Disclaimer: I own nothing
Chapter 17: This is... Harrowing? That doesn't sound right.
"So... what brings you here?" he asked, finally dressed as he stared at his sister cautiously, his weapon resting nearby just in case. He didn't think Raven had come here to hurt him, but he could never be sure.
"Salem." she replied bluntly, making his eyes widen, his lazy face turning serious. "After you fucked up my attempt to kill her agent, I had to move the tribe, just in time before a horde of Grimm swarmed our old location... Grimm lead by some agents I've never seen before. They weren't human, not sure they were Grimm either... I followed them when they went back to her... Salem's faction has increased... massively, she only a handful of servants before... now she has dozens, and all of them look powerful. I don't know where they came from, and I had to leave after one of them tried to skewer me, recognising me in my bird form."
"...shit. Why tell me this?" he asked, making her scoff.
"I don't like you, not since you decided to become Ozpin's lapdog in his endless war... but I hate Salem far more. Ozpin needs to know about this, most importantly... the fact that she has a Maiden, or something similar. Summer, I think. A girl she called... Annie, despite her age she has very powerful fire magic." Raven said, making him sigh.
"Fuck." he sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his head in annoyance, his caution completely gone, Raven was unpredictable most of the time, but he knew her well enough to know she wouldn't lie about this. "I'll talk to Ozpin... maybe you should come along as we-" he started, before sighing as he looked at the empty spot she was stood in, just catching the sight of her flying away. "Figures..."
Glancing at the blank-faced doll again, he sighed. No time to play around, as tempting as it was. He needed to talk to Ozpin. Following her example, he switched forms and flew through the night sky towards Beacon.
'Data Transmitted, awaiting further orders.'
'Stay close to Qrow, keep monitoring his conversations. Time to find out what Daddy dearest is hiding from me.'
'Orders acknowledged.'
- Shiro -
Hmm, Salem.
Cinder's boss.
Who can apparently control Grimm?
Interesting.
Not least of which is that Qrow and Raven both seem afraid of her, even if they try and hide it. Also, Ozpin is at war with her and has been for a long time.
Well, I have things to do tonight before the Game gets pissy at me for putting it off, but it's still good to know.
"So... what's going on, boss?" Jinx asks as she looks around the room, seeing equally confused faces. Neo smirking as she plays with her... hang on, my weapon. How did she even... you know what? I'm not going to even ask.
Yang and Nora both look confused but excited, they're both adrenaline junkies, and it doesn't take a genius to work out they're going to be fighting since I've given them both their weapons back.
Nora is well trained enough to be trusted with it, she hasn't even thought about attacking me, and getting Yang used to my less than legal actions seems like a good idea.
And Jaune's here... because my team needed comic relief I guess? Or a meat-shield/cannon-fodder.
"Right, now that everyone is here, I'll explain. Tonight, we are going on a... expedition. It'll be dangerous, but I've located an anomaly, and I want to investigate it, it's too close to my properties for me to leave it after all. I've gathered you all because you are all people I can trust, and you're all good fighters... or good comic relief." I say with a smirk, seeing Jaune flinch.
"Sounds like fun, and it's not like I had anything better to do tonight..." Yang says, stroking Ember Celia slightly. "I need to keep my skills up anyway. Can't let myself get rusty before Beacon starts." she says with a laugh.
"You're going to Beacon too? So am I!" Nora says excitedly, her hammer resting on her shoulder.
'Will there be fighting to do?' Neo asks.
"Yes... so can I have my weapon back?" I ask making her pout, her eyes growing larger. Puppy dog eyes are cheating when you can use illusions. "Oh, don't give me that look... ugh, fine... I have more weapons. You're lucky you're sexy." I sigh, making her beam at me.
Pulling one of my toys out of my inventory, I pause... honestly, this might work out better.
My weapon of choice is one of the Snipers used by the Machina Sniper troops, and that means I can be our teams ranged fighter. I've got one of the swords from the Robotic Knights as well, just in case.
"Err... is this a good idea?" Jaune asks hesitantly.
"Yes. You're a little bit better at fighting now, but you still need more experience before you're ready for Beacon. It's for your own good, and you'll probably survive. Maybe." I say casually. "I'm not accepting any complaints, so... everyone follow me, I have our ride prepared." I order, the other advantage of everyone I've chosen... is that I'm in charge of all of them.
Even Neo happily follows my orders, and the others don't exactly get a choice. Jinx works for me, Jaune and Nora have no choice but to obey, and Yang owes me too much to complain.
Leading everyone down to the garage, I get them to file into the armoured mini-van, one of my purchases... and by purchases I mean Neo stole it from one of the gang leaders she killed.
Criminals have the best loot. I've got a small armoury of stolen weapons, piles of drugs and contraband, and a fleet of vehicles.
The Vale PD don't even care, criminals killing criminals isn't worth their time, the only reason the Woodward family attracted so much attention is because I went for the family as well, that and the fact that Edward had a decent reputation as an honest businessman and not many people knew of his life of crime.
Did I set up an MCT near the police station to keep them from looking into the killings to deeply? Perhaps. I bought a small business, just a grocers, next to the station, staffed it with the right type of people (desperate Faunus who needed a job, which means they aren't going to risk looking too deeply as long as they're getting paid), and set up the MCT in the basement, so I have the police of Vale under my influence. I can't completely control them without getting too much attention, but something like making them ignore gang on gang violence? Barely needed a push, and if they happen to forget to lock their computers and scrolls every so often, well... accidents happen.
The fun part is that the store is entirely legitimate, none of the staff have criminal records (beyond minor things, the Vale PD are cracking down on Faunus thanks to the White Fang... and some suggestions), and apart from the one room in the basement, there's nothing unusual about it.
"Neo, you drive... I've put the address on the map." I say, taking a seat as she gives me a thumbs up.
The journey isn't that long, even shorter with Neo's disregard of road safety laws... and self-preservation for that matter.
Nora and Yang spend the journey chatting, getting along surprisingly well. Nora knows not to tell anyone about her... unique position, so her backstory is that she's working for me to pay the bills until Beacon starts, something I got her to agree to, it's not unusual for an orphan after all.
Jaune spends the time praying for his survival as Neo speeds through the night, and Jinx is in the front mocking Neo's driving skills.
Before long we arrive at our target location, an abandoned manor just on the outskirts of Vale. I even have an excuse for coming here... it was attacked by Grimm a while ago, and the surviving member of the family has been trying to sell it ever since, but they've failed since no one wants to live in a place where Grimm slaughtered most of the old inhabitants.
I've already sent off a message to the owner, inquiring about it and getting permission to check it out in person, this is just me checking out my potential future property. It's good to have an alibi.
Why do I have so many people with me? Bodyguards, I'm a wealthy and powerful man after all. I could be kidnapped for ransom by the dangerous gangs in Vale after all...
'What are you giggling about?' Neo asks as we get out of the minivan.
"Nothing, nothing... right, everyone stays on guard. Even if this place isn't as dangerous as I'm expecting... we're on the edges of Grimm territory. Yang, Jaune, you take the front line." I order.
"M-me?" Jaune whimpers.
"Stop your bitching, it'll be fine..." Yang says with a smirk, readying Ember Celia as she pushes the manor door open.
The manor is a reasonably large one, the owner had delusions of grandeur and had it built out here because he wanted a big estate, and the city didn't have room for it. He figured he could pay for guards to protect him and that there'd be no problems being outside the city walls...
I think I can see the bloodstains he left behind already.
Grimm tend to be drawn to cities, but with the walls stopping the regular Grimm from entering its places like this that get targetted instead.
"Nice place... if it wasn't for the bloodstains." Yang whistles, looking at the extravagant decorations, somewhat worn down by time and disuse. "So what are we looking for?" she asks as we look around the abandoned house, moonlight filtering in through the windows providing the only lighting, this place had a dust-powered generator, but it's been destroyed.
Closing my eyes, I can... feel the problem already. Beneath us? It's an odd feeling like something is... leaking.
"A way down, into the cellar." I answer, looking over the plans mentally. "Jaune, the door to the cellar should be just through there... why don't you go first." I say with a smile.
"B-but..." he stutters, before he sighs. "On it..."
The little canary can go first, and we'll see if he stops chirping.
It doesn't take long for him to find it, it's not exactly hidden after all.
Pulling the door to the cellar open, Jaune hesitates as he looks down into the pitch-black cellar, something giving off a light green light coming from deeper within. A quick kick later sends him tumbling down the stairs.
"Oww... why did you-" he starts before his words die in his throat. "Err... guys? I think you should see this..." he says, staring off into the cellar, in the direction of the light.
Heading down myself, I pause as I see what I came here for... a glowing green... rift? It looks like a portal, and I can see... a forest on the other side, dead white trees and blackened grass, if I focus I can see... what looks like a village in the distance, but it's too far to make out.
That's the fucker, head into it... I need to find out what's going on, and I can't do it from out here.
"So... what the fuck is that?" Jinx asks, her mini-gun aimed at the portal.
"That, my dear... is what we are here for." I say as I approach it, sticking my hand into it experimentally.
It's... cold, not uncomfortable but it's chilly on the other side. Vale nights aren't warm, but they aren't this cold either.
'Stop that.' Neo says, pulling me back with a worried frown, looking at my arm carefully. 'You, idiot. Go first.' she orders, glaring at Jaune. 'If you don't die, we'll follow you.'
"Err... do I have a choice?" he asks, looking between Jinx and Neo as Jinx starts walking towards him with a grin. "I'll take that as a no... I knew this was going to happen." he sighs, not waiting for Jinx to toss him into it and he takes a deep breath and leaps through the portal, landing on the other side.
Jinx and Neo get along surprisingly well for a pair that are usually arguing. Mostly because they are both sociopaths with little regard for other peoples lives or safety.
"Guys? It's fine!" Jaune says with a relieved smile, waving at us from the other side of the rift.
"What can you see?" I ask as he looks around.
"Err... a village over there and a big empty forest? Nothing else." he says with a shrug.
"Good enough for me, right... every one in. Yang, Nora, you next." I order.
"Gods this is weird..." Yang says with a smirk, jumping into the rift after a moment. She's an adrenaline junkie, so her lack of concern doesn't surprise me.
"Into the magic portal we go!"
And Nora is just... eccentric, so her lack of caution is to be expected. She's the girl who decided to pick a fight with a bunch of criminals after all.
"If we get stuck in a weird forest, I want a raise." Jinx grumbles as she follows behind.
'This should be... interesting. Hopefully, we'll find something to play with.' Neo says, taking my arm with hers as we both enter the portal.
"If we don't, we'll just make our own fun..." I promise, giving her a quick kiss. "Right, I have no idea what we are doing or where we are." I say with a smirk. "So first things first... to the village." I say happily, my hand resting on my sword, the sniper on my back.
"The creepy village... in the middle of the creepy forest? Why not, what could go wrong?" Jaune asks with a sigh as he takes front, his sword and shield drawn.
Smart guy, he learns quickly.
"Err... guys? Where did the portal go?" Nora asks after a moment making us all look at her, and the empty spot where the rift was moments ago.
"Huh... well, guess we better get moving and find a new way out of here, hadn't we?" I ask casually.
Time is moving... strangely here, I'll start my investigation... and find you a way out.
"You are way too calm about... guys? What is that?" Jaune asks with a whimper, pointing deeper into the forest.
"Hmm... Ahh, that would be some kind of walking tree thing." I reply, pulling out my sniper calmly as a pair of glowing amber eyes stare at us, an eerie blue light leaving its mouth.
Haunted Maokai, The Twisted Treant
LVL – 103
Tier – Elite
Faction – The Monsters of Harrowing
Thoughts about you – You're trespassing in his forest
Notable Skills – Summon Haunted Sapling, Sap Magic, Control Nature
Reputation – -100
As a wave of spiky branches bursts out of the floor beneath us, I jump back calmly, watching as everyone else, even Jaune does the same. The floor was vibrating, and it doesn't take a genius to recognise the danger... Jaune got used to dodging things from underground during the rat dungeons... they like tunnelling.
"Everyone, run to the village. That's an order, Jinx, we'll have more to fight." I say sternly, glaring at her as she goes to fire at the creature.
"Run away? Works for me." Jaune says, already setting off into a dead sprint.
"Aww... I wanted to fight the angry tree..." Nora says as we start moving.
"Send some grenades back at it, buy us some time." I order, getting a wild grin from her, immediately followed by the sound of explosions and a roar of pain and anger.
"Why does she get to fire?" Jinx shouts back at me as we leap over some logs that were tossed onto the path in our way.
"Because she has a grenade launcher." I shout back, drawing my sword and slashing through a branch that swings at my head. It doesn't take us long to reach the edge of the forest, and the moment we do, the attacks stop, the monster's loud footsteps coming to a halt as it glares at us from within the forest, before turning and walking away. "Well... that was fun, a good start." I say with a smirk, looking over my team.
"You're all crazy." Jaune moans out, catching his breath as he looks at the rest of us, Yang and Jinx are angry... because I made them run. Nora and Neo are grinning.
"Probably, but that just makes us fun. Stop being a whiny baby, what's an evil tree for a future hunter?" I say as I sheath my sword... "Let's go meet the locals."
Heading into the village, I look around with a grin... before it fades. Where is everyone? The town is just that, a little town on the edge of a big forest... but everyone seems to be inside at the moment.
"Good luck with that... the wimps are all hiding." a voice attracts my attention, making me look up at the roof of one of the buildings, seeing... a far too familiar face staring down at me with a grin.
Wearing a pair of tiny torn denim shorts and a pink tank top, with a tiny black jacket, all covered in splodges of green pain, she grins a slightly... mad smile down at me, long pink hair going down into twin-tails... she already looks a bit crazy, and that 's if I ignore the massive mini-gun she's sitting on.
"From what? And why aren't you hiding?" I ask, making her jump down to our level with a wide grin.
"From the Zombies... obviously, it's Harrowing Night after all. And why would I hide? This is the best night of the year. I'm Jinx, Jinx the Zombie Slayer." she says as we all look between the baffled Jinx and the new Jinx.
"Right... zombies. I'm Shiro, and this is Jinx... Jinx the People Slayer." I introduce with a grin. I have no idea what's going on, but this is great.
"Okay, who the fuck are you?" our Jinx growls, pulling out her mini-gun and aiming it at her twin, who immediately follows up by pulling out her own.
"Cute... that's what I was going to ask. There's only room for one Jinx in Trick or Treat town." Zombie Slayer Jinx growls.
"Trick or Treat town? Seriously?" Yang mumbles, getting ignored as the two break into squabbling.
Zombie Slayer Jinx, The Loose Cannon
LVL – 67
Tier – Elite
Faction – None
Thoughts about you – Curiosity
Notable Skills – Immunity to Explosions
Reputation – 10
"Excuse me? If you don't mind, I have some more questions... we aren't exactly sure where we are, we just got chased by a pissed off tree... and also... Zombies?" I ask getting between them.
"Tch, yeah, dumbass... Zombies, you know shambling undead? Like eating flesh? Zombies. They'll be here soon... still, if you morons managed to survive that old asshole Maokai, maybe you could help? I did have a partner, Zombie Slayer Pantheon, but he kinda got murdered. I think it was either one of the Trick-or-Treaters or maybe one of the vampires? Either way, this place is kinda fucked if we don't drive the horde off." she says with a shrug.
"You... don't seem worried." Yang points out, making her shrug.
"Oh, I don't give a fuck if the pissants from here get chewed on, I just like blowing zombies up." ZS Jinx admits with a grin, patting her weapon. "If you guys need to find a way home, the Witches or the Vampire would be your best bet, but no-one will come out while the zombies are coming."
Quest Added
[Shiro the Zombie Slayer]
Objective: Defend Trick or Treat Town from the Undead Horde
Bonus Objective: Defeat the three Zombie Bosses [00/03]
Reward: Zombie Slayer Jinx Companion, continued Harrowing Questline
"What do you guys think?" I ask, before sighing... they've all already got their weapons ready.
'Never killed a zombie before... do you think they can scream?' Neo wonders, her... my umbrella resting on her shoulder.
"Whatever... but I kill more than you, you cheap rip-off." Jinx growls, her mini-guns barrel already slowly rotating.
"Zombie Killer Nora is on duty, Master!" Nora cheers with a salute.
"This is so weird, but it's better than tending the bar." Yang adds, cocking Ember Celia with a smirk. "Never fought zombies before..."
"Am I the only one worried about this?" Jaune asks as we all get our weapons ready.
"Well... we're in. So... how does this work?" I ask making ZS Jinx turn and walk towards the centre of the town, her ass swaying as she does. "Come on, I'll show you."
"Oi! Stop checking out fake me." Jinx growls as we follow behind her.
"Hey, she's shaking her ass at me, don't put a work of art in front of me and not expect me to admire it." I say defensively.
'It is a great ass.' Neo agrees, nodding solemnly. 'Not as good as mine, but still...'
"And it isn't as good as mine, so if you're gonna stare do it at me not the cheap fraud." Jinx cuts in before she stops. "Wait... dammit..."
"Please, you're the imitation here, why would he look at you when I'm here?" ZS Jinx adds with a smirk at her twin. "Anyway, this thing is the town core... the Zombies will try and destroy it, and we just have to slaughter them like the dogs they are. Easy right?" she asks gesturing to a floating green crystal in the town square.
"Wait... this is just a tower defence game without the towers?" Yang asks with a scoff.
"No idea what that means, we just have to kill the zombies that arrive. Then things will move on." she says with a shrug. "After Pantheon died, I've been failing this stupid mini-game, I keep dying on wave ten when Zombie Nunu shows up, and then it resets back to the beginning." she admits. "Help me get out of this shithole, and I'll owe you."
This place is trapped in a time loop, it can't move on till the zombie horde is driven away. Get killing.
"Works for me, fighting zombies till the end of time sounds like a pain in the ass anyway. So, how long do we have?" I ask, making her grin as she taps the crystal, the moon turning red immediately.
"Ready or not... here they come!" she cheers, as the sound of trampling feet and moans fills the air.
"...Wonderful! Girls, get ready... it's time to be big damn heroes and save this little town. Jaune, try not to die." I add as an afterthought, pulling the sniper off my back, looking through the scope, I can already see the shambling undead approaching.
Who the hell would use undead over a superior force like machines? Tch.
I don't have a skill for sniper rifles, but fortunately, they don't move very fast... it makes them easy targets.
A pull of the trigger sends a loud gunshot through the night, one of the undead dropping as its head explodes.
Heh.
Stat Plundered
+1 END
...Well, well, well. Tonight has just become... profitable.
As the others join in, gunshots and explosions filling the night, I grin. I've been busy lately... but I have to admit... this is kinda fun.
- Glynda Goodwitch -
"I've arrived... but it looks like I'm not the only one." she reported over the scroll.
"Salem's minions?" Ozpin's voice asked, making her frown.
"...No, at least I doubt it. Something tells me that Salem's minions don't travel by... minivan." she scoffed.
"Still, be cautious. I can feel the magic even from here... but I can't leave Beacon, and I can't send Amber or Qrow, Amber is too vulnerable and far too overconfident, and I need Qrow looking into these... new servants of Salem." he warned, making her smile slightly.
"I will be, I'll report in soon." she promised, ending the call and entering the abandoned building. Another arrogant man who thought his money made him invincible, this wasn't the first building to end up like this... wouldn't be the last either.
She could immediately see signs of... recent activity, footprints disturbing the thick layer of dust, it made following the tracts of the... six people easy enough.
There were six distinct footprints, not quite adult in nature... teenagers? Oh, wonderful. If she was lucky, they were horny idiots sneaking away to get drunk and fuck. Then she could just scold them and send them on their way. Hopefully, Salem wasn't recruiting so young.
Following them into the basement, she frowned in confusion as she watched the path... end. In the middle of the room, they just stopped.
No footsteps back upstairs, they just disappeared in the middle of the room.
Her finely tuned senses screamed danger as she prepared herself, the room suddenly growing in an unnatural green light as her footing vanishing from beneath her, the sudden sensation of falling, making her eyes widening.
Landing on her feet, she quickly looked around with a glare, ready to attack as she looked around the creepy forest in confusion, looking up she caught sight of a... hole in the air, quickly closing leaving her in her new location.
...No scroll connection here, no way of knowing where she'd ended up. The flora didn't match any of the kingdoms... but she wasn't alone.
Even a half-deaf fool could hear the sounds of explosions and gunshots in the background, coming from the village she could see in the distance.
Considering her choices, she sighed before heading in the direction of the noise, before her senses, honed from years as an active huntress, screamed at her again, making her raise a shield, just in time to block the... vines?
"You defile the forest! BEGONE!" the... tree thing roared at her, a wave of sharp branches swinging at her, being banished with a simple swing of her riding crop.
Hm, she'd heard tales of a tree that had its Aura awakened, Ivern was it? But this was different... it reeked of magic. She might not have magic, but she had been taught how to sense it.
This entire forest reeked of magic... which was a sign that she was a long way from Vale, Ozpin would have found this place a long time ago if it was close to any of the kingdoms... as would Salem.
"I have no quarrel with you, creature." she said calmly, it was clearly intelligent.
"Yet you trespass in my forest! You humans have abused nature long enough." he roared back, vines shooting from beneath her, wrapping around her leg as they attempted to bind her, a quick wave of her crop shredding them.
Throwing the creature back, she ripped one of the dead trees out of the ground, flinging it at the beast, sending it stumbling back.
As it rose, charging her with an enraged roar, she sighed, catching its arm as it was swung at her with her telekinesis, before she simply tore it off. It was a relatively simple trick, gripping a target in two places and pulling them in opposite directions.
Usually, she'd use it against Grimm, but this creature was clearly hostile and not willing to negotiate.
Watching it roar in pain, she prepared herself to finish it off, before it sunk into the ground, the earth shaking slightly as the source of the tremors moved further into the forest.
Waiting for just a moment, to make sure it was really gone, she headed back towards her initial target, the village in the distance and the source of the fighting.
Hurrying along, not wanting to spend a moment more in the forest, she quickly reached the village, hearing... a familiar voice barking orders over the sounds of combat.
Looking over the battle, she scowled, seeing no less than three future Beacon students in this mess, along with her potential future apprentice.
...and a horde of undead. It was going to be like that, huh? As one of the creatures rushed towards her, she simply lifted one of the stones from the cobblestone pavement and sent it flying at the creatures head, killing it instantly.
She felt nothing doing it, it was clearly already dead... its flesh was rotten and discoloured, and half its chest was already missing, it's innards and ribs exposed showing a rotten and still heart. It wasn't human, even if it looked like one.
"Oh, hey Glynda... what brings you here?" Shiro asked casually, crushing the skull of one of the abominations with a swing of his mace... a cruel-looking thing, covered in spikes and made with a strange black metal.
Looking around, she could see several turrets set up around green glowing crystal, firing at the approaching horde.
"I could ask you the same thing, Mr Eis... this is hardly a place for a businessman after all." she said with a stern look, one that had made many students cower.
"Meh, I'm branching out..." Shiro replied with a smirk, completely unphased. "The better question is what brings you here? I assume you ended up here the same way we did?" he asked casually, sitting on one of the turrets casually.
"Mysterious portal in a creepy manor? I was investigating the manor, Hunter Business... the next thing I knew I was here being attacked by an angry tree." she admitted, taking out several more of the attackers with a glance. There were... hundreds of corpses littering the floor, and even more of the undead charging them... but they were fairly weak.
"And I was investigating it myself... Business Business." he countered with a smirk. "The owner is desperate to sell... and I can see why. Pretty much everyone else here works for me. I brought them along in case of Grimm. Instead, we ended up fighting a horde of undead... just one of those days I guess?" he said with a casual grin, pulling out his rifle and firing several times, an undead dropping with each shot.
"...We will discuss this further later, for now, we should focus on the issue at hand. I'll be having words about you bringing pre-Beacon students into danger later." she growled.
"Yeah, yeah... zombies first, we can flirt later." he said with his usual smirk.
Sternly glaring at him, she sighed as he simply winked at her before going back to the fight. His flirtatious attitude would be an issue if she brought him to Beacon... a school full of naïve teenagers would be a buffet for a beast like him.
She ruthlessly ignored the small blush on her face as she entered the battle, crushing the slight enjoyment she gained from his affections.
- Shiro -
"Oi! Boss incoming!" Zombie Slayer Jinx shouted, getting my attention as a large four-armed zombie charges towards us... a tiny child zombie sitting on its head, controlling it.
Zombie Nunu, The Boy and his... Zombie
LVL – 78
Tier – Elite
Faction – The Monsters of Harrowing
Thoughts about you – Hunger
Notable Skills – Plague Vomit, Plague Bomb
Reputation – -100
Lovely.
This place is honestly great, I've managed to finish my plunder quest with the sheer horde that has come after us, not to mention gained a fuck-ton of experience. We all have, Jaune's level has skyrocketed from the endless horde.
"That's what keeps killing you?" I ask ZS Jinx with a smirk.
"Oh, fuck off... there's just too many for one person." she growls, pulling her rocket launcher out and firing directly at the beast. "If we get through this wave, we'll have reached the halfway point, and we'll get a break... and some ammo drops to restock."
"Got it, everyone... my turret can focus down the minions, so let's fuck up that boss!" I order, I carry a pile of scrap and metal in my inventory, so I can build turrets just about anywhere... they aren't massively powerful, but they're more than enough to deal with the weaker undead.
"Language, Mr Eis." Glynda says with a scowl, making me take a moment to make a note to pull the stick out of her ass and stick a better one back it.
I'm sure it's a complete coincidence that Ozpin's agent showed up here... right after I did. Fucking Ozpin.
Pulling out my sniper, I aim and fire at the tiny bastard sitting on the top. Unfortunately, the fucker is pretty agile... and I'm only somewhat decent with a rifle, I clip him a couple of times, but he drops back behind the zombies head, clinging onto his neck so I can't shoot him.
I can still pepper the big bastard however, he has a thick skull and a lot of HP... but I have infinite ammo.
With a laugh, Yang uses the recoil from her gauntlets to send herself flying into the air, landing on the beasts face and pummelling him with a smirk, countless shotgun blasts to the face making it recoil in pain, thrashing around to get her off...
This boss battle would have been epic if it was a one on one, but there's just so many of us.
I catch a glimpse of Neo weaving between its legs, slicing up its tendons with a manic grin before she vanishes again, several smaller zombies dropping as their heads are cut off by the phantom killer, Jinx and... Jinx seems to have gotten into a competition over who can kill the most, Jaune is... actually holding his own as he cuts down one that gets to close to the crystal, and Nora is blowing shit up with a manic grin.
As one of the undead charges me, I grab my stolen mace and smash it's skull in, some of the undead had weapons, and I have to admit maces are fun... it makes a satisfying thwack when I crush their heads. Also, my sword is stuck on one of the corpses, somewhere over to the side.
I stabbed it, then Nora smacked it with her hammer... it went flying and took my sword with it.
Letting out a battle cry, I stun the surrounding zombies for a couple of seconds, bringing my mace down on one of them with a grin, Battle Cry is very powerful against mobs like these, they all fail the check other than the bosses, and then they get stunned, letting us wipe them out while they stand around clutching their rotting skulls.
As Yang gets electrocuted by the little midget wielding an electric prod of all things, falling from the big bastard, I charge forwards, unleashing a power strike on the beast's knee, shattering it under my ever-growing strength, the zombies provide mostly STR and END when I kill them, and that means I'm growing stronger with every fallen foe.
The beast falls to one knee, a wave of rounds blasting it in the face courtesy of two mini-gun wielding Jinx's, and I take this opportunity to rush behind it, where is that little bastard?
As a grenade blasts the skull of the beast, the tiny child zombie is dislodged from his nice, safe position on the big ones back, sending him stumbling to the ground.
"There you are..." I say with a grin, jumping forwards and bringing my mace down on its skull, it's eyes briefly widening showing some intelligence before I snuff that out quickly.
Boss Killed
+10 INT and WIS
Bonus Objective: Defeat the three Zombie Bosses [01/03]
Works for me.
Dodging the big ones furious swipes, I watch as it gets pummelled by Yang, Nora, Jinx and Jinx, Neo slicing up its arms as it tries to fight them off, and Glynda simply ripping one of its arm off.. quite scarily actually, I can see why she's the vice-headmistress of Beacon.
I wonder who would win between her and Neo?
Neo is the higher level of the two, but only just.
With the 'boss' dealt with, the others fall quickly, unable to withstand this many battle-hungry Hunters in training, I don't even bother getting involved, any my turrets deal with count as my kills, so I'm still rolling in stats and exp. Plus, we're in a party at the moment, so I get some exp from anyone but Glynda's kills.
As the last one falls, the crystal lets off a soft chime, making ZS Jinx cheer.
"And that's wave ten! Halfway to being done with these fucking things." she says with a grin. "We have some time, the next wave won't come until we activate it again." she informs me, sheathing her weapons.
"You heard the lady, take five, catch your breath, yes I mean you Jaune, and check your ammo." I order with a stretch, the bodies of the dead just... vanishing into shards of light, several crates of ammo appearing next to the crystal.
"I would like an explanation, Mr Eis." Glynda immediately starts, making me sigh.
"Fine. This place is called Trick or Treat Town, it's under attack by monsters, if the crystal is destroyed, time moves back, and they have to do it all over again. We need to get rid of the zombies, so the loop continues, Jinx the Zombie Slayer is from here, and she thinks the Witches or the Vampires would be able to help us get out of here, but we can't meet with them until the zombies have been dealt with. So... we're fighting the zombies. Following?" I ask with a sigh. "Oh, and time moves weirdly here... an hour here isn't necessarily an hour back home, but I'm not sure if time moves faster or slower here." I admit, that's a lie... I have the Game clock, which tells me that time is moving however the fuck it wants at the moment.
We've been in here for about half an hour in Remnant time, and hours in real-time... but it isn't consistent, sometimes it's moving faster, and sometimes it isn't moving at all.
"I... see. You are taking this remarkably well." Glynda remarks with a strange look.
"Honestly? This is kinda fun, it's nice to get out of the office every now and then, and what teenager hasn't wanted to fight zombies" I say with a smirk.
"Hmm, for someone who has never attended a combat school, you are remarkably talented... and unnaturally strong. Have you truly never considered becoming a Hunter? It seems like a waste of talent, and as a teacher, I hate squandered talent." she says with an intense look.
"Eh, I've missed my opportunity to become a hunter, Hunters start training at seventeen at the latest, and I didn't even go to one of the combat schools. Besides, I'm a busy guy, lots of business meetings and paperwork, you know?" I say with a smirk, Ozpin wants me at Beacon, does he? She's subtly asked before, but never outright asked me like this.
Hmm... if I could set up an MCT in Beacon itself... but I'd have to find out why Ozpin has been spying on me first, I could make an android body and leave it in Lux under my control while the real me goes to Beacon? My implant will let me control it remotely after all... thoughts for later.
"I'm sure someone as talented as you could find a way to manage his businesses from Beacon... and your age wouldn't be a problem. I am the vice-headmistress of Beacon, after all, there are multiple ways you could join without issues, not least of which would be as my apprentice and teaching assistant." she suggests calmly, making my smirk turn to a teasing grin.
"Aww... if you wanted to keep me so close to you, you could have just been honest. Would I have to call you Mistress? It'd certainly explain the riding crop."
"Hilarious. Truly." Glynda deadpans, the slightest blush on her face. "Honestly, you could use some discipline and a firm hand. Perhaps then you'd be less prone to flirt with everything in your path?"
"Nah, you can't stop nature. If I'm not flirting, am I really me?" I say with a smirk. "You're welcome to try though... just be careful when you stare into the abyss, this deep dark abyss stares right back. Maybe you would make me a decent human being... or maybe I'd drag you down to my level." I say, looking over her body as she rolls her eyes. "Either way, it'd be fun watching you try."
"You overestimate yourself, I've trained countless unruly teenagers into fine Hunters, you'd be no different... even if you'd require a more stern hand. Now if you'll excuse me... I need to go and have a word with my future students." she replied with a stern look, rolling her eyes as I blow her a mocking kiss.
Now that I have a moment... I can look over the notifications that I have been ignoring.
[Upgrade Technology] (Active)
Allows the user to upgrades any technology, increasing it's effect, if you have the correct Proficiencies.
[Summon Follower (Tech)] (Active)
Allows you to summon followers who specialise in technology.
[Create Legendary Machine] (Active)
Allows you to use Legendary Machine blueprints to create famous Machines from throughout the multiverse
Legendary Blueprints Available - GLaDOS
[Master Engineer] (Perk)
All technology or machines created by a Master Engineer are far more effective, will not rust or degrade over time and can be created faster.
[Scientist] Class Unlocked
Figured as much, Engineer class has maxed out completely... which means its that time again... what class do I want next? Honestly, part of me wants to finish each of the beginner classes, Thief and Apprentice Mage. That would open up a lot more possibilities for me, all the advanced Magic and Stealth classes... and while I'm here, I'm going to be rolling in exp.
"Hey, you're the boss of these lot, right?" Zombie Slayer Jinx says, getting my attention from my choices, as long as I pick before the fighting begins I won't be losing too much exp.
"Except Miss Stern and Sexy, yeah." I admit calmly.
"Right... come with me, there's something I want to show you." she says, grabbing my hand and pulling me away.
- Glynda -
What the hell was she thinking...
Shiro flirting with her was standard, he flirted with everyone. She'd noticed that when she first met him, it wasn't that surprising, he was Qrow's son after all... but why the hell did she flirt back?!
It was completely unprofessional of her, but Shiro had a way of getting through her defences that honestly worried her.
He was right, she was staring into an abyss, and every time she did, he tried to pull her in.
And she wanted to take him to Beacon? Where they'd be working closely... for years?
She could claim that she'd never be so unprofessional as to sleep with her apprentice, that she'd maintain a respectable relationship with him...
But she was honest with herself, and she could see her resolve wavering if she was dealing with him all the time, every day...
She had very little in the way of social life, she was simply too busy after all... and having the attention of an attractive young man was making her feel young and wanted again.
How long could she pretend she didn't like it? How long could she turn him down before she just gave in? Jumped right down into the abyss with him?
Sighing, she headed towards the students, putting her stern mask on again. Really she had no say in what they did in the summer... but scolding some future students would make her feel better at least.
- Shiro -
Following ZS Jinx around the corner, into an alleyway, I keep my guard up as she suddenly stops, turning back around.
"...wonderful alley, really glad I came with you to see this." I deadpan, ready to charge the moment she tries anything, she's got a lot of weapons, but she's not that strong physically. Close range is my best chance.
"Oh shut it... I just needed to get you away from the others." she admits, sitting on a box. "Look, this place sucks... a lot. It was great at first, just slaughtering zombies forever... but there's no thrill in it any more. It's just the same thing, over and over again. Even when Harrowing Night is over, it just resets and starts all over again. It fucking sucks. Where's the fun in doing the same thing, forever? I want out... I wanna see something more than this shitty town." she admits, my guard, relaxing slightly.
"So... you want to come with us?"
"Pretty much... you already have one Jinx, why not take two? I can work with weird other me if it gets me out of here." she offers with a smirk. "I'm not much of a thinker, and as long as I can have some fun, I can follow orders."
"...works for me, so why did you need to come back here to say that?" I ask with a frown, it's nothing she couldn't have said with them.
"What? Oh Nah, I wanted you to come here for this." she says hopping off the box, turning around and bending over it, placing her hands on it to brace herself as she looks over her shoulder at me. "Watching you squash that fucking midget zombie that kept killing me made me wet as fuck, and that weird stripper teacher looked like she'd get in the way, so... wanna fuck?" she offers casually making me grin.
"You know... I think me and you are going to get along just fine..." I say undoing my belt and unzipping my trousers as she pulls her tiny shorts down, displaying her utter lack of underwear, and a tiny pussy dripping with arousal.
"Yeah, probably... now shut up and fuck me already, I don't need any foreplay, so get inside me already you cocksucker." she growls making my smirk, gripping her hips and rubbed my tip along her slit for a moment, before I take her advice, and thrust forward, slamming into her with a grin, one hand gripping her base of her twin-tails, yanking it back, a loud yowl leaving her mouth. She's... incredibly tight, on par with Neo... heh, there's something special about fucking short-stacks.
"You know... if you don't want them to know, you should probably just shut the fuck up." I say casually as I speed up, slamming into her with no mercy, spanking her firm pale ass with my free hand, the flesh rippling slightly as she moans in pleasure, a bit of a masochist, huh?
"I don't give a f-fuck if they know... U-ugh... harder, dickhead, I'm not m-made of glass... I just d-didn't wanna deal with some strict bitch trying to s-stop us before we g-got going. The bitch can c-come and watch for all I c-care. She a-ain't stopping us." she growls, slamming her hips back to meet my thrusts as her moans and groans fill the night, they can definitely hear her. "FUCK! Stop holding back shithead." she growls, making me smirk.
"Well... you asked for this." I say casually, see... I learnt a little trick. I can use Power Strike while unarmed, and more I can focus it on any part of my body I am... attacking with.
Slamming into her with a power strike, if anyone was watching carefully enough, they'd probably be surprised to see my shaft glowing with a red light as I sheath myself into her with a grunt, my tip pushing into her womb before I pull back... and do it all over again.
I learnt to do this because Neo is a kinky bitch, and if sex doesn't leave her bleeding and bruised, then she'll be disappointed. It does have the downside of draining my stamina faster, but I have plenty.
"T-that's it... f-fuck, I knew y-you'd be fun... oh Fuck... Oooooh, f-fuck a-already? Y-you've done this before..." she laughs, clenching down on my shaft as she cums for the first time.
"I have... and you're pretty pent up. Been a while, huh?" I say with a smirk. "Oh, hey, honey..."
'Don't mind me... just enjoying the show.' Neo adds with a wave, sitting on the box next to ZS Jinx, her hands sliding beneath her bottoms and under her top. 'By the way, the whole village can hear this loud slut. You should see the look on the teachers face... Yang's too...'
"Heh, I'd tell you to fuck off for calling me a slut... b-but I am getting fucked by a guy I met like two hours ago so f-fair enough..." Jinx admits. "S-still a creepy m-mute bitch though."
'That I am. You're just lucky I'm not possessive, or I'd carve your skinny body into pieces.' Neo adds with her usual smile.
"L-like to see you try you bit- Oh Fuck! Oh fuck, fuck, fuck..."
"Girls, girls... there's enough me to go around." I say soothingly, getting a deadpan look from Jinx and a smirk from Neo.
'Well... I'm not that patient... I'll find my own fun.' she adds, looking me in the eyes.
Heh, our ability to understand each other without words is almost scary.
"Have fun, honey..." I say, speeding up my thrusts again, rutting into Jinx as her moans and whimpers fill the night, Neo vanishing completely.
- Neo -
Stalking her prey, she smirked to herself.
So many choices... the obedient well trained Nora who had been trained to see Shiro having sex as natural? The bright red Jaune covering his ears and pretending he didn't have a boner? The jealous Jinx taking her anger out on the environment? The disapproving teacher, pretending she wasn't getting turned on by the sounds of sex filling the air?
No, she knew exactly who she was going after.
'Curious?' she asked, making Yang jump in surprise, her face going bright red as a guilty expression filled her face.
"N-no... I was just..." she stuttered, going silent as Neo placed a long finger on her mouth.
'I've put an illusion of us over there... come on.' she said, taking her arm and pulling her closer to the source of the noise.
"B-but... we shouldn't..." the usually cocky girl stuttered, putting up no fight as she was pulled towards the alleyway, peering in at the rutting pair, Jinx on her back now as Shiro choked her, pounding into her enough to make the box slam into the wall repeatedly, banging barely being drown out by Jinx's moans and screams.
She was certainly a noisy one.
'You know you want too... call it research, for when it's your turn...' she said casually, moving behind the younger girl.
"My tu- that's not..." she stammered out, flinching as Neo's dexterous fingers brushed against her chest, the other hand slowly moving down towards her stomach.
'Shiro wouldn't mind you watching... he likes putting on a show, and you know you want him.' she said, kissing the younger girls neck gently, her hand moving under the girls crop top and carefully toying with the girl's nipple. 'He's going to love these... you are built for fucking, I'm honestly surprised he hasn't already bent you over with a body like this...' she admitted, squeezing Yang's breast as she rubbed her body against the younger girls, her other hand sliding beneath her shorts, teasing her as a whimper left Yang's mouth.
"We... we're related." she said weakly, still watching Shiro like a hawk.
'You think he cares? You certainly don't. Look how wet you are...' she added, pulling her hand back up, hovering it in front of her face, her juices glistening in the moonlight. 'Just... enjoy yourself, there's no shame in it... soon it'll be you getting fucked by that big dick, but for now... my fingers will have to do." she teased, moving her hand back down, her long middle digit sliding into the tight, surprisingly virginal, slit.
"B-but... o-oh fuck it... do what y-you, Mhmmm, do what you want..." Yang scoffed, her tone filled with pleasure as Neo's musical giggle filled the air. "They can't s-see us... right?"
'...of course not.'
Making eye contact with Shiro, they shared a smirk, like she'd take such a good show away from him.
- Shiro -
Gods, I love that little psycho.
Deliberately not looking at the moaning and blushing Yang, I focus on my barely conscious toy. She talked a big game but... she was all talk. She's no virgin, but it's been a while... and I'm guessing she usually cums once or twice per session, not the non-stop cumming I can inflict on her.
Did I have an implant added so I could amplify the pleasure of my partners? Maybe.
Technology is OP, I need to make more implants, I have plenty of room, and I can just get rid of some of the non-essentials to make more room if it comes to it.
Do I really 'need' to kidneys? Hell, do I really need a heart? I could make a better replacement. Human Hardware is kinda shitty anyway, it's full of flaws and errors, wouldn't it be better to make a better version?
...what was I doing again? Oh, right, Jinx.
Focusing again, I amplify her pleasure to twenty times, a guttural moan leaving her as her eyes start to roll back in her head, her tongue hanging uselessly out of her mouth.
Speeding up, I decide to bring this to a close... she's out of it anyway, slamming into her one last time, I groan as I allow myself to finally cum, I can control my orgasm easily enough, it's just building pleasure, but if I leave it too long, it becomes almost painful.
But it does make the eventual release all the more enjoyable, and as I paint her insides white with my hot seed, I have to let out a groan of pleasure, unable to stop myself.
Catching my breath, I slowly pull out of her tight pussy, smirking as my seed starts leaking from her slightly stretched hole, a whimper leaving her.
"Still with us?" I ask as I fix my clothes.
"F-fuck... you." she mumbles back.
"You said not to go easy on you... but don't worry, next time I'll be nice and gentle." I taunt as she stands up on shaky legs, fixing her clothes, uncaring of the cum leaking out of her, even as she pulls her shorts back up I can see it moving down her thigh.
"You better fucking not, you cum stain. Next time I want you to fuck me into a coma, the other Jinx gets this all the time? Fucking lucky bitch." she mutters.
"Haven't actually fucked her yet, I'll get around to it..." I say with a shrug.
"Heh, knew I was better than her, the dumb bitch."
- Bonus Scene - Ren -
Nora had changed... massively.
She didn't... love their 'master'... but she did like him.
Every conversation had turned to how much nicer things were for her now that she had learnt to submit, how she had a massive bedroom, how he gave her a credit card with a ridiculous spending limit to spend on whatever she wanted, how she could eat pancakes all day every day because they just went to her ass and Shiro liked her sexy ass. Her words, not his.
...How she was going to Beacon soon.
Shiro trusted her, or more likely his control over her, enough to let her out of the tower that served as his prison... and that was a problem for him.
He was initially used as a weapon against Nora, she had to obey to keep him safe... so what happened when she grew to... love serving Shiro? When she cared more about her manipulative bastard of a master than she did him?
What happened to him when she left for Beacon, and he remained behind?
Rape, torture, and if he didn't learn to obey, execution, obviously.
Nora was trying to 'help' him, to get him to see the benefits of giving in, but she wasn't that smart... she just didn't have the personality to manipulate anyone, certainly not someone who had known her for so long.
Shiro must have known that... and yet he sent Nora to convince him to join her in servitude. He was practically saying that his fate was in his own hands... he could keep resisting and be dead within the year, or give in and submit to Shiro, do whatever he was ordered to do...
Nora always seemed so... disappointed in him when he tried to convince her that submitting was the wrong thing to do, that she shouldn't be happy under Shiro.
Hearing her sadly scold him hurt more than anything Neo had done to him.
She was so disappointed and hurt that he was ruining his own chances of going to Beacon, that he didn't want to go and become a Hunter with her... all he had to do was put aside his pride and learn to enjoy serving.
She'd even said he should be thankful that they turned him into this... girly boy. Gushed over how cute he looked.
That was him, the cute girly boy, and Nora clearly liked older handsome, manly men.
Gods, he hated this place...
He wasn't going to die, to leave Nora to Shiro's machinations... all he could really do was give in, and try to keep his mind intact, so he could protect Nora in even the slightest way.
Authors Note: My ADHD was kicking my ass this time, couldn't focus for more than an hour before I wandered off to do something else.
And yes, the title is a Nightmare Before Christmas reference.
Today's Recommendation is The Gamer of the Shop by ghost83, a different take on the Gamer genre. It only has one chapter so far, but it's looking good.
Someone asked if I had a pat reon, so I made one, check it out, or don't. I won't be posting anything on there that I don't post here
www. Pat reon user?u=13212571
