The world has gone insane. As far as Peach is concerned, that is the truth with what she was seeing. One moment, she and Jekyll were caught and ambushed before they could retreat. They had been brought before their enemies and easily overwhelmed before they had gotten their bearings to fight back. In another, her assistant—who now apparently goes by the name of Hyde—went berserk, freeing himself from that Cinder woman's grasp and pretty much began to dominate the field in chaos. The Grimm that the White Fang had gathered had all broken free and began to indiscriminately kill whoever they could. Some went for the White Fang others went for Je—Hyde. It was a chaotic free for all that Peach was absolutely thankful for having wings; she could just fly away and keep her distance from everybody else. Any shot aimed at her, and the few other White Fang members that could also fly, would come at a cost of putting themselves in danger. The fact that she genuinely believed that the Grimm would be more merciful than Hyde is further sign that she has lost her mind.
The only constant that was being had here really was that Cinder was often the one getting in the way of Hyde, mainly due to personal grudges than any sort of heroism; the woman most certainly didn't possess any of that. Combining both weapon and fire, Cinder was doing a frankly fine job at keeping Hyde in check. Then again, it wasn't that hard to do considering Hyde pretty much went for whoever was closest which tends to be Cinder. The woman kept choosing to do so. Was she blind to the White Fang bodies that have begun to litter the ground? Deaf to the sounds of screaming pain and panic that were suddenly silenced? Faceless individuals were the only comfort for Peach; she didn't want to imagine the faces behind the masks.
As for Peach, the moment the White Fang had let go off of her to defend themselves, she took that opportunity to get as high up and as far as she could. Greene had that emergency contact tied to their scrolls and now was certainly a good time for that. Between avoiding gunshots and firing her own, she spent her time watching over Hyde's every action. Like the most terrified guardian angel, Peach was still trying to look out for her partner; she just needed to stomach all the furious roaring and growling. She'll take that over the cackling at least. She really didn't like either but if she had to choose, it would be the growler over the cackler.
In the air, she was mostly safe. Relatively. There had been Nevermore as well and they have taken to the skies and Peach had to fight them the most. The larger kinds of Grimm like the Taijitsu also proved to be a problem. With its body length being as long as it was, it could reach out to Peach and could easily swallow her whole if it ever reached them. With the Nevermore fighting her for the space in the air, that has proven to be a difficult task for Peach. If it wasn't the flyers there were those just long enough to reach her. How did the White Fang even get those here?
Shots were fired against the Taijitsu and the Nevermore. If they had gotten too close, it was either the bayonet or the hammer on the other end of Steadfast. Those that fell, fell to the ground, causing the ground to shake. The dying Grimm must have taken others with them and whoever was unlucky enough to be beneath them at the time. If it were Hyde and Cinder, neither really moved and in the closest thing to a temporary truce that those two had, both would sooner get the dead Grimm out of the way. It was Hyde that broke said truce first by using the dead Nevermore as though it were another weapon. The pitiful avian Grimm didn't even dissipate as Cinder burnt it to nothingness.
Hyde had a monstrous strength as he easily overpowered the surrounding Grimm on the ground. Cinder flew towards him like a ballistic missile only to be stopped dead in her tracks. Hyde's usage of aura was terrifying with how precise it was. Grimm were drawn to aura and Hyde made full use of that aspect as he drew them all to him like he was the flame to their moths. Those in close proximity, namely Cinder, had to defend themselves; those that did not fell to the Grimm. It didn't appear to be some strategy of Hyde as he simply reveled in the constant splattering of blackened blood and the sounds of dying breaths of those around him.
Peach fired a few shots at the Grimm. She wasn't sure if it was because she actually wanted to help Hyde or the White Fang that had been caught in the middle. By the looks of things, those lucky enough to be away from it all were just as unsure as she was. Torchwick and that petite girl that caught them earlier were too busy that they had spent more time fighting the Grimm and White Fang than actually escaping. Nobody could tell anymore who was allied with who as there are those who cared more about their own survival that they would leave the others behind, causing further discord on the battlefield. Dust crates went off in explosions which made it difficult for her to aim in that chaos. Not all of them needed to shot at in order to go off. So long as the Dust had something to react to, depending on how volatile the type may be, the container needs only to be broken for the Dust to explode. With the wild swinging of everyone there, there were a missed strikes and shots that would cause the Dust to explode, further triggering a chain reaction to those nearby. Many bodies have been sent flying already, Hyde included but that man only went back into the fray as he landed on the ground, not always on his feet.
Her eyes widened as Hyde began to get closer to the two thieves. She could feel the air itself get tense with each step he got closer. Neo must have felt that pressure as well for she was the first to react and intercept Hyde's incoming approach. All around them, the Grimm had begun to converge into a mass black pile as they are all drawn to the negativity that Hyde generates. She was uncertain if that was because of the negativity or just the pressure that Hyde possesses. Despite the explosions significantly dwindling their numbers, much to Cinder's visible anger, the Grimm were still in large amounts. Most of the larger ones had already died off; the result of those few instances of a temporary alliance between the White Fang and Hyde.
Hyde pounced on Neo. Opening her parasol, Neo got herself between Hyde and Roman who had fired a shot against an oncoming Grimm. They then shattered like glass, confusing both Peach and Hyde. The White Fang who had been with them mere moments earlier fell backwards as the sudden loss of a counterweight made them lose balance. The Grimm descended on the poor souls soon after. Hyde didn't really let it bother him as he simply went for the next closest opponent, Cinder again. Whatever her reasons are, Cinder despised Hyde so much that she was practically dangerously jealous of anyone else who would fight him.
"Roman!" Cinder roared out. A fire on one of her eyes flared wildly as she was locked again in another clash with Hyde. She still had some sense to at least be mad at someone allied to her for running away. Roman didn't even to care, happier that he just out of the danger zone.
"Good job, Neo!" Roman cried out as the two of them were now apparently far away from them all; neither of them cared about that outcry of Cinder's. They were at the entrance that Peach and Jekyll initially came from. "Now let's get out of here before the place comes crashing down!"
The two then ran off, leaving behind what remaining White Fang members there were, Grimm, and a Cinder just refusing to back down from a Hyde that absolutely relished it. Explosions continued to ring around their area with the only solace being that the Dust that had been far enough from the rest of them were left alone, preventing that much of a chain reaction. Hyde's presence prevented the Grimm from going any further; they were drawn to him like moths to a flame. There were two others who were helping Cinder, occasionally fighting off the Grimm or were landing a few cheap hits on Hyde, they were also wearing White Fang masks but Peach couldn't see what their faunus features are.
Such moment of twisted peace also proved itself an opportunity. There was one White Fang member who had been able to fly launched himself at Peach. A bat faunus judging from the wings. It was rare for faunus to have wings and Peach could count the number of times she had met other winged faunus outside of her family with one hand. Combat in the air was a difficult affair with the lack of something solid to bounce one's feet off of but that was where Steadfast also excelled. Firearms understandably have a level of recoil. Since Peach didn't have much to counter that recoil being in the air other than fly directly towards where she was shooting, she could use said recoil as a burst of speed and change in direction as she moved away from the White Fang member. A second shot followed, one that was meant to hit a target, causing the bat faunus to fall from the air. Engaging in melee meant putting herself in danger and ideally, she would want to avoid that as much as she can. Peach looked away as the bat faunus fell into the black pile of Grimm below.
Where are they? Peach screamed in her head. There was no way that Mulberry and Greene haven't heard the commotion already. They could not have gotten that far and even if they did, the echo of this conflict must have reached by now. She couldn't tell if they were coming from what glimpses she managed to get of the entrance. There wasn't enough light to even tell if their shadows were coming. Peach continued to shot. She didn't need to aim anymore as she only needed to point her firearm in the general direction of the White Fang and Grimm. It was bound to hit something anyway. Hyde is really the only she should avoid and that mad man was as obvious as can be.
Hyde and Cinder continued to clash. The former was all on his own while the latter still had help from two others: a dark-skinned girl with green hair and a silver-haired boy. All the while, Grimm continued to attack them on all sides. It was a mess of fighting as they would attack each other, the Grimm and sometimes their own allies, barring Hyde for his only ally was Peach. However, as time went on, the conflict became Hyde against Cinder and her allies as the Grimm continued to fall down. It was on equal footing as the three of them were made sure that Hyde had no room to breathe. Not that he needed it by the looks of things; he seemed to prefer it since his growls and roars had been replaced with that cackle that Peach heard back in the initiation.
A series of murders, she recalled the words of Jekyll. A serial killer that had managed to inflict chaos and destruction in the apparent town that Jekyll had lived at when he was still a doctor. The same murderer that was apparently working as her assistant. The serial killer that she had been conversing with, partnered with, and went on missions with. Jekyll is Hyde, she thought. She shook her head. There had to be a reason for that. She didn't want to believe that Jekyll really was Hyde. She didn't want to think that the man whose company she had enjoyed, albeit irregularly and with a reason for it now, was the same as that evil that he always talked about.
The silver-haired boy was knocked back. His aura flaring as he landed on the ground by the remaining debris of the Dust crates. The White Fang mask of his had been broken here. Peach quickly took the opportunity to record their faces as the green-haired girl was similarly knocked back. It was a blurry image but perhaps they'll have a clearer one if they went frame-by-frame. Hyde was their entire focus that Peach had been completely ignored. She'll take it if it meant that she could stay safe from them all.
Cinder charged at him again with great speeds. Hyde caught her burning fist and dug his feet into the ground as he forcefully stopped the young woman's momentum, ignoring the burning that was happening on his hand. Hyde's aura was still being used but it was clear by now that it had begun to dwindle. Rather than back away, he continued onward. It looked like he preferred it that way, having that danger to his life.
Then, an explosion occurred close to Peach, causing her to fall out of the sky. Cinder's allies had noticed her at last. Cinder and Hyde are now matching on equal footing without Grimm nor White Fang to interrupt them, leaving the other two—with their masks now broken, revealing their faces—free to deal with her. Peach kept her distance, overworking her wings as she continued to fire against the two criminals. The Dust crates that haven't been expended were being used now, forcing Peach to shoot at it lest that she caught in one of them. The boy certainly had a good aim using the firearm attached to his legs to shoot after throwing them at her. The green-haired one, meanwhile, tried to get closer.
Peach flew farther and kept her height. Whatever their plan was, it relied on having the girl being close enough to Peach. As the faunus who could fly, she had complete control of the air here and could control the distance as she pleased. As such, if they wanted to turn the tide in their favor, they needed to bring her down. It was something that she wasn't about to let happen. The girl tried to get to her, tried to look into Peach's eyes.
In the center of it all, Cinder and Hyde still kept going. The former no longer conjuring flames and instead kept on making glass weaponry which kept on breaking whenever it would clash with Hyde's weapon. He no longer had his knife with him, it had fallen from his hand at some point and he was using whatever was lying around. Weapons of the White Fang, broken pieces of wood and metal, still dissipating Grimm, everything was being used by Hyde as blood had begun to appear when Cinder managed to get a hit.
Her eyes widened at that sight. Hyde's aura has finally run out. Cinder's too since she had taken a more cautious approach now. Rather than back off and retreat, the two continued to clash, neither wanting to be the first to back off. The only difference here was that Cinder was on the defensive while Hyde increased his offensive. Hyde was clearly dominating the fight but he could not last much longer with the damage that he was just blatantly taking. Her eyes couldn't leave Hyde for long. Other than that feeling of repulsion she is getting; Hyde was still Jekyll in that he would surely die if this kept going.
"Emerald!" cried the silver-haired boy, snapping her from her trance. "Can't you get to her yet?"
"I'm trying, Mercury!" replied the green-haired girl.
Their names were Mercury and Emerald, it would seem. That was something that Peach would have to take note later. The two paused as Cinder let out a cry of pain. Hyde was using a bladed weapon, much too long to be a knife but too short to be a sword, at least with Hyde using it anyway. The cut was on Cinder's shoulders as the broken glass that had blocked it fell to the ground.
Peach pulled the trigger one more time and a ping noise was heard. It was faint and nearly drowned in the chaos that is Cinder and Hyde still continued their fight. That meant that she used her last shot. Peach continued to fly around as she searched for more ammunition. She was out as her pockets felt empty. She could no longer shoot at them at a distance. If she wanted to fight them for longer, she would need to get close, get to them on the ground. She wanted to avoid that as much as she could. She took a deep breath and hardened her resolve; in a way that made her feel ill, Hyde needed her. Peach had to comfort herself by reminding that it is Jekyll that needed her; it did little.
Dashing her way towards one of the carts, Peach made her quickest and roughest descent yet. It was a terrible landing as she still felt a shock of pain on her legs when she had finally reunited with the ground. On the other side of the cart, glass continued to shatter as Hyde and Cinder never relented in their assault on one another though it was clear that Hyde was pressing his advantage. Peach didn't need to give herself much time to recover and stumbled her way towards the other side of the train cart.
"Never mind her now!" cried out the voice of Mercury; it must have been meant for Emerald. "We need to get out of here! Use it on the other guy!"
Peach hurried as fast as she could. As much as this was the perfect time to escape, Hyde—or rather Jekyll was still her partner. She wasn't about to let anything bad happen to him. For one, Jekyll owed her an explanation and this time she wasn't about to be patient nor would she give him the chance to change topics. She will have her answers now and Jekyll needed to live for that.
When she had gotten out in the open, she saw that Emerald got as close as she could, taking Cinder away from Hyde and concentrated on him. It had the intended effect as Hyde actually paused. Hyde turned to face Peach. A sudden chill made every strand of hair and feather stand on edge. Hyde began to sway from side-to-side, like a drunkard. His crimson red eyes locked with her own. All the while, Emerald was moving just so that she was always within Hyde's sight.
Illusion-based Semblance, Peach guessed. Holding Steadfast as though it were a spear with the bayonet, Peach rushed forward. It was taking great amounts of effort just for her to get in close proximity to Hyde. Every part of her was screaming at her to move the other direction. But she wouldn't listen. Willing herself with each step, Peach went ahead and tried to stab Emerald and the exhausted Cinder along with her. However, she struck the air of the space that they should have been. The momentum kept her going and the bayonet found its way into Hyde's shoulders. Without aura, the bayonet had a clear path deep and through Hyde's shoulders.
Either Hyde didn't care about being impaled or he was somehow immune to the pain. He raised his weapon, one of the many disposed weapons left by the White Fang and sliced. Peach barely had enough time to bring up her own aura as she just managed to defend herself against Hyde's blade. It was Peach who reeled back and fell down from the shock and pain; aura may have blocked the sharp end of Hyde's weapon but it did not change the momentum and force that it had generated. The blade had nearly made her permanently blind.
Hyde was still under the illusion for he had attacked her this time. Peach couldn't fly above with how easily Hyde was towering over her at the moment. She had to crawl as far away as she can, letting those instincts that she had tried so hard to suppress guide her every action. Some have been made in haste which Hyde exploited by attacking there. Legs. Wings. Hands. Clothing. Nothing was getting spared when he had his chance. Not even the firearm that was still in him could slow him down; the most it did was throw him off-balance.
Peach must have lost her mind. It had taken her a while longer than she should have before she grabbed Steadfast and used it to leverage Hyde and forcibly ripped it out of him while also throwing him to the side. She was within range of the dagger and had to use what remaining aura she had just to tank it all. When she had managed to do so, she used the other end of Steadfast and swung it at Hyde's head before he could get back up. The sound of the blunt end hitting the unprotected head echoed as Hyde finally fell down, not moving.
She followed soon after. Her body finally giving out. Not even possessing enough strength to check the well-being of her partner, Peach's vision turned to black.
/-/
Harold Mulberry and Ann Greene rushed their way towards Peach's scroll. There was an emergency beacon that they all had which was tied to each of them. The two had managed to find the offices of Merlot Industries. There had been activities here as much of the place was still clean, a sign that someone must have been here. They had received a special message when Peach's alarm went off and the two rushed their as soon as it was done.
They would have gotten their sooner if it wasn't for the occasional Grimm and White Fang member coming their way; the latter being the most likely reason for the former. Those members had been so full of fear and panic that only a few of them bothered to fight the two professors of Beacon Academy. Neither were really about to chase after them as their fellow huntsman and huntress needed more at the moment. These other members had also split off from everyone else in the middle of these tunnels, finding other routes and emergency exits that were either there since the beginning or those that have been made recently depending on where one looks.
With each passing second, the duo hastened their steps. The few enemies that they had encountered along the way was enough to tell them that their companions needed as much help as they could. There was only two of them and neither of them appeared to be the direct combatants. None of them were. Mulberry was much closer to a designer of weapons and armor while Greene specialized more on reconnaissance. They are capable huntsmen since they are professionals but there are definitely others who possess greater skill than them.
When they had arrived, what they had seen can only be the result of something insane. It was as though a battleground of war had been contained in too small a space. Blackened craters that the explosions from the Dust crates had left behind. White Fang members charred and scattered with some being bodily incomplete. Grimm corpses that have yet to dissipate but showed clear signs of the sheer size it must have been. The train carts have destroyed and the tracks were pretty much irreparable to say the least. Streams of smoke lingered in the air.
It didn't take long for them to find Jekyll and Peach. On the ground and not moving, both Mulberry and Greene rushed to their sides. They sighed relief when they could still feel the life from them. As for Jekyll however, he had suffered the most with the amount of cuts and bruises he received; the worst of them all was the hole in his shoulders. He had been stabbed clean through it.
"None of the White Fang have piercing weapons that could make that shape," Mulberry commented. "Not one that I could see."
"No," Greene agreed. "They don't." Greene eyes went over Steadfast, Peach's weapon. It had a bloody bayonet. "But we do."
"Ann, you're not seriously implying—"
"I'm not," Greene cut him off. "But I have been entrusted to watch over him. Ozpin's orders."
Mulberry sighed. He shook his head, not at all surprised. "Of course he would. I take it he hasn't told you the full details either?"
To that, Greene confirmed. "Only that I step in should things come to worst. Give ourselves some time, so to speak. Ozpin says that it is not his to share but he received this information from the General."
"And here I thought I'm the team leader."
"For what happens next, you are."
"What?"
Greene pulled out her scroll and gave it to Mulberry. "Press the button and Ozpin will be alerted. Don't and he won't ever know."
Mulberry held the scroll in his hand. He looked over between both Jekyll and Peach. Neither of them were part of the original team. If what he could guess what Greene was implying, there was a danger to be had. His thumb hovered over the button.
"Hey," Greene placed her hands on his own. "You're not the only one who lost team members that day. You're also not the only who has grown rather fond of these two."
"Am I really that obvious?"
"I've been your partner for how many years now?" She gave him a comforting smile. "Besides, I still intend to prove to you that coffee is superior." That was never going to happen. Tea is superior.
Greene never left his eyes. Sighing, Mulberry made his decision; he returned the scroll with the button never having been pressed.
"We will be getting answers from the headmaster afterwards," Mulberry said. "If the students are going to be in danger this soon, I'd rather we on the front lines."
"Isn't that why we're here?"
But first things' first, Mulberry and Greene carried Jekyll and Peach respectively towards one of the exits. There was another pathway that leads to those manholes where they emerged somewhere in Mountain Glenn. There they waited for help and with the information that they have obtained, the mission can be said to be a success.
AN:For a moment, I thought I wouldn't have been able to post this today. Scheduled blackout was had and I only managed to save up to "AN"