Chapter 48 – Grief-Stricken

Ruby

The sound of an owl hooting…

After everything they had just survived, seeing so many brave people die in such terrible ways at the claws, teeth and flames of nightmarish beasts? It's calming hoots were just the calming sound that Ruby needed to hear right now. She couldn't see the nocturnal bird, but she just hoped that it would be okay.

It felt like it had been years since she could enjoy the sounds of nature, especially recently with the past few days. The Grimm have been slaughtering everything in their path, wiping out all forms of life. In fact, this was a factor Ruby hadn't fully considered.

How many species have been wiped out already?

The Grimm have been thorough, they're relentless and destroying everything like a flood. Even should we win… things are going to go back to the Dark Ages. Hunting and scavenging for food, building farms to grow more food of our own.

If the Grimm kill enough of the wildlife… will there even be enough left for us to survive with?

Will we all just… starve to death?

Her hands shook, trembling at the very thought of everything that they've done, all the sacrifices… for it all to have been for nothing?

No… it cannot end like that.

There must be a tomorrow, a future they all strive towards.

It was just… pretty hard to see right now.

Her gaze turned when she saw Cinder stood nearby, then the Fall Maiden approached her, sitting down beside her as they looked outside, at the still beautiful countryside of Anima. Listening to the hoots of that owl. "I'm sorry." Cinder said to her, glancing at Ruby. Everyone could feel the pain in Ruby right now. She just lost her Uncle… and her Biological Father.

"After my mom died… Qrow really took up the mantle… because… my dad…" She closed her eye with grief, shaking her head. "I don't even know who to refer to as my dad anymore… isn't that screwed up?" She scoffed.

"No…" Cinder reassured.

"They both were there for me at different times… I just wish that Qrow… didn't lie to us for so long about him being my dad. Maybe things could've been different." Ruby sighed, wiping the tears from her eye. "He always pushed himself away because he was afraid his Bad Luck Charm would ruin my life… but as my dad would always say… I made my own luck." She said with a small smile.

"Did Tai often come up with inspirational one-liners like that?" Cinder asked curiously.

"All the time." Ruby chuckled. "Some really stupid ones too… so did Qrow… I'm gonna miss that stupid old man. All his silly jokes… his smile…" Ruby said, with tears running from her eye.

"He went out like a hero… a legend that people will tell stories about. The Huntsman who charged at the bringer of our annihilation with only one goal in mind: to make him scream." Cinder said with a chuckle.

"I hope he did." Ruby said as she clenched her hands into fists.

"I think he did." Cinder stated, then Ruby looked at her. Cinder passed Ruby one of the cans of food, knowing the girl needed to eat. Even if with the grief in her gut was masking her hunger, she had to keep going.

"What do you mean?" Ruby asked.

"The Lord of the Wood was the only one to chase us. No Grimm… no other Higher Demons. We have all 3 Relics… why else would they not pursue us, if not because their master was in real trouble? Trouble so bad… that he was screaming?" Cinder explained, putting some salt in the gross-looking food. Same for Ruby.

Ruby thought about that, and a small smile grew on her face. "He really did it…"

Ruby picked up the plastic white spoon and started scooping the food out of the cold can. She was so hungry that she didn't care how gross it tasted. Cinder nodded her head. "To go out on your own terms… with a big fat smile on your face? It's how everyone wants to go down, isn't it? Spitting in the face of death and doing exactly what you said you'd do." Cinder said as she looked at Ruby.

"I hope we're all so lucky." Ruby said with a fearful tone in her voice.

"If we all die fighting… then we do. Giving up and just letting Umbra take the Relics? Then that'd just be lying down, giving that bastard exactly what he wants. No… the only person who's gonna die against their terms… is him." Cinder promised as she glared ahead at the waterfall.

They both listened to the Owl some more as they at their food.

"Gods, this shit's horrible." Cinder groaned.

"You're telling me." Ruby agreed.

Kassius

He stood with his arms resting against the railing, looking down at the main living room where everyone was sitting together. He could see Yang and Blake were sitting next to each other, sharing in their grief, whilst J.N.P.R were tending to everyone else. Nobody was okay, not really… everyone was struggling with the deaths of so many loved ones.

But Kassius still couldn't stop thinking about them.

Team C.F.V.Y, Coco and Velvet especially.

Yes, they weren't part of his team anymore, but he became very close to the two of them on their mission to Arkhonex; they didn't have to go with him on such a suicide mission. They put their trust in him…

… all of this… it was all too familiar.

His hand was shaking as he closed his eyes, seeing their faces in the back of his mind. And when he opened his eyes, he could feel her stood over his shoulder. It felt like time had stopped, and he did not turn around to face her. "You can't keep blaming yourself for it, Kas." Vetra said. He closed his eyes and grit his teeth, shaking his head.

"You're not there…" Kassius sighed. He had felt like he had experienced this exchange so many times in the past.

"You still can't let it go, even after all this time. After all that's happened, all that's changed. You can't let go… because you feel like you deserve punishment. Punishment because you couldn't save us." Vetra stated, but he shook his head and walked away from the railing, only to see the other members of his team.

Rajah and Draven.

The two of them stood before him, and Vetra was behind him. He sighed and walked to the wall, pressing his back to it and crossing his arms, refusing to look at the hallucinations. "You gotta let it go." Rajah said.

"I can't… I was your leader… it was my duty to keep you all safe… and I failed you." Kassius sighed, shaking his head.

"Man, that's bullshit." Draven quickly replied, getting Kassius to glance back at him. "There wasn't a damn thing you could have done that would have made that night go any differently. It went the way it had to, the way it was always going to. Just like this…" Draven said as he gestured to their surroundings.

"You always were the spiritual type." Kassius scoffed.

"You're so close to moving on completely, and we want you to. You and Yang? You're trying for a baby… you love her completely. I know you've moved on from me, and I'm so proud of you for that. But you gotta let all of us go…" Vetra said to him as she approached, standing right beside him. He finally looked at her. She seemed so real, but she was ever so faintly translucent.

"How?" He asked her. "Because even now… I still can't get the thought out of my head. If I had gotten to you all faster, if I could have stopped it…" Kassius said to them.

"You couldn't have stopped Death… he was always one step ahead of us…" Rajah stated.

"We were kids… even if you were there, you would've just died too." Draven stated.

"Or I could have held him off… and you all could have made it." Kassius said, feeling like he was regressing to a point he hadn't been in since before Yang came barrelling back into his life.

"You're stronger than you give yourself credit for… and you have always been a good leader. So many people wouldn't have followed you if that weren't the case." Vetra stated.

"And those people need you." Hyde's voice appeared. Kassius turned around to see Hyde stood behind him. And when Kassius looked back at his team, they were gone. He sighed, closing his eyes as tears trickled down from them. "Been a long time since you had an episode like that, Kassius… and I don't like the way your mind is right now."

"Stop…" Kassius sighed as he walked past him.

"It shouldn't have been you." Hyde repeated.

"Was that you? Making me see them like that?" Kassius questioned, and Hyde sighed.

"I share your body, Kassius, I know your thoughts… the old me would have enjoyed tormenting you with those hallucinations again… but no. Not this time… I only used their images to make you face them. Because you keep on dwelling on it." Hyde stated, and Kassius scowled, shaking his head as he walked away.

"I thought we were past this shit." Kassius sighed.

"So did I… like I said… it's been a long time since you've struggled like this. But back then you were alone… trapped with just a monster in the back of your mind who relished in tormenting you. Always wanting control instead of sharing it. We're in this together now." Hyde explained.

Kassius stopped, looking down the hallway to see Sun, Penny and Oscar sat together, talking amongst each other. "I know you still feel that way, even if you wish you didn't. And losing Coco and Velvet… Velvet especially… it's brought those thoughts back, hasn't it?" Hyde asked him. Kassius sighed, pressing his arm against the wall and pushing his face into the sleeve. His lip trembled, and his clenched fist shook.

"I already failed one team… I was terrified when the Academy gave me a new one. I still think it should've been Oscar to be leader, not me." Kassius admitted.

"You're a good leader, always were. The way Team K.R.D.V were going, you would have been one of the best teams in Haven's history." Hyde explained. Kassius closed his teary eyes and shook his head.

"What could've been…" He said.

"Do you wish Vetra was still alive?" Hyde asked him.

"Of course I do." Kassius answered.

"Even with how far you and Yang have come?" Hyde asked.

Kassius didn't hesitate. "I never said that Vetra and I would have stayed together. The two of us… I loved her… but never like how I loved Yang. Yang will always be my one and only… and honestly, I think Vetra would have liked her."

"You would have broken up with Vetra?" Hyde asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes… because honestly, I never stopped loving Yang. I was… lying to myself, trying to fill a hole that was left behind after I moved to Haven. Honestly, I sometimes wished I had gone with her to Beacon instead of Haven." Kassius said. "What haunts me is that they all should still be here. All of them… and when I'm with Oscar, Sun and Penny? I sometimes… see their faces." Kassius explained.

Two guys and a girl.

A very small similarity, but the similarity was still there, and it was even worse when he looked at them.

Vetra was the kindest of them all, the sweetest, just like Penny.

Oscar was the calmest, just like Draven.

And Sun was the more bombastic of them, like Rajah was.

"It almost feels like the universe is telling me something… giving me a second chance, a chance to redeem myself for my failure." Kassius said as he stared at his hands. "I couldn't protect Cardin… I couldn't protect Coco or Velvet, either." He said, then he looked at the cracked door where he could see them talking.

Kassius turned to Hyde, staring at him with certainty in his eyes. "I will not let them down." He promised, before walking away. Hyde sighed, still feeling these tragic thoughts in Kassius' mind.

"Well… then let's see to it that they do survive. Nora survived the Lord of the Wood… who knows what's possible?" Hyde stated, making Kassius chuckle.

"Yeah… who knows?" He agreed as he approached the door, then swallowed his depression and his guilt down, and put on that smile, the persona so many knew him for. He pushed the door open to see Penny in tears, and Oscar with his arm around her. Sun was standing by the wall, staring out the nightlight at the shattered remnants of their moon. The mood was hardly much better in here, but that's what Kassius felt like he was here for.

To make them feel a bit better about this terrible situation.

"He… he wouldn't leave… he chose to go down with his ship." Penny sniffled, and Oscar nodded his head.

"He wouldn't have had it any other way." He assured with a kind smile.

"And he didn't die for nothing, Penny… if he hadn't closed that Reality Tear, we would have been overwhelmed. He helped give us the time we needed to escape with the Relics." Sun explained. "Gave all of them a chance."

Kassius walked in and he set Lash Equinox down against the wall, beside all of their weapons. He sat down on the chair in front of them, and he reached forward and gently caressed Penny's shoulder. She looked at him and smiled, then turned to give him a warm hug. Penny always loved hugging people, especially after she was given her human body. Oscar looked at Sun and they both felt the same grief for the same man.

"You okay, Sun?" Oscar asked him.

"I… I don't know what I'm feeling." Sun sighed. "For so long I wanted to kill Hazel for what he did to my parents… but I ended up forgiving him… and now I'm mourning the man." Sun explained, chuckling as he sat down on the sofa beside Oscar. "How confusing is that?" He scoffed.

"I'm right there with you." Oscar reassured. "When Ruby and I were captured, he's the reason I made it out of there. Him and Mercury… and Mercury died making sure at least one of us made it out. And when he was one of us, he never stopped trying… even though so many people didn't want to believe he switched sides… he always had our backs. Even with his hatred for Ozpin." Oscar explained, wringing his hands together.

"I'm gonna miss that big guy… and that gruff voice of his." Sun said.

Penny sniffled, and she sat down on the beanbag next to Kassius, hugging her knees. "At least they all went out fighting… I know I'd wanna die like that. Fighting to the very end." Oscar said.

"Nobody else is gonna die." Kassius promised.

"You don't know that, man." Sun said.

Kassius sighed. "No… I don't. I dunno, though… things feel different. We have a chance here. We have all the Relics and our shot to take down Vir Nominis Umbra is closer than ever. Whatever is in the Embered Grove is the key, I just know it." Kassius explained.

"What do you think it is? Some crazy sword that can put him down?" Sun asked.

"Nah, seems too predictable." Oscar answered.

"Whatever it is, it has Umbra scared. When Sylens Emerais figured out there was something in there, he decimated Arkhonex. I don't believe in coincidences for that bastard." Kassius stated.

"Yeah. He's got a pretty outstanding track record of doing things for a reason. He doesn't do things based on a whim, so destroying Arkhonex was definitely in reaction to Sylens figuring that out. Even if his time as an A.I drove the dude insane." Oscar said.

Kassius looked at his cybernetic hand, then he sighed. "I just wanna let you guys know… I'm gonna make sure you all get through this, okay? I don't want anyone else to die, but I'm also not stupid enough to believe the worst is behind us. The opposite could be true. But whatever happens… I will keep you all safe." He promised as he looked at them.

"Kassius…" Penny sniffled. "We keep each other safe." She corrected.

"I know… but…"

"No." Penny stopped him. The sudden no actually made Kassius jolt. "We're not blind to it, Kassius. I know Yang knows, she's your girlfriend… but the rest of us? We know that Coco, Velvet and Cardin's deaths all hit you really hard." Penny explained, and Sun nodded his head.

"I shouldn't have said what I said to you, man… it's been haunting me ever since. I'm so sorry." Sun said with tears in his eyes.

"I…" Kassius stammered.

"We're a team, right?" Oscar asked, standing up and gently squeezing Kassius' shoulder. "So we all face this together. It's not all on you. And we're all gonna see this through." Oscar assured, Kassius looked up at him with tears welling in his bloodshot amber eyes. He bowed his head and finally could let out his grief. They all walked to him, and wrapped their arms around Kassius, sharing in his grief.

He could share with Yang… but this?

This was different…

… he hadn't felt this way since he had Team K.R.D.V.

It was a feeling he missed… that feeling of being in a real team.

Jaune

Jaune caressed Pyrrha's red hair as she rested on his lap, getting as much sleep as she could after using up so much energy in the battle they just endured. But in truth, getting any sleep was pretty hard right now. "How much longer can we seriously stay here?" Emerald asked.

"Not much longer. Soon Umbra will come after us. If he isn't already on his way." The Architect answered as he tweaked his rifle. He had just finished loading as much ammunition that was stored here onto their bullheads, dust and all. Alongside some food for the flight they had ahead of them.

Blake was sat down beside Yang, looking at the blade of Gambol Shroud in her hand. She exhaled shakily, still thinking about the fact that now… the White Fang was no more. She was most likely the last one left, or at the very least, the last higher up in the organisation left. And with so many brave soldiers dead, the entire world's future was resting on the shoulders of the people in this structure. The tension was so thick in the air that one could cut it with a knife.

"We'll get ready to leave soon." Jaune assured.

Yang looked at Blake, and Weiss sat down next to her. Ruby was also seen rejoining the group with Cinder, and Kassius did the same with his team. Yang smiled at Kassius when he walked back inside, and he sat with his team. "Is he okay?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah… Coco and Velvet's deaths… they hit him pretty hard. He's strong but… I know him. He has a bad habit of bottling his problems up… but he's getting better at talking to me about them. Sometimes having someone to talk to makes all the difference." Yang said as she also thought about the loss of Qrow.

"How about you, Blake? How're you holding up?" Weiss inquired.

"The White Fang… it's all gone." Blake stammered. Weiss and Yang looked at Blake as she spoke. "That organisation… I've had such a complicated relationship with it. At first it was a symbol for good, something I believed in. But when Adam and Sienna Khan took over, it started to fall into a dark path. Then, with the Knights of Grimm making their presence known, things improved, only to fall apart again when Umbra used my likeness to murder Sienna and place the blame on me. I kill Adam… the Albain Brothers… Mazen… and now I'm the High Leader for an organisation that doesn't even exist anymore." Blake explained, burying her head in her hands.

A tear dropped from her eyes and onto the floor. "How did things get like… this?"

"So long as we win, and our universe isn't erased… every single soul that has died will be remembered." Ren stated, getting Blake's attention. "It may not seem like much now, but if we think about it… we really could make something beautiful. Memorials that remember everyone that lost their lives in this conflict for our very existence."

"Memory is the key. It's the main thing that Vir Nominis Umbra will take away from us if he wins. Nobody… nothing will remember the things we've done except for him." Nora stated as she clenched her hands into fists.

"Hell no… I refuse to let our story end like that." Yang snarled with anger in her eyes. A silence filled the room as they sat here together, then Weiss looked around and a small smile formed on her face, getting Cinder's attention.

"What's up?" Cinder asked her.

"Just… thinking. Back when Ruby and Oscar were taken… this place was like a home to us. It's a shame we didn't come back here more often. It kept us safe when it felt like the world was ending." Weiss said.

"And here it is, giving us shelter when it actually is." Jaune chuckled, nodding his head in agreement.

"I remember me being scared out of my mind when this one got hurt." Ren said as he playfully elbowed Nora.

"Hey!" Nora giggled, a sound they all had missed hearing.

"And when a certain someone got a bit messed up." Yang said as she glanced at Kassius, of which he touched his scars, chuckling lightly.

"Sorry about that." Cinder said awkwardly.

"Hey, Yang started getting wild because of these babies. I think you did me a favour." Kassius joked.

"Gross." Ruby groaned, rolling her eye as she rested her head on Oscar's shoulder.

"To think… back then… we had no idea about all this… about Vir Nominis Umbra. We all thought Salem was the big bad in charge, and the Knights of Grimm were just these legends who worked for her." Sun said as he fiddled with Ruyi Jingu Bang, walking over to Blake's side and sitting down beside her.

"I don't think I came here." Penny said.

"No, we found you when you fell out of the sky on the Volcanic Chain Isles." Weiss reminded.

"Oh, yeah." Penny chuckled. "Not my best landing."

"We really lucked out with that one." Sun said.

"Well… I remember those islands very well for one reason." Jaune said, looking down at Pyrrha, who was still fast asleep on his lap. "Gods… that really was five years ago… feels so much longer than that."

Memory really was the key.

The thing that was always worth fighting for, both the good and the bad.

Both were better than simply being forgotten.

"Y'know… I was also just thinking… about Qrow." Ruby said as she played with the laces on her boot. "He was one of the first people to actually meet Vir Nominis Umbra, of our little group anyway."

"Who was the first?" Penny asked.

"Me." Yang answered.

"Really?" Emerald asked. Even Neo raised her brow at that.

"Yep. When I was on my way through Anima, I stopped to make camp for the night, when a random stranger showed up out of the darkness asking if he could share the fire with me. It was only when he arrived at Beacon did it click for me… that it was him all along." Yang stated.

"Hell, technically, we all met him at some point. He was that goddamn shopkeep…" Weiss stated.

"Oh, yeah… that was him spying on us too… so that means…" Yang said, looking at Ruby with Blake.

"I… was the first. With Roman." Ruby said, looking at Neo, and she nodded.

"I'll always remember when I first met him… when he poisoned me and made me lose my voice to punish Roman." Neo signed.

"That's right… you used to be a singer, right?" Emerald asked her.

Neo nodded her head.

"He enjoys taking things from people to prove a point, doesn't he?" Blake scoffed as she threw her can in the trash in the corner of the room.

"I just think it's funny… that one of the first people to actually speak to him one to one… was Qrow… and he got to really mess him up. I bet he enjoyed that." Ruby hoped as she held Oscar's hand.

"I remember the first time we heard of his name was from Oscar." Weiss said as she looked at him.

"Gods… when I was thrown back in time to Arkhonex… he was there watching me the whole time." Oscar said, closing his eyes as he thought about it. The amount of times Vir Nominis Umbra had most likely been watching them, and pushing things along in the shadows?

It sent shivers down their spines… just not knowing that he was right there the whole time.

"But… to think that we're close. Close to ending this once and for all? Funny… how this place sheltered us so early on… and now it's doing the same once again when we're so close to the end. We just gotta push a little more… back to Arkhonex. Back to the Embered Grove… and find the secret that Vir Nominis Umbra is so scared of us finding." Ruby said to them all, and they all nodded, finding that resolve they thought they were losing.

Kassius raised his can of gross food. "To the people we've loved… and lost." Kassius said, and everyone raised their cans.

"And to always keep moving forward."

Ozpin

He stood before the waterfall, staring at the Relic of Knowledge that floated in the palm of his hand. Glynda and Maria approached him from behind as he stared at it. "Have you tried using it?" Glynda asked curiously.

"No, it would definitely give our position away." Ozpin answered, letting it fall back inside of Mihi Vindicta.

"Right, like how when Kragen used the Relic of Creation, it marked Dragonspire Keep for Vir Nominis Umbra to attack." Glynda sighed.

"Not like it would tell me things I don't already know. And it still refuses to show me anything ahead of us… it has helped me see things and learn things throughout time but never during the Shivering Dominion… and I'm not sure why." Ozpin said, and Maria sat down on a rock beside him as she rested her scythes against the stone.

"I've been thinking about that, with what you've told me." Maria said, and they both looked at her. "You always said that you couldn't look into the Shivering Dominion, with the Relic or your time travel abilities. Only that one moment in time…" Maria stated.

"Correct." Ozpin confirmed.

"Then… does that mean that everything that happened up until these moments was already written? Like it was fated to happen that way?" Maria asked curiously.

"I've been wondering that, but Ruby, Oscar, Jaune and Pyrrha defy that idea. They have defied their fate time after time. For example, the arrow that took her eye should have killed her, Jaune should have been killed by that Ursa Major in Forever Fall, Pyrrha Nikos should have stayed dead and Oscar was never supposed to exist if not for my meddling." Ozpin explained as he stared at the relic in his hand.

"And then there's Nora…" Glynda said.

"And then there's Nora." Ozpin agreed. "I assumed that the four were the anomalies, but she also survived her fate despite the Higher Demons and Umbra himself being certain of it happening. Yet it didn't, and she's still with us. Things are out of balance… and I can tell that it is getting to Umbra. The unpredictability of this universe is frightening him." Ozpin stated with a slight smile.

"Perhaps that's what the Shivering Dominion is exactly that… a pocket in time that is completely unwritten. Allowing Umbra to destroy the universe, yes… but also making it impossible for him to predict his enemies' movements." Maria suggested, and the two of them remained quiet.

"It makes sense… whilst Umbra has had the upper hand against us, we still have the Relics. The Battle of Dragonspire Keep definitely felt like what Umbra expected to be the final battle… yet here we stand. And him still with only a single relic." Glynda explained, and Ozpin nodded his head.

"You may be onto something." He agreed. Then Ozpin sighed as he lowered his head. "Like everyone else inside… I can't help but think about everyone we lost. Carmine… Hazel… Qrow…" He sighed.

"I never expected Carmine to do something so brave." Maria said, as she fiddled with her mask.

"But Qrow? I always had a feeling that if he died… it would be taking on the biggest, scariest thing. Him and Hazel died the way they chose, fighting to the bitter end against the ultimate evil. We should all be so lucky to have known people so brave." Glynda said with a proud smile, even though she missed her old friend so badly.

The three of them turned when the Architect approached. "It's time. We can't risk staying here a moment longer." He told them.

"Alright, let's move." Maria agreed, hopping off the rock and joining them. Ozpin stared at the waterfall for a few more moments before he joined them. Everyone got aboard the Bullheads, and Sun left one more note for Umbra to read. The Bullheads soared out through the waterfall and headed toward Arkhonex.

Leaving their old trusty safe-house behind.

This was it.

One way or another, the fate of the universe will be decided.

Either with their defeat and Umbra acquiring all the Relics…

Or they learn the truth of Vir Nominis Umbra's weakness.

Vir Nominis Umbra

In the Charred Forest…

He stood upon the cliff edge, staring down at the ocean of black tar beneath his feet. His hand twitched as he glared, hearing the echoing memories of his past. Remembering when he battled against Salem as that giant spider here…

… and remembering all the lies, all the betrayals… all the sacrifices.

"If this is to be where my story ends, then they must prove it to me. Show me just how strong you really are, Ruby Rose." Vir Nominis Umbra snarled, his eyes glowing bright red and suddenly causing the black tar to rise.

Constructing a brand new monster.

Something to hunt them down.

Something… massive…

Author Note - They've had their rest and now back into the fray, and Vir Nominis Umbra is not done with them yet

Sorry this chapter was a bit smaller, it just didn't need to be overly thick with the stuff that happened.

Kassius' part was probably my favourite, his grief over Coco, Velvet and Cardin makes me so sad because of how he relapses, but thankfully his team help bring him back. Poor dude needs some serious therapy to deal with that survivor's guilt he has.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!

Stay tuned for the next chapter!

- Matt