I'm just going to come out and say: this arc is not going to end in the way most people are probably thinking. I've seen the comments, and for the past week, I've been chuckling because of them. Now, so I don't end up saying something that'll give away what I have planned, how about I end this here and get into my response to reviews/comments? Yeah, let's do that!
[Response to Reviews/Comments]
(Qoutev) TACO SENSEI: Thank you! My sister worked really hard on it. As for The White Fang… yeah, no, swaying Jolyne to like them is gonna take a lot. And by a lot, I mean that'll be impossible. At least, in their current state, anyway.
(Ao3) tymaddux: Well considering the name of this arc is "Making a Bull Cope and Seethe" it was never going to go Adam's way. I also have hope for Helluva Boss, but that's slowly starting to dwindle. The reference was Lilith Morningstar, and… well, it's gonna be even better when I get to use her in combat. That'll be very, very fun.
(Ao3) AidenJacksonSmithDSBB: I can't really answer that question, you're just going to have to wait and find out. But what I will say is that there will be a lot of damage done to The White Fang, which should be a given.
(Guest) Reader 451: Nah, Lilith is gonna go on a joy ride. Take of that what you will. We'll be seeing the aftermath of that soon, but not in this chapter… or the next one… we will in a bit I swear. Adam is going to have the wake-up call of the century, and I for one cannot wait for that.
Kolt999: Bruh, I always found it really fucking odd that magic was a gift from The Dark God. Like, isn't he supposed to be the evil one? Why give them magic to defend themselves from The Grimm he created? It makes no sense.
The Silver Eye Bloodline was literal donkey shit in comparison tbh. Sure it was an instant win-condition against all Grimm, but when you go ahead and make those with Silver Eyes just as killable as everyone else, then what's the fucking point? Seriously, at least have them enhanced durability or some sort of regenerative factor, or something to give them an edge against The Grimm! Sure, Magic was probably used to fill that void, but then Ozma went ahead and sealed all the magic within The Maidens!
God, the characters in this universe are so dumb sometimes. Like, why do that when you can just leave things the way they were? It would've made the effort to defeat the Grimm and Salem so much easier. I swear, everyone in this world thinks of the now rather than the future. The only character who seems to do that is, funnily enough, THE BAD GUYS!
Tangent aside, Adam is gonna have a time and a half with his latest problem… probably doesn't get paid enough to deal with… damn near anything. Seriously, The White Fang in canon was and still are incompetent. I have made several changes to hopefully make them less so in this.
Have a good day Kolt!
Now, onto the chapter!
xxXXxxXXxx
[Rantaro]
Rantaro looked down at his hands, clenching them in and out several times as he stood in front of the PTD. He could feel his new "Snake Snake Fruit" powers flow through him, increasing his strength just by him merely having it. He wasn't going to lie to himself, he was excited to try them out.
Black Mamba's were some of the most dangerous snakes in the world, having some of the most toxic venom known to man. He wondered just what kind of powers he would gain from eating that fruit. Even if it tasted awful, he was more than glad to have it. Just theorizing of what it could do, what it could give him, made him want to jump through that mirror heedless of whether Jolyne was here or not.
Or, at least, that was what he would do had it not been for the fact that his mind was plaguing him with worry.
He wanted to train with this new power Jolyne had gifted him with badly. He knew, in the back of his mind, that he needed some sort of combat power like the rest of the group. Having a dedicated healer was one thing, but having a healer who couldn't fight? That was bad. He wasn't stupid enough to not know that being a healer with no real way of attacking was a cursed existence. He played too many games to know that.
Just because he was a nature buff didn't mean he never touched a console in his life, or a computer or smartphone for that matter. Hence why he was so anxious to get to training. He wanted so badly to just get it over with, go buck wild and figure out his powers. Just one step—only one, and he would be able to see just what kind of power he had at his hands.
And while he was tempted to do so—oh so very tempted—he had other things to dedicate his time to. Such as knowing where the hell Jolyne ran off to. One moment they were discussing what to do with Weiss, the next, she bolted out of the door with fury written all over her face without so much as an explanation.
Jolyne hadn't said a word to anyone about anything. She just… left. Don't get him wrong, what she did was none of his business. His job was to be the healer—the support if you will. But when he saw her leave, when he saw that angered look in her eye, he felt a pit of dread well up in his chest. It was the same angered look in her eye that she had when she became dead-set on ending the world—his world and that usually meant that she was going to do something stupid.
Her ending his world had left him feeling hollow. Like his opinion didn't matter. Truthfully he questioned why he had sided with her other than out of pure survival. Then again, it wasn't as if he had anything left for him in that world. His sisters were dead, his parents were… gone, and he was effectively homeless with all of the hotel hopping he did.
In reality, he shouldn't have cared that his home was gone. It was just another adventure. That was what he had tricked himself into believing. But then that angered look in her eye showed up again and it made him feel sick.
She was going to do something bad. Something that she would regret—just like she had regretted destroying their world. It wouldn't be an instant regret kind of thing, but a long-term one. The kind of regret that lingered in the back of one's mind, poisoning one's thoughts with doubt and venomous jabs to the gut.
Rantaro knew it was a long shot. He knew that trying to sway her from this was going to be hard. But for as much as he wanted nothing to do with her personal life, maybe… just maybe stepping in this one time to make her not do something stupid would allow him to bridge the gap a little. To show her that she didn't have to rush things.
To show her that she didn't always have to do things right there, right then, and to allow her to slow down. Perhaps bring some calmness to that vibrant emerald eye of hers…
To do that, though, he needed to confront her. And that look in her eye… it scared him. Scared him deeply. Made his bones shiver and his limbs shake. It made him well up with fear. The kind of fear that one would get when staring up at a God.
She wasn't a God. She was Demi-God, or slowly becoming one, or whatever the case might have been. But she was becoming a God-like figure nonetheless. A wrathful one. One that jumped to conclusions and caused pain and suffering wherever she went.
That look in her eye… that vile, evil look in her eye. It meant a lot of things.
It meant people were going to die.
A lot of people.
The last thing Rantaro needed on his consciousness was the fact that he would be partially responsible for the deaths of hundreds, possibly thousands of people—just like The Branwen Tribe. Yes, they kidnapped him, and yes he wanted them dead too, but this was different. This wasn't just a normal spat against an enemy. This was something else.
No one cared if a few bandits were killed. They were the scourge of the earth. They preyed on the weak and helpless for fun. He couldn't care less what happened to them. But this wasn't that. This was an organization. A powerful one. One that if destroyed would have consequences.
Don't get Rantaro wrong, he knew it was The White Fang she was after, and he knew they were bottom of the barrel, lowly scum who deserved absolutely nothing for what they did to innocent humans who had no say in what their country, kingdom, or settlement did. By all rights, they deserved to die.
But… there was one thing that was stopping him from outright agreeing with the total eradication of The White Fang. And that was the fact that Jolyne, for all intents and purposes, was their God. Why did he think that? Well, because of how everyone talked about The Dragon Faunus as if they were a God or some sort of angelic-like figure that would swoop in and save the day.
So, to The White Fang, having The Dragon Faunus show up would only radicalize them and the surrounding Faunus more. And if that God and or saviour decided to deliver upon them "Divine Judgement" then it would only make tensions worse.
Theories would come out of the woodworks, and it would be the kind of theories that would spark a race war. Some humans would take it as a sign that even the quote-on-quote God of The Faunus had decided that they weren't worth living because so many people viewed The White Fang as, essentially, the vocal majority of The Faunus.
Not only that but there would be those who, probably, imposed laws that were pro-Faunus-Human segregation. If the humans of his world were stupid enough to do that with other ethnicities and skin colours of the same race, who was to say that the same was impossible with two different species?
All in all, life for the Faunus would go from bad to worse in a matter of days.
Don't get him wrong, The White Fang, while awful and deserving of everything that came to them, was a Faunus Rights Organization at heart. That was what Ronin had told him yesterday when he had asked what his and Jolyne's conversation was about last night, seeing as he had eavesdropped some of it when he went to go to the bathroom.
And while their actions were repugnant, they were the only people fighting for Faunus Rights, even if they were in a skewed "Faunus Superiority" kind of way. The morale of The Faunus basically depended on The White Fang. If they disappeared or were destroyed by what they viewed to be their God… well, he didn't need to repeat himself.
Tapping the side of his head, he tried to connect to Jolyne. That failed miserably as a wailing static sound invaded his head instead. The kind of sound that one would hear if a signal was being blocked. Rantaro cursed to himself, looking over to his right. Weiss was looking at him strangely, raising an eyebrow. Confusion danced in her pale blue eyes as she stared at him with a somewhat tilted head.
"Are you okay, Mr. Amami? You look a little… annoyed," Weiss pointed out as Rantaro sighed.
"More than a little annoyed. I can't get in contact with my boss. Quickly, I need your help. What is the nearest White Fang base to this village? Do you know?" Rantaro asked, worry in his tone as Weiss frowned, her gaze narrowing in annoyance.
"I don't know. I haven't been awake for more than a handful of minutes, Mr. Amami. Not only that, but I don't even know where in the world I am aside from the fact that I'm in someplace called Styx. And even if I did, why would you want to know?" Weiss asked tentatively, making Rantaro want to shout. He couldn't get mad at her, but at the same time, he was boiling over in frustration. This wasn't the first time that he had felt this way, and he had a feeling it wouldn't be the last.
"I want to know because I'm trying to spare people's lives from a massacre. That would be why," Rantaro replied, stepping away from the PTD and more in the direction of the bed where Weiss sat. "And I'm fairly certain we're in the Southwest. When I was captured by The Branwen Tribe, Raven had made it a point to say that the village they were attacking was in The Southwest. Now, please, tell me which camp would be the closest."
Weiss's expression grew dark, as she scowled. "You'd wish to spare the lives of slavers?"
"I wish to spare their defacto God from making a fucking mistake. Now spit it out, I'm not going to play nice if you give me snark," Rantaro growled back, looming over the frail girl with a gleam in his eyes. He had dealt with stubborn people before during his many, many travels across his world, and from some people, he was told that he was very intimidating when he needed to be. Considering Weiss was going pale, he had to assume that those people weren't joking about that.
"W-what are you talking about?!" Weiss stammered, looking up at Rantaro. "Defacto God!? The only Gods are the Brother Gods, how can she be a God?"
Rantaro sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose his frustration doubled. "Not literally, Weiss. I mean metaphorically," Rantaro stressed, letting go of his nose and crossing his arms, his glare still present but now less harsh. "The Faunus view The Dragon Faunus as their God and or saviour, which was what Jolyne is. She is The Dragon Faunus. And if The Dragon Faunus starts killing the only people who, unfortunately, are fighting for Faunus rights and equality, what do you think is going to happen?"
Weiss frowned, looking down at the ground. She was thinking which was obvious due to how her eyebrows knitted together. After a few seconds of tentative silence, she looked up at Rantaro. "Mass demoralization… but why? Doesn't everyone know just how awful The White Fang really is?" Weiss questioned, confusion marring her expression.
Rantaro shrugged, some of his frustration oozing away. "I don't know. I haven't lived in one of the major kingdoms, only other settlements. The growing mentality was that The White Fang was the only good thing the Faunus have had in years." That was a lie, but a necessary lie. He was spitballing, and he knew it, but he had to make it sound believable. After all, he couldn't tell her that he was, for all intents and purposes, an alien from another dimension, right?
That never went well in movies, so it wouldn't go well here. Rantaro began tapping his foot impatiently. God, he felt like an asshole right now, but the clock was ticking and he had no idea where it was he had to go. "We don't have much time Weiss. Jolyne never slows down unless she has to. Now tell me, from the Southwest, where would the closest White Fang Base be located."
Weiss's frown deepened, her body language unreadable. Rantaro didn't have much time. Jolyne might've just left, but there was no way she was slowing down for any reason. He had to be quick, because this was basically a turning factor in how this world was going to play out.
Should Jolyne destroy The White Fang, things would take a negative turn and fast.
Should Jolyne spare The White Fang, things wouldn't be so dire.
After a few moments of dreadful silence, Weiss finally spoke up. "From what I know… it would be The Food Camp. But I don't know which direction that is. The White Fang always sets up in the same places on each continent if they weren't found out. The Food Camp was always in the Southwest. That was what I always overheard due to being Adam's personal slave. But… from Styx? I don't know where to start looking. I'm sorry," Weiss replied as Rantaro chewed his lower lip. He muttered a quick thank you, before exiting the room.
He was running out of time. Or, maybe he wasn't? Honestly, he didn't know. He had no idea how fast Jolyne was going nor did he know if she knew where she was going. All he knew was that he had very little time to be messing about. He might've had a day at least to stop her from doing something as reckless as this.
Well, maybe not reckless. One could not call something as karmic as this to be reckless, but definitely, something that wasn't planned. That was his problem with Jolyne. She never thought things through. She was seemingly sporadic, going from one thing to another without stopping, only doing what she deemed to be more important than what she set out to do.
She was rushing things. And that habit was going to be the end of her.
Storming his way down the stairs and to the first floor of the Inn, an idea formed in his head. There was someone he knew who probably knew what direction Jolyne was headed, but he needed to be quick. He had no idea if the person he was looking for was at work yet or still asleep in his house of which Rantaro didn't know where to look. All he knew was that the person in question was Rantaro's last remaining hope of finding out the information he needed.
"Ronin, where is Ronin!" Rantaro thought, reaching the first floor of the Inn. As he did, and as he started to look around his immediate surroundings, a body came flying from the opposite direction from where he was facing. His eyes barely caught the blur from the corner of his eyes, and when they made contact with the ground, Rantaro straightened himself out.
There was a body on the floor, laying flat against the wall with their arms limp and their face contorted in one of pain and confusion. Their eyes were closed shut, and while they looked to be breathing, it was a shallow kind of breath, meaning they weren't long for this world.
The person in question had Octopus-like tentacles for hair, and they were a vibrant purple. They were female appearance-wise, with tan skin. Their armour was your standard kind of chainmail breastplate overtop of what appeared to be a grey hoodie that stopped at just above the midriff, along with a pair of dark blue pants and a pair of knee guards and ankle guards. On their hip was a basic steel sword with a wooden hilt inside a leather sheath, and going through their waist was a piece of jagged metal.
"What the hell is going on?!" The green-haired boy thought as panic began to form in his chest. Why was that girl hurt? Just what had done that? And better yet, how? The only people in the building right now should've been himself, Weiss, Monica, and Jataro, the latter of which were still asleep. Maybe the other workers that helped Ronin out came in early? But that still didn't explain anything! "No, don't think about the who the what or the how, just act!" The green-haired boy urged himself as he hopped down from the final step.
Rantaro was quick to move to the woman's side, activating his Heal spell as he could practically feel what remained of his Mana flood into his fingertips. Runes appeared around his hands as he carefully began to remove the piece of metal. The woman winced, her eyes opened slightly to reveal a faint black shade as they squinted at him. He noticed, nervously smiling. "Don't mind me, just doing my job. What's your name?" Rantaro asked as the Octopus Faunus coughed up small droplets of blood.
"R-Rudy…" the woman said in between coughs as Rantaro nodded, keeping his attention on the wound and the piece of metal. He made sure not to pull it out too fast otherwise the shock would kill her. He had seen things like that from old western shows he had watched, along with harkening back to his first-aid classes. After a few moments, Rantaro was able to get the piece of metal out, tossing it to the side as if it were a piece of trash.
"Okay then, Rudy," Rantaro began as the wound began to patch itself up thanks to Rantaro's Heal spell. Rudy stared down at the wound, her eyes gleaming in amazement. Perhaps she had never seen something like that before? Honestly, he didn't know, and quite frankly, he wasn't in the mood to be trying to care about that. Right now, he needed to know what was going on. "Mind telling me what's going—"
Before Rantaro could finish his question, the piece of jagged metal that he pulled out of her abdomen and discarded began to levitate in place for but a moment, making Rudy's eyes widen. The woman tried to squirm, back up, or do anything. However, something was keeping her from moving. It was then that Rantaro noticed that the buckles on her boots were latched to the ground, digging into the wood and preventing her from moving. He questioned why she didn't slip them off, only to then realize that she was trying to do that, but the boots were seemingly constricting her movements, locking her in place.
"Hold on, I think I can help—" Before Rantaro could do anything about the buckles and hopefully get her out of harm's way, in the blink of an eye, the piece of metal found itself stabbing through the woman's neck, going through her jugular and spraying blood everywhere and more importantly, all over him. The action made Rudy go limp, but not before letting out a choking gasp, followed by a final exhale of air.
Just like that, Rudy was dead. A life taken right before his eyes and in such a precise and calculated way. Rantaro stumbled back, his eyes frantically moving about to find their attacker as a pair of footsteps echoed about the building. The noise was coming from behind him and what Rantaro assumed was the kitchen area of the Inn, and upon looking in that direction, he saw who he was looking for.
Standing there, goat horns on his head, black hair swaying to the right due to a small gust of wind via an open window, blood soaking his shirt, vest, and shorts, stood Jebidiah Maroon with a grey aura around him, his hand clenched in such a way that it looked like he was holding something before his hand went limp at his side.
A disgusting sneer filled the man's visage as Rantaro felt a surge of hate flood his body. Wasn't Jebidiah one of the people who helped Ronin out around the Inn? Wasn't Rudy one of the people he worked with? Why did he kill her?!
"What the hell is going on?!"
"Gotta love Semblances, man. Probably one of the greatest gifts to man The Brother Gods have ever given us," Jebidiah boasted, tossing aside the body of an Otter Faunus that looked vaguely familiar without so much as a care in the world. The man's attention turned to Rantaro as that ugly grin was pointed now in his direction. "Oh, sup there, Human. Hope you don't mind, but I gotta kill ya. Bosses orders. You and those two kids…"
Rantaro didn't know what came over him at that moment. Be it fury, indignation, or whatever else one could describe anger with, Rantaro didn't care. His blood boiled and his eyes narrowed as he felt something tick in the back of his head. A primal rage unlike any he had felt before flooded him and his senses. He didn't care that Jebidah had threatened his own safety, rather he had cared about the fact that he threatened the safety of both Jataro and Monica.
It wasn't just because they were friendly with him. No. It was because they were children. People who shouldn't have been hurt. And anyone who endangered a child was someone that Rantaro would never forgive! He hadn't been a big brother for all of his life just to not care about a few children. He might not have known them all too well, but that wasn't an excuse.
No one. And he meant no one. Hurt children.
With that in mind, he reached back toward the limp form of Rudy and stole the sword out of the sheath on Rudy's hip. The wooden guard felt right in his hand. He had no idea why that was, but it just did. It felt like he had come across something that he knew would be a good enough tool for him to use in this fight.
Jebidiah looked at him, raising an eyebrow in confusion. Rantaro gripped the hilt of the blade so hard his knuckles turned white, pointing the steel weapon forward as he lunged at Jebidiah, a sneer on his face as he did so. The goat Faunus didn't get a chance to react as Rantaro thrust the blade toward him at speeds that made Jebidiah go wide-eyed.
When the blade struck true, it clashed with what appeared to be some kind of energy—Aura from what Weiss described during the confusion about Magic, Semblances, and Aura—giving Jebidiah time to kick Rantaro in the stomach, winding the green-haired teen.
"Well now, wasn't that just plain stupid," Jebidiah scoffed as Rantaro went flying into a table with enough force to tip it over. The green-haired teen coughed, breathing as much air in as he could as pain swelled within his body. Something probably broke, and if it didn't then one or two of his bones were definitely cracked or his muscles were bruised.
It hurt. It hurt a lot. This was his fault, in some way. In the back of his mind, despite his anger, he knew he had been outmatched. Jebidiah looked like a strong individual. Even without that Aura shield stuff. His arms were built like small semi-trucks, mixed with his naturally jacked appearance and his overall demeanour being the kind of person who had fought for most of his life.
Rantaro had never once picked up a blade, let alone thrown a fist, at all in his life. He was a survival expert, not a fighter. He was a healer, not a fighter. He wasn't a fighter. And yet, he still tried, knowing that he was going to fail.
Pathetic, right?
The sword that he had held was weaselled out of his hands by some sort of psychic movement spurred on by a hand gesturing from Jebidiah, earning the boy a smirk from the goat Faunus.
"I'll give credit where credit is due," Jebidiah began as the sword levitated in the air, just above where Rantaro's throat was. "You surprised me. Not many people can say they did that. In all my time working as a double agent for The White Fang, never have I been genuinely shocked at just how stupid someone can be. Was it cause I plan on killing those brats upstairs? Or did you get butt hurt that I killed these morons?"
Rantaro was drawing a blank. Three days and things were already going bad. He had kind of hoped that he could've relaxed a little, got to know the people of this town and maybe build up some kind of reputation. But no, things just had to go from good to bad in a total time of 72 hours.
And now… he was going to die before he even got to warn Jolyne of the mistake she was making. Worse yet, he was going to die and because of that, the kids upstairs were probably going to die too. He had completely forgotten about Weiss. Would Jebidiah recapture her and take her back with him to his boss? She had only just been freed and now she was going to be a slave again.
This was his fault.
This was all his fault.
"Not gonna answer? Fine by me," Jebidiah spat. "Just know that this," the man gestured around the inn and to the corpses of the people around him, "was going to happen regardless of if you stepped in or not. So at the very least, you can go to hell without having to feel as if this was your fault. Peace of mind and all that jazz. Once I'm done with you and those kids, I'll find that old man and capture him for my boss. Just gotta find him first…." And with that, Jebidiah snapped his fingers releasing whatever control he had over the blade.
Just as the sword rocketed toward Rantaro's neck, something snapped within him. He didn't know what, but his survival instincts kicked in. And when they did, any and all caution was thrown to the wind. Energy unlike anything he had felt before surged through his body, just like when he had first awakened to his mana and magic abilities, and when it did, stuff started to change.
Before he knew it, black scales began forming around his neck and taking up the sides of his face. His arms and body seemingly grew more muscle-bound with scales of their very own. He felt his body expand along with his height reaching new lengths the likes of which he never imagined possible. All the while his legs stuck together and thinned out. What became of his legs was that of a long serpent-like lower half with a tipped, pointed tail all covered in black scales up to his waist, along with a white hatch-cross area that looked like a bunch of six-packs stacked atop one another.
His mouth hurt as it grew fangs, and his eyes could now see further than he used to be able to. Not only that but his vision was clearer. Along with that, his hands were now webbed between the fingers, and he had small claws protruding from them. His tongue became forked as it flicked at the air, and now he was nearly as tall as a building, standing at a height of 16 feet. Just barely touching the roof of the inn.
And all of that, all of that bodily change and transformation, happened within the span of a few seconds. Long enough to breathe in and out, or blink a few times.
The blade, when it struck, shattered against his scales like brittle ice, as Rantaro, now looming over Jebidiah scowled. As he looked down upon Jebidiah, instantly, a slew of thoughts came his way. "Traitor. Kill. Disrupted. Angry. Threaten to hurt friends. Threaten to hurt me. Kill him. Kill him now."
Rantaro had no idea of what was going on in his head. Only that bestial instincts overtook him at that moment, and whatever conscious thoughts he had regarding anything else flew out the window. He had to deal with this backstabber here and now. He might not've known the people he just slaughtered, but the injustice was more than enough to send him into an angered rage.
With a mighty shout, Rantaro declared that, in his mind, only one of them was leaving this place alive. And it sure as shit was not going to be this asshole.
"W-What the hell?!" Jebidiah yelled, panicking as several metal objects began to float around the man, spinning in a circle around his body. Weapons like short swords, pitchforks, and daggers, along with cutlery like knives, forks, and spoons, metal dishes like cups, and plates—anything with even a hint of metal found themselves surrounding Jebidiah in some kind of shield.
Rantaro, fury clouding his vision, reared back his right fist as a huff of air escape him. Did this puny man think that mere objects like that would protect him from his wrath? The size and weight difference would be more than enough to break all of those measly objects, but just in case, his body began to produce a countermeasure. While it was completely subconsciously, a purple substance seeped from his scales and gathered around his fist, transforming into a sort of sphere, or a glove.
Rantaro was not in the state of mind to care what was going on. All he cared about was making sure that this bastard was either knocked out, dead or if he ran away. Pressurized air began to form around the descending fist, as the purple substance became almost like a blanket around his hand. Jebidiah launched the miscellaneous objects at Rantaro, the objects plinking off of him like bullets did to steel. They scattered around him, broken and useless as the fist descended upon Jebidiah.
Realizing this, Jebidiah put out his hands, got into a stance that would allow for better footing, and stood there. The fist collided with the traitor's hands, making the goat faunus falter. Rantaro snarled, putting all of his newly acquired weight into the blow, and yet, the only thing that it did was make Jebidiah skid back a little bit, his aura fluctuating and adjusting. Notably, it had gone from a light grey colour to an off-shade of yellow.
The Goat Faunus, with all of his might, tossed the fist aside, reaching for something on his hip. It looked like some kind of dagger, that then unfolded and transformed into what appeared to be a mini-uzi. Rantaro didn't have time to react as the gun was fired. The bullets that hit his scales were seemingly explosive, as they blew up upon contact, stunning Rantaro and making him stumble over himself as he collided with the wall behind him.
The wall that he fell upon caved under his body, the wood splintering and snapping, the noise of which could have probably been heard from about a mile away. As he fell, he destroyed a good chunk of the building that Jolyne had her Abominations rebuild, along with another building behind that one, and another behind that one.
Panicked screams filled his ears, not that Rantaro was in any mood to care. Confusion flooded his mind for a split second before the same fury that had caused him to transform returned in a violent flash. The lumbering Black Snake Monster that was Rantaro gathered himself, his tail coiled as the tip of it glowed. Jebidiah rushed out of the building through the big hole that Rantaro had created, and jumped up, meeting Rantaro's face.
The Goat Faunus drew his gun but was not fast enough to avoid getting slapped by the glowing tipped tail. The energy around The Goat Faunus was now the same colour as piss after he had been smacked by the tail, and when he crashed into the ground, dust kicked up as a result, once it settled, Rantaro noticed that it started turning orange.
"Shit! Just how strong are you?!" Jebidiah shouted, getting nothing in reply as Rantaro bore his teeth in a snarl. He didn't even wait for Jebidiah to do anything more. He simply had the tail go to hit him again, only this time, Jebidiah jumped over it. The man shot at him again. Rantaro was starting to get used to it now. The more he thought about it, it surprised him more than it hurt him.
Noticing the fact that nothing happened as a result of his firing at Rantaro, Jebidiah was about to do something else, only for someone to interrupt the fight.
"What the hell is going on here!?" Ronin's voice cut through the street as both Rantaro and Jebidiah looked in the man's direction. In a split second, Jebidiah aimed his gun at Ronin, making the old boar-Faunus go wide-eyed. "Jebidiah, what are you—"
Before the old man could finish his sentence, Jebidiah fired. However, luckily for Ronin, Rantaro's tail got in the way, bolting in the direction of fire, taking up most of the explosion rounds. The few that made it past the tail hit the ground, kicking up dust. Jebidiah cursed, going to reload his weapon.
There, at that moment, Jebidiah let down his guard as he fumbled for something—probably more ammo. As soon as he saw that opening, Rantaro took advantage of it, slamming his fist into Jebdiah, which in turn crushed Jebidiah under its full weight.
Jebidiah's aura then shattered into pieces, blood jetting out the man's mouth, his eyes rolling back, and his body going limp yet still twitching. Lifting his fist, Rantaro, in a mindless state of anger, went to hit him again, only for his fist to be held back by what appeared to be purple vines. Confusion mixed with anger filled the giant snake monster's mind as he thrashed about, only for his body to begin sinking into the ground.
"Calm down, big guy!" Ronin called out to him, as Rantaro recognized both Monaca and Jataro using their Stands to restrain him. When did they get here? Weren't they still asleep? Had he woken them up during his fighting?
He was… calming down. His anger was slowly fading away, and at that moment, his anger turned to concern, and then concern to remembrance. The moment that happened, he shrunk down to his normal height, the scales, tail, fangs, and vision returning to normal as he lay on the ground, breathing heavily. The ground beneath him hardened, and the vines around his wrist slinked away.
"What in the bloody hell is going on here!" Ronin said, looking back and forth at Jebidiah's unconscious, possibly dead, body and Rantaro's sorry form. The boy breathed in and out, his abdomen still stinging in pain from the kick. A few moments later, something licked his face. He looked over to his right and saw Tyrone, who was now nudging him with the tip of his nose.
"Jolyne… White Fang… Southwest…" Rantaro bit out. He was too winded and confused to get his message across. However, seemingly as if by luck, Ronin knew exactly what he was talking about. The Boar Faunus's eyes narrowed, a hum escaping his lips.
"What's going on…? Monaca doesn't understand," Monaca questioned as Ronin huffed, patting her on the head.
"Your… uh, mother? Sister? Guardian? Whatever, is going Northeast from here to a White Fang base. And, as it would seem, Jebidiah was a spy for them," Ronin mulled as Rantaro with the help of Tyrone got to his feet. The boar-faunus looked over to the boy and frowned. "Are Rudy and the Stonewall Twins okay, boy?"
At that, Rantaro shook his head. "Dead… watched Rudy die with my own two eyes…." As Rantaro said that, he looked back at the Inn. The western wall and the two buildings beside it were going to need to be rebuilt again. "Damnit…"
Ronin closed his eyes, sucking in a deep breath as he did so. He cursed something under his breath, before looking at Rantaro. "Kid… What was that just now? What you did… what you turned into… how did you do that?"
Rantaro blinked, coughing as his breathing became regular. With one deep breath and with another cough, Rantaro spoke. "A gift from Jolyne. A fruit gave me that power… I didn't know I'd lose my wits by using it… It just means that I'll have to be careful when training with it," Rantaro said. It was less of an explantion and more of a straightforward answer. "Nevertheless, I need to go. I need to stop Jolyne from doing something stupid. She can't just destroy The White Fang. No matter how dangerous they are, there will be consequences."
"B-But, aren't The White Fang evil?" Jataro asked as Rantaro frowned. He didn't have time to explain that to a child. Jataro probably wouldn't understand anything he said about the matter either. No offence to the kid, but he didn't strike Rantaro as being the brightest bulb in the shed. Luckily for him, he didn't have to say anything. Ronin was smart enough to speak up in his place.
"Aye, they're evil alright. But, unfortunately, they're the only ones fighting for our rights. As much as I disagree with them, I used to be one of 'em," Ronin said before looking at Rantaro. "And yeah, The Dragon would be dumb to kill them all. She is our Queen after all, even if it isn't by birth, it's her sworn job to lead The Faunus. She can't just go killin' em without at least trying to work somethin' out."
Rantaro nodded, looking over at Tyrone. The Beowulf seemingly knew what he wanted, as the big dog bent down, allowing Rantaro to get on him. Seconds later, the dog turned Northeast and ran. They had a lot of ground to cover, and very little time to do it.
All Rantaro hoped was that he would make it in time. If he didn't… then things were going to get ugly and fast.
[Jasper Quartz]
The heat of the desert wasteland that was Vacuo was slowly fading away. A part of Jasper always wondered why that happened when one got close to Vale's territory. Climates in The World of Remnant always were rather strange like that, especially when it came to the borders between Vale and Vacuo. On the one hand, meteorologists in Remnant explained it away as if it were a heatwave fluctuating in temperature around Vale's border. Those who believed in mysticism said it was magic.
Jasper, for his part, didn't care. Either way, they were slowly leaving the hellhole that was Vacuo, and the sooner the better. And while he'd miss the grains of sand that had become his home, he was more than happy to have a change of scenery.
The desert was lifeless, full of nothing but dangers, heat, and scorching sun. It wasn't particularly a fun place to be, but it had been his home for so long that he knew he would miss it. Even if he was only going to be gone for a handful of days, he would still feel homesick, even if he was only because of the environment and not his actual "home."
Prison would suit his "home" more than the word "home" would. "Home" implies that one was comfortable where they were staying. Living with Boss was the least comfortable thing in existence for more than just the Slaves that wandered about. And while that was one of the reasons why he hated living with his Boss, the other reason was for a far more obvious reason.
But, enough of that. He didn't need to think about that, because all that would do was cause him to start dwelling. And dwelling was not something he wanted to do right now. It would get him in a funk, and that would cause concern. The last thing he needed was someone else's concern placed on him.
Looking back at the group of people he now had following him for a distraction, his eyes focused on the one with red hair. Mahiru Koizumi, his system told him, though he called her Red Hair because it was not only a nod toward one of fiction's best characters, but to the fact that her most notable trait was her red hair.
But, even with those positive connotations, he couldn't help but feel a scowl find its way to his face upon looking at her. There was a profound amount of negativity around her, and a part of him suspected it was because she was surrounded by people she didn't like. Unfortunately for her, she most likely didn't have a choice in the matter.
Aside from that, the thing that she had said earlier had gotten him in a bit of a mood, and not a good kind of mood either. The thing about how she wanted to go on her own… it had pissed him off. Not because he had any sort of hatred toward the girl.
No, quite the opposite really. The reason why he got mad was because of the kind of mentality that she had. Just because she felt like she wanted to be on her own did not mean she could handle that. Hence why he had drawn his spear on her.
He hated drawing Rhongomiant on the poor girl. But it was to prove a point. She wasn't ready to be on her own, and once they had gotten to somewhere they could sleep, have a shower, and eat some damn good food, he'd consider training them. But, for now, they still had a few days left of walking.
Then came the topic of the shortcut through Grimm Infested Territory. He was more than certain that he could take on a small squadron of Grimm by himself. All he'd need for that encounter would be Lightning Body for the speed and strength amp and a mix of Thunder Cage and Thunders Blast to get rid of them. He wouldn't even have to use his spear.
Grimm was this world's version of fodder. At least, for high-level people such as himself. For people like, say, Natsumi, who was Level 57 last time he had checked, it would be difficult but manageable. But, say, someone like Mahiru, Fumiko and Satomi? They would be the hardest thing in the world to deal with. Mahiru was at least level 23, but Fumiko and Satomi were level 5 and 9 respectively.
All it would take would be one good swing to the face from a Beowulf it was lights out, or worse. The last thing he needed to deal with was the death of someone that wasn't even part of his party, or his Bosses Guild—The Terror Legion. Honestly, what kind of name was that? It sounded like something out of a 2010 edge-boy Tumblr page.
That aside, Jasper wasn't all too worried about it. If he had been, then he probably wouldn't have suggested the idea of going through Grimm Infested Territory. There reason was that he was currently at the max level that he could be, and that was Level 150. His Boss was considering raising his maximum level to level 200 so that he could unlock something new, but that was for later. And Jasper didn't know when that later would be.
No, what really worried him was the idea of coming across a Beastkin, or a corrupted hunter. They were created out of a spell placed upon the entirety of Vale, Atlas, Vacuo, and Mistral. Any hunter that works who works directly under the headmasters would be privy to The Madness. It was the kind of mental deterioration that slowly made on go from a normal, functioning individual, to a mindless drone who would attack and eat anything on sight. It was frequently paired with physical deterioration such as skin sagging off of the bone, teeth becoming spike-like and hair slowly falling out in patches.
It was basically a zombie plague, but one that kept the host alive for the entire transformation before and after. Most who experience such a thing end up isolating themselves the first sign of it happening, that being insomnia and the inability to cease touch water. Much like rabies, in a sense. Though, unlike rabies, it was the inability to drink water.
Afterward would come hallucinations of the past, mostly the grim and dark kind, before then the person infected becomes a babbling mess that acts erratically. Then and only then did the skin begin to sag, the teeth begin to sharpen, and their hair began to fall out.
There was no cure, and it was a slow, horrible process. It could take years, or even decades for the first signs of such a thing to happen. And when the first symptom started, the process afterward only took a handful of days. He had seen it go into effect before with one of the slaves his boss cast the curse upon.
Thankfully, it didn't work on Gamers. Most mental curses didn't. But that didn't detract from it being a terrifying thing to witness. Those who became Corrupted preferred the wilderness. It was the last remaining fraction of their humanity making them go to places that didn't make them a danger to their loved ones.
He turned to look behind him and saw that everyone was dead tired. The only one who was not was, predictably, The Dog who had held itself at the rear, waiting for a command like the obedient monster it was.
"How much… longer…" Fumiko bemoaned as Jasper sighed, turning around again and facing the direction they had been walking in for what felt like a century. Putting a hand over his eyebrows to block out the sun, squinting toward the distance, he gathered his wits and frowned before resting his arm and turning around.
"Another few hours yet. Luckily for us, the heat is starting to become bearable due to our closeness to Forever Fall. That does not mean, however, that it will be easier for us. Don't forget about the dangers of this shortcut. We're lucky a Deathstalker or a few Beringals haven't come after us yet," Jasper stated as a heap of groans came his way.
"Isn't there like, any way to get this done faster?" Satomi cried, falling to her knees in a pitiful display. What made it worse was that she was still wearing that stupid outfit. Unfortunately, there was nothing that could be done about it.
Jasper really didn't want to be seen as an asshole, but he was starting to reach his limit. "No, there is no way to get this "done faster." Now buck up, and let's get moving. We're almost out of the desert. Just another few hours. Stick close, because we're getting close to The Grimm Hotspot." At this, everyone gathered closer. He looked over his shoulder to see what was going on, and once again, he was starting to get annoyed. Mahiru still stuck to the back closer to The Dog, avoiding Natsumi, who was her best bet at survival.
The Dog, granted, was a good bodyguard, but it wasn't here to guard her. It was here to make sure he didn't do or say anything stupid. In other words, The Dog was his Boss's way of keeping tabs on him. That aside, Jasper had to wonder just what it was that Natsumi did to make Mahiru so angry with her. Did the former slight the latter in some way?
Whatever the case was, it was going to get worse. He could tell. So, he was going to nip this in the bud before it got even more out of hand. And to do that, he was going to need to cause a bit of a stir amongst the group. So, channelling his best impression of what his shithead of a Boss would do in a situation like this, he spoke.
"Red Hair, what are you doing? I told everyone to group up," Jasper barked out, earning a glare from the teen. Jasper narrowed his eyes, stopping and turning to face the group. Everyone stopped with him, as he crossed his arms. "Red Hair… you're testing my already thin patience. Stand next to the blonde, or I'm leaving you behind."
"I said I wanted to be alone, so then do that, I don't care. If I'm away from this thug, then who cares," Mahiru spat back as Jasper felt his left eye twitch. He calmed himself, closing his eyes and breathing out a sigh. He could practically feel the hatred seeping off of her. Just what had Natsumi done to deserve that kind of hate?
"Whatever… doesn't matter, let's just get this over with," Jasper thought with a frown on his face. "Very well. If I see you and you start to follow us, then I will have The Dog deal with you. Farwell," Jasper stated, turning around and motioning for the others to follow, They hesitated, as he had expected them to, so he stopped again, and turned around, his frown deepening. "Why are you all not going? Let's go, if Red Hair wants to be alone then so be it. We shouldn't have to put up with it."
Interestingly enough, it was Natsumi who stepped up, her posture defiant and her eyes narrowed with contempt. That had been a turn that he hadn't been expecting, but nonetheless, he welcomed it. "Now hold on, you said you'd take all of us to Vale. You're going back on your word, and I thought you told me you never do that. What gives?"
"Yes, I said that. But your friend over there has stated that she wants to depart and be left alone. If she wishes to die out here in the smouldering heat with no one to turn to because of her own stupidity, then so be it. I won't feel guilty about her death if that is what she seeks." It was a blatant lie. In fact, the opposite would be true.
He'd be devastated if one of his actions led to another innocent person's demise. However, it wasn't as if he'd actually let that happen. He couldn't break the act, though, even if it was paining him to say the words he was spewing from his mouth.
Instead of shouting at him, Natsumi did something else. The blonde leapt at him, right fist formed and reared back to strike. She moved lightning quick, but not quick enough to actually land the blow. It was poorly choreographed and could've been seen from about a mile away given the distance. Jasper positioned himself in such a way that he could capitalize on said strike, twisting his body left to preemptively dodge the blow.
Only, he hadn't predicted it to be a fake-out, causing him to instantly regret twisting his body to the left as Natsumi's left fist slammed against his face, making him spit up from saliva, and causing him to stumble back. What shocked him, even more, was that she did a whopping 2,000 damage to him in one strike. Granted, his HP was being doubled by the armour he wore, which meant that the attack dropped him from 30,000 HP to 28,000. Still, though, he hadn't expected it.
And neither did he expect the roundhouse kick to the jaw immediately afterward, doing a staggering 1,500 damage on top of that. After that, he knew that she wasn't just pissed off at him, she was downright furious. Honestly, he had been hoping for that reaction, because hopefully, that showed Mahiru that Natsumi cared about her well-being enough to fight for it.
That being said, he couldn't just allow Natsumi to manhandle him. So, keeping in mind that she was a lower level than him and keeping in mind that she squisher in terms of health seeing as she was 93 levels lower than he was, she snagged her ankle with his free left hand, before slamming her against the sandy ground, cutting her HP down to a quarter of what remained.
He also had to keep in mind that she was an "NPC" as his Boss dubbed them, so she didn't have the HP regen that he would. This would most likely break some of her bones, primarily her ribs, but a point had to be made. He noticed the Daze status effect was placed on her as a result, which made sense. Frowning, Jasper looked over to Mahiru, who was more than stunned to say the very least.
"Now… normally I don't go back on my word. But, I want you to understand this, Red Hair, that someone who I know you view as an enemy just went to bat for you. Let this be a lesson to you that even those who you might see as an enemy have common decency. In truth, I was joking about leaving you behind. However, you are running my patience thin. This will be the only warning you get. If you don't shape up from here on out, you will be dealing with me. Until we get to Vale, you will listen to me. I am the only one here who is not only good at combat but knows how to deal with the threats that we will be coming across on our journey to Vale. Do not make me do this again. Am I understood?"
As Jasper spoke, the air around him became ripe with tension. It seemed as if his point was getting across considering the frantic nod that Mahiru sent his way. He huffed, looking over to Natsumi as he hauled her to her feet. He dug out a healing amulet that he had gotten from one of his Gacha Tokens. It was an Uncommon item, so he didn't mind parting with it.
The amulet in question was a round green emerald-like stone surrounded in silver with smaller octagonal emerald-like gems dotting around the larger rock, connected to a silver chain that expanded to fit around the wearer's neck.
Slipping the jewelry around Natsumi's neck, a green glow surrounded the blonde Cheetah Faunus as she blinked once or twice in confusion. Once she got her balance, Jasper walked past her. The girl looked down at her new necklace and raised an eyebrow. "What the hell is—"
"A token of apology. I used your emotions against you and for that I give you that healing amulet. So long as the wounds you receive don't kill you instantly or are severed limbs, you'll heal them over time. Now, let's go, we have ground to cover."
Turning away from the group and not giving Natsumi a chance to say anything to him, Jasper marched forward, hearing the scuffling of feet behind him. He knew that they were following, after all, he was their guide.
It was just a few more hours to Forever Fall, and then, another handful of days till they were in Vale. He hadn't forgotten the reason why he was going to go there. He had something important to deliver to Jupiter and Titan.
He looked down at his hands as he pulled out the item. It was a standard white envelope with a Vacuan stamp of mailing approval. It wasn't the envelope itself that was the important thing, but rather what lay inside the envelope. Two very special items were handcrafted by their father, his boss, and his sworn enemy.
In truth, he knew he should've taken the items within and run for dear life. But he knew that no matter where he went, his boss would find him. Besides, he liked Jupiter and Titan. They reminded him of Makaria, along with the hope he had in his heart that one day she would be free from that monster that he called a Boss.
Jasper had a plan. A large one. One that he had been working on for years now in secret. Or at least, what he had hoped was in secret—for all he knew, his Boss knew the whole time. But even if that was the case, it wasn't going to persuade him. All he needed to do was wait for the right time. And with the new arrival of another person like his Boss… he knew he had to make it to where they were.
Once that was done, Jasper would finally keep his end of the promise he made to Makaria all those years ago…
Back then, when times were easier. Back then, when his life wasn't so stressful. A full decade ago, back when he was still talking with someone who he cared deeply about. Back when he didn't feel like he had failed her.
He wondered if she hated him now. Perhaps she did, perhaps she didn't. That all depended on if she had blamed him for her current misfortune. If she did, then he wouldn't hesitate to agree. But even still, he couldn't help but think back to a time when things were simpler. Or at least, he wanted to. But right now, he forbade himself from doing that.
He wasn't going to allow himself to escape that fantasy land. He had to deal with what he had done. He wasn't going to allow himself to think that he could get away with damning his friend and then reminisce on those times as if they were fond. Oh, they were, but until the day he had saved her. Until he had unchained her from that wall in the prison underneath his Boss's castle, he wasn't going to give himself the chance to think back to those days.
He would not allow himself to do that.
With a heavy sigh, he continued onward.
"Hey… Makaria?"
"Yes, Jasper?"
Jasper shifted awkwardly, rubbing a hand behind his neck. "There's something I wanted to say to you… like a vow… because I've known you for so long and whatnot… I mean we've been travelling together for how many years now?"
"Around about 3 years or so. Why? What vow do you want to say to me? It better not be marriage. You know I don't want that Jasper."
"Ah! No, not at all, Makaria! You're a friend, I don't see you in that light!"
A small, lighthearted chuckle escaped from Makaria as she placed a hand over her mouth. "I'm teasing you, Jasper. Go on, out with it. While you're at it, try speaking in my language. The one I taught you, remember?"
"Right!" Jasper replied, coughing into his right hand and putting on a thinking phrase. He opened his mouth and spoke...
"-o sina amaurea forth, ni Jasper Quartz, solemnlime vow I ni indome vare- tye, Makaria Plutos, as everime fibre -o mime eala," Jasper mumbled under his breath, his hand clenching his right hand into a fist. His eyes swelled as tears began to form. "fat lotta protecting I've been doing, huh…" Jasper chuffed to himself as he quickly wiped them away. He wasn't going to cry. He might've failed Makaria, but he would be damned if he cried about it.
He'd have plenty of time to cry about it when he saved her. When he finally got to see her again. When he made sure that Makaria was safe. Until then, he would not cry about the past. He would not. He could not.
He would save his tears for Makaria.
-To Be Continued-
I originally was going to have three perspectives in this chapter, but I decided against it. The chapter was too bloated as it was, and besides, 17 pages and 10K words worth of chapter is pretty damn good for the time being.
Also, I originally planned to split the RWBYverse up into 3 sections with 3 chapter lengths that best suited it. After discussing this with someone IRL (my mother, who also reads this: hi mom) I've decided against that. Unlike Danganronpa, because so much has been changed with the RWBYverse, like, oh I don't know, a majority of the world as a whole thanks to Jamol, minus the core principles, RWBY is going to last for a while.
Keep in mind that, even though we are now 16 chapters into RWBY, which was the halfway point of Danganronpa, we haven't even hit midway through this first section of RWBY. I have a lot of plans. Too many plans, in fact. If I had to split the RWBYverse into a book series, it would easily last 6 Books, and that's if we aren't allowing Brandon Sanderson-sized books. If we were, then it would probably only be like 4 or 3. That being said, because we have such a long way to go, I hope you all are ready to join me for that long. Because the ride is gonna be along one, and it can only go up from here!
Till next time everyone, see you soon!