Chapter 9.

From the glass window the redhead contemplated, enthralled, the endless crimson forest that rose around the tracks. The wind blew blood-colored leaves as the train moved over a valley between a pair of small mountains. It was a fascinating sight, despite the youth of those trees, their beauty had nothing to envy of the forests of Beleriand.

Amber had fallen asleep a few minutes ago, leaning her head against the elf's shoulder, immersed in a deep sleep that she seemed in no hurry to leave. For his part, Old Crow was also sleeping, although with much less grace as he snored like a dwarf while drooling like an orc.

"Would you like something sir?" A voice distracted him from that unpleasant image. One of the maids stopped in front of their seats pushing a small cart with what looked like drinks and food to enjoy during the trip.

"I appreciate the offer but I must decline, I am not hungry." That disappointed the woman in uniform, but she just nodded and continued serving the other passengers. Nelyo then leaned back against the seat enjoying the softness against his back, he was aware of the looks that others gave him, not in vain, he was aware of his attractiveness. Although considering his clothing, he guessed that his style was more old-fashioned than the others.

Looking at the broken moon looming in the daytime sky, he noticed his own reflection in the glass and something strange...

"Your scars disappear." His father didn't look happy, he couldn't blame himself for that, being forced to share seats next to the drunk was far from a pleasant experience for a king. The redhead only brought his only hand to his chin to better inspect the reflected image.

"I feel… different, renewed." It was a pity that the stump did not seem to change despite its new power.

"It seems that the magic that the second sons acquired still has limits," the king mocked with venom coming from every word.

"Yes, but it can be improved" Both father and son shared a smug smile. The prince then spent the next few minutes letting his aura flow throughout his body at a slow pace, it was as if a halo ran over the elf's pale skin. That made some other passengers raise eyebrows and look curious at such a spectacle. Although no one bothered to say a word to him.

However, this demonstration was interrupted when some tremors arrived in the cabin. At first there were only slight turbulences, which everyone attributed to the state of the roads or even the treacherous terrain. But then they became more frequent, and each tremor was stronger than the last, and then the rumblings were heard. Metal against metal, shots, explosions, electricity. Some jumped from their seats, demanding explanations or guarantees from the assistants and waiters.

The staff tried to alleviate the situation, they talked about a "security system", "Droids" and a "SDC". Nelyo understood almost none of that, but what he did understand perfectly was the look in Old Crow's red eyes.

"Stay, you already left her side once, you won't fail her again." Nelyo got up in advance. The two shared a brief nod as the elf pushed his way through the hysterical passengers. Fed up with pushing those people, the prince raised his voice.

"SILENCE!". The voice of the Noldor shook the eardrums of everyone present, except for Amber who continued sleeping like a tree. Qrow just rolled his eyes at the sight.

"Passengers, I understand your concerns, but such a reaction is nothing more than pathetic. There is a threat in this vehicle, but reducing yourselves to cornered cattle will only make the situation worse. You are men!, not animals! Leave this matter in my hand, and I assure you that this journey will end without any of you suffering a scratch!" There was no applause or praise, and that was the intention, it didn't need any more noise. The elf walked out the cabin door ready to re-enter the battle. He cursed that the doors were so small.

Tap tap tap.

All eyes turned to the now awake Maiden who was slowly clapping her hands.

"He is a drama king."

After crossing three carriages full of terrified passengers, Nelyafinwe finally reached the commotion zone. At least half of the train was dedicated to transporting some kind of merchandise so it was quite obvious to assume that the train was under robbery. He had many similar cases with supply caravans attacked by orcs during his time in Beleriand.

Upon reaching the fourth carriage, his elven ears caught a brief cessation of the din resulting from any fighting within. Now all that could be heard from inside were the murmurs of two voices, one male and one clearly female.

Entering directly through the front door would only alert them to his presence, so the elf was forced to use an alternative. In one jump he reached the top of the car, his steps never made the slightest noise, he was as silent as a shadow and light as a feather but with enough force so that the winds resulting from the great speed of the train only moved his coppery hair.

From an upper window he watched as those responsible argued in the middle of a dozen corpses. But upon closer inspection, these bodies seemed to be made almost entirely of metal, as if they were armor of some kind.

"What about the crew?" The black-haired woman dressed in monochrome tones asked. She seemed to be in an uneasy state, looking around as she ironically missed the Noldor above them who began to enter inside.

"What about them?" Whatever the plan was, the black-clad man with blood-red hair seemed to have no regard for the civilians in the vehicle. None of them noticed how Nelyo reduced the distance step by step until he was just a few feet behind.

He slowly drew his sword, he did not know if these criminals were protected by Aura, but he deduced that if he attacked one by surprise he would at least be able to knock him out long enough to subdue the other. However, he underestimated the acuity of the girl's senses, and it only took a slight exhale for the feline ears on her head to perk up alertly.

"ADAM!"

The Bull Faunus barely had time to block the surprise attack with Wilt. The two sheets of metal collided with incandescent sparks that rained into the air, such was the force of the collision that Adam fell to his knees on the metal floor and was left dented.

Pulling Blush from his hip, Adam opened fire at point-blank range against the taller redhead's abdomen but the bullets did nothing but tickle his aura and in response the silver-eyed warrior delivered a knee straight to his stomach that sent him crashing into one of the walls. The guy was strong, enough to knock the air out of his lungs. Adam coughed a little as Blake ran to assist him. She watched as her partner used the lasso to pull the possible huntsmen away, but he didn't let her, and with a simple movement he threw her against a group of metal boxes that were dented by the impact.

Regaining his composure and wiping the saliva from his lips, Adam took careful steps around the stranger in front of him. He was tall, taller than Bonesaw with a rather old-fashioned style of dress but he recognized that he knew how to show it off. His hair was long of a copper tone that showed a pair of leaf-shaped ears on the sides of his attractive face full of light scars.

He frowned beneath his mask, putting those thoughts aside, and lifted Wilt to his direction.

"Brother! Why do you help these humans? Why do you defend those who have put chains on our necks? Is the money enough for you to turn your back on your people!?" The bull faunus shouted accusingly as both combatants continued to surround each other. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Blake recompose herself on the boxes. It didn't matter if it was a Hunstmen, the two of them together would be more than enough to defeat him.

"Brother? Ha! I don't remember that a creature like you was part of my family. Don't talk as if you and I share blood." So he was a half-breed? Good for him, at least he would still stain his sword with human blood.

"Well then! The blood of a traitor is worth the same as human blood!". If that halfblood wanted to turn his back on the suffering of his people, then he would punish him the same way he would a human. He and Blake didn't need to say a word, just a nod and they both attacked from opposite ends at full speed. He on the right and she on the left. She changed the function of Gambol Shroud to a katana and using the sheath as a sword, attacked first.

It was clear that she alone was not going to emerge victorious, it only took a simple exchange of blows to realize it. While the mongrel had no problem dancing around her, blocking and deflecting her attacks with just one hand, she was forced to retreat every time he counterattacked. A single blow was enough to force her to put aside her dual style, since to block such force she needed both arms, forcing her to discard the sheath.

With a low kick she fell to the ground, the sword descended on her, and she activated her semblance. In an instant, she jumped twelve feet back but not before leaving a static replica of herself to receive the attack. An ice replica that stopped the attack and left his enemy in shock, a perfect opening for the Bull Faunus.

Like a disk of death, he threw Wilt towards him, forcing him to put down his sword to avoid the crimson blade. Still in the air, Adam grabbed the handle of his weapon, and pursued his unarmed enemy. His assault was ferocious, with an animal-like savagery. Any obstacles around him were cut cleanly away just as a scarlet scythe cuts through wheat.

Finally he was within reach, but Adam underestimated him. The Hunstmen grabbed his wrist and twisted it with an unpleasant sound, making the masked man grunt in pain. He was about to shoot with Blush but he beat him to it and hit him in the chin with the stump of his right wrist. Dazed, he took advantage of the fact that he could not defend himself to grab him by the legs, lift him on his back, turn and using momentum plus his own monstrous strength, throw him into the air towards a container.

It was almost comical, pathetic some would say, the ease with which he was thrown was almost like an adult playing with his child. He didn't have time to stand up, a knee hit his face, breaking his nose, then he felt a hand lift him up from his throat. His head slammed into the metal about three times then a series of blows were unleashed against his abdomen, each one like a speeding bullet train, scrambling his organs with each impact.

By the time he tried to respond to the attack, the familiar sensation of a fist in his face caved in his jaw, the metal behind him giving way, leaving a dent in the shape of his skull. Adam fell forward on his knees, trying to get up but with his scrambled brain it was difficult to recognize directions. His eardrums only heard an irritating hiss not to mention how everything looked double...

He stomped on its horns, the familiar feeling of a sharp blade on his neck bringing back memories. Things he preferred to forget, when he was small, weak and defenseless...

Nelyo took the red weapon, although he did not know all its functions, it seemed to be a simpler design on its own without the holster. He was about to cut the masked man's throat, with his head pinned under his foot, only a single movement was necessary. Killing his enemy with his own weapon had a mixed taste in his mouth, like a bad joke, although he admitted that the thrill of battle was pleasant.

But before he could do anything, his wrist was wrapped in a black ribbon and his entire body was lifted into the air to fall with feline grace to the ground. Digging his fingers into the metal, he avoided being slid a great distance leaving a mark. The woman in black now stood in his way, annoying and angry. She swung the scythe as if it were a whip, at such speed that the eyes of an ordinary man would never have seen it. He was not a man, he was an Eldar, of the royal house of the Noldor.

Dodging the first attack, he rolled to the side, right where his sword had landed. Taking it off the ground, he ran towards his enemy at full speed. She was aware of the enormous disparity in strength between the two, so she wrapped her lasso around one of the roof bars and pulled herself up. Nelyo didn't let the distance get in the way, he jumped with so much force that his feet left a mark.

Once on the roof, he hunted her down, like a cat and mouse. She used the beams and supports as obstacles for him, moving gracefully between them. But he didn't care, this was a good exercise, the fire of his spirit burned too strongly for gentleness so he contented himself with just cutting through everything that stood in his way.

When the ceiling proved not to be the best place, she descended and he was hot on her heels. The boxes, the compartments, the walls, his sword cut everything. When there were no more obstacles or objects to throw, she became desperate, he cornered her against one of the carriage doors, and launched a series of attacks that she had no chance to block.

Instead, she abused her power, blow after blow the imitations broke into a thousand pieces, without even stopping the sword that was now burning due to the speed at which it was wielded. Ice statues, stone statues, fire statues none of them could stop his blade and each time the woman got closer and closer to the sword or the wall.

Drawing his arm back he unleashed one last downward stroke on her. She was able to react in enough time to use her Katana and Sheath, in a cross shape to block the attack but it was not enough. The impact knocked down the doors, sending thousands of burning sparks flying into the air and the young woman with them. The girl fell to the ground almost unconscious, with a purple aura flickering throughout her body.

Nelyo exhaled, releasing flames through his voice. He had gotten carried away, this new ecstasy almost made him act the same way the Dark Lord's demons were unleashed on the battlefield. It had been an unstoppable force a minute ago, a fiery storm that knew no limits in its destruction, but that had to end. He would kill the girl and her partner, and return to Amber.

A strong tremor shook the train car. The elf turned and found the horned man, now maskless, burning with a dark fire standing over the blasted doorway. Growling like a wild animal, he held the red sword and its sheath in both hands. Little scarlet flames sprang from his hair and back, almost like a crude imitation of the demons of power that had once tormented the Eldar in the days of yore.

Soon the train would reach a tunnel and the light would disappear for a long time. Not that it mattered, neither of the two redheads needed that.
Nelyo extended his arms to receive the challenge from the insolent boy, and like a bull taken by the horns, he responded with a growl and marching forward.

When the shadows enveloped the entire train, the only light came from the swords of both combatants. Crash after crash, the car was illuminated by the thousand sparks expelled in crimson flashes. A violent and beautiful dance, whose beauty lies in the collision of two beasts in the skins of men.
The clashes intensified as the fight dragged on, and such was the speed that the tunnel ignored the darkness for good, long moments. A light show spawned by an act of violence between two strangers.

An orchestra of swords that had to end.

But just like the passage under that mountain, the conflict had to end. When the sunlight claims its place. Adam returned the blade to its sheath and charged his final attack. A single movement was all it took to end this, and the mongrel, along with the damned train, disappeared from the face of Remnant. There was so much energy accumulated there to vaporize the entire vehicle and he could use it to maximum advantage.

But Nelyo was not stupid, his instincts warned him of the danger that loomed ahead. He ran to meet him, to face such energy head on. Then Adam drew his sword and all the power was unleashed…

It was a simple, basic movement that he had not used since those first training fights with his brothers or cousins, when tournaments were the most exciting thing in their lives and the threat from the north seemed just a mere fleeting dream. He did not receive the attack with the blade of his sword, no, that would have been useless, he used the guard on the hilt. With surgical precision, he blocked the scarlet blade with the simple metal guard and only a flick of his wrist was required to redirect the attack.

By the time Adam realized it, his Semblance had already betrayed him.

Adam crawled on the ground, his legs too painful to get up. The wounds running through his broken body bled, burned, burned like nothing he had felt before, except…

"Blake!" Where was she? Because of the smoke and the lack of height it was difficult for her to see or distinguish the shapes. But luck was on his side, for the first time all day. And the dust dispersed as the train continued its journey unchanged. There she was, standing, intact, safe in one of the back cars. He smiled in relief, it was still possible to escape, surely the hunstmen was also injured by the explosion. Together they will get out of this, together–

"Blake?" She walked away, the car moving away quickly. Adam tried to crawl towards her, this couldn't be happening, it had to be a mistake, she shouldn't have seen him on the ground. He was still alive, she had to know that.

But She looked at him, for a moment her amber eyes looked into his one eye.

"I'm sorry". It was the last thing he heard before he stomped on his head.

Mae Govannen Eruhini~✨
Salutations!~✨

I'm not going to lie, the action scenes are a pain in the ass. I rewrote this shit like four times because none of them convinced me, and I swear to God that the number of pages used was enough for three chapters!. Thank God, I can confirm that after this I took a break from the fights, sorry for the disappointment... or not, I really don't know what these scenes are like, they're probably shit. What do you guys think?.

Any criticism or review is welcome.

Namárië!~✨