A/N: Well, after Two years, here it is, the first chapter of my first serious fic, The Crimson Spear, a RWBY x Rising of the Shield Hero fic . Came up with the idea after the anime originally aired and I got to thinking, what if there was someone who actually believed Naofumi could be innocent when Bitch makes her false accusations against him?
Then after remembering that the other three heroes were all summoned after they were killed in their worlds, I realized could use this for crossover material. That was also when I just got done talking about RWBY with a friend and thought about having Pyrrha be summoned as the spear hero instead of the idiotic simp that is Motoyasu after her fateful battle with Cinder. So after talking my idea over with some other friends, I eventually got to work on it and after two long years, I finally finished the first chapter after endless writer blocks and being distracted Anime, Video games, Manga and real life. Hopefully, chapter 2 won't take as long
Also, I would like to thank my friend, NorthSouthGorem for being my beta reader and helping me out with for the past two years, so if you don't mind, please look into his works as welll!
And finally, the Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or The Rising of the Shield Hero, if I did, I would swimming in cash, Cinder would have died atop Beacon while Jaune and Pyrrha finally hooked up, and Bitch would have been sold into slavery while Naofumi married her mom and Raphtalia. This will also be the only Disclaimer in this fic as well.
Now, without further ado...On with the show!
...
"Do you believe in Destiny?"
"…Yes."
These six words echoed in Pyrrha Nikos's mind as she floated in an empty, black void. The former huntress couldn't tell up from or left from right. She thought back to before her fight with the black-haired, fiery golden-eyed femme fatale, to where she had kissed, kissed the love of her life before shoving him into a rocket locker and fired him off to someplace safe.
I'm sorry, Jaune. I won't be able to give you the answers you want any more, she thought, recalling the moments leading up to her demise. She had thrown her shield to stop the strange woman's arrow, only for it to break apart and reform once past. The arrow had pierced through her left ankle, causing the crimson-haired young woman to topple over in pain, clutching her leg with a cry. She tried to stand, but found the pain too immense and looked up as her foe looked down at her while circling her.
"It's unfortunate that you were promised a power that was never truly yours," purred the woman, cupping Pyrrha's chin so that she could look into her eyes. "But take comfort in knowing that I will use it in ways you could never have imagined."
Pyyrha ripped her face from the woman's hand and glared as she asked "Do you believe in destiny?" she asked simply, but boldly.
The woman narrowed her eyes as she stood up. "Yes." Her bow and arrow drew together in her hands, and an arrow lanced into her sternum, right between her breasts. A red glow emanated from where the arrow struck, as Pyrrha began gasping in pain. It burned, deeper and deeper, searing her lungs and windpipe.
From the corner of her eyes, she saw her black-haired, silver-eyed friend and fellow huntress appear from over the edge of the headmaster's former office, as the woman placed a hand on the side of her head. All she felt next was a drifting sensation as her vision went black. For a moment, she thought she heard a cry of "PYRRHAAAA!" and a flash of silver, before her presence vanished into the night wind.
Now she found herself in some sort of limbo, with no idea of what was to come. What will my destiny be now? she wondered. Just as she thought that, however, suddenly she was engulfed by a blinding white light. The next thing she knew, she lay face down in an encircled pentagram.
"Fantastic! The summoning was a success!" said a male voice.
"What the?!" said another.
After taking a second to find her center, Pyrrha lifted herself up, looking around as she stood to find several robed men in front of her and off to the side three other men. Two had black hair, with one being so unkept it made Jaune's bed hair look perfectly groomed. The smaller one was blond like Jaune, but more boyish.
Jaune… she thought sadly, holding her spear close for comfort.
"Brave heroes, won't you please save our world from pure evil?!" said one of the robed men who was standing at the head of the group.
"What/Huh?!" said all four as the other three got up on their feet.
Who are these people? Where am I? Are they connected to that woman? Thought Pyrrha as she saw the ragged black-haired boy shake his arm that had a small, five-sided buckler attached to it.
"What's with this shield?" he said as he tried to tug it off. As he did so, Pyrrha finally realized that although she'd pulled her spear close subconsciously, she shouldn't have had a spear; Cinder had broken Milo. She looked down to see a long, metallic shaft, which widened at the end, tipped with a black and silver spearhead, with a red gem in the center. The other two boys had similarly elegant, yet simple looking weapons, a short sword and a bow.
"Please, oh brave heroes, our world is in dire need of saving!" begged the head robed man.
"Is this for real?" asked the messy black-haired man.
"What do you mean it's in need of saving?" asked the blonde-haired boy as he pulled back on his bowstring.
"The story behind it all is long and complicated, but suffice it to say you are the four cardinal heroes and you were summoned here using an ancient ritual," answered the robbed man.
Cardinal heroes? What exactly is going on here? wondered Pyrrha, subconsciously gripping the spear tightly.
"Our world is in a most fragile state and teeters on the edge of destruction. So we beg of you brave heroes, please lend us your aid!" cried the man fearfully, he and the robed figures bowing low to them.
"I guess we should at least hear you guys out." said the man with the shield.
"I...suppose there's no harm…" murmured Pyrrha hesitantly.
"Forget it." said the black-haired boy with the sword.
Pyrrha and the one with the shield looked at him in shock at his instant refusal. She had always been raised and trained to help those that asked for it.
"How...can you refuse a request for help?" asked Pyrrha angrily
Before he could answer, the blonde said, "I also refuse."
Pyrrha glared at him, her emerald eyes narrowing, while the black-haired sword holder asked, "You can send us home right? Do that and maybe we can talk."
The boy then pointed his sword at the men who had summoned them and said, "You brought the four of us here without our consent! Don't you even feel the least bit guilty about it?"
He's not wrong, though he could have been more polite with it. Wiess would berate him if… she shook her head to be rid of the thought of her friend. Now isn't the time for reminiscing, she told herself.
"Not to mention, if you throw us out as soon as we restore peace, we'd have done all that work for nothing," said the bow user, causing Pyrrha to glower at him.
All these two care about is themselves! She mentally sighed as she looked over at the nervous shield-bearer, who reminded her a little of Jaune due to his nervousness. She smiled and put a hand on his shoulder and when he looked at her, she gave him a small smile and mouthed, "It'll be ok."
"How much are you willing to accommodate our requests? Depending on your answer, we may wind up as your enemies, instead of your allies," demanded the swordsman.
You're in no position to start making threats! Why would you even start with that! she thought indignantly. She was quickly growing angry with these two 'Heroes.'
She was about to open her mouth and say something when the robbed man said "Good sirs, before I say anymore, we'd like you to have an audience with the King of Melromarc. You can negotiate your rewards with him directly. So please…"
Before either of the two jerks could say anything, Pyrrha stepped forward and said, "We would be honored to meet with your king." She bowed her head in respect to the men around them. She sighed quietly when the other two shot her annoyed looks, before striding out to follow their guide, claiming that their demands wouldn't change no matter who they talked to.
They were soon being led up a spiral stone staircase that seemed to be leading up into a tower, and as they were ascending, they came across a barred window that gave them a view of the outside city.
"Wow look, this really is another world huh?" asked the bow wielder.
"Sure is, even the air feels different. It's like how you'd expect it to be described in some kind of a travel brochure," added the holder of the shield.
"Does that mean you've never traveled outside of Japan before?" asked the blonde bow hero.
Japan? wondered Pyrrha, frowning, Is that a Vale town?
"Judging by the breeze, I'd say this place has a fairly standard Mediterranean climate," stated the boy with the sword.
The shield-bearer adopted a sheepish look and said, "Uhh, uh-huh, yeah sure, that's what I meant. I just couldn't remember the word for it."
"It feels like how Menagerie has been described by some of my faunus friends," Pyrrha contributed, only to receive looks of perplexity from the other three.
Before they could ask anything, the robbed summoner asked them to continue following him. He led the group of four out of the tower and across a courtyard. Pyrrha, being a former huntress stuck in an unknown place, kept her guard up as they crossed it. She glanced up at a window of the palace they were about to enter and narrowed her eyes, sensing someone watching them. Her grip on the haft of the spear tightened as they passed under an arch, erasing the window from her sight,
Soon, the four were standing in a large, open chamber with large rectangular windows on one side that gave an excellent view of the city. A long, light red rug with gold embroidery along the edges reached from the doors to a set of large thrones, with guards in armor with spears standing at attention on either side.
On the right throne, sat an elderly man with long grey hair that while neatly groomed, also flowed over his shoulders. He was dressed in a grey tunic with golden trim and white lapel along with white trousers. On his feet were grey boots and across his shoulders was a purple fur-lined mantle. Hanging across his chest was a golden necklace adorned with various rubies and gems.
"So, you four are the cardinal heroes of ancient legend. This is the land of Melromarc, and I am her king, Aultcray Melromarc the thirty second, Welcome, brave, honorable heroes. Please, introduce yourselves." said the man, as he smiled gently down at them.
The black-haired youth raised his sword, resting the blade in the palm of his hand and said, "Amaki Ren, I'm a high school student and I'm sixteen years old."
The blonde Bow wielder stepped forward, pulling the bow up to his chest. "I suppose I'm up next. Kawasumi Itsuki, still in high school and I'm seventeen."
"My name is Pyrrha Nikos," said Pyrrha, stepping forward, "I am...was a student at Beacon Academy." Her mind flashed back to her friends for a moment.
"Guess that leaves me, My name is…" The shield bearer started to introduce himself, only for the King to interrupt him.
"Good, good. So it's Lady Pyrrha, Sir Itsuki, and Sir Ren…"
"Hey King! Ain't you forgetting someone?" protested the young man, indicating himself.
The King's eyes lost some of their kindness, hardening slightly as he grunted, "Ah yes, forgive me."
Itsuki leaned forward and said, "Hey, you can't just say "Hey King" You have to address him with a little respect."
The shaggy haired boy glanced at Itsuki and asked, "So what then, his majesty? No, that would be too formal…"
The King cleared his throat, and coldly replied, "King will do."
Pyrrha looked up at the king, wary of his current tone. What happened to the king, is it because of how he addressed him? She thought.
"All right, if that's what you prefer. I'm Iwatani Naofumi, a college student. I am 20 years old."
"Now then." said the King as he looked over the four youths. "I suppose I should explain why we have bought you here."
Why is the King ignoring Naofumi? Pyrrha thought as the King leaned forward on his throne.
"My beloved kingdom and the nations surrounding it are headed towards a path of certain destruction. Every month or so, dimensional rifts open and disgorge near-endless tides of powerful monsters over a random area in the country. My men barely held off the first wave. Many good men were lost that day."
As the king stopped talking as he bowed his head in sorrow, the four heroes looked at each other in confusion, worry and in Itsuki's case, excitement.
"We underestimated the potency of the waves. Once we actually experienced the first one, and barely survived. We realized that only the four cardinal heroes could stop them. So we followed the legend and summoned you four, but now we have no time to lose."
Ren dropped his sword so that the point would scrape along the floor and said, "Okay, I think we have the gist of it. Anyway I'm assuming you didn't bring us here thinking we would save you for free."
Pyrrha narrowed her eyes at the boy. "You sure are...confident in yourself, Sir Ren," she said evenly, a cold note entering her voice, "To demand to be paid in advance of helping someone in their time of need."
He flinched at her tone, but before he could respond, a shady-looking court official standing off to the side said, "Of course not. Once you have repelled all the waves, I can guarantee that you will be rewarded most handsomely."
"Ok, then it seems we have no choice but to take you at your word!" exclaimed Itsuki.
Ren looked down his nose to say, "As long as you don't go back on your promise, we'll work with you, but don't think for a minute you can tame us."
"Exactly," chipped in Itsuki.
"Right, what these guys said." sighed Naofumi as twisted a lock of his hair nervously.
"If I can trust that we have reached an agreeable arrangement, may I ask you brave heroes to check your statuses?" the King asked tiredly as he leaned back into his seat with a tired look on his face.
"Wait...what's a status?" asked Naofumi.
"I too would like to know that as well." said Pyrrha as she tilted her head inquisitively. "I have never heard of a status before,"
"Uhm, yeah." said Itsuki as Ren sighed while looking at the other three heroes.
"Are guys all dense? It should have been the very first thing you noticed when you got here," he said condescendly.
"I'm sorry, have we...offended you somehow?" Pyrrha asked coldy as she turned to face him. "We are all unsure of what is going on here, unless you have been to other worlds before."
Ren sighed and asked, "Don't you see the icon in the lower right corner of your vision? "
Pyrrha just shook her head in disappointment and did as the sword-carrying boy said. Looking down, she saw a small icon out of the corner of her eye. A small green circle with three white dots.
"Oh hey, now I do!" exclaimed Naofumi.
Pyrrha was silent as Ren explained, "Try focusing your attention on it."
She did as was said, and gasped in surprise. A strange transparent screen popped up in her face, with a row of words going down the left side. What are HP, SP, ATK, DEF, INT, RES, HIT and SPD? What do these numbers mean? At the top, over her name and age, was a green bar, labeled Aura.
Seems I can still view my aura level at least, she thought.
"Only level one?" asked Itsuki, "Well that's really disconcerting isn't it?"
"If I may, your highness, what is all this?' asked Pyrrha.
The shady official from earlier explained, "It's called status magic, an ability that is common to adventurers."
"So where do we go?" asked Naofumi. "What's the first step?"
"You must set out on an adventure to develop and upgrade these legendary weapons you have been equipped with."
"You mean they weren't already maxed out when we got them?" Asked Naofumi dishearteningly. "Also, mine's not even technically a weapon."
"Right now, it seems we have a lot of training ahead of us." said Ren.
Itsuki nodded in agreement. "We'll have to level up hard and fast."
"Then once the four of us feel we're ready, we can form a party and…" Naofumi started to say.
"One moment brave heroes." said the court official as the four looked up at him. "I neglected to mention, you must each recruit allies and adventure separately."
"And why is that?" asked Pyrrha, uncertainly, "Wouldn't it be more prudent for the four of us to work together as a team?" Memories of her former team flashed through her mind. "A team of the four of us only makes sense."
"It is said Lady Pyrrha, that by their very nature…the legendary weapons repel one another. If you were to remain near each other, it will hinder the development of the weapons' growth."
As he spoke, a message suddenly flashed up in her vision. Proximity with the other Legendary Weapons will prevent the accumulation of Experience. If possible, please endeavor to grow stronger independently.
"Looks like he's telling the truth," mused Naofumi.
"Since the sun is about to set, rest here for the night and begin your quests tomorrow," said the King. "In the meantime, we will gather the best of the best to form your parties."
A brown haired woman in a simple, yet elegant dress came up to them and said, "We have quarters prepared for you. Please heroes, right this way." she said as she motioned for them to follow her.
Several hours later, Nightfall
Pyrrha sighed as she sat down on the bed in the room she had been given, her mind a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. One moment, she had been fighting for her life against a mad woman, now she was in some kind of alternate world, being heralded as a legendary hero. All because of her spear. She looked up as she heard a loud "Noooo!" from next door, where the guys were rooming,
Gripping her spear, she ran out and knocked on their door. "Sorry for the interruption, but is everything ok?" she called. After a moment, the door was opened by Ren. "I'm sorry, but I heard a shout," she said, looking over his shoulder to see Itsuki looking at Naofumi with disappointment. Naofumi had his head in his hands, mumbling to himself.
"Yeah. Everything is fine, Naofumi here just learned some bad news about his weapon," the Sword Hero explained dispassionately.
"Oh...okay then. Goodnight," Pyrrha murmured uncertainly. Ren slammed the door shut abruptly. She sighed and went back to her room.
I wonder what Jaune and the others would say right now. She thought as she went to look out her window at the star studded sky. Jaune, Nora, Ren...I hope you're ok and safe. She looked down at her hands. Well…as okay as you can be without me.
The next Morning
Pyrrha found herself standing with the others in the throne room, facing the King and in front of him was a line of various individuals
"We have gathered the strongest warriors in the land. These brave souls will fight the waves beside you." said the King as the heroes looked at the row of fighters. "Our future champions, the time has come to begin your journeys!"
Pyrrha cleared her throat self-consciously. "Ah, excuse me, your majesty," she interrupted politely,
"Yes, Lady Pyrrha?" The King acquiesced her interruption with simple nod
"It's really, very generous of you to have gone to such lengths to find these many adventurers," she began apologetically, giving them a nervous smile, "But with all due respect, I would like to find companions for myself on my own terms."
The handpicked adventurers looked confused as the King seemed to mull over the request, then smiled and said, "As you wish Lady Pyrrha." with a wave of his hand, At this, some of the adventurers looked downcast or upset.
"Thank you, your highness," said Pyrrha, bowing her head in gratitude, Naufumi, Ren and Itsuki looked at her in surprise, but said nothing. She nodded at them and said, "If you will pardon me, I think I'll take my leave now."
The King just smiled, nodded. "Think nothing of it my dear. Now as for the rest of you, the time to form your parties has come. Brave adventures, choose your hero and travel forth."
That was the last she heard of him as she quickly made her way out of the throne room, feeling the gazes of the many nobles on her and hearing their various mutters.
"Why did she turn down the team?"
"Do you think she's doing it to prevent them from dying?"
"She really is a hero, not wanting to risk even veteran lives!"
"So, the spear hero is the lone wolf type eh?"
"She's so brave to face the waves alone!"
She ignored said whispers until she was out of the throne room and down the hall near the exit. As she stood on the threshold of the palace, she looked up at the partly cloudy sky. Am I doing the right thing? Should I see this as a second chance? She looked down at her spear, wishing it was Milo. This one seemed solidly made at least, but it was a tad too long for her liking.
She steeled herself and made her way past the gate and over the bridge into the town below. Soon she found herself wandering aimlessly through the crowded streets, eyeing the various vendors and merchants as they called out to her. For a moment, she forgot that she had died as she realized that for once, no one here knew who she was at the current time. Here, there were no fans who worshipped her for her strength as a tournament champion. Closing her eyes, she stopped and relished the feeling. Well hot stuff, play your cards right and maybe you could join up with the winning team. Pyrrha came back to reality as the moment popped into her head and gasped as someone small bumped into her. She stumbled back a step as she heard an "Aaah."
Looking down, she saw a small child rubbing her posterior as she picked herself up off the ground, a small pile of books around her. She wore a flowing dress with a triangular pattern near the top and a crossing pattern around the rest. Around each of her arms was a thick band, while her feet were clad in sandals that fastened about her ankles.
"Owww…" she whined as she looked up at Pyrrha with wide brown eyes before she jumped to her feet and began bowing repeatedly. Her dark blue hair, done up in pigtails, flapped wildly as she babbled, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm so very sorry for running into you Miss!"
Pyrrha was at a loss of what to do, but put a hand on her shoulder and smiled reassuringly. "O-oh, no, it's okay, you did nothing wrong. There's nothing to apologize for!"
"Bu-but I should have been watching where I-I was going," she hiccupped as she quickly began gathering up her books. "Sorry again Miss!" she exclaimed before running off down an alley. Pyrrha just stood there, silent for a moment before closing her eyes and standing. After she took a deep breath, she opened her eyes and made her way into the city, not knowing where she was going.
She soon found herself in a more rundown section of the city. Windows were boarded up or shattered. Pale, gaunt faces stared hauntingly at her from the shadows. Men leered at her, their eyes full of lust and desperation. Children watched from the shadows, cold calculating eyes watching her lightly armored form for any sign of money. Women looked away from her in shame or fear when they saw that despite how light her armor was, it was extremely well made, showing possible wealth. Then there was the spear; eventually all eyes found their way to the spear.
"Hey there, what'sssh a young noble lady such as yourssself doing here round these partssh?" slurred a raggedly dressed man as he drunkenly staggered in front of her, a jug of cheap booze clasped in his hand.
"Excuse me?" Pyrrha asked warily as she saw more men in rags with various knives and shanks in hand, all grinning madly or leering at her. "May I help you gentlemen?" she asked hesitantly.
"Yeah, you can. You can hand over any coin you have on that lovely body of yours and that fancy spear, lil' missh. Do that and maybe me and the boys will let you go unspoiled." he said drunkenly
Another said, "Come on boss, it's been ages since we last had a girl like her. Lets just just take her like we have in the past." There was a cacophony of cheers at that.
"I'm afraid I can't help you gentlemen. Could you point me back towards the main square?" asked Pyrrha, even as she subtly shifted into a loose combat ready stance.
"Sure lass, once you've handled my spear that is." sneered one of thugs as he reached out to grab her arm, only to find himself flying back against a nearby wall.
The men stared in shock, until one shouted out, "SHIT, THE BROAD JUST SENT FRANKIE FLYING!"
"Sorry!" exclaimed Pyrrha, nonetheless leveling the spear at them, "But I'm afraid I can't acquiesce to your request, good sir."
"You bitch!" shouted the leader as he dropped his alcohol and pulled a knife. "Once I'm done making you my whore, I'm gonna kill you for that!" He charged her, only to gasp when he felt something strike him in the stomach. Looking down, he saw the butt of the spear lodged in his stomach. "You…bitch…!" he swore as he crumpled to the ground, clutching his gut.
The rest of his gang eyed each other, before slinking off back into the shadows.
As Pyrrha turned and started to walk away, she heard a loud female voice cry out.
"HEY, WATCH OUT!"
Pyrrha heard someone shout as an explosion erupted behind her. Looking back, she saw a large portion of the already fractured road awash in a giant flame, before a flaming figure stumbled out, screaming in pain before collapsing. A small tube rolled out of his hand, likewise burning.
"You know, for an all-powerful legendary hero, you're not that good at paying attention to your surroundings," said a woman from behind her.
Pyrrha turned to see a woman with crimson hair like hers, only with golden streaks running through it. Her cyan eyes brimmed with an arrogant confidence as she strode up to Pyrrha. The woman wore a thin, black, steel breastplate with overlapping bands covering her stomach. Crimson gems lined the center of her breast plate, with the one that sat in the valley of her breasts being slightly larger than the others and had a slight glow to it. A short black and red skirt covered her waist, with waist armor overlayed on it. Her arms were covered black bracers on the back of her gauntleted hand being inset with glowing cyan gems, with her greaves being a similar style.
The woman strode up beside her, swaying her hips slightly and picked up the now burnt tube. "You're lucky that I showed up when I did Spear Hero, that fool was about to shoot a poison dart into your back that would have knocked you out," she said, a frown on her face. "Slave trafficking is big business here in Melmorac, especially when it comes to young women like yourself."
"Thank you for your...assistance, but was it necessary to kill the man? Why not arrest and hand him over to the authorities, Miss...:?"
"Shimmer, Sunset Shimmer. The strongest mage in Melromarc," Sunset boasted imperiously, "And as for sparing the fool, he'd be back out on the streets in less than a day, hunting some other poor woman to rape and sell to the highest bidder." She spat on the burning corpse, then looked around the narrow street. "Come on, I'll lead you back to the main square, Spear Hero." With that, Sunset turned and walked away.
A few minutes later, Pyrrha and Sunset were standing in the town market, surrounded by laughing couples, kids running through the street or customers browsing the venues.
"Here, you're gonna need this." said Sunset as she tossed a small, brown sack up and down in her hand. "You left before the king could give you your initial payment. I was asked to bring it to you, so be grateful. Six hundred silver pieces, enough to buy you some decent armor and weapons."
"I...thank you, Miss Shimmer for your aid. If you will excuse me now, I should find said items and then a place to stay." Pyrrha said only for Sunset to shake her head and smirk.
"I don't think so, Miss Spear hero." said Sunset snidely. "I'm coming with you to make sure you survive, seeing as you have no idea how our world works." Sunset put her hand on the redhead's shoulder, gripping it tightly. "I don't know why you turned down the king's hired help, but you won't get far on your own, I saw the look in your eyes." Pyrrha turned to look at her as Sunset continued, "You were planning on going solo from the start, weren't you?"
Pyrrha was silent, not knowing what to say. It was true, she had been considering it, not feeling ready to be part of another team, not after losing team JNPR. "I...just don't feel ready for another team yet…" Pyrrha said as her shoulder sagged.
"What are you on about, another team?" Sunset said rather forcefully. "Look, if you don't form a party, you're going to get yourself killed." snapped Sunset, "I don't know what happened to you before you were summoned, but you need to quit wallowing in self pity." The dual-haired woman turned away from her. "Trust me, it won't help you," she murmured quietly, almost in a whisper.
Before Either could say anything else, they heard someone shout, "Hey, Pyrrha-san!"
The two turned to see Naofumi jogging up to them with a cute looking red headed young woman, with emerald eyes the same color as Pyrrha's and dressed similarly to Sunset, only the woman's armor was silver and purple.
"Ah, Naofumi, hello again!" greeted Pyrrha, smiling politely.
"Myne-san and I were just passing by when we saw you. We just finished buying our armor." Pyrrha saw that Naofumi was now wearing a black chainmail shirt, with leather pants and boots.
The red headed beauty Curtsied, saying "It's an honor to meet you, Lady Pyrrha."
"Well, that is nice. Sunset Shimmer…" Pyrrha looked back at Sunset, "Was kind enough to show me the way to find some equipment, so perhaps I'll be able to pass along your regards."
"Well in that case, good luck Pyrrha-san, Shimmer-san." said Naofumi before he and Myne walked by and vanished into the crowds.
After they were gone, Pyrrha heard Sunset mutter, "Poor bastard." Before the redhead could ask for a repeat, her 'guide' continued on by saying, "Well, let's get a move on, Miss Pyrrha. I believe I recognized the craftsmanship of Naofumi's and…Myne's armor."
Sunset turned and began to walk down the street before Pyrrha could say anything. However, she'd definitely noticed the sour expression that had twisted her guide's face. Looking back at her fellow hero who had vanished and wandered off, she then hurried to follow after Sunset. The fiery-haired woman led her through a labyrinth of merchant stalls, and as they did, Pyrrha found herself relaxing. The scene reminded her a little of her visit to Mistral's capital. Soon, the duo found themselves standing before a simple shop that Sunset entered without even knocking.
Pyrrha followed after her into the building, and found herself in a shop filled with a variety of weapons. On one wall was a rack of swords, down the center was a row of tables with small daggers laid out on them. On the other wall was a line of armored suits, all perfectly polished to a shine.
At the back was a low counter with a tall, dark skinned man standing beside it, going through a box of small weapons. He was well built with covering his face, he wore a grey shirt over a pair of black pants covered in dirt and soot. His hands were covered by thick black gloves and his feet were in a pair of black boots as well. Around his waist was a two part smithing apron and a belt full of tools. Pyrrha also noted that his arms were covered in scars as well.
"Welcome ladies ...well I'll be, it's been some time since you were in, little Miss Shimmer." The man greeted them with a small bow of his head. "A few months, yeah?"
Sunset chuckled. "Yeah, it's been a while, old man, and I added the final touches to the armor myself." she boasted as she pointed to the glowing jewels set in her breast plate. "I enchanted them with various effects that weakens elemental and spiritual attacks."
"Well ain't that something, Miss," the man said, scratching his head and looking over at Pyrrha. "And who might this pretty young lass be?"
"Hello. My name is Pyrrha Nikos," she replied politely, with a small bow of her head.
"She's the Spear Hero, and we are looking for some better armor than what she has on now." Sunset said with her arms crossed under her breasts, causing them to be more pronounced. "We have six hundred silver, so give us the best you have under that. Anymore, and I will have to ask my master for some"
"Well, talk about having an interesting day, first the Shield Hero, and now the Spear Hero...or should I say Spear Heroine. I'm Erhardt, welcome to my shop Miss." He gave a small bow of his head.
"I thought I recognized the craftsmanship of the armor that fool and his partner were wearing." snarked Sunset as she leaned against the wall. "Well, in any case. We are here to get some armor that is better suited to fighting the waves."
Pyrrha let her eyes roam over the various weapons and shields that aligned the walls and tables and moved to pick up a shield to inspect it when suddenly… *Bzzt* "Ouch!" she exclaimed, dropping the shield as sparks arced between her hand and the weapon.
A small box popped up in her HUD.
Warning: a hero may not equip any weapon other than their assigned legendary weapon, with the intent to fight.
Pyrrha frowned and went to pick it up again, only to once more receive a shock that jolted the shield out of her hand. "Seems I am unable to use a shield, Sunset," she sighed regretfully.
In response, Sunset put a hand to her chin, while the store owner scratched his head in confusion. Then, after a moment her smile widened slightly. "You say it won't let you use a shield, correct?"
Pyrrha nodded. "Not as long as I want to fight with it."
"How about when you pick it up, you don't think of it as a weapon?" suggested Sunset, holding up the shield for her again. "Think of it as just a piece from a suit of armor."
Pyrrha bit her lip, gazing at it. "I don't know if I can…I've always fought using my shield just as much as my spear. It would be a waste to just use it for defense."
The red-streaked blonde shrugged. "Way it looks to me, you don't have a choice."
"...That's true." Just a piece of armor, just a piece of armor, she mentally chanted. Her old method of fighting, while far superior, simply wasn't attainable in this situation. A warrior must adapt to her circumstances and fight in any way they can. If giving up one weapon will let me stay alive…then I have to try.
She placed her hands on the shield, tensing up and waiting for the zap. A few seconds went by, but nothing happened, making her sigh with relief. She picked up the round shield, smiling sadly when she noticed it was similar in style to her old shield, Akoúo̱. Sighing, she put the shield back down, while Sunset and Erdhart just grinned at each other.
"Seems it worked after all~" Sunset snarked as she put a hand on her waist, "Funny, I expected it to take more than one try before you figured it out. Guess that's a Cardinal hero for you."
Pyrrha then walked around to a case of spears that were lining the wall and stared at them for a minute, then looked down to her spear and back up to the case. She reached out and grasped a simple Spear with a plain wooden shaft and an iron blade. After a second, the red jewel in her own spear began to glow, shining a ray of light on the other one.
Once the light died down, one of the empty slots on her screen suddenly filled in.
New Form copied
Standard Iron Spear:
Atk: 10
Spd: 15
Her spear now looked exactly like the iron spear she had scanned, only now it too bore the red jewel in the base of the spear head. Sunset and Erhardt just stared in shock for a moment, before Erdhart put a hand over his face.
"I did not just see that," The smith groaned, while Sunset laughed, "If you really did do that, you're gonna run me outta business lady."
Meanwhile Sunset's mouth settled into an amused smirk. "No need to worry, old man, she ain't stealing from you and I doubt she can reproduce your work. At least not without several years of experience in smithing," Sunset pointed out as she patted the smith's shoulder.
"Actually…I could in theory. Back on…" Pyrrha stopped speaking for a moment and took a deep breath, pushing back the memories of Remnant and her days at Sanctum Academy. "Back in my world, one of the main requirements for my training was forging my own weapons."
"So you're already a trained warrior?" asked Sunset with a contemplative look in her eyes. "Now that is interesting. From what I've heard, the other heroes have no such training and that begs another question." She said as she looked at the copied spear. "Is it just the spear or can the other cardinal weapons copy other weapons of the same type?"
"I hope not," groused Erhardt sourly, while Sunset snickered.
"Anyway, any armor she needs is on me this time." Sunset quipped as she reached into her cloak and pulled out a large sack of silver. "I want to ensure our Spear Hero actually lives to do her job, and that paltry sum the king gave the heroes ain't going to cut it for long. Best to save that for food and lodging."
"My advice would be to go for something like my armor, but then again, we don't know your magical attributes yet." mused Sunset, tapping her lower lip. "Think you can have it ready by tomorrow or the day after?"
Erhardt shrugged. "Yeah, that sounds doable to me."
"Good, well then after you get her measurements, we'll be off to do some leveling," she said, pulling a measuring tape from a pouch at her side. Brightly, she added, "Well, time's a-wastin'!" and pushed Pyrrha into the changing room.
A little over an hour later, Pyrrha and Sunset found themselves making their way out to the wilds in search of monsters to slay and start leveling up. Soon, they were walking through an open field of grass when they heard a loud howl echo through the air. Sunset grinned, while Pyrrha's eyes widened with slight unease and fear, before she tightly gripped her spear. She cursed Cinder Fall for destroying Milo in the fight atop Beacon tower. Not that she could use it now, thanks to her new weapon.
She knew those howls. But why would THEY be here? How could they be here?
"Well this should be fun," commented Sunset. Her right hand became engulfed in a ball of blazing fire that surprised the spear wielding hero for a moment. Then, her ears picked up the familiar sound of several pairs of padded feet pounding towards them.
A pair of soldiers came running over the crest of the hill ahead of them, screaming "RUN! IT'S A PACK OF HOWLERS!"
As the duo reached them, a pack of pitch black, wolf-like creatures loped into view. Their front limbs were gangly, humanoid arms, and from their backs jutted bony spikes. The top half of their faces were similarly covered with bony masks.
Grimm, thought Pyrrha in shock, Beowolves!
"Heh, a pack of this size can easily rip a small squad of soldiers to pieces from what I've heard," commented Sunset arrogantly as her other hand exploded into a fireball. "Too bad they didn't have me there!"
With that proclamation, Sunset pulled her arms back, then spun on the heel of her foot and thrust her hands forward as the balls of flames shot forth from her hands. "This is the end for you!" she shouted gleefully.
The twin balls of flame soared towards the wolf-like creatures and merged into one enormous ball of blazing red hellfire that crashed into the pack of nightmarish creatures. An explosion engulfed them, sending at least three flying from the impact, while three more were flat out vaporized.
Pyrrha's eyes widened in shock at the act. To be able to obliterate half of a pack at once...just how strong was her new comrade?
Shaking her head, Pyrrha focused on the other three that had survived and charged the first one that had staggered back to its feet. Growling, it lunged at her, lashing out with its bone-white, razor sharp claws. She ducked under the lunge, and stabbed into its left leg, pinning it down. It howled with rage and pain, swinging a clawed hand and slashing at her again. Pyrrha ducked under the slash easily, pulling her spear free as she did so, and spun it, whacking it in the skull with a solid *thunk.* Then, as it reeled, stumbling and limping from the stab in its foot, she plunged her weapon up under its jaw and out the top of its skull, killing it instantly.
Barely missing a beat, she darted towards the next Beowolf, apparently catching it by surprise as her spear stabbed deep into its chest, right between the ribs. Then, changing her grip, she hefted the monster on her spear, lifting it into the air, and hurled it straight into the third one, making them both yelp as they slammed into each other and went down in a snarling heap.
Even as she kept moving, Pyrrha marveled at herself. A single night's rest shouldn't have her running at her peak after the fight she'd just had atop Beacon Tower, right? Even during her tournament days, she'd always needed a few days off to recover from her exhaustion (though those breaks grew shorter as her opponents became quick to throw in the towel).
In next to no time, all three Beowolves were dead. Pyrrha's breasts heaved from the adrenaline that was rushing through her veins. Her eyes swept over the field, looking for more foes, but found none. Her grip loosened around the haft of the spear as she looked over at the bodies of the Grimm she had slain.
Wait, bodies? Normally, Grimm bodies disintegrated upon death, but these hadn't. She stepped over to one and noticed that it was disintegrating, but very slowly. This was the first time she had seen a Beowolf this close without it trying to rip her throat out.
While Pyrrha was examining the creature, Sunset was staring in awe at the ease that the Spear Hero had dispatched the howlers. She had expected a Cardinal Hero to be strong, but not this strong. It was as if she had been trained to fight her whole life, and while this was a boon, it left her unsettled for some reason. Why would someone be trained from childhood to fight with such skill? Was her world's nations constantly warring with each other?
Meanwhile Pyrrha was looking over the slowly disintegrating creature and broke off one of its claws when it started to disintegrate. She stared at it as the grimm finished dissolving, then at her legendary weapon. WIthout fully understanding why, she placed the claw on the jewel that sat within the spear head. She watched as the jewel glowed, and the claw sunk into it.
The screen from before popped up saying
New Spear Acquired
Beowolf Claw Spear
Atk: 10
Spd: 5
Pyrrha watched as the spear glowed bright red, then shrank slightly in length, while the tip began to curve inward. A moment later, she held a pitch black shaft, topped with a pale, claw-like blade, with crimson-orange stripes running along its curve down to and encircling the red gem.
Sunset watched the transformation interestingly; she had heard that the legendary relics could change form by absorbing monster parts, but hadn't really put much stock in the rumors.
Pyrrha's eyes widened in shock and no small amount of fear at the form her spear had become. How do I get it to change back!? She wondered, and no sooner had the thought entered her mind, a sprawling web of icons (mostly question marks) appeared, the whole view sliding over to what looked like a central node, marked Legendary Spear, and the weapon flashed, transforming back back into its original state.
"Amazing." She turned around to see her teammate looking at her with a calculating look in her eyes. "I had heard the rumors, but to see it actually happen…" The flame haired woman walked closer. "There were rumors and stories that the cardinal weapons could gain new forms by absorbing monster parts and other random materials, but to see that they were real is something else."
They turned to find that soldiers from before were nowhere to be seen. After a few moments, Pyrrha looked at Sunset and said, "Those...Howlers, I've seen them before."
Sunset looked at her oddly before shaking her head. "You can tell me once we are back in town. It's getting late and the stronger monsters like to come out at night." She gestured to the sun, which was now close to dipping beneath the horizon. "If we leave now, we can make it back just in time to get a room at an Inn for the night,"
Pyrrha looked back down uncertainly at her spear before nodding at Sunset. Together, they slowly made their way back to Melromarc's capital city. Once they were inside the gates, Sunset led Pyrrha to an...oddly shaped tavern, called the Boar's Hat. The roof was shaped like a conical hat. Inside, a variety of patrons were downing mugs of repugnant booze, shouting at each other while eating or passed out drunk.
A single waitress was moving about, setting down mugs full of liquor and plates of food. Her silver hair flapped through the air as she skipped throughout the pub. She wore a pink buttoned down shirt that bared her midriff and had a black ribbon laying on her breast, her dark mini skirt barely kept her undergarments covered.
Behind the bar, was a tall, skinny man in glasses, with ginger hair and a thick, well-kept moustache. He was busy cleaning mugs, dressed in a typical bar keeps uniform. Behind him, a man dressed in a red leather jacket and pants with metal studs sewn into both legs alongside shoes of similar, yet darker colors. The man was standing over a small grill, a frying pan in his hand with a piece of meat sizzling inside it.
Alongside the moustachioed man was a short, thin boy with blonde hair, dressed in a similar manner to the man beside him.
"Hey, Elizabeth! Two more customers!" the blonde boy shouted over the ruckus while wiping down a mug.
"Of course Sir Meliodas!" shouted the silvered waitress. She turned to face them and said, "Welcome to the Boar's- Lady Sunset!" If it was possible, the smile the waitress had from earlier seemed to grow in size as she hurried over. "What brings you here, the usual?"
Sunset chuckled as patted the waitress on the head. "Hey there Lizzy, sorry I ain't been by lately and yes, the usual please."
The waitress, Elizabeth, led the two over to the bar, where the blonde kid looked up and said, "Hey, Sunny, been awhile!"
To which Sunset sighed, then smirked. "Well, that's how life rolls for one the strongest mages in the kingdom. Stuck in court all the time, wasting my talent on useless nobles and an idiot king when I could be spending more time learning to bend space and time to my will."
"Sooo, who's the cutie with the spear?"
"This cutie as you say is the Spear hero, so keep your wandering hands to Elizabeth and Diane." snarked Sunset.
The man in glasses shakily placed a mug of rum in front of her. "Yo-your usual, La-Lady Sunset."
"Thanks, Escanor."
The blonde, Meliodas leaned against the counter. "So Miss, what's your name?" he asked casually, looking at the red haired spear wielder.
"Ahh, Hello. My name is Pyrrha Nikos, it's a pleasure to meet you, er, Sir Meliodas," replied Pyrrha with a polite nod of her head, before looking down at the bar. The kid's hair and flirtatious personality reminded her of when Jaune first tried to hit on her, completely unaware of fame until Wiess mentioned her stint as pumpkin pete's Mascot. Even then he never really said anything after his initial geek out moment, which she had found secretly adorable at the time.
"Well then, Miss Nikos. Welcome to the Boars Hat. I'm the owner and proprietor of this humble joint, Meliodas. What can I getcha? We got the best drinks in the kingdom and the best food along with the cutest staff around."
"Thank you, but I am afraid that I am still underage, Mr. Meliodas." Pyrrha bowed her head in gratitude while Meliodas cocked his head.
"Underage, but you look like you're 15, 16?"
"17, actually." said Pyrrha shyly.
"Then you're more than old enough to have a drink!" exclaimed meliodas. "In fact you're even old enough to- '' Meliodas was cut off by the cook slapping him upside the head with a frying pan.
"Leave the woman alone Cap, if she doesn't want to drink booze, then she doesn't have to." The chef turned to her and scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry about the captain, he can be a pain in the ass at times. It's best if you just ignore him. Ever since he hooked up with Diane and Elizabeth, he's gotten a bit full of himself."
"Oh, um, o-okay?" Pyrrha answered uncertainty, not sure how to react to hearing of a guy with two girlfriends.
At that moment, the bell over the front door rang as Naufumi and his teammate…Myne, that was it, walked in.
Pyrrha watched as Elizabeth greeted the two, then showed them to a table. Naofumi looked up and gave her a small wave and a smile. A few minutes later, the cute waitress had set drinks in front of them, then wandered off to tend to the other Patrons.
"So Red, how did you know to fight like that back there?" asked a slightly slurred voice from beside her. Pyrrha looked over to see Sunset, her cheeks already flushed from the booze she was swirling in her mug,
"I'm sorry?" asked Pyrrha, confused as to what she meant by the question.
"Back there with the Howlers, the way you put down the last of 'em was way beyond what I expected, even for a new cardinal hero. Experienced adventurers fight like that." Sunset sat her mug on the bar, and crossed her legs. "I want to know how you were able to fight so easily, hell some of the seasoned knights here wouldn't be able to match you."
"…In a way, I was trained to fight, but it was initially as a way of survival. Back...in my world, outside the major cities, the wilds are crawling with monsters. We call them the Creatures of Grimm. Those Howlers, as you called them, were from my home, where they're called Beowolves," Pyrrha explained, picking at the food on her plate. "Most kids go to schools that train them how to fight, and afterwards, a select few choose to further their education by attending elite academies dedicated strictly to hunting and killing Grimm,"
Meliodas and Sunset shared a slightly shocked look at that. "You've seen those creatures before?" Pyrrha nodded her head, while Sunset threw back her head and laughed. "By the four heroes, this is perfect!" she exclaimed. "We are going to be unstoppable during the waves."
Sunset threw back the last of her drink. "Even then, we are still going to need more comrades. I may be the strongest mage in the kingdom, but even I can only do so much. My teacher practically beat into me the need for a good team of friends that will have your back"
"You know, I can recommend some people to ya if you're lookin' for more teammates," said Meliodas with a chuckle, "You'll definitely be unstoppable then."
"Sure, as long one of them ain't you. We don't need you trying to sneak peeks into the girl's tent." Snarked Sunset.
"Your lack of faith wounds me, Sunset," said the blonde barkeep with a grin. "Give me a day or two, and I'll have them ready for you. Sadly, I can't come with you, I have a tavern to run, after all!"
Sunset rolled her eyes at that, while keeping an eye on her surroundings. Pyrrha was picking at the food on her plate in a melancholy manner. "Don't worry, Sunny, she'll be in good hands staying here for the night. It's on the house until ya'll leave to start your adventure."
Sunset just grinned as she stood and stretched. "In that case, I'm going to head on out. Got a friend I wanna talk to before heading home for the night. Later Red." With that, the yellow and red haired woman strode out the door.
"Well, want me to have my cute waitress show you to your room?" said Meliodas with a cheerful grin. "Or are you still hungry?"
Pyrrha looked down at her barely touched plate. "Thank you, Sir Meliodas. I would be grateful for that." she murmured.
Naofumi came up beside her. "Hey. Barkeep, how much for a room?" he asked with a tired smile.
"For you, it's on the house, like with Pyrrha here. Ain't no way I'm charging any of the Cardinal Heroes unless you plan on staying here for a while." The cheerful barkeep replied, "I make more than enough from my regulars to cover you."
Before Naofumi could respond, the blonde shouted over the loud, raucous drunks. "HEY, ELIZABETH! THESE TWO ARE READY TO TURN IN. SHOW THEM TO THEIR ROOMS PLEASE!"
"Of course Sir Meliodas!" the waitress called out cheerfully, before leading the two upstairs.
At the same time, Ren and Itsuki also entered the tavern and watched them going upstairs.
A couple of minutes later, Pyrrha was sitting on the side of her rented bed, staring at the spear for a few seconds before leaning it against the wall beside her. She then fell back upon her bed, her head sinking into the simple, yet soft pillow as she stared up at the ceiling in thought.
Why was I chosen for this role? I lost my battle against Cinder Fall, failed Professor Ozpin and my team. She raised a hand so that it was silhouetted against the moonlight coming through the window. Is destiny giving me another chance? A chance to once again try and save the world? She dropped her hand and turned over on her side to look at her spear as her vision began to blur and blacken as sleep overtook her. Ren, Nora, Jaune, wherever you are, I hope you're safe. Was her last thought as her world went dark.
After what felt like only a few mins, Pyrrha was awoken by the sound of someone pounding on something and shouting outside in the hallway.
*Hey Myne, open up! All our money and equipment has been stolen!" What's going on? Who's shouting? She thought blearily as her eyes fought between opening and closing. "You asleep in there? Wake up, we're in serious trouble here!" Groaning in defeat, Pyrrha pulled herself to herself out of bed and looked out the window to see two carriages pull up outside. She watched as a plethora of guards rushed out of them. Sensing something was wrong, she grabbed her spear and rushed out the door just in time to see some knights manhandling and restraining a barely dressed Naofumi.
"Hey, what are you doing to me? Let me go, You got it all wrong, I've been robbed!" Naofumi shouted as he struggled against the guards. Her eyes widened when one reared back, getting ready to punch the boy. Without thinking, she rushed forward and grabbed the knight's wrist.
"Excuse me, what seems to be the problem, Sir Knight?" she asked firmly.
"Mind your business peasant, you'll find out soon…!" The knight rounded on her, ready to reprimand her more, but flinched upon seeing the spear in her other hand. "La-Lady Spear!" he stammered as Pyrrha released his wrist. "Forgive me, M'lady, but the King has summoned the Shield Hero, by force if necessary. In fact, we were ordered to ask you to attend as well."
Pyrrha looked at the guards, then Naofumi. "Why is he being forced to come, but I am being given a choice?"
"I'm afraid I am not at liberty to say, M'lady, but his highness will surely explain everything once we arrive at the palace," the knight answered with a frown.
"Then take us to the King together," said Pyrrha firmly, her jade eyes narrowing slightly.
"O-of course Lady Spear Hero! Men, escort the Shield Hero and the Lady Spear Hero to the carriage!"
Pyrrha walked out alongside Naofumi just as Sunset came up to the door. The knights immediately lowered their spears in her direction, barring her from the two heroes.
"Uh, Pyrrha? What's going on here? Why are you and the Shield Hero surrounded by knights?" she asked, over the guard telling her to stand back.
"Please, sir knight, she is a member of my team." Pyrrha said quickly when the lead knight began to raise his weapon
The knight looked between the two, before lowering his spear. "Apologies, Lady Spear Hero," he said, while Sunset rolled her eyes. The knights let Sunset pass through them and slip in beside her and Naofumi.
"So an armed escort to the castle eh? Wonder what's going down. Where's your teammate, Nao…fumi, was it?" Sunset asked as she propped her arm up on the window.
"Yes, that's my name and I don't know, I woke up and found that my gear had been stolen along with my money. Even the clothes that I had on when I was brought here were gone! And Myne is still asleep back at the Tavern, I couldn't wake her up even with all the pounding on her door." Naofumi said with a scared look on his face. "I'm hoping she is ok."
"I see," muttered Sunset, as the carriage started forward. After they were halfway to the castle, Sunset perked and said. "Oh yeah, almost forgot. Last night, I made a few stops along the way to my place. Talked to a few friends of mine and they have agreed to join our party later on today or in the next few days."
"Actually, I do believe that I asked too…" Pyrrha started to repeat her request from yesterday, only for Sunset to hold up a hand.
"You wanted to look for people on your own terms? Yeah, heard about that." Sunset rolled her eyes. "In reality, you were planning on going solo." Naofumi looked on in slight shock at that, while Pyrrha just looked down at the floor. "Long story short, that ain't going to cut it here. The waves are just going to get stronger and you're going to need a team to back you up." Sunset flipped her hair over before continuing, running her fingers through it. "At least take solace in knowing that the ones that will be joining us won't turn on you, like some other adventurers would."
Naofumi looked at Sunset with a confused expression, but before he could say anything, the carriage jerked to a stop. The door swung open and a guard appeared. "Lady Spear Hero, Lady Shimmer...Shield Hero, we have arrived at the castle. The King and the other two Heroes are waiting inside." he said with a small nod towards Pyrrha and Sunset.
As the trio were escorted inside the castle, the females noticed a lot of glares or looks of outright hatred aimed at them. No, not at us, but… Sunset looked out the corner of her eye over at Naofumi, who was wringing his hands from worry. She moved close to Pyrrha and whispered "Keep your guard up, I have a bad feeling about something"
Pyrrha just nodded as they were led into the throne room, where Itsuki and Ren were already waiting. She saw all the guards glaring at them, her grip on the spear tightening slightly.
King Aultcray himself looked livid, like he was ready to attack them, though the look abated somewhat when he looked at her. Before he could say anything, Itsuki spoke up.
"Pyrrha-san, you and your companion should step away from Naofumi, you're not safe around him!"
Pyrrha blinked, a confused look entering her eyes as Sunset cocked an eyebrow.
"Wh-what?" Naofumi sputtered, affronted.
"We know all about what you tried to do Naofumi, though I will admit I am impressed you chose not to run," said Ren, giving him a cold stare.
"May I ask what is going on?" asked Pyrrha.
"I'll tell you what Pyrrha-San, Naofumi here is a rapist!" exclaimed Itsuki, pointing his finger at Naofumi. "We all know what you did last night you bastard!"
Naofumi just stared, shocked into near silence, "I…wha?"
Pyrrha looked just as shocked as Naofumi while Sunset narrowed her eyes.
"Something is off here," Sunset thought.
Naofumi finally spoke up. "I didn't do anything, I was the one who was robbed and Myne wouldn't answer her door!"
It was then that they saw Myne hiding behind Itsuki, trembling in fear. "Myne wasn't in her room! She came running to my room after what you did to her!"
"But I keep telling you, I didn't do any-"
"ENOUGH!" roared the King, a look of pure hatred in his eyes as he glared at Naofumi, before sighing and pinching his nose. "My dear, I am sorry to have to put you through this, but will you recount the events of last night?"
Myne looked up fearfully from where she was shivering behind Itsuki and in a trembling voice said. "It was late, and I had gone to bed early and a few hours later...the shi-shield hero came stumbling into my qua-quarters. He was drunk and said "It's late, but the night is young, so let's enjoy it shall we?" and proceeded to rip my nightgown off, then he-he..began touching me…"
Myne looked at everyone, and continued, her fear filled voice hesitantly gaining some strength to it, "I tried to scream but he covered my mouth by kissing me, then he passed out and fell on top of me, one hand on my breast, the other in my under…. I stayed still all night, scared of waking him and when the sun began to rise I managed to move him off of me enough to move. I grabbed a nearby sheet and rushed to Sir Itsuki's quarters for help!"
Pyrrha looked at him in shock and some fear for a split second, then heard Sunset whisper "Lying bitch," under her breath. Pyrrha then looked over at Naofumi, looked into his eyes and saw nothing but fear, confusion and anger. There was no lust, no madness within that she could see.
"Myne! What are you saying! I didn't do anything like that, I'm the one who was robbed! My armor and money are gone!" Naofumi shouted at her, causing her to duck behind Itsuki, a surprising feat given how short the blonde boy was.
Pyrrha thought back to the previous night and recalled that she and Naofumi had gone upstairs together and recalled that he had been as sober as she had been. Just as she was about to speak up, Sunset put a hand on her shoulder. Looking over, she saw Sunset shake her head and mouth stay quiet. As she did this, they heard Itsuki shout "Bastard!".
The various nobles around them all began to whisper, looks of disgust were aimed at Naofumi as he looked around in alarm.
"But I didn't do anything, I didn't even drink last night, ask the bar owner or the waitress, they saw me go up to my room early!"
Again, Pyrrha began to say that she went up with him, but Sunset's grip tightened as a guard came into the room, some purple fabric in his hands.
"My King, this was found in the shield Hero's room."
He held up a piece of fabric to show it was the top part of a woman's nightgown, one side's edge was ragged, showing that it had been ripped. The king's face twisted in rage while Itsuki and Ren glowered at Naofumi, with Itsuki looking like he was ready to use his weapon to kill Naofumi on the spot.
"To think you would use your position to take advantage of your teammate. I should kill you where you stand, for surely that would be the justice you deserve!" snarled Itsuki, unslinging his bow and pointing it at Naofumi.
"Sir Itsuki, that is enough! Please put away your weapon." The king growled spitefully, those his eyes screamed he was in total agreement with the Bow user. "Sadly, I can't allow you to Kill him nor can I imprison him, he is a hero, and thus is needed to help contest the waves of catastrophe. Personally, I would love nothing more than to send him back, but the spell requires that in order to summon new heroes, the current ones must die first."
"Say what!? Are you saying that we have to fight alongside a rapist?" exclaimed Itsuki, while Ren shook his head in disappointment.
Pyrrha shrugged off Sunset's hand and moved forward, no longer willing to stand by and do nothing. Sunset mentally swore, just knowing this would not turn out well as Pyrrha strode up to Naofumi and placed a hand on his shoulder, then looked up at the king.
"Your majesty, if I might say something about these events?" Pyrrha asked politely.
"Of course Lady Pyrrha. Did the Shield make inappropriate moves on you as well?" The King asked, his tone filled with concern. "Please, Speak Lady Pyrrha." He spoke earnestly, while Naofumi looked over at her in dread
"Actually your majesty, I...would like to speak up on behalf of Naofumi's innocence." said Pyrrha nervously as all eyes turned to her in shock.
"You want to do what!?" exclaimed Itsuki, while Ren narrowed his eyes, but said nothing.
"And why is that?", asked Aultcray, his interest now piqued, albeit with an edge of anger in his tone.
"I…" Pyrrha took a deep breath, then continued, "I was at the Inn that Naofumi stayed at as well. I witnessed him turn down Myne's offer of sharing a drink with her and the two of us even went up stairs to our individual rooms and I can say, without a shadow of a doubt that he was not drunk." Pyrrha narrowed her eyes as angry and confused whisper's mutterings began circulating around the throne room from the onlookers. "Furthermore, since I was raised and trained as a warrior from childhood back in my world, I am a light sleeper and thus would have heard any sounds of a struggle, since his room was right next to mine.
"On top of that." Pyrrha turned to Itsuki and Ren. "Mr. Itsuki, that armor you are wearing, I saw that on Naofumi yesterday when I encountered him and Myne out in town AND in the Tavern before we separated for the night. How is it that you have it now?"
"Hey, now that I think about it, you're right! Why the hell do you have my armor, Itsuki!?" exclaimed Naofumi angrily.
Itsuki, stunned for a second at having the spotlight placed on him, stammered out. "M-Myne pre-presented it to me as a gift while helping her recover from Naofumi's rape attempt!" Itsuki declared while glaring at Naofumi.
"If that is the case, then please call for the blacksmith that sold the armor and ask him about it," stated Pyrrha firmly, crossing her arms firmly. "On top of that, why not ask for the Barkeeper and his waitress from the tavern, as well."
Silence filled the hall, everyone stunned by how suddenly the other redhead had taken charge. Then the King blustered. "Y-young lady, you're presuming an awful lot, giving orders in this court!" he sputtered.
Her bright green eyes widened in dismay. "Orders? Oh no, your majesty! I'm sorry if I was overstepping! But you know, if you're going to pursue Naofumi to the fullest extent of the law, isn't it best to get witnesses? A full investigation should be performed to determine if Naofumi is truly guilty. Is that not how Justice is served? If this were Itsuki or Ren, would they also be guilty just on a single person's word alone?" Pyrrha clenched her fist and took a deep breath, then released it. "Please your majesty, if anything else, please allow Naofumi to prove his innocence in the future by helping to fight the waves that are coming. Let his actions speak louder than words!" She unclenched her fist and hardened her eyes. "...And should it come to pass that Naofumi is truly guilty, then after the waves have been defeated, I swear on my honor as a Huntress, that I will deal with him myself."
If nothing else, should the worst happen and no evidence is found, and the king decides his actions are not enough…...I can make sure his end is swift and painless, cause I doubt these people will give him that mercy, Pyrrha thought as she eyed the crowd; they still seemed mostly convinced her comrade was guilty, though a few seemed to be reconsidering their stances.
"Ren, Itsuki, is that not a fair deal?" the spear wielder asked of her two compatriots. The two of them shared a look, before nodding slowly.
"Pyrrha-san is right," said Itsuki, "A person accused of any crime should have the chance to prove their innocence, and given how this world's technology is far behind our world's means of doing so, I have no objections to Naofumi proving himself by his actions."
Ren sighed, his eyes losing just a little hostility. "Pyrrha-san and Itsuki-san make good points, so I have no objections." He then pointed his sword at Naofumi and said seriously, "But know this, Naofumi, we will be watching you closely."
Naofumi wasn't sure how to feel, given the situation, but he was grateful that at least someone seemed to believe he was innocent. If nothing else, thanks to the other redhead, he had a small chance to prove himself, if the king agreed to it.
Pyrrha and Sunset both noticed Myne scowling at the turn of events, further convincing her that Naofumi had been set up somehow. Why, though, was the question at the forefront of Pyrrha's mind.
The King clenched his teeth and gripped the arm rests of his throne, before releasing them and pinching his nose. Sighing, he reluctantly said, "Very well, since the other two cardinal heroes agree, I will allow your request, Lady Pyrrha. But know this." The King glared at Naofumi. "The charges against the Shield Hero have already been spread far and wide across the nation; he will never be able to live a normal life until he has proven his innocence."
Pyrrha bowed her head, and said, "Thank you, your majesty."
The King grunted. "That is all, I wish you heroes the best as you depart on your journey."
Having been dismissed, the four heroes and their parties, or lack thereof, departed the throne room. As Ren and Itsuki continued on ahead, Naofumi stopped Pyrrha and said, "Thank you Pyrrha-san for helping me out there, I was scared that I was going to be killed or worse." as he bowed to her. Pyrrha just waved her hands in front of her face and said "It was no problem Naofumi, it wasn't right, what was happening. As a Huntress, I was trained to look at everything with a clear mind and without relying on my emotions."
"Personally, I tried to have Pyrrha keep her mouth shut," sighed Sunset from where she leaned against the wall, a small ball of purple fire floating in her hand.
""But why? It should have been obvious that I was framed!" exclaimed Naofumi.
"Because idiot, she just made the King and possibly the entire court wary of her. The only thing keeping them from turning on her fully is the fact that A. she is the Spear Hero and B. she's female. Melromarc is a matriarchy, so women here have slight advantages over men."
"I get that, but what does my shield have to do with this, other than being useless in a fight?"
"It's due to the fact that the Spear, Sword and Bow Heroes are worshipped like gods in Melromarc, while the Shield is often considered a devil. The cards were already stacked against you...had you been summoned in Siltvelt or even in Shieldfreeden, you would have been treated better, cause in those nations it's the demihumans that hold the most power, particularly Siltvelt. The Shield is the one that is worshipped as a god there."
At this, Naofumi gained a hopeful look, before Sunset said, "Though I would suggest against going there right now. For one, you can bet Melromarc will do everything it can to keep you from leaving, and two, while there would be hundreds of ladies lining up to join you, they'd be after your seed and dragging you into their politics. Although, if you gave the order they would go to war with any nation in a heartbeat."
Sunset sighed, then continued, "As it is, you're gonna have it rough here. I can say at least this much. Erhardt the smith and that idiot Meliodas and his crew will give you a fair chance, maybe even be able to point you to some people who would be willing to join your party." She pushed herself off the wall and extinguished the ball of fire, saying, "And with that, I think we've done enough to help you for now. If we tell you everything, you'll never learn to grow on your own. Come on Pyrrha, we got work cut out for us. I've already arranged for another mage, a junior of mine, to join us."
Pyrrha hesitated for a moment, then placed a hand on Naofumi's shoulder and told him, "Don't worry. You remind me of an old friend of mine. If he can come along as a warrior like he did, then I know you can go far as well." With that, she hurried off after Sunset, leaving a flustered, blushing, yet nervous Naofumi to his own thoughts.
…
Pyrrha and Sunset reached the gates of the palace, just in time to see the other two heroes talking to their teams and getting ready to leave. As they were passing by them, Sunset came to a stop.
"Hey, Sword and Bow guy." She said, and waited for them to look at her.
"What?" Ren asked brusquely while Itsuki just looked at her with a neutral, yet curious expression.
"I just wanted to fill you in on something about our world. Slavery is legal here in Melromarc.'
The two started at that, and narrowed their eyes as Itsuki exclaimed, "WHAT!?"
"And before you say anything, don't judge our ways based on how YOUR worlds work, the sooner you can get that through your thick heads, the more use you will be in saving our world," Sunset quipped before they could say anything else, "The only reason I'm telling you this now, is 'cause how not only is Naofumi the shield Hero, but now has the stigma of this accusation plaguing him, Naofumi's only choice of getting a reliable party member will be to get a slave. And knowing how you two tend to jump the guns given your performance in the throne room, you would have used that as ammo against him."
Pyrrha couldn't be certain, but for a moment she thought Sunset glanced over at Myne when she spoke the last part. "Sunset, I think they get the point, so maybe we should go meet your friend?" she asked, causing Sunset to Hmph and walk off. Pyrrha meekly waved goodbye to the other heroes and hurried after Sunset.
"Was it necessary to antagonize Ren and Itsuki like that?"
Sunset snorted, and said "Those two boneheads are playing right into Malty's hands." This caused Pyrrha to look at her weirdly, making her companion sigh. "Might as well get this over with. I mean the bitch who accused Naofumi, Myne. Her real name is Malty, and she is the first born princess of Melromarc, though she's not inheriting the throne, thank God."
As they passed through the market, Sunset continued, "Malty is known to sleep around, and Naofumi is far from her first victim. Only those in the court know of her real identity, and the servants know of her tendency to seduce and tempt even married men into her bed, only to accuse them of some crime afterwards and have them thrown into prison. Her old man, the King, is completely unaware of this and believes she is a perfect little angel and dotes on her because of it."
Pyrrha could only remain silent through all this, her mind processing all this quickly, before saying, "If what you say is true, then why don't the servants say something?"
"Jeez, you really are naive ain't ya? It's because they're servants, Commoners who were lucky to be hired to work in the castle. Who do you think the King and Nobles are going to believe? A lowly servant, or the princess?"
Pyrrha stayed silent, knowing the answer, but didn't want to say it.
"Your heart's in the right place Pyrrha," Sunset said gently, looking over her shoulder at the Spear Hero. "But you are woefully naive about how things work in real life, especially here in my world. Things aren't so cut and dry, good and evil. For instance, even the good, kind nobles have slaves, they just treat them better than others do. It's just our way."
Sunset came to a stop in front of a pair of large, silver gates. "Sometimes freeing a slave can be the worst thing a kind master can do, because it gives them false hope." Sunset looked up at the sky as she said in a depressed tone, "Slaves that are freed run the risk of getting captured by slavers and sold back into slavery, which happens more often than not." She looked at her companion in her eyes. "As for how I know of this...I was once a slave myself." Sunset moved her red and yellow hair to reveal a pair of equine ears and with a sigh, lowered the back of her skirt slightly to allow a smooth, red and yellow horse tail to spring forth and swing back and forth.
"I'm a demi-human, and we are the most popular form of slaves," Sunset told her quietly, "To be specific, I'm a pony Demi. I was born into slavery, and when I was just barely old enough to walk, my mother was sold off to a human master...I haven't seen her since I was a child, all I can recall about her is that she was kind. Thankfully, not long after I was purchased by my master, who freed me and took me in as her daughter and student when it became apparent that I had a talent for magic."
Sunset pushed open the gates, and as she entered, she spoke again. "This place is where my master lives. The King won't dare bother her, since she is a close confidant of the Queen. Our companion is her newest student." Pyrrha followed her through the gates to see a large garden being tended to by faunus- No, not faunus, demi-humans, she reminded herself as she followed Sunset into a large, opulent, castle-like mansion. The Demis stopped what they were doing to watch her walk by, causing her to look down so as not to meet their gazes. She assumed they were slaves like Sunset once was. Inside, Pyrrha found herself in a grand hall, with a large staircase running up the middle and branching off onto two balconies lined with doors.
At the top of the staircase on the wall was a large portrait with two, young women holding hands. The taller one was pale skinned, with green hair lined with pink streaks, wearing a pearl white gown that hugged her hourglass figure and stopped just a little above where she showed a generous amount of cleavage. The smaller woman was tanner, with midnight blue hair, and she wore a similar outfit to the other woman, only pitch black.
"My master and her younger sister. Mistress Luna is off leading a band of adventurers; she never liked the formal atmosphere of the noble world. She is a free spirited woman, who is just as skilled in the arcane arts as her elder sister."
As they made their way up the staircase, Pyrrha noticed that every other step had a bust of someone.
"Former students of hers, who left when they felt they were ready or that they could learn nothing else from her." Sunset said sadly, placing a hand on one of the young women. "This was my lover, Twilight." Pyrrha blushed slightly at that as Sunset continued. "When the first wave hit, she was one of the first to show up on the field of battle. Her skills were nearly that of mine, but she was killed after being overrun by monsters while protecting a family of Tanuki Demis." The two were silent, Sunset sighed then continued on upstairs.
"I share a room with our friend, who will be joining us. I would introduce you to my master, but she is currently with the Queen in Faubrey, helping in dealing with a multinational conference to decide how best to combat the waves."
Sunset led her through a door into a hall lined with crimson carpet, and then into a small side door. "Welcome to my room." Inside was a room decorated in golds and red, with a large, four-posted bed in the middle. Translucent white curtains draped from an overhang over the bed which housed a large mirror that reflected the bed.
"Before I get my fellow student, there is something I need to show you." Pyrrha watched as Sunset began to undo her breast plate and let it fall to the ground. Pyrrha began to blush as Sunset lowered her under garment to expose her rather bountiful, cream-colored bosom. The blush stopped upon the site of a black circle, with a heart inside of it sitting atop the valley of her breasts.
She didn't know why, but she felt something ominous about it.
"Wha, what is that Sunset?"
Sunset sighed and placed her hand on it. "It's a slave seal, although mine is a fake. All slaves have one, it prevents them from ever disobeying or turning on their masters. If they disobey or try to harm their owners, they will receive a massive shock that can range from mildly annoying like a static shock to painfully paralyzing and fatal. It also ensures honesty, meaning a slave can never lie."
Sunset picked up her breast plate and walked over to a window and gazed out of it, not caring that she was exposed to the outside world. She turned her breastplate over in her hands and said, "I used to have a slave seal until my master freed me, but replaced it with this fake one in case I am caught outside alone, to fool slavers into thinking I already have a master." She placed the piece of armor back over her breasts and strapped back into place.
"She offered this option to all her slaves, but most have turned her down, preferring the safety of her property and guidance."
After a moment of silence, Sunset shook her head and siad, "Alright, that's enough melancholy for now. Why don't we nab my little friend, then we can stop by the church on our way out."
"Ahh, church?" Pyrrha asked, still trying to process all the grim information she'd been presented with.
"Yeah, The Three Heroes Church." Sunset said, disdain soaking her tone. "It's Melromarc's main religion. Remember, people here worship the Bow, Sword and Spear, so it's obvious they would build a church for it, but that ain't the important part; it's what's in the church itself. You'll see for yourself when we get there."
Pyrrha silently followed her companion through the mansion and onto a rear patio, where a large gust of wind slammed into her along with a wall of dust and grass, pushing her back slightly until managed to brace herself. Covering her face with her arms, she could barely make out a small, blue figure inside what looked like a tornado.
"A tornado!? There's someone inside of it!" she exclaimed, but Sunset laughed over the roaring wind.
"Not even close...yet. And the person inside is Wendy, the junior I mentioned that will be joining us." Sunset pointed to a small blue blur in the middle of a vortex that was the source of the winds pushing against her. "She's a sky mage, meaning she is extremely gifted in Wind Magic, Support Magic and most importantly, Healing Magic."
"Magic?" Pyrrha thought back to when Professor Ozpin had enlightened her as to the existence of magic and the Four Maidens. Soon the vortex and the cloud dirt and grass began to subside, leaving the yard a disaster zone with ripped up trees and gouges in the earth.
"Yes." Sunset said, as the vortex died down, "While healing magic isn't all that rare here, she is a prodigy, a savant." They watched as the small blue haired girl, now that Pyrrha could see her clearly.
"Hey, Wendy!" Sunset shouted, causing the girl to turn and smile.
"Sunset, Sorry I didn't see you. I wanted to get in one last practice spell before leaving!" The small mage said excitedly. The girl, Wendy, seemed familiar to Pyrrha, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
"We are bringing a….child with us?" Pyrrha asked uncertainty, which made Sunset chuckle while the blue haired mage pouted slightly.
"Don't let her adorable looks fool you; given time and practice, her magic might even become a match for mine." Sunset said as she ruffled Wendy's hair. This caused her to pout even more which made the depressed spearwoman crack a small smile.
"You got your stuff all packed, kiddo?" Sunset asked as she ruffled the girl's hair, brushing out the dirt and leaves that had settled in it from the vortex. This caused the bluenette to blush and pout, causing Pyrrha to chuckle under her breath.
"You two must be close then," she said, thinking back to her early days with team JNPR and how they grew close to each other so quickly.
It hadn't been nearly enough time…
"Yeah, you could say that," Sunset agreed as Wendy brushed her hand away and ran into the house, supposedly to get her pack. It was then that it hit Pyrrha, Wendy was the little girl that had run into her earlier in the market.
"While the squirt is grabbing her stuff, I should also let you know that the Three Heroes Church, like most of Melromarc, despises the Shield Hero, meaning our friend Naofumi has a rough time ahead of him, specially with Princess Bitch's fake rape accusation. He ain't the first victim to fall for her wiles, and he won't be the last." At that moment, Wendy reappeared, a backpack and bedroll draped over her shoulders. "I'll say more once we're out of the city," Sunset finished, ruffling the young girl's hair.
"Well, let's get this show on the road. After a quick stop at the church, we'll head off to gather experience," Sunset said, as she led the way back out to the main gate. Pyrrha glanced from Wendy to the slaves they passed, curious as to whether she was demi-human like Sunset or not, but decided it was too personal a question to ask.
About an hour later, the party of three had just left the capital's church after having Pyrrha synchronize her weapon to the dragon hourglass within the hallowed halls. Now they were making their way back to Erdhart's store to pick up her new armor before heading out of the city.
Said owner looked up as they entered, a scowl on his face as he clenched a piece of paper in his hand.
"Sorry, but I'm clo…" Erhardt rudely snapped before he recognized them. He cleared his throat and said, "Sorry about that, ladies. Just got some ugly news from a guard; you're here for your new armor?"
Sunset rolled her eyes, and said, "Yep, I take that to mean you have it ready?"
"Of course, something like that was a piece of cake," Erdhard boasted, a proud smile replacing the scowl from earlier. "Next time, make it a bit more challenging, eh?"
Sunset snorted at that while the bald smith laughed, as he guided Pyrrha into the back to where her armor lay, then came out to give her the privacy she needed to change.
"So let me take a wild guess as to why you were pissed." Sunset drawled as she leaned against the counter while watching Wendy gawk at some of the more intricate weapons and armor. "You have received the news that the Shield Hero raped his female partner?" Sunset watched as Erdhardt scowled at that.
"Yeah. Once you leave, I intend to go give him a piece of my mind."
Sunset rolled her eyes, and said, "The Shield kid did nothing wrong. He's being framed. Our friend Pyrrha was with him all night up until they went into their own rooms, and he was as sober as you and I are right now. From what Pyrrha told me, he refused an offer of drinking with his partner, even after she told him that turning down a drink with a lady was in poor taste here."
Sunset conjured up a ball of water and let it rotate in her hand as she continued her line of thought. "He was staying at the Boar's Hat if you want to ask questions."
Erdhardt was silent, his facial expressions running through a gauntlet of emotions. He knew the owner of the tavern, knew him to be a man of integrity and honest to a fault….even if he was a huge lecher at times.
"Why would the young lady do that to him though?" Erdhardt asked as he rubbed his forehead.
"How about the fact that she is actually the spoiled daughter of the king, taking advantage of his love for her and his hatred for the Shield to do whatever she wants? It's well known around the castle that she's no virgin, and even in the court few dare say anything against her. The servants are just too scared to say anything, especially the male servants."
Erdhadt just stared at her for a moment, before rubbing a hand over his face. "You know what, since it's you, I'll take your word for it and help the kid the best I can, but I ain't getting mixed up in royal family drama."
Sunset chuckled. "Smart man. The Shield Hero is gonna have it rough already after all, so don't be surprised if he shows up with a couple of slaves or more. It's the only way he's going to be able to fight."
At that moment, Pyrrha stepped out of the changing area, allowing the three to see her new look. The breastplate hugged her bosom, leaving her midriff bare, while she retained her bronze circlet, which was adorned with a pair of small, green, teardrop-shaped emeralds on thin chains. And on her waist was a bright red cloth with black edging that covered her rear, while a pair of black, leather shorts were held up with bronze belts. Over her lower calves were steel boots encasing her muscular calves in dark, impenetrable metal. The base was painted a dark brown, with the edges colored a golden hue.
One her left arm was her round shield and in her right was the legendary Spear. She shifted nervously under the gaze of the three other occupants.
"Heh, not bad, Pyrrha," Sunset praised, smirking, "You'll definitely turn some heads once we get out and about"
"Wooow, you're so pretty, Miss Pyrrha!" exclaimed Wendy, stars in her eyes as she clasped her hands.
"Hmmm.." Erhardt just stroked his beard, then muttered, "Maybe I should have gone with a bit more covering for her midriff." Then he shrugged and said, "Well, what do you think, miss? Some of my best work, if I do say so myself, it's not often I get to work on armor for a lady!" He reared his head back and laughed. "Why, with you, I can still count the number of female soldiers and adventurers I've done work for on one hand."
Sunset just chuckled, and said, "Well, now that we have you outfitted, we can head out and start leveling up for real. By the time the next wave gets here, let's try and have you ready for a class up." With that, she tossed a large sack of gold on the counter and said, "Consider that down payment for new armor in the future old man."
….
Before long, the party of three was standing before the gates that would lead out of the city, and it would possibly be month's before they saw them again. Standing at the gates was a male wolf demi that was shirtless, displaying his slave seal, holding the reins to three horses. As they walked up, his face brightened slightly and handed the reins to Sunset.
"Good luck in your journeys Sunset." He said, his tail swishing back and forth, while Sunset smiled and patted his shoulder.
"Thanks, Ranga." She said, hugging him before sending him off. "Good, now that we have our rides, traveling should be a bit easier until we can get Filolial or Dragon mounts of our own"
With a tailwag, the demi quickly headed back into town, while Sunset helped Wendy up onto her own horse, before mounting her own. "You know how to ride a horse, Pyrrha?" she asked as Pyrrha eased onto her mount.
"Y-yes...though it has been sometime since I rode," the crimson haired spear wielder said shakily. She could feel the animal shifting its weight, as if sensing her nervousness. Taking a deep breath, she stilled her breathing and began stroking its mane. After a minute or two, the beast seemed to settle down as Pyrrha's own nerves settled. Looking over at Sunset and Wendy she nodded to show she was ready, the two smiled and with a gentle snap of their reigns, they took the lead out the gate.
As they did, they passed a squad of soldiers, led by a rather buxom, scarlet-haired knight, dressed in a small, revealing breastplate that extended along her hips, composed of feather-shaped plates that pointed upwards, with a large metal flower on the front, leaving the tops of her breasts exposed, along with her stomach. Her biceps were covered by metal straps, themselves adorned by large plated gauntlets sporting feather-shaped plates at the edges. Her waist was circled by large, decorated plates that reminded Pyrrha of feathers that lay on a long skirt. She had a pair of plated boots that was partially hidden under the skirt, with each sporting metal ornaments shaped like wings. The knight also wore a neck-guard made of yet more feather-like plates. On her back were two identical swords, each with blue embellishments along the blade that featured feather-shaped handguards. Her right eye was covered by an eyepatch, while the other was full of anger and sorrow.
Behind her were two other female knights that had less elegant ensembles. One had a look of a traditional beauty to her, her orange,brownish chestnut hair flowed down her back with two tendrils framing her delicate looking face. She wore a pearly-white breastplate with a long skirt made up of numerous elegant looking fabrics, on her waist was a single rapier with a aqua colored circular handguard with two blue gems embedded within the handguard. It was held in a blood red sheath. She had blood stains covering her battle dress, though whether the blood was her own or not couldnt be seen.
The other was a tall, imposing woman with thigh-length dark-blue tinted hair with inward diamond-shaped bangs hanging over her forehead, and cold blue eyes framed by thick eyebrows. She wore a tight, lightly armored bikini-like breastplate that stopped just under her rather generous bust, leaving her midriff bare, while exposing the top of the valley leading into her cleavage out in the open. Her legs were covered by a thin, black leather like thigh high boots, with silver kneepads and around her waist was a white half cape inlined with blue and red thread, On her waist was a single sword sheathed in a plain white scabbard. She was the only one that seemed uninjured, not a speck of blood was on her, but the look of cold fury in her eyes made Pyrrha shiver.
Behind the three women, the men all wore basic armor, and looked like they had seen hell. Some were carrying others with their arms wrapped around their shoulders, others had some men on their back. Some just limped by, bandages covering eyes and other body parts or used crutches.
The group of three female adventurers waited for the cadre of soldiers to pass before continuing the trio moved farther away from the capital, Sunset sighed and said, "Those poor men, they'll never be the same again. I doubt many of them will return to active duty. Their eyes spoke of hell and horror unseen."
Pyrrha nodded, thinking back to the looks of fright she had seen on people's faces as they fled the grimm invading Beacon Academy. Wendy just looked away, not knowing what to say and to hide the fear in her eyes.
"Before I was summoned here." Pyrrha said, her hand tensing on the reigns of her horse. "The school I was studying at came under attack by a horde of Grimm. There were so many, and my team and some of my other friends...we did our best, but we could only save so many."
They lapsed into silence after that, as the castle finally disappeared behind the horizon, not knowing what to say. They continued on in silence until the sun began to set, and Sunset decided they should stop and set up camp for the night, since the sun was nearly gone from view.
As Sunset and Wendy set about setting up the tents, Pyrrha gazed up into the star filled sky and wondered how her friends were doing.
"Please be safe, Jaune, Nora, Ren."
