Chapter 52 – For All Our Souls
Ruby
The time for doubts had long since passed.
They had one goal, and for once, it was actually very simple.
Get to the Embered Grove, with as many Relics as we possibly can… even one Relic is enough.
And yet even without the Oncoming Shadow flooding into Arkhonex at his will, and the odds being relatively even, they felt more afraid now than ever before. Because it was just down to all of them now, and whilst they had fought all of them before, Vir Nominis Umbra was the most dangerous of them all. Even with Qrow managing to torment the monster, he seemed more determined now than ever before.
An animal backed into a corner… meaning he was desperate… and even more dangerous than ever.
Ruby did not hesitate though, and she immediately shot forward, flying off the edge of the broken bridge and heading directly for the Embered Grove. Stretching out ahead were the fallen remains of Arcturus Base. It was a large base, but with no army blocking their path, it would make crossing it a lot easier than it was last time. Everyone followed Ruby as they moved ahead, but as they jumped across the broken buildings, making their descent towards the ground, Weiss turned and saw the Hound vanishing behind some of the buildings, whereas Kannix had vanished all together.
But Kassius knew he was near. He and that Silver Eyed Lunatic have a score yet to be settled. As they sprinted across the buildings, Penny flew across and landed beside Ruby as they ran. "Ruby! How are we going to get in there? Vir Nominis Umbra himself is blocking the entrance! You know he has more tricks up his sleeve, right?" Penny asked.
"We don't have any other choice, Penny. We have to face him head on. Even if we only get one Relic in there, it will buy us enough time to find a way to kill him for good. I'm pretty sure that's what he's really protecting." Ruby explained as she ran. "We can't be doubting ourselves now, Penny. This is it." Ruby stated, sweat tricking down the side of her head, showing her innate fear of this situation.
Ruby hated feeling like this, like there was no other option than to play the very game Vir Nominis Umbra had devised.
But now… there was no other option.
That massive ring of fire surrounding Arcturus Base and Old Town erased all the other possibilities. Weiss jumped ahead as she kept up with them. "We've come this far. We just need to go a little further!" Weiss called out until suddenly the Hound erupted through the windows of a building to her left. The beast tackled Weiss, and the two crashed through the roof of the building that they were on, and it smashed her through the windows.
"Weiss!" Ruby screamed, sprinting after her, diving into the hole she fell into. Blake and Yang immediately followed.
Everyone wanted to follow, but as Ruby followed, she looked back at Jaune. "Don't stop! We have to keep going!" Ruby yelled, before vanishing into red rose petals. Jaune stared into the dark hole Team R.W.B.Y descended into together, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth, before clenching his fist and continuing on ahead with his Relic.
Weiss gritted her teeth as the Hound flew out the other side of the building, shattering the wall and then slamming her to the ground. Weiss glared at the creature, knowing exactly who was trapped inside, the murderer of her sister. The Hound growled, saliva drooling onto her cheek, its hot breath cast upon her face. Suddenly Yang slammed into the Hound from behind, and Blake leapt overhead, throwing Gambol Shroud into the beast's body, throwing it ahead of them. The Hound tumbled away and crashed into a rusted truck, remaining still for a while.
Weiss coughed as she got back up, wiping the thick slimy saliva from her face, gagging from how disgusting it was. Rose Petals burst past her and Ruby was suddenly in front of her, holding her hands gently. "Are you okay?" She asked with concern in her voice.
"I'm okay, but the others…" Weiss stammered.
"I told them to keep going. Pretty sure Jaune knows what I'm expecting. We need to divide Umbra's allies. My bets are on him staying back as a last resort." Ruby explained, helping Weiss up. Then they turned to the truck where the Hound was waking back up.
"Good thinking." Weiss agreed, nodding her head.
"Help…" The faint voice of Raven Branwen whimpered from the Hound's body. Everyone turned to the creature as it writhed around, grabbing onto the pieces of rusted metal, hauling its body back up. Amidst the growls and snarls, they could hear her voice crying in agony. "It hurts! So much… please! Kill me!" Raven begged, and as it sat upright, they saw her mostly consumed naked body dangling out. Her body was rotted, and one of her arms looked like it was only bone now, and her chest was flooded with tar from the exact point where Yang impaled her through.
That's what happened… the tar got inside her when I stabbed her… and when she fell into the tar… it got into her heart and revived her… turning her into that…
It made Yang shudder, and even look away, unable to face what had happened to her mother.
She was so angry at Raven for betraying them, for killing Winter… but she didn't deserve this fate. Very few of their enemies would in her eyes. Maybe only Kannix or Vir Nominis Umbra.
But Raven's betrayal was tied to one thing.
She was afraid.
"It burns… I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm begging you! Please kill me! I don't want to live like this!" she cried, her voice becoming hoarse. Until the black tar surrounded her, pulling her back into her purgatory despite her desperate screams. Yang clenched her hand into a fist, then turned to face what remained of her mother.
"We will, mom…" Yang promised, looking at Weiss, who looked at her. There was a look of anger in her eyes, not at Yang, but at her mother. After what she did to Winter… wouldn't that be the easy way out?
But Weiss was better than that…
"We will." She promised, pointing Myrtenaster at the Hound as Raven was pulled back into the bubbling tar. The head of the beast slammed down over hers, and it snarled, glaring at them.
"Hunger… searing… unending…" It snarled as it glared directly at Ruby. "Take… the girl… destroy… DEVOUR!" The Hound roared, suddenly leaping from the truck towards Ruby, and slashing its razor-sharp claws at her. She dashed backwards, then fired Crescent Rose in its rifle form back at the Grimm. The bullets tore through its body, making it bark in pain as black blood splattered against the floor beneath it, only for the wounds to regenerate the second they were inflicted.
It suddenly grabbed Ruby by her shoulders, growling at her, only for Blake to wrap Gambol Shroud around its throat and yank it backwards, and then Yang jumped and punched it in the face, knocking it away from her sister. Weiss skated across the road, freezing puddles of water beneath her. She slashed Myrtenaster across the back of its leg, dropping it to its knee, then jumping overhead and ramming her pointed sword into its chest. The Hound roared in pain, and underneath the roar, they could faintly hear Raven's screams of pain inside.
And that suffering… it was like an adrenaline rush for the Hound, and suddenly, all the injuries healed. The Hound growled, then suddenly bit down onto Weiss' shoulder, flinging her out of the way. Yang swung her fist into the side of the Hound's head, only for it to grab her by the throat and pin her to the wall. It licked its mouth with its long black tongue, laughing sinisterly. "Yes… hunger… quenched…" The Hound growled.
Ruby suddenly hooked Crescent Rose underneath its jaw, and fired, and she shot across the road into the square in a burst of rose petals, before throwing the Hound ahead of her. The beast tumbled before driving its claws into the ground, slowing itself down. The rest of Team R.W.B.Y joined her side, glaring at the creature as it paced back and forth, watching them, salivating across the floor as it panted.
"I think I've figured out how this thing works now…" Ruby said with shock in her eye.
"Yeah?" Blake asked.
"It's feeding off Raven's pain… her negative emotions. And every single time we hurt it, Raven seems to feel the pain even more." Ruby explained, then Blake's eyes widened.
"It's using her pain to heal its wounds and grow stronger…" Blake gasped.
"Just like Kannix's semblance… using pain to their advantage." Yang stated.
"Then how do we kill it?" Weiss asked.
"We gotta somehow get that tar back and kill Raven herself. Without its host, the Hound should die as well." Ruby stated, then she looked at Yang.
"I know… even if we could save her, she wouldn't live long." Yang stated.
"Not like she deserves a second chance." Weiss growled, hatred in her eyes. Yang couldn't blame her for her rage, but she cushioned her shoulder.
"Stay with us Weiss, don't let your anger blind you." Yang said to her, and Weiss took a steady breath as she stared the Hound down.
"Then we just have to find a way to open the tar… maybe explosives could do the trick?" Blake suggested.
"It could work." Ruby agreed.
The Hound growled, then flames leaked between its teeth, dropping embers onto the ground. The beast suddenly roared and unleashed a cloud of fire towards them, burning through the vegetation that had grown across the buildings. The Hound continued to blast fire everywhere, lighting everything aflame, before focusing that cloud of fire into a beam of purple energy, and it swung its head around wildly, slicing entire buildings apart with the super-heated beam, destroying anything it came into contact with.
Everyone dodged the beam, Ruby swirling around it with her semblance, Weiss bouncing between glyphs, Blake using her shadows as a beam hit where she was standing, and Yang rolling out of the way just in time. Yang then fired towards it and grabbed onto the roof of its mouth and pulled its head back, the beam still firing from its jaws. The beam cut straight through the tower nearby, demolishing a couple of floors.
Yang punched it relentlessly in the spine, implanting multiple explosive shells into the slimy flesh. Then she rolled away. The Hound turned to face her with a growl, then she pulled her arms back, detonating the bombs. They all exploded at once, splatting black tar across the walls and revealing Raven's back to them.
"GO!" Ruby yelled and Weiss shot towards the Hound, but it suddenly spun around and smacked Weiss out of the air with its elongated arm. She crashed into one of the buildings, then it stood tall as the tar trickled across the broken floor towards its legs. The Hound absorbed its own biomass, and eventually it had healed the opening left behind. Suddenly bloody red wings erupted from its spine, making it howl and Raven shriek from the agony it gave her.
The Hound flew above them, shooting fireballs down towards them. They exploded upon contact, one of them aimed directly at Ruby, only narrowly missing as she dashed aside and fired Crescent Rose up at the beast. It dodged the incoming bullets before it suddenly launched itself towards her, slashing Ruby across the face with its claws. It flew past her and grappled onto the Arcturus Base building behind her, blasting more fire down from above. The fire burned across the grass, evaporating the morning dew on the moss.
Ruby launched herself out of the flames and on top of one of the buildings, firing at the Hound, but it leapt off the side of the building and slashed down at Blake. She vanished into thin air, then flipped backwards away from her shadow, firing her pistol at the Hound. The creature snarled as the bullets cut into its body, only for it to slash relentlessly at her, tearing the road to pieces with every single swipe it made towards her. She deflected an incoming blow with her Katana, sparks flying from the impact.
The Hound recoiled away, then Blake shot past, slicing through its side, then Weiss launched herself into its other side, ramming Myrtenaster into its ribs. She then formed an explosive glyph, pulling herself away with a Black Glyph. She landed on it and the explosion tore more of the tar away, revealing Raven's skeletal arm. Blake launched towards it, and she cut the arm clean off.
The Hound growled, glaring down at her, only for the tar to trickle up its leg… and the arm to rebuild itself, anyway. Raven's cries echoed from behind its growls. Blake's eyes widened, and she shuddered at the sound of Raven's pain.
This felt wrong in so many ways… none of them believed in hurting a person like this… or feeling so helpless to save someone from such pain.
"Maybe go for the head?" Weiss suggested.
"Take it out in a single swing? Maybe… try to pin it down!" Ruby called out.
Blake and Yang both sprinted towards the Hound as it roared at them, slashing its claws at them, extending one arm with the long tar. Blake flipped backwards, dodging the incoming claws and reaching out to Yang, who caught her. Yang swung her around and launched Blake towards the Hound, and she cut through its heel with her Katana. It dropped to the ground and Yang relentlessly punched and fired Ember Celica into its side, filling it with lead, before punching it in the skull extremely hard.
The Hound stumbled from the sudden and hard impact to the side of its head, growling at it turned to her, only for Yang to blast another shell directly into its face, stunning the beast for a few moments.
Weiss formed multiple glyphs which held the beast down, and Ruby flew towards it in a storm of rose petals, and she swung Crescent Rose towards its head, hoping to take them both out at the same time. But the Hound laughed, and suddenly the flesh around its neck transformed into bony armour, causing Crescent Rose to bounce off the armour. The beast tore free from the glyphs, and it spun around, smashing all of Team R.W.B.Y to the ground and standing tall, wings splayed out wide.
"Hunger… will… be… sated." The Hound snarled.
Team R.W.B.Y all looked at each other, feeling completely stumped.
It's Vir Nominis Umbra…
Everything has a weakness…
He never makes anything that is completely unbeatable. It's against his entire philosophy…
There has to be a way.
Ozpin
Ozpin groaned as he grot back up, covered in dust and dirt from the Lord of the Wood's attack, and after battling against all three Higher Demons at the same time? He knew this was not a battle he would win on his own. He coughed, grabbing at his chest, and staring ahead at the Three Higher Demons stood upon the ruins of Old Town.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk… when will the Knight of Vengeance learn to remember his place?" The Whisperer chuckled, taking the form of Salem as it walked down the chunks of rubble.
"Nothing more than a scared little mouse trying to outbid destiny." The Onyx Phantom laughed, grinning maniacally, whereas the Lord of the Wood remained silent and still, glaring at Ozpin with those lifeless, glowing red eyes.
"Shall you finally give in? Accept your fate?" The Whisperer asked. Ozpin gritted his teeth and glared at the Demons, pressing his Sceptre to the ground and his helmet forming over his head once more. His eyes glowed green as he slowly stood tall, spinning his Sceptre through his fingers, forming magical glyphs behind him.
"You should know me better by now, Whisperer. I will never stop fighting for this world and its people." Ozpin replied.
"Even when you're all alone? So sad… to die knowing that you have saved nothing." The Onyx Phantom laughed, shaking its head. The Demons could not see it, but Ozpin glanced past them, then he smirked.
"Now, who said anything about me being alone?" Ozpin asked them. Both the Whisperer and the Onyx Phantom shared a baffled expression.
Not noticing the enormous chunk of combined rubble rising behind them, levitated by a furious Glynda Goodwitch, who was pushing her glasses back in place. The Lord of the Wood turned its head slightly in realisation. Too late. Glynda roared, launching the enormous projectile of rubble into the three Demons, essentially making them vanish down into the chasm that was once the majority of Old Town.
"Professor!" Glynda called out, carefully running down the rubble with Maria at her side. They both joined with Ozpin, checking him for injuries. "We came as fast as we could."
"But I'm afraid… we're it. Everyone else is stuck inside that ring of fire." Maria warned.
"I knew it in my bones… of course, Umbra had something clever planned. But at least that means the Higher Demons are out here with us instead of being more problems for everyone in there." Ozpin stated, finding some good in this bad. "Are you two okay?" He asked them.
"Exhausted. Could use a bath, honestly." Maria sarcastically answered with a shrug.
"Are you okay?" Glynda asked him.
"Banged up, but my aura is still strong… the Higher Demons will not give up so easily. With just the three of us… this will not be an easily won fight." Ozpin warned. The two Huntresses turned to the pile of rubble the Demons were buried within.
"Wouldn't have it any other way." Maria assured, straightening out her skull mask, then spinning her double-ended scythe through her fingers. Glynda flicked the Disciplinarian, creating a pulse of purple gravity energy beside her, standing her ground beside the Headmaster she had placed so much trust in.
Ahead of them, the Higher Demons broke free from the rubble, the Whisperer taking Salem's form and blasting out from the debris, dust falling from their body. The Onyx Phantom and the Lord of the Wood clambered out as well, growling in anger.
"Few are capable of surprising us… we are… impressed." The Whisperer confessed.
"Oh, I'm honoured." Glynda sarcastically replied.
"We will cut every last one of you down to get that Relic. You should have run when you had the chance." The Onyx Phantom snarled.
"When will these guys get the fucking message? We're not running, and I'm done hiding. So come on… show us what you can do." Maria challenged.
"As you wish." The Whisperer growled as the Higher Demons prepared to battle. The Whisperer suddenly blasted into the air, eyes igniting and calling down a massive bolt of lightning as the sky darkened. The bolt of molten light exploded into the ground, but Ozpin slammed his Sceptre into the ground just in time, forming a protective barrier of green magic, protecting himself, Glynda and Maria from the powerful attack. Electricity coursed across the force-field, and once the energy had subsided, Maria launched through the barrier as it collapsed and slashed her scythe into the face of the Whisperer. She drove the curved blade through the Higher Demon's cheek, dragging it across the floor, before tossing it ahead of her.
"I never got to fight the real Salem… I thank you for giving me this rare opportunity." Maria stated with a cunning smirk on her face. The Higher Demon stood tall as the black tar reconstructed Salem's jaw, snapping it back into place.
"Silver Eyed Warriors… so infuriatingly stubborn." The Whisperer hissed.
"Damn right we are." She responded, launching forward, and the Whisperer blasted a powerful beam of dark red energy towards her, only for Maria to dash to the side, then launch forward, spinning Life and Death with great speed, slashing through Salem's chest, then blasting a beam of white light from her eyes, burning across the Whisperer's body.
Glynda stood her ground, staring at the Lord of the Wood who walked towards her, bark creaking as it walked, opening its razor-sharp claws for a fight. Glynda glared at it, then she rolled aside as the Leshen suddenly extended a long spear of wood towards her, only missing by a few inches. It then stamped its heavy leg against the floor, sending huge roots tunnelling through the soil towards her. They burst out and lunged at her, only for her to stop them in their tracks with the Disciplinarian, and tying them all into a knot.
She flicked her crop and blasted multiple projectiles of sharpened rubble towards the Higher Demon. They broke chunks of wood off its body, but it hardly even moved to avoid them. Only for it to suddenly leap towards her, forming a huge tendril of roots from one of its arms and smashing it down into the floor where she was just stood. As she dashed aside, she started levitating an enormous chunk of rubble into the air, blasting bolts of purple energy from her manually conjured glyphs.
They sparked like lightning, exploding against the Lord of the Wood's armour. It stared up at her, flames burning in its red eyes. It suddenly swung its huge tendril towards her, now adorning razor sharp barbs across it like a mace. She ducked underneath it, then yanked a sharp chunk of concrete from a shattered building, launching it straight through the tendril, pinning it to the ground. The Lord of the Wood growled in anger, tearing its arm free.
It too, could transform the surrounding landscape. Enormous tree-like roots burst from the ground, holding large chunks of destroyed buildings together, and it walked onto them as they rose into the air with Glynda. It then called in a flock of Diamond-Beaked Corvid Birds. They all flew together behind him like a swarm of starlings. The Leshen pointed its finger at her and they all blasted towards Glynda, but she held her ground as the birds all launched towards her with their razor sharp beaks and claws.
She raised large chunks of concrete into the air, blocking them from getting any closer, it made her shudder to see these birds acting so unnaturally as they just collided into the concrete so hard that they were killed instantly, one by one, never changing their attacks. Once the birds were gone, Glynda blasted the chunks of concrete towards the roots that held the Lord of the Wood up here with her.
Only for the remaining corvid birds to swirl behind the Leshen, fusing together into large Nevermore-Like wings. It flew away as the chunks it was stood upon collapsed, then it growled, before diving towards Glynda. It grabbed her by the throat and pummelled her against the ground, dragging her through razor sharp chunks of rubble, then throwing her into the water.
She splashed into the depths, scrambling to safety as the Lord of the Wood landed on the nearby shore, extending its arm and wrapping the roots around her throat, staring her directly in the eyes. It tilted its Stag Skull, faintly growling as if it was going to say something. It's obvious reluctance to speak, opposed to an inability, was fascinating to the studious Huntress.
But as the Lord of the Wood was about to break her neck, suddenly Glynda cracked her crop, and a chunk of debris shattered against the side of the Leshen's skull, making it stumble. Glynda rolled backwards as she caught her breath, keeping her grip on the Disciplinarian tight.
Ahead of her, Ozpin blasted into the air, his Clockwork Knight Wings forming from his back and spinning Mihi Vindicta in its Mace Form through his fingers, flying directly towards the Onyx Phantom who was mimicking his appearance, only taking the form of his previous body. That of the Knight of Vengeance, a knight clad in lightning based armour. Ozpin buried the mace into the ground with an almighty bang, the shockwave blowing the Onyx Phantom away.
It smashed its hand into the ground, forming large wings of electricity. It flew into the air and blasted a pair of lightning beams towards him. Ozpin dashed to the side, then transformed his Mace into Sceptre form, catching the beam in on the tip of his blade. He refracted the beam, splitting it into three separate beams that carved across the wasteland. Ozpin launched up towards the Phantom, driving his Sceptre through its chest. They both crashed into the side of one of the towering buildings that shadowed them all.
As he held the Higher Demon in place, he looked past him and could see the Nameless Titan still struggling in the distance. It was still pinned down for now, but he knew that their time was running out. The Onyx Phantom laughed, and it suddenly grabbed him by his helmeted head. "Even after all these years, you continue to cling to a dying dream that you can save this world! Can you even imagine how many old fools have filled the role you're playing in every other world we have destroyed?" The Onyx Phantom questioned, suddenly throwing Ozpin inside of the old building.
He crashed across the floor, driving the blade of his Sceptre into the ground, staring at the Onyx Phantom as it landed inside, electricity yanking chunks of metal from nearby with electromagnetism to form a shield. The Phantom spun its mace through its fingers as the lightning built up more and more, before jumping and slamming it into the ground, creating an electrical explosion. The blast shattered the windows, but Ozpin spun his Sceptre through his fingers, firing a beam of green light directly into the shield of the Phantom.
The energy built up in the metal held together by the Phantom's power, and eventually it overloaded, creating a tremendous explosion. The blast shattered the supports, bringing the floor from above down on top of them, but Ozpin swung his wings hard and launched himself backwards, out through the window at the last second. He soared around the building, seeing Maria burning another beam of blinding white light across the battlefield as she fought against the Whisperer.
Then, as the building continued to collapse, forming a huge plume of dust, he saw the sparks of the Phantom's lightning within the smoke. "There you are." Ozpin said, diving towards him, only for the Onyx Phantom to suddenly bring down a huge tornado, swirling it into the flames of destruction surrounding Arcturus Base. The fire tornado tore through the old town, igniting everything in its path. Ozpin's eyes widened as it was directed towards him, until suddenly the Onyx Phantom launched through the smoke and grabbed Ozpin, both of them plummeting back into the rubble together.
Ozpin coughed, grabbing his chest as the fire tornado continued to swirl nearby, creating more and more fire. "Poor Professor Ozpin… struggling so hard to fight against a fate he cannot change." The Onyx Phantom teased as he walked across the rubble, only for Ozpin to grit his teeth, transforming the Sceptre back into Mace form, smashing it across the Demon's face, knocking him backwards.
He spun his mace through his fingers, glaring at the Onyx Phantom.
"You can keep repeating your gospel, Phantom… I will never give up this Relic. Not until you kill me." Ozpin stated, tightly gripping his weapon.
The Onyx Phantom giggled.
"Good. I've been looking forward to watching the light leave those eyes of yours." The Onyx Phantom hissed.
Then the two continued to clash.
Jaune
As they sprinted ahead, they jumped off the buildings and landed on the broken roads of Arcturus Base, and suddenly the Knights of Grimm transformed ahead of them into their beast forms, all the while knowing that Kannix was nearby. "No room for error, people! We have to get into the Embered Grove!" Jaune yelled until the Knight of Death swooped towards them and launched fatal feathers from his Nevermore Wings. The enormous black feathers tore through the buildings, shattering the surrounding floor.
One of them landed at Kassius' feet, blowing him backwards. As he tumbled back, suddenly Kannix attacked from one of the buildings, firing his arm cannon into Kassius' chest. The explosive shells blew him through the wall of a building and tumbling inside of a destroyed hangar that once belonged to the Acolytes of Lien.
Oscar, Sun and Penny followed their leader, chasing Kannix into the Hangar, leaving J.N.P.R, Neo, the Architect and Cinder to face the Knights of Grimm. All the while, Vir Nominis Umbra was waiting, acting as the last line of defence to stop them from getting inside of this Primordial Forest.
The Nevermore soared across the remains of Arcturus Base, transforming into Knight Form and slamming Ferrum Arctus into the ground where Jaune was just standing. The impact knocked him backwards, and he tumbled across the floor, reaching back to make sure the Relic was still clipped onto his belt. The Knight of Death stood tall and pointed his sword at him, remaining silent as he stood before them in the middle of the street.
Up above, Fear banked across the sky, screeching in the form of the Giant Undead Bat, and then he latched onto one of the Air Traffic Control Towers, roaring once more, before he transformed in mid air and spun through the sky, landing with a heavy thud behind them, Formido Falcem rested across his shoulder as he stared at them, but lacking that grin. Their eyes were glowing, but they could tell something was changing in them.
But they knew words would never be enough.
"Relinquish the Relic of Choice, Jaune Arc." The Knight of Death commanded.
"Not gonna happen." Jaune stated.
Team J.N.P.R stood together against Death, whilst Cinder, the Architect and Neo stared Fear down unflinchingly.
Death suddenly formed his Obsidian Bow, and the screeching arrow materialised in place and he fired directly at Jaune, only for the Knight to parry the arrow out of the air, then the team rushed towards the Isomacium Knight. Death swung Ferrum Arctus hard and fast at them, leaving a trail of darkness behind the blade as he moved, but Jaune rolled underneath the blade, then slashed Death across the leg, dropping him to one knee and Nora jumped onto Pyrrha's shield.
Pyrrha thrusted her friend towards Death and she smashed Magnhild against the side of his head, the metallic pang creating a shockwave. Death tumbled away, then punched his fist into the ground, tearing a slab of tarmac out of the ground and throwing it back at Nora. She gasped as it crashed into her face, but Jaune jumped over her after sheathing his sword into his shield. Then he activated his semblance. A vast blade of blue energy formed across the blade of Crocea Mors, the ghostly apparitions of the Arc Ancestry appearing beside him for a few moments. He brought the powerful attack down onto Death, creating an enormous explosion of blue energy which shattered the surrounding buildings, causing some of them to collapse.
But Death held his ground, his powerful sword blocking the hit, staring back at Jaune's piercing blue eyes. Their swords ground together, sparks leaking between the metal edges of their weapons. Jaune jumped away from Death, and Pyrrha sprinted past him, throwing Akoúo against the head of the Knight, catching it as it rebounded towards her. She called lightning down and let the electricity conduct across Milo's blade, transforming it into Spear form, and throwing it between his Isomacium plates. As soon as it impacted, a large electrical explosion burst, knocking him backwards. She opened her palm and yanked Milo back into her grasp with her polarity.
Death turned, channelling dark energy through the blade of his sword and blasting a beam of red lightning towards her, but she slid across the floor, then slashed her sword across his leg, then jumping onto his back, ramming her Spear into his spine. Whilst held down, Ren charged towards the Knight, firing his grappling hooks towards the Knight and pulling himself towards him. He slammed both feet against his head, then as he flipped away, fired his machine pistols at him.
Death growled in anger, his cape of smouldering smoke suddenly transforming into the black wings of a Nevermore, and he spun around, blasting Fatal Feathers all around him, knocking the rest of Pyrrha's team away. She jumped away, igniting her eyes to fly into the air, only for Death to catch her by her Achilles' Heel, slamming her into a destroyed Hellfire Tank. He pulled her from the wreckage, and then punched her in the chest, smashing the road underneath her.
He remained silent, not having to throw insults back and forth like the rest of his allies. His presence created all the tension and fear he needed. Pyrrha launched herself away from Death, returning to her team as the Fallen Knight slowly paced back and forth, his burning red eyes glaring at them, his breath echoing from within his mask.
"Okay… team plan…" Jaune panted, keeping his eyes on Death.
"We gotta overpower him somehow… but… we can't be too risky with this, and Umbra is still past Death." Pyrrha explained.
"Do we even bother fighting him? Just go straight for the Embered Grove?" Ren suggested.
Everyone fell quiet. It was certainly a possibility, but a perilous one. They not only would have to outrun Death, but more worryingly, get past Vir Nominis Umbra. And that wasn't even the worse part of that idea to them. "We can't leave our family behind." Jaune stated. "No matter what, we stay together." Jaune said.
Ren nodded, and Nora spun Magnhild through her fingers. Team J.N.P.R all charged Death together, but the Knight suddenly leapt high above them in the air, flipping and driving Ferrum Arctus into the ground directly in the middle of them, then creating a delayed explosion of blood red flames. He flipped backwards, landing perfectly, before levitating his powerful sword into the air with telekinesis. He thrashed it back and forth at them, telekinetically throwing the sword at them, cutting Nora across her side and smashing Ren further away. Pyrrha and Jaune both raised their shields to block the incoming blows, until Death suddenly swung his wings and launched himself towards his sword, catching it and swinging hard and fast across their backs. The two fell to the floor as Death stood above them, rotating his sword through his fingers before driving it down towards Jaune's back.
Only for Nora to fire Magnhild at his shoulder, sending pink grenades exploding against him, bright pink flames burning across his black armour. He turned, only for Jaune to roll onto his back and slash his sword across his chest, leaving a deep cut thanks to his semblance, gifting him more strength to challenge his foe.
Death stared down at Jaune, then slashed his sword relentlessly at him. Jaune blocked the first few, but his flurries became impossible to avoid, cutting away at his aura, then punching his pronged gauntlet against his throat, pinning him to the wall. Death glared at him sinisterly, snarling as he held him in place. Death reached down and grabbed the Relic, then calmly released Jaune, turning to leave, until Pyrrha blasted herself into his back, and causing him to drop the Relic onto the floor.
Jaune gasped, jumping to it and reaching out, grabbing onto the cane and retreating. Death grabbed onto Pyrrha and smashed her face relentlessly into the ground, before tossing her aside, glaring at them. Pyrrha spat a rock from her mouth, then called her weapons back to her. Not about to back down now.
On the other side, Cinder, Neo and the Architect faced up against the Knight of Fear, who leapt towards them immediately, twisting through the air and bringing Formido Falcem down with substantial force. His huge Scythe dug deep into the road, then he tore it free, throwing chunks of tarmac towards the trio, then lunging directly for Cinder, grabbing her by her throat and lifting her off the floor.
Cinder smirked at him, and gripped onto his wrist tightly, burning his rotten flesh. Fear snarled from the pain, then he backed away from them, firing his crossbow at them in one hand. The bolt shot directly towards Neo, only for her to smirk and shatter, suddenly appearing behind him. She landed on his back and pulled Hush up his throat, pulling him backwards whilst the Architect transformed his rifle into sword form and thrusted towards the Knight. He rammed his electrified sword straight through the Knight's rotten ribcage.
His eyes glowed bright gold, and that smirk returned more and more, but now and then they could see him shaking his head, trying to fight back against the curse. "Come on, Rylen, tell us what you're seeing!" The Architect begged.
"My… daughter… her terrified face…" He winced, his head twitching. Cinder and Neo looked at each other, holding Rylen in place before Fear would take control once more. "My reflection… the monster I've become…" He sounded more and more afraid, but nobody could really come up with a solution for this riddle right now, especially not with the clock ticking faster and faster on their potential defeat.
Then, his eyes shone gold and his face transformed into a maniacal grin, suddenly leaping into the air, throwing Neo off his back, but as she fell she fired Hush at him, sending an explosive projectile detonating against his chest. The Knight came crashing down, staring at them as he slowly stood tall, teeth gritted in a wide grin.
"His daughter… and his reflection…and Fear…" The Architect muttered, trying to puzzle it through. "The answer is so close…"
"For now, let's just focus on keeping our hearts beating, Architect." Cinder stated.
"Yes… yes." He agreed, standing beside the others, then charging towards the Knight of Fear once more.
Kassius
The explosive shells fired from Kannix sent him tumbling into the Hangar, bouncing across the smooth floor and sliding towards an abandoned Bullhead. There were a few abandoned Airships in here, all ones that they did not have time to ship away. Not like it would have made much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.
He looked ahead, staring at Kannix as he walked into the Hangar. "Well, well… look who it is." He chuckled, pumping his cannon arm as he approached, smirking.
"What the hell is it gonna take to kill you?" Kassius sighed, rolling his amber eyes.
"I'm not going down until I watch all of you bleed out." Kannix assured. "First, I got Kragen… you're next. After all the times we've fought? I can't wait to watch you die." He stated.
Kassius chuckled.
"Funny… I've been wanting to finish what we started for a long time." Kassius growled, rolling his cybernetic arm. Kannix gritted his teeth, then Kassius crossed his arms. "You killed Kragen, then? Looks like it wasn't worth it, was it?"
"Shut it." He snarled.
"He didn't give you the vengeance you dreamt of, did he? No screaming? No begging for mercy or forgiveness? Good on ya, Old Man." Kassius chuckled with a proud smile.
"Oh, ho-ho… laugh now all you want, Locke. You're gonna wish you're as strong as he was… and I promise you, she will watch as you die. Then I'll kill her next… AND THEN EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU!" He yelled.
"Look at you… what's left of you? Just an insane excuse of a Silver Eyed Warrior trying to find anything that'll fill the hole left behind in you. It's really just sad." Kassius scoffed.
"Look at me!" Kannix yelled, holding out his metal arms, all his scars. "For hundreds of years I held myself together, but in the past five years, I've lost both my arms and suffered worse wounds than the past two thousand years combined. All of that… because of you infuriating brats. I'm done watching you all get away…" Kannix snarled.
"Right back at ya." He replied, flicking Lash Equinox up, extending his blades. Kannix suddenly aimed his cannon at Kassius, until suddenly Sun kicked him in the back of the head, smashing Kannix's face against the floor. He leapt over him and slid across the polished floor, stopping beside Kassius.
"Sup?" Sun asked.
"Not much. Was waiting for you guys to catch up." Kassius teased as Oscar shot by, nearly slipping over on the floor, eyes wide as he steadied himself, and Penny flew past, hovering behind them. Kannix glared at them with gritted teeth.
"So, Team Leader? We gonna kick his ass?" Sun asked.
"Oh hell yes, we are." Kassius answered with a confident smirk, charging towards Kannix Volantis.
Author Note - I love writing the Hound, the aggression of the creature and giving it the new abilities I've come up with are fun, and of course the whole thing of Raven being its host and it feeds off her pain and negative emotions is fun and twisted XD
Always enjoy writing combat chapters, especially when it's specifically Hero Characters Vs Villain Characters instead of nameless enemies, far more intense.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please review, follow and favourite!
Stay tuned for the next chapter!
- Matt