I promise not to fuck up the name again.
Qrow had been wandering the town, Ashfeld, for a day, and he had a pretty good idea of who this "Knight" was. The town was nothing special at first glance, the most important part of it being that it was a full on town and not just a small village. They really knew how to defend themselves on their own. However, the most eye catching part of the town was the large church in the middle of the town square. It wasn't all that fancy looking, it had a bell tower on top, a set of large doors that were always open, and a man that was the definition of "gentle giant" tending to it.
He looked to be 7 and a half feet tall, and always wore casual clothing. He had shoulder length blonde hair, along with some stubble. His name was William, and he seemed to be a priest. That was odd, since religion wasn't really a thing on Remnant. But he seemed to worship someone named "God". No fancy name or anything, just simply God. He was also really kind, and when asked about him, pretty much everyone had good things to say, though when pushed, they said he was a retired Huntsman. He was told the man's Semblance was that he couldn't age past what he was at right now. Nobody knew how old he really was, but they had a feeling that he might have been as old as the town itself, if not older.
After getting some information on him, he decided to approach him. The church was always open, apparently, so he could just walk right in without issue. He entered the church, and looked around. The walls were covered in large windows with glass art instead of regular windows. They portrayed various religious figures, though he didn't recognize any of them. There were pews leading up to the front, which had a small stage with and large red rug covering it and a giant stone cross against the wall. He also saw William sweeping between the pews. He was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a bright blue T-shirt, along with a necklace with a golden cross on it. Their eyes met, and he smiled.
"Hello there, friend." He greeted. His voice was deep, but filled with kindness. "I don't believe we've met before, you must be new to Ashfeld." He stopped what he was doing and rested his arm on top of the broom. "The sermon doesn't start for another hour, but you're welcome to stay regardless."
"No, that's fine. I just wanted to talk to you." Qrow approached the large man.
"What about? If it's about my previous work as a Huntsman, I'm afraid I don't do that sort of thing anymore. I prefer to stay here." He chuckled.
"No, not anything like that. It's about Beacon." Qrow said, gaining a more serious tone.
"The Academy in Vale? Why? Did something happen? We don't get much news out here, so we're in the dark about most things."
Qrow sighed before revealing the truth. "Beacon's fallen. It was taken by the Grimm." William's eyes went wide and he dropped the broom. He sat down in one of the pews and put his head in his hands. He sat like that for a few seconds before responding.
"So this is why he sent you here." He said quietly, raising his head and looking at the stone cross
Qrow raised an eyebrow in confusion. "How'd you know?"
"Has Ozpin told you what my powers are?"
"No, all he said was that you're powerful." William chuckled again at this, but much more somberly.
"Of course he didn't tell you before sending you." He stood up and dusted off his hands.
"As I'm sure you already know, my name is William. I am one of the three Immortals, alongside my brothers-in-arms, Forn and Yato. None of us can die by any means known to us." The bombshell of information stunned Qrow. These three guys couldn't die? That explains why Ozpin's last message was asking them to seek them out and ask for help. William continued. "We each also have special abilities that you could call Semblances. Forn can transform into a werewolf, though he rarely does so as the transformation is quite painful. Yato can summon the dead, but he only does so to put the souls to rest. And I can see into the hearts of men, and learn their true intentions. It was how I knew why you were here."
"And just how old are you people?" Qrow asked, dumbfounded by all this.
"We are as old as Remnant, older, in fact. My God chose me to go to this new world and spread His holy word. And so I have, hidden away in this little town."
Now he was confused. "Wait, older? How can you be older than Remnant? That's impossible."
"It's true. We hailed from a world split apart by constant war. The Knights, the Samurai, and the Vikings all vied for control of the world. And with no common enemy to unite them against, there was a war that had already lasted thousands of years before I was even born. When we came here, Forn isolated himself deep within the northern forest, Yato made his home atop what you now call the Mountain of Souls, and I swore to never allow another war between men to occur. The Great War was the result of me not wanting to leave Ashfeld defenceless."
"So you're telling me that you and your buddies have all this power, and not once did any of you ever go to confront Salem?!" Qrow was angry at this man for allowing thousands of people to die despite him saying himself that he would try to stop conflict. This question irritated William.
"Letting the Grimm live is a necessary evil. Without a common enemy to unite them, mankind will fight itself. I have seen it, I have experienced it, and I intend to never allow it to happen again. And if letting Salem live is the price I have to pay, then so be it."
"Everyday hundreds of people all over Remnant die because of the Grimm, and you're just gonna let it happen!?"
"And thousands more will surely perish because of humanity's insatiable lust for war!" He shouted, angry now. "You have been blinded by peace, and you fail to see the threat mankind poses to itself! If I kill Salem, what is there to stop war from breaking out?! I am meant to keep the balance so to ensure another thousand year war does not happen again. Now if you have nothing else to say, I would recommend you leave."
Right as Qrow was about to leave, there was an explosion at the front gate. They both rushed out and were met with three dozen White Fang attacking the town. Qrow was about to go and fight, but then William held him back.
"I will handle this." His voice seethed with rage.
As he walked over to the battle, he held a hand in the air, and he began to glow a slight gold. Then there was a flash that only Qrow seemed to notice, and William was in a large suit of golden armor. His legs were covered in metal shin guards and heavy boots, along with knee protection. He had a thick leather belt with a ring of chainmail around his thighs. His arms had thick metal gauntlets with metal plates layered over his upper arms and pauldrons on his shoulders. He had layered metal plates covering his chest with large studs lining them. His helmet covered his entire head, and the eye holes had tear-like patterns carved out. And draped over his back was a large cape with a red cross and white background sewn into the fabric.
He then held up his other hand, and a large halberd appeared. It was gold with silver highlights, and the ax and spear parts, and even the counter weight to the ax head all looked extremely sharp and deadly. It also had a large red gem embedded between the ax head and the counter weight. He rested the large weapon on his shoulder, and began walking towards the terrorists, who had started rounding up civilians.
One of the White Fang, armed with a sword, charged him. He swiftly disarmed him by grabbing the blade, yanking it free and throwing it away. The Faunus responded by going to throw a punch, but William moved his halberd and made him punch the ax head, cutting his hand to the wrist. The Faunus clutched his arm and screamed in pain, then William pulled back, the Faunus's bones breaking with loud snaps, then stabbed him in the head with the spike. He threw him to the ground and stood facing the rest of the attackers, who were now aiming their weapons at him. Some people had already been killed by the terrorists, and this only increased William's fury.
"Pray that God have mercy on your souls, for you shall receive none from me!" He yelled before charging them. The others started shooting at him, but the bullets pinged off his armor with leaving so much as a mark. When he reached the first enemy, he impaled them with the spike, then kept running with the dying man. He arrived at a group and stopped, throwing the corpse into the group. The rest of the battle was bloody and brutal, with limbs flying and the screams of the judged being heard throughout Ashfeld as they desperately tried to fight this man off. At one point he even broke a man's neck with one hand. By the end, there was only one soldier left. The commander of the attack. He was on the ground, trying to crawl away while holding his stomach. As William started walking towards him, he pulled out a whetstone and started sharpening his ax.
"Animam tuam iudicatus est." He spoke in an unknown language as he thundered over to the crying man. When he got close, he kicked the man back down on his stomach. He didn't get back up, he didn't have the strength. As he lay there, William raised his halberd.
"Tu dignatus est reus!" He roared as he brought the weapon down on his neck, beheading him executioner style and embedding the blade in the dirt. He ripped it out and stood there, observing the carnage. It was a mixture of White Fang and civilians. By the end of this, Qrow was perched on top of one of the buildings, impressed but not surprised by the outcome. Then there was a loud crosh from within the church. William's head snapped to it, and he began sprinting to investigate, Qrow joining him. When they got inside, one of the large windows had been smashed, glass all over the floor. But William's eyes locked onto something on the other side of the room.
In the far right corner of the stage, the rug had been tossed aside, and a hidden trapdoor's open door was laid bare. William's eyes widened and he ran to the entrance, banishing his equipment in the process. He ignored the ladder and jumped down, Qrow following close behind. When they landed, they found themselves in a large circular room, the layers of dust evidence that the room hadn't been used in a long time. But what stood out was the angled pedestal in the center of the room, illuminated by a single ceiling light.
"No." William spoke with a shocked tone. "The fools, what have they done?"
"What did they take?" Qrow asked.
"They have no idea what they have done." He didn't seem to hear him.
"William!" Qrow shouted, bringing him out of his stupor.
"They have intruded on a tomb containing a great evil that would put Salem to shame. They are in possession of thousands of years of pent up anger and hatred, and are about to unleash it on Remnant. They have stolen the coffin of Mors." He looked down, and saw the footsteps in the dust that could only belong to a group, and William knew what the purpose of the attack on Ashfeld was. It was merely a distraction. William turned around and climbed out of the room, ignoring Qrow's attempts to talk to him. He was going to speak to Sienna Khan, and attempt to contain this. He never confronted her before because they were never a threat to war breaking out between kingdoms, but this was a crime that could not go unpunished. She would rue the day she angered William Ignis, the Lawbringer of Remnant.
I did it lads! I got off my sorry ass and finally introduced the third Immortal. But who is the fourth, and most malevolent Immortal? The White Fang are about to find out that if you find a coffin bound in chains, there's a reason those chains are there, and you shouldn't open it.
Ok, reviews!
Guest: Yeah, I fucked that up, but at least I fixed it.
TheGreatDoaistDumpling: Deus Vult Frater!
Well that's all for now folks, stay tuned for more.