"Flaming Talon!"
Marco threw his talons forwards, deflected with a swift swing from Smoothie.
"Thundering Beak!"
Marco surged forward, his beak colliding with Smoothie's Haki-infused blade.
"Pale Flame of Transmigration!"
Marco spiraled around Smoothie, gathering a gust strong enough to toss her into the air. Smoothie looked up to find Marco diving at her straight from the sky, an attack she just barely deflected by imbuing her leg with Haki.
Their attacks sent shockwaves erupting across the street, shattering windows and emptying stalls. Dust clouds riddled the area, creating a nightmarish scene for street cleaners alike.
"You made up those attacks just now." Smoothie accused.
"Maybe. Who knows." Marco appeared nonchalant about it. "Don't lie to me and say your crew doesn't do that."
"...Touche." She knew one sibling who was more guilty than the rest. "Are we finishing this fight or what?"
Marco obliged and rushed at her with his talons outstretched. Smoothie charged as a black form overtook her sword. Two inches before they collided, they heard a strange whistling noise above them.
Marco pulled back and shielded himself with his wings as a barrage of missiles rained down upon them, wincing slightly as they exploded against his body. He forced his eyes shut at the sheer amount of dust kicked up from the onslaught. He felt flames dance across his body, already repairing the damage.
"Cease and desist, or we will open fire!" a voice echoed from above. Marco ignored the voice, and instead flared his Observation Haki in search for his opponent. Nothing. She must have legged it when they fired, ironic for someone of her stature.
Guess there was nothing else to do here.
With another flap of his wings, he dove through the streets, using the dust clouds and buildings as cover. By the time they had all dissipated, Marco the Phoenix was long gone.
"Downtown Vale is currently in shambles, however, it seems for the most part that the destruction has come to a stop. The two combatants have vanished from the scene, although footage has been caught of the blue phoenix fleeing. If anything, it's proof that the rumors of a phoenix combating Grimm across the region are all true. Currently, workers are trying their best to put an ease to the panic, and clean up what's left of-" The transmission cut short, leaving Ozpin and his cohorts with the Council of Vale.
"You realize what this means, correct?" a stern voice echoed from the Council's numerous shadows.
Ozpin cleared his throat. "I do not, I'm afraid. Please elaborate, if you would."
"This is the second time Vale's defenses have been breached. The people are in a panic, and the Schnee Corporation is condemning Vale for failing to protect one of their largest cargo ships! We have tried to save face by having Ironwood bolster the defenses for the Vytal Festival, but it would appear that would be in vain." Ironwood looked at the floor briefly, before regaining his posture. No doubt his pride had taken a blow as well. "There is little data on these two culprits, but it is clear that the power they have displayed is far beyond that of regular huntsmen."
"Forgive me for asking, but what is it you're suggesting?" A hint of concern laced his tone.
"This is the first time a human has conveyed such power. How this woman attained such power is currently unknown, but we believe it's best to identify that source. The first step is to capture and interrogate her." another Council member explained.
Ozpin's grip on his cane tightened. He was afraid something like this might happen.
"And the phoenix?" he asked.
"Atlas' military forces have shown great interest in capturing it and studying it. Its origin is clearly different from the Grimm. For now, Ironwood will be leading the front on that operation."
Ironwood's eyes widened. "Sir, with all due respect I-"
"Ironwood." His voice turned cold. "We have entrusted you with the security for the Vytal Festival, but that was clearly a mistake on our part. If you want to save face, we suggest you proceed in this operation without notice. You will be receiving instructions on how to proceed shortly." Ironwood didn't say anything. Instead, he just nodded.
"Is there anything else you would like to add?" asked Ozpin. This situation was certainly precarious, but not unfixable.
"No. That is all. Do stay updated on the media coverage, however, the entirety of Vale is already in an uproar regarding this incident." And with that, the transmission ended.
A few seconds later, the elevator door opened, revealing a relaxed Marco.
"Yo, Ozpin." He strolled in with head resting on his palms. He stopped when he noticed the looks his friends were giving him. "Did I miss something?"
"Aside from the fact that you're a wanted man- bird rather, you didn't really miss much." Qrow took perhaps the umpteenth swig from his flask. Marco wracked his head, but recognizations soon took form.
"Oh hey, aren't you that guy who was eavesdropping on our conversation?" he pointed out.
Qrow froze mid-drink. "Well, guess you're sharper than you look. For a pineapple."
Marco's vein throbbed. He angrily stomped towards the offender. "I'm not a fucking pineapple you piece of-"
"Ahem." They both turned towards Glynda. Qrow was struggling to hold in his laughter, while Marco's face was still stuck in a scowl.
They both, however, took a step back when she whacked her riding crop against her palm.
"Let this be known. The Vale Council is currently in a state of agitation. Downtown Vale is in shambles. We could be looking at the doorsteps of large-scale anarchy. All of this could have been avoided if you. Acted. More. Subtle." With each word she whacked her palm just a bit harder, to the point where it was turning red. Marco bent back as she leaned in towards his face.
"Alright, alright, I get it. Sheesh," he replied nonchalantly.
"Tch." Glynda strolled back towards Ozpin's desk. "If there are more of these characters who seek to cause destruction across Vale, I suggest you get your act together, Mr. Phoenix. It seems you are the only one among us capable of standing up to them."
"Who was that Smoothie gal anyway?" Qrow recalled the name from his conversation with Oz. "She's got legs for days. Not bad on the eyes either."
"She is a Yonko commander." It was Ozpin was elaborated, surprisingly enough. "A few have arrived recently, though they've remained inactive. Until now, that is."
"You seem to be quite knowledgeable on these Yonko commanders, Oz. Who are the Yonko, exactly?" inquired a stern Ironwood.
"Pirates. But not any pirates." Ozpin left his seat and walked parallel to the sea. "They are pirates loyal only to the ones who rule the distant sea like kings."
"I'm guessing you're talking about the Grand Line?" Ironwood and Glynda looked at him. "Hey, it's my job to be in the know. So if pineapple-head here is just as strong as them, what does that make him?" Ozpin rested his mug on his coaster while Marco imagined strangling Qrow.
"Also a Yonko Commander. Or, formerly, rather. It's not something to delve too deeply into." he stated. Marco eyed him gratefully. It seemed the two of them were still taking Newgate's passing hard, though in Ozpin's case he was a lot better at hiding it.
That didn't mean it wasn't painful though.
"You mean this man is a pirate!?" Ironwood's expression suddenly turned hostile.
"Yup." Marco didn't even seem remotely bothered by the accusation.
Ironwood clenched his fist. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't detain you right now."
"You can try if you want. But right now I'm hungry. Hey Oz, you still got those cream tarts? I haven't had those in years." Just thinking about them made his mouth water.
"There's probably a bunch in the kitchen. If you're fast enough you can probably get a few." Upon hearing this Marco made a mad dash towards the window and crashed straight through it, before transforming his arms into wings.
"Thanks Oz! I'll be back really fast, I promise!" Marco's voice faded, leaving them all except Ozpin to stare in shock, having just witnessed a grown man break a massive, 300,000 lien viewing glass for cream tarts.
"And they say I'm immature." Qrow slyly commented. Ironwood pinched the bridge of his nose to suppress the growing migraine drilling his head.
"If he were a student I'd give him more than a slap on the wrist, knowing he can regenerate." Glynda waved her riding crop, easily repairing the damage. Though this was substantially harder with her pounding headache. "Is this really the man who swore to protect Remnant from the Grand Line?"
"Indeed he is. Know this, he may call himself a pirate but he is far from heartless. I know he will fulfill his role as a defender."
"Oz, I don't know if you've realized this, but he took part in wiping out almost all of downtown Vale." Qrow rested his flask in front of Ozpin's mug with a resounding thud. "Even if there were no casualties, do you really think Vale can handle that kind of damage?"
"No," was his response. Qrow forgot how bluntly straightforward he could be sometimes.
"Look, the main threat right now is this Yonko. I still have no idea who that is, by the way. But we need to assess the situation if we're going to fight back. We've already got Salem to think about, you really think we can juggle this?"
"Qrow has a point, surprisingly enough," Glynda said snidely. "Marco will bolster our forces, but he can't be everywhere at once. At some point, he will have to aid in our battle against Salem. Which is why I don't appreciate how lax he is."
"It's true that I will have to inform him of Salem at some point. But don't mistake his relaxed demeanor as inconsideration." Ozpin looked outside the newly repaired window. "It is his confident and boisterous attitude that will not only suppress the Grimm but also keep his head cleat when facing his enemies. The Grimm are attracted to negativity, after all. If anything, a bit of optimism will go a long way in our battle against them."
Glynda let out a small huff. As sagely as his advice was, she couldn't help but be wary of all this. The Four Maidens were supposed to be the most powerful forces on Remnant. And now he claims that he has longtime friends capable of decimating entire districts?
"By the way, you might want to open the window," suggested Ozpin.
"Huh? Why is that?" Glynda got her answer when the window shattered again, as Marco flew inside with a bunch of cream tarts stuffed in his hands and mouth.
"Vooph. Pharry 'vout phat. (Whoops. Sorry 'bout that.)" Marco swallowed the cream tarts, most oblivious to the expressions pointed at him, Glynda's in particular.
Glynda's grip on her riding crop tightened even more. Her headache went from splitting to fracturing, something that greatly worried Ironwood and Qrow. Marco seemed to notice this only after he finished most of the cream tarts.
"No, no! Please. AHHHHHHH!" But his screams went unheard, as his body twisted and contorted in her hands. A pink liquid dripped from his squeezed body and collected in two glasses. She dropped the defecting White Fang member's body to the ground, his body shriveled up.
Smoothie picked up the glass and drank. "Would you like a drink?"
Torchwick stared at the glass in disgust. "Yeah, I think I'll pass."
Neo seemed to have no qualms with it, however, and downed the entire glass in one gulp. Torchwick tried not to retch in disgust.
Smoothie took another sip of her drink. "You can stop lurking, Adam. I assume you are here to make your payment?"
Adam appeared from the shadow of a large dust crate, with two underlings in two. In their hands was a large container, which they rested at Smoothie's feet. Rather than let her bend down, they opened it themselves. They tried to ignore the shriveled corpse lying near them.
Smoothie eyed the contents with a satisfied expression. "Yes, this will do nicely. It seems a business arrangement with the White Fang will indeed be lucrative for us."
"Uh, hello? World class criminal here?" Torchwick waved his hands around to sap some of the attention. "I hate to get left out, but there's still something that needs dealing with."
"I assume you are referring to your arrangement with Cinder?" Smoothie replied smoothly.
"Yeah, that. She's still in the dark about our little… agreement, but I doubt that'll be the case once she gets wind of your little stunt in Vale." he replied bitterly. "Such a waste of Dust. Who will steal it now, now that it's at the bottom of the sea?"
"Quiet." Adam scowled. "It's important that the Schnee Company's trade is crippled. They've never taken hits this big. Which means they'll have to react."
"Which can also be a bad thing for your organization. The Schnee Company will want to divert more resources to destroying the White Fang." Smoothie lowered her glass. "Shall I continue to offer my support?"
"That would be appreciated. The White Fang will continue to supply you in return." Adam replied. He was skeptical at first, but the so-called Smoothie had been extremely straightforward in her offer. As long as payments were made, she would take out major targets, specifically those of the Schnee Corporation. It was scary how easily she destroyed entire cargo ships with just one swing, yet she made it clear she was working for someone. Who could be so powerful as to command someone like her?
He would've been against the idea of working with a human, but he wasn't even sure she was human, the way she easily towered over them. And her power… it was disturbing, to say the least. But he couldn't say it was a Semblance or even tied to it.
Still, they made so much leeway in their goals thanks to their agreement, miles further than what that Cinder woman offered. He'd have to deal with that at some point, but not now.
"By the way, who was that bird-guy?" Torchwick wondered. "Is he someone you know?"
"Unfortunately, yes. It seems we will have unexpected opposition." Smoothie frowned. "If I am to further my goals…"
"Your next line is: 'I will have to speed things along'."
"I will have to speed things alo-" She froze, before inhaling sharply. "I hate it when you do that."
"Huh? Holy shit!" Torchwick and the others just noticed the massive man who seemingly teleported next to them. They thought there couldn't be anyone taller than their newest associate, but they were clearly wrong.
At first, they could only take note of his biker pants and cowboy boots due to his immense height. Looking up, they took in his menacing demeanor, covered mostly with a silver scarf. In his hands, he held a trident almost as tall as he was, and his jacket exposed the pink stripes on his abs, a tattoo that matched the color of his hair.
And his eyes. They glowed red.
"You want to know why I'm here," he said. "You know I was planning on coming here eventually, Sister Smoothie. Especially with the breakthroughs we've made."
"Straight to the point as usual." She sighed. It was difficult holding a conversation with someone who could see the future. "The operation is going along smoothly, brother. Assistance is appreciated but unnecessary."
"You two are related?!" exclaimed Torchwick, but he calmed down after a second of thought. "Actually, that kind of makes sense now that I think about it. You both have giraffe legs."
The man pointed at Adam. "Next you will say: 'And it would certainly be appreciated if you didn't come unannounced'."
"And it would certainly be appreci- what?!" Adam lurched back. He wanted answers, but the man turned towards his sister.
"I appreciate your efficacy, but it is not why I came here. Our network has found something of great importance in the Schnee household, and I have been tasked to retrieve it." Smoothie raised an eyebrow at this. It would have to be important if they would send someone like him to retrieve it. But what could be hiding inside the Schnee household?
"I'm not directly affiliated with the White Fang, not yet at least. I don't think infiltration is an option at the moment." she elaborated.
"Then it's a good thing I don't plan on infiltrating it." His response was clear and simple. Smoothie let out another sigh. She was afraid he would say something like that.
"Wait, what are you gonna do, exactly?" asked Torchwick, but instead the man… liquified? It got even more bizarre when the white substance reformed into a circular formation and disappeared into the hallway.
Adam blinked. "Did… he just turn into a donut and roll away?"
