Chapter 12: Battle's Aftermath
Three days later, Safe Zone in Vale, 3rd October 18 BBY, 12:30 pm…
Nathan groaned as he stirred, his eyes opening to an almost blinding light. "Fucking hell…" He muttered hoarsely, his throat so dry it made deserts look anything but dry. He made to sit up, but grunted with pain, looking down to see his midsection covered in bandages.
"Easy, easy!" A voice said as Nora appeared, easing him back down. "You took a hell of a beating."
"Nora…?" Nathan asked hoarsely.
"Yeah; it's me, Nate." Nora replied. "Oh, thank the gods, you're okay!" At which she hugged Nathan as gently as she could. "When they wheeled you in along with Ruby and Pyrrha, and we saw the state you were in; I… I-"
"Hey, hey… it's okay." Nathan said. "Though… some water would be nice."
Nodding, Nora shouted: "REN! Nate's awake! Grab him some water!"
A few moments passed before Ren entered the room, carrying a glass of water for Nathan. "Here." Ren said, the relief at seeing Nathan awake evident in his voice.
"Thanks." Nathan replied hoarsely, before downing the glass in one gulp. "Ugh… much better." He groaned, taking a deep breath. After that drink, his vision became a bit clearer, and he could see the inside of the room he was in much better.
It was a room he didn't recognise, meaning it clearly wasn't Beacon… "Where… where are we?" He asked.
"In one of the many field hospitals that've sprung up across Vale's safe zone over the past three days." Ren replied.
"Three days?" Nathan muttered, his eyes narrowed. "What about Beacon?"
"We… we don't know yet." Nora answered. "Ironwood's deployed his army to try and clear the Grimm out so that repair crews can go in, but they're not making much headway, yet."
Nathan nodded, before his eyes widened in realisation. "Pyrrha!" He shouted, looking at Nora. "Is she okay? Is Pyrrha safe?"
"She's fine." Ren said. "Just a broken arm and ankle. She'll be okay."
Nathan let a breath he'd no idea he'd been holding in escape as relief flooded him. "Thank the Force." He remarked. "Where is she?"
"Few doors down with Jaune." Nora answered. "We did try and get you two a room together, but there wasn't any space."
Nathan nodded. "How're Team RWBY doing?" He asked.
Nora and Ren shared a sad look.
"They're… they could be in better shape." Nora said.
"Ruby's still unconscious, Weiss is resisting the demands of her father to return to Atlas, Yang is… she's not herself, and Blake…" Ren said before sighing.
"Blake?" Nathan asked. "What about her?"
"Hardly anyone's seen her in the past three days." Nora replied. "When any of us has seen her, she's either been in here, or with Yang, in tears."
Nathan sighed. "She thinks all this is her fault." He realised.
"What?!" Nora asked. "Why would she ever think any of this is her fault?!"
"The guy in charge of the White Fang here in Vale… he was… he and Blake used to be together." Nathan answered. "When she left, he… didn't take it well. He's the one that took off Yang's arm. Way I see it; Blake feels responsible for the White Fang involvement." He sighed, before forcing himself to sit up, ignoring the protests of his wounds. "I gotta find her. Let her know I'm okay." He said, swinging his legs down.
"Nate, in your condition, that's not a-" Ren said, making to stop Nathan.
"Ah, I'll be fine." Nathan grunted, stepping off of the bed, although he stumbled slightly, grimacing as his wounds protested. "I've had worse." Looking at his nightstand, Nathan was pleased to see his combat gear on the table, alongside his lightsaber. "Ren; help me get dressed."
Ren nodded, and a few painful minutes later, Nathan was dressed in his combat gear.
Attaching his lightsaber to his belt, Nathan looked up as he heard Nora giggling. "What?!" He asked.
Nora giggled. "Sorry, it's just… with the bandages… you… kinda look… fat."
Nathan gave Nora a look before chuckling. "Wow…"
"Sorry, but it's true!" Nora said, before breaking into a fit of laughter.
Nathan rolled his eyes, looking over at Ren. "How you two became friends will always be a question on my mind." He remarked.
Ren just shrugged, and helped Nathan to the door.
"I can handle it." Nathan grunted as he left the room, taking a deep breath.
Now he had a debate going on in his mind. He could either go a few doors down and visit Pyrrha, or he could go off and find Blake, hoping she would be okay.
A very big part of Nathan was begging him to just ditch Pyrrha and see to Blake, but a smaller, more responsible part of him demanded that he see to Pyrrha first, since he had basically nearly died for her.
Looking to a few doors down, he reached out with the Force and soon found Pyrrha in the farthest room. Limping over, Nathan took a moment to collect himself before he knocked on the door.
"Come in!" Pyrrha's voice called out from within.
At that, Nathan opened the door and stepped inside.
Pyrrha's room…
Nathan entered the room to find himself being addressed by a different name:
"Jaune, that was remarkably qui-" Pyrrha made to say, before pausing. "Nathan?" She asked.
"Hey." Nathan replied, smiling. "You've looked better." He added sarcastically.
Pyrrha laughed. She was laid in bed with her right foot elevated above her and her left arm in a cast and strapped to her chest. "Me?! You're the one that's suffered three broken ribs, one fractured and another cracked, alongside deep stab and slash wounds!"
Nathan smiled. "And yet here I am, three days later. Almost as if it never happened."
Pyrrha nodded before adding: "Come here, you!"
Nathan surged forward as Pyrrha sat up, hugging her tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay." He said softly, holding her close.
"Me too." Pyrrha said, before the telltale sign of her starting to tear up started.
"Hey, hey, Pyrrha, what's up?" Nathan asked, taking Pyrrha's hand in his.
"I'm sorry." Pyrrha sniffled. "I… when I came to the day after the battle, I asked if you were okay. All I heard was that you were 'on the bridge between life and death'." At that, Pyrrha started crying. "I feared the worst!" She sobbed.
"Hey, hey, hey…" Nathan said, hugging Pyrrha. "I'm okay, now. And I'm not going anywhere for a very long time."
Pyrrha hugged Nathan back as tightly as she could, sobbing with relief into his shoulder until eventually breaking away. "I know." Pyrrha said. "You proved that by coming here to see me." Wiping a tear from her eye.
Nathan smiled and just held Pyrrha close, stroking her hair as the door swung open.
"I'm back!" Jaune called out from outside as he stepped in, carrying two bags full of groceries. "Sorry I took a while, queue was a bitch."
Nathan watched as Jaune then turned, dropping both bags instantly.
"Nathan… you're… you're okay…" he said.
"More or less." Nathan replied, before stepping away from Pyrrha as Jaune charged him and hugged him tightly, bursting into tears
"Thank the fucking gods!" Jaune sobbed. "I was so worried, Nate!"
"Yeah…" Nathan said, tapping Jaune on the shoulder. "Take it easy, busted ribs…"
"Oh, sorry!" Jaune said, breaking the hug. "It's just… by the time they got you down from the tower, you'd already lost so much blood. The docs did what they could, but said your fate was up to the gods, now."
"Well; the gods would have had a fight on their hands if they'd tried keeping me dead." Nathan joked.
Jaune laughed heartily and hugged Nathan again before picking the groceries up and setting them to the side. After that, he joined Pyrrha, taking her hand in his before kissing her on the cheek.
Nathan smiled, folding his arms. "About fucking time." He remarked as he watched his two teammates, together at last. He sighed. "I… heard about what's going on with Team RWBY." He said. "But… has any of you seen Blake at all?"
Jaune met Nathan's gaze and nodded. "Spotted her leaving the house Yang and Ruby are holed up at on my way back. She looked like she was heading to the docks."
Nathan nodded. "Thanks. I'll head there now." He replied, turning to leave. "And Jaune…?"
"Huh?" Jaune asked, looking at Nathan.
"Might wanna ditch that hoodie before Cardin sees." Nathan said, gesturing to Jaune's hoodie, now uncovered by armour as it had been before, revealing a cute little bunny rabbit on the front of it.
Pyrrha's outburst of laughter alongside Jaune's spluttered protests followed Nathan out of the door as he headed off in search of Blake.
The streets of Vale, 13:00 pm…
Nathan felt an eerie sense of familiarity as he walked the streets of the Vale safe zone. All around him, he saw bodies being zipped up into body bags as entire families surrounded and mourned the deceased, injured men, women and children lying on stretchers, waiting to be seen to, and a city in a state of ruin.
All these things felt all too familiar to Nathan, who had walked through many a similar scene during his time in the Clone Wars.
This was the aftermath of battle. This was the aftermath of war hitting a city harder than it'd been hit in nearly a century.
Nathan eyed a long line of body bags and heaved a heavy sigh. This was the reality of war and battle. You may win a battle, but what about the people left behind afterwards, left with no choice but to pick up the pieces?
"Must feel familiar to you, kiddo."
Nathan turned to see Qrow Branwen stood there, eyeing him sadly. "Yeah. Never gets easier, either."
Qrow nodded. "Anyway… what are you doing out and about? You took a hell of a beating up on that tower."
Nathan shrugged. "I'm tougher than I look, Qrow." He replied. "And besides… I'm looking for Blake."
"I figured you'd go looking for her." Qrow remarked. "Last I checked, she was at the docks. Seemed real upset about something."
"Thanks. I'm headed there, anyway." Nathan replied. "Hopefully, I'm in time."
Qrow nodded before patting Nathan on the shoulder and leaving.
Nathan sighed before carrying on his journey towards the docks, hearing someone drop down behind him.
"Su cuy'gar, Nathan... Thought I'd see you around here before long."
Nathan turned to see Ghost stood a few feet away from him, one hand on his hip, the other holding his helmet in the crook of his arm. "Ghost. Would have thought you'd be at my bedside weeping over my body like a grieving mother." Nathan replied sarcastically.
Ghost replied with a chuckle. "Nar'sheb!"
Nathan cracked up laughing as he and Ghost shared a hug. "Gods, it's good to see a familiar face around here that isn't from Remnant! How'd you find me, anyway?"
"I was on Tatooine some months back and our good old friend Caleb Grey was there." Ghost replied. "He was yammering on about how he encountered a Jedi late last year and tampered with his navicomputer in the hope that it'd send him to some desolate system in the Unknown Regions. I tailed him for a while before cornering and interrogating him. That's how I found out about the Jedi being you. From there; it's been nearly a year of planet hopping and death defying fights with various creatures until I finally came here." Pausing, Ghost added: "One of the first things I saw upon landing was the Vytal Festival Tournament, and you making your entrance. From there, it was just a case of looking for you. Now here I am."
Nathan smiled. "Well; I'm glad you're here, Ghost." He responded. "Say... you wouldn't have happened to have seen my girlfriend hanging around?"
"Your girlfriend?" Ghost inquired. "As in that faunus girl I've spoken to a couple times at the house Yang's in?"
Nathan nodded.
"Last I saw, she was headed for the docks. Best get there quick, since I have a feeling she might be leaving." Ghost elaborated.
"I will. Talk more later, Ghost." Nathan replied.
"Ret'urcye mhi, Nathan." Ghost said in response.
Nathan smiled and soon broke into a light jog, heading straight towards the docks. He prayed Blake was still there.
Vale City Docks, 13:10 pm…
It wasn't long before Nathan caught sight of Blake.
She was stood at the docks, looking down at something in her hands.
As Nathan drew closer, he could hear Blake sobbing, and stopped a few feet away. "Blake…?" He said softly, knowing for certain that Blake would hear.
Blake spun round, her eyes widening as she saw Nathan stood there. "Nathan!" She shouted, rushing over and leaping into his arms, bursting into tears as she did.
Nathan ignored the flash of pain in his ribs as he hugged Blake tightly, holding her as close to him as he could as she sobbed into his shoulder.
"Thank the gods, you're okay!" Blake choked out. "When I saw you getting wheeled in, I… I…"
"Hey, hey, ssh, I'm okay." Nathan said gently, kissing Blake on the cheek as he held her close.
Eventually, the two broke their hug, and Nathan finally noticed Blake was no longer wearing her bow. "Your bow…" He said.
Blake then revealed her bow in her hands. "I… don't really need it anymore, anyway." She replied. "Pretty much everyone I know knows I'm a faunus, so… why hide it?"
"That's good." Nathan said. "Means you're getting better at opening up to people. Bet everyone's gonna be happy to see that."
Blake shut her eyes against tears, sighing sadly.
"What's wrong, Blake?" Nathan asked gently.
"I…" Blake said. "I… I have to leave." She finally said.
"L-leave?!" Nathan said. "Why? Your entire team's here, Sun's here… I'm here."
"Exactly!" Blake exclaimed. "Meaning as long as I'm still here, you're all in danger! Adam is still out there, meaning that he can easily come back and finish what he started last night!" Stepping away from Nathan, Blake wiped a tear from her eye. "It's me he wants, Nathan. If I go… then at least he won't feel the need to hurt any of you any more."
Nathan felt tears begin to prick at his eyes as reality started to set in:
Blake was leaving. And there was nothing he could do about it. Unless…
"You really think Adam will just leave us alone if you leave?" Nathan suddenly asked, looking at Blake.
"Yeah… why?" Blake asked, eyebrows furrowing in that beautiful way they always did when Blake was curious about something.
"Blake; Adam vowed to destroy everything you love." Nathan replied. "So… even if you do leave; what are the chances that Adam will just hunt us all down anyway, kill us all and save you for last? I don't know the exact odds, but they're really high."
"So you're saying I should stay here and watch you all die?!" Blake demanded, tears still streaming down her face.
"Blake, you know I don't mean that!" Nathan countered, tears starting to fall. "I'm saying you should fight by our side. Adam can't beat all of us. Eventually, one of us is going to kill him."
"No…" Blake said firmly. "I can't let you put yourself at risk on my account. It's my fault Adam cut off Yang's arm, and it's my fault Adam nearly killed you!"
"AND I'D DO IT A HUNDRED TIMES MORE IF IT MEANT YOU WERE SAFE!" Nathan shouted.
Blake backed away, stunned at Nathan's proclamation.
"Blake Belladonna… you honestly think any of us blame you for what happened to Yang? For what nearly happened to me?" Nathan asked. "Fuck no! And if any do blame you, fuck them! We did what we did because you mean so much to us, Blake! You're one of the most important people in our lives. You're Yang's best friend. And…" Taking Blake's hand in his, Nathan added: "I love you, Blake. And because of that love, I would walk through hellfire, brimstone and suffer unspeakable pain if it means you'll be safe." Taking a deep breath, Nathan added: "You remember that talk we had? On the beach back in Patch, when I told you about that nightmare I had about the Empire coming to Remnant and killing you all?"
"Yeah…" Blake said.
"Well; didn't you tell me then that if they do come, we'd face them together?" Nathan asked.
Blake nodded. "I did. And I still stand by that." She said resolutely.
"Then please… let me and the others do the same with you and Adam. You don't have to face him alone, Blake." Reaching up and tucking a stray hair behind Blake's ear, Nathan added: "We'll face Adam together. Just like we'll face the Empire together, should they come knocking. Because I'd fight a hell of a lot harder if I had you by my side."
Blake wiped a tear from her eye as she said: "Me too."
Not a moment more had passed before Nathan pulled Blake into a passionate kiss.
Blake wrapped her arms around Nathan's neck as she deepened the kiss, even as Nathan wrapped his arms even more tightly around hers, holding each other close for what felt like a wonderful eternity until they broke the kiss.
They still held each other though, before Nathan said: "Come on. Let's join the others."
Blake nodded, taking Nathan's hand in hers as they set off back the way Nathan had come.
So much had been destroyed in the Battle of Beacon, but as they walked, Nathan knew that he and Blake had each other. And as long as they had that, everything was always going to be alright in the end.
I... might have overestimated my abilities to work whilst extremely tired from some hellishly busy shifts at work.
Regardless, thus ends The End of the Beginning.
Man, this fanfic was fun to write. From the opening scenes to Nathan finally squaring off with Adam in a battle for the ages. Almost sad to see it finished.
Either way; let's answer some reviews, shall we?
april-551: I'd say both Adam and Cinder defeated Nathan. Between Adam badly injuring and wounding Nathan to Cinder borderline mortally wounding him, Nathan got his backside handed to him. But yes; Pyrrha is alive. As for what happens with Blake... here you go.
Guest/Hunter: I agree! Pyrrha and Jaune deserve each other to a tee. Pyrrha dying was never in any of my plans, and it's increasingly unlikely that her demise will ever take place by way of my keyboard.
keybladelight: Only the third?! Damn... I need to be the first to do something in a Pyrrha survives fic! With reference to Visions, I'll give it a look, see what could fit.
With all that said, thank you all so much for taking the time to read this story. If you liked it, leave a review in the apropos section, and if you really liked it... maybe favourite and follow me as an author, so you will be updated as and when I upload the next story.
Speaking of... I will be taking a month's hiatus to finish planning out Book 4, so... look to early July being where I upload the first chapter of Book 4.
Again, thank you all for reading, and I will see you all in early July for the first chapter of Book 4, titled: 'When it Falls'
T-Rock14