Beta read by TheManThatWalksTheAbyss115.
Something I forgot to mention in the last chapter was Ylfur and Rapax's weapons and armor. There's a site called ForFashion that has an archive of pretty much all weapons and armor in For Honor, and it's really easy to navigate through. So I'll state the name of their gear and you can go check out the equipment in full detail.
Ylfur (Warlord) - The Ylfur armor (hence the name) and All Father weapons.
Rapax (Centurion) - The Creta armor and the Eye of Chiron weapon.
I'd post links, but FFN doesn't like that, so you'll have to find them yourselves, unfortunately.
One last thing is I rewrote the last chapter fairly heavily, so if you haven't seen it, I'd recommend it, otherwise this chapter won't make any sense to you.
Summer's eyes slowly opened as she regained consciousness. There was a sharp pain in her flank, making her wince and roll on her opposite side, relieving the pressure. She felt the wet grass and dirt beneath her, as well as what she could only describe as a big dog breathing on her. She turned her head to the side to see what it was.
Only for her eyes to shoot open as the visage of a Beowolf met her.
She cried out and made to stand, but the pain in her side was too much. She fell back before reaching for her weapon at her hip, only to find nothing. She was getting more and more desperate until he heard a whistle from behind the Alpha Grimm.
"Accedo!" She heard a man call out, and to her astonishment, the beast backed off and calmly trodded over to the speaker. He was a warrior in ornate armor befitting a field general, a shortsword with an ornate handle at his hip, the blade hidden in a sheathe. He patted the beast on the neck as if it were a horse and not a bloodthirsty monster before pointing to a spot by the edge of the small camp they were in and giving it an order in a language she didn't understand.
To her further confusion, it obeyed without resistance, sitting down in the indicated spot and keeping watch. The man turned his attention to her, revealing his helmet had a faceplate in the form of a scowling bearded man. It was forged with great detail, indicating either this man was very wealthy to commission such armor, or he'd taken it from one who was.
"Y-you can control the Grimm?" She asked, still shaken up from a second near-death experience.
"Is that what you people call these creatures?" He asked, adding further confusion. "If so, yes, I can command the Dire Wolves, or whatever you people call them. Unfortunately, the Great Bears and Blood Crows are not as receptive." He said this casually as he drew his shortsword, the blade also revealed as ornate, along with a whetstone before kneeling and beginning to run the stone along the sword's blade.
"That's a powerful Semblance." How has Ozpin never heard of this guy? He would've been invaluable to their war against Salem.
"Semblance? You use words I do not recognize. This is a gift from whatever higher power chose to bring me to this place to perform an unknown task." She was only becoming more and more confused the longer she was speaking with him. "It does not matter." After quickly inspecting his blade, he sheathed it and tucked away his whetstone before standing and walking over to her. He grabbed her arm and hefted her to her feet, the wound in her side flaring up intensely.
"Agh!" She cried out, nearly falling over once again when he let go and forced her to stand on her own.
"Your wound is nonlethal, do not complain." He ordered. Savior or not, he was proving to be a bit of a dick. "What is your name?"
"Summer." She forced out through clenched teeth as she held her side. "Summer Rose."
"I am Rapax. Where is the nearest town or city?"
"Hold on." She reached into her pocket for her Scroll, but when she felt it, she could immediately tell the metal device had been crushed beyond use. Pulling it out and seeing the crumpled hunk of metal only confirmed what she knew.
"And what is that supposed to be?" Rapax asked, a twinge of agitation in his tone.
"This was my Scroll. Now it looks like I'll have to climb a tree." She sighed, a hand on her face. Rapax scoffed at her.
"A scroll? You think me a fool? What scroll is forged of steel?" He said almost accusingly. Just where the hell was this guy from that he'd never even heard of a Scroll or Grimm? She initially thought he was just a hermit that had lived so far from any kind of civilization, he'd even avoided the dark monsters. But two things killed that theory.
First was his extremely high-quality shortsword and armor. He didn't look like a blacksmith, so he would've had to commission this from a very accomplished forger. The gold inlays, the shape of the faceplate that almost perfectly matched that of a human face, and that's not even mentioning the ornate blade.
And second, was his extreme skill as a warrior. She hadn't seen anything yet, but he had managed to fight off her attacker. Tyrian Callows was a very skilled fighter and a madman that had nearly killed her. Yet here she was, still alive. Either Rapax had found her after Tyrian had left, which was unlikely as the scorpion Faunus would've absolutely finished her off while she was on the ground. Or Rapax had fought him off and looked no worse for it.
That scared her a bit. On the one hand, it meant her protector would be able to handle most threats to them. On the other, if he decided to turn on her for any reason, he would likely slay her with ease. Fortunately, it seemed he wished to return her to safety, probably for a reward, so she'd just have to go along with him for a bit longer.
"Never mind. Let's just go." There was frustration in her voice, but Rapax showed no reaction to it.
Since all that made up the camp was the extinguished fire, Rapax mounted his Beowolf. Summer hesitated momentarily, but eventually pulled herself up, though not without extreme pain from her side wound. Rapax, of course, did nothing to help. Once she was firmly in place, he grabbed the fur on the Beowolf's back.
"Proficiscor." He ordered, and the beast began bounding forward at great speed. As they traveled, she kept an eye out for either a tree or hill tall enough she could use to find Beacon. Unfortunately, the Emerald Forest was very flat, meaning neither was in much abundance.
"So, Rapax, where are you from?" Summer asked, trying to make small talk.
"That is none of your concern." His answer was short and curt. She huffed in annoyance.
"If we're gonna be traveling together, we should know more about each other." She reasoned, but Rapax was having none of it.
"We are not companions. I rescued you from a madman and will deliver you to the nearest village. Once I have received my reward, we will not see each other again." What was the matter with this guy? He seemed to regard her with suspicion, as if she would turn on him at any moment, though she wasn't sure why. He may have rescued her from death, but he was proving to be an asshole who seemed to have only helped her for a reward. She couldn't wait until they separated.
Being on the Beowolf's back for an entire day was giving her wound hell, so she was glad to be off soon. Night had begun to fall by the time they'd finally found a suitable hill to look out from. They reached the peak and disembarked, but the darkness made it difficult to see very far. Fortunately, she could make out the lights and outline of Beacon in the distance, indicating they'd been moving in the right direction.
"Is that a fortress?" Rapax said, his voice lacking that signature aggravation.
"That's Beacon Academy."
"That is a simple school?" He crossed his arms as he continued eyeing it. "That place could house entire garrisons, perhaps even an army. I must get a closer look come morning." He gave the Beowolf an order, and it began circling the camp, keeping an eye out for potential threats. Since the ground had thoroughly dried and the air was reasonably warm, Rapax didn't see the need to build a fire, as the moon provided enough light for him. Strangely, the Summer woman stumbled around a bit, complaining about it "being too dark." He could see just fine, so he told her to stop whining and sleep.
Despite his Beowolf being on guard, he decided to stay up and remain on watch as well. A beast of that size was a good deterrent for most bandits, but he didn't feel comfortable leaving his safety in the hands (paws?) of a glorified animal.
He removed his helmet and looked it over, examining it for any new dents or scratches. Luckily, despite the intensity of the previous battle with the madman, the invisible shield had prevented any damage from being done to his armor. He looked into the empty eyes of the helmet, the visage a permanent reminder of his failures. But as he wiped some dirt from under the left eye, he thought he saw something in the reflection. He paused and looked at it, his eyes widening.
He looked back into the night sky, only to drop his helmet in shock when a shattered moon met his eyes. He stumbled back, almost falling until he righted himself. For the first time in his life since he was but a child, Rapax was left utterly speechless.
"Quemadmodum?" He muttered. How was this possible? The moon was broken in the sky, as a dropped dinner plate smashed against the ground. This was impossible. Was this even Heathmoor? Then he had a thought.
His eyes moved to the sleeping woman nearby, seemingly unaware of what was happening. But Rapax knew better, or so he thought. His shocked expression morphed into a scowl of rage as he stalked toward her, drawing his gladius and donning his helmet, even as he ignored a small part of him saying what he was considering was foolish.
"Immundus lamia." He snarled. Back home, he would have called himself mad for what he was thinking. But these lands had proven to be anything but ordinary. Demonic beasts, men with scorpion tails, invisible shields protecting the body. This land was saturated in magic, and this witch must have cast some sort of illusion spell on him, intending to drive him mad with a broken moon. Perhaps that was what she'd done to the scorpion man before, and he was simply seeking vengeance. That did not matter.
He would slay her for this, ridding the world of an abomination, and lifting the veil from his mind.
Summer awoke to the feeling of being watched. She rolled onto her back and looked up, jumping at the sight of Rapax looming over her. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she was about to ask him what was wrong when she saw the look in his eyes. They were glowing faintly in the dark, his pupils slit like a snake's, locked squarely on her. So he was a Faunus, yet seemed to know nothing about Remnant? She was confused, but that didn't matter right now. All that mattered was the gleaming blade in his hand, gripped in a tight fist.
"Rapax?" She asked nervously. His response came when his empty hand suddenly shot at her, gripping her by the neck and hoisting her up off her feet and to eye level. He squeezed, partially cutting off her air supply and making her choke.
"Foul witch!" He shouted in rage. "Did you truly think I would not notice so blatant an illusion?!" He pointed his sword at the pale moon, hanging high in the sky.
"W-what are you t-talking about?!" She choked out as her hands gripped his forearm. He brought his blade dangerously close to her neck, the cold steel glinting in the moonlight.
"Meretrix meretricis, your lies will not dissuade me!" This guy was insane, and Summer needed to escape. Her Scroll was destroyed, and her weapon had been left behind when Rapax had rescued her earlier. As if that weren't bad enough, she was still weakened significantly by her wound, meaning her Aura was far from at full strength. Her only hope was to run.
She reared back her leg before shooting it forward with some Aura to enhance the blow. She hit him square between the legs, where there was no armor to protect him. He shouted in pain and released her, allowing her the chance to run. Her legs carried her a fast as they could, her side burning in protest, though the adrenaline did much to help. She hated feeling so helpless like this, but there was little she could do wounded and weaponless.
She had made it down to the base of the hill when she heard Rapax finally recover. It doesn't matter how tough you think you are, a hard kick to the balls will put any man out of commission. But the same couldn't be said for his pet.
"Desino illa femina!" She heard him shout in rage from the top of the hill. Her eyes widened as she listened to a howl not far away, and just before she could reach the treeline, the Grimm rammed into her from behind, her Aura just barely holding. She cried out as she tumbled across the dirt, the Grimm's snarls just behind her. Summer looked up and saw it getting ready to pounce, and she could've sworn there was smoke coming out of its jaw. Desperate, she used her last option. Her Semblance.
Summer's body exploded in a burst of rose petals, stunning the Beowolf and leaving her only as a floating ball of swirling petals about the size of a bowling ball. With her pursuer momentarily distracted, she fled quickly fled into the dark forest, leaving a faint trail she hoped wouldn't prove to be her undoing.
Rapax reached the bottom of the hill just in time to watch the witch escape in a cloud of pink petals. He scoffed as it confirmed his suspicions of her practicing witchcraft. His Beowolf swiped away the floating petals, smoke and embers pouring from its maw. That interested him, but his rage demanded he seek Summer out and make her pay.
"Quaero quero Rose." He ordered the great hound, and it immediately bound off into the forest in search of its prey. He watched as it bounded off into the woods, everything seeming perfectly lit despite the time of night. Another curiosity he would look into at another time. He huffed before rubbing his crotch, the pain still making him wince.
"Nice kick." He muttered before taking off after his pet.
X
Ylfur lopped the head off another Bone Bear, its body disintegrating soon after. He had done nothing but slay these creatures for the past day, yet he felt no fatigue. With every kill, it was as if he grew stronger, fiercer, more bloodthirsty. He continued marching through the forest, searching for more of these Bone monsters. He wondered how many forms they came in.
So far, he'd slain Wolves, Bears, and even Ravens. All pitch black with varying levels of bony armor, eyes red as blood. He'd figured out long ago he was no longer in Miðgarðr; the shattered moon was a significant enough indicator of that. Perhaps this was a realm meant to serve as a final test for those whose deaths were not honorable enough for Odin's Hall? It was widely known that, were you an accomplished enough warrior, you would still be accepted into Valhöll should you die a dishonorable death. And perhaps this was to ensure your entrance was still glorious, gifting the warrior souls with extraordinary powers and setting them against a realm filled with vicious beasts with the task of reaching the great fortress.
It was his best theory, as he'd not yet seen any other warriors. Until he heard something coming through the foliage straight for him. He readied his sword and shield, preparing for a battle, but was very surprised to see a woman stumble through the bushes, holding her side and looking like she'd been running for her life. She was looking back at whatever had been chasing her but froze upon turning her head and seeing him.
He must've looked intimidating, covered in glowing runes, his eyes alight with shining blue seiðr. But her fear switched targets as a howl, loud and close, rang out. She looked back at him, and while she didn't say anything, her exhaustion and the pain in her side making it difficult to even speak, he saw the pleading in her eyes.
"Get behind me," Ylfur said, getting in a combat stance. No sooner had she done so than a High Bone Wolf came crashing at him. It lunged, but he'd seen this a good few times. He held up his shield, his sword aimed from just around the side, so as the creature impacted, his sword was to drive itself directly into its heart. Unfortunately, he missed and hit the bone armoring, deflecting his blade. He still flipped the creature over him with ease, making the woman dive out of the way.
Before he could finish the Bone Wolf, he heard rapid footsteps behind him, turning around just in time to see a man he never thought he'd see again.
"Incredibilis!" The Centurion shouted as he made to punch Ylfur in the face. But Ylfur was ready this time. He dropped his sword and grabbed the Knight's fist, halting it mere inches away.
"You again," Ylfur growled. Before the Centurion could respond, he reared his head back and slammed it into his own. The force of the blow sent him flying back into a tree, nearly breaking it in half. One of the boons of his gift was superhuman strength, the likes of which he'd never seen before, at least while the runes were active. He'd been given the strength of Thor in a far more literal sense than any Norseman had ever hoped. He popped his neck loudly before grinning, taking up his sword, and advancing on the Centurion.
"This time, I'll finish what I started." However, he was reminded of the Beowol's presence when it suddenly pounced on him from behind, clawing and biting into his back. He threw it over his shoulder and plunged his blade into its heart as it was down, slaying it and leaving the Centurion to fight alone.
Rapax removed himself from the tree, only to witness the slaying of his Beowolf. He growled in frustration but did not charge in to fight. The witch must have enchanted the Viking to protect her, and she had chosen wisely. The force behind that single blow would have taken his head off had it not been for his protection. But all he had to do was slay the witch, and perhaps the enchantment would break.
He drew his pugio as Ylfur wrenched his blade from the Beowolf's carcass. Holding it by the edge, he threw at Summer, hitting her in the gut. It broke her already weak Aura, embedding itself to the hilt in her flesh. She cried out and fell back to the forest floor, her hands around her new wound as it poured out blood.
Ylfur was suddenly upon him, his sword poised to strike. He raised his arm to block it with his gauntlet, but the force nearly sent him off his feet. He returned the blow with one of his own, landing a hard stab on his chest. It didn't pierce his Aura, but it did damage it. They exchanged blow after blow, neither one backing down but neither doing significant damage. Ylfur blocked nearly every strike, while Rapax used his superior agility to dodge and weave.
But before long, a strange sound interrupted their duel, one that seemed to relieve Summer. It was a whining, mechanical noise coming from close by. Before they could continue their fight, a large metal machine unexpectedly flew overhead, shocking them both.
"Odin's spear," Ylfur said as he watched it land in the clearing. The side opened, a ramp quickly extending to the ground, allowing men in strange armor to disembark. They held strange weapons that resembled short, intricate staffs, but they probably had some other use judging by their make.
When a group of them immediately split off and went to Summer's aid, Ylfur grinned while Rapax snarled. The Viking turned back to his opponent with his arms held wide, blatantly taunting him.
"What will you do now, man of iron?!" He shouted. As the men surrounded them, weapons trained on Rapax, the Centurion realized he would likely not get out of this alive.
"Stand down, or we will open fire!" One of them shouted. He wasn't sure what he meant by "open fire," but he doubted he would like it.
"If I were you, I'd listen to him." Another voice rang out. A new man, who looked to be the leader, walked towards them with a large weapon drawn. It was a mechanical scythe, one that looked more than capable of slaying man or beast.
Seeing he was now outnumbered and outmatched, Rapax considered his actions. He was not afraid to die, but he did not want his death to be a vain one. Growling in rage, he threw his gladius down, embedding it into the dirt. He would be captured, but he would have his revenge for this.
One of the soldiers ran up behind him and tried to force him to his knees, but he held firm. When he stayed upright, the soldier forwent that and just grabbed his hands before putting them in handcuffs. The gauntlets made it awkward, but the cuffs held. The men brought him and Summer back to the flying machine as Ylfur and the man stayed behind.
"Thanks for saving her," Qrow said as he collapsed Harbinger and clipped it to his lower back. Ylfur laughed heartily as he sheathed his sword and put his shield on his back.
"I have no idea what is happening or who any of you are, but you couldn't have chosen a better time to fly in with…" he pointed at the Bullhead, "whatever the fuck that thing is." Qrow looked at the jolly warrior with confusion. Summer and the man had entered the area of Ozpin's cameras a while before they reached that hill. The man who attacked Summer acted like he wasn't from Remnant or had never seen the moon before. This man was acting the same kind of way, but at least he wasn't going crazy. He chuckled at his expression.
"I know that look. You probably think me mad, and I don't blame you." He turned and began making his way to the Bullhead. "Come! Take me to your Jarl, I have much to explain!" Qrow gave him another confused look before walking after him.
"The hell is a Jarl?"
X
When they arrived back at Beacon, Ylfur was taken to Ozin's office while Rapax, whose name he learned from Summer since he refused to speak, was stripped of his weapons and armor before being escorted by armed guards to the holding cells beneath the school. Luckily the wounds Summer had sustained, both from Tyrian and Rapax, were non-life-threatening. While she still had to go directly to the infirmary for a thorough examination, the field medics were confident she'd be fine.
"This place is a lot bigger up close," Ylfur said as they moved through the halls. His Semblance, though the large man called it his Gift, had seemed to simmer down on their way back, much to Ylfur's disappointment. "You said this was a school, right?"
"Academy." Qrow corrected.
"Same thing. Anyway, if this is a school, sorry, Academy, then how big are your fortresses?" He asked.
"Not any bigger, if that's what you're wondering."
"What?!" He shouted incredulously. "If we could build stuff like this where I come from, our bastions would cover entire islands. Seems like wasted opportunity here."
They reached the elevator and entered, and it was here that Qrow was grateful for how spacious it was. Though had hadn't said anything, Ylfur smelled almost foul, like he hadn't showered in months. Though, judging by his barbaric armor, that might be a regular occurrence. He even had some sort of animal pelt draped over his left shoulder. He wasn't looking forward to being stuck in here with the large man, who took up a quarter of the space.
"The longer I'm here, the more strange things I see. This definitely isn't Midgard, though the broken moon was a big enough sign of that." Qrow couldn't wait for whatever explanation Ylfur had in store for them.
When they reached the top, Ozpin was watching the security cameras, observing Rapax's transfer to the cells beneath Beacon. He had shown little resistance after being captured, though there had been a few threats when they took his sword. They were rather creative. He looked up from the screen as he took a sip of his cup of coffee.
"Ah, there you are." He said with a smile. "I suppose I have you to thank for Summer's rescue."
"Já, that would be me." He sat down in one of the chairs, ignoring its cries of protest. He removed his helmet and placed it on the desk, revealing his face.
His hair and beard were grey with streaks of white. That, combined with his slightly wrinkled face, showed he was an older warrior, likely in his fifties. He looked around the office with small wonder at all the moving clockwork parts before chuckling and sighing.
"Old Hallvard would've given much to see this place." He sounded sentimental, but that wasn't what he was here for.
"You've been acting quite strange since we found you, and there's no mention of you in the Huntsman records. You said you had an explanation for your behavior?" Ozpin got to the point.
"That I do. I doubt you'll believe me, but I don't care, so here goes." He cleared his throat. "I am Ylfur, Warlord of the Warborn. And I'm not from this realm, whatever you call it."
"Remnant," Ozpin answered, his eyes squinting in suspicion. Ylfur just chuckled.
"That because of the moon?" When neither responded, he scoffed in mock offense and crossed his arms. "Fine, don't laugh."
"You claim to not be from Remnant?" Ozpin asked for clarification.
"I hail from Midgard, not Remnant. Your moon looks like it served as a Vargr's chew toy, while ours is whole."
"Can you prove this?" At this, Ylfur shrugged.
"I don't know how you'd want me to. I can't exactly take you back home and show you around, now, can I?"
"And what of the man who attacked Summer, Rapax? We heard through the cameras I have set up throughout the forest, and you spoke as if you two had met before." Ylfur furrowed his brow.
"Camera? What's a camera? That some sort of magical listening thing?" At this point, he wouldn't be surprised if these Remnant people had such devices. They were very advanced from what he'd seen, even more so than the Iron Legion. Though, considering this was a different realm, that wasn't much of a surprise.
"They can hear, but they also see and send what they see and hear to me," Ozpin explained briefly.
"Must be useful for keeping an eye on such a big place. Anyway, Rapax. Before I was sent here by whichever of the Gods, me and my warriors were laying siege to a fortress being used by the Iron Legion, the group he hails from."
"And who's this Iron Legion?" Qrow asked. Ylfur snorted.
"Greedy conquerors with hearts and minds as cold as their steel armor. Rapax is what's called a Centurion, a Knight in charge of leading foot soldiers into battle. They're not originally from the Legion, but that's another story."
"And what is your role among the Warborn, as you called your group." Ozpin's curiosity was being piqued.
"Warlords have a similar role to Centurions. We lead our warriors to glory, but the difference is Centurions command their troops with an iron fist, whereas we are respected guardians, sworn to protect our people, and it is because of this they turn to us for leadership." Ozpin nodded in understanding as Ylfur continued.
"Anyway, we fought each other at a ballista nest near the end of the siege. We went flying when some daufi sent a catapult shot right into the tower. We survived at first but were then crushed by a falling chunk of wall." He shivered as he remembered. "I can still recall the feeling of my bones and flesh being squashed to meaty paste. Not something I'd like to relive any time soon."
"So he was your enemy?"
"We were trying to kill each other, weren't we?" Ylfur answered sarcastically.
"Me and my allies will have to speak about this. In the meantime, I assume you have nowhere to go in terms of housing or work?" Ozpin began his offer, but Ylfur looked at him with a bit of suspicion.
"I thought that was obvious. Where're you going with this?" Ozpin expected this kind of suspicion.
"Nothing right now. I'm simply offering you temporary lodgings on the Academy grounds until I have spoken with my allies in private." Ozpin assured him. Ylfur didn't trust this man much, as he'd only just met him, but he didn't have many options, so he slowly nodded.
"Alright, I'll bite. Where are these lodgings?" Ozpin smiled at the, if somewhat reluctant, agreement.
"It is currently summer break, so there are few students still on campus. As such, we have many empty rooms you could use for now. Since you seem unfamiliar with technology, I will have my assistant, Glynda Goodwitch, help you get settled in." Ylfur nodded again and, sensing the meeting was about to end, he made to stand.
"Thank you for your time, Mr. Ylfur. Glynda will be waiting in the lobby at the bottom of the elevator for you."
"Just call me Ylfur. Never was one for formalities." The man said as he picked up his helmet, tucked it under his arm, and entered the elevator. But before he could do anything else, Qrow got his attention by clearing his throat.
"You said you're from another world, but you're pretty relaxed about all this new tech." He pointed out, but Ylfur shrugged in response.
"It's a different realm, so I'm not that surprised things are different here. After all, the Gods are capable of far more fantastical things." After this brief exchange, he stared at the control panel for a moment before pressing a button, the doors beginning to close. "I hope that was the right one." He muttered before they shut fully.
X
Beneath the school, Rapax sat on the bed of his small, dark cell. It was far more comfortable than what those in Heathmoor had to offer, but it was a prison cell nonetheless. The room was sparse, containing only a bed attached to the wall and a device the guards called a toilet. He hadn't taken long to figure out how to use it, and it was better than a bucket in the corner. A sink was built into the top with a mirror just overhead.
He sat in contemplation, his eyes shining in the darkness. He had seen himself in the mirror, how his eyes had changed to those of a reptile's. It let him see easier in the dark, a powerful boon if used correctly. So even though his cell had very little light, he could still see almost perfectly.
He'd heard nothing about Summer since his capture, though that wasn't surprising. But even as he was separated from the witch, his captors said the moon was truly shattered for all to see and had been that way for all of time. He did not believe them at first, he thought them her thralls, but the genuine confusion on their faces made little sense. Just to add to it, this would have been a lot of effort just to break the mind of one man. And the more he thought about it, the more he realized just how foolish he was.
He'd attacked an innocent woman on suspicion of witchcraft, nearly slaying her in his madness. And he likely would have succeeded if that savage Viking had not shown himself. He had conflicting feelings about the Warlord. They were sworn enemies, but if he had not been there, Rapax would most certainly have killed Summer in cold blood.
He had attempted to murder her, and for that, he brought shame to his family and fellow Centurions. He was seen as heartless by many, including those under his charge. In reality, he was simply a very practical, some would say paranoid, man and would not do something others saw as evil simply for the thrill of it. He had gravely wronged Summer, a wrong he needed to right if he wanted to get out of this dungeon in one piece.
He was brought out of his musings when the door opened, exposing him to light. He looked up at the guard in question, a look of disgust plastered on his face.
"Up. The Headmaster wants to see you."
Sorry this took so long to come out, stuff happens. Anyway, onto the reviews.
LazyMan5503: Thanks, I will.
Urtoryu: I wouldn't really compare this to my other works, mainly because a good number of them were written before I really started caring about the quality of my work. Also, this one I've preplanned for the most part, whereas the others I just kind of made things up as I went. Still, glad you're sticking around.
TheManThatWalksTheAbyss115: Truly.
Fearless leader Bart: Some might say moderately pleasant.
Rook435: I had a lot of fun integrating some of the Centurion executions from the game into the final moments of the fight. Even though I'm with the Viking faction, he's still one of my favorite characters. I'm also glad you liked the brutality of the fights, as that's what I was going for. Unlike the main cast of RWBY, these guys won't hesitate to kill their enemies, what with having been effectively raised in war.
Hunter95: Everyone has their preferred chapter lengths. Still, glad you enjoyed it.
djpj7652: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Anyway, that's all I have to say here. I started a little on chapter 3, so expect that at some point.
Skål!