(A/N: Nearing the end once again.)
XOXO
Cinder Fall.
A woman with a backstory deserving of pity but a laundry list of crimes that bought her no compassion. She was more than just a simple murderer. She'd been a power hungry maniac loyal only to herself. So long as it meant she'd receive power others could only dream of, she had been willing to aid someone like Salem, a being that any person with sense should consider an enemy.
She was cruel, selfish, dangerous, and most importantly of all, a problem that needed to be nipped in the bud.
The Grimm circled us, awaiting their cautious alpha's orders while flames licked at our auras, wide near golden eyes staring at me. Those identical swords, worn down by time and use, were held defensively, their wieldier ready to flee at the first opportunity.
That wasn't the cold gaze of a hardened killer. Just someone desperate to survive.
Cinder Fall stood in front of me, but she was just a desperate kid. One who'd probably already done things others would consider unspeakable, but still a kid far from the cruel woman in the show.
If mom knew what I knew and was in my position she'd kill this girl.
It was the only sure fire way to eliminate the threat Cinder represented.
But….but what would Summer have done?
Dammit.
"Get ready." I said, ripping my eyes from Cinder and prepping my blade. "There's a lot of them and more on the way."
I didn't bother waiting for a response, rushing up towards a few of the descending Grimm as howls rode the winds. Wide sweeping slashes took care of plenty, the Grimm quick to focus a vast majority of their numbers on me once they realized the difference in strength between me and their previous prey.
Though no amount of strength could suppress the mercilessly opportunistic nature of packs of beowolves.
A pair of alphas led a charge at Cinder, their pack wearing her down as the alpha's positioned themselves to get the drop on her. She was good with those blades, trained in the basics and self taught beyond that, but far from experienced enough to fully fend off so many Grimm.
As I swung my blade with one arm, cleaving through more Grimm, I pulled my free hand, curling it into a fist.
Sharp and jagged, a sheet of flame heated metal flew from the wreckage, cutting clean through a portion of the Grimm surrounding Cinder before I pulled it back towards her, keeping the hovering thing nearby and throwing off attacks she couldn't keep track of. With my next swing I sent my blade flying, using telekinesis to cleave through them by the dozens while continuing to support Cinder with that piece of the airship's hull.
This whole approach was inefficient but more than enough to handle beowolves.
The far bigger and slower moving form that just crossed into my spread out range was no beowolf.
Spinning my sword back around, I caught it and returned it to my back as I jumped back, landing beside Cinder. Hands planted on the hot wreckage, dirt and roots shook before metal tore, cold wind whipping past as I shot up alongside them. Grimm leaped and pounced, falling woefully short of the floating platforms, soon nothing more than dots as I was carried higher and higher.
I stopped the sudden ascent only once the sheet of metal I crouched on was far above the forest, the cold air noticeably thinner. Cinder, swords held defensively as her gaze made a swift jump from the now distant ground and to me, balanced herself on another piece of the wreckage I ripped free beside me.
And she was glaring, looking no happier to be stuck up here with a stranger than surrounded by Grimm.
I'd thought I would have to and prepared myself for putting her to the blade. There'd be no conversation. No questions. No ifs, ands, or buts. Not even a real battle if I could help it.
Just a swift kill.
Keeping an eye on her, I pulled us and the floating pieces of the wreckage around us away from the crash site.
Helping her was one thing but what now? I couldn't just let her be.
XOXO
"Who are you?"
"Nobody important." I said, wiping soot and ash away from a piece of the wreckage. "Lil Miss Malachite mentioned something about another hotshot. I'm guessing she sent you out here too?"
Silence met the question, Cinder either picking up on its rhetorical nature or still on guard.
I glanced behind me.
Her clothes, a shirt, pants, unzipped jacket and boots, were all dark in color and had seen plenty of use, the bits of soot clinging to the old get up failing to hide how worn they were. Old as they might've been, her actual gear fared no better. The dark belt of pouches around her waist was frayed, parts of it torn completely. Her swords got the worst of it though, the held up blades mishappened and chipped at different places.
It was a wonder she could cut anything with those things without the help of her semblance.
She positioned herself right at the edge of the small clearing I'd landed us in, never once taking her eyes off me.
Still on guard it was.
"She tell you what we were supposed to bring back or are you just as in the dark as me?" I questioned, turning back to continue rooting through what I managed to bring alongside up. I hadn't picked up on anything signaling someone was alive in the ship, so I just ripped out chucks with as much stuff as possible.
Damaged firearms, a few intact crates of the less volatile kinds of dust crystals, tools for the ship's maintenance. So far, nothing stood out.
"Some kind of case." Her answer finally came as I wiped away more of the ash, revealing hard metal.
"A case?" Running my hand along the edges of the object, I found a handle and pulled, taking it with me as I came to a stand. A soot stained suitcase, dark with silvery edges, hung from my hand. It would've been just as unnoteworthy as the rest of cargo I managed to bring along if it weren't for the small weblike mark along one of its edges.
Cinder, not quite taking a full step, moved forward ever so slightly, her center of balance changing. She was still prepped to run but there were less than savory intentions behind that.
"This must be it." I said, turning fully to face her, the suitcase held loosely in my left hand. "Guess we're done out here."
Cinder's eyes flicked up from the marked suitcase and back to mine. "…we?"
"Assuming we're being paid for this I'm willing to split whatever she pays down the middle." I said.
She would agree with me.
Cinder was far from the coldblooded killer I'd been prepped to cross paths with, but she wasn't anything new to me. Survival, like it was for so many in the tribe, was at the forefront of her concerns. That meant recognizing certain things.
Guarded silence remained but her blades lowered.
I walked past her and she followed, a bit of distance kept between us as grass crunched beneath our respective steps.
Should I be disappointed or relieved?
Had she been so far gone as to attack another offering her an olive branch, be it out of sheer cruelty or foolishness, I could've cut her down here and now, regardless of how young she was, the future problems she could cause averted and my focus back on the whole reason I was in Mistral in the first place.
That would've been so much simpler.
XOXO
Going from the uncharted wilds to the secure streets of a city was supposed to be a reassuring change. No Grimm around every corner and every convenience imaginable at your fingertips provided you had the lien. Not to mention so many other people going about their day to day as if nothing beyond their walls existed.
A massive departure from the nomadic lifestyle I'd grown accustomed to.
As I turned a corner, Miss Malachite's bar in view, I glanced over my shoulder.
Scowling, Cinder's narrowed gaze had only become jumpier in what others considered security. She kept a clear distance between herself and others where possible, any who drew close subjected to subtle but intense scrutiny. Occasionally those narrowed eyes would find their way to the case I carried, a little bride seeing us back into the city with it, but she never acted on whatever thoughts were going through her head.
As we came upon the bar, the streets that once been lively almost completely barren with the earliest hours of the morning approaching, the guards at the door let us pass without a word.
Just like the streets, the bar was far quieter, a few regulars snoozing while the bartender and a few others cleaned up around the place.
"Hmph, I can't say I expected the both of you to return together." Miss Malachite, not at her private isolated table, but behind the bar's center, greeted us, a wave of her fan beckoning us over. "And its not often I'm surprised."
I silently placed the case on the bar and she signaled for the bartender to grab it. A quick unlock and checking of its contents later saw a modest stack of lien taking its place on the bar.
Miss Malachite snapped her fan closed and pointed it at Cinder. "If you want more work, be back tomorrow night." She said before pointing it at me. "The same goes for you, be it work or information you want. Be prepared to pay the cost of the latter." I nodded and she turned around, returning to seemingly taking stock of the drinks she had on display.
Guess she was leaving the splitting to us.
I spread out the lien so Cinder could get a clear look at it before taking my half of the colored coded cards. As I stepped back, Cinder took hers and turned to leave without a word.
Cinder Fall.
Whatever her current circumstances, she represented far too much to just let walk away. There was no telling if she was on the path to falling in with Salem or if I'd somehow already averted it through my interference.
I followed after her.
If I wasn't going to kill her then I needed to choose another approach. And it couldn't be anything half assed.
XOXO
(A/N: He might be older, but just like in his childhood Talon still struggles with wanting to take the easy route but the harder route being the one that makes more sense to him or having something motivating him towards it. He'll have to find a way to deal with a young Cinder who honestly might be more of a pain in the ass to write than even Raven but if I can manage it, that sweet satisfaction will be all the better due to the challenge.
Anyways, I say this with confidence for once. We'll definitely be finishing strong tomorrow. Unless something crazy happens like my power being knocked out. And I just jinxed myself didn't I?
Link for those who want to read ahead:
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