This specific portion of Volume 3, these next couple of chapters, I've been looking forward to writing since the moment I started this fic. I've been planning this shit for the entire time now and I'm finally being able to execute it.
Chapter 38: The Greatest Enemies Can Be the Ones Closest To You
-Vale City-
The streets were broken and gritty. The once pristine, clean and grand roadways of the proud city of Vale were barren and destroyed, like a broken piece of fine art, simultaneously tragic and painful to look at.
Grimm were swarming the streets, spilling from breaches in the wall like ants from a broken nest. The monsters of darkness, tearing apart and ravaging everything in their path, be it man, woman, child, plant or statue, none were spared from the onslaught.
The huntsmen who were in the city were struggling to clear the massive horde as, like a Hydra, for every Grimm that was killed, two more took its place. A never-ending cycle of pain and death, such was the state of the once jewel of the continent. The very symbol of peace in the world of Remnant was in flames, beaten and broken beyond repair.
Hex held back her gag reflexes as they passed mounds of dead.
"HELP ME! PLEASE, SOMEONE! ARCK!" a young male voice cried out causing the party of four to turn their heads in the direction.
Nitro was gone in a flash, his semblance and thrusters activated in mere fractions of a second as his fist curved around the corner of the dusty street to plough a Beowolf right through the head. His instinct to protect was on overdrive in this barren wasteland that was once a city.
"Nitro!" Hex called as she, Krome and Ragnar rounded the corner to meet him. "What's going on? Did you find someone?"
"HEX STAY BACK!" Nitro yelled stopping them in their tracks.
"What's wrong?" Krome asked concerned, peeking his head around the corner to see the horror before him.
Nitro's head was looking away, his eyes closed, as the black smoke of the fallen Grimm dissipated around him. On the ground, at his feet was the half-eaten corpse of a boy, not much older than twelve. His eyes were staring up at the sky where the Beowolf had once been, all life, gone, as one would expect when their torso had been ripped open.
Hex grew curious and rounded the corner herself, and barely managed to choke back her sobs as she had to take a moment to empty her lunch on the floor. "Oh fuck… he's… he's"
"I didn't make it in time…" Nitro cursed as he fought back the tears. He couldn't allow himself to feel negative emotions, not now.
Krome and Ragnar were silent, in their time, they'd seen many deaths like this, Beowolves liked to toy with their prey when they weren't feeling pressed for time. Tearing their torso's open so they could get to the lungs first, crushing the windpipe and diaphragm, waiting for their victims to suffocate for air before finishing them off.
Krome spat on the floor, "Disgusting fuckers, whatever sickening god or demon made these monsters… I hope they pay for the sins these creatures are wracking up…" he clenched his fist in fury.
"We can't just leave… him… here…" Hex choked out, unable to look at the sight lest her emotions take over her completely.
"And do what Hex?! DO WHAT?! BURY HIM WITH THE REST OF THE DEAD?" Nitro exploded, his repressed emotions were finally coming to light. "News flash Hex, there isn't anywhere TO bury him."
Hex couldn't hold it in anymore and broke down on the floor in a sobbing fit.
"Hey… look, we can see about giving the dead their respects once we get the bastards that caused this in the first place, alright?" Ragnar said trying to comfort the sobbing girl.
"Uh… guys?" Krome said gathering their attention. "Looks like we have company…" he pointed down the street.
They all turned to see several what looked to be White Fang soldiers and robots from Atlas barrelling down the street.
"Fuck, get up Hex, we've got work to do…" Nitro said readying his gauntlets.
"Hey, we might not have to look!" Ragnar said pointing to the adjoining street. A pack of Beowolves, most likely drawn to their location by the negative emotions, were about to collide with the White Fang pack.
"Oh sweet, the Grimm will just…" Krome's words died in his throat as the moment the two enemy groups met there was a momentary pause where the White Fang looked terrified they were being blindsided by Grimm.
That momentary fear died as the Grimm looked at the soldiers, suddenly their eyes flashed red, like they'd been given a command from a hive mind, and turned away from the soldiers and headed directly for Nitro and the others. The soldiers were confused at first but then went along with it.
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!" Nitro exclaimed as the now merged combat squad of Grimm and White Fang were heading toward them, claws and weapons raised.
"I am so done with this bullshit!" Krome screamed in frustration as the four of them dived headfirst into the mass.
Nitro blew through four Beowolves in a single punch but lost his footing when his semblance made him slip and collide with uprooted asphalt from the broken street. The one downside of having frictionless surfaces is that on broken terrain, there was a high chance of collision.
Nitro flinched and brought his arms up to protect his face as three Beowolves pounced on him.
"OH NO, YOU FUCKING DON'T!" Krome roared as he zipped through the air and sliced through the group with his blades.
Nitro watched in mesmerization as the macaw Faunus gracefully executed the Grimm then roundhouse kicked two soldiers.
"You alright there pretty boy?" Krome asked as he helped Nitro to his feet.
Nitro blushed, "Ah… yeah… thanks for the save."
Krome smirked, "Anytime gorgeous," which caused Nitro to mentally stall. He'd never been actively flirted with before and this was entirely new to him, not that it was a bad thing.
"OI! No flirting on the battlefield!" Ragnar and Hex simultaneously yelled as they passed by with bullets firing behind them.
"R-Right…" Nitro turned, now he and Krome were standing back to back as they took turns rotating, knocking away soldiers and killing Grimm in the process. It felt like their enemies were never-ending.
Once the Beowolves and soldiers were all either dead or knocked out they collapsed in a heap, exhausted.
"Holy shit that was exhausting… how many more of these guys are there? Nova expects us to take down all of them?!" Ragnar said heaving his lungs out.
"We… don't… have… time… to sit around…" Hex panted, wresting her weight on Loki.
Nitro looked at Atomizer, the shiny steel was now dirty and scratched, the armor plating was beginning to dent and he could feel the plates creaking inward. The jet booster fuel levels were also pretty low.
The moment they were all finally breathing normally again, Griffons came flocking in around them on the rooftops, Ursa began swarming the streets to their flanks and they could hear the distinct flapping of a Nevermore in the distance.
"Is that what I think it is?" Nitro said, his eyes closed as he leaned his head against the back of Krome's.
"Yup," the macaw Faunus said, popping the 'p'.
"How many?"
"Counting at least fifty." Hex said sounding exhausted.
"Pffft those are chump numbers…" Nitro responded though he felt like he wasn't prepared to go any further.
"Chances of us getting out of this alive?" Krome asked, glancing around at the enemies closing in on them.
Hex looked at her scroll and crunched some numbers, "negative 0.023%"
"How the fuck did you get negative probability?"
"I didn't calculate it… that was sarcasm…"
"Right…"
….
"HELLO CHILDREN!" The high pitched and all too familiar voice sounded off from the distance. The Grimm and team all halted their movements to turn and see Mortus Noir, standing proudly in his black coat and plague doctor's mask. His startlingly white cane was tapping up beside him as he calmly strutted toward the monstrous horde.
"The cavalry has arrived!" He announced loudly.
"Who the fuck…" Ragnar looked on in confusion as the lone man waltzed up to the backline of the Grimm, several Griffons were ready to attack.
"Mr. Noir look out!" Hex yelled as the attackers swooped down off the buildings and darted like bullets toward him.
Noir calmly stood still and ungloved his hand, touching the Grimm's mask as it came within his reach. In an instant, the Grimm's body turned rotten and brown, before crumbling to dust.
"What the fuck…" Nitro looked on in awe as the entire army of Grimm switched targets to the newly perceived threat.
"Oh, dear children, please cover your mouths, noses and shut your eyes, and stay exactly where you are, don't move an inch." Noir instructed.
"But… there's too many we need to…"
"I'd really hate for something to happen to you miss Magenta, so please do as you are told."
The team shrugged and complied.
"Good… now then…" Noir pulled off his mask and un-gloved his other hand. Under his mask was a sickly twisted smile, like a psychopath dipped in his fantasies.
"The mask isn't to protect me from the world… it's to keep the world safe from me!" He cackled madly as he reached his arms into the air and his body began to glow with a slime green aura that emanated outward like a wave of light, except it wasn't light. The Grimm that came within range of the aura instantly began to rot and decay as if they were perishable food left in the sun for too long. Their bodies began to swell and pustules and growths began forming on their blackened hides until they were completely riddled with disgusting deformities.
The Grimm then began to crumble to the floor as their flesh warped and rotted away, eventually fading to dust as they dissipated in black smoke.
"Well now that, that's over with…" he calmly placed his mask back on and re-gloved his hands. "You may now uncover yourselves children."
The four did as they were told and got up to greet their savior.
"My apologies, I have a very… volatile semblance…" He said with a hint of pride.
Ragnar gazed around at the Grimm and managed to spot one rotting away. "What the hell did you do?"
"My semblance is The Black Plague. My aura generates a disease around me that causes disgusting cancer-like growths to form on any living thing I touch or within the range of my aura's casting ability." Noir explained.
"Oh, so that's why you wear the mask and the suit?" Nitro said realizing.
"Indeed Mr. Zephyr."
Krome deadpanned as he watched the interaction. "Can someone please explain who the fuck this medieval basket case is?"
"Ah yes, I am Mortus Noir, owner of the Chateau Noir, underground crimelord and friend of Nova Flareheart, at your service, other friends of Nova Flareheart." Noir did a mock bow.
"Nice to meet you…" Ragnar said hesitantly before leaning over to Hex, "You sure this fruit loop is Nova's friend?"
Hex chuckled, "Yes my leader has some very… unique allies."
"Hey, Mr. Noir. Could you do whatever you just did over the whole city? Wipe out the rest of the Grimm?" Nitro asked thinking on it.
Noir sighed, "Not the brightest in the bunch are you, Mr. Zephyr."
"Huh?"
"He said his semblance was uncontrollable. Meaning he'd also probably kill any living huntsmen, huntresses or un-evacuated civilians in the process." Hex said folding her arms.
"Correct you are Ms. Magenta. There's also the factor of my aura, while I have not tested this, the range I can cast my semblance is limited by my aura reserves, and I was not born with very much…"
"Oh well… that sounds both… fortunate and unfortunate…" Ragnar said realizing the implications. It meant he couldn't exactly conduct a wide scale assault should he ever chose, but it also meant that even if he lost complete control over his semblance it would only affect a specific area and wouldn't last very long.
"Indeed, the disease of my semblance only lasts as long as I have aura. Helps in case I accidentally infect one of my men, I just shoot myself until my aura depletes and hopefully they survive until then."
All four students shuddered at the twisted way of solving his problems.
"Speaking of which… where are your men?" Hex asked.
Noir sighed, "When the Grimm struck, many of my men were taken by surprise and struck down, the ones that survived I ordered them to evacuate. They refused to leave me un-protected so I shot them all with tranquilizers and loaded them onto an airship."
"Why didn't you keep them around? Why are you even here?" Krome asked eyeing him.
"I refuse to let my men die meaningless deaths. I'm here because I have a duty to uphold the wishes of my saviour and prince." Noir said proudly.
"Uh…"
"Long story birdman…" Nitro sighed.
-Onboard a ship heading to Beacon-
"Nova said to get out of here…" Ruby said turning to the rest of the students. They all looked at her intently, like she was the one who was going to lead them in the coming battle. A commander or a general, that was what Ruby Rose had become.
"And are you going to follow up on those instructions?" Coco Adel asked, tilting her sunglasses down to eye the red leader.
Ruby quirked her brow, "Fuck that. We're heading straight for the fight whether he wants us to or not!" she raised her fist.
"YEAH!" The students roared following her. Weiss looked on in wonder at Ruby's ability to command so easily. She was a natural-born leader, and she took control when she needed to.
Weiss looked out the window, observing the fleet as they passed by, when she spotted something, two ships, one passenger, like theirs, and another one, Atlas grade. She'd thought all the Atlas ships were destroyed by the fleet of White Fang ships, it was a welcome surprise.
"Hey, it's one of ours!" Weiss said pointing to the oncoming Atlas battleship. "Wait… what's it doing?!" she exclaimed in horror as the battleship turned port side to face the other passenger ship.
"No… it's not…" Ruby mouthed as the Atlas ship turned all its cannons around and fired a barrage of lasers at the passenger ship, melting it in seconds.
"Rogue ship?! With that many armaments?! How?! When?!" Neptune exclaimed as he pressed his face against the glass.
"Holy shit if that thing heads for us we're toast!" Sun said biting his fingers.
"Toast? We'd be fucking charcoal!" Coco yelled.
"What are we going to do Ruby?" Weiss asked turning to her leader, but the girl wasn't there. "RUBY?!" the heiress watched as the leader opened the airship door and stepped onto the deck.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING YOU DOLT?!" Weiss said in a panic as she followed her leader out.
Ruby held a stoic gaze as the ship came within range of them. Her eyes trained on the enemy, locked on.
"What are… RUBY WHAT THE FUCK?!" Weiss again screamed as Ruby made a mad dash across the deck, springing at top speed right off the rails, sailing through the air like a rose-petaled, sniper propelled missile, heading directly for the enemy ship
Weiss paled as she observed her leader's actions. "Nova Flareheart… your girlfriend is going to be the fucking death of me…" she sighed before sprinting at full speed herself and using gravity glyphs to launch herself onto the battleship, landing beside Ruby.
"Did they just…" Sun said looking outside to see the two land safely on the enemy ship.
Coco stood up, "They're buying us time. Come on, we're heading to Beacon…"
"Ruby Rose, of all the insane, hair-brained ideas you've ever had, this has to be the worst. That being said… let's get this done." Weiss said drawing Myrtenaster.
Ruby smirked and readied Crescent Rose, "Glad to have you onboard bestie,"
Weiss just rolled her eyes and smiled. "Let's find out who's in control of this shit…" Weiss said as they were ontop of the massive airship. The entire outer hull was like a flat expanse in of itself.
"Looks like we got company…" Ruby said as she looked up to see flocks of Griffon swarming above them.
The duo began attacking left and right, cutting down any that flew low enough to be in their range. It wasn't long before a hatch opened on the far side of the vast expanse, and four figures emerged from the depths of the ship.
It was the entirety of Team BLDE.
"When I saw one of our own ships attacking passengers, I should've known it was you…" Ruby spat as she glared daggers at the four. A fifth emerged behind them, a girl in pink and brown, a familiar face from their prior exchanges. "And… Neo? Was it? Of course, you're here to…"
The pink-haired girl curtsied cutely which made Weiss quirk her brow in annoyance.
"Ah, little red, and heiress to the company that's the enemy of all Faunus kind… great…" Bell said looking annoyed as well.
"When I found intruders on the literal top decking of the ship, I thought, who in the world would be fucking insane enough to stand on a high-speed flying airship surrounded by Grimm? Low and behold it's Ruby Rose… here without your boyfriend this time?" Edan said looking around for Nova.
"Nova's got some more important business to take care of right now…" Ruby seethed not bringing herself to look away from her enemy.
"Yesss… he'sss probably preoccupied with Adam and the High Commander right now…" Lyme hissed with a dangerous smile.
Ruby's eyes widened, "They're here too?! So that's why the White Fang is here…"
Weiss squinted her eyes, "Five of you to take on the two of us? I'm honoured…"
"Two of you? Oh no sweetheart, I thought you'd brought your pet lizard well, at least one of them. Seeing it's just the two of you… well it hardly deserves even one of us…" Bell smirked.
"Oh you little blonde bitch…" the heiress seethed. She was prevented from making a move however when the larger White Fang ship rose from the depths of the sky and pulled alongside the Atlas battleship.
"Great… now what…" Ruby said starting to regret having jumped off the ship in the first place.
"Red! And the Schnee!" The familiar voice of Roman Torchwick boomed as he appeared from the other ship.
"TORCHWICK?!" Weiss looked incredulously as the criminal casually strut over his ship and jumped onboard the next.
"I get a message from Onyx that the ship we stole needs an escort and imagine my surprise when he sent me here… for you two…"
"Okay, why do I get the feeling we bit off more than we can chew…" Weiss said nervously looking at the six enemies before her.
Ruby rubbed the back of her head, "Yeah I'm starting to get that feeling to… hehe… look at it this way, at least it can't get any worse…?"
Weiss flinched, "Oh you just had to say…" *ROAR!*
A deafening cry, of a large creature, was heard shaking all of the people on board the ship, forcing them to cover their ears as massive dragon-like Grimm came swooping overhead, bellowing with all its might.
"A FUCKING WYVERN?! YOU JUST HAD TO OPEN YOUR BIG MOUTH! NEVER. EVER. Say those words, Ruby. EVER!" Weiss screamed and stomped as everyone gazed up at the massive creature.
"Alright, how are we going to do this? Are you going to come at us one at a time like honorable terrorists? Or is it going to be like some all-out brawl…?" Weiss asked bringing attention back to the matter at hand.
"Oh, we're just gonna straight up…" Roman never got to finish his sentence when a loud voice echoed over the speaker system of the White Fang ship.
"Is this thing on? Oh good. Seems you've all gathered here…" the dark, deep voice of Onyx boomed over the speakers.
Now everyone was confused.
"High Commander Onyx?" Edan voiced up, now that the wyvern had quieted down, the entire air was still.
"Yes, field captain Edan. It's me."
"Sir! Where are you?" Bell asked looking around for signs of her commander.
The voice chuckled, "Down on the ground, going to pay my old friend a visit. Imagine how he'll react when I tell him his friends got exploded by a self-destructing ship…"
"Self-destructing…? Sir?" Edan asked confused. Ruby and Weiss shared wary glances.
"Yes, well you see… field captain Edan, Roman Torchwick… you've outlived your usefulness…"
"Excuse me?! What was the point of dragging me to your base if you were just going to kill me?!" Roman screamed looking horrified, Neo looking terrified as well.
"Sir! We've done everything for you! You can't just… betray us like this!" Bell said horrified.
Lyme had fallen to his knees, feeling defeated, while Dune couldn't say anything.
"I have not betrayed you… I've simply… taken the necessary steps to ensure my plans… succeed. Roman, your usefulness fell once we were done using you to rally troops to our cause. You can be quite charismatic… your ability to organize the squadrons to enact this operation was pivotal, but that's all you were needed for…" With that, the speakers cut off.
"COMMANDER YOU CAN'T DO THIS!" Bell cried out, falling to her knees beside her friend in despair.
Torchwick, on the other hand, was having none of this, "Neo, we are getting out of here. I'm not sure how but there's got to be an escape craft or something…" he wandered out into the open looking for a way off the ship. The moment he did so however, the massive dragon came swooping down and made a dive for him. Torchwick barely managed to dive out of the way, not before his right leg and cane were torn right from his body, leaving a bloody stump.
Everyone looked on in horror as the once passive swarm of Grimm above them suddenly turned aggressive, and like a swarm of locusts, rushed at them in droves.
Bell was forced out of her stupor and brought up her shield to defend her friends while Edan used his daggers to try and kill as many as he could.
Dune let out a barrage of Gatling punches, trying desperately to beat off the oncoming swarm, while Lyme shot corrosive green venom at them.
Ruby and Weiss held their ground as they were attacked from all angles, while they were defending the downed Roman with Neo trying to tend to his wound.
"Red… you're… helping me?" Roman said in surprise as Ruby slashed through an oncoming Griffon.
"Criminal as you are, you're still a victim of this situation, just as we are… you have a right to pay for your crimes… in a court of law!" she grunted in frustration as she struggled to swat away another Grimm.
"This… feels… weird…" Roman said flinching as Neo tried to tie a makeshift bandage around his bleeding leg.
"There's too many of them!" Edan yelled as he struggled against four at once, his aura running dreadfully low.
"I can't hold…" Bell squeaked as she lost the strength in her arms, a Griffon swooped down and ripped the shield from her, sending it spiraling off the edge into the endless sky.
"FUCK!" Lyme yelled as he used the last ounce of his aura to dissolve as many Grimm as he could.
Just as they were finally getting through the swarm, a massive explosion occurred rocking the ship. They all turned to see the back end of the ship, the engines, had exploded in a violent blaze. The ship was beginning to lean and lose altitude.
"OH FUCK WE'RE GOING DOWN!" Roman yelled as he felt the ship begin to tilt. A second explosion occurred, this time, it was the White Fang ship that was parked alongside theirs. The force of the explosion sent the occupants of the battleship scattering around, separating them all.
Ruby was sprawled alongside Weiss, she struggled to stand as her ears had gone slightly deaf from the noise.
"WEISS!" She yelled looking to her partner.
"WHAT?!"
"Grab on to me, we're getting off this thing!"
"HOW?!" The heiress looked baffled, "We're like thousands of feet in the air!"
"JUST CLING ON TO ME AND DON'T LET GO!" Ruby yelled as the air around them began to rush as the ship began to fall. Weiss did as she was told and latched onto Ruby's back.
The red leader spared a glance back at Torchwick and the others, she wanted to help them get off but… it was either them or her and Weiss… so she made a choice. Ruby jumped off the side of the ship and began using Crescent Rose's recoil to slow their fall at periodic intervals. Weiss saw her idea and made a make-shift parachute out of ice and tried to let that slow them down.
Back on the exploding ship, a fire was beginning to overtake the deck as both ships were beginning to fall.
"NEO!" Torchwick yelled as the descent began. The ice-cream themed girl looked to her mentor and father figure. "Get out of here, you have your umbrella thing… use it to float yourself down…"
She shook her head, tears coming out of her eyes as if to say 'What about you?'
"Don't give me that look. You and I both know I'm too heavy for that thing… besides… you can't carry a one-legged man now can you?"
Again Neo desperately shook her head and clutched onto him, refusing to let go.
Roman sighed and grabbed Neo's umbrella and placed it in her hand, "Fine, help me to the edge…"
Together they crept to the edge of the barely airborne ship. Just as they were about to jump off, Roman forced the parasol open and shoved Neo hard off the edge. The ice-cream themed girl could only watch in horror and despair as the sad, smiling face of Roman Torchwick stared back at her, as he waved his last goodbye, his face disappearing behind the clouds as she floated further down, helplessly.
A massive explosion shook the ship again, the fire had made it's way tot the fuel supply. They were losing more and more altitude by the second, and with no safe way of getting down, Team BLDE were stuck on the surface of the ship.
"Isss thisss how it endsss?" Lyme asked, barely able to believe the reality.
"I fucking knew it… we were being played from the start… that bastard Onyx… Nova was right, we are nothing more than tools to him…" Bell spat as she slumped down on the deck. They could begin to see the ground now… and all Bell could feel was pure regret… if only she could have changed things…
"If master Onyx wills our death… then so be it…" Edan said almost emotionlessly.
"You can't be fucking serious… even after all this?!" Bell wanted to get up and smack him… but it wasn't worth it. They were all going to die anyway.
Suddenly Bell was pulled into a massive hug by Dune. His thick arms wrapping around her small frame.
"Dune? What're you doing? Hugging at our last moments?" Bell smiled looking up at the big beetle man.
Dune shook his head, and… for the first time in years… spoke, "All… life… I… do… bad… I… mess up… Now… I… do… good… " all of them looked wide-eyed at him. He'd never spoken in all their time they'd known him, besides Bell. They'd thought he'd gone mute from the enhancement surgeries…
"You can talk? Wait… what do you mean…" Bell said, then she realized where Dune's back was positioned. It was facing the back of the ship, and as the ship began drawing closer to the ground it tilted so that his back would hit the ground first.
"No… you can't! DUNE NO!" Bell began to struggle out his grip
He just looked at her, and the first emotion to grace his face in years was a sad, longing smile, "Bell… good… person… good… friend… thank… you…" those were his last words as Bell screamed and pounded at his chest to let her go, tears soaking his shirt as flames overtook the world around them. The moment the ship hit the ground, the earth shook with the massive explosion.
-Beacon Campus Grounds-
The trio was busy carving their way through the intense masses of Grimm and soldiers when Nova received a call on his scroll. It was from Blake.
"Blake?" he answered but there was no response on the other end. "Hello? Are you there?"
"Oh Blake, see, this is what happens when you defy the White Fang, when you go against our order." Nova heard the voice of Adam on the other end and his blood ran cold.
"Come on Blake, where are you…" Nova muttered into the scroll.
"You burn down our cafeteria? That's what you do?" Blake responded to Adam, queuing Nova in on their location.
"Your cafeteria, your school, all these pathetic humans…" he heard Adam respond, but that was all he needed to know. Nova instantly hung up and turned to Pyrrha and Jaune.
"Guys, something's come up. There's a powerful enemy at the dining hall, Jaune I need you and Pyrrha to head to Ozpin's office, quickly!" Nova instructed.
"But what about you?" The blonde asked.
Nova shook his head, "Never mind me, I need to just settle an old score… take care of Pyrrha, she needs to get to Ozpin in one piece."
Jaune nodded, "You don't need to tell me that…" and with that, they were off.
Nova began channeling his fire, "Just hold on Blake… I'm on my way…"
He readied Asura behind him in its sniper form, and like Ruby, did, used its power to propel him forward. Since the semi-automatic gun didn't offer as much recoil as Ruby's bolt action anti-tank rifle, he fed his flames into the weapon. The Fragment of Fire embedded in the eye of the dragon began to glow, as if responding to his power, and began shooting blasts of fire behind him like a jet thruster.
Nova was initially thrown off by the sudden change in power, "WOAH THERE! Oh my precious baby, if that's what you want…" he spoke hopping onto the scythe.
"This is one weird-ass way to travel…" he balanced himself in a sitting position on the scythe, like a witch on a broomstick and accelerated the flames behind him, and just like that he was off like a rocket.
What would've taken minutes to achieve, Nova got there in seconds, the blade of the scythe acted like a wind steering, it was incredible, though it offered very little control at the high speed.
He stopped off at the dining hall, a sonic blast of wind following him closely behind as if he was moving faster than sound itself.
"Holy shit… I'm going to make a note of this…" he said before spinning Asura and slinging it over his back. He pushed through the grand doors of the dining hall to see Adam standing proudly, monologuing something to Blake as she lay there on the floor, barely able to move from the damage she'd taken. Then he spotted Yang, the distinct blonde hair poking out of a pile of rubble, and in an instant, his anger flared.
"ADAM!" He roared gaining the man's attention.
Taurus instantly stopped his monologuing and drew his gaze to the dragon standing in the burning doorway. Nova was covered in blood and ash like he'd been fighting Grimm all day, his hair was whipped back from the speed he'd travelled with and his eyes were red with anger, literally.
"Ah, so nice of you to finally join us, Nova… I see Blake's managed to get a hold of you after all…" he said smiling.
Nova was not smiling, he was practically livid, "Yang! What did you do to Yang you monster?" he snarled, baring his fangs.
"She tried to attack me… so I… disarmed her…" Adam began to laugh at his own joke. Nova had a general idea of what he was talking about given the state of the blonde. She was more than likely still alive… Adam was a cruel man, but he was no evil monster, despite his own claims.
"Blake, can you move?" Nova asked without turning to her, his eyes fixated on Adam.
The cat Faunus struggled to her feet in a coughing fit, "B-Barely…"
"That's good enough, get Yang and get out of here. Head to the CCT Tower, Noir and the others have most likely set up that protection area by now… go!"
Blake nodded and scampered over to Yang, pulling the unconscious brawler out of the wreckage, surprised to find the wound that was where her hand was, completely healed. She said nothing about it, however, and just made her way out.
Once they were gone, Nova relaxed and stretched out his arms above his head, cracking his neck and rotating his head.
"Now that they're gone… I can finally take the fight to you properly…" he said cracking his knuckles.
Adam laughed, "Don't you remember what happened last time? You barely got out alive…"
"I'm not the same person as I was back then…" the drag said, his eyes beginning to glow a fiery orange, his normal eyes turning to dragon-like slits, his fangs seeming to become more prominent and Adam could swear the flames of the burning building were… encouraging him.
"So it seems…." Adam lowered his back, his right arm on the grip of his sword Wilt.
Nova saw his stance, "Oh, so you're going with old school techniques this time? Alright then…" he said getting into a similar stance, Asura in its ninjato form.
No words were uttered after, just staring and atmosphere reading. The tension between the two fighters was so thick you could feel the pressure increase in the room. Neither dared move as if the mere fraction of a movement of a muscle would speak thousands of words…
The moment a piece of burning wood popped and cracked in the hall, both fighters rushed at each other with blinding speeds. Two blades rising out and striking simultaneously, sparks flying as the sound of solid metal rang out amidst the burning room.
The two pushed against their blades, trying to gain the upper hand in this clash of power.
"Oh… you've gotten faster…" Adam smiled as his face was close to Nova's own.
"Heh, and you've gotten slower…" Nova said realizing the difference in power now. Adam's eyes widened behind his mask and he made a clicking sound with his lip, signaling to Nova that he was right.
The fight for power ended in a stalemate as both fighters were pushed back.
"What happened to you, Adam. You were a boy who wanted to protect the Faunus, you wanted peace for all, yet what you're doing here brings nothing but suffering to everyone!" Nova yelled, not giving Adam a chance and closing the gap instantly, curving Asura's blade upward in a slash aimed at his throat.
Adam blocked with his own blade and kicked Nova, but the dragon caught his foot with one hand-tossed the bull Faunus across the room, sending him crashing into the pile of rubble.
"Look at you! Your kicks were never this weak, your balance is off. You're leaning far too much to one side without taking consideration of the other!" Nova yelled as Adam brought himself out of the rubble, his shirt torn to reveal a bare and scarred chest.
"Humans have caused more pain than anyone else to our people. You of all people should know that… though I doubt you ever cared considering what your parents did to us!" Adam yelled dashing forward to Nova, sending a wave of blood-red energy at him. The dragon easily sidestepped as if Adam was moving in slow motion.
"Are you kidding me? Do you still believe that load of bullshit? No offence…" Nova said realizing what type of Faunus Adam was.
"Of course I do… Master Onyx…"
"Onyx said fucking what?! WHAT DID HE TELL YOU ADAM?! Did he give you proof? DID HE FUCKING GIVE YOU PROOF?!" Nova screamed now pulling Asura's gun barrel out and shooting several rounds of fire blasts at Adam.
The bull Faunus's eyes went wide as he barely managed to block the blasts, the force of the impact sending him backward, his shoes leaving black marks on the floor.
"No… but…"
Nova was losing his patience, "EXACTLY! But fucking nothing. You're being used, Adam! He's just forcing you under blind loyalty! HE'S NOT YOUR ALLY!"
"THEN WHAT IS HE?! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO THINK?!" Adam said almost desperately, lashing out in a weak attempt to hit Nova.
The dragon caught the blade with his right hand, the fiery scales acting like a shield to stop the blade from piercing his aura. Nova looked Adam directly in the mask and used Asura to cut his face right up the middle, slicing the mask in half and breaking it revealing Adam's blue eyes and scarred face, with a branded number over one damaged eye.
Nova gasped as he looked upon the face of his old friend. "When did this…"
"A year after you left… I had joined the White Fang, Onyx said he needed a child operative to infiltrate an SDC branch and get undercover to break the Faunus slaves out…"
"But he didn't tell you what kind of undercover you were going in as…" Nova gasped with realization.
Adam nodded sombrely, "I was sent in as a slave, in rags… they… branded me… they took my freedom… my everything…"
"After all this, you still follow Onyx? HE SENT YOU AS A SLAVE! FOR WHAT?!"
"BUT HE SAVED ME! He saved me… and all the Faunus workers there like me… the other kids… he gave us a home…"
"Saved you?! Adam, he put you there in the first place! He turned those innocent children into soldiers of war!" Nova pushed Adam back, with little effort.
"HE GAVE US A PURPOSE! HE GAVE THEM The MEANS TO FIGHT BACK!"
Nova felt his blood boil, "HE TURNED YOU INTO WEAPONS OF WAR! No child should be forced to be a soldier… even now… all the students, we're soldiers now… we haven't even finished our training but we're fighting a war because we have no choice! Because men like Onyx are waging a bloody battle for the sake of their own fucking self-interest!"
"It's for the good of all Faunus!" Adam said now regaining some of his energy, sending a high-speed draw attack at Nova.
The dragon just looked sad, and saw through it like clear glass. Nova simply put his hand forward and caught Adam's strike again.
"Don't you see it, Adam? Haven't you questioned it? What good is all this bloodshed for the Faunus kind? WHAT PURPOSE DOES IT SERVE?!"
Adam was at a loss for words. He'd been having these thoughts ever since their first encounter, when Bell started having doubts, they were further being solidified but he couldn't just abandon Onyx. His life at the White Fang was his legacy, if he dropped it now it 'd mean that everything he'd worked for meant nothing… on top of that whenever the idea of rebellion came into his mind he was suddenly overcome with a sharp headache and blind rage.
"OF COURSE I HAVE- ACK!" Adam clutched his head in pain, there it was again, the familiar pain…
"THEN FIGHT IT!"
Just then Adam received a message on his earpiece communicator. "What is it? Bell? What's wrong why do you sound so wounded…"
Adam was silent as he listened in, "No… you… you're lying…"
Nova used his heightened hearing to hone in on Adam's conversation, he could discern the last sentence.
"Onyx set us up… he tried to kill us… Torchwick, Edan, Lyme, Dune… they're… they're dead… Dune protected me… he's the only reason I'm alive…"
Nova's eyes went wide, he knew they were being used but he saw them as Onyx's most trusted operatives… to think he would turn on his own so easily…
In a fury, Adam gripped the earpiece and smashed it to the ground. "FUCK!" Nova could see the hurt and fury built in his eyes.
The red-haired man turned to his enemy in a blind rage and drew Wilt, shooting several rounds of his rifle at Nova before rushing in.
Nova deflected the bullets and clashed blades with Adam. The bull Faunus tried to slam the scabbard, Blush, down at Nova but the Dragon just shook it off like it tickled.
"You're weak Adam… you don't have the Fragment with you…" Nova said looking at Adam's bare chest.
The man didn't respond. "Onyx has it, doesn't he… he stripped you of that power you once had… that's why you're so weak to me now…" the dragon returned in realization.
When Adam didn't respond with anything but angry grunts Nova sighed. It was time to end this.
"I'm… sorry, Adam… but I did try to warn you…" Nova said before changing Asura to its scythe form, the interlocked blades split apart and Adam was forced off balance. Nova used that opportunity to strike at him hard from the back, curving the scythe around and yanking it hard against him, piercing his aura and hitting him hard over the head, knocking him unconscious.
Nova stood exhausted from the fight, not physically but emotionally. "Now… that's over and done with…"
"Nova Flareheart…" A dark sinister voice boomed around him.
"Who's there?!" Nova said readying Asura on alert now.
The voice chuckled, "Take a wild guess…"
"ONYX!" Nova said fury rising up in his body. His eyes were burning with rage and the Fragment of Fire responded in kind, building fire around him in tendrils.
"Yes… it's me… but I do think we should conduct this exchange face to face…"
I'm actually super hyped for the next chapter, mostly because it'll blow everything out of proportion to like twenty levels.
Up Next: Pyrrha and Nova vs Cinder and Onyx
Yup, that's right, it's happening ladies and gents.
