I barely had enough time to draw Dusk and block the quick sprinting slash as the man with bullhorns crossed the space from the window to the top of the stairs within the blink of an eye and attacked. Our swords met and the scraping of metal on metal filled the air as we pushed against one another. He overpowered me, pushed away my blade with his own and shot me in the gut with his sheath, which I realized was also a gun.
I quickly got up and as we circled each other, saw him smirk. With a growl, I rushed forth and slashed thrice; once upwards towards his left shoulder, which he blocked, the second going from his lower left stomach to his upper right shoulder, although he blocked that attack as well. The third was a simple attempt at a decapitation that he countered by stepping backwards and slashing twice at my legs.
The first struck across both shins, taking out a portion of aura while I managed to block the second hit by quickly sheathing Dusk and using the blades on my gauntlets to shield against the blow.
I hit him with a shoulder charge and he backed up, the smirk gone from his face as he scoffed. "Pathetic."
I took a single step forward but he fired in quick succession four times, three shots being blocked while the last grazed my shoulder. Blades extended, I charged forth and aimed one blade for his throat while the other went to his stomach. He managed to sidestep away from the hit, but I still felt resistance as my lower attack scraped against his aura.
His quick counters came and I felt my mind going into overdrive as I blocked them one by one with my gauntlets. He prepared to assault once more with his blade raised above his head, which I knew was a mistake with this fighting style. I wrapped a gauntleted left arm around his right hand and smashed my free fist into his elbow, eliciting a shout of pain while he retaliated by firing his sheath-gun directly to my chin that took out a massive amount of aura.
We both stumbled backwards from the pain and as he rolled his injured sword arm, I shook my head to remove the disorientation the bullet caused.
"What do you get out of this?" I asked between clenched teeth.
That smirk reappeared on his face as he replied. "To see humanity burn as it rightly deserves."
I retracted the blades on Castor and Pollux before placing my hand on Dusk's handle and preparing for my opponent to attack. He lunged forward and slashed horizontally twice, the first of which I dodged by stepping backwards but the second I had to block as my attacker advanced and met my blade. I held the blade partially out of its sheath, using the case for support as we once again pushed against one another. Then, with lightning speed, he took two more slashes and the next thing I knew, I was looking at the shattered fragments of Dusk lying on the floor of the CCT.
He took advantage of my shock by slashing again at my now unprotected gut, which connected and brought me back to reality. His next vertical slash was blocked as I crossed my gauntlets overhead.
With a howl of rage and a flurry of fists, I hit him over and over again, some hits connecting while others were dodged. I made a suicide play and retracted the blades before firing all twelve of my impact grenades at my opponent less than a foot in front of me, the detonations causing major damage to both of us. Thankfully, my back was to the closed elevator doors however and he was flung towards the glass window, shattering it into several hundred pieces as the mysterious aggressor disappeared outside.
Dizzy from the explosion and exhausted from the amount of damage I sustained, I stumbled towards the main terminal and plugged my scroll into the main terminal. It took a few seconds for a holographic image of a black queen chess piece to pop up with a red background. A few more seconds went by and the red turned to white as a message that read; 'Message sent to: Gen. Ironwood.'
I heaved a sigh of relief, bowed my head and chuckled. I…we did it. Beacon's safe.
Then I felt it. Nothing was worse as steel as cold and heartless as its wielder pierced through my lower left back and protruded through the opposite side of my gut. I let out a pained scream as the weapon left my body and I fell to the floor, my face to the ceiling as the darkened and masked face of my aggressor stood over me with a scowl.
His gaze looked to the terminal and he shook his head. "Very well. You have just signed their death warrants." I couldn't talk through the pain but he appeared to already know the question I wanted to ask as he continued to speak. "The Schnee heiress, the brawler, my love, the silver-eyed one…" He listed off all my friend's alternate names and the one I hoped he wouldn't speak.
"And the faunus you've become so infatuated with over the past year. Know that their deaths will be on your soul if you survive, Joseph Taren." He declared as he moved towards the stairs.
Pure fury replaced the blood that flowed through my veins and mind while I ignored the pain and temporarily regained my strength, beginning to stand. No one would threaten the love of my life and walk away unharmed. There would be nothing held back; no remorse, no tolerance, no quick death that even the grimm deserved.
No mercy.
"Touch her and die." I growled. He turned around just as I delivered a bone-shattering punch to his right shin with Pollux, causing him to take a knee while I held his throat in a vice-like death-grip with my left hand and stabbed him three times in the heart with Castor.
The first hit only aura, almost rebounding off as the invisible shield saved his life.
The second strike was when I could literally feel his aura shatter and anticipate the deathblow.
The third and final hit was by no means quick, just as intended. The blade thrust through his chest as he dropped his weapon and gasped for air. I slowly turned the blade to cause as much pain as possible before sharply jolting it upward, ending his life and rendering my right gauntlet useless.
As his corpse fell backwards, my adrenaline wore off and the agony returned as my vision became blurry and found trouble breathing. I flailed around for support and managed to grab onto the main desk, sliding down it as I put myself in a sitting position.
My wound was bleeding badly to say the least. The thick red liquid slowly poured out of my flesh and through my t-shirt and hoodie, staining the floor. Hearing footsteps, I blinked to clear my vision and extended the blade on Pollux just to see Jaune and Pyrrha ascend the final step and witness the bloodbath that had taken place, the corpse of my aggressor with most of his blood pooling around him while I was in no better condition save for still being conscious.
My leader's gaze fixed on me and he sheathed his sword after collapsing his shield. "Joe!" He cried out. "Pyrrha, take off his mask and help me lay him down. Here, take my hoodie, put it underneath his head while I apply pressure to his stomach." His partner complied while my vision got darker. I blinked rapidly and fought to stay awake. It was an uphill battle however, and darkness and pain continued to envelope me.
A hand slapped my face and my vision got much clearer as I saw Pyrrha kneeling next to me. "Damn it Joe! Stay awake! The medics are going to be here any second and you'll be fine." She reassured me as I looked behind her to see Jaune practically screaming into his scroll.
"I don't fucking care if there's a billion ursa omegas still on Beacon grounds, we need a medical team down here yesterday!" He ordered with an unusual amount of anger. He then hung up and turned his attention to me.
I breathed through clenched teeth as my pain grew exponentially when I felt Jaune's hands press down on the stab wound. "J-Jaune. Tell Velvet-"
"Whatever it is, you can tell her yourself." My team leader said with steely determination.
I weakly nodded and clutched the stone of the necklace and my mind flooded with thoughts of Velvet, our first date, the Cardin incident, meeting each other's families, our time together during summer break and our dreams of building a future together. Additional voices reached my ears but soon became white noise as my mind went blank and went numb.
The tunnel. I thought it was familiar and then I remembered with a chuckle. "Oh yeah, I guess I already died before."
I folded my arms over my chest and waited. Again, three figures emerged and recognized them as Andrea, Denara and Elias. I chuckled again and shook my head with a grin. "This is becoming a bad habit guys. We've really got to stop meeting like this."
Unlike the last time though, none of them were smiling or appeared happy at all. The wolf-twins flanked Andrea as she stepped forth and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry Joe, but this is it."
I raised an eyebrow and put my hands on my hips. "What do you mean?"
Elias exhaled and appeared to be hiding a grimace. "You're uh… you're actually dead."
My grin vanished as I looked to Denara, who only nodded slowly. "No coming back from this one."
I felt my eyes well with tears. "B-but what-what about the doctors? Aren't they going to bring me back?"
My three friends shook their heads simultaneously as Andrea spoke. "The blood loss was too bad this time."
I shook my head out of disbelief and wiped the tears from my eyes. "No, this-this can't be happening." I turned on my heel and attempted to run backwards into the darkness but it was as if a hidden stone wall barred my passage. No matter how hard I hit, no matter how much I screamed in protest, no matter what, this was the end. I slumped against the dark wall, clutching my knees to my chest as I cried.
Something was on top of my foot and I looked up to see Andrea holding out a hand. After a minute, I reluctantly grabbed onto it and she helped me up, supporting my weight as she and the wolf-twins escorted me into the light where a black robed figure with a hidden face and scythe awaited.
After I dried my eyes with the sleeve of my hoodie, Andrea let me go as the hooded person spoke.
"Joseph Taren." It said in a raspy whisper. "Two choices lay before you; roam Remnant as a specter for all of eternity or join your friends in the heavens. You have twenty-four hours to make your decision. I will expect your answer by midnight tomorrow." With that, it faded away into nothing and I was suddenly transported back to the site of my death, partially cleaned up with neither my body nor that of my killer present although blood still could be seen staining the floor.
The sun was now rising and several mechanics were repairing the broken terminals. I tapped one on the shoulder. "Excuse me?" The man turned around and gave me a quizzical look before returning to his work. Confused, I tapped his shoulder again and repeated my words. He ignored me once again and I slapped the back of his head, only for my hand to go through his skull.
The man shivered and he looked around with a puzzled expression on his face. "What's up?" I heard another ask.
The man waved his co-worker off. "Nothin'. Just hearing stuff." He declared.
At a complete loss for words, I walked over to where my opponent had fallen out the window and rather than falling off the edge, I floated.
So I really am dead. I thought disappointedly as I slowly sank to ground level. I flew over to a group of students dressed in their Beacon Academy uniforms as they spoke to each other.
"So why exactly are we dressed up on the second day of school?" A girl asked her friend.
"Beats me. Maybe it has something to do with what's going on in the amphitheater, but I'm not too sure." She replied.
Intrigued, I hovered to the large building to see the entire second-year population gathered in there aside from team CFVY. Many appeared to not really care what was happening but team RWBY, JNPR and the third-year team were holding back their sorrow for me save for Velvet, who let her tears flow freely down her face as she held the necklace that I used to wear.
The sight shattered what was left of my ghostly heart. "Velvet, don't cry." I begged, beginning to feel her anguish spread to my own eyes. "Please don't cry." There was no use trying to hold back as the invisible droplets of grief hit the floor, leaving no marks.
On the stage was a small memorial of sorts with the picture of Velvet and myself laughing in the booth on our first date atop a stack of other pictures including one of me with Castor and Pollux and one during the first day of summer vacation that Ruby and Yang's uncle had taken with all the guys kneeling towards the camera, smiles on all our faces while each of our girlfriends had their arms around each of our shoulders with Ruby and Yang mimicking our stances.
In a single sight, all my fondest memories could be seen. I was even more astonished when Professor Ozpin stepped to the microphone and sighed.
"Today, we commemorate the efforts of Joseph Taren, a second-year student who went through initiation after witnessing his three closest friends brutally killed by the creatures of grimm while still having the fortitude to move forth and participate in missions and classes on a regular basis. Not only was he able to alert the Atlesian military to our state of distress, but also eliminated not only an Omega beowolf single-handedly, but also a vital member of the White Fang organization." At the statement, a couple other heads jolted up and began whispering to each other.
"That's BS. There's no way a student could take out an Omega solo."
"Yeah, and Adam Taurus as well?" Another scoffed. "He's just trying to make us feel something for this guy."
I let the comments pass by and saw Ozpin make room for Jaune at the middle of the stage.
"Joe was a great friend. His first words to me weren't exactly the kindest, but in all fairness, he'd recently suffered a great loss, just as myself, the rest of my team and his friends do now." My team leader declared, giving RWBY a quick glance before shifting his gaze to Velvet and exhaling deeply.
"There was no doubt in my mind that he had courage. Achieving the feats he did with the constant reminder that three people from his life were gone was nothing short of amazing. Although stubborn at times, he gave good advice, fought hard and never gave in."
He then nodded back to Ozpin who took his place back at the microphone as I could only hover in the air, astounded at Jaune's praise.
"There will be no classes for today. Feel free to treat the day as you would any other." The wise Professor declared, causing multiple quiet cheers to erupt from the crowd. As everyone else filed out, RWBY, JNPR and CFVY stayed behind, taking a seat against the stage.
"So is this really happening?" Ruby asked.
Yang exhaled and nodded. "Yeah. Joe's gone."
"I'm never going to get used to hearing those words." Pyrrha declared.
Jaune took a look around at the faces around him and spoke the very words I was hoping to hear.
"Guys, Joe once told me that he'd never get over the death of his friends but if they were there, they'd want him to move on with his life."
"And?" Fox asked with arms folded.
"I think we should do the same." He said. Silence followed as he glanced over at Velvet, who continued to say nothing and clutch the necklace I had on me upon death. "I realize it'll be harder for some of us, but I don't think he'd like all…" He gestured to the photos and everyone else. "This. Everyone shedding tears over him."
"One can only try to move on." Yatsu added.
The group nodded in agreement one by one and enclosed in a group hug around Velvet. I sobbed further and called Death to my side.
"Your decision?" He asked.
"I want to leave." I choked out. "I-I can't stand seeing them like this."
The hood bobbed up and down and I found myself standing upon a cloud with a set of golden gates in front of me. I wiped away my tears and pushed them open coming across my three other deceased friends at a card table with a fourth seat open.
"Royal flush!" Denara called out, turning over her cards.
"Shit!" Elias shouted, slamming his own cards on the table. "How are you so good at this?!"
Andrea saw me coming and nudged the twins, alerting them to my presence. "Didn't want to see them going through life thinking about you?" My friend from Signal asked. I shook my head in reply.
"Understandable." Elias said solemnly as he pulled out another chair from underneath the table and patted it twice. "Now come on, let's play some cards." I gave him a small smile and complied.
After the game was done, they explained to me that whatever I wished to have, all I had to do was imagine it. If I wanted to hang out at the beach, I just had to close my eyes, imagine the scenery and when I opened them, I was there, already dressed in my swim trunks.
Time went on and they showed me the occasional glimpse of how my other friends were doing and as it turned out, they all lived to bring down someone known as 'Salem' and eventually get married.
It was saddening to see that Velvet was with someone else, but even as she kissed her newlywed husband on that sandy beach, my symbol was still draped around her neck. One by one, my friends passed on and I was granted the ability to see them once again. They seemed astonished that they were in their eighteen-year old selves but I explained to them how it was my time of death that effected how they looked when they joined me.
The last to come through those gates was the love of my life. She pushed them open and I was already waiting patiently with hands folded behind my back.
"Did you see?" She asked.
I nodded, already knowing what she was referring to. "I did. I'm glad you didn't let your happiness die with me."
She scuffed the clouds with her shoe and rubbed an arm out of anxiousness. "I explained to him my situation and what I felt for him wasn't even close to how I feel about you but I think he'd understand if I remarried."
I felt myself grinning and gestured behind her. "Why don't you ask him yourself?"
The man Velvet married stood behind her and with a small smile, nodded. "I was but a mere shoulder to cry on. I'll hold nothing against you if you guys want to get married, Velv." He declared.
She turned around and I closed my eyes before reaching into my pocket and pulling out a small box. I took a knee and spoke from the heart. "Velvet Scarlatina, I love you with all my heart and each day I've spent without you is another day spent futilely. So would you do me the honor of allowing me to become your husband?"
"Of course I will!" She shouted with glee. With a grin, I slid the ring onto her left hand and before I could place the box back in my pocket, she yanked me to my feet and pulled me in for a kiss, one that I would never forget.
(AN: There it is! After over six months and a hundred thousand words, this story is finally finished. Thank you so so much to everyone who bothered to click on my story out of the many you could've chosen and to those who've read the whole story. While this was a fanfiction, there's also an underlying message that I want everyone to take away from this and it is the following; Never let society dictate what you feel in a relationship and don't let others judge you for moving at your own pace. If you and your partner are having sex every single day, that's fine so long as both of you are okay with it and if you're not, that's fine too, some people date the same person for years before they get to third or fourth base. And to those of you who are single, if you like a person, ask them out. Literally the worst thing that can happen is there's an awkward moment for a few seconds and you both go about living your own lives. People say that asking a person out is complicated but it really isn't. Just say what you feel for them and if it works out, awesome and if it doesn't, don't let that sway you from seeking your own happiness. Sorry if I'm ranting, but I just felt like it needed to be said haha. Anyways, I encourage you guys to check out my other fanfics and please review.
Yours truly, Vanguard 523)