A/n: I have read the reviews and have tried to adjust accordingly, they're mostly about grammar and spacing so that's a relief. I'm glad I'm making sense to the lore since this was one of the major snags my first story had.
Not much to say, except thank you for the advice and please keep giving it.
Chapter discussion type thing is at the end, so if you're interested give that a read. It's like 100 words.
When one thinks of a bird, the words free, graceful, and majestic may come to mind. All traits that embodied the avian species of the world in one way or another.
If that was the case.
Then Shirou Emiya was no bird.
The young hero flew forwards, wind rushing into his face. Forcing his eyes to stay closed, only managing to open them for slight glimpses at a time. Shirou could feel his descent, the catapult that had launched him into the air could only launch him so high.
Every time his eyes opened they stung.
'Damn it' he thought, Shirou already had a landing strategy in mind, but to even begin it he had to keep his eyes open for longer than a few moments. 'Suck it up Emiya! You can take getting stabbed, but not keep your eyes open?' he scolded, and forced his eyes open. The wind immediately dried out his eyes, the wind stung his now dry eyeballs as he barrelled forward.
He spotted what he needed to enact his plan.
A tree, not just any tree. A tree that had withstood the test of time, a tree that was tenacious enough to reach beyond the ceiling of trees that gave the Emerald Forest its namesake. In other words, it was a tall tree and he was heading right for it.
Shirou's plan was simple, use Reinforcement on his body and the blade at his waist and impale it through the trunk of the tree. Stopping his descent, which would then allow him to climb down said tree. Reinforcing the blade was to make sure that it would impale deep enough to give him a solid hold on the tree. Reinforcing his body was to make sure he wouldn't die, now Shirou was no genius, but even he knew that a sudden stop while he was going at breakneck speeds would be a bad idea.
Willing the Magical Energy within him into the gaps of the blade, Shirou began to glow a dim teal. The blade dug into the truck like a hot knife through butter, the next moment Shirou had propped his legs out to take the impact on the trunk. The tibia may be one of the most commonly broken bones in the human body, but with a little reinforcement, and it might as well have been a femur.
It was all going according to plan.
And then Shirou broke through the tree, and tumbled to the ground. For all his planning Shirou forgot about one crucial detail: Could the tree withstand the force his reinforced body would exert on it at the moment of impact?
The short answer was no.
Shirou shrieked as he fell to the forest floor, his reinforced body making sure that his bones were still intact. Regardless, even if nothing was broken. He could still feel pain.
"It's official." He groaned. "I hate heights." Still even if the plan did not go as he'd intended, he still landed somewhat safely. Now he'd just need to find a partner and a relic to make sure he was accepted into Beacon.
Just not yet, he'd lay here for a bit.
As Ruby Rose rolled onto the ground, she immediately made it back to her feet and took off into a sprint.
"Yang! Shirou! Weiss!" She exclaimed. She needed to get a partner she knew, there weren't many people here at Beacon that she didn't turn into a blubbering mess of awkwardness. If she was going to survive the next four years, she'd get at least one of the three as her partner.
Yang as her sister was the obvious choice, the blonde would protect her and was a social butterfly. Making friends came easy to her, and if she managed to get some mutual friends then it would be all the better.
Shirou was easy to talk to, plus he had such a cool Semblance. She didn't really know him too well yet, but he seemed nice enough in all of their interactions.
Weiss was similar, she even had some points that made her relatable to the hooded initiate.
Wait, did she seriously only know three people in all of Beacon? She racked her brain for evidence of the contrary, no such luck however.
"Wait, I know Ja-" what followed was a pair of loud shrieks that echoed out through the Emerald Forest. Ruby in her haste had managed to barrel into someone, Ruby shook her head. A slight pain that radiated on her forehead was present, but it wasn't anything major.
"I'm so sorry!" Ruby quickly apologized, then realized who she had collided with. "Weiss!" She gasped, wrapping her arms around the white haired girl. Relief washing over her as she held her new partner, Weiss shuffled in her arms for a moment.
"I'm glad to see you too Ruby." Weiss began, patting the girl on the back. A signal for her to get off, and help her up.
Ruby pulled the Schnee heiress up to her feet, and allowed her to dust herself off. Their little tumble had knocked them both to the ground, so following in the older girl's example Ruby began to dust off the specs of dirt that had attached themselves onto her precious combat skirt.
"I'm glad to see you're okay." Weiss continued, not making eye contact as she inspected her garments. "Do you have a sense of direction Ruby? We should get going to our objective."
Weiss seemed different to Ruby, she seemed tense. Though Ruby supposed that was to be expected, they were in a forest full of deadly Grimm.
Oh gods, they were in a forest full of deadly Grimm.
Meanwhile Rin Tohsaka glanced in Ruby's direction, the girl seemed safe and physically able. So that was a plus. Rin tried her best to hide her annoyance, the nerve of the Headmaster.
Chucking students off a cliff?! What was that all about? Rin didn't have time to process it when she was preparing to be launched, her mind immediately went to thinking of how she'd land safely. While she took a rather crude approach in landing, she was just happy to be unscathed.
'Focus' she reminded herself, she had more pressing matters to attend to. Ruby was now her partner, all that was left now was to find Shirou and hopefully figure out how to end up on the same team as him.
Rin checked her person once more, there were no injuries. External or otherwise, and all her belongings were still with her.
She suspected the best way to approach the situation was to at least get their bearings first, but how? She didn't know the area, and the Headmaster gave little to no hints. "The northern end of the forest…" Rin trailed off, she had no way to tell which way was north. "Do you have any idea which way is north Ruby?"
"Huh? U-Uh…" Ruby slowly shook her head.
Rin fell back into thought, and looked over to Ruby. The girl beside her wasn't the same one from last night, she was nervous and therefore somewhat of a liability. "Ruby." Rin began. "I have an idea, but I'll need you to watch my back. Can you do that?"
"You can count on me." Ruby answered, and drew the mass of metal that hung on her lower back. Rin knew it was some type of firearm, but she didn't pay it too much attention. Instead she reached into the pouch that hung around her hip, and fished out an elongated Dust crystal.
Click
The image of her trigger flashed in her mind, and felt the warm thrum of her magic circuits filling with energy. "Anfang." She whispered.
The crystal in her hands shimmered to life as it began to spin in place. Rin couldn't help but become nostalgic, a simple compass spell such as this was one of the first things she learned as she became a Mage. This specific spell never got much use, and was often overshadowed by the other much grander things she'd learn like the Gandr bullets she'd use, or an even better example was the summoning ritual for the Holy Grail War.
Rin peered over her shoulder, Ruby's back was still turned away from her. Good.
While the laws of Magecraft may or may not have applied in this world, due to the absence of the Association. Rin couldn't help but stick to the secrecy she'd grown up with.
To be a Mage is to walk with death.
Rin couldn't count the times she'd heard that statement or a variation of it from Emiya Shirou.
Among the many things Rin had learned from Ruby and her sister was that the former had an intense curiosity for everything weapon and Huntsman related. She was a veritable encyclopedia on Huntsman trivia and weapon design.
If Ruby were to witness Magecraft, then there would be no doubt that she'd be interested in learning it and while she could merely refuse. Emiya wasn't one to turn people away, and eventually Rin herself would be roped into teaching her.
The benefits of learning Magecraft were numerous, and honestly a worthy endeavor to dedicate one's life to. Shirou's dream, while idealistic and unrealistic, would only be achieved through the use of Magecraft. She'd not forget all the times the craft had saved her life during the war.
However Rin was not blind to the downsides. The horrific and disgusting lengths some people would go to, in hopes of furthering their craft by a miniscule amount. Her own sister-No, she'd lost the right to call Sakura that long ago. The fact that her family had in essence sold her off to another family….she felt disgusted in herself.
She'd spare Ruby and anyone else of the knowledge of Magecraft if she could help it. There would only be herself and Shirou who would be aware of the craft.
As the crystal in her hands slowed and stopped, its tip glowed. Pointing in the direction of north. "Ruby I figured it out." Rin called out, then watched as the tip of the Dust crystal began to erode and turn to dust.
The hooded initiate was beside her partner in a heartbeat. Rin pointed northward, with a smile. "It's that way."
"Lead the way then." Said Ruby.
Rin merely nodded, and began to walk ahead of the younger girl. Only bothering to glance back at her every so often. She hoped that whatever awaited them at the Northern end of the forest wasn't too far, walking in heels for long periods of time was already painful.
But walking in heels on uneven forest terrain?
Rin might as well have footwear made of nails. Seriously, even with the support the wedges she wore provided these were not built for combat.
Though Rin supposed she couldn't fault Weiss too much, she seemed like a fairly sheltered girl who didn't seem to have much in the way of independence. That was something she'd have to deal with eventually, Weiss' memories did not simply merge with her own.
In fact she didn't even have access to the girl's memories. Rin was lucky to get flashes at random, and she was even luckier when she'd dream about them.
Weiss' memories were useful. It was a wellspring of information that might have been common knowledge, and could've saved Rin time in the first two months she'd spent in the Schnee manor. The weeks she'd spent in the library, trying to learn current events, basic history, societal norms, and even the members of her own family. The latter was harder to find out, especially if she wanted to not attract attention to herself.
Thankfully, the egos of the two males of the Schnee family was larger than the mansion they inhabited. Figuring out their names and the power dynamic in the family was easy, and with the knowledge she attained; Rin understood what was going on in that mansion.
Jacques Schnee had the ego that could rival a Mage of the Clocktower, and Whitley had the same two faced nature of an average Magus. The two Schnee men were focused on control, and power; further adding to the parallels she could draw to the Mages.
Weiss' mother Willow, was alive but might as well have been absent from her life with all the time she spent secluded in her quarters. She'd seen Klein bring her bottles upon bottles of liquor during her time there, and it wasn't hard to figure out what she was doing.
Lastly was Winter, Weiss' older sister who'd gone and joined the military. Among all the members of the Schnee family, she was the one Rin had the most information on. Weiss and her sister were close, and it seemed that because of this bond a majority of the memories Rin had received were of the older Schnee daughter. Winter wasn't around at all, and it was somewhat apparent that the pair had grown apart significantly when Winter had joined the military.
Fate seemed to have put her in a family as equally dysfunctional as her old one.
As Rin and Ruby continued to absentmindedly trek onwards, the white haired Magus revealed the Dust Crystal she'd palmed. The tip had shifted to the left slightly, meaning they'd diverged from their path somewhere down the line. "How're you doing Ruby?" Rin asked.
"I'm doing fine." She replied. "Though I wish we'd run into other people at least."
Rin couldn't help but agree, while the Emerald Forest was large. The pair should've at least run into one other pair, especially since all the initiates were launched in the same general direction.
"Do you think the Grimm got to them?" Ruby asked.
Rin looked to the Dust Crystal in her hands, it had already eroded by around half. How long have she and Ruby been walking? Palming the crystal again, Rin decided that it was best to take a break.
"Ruby would you-" she silenced herself, Ruby's back was turned to her, the younger girl's legs were apart and close to the ground. Her hand reaching to the object clipped onto her lower back. Rin saw that just beyond Ruby, in a part of the forest that was more shaded than the rest, a pair of burning red eyes glared at the pair.
It only took a single movement for Ruby to deploy her scythe. The mechanical parts slotted into place as Ruby darted forward, and slammed into the Grimm that was staring them down.
"Ruby!" Rin exclaimed just as more growls began to become audible around her. As several Grimm came into view, her hand immediately went to Myrtenaster at her hip. Rin took a breath, she had to calm herself. She'd been in fights to survive before, this was nothing new.
Click
As the revolving chamber of Myrtenaster locked into place, Rin willed the Magical Energy in her body to reinforce her limbs. Being able to move faster and hit harder was never a bad thing to be able to do. The Grimm circled her, but Rin only paid attention to the one directly in front of her. She'd deal with them one at a time, it was no use overloading her brain with information that wouldn't be usable until several seconds later.
These were nothing but animals, all counting on instinct to deliver the killing blow. They weren't mages, and they sure as hell weren't Servants.
Strike! The voice within her cried out, and so she did. Rin pushed herself forward, her blade aimed for the head of the Grimm before her.
A gunshot, and Ruby Rose had appeared in a flurry of petals. Her scythe cleaving the monstrosity in two. Rin slammed her foot into the ground in an attempt to stop, and ended up stumbling for her troubles. Stopping mere feet away from one of the Grimm that circled her.
It lunged for her, baring its fangs and claws. With the intent to defend herself, Rin raised Myrtenaster. The claws of the beast sliding along the length of the thin blade, before sending it clattering to the ground. Rin threw herself to the ground as the Grimm swung again, and swiftly turned to face her attacker again.
"Weiss!" Exclaimed Ruby, before the Grimm that had lunged for Rin fell limp beside her. Ruby's eyes widened in confusion. "Ruby behind you!"
The hooded girl turned, only to catch the Grimm mid-pounce. Ruby stiffened, she wasn't in a position to strike the Grimm. Any attack she'd manage to do would be weak, and only end with her on the ground and Grimm on top of her. Then something cut through the air, then through the bone mask of the Grimm.
The creature slammed into the ground, falling limp before turning to dust. Ruby could only turn to the white haired girl who had her index finger extended. Black energies radiated through the appendage, before Rin had sprinted past Ruby.
Her hand reaching for the pouch on her belt. Another Dust Crystal. "Ruby get behind me!" Rin instructed, before the crystal shimmered and shattered as Rin threw it at a nearby tree. Flames sprouted from the point of impact, then quickly began to spread. It would hold the Grimm at bay for a moment, and a moment was all they needed.
Rin quickly grabbed ahold of Ruby's hand, before rushing off in a direction opposite the flames. Ruby was stumbling every now and then, letting out protests and commands to stop. Rin would stop when they'd gotten far enough, and minutes later Rin had deemed the distance traveled enough.
Rin released her hold on Ruby. "Are you okay?" she asked with labored breaths.
Ruby managed a nod, before looking back. A plume of black smoke was beginning to rise from what she assumed was their original position. Rin sighed, and fell to her knees. The adrenaline was already wearing off.
"Weiss." Ruby began, in her hands was Myrtenaster. Rin quickly looked to her belt, and found it void of the blade, as if Ruby offering it to her was not evidence enough. The white haired girl shakily took back the blade, unsure of how to proceed after the recent turn of events. "Thank you, Ruby."
Rin could see the girl in front of her shift, before she sat down in front of her. "Weiss." Ruby averted her gaze. "I know it isn't really my place, but what was that?" Rin's heart nearly stopped, she had been careless.
'Play it cool Rin, she doesn't know. Pass it off as your Semblance.' Rin straightened herself out, and merely tilted her head as if Ruby had said something silly. "That?" she asked, trying her best to feign confusion. "Oh, you mean my Semblance."
"No, not that. I mean you shooting things from your fingers is awesome!" Ruby shook her head. "I'm talking about how you used Dust, how'd you delay the activation? When Dust is activated by Aura, it usually has a medium to delay the activation like a weapon or my rounds." Ruby looked back to the now massive plume of black smoke that was now spreading throughout the treetops. "But you just used a cut Dust Crystal."
Rin could only gulp as she racked her brain for a suitable answer, she couldn't try to dance around it. Claiming that this was some new technique she discovered was the same as inviting Ruby to be taught Magecraft, and she was not going to do that. For once in her life, Rin Tohsaka was caught with her proverbial pants down.
As Shirou Emiya began to slowly make his way through the Emerald Forest, he let out a sigh. The forest was quiet, something he didn't really expect from the habitat of vicious monsters from what he'd heard.
Still, Shirou supposed he couldn't complain. It was rare that his accursed luck would allow him moments of respite such as these, regardless any moment that he wasn't fighting for his life was a moment he'd welcome wholeheartedly. Shirou paused, the scent of the clean forest air becoming stale as he sniffed.
The smell of smoke.
The rising plume of black smoke was a fair amount of distance from him, and judging by the size of the smoke cloud the fire was spreading at a rather unprecedented rate. Though he supposed that was to be expected, in a forest there was no shortage of things to burn. Shirou did not linger for long, and merely moved on with a scrunch of his nose and a silent wish of good luck to whoever started the blaze.
The bright and vivid image of the moon in the sky high above him flashed in Shirou's mind, not the broken moon of Remnant. The moon he saw was pristine and whole, showing no sign of imperfection that would have soiled its beauty.
Shirou nearly stumbled the moment he put his foot down, he stared forward vacantly. Shaking his head as confusion hit him. 'What was that?' he thought, before pushing the thought away. The smell of smoke was still able to be taken in by Shirou. "The breeze is pushing it this way." he commented, before continuing his stride. The fire would be heading in the direction he was in, and if the foliage only grew thicker then it would catch up to him rather fast. Shirou supposed it was all the more reason to not stick around.
The scent of the smoke from the chasing blaze still lingered in Shirou's nostrils, but he paid it no mind. He'd stop smelling it if he got far enough, and it wasn't entirely an annoyance. It was almost nostalgic if one were to ask him. Kiritsugu must've thought he was being sly, smoking at odd hours of the day where he would be surely alone.
Unfortunately for Kiritsugu, Shirou was a child who became somewhat skilled at sneaking around whenever he wasn't screaming that he'd be a hero at the top of his lungs.
Childhood antics aside, Shirou pressed onwards. Pushing through the dense foliage. How was anyone supposed to get oriented? If it weren't for the fact that Shirou had seen the clearing at the Northern end of the forest, then he'd be lost.
"I'm sorry!" a voice called out, Shirou raised a brow and headed for the voice's source. Luckily the voice seemed to be directly in Shirou's path, curiosity growing within the auburn haired male with every step he took.
As Shirou pondered what type of person would be sincerely apologizing during a life or death situation, he received his answer. Pushing away a low hanging branch, Shirou was met with Pyrrha Nikos who was in the process of helping up a scraggly armored blonde male.
"Shirou." She said by way of greeting.
Shirou approached the pair, glancing at the armored male. "I don't think we've met."
"Jaune." He introduced. "Jaune Arc."
Shirou quirked a brow, he wanted to try something. "Bonjour." Shirou greeted, and was met with Jaune's confused expression. 'Okay French as a language does not exist here.' He thought, which he should've expected. "I meant to say it's nice to meet you." Said Shirou, holding out a hand for Jaune to shake. Shirou's eyes landing on the sheathed weapon on Jaune's hip.
Crocea Mors.
That was its name, its rather extensive history flowed into Shirou's mind as he felt it settle within the Reality Marble. A weapon that shared its name with another weapon from his world, if memory served correctly Julius Caesar named his blade the same thing. Shirou supposed that this was just another peculiarity he'd have to look into in his spare time, he couldn't forget that he was currently in the middle of an initiation.
"I'm trying to find the ruins." Shirou continued. "Would you two be willing to accompany me?"
"That sounds like a grand idea." Pyrrha replied. "What do you say Jaune?" The blonde turned to Pyrrha somewhat perplexed.
"Huh? Y-Yeah. Sure."
"But please wait a moment Shirou." Said Pyrrha, and turned to Jaune. "Jaune, will you be okay? Your Aura didn't seem to take the impact from the branch, are you exhausted?"
"My what?" Jaune questioned, obviously confused. Shirou was in a similar state, this was new information that Rin hadn't told him.
"Jaune." Pyrrha's tone was slow and careful. "Do you...know what Aura is?" Jaune let out an incredulous scoff, but Shirou could plainly see past his facade and could tell that he did in fact have no idea what Aura was and so did Pyrrha. Though he supposed he couldn't judge, he didn't either.
After a not so graceful moment of turning the question on Pyrrha. The redhead locked eyes with Jaune, while Shirou took a step back to stay out of her line of sight. "Aura is the manifestation of our Souls." Pyrrha began. "It bears our burdens and shields our hearts. Have you ever felt like you were being watched, without knowing someone was there?"
Was she talking about skills that Servants had? Like Eye of the Mind? Shirou opted to stay silent, and continue to listen. He was learning something new after all. "With enough practice, our Aura can become our shield. Everyone has one Jaune, even animals."
"What about monsters?" Shirou was sure that at this point, Jaune was entranced by Pyrrha's words that he let some of his naivete show.
"No, they lack a soul." Pyrrha answered. "They're creatures of Grimm, the embodiment of anonymity." As Pyrrha dove into the philosophical aspects of Aura, Shirou fell into thought. Aura was a skill he could compare to Eye of the Mind or even Protection from Arrows, but it stemmed from the soul and shielded its user? Oh how he wished Rin was here, she'd be able to explain it to him. However with the way Pyrrha was explaining it to Jaune, she made it sound like that so long as one had Aura they were nigh invincible. Almost as if-
"Its like a forcefield!" Jaune suddenly exclaimed, taking the words right out of Shirou's mouth or in this case mind. Pyrrha playfully turned back to Jaune, she'd been pacing as she explained it to him it seemed like. "Yes Jaune, I suppose you could look at it that way."
She approached him. "Now, close your eyes." She ordered, placing her hand on Jaune's cheek. He hesitantly did so, much to what seemed like Pyrrha's delight. Was she glowing?
Pyrrha's pupils shrank as a light enveloped both her and Jaune. "For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all." Shirou's eyes widened, an Aria. Similar to the one he'd use when summoning his inner world. "Infinite in distance and unbound by death. I release your soul, and by my shoulder protect thee." When she finished Pyrrha had hunched over, her breaths were ragged.
He and Jaune seemed to have similar ideas to check on the redhead, but he held up a hand to stop them. "I'm fine." She breathed. "I used my Aura to unlock yours, but the energy that protects your body is now your own."
As Jaune shimmered a pure white, Shirou finally seemed to notice the cut on his cheek, mainly from how it contrasted against the glow and his skin. It was there for a moment before it vanished, seemingly zipped out of existence. "You have a lot of it." Pyrrha complimented.
A forcefield that could heal wounds? Now Shirou had seen it all, but he really did not have the right to be surprised. Avalon-the place, not the scabbard that belonged to the King of Knights. Was said to be a place of everlasting peace, where no one could die or be harmed.
Speaking of the scabbard's namesake, Shirou had to be careful. Saber wasn't around, and Avalon was dependent on its link with Saber and Excalibur in order to function at full capacity. Avalon would heal his wounds, but not at the rate where he'd be able to suffer injury after injury and keep on fighting. That's not to say that the healing was impotent without Saber, far from it. Injuries that would take weeks would take mere minutes or hours. Still, getting unnecessarily injured would just be a burden to Rin.
"Shirou." Pyrrha called out to him. "Should we get moving?"
He sent a nod to his fellow redhead, and the trio were off.
Yang Xiao Long let out a welcome breath, she'd lost track of how long she'd been in the forest. Every turn of her head was met with the green of the foliage, it became repetitive quite easily.
"Think this is it?" Yang asked her partner. The raven haired Blake Belladonna whom she met while fighting a trio of Ursai, stepped up beside her. Her expression neutral, then turning incredulous for the briefest moment before she walked forwards in the direction of the decrepit ruins.
Yang trailed behind her partner, inspecting the ruins in the process. Her mind wandered, where was Ruby in all of this? Did she find Shirou or Weiss? Yang knew her sister was by no means a defenseless child, but underneath her carefree exterior she did worry. A few weeks prior while she and Ruby had been training in the woods near their home in Patch, the latter had been attacked by an Ursa.
Granted, Yang did manage to kill the Grimm before it could lay a hand on Ruby but the way she froze up when she was faced with a Grimm without her weapon made Yang worry. She'd completely forgotten that she could just use her Semblance to run, and that made Yang jump into the Ursa's mouth in a last ditch effort to power up her Semblance to kill the Grimm.
"Chess pieces?" Blake's voice cut through Yang's thought filled stupor.
"Some of them are missing." Yang quickly observed, she fought the urge to shake her head. Ruby was fine, there was no use falling into a negative headspace, any and all negativity was just an invitation for the Grimm. "Looks like we aren't the first ones here."
"Guess we should pick one then." Blake added, approaching one of the many podiums and observing the chess pieces. "Any preferences?"
Yang eyed the pieces, then turned her attention to one in particular. "How bout a cute little pony?" She asked, waving the Knight piece before her partner.
"Sure." Replied Blake, her expression forming into a small smirk as she rolled her eyes.
"That was easier than I thought." Yang continued, a silent wish that her sister would share in the ease she found in the task. Perhaps if she could convince Blake to wait here for a few minutes before they headed back, she wanted to make sure Ruby was alright. "Hey Blake-"
"Yes Yang, we'll stay here for a bit." She answered. Yang flinched, surprised by the fact that Blake knew what she was about to say. "Don't act so surprised." Blake continued, placing a hand on her hip as she faced her partner. "You wanted to wait for your sister right? I get it, you're worried."
"How did you-?"
"The two of you were really loud." Said Blake. "Don't worry, we'll wait here a bit. I mean it's not like this place is that hard to find."
Yang smiled, Blake was right. Ruby would find this place sooner or later, so long as she headed north. Heck, who knows maybe she did partner up with Shirou like she planned and the two of them were headed here at this moment. Speaking of Shirou, his catapult launched him ahead of them.
There was a little detail Yang had noticed, all the catapults would launch them towards the same general area. However they were all modified slightly, some initiates were launched at odd angles, some descended earlier than most, and some were launched farther into the forest. Shirou was one of the latter, it made Yang think.
Where was Shirou?
Think this is it?
Asked Jaune, turning to the pair of redheads that trailed behind him. Shirou glanced at the mouth of the cave where crude drawings were etched onto the stone. He approached, and passed a hand atop the drawings. They were of what he could liken to early humans, they wielded spears, and swords.
More drawings ran across the length of the wall, prompting Shirou to follow them. More images of warriors doing battle with what looked like to be a giant scorpion. Still the images continued, more fighting then stopping. A thin layer of moss obstructed the next set of images, Shirou carefully tore away the plant life. His eyes widening in horror, an image of the scorpion far larger than the others heed seen. The spear wielding humans seemingly corralling the beast. The images stopping, Shirou now stood at the mouth of the cave.
From where he stood Shirou could see a dim light glowing within the darkness of the cave. His head snapped back, Jaune and Pyrrha were nowhere to be seen. "Stop!" Shirou cried out before breaking into a sprint. The dim light that was growing smaller was his only indicator of where he assumed Jaune and Pyrrha were. "Jaune, Pyrrha stop!"
The light ceased its movement, as the pair Shirou had run after came into view. "Shirou, hey what took you?" Jaune asked.
"This isn't where the relics are." Shirou snapped. "This is a-" Jaune positioned the torch in his hands forward, a second eerie glow suddenly came into being. "Relic!" Jaune exclaimed, giddily rushing to the glowing object and stumbling in the process. The torch in his hands extinguishing, and plunging the trio into darkness.
"Jaune…" Pyrrha began, her voice beginning to show that she too was finding the situation a bit suspicious. Jaune was the only one illuminated by the "relic" , the light from it making it hard to see what was beyond its eerie glow.
"Trace on." Muttered Shirou, lines of teal began running from his eye sockets up to his ears. With his eyes now reinforced, Shirou could see better. His blood running cold as his gaze pierced through the darkness. "Jaune." Shirou said firmly. "Get away from it, slowly." Jaune did not, much to Shirou's ire. Instead, the blonde knight lunged for the object which then proceeded to lift him up.
Shirou's hands were immediately on the sword at his waist. 'No there isn't any room to fight here' as Shirou relieved his eyes of the magical energy that was coursing through them, he immediately grabbed Pyrrha by the wrist the moment Jaune's shriek cut through the silent cave, and rushed out.
Shirou did not dare look back, he could hear Jaune's fearful shrieks as well as the loud thumping of numerous feet. "Shirou what's going on?!" Pyrrha asked.
"The cave was a makeshift prison of sorts." Shirou panted. "Early Huntsmen trapped whatever that was in here, they forced a cave in. My guess is that years of inactivity made it dormant, but the rocks at the cave's mouth eroded away. In other words, we woke it up!"
The moment they were out of the cave, Shirou released his hold on Pyrrha and drew his blade. Pyrrha did the same, equipping her weapons Miló and Akoúo̱, another weapon for the Reality Marble. He'd go over them later. The beast exploded from the cave, a massive scorpion that was larger than any elephant. A creature that would've been more than a nuisance for Berserker if it was around during the war.
"Jaune!" Pyrrha exclaimed, spotting the blonde still hanging on for dear life on the creature's stinger.
"Pyrrha!" he sobbed. "It's not the relic! It's not!"
'You think?!' Shirou mentally exclaimed, and burst from his position. Magical Energy filling the imperfections of the blade in his hands, reinforcing it. He let out a grunt as he struck, the blade merely bouncing off the thick armored carapace of the creature. 'Tch, Reinforcement isn't enough!'
"Jaune!" Pyrrha shouted once more. "Whatever you do don't let-" as if agitated by what Pyrrha was suggesting to Jaune the Grimm bucked, and flung Jaune off it's stinger and through the air. "Go…" Pyrrha seemed to visibly deflate at the sight, but not for long as Shirou came and slammed into her after another failed attack on the arachnid Grimm.
Shirou grunted as he got to his feet, preparing to strike at another potential weak spot he saw. "Shirou." Pyrrha began, grabbing hold of his wrist. "We should run." she suggested keeping her body low to the ground. "Deathstalkers are strong and tough thanks to their armor, but they share a commonality with normal scorpions: they have poor eyesight." Shirou understood there was a reason why it didn't lash out at them earlier despite having the opportunity to do so, instead it was focused on Jaune who it could feel on it's person.
"I'll follow your lead." said Shirou.
Pyrrha nodded, and began to slowly slink backwards. Making an effort to stay out of the Deathstalker's line of sight, poor eyesight did not necessarily mean blind. Shirou followed, keeping pace with Pyrrha and being careful not to cause any unnecessary noise. Pyrrha pointed in the direction Jaune had been launched, Shirou nodded.
As they began to fall back into the cover of the forest, Shirou and Pyrrha stood at their full height-A crack ripped through the silent forest from behind them, it was like a bomb had gone off. Several more of these deafening bombs sounded off. The Deathstalker turned to them, its mandibles clicking as it hissed. "It doesn't see us right?" Shirou asked.
The Deathstalker answered Shirou's question by charging right at them. The duo quickly rushed off in a panic, Shirou vaulted over shrubs and fallen stumps while Pyrrha rushed through them. Akoúo̱ taking the brunt of whatever was in Pyrrha's way, though she'd circle the occasional tree.
The Deathstalker hissed, and tried to snap one of its massive pincers at Shirou. "Shirou, over there!" Shirou and Pyrrha exploded from the forest into an open clearing, the Deathstalker still giving chase.
"Pyrrha, the ruins!" Shirou exclaimed, pointing to the decrepit remains of what used to be a building most likely. The Grimm tried to strike once more, this time directed at Pyrrha who jumped through the pincer and continued with her sprint. Pyrrha turned to the Deathstalker, and began to backpedal all the while firing rounds from her rifle. "Go!" she exclaimed, her rounds harmlessly bouncing off its armored hide.
The Grimm approached Pyrrha, who proceeded to empty the clip on the Grimm. Shirou shook his head as he rushed at her, the Deathstalker reeled back one of its massive pincers and swung.
Pyrrha felt the sudden pain in her side as the attack made contact, however she did not expect Shirou to suddenly appear before her and twisting her body to the side. The question of how Shirou had appeared was suddenly pushed to aside as the pain assailed her senses.
Pyrrha felt Shirou's arms cradle her head as they descended and rolled on the ground, she heard his grunts with every impact. Once they had stopped, Pyrrha had shot to her feet even ignoring a comment she had heard about "The gang being all here, and that they could now die together." Pyrrha shook her head, she had no plans of dying anytime soon.
Shirou shuffled for a moment before laying his eyes on Pyrrha. "Are you okay?" He asked.
Pyrrha merely nodded, and watched as Shirou got to his feet and drew the sword at his waist. Then looked over to those who were present. "Nice to see you again Blake." He greeted.
"You two know each other?" Yang asked, glancing in between Shirou and her partner. The former nodding with a smile on his face, Shirou took a step forward then faltered. His knees suddenly giving out from underneath him.
"Shirou!" Pyrrha exclaimed, barely managing catch the falling male. She held him in her arms, watching as his face became paler by the minute. Her eyes happened upon his shirt. 'How did I not see this?!' She internally exclaimed, there was a growing red stain on Shirou's side. A rip in his near flawless white shirt that was covered in his blood.
Pyrrha quickly placed a hand atop the wound. Shirou struggled, but she held firm doing her best to keep Shirou still so he wouldn't lose more blood.
"Pyrrha…"
"Don't speak." She snapped. The shrill cry of the Deathstalker catching their attention. Pyrrha grit her teeth, then turned to Yang and Blake as well a third girl who introduced herself as Nora. "We need to get him out of here."said Pyrrha.
The edges of Shirou's vision were darkening, his eyes darted in all sorts of directions as he remained still. 'Avalon…' he reached out for it, trying to bring out Saber's scabbard from within him. Yet it did not heed his call, he wasn't strong enough to bring it out.
"...in…" he muttered, catching Yang's attention. Her lilac orbs meeting his as he remained still. "Rin…"
Yang's face dropped, her gauntlets snapping into place as she took a ready stance. "What's the plan?" she asked, her face hardening as faced forward. She was weighing her odds against the Deathstalker. Shirou could feel his breaths get heavier, then looked to Pyrrha. "Can we move him?" Pyrrha sent a glance to Yang, who did not seem to like silence as an answer.
"Dammit answer me!" She replied, her eyes flashing scarlet. "Can we move Shirou or not?"
"Shirou…"
Shirou no longer had the energy to move his head, the feeling in his fingers was all but gone. With the way his head was angled, he could see Yang's shocked expression as well as Pyrrha's desperate one. He recognized the voice that called out his name. "Ruby…" he muttered.
Yang disappeared from his view as he heard mechanical whirring from beyond his peripheral vision, then a gunshot.
Shirou who was all but numb at this point, felt the faintest sensation of something hitting his face. Pyrrha was losing her composure, he supposed this was to be expected. No one was supposed to die, that was probably what they were all hoping for.
"I'm sor-"
"No." Shirou cut her off. "There's nothing to apologize for…" he did his best to smile. "You did your best." Then the darkness at the edges of his vision spread, and Shirou found himself face up facing a darkened sky. No stars shone, but the white specs of snow that slowly fell to earth focused his vision.
SHLK
His ears picking up the sound, but he did not move.
SHLK
Again.
SHLK
SHLK
What was this sound? Why did it sound so familiar to him?
SHLK
Again, this time right next to his head. There it was, a shining red and gold coated javelin that had impaled itself mere inches from his face. He could see himself reflected on the steel, he could see his tired face. It would be easy to simply close his eyes, and lay there. It would be acceptable, he was in fact tired.
He supposed he would, his false ideal had finally gotten him killed. His end was less tragic than Archer's, but he supposed he wouldn't complain. He wouldn't wish the pain Archer had experienced upon anyone.
So Shirou faced up, let out a breath and closed his eyes. On the edge of his senses, he could hear a voice.
Strange, he could've sworn he'd recognized it.
For it is in passing that we achieve immortality…
Rin Tohsaka's jaw felt tight, as did her chest. "Emiya!" she exclaimed as she rushed to his side, she slid beside Pyrrha who still held Shirou in her grasp. He was pale, and then looked to Pyrrha. The redhead was mumbling, then shone. "What're you-?"
Rin could barely make out her words. "...by my shoulder protect thee…" Rin acted the moment she saw Pyrrha nearly fall back, catching the redhead. Pyrrha's breaths were ragged, a red field crackled like electricity across her body.
"Pyrrha?!" Rin cried out, the redhead was dazed as she went limp. However her grip on Shirou did not falter once bit. Rin shook her, then her emerald eyes came back into focus. "Pyrrha, get a grip what did you just do?"
"I...unlocked his Aura with mine." she finished, then shook her head. "I don't know how to help Shirou, he's going to die." panic laced her features as well as tears as she held Shirou's body. Rin glanced over to the gash in his side that leaked blood, as well as the pool that formed around him. It should've been a familiar sight to her, it was similar to the state she found him at the beginning of the Holy Grail War.
Rin looked at Shirou's vacant eyes, and grew angry. "Get up." she muttered, she grit her teeth as she grabbed Shirou by the collar and shook him. "Emiya! Get up! I know you're not dead, you wouldn't let yourself die because of something so trivial!" It was denial, her heart hadn't ached in such a way in so many years. "Emiya, you get up!"
Rin could feel the tears stinging her eyes. "Emiya...please...don't leave me here alone."
Rin shot upright, as she felt her hand burn. It was as if her flesh was being branded, it brought tears to her eyes as she saw the markings.
Command Seals.
Rin's eyes widened as she recalled. She had summoned Shirou, and in essence despite being alive he was still technically her Servant. Rin released her hold on his collar, and placed her hand over his heart. "With the order of my Command Seal!" Rin exclaimed, the markings on her hand brilliantly shimmering. "I order you not to die! Fight to return to me!"
The shine from her hand climaxed, as a flash of silver enveloped Shirou's body then vanished. Then she felt it, right below her hand.
Thump
Thump
Thump
The steady and rhythmic beating of his heart. "Argh!" Pyrrha exclaimed, her hand bleeding as she suddenly pulled away from where Shirou's gash was. Rin merely watched as the wound the size of a shoe began to slowly seal up, to those unfamiliar with Shirou Emiya it would seem that needles were bursting from his wounds, however Rin had seen it before.
She'd always thought it was a stupid notion. "To change his muscles into blades, in order to knit his wounds with swords." Rin chuckled, and watched as the wound began to close up. Pyrrha was still in shock, Rin would have to explain later. Passing a hand through Shirou's auburn locks, she smiled. "Don't keep me waiting too long, let's finish this together." and rose to her feet.
"Pyrrha, keep an eye on him." Rin instructed, then turned her attention to the creature that put Shirou in such a state. "I have a score to settle."
"Hiyah!" Cried out Ruby Rose, slashing against the armored shell of the Grimm before her. The Deathstalker hissed as it snapped at her, but she needed to keep going. Yang burst out from behind her, and sent a barrage of shotgun shells into the arachnid's face, but to no avail.
"Ruby, get back!" Yang ordered.
"No!" and burst into a volley of rose petals, Yang narrowly avoided the stinger and rushed after her younger sister. She had to calm Ruby down, seeing Shirou in that state made her snap. Ruby was not her, anger wouldn't allow her to beat down whatever stood in her way.
She had to act fast, every moment Ruby spent fighting in this state was another moment she could die. She'd be damned if she lost both Shirou and Ruby on the same day. "Ruby calm down!"
"He didn't deserve that!" Ruby wailed, slashing her weapon against the Grimm. Every strike was ineffective, but she couldn't see past her anger. "Shirou didn't deserve any of this!" The Grimm snapped at her, but she was too nimble. Her semblance would allow her to escape without injury every single time the massive pincers threatened to cleave her in two.
"Ruby you gotta-"
SCREEEE
Yang's blood ran cold, as she directed her attention to just beyond Ruby and the Deathstalker. A black streak in the sky was approaching them, she knew what it was. "Ruby let's go!" Yang exclaimed, firing the off a round from the Ember Celica to propel herself forward. "Ruby!"
"What?!" the younger girl exclaimed, then noticed the onyx blur in the sky. Ruby fired off a round from her weapon, rocketing her backwards, then towards Yang. 'Why was a Nevermore here?! They didn't antagonize it then h-' Ruby's eyes widened, had she attracted it? Was she that angry? No, it wasn't just anger she felt despair and not just her Weiss and Pyrrha and Yang must've felt the same way when they saw Shirou.
A shadow loomed over Ruby as a rain of razor sharp feathers began cascading from above, she could hear Yang screaming for her. She stopped in her tracks and fell back, a feather had pinned her cloak to the ground and to make matters worse the Deathstalker was closing in. Ruby pulled on her cloak, trying her best to free it.
Yang had even turned and rushed for her, but as the Deathstalker loomed over her and primed it's stinger, Ruby shut her eyes. She prayed her death would be quick, and relatively painless.
"Get up!" A voice exclaimed, Ruby's eyes snapped open. Particles of shimmering crystalized powder flowed before Ruby's eyes. The Deathstalker's stinger becoming enveloped by the particles, then suddenly dropped to the ground, layers upon layers of rock and ice formed on the stinger. The scorpion Grimm hissed and snarled as it tried to lift its immobilized appendage.
Ruby could only gawk at the scene before her. "Honestly, I didn't think you were the type to get so angry." It was Weiss. Ruby continued to gawk, did her partner seriously just single handedly immobilize a Deathstalker?
"Get up, I estimate my little restraints here will only last for a few more minutes at best." Weiss added, then looked to Ruby who's cape was still pinned to the ground thanks to the massive feather courtesy of the Nevermore. "Hold still." Weiss instructed, extending her index finger. Ruby knew what came next, and braced herself.
Ruby watched as the black ball of energy that fired from Weiss' finger snapped the Nevermore's feather in two. "Hurry up." Weiss added, as she removed the piece that was still pinning Ruby to the ground.
"Weiss…"Ruby's face fell . "Shirou's…"
"Fine." Weiss continued much to Ruby's surprise. The white haired girl before her smiled, shifting her weight to her hip. "That idiot is fine, you don't know Shirou Emiya. He won't die just because of a simple injury like that." Weiss held out her hand, Ruby's silver eyes meeting her clear blue ones that invited her to come back with her. "We're partners are we not? So let's go back together, I'm sure Shirou's waiting for us."
Ruby reached forward, her fingertips brushing against Weiss'-Then the deafening screech returned. Weiss quickly turned around, her eyes doing their best to try surveying the threat. The Nevermore screeched as it threw its massive onyx wings forward unleashing another volley of razor sharp feathers. Ruby grabbed ahold of Weiss' wrist, maybe she could get them both away if she used her semblance.
Weiss followed her for the briefest moment, then suddenly pushed her down. Ruby panicked as Weiss shoved her into the crouched position. "Keep your head down!" She commanded, then Ruby understood. Flashes of silver steel began soaring above her head, hitting the feathers head on with deadly accuracy.
Ruby couldn't believe it, she was being saved.
The Nevermore shot feathers indiscriminately, that much she knew. The avian Grimm did not have control over the trajectory of its feathers, but there were so many of them that whatever had attracted the Nevermore's attention would be a pincushion by the time the volley was over, but what Ruby was witnessing was just amazing to her. Dozens of swords sailed overhead, and destroyed the feathers that were heading directly for her and Weiss.
"I told you." Weiss smirked. "Shirou Emiya will not die because he was killed."
Shirou fell to a knee, his lungs burned and every breath was excruciating to him. Today was certainly an interesting day for him, it definitely ranked high on his interesting days. It ranked right below meeting Berserker for the first time.
Shirou was sure he'd died, but by some form of divine intervention he was alive-No, it was something more powerful. He smirked, an angry Rin Tohsaka who commanded him to not die with every fiber of her being. "I have your back Tohsaka." He breathed. "Don't worry."
"Shirou!" Pyrrha exclaimed from his side, her eyes still wide as she took in the sight before her. Shirou supposed it was a natural reaction, he was practically dead a few minutes ago; only for him to suddenly stand up and launch a volley of dozens of swords against a giant bird.
Wait-he launched swords against a giant bird. Shirou glanced at his hands. "Trace on." He said, excitement welling within him as he willed Magical Energy into his circuits. The familiar weight of the married falchions in his hands were a welcome feeling. Shirou couldn't help but let out a giddy chuckle as he set his eyes on Kanshou and Bakuya. "I can Trace...I can Trace!" He exclaimed.
Dismissing the blades Shirou returned his gaze to the ever confused Pyrrha Nikos. "I'll explain later, but for now can you gather everyone?" He smirked. "Its time we became students of Beacon."
Pyrrha nodded, then dashed off in the direction of the treeline. He was confused at first, then saw Jaune hanging from the tree by his feet.
"Shirou!" He barely had enough time to register the voice who called out to him, before what he could only describe as a red missile in the shape of a teenage girl slammed into his chest. Ruby Rose wrapped her arms around him as she wiped her tears on his shirt, Shirou could only chuckle as he passed a hand through her short hair. "You're alive…" she trailed off.
"I am." He smiled, then turned his attention to Rin who stood behind the younger girl.
"That's twice I've brought you back to life now." She mouthed. Shirou could only chuckle as he got Ruby off him, just as Yang and the others had gathered round.
"I've gathered them Shirou." Pyrrha began.
"Uh guys." Jaune called out. "That thing is circling back."
"Don't worry." Yang added. "Shirou can just you know, pew pew it out of the sky." Rin rolled her eyes at the wording, and while it was something he'd do but he just regained his ability to Trace without backlash.
"As much as I'd love to do just that." Said Shirou. "I'd rather not, I'm not sure how much I have left in me." He faced Rin. "Will that little weight you put on the Deathstalker hold?"
"A few more minutes at best." She replied.
"So what's the plan?" Asked Yang.
Shirou merely stepped to the side, and walked to one of the many podiums that held chess pieces. "The plan is to get out of here." Shirou answered, tossing a chess piece to both Ruby and Jaune who each caught it without problem. "We've already got a relic, so we just need to return to the cliffs."
"He's right." Rin added. "There's no use fighting these things, better to retreat and just keep our distance from these things rather than fight them only to lose."
"Run and live." Jaune smiled. "That is a plan I can get behind."
Crack
The group turned to the Deathstalker, it flailed and hissed. Snapping its pincers as it violently thrashed. "That's not going to hold much longer." Announced Rin.
"Then that's our cue to leave." The group shared a nod, acknowledging Shirou's suggestion as they all sprinted for the direction of the cliffs.
Rin kept pace with Shirou who was breathing heavier than the rest. "Can you keep going?" She asked.
"I'll manage, but we need to talk after this." He replied, Rin merely nodded. Shirou had to come clean, him hiding the fact that he couldn't Project his weapons had nearly cost him his life and put Rin in danger. His eyes landed on a bruise like mark on the back of Rin's hand. "Rin are those-"
"We'll talk later." She dismissed, the Nevermore soared overhead and perched on another set of ruins that connected the cliffs over a massive gorge. It screeched as if to challenge them.
"Great it's in the way." Yang groaned.
The ground rumbled, Shirou rolled his eyes. Of course things were about to get worse, on cue the Deathstalker came back into view hissing and snapping its pincers and mandibles at the group. "Run!" Jaune exclaimed.
"Nora distract it!" A boy whom Shirou wasn't acquainted with announced, his ginger haired companion who he assumed was Nora jumped out from behind her cover and open fire on the Nevermore. The avian Grimm released a torrent of feathers, only for the teen to jump and roll in between them and blast it with several very pink grenades.
"Go go!" Pyrrha urged, covering the group as she and Nora's friend began to unload bullets onto the Deathstalker. "Onto the bridge!"
Shirou rolled onto the bridge just as the Deathstalker had made its approach, and stopped. It knew it wouldn't be able to follow them, but now they were stuck between the Nevermore and the Deathstalker.
The avian cawed as it dismounted from its perch, then vanished into the mist filled gorge. "While it's gone, go!" Ruby commanded, Pyrrha and the boy stopped their covering fire and joined the group in their sprint. The Deathstalker hissed, and roared raising its head heavenward.
Something felt off to Shirou immediately. "Stop!" He called out, only a moment too late. The Nevermore had appeared from the mist like a shark that had attacked a seal from below and slammed into the stone bridge. Shirou was launched back, and was nearly blown off the side of the bridge thanks to the accompanying wing beats that blew strong gusts of wind.
"Rin!" He quickly called out, worried.
"I'm fine!" He heard her call out to him, her hand waving in the air. Shirou let out a sigh of relief. "Emiya!" Rin called out. "Figure out a way to get over here."
Shirou nodded, the gap the Nevermore had created was massive but he could make it. Shirou braced his legs, with a little reinforcement he'd be able to jump across. The platform suddenly shook, as the hiss of the Deathstalker sounded off. "Oh, right you're still alive." Shirou glared, Pyrrha and the others were trying to push it back.
"Trace on." Shirou rushed forward as the swords in his hands began to form, his most favored weapons. He vaulted over Pyrrha who rolled back to avoid one of the massive pincers of the Deathstalker. Shirou felt the weight of the weapons settle in his hands, and slammed into the top of the Deathstalker's armored top then sank his blades into it.
It hissed and flailed, stepping back as it felt the steel be inserted into its flesh. "Move!" Shirou commanded, pushing the twin falchions deeper causing the creature to wail in pain.
Kanshou and Bakuya weren't the strongest weapons, they did not have the destructive power of Excalibur nor did they have the ability to dispel any and all Magecraft like Rule Breaker. They were simply excellently crafted blades that were created for the sake of creating something, they were mere swords that had no wishes, mere tools to be used. Something that Shirou could relate to, his dream may have been flawed and hypocritical on many levels, but these blades were the weapons he wished were his own.
Shirou roared as he tore away the falchions, and disembarked from the Grimm. It shrieked and looked wearily at him, surprised that its shell had been pierced. Shirou smirked as if to say "Hurts doesn't it?"
"Shirou!" Joined at the hip by Pyrrha, Jaune, Nora and Nora's friend whom he really needed to ask the name of, stood at his side. "You managed to hurt it." Pyrrha commented, spotting the twin gashes just above the Deathstalker's head.
"Those swords are like super sharp!" Nora exclaimed, then turned to the male at her side. "Ren can Storm Flower do that?!"
Ren shook his head. "They're sharp, but my blades aren't that sharp."
"Emiya Shirou." He introduced himself, greeting the male the same way he would back in Japan. Ren's features were ones you'd often see among individuals of the orient, so perhaps this greeting would get them on friendly terms.
"Lie Ren."
The pair nodded, then turned back to the Deathstalker. "Anyone have a plan?" Jaune asked.
"I can kill it." Shirou simply said. "I just need it to stand still."
"Are you sure?" Pyrrha asked, Shirou nodded. He was confident that he could kill it, the original Kanshou and Bakuya were rumored to be able to strike down monsters with a single strike due to the circumstances of their creation. However, his versions did not have this capability. Though, they still had a strong affinity against monsters.
"Distract it, and I can kill it." Three heads nodded to Shirou's statement then burst from their spots. Ren and Pyrrha began shooting, their bullets getting the Grimm's attention. Shirou rushed in as well, seeing this as enough of a distraction. The Deathstalker screeched, and sent a pincer after Shirou. Nora's massive hammer came into view, knocking the claw away.
"Go Shirou!" Pyrrha exclaimed.
Then the Deathstalker struck, its stinger lunging forward with the intent to skewer Shirou. Pyrrha's eyes widened, a realization hitting her. Shirou was unarmed, where had his swords gone? Shirou spun around the stinger and watched as it pierced the ground only to have seemingly walked into the grip of the second pincer of the Deathstalker.
"Your turn." Said Shirou, when Jaune had suddenly appeared barreling into the pincer with his shield open. "Not bad Jaune." He commented, then grabbed onto the stinger just as the Deathstalker had freed and began to retrieve it. Shirou mounted the appendage, and held out his hands.
Kanshou and Bakuya flew into his hands, then began cutting up its tail as he disembarked and descended. Pieces of its tail fell around, as Shirou ran up its back and past the gashes he'd made earlier. Stabbing the married blades into the creature once more, it hissed and thrashed feeling the familiar pain from earlier.
"Shirou it's not deep enough!" Said Jaune.
"Then I'll make them." Teal lines ran up Shirou's arms as sparks of the same color ran down the hilts of his blades. "Trace Overedge!" The tips of the blades exploded from the underside of the Grimm as it suddenly stopped moving, it fell forward and moved no longer. The occasional twitch from its leg was seen, but it was dead. He knew this because it began to disintegrate, if that wasn't a telltale sign then he didn't know what was.
Shirou slid off the creature's corpse, and into Ren and Jaune's awaiting arms who caught him. Heavy breaths escaped his mouth as he stood. "You good?" Jaune asked.
"Yeah…" Shirou managed. "Just tired…let me rest."
"I'm afraid we don't have the chance to rest yet." Pyrrha added, her gaze locked on the far side of the gorge. Shirou's eyes widened. "Rin!" He exclaimed.
Shirou's eyes scanned the scene. Ruby, Rin, Blake, and Yang were still fighting the Nevermore. He could see them peppering it with gunfire, and the occasional blast of offensive Gem Magecraft from Rin, but it was always out of reach and to make matters worse the avian Grimm was agile. It was able to dodge their and swoop down on them whenever they were reloading.
"It's intelligent." Pyrrha muttered.
"It's used to dealing with Humans." Ren added. "They're going to need help, if its old and smart then its only a matter of time until it manages to pick one of them off."
"I can...kill it…" Wide eyes were met with Shirou declaration, Nora and Pyrrha looked at him as if he'd grown a second head. "Shirou, we don't doubt your strength but…" Pyrrha trailed off.
"You'll only be in the way in your state." Ren added. "You're not in any condition to keep fighting."
"I can kill it from here." More looks of disbelief on their faces, Shirou struggled out of Ren and Jaune's grasp as he shakily stood. "Stand back." He ordered, and they did. Only Pyrrha remained close, ready to catch him in case he collapsed.
Holding his hand out to the side, a bright light shone that blinded those behind him. The light was so bright in fact that the Nevermore had stopped mid-flight to search for the source of the light. When the light had subsided, a jet black longbow rested in Shirou's hands.
He held out his free hand, a Noble Phantasm within his mind came to mind. Calad-dread, then a pulse, a sharp numbing pain that ran up Shirou's arm. He stopped the projection, it wouldn't let him. His body had reacted, it was afraid to Project the weapon.
The Nevermore cawed overhead as it unleashed a volley of feathers on four individuals Shirou could barely make out. He grit his teeth, if he began spasming he wouldn't be able to act. He had to think, he shifted to another Noble Phantasm. Hrunt- the same dread, then numbing pain. "No!" He grit his teeth, then cycled through several more Noble Phantasms all with the same effect.
"Shirou…" Pyrrha approached from behind. "What's going on?"
"I need a sword." He mumbled.
Pyrrha tilted her head. "A sword? Like the one at your hip?" Shirou's eyes widened, and quickly unsheathed the sword Ruby had given him. It wasn't Caladbolg, but it would have to do.
Shirou pulsed Od through it, getting a clear picture of its inner workings, its imperfections, and its capabilities. It was barely barely enough, it was strong enough to withstand what he was about to do to it. The sword shimmered and glowed teal as Shirou notched it into the bow.
"Wait what?" He heard Nora ask.
Teal light became red, as Shirou's hands trembled as he held onto his bow. "I am the bone of my sword." He breathed, then the scarlet light coated the exterior of the sword and forced it to become thinner and sleeker as Shirou drew his arm back.
Release.
The projectile flew forward, then shifted to the left. "Tch." It was off, he didn't manage to perfectly alter the sword causing it to shift as it flew.
Then it hit the Nevermore's wing, followed by an explosion several times larger than Nora's grenade blasts that blew a hole in the Nevermore's wing and part of its torso. It screeched, now unable to keep itself suspended in the air as it plummeted to the gorge. The fog immediately devouring it, leaving only the faint echo of its ghastly wails.
Shirou slowly exited his firing stance, and shakily swung in place. "I've got you." Pyrrha said, her hand allowing Shirou to slowly get to the ground. Dismissing the bow, Shirou looked sighed. He hadn't been this exhausted in a long time. Maybe that volley of swords he used to deflect the rain of feathers wasn't such a good idea, but it was too late now to retract his actions.
"What the heck was that?!" Nora exclaimed, grabbing Shirou by the shoulders as her eyes filled with an excited crazed curiocity. Ren grabbed onto her waist and pulled, she struggled in his grip. "Ren, aren't you at least curious how he just shot a Nevermore out of the sky?!"
Shirou couldn't help but laugh at their antics, as did Jaune and Pyrrha. "C'mon guys, let's finish initiation now." Jaune suggested, holding out a hand for Shirou to grab onto.
"But exploding sword!" Nora argued.
"I'll tell you about that later." Shirou chuckled, and ruffled the ginger haired girl's hair. Her eyes lighting up as she turned to Ren with the excitement of a child who was just told they were going to Disneyland. Ren sent Shirou a look "Please bear with her' it said, but Shirou did not mind at all.
"Uh guys?" Shirou began. "A thought occurs."
"What is it Shirou?" Asked Pyrrha.
"How're we supposed to get across?" Shirou pointed to the ruins of the destroyed bridge, more of it had fallen apart during their conflict with the Deathstalker. To add insult to injury, the Nevermore had managed to destroy the remaining parts of the bridge on the other side of the gorge when it had fallen to its death
Pyrrha sheepishly chuckled. "Uh...I hope none of you mind walking?"
Nora jumped at the opportunity. "I get to carry Shirou!"
"Cardin Winchester, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark" As the Headmaster listed off those names, Shirou began to tune out the world. His eyes landing on Rin who stood beside Ruby, Blake, and Yang waiting by the stage. He offered her a wave, one that she returned and one that Ruby joined in on after spotting him.
He chuckled. "Enjoying yourself?" Shirou turned to see the ever stoic face of Glynda Goodwitch who stood beside him, her expression softening slightly as she spotted him. "I'm doing so to the best of my abilities." Shirou replied, then gestured to his legs. He was wheelchair bound, and had been since he and the others had returned from initiation. He couldn't walk, let alone stand up, his legs just felt numb.
"How're you feeling?" Glynda asked.
"I'm good." Shirou answered. "I can move my feet now, but not the rest yet. I'll be back to normal by tomorrow." Glynda nodded, then returned her attention to the stage.
"You were remarkable." said Glynda, Shirou raised a brow. However the professor once again had her stoic mask plastered upon her face. Shirou was sure he'd just received a compliment, so he simply nodded and faced forward. "Thank you." he said, as Jaune and the others got on stage.
As Team JNPR was christened, Shirou felt a sense of pride in watching the four individuals. He couldn't explain it, but watching them succeed made him sit a bit straighter. Was it because he'd brought them together? Shirou shook his head, why was he making it more complicated than he needed to? The reason was simple.
It was because he'd saved them.
Saving a life should be a source of pride, it was the thing Shirou always wanted to do. Today he'd saved four lives-no eight. He'd saved Ruby and the others from the Nevermore as well. Speaking of Ruby, there they were. Team JNPR had gotten off the stage allowing Ruby, Rin, Blake, and Yang to take their place.
"Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long." Ozpin announced. "The four of you managed to retrieve the White Knight pieces, from this day forth you will be known as Team RWBY." A fitting choice if Shirou was concerned. "Led by, Ruby Rose."
Applause rang out as Ozpin declared them the final team to be christened, Shirou deciding to contribute to the applause smiled as he watched Rin bask in the praise. He supposed it was natural, considering what a prodigy she was. Shirou felt his wheelchair slowly move forward, and spotted Glydna behind him pushing him forward. "You have an appointment." She simply said.
Shirou soon found himself before the Headmaster, the grey haired man already finding a cup of whatever to consume the moment he left the stage. "Mr. Emiya." he began.
"Professor Ozpin." He returned, Shirou knew he'd failed in the task given to him. He had no partner and no relic, he supposed the Headmaster was just here to see him off. This was merely a formality at this point.
"I'm aware that you have no partner, and are not in the possession of a relic." Shirou nodded at his words. "This means you failed."
"Failed?!" A shrill voice sounded off, and in a burst of rose petals Ruby Rose appeared before the two conversing individuals. She hovered protectively over Shirou, her eyes wide with confusion. "Professor Ozpin-"
"It's fine Ruby." Shirou assured, placing a hand on her shoulder. "He's right you know."
The rest of Team RWBY approached not long after, as did Team JNPR. "It's not fair, Professor Ozpin. Shirou didn't have the opportunity to get a partner, he was busy protecting us."
"Well he wasn't really.." Yang trailed off, only to get elbowed in the ribs by Blake whose expression did not change all throughout the action. "I-I mean yeah!" Yang corrected.
Shirou smiled, he appreciated the gesture but it was unnecessary. If he didn't pass the entrance exam, then he'd find another way to remain in the vicinity of Beacon Academy. The thought of working as a handyman like in his highschool days came to mind.
"Children, please." Glynda sighed.
"It's quite alright Glynda." Ozpin chuckled, then turned to Shirou. "Mr. Emiya I am sure you are aware of your shortcoming, but the fact remains you failed." The faces of the present teens fell, he met each of their eyes. Trying to assure them that was happening was for the best, after all there was no fighting the man who practically owned the school.
"So Mr. Emiya, I hope you work to fix these mistakes during your tenure here at Beacon Academy."
"Wait, does that mean-?" Ruby asked.
Ozpin chuckled. "Yes Miss Rose." Then looked to Shirou. "Welcome to Beacon Mr. Emiya, I look forward to seeing your growth." Many of those present cheered for the news, Yang jabbed Shirou in the shoulder in a way of congratulations. Rin rolled her eyes, and then turned to the Headmaster.
"You are devious Professor." Rin began.
"Nonsense Miss Schnee." He replied. "This event is to christen Teams, and Mr. Emiya has no team."
"Do you often bend the rules Professor?" She asked, the sly smirk and glint in the Headmaster's eyes were telling enough but he merely turned away and walked off with Glynda trailing behind him. Despite the act, she heard his reply loud and clear.
"Only for those I deem irreplaceable talents."
"I see you took my advice." Glynda began.
The headmaster did not look at her, and merely continued his stride. "Which advice would you be referring to Glynda? I take all your advice."
'Liar' Glynda thought. "I'm referring to the one where we become more discreet with your favorite students." Glynda opened her hardlight tablet, footage from the initiation played. Specifically the footage of Shirou attacking the Nevermore.
"I treat all my students equally Glynda." Ozpin defended. "However, I think it was best that Mr. Emiya's capabilities were not to be broadcasted." His expression grew serious. "You never know who or what is listening Glynda."
I think I should take the time to discuss what happened in this chapter.
First, Shirou now has his Aura unlocked. How this interacts with his body and Magecraft will be touched on in the next few Chapters, I'm still trying to figure out how to make Shirou balance out for lack of a better term.
The Command Seals, it might be easy to forget but Rin did technically summon Shirou as for what he is; Shirou is still alive, so he's not really a Servant but he will be affected by the Seals to some extent as seen here.
If anything else bothers you I'll be sure to bring it up the next chapter.
So this ends the Initiation Arc.