Chapter 5 – Desperation
Cinder
The Lord of the Wood stood before the four brave warriors who spun their weapons through their fingers. Behind them, Team C.F.V.Y continued to hold the rest of the Grimm back.
Coco roared, firing relentlessly with Gianduja in its Minigun Form, shredding through the undulating mass of Grimm that was charging up the stairs at them. Her bullets broke their bodies apart, and even if she ran out of ammo… she was still the Winter Maiden and could decimate them with the power of ice if she had to.
Qrow, Emerald and Cinder on the other hand were up against something equally as dangerous. The Lord of the Wood, and they had no time to prepare. The huge Leshen immediately launched spikes forged from bark towards them all. "Look out!" Cinder yelled, blasting two columns of fire towards the projectiles. They burned to ash but through the fire came the Higher Demon, immediately punching Cinder in the face, and forging a blade of hardened wood down towards Qrow.
Sparks flew, and the sudden impact forced the Huntsman down to one knee, grunting as the huge entity attacked. The fiery coals in its eyes burned hot as it glared at him, but Qrow pushed back, then Emerald jumped overhead and discharged her weapons, throwing her chained sickles ahead. They dug down into the shoulders of the Demon, and when she landed, she hauled the titan back with every ounce of strength she had.
Qrow shoved the Lord of the Wood back, then roots swiftly emerged from its back, wrapping around the chains. Emerald's eyes widened, then it suddenly twisted around in its own body, and grabbed onto the chains with its massive, clawed hand, and hoicked her towards it. She gasped as the massive Leshen opened its hand of sharp ebony claws, ready to impale her with them, only for Qrow to rend the Lord of the Wood across the face. That was enough to stumble the entity, and Emerald broke free from its grip, tumbling across the ground.
Qrow looked around, the Lord of the Wood was gone.
"Shit… where'd that creepy bastard go?" Qrow softly said, gripping Harbinger with both hands, still using it in Sword Form right now. Emerald was nearby, and Cinder hovered above them.
"I can feel him in the air… he hasn't ran yet." Cinder informed, there was always a weird feeling in the air whenever the Higher Demons were near. It was not as obvious as when a Knight of Grimm showed up. No emotional turmoil out of nowhere and no hairs standing on end or even chills.
Just… a feeling.
Like when you felt like there was someone behind you, all the time.
Every now and then Emerald turned around just in case. The infinite echoes of Corvid Birds surrounded them as they stood their ground. The birds were circling overhead. Somehow that was one of the most unnatural things of all… in the midst of all this chaos, an Extinction Event in the making… and there were birds calmly flying overhead?
No… he was not done yet.
He was toying with them.
Then… they saw those same birds start to congregate together, and a thick dark smoke began to form over them. There he is…
Qrow spun Harbinger through his fingers, staring up at the sky, transforming the sword into Scythe mode, slamming the curved blade down into the floor. The smoke continued to build as the Crows and Ravens vanished into it, the twinkling reflection of what little sunlight remained from their crystal beaks disappeared… then an explosion erupted from the mass.
They covered their eyes as the pulse came… then they saw the Lord of the Wood above them, with a pair of wings forged from the feathers of those birds. It swung the wings overhead, forming two more arms of wood that had razor sharp blades extended from them. It's main arms remained the same, since those sharp claw-like hands were just as deadly as blades.
He rarely ever displayed his full power, and I doubt this is even all he can do… but… by the gods that was scary.
And like always, it remained chillingly mute, not a word had ever been said by the Leshen, then it suddenly flew down towards them. It slashed the two bladed arms towards them, cutting clean through the air, and slashing Emerald across the cheek, the impact of which smashed her into one of the broken colonnades. Cinder floated over the Lord of the Wood, firing lightning from her hands, but it dodged her attacks swiftly, darting from side to side in the form of Ravens, then it extended one of its arms with long powerful roots that dug down into the ground an ripped a chunk of rock from the floor and slingshot it up towards her.
She formed her Obsidian Swords and cut them down with ease. The insides of the boulder melted immediately from the heat of her swords, then she dove down and smashed her fist down into the ground. The Lord of the Wood was hardly even effected by the shockwave, but she threw one sword directly into its chest. The blade exploded there and caused the Leshen to recoil back a step, then she rushed forward. She froze one of the Lord's legs in place, then punched him across the face and slashed her other sword across its chest. But then the Lord of the Wood stopped her next stab with the extra bladed appendages it grew, holding her in place.
Her amber eyes widened, and it thrusted her backwards, easily breaking free from the ice. She flipped through the air, then fire expelled from her hands and feet, rocketing herself towards the Lord. She grabbed him by the skull and smashed him down into the ground. The Lord of the Wood grabbed onto her and threw her down into the ground, then stood tall, grabbing onto her back and throwing her with ease into the side of Beacon Tower.
The wall exploded from the impact, dazing her for a few moments. Cinder groaned, rubbing her aching head, then looked forward as the Lord of the Wood moved shockingly fast. His unpredictable nature made the entity so terrifying because they never knew just how fast or powerful, he truly was.
She moved her head to the side just in time as he jammed one of his blades into the wall her head was resting against before she avoided it. Roots swiftly travelled up the wall and wrapped around her body, holding Cinder in place, despite her protests. "Argh! Fuck!" Cinder yelled, then the Lord of the Wood went to carve up her face with its blades.
The fist of Qrow Branwen suddenly collided into the side of its skull, so hard cracks spread across the bone. The Lord of the Wood stumbled away from her, giving Emerald time to cut Cinder loose. "C'mon you son of a bitch! Show me what you've got!" Qrow challenged, the Lord of the Wood howled with rage and slashed its hand towards him, but he spun his Scythe around, deflecting the incoming blow. Qrow swung the Scythe upwards, then spun it across its shoulders, slashing through the Demon's throat, but having no real effect on it. He then let it fall and caught it in his other hand.
He struck over and over at the Higher Demon, whose extra bladed arms blocked every single blow made, backing up on the spot. The Lord of the Wood thrusted forward, extending a powerful root ahead with a spear-like blade extending out from it. Qrow slid across the floor, ducking underneath the incoming root, and hooking his Scythe onto the Lord's leg. He cut clean through its leg instead, dropping the Lord of the Wood down to one knee. It spun around and fired barbs of wood at him, but he vanished.
The Leshen snarled before looking up and seeing Qrow diving down in his Corvid Form, immediately transforming back into Human Form. He roared with immense hate, and went to cut clean through its head, but instead he cut straight through its torso. The Lord of the Wood split open, but grew back up, and ripped one half away from its body.
It crumbled into black smoke, and that smoke transformed into a Grimm, an ability they forgot the Demon could do. Last they saw it do that was back on the Volcanic Chain Isles when Ruby cut it down after being reunited with them. The Grimm was a Hellhound, and fire erupted from its body as it charged back around towards Qrow. He gasped as the huge Burning Wolf rushed him, and the badly injured Lord of the Wood floated backwards, hovering thanks to its wings.
Black smoke poured out from the wound, and he saw whilst fighting the Hellhound that the Lord was constructing matter in thin air, quickly regrowing that impressive amount of damage he dealt to it. The Hellhound growled viciously, sharp triangular ears twitching with flames belching out its mouth of black teeth. It then extended the magma claws from its black paws, and fire erupted across its arm, burning the fur into an inferno. It roared with rage and swiped at him, but Qrow rolled out of the way just in time.
The Hellhound slid across the ground, fiery clouds burst from its back like a refinery tower, eyes glowing bright red. That was when the sky darkened, and Cinder flew towards the Grimm and fired three arrows from her Obsidian Bow at it. The arrows lodged into its body, then exploded. The Hellhound roared in immense rage before crumbling out of existence. They turned and saw that the Lord of the Wood was finished with reconstructing its body.
The head.
We need to go for his head.
The Lord of the Wood roared, eyes burning hot as it grew long tentacle-like roots from its back which immediately shot a storm of splinters towards them. Emerald swung through the air, dodging the spikes with ease, then slammed both feet into the Lord of the Wood's face. It staggered back and growled with anger, the wooden body darkened and the same flames that covered the Hellhound started to erupt across its entire body.
It held its arms out and roared to the sky, the bottom jaw of the Stag's Skull dropped down low with smoke and embers pouring out from its throat. It turned and stared directly at Emerald who shot repeatedly at the creature. She sprinted forward, jumping and spinning through the air, extending her chained Sickles and slashing the titanic Leshen multiple times. It took a step back and slashed her with its lower arms, she dropped, and the Lord of the Wood grabbed her by the leg and smashed her into the wall of Beacon Tower so hard that her green aura flickered for a moment.
She groaned in pain from the hard hit she just suffered, Cinder yelled with rage at the Lord of the Wood as she flew forward and launched a huge fireball towards it. The Lord of the Wood transformed its right arm into a huge shield, absorbing the damage, then it collapsed back down into its normal form. The Lord of the Wood howled once more, wings sprouting from its back and hovering high in the air. It held out all four arms, blades extended outwards, then they saw a swarm of Crystal-Beaked Crows and Ravens all begin to congregate behind him.
They all cawed together and the ground rumbled, and at the same time the Lord's eyes glowed brighter and brighter as the burning coals just increased with intensity. Then, it made the attack, all the Crows and Ravens flew at them, cutting through their aura swiftly and all at once with their sharp crystal beaks. The attack did immense damage to their aura, then the wings of the Lord of the Wood splayed out once more as they flapped, and then it soared at them with shocking speed.
It slashed its sharp claws and blades at Cinder, and she only just narrowly avoided the attack. Qrow rolled aside as well and aimed Harbinger at the powerful foe. He shot the shotgun built into the sword and hit the Demon in the back. It came crashing down into the ground with great force. It left a scar in the ground from its wake, and quickly got back up. Cinder slammed her hand down against the ground, and the winds started to swirl around them, and above her she forged a huge spear of ice, aiming it at the Lord of the Wood.
She fired it with a defiant roar, and the huge javelin of ice came flying towards the Lord, and it crossed its wings together, taking the brunt of the hit. The wings of dead feathers broke apart from the impact, grounding the Higher Demon for now. Cinder broke the sound barrier from how fast she flew towards the Demon, and she formed an Obsidian Axe in one hand, and went to take its head clean off.
"DIE!" Cinder yelled with hate, but it raised up its arm and caught her, stopping the axe with its forearm. It aimed both blades at her stomach, but her eyes burned even fiercer. She created one powerful blast of hot air that burned across the Lord of the Wood's body, and she drove the axe downwards. The blast forced the Demon back a step, but she still cut down the side of its skull and managed to sever one of its Bladed Appendages.
The Lord of the Wood snarled with anger, swinging around to punch Cinder so hard she went flying. Cinder crashed into the ground, sliding and tumbling across the destroyed landscape, having to use that same axe to slow herself down, jamming it into the cobblestone.
Emerald swung forward and kicked the Lord of the Wood in the side of the head, and when she landed, briskly shooting both Silent Judgement guns at the Lord's head. The bullets hit, causing it to recoil back, and it growled with impending anger. But Qrow stared at its body, seeing the cracks forming in places.
It's working.
"Keeping hitting him in the head! We've nearly got the bastard! We take him down and Beacon is ours again." Qrow said, the Lord of the Wood stood tall and launched more barbs from the tendrils it sprouted from its back. Then it turned its gaze to more civilians rushing around the fight so they could get into the Vault. It growled, but in a way, it sounded like a laugh.
It walked towards them and started to fire the spikes directly at the civvies. "No!" Qrow yelled, flying in the way and spinning Harbinger around, blocking the innocent. "Go! Get to the Vault!" He yelled.
In the blink of an eye, the Lord of the Wood was right in front of him now, using the ravens to teleport quickly, and it grabbed his head and smashed him up against the wall. The Lord of the Wood easily towered above Qrow Branwen. He gritted his teeth and began to scream from the pain, as the Lord began squeezing his head harder and harder.
"QROW!" Cinder yelled, she literally turned herself into a human missile, flying directly into the side of the Lord, and the two of them crashed straight through a wall. That was the wall of the Tower, and the civilians who ran down the stairs screamed as the wall shattered above them, but the two of them flew up into the Elevator Shaft.
The huge Leshen punched Cinder in the face as they both shot up the tower together, and Cinder repeatedly burned the side of its face, charring the skull from the fire. Then they both erupted up through the shaft wall and into the top of Beacon Tower. Cinder tumbled across the room, whilst the Lord of the Wood flew up in the air.
In front of the window that overlooked Beacon and Vale, showing a haunting view of the level and chaos the city was besieged by, the Lord of the Wood extended powerful vines and roots out from multiple points of its body, and reconstructed the Blade Arm Cinder amputated. It stopped above Ozpin's Desk, and it held out both arms, staring down at Cinder Fall with a deep guttural growl, crossing both lower blades together.
Cinder gritted her teeth, eyes burning fiercely as she formed two Obsidian Swords in her hands.
Been a long time since I fought in this room…
… and not many happy memories of it.
Though last time, she was on the wrong side, and it was where she murdered Pyrrha. This time… she was fighting to save the world. Fate had a funny sense of humour.
The Lord of the Wood shot down towards her and slashed both blades and claws at her, but she slid across the smooth floor to avoid it. That smooth floor was instantly decimated by its strike, and Cinder rushed forward, hacking and slashing at the Lord. She cut the roots from its back that shot at her, then flipped backwards, narrowly avoiding the blade it swung at her stomach.
She landed and threw both swords at the creature, one stabbed deep into its shoulder, and it shattered the second with its fist, batting it aside. But the one lodged deep in its arm burst into a fireball, breaking that arm apart in the process. The Lord of the Wood growled as the arm crumbled into a thousand pieces, but it was already growing a new one. Cinder had to fight fast, so she sprinted forward and slid underneath the huge enemy. It smashed its fist down into the ground where her head was, and she jumped up behind it, conjuring her Bow and shooting an explosive arrow into its back.
But the Lord of the Wood's body suddenly opened up, and it grabbed the arrow and threw it right back at Cinder before it could drop to the floor.
Cinder dropped from her hovering state, then slammed both her fists down into the ground, blasting fire everywhere. Ozpin's desk toppled over from the shockwave, then she closed her fists and sent two beams of fire towards the Lord of the Wood. It forced its way forward, using its hand as a shield as it walked towards the Fall Maiden. Cinder gritted her teeth, then formed a familiar weapon – an Obsidian Spear, just like Milo.
She rushed forward and spun it through her fingers, countering the slashes from the Lord's blades, and cut the two appendages clean off in two fast strikes. She then jumped and threw the spear through the still regrowing stump, right through the shoulder and out through the other one. She formed a second spear in her hand and blew up the one in the Lord, destroying both arms and leaving a huge hole in its chest. Its head hung from loose roots, and it groaned in pain, but was already beginning reconstruction as it stared her down.
But she did not give it a chance.
"Go back to the hell you crawled from you evil fucker!" Cinder yelled, rocketing towards the Lord of the Wood.
She smashed into the monster, ramming the spear through its eye and they both smashed through the window. The glass broke into a thousand pieces, and they plummeted down towards the ground at great speeds.
They both crashed into the roof of the Cafeteria, and the Spear rammed straight through the skull. The impact blew all the tables and benches away, and the spear lodged deep in the ground. Cinder's aura broke from the landing…
… but the Lord of the Wood's body hardened, cracked, and crumbled away into dust.
"Gotcha…" Cinder panted.
"Cinder!" Emerald gasped, swinging into the Cafeteria and immediately wrapping her arms around her. "Are you okay? We saw you and the Lord of the Wood falling."
She saw Qrow after transforming back into Human Form. "Yeah… landing broke my aura… but I got the bastard."
"Hell of a move, good work." Qrow chuckled.
"What's… the situation?" She asked.
"Team C.F.V.Y have managed to catch a break, the Grimm are slowing for now, but they're still coming. They're not stopping. But we have Beacon under our control again… so get your strength back. We'll take the lead for a while." Qrow assured, patting her shoulder.
"How many more people can that Vault take?" Cinder asked.
"I just heard… Victor said they've reached half capacity." Emerald said.
"We can still get more in… good… that's enough reason to try." Cinder wisely said, getting back up and running with the two of them back to the Courtyard.
Hazel
Fighting in the Academy was one thing…
… but the city centre? That was a whole other monster. The Grimm were everywhere, more Grimm than people by a scale that was thought to be impossible. The sky was being darkened by how many were up there, flying around and knocking airships out of the sky one by one. A Shrieker cracked across the sky and exploded into the side of a Gunship, turning it into a burning wreckage that crashed into the side of a skyscraper. Shards of glass came crashing down from above into the city, alongside chunks of building, flattening cars.
And it was not just the Grimm you had to watch out for, just as Hazel found out. A car came speeding through this hellscape, and he only narrowly avoided it, but the foolish civilian drove right into a swarm. They knocked over his car and dragged him out, feasting on him as he screamed. Hazel roared with fury, with vials of blood in his bag, but he would only use it if he had no choice.
Even now, with the world like this? His semblance still scared him more than any of this could ever frighten him. He battled alongside the White Fang to clear a way for Civilians to make their way to the evacuation points. Hazel punched a Thrall in the face so hard it knocked the creature out of the air, and he smashed it's head down into the floor with all his might. He drew his knife and rammed it between the armoured plates of an Ursa, hitting the heart perfectly, and then he shoved it down to the ground with gritted teeth.
Mazen roared with savage rage, driving his Chainsword down the torso of a Beowulf, cutting it clean in two. His once white and red clothing was now completely black from all the black blood that had splattered over him and his mask. Kaa rushed forward, cutting up the Grimm in her way. The White Fang never broke rank, shooting at everything that was a Grimm, killing them as quickly as they could. "Grenade out!" One Soldier called out, and the grenade blew up multiple Thralls in one blast.
"Look out!" Hazel yelled, turning as one of the massive Krastax came barrelling into the city. It was the huge Manta-Krastax. It smashed straight through one of the buildings with its claw, decimating an entire floor. The huge monster bellowed to the sky as it stormed into the city centre, smashing everything it saw to pieces. The roar was so loud it blew their eardrums out, and it felt like their bones were vibrating it was that loud.
The huge Krastax spun around, then a volley of explosive shells impacted its head. Between the buildings Hazel spotted the Drift of Wandering Star, firing as much as it could into the tight space that giant was between. It stumbled and smashed into one of the towers, nearly knocking it down. Massive chunks of debris came falling, and some had people falling with them, splattering into the ground.
Hazel jolted whenever he heard the deafening bangs of living people hitting the ground from those heights.
This was not war…
… this was slaughter.
A Nevermore flew between the buildings, firing Fatal Feathers down into the streets where people were fleeing for their lives. "Incoming Sphinx!" A soldier called out, and it came banking around one of the towers. It landed so hard and fast that it slid across the road. It opened its wings and roared at them; its serpentine tail shrieked at them as well. Hazel gritted his teeth and grabbed one of the vials of fresh blood the hospital gave him – per his request. He stared at the potent red liquid, and he let out a shaky breath.
We need it…
He bit onto the cork and yanked it out, drinking the whole vial. His Blood Rage semblance kicked in immediately, the simple taste immediately brought up that uncontrollable rage and his muscles immediately grew in size and his strength tripled. Then his eyes glowed almost gold as he roared with unending hatred, staring at the Sphinx. "Oh shit…" Kaa gasped.
He ran straight at the monster, jumping up towards it and he smashed his fist into the side of its head. The Sphinx stumbled and the bone armour that surrounded its head cracked, breaking off in places. It blasted a fireball at him, but he rolled aside. The Snake Tail lunged towards him; jaws wide open but he caught the tail by the mouth. He roared and grabbed the bottom jaw and pulled it downwards with immense strength, tearing the jaw all the way down the tail. The Sphinx cried out from the pain, then it swung the tail into him.
Hazel tumbled across the ground, turning to see a burning car beside him. He roared wildly, pummelling it brutally into he was able to rip the car clean in half like it was made of paper. He lifted both ends of the car up with his hands and smashed them together, barking aggressively, and he sprinted towards the creature, using them like weapons. He smashed the honking car into the face of the snarling Sphinx over and over. Black blood poured out from its mouth until he managed to knock it onto its side.
He beat the Sphinx relentlessly with the cars until its skull collapsed in on itself. Black Blood splattered over him as he killed the huge beast on his own, and he turned to see Mazen and Kaa both wide eyed.
"Holy shit…" Kaa gasped. "I'm glad he's on our side."
He turned with a twitch, growling like a savage dog, as more Grimm came after them, and he rushed towards them, beating them to pieces.
Whilst all around them, the city continued to fall apart.
Ortega
It didn't look any better from up high.
Everyone was stressed, sweating profusely, as the Grimm just kept descending from that massive Reality Split in the sky. All the cannons were firing as Grimm just kept attacking them. Ortega paced back and forth, and the view of the city was getting harder and harder. There was so much fire, entire buildings and skyscrapers were being knocked down. But worse of all, he could see the Krastax laying siege in the city, destroying everything in their path. He tried to fire the guns at them, but he knew that civilians were still in there.
And the Grimm never seemed to slow down.
He knew it would be bad, the Oncoming Shadow. But the descriptions of it? The idea of an army that was infinite and would never stop pouring through despite everything you threw at it in return? He hoped that was just exaggeration… but it wasn't. Those descriptions were completely accurate, and he could already imagine the nightmares he was gonna have of this terrifying day.
Leviathan-Class Grimm were everywhere, and he kept seeing Reapers pouring through.
It took an entire fleet to kill one Reaper… now they are outnumbering the fleet we have here in Vale.
Then… the sky darkened more and more, dark clouds came swelling from the Charred Forest… and he saw what was descending. They were these gigantic Jellyfish; unlike anything he had ever seen before – Tempests. Their long tentacles packed one hell of a sting, they created crackling red lightning in the inky black clouds that they created. It was already beginning to blot out the sun, and they just kept on coming. One of them descended towards one of the Dreadnaughts, and wrapped its tentacles around its entire hull, and crushed it. The Dreadnaught exploded and came plummeting down into the city of Vale.
It crashed into one of the skyscrapers, setting it alive, and the impact was so loud it could be heard from up there. It must have been deafening from down below. King Wyverns swooped down from above, breathing fire across the hull of the Drift of Wandering Star. "Status Report!" Ortega commanded.
"Shields are still holding sir, but we can't keep this up! The Grimm won't stop! Nothing we do makes a dent." One of his Operatives answered.
"Damn it…" Ortega panted, unsure of what to do.
This is not a fight we can win conventionally… we need to get Ruby and the others back to the Embered Grove with the Relics.
That place… it had better have one hell of a good way to kill Umbra.
Because this is it… this is our end… unless we kill Vir Nominis Umbra.
"Sir! Incoming hail from Hei Xiong!" The Comms Operative informed.
"Patch him through!" He ordered.
The feed was patchy, those Tempests were definitely affecting the comms already. "Admiral? The situation down here is F.U.B.A.R! We have to retreat!" Junior informed, the Drift of Wandering Star shook as lightning from a Tempest crashed into it. "The civilians are heading for the Academy, but our line has fallen!"
"Copy that get the hell out of there and back to the Drift of Wandering Star. Ruby and her team are going to need a way out of here. We're gonna be their best bet." Ortega stated.
"My men spotted them fighting with Oz and Glynda at the Docks! I think the rest are still at Beacon Academy." Junior replied.
"Well… we need them to meet up at the Docks… but that area is a red zone. I can't risk getting close with that Kraken so close. Fuck… looks like an Alpha Kraken as well." Ortega stammered.
This just gets worse and worse…
"Damn it." Junior grunted after one of his men just got killed by the fireball of a Manticore. "We've gotta move. I'll speak to you when I'm back on the ship!" Junior informed as Militia and Melanie slashed the Grimm to pieces behind him.
He stared down at the Kraken that was swallowing up the ships with its tentacles, even knocking some low flying Airships out of the sky. He watched as one full of civilians tried to make a break for it… only for the Kraken to wrap its tentacle around it and pull it deep into its cavernous mouth.
"How many people aboard that Airship?" Ortega stammered.
"… two… hundred… sir…" An operative tearfully answered, Ortega clenched his hands into fists and gritted his teeth in anger.
Jaune
Jaune and Pyrrha slammed the doors shut, but as soon as they locked them… Pyrrha collapsed to the ground from how wobbly her legs were. "Pyrrha!" Jaune gasped, tears streamed from her eyes as she laid there, and she rubbed them away, staring up at the ceiling.
"Team A.M.F.S… they're… they're all dead." Pyrrha stammered. "In a few minutes… all of them…"
Jaune crouched down beside her, lifting her up to meet with him, pressing his head against hers.
What can I possibly say?
"I… I know…" Jaune softly stammered as he held her close, his hands were shaking as well. He felt sick imagining the pain they were in when they died.
"They were kids… just like us when we first came to Beacon… I should have saved them." Pyrrha cried, burying her head in her hands.
"How?" Jaune asked her. She lifted her head and looked at him.
"Huh?"
"Pyrrha… look around you. Even after all our preparations… nobody could have prepared for this. Arkhonex got destroyed by a fraction of what we're up against today. How could we possibly do anything to save them from this?" Jaune asked.
"I…"
"You did the best you could. You tried… and…" Jaune was struggling to find the right words. Pyrrha just pressed her head to his and then he kissed her passionately. They held each other close, and he looked into her emerald eyes. "… they wouldn't want us to stop now. And we can't. We need to get these civilians up to the top of this building. It's our best chance." Jaune told her.
She nodded her head and shoved the tears away, calling Milo and Akoúo back to her hands as she stood tall once more. Neo was already looking for a way up, she flicked the switch for the elevator… but nothing.
"Power's out. The Power Plants must be destroyed already, we're gonna have to take the stairs." Ren explained, then they heard the sound of some of the children crying.
"Dad? Where's mom?" The kid sobbed in his father's arms, who looked heartbroken from the tears streaming down his face.
"It's okay everyone. At the very top of this tower is a point where we will get all of you picked up. The Airship will bring you to the Vault, you'll all be safe down there until we sort all of this out." Jaune assured.
"Sort this out?" A woman questioned. "You mean to tell me this can be stopped?"
"Yes… if we find the way to kill the monster responsible for all this then this whole nightmare will end. I give you, my word." Jaune assured, holding his hand against his chest. Saphron and Terra smiled as they walked forward.
"I believe in Jaune Arc… not just because he is my brother… but because I know hope when I see it. And he has always been one to shine brightest and did whatever it took to help people." Saphron explained with Adrien in her arms. "And when Jaune tells you it will be okay? It will be… he has never failed me there."
She turned and smiled at her brother, and he smiled right back at her.
"Okay… c'mon everyone… we got a long climb ahead of us."
Everyone made their way to the staircase, unaware of the two shadows that came flying their way from above. Nora stopped and her eyes widened, feeling her hairs standing on end. She wasn't sure if it was him… but… it definitely got her nerves up.
They followed the long stairs up the huge tower, and as they walked up them… they noticed the sky begin to darken. "Mommy? What's happening?" A child whimpered fearfully.
"I don't know, sweetie." The mother answered honestly, Neo stopped when she saw the Tempests descending from above, and she saw the bright flash of that Dreadnaught being destroyed by one. Eventually the shockwave hit and shook the building. The kids whimpered but Jaune shushed them.
"It's okay… but remember… we need to stay calm. Negativity draws Grimm in… we can't risk it." Jaune assured, he crouched down to the most scared child and gave the kid a candy he had in his pocket. "Here… you're a brave kid." He said, ruffling the young kid's hair. The child smiled, and they kept making their way up the tower. They could hear the roaring of the Krastax just down the road from them in the other block.
It was the stuff of nightmares, literally only a block away they could hear the chaos that Hazel and the White Fang forces were currently fighting in. They kept making their way up the tower.
"We're close to the top now." Jaune promised, he kept them all hopeful as best he could… but looking out that window immediately brought the fear back. But they were so close… just a bit further.
BOOM!
A deafening eruption detonated a few floors beneath them, and they all looked down. They could hear blood curdling screams down there from the fire that was spreading from that floor beneath. The people who were at the back of the line were dying in agony and Jaune looked down, gasping in fear.
Through the fire, it was the Knight of Fury, and he slowly walked towards one of the civilians who tried to crawl up the stairs. The Infernal Knight glared at him and slammed his axe down into the head of the poor civilian. "Oh shit… RUN! EVERYONE GET UP THE STAIRS!" Jaune yelled, Pyrrha fired Milo down at Fury who just stared up at her, hardly even reacting to the bullets that hit him.
Nora turned and gasped, spotting the Knight of Fear in his Undead Bat form flying past the windows. "Oh crap… it's Fear too!" She called out; her instincts were right earlier. It was him she sensed. Everyone began sprinting up the stairs, and then Fury just transformed into a cloud of fire which seeped back through the window and shifted into his Burning Wyvern Form.
Everyone ran as fast as they could, then Fury started to blast beams of fire into the building beneath them, setting it alight more and more. Destroyed pillar after pillar. Nora booted the door to the rooftop open and when they got there, Jaune immediately popped the flare that Hazel gave him. It shone bright red, and he waved it repeatedly. "Please… someone see us." Jaune stammered desperately.
But right in front of them, Fury's Burning Wyvern ascended before their very eyes. Jaune gritted his teeth and let the Flare fall on the ground and drew Crocea Mors. The Glyphs along the blade lit up and he spun the sword through his fingers. Neo, and the rest of his team stood with him. "Everyone stay back!"
Fury immediately breathed a wall of fire down towards Jaune, but Pyrrha held out her hands, wildfire green eyes ignited, and a powerful gale pushed the flames back from hitting them. Fury swooped overhead, then Fear came banking around the tower, using the dark purple clouds as cover. They could hear his demented laugh, and the children screamed in terror as his glowing gold eyes stared at them. He spun through the air, and they heard his bones snap and flesh tear as he transformed into his Knight Form.
He landed hard, causing the ground to shake upon impact, and he spun Formido Falcem through his fingers. "Long time no see…" Fear cackled, grinning maniacally as he paced back and forth. His eyes glowed bright gold and a blurring mirage covered his body, then he darted forward in a zigzag fashion, slashing the huge Scythe at them. Jaune raised his shield, blocking the attack from hitting him, but the force still pushed him across the rooftop.
The building shook more and more, as Fury blasted fire into it from beneath, and the flames were already started to bleed through the door. The ground was hot, and everyone was sweating. Nora fired multiple Grenades from Magnhild in its Grenade Launcher Form at Fear, and they exploded against his chest. The blast threw him off the rooftop, but he just transformed back into his bat form, and banked around the tower once more. Fury erupted up from beneath, landing before them all, axes in hand.
All the civilians were screaming with horror now, as Fury slowly walked towards them. His very presence was causing the fire to spread more and more around them, and the civilians were being backed away from the door now as the flames came belching out. Fury was pushing them towards the edge. All of them, just by walking. His eyes glowed bright with fire.
There was no real room to fight, behind them were just civvies, and the roof was a lot smaller once they had to fight. Fury roared and sprinted towards them, but Nora smashed her hammer into his face. Ren and Neo rushed towards him, he fired both Stormflower Pistols at his head, but the bullets were having little effect against the constantly burning Knight of Grimm. Neo shot an explosive shell at him, but he deflected it with his Axe. She jabbed him with her blade, but he smashed her… and her body shattered like glass.
She appeared behind him after perfectly using her illusion and blasted him in the back. Jaune rushed forward and roared as he drove the blade of his sword down into the Knight's shoulder and Pyrrha threw Akoúo into the side of his head. He staggered back, but then Fear slammed down as well, aiming his Crossbow at them.
Team J.N.P.R and Neo glared the two Knights down with rage in their eyes, ready to fight to the death. Until a blinding white light erupted behind them, they turned and finally, the Evac Airship arrived, and the side door opened to reveal a soldier on the machine gun turret. "Everyone down!" He yelled, everyone ducked, and he opened fire on the Knights of Grimm. They both recoiled back, being shoved away by the bullets and leapt off the tower, shifting into their Beast Forms, flying up into the clouds.
"Everyone on the Airship now!" Jaune yelled, the relief in his chest was indescribable. Everyone clambered aboard as quick as they could…
… then they heard it.
A deafening bang erupted from the building; it was the sound of its supports collapsing. And the building was coming apart around them. Destroyed by Fury's fire.
"Jaune!" Saphron screamed as she reached out for her brother. They all ran to get to the Airship…
… then the building dropped.
And they fell with it.
"JAAAUUUNE!" Saphron screamed as she watched Team J.N.P.R and Neo disappear into the dust as the building collapsed.
Author Note - :O
Not gonna lie, that last part? Been so excited to right that part with Fury and Fear on the roof with them, it's such an intense moment. A building engulfed in fire by Fury, and then both of them attacking at once, pushing the civvies closer to the edge. And then finally, after getting them all aboard the Airship... they fall as the whole building comes crashing down.
This Act is so insane XD
Showing the city under siege from the Oncoming Shadow is always so scary because of how unbeatable it is. You could throw everything you have against it and never make a dent... because you can't.
But they managed to get the Lord of the Wood out of the fight for now, which is great :D That was also a very fun fight to do, the Lord of the Wood is always a fun time due to how many abilities I have had him hold back on due to never broadcasting his true strength.
Also Blood Rage Hazel! Hell yeah, I love that he has like a bandolier of blood vials to set it off XD
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite! (Although if you can't review due to me deleting the Update and reviews for last chapter being shoved here then I understand. If you do wanna leave a review but can't then the best way would be to do it as a Guest)
Stay tuned for the next chapter - The City of Ruin
- Matt