Chapter 54 (Matt) - Souls that Surpass Savages

The Nachahmier Grimm punched at Matt, but Matt used his gauntlets to fire himself backwards before charging forward again, and firing his gauntlets to get extra momentum for a roundhouse kick, but the Grimm caught the leg as if it weighed nothing, and spun Matt around before throwing him into a tree.

Matt began to feel his chest hurting from his recent wound, slowing him down, but he refused to give up against his Grimm clone. Matt stood back up, and started to fire out explosive dust crystals to keep some distance between them both while he recovered. The Grimm rolled out of the way, and got closer to Matt, engaging him in close combat. They traded blows over and over, until Matt slammed his fist against the Grimm, knocking it into the air.

Matt activated the blade part of his gauntlets, and began to slice towards the Grimm, but it was too fast and dodged all of Matt's attacks. The Grimm punched towards Matt, but he blocked the attacks, and swiped at the Grimms feet. As the Grimm lost balance, Matt retreated to where Ruby was, and picked up Crescent Rose, "I'm gonna need this for a few seconds." he said as he winked, and ran back into the fight. Matt called out to the Grimm "You may have been made to copy people's moves, but that doesn't mean I can't copy it either. I don't think I could've come this far using gauntlets without the help of a certain blonde. And besides, you've copied what I'm like while I'm punching. How are you supposed to copy me when I'm doing something new? ". The Grimm growled back, and prepared itself for Matt's next move.

Matt then activated Crescent Rose in war scythe mode, and charged head first using it as a spear. The Grimm grabbed onto Crescent Rose, but Matt continued to push the Grimm back, pinning it against a tree. The Nachamier then ran up the tree, and landed behind Matt, using Crescent Rose to pin him by his neck.

Matt began breathing heavy, showing how exhausted he was. The Grimm growled "You can't win! I'm practically the embodiment of anger. A God of Rage, is what I am! Got any last words? I suggest you say them now!". Matt snapped back "A few. Qrow; thank you for watching over us all, and for saving us countless times. Ruby; what can I say? You've been there for me since I can remember. Don't let anything corrupt your honest soul. And Lyra; Your life can always turn to gold, and I'm glad, even if it is just a small one, to have an impact on you. Please, keep on howling till your last breath.".

"Is that it?" The Grimm asked, "You're seriously going to give up and use the last of your energy to say goodbye? Pathetic!". Matt began to chuckle, "You think I've given up fighting? You really don't know anything more than copying! Oh, and for you to even think that you're a 'God' is funny, considering I'm the original, but I'll happily give myself the title 'God Slayer'!". Matt then used all of his power and pushed Crescent Rose forward, cracking the ground beneath him, "Lyra, now! Wolf Pack!" Matt ordered, and Lyra ran towards both Matt and his Grimm clone, and knocked the Grimm off it's feet. "Same as before!" Matt yelled again, and Lyra began to use the same technique the pair used to take down the White Fang to launch Matt into the air.

Once he got high enough in the air, Matt looked down and saw the Nachamier pummeling it's fists into Lyra, showing no mercy to the wolf faunus. Matt began to feel himself getting dizzy; spectating a fake version of himself beating a faunus so bad she couldn't even stand.

While Ruby was watching the sight of Lyra getting hit like a punching bag, a bright, purple light caused her to cover her eyes. Once the light died down a small amount, she looked up and saw Matt glaring at the ground, but she could see in his eyes, nothing but pure hatred. "Is this what you wanted!?", Matt yelled down towards his Grimm clone, "For me to get pissed off enough to be a challenge? Well trust me, you've just given yourself the problem of dealing with my insane side!". Matt moved his body facing towards the Grimm, and began to fire his gauntlets behind him, sending him faster and faster towards the ground. Matt began to scream, and a purple light began to appear from his mouth again. Just before he hit the ground, Matt released a psychotic laugh, and yelled out "BURN ALL THE BABIIIIIEEEEEESSS!" as he slammed his fist directly into the Grimm, creating a huge dust cloud.

Grunting could be heard from the center of the dust cloud, and as the dust swept away, Ruby and Qrow both saw Matt hitting the dead clone of himself, and even after the Grimm fully evaporated, he continued to swing into the air where he could see the smoke remains of the evil creature. Matt's hair slowly began to turn back to normal, and looked back over to Ruby, "You know, I really am such a handful!" he joked, until he saw in the corner of his eye, Lyra, still on the ground. Matt rushed over, and began to feel for a pulse, but couldn't find one. He began to do CPR, desperately, with tears flowing off his face, trying to save Lyra. "Stay with me! You are not leaving like this. You aren't falling by my hand!".

Ruby watched from afar, in horror of thinking that the wolf faunus' life could have ended. She slowly made her way towards Matt to comfort him, but was left frozen in her place as she saw Matt put his lips towards Lyra's, and breathed air into her. When nothing happened, Matt slammed his hand down on the ground, "Damn it!" he yelled out as he tried again. This time, as Matt did the same, Lyra opened her eyes, and slowly lifted one arm, showing she was okay. Matt saw the signal, and sighed heavily in relief as he leant back and lied on the ground. Matt heard footsteps, and looked up to see Ruby standing above him, "What the hell was that thing!?" she asked, but Lyra replied "The same thing that attacked Matt. It...copied him, his fighting style, even some of his personality. Let's just be lucky that the original can use his semblance.".

As Matt slowly got back up, he began to think to himself 'Where the hell is Jaune, Nora, and Ren? They should have gotten help by now!', and on queue, he saw Nora blast out of a tree, with Ren and Jaune running towards them on the ground. "Where's that backup!?" Matt yelled towards Jaune, but he replied back "We are the backup!", "You're late!". Jaune looked around, and saw the wolf faunus heavily hurt, a huge crater in the ground, and Ruby and Qrow slowly making their way towards the group. "What happened?" Nora asked. "Well ya see," Matt began, "I kind of had to kill myself. Well not myself, but a version of me, that was Grimm, but looked, and fought, exactly like me, but if I'm being honest, I was more of a badass!". Lyra began to stand using Matt as support, "Don't forget the part where you kissed me.". "What?" Nora asked. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. That isn't exactly what happened." Matt began, "She stopped breathing, and I gave her CPR. I didn't actually DO anything.". "You know, some people say that a kiss is the breath of life-" Lyra tried to say, until Matt picked her up. "Quiet you!" Matt ordered, as he began to walk his way back to Mistral.

"Matt. Matt. Matt!" Ruby began to yell after her teammate as she limped after him, while Matt walked his way back with Lyra in his arms. "MATT!" Ruby yelled once more, before using her semblance to rush forward in front of him, blocking his path. "Move out of the way, Ruby." Matt ordered, "We need to get her back.". Ruby refused to move "Not until you stop ignoring me! I know I kind of put my scythe through your chest, but I never meant to do it, and you know that! I just tried to help, but instead it turned out I was dead weight. Just please...talk to me. Even if you want to yell at me, I still need to know you can talk to me!".

Matt gave out a sigh, and looked Ruby in the eye, "Ruby-", "No." Ruby interrupted, "Use the nickname…". Matt gave out another sigh, "Lil Rose, I have five words for you. That...was a good shot!". Ruby gave a confused look, "What?" she asked, "I nearly killed you, put you through hell, and then needed you to protect me while you was already hurt, and you say that me putting Crescent Rose through you was a "good shot"? What the hell is wrong with you?".

Matt gave a loud laugh, but kept Lyra in his grips, assuring her that they'll keep on moving soon. "Ruby," Matt began, "I know you didn't try to kill me, and I know that you're upset about hurting me. But it was an accident. What you did was something any other hunter or huntress would do. You protected someone, and that someone tried to kill me a few night prior. I don't want you to be upset about what happened. I'd rather you see the lightness of it. Find the light in the dark, Ruby. What happened was horrible, but we can never move on if we sit around and cry about it. I'd rather we laugh about it, associate what happened with good things, like how well you've improved. Now come on, I'm not used to lifting this weight.". Lyra glared Matt in the eyes, "Did you just call me fat?" she asked. Matt gave a nervous laugh, "No...I was saying that I...how should I put it...I just fought for your life and Ruby's, so I'm a little tired.". "Aren't you always tired?" Jaune yelled out from behind them, and Matt yelled back "Yes, but I'm still useful, that's all that matters.". Qrow began to walk in front of the group, while simultaneously saying "Now if you're all done with the apologizing, we need to get back." to which everyone followed.

A day passed, Matt, Lyra, Ruby, Jaune, Nora, Ren, and Qrow all found their way back to Mistral, as well as getting Lyra checked up at the infirmary just to check she was fine. As the group made their way towards some airships in the night, Lyra was getting ready to board. "You sure you want to go?" Matt asked, "It would be nice having you around.". Lyra gave a warm smile back, "I'd love to stay with you all, but I need to get my head cleared. Going to Menagerie should help, being around my own kind. I'll be heading towards a town called Kuo Kuana. I went there as a kid with my family, so I know the place a small amount. The last time I went, two faunus were worried about their daughter for joining the White Fang, and I can see why… I spoke to them a little before I left, so they might remember me. I'll probably have to go halfway and then find a boat or something to go the rest. Wish me luck!".

Lyra began to board, while the rest of the group stood by, waving to Lyra as it slowly began to pull away. "I'll see you soon. I'll find you, no matter what!" Matt yelled after her, which Lyra yelled back "I'm sure you will! Have fun without me!". "That's tough to do!" Matt yelled as he turned around, and saw the rest of the team staring at him. "What?" Matt asked. "Nothing…" They all replied. As they walked away from the airships, Ruby pinched Matt on his arm, "Oww," Matt yelled, "Why?". Ruby gave a glare and asked "How did you know how to use Crescent Rose so easily?". "Well," Matt responded, "after spending enough time with Velvet, she told me about her semblance, and how she can copy people. She helped me pick up a few things, which I decided to test out in a desperate situation.". Ruby gave a gasp, "Matt… I… didn't mean to bring up Velvet…". "It's fine, Ruby." Matt responded, "I think I'm over her now. Come on, let's head back. We need to get ready for meeting the headmaster of Haven Academy.". And so, Matt, Ruby, Nora, Ren, and Jaune all made their way back to their rooms, while Qrow went towards the closest bar.