Noble: Alright! Here's a new chapter! Thanks again to Masseffect-TxS, SparkyDapperDab19 and Blaisengfire. Read and Review! Also, if you like the story, fav and follow to keep up to date for new chapters! Fav and follow! I changed the final part a bit courtesy of Masseffect-TxS to make some additions to the chapter.
Sparky: Also, we don't own anything that isn't our respective ideas. All characters in this story belong to their respective owners and RWBY belongs to the late Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth
Blaisengfire: Puppy Arc
Masseffect-TxS: Restart
SparkyDapperDab19: Reaping with Sorrow
Noble4259: Being Human
Beta Reader: SparkyDapperDab19
Any and all peace within the Beacon mess hall was ruptured and torn to shreds as Reaper was thrown through one of the massive windows. The crashing of the glass that came with the impact grated against his ears with an aggression that matched Adam Taurus who refused to ease up on his relentless speed.
Reaper growled with frustration as he soared across the vacant mess hall with only moments to spare before impact. The terrorist managed to recover without an issue held no hesitation as he brandished his shotguns right at Adam who was hot on Reaper's tail.
"All this time here, and you've carried power like this?!" Adam questioned with ferocity in his footsteps. "This is what the Grimm carry with them always?! You're the expert. TELL ME!" Adam roared as he readied his sword.
There was no time to comment or swear at his predicament as Reaper let loose shell after shell at Adam, only for the undead faunus to absorb the impact within his sword while remaining consistent in his pursuit. Some of the pellets grazed and peppered Adam's skin, but much to Reaper's horror, the faunus' skin began to dissipate, just like his.
"Crap." Reaper said. There was barely enough time to react as Adam sent the pent-up energy within his sword right back at Reaper. The energy consisted of nothing but black mist with swirls of sharp, sinister, red.
Raw instinct within Reaper kicked into overdrive as he dove to the side and dissipated into a pool of black smoke. Reaper winced at the sharp he energy blast from Adam singed the tail end of his smoke stream. Any other reaction from Reaper was cut short due to the blunt impact he felt within his core that reverted him back to his physical form.
"What?!" Reaper shouted with disbelief as he angled his eyes upward to see Adam had landed a solid flying side kick into his chest. The sudden surge of strength that came from the faunus sent Reaper soaring once again, but with a much quicker descent to the floor. Reaper soon felt himself tumble through the hall and into a group of tables with intense velocity.
"Uuugh." Reaper said before he shook his head to get rid of the dizziness. The hooded Arc proceeded to fix his mask while looking up at his adversary. There was a hitch in his breath as Adam slowed his pace and held up his dissipating arm for Reaper to see.
"One and the same, Reaper." Adam growled while he stalked towards the dazed Reaper with his sword scraping against the smooth flooring. "I have Noctis' gift as well. Don't think your smoke can save you." The scraping of his sword ceased as he quickly readied himself in a twisted battle stance and bolted Reaper's way in a red and black stream of smoke.
Reaper was barely able to kick up one of the disarrayed tables for a last-minute defense due to the remnants of panic firing off around the edges of his brain. His breath was ragged as he struggled to get up, only to fall back as the table was sliced down the middle. Reaper took the millisecond he needed to shift his shotguns into machetes and greeted his opponent in kind.
"RAAGH!" Reaper was relentless with his rapid and rabid strikes. He took any weakness he could find, any openings he could see, and any ground he could gain. The only problem there was nothing to his advantage. The Adam he fought on his world was just as fast, but he couldn't take any of the hits. This Adam was an entirely different story.
Reaper and Adam traded quick and ferocious blows without any hesitation and every direct hit on either party caused streams of smoke to leak out of them. Reaper ignored each and every slice with ease, while he noticed that Adam was having a more difficult time keeping it together. Every cut caused him to wince or flinch at the new sensation of regeneration.
'Gotta keep the pressure up. Gotta be faster!' Reaper thought before he roared with a fury he hadn't felt in a while. The smoke surged within him as black clashed with black and red. Blades sparked against each other as screams and roars that begged for murder emitted from the two demons. With one last swing from their barrages, both opponents clashed their blades together, emitting a shockwave from the impact that phased through the both of them.
"Oooh I could learn a thing or two from you," Adam said with a sultry tone in his voice. "I can tell you've been like this for a long time."
"You're insane." Reaper growled back as the pressure from Adam was equal to his.
"Pot meet kettle. Or in this case," Adam lowered his gaze to show the glow of his red eyes between the slits of his bone mask. "Monster, meet demon." Adam said before he slipped into his smoke, causing Reaper to fall forward. The Grimmified faunus used his opening to release the pent-up energy within his sword to send a shockwave right into Reaper's back.
"AAAGH!" Reaper screamed as he flew forward and into another pile of tables and benches. The pain seared within him before it spread all over his back. It burned and carved into his decaying skin with a malice he had only felt the night he became who he was now.
Reaper let out a pained grunt as he rolled onto his back onto a calamity of broken tables and benches. The ringing within his head continued onward with a relentless intensity as well as the wound along his back, but neither stopped him from noticing the menacing silhouette of his foe who stood above him. The tip of Adam's sword gently danced across the chin of Reaper's mask as the faunus sneered at the outcome of their battle.
"You should really learn to appreciate what our Lord has given you." Adam growled.
Reaper tried to dissipate once more but was stopped as Adam stomped directly on his sternum. A short cry escaped Reaper but was soon followed by the masked Arc striking Adam's leg over and over. Reaper could see the pained look Adam gave him, but there was no relief from the pressure that built up over the agonizing seconds.
"But he told me what you are. Instead of embracing what you should be, to you and use his power for him and only him, you squander it on helping those beneath you. You defy Noctis and resist everything he's given you." Adam said as Reaper continued with his fruitless attacks. Adam looked on with cold hatred before he flicked Reaper's mask off his face, revealing a panicked and deteriorating Jaune Arc. His skin drooped from his face, making his red eyes wider than they could possibly be. The rest of his face deteriorated to his muscles, and then to nothing but his skull before the smoke swirled back to repair his face.
"Such a waste." Adam said before he rose his sword above his head. "Such a failure."
Reaper's breath hitched at those words as his eyes flashed sapphire for a moment. His eyes that were always filled with aggression and rage were quelled by the icy torrents of fear. Such words brought him back to all those times he felt the same gaze Adam gave him in those moments. The hatred fueled the fear within him. It was a fear that deep within himself, he knew Adam was right. Weiss, Yang, and Blake were right. Reyes was right about him all along.
Thoughts of his teacher, Gabriel Reyes, raced through his mind as the hooded Arc could only picture what he thought of him now. He would say that he was weak to let someone like Taurus win, especially since he killed a weaker version of him back in his world. He would spit some taunts or insults his way, mention that he got the upper hand the moment he let the bull fucker into his head.
That last thought within Reaper's mind eased his fear for a moment as he looked up at Adam and couldn't help but feel a wave of déjà vu overwhelm him. He was here before and the moment his eyes reverted back to their crimson hue, he remembered how he came out on top the last time he faced Adam.
"Funny," Reaper said as he spat a wad of smokey blood toward Adam. "Blake would say the same thing about you."
Reaper rose his decaying lips into a smile the moment he saw Adam freeze at the mention of Blake. With those lingering moments of hesitation, Reaper let out a breath before he dissipated and sunk into the pile of destroyed tables.
"RAAAGH!" Adam roared as he swiped through the pile with a newfound rage, all in order to find his prey.
"Brothers forbid if she could see you now." Reaper's voice echoed all over the darkness of the mess hall. Adam looked up and darted his head in every which way; all while his breathing became ragged. "She thinks you were a monster before?" a long low whistle pierced through Adam's ears as he snarled at the insult. "Hoooo boy, wait until she gets a look at the clusterfuck that is now you."
"She'll understand," Adam retorted with gritted teeth. "I'll make her understand."
BLAM!
A shotgun blast erupted from the darkness which sent pellets right through Adam's left shin, tearing bits of flesh and muscle away from the bone.
"AAAGH!" Adam screamed as he crumpled to the ground, clutching his leg in the process.
"Little tidbit about this 'gift' you oh so adore," Reaper's voice returned with a malicious edge. "That aura that used to protect you? It's gone. You may be stronger and you may be able to survive fatal blows, but you got to be able to take the hits if you want to win any fight. Blake could take you on now and still come out on top."
"She wouldn't have the nerve to fight me."
BLAM!
"RAAAGH!" Adam roared as he rose his blade and angled it at just the right time to deflect most of the following pellets that were sent his way. Emphasis on most as a good cluster embedded itself within his shoulder.
"Heh. Yeah, she would," Reaper said before letting out a chilling chuckle. "She's been killing Grimm as long as she could hold a weapon. How would you be any different? You're not a human to question her morality,
BLAM!
Another round clipped Adam's lower torso.
"You're not a faunus that could question her beliefs.
BLAM!
Another round into the center of his back.
"You're not even an entity like Noctis, Salem, or even Ozpin that could reconsider her place in the world," Reaper finished as he reformed himself right in front of Adam. His mask was still removed as he bore into the wounded monstrosity with shame and remnants of pity. "You're just a mistake that got a second chance at the cost of throwing away everything that made you who you were before." Reaper's voice grew soft at the end as he looked down at his own hands.
"Stop…" Adam said between rabid breaths before he staggered to his feet. He held his sword with a weak grip as Reaper's sad eyes bore into him. "STOP LOOKING AT ME LIKE THAT!" Adam charged at him with whatever strength he had left and swung his blade outward in a horizontal fashion.
Reaper's eyes hardened at the oncoming attack as he ducked beneath the slice before popping up with an uppercut, only to follow the strike with two more crosses to Adam's bone plated face. With a ragged breath, Reaper grasped Adam's horns tightly and yanked his head directly to his oncoming knee, snapping Adam's horns off as well at the mask that covered his horrified face.
"AAAAAAAGGGHHH!" Adam screamed with an agony Reaper had heard too many times before from himself and his victims.
The decaying Arc looked on at Adam who clutched the areas where his horns were supposed to be before he shook his head. "What a disgrace." Reaper said as he walked up to Adam with broken horns in his dissipating hands.
"Out of everything that's happened right now," Reaper said as he gestured to the fight they just had. "What I still can't believe is that you see this," he then gestured to his smokey self. "As a gift." Reaper's eyes narrowed after he said what he needed to say and twirled the horns so the pointed ends were aimed forward. With one last breath, he thrusted the horns forward and into Adam's eyes, causing the abomination to scream with every bit of voice he had left within him.
Moments passed as the screaming continued until Adam crumpled to the floor. Bits and pieces of ash broke off his corpse until all of his limbs were completely gone. Only Adam's torso and head remained; complete with anguish and horror written all over his face.
Reaper looked on at the body for a few more moments as something came over him. There wasn't any anger aimed at Adam, but there was something else as he branded the image before him permanently within his mind. There was no hate towards him either.
There was only sorrow.
Any and all thoughts that raced through Reaper's mind were cut short as a spotlight shined down on him through the broken window. He looked up to see a bullhead circling the damaged mess hall with an urgency he couldn't help but chuckle at.
Moments passed by as Reaper let the smoke recover any serious wounds he took throughout his fight before he grasped what remained of Adam and headed out to the front of the mess hall. The light shined on him almost instantly before the Bullhead landed. Reaper couldn't help but smile at the sight of Velvet once the passenger doors opened. Confusion overtook him however as he noticed Velvet's relief mutate into unadulterated horror. Realization replaced his confusion as he reached up to his face, only to feel his eroding flesh.
Reaper wasted no time in summoning his mask from the smoke and placing it upon his face. Even if it was for a short while, he missed the security it brought him. There were no words to be shared as he boarded the bullhead.
"Take us to the fairgrounds," Reaper ordered at the pilot before he tossed Taurus' corpse to one of the corners of the small ship. "When we get there, get out. I'm taking this thing to the coliseum." the pilot was moments away from objecting before Reaper gave him a look that begged him to test his authority. Silence overtook the pilot before he grumbled and began to lift off the ground.
"Where's puppy?" Reaper asked as he looked around the ship, only to see Velvet present.
"He's at the fairgrounds looking for your friends." Velvet said quietly as she refused to make eye contact with him.
"Sounds reasonable." Reaper said as he folded his arms.
"How did it happen?" Velvet asked suddenly. Reaper looked up to see that she was doing her best to keep her gaze on him.
It was Reaper's turn to look away with disdain. Not at her, but at the memory.
"My world's Yang, Blake, and Weiss kicked me into a pit that creates the Grimm." Reaper said with a quick pace and flat tone. He could feel the horror radiate off his friend with such an intensity, that there was no need to look at her.
"Why?" she asked with a trembling voice.
Reaper looked at Adam's corpse for a few moments in silence before he turned back to her. "I don't know."
"Does it hurt?" Velvet asked, to which Reaper closed his eyes.
"All the time, Velvet."
(Re-Jaune)
"Sparrow! Are you alright?!" Re-Jaune crouched down to check on his companion with Sparrow waving him off. Both of them ignored the panic that ensued within the audience that surrounded them. What mattered now was the enemy before them.
"I'm fine! The bastard just caught me by surprise. Don't worry about me and go kill that motherfucker!" Sparrow growled as he sparked again. Re-Jaune nodded before standing to his full height. The time traveler narrowed his eyes and gave the Grimm King a glare that could melt iron.
"Yes Arc. Hate me even more. It's been too long since I've seen that face."
Re-Jaune said nothing. Instead, he whirled Crocea Mors in a taunting fashion before taking the same stance he took when facing Noctis last time with eyes blazing with blue fire. "Why the hell are you here? And why the hell do you look like me?" Noctis grinned as he rubbed a hand over his new features.
Indeed, he looked like Jaune, except his hair was black, his skin was pale as marble and he had to long black horns grown out of his head. The sclera of his eyes was black with the iris a glowing evil red. He was dressed still in the shadowy cloak, but bone-like armor peeked out of the shadows.
"Do you like it?" Noctis asked with genuine curiosity before he twirled around to show his new body, which made it all the creepier. "It's still a work in progress, but I assure that the final product will be more impressive when we get home. I chose to resemble you because you are the only human in the world that I respect. Thousand had tried to slay me before in our world, none of them could succeed. Except you, my oldest friend. You are the only one I respect and admire."
"So, you have a man-crush on me? Great. That's just what I need." Re-Jaune rolled his eyes. "And the name Noctis?"
"Oh, well." Noctis said with a taunting shrug of his shoulders. "You, humans have names based after colors, so I thought I'd try it out myself. Noctis Mors, sounds a lot better than just screaming Grimm King all the time, don't you think?"
"What the hell are you doing here? Why haven't you gone back to Salem?" Noctis chuckled as he shook his head.
"That royal whore? why would I ever join forces with her? She is a usurper to my throne. She took control and defiled my brothers in her image and I will not stand for it." The lord of darkness leaned forward with a sickening smile. "But once I'm done here, I fully intend to destroy her." Jaune glared as he held his old weapon.
"How? I can't remember how to defeat her, and neither should you. How the hell are you going to stop her curse?"
"Oh, I have my ways. But enough talk…" he held out his hand as black energy poured out and a blade of black iron and ivory bone appeared in his hand. The design similar to his weapon. He grinned as he unleashed his power.
"If you're ready, then let our rematch BEGIN!" Noctis' voice thundered around the almost vacant coliseum while he rocketed towards his destined foe.
Re-Jaune followed suit, not wanting Noctis to gain an advantage early on. The two titans' blades clashed, which sent out a destructive shockwave that threatened to bring down the entire arena. The power behind it sent debris in every direction and nearly sent Sparrow into the stands.
Re-Jaune bore into the Grimm King's eyes, feeling nothing but hate and vengeance for the bastard who took everything from him. Noctis gave nothing but an amused smile as he enjoyed the thrill of fighting the very man who ended his life so long ago. Neither of them moved an inch; locked in a stalemate with both blades grating against one another. Shockwaves of white and black energy escaped their forms and clashed in a spectrum of grey.
The time traveler channeled his aura with a calm intensity, feeling it envelop and course through his body. The stalemate started to end as Re-Jaune pushed harder and with even more power than Noctis. Instead of feeling the stress or fear from the outcome, the doom bringer laughed as he continued to prevent his enemy from gaining an advantage summoning his darkness to gain the upper hand. The Arc gave out a guttural war cry, breaking through the Grimm King's guard giving the monster a devastating blow across his hated adversary's chest. Noctis slid across what remained the arena with black blood spraying out of the gaping chest wound but showed no emotion to the fresh cut.
He craned his neck to the side as the injury started to heal and disappeared completely in mere moments. A grin spreading across his face as he looked at his mortal enemy.
'What in the-?! How did he heal that so quickly?! That fucking bastard has gotten stronger since last time. I'm gonna have to go for fatal hits and just cut the bastard in half!'
"That's it Jaune. That's why I like you so much. You know exactly where to hit the right spots!" Noctis hissed while licking his lips.
Re-Jaune sprinted forward going on the offense with a torrent of slashes from his sword and a barrage of bashes from his shield as well. Noctis parried away the blade each time but failed to block Arc's shield as the infernal thing crashed into him multiple times.
"GRAHHH!" Re-Jaune roared once more before bringing his blade down with the force of an Atlas battleship.
Noctis quickly held up his blade, blocking it with minimal effort before staring at Re-Jaune with a curious gaze.
"Come now Arc, that attack was weaker than the last one!" Noctis lashed out with his blade, swiping it viciously against Re-Jaune's chest and sending the Arc flying just as he did to the Grimm King earlier.
The time-traveler turned in mid-air before stabbing Crocea Mors into the ground, stopping himself from being thrown away like a ragdoll. He looked down at his chest to assess the damage done. His aura was holding up for the most part but not stopping everything, blood dripped from the small wound which made him snarl in rage.
Noctis took in a deep, satisfying breath as he felt the wave of negativity wash over him like the sun rising in the morning.
"Delicious...absolutely delicious! Keep coming at me, Jaune! This is just like before, back when the world was nothing but ash! But first..." Noctis sauntered over to Cinder who was barely holding on by a hair. He stared down at the dying girl without an ounce of sympathy.
"Naive pitiful child. You truly are such an easy pawn to manipulate, but alas, I still have use for you." He extended his hand as darkness enveloped Cinder. Re-Jaune was thrown off at the sudden scream as the darkness overwhelmed her.
Re-Jaune flashed over to Noctis in order to try and stop the Grimm King in his tracks. Noctis held up his sword without even looking at the Arc and blocked the blow before giving out a final breath as the darkness returned to him. What was revealed made Re-Jaune nearly puke as a fully healed but more Grimm like Cinder was kneeling before his nemesis.
"Go, my servant, slaughter Jaune Arc's beloved, Pyrrha Nikos, then after she's been snuffed out move on to everyone else he cares for." Grimm-Cinder roared as she jumped out of the ruined arena with black flames trailing behind her.
"NO!" he yelled trying to stop her, but she was too far away. His focus returned to the monster before him, who only chuckled at his dismay.
"KING!" Re-Jaune bellowed out flying at Noctis as if he was a shell from a battleship careening into the monster and emitting a shockwave more powerful than any previous one. Noctis held his ground gritting his teeth while Jaune was absolutely furious, looking to kill the bastard as quickly as possible to prevent Pyrrha from getting hurt.
They continued to struggle as neither one gave any ground. Ferocity matched satisfaction as Noctis and Re-Jaune clashed blades over and over again. For every time one blow landed, two were met in kind from the recipient. Fury and euphoria intertwined within the two warriors as the clashing grew, only to peak when the two charged at each other with everything they had. The shockwave that came with their collision was so strong, that it sent both of them back to their respective sides of the arena. Neither opponent faltered in their demeanor as they both readied their blades for another round.
Their attention was ripped away from their battle for mere moments as the soft but growing sound of jet engines filled their ears. Re-Jaune looked up from his battle, only to widen his eyes at a flaming bullhead that crashed onto the arena floor, forcing the two to jump out of the way. Re-Jaune breathed heavily as he glared at his opponent.
'Something is wrong, I'm not as powerful as I should be.' Re-Jaune looked down at his hand as he felt his aura flow through him. 'I trained to be stronger than this, did I get affected like the rest? Not just my gear, but my power too?' he looked over to Noctis who grinned.
'And how the hell is he so strong?! I knew he would be stronger, but not this strong. Something is going wrong here.' Re-Jaune looked up huffing from the exertion he was putting himself through to see a familiar figure climb out of the wreckage with what seemed to look like a corpse on his shoulder.
"Sorry...that I'm late. But...better late than never." Reaper breathed out, clearly exhausted as he chucked the once more dead corpse of Adam Taurus, his middle torso and head were all that remained.
"Reaper?" Re-Jaune asked. "What in the...is that Taurus?!"
"Yeah...looks like Noctis brought the fucker back somehow. He was way stronger than before, gave me quite a bit of trouble but you can see the outcome."
"How disappointing."
Reaper shivered nearly instantly upon hearing that chilling, inhuman, and downright sinister voice for the second time. Every fiber of his being was screaming at himself to run, to get the hell out before it's too late. Yet, all he did was swallow hard and turned around to face the Grimm King.
"Ah, the mistake has arrived, and he was capable of killing my resurrected puppet. That's quite impressive, I imbued him with quite a bit of my power, yet he still fell once more." Noctis shook his head with a mocking tsk before he grinned at the masked man. "Though you've proven something with your victory." He raised his hand as Adam's body broke off into black dust and swirled back into the King. "Still useful as a snack in the end. Prime Cut I believe."
"Arc," Reaper said as he backed away and stood by Re-Jaune's side. "I'm gonna be honest with you I don't like our chances here. Where the fuck is Sparrow?!"
"I'm...right here" Sparrow limped his way to them wakizashi drawn with sparks flying everywhere.
"You ain't looking good sparks. Might want to sit this one out." Reaper voiced rare concern for his teammate while Sparrow gave a stubborn head shake.
"Can't...this monster needs to be...dealt with. We need to kill him then find Cinder, he sent her to go murder Pyrrha. We can't let her die, we can't fail!"
"Agreed...Let's take him together, overwhelm him with attacks from multiple angles, we got a good chance. Just don't let him hit you, he could send you flying out of the coliseum." Re-Jaune advised as they nodded.
"Understood." Sparrow said as his breath hitched before he closed his eyes. "Mercy...divert all power to combat effectiveness and unlock the emergency aura supply."
"Orders received, diverting power now, aura supply seal now undone." Mercy responded doing as she was ordered.
"This is very amusing. Observing the three of you plan your attack is humorous as it is futile." Noctis said.
"How so?" Re-Jaune challenged.
"Because I've already dismantled it." Noctis replied as he snapped his fingers.
"The hell are you talking-"
BLAM!
Re-Jaune flew back, feeling buckshot nearly pierce his aura and blow a hole through his chest. He couldn't help but writhe on the ground for a second, letting his aura work before standing back up to see a shaking Reaper, who was struggling to not pull the trigger from his shotguns.
"Reaper?" Re-jaune asked in bewilderment while the man in question could only shake his head shakily.
"Arc..." Reaper said with confused panic. "Don't get close to me...I can't...control...my body! Noctis...you fucking...slimy piece of...shit!"
"It was entertaining to see the three of you try to work together. But I'd rather my fight be one on one with my dance partner, thank you very much." Noctis said as he eyed Re-Jaune like a succulent piece of meat. "Now your friend is my peon. Reaper, do as your name entails and reap their lives." The terrorist gave his all to try and resist the Grimm King's control but couldn't fight it off. His shotgun leveled at Re-Jaune ready to pull the trigger.
"Reaps no!" Sparrow tackled his counterpart before rolling in front of Re-Jaune ready to regrettably fight against his friend.
"John, you deal with Noctis. I'll keep Reaper occupied. I know he isn't control of his actions, but we can't get distracted! Kill that monster where he stands!" Sparrow shouted as he dashed in front of Reaper, striking his companions machetes as hard as he could. The psychopath did his best to try and not block it so his counterpart could take him out of commission but to no avail, his blade came up just in time to catch the cyborg's strike.
"Dammit, Sparks...you're already messed up! Get out of here while you can! I... don't want to...hurt you!"
"I can't do that Reaps. If I leave, Noctis will force you to attack John! I won't let that happen!" They pushed one another away before standing off against each other with weapons ready.
"Reaps...Jaune...however, this will end, I don't blame you for anything that happens."Sparrow said. Reaper was shivering more than he was before and for a moment, Sparrow could see the same blue eyes he has and a single tear roll down the mask that covered his friend's face.
"I'm sorry." Reaper spoke barely above a whisper running towards the cyborg blades drawn, Sparrow met him halfway colliding with his blades in a rain of sparks.
Re-jaune glanced over at his counterpart's duel, swearing under his breath to make Noctis suffer for what he has done to Reaper. Aura flaring more wildly and brighter than before.
"Grimm King..." white aura burst from his body as he glared at the grinning demonic entity.
"I AM GOING TO END YOU HERE AND NOW!" Re-Jaune exploded forward, discarding his shield to the side and gripping Crocea Mors with two hands. Noctis stood in place, raising his blade then finally swinging it down and unleashing a torrent of darkness that shot toward the time-traveler. Re-Jaune swung his blade forward, slicing into the void splitting it down the middle very much as he did before with Cinder.
This time however he was struggling to cut through it. Noctis poured more powering into the blast forcing his foe back inch by inch smiling as the void started to overcome Jaune. The time-traveler gripped his blade, so hard blood started to leak from his hands, legs shaking threatening to give out as he was pushed back farther and farther.
His mind flashed, memories playing like a movie. His first life repeating all of the horrors that occurred, Pyrrha dying, his home decimated, a row of gravestones all engraved with the name Arc, the death of all his friends. Then his second life started flowing through his brain, training with his father, preparing to go to Beacon, leaving his home, then being sent here. Getting to see his friends again, the love of his life, and meet his amazing counterparts working with them to secure a better tomorrow for this world.
'I...will not..fail them...AGAIN!' Re-Jaune erupted with all the aura he had in his body pushing through Noctis's attack with all the power he could muster.
The Grimm King showed rare surprise, gritting his teeth in both anger and strain as he tried to push past his destined foe. The Arc was having none of that as he was still cutting through what Noctis threw at him with renewed vigor and a refusal to give in.
The monster roared in fury giving one last effort to obliterate Re-Jaune, sending his power out even more than before. The time-traveler finally appeared in front of Noctis, Crocea Mors burning red and glowing with pure white light. The Arc let out a final cry of wrath his blade connecting with Noctis's chest vying to see his ancestral blade cut the monster in half as white light erupted between the two blinding Reaper and Sparrow.
The light finally died down after a minute and Sparrow gazed on in anticipation to see what the outcome would entail.
"No...John...JAUNE!" Sparrow screamed at the top of his lungs at what he was witnessing.
Re-Jaune was down on his knees holding only the hilt of Crocea Mors with Noctis's sword stabbed through his chest. Crocea Mors was completely shattered with the pieces littering his feet. Noctis stood above the time traveler with a blank look on his face. Blood sprayed out of Re-Jaune's chest which covered the Grimm King in a crimson shower while the monster didn't even flinch.
"…I am disappointed old friend," Noctis said. "This is not how I wanted our battle to end. But it seems that you were no match for me this time. I had a plan for you, a plan to ensure our battle would wage on for eternity. Like the days of old when the Gods roamed this earth." Noctis crouched down to Re-Jaune's level before he shook his head. "But it seems that our travel to this dimension affected you more then you realized, just as it did me. But whereas you have weakened, I grew stronger." He placed his blade under Jaune's chin and lifted it up to look at him.
"I may not be able to return to our world, but I will make sure this one is suitable to my needs. I will always remember you, old friend, even if our time is cut short. I only wish you could've seen what our future would hold. Farewell, Jaune Arc." Noctis leveled his blade with Re-Jaune's neck.
Re-Jaune made no move to dodge, eyes half-lidded reminiscing on his failure. 'Jaune...I'm so sorry...Pyrrha...forgive me.' He closed his eyes waiting for the end to come.'
*CLANG!*
Re-Jaune opened his eyes to see Sparrow holding Noctis's blade in place, barely able to hold back the king of Grimm.
"Oh? Now the toaster comes to challenge me? Ok then little machine, I ACCEPT IT!"
He smashed Sparrow's wakizashi from his hand before slamming his fist into the cyborg's visor. Glass shattered and the helmet flew off revealing the same face of Re-Jaune except more scarred and bloodied from the blow Noctis inflicted upon him. Sparrow struggled to stand and was lifted off his feet Noctis holding him by his throat.
"You all believed that you would save this world? That you could change the future. Such a naive and pointless goal." He taunted before he gripped Sparrow's right arm and ripped it off making the cyborg screech in pain, all while his limb sent out sparks within in the monster's hand. Noctis slammed him into the ground making the cyborg spit out blood, struggling to breathe.
"The three Arc's, all failures of their respective worlds. You all failed to realize that I gained strength from all of your anger." Noctis gripped Sparrow's leg tightly and crushed it in his grasp, the cyborg throwing his head back in agony.
"You little machine, you're anger and negativity toward the White Fang and Taurus was the most delicious. It greatly increased my presence and power but even then, it still wasn't enough." his gaze turned back to Re-Jaune. "So, I used Cinder Fall to make you, my old friend, so furious that it would summon me and I would no longer be some shadow hiding in the dark!" He brought his fist down onto Sparrow's other leg crushing it as if it was newspaper, moving onto the final limb.
"Oh...This limb is still human, it's not machine. Is this the last bit of humanity you cling to little cyborg?" Sparrow said nothing writhing in so much pain he couldn't even speak as Noctis tore the armor from the arm leaving it bare.
"No matter then, Reaper come here." The terrorist resisted before finally kneeling in front of Noctis. "Good. My order is simple. Mutilate and render his limb completely useless." Reaper stood up walking over to Sparrow machete already out.
He loomed over his friend mind racing trying to think of some way to stop this. He rose a foot over the unarmored limb, all while throwing his head back in forth in a vain attempt to stop himself. Reaper cursed as he failed to do so the moment his boot crushed Sparrow's hand. The sickening sound of bones crunching piercing his ears. Sparrow was already in so much pain he barely felt it tears streaming down his face. Reaper held his machete at Sparrow's shoulder raising the blade to chop it off. He gasped in surprise when he felt his left hand grip his right arm preventing him from swinging it down.
"What is this? Cripple his arm now. Do as I command!"
Noctis's voice echoed in Reaper's mind, shaking throughout his entire body as two parts of himself were at war with one another. He gave out a pained roar shifting his machete into a shotgun and placed it under his chin before pulling the trigger.
Reaper's body hit the ground headless wisps of smoke already forming his head back together. Noctis hummed gazing over the scene before him, his foe beaten and laying on the ground with his allies just as defeated.
"Well, that was…dramatic. More resistant then I thought." He looked over to his wounded rival as he stared before grinning.
"What am I thinking?" Noctis said as he looked on at the three of them with disbelief. "This is not how hour battle should end. No, it must be better than this." He walked over and stood over the time traveler.
"If you can hear me, old friend, I've changed my mind. I won't kill you or your companions. Not this time. For I need you to be at your peak performance, to be at the level you trained to be before I raze this world into an empty wasteland." a sensual breath escaped Noctis as he shuddered at the memory.
"So, gather your allies, train your bodies, and regain the powers you lost. Until we face one another again Jaune Arc, I'm expecting to see you soon filled with revenge and hate!" Without another moment to lose, Noctis disappeared, leaving the three Arcs alone, the arena silent with only the wind whipping around the floating coliseum.
Reaper was the first on his feet, breathing ragged and inconsistent. He shook his head, finally regaining his bearings before immediately sprinting to the still forms of his two counterparts.
"Arc! Sparks! Come on dammit speak to me!" He brought the two close together before looking down at them. He couldn't help but reel back from the sight of them brutally injured and mutilated.
"DAMMIT!" His fist slammed into the ground. His hand dissipated upon impact before he continued again and again, ignoring the blistering pain traveling through his entire being.
"DAMMIT DAMMIT DAMMIT DAMMIT!" after smashing his fist one more time, he finally stopped before he covered his face.
"It's my fault." Reaper said with a shaky voice. "My fault."
"Reaper." Re-Jaune called out in a strained voice making the terrorist turn to face the time-traveler, the older Arc's face twisted in agony while holding a hand where his chest wound was.
"Drag...Sparrow to me. I'll give him what aura I got left. My wound is healed...for the most part." Reaper looked at the wound to see the time traveler's words held true much to his surprise.
Reaper did as he told, dragging the cyborg to Re-Jaune. The time-traveler nodded in thanks resting his hand on Sparrow's chest breathing in deeply as his aura was channeled into the cyborg. Sparrow's breathing became more even and his crushed hand started to mend, bones reforming as the limb became whole again. Re-Jaune gave out a final huff, his hand sliding off Sparrow then rolling onto his back wincing from the still fresh chest wound. Reaper still sat next this his friend stewing in his own self-blame and hatred.
"Reaper," Re-Jaune said with a calm, but soft voice. "It's not your fault. That bastard...If anyone is at fault it's me. I should've been powerful enough to kill him. I don't know how but I lost some of my power coming here. If I'm going to be able to beat that bastard I need to get it back!" His body flared for a second before dying out quickly, the older Arc spent.
"I need to get you two to an infirmary." Reaper assessed as his hatred washed over him for the time being. "Then I'll go hunt for Cinder. Pray to Oum that she hasn't found Pyrrha yet."
"Please Reaper, don't let her die. If there's one thing I don't want to fail today it's keeping her safe and alive." Re-Jaune begged as panic began to spread through him.
"I won't. You have my word Arc, I'll keep her safe and butcher Cinder." Reaper said as he slung Sparrow over his shoulder and hoisted Re-Jaune up with his arm, carrying the two towards the docks hoping there was still a bullhead or two docked.
(Fairgrounds)
"HA!" Pyrrha speared through yet another Beowolf, wiping her head of sweat looking around at the carnage laid before her. Grimm scurried around everywhere, Creeps running amok, Beowolf's stalking prey, and the occasional deathstalker crashing through the treeline. It was chaos. Pure unadulterated chaos. The champion looked around trying to find her fellow teammates and friends but the screaming of civilians and roars of Grimm made her have to focus on the issue at hand.
"GAHHHH!' A scream ripped through the air as a body was hurled out of nowhere landing only a few feet away from Pyrrha. She ran over to help the man stopping in her tracks at who it was in horror. Headmaster Ozpin laid in a small crater, skin seared and his white hair blackened from soot and ash.
"Headmaster!" Pyrrha cried out kneeling next to her teacher trying to think of a way to help him.
"Miss Nikos...You need to run...She's after you!" He said with urgency struggling to stand but to no avail.
"Who Headmaster? Who's after me?" He went to open his lips but stopped pushing his student away at the last second as a torrent of pure black flame engulfed her teacher, leaving nothing but a smoldering blue-hued crater leaving nothing behind.
"HEADMASTER!" Pyrrha screamed in horror witnessing her teacher be reduced to ash right before her eyes spun around to see what looked to be a Grimmified Cinder.
"Ahhh there you are Nikos," Cinder said with a distorted voice. "My master ordered me to find you, but I wanted to kill Ozpin first." She looked down at the singed spot with a mocking glance. "Such a disappointment. You will have to do." The false maiden growled like a feral animal about to feast on trapped prey. She sprung forward glass blade impacting Akuo and making Pyrrha cry out in pain. Despite blocking the strike, the impact nearly popped her arm from its socket.
"Is that all you have? I expected MORE!" She broke through Pyrrha's block slashing across her body to devastating effect. The champion sailed through the air before crashing into a stall. She looked down at her scroll with wide eye as she saw her aura meter was at fifty percent only after a single blow.
'Oum above I don't stand a chance! I need to run, regroup and find help! She'll kill me at this rate!'
"Oh, Nikos! Where are you little champion? Don't run! Come and play!" Cinder taunted and ripped the stall apart with no effort glaring at the now empty impact area.
Pyrrha hid behind another stall a few rows down trying to steady her breathing from both exertion and horror.
'I need to run but I think she could chase after me without issue. Dammit, what am I to do?!' Pyrrha closed her eyes trying to formulate a plan.
"There you are!" Cinder barreled through the stall without warning swinging her blades wildly aiming to eviscerate Pyrrha. The champion leaped back, shifting Milo to rifle mode and fired multiple shots into Cinder making the monster grunt in pain.
"Those feeble little bullets don't do a thing to me! Accept it 'Invincible Girl' you're going to die here!" Cinder sneered closing the distance and planting a kick right into Pyrrha's ribs making the champion spit blood up careening into the ground hard, aura levels plummeting on impact. The false maiden was already on her, hand wrapped around Pyrrha's throat intent on choking the champion to death.
'Can't... breath...I'm going to die here...Jaune...I'm...sorry..." Pyrrha felt tears leak out trying to let out a gasp giving her best effort to fight.
"No more struggling...accept it." Cinder gave a malicious smile feeling pleasure in seeing Pyrrha pass out and finally inevitably die in moments to come.
"AWWOOO!" A yellow flash slammed into Cinder launching her off Pyrrha howling in anger. The false maiden snarled jumping to her feet to see the mangy mongrel who was part of the elder Arc's team.
"Pyrrha!" Jaune Arc ran to his girlfriend and checked her pulse. Moments paste before he breathed a sigh of relief due to the feeling of her heartbeat. He set her back down gently, only to glare at Cinder with nothing but hate eerily similar to Re-Jaune, making Cinder take a step back for a moment.
"You...how dare you..." Jaune's form was enveloped in what looked like a white flame before roaring in fury.
"THAT'S MY PYRRHA!"
Noble: I couldn't resist. If you're a DBZ fan then you know what that last line is from!
Sparky: Maybe it'll distract everyone from the shit that is continuously hitting the fan with no sign of slowing down?
Noble; Good point! Well next chapter will be the aftermath! Read and Review! Also wanna say thanks so much for 400 followers! That is absolutely amazing! On top of that, this story became a year old two weeks ago! How far it has come!