Been awhile, sorry bout that! Hope the extra length was worth it!

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Chapter 30

Stupid, suicidal hunstman. Tricking the mayor into being given free rein over the town's security. Like it'd make an ounce of difference. Why couldn't they understand? They all saw the video feed, there had to be thousands of the beasts! There's no way a single Huntsman with three trainees could ever hope to take on a horde that size. And he doubted the town could even hold the amount of ammunition the militia would need to make a difference.

It was an impossible task. If he stayed and fought he had no doubt he would die. Retel was a nice place, having sheltered him for a few years but nothing was worth dying for. If the idiot Huntsman and his tagalongs wanted to kill themselves along with an entire town that was their choice. He wasn't going to be dragged down with them.

All Gregory needed was a chance to slip away, the faunus kid might see him but all that armor and weaponry should keep him from giving chase. Once he got away he could suppress his aura and make his way back to some kind of civilization. It would be difficult to survive in the Grimm infested forest but it was better than staying and being torn to shreds by several hundred Beowolves.

"I've gotta move the Bullhead" Qrow interrupted the thought, coincidentally providing the perfect chance to slip away. "It's in the Grimm's path and I'd rather not risk our only Grimm-free way back to town." He explained before turning to the vehicle. "I should make it back to the valley before the fighting starts." With a wave backwards he entered the Bullhead and flew off.

Jaune was already walking towards the valley, not even bothering to check if Gregory was following. This was his chance, neither of them seemed to even care if he followed so was he really even abandoning them? He took a step back and prepared to make a break for it.

"You're scared." The brat's voice nearly made him jump, such an abnormally harsh sound he almost thought it was a semblance of some kind.

"Excuse me?" Gregory turned to the kid that was now facing him. He wouldn't, or perhaps couldn't, be embarrassed at being caught. So what if these idiots would call him cowardly for running? They would all be dead soon while he would still be alive, in the end that's all that mattered.

"You can run if you want." He motioned towards the trees around, his cloak clacking noisily from the action. "But I doubt you'll make it very far." Gregory wasn't one to let pride bog him down, yet the child's words made his fist clench.

"Is that a threat…?" He asked dangerously, hand reaching for his whip. He didn't need to beat the kid, just tangle him up enough to get away. Maybe shoot a few explosive rounds into his eye slots for good measure, they weren't so far that he would miss.

Jaune just tilted his head in an oddly simple display of confusion. "Why would I say you could run if I just wanted to stop you?" Gregory continued to glare, refusing to let go of his weapon. "No, I'm not threatening you." He sounded annoyed but still didn't reach for his weapons.

"I don't have time to explain the dangers of wandering a Grimm infested forest. Leave if you want." He turned his back as if to prove his point. "I don't know if Qrow and I can kill enough Grimm to save every civilian but I won't force you to stay. Everyone deserves a choice."

"And what? You choose to kill yourself for the chance that someone might live?" It was that kind of idiotic, self sacrificing bullshit that got talented young Hunters killed. The kind of bullshit that got overconfident kids killed…

"Why make that choice? How could that possibly seem like a positive outcome?!" Gregory hadn't meant to yell but the brat's "white knight" attitude was bringing up a slew of unpleasant memories.

"If you're lucky your entire team will die, but odds are at least one of you will make it onto a Bullhead." Gregory marched forward angrily, his plan to escape all but forgotten in favor of teaching this brat a lesson.

"One of you will escape. But only after watching the people you spent years of your fucking life with get ripped apart by monsters. Years of joyful memories turned sour in an instant..." He ignored the stinging in his eyes as he spoke, choosing to instead focus on the hate burning in his gut.

"How well do you think you'll hold up after that, huh? How long until you start wondering what the barrel of a gun tastes like?!"

That caused a flinch. Good, maybe the brat would think twice before acting all high and mighty again. It was only after he heard a low growl from a few feet away did Gregory realise how much anger he let out. Not enough to bring the horde upon them but still enough to draw an ursa that must have been wandering nearby.

He barely had time to curse and reach for his weapon when a flash of white struck agility that shouldn't have been possible in a full suit of armor, Jaune's oversized gardening tool relieved the Grimm of it's various limbs with methodical precision.

There was a pause as reality seemed to play catchup before the grimm hit the ground.

"I don't know what I would do…" Jaune was looking downwards thoughtfully while the corpse dissolved around him, his voice completely unshaken by the surprise attack. "Maybe you're right and I'd snap. Maybe I would try to seek justice and try to kill anyone involved… Maybe I would try to end it all" He looked up suddenly with black eye slots that somehow seemed to burn a hole straight through the soul.

"But that doesn't make it okay. That doesn't make it any less of the wrong answer." Jaune stepped forward purposefully. "If someone sacrificed themselves for me, I refuse to believe they did it just for me to become something less." An armored finger jabbed forward. "They died so we could live. So we could grow. Not so we could throw ourselves into a pit of fear and hatred!"

"So run if that's what you really want to do. If that's what you believe will help you continue to live and grow then you shouldn't hesitate."

"But if you're running just to continue wondering "What the barrely of a gun tastes like" then you should at least have the courtesy to not act like I'm the crazy one!"

Gregory stared dumbly, unable to form a response immediately. The kid was wrong. He had to be. It was insanity to throw your life away for any reason. He was insane, just like every Huntress and Huntsman who had willingly jumped into the meat grinder. All to protect something as stupid as innocence. Like such a thing could even exist in this world of monsters.

"You're wrong. Killing ourselves to save a handful of civilians only serves to weaken humanity's ability to fight back." Gregory tried to keep his emotions in check, not wanting to draw any more Grimm. "It's something only empty headed idiots do because they think dying is somehow heroic."

"Who said anything about killing ourselves?!" Jaune threw his free hand up, his tone turning exasperated. "If we had absolutely no chance at succeeding do you think I would be letting my team, my only friends, fight by themselves? Do you really think that Huntsman would let his nieces kill themselves?!" Gregory tried to interject that he had no idea who the Huntsman family was but Jaune pressed on without pause.

"If things become so dire that we might all die obviously a retreat will be called. Yes there is still a large risk to ourselves, but that's what it means to be a soldier. Hunter or simple city guard, our job is to protect the people." Jaune turned away and began walking, apparently done wasting time.

"We're not expected to die at command but I doubt anyone expected you to turn tail and run without even trying."

And like that, the young knight disappeared into the brush, walking off to fight a horde of demons like it was preferable to wasting another word. Which left Gregory standing alone with his thoughts keeping him from making a break for it.

Did he stay and fight? He hadn't fought more than a handful of Grimm at once since he lost his team so long ago. The thought of doing so again was… Scary.

He knew he was a coward ever since he gave up on his Huntsman career, doubly so for stooping to human contracts at times when simple guard jobs didn't bring in enough lien. He was a coward, and he had accepted that about himself.

So why did the brat's words piss him off so much…?

"Fucking hell…"

\-/

Jaune fumed silently as he made his way towards the valley. Did that guy really think he was some dumb kid with a death wish? Or maybe he just thought all hunters would seek glory with reckless abandon. It didn't matter which it was, both options were insulting in their own ways.

Where did that failed excuse of a huntsman get off!

It's alright Jaune. Whitback spoke calmly, having sensed the turmoil in Jaune. I don't like him either. How someone so cowardly can simultaneously be so prideful simply boggles the mind. Jaune huffed his agreement, if he was going to runaway you'd think he'd at least have a bit of humility.

However, considering how little he knows of our abilities, I'd say his aversion to fighting with us is… understandable, in a sense. Whitback seemed almost hesitant and Jaune found himself surprised.

"Whitback, are you… Defending him?" The thought made his lips quirk upwards. Not because Whitback was defending Gregory -honestly that actually annoyed him slightly- But because it was defending a human at all. The Grimm was rather open about it's dislike of human and faunus kind, to hear something that contradicted that was… nice.

I'm not defending that coward. All I am saying is that without knowledge of our abilities, certain death is a logical answer to the situation we find ourselves in. Whitback spoke as he always did, without a hint of deceit. Not that Jaune thought it was lying but the fact that it was defending a human that Jaune didn't even like spoke of something.

"I'm not saying you're wrong." Jaune corrected "It's just… you've never really defended anyone other than me before. Especially when I'm angry with them." He believed Whitback might defend someone if it thought it would make Jaune feel better but in this scenario? Where there was no real benefit? It didn't make sense. "So why?"

Whitback remained silent but Jaune knew it had heard him and was just thinking it's response over. By the time Whitback answered Jaune was already in position a hundred or so meters from the valley's entrance.

I suppose. Whitback began slowly. that perhaps it's because I understand what that human went through… It sounded quieter, almost sad as it continued. I have seen what happens when a person loses everything… To go through that without anyone to talk to.

It sounds painfully lonely.

Jaune felt an unexpected and painful feeling swell in his stomach. The realization that he could have easily been the one in Gregory's shoes wasn't a pleasant experience. It was easy to look down at the man as a coward but would Jaune be any different had Whitback not been there to keep him from succumbing to grief all those years ago?

I'm sorry Jaune, Whitback apologised suddenly I hadn't intended to make you feel worse. Jaune shook his head in response, "No, it's alright. I think this feeling is… important." Maybe it would help keep him from judging so harshly. If he could forgive Blake for going overboard with the WhiteFang, then why shouldn't he forgive a failed Huntsman for doing too little?

"Hey runt," Jaune looked back to see Qrow making his way through the foliage. "how are the Grimm looking? Still no movement?" The older Huntsman already had his weapon drawn in it's sword form, though he had it leaning lazily against his shoulder.

Jaune shook his head, not even bothering to look at the beasts in question. "We're fine for now, there's no negativity in the air yet." Aside from a single resentful merc, or ex huntsman or whatever gregory was considered at this point. "Might take some time for enough people to be woken up."

Qrow hummed his understanding and looked towards the valley entrance with squinted eyes. There wasn't much in the way of foliage blocking their sight line, most of that was behind them. But the darkness would have made it next to impossible for Qrow to see the Grimm from their distance.

"We should move a bit closer, we still got a couple dozen meters before they'll sense my aura. Plus I can't see shit from here." Qrow went to move closer but paused when Jaune raised his hand.

"I'm more worried about the mercenary's bad mood drawing them than I am about your Aura." Qrow looked surprised at that, raising an eyebrow curiously. "Mopey-merc hasn't run off yet? I expected him to be gone the moment I turned my back." He scratched at his chin, oblivious to the slight movements in the brush behind him.

"You know, It's rude to talk about someone behind their back." Jaune had to hold back a snicker as Qrow flinched ever so slightly before recovering quickly. "Decided to stick around eh?" The Huntsman questioned while sending a quick glare to his student.

"Ya well, your brat seemed pretty confident so I thought 'screw it, might as well see why.'." Gregory shrugged to Qrow before turning a critical eye to Jaune. "You better not disappoint. I swear if your only tricks are that freaky voice, an oversized gardening tool, and some string on a stick I'm gonna be pissed."

Jaune chuckled at that while sticking his scythe into the ground and pulling free his "string on a stick". "Well I do have some kitchen utensils tucked away, just in case." He returned the sarcasm with a smirk under his mask, his earlier anger dulled. If the man needed to be snarky to get past his fear than so be it, Jaune could only be grateful to have the extra help managing so many Grimm.

As the seconds turned into minutes Jaune found his mind wandering back to the town and his team within. Their training with Qrow might not have been for long but it gave a good idea just how strong team R-SY was. An hour and a half of intense fighting wasn't something to scoff at. Considering Qrow more than likely had them running drills beforehand it was downright impressive they could last so long. His team was amongst the strongest of the first years, there was no doubt they would be fine.

The thought did little to calm the anxiety swelling in his stomach. What if something went wrong? What if there was a Grimm too big? What if the fighting drew another group of Grimm? All it would take was a small swarm from the wrong direction to ruin their whole plan, killing everyone in Retel.

It was the drifting scent of negativity that brought him back to reality. He couldn't afford to get distracted now, not when the safety of so many hung in the balance. His team was relying on him. His friends were trusting him. What kind of person would he be if he didn't do the same in return?

He took in a deep breath, letting the unnecessary action calm his nerves while he pulled an arrow from his quiver. In one swift motion the arrow was placed against the bow and drawn back. An extra second was given for Whitback to adjust the aim before Jaune loosed the projectile.

A second later another arrow was in it's place, twelve seconds after that an empty quiver hit the dirt along with the discarded bow. Scythe in hand, Jaune charged forward with a guttural roar.

Meeting the hordes deadly advance head on.

\-/

Boom

Ruby finished exhaling as she watched the corpse of a Beowolf begin dissolving in the distance through the sights of her scope. A fresh round was pushed into the chamber and she began scanning the town once more. Her face looked set in stone, an odd look for the normally cheerful rose and one that was definitely strained.

"Sniper one, status update." A stern voice commanded suddenly, causing Ruby to jump and nearly lose her footing on the roof shingles. With a yelp she flicked her Crescent Rose out and stabbed it downwards to gain some leverage. She readjusted herself atop the belltower while desperately trying to regain the composure she had fought so hard to create.

"Sniper one, do you copy?" The voice rang out again, causing her to squeak nervously and reach for the radio at her belt. "S-sorry Crossroads," Why did she have to stutter? It made her sound like such a kid... At least she remembered the callsign this time.

"Just some stray Grimm, no sign of the horde." She tried to put a bit more confidence into her voice, she was supposed to be a protector of mankind after all. What kind of Huntress squeaked and stuttered? None she had met.

"Copy that, keep your eyes open. If the forward party falls before they can send a message you will be the first to know." She confirmed her understanding before quickly tucking the radio back away. The reminder of her responsibilities only served to worsen the shaking in her legs.

She tried taking deep breaths like she had seen Jaune do so many times before, if it worked for him it could work for her right?The pounding in her chest that refused to slow made it clear just how wrong she was.

She tried to tell herself that everything would turn out fine. She knew what Yang was capable of first hand and had seen what Weiss could do in combat class. Neither would fall easily to the horde. And Jaune was stronger than all of them, plus he had Qrow with him! Qrow was unstoppable!

If the worst happened and the Grimm overan them, her team had the best chance of escaping. Even with their aura acting as beacons to the monsters they would be practically invisible with so much negativity in the air. It would actually be pretty easy to escape if they tried to.

But what would that mean for the ones supplying the negativity? Almost unconsciously she found her eyes tracing over the gathering of people at the town's center.

More and more made their way to the gathering. Finding their way around the modest defenses with what Ruby imagined to be scared and confused expressions. If the Grimm forced RWBY to retreat, those people would be the ones to suffer most. The militia would of course do their best to protect their families but in the end the Grimm wouldn't care.

Everybody would be slaughtered.

Ruby's fist shook and she quickly turned to continue scanning the edges of town for darkness with a new vigor. She had to succeed, the alternative was unacceptable. Failure was not an option. Heroes didn't accept defeat no matter what, and she was going to be a hero! Just like the Hunter's in her books.

Just like her mom.

\-/

Everything was going to be just fine.

Yang had to keep telling herself that. Her sister may have been younger but that didn't make her any less of a fighter. She's one of the top students in Miss Goodwitch's class so it wasn't like her skills could be questioned. Her little rose had thorns of her own, it couldn't be denied.

But would that be enough against a horde of demons?

Yang would never say it out loud but she knew Qrow was one of the best huntsman in Vale. He was incredibly tightlipped about what jobs he would handle but every one was given directly by Ozpin, one of the most influential people in the country. Had she any doubts of his skill their most recent spars would have erased them.

Jaune was… Well, He didn't count. Yang honestly had trouble worrying about him, because of how strong he was. Nothing to do with how his eyes burned in her mind.

Weiss had the best tutors and dust money could buy along with two extra years of training. Add the fact that Yang would be fighting directly alongside the heiress and it became much easier not to worry about her partner.

Ruby was different, she didn't have years of experience like Qrow and she didn't have someone to watch her back like Weiss. She was the only sharpshooter in town so they needed her as a spotter, but that left her completely by herself atop the belltower. With A gathering of scared people to her back and an army of Grimm to her front.

Just regular Hunter things…

"You're worrying about her again." Yang flinched at Weiss' statement, realizing she was staring at the belltower again.

"Would you believe me if I said no?" She tried to cover her anxiety with a shrug and smirk. She didn't want to worry her partner but her thoughts wouldn't stop. So much could go wrong. What if there was more Grimm than they expected? Or stronger Grimm? What if the town's defenses weren't as strong as they thought?

Hell, a storm could hit and throw everything into chaos. There was just no telling what could go wrong.

"You shouldn't worry so much. She's the leader of team RASY after all, the strongest first years of beacon" Weiss insisted with a confident nod.

"Oh ya? Forgetting about NNBL? Pyrrha did beat Jaune in class." Yang couldn't resist pointing out in hopes of a reaction, maybe even a pout if she was lucky.

No luck it seemed as her partner chose to scoff instead.

" Oh please," She waved a hand with the other on her hip "Jaune wasn't allowed to use his stamina to his advantage. We both know who would win if his "Aura" wasn't tracked."

Of course they did. Anyone who knew what Jaune actually was would know not even the invincible girl would be able to win. The strongest student in Beacon didn't stand a chance against a single Grimm.

Yang tried to shake the thought before it could take shape. Jaune was a nice guy and an awesome teammate. He was quiet and a little naive but still tried his best. He wasn't some mindless Grimm seeking to destroy everything in her life. He wasn't that kind of person.

Right…?

\-/

It started out well enough, a dozen arrows for a hundred Grimm seemed like a fair trade. With how the Valley narrowed at the entrance it almost looked like Jaune had made a noticeable dent in their numbers. It would have been a significant advantage to take in so short a time, had there not been a few thousand replacements.

No single Grimm put up much in the way of resistance. With Whitback's intelligence and power backing Jaune's will and determination nothing could stand against them. The smaller Beowolves and Creeps were crushed underfoot in an instant. The larger Grimm lasted a fraction of a second longer before a large scythe relieved them of their essential limbs and organs.

Barely twenty minutes into the battle and the clearing was littered with the dead and dying beasts. The amount of evaporating corpses concentrated around Jaune created what looked like a murky fog. Though the gaseous material wasn't poisonous it still made it difficult to breath, forcing the two humans in the clearing to fall back.

Jaune noticed the pair drop back but refused to do the same himself. Unlike them, his body could handle the stress of sustained intense exercise almost indefinitely without the need for oxygen.

The bigger risk came from his armor breaking from taking too many hits. With Gregory and his camera's watching, Jaune would much rather keep his armor fully intact to reduce his risk of exposure.

It was fairly easy to avoid being hit by the larger Grimm capable of inflicting such damage. The beasts were strong in their own right, able to crush a person with ease if given the chance. Against the hybrid though? They might as well have been children throwing a temper tantrum.

It wasn't until he hit the forty minute mark that Jaune began to feel something… off.

He grunted as a large Ursa smacked his weapon, surprising him enough to slip past. Many grimm had passed him before but none had done it through such a direct path. It was enough to draw a growl of frustration as the mistake was corrected with a thrown dagger.

The sharpened material landed with a dull thud, the creature crying out in pain.

Then it continued forward, the dagger sticking uselessly out of it's hindquarters.

"I...missed…?" Jaune stared in confusion. He had never missed before, Whitback wouldn't allow it.

Before he could process what had happened he felt something impact his flank, sending him flying into the dirt. He jumped back to his feet, spinning his scythe around him in hopes of stopping more Grimm from slipping past.

The desperate move cost him the weapon as it lodged itself into a deathstalker's armored plates, getting yanked away when the creature continued it's charge.

What was going on? Why was he making so many mistakes?! Why couldn't he feel Whitback's influence anymore…? And why was his head pounding so hard?!

Desperately Jaune pulled his sword free. He couldn't stop now, not with so many innocent lives at his back. He tried to swing the blade like Qrow had taught him, just like he had done with Lucy. It was successfully in cutting down several Grimm in his path but the endless torrent never ceased.

He didn't even see the grimm that knocked him over once more, the hoard seeming to surge forward with new vigour. He barely felt the hit, more of a lovetap when compared to the Deathstalker from initiation. So why did it frustrate him so much? Why did it make his skin feel like it was on fire?!

It was then he noticed the smell he had been so focused on ignoring. That sickening scent that had steadily been getting worse since the evacuation started. It's slow rise had let it go mostly unnoticed but now that Jaune had noticed it, it was all he could do to keep his thoughts straight.

'Come on Jaune you can do this, you've been training for this day for years.' He told himself, trying his best to keep his thoughts calm as he cut down an alpha Beowolf. 'You are not a slave to your bloodlust, instinct, or emotions!' It was quickly replaced with three more, all frenzied and desperate to reach Retel.

The negativity was only getting worse along with the pounding in Jaune skull. He tried to keep focused on the task at hand but it was becoming increasingly difficult. He started wondering where all the negativity was coming from.

That's obvious, it was coming from the town he was protecting.

But why are you protecting it?

Because they were innocent, they didn't deserve to die such horrible deaths.

How do you know that? You don't know any of them.

That wasn't right, it wasn't just strangers in that town. He knew people there. His friends were there now. His team was fighting to protect the town just like him. His partner was fighting just like him.

With all this negativity, don't you think something's gone wrong?

They were strong. They survived fighting Lucy, they were fine. They had to be.

Are you sure? what happens if you're wrong.

What happens if they're dead.

"NO!" The scream tore it's way from Jaune's throat while savagely swinging his sword at the nearest grimm. It smashed against the beast's armor plating, any thought of aiming completely forgotten. The force of the strike cracked the sword and completely decimated it's target.

In the back of his mind Jaune could feel his muscles tearing and bones cracking from the sudden lack of restraint. He didn't care. His body held literally tons of material to heal with. It didn't matter how much material he wasted nor how much it burned in order to do so quickly. None of these monsters were reaching his team. His first ever friends.

They wouldn't be taken like his family was.

He would not allow it.

\~/

Hot damn this took me a minute or two to write. I was originally planning on finishing the entire horde fight this chapter and was kind of stubbornly clinging to that idea (which is partially why it took so long and is completely why there's much more written than normal). But christ on a crispy cringle it was much more than i thought it would be in my head. I decided a whole two months with no update was probably not great so i decided to edit up what i had and here we are! I wanted to push character progression and hopefully get a bit deeper with the personalities, I'm very curious to hear if I've done well in that respect as I tried to spread it out over multiple characters both oc and ooc. As always I hope to hear what any of ya think and hope you all have a wonderful day/night!

Sm0keyPanda, good to hear from you again! I'm happy to hear you enjoyed it and hope I didn't disappoint with the battle! I'm thinking it should be done by next chapter, hopefully. It's true that often times the longer the story gets the more mistakes end up snowballing! Maybe one day I'll re-edit the entire story once it's done? Not sure yet. I've thought about completely rewriting the beginning in hopes of making the children more realistic but I'm rambling now. Hope you keep on readin!

Sergeant Soul Snatcher, I hope the length of this chapter makes up some for the last! I wish I could your reason as an excuse but honestly I am incredibly reclusive, I have maybe two friends who i game with online and that about sums up my social life. I've never been much of a fan of socializing though my days now are being filled with work mainly. luckily my new shift is ends at 12 now so at least im not falling asleep at 5 am anymore. Also about the bad OP writers, I would say calm down there satan but I you're goddamned right! I usually give most OP stories a try (with anime and games and such) But some of them are just sooo cringy! I was an edgy af teen but some people made me seem tame in comparison. I always like to respond to my reviews! I'm may not be very good at socializing but I still love the thought of others enjoying my work as well as thinking it might be improving! I know seeking validation can be bad and i am writing this story because i want to, not just for the attention. but I still think it feels nice to be recognized every now and then! Hope this chapter is up to snuff and thanks again!

Vashta-Neradaed, I chose to have Jaune spare Lucy the first time because I believed his confidence in his judgment of right and wrong to be shaken greatly after the whole Blake fiasco. I agree completely that the world of remnant is a ruthless world where mercy will only cost you (In lucy's case it cost the lives of several innocent lives when she went berserk a chapter or two later). That being said I didn't think Jaune was cold hearted enough to do that at the time, if he could go back it might be different after seeing the consequences but I beleived he needed to experience the consequences of mercy first hand. I Hope that answered your question and thank you for taking the time to review!