Greetings everyone and welcome to the second chapter of the knight & the wizard! I hope you're all excited for this one! Check down below for the new schedule update.
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Chapter Two
It's been three days since we left the inn in Higanbana and now we were on our way to yet another village in hopes of finding a way to Haven Academy. And surprise, surprise, Team RNJR had gotten a new ride along. But not just any ride along; no, no, this ride along came in the form of a deceased wizard, who for some damn reason can't stop talking in cryptic fashion!
"Mr. Arc is there a problem?" asked Prof. Ozpin, the so-called "wizard" inside my head.
"No, Professor Ozpin, there's no problem." I told him in my head.
"Very well. Now, where was I? Ah, yes, it was october and I was recently visiting an old ally of mine..." said Prof. Ozpin, droning on and on with his past lives' adventures.
My Oum, he's worse than Professor Port. If I had known that being the host of an ancient being with magically powers would drive me insane, I would've thrown myself off the nearest cliff.
And if that wasn't bad enough, I was now being forced by said "wizard" to practice various fighting styles on top of my regular training schedule; which I might add is already exhausting enough!
At least I have the others to save myself some sanity.
Looking back on it all, I couldn't believe I was walking through Anima. The only time I'd ever been in Anima was when my family and I were on vacation.
Those were good times.
But now it just seemed so long ago.
Seeing nothing else to do, I unfolded the map from my back pocket and started to read through it, when Nora stretched her arms above her head, a hyperactive smile on her face.
"Another day, another adventure!" she exclaimed.
I could always count on Nora to make me smile and at times she'd often remind me of my sisters, always so happy and hyperactive that it took several layers of food to calm her down.
"So, what's on the agenda today?" asked Ruby, smiling at me with her shining silver eyes.
"Besides having to deal with a disembodied voice constantly talking?" I asked myself before choosing to answer her, "Walking."
"I get the distinct impression, you're annoyed with me." said Prof. Ozpin.
"No, no, I enjoy your excruciatingly long stories, Professor Ozpin." I thought-talked.
"Hmm, very well, seeing how you enjoy my stories so much then let's continue." said Prof. Ozpin and I swear I could hear the trolling smirk he wore like a freakin' badge of honor!
It wasn't until I heard a sigh beside me that I turned to look at Ruby, who was looking a little down.
"Haven is a lot farther away than I thought." said Ruby, causing Ren to turn to look at her.
"Ruby? How long did you think this journey was going to take?" he asked, Ruby's cheeks puffing out from embarrassment.
"I don't know! I grew up in a small area; I've never been this far away from home!" shouted the little reaper, her cheeks reddening.
"Right, but...how long?" I asked, almost afraid of the answer.
"Maybe, like, uh...two weeks?" she answered though phrasing it like a question.
Two weeks?
Two? Weeks?
TWO FUCKING WEEKS?!
"What?!" I shouted, glaring at her, causing her to turn away to avoid my glare.
"Okay, fine! Three or something! Look, whatever...Hey, what's that?" asked Ruby looking up ahead when Nora decided to jump onto a fallen post of a fence to see ahead.
They were buildings and walls.
A village? But that's impossible, we shouldn't be seeing another village in at most a few days.
"That's...strange. I didn't think we'd be hitting another village for a few days." I said, relaying my thoughts with the others.
"Are those buildings...damaged?" asked Nora.
Damaged buildings...Grimm...Survivors.
"We should search for survivors!" I commanded, dropping the maps and running full-tilt sprint into the village, the others following close by as we searched through the village.
There had to be someone...anyone.
"Mr. Arc, please, remain calm." said Prof. Ozpin.
"I can't Ozpin, what if there's a survivor? I have to find them." I said back.
"And if there are, there's no doubt in my mind that you will find them but you must be levelheaded." said Prof. Ozpin, his words calming me down a bit as I continued to search through the rubble.
"Anything?" asked Ruby.
"Nothing over here!" shouted back Nora.
"No on over here, either!" I shouted out, not sure if I should feel relieved or distraught.
"It's almost like...the town was abandoned." said Ren.
Well...abandoned doesn't exactly mean "killed" so at least that could give me some shred of hope.
"Hey, I think I found something!" shouted Nora, getting our attention as we ran over to where she was, standing in front of the town sign, which was being consumed by moss and ivy, when Nora moved the ivy to side.
"Oniyuri? Never heard of it." said Nora.
"Me neither." I said, even going through my memories of visiting Anima with my family just to make sure. "Ozpin? Do you know what Oniyuri is...or was?"" I asked.
"Afraid not, Mr. Arc. Much of my focus was spent on Vale and Beacon. The happenings in other kingdoms was not a priority." said Prof. Ozpin.
"I have." said Ren, his words causing us all to look at him. "You might think of it as Anima's Mountain Glenn, had it never been completed. Years ago, the richest members of Mistral were unhappy with how the kingdowm was being run. Frustrated with the council, they pooled their resources together to build their own city, with their own laws. They hoped that one day, it could maybe even become it's own kingdom. Many thought it would be the future...I know my parents did." he finished, walking away from us, kneeling down to wipe some dirt of a stone wall.
"What happened?" asked Ruby and as she asked that the dirt on the wall finally came free to reveal claw marks.
"What always happens." said Ren.
And then it became so clear...the destroyed village...the lack of survivors...the claw marks.
"The Grimm." I said aloud.
"Not just any, one." said Ren, tightening his fists.
Both Ruby and I turned to look at Nora in confusion but her concerned gaze never turned away from where Ren was when Ruby turned back to look at Ren.
"One?" she asked when several small black birds began to fly overhead.
It was time to leave.
"Come on. Let's just get through here. This place gives me the creeps." I said, grabbing my pack and walking through the village towards the exit, followed by Nora, then Ren, and finally, Ruby.
But halfway through was when I felt a pain in my head.
"Ozpin! What's going on?" I asked.
"Mr. Arc, prepare yourself for battle!" he commanded as I unsheathed my sword and shield, getting back into my stance just as a strange man in an overcoat leaped over a wall, releasing his weapons and charging towards Ruby, laughing the whole way through.
Luckily, she was able to hold him off in time for Ren to intervene with his dual pistols clashing with the man's claw blades before attempting to both kick and shoot only for the man to dodge at the last second.
The two of them went on to exchange several more attacks and parries until the man decided to kick Ren several feet away.
The strange man then turned to go after Ruby again, who rushed at her attacker with her scythe. The man used his blades to block her own attack before kicking her backwards. Only for Ruby to remain upright as they clashed again. Unfortunately, one of the attacks managed to land on Ruby's right arm, causing her to cry out in pain and him to laugh. But the little red reaper doesn't break her stride however and leaps back to take another swing at him.
The man dodges and using his newfound momentum was able to land a moving blow against Ruby, his attack causing her Aura to shimmer.
Reacting quickly, I stepped in just as the man climbed onto my shield and gin at me, creeping me out but giving Nora an opening to swing her hammer. Only for the man to leap off my shield to Nora's hammer and through the top story of a nearby building, not falling due to his leg strength.
Whoever or whatever this guy was, there was no way we were making out this without a scratch.
"We're not looking for a fight!" I shouted.
"Who are you?" asked Ren.
In response, the man began to lean forward and dropped from the tower, showing off his agility before landing on his feet.
"Who I am matters not to you. Or you. Or..Well, you do interest me." said the man, pointing at Ren, then Nora, and then me and honestly I was getting all sorts of "stranger danger" from this guy.
"No, I only matter to you." said the man, finally pointing to Ruby and causing her tilt her head in confusion.
"Me?" she asked aloud and causing the man break down in laughter.
"You, you haven't the slightest clue, do you? Oh, how exciting this must be." said the man.
"What do you want?" asked Ruby, her grip tightening on Crescent Rose.
"Oh, the rose has thorns! My little flower, I'm here to whisk you away with me!" shouted the man, acting overly dramatic.
"Well, what if she doesn't want to go with you?" asked Nora, already knowing the answer.
"Well, I'll take her." the man spoke.
"Mr. Arc, you must keep this man away from Ms. Rose." commanded Ozpin.
"What? Why? Who is this guy, Ozpin? What the hell is going on?" I demanded answers.
"I will explain at a better time but for now, you must protect Ms. Rose." he commanded again.
"Like you even need to ask." I said, hefting my shield and standing in between them. "We're not going to let you do that."
The man then closed his eyes, inhaling through his teeth, holding it for a moment before exhaling with his eyes slowly opening and growling, happily, a single word with a dark, murderous, grin.
"Good." said the man, suddenly disappearing from view and reappearing behind me.
If not thanks to Ozpin's new training, I would've been beheaded in one strike but luckily was able raise my shield in time for Ren to ricochet one of his shots off of my shield and into the man.
But the man was somehow able to cover his eyes at the last moment and was instead able to cartwheel onto my shield and began to use his claw blades to spin in the air against it. When Ruby stepped in to face the man only to get kicked to the side.
Using this moment, I swiftly swing my sword at the guy but hit nothing as the man had already dodged away before I felt a sharp pain in my side and sending me sprawling to the ground and leaving Nora and Ruby left standing.
The man then began to run towards Nora but thanks to Ruby's maverick-nature the red-hooded girl reloaded her weapon with some Dust and shoots it at the man, who easily senses it and dodged it, allowing the bullet to hit Nora, dropping her hammer in the process.
The idea worked perfectly as the man mistook it for an error on Ruby's part.
"Well, if that isn't ironic." said the man, looking smug.
Quickly the smug look was wiped off his face as Nora appeared behind him, raising her hammer over his right shoulder and bringing it down to meet him. The blast from it causing the rest of us to cover our eyes for protection.
But our moment of victory was short-lived as the dust cleared to reveal the man in a crouching position, using his now unveiled scorpion tail to block Magnhild. The man's laughter became haunting as he giggled and curled his fingers at Nora.
"Surprise." said the man, kicking Nora away and leaping backward onto a nearby roof.
"He's...a Faunus." said Ren.
"What is this about? The White Fang? Roman Torchwick?" asked Ruby.
"Plastic soldiers and pawns. My heart and body belong only to our goddess." said the mna, raising his arms to the sky.
"Cinder..." growled Ruby only for the man to laugh aloud.
"Hmph, only in her wildest dreams." said the man.
"Salem...You're working for Salem, aren't you?" I asked, the man's look changing from mirth to genuine surprise and the others to look at me in confusion.
"Well, now, color me impressed, little knight." said the man, leaping back onto the ground.
"Salem?" asked Ren, looking at me.
"Salem is our goddess, our queen, our savior! She will restore this world to it's rightful owners." shouted the man. "But first, we must snip this little rose." the man spoke, launching himself at Ruby, using his tail to smack her weapon down but her grip held it tight as the two began to engage in combat until he kicked her backward and went after Ren and I.
Nora, Ren, and I are swiftly kicked away when the man leaped away from us and towards Ruby, attacking her in several areas and causing her Aura to shimmer.
That was when I felt something strange as a lone crow flies past before shifting into a fully grown man and blocking the man's strike from his tail, trapping it in his weapon.
"Mr. Arc, allow me to introduce my associate...Qrow Branwen." said Prof. Ozpin.
"This is your associate? Ruby's uncle?" I asked him.
"Yes, but for now remain focus." he commanded.
The man's eyes widened as he managed to pull his tail free from Qrow's weapon.
"As I live and breathe, Qrow Branwen. A true huntsman has entered the fray!" shouted the man, looking elated to be fighting a fully-trained huntsman.
The look on Qrow's face must've been louder than I thought as Ruby opened her mouth to speak. "I don't know, this guy's weird."
Qrow nodded at this and turned to face the laughing maniac. "Look, pal, I'm not sure who you are, but you need to leave my niece alone."
This instead caused the maniac to chortle in response.
"Why, friend, my name is Tyrian. And, I'm afraid that is not possible. My assignment from Her Grace was to retrieve this young girl. So, that is what I must do. One does not upset the Queen." said Tyrian.
"Salem?" asked Ruby, remembering what I had said before.
"Yes, like our little knight said, our queen is known as Salem and she is here to deliever us to our true purpose." said Tyrian, his voice was like nails on a chalkboard. "But, I think we've had enough talk now, don't you?" Tyrian asked, taking a crouching position.
"Took the words right out of-" started Qrow, before getting cut off as Tyrian began to rush at him, using his automatic receiver in his vambraces to attack Qrow.
Both Nora and Ren rush to intervene only to be swiftly defeated by Tyrian but being protected by Qrow before the maniac could do any harm. The grown man turned to glare at them, "Don't come closer!" he shouted, pushing Tyrian away.
Ruby, seeing this as her opportunity to help, leaps onto a nearby building and takes aim at Tyrian. Unfortunately, the two of them are moving too fast for her to get a clear shot.
The fight continues onward until I felt a tug at the back of my mind.
"Mr. Arc, this battle will not end in our favor is either Qrow or Ms. Rose is injured." said Prof. Ozpin.
"Then what do we do? Because I don't know if you've noticed but I'm no match for this guy." I argued back.
"True, but provided you obtained the knowledge and skill of someone with experience then we might have a chance." said Prof. Ozpin.
"What do I need to do?" I asked him.
Hell, I was willing to do just about anything if it kept Ruby safe.
"You must relinquish control over to me, Mr. Arc." said Prof. Ozpin.
"How do I do that?" I asked.
"Simply will it and it will be done." said Prof. Ozpin.
Cryptic bastard.
But nevertheless, I closed my eyes focusing on only Prof. Ozpin and slowly, but surely, I felt myself being pulled away and felt the presence of Prof. Ozpin take my place.
It felt as if we were switching seats in front of television screen.
And when I...er, we opened our eyes, we felt...stronger, faster, better than ever before.
And then we took off, with a speed we'd never thought we could accomplish, towards the ongoing battle.
Swiftly, we took out our sword and with a skill we'd never possessed was able to disable Tyrian from Qrow's grip just before his tail met his side.
Ruby, reacting to this was able to slice Tyrian's tail clean off, spurting purple liquid to the ground. The Faunus reeling back in pain as he whirls around to face us.
"You...you..." stuttered the man.
"What's the matter Tyrie? Huntress got your tongue too?" asked Qrow, smirking at him.
Tyrian eyes narrowed into a glare, focusing on us as he attempted to move forward but found himself off-balance just as Ren and Nora joined us.
The ensemble of all of us must've been too much as he took few awkward steps back, muttering to himself. "She'll forgive you." before running away into the distance.
Finally, the ordeal was over and both Ruby and Qrow were safe.
But I guess the switching roles thing was too much for my body as the next thing I knew I was back in control and fell to one knee in exhaustion.
"Jaune! Are you okay?" asked Ruby, looking concerned.
"I'll be fine, Ruby. Just a little exhausted." I said, hoping to calm her down.
"I'll say, what was up with that guy?" asked Nora.
"And who's Salem?" asked Ren.
"And how did you do all those amazing moves?" finally asked Ruby.
"I think I can answer that." said Qrow, getting our attention before kneeling down to me and placing a handle in my hand, a smirk on his face.
"It's nice to see you again, Oz." said Qrow, the other's eyes widening in confusion.
"Jaune? What's he talking about?" asked Ruby.
Seeing no other way out of this, I sighed opening my eyes to look at them.
"There's something I need to tell you all."
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Greetings everyone,
The new updates will be as such for "The Knight & The Wizard".
Chapter Three Due - March 4th.
Other than that, nothing new to add.
Till next time!