A/N: Thanks again to qazse for helping with some reactions!
It was now day four of RWBY and co.'s stay in Katana's dimension. The day before they had watched the Avengers and a handful of movies in Phase 2, which were incredible, easily dominating the movies from Phase 1, stopping just before Guardians of the Galaxy, much to Katana's dismay, but she didn't want to force her guests to watch what she wanted (any more than she already was) and Emerald had been brought into the viewing as well, due to her having been in Lexious' watching of Blade and Incredibles. So now most of Salem's undercover faction was on RWBY's side.
The Remnantians spent a good few hours training and improving their skills, even adding in some moves from the movies they'd watched, most of the girls adding the Hurricanrana to their skill set and many of them improving their hand-to-hand skills with styles they saw from the movies. Ruby, Jaune and Weiss were now actually competent without a weapon and seemed like they'd only improve from there. But now, the group emerged and prepared to relax, watching more monsters and eagerly awaiting the moment they'd receive their own creatures. Katana had assured them that, by the end of the day, they would have giant monsters as companions, so they could barely contain their excitement.
"Alright, Katana! We're ready, so what's the first monster on the list?" Yang asked.
"And will it be one of ours?" Emerald added.
"Sorry, but no it won't, Emerald. I'm wondering if I should even put this monster on Remnant. The Deviljho." The ice demon explained.
"Ooh! We heard about him a lot! I can't wait to see what he can finally do!" Nora said excitedly.
"Why? Is it really that dangerous?" Jaune asked nervously. They remembered Tigrex and were trying to imagine how anything could be more dangerous than that.
"It's considered the most dangerous monster that isn't an Elder Dragon." Katana explained, leaving them all shocked. They were at a loss for words, so Katana took that moment to play the episode.
A view of Earth was shown from above, continuing to rise until the light of the sun engulfed the screen. Then, a pack of wolves was seen moving through the snow, as the word "PREDATORS" was seen in large letters in the middle of the screen. "Predators. They are a natural part of every ecosystem that houses multiple types of living organisms. In the natural order, there will always be the hunted and the hunter." The new narrator explained as a musk ox was shown as the prey and the wolves as the predator, before scenes of wolves chasing the herd of musk ox was shown. "And because of this incredibly intimate relationship, they often evolve alongside each other, the prey evolving to survive and the predator evolving to eat. But what happens when a predator outpaces everyone, not just its prey in its evolution and, in turn, becomes a true danger to every ecosystem it appears in?" He posed an interesting question as a bunny was shown hopping along on its hind legs, before the forest was shown as more writing appeared for the intro.
"Oceaniz Presents"
"The Deviljho"
"Wow, that was beautiful." Ruby said in awe.
"Which is ironic considering the monster he's talking about is an evolutionary nightmare." Katana told them.
"Oh I'm sure Deviljho can't be that bad." Pyrrha defended the monster.
Katana burst into laughter. "Oh I hope you don't get indigestion, cause your gonna eat your words real soon Pyrrha." She declared.
"Ooh burn!" Yang laughed.
A few spinning shots of a forest were shown, before a bird in a tree was focused on as Oceaniz continued speaking. "If you've ever set foot into nature, you have likely seen this happen: a peaceful organism being stalked, hunted, killed and consumed by another one. Ever since the Cambrian era 550 million years ago, the natural world has relied on this so-called process of predation, to not only keep a strict food chain up and running, but also to encourage evolution through natural selection." He explained as a baby crocodilian [1] was shown floating at the surface of a body of water, then a spider knitting its web and finally, a doe walking through the woods as the word "PREDATION" appeared in the middle of the screen.
"Wow. This almost feels like an actual nature documentary." Emerald noted.
"You watch those?" Ren asked, intrigued. He often watched them, too. He liked to get other people's opinions on them, but sadly, Jaune and Nora fall asleep almost immediately. But that also made them useful for when Nora was overly excited, even by her standards.
"Yeah. They're fascinating and they put Mercury and Neo right to sleep. So, I watch them whenever they drive me crazy. Which is most of the time." Emerald confirmed. Neo pouted at this.
A cheetah was then shown prowling the savannah as wildebeests grazed nearby. "Prey and predator relationships are often quite the driving force behind many evolutionary changes as they evolve in response to the other's adaptation and so on and so forth. However, don't fall into the trap of thinking that evolution works flawlessly. A random process of mutations and adaptations will naturally sometimes produce mishaps," Oceaniz explained, the word "MISHAPS" appearing in the center of the screen over a green fish. "Some are detrimental and short-lived. Others are incredibly effective! And some are TOO effective, to the point where one organism's adaptive changes begin endangering entire food chains." He went on as a tiger was shown easily standing up in a tree.
"Uh... Why is a tiger in a tree too effective? We already saw tigers can climb." Jaune said.
"They have the ability, Jaune, but it's mostly something young tiger cubs do, as they become a bit too bulky to make climb easy or effective as they grow. So for one to be casually up in a tree like that, it speaks levels to it being more effective than your average tiger." Pyrrha explained.
"Tigers are scary enough of the ground. Climbing trees is just cheating!" Velvet said fearfully.
"And while those cases are rare, they are extraordinarily fascinating. Such is the case with today's species: the Old World's terror, the World Eater, himself... The Deviljho." Oceaniz described as more forest regions were shown, a small, pterodactyl-like creature even being shown at one point as it flew through the forest. Suddenly, very dramatic, suspenseful music began to play as the tip of a very spiky tail was shown for a split second, before a massive dark green foot with blood red claws stomped down on the ground, before the creature's lower half was shown as it stormed through a forest pathway, then finally revealing the creature in all its glory as it smashed through a giant log, then showing it holding a massive iguana-like creature in its mouth, still alive and struggling desperately. Everything then went black as the creature's terrifying roar was heard.
"It's huge!" Nora cried out.
"And it's holding that big iguana like a chew toy!" Yang said in shock.
Ruby, however, couldn't help but giggle a bit. "It looks like a giant pickle." She giggled.
"Yeah. But something tells me this isn't a pickle you want to take a bite out of." Cinder warned her.
A hunter was then seen in the swamp, dodging the beast's massive stomp as a bar with text slid in on the lower left corner of the screen, revealing its name in different languages. "Called 'Violent Predator' by the natives, the Deviljho earns its nickname of 'Angry Pickle' both in appearance and demeanor." Oceaniz explained as Deviljho was seen simply turning in place, decimating anything close to it with its massive tail, while the black bar now showed its height of 6.5 m and length of 19 m.
"Pffft hahahaha oh my gods he's right. Now that I look at it, it DOES look like a pickle." Yang laughed.
Ruby snorted. "Especially the tail and head." She said.
"Standing tall at a height of 6.5 meters and a length of 19 meters, this predator EASILY cements its status as a Brute Wyvern, towering beasts known for their strength and raw power. But even amongst them, the Deviljho stands out as being particularly fierce, aggressive and dangerous." He gave a basic over-view of the beast as it attempted with several bites, leaps and stomps to destroy the poor hunter facing it.
"Yeah, I'd say all those names are pretty fitting." Blake said nervously.
"As well as being a Brute Wyvern. It has absolutely no finesse compared to Glavenus or Brachydios." Weiss scoffed.
"Uh, ice queen, I don't know if you noticed, but that thing seems to be doing pretty well for itself without 'finesse'." Neo told her.
"But dang. All that meat and skin. I could make a new handbag, boots and a whole suit out of it." Coco noted, thinking of herself rocking a full crocodile skin-like outfit.
A light and dark blue striped background then came down as an illustration of Deviljho was shown. "A hulking mass of green skin and bony spikes called osteoderms, this Theropod is comprised of an astoundingly high amount of muscle mass. While its tiny arms have long-since devolved into useless stumps, not unlike the famous T-Rex, its legs, tail, neck and especially its chest have a ginormous concentration of high density muscle fibers." Oceaniz explained as some arrows pointed out its osteoderms and tiny arms, before it zoomed in on the beast's head. "It's maw is filled with razor teeth that infinitely regenerate as newer teeth grow and push the older ones out of the mouth and onto the chin of the beast, turning its lower jaw into spiky ram. These rows of teeth are sharp enough to easily shred any prey to bits. And that is exactly what this monster needs as it stands as a frightening potential of evolution gone awry." Oceaniz added as a few arrows showed that, indeed, the beast's chin was lined with spikes that were once teeth in its mouth.
"That is both fascinating and terrifying." Winter said.
"But how can the teeth be sticking to its chin? The teeth stay in the mouth because they're rooted in the gums, so these teeth must have become unrooted and therefor, should have fallen out, yet they still stick to the chin... It's incomprehensible..." Glynda said, struggling to understand what she was seeing.
"Guys, I think the viewing broke professor Goodwitch!" Velvet cried out fearfully.
"Did anyone else notice how many scars that thing has?!" Jaune shouted.
The picture of Deviljho was then taken off-screen as a triangle of trees. "In most ecosystems where predation is common, you will find a dependent process called 'Co-Evolution'. This concept is based around the idea that as one species evolves to survive, other species that are inherently bound to interact with that organism tend to evolve in response. This is especially common in predator/prey relationships." Oceaniz explained as the image of a fox and squirrel appeared in the center, a line with an arrow appearing in between to point at both of them. "This is because if one of these parties becomes better at their job, the other party has to either adapt, or die. This is called selection pressure. Prey may evolve to become faster, to build their nests out of reach, or to simply be tougher in order to raise its chances of survival and procreation. A predator, meanwhile, may evolve in turn, becoming faster, gaining the ability to climb, or become more aggressive and violent. " He explained how the creatures change and evolve to counter each other.
"Right. Everything has a role in the ecosystem, keeping each other balanced and in check, as all things should be." Ren declared.
"But the main build up for Deviljho is how it breaks this cycle of nature." Penny noted.
"Right. But the question is, how?" Pyrrha wondered.
"This process is continuous and keeps an ecosystem balanced as it's a perpetual push and pull between predator and prey. But what if one party... OVER evolves? What if, through a unfortunate collection of mutations, a species becomes so adept in its role in the system, that other species simply cannot keep up and evolve in time? What if for example, a predator becomes so skilled and dangerous that its environment cannot balance it out any longer. This is were the Deviljho comes in." He questioned as the image of a the fox slowly but surely grew larger than the squirrel, becoming completely massive, before the icon of a Deviljho was shown.
"Now that is a terrifying scenario." Qrow said, almost tempted to wish up a flask filled with Bourbon.
"That we can agree on. For a predator to evolve to the point were nature has no defense mechanism against it. It's unnatural." Ironwood said, reaching for his own flask and taking a drink.
"Even the Grimm can't be described as such, since animals are capable of bringing them down." Ozpin said, gripping his cane a bit tighter.
"Through some mishap of nature, this pickle-y predator has developed into a force that few ecosystems can sustain for long. The massive, hulking muscles that stretch across this beast's body are akin to huge, volcanic furnaces full of energy. To keep them running at a high metabolism, the Deviljho's body temperature is consistently high." Oceaniz explained how the beast's internal processes worked as a thermometer appeared beside the icon of the beast with five levels to it: Pilot Light Lit, Stoking The Fire, Heating Up, Heart's Aglow and The Heat Is On!, which the thermometer rested JUST below. "This, however, coupled with the immense power output of these muscles, means that the mere act of existing requires immense amount of energy in the form of calories. As a result, the Deviljho has a pressing and constant hunger that propels it. And to satisfy this hunger, it is willing and equipped to fight tooth and nail." He warned as the Deviljho was once again shown fighting with a hunter.
"Huh. So, it's just like Cinder and how she's full of hot air." Neo declared.
"Neo!" Cinder snapped.
Emerald tried to hide her giggles from Cinder for a minute, before noticing something. "There are a lot of animals with high body temperatures and high metabolisms, but they're usually pretty small. Most big animals like that only need a big meal every so often and go for days without food otherwise. Something that big, needing huge meals that often, it's not sustainable." She broke it down.
"However it came to be, the Deviljho boasts immense physical strength and power. Between its razor sharp teeth, muscly legs and enormous tail, this Wyvern has many ways of dealing with its prey. A single stomp can shatter the ribs of nearly any creature, a hit by the tail can cause SEVERE blunt force damage and one bite can cleave most other animals in half. But most of all, it's the beast's tenacity and aggression. that is its greatest weapons." Oceaniz made clear the beast's combat capabilities and relentlessness.
"Whoa... It seems like trying to get up close and personal is suicide." Jaune said in concern as, while the rest of his team did have firearms in their weapons, they still mainly focused on close-quarters combat, not to mention he himself didn't have any ranged weapon to speak of, so he'd be doomed going up against that thing.
"We could totally do it! Look at the hunter! He's just got a sword and shield, too, but he's going for it!" Nora declared, reassuring Jaune.
"Really? It doesn't look like he's really going in for any attacks at all." Ruby said, looking closer as Jaune grabbed a couch pillow and screamed into it.
The blue striped screen came back, along with the Deviljho icon as the word Nature appeared in the top right corner of the screen, before items appeared below it: what looked to be a pork chop, then a medical cross, then a DNA helix. "The driving forces of nature are to eat, to survive and to procreate. And the Deviljho is the burning desire to consume incarnate, its fiery engines necessitating constant large-scale nutrition." Oceaniz elaborated as the cross and helix disappeared while the pork chop pulsated. "This means that anything can become it's prey. Small animals, big monsters, even its own severed tail." He declared, as the icons of the herbivore, aptonoth, the familiar iguana-like creature, the Great Jagras and the image of a tail.
"Are you KIDDING me?!" Glynda and Winter cried out together.
"It's willing to eat parts of itself just to sustain it's hunger?" Glynda asked in shock and disbelief.
"Only when they're no longer attached, at least." Penny said sheepishly.
"Still, for the beast to have that level of hunger and lack of self-control... It's unreal." Winter told her.
"This burning hunger is also what drives this creature's most infamous behavior. As no ecosystem can sustain this monster's endless appetite, the Deviljho has developed a lonely, nomadic lifestyle, migrating from place to place in a never ending quest to feed and consume. It will enter an ecosystem, establish itself as the top dog and hunt it to the brink of collapse, upstaging the food chain and upsetting the natural balance. Before its quest for survival and consumption, all principals of nature are meaningless." Oceaniz described the most terrifying aspect of Deviljho's ecology, as icons for a forest, desert and tundra where shown, Deviljho's icon moving to the forest, leaving it on fire and moving to the desert, which also went up in flames as it moved to the tundra, which also fell into collapse as Deviljho moved back to center stage.
"So not only can it survive in any environment, but it eats everything to the point of the area becoming inhabitable?!" Blake cried out in panic, Emerald quickly hugging her.
"How is that even possible?! For one creature? It'd have to eat every other living thing in like, a month!" The green-haired girl said.
"That beast does more damage then any Grimm ever could." Weiss said in horror.
"And for this quest, it will fight any opponent and, most of the time, come out victorious. Only the Koryushu, the Elder Dragons, alongside a few rare and powerful species can compete and fight off a hungry Deviljho." Oceaniz declared as the icon of a Diablos was sent spinning away by the Deviljho's icon, before the icon of Nergigante was shown, before moving off-screen, being replaced by the icon of another Deviljho. "Curiously, however, should two Deviljho meet, they will not enter combat with each other, instead avoiding contact. While it is unknown why this happens, it's been theorized that on meeting a fellow Deviljho, a non-aggression pheromone is emitted, preventing conflict. Regardless, most conflicts a Deviljho can handle with moderate ease." He informed them of the anomaly where two Deviljho will not fight each other.
"That's weird. Why wouldn't they fight?" Ruby asked.
"Maybe they know they'll both get injured and it's not worth trying to eat each other?" Velvet suggested.
"That would make sense. Predators always make sure the risk is worth the reward. They will not expend energy trying to bring down a prey that cannot be brought down without tremendous harm being brought upon themselves, the reason why full grown Gammoths have no natural predators, as Rage said before." Ozpin explained.
The bigger illustration of the Deviljho was shown once again. "But even if its regular strength should fail to achieve victory, the World Eater still has one ace up its sleeve. One last trump card." Oceaniz declared, the illustration becoming a silhouette, a strange illustration of some strange type of beige sac or vial inside of the beast, right where its neck meets its torso. "A small sac-like organ, located roughly under the Trapezoid that, while usually dormant, serves two purposes when activated by stress and pain." He explained as the organ began rapidly pulsating. "Its first purpose is as a hormonal and neural gland that, as a response to physical strain and stress, can flood the body with Adrenaline and Acetylcholine. This causes a severe spike in cardiovascular and pneumonial activity." He went on as Adrenaline was described as a stimulant hormone and Acetylcholine as a muscle-tensing neurotransmitter, as the heart and lungs were then shown in the display as well.
"Uhh... what now?" Coco asked.
"Basically, it puts that thing in overdrive." Qrow said in horror.
"Like it really needed it!" Winter shouted. She'd hate to admit it, but she might need her Zamtrios to inflate into a ball to match the creature in size if they were to encounter one.
"But more spectacularly, it causes the already impressive muscles to glow, grow and swell to enormous proportions, tearing through the Deviljho's skin and exposing themselves. Scars from battles won and lost, as well as the osteodermal fissures on the sides of the monster are violently ripped open by the engorging muscle mass." Oceaniz told of Deviljho's disturbing enraged state, showing the muscles were indeed glowing as a hunter desperately tried to avoid its now far more ferocious attacks. Then, at a safer distance, a hunter looked through a pair of binoculars to see the Deviljho attack and feed on an Apceros, where it was now clear to see the muscles were indeed tearing through its skin.
"Oh gross! It's muscles look like their ready to explode." Weiss cried out in disgust.
"I think I'm gonna be sick." Neo groaned, Emerald holding a bucket for her as Yang rubbed her back.
"Yeah, that thing's gonna need more than a band-aid to cover up all of that." Yang said.
"That's actually a good point. With its skin torn and muscles bulging out, it should be bleeding profusely." Ren agreed. Although the thought of blood coming out of these giant openings appeared to be the last push needed and Neo vomited.
The Deviljho was then shown fighting the hunter again, still far more aggressive than before it was glowing. "In this state, the Deviljho is many times stronger and also much more ferocious, due to the pain. However, that's not even close to all of it." Oceaniz declared as the striped screen reappeared, the organ front and center. "The anguish of its skin being torn apart by its own muscles, is an additional pain that also stimulates the secretion of adrenaline by itself. This creates a positive feedback loop, where pain activates adrenaline, which causes the muscle to grow, which then tear the skin, which causes more pain, which causes more adrenaline to be secreted. This means that the beast can gain strength infinitely, thanks to this vicious cycle, growing stronger and stronger with every moment it remains in this enraged state." He went into the finer points of the devastating process.
"Fascinating! Our scientists constantly struggle to create positive feedback loops for more power in our androids, so to see a creature naturally be able to do so is completely amazing!" Penny said.
"It's terrifying, but this creature truly is amazing." Glynda stated.
"I DON'T think amazing it the right word to use, Professor." Blake said anxiously.
"I know its not. I never want to see that thing enraged!" Nora said in fear.
The organ took center screen once again. "And as if this were not enough, the aforementioned organ serves a second purpose. It's used to generate, contain and control a substance that has been dubbed by scholars as 'Dragon Energy'." Oceaniz declared as the icon for the organ changed to an icon that looked like a purple trident with red tips, the Dragon symbol, with black mist that had red lightning running through it at the bottom of the screen. "Black vapor sporadically illuminated by arcs of red lightning. This mysterious phenomena has only rarely been observed by monsters of the Elder Dragon classification." He declared as the symbol grew throughout his description and the lightning became more intense.
"It's capable of using an element only the elder dragons use! Fascinating, horrifying, but fascinating." Ozpin said, torn between fascination and terror. [2]
"No it's horrifying. Absolutely, positively, undoubtedly horrifying!" Ruby said as she hid behind a couch pillow, Cinder trying to calm her down.
"I'm starting to think only the Elder Dragons should have that ability for a reason." Cinder said, equally uneased.
The Deviljho was then seen emitting the energy from its mouth in huge clouds as the hunter struggled to dodge. "Its natural presence in a Brute Wyvern like the Deviljho is mysterious, but it grants credibility to a theory that this monster evolved in an area frequented by Elder Dragons, developing this dragon energy as a means to survive and compete. Regardless of the how and why, the fact remains that this energy is among the deadliest weapons in the Deviljho's arsenal. Being ejected in the form of a breath attack, this energy can spell certain death for anyone who is caught by it. Should this rage state go on for an extended amount of time, the Dragon Energy can start overflowing and seeping out of the torn skin, making even mere proximity to the monster fatal." Oceaniz declared as the screen suddenly went black as he spoke the word "fatal".
Ruby shivered at the idea of being hit by that attack, since it usually causes instant death. "Th-these hunters... They don't have aura, right?" Jaune asked, to which Katana nodded. He sighed in relief. "Okay, good. That means our aura might be enough to protect us from the breath. At least once or twice." He said.
"True. But still, with power like that, it might even be able to stand up to a whole squad of Atlas' top soldiers. The Ace-Ops maybe be the one single group capable of bringing it down." James said in concern.
"It's a good thing huntsmen and huntresses usually work in teams then." Ren reminded everyone, bringing a smile to the students as they remembered they were stronest together.
"Of course, this cannot be kept up for long. If the normal state of the Deviljho was energetically draining, then this so-called rage state is even more difficult to sustain. Eventually, the beast WILL tire and it is this exhaustion that anyone wishing to take it down needs to exploit. Once tired, the Deviljho requires immediate nutrition and will attempt to eat anything it finds. That includes poisoned or drugged meat left by a cunning hunter." Oceaniz finally gave some positives to the many negatives of fighting a Deviljho as the beast was seen eating a piece of rather blue-looking meat, before laying down on its side and sleeping right there in the river or pond, practically half submerged. "Additionally, the tearing of the skin weakens certain parts of the body. particularly the underside." He added.
"FINALLY, some good news!" Yang said in relief.
"So, just rely on the creature to be dumb? I guess it's what we do with the Grimm already." Weiss said.
Blake then noticed a spot on the chest. "The underside is weakened and that thing looks important. I bet one good hit with my cleaver could smash that thing." Blake said.
"Atta girl, Blake! That's right about where the Dragon organ is, like he said. You hit that and you can take him right out of his enraged mode... Once." Katana explained.
"Better that than nothing." Neo said.
Cue the return of the striped screen and Deviljho icon. "But what if all fails for our great devourer? What if it cannot find any source of food, or it does not migrate into a more bountiful area in time? Should that happen, its environment bears witness to one of the cruelest displays to evolution's mercilessness found in all of nature: the Savage Deviljho." Oceaniz declared as the icon changed to a larger, black and red, infinitely more vicious-looking version of the beast, appearing to be permanently overflowing with Dragon Energy.
Ruby jumped into Cinder's arms, while Velvet hid behind Coco. Neo hid her face in Yang's boobs and Yang buried her face in Neo's hair, Blake vanishing behind the couch with her semblance and Emerald using hers to make it seem like she had vanished into thin air. Jaune and Pyrrha both held couch pillows out in front of them like their shields and Weiss clung to Winter in fear. Even the grown ups were taken back by the sheer viciousness of the Savage Deviljho's appearance, feeling more fear and dread then from any Grimm. "That thing's a monster even among monsters." Cinder said in horror.
"I don't think I've EVER seen a Grimm that terrifying." Emerald agreed.
"Perhaps a Leviathan that occasionally surface near Argus, but even then it only has the advantage due to pure size." Pyrrha agreed.
"It is unclear what exactly catalyzes a regular Deviljho's transformation into this Variant, but it's been generally agreed upon that the essential factor for it is extreme hunger and starvation." Oceaniz began as the term "Variant" was described, revealing any individual of the species could turn into this new beast under the right circumstances, before the words "hunger" and "starvation" were shown to the left and right of the beast's icon. "As for the exact process, there are two leading hypotheses among the scholars of the hunting commission." He went on as the big picture of Deviljho again, with "Hypothesis A" at the top center of the screen. "Hypothesis A postulates that as as a Deviljho is on the brink of starvation, it either dies, or if it gets the chance, it does the unthinkable: it cannibalizes its own kind, devouring another Deviljho to survive." He explained the hypothesis as the Deviljho's stomach was shown inside it, very, very low, before the icon of another Deviljho went into the mouth of the pictured version of the beast.
"What?! But I thought they never do that!" Weiss said fearfully, hugging her sister tighter.
"True hunger and starvation can make us desperate, sister." Winter told her, only a bit less frightened than her sister.
"I'm amazed it managed to beat another Deviljho while it's starving, though." Penny said.
The icon of the organ was also shown going into the Deviljho's mouth as well. "However, because Deviljho's eat every last bit of their prey, right down to their bones, this means it also consumes its brethren's dragon organ. This, then, causes an overflow of Dragon Energy in its body, the pain of which activates the devourers own organ, overclocking the beast's body with even more Draconic Energy and driving it insane." Oceaniz finished on Hypothesis A, replacing it with Hypothesis B and explaining the term "Catabolysis", the last step of starvation, where the body breaks itself down for nutrients. "Meanwhile, Hypothesis B suggests that when a Deviljho nears starvation, it enters Catabolysis, the process where the body starts metabolizing and digesting itself and its own tissue in order to squeeze out those last few calories and stay alive those last few precious moments, a testament to nature's never ending urge to survive." He went on.
Everyone was horrified at the idea of their body being so desperate for food that it would begin eating itself. "And that is why I absolutely never want to starve." Cinder said, hugging Emerald and Neo who, while they never got quite that hungry, had been dangerously close once or twice in their lives on the street.
"Let this be a valuable lesson, students. Always make sure to bring some emergency rations with you into the field." Ironwood told them.
"Will do!" They all said in complete agreement.
"For the Deviljho, however, this process might have one fatal flaw. As its tissue begins breaking down, its Dragon organ can become unstable and begin spilling the Dragon Energy into the Deviljho's body and bloodstream. This, then, overcharges the dying Deviljho into one last devastating fit into maddening rage. Regardless of how it comes to be, the result is the same: a starved, deranged Wyvern, its body in a perpetual state of rage and agony, shrouded in a constant cloud of Dragon energy." Oceaniz explained as the hypotheses were on the left and right of the screen, before coming together in the center to become a close up picture of a Savage Deviljho looking back furiously at whoever took the picture.
Literally everyone now hid behind the couch at the sight of the creature with the exception of Katana. Although, even she was now snuggled close to Glacies and Cerberus. "Who would take that picture instead of running!?" Jaune demanded.
"Clearly, someone who doesn't value their life!" Coco snapped.
"I honestly couldn't tell that monster apart from a Grimm in that moment. It might have been even scarier." Velvet said.
"The Savage Deviljho is the apex of aggression and violence, lashing out at anything and everything it sees. It's not about food anymore. This Variant will still eat, but it will attack and fight regardless of its necessity, as if to rage one last time in a world that condemned it to mind-shattering suffering. Its fury burns and burns until its reserves run dry and the Deviljho is granted death at last." Oceaniz said almost poetically as one more picture of a Deviljho about to chomp down on a hunter was shown. "Even in the life of this nigh-on unstoppable beast, this devourer of worlds, nature's touch and balance is present. Through evolutionary miracles and mishaps, this beast became the most formidable Brute Wyvern ever recorded. However, it exists at the price of pain, anguish and insanity." He went on as an overhead view of a forest was shown.
"It's a monster, but it still doesn't deserve that..." Pyrrha said sadly.
"No. It's just like Grimclaw, just a victim of its circumstances." Jaune noted.
"While it's not like individual Deviljho can help it, they need to evolve to do something about that metabolism." Neo stated.
"But even after a life of strife and agony, this violent predator lays down peacefully, as all living beings must one day do as well. And as it lays, it becomes the soil of the next generation, the next stage of the circle of life. The organism HE preyed upon feed on the very ground it lays. Thus, the balance of nature rules supreme, always and forever..." Oceaniz finished on a beautiful, poetic note.
"For a monster like that, he gave it a pretty beautiful send-off." Qrow said.
"Agreed. It proves ultimately it is a part of nature, still more so than the Grimm, which simply vanish after they're killed and don't leave behind anything for the next generation." Glynda admitted.
"Indeed. If there was a way to keep them consistently fed, perhaps they wouldn't be as terrifying as they are." Ozpin theorized.
"Right. Katana, how do you handle them in your universe?" Weiss asked. Rather than responding, Katana simply snapped her fingers and a literally mountain of human-sized steaks rained down from the sky, landing behind her, enough to even bury the beast in question. "Oh, well how convenient for you that you can make a mountain of steaks! What about the rest of us!?" Weiss demanded.
"Now I think you understand while Deviljho is mentioned so much. Cause if even one appeared on Remnant, there's no telling how many huntsmen and huntresses will die before it's finally slain. Cause while the elder dragons are forces of nature, they mostly keep to themselves and most of the time don't bother humans. But if a Deviljho has you in it's sights, there no point in running away cause it will NEVER stop chasing and fighting you until you die, or it dies. That's why even elder dragons avoid fighting them. Cause Deviljho's will literally fight to the death to get their meals." Katana explained, before looking to the invincible girl. "So Pyrrha, still think think Deviljho isn't that bad?" She asked.
Pyrrha just sheepishly sank into her seat, while a terrified Ruby held her knees to her chest and rocked herself at the scary thought of fighting a Deviljho. "Fighting Grimm is always risky, but fighting that monstrosity is suicide!" Winter declared fearfully. [3]
"I kind of feel bad for it, though. It doesn't want to be evil or mean. It's just hungry, then whenever you hurt it to much, it goes into a mode that makes it hurt even more. I couldn't imagine living like that." Ruby said sadly.
"You're too good for this world, little Rose." Cinder said, running her hand through Ruby's hair.
"So, what's next?" Neo asked.
"Hm... Good question. Well, for now, let's stick to monsters you guys will get when we finally see all of the ones for you. So... Ruby, why don't you pick who we'll see next, then they'll pick then next person and so on. Sound good?" Katana suggested.
"I like that idea." Ruby said, everyone agreeing. The young rose thought for a moment, before looking to her orange-haired robot friend. "Let's see Penny's next." She declared.
"Thank you, Ruby! I am most excited about seeing what form of creature I shall be partnered with in the future. I hope it's one that can fly and keep up with me and my jet boosters." Penny stated.
"Oh, I'm sure it can keep up with you. The question is if you'll be able to keep up with... Valstrax." Katana declared, playing the next video.
A/N: Thank you for reading! As always, I hope you enjoyed.
[1] It's impossible to tell what exactly that creature was, so I called it a crocodilian, which refers to all forms of alligators, crocodiles, caimans, etc., so don't tell me I'm wrong and to do more research.
[2] Someone please give me some more adjectives other than horror, terror and shock. I feel like I use those too much.
[3] This is something me and qazse couldn't agree on. Deviljho will always be a huge threat, no matter who you are, but I believe the Remnant crew could still take them, while qazse thinks that it would still take a large group of huntsmen at least on Qrow's level to bring even one down and it would still result in many casualties. What do you think? Be sure to say what you think in the reviews. NICELY, please!