Shattered Pieces
Chapter XXI
"Are all the preparations complete?" Yami asked Kankurou back at the metalshop that his two engineers ran. Things were running a little last minute, but he was certain that everything would come together nicely. The Bear Faunus nodded his head as he flipped a switch. The blonde looked at the contraption that he had Kankurou working on the last few weeks and smiled.
It began to hover, a near silent hum emanating and echoing the empty area they occupied. Black and spherical, there was little to look at on the exterior, until it began to rotate along the horizontal axis, the northern hemisphere moving clockwise while the southern went counter-clockwise. With the slight hiss of mechanical parts releasing air, the sphere - which was about twice the size of a mature and ripe watermelon - began to extend. As it did so, an audible buzzing could be heard in the nearly soundless expanse the warehouse was in. "The Habitat for Insectoid Viewing Extremities is fully operational, as are the Wandering Apparatus of Shared Perception."
"HIVE and WASP, huh?" Yami wondered as the HIVE fully opened and hundreds… definitely more than a thousand, small, wasp-like and robotic things began to buzz around. "And these things can do everything you said, right? How much time did it take to reverse engineer that Atlas tech, anyways?"
"Of course they can do everything I said, Yami! I'm not that lazy deer that my sister is so infatuated with, you know! All of them can record up to 24 hours of surveillance without even needing to upload it into the main storage server where it would be located, are intelligent enough to evade assault and capture, come with self-destruct sequences powerful enough to simulate a small fragmentation grenade, have cameras that record in the highest quality you can possibly get and a visual range of over 200 meters. Everything they get is transmitted right to the HIVE and a few terminals in Mountain Glenn that I've already set up so long as they're within 25 kilometers, and I'll get that increased as soon as you get me the right equipment and I can head out to our vassal villages to get the infrastructure ready. These WASPs of mine will enable us to see anything and everything that happens. True, they aren't nearly as reliable as Haku, but he can only be in one place at a time."
"Well, you'll get your test run right here and right now. Send them out, keep and eye on the north, south, east and west walls with them. I'll have a few others down at City Hall to help you, including Shikamaru and Sasori. I need you two there if anything happens that requires repair, he'll coordinate everything and there will be some others there to monitor the different vantage points. If this turns out as well as you think they will, you'll have the funding you need to increase the scale and effectiveness of your HIVE." Kankurou nodded and headed out the warehouse doors, off to City Hall. "Haku, I need Sasori, Shikamaru, Yuukimaru, Rin, Hana, Karin and Utakata at City Hall. Let them know Kankurou will explain what needs to happen and that Shikamaru will be in charge of orchestrating the operation." Haku appeared out of the reflective and polished steel wall of the warehouse nearest Yami.
"Of course, Lord Yami. Where should I be during the assault?" He wondered. Yami thought for a moment before giving his answer.
"I'd like you to give Zabuza, Kisame and Suigetsu support on the east wall. The four of you are used to working as a squad by this point. I want you to use everything you've learned during the training with them to the best of your ability in these coming battles." Haku nodded his head and walked back into the wall, disappearing again.
"Where… will we be?" Neo wondered as she looked at Yami. Kimimaro had since been ordered to the west wall, while Zabuza was - as Yami stated before - on the east wall. Yami's eyes faded as blue shone once again. Neo couldn't help but smile as they did. She loved those deep blue eyes of his. They were like the ocean… vast and infinite, ever-present and something that could easily envelop you if you weren't careful. They matched his Aura so beautifully.
"We're going to be on the southern front, for now. If anyone needs assistance, though, we must be ready to go and aid them. I have the most power and I'm the leader. I have a responsibility to help whosoever requires it the most." Neo nodded in understanding and followed after her lover, gently caressing her parasol.
Anything you need, my love, I will ensure it is done. Anything you desire, you shall have it. Any obstacle… shall be obliterated. You should've just left us be, cowardly king. You should have given my love the crown, the throne and all of your land. Now… now you will perish in the most painful and embarrassing way possible. He will have everything, starting with this city. I won't rest until he gets the entire world though. Neo's grin seemed absolutely mad as the thoughts circled through her head, but Naruto didn't pay it any mind since he was used to that expression on her face. He was even beginning to think it was cute, in its own way. Neo was pushed from her thoughts when the blonde took her hand into his own, which immediately calmed her. He smiled to her before speaking. "Soon, Neo. Soon, we'll have our home and then no one will bother us. Maybe I can even invite Blake over here and introduce you two properly? I think if I could get Blake and Adam here… and then I can have the three most important people in my life all get along, then I would be truly happy. We just need to make sure we have somewhere safe they can visit."
[Mountain Glenn - Southern Wall]
As Naruto and Neo arrived at the Southern Wall, the blonde noted Jiroubo was watching the ground below. "Where are the others?" He wondered. The larger teen looked back and bowed his head to Naruto before he responded.
"It is unlikely for another attack to come so quickly, so I am keeping watch while Roman and Mercury are in the tower. Baki has some of his men along the walls as well, but it's just us three over here." Based on the disapproving look in Naruto's blue eyes, Jiroubo connected a few dots. "Is there another assault coming?" He wondered.
"Haku confirmed that the King is planning to launch a four-point charge on our walls as he thinks we only have three individuals with Semblances under our employ. The North, East, South and West walls will be attacked soon, though we don't have an exact time frame." The boy sighed. "I had heard the King was quite cowardly, but I think he also might be an idiot. For now, we must remain vigilant."
"Of course, Lord Naruto." Jiroubo acknowledged. "Do you have any orders?" As Naruto was prepared to answer, the artillery on the wall caught his eye. Rethinking his response, Kurama came out with a devilish grin.
"Man the artillery, Jiroubo." Red receded as purple shone through. "On my signal, you're going to shell the camps. I simply need some time to clear out Hidan's group and contact the other Guardians. If they won't lead the assault… we'll kill them all before they can." Looking at the heavy artillery in his possession, Jiroubo nodded.
"I shall bring those two out and have them keep lookout then." He mentioned as he headed into the tower.
Naruto took control again and began walking along the wall. "Let's go, Neo. There's more to be done before the King rushes our defenses." The parasol-wielding Queen of Mountain Glenn nodded and followed after him. He was showing such authority that she wouldn't have missed whatever he was planning for the world.
[Northeast Velian Camp - King Alexander's Tent]
The King of all of Vale couldn't help but smile as his nervousness had slowly waned since giving his orders to Sir Argent. Things would start going better, he could just feel it! There was a… minor setback but if his vassals would only listen to him then things would go well and he'd subjugate these unruly Faunus.
That was about the time that Remnant began shaking.
Almost immediately upon the first rocking and concussions, Alexander found himself yelping and hiding under the table he had previously been sitting at. At first, it was only one tremor, but then the next came second later. Then the next. Again. Again. Again. It kept going until the shaking was nearly constant.
"My liege, we must leave!" The voice of Sir Argent cut through Alexander's fear as he appeared and helped him from underneath the table. "The rebels are bombarding us with some sort of artillery. For now, it's aimed at the eastern camp, the one Beryl was stationed at and preparing for her charge. I fear that she is likely dead, seeing as we can feel the quaking from here. Again, we must leave. Those raiders who have been harassing us must have been scouting the territory for Uzumaki so they could do this."
Alexander nodded quickly, fearfully, as he was led out of the tent. Getting on his steed, Argent doing the same, they quickly made their way from the camp. If only the terrain wasn't so terrible that they had to uses horses. He'd feel a lot safer in one of the other vehicles. The other nobles with him and the footsoldiers were also scattering. "We will need to regroup farther away." Argent explained. "For now, the further we are, the less likely we are to suffer high casualties from their assault. I hope the other camps are doing the same."
He didn't say anything, but King Alexander was fine running away from the explosions. As the duo rode further into the forest, he couldn't help but notice how much cooler it was getting as they continued. Was that… snow in the trees?
"Hold, my liege." Argent commented as he pulled his horse to a halt, Alexander doing the same. "Show yourself!" The King and the noble looked around the canopy and the floor for any signs of movement, but were surprised as a lake they had stopped adjacent to froze over and a figure emerged from its surface. Cloaked in teal clothing that looked to be from the Mistralian Orient and masked, the figure regarded them.
"Lord Uzumaki instructed me to guard the Wall, but after hearing his plan, I knew this was an opportunity we could not miss. After all, if you remove the head, a snake simply writhes around aimlessly." The figure spoke coldly, clinically as it threatened the Sovereign Ruler of Vale.
"You are one of those Pretenders then." Argent noted as he unmounted and pulled his sword from its place on his belt. "I shall not allow any man, woman or child to harm any descendant of our Glorious King Augustus." The figure looked upon Argent as a light blue Aura enveloped its hand before needles that appeared to be made of ice appeared in between the fingers of its clenched fist.
"I did not wish to kill more than necessary, but if you would throw your life away for this coward, then it cannot be helped." Argent, despite his armor, managed to evade the needles that came his way and rushed the figure.
"Away with you, my liege! I shall hold him off! You must go though! If you are lost, Vale is lost!" Only giving Argent a look for a moment, the King prodded his mount to gallop away even as Argent and the figure were locked in combat. For every swing and thrust he sent, the figure evaded it neatly.
The figure stopped defending, however, and placed Argent on the defensive quickly. Aura consumed its form and seeped into the frozen lake as large spikes of ice attempted to pierce through his armor. Argent's kite shield would not even stop those, and so all he could do was keep himself balanced on the ice with Aura and evade the spellwork as best as he could. Searching for an opening, any opening, he braced himself and jumped forward, barely evading a spike that could've ended him had he been any slower. Shield thrown away, he held his sword in both hands. The figure had not strayed from its original position, and Argent would make it pay for that mistake.
Just as Argent was about to attack him, a large and rectangular construct of ice appeared in between them, blocking his attack. The figure then appeared within the object before said object began to clone itself in a circle around Argent. Some of those then copied themselves and formed a layer of floating… mirrors above them. One last mirror appeared horizontally above them, creating a dome around the knight. "This is my ultimate technique, my unblockable attack. I'm sure, by this time, Hidan has gotten ahold of the King. Your sacrifice was for nothing, Sir Knight." The figure explained as it was visible in all of the mirrors. Argent looked around, trying to discern whether the figure really had copied itself or if the entire thing was an illusion.
"I am not finished yet, you Spectre!" He declared even as he molded his own Aura. "I will not allow disrespectful rebels and terrorists to take what King Augustus worked so hard to achieve!" Argent glowed with his own, silver, Aura as he spoke. His armor began to glow along with it brightly, so brightly it was blinding. When the glow died down, Argent seemed to match his name as his skin was now a silvery color and his armor was gone. With a grunt, he slammed his now silver fist into the nearest mirror and the figure seemed shocked when it shattered. It kept the dome up, but disappeared from the reflections.
Argent left the dome and noted that the figure was standing atop the horizontal mirror and looking down at him. Once again, it tried creating the spikes of ice from the ground, but Argent stood still this time. When the spike tried to pierce him, it didn't even leave a scratch on his new, gleaming form. Argent looked at the figure, a neutral expression in place before ripping the spike out of the ground and throwing it at the figure. Before it could hit, the masked entity disappeared into the mirror and the mirrors themselves disappeared. Argent reverted back to his normal form, got back on his horse and began the search for his liege.
[With King Alexander]
While Argent was keeping the masked figure busy, the King did his best to get as far away from the battle as he possibly could. He was so focused on what was in front of him on eye level, however, that he didn't notice the tripwire right in the horse's path. With a loud cry of pain, it fell and crushed one of his legs beneath its large frame. His own cry of pain quickly followed as the bone snapped. With some trouble, he pulled himself out from underneath the steed, noting that its own legs were bleeding profusely from the thin wire it had cut itself on at high speed.
"Oooh? What do we have here?" Hidan wondered as he found the source of the scream he'd heard. "You wouldn't happen to be the one who challenged Lord Uzumaki's Divine Right, would you?" Alexander looked at the giant of a man who wore black robes, slicked back, silver hair and wielded a large, tri-bladed scythe as if he was death itself. "It's been some time since I've had the chance to sacrifice such nobility, and never have I been able to do so to Lord Uzumaki."
"S-stay away from me!" Alexander pleaded as he tried to crawl away; Hidan moved ever closer, scythe in hand. Stepping on the King's back he slid his weapon in place, with the King's neck between the first and second blade on his weapon.
"In the name of the Almighty, for he who Takes Pain and Gives Life, Blessed be thy Name. Send unto us all of your Good Will, Give unto Us all that you are willing and Take from us that which we cannot Bear, though allow us the privilege of Journeying with what Burdens we can take. Hallowed is Your Name, Lord Uzumaki, God of all Life. Hallowed is your Will, Lord Uzumaki. Hallowed is your Rule, Lord Uzumaki. In Your Name, By Your Will, Under Your Rule, I offer this infidel to you and may his Blood please you and empower you. Amen!" At the last word, Hidan ripped his weapon back, permanently severing the head of the Last King of Vale.
Grinning madly, Hidan held his scythe like a clergy's scepter, with his arms spread wide. "Flee, non-believers, heathens, heretics! Your King is no more and shall be no more! Only Lord Uzumaki is fit to Rule and only He shall! Lament your Salvation! Be thankful in your Ruin! The World that which was Broken shall be made whole again, for He is the Exalted, the Chosen and the Most Holy!"
That was when Argent arrived just in time to see his liege decapitated and a lunatic spouting some religious nonsense about the Pretender King. His calm demeanor disappeared as the King's rolling head stopped when it touched his boot. Looking down at it, he could still see the look of absolute terror in those fading eyes even when they blinked at him. "My liege…" Argent began seeing red as he laid his eyes on Hidan, his Semblance activating instantly as he was covered in that armor once again. Rushing forward with a guttural and bloodthirsty scream, he caught Hidan off-guard and slammed his fist into the man, launching him through several trees as they snapped in half from the force.
Finally the man only dented the last tree he hit. Argent felt himself calm a little as he saw what he thought to be Hidan's mangled corpse. That was, of course, until the bones that protruded from his body began to re-align themselves and forced themselves back inside Hidan's body. Bruises disappeared in the blink of an eye as Hidan stood, a mad look in his eyes. "That… fucking hurt. I think I'm going to enjoy putting down another heathen." Hidan remarked as he held out a hand, which began glowing purple with Gravity Dust, and pulled his scythe back to his hand.
"What… are you?" Argent had to ask as Hidan rolled his neck, a neck which had been broken just a moment ago. Hidan grinned at the question.
"I am Hidan, the High Priest of the Temple of the Healer. I interpret the words of the God of Life, write them down and teach sermons to our members. I am the direct link between the Great and Merciful Lord Uzumaki and the common people. He showed me the Light and led me away from my heretical beliefs, to find the One True Faith. It is also the job of the High Priest to hunt down heretics and heathens and convert them… by the Word or by the Blade. I think the latter will be sufficient for you."
Argent braced himself as the zealot rushed forward. When Hidan didn't attack with the blade, but with the end of the handle, it certainly did surprise the knight. Seeing it didn't do anything, Hidan's eyes seemed to grow wilder. "I had thought it was something like that. I fought someone before with the ability to harden their skin a few decades ago, but I know how to beat you." Leaning his scythe against a tree, his entire robe glowed with that purple from the Gravity Dust. "I'll just have to literally beat you!"
Argent grimaced, knowing how dangerous Gravity Dust was in close proximity. Glancing at his liege, he couldn't back down though. Someone this insane couldn't be allowed to live! "Pay attention, heathen!" Argent was brought back to the present as Hidan had taken the moment of distraction he had to close the gap. Powered by the force of gravity, Hidan's punch launched Argent through three trees before he hit the ground, rolled a bit and then stopped with a groan. "Huh, that stuff is tougher than I thought. It doesn't really matter though, I'll tear you apart no matter how long it takes! I've got a literal eternity!"
Argent had barely regained his feet when Hidan was upon him again. He tried blocking the next blow, but Hidan merely kicked him through more trees when he connected. This time, he didn't even recover before Hidan stomped onto his back, channeling enough Gravity Dust to begin denting his metallic flesh. Argent couldn't even talk as he was first coughing, and then vomiting, blood. After that, he began choking on his own saliva and blood. Hidan removed his foot, grinning as the knight had let go of his Semblance and was currently bleeding internally, but still alive. "You're not allowed to die yet. That ability of yours will be useful, so I'm going to take you to Lord Uzumaki. Haku! Get the King's corpse." The masked figure from before jumped from the branches of one of the trees and silently did as instructed. With a grin, Hidan picked up Argent, armor and all, and set him over one shoulder as he walked back to Mountain Glenn, picking up his scythe on the way. Without the King or - even if Hidan didn't know it - his second-in-command, Vale's forces would be in chaos and soon, too, would be the government. This was just the beginning of the end for the once proud strongest of the Four Kingdoms.