[X] Bait him into a monologue. If he was distracted, some more people might slip away, and then he could be hit mid-sentence.
[X] Both leave, and Piran sends a message to Winter requesting Summons to assist Yang. But until they arrive, Yang will be alone.
Stepping forward to be the closest to the man, Yang put her hands together and cracked her knuckles. As she did so, she tilted her head to the side. It was subtle, but hopefully, it was enough for Piran to notice.
It was a hard line, between gesturing in a way that made it obvious to allies but unnoticeable to enemies. If she didn't get her meaning across...
Well, no matter. Piran should be smart enough.
"So, this is all your fault?" Yang asked. "You're the reason that there are children without parents right now?"
"They made the decision to harm my people to advantage theirs." The man in black said. "And in these lands, letting such an insult go unanswered is an invitation to be brought low. If I allowed these people to get away with conning me and my men, then anyone who heard of it would try the same. After all, what reason would they have not to?"
"Yeah, because that'll be good for business." Yang replied. "Killing your clients is usually great for your reputation, I hear."
"You speak as someone who has never lived outside the Kingdoms." The man replied. "The people of this land are reliable in one thing only. They will do anything that gives them a better chance of survival. This village will be an example. When dealing with us, keeping your bargains is the path to survival."
"Just an example to you?" Yang asked. "So the lives of these people mean nothing to you?"
"It means as much to me as my life is to them." He replied. "Which is to say-"
There was a cry of pain, and Yang spun around.
Standing there, behind the crowd of people which had began to shuffle away towards an exit over time, was an exact duplicate of the man in black armour. The only difference was in the colour of their equipment- While the man on the rooftop was covered in black plate, the second was clad in complete white gear.
The man clad in white had a hand held upwards, grasping a small child by the throat.
Yang's eyes widened, and she took a step towards the scene as the crowd scattered, running from the sight, only for a movement out of the corner of her eye to give away the movement of the man in black.
She spun around again, bringing up her arms to cover her vitals, just in time for the man's own fist to strike at her, knocking her down.
Jumping to her feet before the momentum finished pushing her away, Yang looked up in time to watch a projectile fly at the man in black, who moved to bat it away. It exploded on contact with his hand, and the explosion, plus subsequent cloud of dust, covered Yang's vision.
Looking towards the man in white, Yang saw Piran lunge at him, only for the man to tighten his grip around the child's throat.
There was a snapping sound, and when the white armoured man threw the body at Piran, it crumpled lifelessly.
Stepping out of the cloud of dust, the man in black held a hand to the side. The gauntlet on his arm began shifting, and with his other hand, he reached for what looked like a harpoon on his back.
Yang fired Ember Celica at him, as she ran at the man in white. As she passed Piran, who was gently moving the corpse that had landed on him, she spoke.
"Run!" She called. "I'll hold them off!"
"But-"
There was a scream, as the man in black threw his harpoon into the crowd. There was a splash of blood, as they ran, and the man in white ran after them.
Yang fired Ember Celica at the one in white, and Piran, watching, dashed towards the crowd.
"Don't you dare die!" He shouted, as he pulled something out of his pocket. Then, with a twist of his hand, he threw it on the ground in front of him.
The boulder which grew on the street quickly blocked off the passageway, leaving Yang alone with the two identical armoured figures.
For a moment, nothing happened. Yang kept an eye on both figures, quickly flickering her gaze between one man and the other, watching for one to make a move to get past the boulder. After a moment of neither moving, the man in white began walking away from the escaping civilians.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Yang asked, snarling. She'd seen the man fire into a crowd, and even if she hadn't, there was a corpse right in front of her, of someone who looked like they never made it to double digits.
The man didn't respond, either of them.
Yang's eyes lingered on the body in front of her. Someone who had died, who she hadn't saved. Because of this fucker.
Looking up with red eyes, Yang charged at the man in white.
The white-armoured man caught her fist, then let go when Yang fired Ember Celica at him. She heard a footstep behind her, and quickly moved to the side as the man in black kicked at her. Before she could dodge further, however, he levelled his arm with her, and his transformed weapon fired.
The harpoon hit Yang in the arm, a rope trailing behind it, and she could feel her Aura strain keeping it at bay. When it didn't fall away, she moved to rip the harpoon away, but the man in black pulled at the rope, and Yang went flying towards him.
The harpoon fell away from whatever grip it had on her Aura just as Yang passed underneath the man, who punched her down into the dirt. Before she could react further, the man in white was at her side, and his kick sent her into a building.
The wood cracked and broke on the impact, and she rolled inside, through the flames, before she was able to stand. Just as she did, however, the man in black was at her side again, holding on to her arm and throwing her out again.
The man in white caught her, and his grip shifted around her throat, putting pressure on her Aura as it struggled to protect her vital organs.
The man in black stepped out of the burning building a moment later, lining up a harpoon shot as Yang was held immobile. He fired, again straining her Aura, and when the harpoon reeled in again, the man in white slammed her into the ground and held her in place.
Grinding against the floor, Yang was stretched for a moment, until the man in white began walking closer to the man in black. Grinding her against the ground with increasing amounts of force, Yang struggled to stand for a moment.
After a moment, she felt a hand against her throat again, and Yang quickly found herself slammed against a wall. Looking forward, she could see the man in white glaring at her.
Feeling the pressure at her neck increase, Yang wheezed to talk. "There's... Two of you..."
"How observant." The man in black said.
"But you're both here..." She groaned out. "Fighting me, not killing..."
The man in white tightened his grip as the man in black drew closer.
"And what of it?" The black-armoured man asked.
"Semblance..." She wheezed. "Can't... Be distant..."
"Is that the last thing you're ever going to think?" The man in white asked. "My Semblance?"
Yang tried to laugh, even as her Aura began struggling to protect her.
"Enjoy your last joke." The man in black ordered.
"I will..." Yang replied.
If this was a spar back in Signal, her Aura would have been well past the point where the match was called. She didn't think her Aura had ever been this low. Another hit from that harpoon would punch right through it and draw blood.
In other words, Yang had never been stronger.
Pulling her head forwardly slightly, Yang closed her eyes and slammed back, headbutting the wall as hard as she could. Almost instantly, it shattered, and the man in white stumbled forward due to the force he was using to pin Yang to the wall.
Feeling the hand around her throat loosening, Yang smiled, and aimed her fists at the man's face.
Ember Celica fired, both fists at once, and the man fell right into the blasts. He was sent backwards, and as Yang hit the ground, she quickly rolled through the building and out of the line of fire.
Before the man could seek her out, she dashed through a wall, breaking through it as if it wasn't there, and reached the man's side with a burst of speed that she wasn't capable of before. The sudden increase caught him off guard, and before he could react, she hit him in the face, firing Ember Celica again as she did so.
Yang had the momentum for this moment, but she couldn't keep it. Not when the man had two bodies. She could pressure one, but the other would blindside her. And even as she was, she couldn't fight two people on this level for long.
But she didn't have to. She just had to buy time, for Piran and the civilians to get away. However long that took, she didn't know. But her win condition was never walking away with this guy on the ground.
Firing Ember Celica again, this time at the man in white, Yang hit the man in black again, before reaching for the harpoons he had on his back.
Those things were the biggest threat, right now. The man was strong, but she'd be able to take another hit or two without being taken out of the fight. The harpoons? One good shot with those, and she was dead.
Taking the harpoons, Yang threw them into the distance, over the burning buildings and away from the fight.
There. Threat weakened. The only issue now was if-
Yang rolled to the side, as another harpoon flew out from the burning building. It hit the wall of the building against the street, and the rope attached to the end of it shot to the side, as the man in white began running.
Ducking under it so it wouldn't entangle her, Yang watched the rope fall as she ducked under it, and saw the man in white reaching for another harpoon. She rushed at him, dashing left and right as she did so to throw off any aim of his, before reaching punching range.
Her fist flew at his face, and the man caught the fist. There was a brief struggle, before Yang fired Ember Celica, and the man ducked out of the way of the shot. Taking the opportunity, Yang brought her knee up, hitting the white armoured man in the face, before ripping the harpoon out of his weapon.
She heard movement behind her, and turned just in time to see the man in black armour make a throwing movement. Her eye's widened, as she saw the projectile.
It was a severed arm from the child's corpse.
Staring at it for a moment, Yang only moved to sidestep it as she took into account the implications.
The bastard was mutilating a corpse to hit at her.
Snarling, Yang ran at him. A shout escaped her lips as she punched at him, and the man blocked the blow with the palm of his hand., and recoiled when Ember Celica fired. Bringing her left hand around as well, Yang moved to repeat the manoeuvre, but spike of pain through her back stopped her.
Trying to fight through it, Yang moved to punch again, but was suddenly reeled back, and hit the ground. The spike of pain increased as whatever it was drove deeper in on impact, and after a moment, Yang steadily stood.
"So easily angered." The man in white said, and Yang looked at him just in time to see him pull a rope. She cried out again as she was pulled off her feet, and with a sudden terror, she realised what was causing her pain.
Looking around at her back as she laid crumpled on the floor, Yang saw the harpoon embedded in her flesh, just below her ribcage.
"You..." She whispered, before a foot came down on her back, in line with her ribs. Yang cried out, as she heard the sound of snapping bones.
"You had nothing to do with this, girl." The man said. "These were not your people. They had done nothing for you. You had not crossed me before now. But you chose to oppose me, child."
There was another spike of pain, as the man pulled the harpoon out of Yang. Her vision was getting fuzzy.
The foot moved from her back, and a hand reached around her neck. The white armoured man held her in the air, gently this time, and held her to face the man in black. As he approached, the man in black picked up the harpoon which had stuck Yang from the back.
Before he could prepare for a finishing blow, however, an explosion behind him distracted him, making the man whirl around.
"So you're the leader." Said a voice recognised, but couldn't identify through the pain. "Well then. I suppose it's a good thing I came in person, then."
A ghastly white figure blurred out of the building, striking at the man in black. The man in white saw this, and tightened his grip around Yang's neck, trying to crush her throat before her saviour could stop him, but some force from outside of Yang's perspective struck at him, and as he stumbled forward, Yang saw an opportunity.
Ember Celica fired again. Without her Aura, Yang couldn't take the blast without consequences, and she felt the force break something as she fell, and there would definitely be burns over this. But it was enough that the pressure around her throat vanished, and when Yang fell to the ground with a sickening thud, she was still alive.
Badly hurt, but alive.
The two men who had attacked her were fighting something else, but Yang saw none of it. After a moment, she felt someone wrap their arms around her, and in a flash, she was being held on a rooftop above the fight.
"Yang." Said a voice, and taking a moment to look through the pain, the huntress in training saw Winter holding her.
"Ma'am-" Yang croaked out, before coughing.
"Save your strength." Winter ordered. "You did good down there, Yang, Just rest now. The airship has medical equipment, and these wounds are fresh. We can have you as good as new in a week. Just save your strength, and don't let yourself pass out until you get there."
"But-"
Winter closed her eyes, and Yang heard a Summon manifest behind her. The Schnee shifted, and Yang felt herself being placed on the back of a ghostly Nevermore.
"Try to hold on." Winter said. "I'll finish this."
Winter let her go as the Nevermore shifted, keeping Yang balanced on it's back, and prepared to take off. Looking to the side, Yang saw Winter step off the building, and move to end the fight.
...Rest sounded good. It sounded real good, right now...
[X] ...No. She'd started this fight. She wasn't leaving it until that bastard was beaten. Roll off the Nevermore. She can still shoot.
[X] Just need to rest... (Temporary Perspective Change)
-[X] Look through the eyes of Winter Schnee
-[X] Observe the actions of Piran Caledfwlch
-[X] Watch the performance of Blast Yellowstone