Greetings everyone!
So, unfortunate news, if you've already Followed and Favorited my other story "Phony Talks" then you've already been made aware that recently my laptop decided it didn't love me anymore and decided to randomly off itself. In response to this incident, I've already prepared several chapters for my other stories ahead of schedule in case I am unable to get the laptop fixed. Worst case scenario, I need to get a new laptop and push back the release dates on my updates. But, hopefully it doesn't come to that.
The only reason, I'm even able to type these stories up and update them is because a friend of mine is letting me borrow their computer. So everyone make sure to say thanks to my friend because if it wasn't for them, I'd never be able to finish up my work ahead of schedule.
As such, I've decided to let you guys decide on how I should go about this. Should I...
A. Release ALL completed chapters ahead of their scheduled release dates. Keep in mind that this would mean that you guys may have to wait until May 7th to get back on normal schedule.
Or.
B. Release the completed chapters on their scheduled release dates in order to avoid long wait periods and schedule confusions via other outlets; ie. Smart Phone, Library Computer, & Friends'/Family's personal computers.
Once you've decided, let me know in either a PM or a review for this story.
Oh, and don't forget to check the bottom for additional information.
Make sure to Favorite, Follow, and leave a Review
Next Scheduled Releases:
April 29th - "Gun X RWBY - Ch. 02" and "The Master Huntsman - Ch. 15"
Other than that, nothing new to add.
Till next time!
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Chapter Eight
It was time.
After several weeks of planning and training till even our own Aura was exhausted, we were finally ready for Salem's assault on Haven Academy, which would begin in exactly three days time.
Or so we thought.
At exactly 8:45 PM, we were called in by the Lion of Haven, Professor Leonardo Lionheart. But the underlying tone of his voice sounded strange, almost guilty. Reluctantly and at the behest of both Qrow and Ozpin, we gathered our equipment and readied ourselves for any surprise that might await us. Call it paranoia, call it assumption, hell, call it a goddamn guess, but I knew, we knew, that this surprise meeting with Professor Lionheart was going to be anything but peaceful.
Sighing, I tightened my grip on the handle of my sword. Ozpin's cane being kept hidden behind me and locked on the waist hem of my jeans. My instincts screaming at me as I sensed several strange Auras using Ozpin's inherent knowledge over Aura.
Even if I held a grudge for the wizard, I had to admit that without him and his knowledge, I'd be little more than a gnat, buzzing around and annoying everyone and everything and just generally being a nuisance to all. But with Ozpin's skills and techniques, I was at least on par with the others in terms of combative abilities. Heck, I'd even go so far as to say I've even managed to beat Yang in a sparring match. Granted, it WAS a sparring match and she didn't use her Semblance, saying she didn't want to have to rely on it. But I still count it.
Nonetheless, I was finally on the same level as my friends, who've been training since childhood to become heroes.
And now it was time to put my money where my mouth was.
My blue eyes glanced up at the broken full moon that illuminated the velvet night sky above the academy before placing my view on the back of Qrow Branwen, who had become something of a mentor/guy I want to punch half the times, leading us towards the main building of Haven.
We pushed open the doors of the building and walked out onto the main atrium, where we were greeted by the sight of Leonardo, standing atop of the terrace at the top of the stairs and below it was the statue of beautiful marbled woman.
Leonardo's eyes widened at the sight of us, no doubt seeing the new additions to the group, before calming himself. "Why, hello. Thank you all for... coming." he said nervously. "There... seems to be more of you than last time." said Leonardo, releasing a nervous chuckle.
Glancing over at Qrow, I noticed how his shoulders seemed to tense up but managed to relax himself to appear believable. "Eh, you know what they say, "The more, the merrier." So, what's going on with the council?" asked Qrow.
I watched as the nervous eyes of Leonardo roamed over each of our weapons and armor, shaking with each glance.
"Why... did you bring your weapons?" he asked, confusing not only himself but Qrow as well.
"What? Leo, we're Huntsmen. You feeling okay?" asked Qrow, prodding the already nervous Leonardo.
"Of course! Of course, apologies. Just haven't had my evening coffee." said Leonardo.
But to the rest of us, we knew he was lying through his fangs. Lionheart was nervous, shaking, and his eyes seemed to glance around at his surroundings.
"Look, it's nice to see you, but we've got work to do. Are we getting support from the council or not?" asked Qrow, growing more and more irritated over Leonardo's nervousness.
The rest of us, glanced around our surroundings, looking into the rafters and corners of the room for any strange sightings. It wasn't until my eyes landed upon a black bird perched on a balcony railing that I felt my instincts go haywire and judging by Yang's own widened eyes at the sight of the black bird, she, too, felt something strange in the air.
"Mom?" asked Yang, gaining everyone's attention as they all turned their eyes toward the black bird with Qrow's own eyes widening in shock before unsheathing his weapon and firing at the bird just as it flies away and behind Leonardo, transforming into the mysterious raven-haired Huntress, Raven Branwen, sister of Qrow and mother of Yang.
Our eyes widened at the sight of her, her carmine-red armor, her nevermore-inspired mask, and her weapon all shouted out intimidation.
"Raven..." muttered Ruby, clenching her fists together while Nora looked on in surprise and amazement.
"They... They really can turn into birds." the hammer-wielder muttered.
We watched as the bandit Huntress, removed the nevermore mask from her face, revealing a familiar face. Raven was the spitting image of her daughter, Yang. But while Yang's eyes were red when she was angry, Raven's eyes were drowned in a see of bloodshed and horror. But here, she seemed almost annoyed at her brother, Qrow.
"If you're going to shoot me, shoot me. That was insulting." said Raven.
"What are you doing here?!" shouted Qrow, his grip on his weapon tightening at the sight of her.
At his words, Raven seemed to smirk, almost tauntingly at him. "I could ask you the same thing. You've been scheming, little brother. Planning to attack your own sister." said Raven, her smirk still present as she walked down the steps towards us. A frantic Qrow then turned his gaze on the shaking form of Leonardo.
"Leo... What have you done?!" he shouted at him, a sens of betrayal once again descending upon us as another person, we had thought to be our ally in this endeavor is revealed to be yet another backstabber.
"I..." Leonardo attempted to say before being cut off by Raven.
"Leo did what any sane person would in his position - he looked at all the information he had in front of him, assessed the situation, and made a choice. And it seems you all have too." said Raven, her red eyes wandering over each of us but lingering on Yang while Qrow only continued to grow more and more angry at his supposed family.
"You have the Spring Maiden." he growled angrily while Raven smirked victoriously.
"I do." she replied.
And Qrow in a last ditch effort to turn the sister he once knew back onto the right path reached out to her.
"Then hand her over and let's work together! We can beat Salem!" he shouted.
But a shake from Raven gave him his reply.
"All that time spent spying for Ozpin and you still have no idea what you're dealing with. There IS no beating Salem!" she shouted back, angrily.
And for a moment, I almost agreed with her. Despite, Ozpin's words and glimpses of hope, they were all soon dashed away by the harshness of reality. What was the point in trying to defeat something that has never been defeated? What was the point in continuing to fight if at the end of the day, we lose more than we had?
But once again, the heroic, innocent voice of Ruby dragged me from that sea of black and brought me to the light.
"You're wrong. We've done things that most people would call impossible, and I know the only reason we were able to do it is because we didn't do it alone! We had people to teach us, people to help us, we had each other. Work with us. At least I know we'll have a better chance if we try together. Please." Ruby pleaded, her silver eyes shining brightly with hope despite the situation, holding out her hand to Raven.
But instead, the heavy hand of reality came crashing down on our hope as the red eyes of Raven glared at the pale white hand of Ruby.
"You sound just like your mother." said Raven, suddenly drawing her weapon and slicing the air behind her, cutting a hole into space and time and creating a portal when a massive fireball escapes from the portal and hits Ruby in her chest, the force sending her flying back several feet.
A look of shock donned on our faces but none more so than Yang as she quickly rushed over to her baby sister.
"Ruby!" she shouted in worry, rushing to her sister's aid while the rest of us watched as another familiar face exited the portal with three others in tow. The sight of her red dress and ash-like hair filling me with absolute rage.
"Cinder..." I muttered, glaring at the woman who ended the greatest year of my life and took my love away from me.
The annoying smirk of Mercury only fueled the fire that burned within each of us.
"C'mon guys, is that any way to greet your old friends?" he asked jokingly, smirking that asshole smirk the entire time.
The sound of Yang's growl being a catalyst for our rage as she, too, glared at the smug asshole, Mercury.
Only Qrow remained as the voice of caution.
"Everybody, stay calm." said Qrow but the rest of us only grown more angry with each passing minute.
But suddenly a strange feeling in the back of my mind sent my instincts wild again. Looking over my shoulder, I see the hazel eyes of a massive muscular man walk through the double doors of Haven.
"Oh no..." said Ozpin, at the sight of the man as several memories involving the stranger filled my head.
I knew this stranger. He was from Ozpin's past. His name was Hazel Rainart, brother of Gretchen Rainart. She died because of me... Ozpin. And judging by Hazel's look, I could only guess that this surprise meeting wasn't to make up for lost time.
"The White Fang is prepping demolition and securing the school grounds. No one's getting in, and no one's getting out." said Hazel, simultaneously answering my question and causing my confusion.
The White Fang were here. The Attack on Haven wasn't supposed to begin until the end of the week. Salem must've rallied her forces in her haste to take over Haven Academy.
"This was all just a trap?" asked Weiss, realizing the predicament of our current situation.
"It appears so..." muttered Ren.
"Raven, tell me... How long have you been with them?" asked Qrow but instead getting his answer from the mouth of Cinder Fall, who spoke with a smug and mocking tone.
"Aww, don't take it personally, little bird. Your sister was a recent addition. The lion on the other hand... entrance into the Vytal Festival was a real treat. Leonardo's been sending Salem all sorts of information for a very, VERY long time. Isn't that right, professor?" asked Cinder, smirking at the guilty eyes of Leonardo, who looked away in shame.
"Stop it..." he pathetically pleaded and fueling Qrow's already growing anger.
"It was you! You sit on the Mistral Council. You had information on every Huntsman and Huntress in the Kingdom, and you gave it all to her?!" shouted Qrow.
"I-" the cowardly lion attempted to make an excuse but was cut off by a pissed-off Qrow.
"I couldn't find any of them, because you let her kill them!" Qrow shouted, his words cutting like a knife into the already weakened, guilty heart of Leonardo while a feeling of guilt and betrayal filled my heart.
How could Leo betray us?
"Aw now, don't beat yourself up about it, Lionheart. I'm sure Tyrian and Hazel would've found them on their own eventually." said a mocking Cinder.
And that was the straw that finally broke the camel's back. I had had enough of her bullshit, her lies, her utter disregard for the pain she'd put us through! I was done being her whipping boy and I was done being that damsel in distress as a slowly felt the power of Ozpin's strength course through me.
"Mr. Arc, please, you must remain calm." Ozpin pleaded but I ignored his words as I continued to glare into the fiery eyes of Cinder.
"What is wrong with you?" I spoke through gritted teeth. "How can you be so broken inside... to take so many lives, and then come here and rub it in our faces like it's something to be proud of?!" I released my anger, the power of Ozpin's Aura filling my body with strength while the others watched me with sad eyes. "ALL WITH THAT DAMN SMILE ON YOUR FACE!" I shouted, releasing a pulse of Ozpin's Aura, the energy causing the very building around us to shake as everyone watched me with widened eyes.
"Everybody, stay calm! Spellsword, I know you're pissed off and you have every right to be but this isn't the time or the place!" shouted Qrow but much like Ozpin's words, his, too, fell on deaf ears as I continued to glare at the soulless eyes of Cinder.
"I'm going to make you pay for what you did! Do you hear me?!" I shouted at her, releasing another pulse of energy from my body.
"Mr. Arc! Please, if you do not stop this then you could-" said Ozpin just before I cut him off with another shout to the target of my rage.
"Well?! SAY SOMETHING!" I shouted, releasing one final pulse of energy and causing the massive glass chandelier to fall and crash onto the marbled floor behind us. My blue eyes glaring into Cinder's yellow but it was her next words that broke any semblance of rationality from me.
"Who are you again?" she asked, looking genuinely confused to hear me speak as if I knew her.
In anger, I reached for my sword and use it's newly added modification to transform it into it's two-handler form, using my aura to enhance my leg muscles and launch myself for speed ahead towards Cinder, swinging my sword down to meet her summoned weapon, an obsidian scimitar. But through the combined power of both mine and Ozpin's aura, as well as combined strength, were able to completely shatter Cinder's weapon and causing her eye to widen in shock just before I manage to grab her hand and toss her to the far right and slamming her into the wall, cracking it as the others watch in shock.
In retaliation for my surprise attack, an angry Emerald released her dual revolver sickles to attack me but found herself blocking sniper shots courtesy of Ruby.
"You're not getting near him." said Ruby and another surprise attack from Yang on Mercury further separates our group.
"Hey there, Merc. I'm thinking it's time you and me have a rematch. I've been meaning for a little payback." growled Yang, cocking her shotgun gauntlets and propelling herself forward at him, starting their rematch.
"Vernal, take out the heiress. Don't bother wasting your power, she's not worth it." said Raven to her companion, Vernal just as Qrow appeared, locking his blade with her own.
"Running away was one thing, Raven, but this... you've crossed the line!" shouted Qrow, glaring into the red eyes of his sister.
"Sorry, brother. Sometimes family disappoints you like that." said Raven, glaring back at her brother.
"We're not family anymore." said Qrow, pushing his blade further against Raven's, who managed to push back against him.
"Were we ever?" she asked, mockingly.
"I thought so, but I guess I was wrong!" he shouted as the two began their fight while Weiss was kept busy trying to block Vernal's attacks.
"Let's see what the Schnee name really means." mocked Vernal while Weiss glared on.
"I'm more than a name." said Weiss, glaring at her opponent and readying her weapon but a smug smirk from Vernal only caused Weiss to summon a glyph beneath her, projecting her forward into Vernal's radius to begin their fight.
Off on the terrace stood a frightened and cowering Leonardo, who watched the fight from above, feeling more and more guilty and ashamed as he watched his old allies fight for their lives. Meanwhile, the man named Hazel, watched with crossed arms as both Nora and Ren readied their weapons, prepared to fight against the hulking man. But despite his massive size, Hazel didn't appear to have any desire to fight with the others.
"I do not wish to fight either of you." said Hazel.
"Nor I you." replied Ren but keeping his twin pistols ready for a right.
"But we will if you're with her!" shouted Nora, hefting her massive warhammer for the fight as Hazel released a tired sigh, cracking his neck and knuckles.
"Very well, then." said Hazel as he slowly began to walk towards the two with an intimidating aura.
And out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a retreating form of Leonardo and reacting quickly threw my sword at him, catching the cloth of his suit and trapping him against the wall, my blue eyes burning with a powerful fire. "You're not going anywhere Leo!" I shouted at him as Cinder, shakily loosened herself from her place in the wall.
Leonardo struggled to get himself loose from my impaled sword. "Young man, I don't know who you are or what you're hoping to accomplish by doing this, but for both your sake as well as your friends, please escape from here. Now, before it is too late." pleaded Leonardo while I shook my head in disappointment. Once free from his entrapment, a terrified Leonardo, readies his own weapon, creating a flaming rock using dust and firing it at me. But due to my own aura it explodes and I remain unscathed by the attack. Leonardo's eyes widen in shock as I draw Ozpin's cane and causing both Leonardo's and Cinder's eyes to widen in shock.
"O-Ozpin?" asked Leonardo with widened eyes while Cinder glared at the sight of me.
"It can't be possible. I killed you!" she shouted.
"Sorry to disappoint you both but I'm not quite Ozpin... Though I can honestly say he's not at all pleased to see you again." I said, glaring at the two of them as Leonardo felt his legs shake from fear.
"This can't be... I knew you would be back, but... you made it here! You found Qrow! How?" asked Leonardo.
"How he got here matters not, Leo! All that matters is his death." glared Cinder, her hand being set ablaze with fire.
"Wait, Cinder... Ozpin couldn't possibly have had this form for long. You! Boy! You're... not REALLY Ozpin right now. You haven't been... This is perfect! If I deliver you to Salem, she'll have to be pleased with me, and I can finally be free of all of this! Cinder! We must capture this boy alive, at any cost!" exclaimed a determined Leonardo as he joined the side of Cinder, both preparing themselves for another fight.
"Ozpin, are you ready?" I asked the disembodied voice in my head as our souls merged once more and we leap over to pull our sword from the wall before facing our two opponents and launching ourselves at the two of them, dual wielding our sword and cane to block and attack them.
Meanwhile, the fight between Weiss and Vernal continues own as Weiss leaps on her glyphs, dodging Vernal's attacks before ending up on the defensive, creating a large ice wall between the two of them as she attempts to summon her familiar when suddenly a large energy beam obliterates the ice wall as well as her familiar and knocking Weiss back several feet while Vernal stands atop the destroyed ice wall with a smug look.
"Don't think I'm going to let you take the easy way out."
But while Weiss was having a hard time against Vernal, we were having an even harder time against both Leonardo and Cinder. It wasn't until we released another Aura pulse that we were able to catch our breath, feeling the exhaustion of our fusion weighing on us, something that Cinder took instant notice of and releases a chuckle from her mouth.
"I remember now, you're the dense one that can't tell when he's out of his league." said a snickering Cinder and fueling Jaune's anger towards her and causing us to grasp our head in pain.
"Remain calm. We must remain calm." we thought to ourselves. we needed to be synchronized at 100 percent or else our body would face the consequences. Struggling, we stand up once more and charge at Cinder, dodging another attack from Leonardo.
Elsewhere, the fight between Ruby and Emerald carries on with Emerald shooting her revolvers at Ruby, who using the twirling motion of her scythe to block the shots.
"why are you doing this?! Salem's-" says Ruby before being cut off by an angry Emerald.
"I don't care about Salem! But I owe Cinder EVERYTHING. You want to fight her that bad? Be my guest." says Emerald, glaring at Ruby as Ruby trips backward and accidentally fires a shot at Weiss, who's still attempting to block attacks from Vernal.
Weiss attempts to once again summon but another attack from Vernal prevents this from happening and manages to deplete Weiss's aura and causing Weiss to release a pained scream which grabs our attention but before we can do anything, a surprise attack from Leonardo pulls our attention away and lands it on Cinder, who is standing off to the side with a smug smile.
"Are you going to let her die too?" asked Cinder, smirking as the anger inside Jaune causes us to grasp our head in pain.
"Stop doing this, Miss Fall!" we shout at her, but only causing her to smirk as she ignites her scimitar with flames.
"If that's what you want..." says Cinder as she charges towards us, clashing with us but gaining the upper hand as another attack from Leonardo sends us sprawling back a few feet. Our fusion crushing our body beneath it's weighing effects as Cinder stands above us with a sinister grin when suddenly a bright light from Ruby's silver eyes engulfs the area around her, stopping Cinder's attack on us and forcefully ending our combined fusion. The light ending once Emerald knocks Ruby unconscious and Cinder is left clutching her arm in pain on her knees.
Seeing an opportunity and despite the immense pain my body was in, I grip the handle of my sword and swing it down upon her only for her to dodge it at the last minute but not before I manage to chip away at her mask. But the stress of my fusion with Ozpin trips me up as I land on the floor, breathing heavily from exhaustion until an enraged and powered-up Cinder places her heel on my chest, keeping me in place as she glares down at me with rage-filled eyes.
"Did you think you actually had a chance against me?! YOU?!" she shouts out, releasing her own pulse of aura. Glancing over to the sides I see my sword on my left and Ozpin's cane on my right. Cinder, after calming herself and deactivating her Maiden power, glares down at me, putting pressure on my chest with her heel. "You're just a failure with a death wish. You don't even know of the horrors you'll face due to Ozpin's actions!"
But I glare back into her eyes as I continue to struggle against her.
"If I die buying them time, then it's worth it. They're the ones that matter." I say, glaring at her and unaware of the danger I had just created due to my words as Cinder looks to my friends before smiling sinisterly at me.
"You think so?" she asks with an evil smile as Weiss gets knocked back by Vernal and conjures an obsidian spear in her hand.
My eyes widen at the sight before landing on Weiss and back to Cinder. My vision becoming blurred through tears.
"No... Please, anything. I'll do anything, just don't hurt her. Please!" I pleaded but the darkness in her eyes was my only answer to my plea as she launched the spear at Weiss, impaling her through the abdomen. A bloodied gasp escapes her mouth as the spear disintegrates and Weiss becomes motionless and slumps down onto the ground. The fighting around us being halted at the sight of Weiss, dead on the floor.
"Weiss... WEISS!" I shout, releasing a massive pulse of Aura that launches Cinder off of me and slamming into Leonardo, the both of them collapsing onto the floor as the others' fights are halted due to the overwhelming energy and unfortunately, catching the attention of Hazel, whose eyes widen at the sight of me using Ozpin's power.
"This power... It can't be... He's just a boy" muttered Hazel.
"That's not just a boy! It's Ozpin!" shouted Leonardo from his place on the ground. "He's already reincarnated!"
Hazel watches as I quickly rush over to Weiss's side before drifting over and spotting Ozpin's cane on the floor and moving back over to me.
"Ozpin?" said Hazel, the calm demeanor that he once had slowly crumbling away and being replaced with infuriated anger. "OZPIN!" Hazel shouts, grabbing my attention and causing me to look up from Weiss.
"Oh no... Mr. Arc, you must run away, now!" shouts Ozpin as he attempts to take control of my body.
The hulking mass known as Hazel slowly begins to stomp towards Weiss and I. His face engulfed with rage towards Ozpin.
"You thought you could hide from ME?!" he shouts, ripping his coat off, and grabbing two pairs of lightning Dust crystals from pouches on his legs. "You'll pay for what you did! You'll die over and over again!" he shouts, plunging the crystals into his shoulders, turning his blood vessels yellow and his arm muscles to bulge outward as lightning coats his forearms. His hazel eyes glowing yellow as he releases an intimidating roar and launches himself towards me only for a sudden appearance from Qrow to stop him, transforming his weapon into it's scythe form and engaging in combat.
Off to the side Leonardo, Vernal, Raven, and Cinder all approach the statue holding up the stairs as Leonardo reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a pocket watch before placing it in a small niche on the statue before the statue begins to lower below the floor. Yang, watching the event looks to Ren and I treating Weiss and Nora treating Ruby, unsure of what to do only for a shout from Nora to make up her mind.
"Stop them! We've got your team covered!" shouted Nora.
But just as Yang is about to stop the four villians, a surprise kick from Mercury sends her to the ground. The fight between Yang and Mercury is then interrupted by a surprise attack from Emerald.
"You wanna get to them? You're going to have to get through ALL of us." says Emerald, using her semblance and causing Yang to look around confused.
Meanwhile, I'm putting pressure on Weiss's wound, my hands being coated with her blood as Ren watches on.
"Ren, talk to me!" I shout at him, grabbing his attention as he checks Weiss's pulse before shaking his head in sorrow.
"This is bad, Jaune." says Ren.
My eyes widen as I continue putting pressure on Weiss's wound.
"No, no, no, no, not again! Not Weiss! C'mon, please!" I shout down at her lifeless body, tears streaming from my eyes and falling down onto her body.
"Mr. Arc, please... It's too late..." says Ozpin.
"No! I can save her! I have to!" I shouted back at him.
"I'm sorry, Jaune... But there are times where you can't save everyone, no matter how hard you try." says Ozpin, his memories becoming my own again as I see a smiling girl's face before it's replaced with a brown casket and causing me to grab my head in severe pain.
All the while Cinder, Raven, and Vernal have all taken their place on the mechanized platform, leaving only Leonardo left off. A heated glare from Cinder causes Leonardo to back away out of fear.
"Make sure they leave Ruby and Ozpin alive. This won't take long." says Cinder as the platform lowers beneath the school and Leonardo turns to watch the fighting.
"Jaune... Please, you can't save her." says Ozpin, once again trying to take control of my body in order to take me away from Weiss's side.
"No! I can help her! I know I can!" I shout back at him, not caring about Ren's ever-worrying eyes.
"Believe me, I wish that were true but death is not something you can prevent. It is mankind's fate to perish at the hands of Death." says Ozpin, his feelings of anger and sadness pouring over into my mind.
"Fuck death! I don't care if I end up dying or whatever else might happen as long as Weiss is alive!" I shout to the sky, as a white glow envelops my hands and Weiss's body. A few seconds go by when suddenly Weiss reacts with a deep gasp for air.
She was alive. Weiss was alive!
"I... I don't believe it..." says Ozpin, voicing out what was going through my own mind.
Off to the side, Ruby's eyes slowly open before widening in realization. "Weiss!" shouts Ruby as she rushed over to us and kneels down beside Weiss's side. "What happened? What's going on?!" she asks aloud as Ren checks her pulse once more, a bright smile on his face/
"I think she's going to be okay! She seems to be stabilizing." said Ren, smiling.
Ruby, seeing that Weiss was no longer in danger looks over to where her sister was fighting against both Emerald and Mercury and Qrow was facing off against Leonardo. Ruby then raises my hands up to see Weiss's closed wound, a smile growing on her face.
"Whatever you're doing, don't stop!" exclaimed Ruby before grabbing her weapon and rushing off to help her sister.
"Ren, Qrow is going to need some help with Lionheart and Hazel. I'll stay here and watch over them." commanded Nora as Ren grabs his twin pistols and rushes off.
Off to the distance, the fighting between Ruby and Yang versus Emerald and Mercury was still going on. While Yang was occupied with fighting Emerald, a swift kick from Mercury knocks Ruby's weapon from her grasp and a sarcastic smile crosses his face. "Uh oh, what're you gonna do now?" Mercury asks sarcastically, throwing a left cross only for Ruby to duck and headbutt his face the same way Ozpin taught her. The gray-haired boy stumbles back a bit, holding his nose in pain before glaring at Ruby, who picks up her weapon with a victorious smirk.
"Whatever it takes to shut you up." says Ruby.
Meanwhile, Nora continues to watch on as I pump more of my Aura into Weiss, hoping to accelerate her healing.
"You guys doing okay?" asks Nora.
"I... I think so. she's coming to. I just wish this would go faster." I say, feeling angry with myself only for hazel to speak up.
"How about you don't complain and just be thankful you unlocked your Semblance when you did." said Nora, growing annoyed with my attitude.
"My Semblance?" I ask, feeling confused as Nora placed a hand on my shoulder with a smile on her face.
"How else do you think you're healing her, dummy?" Nora jokingly asks.
But as I glance down at Weiss's still glowing body, I begin to notice that the longer I heal her the more and more my Aura is depleted as a result.
"No, I don't think I'm healing her. Our Aura heals our bodies. It feels... It feels more like I'm using my Aura to amplify hers!" I exclaim feeling amazed over my discovery over my new found Semblance. But while I was happy Nora became worrisome.
"Wait, aren't you worried about running out?" she asks, staring at the side of my head.
"Pyrrha once told me I've got a lot of it. I still believe her. And if it saves Weiss then it's worth it." I say pouring more of Aura into Weiss, to which her eyes open tirelessly and meet my own.
"Jaune? W-what happened?" asks Weiss as a tear drops from my eyes to which I wipe away and smile down at her.
"You took a heavy hit, you need to stay with me while the others fight." I command only to smile as she immediately frowns at my words.
"That's...annoying." said Weiss, sighing as she slowed her breathing while I just continue to smile at her.
"Heh, good to have you back, Weiss." I said, smiling down at her while Nora watches on until the sight of seeing Hazel use an electrically-enhanced punch to send Ren flying into a wall and causing him to scream out in pain garners her attention as her eyes widen to new levels.
"REN!" she shouts, reaching out to him but looks back at both Weiss and I, to which I look back at her with determined eyes.
"Go! I've got Weiss!" I shout to her to which she nods back before rushing off into the fight, directly towards Hazel.
The brave Valkyrie charges at the hulking monster called Hazel as she uses her Aura-enhanced legs to leap into the air, swinging her massive hammer overhead to slam into Hazel only for him to grab her weapon and slams her into the ground before grabbing her head and electrocuting her with his lightning Dust-enhanced arms, causing her to scream out in pain while glaring into my eyes.
"Hiding behind the face of a child? A monster like you must be stopped!" shouted Hazel, further sending shockwaves of electricity into Nora as her painful screams rang out. "How many more children must die for you?!" he shouts out when suddenly Nora grabs onto Hazel's wrist, causing him to glance down at her. "Huh?"
And Nora, thanks to Hazel inadvertently feeding Nora's strength due to her Semblance, stands up and flips the massive hulking man over her shoulder before holding up her warhammer defensively and Qrow, after landing beside her relays some very important information.
"Oz told me about this guy, Hazel Rainart, his Semblance can block out pain. Think of it like injecting a shit ton of adrenaline. It's how he can take injecting so much Dust into his body." said Qrow, hefting his scythe while Nora glared at the charging Hazel.
"I don't need him to hurt... I just need him to GO DOWN!" shouted Nora, swinging her hammer directly into Hazel's chest, the force of her swing launching him through the wall and subsequently outside onto Haven's quad while the rest of us watched in amazement.
"It's moments like this that cause me to become fearful of the next generation." said Ozpin, voicing out his opinion after witnessing a teenage girl smack a hulking monster through a stone wall.
"Least she's on our side." I said back to him before continuing my focus on Weiss, all the while the sounds of Mistral airships and searchlights shine through the windows to the outside and Weiss slowly begins to move herself to a sitting position.
"What's happening?" asked Weiss, looking at the searchlights and siren noises.
"I'm not sure. How are you feeling?" I asked her as I continued pouring my Aura into her body, furthering her accelerated healing.
"Better." said Weiss, raising her hand as a summoning glyph appeared on her palm and a smirk grew on her face. "MUCH better. Keep it up." she said to me as I smirked back at her and poured more of myself into her.
After a few more minutes, she then gracefully stands herself up and leaps into the middle of the room, plunging her sword into the ground as a massive summoning glyph appeared before her as a massive Queen Lancer crawled from the glyph before fluttering above Weiss and with a flick of her finger the Queen Lancer then launched it's glowing stinger outside, impaling Hazel and pulling him back inside. But before she could continue her fight the sight of a familiar black-haired Faunus caught her and her's team's attention. Their eyes widening at the sight of Blake, whose eyes widen at the sight of them before lingering on Yang.
"Yang?" asked Blake in disbelief as she looked into the eyes of her partner.
But thanks to a shout from Ruby, as she pointed to the now clear entrance to the vault, Yang then took off towards the entrance as both emerald and Mercury attempted to stop her with Emerald falling to the ground and Mercury managing to grab hold of yang's prosthetic arm. Yang's eyes briefly turning red before turning back to their normal lilac and detaching her arm, causing Mercury to lose his balance and Yang the opportunity to jump into the hole leading to the vault. When both Mercury and Emerald attempted to give chase, their path is then blocked by a sudden ice wall courtesy of Weiss, who was being backed by her Queen Lancer.
But now it was my turn to join in the fight as I rushed to grab my sword and Ozpin's cane and join my teammates as they continued to block shots from both Mercury and Emerald while Weiss and her Queen Lancer dodge fireballs from Hazel and Leonardo. My eyes look over to see my teammates exhausted from the continuous fighting.
"You guys okay?" I ask them, getting a cough from Ren and a painful groan from Nora.
"Surviving..." replied Ren.
"I don't know how that big guy is still standing. He recharges his Aura faster than I've ever seen!" exclaimed Nora as Qrow suddenly appears having transformed from his bird form, grunting in pain.
"He's sheer willpower." said Qrow and that when I figured it out. Hazel's Semblance worked exactly like a pain-numbing drug. While it worked and granted increased strength there was always a limit to how much a person could take before the effects started working against them.
"Then we'll just need to get him to his limit!" I shout, launching myself at Mercury and using Ozpin's muscle memory to fight back against his kicks while the others kept Emerald busy.
Suddenly, the Queen Lancer launches several projectiles at Leonardo, who managed to defend himself using his weapon before retaliating with a flame torrent, knocking the Queen Lancer away and giving Hazel the opportunity to launch a combined fire and lightning attack, obliterating the summon and charging towards Weiss. That is until a surprise attack from Blake sends Hazel sprawling to the ground before jumping away and landing next to Weiss and Ruby.
"Are you hurt?" asked Blake, her amber eyes filled with worry for her teammate and catching Weiss by surprise.
"N-No! I just remembered you being more of the quiet one." said Weiss as Hazel, Emerald, and Mercury begin to rush towards us.
"Not today." said Blake, drawing her weapon.
"Alright. Well, what's the plan, Ruby?" asked Weiss, holding her weapon up defensively when out of the corner a molten rock is fired at Ruby but reacting quickly I managed to block the attack from Leonardo and giving Ruby a clear shot as Ruby fires at the cowardly lion, causing him run away in fear, holding his injured shoulder.
Suddenly, the the fearsome roar of Hazel echoed through the building as Ruby smirked, her silver eyes shining with mischievous.
"Checkmate!" shouted Ruby, as she followed closely behind Weiss and Blake as they charged toward Hazel.
All the while, I quickly turn back to my teammates, my own eyes shining with determination. "I'm going after Lionheart! Cover me!" I shout out watching as Nora rained down grenades on Emerald and Mercury while I raced past and after Leonardo. After taking several turns through the school building, I managed to finally catch up to the cowardly lion as he made a break into his office. But before I could get close a strange sight kept me back. It looked like a jellyfish with spiked tentacles.
"A Seer." said Ozpin.
"What's a Seer?" I ask, watching a the strange Grimm began clicking and floated into the office of Leonardo.
"A Seer is a specialized Grimm that allows Salem to communicate with her followers outside of her domain." Ozpin explained.
"Okay, then what is it doing here?" I ask again before deciding to answer my own question as I slowly began to sneak up to the doorway of Leonardo's office before hearing the nervous and terrified voice of Leonardo.
"Uh, your grace!" he exclaimed nervously. "I was just looking for something." said Leonardo, no doubt speaking to Salem through the Seer.
"Leonardo, do you have something you wish to tell me?" asked Salem.
A stressful silence began to fill the space between them before Leonardo was finally able to say his excuse.
"It was Cinder! She altered the plan! Huntsmen showed up here! Qrow! Several students, one with the Silver Eyes and the newest reincarnation of Ozpin! The White Fang attack, it was stopped!" shouted Leonard, stammering for a proper excuse. "I don't know that they'll be able to recover the Relic... Your grace, I can still be of assistance! If I leave now, I... I can avoid the authorities and come find you, I'll do whatever it takes!" But his pleas fell upon the deaf ears of a Grimm and soon he was overcome with fear that it caused him to lash out, aiming his weapon at the Seer but was then stopped due to the Seer knocking the weapon from his arm and tangling it around Leonardo's ankle, tripping him and causing him to fall as Leonardo began to beg for his life. "Please, ma'am! I'll do anything! I can still be useful!" he pleaded but only more tentacles wrapped themselves around his body."Please! PLEEEAAASE!" he shouted out as a spiked tentacle lashed out, piercing his side, causing blood to seep from the wound. "Please... I don't want to die..." I begged.
But just as the Seer raising it's spiked tentacle to pierce Leonardo's body for the last time I rushed into the room, plunging the tip of my sword into the bulbous head of the Seer, stopping it's attack and causing it to loosen it's grip on Leonardo, who scrambled away from the Seer.
But I wasn't done with it yet, seeing as it was still broadcasting to wherever Salem was, I walked over to it's crumbled body and glared into it's eye.
"I'm guessing the person on the other side is Salem, right?" I ask, looking into the Seer's eye before a voice came through, albeit fuzzy.
"That is correct and just who might you be?" she asked.
"The names Jaune Arc, short, sweet, roles off the tongue and the ladies love it." I say back, feeling a little snarky at the moment.
"An Arc? Hmm, I have not met an Arc in centuries. So, am I correct in assuming that YOU are the latest host for Ozpin?" asked Salem.
"Well, I'm more a glorified taxi but yeah." I answer back for a clear a moment I hear the sound of a lighthearted chuckle escape from the Seer.
"It's amusing that even with all those memories, you still can't see the truth. Jaune, if I may, do you understand the consequences of becoming a host for Ozpin?" asked Salem and for a moment several additional memories race through my head and none of them Ozpin's, causing me to grasp my head in pain. "Hmm, I see... It shouldn't be much longer." said Salem.
"W-What's happening to me? What are these... er, memories?" I exclaim, clutching my head in pain as more and more memories flood my psyche and the voice of Ozpin becoming muddled in the background while the soft laugh of Salem remained prominent.
"I suppose, since you've caught my interest, I'll grant you the answers you seek. With each new life, Ozpin is placed within a host that shares his view of the world but what he doesn't reveal is that longer you remain his host the more control he obtains from you until eventually your being, memories and all, are no more and only Ozpin remains. It is the fate of those who become his host but there is a way to break the curse... All you must do is come to me, Jaune and I will free you from Ozpin's prison." said Salem, her voice ringing in my ears as I clutched my head in pain before a final image of Atlas and a golden lamp before falling to the ground in pain, the sound of several footsteps closing in as I stared into the eye of the Seer, hearing Salem's voice just before blackness overcame my vision. "Remember my words, Jaune. And take heed in this, even the greatest of men... Can fall from grace."
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And so ends the "finale" of "The Knight The Wizard" I hope you all enjoyed the story so far. And while I had been contemplating on whether or not to continue onward with an original storyline, I've decided against this in order to plan around what transpires in Volume 6, which might not be released until Fall of this year. In the meantime, "Don't Mess With An Arc", "Gun X RWBY", and "The Master Huntsman" will be available for reading for the proceeding time frame.