Disclaimer: Values are all owned by the original creators. All plot/timeline, new characters, or other differences are owned by the Edict.
Chapter 2: A Glint Within the Dark (Pt 2)
It was rather strange for Summer. For two months, all that had been on her radar was the witch. Salem this, Grimm that, and a scorpion-tailed psychopath that brought up the rear. Well, now, all three of those would have to wait patiently in the back of her mind because the existence before her took front and center.
Summer instinctually placed a foot behind as her hand twitched in anticipation or perhaps even fear. The knight slowly raised to its full height, revealing that her estimation had been based on its kneeling form. The looming figure wasn't 30 feet tall. No, it was at least within the 50's. So large was its existence that it eclipsed the twin gilded doors behind it.
Its armor was pale as the moon, glowing with an unearthly brilliance. A brilliance surpassed only by the golden fluid that encircled the room. Its visor was a cross, creating an amber intersection wherever it looked, its gaze almost seeming to catch fire as it watched her. And its weapon, a hulking slab of stone that looked more apt as a pillar than an actual weapon, released a constant stream of unknown energy. Both the wielder and its weapon were engraved with ornate, archaic symbols that she failed to make heads or tails of.
However, it seems that the being had grown tired of her stare as it stepped forwards, causing the ground to rupture and split wherever the stone greaves landed. Finally, it raised the impossibly large great sword over its shoulder, the new position making her witness to the dark, dry, rusty stains that graced its surface. A solemn splash of darkness upon the blade, a forewarning of the fates of those that came before her.
"Truly, you humans know naught but greed and foolishness. Traitors to your king, and now attempting to take that which belongs to him."
Its voice alone shook the room, reverberating across the walls and causing the golden fluid to ripple in anticipation.
"So be it. If it is gold you desire, I shall encase your tomb with it. Come, face a knight who has never known defeat!"
Summer was forced to her knees as it slammed its blade into the ground. The huntress almost believed that the entire temple had sunken a few inches from the impact. As the knight raised its blade once more, the huntress quickly raised her hands in a faux surrender, hoping to placate the golem before it deigned to add a few new splotches to its weapon.
"Wait! Look, I'm not here to steal anything, ok. I was following someone else here, trying to make sure that a bad person didn't get their hands on something dangerous."
The colossal being paused for a moment before stepping forward once more.
"It matters not what you're here for. You have intruded upon this kingdom and have no place here. Your warning has been heard, so flee from this place lest join the rest of your predecessors!"
"I can't. You don't know what she's capable of. No matter how strong you or those knights are, she won't stop until she achieves what she wants. Let me help you. Whatever it is she's after, we can take it away from here and hide it."
The once comfortable warmth of the room exploded. An inferno of fury and indignation as the golden fluid bubbled and hissed in tandem with the outrage. In an instant, the knight was upon her, swinging its mammoth sword at a speed that seemed impossible. Thankfully, she was faster.
A burst of petals followed her as her feet once more touched the ground, sliding away from her armored foe. Damn, she had hoped a fight wouldn't break out, but it seemed that she needed to be a bit more realistic.
"Again and again, your kind brings nothing but filth here. I had hoped one of silver would have some virtue, but it seems you have tarnished. I will destroy whoever she is, but before that, I shall adorn the walls with your remains!"
Summer was forced to run and evade, as deflecting or blocking his strikes would just make a smear of her. She mentally checked her reserves and began wishing she had rested a bit more before entering this room. Then again, how was she supposed to know that there would be an even bigger obstacle after the last 50 knights?
While she'd rather avoid it, the huntress was forced to repeatedly use her semblance to elude the crushing strikes of her adversary. There had to be a weakness in the being's armor somewhere. Right? The longer the silver-eyed woman circled the behemoth, the less likely finding a weakness seemed.
The huntress continued to glare at the armor in concentration, peering for something, anything that might denote an opportunity. The knight kept pace with her, keeping the woman within its sight as it turned and peered at her with horrid intent. Summer almost began to lose hope until she pushed her semblance even further to finally escape the bastion's burning gaze. There, a darkened patch appeared among the gleaming armor.
Right upon where the left shoulder blade would be for a human or faunus, there was chink in the creature's attire.
A small burst of invigoration flowed through her, manifested by the blur of petals that danced around her form. A single blink was all it would take to miss sight of her as she expertly skated across the ground, leaping over another strike, and sliding past a stomp that threatened to crush her.
To the armored being's irritation, it found its foot stuck within the floor and was forced to endure a slight resistance as the limb was forced free. However, that slight resistance was all it took for an experienced huntress like Summer to take advantage. A red blur flew up the side of the knight, resisting being shaken off and weaving through the various spikes and ridges made by its adorned accessories.
Finally, she spun her scythe, channeling aura within her arm and causing her arms blur as they produced similar two-toned petals and blossoms. A bellow of loathing and malice split through the air before she found herself flying through the air, finally thrown off by the golem.
She quickly channeled her semblance once more, producing a force that allowed her to lean to the left, barely dodging the great sword that tore threw the air of where she once was. Upon landing, she gained some distance, this time just slightly out of range of a sweeping strike that graced the floor.
Her form was crouched, one hand on the ground and another on her weapon, allowing her to react at a moment's notice. The armor glared at her before what sounded like a tsk of annoyance was released.
"You're a fast insect, aren't you? Very well, I shall concede that you are of a different class compared to the previous dissenters. However, do you truly believe yourself the victor? Your strikes are much too weak to damage me, little human."
The silver-eyed maiden grinned and stood up before pointing her scythe forward.
"First of all, I'm not an insect. My name is Summer Rose. And second of all, I will win because I plan to return to my family. So how about you save us both the effort, lay down your weapon, and let me through."
The gaze of the knight turned from the blistering fury it once held to one of begrudging respect as it readjusted its poise.
"So be it. I am Sir Damian, and as an honor, I shall engrave your name along these halls once I defeat you. Now stand and fight, human. We have only just begun!"
With the roar of a lion, the hulking suit of armor thundered across the ground, striking with its full weight where she had stood mere moments before.
Summer had kicked off, sliding along the floor once more as her mind racked for a solution for her current endeavor. For all the talk she put forth, her strikes against his weak point did little to wound the pale being. Furthermore, she doubted it would be as easy to access now that her adversary was privy to her plan.
So, what could she do?
She was forced to slide under another strike, this one grazing the wall and causing the room to groan in response. As she continued to dance around the colossal figure, nearly bisected or crushed numerous times, she began to hear cracks along the infrastructure of the temple. The ground beneath her seemed entirely solid if the fact that it could withstand numerous strikes was anything to go on.
The ceiling, however, was another beast altogether. She saw dust and fragments drift downwards onto the battlefield. She'd have to watch her step; one mishap would be the end of her. But it could also be the end of her foe.
It felt outrageous, a thing out of movies, and slightly cliché, but she had no choice. It looked like Summer was going to have to bring the roof down.
Suddenly her dodges had a purpose, and even as her muscles and aura whimpered in exertion and use, she pressed on. Instead of running across the ground, she leapt onto the side of the column, only pushing off when Damian attempted to pulp her, only to demolish the structure instead.
However, she knew the knight was sentient, unlike the rest, and this was her last chance. So, even though it consumed more of her aura, she was forced back to the ground to evade and misdirect the knight concerning her plan. Still, one by one, the pillars crumbled, leaving only a handful left.
Instead of attempting to destroy those as well, Summer had a quicker way to end this. She ran vertically along the side of another pillar, closely followed by an approaching great sword. She rolled across the ceiling, her ears witness to the shrieking sound created as Damian cleaved through the stone above him.
Right as the man's blade approached being too close for comfort, she tore at her aura once more, squeezing what she could from her dwindling stores. A red streak kicked off the ceiling and landed on the floor before pushing off and rolling away from the knight.
As a second swing was readied by the colossal knight, the ceiling finally gave, releasing rubble down onto the giant. One particularly large piece hurtled like a spear toward Damian's exposed weakness. Finally, she won.
Or so she had thought. To her increasing horror, the knight lunged forward, barely displacing the chink in his armor from the raining debris as his sword speared toward her.
"How predictable!"
His weapon was upon her, soon to crush her torso and end whatever remained of her strength and willingness to fight. However, there were few huntresses like Summer, and even fewer with the experience and talent she was hailed for.
Every last dredge of aura was called upon. Her soul screamed in warning as her silver eyes smoldered, and her body began to glow with a sheen of energy. Then like a rubber band, she snapped forward!
Summer tilted left, barely evading the edge of the blade, before running and sliding underneath the hurtling hulk of armor. Her hair felt the large stone greaves grace upon its length before she was gone once again. No longer a streak, but a flash as she appeared on one of the remaining pillars and kicked off towards the falling stone that once signaled Damian's defeat.
Whatever remained of her nigh empty reserve of aura was called upon again, and to her relief, it tortuously answered. Her scythe swung forward as a similar shimmer of energy traveled up its length before crowning on the head of the polearm. An umbrella of aura was created, and the huntress then screamed as she transferred the defensive properties of her energy to her weapon and launched it toward the descending boulder.
The scythe collided with the obstacle, forcing it to propel in the direction of Damian's kneeling form. The temple guardian's helm turned and gazed as the fast-approaching monolith rocketed towards his only weakness.
"A different class indeed."
BZZKRAM!
The room erupted in an amber glow as the screeching noise gave way to a horrid, explosive crack that resounded throughout the temple. Stone armor shattered and revealed the darkness underneath. Brilliant runes flashed with increasing frequency, and the large place of worship shuddered. The sounds of fighting Grimm, Knights, and even the Wyvern were drowned out as the entire city released golden lights from its depths.
A gilded aurora filled the air, twisting among the stars and moon above. And with its arrival, a dull creaking noise sounded as the gate that Damian once guarded began to drift open for the first time in centuries.