The Legend of Remnant
Chapter 2: The Lion Cub
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The sword cleared the marble pedestal with a ring so clear and crisp that it felt almost unreal to Jaune's ears. As soon as the tip of the blade has passed the lip of the pedestal, he felt it: A sudden rush of energy began to flow through him, filling him from head to toe. His bruises began to slowly clear away, followed by the ache in his muscles, and even the burning in his chest began to abate. Within minutes, his every wound cleared, leaving him feeling renewed and full of strength in a way he had never felt before. His eyes widened as he gazed upon the blade, heart beating in his chest. What was this blade? He'd heard tales of magical weapons, but that's all they were; tales. However, here he was, in a mystical looking clearing, holding some strange blade that had just healed him and filled him with strength. Could any of the tales be true?
And then, in an instant, something hit him like a ton of bricks…
'You are our light, the light that must shine upon Hyrule once more!'
Four stone beasts roar, unleashing their ancient power upon the Calamity…
'The time has come for the boy without a fairy to follow his destiny…'
A young man faces a man with evil eyes, a clash played time and time and time again…
'A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage…'
A clash of blades amidst the backdrop of golden twilight…
'If you wish to wake the lion, then give him fangs!'
The blade fell from Jaune's grasp to the grass below, followed shortly by Jaune himself dropping to his knees, clutching his head, blue eyes wide. Images. Scenes. Memories of things he'd never experienced. Brief snatches of voices and scenarios flooded his mind, along with a thousand emotions that threatened to overwhelm him. Sorrow, joy, rage, contentment, terror, anxiety, satisfaction; the emotions built upon themselves until all Jaune could do was gasp and claw at the grass and dirt, eyes brimming over with tears. He tried to scream, but his breath caught in his throat, as even more scenes played in his mind, even more emotions consumed his every thought…
'It's dangerous to go alone. Take this!'
An old man with a gift, and a curse…
'I won't let things go the way you expect them to!'
A boy and his fairy stare down the falling moon with defiance in their eyes and their souls…
'I can see this girl's dreams...oceans...oceans...oceans...oceans...as far as the eye can see…'
Boy, Princess and Demon clash beneath the briney deep for the fate of the world…
'I never imagined a boy like you could give me so much trouble…'
Sword and Trident meet, sparks clash amidst a world of darkness…
'An incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind, dooming them to wander a blood-soaked sea of darkness for all time!'
Like a light switch, the images and emotions and scenes stopped, leaving Jaune gasping and drenched in sweat, laying face up and staring at the sun shining down upon him. The only emotions that were left were his own, filled with confusion and fear. "What…" Jaune breathed out, slowly rising up on his elbows, "What the hell was that?!" He glanced over to see the indigo-hilted blade glinting under the sun's rays, and suddenly scrambled away in a crab walk, staring terrified at the weapon. There he sat, staring awkwardly at the weapon as though he expected it to float up and start swinging itself at him.
Birds chirped and a gentle gust of wind picked up, rippling the grass beneath him, and yet the blade did nothing more. Still, Jaune refused to move. He knew that whatever the hell had happened was real, and not just some hallucination. It all felt too real. He tried to remember some of the scenes, some of the faces and voices; but, much like a waking dream, it had all slipped from his mind with nothing more than the knowledge that it had happened.
It's a fine blade, but how long do you plan to sit there staring at it for?
Jaune jumped to his feet, glancing around in surprise. It was that voice again, but this time it was clear as a bell. "Who...who are you? Where are you?"
That's not the question you should be asking. In fact, I don't think now is the time for questions…
"What do you mean-"
"Grrrrwwlll…"
Jaune slowly turned to see a pair of Beowolves enter the clearing; knowing his luck, the same ones he'd been running from earlier. He took a step back as they advanced upon him, drooling and growling, flexing their razor sharp claws.
Now that you are no longer without a weapon, I think it's time you show me what you're capable of…
Jaune glanced back to the Grimm and then down to the sword. "Show you?! With that? What was all that? Those images and voices? Who are you? What the hell is going on?!"
Enough! If you wish to survive another day, if your desire to become a hero holds any weight, then pick up that blade...AND LET ME SEE YOU BARE THOSE FANGS!
As if on cue, the beasts rushed forward, and one of the leaped at him, growling loudly as it made to tear out his throat. Jaune didn't hesitate; he ran forward and ducked under the leap of the second Beowolf, hitting the ground and rolling. With one fluid motion he didn't know he could make, he made his way onto his feet, brandishing his shield and holding the sword-
He blinked. When had he picked up the blade? Was it during his dodge? At least this time it hadn't done anything else weird; he couldn't afford to go crazy again when he was staring death in the face. The closest Beowolf swiped at him with claws that could tear him apart easily, but his shield intercepted the blow. A split second before it landed, he feared that he wasn't strong enough to withstand the force of the blow; earlier it had taken all of his strength just to hold one of off of him, and these ones looked a bit beefier than the one he'd lucked out on killing when this insanity started. Its attack landed, and Jaune was surprised to find that while it did leave his arm slightly numb, he was able to avoid taking damage.
He backed up slightly as the first one rushed in, and it too gave a swipe of its claws that cleaved the air where Jaune's face had been moments before. The second Grimm started to blindside him, claws bared and aimed for his throat; Jaune's arm moved almost on its own, knocking it aside with his shield before he turned fully to meet the creature, thrusting the blade at the creature's own throat.
It was like a hot knife through butter, passing through the creature's skin, muscle and even bone with ease that surprised Jaune. It also seemed to surprise the Grimm, which simply stumbled back, unsticking itself and collapsed backward, Jaune's eyes widened and he stared down at the sword again. That was...easy? That parry with the shield, he knew he'd never been taught how to do that, and yet, he'd deflected the attack so casually!
WHUMPH!
So distracted was he by his sudden burst of previously unlearned skill, that Jaune didn't notice that the first Beowolf hadn't been idle, and it swiped him from behind with enough force to send him sprawling to the grass below, white hot pain blossoming across his shoulder blades. Jaune groaned in pain, rolling onto his back, only to see the Beowolf lunging at him, threatening to pin him like the first one, but with more than likely much more fatal results. He rolled hard to the side and the creature landed on the ground with a dull thud. Once more Jaune got to his feet and rushed forward, slashing at the creature. It was a bit late, as the creature actually leaped backward, growling louder at him. It seemed it was old enough, at least, to notice when someone was trying to kill it.
Without warning, it launched itself at him again, and Jaune had only just enough time to stand his ground and use Crocea Mors' shield to keep the beasts jaws from tearing away at him. He struggled to hold the beast back, its weight threatening to drive him to his knees. With great exertion, Jaune swiped the sword at the beast, but this time, the beast actually managed to knock the blade aside with a swipe of its paw, and its other one rose up to meet Jaune's chin, picking him off the ground and throwing him backward. Jaune hit the dirt, the air driven violently from his lungs. Adrenaline and desperation fueled strength were all that kept Jaune from inadvertently dropping the sword and shield. The beast lumbered forward, and Jaune, still trying hard to suck in air, could only think to raise the razor sharp blade in his hand up to meet the now leaping Beowolf.
The beast, in midair, couldn't change its course, and the massive furred wolf Grimm landed upon Jaune, driving the blade into the beast's body. Its jaws were open, fangs dripping with saliva, aimed straight for Jaune's face, and his heart seemed to stop, the world slowing to a crawl. Its cavernous mouth was so close to Jaune's face that he could smell the sickly smell of carrion on its breath. Seconds seemed to pass, then what felt like minutes, until finally Jaune could feel the beast's weight begin to lessen upon his body. The beast had apparently died mere moments from biting into Jaune's face. He let out a slow breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding in as the beast turned to smoke, drifting off of him and fading to nothing in the sunlight forest air.
Pathetic.
"Excuse me?!" Jaune shot up with a start, once more glancing around for the mysterious voice.
It took you that much effort to take out a pair of Wolfos? Those shadow beasts should have been nothing more than a minor distraction, yet here you are, wounded and winded from just two of them.
"H-hey! Who the hell are you? I want some answers, damn it!" Jaune growled, swinging the blade at the air as though it might dispel or somehow even wound the disembodied voice. "What is this sword? Where am I?!"
Hmph. Seems this time the Goddesses have seen fit to challenge me with you. Still, somehow, you've drawn the Master Sword from its pedestal, and although it slumbers still, it's proof enough. The Goddess often make strange decisions, but never wrong ones. I'd suggest making your way back to civilization for the time being.
"Goddesses? Master Sword? The hell are you going on about? Who are you? Are you this sword?"
You'll get your answers later. For now, I want to see if you even have enough skill to survive more than five minutes out in the wild.
Jaune growled again. "Hey! I-I didn't do that bad against them! I survived, didn't I? I think you owe me some answers!" He waited, tapping his foot on the ground, for an answer, but none came. Eventually, he sighed, shoulders slumping, and shook his head. "Damn it all…" The young man looked down once more at the blade in his hands, the sunlight shining off of it giving it an almost ethereal quality. Part of him wanted to go shove the sword back into its pedestal and forget about the whole thing, but…
Something else in him refused. Maybe it was curiosity that stayed his hand, or perhaps it just felt comfortable in his hand, as though it were always meant to be there. Jaune sighed and shook his head once more, trudging back from where he came from…
[Emerald Forest - Ruins]
Ruby Rose was not having a good morning.
Sure, things started off...moderately well, with her managing to stick her landing strategy with no issues, and she hadn't run into any Grimm she couldn't handle easily. Things, however, took a turn for the worse right after she'd run into Weiss, of all people. She was, or at least tried to be, excited to find her new partner, but Weiss had up and abandoned her. When she'd run into her again, she and Pyrrha Nikos were partners, leaving her alone. Then, somehow she'd gotten separated from them and ran into a Giant Nevermore the size of a bullhead, which apparently decided that it was going to harass Ruby by firing spear like feathers as big as she was. She'd been chased around the Emerald Forest for quite some time, not making any headway in trying to shoot the massive Grimm down while trying to also avoid the land based Grimm, and in her desperation to keep herself from being overwhelmed, decided to duck into a cave.
As it turned out, that might have been an even worse idea. It was only due to her Semblance's speed that kept her from being speared by the biggest Deathstalker she'd ever laid eyes on, but as she rushed out of the cave in a big hurry, it followed behind her, its snapping claws and scuttering legs fully audible even among the forest ambiance. Then, a whistling, and Ruby had to leap to the side to avoid being speared by the Giant Nevermore, which had apparently decided to stick around to see if it could wait Ruby out. She ran as fast as she could, burning precious Aura to keep herself ahead of the now two giant threats behind her, and praying she could find Yang and the rest of the Huntsman before they caught up.
That, at the very least, turned out to be her one stroke of good luck, at least for her. She'd run right into the Emerald Forest ruins, seeing not only her sister, but Weiss, Pyrrha and a number of other Huntsman standing around, chatting. "Yang!" Ruby shouted, running up.
The blond huntress turned to face her sister with a smile. "Ruby! You made it!"
"No time to chat!" Ruby exclaimed, glancing over her shoulder, "We've got trouble!"
"Trouble?" Weiss chimed in, glaring at her, "What did you bring with you?"
Fate, apparently, had a bit of a sense of humor, as no sooner had Weiss asked that, that the Deathstalker came crashing through the treeline, followed by the screech and sun-blocking shadow that came from the Nevermore above. Ruby laughed nervously. "I'm sorry?"
"Ugh!" Weiss yelled, brandishing Myrtenaster. "First my Dust, now this? You are the clumsiest girl I've ever met! How did you ever make it to Beacon?"
Yang stepped forward. "Give it a rest, Ice Queen; I doubt my sister wanted to get the attention of Grimm. We've got more to worry about anyway."
Weiss huffed, but fell silent. Then, "Pyrrha. Yang. Blake. Follow me, we'll make our way to the gorge and try to distract the Nevermore there. I trust you three can handle the Deathstalker?" Without waiting for an answer, Weiss took off running, using her glyph to fire a trio of fireballs into the air and at the Nevermore. One struck, not enough to cause it any real harm, but to attract its attention to the white clad Huntress, and the three following behind her.
"What? Wait, I-" Ruby started, only to see the Deathstalker bearing down on her. She quickly got out of its way, avoiding the stinger that plunged into the dirt and stuck there.
"Where's your partner?" asked one Nora Valkyrie, brandishing her hammer and sidling alongside Ruby.
Ruby's face colored. "I...I didn't find one yet." She muttered, despondent.
"I think there's more important things to be worrying about," Lie Ren answered, firing a burst of shots that slammed harmlessly into the Grimm's armored carapace.
"How are we supposed to damage this thing?" Nora complained, shifting her hammer into its grenade launcher form, and firing a shot. The grenade flew through the air, but the Deathstalker put its claws in front of its face before the grenade could land, and it exploded harmlessly against the armor once more. "Oh come on!"
Ruby frowned. She glanced over, and with a burst of speed, grabbed the one remaining relic from the pedestals, just to make sure she didn't fail before returning. "Sorry, just making sure I still get a Relic. If we can dislodge its tail, Nora can attack it with her hammer!"
"What good would that do?" Ren asked, firing more shots at the beasts face. While the shots only served to riccochet of the claws, the Deathstalker wasn't moving as it couldn't see while protecting its eyes.
"If Nora can crack its armor, we might stand a chance of damaging it!" Ruby responded. She focused herself, and rushed forward alongside the Grimm, brandishing her scythe to try and hook the blade around the creature's tail. As she did so, the Deathstalker began to move its tail, causing Ruby to only manage to slice part way through it. The Grimm gave a screech that had Ruby, Ren and Nora wincing in pain.
"Uh-oh, I think you just angered it, Ruby!" Nora replied, stepping further back as the creature flailed in pain and rage, its claws just barely managing to miss Ruby.
Ren fired some shots at the Grimm's damaged tail, but the tail itself was moving around too quickly to get a bead on, and only a few of the shots hit, doing nothing more than aggravating the already enraged scorpion. The creature gave another keen, and began to scuttle rapidly toward the boy, who turned tail and ran. "Ren!" Nora exclaimed, rushing off after him.
Ruby, with no other options, quickly followed behind the two of them, with the Deathstalker close behind. They ran, all three, through winding trees and bushes, trying to shake off the very angry Grimm, but the beast seemed to be able to weave through the forest as skillfully as they could, and was right on their heels. Smaller trees were either run over, or snapped in half by claws that could crush steel. "We can't keep running forever!" Ruby exclaimed. "Ren, try firing more at it! If you can blind it again, I might be able to finish off its tail!"
"If I can get some distance! Nora, can you launch another grenade at it?"
Nora groaned. "I-I'm sorry! I used up most of them before we saw the Deathstalker!"
"Uh, guys?" Ruby added, "I think we've hit a dead end!"
Ruby's words were too true; without realizing it, the trio had ended up right up against a cliff wall, with the Deathstalker still advancing upon them. Ruby, Ren and Nora turned back to face it, Ruby's silver eyes glancing about for anything that could give them an advantage. "Ruby?" Nora asked, shifting her gaze between Grimm and Ruby, "I hope you have a plan…"
"I think I do. All we have to do is-"
Ruby's speech was cut off by the sound of… a girl screaming? From above? Ruby glanced up...only to see a yellow and white falling blur plummet from above, directly above where the Deathstalker was, and-
SQUELCH!
A/N; Hey folks sorry for the delay in updates for my writing, the first week after I'd done my return, I was supposed to be preparing for a D&D game that I got shanghai'd into DMing for. Then it got cancelled. The second week was my first week being transferred back to a third shift position, and my sleep schedule was fucked, so I was too tired to get anything done until I'd readjusted. So, here's my latest offering. Hope it tides some of you over until next time.
Signing off for now, this is LaughingLefou.
B/N: Hey, Random O Panda here. I'm glad to be able to help Lefou with his new pet project. *Psst* Wanna buy some Deku nuts?
A/N 2: Electric Boogaloo: Hey folks, before I go, just wanted to drop a spicy new Omake on you all! Enjoy!
The sword cleared the marble pedestal with a ring so clear and crisp that it felt almost unreal to Jaune's ears. As soon as the tip of the blade has passed the lip of the pedestal, he felt it: A sudden rush of energy began to flow through him, filling him from head to toe. His bruises began to slowly clear away, followed by the ache in his muscles, and even the burning in his chest began to abate. Within minutes, his every wound cleared, leaving him feeling renewed and full of strength in a way he had never felt before. His eyes widened as he gazed upon the blade, heart beating in his chest. What was this blade? He'd heard tales of magical weapons, but that's all they were; tales. However, here he was, in a mystical looking clearing, holding some strange blade that had just healed him and filled him with strength. Could any of the tales be true?
Then, something hit him like a ton of bricks…
'It is written, only Link can defeat Ganon!'
A graying man in a stupid hat points to a scribbled note on a piece of parchment…
'I wonder what's for dinner…'
A fat king chuckles merrily, mindless of the danger he decides to throw himself into…
'HEY! LISTEN!'
A floating ball of light hovers before a boy's eyes, refusing to let him finish the stupid fishing minigame because the damn large fish refuses to take the bait…
The boy blinked, his right eye twitching hard as images and scenes flooded his mind. Emotions, or rather, an emotion filled his thoughts. Annoyance. Annoyance beyond anything he'd ever felt. His hands clenched tightly, his teeth ground against one another, and a growl escaped his throat. Never before in his life had he wanted to punch something more than he did in that moment. To make matters even worse, the images kept coming…
'Excuuuuuuuse me, Princess!'
An idiot with a one-track mind tries, yet again, to hit upon a Princess…
'Master, there is a 95% chance that if you get hit, you will take damage.'
A bland blue spirit floats around, stating the obvious ad nauseum...
'You dare bring light to my lair? YOU MUST DIE!'
An ugly...thing complains about a boy bringing a torch into his lair, flailing about spastically…
Silence fell over the clearing. Birds chirped, the wind whistled, and Jaune stared down at the indigo hilted blade in his hand for what felt like an eternity. Then, with purpose, he strode over to the pedestal, and unceremoniously shoved the blade back into it with a very emphatic, "FUCK THAT!" before storming off back to where he came from, muttering angrily under his breath as he clenched and unclenched his fists.
Silence, once more fell over the glade.
In a realm between dreams and reality, a blond man in green and red slowly turns to a floating blue spirit, his expression dry and irritated. "Fi. You showed him the wrong memories."
"I am sorry, Master."
