Hey, I forgot to say before, I have an account on StoryFire if you guys want to follow me. I shitpost there occasionally, and will post updates on stories when I remember to. Just look me up by name, Bile 1.0, and you should be able to find me.
One month after Ulysses's rejection of Ozpin
Ulysses had done extensive research on this unknown world upon getting his hands on a Scroll. He'd taken it off the corpse of a man attempting to rob another man in an alley. He screamed for mercy, like so many others had before. It was certainly interesting, if nothing else. Dust, Huntsmen, Grimm, the Faunus, it all had his interest piqued. But what really caught his attention was the Faunus rights group known as the White Fang.
Their intentions were noble, seeking equal rights to humans since breaking free of their shackles many years ago. Their methods, less so. Stories of White Fang attacking towns who received supplies from the SDC, the de facto supplier of Dust throughout all of Remnant, and the White Fang's sworn enemy. Taking hostages and doing things that would boil the blood of any mortal. They were a terrorist organization, without doubt.
The city was sick, a festering wound upon Remnant that required a deep cleansing. And that was what he intended to do as he approached the home of a notorious information broker, his nightclub being the front. He approached the den of sin from the rear alleys, concealed by the darkness of the night. He made no attempt to hide the sound from his boots, and the solitary guard stationed at the back door perked his head up upon hearing his approach.
"Mick, that you? You finally done whatever it was you were doing?" He asked, but received no response. This caused his brow to crease in confusion and to discreetly draw his gun.
"Mick?" He asked again, and for his troubles he received a flying energy ax to the face, passing right through him and splitting his torso in half vertically. The weapon embedded itself in the wall to the hilt, and the man stumbled for a moment before collapsing to the ground in a heap of blood and spilled organs. Ulysses retrieved his ax from the wall and entered the building, finding it unlocked.
It was here that he moved quietly, seeking to ambush the crime boss before he could get a chance to escape. He would interrogate him on the identities and locations of his accomplices before sending his soul to Hell, along with any who would attempt to stop him. He silently walked up behind a man smoking a cigarette before using his free hand to quickly snap his neck, letting his body slump to the floor. He walked down the hall, ignoring the other rooms in exchange for the single door at the end that led to the main floor.
He peeked through the door, though he was met with a peculiar sight. There was a large number of thugs surrounding a young blonde woman in the center of the dance floor, Junior and his two bodyguards, the twins Melanie and Militia, speaking to her rather aggressively. It would seem the girl had crossed them badly, but she showed no fear. He respected that.
Her gauntlets told him she was likely a Huntress-In-Training, one that didn't use nearly as much lethal force as him. Before he could further, the situation exploded. The thugs surged forward and the girl sprang into action. She easily held back the tide of goons, at least until the trio of major criminals began attacking.
Junior rose his bazooka to fire, but he was stopped when an energy wave from Ulysses sliced the large weapon in half. He looked over to the side and his face went pale when he saw the demon sprinting towards him.
"Shit, it's the Hellborne!" He yelled, garnering the twins' attention. The Hellborne, the moniker those he hunted gave him. He knew not who started it, but he'd have to thank them should he ever discover their identity, as it seemed to strike fear into the hearts of scum. He was not fully well known, but he was sure that would change upon Junior's death.
Militia lunged at him from the side and attempted to claw him with her gauntlets, but he easily dashed to the side and met her with a haymaker to the face. She stumbled from the blow, allowing him to blast her midsection with a load of hellforged buckshot. Her Aura held, but not enough to prevent her from being launched backwards and through a wall. He turned his attention back to Junior just in time to block a blow from his ruined weapon with his shield.
"I'm not going down that easy!" He yelled in defiance.
"Good, give me a challenge." Ulysses responded, Junior being shocked by his voice. The Hellborne used this opportunity to push him back and lash out with his ax. Junior blocked it with his weapon, but that only damaged it further. His ax became lodged in the now unrecognizable hunk of metal, and Junior smiled briefly before Ulysses simpy deactivated the ax and withdrew the handle, freeing it easily.
"Oh for-" He was cut off by a blast to the head, knocking him on his rear. He attempted to lash out with his weapon, but Ulysses met his swing with his own, the pure energy from his ax cleaving straight through the Aura protecting his hand and severing it cleanly. Through previous experimentation, Ulysses had discovered that whatever made up the blade of his weapon was powerful and concentrated enough to pass right through Aura like a super heated knife through butter. Unfortunately, that did not apply to the shells of his shotgun, nor the fangs or claws of his Hound.
Speaking of his loyal pet, he heard it growl and bark behind him as it held off Melanie, preventing her from reaching them and saving her boss. Junior clutched the stump while roaring in pain as the energy cauterized the wound most painfully. He was interrupted when Ulysses planted his boot on his back, preventing him from standing.
"Give me the names and locations of your accomplices, and I will spare your life this day." Ulysses offered, and held his ax dangerously close to the man's neck to emphasize his predicament.
"Alright, alright! Roman Torchwick, the thief on the news, his hideout's in the docks, one of the old abandoned warehouses. I don't know which one, but I know he's there. He's also working with this bitch, Cinder Fall. I don't know where she's at, but Torchwick should." He spouted out the information like his life depended on it, which it did. Ulysses was surprised at just how easily he had gotten the man talking. He was sure he would've had to sever the other hand, but this worked splendidly.
"Take solace in the knowledge that this will be put to good use." He said, before raising his ax above his head. Junior barely had time to look back before his head was severed from his shoulder, the stump steaming. He heard the signature sound of his Hound finally being bested, and heard as the woman charged towards him, screaming in rage. He stepped to the side and swung behind him, feeling his ax pass through flesh. Not sure where exactly he hit her, and looked over to where she should be laying and saw her laying in a pool of her own blood, her stomach having been split open. She lay in her life blood, desperately trying to hold her innards in.
"No!" He heard Militia scream, and watched as she rushed to her fallen sister. She held her while crying out in emotional agony. "Shit no please!" She begged to whatever god existed in this world. Her sister tried to say something, but he couldn't pick up what it was. Then her hand went limp, and Melanie Malachite had perished.
"No, don't die on me, not here!" She screamed, tears streaming down her face. She was cut off when Ulysses's clawed hand snapped out and grabbed her by the throat. He lifted her up to eye level, even as she struggled against him. He expected to see defiance and rage in her eyes, but he saw only terror and pleading. Pathetic.
"You will serve as a warning." He said as he rose the flat side of his ax to her face, the heat making her sweat. "My name is Ulysses, and you will warn those who would attempt to stand against me of my power." He placed the ax head against her cheek, searing one of the runes on it into her skin as she screamed in agony. "You will spread the word of the Hellborne that dictates they will be burned from this city like the maggots they are. They feast upon this carcass of a city, leaving behind nothing but vile ruin, and I will exterminate them." The rune having been seared into her flesh, he dropped her to the floor where she fell to her knees, sobbing quietly but not looking up at him.
"And when their empires of sin have been rendered to ash and embers, ensure they know it was I who brought upon them ruin and destruction." Finished with his short speech, he turned away from the still crying girl and stood face to face with the blonde one. She immediately got into a combat stance, but he could see the fear in her eyes.
"I am not here for you, child. Stay your weapons from the blood of the innocent, and you shall never fear my wrath." He then walked past her and through the front door, his job here finished.
X
Ulysses approached the docks, murder on his mind. After some scouting, he'd figured out which of the warehouses was being used by Torchwick and his gang. He knew the pathetic thief would be here, like a rat in its hovel. And this time, he had no intentions of being quiet in the slightest. But as he neared, he had the feeling he was being watched. He continued on as though nothing was wrong, but he secretly paid extra attention to what was around him.
Occasionally he would catch glimpses of someone running along the rooftops, but he again ignored it. He figured it was one of Torchwick's men, so he would wait for them to strike. And strike they did.
He felt it before he saw it. He felt what he assumed was a blade enter his chest and exit through his back, but it didn't leave. He grunted in pain as he stopped, looking down at the hole where his heart was. He heard glass shatter and looked up, seeing a short woman holding an umbrella that had pierced his chest, and standing next to him was Torchwick himself. They'd known he was coming.
"Well well well, if it is't the big and scary Hellborne. Not very scary with a blade through your heart, are you?" Roman taunted, the woman smirking. That smirk vanished when Ulysses lashed out with his bare hand and grabbed the side of her head. She tried to pull away, but it was too late. He activated his Semblance and began draining her's, her mouth opening in a silent scream of pain.
Roman, acting quickly, attempted to free her by blasting him with his weapon, but Ulysses's Hound appeared behind him and bit into the weapon, causing him to blast a wall instead. Ulysses finished draining the girl, but as he did so, he felt the Semblance he'd taken from Glynda be replaced with this new one. He quickly deduced he could only have one Semblance at a time, but he didn't care. All power had its limits, he just wished he'd figured out his sooner.
He let go of the woman's face and she hit the pavement, unconscious.
"Neo!" Roman yelled, and he blasted the Hound harassing him. When he looked back up, he froze as he realized he was now surrounded by false Ulysseses, all with their shotguns drawn and pointing at him.
"This Semblance is truly interesting." He heard them all speak at once, before they fired. The one behind him seemed to be the real one as he felt the impact from the blast knock him forward. He turned around only to find he had vanished, the sound of a shotgun being reloaded echoing through the area. He cursed himself and prepared for what was sure to be a long and painful fight. He just hoped Cinder and her lackeys would be able to get here in time.
X
Ozpin sat in his office, hand gripping his mug with frustration as he read the news about this butchering of Hei Xiong inside his own nightclub. Of course, the security cameras had caught everything on video, and he wasn't able to get to the tabloid news sites before they released the footage, revealing Ulysses's existence to all of Vale, possibly Remnant. The Hellborne, as people had begun calling him, had people terrified. A genuine demon roaming Vale, hunting and slaughtering criminals and other such lowlives with a total lack of mercy.
His actions had the people split. It seemed the majority of people detested his actions, calling them barbaric and draconic. On the other hand, there was a very vocal group that heavily supported what he was doing, saying he was finally cleaning up the city. In particular was one group of a mere five calling themselves the Cleaners who had apparently decided to start following in the Hellborne's footsteps. Though many people said they were all talk and no action, Ozpin recognized this type of zealousness. It was only a matter of time until these fanatics did something, and it wouldn't be pretty.
He looked over to what was displayed next to the news article. The medical report for Glynda. Ever since Ulysses had stolen her Semblance, she hadn't awoken, and it was beginning to worry him. Would this be the result of every one of Ulysses's victims? Forced into a coma?
He leaned back in his chair as a message from the doctor responsible for Glynda's care came through his Scroll. He read it quickly and his eyes widened.
Ms. Goodwitch is awake. I don't know how, but her Aura levels are back to normal. Ozpin immediately rose from his seat and made his way to the elevator, intent on seeing his colleague as soon as possible.
Some new details about Ulysses's Semblance come to light. He can only have one Semblance at a time and the old one is returned to their original owner upon being replaced.
Ex-Prince FrostFang: He won't be actively helping them, but he's not exactly going to be hurting them either. He'll help them if he happens to be there, but he's not gonna follow them around or anything.
WordBearer01: But not too much of one.
billymom2: No.
Stratos263: I'm glad you think so.
Er-47: Thanks, I was thinking about going with something fire related, but that seemed to on the nose. So I went with him stealing other people's powers instead.
Unknown: My chapters are typically pretty short, I have a minimum word limit of 2k, but I'll go above that if I really get in the groove.
KamiGleen: He'd probably go into fight or flight.
Guest: Ulysses doesn't suffer fools gladly. Or people who try to exploit him.
Thank you guys for reading, and may Njǫrd give you fortune.
Muna andlát, muna ӕvi.
-Bile
