The battle with the Necrogrimm could be said to have reached a standstill but it was not because Coco and the others were formidable adversaries (for Salem had built her creatures to be stronger than the average Huntsman) but because they were getting hungry. The Aura reserves they had acquired from the academy had already begun to run low, having been utilised in their many previous battles. Even without such a boost, their power, speed and strength could only be described as supernatural. But, unless their enemies chose to stay still, the Nemusa would be unable to latch on and feed. And, if the Nemusa could not feed, neither could the Necrogrimm. All but that which bore Clover's face.
That was the Necrogrimm that Oscar was so desperately searching for amidst the clashing weapons and roaring Grimm. Sweat ran down his face as his heart raced. He could feel the adrenaline coursing through him, making it impossible for him to stand still. However he could not find Clover.
There he was.
Prowling towards the Vault door, needle being dragged across the ground, towards where Ruby was now fighting Cinder alone. She was too preoccupied by the Fall Maiden to notice the creature's advance. But Clover was not Ruby's only problem, the wall of burning spears that hovered behind Cinder was also quite a dilemma.
Oscar didn't waste a moment searching to see if anyone else was aware that Ruby needed help. Each group, although separate, were fighting for their lives. Tyrian was jumping over Qrow and Yang as if they were nothing more than hurdles in a race. Mercury was slumped on the ground, blood dripping from an injury in his shoulder as Emerald was trying desperately to stop it. However she continued to glance up at the wall of ice behind which Nora and Ren were still hidden. She was very possibly seeing something he couldn't. The rest were doing their best to keep the Necrogrimm back. The creatures' strength never flattered and Oscar feared that these monsters of Salem's would only get stronger as time progressed.
But he couldn't focus on the future, just the present and, for now, it was Ruby that needed help. He broke off from the main group, jumping out of the way as Nolan blocked Penny, who had been trying to grab at him and stop him from reaching his goal.
"Ruby!" He called as loudly as he could. But what would calling Ruby do? Distract her and get her killed? Maybe there was a way for her to dodge? Maybe she could escape into the Vault? But what if Cinder could control those spears to do as she commanded? There would be no way to escape them. And what use would he be if he did reach Ruby? Would he push her away? It was laughable if he actually believed something like that would protect her. Ruby was a capable Huntress, his action would do nothing more than hinder her and give her another thing to worry about.
But his options were limited and very few ended with both their survival.
Oscar must have been distracted, his own overthinking being his literal downfall. Something grabbed at his ankles, pulling them from under him. He fell chest first against the ground. His chin crashed into the hard stone, his jaw rattling and it was only by some miracle that he hadn't bitten off his tongue. It was with a dazed and frantic mind that he tried to push himself up against his elbows but the cold point of a blade against the back of his neck stopped him.
"Coward!" Yang yelled, breathing heavily as she tried to charge at Tyrian that had Oscar pinned to the ground. But her uncle held her back as she struggled to hold back his own anger.
"Fight us like a man!" She shouted, this game of captives and hostages tiring her.
"But what would be the fun in that?" Tyrian mused. " Now neither one of you move or it won't be just Ms Red over there that gets shish kebabed."
It was Tyrian's word that finally made Qrow and Yang aware of the danger that was slowly stalking towards Ruby- not only Cinder's cruel hand, but Clover's as well.
"Actually, I dare you to move." Tyrian cackled. " I really dare you! Let's see how much this little guy can take."
"Forget about me!" Begged Oscar, his eyes never leaving Ruby as she desperately shifted her weight while Cinder spoke some villainous monologue. Never had he felt so grateful that Cinder enjoyed talking so much. "You have to help Ruby!"
But what could either Qrow or Yang do? Neither one had a weapon or Semblance that could.
But he did.
This realisation came to him, scolding himself for his own stupidity. No, not stupidity, reluctance, for he knew if he used the weapon he had at hand, the price would be his very existence.
You can't! Ozpin's voice in his mind was loud, desperate.
I hesitated once before. Oscar answered, recalling the attack across the strait. It was impossible to believe that that had only happened that morning. He had faltered to use Ozpin's magic and if Jaune hadn't acted as he had, Ruby could have gotten seriously injured.
Now she could get killed.
Oscar, if you do this, our fusion will be complete. Ozpin tried to warn, to convince him otherwise. He did not wish to take this young man's life away from him, he had never wished to take that away from any of his previous incarnations. But Oscar… he was too young… he had always been too young for such a burden.
That doesn't matter . Oscar replied, resigning himself to his fate as he reached out his hand. He could already feel the warmth of Ozma's magic swelling in his fingertips, his resolve summoning it with ease. This was never meant to be my story.
That's not true! Ozpin yelled, but it was too late, the magic had been conjured eager to please its master. Ozpin wished he could stop Oscar, but at that moment, the boy's will was stronger than his own. Even if he took control now, there was no stopping the spell. That had never been true!
Ruby heard Oscar's voice calling her name. She saw Cinder gesture for the spears to move, and they did, each individual weapon programmed to do one thing - kill Ruby Rose.
Rose petals had already begun to form around the Huntress, her Semblance acting more on instinct then strategy. Where could she run where Cinder would not follow her? Where her friend would not get caught in the crossfire?
Into the Vault?
That would be the only way… if she was fast enough.
But that didn't matter, not any more. The choice had been grasped out of her hand. The spears began to shoot towards Ruby but, before the first could reach her, it was blocked by a translucent wall of green energy. It exploded, raining sparks over the ground, soon to be followed by a dozen others, each one exploding against the wall like fireworks being set off.
Ruby recognised this shield, this mass of solidified energy. She had seen it once before, in Atlas. What stood between her and Cinder's attack was simply a minute form of what she had seen back then. This was nothing compared to that that had held back the bomb of disastrous proportion back in Atlas. But it appeared nonetheless
It all happened instantaneously, yet time seemed to slow for a moment. Not to allow Ruby to study the situation or to escape but to look past Cinder and the Necrogrimm that was still advancing and to the person that had just, potentially, earned her a few more minutes of life.
Her silver eyes met Oscar's hazel ones and any words she wished to say died on her lips.
What had he just done?
He had just saved her... but at what cost?
She knew the cost Ozma's magic would have. She knew Oscar knew the price this act would have.
So why had he done it?
Why had he just sacrificed his life to protect her?
Even pinned to the ground, Oscar had tried to give Ruby a smile - a small, distant smile, the ones that had plagued him since their departure from Atlas.
He gave her a smile, filled with sadness, for he knew, far more intimately than she did, that this would be the last time Oscar would look at her. The next time his eyes gazed upon her, it would not be he who saw Ruby but Ozpin. There was so much she still wanted to say, to understand, to feel. There was just too much to be done for the time he had been given.
He gave her a grateful smile. A smile that simply spoke of his thanks- but for what? The memories? The friendship? The adventure?
All the above and far more.
And with that, a film of light momentarily coated Oscar's eyes.
And he was gone.
And just like that time sped up again.
Tyrian's captive twisted his body with the skill of one who had spent many decades mastering the art of escape- more years than this boy could possibly carry on his shoulders. He pulled at Tyrian's gauntlets. Slamming the Faunus against the ground. He tugged until Tyrian's own stinger was pressed against his neck, while locking his arms behind his back.
"Go!" The youth commanded, his tone taking on far more authority than Oscar had ever done before, like a general ordering his troops. But, although Qrow and Yang were surprised by this reversal of roles that had just befallen Tyrian and Oscar, they saw the shield that had been protecting Ruby, vanish. With it gone and Cinder's anger erupting, the Fall Maiden tackled the huntress, the pair vanishing into the still open Vault.
"Damn it!" Qrow growled, sprinting as he saw Salem's monstrosity that bore Clover's face continue to advance towards where his niece had just vanished into. The shift came to him as naturally as breathing. His transformation into a bird allowed him to cover the distance between him and Clover just as the Necrogrimm was about to cross the border into the Vault.
Qrow shifted back mid wing beat, his body slamming into Clover's as he landed. The Necrogrimm had not expected the attack but he struggled as the pair slid across the ground. Qrow had his sword pressed to Clover's throat and had him pinned to the ground under his weight.
"Qrow !" Yang was still running towards her, having been slowed by an attempted attack by Penny. But Sage had quickly intercepted, cutting off the limb before its hold on Yang could crush her one remaining real arm.
She was still a little away but she faltered in her steps, her head spinning from side to side, darting between Qrow and Ruby, trying to decide which of her relatives needed her help. Never had she ever felt so envious of Sun for having a Semblance that allowed him to make copies of herself.
"Help Ruby!" He sputtered out, pushing all his weight onto his weapon. But, although he wished to decapitate this vile monster, why was he hesitating?
It was because, up close, he looked even more like Clover Ebi had. Every tiny detail Qrow had believed he'd never see again was perfectly etched onto this death pale face- the rise in his cheeks, the slight way his hair curled towards the center. They were tiny details, details one would only have noticed if you had had the patience to study his face closely.
Qrow knew this was not Clover. That his Clover had been killed by that vile Tyrian. So why did his hand shake? Why did it feel as if, if he succeeded now, he would finally become what the Ace Ops back in Atlas had accused him of being - Clover's murderer?
However the Necrogrimm was oblivious to the internal struggle that was happening within Qrow. What it was aware of was the slight decrease in pressure near its neck. Although the Huntsman still held him down, his hold was weakening, and not just the hand that had the sword pressed to his neck.
It wasn't a very notable change but Clover was the epitome of Salem's creations. It was enough. Clover's stinger was not only deadly, it was malleable. The force against this arm had decreased just enough for him to free him from the elbow, thrusting it upwarding. The needle bent as he did so, so the tip pierced into Qrow's side. However it did not cut through skin or clothing - but into his Aura, his very soul.
It first felt like a pin prick that very quickly evolved into the sting of a very angry hornet. And with that pain, Qrow gasped as he felt the air being sucked out of him, then something more- his Aura.
The feeling was indescribable. It was like his insides were being pulled out of his body while the rest of him was going through a free fall.
This small pin prick was already enough to increase Clover's power tenfold. If he sucked this man's Aura dry, none would be able to stand before him. The Necrogrimm had felt such euphoria , such power, before. This was what he had been created for- to serve his master and litter the battlefield with the corpses of her enemies. This Huntsman had not been the first he had fed on, but he was first to have known the original whose face he wore.
Was that why his Aura tasted so sweet? Like a luxurious food he couldn't help indulge in?
Qrow screamed in pain as the Necrogrimm continued to feed. He tried to escape but with its other hand the Necrogrimm held him in place, locking the two in place.
Qrow had to do it now.
End this monster before it ended him.
He had to do this.
He had to kill Clover.
Not, not Clover, this monster.
But there was much in the world that not even Salem, in her centuries of life, knew. There were many mysteries that the gods, when they had vanished, had left behind. Aura was just one of many.
Many philosophers and scientists had mulled over the question - what is Aura? How did it manifest into the Semblances and protect not only their source's body, but those around them?
Although the greatest minds had contemplated and theorised over this question, only one answer continued to emerge.
Aura was the manifestation of one's soul.
But then another question would arise- what was the soul?
Some primal energy? Or was it something much deeper than that?
Some had wondered, what was the soul but the very essence of an individual? The emotions and experiences that built up one's life?
The memories.
It had already been said that this was the first time Clover had fed on one that had known the original and, unlike the others, which used Nemusa to feed, he drank directly from his host. So was that why the sweetness of Qrow's Aura just as quickly turned to poison for the Necrogrimm?
It let out a pain filled growl like an injured animal, shoving Qrow off with far more strength then it had held on before. Qrow groaned in pain , his every limb feeling like lead. He tried to look up at the creature that had done this to him. If Qrow had not just been reduced to a juice carton and drained an inch from his life, he may have been surprised to see the creature was on its knees. Its hands were pressed against its head as if it were fearful it might explode. It shook its head from side to side, growling and snapping like some rabid dog. And when it looked up at Qrow, it was not the Grimm red eyes that greeted him, but teal green eyes.
Clover's eyes.
Qrow felt sick and nauseous and disgusted all at once. If he could move he would have expelled the contents of his stomach there and then. He must have been mistaken. It must have been a trick of his mind. It had to be a trick. That… wasn't possible.
But before he could even try to get a second look, a wall of ice erupted between the pair. He could still hear the creature's growls in protest, but there was no mistake, distorted across the wall of ice, a pair of bright red eyes looked back.
Those eyes… they must have been a trick.
"Get away from him!" Nora yelled, one hand still outstretched, the tips of her fingers slightly blue from when she'd conjured the ice to help Qrow. With her other hand, she held Ren up, but it was impossible to tell who was supporting who at that point. Nora's face was swollen while Ren's was as pale as that of a ghost. The effects of the Nemusa's bite were still slowly paying its toll.
The Necrogrimm snapped its jaws at Nora but the Huntress did not flinch. She was too tired, too drained and exhausted, both physically and emotionally, to react.
She just wanted this all to end.
Qrow heard a cry from behind him and it was with dread that he struggled to roll onto his other side. His every muscle screamed in anguish and protest. Exhausted and filed with forlorn he couldn't help wonder - what had happened now?
If he had had any energy left , he would have shot to his feet but the sight only succeeded in stealing what was left of his strength.
Yang was pounding her fists against the Vault doors which, at some point, had decided to finally close. Discarded at her feet, forgotten and abandoned, lay a golden sword.
Ruby was nowhere to be seen.
Author's note: Thank you so much for reading :D