RWBY: Moon Reflection

As the two groups faced off, the rubble behind them shifted. A faint, almost imperceptible sound—a low rumble—echoed through the air.

Ruby's eyes widened, her tear-streaked face snapping toward the source of the noise.

"Crimson…?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

The enemy froze, their smug expressions faltering as they turned toward the rubble. The pile of debris shifted again, larger chunks tumbling down, as the air grew heavy with an unnatural pressure.

Cinder's triumphant smirk vanished, replaced by a look of wary disbelief. "Impossible…" she muttered, her voice barely audible.

From the center of the rubble, a figure began to rise, hidden behind the moving dust. His movements were slow, deliberate, and unnervingly steady.

"I always believed that I would rather die than let anyone see my real semblance," Crimson's voice called from the shadows.

Cinder and everyone else focused on him again, pointing their weapons and preparing to attack. But from the shadows, two golden orbs opened, glaring at them. The sight froze them with an unexplainable fear. Even Ruby and her others felt a chill crawl down their spines.

"You attacked my home, harmed my sister, intended to kill my family, and now… you violated my memories," Crimson's voice was slow and steady, but malice oozed with every word.

"I have had enough" the last word delivered in a sinister voice.

Before everyone's eyes, the two golden orbs became six. Along with them, a suffocating pressure filled the battlefield—an aura of dread and malice unlike anything they had ever experienced. Even those who had stood in Salem's presence found her intimidating aura to be a pale echo of this nightmare.

Everyone froze, their bodies visibly trembling, pupils shrinking as they instinctively stepped back. Even Ruby and the others lowered their weapons, their emotions wiped clean and replaced with raw terror.

Ozpin, inhabiting Oscar's body, fared no better. He had roamed Remnant for centuries—millennia, even—but nothing, not even the God of Darkness, had invoked fear like this.

From the dust emerged a monster unlike any they had ever seen. His pale, ashen skin contrasted sharply with his three sets of eyes. Each eye had a yellow iris surrounded by a red fleshy sclera, and black lines radiated outward from each pupil, they gleamed ominously. The top pair replaced his eyebrows, the middle pair bore symbols no one could recognize, and the bottom pair gleamed with predatory focus. The cracked, intricate pattern of his irises seemed alive, adding a sinister energy to his dignified yet terrifying visage.

In his hand, he held a katana—an abomination of flesh and eyes that pulsed faintly as if breathing.

Even Tyrian, usually manic and fearless, looked horrified. The monster scanned the crowd slowly, his gaze making everyone he looked at take an involuntary step back.

"What the fuck is that?" Mercury asked, his voice trembling. 

No one could answer.

"My semblance…. My peak…. What I truly am" The demon spoke slowly answering the question. His words carried a weight that deepened their dread.

"For my goddess…!" Tyrian screamed, raising his pincers to fire. But before the shot rang out, a flash of light blinded him. His hands split from his body and dropped to the ground.

Tyrian stared at the stumps where his hands used to be. A cold, deliberate voice came from his side. "You, little insect, should have known your place"

As Tyrian registered the loss, his screams pierced the air. The battlefield fell silent except for his cries. The others looked on, horrified, as the demon appeared next to Tyrian in a blur.

"You said you don't fight fair…. So why are you watching?" The demon's voice was low and deliberate, each word chilling.

The group opened fire in a panicked frenzy, but the demon vanished. They frantically searched for him, only for his voice to ring out again.

"You were the one who violated my memories"

Emerald froze. He was standing right behind her. She tried to run but collapsed to the ground. Turning around, she aimed her guns at him, but before she could fire, she screamed.

Her legs, severed at the thighs, remained standing as she bled profusely on the ground.

"For that, you shall bleed to death" The demon declared, his voice cold and final.

Mercury, the closest to Emerald, launched a powerful kick aimed at the demon's head. The demon met the attack with his blade, slicing Mercury cleanly in half. His corpse hit the ground, blood pooling instantly.

Hazel, enraged by the gruesome display, charged at the demon, his fists slamming forward with immense force. The demon caught Hazel's punch effortlessly and stared into his eyes.

"You are angry," the demon said slowly, letting the words sink in before continuing, "but you should be trembling."

The sickening sound of bones breaking filled the air. Hazel's anger turned to horror as the demon's grip crushed his hand like brittle wood. If not for his semblance, Hazel would have been screaming in agony.

Neo rushed in from the side, blade drawn in a stabbing motion. The demon let her strike, but her weapon couldn't pierce his skin. She froze in place, staring at him in disbelief. His eyes locked onto hers, freezing her with a fear she couldn't comprehend.

The demon casually flung Hazel into Neo, sending them both tumbling several meters away.

"You barely managed to fight me when I was still human. How will you face me now?" The demon asked, his tone eerily calm.

At this point, Cinder and her remaining allies were paralyzed with terror. They had thought the demon was a monster before. Now, he was a creature beyond comprehension—a true nightmare.

Tyrian, who had been sobbing on the ground, turned and tried to flee, dragging himself away despite his injuries. The demon's golden eyes narrowed as he raised his sword. With a single swing, a crescent-shaped projectile flew toward Tyrian, slicing cleanly through one of his legs.

Before Tyrian could scream, the demon appeared beside him in a blur.

"I didn't permit you to leave," The demon said, his voice cold and authoritative.

Tyrian stared up at the demon, tears streaming down his face. Before he could beg for mercy, the demon stomped down, crushing Tyrian's skull with a sickening crunch.

The Branwen tribe bandits, who had been watching in horror, broke ranks and tried to flee. The demon turned his gaze toward them, his voice ringing out with eerie clarity "Moon Breathing - Seventh Form"

The demon performed a frontal crescent-shaped slash that unleashed countless curved and straight slashes, expanding outward. The fleeing bandits had no chance; they were cut down instantly, their bodies falling lifeless to the ground.

The remaining enemies were frozen in place, too terrified to move. Cinder and Raven exchanged a glance before summoning every ounce of their Maiden powers, unleashing a barrage of fire and ice toward the demon.

Unfazed, the demon raised his sword again. "Moon Breathing – Eighth Form"

A massive, long-ranged curved slash shot forth, leaving dozens of crescent moon blades in its wake. The attacks collided mid-air, resulting in an explosion that shook the battlefield and kicked up a thick cloud of dust.

As the dust obscured the area, the demon's voice cut through the chaos. "Moon Breathing – Tenth Form"

Three rotating, saw-like slashes with crescent moon blades emerged from the dust, tearing through the air with terrifying precision. They targeted Cinder, Raven, Adam, Sienna, Vernal, Hazel, and Neo.

The group fought desperately to defend themselves, but not all escaped unscathed. Cinder and Raven managed to deflect the attacks, but Sienna and Vernal were killed instantly, their bodies shredded by the blades. Adam fell to his knees, a deep slash across his chest bleeding profusely. Hazel lost both of his arms entirely and was covered in wounds, while Neo collapsed, bleeding from multiple cuts, barely alive.

The demon emerged from the dust, his katana now transformed. The blade had grown longer and more grotesque, with three protruding, jagged edges on its sides. The weapon pulsed menacingly, as if alive, exuding an aura that sapped the will of anyone who looked at it.

He walked forward, his movements slow and deliberate, until he stopped suddenly, his gaze distant.

He saw his brother standing before him once more, just as he had earlier his smile twisted cruelly. The demon's breath hitched as his expression softened into sorrow.

[brother….] The demon thought, his heart heavy.

"I wanted to become like you… but my own weakness, and failing to understand the decisions you made, fueled my hatred for you" The demon spoke slowly, his voice much softer.

"It was long after your death that I realized how wrong I was. I regretted my hate…. and still do" The demon continued, staring at the air in front of him.

"I tried to do what you couldn't see, even if a little, for the sake of both of us. I thought I was better. I believed I couldn't feel hate, anger, greed, envy, or any other ugly emotions. But in the end, I was no different… I failed. I'm so sorry for being a failure." His voice cracked with emotion, and tears fell from his eyes.

Adam, noticing the demon's distraction, saw an opportunity. He glanced toward Emerald, pale and barely breathing, then summoned all his remaining strength. Channeling his semblance, Adam unleashed the accumulated damage in a single, devastating strike aimed at the demon's neck.

The sword struck with brutal force, enough to sever most of the demon's neck. For a moment, Adam thought he had succeeded.

But the wound closed almost instantly, the flesh knitting back together as if nothing had happened.

Adam stumbled back in disbelief, staring at the demon, whose head tilted slightly as he observed the failed attack, despair filling his heart.

The demon remained silent, the image of his brother vanishing from his mind. His additional eyes glanced at Emerald, who had just drawn her last breath. The sorrow within him grew, twisting into hatred and rage.

"In this form I am indestructible. I can recover from all injuries, including decapitation. Not even the passage of time can harm me…. I am the closest thing to an immortal" The demon declared, his slow, deliberate words sinking into the minds of everyone present.. 

As absurd as his claim sounded, no one doubted it. To them, this creature was not a human anymore, it was a living nightmare.

Most of the remaining White Fang and Branwen tribe members dropped to their knees, paralyzed by despair, awaiting their inevitable demise.

"You all made me feel something I thought I couldn't…. Hatred." The demon growled, his voice filled with venom.

Raising his sword, he assumed a stance that exuded pure malice.

"I know you won't like my actions… you won't appreciate them in your name… but right now my very being is burning with hatred…. every cell in my body is calling for their demise" Everyone could hear the hate and anger seeping in every word.

His next words were spoken with an icy finality.

"Moon breathing - Fourteenth Form"

The demon swung his sword, unleashing countless curved slashes that expanded outward in every direction, creating an omnidirectional vortex of crescent moon blades.

Wherever the vortex passed, screams and destruction followed. Even the close buildings were obliterated, and the battlefield was reduced to ruins. Ruby and the others, realizing the magnitude of the attack, retreated into the school building to escape the carnage.

As the vortex subsided, silence fell over the battlefield. Not a single enemy remained standing.