Replies to my Reviews
Imperial-samaB: Yes it is.
TheDragon2000: Oum no! I'm not mixing any magic, period! Just thinking for all the stuff I'll have to research in my Fate Fanfic makes my head hurt. Fairy Tail Magic is beautiful and simple and not getting changed. Zelretch is exclusive all on his own.
Chapter 22: The Storm
Jaune Arc blushed in embarrassment as he floated in the Airship's cargo bay, suspended by Glynda Goodwitch's {Telekinesis}.
Rumors of his motion sickness seemed to have reached even the staff members, as the moment Jaune had shown the slightest tinge of green on his face, he'd been instantly levitated with Goodwitch bluntly explaining her reasons for doing so.
As they journeyed, he idly listened to more of Nora Valkyrie's wild tales.
"And then the elephant bursted through the wall, tripped over the bench and somehow somersaulted back into it's enclosure! And that's how Ren and I got free passes to that zoo for the rest our lives!" Nora grandiosely finished.
Jaune and Pyrrha Nikos turned to Lie Ren, the usual debunker of her stories. He blinked in surprise himself. "That... was actually accurate."
"Seriously?!" Jaune exclaimed.
"What an amazing adventure." Pyrrha gushed. "Since it's true, I wonder at Nora's great memory to have recounted all that."
"Oh please, don't. Stop." At Pyrrha's silence, Nora clarified. "I said 'please, don't stop.'"
"O-Oh."
"We've arrived." The pilot's voice sounded through, causing Goodwitch to look away from her Scroll.
Nightblue was a small town, Jaune decided as they disembarked and watched the Airship fly away.
"Glynda!"
Goodwitch grimaced as an old man with glowing red eyes and fancy clothes and gems, approached them with a boy in tow.
Even if he sensed no malice, Jaune's Observation Haki went on full alert at just hearing his voice. From the way everyone's hands drew to their weapons, they felt it too.
"Calm down, students." Goodwitch's face scrunched up, as if forcing down a lemon pop. "He's an... ally."
Jaune blinked as the Deputy Headmistress visibly struggled to say that last word.
"Are you still pissed of the time I put you in in a sexy nurse outfit?"
Before Jaune could even fantasize such an amazing scenario, the old man was levitated and sent flying into a nearby boulder.
Goodwitch's crop glowed purple, painting her as the culprit as she growled at the man's direction with a heavy blush.
"I'm sorry about him, miss." Everyone paid attention to the boy who'd followed the man. He was short with tanned skin and freckles. His hair was black and he had hazel eyes.
He was dressed in a green coat with black pants, boots and orange gloves.
"My name is Oscar. Oscar Pine."
"And I am Devil Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg." The old man had returned, not even having a speck of dust on his clothes, much to JNPR's collective confusion.
Jaune choked. Devil?! Coupled with the inhuman power he could feel off him... Malignant Overlord.
"Oh. Looks like one of you realizes the significance of my title."
Then the name kicked a far more recent memory.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHH?!" Jaune recoiled in shock, confusing the others. "You're Issei Hyoudou's master?!"
"Exactly!" Zelretch snapped a finger at him. "Took you long enough! Even though this Fanfic came first in the 'Guide' series, you are the last of the three protagonists to meet me!"
Everyone was heavily confused about this wording of Fanfic but Zelretch told (hypnotized) them to just ignore it.
"Anyway Oscar, you can leave now. You're just Foreshadowing for something life-changing in," Zelretch made a show of counting with his fingers. "the next two seasons."
The boy had an extremely confused expression but left anyways.
"So what now about the mission?" Ren asked. Jaune felt relieved at his interruption. While it was interesting to meet who had trained Issei Hyoudou and was apparently capable of travelling worlds, Jaune liked some semblance of normalcy in his affairs.
Goodwitch sighed as she reverted to the strict disciplinarian all Beacon students knew (and feared). "You have all taken the time to learn details of the mission assigned to you, right?"
"We know of the burnings." Ren answered. "And we know whoever's causing them hasn't been found."
"And a nearby town, Misenwood, was recently attacked in the early morning before dawn today." Jaune continued.
"That's the gist of it." Goodwitch nodded, displaying her Scroll. "Reports coming in show that Grimm visited the arson sites later. If Grimm haunt a place with no people to devour, the terror of the victims before their deaths must have been immense."
"And that's the problem." Zelretch spoke up. Jaune noticed the serious tone his voice had taken. "I specifically requested for your team because of the Mage in it. Your opponent is a Mage themself."
Team JNPR recoiled in shock, looking to Goodwitch for confirmation who simply grimaced.
"Are you... a Mage as well?" Pyrrha asked trepidly.
Zelretch chuckled before answering. "One of the strongest, child. But this isn't my story and I'm retired despite whatvere others might say. So I help out training the next 'Heroes' and 'Protagonists'."
Jaune... felt there was something wrong with his words. There was no lie, but he felt the strange notion of trickery and mischief.
"I've thought about it." Goodwitch explained. "And I've decided that since this is technically your mission, it would be best to stand back and leave it to you four."
Jaune shared a nervous glance with his team.
"I will still be available for advice and help, considering that you four are essentially facing a murderer with the potential strength of a Hunter or Mage."
Jaune thought it through before nodding. "Thank you. In that case, I think we need more information before proceeding."
Jaune turned to face his team. "We'll split to two groups. One will ask for rumors amongst the townspeople. Rumors tend to fly faster and farther than actual news. The other group will head for Nightblue's PD. We can get actual facts to mix it in."
Goodwitch nodded in approval.
"Now to determine members." Jaune made his decision quickly. "Nora goes with me to the PD, while Pyrrha goes with Lie amongst the civilians."
"Why?" Pyrrha blinked before hastily backtracking her response. "I-I mean, shouldn't it be partners team up?"
"That won't fly here." Jaune explained. "Sorry to say this but Pyrrha's fame will have a better effect on the civilians than the police."
"Okay..." Pyrrha grimaced but nodded in acceptance. "What about Nora though?"
"I can't send Nora with you, Pyr." Jaune chuckled. "If she tries to do something chaotic, someone is needed to restrain her."
"I can do that!"
"Physically, yes. Mentally, no." Jaune replied shortly. "Sorry Pyr, if someone you like or respect badgers you a lot, you cave quickly."
Pyrrha choked then looked to Nora and Ren for support. Ren unashamedly looked away while Nora gave her a shit-eating grin. Pyrrha slumped over in defeat.
"Alright then." Jaune softly clapped his hands. "Let's commence the mission and bag this damn arsonist!"
"Yes sir."
"Yes sir!"
"Yes sir..."
The responses varied from Pyrrha's professionalism to Nora's enthusiasm to Ren's quiet stoicism. In the end however, their answers were effectively the same.
And honestly, having them all call him 'Sir' made Jaune a little giddy with pride.
"If that's all, then go ahead on your tasks," Goodwitch ordered. "I will procure our lodgings for the night."
"Come on, already!"
If Jaune was to say there had been...conflict between the police and Hunters, he'd be understating things rather badly. It would be more accurate to say that the two groups hated each others' guts.
Jaune, who had been a civilian a year back, couldn't honestly say he knew why that was the case but he had a few guesses.
Simply put, Hunters were more powerful, less restricted, and much more well-liked by the public.
The police were Remnant's main law enforcement agents, tasked with keeping order throughout the land and acting under the direct control and authority of their respective superiors. The Council for Vale, the Commander-in-Chief for Atlas, the King for Mistral and whatever the fucked up Anarchist Kingdom of Vacuo had. Jaune was pretty sure there was more to it but he'd never been a history nut.
It was synonymous to unregulated freedom versus enforced obedience. Nothing good often came of that mix.
The story that Miltia had told him of a blonde Huntress who had trashed their mostly legal club and had easily gotten away with it and even walked back in without fear was a prime example.
It all boiled down to Nora's simple comment. "They just hate us 'cause we're more awesome and better."
Jaune and Nora being banned from entering their building made it rather obvious.
Police officers were often stationed in facilities not too far removed from towns and cities that were large enough.
The base was a walled-off compound, containing various different buildings. Through the large metal gate, Jaune could see some of the police officers casting various annoyed or curious glances at him and Nora from some kind of training ground area near the center of the buildings.
And speaking of Nora…
"What the hell do you mean 'You have to wait here for the captain'?! I can literally see him inside one of the buildings!"
She was busy arguing with the guards stationed outside said large metal gate.
'The expression of the man who Nora was yelling at didn't change at all from its stoic cast, just as it hadn't since we arrived at the base minutes earlier. "The captain will see you when he is ready."
He didn't know how lucky he was to have Jaune physically holding Nora's shoulder.
"He's sitting there drinking coffee!" Nora yelled. "I've locked eyes with him at least four times!"
"When he is ready."
Nora's irises flickered pink with some sparks coming off and, before she could do something that would get them arrested, Jaune pulled her away. "Nora, we can wait a bit."
Nora whirled around to face Jaune, her expression alight with fervour.
"Jaune, they're fucking with us! I can see it in his eyes!" She declared, brandishing one hand to point his index finger at the guard he'd been speaking with, who didn't even glance at the digit. "You can't expect me to just take this lying-"
Jaune just patted her head consolingly. He could see where she was coming from, though. At this point, the captain was just fucking with them.
Jaune could see the bastard in question through the gate, just exiting the building that probably served as the cafeteria based on the tables he could see in there.
He wasn't dressed all that differently from the rest of the police officers. In fact, the only real addition was the gleaming badge on his chest which probably signified his rank.
As he approached, the guards at the gate glanced over their shoulders and then saluted; in return, the captain merely nodded to them as the gate opened itself with his approach.
"It's about damn time!" Nora exclaimed, folding her arms and glaring at the captain. "D'you know how sick of waiting we were getting?!"
The captain levelled a condescending glare at Nora, sniffing haughtily. "I'm not sure what I expected when I heard Beacon Academy First Years were taking this job," He declared, "but I thought at least my lowest expectations might be met."
Jaune slammed his hand over Nora's mouth before she could say anything in response to that, cutting off the inevitable stream of curses that would have begun flowing out any moment and also restraining her hands which had started inching towards {Magnhild}.
"Excuse my teammate, she's still a bit agitated from the trip." Jaune told the captain, shooting Nora a glare out the corner of his eye. Nora growled, but didn't try to speak.
"For the sake of getting this over with, I'll overlook it." The captain grunted, "I don't want to have to deal with you Hunters and you don't want to deal with us, so let's just get this done so we can all go our separate ways."
"That's fine." Jaune acquiesced, bringing up the request from his Scroll. "We're supposed to get more details from you about where we need to be and what the hell we're dealing with."
Nodding, the captain reached into his pocket and retrieved a Scroll of his own. When he held it up, a few taps projected what seemed like a list of some kind into a rectangular screen in midair.
"Most of what's known about the assailant is already on that request." The captain told them, letting out a tired sigh. "As you already know, there were no witnesses. The death toll has been rising constantly, and nothing we've done so far has even slowed it down."
He pressed his finger to a bar near the rectangle's right-hand side and began dragging it downward, scrolling through the list. "However, there is something you should be aware of. The attacks you're responding to aren't the only ones."
Now there was something to shift Nora's anger to worry. "You mean there have been more attacks?"
The captain shook his head. "Not so much attacks or at least, certainly nothing on the scale of the disasters that spawned that request. It's more a series of crimes that have been taking place in the same region at the same time. I won't go into a lot of detail, since you're here for the perpetrator behind the villages' destruction, but we believe these other crimes are linked to them somehow."
'That would imply that there's an organisation involved in this... The attacks might actually be distractions that are meant to keep the Police busy and spread thin…' Jaune couldn't help feeling apprehensive. 'I wonder... if this was deliberately meant to draw Hunter attention...'
Depending on the exact details of the extra crimes and added to Cinder Fall's presence and plans, there could be something going on in the background which would be more devastating to Vale than even the swathe of destruction it was currently experiencing.
"Hey, before us at Beacon, has any Hunter been approached-" Before Jaune could finish the question, the captain's Scroll rang and the projected screen changed, the words within it vanishing to be replaced with the face of a man in a Police Officer's uniform…
And judging by the flaming firestorm over his shoulder, he wasn't making a routine report.
"Sir, Sumire Village is under attack!" He yelled, panic and fear both clearly audible in his voice just as horror was clear on his face. "Please, send someone! ANYONE! He's killing every-"
Jaune didn't stick around to hear the rest, as he could see the rising smoke pillar in the distance. "Nora! Call the rest of our team and Professor Goodwitch! Catch up with me afterwards!"
With the activation of {Super Hunter} nearly blowing everyone away except the gingerhead and causing a small crater from where he stood, Jaune bursted forth, easily clearing miles in seconds as he headed for the flaming village.
Reaching Sumire Village was a trivial task. All Jaune had to do was follow the billowing tower of smoke and ash that clawed its way into the heavens and blocked out the sun in a shadow that stretched for miles.
Jaune had to narrow his eyes as he drew closer with ash, dust and dozens of other particles assaulting his vision as he drew nearer to the cloud. It stung his eyes and he had to cough in an attempt to clear his lungs. But that was nothing, really.
Nothing compared to the smell.
It was tormenting to describe the odorous miasma that assaulted Jaune's nose. It was rank, pungent, digging through his nostrils and flooding his throat with a stench so sickly and foul that he could practically taste it.
Part of what made it so horrifying was the vaguely sweet edge to the aroma. A musky, horrid sweetness, but a sweetness nonetheless.
It was a scent that Jaune would soon associate with burning corpses.
He couldn't barely form a coherent thought, keeping {Super Hunter} active by instinct as he ran. But when he actually made it into the cloud, the sight that greeted Jaune was too much.
As {Super Hunter} faded away, Jaune's eyes widened as the stinging sensation and the stench took a backseat to the hell he bore witness to.
Ash blew in flurries like a dirty snowstorm, dusting everything with a layer of black and grey. Black flames made a playground of what remained of the village, dancing and cavorting as they devoured the ruins of once-proud homes. One such structure collapsed while he watched, sending up another great plume of sparks, smoke and debris, while the bonfire within finally erupted and engulfed the building's remains.
Jaune could see everything burning down...but it was in the background. Because as bad as the destruction was…
The state of the villagers was so. Much. Worse.
Things that only vaguely resembled humans were scattered throughout the hellscape. Some moving, some utterly still. Though their states of wellbeing varied, they all shared a common trait in the massive number of second and degree burns that covered them. Men, women...children... humans... faunus... all made equal by the black flames which ate away at them.
Jaune felt sick down to his soul as he looked out at Hell on Remnant.
In an effort to compose himself, he reached out with his Observation Haki which had been instinctively shut down when he felt the pained 'Voices' disappearing, which he now knew were people dying.
Among the black fire and the ruin, Jaune found his gaze drawn to a single building, still standing, apparently untouched by the blaze. From what he could tell, it looked like a large meeting hall, resembling a church with its size and steeple. But on its roof were two out-of-place protrusions that looked an awful lot like people - two very different people.
As Jaune started moving closer, his Observation Haki started to ping of a threat as his view became clearer.
One figure was a middle-aged man, dressed in a simple, striped black suit, a white shirt and red tie. His face showed all the signs of age, his dark hair streaked with grey. He was relatively tall and, all things considered, Jaune would have pegged him as the town's mayor or something similar.
That figure was being held over the edge of the building's roof by his neck. His hands were scrabbling at the single limb which held him in place, his features contorted by fear and pain, a slightly blue cast to the skin of his face.
And that limb he was scrabbling at so desperately was attached to a cackling man.
The man was pale with a brown ponytail braided to resemble a scorpion tail. His white jacket was exposed, revealing his chest to have prominent scars which crisscrossed over each other.
The man's most prominent feature was his long, scorpion tail, which flicked about wildly. His eyes were an insane yellow which shone with the kind of mad light only the truly insane could conjure.
And the magic. Jaune almost fell to his knees from the Divinity he sensed off him. 'A God?! Or a Spirit like Virgo and the others?!'
Tyrian Callows, the Fire God Slayer and Mad Hunter of Salem's Evernight Circle, laughed loudly enough to be heard from outside the ash cloud. It was a horrid, bellowing sound that seemed like it should have come from something three times his size and with twice as many teeth. Then he lowered his head from where he had thrown it back, looked around and met Jaune's eyes.
The shiver that ran down Jaune's spine almost seemed like his stare was chasing it, all the way past my body and into his soul.
"I was wondering when someone would finally show up!" He declared with a cackle, causing Jaune to recoil as he leisurely snapped the man's neck before tossing his lifeless body. It arced up for a few metres, then fell through the rest of the parabola until it crashed down into the ash and dust at Jaune's feet, leaving lifeless eyes to stare up at him. "It gets boring killing all these townspeople! They ain't even worth the effort sometimes! Hunters are way more fun!"
Jaune wanted to speak, but his mouth was beyond his control. The Knight's body in its entirety was likewise frozen in place, his brain on lockdown as two distinct ideas formed there with all the processing power it could muster.
On one hand, it was necessary to know what the mad man was looking for. What could have possibly justified all the deaths.
On the other, he was clearly a crazed, psychopathic murderer that was attacking towns and villages, killing everything and everyone in his path.
The choice that needed to be made was resolved in less than an instant.
When Jaune looked at Tyrian, he didn't even see a person.
It was just a damn scorpion.
A scorpion that needed to be stomped on. Repeatedly.
"Oooh? You look really pissed off, don't you?" Tyrian's face split into a cruel grin. "I wonder how long you'll last against-"
"Why…." Jaune hissed, cutting him off as his initial freezing horror gave way to molten rage. "What could you possibly gain from this?!"
Tyrian laughed once more, with a higher pitch this time, every note filled with malice. "Oh, that's rich! You know, loads of people ask the exact same thing. Always wanting to know the 'motive'."
Jaune's Aura rampaged, jumping across his skin and the air around me like flashing lights, casting light into the surrounding ash and turning his eyes and blond hair white for an instant. The flurries of burned and burning material around him began to blow away, creating a small updraft. The sheer nonchalance in Tyrian's voice only served to enrage Jaune further.
"Well if you really want to know...I'd have to say I'm doing it for fun!" Tyrian declared. "Ain't nothing quite like cutting loose and getting all of it out of my system. It's a real healthy way to relieve stress... don't you think?
Something snapped.
Buildings and trees snapped like toothpicks around the Knight and the Scorpion as many of the nearby attracted Grimm were crushed by the Knight's Will and the black divine flames were snuffed out by the blinding wrath that pressed against the World. The Scorpion didn't push back, but was completely unaffected.
"Oh! How adorable." Tyrian clapped his hands mockingly. "What a little Conqueror you are! You're gonna be dangerous when you grow older."
"Is this all just some sick game to you?!" Jaune demanded, drawing another cackle from Tyrian.
"Oh, I can't tell ya how many times I've heard that one before! All of you use the same lines...you're nothing but ants compared to my Goddess!"
Jaune's fingernails threatened to puncture the skin of his palms despite his gloves as his fists tightened. He opened his mouth, wanting to express at least some of the raging volcano of anger within him…
And Tyrian smirked. "Your next line is - 'You'll pay for what you've done, you bastard!'"
"You'll pay for what you've done, you bastard!"
Jaune choked on his word, not even getting a chance to realize the trick because Tyrian moved.
He shot from the roof of the building with enough force to collapse it behind him, crossing the distance between them in the time it took Jaune's mind to reboot and rearing back his fist. "DIE!"
Jaune only barely got his Hardened arms up in a guard before Tyrian's fist hit him with all the force of an out-of-control freight train, driving his arms back into his chest before the force lifted Jaune from his feet and sent him flying.
Jaune was able to perceive seconds passing before he crashed back to earth, twisting about to dig a trench with his legs as the taste of copper filled his mouth.
As he landed, he quickly ran through some thoughts. 'He mentioned a Goddess so just as Dragon Slayers got their magic from their draconic guardians, did this goddess do something similar? Well, I can ask that after I hack his limbs off!'
{Crocea Mors} was instantly out, ready for combat as {Super Hunter} rose once more.
Tyrian didn't waste any time, leaping into the air towards him. He seemed to hang there for an instant, flames as black as pitch roaring to life around his fist...before his descent began.
"[Fire God's Divine Fist!]"
As he grew closer and closer, his psychotic grin re-ignited Jaune's anger from where it had taken a backseat.
Jaune thrust out his shield, Hardening and pushing his Aura along into it, which caused it to add a shiny silver tint to the usual jet black, with the addition of flame-like decals where the Haki ended.
Tyrian's fist impacted his shield, causing an explosion of black flames at the point of eruption.
To Jaune's surprise, Tyrian was actually recoiled back, smashing into a nearby building which collapsed with a plume of dust and ash.
Jaune didn't give him a chance to recover.
"[Aura Slash]!"
The crescent blast of Aura raced forward just as the God Slayer burst forth from the cloud, black flames twisting themselves into the form of a scythe in his palm.
With a smirk, Tyrian swung his weapon, instantly burning through Jaune's attack.
A quick upwards jump gave Jaune the purchase to avoid the first wild swing with the weapon, launching him into the sky and away from the impending bisection. Correcting his position, Jaune fired another {Aura Slash} at near point blank range.
The slash slammed home in his back with no way to avoid it, and Tyrian smashed into the ground barely a second after the impact, raising another cloud of ash.
Jaune mistakenly took a moment to think, and in doing so left himself open when Tyrian's tail shot up from the ground to graze his side.
Thankfully, due to his armor, Jaune avoided damage, instead grabbing the appendage with Hardened arms to catapult the faunus away.
Jaune immediately took the chance, whipping out Virgo's Key.
"[Open, Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!]"
Virgo manifested in a swirl of magic, light and rocks as usual. Only for her to slam into Jaune instantly, decking him away from his current position.
It wasn't a moment too soon, as whips of black flame lashed where he'd been standing.
"Zancrow?!" Virgo said in shock. "No, who are you?!"
"AH!" Tyrian stopped, staring at Virgo in delight. "Not only are you a Mage, but also possess Celestial Gate Keys?! My Goddess will be so pleased."
"You've mentioned your Goddess before." Jaune replied, trying to get some info. "Who is she? Also, what's your name?"
Contrary to Jaune's belief, Tyrian only looked ecstatic to answer.
"My name is Tyrian. Tyrian Callows." He bowed with a flourish, leaving his eyes trained on Jaune in a manner that caused him to shiver. "My Goddess is the supreme entity of this world, Salem! Earlier, your Spirit asked if I was Zancrow. The answer is 'not exactly'! I am only a Fire God Slayer by Reincarnation!"
"Reincarnation?" Jaune tilted his head in confusion while Virgo frowned and clenched her fist.
"As a reward of this entertaining scuffle, I'll tell you some details of why I'm here." Tyrian put his hands behind his jacket, fumbling around which made Virgo suspicious enough to place herself between him and her Master. "I'm hunting for Celestial Gate Keys."
Jaune flinched as Tyrian's wild smile grew even wider. "So imagine my surprise when I find not just a Golden Celestial Spirit, but an active contractor! I do wonder who you're reincarnated from, but no matter. I'll be whisking you away, Hunter!"
Tyrian suddenly removed his arms, revealing that he had equipped his weapons to start shooting at them.
While Jaune blocked the bullets with his shield, Virgo surged forward, with the bullets harmlessly bouncing off her as she whipped her chains at Tyrian.
Tyrian dodged while dashing forward to grab her face. Virgo barely had time to scream before she was suddenly set alight, screaming as black divine flames burned her alive.
"Hands off her!" Tyrian released her and ducked away from the Hardened slash that would have lost him his arm.
"Virgo!" Jaune cradled the trembling maid in his left arm, glaring at the Scorpion Faunus. "What the hell did you do to her?!"
"If you're wondering about how I was able to hurt her so easily, remember that it was a God who gave birth to her, and as a Celestial Spirit, whatever part of her body isn't composed of celestial magic, is saturated in divine magic!" Tyrian's grin seemed to affect reality, the very air around him shimmering as he took on a demonic visage despite his divine magic. "Did you forget what my magic was created for?"
Jaune's eyes slowly widened in shock and fear. "No..."
"That's right, boy!" Black flames wreathed and roared about Tyrian's form. "I am the one being that Celestial Spirits can never defeat!"
"Forgive me, Master..." Virgo coughed out, her burns hurting her immensely.
"Don't ask me that, Virgo." Jaune softly replied. "Just go back and rest up, okay? I'll beat this guy regardless."
Virgo sighed as she vanished. Jaune stood up, glaring at the man.
"Come on, you're planning something in that scraggly head of your's, right?!" Tyrian taunted. "I'll even give you a freebie! As long as you don't run away, I won't attack you for a whole minute!"
Jaune blinked but didn't answer, simply bringing out a Silver Key. 'Of all three days within the month of her contract, I'm really lucky to still be in the last one!'
"[Open, Gate of the Lyre! Lyra!]"
The Spirit appeared in a flash of magic and music, only to shriek at her surroundings.
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! Jaune, where are we?!" Lyra looked around in terrified shock, noting his battered state and the hellscape surrounding them.
"Lyra, sorry to spring this on you!" Jaune yelled, never taking his eyes off Tyrian. "Let's use {Star Dress}!"
"WHAT?!" Lyra shrieked. "You may be able to accomplish that, but I'm not a combat Spirit!"
"Please, Lyra! I need you!" Jaune immediately took Lyra's hands in his, drawing her close. Lyra blushed at the intensity of his gaze while her wings fluttered rapidly. "If you're worried of being hurt, I will protect you and use your power to defeat him!"
"...If you can, go ahead." Lyra looked away, blushing immensely. This must have been what Virgo often told her about, back in the Celestial Spirit Realm. His sheer... presence. "That guy who made Virgo come back in such a state, return the favor fivefold."
"Alright, then. I was already planning to do so anyway." Jaune pressed Lyra's key to his chest.
"[Star Dress: Lyra Form!]"
A silver Glyph with Lyra's Celestial emblem appeared around him, creating a flash of light which faded way quickly.
Jaune's appearance had changed, revealing to be dressed in an armored version of Lyra's attire.
He was dressed in a blue top which had heart prints. His white armor had gained a pink tint and also thinned a bit but was still much stronger than before. The biggest change were the wings, having grown from small ornamentals to life size appendages, each long enough to match Jaune's height.
As for his weapon, {Crocea Mors} had changed into... an Axe Guitar? Oh well, he knew how to play it at least.
"And what is this supposed to be?" Tyrian asked.
Jaune smirked back as his wings quivered and glowed. "I am now your funeral dirge player."
A musical battle-cry ripped its way from Jaune's throat as he appeared in front of Tyrian in a flash. Such was the degree of speed that an actual shockwave blew past.
Tyrian didn't get to mention anything about the decidedly feminine tone Jaune's voice had taken. He was too busy dealing with the glowing Axe Guitar that had just implanted itself against his Hardened forearms.
He didn't even flinch away from the attack though. Instead he laughed loudly, the sound more of a howl than an expression of mirth.
Grabbing the wrist and forearm attached to the weapon that had just struck him, Tyrian yelled "That's more like it!" before beginning to spin.
The Knight of the Lyre was dragged along with the motion until the God Slayer let him go, flinging him into the air with a world class hammer throw. Tyrian tracked his opponent with his face, opening his mouth and taking a deep breath.
"[Fire God's Bellow!]"
Jaune spread his wings, which Tyrian had forgotten about, easily flying around the attack. He notched the Axe Guitar and started playing after activating {Super Hunter}.
If one wanted a description of how loud Jaune's musical attack had been, it would be best to assume that every Rock music lover in the world would have bowed in worship.
The music that slammed into Tyrian were at least above decibel level 250 pushing out shockwaves that ripped through the air with the speed of a caffeine chugging Ruby Rose, the power of a recently thunderbolt struck Nora Valkyrie, and the widespread effect of a hurricane.
The result was the attack breaking down every still unbroken glass and ceramic, completely clearing away the perpetual smoke pillar rising up and sending Tyrian flying as he screamed while clutching his ears.
Lyra nodded her head in approval, completely unaffected by the attack. "Incredible, even though I'm a Support type at most, he's actually doing well! The fact that he's a great guitarist is a good bonus!"
"Lyra!" Jaune yelled down at the Spirit who flinched. "Support me with your music!"
Lyra nodded as she readied her harp while Jaune flew in close, towards the pissed off faunus while moving in a dancing manner. As Lyra's music played, Jaune started to glow slightly as his offensive capabilities got multiplied.
"[Melodic Hack!]"
Jaune swung at Tyrian, who nearly buckled from the force of the slash attack. He managed to deflect the attack but was still injured from it despite his defense, bleeding from a slight cut on his neck.
Jaune didn't let up in the slightest. In tune with Lyra's music, Jaune hacked away at Tyrian with the Axe Guitar, using his wings to their full potential by swiftly dodging his retaliatory flaming swipes.
"Ah. I'm truly blessed." Tyrian muttered as he observed Jaune's form while staying on the defensive. "I never thought Silver Gate Spirits could be utilized in such manner. It is so regretful that you do not follow the glory of my Mistress."
Tyrian smirked as his hands vanished behind the black inferno that erupted in his palms, taking on a roughly spherical shape as it began to grow rapidly against his chest.
"Regret all you want till you die!" Jaune soared upwards, before descending for an immense slash.
"[MELODIC CHOP!]
"[FIRE GOD'S KAGUTSUCHI!]"
The resultant attack slammed into Lyre with just the shockwave, disrupting her music and sending her flying as celestial music crashed against divine flames.
As Lyra rose up to watch, she gasped as she witnessed her Contractor locked in a Magic clash against the God Slayer.
The two groaned as they brought in all their Aura, Haki and Mana for this final clash, gravity itself being ripped apart as they stayed suspended in their positions. Something finally broke as an explosion ripped through the area.
Lyra gasped as the smoke faded away to reveal Jaune being choked as he was suspended by his neck. The Spirit Dress had faded, leaving Jaune in his Hunter attire as he feebly stabbed at Tyrian's chest, too weakened to do anymore against his Hardened chest as his own Haki was exhausted.
"Good! Good! Good!" Tyrian praised despite the blood dribbling down his lips. "You still have some fight in you, huh?!"
Tyrian suddenly raised his free arm to block as Lyra smashed her harp into it. In the opening, she grabbed Jaune off his arm and made to fly off. Without having Tyrian occupied with something else, it was a huge mistake.
A pain-filled scream ripped out of Lyra's throat as Tyrian's blades stabbed her back and penetrated through to her chest.
With an apologetic look to Jaune's horrified expression, Lyra was tossed over Tyrian's shoulder with her body disappearing before she even hit the ground.
Jaune felt the pin-pricking pain of tears in his eyes before growling and shoving himself up to face the scorpion bastard, ready to really give his all into killing him.
But Tyrian looked elsewhere. Jaune's eyes widened as he discovered his target.
"NO!" Jaune rushed forward but Tyrian was faster. He leapt far quicker and higher that Jaune could have reached, creating a mass of black flames between his outstretched hands.
"[Secret God Slayer Art: Prometheus!]"
Jaune's yell was drowned out as a massive beam of black flames was shot, blazing towards Nightblue with enough speed and heat to tear up trees from it's shockwave and set them ablaze just from it's proximity.
Despite the distance, the explosion it caused on impact was gargantuan, darkening the sky for a minute. It was worsened by Tyrian's wild cackling.
Jaune nearly fell to his knees from despair as his tears poured out. His team, his teacher and all the innocent residents, including those asshole Police officers behind that huge glowing purple Glyph were all dea- wait a minute.
Jaune choked out a laughing sob as the flames cleared away to reveal a gigantic purple Glyph, which had protected the town from horrible fiery death. Tyrian didn't share his view. "What?!"
"That is my badass teacher/Deputy Headmistress." Jaune boasted, wiping his face free of tears and ash. "Now I can focus on killin-"
Jaune didn't get farther before Tyrian's yellow eyes took a glowing purple hue.
Jaune didn't dodge fast enough to dodge the glowing punch that landed in his gut. The shock of his Aura suddenly disappearing left him open to the mad Hunter as he shot holes into Jaune's legs.
Jaune fell back, screaming in pain from his bleeding legs. In his haste to defend, he Hardened his sword and swung, Emitting a slash which Tyrian blocked and diverted.
"Come on, now." Tyrian snarled. "You'll be coming with me."
"If you think I'm gonna go anywhere with a bastard like you, you're way more insane than I thought!" Jaune roared from his position. "Go ahead and bring it on, Callows!"
*CRACKABOOM*
A glowing purple missile tore through the sky and struck the ground between them, causing the Scorpion Faunus to retreat from the spreading crack on the ground as ash flew up from the earth.
"Consider it brought, Mr Arc."
Jaune and Tyrian's heads snapped up, sighting the glowing form of Goodwitch.
She slowly powered down, giving Tyrian a cold look as she walked over to her student and kneeled down to observe his form.
"P-Professor..." He had tears running down his cheeks, was covered in ash, heavily bruised and was profusely bleeding from the gunshot wounds in his legs. "W-W-Where's my team?"
"They are still in Nightblue. Due to the Grimm being attracted to the panic of Sumire's destruction, they were needed to protect the townspeople."
Jaune gasped as Goodwitch suddenly hugged him. "I don't know how you did it, but thank you for not dying. Thank you, Jaune."
Jaune blushed as the woman clutched him softly, her sheer relief at his survival dwarfing all of her professionalism. "Um, okay Glynda."
"And you came here alone to assist your student, Witch?" Callows called.
"No." Goodwitch composed herself and stood, releasing Jaune to face Tyrian. "I came here to save my student, Scorpion. You won't be killing another of mine."
The Scorpion buckled, losing his grin as the Witch domineered over him, her Spell spreading her control everywhere around her. It uplifted the Knight and pulled down on the Scorpion, nearly forcing him to his knees.
The crack in the ground gave away, revealing a cave system beneath after all. What was not expected was for the ground underneath Jaune to break away as well, sending him several meters downwards.
After sliding down a sloping wall, he called out, "I'm okay!' upwards.
As Jaune looked around to get an idea of his location, he gasped as his eyes landed on something he was totally shocked to find.
He was currently in a large cavern, with the hole from where he fell several meters up. But all that didn't matter as much as what he laid his eyes on.
Upon a floating pink cloud of all things, was a Celestial Golden Key.
Glynda sighed in relief as Jaune's 'Voice' didn't waver from his fall, his actual voice signalling his survival reassured her enough to face Tyrian.
"I remember you now..." Tyrian taunted, drawing back Glynda's attention. "You're a bit older, but you're that girl who went ballistic after I... encountered your dear teammates. How are the days treating you recently, former leader of Team GOLD?"
Glynda summoned every ounce of willpower to rein in her rage. She breathed slowly before smiling at him. With the afternoon sun shining down in a way that made her glasses opaque, she presented the image of one utterly pissed off Witch with immense sadistic tendencies.
"Tyrian." The honey in Glynda's voice could have drowned bees. "You seem to be forgetting three important things. First, you are an agent of Salem, meaning I have full reason to kill or capture you on sight. Second, you've advertised yourself as a serial arsonist, meaning that no one is going to bat an eye if I move straight for lethal attacks and make it as bloody as possible. Third and most of all, you tried to kill one of Beacon's students, earning all of my unrestrained wrath."
"What a coincidence." Tyrian grinned as he clenched and unclenched his fingers. "Every single one of those reasons have granted you the justification to kill me right here and now."
The Witch of Beacon simply tilted her head and smiled wider. "Yes. What a coincidence."
The God Slayer only had time to blink before every single thing within a six mile radius of the Witch such as trees, boulders, the very ground itself... rose up to kill him.
KingVessel: My personal belief on why they put Glynda Goodwitch far far away from Season 4 onwards... was just so that she didn't break the story.