The Black Knight of Remnant

by Jay walkz

Jaune Arc has unlocked a new power that was unleashed after an unfortunate bloody event. This Dark power has now given him the strength to become something more than an average person. Is this power a gift or is it a curse? Whatever it is, Jaune intends to use it in order to bring about a better world.

30. Chapter 30 - Whirlpool of Emotions

Chapter 30 – Whirlpool of Emotions

*Here's a friendly reminder that this chapter may be controversial and if you are prone to irritation I suggest you don't read this, but other than that have fun.

Jay collapsed onto the ground. He exhausted his last remaining aura on the rest of the team. Everyone opened their eyes and looked at the destruction caused by the blast. Ren quickly helped Jay back up on his feet.

"Damn it. That took a lot more of my energy than I had expected. Is everyone alright?" Jay asked.

"We're fine. Just what the heck was that just now?" Ruby asked.

"That sadistic bastard Rhett detonated himself." Yang responded.

"Wait what? How was that possible? How did he even manage to create a blast that massive?"

"It had something… to do with his semblance and the amount of aura he had." Jay responded as he struggled with the pain he had to endure from overusing his semblance.

"We can't waste time here. We need to go and look for Nora and Weiss. They might need our help." Blake said.

"We need to make sure that blast killed Salem first. The last thing we need is for her to slip away when she is close from being defeated." Jay stated.

"Forget about that. Our friends come first." Ren said.

"I know how bad you want to look for Nora, but if we don't take care of this first there is no telling what might happen if Salem did survive the blast. She can slip away and cause mayhem when she reaches the kingdoms." Ren scowled and Jay and followed his command. They walked over to Salem's last location where Ruby and Ozpin were last seen fighting against Jaune and Salem. There was no body to be found. Ozpin's body must have been disintegrated from the blast moments ago.

"Do any of you where Professor Ozpin went?" Blake asked.

"He… he was killed by Salem." Ruby said.

"What? Are you sure?" Jay asked.

"Yeah… I saw Salem… kill him in front of us." Ruby broke down in tears, but continued to look around for Jaune. From the forest they could hear a loud roar that sent a chill down their spine.

"D…Did one of them survive?" Blake asked. Before someone could answer her, they heard the sounds of movement underneath a pile of rubble. From underneath appeared Salem. She threw the debris off of her and stood on both of her feet. She did not seem injured or exhausted. The protection that she was given from Jaune benefited her greatly. However Jaune could not be seen.

"How the hell are you still alive!?" Yang yelled.

"If it wasn't for Jaune… I would have died in that blast." Salem stated.

"Where is he!? Where's Jaune!?" Ruby yelled. The sounds of groaning could be heard near them. To their left side were trees that collapsed to the ground and were broken into pieces. From underneath they could see Jaune impaled by two swords, Salem's blade as well as his own sword Crocea Mors. The massive explosion was far too great for Jaune that he was sent soaring away and slammed against a few trees that broke into pieces.

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled. She rushed sped towards him, but was stopped by Salem. She had shot a black aura filled arrow towards Ruby stopping her from aiding the knight. Jaune could not see what was going on. The blinding flash of light blurred his vision and the amount of blood he was losing was causing him to slowly lose consciousness and made it difficult to move around. It seems that the blast managed to devour plenty of his aura. Salem's sword dissipated from his body. She now eyed Jaune's friends.

"He is fine where he is, at the moment. For now, I will take care of things here and I will finally be able to start what I should have done long ago. Now, let's start with all of you." She combined her two blades into one and took her stance. Everyone else was exhausted from the fights they had earlier except for Yang and Ruby. Yang walked in front of everyone else ready to fight once more. Ruby walked to her side smiling at her sister.

"We don't plan on giving up. Not now… not ever. Remember that Salem." Yang replied.

"Do you actually believe that a Seasonal Maiden and a silver eyed warrior will be enough to stop me? That's adorable." From behind came Blake with her hand on the sheath of her katana, ready to fight by their side.

"Not just a maiden and a silver eyed warrior, but also a Faunus who can control the dark." The three of them were ready to strike back to protect their team, their friends.

"I'll make sure to strike you down and make you return what isn't rightfully yours!" Salem yelled.

"Let's see if you can!" Ruby was the first to attack. She darted towards her and appeared from behind. As she slashed with her scythe, Salem turned and stopped the curved blade before it could hit her. From behind appeared Yang. Her fist turned to a bright yellow dragon flame as she swung at the back of Salam's head.

"TRY BLOCKING THIS!" Yang yelled. Salem pushed the scythe wielder with the end of her blade and used the opposite end to deflect the impending punch as she turned around. Yang angered at her attack being deflected countered with a roundhouse kick to the face, but was stopped once again by Salem. Ruby and Blake took the chance to go for a combined attack that will guarantee a hit. As the scythe and katana came crashing down Salem kicked Yang's foot away that caused her to fall onto the ground and split her doubled bladed curved sword into two thus stopping both Ruby and Blake's attack from managing to make a direct hit. Ruby and Blake noticed Salem smile as her weapon's blades started to be covered with her dark aura and a shadow on both edges of the blades increased its length. The two jumped away before the shadow could touch them, but the shadow managed to scratch Blake on the arm. When Ruby turned to Blake, she noticed the look of exhaustion in her face.

"Blake what's wrong?" Ruby asked.

"When she used her dark aura on her weapon… I think it absorbed my aura when it struck me. Be careful."

"Got it." Ruby went ahead and assisted her sister who was holding her own against Salem. She was using her shotgun gauntlets to stop and deflect Salem's attacks. Unlike her old gauntlets, the ones she were given were more durable and are capable of withstanding sharp blades as well as Blake's katana that can slice through people's aura when fully charged. Not only that, but she could use her aura to increase the power of attacks thanks to the gauntlets.

"There!" Yang yelled. She saw an opening for an uppercut to the chin and it worked. Salem soared into the air. Yang fired several rounds towards her just to have it sliced in half and not make its mark.

"I haven't had this much fun for a long time!" Salem yelled. When Salem came crashing back down to the ground she aimed her blades downward. Yang used her gauntlets to shield her and it worked. The gauntlets took most of the damage and shielded her from the devastating effects of the dark imbuement around Salem's curved swords. Ruby attacked using her speed to outplay Salem with pure agility, but since she was Ozpin's sister she too had the same time manipulation as he did. Her body moved just as fast as Ruby and was able to block several hits. Blake took the chance to attack from behind. She used her clones to amplify her speed. While she attacked from one side, her clone attacked another simultaneously. Salem pushed all three away using only her aura the shielded her from deadly attacks. Another minute passed and Ruby, Yang, and Blake were still fighting. Blake immediately ordered her friends to stop. The awful sensation coursing throughout her body sensed two dark auras approaching close as well as two familiar auras.

"Blake, Ruby, Yang!" Weiss yelled.

"Nora!" Ren yelled. He rushed to her side and looked at her wound. Nora passed out from the exhaustion and her loss of blood.

"What caused this?" Ren asked.

"We couldn't defeat that Black Swordsman and he is coming our way!" Weiss yelled. Before anyone could respond Blake sensed a massive dark aura appear behind her, large enough to be capable of standing toe to toe with Salem. When she turned she couldn't stop what was coming towards her. A massive blade that was swung by the heavy built Black Swordsman. The blade penetrated through her aura and left a massive gash from her stomach all the way to her shoulder. Blood poured out of her body as she soured into the air. It almost looked as if it were raining blood. Ruby could only cover her mouth and shut her eyes when she witnessed her friend get killed.

"BLAKE!" Yang yelled. She jumped into the air and caught her before she could hit the ground. When she looked at her eyes it was obvious to her that her teammate, her friend was dead. An empty stare was the only thing she was able to show.

"NO NO NO YOU CAN'T DIE! NOT LIKE THIS! BLAKE!? BLAKE!?" Yang screamed. Ruby not focused at her fight in hand turned to see that Salem leaped towards her with her blades in hand ready to impale her just like Jaune.

"RUBY LOOK OUT!" Weiss yelled.

"No." As the blades slowly got closer a body was seen to jump in front of the attack. Ruby's eyes widened as she saw the man who jumped in front of her. It was none other than Jay who leaped forward with all his strength and took the hit for her. The two blades entered his body and came out the back.

"Saving this silver eyed warrior is pointless. You should have saved yourself." Salem's sinister smile changed. Her jaw dropped as she witnessed Jay's right eye flicker from its natural brown state to a blue glowing iris.

"What are you!?"

"I can't let everything I worked hard for go to waste. If sacrificing myself will increase the chance of getting rid of Salem so be it." Jay responded the attack with a powerful rage filled punch to the abdomen that sent a jolt throughout her body and sent her rolling away several feet away. Jay collapsed to the ground coughing out large amounts of blood. His lungs were filled with blood and his entire body felt cold. The blades that were impaled dissipated and his eye returned back to its natural brown state.

"Why am I not helping them? Why am I just laying here?" Jaune's mind was filled with questions without answers.

"Am I dying? Everything is blurry and I can't even move my mouth. I can feel something stuck inside me. It… it feels like a sword. Is… is it my sword?" Jaune's body was starting to relax and his breathing started to slow down. The pain he was enduring was now fading away along with his memories. Salem got back on her feet and walked towards the group who were struggling to stay away from the berserk swordsman. It seems the Black Swordsman was no longer being controlled by Salem and instead was being controlled by his thirst for blood.

"It seems that placing my full control on Jaune disrupted my influence on the others." The Wolf Knight now had complete control of himself, but his mind was already lost by the dark abyss. The two dark users were now fighting each other rather than helping one another. Ruby attempted to pull Jay out of the battlefield, but she wasn't able to. Instead she stood in front of him ready to protect him, the one who shot her sister several times in order to get Raven to appear.

"What are you doing? Get out of her and return back to Beacon. Tell Yang to use Raven's blade to get all of you out of her while you still can."

"I'm not like you Jay. I don't believe in sacrificing a life for the greater good. Everyone's life is equal and not one outweighs the other no matter the circumstances. I am not ready to let Jaune and you die!"

"Don't be stupid Ruby! You need to look at the bigger picture here! There are more lives at risk than Jaune and I. If you can save even 2 more lives by leaving us here then do it! This is what Jaune would want!"

"No! I'm staying!" Ruby yelled. She readied Crescent Rose and prepared to defend Jay.

"You don't have to worry Jay. This whole ordeal will play out the same way it happened to Jaune. Ruby will die… the same way Pyrrha did when she tried to protect him."

"Pyrrha?" Before Jaune's eyes could close, they widened.

"Pyrrha… that name sounds familiar. Pyrrha…" Jaune's body trembled.

"That name sounds very familiar. I know that name yet I don't remember. Pyrrha… Pyrrha…"

Images of a girl with long luscious red hair appeared in his mind. Her emerald eyes were mesmerizing to Jaune. Her signature red and gold outfit brought a strange yet satisfying smile to him. He tried to feel her pale white skin with the palm of his hand, but it went through her.

"Pyrrha… Pyrrha N… Ni…kos. That's who she was. I need to remember what happened to her." Flashing images of moments with Pyrrha appeared in his mind. From the day he first met her, from the Cardin event, from the dance in Beacon all the way to the moment of her death. His body covered with gashes started steaming.

"That's what happened to her, but why am I continuing to fight with her gone!? Images of Ruby nearly getting killed by Adam Taurus, the fight between him and Cinder, the moment when Pyrrha and Adam fought against him, and the images of Jay and Yang when he and his friends were commanded to choose who lives and who dies in Mistral. These images flashed and angered him greatly. His eyes glowed red once again and the steam coming out of his lacerations turned to black infernos.

"That's right! I wanted to get revenge for what they did to Pyrrha. I wanted to get revenge for what they did to Beacon! Their selfish desires and their concern for human life are unforgivable! I can never forgive people like them and I won't let the same mistake occur again! I won't let someone else die protecting me because of my weaknesses." Jaune grabbed his sword from his stomach and attempted to rip the blade straight out. His blood covered teeth were grinding on one another to alleviate the pain he was enduring as he slowly pulled the sword out. It was not blood that spewed out from the wound, but black flames. The black aura emerged out of him and completely swallowed his entire body leaving a black metallic knight armor that was corroded with the darkness similar to that of the Wolf Knight and the Black Swordsman, but unique to him. The crescent moon symbol appeared on his back. It's his family's sign that is passed down from generations to generations. The helmet covered most of his face, but not his mouth. The dark conjured up a black corroded kite greatshield that has long been forgotten. A crescent moon in front of the shield revealed that it once belonged to an Arc. Jaune's aura pushed away the rubble allowing him to get back on his two feet. The black flames continued to rage on around his wound yet he did not feel any pain from it. Everyone looked in awe as Jaune emerged from the rubble with his sword drawn and his newly acquired shield.

"Jaune…" Ruby whispered. Everyone focused on the Black Knight as he walked out of the rubble and into the battlefield.

"There's no need for any of you to continue fighting. I'll shoulder all the pain from here on out."

"We can't just let you fight them alone! Let us…" Weiss said.

"No! I don't want any of you to end up like Pyrrha or… Blake." Jaune looked at Yang who was holding Blake's body.

Jaune's first target was the tall Black swordsman who had his sights on Jaune already. The swordsman although battling it out against the Wolf Knight was ready for Jaune. Jaune approached him from the front and used his sword to block the massive greatsword that clashed against his own. The power and weight behind the attack left a crater underneath Jaune and the shards of rock flew into the air. The Wolf Knight who was no longer under the influence of Salem rushed towards the two, intending to complete his task in stopping the Abyss no matter the cost. The Knight somersaulted over Jaune to strike down the Swordsman who wasn't focused on him. The Swordsman was forced onto the ground and the knight quickly turned to swing at Jaune. Both of their blades made contact and for a brief moment both of their minds were one.

"I will stop the spread of the abyss… at the cost of my life. That is my purpose… my only purpose!" The Wolf Knight managed to strike Jaune across the chest with his sword, but as the blade pierced through his skin, fire permeated on the tip of his blade. Jaune took a step back to avoid his spinning low slash that was intended for him and the Swordsman that got back up. The Black Swordsman fell on his back again this time with black flames burning away at his heels.

"What?" Yang said. Blake's wound was starting to close and life returned to her eyes.

"*GASP*" Blake took a deep breath as she awoke from being dead not too long ago.

"You're alive!" Yang yelled. Ruby and the others turned to see Blake wide awake and being embraced by Yang.

"I thought you were dead." Yang cried.

"What happened?" Blake asked.

"That Swordsman got you and… and your gash was so deep. I could have sworn that you were dead. Actually… you were dead." Blake turned to see Jaune taking on the two Dark users alone.

"We can't just let him fight alone! We need to help him!" Blake quickly got back on her feet and was stopped by Jaune before she could assist him.

"Blake, stop!"

"Why?"

"This is my fight Blake. You were just dead a second ago and I don't know how you are still standing, but I will definitely not let that happen again." Jaune looked towards Salem's direction and saw her smiling at him.

"I'm going to end this now." Jaune aimed his sword at his abdomen and stabbed himself with it.

"JAUNE!" Ruby yelled. Jaune pulled the weapon out and it was now fused with black flames. He turned towards the Abyss walker and the Black Swordsman who were fighting against one another. Jaune rushed them both swinging his sword wildly. The Abyss walker deflected every attack, but he could only do so much with only one hand. Jaune blocked his attack with his shield and slashed the knight at his ribs. Jaune noticed the berserk swordsman swinging towards him and swiftly moved out of the way. The swordsman massive sword completely split the Wolf Knight in two and ended up dissolving into the wind. Jaune spun and slashed at the swordsman's arm catching it on fire, but he wasn't strong enough to completely slice it off. However it was enough to dislocate his elbow and cause him to drop his weapon. Jaune slashed once more this time across his face and slash his legs. Jaune jumped away and knew the only way to completely kill him was to unleash a devastating fiery blast. The amount of dark aura the swordsman held was more than Salem and his own combined. This man was built to kill Grimm stronger, faster, taller, and heavier than him. No one on Remnant could ever compare to him especially the four maidens. He was able to survive Rhett's blast. He shouldn't survive this one.

"It's all or nothing." Jaune placed his shield on his back and gripped the handle of his sword tightly with both hands. He raised the weapon over his head building up dark aura and flames in it. The swordsman got back up and looked at his useless arm. The swordsman's armor tightened the area of his arm causing his bone to be placed back where it initially was regaining movement of his arm. As Jaune was charging his attack he ordered his friends to take cover and prepared to unleash it on the frenzied man that was heading straight at him with his sword at hand.

"RAAAAGH!" A black fiery blast was unleashed from the sword as he dropped it towards the swordsman. Everything in front of Jaune was scorched and covered with black flames. The trees closest to him burned to the ground whereas anything further away was burning away. The distance the flames reached was anyone's guess, but it did cover a long distance. Jaune scanned to see whether the swordsman lived or not and to his surprise, the swordsman was covered in black flames and on the ground, but still moving. Jaune walked over to the man and finished him off by stabbing him directly at his heart.

"Now all that's left…" Jaune turned to Salem who had an evil grin on her face. She had been waiting patiently for her turn.

"…is you."

"This… this is going to be so much fun." Salem split her double bladed staff and readied herself for the impending attack.

"You're going to regret forcing me to fight against my own friends." Jaune ran towards the woman. The flames spewing out of his wounds grew even more. Jaune quickly raised his hand to conjure up black flames underneath Salem. Her body then fell into a black smoke hole that she conjured underneath her. Jaune quickly stopped and turned behind him. He sense Salem reappearing behind him and managed to stop both of her blades with his shield and sword. He kicked her away and used his polarity to pull her back towards him, aiming his blade at her heart. She then released her blades from her grip and managed to regain her balance. Jaune released his semblance and rushed towards her once again. Salem created a black smoke around her hands that materialized the same blades she had moments ago. The two exchanged attacks connecting three hits, but neither side was in pain. Both of their aura are strong enough to take the attack. Salem covered in black flames released her aura causing the black fire to dissipate into the air. She jumped away to dematerialize her weapon. She then summoned a bow with black arrows aimed towards Jaune. She launched a few arrows to which Jaune responded by placing his shield in front of him and using his black hole semblance to send the arrows to the black void.

"Those weren't any ordinary arrows. They would have gone through my shield no problem."

The black flame on Jaune's sword vanished, but that didn't stop him from stabbing himself once more to imbue his sword again with it.

"Why do you continue fighting Jaune? You and I both know where this will ultimately end."

"It will end with your death Salem."

"It might very well be, but what will be left of you? Look at yourself, you're becoming just like me. Thirsty for revenge." Jaune angered by this rushed towards her again. Their blades clashed sending sparks everywhere repeatedly. Ruby, Yang, Blake, Weiss and the others watched as the two of them took shots on one another.

"We just can't stand here. We're letting Jaune do all the work by himself whereas we are just sitting here on our butts doing absolutely nothing." Weiss stated.

"Weiss is right, what kind of friends are we if we don't help him." Ruby said. She was the first to rush towards them followed by Weiss.

"Wait! Ruby, Weiss!" Yang shouted. She turned to Blake who got up and signaled her to join her with aiding Jaune. Yang nodded and cocked her shotgun gauntlets. Both followed behind Ruby and Weiss as they reached Salem. Ruby appeared behind Salem and swung her scythe to her side. Salem summoned her blades and managed to stop her scythe from reaching her. Jaune took the opposite side and it too was stopped by her other blade. She once again teleported through the black smoke underneath her and appeared behind Ruby. She thrusted her curved sword towards Ruby, but it was stopped by Blake's katana. Blake used her opposite hand to shoot several shots at Salem to which she deflected every round with her other blade. Yang from the side released a strong right hook across her face sending her sliding away.

"What are you all doing!? I told you not to interfere!" Jaune yelled.

"You're not enduring all this pain all alone Jaune. We are here to take some of that weight off of you whether you like it or not." Weiss said.

"That's right. Why don't you relax for a bit and let us do some of the heavy lifting." Yang said. Jaune looked back at Salem and noticed her faint smile grow.

"Why is she smiling? Just what the hell is she planning?"

"Listen to me. Be careful when you're around her. Something isn't right about her." Jaune commanded.

"You don't have to remind us about that." Yang's assault came first. She swung her fists viciously left and right. Salem avoided each punch and only managed to feel the burning sensation of her dragon fists. Ruby concentrated on Salem and used a special ability that she had learned from Mistral to paralyze Salem.

"What!?" Salem could not move her body and was taking punches left and right.

"I can't hold it much longer." Ruby said. Weiss used her glyphs to increase Blake's speed. In order to quickly reach Salem and to her shock Salem managed to break out and stop her attack. Blake's katana was storing energy every time her weapon and Salem's made contact. She jumped away to create a gap from them and summoned her bow once more. Her dark aura surrounded her bow and created an arrow that vibrated intensely. She shot the arrow towards the air and when it was about to drop down, it split into 50 dark arrows that surrounded the perimeter.

"Get close to me!" Jaune yelled. They huddled near Jaune as he created a black hole above them. The black void swallowed the arrows that would have seriously wounded or worse… killed them.

"Weiss now!" Blake yelled. Weiss used her glyph to catapult Blake towards Salem with her katana fully charged and ready to be unleashed. As she was sent soaring towards Salem she unsheathed her katana and sliced through her bow and through her aura. However the amount of aura she carried was no laughing matter. It managed to absorb most of the kinetic energy and shield Salem from being cut in two. Salem was sent sliding away with a non-life threatening injury.

"Ren, how's Nora?" Jay asked.

"She's going to be fine, but we need to finish Salem quickly so that we can get her to a doctor. The aura you gave her wasn't enough to completely heal her wound." Ren said. Nora had lost consciousness after losing quite a bit of blood and exhausting herself after running with an injury like that.

"Thanks for giving her your last flask of aura Jay. I don't want to think about it, but had you not had it she could have possibly died."

"I'm glad I could help." Jay looked back at the battle that was going on.

"Just how much control does Jaune have?" Jay wondered.

"Time to finish this! Everyone stay back!" Jaune yelled. He used his polarity to raise himself into the air and launch himself towards Salem who did not expect that to happen. Salem was about to use her blade to shield herself, but as she did Ruby fired two shots at the handle of her swords that caused them to fly off. Jaune reached Salem and placed his sword in front of them. His blade finally pierced through her aura and into her abdomen. Jaune pushed her down onto the ground pinned her there. He looked at her black veined eyes with a satisfied look on his face.

"It feels good doesn't it? Looking at your enemy as she is about to die?" Salem said.

"You brought this onto yourself. Had you not done what you did… maybe things would have been different for you. This is where you will die."

"And the same thing will happen to you Jaune." Salem coughed blood as she struggled to catch her breath.

"You will… end up like me. You'll be killed by the people you swore to… protect. You are *cough* *cough* following the same path after all." Ruby and her team walked towards them to listen in.

"Just a little longer." Ruby and the others reached them and stared at the wicked woman.

"Your dreams, your ambitions, your desires… it all ends here. You'll no longer be a threat to Remnant."

"I won't be a threat… but maybe you will." Salem's aura released from her body and appeared underneath the team. Jaune noticed this and quickly used his polarity to push the team away from the two of them. Ruby slid away hitting a boulder, Blake crashed into Ren, Yang managed to retain her balance, and Weiss used her Glyph to stop herself.

"JAUNE!" Jay yelled. The black aura that once belonged to Salem surrounded Jaune's body.

"It's about time you come to realization of who you truly are!"

"WHY YOU!" Jaune yelled as he tried to overcome the overwhelming power he was given. His screams of agony could be heard from a far distance. His souls started to be split in two. His dark half and his light half now two separate beings.

"CINDER, ADAM, RHETT, SALEM… PYRRAAAAAAH!" A whirlpool of emotions filled Jaune. The negative emotions he had suppressed… now released. A black mist was forced out of his body, spreading throughout the woods and continued to spread through parts of the towns in the surrounding area. The civilians in the cities and rural areas could feel the negativity surrounding them. This was something that creatures of Grimm were strongly attracted to.

Jaune's body flickered and his head turned to Salem. His anger and frustration directed towards her.

"Come Jaune… COME AND FINISH ME!" Images of Pyrrha's smile flashed in his head.

"YOUR INFLUENCE ON CINDER AND RAVEN STARTED THIS MESS! YOUR ACTIONS CAUSED PYRRHA TO DIE AND MADE ME GO THROUGH HELL! I CAN NEVER FORGIVE YOU! RAAAAAAGH!" Jaune unleashed a powerful blast of dark aura mixed with the black flames from his sword that disintegrated her entire body.

"Good… that's the face of one who has accepted the pain."

"JAUNE! JAUNE!" Ruby yelled.

"That's not Jaune anymore." Blake said as her eyes widened, arms shook, and her body trembled.

"I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!" The ground underneath Jaune shook and crumbled. Black aura erupted underneath as if smoke were trying to escape from a confined space. His blonde pale hair from the front lost its pigment. The two souls were now fighting over control over his body and mind. The raging inferno spewing out of his wounds settled leaving only embers and the ground stopped shaking. He was no longer upset.

"We can't let someone like Salem ever spawn in Remnant again! Those who carelessly take human lives into consideration cannot be forgiven!"

"Jaune!" Ruby yelled. Jaune's uncontrollable rage needed to be focused on something or someone. His head turned to his team. They stared at what had become of him. A body filled with wrath. Jaune stabbed himself with his sword and filled it with fire and dark aura. The flames spewing out through his wound grew showing that his wrath continues to grow. He sped towards his team ready to unleash hell on them. Blake attempted to stop his attack with her katana, but it was useless. His strength, power, and speed outmatch her. His powerful slash caused her blade to absorb too much power and caused it to detonate in front of her. Although the blade was still in one piece, using a weapon like hers against someone as strong as Jaune would spell trouble for her. Yang from behind attempted to unleash a fiery jab in the back of his head. Jaune however, sense her presence and used his shield to block the attack and swing his sword. With his speed he managed to land several hits and finish it off with a shield bash. Yang was sent rolling away, but thanks to her semblance, her strength, speed, and endurance increased dramatically. She rushed towards him not letting him get ready for the assault. She swung her fists wildly, ejecting several dust propelled rounds into his shield and body. Yang ducked as Jaune swung his sword and saw the opportunity to grab his arm and kick his leg to bring him down on the ground, but the only problem was that his body was a flame itself. This would mean she would have to force herself to catch on fire along with her attack.

"RRRRAAAAGHHH!" Jaune roared. The ground underneath them started to release black flames which Yang responded by jumping away from him. The ground underneath Jaune turned to black molten rocks.

"Jaune there's no need to fight! Snap out of it!" Ren yelled.

"We're your friends remember! You don't want to do this!" Weiss yelled. Jaune looked at Weiss next and readied his sword. He let out a loud roar as he approached the ice princess. Weiss quickly took action by accurately placing her blade in Jaune's chest causing his body to be covered in ice.

"This should cool him off." Weiss thought.

"NGGHH!" Jaune's body quickly melted through the ice and was about to hack away at Weiss. From the edge of his line of sight, Ren appeared to stop the blade from ripping through her, but with all of Jaune's strength, he managed to break through Ren's blades and deplete all of his aura with one single attack.

"REN!" Jay yelled. He quickly rushed towards Jaune whose blade's fire had just been extinguished.

"Take this!" He attempted to punch Jaune across the face, but Jaune had no problem avoiding it. Jay noticed Jaune was ready to swing and ducked underneath before it could lacerate him across the neck. He grabbed his sigil knife and sliced through the Knight's aura causing the wound to eject even more flames than before. Jaune quickly responded by shield bashing Jay away from him.

"Ruby!" Jay yelled. His body was all worn out from the back to back fights he had to go through the night.

"…" Ruby looked at Jay with a worried look. She didn't know what to do. Should she help them in stopping Jaune or stand there and hope Jaune could come to his senses?

"Don't just sit there! Help us!" Jay yelled.

"I… I…" Jaune jumped towards Ruby slamming down his sword on her. Luckily for Ruby, she jumped out of the way before she could be struck. A pit was all that was left where Ruby once stood. This wasn't just some ordinary man or a strong Huntsman. He was strong enough to be considered close to a demigod. Blake arrived once more to aid the silver eyed warrior. She used her semblance to leave behind an ice clone as Jaune thrusted his sword towards her. His arm and sword were now lodged in the ice statue leaving him unable to attack. Blake saw her chance to attack from the side and went for it. However, much like the Wolf Knight, Jaune used his shield to block the attack and break out of the ice statue to slash at her. Jay saw the opportunity that he was looking for and took it. He kicked off the ground and soared towards Jaune with his knife aiming directly towards his neck.

"No!" Ruby yelled. She aimed her sniper rifle towards Jay's arm and fired a shot into it causing the knife to fall onto the ground. Jay had no aura left to shield him from attacks and the round went through it. He landed on one knee as he groaned in pain.

"What the hell was that for!?" Jay placed his hand over the bullet wound and continued to groan in agony.

"I'm sorry… I… we don't have to kill Jaune! If we can call out to him maybe he'll be able to fight it!" Blake managed to get both of her hands on Jaune's arms and take him down. Her dark aura shielded her from the dangerous flames that spewed out of him. She dug her dark claws deeper into his body in order to immobilize him.

"AAAHHHHHH!" Jaune yelled. He manifested his helmet and head-butted Blake's face. She released Jaune and rolled to the side covering her face.

Jaune rolled towards the knife in attempt to use against Blake. Jay however, didn't give him enough time to grab it. He kicked off the ground and headed straight towards him. He boosted himself towards Jaune and followed up by reaching out with his right hand to grab Jaune's arm and twist it. Jay used the end of his foot to tilt the knife over his feet and kick it towards the air in front of him. The knife flew into the air in front of them and both looked at it as it flipped in flight.

Jay released Jaune's arm and grabbed the knife instead which Jaune hastily responded by punching Jay in the stomach. He bent over and Jaune kneed him across his chin. Jaune pulled his shield and sword towards him and clenched it tightly in his hands as Jay rolled back and landed back on his feet.

"RUBY! THERE'S NO HELPING JAUNE! YOU HAVE TO COME TO TERMS WITH WHAT HE HAS BECOME! IF HE GET'S OUT OF HERE, HUNDREDS OF LIVES WILL BE LOST! DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?"

"DO YOU REALLY EXPECT ME TO KILL JAUNE! AFTER ALL THE TIME I WASTED CHASING HIM DO YOU EXPECT ME TO KILL HIM!? I WON'T!" Ruby yelled. Yang sent several rounds towards Jaune from the side. He used his shield to protect him from the attack and followed up by turning and slashing at the golden fighter. He hurled a black flame towards her way intending to torch her. She used her shotgun gauntlets to absorb the attack and now her fists were imbued with the black flame. The gauntlets are what kept her safe and unable to be harmed by it. A good defense always makes a good offense. The black flames surrounding her fists turned into black dragons. She swung her fists wildly sending several crescent shaped flames back at Jaune. He created a black hole in front of him to send the flames away. When Jaune turned he was struck by Weiss's rapier in his chest. He looked at the girl's light blue eyes that are filled with tears that were ready to stream down her cheeks. This was also hurting her too, but unlike Ruby she understands what must be done. Jaune was pushed away and he quickly filled his sword with aura. This next attack will have devastating effects.

"Weiss get out of there!" Blake yelled. His attack had absorbed enough energy to cut through a person's aura 5x. Weiss had no time to react and wouldn't have time to use her glyphs to escape, but before the sword could lacerate Weiss she felt someone shove her out of the way. It was Ren who made it just in time to push her aside and take the attack in her stead. Blood ejected into the air and Ren was sent sliding away.

"REN!" Jay yelled.

"No." Ruby quietly said. Jaune looked over to Ren who had a deep gash across his chest. Blood was ejecting out of his mouth and spilling onto the floor. The ground was a pool of blood. Weiss sped towards Ren to aid him.

"Why did you save me? You weren't the one who he wanted to kill."

"I… I couldn't let Jaune… to… to kill one of my… friends. I could not bear to watch him do something… that… w…will change the way I… I view him." Ruby arrived next to Ren and placed her hand over the wound. There's no way to stop the bleeding.

"Ruby…" Ren said.

"Why… why do things have to turn out like this. I don't understand. Where did I go wrong with Jaune?"

"It… it's not your fault. There's no need to… beat yourself up for something that… is beyond your hands."

"What… what am I going to tell Nora?" Ruby placed her hands over her face. Ren's blood covered Ruby's face along with her tears that are streaming down her cheeks.

"Tell… Nora to keep moving forward. Tell her th… that I will always be with her and promise me… promise me you won't…tell… N…Nora what… what… ha…happ-" Ren's eyes slowly shut and Ruby shut hers.

"Ren… I… I'm sorry, but I can't live without Jaune. He is what drives me to become something better. He is what shines my day. The moment I saw his misery that awful day… I… I couldn't stand to see him that way. That's when I realized how much his sadness affected me. When I look at him now… he looks the same way he was before."

Yang blasted herself towards Jaune. As he placed his shield in front of him, Blake used her grappling hook to pull his arm away allowing the fiery golden fighter to strike him across the face using her black fire imbued fist. The attack landed, but Jaune used the power behind the attack to his advantage. He spun as she punched him across the face and returned the favor by swinging his sword across her stomach. The impact was so strong that it nearly penetrated through her aura. Jaune then followed up by pulling Blake towards him. When she reached him, Jaune dropped his shield and grabbed Blake by the face and slammed her onto the ground with her face facing him. Jaune flipped his sword, ready to ram it down her chest. Jay gritted his teeth and rushed Jaune before he could finish off Blake. He threw a punch, hoping to hit Jaune in time. Jaune had dropped his sword and stopped Jay's punch in the palm of his hand. Jaune glared at the soldier with his gleaming red eyes and kicked Blake away from him and now had his eyes set on him instead. The Black Knight pulled him and unleashed a powerful dark aura punch that pushed his body into the air. In midflight, Jaune used his polarity to retrieve his sword and assaulted Jay with several slashes across his body.

One slash, two slash, three, four, five, and six. One in the arm, another across his chest, the third one across his stomach, the fourth just as strong as the third made contact with his right forearm, the fifth was well placed in his left shoulder, however the last one missed his throat but managed to scratch his cheek. Jaune then shield bashed him away. Jay slid away on the ground and remained there, feeling the burning sensation all over his body.

Jay pushing through the excruciating pain got back on his feet. The black flames are burning away at his clothing and his skin.

"You just killed Ren and you're showing absolutely no remorse and now you're about to kill me." Jay lifted his head and looked at Jaune straight at his glowing red eyes.

"I WON'T LET THE OTHERS MEET THE SAME FATE! I WILL CRUSH YOU HERE WITH MY OWN HANDS IF I HAVE TO!" Jay's eyes changed to a blue glowing state and his aura appeared once again all over his body. The flames around his body extinguished and his energy returned once more. However it was nowhere near Jaune's. Jay kicked off the ground and jumped towards Jaune, quickly closing the gap between the two. He swung his fist upward hitting Jaune right below his chest. Jay pulled his knife as Jaune was in mid-flight and slashed several times over Jaune's body.

"RAGH!" Jaune roared. His sword struck Jay in his abdomen.

"Please… stop fighting." Ruby whispered. Grabbing her head and kneeling over.

"What do I do? I don't want to hurt either of them. I don't know who to choose. My friends… or Jaune?"

Jay sped towards Jaune again, avoiding his sword swings with his semblance. When Jaune left himself open he pushed his shield to the side and threw several punches into his stomach. The intense black inferno caught his fists on fire. It was a price he had to pay fighting against a man fueled by fire.

"Something's not right. Jaune is 10x more stronger than all of us yet he hasn't finished us. Is he really holding back? It doesn't matter at this point. He must be stopped." Before Jay could deliver the last punch Jaune ejected more flames out of his body which fazed Jay. He used the opportunity to direct a powerful dark aura attack from his sword towards him. The attack was a success and Jay was heavily damaged by it. As Jay rolled away he quickly recovered and took the time to catch a breather whereas Jaune's rage continued to grow. Jay got back on his feet. He limped as he tried to dodge Jaune's assault, but after dodging a few attacks with his fist in front of him ready to counter attack when the opportunity presented itself, he felt a tear in his left bicep. It was difficult for him to move his arm. Jay jumped away to avoid fighting him any further, but as he did Jaune threw his sword straight at him. Jay activated his semblance and the weapon went through him.

"He's going to use his polarity to bring it back." Jaune did what Jay anticipated. When the sword flipped and headed back towards him he jumped towards Jaune, hoping that by activating his semblance he'll get go through Jaune and the sword would impale him instead, but as he went through Jaune, Jaune teleported in front of Jay.

"Dammit!" The sword stabbed Jay through the back of his shoulder. Jaune twisted his sword with his polarity damaging Jay even further.

"ARGH!" Jay out of desperation kicked Jaune in the stomach. He then used his hand to remove the blade out of his left shoulder before Jaune could get back on his feet and do further damage to him. Jaune returned his sword to his side and rushed the injured man. Jay used his semblance to dodge his swing and pulled out his single shot pistol and fired a round into Jaune's ribs. A loud roar was released out of Jaune's mouth as the bullet bypassed his aura and entered his body.

"JAUNE!" Ruby yelled.

"He shouldn't be able to move now." Jaune through sheer will power alone managed to raise his arm and was about to slash him across his body.

"How can you still be…" Jay's eyes widened and gnashed his wine stained teeth. Parts of his face dirtied as if someone had rubbed charcoal on him.

"RAAAAGH!" Jaune roared. He swung his sword aggressively at Jay landing several hits. His aura was now flickering on and off now. This next hit will definitely kill Jay.

Before Jaune could deliver the finishing blow Ruby appeared by him and stopped the blade from slicing through Jay's neck.

"Jaune I know you do not want to hurt your friends so I'm begging you… please fight it!" The others watched as Ruby attempted to bring the Jaune she knew back out. Jaune raised his arm, ready to cut through the rose. Jay who had just reloaded the pistol fired once more at Jaune's chest as Jaune pushed him away. This time the bullet stopped him on his tracks. Jay grabbed his knife and tossed it to Ruby as he slid away. She stared at the knife, hesitating to pick it up.

"What are you doing!? Finish him!" Jay yelled. His body no longer had aura to prevent the rest of his muscles from being strained and torn apart. He was unable to move his body now.

"I can't… I won't." Tears streamed down her cheeks. She shut her eyes trying to come up a solution to their problems that did not involve finishing the first boy she met in Beacon.

"Yang! Blake! Weiss! Do something!" Jay screamed. They only stood by and watched to see what Ruby would do. None of them wanted to be the one who took away her friend's happiness.

"I don't know what to do!"

"You…bitch!" Jay yelled. He used every ounce of strength, whatever stamina he had left to reload the chamber and aim it towards Jaune. His arm violently shook as he aimed the barrel of the gun at Ruby's back. He aimed it carefully so that the bullet would go through Ruby and hit Jaune in the heart. All Jay could see was Ruby's torn cape, her ripped leggings, and the back of her head. It doesn't matter at this point. He doesn't care if he would become the most hated person here, if it meant stopping Jaune so be it.

"I can't let it end this way, not when I have gotten this far!" Jay yelled in his head. Before he could fire his gun, it was kicked from his hand and missed his target.

"Yang!? Why!?" It was Yang who kicked the gun away from Jay. She got down on one knee and picked Jay up by his hair. Both were now on their knees and their red and blue eyes met.

"I warned you, if you ever pulled something like that again I would kill you myself."

"Yang… your sister is willing to risk your life, Blake, Weiss and over a hundred people to bring back Jaune even though it is… impossible!" Yang eyes were empty, compared to Jay's who was slowly filling itself with anger and resentment. She didn't feel any sympathy to the soldier who was about to hurt her sister for the greater good. Her job was to keep her sister safe, but even she wondered whether keeping her safe at the cost of her happiness was something worth doing. Jay frowned at the girl and gritted his teeth.

"You're a Huntress!" Jay slightly turned his head and glared at Blake and Weiss.

"You're all Huntresses! You all knew very well the kind of trouble you were all going to face! Now that you have become what you always dreamt you're just going to throw it all away!? Why did you all become Huntresses for!? Just to go on an adventure? Just to make friends!? Just to let the people down!? You're going to give it all up for what!? A man!? A sister? A teammate? A friend!? You're all going to let hundreds of people die because of Ruby's selfish desire!?" Blake gritted her teeth and frowned at Jay. She promised herself that she wouldn't run away from her troubles anymore, but this kind of trouble wasn't something she ever thought would happen. Sacrificing Ruby's love for the sake of mankind wasn't something she thought could happen. This would mean changing everything about her. Weiss clamped her teeth together. She knew very well that in a way… he was also talking about her. Does she have the power to finish Jaune off and accept the hatred that Ruby will throw at her, sacrificing their inseparable bond? Yang upset by his comment about Ruby and her friends made her let go of his midnight blue hair and instead grip his neck.

"She is what brings a smile to my face. I just want to bring joy to her eyes and I am not willing to sacrifice my own little sister's happiness for you or anyone else for that matter. Losing herself… is like losing a part of me." She gripped his neck tighter making him gasp for more air.

"You're making a… big mistake Yang!" Jay placed both of his hands around Yang's.

Yang's crimson eyes started to be filled with tears. Her quest to look for Jay had ended today and what she found wasn't what she had been searching for.

"I… I hate you… Yang… Xiao… Long." Jay gripped his hands tighter around her wrists. His overwhelming anger and hatred had to be directed somewhere. Tears streamed down the side of her face as she clamped her teeth together.

"I hope… Ruby's decision comes to haunt the both of you… soon." Yang gripped even tighter this time, making Jay struggle for air.

"I hope she… watches as her decision gets the people close to her *Gasp* killed." Jay struggled to say.

"This is the only thing I can do to make sure you won't become a problem to us ever again."

"And when you and your sister are about to die… *gasp*"

"YANG!" Ruby yelled.

"The Jay I knew… the Jay I shared my life stories with, the Jay I was looking for…"

"I hope the two of you will remember this…" Jay started to lose consciousness.

"Is not you."

"Day."

"YANG STOP!" Yang released her grip on Jay's neck. Jay collapsed onto the ground not moving a muscle. She stood up and turned to Ruby who looked at her with a worry look on her eyes. For a moment Ruby thought she was about to lose her older sister.

"GRRRRH!" Jaune roared. The two sigil covered bullets made it difficult for him to move around, but in a brief moment he managed to regain control over his arms. He raised his hand, ready to drive his sword through Ruby's heart. Yang, Blake took immediate action and darted towards them. As they were about to stop Jaune, he swung his arm at them sending them sliding away. The powerful swing had all of his aura focused on that particular area. However, the bullet made him accidentally let go of his weapon as he pushed them all aside except for Ruby.

"We need to stop! We don't have to do this!" Jaune yelled to his twin.

"You gave up your good name for the sake of saving thousands of people in Mistral. You gave it all up thinking it would save the lives, but it didn't and now they see you as an enemy. We need to change their look on you and the only way to start doing that is by finishing things up here."

"They haven't done anything wrong! So why should we!?"

"They won't stop until this gift is gone, you know that. This hurts me as much as it hurts you, but it must be done."

"I'm not going to fight you Jaune." Ruby threw her scythe away and stared at the knight. Tears shone in her eyes. Unable to control his hatred, anger, and frustration Jaune formed a fist and punched Ruby across the face several times.

"Please we have to stop!"

"Finish her Jaune."

"Jaune… this isn't you." Jaune punched her again across the face. Her face bruised up and covered with her own tears and blood.

"This isn't you Jaune."

"Finish her Jaune!" Jaune reached for the knife that Ruby did not dare to pick up and for a moment everything stopped. From inside his head appeared a woman in a golden red outfit. She was someone Jaune knew all too well. It was Pyrrha.

"Jaune?" Pyrrha said.

"Pyrrha?" Both Jaune's replied.

"You've changed… the both of you."

"How… how are you here?" Dark Jaune asked.

"Remember what I said in Emerald Forest? When I helped you unlock your aura?"

"Infinite in distance and unbound by death, I release your soul, and by my shoulder… protect thee." Both the light and dark said in unison.

"When I used my aura to release yours, traces of it remained inside and it allowed me to enter inside your mind and when you absorbed my dark aura that increased the chances of this happening. You saw me before didn't you? I couldn't communicate with you just yet. It was more difficult than I initially thought. It's a trick that only those in my family are capable of doing." Both twins teared up at the sight of their loved one reappearing once again in front of them. Not as an enemy, but a friend. The dark Jaune approached her and attempted to caress her cheek, but like before his hand went through her.

"I don't have a physical form here… I'm sorry." The dark clone of Jaune turned around and formed a fist angered for not being able to feel her soft skin once again.

"Why… why did you have to sacrifice yourself to protect me? I was useless, powerless to defend you and myself. You shouldn't have suffered for my weakness."

"Don't say that. You weren't weak."

"I was and here we are now." The light twin said. Pyrrha scanned the dark side of Jaune.

"You've… you've changed." Pyrrha said to the dark knight.

"This is what I turned out to be because of my inability to save you. Here I am now trying to make sure something like that never has to happen again to anyone else."

"But you're about to kill your friends… you're about to kill Ruby. You understand how she feels about you don't you? She feels the same way I felt and still felt about you. I loved you for who you were back in Beacon. Not the one you turned out to be now." The light Jaune walked in front of his darker self.

"We wanted to avenge your death. We couldn't stand by and watch as Cinder and Adam continue taking more lives. We couldn't stand and watch as others got their loved ones taken away like us. We wanted to prevent that from happening. We didn't want this to reoccur again."

"At the cost of your own soul. Your soul has been split in two, unable to continue maintaining the light and dark in your heart. You've become nothing more than a serial killer Jaune… a serial killer like Salem. " Jaune's heart sank. He couldn't believe that the woman he bled for, the woman he mourned for, the woman he killed for rejected his actions.

"Pyrrha…" Jaune's voice broke down.

"What… what was I to you?" The light Jaune asked.

"You were someone I loved and you still are. You were someone who brought a smile to my face just like you brought a smile every day to Ruby when you were there… near her. I found it hard to express how I felt about you and before I could build up the courage to say it… I…" Jaune's eyes glistened from the bright red light that emitted from Pyrrha and the tears gathering in the edge of his eyes.

"We miss you." Dark Jaune said. Pyrrha walked over to him and tried to wipe his tears off of his face, but couldn't.

"There's no need to continue fighting. There's no need for you to continue struggling. You can stop carrying everyone's burdens. You're not alone." Pyrrha reached out to the both of them.

"You've done your job already. It's time to finally rest." The dark side of Jaune reached for her arm, but returned it to his side.

"No. We've come this far already. I can't allow someone else to feel the same pain we had to endure."

"I've been watching over you Jaune. That's enough. There's no need for you to continue taking everyone's anger and frustration." Jaune looked down on Ruby who was covered in blood and was emotionally torn. He saw that he was holding Jay's knife. His arm violently shook as he aimed the knife at her heart.

"Jaune… I know… I know you can hear me. Jaune it's me." Ruby voice broke down.

"There's no need to carry all that responsibility over your shoulders. Let us… let me help you." Ruby swallowed the blood that slowly filled in her mouth.

"Jaune…we're family." Jaune paused for a moment, his heart skipping a beat.

"We need you… I need you… because I love you." Ruby could see a tear streaming down his cheek when she said that. His red glowing eyes quickly flickering.

"You have to decide Jaune." Pyrrha said, offering her hand to both individuals.

"Your purpose or your family?"

Thanks for reading this chapter. I actually got this out sooner than usual because of the RWBY volume 4 release is coming soon. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I hope you will stick around for the final chapter that will be released as soon as possible. I guarantee that it will be released before Volume 4 of the show is released. Have a nice day!