Darkbloom

Chapter 12


It was a few hours later, when the sun began to rise, that Blake came running back into town, looking for him. Jaune paused midway through a conversation with one of the guards and turned towards her. Blake had a frantic expression on her face, and she answered his unspoken question with just two words.

"They're coming."

Jaune blinked, but then nodded in recognition and turned back towards the guard. "Remember the plan," he said. "You and the townspeople stay inside the walls. Don't venture out for any reason. If any White Fang manage to get in, you'll support us in taking care of them. Let Winter handle any Grimm that come our way."

The man nodded, then ran off to join the other guards and townspeople. Jaune exhaled softly, then looked around once more.

"Weiss!"

At the sound of his voice, Weiss came running, stopping just in front of him. She was already loaded down with extra Dust vials, though the weight didn't seem to bother her.

"What is it, Jaune?"

"Remember what we talked about," he insisted. "Let Winter take care of herself, no matter how much you may think she needs your support. I guarantee you, she can handle it."

Weiss nodded, and then took off running back to her post next to Blake, leaving him behind. Cinder came up from behind him, her heels clicking against the ground as she walked.

"You still haven't told me what you'll be doing," Jaune said without looking back.

"Pay no mind to me," Cinder told him. "You shall have my support until it is no longer needed."

"And when will that be?"

"When their leader decides to show himself. After all, what better way to stop a serpent than by severing its head?"

Jaune felt a chill go down his spine. "You're going to kill him?"

"You will not be killing anyone?" Cinder asked, confused.

"Not if I can help it."

"Hm. Admirable, but foolish – your enemies would show you no quarter; you would be wise to follow their example."

"I'm not them," Jaune insisted. "Not even close to it. I don't want to kill anyone."

"We shall see how long your principles last in the face of adversity, I suppose. But it matters not to me, so long as you continue to serve me faithfully and do not attempt to talk me out of doing what must be done."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Jaune answered, and he meant it. He still wasn't sure what Cinder's bad side looked like, but he knew enough to know that we wanted to stay as far away from it as possible. If that meant letting her do her own thing, then so be it.

He just hoped whatever bloodlust she had would be sated by this upcoming fight.

Off in the forest, he suddenly heard something – the cracking of fallen leaves. His eyes widened; across the way, he saw Blake's ears perk up.

"Everyone, down!" he called.

And not a moment too soon, as bullets began to rip through the walls of the village. The smaller calibers were stopped by the logs, but the larger ones penetrated without issue, leaving the area pockmarked with bullet holes. Jaune grit his teeth as bullets passed just inches above his head, leaving behind a supersonic crack as they soared past his ears. He angled his shield in front of him to block any incoming fire and huddled behind it, rounds pinging off it as he guarded himself.

Then, off in the distance, he heard something else – a series of bestial roars, resounding through the dense treeline. He scowled as the roars washed over the town. They'd anticipated the Grimm arriving in due time, of course, but this was far earlier than he'd expected – the battle hadn't even really begun yet.

Still, it was beneficial in one way – unless the White Fang wanted to deal with the Grimm at their backs, they would have to push into the settlement sooner rather than later.

And he'd planned for exactly that.

"Everyone up!" Jaune called.

The townspeople all rose to their feet, and just like he'd instructed them earlier, they rushed behind makeshift barricades, their weapons aimed at the walls. A large shadow suddenly fell over them, and Jaune looked up to find a Nevermore circling overhead.

"Don't pay attention to it!" he called. "That's not your target! Winter, we need you!"

A white blur suddenly came rocketing past him as Winter Schnee launched herself towards the Nevermore using a series of glyphs. Jaune watched in amazement as she reached the flying Grimm and hooked herself onto it with her saber, then began to hack away at it. The Grimm let out a pained screech as Winter got to work carving chunks out of it, but Jaune was quick to look away as several figures dressed in black and wearing white masks began to scramble over the walls of the village.

"Open fire!" Jaune commanded.

The makeshift village militia they'd managed to cobble together opened up with everything they had – mostly hunting rifles and shotguns, with a few tactical rifles and large-bore handguns mixed in. Still, despite how last-minute their army was, the White Fang mantling over the walls didn't stand a chance under the combined assault of that many guns and that much ammunition. Several of them fell immediately, their Aura shattering and their bodies jerking as they were riddled with bullets.

But Jaune wasn't so optimistic as to think that would be the end of it. As soon as the first wave of White Fang members fell, another took its place, and this time, the townspeople were caught reloading.

"Blake, Weiss, Cinder!" Jaune shouted. "With me! Cover them while they load!"

The three women fell in alongside him as he drew his sword and rushed towards the attacking White Fang members, a loud shout erupting out from his throat. Jaune chose the nearest one, a man with dog ears, and got to work.

The two of them locked blades, though to Jaune's surprise, he soon managed to overpower the White Fang member and begin forcing him back. The man frantically tried to hold him off, but it was no use – Jaune was able to press the attack and keep him on the defensive, forcing him to backpedal.

They both separated, then began to circle each other, looking for an opening. The White Fang member suddenly rushed him with a loud cry, and Jaune raised his shield to block the incoming strike; the sword glanced off the edge of his shield, and the dog Faunus was knocked off-balance due to overextending. Jaune lashed out with his own sword, scoring a hit across the man's torso that cut deeply into his Aura, the green light flaring up in response to the strike.

Jaune took a step back and paused, amazed at how he was doing. This was a White Fang member – a known terrorist, and likely someone who had already killed people. And yet, fighting him was like fighting someone who was stuck treading water – compared to Cinder, the man's movements were sluggish, sloppy, and uncoordinated.

Had he truly made this much progress already, or was this particular White Fang member just badly trained?

Jaune's musing was cut off by a burst of rifle fire suddenly impacting against him from behind. A surprised shout escaped him as the rounds pinged off his Aura, causing it to flare black all around him. The White Fang member he'd been fighting suddenly charged him, bowling him over. Jaune was sent sprawling, his sword slipping from his grasp. The dog Faunus jumped on top of him and tried to force his own sword down into Jaune's chest point-first. Jaune's first instinct was to hide behind his shield, but logic soon prevailed, and rather than hide behind it, he brought it around, bashing the White Fang member in the side of the head with it. The man reeled from the hit, and Jaune seized his opportunity, lunging forwards with enough force to free himself. He jumped to his feet and grabbed his discarded sword, then spun around just in time to lock blades with the man again. This time, though, Jaune didn't hold the lock, instead breaking it and then shoving his sword forward with a yell.

He was completely unprepared for the man's Aura to suddenly shatter, and for his blade to keep going.

Steel met flesh and bone with a dull thunk. Jaune froze, his eyes widening in horror as he felt Crocea Mors' blade scrape across the man's spine. The dog Faunus gave a shuddering gasp and brought a hand up to grasp weakly at the sword, but it was no use – his hands soon fell limp, and he coughed once, then gave his final breath before falling to the ground. Jaune let go of Crocea Mors, instead staring at the dead man in complete shock.

"Jaune!"

Weiss' voice caught his attention, and Jaune swallowed the bile that had risen up in his throat, instead looking over to where she was. He found her trying to fend off three White Fang members all by herself, rapidly throwing down glyphs to try and keep them off her, all while they steadily gained ground against her. Jaune took a breath to try and calm his pounding heart, then picked up the dead man's sword and charged into the fray to support Weiss.

The world blurred as he ran, his adrenaline surging with every footstep. Jaune was barely aware of what he was doing – he was all but blindly lashing out, cutting into any White Fang members he could find. This time, however, he was careful to remain cognizant of their Aura; whenever someone's Aura broke, he took care to strike with the flat of the blade, trying his best to simply knock them out instead of kill them. And the entire time, visions of the dead man filled his mind.

"Don't think about it…!" he muttered to himself through gritted teeth as he stared down a White Fang member who was pointing a shotgun at him with shaking hands.

Before he could make a move on the White Fang member, a flash of black swooped in and did it for him. It took him a moment to recognize the figure as Cinder – she had those same dual obsidian-colored blades in her hands, and had buried both of them in the unfortunate White Fang member's chest. The shotgun came clattering to the forest floor, and Cinder pulled, lifting the Faunus up off her feet. The woman choked and sputtered, blood pouring out of her wounds and mouth as Cinder looked her directly in the eyes, then twisted her blades; there was a sickening crunch and squelch, and then the White Fang member's head fell to the side, and the light left her eyes.

Cinder paid no mind to the corpse, instead pulling her blades out of the dead woman and letting her body fall to the ground unceremoniously. Jaune stared at the body, completely numb, his whole body shaking. Cinder flicked her blades to clean the blood and viscera off them, then marched over to him, her eyes seeming to almost blaze in the night.

"What is wrong with you?" she demanded.

Jaune couldn't help but flinch at her tone. "I just… I killed him…"

"Do you truly think he will ever be the last?" Cinder shook her head. "Pull yourself together, the battle is not yet over."

Jaune took a shaky breath, then nodded. "Okay… what do you need me to do?"

"Go back and support Weiss and Blake however they need it."

"And what about you?"

A thin grin crossed Cinder's face as she sheathed her swords. "I think it is time for me to find the commanding officer."

Jaune couldn't help but swallow nervously at that. Whatever Cinder had planned for the White Fang commander, he knew that he didn't want to know about it.

Cinder suddenly turned and ran into the forest. Jaune could only pray that whatever she did, it wasn't too destructive.


Cinder sprinted through the jungle, carefully looking for the White Fang commander. She knew he was going to be out here somewhere, the only question was where.

Voices from off in the distance caught her attention, and a grin split her face.

After all, why try to hunt the commander down when she could just make him come to her instead?

Cinder carefully advanced upon where she heard the voices, eventually ending up on the outskirts of a small clearing. Three White Fang members were standing there, conversing among themselves in hushed, panicked voices.

"This is insane!" one of them said. "We've barely even breached the town's walls, and we've already lost a third of our forces!"

"Keep it down," another hissed. "If Bane hears us-"

"Who gives a shit about him? We're dying out here! What's the worst he can do to us compared to that?!"

Dissension in the ranks, then. Cinder wasn't surprised – from the limited interactions she'd had with the White Fang commander, he apparently preferred to exert his influence through intimidation and fear rather than genuine leadership ability. Those were important qualities for a leader to have, of course, but if one were to rely on them solely, eventually the effect would wear off, especially when the men themselves were confronted by something even more fearsome than their own commander.

A roar from far off in the forest made all three men tense.

"Fuck this," one of them declared. "I'm getting out of here, guys."

"You can't!" another cried. "Even if Bane doesn't find out, Adam Taurus will-"

"Adam Taurus got recalled to Menagerie after his disaster of a train robbery. He's the last thing on my mind right now. All I know is that I don't want to end up as Grimm bait, or worse – run into that black-haired woman."

Cinder's grin widened. Now was her cue.

"And which black-haired woman would that be?" she asked as she stepped out into the clearing. All three White Fang members suddenly froze, their eyes widening in fear at the sight of her. Cinder stopped a short ways away, her hands resting on the hilts of her swords.

After a few seconds, one of them swallowed his fear enough to take a step towards her. "Lady, we don't know who you are, but we have no quarrel with you-"

"I know. But do you think that will be enough to save you in the end?"

"What are you talking about? We don't have to fight."

"On the contrary. You three are zealots, completely devoted to your cause. You are only attempting to turn tail now because you can all see that you are on the wrong end of this battle. But given that you three are all dogmatic Faunus, and I am not, it is inevitable that our paths shall cross again one day. How many innocent people will you three have hurt by that point? For that matter, how many innocent people have you three hurt by now?" Cinder shook her head. "You all fancy yourselves as dogs of war, waiting for the chance to snap your chains and wrap your teeth around your oppressors. Truthfully, however, you are all rabid. And the only thing to do with a rabid dog is put it down."

She took a step forward, and all of them stepped back.

"W-wait," one of the other men said. "We'll leave the White Fang, honest! All three of us!"

"And will that atone for the innocents you have already hurt?" Cinder asked. "Do not bother trying to answer – I already know how burdened you three are with sin. I can see it in your eyes."

"Fuck this," the third finally said. "She's not gonna let us leave, boys. We're gonna have to fight our way out. And last I checked, we outnumber her three-to-one."

"Your friend has the right idea," Cinder remarked. "Truthfully, you are all already dead. Would you not prefer to go down fighting, rather than begging from your knees like the slaves your ancestors once were?"

Cinder drew her swords, the sound of metal against metal ripping through the night like a gunshot. The three men all flinched when they noticed flecks of gore and viscera still covering parts of the blades.

"Come," Cinder announced. "All of you are bound for hell. You may as well entertain me here, in the mortal world, before entertaining me there for eternity."

"This girl is fucking nuts…" one of the White Fang members said. Still, he hefted his assault rifle, bringing it to his shoulder. "Come on, boys. Let's get rid of her."

The other two Faunus rushed her down with wild cries, drawing blades as they ran. Cinder tensed, waiting for the time to strike, and then just as she noticed the first man's finger curling around the trigger of his weapon, she moved, throwing one of her swords directly at him. The blade screamed through the night, impacting against his head with a dull thunk a split-second later. The White Fang member fell to the ground, the blade jutting out of his skull.

The other two Faunus immediately froze, staring at her in a mixture of shock and fear. Cinder recovered from her wild throw, standing up straighter.

"I abhor firearms," she announced. She snapped her fingers, and a moonlight-black dagger formed in her free hand. "They are so dull to fight against. But you two have blades, yes? Perhaps you will entertain me in ways your friend was incapable of."

Both men stared at her, their bodies shaking. After a moment, they threw down their weapons and ran. Cinder's grin widened, and without missing a beat, she waved her hand. Obsidian chains suddenly formed out of thin air, wrapping around both men's legs. They were dragged back to her, kicking and screaming the entire time; Cinder silenced one with the dagger, leaving it buried in his eye, and then approached the other. She waved her hand again, and he was suddenly hoisted into the air by his chains, coming face-to-face with her.

"How unimpressive," she said.

"What do you want?!" he shouted, tears of horror spilling down his face.

"I desire many things, all beyond the comprehension of a worm such as yourself. But at the moment, all I want is for you to bring your boss to me."

"I can do that!" he assured her. "Just let me call him-"

He was cut off by Cinder pressing her blade against his ear. His eyes widened again, and she smirked at him.

"Oh, I intend to," she told him.

For the next few minutes, the clearing was filled with nothing but screaming. Cinder didn't stop working on the White Fang member until she heard footsteps through the underbrush of the forest, and by then, it was too late to save him.

She snapped her fingers and the chains dissipated, dumping the mutilated corpse onto the ground. Cinder turned around and stared off into the forest, watching as the White Fang leader stepped out, his blade clutched tightly in one hand.

"Do I have your attention now?" she asked.

The man's eyes narrowed behind his mask. "You didn't need to take your time with him."

"On the contrary. I wanted to be sure you'd show up. What better way to do that than to tap into your barely-disguised rage?"

"I'm going to enjoy carving your entrails from your body while you plead for mercy," Bane growled.

"And I am going to enjoy sending you straight to hell, where you belong," Cinder retorted.

The White Fang leader hefted his sword, then pulled a cord on it. The blade began to rapidly spin, emitting an ear-piercing roar as it did so. Cinder stared at the blade, amused.

Her amusement faded when the man charged her, far faster than she'd expected.

Cinder stumbled back, taken off-guard. She pulled her swords from their sheaths just in time to block the incoming strike, sparks flying between their weapons as they locked blades. A split-second later and she would have been bisected at the waist.

"What's the matter?" the man taunted. "Lost your nerve all of a sudden? Where is that bravado you were showing just a few seconds earlier?"

Cinder hissed as he suddenly began to push with all his might, threatening to break her grip. Her heels dug twin trails in the soil as she was steadily forced back. With no other options, she disengaged, separating her swords from his and leaping backwards. Bane lashed out with his sword, and Cinder gasped as pain blossomed across her front. She looked down and saw a large gash carved across her stomach, weeping blood.

"Such little Aura..." the White Fang member said. Her blood flew from his sword's spinning blade, spattering against the ground and onto his outfit, but he didn't seem to care. "I must admit, it is impressive that you managed to get this far with little Aura and seemingly no Semblance. But unfortunately for you, it ends here."

He rushed her again, and Cinder was once more forced on the defensive, blocking or parrying attack after attack. Finally, it was too much for her weapons to handle – Bane brought his sword down on hers once more, and they both shattered. His blade kept going, embedding itself into her shoulder. Cinder screamed in agony as her left shoulder was eviscerated, and only just barely managed to wrench herself free before he was able to completely saw through her arm.

Cinder retreated, running for the treeline. Her vision was blurred from pain and adrenaline, and the air was heavy with the stench of her blood. She chanced a look down at her shoulder and grit her teeth when she managed to make out the white of her bone in-between the blood and the shredded tissue.

"There's no point in hiding," Bane taunted as he walked among the trees. "You might as well come out now and stop delaying the inevitable."

Again, Cinder grit her teeth. The White Fang leader had proven to be far more capable than she'd thought – was this what fighting a fully-trained Huntsman was like? It certainly cast Jaune's fight with his father in a whole new light, she supposed, though there would be time to think about that later.

Jaune…

Cinder shook her head as images of him flooded her mind. Her servant was still out there, fighting for his life, while she played cat and mouse with a mere mortal. What kind of master was she, who couldn't even defeat someone in single combat like that? She was Cinder Fall, Demon Queen of Hell.

Her eyes narrowed. She had just the thing to put an end to this fight. It wasn't going to be without its price, though compared to being killed and sent back to hell, it was a small price to pay.

No, she wasn't going to allow herself to go back, especially not after finding a servant in the form of Jaune. She was going to do whatever she needed to do in order to stay alive.

And so, Cinder stepped out from behind the tree, one hand clenched around the wound in her shoulder. Bane was there, standing a short ways away. When he saw her step out, his eyes narrowed behind his mask.

"Tired of running, are you?" he questioned.

"In a manner of speaking," Cinder confessed. "Though not for the reasons you believe."

"It makes no difference." Bane pulled the cord on his weapon once more, then began to advance upon her. Then he rushed her, a manic roar emanating from his throat.

He only made it a few steps forward before flames sprouted up between the two of them. Bane stopped and stared, confused.

"What…?"

"I must confess that I have not been completely truthful to you," Cinder said. She locked eyes with him, then began to step towards the fire. His eyes widened as she walked directly into the flames, and yet wasn't burned. The fire darkened as she moved within it, going from a bright orange to a dull blue before finally settling on a dark black.

"I am more than just a mere human," she added as the black flames engulfed her.

The fire suddenly surged outwards, and as it did, it went from black to a deep red. The forest was suddenly filled with the sounds of anguished screaming from a multitude of tortured souls, and the air became permeated with the stench of blood, burning flesh, and decay. Bane coughed and gagged as the smell hit him, dropping down to one knee.

He looked up just in time to see Cinder standing in front of him, still covered in that black fire.

"What the hell are you…?" he asked, fear creeping into his tone.

Cinder smirked. "I am Cinder Fall, Demon Queen of Hell. But from now on, you shall know me simply as 'master'."

Bane suddenly stood up, bringing his sword around to cleave her two. Just before it reached her midsection, however, heavy black chains intercepted it, wrapping around the sword and yanking it from his grasp, then tossing it aside. The blade landed point-first in the nearby soil; Cinder paid it no mind, instead turning her attention back towards Bane.

Bane began to step back nervously, finally reaching for his belt, where a pistol was holstered. He yanked the gun from its holster, then began to fire off shots towards her. Cinder jerked as the bullets struck, but continued to advance, and finally, the gun clicked empty. Bane dropped the weapon and tried to back up further, but he was up against a tree, and there was nowhere else for him to go.

Cinder reached out and grabbed his hand, and Bane screamed in agony as the flesh began to burn away, exposing the bone underneath. He tried in vain to force her away, but it was no use – where once Cinder had been so easy to overpower, now she was completely immovable. Bane grit his teeth and sank down to his knees, tears of anguish streaming down his face.

"Please… have mercy…" he begged.

"Now you beg mercy for your sins?" Cinder asked. Her voice was that of a legion, thousands of souls speaking as one. It echoed through the forest like rolling thunder, bouncing between trees and disappearing off into the darkness. "How arrogant of you, to ask mercy of me. You are no better than the other mad dogs I put down."

Her flames pulsed, and Bane howled in torment. Cinder grinned, the white of her teeth showing even through the black fire that coated her entire body.

"Your body shall be burned to ash and your soul shall fuel the eternal pyre of the Underworld, along with those of your former comrades," she said. Through the darkness, the black flames coalesced around her once more, forming an outline of two horns, two wings, and a spike-tipped tail that lashed behind her.

"Now burn for me, you worm."

The fire surged out from around her, engulfing Bane in the blink of an eye. Cinder finally released him, and Bane fell to the ground, screaming bloody murder as he tried in vain to put out the flames, but to no avail. His screams increased in volume as his flesh bubbled and boiled from the heat, before finally giving way to the raw muscle beneath, and eventually to the bone. But the burning didn't stop, even when the light had left his eyes and the screams had ceased; it continued until all that was left of Bane was a pile of ash on the ground. Then, and only then, did Cinder allow the flames to dissipate fully, even those that had engulfed her.

As the final wisps disappeared into the night, Cinder stared at the pile of ash, then closed her eyes and gave a content sigh.

"Cinder…?"

Her eyes flew open at the sound of the voice. She whipped around, and came face-to-face with none other than Jaune, who was standing there clutching his sword and shield in a white-knuckled.

"Jaune," she said. "Jaune, it's not-"

His eyes widened. "Cinder, you're hurt!"

He tossed his sword and shield aside and rushed over to her, then looked over her wounds. At that moment, the pain came flooding back, and Cinder screamed.

The last thing she saw before passing out was Jaune staring at her with concern.


Thanks to Ickbard for all the help with this chapter.

What is up, my dudes? I am back with more garbage for you all.

...Just kidding. Truthfully, I think this chapter turned out about as well as I could have hoped – the little glimpse of Cinder's true power in particular was something I was super happy with. I decided to just make it as metal as I possibly could without it just being ridiculous, and eventually I figured that burning some dude to ash with literal hellfire would probably be good enough.

Besides that, I don't really have much else this week. Kind of a boring week, TBH. I did buy a Polish Beryl 5.56 AK, because I'm discovering I actually really like Kalashnikovs and my Zastava M90 was crying for a sister, but I haven't gotten a chance to shoot it yet, unfortunately. It does look fucking nice though, and I'm glad it doesn't weigh a shit ton like my M90 does. Next on my list: Galil ACE RNL in 5.56. Of course, that won't be for awhile, because I want it with all the shit attached to it, and that's expensive lol. I'm supposed to be saving up to get my own place, but I can't help but get sidetracked sometimes.

Anyway, I'm glad I got the Beryl, and I'm super eager to take it out shooting this weekend.

Past that, I've got nothing. Hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you all next time!


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