Ember Legacy, Volume 3

Chapter 23: Maleficent Darkness

Western Reaches of Vale

"Now, I don't know what you think of when I say dragon. Whatever it is - it's not scary enough."

~ Rick Riordan, The Titan's Curse

"That," Jeanne remarked, staring up at the imposing stone edifice, "is the biggest fortress I have ever seen."

"I must concur," Pyrrha murmured at her side, eyes wide with wonderment. "It looks to be positively ancient."

"Yeah, I'll say," Coco grunted, her head tilted to the side consideringly. "Predates any civilization I've ever heard of."

The sprawling stone ruins were nestled in the crook of where a low hill ended and a mountain began. The towering walls could easily have held off armies in its heyday, and the gaping entrance large enough to easily fit a Dragon. No gates were in existence, and most of the towers had long since crumbled into ruin. The central structure seemed to be more or less intact, though, and would offer shelter if needed.

The blonde warrior turned her head to uneasily peer back the way they'd come. The clouds there were an ominous inky black, with streaks of distant flashes that formed a spiderweb of lightning. And the storm front was fast approaching in their direction.

"Whelp, I don't know about you guys," Nora chirped, "but I'm not in the mood to get drenched. Let's go check it out, yeah?"

"Lead on, imp," Coco grinned, gesturing forward grandly.

Jeanne had to chuckle at the courtly bow that Nora returned the gesture with. The pair had become fast friends, both entertaining a rather raunchy sense of humor that Nora must have been keeping hidden. Wish she'd kept it hidden just a bit longer, she mused with some chagrin. Unfortunately, the blushes that such joking elicited from the rest of the party only fueled their hilarity.

They passed under the huge archway, somehow still intact even though the rest of the sprawling walls seemed ready to crumble at a stiff breeze. As they approached the enormous fortress nestled in the middle of the valley, she could tell it was surprisingly sound-looking. The front even seemed to have an intact door made out of solid metal, though it was propped open enough for them to probably squeeze through one at a time.

"Okay," she breathed as they paused outside the portal. "Who wants to go inside the spooky castle first?"

"It's not that bad, Jeannie," her orange-haired friend chuckled. "Just a little… dusty."

"Dust. Right," she deadpanned in reply, clenching her shield and sword in her hands. Others might tease her for it, but she couldn't help but cultivate an extraordinarily bad feeling about such situations.

She let out an involuntary eep as thunder suddenly crashed behind them. Glancing over her shoulder, she was startled to see that the storm was almost upon them now.

Facing forward resolutely once more, Jeanne followed on the heels of her redheaded Knight, determined as always to watch her back and keep her from harm.

Not that I've been very successful at it, she's been wounded several times on this journey, and often without me by her side. Her jaw clenched staunchly. Then I need to make sure I never leave her side again. Not that it would all that much of a hardship, truly.

Jeanne looked around the cavernous entrance hall warily. Her brow furrowed as the details became clearer to her, from the height of the doorway they'd passed through to the arching ceiling above them, and then the stone bench that lined the wall across from them, except that it rose above the height of her head…

"Oh my Oum," she breathed. "Did Giants build this castle?"

"Seems that way, yeah," Coco mused, running her hands along the worn runes carved into the stone around the front entrance. "Not sure what type, though. Maybe Eldritch or… Well, it's not high enough in the mountains for Storm Giants, and I don't think Stone Giants would be civilized enough to bind together in such a fashion…"

The light in the room began to dim considerably as the storm swept in. The accompanying wind howled through the crack in the metal doors, bringing with it the damp smell of a promised deluge.

"We should move further inside," Pyrrha stated over the noise. "Perhaps there is a chamber where we may light a fire."

The group proceeded forth, Ren holding his staff over his head with a globe of light attached to it. They passed what looked to be a collapsed chamber set against the outer wall, but soon enough came to a comparatively smaller room, one with an actual fireplace, though the size of the thing was enough for all of them to comfortably sleep inside.

"Right," the redheaded Knight stated firmly as she looked around the chamber. There was a door to the rear, this one made of some stout wood that had miraculously held up under the weight of time, though it was cracked and half-falling apart. "Nora, guard the front, Jeanne the rear. The rest of us can get a fire going from the remains of this… Was this a bench? Anyway, let's… Oh."

Pyrrha paused with a chagrined look on her face. "Er, I apologize for presuming to order you about, Coco."

"Don't even worry about it," the Bronze replied with a genial wave as she began to gather up large splinters of wood. "I'm along for the journey, and under your purview, so feel free to tell me what to do."

"Better you than me," Jeanne breathed with a smirk as she passed by her Knight. Pyrrha rewarded her with a light slap on her armored forearm, causing the blonde to chuckle lightly.

They had a camp set up relatively quickly. Turns were taken on watch and rudimentary meals eaten from what rations they still carried while the storm raged on outside.

"I don't believe that's going to let up anytime soon," Coco murmured once she came back from investigating the other end of the hallway. Pyrrha could only sigh and nod as she reclined against the stone wall.

"I suppose we could camp here overnight."

Oh, sure, let's sleep in the creepy ancient castle, Jeanne grumbled internally as she cleaned and inspected her sword. The mundane weapon had a few nicks and scratches that she'd need to get ground off once they returned to civilization. It had served her well throughout the years, but with as much use as it was getting, she was seriously considering using some of her saved-up coin to purchase a new one.

Maybe with a small enchantment, even? No, I doubt I have that much lien, though I could buy a finely-crafted one that could eventually take an enchantment…

Hey, maybe Ruby could enchant one for me.

She smiled to herself softly as her mind wandered to her friends and companions now separated from their little group. Her friendship with Ruby seemed easy enough on the outside as they shared an oftentimes silly sense of humor and an enthusiasm for adventure. Even after she'd found out that her friend was, in reality, a Silver Dragon, it didn't shake her faith in the brunette.

And then there was her sister, Yang, fellow blonde and boisterous brawler. The only reason Jeanne was still alive was thanks to the brash Gold Dragon, rescuing her from the Hellhounds and bringing her back to the surface along with a rather wet and soggy Nora. While she certainly owed her her life, she'd been proud to call her a companion and friend even before that. The blonde woman had a warmth to her, lifting up the spirits of others with jovial conversations, even if she were oftentimes overly affectionate with her Elven lover in front of the group. Said Mage, along with the Cat Faunus Rogue, were a bit more of a mystery to her as they weren't as genuinely open as the others, but she thought she could still consider them friends. Weiss' sharp wit and fighting skill, along with Blake's dextrous combative ability and penchant for dry humor, made them both stalwart companions in her eyes.

The others began to settle down for the evening. As she was the first to stand guard earlier, and everyone else had a turn while the party ate, she volunteered for the initial watch that night.

The blonde paced slowly and as quietly as possible between the two portals. One was half-covered with rotting wood while the other stood open wide with no door whatsoever. The fire burned low, allowing her some amount of illumination still.

Jeanne paused at the rear doorway, peering into the darkness within. They hadn't taken the time to explore very far, just enough to verify the existence of another long, wide corridor with a dusty stairwell winding downwards on the side.

It still gave her the creeps.

Shuddering slightly, the Knight-in-training turned and stalked back to the other entrance, careful not to disturb the others. As she passed, she heard the rustling of one of them as they turned restlessly, perhaps chilled from the dying embers in the fireplace.

She paused, frowning. No, that sound wasn't coming from her companions, in fact, not even from the room at all…

Her eyes flew open wide as the dim light illuminated several shambling forms that emerged from the darkness by the open portal.

"Up!" she screamed, rushing forward. "We're under attack!"

As she got closer, Jeanne could see the details, and immediately wished she hadn't. Their attackers consisted of rotting corpses and animated skeletons, the latter carrying a variety of rusty weaponry. Growling, she slammed her shield into one zombie, sending it stumbling backwards, while slashing with her sword at a pair of skeletons wielding axes. She was determined to give the others time to assemble, and thankfully these undead creatures weren't much of a threat.

At least, in small numbers. Before she knew it, putrid hands curled into chipped-nailed talons were digging at her from all sides while chittering skeletons hacked and hewed at her.

Fortunately, relief was not long in coming. A group of skeletons disintegrated into shards of bone as Magnhild swept through them, its owner following on its heels with a steely glint in her eyes. Two pairs of grasping claws were yanked from where they'd been digging under her back armor as Coco hauled them off, flinging the zombies at the wall where they were smashed into decaying body parts.

And then her Knight was there, emerald eyes glinting determinedly as she pulled Jeanne back. The golden-armored redhead looked as glorious as always, standing tall and proud with her shield set. Pyrrha drew her sword, sparing her squire a concerned glance.

"Are you well?" she asked quickly.

Jeanne nodded, having caught her breath now, and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the woman who she would follow into the Abyss. The woman she'd lay her life down for without hesitation.

The armored pair easily repelled those undead who made it past the whirling dervishes of Coco and Nora, hacking at the zombies and shield-bashing those skeletons lacking a weapon with any sort of reach. Jeanne was curious as to their choice of strategy, seemingly just buying time, but she wasn't about to question her Knight.

And then she picked up on the soft chanting from behind as it got louder until Ren finished his incantation with a shout. Bright white light washed over them, and where it touched an undead, they disintegrated into ash.

Jeanne laughed lightly as her shoulders sagged. It hadn't been a terribly difficult or hazardous fight, but a bit tiring nonetheless. "Zombies and skeletons. Told you this was a terrible place to stop."

"Pfft, like these were any real threat," Nora scoffed, cleaning the head of her hammer off on the heel of her boot. "Just a late-night bit of exercise."

"We have a problem," Coco interrupted their banter, staring into the room with a frown creasing her face. "Where's the Orb?"

Paling, Jeanne dashed forward to the satchel where it had been secured.

Had, being the operative word.

"Oum's balls," the blonde muttered angrily.

Ren offered her a quiet, "Language," as he passed, but Pyrrha paused at her side, wearing a matching frown to Coco's.

"This was a distraction."

"Looks like it," the Bronze sighed, cracking the knuckles on each of her hands.

"Can you track it?"

"Yeah, sort of, and you're not gonna like it."

Jeanne hung her head as she rose from her crouch. "Down?"

"Down."

"Son of an Orc," the blonde sighed, gripping her shield. "Knew this was a bad idea."

"Gear up," Pyrrha ordered, striding over to complete the assembly of her hastily-donned armor. "We don't know what we shall face, but it is imperative we retrieve the Orb from the thief."

"A thief who can control undead," Ren reminded them all mildly.

Jeanne moaned quietly as she followed the others, assuming the rear guard. Her bad feeling was growing with each step, but Pyrrha was correct. They'd come entirely too far to let whatever it was keep hold of that Orb.

They descended the winding stone staircase, Ren once again holding up a glowing orb of magical light on the end of his staff. After what felt like hundreds of yards, deep enough that she wondered why she wasn't feeling the fires of the Magma Plane by now, the staircase ended in a wide, dark hallway. It stretched on ahead of them past the comforting circle of Ren's light.

"How big is this?" she whispered.

Coco turned her head from where she'd been inspecting the wall off to the right. "I can't see the end."

"Well, damn."

"I'm a bit more concerned with the sides here than the end, in any case."

"What do you…?" Jeanne's eyes traveled over to where Coco had been staring. The wall itself looked like it was pockmarked with holes, though they were sealed off with dusty cobwebs. And then lining the walls on the floor were large rectangles of stone laid down, stretching out to the center but allowing passage down the middle.

It only took a moment for her brain to catch up. "Is this a crypt?"

"Yep," the Bronze sighed. "The larger stone biers look to belong to the Giant rulers, while the smaller holes are the servants, must have been humanoid-sized."

Jeanne was still for a moment while the others peered about anxiously.

"We're in a crypt," the blonde finally stated flatly. "Pursuing someone who can control the undead."

"That about sums the situation up, yes," Pyrrha sighed. "Ren?"

"I can feel them stirring," the Cleric murmured. "I can take care of the weaker ones, but we must be prepared for a fight."

"Always," Nora grinned stepping in front of her lover and holding her massive warhammer at the ready. "Bring 'em on."

As Ren began his incantation, Jeanne nervously watched as the dusty holes seemed to show some activity, the curtain-like spiderwebs parting eventually to reveal more skeletons, though these were in considerably poorer state than the ones from upstairs. Before any of the undead could even reach the floor, Ren had finished, and the familiar white light flared out. As it did, Jeanne could spy the end of the immensely long chamber almost a mile in the distance.

"Aww, I didn't get to smash anything," Nora pouted.

"You still have the chance to do so," Ren reported tensely. "There's a group of… something… headed this way from in front of us."

"That's not very specific," Pyrrha murmured, setting herself into a defensive stance on the left flank. Jeanne automatically mirrored her on the right, giving Nora and Coco room to maneuver in the middle.

"No, it's not," Ren admitted. "Definitely undead, though."

"Goodie," the blonde muttered under her breath.

It didn't take long for the snarling and scrabbling to reach her ears, followed soon thereafter by abominations plucked directly out of her more ghastly nightmares. The hairless creatures scrabbled forward on all fours, skin a mottled greenish-grey and with ichor dripping from their fanged maws.

"Ghouls!" Ren shouted as they rapidly approached. "Don't let them scratch or bite you!"

"Yeah, that was definitely the plan," Jeanne shuddered, readying her shield. The first howling, slobbering monster hurled itself onto her shield, wrapping its foul-smelling limbs around it and dragging her sideways.

"Shit!" she barked, stumbling. Two more were on the heels of the first, reaching out eagerly to feast on her warm flesh.

Screaming, Jeanne turned her stumble into a sidestep, pinning the first Ghoul to the ground under her shield while she lashed out behind her. One of her attackers lost its head immediately, while the other reared back, clutching the stump of its missing hand. She twirled her sword, plunging it into the neck of the immobilized Ghoul before jumping back to her feet, dragging her shield out of the clutches of the skewered opponent.

The last Ghoul lunged at her, jaws snapping furiously, but she managed to get her shield up and around in time, bringing her sword down hard on the crown of its head. As soon as the Ghoul dropped, she spun around, searching out her companions.

Nora was the first one her eyes came across, and she was definitely in trouble. A half-dozen of the feral creatures lay at her feet, but another had latched onto her arm, gnawing away fiercely. The orange-haired warrior was stumbling backwards with a dazed look on her face, while her weapon dropped from nerveless hands.

Growling, Jeanne sprinted forward to help her friend. Her eyes flashed to the side, almost causing her to trip as she saw yet another type of undead that was battling Coco and Pyrrha. They had glowing red eyes and long white hair, grim visages split by horrific grins. The one Pyrrha battled wore some ancient sort of dark metal armor and fought with a greatsword, while Coco was hard-pressed by another pair with unnaturally-long claws. The Bronze seemed to be favoring her left side, the arm there hanging limp and useless.

She gave herself a shake and bore in on Nora, who had now fallen onto her side, staring sightlessly off into the distance while the Ghoul crouched over her eagerly. With an angry roar, she slammed into the undead creature, sending it flying. It righted itself with impressive agility, furious at being denied its meal, and hurtled in once more only to be impaled on her sword.

"Nora!" she shouted anxiously, turning her friend onto her back. The arm wound was fairly alarming in its own right, but her seeming immobility worried her more. "Hey, Nora, come on, girl! Snap out of it!"

"Allow me," a gentle voice interjected at her side. Ren crouched down, one hand pressed to Nora's forehead as he murmured a prayer. And then the hammer-wielder sucked in a breath and screamed in their faces.

Jeanne recoiled, but Ren seemed to be expecting it and ran his hands down her arm. Almost in no time at all the wound was sealed shut and Nora's screaming faded away into a whimper.

"I gotta go help the others with… whatever those things are," Jeanne stated hurriedly as she hauled herself to her feet. She paused at Ren's restraining hand on her arm.

"They are Wights," he stated, a hint of worry in his features. "Powerful undead, with a touch that can wither. They drain aura, stay out of range if you can."

"Right," Jeanne sighed. Just keeps getting better. "What, were they working with the Ghouls?"

"No, they seemed to have come up from under one of the biers that opened."

With a resolute nod, Jeanne hurried forward. Pyrrha seemed to be holding her own well enough, keeping the sword-wielding Wight at bay and even scoring a few hits, but Coco was in even worse shape now, grimacing as she inexpertly wielded a sword much like the first one's. Her blue eyes flickered to the side where the bodies of another pair of Wights lay, evidently already felled by the duo.

She didn't give any warning as she sailed in, slashing viciously at the rearmost unarmed Wight. It reared back, howling, but she pressed her attack without remorse. Jeanne kept her shield moving to intercept those hideously long claws long enough for her to score another pair of hits, finally succeeding in causing it to stumble to the ground weakly. Another sword thrust ended its miserable existence.

A shout of warning was all she got, but still she managed to turn in time to catch a glowing green sword on her shield. She gritted her teeth and pushed some of her aura into her arm, both strengthening and protecting it as yet another armored Wight pressed into her. Her feet skidded back as she leaned forward, trying to get an angle to thrust with her sword.

But then a hand snaked out from her attacker. The pressure eased somewhat as the Wight was now only wielding its sword with a single hand, but that was of little comfort as her sword arm went numb. She stared down in horror as the skin on her wrist where the Wight had managed to find a gap in her armor was now a sickly-looking grey.

Her weapon clattered to the floor and she was pushed further back.

"Little help here!" she called out in a panic.

And then Coco came in swinging, battering away her attacker and giving her some respite. While the Bronze dealt with the sword-wielder, though, Jeanne was left unarmed and facing the brunette's original long-clawed attacker.

"Oh, you little piece of Kobold shit," Jeanne moaned, turning to keep her paralyzed arm behind her. Sure enough, the Wight launched itself forward only to latch onto her shield, much as the first Ghoul had. This type of undead, however, was far stronger, and managed to wrench it from her grasp, the leather straps tearing and almost wrenching her arm out of her socket.

Leaving her standing, bare-handed, in front of the ravenous-looking monster.

"Eep," she squeaked, backpedaling rapidly.

Unfortunately, that was the exact wrong tactic to pursue. Her feet suddenly went out from below her as she toppled over the edge of the gaping hole where the Wights had originated from. Startled, the blonde managed to still grab hold of the edge with her good arm.

Her feet swaying, Jeanne looked down into the seemingly bottomless pit.

"This," she murmured dazedly, "is not how I expected to go out."

Years of strength training had given her impressive muscles, but at that moment with the entirety of her weight, armor and all, hanging off of one hand, she knew she wouldn't last very long.

In fact, she was already starting to slip.

"Pyrrha!" she screamed desperately. She glanced down once more, hoping that perhaps it wasn't all that far down. But then the body of a slain Wight went tumbling past her, and she couldn't hear it hit bottom.

Regrets flashed through her mind in the span of a heartbeat, mostly concerning Pyrrha, but she couldn't begrudge the way fate had brought them together. Had she not become a squire, she never would have met the gorgeous redhead. Destiny just seemed to have a problem with her being happy in the end, she supposed.

And then her aching fingers finally gave way.

She'd fallen only perhaps a foot before strong hands clamped down on her wrist. Startled, Jeanne looked up and into familiar turquoise eyes that stared at her merrily, upside-down.

"Not today, Jeannie!" the orange-haired hammer-wielder cheered from where she dangled, the backs of her knees hooked over the edge.

"Nora," the blonde sighed with a smile. "Er, arm all better?"

"Yep, much better!" she grinned in reply. "Okay, so hang on, on the count of three. One… Two…"

With a grunted "Three!" the pink-armored warrior heaved Jeanne up and across her body, spilling her to the ground beside the crypt hole. And then Nora gave another grunt to pull herself up, collapsing in a heap next to her friend.

"We got 'em all?" Jeanne murmured wearily.

"Yep!"

"Good, good… So, I'm just gonna lay here for a few, be a dear and let Ren know my arm is a weird color of grey and I can't move it."

"Ooooh, cool," Nora burbled, leaning over to inspect the paralyzed limb. She gave it a few experimental pokes with her finger. "Yeah, Coco had the same problem, I'll send him over once he's done with her!"

"Thanks, Nora," she sighed.

Before too long the party was healed up and moving forward once more. Jeanne flexed the fingers of her right hand around the hilt of her sword, reassuring herself it was fully functional again.

Her eyes drifted over to Coco, who had an occasional pained expression on her face. Ren had done what he could, but her own aura needed to do the rest.

It took a good ten minutes of cautious walking to reach the end of the crypt. The next passageway was plainer and unadorned, though there were several open doorways leading off.

"Coco," the redhead whispered. "Can you tell where the Orb is?"

The Bronze shook her head slightly. "It's relatively nearby, so they didn't take it from the castle, but I can't exactly get a direction. I don't think we need to go any further down, though. Um… We're definitely getting closer."

"Good enough," Pyrrha replied with a warm smile. "Let us know if that changes."

They entered the first chamber, some sort of feasting hall with a stone table and benches obviously meant for the Giant-sized builders. Jeanne thought it to be a tad morbid to hold a feast that close to where they buried folk, but there was no accounting for other creature's cultures. At the other end was a barren kitchen, sized for the humanoid servants. The rusted iron door leading from there was sealed tight, not budging even from Nora and Coco's combined efforts.

Backtracking, they came across an audience chamber next. It was empty save for bare iron flagpoles lining the walls up near the cavernous domed ceiling and a large stone throne at the far end.

Sitting on the throne, slumped forward and clutching an enormous two-handed sword, was an armored skeletal figure, coated in dust and neglect.

"Huh," Nora mused as she walked forward. "Looks like the king was the last one left."

"Odd that he just expired on the throne," Coco agreed by her side.

"Um, guys?" Jeanne called out warily. "Let's not approach the giant-sized skeleton, okay?"

"It's not moving," Nora protested. She paused, though, as she saw the expression on her boyfriend's face. "Renny? Everything okay?"

"Something… is here," he whispered, face screwed up as he tried to sort out what he was sensing. Oum, the light-bringer and life-giver, was the perfect deity for battling the forces of the undead. Jeanne knew from her lessons that Ren had the ability to sense most undead and other foul creatures of darkness, lending credence to the hackles raised on the back of her neck.

"We should go," Pyrrha declared, inching backwards. "I don't see another entrance leading from here…"

"Too late," Jeanne squawked as the large skeleton suddenly lit up with a dark necrotic energy, crackling across its blackened armor and sword. The eyesockets inset into its skull began to glow an unearthly red.

"Ooooh, shitbiscuits," Nora said, her hammer in both hands at the ready. "So, a skeleton made out of a Giant, huh? Easy-peasy."

"No, Nora," Ren choked out. He seemed to be affected by the fel energy exuding from the creature as it rose to its full height, towering twice as high as any of them.

"Ren, what is it?" Pyrrha called out anxiously. The undead seemed in no hurry to engage them, standing there with its sword still clasped point-down as its gaze drifted around those assembled.

The Cleric's next words sent chills down Jeanne's spine.

"It's a Death Knight."

"A… A Death Knight?" the squire squawked. "How? I mean, yeah, powerful warrior, bind their soul to their weapon through dark magics and all… But a Giant one?"

Right before her eyes, though, was the irrefutable proof of the power of this undead titan. Sinews and flesh started to wind their way around the exposed limbs, and it began to form a face. A horrible, evilly-leering face. And then a dry, mocking chuckle sounded from the depths of the monster.

"Oh, we are so screwed," Jeanne breathed.

She desperately tried to summon up her knowledge of Death Knights from her lectures while still at the Order of Artemis chapterhouse. They were formed from a mighty warrior and animated as an undead creature by the gods of death, evil deities, demon lords, or other malevolent forces, granted eternal undeath rather than face the end of their mortal existence. They retained most of their cunning and intellect, but some also gained extra fel powers.

Their strength, however, rested in their soul-bound weapon which could inflict hideous damage.

"Hit it, now!" Pyrrha called out fiercely, finally overcoming the transfixion caused by the Death Knight's appearance.

As one, the party surged forward to the attack. Nora sailed in first, her warhammer swinging in a wide arc that never connected. Instead, the Death Knight simply shifted its weapon to the side, effortlessly deflecting the attack. A massive boot swung out with surprising speed, catching Nora in the stomach and sending her across the room to land head-first against the wall in a limp heap.

Coco let out an angry roar as she leapt up high, fist cocked back to deliver a powerful blow, but as with Nora it never landed. The titan's free hand whipped out, catching the Bronze by her face and smashing her down into the stone floor, cracking the tiles and sending shards everywhere.

Pyrrha and Jeanne waded in together, separating to attack from opposite sides. The Giant's sword was finally hefted overhead, descending down towards Jeanne first. She skipped to the side, catching the end of the blow on her shield but still staggering from the power of it until she fell over backwards. Her redheaded Knight darted in, striking deadly and fast before retreating again. The Death Knight actually seemed to notice that, turning its head and regarding her levelly. With a seeming nod of respect, the looming monster headed Pyrrha's way, twirling the massive sword before engaging.

The Mistralian Knight managed to just barely keep ahead of the whirlwind of blows from a sword easily the length of a humanoid-sized pike. Sparks flew from her shield from one too many near-misses, but she was unable to get close enough to cause any sort of damage.

Jeanne regained her footing, weaving slightly. The sword hadn't even touched her, and yet still she felt drained and weak. A hand landed on her shoulder, and she sucked in a refreshing breath as her limbs seemed filled with energy once more.

"Distract him if you can," Ren advised as he headed off towards where Nora landed.

Nodding, Jeanne took off in a sprint. She let out a bellowed challenge as she neared, causing the Death Knight to turn slightly.

Her strike against its thigh was likely barely even noticeable, but it was enough of an irritant for the monster to bat at her again. She took the sword strike solidly on her shield, and gasped as the potency of it both dented it in and sent her skidding backwards to land flat on her back.

The diversion was enough to allow Pyrrha to land a series of her own hits, and that certainly got the titan's attention. With a low growl that sounded as if it came from the very bowels of Remnant, the Death Knight slammed its armored boot down. The redhead easily avoided the stomp, but the resulting shockwave and flying debris sent her hurtling against the wall. She still kept her footing, though blood trickled down from her nose and she looked rather wobbly.

But then another fierce cry sounded. Jeanne's head whipped around to spy a battered and bruised Coco crouched with her hands laced together. The Bronze was just completing the action of hurling Nora, the blood streaming down her face not covering up her fierce grin and with her warhammer hefted over her head in both hands, towards the Death Knight.

The Giant undead only had the time to turn before it received the full strength of Magnhild to its face. Stunned, it staggered back and dropped to the floor, soul weapon clattering out of its hands.

It lost its grip on the sword! she thought eagerly, rolling unsteadily to her feet. It's weakened now!

No sooner had the thought crossed her mind than Pyrrha was there, long red ponytail streaming behind her as she darted in and swung a mighty blow against the monster's neck.

Jeanne let out a sigh of relief as the dark energy faded from the creature. A loud crack filled the chamber as the Soulsword shattered into pieces.

"Okay," Nora cheered softly as she staggered to her feet, using her warhammer as a crutch. "As awesome as that was, let's not do it again anytime soon."

"That was indeed a rather imposing creature," Pyrrha agreed quietly as she joined the others. Her emerald eyes flickered over Jeanne probingly. "Is everyone well?"

Coco chuckled as she twisted and turned, bones popping as she did so. "Hurt like a bitch, but yeah, I'll live."

"Well enough," Jeanne added. She held up her shield ruefully. "I have a dent."

"That you do," her redheaded Knight laughed lightly. "Better it than you, though, yes?"

"Most definitely," the blonde murmured.

Ren set to work, healing up what he could and refreshing their energies from the debilitating attacks from the necrotic monster. Since time was still of the essence, the party managed to go through their meager supply of both aura and stamina regeneration potions to supplement his efforts.

"What do we have left?" Pyrrha asked Ren softly as he checked his pouches.

He sighed morosely. "Two healing potions, and they're not all that strong. But I am fully restored, so long as we do not have anything major left to confront, it should suffice."

"Ren," the blonde implored solemnly. "Did you really need to go and jinx us?"

The raven-haired half-Elf smiled gently. "I shall pray to Oum for luck."

"Oh. Well, that works, then."

They exited the chamber and headed further down the hallway, passing several empty rooms of uncertain function. Eventually, the hallway made a sharp right, ending in a cave-in after another hundred yards. Just before that, however, was what seemed to be a rough-hewn side passage, sized for humanoids rather than the Giant lords of this ancient, crumbling fortress.

Resolutely, the five adventurers picked their way along the corridor hewn from solid rock. It twisted and turned as it went until it opened up into a vast chamber, softly lit by a bioluminescent lake but with the outer reaches still hidden in the shadows. The floor dropped sharply away from them, littered with rubble and stalagmites, while the ceiling soared overhead.

"See anything?" Pyrrha murmured.

Ren immediately shook his head but responded in a worried murmur. "Definitely undead in this chamber, as well as… something else."

"Uh-oh," Coco whispered, her eyes flashing a molten gold as she removed her darkly tinted glasses.

"What?" Jeanne squawked anxiously. "What was that for? What do you mean, 'uh-oh'?"

"I mean, uh-oh," Coco smirked warily back at her. "As in, we're in for one helluva fight."

"Greetings!" an ominous voice rumbled through the darkness. "I get so few visitors nowadays!"

"Great," Nora giggled somewhat maniacally. "A beastie with a sense of humor. Um, what kinda beastie are we talkin' about here?"

Something moved at the far end of the chamber, stirring in the darkness. Jeanne strained to make out the shape but began to take involuntary steps backwards as the sheer size of it began to become evident. Ethereally-glowing blue eyes peered malevolently towards them from a height that was not at all reassuring.

And then with a muted thud it took a step forward. Gaunt, skeletal limbs edged into the dim lighting, followed by a massive body with a pair of cadaverous wings that unfurled overhead.

Coco growled low in her throat, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Dracolich," she spat out fiercely.

"D- Dracolich?" Jeanne squeaked. "L- Like, a Dragon that, um, turned into a Lich? One of the most powerful undead, that kinda Lich?"

"Yes," the brunette snarled. "An abomination to all of Dragonkind."

"Ah, but we are not so unlike, you and I," the leviathan chuckled darkly. "You merely retain the lifeforce I abandoned for eternal existence." Dusty scales slithered against the stone as it slowly crept forward. "But where are my manners? My name is Zeuzelliannaeraeisoranth, at your service."

Jeanne's knees felt weak as the monster's gaze traveled over her, her hands trembling and barely able to retain her weapon. Ren seemed to be the most heavily affected, sinking to his knees with his hands clutched to his head, while Nora was unable to lift her hammer, standing there and shaking like a leaf. Pyrrha had her expression set resolutely but was unable to move, seemingly all of her energy currently being spent in keeping upright and not shrinking back like the blonde was.

"Enough!" Coco roared, her voice becoming guttural and coarse. "You want to pick a fight, you big evil bastard, you got one!"

With that the brunette sprinted forward, leaping off of a boulder as she sailed in towards the Dracolich. As she launched herself into the air, her form shimmered, and an enraged Bronze Dragon slammed into the undead monstrosity. As the two titanic forms wrestled, rolling back into the darkness, the lethargy that had overtaken the group was quickly shaken off.

"Oum," Jeanne breathed unsteadily. She shook her head vigorously, twin blonde pigtails swishing around her face. "I thought I'd never be able to move again!"

"Pity it didn't last longer," a dark, feminine voice hissed from the shadows to her right. "Would have made this easier."

The noise from the titanic struggle below them had covered up the approach of numerous gaunt figures who now ringed around the group. They all looked to be severely malnourished, wearing rags and often shoeless. Most of the humanoid races seemed to be represented, mostly Human though a goodly number of Elves, Halflings, and Gnomes, one emaciated Dwarf whose beard was shorn off, and a pair of Wolf Faunus.

All of them regarded the group with hungry, malevolent eyes.

"Ren?" Pyrrha barked out as the four of them drew back into an outward-facing circle.

The Cleric gripped his staff determinedly. "Vampires," he spat out as if the very word was foul to the tongue.

Another figure stepped forward, a woman with long hair the color of night and abbreviated blood-red armor. She held a two-handed sword casually, the blade of which was embedded with sharp edges to cause more pain than actual damage.

"Our Master has kept us on a rather short leash," the female Vampire Lord grinned, her fangs flashing in the light cast by Ren's spell. "You don't mind if my minions sate their appetite, do you?"

"Actually," the raven-haired half-Elf intoned, flicking the end of his staff with his fingers to send the globe of light drifting upward. "We do."

With that, Ren's free hand was held out in front of him, index and middle fingers extended upwards together as he shouted a word that seared briefly through Jeanne's mind. The Vampire Spawn facing him, however, were affected far more strongly, several of them collapsing into fiery ash while others writhed on the ground, screaming and tearing at their own bodies with their talons.

After that rather obvious declaration of their intent, the battle was joined.

Nora threw herself forward with her usual foolhardy exuberance, her hammer catching a trio of the lesser Vampires and tossing them away like the discarded body parts they now were. Jeanne darted forward as well, trusting in Pyrrha and Ren at her back to be able to handle themselves. She soon had her hands full with the pair of Faunus Vampires as they slammed into her shield, trying to overwhelm her defenses.

She deftly flicked her sword across the top of her shield, severing a few fingers of the incautious undead as well as blinding an eye of the one who had thrust her jaws at her. The female Wolf Faunus Vampire recoiled enough for Jeanne to twist the grip on her sword, plunging it down and into the chest of the male before sending him away with a shield bash. Then she lunged, skewering the first opponent through her belly before resetting her posture.

And then she gaped openly as the pair of Vampires righted themselves, ignoring the gaping wounds and advancing once more.

"Right," she growled heatedly. "So you're a little tougher, just means I have to take more pieces out of you."

This time she went onto the offensive, lopping off the right arm of the first Vampire before spinning low and slicing into the other's legs. She followed the male Faunus Vampire down, bringing her sword down across his neck and severing his head from his shoulders.

Jeanne chuckled breathlessly as she righted herself. "Let's see you shrug that off…"

With a screech of fury, the female threw herself at the blonde warrior, scrabbling with her remaining clawed hand as she fought for purchase. Jeanne wasn't about to give her any, however, and first thrust her sword straight through the Vampire's gaping mouth, the blade extending back like a reversed tongue, before retracing it and slashing outward to deal the same fate as the other.

As soon as her opponent dropped, however, the blonde had to skip backwards to avoid the fierce overhand strike from the Vampire Lord. Gulping, Jeanne set herself back in a guarded position, waiting for an opening to charge in.

"Pertinent little girl," the raven-haired Vampire sneered, twirling her two-handed sword in her hands. "Your blood will taste just as sweet, voluntary or no."

"Yeah, you're gonna have to fight for it," Jeanne grinned, her sword pointed unerringly at the woman's head. "And I'm not gonna make it easy for you."

"All the better," the Vampire Lord snarled before hurtling forward.

Jeanne was hard-pressed to keep her shield up before the whirlwind of strikes, the Vampire moving with an unearthly speed and grace. Soon enough both shield and sword were desperately trying to keep the blade away from her, though with only limited success as evidenced by her numerous bleeding cuts.

Must be enchanted, my aura doesn't block it and can't stop the bleeding… I take one good hit and I'm done for...

With an angry shout, Jeanne pushed herself forward and under the woman's guard. The Vampire Lord's eyes widened in surprise before her face was smashed in by the blonde's shield. The attack only lasted for the span of a heartbeat or two before the Knight-in-training was hurled backwards, barely retaining her footing.

And then the raven-haired Vampire was advancing on her, eyes blazing with fury and spittle trailing from the corners of her mouth.

"Ooooh, crap," Jeanne moaned softly. "I really pissed her off, now…"

Before her opponent could close with her, however, a red-hilted sword deftly sailed in, and the raven-tressed head went flying to the side, body crumpling soon thereafter to the ground.

Jeanne sagged to one knee, looking up and into the emerald green eyes of her Knight. "Thanks," she whispered, thrusting her sword point-down and leaning on it for support.

"Well, I'm sure you had things in hand," Pyrrha replied, her tone light but face solemn as she looked her wounds over. "But blood can be such a pain to scrub off of armor."

"True enough," the blonde chuckled. She froze as Pyrrha's gloveless hand snuck forward, cupping her bleeding cheek.

"We should have Ren heal you," the redhead murmured after a seeming eternity.

"I… I can wait," she whispered back, yearning for her hand to stay forever and yet wanting to flee at the same time. Like a rabbit caught in a snare, though, she couldn't move even if she truly wanted to. "Wh- What about Coco? Is… Is she…?"

"They still fight," Pyrrha affirmed, dropping her hand with a sigh of reluctance. "I'm afraid we can do little to help, though."

A bellow sounded through the chamber, one that seemed to trail off into a whine before answered by another furious roar. And then the entire cavern, vast as it was, shook.

Pyrrha helped her squire to her feet, the both of them walking over to stand next to Nora and Ren as they watched the gargantuan struggle below them.

Only flashes were to be seen, really, though mostly of the great Bronze as the light would shine off of her scales. What little they could see, however, told that while Coco was bleeding profusely, she was giving as well as she got. Jeanne knew that Liches, as a rule, had potent necrotic powers, likely magnified in the Dragon equivalent, but hopefully with Coco being in such close proximity and engaging in melee combat, they wouldn't come into play.

And then a tremendous smash resounded through the chamber, the Bronze Dragon becoming visible once more, though this time in far more dire straights. The Dracolich had her pinned on her back, talons digging into her and gaping mouth poised to snap down on her neck.

Coco had one more play to make, however, as she opened her mouth and blew a fireball at her opponent's face. As she couldn't suck in much of a breath with the undead monster perched atop her chest, it wasn't overly powerful, but it was enough to make the Dracolich rear back in anger.

And then the Bronze pushed out with her back legs, sending the other Dragon flailing into the rear wall of the cavern.

Another strong tremor rang out, shaking the floor beneath them. Bits and pieces of the roof began to drop, starting at the rear and steadily moving towards where the four adventurers stood.

"Um…" Jeanne began to warily back up. "Perhaps we should…?"

"I agree," Pyrrha shouted, turning and beginning to run back into the tunnel. "Come on!"

"Wait!" Nora shouted from where she brought up the rear.

"Nora, she's a Dragon, she can take care of-"

"No, the Orb! We didn't get the Orb!"

"It's alright, Nora," Ren stated over his shoulder. "The Vampire Lord had it in her pouch."

"Well, thank Oum for small favors," Jeanne panted. The sweat from her sudden sprint stung the numerous cuts across her face and neck, but soon enough they were back in the chiseled corridor of the original fortress. More crashing sounds followed them, soon followed by a coughing figure who flung herself next to them among a billowing cloud of dust and debris.

"Coco!" the orange-haired warrior cheered, flinging her arms around her friend's neck.

"Hey there, imp," the Bronze chuckled weakly. "Didn't doubt me, did you?"

"Never!"

Ren crouched at her side in concern. "Your injuries are quite extensive, many of them debilitating…"

"Yeah, thing about Dracoliches," the brunette groaned as Nora helped her into a sitting position. "Necrotic bite. Got a good piece of my side here."

Jeanne gasped as she saw the amount of blood that matted the Bronze Dragon's side. It was coated in grey dust, but a fresh amount of the red liquid was quickly spreading.

"Just sit back and relax," the Cleric advised. "I can remove the necrotic effects, but much of the rest will be up to you."

"Nothing I'm not used to," Coco sighed wearily. "Please, please tell me we got it back."

"We did," Pyrrha affirmed warmly as she stepped over to Jeanne. She held out a small blue vial of liquid to the blonde, who gratefully accepted the healing draught. "Perhaps we should rest upstairs some before traveling further, though."

"Be nice to at least get some sleep," Jeanne agreed, sighing in relief as her numerous wounds closed up.

After Ren was done, Nora and Pyrrha both helped Coco along, one on each side with the tall brunette's arms around their shoulder.

Jeanne stood guard to the rear as usual, her sapphire blue eyes trailing the group anxiously, worried about their Draconic companion.

Perhaps a bit more rest will do her some good… I shudder to think of another fight like that last one and what it might do to her.

A/N: Whew, enough action there for ya? I'd actually planned on some Dread Wraiths making an appearance, but I kinda ran out of space. Jeanne is like that one character in a horror movie that nobody listens to. "No, don't go down there alone, really you don't want to do that… Why are we splitting up? Whose brilliant idea was it to split up?"

Anyway, I am sooo happy with the way this one turned out. I have another pair of chapters in this style lined up for the end of this volume, I think I'll move the Wraiths there. And then of course there's volume four, which is just chock-full of the stuff. I had entirely too much fun delving into my set of D&D Monster Manuals, heh (with liberties taken, of course). When my eyes fell upon the Dracolich entry, the evil cackles emanating from my room were glorious indeed.

Quick aside, I've seen several folk note how the first four seasons of RWBY are season-themed. And then I realized, huh, so is this story. Volume 1 is Spring, as the fellowship comes together: Happy, light, fun. Volume 2 is Summer, as the fellowship journeys to retrieve the Orb: Strong, passionate, adventurous. Volume 3, where we are now, is Fall, with the fellowship broken and under increasingly dire straits: Somewhat dark and increasingly gloomy. And then there's Volume 4, Winter, where all the accumulated shit finally hits the fan. Aren't you all glad you have that to look forward to? (I will try to keep it from the 'horrifying level of darkness' that many have predicted for the upcoming RWBY Volume 4.) (No promises.)

Hugs for my wonderful Beta, KellyConnely, and much appreciation to all of my fabulous readers! Nicodemus Cain, Sharkdude5, Martin Hooper1, Boombox94, RatedRSuperStar87, djjohns94, Ninjapandas0010, OverDude12, FoxyFoxation, I appreciate the reviews, and as I mentioned in my other story, I apologize for letting life get in the way of replying back to every one of them. Also if FF ever gets around to fixing reviews once more so I can see them on the site, I might just be able to keep up with them better.

Stay shiny!