Fandom Distorted Mirror [IC]

[Gus Gungus]

Briefly distracted from his search for the disappearing mute by Mercury and Emerald's antics, Char gazed over in their direction.

He didn't like what he saw.

"That fucking face....You really do look just like your old man...'

Marcus was always 'too good' to be bothered with those in the Hitman Team. Came with the territory of being one of the Boss's Elite Guards but things were so damn secretive with that guy that none of the people in the Hitman Team even knew what his semblance was. The few times that Char had encountered Marcus though? The guy was a total fucking prick and Char wouldn't have been surprised that if the reason he stopped showing up to meetings was that he got offed. Whether it was by someone baring a grudge or his own kid wouldn't have really shocked him either way. You didn't get to stand in the Elite Guard being a nice guy.

Turning to start walking towards Mercury, electricity crackled and danced along the edges of Riot Breaker.

"You're the whole reason my partner and I came here. Why don't you go ahead and show me what you-"

"Wait, what?" Mercury protested as he was pulled into canonicity, patting himself down and shooting Emerald a confused look. The thief just shrugged and put up her hands in reply, equally as listless but better at hiding it.



"Who knows? Maybe semblances are kaput on this dude or whatever."

"Wow, cheap."

"I know, right?"

"Why didn't you say something? How long have we just been standing here like assholes?"

"I guess since the very start."

He shrugged, sauntered forward and vaulted over the countertop they were both chilling behind, one metal greave clanking against the floor while the other moved to lazily spin-kick Riot Breaker out of the dude's hand before its swing brought it anywhere near Neo, embedding it in the far wall if successful. He lowered his foot slowly without breaking the man's eye contact, hands raised in a flexible stance and jaw set with that flare of intensity the assassin's son got sometimes when he stopped being goofy.

"Aaaaaaannnnd time. Look man, I don't care."

Emerald, content to keep being the peanut gallery regardless of her semblance, visibly cringed. "WOW. Just not giving him an inch, huh? Nothing for the gigantic bombshell that he knew your dad?"

"Every two-bit crook in Mistral with a couple of lien to rub together knew my dad. No need to make some big, personal thing out of it. What can I say? I like living in the world where nobody knew him. Including me."

"Damn."

"Yeah. So I'd tell you to get lost, buddy, but real talk? We're totally gonna tie you to a chair and spend the rest of the night beating the crap out of you for answers."

Unless she had some prideful objection and wanted to finish him off solo or something similarly western, he proceeded to team up with the ice cream menace and absolutely kick Char's shit in.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

As Nora felt her lungs gasping for air, she noted something… strange about the weapons being held towards them as a threat against any resistance; they were slowly starting to turn the wrong way, angling towards their wielder. The man most certainly felt it himself, something working against his own semblance to threaten him with his own tools.

Then a very familiar shield came spinning silently through the darkness like a ballistic discus, straight for the back of the faunus’ spiked skull while he was focused on the two brawlers and his traitorous sabers.

Stuck as she was suspended in the air and clawing for breath under that choking grip, she wasn't in a position to do much more than spitefully observe, though that spite lessened as she witnessed the two weapons turning away from them and back towards him. That was absolutely not the way to go about making good on the threat of skewering them if he actually intended to do so, but any thoughts on that were swept aside when she witnessed what followed. The shield that came spiraling in seemed like it had catapulted straight out of her memories and into existence. Her eyes widened for reasons that had little to do with her struggle to breathe. That shield was as unforgettable as the person who'd once wielded it, and in that moment, her brain, starved of air, thought she was seeing things. Impossible things.​

The man's snarl curled deeper and his efforts redoubled upon recognition of the intrusion, but the increasing strain on both sides came to a sudden end when the discus collided with his aura and horns. That had his rising growl become a seething roar, and he dove forward into a roll with the impact as bouncer and Nora alike were released from their entrapment, flung right back at the offending party along with the shield like a lethal return serve before he grunted and poured every last scrap of his telekinetic focus into bidding his sabers return to him. His instinct was to meet force with force, to prove superiority over whatever intruding power believed it could stand against his.

"The gnats swarm," he spat, the sheer venom in the words making every syllable as lethal as the weapons he fought to regain control of. Metaphorically.

The sheer Gs of the throw she was subjected to meant the blood must've been rushing to Nora's head, because as she went careening down the hall, the lithe form that gracefully leaped over her and caught the shield on their arm with a landing spin looked like a ghost. A red haired ponytail was held in place by a champion's tiara, and her armor called to mind the warriors of old rather than a modern huntress.

Anyone could dress like her though. What really sold Nora that it was the ghost of Pyrrha Nikos that was haunting this battlefield was the warm, apologetic smile she shot her as they passed by each other.

The mistralian champion planted her feet as she landed, and the faunus warrior found his weapons freed from whatever outside force was accosting his powers as she twirled her sword in hand and rested it on the edge of her shield. Whatever warmth those eyes might've held for Nora was burned away as they stared the man down, a far more savage smile upon her features as she called back towards him

"Sorry! You seemed like you were having too easy a time for this to be a fair fight. Perhaps I'm more your speed!"

As she got flung backwards, her eyes flickered wildly about in search of who had thrown that shield until they founded the redheaded warrior. Turquoise eyes locked onto green and though she only held that gaze for the briefest of moments as she flew by, it felt far more like an eternity. All else was ignored right then, and her thoughts on the sheer impossibility of what she was seeing only deepened. The smile on that face in that moment, it could have been pulled straight out of the past, she was sure of it. A ghost from the past, come to haunt her. Wielding those weapons, clad in that armor, adorning that tiara...

...Tiara! The faunus earlier had talked about a tiara girl. But...if they could see her too, then...that meant...she truly wasn't a ghost. She didn't appear to be any illusion crap either, but if so...that meant she was real. That Pyrrha Nikos had just saved her. Again. No way. That was impossible.

It was only when she hit the floor and skidded along it until the momentum ceased and she slowed to a stop, it was only then that the knowledge of what world she was on came crashing back down. It was a Pyrrha, yes, but not her Pyrrha. A Pyrrha that stood for...all the wrong things, and could easily prove herself to be just as messed up as this world's Ruby, or Weiss, or Blake, or Yang. Nora pushed herself up to sitting, her stare affixed back towards the way she'd be telekinetically tossed. There wasn't so much as a hint that she paid even the slightest attention to the big woman who'd been flung alongside her.

"Pyr...Pyrrha." She let out in a sorrowful, pained and choked breath. Without warning she shifted, and it was a just as strong but far far more emotional Nora that went for a punch to the big bouncer's face, intended to knock her out or at the very least stun her. Whatever actually happened, she scrambled away following it. The maybe cardless giant lady didn't matter right now, how her own strength measured up to the bouncer's was the least of her concerns. She stood there, paralyzed by indecision. If the pattern held true, and she didn't have any reason to doubt that it would...not only was that Pyrrha an evil shadow of the one she knew, but she was probably a murderer. Perhaps dozens of times over. Yet, at the same time...coming to her aid. That smile, held for just long enough....

Nora reached a choice just then. After she caught her breath, she was rushing back towards where the scary faunus and Pyrrha were.

Twisted or not, it was still Pyrrha. If anyone could hold their own with that guy, she felt confident that the magnetically gifted renowned warrior Pyrrha Nikos could do it, but even so...she wasn't simply gonna stand by. Not while she could still do something.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"Somethin' ain't right."

The twins had made steady progress to the higher lodging floors, mainly finding their path impeded by groups of robots that proved less troublesome with two Branwens cutting them down as opposed to one and easily evaded if they shifted into their bird forms. They even had the good fortune to run across a pair of combatants who were complete chumps in comparison, and both were one keycard heavier after leaving them slumped in one of the rooms as they navigated the bunker's endless hallways.

It had been Qrow who shifted back to human form first, his lips a thin frown as he glanced both ways up the hall they were in and moved over to the nearest adjacent one to do likewise. Nothing, save for another squadron of bots marching towards the far end that he ducked back to avoid, and a frustrated hiss escaped through his teeth as he slunk back over to his sister with hands in his pockets.

"I saw those Grimm get sicced on this place. There were a lot. They should be everywhere by now, so how come..."

He trailed off, gaze whipping sharply to the right as his ears picked up something in the distance. The reverberating walls of the steel tomb they were all competing in carried it further than it would've traveled otherwise, and while it was impossible to tell precisely where on the floor it was coming from beyond the vague direction what the sound itself was was unmistakable.

Humming.
​

"Something isn't right? Yes, no kidding. We're stuck in some crazy building in a deathmatch against criminals of all sorts, murderous death bots and one of the more frightening kinds of Grimm that exist, with who knows what else surprises in store?" She wasn't going to rule anything out. "Of course there's plenty that is wrong here." All her words were bitingly sarcastic but even in the middle of delivering that reply to him, she had to admit she could sense that something was off as well. Beyond the strange situation they were in. It was only when he brought up the grimm that she tensed up a bit, but before she could respond in any meaningful way, she likewise snapped to attention, straining to hear something faint that she could have sworn...yes, there.

Focusing on what she heard didn't make any less troubling, however.

"That doesn't sound pleasant."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

'Ugh, what kind of shitty partner am I? I didn't even get to see Black's kid in action. Haven't heard Char screaming for help...' Blanche thought to himself as he reached to push the doors open. 'Guess the others were wrong about you, Char. You're not a coward. You lasted longer than I did! I'm proud of you. You're doing the Hitman Team justice..'

The doors were pushed open and the cigarette fell from Blanche's lips as he started to fall forward.

'Sorry for being dead weight.'

*thud*

Though she knew not what his thoughts were, by the time the pushed away Vernal caught back up, she looked down at the passed out guy with at least a little respect. "There there, my guy." She patted his back with her boot as casually as she could. "You fought well." She wiped away the blood pouring out of her nose and then smirked.

"Just not well enough." Yeah, she was blatantly ignoring how close her aura had come to breaking. One hand lowered to grab the dude by his scraggly hair and she dragged his unconscious body along as she entered, only releasing her grip when she was by the bar itself. Where she graciously helped herself to some drinks.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

The sheer Gs of the throw she was subjected to meant the blood must've been rushing to Nora's head, because as she went careening down the hall, the lithe form that gracefully leaped over her and caught the shield on their arm with a landing spin looked like a ghost. A red haired ponytail was held in place by a champion's tiara, and her armor called to mind the warriors of old rather than a modern huntress.

Anyone could dress like her though. What really sold Nora that it was the ghost of Pyrrha Nikos that was haunting this battlefield was the warm, apologetic smile she shot her as they passed by each other.

The mistralian champion planted her feet as she landed, and the faunus warrior found his weapons freed from whatever outside force was accosting his powers as she twirled her sword in hand and rested it on the edge of her shield. Whatever warmth those eyes might've held for Nora was burned away as they stared the man down, a far more savage smile upon her features as she called back towards him

"Sorry! You seemed like you were having too easy a time for this to be a fair fight. Perhaps I'm more your speed!"

"Pyr...Pyrrha." She let out in a sorrowful, pained and choked breath. Without warning she shifted, and it was a just as strong but far far more emotional Nora that went for a punch to the big bouncer's face, intended to knock her out or at the very least stun her. Whatever actually happened, she scrambled away following it. The maybe cardless giant lady didn't matter right now, how her own strength measured up to the bouncer's was the least of her concerns. She stood there, paralyzed by indecision. If the pattern held true, and she didn't have any reason to doubt that it would...not only was that Pyrrha an evil shadow of the one she knew, but she was probably a murderer. Perhaps dozens of times over. Yet, at the same time...coming to her aid. That smile, held for just long enough....

Nora reached a choice just then. After she caught her breath, she was rushing back towards where the scary faunus and Pyrrha were.

The two bruisers had been fired with such velocity they landed in a tangled heap a good fifty feet away, Nora having little difficulty in getting the leverage required to slug the mighty bouncer in her titan's jaw. "Ow," she rumbled, not quite unconscious but laid out flat and dazed by everything that had just happened, no seeming intention of stopping the Valkyrie as she dashed away.

Beneath the dazzling lights of the arena the scene she returned to frankly wasn't all that dissimilar from a broadcast of one of Pyrrha's fights, either this incarnation or the one who had been her friend. The fearsome gladiator she now faced had propelled himself into the air to snatch a saber in each hand, effortlessly coordinated and familiar enough in their use to keep their ignited edges from searing his own aura as he landed a short distance from her and locked them back into their staff configuration with a click, beginning to circle her with a practiced spin of the weapon behind his back. The light's twirling display was oddly beautiful, in perhaps the same way a bug zapper was beautiful to a moth. He spoke, every word forced out through clenched teeth as though the intimidating faunus was fueled by his own hatred.

"Tsk, yes, quite weary is the head that wears the crown of superiority. Those who lack it crave it, while those who possess it curse the day they were stricken with its tedium. Perhaps I need not explain it to one whose exploits have spanned my home continent, from its highest peak..."

He gripped a corner of his tattered cloak and yanked, tearing it away to expose the bare and unarmored skin beneath. Tribal markings of a similar vein to his face covered the entirety of his startlingly red body, rendering it difficult to tell where they ended and his flesh began.



"...To its deepest swamp."

For some sort of swamp-dwelling barbarian, he seemed remarkably well-spoken. The grip on his staff was reversed and the fingers on his other hand flexed, burning yellow eyes never once falling from his quarry.

"Am I to understand, miss Nikos, that you believe combat should be principled, then? You seek some sort of worthy adversary."

He grinned, lethal and ferocious.

"TOUGH!"



Both hands were thrust wide, and the arena foundation groaned as two more balconies were ripped from their fixings and hurtled towards Pyrrha with surprising velocity.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Something isn't right? Yes, no kidding. We're stuck in some crazy building in a deathmatch against criminals of all sorts, murderous death bots and one of the more frightening kinds of Grimm that exist, with who knows what else surprises in store?" She wasn't going to rule anything out. "Of course there's plenty that is wrong here." All her words were bitingly sarcastic but even in the middle of delivering that reply to him, she had to admit she could sense that something was off as well. Beyond the strange situation they were in. It was only when he brought up the grimm that she tensed up a bit, but before she could respond in any meaningful way, she likewise snapped to attention, straining to hear something faint that she could have sworn...yes, there.

Focusing on what she heard didn't make any less troubling, however.

"That doesn't sound pleasant."​

"I don't need your shit right now, Raven." :|

He strained his ears a few moments longer, and whatever he heard had him belt Raven's arm an instant before assuming his bird form, signalling she should follow suit as he flew up to a higher railing in whatever odd indoor community garden they were in. No sooner than she did were they joined, a lone wendigo rounding the corner from the affixed corridor with its unnatural speed as it blindly scratched and snuffled its way along the floor, teeth and claws pointed and ravenous. Another followed suit, then another, the same vague sense of sedation driving their movements for reasons that were unclear until the main pack rounded the corner.

"ᴬⁿᵈ ʰⁱˢ ᵉʸᵉˢ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵉᵉᵐⁱⁿᵍ ᵒᶠ ᵃ ᵈᵉᵐᵒⁿ'ˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ⁱˢ ᵈʳᵉᵃᵐⁱⁿᵍ,
ᴬⁿᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ˡᵃᵐᵖˡⁱᵍʰᵗ ᵒ'ᵉʳ ʰⁱᵐ ˢᵗʳᵉᵃᵐⁱⁿᵍ ᵗʰʳᵒʷˢ ʰⁱˢ ˢʰᵃᵈᵒʷ ᵒⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ᶠˡᵒᵒʳ."

The sight was baffling. It defied all logic regarding the nature of the relationship between humanity and Grimm, because in the center of that snarling, swarming, miserable mass of flesh and clawed limbs there walked a man. His face was ghostly white, his eyes and mouth streaked with eyeliner and lipstick, and the long, unwashed head of hair he bore fell low on his sweeping leather coat as he hummed gutturally and moved with the creatures like he was their master. It was a sentiment they appeared to agree with, judging from how one allowed him to scratch its bulbous dome like it was behind the ears of a cat. The words he spoke were seeming gibberish, neither any kind of sensible nor aligned with his humming's rhythm.

"ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵗʰᵉ ᵗᵃᵖ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ ᵍʳᵉʷ ᵃ ʳᵃᵖ, ᵃⁿᵈ ⁱⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ʳᵃᵖ ᴵ ʰᵉᵃʳᵈ ᵃ ˢⁿᵃᵖ. ᴴᵉʰ ʰᵉʰ."



"ᶜᵒᵐᵉᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ʰᵒᵘʳ, ᶜᵒᵐᵉᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ᴿᵃᵛᵉⁿ. ᴺᵉᵛᵉʳᵐᵒʳᵉ."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"I don't need your shit right now, Raven." :|

"But you're getting it all the same. Not like life's fond of giving us what we need." : |​

He strained his ears a few moments longer, and whatever he heard had him belt Raven's arm an instant before assuming his bird form, signalling she should follow suit as he flew up to a higher railing in whatever odd indoor community garden they were in. No sooner than she did were they joined, a lone wendigo rounding the corner from the affixed corridor with its unnatural speed as it blindly scratched and snuffled its way along the floor, teeth and claws pointed and ravenous. Another followed suit, then another, the same vague sense of sedation driving their movements for reasons that were unclear until the main pack rounded the corner.

"ᴬⁿᵈ ʰⁱˢ ᵉʸᵉˢ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵉᵉᵐⁱⁿᵍ ᵒᶠ ᵃ ᵈᵉᵐᵒⁿ'ˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ⁱˢ ᵈʳᵉᵃᵐⁱⁿᵍ,
ᴬⁿᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ˡᵃᵐᵖˡⁱᵍʰᵗ ᵒ'ᵉʳ ʰⁱᵐ ˢᵗʳᵉᵃᵐⁱⁿᵍ ᵗʰʳᵒʷˢ ʰⁱˢ ˢʰᵃᵈᵒʷ ᵒⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ᶠˡᵒᵒʳ."

The sight was baffling. It defied all logic regarding the nature of the relationship between humanity and Grimm, because in the center of that snarling, swarming, miserable mass of flesh and clawed limbs there walked a man. His face was ghostly white, his eyes and mouth streaked with eyeliner and lipstick, and the long, unwashed head of hair he bore fell low on his sweeping leather coat as he hummed gutturally and moved with the creatures like he was their master. It was a sentiment they appeared to agree with, judging from how one allowed him to scratch its bulbous dome like it was behind the ears of a cat. The words he spoke were seeming gibberish, neither any kind of sensible nor aligned with his humming's rhythm.

"ᶠʳᵒᵐ ᵗʰᵉ ᵗᵃᵖ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ ᵍʳᵉʷ ᵃ ʳᵃᵖ, ᵃⁿᵈ ⁱⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ʳᵃᵖ ᴵ ʰᵉᵃʳᵈ ᵃ ˢⁿᵃᵖ. ᴴᵉʰ ʰᵉʰ."

"ᶜᵒᵐᵉᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ʰᵒᵘʳ, ᶜᵒᵐᵉᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ᴿᵃᵛᵉⁿ. ᴺᵉᵛᵉʳᵐᵒʳᵉ."

"...Case in point." Her now bird form whispered so softly it was difficult for even the crow that perched beside her to hear. What in the absolute hell is this? It was hard for a bird to convey much, with their limited ability in facial expression and body language but the tilt of her head managed to sufficiently communicate the sheer taken aback what the fuck is this crap feeling that coursed through her whole body as she watched the strange grimm parade. Especially directed at the guy at the center of it all. There weren't that many people who could walk like that among grimm, almost bordering on none, really.

"Who the hell is this jackoff supposed to be? Ozpin's demented gothic rhyming cousin?"

She had no idea, but a chill ran through her body anyway. And...had he just called her out, like he was aware of her name and her presence? Or did it just so happen that they shared names? Neither of those were particularly comforting. "Here's your answer, brother. There they are. Question is, what do we do about it?"​

 

[MidwayLives]

That's hot, she thought to herself from where she now stood, having long since pulled away from that corner and leaving the flames to harmlessly burn nothing but the hallway itself. : |

Undeniably impressive, though the guy was lucky the bolt he had caught had not been an explosive one that would have blown up in his face. She had only been testing the guy more, after all. Something she tried to make more apparent as she called out. "Wait, stop!" It was difficult to pinpoint exactly where the voice was coming from. "That was only me putting you to the test, I wasn't looking to actually start a fight! I'm open to teaming up!" Much as this guy seemed like a lunatic who she wouldn't ordinarily partner with, this tournament was full of guys like that. Might as well try to reach out to the first one she found.

The flames slowly petered out as Robyn shouted to made herself heard over the roaring flames.

Huh.

"Funny thing that, I was just looking for a partner..."

Lowering his hand, Satin still left a ball of fire circulating in the palm of his hand just incase.

Truth be told, he'd rather have just killed whoever shot at him. Getting saddled with partners just weren't his thing.

But rules were rules...

"Whatever."

The flame dissipated entirely and Satin tucked his hands away in his pockets.

"Name's Satin. If you wanna be partners, get out here before I turn this place into a crematorium." ​

 

[MyrtenRose]

The flame dissipated entirely and Satin tucked his hands away in his pockets.

"Name's Satin. If you wanna be partners, get out here before I turn this place into a crematorium."

"...Sorry but did you just say your name's Satan?" Robyn did step up and poke her head around the corner again to look at him. "And that's a bit excessive, don't you think? Scuse me, did I say a bit? I meant very. Very excessive--" She fell abruptly silent, her head shooting off to the side a bit and looking past him towards the other end of the area they were in. The faint noise she'd heard got progressively louder and louder with each passing moment, and before too long it was easy to recognized the noise as the metallic shrieking of the tip of a sword being deliberately dragged along the floor. Then it was joined by another sound, the clear heavy footsteps of heavy armored boots stomping along. Another several seconds passed before the one responsible for making all that noise and announcing their presence finally stepped into sight.

The person was fairly small, but clad from head to toe in heavy silver armor tinted with red. The large sword by their side was almost as tall as the person themselves and held firmly in one hand, emblazoned in the same colors as the armor. They came to a stop and though the eyes of the person could not be seen behind that helmet, it was more than obvious they were staring at Satin from behind that frankly intimidating helmet. A few moments of quiet on the new arrival's part passed and it was impossible to tell what the person was thinking, whether planning a strategy of some kind or simply just gauging the pair's worthiness to even do battle with or if they were thinking of something else entirely. It was even difficult to tell if the person before them was a man or a woman...some things about that armor made her think the former, others the latter. Whatever the case, the person, whoever they were, made abundantly clear their ill intent without any warning(save for ones delivered by aura) or even so much as a single word spoken. Apparently they had decided on a strategy for battle...and that was simply to attack.



The suddenness with which the person moved from standing still a fair distance away to practically on top of Satin was remarkable, especially considering all that armor weighing them down. They practically flew across the battlefield. Both hands gripped the blade's handle now and it was brought down in an overhead swing aimed for Satin's skull.

I hate this, Robyn thought to herself as her weapon unfolded and loaded up and she waited for an ideal shot.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"...Case in point." Her now bird form whispered so softly it was difficult for even the crow that perched beside her to hear. What in the absolute hell is this? It was hard for a bird to convey much, with their limited ability in facial expression and body language but the tilt of her head managed to sufficiently communicate the sheer taken aback what the fuck is this crap feeling that coursed through her whole body as she watched the strange grimm parade. Especially directed at the guy at the center of it all. There weren't that many people who could walk like that among grimm, almost bordering on none, really.

"Who the hell is this jackoff supposed to be? Ozpin's demented gothic rhyming cousin?"

She had no idea, but a chill ran through her body anyway. And...had he just called her out, like he was aware of her name and her presence? Or did it just so happen that they shared names? Neither of those were particularly comforting. "Here's your answer, brother. There they are. Question is, what do we do about it?"

Qrow's reaction wasn't exactly the most inspiring either, buttonlike eyes transfixed on the man and his ghoulish entourage with about as close to a look of distress as could exist on the face of an avian in want of eyebrows, lips or a nose. He was tall, the figure under the veil of leather broad and strong without being quite in the same category of bulk as the likes of Hazel. His build had more in common with the killer in one of those old horror flicks, straddling that sweet spot of large and powerful yet also oddly elegant and capable of moving silently, which was evident as he breezed into the terrarium with his boots making nary a sound. However hard a punch the guy's body might've been packing wasn't what worried the huntsman, though.

It was whatever the hell must've been going on with the soul living in it. A semblance that let someone walk with Grimm, maybe even control them... that was the kind of thing tryhards and teenagers told each other around campfires to win cool kid points. Urban legends about an acquaintance of a cousin of a friend's friend who got themselves lost in the woods one night and saw a pair of eyes amid a sea of grimm's that weren't grimm, or the one about the guy who moved into the site of a massacre by the creatures years earlier and swore he caught glimpses of a kid hovering around the bottom of the garden in the dead of night, even heard the occasional creak from where the old family's nursery would've been. That kinda thing. It wasn't like it was outside the realm of possibility—most grimm were less evolved than humans cognitively until they were a century old minimum, and there were a plethora of semblances out there that could be used to speak to animals or control them telepathically or whatever. So why not? It was just about believable enough to be creepy, to make you wonder. That was why all the stories used it.

To actually see it with his own eyes, though... that was a whole other thing, and it raised all sorts of uneasy questions he was trying not to let flood him. Salem back home, Ozpin here... their influence over the Grimm came from their exposure to the same primordial darkness that spawned the creatures. They weren't created that way; it was something that had been done to them.

So what the hell did that say about anyone who'd been born with that darkness already in their soul?



"This changes things. If there's someone here who can harness this many Grimm this nasty, not to mention whatever lives in the basement... By morning there's not gonna be anyone left for a tournament. He'll slaughter everyone here while they're all busy kickin' the crap out of each other to realize what's coming."

The words that came from his own parted beak were similarly hushed, though it did nothing to disguise their urgency. That same commitment to silence guided the portentious figure's every move as he ran his fingertips over a bed of flowers, still muttering to himself in a very loose blend of verse and freeform while his pets spread across the room in search of targets. A grouping of orchids had him pause, hand stroking them a bit more repetitiously than any of the others before it abruptly snatched at them, grouping them all together at the stem. He flexed his opposing fist, prompting two long, curved wristblades to extend from the folds of his sleeve, and in a single sweeping movement the orchids were all severed so he could lift them away, bringing them to his face for a sniff.

"Forget keycards. If we don't find the others, group up with them and anyone else not too crazy or shady to care... every single person down here is gonna die."

"ᶠᵃᵗᵉ."

The manner in which he suddenly raised his voice ago had the amount of tension in Qrow's bearing double, but the man gave no indication that he had spotted them. For now there was no reason to believe it was anything more than another dose of his deranged ramblings.

"ˢᵒᵐᵉ ˢᵃʸ ᵗʰᵉ ᵒⁿˡʸ ᶠᵃᵗᵉ ⁱˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵒʷⁿ ᵐᵃᵏⁱⁿᵍ. ᴼᵗʰᵉʳˢ ᵇᵉˡⁱᵉᵛᵉ ʷᵉ ˢᵉʳᵛᵉ ᵃᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ʷʰⁱᵐ ᵒᶠ ʰⁱᵍʰᵉʳ ᵇᵉⁱⁿᵍˢ, ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʷᵉ ᵃʳᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵒᶠ ᵘˢ ᵖᵘᵖᵖᵉᵗˢ ᵈᵃⁿᶜⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᵃⁿ ᵃⁿᶜⁱᵉⁿᵗ ᵗᵘⁿᵉ, ˢˡᵃᵛᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ˢᵒᵐᵉ ᵘⁿˢᵉᵉⁿ ˢᶜʳⁱᵖᵗ. ᴹʸ ᵗʳᵘᵗʰ ˡⁱᵉˢ ˢᵒᵐᵉʷʰᵉʳᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ᵐⁱᵈᵈˡᵉ."

His dark, guttural growl was reflected in the snarl of the wendigo he popped a squat beside, gently running a hand across its scalp as it stared at him. He plucked a single orchid from the bunch, and carefully threaded its steam through the bony ridges surrounding the creature's ears before giving it a gracious pat and moving onto the next, like some sort of cultish initiation rite. Each one he left behind continued to watch him as if mesmerized, empty eyes wide, gaping jaws slack.

"ᴵ ᵇᵉˡⁱᵉᵛᵉ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᶜʳⁱᵖᵗᵘʳᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᶠᵃᵗᵉ ˡⁱᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵒᵘʳ ᵉᵃʳˡⁱᵉˢᵗ ᵐᵒᵐᵉⁿᵗˢ. ᴹᵉᵐᵒʳⁱᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᶠᵉᵉˡⁱⁿᵍˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ˡⁱⁿᵍᵉʳ ˡᵒⁿᵍ ᵃᶠᵗᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᵉᵛᵉⁿᵗˢ ᶠᵃᵈᵉ. ᴴᵃᵖᵖʸ ᵒʳ ˢᵃᵈ. ᴸᵒᵛᵉᵈ ᵒʳ ᵃˡᵒⁿᵉ. ᵀʰᵉ ˢᵃᵐᵉ ˢⁱᵍʰᵗˢ, ˢᵒᵘⁿᵈˢ ᵃⁿᵈ ˢᵉⁿᵗⁱᵐᵉⁿᵗˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᵈᵉᶠⁱⁿᵉ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇⁱʳᵗʰ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵉˣⁱˢᵗᵉⁿᶜᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵗᵘʳⁿ ᵈⁱᶜᵗᵃᵗᵉ ⁱᵗˢ ᵉⁿᵈ, ᵃⁿᵈ ᵃˢ ˢᵘʳᵉˡʸ ᵃˢ ᵗʰᵉ ᶜʰᵒˢᵉⁿ ᵗᵃᵏᵉ ᵗʰᵉⁱʳ ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ˢᵗᵉᵖˢ ᵗᵒʷᵃʳᵈˢ ᵍʳᵉᵃᵗⁿᵉˢˢ ˢᵒ ᵗᵒᵒ ᵈᵒ ᵗʰᵉ ᵘⁿᶠᵒʳᵗᵘⁿᵃᵗᵉ ᵇᵉᵍⁱⁿ ᵈᵉᵛᵒᵘʳⁱⁿᵍ ᵗʰᵉᵐˢᵉˡᵛᵉˢ, ᵗʰᵉⁱʳ ᵒⁿˡʸ ᵈᵉˢᵗⁱⁿᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ ᵃⁿⁿⁱʰⁱˡᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ. ᵂᵉ'ʳᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵖʳⁱˢᵒⁿᵉʳˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵒʷⁿ ⁿᵃᵗᵘʳᵉ; ⁿᵒ ᵉᶠᶠᵒʳᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵈᵉᶠʸ ᵗʰᵉ ᵗⁱᵈᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᵈᵉˢᵗⁱⁿʸ ⁿᵒʷ ᶜᵃⁿ ˢᵗᵃⁿᵈ ⁱⁿ ᵈᵉᶠⁱᵃⁿᶜᵉ ᵒᶠ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᶜᵃᵐᵉ ᵇᵉᶠᵒʳᵉ ⁱᵗ. ᵀᵒ ᵗʳʸ ᵈᵉⁿⁱᵉˢ ᵒᵘʳ ⁿᵃᵗᵘʳᵉ, ᵃˢ ˢᵘʳᵉˡʸ ᵃˢ ᵗʰᵉ ᶠⁱˢʰ ʷʰᵒ ˡᵒⁿᵍˢ ᵗᵒ ᵇʳᵉᵃᵗʰᵉ ᵃⁱʳ."

He bestowed his final orchid on the grimm nearest the door, pressing his forehead against its own in a display of inter-species solidarity that was uncomfortable, unnerving, and quite frankly bizarre.

"ᵀʰᵉ ʰᵘⁿᵗᵉʳ ʷʰᵒ ˢᵉᵉᵏˢ ᵃ ᵖᵉᵃᶜᵉᶠᵘˡ ᵉⁿᵈ."

A blessing and curse when it came to dealing with wendigo were that they were blind. They were subterranean grimm who relied on sight, sound, and the raw pull of negative energy to chase their prey into their claws. When they swarmed, it was easy for them to lose track of where a victim was under the horde of snapping, growling and scraping.

So to say it was unsettling when the heads of every single one of the creatures suddenly turned to affix the two corvids with razor precision and that same slack-jawed, hollow-eyed stare was like saying a Solitas blizzard in winter was cold.

"ᴼʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇⁱʳᵈˢ ʷʰᵒ ʳᵒᵒˢᵗ ᵇᵉⁿᵉᵃᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵒⁱˡ."

Spoiler: Bird #1 reaction

 

[MyrtenRose]

"This changes things. If there's someone here who can harness this many Grimm this nasty, not to mention whatever lives in the basement... By morning there's not gonna be anyone left for a tournament. He'll slaughter everyone here while they're all busy kickin' the crap out of each other to realize what's coming."

The words that came from his own parted beak were similarly hushed, though it did nothing to disguise their urgency. That same commitment to silence guided the portentious figure's every move as he ran his fingertips over a bed of flowers, still muttering to himself in a very loose blend of verse and freeform while his pets spread across the room in search of targets. A grouping of orchids had him pause, hand stroking them a bit more repetitiously than any of the others before it abruptly snatched at them, grouping them all together at the stem. He flexed his opposing fist, prompting two long, curved wristblades to extend from the folds of his sleeve, and in a single sweeping movement the orchids were all severed so he could lift them away, bringing them to his face for a sniff.

"Forget keycards. If we don't find the others, group up with them and anyone else not too crazy or shady to care... every single person down here is gonna die."

"...Agreed." There wasn't much more to say in response to that. A man with this sort of influence over grimm, especially this dangerous variety of grimm, and a bunch of weakened and distracted fighters? It would be a bloodbath, that's for sure. The man and his pack could just take his time, casually and slowly walking and murdering them all one by one if they continued as is. But if enough of them banded together, knew what to expect...that would be a different story entirely. And a far preferable one at that. Even if she did have more to say, it didn't come out of her mouth as she focused her eyes on said dangerously creepy man.​

"ᶠᵃᵗᵉ."

The manner in which he suddenly raised his voice ago had the amount of tension in Qrow's bearing double, but the man gave no indication that he had spotted them. For now there was no reason to believe it was anything more than another dose of his deranged ramblings.

"ˢᵒᵐᵉ ˢᵃʸ ᵗʰᵉ ᵒⁿˡʸ ᶠᵃᵗᵉ ⁱˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵒʷⁿ ᵐᵃᵏⁱⁿᵍ. ᴼᵗʰᵉʳˢ ᵇᵉˡⁱᵉᵛᵉ ʷᵉ ˢᵉʳᵛᵉ ᵃᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ʷʰⁱᵐ ᵒᶠ ʰⁱᵍʰᵉʳ ᵇᵉⁱⁿᵍˢ, ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʷᵉ ᵃʳᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵒᶠ ᵘˢ ᵖᵘᵖᵖᵉᵗˢ ᵈᵃⁿᶜⁱⁿᵍ ᵗᵒ ᵃⁿ ᵃⁿᶜⁱᵉⁿᵗ ᵗᵘⁿᵉ, ˢˡᵃᵛᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ˢᵒᵐᵉ ᵘⁿˢᵉᵉⁿ ˢᶜʳⁱᵖᵗ. ᴹʸ ᵗʳᵘᵗʰ ˡⁱᵉˢ ˢᵒᵐᵉʷʰᵉʳᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵗʰᵉ ᵐⁱᵈᵈˡᵉ."

His dark, guttural growl was reflected in the snarl of the wendigo he popped a squat beside, gently running a hand across its scalp as it stared at him. He plucked a single orchid from the bunch, and carefully threaded its steam through the bony ridges surrounding the creature's ears before giving it a gracious pat and moving onto the next, like some sort of cultish initiation rite. Each one he left behind continued to watch him as if mesmerized, empty eyes wide, gaping jaws slack.

"ᴵ ᵇᵉˡⁱᵉᵛᵉ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᶜʳⁱᵖᵗᵘʳᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᶠᵃᵗᵉ ˡⁱᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵒᵘʳ ᵉᵃʳˡⁱᵉˢᵗ ᵐᵒᵐᵉⁿᵗˢ. ᴹᵉᵐᵒʳⁱᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᶠᵉᵉˡⁱⁿᵍˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ˡⁱⁿᵍᵉʳ ˡᵒⁿᵍ ᵃᶠᵗᵉʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᵉᵛᵉⁿᵗˢ ᶠᵃᵈᵉ. ᴴᵃᵖᵖʸ ᵒʳ ˢᵃᵈ. ᴸᵒᵛᵉᵈ ᵒʳ ᵃˡᵒⁿᵉ. ᵀʰᵉ ˢᵃᵐᵉ ˢⁱᵍʰᵗˢ, ˢᵒᵘⁿᵈˢ ᵃⁿᵈ ˢᵉⁿᵗⁱᵐᵉⁿᵗˢ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᵈᵉᶠⁱⁿᵉ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇⁱʳᵗʰ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵉˣⁱˢᵗᵉⁿᶜᵉ ⁱⁿ ᵗᵘʳⁿ ᵈⁱᶜᵗᵃᵗᵉ ⁱᵗˢ ᵉⁿᵈ, ᵃⁿᵈ ᵃˢ ˢᵘʳᵉˡʸ ᵃˢ ᵗʰᵉ ᶜʰᵒˢᵉⁿ ᵗᵃᵏᵉ ᵗʰᵉⁱʳ ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ˢᵗᵉᵖˢ ᵗᵒʷᵃʳᵈˢ ᵍʳᵉᵃᵗⁿᵉˢˢ ˢᵒ ᵗᵒᵒ ᵈᵒ ᵗʰᵉ ᵘⁿᶠᵒʳᵗᵘⁿᵃᵗᵉ ᵇᵉᵍⁱⁿ ᵈᵉᵛᵒᵘʳⁱⁿᵍ ᵗʰᵉᵐˢᵉˡᵛᵉˢ, ᵗʰᵉⁱʳ ᵒⁿˡʸ ᵈᵉˢᵗⁱⁿᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ ᵃⁿⁿⁱʰⁱˡᵃᵗⁱᵒⁿ. ᵂᵉ'ʳᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵖʳⁱˢᵒⁿᵉʳˢ ᵒᶠ ᵒᵘʳ ᵒʷⁿ ⁿᵃᵗᵘʳᵉ; ⁿᵒ ᵉᶠᶠᵒʳᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵈᵉᶠʸ ᵗʰᵉ ᵗⁱᵈᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᵈᵉˢᵗⁱⁿʸ ⁿᵒʷ ᶜᵃⁿ ˢᵗᵃⁿᵈ ⁱⁿ ᵈᵉᶠⁱᵃⁿᶜᵉ ᵒᶠ ᵃˡˡ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ᶜᵃᵐᵉ ᵇᵉᶠᵒʳᵉ ⁱᵗ. ᵀᵒ ᵗʳʸ ᵈᵉⁿⁱᵉˢ ᵒᵘʳ ⁿᵃᵗᵘʳᵉ, ᵃˢ ˢᵘʳᵉˡʸ ᵃˢ ᵗʰᵉ ᶠⁱˢʰ ʷʰᵒ ˡᵒⁿᵍˢ ᵗᵒ ᵇʳᵉᵃᵗʰᵉ ᵃⁱʳ."

He bestowed his final orchid on the grimm nearest the door, pressing his forehead against its own in a display of inter-species solidarity that was uncomfortable, unnerving, and quite frankly bizarre.

"ᵀʰᵉ ʰᵘⁿᵗᵉʳ ʷʰᵒ ˢᵉᵉᵏˢ ᵃ ᵖᵉᵃᶜᵉᶠᵘˡ ᵉⁿᵈ."

A blessing and curse when it came to dealing with wendigo were that they were blind. They were subterranean grimm who relied on sight, sound, and the raw pull of negative energy to chase their prey into their claws. When they swarmed, it was easy for them to lose track of where a victim was under the horde of snapping, growling and scraping.

So to say it was unsettling when the eyes of every single one of the creatures suddenly turned to affix the two corvids with razor precision and that same slack-jawed, hollow-eyed stare was like saying a Solitas blizzard in winter was cold.

"ᴼʳ ᵗʰᵉ ᵇⁱʳᵈˢ ʷʰᵒ ʳᵒᵒˢᵗ ᵇᵉⁿᵉᵃᵗʰ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵒⁱˡ."

The seemingly out of nowhere raising of his voice likewise got to Raven. She was much too professional to jump up in alarm, but it was undeniable that her heart was racing faster as she listened to him go on and on. Gradually her heart rate settled as he rambled to himself like a lunatic about fate and what it meant to him. How he viewed that simple four letter word that meant something not at all simple. An...admittedly interesting ramble, but the words were the lesser focus here. Her eyes trailed him every step of the way as he went about doing...whatever the hell that was with the grimm. All of it culminating in a strange and disconcerting intimate gesture with the final grimm to get adorned that way.

It only got worse from there.

Her heart immediately jumped back to racing again and even faster than before as every. single. one. of the beasts turned, their soulless empty stares aimed straight for them. Oh, terrific. One bird slightly leaned over towards the other. "Looks like we've been made." She unnecessarily pointed out, and she wasn't really certain whether that attempt at a joke was more for his benefit or her own. "Should probably get out of here while the getting's good." Barring him having any better ideas, she went for going to do exactly that in a burst of wings and feathers.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Her heart immediately jumped back to racing again and even faster than before as every. single. one. of the beasts turned, their soulless empty stares aimed straight for them. Oh, terrific. One bird slightly leaned over towards the other. "Looks like we've been made." She unnecessarily pointed out, and she wasn't really certain whether that attempt at a joke was more for his benefit or her own. "Should probably get out of here while the getting's good." Barring him having any better ideas, she went for going to do exactly that in a burst of wings and feathers.

"Wait, be caref-"

The problem that particular plan of action posed in the relatively confined spaces of the bunker was immediate, as one of the wendigo sprang to cling to the door lintel she swooped towards with haste that matched her evasive bird form if not downright surpassed it, like a roach disturbed by light in how sudden and jerky the movement was. It screeched at her, rows of jaws biting outward to try and snap the raven straight out of the air in what would probably place fairly low on her list of ways to go.

The first screech seemed to strike a chord amongst its brethren, their master hunkering down again to watch in silent satisfaction with his fingers steepled as the creatures all went feral at once, snapped from their trance by Raven's movement.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"Wait, be caref-"

The problem that particular plan of action posed in the relatively confined spaces of the bunker was immediate, as one of the wendigo sprang to cling to the door lintel she swooped towards with haste that matched her evasive bird form if not downright surpassed it, like a roach disturbed by light in how sudden and jerky the movement was. It screeched at her, rows of jaws biting outward to try and snap the raven straight out of the air in what would probably place fairly low on her list of ways to go.

The first screech seemed to strike a chord amongst its brethren, their master hunkering down again to watch in silent satisfaction with his fingers steepled as the creatures all went feral at once, snapped from their trance by Raven's movement.​

Oh shit!

The bird flinched backward in obvious alarm before she got too near those far too many teeth of the creature that now blocked her path. A backwards movement that pushed her straight into the portal that had just burst open behind her. The dark red portal spat her out by Qrow’s position once again, managing to drop down on the perch solidly enough despite the overwhelming fear response that had been provoked by the monster.

It still took some time before she managed to will her nerves to settle. “That didn’t work.”

Spoiler

​

 

[MidwayLives]

"...Sorry but did you just say your name's Satan?" Robyn did step up and poke her head around the corner again to look at him.

"SAT-TIN. Not SAY-TIN. Got an I instead of an A."
​

"And that's a bit excessive, don't you think? Scuse me, did I say a bit? I meant very. Very excessive--"

"No. Not really. These keycards are made out of a pretty durable material. Shift through the ashes and you'll find em." Satin responded either not getting what Robyn was hinting at or not really caring about burning his fellow competitors alive. Hard to say which one.
​

She fell abruptly silent, her head shooting off to the side a bit and looking past him towards the other end of the area they were in. The faint noise she'd heard got progressively louder and louder with each passing moment, and before too long it was easy to recognized the noise as the metallic shrieking of the tip of a sword being deliberately dragged along the floor. Then it was joined by another sound, the clear heavy footsteps of heavy armored boots stomping along. Another several seconds passed before the one responsible for making all that noise and announcing their presence finally stepped into sight.

The person was fairly small, but clad from head to toe in heavy silver armor tinted with red. The large sword by their side was almost as tall as the person themselves and held firmly in one hand, emblazoned in the same colors as the armor. They came to a stop and though the eyes of the person could not be seen behind that helmet, it was more than obvious they were staring at Satin from behind that frankly intimidating helmet. A few moments of quiet on the new arrival's part passed and it was impossible to tell what the person was thinking, whether planning a strategy of some kind or simply just gauging the pair's worthiness to even do battle with or if they were thinking of something else entirely. It was even difficult to tell if the person before them was a man or a woman...some things about that armor made her think the former, others the latter. Whatever the case, the person, whoever they were, made abundantly clear their ill intent without any warning(save for ones delivered by aura) or even so much as a single word spoken. Apparently they had decided on a strategy for battle...and that was simply to attack.

Satin watched the armored figure slowly approach without making a move of his own.

Before encountering Robyn, he'd mostly been roasting these bots. Dunno what it was but wasn't as much fun to watch them stagger through the flames.

Maybe it was the lack of smothered screams.

Without so much as even attempting diplomacy, Satin removed one hand from his pocket and closed his blind eye.

"Don't know who you are. Don't care either but you picked the wrong one."

The inklings of raging embers trickled along Satin's arm. The bright blue glow illuminating the chunks of burned flesh along his body.

"You'll die in that suit."

Cooked alive.
​

The suddenness with which the person moved from standing still a fair distance away to practically on top of Satin was remarkable, especially considering all that armor weighing them down. They practically flew across the battlefield. Both hands gripped the blade's handle now and it was brought down in an overhead swing aimed for Satin's skull.

Whoa, they were quick.

Fire erupted from the soles of Satin's boots as he was propelled back, the sword coming mere inches from his face on it's descent downwards.

Coming to a stop, Satin's gruesome stitched visage formed a smile.

The palm of his outstretched hand started to glow and as smoke from his previous blasts cascaded past him, the grin only seemed to get bigger.

Maybe this one would do for him what those machines hadn't.

Die screaming amid the flames.

"Burn."

​

I hate this, Robyn thought to herself as her weapon unfolded and loaded up and she waited for an ideal shot.

Some people went through live with something of a devotion.

It didn't matter to whom said dedication was favored to.

It could have been a person, a place, even an ideal.

Whatever it was it stuck to that person's soul.

Such was the case with the man who went by the name of Radiant Obsidian.

In his mind there was always a guiding hand pushing him along the righteous path. The path that was right and justified.

Everyone else in this competition were sinners undeserving of life and the opportunities that lay ahead.

Unfortunately, for as eager as he was to please whatever 'god' he may have followed, Radiant's semblance wasn't great unless certain circumstances were met. 'Raindrops keep falling'' was it's name and with it, he could manipulate water in any way he saw fit. Turn it to ice, blades, weapons, shields, etc. The drawback was that it needed to be an external source of water he could draw upon. He simply couldn't conjure it up like Satin or the Boss could with their respective elemental semblances. Which is why he'd kept something of a low profile throughout the proceedings. Waiting for his chance to strike and thanks to Satin's lack of care with 'Azure Nightmare', that chance had come sooner than expected.



The smoke wafting off the fried carcasses of the 'bots wafted upwards and activated the sprinklers spraying a torrent of water down. The smoking husks were slowly extinguished and it was then that he finally made his move, his footsteps indistinguishable from the pitter patter of the water rushing down. While Satin engaged the one in armor, Robyn felt a gentle tap on her shoulder. If she looked back she'd see a man-his face hidden away by a mask-standing in the center of the descending water with an umbrella in his left hand.

" 'scuse me..."

His feet weren't touching the ground however. It seemed as if he was standing atop some of the water droplets themselves.

"So~rry. Could....I...have your keycard? I'll let you go if you...just hand it...over..."
​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"Dude's trashing our bar... Shouldn't we reveal ourselves?"

"Shh. Neo's being awesome," Mercury brushed off her concern, munching on a jumbo sized bag of peanuts he took from behind the counter after kicking everyone out as they both just casually followed the chaos and stuck to its periphery. They weren't even making any effort to stay hidden or anything. Neo could see the duo standing right there, both flicking her grins and a pair of encouraging thumbs up in sync the first time she looked over. It was just the other guy who couldn't, nor could he hear them, because illusions were like... so broke.

"True, I think she needs this. FUCK HIM UP, NEO!"

"AND TRY DO IT IN ENVIRONMENTALLY NONDESTRUCTIVE WAYS, UNLESS IT'S COOLER THAT WAY THEN I- Y'know what? Not even gonna backseat fight, just do your thing."

Note: This post didn't happen

Moments before the airhorn trick, Neo shot the duo a bright if slightly confused smile and a pair of thumbs up from where she was hiding behind the counter, seemingly in no rush to ask for help or get them involved. It was good to know that Em's semblance was still

~~~

While Blanche had passed out before warning Char of his defeat, the other hitman was having troubles of his own...

Briefly distracted from his search for the disappearing mute by Mercury and Emerald's antics, Char gazed over in their direction.

He didn't like what he saw.

"That fucking face....You really do look just like your old man...'

Marcus was always 'too good' to be bothered with those in the Hitman Team. Came with the territory of being one of the Boss's Elite Guards but things were so damn secretive with that guy that none of the people in the Hitman Team even knew what his semblance was. The few times that Char had encountered Marcus though? The guy was a total fucking prick and Char wouldn't have been surprised that if the reason he stopped showing up to meetings was that he got offed. Whether it was by someone baring a grudge or his own kid wouldn't have really shocked him either way. You didn't get to stand in the Elite Guard being a nice guy.

Turning to start walking towards Mercury, electricity crackled and danced along the edges of Riot Breaker.

"You're the whole reason my partner and I came here. Why don't you go ahead and show me what you-"

"Ohohoho! So there you are, kid! ALRIGHT!"

He turned and swung Riot Breaker and hit...nothing?

"What the fuck-"

*BWOOOOOM*

-AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!"

Char stumbled back nearly dropping Riot Breaker in the process.

He'd seen a lot of things in his time as a gangster and as a hitman.

Getting blasted in the ear by an airhorn was a new one.

Raising his sword above his head, he swung it down. Cleaving the countertop in twain and leaving him wide open as Neo vaulted over it and-

"AAAAAGHHHHH!!!!"

He ripped Riot Breaker free and clutched at his left ear. That hurt, it actually really hurt!

*thwack*

Riot Breaker clattered to the ground as Char fell onto the floor.

On his back for the umpteenth time this fight.

He'd believed this kid to be just like the rest. She'd crack like an egg now that she'd lost her semblance. Give or take a bit, she'd eventually be like putty in his hands. For some their semblance was part of who they were, what made up the M.O. of their fighting style. Yet this kid had not only managed to knock him down three times but two repeated blasts to the ear had left him a bit dazed and slow to sit up. Scratching his head, he stared the huntress down. If Violet were here this is where she'd bet that Char would have started begging for mercy/trying to talk his way out of the mess if his opponent actually proved to be competent without their semblance. With three people around him and Blanche having been knocked out(not yet known to him)it would have been advisable at the very least.

But he couldn't do that. He couldn't just turn tail and run.

"Kid."

He brushed himself off and stood up with a bit of a shake in his posture.

"I underestimated ya. Sorry 'bout that."

He lashed out with Riot Breaker to try and catch Neo right across the chest.​

View attachment 738881

"Wait, what?" Mercury protested as he was pulled into canonicity, patting himself down and shooting Emerald a confused look. The thief just shrugged and put up her hands in reply, equally as listless but better at hiding it.

View attachment 738879

"Who knows? Maybe semblances are kaput on this dude or whatever."

"Wow, cheap."

"I know, right?"

"Why didn't you say something? How long have we just been standing here like assholes?"

"I guess since the very start."

He shrugged, sauntered forward and vaulted over the countertop they were both chilling behind, one metal greave clanking against the floor while the other moved to lazily spin-kick Riot Breaker out of the dude's hand before its swing brought it anywhere near Neo, embedding it in the far wall if successful. He lowered his foot slowly without breaking the man's eye contact, hands raised in a flexible stance and jaw set with that flare of intensity the assassin's son got sometimes when he stopped being goofy.

"Aaaaaaannnnd time. Look man, I don't care."

Emerald, content to keep being the peanut gallery regardless of her semblance, visibly cringed. "WOW. Just not giving him an inch, huh? Nothing for the gigantic bombshell that he knew your dad?"

"Every two-bit crook in Mistral with a couple of lien to rub together knew my dad. No need to make some big, personal thing out of it. What can I say? I like living in the world where nobody knew him. Including me."

"Damn."

"Yeah. So I'd tell you to get lost, buddy, but real talk? We're totally gonna tie you to a chair and spend the rest of the night beating the crap out of you for answers."

Unless she had some prideful objection and wanted to finish him off solo or something similarly western, he proceeded to team up with the ice cream menace and absolutely kick Char's shit in.​

Oh, it wasn't.

Neo swung hush out if its blocking stance as Mercury decided to get involved to drop into a dainty sit on the counter instead as they talked. There was a sympathetic frown on her face as he talked, but by the time he was finishing his words, she'd leaned on his shoulder (only able to reach it because she was standing on the countertop) to shoot Char a downright apologetic smile, before she used the shoulder like a vault to front flip over and behind before that's exactly what happened

 

[MidwayLives]

Oh, it wasn't.

Neo swung hush out if its blocking stance as Mercury decided to get involved to drop into a dainty sit on the counter instead as they talked. There was a sympathetic frown on her face as he talked, but by the time he was finishing his words, she'd leaned on his shoulder (only able to reach it because she was standing on the countertop) to shoot Char a downright apologetic smile, before she used the shoulder like a vault to front flip over and behind before that's exactly what happened

This is what he wanted.

A fight with Marcus's kid. Pinky had been a welcome detour.

Riot Breaker hummed like an orchestra as he lashed out at the two as they doubleteamed him.

It didn't go that great.

Unused to teamwork due to the Hitman Team's operative usually working on their own, Char was taken aback by Mercury's skill. Even without so much as an inkling as to what his semblance was. It didn't make any damn sense. How the hell were these kids so well-trained? These weren't just your motley crew of little punks. They knew a thing or two and it was going to end up with him losing this. After the latest round of metal foot to face, Char stumbled back against a wall and Riot Breaker clattered to the floor. The humming died down as Char tried to catch his fleeting breath.

'I'm gonna lose to a bunch of snotnosed kids. Oh man, that bitch is gonna have a field day with this. I'll never hear the end of it.'

But he didn't have any regrets. He'd come here to prove that he wasn't a coward. That he could fight without relying on the Null Zone.

He pushed himself off the wall and clutched at his knees. Blood running down from his nose and over his lips.

"Fuck..."

He had to be sure.

"Blanche! BLANCHE!"

There wasn't any response.

Whoever attacked him must have either knocked him out or killed him. Either one meant 'Beyond the Years' was no longer active. Things had gone south real quick and it seemed as though Blanche and him weren't going to walk out of here without acquiescence to this kid's demands. Raising his hand, a red glow appeared around Char's person. Snapping his fingers, the trio would have seen that same red glow around the interior of the bar slowly fade away. "There. You can use your semblances again. You won." He took a step forward and toppled over beside Riot Breaker.

'I didn't run away...' ​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

The two bruisers had been fired with such velocity they landed in a tangled heap a good fifty feet away, Nora having little difficulty in getting the leverage required to slug the mighty bouncer in her titan's jaw. "Ow," she rumbled, not quite unconscious but laid out flat and dazed by everything that had just happened, no seeming intention of stopping the Valkyrie as she dashed away.

Beneath the dazzling lights of the arena the scene she returned to frankly wasn't all that dissimilar from a broadcast of one of Pyrrha's fights, either this incarnation or the one who had been her friend. The fearsome gladiator she now faced had propelled himself into the air to snatch a saber in each hand, effortlessly coordinated and familiar enough in their use to keep their ignited edges from searing his own aura as he landed a short distance from her and locked them back into their staff configuration with a click, beginning to circle her with a practiced spin of the weapon behind his back. The light's twirling display was oddly beautiful, in perhaps the same way a bug zapper was beautiful to a moth. He spoke, every word forced out through clenched teeth as though the intimidating faunus was fueled by his own hatred.

"Tsk, yes, quite weary is the head that wears the crown of superiority. Those who lack it crave it, while those who possess it curse the day they were stricken with its tedium. Perhaps I need not explain it to one whose exploits have spanned my home continent, from its highest peak..."

He gripped a corner of his tattered cloak and yanked, tearing it away to expose the bare and unarmored skin beneath. Tribal markings of a similar vein to his face covered the entirety of his startlingly red body, rendering it difficult to tell where they ended and his flesh began.

"...To its deepest swamp."

For some sort of swamp-dwelling barbarian, he seemed remarkably well-spoken. The grip on his staff was reversed and the fingers on his other hand flexed, burning yellow eyes never once falling from his quarry.

"Am I to understand, miss Nikos, that you believe combat should be principled, then? You seek some sort of worthy adversary."

He grinned, lethal and ferocious.

"TOUGH!"

Both hands were thrust wide, and the arena foundation groaned as two more balconies were ripped from their fixings and hurtled towards Pyrrha with surprising velocity.

Pyrrha wore a calm and patient smirk as the faunus made his declaration, her fingers lightly flexing behind her shield as he spoke.

"I do enjoy a fight, yes. But this isn't the arena that everyone watched me grow up in. I want a worthy foe-"

The balconies came flying in, and Pyrrha shot her hands in opposite directions; one thrust towards the man himself with a sweeping motion, the metal staff suddenly jerking in his grip in a gambit to make him sock himself in the face, while the other shot backwards, an invisible pull gripping the heavy duty metal walls behind her and the force pulling her towards it instead of the other way around, catching Nora around the waist to keep her leap from sending her straight into the crash zone she'd just left.

"-NOT A FAIR ONE!"

She landed with a skid of metal geaves against the metal floor and gently placed Nora down with a much quieter "hello!"

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

Though she knew not what his thoughts were, by the time the pushed away Vernal caught back up, she looked down at the passed out guy with at least a little respect. "There there, my guy." She patted his back with her boot as casually as she could. "You fought well." She wiped away the blood pouring out of her nose and then smirked.

"Just not well enough." Yeah, she was blatantly ignoring how close her aura had come to breaking. One hand lowered to grab the dude by his scraggly hair and she dragged his unconscious body along as she entered, only releasing her grip when she was by the bar itself. Where she graciously helped herself to some drinks.​

She got about a step into the door when about thirty guns got pointed at her.

"S'cuse me ma'am, but the proprieters are takin' care of some business in the back thereabouts nows. Why don't you take a seat n' we'll get to you nice in shortly."

The Spiders had not, in fact, completely abandoned ship. Miss Muffets was their home as much as their business, and while Neo, Mercury, and Em seemed to have whatever was going on in the back handled, it didn't mean they had any intention of leaving the defense of their home to the kids, dangerous as they were.

 

[MyrtenRose]

She got about a step into the door when about thirty guns got pointed at her.

"S'cuse me ma'am, but the proprieters are takin' care of some business in the back thereabouts nows. Why don't you take a seat n' we'll get to you nice in shortly."

The Spiders had not, in fact, completely abandoned ship. Miss Muffets was their home as much as their business, and while Neo, Mercury, and Em seemed to have whatever was going on in the back handled, it didn't mean they had any intention of leaving the defense of their home to the kids, dangerous as they were.

That was a whole lot of guns and a whole lot of loyalty to the place. "...Whatever." She shrugged, acquiescing to the demand. "Heads up though, I'm not with the guy starting shit." She thumbed casually over at the unconscious Blanche. "He was. You're welcome."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

The palm of his outstretched hand started to glow and as smoke from his previous blasts cascaded past him, the grin only seemed to get bigger.

Maybe this one would do for him what those machines hadn't.

Die screaming amid the flames.

"Burn."

The armored opponent's head cocked as they took in the sight of the explosive burst of blue flames heading their way. Their expression was still unseen but the body language didn't convey great concern with the attack. In an instant, they had their own assault of elemental energy generated and coalesced together before immediately unleashing it. A blast of crimson lightning shot forth to collide with the other attack, the crimson juxtaposed against the blue in a rather cool looking effect, or at least, the armored one thought so. A few seconds after the two attacks met and shoved against each other, however, the armored foe pushed off the ground with their boots and lunged through the air right into that mess without seemingly much care.

They emerged out the other side without even a single sound indicating pain or discomfort, and the look of that armor wreathed and illuminated by the blue flames only added to their intimidating nature. It was definitely a sight that would have given lesser men heart attacks with fright. But they didn't much care about scaring this one, only killing him, as they went to bring their sword down for his head once more.
​

"SAT-TIN. Not SAY-TIN. Got an I instead of an A."

"Oh."​

"No. Not really. These keycards are made out of a pretty durable material. Shift through the ashes and you'll find em." Satin responded either not getting what Robyn was hinting at or not really caring about burning his fellow competitors alive. Hard to say which one.

"That's not what I...y'know what, nevermind."​

While Satin engaged the one in armor, Robyn felt a gentle tap on her shoulder. If she looked back she'd see a man-his face hidden away by a mask-standing in the center of the descending water with an umbrella in his left hand.

" 'scuse me..."

His feet weren't touching the ground however. It seemed as if he was standing atop some of the water droplets themselves.

"So~rry. Could....I...have your keycard? I'll let you go if you...just hand it...over..."

"...No." And then she turned away from the strange looking man, seemingly returning her attention back to the other two.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

Pyrrha wore a calm and patient smirk as the faunus made his declaration, her fingers lightly flexing behind her shield as he spoke.

"I do enjoy a foe, yes. But this isn't the arena that everyone watched me grow up in. I want a worthy foe-"

The balconies came flying in, and Pyrrha shot her hands in opposite directions; one thrust towards the man himself with a sweeping motion, the metal staff suddenly jerking in his grip in a gambit to make him sock himself in the face, while the other shot backwards, an invisible pull gripping the heavy duty metal walls behind her and the force pulling her towards it instead of the other way around, catching Nora around the waist to keep her leap from sending her straight into the crash zone she'd just left.

"-NOT A FAIR ONE!"

She landed with a skid of metal geaves against the metal floor and gently placed Nora down with a much quieter "hello!"

She had just been about to jump in and attempt to slam one of those balconies away with a powerful swing of her weapon, when instead the not-her Pyrrha roped her around the belt and pulled them both back out of the danger spot and when their backward momentum ceased, the tinier ginger got put down gently, like she was a delicate vase or something, instead of the badass warrior that she was. But honestly, that hardly registered or mattered right now, and Nora gulped, returning the hello with a far more uncertain and ludicrously awkward: "U-Uh...hey."

She'd known about the fact that for some strange reason, many of the people that she knew to be good and bad had changed places, but knowing that fact did not prepare her for the reality of seeing a still alive Pyrrha today. "Nice to see you?" She didn't know if it was really nice or not just yet but she didn't know what else to say.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Oh shit!

The bird flinched backward in obvious alarm before she got too near those far too many teeth of the creature that now blocked her path. A backwards movement that pushed her straight into the portal that had just burst open behind her. The dark red portal spat her out by Qrow’s position once again, managing to drop down on the perch solidly enough despite the overwhelming fear response that had been provoked by the monster.

It still took some time before she managed to will her nerves to settle. “That didn’t work.”

Spoiler

The creature's head twitched around rapidly in confusion when the shape of sounds and motion it was perceiving as Raven shunted its physical space, but jerked its gaze over to the spot she emerged from the second the exit portal started emitting its faint pulse. Its screech was as feral as grimm screeches came as it coiled and immediately sprang for her again, but this time the yield was different.



It being that the creature was severed in twain in what was a fiercely focused, surprisingly un-flashy swing from her twin as he landed gracefully atop a railing and narrowly avoided the swiping claws of another of the creatures that propelled itself at him. Two more were already following suit with similar drive-bys, the first of which he only just managed to duck at the cost of a loss of his immaculate balance and dangerous teetering atop the rail as it dug two deep gouges into his cloak, and the second of which he didn't quite manage to avoid in its entirety as his aura shimmered protestingly under the rake of its claws. All the monsters had their focus on him now, their raptorial shrieks building to a harmonious fever pitch as they were given a more defined target and their master's smile cut the image of benevolence where he stood. The only reason Qrow hadn't already been buried under more of them than he could handle was their focus on blocking the room's exits, flat out clogging the exit corridors with their mass and numbers, and Qrow pushed off his back foot with a frantic spinning deflection from Harbinger to ward off the three chasing him.

"RAVEN, GET US OUTTA HERE NOW!"

He didn't much care where they portaled to, it just had to not be here.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Moments before the airhorn trick, Neo shot the duo a bright if slightly confused smile and a pair of thumbs up from where she was hiding behind the counter, seemingly in no rush to ask for help or get them involved. It was good to know that Em's semblance was still

Oh, it wasn't.

Neo swung hush out if its blocking stance as Mercury decided to get involved to drop into a dainty sit on the counter instead as they talked. There was a sympathetic frown on her face as he talked, but by the time he was finishing his words, she'd leaned on his shoulder (only able to reach it because she was standing on the countertop) to shoot Char a downright apologetic smile, before she used the shoulder like a vault to front flip over and behind before that's exactly what happened

This is what he wanted.

A fight with Marcus's kid. Pinky had been a welcome detour.

Riot Breaker hummed like an orchestra as he lashed out at the two as they doubleteamed him.

It didn't go that great.

Unused to teamwork due to the Hitman Team's operative usually working on their own, Char was taken aback by Mercury's skill. Even without so much as an inkling as to what his semblance was. It didn't make any damn sense. How the hell were these kids so well-trained? These weren't just your motley crew of little punks. They knew a thing or two and it was going to end up with him losing this. After the latest round of metal foot to face, Char stumbled back against a wall and Riot Breaker clattered to the floor. The humming died down as Char tried to catch his fleeting breath.

'I'm gonna lose to a bunch of snotnosed kids. Oh man, that bitch is gonna have a field day with this. I'll never hear the end of it.'

But he didn't have any regrets. He'd come here to prove that he wasn't a coward. That he could fight without relying on the Null Zone.

He pushed himself off the wall and clutched at his knees. Blood running down from his nose and over his lips.

"Fuck..."

He had to be sure.

"Blanche! BLANCHE!"

There wasn't any response.

Whoever attacked him must have either knocked him out or killed him. Either one meant 'Beyond the Years' was no longer active. Things had gone south real quick and it seemed as though Blanche and him weren't going to walk out of here without acquiescence to this kid's demands. Raising his hand, a red glow appeared around Char's person. Snapping his fingers, the trio would have seen that same red glow around the interior of the bar slowly fade away. "There. You can use your semblances again. You won." He took a step forward and toppled over beside Riot Breaker.

'I didn't run away...'

Emerald being a lazy efficient semblance dependent and Roman (god rest his soul) sucking (in comparison!) meant the double trouble Char faced now was arguably the slickest, most well-polished combination of all Beacon's coolest team's members from a sheer technical standpoint, the same duo that had styled all over the Vytal Tournament and boxed with a goddess well enough that she wanted to be a regular at their bar now. They might've still been young, but Beacon's talent curve was infamously high even compared to the other huntsman academies, and they had been among its very best. Neopolitan was an anomaly of a person in every sense whose soul and skills had been strengthened repeatedly by hardships and loss most people never endured in their entire lifetime, while Mercury had been chiselled out of stone into the weapon he was by one of the land's most notorious assassins, a man he eventually proved strong enough to kill even deprived of his semblance. From Tock to the Shadow Fang elites to the crazy who offed Roman herself, Mercury with all his fight analysis skills had yet to see the gladiator he wasn't confident would pay the price for taking them lightly.

Char was definitely no slouch, but the tornado of boots and parasols he ended up in honestly didn't put a foot out of place, and the end result was MTEN's former leader crashing down on him in a debilitating axe kick before he folded his form and let the midget flip over his back for the aura finishing blow she'd already earned. Merc was already dusting off his shoulders when he straightened up, his steely eyes hard as he swept his hair out of his forehead and let a confident stride over end in kicking the hitman onto his back.

"Sorry to cut the lesson short, Neo. Figured I owed one of pop's old drinking buddies the time of day before you were done schooling him."​

 

[MidwayLives]

The armored opponent's head cocked as they took in the sight of the explosive burst of blue flames heading their way. Their expression was still unseen but the body language didn't convey great concern with the attack. In an instant, they had their own assault of elemental energy generated and coalesced together before immediately unleashing it. A blast of crimson lightning shot forth to collide with the other attack, the crimson juxtaposed against the blue in a rather cool looking effect, or at least, the armored one thought so. A few seconds after the two attacks met and shoved against each other, however, the armored foe pushed off the ground with their boots and lunged through the air right into that mess without seemingly much care.

"Hehe..."

"You're just full of surprises, huh...?"

Coming at someone like him in a suit like that seemed like suicide by immolation. But they just kept on coming.

Enthusiastic as he was to meet someone like that, he hated that they were standing his way.

If he didn't advance, he'd have failed the Boss.

That simply couldn't happen.

'Azure Nightmare's' flames grew hotter the more hate Satin had for his target. The roaring of the flames as they clashed with the lightning captivated Radiant's attention.

"They're quite strong.....huh?"
​

They emerged out the other side without even a single sound indicating pain or discomfort, and the look of that armor wreathed and illuminated by the blue flames only added to their intimidating nature. It was definitely a sight that would have given lesser men heart attacks with fright. But they didn't much care about scaring this one, only killing him, as they went to bring their sword down for his head once more.

Watching as the armored figure bounded into the depths of his flames, Satin reached inside his jacket. His stitched up hand wrapping around the hilt of some kind of weapon.

"Was hoping to save this til later but..."

As they emerged from the fire, sword met sword in the quickest of draws.

Spoiler: Burning Wind

A sizzling was heard as the two weapons clashed and froze in a deadlock, Satin's grin never faltering.

He could heat up his blade and it made mutilating troublesome enemies all the easier. Once he got it hot enough, it was as easy as carving and instantly cauterizing the wound and then Satin could go about his business. As the clash continued though it became evidently clear who was the physical superior between these two. Satin hated to admit it but he was rusty in close quarters. Why bother drawing your blade when you could simply immolate your opponent from afar? He was forced to lean back ever so slightly, his grisly patchwork face reflected in his opponent's glistening blade.

'Heh....damn I'm in a bit of trouble here...'

~~~
​

"...No." And then she turned away from the strange looking man, seemingly returning her attention back to the other two.

"No? So~rry, that's not very polite...." Radiant mused as if his feelings had been hurt by Robyn's quick shutdown of his rather polite request.

Looking at the two competitors locking their blades, Radiant tapped the underside of his mask.

"....Maybe I can take their keycards...if you won't give me....yours.."

Without even so much as moving his hands, still holding the umbrella aloft, some of the water droplets around Radiant began to shift.

Into rather intimidatingly sized icicles.

"...Off you go..."

The newly formed icicles rotated around Radiant before launching forward. Hearing them whistling through the air, Satin propped a boot on his opponent's chest and let a flame burst out. Pushing him back and once more putting some distance between the two of them. While leaving the two of them right in the direct path of the icy projectiles being launched their way. Keeping one hand secured to the hilt of Burning Wind's hilt, Satin grit his teeth and the smile finally vanished. Somebody with a water/ice semblance? They had to show up now while he was dealing with this?

Good grief...

"Get out of the way." He called out to Robyn as he lashed out his free hand in the direction of Robyn and Radiant.

The icicles coming his way were obliterated in the gout of flame that came barreling down the section of hallway. While he'd gone as far as to give Robyn some form of a warning, she'd still need to press up against the wall or move her ass to avoid being caught up in the flames. Or at least that's what she would have needed to do if Radiant didn't step forward. Water continuing to drizzle down around him like some kind of shield, he quirked his head to the side and looked at the wall of flame coming down the warpath. Just as the armored one had shown no fear before, the same was said for this masked man.

" 'scuse me....But that won't work...Not against my 'Raindrops keep Falling...' "

*VSSSSSSSHHHH*

Just like that the entire section of hallway that Satin/Radiant/Robyn/the armored one were all standing in was covered in a thick layer of steam and mist due to some of the water droplets freezing and coming together to create a wall of ice to protect against Satin's flame. It was hard to see now but he wasn't worried. Nobody was going to touch him. His semblance would make sure of that. Standing gracefully atop the same droplets that he'd been when he addressed Robyn, he tried to call out to the Happy Huntress. With the water that'd spilled onto the floor as a result of the sprinklers turning into ice with the crinkling and cracking being the three's only warning to move lest they end up frozen in place.

"....Still don't wanna hand it over....? I'll have to kill you otherwise...." ​

 

[MyrtenRose]

The only reason Qrow hadn't already been buried under more of them than he could handle was their focus on blocking the room's exits, flat out clogging the exit corridors with their mass and numbers, and Qrow pushed off his back foot with a frantic spinning deflection from Harbinger to ward off the three chasing him.

"RAVEN, GET US OUTTA HERE NOW!"

He didn't much care where they portaled to, it just had to not be here.

She wasted absolutely no time in doing so, as well as shifting back into human form for two purposes. One, to grab him and pretty much throw him like a ball into the portal first, just to be sure he'd be on the safe side. Two, to have Omen at the ready to protect her own self and slice away at any of the monstrosities that were too close to either harm, preferably slay, or even simply keep them at bay just long enough for her to step backwards into the portal itself. That much worked, thankfully she alone had only needed to delay them for a very short while. Even so, the speed at which those grimm moved was nothing short of incredible and even though the portal closed off immediately, enough of one of the grimm was poking through that when Raven's portal snapped shut, one of the beasts on the other side found themselves short a limb and half a head.

That was how Qrow, Raven, a grimm arm and those creep empty soulless eyes ended up basically tossed at a familiar faunus's feet, the latter two already beginning to hiss and fade away.

What in the bloody goddamn...? She knew the most pragmatic course of action would have been to immediately go on the offensive against the two highly skilled and dangerous opponents that had just popped up before her, but she just didn't. First temporary confusion stayed her hand, then it was just plain amusement as she stared over at the two.

"This really ain't yer lucky day, eh?"

Raven didn't respond, instead moving to kick what remained of the grimm's arm into the wall out of frustration and letting Qrow take the lead with explaining this fiasco if he wished.​