I'm pretty sure people can guess what's going to happen in this chapter considering how the last one ended. It was both fun and frustrating to write, however.
Just a warning, as the end of last chapter showed, this chapter and the next 1-3 are going to be darker than the canon events, especially this one.
Chapter 35: Battle of Beacon: Aurora's Last Flight
Beacon Academy, Dorm Rooftops, with Emerald and Mercury
Emerald covered her mouth as she watched the Aurora fire another missile barrage towards Vale, Bastion's weapons trying desperately to destroy the deadly munitions as they fired futilely at the Aurora, each blast coming short of the cruiser. "This is horrible…" she muttered as the warship fired its spinal laser at the floating fortress, the massive Dust barrier absorbing the blast.
"I know, it's beautiful," Mercury said with a grin as he watched large swathes of the city burn.
Emerald looked at him, a look of horror on her face. "How the hell can you say that? People are dying down there! Are you really just some heartless monster?"
Mercury looked at her, a smug grin on his face. "Hey, maybe you should get off that damn high horse of yours. After all, it was you that made all this possible, right?" Emerald opened her mouth to counter it before a mortified look crossed her face.
"O-oh god…" Emerald dropped down to her knees, retching as she emptied her stomach, Mercury laughing behind her. "W-what have I done? I never wanted to be part of anything like this…"
"Relax Emerald, just sit back and enjoy it. Our part's done, now we just have to wait for Cinder to do whatever the hell she needs to."
Beacon Academy, Northern Perimeter, with Winter
Winter glared at the White Fang as her squad moved forward, moving through the White Fang's ranks as the soldiers and Atlesian Knights slowly advanced behind her. "Keep pushing towards the CCT Tower! We need to clear a path!" she yelled out as she stabbed a White Fang member in the base of his neck, pulling the blade out as he dropped to the ground. She went to attack the nearest White Fang when a shot from behind her caused her to glance over her shoulder. She went wide-eyed as she saw the Knights opening fire on the soldiers before she growled, Aurelius' words ringing in her ears as the soldiers scrambled to react. "Obsessive discipline makes people predictable… Perhaps he's right," she thought as she reached a hand into one of her pockets, quickly pressing a button before small explosions rang out from inside the Knights, causing them to drop to the ground.
She spun around as she heard a cry behind her, only to see Aurelius looking at her with an amused expression, sword buried in the chest of a White Fang member moments away from cleaving her with an axe. "Did you really sabotage your own robots?" he asked, pulling the blade back out.
She glared at him, grip tightening on her blades. "I shouldn't have to justify my actions to you," she thought to herself. "After the CCT Tower was hacked I thought it would be wise to take the necessary precautions in case one of the control computers was hacked. I feel that my actions were warranted," she said coldly, blocking an attack from a blade before slashing across her attacker's chest
"I didn't say I had issue with it. In fact, I approve of the initiative." Winter looked at him in surprise. "I'm glad to see at least some of Atlas' military is able to think beyond their training. Perhaps there's hope for you after all, Schnee." She quickly looked away, scoffing.
"I don't need your approval, just focus on the task at hand!" Aurelius let out a sigh.
"So be it…" Aurelius took a deep breath before blinking down the path with a trail of rose petals behind him, cleaving through a bear faunus with a quick swing. He quickly ducked under a mace swing before removing his attacker's arm. Winter watched in surprise before she moved to help. Before she took more than a few steps, the ground shook. Everyone glanced toward Mountain Glenn as the peak shattered, a Grimm Dragon flying out with a roar, moving towards Beacon.
Aurelius let out a frustrated growl, eyes shining brightly. "We don't have time for this…" Winter watched as the Dragon let out a pained roar, writhing as it dissolved into a massive cloud of rose petals drifting down from the sky. Aurelius nodded in satisfaction, eyes returning to normal as Winter looked at him in dismay. "Now then, where were we…"
With Weiss, Yang, Blake, and Teams JNPR, CFVY, and SSSN
"Holy shit…" Yang said as she watched the giant Grimm disintegrate. "I wonder which of them was responsible for that…" Weiss charged forward, stabbing a White Fang member in the shoulder before he could cleave through the blonde.
"Yang! We don't have time for this!" she growled. The group watched a bullhead go down nearby, an Alpha Beowolf falling out of it and rampaging through the area outside the courtyard. "Yang, Blake, would you mind taking care of that please?" The duo nodded, running off after it. Yang glanced to the side as Pyrrha and Jaune went to follow Ozpin, frowning slightly.
The pair followed along behind the Grimm, watching as it climbed up a nearby building. They turned to glance into the window when they heard a scream before Blake whimpered slightly. "No…" she muttered, watching the red-haired man stab into the chest of an Atlesian soldier. He stopped and turned to face her, a cruel grin on his face.
"Well, hello darling," he said, stepping into the center of the building.
Yang looked at Blake in confusion. "Blake, who is this guy?"
Blake looked at her in fear. "It's my old partner from the White Fang… Adam." Yang looked at the man with wide eyes.
"As, so the filthy traitor remembers my name! And you even brought a human along too… I'm honestly not sure what's worse, her for being a human, or you for betraying your own kind," Adam said with a growl.
"I'm not betraying the faunus, Adam! The White Fang's way of doing things isn't the right way! We need to-" Adam cut Blake off with a laugh.
"Oh, I see how it is. You had a change of heart, didn't you? Do you really think there's any hope for humans and faunus to be equals? You're deluding yourself, Blake! This has been going on for centuries. It's not going to end until either we wipe out or enslave humanity, or they do the same to us!" Adam pointed his sword at Yang, causing the pair to prepare their weapons. "And since you're standing right here, blondie, I think I'll start with you!"
Vale Streets, with Adrienne
Adrienne cast an enraged glare up at the Aurora, gritting her teeth before she spun around to continue hunting down the White Fang. Most of the soldiers and Draconian forces had quickly realized the White Fang was making sure to only bombard areas none of their own forces were in, further enraging the Orange Rose. The sound of a scream caused her to run into an alleyway, stopping as she saw a pair of White Fang trying to drag a woman out into the street. "Look here, girlie, you can either come with us or we make sure you can't leave when this area gets hit. Make your choice."
Adrienne growled. "All you people are is a bunch of monsters!" she snarled, causing the two faunus to glance at her. "You act like you have the right to do whatever you want. You act like your cause is just and noble, that you're all heroes when you're nothing more than a bunch of masked cowards that go around murdering people who never did anything to you!"
The deer faunus looked at her. "Do you really think we care what you think? You're just a human, you don't understand or care about anything that's happened to us!" Adrienne tightened the grip on her sword as he continued. "Look around you. This is what we've had to deal with for centuries and it's about time you understood that. People like Jacques Schnee are the real monsters and we're the ones winning this fight. We have nothing to fear, especially not a girl like you," he finished condescendingly.
Adrienne let out a roar as her eyes shone, slipping into her Vigil for the first time in the battle as her sword ignited. "Then take off your masks and fight, cowards!" She charged at the pair, getting ready to stab the deer when he lifted the woman in front of him. Adrienne glared at him before she split into two halves, one moving around the woman to cut his arm off while the other copy swiftly beheaded the other faunus. The deer let out a scream of pain before the Orange Rose pinned him to the ground, glaring at him. "I hate people who hide behind others like that," she growled before stabbing her sword into his chest. She took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. "I offer these souls to Thanatos and beg for his mercy on their behalf, even if they don't deserve it. May they be judged fairly for their crimes and be given a chance at redemption in the next life…" She glanced down at the woman. "Are you okay? Let's get you somewhere safe, alright?"
Beacon Academy, near the dorms, with Winter and Aurelius
Winter let out a shout as she surged forward, stabbing into a Beowolf. She glanced to the side to see Aurelius sidestep a Boarbatusk, quickly stabbing into its side before his blade burst into flames. The had made progress towards the CCT Tower, fighting through White Fang and Grimm with little difficulty. Winter watched as Aurelius made a quick gesture before ice shards tore apart an Ursa, not noticing the Alpha Beowolf jumping down from above her. Aurelius glanced over and frowned before dashing over, using the Rose Storm to boost his speed to slip in front of her. As it approached, he quickly made a slash and cut it in two before glancing at Winter. "Now isn't the best time to get distracted, Schnee."
Winter was about to respond when Aurelius had a sudden coughing fit, covering his mouth. She blinked in surprise. "He was able to fight through almost half of the academy without any difficulty, why is he suddenly…" Winter's thoughts stopped as she saw him wipe a bit of blood from his mouth. "Something's wrong with you. I don't recall you getting injured."
Aurelius let out a sigh. "This body wasn't meant for a semblance like the Rose Storm and I haven't had to use the speed aspect yet. I've been gradually adjusting it to be in line with my original form in every way, but until then I'll have to deal with extreme backlash from the speed aspect… Including, most significantly, slowly tearing my muscles apart the more I use it."
Winter sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Why are you fighting if you risk tearing yourself apart? You're being a fool right now."
Aurelius shrugged, wiping the blood off his hand. "I'm a Rose. Being dedicated to protecting the innocent to the point of recklessness is a common trait. Besides, so long as I don't use that aspect of my semblance, I don't have to worry quite so much."
Winter frowned slightly. "I suppose there's nothing I can do to prevent it. Just try not to destroy yourself before the battle's over. I wouldn't want to have to drag your body out of a fight."
Aurelius looked at her in amusement as the two continued moving down the street towards the courtyard.
Beacon Vault, with Jaune, Pyrrha, and Ozpin
Ozpin went to step out of the elevator but stopped, flipping his cane around as he stepped out into the hallway, glancing around at the scattered remains of a number of Sentinels. The trio ran down the hallway, only to duck to the side as a blast of energy went down the corridor. "No…" Ozpin muttered before glancing back at Jaune and Pyrrha. "Cinder's been using the chaos as a distraction and prevent us from reaching Amber in time. The two of you need to leave and get Aurelius. Hurry!"
"But Professor Ozpin-" Pyrrha started.
"Go! This isn't the time to argue!" Pyrrha went to argue when Jaune put a hand on her shoulder.
"He's right, if understand it, there's not much we can do here. We need to let everyone know what's going on," Jaune said. Pyrrha let out a frustrated sigh as she nodded, glancing at Ozpin.
"Be careful, Professor…" Ozpin glanced over his shoulder.
"Don't fret, children. Even if I do lose this fight I won't be gone for long. Now go, hurry!" The two quickly started moving towards the elevator, casting one last glance at the headmaster before the door closed.
Beacon Courtyard, with Weiss and Team CFVY
Weiss watched in amazement as Velvet quickly dismantled the pair of Paladins in front of her, using her projector to replicate the weapons the rest of the students and other teams used to rip one of them apart. Coco glanced at her with a grin. "Not bad, right? Her semblance lets her mimic anything she's seen and her projector's built using some old Draconian tech that she cobbled together. She doesn't get to use it too often, so she really likes to go all out when she can." A cry drew their attention back to the fight, causing Coco to look on in horror as Velvet was sent flying. "Velvet!" Coco growled out before she revved up her gatling gun, Neptune and a few others firing on the remaining Paladin as well.
Weiss looked at the machine, letting out a growl as she charged forward, using her Glyphs to increase her speed. She stopped in front of the Paladin, slamming the tip of her sword into the ground before a giant Glyph appeared behind her, a spectral Goliath stepping out and standing in front of her. The Paladin moved to punch the armored figure before it slapped the mechanical fist away, bringing its sword up in a diagonal slash, cleaving it in half. The Goliath scoffed quietly before planting its sword into the ground, fading as Weiss lost the ability to maintain it.
Velvet and Coco ran over, looking at her in surprise. "Weiss, what was that?" Velvet asked, gesturing to where Weiss' summon was just standing.
Weiss took a deep breath, panting heavily. "It's the part of my Glyphs I've had the most problems with… It seems I've finally made some progress with it, even if it is exhausting…"
Coco smiled at the heiress. "Not bad Weiss. I think you deserve some rest after that."
With Aurelius and Winter
Aurelius let out a frustrated sigh as his Scroll went off, glancing at the number. He looked up at Winter and shrugged before answering it. "This better be important-"
"Bisman! Er, Aurelius, sir, um… We have a problem," Jaune said nervously.
Aurelius paused, staring at the device. "Explain."
"It's that Cinder woman! Ozpin, Pyrrha, and I went down to do that Aura transfer thing…" Winter and Aurelius shared a concerned glance as Jaune hesitated. "She was already down there! She killed Amber and Ozpin stayed behind to let us get away. I-I think she killed him too bec-"
"She what?" Aurelius asked, dismayed.
"She killed Ozpin! We got out on the ground floor and the other elevator was going all the way up the tower. Pyrrha just went up after her, I don't know what to do!" Aurelius let out a frustrated sigh as he glanced at Winter.
"Jaune, calm down, I'll take care of this. Just get back to the rest of your team and-" Aurelius glanced up as a rumbling came from Bastion. "Oh dear… This might be difficult to clean up…"
With Yang and Blake
Blake let out a grunt as Adam slammed the hilt of his sword into her stomach, knocking her to her knees. Yang roared as she charged forward, fist pulled back to punch him in the face. The bull faunus stepped to the side, delivering a quick slash to the blonde's back as Blake jumped up to attack from behind, causing him to spin around and shoot her from point blank with Blush. Blake tumbled to the ground, groaning slightly as she lifted her head, watching in horror as Adam held the tip of Wilt over Yang's chest, foot on her stomach. Blake struggled to her feet and tried to take a few shots at Adam, which he quickly deflected. "Leave her alone!" Blake shouted before she went wide-eyed at the grin Adam sent her way as he moved towards her, punching her in the stomach and delivering a slap to the face to knock her down.
"So, blondie's special to you, is she? Well, the only fitting punishment for a traitor is to see everything the care about destroyed, so…" Blake struggled to get up as Adam walked over, forcing Yang back down onto her back before he held her hand down. Adam grinned cruelly as he brought his blade down on Yang's arm, causing her to scream out.
"Yang!" Blake cried out, tears spilling from her eyes as Adam pushed the blonde's other arm down. Before he could do anything, an arrow shot into his shoulder, causing him to stagger forward. He spun around, growling as he pulled the arrow out, finding himself face to face with a trio of Sentinels and Artemis.
"I would leave if I were you… You will only get one chance to flee." Adam growled as he looked at the Prefect in front of him. He'd received more than a few messages warning him about the figure in front of him. Before anyone could do anything, a rumbling in the distance caught their attention. Adam let out a growl and ran, understanding he had no real hope in a four on one fight at the moment.
Earlier, AWS Aurora Command Bridge
"What the hell are you doing?" Roman asked in frustration as he glared at the monkey faunus that was sitting in the captain's chair. "The plan was to take control of the ship, hack their robots, and then keep anyone from leaving, not level the entire damn city while that thing tries to shoot us out of the sky!"
The faunus laughed, resting his head in his hand as he leaned against the armrest. "That was the witch's plan. We're doing what Adam told us. Vale's supposed to be destroyed, then we're going to pick through the rubble and take every human we find prisoner. Any humans that resist and all faunus that refuse to help us are going to be killed. That's the new plan, so you're just going to have to deal with it."
Roman ran a hand down his face. "Are you people fucking insane? As soon as you destroy most of the city, that thing, the Bastion, whatever it's called, is going to have nothing left to defend but itself! The only reason it hasn't shot us out of the sky yet is because we're staying out of its range, do you really think it's going to sit there once half the city's been-"
"Hey, something just landed on top of the ship," one of the faunus said, ignoring Torchwick. The man let out a growl before he glanced at the screen, paling at the sight of a red cloak.
"Well, I kinda saw that one coming…" Torchwick said, tapping his cane against the ground. "I'll take care of that I guess… C'mon Neo."
The girl hopped up from a nearby chair. "Right," she signed quickly, grabbing her umbrella.
Torchwick let out a sigh as they walked down the corridor. "I'm not going to lie, I think Red might actually kill us this time…"
"Maybe we'll get lucky and take her down… Or maybe she'll get distracted and we can escape," Neo signed.
"We both know she's not going to do that. I swear, she gets more annoying with each fight…" Neo nodded quietly as they climbed out on top of the Aurora, looking across them at Ruby as she cleaved through a Griffon. "C'mon Red, do you really need to show up every time I'm up to something?"
Ruby turned around and glared at the duo, eyes shining. "Why are you doing this? Why are you helping the White Fang with this bloodbath?"
Torchwick threw his hands up. "Do you think I want a part in this Red? I signed on for stealing Dust and end up in a conspiracy to destroy Vale! These lunatics threatened to kill me if I didn't cooperate with them and now that I have, I'm going to be one of the most wanted criminals in all of Remnant! I don't have a damn choice in any of this anymore. It's survival of the fittest Red, and I can't afford to lose this fight!"
Ruby hummed. "That's more or less what I thought. You didn't really sound like you were doing this for money from what I heard," she said before smiling. "Speaking of which, have you checked your pockets since our last encounter?"
Roman looked at her suspiciously as he slid his hand into one of his pockets. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about Red, but-" he blinked as he pulled out Ruby's listening device. "Wait, you bugged me? I'm not sure if I should be impressed that you pulled that off or ashamed it took me this long to find the thing!"
Ruby smiled. "I'm surprised you're still working for Cinder after what's going on."
Torchwick let out a frustrated sigh. "Look around Red, the White Fang's got the upper hand. Even with that thing floating in the sky, there's not much that can hurt the Aurora… And they're firing on everything they don't like, which would include Neo and me if we decided to leave. The White Fang's going to win this, and we're just going to be killed if we try to leave now." Roman shrugged. "I'm not gonna lie, I really admire your spirit kid, but spirit only takes you so far. If I want to make sure Neo and I make it out of this alive, I've got to be on the winning side, whether I like it or not!"
Ruby heard her Scroll beep and let out a sigh as she checked it. "Two minutes left." "I'm honestly surprised you care so much about Neo. Do you to have a history together?"
"Why does it matter to you Red? The only way you're leaving this ship is if you kill us and everyone on it."
Ruby rolled her eyes. "Humor me. I'm curious."
Roman let out a frustrated sigh before he looked at the wolf faunus. Ruby hummed as she noticed small objects start appearing along the ground as Neo tried to set up the battlefield. "I guess it doesn't really matter… Back a few years ago, when I was maybe just a little older than you, I was living on the streets, trying to scrape out a living as best I could any way I could. I won't say I'm proud of what I did back then, but I did a hell lot better than most other people in my situation. One day, after I managed to nab myself a meal, I see this little girl digging through the garbage looking for something to eat and she honestly looked like she wouldn't last a week on the street. I wasn't sure what came over me, and I'm still not sure, but I decided to give her some of it on a whim, my good deed for the month if you want to call it that. After that, I just kind of left, not expecting to see her ever again."
Neo frowned slightly before Roman pat her on the head. "So, imagine my surprise when, a few days later, I'm running from the police and I see the same girl waving me into an alleyway. I had this feeling that it'd be the best chance I'd have at getting away, so I ran down it… into a dead end. I turn to run and find a solid wall in front of me and the police have no idea I'm even there. After that, I decided that keeping her around wouldn't be such a bad idea and I took her under my wing. After a year or two though, I started to warm up to her and she looked up to me, so…"
Ruby nodded quietly. "So you adopted her."
"Yeah. It turns out that Neo's parents died about a week before I first found her. A fire burned her house down and she didn't have anyone or anything. She'd already awakened her semblance by then and it'd taken away her voice."
"So, you care a lot about her right? You don't want anything to hurt her?" "Ten seconds…"
Torchwick growled. "What kind of question is that, Red? I thought I made it clear!"
"Even that?" Ruby asked, gesturing toward Bastion as a loud rumbling echoed through the air. The uppermost part of the Spire Crystal detached, splitting into a large central crystal and four small, Gravity crystals that lifted it into the air. A trio of rings drifted up, spinning around the massive crystal as a lens on each one aligned with the Aurora. "We should probably leave… I don't think any of us want to be here right now."
"You know what, Red, for once I agree with you-" Torchwick cried out as Ruby grabbed him and Neo, flinging herself off the Aurora before carrying them away in a cloud of rose petals.
Bastion, Citadel Command Center
Janus tapped his hand against the railing as Odin stood to the side, the tip of his spear planted in the floor as he gazed towards the Aurora. "The focusing lenses are aligned," the one-eyed Prefect announced.
Janus glanced at him before turning back. "I want it reduced to scrap metal, Odin. Proceed."
Odin nodded. "Aegis Array is firing." The crystal hummed loudly before a beam of Burn energy surged through the lenses, piercing through the Aurora with the sound of a thunderclap before dissipating. Janus watched as the Aurora's debris fell from the sky, the engine pods exploding briefly. "Remaining power reserves are low. Prioritizing the Shock barrier and Gravity crystals."
Janus nodded before turning to Odin. "You are in command for the time being. I will be moving to Beacon to assist." Odin nodded as Janus opened a rift, stepping through it along with four other Prefects.
Beacon Academy, with Winter and Aurelius
Winter stared wide-eyed as the Aegis crystal returned to its position. "W-what was that?"
Aurelius grunted. "Something we don't have time to discuss right now. Jaune, I need you to return to the courtyard and help your classmates. I'll handle the rest, understood?"
"Um, okay…" Jaune said over the Scroll before Aurelius hung up.
The Blue Rose hummed as he glanced at Winter. "You should probably head there to assist as well…" Winter looked like she wanted to protest before she let out a sigh.
"Just don't destroy yourself. I'm sure General Ironwood will be… displeased if he doesn't get an opportunity to repay you for the Aurora's destruction," Winter said. Aurelius nodded before bursting into rose petals, flying towards the CCT Tower. Winter watched, a look of concern on her face before she turned to head towards the courtyard.
With Weiss and Team CFVY
"Remind me to never piss them off. They'd probably destroy all my favorite stores before I could do anything…" Coco said nonchalantly as the Aurora fell out of the sky.
Weiss went to respond when she saw another Paladin charging at them out of the corner of her eye. "Velvet, can you do what you did again?" the heiress asked, causing the rabbit to shake her head meekly. Weiss let out a sigh, her breath coming out in a cloud as she made a gesture. The air temperature dropped sharply as the Paladin came to a halt, ice shards bursting out of its armor. Once the Paladin dropped to the ground, Weiss fell to her knees, wrapping her arms around herself as she lost all feeling in her arms and legs. Team CFVY, Ren, and Nora quickly gathered around her before a familiar voice spoke out.
"Weiss!" Winter called out as she stopped next to Weiss, frowning. "What are you doing taking a risk like that?! You know what your semblance can do to you!"
Weiss leaned against Winter shivering. "I-I didn't h-have a choice…" Winter let out a sigh and wrapped her arms around her sister, a look of concern on her face.
"Try to save your energy Weiss, but you need to stay awake, understood?" Weiss nodded, trembling as the consequences of her actions sank in.
With Cinder and Pyrrha
Cinder smiled as she punched Pyrrha in the stomach, creating a shockwave powerful enough to destroy the upper level of the Tower. Pyrrha glanced around using her semblance to quickly lift debris into the air to crush Cinder, only for her to unleash a blast of fire to send everything flying. An arrow flew out of the explosion and struck Pyrrha in the ankle, causing her to cry out as her Achilles tendon was torn. "It's unfortunate you were promised a power that was never truly yours…" Cinder went to kneel down when she heard a voice.
"I believe I get to decide who my power belongs to," Aurelius growled as he reformed on the Tower, glaring at Cinder as he stabbed his sword into the ground. Cinder quickly stood up, creating a bow. Aurelius hummed before calling out. "Janus, get Pyrrha out of here." A rift opened up before a pair of Sentinels stepped out, carefully picking up the redhead and retreating.
Cinder growled. "And what do you expect to do exactly, Aurelius?"
The Blue Rose frowned, rolling his shoulders as his cloak dissolved, vanishing from existence. "I'm here to reclaim what you've stolen, Cinder." He removed his sword from the ground as his eyes shone slightly.
This chapter was a bit difficult to write, mainly because scenes like Adam's savagery towards Yang are ones I'm not sure if I should include as they are. If you think any parts of this are too dark, let me know and I'll adjust it.
The Aegis is, as shown, Bastion's trump card. It requires vast amounts of power from the fortress-city's reserves, but it's the only weapon it currently has able to outrange an Atlesian Cruiser. The Aegis Array is made up of the "Crown" of the Spire, the five crystals that extend out beyond the top of the Citadel Tower, and three rings with a focusing lens on each, meaning it operates on the same principle as the upgraded Crescent Rose and any other Draconian weapons powered by Dust crystals.
Penny's absence in this chapter and the previous one when she survived her canon death are a bit jarring in my opinion, but I was having difficulty finding a place I could fit her in where it'd feel natural. Hopefully, she'll be able to make more appearances after the Battle of Beacon when I decide exactly what I want to do with her.
I'm sure everyone who paid attention will quickly realize the fight between Cinder and Aurelius won't be as one-sided as it would normally seem. Aurelius' condition means he's restricted in his use of the Rose Storm's speed aspect and other conditions during the fight mean he can't use the other aspects either, while his use of the Reaper's Stare to kill the Grimm Dragon means he's too drained to effectively use any aspect of the Vigil. This means that, against a relatively well rested Cinder that's able to fight at full power, Aurelius might actually have a fairly poor chance of succeeding. His only real advantage is his secondary semblance allowing him to create Dust at will and do various other things.
As always, I hope you enjoyed this and please leave a review if you have comments, input, or requests for how I could improve this.
