Capítulo 809: 152
Chapter 152:
Ruby vanished, feathery petals scattering away from the mantle that now rested over her shoulders. They immediately flew forward, converging on Adam like meteors. Adam's sword rang as it flashed out from its sheath, the red streak of his blade seeming to go multiple ways at once, cutting down all the incoming petals easily, though Adam wasn't able to absorb their power into his sword this way.
Appearing behind him, Ruby slashed at his back, her swords merging with the edge of her cloak. Adam used the momentum of his draw to facilitate a turn to face her, Hakuya slamming against her first slash, the force knocking Ruby back slightly, though she closed back in just as quickly. Still, Adam was able to meet her blow for blow.
More petals detached from her cloak, these ones flying almost straight at him from point-blank range. Even without using his sword to deflect them, Adam was quick enough to dodge them, before stepping in, thrusting out with the pommel of the handle, which glanced off the surface of Ruby's cloak as though it were steel armor. A flash of red from the pommel deflected the electric arcs that threatened to run up into Adam's arm from that point of contact.
Even if she had avoided taking damage, Ruby was still knocked back by the blow. Adam immediately transitioned to a slash. Ruby raised her swords, lifting her right arm over her head so that the blade of Ibara stretched down vertically along her side, then bracing Bara against it horizontally. Adam's sword slammed into Ruby's crossed blades, sending her flying across the ring. However, even as she was launched away, Ruby kicked off the ring, using her momentum to execute a spin that sent a barrage of petals flying at Adam.
Stomping down, Adam let out a roar, Projecting his Aura out in a wave. Ruby's petals exploded against it, throwing streamers of electricity in all directions, but none that reached Adam himself. From there, Adam surged forward on the attack himself. Ruby barely managed to reverse her own movement, dashing forward to meet him head-on. The two of them blurred together, their weapons flashing streaks of red amidst numerous other colors. Ruby's petals exploded in the air and against the ring, filling the space with lightning and flying debris. Hakuya sent crescent-waves of Aura flying in all directions, cleaving through everything in their path.
An arc of lightning danced its way up along the side of the ring, before rushing out into the stands, ripping apart seats and melting metal floors and railings. A flying slash of crimson was knocked up to where it cleaved right through one of the skyboxes lining the inner rim of the coliseum. The shockwaves of their collisions sent reverberations through the entire structure, straining Amity's lifters and maneuvering systems as the airborne building sought to keep itself level against the titanic forces that were constantly threatening to tip it one way or another.
Ruby and Adam were dervishes of light in the center of it all, spinning against each other, even as they spun around one another, both of them always on the move, seeking a new position. The ring began to tilt and wobble. Their mere steps were shattering its already pitted and scored surface. The shockwaves of their weapons colliding only broke the floor even more, and the lifters that suspended the ring were rapidly breaking down.
As Ruby executed a complete turn, she brought her swords back together, lightning accumulating along Akaibara's length. Completing her turn, she brought her weapon around in a downward swing with both hands, aiming to split Adam in two. She had expected Adam to swing Hakuya, using its Aura to enhance its speed to catch her attack. However, despite her movements being hidden from his one functional eye by her cloak, Adam appeared to have anticipated her next attack. Rather than a light-swift slash of Hakuya, Adam maneuvered his sword with brute force, gripping the back of the blade with his left hand with a shout, using that to maneuver it into place to receive Ruby's slash.
To Ruby's dismay, her blow connected, and nearly all the force vanished at once. There was a crackling spark, apparently from there being too much energy for Adam's sword to absorb in its entirety. Had the situation not been so dire, that would have been an interesting revelation. It suggested there was a maximum total to the power that Adam's weapon could store up. However, in the grand scheme of things, that would matter little. After all, Adam's Semblance was now fully charged, and the next attack he launched would be the decisive one. Unless Ruby could survive that, it wouldn't matter what she had learned from his charging up. On top of that, if she did survive, she had no intention of letting him fully charge his Semblance again.
Adam took advantage of the space he gained from being knocked back, returning his sword to its sheath before his feet even returned to the floor. From there, he slid to a stop. Ruby might have pursued him, but stopped, realizing that he was already set for his ultimate attack.
She expected a flash of teeth from Adam, a savage grin, an expression of smug triumph as he prepared to unleash the attack that would end this battle once and for all. The raw power he was able to accumulate with his sword was leagues beyond what he'd been able to use before. On top of that, Hakuya's speed would merge with that of his Moonslice, ensuring that his next attack would reduce Ruby to dust, if even that, before she even felt a single thing. From his perspective, that would be the ultimate mercy; a painless death as she was obliterated into nothingness by an attack too swift and powerful for her own senses to even be able to perceive.
But there was no smile on Adam's face. Instead, there was only a look of grim determination. Even now, with his victory all but assured, Adam was offering no quarter, allowing no iota of arrogance to slip in. He would not allow a repeat of their first fight, where Ruby had tricked him into thinking he had won, only to then strike when his guard was down. This time, he would make absolutely certain of his victory.
Ironically, because of that caution, Adam paused. He was locking all his senses on Ruby, making absolutely sure that, this time, she would not evade his ultimate attack. However, that pause was the final breath Ruby had to make her move. She couldn't close and attack before he drew. In fact, her own senses were already reading the flow of Adam's incoming attack.
Ruby had learned Adam's rhythm in their previous battles. On a fundamental level, that rhythm hadn't changed. There were slight alterations. The extra half-beats, when he supplemented his slashes with gunshots from his sheath, were gone from his style, on account of Hakuya's sheath not being weaponized. However, other than that, the same beats that had informed his attacks and defenses in previous battles were still there. The problem was that they were condensed down. A beat that occurred over the course of a millisecond instead occurred over the course of a microsecond, or even a nanosecond. The timing of his unleashed Moonslice would be the same, but even if she could anticipate that timing, the sheer acceleration of it would still keep her from being able to act on that knowledge.
Her sense of the flow and reach of Adam's attack told her that there was no escape. Out to his sides, in the broad arc inscribed by the swing of his blade, the sweep of it was too large for her to skirt before he could execute it. She couldn't fall back from it either. It extended both above and below. Every avenue out and around was closed off to her. Ruby stood in the midst of a complete zone of death, with no way to escape in time. In that instant, Ruby felt as though death had already claimed her.
Perhaps because of that, her worries and fears seemed to fall away. At this point, the fight was already over. There was no hope. Her mind ceased to function entirely. All rational thought drained away. Along with it went every emotion, both positive and negative. Fear slipped away alongside determination, despair alongside hope. In their wake was a sense of complete emptiness.
Almost of their own volition, Ruby's eyes slipped upward, and she found herself staring up at the moon. The moon's rotation this evening had made it so that its bulk hid the broken pieces that normally trailed behind it, making it seem almost complete. It was a beautiful sight, looking pure and almost perfect to her eyes. Its silver radiance seemed to seep down into her body, illuminating her soul, bathing her in light that would purify her in preparation for her entrance into the next life. Even though her death would come in the next second, Ruby felt as though she could stare up at the moon forever.
"It's not only your life that rides on your sword, but the lives and fates of all those that depend on your protection, now and into the future. That's why you shouldn't forget the importance of a life, especially not your own."
Kyo's words; spoken all those years ago to a little girl, traumatized by the act of killing for the first time; rose unbidden within her.
"Life is beautiful. It is precious. And it must be protected."
For some reason, Maria's words arose as well, the words that had been at the start of her teaching Ruby how to use the Silver Eyes. The Silver Eyes, the power to protect life by destroying the darkness. Even if he wasn't a Grimm, there was no question that the man before her was a source of darkness, a plague of destruction that would next fall upon all the people of Vale, including Ruby's friends and loved ones.
She could see it now. Sasame would be carved into pieces by blades that would utterly nullify her regenerative powers. Her other friends would throw themselves at Adam, and die one after another, if he didn't cut them down all at once with a barrage of slashes so fast their senses wouldn't be able to perceive it.
Dying here would mean the death of everyone else. Knowing that, there was no way that Ruby could allow herself to die. Knowing that, there was no way Ruby could allow herself to lose. Defeat was no longer an option.
None of this even occurred to her consciously. Instead, it manifested purely through her intent. All the years of training and practice she had put into mastering her art came together and, like a beam of light, Ruby could see it illuminating her path forward.
And it lay straight ahead.
Ruby gave herself completely over to the One. Her awareness expanded, swelling to encompass the whole of Amity's interior, spreading farther. Ruby almost felt as though she would be able to sense the entire world this way. However, she felt her senses stretching out to brush against something that lay beyond. It could not be described in terms of shape or color. It was something that her conscious mind couldn't really comprehend. However, she was able to sense that it had always been there, an aspect of existence itself that had previously been beyond her ability to perceive.
Ruby's eyes began to shine. This wasn't like her previous uses of the Silver Eyes, brilliant flares of radiance that spread out like wings of light from her eyes. Instead, her irises illuminated, gradually glowing brighter and brighter. Faint motes of light streamed upward, merging with the clouds that boiled over the sky, an eye forming that seemed almost perfectly centered on the moon above.
Up above, lightning cracked, jumping across the eye of the storm. Then a bolt of pure silver, almost seeming to descend from the moon itself, lanced down to strike the tip of her sword. Her cloak flowed down her arms into the handle, the entire blade shifting from red to the same silver color.
In that same instant, the red lining of Adam's jacket began to shine, along with the wilted rose on his back, and the red highlights of his hair. There was a deafening ring from Hakuya. The massive sword left its sheath, and the entire world turned red.
That world of red was split by a vertical line of silver. There was no particular nuance, no trick of handling. It was a plain downward slash. However, to Adam's eye, it seemed to be a blade of pure silver that reached upwards to split even the moon above. Its radiance was utterly blinding in this blood-red world. It was accompanied by a crash of thunder beyond anything he'd heard before in this battle.
And then everything returned to normal. The red and silver had vanished, and Adam and Ruby had traded places, their backs to one another. There was a crash of metal. Hakuya had been cut in two, the upper half of the blade sent spinning off the ring by the force of Adam's swing. The remainder of his blade remained extending out, showing that the steel had been sheared clean through.
Behind Adam, Ruby panted softly, her entire body drenched with sweat. Her legs strained and struggled to remain standing. Then she lurched forward, having to stab down with Akaibara and use the sword to keep herself from collapsing entirely. The last remnants of her cloak drifted away in a tiny cloud of petals.
"What...was that?" asked Adam, lowering his severed sword. Strangely, he didn't even seem winded.
"I just...I...I came up with it...just now," said Ruby, struggling to find the breath to speak with. She smiles slightly. "I think...I'll call it...Tsukigiri."
"What?" grunted Adam.
"It means...Moon-cutter," said Ruby, managing to turn and look at him, hobbling and using her sword almost like a crutch.
With a heavy clang, what remained of Hakuya fell to the floor, slipping out of Adam's hand. He coughed out a soft laugh. "Did you name it that to mock me?"
"I named it...out of respect for you," said Ruby. "I won't forget what you taught me...for better...or worse."
"I see," said Adam, holding up his hands, staring at them. His fingers began to wash a stony grey, spreading upwards towards his arms. Even as the color-drain spread, his fingers were beginning to crumble away. The effect was spreading from the center of his body as well, stretching outwards from a glittering line of silver cut directly down from the top of his head, perfectly bisecting him. "It would seem that you have won. Congratulations."
With that, Adam's entire form washed gray, before crumbling away to nothing. Ruby let out a slow breath. "Farewell, Adam Taurus."
Hobbling over, Ruby managed to fall down to one knee over the handle and stump of Hakuya. It stung, realizing she had destroyed such a storied and treasured blade, a sword forged by the mentor of the great Muramasa himself. Still, she supposed that the sword had lived a full life, up to its last moment.
Reaching down, she closed her right hand on the handle, her left still using Akaibara's handle for support. Ruby tried to lift the sword, grunting with the effort. However, even with half its blade missing, the sword wouldn't budge. Sure, she was tired, almost to the point of fainting, but she figured she'd be able to drag it, at least. Its weight was unbelievable.
I can't believe he wielded this like it weighed nothing, thought Ruby, aghast. Hakuya's speed was legendary. Certainly, the sword looked large, heavy, and unwieldy. But, after seeing Adam use it to unleash attacks that approached the speed of light, it was hard to accept that the sword really had been that heavy.
Truly...he was a master, thought Ruby. She let go of the broken blade, rising up. There was no point in trying to reclaim it. The most she could do was lay it to rest alongside its wielder...or as close as she could manage, considering that nothing remained of Adam, save for a discarded mask, somewhere in the arena.
Then the ring shook under her feet. Ruby was nearly knocked over, clinging desperately to Akaibara's handle, while keeping the sword anchored in the floor. The ring's lifters began to fail, then the whole platform began to tumble. Alongside it, Ruby could see the biomes that ringed it also beginning to fall. Worse still, as she watched, water began to erupt out of hallways and through the gaps that had been torn through the stands. She hadn't even noticed the coliseum splashing down in the sea. She could hear another rumble from down below.
A creaking sound began to build around her. With a metallic shriek, the walls of the arena began to split open, more water cascading through. The entire structure was crumbling to pieces, even as it sank. It would only be another minute or so before Ruby was inundated. The way things were, she was likely to be crushed by the torrent, before she could drown. Her Aura was drained. Her body's strength was almost completely gone. Escape seemed impossible.
Tiredly, Ruby looked around, seeking some kind of path of escape. She hadn't just survived the most intense battle of her life to simply have said life smothered from her body by the sea. Closing her eyes, she Suppressed her Aura, silently trying to build it up as much as possible in what little time she had left. If she could gather even a tiny portion of the last dregs of her Aura together, she might be able to muster enough to use Shukuchi to escape to the rim of the coliseum. From there, she might, just maybe, be able to navigate a path to safety.
Fortunately for her, such efforts were unneeded. Ruby barely heard it over the roar of the waters closing in, but the sound of what seemed like jets reached her ear. Looking up, Ruby gasped to see a bullhead swooping by overhead. Her heart lurched to see the White Fang symbol painted on its side. However, it switched to hover-mode, turning on its side, the open passenger-bay revealing Penny and Ciel standing at the door, looking down into the arena.
"Ruby!" exclaimed Penny, immediately jumping out. Her weapons assembled into their jet-configuration at her hips, propelling her downwards at even greater speeds. Right before she would have crashed into the ring, Penny swooped up, slipping her arms under Ruby's armpits, and lifting her up. She wasn't a moment too soon, as the waters swallowed the platform of the inner ring, their spray engulfing the pair, before Penny and Ruby rose clear, reaching the bullhead and settling into the passenger bay.
Ruby staggered inwards as the bay doors closed behind her and Penny. She let out a sigh of relief, sheathing her sword, then sinking down into one of the seats. Smiling, Ruby flashed Penny a grateful look. "Thanks for the save."
"You are most welcome, Ruby," said Penny, grinning.
Ruby glanced over and felt her relief compound when she saw Amber and Natsuki sitting at the other end of the bay. The two Maidens were battered, but alive. Looking up, Ruby could see that Penny and Ciel had been though a hard fight of their own.
"I'm guessing you were the winner," said Ciel, giving Ruby a small smile.
Ruby nodded slowly. "Adam is dead," she said.
Ciel closed her eyes, dipping her head slightly, and letting out a soft breath of relief.
"Where are Piper and Rain?" asked Ruby, looking around worriedly.
"Who do you think is flying this tub?" Piper shouted out from the cockpit.
Ruby relaxed, glad that everyone on Team CPPR had been accounted for. Taking another minute to catch her breath, she looked up at Ciel. "What's going on?" she asked.
"We're still confirming the situation," said Ciel, checking her scroll. "The civilians in the coliseum were successfully evacuated to Beacon's grounds. The Valean and Atlesian militaries have successfully established a secure perimeter within Vale. However, we've lost all three warships, and the city has sustained substantial damage. Grimm have appeared within the defensive perimeter. There may be a disruption on Beacon grounds as well. On top of that, a Wyvern has awakened, and is now seeding more Grimm throughout the Kingdom."
"Oh no," whispered Ruby.
"At present, we are heading for the safe zone," explained Ciel. "Ms. Akiyama requires medical attention, as do you, I see."
Ruby frowned, a little worried at the prospect. She wasn't worried about herself so much as she was worried for her sister and Miyu. At present, Sasame and her apprentice probably had all the patients they could handle. She didn't like the idea of adding to their workload, but also didn't see any other options. At best, the most she could hope for was to use Suppression to recover her Aura as quickly as possible, and hope that she could get back into action in time to make a difference.
"What about Raspberry and Rainbow?" she asked.
Ciel frowned, tapping the screen of her scroll. "They reported that the Grimm that are coming from within the defensive perimeter appear to be coming from some kind of spawning pools, which have been seeded throughout the city. There was one in the coliseum as well."
"That's...wonderful..." growled Ruby.
"It looks as though they are looking for the pools that were planted inside the city," said Ciel.
Ruby swallowed, her mouth going dry, realizing that her friends were running headlong into serious danger, and not just from the Grimm. Those spawning pools had to have been planted by someone, and Ruby had a fair guess as to who. Two people in particular, a viciously grinning scorpion-faunus and a hulking mountain of a man, came to mind. She had little doubt that they were out there somewhere. If her friends weren't careful, they could fall victim to Tyrian or Hazel.
"We'll be arriving at the safe zone soon," Piper announced from the cockpit.
"We have been granted clearance to land," said Rain.
"Did you tell 'em we hijacked a White Fang bullhead?" asked Piper. "I'd hate to get shot down because of a logo."
"I explained the situation in detail," replied Rain.
Ruby couldn't help but giggle at the exchange. It seemed her current state of exhaustion was making her a bit giddy. Then she looked over at Amber and Natsuki. "What happened to you two?" she asked.
"We fought Raven," said Natsuki.
Ruby's jaw clenched. Yang's mom... Ruby wasn't sure how Yang would react to that. Raven might have been the leader of a tribe of murderous bandits. She might have been a Maiden who had gone rogue and used her magic to do all kinds of terrible things. She had also been the woman who had abandoned Yang at birth. And yet...Ruby couldn't help but worry about how Yang would react to learning that the woman who had given birth to her was now gone from this world.
However, there was something odd about the situation. Ruby would have expected Raven to go after her in particular. Yet she had apparently attacked the other two known Maidens. Perhaps Raven knew that Ruby was personally connected to Amber and Natsuki, but it still seemed a little of a stretch. "Do you know why she attacked you?"
Natsuki and Amber exchanged a glance, then looked at Ciel and Penny. Ruby realized that the reason must have had something to do with their status as Maidens, which suggested only one reason that Ruby could think of for why Raven had attacked the pair.
But...that's impossible, thought Ruby. Raven was too old to receive a Maiden's power, wasn't she?
Natsuki and Amber then shook their heads. "We're not sure," said Amber softly.
The real meaning behind their words was clear. They could talk about this at a later time. Unfortunately, while Team CPPR were aware of the Maidens' existence, thanks to Jinnn's story, that story hadn't, fortunately, included anything that would tell them who those Maidens were. They certainly didn't know that Amber, Natsuki, and Raven accounted for three of the four current Maidens.
Well...two of them now, I guess, Ruby thought to herself. If Raven was dead now, then her magic would be sent God-knew-where. The only thing that worried Ruby was that the magic might go to Yang. There was no telling who had been in Raven's final thoughts, at the moment of her death, if there had been anyone at all. However ludicrously selfish she might have been, perhaps Raven just might have thought of her daughter in her final seconds. Ruby didn't think that would be the case, which made her feel a bit guilty that she felt relieved that Raven probably hadn't been thinking of her own daughter in her final moments.
As long as it wasn't someone they already knew, they could settle the matter of finding out who the next Spring Maiden was at a later time, hopefully when this crisis was over...assuming they could pull through it.
She felt the bullhead lurch slightly, then rock unsteadily. Gripping the arms of her seat, Ruby fought to keep from being tossed about the cabin, a struggle that the other passengers were sharing with her. The swaying of the craft was enough for her to fully empathize with Jaune and his original tendency towards motion sickness. She was certainly feeling more than a little queasy.
"Sorry!" Piper shouted from the cockpit. "Still getting the hang of flying this thing. Mantas transition to hover-mode a lot smoother."
"Arcade simulators also do not supply much in the form of physical feedback," Rain added, a sardonic note to his voice.
"Just please make sure you set us down at something less than terminal velocity," Ciel pleaded.
"Will do, Boss," Piper replied cheerfully. "Hey, Rain, are we over the landing zone?"
"Try a little to the left," suggested Rain. "Too much! To the right a little less...now forward...back a little...I believe that should do it."
"Right," said Piper. "Here we go..."
Everyone tensed. The bullhead landed with a thud, and enough force that it reverberated throughout the entire cabin. Then everything went still, and they were treated to the sound of the airship's engines cycling down.
"We've landed folks," said Piper, emerging from the cockpit. "Thanks for flying with Cerny airlines. Please check and make sure you have your belongings with you when you disembark."
The bay doors slid open. Ruby, Natsuki, Amber, and Team CPPR emerged into an impromptu airfield that had been set up in one of Vale's larger plazas. Around them, several mantas and bullheads were touching down or lifting up. Those that landed quickly disgorged troops, or unloaded supplies, before lifting up again. Not far away, they could hear the sound of gunfire, accompanied by the frightened screams of people and the roars of the Grimm.
Ciel flagged down a nearby soldier. "We have wounded," she announced. "Where are the medics?"
The soldier in question directed them to a large gymnasium that was currently serving as a field hospital. There was an actual hospital within the perimeter, but it was already occupied. On top of that, Sasame had insisted upon a large open space, where she could reach as many people at once as she could.
And she was hard at work. People were streaming in, even as more were carried out. Sasame moved amongst prone figures, her tails weaving around her, brushing across bodies to stabilize their condition, while she focused her efforts on those most in need of her skills. Miyu worked alongside her, mainly playing the same role as Sasame's tails, stabilizing the worst injured, so that Sasame could handle the more difficult injuries.
The ones that Sasame finished treating were carried out, but more people were stumbling or being carried in. Sasame and Miyu were fighting an uphill battle to save everyone who came their way. But the pressure of the wounded was piling up.
Fortunately, they weren't working alone. Medics from the military were working frantically, mostly dealing with the minor injuries and doing their best to help figure out which people needed treatment the most urgently. It was a chaotic scene, but the kind of chaos that Sasame had trained to thrive in. Her face was shining with sweat, and she was up to her elbows in the abdomen of an unfortunate woman who'd been nearly disemboweled by a Beowolf, knitting her organs back together, even as one of her tails moved to sooth the pain of a man whose leg had been crushed by a piece of falling debris.
"This is awful," said Ciel, horrified by the aftermath of the disaster that had befallen the Kingdom.
"And these are merely the ones who have survived," said Rain sadly.
They helped Ruby and Amber towards Sasame and Miyu. Miyu looked up, having finished her most-recent patient. "Ruby-chan! Natsu-chan!"
"Miyu-chan, please remain focused," said Sasame, not even bothering to look up.
"Y-yes, Sasame-sama," said Miyu, quickly moving to her next patient.
Sasame's eyes flicked in the barest of glances their way, taking in the overall state of their bodies. "Miyu-chan, once you finish with your next patient, tend Ruby-chan's cuts. I will handle Amber-san."
"Yes, Sasame-sama," said Miyu.
A moment later, Ruby was resting against the wall, as Miyu began to treat the cuts that Adam had left on her body. "These wounds are...difficult," she noted. Considering their simplicity, they were taking more Aura than she liked to close.
"They were made by Adam," said Ruby, thinking back to what the man had once done to Neo.
Finally, Miyu lowered her hand from the wound on Ruby's shoulder with a sigh. "That was harder than it looked."
"Do you need to rest, Miyu-chan?" asked Ruby worriedly.
Miyu gave her a wry look. "Someone in your state shouldn't be asking me that, Ruby-chan. Your Aura is almost completely wrung out. You need to keep your Suppression to replenish it as quickly as possible. In fact, it'd recommend taking a nap."
"But-!" Ruby began to protest, only to stop when Miyu held a finger to her lips.
"You can't do anything, the way you are now," said Miyu. "If you want to help, you need to recover your strength first."
"A-all right," said Ruby. In all honesty, she was having trouble keeping her eyes open.
"Get some rest, Ruby-chan," said Miyu, before getting up and returning to the other wounded.
Behind her, Ruby nodded off, against her better judgment.
Not far away from where Ruby was being seen to by Miyu, Natsuki slumped down against the wall herself, noting that Sasame was treating the stab-wound from Raven that Amber had cauterized, all while chiding Amber for doing so much harm to herself.
"Hey," said a familiar voice.
Natsuki looked up and relaxed, her smile widening as Oscar slid down the wall to sit next to her. "What are you doing here, Oscar-kun."
"I guess I'm keeping guard," said Oscar. "We're pretty far behind the defensive perimeter, but they want somebody on standby, just in case a Grimm makes it past the line."
"Sounds important," noted Natsuki.
"I guess it is," said Oscar. "But when the people holding the line are so good at their jobs, it makes it kinda boring."
Natsuki giggled. She cast her eyes across the floor fo the crowded gymnasium, picking out Maria, who, despite her advanced age and disability, was doing her best to help people in through the door.
"I'm glad you're all right," said Oscar. "I was scared when you and Amber were fighting that woman."
"It was scary," Natsuki admitted, as much to herself as to Oscar. "She was strong...stronger than anyone I've ever fought before. If Amber-san hadn't been there..."
Oscar draped an arm over her shoulders and hugged her up against himself. Natsuki leaned her head against his shoulder with a tired sigh. Oscar kissed the top of her head, watching as Natsuki's eyes drift closed.
"It'll be okay," he told her. "I'll watch over you now."
"That makes me feel better," said Natsuki, her eyes closing completely, while her breathing slowed.
Natsuki fell asleep, her head resting on Oscar's shoulder. Oscar shifted her, so that her head was lying in his lap. Then he resumed his watch over the rest of the building, ready to move, should anything happen.
Winter cut down a lunging Creep. Nearby, a Beowolf fell before a hail of fire from the Knights that had accompanied her to the front lines. Glancing one way, she saw an unfortunate soldier vanish beneath the bulk of an Ursa. A second later, she was there, dispatching the monster, then helping the stunned, but unharmed, man to his feet.
"Hold the line," she told the man. "Whatever else, we are the final obstacle between the Grimm and the civilians."
The soldier nodded, then quickly shouldered his rifle, taking aim at the next Grimm to come bearing down on them.
"Specialist Schnee!"
Winter turned and felt a surge of relief through her body as she saw Ciel approaching at the head of Team CPPR.
"Team Copper, reporting-!" Ciel's voice was cut off as Winter seized her in a tight hug.
"I'm glad you're all right," said Winter softly.
It took Ciel's brain a few extra seconds to comprehend what was happening, before she managed to return the embrace. "I'm glad we were able to make it back to you, Ma'am."
Winter finally let her go, then coughed self-consciously. "Please forgive my...lapse...Ciel. I was worried, after all."
"I'm sorry to have worried you, Ma'am," said Ciel.
"It's not your fault," said Winter. Then her expression hardened. "Watts...?"
"Dead," said Ciel simply.
Winter let out a breath. "I see...What of Amity?"
"We had to bring it down in the sea," said Piper. "That bastard was trying to drop it on the city."
"Given the circumstances, that's probably the best we could have hoped for," said Winter. "What about Taurus?"
"Also dead," said Ciel. "Ruby killed him."
Winter nodded, her expression grave. "And how is Ms. Rose?"
"Injured, but not severely," said Penny. "Ruby is receiving treatment now."
"That's good," said Winter.
"We also retrieved Amber Akiyama and Shinomori Natsuki," added Rain. "They had engaged with the bandit, Raven Branwen, and killed her. What she was doing here is something we have yet to ascertain."
Winter certainly found that tidbit rather odd. Just what business did a bandit from Mistral have in Vale during the worst terrorist attack in the history of all four Kingdoms? Wait! Isn't she Qrow's sister? She wondered if Qrow would have any insight into what his sister was up to, though it was probably a moot point right now, given that Raven was dead.
"How can we be of service, Specialist Schnee?" asked Ciel, now getting to what had prompted her and her teammates to seek Winter out.
Winter frowned. "You four can't be planning to fight on the frontlines after what you just went through."
"We will do our duty, Ma'am," said Ciel.
A roar from behind made Winter flinch. She spun in place, her saber already lashing out. She cut down a Beowolf that had taken down a Knight, and had been lunging at her, scarcely even looking at it, before resuming her conversation.
"Your duty, Ciel, is to get some rest. The four of you need to recover your strength and your Auras, if you wish to continue fighting."
"Ma'am, we have more than enough-" Ciel began to protest.
"Show me your scroll," Winter ordered sharply.
Swallowing, Ciel reluctantly held out her scroll. Taking the device in her hand, Winter brought up the status of Team CPPR's Auras. Sure enough; Ciel, Piper, and Rain were all hovering above the critical zone. Penny was in considerably better shape. But even her Aura was below half.
"As I thought," said Winter. "Right now, the job of you four is to rest, and get back up to full strength. We have food distribution and sleeping areas set up. Get yourselves some food, and then rest. I do not want to see you on the frontlines until your Auras are at least seventy-five-percent capacity. Am I understood?"
"Y-yes, Ma'am," said Ciel reluctantly.
Winter rested a hand atop Ciel's head. "You'll make a fine Huntress, Ciel. But, sometimes, doing your best means leaving the fight to others."
"Yes, Ma'am," repeated Ciel. She allowed Rain to guide her away.
Winter immediately returned her attention to the battle, monitoring the situation and seeing where her strength would be needed next.
Ironwood lowered the binoculars, which he'd been using to look out the window of the skyscraper that he and his staff had commandeered to serve as a command center. "What is the status of Team Raspberry?" he asked.
"They are closing in on the first objective," declared one of the officers, who had been tasked with monitoring the scroll signals from the two teams that had been sent out on this desperate mission.
"And Team Rainbow?" asked Ironwood.
"Another two blocks and they'll be right on the target point," said the officer.
Ironwood frowned darkly. "This feels too easy," he muttered.
"Too easy...?" grumbled someone from behind him. "We've got Grimm popping up inside the city, our air cover is gone, and the big one is spitting out even more."
His complaints were quickly hushed by the man next to him.
"I understand your reservations," said Ironwood, turning to the man who'd spoken up. "But, given what we learned about the spawning pool that appeared in Amity, someone, most likely Watts, planted it there, which means that the ones in the city are similarly-planted...
"...And the ones who planted those pools are likely still out there."
The man he'd been speaking to went pale at the notion.
Ironwood returned his attention to surveying the state of their perimeter. The militaries of both Vale and Atlas had acted quickly. On top of that, the ranks of soldiers were bolstered by Huntsmen and Huntresses who had already been stationed in Vale, as well as students sent over from Beacon. There had been reports that Beacon was under pressure by Grimm from the Emerald Forest. But they were able to hold the line easily enough that they could spare more than a few students to help out in Vale.
The problem will be the Grimm coming from outside the perimeter, thought Ironwood. If we can't take out the ones being spawned inside the Kingdom, we'll be overrun in a matter of hours.
In the end, all he could do was place his faith in the students who had come through for him and Ozpin time and again. They had already identified the nature of this problem. Hopefully, they would be able to pull through one more time.
"Sir! Report from Team Raspberry!" shouted the officer. "The first target has been neutralized!"
A round of cheers made its way through the room.
Ironwood limited himself to a simple nod of acknowledgement. "Forward them the coordinates of the next target," he said.
"Yes, Sir!" replied the officer.
It hadn't been easy. But, after analyzing the Grimm's pattern of movement, Ironwood's analysts had been able to isolate the approximate locations of the spawning pools. Granted, they were limited to a rough idea at best. But the results they had just gotten indicated that a rough estimate might just be enough.
Hopefully they can finish off the other spawning pools, thought Ironwood.
"Well...that's one down," said Weiss, lowering Myrtenaster, watching the fires burn in front of her. The pool had ignited as though it had been actual oil. After a minute or so, the black fluid burned away, leaving nothing more than black scorch marks in its wake.
"We've already got the next target from Ironwood," said Jaune, looking at his scroll. "Looks like it's a few streets over."
"Let's get moving then," said Pyrrha.
They broke into a jog, heading across streets and through alleys. As they did, Jaune glanced sidelong at the temporary fourth member of their team. "Thanks for coming with us," he said.
"I'll fill in for Ruby-chan as best I can," said Setsuna, suiting action to word by bringing the blade of his sickle down to punch through the skull of a Beowolf.
"How is Team Rainbow doing?" wondered Pyrrha.
"They're probably fine," said Weiss.
They found themselves crossing a major thoroughfare...or it had been, before the attack. Abandoned cars lined the streets. Some of them sported broken windows and windshields. Some of them were marred by claw-marks, or were crumpled like empty soda cans. The interiors of some were visibly stained with red, and none of them wanted to look to see what the sources of those stains were.
However, the cars were not the only things on this road.
With a deafening combination of howls, barks, and roars, a pack of mixed Grimm bore down on them almost like a wave. There were Nevermores and Griffons descending from above as well. All told, this was looking like a serious fight.
Then Setsuna pivoted to turn and face them. They saw a flicker of black from his Aura. "Chiyugi!"
In a sudden flash, the Grimm leading the charge were smashed flat, lying in the center of a depression that formed in the asphalt, a dome-shaped distortion forming in the air over them. An unlucky Griffon clipped the top of that distortion, and was yanked down as well. The effect of Setsuna's technique was enough to encompass nearly the entire width of the street...but not quite wide enough.
Several Grimm wound up barreling into the affected area, and were crushed down just as mercilessly as the ones ahead of them. However, more than a few others sensed the danger, and quickly moved the skirt the crater that had formed as a result of Setsuna's technique. But the narrowed pathways of safety meant that their numbers had been effectively bottlenecked, so the others went to work.
Still more Grimm spilled into the space of increased gravity that Setsuna had created. A sheen of sweat spread across his face. Meanwhile, Weiss worked her sword furiously. She was trying to conserve her Dust right now, and relying mainly on her swordsmanship to deal with the Grimm that were approaching from her side. Jaune, meanwhile, made himself a bulwark on the opposite side, keeping his shield up and methodically downing the Grimm that came his way with one or two slashes each. Pyrrha took up a position behind Setsuna, drawing a bead on the swooping flyers with her rifle, and trying to either take them out or draw them down into the area affected by Setsuna's technique.
After another few minutes of furious fighting, the latest wave of Grimm abated. With a tired sigh, Setsuna released his technique. "That's a pain to keep up over such a wide area," he grumbled.
"You gonna be okay?" asked Jaune.
"I can still fight," said Setsuna.
"We're not too far now," said Weiss, checking her scroll. "Let's take care of that next spawning pool."
"How many more are there?" asked Pyrrha.
"From the Grimm distribution, the General estimates there are two more that we're responsible for," said Weiss. "Rainbow has to deal with two total."
A roaring scream echoed from above, drawing their eyes upward as a massive winged shape swept by overhead, the downdraft of its wings actually staggering them. "And there's that one..." added Jaune.
"At least that one's only producing a few at a time," said Setsuna, as they got moving again. "These spawning pools are pumping out dozens all at once."
While black droplets continuously fell from the Wyvern's body, none of those droplets ever spawned more than two or three Grimm at most. Furthermore, by dropping them in a scattering pattern throughout the city, the Grimm spawned by the Wyvern couldn't mass effectively, and were generally absorbed into the hordes spawned by the other pools.
The real danger would be if its course took it over the safe zone, where it could then spawn Grimm behind the perimeter. Vale and Atlas had dedicated all their remaining aircraft to the task of turning it back, if its flight was in danger of carrying it over that zone. So far, that particular disaster hadn't happened yet. But the bullheads and mantas were being continuously harried by other flying Grimm, and several had been lost already, so it was a strategy they couldn't maintain for much longer.
Still, their first priority was taking care of the other spawning pools. Once that was done, they would be able to focus all their available strength on the Wyvern. Hopefully, that would be enough to take it out.
They found the second spawning pool where Ironwood's people had predicted. Using Myrtenaster, Weiss hosed the pool with fire, the black puddle screaming and hissing as it disappeared into smoke.
"One more to go," said Weiss.
"Let's hurry," said Pyrrha.
They continued on their way. According to the predictions from Ironwood's analysts, the last pool was most likely located within a parking garage attached to a nearby mall. Apparently, the Grimm that had emerged from that pool had turned the multilevel structure into a nest of sorts, where they massed their numbers, before spilling out to rush the safe zone's perimeter.
They emerged from another alley, coming out onto the street that led straight to their objective. Sure enough, there it was. It was easy to recognize the stack of concrete platforms, linked by ramps, that formed the parking garage...and it was crawling with Grimm. For all that their numbers consisted mainly of Beowolves, Ursas, and Creeps; the Grimm seemed more like massive insects in the way they scuttled up and down the straight sides of the garage, moving from one floor to another, or used the pillars to climb down to ground-level, when they didn't just jump down.
"We've sure got our work cut out with this one," grumbled Weiss, readying her rapier.
"What should we do?" asked Pyrrha. "We aren't even sure what floor that spawning pool is on. We'll get bogged down if we have to fight out way through those Grimm to find it."
"I've got an idea," said Jaune, swallowing. "It's not a nice one, but it might be our best bet."
"What is it?" asked Weiss.
"Let's wait until they've massed enough to rush the perimeter," said Jaune. "Once they build up their numbers, they should all charge out at once. Then the pool will spawn more. If we move quickly enough, we can find it before they replenish their numbers."
"You're right, that's not nice at all," said Weiss.
"But, if the perimeter has held up against rushes before, they can probably hold up against one more," guessed Setsuna. "Then, so long as we can keep the rush after that from coming, we should be good."
"Pretty much," said Jaune.
"Well...however unpleasant it might be, it's probably the best option we have available to us," said Pyrrha.
They pulled back, taking cover in the alleyway. Silently, they wished that Ren was with them. His Semblance would be perfect for this kind of situation. Actually, with his Semblance, they could have probably just walked right past the Grimm infesting the structure and gone straight for the pool with no issue. Sure, they probably would have had to fight their way out, but it certainly would have made reaching their objective easier.
Sure enough, just as Jaune had predicted, the Grimm began their attack. The black masses practically boiled forth from the parking garage, their barks, roars, and howls filling the air as they bounded down the streets, heading straight for the greatest concentration of negativity in the area. There, they would throw themselves against the defensive line and die...at least...that was the hope. Jaune sure hoped that they would be able to hold out. The last thing he wanted to be was the man who'd ignored the rush that finally broke through the line.
Focus on the job, he thought to himself.
Now that the coast was clear, they emerged from the alleyway, breaking into a run down the street. They had to move fast. Sure, the Grimm had mostly cleared out of the area, but the spawning pool would replenish their numbers quickly. So they would have to find it before those numbers became overwhelming. They rushed up the ramp into the garage, looking around.
"Which floor do you think it's on?" asked Pyrrha, looking around.
Setsuna closed his eyes, focusing on his ears. He picked up faint growls, and the scratch of claws against asphalt. He Extended his Aura out to confirm. "Above us," he said.
"Let's get going," said Jaune, already moving towards the stairs up.
The others moved to follow him, but Setsuna paused. "Stop!" he shouted urgently.
"What is it?" asked Jaune, something in Setsuna's tone causing him to immediately raise his shield and get ready. He wasn't the only one.
"We're not alone," said Setsuna. "There's another Aura here..."
The three members of RASP were going to ask for more details, but froze as a chill ran down their spines. There was something familiar about this sensation. However, it was nothing more than a vague impression...at least, it was until a familiar cackle reached their ears.
The mocking laugh echoed through the empty space, bouncing off the bodies of ruined and abandoned cars. Here and there, they heard the sound of boots scuffing against asphalt...or a series of soft clicks. The four of them assembled back to back, looking in all directions.
Then he appeared. He seemed to drop straight down from the ceiling, his booted feet slamming down on the roof of an empty car, before he came rocketing right for Jaune. Jaune desperately raised his shield, successfully warding off the slash from the man's wrist-mounted bracers, before the attacker simply latched onto the edges of the shield, perching on it and lashing over the top of it with something. Jaune barely managed to parry it with his sword. Then his attacker pushed off the shield, jumping away and sending Jaune staggering back as Milo and Myrtenaster pierced through the space the man had occupied.
The roof of a nearby van crumpled slightly as Tyrian landed on it, surveying his prey with wild eyes and a manic grin. The source of the strange clicking sound became more apparent as the segmented, steel length of a prosthetic stinger rose up behind him.
"Ahh...so good to see you all again," said Tyrian cheerfully. "I've been looking forward to the day that I could repay you."
"You guys know this nutcase?" asked Setsuna, watching Tyrian warily.
"Tyrian Callows," said Weiss, spitting out the name distastefully. "He was working for that corrupt Councilman who was trying to have Ruby killed."
"That was but a temporary arrangement," said Tyrian, executing a short flip off the top of the van, landing in front of it, hand over his heart, head bowed. "In the end, my life and loyalty shall belong only to my goddess." He raised his head to grin at them once more. "And my duty today is to ensure that you cannot stop her children from overrunning this Kingdom. The screams of the people shall be a hymn in her praise!"
The four people in front of Tyrian shared wary glances, realizing that this final objective was going to be much more difficult than they'd bargained for.
"Really wishing...we could've...taken the elevator..." gasped Yang as they threw open the door of the next floor.
"Tell me about it..." said Nora, panting for breath alongside her.
Behind them, Ren and Blake merely exchanged weary looks, the two of them too out of breath to even be able to complain. According to Ironwood, the spawning pool located in the skyscraper they were climbing was the main source of the airborne Grimm that were plaguing the Kingdom at the moment. Unfortunately, with the current emergency, and the damage that had already been done to the building, the elevators were not an option, meaning that they had to reach their target the old-fashioned way. Ironwood's people had given them a rough guess as to what floors the spawning pool might be on. However, there was a good chance that they would have to check multiple floors before they found it.
They emerged into what had apparently been a fairly standard office space. Rows of cubicles spread throughout the room, with lanes running between them, sectioning off the space into a neat grid. Looking around, they noted that almost everything on this floor seemed intact. With the way the Grimm had apparently exploded out of the building, there was no way that things would look this neat and orderly, if they had been spawning on this floor.
Of course, that appearance changed when a Griffon ripped its way down through the ceiling with a shriek, its claws reaching right for Yang and Nora. However, the pair easily sidestepped the monster's clumsy lunge. In this enclosed space, the Griffon couldn't maneuver properly until it had ripped open more room for itself. Before it could though, Yang's gauntlet crashed into its head from the right, while Nora's hammer slammed into it from the left. The creature's head vanished in the sandwich of gold and pink shockwaves. The rest of its headless body slumped to the floor, and promptly dissolved.
"Great...more stairs," grumbled Yang, realizing that the Griffon attacking from above meant they weren't high enough yet.
As it turned out, finding the right level was easier than they'd initially thought. Two floors up, they found that the walls of the stairwell had been all but shredded, the door ripped of its hinges, revealing that at least four whole floors of the building had been torn apart and opened up into a single, more cavernous space. Honestly, it was something of a miracle that the top floors of the building hadn't collapsed down yet.
Sure enough, they were treated to a view of Nevermores and Griffons taking wing and flying out through the open sides, where the windows had once been. The undulating black surface of the spawning pool spread out before their eyes. Its surface rippling as a set of wings spread out, throwing droplets of black liquid everywhere, before a fully-formed Griffon clambered out, then bounded for the open air.
At the moment, they would have liked nothing more than to torch the spawning pool and be done with it. The problem was that there was a very substantial obstacle standing in the way.
Directly between them and the spawning pool stood an all-too-familiar figure. Hazel Rainart stared at them with an impassive gaze, arms hanging at his sides. Despite the fact that there was a human right next to their spawning ground, none of the newborn Grimm seemed to even notice him...or the new arrivals for that matter...instead making their way straight out into the open skies.
"Do not come any farther," he said simply, his voice a low rumble that made their bones hum. "There is no need for you children to die for the sake of Ozpin's pointless war."
"Last I checked, we weren't planning on dying," said Yang, slamming her gauntlet-covered fists together.
"You will...if you persist," said Hazel.
"We didn't come here to argue with you," said Blake, leveling Gambol Shroud at him. "We came to stop the Grimm."
"And I will not allow you," said Hazel.
"Then we will simply have to go through you," said Ren.
"More lives lost to Ozpin's folly," muttered Hazel, removing his coat, before reaching down to the pouches at his waist to gather some Dust-crystals. "I will take him to task for your deaths as well."
The members of Team RYNB readied their weapons, realizing that this fight might well decide the fate of Vale.
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