Prologue

Jaune Arc was nervous. His heart was pounding from the adrenaline in his body. Jaune glided with his atlas-modified shield until landing on one of the platforms that were created by the relic of creation.

Jaune deactivated the light barrier on his shield and walked a few steps toward Nora who was waiting for him. "You bring May, Joanna...any hunter that comes through the gate" Jaune instructed Nora as he tried to watch the battle that was taking place in the dimension of creation. Jaune raised his hand so he could shake it with Nora.

Nora said nothing but nodded before she smiled and shook Jaune's hand. So that later they both went their separate ways. Nora goes through the portal and Jaune helps Team RWBY and Penny against Cinder and Neo.

Jaune began to run towards the sound of the battle, he had to take some turns to better observe the situation in which the girls were. Once he was close enough he could see him.

Weiss was on the platform floor probably injured and Penny was in front of her protecting her with her green sword projections from Cinder, who was floating above them about to shoot fire magic at them.

He didn't think twice before jumping off the platform, activating his shield's light barrier to glide in that bitch's direction. He then deactivates the light barrier and puts the shield in front of her before using all of his strength to punch Cinder square in the face, before he activates the gravity dust to send her flying.

Unfortunately for Jaune. Cinder regains her balance in the air, landing on all fours as she continues to slide down the platform, coming to a stop just at the edge.

Jaune landed on the platform his friends were standing on and drew his sword as he got into a fighting stance. Weiss doing the same as him with her rapier. Penny activated maiden powers while holding her swords menacingly behind her.

Cinder narrowed her eyes at them. Then she suddenly began to scream in pain as her Grimm's hand began to convulse and move erratically.

Jaune, Penny, and Weiss tensed, looking at each other uncertainly.

Cinder's Grimm hand stopped. She squeezed Grimm's hand with her human hand checking it before she looked at the people in front of her.

Cinder smiled menacingly. "She's back," She said before she hit the ground and a burst of fire swirling around her hit them.

Jaune gritted his teeth as he slid down the platform, feeling his skin warm from the brief contact he had with Cinder's fiery attack. He felt a chill at the implications of her words. If she was telling the truth then they didn't have much time left before Salem destroyed them.

He had to end this, and it would have to be fast.

Jaune lunged at Cinder with his aura pumping through his legs. The aura amplification on his body didn't take long to take effect. Making him much stronger.

Jaune launched a brutal upward attack aiming to split Cinder in half, but despite his speed, she easily stopped it by creating two swords of fire dust. He tried to strike with her shield, but she easily stepped out of the way and then she slashed at him with one of her swords, but Jaune blocked it with her shield by moving a few inches.

Attack, Block, Attack, Block, Kick, Attack. Jaune and Cinder tried to dominate each other each trying to kill the other. But as much as Jaune tried to hurt Cinder, she never gave in to his attacks.

Cinder fed up with the physical confrontation launches a powerful fireball, which Jaune had to block with his shield. Penny seeing Jaune being dragged into the fire begins to fly as her swords shoot toward Cinder.

Cinder stopped firing her fire magic and immediately began to maneuver through the air while dodging and smashing the swords thrown by Penny.

Jaune sighed in relief when the fire magic was no longer overwhelming him. He then looked at Weiss and raised a questioning eyebrow at her. "Not glyphs?"

Weiss had the decency to cringe. "I ran out of aura. I can't help too much, but if there's an opportunity to attack I'll use it" she said, but he could easily tell that she was scared.

Jaune could understand her. He was scared too, even if he wasn't going to admit it. Jaune even with his augmented aura with the amplification semblance of him couldn't close the gap in strength that Cinder has over him. About them.

Seeing Penny being overwhelmed by Cinder, Jaune ran to attack, but as they were fighting in the air, he had to improvise and throw his shield onto the ground before he jumped on the shield and activated the gravity powder.

Jaune was propelled by the force of the shield and smashed his sword into Cinder's abdomen momentarily stunning her, once Jaune struck her, he activated the magnetism on his forearm causing his shield to immediately snap back at him. He then used his shield as a glider to land back on the platform.

"Weiss where are the other girls? We don't have much time" Jaune commented as he approached her hoping she understood the message he was trying to convey.

Weiss's eyes misted with tears before she gave him a shaky smile. "They fell"

Jaune felt the air escape his lungs at the revelation. But if the girls fell that meant they were...

No, no, no, no. No!

They couldn't have died.

First Pyrrha and now Yang, Blake, and... Ruby.

Fury and hate were upon him. The person causing the death of the girls was-

"Jaune!" Penny screamed in fear trying to warn him.

Any spiteful thoughts Jaune was having were interrupted as his hunter instincts kicked in. But it was too late for him. A ball of fire slammed into his abdomen, knocking out all the air and stunning him momentarily.

Jaune flipped so he could land on his feet, but when he tried to recover he was hit by an avalanche of blows that was fended off by his aura. When Jaune came to his senses he had to block another fireball with his shield causing it to slide onto the platform.

Jaune winced at the pain caused by Cinder. He looked over his head only to see a deep black abyss waiting for him. He was on the edge of the platform one more hit and he is sure he will fall off the platform.

Jaune was about to attack to close the gap with Cinder who was glaring at him, but he was interrupted.

"Leave my friend alone" Penny went to pounce on Cinder.

Jaune's keen senses activated, he looked at Cinder who gave him an evil smile. Jaune quickly understood what she intended.

"Wait! It's a…" Jaune tried to warn her, but it was too late.

Penny cried out in pain as the claws of Cinder's Grimm hand pierced her chest.

Jaune froze with the blood in his body freezing. Ironically, the first to react to defend Penny was Weiss who pounced on Cinder in a desperate attempt to cut off Grimm's arm.

Cinder saw the attack from a mile away and easily dodged it, before taunting the stupid girl who was trying to fight her without an aura.

Jaune looked at Weiss with doubt and concern before deciding to trust her and approach the injured girl to heal her.

"Penny!" Jaune said with fear seeping through, kneeling over her and activating his aura amplification. "Hold on. My Semblance..." The white-gold glow began to come out of his arm to head toward Penny's body.

"No." Penny looked at Jaune and shook her head in resignation. "There's no time to heal me," she said as they both watched Cinder playing and teasing Weiss. "She can't get the staff and the power...," Penny placed a hand over Jaune's. "...but there is something you can do." Then she pointed at her sword and then at her heart.

"You are listening to yourself" Jaune exclaimed in disbelief, his eyes began to water. "There must be another way..." Jaune clenched his fist in an attempt to stop his fear and despair but to no avail. "...There must be."

Penny shook her head. "Please allow me to make at least this choice. Trust me" She took the pommel of Jaune's sword, then gave him a reassuring smile.

Jaune looked at Cinder and Weiss' "fight" before looking back at Penny. Oh, gods... He was going to do it, wasn't he? He was capable of doing what he was about to do.

He didn't want to do it, but there was no time left. Cinder was going to kill Weiss and then she was going to kill Penny, if he didn't do anything they were lost.

Without even thinking about his actions. Jaune drew his sword before he looked at the gleam of his sword. He could see his blue eyes filled with fear and hesitation.

Jaune took a deep breath and didn't think twice before burying his sword in Penny's chest right where her heart was, killing her instantly. Jaune screamed in rage, pain, anguish, and despair as the implication of his actions hit him hard.

The urge to vomit hit Jaune hard as he looked at the corpse of his friend whom he had to be forced to kill. He shuddered as tears fell down his face.

Cinder's furious yell of rage brought him back to the present. Jaune instinctively activated shield light barrier and blocked the Cinder's attack. Cinder grabbed onto the shield as she glared at him with unbridled rage.

Jaune screamed in rage as he activated the gravity dust on his shield causing Cinder to be thrown into the air. Cinder put her hands on the platform before launching into a spin causing her to land on her feet, but she had to reach down and put her hands on the platform to stop her momentum.

Cinder created a sword of fire dust, she ran towards him and then launched herself into the air so she could pounce on Jaune with all her might. Jaune was not intimidated by the bitch. He infused his sword with an aura and amplified it with his Semblance.

Jaune swung his sword filled with his friend's blood with all his might toward Cinder's sword. Both swords clashed forcefully.

Jaune's sword snapped in two.

Jaune looked on in shock as his weapon had broken. He was stupefied he had put all the strength in him and yet his weapon had broken.

Cinder did not miss the opportunity to kick him hard, causing Jaune to fall to the ground and drop his shield as he comes out of shock for the second time. Jaune looked up in fear as Cinder was about to kill him, but before he attacked him.

A bolt of ice hit Cinder's back sending her flying off the platform.

Winter had obtained the power of the winter maiden, and now she was glaring at Cinder with murderous fury.

Jaune watched in fascination at the great battle of two magical maidens. He can barely keep up the fight. They were a blur of lights in the air. Jaune shook his head before looking at Weiss who was kneeling on the ground in shock.

No time to think about his actions. Jaune picks up his shield and runs towards her, he helps her to her feet. With his willpower, Jaune begins to drag her toward the end portal. Jaune tries to go faster to the portal, but Weiss, in a daze, she was making things difficult for him.

Jaune listens to the rush of flames heading their way. On a quick thought, he turns around and throws the dust shield he was carrying onto him. The impact knocked both of them down, but they remained upright until a hiss is heard from the superheated material below them. Jaune recognized the attack and from Weiss's face, he knew that she recognized it as well. It did little to prepare them both.

The ground explodes below him and Jaune is thrown to the side coming to a stop on the platform, his aura exploding and breaking into several whitish-gold shards. He has time to see Weiss fall into the void with a scream.

Jaune, dazed by pain, does not notice what is happening around him for a few seconds. Until his senses come back with Winter reaches the platform, sobbing.

A dazed Jaune realizes the implications and pain explodes in his chest with force. He blinks rapidly to wipe away all the tears. Weiss didn't make it. Winter didn't catch Weiss, and Weiss didn't get on the platform.

He realizes that another person had died because of him. If he hadn't been so careless. If only he had protected Weiss while she retreated. Then Weiss wouldn't be dead.

Jaune doesn't think he's hated anyone in his life as much as he hates Cinder Fall.

Jaune, now standing, looks at Cinder at the same time as Winter. Both looked at her with a burning hatred. And when Winter was about to lash out at Cinder.

A scream shakes the entire dimension in which they find themselves, a woman's voice howls with untold fury as portals flicker and their foundations shake. Jaune realized who was the person who was screaming and craving rampant blood.

He ignored the smug look that bitch was giving them.

A wide-eyed Jaune with pale skin looks directly at Winter. "We need to go." He swallows nervously. "Now," He emphasized so there would be no arguing.

Winter is looking at Cinder with all the hate that is currently buried under her tears, she wanted to kill Cinder, but she knows that he is right. They can't be here when Salem gets here.

"You are going to pay." Winter spits out angrily. "For everything you've done!"

Winter flies off towards the end portal as Cinder smirks and retreats, and he runs after Winter, heading for the portal. Jaune tried to catch up with Winter, but with his broken aura he couldn't go at the speed of a huntsman, so he would have to run as fast as his legs would carry him.

Jaune doesn't realize something is wrong until Winter looks back, her eyes widening in horror and surprise, but she's already through the portal. He looks over his shoulder out of her morbid curiosity and what he sees chills him.

The entire dimension they were in was disappearing.

He thinks of the Staff in Cinder's hands. She must have planned to destroy this place so she can make sure they don't get out of this dimension. A way that she could easily kill her enemies.

The hiss that something is dissolving was being heard much louder and closer. Jaune runs much faster, due to the desperation that is entering him.

The whistle is almost at his feet, he pushes, jumps with all his might-

And the portal to Vacuo dissolves into golden sparks of light just before he touches it, making him scream as he fails and begins to plunge into the void.

Jaune doesn't know what to think about his last moments alive. Of all the things he could have thought. It wasn't about him but about his team. Ren and Nora, two teammates who are now going to be alone, can only hope that Emerald will take care of his teammates along with Oscar. Now that he thought about it, why didn't Nora come back through the portal with the other Hunters? Did something happen on the other side of the portal?

And Penny. Gods... Penny, what had he done?

He will never be able to forget the feeling of Crocea Mors sliding into her chest, as the blood drained from her body and the life drained from her eyes. He will never be able to forget him. And now his sword is broken, in pieces, a part of him is glad because that means, that he at least will not be stained with Penny's blood, reminding him of the great sin that he had committed.

With his ancestral sword broken, he could pretend that he had not sullied his family's honor, the remains of Pyrrha. He hadn't betrayed everything he loved like this, with the blood of his friend.

Gods, why had he been so useless, if only he had done things differently, things would never have turned out so bad, if only he was stronger, Pyrrha, Ruby, Yang, Blake, and Weiss hadn't have been killed. If only he was stronger, he would never have been forced to kill Penny.

His hands would never have been stained with Penny's blood, he would never have become a murderer.

Despair, regret, and helplessness overwhelm him as he falls into the void.

He had failed.

He had failed them all.

Jaune will die dissatisfied and regretful.

It isn't long before the darkness overwhelms his entire view.

.

.

.

Jaune's sight returns as memories of recent events overwhelm him. He feels that he continues to fall, but the darkness that had consumed him was no longer in sight. He could see again, though all he saw was a strange black mist.

Jaune keeps falling for a while, and as unfortunate as it is, he is hopeful.

Hopes to survive, and hopes that the girls on the RWBY team are alive. Even with the deep disgust that weighed on his shoulder for having murdered Penny, he allowed himself to hope and not give in to despair.

As if by fate, he was able to dazzle his best friend Ruby's weapon, her prized scythe. He doesn't think twice before diving for his friend's gun.

As Jaune is about to grab Ruby's scythe, darkness overwhelms his vision of Jaune again.

.

.

.

When Jaune's sight returns, the first thing he notices is the sky, then he feels the sudden wind that hit his body. It takes Jaune a few seconds to realize that he was falling and he was in the air heading rapidly toward the ocean.

Jaune tries to use his shield to start gliding, quickly realizing that the shield was not with him but was falling below him.

In a panic he began to dive toward his shield, forgetting about his friend's scythe that was falling a few meters below his shield.

Jaune stretches out his arm to try to grab his shield when there are only 30 meters left to hit the sea.

He was about to grab his shield when there were 20 meters left.

With 10 meters left, Jaune desperately grabbed his shield before he activated his shield's light barriers made of dust, his arms tensed and stretch up causing him to slow down a bit.

Jaune closes his eyes as he crashes with some force into the ocean.

He tried to fight the ocean current, but it was too strong. It wasn't long before his head smashed into something, he had the brief thought that his aura wouldn't protect him, as he was still charging before the darkness overwhelmed him for the third time.