RWBY||Return of the Riftwalker

Chapter 9: Parona

3rd Person POV

Unknown Location

"Elsha!"

"There's too many!"

"Hold on!"

Opening his eyes, Sincline found himself hovering in his original form amidst an enormous cloud of rocky debris. In fact, it looked similar to the 'asteroid field' that had surrounded the corpse of Daibazaal. Is that... was this a planet? Sincline wondered, examining the remains of the broken world. Most of the rocky chunks ranged in size between Vacuo and Beacon City, with thousands smaller.

What the Hell happened here? Sincline wondered... and that's when a dark chill filled the 'air.' Ever so slowly, a dark shadow began crawling over the planet's remains, red stone turning ebony black as a cloud of darkness swelled around it.... But Sincline knew it wasn't a wave. It was a horde. A horde of Entities: millions strong.

A surge of brilliant purple energy streaked past him, and Sincline whirled as the feminine mech he had seen before in his 'dreams' flew toward the Entities, the edges of her eyes leaking purple energy. Despite the fact that she was vastly outnumbered, she seemed unfazed as she slowed to a stop before the horde.

"Get out of there," Sincline whispered, but he knew she couldn't hear him... and that's when he noticed something that sent a chill down his spine. She didn't have her wings. Did she lose them? he wondered. Or is this before she—

A massive aura of energy roared to life around her, and a pair of gleaming blades similar to those of THAT form hissed out of her forearms. "Bring it," she snarled. Both blades flared, shining with Quintessence, and she raised her weapons before bringing them down in a savage crosscut. A flash of light, and an X-shaped streak of energy tore through the remains of the planet, vaporizing all in its path. It struck true, and a brilliant explosion ripped through the swarm.

'Eyes' wide, Sincline stared at the decimated horde in awe as the creatures dissolved amidst a cloud of glowing particles. All those Entities... she killed them with one blow. That energy attack reminded him of the Aura arcs Qrow often used during their duels.

"Elsha!" a voice called, and a second mech flew down. Bearing knight-like armor that had a nearly identical color scheme to Sincline's, the newcomer held what appeared to be a large Greatsword in one hand and a kite shield in the other.

So that's her name, Sincline realized. Elsha. Her name... there was a haunting familiarity to it, a tone that struck a chord in him and sent shivers down his spine. His armor seemed to shift, and an icy sensation flashed through his veins.

"Legion," the now named Elsha acknowledged. She turned, and Sincline's eyes widened as her burning gaze locked with his, whisps of energy leaking from the edges of her glowing eyes. "Remember, Sincline... not all is as it seems," she warned, her voice turning to static as Sincline's vision glitched.

When Sincline could see again, he found himself floating in his human form amidst the boundless expanse of his Astral Plane. A familiar presence washed over him, and he looked up to find the beautiful form of Akari floating before him.

"Are you alright?" Akari asked, gently cupping a hand beneath Sincline and holding him up so that he was level with her face, her shining blue eyes locked with his.

Sincline nodded, his mind flashing back to what he had just witnessed. "What was that?" he asked.

"I would assume it was another vision," Akari explained. "I was only able to draw you out after it ended. There was a... presence suffusing the dream." She was reluctant to admit it, but she had her suspicions of whom that presence was... and the possibility was terrifying.