"What did you see when you looked at him?"
"A man, nothing more"
Meetra Surik and Visas Marr after defeating Darth Nihilus.
Chapter 22: Sorry
General James Ironwood double checked both of his revolvers, ensuring that they were filled with Gravity Dust rounds. James silently cursed himself for not having the cannon component of Due Process with him, which would've allowed him to combine his pistols into an energy weapon as potent as Penny's own laser, but he had left the upgrade back in Atlas.
Before James could lament further on his lack of firepower, his scroll began to ring. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw that it was Winter calling.
With a swift flick of his finger, Ironwood answered the call. "This is Ironwood." the general curtly replied. "What's your status Winter?"
"General." Winter quickly greeted, apparently out of breath. "The students you sent over from Beacon Tower have made it to the docks and we're getting ready for evacuation. I…" Winter looked down and paused to collect her thoughts, which set off alarms for Ironwood as it was something the always collected Specialist never did. "And I also found my sister and most of her team."
"How are they?" Ironwood asked with genuine concern.
"Alive, thank the Brothers. Weiss and Blake Belladonna are heavily wounded, but alive. The EMTs are seeing them as we speak. Meanwhile Yang Xiao Long is helping coordinate the evacuation. We'll be leaving within the minute."
The General nodded his head. "Good work Winter. Take the injured to the Airships while combat ready students are to rendezvous with Colonel Doyle. I want you all to begin preparations for a city wide evacuation. Should the others and I fail to stop Nihilus here, you will need to abandon the city."
Winter's eyes widened as she whispered, "Is he really that unstoppable?"
"I don't know. But regardless, I am giving you a field promotion to Brigadier General, Winter. Should I die, the evacuation and Atlas's military will be in your hands." The General confidently said, as there was no doubt in his mind that Winter would be his best replacement..
Winter was taken aback by this. "General… I don't know what to say."
"You can say 'Yes Sir' and do your duty, General." Ironwood delivered with a smirk.
Ironwood's words seemed to shake Winter out of her shock. "Yes Sir. Good luck, and I won't let you down."
With that Winter gave a salute and cut off the call while Ironwood put away his scroll. The General then moved to Ruby Rose, who was sitting silently beside Penny and Pyrrha, all three no doubt mentally preparing themselves for the upcoming battle.
"Miss Rose." Ironwood called out, causing the three girls to look at him. "I have just spoken with Winter. She says she found the rest of your team."
Ruby's eyes lit up for the first time tonight. "Really! Where are they!? Are they okay!?"
"Your sister Yang is doing well. She is currently helping with the evacuation. Your other teammates seem to have been heavily injured, but are getting treatment as we speak." Ironwood flatly said. Best to give the news straight and not drag it out.
A myriad of emotions appeared on Ruby's face, shifting between gratitude that her sister was okay to worry for her other teammates.
"With your Semblance, you could probably reach the Bullheads before they leave." Ironwood softly spoke. It wasn't a pressuring statement, just one of fact.
Ruby's head snapped to the General, her face almost hopeful. "I…" Ruby then looked down and shook her head. "No, I need to stay here. It's good that they can escape. But I can do more help here. I'm sure Yang will keep them safe."
Ironwood nodded his head. Ruby had made her choice and there was nothing left to say. He then turned around and began to walk over to the other professors. As he approached Ozpin and Glynda, something seemed to catch Ozpin's attention as he looked up into the sky.
"Is everything alright Professor?" Glynda asked, her hand slowly reaching for her riding crop.
"Do you hear that?" Ozpin calmly said, but his words caused all present to stand at the ready, trying to hear what the Headmaster was talking about.
After looking around for several seconds and neither seeing nor hearing anything, the General turned to Ozpin and said, "I don't hear anything."
Ozpin nodded his head. "Neither do I." At everyone else's confused looks, Ozpin continued, "All sounds of battle within the school have ceased."
Everyone's eyes widened at Ozpin's declaration and realized he was right.
"Is it too much to hope that Nihilus died on his way here and all the Grimm are leaving?" Pyrrha snarked as she gave a tired sigh.
Ruby looked at her friend in confusion at the out of character remark, until she realized that it probably wasn't Pyrrha talking there.
Ozpin chose to ignore the sarcasm and continue on. "I believe it's more likely that he has eliminated all opposition and is on the way here." The Headmaster then turned to Ironwood and Penny. "You should get into position."
With a curt nod, Ironwood glanced at Penny and said, "Come Penny, let's go."
With a nod of her own, Penny acknowledged the order. She then looked at Ruby, and gave her friend one final hug before following the General to their hiding spot, a broken opening within Beacon Tower that gave the two of them a vantage point over the courtyard. This just left Professor Opzin, Glynda, Ruby, and Pyrrha in the courtyard below.
As they waited for Nihilus to arrive, the Headmaster glanced at the others and asked, "Are all of you ready for what we're about to face?"
Pyrrha scoffed at the question. "You weren't there at the docks, Ozpin. You didn't see what he's capable of." Pyrrha shook her head. "No one is ready for what we're about to face. Just ask team ABRN."
Ruby's breath hitched at the memory of what happened to their fellow team. Nihilus tore them apart like they weren't even people. Professor Ozpin moved to respond, but movement from the corner of his eye stole his attention. The Headmaster spun around to face the source, causing the others to turn as well.
Out of the shadowy corridors that surrounded the courtyard, a figure stepped forward. Clad in an ebony black cloak with a visage of terrifying bone white and blood red, Darth Nihilus slowly approached the huntsmen. To their surprise, the Dark Lord was not alone, as within the vice grip of his left hand was an Alpha Beowulf, struggling as Nihilus clutched it by its throat.
No one said anything as red lightning then appeared in Nihilus' left hand, spreading across the body of the Grimm. The Beowulf's struggles only intensified as the lightning continued to advance. The Grimm began to wither in Nihilus' grasp, heavy blackened muscles atrophying before their very eyes, before the Beowulf eventually fell limp and dissolved into nothingness. With his prey drained, Nihilus finally stopped and looked at the gathered force in front of him, his gaze hungry.
Ozpin returned the gaze of the Lord of Hunger, staring deep into the voids of his eyes, and what he saw terrified him. Not even Salem could compare to the sheer magnitude of malice and magical power that Nihilus emanated. The only comparable beings he could think of would be the Two Brothers, who cursed him and his wife with undeath so many millennia ago.
Those around Ozpin tensed as well. Glynda, seeing what had become of her apprentice, narrowed her eyes and her grip tightened around her riding crop as her body filled with righteous anger. Meanwhile, Ruby and Pyrrha felt a mixture of tentative fear and stoic courage within themselves. They had already faced Nihilus once, and were completely outclassed. They knew they faced a nigh impossible task of stopping the Dark Lord here, but they had to try. Because if they failed, who knew what the monster that was Nihilus was going to do to the rest of Remnant.
Meanwhile, Nihilus looked upon the huntsmen gathered in front of him. He recognized the two elder warriors from Jaune's memories, Glynda Goodwitch who sought to take the boy under her wing, and the Master of this academy Ozpin. Nihilus off-handedly dismissed Glynda, she was but a poor mirror to those who wielded the Force, and as such not a true threat in his mind.
Ozpin however, was different. Coming face to face with the Headmaster, Nihilus could see what Ozpin truly was. Ironically, Ozpin was like Nihilus himself. He was a Force Ghost, a spirit of a powerful Force Sorcerer who at first glance looked to be currently possessing the gray-haired man in front of him. But upon closer inspection, it wasn't just simple possession like Nihilus was doing, where he was overriding his host's soul, but some kind of merging of the souls. Like the spirit of Ozpin would possess the host and the two would fuse. Of course, Force Ghosts and Spirits were not Nihilus' speciality, so this was all just conjecture on his part.
Nihilus' eyes then shifted to the two younger huntresses, the two closest to Jaune during his stay here at Beacon, Ruby Rose and Pyrrha Nikos. At a glance, Nihilus had dismissed Ruby as a real threat. He broke her once already, and it would be simple to do so again. He was far more interested in his host's partner.
The Force Ghost that was possessing Cinder had made its way into Pyrrha's body. Nihilus did not know how Pyrrha came to be the host of the spirit, as Pyrrha was only a normal, albeit highly skilled Remnantian in their last encounter earlier tonight. But now not only was the Force Ghost within her, but an additional Spirit as well, creating some strange amalgamation of the three souls all vying for control within the redhead's body.
"Nihilus…" Pyrrha growled out as they locked eyes, her face contorted with anger and hate as she drew Miló and pointed it at the Sith Lord. "Your rampage is over! We will stop you here and now, and you will release Jaune!" Pyrrha declared. Her voice was strong, but Nihilus could tell she was trying to convince herself of this as much as Nihilus.
The Dark Lord looked at her impassionately, and spoke his words intelligible to none but Ozpin and Pyrrha. "The boy is gone. This vessel is now mine."
Glynda and Ruby looked at Nihilus in confusion, but Ozpin and Pyrrha's brows furrowed at his words.
"That is unfortunate." Ozpin said, his voice uncharacteristically cold and low. "Then, before we begin, I have one question. Why? Why do all of this? Subvert my student, destroy my school, kill all of these people. Why? What is your goal? What do you seek!?" The Headmaster slammed the end of his cane into the ground at his question.
Nihilus' head tilted slightly at the Headmaster's query. He paused for a moment, honestly contemplating the question, before his rapsy, distorted voice rang out again, almost amused by Ozpin's words. "You… misunderstand. Taking Jaune's body was the goal. Now that I have returned, I have no need for insidious plots or machinations. I have no grand ambitions of vengeance or chaos like the others who attacked this school. All I am here for… is to feed. On your magic, on your life. On all life on this insignificant, backwater planet. For I am Darth Nihilus, Lord of Hunger, and this world is MINE to consume!"
Pyrrha snarled at Nihilus' words, her sword and shield bursting into flames as a pair of burning wings appeared behind her as well. "GIVE JAUNE BACK!" Pyrrha raised her weapons, causing the two outside of the conversation to adopt battle stances as well.
With that cry, the fight was on. Unlike the fights at the docks and against Cinder, where Nihilus was content with testing his own capabilities and the abilities of his opponents, Nihilus chose to waste no time with toying with his opponents here. At least 2 were powerful Force Users, and he would not give them any opportunity to escape.
And so, before Pyrrha even had a chance to charge forward, Nihilus unleashed a massive Force Drain against those in front of him, the storm of red lightning seeking to drain them of all life.
Before the Force Drain could hit however, Ozpin slammed his cane into the ground once more, and a bubble of green magic energy appeared around them. Nihilus' Force Drain slammed into the dome, and the Dark Lord felt his attack absorb it as the shield was at its root, Force-based in nature. The contest of Force powers continued for seconds, but Nihilus knew he had the advantage. He was taking Ozpin's barrier into himself and would be able to use that magic to fuel his own Force Drain.
But Nihilus' precognition spiked, warning him of danger. Nihilus dropped the Drain and immediately jumped back, just in time to dodge a massive laser beam that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. Following the trajectory of the beam, Nihilus saw two figures appearing out of Beacon Tower, General Ironwood and Penny Polendina, Penny's multiple flying swords spinning in a circle in front of her.
Without missing a beat, Ironwood aimed both of his revolvers and began rapidly firing Dust magnum rounds while Nihilus was still airborne. Spinning his sword, Nihilus deflected the gravity Dust rounds, but he felt his arm shake at the impact of each bullet.
As Nihilus landed, he then felt his precognition warn of danger in front of him. Facing the attacker, Nihilus brought up his sword and deflected a slash from Pyrrha's flaming blade as she charged into melee. The two locked blades as Pyrrha flew into Nihilus, pushing against him. The huntress then swung her shield, attempting to bash Nihilus away. Nihilus stepped back, dodging the shield as he counterattacked.
Nihilus' sword struck air as Pyrrha bent backwards with a back handspring, dodging the riposte. Completing the flip, Pyrrha landed on her feet and dashed forward once more. Pyrrha and Nihlus locked blades again as they began their next exchange. Nihilus easily had the advantage as they both rapidly attacked each other, being stronger, faster, and more experienced than the redhead. But Pyrrha, enhanced by Amber's Aura and the Maiden's power, was able to somehow block or parry each of Nihilus' attacks while returning with her own.
After deflecting one of Pyrrha's strikes to the side Nihilus thrust Crocea Mors forward, a perfectly timed strike that Nihilus was sure would hit. But before the attack struck, Nihilus' blade shifted as Pyrrha pirouetted, completely missing as the huntress retaliated, swinging Miló with her own counter that landed on Nihilus's chest.
The attack was superficial, not causing too much damage, but it caused Nihilus to raise an eyebrow, wondering how it hit. Searching through Jaune's memories, he recalled both Pyrrha's Semblance and preferred fighting style, using her Polarity to manipulate the attacks of her opponents without them realizing. A powerful and subtle skill, and one that Nihilus had to respect.
And Nihilus did respect it for all of two seconds before he then extended his left hand, calling upon the Force to choke the life out of Pyrrha. Pyrrha's assault stopped completely as she was telekinetically lifted off the ground, the invisible force constricting around her neck. Nihilus tightened his grip on the huntress as he dropped Crocea Mors, channeling his crimson lightning out of right hand as he moved to drain the Maiden of her power.
The moment before he could unleash his power however, a flash of red appeared in front of him. The moment after, Pyrrha was gone, no longer within his telekinetic grip, and all that remained was a trail of rose petals. Scowling, Nihilus followed the trail, and sure enough, several dozen feet away Ruby Rose held onto a gasping Pyrrha in one hand and the scythe Harbinger in the other.
Meanwhile, Ruby let out a quick sigh of relief as her gamble worked. Before Nihilus arrived, Ruby had discussed potential strategies with Penny and Pyrrha, as she knew that directly fighting Nihilus was at best suicide. Nihilus had easily trounced her and her friends when she was in tip top shape. Now she was tired with a weapon she wasn't fully practiced with, so she had to fight a lot smarter if she wanted to survive.
That was when Penny mentioned that she believed Ruby's Semblance was not in fact, a simple speed boost, but instead disassembled her and those she touched at a molecular level, moving with them at rapid speed at which point they would reassemble at Ruby's chosen location. And the trio then surmised that if Ruby used her Semblance on someone being constricted by Nihilus' telekinesis, it would break his hold on them as there was no mass for him to control. A supposition that had proven true.
Ruby allowed herself a small smirk as she wouldn't be useless in this fight. Being able to counter Nihilus' telekinesis was going to be vital for keeping her friends and teachers alive.
Nihilus scowled at the red reaper as he recalled Crocea Mors to his right hand while aiming his left hand at the teens. Ruby's eyes widened at the action as she grabbed Pyrrha again and dashed away before the Dark Lord could use one of his abilities.
As they fled, Nihilus' danger sense spiked above him. Glancing up, Nihilus saw a column of marble flying down at him, coated in purple energy. It was easy for Nihilus to recognize Glynda Goodwitch's attack as he then aimed his left hand up. Pushing with a powerful impulse of Force energy, the column cracked and shattered under the pressure of the two telekinetic forces.
The column exploded, raining rocks and debris down onto the battlefield. Shifting his telekinesis, Nihilus then grabbed onto the rubble that was about to land directly on him and flung them at the blonde professor. Glynda's eyes widened, but she rapidly twirled her riding crop and formed a purple glyph in front of her, creating a telekinetic barrier that blocked the barrage.
Nihilus took a step forward to press his assault against Glynda, but he then sensed danger behind him. Immediately spinning around, Nihilus twirled his sword and deflected another magnum shot from General Ironwood, who seemed to have descended the ruined Beacon Tower to join the fight on the ground.
Ironwood ran at a diagonal towards Nihilus, firing off shots from both of his magnums. Nihilus deflected each shot with his sword, but before he could retaliate half a dozen green-trimmed blades flew at his offside. Nihilus glanced to his left and saw that Penny also descended and joined the General in his attack. Nihilus simultaneously twisted his body to dodge the blades as he kept moving his sword to deflect the revolver rounds. While he was able to dodge most of Penny's swords, this proved to be too many attacks for even the Sith Lord as one of Penny's blades landed, slashing into the back of his leg.
Growling, Nihiuls reared his sword arm back as he threw Crocea Mors at the General. Ironwood's eyes widened as the flying buzzsaw came right for him. Crossing his arms in front of him, the sound of metal clanging on metal echoed through the school as the General was sent flying backwards from the impact.
Simultaneously, as Nihilus threw his blade, his left hand reached for the wire that controlled the sword that cut his leg. Gripping onto it, Nihilus glared at the orange-haired student as he yanked backwards. To her utter shock, Penny was pulled forward by Nihilus' strength, no doubt reinforced by his telekinetic powers. Penny wasn't able to process her shock fast enough as she flew forward and right in front of the Sith Lord, whose right hand was cocked back by his hip.
Before Penny could react, Nihilus' fist impacted her stomach with a devastating uppercut. The punch, which contained a combination of both Nihilus' Aura and telekinetic Force energy, sent Penny flying upwards. As Penny was sent flying back, Nihilus raised his hand to recall his sword.
A flash of green interrupted Nihilus as Ozpin then dashed in front of him, his speed no doubt enhanced by his Force Magic. Ozpin lunged at the Dark Lord, rapidly thrust with his Cane that was coated in a similar emerald aura that Ozpin was. With no weapon in hand, Nihilus was forced to raise his left hand and form a telekinetic ward that absorbed the Headmaster's strikes.
While Nihilus protected himself with his left hand, he simultaneously gathered the Force into his right hand to return the favor. However, there was a flash of light and heat above him that drew his attention. Apparently, Pyrrha had returned in force, this time flying behind Nihilus as her fiery wings kept her aloft. Channelling the Maiden's powers, Pyrrha then fired off a barrage of fire balls aimed directly for Nihilus.
Hissing in annoyance, Nihilus then shifted his body and aimed his right hand at Pyrrha's barrage, creating another barrier rather than blasting the Headmaster. Nihilus kept both hands extended as he transformed the barriers into a bubble around himself. This was just in time, Ozpin's and Pyrrha's assault was joined in by Ruby and Glynda. The two stood side by side, the former peppering his shield with shotgun blasts while the latter flung a volley of purple telekinetic projectiles.
Under the relentless assault, Nihilus noticed his barrier starting to break apart. Snarling, Nihilus drew upon his dark emotions and screamed. Ruby's eyes widened as she recognized the attack and without hesitation, grabbed Glynda and dashed out of sight. Ozpin and Pyrrha however, were too slow and took the brunt of the Force Scream, blasted back by the wave of pure malice and hatred that shook them to their very core.
Letting anger drive his actions, Nihilus would not let them get away. Using his telekinesis, the Dark Lord gripped onto Ozpin mid-flight and flung him at the falling Maiden. The two collided mid-air, grunting at the impact but Nihilus wasn't done yet, not when he had his targets right where he wanted them.
Extending his right hand, Nihilus unleashed a storm of red lightning that slammed into the two Force mages. Pyrrha and Ozpin screamed as they felt Nihilus siphon off their Auras and magic. Nihilus grinned manically as he ripped the Force from their very bodies. It would only take a few seconds for him to drain them dry, leaving the two as withered husks.
But Nihilus didn't have seconds as a familiar precognitive warning shouted at him. Dropping the Force Drain, Nihilus turned and erected another barrier, just in time to block a volley of magnum Dust rounds courtesy of James Ironwood. Nihilus' barrier held strong against the Atlas General's assault, but he could do nothing as he watched Ozpin and Pyrrha escape as they were lifted away by a purple energy field.
Eventually the General ran out of ammunition in his pistols, allowing Nihilus to drop his barrier. Channelling the Force into his body, Nihilus used Force Speed, increasing his movement speed exponentially. In the blink of an eye, Nihilus appeared in front of Ironwood, fists crackling with Force-based lightning.
Ironwood's eyes widened as Nihilus threw an electrified jab right for his head. At the last second, Ironwood was able to slip the strike, as he was an extremely capable fighter in boxing and hand to hand combat. Flipping his grip on his pistols, James then swung his revolver horizontally in an attempt to pistol whip the Dark Lord.
Nihilus leaned back and dodged the counter strike, before throwing an electrified left hook right for Ironwood's face. Ironwood brought his arm up to block the blow, his prosthetic absorbing the lightning from Nihilus' strike. With the attack stopped, Ironwood then wrapped his forearms around Nihilus' neck into a clinch, before driving his knee straight into the Dark Lord's stomach.
The strike hit true, driving his knee deep into Nihilus' abdomen, but unfortunately for him it had no apparent effect. Returning the favor, Nihilus grabbed the General by his lapels and pulled him forward as the Dark Lord drove his head forward with a headbutt. The bone white mask smashed into Ironwood's nose, snapping his head back and sending blood flying as the nose shattered.
The General only groaned as Nihilus then released his grip of the General's jacket only to grip his throat instead. With a single hand Nihilus lifted the General into the air while strangling the life out of him. In a move mirroring what Nihilus had done to Adam Taurus not too long ago, red lightning formed in the Dark Lord's hand as he simultaneously choked and drained Ironwood of his life.
But before he could finish draining the General, he saw a cloud of red approach him from the side. Nihilus immediately fired off a Force Push towards the cloud of rose petals, but Ruby shifted directions and dodged as she reached General Ironwood position. With a split second maneuver, Ironwood disappeared from Nihilus' grasp in a burst of rose petals.
Growling in annoyance, Nihilus tracked Ruby's petal burst form as lightning crackled at his fingers. Ruby was fast, but Nihilus doubted she was faster than lightning. Nihilus wouldn't get to find out however, as a beam of Dust energy slammed into Nihilus from behind.
Penny, breathing far heavier than normal as her Aura was now rather low following repeated high-yield energy blasts, smiled as it looked as though she was finally able to land a decisive hit on Nihlus. The smile began to fade however, as she saw that her Dust Energy beam seemed to be getting smaller and smaller. Her mouth then fell open as she realized that Nihilus was absorbing the laser blast into his hands, concentrating the attack into a ball of green energy.
Nihilus then extended his hands, releasing the stored energy as he reflected Penny's Dust laser right back at her. Penny was barely able to bring her arms up in time to block the hit as she was set flying backwards in a smoking heap out of the courtyard. Penny crashed through a nearby wall, ending up in one of Beacon's hallways. Nihilus however, wasn't going to let her get away.
Channeling the Force into his legs, Nihlus leapt after Penny, landing beside her in the ruined hallway. Penny tiredly looked at him as she picked herself up, moving slowly from the amount of damage done to her Aura and her body. She watched in horror as Nihilus released a storm of crimson lightning once more, slamming into the girl as he began draining what was left of her Aura.
Nihilus grinned as he felt what was left of Penny's Aura shatter from the Force Drain. These worms were annoyingly stubborn in preventing him from draining any of them, but now he finally got his teeth into one of them. But as Penny continued to scream, Nihils noticed something. The girl wasn't dying. By now she should've been a withered husk of a corpse as she had no Aura left and he should've drained what was left of her life force.
Stopping his attack, Nihilus glared at Penny, extending his senses to try and figure out what was happening. And that's when he realized that Penny had a cold and lifeless body of machinery and circuitry, not of flesh and blood. Nihilus howled in rage. A droid! Penny was nothing more than a droid that somehow had Aura implanted into it! Outraged, classic Sith lightning crackled at Nihilus' finger tips. Extending both his hands, Nihilus released a torrent of Force Lightning. If he couldn't drain the droid, then he would simply remove it from existence!
Penny's eyes widened at the storm approaching, and out of sheer desperation she shut her eyes and extended her floating blades in front of her. The lightning crashed into her floating swords, sending sparks flying as the electricity ran up the wires and into Penny's body. Nihilus continued to funnel lighting into Penny for several seconds, expecting to see her explode in a conflagration. What he didn't expect was for Penny to not even be screaming. Cutting off his lightning, Nihilus looked at Penny with confusion.
When Penny reopened her eyes, they glowed green with overflowing energy. "Aura reserves at 400% capacity." she reported as she glared at Nihilus with a look of pure determination.
Nihilus tilted his head.
...
Oh.
Forming another circle of blades in front of her, Penny unleashed the largest laser blast she had ever fired, an attack comparable to an Atlas capital ship's main cannon or even a Turbolaser of the wider galaxy. Immediately Nihilus raised his hands, forming another barrier in front of him. But not even Nihilus could fully defend against the Dust beam that was 4 times as powerful as before. Nihilus' barrier was able to stop some of the blast, but it was soon shattered as Nihilus was blasted out of the hallway and back into the courtyard.
The force of the energy beam sent Nihilus crashing into the ground, a crater forming at the impact zone from the sheer power. Even Nihilus had to groan as he picked himself out of the hollowed out depression. An attack that powerful would've been dangerous even in his original form. Jaune's more durable body and powerful Aura allowed him to take the blow, but he could tell his host's reserves were heavily depleted by it. He would need to drain either another Remnantian or more Grimm to quickly replenish his Aura.
But before he could even have much of a respite, Pyrrha returned with a vengeance, having recovered herself while Penny and the General distracted Nihilus. Flying in above the Dark Lord, Pyrrha opted to change strategies as she both couldn't fight him in close quarters, and found that direct fire attacks weren't working either.
Rather than attacking directly, Pyrrha extended both hands out, using her Polarity to call upon all the metal she could sense within the courtyard. Pyrrha strained as she began to levitate abandoned White Fang weapons, broken lamp posts, chunks of rebar, and more. Nihilus narrowed his eyes at this, and raised his hand to call upon the Force and stop her.
However, a flash of emerald green drew his attention as Ozpin was upon him once more. Ozpin dashed next to Nihilus and unleashed a flurry of rapid strikes with his cane. Still disarmed, Nihilus had to fall back and use his Force Barrier to defend himself. Ozpin was relentless in his attacks, calling upon thousands of years of martial training to pin Nihilus down and keep him from using his powers.
With the Headmaster distracting Nihilus, Pyrrha was able to raise thousands of pounds of metal into the air uninterrupted. The sheer amount of material alone would be enough to easily crush almost any opponent to death. But Pyrrha wasn't done yet. The Maiden's fire burst from her eyes in a dazzling display of power as she called upon her magic. Soon, the metal began to glow red hot, then drip as Pyrrha used the Maiden's control over fire to heat the metal to its metal point. Girders and lamp posts turned to molten iron and steel, a liquid still metallic in nature and therefore under the control of Pyrrha's Semblance. Hovering above the battle, Pyrrha held up a veritable lake of molten metal.
"Professor! NOW!" Pyrrha roared as she threw her arms down, dropping a literal tsunami of liquid iron onto the courtyard, aimed right for Nihilus and Ozpin.
Ozpin didn't move as he continued to strike Nihilus despite the oncoming flood. Before the wave of metal hit however, Ozpin was covered in a purple aura and yanked out of the way by Glynda's telekinesis.
Eyes widening, even Nihilus was shocked at this display of power. For most Force adepts, telekinesis on a liquid was annoyingly difficult. It was often easier to form a telekinetic container around the liquid rather than controlling the loose molecules themselves. To be moving the sheer volume of liquid at what was probably 3000°F? Nihilus knew it was rich coming from him, but he thought that was a little bullshit.
Immediately Nihilus created a telekinetic dome of Force around himself as the tidal wave of molten metal crashed into him. Nihilus felt his arms buckle as the fiery liquid splashed around him, swirling around his barrier. While the weight and pressure of the metal alone was difficult to contend with, the sheer heat of the molten metal made the task unbearable. But Nihilus shunt the thoughts of the temperature out of his mind. He would not be brought down by this mere girl and her ghost.
Meanwhile, Glynda watched the scene in front of her with rapt attention. In all her years as a huntress, she'd never seen such raw displays of power from either side in the battle. She watched as the liquid metal surrounded Nihilus, attempting to overwhelm him, while the Sith's own telekinetic barrier held strong. Glynda knew she would never be able to perform such a feat of telekinetic might, but she also knew that Nihilus would be hard pressed to maintain such a technique.
"JAMES!" Glynda roared as she looked at the General. Ironwood turned to her immediately as she gave her order. "SLINGSHOT!" In front of her, Glynda then used the Gravity Dust within her riding crop to create a massive, purple glyph.
Ironwood silently nodded, and ran for Glynda's position immediately. The two veteran huntsmen, having known each other for years, had developed quite a few combination attacks. With his revolvers filled with Gravity Dust rounds James moved behind the glyph and aimed both pistols at Nihilus' barrier. The General then pulled the triggers as fast as his fingers would allow.
Due Process's magnum rounds packed a heavy stopping power and high muzzle velocity to the point that it hit with a force much higher than one would think a handgun could create. The Gravity Dust itself helped accelerate the rounds beyond the initial combustion, to the point that even a large and heavy-set man like Ironwood could use them to propel himself through the air.
When the Gravity Dust rounds passed through the Gravity Dust glyph created by Glynda, the already super-sonic rounds exploded forward, creating sonic booms as they were flung forward by Glynda's power at double velocity. This essentially turned the magnum rounds into railgun rounds, and Ironwood had two full cylinders of them.
The rounds slammed into Nihilus' barrier, immediately drawing the Dark Lord's attention. But Nihilus could only watch as round after round sledgehammered into his barrier. Nihilus' shield was strong, but he could feel it weakening and cracking with every hit, and he couldn't drop it to counter attack lest he be consumed by the fiery flood of ferrum around him.
But he would not have a choice as finally, one of Ironwood's rounds shattered Nihilus' barrier, the amount of damage too much for the Dark Lord to sustain. As the barrier broke, a follow up round flew and struck Nihilus in the shoulder, sending the Dark Lord stumbling back, devastating his Aura.
The barrier now gone, Pyrrha was immediately ready with the follow up. A wave of metal slammed into Nihilus, the superheated liquid subsuming his body. Nihilus howled in pain as his legs, groin, and torso were all covered with the orange liquid, burning through his darkened form and melting into his skin. With over half of the Dark Lord's body coated with the free-flowing metal, Pyrrha then let out a deep breath as the metal began to rapidly cool, encasing the Dark Lord's lower body in an iron trap.
"Now!" Pyrrha shouted to all the others. "Disable him!"
Hissing through the agonizing pain, Nihilus attempted to raise his right hand to rip the soul out of the flying Maiden. But he soon found himself unable to do so as his arm was pinned in place by a purple aura courtesy of Glynda Goodwitch. Growling, Nihilus then tried to raise his left arm to strike. But the heavy footfalls of James Ironwood clanging on the now solid iron ground reverberated as the General's mechanical arm gripped onto Nihilus' left, keeping him from raising it.
In front of Nihilus, Ruby, Pyrrha, Penny, and Ozpin all reconvened with Glynda as Nihilus struggled in his bonds. Before Nihilus could even say anything, Ozpin raised his cane and began casting a spell. Nihilus felt the Force bend to Ozpin's will as Ozpin used some arcane variant of Force Stun. The wills of two immortals contested against one another. Nihilus felt his senses dull and perceptions deaden slowly, the damage he sustained making it difficult to break out illusion.
As Nihilus' head seemed to loll to the side, Ozpin gritted out, "I can't hold him for long."
Nodding her head, Pyrrha turned to Penny, "Penny! Remove the mask!"
"Roger roger!" Penny saluted quickly before sprinting towards the Dark Lord.
Penny's footsteps rang even louder than the General's as she moved for Nihilus. As Penny got close, she then leapt and landed in front of the Lord of Hunger, who seemed too dazed to see her. Slipping her hands into the shadowy cowl of the Lord of Hunger, Penny wedged her fingers behind the Mask of Nihilus, and began to pull.
However, even with Penny's inhuman strength, the cyborg girl seemed to struggle as she tried to remove the mask from Nihilus. Gritting her teeth as she pulled, the Mask pulled forward, millimeter by millimeter, but resisted more and more the further it moved. Penny could even see and feel some kind of black ichor behind the Mask, attaching it to Jaune's face. Then, with a final heave, Penny threw herself back and felt one of the tendrils of ichor snap as the mask came partially loose.
Penny smiled for a brief moment as she thought she had succeeded in removing the Mask from Jaune's face. The smile immediately faded when Nihilus roared. The pain of being partially separated from Jaune snapped the Dark Lord from his stupor, allowing him to break out of the spell Ozpin had him under.
Nihilus came to as his head snapped up, the glare he sent at Penny causing her to recoil in terror. The Mask of Nihilus then righted itself up on his face as a wave of raw hatred and malice exploded out of Nihilus. How dare they? How dare these fools try to take what is his!? Howling, Nihlus channeled the supernova of anger and hate he felt as he flew into a Dark Rage, the Dark Side of the Force giving Nihilus a burst of strength, speed, and ferocity.
Swinging his right hand, Nihilus tore through the telekinetic grip Glynda had on his arm with contemptuous ease. Driving his head forward, Nihlus then hit Penny with a savage headbutt. Penny fell to the ground with a scream as the sheer power shattered part of her synthetic face, revealing the machinery underneath.
Nihilus' head then snapped to Ironwood, who watched slack jawed in stupefied shock. Nihilus gripped the General's robotic arm with enough force that the metal itself dented and folded under the pressure. The General's eyes then widened as Nihilus violently yanked back, tearing Ironwood's prosthetic arm free from his body.
Ironwood fell to his knees, speechless as he gripped the stub of sparking scrap where his arm used to be. Then he began screaming as the pain of having his artificial nerve endings and control diodes so violently ripped away began to register in his brain.
As the General collapsed to the ground, Ruby, Pyrrha, and Ozpin ran forward, all swinging their weapons at Nihilus to intercept and save the soldier, while Glynda fired off her telekinesis to try and pull him out. But Nihilus snarled at them as they approached and channeled all of his rage and anger and screamed once more. The Force Scream exploded out of him, slamming into the four with a wave of hate and pain that knocked them back and to the ground.
As they collapsed, Nihilus returned his attention to the stunned General. Channeling the Force, Nihilus hit the General with a powerful Force Drain. The orange lighting slammed into Ironwood, eliciting another scream of pain as his very life was drained out of him. Ironwood's muscular form shriveled in seconds, turning into a withered husk, his face forever contorted into a silent scream.
Draining the General slightly healed the charred and burned flesh of Nihilus' body, but it wasn't enough. Still running on the high of the Dark Rage, Nihilus made his way out of his metal prison as his telekinesis tore the steel apart. Now free, Nihilus made his way to his next target, focusing on the damaged droid in front of him.
As he approached, Penny slowly pushed herself up to look at him, neck twitching uncontrollably every time electricity sparked out of her shattered face. This droid had annoyed Nihilus far too much, and he would not suffer its existence any longer.
Knowing that both Force Drain and Force Lightning were not viable against her, Nihilus went with the 3rd best option. As Penny twitched, she was levitated off the ground by Nihilus' telekinesis. Nihilus rotated the helpless droid to face him, and with a thought, crushed her. Penny was helpless as her body crumpled and folded inward as the pressure of Nihilus' telekinetic force turned her into a ball of human-resembling scrap. With a flick of his wrist, Nihilus dropped the android's remains to the ground.
"Penny!" Ruby screamed as she watched her friend get brutally dismantled.
Nihilus then snapped his head towards Ruby, who was crawling on the ground, hand extended towards her cyborg friend. The girl looked at him in abject horror, as she realized they had failed. Nihilus was going to destroy all of them.
Briefly, Nihilus turned around and looked back up at Beacon Tower, battle-damaged from the extended fighting across the school. Nihilus then extended both his hands towards the tower, and began to pull. Ruby and the recovering Professors and Pyrrha looked up in awe, and Ruby couldn't help but be reminded of what Nihilus did to that airship not too long ago. Beacon Tower then cracked and crumbled as Nihilus ripped it apart and literally dropped the building on them.
Ruby staggered to her feet in a desperate attempt to try and grab Pyrrha and run. But she was too tired and knew she wasn't fast enough. As she heard rocks falling around her, Ruby shut her eyes and braced herself for what she hoped would be quick death.
...
A few seconds passed, and Ruby realized she wasn't dead. Opening up her eyes, she looked up and saw that the massive falling chunks of Beacon Tower were currently being blocked by an equally massive purple glyph. Swiveling her head, Ruby saw Professor Goodwitch stopping Nihilus' attack in its tracks. Ruby felt her heart leap as she realized they were saved, but her elation soon fell as she looked at Glynda closer.
Professor Goodwitch was struggling, hair down, teeth grit, sweating heavily as she struggled to even stand as she held up the falling tower. Meanwhile, Nihilus was not content to just let gravity do the work, and pushed the rocks downward with his own telekinesis. Glynda bit back a scream as the pressure increased, but she held strong.
As the two telekinetics fought, Glynda sent a hateful glare at Nihilus. "Give my… apprentice... back!" she howled as she strengthened her glyph. Pushing beyond her limits, Glynda fought against Nihilus with every fibre of her being. Soon, the massive boulders were starting to grind and crush between the two opposing forces.
But before they could finish their duel, Ozpin slowly rose to his feet, standing above Ruby and Pyrrha, his weapon The Long Memory pointed at Nihilus.
Exhausted and wounded, Ozpin hissed out his next words between deep breaths. "If you want my magic..." Ozpin then pressed the handle on his cane, causing the gears to spin and glow a bright light as a sphere of green magic surrounded all of them. "Then why don't you eat your fill."
Suddenly a flash of light burst from the cane and Ruby's world was filled with white.
A bright light encompassed all of Beacon. A light brighter than the sun. Bright enough that it blinded the eyes of the many hundreds of students, soldiers, and civilians who were evacuating Vale miles away. Those who were fleeing the carnage of the city watched in horror as what looked like the largest bomb ever exploded in the heart of Beacon.
Once the light finally dissipated, and the smoke finally cleared, students could only look on in dismay as the entirety of their school and home was reduced to nothing more than a pile of rubble. Many shed silent or not so silent tears as the place that was literally supposed to be a beacon for the rest of the world was gone.
The devastation was even worse at ground zero. Ruby coughed as she rolled on the ground, covered in dust and ash. Groaning, Ruby rolled over to her side as she slowly pushed herself up. Her Aura was gone, that was definite, and her entire body felt like a giant bruise. A stabbing pain in her chest indicated she probably had a broken rib or three. Beside her Pressfor Ozpin was on the ground, semi-conscious and barely moving.
Meanwhile Pyrrha was on all fours, panting heavily. The amount of wounds on her showed that she had no Aura, but she was still in the best physical condition thanks to her massive reserves courtesy of Amber. Professor Goodwitch on the other hand, seemed to have been blasted further away from them as Ruby spied the blonde professor unmoving at the far end of the crater. She looked hurt, and from this distance, Ruby couldn't tell if Glynda was unconscious or dead.
Looking around her, the courtyard was gone, as was all of the floating rubble of Beacon Tower, most likely evaporated into dust. The surrounding hallways and buildings were totalled, leaving ruined half walls and piles of destruction. All that was left of the tower was a crater where the lighthouse once stood.
A shuffling behind her then ripped her attention away from the devastation. Turning her head, Ruby couldn't help but laugh. Even after all of that, Nihilus was still alive. At the very least, Nihilus looked as close to death as all of them.
The shadowy robes that surrounded Jaune's body were almost all blasted away, revealing the scarred, burned, and mutilated form of her friend underneath. Not only that Jaune's left arm was gone, destroyed from elbow down by the violent explosion of magic. Nihilus stumbled forward, barely able to hold himself up as his mask glared at the huntsmen. But then Nihilus paused and looked to his right, seemingly momentarily distracted from his foes.
Ruby didn't have the strength to take advantage of that distraction, and instead dumbly looked in the same direction. Amongst the shattered remains and rubble of the school, was Crocea Mors, the blade revealing itself following the explosion. Nihilus felt that the Force must have been smiling on him for his weapon to reappear now of all times. Extending his right hand, Nihlus used what Force he had left to recall the ancient sword to him. Crocea Mors flew into his hand, and Nihilus returned his attention to the wounded students in front of him.
Growling, Pyrrha shakily stood as she glared defiantly at Nihilus, her eyes bursting into flames as they glowed with power. Pyrrha may not have had any Aura left, but she could still call upon the Maiden's power. As flames followed her every step, Pyrrha charged forward. Though Ruby could barely call it a charge, more an exhausted trudge as the Maiden and the Dark Lord slowly limped towards one another.
Pyrrha swung her blade first. A clumsy, overhead slash that looked like the move of a rank amateur rather than a champion fighter. Nihilus raised his own blade and parried the strike, but it was a slow and painful process. The impact alone almost caused the Dark Lord to drop his blade.
But Nihilus readjusted his grip, pushing Pyrrha's sword back and thrusting forward with his blade. Pyrrha raised her shield and block. The thrust wasn't fast or strong, but the attack sent Pyrrha stumbling back a few feet from the hit. Gritting her teeth, the Maiden's magic flared from her eyes as Miló was coated by fire.
With a roar, Pyrrha swung a wide horizontal slash through the air with her flaming sword. From the arc of the slash, a crescent wave of flames shot towards Nihilus. The Dark Lord snarled as he created a small Force Barrier in front of him. He barely had any energy left, and even using the Force to this small amount was difficult. The flames splashed across the barrier, and when they dissipated, Nihilus moved forward to close the distance.
Nihilus brought down his blade in a brutal, vertical chop. Stumbling to the side, Pyrrha dodged the attack by a hair's breadth. As she recovered her balance, Pyrrha then threw her shield forward, slamming it into Nihilus' chest. The attack struck true as the air was forced out of Nihilus' lungs, driving the Dark Lord to one knee.
With her foe on his knees before her, Pyrrha grit her teeth and let out a battle cry as she aimed Miló right for his heart and thrust forward. A thrust that contained all of her love for Jaune, all of her hate for Nihilus, and all of her sorrow for her failure to prevent this tragedy. Nihilus' eyes widened as he knew he couldn't evade the attack. It was too fast and he could barely move. But if Nihilus couldn't move, then he would move Pyrrha.
Reaching out with the last dregs of his command over the Force, Nihilus weakly pulled on Pyrrha's sword. It wasn't enough to rip the blade out of her hand, but instead Nihilus subtly manipulated the sword's angle, turning a killing blow into a near miss as Miló grazed Nihilus' shoulder.
Pyrrha's eyes widened as her attack missed. Almost instantaneously she realized that Nihilus stole her technique. Her shock then turned to agonizing pain as Nihilus lunged forward and drove Crocea Mors through Pyrrha's stomach.
Pyrrha gasped as the blade ran her through, eyes widening as blood began to pour from her mouth. Both Miló and Akoúo̱ fell from her hands as all strength left Pyrrha's body. Her eyes glazing over, Pyrrha met Nihilus' eyes and weakly brought up one had to cup Jaune's cheek.
"I'm… sorry." she barely whispered out as Pyrrha's body fell limp upon Crocea Mors.
Nihilus withdrew his sword as the life left the Maiden's body. While Nihilus would've preferred to drain her of life to revitalize himself, he didn't even have the strength to perform such feats anymore. As the Dark Lord was about to take a step towards the rest of the huntsmen and finish them off, he felt a burning in his chest.
A burning that soon swelled into agonizing pain as Nihilus vomited blood himself. Nihilus collapsed to all fours as he felt like he was being run through with a lightsaber. This was a feeling that he was familiar with. He was dying. Or more specifically, Jaune's body was dying.
But how!? Why!? The amount of damage to Jaune was immense, but it was survivable, especially with the power of the Dark Side coursing through him. As Nihilus writhed in pain, his gaze found Pyrrha's corpse, her hollow eyes still open, final tears dripping down her face.
…
No… No!
Nihilus roared as he realized what was happening. Pyrrha and Jaune formed a Force Bond! In order to more quickly strengthen Jaune's powers in the Dark Side, Nihilus willingly tore open a wound within the boy by forcing him to relive his experiences on Malachor. But by making him a wound in the Force, he inadvertently granted Jaune the ability to easily form Force Bonds. And there were none within this academy that were closer to Jaune than Pyrrha herself.
Nihilus had no idea as to when the two formed a Bond. And he had no idea of the depth of the Bond as he so readily threw away everything that was Jaune once he had subsumed his body. And by ignoring what he saw as inane, teenage drama, Nihilus exploited his own weakness by killing Pyrrha. Now Jaune was dying, and Nihilus desperately needed to try and feed on something to stave off oblivion.
Looking at Pyrrha's body, he then felt the Force Ghost that was possessing Pyrrha leave the redhead's corpse, and fly off towards the other survivors. Tracking it, Nihilus watched as the Ghost flew into Ruby, who was now standing with tears in her eyes as she watched Nihilus execute her friend.
"PYRRHA!" Ruby screamed as her eyes then burst with silver and amber energy.
Ruby looked around confused. One moment she was standing in what was left of Beacon Academy, and the next she found herself standing in this white void.
"Ruby!" a familiar voice called out from behind her.
Immediately the red reaper turned, and there she saw the forms of Amber and Pyrrha, both their bodies no longer marred by their injuries.
"Pyrrha, Amber!" Ruby shouted as she ran to the two older women, glomping onto Pyrrha with a massive hug. "What's happening? Where are we? Didn't Nihilus..."
Pyrrha gave Ruby a said, pained smile as she spoke. "He did." She said softly, "And I thought of you, Ruby."
Ruby's eyes grew even wider as tears formed at their corners. She hugged Pyrrha even tighter while Pyrrha lightly tapped her back.
"Now, the Fall Maiden's power is transferring to you." Amber commented. "Like it did for me."
At her words, Ruby pulled her face out of Pyrrha's chest and looked at her, almost hopeful. "Does, does that mean both of you will be living in my mind as well?"
Amber shook her head. "No, I don't think so. The only reason Pyrrha here got stuck with me was because Ozpin fused our Aura's, and the Maiden's power just came along for the ride. You'll just be getting the magic, no hitchhikers." Amber gave Ruby a sad smirk at that.
Ruby's face fell at her words.
"Ruby…" Pyrrha softly said as she pulled out of the hug, grabbing both of the younger teen's hands with her own. "It's now up to you to stop Nihilus." she said as tears formed on her own eyes. "I'm sorry that I wasn't strong enough to stop him, for putting this burden on you now."
Ruby shook her head. "No! Stop… stop saying sorry. It's not your fault." Ruby sniffled as she let go of Pyrrha and wiped the tears out of her eyes. Her eyes now dry, Ruby looked at Pyrrha with determined eyes. "I'll do it. I'll stop Nihilus. I promise."
Pyrrha smiled at her as she felt reassured in leaving the future in Ruby's hands. "Goodbye, Ruby. I'm glad you were my friend." Pyrrha beamed a tearful grin as she began to fade.
"See you later, kid." Amber added on as she began to fade as well. "Hopefully you'll do better than we did."
As the two former Maiden's vanished, Ruby's sight was filled with white once more.
…
Ruby came to back on Remnant. Momentarily dazed by the transition, the sounds of violent hacking and vomiting stole her attention. Facing the noise, she saw Nihilus on all fours, vomiting blood as Pyrrha's body lay still next to him. Ruby felt her heart drop. So what she just saw wasn't a hallucination.
As Nihilus slowly craned his head to look at Ruby, the huntress screamed. "PYRRHA!"
That's when the flood of emotions exploded out of her. Pyrrha, Penny, her Uncle Qrow, her team, even Jaune. All friends and family that she loved. All friends and family she failed to protect. These emotions burst out of her in the form of a silver light pouring out of her eyes, enveloping her and Nihilus. The power of the Silver Eyes was then tinted amber as the power of the Fall Maiden joined in with the magic of the God of Light, unleashing an unimaginable burst of magical energy all directed towards Darth Nihilus.
Nihilus screamed as the Light overtook him. It was as if he was staring into the Force itself, a Vergence given human form connected directly to the Light Side of the Force. It was a wellspring of life that, even at his fullest, Nihilus could not defend against. Nihilus felt the light tear apart his very form, the darkness surrounding Jaune burning away and dissipating before its power.
When Ruby's assault finally finished, the huntress collapsed to the ground, unmoving but still conscious. Through labored breaths, Ruby craned her neck up to look at Nihilus. And what she saw filled her with both hope and horror. Nihilus was still there, but it was generous to call him Nihilus still. Rather than the shadowy robes of Nihilus, Ruby saw Jaune, his outfit charred and tattered, his skin burned and red, but it was the form of Jaune kneeling on the ground. The only thing that remained of Nihilus was the bone white mask still upon Jaune's face. And through the mask, the shadows that covered Jaune's eyes were gone, and Ruby could see the sapphire eyes of her friend within. It seemed that Ruby's Silver Eyes were able to temporarily disrupt Nihilus' control over Jaune.
"Jaune!" Ruby shouted as she tried to push herself up. "Jaune, if you can hear me, fight him! Please!"
Jaune's eyes looked at Ruby, and she could see the multitude of emotions behind them. Fear, sorrow, regret. Jaune's gaze flicked over to Pyrrha, and the boy shut his eyes in pain at the sight.
After a few brief moments, Ruby heard Jaune whisper to himself, "I'm sorry."
Crocea Mors still within his hand, Jaune raised his arm and held the sword in the air. A spike of a panic then shot through Ruby, as she thought Jaune was going to bring the blade down on her. The panic then turned to horror as she realized Jaune was not pointing his blade at her, but instead was aiming the point of Crocea Mors at his own stomach.
JAUNE! Nihilus roared from the confines of the boy's mind. What are you doing!?
Jaune's arm shook and spasmed as the two minds fought for control over the body. Jaune knew he didn't have much time before Nihilus was back in control. "You… this is all your fault!" He shouted, his voice no longer distorted by Nihilus.
I gave you what you wanted! Power! Without me, you are nothing! Just a weak boy dreaming of being a hero!
Jaune incredulously snorted. "All you did was twist me into a fucking parody of who I was! You destroyed everything I worked, killed and hurt those I loved! You took everything from me! And now, I'm going to take everything from you."
"Jaune no!" Ruby cried out, but there was nothing she could do but watch as Jaune drove Crocea Mors into himself. Jaune gurgled blood as he stumbled back, making it all of two steps before he collapsed backwards and fell to the ground.
"Jaune!" Ruby shouted once more as she pushed herself up in spite of the pain, tears streaming down her face. She stumbled over to her friend's body, and watched as his eyes glazed over. Jaune's head then fell to the side as he passed on from the world.
As the light faded from Jaune's eyes, the Mask of Darth Nihilus then fell from Jaune's face, clattering to the ground beside his corpse. Ruby's gaze followed the mask, and she slowly approached the item that had caused her and her friends so much misery.
"Miss Rose, wait!" the hoarse, tired voice of Ozpin shouted out after her.
Ruby turned and saw the Headmaster barely standing, putting most of his weight on his cane. Ozpin hobbled over to her, and sadly looked down at the bodies of both Jaune and Pyrrha. Then his eyes focused on the mask on the ground. "The mask is still alive. I can feel the power and magic coming from it. It is too dangerous to approach casually."
Ruby glanced at the headmaster before focusing back on the mask. While she wanted to take all of her new found Maiden-ly power to try and destroy the mask, she acquiesced to the headmaster. Letting out a breath, Ruby looked around at the death and destruction all around her, and asked no one in particular, "So what now?"
A/N, 6/28/21: Boy oh boy, this chapter was a doozy. Besides the usual life stuff making it hard to write, choreographing what was essentially a 8k word fight was quite a lot. But I hope the battle lived up to everyone's expectations!
But so, with great casualties, Nihilus has been defeated. But while Jaune is dead, the mask of Nihilus still remains, and the Battle of Beacon has shaken the world of Remnant to it's very core, with far reaching consequences not yet seen. Find out what happens next in the next chapter, Epilogue.
In other news, I also have a new story that is currently out! Flesh is Weak, a Worm+Warhammer 40k Crossover that follows a Mechanicus Tinker!Taylor. If you're into those fandoms, please go check it out!
Review Responses:
ReDestrobo: It wasn't the power of friendship but more the power of like 3 different ultimate abilities combined with Nihilus' own lack of foresight lol.
Blue Phantasm: I'm glad to have subverted so many of your expectations. Hopefully I did it in a good way. And technically, you were right, Pyrrha wasn't able to kill Jaune.
8-bit pirate: Hmm with the amount of resources and pull her family has, it'd probably be robo-eyes.
X3runner: Ironic how that happens.
UnlawfulGentleman: I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter. I always enjoy reading your reviews, puns notwithstanding. And yep the battle was quite the toss up. Probably even closer than what some people thought it would be.
Bassplayer123: It is quite darker than base-line RWBY, but I have the luxury of not having to stay within that PG-13-ish rating that RWBY is. And yep this was probably the strongest team in all of Remnant at that point, save maybe the whole of team Salem and Mommy Salami herself.
KarimHD: Sorry that Nihilus wasn't the victor, but he's kinda, technically not dead yet, so… who knows what the future has.
Tsun: You're welcome!
Hypixal: You're welcome! I did have the Silver Eyes affect Nihilus as, even though he isn't a Grimm, I did adjust that the powers in RWBY are all Force-based, and that Grimm are Dark Side entities. While Nihilus isn't a Grimm, I'd say he is still classifies as a Dark Side entity, and therefore would be affected.
Axel100: That… is a cool idea. Damn why didn't I use that.
BoskiJelen: Nice predictions.
MrBallin: Thanks!
Cyricist001: Maybe, but keep in mind Nihilus still isn't at 100%, and a precognition and enhanced reflexes aren't invincible. As ROTS showed, getting overwhelmed by massive fire power can put down a fully fledged Jedi Master.
BrutusPrimus: Thanks!
Warmachine375: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! There were a few other RvB cameos I snuck in in some previous chapters as well!
Hecserferblade: I hope you enjoyed this final battle! Fight scenes are something I very much enjoy writing and are pretty much what got me into writing fanfic.
With that I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you in the next one!