Jaune Arc blocked the incoming overhead strike with the flat end of his sword.
He bashed his shield into the exposed body of his opponent. At the exact moment his shield hit their chest he activated his emblem.
A dull purple light emanated from the center of his shield.
Combined with his initial shove and the repulsion his combatant was flung into the air all the way to the end of the arena.
His combatant, Pyrrha, landed on her knees and embedded her red shield onto the ground to stop her movement.
She was drenched in sweat and her breathing was labored.
He ran at her with a raised sword but stopped at the sound of the ring's buzzer.
He slowed down from a run to a jog, and to eventually a walk.
He reached Pyrrha and helped the amazonian woman up onto her feet.
He was in a similar state to her: drenched in sweat and with aura flashing around his body. Although because of his massive aura pool he wasn't sporting as much bruises as her.
She wrapped an arm around his shoulder and slumped into him.
He half-walked/half-carried her to a bench outside of the ring.
He plopped her on the bench and sat down next to her.
He grabbed bottles of water from a nearby duffel bag and took one for himself and handed one to her.
The bottle's cap came loose and he greedily drank for a few seconds. His body's rise up and down slowed.
He let out a satisfied sigh as the last gulp of water traveled down his throat.
He picked up his towel, a fuzzy golden white, and began to wipe himself down. As he did this he looked around at the training room.
It was one of Beacon's multi-team training rooms, and as the name suggests, it could hold several teams sparring at once.
The students mostly used them during class but they were also free to them during non-class hours.
He had convinced Ruby to take their respective teams out on a joint training session. She gladly accepted and both teams were now training together.
At the ring right next to where he and Pyrrha were training, Ren and Nora threw down.
The rings across from his team's held team RWBYwho were also hashing it out with one another.
Blake and Weiss were fighting one another in what looked more like a dance than a fight. While Yang and Ruby were as ferocious and loud as possible. They maniacally laughed as they ducked and weaved around one another while their weapons went off like fireworks.
He looked at Blake while she fought Weiss. She expertly dodged under the myriad of glyphs Weiss sent out at her. Shards of ice, lances of lightning, and plumes of flames didn't once touch her body.
She used her clones effectively as well, using them as shields or bouncing off of them for attacks.
Her black hair moved wildly as she lept in the air, it was as if the night sky had learned to dance.
Her once previous head bow was tied around her wrist and fluttered with every movement.
A white glyph appeared beneath her feet and an ice spike shot out. She leaped up and jumped along with the rise of the spike.
Using the icy pillar's momentum, she launched herself at Weiss and landed a decisive blow.
The buzzer on top of their arena rang.
He saw her help Weiss up and they both headed to the benches on their side.
She looked back at him and her amber eyes locked onto his blue.
He gave her a bright smile and a thumbs up. She smiled back and gave him a nod.
He kept on smiling for some reason. On his shoulder, Pyrrha stirred from her stupor.
She stretched her arms and her well-toned muscles flexed in front of his face. She grabbed her red and gold towel and began to dry herself as well.
A buzz sounded from Ren and Nora's ring. They came over to the bench and collapsed down on it.
Ren looked like he had been stuffed into a box with all of his limbs tangled up. Nora sat on top of him and her eyes were blank like a doll.
She let out a ghostly moan and said, "Waterrrr…."
Jaune let out a small chuckle at how tired she was before he handed her and Ren their water bottles.
He and his team were still training with that free for all style he had implemented a week or so back. It was tough and very draining but it created results.
He and his team had already improved by leaps and bounds.
They were much clever and had found many new uses for their semblances. They had also become much stronger in general.
He knew that he especially had improved a lot. He was much stronger now, he had a firm understanding of when/how to use his weapon upgrades, but he still didn't have a semblance.
Jaune was bummed out about that but, if people like Roman Torchwick were any indication, a huntsman could still be strong without a semblance.
Although he had begun to do research on how someone could unlock their semblance, he hadn't found anything conclusive yet.
Pyrrha finished toweling herself down and said, "Jaune, while I don't mind the training you really pushed us more than usual today. You even pushed team RWBY a lot."
She pointed over at team RWBY on their bench.
The two benches hugged the walls between their respective combat rings. The gap between the two rings on either side left each team a clear view of the other.
They looked much more worn out than they were. He had managed to convince Ruby, in addition to a joint team training exercise, to adopt his new free for all regime after he had shown her his own team training videos.
She gushed at how cool they looked before deciding to incorporate it into their own training today.
But the girls were not ready for how brutal it was and now they looked like they had run several continental marathons back to back.
He looked at Blake who pressed an ice pack to her arm and to Weiss's face who had her head slumped on the other girl's lap.
Blake's black aura pulsated over her body trying to heal all of her training injuries.
Ruby, while stretching in front of the bench, animatedly talked to Blake and the rest of her team and pointed at him across the room.
She was most likely talking about who gave her the idea for their brutal training.
Yang and Weiss, both cradling bruises, glared at him. He looked away from their gazes which he could feel burn into his head.
Blake looked impassively at him and then back to her teammates.
She wasn't surprised by the sudden change in training as he and she had actually discussed implementing it
"Jaune are you alright?" asked a concerned Pyrrha who titled her head in front of his face.
He jolted away from her and gave out a cough before responding, "Sorry I zoned out there… I just wanted to give us some extra har training today, for no real reason."
She nodded with a pleasant smile before standing up and doing her stretches. Nora turned around and faced him.
She sighed, "You sure ran us through the wringer. I feel like I won't be able to walk back to the dorms."
She tried to get up onto the floor but her legs shook beneath her and gave out. She landed back on the bench with a grunt.
"See!," the pink bombardier exclaimed.
He gave out a quick bark before patting her shoulder and saying, "Hey, don't worry I bet by the time we're all rested we'll be able to go back to the dorms. Hell, maybe because we all worked so hard today Ren can make us a large batch of pancakes as a treat."
He looked over at Ren who lay face down on the bench. The pink-streaked ninja simply responded with a grunt and a shakily put thumbs up.
Jaune looked back at Nora who seemed to regain all of her energy at an instant at the mention of pancakes.
She got off the bench and started to do her stretches with ferocity,
The increase in the training pressure was not just on a whim actually. The White Fang were going to attack the docks tonight and he wanted him and Blake to be prepared.
Getting the rest of team RWBY and JNPR roped into that was a nice add-on. If they got stronger they would be more likely to survive the future and help others survive as well.
His mind dwelled on the fact that there were a few more hours until the dock fight happened, which would give him his first real chance to really change the future.
He saw everyone else stretching except for Blake and he.
He got up and went to team RWBY's bench.
Blake and her ears perked up as he approached.
The other members of her team looked up at him as well.
"Do you want to get a spar in Blake?" he asked as casually as possible.
Their teams had already sparred with one another in various combinations but he wanted one last round with Blake
"Sure," she said, nodding.
She got up and followed him to the closest ring.
They went into it and took fighting stances across from one another.
Both of their teams finished with their stretches and surrounded their ring. He chucked the ring's combat controls to Pyrrha who caught it gracefully.
Right before she activated the light dust walls around the ring, he heard Nora shout, "Kick her ass in a friendly sort of way Jaune-Jaune!"
Ruby responded to her with a shout of her own, "Kick Vomit-Boys butt, Blake!"
A smirk manifested on his face and one on Blakes as well.
He said to her, "Looks like we have some pretty supportive fans."
"They're not gonna help you with this fight," she said playfully.
The light dust barriers went up around them creating total silence.
As far as they were concerned the outside world was gone and the only things left were them.
The buzzer counted down and on its last beep, he charged her.
He ran at her like a steel bull and right when he was in front of her he was about to bash his shield. At the last moment, she leaped into the air and aimed Gambol Shroud down.
Bullets pinged off from his light dust shield after he had activated the light dust projector and raised his shield to the sky. Right before she tried to flip away from him he activated the gravity function on his emblem.
It pulsed purple but instead of pushing her away, it pulled her towards him.
She was slammed into the shield by an invisible hand. Her face hit the light dust shield that was still protruding out.
He reversed his gravity hold on her which launched her back several feet.
Right before she landed on the ground she summoned an ice clone beneath her. She used the clone as a stepping stone to right herself back up before she landed on the ground.
He didn't give her a chance to recover and immediately ran in for an attack. She ducked under his blade, which gleamed hot with light dust, and she thrust her own blade at him.
She hit her mark and the blade skidded off of his golden aura. She quickly left his reach before he could swing again.
He grunted through the pain but didn't raise his shield in front of him for her next attack.
Instead, he swung his gravity-infused sword down on her.
She thrust in for her second attack but at the last minute weaved away when he didn't raise his shield.
It was too late for her to do anything as the gravity-infused sword came down on her shoulder.
The sword was many times its weight and it must have felt like Nora's hammer was coming down on her.
Blake's dark purple aura flared up and looked more black than usual.
She hissed and staggered on her feet; the hit took a considerable chick of her aura.
He went in for a horizontal slash but she rolled out of the way.
She moved some feet away from him and took heaving breaths. She cradled her shoulder for a few seconds before she let go of it and twisted it around.
He got into a defensive stance and waited for her next move. She stopped twisting her shoulder and suddenly ran at him.
He raised his shield with its light dust barriers gone to give him extra space to swing.
He ran towards her, ready to meet her in the middle, but she jumped towards him and released an ice clone at the same time.
Because of her jump and already built-up momentum the clone flew through the air right at him.
The clone blocked his vision and he instinctively swung at it.
Right as he swung his brain registered that it wasn't her.
Suddenly he felt a slashing pain travel down his back.
He twirled around but she had already dashed to his side and swung again taking another chink of aura with it.
He tried to swing at her again but she moved out of the way like a slippery black eel and slashed him again.
This went on for some time, she upped the ante and used her impressive agility to slip in and out of his guard while taking quick but deceive strikes.
Each strike did not have a lot of power but because there were so many of them his aura was being whittled down.
He was going to get beaten by a thousand cuts.
Even activating his light dust projector didn't do much to stop her as she used the light walls to fling herself into and out of his guard.
The gravity dust wouldn't do anything as she was too close to get a good swing in.
He staggered back on one particular cut and she advanced to land the finishing blow. But he willed his legs to move and surprised her with a sweep of her legs.
She fell back mildly shocked. He jumped on her and traded his sword for his fist.
A steel-plated fist impacted her chest but at the same time she fired off a few shots into his own.
The buzzer rang and he fell back onto the steel of the ring.
The light dust shield shut down and cheers erupted outside of the ring. He looked up with hazy eyes to see the aura monitor of the ring.
His aura was nearly halved while Blake's was a bit less than half.
He was picked up and felt someone hugging him and someone else patted him on the back.
He opened his eyes to see Nora's head of orange hair beneath him. Pyrrha stood off to the side patting him.
He looked over to see that Blake was also being swamped by her teammates. She looked over to him and they both shared sympathetic smiles.
Shrugging Nora off of him, he went to the center of the arena. His team followed and all 8 teens gathered around the center.
Ruby piped up, "That was so awesome! Jaune you were like- she did a slashing motion and an accompanying noise- and Blake was like-she made more slashing motions- So cool!"
They all gave out a laugh at Ruby's eager description of the fight.
Yang spoke up, "You two really went all out."
"That was an amazing fight. You've gotten so much stronger Jaune since you came to Beacon. We're all really proud of you," Pyrrha added, the rest of his teammates nodded their heads as well.
"But you were no slouch either Blake, that was some impressive fighting," Pyrrha said, tuning to Blake.
Blake nodded before turning to Jaune and saying, "You're much better than that guy who used to cower behind his shield at the beginning of the Beacon. Like Pyrrha said, you've grown a lot."
Jaune blushed before responding, "You were really good yourself Blake. I could barely land a swing on you during the fight. I think you've somehow gotten quicker since Beacon started."
"Ok, guys I think that's enough complimenting. I just wanna sleep," Nora groaned.
They all muttered musing of agreement and over to their benches and packed their things.
They all left the training room and headed towards the dorms.
As they walked out he found himself next to Blake.
She turned to him and said, "You know you really hit my boobs hard with that last punch."
"Should I have asked first?" he asked playfully.
"No nothing like that. But if you really wanted to touch them all you had to do was ask. You didn't have to be so crass about it," she said, giving a playful smirk.
He let out a chuckle with some pink dusting his cheeks.
Inside the dorm room, Jaune refreshed himself and took a quick power nap.
After that, he and Ren did a very long aura meditation session.
This helped his aura heal his body more acutely which resulted in him feeling like he hadn't just gone through hellish training an hour or so ago.
He knew that Blake was doing the same so they would both be at their physical best for the dock fight.
He quickly finished his homework and hung around with his teammates until it got dark.
The sun went down and he left the dorm on the excuse of going to the library.
He walked towards it before he took a sharp turn and headed outside of the school.
In the courtyard, he walked over to airship docks in his combat gear.
It wasn't suspicious as this was a combat school and people wore their combat gear all the time.
He spotted Blake waiting near a terminal and jogged over. She also wore her combat gear.
They made some idle chatter while they waited for the bullhead to arrive but he knew that nothing meaningful was really exchanged.
He was looking for a distraction from the building sense of both anxiousness and excitement in his chest.
It was a perplexing feeling like there was a cyclone and a sandstorm trying to gain dominance of his heart.
She must have felt the same thing if her tapping feet yet grim face was any indication.
A few minutes of waiting in the chilly air later, the bullhead touched down.
They both got on and found empty seats in the back. She sat next to the window and he sat right next to her.
The bullhead took off with a thump and they flew towards Vale.
A short ride later they arrived at Vale and headed towards the docks. As they walked the moon rose higher and higher and cast a net of white light on the emerald city.
The closer they got to the docks the fewer people they saw and the quieter it got.
They reached a point where they barely saw anyone at all and it was almost pitch black.
It was unnerving seeing the city streets so quiet. He missed the usually deafening bustle of the main metropolis.
The quiet made him feel like he was traveling through the stomach of an ancient sleeping beast.
A few blocks away from the docks Blake pulled him into an alleyway.
They went further into it before she stopped and turned around.
She looked at the doors and visible windows indented in the dirty brick walls of the alleyway. The doors were bolted closed and the windows were blotted out.
Looking assured, she took out a thick black box from the inside of her white vest.
"What's that?" he whispered looking down at the sleek box.
"Some help," she responded, opening its lid.
The box was stuffed with thick black folded-up pieces of clothing. She took one out and handed it to him.
He unfolded it to see a thick mask, with mouth and eye holes, that if he put on would cover his entire head. There were also some straps and a serial number printed on its side.
She took out a wider piece of folded cloth, which was also midnight black, and handed it to him.
He unfurled the new cloth which turned out to be a long cloak.
It was simple in design made out of smooth fabric that felt elastic but not protective. There were black pins on the ends of its collar which could barely be made out against the already black fabric.
She also took out two pairs of black gloves and handed one pair to him,
"What's all this?" he asked, looking over the equipment.
"It's a military balaclava, cloak, and some gloves. I borrowed them from one of the many Fang depot's spread around Vale," she responded while putting on the gear
She helped him put on the headgear and cloak.
They outfitted themselves and he looked at each of them. He thought that they looked ridiculous, but he would rather be safe from identification than worry about fashion.
The cloak felt loose and would give him mobility although the balaclava felt suffocating, especially around his neck. It was like a big raven had attached to the back of his head and had wrapped its inky feathers over his face.
He shelved his uncomfortableness and focused on what they had to do.
They did one last check before he jogged with Blake over the last few blocks.
They reached the metal gate around the docks and quickly climbed over it.
Barbed wire was no match for aura after all.
Blake led him over to an old but very large warehouse. They found a ladder on the building's side and climbed up.
He climbed on his tip-toes so he wouldn't make a noise. The ladder still let out a rusty creak under him but for Blake, it was as if she was simply gliding up the ladder.
She reached the roof first and she put down a hand. He grabbed onto it and hauled himself up for the last few rungs.
She moved behind a vent and he crouch-walked right behind. The vent allowed them to have an almost perfect view of the entire docks while keeping most of their bodies hidden.
The entire shipyard was a field of gray concrete. The ocean was right next to it and the smell of salt crept into his nose. Around the yard, large metal warehouses stood like a sentry of metal giants.
Cargo Boxes of all colors were stacked in neat areas throughout the docks. Large cargo ships sat still on the water near the docking bays.
He spotted a section of cargo boxes that were exclusively filled with cargo stamped with the SDC logo or Schnee snowflake.
Strewn forklifts, trucks, and other machinery littered the yard. There wasn't a soul in sight.
Did Roman pay off the dockworkers? Or was it just too late at night? Jaune could only guess so he instead looked down around for anything.
Thankfully their scrolls had extreme zooms, so he was able to look over the yard with a fine eye. He was grateful for the wonders of technology.
He did have to dim down his scroll so it wouldn't stand out in the otherwise pitch-black night.
The clouds had rolled over the sky and the once full moon was now concealed.
Blake looked around for the approach of the White Fang and Roman he looked for Qrow's crow form and Penny.
If she approached they were supposed to go down there and make sure that she left the docks.
Hopefully, the aloof girl would listen to them and not interfere.
A considerable amount of time passed with him looking out his scroll. He let out a quiet yawn. At that exact moment, a low thrumming noise began to emerge from the sea.
He looked forward to the murky waved and slowly the sound got louder and louder.
Bullheads came into view over the horizon, their loud engines even so far away flooded the air. He quickly ducked lower behind the vent and Blake did the same.
Her amber eyes sparkled a bit before she put up her scroll on the vent. He did the same which allowed him to see the approaching squadron of bullheads without having to put his head up.
The closer the bullheads got the easier they were able to identify with the zoom. They were dirty steel things with scratches and dents all over them.
Crude White Fang logos were painted over both Atlas and Vale emblems.
Leading the front of the procession of bullheads was one that looked to be right out of the factory. As it got closer its cockpit window came into focus on his scroll.
Inside was Roman Torichwick talking to the pilot of the bullhead. Torchwick's bowler hat, coat, and ginger hair stood out like a Beowolf among a pack of sheep.
He couldn't hear what the man was saying as their scrolls were not nearly as advanced to have directional hearing but he could imagine it was probably something smug.
The roar of the bullheads got even louder until they hovered right above the docks.
Blake pushed him down and their cloaks made them undetectable on the black-colored roof from the night sky.
The roar of the bullheads got closer but also got lower and lower until they stopped entirely. She let go of her hand on his back and allowed him to get up.
He sat up and saw that all the bullheads landed in oddly empty lots.
Most of the dock was filled up by shipping containers or scattered equipment while the spots the bullheads landed on were strangely empty.
Roman must have used his connections in the underworld to make sure the docks were deserted today and prepared for the Fang's arrival. He must have also used his connections to keep Vale airspace and the police quiet as well.
Those favors must not have come cheap. Did Cinder really have such a grip on Roman that he went to any extreme to please her? It was a question for another day as the man himself got off his bullhead.
He walked side by side with the same pilot from before.
He spoke loudly but Jaune still couldn't make out what he said from so far away.
He did point at the shipping containers and started to direct the other White Fang. The pilot next to him jotted down on a clipboard while he spoke.
Several of the White Fang moved to the SDC shipping containers with pliers and crowbars.
They pried open the containers which let out loud steel groans as they were open. They creaked like old caskets in a musty vault. They got inside the containers and, in pairs, carried out an assortment of crates all with the SDC logo stamped on them.
The crates were shuffled into the bullheads all the while Roman shouted at the White Fang and overall looked agitated.
Jaune looked over at Blake and she had a hard glare in her eyes.
He whispered to her, "Are you alright?"
She meekly nodded before turning to him and saying, "It's just… The videos really are true. The White Fang are here and working with Roman. I had this tiny little hope in my heart that the videos were wrong and that the White Fang wouldn't stoop down to working with Roman and stealing dust but it looks like I'm wrong. What happened to the people I gave my life to?"
She looked away and back at the Fang who continued to pillage the containers full of their dust.
He felt empathy bubble up for Blake. She gave a majority of her life for a cause that was hijacked by the wrong people but she didn't get off the wagon soon enough.
He combed his thoughts and, putting a hand on her shoulder, said the best thing he thought was right, "That White Fang is gone, Blake. But that doesn't mean the ideas the White Fang were fighting are too. After we fix all this and prevent the fall, you can rebuild the White Fang into something better. Something more than the monster it's become. And I'll help you if you want."
She looked back at him, slightly stunned at his words. Suddenly her face shifted into one of pure determination.
"Thanks, Jaune," she said.
He simply nodded and looked back down at the operation.
The White Fang had gone through a considerable amount of containers in the SDC section of the docks.
As Roman passed by some opening up a few containers a White Fang member jogged up to him.
They pointed over to a green and black cargo container that was in the middle of some other containers but not next to them.
Roman and the grunt went over to it and the grunt pointed to the side of the container and spoke to the thief.
Jaune noted that the container did not have the SDC snowflake or lettering logo as all the other cargo containers in that section. He pointed this out to Blake.
He stared intently as Roman just shrugged at the Grunt's concern and told him something. He spun around and began to walk away at the exact moment the grunt got another member to help him open the door.
The other member came and, using two crowbars, they opened the door which let out a giant metal heave.
Suddenly a black shape emerged out of the doors at a breakneck speed. The figure pushed past the grunts away with such ease and force that the grunts were knocked into the parallel containers.
Their unconscious bodies left indents in the metal as they slid down.
The figure rumbled on and straight into the back of Roman who didn't have time to react.
He was punted to the ground with his orange aura flaring brightly. The figure whose tattered red cape billowed in the wind slashed at Roman while he was down.
All around the yards, the doors of unmarked containers flew open and police in SWAT armor swarmed out. Their thick black body armor made them look like dark nights. They carried sophisticated rifles which were quickly aimed at the White Fang.
Like black ants swarming out of a colony's many entrances, an almost mind-boggling amount of police filled the yard.
The White Fang were cornered on all sides and most immediately dropped their clunky assault rifles. Jaune heard some gunfire further inside the sea of SWAT members but they were quickly snuffed out.
It looked like the Council didn't spare a single penny on stopping the White Fang tonight.
He was simply astounded and judging by Blake's eyes she was too. He had never truly seen an organized sting operation led by a huntsman with full support.
It looked straight out of a book.
Roman somehow managed to push Qrow off of his back with his Cane and got up.
Qrow backed away from him and stared at him with a raised brow.
Roman made a show of dusting himself off, his pumpkin-colored aura flashed violently around his body.
Around them, a circle of police had formed a perimeter and aimed their guns right at the center, at Roman.
Tactical flashlights on the ends of their assault rifles shone like the eyes of some great eldritch beast. They bathed Roman in white light on all sides.
He simply looked around the circle with a blank expression. He dropped his cane and simply raised his arms up with a grin.
He said something to Qrow who was handed a pair of cuffs by a police officer next to him. Qrow slowly walked up to Roman as Roman kept on babbling.
Jaune noticed on his zoomed-in scroll that Roman kept taking subtle glances towards the fence line around the yards. Specifically, the part of the fence right behind the warehouse he and Balke were staking out on.
HE looked back and saw that the fence gave way to a line of trees and behind that, he could hear the bustle of the highway.
Was Roman waiting for Neo to show up and save him?
Qrow cuffed Roman and shoved him into one of the many squadrons of police vans that had shown up.
The police vehicles lit up the entire yard in blues and reds. Jaune heard the screech of sirens off in the distance, presumably, other police cars coming.
The White Fang were also being loaded into the vans grumbling and shouting at the officers.
No White Fang were put into Roman's own van which was actually an armored car.
Qrow pushed Roman into the back of the truck and followed in behind. He closed the door behind him. A police officer got into the front of the truck but the truck did not move.
The other police milled about talking to one another while others taped off the area.
The evidence team arrived and started to fill the area with the flash of scroll lights.
Suddenly Blake tapped his shoulder and he turned to her.
She pointed over the steel link fence around the dockyard. He squinted over there and looked at the treeline right behind it.
It took his eyes a few seconds to realize that there was a shade of pink hiding among the brown tree trunks. Suddenly the pink moved and started a beeline for the fence.
Out of the trees, Neo Politan ran out with her umbrella clipped to her side. She acrobatically jumped over the steel fence which was a considerable amount taller than her.
She landed on the other side on her toes and looked around. She didn't look up; they still hid behind the edge of the roof, careful not to be seen.
Jaune waited with bated breath before he got up with Blake. They crawled over to the roof's edge and looked over it.
Neo ran to the center of where all the police were gathered. Halfway through the gap. between the warehouse they were stationed on and the warehouse across from theirs, she stopped.
In the darkness, a bright swarm of pink shards weaved through her body until she was completely invisible. The sound of twinkling glass being crunched filled up the block below.
She started to run again and he and Blake quickly went over to the other end of the roof.
"We have to stop her before she gets to Roman," Blake mused as her scroll focused on the trail of pebbles being kicked up by invisible feet.
"I think I have an idea," Jaune responded.
Before she could respond he took a few steps back and ran forward. He jumped off the roof and onto the streets below.
He felt his heart rise in his chest and the same feeling of freedom from his initiation launch came back to him, minus the fear of becoming a red splat on the ground.
Putting his shield in front of him, he moved all his aura to the front of his body and took a deep breath. Hopefully, all the landing strategy practice he had been putting in with his shield upgrade and the overall new training he had done with his team would pay off now.
Air whizzed by his ear and, like a golden comet, he struck Neo.
She glanced up and her eyes opened in shock.
He felt his shield ram into the short woman. The shield took most of the shock but his aura did flare up momentarily and his arm buckled.
She was forced onto the ground and her illusion instantly shattered into tiny pink motes of light.
At that exact moment, he activated his gravity dust emblem.
His shield crunched into her and pushed her further into the ground. He imagined that she felt the weight of a bullhead on top of her.
She was pushed with such force that she made a small crater.
The impact created a small boom.
She croaked out a scream that sounded like a creature from the deep depths.
He quickly got up and saw that her pink aura completely cocooned her body. Unlike the usual watery pattern, her aura was a bright pink neon skin that enveloped every part of her, trying to heal her.
He didn't let her aura do its work and instead lunged at her with his weapon. She was bent over unnaturally and meekly tried to slide out her umbrella blade.
His sword ground against her blade which she had just managed to get out in time.
Their blades flew past one another and she pierced into his cheek and ground against his golden aura.
But his sword found purchase in her chest and he sliced hard.
She grunted before stepping back. Her aura was now darker and he could see through it.
She was bleeding heavily from her nose and her eyes were rimmed red. Her aura shifted from a cocoon around her entire body to just rolling around on her back.
She stood hunched over and had a hand on her side. Even with aura, he could tell that his impact broke something.
He ran straight for her and she lunged at him. But she didn't get the chance to close the distance as a hand came up behind her and locked her by her neck.
A blade emerged from the dark like death's hand and sliced into her throat. Gambol Shroud ground against her pink aura which haloed around her neck.
Neo let out another croaking scream that was barely above a whisper.
Blake pushed her into Jaune with her foot and he swung again.
They both started to fight the pink assassin.
But it wasn't so much a fight but a slaughter.
Neo stood no chance against both Jaune and Blake working in tandem after their initial devastating blows.
Jaune imagined that a huntsman fight would be grander or would have more honor, maybe one would even look like a Beacon sparring match. But this fight wasn't any of that.
He and Blake took no mercy on Neo knowing that she was one of the direct contributors of the fall. They relentlessly slashed into her already broken body and didn't give her the chance to fight back.
Neo meanwhile used every single dirty move from biting them or stabbing their eyes but that didn't help against their full auras.
In two minutes her aura broke just as Jaune's sword slammed down on her back.
She crumpled onto the ground instantly and a nasty bloody gash appeared on the back of her white coat. Blood pooled from the wound and onto the concrete below.
Counting his beginning stunt up until the end of the fight, the entire confrontation had been about only 3 minutes.
He heaved and out felt the adrenaline slow its run throughout his body. He leaned against the brick wall and wiped a sweat-covered forehead.
He looked over to Blake and saw that underneath her cloak she was also in a similar state.
Neo still lay on the ground, her chest rose heavily and her back still bled.
Blake went up to the body while he still leaned against the wall with a clear view of Neo.
He asked Blake, "What should we do about her?"
Right at that exact moment, Neo leaped up at Blake with her umbrella rapier still clutched in her hand.
Like a cornered feral animal she snarled as her blade flew at Blake's stomach.
Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as Jaune watched Neo's blade streak towards Blake's stomach.
The blade tip moved like a silver hawk and the tip found purchase into Blake's midriff. Still, in his slow-motion view, he could see the blade tip grind against her purple aura before it seemingly went through it like jelly.
At that exact moment, he remembered a lesson Ren taught him about aura. Someone's aura was always activated even when they were not actively using it.
But during a fight huntsmen will push aura to certain parts of their body to make that part stronger or to make it more defensible from an attack.
The passive aura, while strong, can't defend against certain attacks and could actually be bypassed by strong attacks.
Neo's blade was just sharp and piercing enough that it could bypass Blake's passive aura.
Right as her blade went through Blakes aura some primal part of his brain switched on.
Faster than he could even comprehend, he took out the standard-issue Atlas pistol Ruby had given him, from a side holster, and shot Neo in the head.
The gun let out a bark that sounded like a beowolf's howl. It flew straight through the side of her head and out the other end in a splatter of blood.
Neo dropped to the side instantly; her blade clattered to the ground from a loose lip. Her face was blank and expressionless as all the muscles in her body relaxed in the embrace of death.
He stood still like a statue for a second before he took a shuddering breath and ran over to Blake.
She had her hand over the spot where Neo's blade almost pierced her and looked frozen in place.
"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice suddenly very dry.
He tried not to look down at Neo's body but he felt his own \shake like there was a lightning storm happening inside of his heart.
Blake shook from her time still state and looked up at him. Her eyes were wide in fear and she looked like she was about to leap away from him but her eyes instantly turned blank a millisecond later.
She spoke with sudden steel, "That gunshot and the fight was loud. They're going to be swarming us in a few seconds. We have to collect evidence then leave."
She didn't wait for a response and crouched down. She scanned her eyes over the puddle of Neo's splattered blood. She didn't look the slightest bit uncomfortable while he gagged at the sight.
He still tried to keep Neo's body out of his frame of vision.
She gave out a small grunt when she put her gloved hand in the puddle and took out a broken bullet. She put it in her pocket before quickly brushing past Jaune and picking up the loose bullet casing.
"What about her?" Jaune suddenly exclaimed in a croak.
His hands shook hard and the headgear and cloak felt even more suffocating than they were before.
"We have no time. We have to go now or get caught," Blake responded.
Before he could retort back she grabbed his hand and gunned it to the fence around the docks.
He took a glance back and could see the flashlights of the police fill the section they were just in and land on Neo's unmoving body.
He threw up a little in his mouth. But he turned back and started to actually jog making it so Blake wasn't dragging him.
They found the route they had taken and diverted from it halfway through it. Blake pulled him into an alleyway and they threw their gear in a local dumpster.
Before he could even take a short breath they were moving again. They briskly walked or ran towards the air dock.
Their route made it seem like they weren't coming from the docks.
They arrived at the airship docks and took the first bullhead to Beacon.
CHAPTER EPILOGUE:
The chill of the autumn air bristled Qrow's feathers as he made it to Beacon's tower.
He flew in through a small open window into Ozpin's office.
He hopped up on the ledge for a few moments before he got his transformation down and turned back into his regular old human self.
It always felt strange to go back into his human form after being in his bird form for so long. He felt like he had to learn how to walk again for a few moments.
He got his bearings and looked around the office. It was still the exact same green, white, and black colored space that it had been since his time at Beacon.
The ticking of the giant gears on top of the office filled the room.
He never could understand how the old man could get anything done with the inane clicking right above his head.
Ozpin sat behind his desk signing some papers with a hot steaming mug at his side. In the corner of the room, Glynda used the coffee station.
Ozpin looked up from his stack of papers and said, "Ah, Hello Qrow, please take a seat."
Glynda looked up from the coffee mug she was preparing and nodded towards Qrow.
He walked over to Ozpin's curved desk and sat down. He put his hands on the glass of the desk and fell back into his seat.
A moment later Glynda sat next to him. She offered a steaming mug of coffee which he duly accepted.
He hadn't drunk from his flask in the last few days as he was being run ragged. He was so busy he had simply forgotten, so the coffee was a nice pick me-up that soothed his inner soul.
Glynda drank from her own mug and Ozpin signed the last of his papers.
The old headmaster looked up and, in a calming voice, said, "How are you feeling from the confrontation yesterday?"
Qrow took a big gulp of hot coffee before replying, "Eh, just a few scratches, and a bruise. Roman may have once been a hunter but he grew soft fighting off regular criminals. The White Fang was a joke so nothing happened there."
Qrow paused before asking Ozpin, "So how's our resident thief doing?"
"He's currently in one of Vale's high-security prisons and we have a huntsman on guard."
"Has he said a word?"
"No, not yet. Interrogators are having no luck with him, he just sits back, quips, and smiles. Although I think he won't be smiling for long. There is a considerable case against him with him being a famous thief and all. Working with a terrorist organization has also granted me more power to keep an eye on him."
Ozpin took out his scroll pad which showed a live feed of Roman in a cell with steel cuffs bound on his wrists.
He looked up at the camera, one of four with a bleary-eyed smile, and waved. Behind the glass walls that made up his cell, a pair of huntsmen stood guarding the entrance.
"Why not give him those experimental aura cuffs?," Qrow mused looking at the feed.
"Those are still in their testing phase. We don't really know what side effects there are to tampering with the human soul so it's dangerous. That's why I have some for-higher huntsmen guarding him," Ozpin answered.
Glynda suddenly interjected, "It still seems strange why such a pronounced thief would up and work with terrorists seemingly out of the blue. Also, I've always wondered how he climbed the criminal ladder by just being a thief. I know you can't do that without some blood in your hands."
"We don't have any direct evidence of Roman committing murder but he most likely had an associate that the dirty work for him. That young woman who was found dead near the edge of the docks was most likely that associate. Her weapon and traces of aura certainly hint at the skill needed to kill off Roman's many powerful enemies. Although there are no records of her actually existing anywhere on the planet."
"Strange...So do you think that she's also the person that's helped him escape custody all those times?" Qrow asked.
"Most likely, maybe she had some sort of mind control or illusory semblance. Fortunately or unfortunately we may never know. Speaking about this young woman I would like to talk about why I called you here."
Qrow grunted and finished the rest of the coffee. He knew where this was going.
His hand instinctively went for his flask but he pulled it back; it would be pretty illogical for him to get drunk right after he had an energy boost.
Ozpin looked over at Glynda.
She put down her mug and put a manila folder on the desk. Qrow glanced at it and saw the words 'Tungsten' written on it.
"So do you think our friend Tungsten had a hand in her murder? Do you have any new information about them?" Ozpin asked.
"The police didn't find any prints near the woman but they did find shards from the bullet that killed her. They couldn't find the bullet casing so whoever cleaned the scene knew what they were doing. But the analysis of the shards says that the bullet wasn't one normally used by the Fang."
"So do you think that Tungsten committed the murder?"
"I honestly don't know. Maybe he knew Roman was coming so he left him for us while they dealt with the bigger threat. Or maybe she just wandered into the wrong White Fang grunt who was carrying their own personal weapon. But judging by her physical prowess and traces of aura I'm not so inclined to believe that. All signs point to Tungsten being our man but no one is going to press charges on them. Anyways we can still use them as a source of info if we don't scare them off."
"I still shudder at the idea we have to work with murderers and criminals for the greater good," Glynda commentated.
Qrow argued back, "But it isn't really cooperation. More like mutual benefaction. They don't get destroyed by huntsmen and we get to take down the big picture threats. Also if we didn't have our grip around the underworld Grimm would be swarming the cities."
The deputy headmistress nodded conceding her point before Ozpin spoke again.
"Let's say we did have to bring in Tungsten. Do you have any idea who they might be?"
"I have a hunch. They called me from Ruby's phone twice and I'm pretty sure the chances of Ruby going into the city, having her scroll stolen, and being given back it twice are pretty slim to none. So whoever Tungsten is, they're most likely Beacon students. Although they used a privacy wall when they called it doesn't look professional. I'll have some of my contacts try to break it and see where they called form."
"A Beacon student? The only student I see even having the know-how and knowledge about the White Fang would have to be Blake Belladonna," Glynda remarked cupping her chin.
"But Blake Belladonna left the White Fang and I gave her asylum at this school. She couldn't have access to information about the attack on the docks," Ozpin pointed out.
Qrow asked, "But what if she's back with the Fang and is playing some sort of triple agent gig?"
"No, if someone defects from the Fang and they try to join back they are sadly turned into a harsh lesson for leaving."
Ozpin continued, "More importantly, I think we can identify who this Tungsten person is if they reside in this school. It is a bit of a gamble but we should keep watch on any students who behave strangely. Taking a life, even an evil one, has serious side effects. Focus on the first years as most if not all of them have not taken a life so their change will be easier to spot."
"I still can't believe you let a former terrorist into this school," Qrow said rubbing his forehead.
"I happen to recall a time when I let a former thieving and barbarous bandit into my school as well," Ozpin replied with a smirk.
That got Qrow to close his mouth and look away.
Glynda let out a tiny chuckle before Qrow got up and did a quick stretch.
In the middle of his stretch, he said, "This is where I take my leave."
He went over to the window but he quickly looked back and spoke, "Oh and one more thing, during the end of our last conversion, Tungsten made what I presume to be a slip-up and said "Our information" I don't know if that was a mistake but I think you're looking for more than one student."
"Interesting… Alright, Qrow keep me posted on any Tungsten communications but otherwise, you should head back to your other duties.," Ozpin said, putting the manila folder away.
Qrow nodded before he transformed into his avian form and flew away.
"Weren't you going to tell him about the weapons transport?" Glynda asked, taking all of their empty mugs.
"No, it is just a rumor after all and he has more pressing duties. I will shake my web and see if anything comes up but I won't throw my prime agent at a whisper."
Glynda nodded and left the room while Ozpin pulled out his scroll pad.
On it was a grainy black and white photo that depicted different parts of a machine being put inside of a truck bed.
Most of the parts were white blobs in the image quality.
The only clear thing in the image was some words printed on the closest part that read, "Paladin: Excalibur."
AN:
Hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review or comment. Greatly appreciated.