A/N: "Dad! Dad, wake up," Argent yells as he jumps on his dad.
"Mm? What's up, kiddo," Jaune asks sleepily, head still on the pillow.
"We're back!"
"Uh?"
"The story's being updated!"
"Kiddo, we haven't been updated in months. Other stories and all."
"But we're being updated now!"
"Isn't there some kind of other story coming up? Something about a hotel," Jaune yawned.
"It isn't done yet, so we're being updated next!"
"Mm. Hear that, Nim," Jaune asked as he nudged his wife.
"Mm. Am I in this chapter," she asked sleepily, not getting up from the bed.
"Uh... not really. It's mostly dad."
"Then I'm staying asleep. Wake me up when it's my chapter."
Jaune got up and stretched, his joints popping as he woke up after months of no updates. "Ah, whatever. Let's continue the story, I guess."
"Think we'll get reviews," Argent asked excitedly.
"I doubt it," Jaune yawned.
"Aw."
"It's no big deal, Arie. Anyway, let's get things started." Jaune then looked down at his wife and kissed her cheek.
"Yeah, you'd better kiss me," Nimueh went, still not moving from the bed.
Jaune just chuckled.
But yeah! King of Grimm is being updated this week! Next week, I'm not so sure. Anyway, ONTO THE STORY!
In front of the team was a fully formed oasis. The water was still clear and sparkling, surrounded by fully grown palm trees, many of which had fruit growing on them. There were coconut trees, date trees, and palm fruit trees. There were even a few banana trees and mango trees. There were also some cacti, with flowers and fruit already blooming on them.
What was even more amazing was the village already formed around the spring. Small huts, a small market, and plenty of Faunus working in the area. Faunus were picking the fruits, Faunus irrigating the spring to new gardens, and Faunus using some water to clean the Devil Dragons, the Grimm obviously enjoying the attention. One even rolled onto its back while giving out an adorable growl that sounded more like a purr as it was enjoying being washed.
"There you are."
The team looked to see a familiar Menagerian Guard walk up to them, slicing the top off of a coconut with his claws before guzzling it down.
"Howl? You're still here," Ilia asked.
"Don't sound so surprised, Bub. If anything, I should be asking why you're still in a guy's arms. Thought you were into the girlies."
Ilia turned pink before lightly patting Jaune's cheek. "Put. Me. Down." He did. Ilia looked at the village. "This is amazing. I know we're fast builders, but still. Just two days. And the greenery. How?"
"You can thank Meak for that," Howl said as he pointed his thumb towards a sleepy-looking Faunus lying in a hammock as he slowly and lazily ate a banana.
"Meakanu? The literal Sloth Faunus? He's the laziest guy I've ever met. He literally has moss growing in his hair. How could he do this?"
"You don't know his Semblance? It's Green Growth. Give him some seeds, have him charge them up with his Aura, and boom."
Jaune's eyes widened. "That's incredible. He might very well be one of the most valuable beings in the world. If a forest is ever burned down, he could regrow it like nothing happened."
"I guess he could, but don't get your hopes up. He's still a sloth. Can barely get that guy to do jack. Had to bribe him with fresh fruit. Only thing he likes more than the moss growing on his head. Oh, and cactus flower. So, you four planning on staying in Inai Kauwaki?"
"That's what you're calling this settlement," Yuma asked.
"Yup. Got names for the other four, too."
"Then we'd better find them," Jaune said with a smile.
Howl chuckled. "I guess you should. Hey, hero, can you and your team do us a favor?"
"If we can."
"One of the oases is near the ocean, right?"
"Ah, I get it. You want to make a fishing village ASAP."
Howl chuckled. "You are smart. Already plan on naming it Moana. If you get that oasis ready, we'll have a fish fry in a week. My treat."
"YOU," Trifa went. "YOU'RE TREATING?!"
"Is that really such a shock," Jaune went.
"Well, yeah. Howl is an infamous loner. The only ones he actually likes spending time with are his wife and daughter," Ilia explained.
"Hey," Howl went in annoyance.
Jaune chuckled before looking at Howl. "My wife is being taught how to make Pina Coladas by Kali. I'll see if I can convince her to bring some to the fry as an apology for my team's rudeness."
The group was quiet before Howl dropped his coconut, surprising Jaune.
"L-Lady Kali's Pina Coladas," Howl began.
"T-The legendary drink," Ilia went, drool flowing down the side of her mouth.
"Legendary," Jaune asked. "Whoa," Jaune said when Yuma grabbed him and shook him by his shoulders.
"YOU GOTTA CONVINCE YOUR WIFE, MAN!"
"Huh?"
"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! LADY KALI'S PINA COLADAS ARE TO KILL FOR! NO, KILL AND DIE FOR! I ONLY HAD THAT THING ONCE IN MY LIFE! I NEED TO HAVE IT AGAIN!"
"So sweet yet tart. A balance so perfect that you feel like you've found an unbelievable treasure," Trifa went on in a trance.
"And the different flavors she can make," Ilia went in a dreamy trance. "The Chocolate Pina Colada. The Minty one. Oooh, the cinnamon one."
"People joke how that cinnamon one helped me and Inai make Kahawai."
"Who," Jaune asked.
"His daughter," Ilia answered.
"To this day I wonder if it really is a joke."
"Oh, please. Everyone knows that those thunderstorms over your hut are you and Inai getting busy," Yuma went. "Honestly, I'm surprised she's only seventeen. Wai should have been born years earlier if you ask me."
"No one asked you, Yuma. Keep it up and I'll make sure you won't be able to answer anyone again," Howl said as he held up his claws, Yuma backing up and holding his hands up in nervous defense.
The team snickered at that interaction.
"Oh, but even on a Devil Dragon, it could take a few hours, especially if we're attacked by any wild Grimm or beasts," Jaune said.
"Yeah. Saw a few Diablos in the distance," Howl said as he looked out toward the desert. "They haven't rushed the village, but I'm guessing that's thanks to the Grimm and the number of warriors in the village. They're not dumb."
"They don't attack overly protected turf," Jaune guessed.
"Exactly. Still, best to be careful. We got some supplies to help out. Sonic bombs, fruit balls, dung bombs, some water canteens to keep you hydrated, the works."
"I'm sorry. Dung bombs," Jaune asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Diablos have really sensitive noses, even more than us Faunus. Toss one of those foul things at their sniffers, they'll go off runnin'."
"G-Good to know," Jaune went.
The team was riding through the desert on two Devil Dragons, Trifa riding with Yuma while Ilia rode with Jaune. Jaune decided to leave the other two Devil Dragons. As Howl said, they made for great deterrents for the other Menagerian Desert wildlife and Grimm. Devil Dragons were pretty much the Apex Predators of the island, after all.
"So, why am I riding with you and not Trifa," Ilia asked, ironically still hugging Jaune's waist.
"You want to split up a happy couple? And you call me a horn dog," Jaune joked.
Ilia gasped just as jokingly. "Why I would never. You wound me, hero." The two laughed at their little banter.
"I hope you don't take this the wrong way, Ilia, but you riding with me like this reminds me of the time I went horseback riding with one of my little sisters."
"Does it, now?" Ilia then hugged Jaune. "Weirdly enough, I feel like I'm with my older brother right now. Weird to say, since I'm an only child."
". . . Blake also told me how you're an orphan."
"Of course she did," Ilia sighed sadly.
"You miss then, right?"
"Of course I do. A day doesn't go by when I don't wish to be able to see my parents again and tell them I love them. I'm sure they're disappointed in what I did, though."
"You mean what you did as a White Fang member," Jaune asked as he looked back at the Chameleon Faunus.
"Yeah," Ilia answered sadly as she hugged Jaune tighter.
"Well, I think they'd be proud of the woman you grew into. After all, you're a role model for a lot of kids in Menagerie now, right?"
Ilia giggled. "Right. . . Still a long way before I'm as big as the Hero of Remnant, though."
"Me," Jaune asked with a chuckle.
"A lot of kids want to be like you, Jaune. Strong, heroic, fearless..." She snickered the next part. "And rich."
"Of course," Jaune went with a roll of his eyes.
"Now they want to be like you even more."
"Hm? Why's that?"
Ilia looked up at Jaune. "Because, in a weird way, you're one of us. A Faunus. You may not have wanted these powers, but you still embrace them."
"To an extent," Jaune corrected.
"To an extent. Still, you've saved a lot of lives with these powers. I mean, look at what you're doing for Menagerie alone. Yeah, you're a bit scarier now, but you're still loved. You're still you. You're still Jaune Arc, the Hero of Remnant. That's why a lot of the kids look up to you," Ilia said with a genuine smile.
Jaune smiled back before looking forward. "Well, better keep up the good job."
"Yeah. You'd better," Ilia said as she looked out towards the desert to keep an eye out for trouble. She then sniffed the air. "Salt?" She sniffed the air again. "Sea salt!" She looked in the direction of the scent and saw it. "HEY, YUMA! TRIFA! LOOK! IT'S THE SEA!"
Yuma and Trifa looked as their Devil Dragon ran.
"IT'S BEAUTIFUL," Trifa called.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW CLOSE WE ARE TO IT! WE'VE NEVER HAD AN EXPEDITION ANYWHERE CLOSE TO THIS PART OF THE CONTINENT, NOT EVEN BY AIR," Yuma called. "WHOA! I JUST SAW A FREAKIN' SWORDFISH!"
"YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS, ILIA," Trifa called.
"THAT THE OASIS WE FIND HERE WILL MAKE A PERFECT FISHING VILLAGE," Ilia answered, the three Faunus cheering happily.
Then, the Devil Dragons began to slow down before climbing a dune. It was on the side of the ocean, meaning the oasis was in the perfect area, making the Faunus even happier.
"Jaune, please tell me the oasis is around here," Ilia asked excitedly.
She actually looked up and saw a forked tongue flick out of Jaune's mouth before rushing back in. "It is," he answered seriously.
Ilia was happy at first before she noticed Jaune's expression, her smile going away. "Jaune, what's wrong," she answered with worry.
"This was too easy."
"Huh?"
"We rode for nearly two hours without any trouble. We weren't even attacked by Menagerian Dune Crabs. Nothing attacked us."
"I-Is that a problem?"
Jaune glared towards the approximate location of the hidden oasis. "The last oasis we found had a bank of Devil Dragons around it. Why aren't there any now?"
Ilia's eyes widened in realization.
Yuma and Trifa's Devil Dragon walked up to Jaune and Ilia's.
"What's wrong," Yuma asked in concern.
"You three armed," Jaune asked.
Ilia placed her hand on her Lightning Lash. Yuma took out the throwing daggers Howl suggested for him while Trifa readied her wire gloves Howl also suggested.
"Cover me," Jaune said as he jumped off the Devil Dragon and carefully walked towards the target area.
"Think it's another Diablos," Yuma asked.
"No. They would have made themselves known by now," Ilia answered. "This is something else."
Meanwhile, behind a boulder near the ocean, a head peaked out over the stone.
"That's right. Just a bit further, hero," Toad went. "Hurry up. This salt is killing me," he muttered as he drank more from his canteen. "Dammit, Kulu, you know toads and sea don't mix. Why did I have to be the first to go after Jauney?" He then looked out at the sea. "Then again, I ain't the one who's gonna get him, am I, my fishy friend?" Toad snickered evilly as four pairs of red eyes glowed beneath the waves.
Jaune walked closer to the area, analyzing the area.
'Come on. Just a few more steps,' Toad thought, sweating profusely and chugging down more water.
Toad's eyes bulged when Jaune stepped into the area he wanted him to be. 'NOW,' he telepathically thought.
A tentacle then wrapped around Jaune's leg, surprising him before he was dragged towards the sea.
"JAUNE," Ilia yelled in concern before aiming her Lightning Lash. For this particular mission, she had her weapon upgraded so that it was also a gun, the barrels next to the blade on the base of the hilt. Yuma was already throwing daggers while Trifa tried to web Jaune with one hand and use her wires on the other hand to grab and slice the tentacle.
'Oh, no, ya don't,' Toad thought before he croaked.
Right as their attacks rushed to help Jaune, Sand Sharks jumped out and took their attack. Though they died, they were still able to prevent Ilia and her team from saving Jaune, the hero being dragged beneath the sea waters.
Before they could react, a Sand Shark tried to bite Ilia from behind. Her Devil Dragon saved her by biting the Grimm's head with enough force to crush its head, the bone mask of the shark making a loud crunch.
The group then realized that a frenzy of Sand Sharks now surrounded them, making it impossible for them to help Jaune.
'ALRIGHT,' Toad cheered softly to not alert the three. 'And I'm outta here,' he thought as he jumped far away while the others weren't looking, now riding on the back of a Sand Shark as it swam him away at great speeds, no one knowing the Faunus was ever there.
Jaune was being dragged underwater, but he didn't care. He was able to breathe underwater now, but he wished he had learned Shark God Style. He was pretty sure Wolf God was useless underwater, Snake God possibly being useful. Still, he should have thought ahead. When he discovered that one of the oases was close to the ocean, he should have learned the martial art as a precaution for situations like these.
Jaune then saw what had wrapped around him, looking into the face of a Black King Taijitu.
The Grimm opened its mouth, preparing to either swallow Jaune whole or take a bite out of him. Either way, it lunged at him.
However, Jaune was charging lightning in his mouth. He may have never Conquered one yet, but he could still use his magic to imitate a Sea Feilong's lightning breath, blasting the snake's head off, its hold on Jaune completely gone.
Jaune was about to swim back and help his team when he noticed something. Another Black King Taijitu. He then realized there were more, all of them black. He followed their necks to see they were connected to a single Tentacle Grimm. All of the heads, including the Tentacle Grimm base, roared at Jaune.
'An Orochi. Been a long time since I've fought one of those,' Jaune thought as he prepared to fight the massive, rare Grimm. 'Ambrosian Garb, appear,' he thought, his armor appearing on his body. He then had his sword appear right in time to clash with the fangs of an attacking head, the force making the water of the ocean surface explode like a geyser.
Ilia looked towards the explosion only to be knocked off her Dragon by the sand bullet of a Sand Shark. She jumped up to her feet and looked at her shoulder, her Aura flashing before going back to normal. 'No wonder Huntsmen unlock these things as soon as they can.'
A Sand Shark tried to lunge at her, but Ilia jumped over the beast and swung her Lightning Lash, stabbing right into the Grimm's eye and through its head, the creature already fading away as it fell into the sand.
Trifa was being creative with her webs, lassoing one of the Sand Sharks and actually surfing it, keeping up with another Sand Shark. When she saw the chance as its head surfaced for a split second, she wrapped her wires around the creature and with a yank of her glove sliced the monster's head to pieces, surfing for the next victim.
However, her Grimm was getting annoyed.
When it couldn't dive because of her webs, it decided to just jump out of the sand, trying to land on its back to slam Trifa onto the course ground.
Good thing her boyfriend was around.
Yuma grabbed Trifa right before the Sand Shark could slam her into the ground, throwing a dagger into the creature's throat. It began to thrash around as it howled in pain from the blade in its throat before Yuma flew directly above the creature and held out his hand. His glove then began to glow purple.
In the blink of an eye, the dagger he threw into the Grimm's neck shot through the creature and back into Yuma's hand, the Shark's black blood spewing before it fell to the ground, fading away.
"Heh, I think I could have easily taken over the Belladonna Estate with these," he said as he looked at his daggers.
"That, and you have your Aura unlocked, so Lady Kali can't knock you out with a tea tray," Trifa teased.
"Hey, you were knocked out by one punch from Blake," he teased back.
Before the two could flirt any further, an explosion occurred once more. They looked towards the sea to see an armored Jaune getting blasted into the air before seven Taijitu heads appeared around him, roaring in terrifying unison, before coiling around him and dragging him back into the water.
"ILIA, JAUNE'S IN TROUBLE," Yuma called.
"WE'RE NOT DOING ANY BETTER," she called back.
Yuma looked and saw what she meant. "Aw, shit."
Entire herds of Sand Shark fins were rushing towards them, a massive one in the middle of the shiver.
"A Great Sand Shark. Great," Trifa deadpanned.
The Devil Dragons roared at the approaching army, ready to fight.
Jaune was having a hard time fighting the Orochi, its heads faster and more agile in the water than he. Sure, he could move quickly through the water thanks to his magic, but he was doing more dodging than fighting. He was trying to charge up an electric blast, but the Orochi was one of the more intelligent Grimm in the world. Every time Jaune would begin to charge his spell, they would force him to dispel it by blasting water torrents at him from their mouths, usually multiple at a time, and more often hit him than miss.
Jaune's armor was definitely protecting him, but his Aura was already nearing yellow.
'Ah, screw it,' he thought before blasting towards the base of the Orochi.
The heads tried to bite or swallow him, but Jaune made sure to go at reckless speeds, speeds too great for an underwater amateur like him to maneuver through. So, he ended up slamming into the Orochi's base, making the creature roar out in pain as he cracked some of its mask.
Jaune didn't care. He was where he wanted to be. He didn't hesitate to slam his hand onto the Orochi and try to Conquer it.
Big mistake.
Its Color was the darkest purple he had seen yet. Darker than even the Wendigo. It was also a unique shade of purple. Like it had a mix of other colors in it. Almost greenish. For some reason, his first thought was that it looked... toad green.
Then, he heard the Grimm's "voice".
'FOOLISH TRAITOR! I AM ONLY LOYAL TO OUR GOD! YOU ARE NOT WORTHY TO BE MY KING! THE ONLY MORTAL WHOM I WOULD LISTEN TO ON THIS PLANET IS THE ONE WHO SUMMONED ME TO FIGHT FOR MY GOD!'
'Summoned,' Jaune thought.
'NOW, BEGONE,' it roared before the Color actually exploded, sending Jaune spiraling out into the water.
Jaune was able to somehow regain his balance, shaking his head before looking up. "Oh, shit."
All of the Orochi's remaining heads were charging up the same torrent attack that's been a bane to Jaune throughout this fight, including the base. Before Jaune could even think of swimming out of the way, eight massive beams of water blasted toward him, hitting him point blank.
It created an explosion so huge, that the sky darkened with water. Then, it actually began to rain around Ilia and her team.
Ilia was staring at the blast sight, eyes wide in shock. "J-Jaune?"
"ILIA, BEHIND YOU," Yuma yelled.
She didn't even try to turn when a Sand Shark lunged at her. It was caught by her now larger Devil Dragon anyway. Still, she didn't care... until it hit her. Rage.
She began to shake as she clenched her Lightning Lash even tighter, gritting her teeth before she roared as she fiercely stabbed the struggling Sand Shark through the head, killing it, not even caring that her Devil Dragon was absorbing Grimm Smoke of the slain shark, too angry at the supposed death of her friend and leader.
"YOU BASTARDS WANT TO KILL US SO BADLY?! COME AND GET US," she roared at the sharks, her Dragon roaring behind her, as if just as ready to take on the herd.
"Yuma, you don't think he's actually," Trifa asked in a shaky voice.
"No. Not him. Besides, the Grimm is still on our side. That has to mean something, right?"
"I hope so. . . But I'm more interested in taking THESE FUCKERS OUT!"
"YOU READ MY MIND," Yuma roared as he flew down to help Ilia take out the herd, his and Trifa's Devil Dragon charging after them to help in the fight.
Meanwhile, the underwater foam from the Orochi's blast finally cleared, the monster now alone. It looked around the sea, seeing no sign of Jaune. Not a piece of his armor, not his sword, or the body itself. It kept searching around before looking up, seeing no sign of him before it began to look down.
Too late for that.
Jaune's boot slammed into the bottom of the beast, making it roar in pain and anguish as Jaune blasted both himself and the creature toward the surface of the ocean. He was going at such extreme speeds that the water rose with them before bursting into the sky, continuing the artificial rain and getting the Faunus's attention.
Jaune then grabbed the Orochi by the base's boney mask and began to spin around before tossing it towards the desert, crushing a small herd of Sand Sharks in the process, a sandy smoke screen hiding the massive monster.
Jaune then flew over towards the cloud before erecting a massive ice wall to make it harder for the Orochi to reach the ocean. "You had a massive advantage in the water. You damn well could have killed me if we stayed. You did shatter my Aura after all. But now we fight on MY turf!"
The Faunus were happy to see their leader alive.
"That stubborn human," Ilia said with a relieved smile.
"But what is he wearing? It looks amazing," Yuma said.
"I've never seen armor so beautiful before. Where was he hiding it," Trifa asked.
'Wait, those symbols on him,' Ilia thought. 'Aren't those the Four Relics?'
Then, they all heard a growl.
One of the Orochi's Taijitu heads swung with more than enough force to blow away the dust. It was now even bigger than before, all eight of its heads recovered, and any previous damage from before was now gone. Then, eight snakes and the base of the beast roared at Jaune with enough force to make the ice wall crack, but not enough to shatter it.
It was also more than loud enough to make nearly every Sand Shark shoot out of the sand, flopping around like fish out of water.
The few that were out of range tried swimming towards Jaune. But when one lunged at him, it was caught and eaten by one of the Taijitu heads, making the Grimm even bigger.
"So THAT'S how Big Ben got so big. Grimm can become stronger by absorbing other Grimm. Wonder why Salem never used that trick. . . Unless she never knew. Great. I just discovered a way Grimm becoming even more powerful besides through age and experience. And all I had to do was get attacked by one of the rarest and deadliest Grimm in the world. Just my luck."
"JAUNE," Ilia called. "WE'LL TRY TO DEAL WITH THE SHARKS! THINK YOU CAN HANDLE THAT THING ON YOUR OWN?!"
"NOT THE FIRST TIME I'VE FOUGHT THESE THINGS, ILIA! JUST BE CAREFUL WITH THE SHARKS! WE'RE SURVIVING THIS OFFICIALLY S-CLASS MISSION! THAT'S AN ORDER TO ALL OF YOU!"
"YES, SIR," the Faunus responded in unison as they got ready to take on the herd with more gusto than before now that their leader was back.
"Right then, let's dance, you overgrown calamari dish," Jaune said as he readied his sword and his staff, his cape flowing majestically.
The Orochi roared once more as if accepting the final round of its fight against Jaune. It was prepared to prove that it is just as deadly on land as it is in the sea, if not worse.
Jaune rushed at the Orochi, dodging its lunging heads, even running up one of them before lunging at the base, stabbing into its head. It roared in pain as Jaune tried to electrocute it. He was caught off guard when the monster actually began to spin.
It was moving at such speeds that it created a twister, even sucking up some Sand Sharks. The only reason Ilia and the others weren't sucked in was that they clung to their heavy Devil Dragons.
Even Jaune was having trouble holding onto the monster. As he clung to his sword, an unfortunate Sand Shark slammed into him, making him release his sword and get sucked into the twister, his sword vanishing out of the beast and back onto his arm.
The Sand Shark struggled for a bit before Jaune Conquered it. The next thing he did was just plain crazy. He got onto the Grimm's back and actually used it like a surfboard, literally riding the winds of the twister.
His helm made it easier to see through the sand, but he couldn't see any sign of the Orochi. His enhanced hearing was able to catch the sound of crunching and screeching Grimm. Moments later, he found out why.
It became darker behind him. He looked to see a massive Taijitu head. He looked like a bug in comparison to the snake's size. It tried to swallow him and the Sand Shark whole, but Jaune was able to steer the shark downward, ducking to barely avoid having his head bitten off.
Jaune didn't waste any time summoning his sword, stabbing the snake in the neck. He then quickly ran around the massive beast's head, decapitating it. He then ran down the snake's body, slicing through the tentacle as he ran down and found the base, three massive red eyes looking towards him.
Jaune jumped onto the head and tried to stab through, only for his sword to bounce off.
'Damn! It's hard! It may be based on Nim, but it's still only a replica. Can't compare to the real deal. Doesn't help that I haven't put nearly as much Aura as I should into this armor. Still...' Jaune thought as he looked back to where the eyes were. 'There are softer places to attack than bone.'
Jaune then ran over and swung onto the eye of the Grimm, slamming his boots on first before stabbing into it. The Orochi screeched in pain and agony as black smoke spewed onto Jaune's face. He tried to take his sword out, but it was lodged deep. He was about to make it vanish so he could summon it again, only to be swallowed whole by a Taijitu head.
However, Jaune was a quick thinker. He used the claws of his gauntlets to stick onto the throat of the beast, making the snake screech in pain.
Jaune then held up his free hand, forming a fireball in his palm. He also added lightning for a good, painful measure. When he was satisfied with his creation, he tossed the spell down the beast's gullet. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!"
The Taijitu screamed in agony as the base of its body began to glow red before blowing up, making the Orochi roar in pain.
The snake's head was swirling in the twister, vanishing. When the smoke cleared, Jaune was flailing around in the wind, trying desperately to regain his balance. Though the wind was getting weaker, thanks to the destruction of two heads, it was still too dangerous for Jaune to summon his wings. The winds would rip them off.
Fortunately, the Sand Shark was still alive. It caught Jaune, the hero gratefully climbing onto its back and riding the winds.
As he did, three heads tried to attack him at once. Jaune was able to maneuver past them, somehow not letting his shark get so much as a scratch. Two of the heads tried to wall Jaune off, wanting him to slam into their bodies. But Jaune saw a small gap between the monsters. It was too big to fit him and his shark, but he thought he should be able to jump through it if timed correctly.
At the right moment, he pushed his shark down, knowing it would be able to get under the snakes safely without him riding it, and jumped. He barely made it through the gap, the twister's winds ironically helping him by speeding him up right before the gap smashed shut.
But when Jaune landed on his shark and looked up, he saw that they were flying right into the open maw of a snake.
Jaune smirked.
He placed his hand on the Sand Shark and imbued it with ice magic, giving it ice armor, all of the ends looking as deadly as any point of a spear, the edges gleaming like perfectly crafted swords. Jaune then pointed his free hand behind him, held his sword forward, and unleashed a blast of fire that shot him and his shark into the snake like a bullet.
It was a bit of a struggle, but Jaune and his Frozen Sand Shark pierced through the snake's head, the shark roaring in triumph while the snake cried out in dying agony before fading away.
The Orochi roared, its cry filled with both rage and agony, getting tired of Jaune cutting off its heads.
The Grimm then coiled its heads together before blasting them outward, canceling the twister it created.
Though the skies were now clear of violent winds and rushing sand, it meant Jaune's shark could no longer fly. To save it, Jaune grabbed its fin and threw it towards Ilia's group, the Grimm slicing through a Sand Shark trying to lunge at Yuma from behind. It then jumped out of the sand next to Ilia and her Devil Dragon, roaring as three other Sand Sharks jumped out and roared back at it as if accepting its challenge.
With the winds gone and his new Sand Shark safe, Jaune grew his wings and was flying above the now colossal Grimm, its five heads and base body hissing and growling at him.
They were both ready to end the fight, the sky crackling and crashing with actual thunder and lightning.
Four of the heads lunged at Jaune. He summoned his staff and lengthened it with earth and ice, using it to smack one head away while using his sword to parry another. he allowed himself to fall from the air to avoid another head before performing a split to land on the fangs of the head below him. He jumped before the snake could slam its mouth shut.
Jaune stabbed his sword into the snake's eye, making it screech in agony before he ran across its head and slashed the top half off, making the tentacle vanish.
Enraged, the Orochi violently flailed its remaining heads around, all four remaining heads attacking at once with reckless abandon.
That recklessness actually helped, one of the heads slamming into Jaune with enough force to make him spin in the air. As he spun, one of the heads bit Jaune, catching him by the waist. With his Aura gone, the pressure made him cough up blood, but his armor prevented any of the Grimm's fangs from piercing him.
Still, the Taijitu head began to slam Jaune onto the ground. Though it was sand, it still hurt, especially since the Taijitu was slamming Jaune down from the height of a four-story building. Each blow was doing a decent amount of damage to Jaune, but it would still take much more than that to beat him. The beast figured that out when Jaune stabbed his hands through its lips, preparing to rip it apart.
Before he could, another head bit the other half of his body, Jaune was hidden between the mouths of the monsters, both massive snakes trying to rip him in half while the Base and the other two heads roared in triumph.
Premature celebration.
Jaune began to electrocute the two heads before remembering an interesting aspect of the Ursa, their natural massive spikes. Jaune then made his own bone spikes grow out of his body, stabbing through the mouths of the Grimm. They wanted to roar in pain, but Jaune's spikes kept them shut.
Jaune then roared out fire, blasting them out of his hands and feet, filling the Grimm with burning flames that made the snakes bloat up. Then, the snakes exploded, some of the fire burning half the face of one of the last two tentacles while a stray fireball killed a Sand Shark trying to attack Trifa from behind.
Jaune was floating in the air, panting from exhaustion, not used to using that much magic at once. Then, he looked at the Orochi defiantly.
The last two heads hissed before they began to inhale. It was a powerful suction that was dragging in the sand, some sharks, and even Jaune's own ice with some ocean water. Whatever they were planning was bound to be huge. The Base head was also inhaling, sucking up sand. Jaune also noticed that the sand it was on was getting wetter. He realized that it was on top of the oasis, sucking up the trapped water. Judging by the now abundantly wet sand below it, there was a lot of water at this oasis.
Still, Jaune didn't have time to think about the oasis. He needed a way to deal with this monster, or else its next attack might very well kill him.
Then, he heard thunder.
He looked up to see the storm clouds, lightning flashing across them, a crazy idea forming in his head. "Please let this work."
He then charged up electric magic before tossing them into the sky. Nothing happened at first until the lightning became much more violent than before. Jaune could actually feel the electricity coursing through the clouds. He was relieved when he felt the sensation he was hoping for: control over the lightning.
He held out his arms, trying to command the lightning to gather into one spot. He was actually watching the lightning flow into the spot he wanted. But it wasn't going perfectly as planned.
Some of the lightning was as volatile as you'd expect lightning to be, a few bolts hitting Jaune. It got worse when some of the Sand Sharks started to attack Jaune directly, spewing sand bullets at him before getting sucked up by the Orochi, making it stronger. What made it even worse was that the spell was taking a lot of concentration. So much that it felt like it was tearing Jaune's mind apart. He wasn't used to anything this complicated. He didn't even know if the other Seasonal Maidens would manipulate the weather to this extent. He'd only seen Winter use the full power of the Maiden, but he wasn't sure if even she could command nature at this painful level.
It was getting so bad that blood was starting to flow out of his ears and mouth, the stress of the magic getting to him.
Still, he was able to complete his spell, the lightning now looking like a bright beacon, almost like a small full moon in the sky.
Howl and his team of settlers were even able to see it. "By the God of Animals himself," Howl went.
"I thought only Inai could pull something off like that," a random Pig Faunus went.
"Guess we know Arc's at the same level as your wife," Meakanu yawned.
Howl stared at the lightning. 'No. It would have taken even Inai much longer to make something like that. Twenty minutes at least,' he thought. 'But Jauney did it in what looked like five minutes. How powerful IS that guy?'
Jaune then looked down at the Orochi, the monster looking fat and full, ready to unleash whatever it had gathered. However, Jaune was ready as well.
As soon as the Orochi unleashed its blasts, a beam out of the Taijitu heads and a massive explosion of a laser out of the maw of the Tentacle Grimm, Jaune threw down his arms with great effort, unleashing a massive ray of lightning at the three blasts. Jaune's massive electrical ray clashed with the Orochi's three beams. They seemed evenly matched at first.
Then, the ray blasted through the beams and smashed into the Orochi. It screamed in agony as it began to evaporate, vanishing within the light of the explosion, the force of the blast sending many Sand Sharks flying, some vanishing towards the desert, others into the ocean. The explosion created a massive light of dome so brilliant, that it illuminated all of Menagerie. Even more amazing, it was seen all the way from a Valerian port town.
Then, it faded away, the natural light of the sun illuminating the world once more.
Ilia was clinging to her Dragon, holding onto it for dear life. She didn't even open one eye when the winds stopped. She only opened one when her Dragon nudged her with its muzzle.
She saw Yuma's wings wrapped around himself and Trifa, the Bat Faunus opening his wings when his Dragon nudged him. The three Faunus looked around to see... nothing. The only Sand Shark around was the one Jaune Conquered, the Grimm shaking off the sand and its Ice Armor.
Ilia then looked up towards the sky, seeing Jaune. She then looked down towards where the Orochi was. What she saw made her eyes widen.
Jaune looked down at the impact where his spell struck. Below him was pure glass. It went so far down that he could see the oasis water trapped beneath it, ready to be unleashed. Jaune wanted to use his magic to deal with the glass, but first... he needed to fall out of the sky from exhaustion.
"JAUNE," Ilia yelled in concern when she saw her friend slam onto the sand. She jumped onto the back of her Dragon, whistled the same way Jaune showed her, and had her Grimm take off running, Yuma and Trifa following her lead.
Jaune was now on his back, groaning. He was about to make his armor retreat into its tattoo form when it shattered, turning to dust before reverting to the said tattoo. 'Damn. Since it's incomplete, it has limits to how much punishment it can take. Hope none of my enemies find that out anytime soon.'
He then heard the sound of running and looked to see the Dragons charging toward him. They skidded to a halt, their riders jumping off.
"JAUNE," Ilia yelled as she slid to his side, helping him sit up.
"That was intense. You alright, boss," Yuma asked.
"I've been better," Jaune groaned, it being too hard for him to even talk. "How's the oasis?"
Ilia giggled. "All about the mission, eh, Huntsman?"
Jaune shrugged, which made him groan in pain. "Man's gotta do what a man's gotta do," he groaned out.
"Hey, women get the job done just as well," Trifa said as she teasingly placed her hands on her hips.
"I feel like I can't respond to that without getting in trouble."
"Probably not," the three Faunus responded in unison before Yuma walked away.
He stopped at the edge of the glass, squatting down to take a closer look. "By the God of Animals. This thing has to be big enough to hold Ao Ana Academy. How are we gonna deal with this much glass?"
"We can't just shatter it," Trifa said. "Rather not contaminate our new oasis with glass."
"Just... give me a moment to rest," Jaune panted. "I'll deal with it. Oi."
"Do you ever just relax," Ilia asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You see Nimueh in sexy lingerie anywhere," he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"And now I wanna smack you out of jealousy," Ilia said.
"Ditto," Yuma said. "OW," he went after Trifa stomped on his feet. "Yeah, I deserved that," he went as he hopped on one foot, holding his sore one.
Trifa then looked around. "Hey, Jaune, did you deal with those Sand Sharks with that blast of yours?"
"Hm? No. I don't think so."
"Then where are they?"
As soon as Trifa asked that, a sand shark burst out of a nearby dune, Yuma throwing a dagger at its head, killing it. "YOU HAD TO ASK, BABE," he said as he, Trifa, and Ilia took their stances.
They were then surrounded by a herd of Sand Sharks. One tried to lunge at Jaune, but it was attacked by his Conquered Sand Shark, the Grimm ripping its enemy's throat out.
"Yeah, screw this," Jaune said as he looked around. He then saw the fin of the Great Sand Shark and threw one of the Sonic Bombs he had at it, making it and some other Sharks jump out of the sand in surprise. Jaune, with quite a bit of exertion, lunged at the Alpha Grimm and slammed his hand on it. "I am WAY too tired to deal with you little shits."
Then, quite easily, he Conquered it.
The Sand Sharks then stopped swimming. Ilia and the others watched as they all jumped out of the sand, looking lost and confused. They all looked at their previous Alpha, the Great Sand Shark rolling back onto its feet before shaking. It then looked around like a lost bird before looking at the new Alpha, Jaune.
Jaune scratched the Great Shark's chin, making it purr before pointing a thumb towards the desert and whistling. With that, the Great Sand Shark dove into the sand and swam away, followed by its herd, with only the first Sand Shark Jaune Conquered remaining, the now bigger Grimm lying down in the sand.
"That was... kinda anticlimactic," Yuma said.
"Don't complain," Trifa said as she elbowed him.
"I'm not! It's just... well, maybe I am... a little."
"Jeez. You're really making life easier for us, superhero," Ilia said with a smile, a hand on her hip.
"That's my job," Jaune said as he walked towards the glass. He then knelt down, grew out his claws, and dug them into the glass.
"Uh, boss, you sure you can handle that," Yuma asked. "That's bound to weigh a ton."
"Probably a hell of a lot more," Jaune said.
"Shouldn't you rest," Trifa asked.
"We do have some insanely strong Faunus, you know," Ilia said.
"Oh, I don't doubt that, and I probably should, Trifa, buuuut..."
"You're stubborn," Ilia asked with a deadpanned expression.
"Yup," he said as he popped the P.
Meanwhile, Ruby was eating her favorite cereal alone, since Weiss had already gone to work, Silber was on an Academy assignment, and there were no jobs available for her rank that day. She was bored and lonely before she shivered with a deep blush. "Why... do I... really wanna kiss Jaune right now?"
Jaune then took a deep breath, closed his eyes to concentrate, and readied himself. His eyes then shot open, red and black from charging up his powers, and began to lift the glass. After a few minutes of exertion and a powerful roar, he lifted the massive cylinder of glass, yanking up a huge chunk of desert in the process, but not even so much as cracking the glass.
"HOLY HELL," Yuma went.
"That strength of yours is incredibly humbling," Trifa went with a twitching eye.
Jaune then walked away from his newly made crater and placed the cylinder there. "No idea what to do with this."
"We'll deal with it later," Ilia said. "By the way, where's the water?"
"Huh?" Jaune joined his team and looked into the crater. "That's weird. Why isn't it-"
There was then a rumbling.
"Oh," the entire team deadpanned in unison.
A geyser then blasted all four of them.
A/N:
"It's good to be back," Argent cheered.
"Don't celebrate yet, kiddo," Jaune said.
"Huh?"
"The writer has other stories, honey," Nimueh explained.
"So, we might not come back, next week?"
"Probably not," Jaune said with a shake of his head.
"Aw."
"Ah, don't worry, Arie," Nimueh said as she rubbed her son's head. "We'll be back eventually. We've got plenty of material, after all."
"Mm. . . Do you think people will leave reviews?"
"Don't count on it," the parents said in perfect unison.
"Aw."