Summary/disclaimer: Time for another chapter of Burning Hope. Enjoy the 900-word chapter. I don't own RWBY, Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth do.
(Vale, Ancient Human ruins.)
Cinder dodged a whack at her head with Long Memory before she blasted herself back to a tree.
"You've come a long way since Beacon." Cinder said before summoning her sword and throwing herself into the battle.
Ozpin dodged before slapping her in her scared eye with his cane. Cinder shrieked in pain and backed off.
"You used to bring hope when Salem brought fear. I actually went from wanting to puke over your speeches to understanding why Theodore and Ironwood looked up to you…" Cinder said, rubbing at her eye before blasting a gust of wind at Ozpin with her free land.
Ozpin blocked it with a barrier and the wind uprooted a tree. Cinder sighed, her maiden powers had been blocked at Vale, they were evenly matched.
"Salem broke you at Atlas, didn't she? I didn't go after Fria. You think I didn't want her power? Arthas made me a better person. I trusted you with the crown…" She said, circling Ozpin, waiting for an opening.
Ozpin watcher her as the two circled each other like starving King Taijitsu.
"You seem to have forgotten that you destroyed all of Vale while working for my former wife… And your arm was replaced with a Shadow Hand Grimm." He stated, Cinder growled and charged him only to be repulsed by a swing of Ozpin's cane which sent her skidding back.
"I'm trying to change… You held back information on Salem. You did NOTHING when Ironwood nearly had a mental breakdown. YOU downplayed what Lionheart did at Haven. I might have been a bitch… But at least I'm trying to turn my life around. You seem to have forgotten your plan was to raise Atlas so far out of the way that nobody could reach it… While leaving the rest of Remnant to die." Cinder hissed; her good eye blazed with flames as she remembered trying to fight her former master.
The city had never been the same when Salem came for the relic, trapping her was next to impossible.
"Good deeds require sacrifice… I thought after you giving up your humanity for power, you'd see just what I'm trying to do." Ozpin said, he slammed Long Memory into Cinder's sword as she summoned another.
It shattered and Cinder gasped as glass cut into her arm. She gasped and pulled it out of the demonic arm while wincing in pain.
"I starved for power. I wanted to be feared after I was forgotten by humanity… Arthas got me to see the light in my powers. You've become as arrogant as Watts, as ruthless as Hazel and as crazed as Tyrian. I lost EVERYTHING by following Salem. I lost weeks of sleep when I became a mother, wondering day and night if my damned kids would find out their mother was a damned PSYCHOPATH!" She yelled before rushing forward, she kicked at Ozpin who ducked it before blasting the ground with flames, nearly roasting Arthas and the others as Arthas looked at her.
"People used to look up to you… Men, woman. You were a role model, I've been dealing with running a school, raising a family. Ironwood took over leading Atlas while Winter took over the military… What have you done with your life so far, old man?" Cinder growled, another hit and she had her Aura crackle.
"I've been trying to rebuild the world only to see it had no hope of understanding anything. Salem was defeated, but they didn't learn to prevent another like her from taking over." Ozpin said, Arthas tried to shoot him in the back only to be knocked to the ground when Ozpin struck him.
Cinder panted as she slowly stood up, Ozpin was battering her left and right and she couldn't even touch him. he had certainly improved since the fight from Beacon.
"People don't need leaders, they need hope. You think destroying the world is any better than… Salem? You act like your better than me, yet you've acted worse than everyone we fought against. I'm not fighting for just myself; I'm fighting for the next generation of Huntsmen and Huntresses. I'm fighting so humanity and Faunus kind can survive… And I'm fighting so my family and husband are safe… I felt bad about Oscar… But if you think using his body means I'll take it easy on you?" She asked before a tornado started to surround her, lifting her off the ground.
"Then I'm done offering mercy… I might have turned my back on everything I stood for before now… But I won't allow another Salem on Remnant." Cinder stated, her hands burned as she prepared to duel Ozpin.
She would end this; she would make sure Ozpin was subdued. Her only question was what drove Ozpin so much down this path. She doubted it was humanity's inability to survive and grow.
Author Notes
Phew, another chapter done! I am so sorry for not updating the story in a while. I lost interest in the story and will be finishing it up soon. I also want to apologize for not writing Cinder in character last story. Next chapter will be listed on the summary and will show the rest of the fight with Ozpin. Until then, Lighting Wolf out!
Ps: I am making a Winter story on Thursday or so and a Raven or Glynda story after that, let me know your thoughts in the reviews.