As the two teams exited the flight of stairs, they arrived on a ledge that had been transformed into a courtyard for the former royal palace just beyond. There lay Cinder, Last Queen of Mantle There lay victory. But even now with victory so close at hand, the seven could not find it in themselves to advance just yet. They could hear it below them and hesitantly, Ruby Rose approached the banister that lay just beyond them.
"Wait, Ruby-" Yang stepped out to stop the girl until she felt Raven's hand settle on her shoulder. An arm across her back then as her mother came alongside her, pulling her forward. Taiyang and Qrow beside her, Blake and Weiss trailing from behind, they walked toward where the young Rose had halted. The stench that assaulted them would forever burn the scene into their minds. Physics bent and broke below them as Semblance and Aura washed back and forth across the battlefield, itself a constant ebb and flow as the lines of battle clashed and intermingled. The staccato of dust bullets and the dull clangs of metal against metal were a never-ending assault on their ears. Every few seconds a scream or yell would wind its way up from below the valley.
They watched as flags of the three allied kingdoms advanced alongside the banners of the redeemed White Fang under their old emblem; the Free Atlesian Forces under Winter assault the lines of Mantle troops, robotic and living alike Menagerie's corp covering their flank. In the distance, Pyrrha and the rest of JNPR covering the retreat of the wounded. Their enemy giving them a wide berth. In the skies above, dueling fleets fought to win dominance. The fire ravaged body of a cruiser wearing Alliance colors groaned in the background collapsed under its own weight. Its corpse falling upon those below and a wave of dust and dirt washing over the combatants. Explosions falling among the warring armies as fighters strafed and were chased in turn.
And somewhere in the not far enough way distance, a horde of Grimm would soon be on their way. Just as in the fall of Vale. The loss and anger and fear and hopelessness... Just when would that damn break? When would that horde descend into this madness?
"Beautiful, isn't it?" The call fell upon them from on high. It was more than enough to draw their attention away from the carnage below. After all, they'd been desperately wanting to turn away from it the entire time. The assembled group just... Couldn't look away. Blake, somewhat thanked the woman for drawing their attention away from it, although she would never admit it. Explosions rocked the balcony above them, dust particles reflecting in the light as they fell upon the courtyard below. Beside her, Yang's arm remained outstretched Ember Celica still smoking from the barrel. Further down the line, Ruby and Qrow had their weapons outstretched as well. The same furious countenance on their face as the young blonde.
Of course it did no good. The parasol fell back from the banister and upon Neo's shoulder as she stood before her Queen, her lithe body walking along the structure until she sat just to the front and side of the ruler and sat down. The same infuriating smirk and confidence in her eyes as always. Cinder herself still looked down upon them, unabashed. The calm look of superiority upon her features a stark contrast to the rage they had witnessed in their last confrontation. "Hello again teams RWBY and STRQ! I see that you've come to watch the final battle with me." She strode forward and clasped the railing, "I must admit, I was hoping you would be here in my moment of triumph." She smiled.
That was it, they could take no more! The rage burning inside them had to be released! This infuriating, horrible woman! The cause of so much strife and death that had clouded their lives stood before them! Why wait now? STRQ had already over taken all of RWBY besides Ruby herself and the four had already made it half way across the courtyard, WBY a few paces behind to provide support. And then it fell upon them like a cloak. That despair. It washed over their skin like rain and filled their lungs as easily air itself. It permeated the very ground and wound it's into their hearts. Even the din of battle below them began to sound as if in a far off distance as their minds retreated inside to shelter.
Team STRQ knew this feeling well. It reminded them of old Grimm, ancient Grimm that they had battled in the past: herds of Goliath stampeding towards weakened settlements and phantom towns that grown up in the wilderness; a sky blackened by Nevermores, Deathstalkers that had taken refuge under the sands of Vacuo and fed on the passing caravans and devoured whole trains. Team RWBY had had peripheral experience with these things. Never bearing the full brunt of such a beast's hate, anger, and sheer sense of... Void. Grimm that powerful... Their very presence seemed to swallow all the happiness around them. The dark feelings inside them seemed to exude form their bodies and wash all the world around them devoid of color. Invariably, things died when they approached and the world grew even emptier. So is it so strange that beasts like that had that same lacking of presence that might itself so broken and bent? So even as Cinder on the balcony above them, looking so ever delighted now team STRQ now stood before younger team as their shield. What the hell had Cinder prepared?!
"Yes." That smile resting on that face, so beautiful and pleasant even on one such as her shone with unconcealed joy as she witnessed the predicament she had subjected them too. "I had ever so hoped it would be you all." The words drifted on the wind, Neo the only one to hear them.
A clacking sound echoed out of the entrance before the septet. The balcony Cinder stood on, rested above a row of arches. Behind them, the natural entrance of a cave had been carved with delicate precision to become a normal roof. A few yards behind the arches, the open air room wrapped in until a single hall way led further into the mountain and inevitably up to the citadel of the sprawling complex. This is where the sound rose from and drew ever closer. "Grimm sure as fuck, don't make that sound." Qrow ground out through gritted teeth. Taiyang and Raven remained focused on the entrance, ready to throw themselves at it to buy the girls time to be escorted out by Qrow if need be. "Team RWBY!" He snarled turning to the shocked girls, who finally graced him with their attention. "Snap out of it! Be ready to provide team STRQ with fire support if necessary. We will keep whatever the hell is coming off of you all. I promise. Otherwise, you will engage Cinder and Neo as ordered. Understand?"
Staring into her uncle's eyes, Ruby found it in herself to nod. The smirk she received in return shoring up her flagging spirits. She turned to Yang, who was now staring at her. For once, she could hesitation and more than a little fear in her older sister's face. The last time she had seen that... Memories unbidden tried to make their way to the forefront of her mind, but she pushed them back. But not before an unbidden image of a broken Blake crossed her mind. A phantom pain racing up her arm and torso. She fought the urge to reach out and touch the scars under her clothes and instead turned about to bring Blake and Weiss into the view. All three looking to her for guidance. "You heard Qrow," her voice far steadier than she thought it would be. Far steadier than she herself felt. "Be ready to move as ordered on my command." She gave no room for any fear to creep back into her face as she turned back, catching just the quickest glimpse of the trio nodding. Authority found itself truly appearing at the most unfortunate times. Her uncle's scythe fell into the earth with a clang. Ruby's head shot back to the entrance, Crescent Rose coming up her arms ready to move. Her hand immediately cycled a round into the chamber and she tilted her body forward. And her breath hitched in her throat.
Weiss too had brought Myrtenaster up into guard the moment she had heard the great scythe go limp in its master's hand. The enemy had finally exited the hallway, boots clacking down onto the marble floor as they finally, calmly approached. Where was the command?! Then she heard Ruby, and finally took her eyes away from the enemy before them to glance to her side. What? Disquiet made itself known deep inside her as she glanced again at the older team and her younger leader. They stood there as if riveted to the floor. Taiyang's arms had fallen to his sides, a slight trembling had made itself known on the man. She could see him shaking and that feeling of fear began to grow again. She could see his eyes had widened, his mouth slightly agape. Trembling. Qrow, none the better. The man was completely in shock. His eyes were trained on the figure still approaching them. What the hell are we supposed to do?! She raged in her mind. She couldn't see Ruby's face any longer, but she could see the way Crescent Rose had gone almost limp in the girl's hands. Something that never happened.
She could see Raven though and the look of shear anger that radiated from the woman's face took her aback. Her katana was gripped tight in her hand, and the shaking was from something she guessed was far removed from the case afflicting Taiyang. Her normally red eyes had grown sharper, the scarlet more pronounced. Almost glowing. Just what the hell is going on? Weiss looked forward again to the enemy. Her observations had taken mere seconds, so the figure, No. It's a... Woman. Had not gotten too much closer. Heeled boots became legs, even as those rose up and became hidden under the long cloak that billowed about the figure. Black lining made itself known on the reverse as the white flowed about in the wind. The face still hidden. So why?! The panic building in a Weiss until it became a fever pitch.
"Yang? Yang! Come on!" That was it for Weiss as she now turned back to her remaining team mates, fear no longer hidden where she had buried it. She could only watch as a panicking Blake had taken hold of Yang's hand and was tightly gripping it as she gently shook the blonde's shoulder. But Yang... Weiss' heart hurt at the sight. Red eyes no more, the young woman's purple eyes now brimmed with tears even as the streamed down her face.
"No. No, no, no, no, no... Noooo," Weiss' stomach dropped as she finally heard the words escaping Yang's mouth. The wail at the end, almost causing her physical pain. The girl was wide eyed, her head shaking slowly back and forth as if she no longer knew what to do. The clacking stopped and Weiss saw Blake look up even as she herself turned now. Her eyes catching just the trace outline of wet stone just before Ruby and she knew the young girl before her had to be in the same state as her sister. But what hurt Weiss just as much was the feeling now surrounding her. Oh no, the dread feeling of despair, of unbidden might had not gone away. She had only been able to push it away. But now, looking at the company around her, it had settled about her like a thick molasses. Merely standing there was draining her as the enemy stood only a few meters away. Her brain hurt as she looked upon it, wondering how she could feel no presence at all as the figure stood there as if this was an everyday occurrence. She could feel her aura quake and shiver, her soul ache. Then she heard Yang and she could have sworn her heart stopped.
"Mom?" Raven did not turn. No. She knew better than that. The reason why she didn't turn hurt her more than she would ever admit. It pained her heart and laid bare once more before her all the pain she had caused her daughter for almost two full decades now. No. She would never admit it. Not in front of this person. It was all she could do to not cry. Yang wasn't talking to her.
Blake could only watch as two hands rose up from under the cloak and took a gentle grasp of the hood adorning it, and pulled it back until it rested on the back of the woman before her. All four of her ears could hear Weiss gasp and Raven's teeth grind. She herself could only look on in shock. Dark, almost jet black hair like her cascaded down the head of the woman before giving way to the darkest red highlights at the tips. Just below that, silver eyes flashed in a happy way that she had grown very accustomed to the past few years. It was like looking at a mirror image...
Blake watched as the woman readied herself. She could barely believe it. She scanned her eyes across the courtyard and found Raven to only truly be the one ready to fight. To be honest, she didn't know if she herself or Weiss even could at this point. Her eyes sought out Cinder and Neo, still ensconced on the balcony above. Perfectly content to just sit and watch this all play out it seemed. Motion caught her eye as she swung her head back to the ones before her. A wind has risen unbidden from the valley below where the war still raged. On its wings, the stench of death spread across the courtyard. Ruby's cloak pressed against her unnoticed, but the enemy's cloak spread back and billowed like wings. The gentle smile across her face brought to mind an image of an angel. The Angel of Death, was all Blake's mind could process between the sense of horror spreading from this woman and smell filling her nose. A Red Reaper and an Angel of Death, huh? A part of her mind wondered.
A hand reached back and absentmindedly brought a ponytail to rest on the woman's shoulder. There was warmth in those silver eyes as she scanned the party before her. A giddiness was in her heart as it ached with love ready to be expressed. Confidence was in her stance as she brought her arms down along her sides and clenched her fists in readiness. Finally, all her years of labor and trials would come to fruition today! Finally, it would be worth all of the sacrifices!
Summer Rose had descended to the battlefield.