Ruby's body rocketed to the bottom of the crater, practically acting on its own. Others cried out from behind her, telling her to stop, or wait, but she couldn't hear them. The only thing she could hear was her heart pounding with every step, filling her with an energy she'd only felt once before.

Her muscles burned like red hot steel as she rushed Cinder down, flipping Crescent Rose in her hands before pushing off the ground with all her might. The wind rushed through her hair as she arced upwards, gaining height more quickly than she'd ever done before. When she felt herself start to slow, she pulled Crescent Rose's trigger, propelling her faster and faster along.

As she raced towards Cinder, the demon's eyes flicked to hers, and bore into Ruby with as much intensity as seemed physically possible. Fire burned in Cinder's pupils, and when Ruby stared into it, her body started to slack. Would it really be so bad to just keep staring? It felt good, to say the least.

She shook her head, biting down on her tongue to keep her focus. Cinder's trick wouldn't work. Not if she kept herself as sharp as possible.

She fired off one last round before swinging Crescent Rose around again, cocking it back for a strike. Cinder looked somewhat surprised at how Ruby didn't falter, but smiled and opened her arms, seemingly welcoming the attack.

Ruby brought her scythe swinging around, aiming for the spot just above Cinder's shoulders. If she could just end this now, no one else would have to get hurt.

The blade whistled as it flew, but just as Ruby thought it would hit, Cinder raised a wing to intercept the blow. Crescent Rose's blade punched through the leathery skin, but caught on one of the bones. Ruby realized that she was going to lose all momentum, which would leave her as vulnerable as a sitting duck. The force of the blow dissipated into the bone, and despite Ruby's best efforts, she couldn't cut through. As a result, she simply clung onto Crescent Rose for dear life, hanging a few feet off of the ground.

Cinder laughed quietly to herself, shifting the wing to bring Ruby closer. Ruby tried to not even breathe as she looked over her shoulder, hoping that she was going to get some backup. Unfortunately, most students were still making their way down the opposite side of the crater, nowhere near close enough to help. She was on her own, then. She turned her face back to Cinder, whose smile now stretched almost all the way across her face.

"I-I don't suppose you'd l-let me go, would you?"

Cinder's response came as a whisper right in Ruby's ear. "Why would you want that? Let me show you what I could offer first."

As her words moved through Ruby's ears, she could feel herself starting to calm. There was something melodic in every syllable, it made her want to-

She bit down on her tongue, and tasted blood start to well up. Cinder wasn't going to corrupt her like that. She would fight. Inside of her hood, she heard another whisper, not Yang's anymore, but very distinctly not Cinder's.

"I think now would be a good time for me to take over, yes? You seem to be in a spot of trouble."

Cinder's face was growing closer, and keeping her eyes open was getting much more difficult. "Fine!"

She drew in a sharp gasp as the sensation of thick needles slipping between her vertebrae presented itself. Every muscle in her body tensed for a few seconds, before loosening again. She tried to cry out, to scream for help, but nothing worked. She wasn't in control anymore.

Her body started to move again, and with a strength she'd never felt before, she pulled down on Crescent Rose, completely silent while doing so. The blade ripped flesh and severed bone, and she fell back to the ground, carving Cinder's wing the whole way down.

When her feet touched the mud, she plunged all the force she could into the blade, pulling it through the bottom of Cinder's wing. Without hesitating, Ruby brought the scythe back up and made a slash at Cinder's gut. Her opponent jumped back, avoiding it, but looked at Ruby with a suspicious expression.

"What happened to you? Don't you want-"

Before she could finish the sentence, Ruby lunged forward, aiming at Cinder's hooves this time. Again, she dodged, but this time it seemed slower to Ruby. She could keep up better with Cinder's movements a little better. Ruby brought Crescent Rose back to a guarded position, and stared at Cinder with hateful eyes. Cinder stared back, looking Ruby up and down, an eyebrow raised. She half expected the demon controlling her to say something, but instead, they continued to stare as the moments painfully dragged into seconds.

She was just barely aware of what the demon in her was thinking, but she didn't need to be in order to understand the same thing. There was no way that she was going to hit Cinder in a one on one fight. She needed to get the others involved somehow. Without looking back, Ruby took a few wide steps, then threw herself backwards. Her cape rippled and whipped as she fell, and she could now clearly see screaming faces in its everflowing blood.

She couldn't help but feel that she'd bitten off a little more than she could chew.

Amber watched as Ruby spiraled towards the ground. She started to move forward, but paused again when she say Ruby align herself back to the ground, landing almost elegantly, and without a single scratch. Something was wrong. How had Ruby been able to pull that off? She didn't doubt Ruby's abilities, but something about it seemed unnatural.

She couldn't help but feel that something strange was going on. The students were all charging forwards, though, and she couldn't let them go alone. She snapped back to attention, and motioned for her Paladins to move forward. Before she joined the charge herself, she turned back to her side, looking down at Yang.

"Yang, can you tell what happened to Naze? Is he… Well, can you sense him?"

She looked like she wanted to charge after Ruby, but her feet were rooted to the ground.

"I… He's not dead. Gone, I mean." She waved her hand dismissively. "Cinder didn't blow him out of existence. I don't think I'd still be here if she did. He did something. Maybe this is part of the plan."

She didn't sound too sure about that last part, but Amber liked to think the same thing. If Naze had planned all this, she would be significantly impressed. Not that he hadn't done enough already, of course. When she tried to feel him, the same way she felt the rest of the necromantic power around her, she couldn't sense anything. Nothing, at least, that felt like a Lich. There was something new in the crater, but Amber didn't know what it was. It felt like some type of magic, but she didn't have enough experience to know for sure. It seemed to be hovering in the air where Naze had disappeared, but beyond that, she couldn't discern anything.

Could it just be some kind of echo? Naze had been using huge amounts of magic when he disappeared, could some have just been left behind? She shook her head, wrangling her focus back to the situation at hand. There were too many questions right now, she hadn't even come to terms with what she had become, but it could wait. It had to wait.

Cinder looked across the crater, taking a measure of all the students she would be battling, before leaping off the edge, moving to engage. Ruby darted backwards as Cinder fell, not wanting to be stuck in another stalemate. Amber noted that, as she fell, Cinder didn't extend her wings, simply letting herself drop.

When she hit the ground again, the students were about halfway across the crater, screaming and cheering as they charged. Countless weapons were raised, a few even started to take potshots at her as they ran.

A few hit, but even those that made contact failed to do any damage. They didn't even make Cinder flinch, and as she started to run forwards, she started to dodge them, making slight adjustments in her stance or step that were almost unnoticeable but lead to every incoming attack missing.

Amber rushed forwards, flowing through the air like she was carried by a strong current. She didn't understand what was going on, but she wasn't going to let those students go into a fight like this alone. Not after the courage they'd already shown.

Her light brightened, and she could feel the hope emanating off of the students. It made them strong, and made Amber strong too.

When Ruby rejoined the body of students, she turned on her heel and took immediate part in the charge, dropping just behind the head of the charge. As Amber watched, she felt again that something was off about Ruby. She seemed to exude some kind of grim energy, although she couldn't tell what it was.

Amber decided letting it go was the best thing she could do. Being in a strange mood was understandable, considering the stress.

Jaune raised his shield as Cinder grew closer, glancing to his side, making sure that Pyrrha was still there. She was, looking forward and every bit as determined as he was. He turned to his other side, finding Nora sprinting next to him. A devilish smile was plastered across her face, and a manic glint in her eye told him that she was having the time of her life. At least someone was having fun. Next to her, Ren was sprinting as well, his face showing a degree of concentration that almost made Jaune feel uneasy.

He turned his face back to Cinder, what they'd all come to kill. It was hard to imagine that she'd ever been human. She looked so grotesque, or, at least, that how she seemed now. He couldn't deny that there was a somewhat disturbing allure she had. It would probably be irresistible, if Amber wasn't giving them strength. His grip on his blade tightened, and he felt his heart swell in his chest. No matter what happened, he wasn't going to let her get under his skin. He was better than that. Every single person behind him was, too.

Jaune's heels dug into the ground as Cinder lunged forward, moving almost faster than the eye could see. He pulled his shield up, and stumbled backwards as he felt what felt what felt like a train slam into his shield. The sound of metal rending apart filled the air, and pain shot through Jaune's arm.

His foot sank into the mud, forcing him to topple backwards. For a second, his guard was down, and it was all he could do to stare up at Cinder in horror. She stepped forward, bearing her claws out to pounce on him, but before she could, Pyrrha stepped between them. Cinder lunged, but Pyrrha stepped back as she deflected the blows, shifting her shield to make sure it wasn't outright shredded.

Jaune scrambled to his feet again, ignoring the warm feeling spreading across his arm. It didn't matter. All that mattered was that he help. He leaped just to Pyrrha's side, bringing Crocea Mors stabbing towards Cinder's chest.

The blade hit its mark, but Cinder's thick hide was almost too thick to penetrate. Even with all the force he could muster, he couldn't force it any deeper than a few inches.

He was about to leap back, getting out of her reach again so she couldn't retaliate, when Nora rushed past. Magnhild was low at her side, but he could just register that it was moving up in a swing that could crumble a building. The hammer's head impacted Cinder just below the ribs, pushing up into her diaphragm. Jaune's eyes widened as he saw Cinder's hooves lift off the ground for a small moment. An instant later, a cascade of bile poured from her mouth, splattering on the ground and hissing as it ate away at the mud.

Nora cheered, pulling Magnhild back for another swing, but before Cinder's hooves even hit the ground again, she swiped at Nora, hitting her on the side of the head with the back of her hand. Nora was sent flying, arcing through the air before hitting the ground and rolling like a ragdoll. Jaune watched her go, worried that she might have been injured, or worse. Thankfully, Nora started to move again almost immediately, climbing back to her feet and glaring at Cinder with a worryingly wide smile on her face.

When Cinder turned to hit Nora, it revealed a discolored spot that almost looked like it was rotting away. Jaune didn't take the time to think about it, instead lunging forward, praying that this strike would be more effective than the last. The gleaming blade sunk into the small of Cinder's back, and Jaune found at the flesh was spongey and soft. Crocea Mors sank halfway to its hilt before Jaune started to pull it out. He didn't need to lose his weapon.

Cinder turned again, but the flow of students was on her now, and she didn't have the opportunity to pick her targets. Completely surrounded, all she could do was lash out at whoever was in front of her. This happened to be Ren, who had his pistols bared, simply waiting for an opportunity to fire. As soon as he saw her focus shift to him, he pulled the triggers, spewing a volley of dust-filled rounds into Cinder's front.

Ren's eyes widened and he started to back up. The crowd was thick behind him, making getting any real distance away impossible, and when Cinder lurched forwards to grab him, it was all he could do to turn StormFlower's barrels up, hoping that he might do some damage with its blades.

Before Cinder reached him, the crowd behind him was shoved violently aside, and Ruby exploded out. With inhuman speed, she grabbed the back of Ren's collar and threw him backwards, out of Cinder's reach. She then swung Crescent Rose around her side, angling to impale Cinder through the chest.

Cinder jolted to the side, dodging the swing, but finding herself in range of the wall of students. Great swords, rapiers, bullets, an uncountable number of attacks came down on her, accompanied by the jeering and screaming of the crowd. While the attacks didn't do much damage, they had the potential to hit one of her more vulnerable areas.

Jaune tried to think of a plan. If overwhelming her was the best they could do, than it was what they would do. It put lots of people at risk, but it was the only way he could see doing any damage.

He glanced down at his left arm, feeling somewhat dismayed at the damage his shield had taken. Massive gashes were carved into the metal, utterly ruining the sliding plates that allowed it to collapse. Past the edges of the slashes, he could see the ripped edges of his sleeve, and blood welling to the surface past that, soaking the fabric and trickling down his wrist. The wound was starting to close, though, he could feel his aura working.

Ruby's vicious attacks didn't stop, or even slow as she continued to make sweeping attacks. Jaune caught a glimpse of Ruby's face in the midst of her barrage, and paused slightly as he saw her expression.

Her mouth was twisted into a bizarre grin, barely noticeable and showing no sign of exertion. A shiver ran up Jaune's spine as he watched her move. There was simply something off about her, she had never moved this way before. It was the stress of the situation, he supposed. It was weighing heavy on everyone.

A few erratic movements in the crowd jostled him around as a few of the more enthusiastic students shouldered their way towards the fight. The circle around Cinder was closing in, but Jaune could see that it was giving Ruby less room to maneuver, and she was the only thing keeping Cinder occupied.

There was only one thing he could think to do, and that was step forward, put his arms out to the sides in front of as many people as possible, and shout, "Back!"

His voice could barely be heard over the cacophony around him, but the people immediately around him seemed to get the picture. They took steps back pushing the people behind them, and shouting for them to give space. In Jaune's peripheral vision, he could see Pyrrha doing the same thing. A little bit of weight seemed to lift from his shoulders. It was good to know he had someone to count on.

Still, the battle was going to need more direction than simple commands to move back and forth, and there was no way for him to get those out. Pyrrha could help, but there was no way that she could spread the word through the whole mob, and the delay of waiting for word to spread was too big.

Even with teams of people to spread the word, the delay could be an issue. If he could speak to everyone at once…

He turned, and looked up at Amber, who was hovering over the crowd, keeping a concerned watch, her powers dancing at her fingertips, ready to help anyone who was injured. He couldn't count on that power, though.

He waved his shield arm, trying to get her attention, and when she looked directly at him, he felt a warmth fill his body. Time almost seemed to slow as Amber's voice echoed though his head, not quite loud, but impossible to ignore.

"What do you need? Are you injured?"

Jaune shook his head. "No, I need you to help me talk to everyone here. This just rushing Cinder down is too dangerous, a lot of us could die. There needs to be some direction. If you make everyone hear me, I'll tell them where to go!"

Cinder looked down at her hands for a moment before nodding.

"Yes, I can do that." She looked back to Jaune, now noticing the cuts on his arm. "You are hurt! Let me-"

He cut her off, turning back to face Cinder, saying, "It doesn't matter! Just make sure they can hear me!"

The back end of Crescent Rose went swishing past, half an inch from his face, and he jerked back. He stumbled back, and regained his balance when Pyrrha caught his shoulder. He gave a small nod before looking at the battle, thinking of what could help. Ruby was still locked in combat with Cinder, allowing her no opportunity to turn her attention to the others. The students tightly encircled the two combatants, doing their best to dodge or deflect any stray hits that came their way, but the circle was getting too tight. Ruby barely had any room to swing Crescent Rose without the risk of catching someone else with the blade. The crowd gave another small surge, shunting Jaune forwards.

He took a deep breath, hoping that Amber would do like she'd said, and shouted, "Everybody, back off!"

His voice sounded normal to him, but he could see everyone, aside from Cinder and Ruby, react to his words. Most of them looked up at Amber for a moment before doing as they were told, and though it took a moment for everyone to comply, they did.

Jaune glanced over his shoulder, seeing how tightly packed the group was. "Spread out! Give each other enough room to use your weapons! If Cinder gets away, you'll have to move fast!"

The crowd around the fight started to thin, and Ruby's movements started to widen out a bit. She was faster, but still couldn't seem to outmaneuver Cinder. He looked around at the edge of the crowd, looking for anyone with weapons that would help. They needed well-placed strikes, but ones that could be delivered quickly, and have the capacity to hurt or even disable Cinder.

Pyrrha had such a weapon, and he had no doubt that her skills would be more than adequate. It would take more than her, though. He spied Weiss on the opposite end of the circle, and waved, getting her attention. Her focus was locked on her battling friend, but after a few moments, he was able to catch her eye. Myrtenaster would be excellent for quick precision, and he was confident in betting that Weiss was more than willing to aim for vital organs.

Next to Weiss was Blake, standing at the ready, Gambol Shroud in her hands, waiting for just the right moment. Jaune pointed to her, then himself and Pyrrha, hoping that Weiss would get the picture. She nodded, and he continued to look. If Nora were present, he would include her, but Magnhild wasn't the wieldiest of weapons, even in Nora's hands. What it had to compensate, though, was a long handle, with plenty of reach. She would be almost impossible to control, though. He continued looking.

Ren was standing at the ready, behind a few people who still crowded the front. Jaune hesitated, unsure of whether or not he should include him. He was agile and fast, but using StormFlower's blades would require him to get much too close to Cinder. Jaune didn't like it, but he moved on without signaling to him.

Those were all the faces he recognized in the immediate area. He was surprised to not see Yang, but she had seemed fairly stunned when Ruby charged off on her own. She was probably somewhere by the outside of the crowd, probably pushing and shoving her way inwards. He hoped that no one tried to stop her, for their sakes. Yang would no doubt fight tooth and nail just to get to her sister, let alone fight at her side. Jaune wasn't confident enough to think he'd be able to hold her back.

Jaune spoke, only talking to those he had chosen. "Alright guys, we've got to organize a little bit. While Ruby keeps Cinder busy, we're going to do as much damage as we can! Everyone else is backed off, so they shouldn't get hurt. If you see an opening, go for it, but make sure it's a good one!"

He saw nods all around, and his fingers tightened around the grip of his blade. He narrowed his eyes, watching Cinder, trying to keep up with the blur as she fought against Ruby. The spot he'd stabbed earlier still had not closed up, and slime stilled dripped slowly out, steaming once it hit the ground. Other spots of discoloration caught his eye, and he kept special watch on them. He wouldn't miss a single opportunity.

Cinder raised an arm over her head, planning to bring it down on Ruby, but just as it started to fall, Weiss dashed forward, and Myrtenaster punctured a spot just between Cinder's ribs. She roared, and changed the direction of her swipe to hit Weiss. A glyph appeared at Weiss's feet, throwing her backwards. Cinder lunged after her, but as she stretched, Blake ran forward, swinging Gambol Shroud at her legs.

Cinder twisted mid-air, pulling her arms into her chest and spiraling away from the blade. Pyrrha leaped forward, thrusting Miló in its spear form towards Cinder's throat.

Cinder pulled her legs up, sending herself into a spin, a hoof knocking the spear away nearly hard enough to knock it from Pyrrha's hand. She was barely able to hold on, but keeping her grip forced her to lean back, taking her off her guard. Another kick followed just behind the first, and Pyrrha was barely able to pull Akoúo̱ up in time. A dark glow around the shield told Jaune that she'd used her Semblance to move it.

The hoof impacted the center of the shield like a gong, punching a large round dent in the metal, causing the edges to vibrate and give off a warbling, twisted sound. This noise didn't do anything to cover the sound of bone snapping, though. Pyrrha cried out in pain as she slid back, digging her heels into the ground and trying to say upright.

Jaune's eyes widened, and he exploded into action, placing himself between Pyrrha and Cinder without a second thought. He brought his shield up, despite it being a mangled mess, and started to walk back, keeping Pyrrha behind him.

"Are you alright? Get back!"

He turned his attention back to Cinder as she landed on the ground, straightened herself, and looked directly at him. He suddenly felt like his broken shield wasn't going to be enough protection. She started to move towards him, but Just as she started to move, Ruby came flying from the side, striking her in the small of the back with Crescent Rose.

The blade penetrated her skin, pushing its way through inhumanly thick chorded muscle and dissolving organs before splitting the skin on the other side. Cinder was fully impaled on Crescent Rose, blood and bile leaking from the hole. She didn't show any sign of pain, but looked down to see the curved steel sprouting defiantly from her abdomen.

Ruby didn't stop her assault, instead pulling the trigger, and letting the gun's kick drag the blade up, tearing through more skin and bone. She got three shots off before Cinder pulled herself off of the scythe, her attention turning back to Ruby.

Jaune gave a relieved sigh before turning back to Pyrrha, stepping away from the battle. She held her arm close to her chest, trying to move it, but wincing with every effort. Jaune could see an unnatural curve to her forearm now. It almost hung limply off of the shield, her limp hand holding it in place. Jaune felt his stomach turn looking at the unnatural angle, but he kept focused, turning his attention to Amber.

"We need help! She's hurt!"

Pyrrha shook her head, saying, "Jaune, I'm fine." She waved him back to the battle, but he shook his head.

"Not until I know you're safe!"

A moment later, bright light engulfed both of them. Jaune saw the twisted bone of Pyrrha's arm set itself before fusing with itself again, fixing the damage that had been done. After a few moments, he felt his own arm starting to knot its flesh back together, sealing the wound and returning his strength. He curled his fingers, then glanced again at his shield. It had been good while it lasted, but he didn't know if it could be repaired. It'd done its job, though, he was sure he would have lost his arm without it.

Jaune gave Amber a quick thumbs-up before pulling Pyrrha back to her feet and turning to the battle. They raised their weapons, eager to get back into the thick of it, but all Amber could do was watch. She wanted to help, to strike out against Cinder with her own power, working away the foul presence that had taken her soul as its own, but she couldn't. The corrupting demonic energies were not the only kind inside of Cinder.

She could feel the presence of rot inside of Cinder, so aggressive and malignant it almost seemed to be beating out the flame of demonic energy inside of her, or at least keeping it at bay. It pulsed through her body like a cancer, spreading and destroying everything it could, but her constant regeneration fought back.

Amber took a moment to watch Cinder's movements carefully, comparing them to when she hadn't entered the swamp. She moved wider, and in a less calculated manor, slowing down ever so slightly. It was indicative, perhaps, of her body starting to give out. The others were helping to spread this rot through the rest of her body beyond what it could accomplish itself with every strike, but Amber worried about whether or not it would be enough. Was it even possible for Cinder to die from a disease like this, or had Naze only weakened her for them?

One thing she was certain of was that without being corroded from the inside, Cinder would be a much more dangerous opponent. As it was, she was slow and vulnerable. Amber didn't know the full extent of her powers, but she was sure that if she blasted Cinder with it, the disease would be purged as well, and she had no way of knowing if the blast would kill her. If it didn't, Cinder would have the only thing limiting her power removed, and Amber was sure that none of the students would stand a chance.

She saw her Paladins creeping forwards, toward the fight with shields up, and their wills like iron. It pained her to do so, but she whispered a word to all of them at once.

"Stop."

They did as they were told, but she could feel a collective heart beat skip between them. Almost immediately, she was beset by questions, her followers asking concernedly if something had happened, whether they should try to get the students out, or if they needed to take some other special task. She shook her head, explaining as quickly as she could.

"Holy magic will only make things worse! Naze did something to Cinder, made her very sick, and I'm sure that Holy magic would burn the disease away! Support the students if you can, but don't attack Cinder."

They obeyed, spreading themselves among the students, where they would be able to help if Cinder broke free of Ruby's constant attacks. Amber turned he focus to the hooded girl, concerned about how she was holding up.

Crescent Rose was practically a blur as it twisted and twirled around Ruby, dancing around her fingertips in an impressive display of mastery over the weapon. Every strike seemed to flow like water, but have the force of a train. How Ruby maintained the levels of what must have been exhausting effort, Amber didn't know, but she could almost feel the energy radiating off of her.

Her eyes narrowed, and she tried to ignore the nearly-overpowering levels of necromantic magic in the air. Cinder's demon magic made it hard to sense anything else, but something else was definitely there. The more Amber focused, the more demonic energy she sensed. Cinder was spewing it like a geyser, but it Ruby appeared to be completely hidden by it.

She watched for a few more moments before realizing that there were two sources, not one, of demonic power. Amber wasn't sure if she still had blood, but if she did, she was sure that it would run cold. Was Ruby giving off demonic energy as well? Why? Had Cinder done something to her?

Amber stretched a hand out, intending to purify Ruby of whatever taint Cinder had afflicted her with. She stopped herself abruptly, light shimmering at tips of her fingers.

Was it a bad thing? She berated herself; of course it was a bad thing, but was it a bad thing she needed to fix immediately? Ruby was the only one keeping Cinder from being unleashed on the other students. If she were gone, Amber wasn't sure how many she could save.

She would fix Ruby as soon as the battle was over, she decided. It felt wrong, but she didn't know what else to do. Was it right to leave her like that, just because it benefitted the rest of the group? It was what Naze would do, surely, but that wasn't much comfort. She lowered her hand again, trying to clear her head. Maybe trying to think like Naze wasn't such a bad idea, if only for a little while. She wasn't even sure if she would be able to defeat Cinder one of one. Maybe caution was the better option.

Something else caught her attention, moving quickly through the crowd and shunting anyone in its way to the side. It didn't take long for Amber to recognize Yang, her bright blonde hair was easy to identify, and the necromantic power around her only made it easier.

She closed the distance between her and Cinder impressively fast, her head bowed like a charging bull. She might as well have been, considering the way she charged through the crowd. When she got close to the ring around Cinder, her pace quickened, and the air around her started to spark.

Flames exploded out of her fists, and she leaped into the air, soaring over Pyrrha and Jaune, shouting, "Get away from Ruby!"

Distracted by a particularly brutal flurry of attacks from Ruby, Cinder didn't have time to duck, jump, or otherwise dodge the crushing display of brute force as Yang's knuckles collided with her temple.

Cinder staggered back, shifting her weight to keep her balance, but even the second spent doing this was valuable time. Ruby lashed out again, bringing Crescent Rose forwards in a wide horizontal swing, building as much force as she could. The blade hit her square on the hip, the blade passing all the way through again. The others jumped forwards all at once, striking every blow they could against Cinder in the brief moment she was halted. Crocea Mors pierced her chest, plunging down almost a full hand's length deep. Miló slipped between her ribs, slicing organs and muscle apart. Myrtenaster pierced her ribs higher up, sliding almost hint deep, accompanied by a blast of frigid dust, injected directly into Cinder's body. Gambol Shroud carved a deep gash in her belly, breaking the layer of rotted tissue and spilling her guts to the ground. Even Ren dashed forwards from the side, bringing one of StormFlower's short blades down on Cinder's spine, just between her wings.

For a single heartbeat, everything seemed to stand still. Each of the fighters looked at each other, taking all the information they could from their glances.

They were smiling. They knew that they were doing it. Cinder was weakening, they could feel it.

Another beat of their hearts pounded blood through their veins, and time resumed. Each one pulled their weapon out and dashed back to their places, knowing that Cinder's retaliation was coming. None of them wanted to be in arm's reach when she managed to compose herself again. Even Ruby ripped Crescent Rose out, gouging as much as she could on the way out.

Yang didn't back up. Instead, she followed her first strike through with an uppercut, aimed right under Cinder's chin. Ruby also stayed close to Cinder, making sure that she could take any shot she could.

Yang's fist connected, knuckles buckling under the force of the blow, and fire being thrown out from the impact. Cinder's head jerked up, and Ruby moved again almost instantly, swiping Cinder's legs out from under her. She toppled, hitting the ground with a soft thud.

They stopped for a second, staring down at her.

"Is she… Did we kill her?"

Yang stayed on guard, but glanced over to Ruby with a questioning look. She expected Ruby to look back, but she kept her eyes locked on Cinder, not relaxing in the slightest.

"Uh, Ruby? Are you feeling alright? You look a little-"

She was cut off by her sister, who jerked her head to the side, saying, "Tell Amber to blast the distortion Naze left with as much power as she can muster. She will start to feel it destabilize. Do not let her stop. We are close, but alone, we're too late."

Ruby's voice sounded strange, and her eyes glowed with an intensity that Yang had never seen before. It reminded her of her own semblance, but Ruby didn't seem angry. She didn't seem anything, now that Yang took a good look. Her face had an even, neutral expression, almost like her face was a mask. A pang of worry shot through Yang, and she squinted at Ruby's face, trying to make out any hint of Ruby's normal mannerisms. Yang supposed that it could have been her imagination, but Ruby's voice sounded like it had an echo, or like there was more than one voice coming from her throat.

They stared at each other for a moment as Yang tried to make sense of the way Ruby was behaving, before Ruby pointed at Amber, said, "Soon, please," then turned her focus back to Cinder.

Yang hesitated for another moment, before turning to face Jaune, saying, "You got all that, right?"

He nodded, and turned to face Amber. Yang didn't linger enough to hear what he said, instead turning to face Cinder again. She was moving now, twitching, and giving off an eerie glow. Yang could feel the demonic energy starting to pour out of Cinder as she started to pull herself back to her feet, despite barely being able to stand.

"Do you… really think-" she rounded on Ruby "-schoolchildren can stop me? Children, and corpses?" She started to laugh. "This world will be mine! My master has promised it! You are nothing but an annoyance!"

Ruby cracked an uncharacteristically crooked smile and tilted her head to the side. "It wouldn't be the first time its lied to its lackeys, would it?"

As though in response, Cinder started to pour even more demonic power out, forcing the circle around her to widen. Those who were closest started to flinch and gasp as blisters appeared on their exposed skin. Everyone could feel that Cinder was starting to change, even the look in her eyes was turning to a smug glare. Something was going her way, and they couldn't stop it.

Ruby looked at Yang again, and shouted, "Get back! She's becoming one with her master!"

Author's Note:

Yes, I'm not dead. only a few chapters left before this thing is done.

And anon who just asked like a minute ago who I can't reply to because you're an anon so I don't know why you asked a question; this chapter is up now.