I have COVID. Again.

Our accountant at work caught it from her husband and she took time off Tuesday to self-isolate after she tested positive, and I started feeling pretty bad Thursday afternoon and worse on Friday. Terrible headache, aching muscles and just overall "meh" feeling. Tested positive this morning. Damn it all. Still, it's not half as bad as it was the first time I caught it, when I really felt just utterly wrecked. Immune system a little tougher thanks to the vaccine and my having fought it off before. Going to write anyway. It'll hopefully keep me distracted.


Cover Art: Curbizzle

Chapter 33


Magnis slumped down against the wall bleeding from a dozen wounds. His aura was still at half, but the clever use of Null's Semblance meant every shot from him and every stab from Adam found its way through regardless. His sword clattered down at his side as he slid down the wall, blood caking his lower jaw and teeth stained red.

"I'd have probably died if this was a one on one fight." Null acknowledged. "You really earned your title of huntsman. Makes me wonder if I could have were things different."

"Enough of this." Adam hissed. He whipped his sword forward to let the tip tickle Magnis' cheek just below his eye. "The human dies as he should, helpless and unable to protect himself."

"Those that make light of their enemies are destined to die to them."

Adam turned to Null with a snarl. "You think he will kill me."

"Not me." Magnis managed a weak smile. "But one of me might." He looked to Null with his last breath and said, "Don't let our father die."

The man might not have seen the nod, but Null gave it anyway, turning away as Adam ran the already dead man through just to be sure. It felt like the Adam here was different. Both had attacked Beacon, but this Adam was angrier and bitter, far more focused on Blake than even he had been after she abandoned him in Vale and left him to the wolves. The fight had taken a lot out of him despite his Semblance, and he wasn't certain how many more like it he could handle.

The team of his counterpart in this world had fled. Good for them. Null couldn't claim to know or have any sentiment for people he'd never met, but he could see a losing battle when as well as the next person, and they had too many people here. He and Ashari were a fearsome duo. Add in Adam, Cinder and Emerald with her Semblance and it only got worse. A first-year team really didn't have any place fighting them.

Ashari and Emerald had come back to help Cinder handle Nicholas, and the man – proud and powerful as he was – couldn't stand against that many people. Null knew that first-hand, having watched his own father be beaten and gunned down by Chivalric Arms. Even the greatest of huntsmen could die given enough enemies.

Watching it now from the other side was a raw and agonising experience deep down in his bones, and he hissed sharply when Nicholas was disarmed and fell to one knee. Cinder, sensing victory, surged in with a summoned sword, only for it to be sent pinging away by another that met it halfway. Ashari stood before their downed father, his single sword arm angled toward Cinder and his face set hard as stone. "Enough. His champion is dead, and he is defeated. There's no need to continue this."

"Ashari!" Cinder hissed. "How many times do you intend to cross me? He is still a huntsman – he can still be a threat!"

"He is our father." Null interrupted her before she could get too into it. He knew she'd lash out at Ashari, perhaps order Emerald to turn him aside, and he wasn't about to have it in this case. "I'm of the same decision as Ashari here, Cinder. I won't sit by and let him be killed."

Cinder looked back to him, still angry, but a little muted. It seemed she felt less rage at him than Ashari, but then this was his first time truly disobeying her. They'd otherwise always had the same goals and a relatively strong alliance. Her eyes seemed to ask what he would do if she pushed and killed the man, to which Null idly raised the barrel of his gun to his own temple and raised a single eyebrow. The threat was clear. Desist or he would remove her from this war one way or the other.

Cinder dismissed her weapon and sniffed. "Very well. Knock him out, Ashari. I assume you can do so gently."

Nicholas looked furious and yet there was so little he could do, exhausted as he was, and Emerald and Ashari worked to remove him from the war peacefully. Null looked away and to Cinder, lowered his gun and nodded. "Thank you."

"We are in this together." Cinder came close and whispered. "We still are, correct?"

Doubts. Null supposed she had good reason to with Headmaster and Roman's betrayal, and now so close to her final goal. It was odd to see her so uncertain but then the Cinder in his world hadn't had to worry about divine intervention or more unknown and dangerous people than you could shake a stick at.

"I am committed," he said. "I will do almost anything for that wish. The almost covers killing my own family. He's the only one here," he added with a nod to Nicholas. "You don't have to worry about me flaking out."

"What of the ties you hold to the students here?"

"Blake is the only one I was ever close to and she betrayed me. I briefly met Rose, Xiao-Long and Schnee, but they didn't leave good impressions on me. They hold some responsibility for killing my mother."

"You can kill them, then?"

"I can." He wouldn't enjoy it but he could. "And I will if needs be. Knight still isn't back as far as we can tell. Maybe Grimm actually managed to beat him."

"It would be a miracle if he did. We can't assume it." She looked to Ashari, Adam and Emerald. "We push on. I wouldn't put it past those that fled to come back with reinforcements. Our target remains the same. Once I have the maiden's power, I'll be on a level comparable to the strongest of Ozpin's champions."

However many of those were left now. This wasn't just their attack but Headmaster's as well – they were simply taking advantage of the chaos. Walking into his trap, Null privately thought, but there was little he could do but walk along with them. He was only good when he could get up close and personal with his enemies, and whatever Headmaster may have said and what Cinder may have thought, he'd always known that each and every other champion was someone he would have to kill eventually.

"Adam is going to be a problem," he told her. "He's unreliable."

"He's useful."

"I didn't say we should ditch him. Only that, useful or not, he's going to be a problem." Null eyed the man distastefully. Adam was drying his sword after withdrawing it from Magnis' chest. He was using the man's own shirt, such disregard for the dead irritating Null more than he cared to admit. "If he sees Blake, he's going to ignore everything to fight her and she's not even an Anchor."

Cinder hummed. "What do you suggest?"

"Team RWBY and JNPR will come for us. They'll come this way. I say we leave him here."

"To his death?" Cinder asked more with curiosity than any remorse. "You don't think he can hold eight people off, do you?"

"No. He can delay them, though. And when he dies, Revolutionary goes with him. That's one less champion to deal with."

"He was supposed to be on our side."

"Adam ruined that. He won't fight for us now no matter what wish is offered." Null sneered back at the masked man. "I say we make him stay and clean up his mistake. Tell him Blake is coming," he said. "He'll hear that and nothing else."

Cinder tapped her arm for a few seconds and watched Adam. Then, with a quick nod, she left and approached him to put Null's plan into place. It would almost certainly get Adam killed, but even if it bought them ten minutes that would be enough to get Cinder the maiden's power. It wasn't that he particularly feared Teams RWBY and JNPR – he didn't with Cinder and Ashari here – but eight people was still far too many to deal with easily. They might even split up leaving several to deal with Adam and the rest to follow, further reducing their fighting power.

"It looks like Hunter is back." Ashari said. "He shot some smoke arrow at me and helped the team escape."

"He's no threat." Null said. "An arrow against aura. Really. He's not even a huntsman."

"Makes it all the braver for him to come back, doesn't it?"

Ashari smiled. The man was ridiculous, always acting so pleased when other champions did things. Null didn't doubt the man wanted the wish from winning, but it felt as though he didn't take it quite as seriously. He was more interested in seeing alternate versions of himself.

"You let them go." Null accused.

The one-armed man didn't deny it. "What if I did?"

"They'll come back. All you've done is ensure we have to face them again. You could have broken some legs and crippled them, then they'd have to retreat and stay away. You can be kind without being soft." Null let out a tired sigh. "Keep that in mind or you'll be just another casualty."

Ashari chuckled. "Maybe I want them to come back."

Maybe he did. Null wouldn't claim to understand the man.

Cinder returned with a coy smile. "Adam has agreed to stay behind and deal with any pursuers. He has a score to settle with some of them personally. We move on. The maiden awaits, and then we bring this war to a close."

/-/

Magnis had fallen. It was a shame he couldn't take Null down with him, but there wasn't much that could be expected of him fighting on his own against so many people. Fate slipped his scroll away, sighed and stood at a window to look outside. The battle out there was going about as expected, with the White Fang well and truly being annihilated. A couple of Grimm had been drawn by the chaos, but they weren't doing much to help. Atlas would wrap this up soon but would flounder trying to reach Ironwood before entering the school. He estimated he had twenty to forty minutes left, which ought to be time enough.

"I should expect my cover to be blown by now. About time really. They should have noticed sooner." It was a little disappointing Pyrrha hadn't, but she'd bought into his horn dog routine with the dogged determination of someone who didn't want to deal with him. Only Yang had truly come close to figuring him out. "That's Warchief, Agent and Magnis dealt with. That leaves Null, Ashari, Revolutionary, Hunter, Headmaster and Xiong. And potentially still Knight if he survived against Grimm."

Of those, Knight was the most worrying but also the least pressing. The problem now was that Cinder's forces had two and Headmaster and Xiong's motives were unclear. He'd roundly managed to cull Ozpin's forces, but any more culling and he'd have little chance winning. The various sides needed to be kept even, which was much harder than it sounded.

Warchief really had to be the first to go. The man's ability to act as a force multiplier by coordinating the defence was too risky. Agent had been less intentional, more luck really, but Magnis was a good one to have out the way. The most experienced huntsman would obviously be the one to sacrifice his life to let Team JNPR escape. He'd predicted that one almost perfectly.

Now what? I really need Cinder to lose one of hers first. Null or Ashari. Neither will be easy.

Null was the most immediately dangerous, but Ashari was no slouch. He had Magnis' skills and experience, but a far more cautious mind. The loss of an arm would hopefully do enough to slow him down. Who to send against him, though? He'd been able to lead Team JNPR and Magnis around by the nose, but no longer, and Headmaster and Xiong were enigmas. He didn't have any grasp on them.

/-/

"I'm less than convinced." Ozpin said.

Headmaster Arc smiled. "Oh?"

"You claim to want the best for your students and yet you've orchestrated the very worst," he challenged. "I have been doing my best to look out for these young men and women, to limit their involvement in this war, and you've brought it straight to Beacon. If not for your actions, this would still be under control."

"You mean to say that Cinder and hers would be in Vale choosing the shots and you would be left reacting. Not exactly under control is it, Oz?"

"We had the advantage of Ironwood's forces."

"You still do. For all that it's being used so poorly. But let's not be silly. Fate would have continued to pluck at your allies and Cinder would have claimed one or two more. You're too reactive. You're used to facing Salem and doing your best to keep her contained. Not beaten but contained. I don't fault you there – Salem isn't a matter so easily dealt with – but this is different. You can't win a war by sitting back and letting your enemies pick and choose their battles. And even if you could, all you're teaching your students is to rely on you and follow your orders. Hardly growth, is it?"

"And what have you offered them, Mr Arc?"

"A chance to make their own decisions, face their demons and act in a manner of their choosing. They are masters of their own destiny now."

"You've left them bereft of leadership and advice!" Ozpin snapped, surging to his feet. "They will make mistakes!"

"If there's one thing I learned in my time as a teacher it's that you learn more from mistakes than you do victories." Headmaster motioned again for Ozpin to sit. He did not. "Struggle is an integral part of human life and development. If you are just going to move them around like chess pieces, they'll never learn to stop being pawns."

That was a sentiment Ozpin might have accepted in any other situation. It was something he tried to teach. This was not any other situation, however. The fate of Remnant depended on this arbitrary contest from the Brother Gods, and he didn't have the liberty of trusting his students – well-meaning as they were – to make the right decisions. Not when so much rested on the outcome.

"You and I have very different teaching styles, Mr Arc."

"That's inevitable, isn't it? The thing is, yours doesn't much matter now. What's done is done. They will learn to adapt and lead and make the decisions themselves, or they will stay back and wait for you and be safe that way."

"What is your stake in this? What wish do you want?"

"Me?" Headmaster Arc smiled. "Wishes are for the young."

"You don't look a day over thirty."

"Ah, but I feel old when I spend all my time around teenagers. I don't have wishes, Ozpin, I have ambitions – and ambitions can be worked toward. I don't need divine intervention for that, and I wouldn't accept their brand of it if they offered. That's another thing." He leaned in. "You're playing their game. Why?"

"Their-?" Ozpin frowned. "The Gods? I don't have much of a choice. None of us do. You've seen their power. Summoning you here along with the others, laying down the rules. If Salem wins, everyone will die. We have no choice."

"There's always a choice."

"Oh, don't give me that!" he snapped. "Yes, there's a choice but do nothing is one that just leads to her victory. The only reasonable choice is to fight."

"I agree."

Ozpin felt his scowl grow. "Then why argue it?"

"Because you're not fighting, Ozpin. You're giving in."

"I'm wasting time talking to you is what I'm doing." He moved around the desk, cane clicking on the tiles. "You're right about that. Stop me or do not – but I won't waste time talking when my students are in danger."

Headmaster Arc leaned back over the chair. "Fighting their battles for them won't help them develop. You wouldn't walk into class and do their exams for them."

"I am not interested in philosophy."

A chair scraped back. "Then I'm afraid I'll have to stop you."

Ozpin twisted and lashed out with his cane in a fencer's stance, striking up for the man's temple. Another cane – his own from another world – blocked it, gripped not as he would, but further down like a stave. It was a mere inch from the man's head and trembled as they fought against one another. Headmaster smiled. "You know, I never did get the chance to fight against you. We were always on the same side."

"Then let this be a learning experience!" Ozpin snarled.

He whipped his cane back and thrust, feinting the first and second stab and driving the third into Arc's stomach. He stumbled back, recovered and cracked his cane into Ozpin's, dancing back with fancy footwork that he hobbled to keep up with. Headmaster was spry, young and fit to Ozpin's age, but the experience lay with him. Of course it did – he had thousands of years of it. He pushed forward, cane pirouetting and feinting toward Arc's throat, then dipping low and around to strike his cheek from the left. Ozpin ducked the counterattack and swung with both hands to knock the man back and into his desk.

Headmaster sat on it, rolled back dodging the strike that cracked the wood and rolled off the end to land – almost comedically – sitting in Ozpin's own seat. "Oof. You're as overpowering as I imagined. And surprisingly aggressive for such an old man. Now, about what I was saying-"

Ozpin stormed his way around the desk with one hand on the woodwork to balance himself. "I told you I have no interest in talking!"

"We can talk while we fight."

His answer was a green bolt of energy that punched through the headrest of the chair. Headmaster Arc had ducked, and slid off now, twisting and pushing the chair at him to keep him away. Ozpin blasted it away with an explosion of green light. To anyone, he called it his Semblance, but the reality was pure magic. The essence of the God of Darkness that so many had forgotten. His own was weaker after creating the maidens, a terrible error in hindsight, but it was still enough to grant him the edge.

The man was sent scurrying as Ozpin sent a beam of it splashing against the wall. He adjusted his aim to drag it across and chase the man around the room, at least until Arc realised how this was going to go and charged back in. Cutting it off at the last second, Ozpin adjusted his grip to parry the first blow, then slipped his weapon over the top to stab at the man's throat. The blonde caught it with his free hand just below the tip.

"Learned helplessness is a thing," he panted. "Pitting Jaune against Jaune, playing the game the Gods want, only reinforces the concept that they can't achieve anything themselves."

The words brought a flash of anger and Ozpin responded despite his earlier claims. "Your powers are far beyond the pale for what they can handle!"

"We're all of us mortal no matter our odd skillsets. They should be able to fight us on equal grounds. Maybe not Knight," he admitted, "but they don't have to deal with him when he's on your side. The rest of us should have been easy pickings."

Ozpin yanked his cane out the man's grip and swung it for his head. They clashed again, the constant strike of cane on cane echoing through the room. Headmaster gave ground, forcing Ozpin to chase him on his bad leg. Aura flashed and splintered as he scored hit after hit, pushing through the younger man's clumsy guard. Even so, he never drew his sword. Ozpin didn't care to wonder why.

"Even someone like Null faced problems from Team RWBY in his world!" he went on, ducking and desperately fighting back. "How is it the RWBY of this world can't even think of challenging him? It's because the Gods told them it would be Jaune on Jaune, and you've reinforced the idea – intentional or otherwise."

"He could kill them!"

"Grimm could kill them. A training accident could kill them!" He slapped Ozpin's blow aside and tried one of his own, cringing as Ozpin caught it on his arm, slid into his guard and snapped the head of his cane up into the man's chin. He staggered back rubbing his jaw. "Four huntresses-in-training with strong teamwork shouldn't have any problem against someone who hasn't seen a day of training. All he has is his Semblance. That's it. Even Ashari, for all that he made them look the fool, is just a man good at what he does. What holds them back is the belief that they can't match him."

"Belief won't be enough to guarantee victory!"

"You can't keep coddling them. The only thing that will guarantee is that they get themselves killed later in their careers because they don't know how to handle strong enemies."

Ozpin pushed back against the man. "At least there will be a later for them. That is enough."

"Not for me." Headmaster Arc gritted back. "I'm only satisfied if my students leave Beacon with the skills necessary to succeed in this shitty world we live in. Survival isn't enough. Neither is making it ten years and dying after."

Arrogance. Undiluted arrogance. Nothing he said was wrong but the timing – did he think now of all times was when that was important? Remnant was on the verge of destruction. The Brother Gods had returned. It was do or die and thoughts of the future belonged in the future. All that mattered now was survival.

It was with that in mind that Ozpin summoned all his anger and unleashed it in one wild explosion of raw magic. The light flooded his office and shone out his windows, turning his tower into a lighthouse. It send Headmaster Arc sailing back into the far wall, his cane flying left and his sword right. He fell to all fours, gasping for air as Ozpin stalked forward bathed in an emerald glow.

"Bold words." he sneered, every part Ozma. "Arrogant, mindless drivel. This is war, and morals are lost during it. Your ideals may be kind at any other time, but there are too many relying on me to make the right decision to let such things cloud my judgment. You should understand that if you were truly headmaster."

The man coughed and looked up. "I understand it."

"Good." Ozpin lowered his cane to the man's face. "Any last words?"

"Yeah." Headmaster Arc grinned. "Sorry about your office."

Ozpin saw the stark light flashing all around and beyond them on the wall. He turned, eyes bulging out as he saw the gargantuan floodlights approaching the windows at speed. The Atlesian battleship was hurtling toward them, toward his very tower, and it was far, far too close to do anything to avert its path.


The Professor Arc special. If you can't beat it, drive an airship into it.

Man, I feel awful. Just so drained. I'm going to go to bed early and hope that I feel more alive in the morning. At least I was able to write this much. Kind of surprised myself if I'm being honest as I pretty much resigned myself to not writing anything today and posting an apology instead.


Next Chapter: 16th July

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