Running past broken windows and raging fires, punching a White Fang member across the jaw and knocking him to the ground, your ears pick up the feint sound of Yang screaming. Your heart races and, breaking through a line of Atlesian Knights, you sprint in the direction of Yang's voice, towards the cafeteria.

Just outside the building, you stop and turn on the spot, eyes scanning through the rampaging chaos in a desperate search for Yang. That's when you see it. Everything seems to stop as you watch Yang charging at a red-haired bull Faunus standing over Blake. You reach out, screaming Yang's name, but it's no use. Your stomach drops as you watch the man pull his blade from his sheath, and in one single stroke, he slices her right beneath the shoulder. Her body drops, blood seeping from the wound. Blake runs to her as the man you now recognize to be Adam Taurus slowly approaches them, blade still in his hand. Crashing through the wall, you run at him with your head down, catching him by surprise and tackling him to the ground.

As he falls backwards, he brings his legs up and kicks you in the stomach, launching you over his head where you land with one hand placed on the ground. Positioned directly between him and the two girls, you straighten your back and stare at Adam, who is back on his feet, brushing the dirt from his black jacket.

"Blake." You say out of the corner of your mouth. "Get Yang to safety."

"I...I can't just leave." Blake says with a shake of her head. "He'll kill you."

"No." You snarl, staring at the figure in front of you. "I will not be the one who dies tonight."

"But..."

"Leave. Now!"

Biting her lip, Blake nods once and picks Yang up in her arms, running from the scene. Now it's just you and Adam standing in what was once your school's cafeteria, fires burning on all sides.

"I don't take too kindly to being interrupted." He says almost like he's bored. "Once I'm done here, I'll find your friends and finish what I started."

"No." You respond darkly.

Adam almost laughs. "Excuse me?"

"You just hurt someone I love. That's not something you get to walk away from."

"We'll see."

In the blink of an eye, Adam is upon you, his sword slicing at your head. Bending backwards, you duck under the blade and spin one-hundred-eighty degrees just in time to block a strike with his pommel. Rolling his arm over, you step through and push down, compromising his elbow and bending him over. Adam however spins under your arms and around your back, elbowing you in the spine. Staggering forwards, you turn and face him again.

He's walking across the room, blade angled towards the ground, eyes on you. Reaching up, you pull Rhino's Charge from your shoulders and let the weight fall to the ground.

"Who are you?" Adam asks.

Ignoring his question, you send Rhino's Charge at him. You move your hands, pulling and releasing the rope. Your body spins and bends as the weight circles your body, wrapping around your back and neck before you roll your shoulders and pull again, spinning with the momentum of the weight and uncoiling it from around your torso, launching it in a flurry of attacks. Adam sidesteps and ducks under your attacks, just managing to keep up. Stooping under one attack he rises again to be met with the weight flying back his direction. He barely manages to raise his sword in time to block, and even then, he's sent stumbling backwards. As the head of Rhino's Charge returns, you move your body so the rope wraps around your neck. Spinning your body in a diagonal downward arc, the rope then uncoils, sending the heavy weight forwards and forcing Adam back. Pulling on the rope, you this time kick the weight as it returns. Rhino's Charge connects with Adam's stomach, knocking the wind from his lungs as he lurches backwards. Pulling back, you manage to snake the rope around his legs, and, tugging, he falls to the ground. Swinging Rhino's charge in a circular fashion, you spin and release more of the rope's length, the heavy weight comes crashing down towards the ground.

Adam rolls out of the way to avoid getting crushed, jumping back on his feet. Running forwards, he ducks and weaves around your attacks, getting up close. As he slices and cuts at any opening he can find, you're forced to retreat. No longer able to use the full range of your meteor hammer, you use the length of rope in your hands and sling it around his arms and torso, the rope snaking up his limbs. Ducking under another cut, you weave behind his back and pull on the rope, tightening it and trapping his arms to his sides. Kicking him in the back of his knee, Adam drops, still struggling against the restraints. Walking up from behind, you wrap your arm around his head, placing your other hand on the back of his skull, preparing to snap his neck. Just then, he manages to use his sword to cut through the bindings, freeing himself. Reaching over his shoulders, he grabs you by the collar pulls you forward, throwing you over his shoulder.

Standing back up, Adam begins laughing.

"You're good. I'll give you that." He says as he steps over the remains of Rhino's Charge, the rope now cut to pieces, rendering it useless. "But let's see how you fair without your weapon."

Rushing at you, he assaults you with a flurry of cuts. Overhead, backhand, side cut, thrust. You're barely managing to keep up with his attacks, a downward stroke passing a little too closely by your ear. Steadily backing up, you duck under a cut to the eyes, the blade instead slicing through a support pillar. As he comes back with a backhand cut, you block to his wrist. Lifting him arm, you position yourself so that you're in front of him, your back to his front. Still with a firm grip on his wrist, you crank his arm down over your shoulder. His arm spasms as his elbow hyperextends, and it results with him losing his grip on the blade. Elbowing him in the stomach, you kick his blade away where it slides to a halt beneath a broken window.

Taking advantage of your momentary preoccupation, Adam manages to pull his arm free from your grasp, taking several steps back and clutching his now sprained wrist. Both of you are covered in cuts and bruises, though Adam's leather jacket seems to have protected him better than your robes, which hang off you in shreds. Tearing the last pieces of fabric away, you take a deep breath and assume your fighting position; feet shoulder width apart, slight bent at the knees. Both hands open, left hand extended further than the right, palm up. Right hand palm down, fingertips at the left elbow.

"I'll admit, I'm impressed." Adam says, breathing heavily. "But that won't change how this ends!"

He runs at you again, throwing a push kick at your chest which, despite being stopped by your guard, causes you to slide back a bit. Adam's punches are blocked by your hands, his kicks stopped by your feet. A punch aimed at your jaw is brushed gently to the side and instead breaks through another support column, stone and mortar crumbling. Tired of playing defense, you decide to shift into a more offensive style of combat. Though Adam is undoubtedly a master swordsman, his open hand combat could use work. Your punches and kicks send him stumbling backwards as he desperately attempts to avoid getting hit. Throwing an outside-inside crescent kick across his face, you follow the momentum and jump into a flying spinning heel kick.

Adam dives out of the way, landing in a keeling position. Turning to face him, you're surprised to find a bullet zooming towards your face. You move your head to the side, the bullet whizzing past your ear. In his hands is his sword's sheath, now converted into a long rifle. Smirking, he points the rifle at the ceiling and fires another shot. The bullet disturbs the already compromised integrity of the roof, and several large chunks of rubble fall from overhead. You dive out of the way, the concrete landing with a crash where you had been standing previously. As you push yourself back to your feet, you realize Adam had been using it as a distraction, and he was now over by the window retrieving his blade.

You run at him, hoping to get to him before he can secure his grip on the hilt of his sword, but you're too late. Turning around, he blindly slashes at your head. Inhaling sharply, you drop to your knees, your earlier momentum causing you to slide several feet, shards of broken glass cutting up your shins. Ignoring the pain, you brace yourself for another round.

As Adam comes at you with his sword, you do your best to dodge him, but the searing pain in your legs has you off balance. You're just a millisecond too slow with your retreat, and the tip of his blade slices down and across your chest, blood pouring from the deep cut. Distracted, Adam manages to cut you again, this time on the inside of your right thigh. Screaming in agony, your leg collapses onto the knee as you clutch at the new wound.

Adam laughs maniacally as he places the edge of his sword against the side of your neck. You try to move, but both your aura has been heavily damaged, and you had exhausted all your energy reserves fighting those Paladins. The only thing you could do now, was wait. You closed your eyes.

"You'll be happy to know you lasted longer than anyone else." He sneers. "But I'm afraid this is where we part ways. Don't worry though, Blake and her blonde friend will be joining you soon enough."

He raises his sword, preparing to cut you down. But as he did so, something inside you was triggered. Your eyes snapped open at the mention of Yang. You may be exhausted. You may be beaten, bloody, and bruised. But you were not about to let this man, no, this monster, get anywhere near Yang, not so long as you still drew breath. As his sword swung down at your neck, you lifted your left hand and grabbed the blade. You absorbed the kinetic energy behind the attack, but even stationary, the sword was sharp, and you could feel it cutting deep into your palm. Hand still wrapped firmly around the blade, you struggled to your feet, fighting through the stabbing and aching coming from your thigh and shins as blood continued to flow freely from the long gash across your chest.

Though wearing a mask, you can tell that Adam is clearly surprised at your ability to stand, but he tries to hide it.

"Really?" He laughs. "Just give up! It's over!"

"So long as I'm breathing, it isn't over."

With your right hand, you seize Adam around the neck, digging your fingers into the soft flesh as you tighten your grip around his throat. Gasping and choking, he claws at your hand to no avail. Slowly, you start to push him back, step by agonizing step until his back is to a support beam. Still pressing forwards, Adam is lifted off his feet, the grip on his blade releasing as his brain is deprived of oxygen.

"I told you, you don't get to walk away."

Pulling your arm back, Adam's body leaves thesupport pillar, only for you to slam him back against it with enough force tocrack it. The crack slowly starts to spread up towards the ceiling, stone dustfalling from overhead. A dangerously loud crumbling sound suddenly distractsyou from your goal. Weakened by the fire, the loss of this third support beamfinally was enough to compromise the buildings integrity. The ceiling caves in,burying you and Adam under a pile of concrete. Everything goes black.