Capítulo 62: Shattered
Shen's playful talk caused the air to go stale on Atlas's side. All of them hated Shen with a burning passion and the general's under him just as much. Taking a deep breath Ironwood began to walk forward, with everyone waiting behind him entirely on guard. Seeing that Shen walked to meet him with a smile.
"You had me thinking this was going to be a bit more private. But it looks like you plan on making quite the spectacle out of this. Of course, I'm fine with it either way." Ironwood grit his teeth before speaking.
"This isn't a game. We both know why we're here so you can drop that fake kindness act. I see straight through you, all of us here do." Shen glanced at RWBY and the others, all of them were ready to spring into action.
"You really do know how to suck the fun out of it. But fine, let's be serious. Before anything, I'll be taking back Blake." His words made Ironwood show a hateful and resolute look while scoffing.
"This isn't a negotiation. Compared to the others you've gone against I'm willing to do whatever it takes. I have no qualms with ordering the execution of an enemy. I'm giving you one chance, withdraw your army from Vale completely and this can end without bloodshed. Otherwise, we will put you and everyone who came with you down here and now."
Ironwood started Shen dead in the eyes when he said that. Shen tilted his head to the side flashing a grin as he spoke.
"Really? Well now… I want to see how you plan to back those kinds of words up." Shen's entire body flashed with electricity crackling and frying the air around. It was like a trigger going off immediately sending both sides into action. Shen's hand reached straight for Ironwood's neck, with the latter having no time to react.
However, before he could reach him Shen saw a glint of light. Within second's beams of green energy flow from the sky like an artillery barrage. They pierced through Shen and even the ground under him as if it was a hot knife to butter.
"Your fight is with me." A purposeful female voice came from the sky. Flying down onto the ground next to Ironwood, everyone on Atlas's side recognized her immediately.
"Penny you're here." Ruby looked relieved along with Yang and Weiss. Every Huntsman and Huntress there seemed to be a bit more relaxed. That was the effect Atlas's Protector had on people after all. However, in the midst of that, a voice immediately took their attention away from her.
"I see, so it wasn't a new weapon after all. You've been building up the old to take on the new." Everyone watched the dust clear, revealing a chilling sight. Hole's had been pierced through Shen's body, but his organs or blood were nowhere to be seen. Electricity, it seemed like his body was completely made of it.
Even with holes removing over sixty percent of his head, he spoke normally. And slowly those holes began to close.
"Damn, I knew his powers were freaky but that's inhuman." Hearing Yang, Weiss, and Ruby agreed silently, they had never seen anything like it. Only Ozpin was completely unphased narrowing his gaze onto Shen. As Shen healed he took a better look at Penny.
She had changed like the others. Her hair was short and combed to one side. Her outfit looked a lot more bare bone's and unlike before it was easier to tell she was an android. Her eyes shone their emerald glow as if they were scanning Shen. Floating behind her back were eight swords, seemingly levitating in the air.
Their black blades glinted in the light with glowing green energy traveling through them from their hilts. Staring at her, Shen confirmed his thoughts.
'That attack alone had enough power to kill any normal Huntsman or Huntress. There's no doubt she was the one who defeated Blake.' They had utilized the Relic of Creation to increase their army's weapons. But at the same time, they had also spent a lot of time, research, and money on Penny.
She was their true and final weapon against Shen, the number of times her body had been rebuilt and functions re-coded ranges in the dozens. Compared to the original RWBY storyline she was made for combat now.
"Looks like it's our turn to step in." Torchwick twirled his cane around his finger as he began to step forward. In response, Ozpin was the first to take a step forward on the Atlas side.
"This is going to be fun, hehe…" Taella laughed to herself as her eyes scanned the other side before locking onto Winter who had moved to support Ozpin.
"Looks like this was inevitable from the beginning." Sienna shook her head but prepared to fight all the same. The entirety of the Faunus race was hinged on this. If they lost, the Faunus would be tainted in history, they would never recover from submitting to Shen. But if they won… She could guarantee their future, that was her one and true goal.
She was willing to subject herself to anything to see it through.
"We're here but it still feels unreal." Drawing her weapon Weiss spoke with a bit of uncertainty. Yang came up from behind her, patting her on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, Penny will handle Shen, all we need to do is make sure we handle the others. Drawing a crescent rose which unfolded into its Scythe form Ruby spoke as well.
"The world is counting on us, I refuse to let everyone counting on us down." The Ace Ops and other Huntsman and Huntresses all nodded hearing Ruby over the comms. Failure isn't an option, they were going to win, they had to win!
All kinds of convictions, hopes, wishes, and dreams. Reasons for fighting and motivations were all preparing to clash, and at the center of it all were Shen and Penny. Ironwood had retreated as the two of them stared at one another. The world seemed completely cut off from them as Shen spoke.
"You started thing's off, so let's see just how good your upgrades are." Summoning Gae Bolg into his hand's Shen had to admit they chose the right opponent for him. Penny didn't have the heart to pierce so Gae Bolg's ability would be useless against her.
As he thought that Penny bent her legs before rocketing towards Shen. She was fast, much faster than he was expecting her to be. Putting up his guard all eight of her swords flew through the air from behind her striking the shaft of Gae Bolg. The force caused the air to shake and sent him over a hundred feet into the air.
Regaining his balance Shen held out his hand towards Penny who immediately began giving chase.
'Sago!' Electricity gathered at his palm before being released in a wave. It turned the portion of the sky blue as it flew through the air towards its target. However, Penny's Systems redacted immediately. Automatically her blades flew in front of her creating a cyclone-like formation while spinning rapidly.
The beam of electricity clashed against the blade's scattering like water against a solid. Shen's eyes widened at this. His attack had been completely nullified? The moment Shen's Sago was countered Penny rushed up to his level in the sky. There wasn't a single wasted movement as all eight of her blades began to attack once.
Shen reacted quickly, his hands moving in ways that would be impossible for any bonafide human. Every single blade moved as if it was controlled by another person. Independent of one another, yet attacking in combination. The number of sparks that flew left a glowing trail through the cloudy sky.
They were like streak's Shen leaving lightning in his wake, while Penny left green flames. Blocking another one of her attacks, two of Penny's blade's ground against Gae Bolg, pushing Shen back through the sky. After a moment he used his wrist to spin Gae Bolg knocking the blades off of him before transforming into lightning.
Shen didn't hold back an ounce of his speed this time around. To a normal person, it would have looked like he teleported straight in front of Penny. Purple Karmic Lightning engulfed his entire body coiling around Gae Bolg like a snake. He aimed straight at Penny's chest piercing directly towards her.
Her eyes widened as she quickly activated her shield. A green forcefield made of Aura appeared around her acting as a shield. The moment the attack and defense touched, purple lightning arched through the sky like a crack on the glass. The sound of thunder echoed out so loudly, causing even the building below them to shake.
[Warning! Aura Barrier efficiency levels dropping!]
Penny received a warning as she watched Gae Bolg drive its way forward. Within a second's the barrier around her began to crack as she felt herself being pushed down. This was thanks to Karmic Retribution of course which was the bane of Aura which was a manifestation of will and spirit.
The amount of force Shen was applying increased by the second, Penny's barrier cracked as if it was the most fragile thing in the world. Before she knew it Gae Bolg broke through, piercing directly into Penny's stomach. Shen didn't hesitate for a moment as even more, Karmic Lightning began to channel itself.
Like a localized thunderstorm lightning shot out in all direction's coursing through Penny's body.
[Warning! Aura levels dropping! Danger! Danger!]
[Warning! Severe damage detected in the stomach region!]
[Error systems malfunctioning!]
"Ahhhh!" Despite being an android, Penny could still feel pain when it attacked her soul. Her scream echoed out. It was horrifyingly loud and sounded painful beyond belief. It was only after five second's that Shen stopped yanking Gae Bolg from her chest. Her glowing green eyes seemed to flicker.
With zero hesitation Shen raised his leg in the air aiming directly for her head. She was incapable of moving, let alone dodging as the kick came down swiftly striking her directly in the head. A shockwave shot out as she was sent flying towards the earth. She slammed into a six-story building destroying a large chunk of it instantly, as the rest collapsed in on her.
As her body hit the ground, it made a massive crater fracturing the very earth. Cracks spread tearing the ground apart and causing nearby buildings to collapse as well. Looking from above Shen stared down at the massive cloud of dust obscuring the area below him. His eyes were just as focused as before and he didn't let his guard down one bit.
Shen felt something was wrong. Penny was strong, but against Blake who had four years to grow stronger and master her abilities, the chances of her winning were close to zero. He had originally assumed Penny captured Blake, but maybe he was wrong? Or was she hiding something?
Lying there on the ground Penny's eyes flashed back on. Countless warnings and errors were flooding her view and all kinds of alarms were ringing in her head.
'He attacked my soul directly… None of our research on him told us he could do that.' Struggling to even move her body Penny tried to get to her.
'I thought maybe I could hold him off long enough for Ruby and the others to make progress… But at this rate I'll end up losing before then. If that happens…' All of them would die and it would be her fault. But even knowing that she was hesitant. Image's flashed through her head the moment she fought Blake.
The thought made her shake her head, as her face turned resolute.
[Command received! Decoupling Wired Blades…]
[Disconnecting from Main Power Source… Switching to Secondary Source…]
[Rebooting Systems… Activating Enhanced Combat State be advised…]
The wired blades unhooked from Penny's back, as her eyes began to change in color. Their green glow began to fade, switching to a deep purple. The mechanical parts of her body did the same, as purple energy began leaking from her body. From up in the sky, Shen couldn't see what was happening.
But at that moment he felt something was wrong. It was purely out of instinct.
"Whatever she's doing down there I'll end things before she can start." His eyes locked onto where he had sent Penny flying. Light and Dark reds began to spiral around the spear's tip as Shen's entire body began to channel power outwards. The outburst of Mana caused the air to feel thick and oppressive.
Getting into a throwing position he tightened his grip as he added in even more power. Electricity crackled through the shaft of Gae Bolg engulfing entirely in a layer of lightning. The lightning slowly turned purple as it merged and entangled itself with the crimson aura swirling as Shen uttered two words.
"Gae! Bolg!"
With one throw Gae Bolg seemed to flash in and out of view, faster than the eye could track. At the same time, Shen saw the dust suddenly clear due to an invisible force. It all happened in a matter of seconds as a demonly purple light flew into the air directly towards Gae Bolg. The two of them clashed in the air resulting in a massive struggle.
The clash caused what seemed like the entire city of Atlas to tremble. The amount of energy being outputted would turn anything in between to dust. Yet at this moment Shen was seeing something he thought was impossible. The sound of cracking began to echo amongst the violent sounds of explosive power.
The purple light, shining like a dark star, suddenly doubled no, tripled in power, in an instant. In that moment crack begins to form across the entirety of Gae Bolg.
"That's…" Shen watched as the output of the purple light doubled again, and the cracks around Gae Bolg met their climax. In a loud shattering noise, Gae Bolg's energy faltered and was overwhelmed along with Shen's lightning. It splintered into pieces like wood, flying in every direction.
A piece even flew directly by Shen's face, as he stared down in disbelief. He had Gae Bolg with him since nearly the beginning of his time here in the RWBY World. It was a weapon without match, and depending on the situation made him nearly invincible. Yet it was actually destroyed? Just like that?
The remnants of Mana and power cleared the air revealing Penny's figure floating in the air. Her eyes had turned violet, and the mechanical parts of her body that had been flowing with green Aura had changed into a deep sinister purple. In her hand's a blade seemed to pulse, energy flowing through its carefully ordained silver handle into her body.
The blade section was glowing brightly yet seemed to be almost chaotic in nature and design. Shen's face seemed to be shadowy as he spoke.
"I see, so you had it on you the whole time. The Relic of Destruction…" Strong enough to destroy even a Noble Phantasm, it was by far the most powerful and dangerous weapon in the RWBY universe.
Penny slowly flew up to the same height as Shen, staring him dead in the eyes. No hint of the happy-go-lucky android could be seen or heard in her next few words.
"For all the suffering you've caused, I won't show you any mercy. You'll die here, on this day, by my hands."
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