Crimson stood motionless at the heart of the battlefield, his grotesque form towering above the carnage. Shredded corpses lay scattered around him, the ground beneath soaked in dark, congealing blood. The air was heavy with the stench of death.
Amid the devastation, a pitiful figure moved weakly—a lone survivor of his wrath. Raven Branwen, battered and broken, dragged herself away from him with trembling arms. Her left leg was severed below the knee, her right hand missing two fingers, and her left ear was torn away. Blood trickled from countless smaller wounds across her body, painting a grim tapestry of her agony.
Crimson began to walk toward her, each step deliberate and unhurried. He could sll her fear, the desperation pouring off her in waves. The sound of her ragged breathing reached his ears, and as he drew closer, he spoke, his voice calm yet cold as ice.
"Where do you think you're crawling to?"
Raven froze, her movents stilled by his words. She turned her head to look at him, her pale face streaked with tears and blood. Her lips quivered, and she managed to whisper, her voice barely audible, "P-please..."
Crimson tilted his head slightly, his golden eyes narrowing. "You want rcy?" he asked. "Do you think you deserve it?"
Her breathing grew heavier, but she didn't answer. Her wide, tear-filled eyes t his, silently begging for her life.
Her gaze stirred sothing deep within Crimson, but it wasn't compassion—it was anger. As he looked at her, he saw his own reflection, the shadow of his own actions. He rembered the family he had abandoned, the wife and child he had forgotten in his pursuit of power. The atrocities he committed in the na of hatred and revenge, culminating in the death of his own descendant.
Raven mirrored him to an uncanny degree, and the realization twisted his fury into sothing even darker.
Footsteps and hurried voices broke his thoughts. Crimson didn't turn around but he still could see Ruby, Yang, and the others erging from the school building. Their faces were pale, their movents hesitant as they took in the monstrous figure before them.
Yang's voice trembled as she called out, "Crimson, stop! Calm down!"
Crimson now turned to look at them, his multiple eyes scanned the group, his gaze lingering briefly on Oscar and Qrow before returning to Yang. They were all afraid of him, even Ruby, who had always seen the good in everyone. But he pushed it aside.
Qrow stepped forward, his hands raised in a gesture of peace. "Crimson," he said firmly, "calm down. Don't kill her."
Crimson's golden eyes fixed on Qrow. "You want to spare her?" His voice was low, almost a growl.
Yang and Qrow both nodded, their movents slow, cautious.
Crimson's fury ignited once more. His voice rose, echoing across the battlefield. "She abandoned her family! She left them to fend for themselves while she sought power and survival. She allied with the enemy, conspired to kill her own blood. And you want to spare her? Why?!!"
Qrow's reply was quiet but resolute. "Because she's my sister."
Yang stepped forward, her voice shaky but determined. "Because she's my mother."
[They look like him back then…] Seeing their looks, it reminded him of his brother in his final monts, his brother had the sa look in his eyes.
Crimson's grip tightened on his katana, the blade quivering with barely restrained energy. His anger boiled over, and he slashed the air above Raven's prone form. The force of the swing created a shockwave that sent debris flying, causing everyone to recoil in fear.
Raven flinched, closing her eyes as the wind from the attack ruffled her blood-soaked hair.
"You abandoned your family," Crimson said, his voice heavy with disgust. "Now, you live only because of them. You don't deserve their rcy, but they have given it to you regardless. Make ands while you can."
His gaze bore into her, the weight of his words sinking into her very soul. Then, before their eyes, the transformation began.
The monstrous eyes disappeared one by one, fading into nothingness. His grotesque katana crumbled into dust and blew away in the wind. Crimson's pale, ashen skin regained its color, his human form reerging from the monstrous facade.
He exhaled deeply, his shoulders relaxing. His red eyes, now free of malice, looked at the group with a calm, almost serene expression.
"It's over," he said quietly, his voice carrying a hint of weariness.
The silence that followed was deafening. No one moved, no one spoke. The only sound was the faint rustling of the wind over the ruined battlefield.
Raven stared up at Crimson, her breath hitching in her throat. She didn't dare speak.
Crimson turned his back on her and began walking toward Ruby and the others. He stopped a few paces away, his gaze eting Yang's.
"Take her," he said simply. "Her life is in your hands now."
With that, he turned away to leave, but Qrow called him "Crimson, what was that?"
Crimson looks at him for a mont before answering "Not everyone understands why their semblance manifests the way it does, but I understand mine. I had a purpose I wanted to fulfill, and I was willing to pay any price for it… no price was too great. But I was weak, slow, fragile, blind, and afraid of death, —afraid of dying before completing my purpose. Becoming a demon was the answer to that."
He paused, scanning everyone, letting his words sink in before continuing. "It made stronger, faster, more durable. I can create a powerful weapon out of my own flesh, and can attack at Range. I can regenerate from any wound, even ti holds no power over . My extra eyes see all around , in every direction. I can even see...the transparent world."
"Transparent world?" Qrow repeated, the term unfamiliar.
"It is hard to explain," Crimson replied. "I see things others can't. When I looked at you, I saw through the lie you and dad have been telling us for seventeen years. I assu it's related to your semblance, always active. Looking back, I should have noticed it sooner. So many things make sense now" Crimson chuckled mirthlessly at his own words.
Qrow's words stuck in his throat.
Crimson pointed to Oscar and continued, "And just like that, I saw Ozpin's abomination ghost on him."
He paused, his tone softening. "I was willing to sacrifice anything to complete my purpose, that cost my humanity, I beca a demon, a monster. And after all of that I still failed. I am a disgrace to life itself"
Crimson turned away to leave, but Ruby stepped forward after so hesitation.
"Crimson," she said softly, her voice filled with uncertainty.
He didn't look back. "I am too tired, Ruby. Stay strong" he replied, his tone gentle yet distant.
And then he was gone, leaving behind a battlefield littered with death and a group of survivors struggling to understand what just transpired.
__________________________________
It was well past midnight, and the quiet of the farmhouse was almost suffocating. No one spoke, but the silence was heavy with unspoken thoughts, the weight of everything that had happened at Haven still hanging over them all. The battle, the aftermath, and the things they had learned—each mont seed to stretch on infinitely.
Ruby sat in the corner of the room, her head resting in her hands as she stared at the floor. Her teammates were nearby, their exhaustion palpable, yet none of them dared to break the silence. They had returned to the farmhouse where they had been staying, but there was no comfort in the familiar surroundings tonight. The walls felt like they were closing in. Even the warmth of the fire in the hearth seed to mock the chill that had settled in their hearts.
Blake and Sun had been filled in about the Maidens, the magic, and the relics. But their reaction was muted, as though they had already exhausted their ability to be shocked. After the brutal violence of the battle, the story seed to lose so of its weight—there was little more that could surprise them. The information hung in the air, but the air felt too thick to take it all in.
Yang sat on a chair near the table, her fingers absentmindedly tapping the surface as she glanced at the stairs every now and then, waiting. She hadn't spoken a word, but the tension in her posture said enough.
Upstairs, Qrow and Ozpin had been tending to Raven. They were the first to return, stepping down from the upper floor. Qrow looked tired, his features hard to read, as though sothing about the situation was still weighing on him. When he spoke, his voice was raspy.
"Raven's condition is stable now," he said, his eyes shifting to Yang. "She'll be weak for a while, though. That… fight took a lot out of her."
His last words ca slower, almost hesitating. The weight of his own feelings seed to seep through.
Ren, who had been silent since their return, looked at Ruby, then Yang before he spoke. His voice was careful.
"Do you really not know about... Crimson's semblance?" he asked, his eyes moving from one face to another, searching for so sign of understanding.
The two of them responded with a quiet but unanimous shake of their heads. Ruby shifted slightly in her seat, breaking the stillness. "We've never seen anything like that before, Ren," she said softly. "None of us knew."
Qrow took a long drink from his flask, his gaze distant as he stared into the fire. He didn't speak right away, as though the words weren't ready to form.
Oscar, now occupied by the spirit of Ozpin, spoke up. "Crimson… broke down there. Probably for the first ti, he said what he truly felt and believed. It was as if he was letting go of sothing. But… did any of what he said make sense to you? What purpose did he fail to achieve?"
Ruby and Yang exchanged a glance before responding. Ruby spoke first, her voice low. "He was always interested in art and music. He never really showed interest in anything that aligns with what he said."
Qrow's lips were pressed into a thin line as he considered what they said, his gaze flicking from one of them to the other.
Pyrrha, who had been sitting off to the side with her head bowed, suddenly looked up. "What about the dead person Crimson cares about?" she asked, her voice fragile with curiosity.
Yang shook her head, her expression unreadable. "We don't know," she replied softly.
Ruby added with a sigh, her voice barely above a whisper, "He never cried… not even when Mom—died. But today he was crying."
The room fell silent once more, the weight of their words sinking in. Even Ren, who had said so little, now seed lost in his thoughts, his eyes downcast as he processed the implications of everything they'd learned, everything they hadn't known about Crimson. The person who had always been an enigma to them.
Qrow shifted uncomfortably in his chair, his flask hanging loosely in his hand. He spoke with a heavy voice. "I think I know."
Everyone turned to look at him.
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