"She's bleeding out! I don't know what to do!" Jaune exclaimed, pressing his hands against the deep gash on Weiss's side.
Ruby gave him a worried glance before spinning Crescent Rose in her hands to deflect a White Fang member's attack. "Just keep holding pressure to it! We'll get her help after we take care of these guys!"
"Where's Sera at?!" Yang demanded, blocking a hit from Mercury. She sent an explosive towards him with the thrust of her arm. He sidestepped it and leapt into the air, trying to bring his foot onto her head.
Phoenix smirked as he crossed blades with Ren. "Maybe the stupid girl finally smartened up and made a run for it."
Ren scowled and pushed against him, but the guy was deceptively stronger than he looked.
Neo appeared out of nowhere and acrobatically kicked him in the side, then Phoenix went tumbling to the floor. The fight was utter chaos, and everyone had to stay on their toes to avoid getting overwhelmed.
"I don't know!" Nora replied, swinging her hammer into a random WF goon.
Ozpin held his cane tightly, watching for anyone who might come close. "I sent her after the Spring Maiden."
Qrow's eyes widened. "You what?!"
"She can handle it, I know she can," he replied. Even he only half-believed his words. "Kassandra won't let her fail, I'm sure of it."
"The dead girl?!" Yang said. "The one in her head?!"
Ozpin glanced towards the statue of Jinn, the genie inside the Relic of Knowledge. "We'll just have to trust her. We can't afford to spare anyone else, so until we clear the room, she's on her own."
Qrow seethed, both angry at the headmaster and worried about his pupil. Wordlessly, he fought harder to hurry and help the white-haired girl.
Jaune faltered when he saw Weiss's face start to slacken. Her grip weakened on his arm and fell to her side limply. A wave of anxiety and nausea hit him like a truck. In that very moment, he was brought back to when he was sent away in that locker the night Vale fell. He'd been helpless to help his friends that night, and now, he was useless all over again.
He squeezed his eyes shut and pressed down on Weiss's side harder, desperately hoping to stop the bleeding so he wouldn't lose someone else.
A bright green glow emanated from his palms and washed across Weiss's skin, bathing her in a warm light. When he opened his eyes, he was awestruck at what he saw. His aura was seeping into Weiss, concentrating on the cut in her side and slowly mending it. Her bleeding stopped. The color returned to her face, even though it was hard to tell from her naturally pale complexion. The battle raged on around him, but his attention was fully on her.
"G-Guys, look," he said, just barely loud enough to hear over the sound of gunshots and clashing weapons.
Ozpin turned, eyes widening at the unexpected sight. He checked around him to ensure that he was in no immediate danger, then smirked lightly. "Congratulations, Mr. Arc. You've finally discovered your semblance."
Jaune looked up. "My semblance?"
"Of course," he nodded. Then Hazel yelled his name, and Ozpin rolled his eyes. "Excuse me, please. And uh, don't stop doing that."
Then he turned just in time to evade Hazel's massive fist, narrowly missing Jaune by a foot before the others managed to get him away.
Qrow spun Harbinger and hit two White Fang members and Phoenix at the same time, keeping them as far as he could away. "Keep them off of him!" he ordered.
Jaune stared at Weiss's face, silently pleading for her to wake up. "Come on, come on...!"
He could hear his heart beating against his chest while his aura flowed into Weiss. And after a count of exactly nine seconds, the heiress gasped sharply and her eyes flew open.
. . .
It had taken a lot for her to actually jump down that hole. She thought she'd heroically fall and come up with a master plan to take down two Maidens and Raven Branwen. But now that she was actually falling? There was only one thought on her mind.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH SHITFUCKSHITFUCK WHAT THE FUUUUUUCCCCKKKK?!"
Yep. That about summed it up. Sheer, unadulterated terror. Mostly because she hadn't realized until she'd jumped that she had no idea how she was supposed to land safely. That seemed like a minor detail at the time.
But now, she could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and it made her heart jump directly into her throat. It wasn't until the very last second that an idea came to her.
Sera drew her sword and stabbed it into the side of the tunnel, holding onto Igni's hilt as tightly as she could. She was expecting to halt immediately and possibly dislocate her shoulders from the sudden force, but instead, she'd only slowed her descent. Apparently, she'd sharpened her sword just a little too well.
She screamed as she continued to fall, all the way until she'd actually stopped. It took her a full five seconds to realize that she was no longer falling to her death. Sera opened her eyes and looked down. The ground was at least fifteen feet below her. Her sword had stopped just a few inches from the edge of the tunnel.
"O-Okay..." she breathed, tilting her body to plant her boots against the wall. The huntress yanked as hard as she could and pulled Igni free, the blade slicing through the stone like butter.
She yelped and dropped through empty air until her feet hit the ground, and she rolled to shift the momentum until she was on her feet with Igni in her hand. She looked up into the tunnel she'd fallen through, seeing a tiny light at the top. Sera shivered, unable to believe she'd survived such a fall.
When she lowered her gaze, her mouth fell open. The inside of the vault was gorgeous. She was in an enormous cave inside the mountain that Haven as built on. There was greenery everywhere, with brightly colored flowers that glowed in the darkness. Below her was an enormous structure of white stone and golden trim. A stone brick path led to the front of the vault with twenty-foot-tall trees on either side, as well as more flowers. Sitting in front of an enormous door was a circular platform about two hundred feet wide. The next thing she noticed was that the vault and the walkway was right above a chasm. She couldn't see the bottom. Just an empty black void.
Standing in front of the vault door were the three women she was here to stop. Sera sheathed her sword and hurried down the long staircase that led down to the main walkway. Fortunately, it seemed that they hadn't noticed her. Unfortunately, they seemed to be having some sort of disagreement. Just as she reached the circular platform, she saw Raven suddenly become encapsulated in ice just as she was about to draw her sword. Vernal crumpled to the ground, a black appendage stuck to her chest. When she got closer, she saw blood staining the woman's clothes. And she saw that the appendage was actually Cinder's arm—the one that'd been wrapped in bandages. It looked Grimm, as if she'd gotten an arm from a Geist.
Then Cinder withdrew the creepy Grimm arm and let out an exclaimed, "What? Where's the power?!"
Okay. So, she was trying to take Vernal's Spring Maiden powers. Typical. That's all Cinder was—a power hungry woman who'd stop at nothing achieve her own fucked up goals. Yep, she had to put a stop to her. If she could just steal a Maiden's powers, what else could she take? Someone's semblance? Their aura itself? Could she take her power and become even stronger on top of being the Fall Maiden? She didn't know, but she intended to put an end to all of it.
Well, here goes nothing. Moment of truth. In what little time she had, she mentally reached inside of herself. Just like when she'd tried to reach her power before, she dug in deep and concentrated as hard as she could. This time, she kept her eyes open to keep watch. She wasn't sure if it would work like that, but she had to try.
The seconds slowed to a crawl as she manifested within her own consciousness and was greeted by three different colored auras. One violet, one blue, and one red. She reached towards the violet one that represented herself. Surprisingly, the red aura remained still. She expected it to drag her towards it like before, but it seemed... still. Not inactive, but... dormant.
In a flash, she was encapsulated in the violet aura and energy surged through her like a raging fire. It put her senses on overdrive, her mind reeling from the shock. She gasped sharply, her entire body shaking as violet aura flickered across her skin. Sera's entire nervous system lit up like Nora when she gets supercharged.
She stumbled slightly, not sure how to handle all the energy coursing through her body. Sera raised her hand, seeing that her fingertips were starting to turn white and spreading up her hand and under the sleeve of her jacket.
It worked. She'd accessed her latent power on her own, and this time, she didn't have to calm a raging inferno of anger and hatred. Now, she felt just a normal, yet elevated level of anger for Cinder Fall.
Sera put two fingers to her lips and whistled. Cinder whirled around, her eyes wild and enraged. Raven remained frozen, and while her Grimm mask was on, Sera could feel the anger radiating from her. When the Fall Maiden saw the skin on Sera's neck turning white, traveling up to her face and morphing her eyes red and sclera as black as night, she faltered.
"Didn't go as planned, huh Cindy?" she smirked.
Cinder's eye blazed with orange flame, her teeth clenching as balls of fire erupted in her palms. She floated two feet off the ground, the air below her swirling with flames.
Sera didn't hesitate to run towards her, sword drawn. She felt good. Powerful. As if she'd suddenly drank a case full of People Like Grapes, then did a line of that narcotic powder she'd seen in Junior Xiong's nightclub.
Cinder raised her hands and sent an inferno of orange flames in her direction, and Sera leapt as high as she could to avoid it. Unexpectedly, she jumped a lot higher than intended and sailed right over Cinder's head, landing with a stumble. She narrowed her eyes at her feet perplexingly. Apparently, her little power up had done more than make her faster. She didn't remember being able to do that before, but then again, she hadn't really tried.
It was in that moment that Raven finally broke free of the ice that held her. Their eyes went to her, and Raven slowly removed her Grimm mask. Her red eyes ignited, burning a shade of scarlet that matched her aura.
"Did you really think I'd let the power of a Maiden lie with that girl?" she asked, her voice steely calm. A chill went down Sera's spine at the unbridled rage that laid within it.
Sera blinked her crimson eyes. "I mean, I thought she was the Maiden."
"Shut it," Raven snapped, then drew her sword.
A pair of black twin swords manifested in Cinder's hands and she stepped backwards, raising her blades at each of them. Sera got closer to close the distance and get within sword's reach of the two Maidens. With her off hand, she drew her double barrel and pointed it at Raven. The three of them formed a triangle, glancing at each other warily.
"Little stand-off, huh?" Sera smirked.
"I'm not leaving without the Relic," Cinder said through gritted teeth.
"And I'm not leaving without kicking your ass up and down this vault like a soccer ball, you fucking bitch," Sera replied coldly. "You killed my friends, and I'm going to pay you back in full."
Cinder scowled, but she made no move to attack. Raven glanced between each of them sharply. Sera's new appearance seemed to surprise her, but if it did, she didn't let it show. The bandit stayed just as calm and reserved as ever.
"We can't stand here forever," Raven muttered. "And I'm not making the first move."
"Is that how you managed to win over Tai? Just waiting for him to make a move while you stayed all bitchy and distant?" Sera asked, unable to resist taking a shot at Yang's horrible mother.
Raven's lip curled. "I'm starting to see why my daughter likes you. Always did have poor taste in company."
"As if you know anything about Yang," she scoffed. "But you help me take this one down, and I'll tell her you're not as much of a nasty momma as we thought."
"I'm not siding with either of you," she spat.
"Come on, Raven," Cinder chuckled. "We can kill her, then you and I can have our own little... talk."
Raven's frown deepened. "I really don't like you."
"Yeah, she has that effect on people," Sera deadpanned. "Just an arrogant egomaniac on a power trip."
Cinder's scowl deepened, her one good eye blazing with angry fire, her teeth visibly grinding.
Sera smirked and adjusted her stance, lifting the tip of her sword towards her chin. "Don't look at me like that, hot-head. That fire is about as threatening as your boy Phoenix. All bark, no bite."
She seethed at that, brandishing her twin swords at her. Raven tensed, ready to strike at any moment.
"Go ahead," Sera turned her shotgun to the Fall Maiden. "Make my day."
Cinder lunged at her, flames blazing and swords flashing. Sera pulled the trigger on her shotgun and blasted her in the chest, but it only slowed her down. Cinder glared at her and kept going.
Sera dashed backwards and fired another shell, catching Cinder in the shoulder. With no time to reload, she ducked under a sword swing and holstered her shotgun. She rolled to the side and came up on one knee, raising Igni just in time to block Cinder's dual swords. Her eyes glowed brightly with crimson light, meeting the Maiden's angry flames.
Her arms shook under Cinder's hold. Her Grimm arm seemed stronger than the other, somehow. Sera flipped the switch under Igni's hilt and its blade sparked with violet electricity left over from the dust crystal she'd used to subdue Vernal. The shock failed to travel into Cinder's glass weapons and left her puzzled as to why it hadn't worked.
Cinder chuckled coldly, her eye blazing hotter just inches away from her face. "Should've paid attention in school, child."
"Hey, Raven? Care to throw your hat in the ring?" she grunted, trying to push Cinder away.
Something hit her in the side and sent her sprawling. Fortunately, Raven hit Cinder too. Sera shot to her feet and raised her sword in case she had to defend herself further. Where she and Cinder had been locked in a power struggle, Raven stood with her katana in her hands and her eyes burning with scarlet flames. Only now, her sword looked... different. Instead of just being a katana, a long blade of burning red energy encapsulated the weapon like some sort of aura blade.
"Well... that's a new one..." she muttered, taking a few steps away from the bandit leader.
Cinder's eyes narrowed and she flicked her swords to the side, the black blades catching aflame and elongating until they resembled Raven's.
"Oh, come on..." Sera groaned quietly. "Two Maidens with ridiculous powers against me with a sparky sword. Yay me."
She took the opportunity to reload her shotgun before the fighting kicked off again, then smoothly holstered it for later use.
Her nerves tingled with energy as she glanced between the two of them. Even with the use of her power, she wasn't sure if she could stand up to two Maidens at once. But she had to stop Cinder from getting the Relic. But she wasn't sure how Cinder would do that if Raven simply refused, and if Cinder was unable to steal her power.
Then Cinder took the initiative to attack first, and she couldn't think about it further. She targeted Raven this time, expelling the sword in her Grimm hand and launching it towards her faster than Sera anticipated.
Raven saw it coming from a mile away. She evaded to the side and brought her aura sword up in the blink of an eye. At the last second, the Grimm arm twisted and grabbed Raven's wrist. Raven cried out, scarlet aura flowing into the black flesh and traveling towards Cinder.
"Give it all," Cinder chuckled.
Yeah, no, Sera thought.
With the aid of her enhanced muscles, she jumped towards the Fall Maiden and aimed to sever her Grimm arm. In a flash, Cinder's sword appeared in front of her and deflected the attack. She switched targets and swiped at Cinder's side, knocking the woman away. Raven freed herself from the black appendage and went on the offensive, leaping between the two of them to fight them both at once.
"Come on, really?! I'm trying to take her down! Sera exclaimed as she parried a strike from Raven's sword.
The bandit swung her aura blade in a wide arc, and Sera and Cinder had to jump or evade to get out of its path. She jumped into the air and twirled, the red blade spinning like a blender. Cinder screamed angrily and swung her sword as well, each of the energy blades heading straight for Sera.
She jumped straight into the air, narrowly avoiding their attacks. She landed nimbly and braced her sword with both hands on its hilt, catching Cinder's blade in a flurry of sparks.
Sera spun and rolled and kicked as fast and effectively as she could. She was a deadly whirlwind of white and purple, fighting as hard as she could. And her attacks were only chipping away at their aura. If she could fight them one at a time, she knew she'd have a better chance, but two at once? She had to fight twice as hard just to keep up with them. But she was keeping up with them.
The longer she fought, the more she felt herself attuning to her abilities. She could regulate her aura and strength more effectively than when she'd first started. When she used her power before, it had practically been a mindless frenzy with her inner rage controlling her senses. Now, she was calm and able to focus. She could feel her mind and body getting used to the strength she now wielded. She was freeing herself of the shackles that bound her in the past, and deep inside, she was freeing something else, too.
A particularly fast swing from Cinder caught her off-guard and nearly caught her in the neck, but her shield suddenly raised and blocked it, a resounding CLANG traveling through the cavern.
Sera blinked, puzzled as to why that happened. She looked down, seeing her hand clasping her sword and fingers unclenched to slap her wrist.
'I'll be watching,' Kassandra had told her in her dreams.
The huntress smiled and shoved Cinder's sword away, swinging her sword with one hand. Cinder blocked it easily, but Sera took the opportunity to slam Pyrrha's shield into her and knock her back. Raven appeared beside her, landing a heavy swipe across the Fall Maiden's chest. Her aura flickered slightly, but it held.
Sera glanced at the bandit briefly and kept going, kicking Cinder in the leg to make her loose her balance then jab the point of her sword into her chest. Raven followed it up by twirling and bringing her aura blade into her side. They landed another few good hits, attacking in sync with each other before Cinder exploded.
Literally, she exploded. An ear-piercing scream came from her mouth and a surge of flames erupted outwards as if she'd ignited a pile of fire dust. Sera was blasted backwards and sent rolling across the ground, stopping just feet away from the edge of the platform. Raven brought her sword down and somehow divided the flames with the aura on her blade, her hair blowing back from the force of Cinder's blast.
Cracks traveled across the platform, the stone splintering under the shockwave. Sera climbed to her feet and eyed the web of cracks, thankful that the stone had held and not sent her tumbling into open air. But it did give her an idea. A stupid, crazy idea that only Sera Kallisto would come up with.
She noticed places where the stone had chipped and left openings throughout a portion of the platform, creating a semi-circle where Cinder's blast struck. Apply the right kind of force, and she could break it. If she could get Cinder in just the right spot...
Sera reached into her pocket and found the jumble of dust crystals she kept for her weapons. Raven and Cinder were locked in a heated fight, their dust blades moving so fast that she could barely keep up. It was like that movie with the guys with laser swords, flipping and jumping around while managing to perfectly deflect and counter each other's attacks. She wasn't sure how she should proceed regarding Raven. They'd attacked Cinder together, but she was still an enemy.
While keeping an eye on them, she went to work placing or dropping as many dust crystals as she could into the cracks. The idea was that she'd detonate them and break away part of the platform and hopefully send a certain woman into the chasm with it, maybe both of them if she could manage it. Once she was out of dust, Sera immediately charged back into the fight.
Cinder saw her coming and tried to blast fire in her direction, but she dropped to her knees and slid across the ground, bending backwards to let the flames blow right over her face. As soon as the fire was gone, she came up fast and brought her sword into the Maiden's side. Raven jumped and kicked her in the face, and Sera reeled backwards.
Well, that settles the Raven dispute. Sera clenched her jaw and fought harder, spinning to deflect both of their swords and land a decent hit on each of them. They traded blows relentlessly, and it was all she could do not to get overwhelmed by their powers. The fight was slow-going, despite taking every ounce of her strength to pose a threat to the strength of two Maidens.
But there was something strange going on. Just like what happened with her shield, her body seemed to move with a mind of its own. Only slight adjustments here and there, but her sword would suddenly twitch to deflect a strike, or her shield would shift to her side to block an unseen attack. It was insanity, but it gave her the edge she needed to stay in the fight. She knew that it could only be Kassandra. There was no other explanation, unless her transformed state somehow enhanced her reflexes to the point of being able to perfectly predict her enemies' attacks. But that was impossible, so it had to be Kassandra keeping an eye out. She'd have to find a way to thank her later.
Cinder delivered a particularly powerful flaming kick to Raven's head and sent her tumbling away, then turned to Sera with a nasty grin on her face.
"It was stupid of you to come down here. All you're doing is making this take longer. One way or another, I am getting that Relic," she monologued.
"Holy Brothers, does that Grimm arm come with a mute button? I have had enough of your constant yapping," Sera grumbled, raising her sword.
Cinder scowled and lunged at her. They crossed swords, sparks flying from the impact. Cinder's eye bored into her, glowing brightly with orange flame. "You're nothing. Just a failed experiment that ended up being more trouble than you're worth."
Sera clenched her jaw and pressed against Cinder's sword, trying to get the upper hand in their struggle for power. Her arms coursed with strength, refusing to let the Maiden overpower her. Cinder was forced to take a step back, a look of worry flashing across her face before her usual scowl returned.
"You think you can beat me?" she seethed.
"Yes," she said. "I think you're afraid that a 'failed experiment' is going to whip your tail. Those powers you stole did nothing but show how ugly you are inside."
"You know nothing of me," she sneered.
"I know enough," Sera narrowed her eyes.
Cinder grimaced, the flame in front of her eye burning hotter as her anger reached new heights. She screamed and shoved Sera back, then raised her palm, a torrent of red-hot flame blasting the huntress directly in the chest. Sera flew backwards and hit the ground hard, her sword clattering out of her hand.
. . .
Jaune blocked a hit from his cousin's enormous sword and countered with a powerful swipe with his own. Magnus grunted and stumbled back, shooting Jaune a glare before charging him again.
Weiss saw this and twirled her wrist, raising two fingers in an elegant gesture. A wide white glyph formed at Magnus's feet, then a pillar of ice shot out of it and sent the blond flying. Jaune gave her a grateful nod, and she smiled smugly in return. It was good to be at full strength again. Jaune's semblance did more than heal her. It had strengthened her aura and semblance beyond its normal capabilities. She wasn't sure how long it would last, but she intended to take advantage of it for as long as she could.
Yang appeared at her side, landing on the floor after using her gauntlets to blast herself out of Hazel's range.
"Nice to see you on your feet again, Ice Queen," she smirked.
"Please," Weiss rolled her eyes. "It'll take more than a little cut to keep me down."
"I dunno!" Yang grunted, catching a White Fang member's blade with her prosthetic arm before yanking it out of his hands and punching him across the face. The goon flew straight out the door at the speed of a rocket, and he had the fire around him from her dust round to match. Yang blew a strand of golden hair out of her eyes and gave a cocky grin, her eyes burning red. "You looked pretty rough for a minute there."
Ruby squealed and zipped away from Mercury. The guy had come a hair's breadth away from kicking her into oblivion. "Can you two go back to fighting now?!"
Weiss rolled her eyes and spun the cylinder on her rapier. She shot a glance towards the hole that Sera had apparently jumped down to go fight Cinder, Raven, and Vernal. She was worried, but she knew Sera wouldn't have done it unless she knew she could handle it. Then again, Sera was a bit arrogant. A little too much so for her own good.
'Hurry up and get back here, you idiot,' she thought, chewing her lip nervously.
An explosion drew her attention she whirled around to see that something had detonated outside. She wasn't sure what it was, but she hoped the White Fang hadn't moved forward with blowing up the school.
"The hell?!" Qrow exclaimed.
"Keep fighting!" Ozpin urged, bracing his cane with two hands to absorb a punch from Hazel. Neo rolled her monochromatic eyes and performed a backflip, bringing her foot onto Phoenix's head. She understood why Sera disliked him so much. The guy was aggravating.
Weiss turned her eyes towards an attacking White Fang member and Yang raised her gauntlets, ready to pound someone's skull in at a moment's notice. Then someone new caught her attention, running through the door with her usual bladed pistol in her hand.
Blake Belladonna burst into the room with a wild look in her eyes. She'd ditched her old black clothes and replaced them with a long white coat, black crop top, and tight black pants. At first, Weiss thought she was cosplaying Sera, but there were some noticeable differences in the clothes' style.
When Blake saw Weiss and Yang, her eyes went wide with surprise. Weiss's expression matched hers, only her jaw had dropped at the sight of their missing teammate. Yang looked just as surprised, but then her expression morphed to one of distaste. She turned away to punch Emerald so hard she went skidding across the floor like a skipping rock.
Weiss blinked uncertainly, as if she was hallucinating. But Blake was still there, her face filled with shame and longing. Sun Wukong appeared at her side with a grin, and it immediately melted when he saw the others. Then his smile returned in force and he laughed, looking at Blake and pointing at them. He said something Weiss couldn't hear over the battle, then waved at Weiss before jumping into the fight with his staff in hand.
Blake shook her head as if to clear her mind and sprinted towards them, ignoring the White Fang and Salem's minions to reach them. Yang subtly blasted away with an explosion from her gauntlets, sailing towards Hazel with her eyes glowing red and hair flaming.
"Weiss!" Blake said, a genuine smile on her face as she hugged her. Weiss returned it, then quickly pulled away.
"What're you doing here?" she asked, still shocked to see the Faunus.
"The White Fang, they-" she started.
"Are trying to blow up the school?" Weiss raised an eyebrow.
Blake blinked. "Yes, they-"
"Look, there's no time," she interrupted. "I'm happy to see you, but I really need to go. Sera needs my help."
Blake gaped. "Sera's here too? Why does she-?"
"Look, are you coming or not?" she said impatiently.
The Faunus blinked uncertainly, then nodded. "Sun! Can you help them handle it from here?"
"You kidding?" Sun cackled, swinging his staff into Phoenix's head.
Blake turned her eyes to Weiss. "Let's go."
Weiss smiled and ran towards where Sera had gone to chase the others. She and Blake arrived at the long, dark tunnel and peered down into it. Blake shot her a nervous glance.
"You sure about this?"
"Positive," Weiss said determinedly. "Trust me."
"Always," Blake replied.
The heiress smiled, grabbed Blake's hand, then jumped. Blake screamed as the ground disappeared from below her and she was enveloped in darkness. Weiss beamed, happy to run to Sera's rescue. She smiled the whole way down.
. . .
Sera let out a pained yell as her aura shattered and she was thrown aside. She rolled for a several feet and stopped just feet away from the chasm. She struggled to pick herself up, her arms and legs shaking as if she'd just finished four-hour long workout. She was covered in scrapes and bruises and her chest heaved with exhaustion.
After she'd crossed swords with Cinder and hurled those choice insults at her, Raven swooped in like a death bird and knocked them to the ground with her aura blade. Cinder would have flown right off the edge, but at the last second, she blasted fire from her hands and feet to propel herself back up to the platform. When that happened, Sera felt robbed. If she wanted to bring send Cinder into the abyss in accordance with her plan, she'd need to restrain her somehow. That ruined her other plan to send both Cinder and Raven down if they could both fly around like that, but that wasn't so terrible. After all, she still needed Raven to open the vault.
Once again, Raven and Cinder were locked in a heated battle for dominance while Sera was picking herself off the ground. Her legs shook under her weight as she rose to her feet, barely managing to lift her sword. This fight had utterly exhausted her and she wasn't sure how she'd come out on top, but she had to. She didn't have a choice. Thankfully, Cinder and Raven were looking almost as tired as her. At least she had that going for her.
Cinder landed a lucky hit on Raven with a blast of fire and sent the woman rolling. Raven seethed, her teeth clenched and fists tight as she planted her sword into the ground to pick herself up. Then Cinder turned towards Sera, a ball of fire appearing in her hand as she casually strolled towards her.
"Well, well," she chuckled. "Looks like it's finally time to put the child to bed."
Sera rolled her eyes, trying not to let her exhaustion show. "Gods, do you ever shut up? I bet you practice those dumb lines in the mirror before you start covering up that missing eye."
"Oh, put away the bravado already. You're finished. You can barely stay on your feet."
"Sister, I could beat you with a blindfold on and hands tied behind my back," she panted.
Cinder shrugged. "Make your move, then."
Sera glanced at Raven. She made no move to help or attack Cinder. Not like she even expected her to. She watched silently, taking the opportunity to catch her breath before she jumped back into the fight. With nothing else to do, she obliged the Fall Maiden. Sera gripped Igni with both hands and swung as efficiently as she could manage.
Cinder snatched the sword from her hands and tossed it aside, barely even blinking. Igni clattered to the ground ten feet away, but it might as well have been back in Vale.
"Pathetic."
Sera drew her shotgun and pointed it at her. Cinder took that too, ripping it out of her hands with ease. She smiled coldly and held it aloft, her hand glowing with pure heat. Before her very eyes, the metal on the gun glowed brightly and melted in Cinder's hand, dripping to the floor. The molten metal hissed against the ground and its wooden stock caught aflame, burning to a cinder before breaking apart into ash.
Cinder smiled wide, the flame in front of her eye doing little to hide the cruelness in her gaze. Sera clenched her teeth and balled her fists at the destruction of her weapon. Qrow had gifted it to her shortly after she'd first arrived to Beacon. She'd grown attached to having its weight on her back, and now it had been reduced to a molten puddle at her feet.
She grinded her teeth and gave Cinder her best death stare. "I really fucking hate you."
"You think I care?" Cinder laughed. There wasn't a hint of humanity in her gaze. It was like she was completely soulless. If she didn't have an aura, Sera would think she was just another Grimm. Hell, she had the arm to show for it.
She needed a distraction to enact the next part of her plan. Sera glanced at Raven again, silently begging her to intervene. The bandit's eyes widened in acknowledgment. She gripped her sword and moved towards Cinder, her crimson eyes glued to the Fall Maiden.
Fortunately, it seemed like Cinder wanted to play with her food. She chuckled and flexed the fingers of her Grimm arm. "You know, it'd be a shame to just kill you and let all that power go to waste. So after I take it, I'll show Salem just how foolish she was to think you were capable of being more than a simple pawn. Truthfully, I'm not sure what she was thinking."
'Yeah, keep talking, bitch,' she thought to herself as she watched Raven creep behind Cinder at the edge of her vision. She couldn't risk looking at her directly and alerting Cinder.
"Then when I have your aura, I'll take Raven's, then take the Relic and find out how to take Salem's empire for my own," she monologued.
"Take, take, take," Sera muttered. Raven was just feet away. "Is that all you can think about? Gods, ditch the theatrics already, you insufferable, melodramatic egomaniac. If you're gonna kill someone, kill them. Don't just stand there talking about it."
Cinder scowled, raising her black arm, its sharp nails gleaming in the light. "Good idea."
Raven grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around just as she tried to sink her claws into Sera's chest. The Grimm arm missed by a mile and sailed harmlessly off to the side, and Raven punched her across the face with a scarlet, burning fist. Sera exhaled the breath she'd been holding and wrapped her arms around Cinder's waist, suplexing her into the ground before sliding down to pin her wrists behind her back. Raven watched wordlessly while Cinder struggling, screaming in outrage as she recovered from the blows she'd taken. In the blink of an eye, the fire within Sera had been reignited and she mustered the strength to subdue her opponent.
"If I'm going out, I'm going out my way," she muttered under her breath. Sera planted her knee on the Maiden's arms to keep her down and slung her body holster off of her, using its straps to tie Cinder's wrists behind her back.
While she was busy, Weiss and Blake appeared on the platform with their weapons ready. Their eyes widened at what they saw, but Blake was even more surprised than Weiss. She'd never seen Sera's transformed body. The sight of her white skin, black veins, and red eyes sent a shiver down her spine.
Weiss composed herself and ran towards her. She screamed Sera's name, and Raven whirled around with her katana poised to strike. The woman's flaming scarlet eyes made her stop in her tracks, rapier pointed towards Raven's chest.
Sera looked up and saw her friends, barely even registering that Blake was there. In the short seconds that she'd had Cinder bound, the Fall Maiden willed her arms to heat up in an attempt to burn through the leather straps of her body holster. Sera frowned and stomped at Cinder's head. That bought her a few seconds.
"Stay back!" she waved her arm towards Weiss, her crimson eyes wild. She couldn't let them get close to her. What if Cinder decided to explode again. Fortunately, it seemed like she was too distracted with trying to get free to think of that.
"What are you doing?" Weiss demanded, her rapier still raised at Raven.
Cinder's arms heated up again and Sera cursed. She slung Jupiter from behind her waist and expanded it to its full size. She quickly dug her pick out of her pocket, eyeing the many dust crystals she'd left in the cracks of the platform.
"Weiss," Blake nudged her, pointing at the small shards sticking out of the ground.
The heiress's eyes widened and she glared at Sera. "What are you doing?!"
The straps of her body holster were lasting far longer than she'd expected. It was almost a pity to destroy it, but it was necessary. Cinder constantly screamed threats and insults, but Sera ignored her. She punched her in the head to shut her up, but the Fall Maiden just yelled louder.
"Too strong, only way to stop her!" Sera said, her voice shaking. What she was about to do terrified her beyond what she could comprehend. Her heart was pounding, her blood was cold with fright, and did her best not to sob as she planted her foot harder against Cinder's wrists. "Get back!"
Blake winced and pulled on Weiss's arm, but the heiress wouldn't move. Tears spilled down her face in an endless stream. "You're not doing this!" she ordered. "We can take her, just let us fight her!"
Sera gave a broken smile in response. "I'm glad you're better, Weiss. Couldn't stand to see you hurt."
Blake's amber eyes widened slightly, slowly putting two and two together. Sera and Weiss? That shocked her even more than seeing the state Sera was in. She had her money on getting with Yang, if she was being honest. They had more in common. But Weiss?
The straps binding Cinder were going to snap any second now. She could suddenly pull some sort of fiery power out to aid her escape, and Sera had to go through with this before she could get the chance.
"It'll be okay, Weiss," she said. With her off hand, she pulled her necklace off her neck and threw it at her. The silver chain landed at her feet, but Weiss made no move to pick it up. Her eyes were locked onto Sera. She tried to force herself to move, but she was frozen in place as if she were watching an airship crash. Raven stood solemnly, and Blake could only watch as the friend she hadn't seen in months was about to destroy herself to kill an enemy.
Cinder screamed in outrage and struggled against Sera's hold on her. "You're insane!"
Sera smirked, a sob of a laugh leaving her lips. Then she looked to Weiss and Blake and raised her pick high above her head. "Keep that for me until I get back, yeah? Blake, I missed you. Good to have you back. Look after the others."
Blake shook her initial shock away and tried to throw Gambol Shroud at her, hoping to pull her away before she could go through with her plan. Weiss reached out to her, crying out, "Sera, don't...!"
Too late. She brought her hand down hard, instinctively placing her fingers on Jupiter's strings to play a deafening power chord. The blast of noise washed over the dust crystals and ignited them, explosions of fire, lightning, wind, and ice blasting one after the other in a row. The concrete splintered and fell apart, the already broken portion cracking to pieces.
Raven Branwen saw Sera's sword laying in the path of destruction and scooped it up, then used every ounce of her remaining strength to jump to an undisturbed part of the platform. Blake winced and turned away, squeezing her eyes shut so she wouldn't have to watch. Weiss stood with a tight expression, tears streaming down her cheeks as Sera and Cinder fell into the chasm. The amnesiac flashed one last subtle smile just before the ground fell from underneath her.
As soon as she felt herself drop, Sera slung Jupiter across her back and grabbed Cinder by the shoulders. Her white hair and coat blew straight up from how fast she was falling, her eyes glowing a bright red in the darkness. She turned Cinder around in mid-air and punched her across the face, a deep scowl on her face. If she was going to die, she was going to make sure she could take out as much of her anger on this woman as she could before it happened.
"You're crazy! You're fucking insane!" Cinder screamed over the rushing wind.
"Yep!" she hollered, then punched her again.
Cinder's good eye blazed with Maidenly fire. She yanked her wrists apart and snapped the straps of Sera's body holster. Before she could blast the huntress away and fly to safety, Sera grabbed her by the arms, crossed them like an X, then twisted in the air to wrap her leg around the Maiden's head. She held her as tightly as she could, silently hoping she might break her neck before they hit the bottom of the chasm.
"I'll fucking rip you apart! I'll tear your head off and burn it in front of those pathetic huntsmen then fucking kill them too!" Cinder screamed like a banshee.
Sera frowned and tightened the muscles in her leg, eliciting a choked gag from the zealous woman. "You talk too much," she muttered.
Cinder seethed and blasted torrents of white-hot flame from her hands and feet. The propulsion sent them into a far wall and Sera groaned at the sudden impact. She shook off her daze, refusing to lessen her grip on the Maiden. Then Cinder loosed more of her fire and they rocketed in the opposite direction.
They hit another wall. Something hit Sera in the head, and everything went black.
. . .
"Weiss, we have to go," Blake spoke softly, pulling the heiress's hand to take her away from the edge.
Weiss shakily bent down and picked up the necklace Sera had thrown at her. The silver Omega pendant dangled from her fingers and she bit back a sob. It's only been seconds since she'd ignited the dust and sent herself and Cinder into the black abyss below.
Raven shifted on her heels and approached them with Sera's sword in her hands. Blake raised Gambol Shroud at the woman, unsure of who she was or what her intentions were. Raven didn't even react, simply walking up to the huntresses with a solemn expression on her face.
"She fought bravely," Raven stated. "Even in the face of the danger of two Maidens, she never wavered. You should be proud to have been her friend."
Weiss scowled. "As if you know anything about her, you godsdamn-"
"Weiss," Blake said, flashing her a cautious look.
The heiress scoffed and turned away, no longer wishing to look at her. "Just open the vault so we can get the Relic."
"Relic?" Blake asked, puzzled.
Raven winced and held Sera's sword out to them. Blake took it gingerly, running her finger across its honed edge.
"Thank you," the Faunus said.
"Least I could do," Raven nodded.
Weiss fingered Sera's necklace, frowning at the polished metal. Why? Why was that the only option she had? She and Blake were right there. Together, they could have beaten Cinder. It was possible, right? It had to have been. So... Why...?
"I'll let you have the Relic," Raven said. "It's no good to me, anyway."
"I don't care," Weiss stated. "Just open it."
The bandit sighed and strolled to the Vault. Weiss and Blake followed, keeping their weapons ready and eyes on the Spring Maiden. Raven placed her hand on the enormous door and it deconstructed. Or rather, wide black lines formed throughout it and hundreds of panels began to slide aside, turning and twisting until a wall of golden light separated them from the Vault's interior.
Weiss and Blake could only stare in amazement as the door seemed to transform before their very eyes, but Raven looked unimpressed. She turned to them and sighed heavily.
"There. It's open," she stated. Then she swiftly walked away, towards the elevator at the rear of the cavern. Blake watched her go, still completely lost as to what they were doing. Weiss took a deep breath and stepped inside, passing through the golden light without issue. With nothing else to do, Blake followed her.
"What... is this?" she asked. The inside of the Vault looked like an endless desert, with a sky and everything. Neither she nor Weiss had any clue why the Vault had an entire desert inside of it, but the structure itself certainly betrayed its true size.
"Bigger on the inside," Weiss muttered, looking across the vast desert and swirling dust devils. She cleared her throat and kept walking. Just a hundred feet in front of them floated a regal golden lamp with glowing blue glass. It radiated power and mystery that drew Weiss in like a Siren's song. "We'll explain it later. Just... it's a long story."
Blake frowned uncertainly, but she trusted her. "Okay. Let's just get it and get out of here."
With each step, Weiss only felt more and more broken inside. She'd just watched her best friend perish in front of her eyes. All she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and ignore the world, but she had a job to do. She put Sera's necklace around her neck and took a shaky breath.
She hesitated to touch the Relic. There was no telling what this thing could do or what would happen when she removed it from its gilded pedestal. Before she could second-guess herself, she grabbed it, and it immediately stopped floating. The Relic nearly slipped out of her grasp, but she held fast. Weiss exhaled the breath she'd been holding since she started to reach for it and turned to Blake.
"Let's get out of here and... and tell the others what happened."
Blake nodded sadly. "...Right."
. . .
When they arrived at the top of the elevator, Weiss was glad to see that the battle had ended. Captured White Fang members were being led outside or removing their uniforms, having apparently decided to give up their evil ways. She couldn't see Neo anywhere, which was a little strange. Lionheart was gone too, as well as the rest of Cinder's group. She didn't know where they were, but at the moment, she couldn't find the will to care. Raven seemed to have disappeared without a trace, like she vanished into thin air. If she was here, Yang would probably be beating her face in.
The others were smiling and congratulating each other on their fighting. Sun laughed and patted Jaune on the back, nearly knocking the poor guy over.
Ozpin smiled lightly when he saw the Relic of Knowledge in Weiss's hand. Then he furrowed his eyebrows and stepped towards them.
"...Where's Sera?" he asked.
Weiss choked back a sob and fell to her knees. Blake's eyes were downcast, putting a hand on her teammate's shoulder. The others' eyes went wide, glancing at each other in disbelief and immense surprise. Qrow rushed towards them, his jaw tight and fists clenched.
"What happened?" he demanded.
Blake looked up at him sadly, her feline ears flat against her head. "We couldn't stop her."
"From doing WHAT?" Qrow said through gritted teeth, his fists shaking.
Her frown deepened and Weiss began to sob on the floor. Ruby's expression melted and she fell to her knees, followed by Jaune. Yang dropped her eyes, staring at the floor. Her eyes flickered between red and lilac, her hair threatening to catch aflame.
"No," Jaune muttered. "Not her, too."
"What about Cinder?" Ozpin asked, holding his cane tightly.
"Gone," Blake replied. She held aloft Sera's sword. "I'm sorry. I just got back, and..." her voice died in her throat.
Yang turned and stormed out of the academy. On the way out, she punched clean through one of the pillars and knocked it over with a resounding boom, never slowing her stride.
Qrow ran his hand through his hair and paced in front of them. "This is impossible. I refuse to believe it."
Weiss gulped, trying to stifle her sobs. "S-She just..."
Blake knelt beside her and pulled her into a hug, and Weiss just broke down in her arms. All the others could do was stare at the floor, grieving for their lost friend.
Ozpin sighed, shelving his own emotions to reflect upon later. "She ensured that we attained the Relic. That's what matters. The loss of Sera Kallisto is something I never foresaw, but-"
"Stop," Qrow stated. Ruby flinched. She'd never heard her uncle so angry. "This is no time for one of your speeches. Just... stop." He stormed out of the room, his stride stiff and robotic.
The tension in the room was heavy and full of despair. None of them could believe what had happened, but the state Weiss was in was proof enough.
Once the White Fang were handled and the Faunus from Menagerie headed back to their island, Weiss and the others returned to the house Lionheart had gifted them. Ozpin found the headmaster in his office, murdered by someone unseen. Blake and Sun stayed behind and followed them to the house, but no one was in the mood for catching up. The entire walk was silent, like they were marching a funeral parade.
Blake opted to keep carrying Igni until she found somewhere to put it. It was the least she could do for her. No one was sure where Yang and Qrow had gone, but they assumed they'd find them at the house. It turns out that they were half right. Yang sat at the table with her eyes downcast and a deep frown on her face, fists clenched tightly on the table top. She didn't even react when they walked in, but Ruby ran to her side to put her arms around her shoulders.
"Yang, it'll be okay," Ruby said quietly.
The blonde's fists clenched tighter. Ruby flinched and slowly removed herself from her sister, looking at her sadly. Jaune frowned and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Come on, let's give her some space. Everyone's going to process this in their own way."
Ruby nodded and hesitantly stepped away, heading towards her room. She just wanted to be alone after the night she'd had, and no one stopped her. Once her door was shut, she dropped Crescent Rose on the floor, then fell onto her bed and curled up on top of the blankets.
Sun cleared his throat and tried to put on a small smile. "Even under these circumstances, it's nice to see you all again."
Jaune nodded dejectedly and moved into the living room, leaning his sword against the couch before falling onto it.
Ozpin sighed and planted his cane. He wanted to say more to try and make them feel better, but after Qrow's outburst, he wasn't sure if he wanted to risk it. Instead, he just returned control of Oscar's body and receded into their subconscious. He'd return when he was needed.
Weiss looked at the Relic in her hands with distaste. She was holding the item her friend had sacrificed everything to retrieve. They had to keep it out of Salem's hands, but she would've handed it over happily if it meant getting Sera back. She looked at each of her friends, processing the outcome of the fight in their own ways. Mostly, they just looked sad and/or withdrawn.
She sighed quietly and closed her eyes, trying to control the tide of emotions raging within her.
'This is what I get for getting too close to someone,' she thought bitterly. Something had started forming between her and Sera, and just as quickly as it started, it was taken away. There was no telling what would've happened if it was allowed to continue. Weiss could've had her first kiss, first actual relationship with the annoying girl she'd developed a crush on, and now she was gone.
She felt someone pull her into a hug, and she just melted into it and shoved her face into whoever's shoulder it was. Judging by the white clothes and black hair, it could only be Blake.
"I've got you," Blake said. Weiss just nodded and let herself be held.
"So..." Oscar said nervously, not sure of what to do. "What, uh... what's the plan now?"
'Who cares?' Weiss thought bitterly. 'Sera's gone. Another friend from Beacon, just... gone.'
Jaune stood from the couch and marched towards them, a determined gleam in his eyes. "Okay, look," he said. "I'm not going to lie and say this isn't hard. It is, we know that. But we have to keep going and keep that Relic away from Salem. You all know as well as I do that she wouldn't want us to stop just because of this. She'd kick our ass for even considering it," he scoffed with amusement.
"But... where do we go from here?" Nora asked, rolling her wrist. "We were supposed to finish our training at Haven, and that got ruined pretty quickly. So... Where?"
"The only place we can go," Jaune said, already knowing this wouldn't go over well. "Atlas. Shade is too far to even consider traveling to, so the only choice we have is to get to Atlas."
Weiss's eyes widened. She knew he was right, but that didn't make her feel any better. She'd just escaped from Atlas, and now she was supposed to just go back?
"Okay," Yang said, finally speaking. "We go to Atlas. That's where Ironwood is, right? He should be able to help with the whole Relic thing. Any objections?"
No one objected, even if Weiss did really want to.
"All right," Jaune said. "Atlas. Any idea how we're going to get there?"
End of Volume 5
Again, sorry if the finale seemed a little rushed. I dunno why it was such a slog to get through. But hopefully the twist ending was unexpected.
Sera will return in Volume 6.