They emerged into a dark alleyway. The buildings around them looked to be one breeze away from collapsing in on themselves, and the streets smelled of urine. The stench was so strong, even Yang gagged when she first emerged from underground.
"I'm sure you two are aware of the homicides happening in Mantle lately. For once, the media isn't exaggerating how bad it is," Robyn explained, unfazed by the putrid smell.
"You mean the White Fang are really responsible for it all?" Yang asked.
"Technically, it's one individual," Fiona corrected. "Our intel learned his name is Tyrian, a dangerous man with a Semblance that can disrupt Aura. It's how he's able to get so many victims without having to exhaust them in a fight."
Fiona's description left chills down Weiss' spine. Ruby had mentioned fighting a madman who was also named Tyrian. This had to be a freak coincidence. The man Ruby fought lost his stinger after he hurt Qrow.
"On a brighter note, the symptoms can be treated if it's caught early, so it's not completely hopeless if someone gets hurt," Fiona added.
"All that is to say, be careful," Robyn said. "Your job is to help Fiona find the team sent out into this neighbourhood. I've been trying to contact them, but no one's answering. We'll split up here and rendezvous back at Home Base."
They followed Fiona's lead while Robyn returned underground to lead more people to other parts of the community.
Weiss wasn't sure if they'd find anything. The wrecked streets stood abandoned and perfectly still. The only indication they once held life was the personal items left trampled on the ground. Their footsteps clicked so loudly into the silence it felt like they were announcing their presence to the entire neighbourhood.
The first sign of trouble came when they stumbled across two unconscious bodies lying in the space between two apartment buildings.
Fiona attended to the first body while Weiss and Yang checked the second individual's vitals. They were warm to the touch, but she couldn't find a pulse. The only visible injury they had was the slender scratch on their thigh. An unknown purple substance oozed out of the open cut like pus.
Weiss' gut twisted into knots. If a single cut was all it took to kill someone, it didn't matter how strong Adam was. One misstep was all it took to take him down.
"We must be on the right track," Fiona said, sounding ill. "Come on, there might be others who are still alive."
They threw caution to the wind and sprinted down the maze of alleyways. The sound of metal clashing shrieked in the distance, pushing them to run faster. The next corner brought them to a war zone.
Bodies were strewn haphazardly between the dark buildings. A flickering streetlight revealed a purple cut on each of the victims. At the far end of the alleyway, two figures clashed blades with each other. Weiss recognised that white jacket anywhere. Yang charged into the alleyway with Weiss hot on her trail.
Blake's opponent moved like lightning. As they drew closer, it was clear Blake was stuck on the defensive. Her opponent didn't leave any room for her to strike back.
Blake's opponent knocked her hard in the head, sending her flying into the wall on her right. Gold light burned in Yang's hair the moment Blake's Aura shattered. She threw herself into the fight, striking the man in the torso so hard it threw him backwards. She didn't wait for the man to get up, charging after him with her Semblance still blazing.
"Blake!" Weiss dropped down beside her, relieved that she couldn't find any purple cuts.
"Weiss?" Blake groaned.
"It's okay. We're here to help." She helped Blake sit up against the wall.
"Is Adam…?" Weiss peeked over at the pile of bodies slumped in the pathway. Fiona was still trying to check for signs of life.
"He's dealing with Sienna," Blake said. "They ambushed us and–"
"Joanna!" Fiona cried.
Fiona crouched beside one of the bodies on the ground. A pained groan was the only response she got.
"Oh, thank gods! How long have you been stung?"
Another incomprehensible groan sounded.
"Look out!" Blake grasped Weiss' shoulder and pushed them both down.
Yang threw herself in front of Weiss, catching the toxic stinger with her prosthetic hand.
The man leapt out of reach before any of them could attempt to hit him back.
"Awww, now that's no fun." The man laughed as Yang flicked the purple liquid off her metal hand.
The man perfectly matched the description Ruby gave them. From his manic laugh to the scars crossing his exposed chest, this was undoubtedly the same Tyrian who tried to kidnap Ruby.
"I was about to give the pretty little princess a like poke. Why did you have to ruin all the fun?"
"Fiona, get your friend out of here!" Yang ordered. "We'll take care of him."
Tyrian cackled even louder in response.
"I can't leave you two alone here–!"
Tyrian lunged forward with the speed of a bullet, stopped only when Yang smashed her fist into his face. Tyrian continued to laugh as if he didn't feel her metal hand colliding with his nose.
"You said the symptoms can be treated if caught early, right? Go before she runs out of time!" Weiss exclaimed as Tyrian charged at Yang again, his crazed cackle drowned out Fiona's response.
Weiss leapt to her feet, creating a small rock barrier to protect Blake before running up to help Yang. She used her Glyphs to help Yang keep up with Tyrian's attacks.
Tyrian was a wild fighter. His movements were unpredictable as if he was acting purely on instinct. Weiss intercepted with fireballs whenever his metal tail arched down to sting Yang. Her Glyphs ensured Yang matched his agility.
Their plan must've worked too well as Tyrian's gleeful giggles dissolved into furious grunts and curses. He caught Yang off guard with a jab to the stomach. Both his and Yang's Auras glowed from the hit.
Weiss activated her Orange Dust and wedged a rocky barrier between Yang and Tyrian, stopping him from using the blades on his arm bracers to cut Yang.
Deranged purple eyes turned to her. Tyrian jumped up her barrier and launched himself at her. She summoned a barrage of fireballs at him. Tyrian twisted around the flames, allowing the fireballs to fly over the buildings sandwiching them.
Weiss hoped no hostile forces saw her stray projectiles.
A Glyph beneath her feet launched her backwards to avoid meeting his stinger. Yang jumped in and nearly hit him square on the head. Yang landed punch after punch without holding back. Weiss kept her distance and used her Semblance to support Yang.
Tyrian, despite being pushed further and further into a corner by Yang, was in better spirits than ever before. Every punch made him roar with laughter. Weiss didn't know why he was so happy about losing until he suddenly changed tactics, slipping beneath Yang's reach and lunging at Blake.
He raised his prosthetic tail, but his eyes did not glow purple.
"Yang, it's a tra–!"
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Yang charged at him like a raging fireball.
He ducked right as Yang swung, twisting around and colliding his glowing fists into her gut, disrupting the protection of her Aura. The hit threw Yang back. Tyrian chased after her, his eyes now glowing in venomous purple.
Weiss threw herself between them as Yang crashed into the building behind her, Aura flickering. Tyrian's fists hit Weiss' stomach faster than she anticipated, knocking the wind right out of her. Weiss swung her sword as Tyrian's tail bore down on the spot he'd just hit.
The edge of her blade caught his shoulder right before he bounced out of reach, laughing like a gleeful child the entire time. Weiss' heart dropped at the thin purple gash in her stomach.
"Weiss," Yang groaned behind her.
"Take a breather. I can take over for a bit," she said, covering the cut with her hand.
Weiss squared her shoulders and moved to face Tyrian head-on. The wound felt like a paper cut at worse. If she was careful, it was possible to defeat Tyrian before she started to feel bad, or she could tire him out enough for Yang to finish the job.
Tyrian studied her with a grin so wide she wondered if it hurt to maintain it.
"You must be the Schnee Heiress I've heard so much about." He walked casually towards her. "I heard from a little angry kitty that you seduced her strongest warrior. I don't see what's so special about you."
Weiss wasn't going to fall for his little game. She coated her blade in fire and waited for him to make the first move. Tyrian didn't seem to notice the fire burning on her sword, or he simply didn't care, never failing to break his casual stride.
"Sienna was really upset when she saw him tonight. I wonder what she's going to do to your prince charming now that he's all alone with her."
He was messing with her.
Weiss steadied her breath and pointed her flaming blade at his chest. Tyrian looked at her like she'd offered him the entirety of the Schnee fortune. Weiss took two steps back without meaning to.
"How long can he survive against her shiny new upgrade? Last I saw, he had some trouble keeping up with her. As they say, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned."
She'd seen Sienna pushing Adam to his limits, and that was before Weiss shattered her old weapon. Sienna likely hasn't forgiven him for that incident.
"He's been worried about you, little princess. That's probably why he was so distracted tonight. If anything happens…don't you think it'll be your fault for occupying so much of his attention?"
Weiss focused her efforts on maintaining a steady grip on her sword and an impassive expression–
"I heard she wanted to teach him a lesson for sleeping with a Human whore. I don't mean to brag, but I gave her a few ideas on how she could discipline her lost sheep." Tyrian leaned in like he was about to share a secret. "Do you want to know what I told her, little princess? I bet you'll love it."
"Shut up," she said through clenched teeth. Tyrian's maniacal grin only widened.
"You're right. It would ruin the surprise. I'll give you a hint for being such a good little girl." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "Your prince charming will need more than an eye patch to hide his cute little scars."
"SHUT UP!"
Weiss sent a wave of fire at him. He dodged the flames without breaking a sweat.
"Isn't it wonderful, little princess? He's going to be even more disfigured all because of you!"
Weiss used her Glyphs to propel herself forward, fire trailing behind her still-burning sword, and swung. Tyrian's unhinged laughter grated her ears like nails on a chalkboard. The harder she swung her sword at him, the louder his cackling became. The fact he always slipped out of reach from her sword made her rage explosive.
She changed tactics and relied on her Glyphs to increase her agility. Tyrian's laugh finally went mute when she landed consecutive strikes. She leapt from Glyph to Glyph without giving him a chance to stop and think.
Weiss wasn't sure what hit her first, the tightness in her chest that made it impossible to breathe or the searing pain that erupted from where she was stung.
She crumbled to her knees, panicking as it took a physical effort to take a breath. Yang cried out her name when a foot collided with her chest, sending her skimming against the concrete ground.
"Well, well, well, Her Highness has finally been brought down a few pegs."
Weiss glared at him. He continued his casual stride towards her again.
"You're brave, little princess. I'll give you that much. I can almost see why he likes you so much. It's a shame I couldn't play with you a bit longer."
Yang intercepted him with her fists raised. Tyrian retaliated even faster than before. In a single breath, he threw her off to the side and broke into a sprint towards Weiss.
Yang screamed at her to move, but Weiss could barely breathe, let alone move. She met his crazed purple eyes. She doubted he felt any guilt for what he was doing, but she was going to make this as personal as possible.
Tyrian's grin dropped like a rock. He changed tactics at a second's notice and leapt backwards, avoiding a glowing red sword that struck the spot he once stood.
A curtain of black and red dropped down in front of her. Had she not been working so hard to get air into her lungs, she would've cried in relief.
Adam looked over his shoulder, his eye widening at the purple cut in her stomach.
The world turned red.
His Semblance burned so brightly was like staring into a wildfire. Tyrian had made his move again, but his attack was over as quickly as it'd begun.
In one swift move, Adam retrieved his sword and shattered Tyrian's Aura with a single swing of his blade. Tyrian broke down laughing despite being in such a vulnerable position.
Weiss was about to voice her relief when the pain from her injury rendered her completely speechless. It was like someone had cut her open and set her on fire. She squeezed her eyes shut, groaning as the burning spread like an infection.
She felt him pick her up from the ground, cradling her against his chest. Her heart beat so uncomfortably fast and loud it drowned out his voice calling out her name over and over again.
Was this what a heart attack felt like?
Weiss opened her eyes when his hand cupped her face. A smile touched her lips when she couldn't find any new scars or injuries on his face. She wanted to hold him again, but the tingling sensation numbing her arms rendered them useless.
"Can you hear me?" he asked. She heard the fear in Adam's voice; felt the slight tremble in his hand. Weiss had never heard him so scared before, not even when he recounted the story of his past.
"Yeah," she managed to breathe.
"I'm going to get you help, alright? I know it hurts, but you need to hang in there for me."
Weiss wanted to apologise to him. She needed him to know how sorry she was for hurting him. Another painful wave burned her words to ashes. She winced as the unseen fire scorched her insides.
A different kind of warmth tickled her chest when he kissed her forehead – she had to be hallucinating. The poison was making her delusional.
"I need you to be strong for a little longer." He pressed another kiss on her cheek. "Stay with me, alright? Don't…don't leave."
Where would she go? Weiss kept her questions to herself, afraid of what she might reveal amid her hallucinations.
"H-how is she?" Yang sheepishly approached Adam. Her nonprosthetic arm was turned away from him.
"Not good. When did he sting her?" Adam answered curtly, never taking his eyes off Weiss.
"Just a couple of minutes ago. She took a hit for me."
"We need to get going–"
Weiss gasped in pain when he suddenly threw them both down on the ground. A crack of a whip roared so loudly it made her ears ring. Adam leapt back up to his feet, with her still in his arms, moving in time to dodge a glint of silver to their right.
"You really thought you could trap me in some filthy basement?"
Weiss couldn't completely see Sienna at the end of the dark alleyway, but she heard the disdain in her voice and felt her glare burning holes through her head.
"If you have any ounce of self-respect left, you'll give me the girl."
Adam didn't answer her, but Yang responded by activating her Semblance.
"You can't fight her," Adam protested.
"You don't tell me what to do–"
The alleyway lit up in flames. At least, that's what Weiss thought when Sienna's new whip flew at them like a blazing serpent. Yang and Adam split up. Sienna didn't give Yang a second glance, focusing all her attention on attacking Adam.
He could've fought back if he wasn't carrying her, but he never once let her go to reach for his sword.
Weiss was a liability to him. His movements were restricted because of her – because he was so focused on protecting her rather than himself. Sienna's burning whip collided with his back whenever he turned to shield her from the attacks. He never made a noise, but she felt him tense before every lash; heard the hitch in his breath from every hit.
He was getting hurt because of her. Weiss hated how Tyrian somehow predicted this very situation.
"You traitorous little brat! We should've left you in the Dust Mine where you belong!"
Sienna's whip dug into his back again. Her blood went cold as his Aura flickered.
"Let go," Weiss managed to whisper.
Adam either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her. She pleaded with him to let go and fight back, but his grip on her only tightened.
A flash of yellow launched between them and Sienna, managing to send her flying back with a mighty punch to the chest.
"We need to get Weiss help," was the only thing Adam said to Yang. Yang nodded in agreement.
"She doesn't seem keen on letting us go," Yang said blankly. "We need to slow her down somehow."
"Do you have any Dust on you?"
"No." Yang glanced down at Weiss with a worried expression. "Weiss does, though."
"Get Blake and run. I'll take care of the distraction."
He knelt and fumbled her rapier's Dust compartments, whispering an apology when he noticed the new position caused her more discomfort.
Yang sprinted out of the narrow pathway with Blake on her back as Sienna's whip made a second appearance. Adam hurled the Dust container to the ground as she closed in on them again.
A violent torrent of wind ripped to life, creating a barrier between them and Sienna. Adam took off as soon as he could. Sienna shouted something at them, but the wind drowned her voice.
He didn't stop running when he caught up with Yang. They retreated underground without encountering any more trouble.
"I can use my Semblance to provide you some light–"
"No!" Yang cut him off sharply. "I can keep up fine on my own."
As if to prove her point, she activated her Semblance and washed them in dim golden light. They didn't exchange any more words when a particularly loud explosion roared above ground, leaving the sewer tunnel trembling in fear. Adam took the lead, with Yang following his trail.
The pain that burned in Weiss' gut spread like molten lava, incinerating everything it made contact with. She wasn't sure how much more she could take.
"Adam," she whispered, hating how weak she sounded. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you back in Atlas. I–"
"Don't give me that shit right now. You can tell me after we get you help."
"But if I don't make it–"
"You're going to be fine, so stop this bullshit final-hour talk and rest."
"It's unbearable–" She winced when the molten poison spread to her chest. Every laboured breath she took felt like razors cutting into her lungs.
"It's going to be okay. I promise you'll get help, but I need you to give me a little more time."
"But what if–"
"There's no what ifs. I'm never going to forgive you if you give up now. Hang in there a bit longer. We're almost there."
The best she could manage was a nod. Weiss squeezed her eyes shut and tried not to focus on the poison burning her from the inside out. But no matter how desperately she tried to ignore the fire spreading inside her, the pain grew too much for her to bear. She allowed darkness to claim her.
Weiss became vaguely aware of her surroundings at random intervals in time. Each time she drifted back to reality, that horrible burning in her gut was always present.
There were always muffled voices surrounding her. She could never hear what they said, but she recognised them as belonging to her friends and brother. Sometimes they spoke as a group, while other times, it sounded like only one person was around to talk.
Adam was always present when she drifted into consciousness. Weiss was never able to open her eyes to see him, but she knew he was there. There was always a sweet scent of pine to her left. When the feeling finally returned to her arms, she felt her hand cradled in his.
I need to leave first thing in the morning, so I don't have time to thank every reviewer by name. If you commented yesterday, just know I appreciate the time you took to leave a review! 333
Take care and see you next week!