Team Nightwatch

The Fall of Beacon

     My feet pounded on the stones as I ran as fast as I could, thinking that flying would be better before I heard it.  A roar rang over the sound of battle, a shadow falling over me as I ran.  A Dragon flew over head, black blobs dropping from its wings to land on the ground, forming new Grimm.  Lightning raced up and down my body, striking Grimm as I raced by just to give me a clear path.  

     The Tower loomed above me, the top destroyed and made as the Dragon's perch.  The wind whipped around me, lifting me to start climbing the tower.  A path of glowing glyphs appeared beside me, followed by Ruby with her scythe in hand.  We looked at each other.  I've never seen such a determined look in those silver eyes in those few seconds than I have the past few months.  We made it to the top at the same time, lightning arching from me but what we saw forced me back to the ground.

     Cinder had her bow in her hand and had loosed an arrow...at Pyrrha.  It hit her squarely in the chest...right over her heart.  I saw the point come out of her back, looking at the scared expression on her face.  Cinder walked over and put her hand on Pyrrha's face, a red light covering Pyrrha.  I watched, tears forming in my eyes, as Pyrrha disintegrated and flew into the wind.

      Rage that I've never felt before rose in me as Cinder looked at us with that stupid winning smirk she had.  I don't know what happened next, I blacked out somewhere along the way, but this I do remember.  Ruby shouting "Pyrrha", a blinding flash of white light, Cinder screaming "What?",  a roar coming from me and the sound of a massive explosion.

     

     Just to let you know, waking up to be falling several feet in a few seconds is not something you should want to do.  At least I was awake though...Ruby had fallen completely unconscious and was falling beside me.  I grabbed a hold of her and positioned us to where I would hit the ground before she did.  As much as the crater I created destroyed my back, it was better than her splatting on the street.  

     The defenses of Beacon were crumbling and no one was fighting the Grimm this deep in the city.  I ran back to the bulkheads and saw a familiar torn red cape.  

      "Qrow!"  I shouted.  He turned around, a worried look in his eyes as he looked at his niece.  He took her from me and started to run beside me, and I got to look at some of the damage.  Yang was lying on the ground beside Blake, who had a wound in her side, but Yang's injury was more severe...her right arm was missing from the elbow down.  Leah was lying with Isabel and Destiny, bandages wrapped around her waist but she looked less like she was dying and more like she was asleep.

     "What happened?" Isabel asked.  "Did you do whatever it is you were going to do?"  I shook my head, feeling more tears as I thought about Pyrrha.  "Andrew...?"

     "I swear I'm going to kill her," I muttered.  "She's going to regret what she did today...."  I could feel their concerned gazes on me as I sat down, waiting for the ship to take off.

     "What happened up there?"  Destiny asked.  I didn't say anything for a long time.  We got into the air when I finally sighed, looking out the window.  

     "There has to be one more person added to the death count," I told them.  "I went to end Cinder before she could do too much damage, but I don't know if I succeeded.  I'm not actually sure what I did...anyway, I didn't save her even though I probably could have...."

     "Save who?"  Isabel asked, looking concerned.  

     "Pyrrha," I answered.  "I got up there to watch her take an arrow to the heart.  I know that I could've saved her life, but I didn't have fast enough reflexes to do it...."  I launched into the story about what had happened up to the point where I blacked out and woke up falling to my death.  "I don't have the chance to do anything, but I know what I need to do...."  I looked at Leah, hoping that she wasn't going to hear any of this.  "For her...for all of you...."

      None of them questioned me about what I meant, but it seems like they get the idea.  I was going to leave...find out the truth of who and what I really am, and only one person knows the answer to that.  "I know somewhere you all can stay.  My family has another house that they were going to let us use if we wanted to stay together over the summer...."