Dirt & Grit
Chapter 10
Three months later…
"Aaah…Fuck." I hissed while pulling the bandage tighter around my arm to soak up the blood from the cut I got from our recent scrap. Giving it a good tug, I reached down with my other hand into my trouser pocket to grab a pack of cigarettes that Amon had given me. Lighting it and bringing it to my mouth to feel the nicotine deaden the pain as I looked out at the rest of the camp from my position on the tree stump I was sitting on.
What used to be a bustling little community of around sixty had dwindled by half of that since we have been on the run. My chest ached as I watched the new funeral held for someone we had recently lost – a kid – during our last escape. They were only seven and had already lost their parents in another raid.
Barely younger than me…
Vale didn't take kindly to the murder of the mayor and had sent as much as they could chasing after us as we ran further east to get away from the kingdom. Amon planned to get us to cross the sea and meet the Mistralian Nomads for any safe refuge they could offer us. No one could argue with him; everyone was too exhausted to try.
Rozalia barely spoke to anyone anymore, and when she did, it was only to talk to Amon and get some food before she retreated to Myron's old cabin to sleep and to fight whenever our chasers attacked us. She didn't even look at me or acknowledge that I had existed at all since Myron's death, and a part of me was convinced that she blamed me for getting him killed and Neo disappearing.
I don't blame her…
I flinched as my arm began to sting, and I punched my knee to distract myself from the pain. My stomach growled as I realised how hungry I had been since the last fight, so I got up to look for food. I wandered over to where Diane was, whose bloodshot and baggy eyes were visible to everyone as she tried her best to feed the camp throughout the months.
"Diane," I called as I got closer, and she stiffly turned around in response and weakly smiled at me.
"Oh…Hey Grit," She greeted before nearly falling over, which I stopped by stepping in to catch her. She quietly thanked me and straightened herself before bracing herself against the cooking table.
"If you're looking for food, Grit, I'm afraid we're all out." Diane meekly said as she rubbed her eyes.
Poor woman…
I nodded towards the forest behind her, "That's okay. I'll go hunting now and see if I can find any game." Moving away from her, I returned to my caravan to retrieve my bow and knife. I only made it a couple of steps before Diane spoke up.
"Uh, actually, I think I'll come with you," I turned my head to look at her as she weakly smiled at me, her eyes darting around, looking anywhere but mine, "I found a pond nearby that might be a good spot for any animals to gather." She explained while fidgeting with her hands.
I guess I could use some help with this.
"Okay," I nodded before returning to resume where I was going. I stopped as I walked past an armoured corpse being scavenged of its gear. Even in death, it was still just as menacing as when it was alive.
We had been moving for a week …since all of that happened. I was at the front of the caravans with Amon as he led the procession to the East to get as far away from Vale as possible. The caravan we rode atop bumped and jolted as we rode fast through the night; the horses followed the light of the lantern attached to them as they pounded the dirt beneath them.
The only noise was owls hooting for each other and wolfs howling at the moon to ward off predators and find others of their kind. It calmed me to know that we were far enough from the kingdom that nature was following our steps.
I looked to my right to see Amon gripping the reins tightly as he guided the rest of the Nomads, giving it his full attention. In situations like this, Rozalia would usually be upfront with Amon. However, ever since discovering Myron's death, she had been holed up in her caravan, ignoring anyone who tried to talk to her.
So now it was up to me to try and help Amon as best as possible; I needed to do my best as it was my fault we were even in this mess in the first place. If only I had never listened to Neo in the first place…
Neo…
No! Don't think about her!
I shook my head before noticing that Amon had raised his hand, causing the procession to grind to a halt leading to murmurings behind me as they wondered what had happened. I looked to Amon, who glared off into the darkness before us while slowly standing up.
I tried to see what he saw, but all I could see was the dark going on forever.
I felt it before I saw it. A sense of dread and impending doom as my insides felt like they would jump out of my skin; I felt it in my soul that something unnatural was coming for us. Something that didn't belong with the rest of us.
The forest went still; the sounds of nature had retreated in fear of what was coming next.
Then I heard it. Unnatural mechanical breathing surrounded us as I turned in all directions, trying to find out where it was coming from as my heart began to race.
My hands felt clammy, and I struggled to grip the sword I had kept by my side since we had started moving. My mouth felt dry as I tried to speak the words I wanted to say.
And then I saw it; two glowing red orbs glaring into my soul from the dark, its presence making me want to throw up and run away as fast as I could. It stepped out from the darkness, its heavy feet making it seem like the ground quaked at its approach.
"Fuck," I heard Amon whisper as he got down from the driver's seat and moved round to stand in front of the horses, which began neighing and moving around irrationally, trying to get their reins off. The thing continued marching forward where its form became clear.
It stood tall, and its entire body was a shade of black that seemed to absorb all the colour nearby into itself. Pouches were placed on its chest, arms and legs while not a piece of its flesh could be seen anywhere, making me doubt if it was even human.
No human could have an aura like that; it just didn't make sense. The leaves and dirt crunched beneath its armoured boots before stopping a few metres away from Amon, who had already drawn his weapon, a bejewelled falchion which he twirled a few times before stopping.
The creature stared at Amon, its demonic glowing eyes betraying nothing of the wearer's thoughts. I now realised it was wearing a helmet with a gas mask and a nozzle connecting to the chest piece.
The quiet was deafening as Amon and the Thing stared each other down. Amon bounced slightly on the balls of his feet while rolling his shoulders while the Thing stood there motionlessly waiting.
"So…" Amon began, and my head snapped towards him while still keeping that Thing in my sight, "…They sent a fucking Warden this fast, huh?"
What the fuck is a Warden? That?
The Warden said nothing but reached behind its back to pull out a large rifle with a two-pronged end that crackled with energy. The Warden rotated its neck while using a hand to reach up and tap something on the side of its helmet.
"AMON OSGAR AND ROZALIA BRANWEN, BY ORDER OF THE WARDENS, YOU AND YOUR GYPSY CAMP ARE SLATED FOR EXTERMINATION; PLEASE DO NOT RESIST." It stated in its garbled voice as it awaited Amon's answer.
"And if I say no thanks?" Amon asked as he crouched down a bit, getting ready to attack.
A pause.
"THEN EXTREME FORCE WILL BE USED TO SUPPRESS ROGUE AURA USERS." It replied as it flipped a switch on its rifle, causing it to jump to life with sparks of electricity lighting up the darkness.
Another pause.
Then it attacked. In one swift motion, it raised its rifle and began firing at Amon while advancing on him, clearing the distance feet by feet. I leapt off the carriage, drew my sword, and tried to circle the Warden as Amon deflected the first two while moving out of the carriage to prevent it from being caught in the crossfire.
The Warden continued firing at Amon, who rolled and jumped out of the way of the shots, which sailed past him and set the trees alight, bathing the forest in an orange glow while the smoke began to rise. I went to call my Aura to kick its teeth in it but found that I had run out.
No. Not run out; my aura was just…gone.
How?! I didn't use any of it!
I tried as hard as possible but found nothing coming out. I felt the ground shake as something came closer, only to look up to hellfire eyes looming over me. I was paralysed; I didn't know how it managed to get over to me so fast; I could only watch helplessly as it raised its rifle in my face, the heat singing my skin before it stumbled off to the side where Amon had shoved it over.
"What the fuck are you doing, Grit? You wanna die already!" He shouted before pushing me out of the way as an arc of lighting flew by and hit another tree. He growled and ran as fast as he could towards the Warden and the other few fighters in our caravan who joined the fight where they now numbered six.
I knew they all had Aura, but right now, they were all fighting so…slow as the Warden ducked, turned and reflected the attacks thrown at it. One of the men swung an axe at it, which it ducked before flipping its gun by the two prongs to swing it like a club at his head with such force that it did a full rotation.
I could hear screaming from the caravans and looked to see one of the women held back by Diane as she tried to fight her way over to the man's corpse.
"RENTHAN!" She shrieked.
I shut my eyes briefly before picking myself back up to join the fight, even though my legs wouldn't stop shaking for a second. When I looked back, two more of our fighters had dropped dead with limbs torn and heads snapped at different angles. I looked to see Amon and fought the gasp that nearly came out of my throat.
To see a man that I thought was nearly untouchable, bleeding from the knuckles and forehead with a foul scowl on his face. He licked the blood on his lips before turning to the rest of us with a snarl.
"All of you fuck off! You're just getting in my way and dying!" He shouted, making my spine shiver as we backed off.
The Warden stood straight as Amon paced back and forth; it did not move or make any sound as its head silently tracked Amon back and forth, waiting for him to make the next move. A part of me, deep down, wondered if Amon would lose this fight.
The dirt beneath Amon exploded as he dashed towards the Warden, who had already got into a ready stance aiming with its rifle and firing off, narrowly missing Amon as he ducked and weaved out of the way. His hand dragged across the dirt until he got within a few feet of the Warden, where he flung it into its face covering its eye. It didn't move to wipe it off as it tried firing another shot at Amon, who pushed the rifle up and swung his Falchion upwards into the Warden's left, severing it completely.
I expected anything; a shout, a scream, even a fucking grunt, but nothing came out of its mouth except it headbutting Amon so hard he fell onto his ass before rolling backwards to dodge the stomp. It bled profusely with the colour black, but the wound didn't affect the Warden as it dropped the rifle to pull out a vicious combat knife to stab and thrust at Amon, who leapt to his feet to clash blades with the Warden.
"Fuck this! All it's got is a fucking knife!" I heard one of the older fighters next to me say as he charged ahead of us with a mace. I recognised him as Credi, who had let me play poker with him and the other adults once.
He screamed as he ran in with his Mace charged over his head, looking to cave the Warden's head in with one blow. I tried to reach out to stop him, but he was already too far gone.
"CREDI!" I shouted, trying to go after him before feeling a rough hand hold me back. I turned to see the owner was Toby, with sweat dripping from his forehead, shaking his head at me.
"You'll just get in the way," He said.
"But I-"
"No Grit, stay here." He firmly stated as he clenched harder on my shoulder.
I grunted before returning to the fight to feel my stomach drop as the Warden's head robotically snapped towards Credi. He kicked Amon in the stomach, who blocked it with his falchion but still skidded backwards in response. But within the next five seconds had turned his stump to Credi, where he squirted his inky blood into his face causing Credit to sputter and instinctively try to wipe it away before the Warden had closed the remaining distance and peppered Credi's chest with his knife leaving nothing but holes that splattered onto the Warden's mask highlighting his red eyes to become even more monstrous. Credit wheezed and tried to swing his mace, but the Warden finished him by slitting his throat and stabbing him through the eye.
I watched numbly as he killed another of us, the screaming of the rest of the caravan becoming duller as I watched Credi's body drop to the floor with a thud. I tried to feel that familiar rage but couldn't…as if I couldn't! No matter how hard I tried, my aura wouldn't come to me when I needed it the most. But I wouldn't take it lying down like a fucking animal.
The Warden had already turned back to Amon to continue clashing with him, nearly catching his throat or his tendons with his knife to try and end it with one blow as Amon tried all he could to defend himself while still getting a few hits on the Warden who still reacted with nothing.
I shrugged Toby's hand off me and charged in, feeling disgusted, enraged and ashamed that some fucking monster thought they could just come in and take everything from me! I was angry that because of me, this thing was after us! It was all my fault again!
I had only made it a few feet before it turned to me, and it felt like time had stopped, and my breath was robbed of me. Staring into's flaming eyes, only one thought and instinct raced through my mind as it gave me its full attention:
DEATH
My knees buckled as I nearly fell to the floor, trying to hold in my vomit as its uncomfortable aura blanketed me against my will, trying to force me to surrender to it without a fight. I ground my teeth and pushed myself up to try and force myself to fight, but it was almost too much. I watched it but the pummel of its knife into Amon's face to stun him as it stomped towards me, covering the distance in a matter of seconds as I clenched my longsword to get ready to fight. It stood taller and taller as it got closer, and my teeth wouldn't stop chattering as it loomed over me, its knife already in a plunge position.
My arms were stiff, and I couldn't raise them in time! Panic flooded my body with a straightforward message;
I'M GOING TO DIE!
It was already halfway down before it switched its momentum to slice at something coming towards its head. They were bullets, and I could now hear the bangs coming from behind me as I turned to see Toby firing a revolver at the Warden, who-
-Who fucking sliced the bullets!
I crawled away from it and realised I could finally start breathing again as Amon flew in behind to try chopping its head off in one go. This was it! It was finally going to die! It was-
-The Warden glanced behind him for a second before throwing its knife towards Toby so fast that it looked like a blur, where it landed with a thud into Toby's chest, who looked stunned for a moment before trying to pull it as he collapsed. He ducked Amon's blade to knee him in the stomach. It left a trail of black behind its movements.
"TOBY!"
"GRIT MOVE!"
I turned to see the Warden leaping towards me with its metal boot sailing for my head before the smell of ozone filled the air, and my hair stood up as a bolt of lightning slammed directly into its chest, causing it to smash into a tree behind it. I turned behind me to Rozalia, stalking towards the Warden with glowing purple eyes the same as her aura as she summoned fire in one hand and lightning in the other.
The Warden pulled itself up with a football-sized hole in its chest, gushing out that same foul blood. Its helmet had been cracked, and I could see its face-his face, which was a sickly pale like a ghost with what I could see were black veins crisscrossing its skin. It slowly stumbled over to Rozalia with his arm outstretched, coughing and wheezing.
"M-MAID-" It tried to wheeze before Rozalia shot another bolt of lightning at his head, destroying him as he fell to his knees, where she flung a fireball at his body, causing him to begin incinerating.
I couldn't help but stare at Rozalia in awe as she killed the Warden. Was she always this powerful? She turned to look at me, and I instinctively turned my head away in shame as I saw her bloodshot and baggy eyes that spoke of sleepless nights and grief.
Grief…Toby! I turned around to see Toby slumped against the leading caravan with the other Nomads crying over him, holding him and weeping to each other. I also wanted to cry, scream and break something, but…
…But I just felt so numb. All I could do was watch someone I cared about die again as I watched helplessly like a pathetic weakling.
The leaves crunched behind me as a hand landed on my shoulder; I looked up to see Amon's bruised and bleeding face offering me a cigarette with his hand. I gratefully took it and let him light it feeling myself calm down slightly as I smoked. I looked over to see Rozalia standing over the incinerating body of the Warden before she screamed and began stomping its disintegrating body into nothing.
"Come on, let's bury the bodies and move on. They rarely come alone, and we need to move." Amon gently said as I numbly nodded back to him.
Something in my gut said this was only worsening before it got better.
And worse, they got. More Wardens had come in the following months, along with Valean Special Forces or VSF, whittling away our numbers more and more as the months went by. If I had the choice between what I would prefer chasing us, I would always choose the VSF instead of the fucking Wardens. Thinking about them made me want to throw up at the thought of fighting them.
Amon explained to me what they were; a secret group that was not beholden to any of the kingdoms and worked as an independent force while having full jurisdiction to hunt rogue Hunters or any class S Aura users that had broken the Kingdom's laws. No one knew how they were made or where their base was, but they always appeared whenever needed. What made them so effective was their ability to turn off the Aura's of those who had theirs unlocked, making them fight on even footing as the Wardens had no Aura of their own; in fact, Amon told me they didn't even have souls.
Their bodies were trained to their physical peak, and their ability to feel pain had been almost wholly numbed from any injury, grievous or not. Again, if I had to pick between the SVF or the Wardens? I would always pick the SVF; they were human and could be understood, but the Wardens…
…They were inhuman and reminded me more of the Grimm than any Faunus or Human. This puzzled me even further because Rozalia could use her Aura against them while we were sitting ducks. But it wasn't worth questioning as Rozalia was the only reason we had even survived this far; we were only a couple of weeks away from the Mistralian pirate port. Amon had managed to call in favour of an old pirate captain who offered to ferry us to Mistral.
We just had to push out a little longer.
I heard a slight cough behind me and remembered that Diane was there to help me hunt. I doubted she could do anything as she stared at her feet the whole time, only just avoiding tripping over roots or rocks in the way. I ran my hand through my short hair and idly noted to buzz it down again in a few days.
"Diane," I said gently, which made her jump before she smiled at me, "You okay?" I asked, as it was apparent she wasn't all there.
She fiddled with the gun holstered at her side and weakly nodded at me, "I'm okay dear; let's just keep heading forward." She moved past and led the way as I watched for moments before shrugging.
We walked for a few more minutes before she spoke up again.
"Hey, Grit, do you think of your family sometimes?" She asked as I swallowed in surprise at her question.
Images of flames and death danced in my mind as the wounds of that night were still fresh on me.
"Sometimes," I muttered while I followed her as she hummed in response, not even turning around to face me.
"I always think of them, especially Oak, my little boy. You remember Oak, don't you?" She asked as I remembered the first fight I had been in. I made to respond, but she continued without listening to me, "I remember my baby every single night since he went away. In my dreams, he always asks me, 'Ma, when are you coming to see me again? I miss you so much!' before disappearing when I wake up." I said nothing as she spoke, not feeling as though I could say anything.
But understanding perfectly where she was coming from as ghosts haunted me in my sleep. I made to speak up now to say sorry that happened to her, but she wasn't done.
"I cry every morning, knowing I can't hold him in my arms anymore. To run my hands through his hair and stroke his face." She whispered as we made it to a clearing by a large pond shining with the overhead sun. I looked around to try and see if there was any game nearby, but it was quiet…too quiet. I tried to ask Diane if this was the right spot, but she continued walking to the pond's edge, looking out over it.
"I tried to hold on as long as I could, but deep down, I think I already understood that I died when his small and frail body was lowered into the ground." She reached her arm out towards the pond grasping for something as I watched her, my stomach turning in anxiety. "I thought I should stay to ensure that no more children would lose their lives, but…it all seemed pointless in the end." She whispered as she stood still, lowering her hand to her side where her gun was.
"Diane, what are you-" I began asking as she giggled and cried before turning to face me with a miserable smile. She pulled her pistol out, and I tensed up, getting ready to defend myself, as she pointed the gun at me.
Dive to the left. Use my Aura to reinforce my speed. Use my semblance? No, I might end up killing her. Disarm.
"Oh, Grit," She said, "I always wished it would have been you instead of my baby."
…What?
"Diane, what are you saying-" I cut myself off as she turned the gun to her temple, "Diane, WAIT-"
*BANG*
The side of her head exploded as bits of her skull and brain stained the ground as she collapsed to her side, her head rolling into the pond, dying red with blood.
"…Diane?"
The inside of her head continued leaking into the pond darkening the water as her body twitched and jolted before stilling completely. Her pistol was held limply in her hand, still smoking from the barrel, and pointed towards me.
I wanted to cry and run over so I could beg her to come back, but all I felt was that same numbness when Toby died. My instincts were at war; on the one hand, I wanted to curl up on the ground and stay there; on the other, I wanted to hurt something I could get my hands on. I finally settled on just sitting down and watching Diane's body slowly slump further into the pond, disappearing into its depths to claim.
"Why?" I whispered to her, "What was the fucking point?"
'I always wished it had been you instead of my baby.'
My hands clenched while I buried my face into my knees, my jaw clenching and unclenching before I shot to my feet, glaring at Diane's dead body, trying to destroy it with my eyes.
"You think that I should be dead? You think it would have been better if your stupid fucking kid was alive?!" I screamed at her, "Well, guess what? I'm not dead! I fucking outlived him and the rest of you fucking bastards!"
"ME! I SURVIVED! ME!" I pounded my chest as she lay there, still dropping slowly into the pond as I waited for her response.
Nothing.
I dropped again to my knees as my eyes began to sting, "…me, it's always just me…." I muttered, ignoring the dampness on my cheeks.
"Grit?" I turned round to see Amon standing at the treeline, watching me wide-eyed and then turning his attention to Diane's corpse sunken halfway in. I couldn't even explain what had happened in the last few minutes, so I stared sullenly at him as he walked over to look at Diane's body.
I followed his gaze as we both stared at her and a feeling I had tried squashing down the past few months; hopelessness. It was all just so fucking hopeless. Getting to Mistral looked even more impossible the closer we got, and even if we got there, how many of us would even be left? Twenty? Ten? Five? One? Or would we all be in the ground by the time we arrived?
I didn't know anymore; I just wanted to lie down and go to sleep forever, so maybe this was just a bad dream I couldn't wake up from. I looked up at Amon to see that same emotionless expression on his face as it was reassuring. To know he was still completely controlling his emotions and our situation.
Another story was told; His eyebrows were lowered, and beads of sweat lined his brow as he bit his lips in anxiety, but what made my stomach drop was his eyes and the unspoken message they proclaimed: Fear.
Pure unadulterated fear danced in his eyes as he stared at Diane's body before the look vanished, and he schooled his face back into the same emotionless façade I knew him for.
"Amon?" I asked from below him as he looked at me from the corner of his eyes, "What now?" The meekness in my voice surprised me as Amon looked back out across the pond before sighing and rolling Diane's body with his foot further into the lake with a quiet splash. Pinching his eyebrows and shutting his eyes, he paused momentarily before continuing to look across the pond.
"…I don't fucking know anymore," he said so quietly I wasn't sure I had even heard him.
"What?" He ignored my question and turned to haul me up by the arm, depositing me on my feet and facing him as he scowled.
"Don't tell anyone what happened here." He started as my face betrayed my confusion, "For all anyone knows, a Grimm killed Diane, and that's it. Okay?" His expression told me there wouldn't be an argument about this.
I don't think I even wanted to do it as I imagined the faces of everyone back at camp. To know that she had been by Grimm would be understandable, but finding out that she blew her brains out? It would be chaos, and who knows what would be next. I didn't want to know, so I dumbly nodded at Amon, who jerked his head back towards the camp, and I followed him around.
I gave one last look towards the pond and turned away back through the treeline, reaching into my pocket for a cigarette, my hand slightly shaking as I put it into my mouth. The rest of the journey was quiet as we marched back, both of us smoking the whole time. Even after puffing away half of it, I could still feel my hands shake, so I tried clenching as hard as possible to make them stop.
Amon stopped walking as we neared the exit to where we had set up camp and walked over to a pair of rocks to sit down on them. He patted the one next to him as an invitation to sit down, which I accepted as I tossed the butt of the cigarette onto the floor. We sat silently as he continued smoking, looking towards the exit as I took in his face.
Eye bags that he had always had were even more severe, making it look like he hadn't slept for weeks, and I could believe that, honestly. His skin was even more pale than normal even though we had been travelling in the sun for months and the weather was only getting colder. The length of his hair had also gotten longer, changing it from the long but well-groomed style I had usually known into a ratty and scruffy untamed mess.
Just in general, he looked like a fucking mess. He must have noticed my staring as he turned his head slightly to look at me with a raised eyebrow as he flicked the butt of his cigarette away.
"You want to take a picture or something?"
"…No."
"Hm," That was the end of that exchange before he rubbed his eyes with his palms and leaned back onto the rock as he sighed, "Kid…what happened back there wasn't your fault. You know that, right?"
'I always wished it would have been you instead of my baby.'
"…If you say so, I guess," I replied, still clenching and unclenching my fingers to try and stop the shaking.
Why won't I stop fucking shaking?
"What happened there was something that Diane had wanted to do for a long time. I guess she finally snapped in the end." Amon leaned back with his elbows on his knees, "Some people can't come back from a loss like that, and even if they seem fine, they ain't. You know what we call them in Nomad?" He asked, and I grunted in response.
"Așteaptă mort means the 'waiting dead'. People who have already died on the inside and are just shambling around waiting to be put into the ground either by themselves or from something else." He explained as I felt a scowl creasing my forehead.
"Why are you even telling me this? To make me feel better? It's not working, and all I can think about is how miserable Diane was all this time…." I thought back to all my interactions with her now in a new light, her spaced-out expressions, how she always jumped whenever someone spoke to her. She was just never there in the first place…
"I guess I'm telling you this because…eh…I dunno," Amon stared down at the ground as he flexed his fingers, "…I guess I'm getting too old, and when you're old, you get plagued with regret. I haven't seen a person die with nothing to regret about their life, and it just…Well, I think I've got a new grasp of what that means now."
He turned to face me, "I want to ask you something, Grit, something that's been swimming around in my head for a while now." I turned to face him with an eyebrow raised.
"What will you do after your revenge?"
My heart froze, and my stomach dropped.
After? After what? When I finally kill that man and that Grimm? I'm going to…I'll go to…I mean, I'm going to kill the Grimm and then…then what?
My neck felt uncomfortably hot, and I felt awkward sitting there with Amon as he sat there looking at me with something…something that looked like pity.
It enraged me to have him look at me like that; he gave me this Aura in the first place! He trained me to fight back against the Grimm. To fight back against the people coming to hurt me! What the fuck does he mean after?!
I made to speak but found the words drying in my throat as he waited patiently for my answer. I couldn't say it. I didn't know what to say then; the thought of an after was never on my mind.
"Hm. No answer? That's fine; you don't gotta come up with an answer now, but how about a suggestion?"
"What?"
"How about being a Huntsman?"
I choked as he said that, while trying to search his face to see if he was joking, but unfortunately, he was being a hundred per cent serious on this. I brushed my hand through my hair and looked at the camp through the trees. The difference of six months on the run had completely changed it.
It looked so…dead.
"…Are you fucking with me right now?" I asked as he nodded.
"As serious as I ever am. Anyone with a working pair of eyes can tell you ain't cut out for this life, at least." He slicked his hair back as he fished for another cigarette, "You're way too much like your old man anyway. Always acting like he was carrying some heavy burden or some other dumb shit."
Dad?
"…What was it like? Being a Huntsman, I mean?" I asked as he focused on lighting his cigarette before exhaling as he looked up at the sky.
"It was…just something to do with my time. I didn't care about saving people or killing the Grimm or the people who lived on this dirtball. I just went because I was just sick of being a Gypsy." He looked like he was talking to the wind as he recalled his time being a Huntsman before chuckling, "Looking back now, though…It was probably the best time of my life."
"As far as I could remember, I had always been stronger than everyone I had encountered while travelling with the Great caravans. They said I had the Gypsy king's blood running through my veins and called me a 'Prince', but it was all just nonsense. The Caravans follow the strongest in each part of Remnant, so I knew I was nothing special; in my eyes, they were just a bunch of weaklings clinging to me to keep them safe. To keep the kingdoms away from us as we travel in circles over and over and over again until something changes."
He clenched his hands and released them.
"I had to get away from them to breathe my own air for once, so I left in the middle of the night with Zece degete and the clothes on my back. I wandered for months until I ran across a girl my age fighting off some…beowolves I think? Ah fuck it's been so I can't remember, anyway; I decided to help her out, and she told me where she was going; to 'Beacon, the greatest academy in the world!' I had nothing else going on, so I just followed her."
A smile was on his face, not just the usual arrogant smirk or that savage grin he liked to keep on his when he was fighting or in trouble but a small genuine smile as he spoke about the huntress.
"Who was she?" I asked, and he looked over at me as he rubbed his hands.
"Her? Oh, we enrolled together, and she even hated me for a bit, haha!" He recalled making me roll my eyes as I was not surprised. "Anyway, it's there I met your old man, and he was probably one of the most annoyingly optimistic people I'd ever met but also one of the most stubborn. No matter how often he got hit, knocked down or nearly killed, he always got back up." I was dimly aware that I turned fully towards him as he spoke of my dad. It was strange to hear someone else's view of my dad. I had only known him as the big giant that always teased my mum, played with us and was just generally beloved by the village.
My heart ached at the thought of them, but I squashed that deep down as far as it could go for the moment. Amon didn't notice and was content to speak of his past.
"What about the rest of you and dad's team? What were they like?" I asked, feeling somewhat excited learning about my dad and who he used to be. Amon stroked his chin and chuckled.
"Hmm, where to start? Well, first, there was Hazel Rainart, probably one of the biggest bastards I ever met, who stood about eight feet last time we measured."
"Woah." I couldn't imagine something that big besides a tree or something, "What was he like?"
"Quiet, very quiet, and nothing ever seemed to get under his skin – well, besides me. I had hours of fun trying to rile him up, but nothing seemed to work besides one thing." His flashed with fear, "I think I was just joking about his sister, and he absolutely lost it, punched me through about six walls and destroyed half of the courtyard before Gin, Peter, and the rest of the faculty could restrain him."
"Brothers knows I didn't ever try that again; I can still feel my ribs ache from his punches sometimes. Other than that, he was a pretty standup guy, always helping anybody who needed it and stepping out in front of us whenever we got into a scrap."
"Whose Peter?" I asked, curious to know more about Amon and dads team.
"Ah, Peter Port, runaway farm boy turned delinquent. Shorter than the rest of us but with ten times the arrogance, always off looking to do two things; kill Grimm and chase skirts." Amon laughed, "As much as I hate to admit it, he was a handsome bastard that left a trail of broken hearts around Beacon. I remember one time in our third year, we were doing a mission out in Mistral for this bastard of a town mayor and his wife who had this stunning daughter that had just recently turned eighteen." Amon laughed again, "Haha, just thinking about it still makes me laugh – Anyway, I noticed that Peter had been giving her the eyes, and she right back, but I didn't think anything of it. So after we finished killing this Alpha Manticore, we stayed overnight before leaving in the morning; I noticed Peter wasn't in his bed – To be fair, we had been drinking a stupid amount the night before – So we all went looking for him as we had to leave on the Bullhead in about twenty minutes, when we began to hear shouting and screaming coming down the road from the inn, we stayed in."
I leaned in.
"And there he was, naked as the day he was born, sprinting down the road with just his stupid blunderbuss and his scroll, hollering and waving at us as the town guards chased after him. We all knew immediately that we needed to hoof it or we would end up strung up on a tree, so we made a break for it." Amon couldn't stop chuckling as he tried to get the next bit out, "I'll never forget what he said as we ran. One of the guards screamed, 'Stop that man! He slept with the Mayor's daughter!' and Peter, haha, P-Peter just called back 'The Mayor's daughter and his wife!'" Amon slapped his knee as he leaned backwards to laugh, and I couldn't help but giggle at his infectious laughter. I realised this was the first time I had ever heard him laugh in all the years I had known him.
"Heh-heh, we didn't end up getting paid for that mission, and we also got chewed out by Headmaster at the time, but man, was it worth it." His laughter died down, and we sat silently for a moment as he looked almost wistful, staring off into the distance. "…Those were the good old days, weren't they?" He asked no one in particular.
I watched him as he looked beyond the camp and even further beyond that, but what was he looking at? I couldn't say I had a clue, but I felt like there was something that he forgot to mention when he spoke.
"What about that huntress?" He turned to look at me with a raised eyebrow as I reiterated, "You know? The one you met going to Beacon?"
"Ah! Her…Heh, we actually got married for a bit." I was grateful I wasn't drinking anything because I would have choked and died on it.
"W-what? You?"
He looked at me unimpressed, "Yeah? What's so shocking about that?"
You're an asshole. You beat up kids. You steal. You cheat, and again, you're just an asshole.
"…It's just kinda weird, I guess."
"Hm, I get that." He nodded, and I resisted the urge to reveal what I thought, "Anyway, it didn't last long, and we got divorced – badly – Lots of shouting and screaming, then we never spoke to each other again."
He laughed again, but I could tell it was forced as he stopped immediately and returned to flexing his hands again.
"What was her name?" I asked as he continued looking down at the ground.
"…Glynda." He said quietly, and all I could do was nod as, once again, we sat in silence for a moment as I took time to think about what he said.
Become a Huntsman? Is that what I have to look forward to? Just laughing with some pals and killing some Grimm? With these bloody hands?
I looked down to see my hands covered in blood that I tried wiping off but became bloodier instead, so I just put them back in my pocket.
Would I deserve something like that?
Amon stood up from his seating and stretched his back, creating a popping sound while starching his shoulder. He stuck his hand out to me, but I shook my head; I wanted to sit here longer and…think.
"Don't stay out too late, alright? You need your sleep." He said as he began walking away. I couldn't understand him recently; he should have been mad at me. It was my fault this was even happening to the camp; if I hadn't listened to Neo, then none of this would have happened.
I got Myron killed and Toby and Diane and half of the camp! So why is he so…
I watched him as he went but called out one final time, "Amon!" He turned to look at me while rubbing his beard.
"…Why are you being so nice to me?"
"Do you not want me to?"
I stared at him in response, not saying anything except to wait for an answer. He sighed and looked away from me.
"As I said, Grit, I'm getting too old, and my regrets are piling up." He looked back at me with a sad smile, "Don't worry too much about what happens next; I'll take care of it okay?"
I couldn't do anything else but nod.
"Oh, a word of advice from an old man if you want to take it; try your best to live without regrets, always say what you want, and do what you want. Always think twice before making a decision and when you get knocked down, get back up and knock them back down twice as hard." He fished for another cigarette, "That's what I think is the recipe for living a regret-free life."
I didn't have anything to say except to nod again as he walked away, the setting sun shining down on him before night came. I sat there for another few hours, mulling over his words and their meaning.
Live a regret-free life...I don't think that's possible anymore, Amon…I don't think that will ever be possible for me.
The faint echo of a baby's cry and the groaning of the corpses of those I killed or got killed dragging me down into the ground caused me to shut my eyes and dig my knuckles into my head to quiet them down. The noises became duller, and I opened them up to see the broken moon shined on me and the rock I sat on.
I breathed in and marched back to my caravan for another restless night and the ghosts that waited for me.
Two days later…
I woke up to the sound of loud droning and heavy engines blaring outside of my caravan; I jumped from my hammock, taking the knife I had under my pillow with me as I got changed and sprinted outside in nothing but a long shirt and cotton trousers with my chain tossing about my neck. It had been raining the night before, so I was dimly aware of how damp my feet felt, but it did nothing to override the shock of what I saw.
Bullheads…I had seen them when we went to Vale and occasionally back in the village when I was younger. But this was something different; it had giant turrets that looked like they spat cannonballs and were far more armoured than the usual ones. It looked like a tank that could fly.
It hovered in the air before turning slightly to slowly land as the grass and trees blew violently from the air coming out of it. I covered my face to stop anything from hitting my eyes and noticed that the remaining Nomads had come out from their caravans to see what was going on as the very few fighters left came out with weapons ready for a fight.
I noticed Rozalia striding to the front, her hair messy and eyebags on full display. I thought she looked like she had aged rapidly since I last saw her, and I couldn't blame her. I clenched my knife harder as I watched the bullhead land, sparing a few glances at Rozalia as we waited.
We waited for the door to open and to get ready for a fight; the pit in my stomach deepened as I stood there sweating, not knowing what would come out. VSF? Hunters? Wardens? My stomach flipped at that last one.
The doors opened, and we saw all darkness until a man stepped out in a pristine white uniform with armouring on the chest, legs and shoulders. What stood out to me the most was his height as he towered over the two subordinates that stood on either side of him. One was a woman with stark white hair and ice-blue eyes, while the other had short brown hair and teal-green eyes. Both wore crisp blue and white uniforms with far more armour than the big guy in the middle.
These guys aren't from Vale…
The middle one scanned the camp and us in it, with his eyes lingering on me for a bit before turning his attention to the rest of the Nomads.
"Attention Nomads, we have come for the arrest of Amon Osgar. Turn yourself in as agreed within the next ten seconds, or we will use the full force of the Atlas Military to bring justice!" He proclaimed as he stood there with his arms behind his back.
Atlas? Agreed? The fuck?
I looked around to see that the rest of the camp was just as confused as I was, with us turning to look at each other before returning to look at the man.
"Who the feck are you anyway?" One of the nomads called.
"I am Lieutenant-General Ironwood, here on behalf of the Vale Council to resolve the rampant Nomad situation. I will begin counting now, and if Amon Osgar doesn't turn himself in, you will all be brought to justice." I looked to see that the two goons he had beside him looked slightly uncomfortable with the order but schooled their features immediately.
Silence.
"Ten."
I-is he serious?
I heard someone chuckle behind me.
"Nine."
I felt myself giggle as well as I looked around at the rest of the nomads, smiling and laughing at each other.
"Eight." I heard him grind his teeth as he said that.
The laughter got louder.
"Seven." He scowled and glared at us, "Is there something funny?"
We laughed even hard as his jaw clenched while the two beside him looked confused. Someone from the back called out, "Haha! We're laughing 'cause this is probably the best heads-up we've ever had!" More people laughed.
"Ten seconds, he says! I could've had another kid by now!" The laughter got harder, and even I couldn't stop giggling.
"Five." He ground out, "This is your last chance to hand over Amon Osgar."
"Never heard of him!" Shouted someone.
"Four."
I clenched my knife in preparation as I watched the two beside Ironwood grab the hilt of their weapons.
"Three."
As the laughter died, I poured Aura into my feet, ready to kick this asshole's face in.
"Two."
I swallowed as I took them in. They were strong, especially the white-haired one; I wasn't sure I could win against her.
"One-"
"All right, everybody, calm the fuck down now," a harsh voice cut in, and I turned to see Amon walking towards the bullhead from the back of the crowd. His appearance surprised me; his once untamed beard was now stubble, and his hair had been cut shorter and tied into a ponytail.
"Amon?" I asked as he walked past me, only glancing down at me as he walked past towards the bullhead. He stopped short of the ramp as he looked up at Ironwood, who looked even more disgusted and angry.
"Amon." He spat as though his name was poison. His arms were out by his side now, and his right hand twitched towards his holstered gun.
Amon smirked, "Well, if it isn't metaldick himself, how are you, buddy? Still mad at me?" Ironwood looked like he was about to explode before a mask of calm covered his face erasing his previous ire.
"Amon Osgar, on behalf of the Vale Council and by the might of Atlas, you are hereby placed under arrest for crimes against the Kingdom and its people; you will be sentenced to – "
"Ah, shut the fuck up already, you asshat; we both know it ain't about that." Amon cut in as Ironwood stopped speaking to stare at him, his finger becoming itchier by the second. I moved to step in but found a hand holding me back, and I turned to see Rozalia shaking her head at me.
"Oh? Then enlighten me, traitor, on what you think this is about?" Ironwood asked as Amon pulled out a cigarette.
"It's about…." He fished for a lighter and flicked it open to light his cigarette, "…Atlas getting its grubby little fingers into each of the kingdom's pies and not taking them out." He blew a cloud of smoke up to Ironwood. "I wonder how giddy the Atlas council was at the prospect of getting my head? To have the opportunity to wave its big dick around at the rest of the Kingdoms."
"Or maybe I should say it's little dick." I barely saw what happened as the white-haired woman disappeared beside the general and reappeared with her sabre drawn at Amon's throat, who continued smoking.
Fast!
"You will keep your filthy tongue silent and address the general with respect, gypsy or I will take it from you." She pressed her sabre into his throat, "Understood?"
"Corporal Schnee!" Ironwood barked, "Stand down this instant!"
The Schnee lady snapped her boots together and saluted, "Yes, Ironwood, Sir!" As she backed away a few feet but still glared at Amon.
"Wow," Amon clapped, "You've got your dogs well trained; I have to say, Woody, well done indeed."
"Enough of this, Amon; surrender now as you agreed and come with us; I will not ask again."
"I have to wonder if that thing in the tower knew this would happen." He took another pull before exhaling, ignoring Ironwood as I looked at him in confusion. "It always seemed to have plans upon plans upon plans."
Thing? Is Amon going somewhere?
He threw his cigarette onto the ground to stomp it out, "You know it's playing all of us, right? This is all just one big fucking game to them, and it seems like right now I'm one of the few who figured out that we ain't even players." He chuckled as he stuck his arms out, "Well, might as well get this over with then."
My stomach dropped as I looked at his outstretched arms as Ironwood nodded to the man beside him, "Junior Specialist Ebi, place the aura restraints on this criminal." He ordered as the man marched down the ramp with a pair of thick cuffs.
My heart beat faster as I watched them get closer; the rest of the Nomads became restless and started shouting at Amon and Ironwood.
He's leaving. He's going somewhere far away, and I'm not stopping it.
My hand clenched tighter around my knife, and I was already pouring Aura through my body as I felt the muscles in my legs coil tight.
"Oi, Ironwood, you're gonna stick to the deal, right? Me for them?" He said, gesturing his head back towards the rest of the camp.
Ironwood nodded, "Of course, unlike you, I'm a man of my word."
Amon hummed as the cuffs were slapped onto his wrist, and I was already sailing towards them, my knife plunging towards the brown-haired man.
"YOU AIN'T TAKING HIM ANYWHERE!" I screamed as I got closer, and the man turned around wide-eyed as he saw my knife coming for his face. Instead, I got sparks as the white-haired woman blocked my knife with her sabre and forced me away from her as I skidded backwards onto the ground.
"Stand down, Gypsy or I will put you down." She said as she flicked her sabre into a duelling position.
I snarled at her and went charging in again with my knife raised; I went to go low to try and slit her Achilles tendon and then go after the man next to rescue Amon. It was all for nothing as I slammed into the ground; I tried to move but found my body was not being pushed but pulled into the ground. I looked to see some giant black rotating snowflakes on the ground.
It must be her fucking semblance. Fine, let's do this!
I felt that familiar anger run rampant in my body as I pushed myself up, blood dripping from my nose as I struggled to stand, trying to overpower her semblance. I looked into her wide eyes before she scowled and released it. The ground had already exploded beneath me as I lunged for her, my knife stretching out to cut her throat.
I'M NOT LOSING HIM; YOU WON'T TAKE I WON'T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN
"GGGRRRRRRAAAAAAAAGGGHHH" I screamed before a shape stood in front of me; I recognised it but couldn't do anything in time as it kneed me straight in the stomach, causing me to drop to the floor and dry heave.
"GAH!" I spluttered as my vision went dizzy; looking up, I saw Amon standing over me before kneeling to my level.
"D-don't go, please," I begged while fighting the pressure behind my eyes, "…please."
He smiled sadly before ruffling my hair and standing up while I fought off the dizziness. I reached out to him as the ringing in my ears slowly became quieter, and the shouting from the Nomads became louder.
Please…
"ALL RIGHT, LISTEN UP, YOU LOT!" Amon shouted to get their attention, "I've gotta head off now to get my head chopped off so you can get out of here safely."
"Rozalia is in charge now, and she'll get you all the rest of the way of the journey," He raised his hands to scratch his hair as he looked…sheepish, "Sorry I wasn't that good at leading you lot and getting most of you killed I…I wasn't as strong as I had to be." He bowed his head.
"Please forgive me!"
Don't go…
The nomads cried and begged him not to go as he raised his hand to stop them from charging the Atlas goons. He looked over to Rozalia.
"Sorry to drop that on you, Rozalia, but I don't know what else to-" She smiled at Amon.
"Să-ți odihnești picioarele Amon."
Amon nodded to her before turning back around but not before looking at me.
"Hey, Grit," He said as I struggled to push myself up, finally able to keep my head in check, "Have a real think about what I said, yeah and…I'm sorry."
"W-what?"
He turned around and marched with the two soldiers back into the Bullhead, where Ironwood stood with his revolver drawn as Amon strode past him. I couldn't hear them, but Amon mouthed something to Ironwood, which caused his eyes to widen.
He's getting so far away.
I pushed myself to my feet as the ramp closed and ran after it as it lifted off the ground, getting further and further away.
"Come back! I SAID COME BACK!" I ran through the trees and chased it until it was but a dot in the sky, "DON'T FUCKING LEAVE ME!" I screamed to the sky.
I collapsed onto the floor, dirt entering my mouth and slamming my chin onto a root as I turned onto my back, staring up at the trees blowing gently in the wind. I reached up to the sky, staring at my shaking hand.
Weak. Pathetic. Little. A hand that can't protect anything at all, anything I care about will always be taken away from me, and I can't do anything at all!
"Before you think of thanking me or any other stupid shit, just remember…." He turned to look at me with that half-lidded stare.
"… I've just made your life a living hell."
I could accept that…I could accept that you made my life harder…but I don't understand why you…
My hand clenched.
"I'm sorry."
…Why did you apologise?
I covered my eyes with my arm.
Crying all alone in the forest.
Three weeks later…
We were so close to the sea I could hear the seagulls squawking in the air, signalling that our journey was almost over. There were only twenty of us left in the caravan, including me and Rozalia, who had taken charge on Amon's final orders.
Since Amon had been taken away, the atmosphere around the camp had completely died; it was as though we were just a walking parade of zombies. Even I couldn't feel excited as we got closer to the sea before setting up camp for the night again.
The sounds of Nomads cheering, laughing, fighting and generally breathing life into the camp were gone. Food was scarce; medicine was nowhere to be found, and everyone was exhausted, physically and mentally.
Even in the end, it all just felt…pointless. Rozalia was more active in the camp, but even I knew that was an act; how did I know? Because she was acting in the same way that Diane did before she…she…
'I always wished it would have been you instead of my baby.'
I slapped the side of my head to chase the memories away and focus on what I was doing, which was…nothing at all. I was returning to my caravan after just wandering around doing nothing and wanted to go to sleep so I could already be across the sea.
Is this really what I want? How is this going to help me?
I walked past the miserable faces of Nomads passing the time by smoking or drinking on their own to pass the time. I duly noted that no more children were running around anymore since the hunts happened.
All dead…
I closed my eyes and breathed before looking to where the seagulls were flying overhead.
Mistral.
What would even be over there? More death? It was even more of a shithole than Vale was, so it was just running from the fire and jumping into the lion's jaw. Or, however that saying went.
Rubbing my head, I returned to my caravan and stepped inside. It was sparse and empty since I chucked Neo's shit out of the window in a rage months ago, but now looking back…I regret it. Her mirror, books and the empty tubs of ice cream she left lying around were all gone.
Gone. Forgotten.
I looked over to the corner to see Excuser sitting in the corner, still gathering dust from not being used. Even after all these years, I still felt unworthy to wield it, I wasn't a hero, and I barely avenged anyone. If anything, I was just getting more people killed from my stupid, stupid decisions. Grunting, I turned around to go to bed as the sun dipped away, slowly bathing the camp in an orange glow.
Climbing in, I closed my eyes and tried drifting off to sleep with the hammock slowly rocking me from side to side. I tossed and turned but couldn't get comfortable, no matter how much I squirmed around.
"Fuck!" I sat up, rubbing my face in irritation as my body refused to sleep when I needed it to, "Just fucking sleep already!"
I dove my face into my pillow and squeezed my eyes shut as hard as possible. Nothing. I couldn't fall asleep at all! My body shook as I sat back up again but now dangling my feet over the edge.
Why can't I sleep? And why does my body feel this way?
I looked at my shaking hand and grabbed it with my other to stop it from doing that. It eventually stopped, and I reached into my shirt neck to pull out my family chain, the symbol of the Merrick family.
But what family did I have? It was only me, Autumn, Dad and Mum. The truth is that now…I don't have anyone else anymore, Rozalia is just a husk, and I have…no one.
"…What am I supposed to do now?"
*SMASH*
I looked up to hear a crash coming from outside and tucked my chain back into my shirt as I leapt to my feet. My window was open, and I smelt wood burning along with the cheers and shouts of men and women.
"BANDITS!" I heard one of the Nomads scream as their voice faded. I grabbed the longsword next to the dresser and burst through the front door. I looked around to see that the campfire that was usually set up had been destroyed as men and women in ragged bits of leather and metal armour were chucking sticks of fire at the caravans laughing and hollering.
Behind them was a giant red…portal with more bandits walking through, armed to the teeth. At that moment, I didn't feel fear, anger or stress; instead, I just felt like…laughing.
Of course…of fucking course, right at the fucking end.
Now the amusement was gone, and instead, I felt that same rage that plagued me for the last few years as I sprinted towards the bandit's sword raised high. I turned the blade to the flat side and smashed it into the first bandit's head, causing him to slam into the ground face-first.
No aura…good.
I looked up to see the surprised faces of the other bandits as they fumbled for their weapons. I had already lunged for the next bandit – A woman – as I used my aura to increase my jump so my foot was level with their face. Kicking her in the teeth with my boot, she cried out in pain as her hands shot to her face before I landed and struck her around the head with my sword causing her to drop to the floor in agony.
"HE GOT JENNY AND ACE, FUCK HIM UP!" One of them screamed as they pulled their weapons out. I quickly counted them in my head. Thirty or around that number were all I could see. I couldn't confirm the number as I was already deflecting a blow from a dagger and then from a shortsword that grazed me. My aura flashed, and I spun around to drive the butt of my sword into their jaw, making them fall unconscious as they spat blood onto my shirt.
"HE'S GOT AURA. WATCH OUT!"
I snarled and got ready for my next attack when I turned to see a bone mask in front of me.
Grimm?
The next thing I knew, I was sailing across the air before bouncing across the ground until I came to a complete stop. I spat out dirt and other bits of grass as I scrambled to my feet to face whatever had just hit me. I flashed my aura to make sure I still had it and felt quiet relief that it was still there.
I saw the same bone mask standing across from me, with a few other bandits smirking at me while hooting and whistling. Looking more closely, I saw the person with the mask wielding a large red Odachi. She flicked it off to the side before sheathing it again.
"Woohoo! You go, boss, teach that little bastard a lesson!" The bastards cheered behind her as I glared at them.
"Yeah fuck him up, boss you- " She had drawn her blade towards the rest of the bandits, who quieted down.
"Be silent," She commanded, "Do not think celebrating a minor victory over a child is worthwhile. Go raid the rest of the camp and take whatever they have."
The bandits nodded before running off to continue pillaging. The screams of the Nomads filled the air, along with the laughter of savages as they took whatever they wanted.
I ran forward and made to jump over their leader, but she had leapt up simultaneously to kick me back down, and I skidded across the ground. I snarled and gnashed my teeth at her.
"Get the fuck out of my way, or I'll cut your fucking head off!"
"No, you won't."
"Oh yeah?! Fucking try me!" I sprinted towards her with my longsword in a two-handed grip getting ready to slice her head off and rescue the rest of the camp. I slashed towards her neck, and she stepped off to the side before punching me in the side, sending me stumbling before she whipped her leg into a vicious kick that smashed into my face laying me flat on the ground.
I coughed up saliva and vomit as I got back onto all fours as she stood over me, "Do you know why you won't kill me?" She asked as I pushed myself back up, still holding on to my sword.
"It's because you aren't ready to kill me." I scowled at her.
"Huh?"
"I watched you fight earlier," Her voice slithered unwantedly in my ear, "Even though we had come to attack, you made sure to keep your blade on the flat side to prevent killing anyone." She sounded like an adult admonishing a child.
"Now, why would you do that? Is it because you were taught killing is wrong? Or is it because you don't have fond memories of it?" I flinched at that last one which she seemed to pick up on. "Ahh, I see now."
"…shut up," I muttered as I gripped my sword even harder, "SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I screamed as I ran at her, my aura disappearing into my body as my semblance activated; the dirt beneath my feet exploded, and my swings became faster. The ringing started quietly.
I swung, and she ducked it. I swung diagonally, and she stepped out of the way. I went to boot her in the stomach, and she just leapt over my head. I tried to swing a haymaker at her skull, and she just redirected it, so I went stumbling forward as she axe kicked my back, sending me to the ground. Coughing up blood, I tried to stand back up but couldn't as her foot dug into my back, driving the air out of my body.
"…What's your name, boy? Something about you is familiar to me."
"G-Grit M-M-Merrick bitch, remember it when I smash your fucking head in!" I shouted hoarsely at her as she seemed to be taken aback even though I couldn't see her face.
"…You're Gin's child." She stated as I tried harder to push her off, feeling enraged that someone like this even knew my dad.
He would never have known someone like this cunt!
"I thought he and his children had all died, but…it seems that's not the case." She was talking to herself as she lifted her boot off me, and I gasped as much air as possible. I didn't have enough time to react as she pulled me up by the back of my shirt collar and threw me again across the clearing as my sword flew from my grasp.
"I owe your father a debt, which I'll pay back right now, along with some advice." She strode over to me as I lay on the floor, trying to push myself back up to glare at her before she stomped my head into the dirt a few times until she was satisfied that I wasn't getting back up. I stiffly turned my head to look up at her narrowed red eyes as she returned my stare.
"In this world, there is one simple rule that all of us follow; The weak perish, and the strong survive. Eat and be eaten, kill and be killed, take and be taken from. No matter where you go, this will always be an immutable fact of life that cannot be changed. Only the strongest will be all that's left of this war." She stepped away from me as I coughed up blood and phlegm, listening to her bullshit. My arms and legs felt numb, and my vision was becoming blurry.
"S-s-shut the fuck up-gah!" I tried to speak, but it felt like my ribs were shifting around my body, causing me to gasp in agony as I collapsed again.
"I will spare your life only this once, Grit; if you're smart, you'll stay down and wait for this to end." She stalked off back to the Nomad camp, where I heard the howls and screaming of men and women being killed. Lighting and fire coloured the darkening sky as I tried to push myself upwards, but my limbs failed to obey me.
I had no choice but to crawl as I listened helplessly to the cries of the Nomads being slaughtered; flashes of that fiery night years ago played as I got closer yet so much further away. I had to save them; I had to! I couldn't just let it end like this.
…I couldn't be that weak, useless baby that waited for someone to save me again. This time there was no one to save me; Ihad to do it!
But only if my fucking body could…just…MOVE!
I pushed with all my strength to get myself onto my feet, feeling the fire in my body that burned me and warned me to stay down for good. I gasped as my knees shook and my arms refused to raise above my waist as I slowly stumbled and wobbled my way to the battle. My head felt wet, and I had to close my left eye from the liquid running over it – No, not liquid, it was blood.
I wasn't strong enough to wipe it away and continued moving forward until I came across the caravans. They had been blasted and destroyed from the raid, and the bodies of some of the Nomads had been left in the wreckage, their limbs twisted and broken beyond repair. Spitting out a wad of blood, I continued limping forward to the centre of the camp, where I nearly tripped over the body of a bandit with a hole blasted through his chest.
Rozalia…
I spat on the bandit's body and continued moving where I reached the usual firepit that had been destroyed. Bandits stood back and waited on the outskirts as the Leader, and Rozalia fought each other. Rozalia floated in the air summoning lighting, fire and ice at the bandit leader, who ducked, jumped and sliced away while going in circles around her and avoiding the corpses of the bandits that surrounded them.
But then Rozalia turned towards me as she must have noticed me standing there, and it was as though time had stopped. Her eyes, dead for all those months, shot back to life when she saw me standing here clutching my ribs.
Relief.
That's what I saw in her eyes as we looked at each other, and while it seemed time stopped for us, it hadn't for the bandit leader who sliced the air in front of her, creating a portal. I tried to shout out to her to watch out, but my throat was sore and dry from my screaming.
Too late.
A portal had opened up behind Rozalia, where the red blade of the leader pierced through the portal and out through Rozalia's chest; she froze before looking down to stare at the blade protruding out of her chest before turning to me again and smiling.
I couldn't hear anything as the blade retracted from her chest, and Rozalia dropped from the air and landed on the ground with a dull thud. I could barely hear the bandits cheering and shouting as she lay there; all I could do was limp my way over to her and collapse on my knees as she stiffly turned to look at me with a pained smile.
I tried to speak, but all I could was wheeze and cough, "I-I-I'm sorry, I wasn't – " I began coughing again as she gently touched my cheek, stroking it as she tried to speak.
"What do you have to be sorry for?" She continued smiling even as I noticed the bandit leader standing over us. "I'm the one who should be sorry; I left you all alone, Grit…." Her eyes pinched together as tears slipped out of each eye.
The pressure behind my eyes built, and I couldn't stop the tears from falling either. She raised her other hand to cup my face and made me face her as she swallowed her tears.
"I…I…don't blame you for what happened to Myron or Neo…I…Love…you…Grit," She let out a violent cough, and she turned paler by the second as I mumbled and cried, touching her face, trying to memorise it as much as possible.
Rozalia turned towards the bandit leader, who stood there silently watching, "Oh…Raven, my stupid little sister…You won't get what you want in the end…You won't…." Raven said nothing as I clutched onto Rozalia weeping into her chest as she left me.
"…Ah, it's warm…Myron?...I'll see…you…soon…my love…" She whispered into the air before she took one last breath.
And then she was gone, gone forever.
Her body glowed, and a green light emerged before flowing into Raven, who stood there staring at her hands. My body shook but not with tears but with RAGE.
"G-g-give her back…" I growled as I looked up at her Raven, who still hid behind her mask, "GIVE HER BACK!" I used all my strength to leap at her, but she raised her hand and sent me flying backwards away from her and Rozalia. I rolled on the floor before digging my hands into the ground to stop myself as I pushed myself back onto my knees.
She had already opened a portal to leave, but worse than that, she was carrying Rozalia's body with her. I grunted as I pushed myself back up, ignoring the bandits jeering and throwing whatever crap they could find at me as I limped forward.
"Gi…give…give her back…" I mumbled as I got closer; Raven turned to look at me, her shoulders depressing as she looked…disappointed.
"I already told you, Grit, I would only spare your life once," She nodded to a giant of a bandit hanging off to the sidelines, who nodded back and heaved a giant club with him. I tripped and fell before picking myself up as another rock hit me in the head, "What happens next is your fault, goodbye." She stepped through, stealing Rozalia's body as the portal closed behind her.
I reached out to her as she left, but it was all for nothing; my body stung, ached and shuddered with pain as my arms failed to reach for what I needed to keep safe. To protect what was mine…I failed again and again. A shadow loomed over me, and I looked up to see a giant of a man holding a massive wooden club as he stared at me blankly.
"You've got guts, kid. I admire that in someone," He spoke, his deep rumbling, but I had already written him off; I needed to make it to Rozalia; I needed to get her back from that maniac, "But unfortunately…GUTS DON'T MEAN SHIT IN THIS WORLD!" He shouted, and it was as though thunder was shot into my body as a massive object covered my vision, and I felt myself sailing through the air before crashing into something hard until I laid flat against…a wall.
Where am I?
What happened?
Am I in a caravan? Whose is this? Who am I?
I'm Grit…I think…I think I'm dying…
My eyes dully flicked around where I was to find out where I was going.
…Hammocks on the floor…a shattered dresser…A…A…sword…
Whose weapon is that?...Dad…Excuser…
I saw the chain sword lying on the floor before me; I never realised how large it was…how heavy it looked…
I can't feel my fingers…I can't feel anything anymore…Why does this happen to me? Why does this keep happening to me…What did I do to deserve this?
My eyes felt so heavy…Maybe I should close my eyes for a minute…Just for a second…
…Sorry, everyone…I'm sorry I'm so weak and pathetic…I'm so sorry…
I'm here again.
I'm standing at the bottom of the hill, and dad is standing up there at the top, telling me that I'm pathetic and weak. I'm trying so hard to climb the hill but the hands of the dead keep pulling me down and asking me the same question.
'Why?'
'Why did I survive when everyone else didn't?'
'Why do you keep getting everyone killed?'
'What's so special about me?'
…And I don't know. I don't know anymore; I'm just so tired of it all…
I'm barely halfway up the hill before I stop and let the grasping hands drag me back down with them. I think this is it…I can finally rest…I don't want to hurt anymore…
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
"Pathetic."
Who is that?
"Get up."
Who are you?
"You know who I am. Now get up."
…Why? What's the point of getting up?
"Because we are not done yet."
What do we need to finish?
"What we promised."
I look over to see a younger me looking up at Amon, tears streaming down my face.
"I'll kill all of 'em… I'll find that horned bastard and shove his hands down his throat! I'll rip that fucking talking monster to pieces! I-I-I'll wipe every last Grimm off the face of the planet if I have to! I FUCKING SWEAR IT!"
That was me?
"Yes. That promise is still unfulfilled, so get up."
Who are you?
"A grudge that won't be forgotten."
…But what do I do?
"I will show you. Take my hand."
I looked up to see the voice with its hand outstretched; its form was that of a dark armoured behemoth, silver eyes pouring out of its eyesockets and a burning wagon wheel on its back.
Where are we going?
He pointed up to the top of the hill with his other hand, and I felt a pressure building behind my eyes.
…No, I can't make it.
"You have no choice. We will go to the top."
I tried to move away, this beast frightened me, and I wanted nothing to do with it.
Leave me alone! I don't want to go! Just leave me here.
"No. We will go to the top. Now."
I didn't have the chance to reply as it latched its hand around my throat before climbing the hill, kicking the face and arms of the dead out of its way as it clambered to the top.
I tried to cry as his grip tightened, but I had no strength to fight it off. Please let me go.
"No. I'm sick of watching you flounder and flail as we get crushed repeatedly. I'm tired of screaming at you behind a wall while you cry like a wretch."
"No more."
"I will do what you are too weak to do. I'll finish what they all started; the yellow-eyed faunus, the Grimm, Adam Taurus and Raven."
I sobbed as we got further up the hill. PLEASE STOP. I DON'T WANT TO GO. PLEASE STOP IT.
"I WILL KILL ALL OF THEM."
I WANT TO GO HOME!
"YOU CAN'T ANYMORE! IT'S GONE, AND THE PEOPLE WHO TOOK IT ARE STILL OUT THERE!"
I couldn't fight this beast. It was just too strong as I watched it stomp on the faces of Mom, Autumn, Aaranay, Violet, Myron, Neo, Toby, Diane, Amon, Rozalia, the people of bonfire village and the Nomads all desperately reached for me trying to stop me from getting to the top.
"Raven was right, Grit. The weak perish, and the strong survive. Kill or be killed. Take or be taken from. Eat and be eaten." It hauled me up to look it in the eye. "So, we will be strong. We will kill. We will take, and we will eat."
The pressure behind my eyes was unbearable, and it took everything I had not to scream.
"That is what it means to be strong."
I had no more strength to fight the beast as it ripped apart the spectres trying to stop it before finally reaching the top of the hill where my dad sat waiting. I could feel the rage coming from my dad as he charged at the beast waving Excuser.
"YOU DON'T DESERVE TO BE HERE!"
The Beast grabbed dad by the throat before repeatedly slamming him into the floor until he dropped Excuser. The Beast snatched it, and before dad could do anything, it had sliced him cleanly in half, his torso and legs falling away from each other.
DAD!
The torso of, my dad tried clawing his way to the Beast, who snarled and kicked my dad's upper half back down the hill.
"That right there was the biggest weakling of all Grit."
SHUT UP.
"A man too stupid and pathetic to choose between avenging his wife or keeping his children safe, so he tried to have both."
SHUT UP.
"And do you know what happened? He lost both. He lost to that faunus. He lost his daughter, and now his son has lost far more than if he had just let him die!"
I sobbed at the beast's words.
"And now you have NOTHING to show for it besides this." He chucked me before him, and I gripped the hill as hard as possible while pulling myself up from the edge.
"These bonds. These connections. Look at what they've done to you. They've left you broken and weak! A miserable broken toy to be chewed around and played with! Then discarded when they are finished!"
The beast glared at me with glowing silver eyes as I screamed; the pressure behind my eyes was becoming too much for me to handle.
"So, get up, Grit. We will climb this Hill as many times as we have to until we get our revenge. Get up."
I tried clawing out my eyes to get rid of this fucking pressure.
"GET UP GRIT."
GRRRRRAAAAHHHHHHHH!
"RAGE. RAGE. RAGE."
I'LL KILL THEM ALL!
"YES! AGAIN AND AGAIN!"
"OPEN YOUR EYES!"
A flash of light burst from my eyes, and maniacal laughter was all I heard as I flew off the hill.
Outside of Grit's caravan…
The bandits watched as Rex smashed the young boy through the walls and didn't know whether they should cheer. They muttered to themselves as they watched Rex take deep breaths in and out before turning around to one of the bandits near him, "You, go in there and check it out. Make sure that kids dead; you know what will happen if you fail Raven." The bandit shrugged and made his way over, certain that the kid was dead. No one Remnant could survive an attack from Raven and then from Rex; it just wasn't possible.
The bandit slowly walked in through the darkness as the rest of the bandits watched in either boredom or anticipation. The bandit called out, "I think it's all good, Rex I – W-wait no way, how are you – GRRRRAAAAAAHHHHGGGGHHHHSTOOPPPP," The sound of a chainsaw was all the bandits heard and the squelching and cutting off flesh as the bandit screamed and then fell silent.
They all looked at each other in shock, waiting for whatever was in there to come out. Rex raised his club and got ready to fight; whatever was in that caravan was not the same thing that went in. Wet thuds that resembled feet walking on something wet came from the darkness, and the rest of the Branwen tribe tensed up as the figure emerged from the wreckage of the caravan and into the light of the burning Nomad camp.
Rex stared at the boy as he came into the light; torn clothing, bare feet, buzzed hair, and little and large cuts covered his body. But that wasn't what stood out to him; no, three things stood out: His glowing silver eyes, the giant chain sword that was longer than the boy, and finally, the severed head of the bandit he held in his other hand. Rex didn't know what it was, but the hair on his neck stood straight as the boy scanned the crowd with half-lidded eyes looking over them as if they were trash.
That look enraged Rex; he had only seen it on a few people who deserved it; Raven Branwen, Amon Osgar and some other Huntsmen but this kid? This kid thought he was stronger than all of them? He clenched his club tighter and felt his jaw pop from how much he was grinding it.
"So!" He began as the rest of the bandits snapped out of what they were doing to look at him speak. The boy settled his gaze on Rex and gave him his attention, "You survived my attack, kid! There ain't that many that can do that; in fact, I can count on one hand how many – "
"Shut up." The boys cut through like a sharp knife silencing what Rex had to say, who ground his teeth on being disrespected again but fell silent when staring into the burning silver of his eyes. The boy looked around again before cracking his neck, "Here's what's going to happen. I am going to kill all of you." He stepped down from the steps slowly, step by step, as the bandits retreated.
"And then, when only one of you remains, you will answer my questions before I leave you alive with one leg." The boy stared at all the bandits, who stared dumbly back, "Understood?"
Silence before Rex started chuckling, and soon the other bandits started laughing as well at the situation, realising that for all the boy's talk, he was still just a boy. Rex pointed his giant club at him, "You seem unable to grasp your situation, boy; we got you surrounded. Before, I wanted to make it quick out of pity, but now you've pissed me off, so – OOF!" Rex was violently interrupted as something rigid and wet slammed into his face, which he pulled off to see the Bandit's severed head had been thrown at him breaking his aura as it disappeared. He looked up to see that the boy had already left his spot and leapt at him, his silver eyes glowing even brighter because of the fire terrifying Rex as he desperately raised his club to protect himself from the boy descending on to him.
A horrible buzzing sound was all Rex heard as his club split in half from the chain sword cutting its way through the wooden club, and he had no time to react as it fell to pieces on either side of him. The last thing he saw was the snarl of the faces as he cut into his head and continued travelling down, splitting him in half from the momentum. Rex's body copied his club and split off into opposite sides; intestines, organs and bones had all been roughly chopped in half as his blood sprayed over the boy covering him in a shower of gore.
Dead silence followed as the bandits watched one of their strongest men be killed in just a few seconds like it was nothing. They didn't know what to do as they stood there silently, watching the boy look up at the moon, reaching for it with his other hand before pulling it back down. The bandits stepped back as the boy revved up the chain sword again and muttered to himself, "I don't care how heavy it is…I'll carry it all the same…."
As if possessed by desperation, a few bandits ran screaming at the boy, hoping to overwhelm him with numbers. It was a futile effort as the boy effortlessly swung the chain sword in an arc, cutting down the bandits in one swing and cutting them completely in half as they screamed, twitched and died. No longer satisfied with reacting, the boy dove into the rest of the bandits cutting and ripping them apart; a few of them had their necks, arms and legs broken with punches and kicks that had been reinforced with his semblance. To the boy, it was as if they were made of paper and far more fragile than that.
The boy snarled and cursed as he waded through their guts until only one remained who cowered away, covering her head while sobbing into her knees, "Please don't kill me, please don't kill me, please don't kill me," She repeated over and over again saying it less like a plea and more of a prayer to appease the beast that had slaughtered them. The boy loomed over, waiting for her to notice him; when she did, she whimpered as he reached down a yanked her up by a tuft of her black hair. She screamed and begged him to put her down, but the boy did not seem to listen.
"I will ask you three questions now, and you will answer them. Understand?" The woman frantically nodded as tears and snot dribbled down her face, desperate to escape her situation.
"Where is your tribe located?"
"It-it-it always c-c-changes, we m-m-m-m-move around constantly so uh – please don't kill me – so we don't get hunted down by the W-w-wardens or H-hunters oh gods I'm so sorry, please don't kill me!" She begged and snivelled before screaming as the boy tightened his grip on her hair, making her squeal.
"Where is the closest village from?"
"U-u-u-u-uh if-if-if you go um uh," She stuttered and licked her lips as she tried to think, "That's it! Y-y-yeah, if you travel west from here, a town called Anvil is still around!"
The boy leaned in and scowled, "You ain't lying to me, are you?"
The woman frantically shook her head, "N-n-no, I swear I'm not lying! I promise you! Please just let me go!" She begged the blood-covered boy, who ignored her.
"Final question, and you can go." He said as she nodded her head frantically.
"ANYTHING! ASK ME ANYTHING!"
"Left or right?"
"H-huh?"
The boy growled, "I said left or right."
"LEFT! OH GOD FUCKING LEFT; JUST LET ME GO, YOU FUCKING PSYCHO!"
"Very well." Replied the boy as he dropped her. The woman breathed frantically before the roar of the chain sword went off again and descended on her left leg, severing it completely as she screamed for a full twenty seconds before passing out from the shock.
The boy stared at her unconscious body before spitting on her and walking west, past the wreckage of the camp, past the bodies of his victims, past the bodies of the Nomads and his destroyed caravan. He made it to the edge of the camp when he saw glowing red eyes and masks staring at him from the darkness of the treeline. Slowly they approached the boy salivating at the rage coming from him.
The boy chuckled as he saw them, "…No matter how far I go, you'll always be there to hound my steps, won't you?" His only response was the biting and snapping of jaws as he savagely grinned before revving up his chain sword again.
"Well, come on then, you fucking monsters!" He charged at them as they sprinted at him, eager to sink their teeth in him, "I'VE GOT A FUCKING PROMISE TO KEEP, DON'T I? AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The only noises heard that night was the tearing of flesh, the squeals of the Grimm and the laughter of a broken boy.
Authors Notes:
Boy, oh boy, 16K+ words writing this. My brain is completely trashed, but I'm happy the way it turned out. After this chapter will be the start of Grit's journey at Beacon which will be explained. But poor Grit huh? Anyway, after this chapter, I think I will keep the chapters to around 5-6k until something big happens; that way, I can pump out more chapters and help it flow more. I'm also gonna change the genre of the story as I feel like it's not accurate right now.
Thanks for reading, and see you next chapter.
Translations:
Să-ți odihnești picioarele Amon = May you rest your feet Amon
