Arc 3 - Chapter 8 - The Public Domain

It was due to simple reflex that Jaune attempted to cast Bulwark as he turned around and saw the Jackalope Grimm bounding toward him. It's beady red eyes burning with fury, hooves pounding across the cement, giant black horns pointed square at him, eager to gore him like a fish on a butcher's block. The natural expectation, then, was for the partial shield to prevent such a gruesome fate, and send the blood-mad beast crashing through a wall.

Instead, a strange white sword burst from Jaune's hand, crossed the distance between it's target in a flash of light, and buried itself into the Jackalope's head, deep as the pommel. The Grimm tumbled forwards, body flopping over and over like a puppet with its strings cut.

Jaune might have wished for the blade to come back, but there was no need when there were a dozen more to hand.

It was hard to say if the swords had wills of their own, or simply catered to his basic survival instinct, either way the shining blades circled in rapid formation around him like a squad of knights protecting their king. Knights of a Round Table, like in those dumb stories he'd read as a child. That was as good a name as any. And one should take such help as is offered.

Jaune darted at the next Jackalope just as it prepared to charge. Called upon Bulwark like before, and one of the blades buried into its front hoof, nailing it to the ground. Jaune crossed the remaining distance in a single bound, and split the beast's head with an abduction overhead ax cut.

A handful more, spawning from the darkness of the alleys and gutters, leaping from the black buildings, bleating with rage. As one, they converged upon him.

They did not know what it really meant to be angry.

Jaune roared himself as he dashed one in the face with the butt of his ax. Once, twice, then on the third, he spun the ax around and buried the blade into its face. One of its brothers, thirsty for vengeance, took that opportunity to leap at him, and Jaune hurled the limp body of his kill at it, leaving them crashing in a heap.

Jaune let out a snort through his nose as he hacked into the head of the next one, then the next, then doubled back and sent three of the Round Table swords to intercept another. It was… surprisingly easy. Strangely natural.

The back of his neck crawled. Jaune raised the ax high and caught another Grimm, which had likely descended on him from one of the buildings, banking on the sneak attack. Stupid animal. Jaune shattered the ground and he slammed his attacker into it. It's painted screech teased a smirk onto his lips. Jaune ripped the blade down from its jaw and through its stomach into one swift motion, for now he was the butcher and this demon of hell was the little fish.

More.

He felt them coming. He heard them. Saw them. But for now, Jaune felt no fear. Only… something else.

Jaune rushed the next group without further thought. Once lashed its horns at him, but Jaune shattered them with a backhand of his ax, the shards spraying another Jackalope in the face and causing it to fall. Jaune ran the neutered one through the eye with one of the swords, ripped it free, then buried it deep into the skull of the felled one. Another darted right to left as it charged, convinced that it might somehow confuse him. Jaune played ball, throwing a swipe just as it dodged to the right. The foolish beast seized the moment, and as such didn't see the two swords sweep under and clip its legs right at the knees. Jaune felt no pity as he drove two brutal blows into its head.

More.

Again they came and again they were repelled. Jaune's ax feasted well and so did he. Limbs flew, bones cracked, good slayed evil, and with as much mercy as evil deserved.

Jaune's axe shattered a Jackalope Grimm's horns, sent shards of bone flying, but did not stop there. It went on to bite clean through the monster's head, silencing its demonic screech. Jaune booted it in the chest and sent it tumbling away, its lifeless body crashing into one of its brothers which had been ready to spring.

More!

He was in a frenzy. No longer thinking.

"Come on!" Jaune shouted, driving a vicious blow into another Jackalope's head, then another, and another, and another.

He felt like a storm. A vicious, angry tornado which destroyed everything in its path and did not give a damn for the morality of it. Jaune's holy blades danced to his tune. Like lightning, they struck down every threat to their king. This was what he'd needed. This was the release he'd been craving. Something to hit without hurting anyone. It was all Jaune could ever want.

But all things come to an end eventually.

In this case, what had seemed a well of endlessly spawning of Grimm had, seemingly in an instant, finally run dry. And all that remained were the mangled corpses of his enemies, fading into black wisps. Even Jaune's army of swords had begun to fade like flickering light bulbs, and only fully vanished when Jaune took a deep breath. The strain hit him all at once. He heaved like a carp, having to prop his hands on his knees as he attempted to stay upright, his forehead was moist with sweat. That had taken more out of him than he would've guessed. It certainly hadn't felt very draining while he used it.

Jaune squatted down and tried to steady his breathing. He had no idea why his powers had manifested like that. He certainly couldn't claim to have come up with it on his own. Maybe it had saved him now, but in a prolonged fight with stronger enemies, it was a death sentence to be left this wide open. This Blades of the Round Table technique would have to be a last resort.

After finding his strength again, Jaune stood and headed over to an abandoned car a short way down the road Looked like it had run off the lane a long time ago, now mattered with rust and wither, and its front bent around a fire hydrant, half pushed out of the ground. "It's safe." Jaune said, hoping like hell no Grimm had escaped his sight and gotten to them.

Thankfully, Blake and Pyrrha crawled out from behind the car, rattled and terrified both, and stared at him. A long moment stretched between them.

"What?" Jaune asked.

"Nothing." said Blake, then she looked at the ground. "I've just never heard you laugh before."

"I was laughing?"

Pyrrha nodded quickly, like a child answering their parents in the hopes of not getting into trouble. "A lot…" she said.

"That's, er…" Jaune really had no explanation for that. He certainly hadn't felt like he'd been laughing. What even was there to laugh about while fighting for your life? "Well, it doesn't matter. Are you hurt?"

They shook their heads no.

"Then we have to keep on. Let's get moving."

Pyrrha looked in no way relieved. She wrung her hands together, looking around at the derelict city like she was seeing ghosts. "Will there be more of those things?"

Jaune tried to calm her right then. The last thing he needed was for one of them to panic. Panic spreads like fire, his father used to tell him. "Maybe. But we're safe right now, okay? You have to stay calm."

Thankfully, instead of doing the exact opposite, Pyrrha tucked her lips, eyes wet with fear, and only let out a low whimper. Jaune supposed that was the best he could ask for.

Blake wore a brave enough face, but she was hugging her sides like she was trying to keep her guts from spilling out. Probably had imagined those Grimm doing that very thing. And they certainly would have. She wore her suspicion plain as far and aimed it squarely at him, perhaps trying to work out whether he was the inciter of their dilemma or their rescuer. But the correct answer is the former, for now. The jury's out on the latter.

Jaune looked around himself. At the vast sameness of the dark city, which had not seemed to change at all since they'd landed. Tall black buildings that seemed at first normal, but the longer he watched them, the more unsettled he felt. At times the structures looked like they were intended… while other times they looked like the headstones of a graveyard. Putting it like that, it was no wonder the girls were scared. Jaune was unsettled himself.

Then, a rather uncomfortable thought hit him. Could this be his heart world?

It made the most sense when you thought about it. Perhaps his key had recently manifested in the community center. It certainly had been the place he spent most of his time. It had become his place of comfort lately, a home away from home, which was all kinds of ironic. And how had he accidently dropped in? The same way Ruby had. What influence he'd caused in her world had affected her heart and forced her to dive. So… that had to mean there had been some kind of change in him, right? But what changed? And why?

He could explain dragging Pyrrha and Blake with him as some cruel rotten luck. Maybe it was possible to take someone with you by force when you dived. Though there was no certainty in that since Ruby had dived right in front of her sister and not taken her along. So what the hell was going on?

Jaune's shoulders slumped as he let out a sigh. There were only ever more questions in this Hunter business. He was starting to wonder if he should just take the advice he gave Blake. To be glad not to know.

"Jaune?"

Jaune was roused from his internal musings, back to the girls, both waiting on him. The three of them jumped at the sound of a faraway roar. The same one which made Jaune's spine tremble with the horrible consideration of whatever demon making it could be. But like he'd said, better not to know.

"Let's get a move on," Jaune said, ushering them with him, and toward the long dark street, barely lit by weak moonlight. "And stay close."

Jaune had never seen water so still. Not since Neptune's heart world. It didn't look real somehow, like that massive distance of sea was actually just a big dark flatland of nothing. Jaune didn't like water much at all, but moving water, at least, was normal.

They'd come upon the downtown docks, and like the rest of the city, it was at once familiar and foreign, like a smell you couldn't quite place, yet still aroused nostalgia. There was no smell here though, not the ash of old cement nor the old salt of the bay. There were no sounds, no hiss of gentle waves, no cawing seagulls, no creaking ships. The air was empty and lifeless.

All that broke the monotony was the footfalls of Jaune, Blake, and Pyrrha, walking along the roadside pier, very little said between them. What even was there to say?

Blake had pulled ahead a good ten strides, and Jaune had a feeling it wasn't an accident. He watched her for a moment, arms wrapped around herself like it was freezing, head down, probably crying. He thought of going to her, but then what could he say? It'll all be alright? Jaune wasn't confident enough to promise that. Just think of your family? That'd only make it worse, really. Jaune was trying not to think of his own family right now.

It wasn't lost on him, the cruel karma of this dilemma. This was basically what he'd put his aunt through. That journey through Qrow's heart, which should have been straightforward and quickly done, had become unnecessarily complicated thanks specifically to his selfishness. Aunt Peach had been forced to protect him, Neptune, and Ruby at all times. Jaune remembered every day since then, how he'd nearly gotten family and friends killed over one stupid decision.

Jaune looked across at Pyrrha, who stared out toward the still waters as she walked. Her and Blake both. Their lives were in his hands. His responsibility. If they were killed, it would be on him and no other.

He frowned resolutely and decided it best to say something. "Er, hey,"

Pyrrha turned to him. "What is it?"

"Nothing. I mean, well, I promise to get you home, okay? That's what I wanted to say."

Pyrrha rubbed her arm anxiously. "I'm scared."

"Me too. But I won't let anything hurt you. You're going home, no matter what. I'll make it happen."

She stared for a moment. "Then… Do you know what happened? Do you know where we are?"

The most he had were theories, and every one of them would take far too long to explain. All he needed was for Pyrrha to believe that she was safe, even if it wasn't true for certain. "I do. But I can't tell you. It'll only put you in more danger."

"More danger?"

"The… things here? The monsters? They're the kind that are simple enough to defeat. It won't be hard for me to protect you from them."

Pyrrha swallowed. He only just now noticed her long neck. Looked very sensitive. Smooth. "Then, there are worse ones?"

Jaune sighed. "Like I said, it's better that you don't know."

She nodded weakly. "So what are you? A superhero?"

"If that helps, sure."

She gave a feeble smile. Quite as if she was putting all her effort into it, but didn't have the strength to complete the task. He eyed her lips, strangely. Plump. A bit wet after she licked them anxiously. "Forgive me. You're not the kind of hero I would've imagined."

Jaune tried to match that weak smile, but didn't even get as far as Pyrrha had, and simply shrugged. "I have a talent for being a disappointment."

Pyrrha managed a bit of a giggle, and it felt kind of exhilarating to hear. He was so used to her ice cold demeanor that the idea that she could laugh seemed out of the realm of possibility. In the end, thankfully, she turned out to be more human than robot. "Okay," she said. "Then, I guess I trust you. You swear you can get us out of… this place?"

Jaune had no idea what he was doing, but it was best to keep Pyrrha calm. "I've got a plan. It just might take some time."

Pyrrha nodded, then went back to staring at the sea. She stopped suddenly, still as a statue, just watching the black horizon, punctured only by the shattered visage of a weak-lighted moon. "I feel…" she trailed off.

Jaune followed her gaze to see what she was looking at, but didn't find anything. "Feel what?"

"Like I've seen this before." A pause. "Like, I've been here before."

"It looks like the docks in downtown Vale. That's probably why you remember it."

"I've never been there. Downtown."

Jaune blinked out at the water, considering it for a long moment. A tingle in the back of his mind began to stir, like an old memory was starting to awaken. Jaune shook it off. Clearly, this was an aspect of the heart world, or some power of an unknown Grimm. Yes, that had to be it. "You saw it on the news then. Doesn't matter. We have to go, Pyrrha."

She lingered for just a moment longer, then allowed herself to be guided away. Her eyes found him again, dark in the low light, yet the green of her iris managed to glow ever so faintly. Strangely enchanting. She spoke low, as if the secret she was about to trust him with would invite disaster should anyone else overhear. "Can I hold your hand?"

He wasn't sure if it was her words or how her voice sounded, but Jaune found himself lost for words. His brain overheated. When he finally caught up, all he could get out was, "Huh?"

"It's fine," said Pyrrha as she began to pace ahead. "Forget it."

"No, wait!" Jaune called, perhaps a little loudly, startling the girl into facing him. Damn, well now he had to give her an answer, and after she had just let the topic go. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

There was no logical reason to say no. The three of them were stuck in a dangerous alternate dimension with no certain way out, surrounded by monsters and unknowns, and unlikely to escape with their lives. It only made sense to want some measure of safety, if a small one.

And yet, Jaune hesitated. Ruby was at the front of his mind. She was the one he held hands with, she was the one person who reserved that right. If he held hands with some random girl he did not know, what would that look like? He could never betray her like that. Never.

Then came the sneaky thought that Ruby was not there and so wouldn't see it, so surely it was fine. Right? Would he want to see Ruby holding hands with Roy? Hell no. But then, he didn't much enjoy seeing them hug, either. And he saw that often enough. At least in Pyrrha's case, he'd be doing it for a good reason. A moral reason. He was trying to save her life. Holding her hand would keep her calm, thus key to saving her life. He didn't want to, not at all. He simply had to. It was the right thing to do.

The right thing…

"You can hold my arm. If you want." Jaune managed to stutter out, "I'll need my hands free in case, you know, something happens."

Pyrrha watched him for a moment, seeming to search him for a lie. Jaune had to keep from swallowing. Finally, she clasped her hands in front of her and continued on, head down. Her voice could not have come out more dejected. "It's okay. Nevermind."

Uncertain if he had lifted Pyrrha's spirits or brutally shot her down, Jaune chose to hold off on talking to Blake for a time, while he thought about the right words to say. His father had always told him to think before speaking, and that went double when talking to a woman. Call her beautiful and she'll love you for a day. Call her ugly and she'll hate you forever. Compared to that, promising to get them all back home alive would be a cakewalk. Hopefully.

They were in what looked like this alternate Vale's version of the industrial district. The roads were spacious, but one would not glean so from a single look. From atop their vantage point on one of the smaller buildings, the road was a sea of cars with small patches of road poking through on occasion, while chains of black buildings loomed like shadows amongst the mess.

Pyrrha had taken a moment to be alone, and Jaune saw her now, sitting on a generator box, her forehead bowed onto her clasped hands. It looked like she was praying, and he had to wonder whether that was a normal thing or her very first time. He thought grimly about how hopeless you had to feel if God was your only way out.

Blake probably wasn't praying, but he supposed it was only a matter of time. She stood leaning over the balustrade, staring out at the empty city in silence. No better time than now. So Jaune approached her and trusted to luck.

"Hey." He began, "It's a dumb question, I know, but are you okay?"

Blake glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "If okay means alive, then yes."

"I'm sorry. This isn't fair on you or Pyrrha. But we're all going home, I'll make sure of it."

Blake turned to him with a sudden fierce look, arms crossed. "Tell me what's going on here, Jaune."

Jaune lowered his head. "I can't. All you need to know is that you'll be out soon, okay?"

"And then what? Just go on with life? Act like none of this ever happened?"

Jaune had been trying not to think of that part yet, but Blake was exactly right. This was not something she or Pyrrha could ever speak about. Not to anyone, but especially him. It would be best to treat it all like a very bad dream. Of course, how could he explain that without sounding completely untrustworthy? "Worry about that later. What's more important is getting us all home."

Blake hissed under her breath. "Did you do this to us?"

Jaune flinched. "What? No! Why would you think that?"

"I heard you say something about taking us with you. I heard you say it, Jaune."

Let it never be said that Jaune Arc is not the expert at digging one's own grave. "It's too much to explain, okay? Once we're home, you won't have to worry about it anymore."

"Why can't you tell me anything?"

"You'll be in more danger if you know. Just trust me."

Blake stared at him for a long, awkward moment. "What if you can't?"

"What?"

"What if you can't get us home?"

Jaune paused again. He had no idea what to say to that possibility. What if they were stuck here? The dive point had not worked when he tried to leave, and if this was his heart world, then he should have no problem leaving it. Unless there were things he didn't yet know, which seemed to always be the case.

"Let me handle it. It'll be okay, Blake. Just… hang in there."

Blake turned from him without another word and walked off to be alone. All Jaune could do was sigh.

Perhaps talking just wasn't his strong suit.

It looked like it might have once been a jewelry shop, what with all the old glass containers. Strangely there were no jewels behind the glass, despite very few things being broken into. Instead there seemed to be this old gray ash covering the inside, as if the jewels had disintegrated into worthless dust after a thousand years of stagnance. The air was of chalk and ash, like the air itself had been cremated.

It had a morbid feel to it, unfortunately. But it was one of the only buildings that was mostly undamaged. It would have to work for a hiding spot.

Jaune felt confident in concluding that the city was mostly empty, even of Grimm, strange as that was. So he picked a decent enough place for the girls to hide in and decided to venture further on his own. He would have preferred to keep them with him, but he could move faster on his own, and there were no Grimm nearby. He only hoped that he would return with good news. Or at least return.

"You're coming back?" asked Pyrrha, eyes wide with worry. Whether it was for his safety or her own, there was no telling.

"Promise." Jaune nodded, "Just don't go outside. And protect each other however you can. If those monsters show up, just sneak out the back and find a new hiding spot. I won't be gone long, so I'll find you." Jaune spoke a little louder to ensure Blake heard him. "Okay, Blake?"

She nodded, but didn't look at him.

Jaune rubbed the back of his neck. "Right, then I'll be back."

It was only after he was out of the area that Jaune pressed his forehead against the wall of an alley, blood thumping in his head. Blake's accusations rang through his head. Did you do this to us? What if you can't get us home? What if we're stuck here forever? All questions he had no answers for, if indeed there was any answer besides a bad one.

Jaune wanted so badly to just punch the wall again and again until his hand broke. It wouldn't have been the first time. But even though he raised his fist to do it, he could only think about Adam's words. This is not the way. You must control your anger.

Jaune's lip trembled with the fear that he'd been holding back for the sake of the girls. If he couldn't resurface despite being at the dive point, then they truly might be trapped. They would be a case no different than those stories of unexplained disappearances. People of all kinds and ages vanishing out of nowhere, never to be seen again. Blake's and Pyrrha's families would be devastated. Jaune's family would be devastated. None of them ever know what happened to their children and siblings.

"What do I do?" Jaune threw his hands into his face. "What do I do?"

Had to stay calm. Breathe. Jaune blinked the wet out of his eyes, palmed his cheeks. There had to be a way. Think.

Maybe he could go back to the initial landing point and try diving again to see if maybe he simply could not consciously take others with him. That made sense. After all, Peach had pulled him into her world the first time, and perhaps only very skilled Hunters could do it. And if it worked, he could run straight to aunt Peach and get her help. Her off days were usually on the weekends, so she would be home, if only to sleep. Yes. Yes, that was the plan. It'd work for certain.

Jaune turned and made ready to sprint the whole way back, when he spotted something. What looked like a road sign, old and damaged, sticking up in the middle of the road in a way that was disarmingly unnatural. It served no purpose being in plain view like that. Except if whoever put it up wanted people to see it. Cautiously, Jaune got closer to inspect it. Kn He kneeled down to inspect it. Big bold black lettering was painted across the white across the plate.

Downtown Rescue Camp - Follow the Signs

Jaune felt his heart leap into his throat. A rescue camp? In a heart world?

What the hell was this place?

"Hey!"

Spooked into action, Jaune spun around and summoned his ax, pointing it at the source of the voice. Just a few strides away, a tall man stood with a mean-looking spear held pointed out toward him. They stared at each other.

The man looked at Jaune's weapon. "That's a nasty weapon you got there. How'd you get here, kid?"

Jaune thought for a moment about what to say. In this case, being honest and lying would not make a difference. "I was at a community center with…" best not to say he was with anyone yet. "And something happened. I fell. And there was all this space. And now I'm here."

There was no change in his expression. Meaning he had likely already guessed. Meaning he was aware of this phenomenon. But how aware? "This happened just now?"

"Couple of hours ago."

The man's eyes did not leave the ax. "Can't imagine you brought that in with you."

Jaune made sure to answer quickly. "I don't know what this is. I was scared. It just appeared in my hand."

"Looked to me like you weren't too confused about pulling it out on me." The man took a careful step closer. "Once chance. Who is your master? Who do you serve?"

"What? No one… I don't even know what's going on. I just want to go home."

The man glared at him down for a long, tense moment, his face switching back and forth between pity and suspicion, while Jaune tried his best to stay civil. He quietly let go a breath as the man then lifted his spear upright, shoulders relaxing. "Saw you looking at the sign there. I was coming out here to put some more up."

Jaune, however, didn't lower his weapon. Not yet. "It said something about… rescue?"

He nodded. "That's one of the Public Domain Rescue Camps. That's where we are now, in case you hadn't guessed. Built for all them who drop into places they have no business being in. Guess you're like the rest." Another step forward. "That's why you need to tell me the truth. I can see from your stance you ain't afraid. You're trained. You've seen this kind of thing before. Who's your master, kid? You know Doctor Oobleck?"

Jaune eyed him for a second, but finally lowered his weapon. "You know Oobleck? Then, you're with the Organization?"

"That I am. The doc is my captain."

It was weird to feel some measure of relief to see an Organization member, especially after the events of a month ago. But in this situation at least, he desperately needed their help. "I'm an apprentice. Under Victarine Peach? I'm here by accident. What's the Public Domain?"

The man's eyes widened. Considerably. "Victarine Peach, you say?"

Jaune paused for a moment. He got a weird feeling from how he'd spoken. "Er, yeah. But I know—"

Jaune swore he felt his brain crash to one side of his skull as his head exploded with pain. Down. He went down. The ground was cold and there was a ringing in his ears. Someone was talking.

"What the hell? Did you need to do that?" said the man.

A woman's voice came next. "He's one of 'em, ain't he?"

"He's a damn kid."

"Vel was a damn kid. Didn't change a thing however. Tie him up. Could be there's a lot he knows and the boss'll want to interrogate him. Now! Before the Grimm show up!"

"Wait…" Jaune got out raspily. But he was losing consciousness. His body felt weak. He felt someone bind his hands and feet, lift him, then sling him over their shoulder. Not a moment later, he felt his body bob up and down, and he realized they were taking him.

Taking him away from Pyrrha and Blake.

"Wait…" Jaune hissed, tiredness taking him over fast.

Had to get away. Had to find the girls and get them out. Had to…

But Jaune was powerless to do anything as his captors headed off to who knew where, with him in tow. Headed east. The opposite of west.

And opposite the rescue camp.

Got this done much faster than the last thankfully. This was a fun chapter to write and I'm excited for the next one. See you all then.

ISA