Notice:

There will be no updates from 13th – 19th June inclusive of both days. I'm away at an expo and stuck going out with clients pretty much every night. Going to be exhausted, overworked and drunk or hungover whenever I'm not. I'll be back 20th June to write as normal.


Cover Art: Curbizzle

Chapter 28


Something is wrong in the city, Knight thought. It was obvious from the sounds far behind him, and the lack of light. The reason for it eluded him, but then so much did in this wildly futuristic world where lanterns and burning torches had been replaced with dust-fuelled filament, and where magic was apparently a thing of the past. It was all so difficult to grasp and all so out of place.

This, though. This, he understood. Knight took a deep breath of the crisp evening air as he looked out over the plains outside Vale, at the horde of black and white creatures before him with their glowing red eyes. Such an army lay between him and their master that it reminded him of Salem's invasion of Vale in his world. She had been far worse of course, launching flesh-eating worm creatures into the city and blowing the walls apart with her power. Salem had taken her time in making them suffer for her own amusement.

This, her son, was more direct. Knight appreciated that.

Drawing his sword, he stabbed it down into the ground and threw back his cloak. He knelt, touching one hand to the grass and closed his eyes briefly. His power spread out, singing underground in search of metal. He found plenty. Then again, this city was more metal than stone and wood. Much of it was likely important in one way or another. He'd have to apologise later for usurping it. Pipes and metal wiring inches thick snapped and coiled underground - turned cherry red and slag hot, then rushed up through soil to burst out and wrap around him. Burning hot, it would have melted the flesh from anyone, himself included, if not for his Passive protecting him. He could suffer no harm from the heat of his own forge. So amusing to think, years ago, that he'd dismissed such a Passive as mere convenience and nothing more.

Concentrating, he shaped the metal as he might have with hammer and forge, pushing and moulding it down, stretching out links and tying molten threads like string, then cooling them rapidly. Hardening, tempering, all happening in real time and without a forge. Within a minute, no more than sixty seconds, he stood again, resplendent in gleaming plate armour that covered him from foot to neck. More leaked up over his head, encasing his hair and face before hardening to silver steel. Only then, encased, did he pick up his sword once more and swing it.

Ozpin had feared of an audience to their fight but the walls were barren but for a few defenders. They would tell stories of this, he was sure, and those stories would be difficult for Ozpin and Ironwood to suppress. As long as they and everyone at Beacon were alive to suppress them, however, he would consider his work done.

Over a million Grimm for me, Jaune thought with no small amusement. I should be flattered.

They weren't attacking, though.

"I am Jaune Arc." Knight bellowed. "King of Vale and its peoples." Not this Vale, but still, he'd had this driven into his head by Ellayne, and he wasn't about to upset her by ignoring it now. "Will you parlay with me, Grimm?"

To his surprise, the horde parted down the middle to expose the man he had so nearly slain before. Grimm looked healthy again, which was more than could likely be said for Ashari. His pasty white skin and red eyes looked dull. For a moment, Knight thought him broken, but then he saw the way the man's shoulders hung and the Beowolf that was supporting him by taking much of his weight, and realised he was exhausted. Summoning this much Grimm must have taken a lot out of him. Blood as well as energy. If I reach him, he won't be able to fight at all.

Even so, he didn't charge. A parlay had been called and answered. He would not be the one to break it.

"A good evening to you, Grimm." Knight said politely. "I am Jaune Arc, King of Vale."

The man-monster smiled. "And I am Jaune Arc, King of the Grimmlands."

Oh. A fellow monarch? It didn't mean much, what with Knight's own ascension to the crown being something random and almost more elected than anything. He'd been chosen because he and Ruby had killed Salem, and because with Ozpin, the King and the Royal family dead, the people wanted someone to look up to. Honestly, he hadn't understood why they had. They could have made a committee or a council, but they needed a hero in that dark hour, and he and Ruby had been thrown into it. He wondered if Grimm was the same, or if his royalty wasn't more of the family lineage sort.

"I ask you as a fellow ruler if there is no way we might avoid this." Knight said. "If you and I might not work our differences out without risk to the people of Vale."

"There is no risk to them." Grimm rasped tiredly. "I will not attack them."

"You didn't answer my question."

The monster smiled. "You could kill yourself and save me the trouble?"

"Hardly fair."

"What if I offered to die with you?"

Was he serious? Knight opened his mouth to deny it, only to see the defeated look on Grimm's face. He'd seen that before on others in his time. Cinder for one. His Cinder, not this cruel mockery he saw in this world. A woman forced into a betrayal she did not want, forced into a war she hated and then forced to fight and die against someone she held no ill-will towards. He had mourned her death all the more for the fact he'd been the one to kill her.

Grimm wore the same defeated and worn expression she had.

"You plan to die tonight. Don't you, Grimm?"

"Tell me, King of Vale. Is your Kingdom peaceful? Do the people live good lives?"

"I like to think so." Knight replied. "It was difficult at first, what with Vale having nearly fallen to the Grimm, but that was years ago. Everyone is happier now, still grieving in a sense, but hopeful for the future." He pondered the purpose of the question for a moment and then asked back, "And yours, oh King of the Grimmlands? Is your Kingdom peaceful?"

The man smiled. "It is. The Grimmlands has made peace with Atlas and Vale, with Vacuo and Mistral, and has close bonds with the island of Menagerie and the faunus there. The first human settlers have come and are building a town at the base of my mother's tower. There is a festival held each year to commemorate the God of Darkness. Thousands come to drink and be merry."

That was not what Knight had expected if he were being honest. A different Salem, he reminded himself, and thus a different world. If Salem were his enemy, and an enemy of the people in this world, then it stood to reason that there must be some worlds out there where she was not. Crocea Mors dipped slightly until her tip touched the floor.

"Why do we fight, King of the Grimmlands? Why must we do battle and die to one another?"

"It's because neither of us has a choice." Grimm replied sadly. "The Gods brought us here and they set this war. We're pieces on the board, and what right does the knight have to question why he has been ordered to take the rook? What right does a pawn have to beg they not be sacrificed for a greater piece?"

"We have our own free will."

"We have our own worlds as well." Grimm sighed and pushed off the Beowolf supporting him. "I swore to love and support her. I won't go back on that now. To do so would be to prove her right. We're enemies. That's all we can ever be."

"I do not hate you, Grimm."

"I don't hate you." Grimm replied easily. Casually. "You're just a me from another world. In another place, another time, I'd have loved to be your friend."

Knight felt the weight settle in his stomach. "I truly believe we could have been that. To a good battle then, King of the Grimm." Knight saluted his weapon high in the air. "Let us show the people of Vale what true battle is."

"Yes." The lines of Grimm closed in around his fellow ruler. "Let us."

/-/

Beacon was in uproar.

The whole city of Vale was in uproar most likely, but it was hard to acknowledge the city with the power down across all of Vale. How had that been accomplished anyway? It wasn't like Vale had one dust-fuelled plant that powered the entire city. Of course it didn't. Vale had hundreds of suppliers, some six larger than others, but the rest still capable, and taking them all out at once would have taken a concerted attack on every single one of them at once or an ecological disaster. Ruby suspected the first, and she was pretty sure everyone else did as well.

"Your orders are to stay in Beacon and stay safe!" Miss Goodwitch told them hurriedly. The rest of the students were running around Beacon to positions, unsure why they were being told to take a perimeter of the school but listening all the same. Beacon still had power thankfully, but the backup generators had to focus on essential systems. The CCT ought to have been one of them, but it, too, had gone down for some reason.

Some reason being foul play. Obviously.

"This is almost certainly an attack on Beacon," the teacher said. "Ridding the city of power is disruptive but won't win them the war, whereas cutting us off from all reinforcements might. Trust no one. Look after yourselves. I will have to see to the other students."

"What about Knight!?" Ruby asked.

"He's already left to fight Grimm, Miss Rose."

"But this attack-"

"Will be only the prelude to an invasion of Grimm if he does not accept the challenge." Ruby knew she was right, just as she knew Knight would go out like the hero he was. Like mom. Her eyes watered as she realised he might not come back. "The city cannot defend itself against such an army without any power. Trust Knight. Do your part and stay alive no matter what comes."

Miss Goodwitch was off before they could say anything else. It hurt to be left behind, to be told to stay behind and do nothing while everyone else fought. Ruby wanted so badly to rush in and help, but she knew that one wrong move on her part would get Knight killed, cost them the war and doom all of Remnant. The right thing to do was stay safe. Ruby hated it.

"No power will mean no one recording the battle between Knight and Grimm." Weiss said. "I wonder if that's an intentional decision on the part of whomever did this. It does well to hide the truth of the Gods' war. Don't you think?"

"It does," Blake agreed, "but I don't see what anyone other than us would have to gain from it. Salem's side won't care if the war gets revealed, and Ozpin isn't going to cut his own power supply to do this."

"He looked as shocked as anyone else." Ruby agreed. While she could see Weiss' point, she'd bet her liver Ozpin and Ironwood had no knowledge of this. "I think it's a coincidence. Beacon on safety mode means it'll be easier for Cinder and her lot to sneak in. The cameras in the Emerald Forest will be down along with the outer security systems."

"Do you think Team JNPR are safe?" Yang asked.

Probably. Ruby doubted they'd let them go fight while keeping her safe. Fate might not be the most willing of participants, but he was still on their side and was therefore invaluable. Revolutionary, too, which explained why he was sat in the corner looking confused and worried. Ruby felt bad for him. He'd come into this war, immediately been tortured and imprisoned, and even now looked like he was suffering from it. He kept away from them and would often be heard muttering to himself. Ruby hoped he wasn't losing it.

Ruby hoped for a lot of things – not least of all Knight's safe return.

/-/

The sword cleaved through four Grimm in one swing and kept going. It cut a semi-circle, slaying every Grimm it touched until Knight caught the hilt and brough it to a stop. The momentum carried him forward and he was used to moving with it – used to Blake and Ruby protecting his back as he did, but these Grimm couldn't reach him anyway. Before they could react, he darted forward and past the still-falling Grimm he'd slain, where he completed a half spin and a two-handed slice that carved through twelve more.

His blood sang. His heart raced.

A laugh bubbled forth that would have gotten him in trouble in the royal court. It wasn't anything his friends hadn't heard before, often when they snuck off to take on Quests like the good old days. To risk their lives, save people, have fun and just experience the uncertainty of life and death. Even before he came here, it had been three months since the last. Ruby had been itching. He had been downright desperate. This could not have come at a better time.

Laughing in the face of their howls and roars, he dashed into them, carving his way through like a flaming brand through a block of butter. The Grimm here were weaker than back home. Like the locals, they lacked Levels and Stats, having instead a set degree of resilience as depicted by this world's biology. It was strange to him, alien, but it certainly was fun. He could grow, had grown, while they were forever stagnant. In all honesty, his Guild could wipe this entire world free of Grimm in the space of a few years if they'd all come here. That was how great the difference was. Great enough that he could catch the claw of an Ursa with his free hand, tear the thing's arm off with a violent twist and then swing said limb so hard it exploded on the face of another, sending it flying back with half its head caved in.

How many had he slain now?

One thousand? Ten thousand? Fifteen-?

It was impossible to tell and there were so many more. Hundreds of thousands remaining. An impossible battle even for him – he simply couldn't swing his sword that many times. Had this been his world, with consequences for his people and the end of his life, he might have despaired. But it was not. If and when he died here, he would go home. He wouldn't even remember this. Faced with that certain fate, win or lose, what point was there in fear? What use was there for worry? Knight – no, Jaune Arc – laughed at the top of his lungs and swung his arm upward. Metal pipes that lay beneath the ground burst up like spears, shattering bone and piercing flesh. They then spilled out water, a stark sign of the sudden plumbing issues the city was liable to have. Really, though, they shouldn't leave so much metal under the surface and within reach.

A great tusk struck his back, denting his armour painfully and pushing it into his kidneys. He grunted and turned, slammed his gauntleted free hand down on the Boarbatusk's head and grimaced when, instead of being pushed flat, his hand caved trough its skill and into brain matter. Lovely. He pulled his hand up, body attached to it and all, and tossed the thing into the press. His sword lashed out, separated two heads from the shoulders of two Grimm, and then cut a diving Nevermore in half before it could hit him.

"You will have to do better, King of the Grimm!" he shouted. "This is child's play!"

The Grimm roared as if in answer and piled onto him harder than before. The press of bodies became so much that it would have crushed a normal human. Those that touched him died, but more climbed on, piling high until they were a mountain of dying and soon-to-die Grimm throwing their lives away. The mountain shifted slightly, vibrated, and then a great metal pipe rose up like a snake with Knight upon it, kneeling with one hand touching it as it burned bright red. The pipe, made malleable by the heat, splashed down onto the assembled Grimm, crushing a hundred at least and burning hundreds more to death.

Marching forward, he waved his free hand and brought more, forming it in his mind to create walls that rose like a second set of battlements. They rose and rose until the metal that supported them was spent, at which point they fell. They fell forward, crushing more Grimm and shattering the ranks before him. The horde roared and he roared back, matching their charge with one of his own – except faster.

How funny it was to think that he was now alarmingly fast by the standards of these people, when in his world he was teased for being so sluggishly slow. He blitzed through a hundred Grimm in a matter of seconds. A feat that would have been impossible in his world. The difference between his poor Dexterity and their Agility would have given them the edge in dodging no matter what he tried. He'd ever been more suited for larger, slower Grimm, leaving the speedy ones for Blake and Ruby to run circles around. There was a reason he hated sparring with them, and it wasn't because he didn't want to hurt them. It was because they could make him feel and look stupid if they wanted to. Damn speedsters.

"The boot is on the other foot now!" he taunted, darting between grasping limbs and devastating slashes with ease. "Is this how it feels for Ruby? It's incredible. I've never felt so alive."

Of course, unlike Ruby, he could also take most of these hits without having to worry for his life. Knight stopped, skidded and sliced with all the speed he'd built up, not only slaughtering every Grimm within ten feet of him, but also by sheer force of Strength tearing a great furrow through mud and rock that opened like a shallow chasm ahead for fifteen metres. He had to wonder if even the world itself was somehow weaker, or less resilient to Stats, as he would have struggled to do that in his.

He felt like a God here – and some might have liked that. For him, however, it was lonely. Strange. He had to measure every move he took, hold back even on picking something up in case he broke it into a million pieces. It was worse being around people who he could, through no intention, kill with a gentle slap on the back. It made him feel less like a god among mortals and more like a Beowolf among children. One wrong move would mean tragedy.

Still, and despite all that, all he could see was Grimm for miles. Hundreds of thousands of them remained, swarming him like an ocean of thick tar. Here, he could be himself. Let loose. Indulge. Perhaps even die.

"Let's find out." Knight twirled his sword and pointed it at the oncoming horde. "Come. Face me."

/-/

Emerald wasn't sure what to make of Cinder's sudden decision to attack Beacon. On the one hand she understood that the blackout across the city, almost certainly caused by Headmaster and Xiong, was an opportunity that couldn't be ignored. She also knew that Knight would be busy, and that they wouldn't get a better opportunity. That didn't change the fact that Ashari was still struggling with only one arm, that Adam didn't have his iteration, and that they'd essentially be attacking Beacon and all their own with just Null and themselves to show for it.

It reeked of desperation.

Emerald didn't dare say it.

Ashari held no such thoughts. "This is a poor plan, Cinder. They outnumber us."

"They will outnumber us regardless," she spat, pushing quickly through the Emerald Forest toward the academy building beginning to rise above the trees ahead of them. Beacon looked dark, the lights still on inside, but only through windows and corridors. The spotlights and decorations outside that would have illuminated it were lost. "Headmaster and Xiong are attacking now. We'll use the confusion they cause to sneak in. Ozpin's numbers won't mean a thing if they are stretched thin defending from two angles at once. We are also better than any other Anchors."

That was true, Emerald supposed, and she felt a small bit of confidence in Cinder return. They'd taken down the Fall Maiden, almost bested her but for Qrow Branwen, and person for person they were stronger than any first-year Beacon student. They didn't necessarily have to pit Ashari and Null against their counterparts if they didn't want to.

Ruby Rose, Pyrrha Nikos, General Ironwood and Nicholas Arc. Those were the anchors they had to find. Of those, Ironwood and Nicholas would be the harder of the two – both huntsmen in their primes. Pyrrha Nikos might also be a challenge, but Emerald was sure Cinder could take her, and she could use her Semblance to escape Nikos if she had to. Technically speaking, the numbers weren't so far against them. It would be Magnis, Warchief, Fate and Revolutionary against them. Assuming Headmaster and Xiong kept two busy, that made it even odds, and if Adam fought his own iteration then win or lose, Revolutionary would be dealt with.

"Do not underestimate the teams." Ashari said quietly. "They may be young, but their teamwork and determination us unmatched."

"I'm sure that friendship will carry them far." Cinder said mockingly.

Emerald would have normally laughed at that, but Ashari gave her a look – a look that would have made her feel small and embarrassed if she had. Quietly, she nodded, and he appeared satisfied. It wouldn't hurt to be cautious, and it wasn't like she was as strong as Cinder. If he thought she should be careful, she would be careful.

"What is the plan?" Adam asked. "Do we stick together or split up?"

"The White Fang will cause chaos as best they can." Cinder said. Emerald wondered how the angry faunus didn't bite back at his people being thrown away like that, but Adam simply nodded. "You will come with us, and we shall strike deeper. Our targets should be Team RWBY. Grimm may not be able to kill Knight and we cannot have him coming back to slaughter us. If your champion is there, you may deal with him how you wish."

"He dies." Adam said. "For his betrayal."

Rather than argue for the safekeeping of another champion on their side, Cinder simply nodded her head. "Then kill him but do it quickly. Once we've dealt with them I want to find the Fall Maiden and finish her. Using her power will give us an edge over some of the less combat-focused champions like Warchief and Xiong. Ozpin isn't likely to be defending the maiden when he has the this war to worry about."

"What if we see Headmaster or Xiong?"

Cinder's teeth clenched tight. "Leave them," she hissed, and Emerald could tell how much it pained her to say that. "For now, it's best they face against Ozpin. If we get ourselves stuck fighting them, we only exacerbate the problem of being outnumbered. Ignore them for now. After…" Cinder snarled. "After things are under control, however… leave Headmaster to me. I want the pleasure of killing him myself."

/-/

Warchief flicked between the few working cameras with a groan. Most of them were down, those that remained more inside the school than outside. Worse, Ironwood wanted him giving out orders to the soldiers again, which was ridiculous! Damn Ren and his stupid book – how had it brainwashed another world into believing that he knew what he was doing? He swore he was going to kick his friend's ass when he got back.

"Ace-Ops move to the main hall." Warchief said. "Clover, keep an eye out for anyone approaching the central elevator."

"On it, Warchief."

"Do we have eyes outside the school? Cameras are down."

"Sniper Team One is positioned on the west wing third floor balcony," someone replied. "I can see the Emerald Forest's western edge and the stretch between it and the main building."

"Perfect. Keep me updated if you see anything moving there."

"Yes sir."

The bad guys would have to come from the forest if they wanted to reach the school. That or by Bullhead, but surely – surely – they wouldn't be that stupid. The Atlesian battleships outside were still in the air, too afraid now to support Knight with the events unfolding in the city. General Ironwood wanted them kept back. Warchief felt for the guy fighting alone against a million Grimm, he really did, but there wasn't much he could do about that now.

"Winter reporting. I'm at the generators. No contacts. Requesting orders."

"Okay." He'd thought whoever was behind this might try and finish off the power. "Leave some people there and you go back to the main floors. Go guard Team RWBY if you need something to do. They'll likely be targets. Is there any news on Team JNPR?"

"Secured in the cafeteria," a soldier answered. "We're waiting on Goodwitch to lead them back to the main school building."

"Alright. Keep them there for now. Don't take any risks. Airships, this is central control. Sound in?"

"Vanguard sounding in."

"Indomitable sounding in."

"Victory sounding in."

Warchief waited. The silence was deafening. "Bulwark, sound in. This is central control. Bulwark, do you copy?" The feed was static and little else. Warchief swore. This was the same method Fate's notes had warned them about. "Vanguard, Indomitable and Victory. Be advised that Bulwark is not responding. Suspected to be under attack or under enemy control. Move to engage and board – shut down its weapons as soon as possible."

"Understood."

"On our way."

"Yes sir."

They'd deal with it hopefully. According to the intelligence, the attack on Beacon normally involved the airships being taken over to take control of the Knight Units – Atlas' automated robots. That hadn't happened in his world, but apparently it was a common enough theme in other ones to worry about. Ironwood had already refused to bring the robots based on that, so it wouldn't be much of a problem. The problem now was all the weapons the Bulwark had, which might be turned on the school if it really had been taken over.

"Warchief to Ironwood."

"Ironwood here. What is it?"

"The Bulwark isn't responding and is suspected to be under enemy control." He heard the General curse over the line. "I've sent the others to board and deal with it, but you should be careful on the ground. It could turn weapons on you."

"Understood. We'll take cover pre-emptively. Keep me updated on any changes. Ironwood out."

"Will do. Warchief out."

Things were under control. They knew what usually happened, had all of Atlas ready and no robots this time for Cinder to take over. By all accounts, things were going well despite the army of Grimm outside the city walls and power out across the entirety of Vale. We can do this, he told himself. We have numbers on our side, and they have to attack us. It's just like defending the auditorium again, except this time we have the heavy hitters like Pyrrha on our team. No problem.

The door behind him swished open. Warchief turned to look at one of the Atlesian guards Ironwood had left him. "What's wrong? Is Winter back-"

The soldier gurgled and fell forward, dropped first to his knees and then slammed face down to the floor. The man behind him, who wore his own face, stared back at the startled commander. Outside, the other soldier lay on the floor, unconscious or dead.

"You-" Warchief gasped. "Why!?"

"Only one winner has their wish granted."

"You said you didn't want to fight!"

"I don't." Fate replied calmly. "I want to win."

The gun came up, and Warchief found himself staring down the barrel.

"There's a difference."


I remember back at the start when some people were claiming it made no sense for Fate to take the attitude of not wanting to fight when there was a wish on offer that could solve all his problems. Those same people said it was so stupid he just wanted to sit out and sleep with random people.

Yeah, obviously. I'm pleased to say most people figured out Fate was sandbagging on purpose to let everyone pay more attention to the "flashy" versions with the crazy powers, while he plotted his own path to victory. There's a reason he's been as much of an asshole to his friends as possible. It's harder to turn on people you care for after all. It'd be really hard to kill Ruby to get rid of Knight, or Ren to get rid of Hunter, if you see them as your best friends, teammates and even former lovers.


Next Chapter: 4th June

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