A/N: To the people that bother to read my A/N's, I'd like to welcome you back. Sorry I made you guys wait this long. I didn't really have time to write during the week and the weekends were spent playing Elden Ring with a friend of mine... I might have a problem... *nervous chuckle* Well, regardless, I hope you guys find this chapter worth the wait.
Chapter Two: The Wolven Warrior
Night fell.
To most, it would pose a problem. Had they neglected to bring a portable light source, be it a torch, a flashlight or even a scroll if all else failed, they would be left to bumble around in the dark, left wholly unaware of the monsters that breathed down their necks, waiting for the smallest mistake to strike.
He was not most.
For all the gripe he and others like him received for it, it was at times like these when he was glad he was a faunus.
His ears, wolf-like with dark fur, perked up when they picked up something beating against the ground, drawing closer and closer. A snarl was his only warning.
He planted his feet, turned and swung, his greatsword cut through the air, cleaving the opportunistic Beowolf's head from its shoulders in one clean strike, leaving it to fall to the floor where it burst into pitch black smoke.
An Ursa burst from the treeline to his side, its large claws falling upon him with the intent to cleave him in two.
He was faster.
His sword swung upwards, separating the Grimm in two, letting its severed halves to fall to his sides. The momentum of his swing carried him upwards. He raised his blade once again, before he brought it down onto the head of a Creep as his feet met the ground once more, smashing its skull into pieces.
Yet for every creature of Grimm he slaughtered, it seemed two more would take its place. He hadn't been fighting for long, but he was aware of the fatigue that had begun to build within him. His hair began to grow damp as droplets of sweat trailed down his forehead. His lungs began to sting as his breathing grew more ragged.
His greatsword plunged into the chest of another Beowolf. A burst of frost from the Ice Dust imbued within froze the beast solid, killing it mid lunge.
Another took the opportunity to lunge at him in turn. He saw it coming, tore his sword free from the frozen carcass and swung at his assailant. The blade bit into its shoulder, but he was not fast enough to stop the beasts claws from raking across his chest.
His aura held, shimmering a pale purple, preventing the claws from digging into his chest.
It did nothing to halt the force of the blow.
He stumbled back, just barely managing to keep his footing as another Ursa slammed a paw into his shoulder. Distracted as he was, he failed to react and the blow sent him sprawling.
The Ursa lunged.
His sword split its skull in half, his swing gracefully transitioning to a flip that put him back on his feet once more, aided by his sword's momentum.
Swiftly, his pale purple eyes swept over the monsters before him. There were many, too many to fight one at a time.
A growl left his throat.
"Fine…" he sighed.
He leapt into the air with a flip as frost gathered on his blade, trailing a freezing blue mist behind it. As he fell, his sword plunged into the back of a Beowolf, impaling it to the floor.
The Grimm surged toward him like moths to a flame.
Then the Ice Dust within his sword exploded. A deep freeze blew across the battlefield.
All it touched ceased to be, leaving naught but frozen husks in its wake.
Icy mist escaped him as he breathed out a tired sigh, accompanied only by clinking of ice as the Grimm all collapsed to the floor. He hefted his greatsword and laid it against his shoulder as his gaze swept around him.
What was once a forest filled with greenery was now a frozen wasteland. Frost coated the ground and tree barks while the very air itself dropped to sub zero temperatures. His ear twitched as a droplet of water splashed onto the icy ground. Already the area was beginning to warm once more. The Grimm would evaporate once their carcasses thawed out.
He shook his head. "Had to work for it, but it's done, I suppose…"
Grimm, despite the monsters that they were, despite the strength, speed and tenacity they exhibited, were still nothing more than mindless beasts. With some of the older Grimm being exceptions, the manifestations of the dark showed no intelligence beyond that of instinct. They were predictable, easy to defeat for any Huntsman worth their salt. They proved more difficult for anyone lacking the professional training, but they were truly only a danger if they managed to swarm you, or if you had no training whatsoever.
That being said, he'd been sloppy.
A frustrated growl tore from his throat at the reminder but he pushed it down lest more Grimm appear. Wouldn't do for his emotions to get out of control a second time.
His gaze drifted to the cave entrance some distance away. Massive prints led both inside and out, the former being fresher, while the latter were older, almost faded away. Claw marks, meant to mark territory, were gouged deep into the stone.
Without his night vision, he wasn't sure if he'd have seen it. He'd barely noticed them now as it was, the jagged formation of rocks doing well to disguise them.
He wasn't ashamed to admit a shiver went down his spine at the sight.
His quarry was here, no mere mindless beast like the others he'd just butchered. This was the Grimm that had slaughtered countless innocents, the beast he'd hunted across all of Northern Vale… Only minutes prior he'd felt himself lucky.
Then a scent hit his nose.
It wasn't that of a Grimm, nor an animal.
It was human.
The footprints leading into the cave, far smaller than they had any right to be, suggested a child.
With his greatsword hefted on his back, he charged into the cave.
He only hoped he wasn't too late.
Something was wrong… Ranni could feel it.
Her hair stood on end, sending a prickling sensation down the length of her arms. Her heartbeat sped up as her blood rushed in her veins, beating within her chest like a hammer crashing against an anvil. A chill shot up her spine, making her shiver.
Her gaze swept left, then right, then left again as her instincts shouted at her to run, to run far away and never look back lest a terrible fate befall her. Naught but pitch black darkness met her no matter where she looked.
Not even her hands that were held right before her eyes were visible to her.
It was so dark…
She'd found the cave after night fell. There had just barely been enough light left, provided by the shattered moon in the sky, for her to spot it. She'd sought shelter within and had swiftly fallen asleep once she'd found a place to lie down.
When she awoke, all of her fatigue had vanished in the blink of an eye, exchanged for the sense of impending doom fast approaching. Nothing before had made her feel like this. Not the ruffians who'd accosted her in Mantle, not even the Nevermore which had destroyed the airship she'd taken passage on had caused her such…
Ah… She was scared, she realized. No longer did she merely witness the terror within the hearts of those around her. Now, she felt it herself.
It was paralyzing.
Indecision was her adversary. Her thoughts; scrambled. Her legs sought to move, to force her to stand so she could run as far and fast as her frail appendages could take her. Her fingers curled into fists as magic rushed in her veins, instinctively surging forth to defend her from whatever creature hid within the dark. Her jaw clenched, seeking to snap open and cry, cry for anyone and anything to help her, to save her.
Yet she did none of these things. For if her mind had yet to realize it, her heart knew it all too well. Should she so much as twitch…
…It would find her…
She knew naught what it was, only that should she and it come across one another, her head would be removed from her shoulders before she'd even realized it.
At least it was a small comfort… If she was lucky, she'd feel no pain…
The cave she was in was large. She knew naught because of her eyes, but due to her ears.
Something was near. She could hear it. Whatever it was made the cave shake with its steps, the sound echoing across the cavern walls akin to a troop of knights stomping down a hallway.
It searched for her. It knew she was here. Yet it hadn't found her.
Whatever it was moved around the cavern, its steps growing quieter and quieter as it journeyed further into the caves depths. When she could no longer hear the sound of the beast, she would gasp out relieved breaths as she greedily gulped down lungfuls of air.
She dared not breathe when it strayed too close.
Once, it had nearly found her. She had felt its musky breath on her form as it sniffed and snarled. She had managed to hide herself in a cavity within the cavern walls. Small enough for her to fit inside, deep enough for the beast to struggle in its search.
Luck alone had saved her, however. A loose stone had slipped free from its hold and had fallen to the ground, drawing the beasts attention away. If it hadn't been for that… She was certain her demise would have been imminent.
She was unsure just how much time had passed. She was deep enough within the cave that she had no chance of witnessing the rising sun should she have remained long enough for night to pass. She was hyperaware, each second feeling as long as an hour.
She felt as if she would soon go mad.
Despite how her heart screamed at her to remain still as a corpse and quiet as the grave, she knew inaction would only mean it would be a matter of time.
Already, she could tell how the beast strayed farther less frequently, how the area it searched grew smaller and smaller, closing in on where she hid.
She had to move.
She had to run.
She had to flee.
If she didn't, she would die!
Her chance came when the beast, whatever it was, wandered away once more. Its steps grew faint, then silent as it moved outside her senses.
Now!
Quickly, yet quietly, she crawled out of her hiding space. Before she knew it, her feet were dangling above empty space, before she pushed herself off. A silent huff escaped her as she landed, her knees threatening to buckle under the force, but she remained standing.
Then, she was met with a problem.
She couldn't see!
Yet, she knew if she remained where she was, with her feet rooted to the floor, it wouldn't be long before it returned. So, she forced her feet to move.
She didn't make it ten steps before she slipped on a loose stone.
She crashed hard against the ground, barely bringing her arms up to shield her head in time as she fell.
The sound of stone smashing against stone reverberated throughout the cavern, leaving a chilling silence in its wake.
A disturbing roar, however distant, surged forth, before the thumping of feet, or paws, or whatever appendage belonged to the horrid monster hunting her, grew closer and closer.
She cursed internally and threw caution to the wind. It knew where she was and she still couldn't see!
A spell! She had to cast a spell! Her magic surged forth and sparkling Starlight shined throughout the cavern, casting upon the walls an ethereal glow.
She almost wished she hadn't…
…Because now she could see…!
On the other end of the chamber, many times larger than her own tiny form, stood what could only appear in one's worst nightmares.
As she stared into those red eyes, so hateful and evil and burning, Ranni knew she was going to die.
When the creature opened its maw, displaying rows of sharp teeth and a lolling tongue that dripped with saliva… it screamed.
And Ranni, stricken by true fear for the first time in her life, screamed with it.
His jaw clenched as the scream echoed throughout the cavern.
Had it not been for his wolf ears that twitched at the grating noise, he'd not have heard the smaller, quieter, yet equally ear-piercing scream of a young girl that was drowned out by the roar of a monster.
Stone crunched underneath his boots as he bounded forward, and though he took care not to crash head first into a wall, it was proving more and more difficult the deeper he ran. The moonlight, which had given him ample light for his eyes to adjust to, grew fainter and fainter the further he moved from the caves entrance.
Soon enough, he was sprinting in pitch black darkness where even a faunus like him could barely see. Instead, he relied on his nose. He followed the scents, one of his prey, the other of the girl, while trusting his other senses to lead him.
And to think he'd been making fun of those who neglected to bring a light source not long ago… He wondered who the one laughing now was, because it certainly wasn't him.
Another bestial roar tore through the cave, louder, closer this time, and he picked up his pace. A flash of orange light banished the dark for a moment, giving him just enough time to spot its origin. He turned towards the source and dashed forward as the grip on his sword tightened.
When the beast roared for a third time, he was right on top of it.
He burst into the cavernous chamber, only to be met with the source of the glow. Fire blanketed the room, emanating a suffocating heat that made him sweat even from the brief exposure. His eyes widened when his gaze fell upon it.
There, in the corner of the room, the only piece of it untouched by the flames, sat a tiny, frail girl with snow white hair. Her eyes, a beautiful blue, were wide with fear as they gazed at the beast before her.
Where the girl would have barely reached his thigh, if even that, this beast towered over him thrice over. Its body was cat-like, reminiscent of a lion, with a mane of pitch black fur covering one of its heads. One head held an appearance that suited its body. The bone around its left eye was chipped and cracked. A grotesque scar, a large cut from a battle long past, ran down its chin. The other head, that of a ram instead of a lion like the first, held gnarled horns, one of which had been torn off, that were more than capable of piercing and crushing armor. Baleful orange flames spilled from its maw, coating the room in crackling fire. Its claws were longer than knives and sharp enough to tear flesh like paper. Bone-like spikes ran down the length of its back atop its spine, all the way to its tail, the tip of which held the head of a snake with fangs that dripped with venom. The draconic wings on its back were just the finishing touch.
A Kymera… It was toying with the girl, forcing her into a corner to draw out as much fear as it could for nothing more than cruel pleasure, before it would inevitably kill her.
Not if he had anything to say about it!
Frost built up along his blade as he leapt into the midst of the flames. He raised his greatsword high, before he plunged it into the stone floor. A web of cracks surged forth as an icy explosion plunged the room into freezing temperatures, extinguishing the fire and causing thick steam to race towards the ceiling.
His ears twitched as they picked up the startled growl from his prey. His head swiveled in its direction and he lunged, his blade raised high, intent on severing its heads from its shoulders. His greatsword fell in an arc and he briefly heard the squelching of flesh being severed before it was drowned out by a shriek of pain.
He barely raised his sword in time to block the Kymera's retaliatory attack as its claw, now missing a single digit, raked across his blade with the ugly sound of steel scraping against steel.
He jumped back as the Kymera did the same, before the beat of its draconic wings blew the last of the steam away.
Despite the victory, minor though it was, no grin came to his face. He'd gotten the drop on the damn thing and that tiny nick was all he could manage?
A whimper drew his attention away from the Kymera and he glanced at the girl out of the corner of his eye, making sure to keep the Grimm in his line of sight. This would be tricky. Fighting this thing on its own was difficult enough but with the girl?
His luck just kept getting better, eh?
That being said, they way she was looking at him bothered him. The widening of her eyes, the way her mouth dropped. Normally he'd simply brush it off as surprise at someone managing to intervene in time but he could swear that there was recognition in her gaze.
"Try to stay back, child. I'll make sure this beast stays dead once I'm finished with it," he said.
The girl's response, if there was any, was drowned out as the Kymera's heads howled in unison, an unholy wail that sent a chill down his spine, drawing his attention back towards the beast.
A gout of fire burst from the ram head's maw, painting the floor in hellfire. He dashed to the side as the flames barely licked at his form before he lunged with his greatsword poised to run the Grimm through.
Its claw rose to deflect the attack, before another swipe threatened to gouge his eyes out. He ducked as he hefted his blade once more, allowing the razor-sharp claws to sail overhead, barely missing his ears, before he whirled and slammed his blade into the Kymera's shoulder in one fluid movement.
A blast of acidic venom from the snake head forced him to abandon his attack lest the burning liquid dissolve his flesh. He changed direction, swinging his blade toward the ground as he leapt into the air. The momentum propelled him higher still, allowing the venom to just barely miss him. It splashed harmlessly against the ground where it ate away against the stone, sizzling and bubbling.
Still in the air, he twirled and swung his greatsword in a massive arc as frost built along his blade once more. The Kymera beat its wings, pushing him away as it leapt backwards simultaneously. His strike missed, but the wave of ice that followed surged forward. It was halted by a torrent of flame equal in power.
He didn't let up his assault. He burst through the steam that billowed towards the ceiling and swung.
His blade met nothing but empty air.
A shriek from above was his only warning. His head snapped towards the ceiling, only for his pale purple orbs to meet baleful red, the Kymera's claws having already swung towards him with the intent to flay his flesh from his bones.
He moved with instinct, an old technique learned from a comrade turned traitor. One moment, he stood beneath his impending demise. The next, he vanished.
The Grimm crashed into the floor as its claws tore stone apart with ease, sending fragments of rock flying into the air as it unleashed its furry on the area he once stood.
It took a moment for the Kymera to realize there was no bloody corpse beneath its feet. Once it did, it was far too late.
Steel cut into its hide as he reappeared beside the Grimm. His blade bit deep, earning a satisfying shriek from the beast. He was too slow to avoid the snake head that snapped towards him. He hissed as fangs pierced his armor and scraped against his skin. Only his aura saved him from a far more grievous wound.
He spun his greatsword before him. The snake head retread before he could sever it from the Kymera's tail, only for the beast to whirl with deceptive speed. The ram head smashed into his chest. His aura crackled but both it and his cuirass held.
The Grimm didn't give him a chance to breathe. It lunged forth, its claws blurring as they slashed at him with a speed that more than surprised him. His greatsword snapped around him in a vain effort to shield him from the deadly blows. Still, despite his efforts, his aura cracked as razor-sharp claws shredded his armor and raked against his aura.
The Kymera stood upon its hind legs and let out a horrifying shriek, before its forelegs thundered towards the earth.
He was faster. His sword swung upwards, carving a deep gash into the Grimm's underbelly. The momentum of his strike carried him backwards with a flip, the beasts claws narrowly missing him.
A ball of fire flew towards him. He stepped, vanishing as the attack missed him entirely, only for him to reappear and thrust his sword forth, plunging it into the Grimm's scarred left eye.
It howled, a grating sound that made him shudder, but he didn't relent, even if the noise made him want to clamp his hands over his ears. Instead, he twisted, drawing further shrieks of agony from the beast, before with a final tug, he tore the blade free as the Kymera staggered back, spraying black blood across the walls, the ground and soaking his form with dark ichor.
Now and only now, did he allow himself to grin. He might have despised the one who had taught him the technique an age ago, but the Bloodhound's Step would always be an incredibly useful skill.
Red eyes filled with hate burned holes into his own and he readied his blade once more. He'd make sure this beast lay twitching and dissolving before the night was done.
It wasn't possible.
After all, what were the odds? Improbable at best, impossible at worst.
She didn't want to get her hopes up for she felt her heart might break, but the more she watched, the more he fought, the more her resistance to the notion in the back of her mind crumbled.
When he first appeared with a burst of chilling frost that put out the fires that would have otherwise swallowed her whole, she couldn't help but gape.
At first, she wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh at the fact she had been saved, or cry since her supposed savior was a faunus. She would have called it ironic, but then her eyes saw the rest of him.
He was fairly young and he towered over her small form, with pale purple eyes and dark hair, though too light to be black. Dark grey most likely. His skin, while by no means dark, held a healthy tone found on those who often stood in the sun. His attire, which she might not have found strange, was unusual for those in his line of work.
The Huntsmen on the airship wore thin, personalized clothing that allowed greater freedom of movement with very few protective pieces. The man before her was covered in a full suit of armor by comparison. Save for his head which remained bare, and his feet on which he wore leather boots, his shoulders all the way to his knees were protected by plain, although seemingly sturdy steel plate armor with a dark blue, tattered cloak made of animal fur draped across his shoulders and back.
Then he began to battle the creature which had seconds prior been about to kill her. The way he fought, the way his greatsword swung harmoniously with practiced grace and bestial savagery, it was…
It was so familiar…!
The thought brought renewed tears to her eyes. No longer were they of fear, but of sadness, longing and pain, but also of relief and joy.
And finally, when he'd delivered that viscous blow which spilled the beasts blood and sent it staggering back, she saw the wolfish grin on his face and a sob, unable to be held back, burst from her throat.
"Blaidd…!"
Blaidd stood still as the beast continued to shriek. It clawed at its eye, seemingly in an attempt to alleviate the pain, but it only succeeded in making the wound worse. By the time it was finished, his ears were twitching madly from the noise and the Kymera's lion head was missing the left half of its face, with naught but black flesh and dark blood pooling by its feet.
With the eyes that still remained, it glared at the wolf faunus, before, with a howl of rage, it stood on its hind legs once more and slammed its front paws into the ground, scattering dust into the air.
A confused frown crossed his lips as he quirked an eyebrow, only for dread to take its place when the ground cracked and the cavern shook.
When it slammed against the ground a second time, Blaidd was already running towards the frightened young girl. He stumbled as shards of rock began to rain down from the ceiling but nevertheless, he continued on.
By the time he'd manage to actually reach the young girl, he could do no more than wrap his arms around her before the Kymera's feet thundered against the ground for a third and final time.
It was like an earthquake. The ground shook and the cavern trembled as stalactites rained down from above, before the cavernous floor they had battled upon shattered into thousands of pieces.
Then they were falling.
The ground gave way beneath them, introducing them to open air. The girl yelped in his arms as gravity enforced its hold upon them, but to his surprise, she didn't shriek as he expected her to.
His ears were certainly grateful. Small mercies, he supposed.
Nevertheless, he held her tight. His backside met something solid within seconds, eliciting a slight groan of pain, before he was sliding down an angled slope deeper into a previously closed off section of the cave.
He took a second to relax, breathing out a sigh of relief, when he realized he was no longer in free fall.
A falling rock nearly crushed his head.
He didn't dare drop his guard after that.
It took all he had to avoid the debris which threatened to spear him through, or the gaping holes that opened up before him which promised doom should he fall in. All as the Kymera, whose terrifying screeches chased him all throughout, hurled venom and fire at his form. If he got lucky, they would land separately. Otherwise, the two would mix and combust, creating fiery explosions which singed his armor and battered at his aura.
He was in hell. Of this, he was certain.
Mercifully, the drop eventually came to an end as the incline gave way to stable, flat ground. His armor skidded against the stone as he ground to a halt. He stood up immediately, only pausing to ensure the girl in his arms was in one piece.
She was uninjured, aside from a series of cuts, bruises, minor burns and what looked to be a broken nose. Considering her apparent lack of aura, Blaidd considered it could have been much, much worse. Only, to his confusion, she was staring ahead at something and her eyes were… Were they glowing?
He turned his head, only for his jaw to drop at the sight. Glowing light blue crystals lined the cavern walls all around them, casting their forms in an ethereal blue glow. For a second, he thought they were Dust crystals, either Ice or Hard-Light, but they didn't have such a brilliant hue, nor did they glow so vibrantly.
Then the girl in his arms spoke.
"Glintstone…?" she muttered, her quiet voice filled with shock.
His head snapped down to her as his eyes shot wide open.
How did she…?
His train of through was disrupted as a shriek filled the cavernous chamber, bouncing off of the walls in a terrible echo that made him wince as the sound assaulted his ears. A second later, the Kymera landed before them on the other side of the chamber, surrounded on all sides by rushing water that fell from above to continue its flow through underground rivers.
He set the girl down as the Kymera growled at him, a sound full of hate but also of pain. It was injured, heavily so, and it was weaker than it once was.
Blaidd's sword rose as he readied to do battle once more, only to hesitate when the beast turned and… What was it doing…? Surely it wasn't trying to escape. There was nowhere for it to go, unless it took to the air once more.
His question was answered when the powerful jaw of the lion head clamped down onto a shard of Glintstone.
The beast tore into the shards, with the horrible sounds of cracking crystals and snapping teeth filling the cavern. Despite the damage it sustained, it ate rapidly, too quickly for Blaidd to close the large distance between the two.
It was finished in moments, releasing a shriek of agony as it swallowed the last of the shards before it. The sound went from agonizing to absolutely torturous as the volume and pitch increased three-fold.
When it began to twitch and convulse, Blaidd finally forced himself to move.
He lunged across the distance as the magical shards burst through its flesh, growing like a fungus. Its eyes twitched and burned, beginning to glow a gleaming blue instead of the red he was used to.
His sword fell upon it as soon as he was close enough, swinging for the beast's neck.
He was too late.
A blast of pure magical energy surged forth from within, crashing into Blaidd and throwing him back across the chamber. He slid across the ground, releasing grunts of pain and irritation as he tumbled. He got to his knees when his momentum eventually slowed enough, only for him to gaze into the eyes of a monster.
Raw, magic flames poured from its maw as the Kymera spread its wings. It took to the air with powerful beats, only for all three of its heads to glare at him as one. Then, in tandem, they bellowed, roared and hissed.
All Blaidd could do was raise his sword and fight on.
And so, with a howl of his own, that's exactly what he did.
A/N: Once again, to those of you that bother to read these, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.
So the mystery person is revealed! It's Blaidd... Was anyone surprised...?
And we also have the first proper fight scene in this fic. I guess you could count the Nevermore assault on the airship last chapter as the first fight, but I didn't really consider that to be one. It was a bit difficult to do since I tried to make Blaidd's fighting style similar to how he fights in game plus I just didn't want it to be boring. I often find myself skipping over a lot of the fights in other fics I read and that would be a bummer if people skipped over mine too.
Also, I hope that the Grimm I chose to be Blaidd's adversary was an interesting enough choice. I found some concept art of it online somewhere, I think it was on Amino, and it looked really cool so I decided to use it instead of some random mindless Grimm so the encounter would have some weight. I would have used an Elden Ring side boss or something but I have no idea how to justify something like that appearing this early on in the story, if at all.
There's also the Glintstone at the bottom of the cave. Can you tell I'm writing by the seat of my pants yet? Seriously though, the more I write this, the more complete the rough sketch of this story becomes in my head, and with a bit of help from one of my readers, (Thank you, ComparedDread12!) I have a mostly set in stone backstory idea for how Ranni, and now Blaidd, came to be on Remnant. I won't say much else just yet, lest I destroy any interest people have left in this fic, but I hope people will like the direction I chose! That said, I'm more than happy to entertain any suggestions you guys have. One of you has already helped me and I won't say no to more!
I think that's all I want to say this time around. If you enjoyed this chapter, I kindly ask that you leave a favorite, follow and/or a review. All of those things help motivate me as they let me know I'm making content that people enjoy. That goes double so for any criticism that anyone has. If anyone has anything to say to me about this fanfic, whether good or bad, I'd love to hear it. My PM's are also always open and I'll be sure to respond to any messages I get. That being said, I'll see you all next time.