Jaune's head dipped down and he stared into his near empty mug. Nobody else spoke. The dead silence following his statement festered in the room. Jaune clenched his teeth angrily, feeling disgusted at himself for the lie he'd told himself in that moment. He knew deep down that once they retreated there would be no going back. He'd chosen to prioritize their own lives instead of staying to defend Beacon.
He'd lived while the partner he abandoned had died.
Shaking his head, Jaune pushed aside his self-hatred and tried to distract himself by continuing his tale.
"Anyway, the five of us headed for-"
"Pause."
Jaune glanced up at Yang's request, stilling when he saw the expression on her face.
"Yang?"
"That's it?" Yang asked, the impassive look on her face unnerving Jaune a bit.
"Wha… what do you mean?"
"Blake." Yang spat her partner's name. Jaune could hear the anger in her voice even if her expression was flat. "She just left? Just like that? Really?"
Most everyone in the room wore uncomfortable looks on their faces at Yang's words. Other than Yang herself, the only other two who looked just as angry were Nora and Velvet. Though Nora's expression conveyed disappointment, Velvet's expression was twisted into a rictus of fury at hearing the other faunus's name. The bunny girl was clenching Cardin's arm so hard that the boy was wincing and trying to flex his fingers to keep the blood in his arm flowing.
"That's… it's what happened." Jaune told her slowly. "Blake just… I mean, she-"
"And what was it she said before she ran off? Again? That'd she'd 'make it right'?" Yang asked, and Jaune could tell from the way her eyes turned red she was building up to an explosion. Her voice was increasing in volume, and her face began to morph into something that made him want to take cover underneath the chair he was sitting in.
"Yang, she-"
"What was her plan for that then, huh? She didn't feel the need to share that with the class before she left you all high and dry?" Yang went on, her tone growing more incredulous and disbelieving as she continued. "And… and she apologized? Like everything that happened was her fault? That everything the White Fang did was on her?"
"Maybe it was." Velvet hissed angrily from her own seat.
"Velvet…" Arslan cautioned, giving the faunus a stern look.
"What? You weren't there! We were!" Velvet retorted, her own expression furious. "She just left us all! In the middle of everything! She left her partner! Who does that?! Especially when she'd gotten injured like that! Explain that to me!"
"It's not like that! Blake is… she…!" Ruby struggled, trying to speak up in defense of her teammate but faltered as she tried to do so. "She… must've had some kind of plan! She wouldn't just-"
"Run off on her own?" Nora scoffed, looking deeply unimpressed. "I dunno, Rubes. Given how close our teams were, we got to know each other pretty well even if Blake was almost as quiet as Renny sometimes. And this sort of thing seems par for the course when it comes to the kitty cat."
Ruby bit her lip at Nora's harsh words, as she couldn't deny the truth in them. "B-But, it's not that simple, she's…"
"Blake's always had a strong sense of responsibility… and from what I've gathered, she always felt some personal responsibility for the White Fang's actions because she was an important member of their group before she left." Ren commented. "She takes actions she believes are right, even if she was often reckless when deciding those actions."
"Blake feeling guilty about the White Fang?" Yang gasped in mock surprise before glowering at the raven haired man. "Yeah, we already knew about that. It's old news. What's your point?"
"My point is, and this is only a guess based on my own inference, but maybe the reason Blake left was because she thought it was how she could protect you?" Ren proposed.
The remnants of Team RWBY and JNPR could very well remember the fights they'd been dragged into courtesy of Blake over her obsession in hunting down and stopping the White Fang throughout the school year. A scorched dock, a ruined freeway, and the resealing of Mountain Glenn were all examples of times they'd gotten themselves involved in foiling the White Fang's plans. And no matter how often they stepped in the terrorist group's path, Blake had always been on the lookout for the next set of White Fang toes to step on. And while Team RWBY were arguably the most talented and capable first years in Beacon, there was no discounting the danger they'd landing themselves in during those escapes.
Ruby, Yang, and the absent Weiss had all confessed to JNPR a time or two how exhausting it was to mollify Blake and try to meet her halfway in regards to the White Fang. It had been a tricky thing to strike a balance between indulging in Blake's White Fang investigations and reminding her that she had to be a student and not just a vigilante. Jaune remembered when Ruby had come to him feeling shaken over her brief capture by the White Fang in Mountain Glenn, and Nora remembered that week when Yang had challenged her and Pyrrha to spar after spar to shake of the sting of defeat Torchwick's diminutive associate had handed her on the train the White Fang had crashed.
Though in their minds, Ruby and Yang were both split. Maybe if they had let Blake off the leash a little more the attack on Beacon could have been stopped in its tracks before it happened. At the same time, they couldn't know for sure if Blake still would have left at some point.
And Blake wasn't present to answer any questions, so there was no relief from the turmoil her abandonment had given them.
Still, there was one thing Ren had said that Yang couldn't let slide.
"You said she left in order to protect me?" Yang asked before she threw her head back and let out a sharp bark of laughter, causing everyone in the room to flinch. "Well, she sure did a bang up job of that, didn't she?! Couldn't be more protected than this!"
Yang's giggles abruptly cut off as she glared at everyone around her, thrusting her metal arm out in front of herself so that everyone could get a good look at it.
"Is this what you call making up for things?! Is this why she fucking apologized?!" Yang demanded, clenching her metal and plastic fist angrily.
"I didn't mean it like that." Ren said hurriedly. "I'm just saying that with the attack and after what Adam did to you, maybe she-"
"Shut up, Ren. Just shut the fuck up." Yang seethed, causing the young man to fall silent. "We can try to come up with reasons for why she ran off. Come up with excuses for her. Forgive her and make up and assure her for the billionth time that we've got her back and that she should trust us…"
Yang's arm came down as she covered her eyes, hating the burning sensation coming from behind them.
"Yang…" Ruby whispered, her own voice cracking as she beheld her sister's misery. "Blake is… she tried to…!"
"DON'T!" Yang screamed, causing the smaller girl to recoil at the venom in the blonde's voice. "Don't try to defend her! None of you! She doesn't deserve it! Not after she pulled this shit again!"
Everyone watched helplessly as Yang began to sob. Crying fitfully to herself as she tried to pull herself away from Ruby but the little reaper wouldn't let her. Even as Ruby's own tears began to fall from her eyes she clutched onto her sister's good arm. Whether it was an attempt to console Yang or because Ruby was trying to seek out comfort for herself, none of them knew for sure. It could have been for both reasons. With her flesh and blood arm in Ruby's hold, Yang had to use her robotic arm to attempt to stem her own tears… which only made her angrier since every time she looked at it she remembered her partner. She remembered leaping to defend Blake from Adam. She remembered the moment of blinding pain before everything went dark and then waking up to find out she was missing an arm.
She'd lost that arm trying to protect her partner, and said partner hadn't even stuck around to wait for her to wake up.
"I'm… sorry, Yang." Jaune tried, heart clenching in his chest as he watched her hurt. "I tried to-"
"Don't apologize." Yang snapped. "Don't you dare apologize to me, Jaune…!"
"I am though." Jaune grimaced. "I… I should have tried to stop her from leaving. I saw when she made that decision, but I couldn't-"
"I SAID don't apologize! It's not your apology I want!" Yang screamed, slamming her fist down on the sofa and causing a crack of air to echo through the room as her metal fist hit the fabric. "Don't you get it?! This is just what Blake does! She ran away from her parents! She ran away from the White Fang! She ran away from us when Weiss called her old band of psychopaths out! She ran off to fight Torchwick and left me to get knocked around by that midget on the train! And she ran off when her ex popped up and sliced off my arm! Really, we shouldn't be surprised! It was only a matter of time before she ran off on us all together!"
Yang glared at Jaune so hard that anything he wanted to say got stuck in his throat. The fury and hurt in her eyes made his stomach twist up.
"Don't… don't feel guilty on her account." Yang hissed. The impulse to punch her fellow blonde in the face for trying to shoulder some of the blame for Blake's absence was strong, but she didn't give into it. Not that she could with Ruby clinging to her and keeping her in place anyway. "It was her choice to leave. Her choice to run away. Just like every other time. Because… because she never really trusted us, did she?"
"Yang, Blake-" Ruby started but Yang raised her voice to speak over her sister.
"Remember when everyone thought that I'd crippled Mercury during the tournament? When Ironwood disqualified me? I saw Mercury attack me and I defended myself, but I was the only one who saw it. The rest of the world saw me attack a fighter who had already lost and surrendered. Ruby, you and Weiss believed me right off the bat when I told you what everyone saw was wrong. That something fishy was going on. Do you remember?"
"I… I remember."
"Though now we know Emerald Sustrai's semblance was responsible for that." Arslan commented. "And we know that Mercury Black had been putting on a show. There was no leg for you to break since he had no legs at all to begin with."
"Metal legs. All that screaming and crying… when all he probably had to do afterward was buff out a few dents from your punch." Neptune muttered. "I can't believe we all fell for the act."
"Everything about their team was fake." Cardin grumbled.
Yang let out a humorless chuckle. "It was. But even before we knew they were the bad guys, Blake… when I told her that something was wrong with that fight, she didn't… she didn't believe me."
"That's not true!" Ruby protested immediately. "Yang, she DID believe you! Blake didn't actually think that you'd-"
"Ruby, she pretty much told me to my face that she was afraid that I'd become like her ex. The person who was 'very dear to her' that she mentioned was obviously Adam. She was painting me with the same brush as the guy who took off my damn arm!" Yang seethed.
"No! No, you're wrong!" Ruby shook her head desperately. "Blake may have said that at first, but she said she'd still trust you!"
"Only after she made me promise that I didn't do it! Because she couldn't just take me at my word that something was wrong!" Yang snarled, a few angry tears running down her face. "That minute where she made me think that I didn't have her trust, that she thought I was the kind of monster who'd attack a defenseless person… it was the worst feeling ever! And even after I looked her in the eyes and told her I didn't do it, that I saw Mercury attacking me… she never said that she actually believed me. She just thanked me and left with all of you."
"T-That's…"
Yang's eyes screwed shut as a painful expression appeared on her face. "She… even when she was leaving she still looked wary of me. Looked like she was judging me. Trying to decide if I was another Adam waiting to happen…"
"B-But she has to know now! We all do!" Ruby insisted with a smile. "Now we know about Emerald's illusions and Mercury's legs and that they tricked everyone into thinking you-"
"You're missing the fucking point!" Yang screamed, wrenching her arm away from her younger sibling as she rounded on her. "If she really knew me, if she really trusted me, she would have believed me! Like you and Weiss did! I shouldn't have had to try and convince her! She was my partner! The person that was supposed to have my back no matter what! With everything we'd gone through, all the times we saved her and helped her deal with the White Fang, I thought I'd earned that trust!"
Yang was suddenly on her feet and looming over Ruby. The blonde's hand snapped out and fisted in the younger girl's collar. The brawler's mind was a red haze as she screamed and the static in her ears drowned out everything except the sound of her voice.
"But Blake never trusted me! She didn't trust any of us, Ruby! She didn't believe me when I told her that something was odd during my match against that asshole Mercury! I was miserable and crying and when I needed someone in my corner the most… Blake thought that I could turn into someone like the terrorist who led an attack on our school and crippled me! And… and she just ran off again because it always has to be her and the Fang! Like everything they do is because of her and her alone! Because she thinks the best way to help us is to abandon us! Because her obsession is more important than the team! More important than me!"
The white noise filling her eardrums abruptly cut out and when it did, Yang suddenly became aware of herself again. She felt an arm wrapping around her waist and another around her right arm. A hand was on her left shoulder and digging into her skin like a vice. The skin on her own remaining flesh hand felt wet. Blinking slowly, Yang found herself staring into Ruby's face as the girl sobbed and hiccuped. Ruby had tears running down her cheeks and Yang's fingers opened involuntarily, dropping Ruby onto the cushions. Nora and May immediately were at Ruby's side, the former wrapping her arms around Ruby's shoulders from behind like she'd often do with Ren and the latter gently taking one of Ruby's hands and holding it in both of hers. Looking back after she'd let go, Yang saw that Jaune, Arslan, and Ren were the ones who were holding onto her. All the anger she'd felt was oddly distant too. She could tell it was still there, but it couldn't be drawn on at all anymore.
When Ren took his hand off of her shoulder, the anger was tangible again but seeing Ruby's crying face in front of her… Yang's anger was instantly smothered by shame and disgust. Screaming into her sister's face, using her as an outlet for her anger even though she'd been trying to comfort her… the self-loathing was like a hammer blow to her. It was even more powerful than when she'd almost been tricked into believing she'd crippled someone on live television. In her anger and hurt, she'd gone and made Ruby cry.
Yang ducked her head shamefully. "I'm… I'm sorry, Ruby… I shouldn't have…"
Ruby sniffled quietly and shook her head. "I-It's fine…"
"It's not." Yang denied, not wanting to be excused for what she'd done. "Hah, look at me… making my little sister cry after everything… maybe Blake was right to have her doubts about me…"
"D-Don't do that either!" Ruby cried, a spark of anger in her voice despite how watery she sounded. "Y-You'd never… it's my fault for… for trying to make it sound like everything's okay when I know everything's messed up. Blake leaving was… I mean, I'm angry about it too! And Weiss got taken away by her dad, dad and Uncle Qrow aren't here…"
Ruby words trailed off and she devolved into a fit of sobbing that was half angry and half sad.
Nora stared at Yang for a moment before she nodded and unwrapped herself from Ruby, gently pushing the smaller girl forward. May also let go of Ruby's hand. Yang slowly sat down and gathered Ruby into her arms, hugging her sibling close. Everyone else was silent. Half the group observed the scene with expressions of sympathy, while the other half winced and stared down at their hands and laps while looking frustrated at their inability to speak words that would fix the situation.
Jaune swallowed the lump in his throat and suppressed the impulse to try voicing another apology. His earlier attempt to give it had been to try and comfort Yang… but if he was being honest with himself it had also been an attempt to assuage the guilt he hadn't been able to extinguish since they arrived at Radian.
There was so much he wanted to apologize for…
But Jaune pushed down that impulse and cleared his throat to get everyone's attention back.
"There isn't much left to the story." Jaune spoke up. Yang lifted her head and turned towards him, meeting his gaze. "After Blake left, we ran to the west docks to see if we could escape. Find a shuttle or bullhead to fly us out."
Yang's lips turned down a little. Jaune could still see that Yang had more questions, likely about Blake. The swordsman could still see the anger and confusion she felt, but he also saw Yang calm herself with a slow breath and she circled her arms a little more securely around Ruby.
"…Right. It's not like you guys could do anything else." Yang nodded and glanced around the room. "So then… did you meet Nep and Arslan's teams on the way? What happened to them? And Ruby and Weiss, how'd they…?"
"I'll tell you. I mean, a lot was going on at the time, but even when we got to the landing docks we didn't leave right away…"
- - -
His legs and lungs were burning, and the extra strain put on him thanks to carrying Yang contributed further to his stamina drain, but Jaune didn't let himself stop. In a straight fight between anyone in their group he'd probably come in last place despite progressing by leaps and bounds in fighting ability since Beacon started, but if there was one area Jaune could potentially come out ahead in comparison to his peers, it was endurance. And bolstered by his aura, the fatigue dragging on his limbs was ignorable. Jaune's pace didn't falter and his legs kept moving. He ducked under gunfire and jumped over fallen debris as their party raced toward the docks.
"Just a little more." Jaune muttered as he ran. Even as the surroundings rushed past him, and even if most of the environment was consumed by smoke and flames, he recognized the shapes of familiar landmarks and the paths they ran through. They were getting closer and closer to their destination.
And miraculously, they were all still together and in one piece.
Velvet was in front of him. He could hear Ren and May shouting where they were headed, using their semblances in tandem to avoid any large groups of White Fang or Grimm that could impede them. Nora's battle cries could be heard even over the gunfire and roars of Grimm. And glancing backwards over his shoulder for a brief moment, Jaune confirmed that Cardin was bringing up the rear and keeping pace just two steps behind him.
"We're gonna make it." Jaune whispered determinedly to himself under his breath, jumping over a piece of fallen building and using the momentum to shift Yang up so he could better secure his grip on her. "We're gonna escape. We're gonna get out of this."
And hopefully… hopefully Pyrrha, Ruby, and Weiss would be able to meet up with them soon too.
He also hoped Blake hadn't run off just to get herself killed. In spite of her leaving them, Jaune hoped that she'd find her own way out of this chaos.
"Guys, look!"
Velvet cried out and pointed up to the sky. Gazing upward, Jaune grinned enough to split his face in two when he saw two evac shuttles ascend in the air before taking off southwest away from Vale. They were Atlas evac shuttles, evidenced by the turrets hanging off on the sides that soldiers were using to ward off flying Grimm that tried swooping toward the vehicle. Even with the flocks of Grimm in the air and the smoke from fires billowing upward, the ships could be clearly seen. That meant they'd almost made it! That the shuttles were even capable of taking off meant that they might actually be able to escape!
"Really hope those weren't the last ships to leave!" Cardin shouted.
"They weren't!" May called back. "I can see dozens of people not far ahead! Their auras are all spaced out in a way that looks like they're crowding around ships! We can still fly out of here!"
"Then we'd better move it!" Jaune declared, finding his third wind as he dashed through the ruined buildings toward the docks with everyone else.
Rushing out from the burning campus area at last, the group hit the tarmac leading to Beacon's west landing docks in a sprint. Even through the smoke and fire, bullheads and much larger evacuation shuttles could be seen on the dock platforms. Civilians could be seen crowding around them while students, Atlas soldiers, and hunters who had allegedly been visiting Beacon for the Vytal Festival Tournament had managed to set up a perimeter to fight off approaching Grimm, White Fang, and rogue mechas.
There was also one final obstacle between their group and their destination.
Two automated Paladin mechs were stomping over the walkways leading to the zoning pads, firing rockets from the launchers on their arms toward the evac shuttles and bullheads trying to take off. Several knight units were gathered around the larger robots firing their automatic rifles into the groups that were scattered across the landing areas.
Jaune snarled at the sight, an expression he was sure that his friends mirrored, before he formulated a response to address the issue in front of them.
"Nora!" Jaune called out.
"Yes, fearless leader?!"
Jaune pointed at the first Atlas mech. "Smash!"
Nora grinned fiercely at the order and charged. The rest of the group took off after her.
"There's still the second one!" Ren called.
"I know!" Jaune called back. "Velvet! Think you can pull off a Nora smash?"
"I think I can manage!" Velvet shouted in reply, holding out her arm as an arc of electricity sparked across it before a lightning dust replica of Maghild was summoned into her hand. "It'll be the perfect way to use up the last of Nora's lightning dust!"
"Great! Everyone else, take out the knight units!"
As the rogue Atlas mechs had their backs to the running students, they were able to get the drop on them. Ren and May fired their guns at the knights, shooting off their heads or blasting holes in their torsos. Nora amazed them all by swinging her hammer and smashing one of the Paladins into the side hard enough to lodge its elbow joint into its main body. The robot's torso spat out a shower of sparks before it collapsed.
Cardin was able to use his mace to strike the other Paladin's leg joint, making it stumble and leaving it open for Velvet to drive her electric hammer into its back. The Paladin sputtered and groaned as it fell to its knees, vibrating and sparking from the electric current running through it. Jaune couldn't contribute to the battle since he was occupied with carrying Yang to safety. But thanks to their effective ambush, they all managed to break through the line of robots and into the landing area.
"We made it!" May cheered.
Jaune let out a relieved sigh, letting himself catch his breath for a moment before looking around the scene.
Other than a small handful of hunters, mostly students and Atlas soldiers were present at the landing zone, and all of them were fighting off rogue Atlas mechs that were approaching from the campus or taking shots at Grimm were swarming from where the landing strip dropped off Beacon's west cliffside. Looking beyond, Vale could be seen and Jaune felt his stomach twist in his gut when he saw the fires and smoke that covered the city. It looked like Vale was experiencing destruction on a similar scale to Beacon. In the back of his mind he had suspected that Vale had come under attack as well, but it was the first time he'd gotten to see the full picture.
It was a horrible sight, but not a picture he could spend a lot of time looking at for the moment.
Jaune turned to address the group. "I'm gonna try and get Yang onto one of these ships. Or at least see if there's a medic who can actually look after her."
"What should the rest of us do?" Nora asked.
"I…" Jaune paused and took a quick glance around. He could see soldiers and hunters defending against the robots and Grimm. "Help defend the shuttles for now. I'll call you guys over when I've found one that can take us out of here."
Jaune hoped he didn't sound too uncertain, but if he did nobody called him out on it and everyone nodded in response. Jaune nodded back then started moving away, but blinked when he found Velvet moving to help him support Yang as he carried his fellow blonde.
"Resting in the library helped, but my aura is still almost gone." Velvet told him when he shot her a questioning look. "I'd like to help, but… if a few strays hit me my aura would break. Let me help you with her."
Jaune nodded toward her, expression thankful and sympathetic before he moved through the crowds and into the landing zone area where the evacuation shuttles and bullheads were docked. Moving to the closest shuttle, Jaune began calling for help.
"Hey! Is there a medic anywhere! I've got an injured person with me!"
"Jaune?! Is that you?!"
Jaune turned around at hearing a familiar voice and his eyes widened when he saw a dark skinned student with spiked blue hair running to meet him.
"Neptune?"
"Holy shit, it is you! Man, I'm SO glad to see you're still in one piece!" Neptune grinned, looking positively ecstatic. His grin got bigger when he saw Jaune wasn't alone. "And hey, you brought a… friend? Who're you? You're not Pyrrha."
Neptune's mention of his actual partner made Jaune clench his teeth.
"Never mind that." Velvet answered instead, and Jaune was grateful for her intervention so he wouldn't have to answer Neptune's question. "Do you know if there are any medical officers around here? It's Yang. She's hurt really bad!"
"Seriously?" Neptune gaped. He was well aware of Yang's prestige as a fighter and was one of the few among their year who could actually stand up to Pyrrha in a fight. Seeing her unconscious and being supported by the two in front of him was a shocking sight. "How did she-"
"Stop. We're not answering questions right now. You answer ours." Velvet interrupted sternly. "Medic? Where?"
"R-Right. Um, there should be-"
"Jaune! You're alright!"
Glancing past Neptune, Jaune and Velvet saw the rest of Team SSSN approaching. Sun's grin was radiant as the monkey faunus slapped a hand against Jaune's shoulder when he reached them.
"Should've known you guys would've made it out okay! Now we can get the hell out of… woah, is that Yang? How'd she get knocked out? And where's Blake?"
Trust Sun to immediately point out that the girl he was crushing on wasn't among their number.
"She ran off!" Jaune shouted, ignoring Sun's shocked expression and turning to address Team SSSN as a whole. "We need to get Yang onto a shuttle and get someone-"
"The fuck?! What happened to Yang's arm?!" Neptune yelped when he finally noticed that the blonde girl's right arm ended in a stump.
Jaune gave a frustrated growl, quickly growing fed up that they still hadn't been pointed in the direction of a medic. "I need-"
"GET DOWN!"
The scream of warning was immediately followed up by a rocket flying over their heads and slamming into the propellers of the ship ahead of them. The shrapnel from the destroyed propeller flew into the engines and caused a chain reaction that led to the whole shuttle combusting. Jaune and Team SSSN were thrown off of their feet due to their proximity to the explosion, and Jaune barely managed to swing himself around so he wouldn't land on Yang as heat washed over them.
The screams from civilians which had just been background noise at first grew in volume and almost drowned out the sounds of gunfire and the roars of Grimm as Jaune shakily got to his feet. Looking around, Jaune found that any semblance of order that might have once existed at the evacuation point was gone along with the destroyed evacuation shuttle.
Jaune crouched down and quickly turned Yang over, relieved when he found that she didn't sustain any further injury. Glancing up, he saw Velvet pushing herself up but grimaced when he saw the flash of aura over her skin indicating that her aura was gone. Team SSSN was also regaining their bearings as they gathered up, though Jaune noticed Scarlet favoring his left side. Whether it was a result of kickback from the explosion or an injury sustained prior, he wasn't sure, but he didn't have time to ask.
"Guys! Hey!" Jaune called through the smoke that billowed around them and was relieved when after a few moments May, Velvet, Cardin, and his two teammates quickly emerged from the haze and gathered around. "Good, you're all okay…!"
"That should be our line. You lot were the closest to the ship." Cardin grimaced. "When we saw the explosion we all panicked."
"Are you all okay?" May asked frantically.
"No immediate injuries." Jaune told them.
"My aura's gone though…" Velvet winced, drawing concerned looks from everyone. "I'll just… do my best to keep my head down from now on."
Jaune was gratified when Nora and Cardin closed in around Velvet, the duo blocking off the bunny faunus from the direction from where Grimm and robots were crowding in the distance.
"How do things look?" Jaune asked.
"Extremely bad." Ren reported. "The Atlas soldiers here managed to set up barricades and helped establish a perimeter before the Grimm and White Fang swarmed them completely, but at the rate things are going they'll eventually be overwhelmed. There are only a few bullheads and half a dozen shuttles left and it's getting harder to coral the civilians as the fighting gets more intense."
"The White Fang managed to destroy two shuttles already. It's made everyone start to panic." May whimpered. "Everything's starting to break down."
Jaune bit his lip as he looked around. Soldiers and veteran hunters were trying to call for calm, but it was hard to rein in scared civilians while they were busy defending against Grimm, rogue robots, and White Fang terrorists all at once. The general panic would only cause the Grimm to get even more frenzied, and if they converged then there was a real possibility that their position would be completely overrun.
"Who're you guys?"
Sun's question caused Jaune to startle from his thoughts. Turning toward the monkey faunus, Jaune saw the bewildered expression on his face as he got a full look at Jaune's group. Nora and Ren he recognized. But the girl with the sniper rifle wasn't Ruby, the faunus girl that had been helping Jaune with Yang wasn't Blake, and both Ren and Jaune were the only males in the RWBY and JNPR friendship group so the third guy wearing silver armor was a complete unknown to Sun. And if one counted Yang among their number even though she was unconscious, the total count for the group only came up to seven, not a two team combined number of eight.
"Where is everyone?" Neptune followed up Sun's question, pointing to the three strangers. "Where's Weiss? Or Ruby? And Blake? And Pyrrha?"
Jaune couldn't stand the questions. Pyrrha was fighting Cinder, but he didn't know how that was going. He didn't know where Ruby or Weiss were, only that he'd sent them after Pyrrha and he had no idea if they'd made it in time to support her in her fight with the woman responsible for everything. And he had no idea where Blake was since she'd run off. He had no idea where any of those girls were or if they were okay. So why were Sun and the others asking him?
Jaune was saved from having to answer when bestial roar took everyone's attention.
One of the barricades that had been set up collapsed as an Ursa Major crashed through it. White Fang soldiers followed after the rampaging Grimm, raising their guns as weapons as they spread out to attack the crowd. There were no soldiers or hunters in proximity to close the gap, and the suddenness of the breach attack caught their group off guard and so they didn't react immediately to the threat.
Someone else not among their number did though.
With a cry that sounded like a lion's roar, a blonde girl with bronze colored skin suddenly descended on the Ursa like a comet, arresting its charge by smashing a flaming fist down on the Grimm's head. The force of the blow and the swiftness of the attack caused the White Fang members who had been following in the ursa's wake to stagger, and that pause gave enough time for three other individuals to cover the gap and attack from behind, striking down the terrorists before they could let loose upon the nearby crowd of panicking civilians.
"Arslan!" Neptune cried, recognizing the girl who quickly leaped off the ursa as it faded away and landed in front of their group.
"What are you all just standing around for?!" Arslan demanded as the rest of her team stepped over the White Fang corpses to reach them. In their place, Atlas soldiers quickly moved to cover the gap that had been punched in their defensive wall and began laying down suppressive fire, dissuading Grimm and White Fang from passing their defensive line that way. "The battle is still ongoing! If you have a weapon and if you aren't hurt, you should be fighting! We can't allow panic to spread anymore than it already has!"
"H-Hey, we were getting to it!" Neptune protested. "A shuttle just exploded on us so we were a little-"
"Casualties will only increase the longer you remain idle!"
"Listen here Lion Girl, you-!"
The budding argument was stopped when an Atlas soldier called over to them.
"Hey, you're all students, right?"
"Y-Yes, we are." Velvet spoke up, stepping forward. Being the only one among their group familiar with Atlas, she was able to recognize the insignia rank on the man's breastplate. "Are you the lieutenant in charge of the soldiers fighting here?"
"One of them. Our captain is… well, it doesn't matter now." The man shook his head. "I'm telling everyone that I can that the remaining ships are preparing to take off. Please move to one of the shuttles and they'll get you all out."
"You think the White Fang, Grimm, and your haywire robots will just let us all go like that?" Cardin scoffed.
"The remainder of my platoon and a handful of hunters have all agreed to stay and defend this location as long as possible. Or at least until the last shuttle is ready to leave. We'll take it once everyone has boarded the shuttles and evacuated." The lieutenant replied. "I'd hurry if I were you. The Grimm are only growing more ferocious and the White Fang look like they're getting ready for another push."
Without waiting for a response, the man hurried toward another cluster of people. The group of hunters-in-training glanced at each other for a moment before Arslan gave a huff and pivoted on her heel, heading toward the broken barricade.
"You're not leaving?" Neptune asked.
"I will." Arslan called back. "But I will leave with the last shuttle."
"But that soldier said-"
"I know what he said. But I am choosing to stay and fight for as long as I'm able to."
"…Well, you heard the boss." Nadir spoke up as he hefted his gun katana. "Just tell us where you-"
"Don't feel obligated to stay just because I am." Arslan interrupted her teammate. "I understand the risk I'm taking by staying. I'm not going to ask you all to take the same risk."
"B-But you're our leader. We're a team. We can't just let you fight by yourself." Reese protested.
"Either we fight together or we leave together." Bolin asserted.
"Hey, Arslan, I know your intentions are good and all but… don't you think we've done enough?" Neptune asked, stepping toward the girl. "We've been fighting for a while now. And I've seen you fighting past the barricades. Other than your fire dust, you've got no long range options for fighting. It's not like your rope dart has very much distance anyway."
Arslan frowned. "What are you saying?"
"I'm saying that I know you're not at one hundred percent anymore. None of us are. I don't think you need to feel bad for stepping away." Neptune advised. "The other soldiers and hunters can handle things better than us. We should rely on them."
"We are hunters."
"No, we're students!" Neptune shot back. "We weren't trained for anything like this!"
"Even so, I believe that I can make a difference. I have a choice in front of me, and I will choose to fight. I won't let myself believe that my only option is to retreat. This isn't my school, nor is it my home, but I will use the strength I have to support those who have also chosen to fight."
Neptune and Arslan's teammates said something in response, but Jaune didn't hear it. The blonde girl's words weren't especially profound, but somehow they struck a chord with him.
A choice…
He had wanted to fight. He didn't want to run. If he had been allowed to make his own choice, Jaune would have been fighting alongside Pyrrha at the moment. For better or for worse, he wanted more than anything to fight by her side.
She had taken that choice from him though.
"Because I was too weak."
Because it had just been him, and he only would have held her back.
…But he wasn't alone now.
And if the choice to run or fight was presented to him again now? It was obvious which option he'd choose.
"She's right." Jaune spoke up loudly, causing everyone to turn in his direction. "This isn't at all what any of us expected, but we're here now. We might be tired, we might not be qualified, but we can fight. I will fight."
Jaune drew his sword and expanded his shield.
"I'll help the soldiers and hunters defend this place until everyone here has evacuated." Jaune announced, turning to address the group as a whole. "And even though Arslan said she wasn't going to ask, I'm going to instead. Everyone, please… let's fight. We'll fight together AND we'll all leave together."
Jaune didn't expect his declaration to resonate with anyone. He was just asking something selfish. Yet, he was shocked to see that everyone's expressions suddenly got a little firmer. Their hands clenched their weapons a little more tightly. They were actually listening to him…
"Tell us what to do, Fearless Leader." Nora smirked. To Jaune's amazement, everyone nodded in assent to the orangette's words.
…But there was no time to dwell on it. If they were all willing to listen, then he'd lead as best he could.
"Velvet, get Yang onto one of the ships. Preferably one with a medic. With your aura down, you can't risk staying out here anymore. I'm trusting you with her safety, okay?"
"…Okay, Jaune. I'll make sure she gets help." Velvet nodded. "In return, you better make sure everyone leaves on the shuttle with us, okay?"
"We'll be right behind you."
The swordsman and the rabbit faunus exchanged firm nods before Velvet lifted Yang up onto her back and started hurrying toward the landing zone. Jaune watched her for a moment before turning toward his teammates.
"Ren, your semblance is key here. Go around and use it to calm people down. Nora, you go with him and watch his back. Sun, you're the speaker. Tell any civilians to get to the shuttles and bullheads after Ren's calmed them down. Also try to give the soldiers and hunters some breathing room to recover and get back in formation."
The group stared at him in shock for a moment, prompting Jaune to glare when they didn't start moving immediately.
"Well? Get moving!"
"R-Right! You got it, boss!" Sun said, snapping a quick salute and giving Jaune an impressed smile. "Still, I can't leave you here without one of mine contributing to the fight. Nep, you mind being Jaune's gunner?"
"A sound plan." Arslan nodded, turning to her own teammates. "Bolin, Reese, Nadir? Support SSSN. Though I would like you to focus on protecting civilians and aiding in evacuation. Once they are corralled, you must help keep calm and prevent another panic if you can."
"What about you, Arslan?" Nadir asked.
Arslan slammed her fists together. "With you all supporting the backline, I will play the role Jaune Arc did for me. I will be where I am most needed amongst our fighters."
Not giving her teammates a chance to argue, Arslan darted off and let out a roar as she fell upon a cluster of White Fang troops who were trying to climb over a barricade that two Atlas soldiers were hiding behind.
"…And there she goes." Neptune muttered.
"And that's also our cue. Time for us to get moving." Sun grinned before pausing. "Though, Nep… you mind staying and giving Jaune some support? He's sending off Ren and Nora, so that just leaves him with the guys in the armor and the sniper girl. You mind being his fourth?"
Neptune sputtered a little at being put on the spot. A nervous expression flashed across his face briefly before his expression grew determined and he nodded. "Yeah… yeah, I can do that."
"Good to hear it man. Soon as we help with the civies we'll give you some backup!"
"You'd better. I really don't want to make this some kind of last stand like they do in the movies…"
"Will you be okay?"
Jaune glanced over at Ren when he asked that question. He could see that his friend was concerned, and he saw a similar expression on Nora's face. Jaune acknowledged their worries, and pulled a confident smile onto his face.
It was important to look convincing.
"We're hunters." Jaune said, echoing Arslan's words from earlier. "We'll hold the line until you help get everyone organized. We're not gonna give any ground."
"…There's our fearless leader." Nora smiled. "Time to get moving, Renny."
"…I suppose so." Ren nodded, glancing at Cardin and May as he and Nora moved past them. "Watch out for each other."
Cardin and May didn't reply verbally, but gave resolute nods to his words.
After watching his teammates and the majority of the Haven students depart, Jaune addressed the remainder that were left. May, Cardin, and Neptune faced him. Including himself, it was a new four person team created from a mishmash of their currently fractured original teams. Cardin was someone who used to bully him. Neptune and May were from entirely different schools to boot. The odds were stacked entirely against them and it wasn't reasonable to expect any kind of synergy amongst them.
"We'll just make it work." Jaune thought as his expression steeled.
They'd hold out until the rest of the shuttles took off. And if they held out long enough, made a big enough dent in the enemy, then maybe their teammates would find their way to them.
"May, Neptune, cover us!" Jaune shouted as he raised his sword and ran toward the encroaching crowd of Grimm. "Cardin, let's go!"
"I've got your back, Jaune!" Cardin roared.
Together the two of them charged an Ursa and swung their weapons down on its head. The impact of both Crocea Mors and Executioner slammed the bear Grimm down into the concrete just as it had begun to roar, crushing its skull and immediately causing its body to begin dissipating.
The attack was an announcement to the rest of the Grimm, and the creatures of darkness all let out roars, cries, and squawks as they descended on the two team leaders.
Undeterred, Jaune and Cardin continued with the maneuver that they'd hastily fallen into. Every beowulf that leaped toward them, every boarbatusk that charged them, every Ursa that tried to tackle them, every nevermore that shrieked down upon them, the two men struck as a pair. Jaune's sword cut off a Grimm's attack and Cardin's mace crushed the body. Cardin's mace would block a claw and Jaune's sword would slice through a Grimm's body. Or they'd strike together and rip through the Grimm to get through and meet the next monster to kill. It was a pattern of continuous attack and both beacon students screamed battle cries to match the roars of Grimm.
But their initial charge only gave them so much momentum. When bullets from rogue Atlas mechs and White Fang troopers began to pepper in between their attacks, Jaune and Cardin were forced to slow down and play more defensively. Back to back, Jaune maneuvered his shield to block every claw and bullet he could while Cardin followed up with his mace. As perilous as being surrounded on all sides by Grimm was, the creatures of darkness had bulk and thus made excellent impromptu shields for Jaune Cardin to duck behind so the Knight Units and White Fang shooters couldn't get a solid bead on them. Both boys did their best to stick close together and keep a pair or trio of Grimm between themselves and any gunners at all times.
When the White Fang's aggressive shouts started getting replaced with panicked cries, Jaune and Cardin knew that their support was about to give them some breathing room. They could both hear the loud cracks in the air that sounded each time May fired her sniper rifle, and each shot was followed by a scream from a White Fang member or small detonation as a knight unit's head exploded. More rapid fire shots along with a crackle of electricity was evidence of cover fire that Neptune provided in between May's sniper fire.
Past the Grimm, they saw a break in the White Fang's formation and charged through the Grimm blocking them, escaping the encirclement, and retreating back toward the barricade that May and Neptune were firing from alongside a few Atlas soldiers.
"Nice job!" One of the soldiers called enthusiastically. "That made 'em think twice! I was worried when I saw that group, but you guys took 'em apart!"
"Thanks for the assist!"
The cheers from the soldiery actually made the four hunters-in-training break out into a few grins. At least until another Atlas soldier shouted another warning.
"Paladin incoming!"
Indeed, the figure of a hulking mech was stepping out from behind a fallen building and was facing in their direction. Instead of approaching though, the mech leveled it's cannon and began firing. Jaune and Cardin through themselves over the barricade while everyone else ducked behind it, the barrier luckily managing to hold up against the hail of bullets.
"There's no way we can close the distance to take out that thing before its gun fills us up with bullets." Cardin said.
"Definitely not… but I think I could manage for a few seconds." Jaune muttered. "May, do you think you could take out the cannon if you had a chance to take a shot?"
"I-I don't think I can line up a shot while under fire!"
"I'll give you time to do it. Just hurry!"
"Wha-?!"
Jaune didn't hesitate. He leaped over the barricade with his shield in front, crouching low and presenting himself as small as he possibly could. Past his shield, he saw the paladin swerve toward him and unleash another barrage of fire. He gritted his teeth as he felt the impact of the bullets.
I'm not weak… I'm not useless…!
The Paladin fired another missile right at him. He surged his Aura and took the impact head on. The blast hit short of his position but blasted him as hard as an Ursa charge, but he held his ground even as his entire body seemed to rattle from the inside out.
His ears rang, he staggered. More bullets impacted his shield. He kept moving forward, gritting his teeth.
The cannon on the Paladin slowly turned towards him, away from the others. Jaune held his breath.
A shot rang out as a Dust round went right through the barrel of the main cannon. The firing chamber exploded into a massive fireball. Jaune spared a glance back at May: While she still looked scared, her aim was steady and true.
"HYAAAHHHH!"
Cardin slammed his Executioner down into the ground, unleashing another blast of Fire Dust. It rocketed through the earth, and Jaune barely dodged out of the way as the shot struck the ground the Paladin was standing on. The giant mecha staggered, the earth underneath it crumbling.
Neptune burst out of his improvised cover and unleashed a lightning blast. The electricity made contact with the Paladin, crackling all over its metallic armor. It stuttered for a moment, but kept coming.
"Damnit…!" Jaune cursed. He charged right at the Paladin, Neptune and May's fire peppering the Paladin. They were like pinpricks to its armor though, mere distractions. Cardin unleashed another blast of Fire Dust, blasting more rocks and shrapnel up against the monster robot.
"Go for the joints!" Neptune shouted.
Jaune ran as fast as he could, getting over the rubble and barricades. He grit his teeth and swung his sword, hard and fast, for the ankle of the Paladin. His sword burned with golden Aura, and he drove it into the joint-Just between the armor plates.
The reinforced mechanical hydraulics and electrical sinews resisted the first blow to some extent, but Jaune struck again, and again, and again-Before he reached the breaking point. A final blow, all of his Aura being put into it, broke the main joint of the ankle. Which was good timing-The Paladin spun around, May and Neptune's fire distraction no longer working. Jaune held up a shield and planted his feet-He took the blow, barely able to hold the blow back. He gritted his teeth as the Paladin, while crippled, still tried to crush him…
"CARDIN!" Jaune shouted.
Cardin barreled in, swinging his Mace to knock the giant robot's broken leg right out from under it. The mecha fell, and Jaune barely scrambled out of the way as it fell and slammed into the ground. Jaune didn't hesitate, and drove his sword through the cockpit canopy, smashing it to pieces. Cardin helped by taking out one of the arm joints, making the robot's gun arm fall, useless.
"Come on Jauney, COME ON!" Cardin shouted urgently. Jaune found the controls for the Paladin and smashed it as hard as he could. The electronics all went up in fire and smoke, and the mecha twitched, shuddered, and then fell limply onto the ground. Jaune and Cardin panted hard, sharing a small grin. It was a savage thing, unspoken yet strong.
All too brief though, as Grimm charged them. And behind them were more Knight drones.
- - -
Jaune slowly shook his head, taking a deep breath. He set his finished mug down onto the coffee table. He sighed.
"We fought as hard as we could. Ultimately though… We finally ran out of time."
- - -
Jaune could hear the shuttles taking off behind them. Though the seven of them were holding the line, no matter how many robots they took down, more stepped up to take their place. Not to mention the Grimm that were being drawn to all the commotion their battle was causing.
"We can't keep this up!" Ren shouted as he fired Stormflower at a beowolf. "I'm almost out of ammunition!"
"I'm out of grenades!" Nora called, swapping her weapon back to its hammer form in time to club away a charging boarbatusk.
"My aura is close to depleting! I can't take much more hits!" Arslan announced.
"Same here!" Cardin shouted.
"H-How much longer are we gonna defend this place?" Neptune asked frantically as he fired two crackshots that took out two Atlas knights. "There's only two ships left! Shouldn't we escape now?"
"Just… just a little longer!" Jaune called desperately. "There still might be people who are trying to make their way here!"
"Even if there were, there's no way they'd be able to get through all that!" Neptune shouted, pointing to the mixed horde of robots and Grimm. "I really think we should leave!"
"Not yet! Just a little more!"
"Jaune, c'mon man! It's time to call it! Anymore than this and we'll be-!"
Suddenly a familiar silver glyph appeared in front of their formation. A second later, a massive armored gauntlet wielding an even larger sword burst from the glyph and slammed down into the center of the horde, scattering the group of robots and creatures of darkness.
"Yes…!" Jaune cheered as several more glyphs appeared in the air.
Looking up, everyone saw the Schnee heiress using her glyphs as platforms to leap over the swarm of Grimm and rogue robots and over toward their group. Just behind her, a grizzled looking man was jumping across the glyphs right behind her while carrying someone underneath his arm. As they got closer Jaune spotted the red hood the person being carried was wearing, and Jaune felt his relief double.
…Only to realize a second later that he didn't see a certain redhead in golden armor jumping after the man. It was just three.
Jaune shut that thought down before it could break him, and instead raised his sword in the air as he shouted to his friends.
"Retreat to the shuttle! Let's go!"
Everyone immediately beat a retreat toward the shuttles. In the corner of his vision, he saw Weiss land between Nora and Ren, with the duo quickly moving to support the clearly exhausted Schnee heiress as she almost collapsed. The older man who Jaune recognized as Yang and Ruby's uncle was carrying Team RWBY's leader underneath his arm while firing into the crowd of Grimm and robots with his weapon as he backpedaled to the shuttle. Jaune raised his shield as Arslan and Cardin rushed past him, blocking a stream of bullets before Jaune ran after them.
The shuttle was already beginning to hover off the ground and Jaune had to leap to get himself onto the hanger ramp. He grabbed Arslan's outstretched hand and she helped haul him up into the back of the aircraft as the doors began to close.
"Everyone who isn't strapped in a seat better brace yourself! As soon as the hanger doors seal we're gonna take off fast!"
The pilot's announcement over the intercom had most everyone in the hangar dropping to the floor and Jaune was quick to mimic them. A few seconds after the bay doors groaned and sealed, Jaune felt his stomach lurch as the shuttle accelerated. The aircraft rumbled and Jaune could hear the winding whipping against the vehicle as it cut through the air. The roars of beowolves and ursa grew distant and bullets could no longer be heard ricocheting off of the shuttle's metal plating.
Jaune was glad that he was able to push down his motion sickness and not throw up all over the hanger. It was the last thing anyone needed.
When the turbulence settled, Jaune pushed himself back to his feet. Looking ahead, he caught a glimpse of Ruby and Yang's uncle disappearing through the door that led to the shuttle's passenger compartment. Jaune quickly hurried through the door after him.
As he hurried down the aisle, Jaune glanced around the packed seats. Men, women, and children all huddled in their seats. There were more people than there were seats in the shuttle though. Every child was sat in an adult's lap if they could, though many adults themselves were squeezing into one seat and sharing a seatbelt. Even then there wasn't enough room for everyone to sit down, and Jaune had to step over some people who were sitting in the aisle area or move around someone who was standing and gripping onto the closest seat or overhead storage handle for support. Everyone's faces expressed the same thing though.
Shock, terror, anger, loss, sadness, and misery.
Husbands and wives comforted each other, mothers and fathers tried to calm their children or hush crying babies, and people who were probably complete strangers to one another huddled close and whispered amongst themselves.
Jaune felt his spirit take another hit as he observed the crowd on his way after Qrow, who's voice he could hear speaking harshly from the cockpit.
"Sir, if you don't have anything valuable to contribute, then please return to the hanger area." The pilot told Qrow when Jaune reached them.
"The hell I don't!" The grizzled huntsman protested. "We need to get out of the air as soon as possible! I'm telling you that the settlement here will-"
"And I'm telling YOU that going there isn't possible. Before the radio went out we got a report that the town was under attack! That isn't a viable landing zone!"
"The longer we stay in the air, the bigger the chance some Grimm will knock us out of the sky! Those gunners don't have enough ammunition to clear us a path!"
"We're not clearing a path to anything, sir. We're flying away from Vale, southwest. It's the only direction not choked with Grimm. Whether or not we'll find a place to land before we're attacked is entirely up to our own luck now."
Qrow scoffed at that. "Oh yeah, because THAT'S reassuring…"
"Look, before the CCT went down we got reports of Grimm incursions not just in Vale, but in cities and towns bordering it. Any of the places you suggested have us risk dropping down into a Grimm horde. At this point we're better off trying our luck landing near a midland area or even at a frontier town."
"You got enough fuel to make it to the frontier though?" Qrow asked.
"I don't. My point is that the further we can get away from Vale is best. Actually landing in a city or town would be a bonus." The pilot sighed. "But with the CCT down I can't communicate long range to see what place will take us. Locale radio works but it'll only work if I get within range of a city's air control. I'm flying blind here, so unless you can point me an area a good distance from here that won't have us getting swamped by Grimm within the hour, I'm just picking a random direction and praying as I fly!"
"You…!"
Jaune coughed, getting the attention of both Qrow and the pilot. The pilot looked surprised while Qrow looked furious, though the older man quickly schooled his expression when realized that he recognized the kid that was standing at the door to the cockpit.
"Kid, you shouldn't be here right now. We're trying to figure out where a safe place to fly everyone is without-"
"Radian."
Qrow blinked at Jaune. "What's that now?"
"Radian. It's… it's a settlement that isn't too far from here. They'll take us in." Jaune muttered. "It's… between the frontier zone and Vale's proximity cities. Good distance from Vale, good distance from the border… it's a sweet spot that's pretty isolated from everything else. Isolated enough that we should be able to land safely."
"You sure about that?" The pilot asked. "We only have so much fuel and with the Grimm flying around we can't afford to be in the air longer than we have to. If they refuse to take us then-"
"Trust me, they'll let us land."
"Look kid, without some kind of guarantee I'm not sure I should-"
"My family is in charge of Radian. My dad, Nicholas Arc, runs the militia there. Just tell them Jaune Arc is asking that these people need asylum and I guarantee they'll put up with us and the other evac shuttles."
"…Alright, fine. It's not like we have any other real options anyhow." The pilot sighed. "You mind punching in the coordinates?"
Jaune nodded and hit a few buttons on the pilot's console as the man pointed to them. After confirming the coordinates, Jaune felt a hand grip his shoulder.
"Good on ya for giving us a place to fall back to, kid." Qrow said as he tugged Jaune out of the cockpit. "But you look like you're about to fall over. Seats in the passenger compartment are filled up, but there's plenty of room in the hanger. C'mon."
Jaune let Qrow guide him as he stumbled along. Moving past the fretting civilians packed into the seats, Jaune heard the door to the hanger hiss as it opened before it shut behind him. Slowly and with care, the older huntsman sat Jaune down against the wall a few feet away from the door.
"No seatbelts, but hopefully there won't be too much turbulence. You gonna be good here for now until we get to your hometown?"
"I… yeah, I'll… I'll be fine for now." Jaune murmured, suddenly feeling fatigued in a way he'd never felt before.
Looking over Qrow's shoulder, he could spot everyone else. Neptune was sprawled out on the floor while Arslan and Ren sat in meditative poses nearby. Weiss was sitting against the opposite wall, using her legs as a pillow to support a still unconscious Ruby. Yang was being inspected by a medic with Nora and Velvet hovering close to them, while Cardin sat in a chair nearby and leaning resting his chin against his palm. Scattered around were a few more Atlas soldiers and hunters. Everyone looked exhausted.
And as much as Jaune wanted to close his eyes and sleep… he had to know for certain…
"Where… where is she?" Jaune asked, gripping onto Qrow's arm before the man could pull away.
"What are you talking about?"
"My partner…" Jaune croaked. "Pyrrha… she… was going to go after Cinder… Ruby and Weiss were going to help her… where…?"
Qrow grimaced and Jaune felt his heart sink.
"Kid, c'mon… you gotta know the answer already," he said, gruff but not without sympathy.
Jaunne stared up at the older huntsman silently before he slowly shook his head. Even if he knew the answer in his heart, his mind rejected it. He had to hear it said out loud.
Even with his faltering strength, Jaune's grip tightened around Qrow's arm. "Where…?"
Qrow stared at the young man sitting in front of him for a moment before giving a tired sigh. Reaching behind him and digging into his back pocket, the man pulled out a red sash and presented it to Jaune.
"Ruby was holding onto this when I found her. I'm guessing you know who it belongs to…"
Jaune could feel the pressure build behind his eyes as they started to water. Even if it was burnt at the edges, Jaune recognized Pyrrha's sash instantly. Weakly raising his arm, Jaune grasped the fabric tightly as Qrow dropped it into the blonde's other hand.
"Pyrrha…"
"I'm sorry, kid… this was all that was left."
Jaune's grip on Qrow's forearm slackened and the huntsman pulled away. The young man glanced down and stared at his partner's sash. After a bit, his arms went limp and Jaune slumped against the wall. Even if his limbs felt heavier than lead, he still clenched onto the ribbon.
Even as his vision began to swim, Jaune thought back to that moment… the last time he ever saw his partner's face.
"I can't lose you."
Pyrrha was dead.
"I love you."
He would never see her again.
"Goodbye."
And he couldn't do a thing about it.
With that final thought, Jaune felt the last of his strength finally drain away as his head lulled to the side. Darkness creeped along the edges of his vision for a few seconds before blissful unconsciousness swallowed him his thoughts up.
– – –
The only sound in the room after that was the crackle of the logs in the fireplace, and the ticking of the old clock on the mantlepiece. Jaune's head was bowed as he stared down at the floor.
"After… After that," Jaune murmured, "I woke up in the hospital. Met up with Ruby…" He nodded to the little redhead, who sniffled a bit but still managed a smile, "and everyone else. We got to work and, well…" He shrugged. "Ruby?"
"I…" The little reapette swallowed before she spoke. "Weiss and I… We fought our way to the top of the tower. I saw… I saw Pyrrha fighting Cinder and that dragon. She… She took arrows to… To everywhere and…"
She shut her eyes tightly. Yang wrapped her arm around her little sister's waist, and squeezed her tightly. Ruby forced her eyes open, even as she trembled.
"And Cinder killed her," Ruby whispered, "And my eyes just… Just exploded. And the dragon was stoned and I just… Just…"
She sniffled again, tears falling from her silver eyes. She crumpled in her sister's arms, and Yang held her tightly. She rubbed her back up and down with her organic hand. A tense silence fell again, as Jaune bowed his head.
"We saw the Dragon as we escaped," Arslan said quietly, "It was frozen to the side of the tower-Stone. There are legends of Silver Eyed Warriors in the past who could do amazing things with their powers."
"I-I know of a few of them," May murmured, "My parents told me many… Stories…" Her voice dwindled to a mumble as Ruby sobbed.
Yang took a deep breath.
"And Weiss?" She asked, bracing herself for more bad news.
"We got here," Ren said softly, not looking directly at Yang, "And then some of her father's agents grabbed her at the hospital. Atlas has been reaching out to various towns and cities to find out where their citizens visiting Vale for the Vytal festival or surviving soldiers who were assigned as security for the event managed to evacuate to. I don't know how, given that the CCT network is down, but word got to Weiss's father somehow about where she was and his personal staff showed up and flew her back to Atlas. We didn't know she'd been taken until one of the nurses informed us when we asked where she was staying."
"She was gone before I woke up." Ruby mumbled. "I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye. And I can't even get a call through to her now…"
Yang grit her teeth, but managed to relax a little. Just a bit.
Jaune took a deep breath. He slowly nodded.
"So… You know the rest."
"And now we're on break," Neptune sighed. Jaune nodded slowly.
"Yeah," he sighed. He looked back up at the group. He worked his jaw carefully, and shook his head.
"Guys," he said, slowly and carefully, "Now that we know about the situation and your teams? You can all decide on what you want to do now. There's nothing to keep you here if you don't want to stay."
Neptune balked.
"Woah," Neptune held up a hand, "Where's this coming from?"
"I just…" Jaune shrugged. "I mean, we're here. We're safe. But you don't have to stay if you don't want to. If you do? Nothing changes. You don't have to make a decision now. I'm just saying… It's up to you."
Arslan nodded, her face a blank mask. Neptune grimaced, looking confused. He looked over at Arslan, then back at Jaune with a shrug. Cardin and Velvet remained cuddled together, though they both looked very grim. Yang was leaning against Ruby, but trying not to look like it. Even after her outburst, she was trying to look strong, while Ruby had given up her crying and fallen asleep. May sucked in a deep breath and just looked awkwardly towards Jaune. Nora and Ren stayed together, their eyes locked on Jaune expectantly.
Jaune took a deep breath.
"Anyway… We can talk more tomorrow," he finished. "Unless anyone has something they wanna add?"
Silence greeted him again. Nora took Ren's hand and squeezed it, before she turned her smile to Jaune.
"We're not going anywhere, Jaune-Jaune." She shrugged. "We… We don't have anywhere else to go, after all. Or anywhere we'd rather be."
"S-Same," May whispered quietly. Arslan reached out to squeeze her hand, which May took. Neptune had made to reach out too, but held back with a grimace.
Cardin sucked in a breath and slowly shook his head. He tightened his grip on Velvet's hand, and she wrapped her spare around his.
"We're fine here for now, Jaune," Cardin stated firmly.
"Y-Yeah," Velvet said quietly.
Arslan shrugged.
"I am here for a reason. And I am content to stay until I am needed elsewhere," she said softly.
Jaune frowned a bit in confusion, but managed a small smile in return.
"Then… See you all in the morning," he murmured. He turned to Yang. "Do… Do you need any help getting her to bed?"
Yang stared at him for a long moment before she nodded.
"Yeah. Thanks," she said softly. Between the two of them, they got Ruby up and carried her gently through the living room. They made it to the foyer, and slowly headed up the stairs.
It wasn't until they were gone, and Velvet slowly nodded that they were gone, that Ren spoke.
"We have made our choice. We're going with Jaune after Cinder… What about you?"
Cardin clenched his fist and growled.
"That bitch needs to go down. If you're going after her and her buddies? I'm in."
"Same," Velvet stated firmly. "We… We can't let them get away with this."
Arslan slowly nodded. Her face was grave.
"I wish to join with you as well," she said, "If you'll have me."
Neptune sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I gotta… Think about it," he admitted. "I mean, that bitch has gotta go down but… Why us? Why not other people? I mean… I mean I know it's personal for you guys," He nodded to Ren and Nora, "I get it. But…"
Cardin scowled a bit. Ren held up a hand.
"We understand," he said, "And like Jaune said: We don't have to make a decision right now."
"I…" May slowly shook her head. "I only had my team. Now… Now they're gone and…" She sighed and shut her eyes. "I don't know what I'm going to do with my life."
"Well," Neptune smiled, leaned back and winked at her, "You could always date a handsome young Hunter? That might be a nice start."
May stared at him, silent. The rest of the room was filled with the crackling of the logs and the ticking of the clock. Neptune sighed and looked away, face solemn.
"Yeah… I didn't think it was very good either," Neptune muttered.
"I…" May winced. "I'm sorry…"
"Don't be," Neptune snorted. "I got worse ones to tell."
"And I look forward to when we can all laugh at them," Arslan said, a gentle smile on her face as she reached out to squeeze his shoulder.
Nora smiled slightly as well.
"Me too," she said.
Neptune sighed softly, and stared into the fire.
"Yeah…"
- - - -
Written with massive help from
UnknownAnon
