by her uncle from a distance. I pleaded to anyone that this would help us. I stopped for one final question however.
"What is it called? It had to have a name right?" Frisk was silent as entered the streets of the still worried town, approaching a shuttle. Just as we entered the ship, she replied. Her eyes were dull and lifeless.
"Wendigo."
My veins turned to ice at the name…
—Play The Power of All for One—
In a distant village a man did his best to keep from showing his fear as a beast took shape from a black mist. He was the last left, all the others long lost to the materializing beast, lambs to the cosmic slaughter. The man yelled out useless words, trying to intimidate the beast.
"I'll kill you, you bastard! I'll—" the man gurgled as I a blink on an eye, a massive ash grey hand curled around his body. He broke down pleading for his life before the grimm tightened his grip crushing him into paste.
The image distorted showing it to be a projected image in an unknown location. Two entities watched though only one of them physically existed within the confines of the universe.
"A potent new soldier for me…I must thank you for the generosity. This game between my brothers and I has grown quite tiresome over the eons." an aged and feminine voice ended the silence within the void, not to the surprise of the second being.
"You will help us won't you? I would hate to see such potential wasted…"
"Of course, your Ascension was an unexpected event but also quite exciting. We have reached the apex. We can move on to the next world." There was a smile on the first beings voice, and her delicate eyebrows lifted up as other images came.
"It was a simple trade. I didn't have to waste energy in creating them. The humans did the work for me. If only their accidental creator hadn't jumped bodies or more such containers could be made."
The fog faded revealing the two beings, though one of them was still covered in shadows regardless. The first being looked human if with a pale white and lifeless skin. Deep red and black veins ran up her arms and face and periodically glimmered with red. Her red irised eye blinked and the Wendigo stopped in its tracks.
Orders?
"Place the body there." The monster followed it'd masters intent and from its back a rotting Faunus body came to light. It ran up to a cracked spike and with a squelch impaled the body onto the spike. "Remain hidden until Cinder requires your assistance. Destroying Haven will be a clear demonstration of your power."
"You like them?" The queen of Grimm smiled as the orb shifted its view across the globe. She cursed that she could only see where her seers could. But her new pets did put a smile on her face.
From the shore of Cairo, its remaining people had unveiled the great Sphinx. The people celebrated until from the water of the great river, a beast so similar in shape to the ancient stayed arose from the waters. A flash of light followed and the entire shoreline was burnt to a crisp.
In the land of the rising sun, a village of invaders was under attack. The people were out of place and out of time. Their animalistic ears tried to become part of their scalps and their tails wrapped their bodies as their fear took hold of them. A human among them screamed.
"ONI!" From burning ashes a dark figure arose, their eyes blazing red and their fangs poking out of a hideous face. The 30-foot tall being roared and the image shifted as the beast lot up into flames, charging all the while.
The eye sunk into the deepest point of the pacific as a swimming Leviathan headed toward the last pacific islands with intent. The tuatara like creature was the largest of its kind, black ooze dripped from its pores as it swam poisoning the water. It stopped to nuzzle a rusted up nuclear carrier, it's head alone ran a third of the length of the old vessel. It's skull plating covered the entirety of its head, three eyes blinking as it obtained it's orders.
"What will you do with them?" the devil on the women's shoulder asked with an emotionless curiosity.
"I need only the Oni…a test against Menagerie should prove sufficient." The said monster moved after cutting down the last remaining villager, though others had managed to escape.
"Don't you need them? In every iteration you always have."
"You know it won't make a difference at this point. The White Fang always falls eventually."
"Hmm…"
The two grew silent watching as the beast's wreaked havoc across an already broken world.
The Beasts of Extinction had awoken…