70 - Don't Take These Beautiful Things That I've Got

And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. - Colossians 3:14

In the center of a massive room, bathed in golden light and swaddled in an expanse of swirling clouds, sat three magnificent thrones. They almost looked like huge bars of gold, finally carved and chiseled into chairs fit only for the gods. With that line of thinking, it was no wonder Ruby felt like didn't belong.

There was a majesty to it, she couldn't deny that. But it was underpinned by this unsettling feeling that she couldn't trace the origin of. The room seemed itself a sample of a greater whole, giving Ruby the impression that where they were was far bigger than she had imagined. This place embodied a kind of disparity. Confined yet infinite. Beautiful yet repulsive. Good yet evil. Like the difference behind the meaning of smile, which entirely changed depending on whether you were holding a bouquet or a kitchen knife. And that only made it that much harder to trust this Imposter-Jaune.

Neptune had awoken now, and what little explanation she could offer about their dilemma didn't do much to help his worries. They followed the Apostle as he made for the chairs—which was obvious given they were the only thing in the room—and sat himself in the middle one. He looked up at them, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "Do you suppose these thrones are awaiting some yet unannounced guests?"

Ruby shared a look with Neptune, hesitant, but in the end they took their seats. Ruby looked at the Apostle from the corner of her eye. He wore a rather tame half-smile as he crossed one leg over the other, set his elbow on the armrest, then laid his cheek on his knuckles. Looked like a man relishing a lovely afternoon outside on his porch. A hundred questions rattled Ruby's head, gave her a headache, exacerbating her frustration.

Before she could get a word out, Neptune demanded an answer to the most pressing question. "What the fuck is going on here?"

The Apostle looked up at him. "Like I explained before, we are here for a show. One which I believe you won't want to miss."

"A show? About what?"

"You are quite impatient. Were you not taught that things are always more exciting when they are unexpected? Why ruin the suspense? Sit and surrender your attention. Let us tune in."

Again, Ruby shared a look with Neptune, whose expression was perhaps the most pitiable. Confused dread. Like seeing a clown doll sitting alone in the middle of the night and knowing logically that it couldn't be alive, yet fearing the possibility that you were wrong. What else could they do? Neptune sat upright in his chair, looking ready for action at the drop of a dime.

That was when the Apostle reached out his hand, holding it level above the ground. Quickly the clouds began to peel apart. They folded in on themselves, clumped together into bigger masses, and fled from their patch like a flock of sheep that escaped the shepherd. They parted and parted until they revealed…

Outer space?

With the light and clouds gone, all around Ruby was the vastness of space. An unquantifiable blanket of darkness dotted with trillions and trillions of stars, unknown and faraway. The sudden surge of horror made her seize her breath, only to realize she'd have exploded already if this was the "real" outer space. Now she could see planets, all of different sizes and distances, some drowned in a single defining color, others wreathed in colors Ruby didn't think she had seen before. It was as if her depth of vision had suddenly, greatly increased. Everything began to zoom in, passing stars appeared as white streaks, as the universe's wonders welcomed one and all. Clusters of asteroids, small as atoms and big as planets and everything in between. Massive superplanets, suns, pulsars, supernovae, black holes. Small blue planetoids, comets, dust clouds. Everything this reality had to offer and more. Awesome to behold. Terrifying to believe.

"Look here," Ruby felt the Apostle touch the underside of her chin with a finger, and while her skin crawled, she resisted the urge to slap him again. Her eye caught a strange looking planet some several thousand miles away. She almost had to squint, but could swear that it was four planets instead, all extremely close together. One was a deep, almost bloody red. The second a bright gold, the third a faded yellow, and the fourth and deep black that would've looked more like a black hole if it weren't for streaks of red crossing through it. "Do you know what that place is?" asked the Imposter.

Ruby frowned at him. She felt bad for doing it, but she got a bad feeling from looking at him. An instinctive dislike. Worsened by the fact that he looked like her boyfriend. "Why would I know?"

"I figured you would know. You more than anyone. That is the world of the Mad Princess."

What? Ruby blinked, stared at the planets. She could see now that they were circling one another in a slow, yet steady revolution. With no Sun to attach to, they clung to one another in the vast void, like they were all each other had. They had been all each other had. As alien as the idea of planets revolving around each other seemed, part of Ruby couldn't help but feel a little happy. Through it all, the hearts of her family had stayed together.

"And here," Ruby turned her head again, and now saw a planet far bigger than her own, a deep blue color, dashed with streaks of white. It might not have been much to comment on, if Ruby hadn't seen the waterfall. It spawned from the round surface, poured off the edge and broke into thousands of frayed rivers, which thinned the farther they went out, until they were reduced to clouds of mist.

"Is that…?" whispered Neptune in disbelief.

"The domain of the vain emperor. He is an entertaining fellow, if equally insufferable. Arrogance on the weak is quite the paradox, isn't it? The only being which fancies itself a god is one which does not know what godhood is."

Neptune frowned at the Imposter, and Ruby felt greatly relieved that he disliked this freak as much as she did.. "Alright, smartass. What is godhood then?"

The Imposter smiled and shrugged both shoulders high. "Why ask me? I am not a god." He turned back to the space before them, pointed down. "But that is enough idle talk. Let us get to the show. I hope we've not missed anything."

And Ruby followed his finger to see that there was another planet, only this one was much, much closer. Dead-looking. Like it had been full of life some several eons ago, but now it had all wilted away, all evidence of life, all trace of habitation. This was not a planet for the living, that much was plain. Then there was its size. Even turning her head, Ruby could not see the planet's full circumference. It took up the entire span of her vision. A vision that only reached further the longer she stared. Past the ashen atmosphere, through the heavy clouds thick with clawing lightning and screaming thunder, and down onto what appeared to be a massive empty wasteland, shrouded in darkness. Even still, her vision went further. Now she could see people, and many of them. Thousands scattered across the wasteland. They seemed to be fighting each other, as their shouts and bellows mingled together in a mass of unintelligible sounds. A collective song which expressed pain, horror, and death. It all seemed too epic in scale to be real.

Ruby swallowed before asking, "What are you showing us? What's going on down there?"

"It would appear to be a war." the Apostle answered simply.

"I got that." Ruby muttered, "I mean who's fighting?"

"I imagine these are the vassals of the worm, as well as his betrayers."

"The worm?"

"Yes."

This jerk could rave on endlessly about nonsense and crazy stuff, but he was annoyingly thin when it came answering questions, and that was pretty old already. "I mean, what worm?"

"I don't know what kind of worm he is. But he looks like a worm, so that's what I call him."

Ruby looked at Neptune for the third time now, reflecting her irritation against his. Maybe that line of questions was pointless to continue. She was about ready to move on to a different set of questions, but the chaos below managed to grab her attention. There was something strange going on. A group that had been fighting just moments ago had suddenly all boiled together in a single direction, trampling the corpses of enemy and ally alike in pursuit of something. Or escapee. People ran over each other, toppled and fell, pushed each other out of the way, all the while screaming words Ruby couldn't make out. What was once a fairly orderly battle between rivals had been reduced to a desperate scramble for safety. But safety from what?

A moment later, she saw it.

It had a human shape to it, a mostly human body, though the proportions were certainly beyond the realm of reality. It seemed, even from this distance, taller than two fully grown men stacked on top of one another, with long and heavy arms, pulsing with muscle, iron chains wrapped around its wrists. Its massive legs took heavy and yet slow steps toward the fleeing people, like a predator taking its time, knowing his prey eventually would lose the energy to run. Its skin was all black, scored with white spikes, stakes, and plates of bone armor. Ruby wondered if those bones were the monster's pulled from the inside out? Or did they belong to its victims, which it now wore like a new dress? Boh possibilities were disturbing in their own right.

But it was the creature's head which would fuel Ruby's nightmares.

Put simply, it was the head of a squid. A thick, bulbous trunk with flayed fins that fanned out so wide they almost looked like wings. Not only that, the trunk was transparent, and inside was a glowing red brain settled in a toothy bone-like stem. Green veins pulsed with the pumping of blood, making the head seem all the more real, and yet otherworldly. The creature reminded her of those cursed Grimm that Peach had said could cripple people's minds with a direct look. The Shards of the Brain. Its plate-sized eyes were on either side of the trunk, lacking focus, as if the creature was blind, or just had no use for eyes. Lastly, the tentacles. Thick, long, and flapping about in the air like they were snatching after something in the air, suckers pulsing hungrily.

"What is…?" Ruby could barely get the question out. Her body felt cold from just looking at that thing, and she was in the safest position possible. Or rather, she hoped she was.

The Imposter regarded the creature not with fear, but curiosity, like a child watching an interesting bug crawl around. "Well, that is certainly an interesting thing. I have no idea what it is."

Ruby found herself not wanting to know. It was clearly a Grimm, that much she could tell from its color and unnatural proportions, but she'd never seen one shaped so close to the human form. The thing had no fangs or claws or even a weapon-like appendage. At a first look, it didn't seem to be dangerous in the conventional sense. Perhaps even an Ursa looked more immediately threatening. But then, she looked for longer. She felt cold slime on her skin, made her shiver, made her feel gross and violated like she was being molested in the dark. Perhaps the people down there felt this on an even worse level, for as they ran into other groups, they no doubt spread the news of the approaching Grimm, redoubling the spread of panic. People that were once stabbing and throwing fire at each other stopped immediately and began to run, scattering like a colony of ants after their home was destroyed.

The one thing Ruby couldn't make sense of was where they were running to. It seemed like the whole planet was a wasteland. There was nowhere safe to go at all. Then she looked in the direction they were heading and saw there was a great cityscape not far away, relatively speaking anyway. She guessed the real distance was much greater than how she perceived it, there floating above the planet.

"What is this all about?" growled Neptune. "You haven't told us anything. We don't know who you are or what you want us here for."

The Imposter looked up at him. "Very well. You may call me the Apostle of War. I brought you here to bear witness to a historic event."

"Historic event? What does that mean? What does it even have to do with us?"

The Apostle grinned, then turned Neptune's chin till he was looking back at the battlefield. "See for yourself."

Ruby followed their gaze. There was a massive section in the city that had been reduced entirely to rubble. Buildings had been toppled, laying on their sides either mostly whole or in scattered pieces, and many more in the process of joining them. She could see that people were moving down there, but it was a little harder to see. They moved ridiculously fast so they were hard to track, but eventually she did make them out. A half-armored girl in black plate fighting with a round shield and spear. A heavy built man donned in heavy gray armor, visor glowing a dark purple, and hefting a mean-looking double-sided ax. The two of them looked scary enough, but it was the third combatant that got a reaction out of Ruby. He didn't wear much armor, or even a helmet. Ruby wished he did, though. Not knowing that it was Jaune might have saved her from a heart attack.

Ruby fumbled for words, struggling to make sense of it. "But… but he went home. He was right behind us."

She got no answer, because there was no answer to give. Could it have been an accident that he was there? Yes, but Ruby didn't get that impression at all. Jaune and the armored girl fought the armored man like they had a personal vendetta against him. Like he was a target they'd been pursuing and did not intend to let escape. No, Jaune was here because he'd wanted to be. Meaning he had lied to her. He'd only been trying to get her and Nepune to safety, or just out of the way. Jaune and the armored man were fighting on, clashing again and again, and each time a burst of blue flame burst from Jaune's sword. She did not miss that Jaune was wearing that mad smile again. Probably laughing, too. Just like she'd seen long ago and would see on occasion during training. She hated that smile. Loathed it like murder. It didn't look like Jaune at all. It wasn't her Jaune. It wasn't the Jaune she wanted.

"Fascinating, isn't he?" said the Apostle, and Ruby could tell he was looking at Jaune. "So fierce, so desperate. And considering the strength of his enemy, he is right to be. The need for victory, motivated by terrible loss. The worm has him entirely under his control."

"We need to help him! We need to get down there!" said Neptune, standing up.

"I'm afraid you cannot." said the Apostle.

"Try and stop me." Neptune spat. He began storming around in the open space, not even knowing what he was looking for. But if there was an exit, it certainly wasn't obvious. Eventually, he came back to the Apostle, even grabbing him by the collar. "Tell me how to get out of here! Now!"

The Apostle did not answer immediately. He simply looked around Neptune and down to the battle. Ruby would think that no one, even the most humble person, would ever tolerate being yoked up by the collar like that. And yet, this Apostle seemed to ignore this invasion of personal space like it simply did not offend him. As if even such disrespect like that did not even occur to him. After all, you couldn't take offense to something which failed to wound your pride.

"As I said," The Apostle said calmly, "You cannot leave. We must wait for the bridge to form."

"Bridge? You brought us here! Why can't you get us out?"

"Oh, I can leave whenever I desire. I could intervene right now if I felt so inclined. But what would be the point in that? I shall wait to be called."

"Called?" Ruby asked, and she looked toward Jaune, still fighting. "You mean Jaune? Why would he call you?"

He shrugged. "I suppose we shall see."

Neptune must have realized his demand would never be met, for he let the Apostle go and sat back in his seat, frowning deeply. The Apostle simply steepled his fingers and watched, a plain expression on his face, giving away nothing. It wasn't lost on Ruby that the Apostle seemed in many ways similar to the Wolf and yet vastly different. This whole time, she'd assumed the Wolf was Jaune's Alter, but then what was this guy?

"What exactly are you looking for? What do you want?" Ruby asked.

The Apostle did not look away from the battle. "I cannot claim to have some grand higher purpose. Who am I but a man seeking his next mode of entertainment? Still, there is a kind of desire in this. I want to see if this Jaune person, whom I've been told is host to my destiny, is truly worthy of my comparison. I want to know if he understands my power—our power. And can he use it to its greatest potential? A potential even my brothers, even I, have yet to fully master?"

Ruby looked between him and Jaune, swallowing. Jaune's insane grin contrasted with the patient, observant smirk of the Apostle, like a parent watching his child play. "What is your power?" she asked.

The Apostle glanced across at her, gifting a disturbing smile. "Why, the power of love, of course."

Hazel could not help but feel disconcerted as Jaune Arc squared his legs, pumped his arms, and roared out the most evil laugh he'd ever heard. He was completely overflowing with raw power. So much so that Hazel felt the air nearby grow stale, cold steam wafting off his shoulders, the increase in gravity crushing the rubble at his feet, and bolts of lightning spraying out of his body like he was a short-circuited generator. A young devil freed from the shackles of inferno, looking for whatever excuse to lay ruin on the world around him. Gratingly, it reminded him all too well of Tyrian Callows.

That was how he knew the boy had to die. Now, before he became a bigger problem.

Jaune came at him at an alarming speed. Tearing through the earth and leaving a great divot in his wake. The boy himself wasn't all that dangerous, even despite his ability to wound Hazel. Still, he'd donned his armor for a reason, and there was no point in an unnecessary risk. Bad enough that his control over the situation had suddenly slipped away, but now there were several additional factors which would set back his plans significantly, if he didn't take care of them soon.

Hazel dodged the boy's first cut, then the second, then the third, all in rapid succession. He responded to that flurry with a quick back swing of his gauntleted fist, but as it carried through, it caught nothing but air. Hazel jumped away and Jaune came spiking the ground with his flaming blade, letting loose a fiery explosion so contrarily cold that Hazel felt it in his bones. Jaune sprang at him with a stab, and Hazel skirted it away with the blade of his ax, heard the hiss and crack of ice cooking around the blade. It reminded him of the cut he took, and how frost had spread from it like a strange infection. In a way, it worked sort of like a Curse-type. That might have been worrying, if he wasn't facing an unpolished, inexperienced child.

Hazel caught the boy with a punch, but he'd raised his shield-arm in time, even formed a layer of ice for greater defense. Even still, Hazel sent him tumbling away, bouncing across the rubble-strewn ground. To his merit, the boy recovered well. He pushed himself off the ground, flipped through the air, and landed on one knee. He looked at his shield arm, only now the shield had been shattered to pieces. If any damage had been done to his arm, Jaune didn't show it. He simply stood back up, eager for more. It was hard to tell if he was taking this ordeal seriously. One moment he's begging to save everyone's lives, the next he looks like an unrepentant killer. How broken was this boy?

And then there was the girl. She came down with a spear cut, only it wasn't aimed at Hazel. Jaune rolled out of the way, and the moment the girl touched the ground she sprang toward him, spear extended. It must have caught her by surprise that Jaune would meet her aggression rather than escape it, and his sword was already mid-swing to catch her. The girl spun in the air, blocked the blade with her shield, and a burst of cold fire erupted where they made contact, sending the girl tumbling away.

This had been going on since the fight started. Hazel had fully expected the two to fight him together, regardless of allegiances. It made the most sense to call a truce to take out the perceived bigger threat. The fact that they chose not to, and instead attacked each other with the same aggression, left Hazel questioning their true goals. Did the Vicar perhaps believe Jaune to be the bigger threat? Or was there something else going on here?

Hazel huffed. Why was he even thinking about this? None of it mattered. He was here to kill the Superior. To find his Alter here in the Public Domain and slay it, sentencing him to the ultimate fate that all under his thumb met. He was here to get the justice his sister rightly deserved. Then, at last, he could have peace.

This was all he had left in his life now. He had to succeed, whatever it took. Hazel felt a rush of torment as he thought of his sister's beautiful face, there in the coffin, still and cold as a withered statue, and resolved himself once more. Justice, at any cost.

So it was that Hazel didn't let these puppets of the devil sort out their squabble. He rushed in, ready to crush them both quickly and painlessly. They met his charge, the girl in silent fury, the boy in laughing lunacy. Hazel almost laughed at the irony of their battle. Himself the past Vicar, the girl the current, and Jaune no doubt the latest candidate. All fighting in the name of the Superior, one way or another. Just went to show that the Superior's manipulations extended even to his enemies, even to those who knew him.

Just as the three of them were about to clash, the air around them rapidly grew in temperature. An orange light fell over them, followed by a heavy crackling. It was suddenly, intensely, skin-peeling hot.

A fireball was coming down from above, almost looking like a meteor that had broken through the atmosphere. Hazel and the children were forced to retreat, jumping away just in time to avoid the crash, flames splashing everywhere. Hazel's skin felt sweaty already, despite only being exposed to the fire for a few seconds. Where the hell had it come from?

The pile of fire billowed like a massive bonfire, a lantern of hope against the backdrop of the Public Domain's eternal night. From within, a smooth hand reached out and clawed at the ground, then another, followed quickly by a head, almost looking like a newborn crawling from the womb with its own strength.

It was the young woman who Peach had called Cinder.

She crawled from the great fire, and was stark naked, her clothes likely having been burned to nothing. Some flames clung to her extremities, as if desperate to preserve what remained of her lost dignity. She crawled to her hands and knees, limbs trembling, hair lank and clinging to her face like she'd been swimming rather than on fire.

Her arrival must have surprised Jaune as well, for his veneer of madness had vanished and was replaced with worry and fear.

Then Cinder lifted her head. Her eyes were flooded red, blood red, with bloody tears pouring out and tarnishing her cheeks. She broke into a fit of coughing, puffs of smoke pouring out like a broken exhaust pipe. Her coughs grew louder, heavier, producing more and more smoke, strips of fire, a strange molten liquid oozing from her mouth.

The girl looked toward the sky, clasped his hands to her mouth and heaved like she was about to puke. Somehow Hazel doubted her last meal would be coming up. He stepped back a few steps as a spinning torrent of fire burst from Cinder's mouth, rising high into the air, expanding like a massive burning tornado, swirling with orange and blue, piercing the dark clouds.

Only then did Hazel see that the sky had begun to puke as well, but it didn't produce fire. Not at all.

Instead, it was lava.

It poured from the massive black hole where the moon had probably been, running like an overflowed sink. And from breaks in the sky, lava also poured, falling from thousands of miles above and forming pools in the dark city. One emptied onto a tall building, and the trails ran off the structure's sides as the weight of molten rock slowly caused it to crumble. Hazel deduced that this was probably the girl's Overshadow. And by the look of her, she seemed to not be able to control it. Pitiful.

He looked down at his armor, seeing that some of the fire had grazed him, melting the gauntlet a bit. A bad sign. It meant that those flames would hurt him too. Which made her more immediately dangerous even than Jaune.

At this point, Hazel was almost amused as he looked upon the three prodigious demon children before him. All products of the Superior's machinations and manipulations. Pawns he'd been waiting for the right time to play, and true to character, he had played them perfectly. Evil though he was, there was no denying the Superior's cunning.

Should he use his Overshadow? It was tempting. One or two of these brats was doable, but with this third one, his chances coming out of this unscathed had reduced dramatically. But Hazel shook his head to dispel his worries. No matter what, he needed his Overshadow to ensure the Superior's death. His Alter was here in this world somewhere and who knew what it could do. He could not waste his winning play, not when it took so long to recharge. Nothing had changed, even now.

Hazel would take on any challenge. Any obstacle. He would destroy every enemy until there were none left.

He thought of his baby sister. Her smile, her bright future, how it had been taken from her, taken from him. Keep moving forward, Hazel told himself. Don't think. Just fight. Win. You must win.

So Hazel sprang into action.

But of course, there had to be another interruption.

He was more surprised that Peach managed to hold against the strength of his swing. She caught his ax on the end of her scalpel, supported her arm with the other, and dropped to one knee to bear the impact. Despite being in such a vulnerable position, she looked up at him with a venomous snarl, all teeth, eyes wide with merciless rage. "Keep your fucking hands off my kids."

Hazel sneered down on her. "Stop me, if you are able."

Not long ago, Squidhead had been taking its leisurely time, like an old horse approaching the feeder at lunch time. No need to rush to a meal that wasn't going anywhere. Then, it came across the corpses. The fields of people that had fallen in battle, which it now stood amongst like it was contemplating the dead.

Ruby jumped in her seat as the Grimm unleashed a roar so powerful that it shook the thrones. Made the serene clouds bubble and boil. The sound was like a slowed, deepened recording of a nail dragging across a chalkboard. So grating on the ears that she felt like they might bleed. Whatever had been dormant about that monster's nature was dormant no longer. And it proved her correct, by starting a frantic dash after the ones that escaped, its big meaty arms out in front of it like a child darting toward his mother. The creature had to be more than ten miles away, at least. There was still time for the people to get to safety.

Except that in exactly twenty-four seconds, Squidhead had caught up.

Sensibly, it caused a riotous panic. People scurried and scattered on double time, thrown into life-fearing madness. Some fired whatever magic they could to kill the Grimm, or at least slow it down. Nothing worked. They pelted it with fire, ice, lightning, and it did nothing but fall off its body. Someone threw a massive slab of earth at it, many times larger and wider than the monster itself, but the slab crumbled apart upon making contact with the Grimm, slowing it down not an inch.

"They can't even hurt it…" Neptune whispered in horror.

"It seems not," agreed the Apostle, watching with mild interest. "I hazard a guess that this creature cannot be killed. It is immune to death."

"How can anything be immune to death?"

"Is death truly universal?" The Apostle tapped his temple. "You need to open your mind to the possibilities."

Neptune adopted a look of total bewilderment, which quickly progressed into rage as he stood up. "Alright, what is this all about? Who are you and what the fuck are you after?"

Ruby tried to calm him down. "Nep—"

"No, Ruby! I've had enough! You brought us here, right? You must have taken us from where we tried to resurface. You did that for a reason. But all you've done is speak in fucking riddles all this time. Telling us to just be patient? Be patient for what? What are we waiting for?"

The Apostle did not look at him as he vented, instead he was watching the madness down below. He answered, quite simply, with, "Answers will come in time."

Neptune looked ready to strangle the Apostle, even raising his hands to do it, but then grabbed his own hair instead, throwing himself in his seat in defeat. What else could he do?

Some of the fleeing people had opted to stay behind to fight the Grimm, despite likely knowing their efforts would be for nothing. A desperate attempt to give their fellows a chance to escape. Ruby turned away and was thankful that the screams mingled together into a faint clamor, sparing her an unpleasant image. And this was the world Jaune wanted to be a part of? He'd told her how he'd chosen this. Wanted it. Who wanted something like this? And why lie? Why else try to send her and Neptune home? Perhaps half of the reason had been to protect them, but there had to be more to it than that. Ruby believed in the inherent good of people, but even she had to admit that most people didn't do things out of pure altruism.

This was the world Jaune wanted to be in. A world for the insane.

She turned to the battle with the small hope that it had miraculously come to an end, but of course, it hadn't. On the contrary, it had gotten even more hectic now. Disturbingly, Cinder was a force of mass destruction, fire spewing everywhere. She flailed about, seemingly with no target or reason, shooting fire at whatever she could see, or couldn't see for that matter. Her beams burled through entire buildings and brought them crashing down. Lakes of lava had pooled into the surroundings, making even the ground into a dangerous enemy. Even with all the noise, Ruby could make out Cinder's voice. In such a situation, she expected her to be laughing, like the psychopath she was.

But instead, Cinder was constantly, endlessly, breathlessly screaming. That blood-curdling kind. The scream of someone burning alive.

It was something of a four way battle at this point, the context which Ruby did not know and wasn't sure she wanted to know. The armored man and girl were focused on each other, while Jaune and Peach looked to be trying to help Cinder. But in such a destructive battle, they crossed each other's paths often. In one moment, Jaune is matching Cinder's flames with columns of ice, then the next he's darting around the armored girl's lasers. Peach would intercept Hazel, who'd be going after Jaune, only to have to escape Cinder's unbiased flames, only to have to keep the armored girl from stabbing her. Moments of working together, then turning against each other. Teamwork and betrayal in equal measure, constantly shifting.

In one word, it was chaos.

Everything was out of control.

Even after three years, Cinder still could not control her Overshadow. She knew the mechanics of the technique, could use it to clear away hazards, dangerous surroundings, or heavy weather, but she still couldn't enforce her heart world's rules. A mental block, no doubt. That was why only Dominions were permitted to use Overshadows. Precisely to avoid a situation where you became a liability to your team, or worse, a threat. A Hunter with no crippling mental obstacle to overcome could more easily enforce their will onto others. To Overshadow without having your Alter defeated was to force oneself to confront their deepest traumas in the most twisted way their heart could project them.

Peach had dealt with this before, a handful of times in fact, during the girl's training. There really was no surefire way to calm Cinder down once she was in this state. All you could do was wait it out or try to get through to her, both of which were equally dangerous, if only because Cinder could not distinguish friend from foe. After all, fire had no biases or prejudices. It sought to burn anything and everything in equal measure.

Jaune managed to prevent Hazel from splitting Cinder's head, but the impact made him buckle, shattered his shield, and dropped him onto his back. Hazel brought the ax down on him, but Peach was close enough now. She stitched the ax to a jutting piece of building, and it slipped from Hazel's hand, leaving him to cut nothing. She'd thought Jaune would use that chance to escape, but instead he pushed up, an ice gauntlet formed around his hand and scored a claw slash across Hazel's jaw. It tore away the chin of his helmet and sent it spinning away. Hazel attempted to strike back, but the Vicar's laser beams had made a comeback now and we're raining up on him and Jaune. The two scattered, Jaune after Cinder, Hazel after the Vicar.

Cinder let out a terrible shriek as she sent a torrent of blue fire at Jaune, who returned with that cold flame of his own. The splash of two beautiful flames produced a steaming hiss as they pushed against one another. Jaune called Cinder's name, begged her to stop, but Cinder didn't hear him. Her flames grew in height and heat, making Peach sweat even from this distance. They overwhelmed Jaune, forced him to give ground and jump away, hair drenched in sweat, cloaks half burned away.

They needed to knock her out the first chance they got. Knock her out then make a quick escape. Hazel wasn't their ally anymore, and whichever said won this war didn't matter anymore. Peach and everyone she loved were screwed, no matter who came out on top. The best Peach could do was get her children and run. She could think about the rest later.

She had just managed to catch up with Jaune, ready to press him to her side and keep him there, only to see something in her peripherals. She raised her scalpel just in time to block the Vicar's short sword cut, but her opponent's strength won out, sending Peach back several feet, and once again out of reach of her son.

"You little bitch!" Peach roared in a fury, casting Sever at the girl. It cut open the girl's gauntlet, tearing away chunks of metal, even drawing a bit of blood from fair skin. Peach leaped at the Vicar, raised her leg back, then kicked the girl in the jaw as hard as she could. Satisfyingly, it sent the girl toppling, but it didn't keep her down. Nothing kept her down. More holy beams fired, forcing Peach to stay mobile.

It was Jaune versus Hazel now, with Cinder playing stage hazards. In another feat that absolutely blew Peach's mind, Jaune managed to conjure small sheets of ice beneath his feet with every stride he took, thus allowing him to very literally dash across a lake of lava. He sped right toward Hazel, blade breathing cold air, and Hazel came to meet him. There was an ear-rending clang as their blades met, causing the surrounding lava to shoot up around them like a geyser. Hazel booted Jaune away, sending him flying into one of the lava walls, but Jaune coated himself in a shell of ice and passed through unharmed. Ice spread into a platform as he landed, but by then Hazel had come diving at him and destroyed the platform just by landing in it. He, of course, needed no platform to stand on. His armor let him slog through the lava without injury. His semblance really was overpowered.

Over and over the two would part then clash, part then clash, part then clash. Every impact was like the sound of thunder. Hazel's armor radiating Psychokinetic aura, Jaune's body fuming with cold steam and white lightning. Then there was real thunder. The sky was boiling with clouds and long lightning flashed across the sky. The bolts came raining down too, and everything they hit was blown to bits. They left that rancid, ashy odor of a highly electrified atmosphere. That stink of a storm coming. Peach swore she could even feel drops of rain now too. Every element of nature was in attendance, here at the end of the world.

It took no effort at all for Hazel to lift a small building, half submerged in the lava, and hurl it at Jaune. He then did the same thing with another and chucked it at the Vicar. Who, by the way, had now sprouted golden angel wings and was now fucking flying. The Vicar shot a single thin yellow beam from her spear tip that pierced the house like butter and sliced it clean in half. Jaune was either not one for such precision, or just didn't care, as he blew his building to bits with a fiery explosion from his sword.

Cinder was back now, her screams like that of a hawk in horrible agony. She came sailing toward the three like a wayward comet, and by now they knew better than to challenge her power directly. They scattered as Cinder crashed into the lava lake, the explosion so violent that the lava and earth beneath blasted into the air, then came back down in as a hail of burning glops, burnt shards, ashen mist. Cinder emerged from the resulting crater, bare feet sloshing through the lake, and she screamed toward the Vicar floating above, blowing a jet of flames at her. Jaune and Hazel engaged once more, both now roaring with every swing, miss, clash, and blow.

It was an insane sight to see, to put it lightly. Too much for Peach's senses to keep track of. Lava waterfalls pouring from the sky. Lightning dancing in the clouds, thunder booming among the stars. A moment ago, the rain had been light. A gentle drizzle. Now it came in heavy sheets, drenching Peach to the bone, and producing rotten steam from competing with the lava. Cinder was a living forest fire. Spreading her madness like a plague hellbent on the end of humanity. The Vicar, right hand of God, cast down heaven's judgment with merciless fury. Hazel, a one man army, chucking buildings, causing tremors, roaring like a beast freed from the cage.

Jaune, amidst it all, a fledgling god. Exploding ice, swirling blue flames, frozen lightning bolts, winter spreading like a disease. Her boy had no idea how powerful he truly was. Not even Peach knew for sure where his ceiling ended, but wherever it was, it was a long way up. If it weren't for his lack of refined technique and years of experience, he certainly would be stronger than her. And only after four months. So it was that Peach found herself both afraid for him… and of him. Just as she had felt for her beloved sister.

Peach knew she had to stop Cinder soon, but it was getting harder by the second to think of a plan. Especially with the world around her going to complete shit. Was there even a point to a plan anymore? Would it make a difference if she just sat down and watched the end of the world? And just when she thought things couldn't possibly get any worse, something approached from the horizon. Something big. She could hear the distant sound, like a stampede of horses all galloping toward freedom. Or safety. Then, as she squinted at the distance she saw what it was.

An army of thousands. Hunters and Rebels both, all in a panicked sprint toward the derelict city slowly being consumed by nature's forces. Surely they saw that what they were approaching was the closest thing to hell on earth, and yet they weren't slowing. Some were outright pushing their comrades out of the way. Some tried clearing the ground with jumps, looking like crickets leaping from tall grass. Their collective screams combated even the cry of thunder. The very sound made Peach's spine quake. But what could they be running from? What could possibly scare so many -

A shockwave of a roar shook the air, overpowering everything. Sending ripples through the lava falls, making the clouds bubble, temporarily stopping the lightning like the heavens themselves had trembled in fear. Peach's heart sank into her stomach. Zulhetl was here.

She had to get her babies.

Peach ran as fast as she could. As fast as she possibly could. No more reason or logic. Just the pure animal need to preserve her offspring.

"Jaune!" she screamed as loudly as she could, voice cracking with the effort. "Jaune! Cinder!"

But they couldn't hear her. Everything was too loud. Jaune and the Vicar were at each other like lions now, constantly pawing, slashing, and biting at each other. Cinder rained hell down on Hazel, incinerating every building thrown at her, burning bright as a star. As far as they were concerned, they were on entirely different planets.

Peach despaired for an answer. What could she do? What the hell could she do? Then, sudden hope-filled clarity. The strain on her energy flow was gone. She felt unburdened. Her power was once again at full capacity.

Which meant…

The massive clocktower burst from a bed of lava, unbothered by the heat. The bell rang louder than the thunder, signaling the only shot Peach had left to save her children. Peach refused to waste it.

"Sew!" she cried, pointing a clawing hand at Cinder.

The sudden relinquishing of her Overshadow had instantly rid Cinder of her fire cloak, leaving her stark naked, but safe to retrieve. Her psychic strings reached Cinder faster even than Hazel could, then Peach pulled with all her strength to bring her daughter back. She caught Cinder, nearly stumbled, but managed to steady her. She was barely conscious, her breathing was raspy, but her girl was alive and that was all that mattered.

She found Jaune still engaged against the Vicar, and she set her strings at him. They caught him just in time, and Peach pulled him in… the strings snapped.

Her strings, made entirely of ethereal Psychokinetic energy, literally incapable of being broken by normal means… had snapped.

Jaune ripped out of her grip with visible effort, but his eyes were set on the Vicar and he meant to see her ended. The Vicar had slowed, her movements were getting sluggish, the fight was going out of her and Jaune recognized that. She fired a laser at him, but he readily dodged, then rushed her down fast enough to smack her across the face with his shield. Then he hit her with another, and another, four times, six times, ten times. On his eleventh blow, he sent the girl tumbling head over heels, her helmet flying off her head and spinning away into the darkness. Peach once again tried to pull Jaune away, but once again her strings snapped. Jaune went after the Vicar with no mercy. Her spear caught him in the shoulder, punched all the way through. But Jaune must not have felt it. He lashed with that same shoulder, spiking the Vicar's shield with such strength that he made her slip. Jaune booted her in the chest as she came down, sending her spiraling through the air, crashing through an upturned rock, and luckily landing on solid ground.

Still for Jaune, it wasn't enough. Even despite how tired he looked. A third time, Peach tried to pull him away, and again he resisted. How could he resist her strings even while she was Overshadowing? He couldn't possibly be that powerful. Peach had only ever had Curse-types break her hold.

The Vicar was curled up on the ground now, the first example of vulnerability Peach had seen in her. The hunter Jaune was, he saw a meal. Jaune's shoulder rose and fell with haggard breaths, but he soldiered on anyway. He raised his sword over his head, igniting it with ice-flame. He kicked the Vicar onto her back, flexed his arms to deliver the final blow… and froze.

For a full couple of seconds, he stood there, utterly suspended in time. And since the Vicar was on the ground, Peach couldn;t make out what he saw. But based on his reaction, he must have recognized whoever had been under the helmet. But who?

No time to find out. Peach made ready to snatch Jaune away now that he'd let down his guard. Then they could finally get out of here.

In an instant, almost a blink, Hazel appeared and knocked Jaune's sword away. Then, just as the Vicar seized the chance to attack, he drove his ax into her stomach. Peach half expected to see the girl fall in half, but in the end all she did was crumple back to the ground. She didn't move again.

Jaune went for Hazel's throat, screaming something Peach couldn't make out. Only for his neck to be snatched into Hazel's massive hand, suspending him in the air, and arresting his breathing. Peach's heart was in a frenzy as she cast her strings once again, hoping desperately against hope, praying she made it in time. Her strings latched onto her one and only son, and this time, he did not break them.

Peach couldn't help but imagine a grapefruit being smashed against a hard surface, juices spilling, chunks of the insides spraying. That was the closest comparison she could make to what Hazel did to her son's head when he dashed against a slab of rock. Then, Jaune slumped like a doll falling off a shelf, and fell still beside the girl.

Neptune roared with agonized fury. Ruby wished she could scream, but all she could do was stare in complete disbelief. Was this real? Had she seen that?

Neptune was looking desperately around for somewhere to go. No doubt desperately wanting to help Jaune, if there was a way to help him. Eventually he rounded on the Apostle. The only one with any power to do anything. "You bastard. Is this what you wanted us to see?"

The Apostle did not answer. He was watching intently, quietly, expectantly.

Neptune, tears welling and teeth bared, let out another in indignant yell. He fell to his knees in complete helplessness, smashing his knuckles onto the non-existent floor. "Shit," he blubbered, "Shit…"

Ruby still could not help watching. The escaping people had now entered the ruined city, with the Squidhead caught up, there would be more tragedies on the way. It went without saying how much of the problem they were about to have. Everything was thrown into chaos.

Miss Peach was carrying Cinder along as she hurried over to Jaune, as fast as she could with the burden in her arms. The armored girl had been taken down too, but Ruby couldn't see her face the way she was turned. What did it even matter? She was most likely dead. Jaune was most likely dead. Superpowered or not, you couldn't just survive having your head smashed open.

Across her, the Apostle's expression didn't change even slightly. He still rested his cheek on his hand, foot bobbing up and down like he'd seen this plotline before and was just waiting to get through the boring part. Ruby wanted badly to demand answers too. To slap him and kick him and claw at his eyes until she couldn't anymore. But the answers didn't matter anymore. Nothing mattered.

She fell back into the chair, buried her face in her hands, and sobbed.

Jaune… couldn't feel anything.

The world was noiseless. Well, kind of. He only hear very vague things, unable to distinguish them from other sounds. They seemed to blend together into a strange melody, neither soothing nor disturbing. He wasn't sure whether he was lying down or standing up, whether the world was spinning or he was. Wasn't sure if he even remembered what he'd last been doing. Even that seemed far away.

Wait. He was recalling something now. Right, he'd been fighting. Been fighting Hazel. Trying to save his family and friends. Were they saved? Had he saved them? Wasn't sure. He hoped so. He only wanted the best for them, for everyone to be happy and safe. He liked to think they were all at home, just going about their day, no worries or fears. That was a perfect world to him. One where everyone he loved was happy. He didn't need to be in the picture.

Perhaps, this was enough. He was tired. Needed a nap, and a long one at that. A nap that would never end. That sounded great right about now.

Are you alive, Mister Arc?

Jaune could barely make him out, but he recognized the voice well enough. A man stood above him, looked straight down at him, leaning on a dark cane. It made him think of a pet owner scowling upon an old dog and considering what to do with it. Jaune couldn't make out his eyes, mouth, or any other facial features. It was as if his face had been smeared with wet paint. Making it appear plain and pale like an empty canvas, ready to be painted in a new image. Jaune attempted to respond, but he couldn't hear his own voice. He didn't even know what the right response was.

You've met a terrible fate, haven't you? came the voice again, low and soft, almost a whisper. Your family is in danger. Terrible danger. All on account of your failure.

So his family wasn't safe. He had failed to save them. Failed as a friend, a brother, a son. Perhaps that was just as well. He had always let people down. He was a disappointment. Always would be.

You're dying, Mister Arc. You teeter on the edge.

He didn't fear death. Death could have him, if it could take him. He feared worse things. A lonely life. A meaningless life. A loveless life. He feared the uncertainties of life itself. The real world was a hard place to confront. It was so much easier to fight monsters and Alters. Things were simpler, better, when he didn't have to think so hard.

You are powerless to save yourself. Powerless to save your loved ones.

Yes, he knew. He'd known all along.

Let me help you, Mister Arc.

Help him?

Yes, let me help. I can save your family, your friends. I can save the very world. The voice sounded closer now. It cut through the static. But I need your help. I need your power, Mister Arc.

Why would anyone want his power? Clearly it couldn't do anything, so what was the point of it? All the power in the world and he'd still failed to protect the things that mattered.

I will use your power in ways you cannot imagine. I will make everything right again. Even closer now. A tongue on his ear. Only give yourself to me. Clear your mind, Mister Arc. Empty your heart. Surrender. And sleep.

Sleep was a good idea. The man's voice was soothing, whoever it was. It didn't seem like a bad idea. He could have whatever he wanted as far as Jaune was concerned. He was so tired of trying, struggling, and failing. He wanted no more. Just to rest and never wake up.

That's it…

The muddied faced man moved his arm, reaching out his hand. It seemed so far away, yet some close. He needed someone's hand to hold.

Yes. That is the way…

Jaune felt like he could move his arm a little, and reached for the man's hand. Yes, he'd had enough. It was over now. Better people could take over from here. He'd done his best and it hadn't been enough. All he could do now was sleep. Their fingertips touched, cold as a corpse.

Well done, Mister Arc.

Their fingers wrapped around one another's. Palm met palm. And Jaune let his mind empty. He let his heart empty. He let his entire being empty…

Wait.

The hand he'd touched wasn't cold anymore. It was warm. Like the summer sun. Gentle grip. Gentler than silk.

A soft voice reached him. Oh honey, what's happened to you?

"... Mom?"

She was kneeling down before him. A woman of fair skin and long golden hair hanging over her shoulders. Her crystal-blue eyes stared into his, vast as an ocean, calm as a stream. She had this smile, that kind that made him feel like everything was okay. There were no problems. There was peace and good times ahead. Nothing to fear. The smile that had always made him feel safe.

The woman squeezed his hand, and spoke again, her voice like a guiding lantern. Why are you crying, honey? Did you hurt yourself?

Maybe he had. Could explain why he felt so numb. He felt like crying, but nothing came out of him. Maybe all his tears were used up.

"You've been so brave. You've been so strong for so long. I know it's been hard."

Yeah, things had been hard. It hurt to think about. He didn't want to think about it.

"Sweetie, you're dying."

He knew. Because he was too weak to save himself. He was okay with it now. Because he could go wherever his Mom was.

"You can't, honey."

Why not?

"You must keep going, baby. You need to get up. You need to protect everyone."

He wasn't strong enough.

His mother laughed. "You? Not strong enough? Don't be silly. My son is strong. I raised him to be. Are you saying I failed?"

No. No, he'd never say that. She'd been the greatest mom ever. So great that he missed her terribly. He wanted to be with her.

Jaune wept, though he couldn't hear his own words. "Where are you, Mom?"

"I'm with you, sweetie. I'm with you. You have to get up. Everyone needs you… and you need them."

He did need them. Yes, his family. His sister's and dad, Aunt Peach, Cinder. Ruby and Neptune and Sun and Yang and Blake and everyone who'd come into his life. He had been so lost. A stray in the road. But they had taken him anyway, the rabid mutt he was, and gave him… love. He didn't want to lose that.

His mother stood, and Jaune tried to hold onto her hand, but she pulled away, smiling down at him. "I have to go now, baby. You'll see me again one day. But right now, you need to fight. Fight as hard as you can. You must keep moving forward… until all your enemies are destroyed. Understand?"

Destroy his enemies. Yes, that sounded like a good idea. A genius idea. Far better than taking some boring nap.

"Don't let them break you."

He wouldn't.

"They can't break you."

They couldn't.

"You will break them."

He would.

"You are strong."

He was.

"You are the strongest."

I am.

"Show them your strength. Teach them a lesson. Make them regret ever hurting you. Goodbye, baby. I love you."

He loved her too. He loved her so much. But he couldn't be with her right now. There were many more important things to do. Other people he had to live for and to love with everything he had. And no one, not even the gods, would take that away from him. Not without a fight.

And so Jaune turned his eye to the sky above, where the gray clouds boiled with heat and lightning, and he whispered, "Are you there… Apostle?"

Ozpin couldn't have smiled wider. His plan had gone better than expected.

Granted, he'd never expected the boy to break so soon and so quickly. At most, he'd thought the encounter with Hazel might enhance his despair, and that his Aunt's death would be the catalyst for his collapse. But he'd forgotten how strong Hazel was, and that had been enough to crush what remained of Jaune's defiant will. That, or Jaune was more weak-minded than he'd well, he cared not for the details. The results spoke for themselves.

Now, with this body, with this power, he would be unstoppable. Nothing could stand in his way. Probably he wouldn't need the Silver Eyes anymore, meaning he would have to do something about that bloodline. Future plans. For now, once he secured Jaune's mind, he'd put an end to Hazel and his Rebels. Those fools, swayed by Salem's deadly allure. They did not know he was the one saving them all. But well, mortals were fools. Sheep. And it took someone from beyond mortal thinking to lead them into a better future. To shepherd them toward prosperity.

So Ozpin had forced a Partial Convergence, bridging the Public Domain and Jaune's Heart World together. With their souls so close, it really was that simple to just cross the border. Such was his power. It would infect Jaune's heart with torrents of Despair, but that could be easily taken care of later. The boy had a powerful resistance to the Shards of the Brain after all, meaning he would not be easily consumed. Yes, this body was truly perfect.

And with a confident smirk, Ozpin crossed that bridge step by step. Already formulating his plan to reform the organization anew and usher in greater world unity under his guidance. He barely resided a victorious chuckle. The future was his.

"I thank you, Mister Arc." he said as he crossed the final threshold.

Velvet Scarlatina met him there.

He paused. The area around him was white and empty, like a shining fog. Velvet had her arms crossed behind her back, staring at him with an easy, calm smile. Like she was greeting an old friend. Or an old enemy. Ozpin just stared back, a little unsettled, but ultimately unconcerned. This was just some projection of Jaune's heart world. Perhaps the girl's death had stuck with him. A shame, but it hardly mattered now. The girl's ghost wouldn't be plaguing him anymore.

That's when the girl lifted her arm and pointed right in front of her. Or rather, behind Ozpin. He turned around.

And instantly found himself submerged in complete darkness.

A cold voice pierced his ears. "So you've finally come, worm."

Ozpin now stood on a floor of golden clouds, the area bright with colors of white and gold. Ahead of him, a wide marble staircase, shined to a mighty reflectiveness, stretched high, high above. He couldn't even count how many steps there were, it was that tall. At the top was a single, massive throne, the backrest stretching high before a backdrop of swirling clouds, going round and round in a massive circle.

No, they weren't clouds. They were angels.

They were draped in pure white robes, sported long golden hair, and had wings twice as tall as themselves. Their joyous, playful, eerie laughter filled the air as they continued to soar in their great circle. They spun and twirled and danced to their heart's content, as the beats of their wings created a drumming in the air that made Ozpin's ears pop. Millions of these strange celestial creatures, all united under a single banner, a single devotion to which their laughter served as both song and prayer. To the celebration of their Lord and Creator and God. To the celebration of the king who sat the throne.

Indeed, he was there. One leg crossed over the other, elbow on the armrest, cheek resting on his knuckles. The Apostle of War looked down on him with a rather bored expression, like he was looking upon something that had failed even to elicit some emotion. No hate or anger or disgust, just nothing. And that was the first thing Ozpin noticed that didn't make sense. The second thing was that the Apostle was there at all. Now that he'd taken Jaune Arc's body, the Alter should have been erased in order to make room for his own. That was how his power had always worked. It didn't make any sense.

And that filled him with a sudden terrible dread.

"So this is what you truly are," spoke the Apostle. "How strange. I thought you'd look more… threatening."

Ozpin again could only stare up, speechless. What had happened? Did the transfer fail? Had he somehow connected to someone else's heart world? Such things had never happened before, so it was unlikely that they'd happen now. He hadn't made a mistake. And yet now he doubted himself. How else could he explain this?

"So… this was your plan? To invade my kingdom and steal my throne? Is that why you watched me from below, like a pervert watches women bathe?" His lip curled, "What a pathetic thing you are. A worm, indeed. And yet, you seem troubled. Surprised, even. I've no notion of your power, but I wager that whatever you attempted to do has failed."

Impossible. It could have failed. It couldn't have. No, this was…

"Your failure is only natural. You are not the only one whose power has failed before my presence. What can one truly do, in face of the greatest power this world has ever known?"

Ozpin felt himself sweating now. A creeping feeling was slithering up his back as he uttered, "And what power would that be?"

The Apostle cracked the most malevolent grin. The likes of which Ozpin only saw in the worst of his nightmares. That grin that he'd seen in his final moments before the end of the old world. "Why, the power of love, of course. It is a power which transcends all else. It is what all creatures of higher thinking seek, one way or another. When all else fails, it is love that sustains us. How could it not be the very pinnacle of power? I think you know this, or you did once. But it appears you've forgotten it. You pushed it away, in favor of lesser powers."

Memories flashed in Ozpin's head. Thousands of years of success and failure. Losing to Salem, punished by the gods, cast into the endless cosmos with nary a destination or purpose. How he'd suffered in the vas and empty darkness alone for eons. Then, finally found hope in a new place, a new world, with new people and new chances. Then thousands of years more, cultivating, laying a foundation, and growing in strength. Everything he'd created, the faiths he'd started, the countries he'd birthed, the heroes and villains he'd made, all of it was at the front of Ozpin's mind. How terribly pointless it all seemed.

Because none of them had felt so daunting as the obstacle he faced now. No wall had seemed too high a climb, until now. No challenge was unsurmountable, until now. No enemy was unbeatable… until now.

He had to escape. Had to get back to his old body. It would hold out for another year. More than enough time. Yes, this was just an unforeseen wrench in his plans, but he could still—

Ozpin was being held up by his collar.

The Apostle had gotten hold of him, somehow. Without his notice, without even feeling his body being moved. The Apostle stared at him for a moment before speaking again. "The truth is I'd expected your interference at some point. I cannot say I know your intentions, even now, but I don't imagine any of them being good for me or my host. So I ensured that if he is to call on anyone, if he is to rely on anyone's power, it should be mine. I alone reserve that right."

He knew Jaune was his host? When had he become self-aware? Who had told him of his true nature? All these questions and more flooded Ozpin's head, each one a more terrifying consideration than the last. Ozpin couldn't jump out of the Heart World with an Alter holding him like this. It simply wasn't possible. And in his own Alter state, he had no real strength or power, so any effort to break free was pointless. He was caught. Trapped. And at the Apostle of War's mercy.

"And now, I have been called upon to make due on my promise. To destroy all enemies of my host, and to demonstrate the extent of our power. You are truly honored to have a front row seat to my grand showcase. Come, worm." said the Apostle, getting to his feet and raising Ozpin higher into the air, his grip tight as a vice. "I will show you the true power of love… by taking away everything you love, one by one, until you beg for salvation. Then, I shall take even that from you."

"You can't!" Ozpin howled like a dog locked in his cage, desperate for freedom. "You can't!" he cried.

The Apostle smirked so evilly that Ozpin was filled with a sinking horror, like he'd stepped into quicksand was slowly being swallowed. He couldn't help but ask himself if he had made a terrible miscalculation. Where had he gone wrong? This was not how things were supposed to be. This was not the future he'd planned.

"I would suggest you pray to your Gods, if you have them." said the Apostle, "But why bother? They won't be able to save you, anyway."

The next thing Ozpin knew, the Apostle leapt from his seat in the heavens with him in tow and now soared through dark reaches of outer space. Close behind, and looking like a billion comets soaring through the night, an army of angels followed.

What else can I say? You all know what's coming. We are only a couple chapters away from the end of the Blake Arc. I'd say maybe two or three more, if nothing changes.

See you in the next one!

ISA