Forged Destiny [Book 4: Ch. 13, Ch. 14]

"The monarchy is corrupt," Tyrian howled, smiling wildly. "The church is corrupt, our faith is corrupt, and those that rule Mistral care only for their own ideals. I beseech you, Salem. Become our Queen. Become the new Goddess of our Kingdom!"

His wish was to place a demon like her on the throne of Mistral? It was insane, and as his words came to an end I waited for the explosion of air, some kind of cosmic sound, that would herald the reality of his wish.

Nothing happened.

Salem, however, did laugh. "That is your wish?" she asked. "You wish to have me as your Queen and Goddess?"

"Yes," Tyrian pleaded. "Let me be your Hero. I beg of you!"

[...]

With the moment given to him, Tyrian crouched down and pushed up, launching himself into the air and up towards Weiss' hiding spot.

The Mage panicked and erected a wall of ice before her. When Tyrian neared, the wall expanded out towards him and exploded –a ball of flame bursting through. It caught him by surprise and knocked him back down, even if it didn't cause any real harm.

It was enough for Qrow to catch and engage him again, however, while Weiss dispelled the broken wall above and began to rain down spells in support. With his tail now revealed, they had trouble getting through it and his twin blades, and Tyrian seemed able to direct all three with graceful skill, even blocking attacks from Blake and Pyrrha with the chitin plates on his extra limb.

Was he really going to beat all four of them? That was ridiculous. Watts had bested us, but he'd had Roman with him and we'd all been outclassed. Qrow was much stronger than us and would have probably been able to fight equally with the Paladin, so for him and our three stronger members to be held back was insane.

What kind of monster was he?

He's a Hero, I realised, shocked to my core as he caught Blake's wrist in one hand and swung her into Qrow like a missile. The two fell back and Tyrian was soon inside of Pyrrha's guard, scoring a jagged cut to her abdomen and almost gutting her but for Weiss forcing him back with a lance of pure ice.

He was a Hero, and this was what a Hero was capable of if they reached a high enough Level. It wasn't some incredible skill like Cinder's Phoenix, or a frustrating gimmick like Watts' healing spells. This was raw Stats and skill, coupled with a man who knew how to use it after hundreds, if not thousands, of life and death battles. In comparison, we had a few standout examples but nothing like Tyrian's vast experience.

I had to help them.

[...]

I gripped Crocea Mors with two hands and dragged it before me.

Salem made no move to stop me, even as I fought past the agony required to raise it up above my head.

"You realise that will not harm me," she pointed out.

"I know that," I whispered. My smile was strained. "But does he…?" I raised my voice and shouted at the top of my lungs. "I banish thee, Salem! Be gone from this world!"

"NO!" Tyrian screamed.

Crocea Mors swept down.

Tyrian's blades pierced into my unprotected back.

Blake, Qrow, Weiss and Pyrrha's did the same to his.

—Forged Destiny [Book 4: Ch. 13]


As suicidal as it had been, it was the only option I could think of to win. There'd been a chance I might survive it, but only a small one. At the very least, this way ensured everyone else would make it out in one piece.

Heh… it was strange how calm I felt at the prospect of my own death. I should have been frightened, but I wasn't. In truth, the thought of surviving when everyone else died was far worse. At least I wouldn't be going alone. I gripped onto her hand and struggled to see what had happened to Tyrian.

The Paragon was face-down several metres away, his swords discarded and blood pooling from several grievous holes in his back and side. As expected, when he'd thrown all caution aside to kill me – believing he had to save Salem – he had left himself completely open. I'd banked on that instinctive desire not to let the same disaster strike again overpowering his common sense. It looked like I'd been right.

He was dead, or dying. Blake and Qrow's high Levels and Pyrrha's prodigious Strength… even if they couldn't muster the skill to break past his defences, the raw power behind their attacks had been enough to do serious damage. They'd just needed an opportunity to drive it home.

—Forged Destiny [Book 4: Ch. 14]