Fandom RWBY: Grimm Hunter (An RWBY X Monster Hunter Crossover)

[Emperor Of Embers]

Already Clifford somewhat lightened up around Gilford as they walked. Maybe the kid is good willed afterall? Maybe. Upon reaching the destination, Clifford gazed in awe as he looked at the gate, and walked in to gaze at the really long table. He was worried when he saw Damian react the way he did. His instincts were telling him that this was all a very bad idea. But he had to go through with this. Sonora did not like this very much either, but she was very worried for Damian. She decided to stay quiet, as to not make things worse on him, or anyone else.

Sonora looked around as they entered, the table was large alright, and she was hungry as well. She sat down on a seat close to the edge of the table, leaving a seat for Damian as well. Clifford sat down a few seats away, leaving some room for everyone else who followed Gilford. Her stomach was turning in knots as she looked at Damian, almost afraid to say anything to him, even afraid of him going off on her. But she looked at the decorations around the room, and all the grandeur that followed. She was certainly intrigued, but in no way jealous. CapRock Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna Lord0fFate nimona

 

[Karcen]

Despite the urgency that Lapis felt she was careful in her movements. the group was not allowed here and thus they could leave no tracks and not allow themselves to be seen. Thus she would cut off cameras cutting off the chances they would be seen as the group moved. The group moved from tent to tent when there were guards they would be knocked out silently by her father bashing their heads together from behind. The tents themselves seemed to be a mix of various scientific fields from geology to zoology tons of data was everywhere. The group would come to one medical tent that wasn't here to help the hurt but to conduct experiments on something. Lapis would start looking over various documents, this was the kind of place any data on the plague suckers would happen. Looking over various binders Lapis flipped quickly through pages reading little bits to be quick about things and most of it wasn't very relevant.

This would last for several binder before Lapis found something, a very important something. The binder was like any other and seemed to mostly be a report but the picture of the plague sucker indicated what it was about. Lapis would start to flip through the pages, just enough to get the gist of what was going on with them. The report was something that actually made her more and more angry as she read on. The company was researching Grimm namely the plague suckers and the illnesses they caused to single out one, hers. The last few pages were about how this would allow them in theory to infect others with what she had and make them like her in an attempt to make a slave force. This was something that made Lapis break her normally calm mask and actually show her anger, a rage she didn't know she could even feel at the evil of these people. Lapis knew this camp, this work, this company, everything had to go. She needed to destroy it all this work could not go on she could not allow others to be like her. She needed to show this company just how docile this illness made her.

" You all need to leave the area" Lapis said as she had an idea of what she would do to destroy this place to level it all and such power would hurt without a thought to side. " Take this report and go back this would be enough to damn anyone creating a slave race using Grimm " She said summarizing the project rage filling her voice and her face as she held out the report.

Grim Wraithe Stjerna

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Sean grinned and nodded, following his new teammates into... Well he did not really know what. Which was alright, it was how he had gotten here in the first place. As they walked and approached the dozens of white tents and cages, Sean drew his weapon of choice from his side and slid the action rearward --SHLICK-- and quickly pushed it forward --SHCLACK-- chambering a firs dust infused round into the chamber. 'Come what may, I will be there.' He thought as he looked around in awe and wonder at the shear size and scale of what surely would be a small tent city.

Sean hung to the back of the small group, providing some form of rear security and checking behind them as they rounded corners, cut down cameras or knocked hapless guards unconscious. Helping to pull the bodies out of sight and somewhat hide them. It seemed like they had been there a long time before the faunus lady stepped into the tent that held all manner of medical and scientific equipment. Sean stood near the entrance, watching for any signs of approaching guards or staff, and looked back with some surprise when Lapis called out to him and Peter with such rage and anger. If he had not already had an uncomfortable feeling around her, he was certainly not reaching to grab the binder from her hand now. "Uh.. Peter, why don't you grab that?" His voice cracking just slightly in the middle, he coughed at the end to try and cover his nervousness.

It was as Lapis was holding out the binder and Sean was turning back to the tent entrance that a lab tech almost bumped into him, dropping her coffee and looking up in shock at the sight of intruders in her field lab. "GUARDS!" She yelled, turning to flee. Acting quickly Sean stepped forward, pivoting on his lead foot and swinging the grip end of his Boomstick, which was still in shotgun form, into the back of her neck, where the shoulder joins the neck. The lab tech crumpled to the ground like a puppet whose strings had all been cut at once.

CapRock Karcen Lord0fFate nimona Emperor Of Embers

 

[CapRock]

Cassie

To Cassie, all that setup for a tent didn't seem just odd - it was excessive. As she walked iin, she noticed even the very floor surrounding the table wasn't dirt, but some sort of metal as well, which only served to heighten the feeling that something was very, very wrong. But they'd have to try a bit harder than that if they wanted to scare her. The Sterling walked up to the table to meet her family; there was a feeble-looking blonde woman next to Dior's seat, a confident young man dressed in general's clothes and a young girl in a frilly dress surrounded by her toys; from those, only the male seemed truly interested in their presence.
"We finally meet." He greeted Cassie, getting up and taking her hand for a kiss. His movements seemed eerily seemed to Dior. "I'm Aurel, pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Same here." Cassie replied, her best attempt at a polite response. She glanced at the other two and said: "Nice to meet you too. I hope we can all get along."

To that, the elder woman only nodded with a quiet 'yes' and the little girl didn't even bother to look at her in the eye, instead still focused on her plush toys. Cassie took a sit between Clifford and Dior, and Damian quietly took the furthest seat possible. He didn't seem to keen on eating as well. Looks where being thrown left and right, a tense silent suspension. The silence remained oppresive until the sound of a fork clanking against champagne glass broke it. It was Dior, who signed in for the servants to bring in the food and drinks. Cassie didn't take long to realize that they were all Faunus or Ancients, which got her grasping the table cloth with her nails.

"Well, as we're being served, a few opening words." Dior said. "I must say I wasn't expecting guests of... Your standing to join us as at the table." He said, glancing at Clifford. "But since you are here, would you be so kind as to enligthen us to how a being like you managed to claw your way into our ranks, into our family, even? That would be most intriguing to hear, I'd wager."
"Is that supposed to be some sort of joke?" Cassie finally blurted. She shifted from the table cloth to her cutlerly. From the side, Damian averted his eyes from the scene, completely giving up on salvaging the situation. "It's not being funny at all."
"Oh, dear." Giggled the girl, finally speaking up. "She really is a savage. How revolting."
In respose, Cassie clenched the fork as she was served; it began glowing red hot and melted a bit.
"Oh, I do apologize if my words have offended anyone." Dior said. "As always and forever onward, we mean no disrespect towards our fellow demi-humans."
The fork snapped in half.

Peter

Seeing Lapis lose her calm for good was one of those things Peter always secretly hoped to see someday, but now regretted intensively. A part of him wanted to hug her and tell it was alright, but... Seeing and hearing her rage unrestrained for the first time made his knees weak. He glanced at Sean for a moment, hoping he'd fetch the roport, but to no avail. Instead, he himself timidly reached out to grab it, then nearly leaped to the ceiling when he was startled by the incident with the lab tech. Although Sean had been quick to deal with the situation, the alarm had been rang. Not that it mattered to Lapis, since she was clearly still adamant about her bold next step.
So what now? Peter bit his lip and glanced at Lapis, then at Sean again, then at the main tent, his mind furiously trying to make sense out of it all and come up with a reasonable approach.
"Sean, we should probably try and alert Cassie and the others at the tent first, but... After that, we better listen to Lapis." He looked again at the report, then at Lapis. "Lapis, I'm so sorry... Whatever you do, stay safe." He said, nodding her goodbye and he opened some speace between himself and the girl. From now on until the end of all this mess, his only goal was to make sure everyone got out of it alive.

Emperor Of Embers Lord0fFate nimona Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna

 

[Emperor Of Embers]

When Dior, a small girl with plush toys, and a frail old lady sat at the table, Clifford immediately felt tense, and he could feel it from Cassie and Damian heavily. When he saw the servants walking in and out of the room, he curled his fists up, a frown on his face as he realized what they were doing to the faunus and ancients. "Damned humans!!! They are enslaving the Faunus and the Ancients! They are going to pay for this, they just need to give me a reason to tear them apart. Rip their black and rotten hearts from their chests!!" He said, with an audible and angry exhale. He then took a deep breath, and exhaled as he listened to their conversation. What Dior had said really pissed her off, and he set a hand on her shoulder. "That isn't funny in the slightest, and I know people who can make better jokes than that." Clifford began to worry as the fork in her hand began to heat up at his words. The little girl's comment was not helping either. "I'll show you who the savage is, just you wait. I will wait for a good excuse to feed you to the scavengers." Clifford flinched as he heard the fork snap in half at the demi humans comment. This pissed clifford off immensely, and he cracked his neck. "Gee, thanks for that. I guess it turns out we Demi Humans are more human than even you." He calmly and yet sarcastically snapped at Dior as he removed his hand from her shoulder, and took her smoldering hot hand in his. He was used to the heat at this point, but right now, he needed to calm her down as much as possible to not set the tent on fire. He felt his body heat up in a fury he had not known before, and tried to keep his composure, but he was slowly losing his ground on that front. All the more reason to slaughter them when he gets the chance. CapRock Karcen Lord0fFate Grim Wraithe Stjerna nimona

 

[Karcen]

Lapis looked to the two with her and the guards and had just one word for them, for everyone in truth " Run" She half ordered not wanting and not able to have their help with what she was doing.

When the two were gone hopefully having gotten some distance Lapis would unleash her plan. She had never actually used her other parent when the others were around as she could not stop her from harming everyone and everything around. Lapis had always called upon her father for he was the more reliable of the pair, but her mother was far more powerful, but power came with a price. Lapis knew that but this was a situation that called for it she needed to kill everyone and destroy everything. Thus she called upon her mother and above the camp high in the air a blindingly bright rift opened, and even as the rift closed the light didn't vanish instead to took shape a blindingly brilliant form that looked almost like a moth and human had been mixed together, but instead of wings of hands there were squirming white tendrils. The figure glowed with a brightness that would rival the star they orbited and a moment after the brightness would somewhat subside. Then it moved and unleashed a wave of energy and light and sound all in one that washed over everything , from building to person. The tents would start to burn the supports buckling, the machines burning out their components fried data lost, and people would find their Aura barely able to resist the wave.

Then came another wave with the floating figure glowing brighter as everything was again pounded blowing away already damaged things and knocking over machinery while some would find themselves unable to mount any counter to the figure as yet another wave washed over them never breaking the aura yet leaving it close. The waves would start to grow faster and slowly the sound would later in pitch and frequency becoming a melody of destruction. Still the killing of people was not the mothers job instead lapis moved swiftly with gun and blade to attack and kill those weakened by her mother even as the camp around them collapsed. Lapis was seemingly unaffected, but in truth she was one hit away from her own aura shattering and when she used her rifts to move and strike rapidly she was using up a finite supply of dust she had on her person for emergencies. Still with few able to even move as the song continued to assault the entire camp would find a blade through their chest or a bullet through their brain in moments. This in truth was no battle but a slaughter as the blood of every person she killed slowly stained Lapis's white clothing red. Hopefully everyone had run perter had gotten them all out as lapis right now could only be called a berserker and there was no telling if like her mother she couldn't tell friend from foe in the sea of blood.

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Sean took a careful step towards the tent entrance and peered around the edge in one direction then the other, hoping to not see any guards rushing towards them. He let out the breath he had not realized he had been holding and took a deep breath. 'Small victories I guess.' He looked back as Peter mentioned alerting Cassie and the others and then getting to safety. Nodding as he stepped back into the tent and rolled his neck and shoulders, eliciting a series of rapid cracks as he forced the tension from them.

"Run" The order Lapis gave was like the starter pistol at a race, it sent a shot of adrenaline through Sean's body and set his feet to running. He did not like the idea of abandoning anyone on a mission, even if it was the creepy spiderlady, but something about her voice, and Peter's physical reaction, made it clear there would be no talking her out of her plan.

"Right. So do you want to be the one yelling or me?" The huntsman asked as he stepped out of the tent and made for the main tent, his Boomstick up and sweeping from side to side looking for a target. "Also are shooting to ki...." His sentence was cut short as a rifle shot grazed past his head from behind as one of the guards finally caught up to them.

CapRock Karcen Lord0fFate nimona Emperor Of Embers

 

[CapRock]

Damian

Wrong. Everything currently happening was just so very, very wrong.
Ever since the discussion at the tent, Damian had dedicated himself to not intervene regardless of what happened. Part of him wanted to see them struggle a bit with Dior, understand his point of view and give up on their unrealistic dreams; the other part of him actually had some hope of seeing them succeed somehow and prove him wrong. As he saw his cousin taunting them left and right, he couldn't help but massage his temples and avert his gaze from the scene. After Clifford's attempted snap at them, the Vapors simply giggled politely and proceeded to get themselves served.
Shortly after that, however, bone-chilling tremor hit the tent. Cassie got up from her chair and reached out for her weapon almost imediately, but Dior simply smiled.
"This was quite fast." He said. "A shame, I was hoping to entretain you for a bit longer. Oh well. Servants, please engage the entretainment module."

At this point, one of the servants reached out for a panel set up at around the middle of the tent and hit a few commands. The shaking of the floor grew more intense, and the tent's fabric retreated into the metal structures, revealing a transparent barrier hidden inside. Without the tent, the group now had a clear vision of the rapidly expanding destruction caused by Lapis' summon. The first wave of energy ripped other tents and facilities straight from their foundations, but barely fazed the main one due to its sturdy protection. It seemed like it would at least last a few blows before cracking open.
But that wasn't the only surprise that came from the fabric disappearing: everything at the ground level was shrinking - and fast - and the platform that formed the base of the main tent shut upwards into the sky. What was once a floor was now a pillar, standing up pristine amongst the ever-growing destruction. Without ever skipping a beat, the majority of the Vapors equipped themsleves with binocules and headed towards the walls to witness the destruction with the gleaming eeys of a kid watching a superhero movie in the cinema. From their demeanor alone, you'd never guess that they were watching hundreds, if not thousands, of lives getting anihilated by a ragin monstrosity.
"Oh, my." Dior, the only Vapor left behind, said to the guests. "Seems like we have another incident at the camp, and a rather catastrophical one. I wonder what could have caused it?" With a wave of his hands, he had the servants offer binoculars for Cassie, Clifford, Sonora and Damian as well and walked towards the wall to join the rest of his family. "Oh my, it's even let loose some of the monsters... Aren't those some of your relatives, Clifford? They look frienzied, as if they could hurt your friends down there... Or even hurt themselves... Quite the predicament indeed." He finished, hands behind his back.
Damian picked up his binoculars and looked down at the destruction of the city. Just like his cousin said, there were the Odogarons, making their way in a pack towards the fearsome monster in the middle. It all looked like a massive, unfortunate incident alright, but the Sterling knew how to look deeping into the situation; he saw that they still all wore shock collars, and that they were working at their fullest on the monsters as they kept on pressing forward.
"You..." Damian said, putting his binoculars down. "You're goading them into certain Death, aren't you? But for what?"
He asked innocently, but didn't need a response. Realization hit and he glanced at Clifford, feeling his heart drop. What have they done?

Peter

"Oh please, go ahead!" Peter repled to Sean, trying his hardest to run away from the laboratory lest he met the full force of Lapis' rage full on, trying his best to avoid the incoming fire from the guards. It was around that time that he saw the main tent climbing into the sky. He was so impressed by the scene that he didn't notice the blast coming from Lapis' mom and got hit directly by hit. Peter's world spun a few times as he tumbled over into a tent. He was still trying to get a hold of himself and find where he was when he saw a hand reaching out to him.
"Hold on."
It was Yukari. With the help of her especial grim-like creatures of good, the Hoppes, she had managed to pick all babies from the tents they were and was on the movie, concentrated in taking them away to safety. Sighing in relief, Peter took her hand and climbed on the back of one of the creatures, then signaled at Sean, saying:
"Hop on, Sean! We can't just bust into the Sterlings with a pillar like that on the way. I guess we gotta regroup and make a plan."

Emperor Of Embers Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna nimona Lord0fFate

 

[Emperor Of Embers]

As he watched the Odogaron ancients flock as a pack towards lapis, shock collars on, he clenched his fists as he remembered the shock collar that was put on him by the white fang, but what made things worse, was that they are his people, and they were basically going in to attack Lapis, which was a very bad idea to begin with. He shed a single tear before turning to Dior, Peta, Vanna, and Aurel, hearing guns cocked and pointed at him with a twitching, furious glare with a terrifying snarl. "My home... My family... First the White Fang... now humanity... I have lost so much to the both of you... But now... You will experience what I have suffered through... What you almost took from me again...! My family is out there on a suicide run against an ally of mine.... AND YOU ARE TO BLAME, YOU FILTHY MONSTERS!!! IF YOU WANT TO BE A MONSTER SO F@#$ING BADLY, THEN HOW ABOUT I SHOW YOU LITTLE SH!7S WHAT A MONSTER REALLY LOOKS LIKE!!!" Clifford rasped as his veins began to glow all over his body, his sight going red. He looks at one of the gunmen and pounced on him, mauling the poor soul in the most brutal way possble. When he was done, Clifford bites off a piece of his victim, and glared at the other gunman before finishing the bite. A very inhuman sound erupted from his throat as the gunner ran away, which proved futile as Clifford bounced onto a wall, the from the wall onto his victim, leaving him dead and pooled with blood. This was a point where Clifford lost himself and looked at Dior, his wife Vanna, Aurel, and the little girl with him. He circled on all fours around the 4 of them, before slashing at Dior's legs, and then his chest and neck, leaving a red pool with a dismembered mess in the middle of it. Aurel Drew his rapier as he held a hand out to Peta and Vanna. "Go! Run while I hold him off!" Aurel yelled as the two women ran, with Aurel soon getting mauled before he could look back. Clifford's targets now? The two female Vapors that were fleeing the scene. He then dashes off at the blink of an eye, and chased off after them, following their scent like a bloodhound. Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna nimona Lord0fFate CapRock

Spoiler: That Inhuman sound? Listen to the last part in the vid.

 

[Karcen]

Lapis was moving from person to person attacking and while it looked like she was completely random in fact it was almost like there were two of her. Lapis could almost feel that she was split the logical side of her was directing her movements how to block how to move how to slash whole her rage kept her going seeing red each person falling and the rage demanding more. She was focused on the people not the monsters only killing those that actually attacked her first her rage was at the people for what they were doing not the monsters. it was this split between logic and rage that let Lapis notice 2 things , one the rising tent and two the monsters coming at her. That was not normal her logical side could almost be heard saying something was wrong it was instincts and the monsters were not acting on theirs. Lapis could not know about the shock collars, though as soon as they entered her mother's range there were tiny explosions near their necks that would stop any shocks. The rage was saying to attack them to attack everything but moved but her logic was focused she wasn't killing monsters she was killing people she couldn't start killing monsters she could avoid. Lapis also didn't know they were related to one of her teammates, but still she had to focus she had another target that had made itself clear. The camp at this point was burned and destroyed with nothing that really could be recovered, computers were fried, documents burned, millions of dollars wasted and possibly billions in insurances to be paid out for everything. This was the kid of loss that could sink a company, though this one had more money than sense. if the people had any sense they would have looked into their enemy and known their bubble would be useless. The rage could almost hear logic say go get them and she vanished her mother soon fading her purpose over the correct enemies found. Lapis would of course have no idea why the monsters had come out her or why they had been selected to attack her.

There would be a flash over the domed destroyed tent that had been protected from the blasts of her mother. inside there was already blood everywhere and her teammates or most of them. Now that Lapis was out of the slaughter she had a little more sense to her, at least she could just barely tell friend from foe, something which was slowly becoming clear as she seemingly came down from her anger high. Lapis had done what a child did she threw a fit of rage and had expended all her rage in a massive tantrum. Still she could see two figures running off a grown woman and a child two of the family members that had seen so evil as to think of using the plague to make slaves. following them running like a beast was Clifford covered in blood and gore. Then there was another flash and Lapis was gone only too appear in front of the two females path.

" Why are you running this is what your family wanted, to infect people and make them like me aren't i just the prefect slave, isn't Clifford just an obedient pet?" She said her voice on the boarder of sarcastic and returning to her normal cold emotionless self. " Your death is your to chose my blade or his claws" She finished brandishing her blade at the two they were not going to escape.

 

[CapRock]

Cassie

From that moment forward, all hell broke loose.
At first, Cassandra Sterling was left completely frozen, the very face of shock and horror as the seemingly inevitable conclusion to that apalling sequence of events unfolded right before her eyes. Death and destruction laid open before her and, although part of her wished to participate in it as well, the other side of her knew that those were, to some degree, her family laying dying there, and that made them no better than the ones they were killing. With Dior, Aurel, and now the two girls laying bleeding in front of her, she quickly did the math and realized there was technically only one Vapor left. Gilford seemed like he had the best chance of being saved out of all the Vapors, but now that he had seen all that, she deeply feared for his sanity.
And that's when she saw it.
Gilford was, in fact, there, having been left behind by the meaningless slaughter. And he hadn't been idle. From atop the tower and looking upon the destruction caused by the whole mess, he had grabbed on to a massive sniper rifle, .50 cal, and was set in position, aiming at something below. His eyes, which were set at the scope, were trembling with hate, with a trickle of tears going down his face. Sobbing, he said:
"I thought you were better. That you were worth being saved. Now I see that they were right all along... Let me finish this stupid plan."
"Wait, no!" Cassie pleaded, making her way towards him as fast as she could, weapon drawn and ready to stop him. "We can still-"
BANG!
Cassie didn't need any explanations for what happened. Deep down, she new exactly what was going on. This was an act of revenge, one whose consequences she would only fully understand later. Using her pike, she knocked over the last Vapor, who barely showed resistance, kneeled on top of him, and began stabbing down on him, beating out his aura little by little until blood began smearing out. She started yelling in fiery rage and stabbing with searing flames but, as the sassault went on and realization settled in, her strength waned, and her cries of anger descended into desperate sobbing. The huntress grew red hot and began sweating bullets, a fever so powerful it made her collapse to the ground, consciousness fading fast.

Damian

Meanwhile, Damian himself was walking through the mess, he himself not taking all the deaths very well. It reminded him of his childhood, the time they did the same to himself and his sister and forced them to escape and lose contact. It seemed that this really was an inescepable fate for the Sterlings. He made his way to Dior and crouched next to him. Bleeding and nearing death like that, he finally didn't look as smug and threatening as he used to.
"This was gruesome, even for my standards." Damian mentioned to him. "Although, with the way you attacked out babies, it's not like you didn't have it coming."
"Your... Babies... Were attacked?" Dior weakly asked back, spacing his words with bloody coughs. "Yes... I suppose that would have been quite the move... But I can't take credit for it. Besides, you know that if we had ordered it... It would not have failed."
"What the hell?" Damian asked, holding Dior up. But the man was already limp. "What do you mean, it wasn't you? Answer me!" He shook the corpse, but it was useless. "Fuck!"

Emperor Of Embers Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna nimona

 

[Emperor Of Embers]

Clifford, Sonora, and Gamora heard the Gunshot, and they all rushed to where the source was. Clifford saw Cassie laying on the ground, red hot as she had used her semblance. "NOOOO!!!!" Clifford screamed as he clutched her in his arms, and he looked at Sonora, with a desperate look in his eye.
"Let me take her in. Maybe a cool bath should cool her off." She said as she picked up Cassie, and went off to search for a bathtub to put her in. When she found a tub, she filled it up with Cold water before stripping her unconscious sister in-law and putting her in.

Gamora had seen something. No, someone moving slightly below the tower, and it appeared to be an Odogaron ancient. "Clifford, we got a survivor. We should tend to them." Gamora said as Clifford looked at her in hope, maybe he and Sini would not be the only ones afterall. The two jumped down from the top of the tower, both taking a heavy landing, virtually unscathed. Clifford then picked up a scent he knew very well. "MOTHER?!?!?" He screamed as he dashed off, following the scent, with Gamora tailing him. And there she was, Clifford's mother, layed out next to a rock, a massive hole at her right side, barely breathing. "My child... is that you?" she asked as she looked at him, her eyes half closed. "Yes! Yes it's me! I missed you so much! I have so much to say!" "Save your breath... My time has come. I love you, my son. You have grown so much... and have gotten stronger... Take care, and be strong... Etzli..."
And with that, she closed her eyes, and her breath ceased as she ascended to the heavens. "Mother!? MOTHER?! NOO!!!! PLEASE! COME BACK TO ME!!" He shrieked as he held her corpse tight, hugging it in hopes it would bring her back as the tears fell like a waterfall. He did not want to believe that she was dead, and after reuniting with her now less. Gamora's heart ached as she watched on, knowing full well the pain of losing a loved one. She stayed silent, and sat on a rock behind them, letting Cliff have his moment, and allowing him time. "I... I'm sorry for your loss. I know exactly how it feels to lose someone so close to you." She said as Clifford glared at her with a desperate, angry sadness, tears rolling down his face. "I have lost so much... One of my best friends... Most of my kind... now my mother! Who's next, Cassie?! I am tired of losing people! I am tired of people leaving me behind as they go someplace else... I am tired of feeling alone..." Clifford looked down at the ground, letting the corpse fall to the ground as he covered his face with his bloody hands, sobbing into them. Karcen Grim Wraithe Stjerna nimona Lord0fFate CapRock

Spoiler: Clifford's mom

 

[CapRock]

Damian

After that shout, Damian ran after Sonora and stood by his sister's side as she laid on the bath, holding hard to her hand and making sure to change the water up whenever it began to get to hot. The sight of his sister battling for her life was what finally managed to break up the veteran, as tears were now flowing freely down his face as he leaned his foread on the tub's edge.
"I tried so hard." He admitted. "I tried to shut you off when we first met. Then I tried to hide and make them all forget my existence. Then, I tried to take it all upon myself and leave you out of it... But I failed, every goddamn time. And now..." Damian stopped a bit to sob. "I'm so sorry... Sis, please, you have to make it through..."
Then, Damian gasped. He felt a faint clench at his hand, followed by some words by non other than his sister:
"You never seem to get it, do you, brother?" Her voice was faint, but still felt somewhat confident, even if it was a little forced. "This burden... Was never yours to bear it alone. We'll make it through this, no matter what. Together." Still sobbing, Damian clenched her hand back and nodded, adding:
"Together."
"Speaking of that..." She muttered. "Can... Can I see Cliff? I think it'd help."

Peter

"There they are!" Peter yelled from atop his Hoppe when he saw Clifford and Gamora, closing in to get a better look at the situation. "Guys what's going... Oh. Oh no."
Although he had arrived late at the party, it took once glance to understand exactly what was going on; the energy was so bad that the Hoppe he mounted on faltered and dropped Peter, who came in rushing to get Clifford in a tight hug. It didn't take long until he started crying too. "How... How could they? I can't believe this..." It was only after several seconds that he turned to the rest of the group, spotting Gamora and Lapis there. "We... Better get going, I don't think there's anything else left for us in here. This document you gave me, i think it may be more than just evidence. Maybe, just maybe... There can be more to this day than just complete tragedy." After saying that, he finally released his hug on Clifford, saying: "I need you to be strong, Cliff. Your wife kids need you right now, but you and I, we're gonna make sure that they won't be going anywhere, ok?"

Emperor Of Embers Karcen Lord0fFate nimona Grim Wraithe Stjerna

(To Grim: We're about to wrap up this arc, sorry if I didn't have much for your character but I'm sure the next one, led by Emperor, will have something more. Thanks for th patience!)

 

[Emperor Of Embers]

About 6 months later, in Roja Manor:
Sonora had just gotten up out of bed after a long night of fighting the twins to sleep. She was groggy and cranky, and went downstairs to the kitchen to grab some coffee. She heard baby giggling and screaming as she heard Clifford playing with Sini and Aslan, his two bundles of joy. "He sure got better fast..." She muttered as she turned on the coffee pot. She laid her head on her arms on the counter, feeling exhausted. Magnus walked in with pep to his step, and started making breakfast. "Good morning, my little pup! What would you like?" Sonora looked at him with a scoffing chuckle. "Caffeine and wine." She tiredly joked as Magnus chuckled. "Long night? Well, I know something that I know you love!" Sonora nodded as she smiled. Magnus then set to work on making breakfast for everyone.

Clifford was in the living area, playing with Aslan and Sini. He had recovered from that tragic day 6 months back, but he did not forget about what his mother had told him. Then, he began to think of a conversation he had with Cassie ages ago.

"Hey babe, how are ya holding up?" Cassie asked Clifford as she walked into their room with Sini in her arms, wearing her pajamas. "Feeling a little better... But... There is something I should tell you... About that day." Aslan was in his arms, sleeping like a limp doll, occasionally stirring. "What did she tell you? You... You haven't really talked about this since it happened." Clifford sighed, and looked at his wife with sad eyes. "She told me to be strong. And take care... But there is something you should know about me. My real name... is Etzli." Cassie paused for a moment to process what he had just said, mouth agape. "Etzli...? That is your name? And here we've been calling you clifford this whole time! Why don't we all call you by your real name?" Clifford sighed, and then looked at Aslan, then at Sini, then at Cassie. "Because... Everyone knows me as Clifford. And it would be weird to have them try to know me as Etzli. But please, keep this between us... Alright? I don't want to cause any confusion." Cassie nodded, and climbed into bed with Clifford, or Etzli, whichever you prefer, and the two leaned in close to each other for a nap.

He felt a little selfish to ask that of her, but all he knew was that things would be easier that way.

Gamora walked through the door, with peculiar little girl with her. That little girl, was Gamora of Hakum, and outside waiting for her, was a small Rathalos she had affectionately named Ratha. "Sorry I'm late old man, little sis wanted to peruse some things for her monsters. And I completely forgot what I needed to grab." Gamora Mccloud said as Hakum nodded. "My bad! It's been a while since I saw my big sis, I just had to say hi, and introduce her to Ratha!"
Karcen Lord0fFate nimona Grim Wraithe Stjerna CapRock SlightlyOpenCurtains

 

[Karcen]

Six months was a long time, long enough with the note from the documents Lapis found to create what could very well be something to restore her ability to feel. This would be the only good thing that family would have ever possibly been connected to for Lapis. Still despite what should have been something to celebrate Lapis had been more distant than normal after the slaughter after realizing in the heat of the moment what she had done and even what she had done when she had been more normal. Lapis had killed a child, she was already no good with kids and if she had killed one once she did not know if she could be trusted to not kill again. She had never been around the mothers but now she had more actively avoided the mothers. That was at least until the cure had been made and while it was a risk she had gone through with it using herself as a test subject for the chemical cocktail. What had happened was Lapis had been bedridden for 2 weeks unable to leave or do anything barely even aware of her surroundings. The end had not been seen by anyone as when someone went to check on Lapis one morning she was gone having taken her limited possessions with her and left only a note telling them she was taking at break and going home. That had been nearly 4 months ago and no one had any clue where she went, well they knew she had gone home but that was vague. Lapis had never really explained anything more than the most vague summary of her home for she had never seen any meaning in it. Thus with an unknown threat lurking in the shadows Lapis was missing far longer than ever before.

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Sean was turning to have the guards that fired at him, holding his Boomstick at his hip and firing from there rather then bringing the sights into alignment, running backwards to keep up with Peter. Several things happened at the same time, first Sean pulled the trigger and bright red fireball blossomed from his weapon accompanied with the thunderous report of the shotgun. Second was one of the guards taking the full blast and crumpling to the ground as he ran, which turned into a forward flying somersault as the blast from Lapis swept towards the small group.

As Peter was thrown into a tent, toppling it, the body of the guard that Sean had taken out was sent flying into the young man that knocked him sideways and into a series of head over heels flips, taking out a sapling in the process.

"Hop on, Sean! ...."

Was all that Sean heard as he stood, disentangling himself from the body, tree, and tent. Shaking his head to clear it as he moved to Peter reached for the offered hand. With help he slid onto the back of the Hoppe, not really registering what he was riding on. More concerned with aiming at and firing on the swarming guards as they made their way to the rest of the group.

Sean took in the same scene as Peter, but did not put it together as quickly. As the Hoppe faltered and roughly depostited both riders, Sean rolled into a kneeling position and turned to face away from the group. Both to let them all catch-up and regroup, and to take a rear-guard in case of any incoming threats.

Six months later.

Sean looked up at the Manor house and let out a short breath and slowly took a deeper one. It had been six months since he had volunteered to help this group, and the last time he had; well it had been a very rough day.

He returned to Beacon with the information they had gathered and informed those in charge of what was happening. It wasn't until after several other huntsmen and huntresses reported similar rumors and sightings to Sean's report that he was takes with further investigation and to link up with Peter and Cassie again.

'Maybe things will go better this time ' He thought as he rapped his knuckles loudly on the door, and waited for a response.

CapRock Karcen Lord0fFate nimona Emperor Of Embers

 

[SlightlyOpenCurtains]

It was with bleary eyes that Darren awoke, head enveloped in a soft cloth. It was a pleasant feeling, the pillow being soft and airy, as was the rest of the room for that matter. What he could tell with his eyes closed was that he was somewhere warm and there was a light breeze moving through the room, probably from an open window or door. The breeze wasn't cold or anything, quite the opposite the air carrying with it heat and the smell of saltwater as in permeated through where he lay. So then he opened his eyes.

The room itself was quaint and cosy, built from mostly wood, with light curtains moving from the window. The unfamiliarity with this place quickly settled in as Darren properly woke up. "What the fuck?!" He found himself yelling as he sat up, finding himself dressed in a white shirt and as he discovered with a quick check under his blanket, a pair of red shorts. "Where the fuck am I?" The young hunter whispered to himself, slight apprehension at the idea of waking whoever was taking care of him knowing he was awake. He remembered getting hurt during the hunt in Menagerie when he tried to go after a deathstalker on his own but who's house was he in?

Karcen

 

[CapRock]

Cassie

As the morning sunlight rays began to creep into one of the Sterling's room, a lazy rumble could be seen mounting up on the bed. Slowly, but surely, a puffball of carmine emerged from the sheets, two massive bags hidden barely visible under the unkempt hair. Cassie left her bed and stumbled her way to the kitchen, stopping for a moment to glance at Clifford, Aslan and Sini at the living room. She saw how lively the babies looked despite having kept her awake the entire night and envied their energy quite a bit. She was trying to grumble her way into a 'good morning' when the most unbelievable of events took place. With a little help of her father's clothes, baby Sini got up and began - for the first time ever - to waddle her way towards her mother. Aslan, who had yet to achieve to feat despite being older, could only stare in awe at it, as did his mom:
"Sini... Oh my gosh!" Cassie seemed fully awake now, squatting in front of Sini and holding her arms open for the baby to reach her. "Cliff, get the camera! now!" She pleaded.
While that commotion happened in the living room, a knock was heard on the door. It took a few seconds before it got answered; when it did, Sean was greeted with the sight of Damian wearing only pajama pants wand holding a mug on his hand. From the last time he had been seen, the young man seemed significantly calmer, raising his eyebrows in a modest surprise upon seeing the huntsman. He said:
"Oh, you're here early. come in, we've got some spare coffe." Damian turned back to the kitchen and began walking assuming he was being followed by Sean. "Any luck on your recon? We've been a tad stuck so far ourselves."

Emperor Of Embers Grim Wraithe Stjerna

 

[Emperor Of Embers]

Clifford ran off to their room to get a camera, shouting "SHE IS WALKING!!! SHE IS WALKING!!!" When he came back, He took a video of Sini waddling to her mother, smiling and babbling as she did so. Clifford had not felt so proud and happy in his whole life, and he looked at Aslan with a smile as he looked back with a face of shock. "I cannot wait until you start walking!" He exclaimed as Aslan smiled and made baby noises. And soon after, Cherry and Sonora were crying as they woke up. Sonora sighs as she slumped away, walking like a zombie. "Momma's coming!" She called as she walked upstairs, went to their room, and shut the door for feeding time.

Gamora and her younger sister sat at the table as Magnus served them, and they began to eat. Magnus smiled as he watched them, and then heard Cassie and clifford screaming as he realized what was happening. "She is walking?!" He exclaimed as he gave a hardy laugh, and crossed his arms. "Strong like her parents I see! She will make a fine huntress one day, for sure!"
CapRock Grim Wraithe Stjerna

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Sean rocked from heel to toe, whistling to himself with his hands shoved in his pockets as he waited outside. And he was looking over his shoulder, trying to not be awkward when the door opened to reveal a slightly disheveled Damian and how coffee. The huntsman smiled and gave a small wave. "Oh, yeah. Sorry."

The offer of coffee was very much appreciated and Sean was following right behind Damian, after a few quick steps to catch up once he closed the door. "Not so good." Hearing the joyous commotion of parents and small children doing something amazing, he gave them a small wave and smile as he followed the offer of coffee. Stepping into the kitchen and leaning against the counter, rubbing his neck out of habit. "We've had more reports and sightings, from all over. Which suggests this is getting bigger, but other then that I haven't really found much."

CapRock Emperor Of Embers

 

[Karcen]

Lapis had changed much in the time between taking the cure and now. She had changed not only in the expected way but also physically. Lapis could no longer cover up her faunus traits as her 5 red eyes were plain to see and her 6 arms were covered in chitin. Her mental changes had given her emotions once more these combined had made Lapis leave her team without saying anything or showing them the changes.

A few days ago Lapis had been hunting Grimm as no matter what she was a huntress, when she had found another hunter. The man had been fighting a death stalker and had not done well ending up stung and out cold. The old lapis would likely have left the hunter to die not feeling guilt or sympathy but the new lapis did. She had finished off the almost dead Grimm and taken the hunter home to nurse him and caring for somone gave lapis an odd nostalgia.

Speaking of the hunter Lapis could hear him yell for the walls of her home were not so thick. Lspis would soon come into the room dressed in some clothes she had quickly customized her arms on full display.

" Good you are finally awake you were out for a few days there " she said though her tone sou ded almost uncertain as if her words and emotions might not be the right ones.

 

[SlightlyOpenCurtains]

Darren didn't quite know how to respond to a young spider-lady walking through the doorway, but a slight "Woah" under his breath seemed to do it. Then the panic of being in the black-haired girl's house took over. "What the fuck do you mean 'out for a few days'?" He asked in a discourteous tone, standing out of the bed with a single jump, landing barefoot on the rough wooden floor. He was glad he was alive, and this girl must have saved him, but god damn it, he had that scorpion bastard handled! "Thanks for helping but, cmon, I had it covered!" He continued, thanking her in a very...back-handed manner.

He took a moment to look around for his stuff, waiting for a response as his eyes glided over the room, noticing a chain in the corner with his clothes, but lacking his axe. He took a second to throw the longest parts of his hair over his shoulders as he walked across the room, aura having handled the worst of the damage done to his left arm, though the bruise and scar had yet to fade, as he clearly found out with a quick check. "Where am I? And honestly, I'm not gonna be a I'm uncultured about this, thanks." He finished, voice losing the angered tone and the scowl on his face.

Karcen

 

[Karcen]

Lapis was unsure why the guy reacted the way he did, she had been trying to actually understand what emotions to use and when and she assumed she was wrong this time. Lapis of course had simply been going with her gut in the tone she used. There was also the chance the guy was just mad that he thought he hadn't beaten the deathstalker. That would be incorrect as in truth Lapis had simply delivered the last blow to kill it faster the grimm was without a doubt on death's door. The guy had also been close, but he had gotten lucky in that they would not die together instead he would get to hunt again. Lapis in truth didn't notice the back handed tone as much as others just assuming he didn't understand or perhaps he was more normal than the people she had been surrounded by.

" You are a bit confused the deathstalker was trying to take you with it, i only killed it faster than it would have died" Lapis said her tone a bit confused over the anger at the lack of gratitude many others might feel " As for where you are this is my house, you needed to be cared for otherwise you would have joined your prey" Lapis continued her tone slipping to a more emotionless state.

SlightlyOpenCurtains

 

[CapRock]

Damian

Damian served some coffee for himself and Sean, not giving much attention to the commotion happening in the living room - he'd deal with it after he finished his cup. He drank some while listening to his report, his eyes glancing to his nape as he noticed the movement. "Got a rash there?" He added with a snicker. "Anyway, it looks like it's about time we all headed there. This sort of situation needs to be cut down by the roots as soon as possible." Another big sip finished the coffee, and he stared at Sean with an almost taunting look. "Unless you're too sore for another trip, of course."

Peter

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygod-!"
As soon as Peter overheard the news, he scrambled as fast as he could towards the living room, desperate to catch the smallest glimpse of the memorable scene. He managed to catch just the last step as he came crashing into the floor, with Cassie hugging and complimenting the little girl with the widest grin all over her face. Yukari came silently behind him, holding both Verde and Midori in her arms.
"Did you see that? And so young! I wish our kids were that smart." Peter said.
"But they already points out flaws in your blueprints every now and then." Yukari replied.
"Well, I guess that counts- Hey, is that Sean? Nice seeing you again!" Peter made his way to the kitchen and held out his hand for a quick shake. "We've been waiting for you." Damian quickly put Peter up to speed with what Sean reported, to which he added: "Hm... It does seem like we need to go soon. Hopefully, we can find some clue about Lapis there."
"Don't get your hopes up." Damian said. "Just because she's a faunus doesn't mean she's been to Menagerie."
"I-I know!" Peter retorted, stuttering. He seemed a little down, staring at the floor. "I guess I'm just grasping at straws, at this point."

Grim Wraithe Stjerna Emperor Of Embers

 

[Grim Wraithe Stjerna]

Sean happily accepts the coffee, nodding his thanks, quickly dropping his hand at the comment. "Oh? No. Just an absent minded habit. " He smiles and pointedly puts one hand into his pocket as the other holds the hot cup of coffee.

A chuckle and smirk escape from behind the cup at his lips as Damian makes the comment about being sore. "Please. The last time barely rung my bell." Taking a deep drink of the hot joyous caffeine, letting it's scent and taste wash over him. "It would take a Goliath tusk sweep to make me say 'ow'."

Seeing Peter raises his pocketed hand to meet and grasp the offered hand; giving a friendly head nod and smile to Peter. Sean listened quietly as the other two spoke, although hearing that Lapis was not there did make the young man relax just a touch. Though whether the others noticed would be only if they were paying strict attention to his body language.

CapRock Emperor Of Embers