Kept you waiting, huh?
Before we continue, I'd like to make one aesthetic change to the minions, because bloody hell the knights really got shafted with their updated looks.
Knight soldiers (or minions depending on what you like to call them) now wear a coat of plates over their gambeson and their helmets have been changed from kettle helms to sallet helms (if you don't know what a sallet looks like just check the story image).
Viking soldiers now look more like what we see in the cinematic and marching fire trailers.
Samurai soldiers still look like how they do in-game.All soldiers now wear the colors of their respective factions like in the campaign, I.e.: Samurai use the fujiwara colour pallet.
Now onwards with the chapter then!
Tranquility woke up to a gentle midnight breeze that rustled the leaves of the trees that surrounded her. She sat up and her hand immediately flew towards her throat as if to test if her head was really there. The peacekeeper shook her head in confusion, just how was she alive? She'd seen her own body, Astrea decapitated her, she was as dead as one could be, but if that was true then how was she even here at all?
She shook herself from those thoughts before they became a burden, all that mattered for now was that she was alive and unharmed from what she could tell, she'd have to strip later just to be sure.
As Tranquility got on her feet, she spotted her weapons leaning on a tree, like they'd been left there for her, as for who'd done it? It didn't matter for now, they were gone and she was here. She grabbed her sword and dagger and placed them on her back and hip respectively. She walked aimlessly through the forest for a while, trying not to think of anything related to Astrea or Horkos, instead focusing her mind on her surroundings, keeping her eyes and ears open for anything unusual. Her vigilance paid off after a while when she found a very tall tree that could give her a clear view of the forest she was currently in, and so without a second thought, she began her climb, pushing past the leaves and branches to the very top.
Out of everything there was to see, one thing caught her immediate attention; a large fire raged over what looked like a village in the distance. She sighed at the sight and shook her head before climbing down.
A peacekeeper's work was never done.
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Shit, shit, shit. When he woke up this morning, he expected to have a nice coffee, get to work on repairing the walls from the grimm attack from two weeks ago and go to sleep after a relaxing cup of tea, a nice, simple, normal day.
So of course, one could say that he jumped off his ass when BANDITS of all things began raiding the village. The broken walls had of course, done shit at keeping the bad guys out, and so here he was, running for his life towards the forest, that was until he bumped into something big, something golden. When he looked up and saw a literal knight his relief was palpable.
"Huntsmen! Sweet Oum thank you! Bandits are raiding our town, we could use the help," he said to the man with desperation.
"That's why we're here, we saw the fire and came to help, stand back and let us deal with this." He said as he cracked of his fingers.
"Wait, we?" He leaned to the side to get a look behind the man and his jaw dropped. There was a large party of warriors right behind the golden knight that he'd somehow managed to miss.
He'd never been more thankful to Oum then at that moment.
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The lawbringer grunted as he stepped forward, assessing the situation before turning to face the warriors behind him.
"Iron legion," the soldiers, who were still confused as to why and how they were still alive, looked at him expectantly. "Strike hard, look for each other's backs, Nulla misericordia!" (no mercy)
The warriors were more then happy to answer with a cry of their own, fighting would get their situation on back of their minds for now, and right now, that's all they wanted.
The Vikings and samurai didn't need to speak latin to understand what he meant at the end and were quick to follow their fellow warriors into battle. As the modest force charged through the most direct path, he gripped the strangely dressed man who'd bumped into him by the shoulder and spoke in a less intimidating voice, or at least tried to "Are there any other entrances?"
"What?" the man asked him with surprise in his voice. "Oh, well uh Tony built a tunnel that goes from his house to the forest, paranoid bastard."
The lawbringer nodded with a satisfied hum, it would do. "Take me there now."
"R-right away sir!" he answered nervously before doing what was asked of him. The lawbringer grinned under his helmet, no one ever expected the master flank.
No one.
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As Tranquility got closer and closer to the burning town, she heard the sounds of battle. Good, that meant the enemy was distracted and that she could keep low for longer, it was an advantage she was going to use well.
Tranquility approached the ancient looking wall that surrounded the relatively small town and looked for anything she could use as a grip to climb, it was a relatively easy task with how old the walls were. As she made it to the top she took a moment to scan the battlefield. The enemy was disorganized but numerous and for each one cut down, two came in to replace them. That was however, the lesser of her worries as she was surprised to find the same warriors she'd seen dead just an hour ago on their feet and fighting. "This doesn't make sense…" she muttered quietly under her helmet before shaking her head, duty first. Tranquility found a roof she could get to with a big enough jump, the fall wouldn't be pretty if she failed, but, seeing no alternative that wouldn't immediately give her away, she sighed and took the leap, landing hard and right at the edge. She immediately got away from the edge and glanced back and then down, briefly looking over the battlefield to quickly check if anyone had noticed her, finding her position to not be compromised, Tranquility nodded with satisfaction. Perfect.
She kept to the roofs for a while, making her way to the back to catch the enemy where they weren't looking, right as she made it, she encountered a lone man, looking over some hostages, threatening them with a longsword, Tranquility hummed for a second as she observed the man inch closer and closer to the building she was in, it was too perfect of an opportunity and so she unsheathed her dagger, held it with both her hands in a reverse grip and leaped, aiming for the man's collarbone.
As a peacekeeper, Tranquility was trained to ignore her feelings and yet no matter how hard she tried, heights always seemed to unnerve her, climbing was easy, but once she looked down her legs always felt weaker and her heart accelerated despite her protests for it to calm down. She never screamed when she leaped like this, for every time her lungs would forget how to breath and her lips would forget how to speak, she always aimed before leaping because no matter how hard she willed them to, her eyes would not open as she soared through the air with the grace of a falling rock.
Right now, she didn't see her Nowan dagger go through the mans collarbone but rather felt it as it punched through, heard his howl of pain as the force of the stab brought him to his knees. As a peacekeeper, she was taught to be quick and lethal, and so, she pulled out her dagger and slit the man's throat, letting his body drop down to the floor ungracefully.
Tranquility opened her eyes to the sight of a crowd of tied up civilians looking at her with a mix of awe, confusion and fear, she tilted her head at them, not because of their reactions, but because of the way they dressed, it was… strange. Before she could get to unbinding the civilians, the door of the building behind her was kicked open. In a quick motion, she took her sword from her back and spun around only to find a very familiar looking set of golden and white armour.
The lawbringer looked around with his weapon at the ready before standing down, his sight set on Tranquility. "Peacekeeper." He addressed her.
"Lawbringer," she answered with a nod. "Keep watch while I cut these people loose." The man simply nodded as she got to work. In all of her life, no one had ever thanked her for her work, so it was a surprise for sure when she got quiet thanks from the people she freed, she didn't know how to feel about it. When she was done, Tranquility approached the lawbringer. "You're flanking."
"Just like you are it seems." He answered with a shrug. "Did you manage to see the enemy force?"
She nodded. "They aren't skilled fighters but their numbers make up for it, we may need an extra blade," she said with a gesture towards the longsword that was laid down next to the corpse of the man.
"Indeed…" the lawbringer said as he picked up the blade, inspecting it briefly before clearing his throat, gathering the attention of the freed civilians who'd began to talk amongst themselves in hushed tones. "Does any amongst you know how to use a sword? We need an extra arm." He shook the cheap looking blade for emphasis.
Tranquility was surprised by their reactions of outrage and confusion. Most people in Heathmoor, even in the cities, knew the most basic of techniques at the very least, and even those who didn't were often eager to defend their homes, and so to get these reactions was utterly bizarre. Something wasn't right.
Right as the lawbringer was about to retract his question, a man with black, greying hair, reddish eyes and wearing a red cape that had seen better days stood up from the crowd. "I do," his voice was gruff and had that tingle of tiredness Tranquility was used to hearing from those older than her, a warrior.
A wolf.
"Very good, what is your name?" said the lawbringer as he handed the weapon to the man.
"Qrow Branwen." Was his answer.
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The trio of warriors moved in complete silence, looking out for any hostiles and quickly dispatching those who showed up, one thing that Tranquility kept noticing was how Qrow kept glancing at them, he looked at the lawbringer with mild curiosity and nothing more, but when he looked at her, all she could see in his eyes was caution, paranoia. He clearly thought that of the two of them, she was the most likely to stab him in the back, and he wasn't exactly wrong, but if he thought she was the biggest threat then he was sorely mistaken, there was a very good reason behind the fear many in Ashfeld had of lawbringers.
As Tranquility kept on her idle thoughts, her ears picked up on the sounds of distant battle. "We're getting close to the fight."
"Sharp ear," Qrow said as he looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
Tranquility tilted her head at him. "Of course, that is what's expected of me." She said before breaking into a jog alongside the two
As they got closer, the sound of a loud and boisterous laugh filled the air. "That sounds like our raider friend, let's hope he's left at least some for us." The lawbringer said before breaking into a sprint, Qrow and Tranquility soon followed. "Branwen, stick close to me, peacekeeper." He stopped for a moment to look at her. "Go on ahead, find the biggest bastard you can find, and kill him, an example for the rest."
Tranquility nodded and rushed ahead without a word.
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Qrow couldn't help but raise an eyebrow when the hooded woman ran past them, though his shiny new friend didn't seem to care in the slightest. "You sure that was the brightest idea? She's gonna get hurt going in solo."
"I wouldn't worry too much, her kind are used to working alone," the armored man said calmly.
"Her kind?" Qrow asked with confusion.
"Peacekeepers," he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "She's done this kind of job before a thousand times over, so ease your mind and keep focused on the fight ahead."
Qrow burrowed his brow in thought as they kept moving. That name didn't ring a single bell, a new organization maybe? He'd have to ask Oz to look into it.
The man in front of him broke into a sprint as they approached the fight, Qrow followed closely behind as he gave the poor quality sword in his hands a flip, It wasn't Harbinger, but it would do.
The golden knight charged into an unsuspecting bandit with the tip of his poleaxe, dragging the resisting enemy forward until they crashed on the wall of a house, Qrow covered his back as he did his impaling charge, cutting down any who tried to get close. It was shortly after the bandit hit the wall that Qrow heard words in a language he couldn't recognize.
"Mors pro te venit!" (death comes for you!) shouted the lawbringer as he flipped the bandit over his shoulder using the butt end of his weapon.
Qrow, confused as he was, didn't waste the opportunity and quickly stabbed the bandit through the heart. Qrow wasn't a strange to killing, he could thank the tribe for that, but he preferred to avoid it when he could, though judging by how the fight was developing, this really wasn't the time for that.
Not far away from them, a man wearing some very fancy armour and a helmet that was accompanied by a mask sliced through his enemies like a hot knife through butter with a weapon that, to him, looked like an oversized katana.
Not far away from him was a man with a skin a few shades darker than his fellow warriors that barely wore anything that could count as armour and wielded an axe as big as himself. Covering his back was a knight in pure black armour with gold accents wielding a very fine longsword with the skill of a master, better than most huntsman he'd met as a matter of fact.
Then there was a woman with a cape that seemed to simply move like water, flowing from one attack into the next, dodging almost everything that was thrown her way. He shook his head in confusion, who were these people?
"Branwen! Cease your lollygagging and help us kill these bastards! They won't stop coming!" Qrow nodded and returned to the fight, his questions could wait.
The fighting lasted for what felt like hours, though most of the warriors surrounding him didn't seem to be tired in the slightest and those out of breath needed but a moment to recover. It was then that, amidst the brutal melee, two fighters crashed through both groups, on one side, there was the same woman from before and her opponent was one of the biggest bastards Qrow had ever seen. He easily towered over the peacekeeper with his 7 ft. in height and brandished a stone pillar with red dust markings all over it as a weapon.
"Soldiers, halt!" Said the golden knight in a commanding voice as he raised a fist. "Let her fight this one alone."
The bandits on the other hand, cheered. "Boss! you're here!"
The bandit leader looked at his remaining men and women with a grin that screamed of bravado. "Stand back boys! This one's mine!"
As the two groups stood back in a circle, as the two warriors circled each other, Qrow took out his scroll and began recording.
His gut told him Ozpin would want to see this.
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Tranquility hummed at the bandit leader's weapon. It reminded her of the sculptures and carvings she'd often find in places occupied by the Ignis Fatum, this however seemed more… alive, it was as if the red markings pulsated with a power she could not even begin to understand, as if the wild nature of fire itself was contained in the lines and twists that were the random patterns on the pillar.
The man got tired of waiting and charged straight towards her with a confident war cry, Tranquility dodged the overhead swing with ease, what she wasn't expecting however, was the explosion that came right after with more than enough force to knock her down. Her instincts kicked in and she rolled to the side just in time for her to see the large stone crash where se was just a moment ago. When this close, she could see with more clarity how the markings shined like hot metal before exploding. As the explosion sent her flying, she made sure to land on her feet, and watched with interest as the markings were seemingly loosing their shine, the once scarlet red turning dull.
She hummed briefly and rolled away from a follow up slam, just as before, the markings grew ever so darker, whatever power it was he wielded, it seemed that he could only use it so many times, the plan from then on, was obvious enough.
Tranquility charged the man, and right before the massive stone made contact, she spun around him, delivering him an elbow to the back. As expected, the pillar exploded and the bandit growled, attempting to strike at her again, Tranquility however, simply ducked the horizontal strike and retaliated with a slash to his exposed back courtesy of his overextending, the peacekeeper kept on his back, baiting his attack and circling around him for cover when the explosion happened. For the soldiers watching her, it looked like a graceful dance, a predator toying with her pray before the kill.
This went on for a minute, the larger man getting more frustrated and tired with each miss. "Stand fucking still, bitch!" he said as he brought down the pillar with all his might, this time however, nothing happened. As the man's eyes widened, Tranquility allowed herself a small smile as she slipped into the man's guard, stabbing him three times in his kidney. All too easy.
When the dagger came out though, she was surprised to find the weapon bloodless. Confused, she kept up the pressure, attacking fast and putting as much strength as she could into each attack, her weapons never came away bloody. Not for the first time in the day, Tranquility asked herself what was going on, before her mind wandered too much, she was brought back to reality by the punch that she narrowly managed to sidestep, retaliating with a thrust that was quickly followed up by a second one with her dagger, right before her deep gouge could connect, something happened, something she couldn't have ever imagined. A red… thing crackled all over his body before disappearing with a sort of strange sizzle, the man screamed in pain for the first time as the dagger easily punctured through his skin into his side. There was blood and the peacekeeper hummed before attacking again, this time, her sword was stained crimson as she made a heavy cut that ran a long diagonal on his chest.
As the man watched Tranquility with wide eyes, his bravado disappeared, replaced by one simple and primal emotion: fear. The fight ended quickly after that, the smaller woman's sword buried deep in his chest and him finally releasing the now useless stone he'd wielded as a weapon. Tranquility, rather than simply removing the blade and letting the body fall, she stepped behind him one last time and quickly slit his throat. "Peri!" With a light push, she let the bleeding man fall to the ground face first.
The remaining bandits quickly dropped their weapons.
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The lawbringer nodded in satisfaction as he looked towards the fires, the houses were a total loss by now, but thankfully the flames weren't expanding, that at least gave them some breathing room. It was at that moment when Torbjorn approached him with a grin on his face. "Tin man, glad you could join us! A bit late but still, your help is appreciated."
The lawbringer nodded as he shook hands with the raider "Casualties?"
The bearded man looked behind him while scratching the back of his neck. "Nah, a handful of wounded but no dead, I was actually impressed by your soldiers, they fight well."
It was at that time that the Kensei approached the group. "We still have a problem though." He looked around and spoke in a low voice. "We can't afford to take prisoners, you know this."
"I do, indeed I do," he said with a tired sigh. "Branwen, go back to your people and inform them that they are safe for now."
Qrow glanced at him briefly before going back. "Sure, but I will have a word with you and your group after this."
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Qrow wasn't prepared for the sight that awaited him when he went back to the mysterious warriors, neither were the people they'd rescued judging by just how many of them were puking. They followed him back, saying that they wanted to thank them and of course, he hadn't tried to stop them seeing that he didn't really have a reason not to, oh how much he wished he had right now.
The golden knight gestured for the next and last prisoner to be brought forward as he kicked off a headless corpse from a piece of wall he was using as an impromptu executioner's block. By this point, his gauntlets, helmet and a large part of his breastplate were covered with blood, not that he seemed to care.
"C'mon man you don't have to do this! We can reach an agreement man!" the bandit screamed hysterically as she was dragged by the hooded woman and the knight in black armour. Qrow felt a tug in his heart as he looked. The girl had short, dirty black hair, hazel eyes and wore clothing that seemed just a bit bigger than her, but what disturbed him the most was just how young she was.
She couldn't have been any older than Yang.
"We can't." replied the man with a cold voice as he got his halberd ready.
The girl's eyes began to water and she screamed at the uncaring golden knight. "Who are you to judge us?!"
"Judge, jury and executioner," he said as he readied his weapon. "I am the law." Right as the lawbringer was about to behead the bandit, Qrow decided to step forward.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" he had to stop this, he wouldn't have been able
The man looked at him and grunted as he got into a more relaxed position. "We cannot take prisoners."
"So you're just executing them?!" Qrow shook his head, he would have expected them to call the proper authorities or heck, just haul their asses to Vale and dump them off there, but to just kill them right there and then?
It wasn't that Qrow wasn't against killing enemies, he'd end a man in a fight if he had to, but this? This was different.
"Yes, it's not something I do out of pleasure, but a duty I must fulfill, the law will not falter, not under my watch." He lifted his halberd again. Qrow called for him to wait, the golden knight simply seemed to ignore his words. Right as he prepared to watch the woman's head roll, she was saved by the last person he would've imagined.
"Conscription then," The peacekeeper stepped forward, her eyes never leaving the sobbing woman. "She's less defiant than the others."
"Desperation is not good enough, she'd just flee at the first opportunity and I'm not exactly in the mood for a manhunt."
Qrow took the opportunity for what it was. "Maybe, but she looks willing to do anything, I'm sure you could reach some sort of agreement."
"Y-yes! I'll do anything man, just don't kill me!" She was begging for her life, looking solely at the man who would have killed her mere moments ago.
The lawbringer hummed, after a minute of tension, he finally made his choice as he let the weapon rest at his side. "Very well, you'll have ONE chance to prove yourself, impress me and you will gain a pardon through service, prove my suspicions right and I'll kill you where you stand. Are we clear?"
"Yes! We're crystal!" The relief on her face was more than palpable.
He nodded once before lifting her up, Qrow didn't need to see the man's eyes to know that he was looking at her straight in the eye. "Welcome to the Iron Legion."
Qrow sighed as the girl was taken away by the longsword wielding knight, who was quickly followed up by the rest of the group. "I need a drink."
Hello again, as for the why they aren't asking any questions about what's going on, don't worry, next chapter's all about that, just have a little faith I'm me, ye?
Anyways, see you later.
