HA33/HA34 AN

As far as he'd come and as hard as he'd worked, the fight between Tyrian and Neo was on another level. They blurred and tore their way through the clearing, bending at angles that didn't seem possible, deflecting attacks with the barest of warnings and staying perfectly silent the entire time. Even Tyrian, who had been running his mouth all through their fight, didn't waste a single word against Neo.

[...]

Tyrian stabbed his tail down into the thick loam and used it as a pole vault to get up and over Neo. The strength required was ridiculous, not to mention how he caught a low hanging branch and hauled himself up onto the boughs. In return, Neo dashed to the tree and jumped, planting one foot down and kicking off. She frog-hopped between two trees, reaching the same boughs and landing with nary a pause, lunging forward with her sword. Tyrian's laughter echoed the clash of their weapons, but again he refrained from speaking.

[...]

"Look out!"

Sienna pushed Jaune away suddenly, diving in the opposite direction. Something crashed down between them – a body, feet first, striking the grass where they'd stood. Tyrian's wild eyes flickered over Sienna first and then him. They widened gleefully on seeing him.

His heart exploded with pain. Neo…

A second shape blurred from the treeline and struck Tyrian's back, also feet first and this time kicking off so hard both she and Tyrian were launched in different directions, him into a tree and Neo up in the air. She flipped and landed unsteadily, panting harshly with her boots scuffed her distinctive grin nowhere to be seen.

"Neo!" he gasped, pure joy rushing through him.

Her mismatched eyes met his but there was no smile. She darted at Tyrian, bending low under a knife thrust and twisting on one heel, holding her sword up behind her back to parry a second. Completing her spin, she drove a heel cruelly into the back of his shin, forcing him down on one knee. His tail swept behind him before she could stab him in the back of the head.

A crack heralded Sienna entering the fray, whip snapping down on Tyrian and missing as he rolled forward. Neo stamped down on it and launched herself up, kicking twice toward Tyrian's head and forcing him to block. As the whip sailed back, she snagged it with one hand, riding it up and around to evade his tail. She let go and landed in a crouch, then rolled left as Tyrian's tail stabbed down.

Tearing Crocea Mors free, Jaune rushed in.

With a flicker of light, Neo appeared in front of him. He almost crashed into her back.

"Neo-?"

She shook her head and backed into him, herding him away like an animal might its young.

[...]

Tyrian grinned at him, snapping one hand out to catch Sienna's whip. The barbed tip sparked in his grip, but he held it with his aura, even as she tried to pull it free. Even then, he kept his attention on Neo. He knew where the threat lay.

[...]

Neo clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes. That was all he got as Sienna realised she was being pulled into her death and relinquished her weapon. It flew forward and Tyrian whipped it down, making the handle crack toward them. Neo parried it and jumped in, ducking under the barbed tip he threw her way and stabbing for his gut.

"Sienna!" Jaune yelled. "We're leaving!"

"About ti- get down!"

Jaune threw himself to the floor. Tyrian's tail stabbed through the space he'd occupied, the faunus having skipped Neo entirely to attack him. Their eyes met for a brief instant before Neo was on him again, spinning and flipping, literally backflipping up under his guard to drive both feet into his chin and knock him off his feet. He cartwheeled in the air but managed to fire a hail of shots back. Some hit the ground and leaves, one struck Jaune's shoulder and pinged off his aura. At least six struck Neo, though she warded her face with one arm and let her aura tank the damage.

[...]

When Tyrian charged in against Neo again, still keeping an eye on him, Jaune realised the man didn't have reinforcements at all.

He's insane. He fully intends to take us three-on-one. Is he that confident?

He couldn't be; he was holding on against Neo, but it was a fight that looked like it could go either way. Neither him nor Sienna were great fighters, but they could hold their own. Together with Neo, the odds were heavily in their favour. If was confident, it was because he was an idiot, and Jaune didn't dare doubt on that.

Tyrian's objective wasn't to win. It was to kill him.

Neo caught an elbow to the face and bent with it, bleeding off the force and falling back. She whipped one leg up to kick the hand away and defend, only to be left one-footed and lost as Tyrian broke off and lunged for Jaune instead. Her eyes grew wide.

Jaune slammed his shield up in time to block the knives. The tail, he had to dodge entirely, breaking off and leaving himself open. It missed by a few inches and Tyrian drove a foot into his stomach, bending him double. Eyes clenched shut against the pain, Jaune threw himself into a tackle, pushing as much aura to his back as he could in case the stinger came around. Tyrian was so wiry that he probably weighed more, especially with his breastplate. He hauled the faunus up and carried him a few paces.

Heels landed on his back, he felt them through his coat. There was a brief moment to ponder why Neo was standing on him before Tyrian's laughter turned into pained grunts. She kicked off Jaune and planted both feet in Tyrian's face to knock him away. Before he could follow, Neo caught his collar and yanked him back, separating them again and shooting him a furious glare.

"I'm trying to run!" he yelled. "He won't let me!"

The proof of that came as Tyrian lunged in again. Neo tensed her legs to dodge but then glanced back and held her ground. Tyrian was bigger and heavier than her and leaned his weapons down onto hers, pinning her arms in place. He pushed her down onto one knee, all the while bringing his tail around.

Sienna hurled herself onto it, wrapping both arms around the stinger and her legs further down around the tail. Tyrian yelped, obviously not enjoying his tail gaining a full human body worth of weight. The barbed tip tried again and again to scratch her face, but Sienna was holding on grimly, keeping both hands on the stinger tip like she was warding away a knife.

"Nice," Jaune panted, dashing over. "Keep it there – I'll cut it off!"

"I think not!" Tyrian slammed through Neo's guard and kicked her away. The small girl went skimming over the rocks with a crackle of pink aura and sparks.

[...]

"Nighty-night headmaster! Salem sends her regards."

The stinger stabbed down.

White flashed from the edge of his vision.

Neo covered him, face down, one hand on his shoulder and the other his chest, balanced over him on her hands and knees. Her face was right before his, bruised and bleeding from her lip. His eyes stared into mismatched pink and brown.

Those eyes bulged. Her body jerked.

"N… Neo…?"

Her mouth opened and closed. No words ever came from it, but for once he heard a sound – a gurgling and desperate rattle of breath. The whites of her eyes turned red.

"Oops." Tyrian's tail bulged as his venom pumped down and into her back. "Well, I guess it doesn't matter which of you goes first. There's plenty to go around."

—HA33

[...]

It may be that Sienna wouldn't be this useless in a 3v1, but we just don't know and if Tyrian could take on Team RNJR and Qrow at the same time, I'm going with the idea that he's really strong – since Qrow is (I believe) called one of the strongest huntsmen of his era.

Stronger than Neo? Who knows? Honestly, it's not just me who makes her OP – just look at her kicking ass in the show. But in the fight last chapter it's worth pointing out that Tyrian doesn't beat Neo. He forces her to beat herself by attacking Jaune.

—HA34 AN