Ember Legacy, Volume 4

Chapter 32: Berserker's Fury

Kingdom of Vale

"I'm not so much a dragon slayer, more a dragon annoyer… I'm a dragon irritater."

~ Craig Ferguson

"You haven't been bit till a dragon does it."

~ Tamora Pierce, Emperor Mage

The sleek Silver soared in for another pass, a great gout of flame roaring forth to incinerate some of the Orcs amassed around her friends battling below as she skimmed along the ground. So far, the fight had been easily managed, but things were becoming a bit more… hectic.

She turned her head just in time to veer away, avoiding a furious charge by yet another Brown. The similarly-sized Dragon soared past her, but she let it go, noting a Bronze that was bearing down on her would-be ambusher.

Instead, she wheeled around, glancing back down at the small pocket of her embattled companions as they steadily pushed forward. The presence of the Orb ensured that only the most foolhardy of Dragons would attempt to attack them, as was evidenced by the scorched remains of a Green embedded in the ground some dozens of yards behind them. But still, even though she worried for them, there was just so much she could do without impeding their own progress or putting herself unnecessarily at risk.

Satisfied for now that she'd helped them as best she could, Ruby climbed back into the sky where a swirling, chaotic melee was taking place.

She immediately noted another Silver who was beset by a pair of Browns, the both of them locking their jaws onto her struggling form. Ruby shot forward with her innate speed, crashing into one of the Browns and sending him careening off, while she deftly turned and snared the other Brown around the shoulder with her talons. The wounded Dragon let out a keening roar that was cut off when the first Silver turned and clamped down on his upper neck, snapping it.

The two Silvers sprang apart, allowing the corpse to fall to the ground. "You okay?" Ruby asked the other, noting the gashes along her flank.

"I will be!" she replied before taking off once again, eager for more battle.

Ruby shook her head wryly. There was no denying the fervor of the young Silvers who had pledged themselves to her cause, but some of them were woefully inexperienced.

Fortunately, the bulk of the Dragons opposing Cinder were fairly equally spread between the quick Silvers and the more combative Bronzes. And speaking of which…

Ruby wheeled once more, lashing out at a large Red who was bearing down on a familiar Bronze Dragon. She latched onto his back, digging in and snapping at his vulnerable wings. As the Red tried to dislodge his antagonistic passenger, the Bronze spun back around and assaulted him from the front.

The mighty Dragon didn't last for much longer after that.

"All right there, Ruby?" the Bronze queried humorously as they hovered midair, watching the Red's corpse tumble down in the direction of the city walls.

"Good to see you, Fox," she greeted him somberly, cognizant that this wasn't the time to tell him that his sister had perished. "Have you seen Yang?"

Fox laughed as the tempo of his beating wings picked up. "Just look for the biggest cluster of the enemy, and you'll find her!"

Ruby gave him a grateful nod as she rose up higher, trying to get a better view of the overall battle. So far, the inexperience of the Silvers was ably balanced by both the aggressive Bronzes and the few powerful Golds that had joined the mix. As well, she'd seen her Uncle Qrow flit past, diving in and out of battle, seemingly untouchable and only matched by the other venerable Onyx.

The Silver chuckled, wondering who or what had been able to persuade Yang's mother, Raven, to join the conflict.

And then her grey eyes lit upon a swirling flight of several Brown Dragons, along with a White and another Red, who seemed to be in the process of pummeling a solitary Gold.

Growling, Ruby threw herself forward, pushing her speed to its limits. She flashed through the melee, scoring several deep gashes against those facing her sister. One Brown immediately tumbled from the sky, his wing mangled beyond use, while another fled the scene with part of his face, including an eye, scoured away by the Silver's sharp claws.

She threw herself up high before turning and plummeting down like a meteor. Another Brown was wounded in her flank, allowing Yang to push her other Brown opponent away and finish her off, while Ruby landed on her next target, the White.

The Dragon may have been of a size with her, but he was as strong as Yang. Still, from her perch atop his back, lodged between his wings, he was unable to bring his greater strength to bear, and gradually weakened from her assault. Finally, he managed to throw her off, but instead of continuing the fight, he simply turned and limped away, his flight erratic as he made for the northern mountains.

Ruby spun around to see Yang attempt to finish off the Red, but then another crimson-scaled form slammed into the pair, sending all three crashing down and into the forested ground. With a sigh, the Silver swooped down and tore into the newcomer, allowing Yang to finally put an end to her original opponent.

The Gold chuckled as she painfully rose to her haunches, stretching out her bloodied wings. "Thanks for the help, Ruby!"

"Yang," she growled seriously as she set down next to her. "What in Oum's name do you think you're doing?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," she thundered, "you're not even trying to stay safe! Are you… Are you actually trying to kill yourself?"

"What? No, of course not," Yang scoffed half-heartedly. "But if I have to go, this is one glorious battle to go out in!"

The Gold threw her a jaunty wink before she stretched her wings back out and rose up into the conflict once again.

Ruby gaped incredulously at the departing Gold. No. No fucking way am I going to lose her after we just found each other. And there is no way I'm allowing her own stupidity to be the cause of her demise.

Grimly, she leapt back into the sky and shot back over towards the battle taking place on the ground. As she drew close, skimming across the tops of the trees, she spied a small, foolhardy Red who was trying to melt a dome-like ice shield evidently raised to protect her friends.

With a snarl, she sped in and ripped into the Red hatchling, sending her fleeing away and trailing pained howls and hot droplets of blood. Without further ado, she landed next to the now-dispelled shield.

"Weiss!" the Silver called out anxiously. "I need you to jump on!"

Unhesitatingly, the Elven Mage raced up the extended wing, while the others stared at her uncomprehendingly.

"Ruby, what are you-" Pyrrha began, but she quickly cut her off.

"No time, hang tight, alright?" Her eyes sought out Blake and tried to give her as much reassurance as possible in the face of more approaching Orcs. "I'll be back soon to help!"

With that, she sprang into the air, nimbly twisting and turning to avoid the swirling combat above.

"Where are we going?" Weiss shouted, clinging to her back tenaciously.

Ruby's nose was pointed straight at where Yang was now single-handedly battling a pair of Browns and another Red, this one quite a bit larger than her. "There!"

She accelerated, putting more lift into her flight as she tried to get above the dueling Dragons.

"What is she doing?" Weiss gasped.

"Trying to kill herself," Ruby growled. "Do you trust me?"

"Of course!"

"Do you still trust Yang?"

She was a bit more hesitant in answering this time, but when it came it was full of firm conviction. "Yes. Yes, I do."

Ruby nodded as she soared overhead. "Get ready to jump!"

"...WHAT?!"

"Now, Weiss, jump!"

With a disbelieving shriek, the Elf let go and tumbled into the air. Ruby banked hard and dove towards the Dragons below.

"Yang!" she bellowed as she flashed past, disabling both of the Browns in one go. "Catch!"

"Wha-?" The Gold spun in place, her crimson eyes wide and shocked as she picked out the small white form plummeting towards the ground and screaming her name.

The Gold shot forward, ignoring the wounded Red and racing to intercept her lover. She made it in plenty of time, hovering in place to allow Weiss to become settled before she took off once more, the enraged Red now on her tail.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Yang bellowed angrily over her shoulder.

"You tell me!" Weiss shrieked furiously. "Why were you trying to kill yourself?"

"I wasn't-"

"Don't give me that! I saw you, Yang! Why were you trying to take all of those Dragons on at once?"

"Is now the best time for this?" the Gold retorted hotly.

With a growl, Weiss spun in place, flinging several ice shards behind her. The pursuing Red, not expecting the attack, roared in pain as his wings were shredded. He broke off, painfully gliding away from the battle over Vale.

"There's never a perfect time for this!" the Elf shouted, her left hand firmly clasped around Myrtenaster while the other clutched at the mane in front of her. "So now is as good a time as any!"

A gout of fire erupted from Yang's mouth at a passing White who was intent on chasing down a Silver. The wintry Dragon screamed as she arced towards the ground, trailing flames and smoke.

"Really?" Yang yelled, the sarcasm dripping from her lips as much as the flames did. "In the middle of a battle?"

"Yes, Yang! Now will you please tell me what it is that has you so intent on driving us apart?"

"I'm not trying to drive us apart!"

"Well, you're doing a bloody good job of it!" Weiss retorted. She reached over her shoulder and threw up a wall of ice in mid-air. Another Red had soared in to try and latch onto Yang's back, but instead cracked his head against the ice block, shattering it but causing him to fly away from his intended target, his movements wobbly and erratic.

"Weiss…"

"No, Yang! You tell me, right now, what is this bargain?"

Yang growled loudly enough that it vibrated the Elf where she was perched. The Gold banked suddenly, arcing in and scoring deep slashes into the flank of a Green who was latched onto a Bronze. The Green wailed as she flung herself away, but the damage had already been done. The Bronze, missing most of his face from the acid breath, tumbled soundlessly from the sky.

"Fine!" the Gold shouted as she wheeled back around again, searching for more targets. With Weiss on her back, there was no way she'd risk engaging in another stand-up fight, but she could still perform some hit-and-runs to assist others. "You really want to know?"

"Yes, I do!"

"I have to go back home and find a mate, okay?"

Their flight evened out as they passed through a relatively tame portion of the skies. Weiss absentmindedly flung out a lance of fire at a Brown who got too close, sending him scurrying away.

"Say again?" Weiss prompted, barely audible to the Gold's ears.

She laughed morosely. "You heard me. The bargain was, when I found my sister, I was to return to the Gold Matriarch with a mate, or she would find one for me."

"But…" The Elf swallowed, the surrounding battle suddenly distant. "I love you, Yang."

"And I love you, princess, but that doesn't matter. It's the Dragon way." Yang sighed heavily. "My line is strong, I have to… to bear hatchlings…"

"Do you… want to?"

"No!" Yang roared angrily, causing Weiss to jump slightly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw another Red bearing in. With an irritated growl, she drew her rapier and pointed it at the approaching Dragon. A searing lance of lightning hit the young Red right in the chest, blasting through deep enough to mortally wound it. She slumped in her perch from the aura drain.

"Then… why?"

"Because I have to, damn it! I gave my word!"

"Yang…" Weiss shook her head, flinging away her tears. "No. I refuse to… Very well. What, precisely, was the wording of your bargain?"

The Gold whirled around suddenly as a Bronze flashed past. The platinum-haired woman recognized the form of Yatsu as he was being pursued by a pair of Greens.

Yang's wings beat furiously as she built up enough speed to catch up. While she blasted the rightmost one with another gout of her flame breath, Weiss pelted the other with icy spikes until he broke off to look for easier prey.

After being assured of her childhood friend's momentary safety, the Gold wheeled around once again and headed for the outskirts of the battle. She hummed to herself, the sound vibrating through her chest.

"I had to swear to return after I found Ruby," she rumbled. "I already modified that to include assisting her with her quest, but I cannot push that any further. As for the other… I was told, 'Either choose a mate or I will choose one for you.'"

Weiss frowned as she flexed her fingers around the hilt of Myrtenaster, feeling her aura slowly replenish itself. "That's it?"

"Well, yes, but the intent-"

"Ah-pupupup!" the Mage cut her off imperiously. "We're not talking intent here, we are speaking of the exact oath you gave to your Matriarch!"

"Okay…" Yang's head swung back and forth as she searched for more targets. "Then, yes, that's it."

"I fail to see the problem."

"What?" the Gold barked incredulously.

"I love you," Weiss reiterated patiently. "And you love me. Why can I not be your mate?"

"But…" Yang slowed the beat of her wings as she tried to come to terms with what her lover was proposing. "Being a mate… I mean, the Matriarch wanted me to continue my bloodline!"

"But that is not what you swore."

"No… No, it's not…"

"Is there some sort of rule or law against a Dragon taking a non-Dragon as a mate?"

"Nooo…" the Gold drawled uncertainly. "It's just… I've never heard of it being done before…"

"Very well, then," Weiss proclaimed triumphantly. "We'll make it work."

"We… We will? How?"

At that, the platinum-haired Elf laughed, the sound tinged with a bit of hysteria. "Yang, you're a fucking Dragon, we'll make it work somehow!"

The Gold couldn't help but laugh a bit herself. "You know what? Yeah. Fuck it, we'll make it work."

"There's the blonde I know and love," Weiss grinned, leaning forward and wrapping her free arm tightly around the massive scaled neck in front of her.

"You are awfully stubborn," Yang retorted wryly. "For a non-Dragon, that is."

"Perhaps you've begun to rub off on me," Weiss giggled merrily. "Now then, shall we return to the battle?"

"So long as you got my back, princess."

"Always, my love."

City of Vale Outer Walls

Pyrrha's lips were pulled back in a snarl as she waded forward, lashing out at yet another Orc trying to bar their path. As with the others, he was dispatched adroitly, but the ongoing battle was beginning to wear on her.

The redheaded Knight took a step back, searching out her companions. Jeanne stood strong by her side, as usual, blocking an overhand strike from a greatsword with her shield before Crocea Mors flashed out and disemboweled her opponent, ripping through leather armor as if it were paper. Nebula and Dew strode along at their flanks, guarding the unarmored Cat Faunus in the middle who was doing an admirable job of slaughtering the vast majority of the horde they faced.

There seemed to be no fatigue at all in the raven-haired girl's stance as she wielded her enchanted bow with deadly precision, but Pyrrha was attuned enough to her friend by now to note the worried droop in her Faunus ears, wondering where their brunette leader had gotten to.

As if summoned by the very thought, a familiar Silver Dragon soared overhead, passing by on both flanks and scorching deep furrows of flame in the ground. The surging armies of Orcs pulled back at the onslaught, allowing the beleaguered group to press forward once again.

And then a red-cloaked shape tumbled to the ground from behind, jogging forward. "How are we doing?" Ruby asked quickly.

"No injuries, remarkably enough," the redhead reported. "But we're beginning to tire. Also, we're without our magical support now."

"Yeah, sorry about that," she chuckled in return. The brunette paused by Blake, who had lowered her bow to give her arms a rest. With an impish grin, Ruby hopped up into her toes to press a quick kiss on the raven-haired woman's cheek, eliciting a blush.

"Are they okay?" Jeanne pressed. "Yang and Weiss?"

"They will be," she returned firmly. "But they need to work together right now. I'll stay with you guys and fight on the ground, I'm just one big target otherwise as my defenses are diminished by the orb."

The brunette reached her hand out towards Dew, who readily passed over an oddly-shaped lump of metal. With a grateful nod, Ruby whispered a few words before unfurling her massive warscythe.

"Right, so let me take point for a bit, okay? Stick close but conserve your energy."

"Are we still heading for the gates?" Nebula asked worriedly. "I don't think they will be opened for us."

"No, there's a breach a little ways along, the body of a Dragon fell right on the wall." Ruby strode forward confidently, "Should get us closer to Cinder."

"She left the gatehouse as soon as I got within range," Blake growled lightly.

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance, Blakey," the brunette retorted before sprinting forward to intercept another group of armored Orcs.

The group pressed forward, the going much easier now with Ruby carving great bloody swaths through the opposition. She whirled about like a red cyclone, leaving a trail of dismembered body parts and bloody Orc corpses in her wake. Slowly the party pressed forward, drawing ever nearer towards the corpse of a giant Red that was sprawled across the ground, its head hidden from view where it had collapsed the wall of Vale atop it. Ringing the breach were soldiers in the livery of Vale, holding off any approaching Orcs but making no attempt to move past the walls.

Just as they reached their destination, a mighty roar shook the ground. The adventurers looked up to spy another Red Dragon, this one easily twice as large as the one on the ground before them, looming up from behind the city walls.

"Cinder," the Silver growled, hands tightening around her weapon.

"What is she doing?" Jeanne gasped incredulously. "She's still inside the city, she must be crushing so many people…"

"I do not think she really cares about that," Pyrrha murmured sadly, thinking of the massive loss of life among the Valesian civilians from the Red's careless actions.

But then the group was forced to step back, the gargantuan beating wings causing gale-force winds to batter at them. Cinder roared once more, a thunderous sound filled with rage and frustration, before leaping to the the air and slowly building up speed, snout pointed back towards the west. Blake brought her bow up but just as quickly dropped it to her side again with a snarl as the Red was far outside her range, not to mention the Orb's.

The redheaded Mistralian Knight turned towards the party's leader. "Will you chase her down?"

"Yes," Ruby gritted out, her eyes a swirling cloud of stormy grey. "I am not letting her get away with all of this." The brunette turned with a frown, passing her collapsed weapon along to Dew once more who strapped it to her back. "Jeanne, keep ahold of the Orb, make sure it still gets inside Vale, okay? Stick with the plan, I'll just-"

"I'm coming with you," Blake interrupted firmly.

The Silver smiled softly at the Cat Faunus. "Okay," she replied simply.

She stepped to the side and changed back into her true form, with the Rogue nimbly hopping up behind her neck. With a quick backdraft, the pair took to the skies, arrowing off in pursuit of the ancient Red.

"Right," Pyrrha stated with conviction. "We need to get inside the city, now."

They strode forward, the opposing Orcs seemingly dwindled away this close to the walls. As they clambered up the Dragon corpse, using the jumbled stone debris to pull themselves up, the four Knights paused atop the corpse's neck.

Beneath them, the milling guardsmen were making no attempt to even defend the breach anymore, not that there were any more Orcs forcing their way in. Instead, the leaderless soldiers were fearfully conversing about the gigantic battle and the presence of Dragons around their city.

"Are they not even trying?" Jeanne whispered incredulously.

"They're at least here," Nebula sighed. "Without any sort of command structure or motivation, though, the best we can hope for is that they keep the city safe."

"That's not good enough," the blonde growled, her sapphire eyes flashing as she stepped forward and drew her sword once more. The enchanted blade gleamed in her hand as she raised it over her head.

"Citizens of Vale!" she shouted, capturing the attention of every soldier in sight. "Are you truly content to sit behind your safe walls while the Valesian population suffers?"

Pyrrha watched her squire, proud tears forming in her eyes as the assembled guardsmen gaped up at her, enraptured. The blonde swung her sword around to point back behind her.

"Look out there. That is your land, your people. Are you willing to let those monsters have it uncontended?" Jeanne turned, her blonde hair, unbound and shining in the sun, swinging out behind her as she gazed across the assembled soldiers. "This is your kingdom, take it back!"

The answering roar might have rivaled that of a Dragon as soldiers began to surge forward, spilling across the Red Dragon's corpse and out past the walls.

Pyrrha sniffled, her hand to her mouth in adoration. "Gods, I love that woman," she whispered.

"So go stand with her," Nebula advised with a grin. The Elven Knight strode back down towards where the guardsmen were assembling outside the walls, bellowing out orders to get them into formation. Remnants of the Orcish army were taking notice, some of them approaching with a gleam in their beady eyes to challenge their occupation of the ground there. Dew ran out to coordinate the other flank, and between the two Valesian Knights they had the soldiers effectively organized in short order.

With a resolved nod, the redhead turned to walk up next to her squire. Jeanne's eyes were bright with adrenaline as the import of what she'd just done dawned upon her.

"That was nicely done," Pyrrha murmured, not bothering to hide the pride or love in her eyes and voice. "Let's get the Orb to its rightful place, shall we?"

"Very well…" the blonde replied with a wide smile, sapphire orbs projecting just as much ardor. "My Lady."

A/N: Everyone, say it with me now… "Fucking finally!" I rather like Ruby's method of dispute resolution, just throw them at each other and force them to work it out. Apologies to those who were getting more than a little frustrated with the pacing of Freezerburn's resolution (hugs, AntonSlavik020!). And, yes, this battle is spanning a couple of chapters. Originally I'd intended this particular one to be two shorter chapters, but the flow of battle seemed to work best this way. As I think I've mentioned before, I've actually shorted the planned ending by one chapter. Two more chapters left. Ready for the final boss fight? I'm not. And I wrote the damn thing…

Hugs for my intrepid Beta, KellyConnely, and bountiful appreciation to all of you readers and reviewers! AntonSlavik020, RatedRSuperStar87, ZHsteven, TacoKing23, Crescent Sunrise, FutureHangover, Boombox94, kinigget, OverDude12, Minesniper, brace yourselves...

Stay shiny!