Frozen Waste [Open]

Night thinks for a bit. "Well if its as big as you say it is, and as nasty." Night goes to the back of the cave and places his hand against the wall. "Good, good, its dry back here." Nights aura starts to flare out of his body in a bright red and trail through the air to his hand.

"Ok get ready!" All of a sudden Night thrusted his hand against the back of the cave and as he did this, dust crystals were pushed out of the wall being held by his aura.

"Hahaha yes yes, lets see. Theres some fire, ice, electric, polarity. Good just enough to take it down." Night began gathering the crystals prepping them to become bullets.

"I'll take first watch. I'm not that tired and it's a bit too cold for a nice nap." Xarias said, walking towards the mouth of the cave.

These guys might be the easiest way for me to find my target and get the bounty. Might as well stick around a bit longer than usual.

Xarias had a tendency to suddenly leave behind any groups he joined. It's not that he doesn't care, he just doesn't want to get too attached to people. He doesn't like making friends who could potentially die on him. He doesn't want to go berserk trying to save someone and end up being the cause of their deaths himself. His semblance might be powerful, but it comes with a risk. A risk that he couldn't take for the sake of not just himself but for other people as well.  He just can't let that happen again.

As Night starts fiddling with the crystals he's just acquired, Xarias takes position at a good distance from the mouth of the cave. It's not an ideal shooting spot but the narrow passage would make easy Swiss cheese out of anything that comes too close.

Now that I think about it, where'd black go?

"By the way guys. Where do you think Black headed off too?" Xarias said, as he fused his partisan at the hinge to form his rifle.

"Not sure, dont really care. Dont get me wrong i dont hate the guy but I'm sure if he went out there he has a plan." Night said as his aura surrounded the crystals with sand and compacted them under high pressure as small bits of dust crystals fell out of the sand.

Without much to prepare for, like Night did, Pierce fell asleep. Or at least as much asleep as he could manage in the cold. There wasn't anything he could do to prepare for tomorrow. He didn't need ammo or to organize his dust supplies. He didn't have any. For the time being, Pierce was content with the damp, icy floor.

Eyes shut, Pierce lets his breathing slow down to a crawl. Hands rested on stomach and head leaning on the cave wall, he listens to the methodical clinking of Night's preparations as he slowly falls unconscious.

Pierce falls asleep on the cold damp floor of the cave. By the looks of it he's pretty used to sleeping in unusual places, he's passed out like a log. Night continues his preparations on his makeshift table while methodologically adjusting his equipment and the dust he just pulled out of the wall. Xarias usually didn't like making field repairs or the like unless needed, he usually came prepared with all he needed. While Pierce lay in the corner and Night continued with his preparations, Xarias took watch, making sure that even the tiniest movement on the outside was accounted for.

This is going to be a long night

"Hey Night! You better get some shut-eye as well. If you're planning on sticking around with us you better be well rested. By the looks of it, the thing Pierce is hunting is probably a bit nastier than your average grimm" Xarias said, never keeping his eyes off the mouth of the cave.

Where could Black be? Is he coming back or is he busy doing his own business?

Xarias pondered on the idea while staying as alert as he can. He wasn't tired but he had this constant feeling that something was alerted to their activity since they first got to the cave and it probably wasn't human. The blizzard seemed to have start calming down but that didn't mean he should let his guard down. He knew something was out there. Something lurking in the shadows. probably more aware of them then they are of it.

"Dont worry ill be reedy." Night said as he finished making the rest of his custom ammo. "Ive dealt with some pretty bad gri-." Night stopped as he heard a faint sound in the distance that didnt sound human.

He turned his head slowly as he loaded his revolver fast but quietly with ease. "Shh...dont move, we're being watched." Night said with a whisper as he pointed his gun past Xarias towards a faint but visible shadow in the distance. Night nudged Pierce trying to wake him up.

"I'm already up." Pierce said just before Night's hand reached his shoulder, still keeping his eyes closed, his face still motionless aside from his lips. Even in his sleep, Pierce tried keeping a close eye... er ear on his surroundings. Either way, he had been prepared for a long night.

How long was I out? Can't have been more than a few minutes.

There it was again. An inhumanly low rumble. Like an avalanche. Or something hungry.

Angry, more like it Pierce thought as he heard the growl once more.

From where he was laying, Pierce could hear perfectly, his ear directed right outside the cave. Turning his head, he presses it to the cold ground.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

The unmistakable sound of heavy footsteps. Something big was coming. Perhaps this was just what he'd been waiting for.

"I'll check it out." Pierce said, still on the ground as he vanishes from sight with a barely audible whisper.

"Wait...i recognize this smell, this thing has been tracking me since i enter this tundra." Night slowly made his way out of the cave with Gold Rodger in one hand as he unsheathed R.W.M into his other.

"I guess its time to get down to business." Night loaded the last air bullet and switch Gold Rodger to its blade form as he pulled the trigger and swung. A large torrent of wind was sent from the blade into the sky as the blizzard seemed to have left faster than what it was. "Wow." Night stopped as he switched Gold Rodger back into gun form and pointed the barrel at the grimm.

"Is that what i think it is?"

"I think you gave away our position" Xarias said, his sights on the large shadow in the distance. Pierce disappeared, the only trace of him left were the footprints in the snow outside, they ended abruptly with a slight disturbance.

He must have jumped into a tree

Night had his gun aimed at the shadow. Xarias couldn't tell if he was brave or stupid. If there was more than just one thing out there it could spell trouble for them all. Xarias equipped his partisan by splitting his rifle at it's butt and extending it to full length in one swift motion. He then changed stance with one blade facing the entrance and the other behind him while in a mid crouch position. Coiled up like a spring, he decided to wait for a sign of hostility, if it left them alone they could follow it and see if there's any trace of the people it attacked. Xarias wanted to be sure this was the grimm he was looking for.

"Don't shoot yet, we have to make sure it's hostile, if it ignores us we'll just track it to it's den." Xarias said, not moving from his position but obviously coiled like a spring, ready to dash right in if needed.

This is going to get interesting.

Pierce wasn't sure what he was looking at. Perched on a branch, out of sight, Pierce looked down at the creature.

This is not a normal Ursa.

Below him the Ursa was walking straight for the cave. It was easily fourteen feet tall at the shoulders, its back lined with three rows of white, bony spikes. The fronts of its legs, as well as its chest, were covered with bony plates,the same plates on the sides of its neck. The claws on the beast looked about a foot long and sharp enough to cut deep into rock, its teeth terrifyingly the same way.

Am I supposed to kill this thing?

It's sides looked unguarded though, but its fur was thicker than a normal Ursa's. Hopefully Night's or Xarias' bullets work well.

At the moment, Pierce felt safe in the tree, out of the grimm's reach. But as it came closer, he found himself looking for another perch, wondering if it could knock his current one down.

I'm not gonna enjoy this.

It's about twenty feet from the cave now. Pierce can see the end of Xarias' partisan, barely sticking out of the entrance. He looks ready to fight, hopefully Night is as well.

What?

Out of nowhere, the beast changes course, moving to the right of cave entrance, along the cliff face. As soon as it was about fifty feet away, a path large enough for four men to walk side by side dug through the snow, Pierce landed back on the ground.

"That's what I'm after. It might be going to what you're after too, Night."

"Hmm." Night holstered his weapons and walked towards the unusually large grimm as his aura flared out bigger than before. "Respect the strength of the grimm and its land, and it may just respect you." Night held his hand out to the grimm as his body became engulfed in a bright red aura.

"Grimm!...Will you allow us passage through this great tundra that you call home?" Night asked prepared to go with whatever happened next.

Where's Night?

As Pierce lands at the cave entrance, he finds that Night isn't there anymore. Xarias is standing there, a mix of anger, shock, and utter disbelief, plastered on his face.

"Xarias, where did Nigh-"

"Grimm! Will you allow us passage through this great tundra that you call home?"

Pierce looks outside just in time to see Night finish yelling at the creature.

Night! You idiot!

Does he have a death wish?
"What the hell does he think he's doing?" xarias said, still shocked that Night would just casually approach the easily 14 foot ursa. One wrong move and he'll be Night-kebab. Pierce got down, just as befuddled as Xarias was.

"stupid, not brave, stupid"

Xarias then grappled to the tree nearest to night and zipped to it as quietly as he could. Some snow was shooken off but the ursa didn't seem to care.

"Hey! Are you crazy? Get back!" xarias whispered, just loud enough for Night to hear. Grimm don't care of formalities, just what the hell is this guy thinking?

Night watched the ursa stop as it heard his voice. As Night watched the ursa turn its head towards him and Stare for what seem like forever as the ursa watched the large amount of aura pouring out of him. The ursa turned back to the path as it continued walking.

"Come, the grimm has allowed us passage. We have no reason to fight here." Night said to Xarias and Pierce as he began to follow the ursa.

Pierce's jaw practically hits the floor as the Ursa turns around and continues walking.

What just happened?

Noticing their forms growing smaller in the distance, Pierce realizes he needs to get going.

He locks the Jaegers into place on his boots and begins skating along the face of the cliff, staying a good distance above the walking pair.

"The ursa shale lead us to a proper place in which we will fight." Night said as his body was still engulfed in aura. "But once the fight is over with, I ask that we part ways for when I enter the cave that I'm looking for, if its there."

Ooooookay.

For once, Pierce did not know what he was looking at.

Apparently, Night can talk to grimm. Does he have two semblances or something?

As confused as he was, Pierce wordlessly followed Night and the Ursa.

They had been walking for some time, Pierce dropping to the ground and walking a few minutes back, when the grimm entered a fairly large cave in the cliff face.

"Is this what you were talking about, Night?"

Night stopped at the cave entrance as well as signaling Xarias and Pierce to stop. "No, it'll be within this cave." Night thought for a bit. "I guess i should tell you the real reason why im out here. It wasn't a rumor i heard, but a note from the a man who saved me years ago but died teaching me everything he knew."

Night turned around to face them. "If you follow me within the next cave...ill have no choice but to barry you both alive, I really dont wont it to come to that."

Night returned facing the cave and drew his weapons. "Lets begin shale we, we wouldnt want to keep him waiting."

"Just so you know, I hate being threatened." Xarias said, he still had his partisan equipped.

Hearing the imminent threat from Night just now he clutched his weapon even tighter. He could definitely take him on but that wouldn't be right. It seems as if he has his own reasons, but a threat is a threat. Xarias doesn't want anything to get in the way of his objective, be it grimm or human, or even faunus. Seeing the mouth of the cave he double checks his ammo and sees to it that his weapon didn't jam because of icing. Seeing that his stuff was at peak condition, he was ready for anything.

"So this is it, eh?" Xarias said, as he swung his partisan in a full arc and then changed stance to dash right in to the cave.

I've got my speed to my advantage, some people are just physically fast but my semblence takes it to the next level. If anything attacks I'd be ready, if Night turns on us I know his weakness, only problem is the bear. The armor is too thick. Maybe the joints?

"Hey, aim for the joints, it will slow it down and it's one of the only kinks in it's armor. I'm not sure if even explosives would work on it." Xarias said, he wanted to take this thing down as quick as possible. If it was the thing he was looking for, he'd have to take it down no matter what the cost. Enough people of suffered because of it, it's just one step closer to making the world a safer place.

I'll show you the true meaning of Fury

"Hey, aim for the joints."

Xarias lectures Pierce on a subject he's all too familiar with. Even before he'd entered Beacon, he knew how to safely take down an Ursa. He'd go with his father as he'd hunt any grimm around their town.

Take away its legs, and you can take away its life.

Wise words dad. Wise words.

"If it's joints you want taken care of, I can get rid of those before it even knows I'm there. After that, it's up to you. It might be thinner on the backs of it's joints, but that fur is pretty thick. I don't think I can cut through and do too much damage." Pierce says, sizing his opponent up.

On paper, this should be just like any normal Ursa.

"It looks pretty slow from what we've seen of it, and most Ursa are. Just stay out of it's teeth or hands and we should be fine."

Right now though, I'm not sure paperwork'll cut it.

"Well, let's do it." Xarias said, he had his goggles on now. Good for keeping particles from hitting his eyes while dashing with his weapon. He coiled up like a spring, ready to jump in and face the massive ursa. From observing it he could tell it might not be able to move as fast, but just in case Xarias had his semblance ready to kick in, he only activated it in short bursts when needed. He never felt the need to constantly use it since his own reflexes should be more than enough most of the time and by the looks of it he wouldn't need it that much when facing this enemy.

This is gonna be fun.

"Let's do this!" xarias said, as he shot his weapon and dashed in to the cave. He then grappled to the ceiling and zipped right through some icicles.

What the hell?

Xarias used his semblence to take in all he could see. His enhanced consciousness allowed him to process every little detail. He could see bones, he wasn't sure what he saw at first but the rags on a few skeletons proved otherwise.

Are these....people?

He could see about fifteen skeletons alone in one corner. Who knows how many innocent people has this grimm killed?

You'll pay for this!

He then felt a throb in his chest, and another one in his head. As if, something wanted to come out.

DIE!!!!

"STOP IT!!!" Xarias yelled, as he lost his grip. He could feel his semblance about to go to overdrive. He didn't want that, he had to keep control. He fell down to the floor of the cave, clenching his teeth. Everything was in slow motion. His hands on his head, he curled down to a fetal position. Every moment as if a thousand knives were stabbing his very soul.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHH" He was yelling now, he was keeping himself under control. His relentless burst was leaking through and his aura was engulfing him.

Calm down, calm down.

Little by little he managed to regain control. He then shook it off, the next thing he could see was the Ursa's shadow looming over him.

IC:

"If you follow me within the next cave...I'll have no choice but to bury you both alive. I really don't want it to come to that."

Somewhere above the group, blended in with the black and white of the trees and sky light, Junis mused it to himself. Was something of worth there? Perhaps. He'd never heard of something like that within these regions, some treasure trove of wealth hidden deep within a cavern. But he'd never heard of an overgrown Ursa like this either; so maybe the world was still full of surprises.

He reached into his bag, pulling out a single, blood red crystal that gleamed under the dull grey light and hid it within his sleeve, before hopping down and landing with a dull thud onto the snowy ground. Seconds after Xarias dashed his way through the cave, he followed, even as he let his staff slide out into it's full size.

A sickly, mottled pale green shone out of the crystal embedded atop the staff, strobing the area with light. Immediately, Junis was made aware of the skeletal frames that lied on the ground or was indented into the wall, pressed into the dirt and stone like ornaments of the cave....

In silentium, he stifled a forced laugh.

Night opened the cylinder of his revolver and loaded six glowing yellow bullets and ran inside. "Xarias! Get away quick!" Night took aim and pulled the trigger. A large flash of light like lightning came from the barrel of the gun and with it the sound of thunder as beam of lightning struck the ursa.

Night then clicked a button on R.W.M igniting the blade, then swung sending a wave of fire towards the head of the ursa. "Pierce the joints!" Night said firing two more bullets.

Pierce's body shook as a roll of thunder reverberated through the cave, his skates leaving the ground momentarily as the tremor reached him.

What was that?

Then there was heat. An arc of fire had struck the Ursa in the face, though it barely made the creature flinch.

There was a sickening light illuminating the room, probably another one of Night's semblances. In the pale green of it, Pierce saw the skeletons. Human and animal bones alike, strewn across the floor, stuck in the icy walls, everywhere.

How long had this Ursa been doing this?

Scanning the ground, Pierce saw Xarias, about to turn into another one of these skeletons.

"Pierce, the joints!" Night reminded him.

Right. Xarias can handle himself. I'm sure of it.

"Got it!" Pierce yelled, skirting along the edge of the cave towards the Ursa's rear. In one practiced motion, the right Jaeger returns to his hand for a split second then flies towards the grimm's left Achilles' tendon.

IC:

Junis followed silently, heading to the opposite side of the cave that Pierce had sprinted towards. His free hand let loose a single metal sphere in a loose but practiced motion. Rather than fall they way it should have, it kept on flying forwards. Within the dim light, the sphere was near invisible, and with amazing speeds flew, zooming forwards to puncture through the side of the massive Ursa's knee.

Xarias started regaining his composure. Just as a couple of Nights'  bullets struck the Ursa, Pierce dashed in and aimed for the Achilles' tendon of the massive grimm. It managed to cut through but the Ursa barely shifted from it's position. With the massive grim looming over him, Xarias activated his semblance and quickly jumped out of reach of the Ursa, just as he did that he noticed a small metal sphere fly by and puncture the Ursa's knee from the side. This time the grimm roared. More out of anger than of pain.

Where did that come from?

It began to charge towards Xarias, luckily Xarias could see it coming. It was as if everything was slower to him but in reality his semblance sped up his consciousness and his physical speed. As the grimm swiped with it's massive claws, Xarias dodged it and jumped onto it's arm. He then saw his weapon lodged into the ceiling, he then jumped from the Ursa's shoulder just as it tried to swat him off. He managed to get hold of his weapon, he freed it from the caverns' ceiling then fused it at the hinge to form the rifle. While falling he let loose a volley of high velocity rounds right into the face of the grimm. It managed to daze the monster a bit and Xarias could notice the mask-like part of the armor cracking ever so slightly.

Can't let them have all the fun