A/N: Finally done with the tournament arc. Man, I used a lot of brain juice finishing this last chapter. Anyways, I'm glad I finished it not that far off from the end of April, but I will be taking a break in May. I might make a few changes in the previous chapters that I feel needs some work, but hopefully I can get to the next chapter at the end of June. Thank you for reading and see you in June.


Diamon stirred to the sound of distant fanfare and jovial outcries.

"You're awake."

A gentle voice called to him from nearby.

He moaned as the injury from his last fight finally registered and he sluggishly opened his eyes to find Jade sitting beside his cot with a warm smile. For some reason, seeing it made him feel just a little better.

"Did we do it?" He mumbled with a raspy voice, his chest heaving just to get the words out.

It was ambiguous what he meant by that. Did he win? Or did he accomplish the goal he set out to do? Or perhaps something completely unrelated? Even he was unsure.

But, Jade just gave him a comforting look and whispered gently one word.

"Yes."

That was all he needed. He felt all the tension fly away and his body slowly melt into the somewhat uncomfortable cot.

"Where's Ame..Amy?" He caught himself, suddenly feeling the need to say her nickname.

"She's right beside you," Jade nodded her head to the other side of the bed.

Just as she said, Amy was resting in a cot similar to his directly to his right, an arm's reach away. She was sleeping so peacefully, appearing so vulnerable in that state, it's hard to tell that she just went through an arduous battle not long ago.

Seeing her like that brought back memories of their childhood, when she was much more shy and introverted..

When did she change so much?

It made the dazed Diamon unconsciously reach his hand out, wanting to pat her head, but stopped part way through the motion upon realizing it.

"How long was I out?" He said with a clearer tone this time, the final dredges of sleep draining away.

"Not long. About twenty minutes. The marching band is still in the middle of their set."

She must be referring to the bright music drifting through the room they were in.

Diamon struggle up from his cot, drawing concern from Jade, but he held a hand up to reassure her.

"Don't worry about me. One of the perks of being a Prisma is our Aura recovers quickly. But, I know my limit so I won't be walking around anytime soon. I'm more worried about you right now. How are you feeling?"

Jade looked a bit startled. "Me? Well, I'm fine, I guess. But Yu…"

"Let me guess. He's sitting out there staring broodingly into the distance."

"Umm, not exactly, but yes."

"Typical," he scoffed, but not in a derogatory way. He just found it humorous. "At the very least, he is consistent."

Jade made no reply, but nodded, a bit melancholic.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Shouldn't you be out there getting ready for your match?"

Jade perked up, as if she just realized that fact, but still held a bit of concern on her mind.

Sensing what she might be thinking, Diamon flexed his muscle to demonstrate his physical well being.

"Like I said, I'm perfectly fine now. Don't worry about me and Amy. I can look after her from here. You just keep your mind on the coming battle."

"Alright, then." Feeling reassured, Jade gave him a nod and a smile, before heading for the exit. As she opened the door, she gave them one last look to reaffirm Diamon's resolve, then disappeared from the room.

The moment the door shut, Diamon dropped his arms and clutched it in pain, rubbing it profusely to loosen the sore muscle. He technically didn't lie about his Aura quickly recovering, but fatigue and pain isn't something that goes away just because your Aura is back.

"Urgh, Jaq really did a number on us," he mumbled as he gazed at Amy with a slight forlorn look. "We put up a good fight, but in the end, it wasn't enough."

Then, he turned towards the exit again, a bit more upbeat.

"We may have lost the battle, but it isn't the end. Please carry on our torch, Jade. I believe you will succeed where we have failed. I believe in you."

With that, he slouched back into his bed and let the exhaustion wash over him again.


Jade came back to the main stage just as the band was finishing their piece.

Yu was sitting on the bench at the edge of the arena exactly where she left him when she went to visit Diamon and Amy. He even had the same slouched posture and brooding aura around him too, as if he was frozen in time while she was away.

But that wasn't the thing she was focused on. Yu being aloof isn't something worth batting an eye, but the color of his Aura is a little concerning. It was murky and dark, definitely not his normal forest green colored Aura.

It was the same way yesterday, but less noticeable.

She wanted to ask him about it, but with the hectic schedule and festivities it was hard to bring it up.

Jade wondered when it started, or rather, why he returned to the way he used to be. He had been doing better ever since they came to Beacon. He was able to socialize with people, participate in events, and even cared about things other than training. But at some point, he slowly regressed back to the way he was back when she first reunited with him.

The same sharp look. The lack of concern for anything around him. And, of course, his murky Aura.

She approached him quietly. He doesn't react, but not because he didn't notice.

"Did you enjoy the show?" She tried her best to act normal.

"..."

No answer. Instead, he just took a gulp of an energy drink sitting next to him.

The drink wasn't there before so he must have gotten up sometimes during the 10 minutes she left him alone. That gave her just a little bit of relief.

She sat down beside him and followed his line of sight.

It was directed at the stage, the flat colorless stage that just a minute ago was alight with a plethora of colors for the band performance. The technology behind it was far beyond Jade's comprehension, but it nonetheless attracted her curiosity for the unknown.

However, she was certain that wasn't what her brother's attention was focused on.

It was what lies beyond the stage, on the opposite wall from where they sat. Two figures, one leaning against the wall and the other sat on the bench: Ace and Jaq respectively.

More specifically, she knew his glare was targeted towards Ace. And it appears he was also staring back at him with an amused look.

Jade frowned. She was right to be wary of Ace. After what he did yesterday, and the events earlier today, she was positive that he was plotting something.

It also doesn't help that ever since the practice match between Yu and Ace, Yu has been focused on him too much, almost obsessively so. Well, now that she thought about it, her brother always had a bit of rivalry with Ace even before that incident, but it was alway Ace who goaded him while he just ignored it for the most part.

Still, it was significant enough of an event for her to hope that they don't go up against those two during the tournament, but sadly, here they are.

"Do you remember the plan?" Jade decided to change the subject to something Yu would respond to.

"Of course," Yu said as he crushed the empty energy drink can and tossed it unceremoniously into the nearby trash can. "I wasn't sitting here for the last fifteen minutes daydreaming you know."

"Fair."

She paused, trying to think about something else to say.

"Look, I know you wanted to get to the finals and win this thing, but remember the promise you made. Don't push yourself too hard. Just reaching this far is already an accomplishment, and forcing yourself just for victory isn't necessary. I want things to end in a memorable way and that doesn't have to be winning the tournament."

She noticed a subtle shift in Yu's expression. It loosened a bit, but he still maintained that sharp edge. She took that moment to reach her hand over, her pinky extended, hoping to loop it around his. It sort of became a ritual for them whenever they make up after a heated argument.

However, the moment their fingers touched, Yu pulled back in shock. Jade, too.

There was a static shock when they came in contact. It seemed harmless, but Jade stared at her hand deeply, pondering what just happened.

It might've been a coincidence, but when their Auras met during that moment of contact, instead of melding like it usually does, she felt a repulsive force as if his Aura was rejecting her own. It wasn't intentional, that much she knew. It was more like somehow trying to fit a wrong puzzle piece into an open space.

Yu didn't seem to notice anything wrong, but it weighed heavily on Jade. Needless to say, it gave her a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

However, before she could contemplate it further, the cheery voice of the announcer quickly drew her attention away.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed that wonderful performance from the Vallian Marching Band."

The crowd responded with cheers and claps.

"Great! Now for some announcements. As you may all be aware, normally the second semi-final match would start right now, followed by another break to give the participants some time to recover. Since there is no second match, we were planning on going straight to the second break, but Team JAQK has let us know that they wish to proceed with the finals without it."

"Huh?" Jade exclaimed. If she recalled Jaq was pretty beat up after her fight with Amy and Diamon. There's no way she made a full recovery in thirty minutes. Is she looking down on them? Or is she confident in her recovery?

It doesn't matter either way. Her surprise was more an altruistic concern for Jaq's health more than anything else.

"So, without any further delay, let's jump right into it. I know you are looking forward to this moment. THE FINAL MATCH! TEAM JAQK vs TEAM JAYD PART 2!"

The crowd exploded into cheers.

The stage whirled to life, the platform glowing brightly as shapes of the biomes began to form. This time it took on the form of a rocky desert biome and a lush forest biome. Two extreme opposite once again.

Once the stage finished its makeover, the usher at the edge of the stage let Jade and Yu know they could approach and so they made their way up towards the arena.

They entered on the desert side and immediately Jade noticed a weird sensation from the sand she stepped on.

It definitely had the consistency and fluidity of sand, but there wasn't a feeling of unstable footing as she trod through it. It was as if there was a solid surface just underneath the sand, an almost elastic and springy surface. In fact, now that she thought more about it, when she dug her feet into the sand, it parted surprisingly easily as if they had no weight, until, of course, her feet reached that elastic underfloor.

So that's how it works, Jade thought herself. She was curious how the arena created these biomes and just from a few steps into it she has grasped the fundamentals of its functionality.

Everything she sees is an illusion created by the pillars surrounding the stage and the floor itself. However, there are some sort of malleable building blocks that are used to give tangibility to the illusion. Kind of like how a video game space can be made interactable by adding colliders to objects.

To test her theory, she kicked a small boulder nearby. It was definitely solid, but lacked the hardness expected of a rock that size. Rather, it almost had a rubbery coat around it.

Satisfied with her discovery, Jade redirected her attention to the other biome where Jaq and Ace emerged through the forest thicket. Information about the stage may seem pointless, but any little knowledge could potentially help in the fight. Especially against opponents like them.

The two teams met at the border between the two biomes. The announcer did the same thing as the last match and gave the four of them an opportunity to commune before the match fully began.

Jade didn't know what to say here other than the usual greeting and the token "good luck" callout, but it seemed Jaq had some words to share beyond that.

"So, we finally crossed paths once more. It's been a long while since we had an opportunity to go all out again."

"Not since placements." Jade finished her train of thought.

Jaq nodded. "And now, here we are. Coming full circles. I'm looking forward to seeing how far you guys have come since then. Diamon and Amy certainly didn't disappoint, so I expect as much from you two."

"So, what? Are you going to face both of us alone as well?"

"Oh, definitely not," she chuckled. "I'm not some monster that can quickly recover from injuries in such a short time. If I fought both of you by myself now, I don't think I can last five minutes."

So Jade was right in assuming she wasn't fully recovered yet. But that begs the question…

"Then why did you choose to start the match now? You could've waited another hour."

"And do what? The audience came here for a match and I don't want to let them wait around for almost an hour for my sake. You are an entertainer, you know how it can be when there's nothing going on."

"Well…"

She had a point.

"Besides, I hold partial responsibility for things ending up like this so this is how I choose to make up for it."

"But aren't you worried that it might affect your performance? I don't think I will be happy if we win because you collapse from exhaustion."

"Thanks for the concern, but that's what this oaf is for. He's got enough energy in him to make up for me." She gave Ace a firm thump in the chest.

"Humph."

Surprisingly, Ace has been the quiet one this entire time. He wasn't boisterous as he usual was and, instead, had a very solemn and serious expression that's very unlike him. However, the moment he noticed Jade's attention on him, he quickly put up a smile and gave a wink.

"Hey, if you're so worried about Jaq's health, just come at me. I can take you both on all day, any day."

Yu shifted his body, as if about to respond back to Ace, but speakers started announcing the countdown to the battle, ending the conversation.

Both teams stepped away from the other and got into their battle stance.

"Remember the plan." Jade whispered to her brother as she brought forth her two bladed fans, Zephyr's Edge.

Yu nodded as he tugged on the string of his bow, Boreas Arc.

The plan was simple. Jade enhances her brother's ability, while he focuses on one of the pair, in this case it would be Jaq as she is supposedly the weaker one currently. Naturally, the other member would target Jade, but she was confident in her abilities to avoid taking hit so all Yu needed to do was put all his attention on his current target.

The timer slowly reached the end.

3...2...1... START!

A loud horn signaled the beginning of the finals.

Jade quickly started with a simple energetic step pattern, manipulating her Aura and enveloping her brother in it. Strangely, there was no resistance like when they were sitting at the bench moments ago, but she had no time to think about it further.

The moment Yu felt the change in the wind around him he charged forward, straight toward Jaq who stood calmly in her fighting stance.

He fired an arrow first, then swapped his weapons form immediately into a katar and followed up with a lunge right behind it. However, both didn't reach their intended target as Ace suddenly got in front of their trajectory, blocking the arrow with the smaller of his two blades, Cu, and stopping Yu's blade with the larger sword, Culainn.

Ace's sword slid right between the small slit between his two pronged katar, stopping at the cross guard. It was a favorable position for Ace as it gave him some control over Yu's blade movement.

Fearing he would try to disarm him, Yu had no choice to pull back.

But, as he did so, Jaq came leaping over Ace's back with her large sword, Wolf's Fang, raised high, ready to swing down on him with a heavy overhead blow.

It was a heavily telegraphed move. Jade made a motion of pulling her fans back, mirroring the movement of an oarsmen pulling an oar through the water, and Yu simultaneously backstepped with an unnatural movement, like a puppet being pulled back by strings.

Jaq's sword crashed into the sand, kicking up a plume of tiny rocks.

Not wasting a single opportunity, Yu spun on his heels, redirecting his backward movement so that he could make a backhand swing at her exposed head, but, of course, she quickly recovered and raised her blade to block it.

While locking blades, Yu saw Ace sprint by him from the corner of his eyes. His attention wasn't focused on him, but of his sister, standing several meters behind him.

"Ghhh!" Yu pushed Jaq's blade back and reflexively turned to engage the other member of Team JAQK. But that was a fatal mistake.

"No, Yu! Watch out." Jade called out desperately.

However, it was too late. That moment's distraction was enough for Jaq to hit him with a side swipe, knocking him off his feet. Then, she proceeded to follow behind Ace for a two on one scenario.

Jade braced herself, closing her fan to turn them into daggers. Ace came in first, swinging his sniper like a longsword, but she managed to deflect it. Then came Jaq. In order to avoid her attack, she had to backflip over her swinging blade.

She gritted her teeth upon landing. It looked like their aim was to target her first. It was the most logical course of action for them. Her ability to strengthen Yu was dangerous and her lack of offensive power made her an easy target.

But it wasn't like she was totally defenseless.

Reopening her fans, Jade did a leaping spin and fired two wind blades at her opponents. It wasn't anything powerful enough to stop them, but it was a good way to distract them.

Distract them from what?

Ace was quick to notice as he immediately turned around and cut down a projectile fired by Yu behind them.

However, Yu did not relent and continuously fired a barrage of energy arrows as he slowly approached while Ace continuously blocked them.

Meanwhile, Jaq trusted Ace with her back and pulled her sword close to her body, the already red blade now glowing a brighter shade of red.

Jade knew what she was doing as it was the same move she pulled back during her match with Diamon and Amy.

Was she trying to finish her right now? She hasn't even taken that much damage yet.

Either way, Jade was ready. Ever since Aki revealed her "true" Semblance, she had practiced different ways of utilizing it beyond what she could have done before and one of those new abilities should be able to deflect Jaq's attack.

Theoretically.

A bead of sweat fell from cheeks as a small wave of anxiousness washed over her. She SHOULD be able to deflect it, but since she hasn't actually applied the technique to a real life scenario, she didn't know if it would work the way she intended to use it.

It was too late now. She combined her two fans into a chakram and began twirling it, generating a field of wind around it.

Jaq still held her sword behind her, its blade now radiating an intense heat that even she could feel, all the while ignoring the melee struggle between Ace and Yu right behind her.

"Rraaa!" With an intense shout, Jaq finally swung her sword, firing an arc of blazing inferno from its tip.

The blaze travelled brisk pace, not as fast as a speeding bullet, but definitely not slow enough to avoid, leaving behind a trail of scorched sand.

However, Jade was not fazed. Just as the inferno reached her, she spun on her heel and intercepted the flames with her spinning chakram.

It was an odd sensation as the fire wasn't a tangible mass that could be stopped in such a manner, but it made sense to Jade. For what she saw within this mass of flames that was invisible to all others was the outline of Aura, namely Jaq's Aura which was imbued into the fire to maintain its shape and destructive capability as well as giving her a semblance of control over the inferno.

And it was that Aura that Jade blocked using her own. The odd feeling of resistance came from her Aura not meshing with Jaq's, but in a split second, she was able piece together the intricacies of Jaq's Aura like a lockpick aligning all the tumblers correctly.

Once their two Auras were able to connect, the resistance against her weapon disappeared, causing her to follow through with her swing and the fire dispersing all around her. And from the remnants of the flames, Jade's chakram now glowed with a red tinge.

"What!?" Jaq exclaimed in surprise, unsure what just happened. To her it just looked like her attack suddenly dissipated when it reached its target.

Jade did not give her a second to regain her composure as she threw her weapon at her opponent, the disk-like weapon suddenly bursting in flames mid-flight in a similar fashion as Jaq's flame attack just moments ago.

Yet, even facing such a surprising twist of fortune, Jaq kept her focus and countered her own flame with another fire strike. There was an explosion of smoke and sand, temporarily stunning Jaq and Ace, and unfortunately Yu too, as he was in close proximity to Ace.

Jade quickly dashed to one side, hoping to circle around everyone and regroup with Yu, but that plan was quickly dashed when a wall of fire suddenly appeared in front of her.

She had to tumble back to avoid it, but then another came right after, forcing her back further.

The sand cloud dispersed, revealing Jaq preparing another flamestrike.

"Ace! Do it now!" Jaq screamed as she jumped several meters into the air.

On cue, Ace rushed into Yu, forcing him back, then followed up with a swapped boulder to blast him into the forest biome. He immediately chased after him and not a moment later, Jaq fired another wall of flame next to the first one.

The full length of the fire wall didn't extend the full stretch of the arena, but it was of a length that will be annoying to circumnavigate.

However, that wasn't the issue. The real problem was that it was opaque and prevented line of sight with Yu, thus preventing her from assisting him in anyway.

So that's what they were after. Divide and conquer.

"This is a bit nostalgic, isn't it?" Jaq spoke as she landed.

"Yeah," Jade muttered softly. She gripped her weapon tightly and had a cautious posture, but otherwise, she was calm. "Except we are on the wrong side of the arena."

Jaq chuckled. "That's what I like about you. Even in such a situation, you are able to keep your calm."

She then narrowed her eyes to observe Jade more clearly.

"And that look in your eye. It's reassuring to know that you are carrying yourself with purpose, much unlike back then when you seemed lost and confused."

"I guess I have you to thank for that."

"No, that was all you. I simply reminded you of who you always were. I can tell. There's an air about you. A feeling that you are an extraordinary person destined for greatness."

"Please, you think too highly of me. I'm just a normal girl living her life."

"You are far too modest. There's a saying: 'Those who are destined for greatness are destined to cross path with each other.' When I saw you dancing in the clearing on that day, I had a feeling you were no ordinary person."

"Is that why you wanted to be friends with me? Because you think I'm special?" Jade didn't mean for that to come out harshly, but it did.

And it seemed to have stung Jaq a bit.

"No. Wanting to be friends, that was genuine. I would want to be friends even if I didn't hold that opinion about you. After all, isn't it every student's desire to be friends with the first person they have a pleasant conversation with?"

Jade couldn't argue with that since she held that opinion too.

Jaq continued on, this time with a bright smile.

"But, to meet someone like you, someone with your particular skills, I think it was the work of fate that brought us together."

"Fate?"

"Yes, fate."

Jaq stabbed her sword into the sand, adopting a passive stance, completely ignoring the fact that they were supposed to fight each other. Even the audience were a little confused at the lack of action between the two girls.

"You once asked me why I am attending Beacon. I told you I wanted to live a normal life, but that was just one of many. I can't elaborate on all of them, but there is one I want to tell you, specifically you."

She made a serious expression and withdrew her blade from the sand, pointing it towards Jade.

"I am looking for someone who is capable of inheriting the blade arts of House Hart."

Jade couldn't comprehend what she just said. It seemed like something completely random.

"Wait, why?"

Jaq smiled weakly, but it was made one that seemed so forlorn.

"As you may know, ever since the Royal Flush disappeared from the world, the school of swordsmanship they taught disappeared with them. It is a dying art."

As she said that, she twirled her sword around, invoking certain moves from said blade art, all the while observing it with sad expression.

"I am the last to wield it, but I refuse to let it fade into obscurity. The blade arts of House Hart are meant to fight against the Grimm and it is such a waste for it to be wielded only by a single person. Now that I...no, we have gone public, I want to keep the history of my family alive, even if it's for the selfish reason of imparting my mark on the world in some way."

Jade could understand, if only a little, the desire to leave behind a part of yourself in the world once you are gone. But there is still a long time before needing to worry about that.

"Then just start a school or offer to take lessons. Why do you need to choose someone to teach? And why me?"

"Like I said, you have traits that most would consider to make you a prodigy. Uncanny intuition, adaptability, quick learning, charismatic aura, and major success in your youth."

She put a particular emphasis on the last one, obviously referring to Jade's past as a dancer.

"But there are more than enough people that can fit that description. Rather, I chose you for who you are, a compassionate, altruistic individual. In a way, we are like kindred spirits. And all those reasons are prerequisites because there's a...peculiarity about my sword style that simply cannot be taught like the alphabet or the times table."

Jade gave a confused look, so Jaq sighed and began to explain.

"The blade art passed down through generations of the Hart family is called the Paths of Enlightenment, or more specifically, the Eight Paths of Enlightenment."

She raised her weapon up in a very standard looking stance as she spoke.

"Within it, the Paths are separated in two style, 'Of Earth' and 'Of Heaven.' The Path of Earth is a simple set of sword techniques employed to fight enemies of certain types. Observe."

Without further warning, she charged towards Jade with her sword raised, going for an overhead swing.

"First Path: Way of the Land."

Jade was startled by her sudden attack, but she was able to raise her weapon, now collapsed into a pair of daggers, to block it. The attack pattern Jaq employed was simple and familiar enough for her to reflexively move to counter them.

However, during a lull in her attack, she suddenly changed her stance so her weapon was raised high and the blade pointed downward.

"Second Path: Way of the Sky."

Now, her attacks seemed more defensive in nature, performing a series of upward arcing slashes. However, since the slashes were aimed high, Jade dropped low and went for a sweeping slash at Jaq's legs.

But even so, Jaq simply crouched down and deflected her attack with ease before facing her again with a lower posture.

"Third Path: Way of the Sea."

Jaq lunged forward, thrusting her sword as if it was a spear.

Jade avoided twisting her body to one side, but at the peak of her thrust, twisted the blade so the sharp end faced Jade.

Intuition kicked in and she dropped to her knees, leaning back all the way until it was nearly parallel to the ground, right as Jaq's blade made a large arc across where she stood just a moment before.

Jaq's sword made a full rotation before she brought it close to her chest again and proceeded with another set of stabs, which forced Jade back right as she got back to her feet.

Using the distance gained, Jaq folded her sword back, holding it near her waist as if it was sheathed in a scabbard.

A flicker of recognition crossed Jade's face. It was the same position she held when she fired that torrent of flame at her earlier as well as when she defeated her other teammates. Except this time, her blade wasn't wreathe in flames. Nonetheless, she put up her guard.

"Fourth Path: Way of the Void."

Her voice was flat and devoid of emotion and her motion was fluid like water. It was a single clean cut, she "drew" her blade and swung her arm its full length. The tip of her sword glowed under the stadium floodlights, making a clear crescent arc in the air, denoting the range of her blade.

However, despite being outside of the range, Jade felt a clear pressure against her fans. She peaked to her side and found depressions carved into the sand dunes behind her, substantiating her theory that Jaq's attack somehow could reach beyond the range of her sword.

It was no time to relax, though, as Jade quickly prepared for whatever attack came after, but none came. Instead, she found Jaq standing casually with her sword planted in the sand again as if the last minute never happened.

"You know, even though I expected you to avoid my attacks fairly easily, you still managed to exceed my expectations. The way you were able to predict and deduce my attacks even though you never saw them before just shows your strong intuition. It just further proves I was right in picking you."

Jade also relaxed as it felt like the courteous thing to do when her opponent was acting so casual.

"You still haven't told me how that relates to learning your sword style."

"Right. That was the 'Earth' path. The 'Heaven' path is different. Much different. Whereas 'Earth' is only a set of skills anyone can memorize, 'Heaven' is unique to the individual. It cannot be 'taught' in the traditional sense as it incorporates everything about who you are, your Semblance, your weapon...your personality."

"Then how am I going to learn it if it's unique!?" Jade couldn't help but let a little bit of her frustration leak out. It seems like such a heavy burden she placed on her and she was afraid she wasn't ready for this despite all the praise Jaq gave her.

Jaq's brow furrowed and her eyes narrowed with an intense seriousness. "The same way I learned it, the same way everyone who was blessed with it learned it: by surviving through it."

Jaq's Aura flared up, glowing bright red in Jade's eyes, but also with a tinge of gold mixed in. It was so intense that it made Jade unconsciously take a step back.

"The 'Heaven' path is a feeling that could only be understood by crossing blades with it. It is up to the teacher to demonstrate it's true form and the student to comprehend it. Like a torch igniting another. A legacy passed through the generation."

She shifted the large coat slung around her shoulder, removing the tassel and slipping her arm through its sleeves, finally wearing it properly.

It was the first time Jade ever witnessed her wear her coat that way and it gave off an intimidating feeling. She must be extremely serious. If so, then she felt it was only appropriate to match her intensity. She unfurled her fans and prepared herself for what was to come, fully accepting the role Jaq has placed on her.

Jaq picked up her sword once more. She raised it with one hand, tip pointing towards Jade, and took a crouched position while extending her other hand forward.

"Watch closely! Carve it into your memory and carry it forth. This is my Path, my will and testament. But be warned, from this moment on, I stand here not as a competitor, but an enemy ready to strike you down. If you do not do the same, you may die."

Jade gulped, terrified at that prospect, but she understood and nodded.

Jaq smiled, if only for a brief moment, before hardening her expression.

"Here I go."

Jaq's Aura pulsed intensely, generating a massive gust of wind.

"Fifth Path: Byakko."

There was a boom. And for an instance, Jaq's body disappeared amidst the explosion of sand where she once stood.

At least that was how it appeared to the audience.

However, Jade was paying close attention. She saw that Jade dashed towards her, faster than the speed of sound, hence the boom, and was making a swipe at her.

She tried to block it, but that was a mistake. There was so much pressure behind each swing that it was physically impossible to stop each blow, only divert it. And each slash came so fast and forceful, like a tornado.

It was strange. Jaq told her she would understand once she clashed with her and while she didn't understand what to look for, the moment she felt Jaq's blade clash with her own, she felt like there was some merit in her word. For as she backs away from her vicious attack, she can somehow saw, no, felt the image of a white tiger looming behind her and each swing was like the raking of its sharp claws.

Is this what she meant?

There was no time to contemplate. Jaq continued her savage assault, pushing her closer and closer to the edge. Something needed to be done.

Then, it suddenly stopped. But the reprieve was short and what followed was more ominous than what came before.

Jaq held her blade over her shoulder, her sword configured into its short form and her Aura giving off a different feeling.

"Sixth Path: Genbu."

As she said this, her Aura gave off the image of a massive tortoise.

But Jade was more worried about her sword. Her intuitions kicked in, her senses tingling at an incoming threat. It told her to evade, to get away from where she was standing.

And so she did.

Not a moment later, Jaq swung her sword heavily and a massive fissure formed where the blade struck the ground. The whole arena quaked. The entire biome quivered as the technology sustaining it could not process the massive trauma.

Even when she gave herself plenty of space between the line of destruction, she felt the wake of the destruction.

She sputtered fake sand from her mouth and cleared her eyes. She needed to make a move. Staying around and waiting for the next attack would be a bad idea. Even though Jaq said observe her attacks, that won't happen if she doesn't survive until the end. And she did say they should treat each other as enemies, so…

Jade fired two wind blades in Jaq's direction. It was quickly deflected, but she followed up with a spinning jump slash, forcing Jaq a few feet back.

Jaq smiled, seemingly happy that she finally went on the offensive. Her sword extend to its long katana shape and she held the blade upright with both hands, pulling it close to her head.

"Seventh Path: Seiryuu."

Again, another shift in her Aura. She started spinning too, catching one of Jade's fan at the start of her spin and the other at the end. But it didn't end there. She started twirling her sword with fluid precision as if a serpent slithering through water.

The two of them went through a series of blows, both sides moving in harmony and purpose, like two dancers marching to a tune. Perhaps it reminded Jade so much so that she was able to sync herself so well to the dancing movements of Jaq's sword.

But it was also when she noticed something else.

It was only through clashing blades did she feel the quivering of Jaq's Aura and the shaking in her arms.

She was overexerting herself. A fact exasperated by the fact she wasn't fully recovered from her previous fight.

Is she overworking herself for my sake or hers? The thought popped into Jade's head.

However, worried as she might be, she couldn't let that knowledge dull her focus. This was still a competition. And a competition needs a victor.

With the way Jaq was burning through her Aura like tinder, one of them will fall by the end of this. Either Jaq crumbles from exhaustion or Jade gets crushed under her pressure.

Somehow, the high stakes and crushing pressure triggered Jade's competitive nature. Combined with the knowledge that Jaq was wearing herself out fast served to motivate her to win more than ever.

After another bout of clashing blades, Jaq suddenly retreated, taking out a red Dust crystal and loading it into her blade.

"No you don't!" Jade cried as she charged at her to stop her from doing whatever she was planning next.

"Now you are getting into the spirit of battle." Jaq smiled. "But it's futile."

Flames burst from the gun chamber where she placed the Dust crystal. They spread to either side like a bird spreading its wings. The sudden burst of heat was too intense for Jade to push through, forcing her to stop. Using the time gained, she raised her weapon high.

"Finally, Eighth Path: Suzaku."

Her sword was completely consumed by the flames and expanded in the shape of a phoenix. With a battle cry, she swung her sword, sending the flaming bird at Jade.

There was nowhere to dodge. The only path left was to survive through it. Jade gritted her teeth as she combined her fans into the chakram again in an attempt to nullify the flames like before. She spread her weapon in front of her like a shield just as the flames reached her.

Intense flame swirled around her, licking at her skin, hungry to consume.

Try as she may, it was quickly apparent that the scale was much different than before and she wasn't able to nullify it. If so, then she just has to endure.

The flames pushed at her for what seemed like an eternity, slowly but surely draining both her stamina and Aura, but just before she reached her limits, it passed.

A moment of silence fell on the desert biome, both contestant on their knees, exhausted.

"Seems like you survived," Jaq panted while leaning on her sword for stability. "Well, do you understand a little more now that you've witnessed it."

Jade coughed, still affected by heat. "If I say yes, are you going to concede?"

"Heh," Jaq let out a airy chuckle, a fiendish smile slowly spreading across her face. "It's been a while since I've gotten this exhausted in a fight. The buzzing in the ear, the adrenaline coursing through my veins. It would be such a shame to end things now."

A scary change came about Jaq. Her diminished Aura suddenly flared to life again and she raised her weapon with renewed fervor. What's more, Jade noticed a suspiciously golden glow coming from Jaq's left eye.

"Jaq?" She called out cautiously to her, unsure what she was planning.

However, she wasn't listening.

"I'm not letting this end in such a boring way. We are both still standing and we both still can go even further, so LET'S KEEP GOING UNTIL ONE OF US FALLS!"

It was so unlike her to speak like that, but before Jade could point it out, she was already raising her weapon.

"Double Bladestorm."

Suddenly, there were two Jaqs.

"What!?" Jade exclaimed in surprise.

The first one rushed at her and went for a simple sword swing. Jade easily block it, but the moment they made contact, she seemingly disappeared, only to be replaced by the second copy. This one swung at her with a familiar pattern. She recognized it as the Fifth Path: Byakko.

Unable to react fast enough, the blade struck her leg, sending a jolt of pain across her body. But the assault did not end there. Again, Jaq disappeared and reappeared behind her readying another swing. This time she reacted fast enough to block it but just as before she quickly disappeared and reappeared in a different direction. This kept going. Each time faster than before. The first few times she could keep up, but the constant buffet of blows soon wore down her defenses. Left. Right. Up. Down. Nowhere was safe for her.

And all the while Jaq was laughing, almost maniacally.

Something was definitely wrong and she needed to do something. But what?

A sudden inspiration came to her. Perhaps she could calm her the same way she calms her brother. It was risky, but worth a shot.

Before her Aura collapsed, she conjured up a torrent of wind to stop Jaq's next attack. Like the bodies before it, it simply faded away, but this time she reappeared a few meters away with her sword ignited in flames, ready to deliver the final blow.

This worked in Jade's favor as she rushed her with her chakram.

Jaq's sword came swinging down.

Jade parried it with her weapon.

Almost immediately, Jade's weapon was knocked from her hand, but it was enough to deflect Jaq's hit from landing directly. Then, with her bare hands, she pressed it against Jaq's chest letting their two Auras merge. Immediately, just like the process of osmosis, Jaq's dense Aura flowed towards Jade's flickering one as the two different Aura tried to find a balance. On top of that, Jaq froze in place while Jade felt a surge of energy within herself.

It was working!

But then it hit her.

At first it was a dull throbbing in the back of her head. Then it spread across her body and she started seeing visions. They were vivid. Images of blood and piles of collapsed bodies. There was even a quick flash of a strangely familiar young boy clutching his eye in pain. That's when she realized these were memories. But not of her own.

But that wasn't all. She was also getting something else. Words? Feelings? They were both insubstantial and clear and the same time.

Steal.

Destroy.

Kill.

Suddenly, all the images disappeared, replaced by an endless darkness that threatened to consume her. The throbbing was replaced by excruciating pain, shooting across her body like lightning.

"AAAAAAHHHH" She screamed, her body spasming in pain.

However, her scream awoke Jaq from her daze and she gazed upon the writhing Jade in shock. She quickly understood what was happening and her expression changed to one of regret and sadness.

"I am so sorry about this," Jaq's tone was filled with melancholy as she raised bare hand and chopped Jade's temples.

The blunt trauma instantly knocked out Jade, severing the connection between their Aura and causing both to completely vanish. She crumbled, but Jaq quickly caught her and lowered her carefully to the ground.

"Both Jade and Jaq's Aura have been drained. They are both eliminated."

As the echo of the announcement rang through the ring, Jaq gently cradled the unconscious Jade in her lap, her expression pained and deeply apologetic. All she could do was continue to apologize.

"I'm sorry you had to see all that. I'm so sorry."


The announcement that both Jade and Jaq were eliminated faded away.

Yu's expression tightened, but otherwise did not turn away from his opponent.

But the same couldn't be said of Ace as he had a smug smirk plastered all over his face at the news.

"Oh, a surprise for sure, but can't say I didn't see it coming considering all the factors at play. But on the bright side, we have the stage all to ourselves."

Since they were separated, Ace had pushed the fight deeper into the woods. Granted, it wasn't a particularly large forest as the radius of the arena was only 25 meters long, but it was big enough to obscure the sight of the other biome. In fact, the only thing Yu could make out through the trees was the fire wall flickering out of existence.

Their battle wasn't as intensive as what they heard from the other side, but Yu had a sneaking suspicion that Ace wasn't actually trying all that hard in the first place. He wasn't sure whether that was his hubris or he was buying time? Either way, Yu raised his weapon again, readying himself for another attack. They may not have exchanged any major blows up till this point, but he got the feeling something might change now that both their partners were eliminated.

However, instead of attacking, Ace casually started a conversation. Something he hasn't done since the start of the match.

"You know, have I ever told you that we are very similar?"

Yu's eyes narrowed, but he did not respond. Instead, he rushed him with a series of slashes with his bow in melee form, but Ace parried them easily.

"I'm in no mood to chat." Yu grunted as his blade grinded against Ace's.

"Oh? But I am."

Ace forced Yu away and continued talking.

"That hard look in your eyes. That unwavering hatred. That single-minded pursuit of a goal. It is all too familiar."

Yu didn't want to hear any of it. He kept attacking him hoping to shut him up, but of course, it wasn't effective at all.

"Perhaps in another life we could be brothers."

"Shut up!"

Another ineffective strike.

"At least that was my first impression, but that has changed."

Ace suddenly went on the offensive, clashing blades and forcing Yu back a step.

"I may see some similarities in you, but we couldn't be any more different." Ace's once smug visage now turn into a nasty snarl. "I've got a goal, too. And everything I've done up to this point has been of the singular purpose of reaching that goal. My resolve has been unwavering. But you, you are just a wandering vagrant. Lost. Without purpose."

Ace pushed his blade further, driving Yu to his knees.

"You speak of destroying the Grimm yet all I've seen of you these last few months was flail about, acting like this farce you call training and schoolwork means anything. A Huntsman's role isn't to hunt the Grimm, merely defend against them. Dummies and simulation can't match the true feeling of killing a Grimm."

He leaned closer, his hot breath clearly felt on Yu's cheeks.

"Tell me! Since the Emerald Forest, how many Grimm have you actually killed?"

"I said shut up!"

Yu suddenly twisted his weapon to force Ace's weapon away. Then, with his free hand, he grabbed his weapon and pulled it apart, the two pronged katar splitting into two dirks. This took Ace by surprise and he got clipped by the first wild swing Yu threw at him before recovering.

Ace rubbed the spot where his blade clipped him, his expression returning to a neutral one.

"I see you made some upgrades to your weapon. Definitely caught me by surprise. But now that you've revealed your little trick, I won't make the same mistake again."

Meanwhile, Yu took a deep breath, his boiling temperament simmering to a cool after landing a clean blow, and he let out a few pointed words of his own.

"If you think you can get under my skin with that, then you are wrong."

Ace had a look of disappointment, as if the turn of events wasn't what he expected, but then smiled once more.

"That wasn't my intention. I was just curious about what sort of experience led you here."

Yu suddenly froze, a sudden uncomfortable emotion welling within him. Ace noticed this and a devilish smile lit his lips as he dug his dagger deeper.

"May 3rd, 981 New Era. Vermilion Village. Population: 124. Attacked by Grimm horde of medium size. No Class A Threat or higher. Village completely raided. 26 injured. 5…"

Before he could finish his sentence, he slapped away an arrow Yu fired at him.

"Where did you learn that?" Yu's voice was cold and harsh, his eyes scarily wide.

"Heh, just a little investigative work. Your sister was very uncooperative in providing details, but the Vale Transmit Tower had more than enough information to piece it together."

The Vale Transmit Tower. This large spire is what allowed for transcontinental communication as well as large scale broadcasts. But it wasn't all that it did.

"Did you know? Besides being a communication tower, it also stores a wealth of data. One such data is all the reported Grimm attacks across the world in the past 10 years. These reports were collected from the country of origin and then shared to all the other Transmit Towers in the hopes of discovering patterns and tactics to counteract them. Obviously, you would need some clearance to access them, but let's just say I have my ways."

"Enough!" Yu didn't want to hear anymore and violently charged at him. However, Ace simply matched his wild swings with cool, meticulous precision.

He deflected each of his attacks all the while continuing to speak.

"Casualty report: No Huntsmen casualty. Two killed at Ground Zero. One during initial evacuation. And a pair of parents."

"Stop it!" Yu screamed through gritted teeth as he sped up his swings. His head started to hurt again. His vision blurred. There was a turmoil of emotion rising. But he would not stop.

"Huntsman reported that he arrived just in time to save a child who was trapped in a corner from an injured Beowulf, but was too late to save the child's parents. Injury shown to be from an axe the father used before getting killed. Strange? A Huntsman-in-training at fifteen, unable to finish off an injured Beowulf? Need defending from untrained parents?"

"STOP!" Yu was beyond hysterical at this point. He was just yelling and screaming just to drown out the voice that was reaching into his dark past.

But he would not stop.

"That's when I dug into your school records. You were never trained as a Huntsman. You quit after one year in the middle school program and returned home to your normal pathetic life. You are nothing but a dropout. A failure."

Something snapped within Yu. His vision turned red and a violent urge to cut Ace down arose from within. For a second, it was like something took over his body. Black miasma formed around him as he swung his weapon with a blood curdling scream.

Ace blocked in normally, but what he didn't expect was sudden extra power behind it. It sent him flying through the air, bouncing off of trees in the way. He then tumbled unceremoniously onto the ground sputtering out foliage and dirt before trying to get back on his feet.

But it was too late as Yu suddenly appeared before him with another dangerous swing.

There was no time to maneuver so he took another hit except this time he smashed into a large brush, creating a massive hole in it. Leaves and branches shot everywhere like confetti at a party.

Yu still wasn't done though. He jumped into the air going for an overhead chop to finish him off, but just as he lowered his blade into the brush, two hands shot out and grasped his weapon arm. Despite all the kinetic energy in that swing, somehow Ace still managed to stop it mid swing.

Then, out from the bush, Ace emerged. His face was bruised and his hair ruffled, but otherwise he still looked pretty energetic. More importantly, all that damage has caused his eyepatch to loosen and, with both hands occupied, he was unable to stop it from completely falling off. Behind the eyepatch revealed his right eye, which was not abnormal or different in any way compared to his left eye, but there was a large scar running across it at an angle almost parallel to how the eyepatch was worn. And within his sky blue eyes, a fire was burning within.

"Yes! Now this is the thrill battle!" He cackled with a large evil looking grin. "Oh it has been so long since I felt such exquisite pain."

Yu tried to extricate his hand from his iron grip, but was unable to do so. Meanwhile, Ace lunged forward cracking their skulls together, causing both of them to reel back in pain.

Ace was the first to recover, shaking off the pain before grabbing a branch and using his Semblance to swap it with his weapons, which was several meters away.

Soon after, Yu also recovered. Not just from the head trauma, but also from the bloodrage he just experienced. Yet, that deep rooted hatred still remained.

Now that his head was cleared, he was able to comprehend a little of what happened a few seconds ago. During his unbridled assault against his opponent, there was a feeling of clarity within all that pent up rage. As if all the variables were displayed to him and all the pieces were within his grasp. He wasn't able to utilize it when he was mindlessly attacking, but if he could get into that zone again, perhaps he could finally defeat Ace.

"What are you standing for? Did you lose one too many brain cells from that headbutt? Come on, I'm ready for round two."

Yu faced Ace once more as he spouted those taunting words. His sarcastic grin pissed him off and he felt the anger rising once more, but he didn't let it consume him this time. He let it build until he felt it hit that sweet spot and then that feeling of clarity hit him once more.

Immediately, he kicked off, separating his weapon into the two short swords and rushed towards Ace, who met him with his weapon in the dagger and sword form.

Their clash this time was much faster, much fiercer than any of their previous fights. To the audience, their arms were moving like a blur, but to each other the pattern of their swings made perfect sense. They were locked in a dance of death. Blade clash with blade, retreat, then rush in again. Rinse and repeat. Faster and faster. At some point they were flitting through the trees so fast, the camera bots just gave up trying to follow them.

They went on a whole minute trading blows. The ringing of metal on metal came like a machine gun. But it wasn't like either one of them were coming out of this unscathed. Here and there, Yu received a slash to the shoulder, Ace took a hit across the stomach, but neither of them let out any indication of being hit even as their displayed Aura levels began to drop.

After a while, they fell into a rhythm and Ace began to speak again.

"After crossing blades with you, I now see the truth. The truth behind your purpose, your anger."

They both made some distance from each other, turning their weapons into their respective ranged form. They fired at the same time, energy bullet and energy arrow travelling along the same path before colliding and shooting off in a random direction.

"It was never about the Grimm. You were just shouting at the iniquity life threw your way. Placing blame where it was easy to place."

They started circling each other, flitting between trees and brushes, all the while firing shots when emerging from their wooden covers. The forest became a battlefield of whizzing projectiles. Some collided with each other mid air while others struck the trees just as its intended target duck behind them.

"It is a tale I know all too well."

Their circling got closer and closer until finally they reached melee range again, at which point they struck each other with their bow and sniper respectively.

"You see, we are all bound to the world by strong emotions. Love. Hate. It is the driving force that shapes who we are."

Ace suddenly knocked Yu's weapon away, but he immediately reciprocated and disarmed Ace. Weaponless, the two proceeded to engage in a fist fight, punching and kicking each other with force and precision of martial artists. And even through the fist to the face, Ace still kept talking.

"You. you are driven by an insatiable hate. I see it in your eyes. You hate unconditionally. You hate equally."

Ace suddenly backed off, grabbing his rifle as he did so. Yu also took the moment to retrieve his own, but when he raised it he noticed something ominous...and familiar.

As Ace retreated into a small clearing, he had spewed a bunch of silvery bits which now hang in the air like metallic snowflakes.

"But more than anything, you hate yourself the most."

Yu's eye twitched at his words, but he was too focused to react. This was the most he has ever pushed Ace and it was very apparent that he was reaching his limit if he plans on using "that" attack again. Last time he faced it, he was almost powerless, but this time, he felt confident that he will be able to track it. Still, he fired a few shots to buy some time, but Ace quickly deflected them.

Ace's sniper revved up, red lightning sparking from the chamber as he raised it up high.

"O pitiful creature, I shall be the instrument that absolves you of your curse."

Ace points his sniper at Yu, the barrel now brilliant red.

"Gae. Bolg."

A massive red bullet fired from the barrel of the sniper, going straight at first, but quickly disappearing and reappearing in place of one of the silver shrapnel. It kept doing so, zipping around at a chaotic and frenzied pace, almost imperceptible to normal humans.

But Yu could see it. This time, he knew how to track it.

With his Foresight, he noticed traces of Auric residue around the object Ace was planning on swapping the bullet with as well as the vector it will go in. And with his new clarity of sight, he was able to perceive every silver flake around him, even the one behind him as if he had eyes on the back of his head. Going even further, Yu was confident he could predict where Ace would swap the bullet next.

Two o'clock. Aimed at chest. He twisted his body as the blood red bullet went zipping by where he stood.

Seven o'clock. Aimed at head. He ducked, narrowly avoiding it again.

He felt the rhythm. He understood the pattern. Ace's ultimate move is now useless.

Ace seemed to understand what was happening and his eyes widened in shock.

This was his moment. He can end this now. Surging with confidence and adrenaline, he began running towards Ace, not bothered by the web of danger surrounding him. Ace tried to impede his progress, but he avoided the bullet by leaping into the trees and jumping from branch to branch. At the same time, he drew real arrows from his quiver at his side and fired them while making his zigzagged approach.

Ace deflected all of them, causing them to dig harmlessly into the dirt around him. Afterwards, his expression tightened and the pattern of his bullet changed. Rather than targeting him directly, he aimed for the tree branches.

But that was hardly a detriment as Yu used the trunk of a tree to make one final leap to leave the range of the silver flakes. The bullet attempted to hit him one last time as he travelled through the air, but he spun around and diverted it with his blade.

Yet, even as his attack failed to reach, Ace had a smirk.

"Checkmate."

Ace kicked up a rock next to his feet. It was obvious what it was for Since Yu was midair, his mobility was poor and deflecting the projectile will stymie his momentum.

"No, it's checkmate for you." Yu grinned as he predicted this turn of events. He was aware that Ace had a bunch of tricks up his sleeves, so he left contingencies in place.

Just as he said this, the arrows lying all around Ace exploded in a shower of smoke and dust. The suddenness of it caused Ace to flinch and raised his arms to shield his eyes, which, in turn, made his swap to fail miserably and the bullet went off in some random direction. Not only that, the explosion whipped up a storm of foliage that shrouded the clearing in a veil of rubbish.

Yu knew that Ace was able to swap with any object nearby as long as he had line of sight and that he chose the clearing because it gave him the most vision in case something goes south. So by obstructing his view with this chaotic mess, he hoped to keep him stationary.

This was it. This was the end game. He had bested Ace. His ultimate ability bested. His escape route cut off. He just needed to deal the final blow and it will be over. Victory was in sight and he couldn't help but grin a little.

But that's when he noticed.

Behind Ace's raised arm, he noticed that the fire was still ignited in his eyes. He wasn't done just yet. Then, slowly, Ace unclenched his fist and a small object fell out. A coin.

The realization dawned far too late as Ace fired his gun, which was pointed at the ground, but the shot immediately swapped with the coin.

Yu watched in horror as the energy bolt got closer and closer to him. He was already descending from his jump. Deflecting the shot now will waste his one and only opportunity to strike him down. Is there nothing he could do? Is this how it will end again? How it always end?

No! He refused to let it end like this.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Yu screamed, letting pure instinct take over.

With a twist of his body and a shot from his katar, Yu spun out of control, but managed to avoid Ace's last desperate attempt. He continued to fire more shots using the momentum to correct his wild course until finally, he was pointed at Ace once more.

And what he saw on Ace's face was a mixture of shock, anger, and frustration.

"INSOLENT SWINE!"

He raised his sniper in a desperate attempt to block, but using the momentum of another shot, Yu slashed his weapon away from his hand and followed through with a final spinning splash to finish him off.

"IT'S OVER!"

"IT'S NOT OVER UNTIL I SAY IT IS!" Ace's screamed. His expression was wild and scary. Something very unlike him.

Yu's blade swung in, aimed at his head.

And then…

Nothing.

There was no feeling of contact. No feeling of metal against someone's Aura. It just kept going as if he was cutting air.

What just happened? Yu thought.

Was he too far? Was his aim off? He was sure that his blade was in range and upon further inspection, it definitely was. But he did notice a little detail. His position was slightly off from where he thought he was. He was still within range to hit him, but just a bit further than where he had planned to swing.

In his moment of doubt, Ace lunged forward and landed a heavy punch into his stomach.

"Know your place!"

Yu was launched into the air, the wind knocked out of him. Then, Ace grabbed a rock and swapped with his rifle, firing one last shot, which struck him in the temple.

All he saw was flashing lights as his Aura disappeared and he crashed into the sandy floor of the desert biome, face first.

He was still conscious, but he remained unmoving. A wave of complex emotions washed over him as he failed to understand what just happened. Everything was going so perfectly and then it wasn't. Was it his fault? Was it fate? He didn't know.

Then, a shadow came over him, and he looked up to see Ace staring down at him with an almost pitiful expression.

"We are all bound by limits. It's a shame your limit wasn't enough." With that, he turned around, ready to leave.

The way he said it triggered something within him. His fist clenched and his muscles tightened. In a fit of rage, he grabbed his weapon and went for a cowardly attack from behind, ignoring all sensible reasoning and sound judgement.

However, Ace spun around and struck him first before his own sword reached him.

He lurched to the side, a sharp pain shot across his arms where Ace hit him. Through pain, he could hear a gasp from the crowd that quickly became silent. He felt the arena shift to normal and that rapid beating of many feet.

That's when he felt it. A hot, tingling sensation and the feeling of viscous liquid flowing down his arms. He looked down and saw his arm painted red with his own blood, which now dripped onto the metallic floor, leaving splatters of red. He looked up in disbelief, at Ace who stroked his blade to wipe off his blood before dropping it at the behest of the faculty that now surrounded him.

He couldn't hear what was being said or make sense of what was going on. His mouth feels parched and his head feels light. He tried to say something, but nothing came out. Slowly, he felt a grogginess set in and collapsed once more, unconscious.


"So, what's going to happen to them?" A concerned Jade asked Aki.

It was late into the evening now. The tournament was delayed after that disastrous match and Ace was escorted off the field by a squad of faculty while Yu was rushed to the infirmary. The injury Yu suffered wasn't life threatening, but the cut was deep enough to require several days of Aura therapy to fully close up. However, that wasn't the most concerning part. Since both Ace and Yu disobeyed the rules, severe ones at that, they were both held in detention until the school decided the appropriate punishment.

Jade woke up not long ago and when she heard the news, she immediately rushed off to find Professor Aki. But she was not alone.

When she arrived at Aki's office, she found Jaq already with her.

And now here they were.

"I don't know what to say," Aki replied with a worried look. "The punishment has been decided, but I don't know what to make of it."

Both girls held their breath.

"Of course, both of them are suspended for the rest of the month. But…"

"But?"

"Headmaster still allowed them to participate in the winter campout next week, but not with the normal group. They will be together in a separate group for a...mediation session. Obviously, they will be supervised in case things don't turn out well. And, if they can work things out between them, the school will be willing to lessen their sentence."

"That's great news, isn't it?" Jade let out her breath in relief.

Aki remained skeptical. "Yes it is, but it is a bit weird. I've never heard about this kind of condition, or at least not since I worked here, but Ozpin wants it this way, I won't question it. I trust his choice."

During this whole exchange, Jaq remained silent. Her gaze appeared distant and she seemed to be deep in thought. Other than earlier when they were asking how their teammates were doing, she hasn't spoken much.

"Is there anything else you would like to ask?" Aki inquired.

Jaq suddenly shot her head up, having come to some conclusion, and shook her head. "No, I'm good. Thanks."

With that she got up from her seat and left.

Jade was a bit startled at how abrupt she left, but as she was also out of question, she got up, gave Aki a thankful bow, and left too.

Outside, she found Jaq leaning against the opposite wall, her expression downcast.

"Jade."

"Yeah?" She tilted her head a little in curiosity.

"I'm sorry."

For some reason, hearing those words felt a little nostalgic. She couldn't place how, but it felt like she heard her say it before. Her memory was a bit fuzzy between when she touched Jaq's Aura and when she awoke, so she assumed it might've been somewhere in between that time. Either way, it gave her a nice warm feeling.

"No, it's okay." Jade shook her head. "I feel like I should be the one apologizing."

She didn't know how else to put it. Was Yu in the wrong? Was Ace? Were they both wrong? She wasn't there to witness what happened, so she didn't know what to think. Her head hurts just thinking about it.

Jaq looked like she was about to say something, but she stopped herself, gripping her arm tightly. She mumbled something, but her words were imperceptible, and she slowly walked away, leaving Jade in a cold, lifeless hallway.

After a moment to collect herself, she also walked away, but not towards the dorms. She snaked her way through the school grounds, heading towards the infirmary. Towards where Yu should be.

The campus was mostly empty as most students have retired for the night after an eventful day, which she appreciated as she didn't want anymore cautious glares coming her way. She had her fair share of those looks in her previous school and she didn't know if her current emotional state could handle it.

Soon, she reached the infirmary and to her surprise, she found her brother out of bed staring out the window into the night.

"You're up." Jade exclaimed, but Yu didn't respond.

He was covered in bandages, but most of it was covered around his arm, which was placed in a sling, not because it was broken but for resting purposes.

"How are you feeling?" She tried again, but still no reaction.

Still, she felt like she needed to do something. "Please. Talk to me. I want to know what happened. I don't know what Ace did that made you act like that, but I know that isn't you. You were just stressed from everything. If you tell me what's going on maybe I can help you, maybe…"

"Stop. Just stop."

Yu's words were cold and harsh. It made Jade freeze.

"W-what do you mean? I'm only trying to help."

Yu faced his sister, his eyes seething in rage.

"Stop treating me like some toddler! I don't need your pity! I'm sick of it!"

"No! That's not what I'm doing!"

"Well it sure as hell feels like it! You wouldn't understand anyways!"

"What are you talking about?"

"It always ends up like this. Back when we came here, back in Mistral, hell, even back when we were kids. I'm sick and tired of being some crippled pup that you need to look after."

He shifted his body, jostling his arm, which caused him to wince in pain but he continue on, angrier than before.

"Why can't I be more like you!? You always had the spotlight. You were the genius who could accomplish anything she set her eyes on. Mom and Dad, everyone, all they could see was you. Meanwhile, I sat in the darkness unable to accomplish a single thing!"

"That's not true!" Jade's voice cracked as a well of emotion rose from her, causing her eyes to grow moist. "You've made it here. Isn't that what you wanted?"

Yu laughed. "What I wanted? Do you even know what I want?"

"How could I if you never tell me!?" Jade practically cried.

Yu paused for a moment. Then, continue with a colder, muted voice.

"You want to know? Four years ago, I went to a Huntsmen Training School in the closest city. I thought that was wanted. But I didn't have what it took. I failed. I was bullied. And the first chance I got, I quit. I quit and returned home to be some boring nobody."

Jade tried to say something, but the words won't come.

"And then that happened. I thought, maybe, just maybe I could do something, but like everything else, I couldn't. All I could do was cower in the dark and watch them sacrifice their lives for me. FOR ME! What a joke! I wanted to be a protector, but I ended up protecting nothing."

Yu stared at his hands as if they were stained with blood. Then, he turned his gaze up at Jade with burning hatred.

"And you know what's worst? Ever since then I thought, if it had been you. If you were there, things would have been different. And I hate it. I hate this powerlessness. I hate the weak me that can't do anything right! Everytime I see you succeed, I'm just reminded of that pain. I hate it. I hate it. I HATE IT! And most of all, I HATE YOU!"

His last words broke the final wall keeping Jade's emotion together. Like glass shattering upon the floor. Tears began to spill from her eyes as she stood frozen, in utter disbelief and pain. She reached up and touched her face, refusing to believe the water to be her tears. It was rain. Yes, it was just raining in the room. However, as more and more came out, even that delusion wasn't enough to dull the pain.

Yu appeared a little shocked by his own words, but his expression hardened and he turned away, refusing to look at her sister again.

"Get out."

He didn't even need to say it. Jade was already running away, with the gleam of her tear drops marking her path.

For the rest of the week, the two of them never crossed paths.