Chapter 37: A Life well Lived
"W-Wasure?!" Ruby said as she limped her way towards the blonde look-alike of her deceased friend. The blonde haired woman turned around to face everyone before looking down at Ruby who slowly made her way towards her. "Is that… really… you?" Ruby asked, not sure on how to proceed on this. The cafeteria went silent as it waited for an answer which seemed like it never came.
"Yes Ruby, it's me…" The familiar smooth and warm voice of Wasure filled the whole cafeteria, seemingly brightening up the whole atmosphere as if a lingering feeling of despair had been removed.
Ruby started to tear up, trying her best not to cry but failed to prevent the inevitable and crashed into Wasure, hugging her incredibly tight as she cried on her. Wasure smiled warmly and hugged Ruby before the rest of the team surprised Wasure by turning the single hug, into a group hug. Wasure simply closed her eyes with a smile and wrapped her arms as best as she could around the four girls.
"You idiot…" Weiss muttered to herself, trying to keep her voice soft and quiet to not let anyone hear her crying and sniffling.
Blake was just silent, not because it was just like her to not say anything, but because she was all choked up and couldn't say anything.
"So it was true… beating your mentor did bring you back…" Yang said finally feeling at ease.
Wasure opened her eyes and frowned before gently pushing the four back, getting odd looks from them. "Actually… you didn't beat him…" Wasure said before getting a bunch of puzzled looked.
"Wh-What do you mean? I-I mean… you're standing right here in front of us and you're alive after we beat that mentor of yours!" Ruby said, confused.
"She came here on her own free will… that is a literal statement. Considering she was within a state of limbo after dying, she was conserving energy and now… she has used it all to just create a human form… a shell of the Wasure you know. She tossed aside all her emotions and practically exchanged them for more power and time to stay in that physical form…" The man in black said before he came walking towards the group, only to stop a few meters away. "To put it simply, her soul is now what you see, a physical representation of her body. This is her final stand before she fades out of existence, and once that is done… even I don't think I can bring her back, she was an accident after all." The man in black said calmly.
"Wasure... are you saying you're…?" Ruby couldn't say the rest of the sentence as she saw the warm smile Wasure was giving, now seemed like with someone who had accepted fate and held no regrets.
"We're friends right? I couldn't let Yang die… after all, a big sister has to watch out for her younger siblings…" Wasure joked, making fun of how Yang would sometimes call her big sis and the sort. "Now… hold still…" With that Wasure got on one knee and quickly relocated Ruby's right knee joint before getting back on her feet and turned to face the man in black.
"I guess considering this is where it all ends… you won't care for the outcome anymore… will you?" Wasure asked.
"Nope…" The man in black said before he spun his swords around. "But it's worth a shot to try and obtain your freedom with this last stand, make things interesting." He added with a grin.
"We've got your back Wa-..." Ruby paused when she saw Wasure suddenly stare at Ruby, the warm feeling that was just there a moment ago was now gone, and instead was replaced with a cold serious death stare. Ruby took a few steps back before Wasure turned her head back forward to face her mentor and creator.
"I would prefer it if none of you fought anymore, you aren't in any condition to help me as it is… so just sit back and watch." Wasure coldly said.
"You make the first move…" The man in black said before Wasure clenched her hands closed before kicking up two pieces of one of the wooden dining tables and they transformed into large machine guns that Wasure dual wielded before immediately opening fire on him.
The man in black grinned before he took a step forward before swinging his sword and sliced through the first bullet, before following the barrage of bullets that awaited him, he seemed to actually have been doing a dance, making his way closer and closer to Wasure with each step and pose as he blocked each bullet in sync with his moves.
Wasure kicked a chunk of stone towards the man in black before it seemingly glowed silver and changed its shape into a grenade, which soon was sliced in half by the man in black who noticed a little too late before it blew up right next to him. She ran up to the man in black, now within a cloud from the used black powder. She changed her guns to a shield and a lance before sliding to a stop as she lifted her new shield to block the first attack her mentor had to give her. With that done, she thrusted her lance forward before feeling flesh and only got more serious as she felt the lance get pulled.
When the smoke faded, Wasure had blocked the broadsword and had barely missed a thrust from katana, yet the weirdest part was that there was a third arm that had pulled the lance deeper into the man in black, he was doing it to himself.
The lance suddenly popped out multiple gun barrels before opening fire on the man in black, filling him with bullet holes that only closed and healed after a few seconds. Wasure jumped back, leaving the lance inside the man in black and watched as it corroded away like it was touching acid, she also watched as the third arm seemed to recede back into the man in black's body. The remaining bits of the lance fell to the ground being nothing but a melting clump, though the man in black only grinned as the large wound caused by the lance quickly healed up.
"He was going easy on us…" Ruby muttered, noticing the tension between the two. The aura of the sinister and sadistic man in black, and the determined dead-serious aura of Wasure. "They are on an entirely different level…" Ruby said, astound on how after fighting her and the rest of her team, followed by everyone else; the man in black hadn't gotten much damage and still seemed full of energy.
"There's only one way I can win this…" Wasure thought as she kicked up a chunk of debris before it changed into a katana and then grabbed it before spinning it around and took a stance, the shield grew larger and thicker, yet looked light to lift. "And that's by getting as much contact with him!" Wasure shouted in her head before she pushed off the ground, instantly being pushed into the air and flew towards the man in black who took a stance and waited.
When Wasure came close enough, still in the air, the man in black swung his katana and Wasure dodged it, using her own katana she blocked the broadsword. With both of the man in black's weapons stopped, Wasure quickly put her feet on the ground and pushed forward with her legs, following her shield arm to push away the man in black's katana. Wasure bashed the shield in the man in black's face to stun him before Wasure dropped her katana and placed her hand on the man in black's chest before a silver light glowed from the point of contact. The man in black's eyes widened before he looked down and quickly pushed Wasure's arm aside before roundhouse kicking the side of her head straight into the ground. She was stunned and put her hand on her head as she tried to regain her senses.
"Stealing power from me? That is so animalistic if it's you trying to steal power from me… like a leech wanting blood. Though it's a smart idea and possibly the only way you'll truly stand a chance… you should of have done a bigger sneak attack and have waited till I as too busy to notice." The man in black said before he spun his katana around so he held it in reverse, the blade running up with his arm. He held the katana over Wasure as she was still trying to recover, it was obvious the man in black was about to stab Wasure while she was down.
Yang clenched her hands closed before she ran towards the man in black, ignoring everyone's shouts. She was angry and wouldn't put up with it anymore, she wouldn't allow Wasure to die a second time and just watch this time. Before Yang quickly made her way to he man in black, she unloaded her right gauntlet and put a single black shotgun shell in before giving her gauntlet a little shake to lock everything back into place before she leapt into the air, nearing the man in black with her right fist pulled back and ready to unleash hell with one shot.
Before Yang knew it, she suddenly came to a stop, still in the air. Her eyes widened and her senses went funny, she felt something numb at her stomach, her vision started to blur, and she thought she heard several people call her name almost like screams, but they were all mushed together and she couldn't make them out as they faded in and out. But she soon noticed she was looking straight at the man in black, face to face, before trailing down his arm before seeing his hand holding the katana, blood running down the blade and his hand. The man in black had quickly changed the holding of his katana and had stabbed Yang while she still was in the air.
"Remember when you agreed to helping Wasure by beating me? This was one out of two outcomes for how this fight would end…" The man in black whispered before he moved his arm and quickly flicked his hand before Yang slid of the blade from the force of the swing and flick and then tumbled to a stop, not moving as her blood started to leak all around her into a puddle. Everyone ran towards Yang in a hurry, except for her father who looked shocked, like he was still processing what was happening.
"Yang..." Her father whispered before lightning shot around him, his face turned into one of rage before he charged at the man in black. "I'LL KILL YOU!" He shouted as he ran as fast as he could towards the man in black who stood there, the electricity building up around Taiyang.
"Really? When I've already cut you down?" The man in black whispered in Taiyang's ear before walking behind him, Taiyang was still as a statue before his chest suddenly ruptured with blood in the form of an X. Both of the man in black's blades were now dripping with blood. He gave them both a flick to remove the blood before Taiyang fell to his knees before falling face down.
"Yang! Talk to me!" Ruby shouted as she shook her sister, not getting anything as she started to panic.
"Move, I need room!" Qrow shouted as he caught up with everyone else as they surrounded Yang, he quickly got the room he needed before he ripped his shirt up into strips and started putting pressure on Yang's wound before laying her on her side. He then tried to do what he could about the wound.
Wasure finally came back to her senses, she looked in the direction of where she could hear everyone's voice, they were all huddled together. Ruby looked up and then looked away from where everyone was looking before she looked at one certain location and ran off in that direction, screaming her father's name as she passed Wasure in a blur. Though with Ruby now move, the others watched where Ruby went and ran off after her except Qrow, Wasure saw what happened her eyes widened. She saw Yang laying still in a puddle of her blood.
"You…" Wasure said before she put her hands on the ground and pushed herself slowly up. She closed her hands, making a tight fist that was strong enough to pop her fingers. "BASTARD!" Wasure shouted before she suddenly pushed off the ground, becoming a blur with the ground being ripped up as it headed straight to the man in black. In the blink of an eye Wasure appeared in front of the man in black with a closed fist and eyes full of rage and tears. She screamed at the top her lungs, shaking the whole area like it was an earthquake before sending a punch straight into the man in black's face, the power of the force sent him flying and crashing into the wall till he was halfway inside it.
"I feel so damn stupid! I never should have asked for you help! I never should have asked for freedom! You never should have created me!" Wasure shouted before she ran towards the man in black before jumping off the ground and crashed a hand through the wall next to where the man in black was before she placed her walls on the leg and held on. "Yet here I am! You couldn't have just created me like the other two! With no emotions for others! But no!" She shouted before she started punching the man in black right in the face over and over again. "I was a fool to believe you truly had any soul! You used me like the weapon I am and have no concern for those around you!" She shouted before her punches started to force the man in black's head deeper into the wall. "You slaughtered people who called you friend like they were nothing AND WITH ME BEING THE CAUSE!" Wasure shouted before she suddenly stopped her bombardment of punches as tears flowed down her cheeks, she had her fist still ready to send another punch as she cried.
"Do you have any idea how much it hurts inside me?" To be the actual murderer of so many people whenever you used me as a weapon? To see cities small and large burn just for your amusement while I drip with the blood of hundreds to millions from possibly a single night of terror?" Wasure asked as her voice started to quiver. "Even now… I feel like I still am the cause of those murders and especially right now… I feel like I just caused Yang to die…" She said before she lowered her fist, and ripped her other hand free and dropped down to the ground before she sat against the wall and put her forehead to her knees as she curled up in a ball. "I was at peace when I died, glad that I no longer had to worry about losing my friends or causing another death. But I no longer feel that way… I feel like…" Wasure stopped talking before she suddenly felt two objects fell right beside her.
She looked up and to her sides before she saw the man in black's katana on one side and the broadsword on the other side. She looked up to see the man in black standing where his feet had crashed into the wall, with open hands and was looking down at Wasure.
"I yield…" He said before Wasure's eyes widened at those words. She watched as the man in black calmly defied gravity and walked down the wall before putting a foot on the ground and then the other before he walked over to Qrow and Yang, gently pushing Qrow out of the way. Though Qrow wasn't watching what had happened and almost tried to attack the man in black before he seemed to calm down and moved aside.
The man in black crouched down and looked over Yang, she had bloody bandages and wasn't look good, her skin was slightly pale looking. The man in black put a hand on the wound he inflicted before the blood puddle around Yang seemed to shrink and Yang's regular skin color returned. After a short moment the man in black removed his hand and all the blood was gone, he removed the bandages which were Qrow's ripped up shirt to reveal the wound was all healed and there was nothing but fresh scar in its place. Yang wasn't awake though, yet her sudden snoring signaled she was alright and sleeping.
He walked over to Taiyang and did the same thing, though this time no scars appeared where the wound was, though there was no worry for if Taiyang was conscious or not, his snoring let everybody a sigh of relief.
"Well… shit." The man in black said as he suddenly leaned back before falling straight on his back, arms spread out, "I can't move." He said with a smile and an oddly warm chuckle.
"Wh-What just happened?"Ruby asked, her and the rest around Taiyang had kept their distance from the man in black when he came over.
"The fight is over, you've beaten me…" The man in black said calmly.
"But… why?" Wasure asked as she made her way over to them slowly.
"You forgot just who I am Wasure. I was once like you, feelings were natural for me at my early years, before I reclaimed you I had lost the emotions for others over time. A common soldier ranked Private in a war hesitates when he fires his gun at the enemy, however a veteran war soldier does not hesitate to shoot and kill, though they were once rookies. Call it a moment of clarity in realizing how similar we are Wasure. I've had to kill my closest friends when I sure as hell didn't want to, but I did and cried about it later. You've have a well lived life here that technically hasn't gone to shit unlike me." He answered. "Come here, I need to end our agreement." He said before Wasure quickly made her way to him.
"Get me my cigarettes and lighter, I want a smoke." The man in black said once Wasure was standing over him. Wasure got on her knees and reached inside the man in black's inner dress coat pocket before pulling out a cartridge of cigarettes. She flipped the lid open and pulled out a cigarette, and then put it near the man in black's mouth until he held the end of it with his lips. Wasure put the cartridge back before reaching into his dress pants pockets and pulled out a zippo lighter before flipping the metal lid open and pressed her thumb on the flint wheel before giving it a few spins before a flame was created on the wick. She hovered the flame under the cigarette before it started to burn, after that she closed the lid of the zippo and snuffed out the flame.
The man in black breathed out a puff of smoke before taking a breath in, "My true and full name is Pyuayunibasaru Chūsei…" He said before writing in silver appeared on Wasure's hand holding the zippo, "I am Everything and Nothing, Everyone and No One, Everywhere and yet Nowhere at the same time… I am Onmyō." The man in black said, the writing in silver suddenly faded away. "Wasure, you are free to do as you please, and an invisible inscription on your hand will keep you full of power." He said before Wasure put the zippo back.
"Thank you… dad…" Wasure said with a smile, her words made her and Onmyō chuckle a little.
There was a moment of silence before it was broken when Yang suddenly came running up to Wasure before tackling her to the floor, tightly hugging the now freed Wasure, everyone laughed before the rest of team RWBY joined in on the hug.
"A live well lived indeed…" Onmyō said before he took a breath in and then breathed out smoke before closing his eyes. It wasn't that long before he was surrounded by all of Beacon, students and staff alike with their weapons all pointed at him. Ozpin had actually waited for an opportunity for this before he sent people in, Glynda had acted on her own. But now, Onmyō was being arrested and Victor watched from a distance, his anger rising. He would get what he wanted sooner or later, but now wasn't the time for him to do anything, he just had to watch as Onmyō was handcuffed and carried away. A grin on the well dressed man.