So, this chapter is going to be much like the chapter where Jaune and Hazel squared off last time – a lengthy one, at least in comparison to the usual length of my chapters. Their battle will also be the main focus of this chapter too, so there won't really be many scene changes like usual, that way the flow isn't broken up too many times. That isn't to say that I'm just going to ignore everything else going on, but it will be addressed at a more appropriate time.
Also, to those of you wondering if this current incident will be this fic's version of the Fall of Beacon in canon, well, you'll see, heh.
Now then, not to sound like I'm being an alarmist or just generally paranoid here, but be careful out there, everyone!
Now, onto the chapter!
P.S. So, am I the only one that freaked the hell out over how cool the Spawn trailer was for MK11?
Chapter 34
As their initial attacks clashed against one another, Jaune saw up close the change the man had undergone in this short time span. He recognized the unnatural energy signature Dust sometimes gave off and it was pouring off his foe in waves now, made all the more evident as he tried to force his blade to cut through the man's lightning enhanced fist.
Letting loose a mighty roar and with ever growing power, Jaune pushed forward – and managed to push the man back just a bit, his blade even beginning to cut into his flesh just a bit.
But only a bit.
Sensing that he was going to lose this initial clash, the man suddenly pulled his fist back and tried to swat his blade to the side, but Jaune pulled back as well to avoid that. But just as he did so, the man lashed out with his other fist and fired a multitude of genuine lightning bolts from it.
They were immediately attracted by the metal that obviously made up Jaune's sword, said weapon acting as a lightning rod. By all rights, he should just drop the weapon, but he didn't. And so, when the bolts struck the blade, their powerful currents flowed through the blade and into him.
Clothes and hair began to burn. Flesh fried and his veins felt like they were boiling. His organ cooked. The pain was undoubtedly immense.
And yet, the blond teen didn't even so much as he grunt in acknowledgement of his agony. Instead, he tried to blitz his enemy from the side, feinting a swing to grab the man's attention only to then go for go a sudden high kick that landed against the chin of the much larger man.
The man grunted, more in surprise rather than pain and reeled, but still threw a punch that Jaune couldn't stop in time and so he too got struck alongside the face.
Jaune stood his ground though, even as said ground quaked with tremendous force, and upon swiftly switching his sword to a reverse grip, he swung at an angle and caught the man with the back of his blade. Enhanced by aura and swung with all his might and momentum, it still managed to cut into the man's torso a bit, but primarily launched him through the building they were in.
The man went careening through wall after wall until he was out in the streets. Thankfully, with all the chaos city hall was undergoing as well as the work day being over for most people, this area was pretty much empty at this time, meaning he didn't have to worry much for anyone else getting caught up in this horrid mess.
Rather than give chase, he swung his blade twice, unleashing waves of pure aura that traveled at a speed great enough to rival lightning itself.
Unfortunately, his foe was quick enough in getting back on his feet and raised both of his thick arms in time to guard.
Jaune immediately charged at him and went in for a stab to the heart… only for the man to reach out with one hand and grip his hands whilst twisting his upper body out of the way with a speed no one that big should have. Jaune tried to break free, but before he could even mount any kind of struggle, the man had retaliated with an uppercut to his stomach. And just before impact, he fired a massive bolt of lightning that practically tore through the blond and came out his back.
By all rights, he should've gone flying. He nearly did too. However, he had a death grip on his blade and so did the man, having apparently been expecting him to let go and thus disarm. When that didn't happen, Jaune took advantage of the man's microsecond long pause of shock and launched a kick from his awkward position to the man's crotch.
The impact was louder than thunder and succeeded in bringing the man down and getting him to loosen his grip considerably. Not completely, but enough for Jaune to pull his blade free and start swinging with a fury unlike anything he's ever felt before.
The first dozen or so slashes tore up the man's body well, cutting into his flesh with greater and greater ease as Jaune's strength and speed continually grew. But after such a precious few seconds, the man recovered and let loose a roar of pure defiance. Lightning poured off him in all directions and it was enough to force Jaune off.
One lightning bolt had nailed him right in the face, making his eyes nearly burst and thus he was blinded temporarily. Even then, he was already moving on pure instinct as he detected incoming danger. Alas, he wasn't quick enough and the man rammed him hard, throwing him off balance before delivering several fast hooks that pulverized Jaune's already creaking bones.
After one final blow that forced Jaune onto a knee, the man then delivered a punt kick that caught him under the chin and nearly snapped his head all the way back. But Jaune rolled with it, actually rolling backwards several feet before getting back up.
"You…!" Jaune began, only to not finish. He didn't even know what to say at this point. That said, he still took action and in the form of throwing his sword directly at the man.
It was a perfect throw, the blade travelling like a javelin towards the man's throat at breakneck speed. But the man merely backhanded it and sent it flying some odd meters to his left.
This proved to be a mistake on his part, however, one that Jaune had unconsciously intended for the man to make.
In that instant where the man had reared back his arm to deflect his sword, he'd ended up obscuring his own vision in the process.
Jaune capitalized on this by darting forth and leaping up. His knee slammed into the man's throat before his arm could even fully complete its swing and then he latched both legs around the now disoriented man and fell backwards, using his strength and the man's now off balanced state to flip him.
The two went crashing to the ground and Jaune was atop his enemy. Scooching down a bit so that he was now atop the man's chest, he promptly smashed a fist right into his nose, hard enough to fracture it. He didn't stop there though and threw as many punches as he could to his face and neck.
He scored some good hits before the man brought up a hand to guard one punch that would've otherwise struck his eye and then dodged Jaune's next punch by shifting his whole body to the right. The result was Jaune's blow striking the ground directly. The crater that had already formed from the flip and initial punches got much bigger as he accidentally struck it, sending debris flying directly into his own face.
That was when the man launched a powerful hook into his side that blew him right off, but Jaune rolled even as he smashed through the entirety of another office building and got back up in time to duck under the large haymaker the man threw his way upon chasing after him. Jaune then bounced up and swung upwards, his fist connecting with the man's underarm. This sent the attacking limb up, but the man quickly readjusted his balance and just delivered a blow with his other arm that Jaune just barely blocked.
Even then as he went skidding, he remained standing and when the man shot out two quick lightning bolts, Jaune grabbed a nearby scrap of metal that had once been part of the building and flung it off to the distance. The bolts curved in their path slightly to follow the metal, giving him plenty of room to maneuver and he leapt first to his left before leaping again, towards his foe.
The man threw an upwards punch as he closed the distance and Jaune responded by flipping forward in midair, avoiding the punch by a hair's breath before delivering an axe-kick that struck the man in the right shoulder.
It barely budged him, however, and the man just let loose another growl, more distorted than before, as he grabbed Jaune by the leg and spun him around, all the while pumping lightning directly into him.
His leg burned fiercely, to the point where it felt like it might just snap right off now due to the combination of sizzling flesh and bone and the man's own strength, but before such a thing could possibly happen, Jaune got thrown up and at an angle and he went sailing through yet another building, only coming to a stop after smashing all the way through to its rooftop.
Said rooftop was easily fourteen stories above ground, to give an idea of how far he'd traveled.
He was bloodied, battered, and partly cooked, but even then his own aura which was still gushing out, worked overtime. His wounds were healing rapidly, but it would be a while before he was back to normal.
A length of time that his still unnamed foe would not grant him. Not that Jaune particularly paid much attention to this fact anyways.
The man, clearly some odd floors below him now, fired upwards with multiple lightning bolts and Jaune danced upon the roof, avoiding the blasts as they shot through all the floors to get to him. The rooftop was quickly deteriorating as a result.
And this fact he did pay much attention to.
After jumping to avoid one more bolt that would've struck his side, he stomped hard upon landing and brought the whole rooftop crashing down. All that rubble struck the now equally ruined floor directly below it and sent that crashing down as well, setting off a chain reaction.
And just like that, the whole building just threw in the towel.
Jaune leapt from one piece of debris to another to avoid being buried underneath it all. The same seemingly couldn't be said for his foe, however, at least not from the looks of it. Upon landing, the blond scanned the ruined area intently for any trace of the man, not buying for even a nanosecond that he'd been beaten.
Sure enough, his instincts warned him of danger and he started to move – but didn't prove quick enough as a bolt of lightning shot forth from somewhere behind him and struck him right in between his shoulder blades.
Additionally, he was knocked right off his feet and went crashing face first into the ground after tumbling a few dozen meters. He didn't even get enough time to even begin getting up when a huge foot slammed into the back of his head.
"You pathetic fool!" the man yelled, his voice once again growing increasing distorted. "Is this all you can ever amount to in the pursuit of your blind justice?!"
Normally, Jaune didn't speak much with those that clearly needed to be put down and whenever he did, it'd always been in a calm but admittedly forceful tone. But this time was much different. "Just why do you even hate him me so much?!" he growled out in supreme annoyance and befuddlement as he forced himself up.
The man tried to stomp again, but Jaune moved his head out of the way, latched onto the man's ankle and then swung himself around, his own legs smashing into the man's other foot. It caught him off guard and sent him crashing down.
Unlike before, where he'd mounted him, Jaune got up, his grip still on the man's ankle. Lifting the leg a little higher, he stomped on the back of the man's now exposed knee and then punched the side of said knee, hoping to break it.
He didn't, but there was a slight cracking noise, indicating the beginnings of a breakage.
He would've gone for another attack, but the man lashed out with his free leg in an attempt to stop him. But Jaune saw it coming and caught it, stopping the attack cold.
Only for the man to then twist at the waist and flip himself over, taking Jaune with him. He squeezed his legs, trying to pin Jaune, but the blond forced his way out and while still on the ground, suddenly kicked outwards twice, hoping to get the man in the gut.
The man rolled out of the way and got back up first and then threw a kick that caught Jaune in the side of the ribs, cracking them lightly in addition to obviously sending him soaring once more.
Jaune grunted in exertion as he spun around, turning the momentum to his advantage as he landed on his feet not unlike how a cat would, only to then lean to his left to avoid a bolt of lightning.
Two more bolts quickly followed as the man closed the gap between them, only for his attention to then be suddenly switched over to something else.
Jaune saw it too – his sword. By sheer dumb luck, it looks like the man had succeeded in sending him in the same general direction he'd knocked his weapon in.
It was now suddenly a race for his blade. In the case of the man, who was further away from the weapon, he fired a huge bolt of lightning that would undoubtedly destroy the sword entirely.
In Jaune's case, however, he was much closer and his speed was now such that he could close such a gap just before the lightning could strike it. He did so successfully and unconsciously began to circulate aura within his weapon.
He's learned his lesson from the last time they'd fought – before, he'd just flood his weapons with aura, run the risk of essentially overloading them and thereby breaking them. But this time around, with only the one blade left, he instead just poured a set amount of aura within it and circulated it, not unlike how blood circulates through a living body.
The result was a weapon that boasted far greater durability and cutting power than it would possess without aura. The only exception is that Jaune would need to concentrate this whole time to make sure he doesn't screw up the regulation by cutting off the aura feed or forcing too much into it.
But that's okay – he'd already figured out a way to deal with the latter of the two scenarios.
A solution that he now demonstrated as he closed the distance between him and the man.
Pouring an absurd amount of aura into his blade, he promptly unleashed all this excess when he swung. But rather than unleash in a wave of aura like he normally would, he instead focus all this aura alongside the blade's already sharp edge.
The result spoke for itself as it cut cleanly into the man's arm as he brought it up to guard. And it was by no means a shallow wound either.
The man howled in shock and pain as the blade cut through most of his arm, easily reaching bone and cutting through most of it in one smooth motion.
"You…!" the man growled before unleashing another burst of pure lightning from his whole body. But this time, Jaune was ready for it and leapt back, just out of range of the lightning.
However, just one bolt was able to reach for him… at which point, in his single-minded focus on defeating this man right now, he proceeded to perform an impossible feat.
Just as the bolt was about to get past the range he could comfortably swing his sword within, Jaune suddenly swung twice and proceeded to cleanly cut the lightning bolt itself into four pieces that then sputtered out of existence.
"What?!" The man looked genuinely surprised now by this absurdity, his pain seemingly forgotten about for now.
This was a look Jaune found himself finding some quiet relishing in. And surprisingly, seeing the man's expression lose that hate filled edge to it, if only for a brief moment, was enough to calm him somewhat as well. Not completely, of course, but enough for him to no longer be nearly blinded by such rage.
"…I remember what you said to me, back in Sol," Jaune started as he took up a defensive stance, glaring all the while at the man. "Every single word… you know, don't you?"
He spoke of his semblance and its mental pollution. Whether or not the man himself had gone through something similar, he couldn't say… but he did know now that the man was aware that he wasn't quite always in control of his own actions.
And judging by the look on his enigmatic foe's face now, it seemed like he was right.
"…Like I said before, you're no hero, boy. You're a slave," the man practically spat out. "I could tell just by looking at you – you barely possess any will at all, not in any way that matters. And you know it too, don't you? That for the rest of your life that you're going to be engaging in this pathetic hero play without any concern for yourself. Or, more specifically, that you can't feel any concern for what's been done to you… and what will be done to you."
Ever since the awakening of his aura and semblance, Jaune has done practically everything he's done out of an all-consuming compulsion to help others, to strike down evil and all those that posed an otherwise unchangeable threat to others. It'd been impossible for him to even try fighting this compulsion, couldn't even fathom a reason as to why he even should in the first place. Whatever autonomy he may have possessed as a kid, whatever other dreams or desires he may have or could have possessed later in life… that all died the very instant he'd awakened his semblance.
And what was the true tragedy of it all is that Jaune knew this. He was not oblivious at all to this change in him. He was all too aware that whatever parts of him that could still act like a normal human were either being suppressed the hell out of or were just straight out nonexistent now.
Whatever possibilities he could've had in life had long since been sacrificed in the name of the greater good… something that bothered his family greatly, bothered his team now that they were catching onto the full extent of his abnormality…
And it would seem that it bothered this man too, but in a way that differed significantly from the others.
"What's it matter to you?" Jaune quietly asked, his expression surprisingly bitter though only for a second. "I've never met you before in my life prior to Sol. I imagine that this could be said for you too – up until Sol, you've never met me, never even knew of me. So, why? Why all this hatred? Why go to these lengths? Just… just look!"
Having been gripping his blade with both hands, he undid his grip on it with his left hand and motioned off to the distance, where the sounds of chaos can still be heard even from here. Shouting and crying and gunfire and explosions. A cacophony of roars from the Grimm could also be heard as well, the sheer number of Grimm out past Vale's walls being more than enough for their combined cries of murderous rage to reach even this far into the kingdom.
"What could possibly be worth going to these lengths?!" Jaune cried out to the man. "Is whatever goal you have truly so great that it's not a problem for you to endanger so many people?!"
"I don't care about what happens to others," the man suddenly shot back in that distorted voice of his and with a firmness that left the blond teen genuinely shaken. And then the man continued in a much softer voice, a bitter voice. "…Not anymore, that is. Not since…"
The man shook his head after trailing off.
"All this doesn't matter anyway," he continued after a second, seemingly regaining his composure. "No matter how many people live or die today, she'll come in due time. And when she does, it'll be over for everyone in this kingdom."
Jaune narrowed his eyes. 'She?' Was this really a time for vague pronouns?
"Not even a fool like you would be able to stop Salem," the man continued, practically rambling on at this point. At least Jaune's unspoken question got answered… and what an answer it was. "But I won't – can't – feel at peace if I let her or someone else do this instead."
"Do what?" Jaune demanded as he took a step forward, ready to respond to whatever attack would undoubtedly be coming. He also desperately wished to ask the man about the name of 'Salem,' for it surely couldn't be a coincidence that there'd be two people out there with such an unusual name. Was this Salem the same one the headmaster apparently knew of…?
Alas, this was one question he couldn't utter out in time, for the man responded to his question.
"Kill you," the man growled out as aura and lightning suddenly radiated off his form.
It was enough to actually catch Jaune off guard a bit, but his instincts, ever so sharp, warned him immediately of danger and he immediately raised his blade to block whatever was coming-.
-Except, for once, his instincts were wrong.
During this momentary blindness, the man had reached into his pockets and pulled out two large Dust crystals, fire types.
The man then jabbed them right into the sides of his arms and the last thing Jaune saw was the man's very body seemingly absorbing the crystals in their entirety…
Right before his foe seemed to practically explode. All the blond saw immediately afterwards was nothing but a storm of lightning and flames.
"…" Watts made a rather complicated sound as he watched what was taking place on the multitude of still intact cameras.
So completely engrossed was he that if Cinder tried contacting him, it would have gone completely unnoticed.
He'd expected quite the show when Hazel had dragged Jaune Arc off to do battle, but what he'd seen so far had blown all expectations he'd held right out of the water.
As the former Atlas scientist had noted much earlier, Hazel and Jaune Arc were aberrations of a sort, possessing power far greater than the norm established throughout these past eras. To know of this on a purely intellectual level was one thing, but to see the sort of power they were wielding, the kind of speed they moved at and the sheer resiliency they possessed was just unreal. While a number of the more elite huntsmen out there would be capable of keeping up with either combatant's speed, matching their brute strength or attempting to put them down through repeated strikes would be nigh-impossible.
Moreover…
"What… ferocity…" he'd murmured at some point. The cameras throughout that whole area were of considerable quality, but there was naturally a limit to the level of speed they can capture. Thus, most of the battle had been unseeable. Had he been there up close and personal, he'd have no trouble seeing what was going on, but alas this was the limit of this type of technology.
But in any case, what he had seen… it just boggled his mind. Despite Hazel's tall and heavily appearance, he was a man of considerable martial skill, utilizing his great strength and surprising speed to deliver heavy but supremely precise blows to cripple and kill enemies quickly.
Thus, to see him and his young enemy exchange attacks so wildly and with little regard for actual defense had been just as much a shock to him as their power had been. So lost in rage were the two that it just didn't seem to register at all for either one to take a more calculated approach to this battle.
But now though… that has changed.
After the two had taken a moment to surprisingly talk – it was surely not an amicable chat, Watts could tell – his associate and Jaune Arc seemed to have reined themselves in a fair bit. Oh, there was no mistaking the rage that still burned deeply within their eyes, a rage that put the 'rage of fiery flames' Cinder liked to boast of so much to absolute shame.
Even after Hazel had injected himself with two more Dust crystals, Watts could clearly see the man rein in the sudden rush of additional power and begin to apply it more liberally than ever before, starting off with the generation of ash of all things to cloud the whole area.
Not even a few seconds after doing so, Watts zoomed in just in time to see the vague shape of Hazel rush in and deliver a powerful haymaker to Jaune Arc, whose form was illuminated for the briefest of seconds when the flames generated at the last possible instant by Hazel's fist clashed against the boy's blade.
This… this was proving to be a far better treat than the former Atlas scientist could have ever imagined. His hope that it would provide him much needed data to complete his project once he's reobtained it may not have been a small hope after all.
With a giddiness that he hasn't feel in ages, Watts continued his viewing of the battle, wondering what other insights he could gain from it.
"Give me a grand show, you two…" he murmured with made glee.
Power greater than ever before coursed through him, to a point where he, Hazel, nearly lost himself in an impenetrable haze.
But just before he'd lost himself, he'd reined in that power and had been quick to capitalize on the boy's confusion and brief blindness.
Fire crystals can do more than just produce flames – with enough power and control, generating even ash or outright magma would be possible. The latter was not something quite within his ability to do, but the former very much was, thus his opening move.
Alas, even after producing a thick cloud of ash to further obscure the boy's field of view, the blond had still been able to ward off the following punch.
But Hazel wasn't deterred. Pulling back, he circled around the boy with inhuman grace for one his size and landed a heavy body blow to Jaune Arc's side.
The hit blew the blond dozens of meters away and dissipated the cloud of ash a bit, but Hazel wasn't worried. Though anger still coursed through him, he was thinking with a clear head now. He wouldn't lose himself like he had just moments earlier.
Moreover though, he'd slipped up – uttered Salem's name. He knew not what, if anything, Jaune would do with just a name, but there was no telling now what the boy would get up to in due time. Now more than ever, the boy had to die.
And he'll be the one to do the job. Not that Neo girl, assuming she was even alive still after being grazed by an attack like that, nor Salem herself.
Hazel began to lumber forth as he observed Jaune landed on his feet. The boy's sword glowed with unbridled power and he unleashed it without hesitation, not to attack him, but to instead focus on blowing away the ash.
But Hazel wouldn't let things be that easy. For quite some time now, a change had been coming over him, ever since he'd first started his Dust injections all those years ago. And just now, when he'd injected the fire Dust crystals, he'd felt a definite shift in the very core of his soul.
He was changing. In what ways and into what exactly, he knew not nor cared. As long as he could accomplish his goals, it didn't matter.
What did matter though was how beneficial these changes were; aside from an increase to his physical parameters to better match the boy's ever-growing power, something about the Dust itself was reacting oddly within him.
And so, with an unconscious wave of his hand, the cloud of ash bent to his will, spreading out of his volition before suddenly forming around the boy.
Then, with just a snap of his fingers, he ignited the ash.
A cascade of explosions, each one powerful enough to bring down even Atlas' tallest and most enduring skyscrapers, went off. Despite their power, the explosions were small, focused as they were intended to do as much damage as possible to the boy.
It went without saying that it wouldn't be enough, however.
Sure enough, Jaune leapt out of the series of explosions, his clothes torn and burned and fried, but ultimately the boy himself was looking a hell of a lot better than ever before. It would seem that his power had now grown to the point where not even an attack on this level can do any substantial damage to his body anymore.
No matter. He won't back down either.
Growling in challenge, Hazel charged at the boy and concentrated lightning into his arms before firing several bolts directly at his hated enemy.
Just like before, the blond teen pulled off an impossible feat, actually slicing the lightning bolts into nothingness and all without even missing a step anymore. And when Hazel followed this up with a sudden fireball, he bore witness to the sight of Jaune physically knocking the flames away with a sudden backhand, the flames being destroyed as though they were a solid object when they obviously weren't.
But again, it mattered not.
The two of them were in the center of a vast parking lot, long since abandoned. And as they met in the very center of it, they attacked.
Hazel threw two lightning quick punches, aiming for the boy's left eye and his kidneys. But the blond dodged with minimal movement and retaliated with several short swings of his blade that would've cut out his throat and artery in his upper right leg if he hadn't pulled back in time.
It's been a long time since he's ever felt the genuine need to dodge, thanks to the combination of his semblance, aura, and natural toughness. That he still needed to dodge in spite of his own abnormal increases in power just now said something about Jaune Arc's might.
As he stepped back, Hazel lashed out with a sudden kick as Jaune tried to get in close. However, the teen merely dodged and swung his blade horizontally and managed to cut him across the stomach. The cut was so clean that it generated no sound at all in the process and it took a solid second for blood to spew out, a result of how deep the injury turned out to be.
Hissing in pain, Hazel returned the favor. Despite his skill in unarmed and thus close quarters combat, he knew that he was a bulky man. Surprising speed or not, he can't just fight in the same way a person with a much slimmer physique could pull off, and so twisting to deliver short punches was not an option.
But he was no longer limited to just physical blows alone.
With nary a thought, Hazel opened his mouth as wide as he could – and out spewed a torrent of flames that quickly spread out for tens of meters.
Jaune was engulfed in the flames and Hazel didn't miss the way the boy was literally being fried… though he could also see the wounds slowly stop spreading, a sign of his increasing physical toughness nor did he miss the wounds slowly closing up, showing that the boy's absurd healing was also getting faster.
The blond leapt up, golden aura pouring off his form to such a degree that it was almost blinding by this point, especially with how cloudy and dark this afternoon still was. And as if taking note of this, the boy let out a roar and the amount of aura pouring off him increased even more, as did its luminescence.
Hazel was forced to close his eyes and even raise an arm up to provide additional cover lest his eyeballs be burned out. But even then, he still retaliated.
Once in the air, you're at the whims of gravity and physics. As absurd an existence as Jaune Arc, not even he could just change directions at the drop of a hate in mid-descent.
Certain of this, Hazel thrust his free hand outwards and fired a huge blast of lightning, the familiar screeching sound of lightning filling his ears – only for it to suddenly disappear as Jaune no doubt cut it up into nothing.
"Hmph!" Hazel had already been backpedaling as he'd done this, but now he outright leapt back and just in time as Jaune could be heard landing and swinging his blade at the spot he'd just been in.
However, even though he'd missed, Jaune had apparently accounted for this, for another oddity occurred. The very air itself had been cut and a vacuum effect occurred.
So strong was its pull that Hazel had to plant himself firmly lest he be pulled in close for an attack. He did make use of this sudden vacuum by way of spewing out more ash, which got pulled right in close to Jaune and he immediately ignited it again.
This time, Jaune moved back a foot to avoid being caught in the direct epicenter of the blast and then swung his blade, unleashing a wave of aura that cut right through the explosion itself and quickly closed the gap between them.
And this time, Hazel couldn't dodge for the vacuum effect was still ongoing though dying down. Thus, all he could do was defend.
With a yell of defiance, he raised his right hand and grabbed the wave of aura just as it was about to reach him. Pain filled him as the wave began to practically disintegrated bits of his flesh and even his bones, but through a continuous stream of lightning and flames to coat his hand combined with his own brute strength, he too was able to do the impossible and outright crush the wave of aura, turning it into nothingness.
What had just happened was a truly incredible feat – aura was the manifestation of one's soul, a type of energy. Energy can neither be created nor destroyed and aura, when used in the manner Jaune uses it in, followed this same basic principle… and yet, Hazel had succeeded in destroying it.
So lost in the battle, though, that the man himself didn't realize the feat he just pulled off. And if Jaune Arc himself was at all aware of what just happened and the implications, then he showed nothing as he charged right at him.
The young blond faked an upwards sword slash that Hazel saw through before then attacking for real with a fast straight punch to his gut that found its mark. Said punch slammed right into the wound from before – the wound that was now almost healed – and staggered Hazel for a split second that the blond promptly took advantage of by slamming the butt of his sword hilt into the bottom of his jaw.
For an instant, Hazel saw nothing but stars, but from a lifetime of training and battle, his body responded on its own by sidestepping just as Jaune went in for a swing that would've otherwise cut his left leg right off at the thigh.
Regaining his senses, Hazel reached out and flicked the side of Jaune's left ear hard, an action that actually got a wince out of the blond in spite of him having shrugged off virtually everything else with nary a grunt. Just went to show how sensitive certain parts of the body would always be, no matter how tough one is.
This provided Hazel a brief window which he used to then grab the boy by that same ear and lift him right off his feet. Had the boy not struggled against this at all, Hazel would've ended up ripping his ear right off. Had Jaune struggled even slightly by trying to stand his ground or jump in the other direction, well, his ear would've definitely been torn off along with part of his face. But, in an admirable display of combat intelligence, the blond leapt in the direction Hazel tried to tug him in and so managed to avoid such a fate.
Hazel could almost admire the boy's instincts, but only barely. In any case, he was still essentially crushing the boy's ear between his fingers, rendering it bloodied. And just when Jaune started to launch a kick in mid-tug, Hazel simply spewed fire from that same hand, which then transferred over to Jaune's ear and then his entire head.
That definitely got a reaction out of the blond now, who cried out in shock and pain just long enough for Hazel to toss him aside like hot garbage. And in mid-toss, Hazel pivoted on his feet and delivered a massive punch, enhanced by lightning and fire alike, to Jaune's expose gut.
The resulting impact sounded louder than thunder and sent the teen flying through the air, smashing through several buildings before beginning to descend.
Hazel promptly leapt after him, covering such a distance in just the one leap and before Jaune had even hit the ground. And even as he slammed into the ground, the blond still managed to twist about and swing his sword seven times, unleashing waves of aura each time.
The first one took Hazel by surprise and cut deeply into his chest, drawing a lot of blood. However, he immediately generated flames from both hands and concentrated them to such a degree that they acted as pseudo-thrusters, allowing him to maneuver a bit in midair. Thanks to this, he was able to avoid the remaining waves of aura, but the second one had still been able to clip him in his face… and sadly for him, took out his right eye.
The pain was far from minute and Hazel genuinely screamed as a result. With his vision partially lost and his concentration broken, his flames went out and he went falling to the ground below, clipping a building in the process with his lower body.
The man had a less than graceful impact as he landed face-first on the asphalt, breaking it. Disoriented as this left him, Hazel still was of sound enough mind to hastily roll out of the way when Jaune, having landed as well, rushed over and swung at the ground, leaving a huge gash that was at least a dozen yards in length and just as deep.
The boy was in the process of swinging again, this time at an angle to account for Hazel's still moving form, but in yet another bout of sudden creativity, Hazel slammed a fist into the ground, producing a series of spider-web cracks that ended up overlapping the gash the boy had just created in the ground. And an instant later, the flames he'd produced with that very same fist ended up shooting right out of all the cracks, the gash included.
His young foe was left with no choice but to move back lest he be roasted yet again. This gave Hazel enough breathing room to full get up and resume his offensive in full.
Bellowing, he shot out fire again and turned his head left and right, making sure the flames spread out as far as they could possible go and then after a few seconds, he concentrated the flames as much as he could until it was as close to a beam of flames as it could be, thereby allowing him to extend the range of his attack at the expense of immediate spread.
He was able to lock onto the blond and blast him back, but the teen had raised his sword to guard against the fire beam and his weapon was holding up without issue despite the intensity of the heat, which was great enough to start melting the ground beneath them a little.
Hazel used this chance to approach, but he only got about a dozen steps before he had to stop – he could only exhale for so long before needing to take a breath again, after all.
He panted and coughed, his throat feeling exhausted from such strain – but he himself was far from tired.
No, if anything, he was feeling more energized than ever before… and he could only feel himself getting even stronger. The changes he'd felt upon injecting just moments ago were still far from over.
But unfortunately… the same could be of Jaune Arc.
Even now, though the aura pouring off him had lessened considerably, it was still there and even more intense than ever before. His tattered state aside, the boy no longer showed signs of injury thus exposing his bare upper body and part of his lower body for all the world to see. Hazel could see the slim but incredibly muscular physique Jaune possessed, the way each and every muscle strained and even writhed as he too was undergoing some sort of evolution still.
In terms of combat power, it would seem the two of them were now evenly matched, but there's no telling just how things will go as this battle continues.
It'll ultimately come down to which of them eventually starts to slow down first, Hazel supposed.
Then in that case, the man thought as he regained his breath, he'll just have to keep on swinging until one of them finally drops.
His muscles bulged as he tensed up, preparing to go yet another round. The same went for Jaune, who switched from a defensive stance to an offensive one.
In light of all that just happened, the two of them were now assessing their options, figuring out how to better counter the other's ever developing skills and abilities.
So lost in thought for the moment that neither one of them saw it coming until it was upon them – the appearance of another combatant.
Hazel's eyes widened and he genuinely gaped, he being the first to notice the new arrival, who leapt at Jaune from behind him.
Bloodied and with clothes in tatters and in general in a state that by all rights many would consider to be near the brink of death itself… Hazel honestly couldn't believe his eyes as one dying but indignant Neopolitan popped out of nowhere with an agonized but enraged expression on her face.
And the very first thing she did upon making her appearance was launch an attack right at an unassuming Jaune.
It'd taken a time and a half to do it, but Neo had done it. From where she'd been to essentially lie in agony at up to here, she'd managed to limp and jump and crawl her way here, here to where her most hated enemy was at.
It was worth noting that she was not in a good condition at all – though Jaune Arc's attack had not struck her head on thanks to Hazel's timely intervention, she had suffered greatly from it. Even though she'd focused as much of her aura as she could into pure defense, the aura slash had still managed to completely tear through her aura as though it hadn't even been there at all, having reduced her aura level to a state so low that even a pebble toss from an unruly child would drain her of what little she had left.
But more than that, that attack had done her unbelievable harm despite missing its mark, having not just severed but even outright obliterated the entirety of her left arm, a small portion of her torso and most of her left leg. Such injuries would've been considered potentially survivable had they been inflicted on a much larger and sturdier person, but on someone as petite as her? Even if she'd had enough aura to forcibly staunch her bleeding and keep her alive, it would not keep her among the living long enough to receive good enough care to ensure her survival.
But what little aura and strength of spirit she had left had been just enough to keep her going, help make the agonizing trip here. At least it hadn't been too hard to find the blond bastard, what with all the violent shaking and collapsing buildings and all that jazz.
And damn it all, if this is to be her last day on Remnant, then at the very least she was going to take the mother fucker down with her!
To her great fortune, the blond teen had been so wrapped up in the fight against Hazel – seriously, these two were monsters, just how the hell could anyone be so strong?! – that she'd been able to use some of her fleeting strength to launch herself off the top of toppled and partly destroyed dumpster and right towards Jaune Arc's back.
In her remaining hand she held a simple knife, having lost her replacement weapon due to that damned attack as well. But she focused the remainder of her aura into the knife to strengthen it and she actually prayed it'd be enough to pierce the back of that bastard's neck.
This was it – her final moment!
Time felt like it slowed to a crawl as the distance between her knife and his neck shortened with every passing microsecond. Her desperate hope turned to pure vindictive elation in this process and led to her letting out a silent bark of laughter-.
-Only for her elation to be dashed with swift and brutal efficiency.
It happened so fast that her ailing senses simply couldn't process it until it was already too late. One instant, Jaune Arc had been standing perfectly still, back exposed to her… and in the next instant, he'd leaned to the side and twisted, just enough for him to maneuver his sword.
Her hand was severed and it along with the knife it still tightly held went flying past the blond as did she… except…
…Ha, h-how weird, she thought numbly as she harmlessly sailed past her hated foe.
…Just why was her body… all the way over there…?
…
…
Jaune hadn't heard the incoming attack until the last possible instant, at which point he'd been all too quick to respond and relief his attacker of her hand and head.
It was only with the mildest case of surprise that he watched head and body separate before his own eyes and he recognized the person who'd been so close to stabbing him all the way through the throat, not that such a thing would've done much good in the first place.
That girl, the one who'd been Roman Torchwick's accomplice. Judging by the state of her body, his aura slash at that time had not fully missed its target it would seem.
…
…He… didn't quite know what to feel. On the one hand, this woman had very much been an unrepentant criminal, much like how Torchwick had been and judging by how things were lining up, it would seem she'd thrown her lot in with this man before him and whoever else he was working with. Had they been successful, there would be no telling just what kind of damage they could cause.
Not that they weren't causing enough as it is. Sparing a brief glance towards the sky, he found it Grimm-free for the most part. Indeed, even the constant roaring of the Grimm themselves from where they were at by the walls seemed to be much lower in volume now, a sign of their diminishing numbers.
But city hall still sounded like a miniature warzone even from this distance… just what was going on there right now?
No, but more than that…
Jaune couldn't tear his eyes away from the fallen body of the fallen criminal.
"What you see before you," his foe spoke suddenly, grabbing his attention. The sheer level of distortion to his voice failed to mask his surprising solemnness. "Is but one example of the chaos your slavery will bring to you. No matter how many 'evils' you strike down, another will always rise to take the last one's place… and more often that not, it will be in direct response to what you've done. Like the girl for example – because you killed Torchwick, her most cherished person, she'd come to hate you immensely for it… and now look at how things have turned out. She was willing to join my allies and I all for the express purpose of revenge against you. And you… you had no choice but to respond."
The man took one large step forward, though not in a combative manner. "…And though it's probably yet to happen, it'll only be a matter of time until the people you save turn on you, try to twist you and use you… and because you're nothing but a slave, you'll only ever to continue to walk down this path without any choice of your own being made about it." The man grimaced and looked at him in loathing. "Really now… what a pathetic being you are. Your very existence is unbearable."
Jaune glared right back at him in silence but stopped after a few seconds to once again glance at the fallen body. He closed his eyes for a split second and lowered his head, almost as if in mourning… except that was not something he could actually feel. Not for 'evil.'
A second later, he raised his head and opened his eyes. He took several steps forward, past the body of the now dead criminal. He spared not another glance, not even for even the smallest possible fraction of a second.
"I won't lie," he started. "Not to anyone, much less myself. You're right – I'm a slave. A lot of the things I've done over the years, I did because I had no choice in the matter. My mind isn't quite my own anymore, it feels like. Same thing goes for my body… but even then, it's not as if I'm not aware of what's going on with me. And you know what? The part of me that's still me… if it were possible for that part to disconnect and review everything that's happened over all these years… I don't think that part of me would disagree all that much. Now don't get me wrong either; a lot of the things I've seen and done, just about anyone else would've been scarred by it all in some form or another. But even back before I was sent spiraling down this path, I'd known that doing good would never be easy."
Jaune raised his sword and pointed it directly at the man. Aura began to once more pour off his form, but in a much more controlled state than before. Every fiber of his being practically ached to continue.
"The world isn't just black and white. I've long since stopped being naïve enough to believe otherwise. Sometimes, hard choices must be made in the name of the greater good and no matter how much experience I gain, I know that I'm not always going to make the right move. I'll stumble. I'll fail, just like everyone else does at times… But!" Jaune's blue eyes glowed a magnificent and fiery gold. "No matter what, I'll persevere! Not simply because I'm compelled to, but also because I choose to!"
Yes, that was exactly it, he realized in this moment. As much as he'd unconsciously wished to be free of this mental pollution of his, it wasn't as if he'd hated such a thing. Sure, he wished to be more like everyone else – enjoy the company of friends and family, laugh and cry with others, fall in love, maybe even have a family one day too, things he'd already begun to do just a tad bit thanks to the help of his friends – but one thing that's never changed about him was that he'd always wanted to be a hero, to fight the bad guys and save others. His semblance may be forcing him to do just that at the expense of much else, but in the end it was nothing more than just an extreme amplification of what'd already been there all along!
…!
Something… something within him was beginning to change. But it was different from all the other changes he's been undergoing for quite some time now. His muscles didn't bristle in response to the change nor did his aura suddenly surge or anything like that. This change was far more intimate in nature, something that only he himself would ever be aware of…
…Except, it also seemed like the man himself seemed to sense this shift as well, for his previously enraged expression now gave way to one of muted shock.
"…Alright then. So be it," the man said quietly as lightning and flames began to dance all along his bare arms. "…No matter what conclusions either of us come to here, it doesn't change the fact that you still need to die."
"Nor does it change the fact," Jaune began to retort. "That you and whoever else you're working with – like this Salem you mentioned – need to be stopped. And I fully intend to do just that."
With nothing else needing to be said, the two assumed combative stances and launched themselves at each other, fully intending on ending this battle…
…Only for yet another interruption to occur.
And unlike the first one, which had attempt to sneak up behind him, this one had come from somewhere just a bit more unlikely-.
-Directly above them.
Alright, so what do you guys think? Worth the wait? Heh, I hope so, for I've been itching to write the next battle between Hazel and Jaune here… and I'd like to think I did a pretty good job at upping the scale in all sorts of ways.
Specifically in ways that I'm really disappointed weren't done in the show.
To elaborate on that, well, firstly we all know just how bad volume 5 of RWBY was in general, even by the rather flexible standards a lot of fans have regarding the series. And to me, one of the biggest screw-ups about volume 5 had been how they'd handled Hazel. I don't simply mean his character – I believe I've already made my opinion on that known nearly a dozen chapters ago when I first introduced him in the fic – but rather his skillset and overall fighting style.
When we saw him fight in the climax of volume 5 – yes, I know I use that word liberally here – all we saw of him fighting was just him literally tossing Nora and Ren aside at first in a lazy fashion and smack aside Qrow in an equally lazy way. It hadn't been until he found out Oscar was Ozpin's next body that he really went nuts and injected himself with Dust… only to end up fighting like any other typical brute in any other work of fiction and launch balls of fires or lightning in the most generic way possible. Just about the only creative thing he did with these powers was grab Nora by the head and try frying her and again I use the word 'creative' here very liberally. He didn't try to do anything special at all with the powers granted to him by the Dust crystals. Despite pretty much obtaining a watered-down power set of a Maiden i.e. elemental manipulation, he didn't do anything near the scale of what Cinder and Raven demonstrated.
Granted, the dude had gone berserk and berserkers usually don't think things through, much less fight in a rational manner, but it goes without saying how poor an excuse that is since there's plenty of other such berserkers in other fictional works that really go nuts with whatever abilities they possess.
Thus my attempts in this chapter to start correcting that. I mean, considering the level of skill characters like Weiss have in manipulating Dust for a variety of effects, I'm genuinely amazed someone like Hazel whose true fighting style revolves around Dust usage too doesn't have equally good control over the Dust powers he gains.
Now, admittedly, generating ash thanks to the fire Dust crystal might be a tad much since nothing similar was done in canon as far as I can recall, but this is due to the changes he's undergoing in this chapter, changes that will be explained in due time as will all other things, of course.
In any case, TLDR I hope you guys like the way I'm writing Hazel's character and abilities. Oh, and I'd planned for Neo to die at this point of the story quite a bit in advance, so hope this is also something you guys can understand given the circumstances.
Whelp, with that off my chest, time to bring this to a close for good now.
Until next time, everyone. Take care!