It all happened in an instant.
GAKUUUUUUUN!
One step
All I could take was one step,
And that was all that took for his fist to seal my fate.
"MAGENTAAAAA!"
Vegas was shouting behind me, he only just noticed the fist emerging through my back.
A fist, coated with blood and glistening red in the streetlights like a ruby.
A hand of a Crimson King.
"... A human never truly knows when their life will expire. After all, one can only tell that a flame will expire soon when it is but a flickering flower, clinging onto the last wax or log. You knew you would die, but who knew that you would die without a proper fight."
That's all I could hear before the sound of my own heart drowned out everything else.
My knees gave in, dragging the rest of me with it to the floor.
I felt my back starting to grow cold and wet.
My eyelids were starting to feel heavy.
….
….
.. Shit….
… Even if I tried to keep my eyes open, it was no use….
…. Everything's starting to become a blur.
"... Cioccolata…"
I forced out the wretched name out of my lips.
Even in my final moment, there was something that I had to say. Every cell in my body told me that it was absolutely dire and necessary.
"... Yes?"
….
…
…
"April Fools, bitch."
Got eem
GAKUUUUN!
It was Cioccolata that drew the first blood.
His left arm instantly flew from his side to my face.
It only failed to hit its intended target because its path was obstructed by my right arm, flying up into a guard to protect myself in the last millisecond.
I felt my body stumble back from the punch. The weight that was pushed into the punch was unbelievable for how light the motion looked.
Cioccoalata's expression told me that the jab itself wasn't meant to do anything.
It was either nothing more than to test the waters.
Or it was meant to do something else entirely.
The strike caused my arm to be washed with pain.
Thank god I had my aura, or else it would've been broken already.
I saw Cioccolata starting to stand on the ball of his feet, he was bouncing up and down in a slow rhythm.
He was getting warmed up and ready.
Then, 4m away from me, his limbs turned into a blur.
BABABABABABABABABABAKAUUUNG!
I immediately brought my arms up once more in a crossguard, and the barrage was picked up by the nerves in my arm faster than my eyes.
The forces from his strikes were no longer jabs. Aura alone couldn't mitigate it. Exposed to his barrages any longer, and it was clear that my Aura would break like a sandcastle.
I was only able to hold out thanks to 「Sticky Fingers」, which made the auras on my arms elastic and durable to blunt forces like rubber.
Magenta Valentine
Hp: 3,542/3,542
Aura: 6,242/7,347
GACHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHI!
Specks of light started to sparkle at the corner of my eyes, which promptly stopped Cioccolata's onslaught and forced him to take a step back.
I saw fragments of the asphalt road flying into different directions and realized that it was Vegas's doing.
His coins were embedded in the road, spinning into the hard asphalt floor like it was nothing but sand.
"... I see your friend has decided to join us as well."
"Damn right I did! What made you think that I'd just stand here and watch you kill my friend!"
"... Vegas, you do realize that you could die here…. Right?"
"..." Vegas stood silent with a frown for a minute,
"Tch," Before clicking his tongue and pointing at me. "Of course I do! I can already tell that he can put us down like sick dogs if we make one wrong 「move」!"
"..."
"But I don't give a shit about that! Magenta, you keep spouting shit about 「courage」! That 「courage」 is knowing 「fear」, and that you step forward to 「fight」 even with that 「fear」 in your 「heart」! Well, I can see that you're shaking!"
Cioccolata tested the water about now and decided to strike, but promptly stopped himself when the coins embedded in the floor started to ignite like an explosive as soon as he got near.
"You're 「shaking」, Magenta! You know they're after you, I can tell they are! I can get the gist of what's happening! These guys are the reason why you were looking so sick for the past 2 months! But you decided to fight! You decided to accept what's happening, and you're trying to break through it! Your 「fate」! Your 「limit」! Your showing 「courage」! As a friend, I can't just let you stand here and try to face this fear alone! I'm doing it too! I'm going to face this 「fear」 with you! We are going to face this 「fear」 with you! Because this is our problem as well! Your 「fears」 are my 「fears」! Your 「Pain」 is my 「Pain」! I may talk shit a lot, but for once those words weren't empty promises! So get your ass ready Magenta, cuz' I'm going to be kicking it back up every time you fall back down! I'm going to gamble my 「life」 here, and I'm betting it all on 「you」!"
Cioccolata looked at Vegas.
"... You seem to have made very good friends, Mr. Valentine."
"... Can't really confirm that, they're a real pain in the ass sometimes."
"I'm taking back what I said, Magenta. You can die by yourself."
A small chuckle escaped Cioccolata's lips.
"What words, Mr. Dandelion. And yet I see that you will die for your friend here without hesitation."
"... Cioccolata, was it? I can tell you this for sure: My 「heart」 and 「actions」 are utterly unclouded….!"
Chapter 11: They are all those of 'Brotherhood'.
"That makes this situation all the more dire."
That was all Cioccolata said before his feet dug into the asphalt floor, showing the strength of his legs.
…..
….
Or the fragility of the roads.
Cioccolata felt something was off with the roads, as he quickly looked down to his feet as he was running towards Vegas.
The asphalts were crumbling….
... a little too fast.
Like the roads were made out of loose sand.
Another significant difference was the speed of Cioccolata.
His speed was much slower than before.
And he was moving like he was ankle-deep in water or sand.
GACHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHI!
More coins started to fly towards Cioccolata.
He couldn't dodge most of the coins flying at him and decided to swat them away from him.
The yellow lines of light spinning chaotically around the coins told me that he imbued it with the 「Spin」, causing them to dig into Cioccolata's arms.
I saw them starting to twist the muscles, snapping his arms and fingers into dangerous angles.
It was clear Vegas was going all out.
But Cioccolata looked like he was treating the coins as nothing more than minor nuisances.
He was enduring the 「Spin」, and I saw his hands forming into fists, despite the interference of the coins.
I saw Cioccolata's right-hand blur, and in a moment of panic shot out 「Sticky Fingers」 at Vegas in an attempt to pull him away from the strike.
Cioccolata's hand landed first,
But it did nothing.
The fist landed on Vegas's cheek, but it simply slid across his face like it was coated in oil.
The force put into the strike became his own undoing as his body twisted to show off his right side.
Cioccolata's right side was open, and Vegas didn't miss it.
He started to unload his coins into the right rib of Cioccolata, and that forced Cioccolata to step back and tried to use his left hand to block any of the coins that he couldn't dodge.
The coins also slid around Cioccolata's left hand, just like its right counterpart.
It effortlessly homed into his ribs.
I saw the coins stressing out Cioccolata's aura, illuminating in a sickly Persian green light, trying to block off the buzzing yellow lines.
Cioccolata did nothing but look at the coins, and then back at Vegas.
"... Interesting. I don't think the 「Spin」 can make my hands slip like they were dipped in oil."
…..
….. He knew about the 「Spin」.
But that didn't surprise me as much as it should.
Vegas did nothing but stare at Cioccolata. He dropped the canister to the floor and grabbed 2 more from his vest.
3 min 32 seconds
"... 「Price and Profit」."
"... Pardon?"
"「Price and Profit」. That's all I'm going to say to you."
Mantra: Price and Profit
Level: 32
-Soft & Wet... When my soap bubble touches something and breaks, I take something from there.- Josuke Higashikata
Effect: Holding a belief that everything has a price, Vegas Dandelion's views of the world developed his semblance into having the current effect:
-Converts Aura to have the concept and property of [Currency] and imbues the Aura into whatever he touches.
-[Currency]: Causes the Aura to 「Buy」 a property of whatever it touches, depending on the amount of Aura converted to have the property of [Currency]. (Ie. Temporarily 「Buying」 the sights of someone will cost more Aura to use than 「Buying」 the frictions of someone or something.)
- Properties 「bought」 by the Aura will be stored inside the object imbued by the Aura, until it is commanded to be released.
"... I seemed to have been too impatient to take this situation with the proper weight it should carry. Apologies, I shall make up for it by taking this more seriously."
Cioccolata brought his arms up horizontally, the coins still spinning into them through the strength of the 「Spin」.
Then I saw it with my own two eyes.
The same yellow lines of light that spun through my weapons, through Vegas's weapons.
Starting to appear on Cioccolata's arms.
Spinning in the opposite direction of the lines of light orbiting Vegas's coins.
And I saw the Coins stop dead in their tracks, and fall harmlessly on the floor.
"A word of advice, as a 「Spin」 practitioner as well: A 「Spin」 without harnessing the 「Golden Rectangle」, is like an 「Eagle」 that has failed to harness its ability to 「fly」."
The coins digging into his ribs soon fell with its brethren, clattering harmlessly to the ground.
Vegas did nothing but watch.
"... Magenta," Vegas spoke out. "This guy's starting to scare me."
Cioccolata brought his left hand up.
If….. If I'm right, then Vegas most likely 'bought' the 'durability' of the Asphalt road, and the 'frictions' of Cioccoalta's arms
So by all means, whatever his arms could do, wouldn't be that much of a problem….
…. Right?
Why is this simple action frightening me so much?
Then I saw it.
In the briefest moment, I saw something hover over Cioccoalata's left hand.
It looked like claws, a talon of a bird.
Or a crude imitation of one,
Colorful, very colorful.
It was fragmented into several small patches of color, like stained glass.
And I knew that something was coming.
"VEGAS, WATCH OUT!"
Vegas reacted to my shout, and suddenly rolled to the side.
And at the same time, the yellow lines of light started to orbit around Cioccolata's left hand, before something shot out from his index and middle finger.
DOKOOOOO!
Like a bullet.
It left clouds of dust rising from the asphalt road, where Vegas stood seconds before.
And Cioccoalta took this chance to turn into a blur, appearing in front of Vegas as he was rolling.
Cioccolata's right leg started to envelop itself in a sickly Persian green glow,
TOGOOO!
before it swung into Vegas, striking him in the stomach.
"Huuuurgh!"
Vegas dry heaved as he rolled back from the force of the kick.
Luckily his Aura was able to protect the strike.
It looked like he covered the distance in one leap, never touching the ground until he got close enough to strike…
CRACK!
The sudden sound made me look at what made the sound.
It was the hole,
The hole left by whatever Cioccoalta shot out.
The hole was starting to crack, looking like thunderbolts on the asphalt floor.
"... Asphalts have quite a half-life, so you'll only ever see the aftermath of its decay." Cioccoalata said as he turned back to me.
"It should be quite an experience for you to see the process."
He smiled,
And that was all the confirmation I needed to know that Vegas was in danger right now.
"VEGAS, GET AWAY FROM THERE!"
The cracks started to stretch towards Vegas, like starved snakes that found their prey.
Vegas immediately got back up, trying to avoid the stretching and snaking cracks.
He dropped a few of his coins on to the road,
And we saw what would happen if one of us touched the cracks.
As soon as the coins landed on the lines of cracks on the road, we saw the coins cleave in half.
The coins, they were durable.
Even if they weren't coated with Aura, they were still customized and minted to be used as Vegas's weapon.
And yet they cleaved effortlessly the moment they were dropped onto the crack.
And that wasn't all.
The surface of the coins started to flake off, revealing a dark-brown surface underneath.
Like a scab,
Or a burn scar.
Cioccolata did something, but I didn't know what.
Unfortunately, Cioccoalata didn't give me any time for me to think and figure out his secrets.
The crude imitation of bird talons now appeared on both of Cioccolata's hands,
DOKOOOO!
DOKOOOO!
DOKOOOO!
DOKOOOO!
Before 4 shots started to whistle towards me.
I shot 「Sticky Fingers」 up onto the walls of the buildings behind me to get out of the way.
The 4 projectiles started to twist to try and follow me, but it could only turn so much, missing me entirely.
But now I had Cioccolata himself lunging towards me.
…
Fuck me.
I stretched out my Aura like a membrane with 「Sticky Fingers」, trying my best to stop Cioccolata's strike with it.
And then I got a good look at Cioccoalta's left hand.
It was cover with that same stained-glass like an appendage, that bird talon.
It was stretching my Aura thin, threatening to rip it open.
A kick flew into me from the right, and I ducked my head down to dodge it.
Only for my head to become vulnerable for his left knee, which flew into my chin with quite a force.
My head immediately shot back up, and he grabbed the top of my hair with his free hand, enveloped in that grotesque model of a bird talon, and smashing me into the windows behind me.
Magenta Valentine
Hp: 3,542/3,542
Aura: 4,320/7,347
It hurt like a bitch.
2 minutes 48 seconds
I could feel my Aura leaving me to take the brunt of the hit instead.
I still had a bit, but now my moves needed to be conserved if I wanted to last longer.
I retaliated with a kick, which he dodged by swaying to the side.
I took this as a chance to shoot out 「Sticky Fingers」 from my foot, onto the street lamp.
He went for another open-palm strike, and I dodged that as well, using this as another chance to go for a roundhouse kicked.
He guarded himself with his left arm, and I used this chance to attach the other end of 「Sticky Fingers」 onto him.
All I need to do was will my Aura to contract, and I saw him finally get off my ass and fling into the street lamp.
Clang!
He crouched into a ball to minimize the damage and immediately grabbed onto the top of the lamp to keep himself from falling.
"... Well, wasn't that a surprise." Cioccolata whistled out.
"..." I remained silent.
The part of the street lamp that he was grabbing onto was turning from grey to reddish-brown. The coating was starting to flake off.
"... Your semblance. It's something to do with 'decaying', isn't it?"
"..." It was Cioccolata's turn to pull out Miranda's rights.
He hefted himself up the lamp, and stood on the narrow metal bar.
And then he lunged at me.
ZUKYUUUUUUUN!
I counted by throwing a steel ball at him, imbued with the 「Spin」,
DOKOOOOOOO!
But that wretched talon appeared once more to shoot something at my weapon,
And just like that, my proud weapon, who stayed by my side for the past 5 years, was given the dishonor of cleaving in half so effortlessly.
But Cioccolata didn't give me the time to dwell on that.
I quickly jumped from the building to roll on the floor.
This time, Cioccolata's shot was precise enough to home into me,
ZUBABABABA!
"FFFFFFFFFFUCK!"
I instinctively yelled out in pain.
My Aura was still there to protect me from the damage it would cause.
But unless one had a semblance, it wouldn't mitigate the force, nor the pain.
And I felt that thing drilling into my left calf, It didn't go into my legs because of my Aura, but perhaps that would've made the pain subside quicker.
And I was able to get a good look at what Cioccolata was shooting out.
"... What the fuck?"
Even if it was drilling into me, I saw it quite clearly
The curved shape, starting thick and slowly ending into a small point.
It was an actual talon of a bird.
The fuck was this guy, Johnny Joestar?
WHOOOOSH!
Cioccolata was lunging high up, and coming down with an axe kick.
I quickly rolled to the side, and pulled out Matador Carnage from my inventory.
"... Shit…"
My calf still had the 「Spinning」 talon digging into it.
It was starting to look like a broken shard of glass now.
I took out my remaining steel ball.
I wasn't able to harness the 「Golden Rectangle」 yet, but I figured it was enough to cancel the force of the talon.
The steel ball rotated in the opposite direction of the talon. The talon slowed down at first, but slowly started to speed back up to its original velocity.
Shit….. So this was the difference in the closeness to the golden rotation.
… How did he even manage to spin in that closely?
There's nothing here that is natural for him to use as a reference…..
….. Right?
My left calf was still hurting, but the spin made it sturdy enough to mitigate the damage it caused to my Aura.
It was enough for me to stand on it.
"..."
We both stood there quietly.
Then Cioccolata lunged foward.
I immediately dropped to the ground and spun into a kick.
Cioccoalata guarded against the kick and shot out a knife-hand strike.
I used my remaining leg to hook my Matador Carnage to swing my bladed wheel around to block his kick, redirecting his strike to the side.
He used this situation to his advantage and used the torque from the redirected strike to spin into an elbow strike, coming down towards me.
I swung around, rotating my weapon around my leg to turn into a makeshift shield and blocking the strike. The force hurt my leg, but it was a lot better than dealing with an unguarded one.
He spun back around to go for a side chop, and I countered with spinning around into a kick once more.
I went for an axe kick, in which he grabbed, and I used that chance to attach 「Sticky Fingers」 onto his hand.
At the same time, I spun Matador Carnage around my body to my arms, bringing my knees to my chest and using my free leg kick forward.
He redirected the kick to bring in an open-palm strike.
I immediately swung the bladed wheel up, hitting his hand up to leave him unguarded.
I brought my free leg in and kicked into his torso.
Or at least, I would've,
But then that bird talon shot out from his torso to grab my other leg, and he used that chance to stomp on my chest.
He used his other leg to stomp on Matador Carnage.
And in a brief second, I saw something rising out of Cioccolata, connecting to that talon grabbing my arm.
A multicolored imitation of some bird, with long legs, long neck, and a long and narrow beak.
It looked like those scrap art sculptures, consisting of intricate parts and plates, finished and tinted off with those stained glass-like shards streaming out like feathers. Few gaps in between showed off white marble-like bones.
It was an inexplicable mess of beauty and horror.
Especially that inanimate imitation of an eye trained onto me.
It looked like a human bloodshot eyeball that was too small for its socket, yet it didn't look real.
Glistening in the streetlamp, it looked like it was a wax model, or plastic.
Darting its head around, It stopped onto my face,
KIEEEEEEEEEEEK!
And screeched at me.
Wraith Crane
Level: 93
[Wretched Cannibal]
Race: Mantra Beast
Type: Avian
Rank: D
It reeled its head back, purplish, pinkish, greenish gas rising out from the gaps of its beak and under its socket, and lunged its head forward at me, preparing to strike me with its beak.
Shit….
"Uoooooooo!" I screamed out instinctively.
I was completely pinned...
GACHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHICHI!
More coins flew into our direction, and that forced Cioccolata to move away from me.
The trail of coins started to follow Cioccolata, and he knew not to touch any of the coins.
And we saw something unbelievable.
He started to run towards the building, coins trailing behind him, and he fucking ran up the wall.
Cioccolata shot out two more of those wretched talons at Vegas, in which he dodged out of the way.
More cracks started to appear on the asphalt road, snaking towards Vegas.
Vegas started to make a run for it, still shooting more coins at Cioccolata.
Cioccoalata started to run across the wall again, shooting more talons.
I assisted in Vegas by turning Matador Carnage into a shotgun, and open fired.
The Wraith crane, bending its neck like a serpent, turned its head 180 degrees to look at me.
Then it turned the rest of its body, still attached to Cioccolata.
"... Dude," Vegas spoke out. "The fuck is that thing?"
Looks like Vegas could see the thing as well.
"... I don't know…." That's all I could manage to spit out.
It started to flap its wings, and with every motion, I saw something sparkling around it.
Then, it stopped flapping its wings, letting us see what was sparkling around it.
Shards, like glass or crystal, that clearly came from its wings.
It was its feathers.
Maybe that's what Cioccolata used as a reference for the 「Golden Rectangle」.
But I had not time to dwell on something like that right now.
KIEEEEEEEEEEEECK!
It let out a wretched cry before it flapped its wing once more.
The shards started to rain towards us, intent on hitting us.
I stretched out my Aura to catch the ones flying towards me, which stopped at right before my eyes.
Vegas started to change his target from Cioccolata to the feathers, shooting them down as fast as possible.
"Urk!"
"Fuck!"
But we couldn't block all of them.
Although they missed the vitals, few shards went into my calves, knees, and thighs.
Vegas got few embedded into his shoulders and forearms.
I couldn't believe that it ignored our Aura so effortlessly, and in a moment of panic, I checked my status.
Magenta Valentine
Hp: 3,020/3,542
Aura: 3,141/7,347
….. I still….
I still had Aura,
Then how?
….
It… It was clear it was a mantra.
"Wh-what the fuck! I still have Aura, but it went through it like it was made of horseshit! What the fuck are these!?"
It was understandable why Vegas was freaking out. He didn't know what was going on at all.
"Vegas, stay calm! We're giving what Cioccolata wants!"
I looked back at my status, and I couldn't believe my eyes.
Magenta Valentine
Hp: 2,910/3,542
Aura: 3,021/7,347
My Aura…. My health….
It was falling.
"... M-Magenta! I know you told me not to freak out here, but I'm having a hard time not to!"
I looked back at Vegas.
And I saw his shoulders and arm rotting.
It was starting from those shards and slowly spreading.
I looked back at my wounds, and saw that it was the same for me as well.
…. What is this, poison?
Then a new status screen popped up: Ruby red.
DANGER!
YOU HAVE GAINED THE STATUS: NECROSIS (TIER 3)
YOUR HEALTH, AURA, AND VAJRA WILL BE CONTINUOUSLY DRAINED (THIS WILL INCREASE EXPONENTIALLY)!
YOU WILL SLOWLY START TO LOSE FUNCTIONS IN YOUR LIMBS AND ORGANS!
YOU WILL GAIN A 45% DEBUFF TO ALL STATS!
"... It seems it's my win." Cioccolata spoke out.
Shit, we got the main enemy out of our sight.
I looked back at where Cioccolata should've been,
And he was no longer there.
"Word of advice to carry with you when you go back to Nirvana, Mr. Valentine. Always keep your eyes on who you are fighting."
I heard his voice behind my back.
And I felt a drop of sweat travel behind my back.
But I still wasn't out of this world yet.
I shot out the other end of 「Sticky Fingers」, which was attached to Cioccolata's hand, to the nearby streetlamp, and willed it to contract.
I immediately turned around, switching Matador Carnage into a battleaxe to swing at Cioccolata.
"Not so fast, Mr. Valentine. I won't fall for that a second time."
The Wraith Crane's wing immediately swiped across my Aura thread, cleaving it off from its master.
At the same time, the hand that was connected to 「Sticky Fingers」 grabbed the blade of Matador Carnage like it was just a styrofoam toy.
His left leg blurred, and my legs immediately flared up in pain.
"Huurk!"
He was kicking into my legs repeatedly, targeting nothing but the shard-like feathers in order to kick it deeper into my legs.
I couldn't endure the hits, and my knees fell to the ground.
Cioccolata took this chance to bring his other hand up into a knife-hand strike. His Aura fully concentrated into the hand, still had that bird talon overlap it.
It dug into my ribs, breaking the remaining Aura barrier on my body.
Blood was spilled on the road.
My blood.
I felt something well inside me. Climbing up my throat and forcing me to cough it out.
It was blood as well, leaving a splotch of it on Cioccolata's coat.
"...S-shit…"
"Magenta!"
"I'm sorry it had to be this way."
Vegas couldn't fling his coins anymore. The shards embedded in his arms made sure that he was out of commission for a while.
But that didn't stop him from trying to get Cioccolata away from me.
He charged in, going for a side kick.
I saw the free talon of the Wraith Crane strike out to grab Vegas's leg, and use its wing to slice him across his chest.
The slash broke through his Aura, but did its job in protecting Vegas from any dire injuries.
The force caused him to roll across the road, away from the two of us.
Cioccolata removed his hands from my ribs, and I felt my strength leave with him.
My hands fell to the ground in a shitty attempt to support me.
I didn't have any strength left to stand back up and fight.
To run.
To do anything.
I couldn't do anything anymore.
I was at his mercy.
I lost.
Again.
"Ha… Ha….. shit….."
That's all I could force out as I turned up my head to face him.
He was looking down at me, and for the briefest moment, I saw The Starved Hound's eyes overlap with his.
It was a shitty feeling.
… God…..
In the end, I couldn't do what I wanted to do most.
I couldn't live,
I couldn't see Ruby and Yang enter Beacon.
I couldn't see Blake and Weiss become friends with the sisters.
I couldn't see them getting along with Team JNPR,
Having fun,
Hunting Grimm.
While they carried on with my life,
I would die here on the streets like a dog.
"...Haha, ha….."
I felt something wet dribble down my eyes, across my cheeks,
And hit the floor.
I wasn't blood, at least.
"... Farewell, Mr. Valentine."
I saw him bring his hand up, brought together like a blade, a knife-hand.
And he swung down to a chop.
I could feel myself slowly getting lightheaded.
My eyelids were slowly falling down.
I did nothing but close my eyes.
SHUUUUUUN!
"MAGENTAAAAAA!"
That's all I heard before my mind fell into a deep sleep.
"MAGENTAAAAAAA!"
That was all Vegas could scream out. That was all that he could do.
That was all he could do as his friend's life started to expire before his eyes.
"DON'T YOU DARE TO IT, YOU FUCKER!"
He shouted at Cioccolata. Cioccolata ignored the shoutings from Vegas as he slowly started to bring his hand down.
The final strike to end Magenta's life.
SHUUUUUUUUUN!
It started to swing down with speed and force of an executioner's axe.
GACHUUUUUUN!
But it soon halted when something flew through Cioccolata's descending hand.
ZUBA!
It cleaved through Cioccolata's arm, separating his hand from his wrist.
The projectile that managed to perform such task embedded itself proudly on the road.
A golden trident, with yellow lines of light orbiting around the weaponry.
Blood started to spray out of Cioccolata's wound in high pressure, but then slowed to few dribbles, before stopping entirely.
Cioccolata didn't scream. He didn't even grimace in pain.
He looked more surprised than anything.
"Shit… I wasn't too late, was I?" A foreign voice spoke out from the direction the trident came from.
And there, stood a figure. Wearing a green shirt that was buttoned only up to his chest, and wearing khaki business pants that fit his legs tightly, revealing the toned muscles underneath.
"... And who might you be?"
"... What, didn't Durian tell you about it? I'm Atavaka, and I'm here to take these kids with me. Alive, and not harmed any further."
"..."
And the streets stayed silent once more.
Roman Torchwick was burning cigars after cigars as he sat in the Bullhead. He was supposed to wait up for Cioccoalta, but the situation forced him and Cinder to leave beforehand.
That only made him anxious of what might happen next. Sure, he weaseled himself out of tight situations several times before. And this wasn't the first time leaving a crew member behind. He managed to convince several other crimelords of his reason, give them a good excuse to not have him end up in a bloody trash can in the alleyway.
The problem is, the people he would have to deal with weren't crime lords.
No, no no no. They were far from it.
They were frickin monsters.
They were the type that made people rot into 3-week old corpses just because they bumped into them.
Reasons be damned for those delightful chaps, they went with their emotions.
If they heard that he and Cinder left their subordinate behind to take the short end of the stick, then no amount of excuse was going to keep them safe.
And it seemed that Cinder was just as nervous as he was, as she made no attempt in smug smirks and sultry-toned speeches.
She was silent, folding her arms and tapping her glass high heels on the metal floor and creating that irritating rhythm
He wasn't going to tell her that, though. He was smart enough not to push her buttons in this situation.
Well, if anything, he wouldn't have hesitated to smirk at her, push his limits and maybe take a photo or two of her breaking that smug attitude and suffering. Maybe send it to Neo for her to enjoy as well.
But no, they had no luxury. They couldn't pin the blame on this one. They wouldn't listen. They didn't care why, they only cared that they did it.
Roman was dying to go for a detour, to try and think up of a plan to ease the pain as much as possible.
"So, I see you two have finished."
But life had very little concessions.
Durian's voice boomed out behind them, and Roman and Cinder both flinched in response.
"D-Durian! Buddy!" Roman spoke first, trying to put on a smug persona. Trying to hide his anxious fears.
Durian simply looked at Roman, then to Cinder.
"Is this the last dust robbery till the next shipment arrives."
"... Yes, Mr. Durian. This is all there is for the next few months." Cinder managed to force the words out of her mouth. Smiling at Durian as she spoke.
"Good." Durian looked around the plane, walking out to the passengers' seats, and then to the cargo bay, and then returning back to the pilot's room.
"... Where is Cioccolata."
The million-dollar question finally arrived, and neither Roman, nor Cinder was willing to answer.
Cinder's eyes were starting to grow wide, as her hands balled into fists to keep them from shaking.
"W-well, about that….. We-"
"Are you telling me that you left Cioccolata."
"...Y-you see-"
"I see clearly that something went wrong and you used my pupil as a shield to take the brunt of it. Am I wrong?"
"N-now, now! It's not like that! He-"
They were interrupted by the banging on the door of the Bullhead. It startled the two criminals, causing Roman to grip on his cane tightly and Cinder to unballing her fists to spawn flames in her palm.
Durian did nothing but walk over to the door, and opening it before the other two could react.
And out came Cioccolata, with strange-looking wings sprouting out behind his back.
Wings that looked like a sculpture of scrap metal and stained glass. Colorful, fragmented.
And Cioccolata looked like absolute shit.
His left wrist was nothing but a bloody stump, and his right leg ended only down to half of his calf. There was a gash running down the right side of his face, threatening to open up and spill the content inside his head over the floor.
He was carrying his foot and hand in his right arm, limp and lifeless.
"... What happened to you." Durian spoke first.
"I decided to stay to kill Mr. Valentine. I almost succeeded too."
"Did they retaliate and leave you like this?"
"No sir. Not at all. I immobilized Mr. Dandelion and left Mr. Valentine spewing blood and spilling his guts on the floor."
"... Then what did that you."
"... Atavaka, sir. He arrived just as I was about to finish Mr. Valentine off."
Roman and Cinder saw Durian's face crinkle up at the mention of Atavaka.
It was the first time the two saw Durian show any kind of emotion.
And it was clear to them that it was anger.
Wrath.
Visceral wrath at the mention of the name.
He put his hands inside his pocket, and brought out something to give to Cioccolata.
"Here, fix yourself up."
It was threads and needles.
Cioccolata took it, and went over to a spare seat. He started working on his severed hand first, sewing it back on with extreme precision and speed.
He didn't waste any time on moving to his legs,
As soon as he started to work on sewing his face together, Roman and Cinder turned away to look somewhere else.
It was disgusting to see, and just uncanny on how calm Cioccolata was with this whole situation.
He wasn't even wincing in pain.
They heard a scroll dialing,
"Yes, sir. It's Durian."
Then they heard Durian's voice.
"Yes, sir. The dust heist is finished. I called to inform you that Atavaka has arrived, sir. Yes, sir. Cioccolata was the one that engaged with Atavaka, sir. He's sewing himself back up with the 「Nazca threads」, sir. Yes. Yes. I understand, sir. Yes. Thank you, sir. Take care, sir."
I found myself awake in a foreign bed, looking up at a white ceiling.
I slowly looked around. Empty beds lined either side of me.
I was in a hospital
Open windows let its curtains flutter serenely in the bright sunlight, revealing crystal blue sky that held no clouds,
The sun was on its way to the other horizon, but there was still plenty of time before it disappeared to drag the night with it.
There was no one else in the hospital room I was in, so it was much more serene and calm.
The atmosphere in this room was very soothing for my heart, especially when I started to remember exactly why I was in this hospital in the first place.
"..."
I was mindlessly looking around the room, when the sound of the door opening echoed out into my room.
I instinctively looked towards the door, to see Heat coming into the door.
Our eyes meet, and Heat's eyes widened.
"Magenta!"
"Sup."
Heat walked out the door quickly, and I heard muffled shoutings coming from the gap of the door.
Soon enough, the rest of my friends and family rushed into the door.
Vegas had both of his arms bandaged and in casts.
Yang and Heat looked fine, both worried and relieved showing on their face.
It was my parents and Ruby that had it worst.
My father's face was pale as the sheets on the hospital bed, his breathing was light as he ran up to bring me into an embrace.
My mother had the same expression as Ruby, mouth covered by her hand and tears glistening in her eyes.
I couldn't blame her, her own son was nearly killed by an unknown assailant in the streets of Vale and she didn't know about it.
Ruby was actively crying as she stood beside Yang and my mother.
It took several minutes to finally calm them down. Apparently Vegas and Ruby filled them in with details.
A criminal with a strange bird and abilities they found hard to believe to be a semblance.
The Regional semifinalists and champion of Vale, both ending up suffering from heavy necrosis. Among many other injuries.
The only reason why they were alive was because of the timely intervention of a huntsman named Forest Religiosa.
Ruby finally came up to me while we were talking, when she started to sob.
"I-I…..I-I'm s-sorry… I-I left you guys to deal with them a-and…..and, and y-you g-guys…."
I put a hand on top of her head, making her briefly stop talking and look at me.
"... It's fine. You did nothing wrong. It was better this way, too. You would've gotten hurt the worst if you stayed."
She finally broke down then and there, falling to her knees.
The next day, the 5 of us were gathered around my hospital bed.
According to Ruby (back to her peppy self), she managed to meet Professor Ozpin after the whole ordeal, and managed to get into Beacon Academy.
Apparently there was another old man that sat next Ozpin during their talk. According to Ruby, he had hair just a white as Ozpin, with a white beard like a stalagmite.
And eyes like a starry night sky.
That was enough description for me to realize who it was.
And speaking of the devil…..
The door creaked open and we all turned to see who it was.
Professor Ozpin…. Forest Religiosa, a man with a bulky, muscular frame with mossy hair and a permanent frown, wearing nothing but a white half-buttoned shirt with khaki business pants…..
And Ahura Mazda himself.
"Professor Ozpin!" Ruby shouted out.
"Good evening, Miss Rose. While it is nice to meet you, I do hope it's ok if we talk to Mr. Valentine." Ozpin replied.
Vegas, Heat, Yang, and Ruby looked at each other, before looking at me. We all nodded our heads, and my friends walk out to wait outside.
The moment the door was closed, Forest touched the door with his two fingers. A bright red sigil appeared on the door, and it didn't seem like it would leave anytime soon.
"... That's… A mantra, isn't it?" I asked.
Forest smiled at me in response. "Sharp kid, aren't yah? I see you've been learning how to use your Akashic Record."
"Speaking of which….. Long time no see, Mr. Abel."
"Yeah… good to see you alive as well. And I see that you've…. Met, our pain in the ass of the year."
I simply nodded.
"Yeah…. Sorry about that. You really shouldn't be involved with this, but apparently, life wanted to be an utter bitch."
"That's alright. They started to target Ruby anyway, whether I was a threat or not."
"So they have, just like the other worlds."
"... What…. Exactly happened in the other worlds?"
"What, the ones they decided to invade?"
"...Yes."
"Well, for starters, they killed Salem. Her immortality was god's curse. A powerful mantra, but a mantra indeed. It's not particularly hard to bypass it if you're a god."
"... Oh.."
"Yeah, and they replaced themselves as the new head of the whole….. Villainy operation. And unlike Salem, they were…. Much, much more dangerous."
"..."
"They had superior mantras and strength, on top of barely anything able to kill them. None of the worlds was safe once they entered, unless we intervened."
"... I see."
"... Team RWBY and JNPR all died when they fought the gods, and the world was destroyed. None of the souls of that destroyed world ever made it into the afterlife."
"Your world is at the same risk. And I'm sorry that you were swept into this."
"..."
I stood silent, I was feeling the pressure once more.
The pressure of danger.
Of imminent destruction.
…. So this is what Lovecraft felt.
"... So," I spoke up. "What now, what am I supposed to do?"
"Two options: you can either run and hide, away from this world, away from this terrorist group, or you can stand up, and fight against them. You can get stronger, and you can help us protect this world. And we'll protect you while you train."
"... Not much of a choice there, sir." I said with a smile.
"Then I guess it's settled," Ozpin concluded. "You three will also be going to Beacon, unless you want to object."
"... I know it's a school for huntsmen and huntresses, but how exactly is that school going to keep me safe from evil gods and demons?" I asked.
"Because I'll be working there as the newly established security," Atavaka, Or Forest, answered. "Along with my subordinates and colleagues, we'll be increasing our security there for other reasons anyway. You're just more reason to pay attention to the school's wellbeing."
"Well then. I'll see you at Beacon Academy, Mr. Valentine. Take care until then." Ozpin concluded.
Atavaka opened the room, and we saw Ruby and Yang leaning their head against the door, trying to listen in (and failing). They were startled when the door opened so suddenly, and fell to the floor. Heat and Vegas were simply leaning on the other side of the hall, waiting for our conversation to finish.
"Take care, Magenta." Mr. Abel said to me. "I'll see you again soon."
Mr. Abel stood up from his chair, and followed the other 2 adults out of the room.
"... So, what was that all about?" Ruby asked.
"Can't tell you."
"... Hmph, well you're no fun." Yang grumbled out.
Ruby simply crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks.
"Well, I need to get ready for going to Beacons. I'm sure you got in as well. Or at least, you will if you applied for it."
"Same here." Heat chimed in.
"Yeah, they came here to offer me a place there as a student, in fact."
" Oh thank god….. So….. I'll see you again soon. Stay safe, ok? Don't forget to tell us everything that happens when you get well, ok?" Vegas started to walk out the door.
"Yeah. sure. Remember, you're a target as well. Watch out." I answered.
"... Honestly?" Vegas spoke out. "Despite what happened, I don't regret it."
He gave me a smirk before he left.
"... You stay safe, like Vegas said." Heat repeated.
"You stay safe too. Sorry I dragged you guys into this."
"Bullshit. You never dragged us in, pal. We were all in this with you in the first place." Heat answered as he walked over to me and lightly whipped my shoulder with the back of his hand and followed after Vegas.
"Oh, you better tell us everything, like Vegas said."
"Ok, ok! What are you, a Parrot?"
"I'm your concerned friend, you ungrateful twat."
"Yeah. Sure. Whatever."
Heat flipped me the bird before leaving.
I couldn't help but snort out a laugh and return the favor until he got out of sight.
Yang and Ruby simply stayed blank as all of this happened.
"... Well, we'll see you in Beacon as well. Get well soon!" Ruby shouted as Yang simply smirked and waved her hand.
"Don't make my sister cry again, ok? Last chance, buddy."
"Yang!"
"... Yeah, yeah. I'll be careful this time."
"Hmph. Be careful, ok?"
"Yeah."
"You sure it's fine if you don't tell him?" Atavaka asked Ahura Mazda.
"Yeah, it's not for him to worry about right now."
"I know, but… I feel like we should tell him now, rather than when the fall of Vale starts."
"About the fact that there's something much more powerful than maidens and relics sealed underneath the schools of this world?"
"Yeah, I'm sure he'll meet them anyway, and get himself dragged into this further than before."
"Oh, he's knees deep in this shit already, and he got himself in it the moment he decided to fight back, to protect this world, and it's fate. So, I will tell him. It's clear that they'll take interest in Magenta as well. But right now, he's already busy trying to get used to the fact that those vile gods are after him and his friends. We don't need to pressure him any further with such heavy knowledge."
"... I see….."
"... There's a reason why I gave him the Akashic Record, Atavaka, more than just having enough karma and achievements to ascend to godhood. I didn't just give it to him because he was like those demigod heroes in myths and legends."
"..."
"... In fact, I think that he'll be the turning point in this shitty war between gods. The turning point to our 「Victory」."
Today's mantra beast compendium:
Wraith Crane
Type: Avian
Rank: D
Descriptions: Wraith Crane is one of the 2 possible ascended forms of the Preta Crane. Unlike Dharma Cranes, which are Preta Cranes that have purified themselves by gaining enough good karma, Wraith Cranes are the total opposite: They have ascended by committing great sins of cannibalizing on their own kind, and absorbing enough Vajra cores of Preta Cranes to ascend into a more horrific form. Also known as Rakshasha birds or Zhenniao, they have specialized in degradation and poison mantras and can cause active decay in buildings and targets.
Natural Wraith Cranes, despite being a much more serious threat than Preta Cranes, are still one of the weakest Mantra Beasts known to the Celestial beings.
Their nature and affinity mean that they are weak to Purification Mantras and other Vajras associated with the holy/serene aura.
Sup guys, happy April fools.
My main goal is to get this fanfiction good enough to get a page on Tv Tropes, to see what other people think of my characters. Wish me luck, people.
I also got a few things to announce.
The first one, is art.
I got a clear idea about how these characters and creatures look, and I feel like descriptions aren't enough to fully capture what they look like, so I'm deciding to make arts of them.
Not too sure where I would put them (most likely Twitter/Tumblr or deviant art or some shit) but I'll decide that on the next update of this story.
The second one is that I'm planning on writing a new story, on top of this RWBY one.
It's a Yu gi Oh fan fiction where the protagonist was a normal Yu Gi Oh fan from a version of our world until Duel Monsters from the Duel Terminal stories started to invade their world.
Fighting them off, the Protagonist ends up arriving in the Yu Gi Oh World (starting from GX), and starts to travel through the Yu Gi Oh worlds to stop the invasion of the Duel Terminal Monsters (It's basically Kamen Rider Decade type of story in Yu Gi Oh world). If you guys either like my style of story, or also a fan of Yu Gi Oh, try checking it out! I'll appreciate it.
Alright, take care guys. Be safe.