Well, after leaving things off on a cliffhanger (Yang would be proud), I was writing a chapter for another story I had while everyone's reviews were coming in. You know how hard it was to write another story's chapter when everyone was enjoying this story? Pretty damn hard. But I knew what I wanted to do. The moment I finished the other story, I went back here. As many of you guessed, a solo survival arc was in store. Jaune did not die here. Sorry for those of you who wanted Ruby to be the new main character.
And yes, Jaune will get a range weapon at some point. Just not in the near future. Thanks to Maverick for betaing this chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.
Ruby saw her best friend falling off the edge of the cliff in slow motion.
Her blood froze as her brain processed what happened. Before her mind could fully process things, her body was already racing over. A hand outstretched trying to grab his hand. A shrill yell so unlike the girl's normal voice screeched out as her fingers grasped at nothing but air. The horror sank in as Jaune fell further and further toward the river far below. As Ruby stared at him and to her shock, the boy was smiling.
"Go on!"
That was what Jaune yelled before collapsing his shield and fastening it, along with his sword, to his belt. He finished a moment before he hit the water. A splash echoed through the canyon as the blonde boy's body vanished beneath the water.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Ruby screamed as the sound of clicking came from behind her. Tears of anger and sadness fell from her eyes as she turned around. "How dare you!?"
Her scythe blade swung and cleaved the nearest Arachna in half. Ruby let out another yell and dashed forward, slicing the right side legs off another. The girl was becoming a whirlwind of death as she moved through the Grimm with a combination of short bursts of her Semblance and deadly slashes. The girl was no longer fighting like she did before. Anger had taken hold and she was cutting everything in front of her.
Much like how Yang faught.
"Damn it!" Qrow sliced one of the last few spiders down and dashed over to the cliff. He knocked one off after stabbing the ugly beast in the eyes before peering over. There was no sign of the boy as he had already been swept away. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!"
The sheer number of spiders that had been hiding on the cliff face was far more than what was found in a small nest. This nest was gigantic. Take it for Atlas to be completely off the mark. If it wasn't for Jaune, they would have been ambushed. Thanks to the boy's warning, they managed to prepare before they got completely surrounded. Yet he was the one who got the short end of the stick. It didn't seem like these Arachnas were making holes in the side of the cliff, so the edge shouldn't have broken like that.
There was only one real explanation.
It was his fault…
The last Arachna fell before his blade as he sliced the head off. The red eyes glowed for a second longer, before dimmining into nothing and breaking away into black mist.
"Jaaaauuunnnneeee!" Ruby wailed, as she fell to her knees. She had lost her best friend. If only she had been faster, she wouldn't have let him fall.
"Ruby!" Qrow shouted, rushing to her side. "Ruby! RUBY!" The girl wasn't listening, too lost in her own despair, so he had to take drastic actions. There was no time to use words.
SMACK!
Ruby's head jerked to the side as Qrow backhanded her across the cheek,
"Pull yourself together!" Qrow told her, his voice loud, but more firm than outright yelling. "He's not dead! That kid is tough. We're going to go after him."
Ruby blinked and looked toward the ravine.
"Don't even think about it," Qrow growled. The girl didn't appear to be thinking straight. "Listen, this is what you're going to do. And you're going to do exactly what I say. Understand?" Ruby nodded her head up and down. "About a mile down this path, there is a side route that leads down the side of the mountain. You will follow this path and head down to the base where the river leads. Do not leave the path and watch out for Arachna's. They are in the middle of increasing the size of their nest, so most of the spiders are near the edges. If you go further in, you'll encounter less. Same with Jaune."
"W-what about you?" Ruby choked out.
"I'm going to descend straight down the mountain," Qrow told her. "After I warn the base about the situation. We won't get reception too much further in."
"I can go down with-..." Ruby began.
"NO!" Qrow cut her off. "You can run up cliffs with your Semblance, but you haven't learned how to fully stop properly when going down a straight drop off. If you can't, you'll end up injured at the bottom when you smash into the ground. I can't rescue both of you. Now, go."
Ruby didn't even consider arguing. They already wasted too much time as it was. Her thoughts were completely overshadowed by her imagination of what was happening to Jaune. Could he make it out of the river? Would he go over the waterfall? What if he was attacked by Grimm while exhausted? The spider nest was overrun with Grimm, so they were everywhere. They had to move. That knowledge caused Ruby to turn and dash down the pathway.
"Don't take any risks!" Qrow yelled after her. Once Ruby was out of sight, he pulled out his Scroll.
"Reporting in, Qrow?" Ash's voice came in from the other end.
"Damn right I'm reporting in!" Qrow growled. "Was your scouts' report so inaccurate that it bordered on gross incompetence? This isn't some medium size nest. This Arachna Nest is gigantic and in the process of expanding!"
"Yes, we did have to hide that small fact from you in order for you to accept it." Ash admitted.
"YOU KNEW!?" Qrow's hand shook and almost squeezed hard enough to shatter his Scroll.
"A bombardment on the nests would cause millions of Lien in supply shortages, which would end up affecting not only Mistral towns, but Atlas." Ash replied. "We needed to see if it was possible for an elite Huntsman to take out the Queen."
"You didn't think to WARN me?"
"You would not have accepted it otherwise."
"Damn right I wouldn't have!"
"We will be preparing a bombardment, but anything you do to slow their expansion makes our job easier." Ash stated.
"You better hope I don't make it back," Qrow's voice was dripping in venom. "I'm going to make you regret ever being born."
"My job comes first over emotions." Ash told him, before hanging up.
Qrow shoved his Scroll into his pocket and his hand was gripped so tightly into a fist that his knuckles were white. They knew it was a large nest, but Ash had purposely kept them in the dark on how big.
Jaune paid the price and Qrow was going to do everything possible to save him. There was a reason he had to send Ruby off on her own. She couldn't see what he was about to do. Stepping up to the edge of the cliff, Qrow took a deep breath and let the cool wind whip against his body.
Then he swan dived off the side.
The man disappeared and only a small black bird soared off, following the river.
Time seemed to stand still as Jaune began to fall. The Arachne had finally let go of him before plummeting to its doom. The last thing the boy saw was the panicked look on his friend's face. Ruby's expression was one of horror and shock as she reached out desperately for his hand. Yet she was too far away and they both knew it. The only thing Jaune could do was try to reassure her.
He gave her a smile as he drew his hand back.
"Go on!"
SPLASH!
Jaune's breath was forced out of him as he fell into the ice cold river. It was a good thing he reacted so quickly. The boy collapsed his shield and attached it to his hip bid air. RIght before he hit the water, Jaune managed to slide his blade into the sheath. He would still have to carry the weight, but there was less of a chance of losing his weapon. Assuming he survived.
Still, who knew water could feel like someone broke a baseball bat on his back.
Panic overtook him as he sunk into the water. His body temporarily froze from the painful shock rippling through his body along with the sudden temperature change. The water was freezing, even with the day being bright and sunny. Jaune forced his eyes open to see the shimmering light above him getting darker and darker as he sunk down into the depths.
Strength welled up within him. The desire to live exploded outwards as Jaune kicked his legs and reached out with his arms to pull himself toward the surface. His foot brushed against the bottom of the river and helped propel him forward. The light got brighter but the current became stronger. Yet, once again, Aura enhanced strength allowed him to prevail as his head exploded above the surface.
Sweet air filled his lungs as Jaune took a deep breath before being forced back under by the current.
Panicked welled up within him again. Just because someone knew how to swim doesn't mean when they are drowning they would remember how to do so. Fear and terror overcame rational thought. The moment you're forced underwater, your body becomes like lead. Jaune was finding that out the hard way as the current dragged him along.
His head broke the surface again as he sucked in another lungful of air. Looking up, the cliff he fell off was getting further and further away as the rushing water pulled him away. His arms thrashed around as he desperately tried to stay afloat. His hand hit something hard and wet. Without even glancing at what it was, his arm instantly wrapped around it, looking for any kind of life vest.
It was a large log that had been washed down the river.
Dumb luck had it within Jaune's reach.
The boy wasn't out of trouble yet. Gripping the wet wood was difficult, even with both arms. The moment he let up, the current would pull him away and his only salvation would vanish. The rapids around nearby rocks were causing mini whirlpools, pulling at his body from under the surface. The log was thankfully big enough to act as a floatation device, but it was a chore to hold on. Then a side hit a rock and the loud crack made him flinch, while the jolt threatened to loosen his grip.
Yet he held on.
He wasn't going to die like this. One of the Arachna's that had fallen had its body torn apart from being smashed into some of the rocks. If Jaune had been a few feet over, that could have been him. Kicking his legs, the blonde tried his best to steer the log past the obstacles. The walls of the ravine he was in were too steep and wet for him to grab on with how fast the river was carrying him.
'I need to get to shore.'
Since the immediate danger was over, Jaune's brain began to process his situation. The current was strong but as long as he avoided the rocks, he was safe for now. The biggest issue was the fact he was getting further and further away from Qrow and Ruby. Into a nest of giant Grimm spiders. Even if he escaped the river, he would be on his own. His eyes darted around as the walls encasing him began to disappear. Up ahead, the shores might be reachable. Holding onto the log that saved his life, Jaune began to kick.
Shows and video games made it look so easy. There was a reason fast moving water could wash away people and vehicles. With how strong the river was, no matter how hard Jaune kicked, he wasn't getting any closer to the shore. It wasn't from lack of trying though. His legs and lungs were burning from exhaustion as he was swept away. Everytime he thought he was getting close, something pulled at his lower body back into the middle of the rushing water. At this point, Jaune just about gave up trying to save himself.
'I guess I have to let the river decide where I'm going.'
That didn't mean Jaune was going to give up completely. If an opportunity presented itself, he would push to the shore line. His head swiveled around as he tried to get his bearings as he continued down the river. He didn't want to lose track of which mountain he fell down from, as he needed to find his way back. It should have been easy to follow the river back once he got on shore.
Until the boy saw the fork ahead of him.
"Ah… fuck." The misfortunate boy moaned. Not normally a cusser, this circumstance called for it. "Which way? Which way?" Jaune began to panic. "Crap! Can I even choose?"
His eyes widened in horror as several Arachna's on the shore to the left noticed him and began to click their pincers. Little did he know that his negative emotions like fear and worry were attracting them to his position. For once, the roaring rapids were a blessing. One Grimm tried to get into the water but was swept away by the current. Seeing all the spiders on one side of the river told Jaune what way he needed to go.
'To the right! To the right!'
Jaune kicked with new vigor, even as his muscles threatened to freeze up in protest. Fighting a couple Grimm on land was doable for him now after plenty of Qrow's training. When he was desperately trying to stay afloat on a wet log? That wasn't going to happen. He would not be able to draw his blade, let alone fight. Going down the right path was the best option as the Arachna's ran along the left.
To make matters worse, sharp rocks divided the split in the river. If Jaune went straight down, he would smash against the rocks. If by some chance he survived from crashing into them, drowning seemed like the only realistic outcome. A couple broken bones would make any type of swimming impossible. Most likely, the log he was clinging to would shatter and he would be bashed around. Once again, legs began to kick wildly as he desperately tried to go right.
The current did eventually push him to the right side since his exertion managed to barely move him over. Breathing a sigh of relief, Jaune glanced back as the spiders began to grow smaller in the distance. For now, it was safe, but for how long was uncertain. The river wasn't slowing down but at least the Grimm were nowhere in sight. Jaune felt himself relax as he continued to float along, attached to his new best friend log. Following Qrow's training, the boy kept looking around for any sign of danger. But he couldn't possibly see the hidden dangers.
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Something hit his leg. Something big. It wasn't something like teeth or claws. The force was blunt, indicating it was an underwater rock or maybe even a fallen tree. Whatever it was collided right into Jaune's leg below the knee. The force was strong enough to take a good chunk of his Aura. Even with that shield, pain shot through his body. Without that protection, his bone probably would have shattered. Even so, Jaune almost lost his grip.
Blinded by tears, Jaune refused to let go. He tried to float more to the surface with his body outstretched to avoid any more unlikely surprises. His Aura was dulling the pain, but that also meant he was using it up. If he used up all his Aura on healing, any attack would be deadly. Ruby and Qrow weren't around to cover for him.
"Ruby…" Jaune muttered. "No… I'm not going to die. I won't put who through that."
Taking a deep breath, he began to concentrate.
A soft white glow covered his body as he amplified his Aura. The same training Qrow had been making him do everyday was now being used while in a dire situation. Amplifying his Aura to the point he was regenerating it faster than using it. The wound on his leg dropped to a dull ache as healing accelerated. This was harder than any of the training though. Concentrating on his Semblance while holding on to a wet log with tired and sore arms was not an easy task. Closing his eyes to help focus only did him a disservice by threatening to make his arms relax. Also, being blind in the middle of a fast moving river didn't help settle his nerves either. That meant his only option was to use his Aura Amplification while concentrating on his surroundings too.
Multitasking in the middle of a dangerous situation.
Pretty much all of Qrow's training was like that, even if this wasn't actually training. Or as he would say, everything is training, including experience. Maybe not that exactly, but he would make something up to sound cool. Still, Qrow taught him these skills for a reason. Jaune was just using them in a situation they didn't expect so soon. Or ever really. Seriously, who could have planned for him being carried down a fast moving river.
Speaking of fast moving…
"Am I going faster?" The boy muttered to himself, as he spun his head around. It seemed like the trees around him were passing by quicker. "Why am I…?"
Words died in his mouth as he remembered something Qrow mentioned.
"The river is fast moving and a couple miles downstream, there's a large waterfall.""
"Nooooo…"
Regardless of how much Jaune tried to deny what was happening, in the distance, as the river turned, a large cliff was visible. The river was rushing off the side and water was falling countless stories before continuing. The impact of what was happening hit him like a ton of bricks. The boy who just began to relax, began to panic once more as he desperately tried to kick to shore.
"SHIT!"
Nothing he was doing was working. The current was too strong and pushed him around as it bent. The leg that hit the underwater obstacle was beginning to throb again. Jaune's eyes darted around, looking for anything that might be able to save him. Desperately praying while doing so. Anything, even the smallest chance of salvation was all he hoped for. The waterfall was fast approaching and he began to have doubt he would survive this.
When he finally saw an opportunity.
Hanging off in the distance above the water, was a relatively thick tree branch. A tree had grown at an angle over the river. It looked to be just out of reach of his arm. Instantly, Jaune thought about how to get it. Should he risk trying to push off the log or was there a better way? The rope in his backpack wasn't going to do anything without a knot and he doubted he could tie that in his current predicament. There wasn't enough time to do anything else, so he figured he would throw it over the branch and grab both ends to hold on. Jaune hoped the branch would hold.
Reaching over his shoulder into his backpack, that was thankfully still strapped to his back, he grabbed the first thing he could find and his eyes widened as he stared at the net in his hand.
It was his hammock.
"This will have to do!" There was no time for Jaune to do anything else as the tree branch drew closer by the second. Gripping the end of the hammock tightly, he raised one arm off the log. There was only one shot as the roar of the waterfall drew closer. If Jaune missed, he was going over the edge. Based on the valley in the distance, the fall was going to be a long one. "Come on!"
The boy launched the rolled up hammock. As the mesh traveled through the air, It began to unravel. The net soared over the branch and Jaune pushed up with his other hand to grab the end. He just managed to slip his fingers into the hammock before the log flowed out of his reach. With a jerk, Jaune stopped. His lower body was still in the water and being pulled along, while his arms were holding the hammock tightly that kept him from going with the river.
The log went over the edge and vanished from sight.
Looking up, Jaune began to try to climb out of the water. His muscles strained just trying to get a little higher. The boy was tired from holding onto the log and already trying to escape the river. Now, he was trying to pull against the current that was threatening to tear him away from salvation.
'Screw this!'
Jaune wasn't giving up. Not when he was so close. Straining against his sore muscles, he inched his arms up the net. His body slowly rose out of the water. It was like doing a pullup while wet, sore, tired, and someone holding onto his legs. He was almost to the branch itself and then all he would have to do is shimmy toward the shore.
Crack!
"Nooooo."
The branch began to sag.
"Nooooooooo…"
Another crack was heard.
"SHIT!"
Jaune couldn't slow down anymore. With a burst of strength from the last of his reserves, he pulled up and grabbed hold of the tree branch. As it began to sag even more, his left hand wrapped around the bark and hoisted himself up. With a sudden swing like he was doing gymnastics, he brought his legs up and wrapped around the thicker part of the branch.
A moment later, the part of the branch his arms were hanging onto broke free in his arms. Only his legs that were wrapped around closer to the base of the large branch were keeping him out of the water. The boy was hanging upside down like a bat, panting from the exertion.
But he wasn't going over the waterfall!
Taking a deep breath, Jaune bent his body upwards and climbed onto the remains of the branch then grabbed the trunk.
A moment later, he was on solid ground.
"Thank you!" Jaune gasped, falling down on his hands and knees as his remaining strength faded. All the tension he had been holding back broke free, making his legs and arms wet noodles. The boy wanted to kiss the ground as he just escaped death itself. He hugged the ground for a few more moments before the weight of the situation weighed down on him.
Jaune sat up and took a couple deep breaths.
"Okay," Jaune muttered to himself. It felt more reassuring to talk out loud, but he kept his voice down to avoid any Grimm hearing him. The area was silent and the spiders were further upstream on the other end of the split. He was safe for a short time at least. "What's the steps for when I get seperated from Qrow and Ruby?"
Qrow's voice echoed in his mind.
"If you find yourself on your own, there's a couple things you need to do. Make sure you're in a safe location. Stay still if possible as it's harder to track people. Don't draw attention to yourself. Yelling, screaming, making noise? All of that will attract Grimm or maybe even bandits. Keep inventory on your supplies. The last thing you want to do is run out of food in the middle of the wilderness."
The rules kept going on. Everything Qrow told him over the last couple of weeks was running through his mind. Jaune began to really appreciate how much information his mentor had been imparting onto him. Even if Qrow was rough around the edges and liked to joke and drink, the man knew his stuff. Running through the rules again, Jaune checked his surroundings as best he could.
"No Grimm," The boy murmured. "Let's check my supplies." His finger tapped his belt automatically. "Fastening my sword was definitely the correct choice. There's a good chance I'll meet some Grimm." Since his sword and shield were okay, Jaune emptied his bag and made sure he still had everything. "Scroll is soaked. I can't turn that on until it dries or it's going to short circuit."
His eyes fell onto the broken tree branch.
The hammock that had saved his life had been tangled up in the branch before it broke. It was long gone, falling off the edge of the waterfall. Jaune took a brief moment of silence to pay the respect that one tool deserved. Once that was finished, he continued going through the rest of his gear. His sleeping bag and sleep clothes were soaked and would take forever to dry. Rope, knife, and a few other tools were fine. They were usable. The inceniary bombs Qrow gave him were waterproof, so they were fine. Not that Jaune would get a chance to use them. The Atlas ration bars were in the airtight plastic bag so they made it.
"Looks like I'm in pretty good shape." Jaune wiped his brow. "That could've been worse."
Instantly, the boy froze as he looked around. He made the mistake all characters in horror movies make. You're never supposed to say those words out loud. There's no point in tempting faith. Jaune packed his stuff away quickly, just in case. He would have preferred to let the stuff dry out, but if he was forced to run, all his gear would be left behind.
"Okay, should I sit here and wait for Qrow and Ruby?" Jaune muttered to himself. His eyes followed the river but the mountains in the distance were a blur. "I should probably follow the river back north, but there's so many Grimm."
Something occurred to him.
If the Arachnas were expanding their territory, didn't that mean most of the Grimm were spreading outwards, away from the Queen's lair? Since Jaune slipped past them though the river, was he possibly closer to the center? If he was, should he try to go after the Queen? The spiders were supposed to lose purpose if she died, so it might be a good opportunity.
"Ha… haha… hahaha!"
Jaune couldn't resist laughing as the thought passed through his mind. There was NO way he would be able to do something like that by himself. Even if he COULD track the Queen Arachna to its lair, she would certainly be protected by guards. He would have trouble fighting one or two at a time. Ruby might be able to do that. Qrow would totally be able to do that. Himself? Not even a chance.
"Looks like I can only wait here for help." Jaune sighed, wishing he could do more. "If I back track, I'll just run into Grimm."
The sun was high up in the sky and the warm rays were already drying him out. He sat on a warm spot of grass and relaxed slightly as he regained his strength. Now that he was out of danger, the pain and exhaustion was weighing down on him even harder. Adrenaline had kept him going. Checking his leg, there was a large multicolored bruise where the underwater obstacle hit him. Jaune poked it and winced.
"If I didn't have Aura, my bone probably would have broken." Jaune worried. "Speaking of, I might as well keep it up." Without his Scroll, he couldn't tell his exact level, but it wasn't anywhere near full. Luckily, Jaune had the cheat code to recharge himself quickly. It's like characters in a video game who can heal up between fights. Taking a deep breath, he began to fully focus and boosted his Aura recovery.
Instantly, relief washed over his worn and battered body.
"I'll have to be careful when I get back to Beacon," Jaune chuckled. "When Nora finds out about this, every time she gets hurt, she'll want me to heal her. I'll never have a peaceful moment."
Those words weren't tense or annoyed, but rather were full of fondness for his teammate. Jaune missed Nora, Ren, and even Pyrrha. While he was still hurt from her reveal of his secret, he knew he messed up multiple times. Yet deep down, Jaune wanted to see them all again. No, he would see them all again. The boy sat up and took a deep breath.
"I'm not dying. I will make it back!"
Just like Manny told them, before Tyrian took his life, they couldn't wallow in pity and negativity. That just weighed down on their mind and attracted Grimm. Jaune wasn't going to fall for that. Ruby and Qrow were top Huntsmen and would be down to find him soon enough. If he died, Ruby would be sad. She gave up so much for him and there was no way he would hurt her more.
His white Aura flared up at the thought.
"Might as well do some Aura training." Jaune mumbled. "I can't just do noth-..."
Snap!
Jaune instantly stood up, ignoring the dull pain in his leg, his hand already pulling out his weapon. One of the most basic things Qrow taught him.
"You hear something, assume it's an enemy until you see it."
That advice was spot on this time. From the trees and bushes, a large Arachna emerged, its multiple red eyes glowing softly and the pincers clicking menacingly. Jaune froze for a moment at the sight. Even if he had fought them before, giant spiders elicited a certain primal level of fear. The spider rushed at him, preparing to bite, when Jaune's arm moved automatically in a vertical downward slice.
A high pitched shriek followed as the blade cut a leg off and a good chunk of flesh.
Jaune didn't stop and pulled his arm back as he jabbed his sword straight forward. The metal stabbed the Grimm straight in the face , spewing more black blood. The body flailed and a leg kicked Jaune in the side, making him flinch, but his Aura absorbed the blow. The spider fell and twitched one last time before beginning to dissolve.
"Where the hell did that come from?" Jaune muttered, looking around frantically. "If one's here, it's probably not safe. I need to move."
He heard some clicking and the sound of steps on hard ground and rocks.
'Yep, can't stay here.'
His first instinct was to just run, but that would only make noise. Grimm would follow the sound until they caught up with him. Carefully, but with deliberate swiftness, Jaune slipped away from the clicking into the trees, away from the shore. This might have been a mistake, as spiders could climb the trees. At the same time, he wasn't out in the open where he could be easily spotted. He needed to find a place to lay low for now.
The trees seemed to have done the trick. The sounds of Grimm vanished. Jaune kept moving until he came to a rock formation surrounded by busted trees. He had been moving for almost an hour. As much as he hated doing so, as it violated Qrow's rules, it was either do so or get swarmed by Grimm. One or two, he could handle. Dozens? There was no way.
"Phew…" Jaune leaned against the rock, hiding behind the stones. "It's hard not to make any noise when moving. People like Ren make it look so easy." Taking a couple deep breaths, Jaune began to boost his Aura some more. He needed to be at full strength if he was attacked again. His muscles didn't hurt as much and his leg was almost fully healed. It took a lot of Aura to heal a bruise over closing a cut for some reason. Jaune wasn't sure what the rules were.
A few minutes passed in silence, as Jaune kept his Scroll out to dry. There was no way he was turning it on without it being completely dry. It was the only way he could contact Qrow and had to be together, so he only needed to reach one. Wherever they were. It was then the boy realized he hadn't been paying attention to where he had been going while fleeing from the Arachnas.
"Crap, I can't lose my bearings!" Jaune yelped then covered his mouth. "Okay, remember what Grandpa taught you." Looking up at the sun, he was able to get a general bearing of his location, including using a stick on the ground to determine the time. He measured the shadow and waited to see where the shadow moved. With those two pieces of information, he was roughly able to figure out the cardinal directions.
He had been heading north.
"Okay, all these mountains look the same, so I need to pay more attention." He kicked a rock a few feet and then walked over to pick it up. He bent over to grab the stone.
Clink!
Something hit the stone where his head would have been only moments before. Jaune turned and stumbled backwards, eventually falling on his ass. An Arachna with a different physiology than the others Jaune had seen had tried to assassinate him. While they all had red evil eyes, a white mask, and black fur, they had differences. The trapdoor Arachna subspecies had larger and thicker legs, the ones that climbed up the wall had clawed legs to grip onto the ledges. This one had long, spindly legs that ended in points, like daggers. It moved silently and if Jaune hadn't moved when he did, that spear would have been buried in his skull.
The Arachna stabbed a leg forward and sliced into Jaune's shoulder. The point was so sharp it actually pierced his Aura without problems. Jaune gritted his teeth from the pain as blood trickled down his shirt. The bladed feet seemed to be able to pierce into the actual rocks. While not good at climbing, it could silently travel across difficult terrain. An assassin spider subspecies of some kind.
Jaune grabbed his sword from his belt and pulled it up to deflect a second attack. His fingers fumbled around his shield to get it up as the spider climbed over him and stabbed downwards. Jaune rolled to the left to avoid the bladed leg, which sunk into the earth. He stabbed upwards, slicing into the stomach before pushing the blade and slicing the beast open. A spine chilling screech escaped the Grimm before it collapsed. Jaune kicked the Arachna off him, grabbed his Scroll, and made a break for it. There didn't seem to be other spiders nearby, but they surely heard the scream if there was.
Once Jaune had put some distance between himself and the corpse, he leaned against a tree, panting. Trying to catch his breath, the boy quickly grasped his bearings to figure out where he was. He didn't want to lose getting back to the river and his companions. The pain in his arm subsided as his Aura healed the slice in his shoulder. It wasn't completely gone though and a dull throbbing was still there. Focusing, Jaune tried to boost only that area. He needed his arm working at one hundred percent. White Aura seemed to flow over his shoulder and slowly faded down his arm and torso as it spread out.
"Wow, I can boost specific areas!" Jaune gasped. "Will that make the area stronger? Like a shield?"
Qrow did mention once that pushing Aura into his arms and legs could boost his strength multiple times. With all the training Jaune was already doing, there hadn't been time to focus on that specific training. The basics were what Jaune needed before moving to something more advanced. Well, without his mentor now, Jaune was learning everything on his own. In the middle of fighting Grimm while lost in the woods.
"Would this be a Trial By Blood Qrow mentioned to Raven?" Jaune wondered.
If Raven was as cruel as Qrow implied, tossing an apprentice off the deep end seemed like something she would do. They either figure out how to survive or die in the process. It's not exactly a novel concept. This situation popped up in video games all the time. The biggest problem was the sheer number of casualties. Being on the receiving end of this trial wasn't fun in any way.
Once Jaune was healed, he started to move again, only to walk around a tree and come face to face with two Arachna's.
'How are they finding me?!'
"Fuck!" Jaune swung his blade, but missed the first spider. The second one jumped and tackled him as its legs held him down. The boy struggled and managed to free his shield arm. With a thrust upwards, he pushed the spider off him, focusing on his Aura. Trying desperately to reinforce his arm.
Jaune needed to boost his strength somehow, and this was the only way he knew how to do it. Amplifying the aura in his arm, he could feel the power build up. The spider was literally lifted up and tossed back several feet. Maybe not a huge difference when compared to someone like Nora or Yang, but to Jaune, who had limited training, this was a huge deal. Scrambling to his feet, Jaune held up the shield as the Arachnas clicked angrily.
"Come at me!" Jaune antagonized.
One Grimm crashed into him, forcing him back. His feet dragged along the ground, but his stance remained firm. Raising his sword up high, he stabbed the blade downwards into the head of the spider. Dark blood squirted out as the glowing red eyes dimmed and went dark. They weren't strong individually, just in groups.
Fangs closed on Jaune's arm as he was pulling out his sword.
"AHHHH!" Jaune cried out, as the second Arachna bit down. His sword arm was stuck and he couldn't slice the spider. That last attack had been a mistake as it was stuck in the first Grimm corpse. He left himself open trying to retrieve his weapon. It felt like his arm was being torn off as the spider pulled and chewed. White Aura was flaring up to protect him, but Jaune could feel the strength weakening. "Take this!"
Jaune raised his shield and began to bash the face of the Arachna with all his might.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Metal met Grimm flesh as Jaune slammed his shield with all the strength he could muster. Panic welled up as he desperately wanted his Aura in his arm to hold. The glow around the fangs burned brightly and did manage to avoid breaking. His flesh wasn't being torn apart at least. Blood began to pour from a couple destroyed eyes as Jaune repeatedly smashed the face of the spider with his shield. Finally, the grip loosened on his arm and the Grimm fumbled backwards. With his arm free, Jaune yanked the sword out of the corpse and sliced deep into the face of the second one.
Spiders may have been nightmares, but their weak heads were easily reached.
"How do they keep finding me?" Jaune muttered, rubbing his sword arm where he had been bitten. The skin was red, but his Aura was quickly healing it up. "I never see them draw close. Do they have thermal sight? Can't be. Qrow would have told us about that."
The boy concentrated on his Semblance to boost the rate of healing on his arm. The pain vanished and the redness began to fade until it was completely gone. Letting out a sigh of relief, Jaune continued moving, knowing that the cries and sound of battle was sure to attract spiders. Since he had an idea where he was, the plan was to start heading toward the mountain where he had fallen off. It was going to be a long walk, slower trying to get through the forest while dodging Grimm, but it shouldn't take more than a couple hours, probably. He had been chased quite a distance.
However, Jaune didn't get far before coming across two more spiders. They seemed to be coming right at him, but hadn't seen him yet. The boy debated running, but decided it was HIS time to ambush. With his Aura Amplification, he was pretty much at full strength, if a little tired. The Aura boost did NOT remove the build up of fatigue from constant physical activity. It just helped speed up recovery. Quietly, Jaune hid behind a tree as the spiders walked passed.
"Hyah!"
Jaune jumped out and sliced one in the back, but the wound was too shallow. The spider turned and kicked him in the stomach with one of the many legs. He slammed into the tree and the air escaped his chest. These weren't assassin spiders, but ones resembling wolf spiders. Thicker legs, bigger fangs, and much stronger physically. Jaune's vision blurred from the impact as a blob drew close. On instinct, he dived down as the spider bit into the bark. Raising his sword, he cut the torso right above him as he laid on the ground. A trick that seemed to work often.
The first spider collapsed on him, making the boy panic for a moment. Kicking the body off, he raised his shield as the second one tried to bite down. His arm shook from the weight of the strike, but at least he wasn't bitten. Slashing wildly, one of the legs was cut. The familiar shriek of pain was heard. Problem was that spiders had eight of them, so one cut leg wasn't fatel. Another leg rammed into his gut as a third one slammed into his own leg. Gritting his teeth, Jaune slashed a second leg and then stabbed the beast in the throat. Black blood fell on his armor as the beast staggered around before finally dying.
"Hah… this… isn't easy…" Jaune panted, out of breath from the last hit. "There's no end to them. I'm just lucky I'm only finding patrols." He stepped over the disappearing corpses and began to keep moving. The shrieks were sure to alert more spiders. Still, he wondered how they kept finding him. Was he really just that unlucky?
Again and again, the pattern continued. Jaune would move to a quiet area to rest up, recharge, and figure out his bearings. Yet the moment he finished healing up and was ready to move, more Arachnas showed up. Thankfully, it was almost in groups of one to two, but the poor boy couldn't catch a break. Over and over, he ended up killing them, barely having time to rest, before more showed up. Jaune didn't understand why this was happening. If the Arachnas knew where he was, wouldn't they just swarm?
On the plus side, he avoided three trapdoor spider pits thanks to Qrow showing him what to look out for. That would have been the death of him.
"I can't… keep this… up." Jaune leaned against a tree as his body was sore all over. Being smacked around by countless spiders, constantly running through rough terrain, and the Arcahnas showing up over and over again was pushing him to his limits, if not beyond that. His muscles burning from the strenuous exertion. "Guess I should tell Qrow my Semblance isn't all powerful at least. Let's see, where am I…"
He just started to check his position again when he heard something.
Bang!
It was the sound of a gunshot.
"Was that Ruby?"
Jaune turned toward where he thought the noise came from. It was hard to tell with the echoes. The gun shot sounded softer than Ruby's high powered rifle. Still, if it was a gunshot, that means someone was there. Someone who might need help or at the least might be working on the same mission Qrow was leading. Not wanting to lose them, Jaune began to run toward the noise, but still watched his step. The last thing he needed to do was trip on a tree root. Or run into a tree. Or step onto a trapdoor spider trap. That would just be embarrassing.
There weren't any more sounds of gunshots, but there was definitely something up ahead. Just over the hill in front of him. Worry ran through Jaune's mind as he feared the worst. If someone had run out of ammo and was being swarmed, they wouldn't last long. It's why Qrow and Ruby told him melee weapons were more important than guns. Darting forward, Jaune reached the top of the hill and looked down off a small cliff face into the valley. The ridge was only twenty feet higher than the valley, but it gave him full view of the carnage.
Dozens, if not more, Arachnas were dead and dissolving into black mist. There were probably countless more Grimm that had died already. For a brief moment, Jaune thought Qrow and Ruby had come all this way already, but that wasn't the case. As more and more Arachnas came into view, they were focused on and surrounding a single person.
The young woman, probably in her mid 20s, with tan-colored skin, short brown hair and icy blue eyes was in the middle of the spiders. A tattoo of a bird rising from flowers was on her left arm. She wore a light brown vest with dark brown panels on the top and a dark brown buckled strap on the back, over a torn white shirt that was partially unbuttoned. Her maroon-colored jeans had the right side rolled up to her thigh, revealing the dark pink lining alongside a brown belt with a pouch.
This unknown woman was using two crescent shaped blades, each with a ring-shaped center. The large outer blades had hooked points that pointed back toward the grip. They had four smaller blades located in pairs above and below the grip, which was wrapped in red cloth and curved to form part of the middle ring. Atop the ring and below the upper blades was a pair of rectangular gun barrels. Within the main ring was a smaller, thinner ring connected by a pin to the forward facing portion of the weapons, acting as a trigger for the barrels.
And this woman was skilled.
Jaune couldn't help watching the way she fought. This woman was a professional Huntress. She had to be. The moment any spiders approached her, they got slashed by those crescent blades. With a flick of her wrist, one went spinning through the air to cut one and bounce back to her hand. Even being completely surrounded, she had no problem holding her own. Arachnas were being downed in droves. No wonder Jaune only ever found one or two at a time. They were patrols. The main force was distracted.
"She can't keep this up forever, can she?" Jaune muttered.
It seemed like the woman could.
Jaune watched in awe as she leaped over an Arachna, slashing the back of the throat as she passed, to end up kicking a second one. With a flick of her wrist, she threw the curved blade into a third, slicing its leg off as it flew, bounced into a tree, and returned to her hand. Turning, she fired a barrage of yellow shots from her guns, some kind of Dust bullets, to take down another four that were in the trees. For a moment, it looked like the numbers were thinning and she would win.
Then Jaune saw it. A large spider, easily three to four times bigger than all the ones he faced, appeared to his right down in the valley. It had to climb over a couple of trees that were close together. Limbs broke under its massive weight. The woman saw it and frowned as she turned her weapons toward it.
"Is that the Queen?" Jaune wondered. "It's big enough to be… BEHIND YOU!"
The boy would have preferred to remain silent, but a shimmer behind the woman caught his attention. For a moment, a spider outline flickered into existence before blending in with the ground. A camouflage spider had been sneaking up on the short haired woman. The female warrior turned and stepped back to avoid the surprise attack, but while she avoided the sharp leg, the mouth turned and bit her ankle.
"Fuck!"
Slamming her curved blades into the smaller spider, the woman wobbled and collapsed to one knee. Either the bite was deeper than it looked from Jaune's position, or the bite was poisonous. Judging from the way her leg flopped around like she couldn't feel it, it was probably the latter. However, the weakened woman had another problem. Grimm liked to go after weak prey. The spiders began to converge on her, even after knowing he was there. The large spider was passing under him and instantly, Jaune's brain decided to do something extremely brave.
And incredibly stupid.
Nora would be proud.
"AHHHHH!"
Jaune jumped off the cliff and raised his sword as he flew through the air. His shield was folded and attached to his hip, while both hands were clasped firmly on his sword's hilt above his head. Flying through the air felt like slow motion, even as the wind whipped past his face. The large spider was growing closer and closer. The head slowly pivoted as the red eyes looked up at him. It was too late though.
"SCREEEEEEEE!"
The sword plummeted into the large head, spraying black blood everywhere. Hanging on to the blade impaled in the creature's skull, Jaune refused to let go as the Grimm shook from side to side. Thrashing around wildly, it stepped on another Arachna, squishing it to a pulp. Crashing against a couple trees, it finally collapsed and went silent. Jaune yanked the sword out and jumped forward, cutting at another Grimm that was between him and the woman. The strike missed, but the spider jumped back and allowed Jaune to pass.
"Are you okay?" Jaune asked, unhooking his collapsed shield from his belt and opening it up. He turned to face the spiders. "Can you stand?"
"The fucker poisoned my damn leg!" The woman hissed. "Can't feel a thing."
"Well, it should be over soon," Jaune held up his shield. "Once the Queen dies, the rest of the spiders will stop."
"That wasn't the Queen."
"What?!" Jaune's head spun around so fast it cracked.
"That was just one of the guards chasing me, dumbass!" The woman spat. "The Queen is five times that size!"
The blood drained from Jaune's face as the remaining spiders drew close. He didn't think this through. There were still like ten left and he was only used to killing a couple at a time. Fighting this many at once would be beyond his ability. Maybe the woman behind him could fire a few shots.
"Get out of the way!" The woman growled, holding up her guns.
Jaune knew better than to argue. This strange girl was many leagues above him. If she had a plan, he would put his faith in her. Putting her guns together, the guns' barrels began to glow yellow. A bright laser shot out as she swung her weapons in an arcing motion. The laser sliced through all of the remaining spiders, leaving nothing but a small burn mark as the Grimm fell into pieces. Several trees and even the rocks behind the spiders were cut too.
"Ugh, I'm almost out of ammo now, fuck!"
It appeared cussing was quite common for people out in the wilds. Or maybe it was just Grimm drawing out people's inappropriate vocabulary. Thanks to his grandfather and Qrow, Jaune wasn't too fazed. Instead, he approached the woman to help tend to her leg where she had been bitten.
"Take another step and you're dead."
Jaune found the nozzle pointing right between his eyes and he held up his hands defensively.
"Hang on, I'm not an enemy!" The boy was worried he would be shot. That would be an embarrassing way to die. Killed by someone he helped. "I'm trying to help. That wound needs to be treated, right?"
The woman's cold blue eyes were like ice and radiated suspicion.
"There." She pointed behind her near a tree stump. "My bag is there. It has some poison antidote for these Grimm."
"On it." Jaune rushed over and picked up the brown sack. "Here." The woman didn't thank him as she opened it and took out a small vial. Removing the cap, there was a small needle and she shoved it into her leg. The woman flinched and then relaxed, her eyes still darting around the area in case they were interrupted. "Er… are you okay?"
"Just tired, kid." The woman rolled her eyes. "If you wanted to help, you could have shown up sooner."
"It was luck that I showed up when I did." Jaune laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "I got separated from my companions earlier today. We're after the Queen Arachna on a mission as Huntsmen."
"Are you?" The woman slowly stood up and tested her leg. Seeming satisfied, she stretched a bit before glaring at him. "I need to kill her as a test for my tribe. Don't get in the way and I won't care if you go back to whatever town you came from and say you did it." She stepped forward and stumbled.
Automatically, Jaune reached out and grabbed her arm to steady herself.
"You need to rest a bit first!" Jaune told her. "You're exhausted." Her sweaty face and heavy breathing proved it.
"I don't have time for shit like that." The woman pushed him off. "I'm here for a trial for my tribe. If I don't succeed, I'll be kicked out. We only accept the strongest."
"Trial By Blood?" Jaune blinked, remembering something Qrow mentioned a long time ago and repeating it automatically.
"What?!" The woman spun around and looked at him. "How do you know about that?"
"It's something my mentor mentioned I did once." Jaune admitted. "He didn't tell me much about it, just that I passed."
"How…?" The woman was eyeing him closely, taking in his entire appearance like he was some strange alien. "You don't look that strong." Jaune felt a vein of annoyance in his head twitch.
That may have been true, but she never even saw him fight!
"Here," The boy said instead, biting his tongue. The woman was probably so exhausted she was just being snippy. "This should help." Reaching out, he put his hand on his shoulder. Instantly, a hand wrapped around his wrist in response, but Jaune was already concentrating.
Aura began to flow into her.
"You're… regenerating my Aura?" The woman's words were full of disbelief as she felt her strength return. "How… why…? Are you nuts? What kind of idiot would give a random stranger their Aura?"
"Don't worry about it," Jaune assured her, trying to put her at ease. "I'll just regenerate my own Aura. No big deal."
Those icy blue eyes held a lot more than surprise now. They were full of curiosity.
"What was your name again, kid?"
"Jaune. Jaune Arc."
"Vernal. I guess I should thank you for the help." Her tone had changed suddenly. "The guard was a little annoying after it called for backup."
"You actually know where the Queen's lair is?" Jaune asked. "How far away is it?"
"Not that far," Vernal shrugged. "But that hardly matters. I only have a few rounds left and there's still quite a few guards around it. Just because the nest is expanding, doesn't mean the Queen's completely unguarded. The Guard Arachna's are pretty damn strong. Unless you surprise one."
"So if we had some supplies to help take out the Queen, think we could do it?" Jaune raised an eyebrow.
"What are you planning, kid?"
"Would a kid have these?" Jaune took off his backpack and opened it, revealing the incendiary explosives Qrow had given him. "Think we can use these?"
For the first time, a grin formed on the woman's face.
"Maybe I was wrong about you. You aren't a complete idiot. Yes, I think we can work with these. I'll even give you the privilege of helping me."
"You are soooo kind." Jaune rolled his eyes as he zipped his bag up and finished amplifying Vernal's Aura. They would need to be at full strength to dive into the Queen's lair.
Hopefully Qrow and Ruby would show up soon. They could use all the help they could get.
Feel free to leave a review, comment, suggestions, or ideas, I love reading them. If you have a question you wish I ask and would like a quick answer, feel free to message me directly. I try to respond to those within a day or two. Comments, I tend to respond to in the next chapter.
I'm sure this Vernal person has no ties to anyone important and Jaune will not find himself dragged into a bandit tribe to either be breeding stock, a pocket healer, or fight to the death in a ring for people's amusement. Nope, totally innocent.