Jaune and Hazel met up near the address of the main hub for this gang. Jaune never asked the name, he trusted Hazel to handle that part. "they're all inside of that warehouse. they all think that they are trying to get rid of each other after the clusterfuck you caused, I will be watching the getaway cars. Happy hunting." with that the small mobile mountain lumbered off to whatever hiding spot he was found.
There was a team of two that were patrolling the perimeter. In the old days Jaune would have left them alive to avoid engaging them but these bastards shot his son. This time Jaune drew his personal pocket knife, a small folding knife with a two and a half inch blade.
compared to the sword he used to carry it was meager at best but in his hand this knife was still capable of dispensing with death and devastation, and it was about to. The sentries were passing by a parked car. That was when Jaune lashed out and his left hand struck one man in the neck hard enough to wind him but not hard enough to kill, that would have been too fast.
with the first man disabled Jaune's fury turned to the second who was reaching for his gun when Jaune grabbed the man's right hand and with deadly experience severed all the tendons in the man's arm letting the now limp limb hang as Jaune stabbed the knife into the man's chest leaving it there and freeing up Jaune right hand to grab the man's left arm and allowing Jaune to perform a simple hips toss.
As the man crashed to the ground Jaune re-gripped his knife, ripping it out and then stabbing it into the man's solar plexus, knocking the air from his lungs and in the long run killing him. now that the second man was permanently silenced Jaune returned to the first and instead of using the knife Jaune lashed out with his left hand this time using his arm like he had back outside of Cinder's studio and running it through the man's throat and out the back of his neck spraying blood everywhere and killing the man instantly.
letting the nearly decapitated body crumple to the pavement Jaune went back to the second man who was writhing on the ground in pain but unable to scream. not being able to find any mercy in him for these men Jaune grabbed the man's right arm and pulled him onto his left side. Once there Jaune brought the knife down in the man's belly dragging it across and disemboweling him.
The pain would have been immense and Jaune left him like that to bleed to death from his opened gut or suffocate from the ruptured diaphragm either one was fine by him.
The door was locked but that was about to change. wiping his knife on his already bloody shirt Jaune folded it back up and put it back in his pocket. He needed his right hand open for the sidearm he drew. He was only given the magazine in the gun and Jaune knew the model so he knew that he only had nine rounds.
The cheap wooden door shattered when Jaune's blood covered left hand crashed into it near the hinges. stepping through the wreckage he saw that there were five men and one woman standing at a table in the middle of the room.
They all turned to see what had happened in time for Jaune to shoot the first one as they were making eye contact. The bullet passed through his forehead and painted the two people next to him with his blood and grey matter. The next one to die was the one that reached for a weapon he received a bullet through the left eye socket.
Jaune moved closer firing off two more shots, dropping two more of the people leaving just the woman who was sitting at the head of the table she must have been in charge. When she reached for a weapon Jaune fired again blasting off her right thumb before holstering the pistol and sprinting the last three steps to her cracking a stiff right straight to her left shoulder hard enough to break the bone and spin her around.
Jaune's left arm wrapped around her jaw and his right hand clamped down on her destroyed left shoulder. with a grunt and in an act of vengeful wrath Jaune twisted her head one way and pulled her body the other, ripping her head off with part of her spine attached.
dropping the head to the floor Jaune went outside to see Hazel waiting for any runners. tossing the large man the gun and holster Jaune said. "make sure that Browne knows that this was a one time deal."
Hazel nodded and headed off to return the weapon. Now that he was done with that Jaune headed home. The walk was thankfully quiet with everyone still asleep or aware of the gunshots and not wanting anything to do with the situation.
When Jaune got home he made sure to enter slowly and when he saw that Cinder was waiting for him on the couch without the kids he was glad. she was used to blood, maybe not this much but she was used to it. they weren't.
"It's over?" she asked.
"no, but those sick fucks are all rotting in Hell." he answered, making his way to the shower. Cinder followed him in and as they went to work getting the dried blood out of his hair and off of his body she asked him.
"what's next?" her tone told him that she was worried and she was right to be.
"what can you and Emerald not live without?" Jaune asked. "I'm gonna run over to your house and grab it so we can leave in the morning."
"are you sure that will be necessary.?" Cinder asked.
"Yeah, Ruby is probably already in the city and she might even know you're alive. she won't stop until she's changed that. We have two options. We can go to war with all of the Beacon and see how long we last or we need to make following us so expensive and unwarranted that they give up." he answered no longer cleaning up and just enjoying both the hot water and Cinder's company.
"how are you going to do that?" she asked nervously.
Jaune's mildly improved mood dropped at her question. after a tired and weak sigh he answered. "I need to kill one of them, maybe two." Cinder's face showed her shock better than her mild gasp could have. "I was the tactial brain of our old unit. If I make it clear to them that coming after us will be total war and ignoring us will be total peace then Ruby will make the pragmatic choice. she has that in her, Gods I hope she has that in her." as he finished Jaune brought his head down and rested it on Cinder's forehead.
"Is that what it is going to take?" she asked her unspoken plea delivered.
"yeah it is, they will not stop hunting you and by extension us until either they win or they decide winning isn't worth the price." Jaune explained somberly.
"We can just disappear, you did it once..." she tried to say before Jaune gently cut her off.
"no, they thought I was dead, that trick isn't working twice, and going on the run with a couple of children is both impossible and irresponsible. I don't like it anymore than you do but Emerald and Ferro are all that matters now, we can not let our sins wash on them."
"agreed," she grimmly said, leaning into Jaune's and holding him close.
...
Ruby was getting ready to go to sleep when her scroll rang, it was the hospital. " Ms. Rose. he, uhm, he has escaped, we don't know how long he's been gone."
Ruby rubbed the bridge of her nose in frustration, she would deal with Adrain later. "Thank you for letting me know." she said before hanging up. Just as she was doing so a second call came in put on hold by the first, it was Yang.
"Yes, Yang?" she asked.
"you're not going to believe the call I just got." Yang said both excited and concerned. " A nosy neighbour saw the report about what happened and they think they saw Cinder Ash two blocks from her house, I'm sending you the location." Ruby was on her feet and running before the message with the location finished sending. she had also grabbed Weiss who was used to being carried in such a manner after years of it being the best way to get somewhere urgently.
Blake sent her a text telling them she was in town so Ruby forwarded her the location along with the message ASAP. Blake didn't respond which meant she was too busy either flooring it to the address of finding the address on a map.
...
When they were all ready they closed in on the street. Cinder was waiting for them in the middle of the street. This was clearly a trap but they were going to shove that trap down her throat and make her choke on it. Ruby and Weiss approached from one end of the block and Yang and Blake from the other.
They met in the middle with Cinder still standing there motionless. "I should try to arrest you now," Ruby snarled. but you don't deserve that, not after what you've done."
readying her weapon and making sure the only thing behind Cinder was an empty road she leveled the rifle mods on her. "do we need to do this here?' Cinder asked her voice so weak that Ruby almost didn't hear her.
"Yeah, right here and now, on your knees." she ordered.
Cinder did as she was told and hoped that her plan would work. the sound of the gunshot would wake Jaune up but he wouldn't do anything to rash. she would put Ferro and Emerald before his own rage. she was certain of that.
Ruby flipped off the safety and made ready to pull the trigger. as her finger squeezed she heard a sound coming from one of the nearby houses. "mommy noo!" it screamed, making Ruby's eyes flash to see a young boy with grey hair and rosy eyes standing in the doorway of his home with his hands held out hopelessly trying to stop the weapon from firing.
His plea fell both too late and on deaf ears. the trigger released was tripped, the spring was released and the firing pin was shot into the primer on the round in Crescent Rose's chamber igniting the load of weapons grade dust powder in the casing
Then Crescent Rose exploded in Ruby's hand, sending shrapnel everywhere but at Cinder and making everyone flinch. Just as everyone was getting their composure back a much louder voice could be heard. This time instead of a cry for mercy it was a roar of fury.
Ruby looked to see Jaune Arc in his boxers running through the street. Just as he was reaching Yang his left hand batted her right arm away enough for his right elbow to crash into the connection point between her robotic arm and her shoulder ripping the arm off and ripping the air from Yang's lungs and sending her to knees as she felt of the pain of effectively having her arm cut off for a second time.
Blake was next she tried swung her sword from seven oclock to one but Jaune was too fast and knew her too well his right hand grabbed her wrist stopping her strike and his left hand came down hard on Blake's right ear. stunning the cat before Jaune stepped back and threw the hardest round kick he could at her liver, draining her aura, cracking one of her ribs and hitting with an object the size of a baseball bat and about ten times the force.
Blake doubled over in pain as Jaune took her sword, the loose pavement grinding beneath his bare feet as he planted himself between Cinder and Ruby with a growl on his lips. and a fighting stance on his feet.
Ruby was worried and confused in equal measure. Of all the people to try and save Cinder Fall, Jaune Arc was the last person she expected. And she was worried, thanks to his knowledge of her team and the element of Surprise Jaune had just turned what might have been a four on one fight into a one and a half on one fight.
While Ruby was thinking of what to say, the boy from the house ran to Cinder. "MOOOM!" he yelled, sprinting to her side and throwing his arms around her in tears.
The silence continues, the only sound being the easing sobs of Ferro who had just almost lost his mother. That silence was broken when Emerald came outside. She hadn't seen what was happening but she saw Ferro holding her mother and her mother on her knees in the street.
Instinct overrode logic and she ran to her mother.
"Cinder, get the kids, we're leaving," Jaune said, cutting the tension in the air. His eyes never leaving Ruby's
"No," Cinder said slowly standing up and with great effort freeing herself from Ferro and Emerald. "I can't do that, as long as I'm alive the three of you are in danger, I can't allow that."
As she spoke she moved first to Jaune's side and then gently guided his arm down. "You set this up." he said the pain in his voice and eyes hurt Cinder almost as much as the realization hurt him.
"Nobody else deserves to die for what I've done, not them and not you," she said she wanted to kiss him one last time but if she did that she wouldn't be able to let go of him, she would let that happen. "Please, let this end, for their sake," she whispered, referring to Emerald and Ferro.
She was right, he knew it. If they ran they would be followed. Even if he killed all of them, which he couldn't, they would still be pursued by whoever stepped into the role of those they destroyed.
Gambol Shroud clattered to the street as Jaune's heart dropped with it. He had fallen in love four times in his life, the first woman and the third were dead, and the second was leading a team that was about to kill the fourth.
Walking back over to Ruby, Cinder again pleaded her case. "Please, not here, not in front of them." she begged
No Ruby relented. "Fine, Weiss get Blake and Yang on their feet." she ordered firmly clamping her left hand on Cinder's shoulder and leading her off. Ruby made it three steps when first her scroll rang and when she dismissed the unknown caller Weiss' rang.
She answered it out of curiosity. "Hello,?" she listened to the voice and handed the scroll to Ruby, "it's for you."
Letting go of Cinder she took the call.
"Who is this?" she asked.
"Hazel Reinhardt, I have someone who wants to speak with you." a few seconds of wheezing could be heard before Hazel continued. "In case you didn't understand that it was your prized student begging me to let go of his throat, you have two choices, you can kill Cinder and I will personally tear this boy in half or you can let her and Arc go and you get your student back."
Ruby froze, Adrian was innocent, he didn't deserve to die but Cinder did, who got what they didn't deserve, she remembered what she was taught in Glynda's warrior ethics class.
"Death can only be given, never taken back. As hunters you will be dealers of death to grimm and people alike, the day might come when you don't know what to do, whether or not killing someone is the right thing to do, I am telling, no warning you from a point of wisdom earned through my blood soaked experiences that if you ever have any doubts then you death is not the right choice."
"Get out of here," Ruby snarled to Cinder. "I'm not forgiving you, but I'm not going to hunt you. Enough blood has been spilled on your account." before she went to help Blake and Yang,
She stopped when she passed by Jaune. "I expect to see that boy at Beacon when he's old enough, consider it my way of making sure you two walk the straight and narrow."
She was talking about how Adrain had used his semblance, or more to the point Pyrrha's semblance to destroy Crescent Rose.
As Cinder returned to her family the shock of almost dying twice finally hit her, bringing her to her knees in the ever busying street Jaune looked down at his son. He had told himself that Ferro would never end up like his parents, that was why he was keeping Ferro from the hunter world. It was the best way to do that. But now he saw in Ferro the child that Mercury and Emerald should have been.
He would grow up to be a hunter, that much was certain, and if he lived up to the potential of his parents both by blood and by bond he would probably end up being Beacon's eighth angel.