A/N: Thanks to my friend qazse as always for reaction ideas.
A hunter with a longsword delivered a slash to a giant blue, icy Elder Dragon, supposedly bringing the monster down. "When you think that you've won. And that there's not left to be done. Well, then I suggest you run. Because it's just not true. And a world of poison descends upon you!" Rage warned with an ominous echo to his voice as a freezing purple mist made it impossible to see, before a massive ice meteor descended in the center of the arena, everything going black.
Everyone was left in shock and awe at the opening, especially the students. "Whoa... That was epic. And kinda terrifying." Coco said.
"B-but how?! That doesn't make any sense! If they slayed the monster, how can it cause this 'world of poison' he speaks of! That should be impossible!" Weiss exclaimed.
"Ooh! Maybe it has a self-destruct feature like a robot, only instead of an explosion, it's poison!" Nora theorized.
"But that makes no sense! Why would an animal have a feature that destroys them?! And how would any body processes even work after they die?!" Weiss questioned again.
"Actually, she's onto something here. There are actually QUITE a few insects that explode as a form of self-defense. And some of them only activate after they die, like if they get crushed or something. And plenty more animals have functions that still work after they die, like jellyfish or stonefish, you touch their poison parts even after they die and you'll INSTANTLY regret it." Emerald added.
"And don't forget pufferfish. It may be a delicacy, but if the chef slips up even a little when making it, it's curtains for you." Cinder added, remembering when the Madam tried adding pufferfish to the menu at the Glass Unicorn. The lawsuits ALMOST got the place shut down, ALMOST letting Cinder be free of her adopted family, but they still managed to scrape by, just having to remove the fish from the menu. [1]
A group of hunters were fighting the dragon together now. "Welcome, my fellow hunters, as today we talk an Elder Dragon of mysterious might. Some say he is a creations wrought deep in a lab, a horror given breath. Some say he hails not of this Earth. Some say he is a conqueror claiming a new home." Rage explained as the fight continued with the dragon bounding around the arena, the ground freezing underneath him any time he set foot upon it.
"Well, those are all quite the theories." Summer said, slightly disturbed by all of those prospects.
"The idea of it being created in a lab is quite interesting... but also has a number of disturbing implications." Penny said, unnerved.
"It means someone was trying to play god... And it seems like they created a devil." Winter agreed, equally unnerved.
"Things like this is why genetic and/or organic experimentation is illegal." Ironwood added in concern.
"Quite. We saw the horrors of such things first hand from Dr. Merlot." Glynda said in disgust.
"I kind of like the idea of it being an alien wanting to conquer the planet. It sounds like an epic sci-fi movie!" Ruby exclaimed.
"Yeah, I like that idea, too. 'Cuz that means I'd get to kick an alien conqueror's butt!" Yand declared, fantasizing about her standing on top of a battered and bruised Duremudira, wearing her aviators with a Vale flag planted on the ground in front of her like an action hero.
But now, they finally got a good look at the beast. "Well, this beast is quite the impressive sight." Adam said, impressed.
"Yeah, I'd say it's pretty badass... if it wasn't so terrifying!" Jaune exclaimed in fear.
"I kind of like it. Its eyes give it a pretty edgy look." Ilia praised.
"And it looks quite strong as well. It seems to be more muscular than Elders like Kushala Daora or Teostra." Hazel said.
"It looks almost gothic. I think I'm a fan." Blake said with a small smile, a bit of a goth herself.
The dragon folded its wings in defensively, before swinging them out widely with a burst of ice. "What we DO know is he goes by Duremudira." The host explained, before everything went black with the monster's name being shown. "Doo-Ray-MOO-dee-rah? Duh-Ray-muh-duh-rah? Duh-ruh-moo-DEE-rah? Okay, look: you're gonna hear a lot of different pronunciations as we go through this." Rage admitted as the name zoomed in more and more. The fight was then shown again. "Enter, then, the Guardian of the Sky Corridor! The Emperor Ice Dragon and he is... Well, something else entirely." The host said as the dragon released giant beams of ice from its mouth.
"Oh, not ANOTHER tongue twister name!" Neo groaned.
"Duh-Ree-Moo-Dee-Rah? That sounds the least scary version of the name." Velvet guessed.
"Doo-Ray-Muderuh. Sounds kind of like murderer, which this thing PROBABLY is from the look of it." Ren theorized.
"I'm just gonna stick with Dude." Roman said.
"That may actually be the best option. Keep it simple." Ozpin agreed.
Ruby groaned at this. "Why do these monsters have to have such confusing names!?" She complained.
But then they heard the name. "The Emperor of Ice Dragon... I have to admit, I quite like that name." Winter said.
"I agree, sister. It's dignified and regal, as well as imposing by making him sound as though he has total control of ice." Weiss agreed.
Qrow chuckled at this. "You know, I WAS going to say this doesn't help your case of not being ice queens... but I gotta admit, that's just a badass title." Qrow said.
"But wait... If it's the Emperor of ICE Dragon, what was Rage saying about a world of poison? Those two things don't add up. If it uses ice, that's not poisonous." Pyrrha said.
The crew looked to Katana at this. "Sorry, guys. You'll just have to be patient~" Katana said teasingly.
Several of them groaned at this. "Must you ALWAYS be so cryptic?" Glynda asked... To which their host simply shrugged with a cheeky grin, causing some of them to growl or grumble in annoyance.
The beast then leapt forward, raising a wall of ice in front of itself upon landing. "Firstly, his home. A trap-laden tower of the Ancient Civilization, guarding mysterious secrets, deadly powers and long Gog-forsaken experiments. This long-abandoned tower is a place that only the most skilled, bravest and battle-hardened of hunters would EVER dare to venture. And of them, so few ever see sunlight again once they are swallowed by its depths. But what is the Sky Corridor? Well, akin to the tower, a construction that is monument to the horror of the Great Dragon War, built on the very bones, flesh, scale of Kushala Daora, used as the very mortar itself and decaying as it spirals through the cloud, this really is a shrine of screams." Rage retold previous information, showing several images of the tower and hunters preparing to face it, before the roar of a Kushala was heard, sounding closer to a scream.
"Oh, not the tower again." Velvet whimpered.
"Seriously, why did they need a giant tower and WHY did they have to make it out of dragons?!" Emerald complained in a mix of anger and heartbreak, getting nods of agreement from the other animal lovers.
"Truly atrocious. And I can only imagine those experiments he's talking about are even more so." Pyrrha said in disgust.
Then, they heard the roaring screams of Kushala. "Okay, THAT is not helping!" Ilia said fearfully.
Duremudira then charged forward ice forming and shattering in front of and around him. "But this is not the only depraved structure the Ancient Civilization built, for the Sky Corridor is another one. Though, unlike the tower, it is much more labyrinthine in structure: many corridors, rooms, easy to get lost and even easier still to put a foot wrong and trigger some horrific contraption to bring about your end. See, treasure untold was laid bare in these chambers, but they were not left unprotected. And it is the Guild's top priority, or at least one of them, to fully lay bare the secrets within. And that is where us hunters come in, regularly being sent to investigate." The host explained, showing several horrific traps throughout this corridor: flamethrowers all over on the floor, a giant, rolling stone column, scythes on tripwires, a puddle of poison coating the entire floor of one room, giant shurikens spinning on a track and rotating columns of flamethrowers firing intensely hot blue flames.
"Why would they make this insane death trap!? What could the reasoning possibly be!? If they needed to hide their treasure and information, why not just put it in a vault!?" Summer exclaimed, horrified by the death traps along with several others.
"Because evidently, nothing in this crazy world of theirs can do things the simple way." Qrow told her.
"And I think the Guild might be even crazier to keep sending hunters into that death trap to get stuff. I say cut your losses." Jaune said, deeply unnerved.
"Well, the stuff inside could be really useful. Like, we could find something that lets us just drive off every monster short of Fatalis. It's a possibility, at least." Tekko explained.
"You know, I used to have a saying, 'no risk is too great for the greatest reward'... I'm second-guessing that now." Roman said.
"Oh, come on, guys! Where's your sense of adventure! It's just like Vacuo Jones and the Mosque of Mayhem!" Yang cheered.
"And the only reason Vacuo Jones survives half the stuff in that movie is because of stupid coincidence or plot armor! We don't have either of those things!" Neo told her, not noticing the grins on the faces of Katana and her daughters who know they do indeed have plot armor.
Duremudira took to the air to continue the fight. "But what was found there... What awaited... Well, a nightmare doesn't begin to describe it. Monsters SWARMED inside. How they got there, how they exist is an enigma unto itself, but one monster stands atop all of them, stands high up the tower. And this is our focus today, Duremudira." Rage declared, showing a still image of the monster. "Visually, unlike anything else, you'd believe me if I told you he came from the stars beyond. And, indeed, for a little bit of a while, that was a guess. But, replacing that was a theory that they are guard dogs of sorts. See, the Ancient Civilizations very much tamed, bound and controlled dragons to their whim, used them as guards, as fighters, as pack mules, as engines for their civilization. And, indeed, the Dragon may have simply outlived his masters in the tower, yet his mission to protect it from all outsiders still remained." Rage told the theory as the dragon reared up on its hind legs and crashed down to send out a wave of ice spikes.
Many in the cast were aghast at this. "That's horrible!" Penny said in horror.
"Making Elder Dragons your guard dogs?! What was wrong with this civilization?!" Blake cried out in anger.
"I mean, I can understand wanting to guard your treasure, but using a dragon to do it feels like overkill, especially in a building already rigged with countless traps. That'd be like if Ruby used Crescent Rose to open a jar of pickles." Cinder said, not noticing her girlfriend whistling innocently.
The dragon started to leak out massive amounts of frozen gas all around itself. "However, that was finally proven untrue when it was confirmed he is simply an invader, a mysterious creature from a mysterious land that decided one day to call this tower home. And, in the process, wiped out every living soul, every man, woman and child that dwelt there. Most fled, the rest slaughtered and thus, it's remained, an icon of misery ruled over by this Elder Dragon." The host said as Duremudira took to the sky and breathed down a giant beam of ice.
However, they were soon put at ease once they heard these claims were false. "Yay! No Dragon slavery! That's good!" Nora said happily...
... At least until they heard what really happened. "Okay, I know this is horrible, but I think the dragon guard dogs was better." Coco gawked in horror.
"All those people... Men, women and children... All gone. All so so this beast could have its own territory..." Ren gasped, equally horrified.
"Few creatures in this world truly deserve their moniker of 'monsters', but this one truly does fit that title." Ozpin said with a glare towards the monster on screen.
A still image of the monster was then shown. "So, what exactly is Duremudira all about? Well, at a glance, he has the similar structure to your Kushalas, your Teostras, the four legs, two wings same shaped body, but that's really where it ends. His dark and grey scales give him an eerie look, lines of pure Bio-Energy glistening across his hide, an inkling of the power within. His wings jagged, but no less capable of sending him careening through the air, his tail a trident and can very much be used as such and his jaw powerful, two rows of teeth at the top gouge and shred flesh just as effectively as his mighty claws. He is hard to kill, harder still to not be killed by and he contains quite the arsenal of elemental weaponry." Rage listed off the beast's features, before everything went black as a blizzard appeared to roll in.
"Gotta admit, that is one badass dragon." Qrow admitted.
"I like it's chin spikes. It kind of reminds me of Zinogre." Ruby said, hugging Crimzon's head.
"The trails of Bio-Energy ARE quite impressive and pleasing to observe." Hazel added.
"I'm quite a fan tail, as well. Quite an interesting shape. And no doubt a devastating weapon in combat." Adam stated as well.
"And those wings are pretty... COOL? Eh? Guys? Get it? Because it's an ice monster?" Yang asked as everyone besides Neo groaned at the pun.
The dragon then began to emit an aura of ice as its eyes glowed red. "As mysterious as this dragon is, how it kills certainly is less so: ice. Bitter, cold, unrelenting ice. It can coat its claws to give them an extra edge, but that is just the most basic of starts. There is no ancient documentation of this animal, all the reports are from first-hand hunters who survived, or in extreme rare cases, overcame it. It has the ability to super-chill the very air around it and propagate that onwards and onwards until the entire chamber is cased in ice, a frozen tomb for the battle ahead. The walls, the floor, the ceiling, a cocoon to contain the chaos of the cacophony ahead. Well, if any hunter should be unprepared... This is their final hunt. Though, a hunt is being generous. This guy is violent, he is extreme, he is aggressive, he is a psychopath amongst psychopathic monsters and he goes out of his way to make sure that your death is gruesome." The host warned as the beast froze the entire room, trapping the hunters in with him as he went on the attack.
Many of the more logical cast members, mostly the adults, were deeply concerned at the lack of information on this beast. "No documents... only first-hand accounts from those lucky enough to survive. And even then, those could be unreliable due to fear and trauma affecting the hunter's recollection of events." Glynda said in concern.
"And since it's an ice monster, it will most likely be found in freezing environments. So it would no doubt make its home in Solitas. So we would more than likely have to deal with it in Atlas. And that would be a nightmare. We're already at risk of extreme colds. The artificial climate is the only reason we don't all freeze to death. What if Duremudira compromises it?! Or even overpowers it?! And at least most monsters will ignore large settlements if they come across them. If this beast is truly as vicious and psychotic as he says, it is GUARANTEED to attack Atlas if it stumbles across it." Ironwood said, almost on the verge of a panic attack.
"And if that does happen, we'd have no time to mobilize a proper response team! And even if we did, like sending the Ace Ops after it, it's not even a guarantee for them to succeed if so few hunters of your world are capable of overcoming it!" Winter said in horror.
"I could always move to Atlas to lend a hand if you wanted." Qrow said, laughing at the immediate "NO!" he received from the military members.
Duremudira leapt across the arena to pounce on a hunter, now emitting purple mist. "He has been thought to be a literal demon, a punishment rendered from the depths of Hell itself. The reality, of course is he is as much living and breathing as any Elder Dragon, but it's hard to think that when his secondary weapon is deployed. See, his ice may bring Frostbite, a status unique to him, Dyuragaua and Toa Tesukatora." Rage explained, showing still images of a green and orange Pseudo-Wyvern and an icy counterpart of Teostra. "And it will not only drain your stamina incredibly quickly, but also reduce how much you have, very very rapidly, rendering you- well, at the mercy of the beast." The host elaborated on the effects of the ice grimly as the beast let out a burst of ice from its body.
"Yikes. That Frostbite status sounds brutal. Especially when you are in a position where you could catch the ACTUAL condition frostbite." Summer said in concern.
"Yeah. And most of us are speedy agile fighters who rely on our stamina to move around and avoid attacks. So this would be a nightmare for like HALF the people in this room." Neo said, equally concerned.
Some, however, were more distracted by the other two monsters shown. "Ooh, those are cool monsters! That first one is like a fusion of Tigrex and Zinogre! It looks super vicious, but super cool! And that second one is really pretty and awesome!" Ruby noted with stars in her eyes.
"I agree. In fact, the second one reminds me of Teostra and Lunastra a bit." Cinder said.
"Because it basically IS them. It's an Origin Species, basically an ancestor their evolutionary line started from." Razara explained.
"Fascinating. I hope we get to see more of these origin species." Penny said.
"Only if Rage keeps up with his new lores and actually does new ones instead of monsters he's already covered." Katana muttered. [2]
The ice the dragon attacked with then somehow turned purple. "But beyond that, this dragon has access to poison. Not just any poison, Corrupted Poison, infused into the ice and his very body, it is beyond lethal. It doesn't melt health as fast as some, but it lasts a long time, requiring a wonder drug to cure and that is not so easily acquired. It also reduces the defense of those afflicted, making them much more susceptible to impacts of all kind as your body races to try and combat the now coursing venom in your veins. This, combined with the frost... Well, you can imagine how it wears down would-be prey or would-be aggressors: frozen to the bone, burning inside as your blood is corrupted, what can you do as this dragon impacts you with all the force of a meteor?" Rage warned as the beast took to the sky and fired down poisonous icicles at the hunters.
Many had a sense of dread when they heard the title Rage gave this ailment. "C-Corrupted Poison? I'm not sure I like the sound of that..." Weiss said nervously.
"Yeah. And seeing it ooze all over the place doesn't help things." Jaune said, equally nervous as he looked upon the dark purple sludge.
"Oh, goodie! You need a rare wonder drug for this stuff! That isn't totally annoying at all. And we all know rare means expensive." Roman complained.
But then their jaws dropped when they saw the beast mixing its powers. "P-poisonous ice?! How is that even possible?! Sh-shouldn't the ice freeze and kill the chemicals of the poison? Or the water inside the ice dilute it?" Pyrrha questioned.
"I feel my processors starting to overheat again." Penny groaned, holding her head and trying to prevent her brain from frying as she tried to process the information.
"This thing is like Fatalis. Other monsters are a problem, but they don't TRY to be. But this thing... It feels ACTUALLY evil." Ilia said fearfully, earning nods from all the other decently reasonable members of the group.
"You would have to be out of your mind to want to pick a fight with this thing." Ren said in horror.
"Or just a brave warrior who wishes to test their mettle." Adam declared.
"Indeed. Only by pushing yourself to the limit and bringing yourself to the brink of death can you truly know what you're capable of." Hazel agreed.
The dragon roared and began to glow purple before it froze the room once again. "If, by some miracle, you manage to push and fight and claw your way to advantage... Well, the third phase will begin. And, look, I just want to take a moment here to address his theme. A lot of themes we came up with for Frontier monsters range from okay to good, some of them are a bit 'ahh', but when it comes to-" The host began, before inserting music to sound like he was rapping as he tripped over the beast's name. "I cannot get enough of this. Listen to it!" Rage exclaimed as epic, yet haunting music began to play as the dragon charged back and forth, surrounded by purple mist as spikes of poisonous ice popped up all around. "Is that not just- Oh! It's badass! It's exhilarating! Bring me to the battle! And, oh, I love it so, so much!" The host declared as the beast breathed down more poisonous ice shards from the air.
But many of the teens, as well as Qrow, found themselves super hyped by the theme. "This is amazing! It sounds like supervillain music!" Ruby cheered.
"You got that right, Red! This is getting me AMPED! I want to fight this thing more than ever now!" Coco exclaimed.
"Better save some room for me. I'm definitely taking this thing on if I get the chance." Qrow added.
"Heck yeah! I'd challenge this thing in a heartbeat! I beat I could melt those icicles before it ever got close to me! Or I'd just blast them out of the air!" Yang declared.
"Coco... Why do you have to do the most insane things ever?" Velvet groaned at her girlfriend's antics.
"I know how you feel. I was joking earlier, but I'm starting to get GENUINELY concerned my family is suicidal." Summer lamented at her family's eagerness to fight this killing machine.
Duremudira then bounded throughout the arena, leaving a circle of poisonous spikes wherever it touched. "This monster, then, in its third phase tints purple as it absorbs its own poison into its own body. Which, of course, doesn't feel great, but it does let it push itself beyond its previous limit. Adrenaline coursing, the ice on its claws, on its head growing bigger, the access to the attacks that it has increasing in potency and scope as ice explodes, poison explodes, the room explodes! Death rains everywhere and it uses an onslaught of all it has against you. They are fast, they are strong, they have every physical attack you could imagine. They have a breath which is a thousand shards of ice that shred armor and flesh alike, there is beams of freezing wind, there is massive boulders of ice created and hurled in a huge area around it, it can encase itself in a shell of ice and then use itself as an icy meteor to crash onto hunters and then, of course, shatter the frozen room in an earthquake of cold." Rage warned as the creature indeed dropped a meteor of ice.
Many of the cast were shocked at this third phase and the meeker of the cast were quite fearful. "Oh, come on! How did it find a way to look even scarier and more malicious?!" Velvet cried out in fear.
"It feels like it's going to eat you alive just for EXISTING!" Neo squeaked.
"Spikes of poisonous ice coming out of the very ground?! A rain of ice shards that tears through armor!? How could any hunter stand up to such an onslaught!?" Penny asked in concern.
"I'm afraid I don't know, Penny. And that has me the most concerned." Ozpin said in concern.
But then the rational *cough, cough* Sane! *cough cough* members of the cast were shocked and horrified by the ice meteor. "That attack is massive! And you're trapped in such a small room with that beast... How could anyone possibly avoid that?!" Glynda questioned in horror.
"And don't forget it's poisonous, so even if you avoid the actual attack, what's stopping the toxic fumes from getting you!?" Winter added in concern.
"That's something to figure out in the heat of battle. Which makes it all the more exciting." Hazel said.
"Agreed. Figuring out how to survive these things separates the true warriors from the pretenders. It proves you have the mettle to survive in this insane world. And the adrenaline and blood rush from being in such danger is something to truly live for!" Adam declared.
"Preach it, brother! That blood rush gets me out of bed in the morning sometimes!" Coco agreed.
"Yeah! Adrenaline junkies for life!" Nora cheered, earning nods of agreement from the other thrillseekers.
The more level-headed members of the cast just looked at the group in shock. "Okay, it's official. They're insane." Pyrrha said.
Glynda sighed. "That does it. I'm scheduling all of those students to mandatory counseling after this." Glynda told Ozpin.
"Excellent idea. Qrow, Hazel and Adam will also be receiving counseling if Qrow wishes to keep his job and the other two wish not to be prosecuted for their crimes against Remnant." Ozpin agreed.
The dragon took to the air once again and rained down more freezing, poisonous death. "It really is something to behold, truly it is the master of the Sky Corridor, the only place in which it can be found. But if you somehow make it past, somehow defeat it and keep exploring, you climb higher and higher, you will find ANOTHER Duremudira, one that dwarfs the previous. And this is known as the Second District Duremudira, indeed because the second district of the tower is where you come across it. And this stronger individual has a secret final phase. Seemingly, it will have succumbed to its many wounds, but it has a secret and that secret lies in its poison, which it commands much more potently. And, in fact, in order to command it such, it takes a leaf out of Gypceros' book, of all things." The host began as a larger Duremudira charged back and forth, before shooting out a beam of poison.
A very large, very derpy-looking Bird Wyvern was then seen. "I'll kill him! That's my thing! It's like the only thing I have! Because I'm so disgusting otherwise!" The monster complained as it ran forward like a chicken.
Many a jaw hit the floor as the rational members of the cast froze. "It can't be... It's not possible..." Weiss said.
"There can't be a stronger version. It's impossible. How can you get stronger than THAT?!" Ren asked in horror.
"Heck yeah! More of a challenge! Bring it on!" Yang cheered, shadowboxing a bit.
"Seriously, what is wrong with you guys?! This thing isn't something to mess with! It should be avoided at all costs, why do you want to fight it so bad?!" Jaune asked in disbelief.
"Come on, kid. Did you forget the line of work you signed up for? Fighting monsters for a living is LITERALLY our job. And you should always take some enjoyment in your work." Qrow told him.
"Fighting the Grimm and even some of the crazier monsters we've seen is one thing, but this thing is just a walking death sentence! There's a difference between getting an adrenaline rush from a good fight and throwing your life away on a suicide mission." Cinder told them. There was a reason she didn't just charge for the Fall Maiden as soon as she got to Beacon.
"But surviving a suicide mission just means you're a GOAT." Nora declared.
Thankfully, some MUCH NEEDED levity came in when they saw the Bird Wyvern. "That has GOT to be the goofiest-looking monster we've ever seen!" Ilia laughed.
"I know, right?! If we were supposed to be intimidated by that thing charging in, saying it's gonna kill Duremudira, the impact is lessened when it starts running like a chicken." Emerald agreed.
"We've seen that thing before, right? I think we've gotten a glimpse or two of it before. But it seems so forgettable, I wouldn't be surprised if we've seen it more and it just slipped our minds." Weiss said.
"Oh, that's Gypceros. And yes, you've seen him before." Tekko said. "But trust me, you won't be forgetting him much longer." She muttered under her breath, knowing the Strange Poison Bird was next.
The Duremudira was lying on the ground, seemingly deceased. "It will appear, then, to have been slain. But from its body, expelled, released a world of poison misery, coating the room in the purple mist, it will then absorb it all back into itself, gaining life anew at the cost of corrupting its very essence. Now bright purple and on a timer of its own life, it fights with renewed vigor. White cracks appear down its body as it struggles to contain its own energy, at this point, the demon truly is released and you must fight not just encased in ice, but encased in poison as it flows across the frosty floor, as pillars erupt from its depths, this is all or nothing and it is you or it is him as he unleashes the most devastating set of attacks yet." Rage declared as the beast did indeed manage to defy death itself with its unnatural poison ritual.
Finally, it seemed the entirety of the cast was on the same page now, as they were all shocked and disturbed at this news. "It brings itself back to life... with its own poison? How is that even possible!?" Ruby asked in disbelief.
"Okay, that is just CHEATING! I call hax!" Roman cried out.
"So even death can't stop this thing. Is it possible it's immortal like Salem!?" Ironwood said fearfully, only imagining the horrors of what would happen if Salem got her hands on even ONE of these monsters, TWO immortal menaces on the same side.
"Cool it, general. It's a one-time thing. And, like Rage said, it's on a time limit. It's just one hell of a second wind, but that wind runs out, too." Razara assured him.
"Still, from the sound of just how much more powerful it gets, that second wind sounds more like a hurricane. And humans don't do too well standing in the middle of a hurricane." Summer said in concern.
"Especially a hurricane filled with ice and poison." Winter added.
But eventually, even this seemingly immortal dragon was brought low. "But slayable, he eventually is... And then, finally, one remains. A Duremudira above even that, which can revive in a world of poison." The host informed, introducing a more silver-y Duremudira that seemed to have lightning powers. "This is known as an Arrogant Duremudira and it is an Extreme monster, Extreme individuals are basically Deviants, they are extremely, ridiculously powerful, rare and just the top So extreme to the point this one has a flip of element. Firstly, visually, it is silver-scaled now with glowing white, teal-y eyes and lovely sapphire, almost gem-like claws, spikes and general appendages. In fact, he is quite beautiful to behold and he has this unmistakable aura of pure power around him." Rage explained as the beast took to the skies, before slamming down onto the ground with enough force to crater it, shooting a massive beam of purple lightning.
"OH, COME ON!" The rational members of the cast cried out at an even stronger version of the beast.
"How much stronger can these damn things get?! It's starting to sound like it's on Fatalis' level! Maybe even above it!" Ren, of all people, complained.
"I swear, I'm about to have a heart attack from this thing." Ozpin groaned.
"I won't be far behind, Oz. This is getting ridiculous." Ironwood said, clutching his chest.
"Agreed. These powers are just too much! Just look at how much lightning it's letting out! Or making craters just by dropping down on the ground! How does something even evolve to become this strong?!" Penny exclaimed.
"I don't know, guys. It's still scary, but... you've got to admit, it's actually kind of beautiful in a way." Velvet admitted.
"Yeah, it is! It's so shiny! And it's silver scales and blue streaks are beautiful! It mixes with the lightning so well! And the gem claws are so pretty!" Ruby said with stars in her eyes.
The monster then did a sweeping beam of thunder. "Now, it will start to act much like the regular one does in its revived third and final phase, BUT it now has access to purple lightning, thunder raining down and everything that used to be ice is now based on electricity. It will weave its poison in and out of attacks, too and generally speaking, it will absolutely annihilate you. It is much, much more powerful than anything that has come before. And, indeed, he is considered to be one of the most powerful monsters in the entire Frontier. It its strength is even considered to be on par with Disufiroa, who himself is comparable to Black Dragon-level strength. That is just how insane this monster is." The host informed as a picture of Disufiroa was seen.
"Giant purple lightning beams..." Nora said, practically drooling over the beast before her.
The rest of team JNPR became horrified at this. "Oh, no... She's thinking about addit one to her team, isn't she?" Jaune said worriedly.
"N-no, it can't be... surely she's just admiring its power. She isn't THAT crazy, is she?" Pyrrha asked in fear.
"She most certainly is. I guarantee as soon as she heard the word 'lightning', she already wanted to add it to her team." Ren confirmed.
"I WANT IT!" Nora screamed, causing her team to facepalm.
But then next piece of information left the rational cast members in shock. "It can't be... surely he's exaggerating." Glynda said in concern.
"I REALLY want to say yes, but after hearing what the weaker versions can do and knowing this one is stronger, I almost HAVE to believe it." Blake said in horror.
"To be on par with Disufiroa... A beast that can mix THREE elements... And change the very color of the sky. This creature might be beyond anything Remnant could produce to fight it." Ozpin exclaimed in shock.
The normal form of Duremudira was shown once more. "And I'll be honest... Visually, I'm not a big fan. I think he looks a little bit weird and I don't really know what to say on that front. He just doesn't do anything for me in how he looks, I don't really like his wing shape. His head's okay, but I don't really like his chin spikes, just like I don't like them on Zinogre, I think the kind of trident-y tail's a bit ehhh. I like the glowing lines down his body, but look- visually, he's not what we're here for. A dragon that has chased out a pocket of Ancient Civilization with all the might that they had is badass. A dragon that can encase the ENTIRE ROOM in ice so that you cannot escape and he has complete homefield advantage is badass. Poison combined with ice is absolutely badass and I think that's a wonderful combination of element and status and there's no denying that his fight visually is epic, it is overwhelming, it is cool and he looks like an incredibly satisfying monster to bring down." Rage finished as the beast did its giant ice meteor once more.
But those who were still somehow fans of the creature were shocked and offended at Rage's words. "Weird?! How dare you, sir! This monster's look is AMAZING!" Ruby declared.
"Agreed. This creature has the visage of power and it should be respected." Adam said angrily.
"Yeah, we've definitely seen some worse-looking monsters. The edgy goth look is excellent and he pulls it off perfectly." Blake agreed with narrowed eyes.
"Exactly! Respect the edgy badass dragon!" Ilia agreed.
"You know what we're going to ask." Razara said to the cast.
"It's TERRIFYING!" Most of the adults and the more sane teens cried out.
"This thing is a walking murder machine! If it didn't hole up in the Sky Corridor and actively roamed the land, it could be just as bad as Gore Magala. Maybe even worse!" Weiss said fearfully, clinging to both Penny and Winter in fear.
"I'm afraid Miss Schnee is right. The mere fact that its poison so deadly and requires a rare wonder drug is already enough to disqualify it of the list of monsters coming to Remnant." Ozpin said.
"Exactly. And that's without adding how ungodly vicious and psychotic it is and how it can completely freeze over almost a city block! This beast can NEVER be allowed on Remnant! We'd need the greatest Huntsmen and Huntresses in the entire WORLD to slay it! And even then, the casualties would be CATASTROPHIC!" Ironwood exclaimed.
"Jeez. You guys need to take a chill pill. If hunters without aura and semblances can do it, I'm pretty sure we can, too." Qrow told them. [3]
"Heck yeah, we can! I'd take it down and have a portrait of myself painted standing over it!" Yang cheered.
"I wouldn't mind facing off against even the normal one." Hazel said.
"You better count me in on that!" Coco declared.
"And I as well." Adam added.
"I will have a normal Duremudira's head mounted on my wall! And I MUST have the Extreme Duremudira!" Nora exclaimed.
"You guys are all insane! They'd eat you alive in one bite! And probably enjoy it!" Neo cried out.
"I'm with Neo on this. It's just too much for me. Even if the last version is pretty." Velvet said fearfully.
"Well, I'm still disgusted at how it slaughtered the inhabitants of the Sky Corridor. At least most other monster attacks are due to 'wrong place, wrong time'. But this beast is malicious and goes out of its way to cause harm." Pyrrha said harshly.
"I mean... All of you guys have a lot of points. I think it's super scary like Velvet does and I agree with Pyrrha that it's horrible how it wiped out the Sky Corridor..." Ruby began, before stars appeared in her eyes again. "BUT IT'S SO COOL! The dark blue colors and the lines of power running through it are so cool and I love it's chin spikes! I mean, it's poison is really scary and creepy, but that also makes it seem like Toxin, the supervillain of my favorite animated film! Which makes it even cooler! I can just imagine Nergi looking like a hero and charging in to bring down the evil Duremudira in an epic battle for the ages!" She exclaimed, speaking a mile a minute while imaging an anthropomorphized Duremudira dressed like a supervillain [4], facing off against an anthropomorphized Nergigante [5] in an epic final duel of good and evil. "And besides, all three of them have powers right out of PincherDex entries!" Ruby exclaimed, remembering the crazy, over-the-top dex entries from Pinchermon that don't add up at all to the games or shows.
"Exactly! That just makes it more epic!" Yang agreed with her sister.
Summer groaned and held her head at this. "How did my babies lose their minds while I was away?!" She lamented.
"PLEASE tell me that whatever is next isn't nearly as horrific as this beast." Weiss pleaded.
"Well... it depends on how you define horrific." Katana said, causing the sane members of the cast to groan. "I will say it's powers aren't nearly as horrifying to fight against." She said, causing some relief for the group. "But it's still more than capable of causing havoc. And the last thing you should EVER do is underestimate Gypceros." The hostess told them, starting the next video.
A/N: The title of Sai's video is "The Bumbling Bird! Gypceros Lore" by Sai Blade. Be sure to check it out before the next chapter or as you're reading it and don't forget to subscribe to Sai if you haven't already. He's super close to getting monetized, so maybe he'll stop asking me to ask you to subscribe.
[1] Yes, I know you normally have to have someone sign a waiver to serve them Fugu, but I somehow doubt a woman who rather openly employs CHILD SLAVERY AND TORTURE cares much about legal details.
[2] It is great to see Rage making lores again- and at quite a quick rate, too- but it's kind of disappointing that, so far, he's only doing ones he's already done in some shape or form.
[3] This is NOT saying that Huntsmen and Huntresses in RWBY are better than Hunters in Monster Hunter. I'm not having this debate again. They both have their advantages and disadvantages. Let's all just agree they're great. This is just Qrow being his usual cocky, overly sure self.
[4] Picture Mr. Sinister.
[5] Picture Alucard from Castlevania: Symphony of The Night