Beta'ed by ObsidionJaguar15


Chapter 2: The Cursed Child

"We need to run," Blake blurted, her breathing irregular as she tried to keep from just panicking like a cat with a dog. "Everyone is going to get killed!"

"We can't, we're trapped in its domain…" Maki muttered as she glanced at her wrecked weapon, which was now next to useless broken as it was, especially considering how little desire she held to be anywhere near the Curse.

Pyrrha readied her weapons and narrowed her eyes, her lack of experience leaving her with a bravado that would soon come undone.

"Stand behind me everyone. I will—"

Her words were cut short as the Curse rushed forward so fast that it reached her before she had even thought of blinking. With its grin still present, it formed a fist enveloped in unbridled Curse Energy and launched a quick jab that to an experienced eye seemed almost playful.

A resounding metallic echo was heard that quickly proved what "playful" was for such a being. Pyrrha gritted her teeth as she got pushed back by its sheer force, feeling and seeing the crater form from its blow as it fully stuck in her mind what happened.

It dented her shield.

A simple punch from the Curse dented Akouo , a shield that had endured so much in her career, and it wasn't even at full power when it did what nobody else could!

The assault did not end with the jab as the Curse closed its distance again, delivering a roundhouse kick to her shieldless arm.

She blocked it by quickly morphing Milo into a xiphos, but the force of the kick sent her sliding backward with a grunt. Her Aura protected from the worst of the hit, yet it still was something she would have rather never taken in the first place. Her face remained resolute but Yuta picked up a peculiar, harrowing detail; she was sweating. The seemingly invincible girl who didn't get hit once was breaking a sweat like a perp with their prints on a weapon in an evidence bag.

"You bastard!" Maki said as she threw her broken spearhead at the curse, but to no avail, as it dodged the makeshift throwing knife easily with a tilt of its head, chucking all the while at what to it seemed like a toddler failing at the dart board. It raised its finger and pointed at her, and before she could react, a blast of Curse Energy pierced Maki's shoulder like a burning nail through butter.

Panic spread on Yuta's face as he ran to her. "Zen'in!" he shouted as he kneeled to check the damage. Maki winced as blood started pouring out of the wound, pressing the gash with her hand and clutching it tightly to keep from bleeding out.

"We have find a way out…Invincible Girl has to hold for us to get help," she muttered as she looked away in shame at her sudden defeat.

Yuta grimaced, not believing what he was hearing from her who had been so headstrong in all this. "And you want us to leave her alone fighting that thing?! She won't last!"

Maki's eyes glowered at him as if daring him to speak further, an ire there that felt…cold, yet tinged with something else that Yuta couldn't describe.

"What can you do?"

His muscles tensed, and his breath hitched. Those words hit him with the weight of a Mac truck, because he knew she was right. What could he do as he was now? He was useless; he didn't know how to fight, didn't possess anything like a real Curse Technique, and knew next to nothing about the supernatural world to come up with some cutting stratagem that would win them the day.

He watched as Maki's body trembled, but her face remained just as icy as ever. In the short while he had known her, he knew how the girl managed her attitude. Though she might come off as brash and crude, she wasn't cruel, not really. If she didn't care about him even an ounce, she wouldn't have tried protecting him from the White Fang members; she'd have used him as a shield or even finished him off herself like he wished she had deep down.

Neither of them wanted to let Pyrrha die, but this seemed the best option, for now, to run. Yet that jarring question still tormented his mind.

What could he do?

Nothing, he could do nothing. He could try to summon Rika, but odds were she would go on a rampage and try to kill everyone again, and that wasn't any better.

He watched as the Curse sent a blast of pure power at Pyrrha. She planted her feet on the floor and blocked it with her shield, but it was so strong that the floor beneath her cracked badly enough she couldn't keep herself steady as the tiles and ground lifted and broke, and before long it wasn't wood and concrete breaking either as metal started to scream before it all finally snapped, and it hit her what happened.

Her shield broke.

Her eyes widened as the full force of the blast landed, sending her flying across the hallway toward a wall that broke on impact. Her body flickered with red light, signaling her Aura reserves were closer to empty than full.

The spartan girl trembled as she stood up, her tiara and ponytail coming off, her hair falling like a red river. She grunted as she saw her left arm limp, unable to move, and pain radiating from her socket. She grabbed her shoulder with her other arm and pushed it back hard, a crack echoing throughout the entire school that made even the bull Faunus cringe in empathetic pain.

The Curse's smile widened with teeth flashing, its laughter like a hellish jester mocking them for their helplessness before its power. It was a reminder to all of just how different the threat of Curses were to the Grimm, practically demonic beings delighting in the pain and fear they inflicted compared with the Grimm being little more than animals with a particular attraction to negativity. Say what one did about a Geist or a Nuckelavee, even Grimm that smart never had the real malice that Curses brought with them, a malice they were all exposed to right now.

Still, her determination didn't waver much if at all. She took a long and deep breath and grabbed Milo in its dory form, the only weapon she could use now. She extended her right arm, and it started to radiate blackness around it.

Yuta's eyes widened as more than 30 desks started floating around the curse before they morphed into iron lines as the metal was torn away and formed into its purest state.

Pyrrha moved her hands, causing the lines to move, fast enough to grab the curse by its limbs without it being able to react in time. She managed to use all the metal around and what was left of her Aura to entangle the curse tightly in its metal bondage.

The Special Grade gratifyingly no longer held its cocky grin but rather watched in terror as Pyrrha charged at it with her dory. She embedded Fire Dust onto its blade, causing it to burst into flames, a striking charge that would be sure to kill this monster long enough to get away. She let out a war cry and threw her spear with all her might like a bolt of lightning, adding in the blast of the rifle within to speed it up further alongside the spinning force of her Semblance. It hit its mark straight through the Curse's heart, a terrifying and fiery drill of death for anybody. What followed were the screams of purest agony as it started to burn from the inside out, unable to escape now from its assured end.

Yuta let out a triumphant smile; Pyrrha really was the best fighter he had ever met.

However, she had made a critical error, which was not her fault even if she would claim otherwise in her guilt.

Her weapon wasn't a Cursed Tool.

The flames dimmed as the Fire Dust sputtered out, and Yuta could see the curse grinning at them again like nothing had happened save a stint in a sauna. Its grin turned toothy as it freed itself from the metal like they were pretzel sticks for all the resistance they had. It grabbed the lance and pulled it away from its skin, purple blood dripping from a wound that closed instantly, causing Pyrrha to take a step back from it, her determination truly wavering now at seeing what her efforts really amounted to.

The Curse lunged at her and jabbed quickly at her solar plexus, the blow bursting something enough for blood to spit out, and for her to launch backwards with painful force, rolling toward Yuta's feet, alive but out for the count.

He whimpered; he didn't know what to do. They were all going to die, and he couldn't do a single thing about it!

He saw Blake looking in terror as despair started to overcome her, so much so that she exhaled shaky breaths, while Adam had resigned himself to his fate, looking down in shame as he waited for death to take them away.

"Okkotsu."

Yuta's eyes widened as Maki grabbed him by his shirt tightly, remembering that she was still here too. Her eyes bore directly into his soul.

"Why did you enroll at this school?" Maki said. "What do you want?!"

"I don't understa—"

"You do understand, so answer me!"

Yuta

What did he want?

All of this time, he lived wallowing in his misery and cursing his existence. He didn't think it was worth it to keep living if he was going to be a walking apocalypse, not if it meant that people had to be hurt just so he could do something like ride a rollercoaster or watch a musical.

So why did he keep on living? He deserved to be lonely and hated so he didn't hurt people. He didn't deserve anything like love or friendship. He deserved to be killed and forgotten and left for the vultures to peck on.

"I…"

Yet…that didn't mean he had to put up with what the world threw at him.

"I don't want to be alone."

Yuta…

A part of him, deep inside his soul, wanted to defy his apparent fate, to have that kind of life that he hadn't known for years now, and with interest too for all the shit it has slung his way.

"I want to believe that it's okay to keep living— and to move on."

And it was time for that part of his soul to wake up.

"If you want to move on… then it's time for you to wake up and start exorcizing," Maki muttered, seemingly satisfied with his answer with a ghost of a smile on her face. "This is what being a sorcerer is all about."

Her grip lost all strength as she slid down and fell to the floor, her wounds finally taking their toll on her as she fell into the sweet hands of Morpheus.

Yuta!

His eyes widened as he saw a little girl with brown hair standing right across the hallway; his childhood friend and first love stood still with a sweet smile that hid something dreadful for all but him.

"Hey, Yuta?" Rika said, her voice soft. "Can I come out and play?"

Yuta gulped, yet reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box.

The Curse lost its smile and opened its mouth, gasping in a terror that was far more real than what it showed to Pyrrha. It let out a panicked cry and rushed towards everyone, its hands glowing brightly with Curse Energy as it tried to stop the worst before it was too late.

Yuta gritted his teeth as he tried to open the box like it was a decrepit sarcophagus over a simple box, but the Curse was already on his face before he mustered the will.

He heard a loud chattering coming from his side, and his ears started to ring. Blake had apparently finally broken down from her fright and fired a barrage of bullets loaded with Ice Dust at the curse, freezing it in place for however few moments that would last.

He turned to look at the Faunus who had attacked him not even half an hour ago, the girl glaring at him with desperate ire as she shouted, "Do something!"

Yuta shook his head clear and nodded in agreement. He opened the box, revealing a shining silver ring, a wedding band of all things, pulling it out and placing it on his left ring finger, a simple declaration escaping him.

"Rika, you can come out and play now."

The Curse broke free from its restraints and leapt away from Yuta as it felt what was coming. It slowly backed away from them before it turned tail and tried to run for the hills at a pace they'd have considered impressive if it weren't for what the Curse was.

But it was already too late. A white, clawed hand grabbed it by the waist, stopping its movements dead as the new Curse emerged from the shadows.

It was a great, pale creature with white tendrils on the back of its skull somewhat like the soon-to-be slaughtered's own mockery of a haircut. It had a body rippling with grotesque muscles, gangly arms that were just too long for its body, and a shadow of a tail that served in lieu of legs. Its face was hollow and empty, the only real detail being the gaping mouth of teeth of all the wrong shapes that smiled a terrible thing.

It was the Vengeful Cursed Spirit, Orimoto Rika, free from her chains to show her terror once more on for once a deserving victim.

Blake dropped her weapons as she watched Rika's entire form manifest as the ghostly ogress it was. Her whole body was shaking at the horrid sight before her, and the promise of mad violence that came with the spirit.

Pyrrha remained awake on the ground, not trying to move as she gritted her teeth. She felt the immense pressure Rika radiated, something so far beyond anything she'd ever felt before that she knew that there was absolutely no chance she could beat it.

Adam's breath hitched as he raised his head slightly. He cracked his teeth as he bit down hard, trying with all his might to stay awake as veins popped on his skin and sweat poured all around, but it was futile effort and soon he was out like a light under the power before him.

However, Yuta remained calm, a strange thing to see on a boy who had otherwise proven himself an utter coward, a strange courage-or apathy, more like-born from knowing that no matter what else, she could never hurt him even if she was utterly livid otherwise enough to destroy everything else.

The Special Grade was not so calm, as it let out a desperate scream and enveloped its hands in Curse Energy, delivering a powerful mantis punch to Rika's face. The hit landed with a resounding force, and with enough power to break the glass around them, crack the tiles and walls, and blast them all with buffeting winds.

For Rika though, she might as well have been hit by an actual mantis for all it hurt, angrily tightening her grip on the abhorrent Curse as it writhed in agony at being crushed by the strange serpentine Curse.

"That hurt, asshole!" Rika screamed. She opened her mouth, and a purple light emerged from her mouth, building up in power and potency in little time as raw energy threatened to breathe out like a dragon's breath. The Curse wailed as it tried to free itself from her grip, desperate to escape the beam of destruction that would see it returned to what it once was, to no avail.

The light from Rika's mouth came out like a geyser of fire, blasting the Curse's entire body with pure power. Yuta covered his eyes as the bright purple light shone with an intensity that would make a welder's torch seem dim. The blast was mighty, it shaking the whole school to the very foundation, an earthquake in miniature. The purple beam continued on, shattering everything in its path and creating a gaping hole that revealed the outside world, with the yard and parking lot an oddly comforting sight knowing what had been inside.

Once the light died down, Yuta uncovered his eyes, and he saw Rika letting out an innocent grin as she held the curse on her hand, or rather, what remained of it.

The Special Grade's entire body was just broken, burnt toast at best that was dissipating into acrid smoke and cinder, with what little airflow there was drifting it all away.

The tension rose as Rika approached Yuta, her fist clenched, none daring to make a move for fear of provoking her, save for Yuta, as he watched her with a grimace.

It wasn't like he hated her; on the contrary, she was his first love, somebody whose memory he cherished even now…but love was far down the list of what he normally felt nowadays at seeing the pitiable and terrifying state of his childhood sweetheart, one who was currently coming up to him like a puppy with a toy.

"Hey, Yutatake this."

Yuta blinked as he opened his palm to revive her "present" and nearly barfed as he stared at the thing Rika dropped at his hand. It was a wretched and desiccated red finger with a black-or was it just a really dark blue?-nail that looked far too long to fit on a human, its putrid miasma making obvious its nature as a Cursed Object, which begged the simple question; how did this rotten thing end up with the Curse currently in their lungs?

"Yuta~do you like it?"

He wanted to say no, he should say no, but but he'd known for a long time when to keep things to himself, especially around people. "Yeah…" Yuta said, smiling sheepishly. "It's, um, it's lovely. Er, thank you."

Rika's grin widened as she went giddy at the praise, a trembling on her like a kid who'd just tasted ice cream for the first time. And then she saw the others, and the giddiness dropped like a bomb as she radiated out a jealous hate that would like for nothing more than to tear these people asunder.

Yuta's whole body drained of color as he knew what would come next, especially for the pair that hurt him. Blake's ears raised like antennae as she instinctively went for her weapons, knowing more on instinct than logic that she and Adam were first on the chopping block.

"Each one of you hurt my Yuta," Rika said, looming over everyone despite the lack of space, both arms glowing brightly with raw Curse Energy that distorted the space around them with its output. "Now I'm going rip you all—"

"Rika."

Rika froze as she heard the firm voice of Yuta, his meekness replaced a frown and furrowed brow like he'd caught her stealing an extra slice of cake.

'Here goes nothing…' he thought as he took a long, deep breath. "I-If you hurt any of them, I won't talk to you in over a month."

Rika let out an audible gasp, and the glow in her hands died down. She started to whimper and grabbed Yuta by the shoulders.

"Yutaaa, I won't hurt them, I promise, so please, please, please just talk to me. Please don't leave me alone." . The begging was odd to see, and it hurt something within, yet still, Yuta didn't say anything. What could he really say? The promise had never held up well beyond the first go, as the limbs and bodies showed, and doubtless too with this, though hopefully she'd stay away for a while longer.

With no answer coming out of Yuta, she disappeared into thin air with all the gravity of a girl taking her ball and heading back home.

"Well, that… just happened."

Yuta perked up as he saw the Pyrrha standing up, her legs wobbly, the cuts and scraps trickling bits of blood.

"Miss Nikos, you're—"

"I'm fine, my Aura is working through my wounds," she replied as she grunted in pain, which was quickly replaced with a small grin. "I lost…"

Yuta glanced at her with a blank look.

"You're… happy about that?"

Pyrrha stared back at him, giving him an owlish look, like she was staring at a living paradox over a guy who didn't know her cereal box cameos. She then let out a sigh when it became clear that face of bewilderment wasn't just an act.

"You really have no idea who I am…" She said, as she made her way and grabbed her spear from the floor, marred but unbroken. "Don't worry about it, I'm just relieved is all."

Yuta blinked; what did she mean by that? He made a point in his head to talk about it all later, preferably somewhere with proper lights and ventilation. He relaxed a bit, glad that everything was over; this all could have easily gone out of hand if he didn't get his act together when the Special Grade attacked. Even so, Rika didn't do everything, Pyrrha and Blake's efforts made him see what he truly needed to do to face his fears.

He watched the cat faunus as she clutched her partner in her arms. The White Fang were still terrorists who had all committed some crime, some far worse than others, but even so, each and every one of them had people they held close with love, affection, and camaraderie. Yet he still knew that their leaders stirred all that into something far worse, something that Yuta couldn't forget as he looked at the pair and wondered what to do with them. It left Yuta with plenty of burning questions on why, and if something could be done about it as he made his way and offered his help.

"Are you alright?" Yuta asked Blake, who looked at him with her golden eyes, owlish blinks coming that spoke to her own conflict as she mumbled a response, "Yeah, yeah, I'll-we'll be fine."

"That's good to hear. Then we should probably make our exit now," Yuta responded as he gave her a smile of reassurance, himself going to pick up the still unconscious Maki, and almost tripped as he lost his balance; didn't know she was that heavy!

They were about to leave until Blake's ears started twitching, eyes widening as she looked everywhere in fear, confusing Yuta.

"You should leave now," she said as she started backing away a good distance from them with Adam in her arms, knowing something that none of them did.

Pyrrha's eyes narrowed as she raised her spear and pointed it at her, ready to at least try and keep them from leaving.

"Not until the authorities arrest you both…"

"Forget about us and run!" Blake screamed in worried anger. "It's our people!"

Yuta couldn't hear a thing. He was sure that nobody was following them this time, otherwise, Rika would have told him and dealt with them quickly. She very well could be lying to them to escape, but it was a poor attempt if that was the case.

Click, click, click.

Pyrrha's eyes widened and she wasted no time to pull Yuta away from Blake with her Semblance as she heard something that should not be there.

The cursed worm that appeared earlier emerged from the floor and swallowed both White Fang members in its mouth, and with no intent to stop, it charged towards Yuta, Pyrrha, and Maki with a screech, unlikely to be as "kind" to them.

"What now?!" Yuta yelled as tears started to come out of his eyes, fear starting get a hold of him again now that Rika had slinked off to sulk.

"We jump!"

Not wasting any more time, Yuta ran towards the hole Rika left and jumped without hesitation, Pyrrha following suit with spear in hand.

She pulled Yuta beside her with her free hand and placed her spear under her foot, using her Semblance to give them forward like a makeshift snowboard. She grunted as her exhaustion fumbled her concentration, making an already experimental technique all the more testy.

Her quick thinking paid off at least as they managed to slow down from terminal velocity, but not enough to slow them down for a soft landing. Compared with splattering all over the floor, rolling around like sacks of potatoes at least let them live, if not at all feeling like a million bucks as they felt things pop and creak that nobody should ever hear.

The worm Curse emerged from the school with zero of their issues, and Yuta couldn't help the yelp he gave as he actually saw the sheer size of the thing. It was practically long enough to wrap itself all around the school's main building, and wide enough he swore it could swallow them and all the cars in the parking lot like a disgustingly giant party sub!

However, he had enough of being scared dead for one day, and tried to find some way to get them home safe in whatever was left of this campus.

He saw a car, not far away from him, a beat up junker of a pink sedan that had seen better days and less depressing mileage. He doubted he'd hit even sixty miles on a good day, but begged can't be choosers.

"Get Zen'in in that car, now!" he shouted at Pyrrha as he pointed to the car. "We have to get to Sensei!"

Pyrrha eyed him for a brief moment with some uncertainty, but it didn't last but a moment as she hoofed it with Maki in tow to the automobile.

Yuta broke the driver's seat window and unlocked the door, entering the sedan as he opened it up for the others and reached for some way to start the car before he turned to his erstwhile comrade.

"Nikos, open this!"

Pyrrha shakily used her sword to pry open the ignition, popping out wires galore that Yuta took in an instant as he recalled how to hotwire a car.

'Red means power and brown is starter…'

He saw the worm sliding towards them at a regular pace, its mouth wide open in a lazy hunger, turning Pyrrha even paler than she normally was.

"Yuta?"

He focused solely on the wiring. He pulled out the two ends of the brown cables, ignoring the shocking pain, and pushed both together.

He heard a sound, the sputtering start of an engine that gave way to a roar that choppy as it was, might as well have been a chorus of angels to him right now.

Yuta revved the engine with all of his might and drove the car at full speed, the sedan having an oddly efficient acceleration that sent Pyrrha flying in the backseat as they sped away from the great worm. While it stifled her worries some, Pyrrha still wouldn't be breathing easy until they had completely gotten away from the worm that she watched like a hawk, though a question did pop up in her mind.

"You know how to drive?" Pyrrha asked, eyebrows raised. Yuta nodded as he focused on the road. He needed to push it to the exit, and talking conversely helped him focus, "Rika taught me when she was alive."

Pyrrha furrowed her eyebrows, giving him a questionable gaze. "How old were you two?" Yuta gave her the most innocent grin ever as he answered, "Eleven."

Not the kind of answer she expected. "WHAT KIND OF CHILDHOOD DID YOU TWO HAVE?!"

Yuta's face reddened as memories of Rika stealing her grandmother's truck…which they drove donuts with until it crashed in a smoking wreck. He remembered how they were laughing while they were drifting in a wide open field and street, just enjoying the moment.

It was fun, but when he thought back now that he was older it didn't seem like the brightest idea. They were kids, sure, but still, it was hard to forget that Rika had been a pretty open troublemaker, from breaking the silverware and spending her grandmother's money on cake and pizza to stealing her wedding ring…a ring that he had been wearing for years now. Granted, Rika's grandmother loathed her existence because she thought that she killed both of her parents-somehow, despite being barely old enough to reach the countertop at either time-and the feeling was mutual, so he could get why Rika had done all this mischief, if on reflection know it also wasn't the best response.

His thoughts halted though when he noticed something odd; for a campus ground that ultimately was less than a mile long, he hadn't actually gotten any closer to getting out despite the constant driving.

Where was the exit?! This place was a maze despite being a fucking parking lot!

It wasn't just him either, Pyrrha voicing her concern as she saw them continue on the same path.

"You have noticed it too, right?" she asked as she glanced at the rearview mirror. The worm was still chasing them, but it didn't show any signs of getting closer either. They were at a safe distance if they kept driving at this speed, but the concern remained as they continued on this perpetual motion track.

"It's just like back in the school…" Yuta muttered as he furrowed his eyebrows and clutched tight on the wheel.

Another domain. But now they couldn't afford to fight the Curse head on after all this fighting, not with Pyrrha wounded and Maki out of commission. She needed to go to a hospital immediately, and unfortunately the only other way was to call back Rika and pray she didn't jump to anger after that last conversation.

He glanced at the fuel meter, the thing ticking fast as he wore out the Dust within, his ears starting to ring as he thought over and over what he could do.

Okko—

What can he do?

That jarring question started to fog his mind as anxiety was overcoming him, cold sweat dripping down his forehead and his heartbeat beating like a marching band.

Okkot—

Where was his resolve now? He spouted such bullshit to Maki and she trusted him enough to carry out the mission, but now look at him. She would deck him in the face if she saw how pathetic he was, and he deserved that and more. He might as well drop-

"Okkotsu!"

Yuta's eyes widened as he felt Pyrrha shaking his shoulder. He looked at her and saw her gaze without an ounce of fear, but instead, she looked determined, as always, like a true warrior.

"Focus," she urged, gazing through the rear window. "We have a curse to stop. You must have some idea how we can get out of…whatever the hell this is."

Yuta gulped, wanting to tell her that he was just some new student and didn't know any better and she wouldn't be getting much help from him. He had no way of knowing how to stop that Curse from catching them with—

Aren't worms supposed to be faster underground than on land?

When the worm Curse came by the first time, it announced itself by creating an earthquake alongside its clicking. Its sheer size managed to shake the entire school so they were prepared for its arrival, but it was different this time. It didn't make any sounds at all, only the clicks, and if it wasn't for Blake's warning, they would have been eaten alive. It had to have a condition, but he wasn't sure what it was; some kind of Binding Vow or a function of a Domain or…

An idea popped in his head, a risky one sure, but time was a luxury right now with the tank getting closer and closer to empty. They needed to act.

Yuta took a deep breath and steeled himself. He wanted to keep on living, so he'd make sure he could get that. For everyone's sake, even his own.

"If we want to escape, then we must take the route where it came from, and that would be underground. How close are we to the sewers?" Yuta said, eyes narrowing.

Pyrrha grimaced, clearly not liking the idea of being stuck in a dark and disgusting place with no idea of what would be there. "Yes, we shouldn't be far, but the last thing we could do right now is fight that thing on its territory."

"Listen, we don't have much of a choice. My sensei is out there waiting for us, and this is the only thing I can think of to get out of this Domain so he can help us in this fight," Yuta reasoned, and when he saw Pyrrha's hesitation, he pressed further. "Two things can happen if we go to the sewers. One, we'll still be in the Curse's territory, which means I'll use the closed space and Rika to hold it off, and then you can take Zen'in and get out of here. Rika can easily take it down, but if what that Blake girl said it's true, then there will be a whole lot more White Fang waiting for us inside that thing."

Pyrrha's eyes widened. "You can't possibly be thinking—"

"Two, we get out of its Domain, and we can call Sensei to help us." He said, causing her to shut up. "Either way, I plan on getting you both out alive!"

Pyrrha stared at him quietly, her emerald eyes gazing into his as she tried to see something he couldn't quite grasp. A staredown that felt like an eternity lasted a mere ten seconds, and one he apparently won. "I may have just met you but…" she finally said, grabbing her Milo tightly as she shifted it fully into its rifle form. "I'll trust you, Okkotsu."

Pyrrha took out a Fire Dust round from her pocket and loaded it into her weapon, then took Maki in her arms and lowered the window. She stuck her head outside, sticking her thumb out and taking a deep breath as she aimed, Yuta driving as steady as he could for her sake. Then she launched it out as a javelin with her might, the guidance and spinning of her Semblance, and the power of the Fire Dust that went off to propel it downward similarly to what she'd done with the Special Grade. The spear became a missle, strong enough to utterly crater the ground deep and wide enough to see their destination, though the force unfortunately was a bit much for Yuta, the boy skidding the car a little too far to the right. Pyrrha and Yuta jumped outside of the car midair right towards the crater she just made, and just in time as the car was sent careening away.

Yuta covered his eyes as he was falling through the smoke until he landed on his right arm, recoiling in pain as the snap in his right arm helpfully confirmed he'd broken something there.

Pyrrha landed a little better, but Maki's weight put more strain on already aching legs, to where she was only just able to place her on a walkway above the muck they now found themselves in, the green-haired girl still utterly out of it.

Whatever pain he had felt was washed away by the assault on his nose, the smell of piss, shit, and everything else people flushed down the toilet, something that stung his eyes like pepper spray and made him pray to whatever gods were out there he didn't catch anything being down here. And the wetness, the disgusting films of bacteria clinging onto him, it was all a nightmare, a thing that made him want to scrub down with steel wool, burn his clothes, and otherwise try to forget he'd ever set foot here.

In a roundabout way, he did find something to distract him…in the form of a burning barrel pressed against his head courtesy of a White Fang member, who made it quite clear what his options were right now.

"Okkotsu!" Pyrrha shouted as she tried to move, but she could barely take a few steps before just managing to extend her spear in time to stab into the ground to keep from falling into the muck, panting like a sick dog. After all the action and punishment, she'd reached her limit fast, and Yuta couldn't help but feel oddly lucky knowing that he was still largely ok compared with the girls.

Footsteps approached, and another of them came out, a snarl on his mouth as looked at them with disgust, holding up a shotgun to their heads that in their state, neither would survive a blast, and Pyrrha could only hang her head in shame at the thought of this being her end. He kept his hand steady as the buzz of a radio was heard, the goon talking to his superior over their "prize", "We got them, boss, what's your call?" he asked.

It buzzed once more, "Leave them to me, but shoot their knees out if you have to; don't want them crawling away now." There was a soft menace to the voice, something beyond the growls and grunts of thugs, something that Yuta could just feel slither into his soul and refuse to leave.

The sewers started to shake violently as Yuta could hear a familiar rumbling and clicking coming closer.

Click, click

Just in front of them, the worm Curse broke in with a screech and loomed over them, its rows of teeth showing as its mouth started to widen, seemingly ready to eat them whole.

Then it gagged like a cat with a hairball and spat a great glob of green goo from its mouth that had disturbing shades of black around it, Yuta straining to see anything in there before he pursed his lips in bemusement at what he saw; it was Blake and Adam, both healed of all their wounds. The cat Faunus looked like she was trying to ignore them, trying to act like she had just stumbled into some gonzo meeting of the minds at her favorite cafe, a sharp contrast to the bull Faunus who looked ready to spit hellfire and brimstone at them, and not metaphorically either.

However, what caught his attention the most was the figure that led them, a man garbed in the dark robes of a Mistrali zen priest, a golden kāṣāya providing some color to the ominous monk who held a lupine grin as he eyed them up and down.

"Oh, you two, I was dying to meet you." He said as he walked towards them. When he was near them, he bowed. "My name is Geto Suguru, and I am humbled to make your acquaintance."

"You're their leader…" Pyrrha muttered as she gritted her teeth. "You destroyed my old school!"

He sent an innocent look at Pyrrha.

"Oh, that? Sorry, but I needed to do it for my plan to work, collateral damage and all," Geto waved off as he rubbed the back of his head, before turning a scowl at her. "Even so, that school was already overflowing with curses before my intervention; it was already doomed with the monkeys, I just put it out of its misery, such as it was."

Even just saying the word monkeys made him seem as disgusted as a man finding a pickled herring in a toilet or a great piece of art rotted over with mold and worms, which made the almost instantaneous switch to an almost angelic smile all the more frightening.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you two," Geto said. "You are perfect for my ideal world; I wouldn't want to ruin that, at least not if I have to."

"Your ideal world?" Yuta asked, not taking his eyes off him as the monk paced around.

"A world in which the Faunus govern all of you so every one of you can learn how it feels to be oppressed for all these years!" It was one of the White Fang goons that had spoken, his voice firm and passionate, with just enough of a vengeful edge that made it known that this was both a student of history…and probably another person just as liable to burn it down if he had to, just like a lot of the White Fang.

Geto eyed them with an odd neutrality that didn't go unnoticed by Yuta, "Close enough." His expression turned rancid once more as he looked at Maki, the fallen Zen'in warrior somehow disgusting him the most out of everything, and Yuta couldn't fathom why, though he very much got how deep it went when the man cruelly kicked Maki hard enough to send her flying to him, the girl wheezing and gurgling on blood as wounds barely closed opened once more, and would almost certainly be infected in this disgusting place. The fucker just treated her worse than the shit they were all in, and he couldn't help the haunting comfort of Rika that threatened to come out.

He glanced toward their members, and Yuta knew that at best they didn't care, and at worst they were like Adam, who finally had a smile on his face at seeing Maki suffer like this, and so many others reveled in it as they chuckled and grinned. The only one who had the decency to look ashamed was Blake, as she looked away with a frown that was still cold comfort.

Pyrrha mustered up some vestige of courage as she tried to ready herself with Milo as a sword before the wicked grin of the monk, "Oh Miss Nikos, I don't recommend doing that."

Pyrrha froze as she saw little…fecal things coming out of the sewage and crawling around them, somehow even more disgusting as their smells concentrated the shit and pus of everything as they stated with their rotten yellow eyes.

However, Yuta wasn't scared somehow as he lowered her blade, her eyes wide yet comforted by the act, "It'll be alright," he said, smiling softly at her. "We'll be okay."

Geto could feel something was about to go off

"He hasn't realized it yet, but we managed to get out of the Domain,"

Geto's eyes widened, realizing his mistake too late; he had no time to react as he felt a sort of rupture in the wind passing through.

In a blink, a white-haired man with a white bandage over his eyes appeared out of nowhere between Yuta and Geto, and the confidence of the White Fang broke into almost panicked attacks as they all readied their weapons, Adam and Blake included.

Silence engulfed them, no one daring to make a move as doing so would prove to be their final breath.

Gojo Satorou looked around, a rare face of displeasure on him, only growing at the grievous wounds his students had, though not quite so for the champion. His carefree attitude was long gone.

"Ruining your party, Suguru?" Satoru asked in a low, menacing voice. "You didn't spout bullshit in my student's ear, didn't you?"

"Long time no see, Satoru!" Geto beamed at him. "How's Shoko?"

"She's doing great; she's smoking a lot less now that she doesn't see your ugly mug so often,"

Yuta could swear that he could see Geto…pouting?

"How cold… and here I thought you missed me,"

Satoru didn't seem in the mood for small talk as he took a step forward. The curse worm that still loomed over them let out a screech and lunged towards them with its mouth wide open.

Satoru lowered part of his bandages, allowing everyone to see the unnaturally bright blue color of his eyes. He pointed his finger towards the curse.

"Curse technique reversal—"

A red ball of cursed energy started to form on his fingertip. Pyrrha's eyes widened.

"He's converting curse energy into— Aura?!"

The red ball of energy shot out of Satoru's fingertip.

"Red!"

It pierced through the curse worm's body like a bullet. It let out a blood-curdling shriek as its body started to swell up and explode into a thousand pieces, its remains raining down on the ground like confetti.

Everyone in the room save for Geto remained awestruck at the display of strength that Satoru demonstrated. Yuta and Pyrrha hadn't seen anything like that before as they glanced at Satoru with awe. The curse they've been fighting not too long ago got exorcized instantly while they struggled!

Adam glanced at Geto, giving him a mean look. "You wanted us to get near that?!"

Geto simply rolled his eyes and turned his look at Satoru again, letting out a pleased smile.

"I didn't finish talking, Suguru." He said as he narrowed his eye. "I know what you're planning, so let me get this straight, you're not taking my students to your group of crazies," Satoru said.

"You're completely— wrong! That's not my plan!" Geto said as he made a buzzing sound with his mouth. "We were just having a heart-to-heart, right?"

He looked at Yuta and was surprised when he saw the intense glare he was giving back.

"I don't know which part you think kicking my friend like trash will make me hear a word you say…" Yuta said as he barely contained his snarl. He was tempted to let Rika out to tear him apart piece by piece. Almost.

Geto sighed and looked at him in disinterest.

"You are SOOOOO basic…it's boring," Geto muttered.

Suddenly, every White Fang member started running towards Geto and his group and surrounded them in a protective cordon, guns and blades and everything else all pouring out. A bright light shone from above them in the hole Gojo made with his attack and a powerful gust of wind started to form around them as the deafening roar of a bullhead rang clear. A ladder dropped beside them and the White Fang members started to climb it.

Gojo wasn't going to let them go, as he raised his finger and purple sparks started to surround it, the unspoken threat of his strongest attack there, one Geto knew all too well would be something none of his people-nor himself-would survive, especially this close.

"I wouldn't recommend doing that Satoru, unless you want them to die, that is…"

Pyrrha started to back away as the curses that threatened her earlier emerged from the sewer waters again, their claws ready to strike her at any moment and give what would undoubtedly be a disgustingly painful end.

Yuta didn't know when it happened, but he could a small pinch on his throat as small fecal creatures started to crawl over his shirt, their spikes aiming right to his jugular. He felt a knot in his throat as he realized the sheer danger of whatever Geto's Curse Technique was, especially compared with his barely manageable companion.

Satoru gritted his teeth as he glanced at the immediate danger and the sparks on his fingers died down when he realized that, while he might beat them in a draw, there was no guarantee. Geto let out a pleased smirk at seeing his old friend's silent defeat, even if he hadn't beaten him.

"This will not be the last time we'll be seeing each other," he said as he raised his arms and let out a mad grin. "On December 24th, the White Fang will wage a great war and I will unleash a thousand Curses on the cities of Kuchinashi and Mistral. Their orders? Massacre every single person in sight, from the greatest Hunters to the children of our enemies and everything in between!"

The White Fang members cried in enthusiasm as they raised their weapons high in the air, some even letting off a few shots as a salute. Yuta noticed Blake gritting her teeth and clutching the side of the ladder tightly, doubt and frustration clear at what she was seeing, alongside something else that was lurking beneath.

"You better tell our cranky principal," Geto said. "They need to start organizing if they want to avoid judgment day." He grinned maniacally.

"Let us curse each other to the death!"

The White Fang's cries started getting louder, faster, ravenous.

"Geto! Geto! Geto!" they shouted.

Yuta scowled as he couldn't believe what he was seeing. The White Fang followed this human without question, like he was the messiah come down to punish the wicked. It didn't make a lick of sense why a Faunus supremacist group followed him with such conviction, and yet here they were chanting his name in the face of the strongest man alive.

Why do they follow him, just why?!

Their cries died down in time as the White Fang members finished their retreat to the bullhead, alongside Blake and Adam. Only Geto remained for a moment, wanting to be the closer as he gave them a bow and grabbed the ladder out.

"Goodbye then, Satoru, Okkotsu."

With that, Geto retreated to the ladder and the light died, the sound of the aircraft started getting further until it faded away.

The Curses surrounding Yuta and Pyrrha disappeared into horrid black sludge, blending in with their surroundings just as terribly well as before.

Satoru let out a sigh and placed a palm on his face, for once seeming to be the exasperated one. "I swear the man likes to show off more than me sometimes…"

He then turned to Pyrrha, Yuta, and Maki, his shoulders relaxing as he gave a carefree smile.

"I'm glad to see that you two are alright! You almost had me worried there," he said as he grabbed Maki and placed her on his shoulder. "I should take her to Shoko for a quick fix. After that, I'll invite you two to breakfast, my treat."

"Breakfast?" Pyrrha said, tilting her head. "We've only been here for an hour."

Satoru snorted.

"Yeah, nah, you've been here for a day and change," he said nonchalantly like they'd simply got stuck in a movie for a little too long, in contrast to the gaping the two awake teens gave.

"A DAY?!"

"Yeah, I was about to kill that guy, but he told me that it was all part of his plan like some Saturday morning cartoon villain; real melodramatic, the asshole." Satoru shrugged.

"Sensei..." Yuta asked, "Was it worth all this just to test me?"

Satoru sighed and patted Yuta's head with gentle and sincere affection.

"Sorry about that, I was against this idea from the start, so next time I see him, I'll deck him in the face for you."

Yuta tilted his head. "Who?"

"That asshole who runs Beacon, Ozpin," Satoru said as a glint appeared in his eyes. "Or as he's known in Jujutsu society, one of the five Special Grade sorcerers."

Yuta blinked a couple of times as he processed the information.

"…Again, who?"


See you in a week or two for Chapter 3! Be sure to follow this story on SpaceBattles!

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