Chapter XXIII: Rage of the White Dragon Heir- Max vs Adam!
The Final Stand
The Hijacked Airship - Ruby's Battle
The Wyvern's massive form flies past the hijacked Atlesian Airship, its presence drawing Griffons that swarm the skies like locusts. Ruby Rose stands on the hull with Crescent Rose in hand, her storm dragon abilities creating wind patterns that help her maintain balance despite the turbulent air currents.
A Griffon lands on the airship with predatory intent, but Ruby's scythe cuts through it with practiced efficiency. The creature disintegrates into black particles that scatter in the wind.
Ruby: (her voice carrying determination despite her grief over Penny) Koga, how many more airships are compromised?
Koga: (his voice coming through her communication device as his Poison Balrog abilities work to clear Grimm from other vessels) Three remain under Roman's virus control. But Ruby, you need to focus on your immediate threat. I'm detecting Neo's energy signature on your position.
A camera snap draws Ruby's attention. Neopolitan stands behind her, her disguise dropping away with a wave of light washing over her from bottom to top. She winks after taking a picture of Ruby, sending it to Roman with accompanying text:
"Guess Who?"
Roman: (his voice echoing from the airship's interior) Oh, you can not be serious!
The wanted criminal emerges onto the hull with Melodic Cudgel in hand, his theatrical confidence barely masking his frustration at Ruby's persistent interference.
Roman: Little Red, little Red, you are just determined to be the hero of Vale, aren'tcha?
Ruby: (her storm dragon abilities crackling with intensity) What are you doing!? Without these ships, the Grimm will destroy everything!
Roman: (his voice carrying dark satisfaction) That's the plan!
Ruby swats aside Melodic Cudgel just as he attempts to fire, but Neo returns with acrobatic grace. The pint-sized fighter leaps over Ruby, her kicks precise and devastating as she uses momentum to flip Ruby over and send her tumbling.
Ruby: (struggling to maintain her footing) But why!? What do you get out of it!?
Roman: (his theatrical demeanor cracking to reveal genuine fear) You're asking the wrong questions, Red! It's not what I have to gain, it's that I can't afford to lose!
Neo vaults over Roman for a powerful kick, then uses Hush's hook to flip Ruby with practiced efficiency. Each strike is calculated to disorient rather than kill, keeping Ruby off-balance while Roman positions for finishing blows.
Roman: (his voice carrying resignation mixed with defiance) I may be a gambling man, but even I know that there are some bets you just don't take. Like it or not, the people that hired me are going to change the world! You can't stop 'em, I can't stop 'em!
As Roman continues his rant, Ruby notices the button on Neo's parasol. In a desperate move, she kicks away a Nevermore and reaches for Hush, causing it to open suddenly. Neo's eyes widen with shock as wind catches the parasol and sends her flying off the airship, disappearing into the swarm of Grimm with a silent, terrified gasp.
Roman: (his theatrical confidence completely shattered) NEO!
Ruby: (her storm dragon abilities surging with righteous fury) I don't care what you say! We will stop them and I will stop you! BET ON THAT!!
Ruby charges with her Semblance at maximum speed, rose petals scattering in her wake. Roman grips Melodic Cudgel with both hands, his desperate need to survive overriding his usual showmanship. He catches her scythe with the hook and hurls her back, following up with brutal strikes that send Ruby tumbling across the hull.
Roman: (his voice growing more desperate with each blow) You got spirit, Red. But this is the real world! The real world is cold! The real world doesn't care about spirit!
Ruby kicks him in the knee, disrupting his rhythm as he prepares a downward strike.
Roman: (his fear manifesting as rage) You wanna be a hero!? Then play the part and die like every other Huntsman in history! As for me, I'll do what I do best: lie, steal, cheat, and SURVIVE!
But as Roman prepares his final overhead swing, an Alpha Griffon suddenly appears from the sky. The creature is drawn by the overwhelming negativity of Roman's rant, its jaws closing around him whole before he can even scream.
Ruby: (her storm abilities helping her maintain balance as the Griffon's arrival sends shockwaves through the hull) Roman!
The beast charges at her, but Ruby prevails with a powerful kick to its head that sends it crashing through the hull. She grabs Crescent Rose, leaps off the falling airship, and uses her weapon like a pogo stick to control her descent, landing safely on Vale's rooftops.
Koga: (his voice filled with pride and concern) Ruby, that was incredible and terrifying in equal measure. Are you injured?
Ruby: (her voice carrying exhaustion and grief) Physically? I'm fine. Everything else? I don't know how to answer that, Koga.
Koga: (his tone gentling) Then we deal with everything else after we save the people who still need saving. You with me?
Ruby: (her determination reasserting itself) Always.
Beacon Courtyard - The Unified Defense
Outside Beacon's dining hall, the battle against Grimm, infected Atlesian Knights, and White Fang forces continues with desperate intensity. Teams CFVY, SSSN, ABRN, and FNKI coordinate their defense with the kind of seamless teamwork that months of training together has created.
Velvet Scarlatina struggles to stand after getting knocked down, only to be bumped by Coco Adel who gets sent flying by a Paladin's strike. The mechanical behemoth looms over them as Neon Katt and Reese Chloris dodge and weave through the chaos.
Coco: (her voice carrying both exhaustion and determination) Velvet! Now's the time!
Velvet: (excitement mixing with nervousness) Really?
Coco: (providing covering fire) Just make them count.
Velvet nods and walks toward the Paladins as Anesidora glows in her hands. Her Hard-Light Dust weapon begins forming copies of her teammates' weapons with photographic precision.
Weiss: (watching in amazement as Kazuma coordinates their defensive position) What is she doing!? She's going to get hurt!
Coco: (her voice carrying absolute confidence in her partner) Just watch.
Kazuma: (his Black Reaper Dragon abilities creating shadow barriers that protect Weiss from stray fire) Velvet's weapon allows her to replicate any fighting style she's photographed. She's been preparing for this moment since the semester began.
Velvet's display is nothing short of spectacular. She replicates Crescent Rose's spinning strikes, Myrtenaster's elegant precision, Ember Celica's raw power, and Gambol Shroud's acrobatic grace. Each copied weapon and fighting style flows seamlessly into the next, creating a combat demonstration that would make their original wielders proud.
She trips the first Paladin with Gambol Shroud's ribbon, lops off the second's hand with the cleaver form, and peppers it with holographic bullets from Gianduja. Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang counter incoming strikes while Magnhild's copied form severs a mechanical limb with devastating force.
As she leaps off the second Paladin, Velvet copies Floating Array—Penny's weapon—causing visible pain to cross her face as she remembers her friend's death. But she channels that grief into fury, slicing apart the Paladin's legs before blasting it at full power.
The first Paladin sucker punches her, sending Velvet skidding across the ground with a pained cry.
Coco: (her voice carrying fear and rage) Velvet!
Multiple students rush to provide covering fire, but their attacks barely slow the advancing machine. As the Paladin prepares to crush Velvet beneath its fist, Weiss rushes in with desperate determination.
Weiss: (her voice carrying protective fury as she positions herself between Velvet and the threat) No!
Instinctively, she creates a summoning glyph—something she's never successfully done before. The arm and sword of the Arma Gigas she once fought materializes, blocking the Paladin's fist and bisecting the machine with supernatural strength.
Weiss: (staring at her summoning with amazement) I... I did it. I actually summoned!
Velvet: (taking a picture with a delighted smile despite her injuries) That's going in my collection!
Kazuma: (pride evident in his voice as he moves to Weiss's side) Your growth has been remarkable, Weiss Schnee. From struggling with basic glyphs to summoning protective constructs in moments of crisis.
But before they can celebrate, another advanced Paladin rushes toward them with threatening speed.
Sun: (his voice carrying exasperation) You have got to be kidding me!
Suddenly, electricity arcs across the Paladin's frame. The machine powers down mid-charge, collapsing and sliding to a stop in front of the assembled students.
Sun: (his characteristic humor reasserting itself) Hm. That went better than expected.
Weiss: (doubling over with exhaustion, leaning on Myrtenaster for support) The virus... Roman's virus must have finally been purged from the system.
Yang: (running toward them with Max at her side) Weiss! You're okay! Have you heard from Ruby?
Weiss: (shaking her head with concern) Not since she went after the hijacked airship. What about Blake?
Weiss: (pointing toward the dining hall) She went after an Alpha and some White Fang members. Yang, I think it's Adam Taurus.
Yang: (her flame dragon abilities surging with protective fury) Then I'm going to her. Max, with me!
Max: (his Flame Dragon King presence radiating protective intensity) Already moving. Weiss, you look for Ruby. Blake's going to need backup against Adam.
Weiss: (giving a tired thumbs up as Kazuma helps support her weight) Be careful. Adam Taurus isn't like other White Fang operatives.
The Dining Hall - Blake's Stand
Inside Beacon's dining hall, Blake Belladonna backs away from shattered windows as Adam Taurus stands framed in broken glass. His red hair and distinctive mask create a silhouette that haunts Blake's nightmares.
Adam: (his voice carrying twisted affection and menace) Running away again? Is that what you've become, my love? A coward?
Blake: (her voice demanding answers despite her fear) Why are you doing this?
Adam: (his idealism twisted into something dark and possessive) You and I were going to change the world, remember? We were destined to light the fires of revolution!
He stomps on a downed Atlas student's chest, causing the injured fighter to cry out in pain.
Adam: (drawing Wilt with theatrical menace) Consider this... the spark.
Blake charges through the window with desperate speed, her blade clashing with his as she pushes him away from the student. They stand with their weapons locked, former partners now enemies separated by fundamental choices about what justice means.
Blake: (her voice carrying conviction despite her fear) I'm... not... running.
Adam: (his voice dropping to dangerous quiet) You... will.
He kicks her away with brutal efficiency, sending her sprawling across the floor. A nearby Creep runs toward her, only to be shot by Adam before it can reach its target.
Adam: (beginning his approach with predatory patience) But not before you suffer for your betrayal, my love.
From the courtyard, Shoryu's frost abilities detect the confrontation occurring in the dining hall. His dragon senses recognize Adam's energy signature and the personal nature of the conflict unfolding.
Shoryu: (speaking through dragon family communication channels) Max, Blake is engaging Adam Taurus in the dining hall. This confrontation carries personal history that suggests your intervention may be necessary.
Max: (his voice carrying grim understanding) Adam and I have our own score to settle. His ideology represents everything dragon families stand against—using justified anger as excuse for unjustified violence.
Shoryu: (his ancient wisdom recognizing the territorial nature of dragon conflicts) This is your fight, brother. I'll maintain perimeter security and ensure no other threats interfere with the resolution you and Blake require.
The Vault - Pyrrha's Choice
In the depths beneath Beacon, an elevator opens to reveal Ozpin, Jaune, and Pyrrha. The three sprint down the corridor toward ancient machinery that predates the modern kingdoms.
Jaune: (his confusion evident as he tries to understand where they're going) What is this place?
Pyrrha: (her voice carrying the weight of secrets she's been forced to keep) It's... a type of vault.
Jaune: (processing the implications) You've been here before?
Pyrrha looks away, unable to meet his eyes as guilt about her secret knowledge weighs on her.
Jaune: (his voice growing more concerned) What would this school need to... hide?
They arrive at the Aura transfer machine, and Jaune stops in his tracks. His eyes widen as he takes in the strange contraption and the comatose girl suspended within—Amber, the Fall Maiden whose power Ozpin hoped to transfer to Pyrrha.
Jaune: (his voice barely a whisper) What? Who?
Pyrrha: (her voice carrying apology and resignation) Jaune...
Ozpin: (his ancient authority overriding their moment) Pyrrha! Get to the pods!
Pyrrha looks at Jaune one last time, then runs to the second pod as Ozpin begins activating the machinery.
Ozpin: (addressing Jaune without looking at him) Mister Arc, if you'd like to help, you can stand guard here.
Jaune looks between Ozpin and Pyrrha with growing understanding and horror at what's about to happen. He turns around and gets into a guarding stance, his body language radiating helpless concern.
Pyrrha: (her voice small as she faces the pod that will change everything) What do we do now?
Ozpin: (typing on the machine's holographic interface) We, do nothing.
The second pod opens, and Ozpin turns to look at Pyrrha with ancient eyes that have witnessed countless sacrifices.
Ozpin: (his voice carrying the weight of giving someone an impossible choice) You, Miss Nikos... have a choice to make.
Pyrrha looks at the pod, then at Jaune's back. Her expression shifts from uncertainty to sadness as she wipes a tear from her eye. She climbs into the pod, which closes around her with mechanical finality.
Ozpin: (his voice gentle despite the horror of what he's asking) Are you ready?
Pyrrha looks at him and gives a slow nod, trying to maintain composure.
Ozpin: (needing verbal confirmation for what he's about to do) I... I need to hear you say it.
Pyrrha: (her voice barely audible) Yes.
She lays her head back, staring ahead as she prepares for transformation that might destroy everything that makes her who she is.
Ozpin: (his voice carrying genuine regret) Thank you, Miss Nikos.
The Dining Hall - Adam's Cruelty
As the Aura transfer begins in the vault below, Blake continues her desperate fight against Adam in the dining hall above.
Adam: (his voice carrying twisted disappointment) This could've been our day! Can't you see that!?
Blake: (her conviction unwavering despite her fear) I never wanted this! I wanted equality! I wanted peace!
She raises her sword, shifting it to sickle mode, and fires at Adam. He blocks both bullets with contemptuous ease, his Semblance absorbing the kinetic energy.
Adam: (his voice dropping to cold finality) What you want is impossible!
He backhands Blake across the face with brutal force, knocking her over. As she struggles to rise, his expression shifts from anger to something more disturbing—possessive obsession masquerading as affection.
Adam: (his voice carrying twisted devotion) But I understand because all I want is you, Blake.
She raises her weapon, but he kicks it from her hand before she can fire. The second blow sends her sprawling again, leaving her defenseless.
Adam: (approaching with predatory patience) And as I set out upon this world and deliver the justice mankind so greatly deserves, I will make it my mission to destroy everything you love.
Yang: (her voice echoing through the dining hall) Blake!
Yang's arrival draws Adam's attention. She shoots a White Fang member who attempts to interfere, then looks around frantically for her teammate.
Yang: (desperation evident in her voice) Blake! Where are you!?
Adam looks at Blake's terrified expression, then returns his gaze to Yang with calculating malice.
Adam: (his voice carrying lethal promise) Starting with her.
The Vault - Cinder's Intervention
In the vault, the Aura transfer machinery activates with ancient power. Amber begins glowing orange, her eyelids fluttering as the process draws Fall Maiden power from her comatose form. The orange glow travels through pipes connecting both pods, descending toward Pyrrha.
Orange light surrounds Pyrrha, and she begins screaming in agony as foreign power attempts to graft itself onto her soul. The sound is primal, terrified, and heartbreaking.
Jaune: (spinning around in horror) Pyrrha!
He runs to her pod, his hands pressing against the glass as he watches his partner suffer. His gaze darts between Pyrrha's agonized face and Amber's suspended form, trying to understand what's happening.
Ozpin: (looking away because he cannot watch what his desperate choice is causing) I'm... so sorry.
Suddenly, an obsidian arrow pierces the glass of Amber's pod, striking her in the chest with lethal precision. Amber gasps, her eyes opening briefly before beginning to close for the final time. The machine begins beeping urgent alarms as the transfer process fails catastrophically.
Ozpin and Jaune turn to see Cinder Fall standing halfway down the corridor, her newly acquired Fall Maiden powers manifesting as an obsidian bow in her hands. She lowers the weapon, a tiny smirk crossing her face.
But this Cinder is different from the one Katsura captured on the rooftop. This is a construct—a manifestation of Salem's power designed to complete the Maiden transfer even if Cinder herself was compromised.
Ozpin: (his ancient awareness recognizing what he's facing) A projection. Salem anticipated Cinder's potential failure and created a backup plan.
The Dining Hall - The Moment of Horror
Adam draws Wilt and stabs it into Blake's abdomen near her left hip. Her shriek of pain echoes through the dining hall, carrying to Yang's ears with devastating clarity.
Yang: (her head snapping toward the sound) Huh?
Adam stands upright, pulling his sword from Blake's flesh with deliberate slowness. He turns to face Yang, his expression carrying satisfaction at Blake's suffering.
Yang: (her flame dragon abilities exploding with protective fury) Get away from her!
Blake: (reaching out helplessly, her voice barely a whisper) No... please...
Max: (arriving beside Yang, his Flame Dragon King presence radiating dangerous intensity) Yang, wait! Adam's Semblance absorbs kinetic energy and releases it with amplified force! A direct charge plays into his strengths!
But Yang's rage at seeing Blake injured overrides tactical thinking. Her eyes turn red, flames erupting around her as she leaps at Adam with tears streaming down her face.
Adam sheathes his sword, smiling as he waits for the perfect moment. As Yang flies through the air with her fist drawn back, he draws Wilt in a single smooth motion. His Moonslice technique activates, releasing all the absorbed energy in one devastating strike.
Max: (his voice carrying desperate warning) YANG, NO!
The blade passes through Yang's right arm just below the elbow. Time seems to slow as the lower half of her arm separates from her body, glowing yellow Aura splattering from the wound like liquid light.
Yang: (her scream of agony and shock echoing through the hall) AAAAAHHH!
She crashes to the floor and lays there on her side, blood pooling around her severed limb as shock and blood loss drag her toward unconsciousness.
Max: (his Flame Dragon King fury manifesting as temperatures that make the air itself shimmer) You just made the last mistake of your life, Adam Taurus.
The Vault - Amber's Death and Power Transfer
In the vault, Amber struggles to breathe, her eyes wide with pain and fading awareness. The arrow in her chest has done more than physical damage—it's disrupting the transfer process in ways that will have catastrophic consequences.
Finally, all breath leaves Amber's body. Her eyes drift closed, her head leans to the side, and her whole body goes limp. The green flames lighting the torches throughout the vault suddenly extinguish, plunging the chamber into darkness broken only by orange emergency lighting.
Pyrrha: (frantically beating her fists against the glass of her pod as she watches the transfer fail) No! NO!
The orange glow leaves Pyrrha and travels back through the pipes into Amber's dead body. Then, instead of dissipating as natural Maiden power would, it bursts out of Amber and enters Cinder's projection.
The construct glows with stolen power, begins floating, and gains long trails of flame around her eyes. Orange energy swirls around her form as the Fall Maiden's full power consolidates under Salem's control.
Pyrrha: (beating even harder on the glass, her stress reaching breaking point) Let me out! JAUNE!
Jaune: (raising his sword and charging at Cinder's projection with desperate courage) Get away from them!
The projection summons a massive fireball, casting it toward Jaune. He blocks with his shield, but the force blasts him backward. He lands on his back, his Aura flickering from the impact.
Pyrrha: (her scream carrying absolute terror) JAUNE!
Using her Polarity Semblance, Pyrrha rips the pod's door off its hinges and throws it at Cinder's projection. The construct knocks it away like it's nothing, demonstrating power that exceeds what Cinder herself possessed.
Ozpin: (putting his arm out to stop Pyrrha's charge) Take Jaune and get out of here! Find Glynda! Ironwood! Qrow! Bring them here right away! The tower cannot fall!
Pyrrha: (her voice desperate) But I can help!
Ozpin: (turning to stare at her with ancient authority and brutal honesty) You'll only get in the way.
The words hit Pyrrha like physical blows, but she obeys. She scoops up Jaune and runs toward the elevator, leaving Ozpin to face Salem's projection alone.
The Dining Hall - Max's Intervention
Adam slowly walks toward Yang's unconscious body, swinging his sword to flick her blood from its blade. The casual cruelty of the gesture reveals the depth of his corruption—this isn't justice anymore, it's sadism.
Before he can reach Yang, Blake throws herself between them despite her own injuries. Her determination to protect her friend overrides her pain and fear.
Adam: (his voice carrying genuine hurt beneath the menace) Why must you hurt me, Blake?
Max: (his voice cutting through the confrontation with ancient authority) Because she remembers what you used to be before hate consumed you, Taurus. Before you twisted justified anger into excuse for atrocity.
Adam turns to face Max, his red hair and distinctive mask creating an intimidating silhouette. But Max's Flame Dragon King presence radiates power that makes Adam's Semblance-enhanced abilities seem small by comparison.
Adam: (his voice carrying recognition) A dragon. I wondered when your kind would stop hiding behind human proxies and reveal yourselves.
Max: (flames beginning to manifest around his human form) We don't hide, Taurus. We choose partnership over domination. But you've crossed a line that requires direct response.
Adam swings Wilt at Blake, but instead of her head detaching, the blade passes through a shadow clone. The real Blake drags Yang's unconscious form away from the confrontation, leaving Max to face Adam one-on-one.
Adam: (beginning to circle Max with predatory patience) Your bonded mate. That's what the blonde girl is to you, isn't it? How poetic—I'll destroy your love the same way Blake destroyed mine.
Max: (his voice carrying cold finality) The difference is that Blake never loved you, Taurus. She feared you, pitied you, tried to save you from yourself. But love? That requires mutual respect, and you've never respected anyone except as tools for your revenge.
Shoryu: (his voice coming through dragon family channels as his frost abilities create a perimeter around the dining hall) Max, the confrontation is contained. Adam cannot escape, and no other threats will interfere. This ends here.
Adam: (his Semblance beginning to glow as he absorbs ambient energy) Then let's end it, dragon. Let's see if your ancient power can stand against the fury of every faunus who's suffered under human oppression!
Max: (his Flame Dragon King transformation beginning as scales emerge across his skin) I've faced genuine threats to existence across multiple realms, Taurus. You're just a broken man hiding behind ideology to justify personal cruelty. And that ends now.
The confrontation between Max and Adam represents more than personal conflict—it's a clash between genuine protection and twisted justice, between choosing to heal and choosing to destroy, between love that empowers and obsession that imprisons.
As their battle begins in earnest, Blake continues dragging Yang toward safety, her own injuries making every movement agony. Behind them, flames and absorbed energy collide in a dining hall that's becoming ground zero for a fight that will determine whether Adam's ideology of destruction or Max's commitment to protection will prevail.
And in the vault below, Ozpin faces Salem's projection with The Long Memory in hand, knowing that the Fall Maiden's full power now serves forces that seek to destroy everything he's spent lifetimes protecting.
The Fall of Beacon reaches its climax, with multiple confrontations occurring simultaneously across the academy. Each battle carries consequences that will reshape Remnant's future, and every choice made in these desperate moments will echo across the conflicts yet to come.
The Dining Hall - The Beginning of the End
The dining hall transforms from a place of shared meals and friendship into an arena where two fundamentally opposing philosophies will clash with lethal finality. Adam Taurus stands with Wilt drawn, his Semblance glowing as it absorbs ambient energy from the chaos surrounding Beacon. His confidence stems from years of combat experience and a power that has allowed him to overcome opponents who should have been his superior.
Max stands opposite him, and something in the dragon's posture makes even Adam's battle-hardened instincts scream warning. This isn't the casual confidence of someone who thinks they can win—it's the absolute certainty of someone who knows the outcome before the fight begins.
Adam: (his voice carrying forced bravado) I've killed Huntsmen, dragons. Trained warriors with decades of experience. What makes you think—
Max: (his voice cutting through Adam's posturing with quiet intensity) You haven't faced a White Dragon King, Taurus. You haven't faced someone who's been trained by Athena herself in the Sanctuary. And you certainly haven't faced someone whose bonded mate you just maimed in front of him.
Adam's Semblance flares as he charges forward, Wilt moving with supernatural speed enhanced by absorbed kinetic energy. The strike should decapitate Max—it's the same technique that took Yang's arm, amplified by the chaos energy Adam's been storing throughout the assault on Beacon.
Max doesn't dodge. He doesn't block. He catches Wilt's blade between two fingers with casual ease that makes Adam's eyes widen behind his mask.
Max: (his voice carrying disappointment rather than anger) That's it? That's the power you've been using to terrorize humans and faunus alike? That's what you thought would be enough to face a Dragon King?
Adam: (attempting to pull Wilt free, but the blade doesn't move) That's... that's impossible. My Semblance absorbs kinetic energy and releases it with amplified force. Nothing should be able to stop that strike!
Max: (his fingers beginning to glow with white-gold light as his true power manifests) Your Semblance is impressive by human standards, Taurus. But I was trained in Sanctuary by beings whose power transcends your understanding of what's possible. Let me show you the difference between borrowed strength and earned mastery.
With a casual flick of his wrist, Max shatters Wilt's blade. The legendary weapon that Adam has wielded for years breaks like cheap glass, fragments scattering across the dining hall floor.
The White Dragon King's Revelation
Adam stumbles backward, staring at the broken remains of Wilt with genuine shock. His Semblance, which has been his greatest advantage in countless battles, proved utterly inadequate against Max's casual display of power.
Adam: (his voice carrying disbelief and growing fear) You... you broke Wilt. That blade has withstood battles with trained Huntsmen, has absorbed enough kinetic energy to level buildings. How did you—
Max: (his transformation beginning as white-gold scales emerge across his skin) Because I'm not a Huntsman, Taurus. I'm a White Dragon King whose draconic essence has been tempered by cosmic training that predates your civilization. And you just made the catastrophic error of harming someone I love.
The transformation that follows exceeds anything the students have witnessed before. Max's human form shifts not gradually but explosively, his body expanding into his full dragon form with such speed that the shockwave shatters windows and sends furniture flying.
His scales gleam white-gold, seeming to exist partially outside normal color spectrum. Each scale catches light in ways that shouldn't be physically possible, creating patterns that hint at the cosmic power flowing through his form. His eyes burn with intensity that makes Adam's red hair seem dull by comparison.
Shoryu: (his voice carrying across dragon family channels with evident concern) Brother, your power output is exceeding safe parameters. The cosmic energy from your Sanctuary training is manifesting at levels that could destabilize local reality!
Max: (his voice resonating with harmonics that make the air itself vibrate) Then Adam Taurus should have considered that before he maimed my bonded mate! Shoryu, maintain the perimeter! No one interferes, and no one escapes!
Shoryu: (his frost abilities creating barriers that seal the dining hall completely) Understood. But Max, remember—you're fighting in your human realm. Full cosmic power release could harm those you're trying to protect!
Adam draws Blush, his gun, with desperate speed. He fires repeatedly at Max's dragon form, but each bullet simply ricochets off scales that make reinforced steel seem like tissue paper. The kinetic energy his Semblance absorbs from the impacts amounts to nothing compared to the power radiating from Max's transformed state.
Adam: (his voice cracking with fear he's unaccustomed to feeling) What are you? Dragons are supposed to be powerful, but this... this is something else entirely!
Max: (his massive form beginning to circle Adam with predatory patience) I am what happens when draconic essence combines with training from beings who protect cosmic order itself. Athena's saints taught me techniques that allow dragon power to transcend normal physical limitations. And you, Taurus, are about to experience what that combination means when directed by genuine fury!
The Cosmic Techniques Manifest
What follows isn't a fight so much as a systematic demonstration of the vast gulf between Adam's power and Max's true capabilities. Each attack Max launches carries techniques learned from Sanctuary training, draconic power amplified by cosmic understanding that makes his flames operate beyond normal combustion physics.
Max: (his voice carrying ancient authority as white-gold flames begin manifesting around him) Athena taught me that true power comes from perfect unity of body, mind, and spirit. Watch as I demonstrate what that unity creates when channeled through Dragon King essence!
His flames don't just burn—they exist partially outside normal reality, operating on principles that transcend simple thermal energy. When they touch the ground, they don't scorch so much as erase, removing matter at a fundamental level that goes beyond mere destruction.
Adam attempts to absorb the kinetic energy from Max's first serious strike, his Semblance flaring as it tries to process the incoming force. But the cosmic-enhanced draconic power exceeds what his Semblance was designed to handle. Instead of absorbing the energy, Adam's body begins to break down under the strain.
Adam: (blood trickling from his nose and ears as his Semblance fails catastrophically) No... no, this isn't possible! My Semblance has never failed! I can absorb and redirect any kinetic force!
Max: (his voice carrying cold explanation as he demonstrates the vast difference in their power) Your Semblance was designed to handle human-scale kinetic energy, Taurus. What I'm channeling transcends your frame of reference. This is cosmic force tempered through draconic essence and refined by Sanctuary training. Your body isn't equipped to process power operating on this scale!
Adam staggers backward, his Aura flickering erratically as it tries to protect him from forces it was never meant to withstand. His legendary combat skills, his years of experience, his Semblance that made him nearly unbeatable against conventional opponents—all of it proves utterly inadequate.
Max: (his dragon form's sheer presence creating gravitational effects that make movement difficult for Adam) The Gold Saints taught me that power without restraint is merely destruction. But they also taught me that some threats require overwhelming response. You maimed my bonded mate, Taurus. You tortured Blake with psychological manipulation disguised as love. You've used justified faunus anger as excuse for inexcusable cruelty. And for those crimes, you face judgment from someone you cannot possibly overcome!
The Systematic Destruction
Max's assault continues with methodical precision that carries more intimidation than random violence. Each strike is calculated to demonstrate not just power but perfect control—the kind that comes from cosmic training rather than simple brute force.
Max: (flames creating complex geometric patterns that hint at underlying cosmic mathematics) The Sanctuary teaches that combat should serve justice rather than revenge. So I'm not going to kill you quickly, Taurus. I'm going to show you exactly how outclassed you are. How your entire ideology of strength through violence collapses when you face someone whose power exceeds your comprehension!
His tail swings with speed that creates sonic booms. The impact sends Adam crashing through multiple walls, his Aura shattering completely under the assault. Without Aura protection, Adam is just a trained fighter facing a being whose power operates on scales he can barely conceptualize.
Adam: (struggling to stand as blood pours from multiple wounds) You... you can't do this. I'm fighting for faunus liberation! Every human I've killed, every act of violence, it was all for justice!
Max: (his voice carrying ancient disappointment) You're fighting for personal revenge disguised as justice, Taurus. Real liberation doesn't require torturing the people who love you. Real strength doesn't need to maim teenagers to prove itself. You've become exactly the kind of monster you claimed to oppose, and now you face the consequences!
Max's claws extend, each talon glowing with white-gold energy that makes the air itself distort. He rakes them across Adam's chest with precise force—enough to cause agonizing pain but carefully calibrated to avoid fatal damage.
Max: (his voice carrying the weight of judgment) The saints taught me that execution should be reserved for threats that cannot be redeemed. You're not that threat, Taurus. You're just a broken man who chose cruelty over healing. So instead of death, you get something worse—you get to live knowing that everything you believed about strength was proven wrong by someone barely into his full power!
Adam: (his voice cracking with pain and terror) Barely into your full power? This... this is you holding back?
Max: (his dragon form beginning to revert to human shape as cosmic energy dissipates) I'm eighteen years old, Taurus. A Dragon King who's only beginning to understand what his full potential will become. The power you've just experienced? It's a fraction of what I'll be capable of when I reach my prime. And you attacked my bonded mate when I was this underdeveloped? The sheer stupidity of that choice is almost impressive!
The Broken Ideology
Adam lies broken on the dining hall floor, his body shattered by forces he couldn't comprehend or counter. His mask has been knocked away, revealing the brand scarring the left side of his face—the SDC logo that symbolizes the genuine injustice he suffered and then twisted into excuse for atrocity.
Max: (standing over him in human form, white-gold scales still visible along his arms) You want to know the real tragedy, Taurus? You had legitimate grievances. The SDC's treatment of faunus workers was unconscionable. The systemic discrimination you faced was real and wrong. But instead of channeling that justified anger into constructive change, you became the monster you claimed to fight against.
Adam: (blood bubbling from his lips as he tries to speak) Blake... she betrayed everything we believed in. She chose humans over her own people. She had to be punished...
Max: (his voice carrying cold finality) Blake chose compassion over cruelty. She chose building bridges over burning them. And she chose to walk away from you because you stopped being someone fighting for justice and became someone who enjoyed causing suffering. That's not betrayal, Taurus. That's growth.
Shoryu: (his voice carrying through the sealed perimeter) Max, Blake has successfully evacuated with Yang. Medical teams are providing emergency treatment. Your mate will survive, though she's lost her arm.
The news about Yang's survival makes Max's expression shift from controlled fury to something more complex—relief mixed with renewed anger at what Adam's violence cost.
Max: (addressing Adam one final time) You took my bonded mate's arm, Taurus. You traumatized Blake in ways that will take years to heal. You participated in an assault that killed innocent students. And you did it all while claiming moral superiority. So here's your judgment: you live, but you spend the rest of your existence knowing that a Dragon King barely into his power treated you like an insignificant obstacle. Your ideology of strength through violence? It died here, broken by someone who could have killed you instantly but chose restraint because that's what actual strength looks like!
Max turns to walk away, leaving Adam broken and defeated on the dining hall floor. The White Fang soldiers who watched the confrontation from hiding positions understand with crystalline clarity that their leader's ideology just collapsed under demonstration of genuine power wielded with discipline rather than rage.
The Aftermath - Understanding True Power
As Max exits the dining hall, his transformation back to human form complete, he finds several witnesses who watched the confrontation through broken windows. Their expressions carry mixtures of awe, fear, and growing understanding of what dragon families really represent.
Cardin: (his earlier bullying behavior seeming pathetically insignificant after witnessing true power) That was... Max, you could have leveled the entire academy if you wanted to. But you held back. Even when you were that angry, you maintained control.
Max: (his voice carrying exhaustion despite his overwhelming victory) Sanctuary training teaches that power without discipline is just destruction, Winchester. I could have killed Adam in the first second of our confrontation. But that would have been murder rather than justice. He needed to understand how completely his ideology failed, and execution would have made him a martyr.
Mist: (approaching her brother with pride evident despite the violence she just witnessed) You've grown so much, Max. The cosmic techniques you displayed... they exceeded even what Derek and Katsura showed against the Wyvern. You're becoming something extraordinary.
Max: (his expression darkening with concern for Yang) I don't feel extraordinary, Mist. I feel like I failed. Adam shouldn't have gotten close enough to Yang to take her arm. I should have intercepted him before he could hurt her!
Shoryu: (his frost abilities dissipating as he drops the perimeter barriers) You can't protect everyone from everything, brother. Yang made a choice to charge Adam despite your warning. She acted from protective fury rather than tactical thinking. That's not your failure—that's the consequence of emotions overriding combat awareness.
Blake: (her voice weak as medical teams work on her injuries while she insists on speaking) Max... thank you. For stopping him. For not killing him. Adam needs to live with his defeat, needs to understand that his ideology of violence doesn't work against people who are genuinely strong. Death would have been too easy for him.
Max: (moving to where Blake rests beside Yang's unconscious form) You're welcome, Blake. And I'm sorry I didn't get there sooner. Yang shouldn't have lost her arm because I was too slow!
Blake: (her voice carrying conviction despite her pain) Yang lost her arm because she charged in without thinking. Because she loves me enough to act without considering the consequences. That's not your fault, Max. That's... that's what makes her Yang.
The Medical Response
Yang Xiao Long lies unconscious on a medical gurney, her right arm severed just below the elbow. Emergency medical personnel work frantically to stabilize her, but the specialized nature of her injury—caused by a Semblance-enhanced blade that absorbed and released massive kinetic energy—creates complications that normal field medicine isn't equipped to handle.
Max: (his voice desperate as his bonded mate connection makes him feel Yang's pain) What can I do? The mate bond means we share injuries on some level. Can I channel healing through our connection?
Derek: (arriving with Katsura as they assess the situation) Dragon family healing abilities can accelerate recovery, but they can't regenerate severed limbs, Max. Yang will survive, but she'll need prosthetic replacement or specialized Aura techniques that might allow regeneration over years of focused effort.
Katsura: (her ancient wisdom providing context) The Sanctuary has techniques for reconstructing damaged bodies, but they require extended training under conditions that wouldn't be safe for Yang until her Dragon Princess transformation completes. For now, focus on maintaining her emotional stability through your bond. Physical healing can come later.
Max: (his hand hovering over Yang's unconscious form as tears stream down his face) I should have protected her better. Should have moved faster. Should have—
Ruby: (arriving with Koga at her side, her storm dragon abilities still crackling from her airship battle) Max, stop. Yang made her choice. She saw Blake in danger and acted without thinking. That's who my sister is. You can't protect someone from their own protective instincts!
Koga: (his Poison Balrog abilities having cleared the remaining Grimm from the immediate area) Ruby's right. Yang acted from love rather than tactical awareness. She would make the same choice again, even knowing the cost, because that's what it means to care about someone more than yourself.
Max: (his voice breaking with guilt and grief) Then we make sure her sacrifice means something. Adam is defeated but alive. Blake is safe. The assault on Beacon is failing. Yang lost her arm protecting someone she loves, and we honor that by ensuring the world she's fighting for is worth the price she paid!
The Tower - Ozpin's Final Stand
While Max dealt with Adam in the dining hall, Professor Ozpin faces Cinder's projection in the vault. The manifestation of Salem's power carries the full Fall Maiden abilities, making it a threat that even Ozpin's ancient experience struggles to counter.
Cinder's Projection: (her voice carrying Salem's influence rather than Cinder's personal cruelty) This whole time... right beneath our feet. She was right about you, Ozpin. Always planning, always hiding, never trusting anyone with the complete truth.
Ozpin: (The Long Memory in his hands as he faces power that exceeds his current capabilities) Salem has had centuries to plan this assault. I've had mere decades with this current incarnation. But even with limited time, I've built alliances she doesn't expect and gathered forces she cannot overcome!
Cinder's Projection: (flames erupting around her as Fall Maiden power manifests) Such arrogance. You think your dragon family allies can stop what's coming? They've revealed themselves now. Mother knows their capabilities, their limitations, their coordination patterns. Today's victory will become tomorrow's defeat!
The confrontation between them represents more than simple combat—it's a clash between competing visions of Remnant's future. Ozpin's philosophy of hidden guardianship protecting from the shadows versus Salem's nihilistic certainty that all efforts at preservation ultimately fail.
Ozpin: (his Aura flaring as he channels power from lifetimes of accumulated experience) You're wrong, Cinder. Or rather, Salem is wrong through you. Dragon families don't operate by human limitations. They've survived extinction events that destroyed civilizations. Whatever intelligence you gather today becomes obsolete the moment they adapt to counter Salem's new tactics!
As their battle intensifies, the tower itself begins to shake. The Fall Maiden's power, wielded by Salem's projection, creates reality distortions that threaten Beacon's structural integrity.
But even as Ozpin fights his desperate battle, reinforcements arrive in the form of Glynda, Qrow, and Ironwood—called by Pyrrha and Jaune after their escape from the vault. The tide begins to turn as four experienced fighters coordinate against Salem's projection.
And throughout Vale, dragon family members continue their systematic destruction of remaining Grimm forces. The combined might of ancient powers, experienced Huntsmen, and academy students working in coordination proves too much for even Salem's carefully orchestrated assault.
The Fall of Beacon continues, but the tide is turning. Adam's ideology lies broken alongside his body. Cinder's projection faces overwhelming opposition. And the dragon families have revealed themselves as forces that Salem's conspiracy cannot simply sweep aside.
The cost has been terrible—Yang's arm, Penny's death, countless civilian casualties, and Beacon Academy in ruins. But survival remains possible, and with survival comes hope that the sacrifices made today will not be in vain.
Max stands vigil over Yang's unconscious form, his white-gold scales still visible as evidence of the fury that drove him to demonstrate his true power. He's a Dragon King barely into his potential who just showed the world what happens when someone threatens his bonded mate.
And somewhere, Salem watches through her projection's fading connection, learning that dragon families represent forces even her immortal power must respect. The war continues, but the sides have been clearly defined, and the cost of threatening those under dragon protection has been made devastatingly clear.
To be continued in Chapter [XXIV] 24: The Fall of Beacon [Finale]; End of the Beginning