บท 22: Chapter 22 - Battle of Reach II
(Third Bonus? 😵 Still can't sleep damnit and its 7 pm already.)
On Reach.
"Damn it! What just happened! Why is the leading ship suddenly crashing down!" Qrow shouted at the innocent Atlesian soldier that happened to be in his arm's reach.
"I don't know! We all suddenly lose contact with the flagship!" The soldier replied back which answered none of Qrow's questions as he pushed the soldier away and immediately transformed into a crow and flew towards the wreckage to seek an answer.
'Is Salem truly on the move as Ozpin suggested? The unusual Grimms activities, new breed of Grimms and the battle between two groups of Grimms to serve as a smokescreen. Salem's true goal is to eliminate James?' Qrow thought over the recent secret meeting Ozpin organized prior to this battle.
In the meeting, Ozpin suspected the unusual Grimm activities is a smokescreen that Salem employed to do something in secret. After all, the only one that can control Grimms is Salem.
If he thought it over, everything does make sense now that her goal had been revealed. The assassination behind James Ironwood is indeed the doing of Salem.
The Ansel town incident is also the doing of Salem. After all, Ozpin cannot be convinced that a human can tamper with the creation of the God of Darkness. Of course, Ozpin cannot foresee the involvement of an Outer God and conveniently lay all the blame on Salem since it does seem like something she would do.
Also James Ironwood died before he could share the truth behind Ansel Town. He did not foresee his sudden death and with the nature of the information being the highest confidentiality, he brought the truth alongside him to his grave forever buried.
———
"Haaah!"
"HYAAH!"
"Uoh! Nice one, Boss!" The three cheered for their leader who just bisected a Zombified Ursa in half.
"Alright alright. Enough cheering. We should take shelter first. The ship crashing would be rough." The leader gestured at the airship that is very close to land already and about to crash into the horde of Zombified Grimms.
"Well, at least the crash should take care of a big chunk of those Grimms." The one with a chainsword said while gazing at the scene with a low whistle.
"Yeah. We should increase our speed. The moment the airship crashed. It will be swarmed by the Grimms. We have to act quickly to save our brother's friend." The leader said.
"Let's go! For our brother!"
"For our brother!"
A chainsaw, a chainsword, a chain-axe and a chain knuckle duster? Raised to the air in a loud war cry to invigorate their spirits before they once again increase their pace.
However Adam somehow managed to outpace the Aura users who had their physical strength enhanced. But Adam after taking the virus serum had exceeded human limitations. He will be even stronger when he obtains his own Aura.
"Huff… Brother Adam. You are sure to run fast even in all those gears you are wearing." They commented about Adam's choice of gear being a tactical gear that would normally hinder a Huntsman's speed because they are cumbersome.
"You get used to it when you wear it everyday." Adam commented offhandedly as he indeed felt hindered at first but not after he got used to the weight.
"Are you a Mistralian by any chance? I heard there are special schools that train body strengthening arts." Someone asked.
"Nope. Anyway we are close. Be careful, there are a lot of Grimms here. Don't let them injure you. Not even a little." Adam warned as he didn't know if First Aid can stop the virus infection and he rather not test it out.
"Haha. With your Semblance. We are basically impervious unless there is an Elder Grimm." The leader chuckled half jokingly.
"Well, just because something is different about the Grimms. You people surely noticed them already." Adam hinted about the Zombified state of the Grimms.
"Yeah, we actually did. But don't worry, brother. We won't live long in battle if we didn't notice something that obvious." The leader reassured Adam.
"Alright then." Adam said no more as he saw the airship crash in the distance and thankfully didn't explode and only kicked up a bunch of dirt and debris.
"Come. We will open up a path for you, brother."
"Uoh!" The other three raised their war cry once more and literally carved a path through the Zombified Grimms in front of them.
Adam has literally no idea why they are going this far for him, a complete stranger.
———
"Achoo!" Agent sneezed while Scarecrow stared at her.
"Can machines like us even sneeze?" She questioned the meaning of her existence.
———
In the crashed airship.
"Is everyone alright? I need a status report right now!" Winter barked at the people that now fall under her command as the second highest ranking officer after General Ironwood on the airship and the entire battle as a whole.
"All crew survived, Ma'am." Someone replied after doing a quick headcount.
With the Atlesian airship being made with state of the art technology of Remnant, there isn't much crew needed to man the airship. Most of the human crew is in the control room and few others are soldiers. The heavy lifting is mostly done by robots.
"Good. Gather up on me. We have to leave this ship before the Grimms swarm up on us." She commanded and ordered the soldiers and Specialists to escort the other non combatant crew as they all made their way out from their soon to be their coffin.
The Specialist team and Winter took the front, the non combatant in the middle and the Auraless soldiers took the rear. Winter and her team spearhead the escape towards the hangar where they can take a Bullhead and escape.
But, unexpectedly when they arrived, the hangar was already breached by countless Zombified Grimms through a hole ripped open by the crash.
"Ma'am."
The Specialists team await her order while she is left indecisive whether they should fight here because this is the only way they can escape. The non combatant and soldiers cannot survive the onslaught of Zombified Grimms outside which surround the entire airship. Only through a Bullhead can they escape.
However, with the current situation. No need to talk about escaping. She didn't think they could even board the Bullhead unless someone served as distractions to pull the Zombified Grimms attention away while the others boarded the Bullhead.
However, just as the situation is about to become bleak. A loud noise of metal being saw open was heard. Everyone and the Zombified Grimms turn their attention to the ceiling of the hangar to see sparks flying down with a saw cutting it open.
After that, Adam and the Brotherhood of Saw drop into the hangar. Adam's eyes immediately turned to Winter and saw the group behind her. He immediately understood the situation and whispered something to the four that came alongside him. Then Adam turned back to Winter and gave her a nod before all five of them played the role of distraction.
'Leave quickly, we will hold them off.' A transmission abruptly played on Winter's earpiece. She didn't even have time to question how he managed to connect to her earpiece as she ordered everyone to quickly board the Bullhead.
Briefly, Winter sees Whitley overlapped with Adam and her face turns rosy and her eyes turn misty. Never had she thought the younger brother that she deemed as failure and disappointment due to following Jacques would turn out to be heroic despite there being the factor of him being amnesiac.
"What about you and your team?" Winter asks while she is rushing towards the Bulkhead with the group following behind her. Her eyes never stop looking at Adam's direction as he fights with brutal ferocity and efficiently as if every part of his body is a deadly weapon, punching and stomping Zombified Grimms with ease.
'We have the means to escape on our own. There's no need to worry about us, Miss Winter.' Adam replied back with a loud sound of gunfire as she can see him using his shotgun to crack open the Deathstalker's mask before he crushed the exposed head with his fist.
'Amazing, Brother Adam. There are few that can boast to kill a mighty Deathstalker with their fist.' Someone said the background and laughed. She can see a man wielding a chainsaw tapping Adam's back while laughing heartily.
Somehow, Winter wished she was the one fighting side by side with Adam. She yearns for the day the three siblings will make up and become one once again. Perhaps she should. Atlas is already a big mess, General Ironwood is dead, there is no one worthy in Atlas to offer her loyalty to anymore.
With one more reluctant gaze, she soon boarded the Bullhead that had finished starting up and ready to fly.
"Everyone hold on tight! We are leaving immediately!" A Specialist who can fly a Bullhead becomes the pilot and informs everyone he is about to take off.
The Bullhead took off a minute later. Winter however remained latched on the window and looking at the five still fiercely fighting and had yet to retreat.
"Ma'am, I think we should go down and help them." A Specialist said as the people on the Bullhead no longer need their help. They can fly on their own to the safe area at Reach.
Winter does not need to give the suggestions a thought as she immediately opens the door and jumps down. The Specialist team also follows behind her except the unlucky one that has to be the pilot.
———
In the hangar.
"Tell me brother, is that Missy your lover or something?" The one with a chain-axe grinned and asked while his weapon smashed on a Zombified Beringal's neck before the saw started revving and immediately tore through the thick bones, decapitating it.
"What gave you that idea?" Adam shudders and remembers Winter supposed to be this body's older sister. It's incest!
"Hmn, her stare was passionate… I guess."
"Yeah. The way she looks at you is like a wife sending off his husband off to battle. But still, she is the infamous Ice Queen. Brother Adam is amazing to tame the infamous Ice Queen of Atlas. You have to share with me your secret." The leader acts chummy and jabbing Adam softly to make him hand over the secret.
"It's not like that!" Adam denied but the more he did, the more the other felt convinced with their theory.
"Hoh… Then why is she coming toward us right now?" The one with the saw knuckle duster laughed mirthfully while pointing at the Winter and the Team of Specialists heading toward them.
"Ah, Brother Adam is the greatest man among all. To melt the heart of the infamous Ice Queen. We will excuse ourselves, please take your time." The four hastily leave Adam and charge toward the Zombified Grimms with even greater passion while screaming their war cry.
Now that he noticed, the four of them all look strong. Even an experienced Huntsman had difficulty against the Zombified Grimms but to them, it felt like just a bunch of max leveled players stomping on low leveled mobs.
Adam then turns his attention to Winter and her team of Specialists.
"Why didn't you leave with the Bullhead?" Adam asked with a harsh tone that borderline scolding while he looked at the Objective tab that showed the Emergency Task still remained incomplete.
From the way the Task described, it was as if Winter would die without his interference. But the enemies he encountered so far in the hangar and around the crashed airship could hardly pose a problem to Winter. This means the threat is still lurking around. Which is why he felt restless with Winter still onboard the airship.
"Why? You asked?" Winter was caught off guard by his tone but she didn't take it to heart and simply chalk it off as him being worried about her which does align with his actions so far. Or else why would he even bother to come help her?
"I am worried of course. How exactly are you and your team going to escape with those Grimms swarming around the wreckage of this airship?" She propped her hands on her hips while adopting a more stern expression which said 'This is my turn to scold you for being reckless'.
"I have my ways. I told you, didn't I?" Adam sighed. He is not going to explain every single plan he has in mind to a stranger. Yet, Winter gives him that stare as if she deserves to know those plans.
"Anyway, it's not important anymore. Let's leave quickly." Adam immediately ends the conversation and walks toward the Saws Brothers and ignores Winter.
"Let's go." Adam told the leader.
"Alright, Brother Adam. We best leave quickly. The Atlesian airship fleet is proving fire support to thin down the enemies. They opened a path for us." The leader points at the trail of destruction left behind by powerful explosives which open a straight path towards the base of Reach where most Huntsmen are concentrated to fight off the Zombified Grimms.
"Alright." Adam understood and nodded before he gestured to Winter and her team to follow.
They all about to depart when a crow suddenly flies straight towards them and turns into a human.
"Qrow?" Winter exclaimed in surprise by the newly arrived guy.
"Winter! James! What happened to James? Did he survive?" Qrow shoots a barrage of questions to Winter.
Winter however adopted a sullen look.
"No. He was assassinated. It's my fault… Should've I paid more attention, I would have noticed the assassin."
"It's not your fault, Winter. None of us expected this. Not even Ozpin until it was too late. It's my fault too. I should have informed James earlier and all this could be prevented." Qrow also blamed himself for not being able to arrive faster and inform James of Salem's true goal.
"Cough, I think both of you can do the 'taking blame' session later and escape first." Adam wakes the two up from their world and reminds them of where they currently are.
"Let's go quickly before the Grimms swarm back." Adam said and about to turn away when he suddenly noticed a red dot suddenly appeared behind Winter on his minimap.
'I must warn her!' Adam monologues in his mind but he later abandons the thought. She wouldn't be able to react in time with the blade literally inches away from stabbing her heart.
*Adrenaline Shot!
Adam's perception of time slowed and so did his body and everyone else. Only his mind had accelerated. First, he instantly covers the distance of three meters in a blink of an eye and then pulls Winter toward him to evade the blade and push her away but unfortunately propels him forward with the momentum. Adam summons his shotgun which takes a while before he aims it at the assassin. By the time he manages to pull the trigger, the blade stabs his chest but is protected by the thick Hardplate Vest he wears.
*Bang* x2
Adam managed to shoot twice at the assassin before he escaped and he heard the sound of glass breaking.
He checked his minimap to make sure the enemy truly fled but to his surprise, the assassin was on his right. By the time he moved his body to face the assassin, a blade slipped through the unarmored part of his armors on the neck and stabbed through it before the assassin fled again.
'Fuck! Just as my Adrenaline Shot expired!' Adam cursed but no voice came out as he made a bloody gurgle with his throat stabbed and slashed.
Blood flowed out his neck copiously and soaked his hand which he managed to take a look at before he fainted.
*Stim Shot
The bodysuit detected Adam's health reach critical and immediately applied a Stim Shot. He actually isn't fatally injured despite having his throat slashed. The Virus Serum makes him basically impervious to all manner of small injuries. In fact, had the Stim Shot not applied. His enhanced regeneration would have heal it on its own but take much longer time. He fainted because the blood blocked his airway and asphyxiated.
"A- Ahh… Whitley! No! Please don't die here! It's my fault! I should have just left like you asked." Winter shedding tears while cradling Adam who she thought had died. "It's all my fault!" She hugged him tight in disregard of the blood staining her white uniform and cried even more on his stilled chest.
The bloodstain on his neck didn't make the healed throat visible to eyes especially in such a dark environment.
—————
(His plot armor negate Qrow's Semblance.)
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