I held the trigger down until it stopped firing.

Even after, I plunged my finger on the trigger a few more times before giving up. My hands felt clammy, and I had a lump in my throat as I realized how little effect the entirety of that magazine had on my new opponent. There was no panic, no hesitation or running. Instead, I watched his aura flare to life against each impact, defending him well enough that he didn't even flinch.

"HA! You'll need a bigger caliber than that…" I could hear the savage smile under his mask.

I stepped back, letting the rifle fall and catch itself with the strap around my shoulder. My eyes narrowed on my opponent as I studied him. The White Fang had a dark complexion, and he wore a sleeveless garb like the last, only with a high-collared white vest which had a long tail. A pair of steel guards covered his forearms, and his left arm was covered in a sprawling tattoo. I stared at the odd mask he wore, noticing how it was unlike the other Fang I'd encountered.

'Based on that creepy bug mask… he's different than the others.' I thought nervously to myself. 'As if the giant chainsaw didn't say that already!'

"COME HERE!"

My thoughts were cut off when I flinched at his shout. The chainsaw let out a chugging rev as the giant charged me. I brought up Crocea Mors, but it was as if I blinked and he was there. The man reeled back and swung his weapon at me laterally. I just managed to bring up my shield, and I heard metal teeth scraping against it before I was sent skidding back from the force. I grunted, somehow regaining my balance before I lost my footing as I was sent two feet from him.

"I've grown since the little Schee escaped me…" He spat lowly, his motor idling. He stepped forward and pointed the chained blade behind him. "You little 'huntsmen' should be nothing to me now."

I bristled at his insult, both to myself and a friend. I readjusted, planting my feet and tensing my shoulders with both my weapons at the ready, and a scowl directed at him. He simply laughed just before leaping towards me with his leading foot, sending a cross-body slash at me which I blocked without trouble. I watched his momentum carry the chainsaw upwards, and it revved as it came rocketing back down with an overhead swing. I held myself until the spinning blades were just close enough, then I slammed my shield forward into them as hard as possible. The weight caught the Fang off guard; he grunted as he stumbled back, and I took my chance.

I lunged at him with the tip of Crocea Mors. While his aura stopped him from being pierced, the hit to the ribs made him lose footing and he fell hard to his back. I breathed deep, then leapt above his prone figure.

He rolled backwards, and the tip of my sword planted itself in the dirt where he was before.

I clicked my tongue at the miss, but he growled and kicked towards my face. I raised my shield and blocked the paltry hit, but the tall White Fang used my block as a platform to flip back to his feet. I stood, ripping Crocea Mors from the soil and sliced it through the air at my side, sending particulate from the dirt flying.

"Get out of my way." I glared at him, voice coming out colder than I expected and sweat beading on my forehead. I'm on the time of a ticking clock, and I've already lost too much. "You're wasting my time."

"I wish you'd make me, human!" He may as well have growled at me, for how much derision was packed in those words. I felt my blood rising to the unspoken insult, and I followed his wishes.

I rushed the chainsaw wielding maniac, feigning a frontal hit before breaking off towards the opposing side of his weapon. As I slid by him, I gave him a glancing slash with my sword. I heard the wind rushing as I passed, knowing in my mind that he'd swung his weapon after me. I ran, putting distance into the courtyard before slinging myself back to face him. He was there behind me, of course, barely a foot away from me. Seeing him reeling back to swing once more, I decided to take advantage of him. I lunged forward, rocking him with my shield yet again, though this time following up with two broad swipes of my edge to his ribs and arms.

In an instant, I felt fingers grasp the top of my head.

Next thing I knew, a smooth wall slammed into my forehead, hard. It was only after stumbling back that I realized he'd headbutted me. I shook my head, hearing him laugh at my dazed expression. It was turned to panic soon, as I heard the revving pitch up. I leapt back out of instinct, but he didn't let up. I continued the dance, tumbling away from the lashing bladed chain of the terrorist that fought me, all the while trying to regain footing in the battle. I tried again and again, forced to listen to his cackles over the roaring engine while barely avoiding his attacks. Eventually, I missed my steps. I felt the force behind his weapon cut diagonally across my chest piece, and hissed as my aura flared.

I recognized the losing situation of dodging, and instead brought my shield up to block his next swing… only to fail. I watched with growing annoyance as he slammed the blade's broadside into the very edge of my shield, and my arm was thrown away with it. In my gut, I knew I wouldn't be able to readjust my arm in time to block again, so I brought Crocea Mors out to play. We made connection properly, both angled to attempt overpowering the other. Sparks flew, and my muscles screamed at me as I held my blade against the whirring teeth of the chainsaw. I felt my teeth crunching against themselves as I strained with all my might to fight off the power behind his attack.

However, the teeth eventually caught my blade. It was slung from my grasp over onto the stairs of the main building where it clattered down to the walkway. I watched it, wishing it never happened.

"GAKC-"

The full-length of the Fang's chainsaw slammed into my chest. I fell to the ground on my back, pressure rattling my ribs through my armor from the blow. My chest rose shaky, trying not to cough on the heavy breaths I took. It wasn't a second later before I felt a hand wrap itself around my throat, and I was hoisted up into the air.

"As I said, pretty good for a human." I couldn't see it, but I could hear the glee on his face. My hands gripped and tugged at his, and I kicked as much as I could. He didn't budge. "You're no Schnee, but a Huntsman is good enough to kill!"

"HEY, LEATHERFACE!"

"Hm?"

The obnoxious insult was followed by a large metal mass smashing into the head of the White Fang from behind. A loud crack pierced through the area, followed by a flash of his aura and the hand around my neck loosening. He shouted in pain while I fell to the ground. I didn't waste any time when I smacked onto the stone below, and scrambled away from the monster that was intent on my death. Another loud crack made me look back, and I was shocked at what I saw.

"Cardin?" I muttered, rubbing at my neck.

He was here, reeling back with one good arm and slamming his mace into the large White Fangs side. The maniac doubled back from the hit, right before slinging the whirring blade towards him. The hit was glanced away by the rod of his mace meeting it.

"Insolent human! You can't interrupt me during the finale!" The terrorist shouted at him, attempting a forward kick that was avoided. A smarmy smirk grew on Cardin's face as he attacked overhead.

"I can't? Why don't you read off my rights, you horror movie reject!"

Their shouts slowly turned to growls and insults, but they were focused on each other. I turned and ran towards where Crocea Mors was thrown earlier, seeing the opportunity to re-equip. Only seconds passed, but a loud crack in my ears made me stumble.

"GKUAAAAgh- FUCK!"

My head whirled around back towards the fight.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" My heart hammered in my ears as I watched the Fang laugh. Cardin was defeated, lying on his back, while the terrorist grinded his heel into the crushed and broken shin of his right leg. "Finally, blood! I hate playing with my prey!"

My eyes flicked back to my sword that was laying on the stairs.

'I won't make it…' I knew as I looked at it, the lights glinting off the edge. I hesitated, considering going after it anyway to increase my odds of survival. The moment the revving started, my choice was made for me.

I released the mag on my rifle, letting it drop to the ground and dug into my pocket for one of the other two I had before slamming it into the slot. I turned, and seeing the chainsaw just about to be sliced down to finish Cardin, I emptied my second clip. The bullets sprayed against the White Fangs back and head, some missing, but the effect was the same. He stumbled away from the downed Huntsman-in-training, and turned to me with his aura dying down after the hits.

"ENOUGH INTURRUPTIONS!" His rage was palpable, I felt it from here. "If you wish to die first, SO BE IT!"

He charged me with his chainsaw held above his head. I glared at my opponent, switching out to the very last magazine I had for my rifle. All my hesitation bled away as the importance of my victory here settled on my shoulders. My win would keep not only me alive, but it would spare my classmate. It would allow me to track down Pyrrha, and keep her from doing something stupid.

I met the charge with one of my own, rushing towards my opponent.

As we met, he predictably slammed his chainsaw down from above, which I blocked without thought. I lashed out with a punch which hit just below his armpit, and I smirked viciously when he flinched. His weapon rocked with a punch from my shield, and when his grip came off the weapon I roared. I reached up, grabbing the top of his head with my shielded arm and brought it down. The tip of my rifle jabbed harshly in the soft spot under his chin.

"HAAAAAAAAH!"

I shouted while unleashing the clip on full auto, each heartbeat rocking my body as the bangs drowned out every other noise, including my target's screams. Eventually, the gun ran dry and his aura stopped flashing. My rifle was ripped from my grasp, and the strap that kept it on me snapped. I heard it shatter against the ground a second before a fist landed dead center on my face. I blindly lashed out with a kick and made contact, blinking the tears away from my sight as I made a foot of distance between us. He breathed heavily and growled at me, and I simply glared back.

We rushed each other once more, closing the distance in a flurry of chainsaw blows. Each one I met with my shield effortlessly. In the back of my mind, I realized that I'd grown from when this fight started. Instead of struggling to keep up with the Fang, I was matching him beat for beat. We kept on for way longer than I thought myself capable of, each attack something that would have killed me at the beginning of the school year.

"JAUNE!"

I spared a glance towards the shout, just in time to duck beneath a whirling mace that instead struck my opponent in the chest, to which I heard a wet cough and saw him stumble back. I snatched the handle of the mace out of the air, feeling the weight pull against my arm, and turned a toothy smile to the terrorist before me.

From underneath, I launched the first attack while he was dazed. The jagged metal flanges crashed into his face, shattering his bug-like Fang mask and showing me the scars and dazed expression underneath. His head whipped back from the impact, and I kept up the offense. Hit after hit after hit; ribs, legs, stomach, and ribs again. The last thing I targeted was his weapon, and I did so with glee. The flanged head smashed into the body of the chainsaw, and sparks flew from it as the metal body crushed in on itself. It slipped from his grip and clattered to the walkway beneath him. I stepped back, smirking victoriously, and intent on catching my breath after my onslaught.

The mace didn't seem to want to move with me though.

I looked, only to see a meaty hand wrapped around the shaft of Cardin's weapon, then a wordless shout and everything went bad. Fingers grasped at my collar and I was lifted up, then sent tumbling across the landscaping. Through the fall, I felt the leather strap on the backside of my shield loosen, and my grip faltered which led to it slipping away. I landed on my stomach with my face in the dirt. My opponent was ranting nonsense and I heard the screeching of the monster in the sky as I pushed myself back up to my hands and knees. I looked up at the Fang, rage and hatred contorting his uncovered features as he shouted at me, none of his words registering in my mind.

I felt naked. No Crocea Mors, either part of it. No White Fang rifle, though it's useless now without any ammo. Now, no mace to back me up, as it rests safely in the hands of the maniac.

'I do have one thing left…' I thought, my hand falling to the stained burlap sack still safely tucked into my belts. I glared, resolve flooding my veins as I faintly heard the sound of clashing echoing from the top of the tower. 'How long do I have? Seconds, I think.'

I brought the bag of grenades into my hand, and ran forward with boiling blood. He noticed me coming, and reeled back for his typical side-blow, something I recognized from a mile away at this point. I grasped all the rings and yanked them free, the wires dragging rings from the drawstring mouth of the burlap. The loose metal clinked against the grenades inside, just before contact. He swung hard, shouting out a threat, and I planted my foot stopping myself just outside of range. Afterwards, I lunged at him and swung the bag from the right, letting them crunch into the side of his face.

BOOOOOOOOOM!

The explosion was ungodly. The light and smoke obscured my vision, and the force sent me flying back. The boom rocked me and the force shattered both my aura and the ground, dirt flew through the air. Hot pain sliced across my entire body after my aura gave out, and the landing was harsh.

My breaths came raspy as I lay back on the scorched earth with ringing ears. I glanced up, pain flaring as I moved, to see the crater the explosion left and the prone figure of the White Fang maniac. I let my head slap back against the ground after confirming, and simply looked to the sky while trying to breath.

A screech that pierced the sky knocked me from my rest. My gaze tilted, watching the Grimm dragon fly head-long towards the tower, only to swerve and miss at the last second. The glass surrounding the tip of the tower shattered, and a series of horrid creaks and groans preceded the roof exploding off the top.

"Pyr-" I coughed, spitting to the side. "-rha!"

The rubble crashed down around the courtyard, thankfully not near me. I knew I had to move. I flipped onto my stomach, pain erupting through my body like a geyser from the simple action, and I struggled to keep my mind focused. My hands dragged me to the stairs, gasping for air with each movement. I forced my body up the first two steps with my heart beating in my ears, barely able to hear the sound of fighting echoing from the top of the tower. My teeth were grit, and I looked up at the sound of a rumble. The wyvern had landed on the side of the tower, peering over the top. My mouth gaped as I saw it, and I prepared to double my efforts, but I couldn't. The smoke drifting from the tower, oddly brightly colored, caught my attention.

A blinding light lit up the sky, shining bright against the dark. It originated from the tip of the tower, engulfing everything around it including the giant Grimm. Everything was painted in shades of white. It burnt my eyes to look at.

As fast as it came, it disappeared, leaving everything darker than before. I watched with dread in my heart, even as the Grimm turned an ashy color and froze against the tower.

In my gut, I knew.

"… Pyrrha?"

The bright ash drifted down from the top of the tower, landing on my face and in my hair. Instinctual despair gripped me. I gazed with wide eyes up at the tower, expression uncontrolled.

"PYRRHAAAAAAA!"

I screamed myself hoarse, and attempted to claw my way up to the top of the tower. My fingers were cut against the unforgiving refuse littering the stairs as I dragged myself to the top of the flight. My vision blurred by the time I breached the peak, and the details of the reception area were lost on me. Before I could drag myself past the busted doors of the building, my body gave out, and I fell unconscious.

[AN- Thanks for the favs follows and comments. Let me know what you think.]